More Pictures That Aaron Will Love

Tonight John David found one of our dinner guest's shoes.



He loves to try on any shoes that he sees.



So he had to give these a try.



He actually walked better in heels than I do.



He didn't fall, or stumble even once.



But Aaron still felt the need to rescue him.



"There you go buddy. That's better, huh?"



He immediately turned around and went to get Sarah to help him put them back on.

Why I Think My Husband Rocks!

Not just because he built me this while I was gone. (Although I do love these shelves, and am very impressed with his skills!)



Or because he is going to (in the very near future--I hope--HINT HINT:) build another one right beside it. Or even because he's going to build shelves coming off of them for even more storage (which is badly needed, and makes me oh so happy!). But because he came home with a list of scriptures and asked me to look them up so we could talk about them. They were all talking about the fate of the "wicked" and I was just thinking we were going to talk about how to avoid falling into Satan's traps or something like that, until I turned to the last scripture and found a ticket for "WICKED"!



He has a ride in August and I was originally invited to go with him, but then it turned into a guys' weekend trip. So he told me I could have my own girls' weekend trip sometime. Well, I just thought mine would never happen, but he made sure it did and planned it all out with my friend Wendy. So Wendy and I are going to Houston in a couple of weeks and going shopping, and to the temple, and to see "Wicked"! I am so wicked excited! I love that he is so thoughtful! Yep, that's (one of the many reasons) why I think my husband rocks!

Our Little Princess

Look what John David found to play with the other day in his sisters' room.



I'm sure Aaron is going to love these pictures.



But honestly, it was bound to happen sooner or later. And he does make a cute little princess, don't you think?

Dear Mister Cell Phone Maker,

We absolutely love that the new GPS technology can locate our lost phone for us. Now, we would really appreciate it if you could invent a ROBO-COP to retrieve our lost cell phone from the random house in the hood. Thanks so much!
Love,
The Youngs

Flashback Friday

(pictured--Aunt Carolyn Jean, Grandma Barnett, Daddy, and a general who's name no one can remember)

This is the Soldier of the Month picture that I found while going through stuff in my parents' computer room. My mom had been looking for it for months, so she was very excited that I found it. The date on the picture is May 22, 1964. Unfortunately I don't know what Daddy did to receive this award, but Aaron says that they don't just give them out to anyone. My Aunt Carolyn Jean told me that she and my Grandmother were in Colorado visiting my dad when he received the award, and they asked them to get in the picture with them. My Daddy was a pretty handsome soldier. :)

Go to the Dollar Store. Buy water guns. Come home and have a water fight.

This was the activity that the girls picked out of our summer fun jar today.



"Mom, come outside. We promise not to wet you!" Yeah, that was the promise I was given before I went outside. The sad part is that I actually believed them, especially since I had my camera.



I should have known better than to trust the two little sneaks, because.........



.......after less than a minute, my pants looked like I had a little accident.



I only got a couple of shots before I had to go inside and change, and come back out ready to show these girls who's boss. This, by far, has been our most favorite activity--so far. I don't know who had more fun--me or the girls. In fact, we liked it so much, we put it back in the jar to draw out for another day. Can't wait. :)

Happy Father's Day Daddy

Feeling a little selfish today and wishing you were here so I could hug you, tell you how grateful I am to have you for my Daddy, and how much I love you.

Father's Day Weekend

Saturday morning Kent brought the lawn mower and helped Aaron to mow our lawn.



John David stood at either the front window or the back door and watched them the whole time. He was pretty fascinated. And when Aaron was done, Katie brought John David outside, and Aaron gave him a ride on the mower.



He's getting to be Paw Paw's boy, and was pretty excited to see him. Pardon the cloudy pictures. My camera kept fogging up because it was so hot outside.



Saturday night we went over to Maw Maw and Paw Paw's house. We watched the new "Alice in Wonderland" and ate popcorn and M&Ms, a Young family favorite.



Sunday evening we went back over to Kent and Johnice's house. The kids played with Daddy and Paw Paw, while Johnice and I cooked dinner. We made Aaron's favorite thing for dinner--breakfast, which consisted of french toast, bacon, sausage, and eggs. It was delish, if I do say so myself.



Then we gave Paw Paw his present.



It was a GPS, and John David was very interested in trying to get it opened.



And he had even more fun playing with the bag that Paw Paw's gift was in.



He's so funny. And cute.



Then everyone went outside and helped Paw Paw get it all set up in his truck.



John David loved being in Paw Paw's truck and pretending to drive.



Then we went back inside for dessert. I made a brownie tie.



I am so grateful for these two awesome fathers in our lives. I am grateful for Kent and for the great father that he is to Aaron, and for the great grandfather that he is to my children.



John David enjoyed his new favorite treat--an ice cream cone. He's had at least half a dozen of these in the last few weeks. His hair in this picture cracks me up. It is just like he is these days--hard to tame. I really do try, but this is always how it ends up.

I am so grateful for this awesome father in our lives too! He is a wonderful father to our children, and we love him so much!

Just What I Need

We got back from North Carolina late Tuesday, or should I say early Wednesday morning? Anyway, we're back, and I'm still tired, and trying to sift through the mounds of mail, laundry, and just stuff piled everywhere that seems to be multiplying. As if that wasn't enough, our refrigerator has decided it needs a vacation too. Our freezer for some reason is still going strong. But all of our frig stuff is inside of these two coolers that have become John David's new favorite thing to climb on and get into. Oh, and did I mention that both of the girls have ear infections--in both ears. I think it's time to dip into our summer fun jar, because I'm having withdrawals from all of the fun we had in North Carolina. Not to mention, missing all of our peeps. But it is nice not to have to live out of a suitcase, sleeping in my own comfy bed, and of course having my wonderful husband's company and help. Lots of stuff still left to post about our trip, but I will be posting it in order, because I'm weird like that. Stay tuned.

Silly Bandz--the more the sillier!

While we were in North Carolina, the girls got caught up in the latest craze--silly bandz. I had never even heard of them before, but they are a pretty big deal in NC with little kids, on up to teenagers. They remind me of jelly bracelets, which were popular when I was in middle school.



But silly bandz are cooler, because they come in shapes. All kinds of shapes. And they are sold in themed packages. Like the ones above, which were food, beach, and cool phrases. So my girls of course had to have some.



And you can't just have a few silly bandz--you apparently need at least 342. And once you collect them, then you trade them with your friends.



I think the more silly bandz you have, the sillier you are. At least that goes for my silly girls. :)

Carry On!

One of the reasons we stayed in North Carolina for so long this trip was because my mom had asked me to help her go through my dad's stuff. I knew it would be an hard trip anyway, this being our first summer without Daddy, but helping my mom with this task made it even more emotional. But we did surprisingly well, I think. We only cried a little, which was to be expected. And we laughed a lot, as we remembered some of the silly and quirky things that made my dad, my dad. We took several days to go through everything. The first day we went through his clothes. We gathered up some of his favorite shirts and ones that we remembered him wearing a lot, and I brought them home to make a quilt for my mom. This wonderful idea was not my own, but actually came from my sister-in-law, Kristen, who offered to make it herself. But as we were gathering the clothes for this project, I really felt like I wanted to do this for my mom. So I talked with my sister-in-law about it and she graciously agreed to let me do it, and to help in any way that I may need her. And I'm sure I will be taking her up on that offer, since she has more quilting and sewing experience than I do. Hopefully, I can make something nice for mom that will bring her comfort when she sees and uses it.

Then I spent a couple of days going through the computer room, which was where my Daddy spent a lot of his time. He loved the computer. He liked looking at our family blogs, checking out his favorite herb doctor's site, finding recipes he thought he might like to try, and just lots of surfing the web. But more than anything, he loved to print. He printed emails he liked, recipes he wanted to try, talks from the church website, and just lots and lots of stuff. So needless to say, there were lots and lots of papers thrown out. And magazines. And newsletters from his favorite herb doctor that he had neatly saved in binders back from the 90s. Yeah. Lots of stuff. Eight bags of stuff, if I'm not mistaken. As I was going through this stuff, I though about my dad and what he might say if he were there and saw me throwing away all of his stuff. I think he would have been saying, "Oh, Lynetta! Don't throw that away Lynetta! There's some good stuff in there you need to read. Oh, not that! Don't throw away that! You need to read that Lynetta!" But not all of it was trash. I also found lots of treasures. He kept his genealogy in the computer room as well, and in going through some of it, I found his "Soldier of the Month" picture that my mom has been looking for, some cool family pictures from long ago, pictures of him and his counselors during his years as bishop, and some pictures of him and his family when he was growing up. Lots and lots of cool pictures that I have decided I am going to post from time to time on "Flashback Friday". I also found an awesome paper about death that he showed to me years ago. I looked for it after his funeral, but I couldn't find it. I thought I had a copy, but have looked and looked for it, and couldn't find it anywhere. So I was thrilled to finally find it and share it with my family. It is really awesome, and it was a comfort to find and read it again. I also found a quote he had printed several copies of by Ralph Waldo Emerson, which said, "For every minute you are angry, you lose sixty seconds of happiness." I like this quote, and think you could substitute lots of emotions for "angry". For instance, it could say....."For every minute you are sad....or mad.....or depressed......or frustrated......you lose sixty seconds of happiness." I took one of the copies to put on my refrigerator so I can see it everyday. I also found the last two talks that my dad gave in Sacrament Meeting. One he gave in September 2007 and was about Family History. And the very last talk he gave in Sacrament Meeting was in April 2008. He was the Ward Music Coordinator at the time and was assigned to speak on the blessings we receive from church music. He talked about how he loved music, especially the hymns, and about the power that they can have over the mind and spirit. It was a really good talk. He talked about a song that he learned when he was about ten years old.

Firm as the mountains around us
Stalwart and brave we stand
On the rock our fathers planted
For us in this goodly land
The rock of honor and virtue
Of faith in the living God
They raised his banner triumphant
Over the desert sod
And we hear the desert singing
Carry on, carry on, carry on
Hills and vales and mountains ringing
Carry on, carry on, carry on
Holding aloft our colors
We march in the glorious dawn
O youth of the noble birthright
Carry on, carry on, carry on!

We'll build on the rock they planted
A palace to the King
Into it's shining corridors
Our songs of praise we'll bring
For the heritage they left us
Not of gold or of worldly wealth
But a blessing everlasting
Of love and joy and health
And we hear the desert singing
Carry on, carry on, carry on
Hills and vales and mountains ringing
Carry on, carry on, carry on
Holding aloft our colors
We march in the glorious dawn
O youth of the noble birthright
Carry on, carry on, carry on!

I know when my dad wrote this talk over two years ago that he couldn't possibly have known the impact that these words would have on me when I found this talk. But I felt like it was a message for me. I felt like this was just what I needed to hear. I have a responsibility to carry on the heritage--not of gold or of worldly wealth--that I have been given. I am so grateful for my dad and for this wonderful heritage that he, and my mom, have given me.

FHE in the Park

Our last night in North Carolina, we went to the park for FHE. It was such a fun night.



There was good company.



And good food.



And cute cousins to play with.



And even a cage for my wrecking ball. Just kidding. I do sometimes wish I had a cage for him though. Is that bad?



Yep, he climbed up there all by himself. I can't tell you how many prayers are said each day just thanking Heavenly Father that he is safe, and that I don't need to take him to the ER, or call Poison Control. Do you see why I sometimes wish for a cage?



Anyway, we all had a blast, but especially the kids. Then after it got dark, we went to Dairy Queen for some frozen refreshment. Thanks for the fun memories everyone! We love you all so much, and can't wait til next time!

Bonding With Grandma

Watching John David play in Grandma's cabinet--5 minutes.



Watching John David throw all of the cushions off of Grandma's couch--10 minutes.



Watching John David give Grandma "knuckles"--MEMORIES THAT WILL LAST FOREVER.

Grandma Barnett

We went to visit Grandma Barnett several times while we were in NC. She is ninety years old, and still lives by herself.



She is just as cute and sweet as ever! We love you Grandma!

Camp Singletary

This is probably the most anticipated week of the entire year in our family--the week we go to Camp Singletary! We spent several summers there as children, but this was the 5th year that my brothers and sisters and our families have been going. And our first year without Daddy there. My brother Eric and his family also were not there this year, as they are expecting a new baby boy in just a few weeks. So while we missed Daddy and Eric and his family, we still had so much fun and made lots of good memories. Here are our favorite things about our week at Camp Singletary.

*The Beautiful Scenery



Seriously, it's is just beautiful!

*Lake Singletary--aka "Snakey Lake"



The kids started calling it Snakey Lake a few years ago when we saw a snake swimming with us in the lake. But that memory didn't seem to bother any of them this year.

*Trips to White Lake



Yes, even though we love Snakey Lake, we also love to take the short drive to White Lake. It is just so pretty. And we love the fact that it has a beach for the little ones. Lake Singletary has no beach entry. They entire lake is surrounded by trees, except for the little space where the pier is. So most days we spent early afternoon at White Lake and late evenings at Snakey Lake.

*The White Lake Waterpark



There's lots of stuff for kids of all ages, and it's just tons of fun!

*Craft Time!



This year we made snake key chains (to remind us of Snakey Lake), friendship t-shirts, painted picture frames, and decorated hats and totes. These kids love gettin' their craft on! And quite honestly, so do the mamas! :)

*Lots of cute cousins to play with



The kids absolutely love spending the week with all of their cousins, outside, all day, everyday! And I love that my kids are making fun memories with their cousins at Camp Singletary, just like I did when I was a kid.

*Being able to get as dirty as you want to



John David was quite the handful at camp, but he so enjoyed being outside all day, everyday. And even though it was a lot of work, it was worth it.

*Late Night Fun



We sometimes get a little crazy when the sun goes down, and we always have a blast. The highlight of late night this year were special tryouts for American Idol--even Randy, Paula, and Simon were there. And whoever missed Marleigh's performance of "Pants on the Ground" seriously missed out! It was SO stinkin' hilarious! Way better than the original!

*Playing in the sand



The kids LOVE digging in the sand at Camp Loblolly Bay. It's a great way to pass the time while they aren't swimming or crafting.

*Naps



You can take them whenever and wherever you want to!

*Just being together!



That's always the best part! Thanks for another great year of fun memories everybody! We can't wait for next year!