The New Chapter.....

The big question today at work was, "Where are you moving to?"  My answer....

Charleston, West Virginia  - the capitol of the state.  About 2 1/2 hrs from Jason's hometown of Wheeling and just a few hours from my brother Nate and his family.  Finding jobs, a home for our family, selling our home in South Dakota, getting the kids settled into new schools and neighborhoods, finding the ward building and our new bishop are just a few stressful things that have been on my mind for a few months now with the added stress of not being able to tell anyone - hardest thing for me!! 

Suprisingly, with prayer and faith, everything has fallen right into place all in the right time. 

On the 7th of March, I leave for WV. 

Many tears have been shed at the thought of leaving my family behind to finish the school year, and leaving my second family at Ruby Tuesday.  I had no idea how sad some of them would be.  Today was life changing.  I settled on a date, gave my notice to my boss, and began to let my staff know. 

All this time I have been waiting for the day I would truely be excited, and finally

 I can say...today is that day!

"West Virginia is known for its fun outdoor recreation. From hiking and biking to skiing and whitewater rafting, West Virginia has everything to offer. These recreational activities provide great vacation ideas and are fun for the whole family. Paddle through the morning mist on rivers or lakes, jet along the white water rapids, take a journey through the mountains on the various scenic trails, or kick back and enjoy the sparkling night sky. Relax in thousands of acres of well kept parks or enjoy many of the different accommodations that we have to offer. Charleston offers mile upon mile of unspoiled, breathtaking splendor season after season."

Emily Made Out....

When Trenten went to buy roses for his girlfriend for Valentine's Day, he returned home with roses for Emily.  She was so suprised and happy.  But Trent doesn't get credit for all these roses, some came from Jason and I.  Emily had a choir concert tonight that the fourth and fifth graders had been working on putting together all school year.  Finally, we were able to hear them sing.  What an exciting concert they had - made my choir concerts seem like snore-a thons.  They were in black and white and used a black light for a song, had glow in the dark bracelets and sang in the dark for another, and had hats and props.  They sang songs from Phineas and Ferb, Shake It Up (Disney), and Fireflies to name a few.  They were so much fun to watch.  The High School auditorium was packed!  Standing room only.  She had a great time and was so suprised to see we had brought her flowers.  She added them to the ones Trent bought her and I grabbed a few photos.....



A Letter From Mom...

As I studied and prepared this last week for my lesson in Relief Society  (having a Testimony of Jesus Christ), I once again came across Mom's letter that she wrote to me when I was 16.  That summer our ward was attending a Youth Conference - the most memorable one that I can remember.  It was one that as youth, we were organized and separated  into "families"(given a set of parents to guide each group) and we camped in family groups given challenges throughout the week.  One of our challenges as a family was to hike into a wooded area, find a quiet spot, and stop to think about our own personal testimony of our  Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  Within a little while, one of our leaders gave each of us a letter, written before the conference, by each one of our parents, bearing their own testimonies and telling each one of us how much we were loved. I did not realize at the time how profound this letter would be in my own life.

I have referenced it many times in my lessons in Releif Society.  More important to me now, is the knowlege that my mother had such a strong testimony of the gospel.  Now that she has passed away, it is one of my most prized posesssions, reading it over and over knowing that what she wrote would be exactly what she would tell me if she were still here in times of wavering strength and struggling faith.  Along side my partiarticle blessing, this letter gives me the motivation and determination to return to my  Heavenly Father and desire to have an eternal family.  Someday I will see her smiling face, and will thank her for writing

 that letter to me 23 years ago.  She will probably never know the

eternal effects she had on my life when she sat down, probably at the end  of a

 bustling busy day, with a task given to write a letter to her teenage daughter.   

Just one of my favorite pictures of Mom.......

Family Favorites

So here are some photos that didn't make it to our Christmas Card - the rejects.  Funny how I didn't like them at the time, but are fun to look at now!

A Place We Call Home

Someday we will move from this home.  It has been an amazing house to raise our family in for the past few years.  To think that another family will occupy the home we built makes me a little sad considering we changed so many things in the layout to fit our family needs.  Just a few pictures to bring back memories. 

Dog and Gecko

Toby is 5 - probably the sweetest dog we've ever had.  Gage - our German Shorthair Pointer is trouble (he's only one) so maybe I'll post pictures of him another day.  Toby is kind and has never given us any trouble.  Probably the only issue we have with him is his

 excitement when visitors come over.  Oh how he loves visitors and attention!

Reggie is Trent's Gecko.  He is a year old and a pain in my behind!  That's it - he's a pain...

Emily Sleeping

There is something so amazing about them sleeping.  I don't know if it is because of the silence or how innocent they seem, what ever it is, I love taking pictures of them sleeping. 

I bought Emily this hat and from the minute the cashier scanned it until the next morning it did not come off her head.  I guess she likes it!  Who would have thought.....pink sock monkey hat would make a 10 year old so happy.

Reason To Shoot!

I am very quickly learning there is not enough time in the day. 

 Looking back, I was dying to buy my DSLR and now I hardly use it. 

 The camera on my Razor is great and I always have my

 cell in my purse, so more often than not I it instead. 

I am so in love with my cousin Meg Clifford's blog site.  She is a photographer - and not only does she prove what a great wife and mother she is, she takes amazing photos. 

 Only wish I lived closer so that I could get some great tips and learn how

 to use this darn camera. 

My new goal (mostly to push myself into leaning how to take great pictures) is to have a theme each week and start it on Monday.  Hopefully I can capture some great photos and figure all this out.  (Plus maybe my husband will be a little more at peace

with the money spent on my new toy!)

FOTO themes for 2012

the human environment
local streetscape
famous places
bridges
the automobile
planes & trains
cooking
dining out
urban macro
children
elders
in the workplace
paganism & religion
city hall
at home
abandoned and discarded
high tech
the hospital
paint
advertising
steel & glass
sports
shopping
music
sculpture & monuments
paths
vacation
bath-time
humour
skyline
neon
graffiti & street art
churches & graveyards
metal
travel
signs
party time!
family
student days
fashion shot
crime and crime-fighting
other photographers

seasonal
Christmas
Easter
Labour Day
Hallowe'en
Festival of Light
New Year's Day
spring
summer
autumn
winter
time

nature
sky and cloud
water in motion
underwater
weather
wild outdoors
nature macro
domestic animals
wildlife
at the park
mountains & valleys
in the garden
play of light
hands
eyes
hair
arms and legs
flowers
trees and wood
fog and mist

time of day
sunset
sunrise
morning
evening
twilight
night

emotions
peace & tranquility
strife & war
happiness
sadness
love
hate
power & control
solitude
friendship
death & rebirth
fear & unease

form & techniques
circles
movement
openings
barriers
filtered
simplicity
long exposure
flash
illusionist
double exposure
self-portrait
HDR
chaos
repetition
photojournalism
contrast
symmetry
spirals
reflection
distortion
the S curve
Rule Of Thirds
in the movies
negative space
upside down
depth of field
unusual perspective
vanishing point
texture
silhouettes
shadows
exactly seven
out of place
transparency
trashed and grunge

colors
red
orange
green
yellow
blue
violet
mostly black
mostly white
complementary colours
contrasting colours