Heritage Park

Last week we went with Brynn's 2nd grade class on their field trip to Heritage Park here in Oceanside. The kids received a tour from a funny old man named Sheriff Cobb, I 'm not sure if that was his alias or if that was his real name, but he was a funny guy. We were able to visit the old schoolhouse, the old jail, the blacksmith shop and the livery. As parents, we provided a western lunch of fried chicken, apples, homemade cornbread, watermelon and homemade apple pie. After lunch the kids performed a square dance and then did relay races. It was fun to get to know some of the students and parents better. I love Brynn's school and her teacher. She is a seasoned teacher and goes above and beyond with everything that she does. It has been an amazing experience for Brynn to be in her class for even these few months.

When we first met her, she thought we were a little crazy for uprooting our family in the middle of the school year, and as former school teacher, I know how hard it is to get a new student in the middle of the year, but after getting to know Brynn and what a great girl she is, she has told me over and over what a wonderful daughter we have. We have felt so many tender mercies over the last few months. We know that Heavenly Father is watching over our family.

Joseph spent half of the field trip with us too. The girls thought Joseph was so handsome and giggled at how cute he was with Brynn when he square danced with her. One little girl said, "Brynn, your dad is HOT!" Brynn came home from school and blushed a little as she told us. I am so happy to be married to him and I am so glad he takes the time to show Brynn how a girl should be treated. Someday I hope she and Abby find someone just like him!

St. George Highlight Video

When I view the video I have to make sure the HD button on the screen is turned off in order for it to play smoothly.

Thanks Uncle Stephen for making the video highlight movie of St. George. We love it!

http://www.vimeo.com/12004928

St. George (Part 2)

We spent all day on Saturday visiting and swimming in the pool. We even threw in a little birthday party for Aaron. The weather was awesome! It was a perfect day for swimming. Aaron loved his gifts and hugged them tightly to show his approval. He quickly pulled them away when Grandpa asked if they were for him and replied, "No Grandpa, you're too big, they won't fit!" The kids were literally wiped out after a full-day of swimming.

On Saturday night, Uncle Scott took us to an awesome park where we enjoyed a picnic of Cafe Rio. I told Scott that St. George would be a perfect place to live if you could just leave for the summer months. The air was dry and warm with a slight breeze, it really felt perfect.

I left St. George Sunday about 11:00 just as everyone else was heading off to church. I opted not to go, but to get on the road to beat the SoCal traffic. My plan was foiled when my mom called right as I reached Vegas. From the sound of her voice, I thought someone had died, but thank goodness it was just to tell me this, "Amy, you left your purse." Well, since I had feared the worst, my heart and stomach had already sunk and my nerves were whacked out of control, this was relieving news to hear. We made a plan to meet half-way somewhere outside of Mesquite for the hand-off. This added 2 extra hours onto our trip, but I am just glad it wasn't discovered any later and I am so grateful for my parents for coming to bring it to me. They are the best! I think Heavenly Father definitely has a sense of humor and he uses it to teach us a lesson. He must have been shaking his head witha smile saying, "Amy, you don't get ahead by skipping out on church." I learned my lesson. :)

The kids were troopers. We did hit SoCal traffic making the supposedly 7-8 hour trip closer to 10 hours , but we arrived home safe and happy. The last 30 minutes of the drive Isaac got really restless and started to cry, so Abby called Joe. He and Isaac talked and babbled and sang back and forth until we arrived home. It was amazing how much his spirits were lifted by hearing his dad's voice. I love my family and I am so grateful we were able to visit.

We've discovered another benefit to living in Southern California. It's alot easier to find an in-between spot to meet family. When you're living in Northern California, not many people live in or plan weekend trips to Elko or Battle Mountain, Nevada (if you know what I mean).

St. George

Last weekend we took a trip to St. George and met up with everyone in my family except for Chad and Jenn. Joseph was going to come with us, but then he decided last Friday afternoon to stay home to work on a report and to get a long ride in to train for some of his upcoming races. We had a great time visiting and playing and meeting the newest members of the Vest Family, Samantha Rose Vest and Stephen Vest Covey. Every one of us loved holding the tiny little bundles.

It was fun to see the natural motherly instinct in my girls and it was a special treat to watch my boys with the babies. On Saturday night, while I was holding baby Stephen, Aaron came and sat next to me and asked sweetly, "Mom, I hold baby Stephen?" He sat there with a dimply grin gazing at the baby and then looked up at me and said, "Mom, baby Stephen's cute!" Not too much later Isaac climbed up and started to stroke, then poke (yikes!) at baby TT. Both boys thought the baby was pretty cool. The boys had a reverence about them when they were next to the baby. It was amazing to see that even though they are young, they can feel how delicate a newborn is. Soon after, they were off to be there rumble tumble selves, wrestling, jumping, running and throwing everything in sight. But it was fun to get a little glimpse of the sensitive side of them.