April Events

What a month!!  At first I didn't think we had much to share, but I was wrong.  There are always pictures to document casual and spontaneous moments we don't want to forget.

For Christmas of 2016 Lincoln received a Monster Truck School bus.  We don't know what happened, but within a few months it was lost.  I'm afraid it probably ended up in the donation box accidentally.  Anyway, after being without his monster school bus for over a year Joseph decided to buy Lincoln another one.  Lincoln was SO HAPPY when his new monster school bus arrived.  Here he is sleeping with.  I guess he wasn't sleeping, but posing for a picture when I put him to bed.

We have started taking the little ones to the Home Depot crafts.  They enjoy them as much as Kimball and Rebecah did at this age.  Rebecah actually joined in this month.

There was a special preschool Dad night at the end of March that I forgot to document.  Joseph took Lincoln and Annika to "Donuts with Dad" and they enjoyed a variety of activities and crafts.  A few weeks later it was "Muffins with Mom".  On both occasions Annika didn't want to pose for any pictures with us. 

Muffins with Mom

Here's Lincoln all dressed up for church in a little suit a friend game him.

Edie is still a dream come true.  She hit the 18 month mark April 12.  She is now attending Nursery at church and does fairly well.  She sprouted 3 more teeth so I think she has a total of 15.  Edie LOVES to be outside.  I told her last month that once she learned to talk I would let her play outside.  She definitely holds me to it.  She can say a lot of words and she even puts a few words together.  She is becoming more of a daddy's girl.  I love it when she calls Joseph's name and is so excited to see him.  Her fondness for him may have something to do with the fact that he lets her roam all over the yard while he does yard work.  Chameleon is still her best friend.

Edie was sick for a few days with a fever.  Here she is wrapped in her 

quilt after a bath looking very sad.

Lincoln saw the picture and recipe for Chex Muddy Buddies on the back of the cereal box. He asked if we could make them and he was very excited to help!

 While Rebecah was at piano lessons we hung out in our friend's backyard with her kids enjoying the beautiful weather.  Thank goodness Chameleon didn't get too dirty!

On April 15, the Stake President (church leader that oversees the Bishops/congregants for 7 congregations in our area) asked to meet with Joseph and me.  He then extended a call to Joseph to serve as Bishop of our ward.  It was a rather overwhelming and daunting thought.  We had two weeks notice before it became official in Sacrament Meeting on April 29th.  We had quite a few sleepless nights over those two weeks as we realized more and more how our lives will change over the next 5 years.  Typically Bishops are called for 5 years.  This will be a new adventure for our family, but I know we will be blessed as we sacrifice some of our time with Joseph so he can help the members of our congregation. 

I was really nervous and almost sick to my stomach the day Joseph was sustained in Sacrament meeting, but once he was sustained my nervousness subsided and it was a wonderful day at church.  The Stake President spent an hour with us, Joseph's new counselors, their wives and any visiting family members sharing encouragement and support.  Our kids were really surprised because they found out during the church meeting.  I think Kimball will have the hardest time with the adjustment since he usually needs his dad the most.  Joseph and I both realized this and I think we will make a special effort to help Kimball see that Joseph will still be able to attend Kimball's games, concerts, etc like he has done in the past.

We were grateful that Joseph's dad was able to come for a short trip to be here to support us.  We were glad he was able to participate in the ordination circle.  Living so far away and having family miss our major life events is by far the hardest part of being apart.  We were glad Joseph's dad made the sacrifice to be with us.

The new Bishopric:  Bishop Coffey with his counselors Jon Wesel and Adam Walton

The Bishopric and their wives.  Ha!  I'm the oldest in the group!  

We didn't tell the kids that Grandpa was coming to visit until the morning of his arrival.  We knew the big kids might ask too many questions if they knew Grandpa was coming but not Grandma, so we kept it a secret.  Good thing we did because Saturday was a long day for them waiting for Grandpa to arrive at dinner time.  Lincoln, Annika and Edie warmed up to Grandpa very quickly.  We definitely made the most of our time with Grandpa since he was with us less than 48 hours.

Hearing about Grandpa's mission to Vietnam

Playing with presents Grandpa brought us from Vietnam.

Lincoln formed a sweet attachment to Grandpa.  They read a lot of stories together and snuggled during church.  

Here Lincoln is hugging Grandpa good-bye.  It was so sweet when Lincoln said:  "Don't leave me!"  That just melted my heart.  Why does family have to live so far away? 

Riding on the shopping cart "garbage man" style.  I loved it when Lincoln told me that was what he was doing when he hung on.  That thought never occurred to me, but I loved it.  Now I'm always encouraging them to be a garbage man and garbage lady so I can make my way through the store faster!  The best part is when Lincoln makes garbage truck noises and says "honk, honk" as we are rolling along.