Life at the YMCA

I had the opportunity to escort Anson Bishop to the Y for his swimming lesson yesterday. Of course Anson was excited to go swimming, the boy is a fish. Well, the two of us walked into the dressing room and were confronted by a most unexpected site. Sitting on the bench was the largest man I had ever seen. By the look on Anson's face, I think he felt the same. I don't want to be cruel, but my heaven's, there were acres of naked flesh before our eyes. I tried not to stare. Really. I did not want that sight seared into my brain. No matter how hard I focused on the floor, the ceiling, anywhere, my eyes were drawn back to this view of, well, blubber. It was like a train wreck...you don't want to look at the carnage, but you have to. Did I mention we had the back view? Anyway, Anson continued to stare in fascination as the man hefted himself off the bench - remember, back view - to begin dressing. Anson, still staring, pointed at the man and stated in his quiet voice that, no matter how quiet, reverberated through the room "Grandpa, big bottom, big bottom, Grandpa". I made an attempt to shush him, but to no avail. Again, "Grandpa big bottom", then pointing to his own backside said "Little bottom". I was desperately trying not to laugh. The boy did make an excellent comparison. I hurriedly got Anson and his "little bottom" dressed and out to the pool. As Paul Harvey would say, "And now the rest of the story..." cannot be shared. My insurance won't cover the expense of intense counseling for the unsuspecting innocents that may read this...

This is one of my favorite photos of Arli. This was taken on her blessing day. She looks so serene and content. She is growing like crazy and only gets more beautiful every day. It is so much fun to have another baby in the house (although it is only for a very short time). I look forward to the Bishop baby due in a few weeks and then only a few short months later, the first Travis and Stacie Botkin baby will arrive. Babies, babies everywhere. My camera will be busy over the next few months.

Baby Girl Botkin

Baby Girl Botkin made her apperance this morning at approximately 8:25 AM. A great relief to her mother that she finally decided to make her entrance into the world. As you can see from the pictures she is sporting a beautiful head of thick black wavy hair. She is going to be a heartbreaker. Baby Girl Botkin is a svelte 19 inches long and weighs a girlish 7 pounds 7 ounces (I hope I got that right). She is a beautiful little thing. Beck was not sure what to think of her at first but started warming up to her and even smiled at her a few time. We are excited to have this wonderful new little addition to our family. We are truly blessed.

Ain't Love Grand!?!?!

Even though I have no photos, I did want to share a post on our wonderful, romantic get-away for Valentine's Day! We went to ...drum roll please...

The Red Lion Hotel in Boise Idaho! it was actually awesome and we had such a fun time! We were supposed to go to SLC, but because of several reasons, decided not to make the trip.
So, with a little help from our buddies at PriceLine, we had an economical, fun weekend right here at home!. We enjoyed each other so much, along with some great food, great movies, and great entertainment . It was just nice to be able to reconnect with each other, and have some quality alone time!

I am still so in love with my wonderful husband! Every day is a reminder of what an amazing man he is. How fortunate I am to have him in my life!

Love you , Honey!

Finally! Some pictures of Gpa with some of the grandchildren! Yes, I finally got a camera, and don't even try to compare my photos with his! We took the kids to Burger King for some Gpa and Gma time and some yummy(?) fries and chicken nuggets. Anyone who knows these kids, knows how much they love fries and possibly greater than their love of fries, is their love of ketchup! The greatest love of all, is our love for them!

A mathematics award winner!!!

Anson was honored at the Pierce Park Elementary Awards Assembly last Thursday, with a special award for great performance in math for the 1st semester! He got a cool medal on a purple ribbon and a very nice certificate. Mom and Dad (and Gma) are so proud! Way to go, Anson!

A few of Grandpa and Grandma's important things...

Superman's new cape


Beck's new favorite Christmas toy.
Eden transformed into a ballerina.


Who is the man behind the goggles?

Just a Thought

With everything that life has handed us the last few months, I started thinking. I know...dangerous. I was thinking how precious life is and how fragile. How unfettered our lives can be one moment and the next we are entangled in a web of complications, trials, finances, and on and on and on. All these "important" things distract our focus and shroud our perspectives so heavily we forget what is truly important. Family, relationships, spirituality, renewing and serving one another. To paraphrase a quote, "The most important things in life aren't things". I have to remind myself to savor those moments of joy we experience everyday. Shared laughter, the conversation of comfortable silence, the gentle touch of a child's small hand, holding hands with your spouse...the list is endless if you think about it. Just a thought.