All the pretty pictures

We had family pictures done. I love them and thought Jocelyn (Jocelyn Fox Photography) did a great job despite a very uncooperative Breanna.

There were lots of good ones to choose from but I think we might use this one to blow up in our living room:

It's very posed but I like that we're all looking and smiling. Doesn't happen too often with kids. For some reason I'm suddenly craving mini-eggs...

We've been having so much fun lately. We went to Calaway Park for my brother's birthday and we all had a BLAST! Best time to go is a Friday night, especially when the forecast calls for rain and it doesn't end up raining! Even the melted ice cream cake in cups because I forgot plates turned out to be a hit:

This is my brother and his fiance, they are so tall and georgous I can't help but think they must be vampires, Twilight style.

Jesse L-O-V-E-S rides. The scarier the better. It is sooo fun to watch. Not so fun when it's time to leave!! And Breanna's favorite part was playing in (and drinking from) the puddle with her squeezable little cousin Evie.

Last but not least, this is my sister Candace and brother Derek reading my kids books before bed. I know I have the best brothers and sisters :)

What Makes Me Me...

I know I'm bordering on sounding crazy here, but I wish I knew what people thought of me. Not the good things, but the bad things! When I was young, like, 11, there was a girl I really liked who decided she didn't like me. She was the ring-leader of all the girls I went to church with so it turned into a bad scenario and lasted until I was 16 or so. I would hear about some of the things she would say about me, always making fun of me for being a "goody-goody", inviting everyone to sleepovers and get-togethers and not me, hiding my coat, my favorite coat that I really had to sacrifice to buy, convincing people not to invite me to their birthday parties, but mostly just completely and totally ignoring me along with all her friends. I never knew why she didn't like me, and I wanted to so bad. I just wanted friends, even one friend- so bad.

Good Times

I am happy.

I'm not afraid to say it. I struggle with the trendy, often mormon facade "oh my goodness, I'm so happy and life is perfect" with stock mormon trials that like a sitcom get resolved by the end of the day. I'm not like that!! Yet here I am exactly like that!! Maybe they aren't fake after all and I should stop judging people :)

I can't solve anyone's problems, not even my family's. I can love and try to serve others but I can't solve their problems and I can be quite happy in spite of them. It's a weight off my shoulders. It's also nice to know that I have very little to do with solving my own problems. Everything I have comes from Heavenly Father. Everything everyone else has does too!

Well because of all this I'm very boring. I feel very little angst so I really don't have a lot to say. Life is good.

Sarah

Feverish

"Life is just like an old time rail journey ... delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed."

Our family just returned from our Spring holiday and I am happy to say it was one of those beautiful vistas. My life goes in cycles and it is always nice to find myself feeling truly happy and content for periods of time. The last time I really felt this way was Christmas holidays. I think it has a lot to do with Brad being around :) Really, it was nice to spend so much time together and remember how much we LIKE each other! Daily life- delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders and jolts- gets in the way of those feelings sometimes.

Today I am sick with a fever and one of those sore throats that makes it awful to swallow and feeling bad about yelling at Jesse and worrying about all the things I could get done if I had the energy and wishing Brad were home...but it feels good knowing the cycle will come back around soon.