I want to shout from the rooftops!

This young man walked into the church today just having graduated from primary and left the church today a newly ordained deacon. The power of the priesthood has been given to him and he was ready. He was worthy and he makes me want to shout from the rooftops how much I love him and how proud I am of him!!!

Xander is such a fine young man. He has always been a good boy, but today, there was something special about him. A presence that cannot be described. He has been growing taller, but he has also been growing up. It's kind of a bittersweet feeling for me. I want him to be my little boy forever, but I also want him to take on the world and grow and explore and become a man. We were excited, because our good friends, The Welters, came down to be a part of this special day for our family.

I was a little disappointed that my family could not be here. It's hard having everyone live around the world. We saw everyone this summer, at the family reunion, and I always miss them terribly after that!

Yesterday, around 6pm, we got a phone call.....

Yep! My dad!

He was flying through on business and called to ask if he could spend the Thanksgiving week with us. I was so excited! It was a fun surprise and it made my day and I did get to have family with me on this important day!!!

There were so many people who came to see him ordained. We are blessed to have friends and family close to be able to share this day with Xander.

Mike and Peggy Welter. They are like surrogate grandparents to my children. Xander really wanted them to be here and they drove six hours to spend the week with us and to be a part of this day. They have known Xander since he was born and Jason's family since Jason was a little boy. Peggy used to hold Xander for me while I was in the Spanish branch and Mike was the bishop. They have loved this little boy for many years!

Steve and Kathleen Boyd. We call them Uncle Steve and Auntie Kathleen because they are so close to our family. They have known Xander since he was born and Jason since he was born also! They are college friends with Jason's parents. We love them very much!

Jason's family. Jessica, Alicia, his parents. We are so grateful they made the effort to come. It's nice to have some family close to share moments like these.

Steve and Charlotte Day. Xander's paternal grandparents.

Three generations. I am so grateful we were blessed to be able to take this picture! It means a lot to have my dad here!

Three generations of Days.

The two grandfathers.

The very proud mommy!!!

And the proud dad!

Today was a reminder of how blessed I am to have these four beautiful children. I never realized how strong the spirit could be until we were blessed with Xander, Garrett, Eleanor and Savannah.

It seems like every picture I took, Xander was so happy and filled with joy. He was gracious and kind and gave everyone a hug and thanked them for coming.

I hope he knows ho much I love him. I know he understands how important the priesthood is. We have talked about it. I am amazed at his insight and understanding. He will make a great asset to the quorum. And next week, he will pass the sacrament for the first time.

Congratulations Xander! I love you!!!

40 toes

I just want you to know how much I love these toes....and the kids attached to them. I am truly blessed to be their mom. So many things have been happening lately. I need to catch up. I need to get it all documented. But just for now, I will relive this summer memory and thank God I am blessed beyond description!

From trash to treasure.....

When I first met Jason, he was driving a Mercedes and wearing a Nordstrom suit. I, on the other hand, was driving a Volkswagon and wearing Birkenstocks. I was thrilled at the treasures you could find on the side of the road. He looked at me in horror as if I had a rare disease.

We have since come to an agreement. He tolerates most of what I bring in and has on occasion been heard to say, "Wow! I never knew you could do that with what it looked like before!" Other than a few purchases, most of what we own was found on the side of the road, given to us or nowdays, found on Craigslist.

I really wish I had a picture of this frame when I found it. We were driving to his parents house and there was an entire PILE of picture frames. I yelled, "STOP!" He kept going, insisting we were late (which we were!) and I was so bummed! I just knew someone was going to swoop down and take all my picture frames while I was having to be social with his family.

Luckily, the odds were in my favor and all 36,000 people who drove by that night had enough picture frames in their homes. On the way home, they were still there and I was soooooooo excited!

So, he pulls over...I run through traffic.....he does some kind of illegal turn.....I rummage through the frames and grab the best ones.....he pulls over...I jump in.....and he peels out like we are in a getaway car, lest someone see us!

The frames sat in the garage for several weeks. I convinced a friend to use the smaller ones for her daughters wedding, but this beauty was MINE!!!!

So, here it is before.....

And here it is as a chalkboard at the bottom of the stairs going to his studio!

You can see more of it at my creative blog: www.onecreativeday.blogspot.com

And yes, this was one time he said, "Wow! That's really cool looking!"