Eight is Great!

My William got baptised this weekend. He was really excited to have us all get together and have a special day all about him. He still has the twinkle in his eye that says....I am up to something and it is going to be funny. I was very glad to be able to be at the baptism. I would not have missed it for the world!

I flew in on Friday night and Mom and Dad (who had driven down) picked me up at the airport. We woke up and started prepping for the big day. Amongst all of the running here and there, Chelsea took Grandma and I down to the beach for a great walk. It was a beautiful day and our Chelsea was a great tour guide.
William asked me to speak, a great honor! I decided to put the talk in the blog, so that I will have a complete history of the weekend. Feel free to steal anything you would like for future use.

You have chosen to be baptised today. When you are baptised your sins are washed away and you are clean.

Take a bottle of water, food coloring and bleach. You add a few drops of food coloring to the water and explain that the food coloring represents sins, as we are baptized (add the bleach) the sins are forgiven and we become pure once more.

When you are baptized you make a covenant with Heavenly Father.

A covenant is a two-way promise between Heavenly Father and you. These covenants are important, and there are special covenants that you will make through out your life, but Baptism is the first.

When you are baptized, you promise, or covenant, to take the name of Jesus Christ upon you, to always remember Him, and to keep His commandments.

Sometimes it is hard to always remember the Savior and we will make mistakes (add color), but even though you can't be baptised again, you can always repent. Add more bleach to show repentance.

After you are baptized, you will be confirmed a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and you will receive the gift of the holy ghost.

Before baptism, you could feel the influence of the Holy Ghost from time to time and through that influence can receive a testimony of the truth. But now, it is different - now you will receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, you have the right to the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost.

You will need some help keeping your promises to Heavenly Father (remember what the promises were? To remember Jesus Christ and to to keep the commandments). The Holy Ghost will help you keep this promise.

Hold up the empty can.

When we don’t have the gift of the Holy Ghost, we are easily crushed by temptation. Some of those temptations may be: fighting with your brother, being unkind, not listening to your mom and dad, or letting a little lie. (As each temptation is listed, crush the can in your hand.) With out the Holy Ghost, we are weak and easily crushed.

BUT

Now grab the full can.

When we have been blessed with the gift of the Holy Ghost, we are not easily crushed because the Holy Ghost strengthens us enough to resist temptations. So when you are tempted to fight with your brother, being unkind, not listening to your mom and dad, or letting a little lie.(Try crushing the can.) we are strengthened by the Holy Ghost and we make good choices. When we choose the right and obey God’s laws, we can be filled with the Holy Ghost and harder to crush.
I am very proud of your decision to get baptised today. I know that your Heavenly Father is happy with your choice too.

I have a favorite Scripture that reminds me of all of my nieces and nephews, and I want to finish with that scripture.

It is in Alma and he is talking to his son. I like this scripture because it reminds me of you and the good choices that you are making.

And now, my son, I trust that I shall have great joy in you, because of your steadiness and your faithfulness unto God; for as you have commenced in your youth to look to the Lord your God, even so I hope that you will continue in keeping his commandments; for blessed is he that endureth to the end.

You have done a great thing today, and have started down a path that will lead you back to your Heavenly Father. Like the scripture said - you have commenced in your youth to look to the Lord. Keep looking that way William, and choose to stay on the path. I promise you that it is the right thing to do, and it will bring you great joy. I love you.

The proud family.

Susan made a memory book, and at the baptism everyone took a page and wrote a message to William. Chelsea read them all to William after the party. He loved the book and every one's thoughts.
There were a ton of people at the church, and then everyone came over to the house for a great party. Susan had a ton of food, and I ate way too much. It was great to visit with their friends. We even got to meet some of Chelsea's friends and roommates from school.

My lovely Carly! Carly was babysitting all weekend, but she brought her charges to the baptism and party. She was a great little babysitter.

William took the camera and was taking pictures of the things he was excited about. He mostly took pictures of the people, but I loved this pic of the root beer.

Sam sang at the baptism, and it was beautiful. He and Grandma Ann were a big hit. And by the way, Sam is much much taller than me.

Me and my boy. We had a fun weekend. We got to stay for Sacrament meeting, and I am afraid that I have to admit that I did not help William be reverent. He makes me laugh and roll my eyes at the same time. Love you Will.

Huuuuummmmmmmmmmmmmm Baby!

So back in high school I had a fantastic English teacher who was a serious Giants fan. Back then, KGO (the local radio station that broadcast the games) had a slogan .... huuuuuuummmmmmmmmmm baby! I have distinct memories of Giants bumper stickers all over the school lockers with this huuuuuuuummmmmmm baby calling out to everyone walking down the hall.

Well today, I went to my very first Giants game. I have been to a handful of professional baseball games, but never the Giants. There is a little tug at nostalgia at having missed a game at candlestick, but after today at AT&T park there is no looking back. It is a beautiful park and we had a great time.
Mom drove down and picked me up and then we went over and got my friend Alicia and her adorable baby. It was a fantastic day in the city. Clear, sunny and warm. Here is our first view of the park.

Another one of these picks that mother hates. She does not like the wrinkles, but they are really lovely laugh lines. Mom enjoyed the game and refused to even consider leaving before the end.

The stadium sits right on the water and is a beautiful view. Occasionally I would be watching the boats and miss part of the game.

The game went to 10 innings with no score, and then with two men on base the batter hit a fly ball and it fell right between two outfielders. We won! YEAH. Games where you win are so much more fun.

Kirnen was a very good sport. He got a little upset with me when I held him, and was much happier with his mom. He had a great baseball outfit complete with hat.

OK, he did not like taking the picture either, but that was just because I was keeping him from his lunch. It was fun to hang out with Alicia and catch up. I am away so much that I don't get enough time to chat with friends. Alicia and I visit teach together, and she is a great companion.

The new stadium is downtown, so you get a great view of the bridge, and see our lovely flowers. An amazing spring day.
Thanks for coming out to play! It was so worth taken the afternoon off.

Here Comes Peter Cottontail!

Easter is one of those great holidays that is best spent with family and lots of kids. It has been several years since I have had a good old fashioned Easter complete with little kids, an egg hunt, Easter baskets, and lots and lots of family. This year was a great return to the grand traditions. I invited my neighbors and good friends to celebrate Easter weekend at Fawnhill, and my brother Craig and his family was up at Grandma and Grandpa's for Spring Break so we had a nice full house.

Hillary, Roger, Sarah, Baby Will and I drove up on Friday afternoon to meet up with those already basking in the peace and beauty that is Fawnhill. Turns out the boys had just finished giving Rilla the first bath she has had in an age and a day. Here she is getting hosed down. I was very surprised to hear that she did not run away, but notice the leach? She was nice and fluffy (and totally shedding yuck!!). Sam and William did a great service!

We decided to start with a very important tradition, pictures with the donkeys. We piled into the cars to drive up to the ditch. It is hard to explain why we drive this very short distance - especially to people that I walk with twice a week for about 2 miles up and down the San Francisco hills. But drive we do. Here is Sarah getting a carrot to feed to the famous donkeys.

Baby Will liked the ditch, donkeys, and stick races. He is just so adorable. Sorry I don't have a smiling picture, which is so very hard to believe because as Grandma Ann says, he is that baby who just sits quietly and smiles all the time!

Sarah was really not to sure of the Donkeys, but Grandma Ann did help her feed him that carrot.

Will on the other hand was the brave strong little man, and fed that donkey like a champ!

Even my Carly fed a donkey, and truth be told I fed the donkeys for the first time ever. I usually take the pictures and pretend that I am not afraid of the famous donkeys. Turns out, it is very easy to do and they don't bite your hand off.Then next step in the tradition is to walk down the ditch. I think it is one of the prettiest places in the world. It is currently lush and green and cool.

On the way down the ditch, you have to look for a stick for the stick races. I have tried all sorts, long, short, small, large, heavy, light. I never win. I think that sometimes we have cheaters on the track.

We all throw in the sticks together.

And, then you race back down the ditch watching your stick to see who is going to win. Hillary reported on her blog that I won the stick race, and as much as I would like a victory the truth is that we lost track of the sticks and the race really was a forfeit. I want the title of a stick triumph, but I want it fair and square. The next time...next time....I will be victorious!

Big William and Sam loved playing with Baby William. They could make him laugh and laugh, and they were great babysitters.

After our Easter dinner on Friday night, we decorated some eggs. We ended up with a very good bunch of colored eggs. But pay attention to what happens, but in the end I don't think I got more than 1 hard boiled egg.

We all kicked back and watched a movie Friday night, and then Grandma and Craig got up early to help out the Easter Bunny.

Saturday morning we woke up and had a great Easter Egg Hunt. Sarah, Sam, William and Carly went hunting. Carly was more of an observer as she only had one egg in her basket - the one she had colored the night before. The kids were good at helping Sarah find eggs (well William did his best but sometimes the excitement got the better of him!). They all seemed more interested in the eggs that rattled rather than the ones that might be of the non candy variety. William was running around yelling - eggs eggs I am looking for eggs - but not those - they are hard boiled and I don't pick those up! Sam and William were slyly throwing hard boiled eggs at each other or down into the forest. You see why I did not get many to eat! Little squirts. Carly and I did make up a very small plate of deviled eggs.

After the hunt, the Easter Bunny left clues all over the house which lead to the bonanza of Easter Baskets.

Carly and Sarah got matching Easter Bunny suckers.

The gang just before the Craig and Susan family had to leave. Saturday morning was lovely, but they had to get back for Easter with Grandma Jean. If we could just get Grandma Jean to come up and see us - we'd be so happy! We miss you Grandma Jean!

After we grazed at a lunch buffet of leftovers and Easter candy, we drove up to Bridgeport which is up past Grass Valley and on the way to Marysville. It used to be an important town with a covered bridge. It was a crucial part of the road connecting the foothills to the mountains, but now it is a park and historical monument. The covered bridge is still standing, and is the longest in the world - 922 feet. When we got in the car and drove through Ophir, Sarah identified all of the neighbor's animals, goats, horses, sheep. She was very good at all the animals and accompany sounds.

There are several hikes around the park which runs along the North Fork of the Yuba River. It was an amazing spring day (after a week of rain), and perfect hiking weather. We took a very mild hike with a wild flower strewn path, great views of the river, and a place to throw rocks into the stream.

Roger and Sarah threw rock after rock into the stream. Sarah could have stayed all day, but the mean grownups made her stop and hike back home.

Sarah was a great hiker - well I should say runner. She never got tired or whiney - just a little sad when we would not let her run along the cliff alone. Honestly what is the matter with grown ups!

Will also very good, do you like his hat? It was a makeshift sun bonnet but somewhat effective.

Mom - my hiking buddy.

On the back to the car Sarah ran through this field chasing butterflies. She yelled utterfly come here utterfly. She really wanted to catch one, but they did not oblige.

Saturday night Mom and Hillary and I worked on the girls camp quilts. Poor Roger was a quilt widow, but a very good sport. We got a lot of quilting done, and Hillary is on her way to becoming a quilter extraordinaire!

Sunday morning we headed off to church. Mom and Dad's ward has very few small children, so our guests were a huge hit. Sarah got compliment after compliment, and several women ohhhhed and awwwwed over Baby Will. We had a great Relief Society lesson about the Savior and adversity, and a lovely Sacrament meeting about the gifts of Easter - the life of the Savior, the atonement, and the resurrection.

After dinner Roger and Hillary amused Grandma Ann by taking the kids on a walk through the forest to the pine tree. I explained to Hillary that there is a pine tree that Mom has decided is important and famous. She drags anyone she can down to that tree.

Can you see the tree? It is in both the picture with Sarah and I and the one above it with the entire family. Look hard! By the way, despite the fact that I showered and did my hair, it appears that I did not bother to dress for Easter Sunday. I assure you I did - and can't figure out why I look like a Saturday slob in all of the Sunday pictures!

Sarah did like the forest and she liked Budda (Rilla) coming with us. She would get upset when the dog ran off, so she yelled Budda Budda. Oddly enough Rilla only came back when an adult called her. Sarah also like to run down to Mom and Dad's room and point at the dog's food and yell doggy eats doggy eats.

On the way back to the house we stopped at the swing for a few pictures. Will really liked it.

Sunday evening Hillary and Roger et al headed back to the city. I stayed the night so I could work in our Sacramento office the next day. It was such a nice relaxing weekend packed full of fun. I am telling you - kids - make the best entertainment.

Hope your Easter was full of fun.

Carly Bo Bear's Choir Trip

My Carly was in town on a choir trip this week. I got to have dinner with her and some of her friends on Thursday in Chinatown. They were a very nice group of kids and it was great to be able to visit with our Carly.
On Saturday we headed down the peninsula to see the choir sing. Grandma and Grandpa came down too, but there was a sad and bad traffic back up that made them late. I was able to video some of the song so Mom could hear a little of the performance. But we did get to visit with Carly and take some pictures and meet more of her friends. So it was a fun afternoon.

Here is the whole choir. Grandma made them all cookies, and they were so polite and all thanked her for the yummy treats.

Here is my beautiful girl. I remember when she was so little and called me Aunt Nindy.

Mom just hates it when I take these pictures. I tell her that we are cute, but she thinks it shows her wrinkles. I only hope I look like her when I am 73. (It was her birthday this week too!)

Here is our girl with Grandma and Grandpa.

After the visit, Mom and Dad came back to the city and stayed to watch conference with me. It was so fun to have them for the rest of the weekend. We worked on girls camp quilts, finished fixing Anna's dress, and quilting on Cathy's chicken quilt (which she pointed out I started in 2001!)

Conference was so great. I am still thinking about Elder Holland's talk, what incredible insights. I am looking forward to listening to the talks again - 8 hours is just too much to take in at once.