18 months and growing...

LEVI!

Time well-spent...

I blinked, got a little busy, blinked again and WHAM! Summer is suddenly over! It is not a secret---I'm a huge advocate of long summer breaks. For me, it should be an enchanted, carefree time for kids, and myself, of course! I can't imagine it being a"boring" time or even involving days filled with rigid routine or predictable schedules. (Don't get me wrong, those lovely necessities have their place, but that's what the school year is for right?) My little people should have no reason to utter that "b" word. The world is a huge, interesting place with countless wonders to behold! Saying, "I'm bored" is unexceptable! Even my own little corner of the world is a wonderful place for exploration, adventure and enjoyment. And at this point in my life, more that ever, I yearn to capture the bliss and magic that summer brings! And I hope that some lovely moments are remembered by our kids this year, for this is truly the height of their "childhood"...

~Chasing and catching fireflies in our jammies right before bed~

~Popsicles... at least four times a day~

~Running outside for endless hours in the heat and dirt with our friends~

~Tending to the needs of baby birds who had fallen from their nests ~

~Dancing in the rain~

~Skipping through the water sprinkler~

~Sitting on the water sprinkler~

~Wearing flip flops all day, every day~

~Stopping to play at every park we see~

~Jumping into freezing swimming pools~

~Lying on hot cement after a swim~

~Ice cream and nachos at the concession stand~

~Going bare foot whenever we want~

~Staying up as late as we want~

~The diving board~

~Water slides~

~Countless giggles at countless sleepovers and countless play dates~

~Racing on hot, fast, cool bikes and thinking we rule the road~

~Getting super hot and sweaty just so we could have a water fight~

~Fountains ~

~Listening to civic bands in the park and old gentlemen crack corny jokes for the audience~

~Wading thru tall, itchy, buggy grass to jump in a creek w/our clothes and shoes on~

~Roman candles and sparklers, and firecrackers ~

~Admiring the blue, blue sky and the puffy white clouds~

~Daddy's awesome grilled teriyaki chicken wings~

~Shorts ~

~Shade~

~Swimming suits~

~"Muscle" shirts~

~Nauvoo~

~Weeks of "kid swapping" with cousins~

~Watching cicadas crawl out of their shells~

~Loving the feeling~

It's what it is all about.

These cherished moments didn't take a lot of money, just time...

...Time well-spent.

Celebrating Maddie!

Our Madelyn Grace celebrated her 7th birthday! She had been planning and anticipating her special day for several months, so you can be sure she was very pleased when the day finally arrived!!! What pure pleasure it is to celebrate this beautiful child of mine. She is a little girl that thoroughly enjoys be just that...a little girl. Even as she continues to grow, she remains blissfully engrossed in the serious work of being a child and seems to be in no hurry to grow up, and I just love that about her. She still loves to have lullabies sung to her at bedtime; she love kittens and puppies, penguins and ponies....and pink and purple. She loves to skip and jump and color pictures...and signs every one of them with, "To mom, I love you." To her, PLAYING is life, and she is in heaven when she has someone to share in that joy... from Barbies or babies to picnics or puzzles. She's all over it. She works very hard when she needs to learn something new, and she will harbor intense anxiety and will hold herself back with a fierce stubbornness when she is unsure of something. However, she just shines with strength and confidence when she overcomes and finds her groove! From the day she was born Maddie has always brought to our home a mildness and sweetness that is irreplaceable (and very much-needed!) She is our snugly buddy, and we are so privileged to have her in our family!

~7 more things we love about Maddie~

So Sweet

Cute as a bug

Thoughtful

Helpful

Love to Cook

Determined

Great Giggles

Happy 7th year Maddie-moo-Gracie-lou!

We love you to the sky!!!

Happy Father's Day

"...By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families."

(See The Family: A Proclamation to the World," Ensign, 1995, 102).

First, a little boy, then a little girl. Then surprise- --another little girl. And a long while later, one more little boy! That's how he came to be called "Daddy" around here. With each new child, and with each passing year, the daddy at our house has shown us that it takes dedication and love to make it all work. We appreciate all his hard work and devotion. His unwavering sense of duty and dedication to providing for and protecting us is obvious to all. We have been blessed and we are most thankful to know that this is only just the beginning of our ETERNAL FAMILY!

Happy Father's Day!

Hero

Roller Coaster Ride

It brings you up slowly then shoots you like a rocket towards the ground

It twists you and it shakes you before it turns you upside down

You can't see what's around the corner

And you can't look back, so just live it up and feel the rush


Life is a roller coaster ride

Time turns the wheel and love collides

Faith is believing you can close your eyes and touch the sky

So shine while you have the chance to shine

Laugh even when you want to cry

Hold on tight to what you feel inside and ride
(Performed by: Martina McBride; Songwriters: Michael Davey, Andrew Dorff, Chris Robbins)

Joe and I spent a special Saturday together at World's of Fun. All by ourselves. It WAS fun. We rode roller coaster rides together. We are good roller coaster buddies. I was reminded of this good song sung by Martina McBride, and that life IS a roller coaster ride. We find that our strengths and weaknesses work well together as we continue to learn to climb and soar, jolt and weave through the twists and turns, lurches and loops and screeching halts of our life together.

Happy 12th Wedding Anniversary to us!

In our marriage, there are some other correlations:
*We ride intentionally.
*There are moments of nervous anticipation as we climb up. But we know we ride for the thrill of it.
*We can make it fun.
*There are long waiting lines that try our patience.
*The fierce speed is liberating and we are seemingly out of control. But there are also chances to slow down and catch our breath.
*The more times we ride, the more we know what to expect, and we can sit back and enjoy the ride.
*We know what joy ultimately awaits us at the end....and what keeps us coming back for more? THE RUSH!
I made an incredible choice when I chose to marry this man. With him, it's always an adventure, and I'm hoping that an eternity is long enough to spend with him! We've come far, and have so much yet to accomplish together. He makes it easy to anticipate our future and we have so much to look forward to.
I LOVE YOU, JOSEPH WESLEY FORRED!!!!

You are my constant. My companion. My tower of strength. My love. My Rush!

You know I adore you .

Now...which way to the next RIDE?!

Rocky Mountain High?

Well, our family survived our first (long) road trip since little Levi. We DROVE to Colorado and the kids did GREAT! Yes, we were expecting the worst, and got the BEST. We went with the idea of getting a feel for the area, since Joe has forever dreamed of living in the mountains. The plan was for Joe to spend some time scoping out some Chiropractic practices. But, it was also a good opportunity to use it as a little vacation. We enjoyed every minute of our time there, in spite of two whole days of dense FOG. The funny thing about that is that we were planning to check out the town of Evergreen (a highly recommended community), and the fog was so thick we could barely see in front of our van, let alone the town! Hmmmm-had to wonder if SOMEBODY was trying to tell us something....Didn't even get to fully enjoy the mountainous scenery for a couple of days! Needless to say, we couldn't check out the town. But, the kids loved all the rock climbing, Joe was able to add two more job opportunities to his list, and I enjoyed all the compliments we received on our well-behave children! (Yep, that made me feel so successful.) It was just fun to see our kids enjoying everything we did: from shopping in old mining towns, to eating breakfast at the hotel buffets to hiking rocky mountains on foot and by van! I think they like the feeling of exploring new places together as well. So. the time we spent together was invaluable: exploring unknown roads and regions, taking in the magnificent views, taking our time and just enjoying being together on a little adventure. And just for the record: I was surprised at how "rocky" EVERYthing is out there. Our trip was back was a re-awakening to the lush beauty of spring in Kansas City!!! There is so much to be said for green grass and trees with green leaves! Humidity is a small price to pay for that, if you ask me. ANYWAY-We had a happy time while we were away, but, as always...there's no place like home!