Naomi Lives Here

Our home is blessed with our daughter's beautiful creations.

From a very early age we knew that she had an artistic flair,

and a knack for color schemes.

Our dining room table often looks like this.

She makes our place prettier,

every part of it,

and certainly has a mind for detail.

I can't wait to see what she will do with her talent. Naomi could be an artist, an interior designer or perhaps a gang member with duties as chief tagger.

Whatever she does, Naomi will leave her mark.

Cam Update

First up, calling him "Cam" is all the rage.

Cam is a member of the Bear den in his Cub Scout Pack and the lucky boy has his Grandma Shearer as one of his den leaders! Life is good for scouts, this month they participated in the annual pinewood derby. Russ and Cam made a nice car (that I failed to take a picture of.) It was black with a LEGO man driver and trust me, it looked goooood!





Last week we went to the BYU Paleontology Museum with the Bear Den. I thought is was perfect for kids his age. They gave us a 30 minute tour and admission is free!





They are sticking their heads into the jaws of a prehistoric crocodile that was the length of school bus!

Recess is the first thing he tells me about when he gets home from school. I get animated play-by-play accounts of how this happens to his clothing on a regular basis...



Cam participated in his first Hershey Track Meet this month. Third-graders from five Elementary schools gathered at the local high school to compete. Unfortunately, we missed Cam's events, the standing long-jump and the 200 meter, while picking up Savannah from preschool. However, he did well, had a great time and is already anxious to compete next year.



Perhaps you noticed the red spot just above his lip. Here's another shot taken a few days later.



This is what an airsoft gun can do to your face. He doesn't care. After his first airsoft war with a big group of kids in the neighborhood, all he can talk about is buying one of his own. I can hear echos of The Christmas Story. "You'll shoot your eye out, you'll shoot your eye out." He promised to wear goggles so we are going to give him a probationary period to prove he is responsible enough to own one. I suggested a year long probation, but he didn't like that so much.

Cam keeps plugging away with piano lessons. This month he learned how to play Ode to Joy. He might play this for the recital in June and has a month or so to polish it up.



Cam works hard at school and recently became a fan of a reading program that the school is testing out. It's called Ticket to Read and he can't wait to do his reading homework each night. We are thinking about buying subscriptions for our kids this summer. It's less expensive if you buy them in bulk. If any of you are interested in going in for a group rate please let me know. You can get a 14 day free trial here.

Blossoms!

The previous owners of our home must have loved blossoms because nearly every tree and shrub has spring blossoms. For two weeks our place feels magical!

Easter Weekend

Easter weekend began with the arrival of cousins on Friday afternoon. Elise and Jacob came to stay the night with us and Savannah went to Grandma's house for a sleepover with cousin Madeline. On Saturday morning we ate breakfast and listened to General Conference.

Around noon we gathered with relatives for an egg hunt. The forecast predicted snow in the afternoon so we met inside a seminary building.



We spent the afternoon session at home and welcomed Randy, Daryl, Tim, Jen and their kids to come watch it with us. Afterwards the men went out to eat before attending the Priesthood session and the rest of us stayed at our house.

On Sunday morning I woke up in an okay mood. The layer of snow on the ground was pretty but I just didn't feel the "happy" part of Easter. I made the mistake of reading some news and that sent me downhill. There are so many problems in the world and sometimes I let them get to me. I tried to remind myself that it was Easter and I should be celebrating Christ's victory over the grave. That wasn't so helpful, it only sparked the emotions connected to death.

Easter is the celebration of Christ's Resurrection and I felt like a doubting Thomas for being so down. I started to think about the untimely deaths of family and friends. I thought of my widowed sister, the recent passing of two angel cousins, and and a friend that lost his wife to cancer in February. I ached for them. Sometimes the Resurrection and Christ's return just can't come soon enough. I'm not much of a crier, but Sunday morning I really cried. Of course it wasn't for my own pain, but for the intense and lonely sorrow of those grieving their enormous losses.

I pulled myself together and joined Russ and the kids to watch the Sunday morning session of General Conference. I walked in during this talk by Elder Richard G. Scott. (Keep in mind that Elder Scott is a widower and that his first born son died at a young age during heart surgery and that his second child lived for only a few minutes after birth.) He spoke of things that I know, but the Spirit helped me to feel it in my heart. His message was profoundly sincere, comforting, reassuring, hopeful and uplifting.

Easter means more to me than it used to. I don't know that it will ever be as festive and light as it once was. It's now heavier - more tender and it leaves me with a sense of longing. Longing for the end of grieving caused by separation. However, it's also more personal and poignant. I know the Atonement is real and I am thankful for the miracle that is assured to each of us.