Sunday, June 28, 2009

Mason's Blessing


I know that most of you reading this will not be able to attend, but I'm putting it out there anyways.

We'll be blessing Mason Sunday the 5th of July. Sacrament starts at 11 and we'll be having a BBQ at our house after wards. We'd love to have anyone who wants to come!

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Wow it's been a while

It has been a mighty long time since I've put up a post so I thought I'd give a quick update.

Cory is trucking along with his Master Degree. He had one test left to take and missed passing by one percent. Yikes! Until yesterday when we found out that they were going to count it as a pass afterall! WOO HOO! That means he is 3 papers away from being a Master!! He works so hard to take care of our family and for that I am greatful!

Trace has been learning to swim! He's like a little fish. He loves his teacher Emily and tells us everyday about all the fun things he learns. He'll be starting preschool again in the Fall. He loves to help out around the house and loves even more that he's earning a dollar for doing his chores. He's hoping to be able to spend what he earns at Disney Land in the Spring. He's also really enjoying his trampoline and has taught himself to "super bounce".


Kenadee is also learning to swim with her teacher Olivia. I'm sure she's learning a lot but all she reports is that she's learning to back float! At least she'll be good at it! Kena got a new hair cut today to help keep her cool for the summer and she's loving it. She told me this morning that she's glad she looks so pretty. She loves to color and read and the library is quickly becoming her favorite place, next to the swings in the park.


Jaxson is my wild child. He's always running around and getting into things. His little knees look like they've been in a war and his noggin is full of bumps and bruises. He loves his baby brother and helps whenever and however he can. He's talking up a storm! My favorite things to hear him say are "I wub boo" and "WHOA" which he says everytime you give him something to eat. Silly kid. He's also our big boy. He's started potty training all on his own. He's a sweet little spit fire and I can't imagine our family without him.


Mason is growing like a weed. He's almost 11 pounds now and seems to get bigger everyday. He has colic which has been a bit of a challenge, but he is getting better and I'm hopeful he'll be out of it before long. He's starting to smile though and when I get those it makes the rest worth it. He's also sleeping really well. He slept last night from 10 until 6. What a blessing that is.


And then there's me. I'm on a break from school until August and just enjoying being with my family. It's been a beautiful spring/summer and we've loved playing outside. I'm finally getting used to being the mother of 4 and we're settling into a routine that means our house is clean at least once a week! (I'm also learning to be ok with that) Cory and I are in a bit of a foggy place right now. We're not sure whether we'll be staying here in Wyoming or leaving. We're not sure whether we'll stay in this house or move to a bigger one. And we are definately not sure when this will all happen if it does. It's been tough for me, because I'm a planner, but I trust that what is meant to happen will. Wish us luck!

Our family is growing and having fun. We love you all so so much and we're greatful for the love we feel from each and every one of you! We really are blessed!

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Rocky Road

A couple nights ago we promised the kids ice cream cones and they chose rocky road. I'm pretty sure the pictures speak for themselves.




I love this picture. Kena wanted to wear a hat like daddy. Her cute little ear was poking out the other side and bent over and I wish I'd gotten it in the shot. It was so darn cute. What a kid!



Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Thanks Aunt Mari for this post!

Annie Dean Ellsworth is an incredible woman that I have yet to meet, but feel incredibly close to. It is her name that I carry and feel determined to live up to. She is my great grandmother, my grandpa Georges Mommy and I love stories about her, so when I saw this post this morning on my Aunt Mari's blog I had to steal it for my own. It was a story I'd not heard (the tea pot part) and I wanted to keep it for my own children to read. I feel that all to often we forget about our ancestors and what they did so that we might have the gospel in our lives. Enjoy!

Aunt Mari wrote:

Several times in my life my father George Dean Ellsworth told me this story. I remember his smile as he remembered the incident as well as the tears in his eyes and the emotion in his voice as he spoke of his dear mother's conviction to the gospel of Jesus Christ.


Annie Dean EllsworthJune 26, 1884 ~ Sept. 6, 1960

Young George ducked just in time. A commotion from inside the kitchen window had startled him. His mother's angry voice had sounded just before the object came hurtling past him...
Annie Dean lived in a tiny village called Flaunden in the county of Hertfordshire, England in the 1880's. Her family was very poor having 12 children to feed and a father who worked only long enough to buy his liquor. The children all worked binding hay, helping with harvests, selling acorns they had gathered in the woods, and picking rocks from farmer's fields. They would often live on fruits and nuts they and scrounged from neighboring orchards.
When she turned eleven and had finished fourth grade she had to leave home to become a housekeeper's apprentice. Annie had always wondered about religion and was never quite happy with any church she attended. none of them felt right to her. At the age of 18 she was confirmed into the Church of England. She said it was one of the darkest days of her life. When she was alone in her room she felt surrounded by gloom so she thought she might try to read from her prayer book. As she touched the book a cold chill ran through her body. She laid it down and asked herself, "How do I know which church is right?" Then, for the first time in her life, she knelt down and prayed in her own words. The darkness and gloom left her but her feeling of restlessness remained. Soon she was invited to the home of a friend to listen to the preaching of two boarders living there. They called themselves Mormons.
Every word they spoke rang true to Annie's heart. Within three weeks she was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In another two weeks she was working in the mission home as a cook and housekeeper. Eventually arrangements had been made for her passage to America. She went back home to visit her family and tell them of her happiness. Her father, upon hearing her mention the name of Brigham Young stood and left the room. This was very hard on her because she knew she would likely never see him or any of her family again.
Thus it was with great courage and faith that she left her home and country in 1907 to make a new life for herself in "Zion". In the following years she became a registered nurse, married, gave birth to twin daughters, and lost her husband to cancer when the twins were only 2 months old. She eventually found her way to Mesa, Arizona where, among other nursing jobs, she worked caring for Caroline Ellsworth, a a very ill woman with a young daughter. Carries' condition eventually caused her passing away, leaving her husband Frank alone with little Ruth. He soon began to court Annie and it wasn't long before their two families became one. The twins Lora and Dora, along with Ruth were joined in the following years by George, Naomi, Joseph, Martha, and Robert.
Annie and Frank filled their life together with joy in their family and service to others. Living just across Main Street and up North Hobson St. in Mesa they could walk to the new temple. They served in the temple for many years. Annie was filled with compassion nursing many ill people and helping to bring many babies into the world as a mid-wife. She never turned anyone away during the Great Depression, sharing what food the family had with those in need.
Through all of her years of devotion to her God and service to others there was still one temptation that nagged at her and caused her much annoyance. She had never gotten over the desire for afternoon tea every day when the time rolled around. Not that she would ever succumb to it but it troubled her that the temptation was still there. And so it was on that particular day she determined to rid herself of the desire once and for all. On her stove was a tea kettle she used for heating water. She seized hold of it and cried out in a voice that came from her very core.


...when he lifted his head out in the yard George was puzzled. There in the grass lay the object that had nearly hit him in the head...his mother's tea kettle!

Annie would later tell him the story and how she was never bothered by the want for "tea time" again. George grew into a fine man and loved to tell the tale of the tea kettle and how proud he was of his mother, her faith, courage, and determination.