bugs and gratitude

It seems that there is a stomach bug going around. We've been waiting for it to hit our family, hopefully it hasn't already/won't. Kids at school and friends at church have been sick. The bug seems pretty fierce, lasting over a week with related intestinal complications. Today, when Cole's Pre-school teacher asked all the parents to stay behind after the kids went into the room, I thought she would comment on the prevalent sickness and recommend preventative measures. Well, she did talk about a bug, just another type of bug. Someone in the class had lice and all the children would be checked. This is no reflection on the family or the child who had it, it is just an easily spread bug and it is important to catch as soon as possible. I felt very grateful that Cole and the rest of his classmates were nit free. It just reminded me that there are many things to be grateful for. There are hidden blessings all around us.

You Gotta Be Kidding!

We just got a new game. It is called "You Gotta Be Kidding!" It is a game of "Would You Rather?" questions. For example: Would you rather be born with an elephant trunk or with a giraffe neck? We have loved playing this game as a family. Taylor and Cole can join in the fun! We recently played this with some friends and enjoyed an evening of laughter.

Flash Forward

It is hard to believe it is already March. We don't have many pictures to show for the last few months, but I thought it'd be good to give an update to what we're doing now. Troy is busy working his postdoc and fellowship positions with the University of Pennsylvania. He also continues to teach every other Sunday. He also has several home improvement projects he is planning. I have been busy keeping up with the kids, cleaning house, and serving in various capacities at church. I have almost finished our taxes (yea!!!), and hope to do something with our mountain of papers soon (really!). Troy and I have been reading the Chronicles of Narnia together. It is slow going, since our unplanned time together is scarce. Some evenings we are able to read a chapter. Yesterday we took a family trip to the D.C. Temple. We left in the afternoon and spent a few hours doing temple service. We traded off watching the kids at the Stake Center next to the temple. The kids enjoyed riding their bikes and scooters in the warm weather. It was great to have time together and plan to go again soon. Today the kids were playing with their cars and I overheard Cole telling Taylor that his car was going to the Temple. I love surprise blessings. Tonight Taylor and Cole went home teaching with Troy. Taylor is growing up so fast. I realized that it won't be many more years before he is really going home teaching. He was able to share an experience he had in answer to prayer. I am grateful for Troy's leadership in teaching them. Taylor is learning to like school. He enjoys making friends and loves anything silly. We will start teaching him piano basics this month. Cole is enjoying his pre-school class and has made many new friends. Within the past 8 months Cole has started to sing, and well. Tonight, while waiting for a bedtime song, he sang his own songs. A year ago I never imagined he would do this. He sure is growing! This is another blessing that fills our home- the sound of our children singing primary songs. Cole loves to play with Lucy and wants to help her. Both Taylor and Cole adore her. We are finding she is very distracting for them, they love her so! Lucy has started crawling and definitely wants to join in the boy's fun. She is also is becoming more emotional and expressive- learning how to run the family. This hasn't been much of an update, but really a snapshot of our lives. We love our dear family and friends and pray for you. We know that many people are experiencing difficult trials right now. Life is complicated. We pray for the leaders around the world to seek inspiration. We also pray we may have the courage to follow the counsel of our Prophet and the personal promptings we receive from God.