"March"ing Forward!

Hello dear ones,

What a week! Ups and downs, as usual, but the Lord is mighty and He makes everything work for our good. Onward and upward-- CARRY ON!

This past week I have FINALLY been painting the coffee table and an end table from the living room with chalk paint. Yes, Mom is actually working on a project! I am wishing I could paint every bit of wood in our house WHITE, but we'll just see if I get this particular project finished before I get too ambitious.

;-)

New pi-nano!

I forgot to tell you that we got a new-to-us piano! It's a beautiful antique, and it has a lovely, though old-fashioned, tone. And best yet, ALL the keys work! YAY! I'm including a picture, so we'll need you to try it out for us someday.

Missionary News

M-- B-- is heading out to the MTC this month! I can't remember where she's going, but I think it's in South America. She'll do great! Her mom is so proud.


I think I saw on Facebook that M-- W-- just got to Hong Kong. That's about all I know, but you know M--; he'll do great work as a missionary!


B-- W-- leaves next week-- his farewell is Sunday. So Lliam and some of the other guys in the ward are going to get together this week.

Little ones on a long board

Family Stuff

Saturday, we spent real time together as a family at the park. Daddy and I brought some lunch and the kids all ate and ran and played. Eryn and Grayse both fell down and got scrapes, and the kids had fun pushing each other around on Lliam's longboard. Joy and tragedy all in one day! ;-)

Gorgeous weather! Warm AND overcast.
(With Fiona not having fun...)

I'm reading some new books on homeschool and organization-- yeah, the usual. LOL! We need to do a BIG PURGE, so that's another project I'm tackling.

Yesterday, Daddy and I fasted and prayed to know if we should put all our energy into trying to stay in this house, and we got a "Yes," so that's the new goal. Whether we are successful or not remains to be seen, but we are going to do ALL we can to stay in this house. We'd love it if you could join your prayers with our. Miracles CAN happen, right??? :)

Today it's "cold" and rainy. I mean 50-ish degrees! *tee-hee* But really, we Arizonans are enjoying the weather thoroughly.

We love you, and are so grateful for the good example you are setting for ALL of our family. We know the Church is true, and that the restored gospel is the only way we can return to our Heavenly Father.

I want you to know that your mother has a firm testimony of Jesus Christ and the reality of His life and resurrection. I want you to know that I will ALWAYS follow the living prophet. My one goal in life is to be true and faithful to the end, just as those who have come before us.

I love you, son. Keep up the hard work, the obedience, and the faith. Your faithfulness is a wonderful source of joy for me, and I appreciate you.

Much love,

Mama Rachel

This Week!

The Gilbert temple on President's Day

Hola, Elder Keppy-Face!!!

:-D

We are so, so sad we missed you last week. :-( But we hope you got our package, as a consolation for no letter. (Did you get it? Huh???)

This has been a busy week at Das Keppnerhaus. Last Sunday evening, we had Daddy's Keppner cousin and her family over for dinner. They live in San Tan Valley, and have three boys. The oldest is seventeen, the middle on is 14 (I think?), and their ten year old little guy is autistic, like Morganne and Gavin. It was crazy and fun, and it was wonderful to reconnect a bit. Who knew we had Keppner cousins in AZ?!

Early Monday morning, Avalon and I went to the dentist's office so she could get a tooth pulled, a spacer put in, and several teeth filled. After we got there, they weighed her and then gave her some special medicine to make her sleepy. She and I waited in a dark room where she laid down on a special little bed and watched a movie. When the medicine kicked in (She was so funny!), they led us in to a room where Avalon could sit in the dentist's special chair to get her work done. She was so good! She help still and hardly remembered a thing.

Avalon getting sleepy...

When we went home with her, she was so good about eating only soft things, and slept pretty much the entire rest of the day. We are so glad her owie tooth is better and that she was such a brave girl. (See the picture of her getting sleepy below.)

Tuesday afternoon, I took everyone but Gavin, Ronan, and Davy to see the E-- boys performing in "Seussical the Musical!" (Gavin and Ronan said they didn't want to see it, but they really missed out!) It was PHENOMENAL!!! Those musicals [high school] puts on are awesome, and we were so glad we got to see it. Sister E-- emailed me that their cast was performing the show at --- for FREE for some public school students, and that we could attend. There were plenty of seats available, so we got good ones and had a blast!

Morganne, Lliam, Bonny, and Dierdre were all raving as much as I did. You would have loved it, too. EVERYONE in the show was amazing-- it was just soooo good! One of the G-- boys played Jojo in the show, and did a great job.

Wednesday had the usual craziness, with mutual, scouts, and all. Ronan helped with the flag ceremony for the Blue and Gold banquet, so he was the only one who attended. Can you believe that we have NO Cub Scouts in our family right now? Weird...

Friday we had our TJLA classes. During my English Literature class in the afternoon, we had a really special experience. We are studying the early Victorian Era and were going over Tennyson's poetry specifically that day. In a flash of heavenly inspiration, I walked my class over to the basketball park, and I read them the poem "Crossing the Bar" out loud on the green rolling hills. Picture the cloudy sky above, with birds chirping in the background:

Crossing the Bar

Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
When I put out to sea.

But such a tide as moving seems asleep,
Too full for sound and foam,
When that which drew from out the boundless deep
Turns again home.

Twilight and evening bell,
And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell,
When I embark;

For tho' from out our bourne of Time and Place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crossed the bar.

We then had a great, GREAT discussion on our life's callings, and what the future holds for us. I had then eat go off alone in the park, somewhere quiet, and had them write a list of FIVE things they want to do OR be before they "cross the bar." And by "crossing the bar," it could either mean before they die, or before they leave home, or...?

I did the exercise, too, and it totally made me cry and realize what is MOST important to me.

After gathering back together at the end of our debriefing discussion, I suddenly felt prompted by the Spirit to share how important Grandma Nielsen's living testimony has been to me in my life. I totally cried and bore my own testimony.

I don't know if the class helped the students that day, but I know it helped ME. Heavenly Father is so good to give what we need, right when we need it!

Saturday was full of housework and lazing about, too. Then, that evening, we went to a play done by another new homeschool group. The play was actually written and directed by D--, who also starred in the main role. It was fun and cute, though they had some itty bitty ones in their cast! (9 and 10 years old) It was a moralist story with a defined message, but also was done in Shakespearean-esque language, though not in iambic pentameter. I guess K-- and S-- helped write it, and S-- was also in it. We had a fun time, and I thought they did a great job. :-)


Yesterday was really great, with a wonderfully inspiring ward conference. (President D-- and Bishop W-- are so great!) Daddy and I both took several notes, and have some new goals. GOOD STUFF!

Just waiting...

This morning.... (drumroll please...) Lliam did something major!!!

He...


passed...


his...


driver's test!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He OFFICIALLY has a real Arizona driver's license.

WOW!!!

It's so exciting!!!! :-)

We love you, we miss you, and we know the work you are doing is the Lord's. We're so proud of you for your devotion to Jesus Christ and His work. Stay True and Faithful always. We love you!!!


Carry on,

Mama Rachel

Random February-ness

Our "Ten Virgins" cast

Dear ones,

We had a calm, good week-- my favorite part was being in the Ten Virgins musical! :-) I'm afraid I will subject you to several pictures on that subject! ;-)

Monday I took Lliam, Gavin, and Ronan to get haircuts. Yes, even Lliam was ready for a trim. I stopped in the McDonald's drive-thru for ice cream cones afterwards. It was nice to spoil them a bit. :-)

Haircuts make us happy!

On Tuesday I ran Morganne to Institute Choir at CGCC (Chandler-Gilbert Community College), and then Daddy took her back for Institute that evening. We need to get that girl driving soon!

Wednesday evening was New Beginnings for the Young Women. They had a fun "Cruise" theme and Dierdre brought home one of the decorations; a tiny goldfish she named "Goldilocks."

Our lovely "Goldilocks" (a.k.a. Dierdre)

We spent Thursday cleaning the house in preparation for feeding the missionaries that evening. Morganne made her famous chili and served it with tortilla chips, cheese and sour cream. They couldn't stay long, but it was so nice to have them join us to eat. It sure makes us think of our missionary!

Friday morning's Biology class that's usually at our house was cancelled, so I gathered some props and stage decorations for the Ten Virgins play and after almost getting in a car accident on the way, (WHEW!) I headed over to the church to help decorate the stage. Even though I had my class to plan for later that afternoon, I decided to stay and help. It was so fun! I was draping fabric, pinning trim, and arranging decorations and props. I had a BLAST!

Our stage, all dressed up

About the play: It felt soooo wonderful to be using my talents to build up the Lord's kingdom. I had been praying for an opportunity to do so for a LONG time, and the Lord answered my prayers in a wonderful way! :-)

Cast members getting direction in between performances

We had our final dress rehearsal Friday night, where we also performed for our families. It was a little rocky, but overall, it went really well.

Saturday morning we had our first performance at 9am. President D--, our stake president, came and talked to us briefly after our warm up. It was so neat! He reminded us of how much the sisters in our stake needed to hear the message to prepare spiritually. We also performed at 11am and then again at 1pm. We really felt that the Lord used us to bring His daughters closer to Him that day. It was the BEST experience I have ever had being onstage. I loved every second!!!

Our director and pianist discuss song speed with our one dancer.

Being in this presentation has been such a blessing in my everyday life, too! It has helped me feel close to the Savior every day, and taught me lesson after lesson about staying in tune with the Spirit, and being prepared to meet the Lord. I have had some very sacred, personal experiences because of my preparation for the performances. I hope I remember them all! (Yes, I am recording them in my journal...)

Me, backstage

Last night, after choir practice, Daddy and I attended the Priesthood Preview meeting with RONAN! Can you believe it?! Yes, he turns 12 this year. He and all the boys in his group are so fun. There's a LOT of them! Most of the boys sat together on the front row, but even though they invited him to come and sit with them, Ronan wanted to sit with Daddy and I. That was sweet!

At the end of the inspiring meeting, Ronan and all the boys stood up at the front and sang "Armies of Helaman." I'm pretty sure there wasn't a dry eye among the parents. (The sound cuts out in the middle when I accidently covered the mike, and you get subjected to my soprano voice at the end when the sound comes back up. I tried to sing quietly-- I really did! LOL!)



During the meeting, Brother--, who is in the stake YM presidency, said that only 35% of young men in the stake are going on missions! OUCH. Satan is really working hard to distract the young men in our area from serving. Yes, I cried.

We we miss you all, and we want you all to know how important you are to us. We pray for each of you daily, and love each one of you sooo much. May the Lord continue to bless and teach and heal us all!!!

Lots of love,
Mama Rachel

Happy Groundhog Day!

Dear sweet peoples,

Well, it has been an in-ter-est-ing week. We have had a house full of sickies, beginning with Davy puking on Monday night, and then most of the rest barfing on Tuesday, with a few stragglers (Dad and Lliam) getting sick later in the week-- just in time for Granna and Pa to come! (Granna and Pa got here on Wednesday morning and just left last night.) Poor Granna did end up sick, but was well enough to go to church with us on Sunday, and to fly home that afternoon.

Goofy me and gorgeous Granna

The laundry room has officially been declared a disaster area. YIKES.

Granna and Pa brought down a moving truck full of things from them and from Grandma Nielsen.
​Wasn't that so sweet of them? We had a great time with them! ​It was like Christmas all over again, but this time with some tears. (From me.) It still doesn't feel like she's gone, but she was such a HUGE part of my life, that I know she will be with me-- and IN me-- always. She set such a wonderful example for me, and I want to be just like her. I want to make her proud of me!

Dierdre and friend serving at the temple.

Dierdre went to the temple to perform baptisms for the dead with her sweet little friend, C---. She got over her sickness just in time to go! She has some great friends in this ward. We are doing all we can to stay!

The stake presentation of "The Ten Virgins" that I'm in runs for three performances THIS SATURDAY!!! I am super, SUPER excited! I am hoping to take lots of pictures and take a video of the show so that I can send it to loved ones, like yourselves. It has been such a huge blessing in my life-- I just don't want it to end! I hope I remember the lessons I am learning from this experience. I want to be one of the WISE!

The kids loved having Granna and Pa here-- Fiona loved them, too, though she does take a while to warm up to people at first. She is such a mama's girl! 

Fiona warmed up to Pa pretty quickly.

She is sooo cute! Her newest thing is to smack her lips after someone kisses her. She is really good at mimicking sounds. And she is standing up and holding on to anything that will stay still. She crawls and babbles-- though she also likes to whisper-- so adorable! 

The kids are running around, playing, fighting, drawing, crafting, reading, some are even studying, and after a week of illness, the house is a disaster. SIGH. Hopefully, I can get them to clean up soon enough to take them all to the library this afternoon. (After the older boys all get HAIRCUTS.)

*They DID earn their library trip last week, in case you were wondering... ;-) )

We love you all!!!
~Mama Rachel

A Fresh, New Year

Goofy selfie with baby Fiona

Dear ones,

I just love new beginnings, don't you?

We had another nice week of vacation, and some New Year's Eve fun-- no fireworks this year! (After Ronan's fireworks accident in July, and Lliam's gunpowder explosion last New Year's, we thought we'd better not tempt fate.)

Fascinating fire, without the BOOM!

So, we lit four paper lantern/balloons, and enjoyed the neighborhood fireworks displays. We also had our traditional "dinner" of appetizers with different cheeses and crackers. The kids were in heaven! (Crackers are a treat around here-- they don't get that that often.)

We spent New Year's Day taking down all the Christmas stuff and packing it up for next Christmas. I didn't even cry this time! ;-)

She's HOME!!!

It has been so nice having Morganne back home. She is so sweet with the little girls, even though they drag her from place to place, all vying for her attention. She fixes their hair and helps with dishes and cooking-- we like it!

Saturday I took some time alone to plan out the new homeschool semester for our family. It was so cool to park in the temple parking lot with the majestic Gilbert temple in front of me, listen to some quiet music, pray and be inspired for this new semester. 

Posing cuties

I'm trying to add a weekly trip to the library on Mondays this semester, but it will all hinge on whether or not the kids get their chores done each Monday. (Our "House Recovery" day.) We shall see how it goes!

Today we have a flurry of room rearranging going on, and trying to get back on our usual schedule. Bonny and Gavin started seminary again today, and so that was good for helping us get up early, and get the day started out right.

Our TJLA classes start up again this Friday, so I have all kinds of administrative stuff to get done. (Ick.) That's not my favorite thing to do, but I am looking forward to my literature class for second semester. Austen and Dickens and Tennyson! WOOT! Lots of good books to come.

Pretty big sisters

I had my first rehearsal for the "Ten Virgins" musical I'm in for the stake. I play the part of the Narrator, and got to sing one of my solos in front of all the other ladies. I was a tiny bit nervous, but also had a great time. We all sound so good together on our group numbers! I am going to try to make sure they film it when we perform. We perform it on Saturday, February 7th. Exciting!

We hope you are all doing well. I have a testimony of the Savior's influence and help in our lives, even when things are hard. I know that Jesus Christ is on my team and He gives me HOPE to make it through whatever comes, even when things are really difficult. He is not standing before me in judgment, no! He is on my side, lifting and carrying my burdens WITH me. Oh, how beautiful that image is to me! His Atonement and love are amazing-- oh, it is wonderful!!!

"I can do all things through Christ, which strengthens me." I know this is TRUE. This is my testimony, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

With so much love,
Mom/Rachel

Aftermath of Christmas

Every Christmas Eve,
our kids love to reenact scenes from the Savior's birth.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

We hope y'all had a great one!

Our favorite presents were having Morganne home with us and being able to talk to our Elder Brennan via Skype. It was so great to have everyone "with" us for Christmas Day!!!

The kids were so excited to welcome home our Sister Keppner!

Brennan looked really great, and it was wonderful to hear his voice and talk to him face to face! He seems to be doing well, and we are so proud of him. We know he loves the Lord and we pray that he is able to keep up all the good work he is doing.

"Teancum and Friends" as Brennan calls his companion and roommates

We've been really enjoying having Daddy home from work for the week. We've had lots of yummy food and treats, but the best thing is being together as a family.

Babies in our new wagon

We did go see some movies on the day after Christmas; Bonny and Dierdre went to see "Into the Woods" with friends, and Morganne, Gavin, and Ronan went together to see it Friday, too. Then Daddy took me to see it that night for our weekly date.

I loved it-- it brought back so many wonderful memories for me. (I played Jack's Mother when our high school performed the musical my senior year.) The movie was really well done, and though they did clean it up quite a bit (Disney released it as PG), it really is NOT a kid movie. But it will be one of those we will look forward to sharing with Brennan when he gets home-- in only ONE YEAR!!! Wow.

Returned with Honor: Our Missionary Morganne is now
home to stay! Here she is with a cake made by her sister Bonny.

Morganne had a nice birthday, I think. She did a really wonderful thing, and told us she didn't want anything for her birthday, but that she would be giving US presents for her birthday. Isn't that so awesome?! She gave us some good books and gave a movie to Lliam. We did end up giving her one present-- Daddy's old iPod Touch. She was tickled pink!

Fiona was not sure about Morganne, at first.

We need to find a few furniture pieces for Morganne, but other than that, she is settling in with us just fine. For the first day or so, Fiona would cry when Morganne held her, but after just two or three days, Fiona adores her.

Fiona is crawling everywhere, and has even started trying to pull up to things like the couch. But then, she doesn't have very good balance, and falls down. :-( She doesn't like that part. 

A seriously cute little Santa

But she's a determined little soul, and so she keeps pushing herself to try new, hard things. I admire her and want to stop her at the same time. The baby years go all too fast!

One thing Morganne REALLY wanted to so on her birthday was to Skype with her friend, T---. For those of you that don't know about him, she met him when she was serving on her mission in the Family History Center in Idaho Falls. He was also serving a mission there, he has cerebral palsy and gets around in a wheelchair. He lives with his parents in --- and ended his mission just before Morganne did.

Morganne, and her friend, T---

Morganne introduced Daddy and I to T---'s parents over Skype and then they were able to talk for quite a while. He seems like a very nice young man. He and Morganne went on a few dates when she was up there, (Two missionaries dating each other-- funny, huh? But it was allowed on her mission.) and he has given her some really nice gifts. We are thinking we may not have heard the last about him. *wink*

Lliam gave Bonny a phone for Christmas. What a kind brother!

In other news, Lliam has decided that it's about time for him to move out, and Russell and I agree. He is taking a big step, trying to support himself and we are nervous and excited for him at the same time. We'll be sure to keep you all updated on that.

Lliam with short hair and happy babies

We love you all, and want you to know that we are so very grateful for each one of you and the good you are doing in the world. We also want you to know that we love our Savior, Jesus Christ, and are so thankful that He has made it possible for us to all be together forever!

With much love, Mama Rachel

December Hustle

Dear ones,

Oh, my-- what a busy week! I'm sure you all feel the same.


The first part of the week was pretty normal, but things sped up from there. TJLA classes ended last Friday, so we didn't have any classes this past week. Bonny and Gavin's seminary class ended for the semester, as did Bonny's dance classes at school. Lliam worked, and the kids made lots of messes. In other words, completely NORMAL!


Homeschool is now officially on break, though December is always slow in the academics department. What else is new?


We have been blessed to be the recipient of the 12 Days of Christmas this year, and we all work hard to NOT catch whoever our kind friends are. We've received treats, toys, yummy homemade bread, lovely decorations, and fun things like playdough for the kids. It is so sweet and makes the holiday even more fun than usual.

Bonny and some Dance class friends

Thursday evening, we ALL traipsed over to Bonny's dance recital-- the first one our WHOLE family has been able to attend, since the other ones from years past always charged mega-bucks for just Daddy and I to attend. It was awesome! Bonny did a really great job-- ballet truly IS her genius! The teacher placed her front and center on the ballet number, and it was GORGEOUS. She is such a lovely dancer!

She has made some good friends in her classes, even though she is one of the oldest students there. It's nice that the school is so small, but the majority of students there are junior high age. I'm going to look into the possibility of some science classes there for her next year. We'll see what she wants to do, and if that's even possible.

Lliam has been working hard in all the holiday rush at a cash register, and does a good job. Unfortunately he got sick, and has not been able to work as much as he would like.


Lliam, Bonny, Dierdre, Dad, and now Ronan all have killer colds, complete with sore throats and lots of coughing. Bonny completely lost her voice, and was not even able to go to church yesterday. The rest of us are taking lots of vitamin C, we all went to bed early last night, and several kids slept all afternoon after church. The house reeks of essential oils, humidifiers are humming, and herbal tea is being consumed at an alarming rate.


Almost all of Friday, I went out shopping, shopping, SHOPPING. It took a lot of time, but we FINALLY got Brennan's missionary package finished and SENT! (Whew!)

Then, that night, Bonny and I went with some homeschooling friends to see "A Christmas Carol" at the Hale Center theatre. (We've been part of a group called "The Statesmanship Club" that Sister W-- has created.) It was really good, and we all agreed that I should direct it in the next few years. We've already practically got it cast! ;-)


After the play, we took the youth to the G--'s for the Ensign Educator's yearly homeschool Christmas party. Bonny came home with me, since she was feeling pretty sickly by then. But Gavin and Didi had a good time. They had a hayride and went caroling.

McKenna and her fellow ballerinas

Saturday morning, Bonny had her recital for all her ballet students. It was cute, and they all did a good job. I think the parents were glad it was short and sweet, and so were we! The girls had a great time, and that's what's most important.

Dierdre and A-- before their dance number

Saturday afternoon, Dad and I braved the crowds and went out shopping until late at night. We are mostly done with everything for Christmas! YAY!!!


Yesterday's Christmas sacrament meeting program went really well, I think. I had more people sing with our choir than have ever sung with the choir in this ward. (So Brother H-- told me.) We sang three songs, with two speakers in between our numbers, and the songs and talks went together perfectly. Heavenly Father is so wonderful, isn't He? Everything in the program was so inspired, and I am constantly amazed at how much the Lord loves us all.


Sadly, Lliam and Bonny were sick, so I left Fiona home with Bonny. Daddy even went home after sacrament meeting, since he was beginning to come down with the ick.


In Relief Society, I sang with some ladies for a special musical number. Sister W--, Sister H--, and Sister W-- (You'll love her when you meet her!) joined me in singing "Candlelight Carol"-- one of my FAVORITES! I think it went well, but most importantly, it brought the Spirit.


I LOVE CHRISTMAS! I am so excited to have my Morgie home with us-- I can't believe her mission is over and she is coming home!!!! And I'm ecstatic to talk to my Elder Brennan on Christmas Day. WAHOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Do we need more exclamation marks? Oh, yes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:-)


We love you all and wish we could have each of you with us, but we are also grateful for the promise of eternal families that we have because of our wonderful Savior, Jesus Christ! My heart is full of joy and hope all because of the sacrifice of our our elder brother.


More than anything else, this Christmas I want to give my family my sure witness and testimony that Jesus Christ is REAL! That He loves us, and that He did all that He did for US. HOSANNAH!!! And Merry Christmas to you all!!!

Love, love, love,
Mama Rachel

Now We Are Six!

"When I was one, I had just begun.

When I was two, I was nearly new.

When I was three, I was hardly me.

When I was four, I was not much more. 

When I was five, I was just alive.

But, now I am six. I'm as clever as clever. I think I'll be six now, forever and ever."

~A.A. Milne

Dear ones,

Avalon turned SIX YEARS OLD last Thursday, and had a good birthday celebration, I think. She got a Tinkerbell barbie, new shoes, birthday money from Grandma, an adorable Cinderella apron from Granna, and lots of fun, little things that little girls like-- especially when it's from the movie "Frozen."

Avalon-- I mean, Cinderella

Avalon danced, and giggled, and sang all day long. Oh the joy of being SIX! She told me that she was just like Eloise-- except not naughty. Hee!

I was good and did not comment...

Bonny made her a beautiful snowflake cake ala "Elsa", and we had a nice time together as a family.

We finished reading "A Wrinkle in Time" out loud as a family. And Mom cried, of course. We just started "Howl's Moving Castle" and are reading our Christmas stories aloud every night. Daddy is looking forward to reading "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" aloud, though I am pulling for "A Christmas Carol," since we never got to that one last year.

This week will be hectic, with Christmas parties, a house inspection, Dad's birthday, and comings and goings of all kinds.

Big brothers make great airplanes.

Lliam's new job at --- is working well, and he enjoys it. It's been very busy there, because of all the Christmas shoppers. Lliam works the register and also helps unload the truck when it comes in. 

Bonny got a new REGULAR job last week! YAY! She has started working as a "mother's helper" for a lady in our ward that lives down the street. She does a bit of everything; babysitting, laundry, cleaning, helping where she's needed. She works there for 3 hours each on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. She still teaches ballet on Tuesdays, and attends dance and ballroom dance classes at --- on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. (There's a new building over by us, now. It's nice!) And she studies and does all her school work beautifully!

She is a responsible, organized girl, or she never could manage everything on her plate. She has big plans for attending BYU, and she is working hard to get there. I'm starting to miss her already!

Dierdre is on fire with family history work, and does some indexing every day. And she loves Pinterest, too. ;-) She is working hard in her Key of Liberty class, and is also doing well in my English Literature class. She has some adorable little friends in Beehives with her, and is really coming into her own. She and Bonny are best buddies, and talk and giggle for hours.

Gavin is going crazy with programming-- he LOVES it! And he is catching the indexing bug, too. He is our resident math guru, and loves taking his turn on the computer so he can do math and programming. And he's GOOD. Dad is taking him under his wing, and helping him understand anything he doesn't pick up on. He is moving at a tremendous pace, and I think Daddy is glad to have another programmer in the house. :-D

Ronan is busy taking everything apart that he can get his hands on. Unfortunately, he can't always put it back together! Last night, he figured out how to make a homemade machine work with wires and batteries. But then he got shocked a bit. Luckily, Dad stopped him before he tried to open up an old computer monitor. Those are dangerous; even Dad doesn't mess with them. He is also still Lego crazy, and designs and builds new things all the time.

Sleeping Beauties

MacKenna is reading so beautifully. She reads aloud to me from the Book of Mormon every night, and I can see her improvement every day.

Grayse is becoming quite the artist. She's really good! And she LOVES baby Fiona, and carries her all around the house.

Eryn is growing up so fast. She is doing better about sucking her fingers, but when she gets sleepy, she still can't seem to help it. It's so cute; when Fiona cries, Eryn will come running with her blanket to try to soothe her. LOL!

Davy boy is so excited about EVERYTHING, especially about getting into mischief. He adores Fiona, but sometimes loves on her a bit too much-- which she does not appreciate.

He talks up a storm, and has the clearest little voice. Now, if we could get him to stop screaming: in happiness, enthusiasm, frustration, for anything! It's cute, but only for so long. And he inherited that piercing, ear-splitting scream that Gavin used to have and the little girls all have.

"Oh, the noise, noise, noise, NOISE!" ;-)

Big sisters like to dress up babies

Fiona is now CRAWLING. She is also an expert in her baby walker, and loves to talk, sing, and bang on everything. She is constantly making sounds to match the kids. She will try whatever sounds those around her are making. She will be an early talker, for sure.

We love you all!!! We wish you the peace, love and joy of the Savior, Jesus Christ. We are so grateful for Him and his beautiful example, teachings, and sacrifice.

We have so many reasons to rejoice!!! We hope you are all having a lovely Christmas season, and that you feel the Savior's love every day.

Love, Mama Rachel

December Cometh!

Dear ones,

We had a great week, and a blessed Thanksgiving. We hope you all had the same!

The week started out slow, but then picked up steam as it went on.

Early in the week, I found out that I got a part in the Stake Relief Society musical! Wahoo! I will be playing the part of the Narrator (two solos! O.o) in a musical about the parable of the Ten Virgins. The music is beautiful, and I'm excited to get started! We perform it in February at a stake Relief Society activity.

I'm thrilled for the chance to play the Narrator!

On Wednesday, Bonny and Dierdre went to the temple with some friends that just moved from our ward. I watched the family's younger kids while they went. The girls had a great time! 

Bonny and friend

Thursday was Thanksgiving, of course, and Daddy, Lliam, Bonny, Dierdre, and I had a good time cooking, baking, and getting ready. Dad tried a new way to cook the turkey, but we cooked another 20+ pounder, so it took longer than we had hoped. (Typical, right? LOL!)

Thanksgiving action shot!

Bonny and Dierdre did all the pies, Lliam did the potatoes, and Dad and I did the rest. It was yummy! We hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving celebration, too. :-)

Happy Birthday to our Didi!

Friday was our Dierdre's birthday! Can you believe she's 13?! She and Bonny spent a good part of the morning setting up Pinterest and Gmail accounts for her. (She's decided she doesn't want a Facebook account. Which works because we're on a FB fast, anyway.)

13 Candles

We also spent Friday putting up all the Christmas decorations. YAY!!! In fact, Daddy and I actually got a NEW TREE! I know, I know. It's a miracle! It's a 7 foot tall wonder that looks the closest to real we've ever had. (Daddy and I ventured out on Black Friday to get it half off.)

A new tree!

Saturday was full of service for the youth, first cleaning the church, and then helping the C--- family move. Lliam also had his trek reunion on Saturday night, so he actually got to spend some time with Mark!


Mark looks great. He is so excited to leave for the MTC in the middle of this month. Hong Kong won't know what hit it! ;-) I know he's going to be a great missionary! He even took this semester off from college! I wish he and Lliam could get together more.


Sunday was lovely. Lliam had a meeting for his new job early on Sunday morning before church. He starts work at The Dollar Tree TODAY! He is excited to have a regular, non-temporary job. He was given a new bike by Brother C--- when he helped them move this weekend, so between the bike and his longboard, he's all set!


The kids and I are in full Christmas-happy-mode, listening to lots of Christmas music. (Look for something special in the mail this week, Elder Keppner!!!) They're all begging to go Christmas shopping, and some even have their shopping for siblings all done. Christmas will be here before we know it! (Yikes-- I need to get busy!)

Happy baby!

We look forward to having Morgie home for Christmas. Her ticket is bought, and we're trying to figure out how to rearrange rooms. We're also excited to be able to Skype with our Elder on Christmas day!!!

HALLELUJAH!!!! And Happy December, y'all! We love you!!!

Love,
Mama Rachel