Aubrey Anna's 12th Birthday

My sweet beautiful Aubrey Anna turned 12 on Tuesday.  Back in early February when we were having lovely 60 degree weather, and unbeknownst to me, she and her friend Amaya planned a joint Birthday party which they were going to invite their entire school class to.  The plan was to have the party later in February, between both of their birthdays.  I knew the awesome weather we were having wouldn't last forever, eventually it had to be winter.  And I could not handle the entire 6th grade in my house while it was snowing outside.  So I decided to seize the day and the weather we were having at that moment.  Twenty four hours later we were having a full on party!

 I turned my back for one second and when I turned around again this was happening:

And then all out cake war broke out.  Almost a month later and I'm still finding cake smear in strange places.

 Last Sunday my mom had us over to her house for Aubrey's Family Birthday Dinner.  She made Aubrey the cake of her choice.  Actually she made her 2 of them.  One to eat then, one to take home for later.  Best Grandma ever!

Ever since she turned 11, she has been planning her 12th Birthday.  Her greatest desire?  To go on her 12th birthday to the Temple and do baptisms for her ancestors.  We told her she could choose which temple she wanted to go to.  It was a decision she took very seriously and didn't decided until just a few days before.  She chose the Logan Utah Temple.  She chose this temple because it is beautiful and also because it the the temple where her grandparents, Steve's mom and dad, were sealed.  Steve was working out of town but he drove back home for the special day.  As soon as school was out, we left for Logan.   Before we went to the temple we had a delicious dinner at a Brazilian restaurant.

 It was a special night.  As soon as the temple workers found out it was her 12th Birthday and that she chose their temple to go to, they gave her extra special treatment.  I am so thankful for Aubrey and her desire to go to the temple.  She is a special girl.  I am so grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ.  I am thankful for temples that bind families together for eternity. And I am so thankful for the effect the temple has had on our family as we have made it our focus.

Schmid Happens - Epilogue

 We had a wonderful time with Steve's family.  We are so thankful they were able to come visit us and help liven up our summer.  Steve's Dad and step mom Rhonda and his brother David stayed with us 4 more days after the Kentucky Schmids left.  In all we had visitors for 23 days!  Those days were packed full of fun and family!  Here are some pictures of the last few days of our visitors.  One night we had a storm followed by the most beautiful sunset.  The pictures don't even begin to do it justice.  We all stood on the back patio admiring the beauty.

On Monday of that week, July 14th, Aubrey and Addy started swim lessons.

That same day Zac and I were busy getting him ready for a 50 mile backpacking trip in the Wind River Mountains in Wyoming.  I dropped him off for a haircut while I was running errands.  When I picked him up I was a little shocked to see him sporting a mow-hawk!  He left at 4:30am Tuesday morning for the adventure of a life time.  He said his goodbyes to grandpa before he left.

 On Tuesday Roy, Rhonda and I spent the entire day (until 9 at night) downtown at the Family History Library.  I had never been and with my latest family history obsession I felt right at home there and can't wait to go back.

 One of the things I spent my time doing while I was there was scanning pictures, old letters and documents Roy brought with him and uploading them to the Family Search website and tagging them.  Of all the hundreds of pictures this one is probably one of my favorites.

On Wednesday Roy, Rhonda and I went to the Bountiful Temple to do sealings for family names.  We had gone previously with Steve, once to do initiatories, another time for endowments and this time we finished it up with sealings.  Unfortunately Steve had to work this day and couldn't go with us.  It was a wonderful experience in the temple.  That night my mom and Sister Lauren came over and had dinner with us.

 After dinner I went with Emily to the church for a Girls Camp slide show.  After the slide show I was chatting it up with some friends and Emily and her friend got tired of waiting for me, so they sat in the van.  With the windshield wipers on.  I'm pretty sure this is why they really need to be replaced as I just recently discovered.  FYI, that trash was placed on the dashboard by the girls sitting in the van, I don't drive around like that.  I keep my trash on the floor of my van!

And then Thursday came around and it was time to say goodbye.  We enjoyed having Roy and his family with us.  It is the most time my kids have spend around Steve's dad and I am so thankful we had this opportunity to have him in our home and get to know him better.

 Click here for all my Schmid Happens posts

19 Years and Counting

19 years ago yesterday, I made the best decision of my life when I married this man.  It wasn't long after we met (less than a week) that we knew without any doubt that we were supposed to be together for the rest of forever.  That knowledge has only been strengthened through time.  So much has happened in that last 19 years.  We have both changed so much.  I know without a doubt, it is because we have kept God first in our relationship, that our marriage is still holding strong today.  Stephen, I love you.  Thank you for loving me back!

Yesterday was our anniversary and we spent the entire day together.  It was fabulous.  We spent the first half of the day in the temple.  We decided that since we were celebrating our eternal marriage that day, we wanted to give another couple the same opportunity.  We found a husband and wife in Steve's family line and did all the ordinances in the temple for them yesterday- from baptism through sealing.  It was an awesome experience and we were able to be the witness couple to boot!  (I tried to tell Steve this was a bad angle to take a selfie from, but he wanted the temple spire in the background) (want to find out more about forever families, Mormon temples, and family history work- read to the bottom of this post)

We were dying of starvation by the time we left the temple so we went to Costa Vida for lunch.

Then we went to see a movie- Godzilla.  This is a picture I took of us in the movie.  If you could see it, what you would see is Steve having a hard time sitting through it, me sound asleep and apparently snoring, and both of us giving it a big 2 thumbs down.

After the movie we drove a little way up the canyon, found the perfect grassy shaded area, laid a blanket out and I read a book to Steve.  We read for over 3 hours.  It was absolutely lovely.  When the time came to leave, neither of us wanted to.  If it hadn't been for hunger, we would have stayed there a few hours more.  We both agreed we should have skipped the movie and spent the whole day on the blanket.

Dinner was at The Mandarin.  It was delicious.

After dinner it was time to come home to the real world.  Real World = a disastrous house, strawberry jam all over every surface of the kitchen, video gaming, a missing teenager, small children up past 10 on a school night, everything the kids ate yesterday on display on the kitchen island, and much much more!

I am so thankful for my husband.  I am so thankful that we have been sealed in the House of the Lord.  I am so thankful that our family can be together throughout the eternities.  I am so thankful we live close to a temple.  I am so thankful for the life Steve and I have built together with the help of our Heavenly Father. 

Want to know more about Mormon Temples?

We believe that family relationships continue after death.  We believe that the sealing power spoken of in Matthew  has been restored to the earth today.  Families can be together forever.  When a couple is married in the temple or a family goes to the temple together to be sealed, they are sealed together not just for this life, but for all eternity.

  “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:19).

We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to be baptized and receive other sacred ordinances, such as being sealed to their family.  Even those who did not have that opportunity in this life.  In the temple we are able to perform those ordinances on behalf of our ancestors who have passed on.  We stand in as proxy, acting for them.  It is their choice to accept those ordinances or not in the spirit world.

 "Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?"  (1 Corinthians 15:29)

We believe that the family is central to the plan of our Heavenly Father.  You can read "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" by clicking here.  Because the family is so important, because family relationships last beyond the grave, and because we have the opportunity to perform sacred ordinances for family members who have passed on, family history work is an important part of our church also.  Our church has an awesome website, available to anyone, that can help you trace your family lineage, find out more about your ancestors, and it also gives you a place to store photos and stories of your ancestors and family members.  I have been able to trace some of my family lines all the way back to Adam and Eve (for real!).  You can find that website by clicking here.

To find out more about Mormons and temples, click here.  I am also happy to answer any questions or to help you navigate your way through the Family Search website to help you build your family tree.

A Generally Awesome Weekend

I belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  We have a living prophet and apostles who give us guidance and direction from our Heavenly Father for problems and challenges that we face in our world today.  Every six months we have a General Conference where we are able to listen to the Prophet and Apostles and other church leaders and receive counsel from them.  It is a wonderful renewal of the Spirit.  It lasts for 2 days, a Saturday and a Sunday.  There are 4 general sessions each lasting 2 hours.  If you would like to watch any part of the Conference, click here.  Our family makes a big weekend out of it.  I start a week before Conference by leaving treats for the kids to find when they wake up, counting down the days until General Conference.  We spend the entire weekend together as a family listening to the messages.  Above are some of the treats the kids found last week.  Below is our treat basket we had to help us make it through the day.

This Conference we started a new tradition that we loved, and will most certainly continue.  We put pictures of the Prophet and Apostles on the wall around our TV.  Everyone had their own stack of post it notes.  When anyone heard something from a speaker that the liked, they would write it on a post it note and place it around the picture of the person speaking.

 Saturday Morning Session and breakfast

Saturday night, after the morning and afternoon sessions, there is a Priesthood Session.  This is for all male members of our church ages 12 and up (the girls and I went to the General Women's Meeting the week before.)  Steve and Zac have a tradition of attending the Priesthood Session together and then going out for dinner after.  This time they even threw in a late movie and went to see Captain America.  The girls and I stayed at home and had a girls night.  The next morning our Conference baskets were replenished and ready to go.

I usually make crepes for Sunday Conference breakfast, but I decided to try something new.  I made German Pancakes in muffin pans.  We filled them with deliciousness.  They turned out yummy.  My family, despite their German heritage, usually doesn't like German Pancakes (I know right?), but they gobbled them up this way.  I guess this is how I will be making them from now on.

Steve and Aubrey watching Conference and refusing to be photographed.

 Ha ha!  I was able to sneak a picture!

Between the morning and the afternoon session on Sunday, we followed another tradition and went for a walk on one of our favorite trails.

 My kids can't just walk over a bridge like normal people.

 OK, quick picture to get mom off our backs.

Annnnd...back to climbing....

I really love this wall and wanted to take a picture of someone in front of it.  Addy and Emily were the only ones who would stop for me.  But then I couldn't get a serious, well placed pose from either of them.  And if one of them was being serious, the other most certainly wasn't.

Back home for the final session of Conference.

It was a most fantastic weekend.  I loved spending it with my family.  I loved all the wonderful, inspiring messages that were given.  Here is a a collage my friend Britta put together of some of her favorite quotes from General Conference.  They also happen to be some of mine.

My very most favorite quote though is the one below.  Over the past year, I have developed this grand obsession with my Family's History.  I have been reading histories of my ancestors, and Steve's, and learning about their lives and the sacrifices they made so that I can be where I am today.  One thing that has really made a huge impression on me is the great sacrifices they made for what they believe.  Steve and I both come from people who gave so much and suffered so much for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Some of our ancestors even gave their very lives for their deep faith and convictions.  What an amazing legacy to pass on.  If just one of them had gone astray, I might not be where I am today.  I can't even imagine my life without my testimony of the Gospel.  I feel a huge responsibility for passing on this truly great legacy of faith to my children.  We are not required to suffer great consequences or the possible loss of our lives for what we believe.  But we are required to offer up a different kind  of sacrifice.  One of our time and efforts in order to nourish our faith and build a strong foundation.  If I don't put my all into making sure my children go out into the world with a sure foundation, generations that follow will be affected.  It makes me so thankful to the ancestors that came before us and helped to lay that foundation.  I am so thankful to those that came after them that added to that foundation until it eventually came to rest under my feet.  If I don't do may part to add to that foundation and pass it on to my children, all those who came before us and gave every fiber of their being to the building of that foundation, is lost.  That is why I so loved this talk and this quote from it:

(It was also an awesome talk because the grandfather President Eyring was referring to in this talk, who helped settle a Mormon Colony in Mexico, was friends with Steve's ancestors who also helped to settle that same colony.  A fact I made sure to pass on to my children)