Ready, Set ...

Heya ... so here's our new address: 777 Hoopes, Apt. G-108, Idaho Falls, ID 83401 ... We're in the same zip code as most of you! Can you believe it? They are the 'Meadows' apartments off of Woodruff ... Pretty easy to find. Between 17th and John Adams Pkway ... and we'll have a POOL! So party at our house - anytime! Today is my last (technical) day of work here at the office ... Next week, we're packing up, and the next week, we're headed your way! See you soon! Love ya, C & J

Windows to Heaven ...

Ahhh ... what a wonderful weekend. I hope everyone is doing well ... what a wonderful opportunity to listen to our new prophet. Tears fill my eyes with the perfect brightness of hope ... I'm so grateful that Heavenly Father loves us enough to share with us His sweet messages of hope and love and comfort and guidance through those chosen to speak with us over the last two days. I'm grateful for my family! I love each of you SO much. I know I blather on like an idiot sometimes, but my heart is full and I'm sorry that you have to read the overflow ... Ha, ha ... I'm sure you'll get over it. Right then ... have a wonderful week! See most of you this weekend!

Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!

Hey Ashley! We hope your first birthday was full of fun, crazy, giggle-filled moments!
We love you!

34 Days and Counting ...

... Hee hee hee! I'm so excited ... (I'm doing a little dance that I'm sure none of you want to see!)

This Easter ...

"At this wonderful season of hope and renewal we testify of the glorious reality of the atonement and resurrection of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Of all the victories in human history, none is so great, none so universal in its effect, none so everlasting in its consequences as the victory of the crucified Lord, who came forth in the resurrection that first Easter morning." — The First Presidency, 2008

Our primary lesson last Sunday was, of course, about the Resurrection. How incomprehensible ... this gift we've been given. How grateful I am that we grew up in a home where we learned the true meaning of Easter. I remember getting up early a few Easter mornings to watch the sunrise with dad. I think I only did that a few times because, as a teenager, I guess I thought sleep was more important. Knowing (now) the importance of what dad was trying to teach us ... I wish I'd gotten up early EVERY year. If we only knew then what we know now, huh? I think we'll get up early this year ...

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend thinking about our Savior. We sure miss you all! Give all the kids hugs from Jim and me. I hope the easter egg hunt was a blast!

Happy Birthday Lucas Bruce!!!

Happy 2nd Birthday Lukey!!! I hope your day is full of fun and wonderful surprises! I'm so glad to have you in my life sweet boy!

Happy Birthday Koby & Kamri ...

So I'm going through some old files ... and look at the cuteness that I found!!! I can't believe how little Kamri and Koby were in these pictures (taken in 2003) ... SO stinkin' cute. I can't believe they turn seven this week! It's unbelievable! HAPPY BIRTHDAY you cutie-patooties. I love you so much!

Okay ... Here's the deal.

So now it's "Idaho Falls or Bust!" We've already scheduled the moving truck, so it's pretty much a done deal. We're taking another huge leap o' faith and moving home the last week in April.

Our landlord and he wife need to move back into 'our' lovely, little home. We're pretty sad to leave what has been our safe-haven and sanctuary up here, but we're excited to make the move down south. We've been praying about what to do, and when Roy called us on Saturday, that helped to answer our prayers.

We'll keep ya posted ... but we can't wait to get settled and have all of you over for dinner or just a big old party ... Tell the kids that now we can have sleep-overs at our house! (Hey, that's kinda fun to say!)

Thanks everybody, for your never-ending support. Love ya, see you soon!

Finally ...

I changed our blog to be 'custom' just like the rest of all y'all ... Thanks for making me look bad for SO long! I can't scrapbook, so I had to take some pics and do a little photoshoppin' ... Let me know if looks funny when it loads, will ya? Love all o' yer guts.

Sisters ...

A friend just sent me this email about sisters ... Made me smile
and think of my beautiful mom and my four sisters ... I love each
of you so much ... and I appreciate having you in my life!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A young wife sat on a sofa on a hot humid day,
drinking lemonade and visiting with her Mother. As
they talked about life, about marriage, about the
responsibilities of life and the obligations of
adulthood, the mother clinked the ice cubes in her
glass thoughtfully and turned and looked at her daughter.

'Don't forget your Sisters,' she advised, swirling glass.
'They'll be more important as you get older. No matter how
much you love your husband, no matter how much you
love the children you may have, you are still going
to need Sisters. Remember to go places with them now
and then; do things with them.'

'Remember that 'Sisters' means ALL the women...
your girlfriends, your daughters, your mom and all your other
women relatives too. 'You'll need other women. Women
always do.'

What a funny piece of advice!' the young woman
thought. Haven't I just gotten married?
Haven't I just joined the couple-world? I'm now a
married woman, for goodness sake! A grownup! Surely
my husband and the family we may start will be all I
need to make my life worthwhile!'

But she listened to her Mother. She kept contact
with her Sisters and made more women friends each
year. As the years tumbled by, one after another,
she gradually came to understand that her Mom really
knew what she was talking about. As time and nature
work their changes and their mysteries upon a woman,
Sisters are the mainstays of her life.

After more than 50 years of living in this world,
here is what I've learned:

Time passes.
Trials challenge.
Distance separates.
Children grow up.
Jobs come and go.
Love waxes and wanes.
Hearts break.
Colleagues forget favors.
Careers end.

BUT......... Sisters are there, no matter how much time
and how many miles are between you. A sister is never
farther away than needing her can reach.

When you have to walk that lonesome valley and you
have to walk it by yourself, the women in your life
will be on the valley's rim, cheering you on,
praying for you, pulling for you, intervening on
your behalf, and waiting with open arms at the
valley's end.

Sometimes, they will even break the rules and walk
beside you...Or come in and carry you out.

The world wouldn't be the same without women, and
neither would I. When we began this adventure called
womanhood, we had no idea of the incredible joys or
sorrows that lay ahead. Nor did we know how much we
would need each other.

Do You Ever ...

... have a day when you feel as though you're about ready to lose it? Or when you have to deal with someone so ignorant, that you struggle to find words small enough for them to comprehend? Do you ever get so angry that you just want to spout off and tell them EXACTLY what you think of them? Ahhh .... today was the day. But, not to worry - I didn't.

To let some built-up anger "go"... I've been counting my blessings. I am so VERY GRATEFUL for all of the blessings in my life ... and my family is at the top of the list ... so Sweetheart, Reu, Mumsy, Rybo, Lori-Bob, Jax-Man, Jaker, Mah-li, Sweet Conor, Renner, Marky, Lukey Duke, Kimmer, Rodney George, Kób, Kamri Lyn, ZiZi, Darling Hailey, Ricker, Messa, Jess and Ashey ... THANK YOU for helping me 'get over it' ... it's hard to be angry when I think of each of your beautiful faces ... I love you all SO much!

Tribute to President Hinckley

I'm sure you've all seen different tributes to President Hinckley ... here's a beautiful five minute tribute if you'd like to watch ...

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7433508959787481703&hl=en

The Hinckley Challenge ...

Hi everyone, I found this website: www.hinckleychallenge.com this afternoon and would love to invite everyone to read the Book of Mormon in 97 days ... in honor of our much loved President Hinckley. I've pasted the information from the site below ... you can log in and sign-up and accept the challenge if you wish! You can also track your progress on the site ...

Also, I heard that there will be broadcast tomorrow (Monday morning) at 10AM in regard to the new First Presidency. I love you all! — Carrie
__________________________________________________________________

Taken from the website: www.hinckleychallenge.com ... As of today, you must read 5.42 pages/day to finish by May 11, 2008

President Hinckley often stressed our making the Book of Mormon part of our lives. He was 97 when he passed away, and we would like to celebrate his life and teachings by reading the Book of Mormon in 97 days.

President Gordon B. Hinckley on the Book of Mormon:

"I take in my hand the Book of Mormon. I read its words. I have read Joseph Smith's explanation of how it came to be. To the unbelieving it is a story difficult to accept, and critics for generations have worn out their lives writing books intended to refute that story and to offer other explanations than the one given by Joseph the Prophet. But to the open-minded, this critical writing has only stimulated them to dig deeper; and the more deeply they dig, the greater the accumulation of evidence for the validity of Joseph Smith's story. Still, as has been demonstrated for a hundred and fifty years, the truth of the Book of Mormon will not be determined by literary analysis or by scientific research, although these continue to be reassuring. The truth about the origins of the Book of Mormon will be determined today and tomorrow, as it has been throughout the yesterdays, by reading the book in a spirit of reverence and respect and prayer." — ("Praise to the Man," Ensign, Aug. 1983, 4)

Before/After

Just to give ya an idea ... here is our little picnic table (with a flower pot on top of it) ... 'before' taken after the snowfall on Sunday, and the 'after' which I took this morning about 8:00 AM ... this is hilarious!

... More Snow ...

Okay, here are some more fun pictures of the never-ending snow fall ... we got another 7" last night ... to add to the already 20" we got on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. There's so much snow, even when they plow, there is no where to put it - so it's just sitting in the middle of the streets.

Jim usually goes out the back door to work, but as you'll see, the back door is completely blocked. The snow is so heavy on our big trees, that this HUGE branch broke off some time during the night ... it's CRAZY! Jim had to go out the front this morning, and will have to use a chainsaw to break the branch down in order to get it out of the yard. Oh my!!!

Beloved President Hinckley ...

Dad just called with the bittersweet news that President Hinckley passed away this evening ... I am so sad that he's no longer here with us, but I am so happy for him ... to return to our Father in Heaven, to have so beautifully passed the test of mortality and to be reunited with his sweet wife ... I'm certain there is much rejoicing to have his humble spirit home ... I loved President Hinckley so much! I am so very grateful to have lived on this earth under his stewardship ... what an honor and a privilege!

I was sitting here typing this and saw my copy of "Stand A Little Taller", and I couldn't help but smile when I opened it and glanced through a few pages and read one of our family's favorite scriptures ... "A new commandment I give unto you, That you love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." - John 13:34 ... to which President Hinkley added, "Let us from this day forward be a little better, love one another a little more, treat one another with great kindness and look to God and live." ... that pretty much says it all.

Last Minute Cookies ...

I made some cookies for Jim to take to work tomorrow, as a 'thank you' to some of his co-workers ... And because I didn't have much advanced notice and I didn't want to make another trip to the store this weekend — I just baked off some cookie dough (that I'd made earlier and had frozen in single scoop portions) ... and threw some melted chocolate on them. Literally! It only took about an hour - super easy, and super sneaky!

Let it Snow ...

... It's been snowing non-stop for the past 36 hours ... It's so crazy, it's hilarious. I know we're all used to snow like this - but they say it hasn't snowed this much in Coeur d'Alene since 1992! Ha ha ha ... it's pretty amazing ... Jim and I 4x4'd (is that even the right term!??!) to church this morning and saw so many fun sights along the way that after church we came home and grabbed the camera ...

hApPy BiRtHdAy eRniE!!!

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me HAPEEE when skies are gray ..." Happy Birthday my beautiful sister. I love you more than words can say. You make me laugh, you make me cry ... You make my life so much sweeter ... I love you bunches and tons! And for the next few months — you're only one year behind me ... ha ha ha ha ha ... ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ... (this is one of the laughing times) ... ha ha ha ha ha ha!

... Icicles ...

Okay, these are the weirdest icicles I've ever seen. They're coming off the front of our house ... but as you'll notice, there are two rows of them - pointing in two different directions. Because we have a metal roof, they freeze in place and then as the metal heats up during the day, they slide and 'curl' under the roof, without falling off ... so when more icicles form - pointing toward the ground, you've got the 'curled' set that are now facing the house ... and then the new set that are facing the ground ... so weird ... had to snag a photo to share ...

... The Santa Cruise ...

So every year ... Santa and Mrs. Claus bring the North Pole to Lake Coeur d'Alene and welcome boats to come and visit ... the ships fill with children (young and old) at the resort, and then it's a fifteen minute boat ride out to the North Pole ... It's after dark, so as you look back at CDA, you see all the lights in the marina ... and as you get out to the North Pole, Santa reads off his "nice" list and just happens to name everyone on the boat! (They get a list of passengers ahead of time, and 'Santa' is a good friend of ours in the ward ... so when he got to Jim's name, he mentioned, "I'm not sure if he's on the right list" ... it was pretty funny) ... it's mostly for the kids, but our good friends, the Clark's, took us and Jim's parents with them and their kids to visit the 'North Pole' ... it was a blast!

... A Visit with Jim's Mom & Dad ...

Here are some fun pictures of Jim's mom and dad that we took while they were here ... They came to visit the week before Christmas, and it was so nice to have them here! We don't get to see them very often ... so we made good use of the six days they were here. We had Christmas a bit early and without mom's help, I wouldn't have been able to prepare for Sharing Time in such an expeditious manner! Whew! She was amazing! We were so grateful to them for coming to share the snow and lots of fun memories with us...