Home again, home again...

Just a quick update: Alex is home on medical release for a little while so we can get her better. Just thought y'all might like to know. To learn more, go to her missionary blog: indianaadventure.blogspot.com

Lost or not, that is the question

For FHE last Monday we went to the corn maze. It was such an absolutely fun time!!

The kids (Wesley really was happy)

Caurn, caurn and....

more caurn.

On my own... (isn't there a song?)

Determining if we are lost or not

LOST?!?

It was so much fun!!! It was fun to be with the family.
I loved being outside!! It was just so beautiful!!
I love this earth!!!! :D

A weekend at Yellowstone

Last weekend we went to Yellowstone with my family! It was so much fun!! I love being with my cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents. We always have a blast!

O' Faithful - we saw her blow TWICE

Just a geyser

I love the sky!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A bison - the first of my "favoritest" animals that we saw

A bald eagle!!! Seeing it totally made my day!!!
(another "favoritest" animal)

A baby bald eagle (it hasn't gone "bald" yet) :)

A bison crossing the road

The Upper Falls (I don't know how this picture is supposed to go but isn't the water BEAUTIFUL?!?)

Me and Upper Falls

A rainbow at Upper Falls

A white elk (at Bear World)

A white wolf (at Bear World). Two white animals. WOW!!

A cute, cuddly bear!! OOHH!

Another adorable bear!!! (double AH!!)

NO MORE PICTURES!!!! PLEASE!!!! (um... sideways)

Some cubs fighting!!

More fighting (they must be siblings)

A moose!!! (the last of my "favoritest" animals that we saw!)

I loved being out in nature and seeing all of God's wonderful creations!! All the trees, plants, animals, the sky. You can just feel God's overwhelming love for you!! I love this earth!!! And I love the God that created it all!!!! :D

My cousin passed away last week. It has been a really hard week. It's really sad that you never know how truly amazing a person is until they die. I will miss him so very much!! And I will be forever grateful for his extraordinary example!!
I wrote this poem for him...

The Quiet Giant
Dedicated to Robert Mack McConkie
Written by Mackenzie Smith
August 27, 2009

In life there are quiet giants,
Who go struggling through their lives,
Trying to get through it,
Trying to survive.

But in amidst the struggle,
The crying and the pain,
There is something amazing,
That they seem to gain.

They gain a strength inside them,
A power that’s within,
They realize they have power,
To begin again.

They change into a person,
Who is strong and kind and true,
They find what’s deep inside them,
Something they never knew.

These quiet kinds of giants,
They do so many deeds,
They help so many people,
And fill so many needs.

They’re always helping others,
Never seeking fame,
Doing good things as they go,
Rarely leaving a name.

You may not ever notice,
These quiet giants’ ways,
But they leave their mark among us,
Every single day.

Now, these quiet giants,
They begin a lot like us,
But in their times of trials,
They grow and grow so much.

When they one day leave us,
We realize how very much,
They helped us in our hard times,
With their quiet, gentle touch.

Of all those quiet giants
With many different names,
There was one among us,
One that we gladly claim.

Our brother, cousin, child,
Grandson, helper, friend,
Let us do service like he did,
So his influence has no end.

I am determined that I will be a better person,
because of him!!

I love you, Robert!!!

A house show

I have a great friend that writes her own songs. Her songs are so inspiring!!! She has such an amazing voice and plays the guitar so wonderfully. It's always such a pleasure to listen to her. Well, last Friday we had a house show for her and it was GREAT!!!!
She is actually recording a CD and it's coming out in October!! I'm so excited!!!

Sarah and her guitar

Jonathan, her cousin, was the drummer

Thank you Sarah and Jonathan!!
It was a fun evening!! :D

I'm back!!!!!

My week without the computer is up! YES!!

The missionary week started out well. I would get up early, do my "spiritual" stuff and everything was going pretty smooth. It was hard to constantly see the computer and not be able to do anything on it. A few days into the week I got sick and so I pretty much dashed all the "missionary rules" except the computer one. But everyone kept asking me questions about the computer, to fix problems and how-to stuff (you'd think I was some computer genius with all the problems and questions I get) and it was SO hard to not be able to get on it and fix them. I'm a hands-on person and sometimes people can be SO slow when I give them instructions that several times I thought I would just DIE. But I didn't (as you can see). And then one day there was something that I had to do ON the computer for Alex, or at least, to send to her. So I decided that I would not get on the internet all week (except this one time to try and fix a problem). And that went pretty well as well. And so my week is up!! And I survived!! I feel like I held my breath for a week and just let it out. I LOVE the computer!! It's great to be back!! But really, it wasn't THAT bad.

Oh, also, about my wisdom teeth. I got an infection two weeks ago. It started hurting on a Sunday and I just thought it was stiffness. The next day I went to Singles Ward FHE and came home early because it hurt so bad. When I got home I was swollen huge. We went to the doctor the next day and, for sure, it was an infection. He had to open it and flush it and I almost passed out!!! It hurt so bad!!! He didn't even flush it a second time with water because I was in so much pain. So I got more pain meds and antibiotics for the infection. I had to keep the wound open so it would heal inside. A painful process but its all healed now and I'm better!!

And I think that's it!! It's good to be back!!!

Signing off (for a week)

I'm going to take a week off from the computer. (gasp! NOOOOO!) I don't know if I'll be able to make it or if I will just pass out from the struggle but I'm going to try. It's for this missionary challenge thing a friend did for seminary minus a few things (to find out more, click here). It's going to be kinda hard but so worth it. Wish me luck and I will be back in a week to report (if I'm still conscious, that is).

The weeds always look bigger
on the other side of the fence

All the time I weeded today the chickens kept sticking their head through the fence. So funny because there aren't any weeds next to the fence but they would do it anyway. So we decided to give them a reason to actually do it.

Last Girl's Camp

So, July 8-11 was Girl's Camp. It was my last year. :( But it was GREAT!!! It was such a care-free, relaxing time!! I loved every minute of it! We did so many fun things. We did crafts, skits, sang camp songs, talked, and laughed.
We went to Beaver Mountain and stayed in the yurt. All the leaders and girls in the yurt was quite an experience. The last night there was constant laughing for probably an hour. We just couldn't stop.
We also went on a 5 mile hike. It was BEAUTIFUL!! But kinda painful because I had a bruise under my toenail and got a blister the size of a quarter. But the view at the end was worth it.

Singing camp songs

just hangin' out

Our "battle" with marshmallows and PVC pipes

Attacking Sis. Haynie, our camp director

The hike

The view

A columbine on the hike

A tree...

just laughin' :D
Such fun, such great memories.

...heard this?

Have you ever heard the song "Any Day Now" from "Fiddler on the Roof"? It was what Perchick was going to sing to Hodel after he proposed to her. Originally it was going to be "Now I have Everything" but that was taken out and replaced with "Any Day Now." It was recorded but taken out of the show before it was filmed. I just love this song!!!

Enjoy!!!

Wisdom Teeth update

So, its been a week since I've had my wisdom teeth out and what a week! The week was full of nauseousness, pain meds, a swollen face, soft food, a stiff jaw, sleep and movies.
Just a little info - all four (4) of my wisdom teeth were impacted!!! Talk about "ouch." But I'm off the pain meds!! My jaw is just a little stiff and can open it about... hmm... maybe 1/2 an inch.

But I'm almost not swollen!!! HOORAY!!!!

Wisdom Teeth

So... I'm going to get my (4) wisdom teeth out tomorrow. I'm SOOOO SCARED!!!!! The doctor, because I'm... older and because I have all four, didn't spare me any info on what could go wrong. And my siblings that have already had them out have had pretty bad times so I'm not looking forward to it. But the good things is that, since I went to girls camp last week and didn't get alot of sleep, I will be able to sleep - ALOT!!! And I get to watch ATON of movies.

I just wanted to tell y'all - I'M SUPER NERVOUS!!!
That's all.

We got our first letter
from Alex!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's great to hear from her and know that she is loving it!

p.s. her missionary blog is indianaadventure.blogspot.com/

my RANDOM thoughts on gardening...

I think that no matter how old or infirm I may become, I will always plant a large garden in the spring. Who can resist the feelings of hope and joy that one gets from participating in nature's rebirth?

~Edward Giobbi

True, true.
Well, two Saturdays ago, we planted our garden. You see, we had our plants ready but we procrastinated, procrastinated and... procrastinated. Then it hailed really bad (most of our neighbors garden were destroyed). Then it rain, as most people said, for 40 days and 40 nights. oh, so much rain!!!! As you can see, we never had a chance to get the garden in (sheepish grin). So the night before before our friends came up for Alex's farewell, we stayed up late (9 o'clock) planting most of the garden. My dad had to shine a light on us so we could see what we were doing. So most of our garden is in.
And you know you have good friends when this is what they do when they come up for a "stay" at your house...

... so your yard could be ready for the farewell the next day,
even though it was raining.

This is my prayer now...

"I know that my Redeemer Lives" but do I really have to play (again)?

The rest of the story...
Seminary graduation was over. I was so relieved! I really liked the song I played but I didn't want to play it again for quite some time. It was over and I was done!
Well, one night we were playing the game Risk as a family and the phone rings. Need I say that... it was for me. (sigh) And it was a counselor in our Bishopric. (double sigh) He, in a round about way, asked me to play the song I had played at seminary graduation the next Sunday for Ali's farewell. Now, my mom had always taught me that you never say no to a church calling, or a talk, or a prayer. In other words, don't say no to a member of the Bishopric. (oh NO!) Because that principle was so ingrained in me I reluctantly said "yes." These were my thoughts - "I've played it before. It's just my own ward. I know pretty much everyone there. I'M NOT THAT NERVOUS." HA! Was I wrong or what!
I went to practice it on the piano in the chapel the Saturday before and, boy, was I nervous. I could hardly play it. I thought I could do it without God's help and I was so wrong. I was nervous, shaking and panicking (to say the least). I knew I was going to completely slaughter it. I had no right to ask God to help me the last minute. But I did ask for His help. I prayed so hard. I knew that it was Him that had made it go so well before. And I knew that I could not do it without Him.
The next day (which was Sunday) I went early to church so I could practice some more. I still was so nervous. I messed up so bad. But I trusted that God would be with me. When the time came I went up there, sat down and played. It went so well. Oh, it sounded so beautiful. But for a second I thought "I'm doing so well." And, well, I played a note wrong in the last chord. I went back to my seat and was shaking so bad. I knew that God had helped me. I hadn't deserved it but He had helped me. I had thought I could do it on my own and I was mistaken. Even though I had played the last note wrong, God had helped me and I was so grateful for that.
After the meeting was over I went up to my piano teacher, who was there to hear Alex, and I told her that I had played the last note wrong and she said that she could not tell. I thought "If my piano teacher couldn't tell then, wow, no one must have." So many people came up and said that it was wonderful, beautiful and great. My Aunt Zell said that she just loved that song and she had heard it twice! One uncle said that I did so well and it almost made him cry. One lady from the ward said that it was "straight from Heaven."
Even though I didn't deserve God's help, He did help me. I know that God loves me. I know that God won't leave us to fend for ourselves. If He sees you to it, He'll see you through it. I know that God wants to help us in our lives. I know that He will help us through anything. He is our Father and He loves us so very much. I want to always trust in Him, always love Him and do what He asks me to do, no matter how hard it is, because He will not leave me alone.
I know that Christ lives! I know that He loves us so much. I know that the Atonement is real and because of that we can repent, change and become better. I'm so very grateful for it. And I'm grateful for these experiences. They have helped me grow and trust God more.

I know that they live!!

"I know that my Redeemer lives" but do I really have to play?

So I played the piano for seminary graduation AND Ali's farewell.

Here is the first part of the story...
It was about 2 weeks before the seminary graduation. Ali had given a talk for hers and I thought it would be kinda fun if I gave one too but since it was really close I thought "there is no way I'm going to do anything." So I wasn't expecting anything. Well, next thing I know I get a call from this girl who I have no clue who she was and she asks me to play a musical number for the graduation. I seriously didn't know what to think (or say). I'm sure I was silent for at least a whole ENTIRE minute as I thought about what she was telling me and what to say. So I told her yes (very hesitantly) and told her I would call her to tell her what song I would play.
I scrounged around looking for something to play. I finally picked a piece that was fairly easy because I knew that would probably be so nervous that I could hardly play it and also because it was the song that I could be the most expressive in. After I found the piece I was going to call the girl but because I was in so much shock when I got the call, I could not remember her name and couldn't find her number. So I had to call a counselor in the Stake Presidency to get her info. I didn't feel too confident with the piece because when I played it, it was only about about 2 1/2 minutes long. So I asked him if it would be okay so short. He asked what it was and I told him "I Know that My Redeemer Lives". He told me, in his quiet, calm voice, "that will be wonderful." I can't tell you how happy those few words made me feel.
So, I called her, got everything in order and it was about a week before the big event. I was so nervous! Every time I practiced the piece I would just shake and, oh, it was so bad. I thought I would not even play one right note. But I knew that God would help me. He could help me play it well and He could give me comfort, confidence and peace. I prayed so hard. I prayed that I would be able to perform well and to help those I played for feel the Spirit and my testimony. I worked on the piece so much but I felt so inadequate. I got a father's blessing and felt alot better. But when I practiced it I would still get so nervous and played so poorly. I knew that I had worked hard, maybe not all I could have, but hard. I had prayed about it and I had gotten a blessing and so all I could do now was to trust. So I trusted in God with everything. I put my all in His hands and went forward.
That night as I practiced I still was so nervous. We had a little mix-up with the time so when I thought I was going about 15 minutes early to play on the piano, I actually was an hour and 15 minutes early. I sat on the stand for about an hour before it started and it kinda helped me de-stress a little to see all the people and get used to their faces. I was first on the program, which was a blessing in and of itself. When I sat down on the bench I felt calm and peaceful. I started playing and it went so well. I think I only played about 1 wrong note. I felt like it went so quickly. And, oh, it went so well. When I sat down, the girl I was sitting next said it was just beautiful. Afterwards so many people told me that it was wonderful. One lady from our stake, who is really musically talented, came up and told me that she just had to sit back, close her eyes and soak it in. That is was truly beautiful. I know that God was there with me, playing with me. I could not have to done it half as well if He had not helped me. I was so happy. My Father in Heaven is so good to me.
I like the song I played best because I felt like that was my testimony. I do know that Christ lives. I had just read in the Book of Mormon about when Christ came to the Americas. As I played I could just see that. I could feel how much He loves me. How He loves us all and cares for us all "one by one." That song was my testimony of Him. I'm glad that it's over but so glad that I was able to have this experience.

tomorrow I'll get the next part

Okay, so I haven't posted in a looong time. Just a quick catch-up. Umm... it's rained like crazy for the past few weeks. We just barely got our garden in (or at least some of it). Ali had her farewell yesterday and so we have been frantically getting our house cleaned and ready for that. We had our GREAT family/friends the Bergesons come up for the farewell and stayed with us (well, sorta). I had Seminary Graduation on May 31st and was asked to play a musical number for that. Oh, and I played in Sacrament meeting at Ali's farewell. I've been doing practices for the "Monster Concert" that my piano teacher does every year. I've stressed over Ali's farewell, playing musical numbers, the Monster Concert, moving on with life, and the rain. So it all in a nutshell, I've cleaned, weeded, practiced, fed "goatlets", laughed, stressed and panicked for the past few weeks. Hopefully I'll find the time to tell y'all about most everything but if not, have a great day!!!

Do you remember in the movie "Emma" when Emma and her father are going to a Christmas Eve party and they go to pick up Mr. Elton. Now as you recall, Mr. Elton is in love with Emma (or thinks he is) while Emma wants him to marry her friend, Miss Smith. When they pick Mr. Elton up he asks...

Mr. Elton - Where is Miss Smith?
Emma - I have some sad news. Miss Smith is ill and cannot be with us this evening.
Mr. Elton - A sad loss to our party. She will be missed at every moment. However, I feel, and I hope you will concur, that small parties are the best. I would rather fall short by two than exceed by two. And how fortunate that the snow comes now instead of yesterday, when it would have made our party impossible! Now, THAT would have been a real cause for sadness, would it not? (Not to Emma's satisfaction.)

Well, later that evening, around the fire Mr. Knightly and Emma are talking together. Mr. Elton walks up and sit right in the middle of them and says

Mr. Elton - I hope I'm not intruding.
Mr. Knightly - No, no.
Mr. Elton - But I cannot stop thinking of Miss Smith's condition.
Emma - She will be happy to know of your concern.
Mr. Elton - How could I not be concerned? The whole situation is most alarming! There is nothing worse than a sore throat. Its effects are exceedingly bleak. And that is why I must, in the presence of your friend, ask you to stop visiting her!
Emma - What?
Mr. Elton - You are putting yourself at risk, and we cannot allow that, can we Knightley? I mean, is this fair?

I'm sure you know the scene well. I sure do!!

Anyway... as Miss Smith, I am in this the sad predicament, for there is "nothing worse than a sore throat", as I well know. I have been suffering from it for the past two days and am more than ready for it to go away. I have done sooo much to try and get rid of it but, alas, nothing has helped much. I guess I just have to let it run it's course. Just wanted to let you know!

The new arrivals

Guess what!!!?! Susan just had her babies!!! There are three does, all alive. I think that they are just so cute!!! Happy day!!!
We are bottle feeding all of our kids because they can get CAE (caprine arthritis encephalitis) from nursing and because the mamas make better milking goats when they don't nurse kids. So there is sooooo much feeding to do!! Just right now they are all lying down and it's all quiet. It's so nice not to have to watch them and to hear NO bleating!! But it is very fun having them here!! What a joy they are!!

Rochel Bambi

Yoshiko

Nasira

The "bestest" time - they are all sleeping