imagination

i have been watching our grandchildren lately and marveling at how they are each so unique from each other. not only in their physical characteristics, but also in their imagination.

rylee's imagination manifested itself in being a 'mommy', she was always cooking in her kitchen and playing with her dolls, or her little sisters! she has always been really artistic as well. she is a sweetie.

sadie is three, and she does art shows. she lines up papers all along the floor (doesn't matter if they are hers or rylee's), then she sets chairs out so that all the people can come and see her art show. she is adorable.

james has a huge stuffed dog that is in a sitting position, probably about 3 feet high. he rides it around like a horse, all over the place, with his cow-boy-hat on! he is precious.

lucas is our star. he shines like crazy! put on 'singing in the rain', 'make em laugh' or 'chim, chim cheree' from mary poppins and not only is he dancing away just like they do but he is mimicking the facial expressions, and the stances as well. he is priceless.

i love seeing their imaginations unfold, just as i watched their mommy and daddy's unfold. sam was our artist, still is. craig was our builder, still is.hence, a career in IT. amy was our musical and animal girl, still is. i guess amy was our dreamer and our collector. rach was our motherer (and a little bossy) and reader - still is (not so much on the bossy part)! i love that watching them with their imagination gives us hints into their futures.

i am grateful for imaginations - what a great gift from our Father.

a rainy day

it has been awhile since we have had rain (not counting yesterday, of course). i had plans to go to see my mom and sister, but decided tomorrow would be better. i love rainy days at home. rach has been working for rebecca in ripon and so i have been pretty much alone today.

and i didn't have anything that needed cleaning!

so, i ran errands (love browsing the used book store shelves, even though i didn't purchase anything), baked cowboy cookies (only ate a few), and made eggplant spread (one of my new favorite things). then i decided i needed to rest my aching back (which it has been doing since last night, but i had things to do!).

now, here i am catching up on my blog, and about to go and dive back into my current read.

i am grateful for a good rainy day that just allows me to do whatever i want to do. oh, and i like the rain that goes with it too!

drip drop

as i was driving home from tracy this afternoon and looked north i noticed that it was much darker over in that direction than it was where i was...at the moment. as i drove i came closer and closer to the darkness. soon it began to rain, then it began pouring. i smiled inside and out. i am so grateful for the rain.

an apple a day

my friend, sue, is visiting from colorado. we have been friends for nearly nine years now. she was my counselor when i was yw's president in our ward, her husband, scott, was our bishop. he also served as our high councilor when pat was bishop in ripon ward, so they go pretty far back.

at any rate, sue did not have any plans today. first i thought we would just hang out around the house. then this morning i thought, 'why would we do that? there are so many things we can do around here!'

so i gave her and rach a few options, one of which was half moon bay, then i suggested the foothills and sue immediately said, 'apple hill!' within an hour we were on our way. we had no idea if there would be much to do on a weekday, but we were in luck! the three main places our family goes to were open, with some of the vendors there, and all of the apple goodies being sold...yay! the weather was a cool 60 degrees, so we were a bit chilled, but it was beautiful there! (as always)

i am grateful that there are so many things to choose from when you want to get out of manteca (and who wouldn't?) and that we could drive to apple hill and have a wonderful time there.

Changes!

The first 'official' day of fall took place about two weeks ago. You couldn't tell, not if you live here you couldn't! BUT today is a different story! Today marks my official first day of fall! It's almost chilly! I love it!

Rach and I were discussing Spring and Fall today. She said she wanted them each for six months, but I said I wanted them for five each, with Summer and Winter each having a month...that way we appreciate Spring and Fall that much more!

I am grateful that it is beginning to feel like fall! I seriously love it.

Testimonies

My heart is full of joy from listening to the testimonies of our Prophet, Apostles and GA's today. President Eyring tugged at my heartstrings, Elder Hales spoke to and broke my heart (so grateful he was there and had no idea he was so ill), Elder Ballard touched my devotion, and our dear Prophet, President Monson, spoke volumes to my inner child as well as the grown up in me.

I am grateful for my testimony, and for the testimonies of those I follow with all my heart and soul.

President Monson

This morning when General Conference began we noticed right away that someone was missing...the Prophet! My mind raced, wondering where he was and when he would show up! I was grateful when he did. His presence makes such a difference.

I am grateful for President Monson, who seemed to be moving a little slower today (anyone else notice? any insights?) He has been an apostle for 48 years now! I was 8 when he was called. Just like my children I remember growing up and looking forward to his stories. Now my grandchildren love him. That is amazing.

Today as James was watching the 'phrophet' he kept saying, "phrophet...funny!" He repeated the same for me on the phone. He also had to mention 'presdent ukdorf' and 'i like him' - so, so cute!