You know that feeling that you would get as a child (or even still if your crazy like me!) when your going up the basement steps and you all the sudden have to book it up them because you feel like something is following you and gonna get you? And not only that but you wanna run as fast as you can, and as quiet as you can so nobody will laugh at you? Well, I finally realized Why that happens! Its training! like boot camp for moms and dads who are going to have kids! you see this all occured to me when Liam kept waking up tonight. I would go in there and put him back to sleep and then try to go back to bed (or to pinterest lol!) and He kept waking up when I left the room. That is where the silent fast moving heart pumping ninja run comes in handy! I tip-toe-ran out of his room and shut his door super fast before the faint light creeped into his room. Yeah I got that "someone is chasing me feeling" but it wasnt that it was " I want my child to sleep for once" feeling in my case! HA! So there. I finally answered the question that everyone was dieing to know lol ! not really but it is kinda funny tho right? Ah..who am i kidding? I laugh at my own jokes and thoughts all the time lol !

Pictures

i am way behind on pictures everywhere. I am going to post some and put some up on fb.ill let you know when I do!!

LA LA LA.....I CANT HEAR YOU!!!

This is a pic from Egmont. A guy has his own Island and helicopter. Liam loved seeing it flying abck and forth. My little two year old!


So, Today is one of those days where i just couldnt wait for Ryan to get home. Liam is now 2 years old and the terrible twos are definately catching on! We have been busy every since getting back from Egmont, and so Laundry has been very slowly getting done. Today I had some time at home so I thought i would try and get it done while doing other things around the house. I would be folding and putting things away and then Emery would wake up, so i would go in the room to go get him and i would come back and Liam would have destroyed my piles of folded laundry!!! I am definately not one of those women who enjoy folding laundry. I would much rather every person have a big basket that i could just throw clean laundry in and they can fold it if they want! But..seeing as how my husband was spoiled growing up, I have to fold laundry. He even makes me fold some things certain ways because thats how his mom did it...! anyways thats a differant story. So..after Liam destroyed my piles a few more times as i was trying to multi-task , I decided to not get mad and just accept that he is an innocent 2 year old that was just taking advantage of the warm fluffy piles to jump on. I sat him in his high chair with a home made popsicle, to keep him occupied. I also at that time put Emery in his little chair so that he could also be in on the action. I then proceeded to put away clothes. Walked into my room for a second and Liam screamed for me because his popsicle was melting.I gave him a paper towel to satisfy him and then went back to my business. Only time enough to get a hanger out of the closet , Emery started crying. I went and gave him is suther and talked to him a bit and then went back to the room. Things like this happened a couple more times as Liam dropped his popsicle on the floor and it broke off the stick and so he wanted a new one (no matter how much i tried to get him to eat it in a bowl with a spoon.) and when Emery decided that he was going to not like himself filling his pants for even a second. After all this I finally thought I was going to get my chance to put away some more clothes, I was excited. But as the pattern goes I wasnt in the room for very long before Emery started crying. I decided I was going to ignore it for a little bit just so i could finish what I was doing. Then Liam started screaming really loud "mom, mom, mom, mooooooOOOOOMMM, MOMMY, MOM,mommyyyyyyyy, Mom, MOM, MOM, MOM, MOM!". I started singing a song as to help me ignore my children for another minute. Liam kept calling me and Emery kept screaming. I had had enough! I finally marched back into the kitchen and looked at Liam and asked him "OK WHAT IS WRONG ALREADY??"....can you guess what he did? Liam pointed at Emery and said "Emy crying." Well ..at this point I was frustrated but had to have a chuckle. I picked up Emery , changed his diaper again, grabbed a popsicle for myself and decided laundry could wait another day. I love my boys and its funny when I think I am trying to teach them the meaning of patience and they are in return trying to teach me about quality time. I enjoyed the rest of my day and made supper and cookies after Ryan got home , Liam ate so many I was sure he was going to throw up. I packed for my trip to lethbridge tomorrow , and put the boys to bed. I thought everything good and I was gonna write this post after saying goodnight to Ryan. Until he went in our room and called me lazy for not finishing the laundry. The only thing I could do was smirk and tell him that I enjoyed my day. I hope that you can find happieness in the madness too when you need it! Love all you who read my blog! -Athena

Invisible Mother

I found this on my yellow sandbox:
Invisible Mothers
It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store.
Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?'
Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all.
I'm invisible - The invisible Mom.
Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more.
"Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?"
Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?'
I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?'
I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'
I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going, she's going, she's gone!
One night, a group of us were having dinner,celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well.
It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription:
'To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.'
In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.
A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built,
and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man,
'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof?
No one will ever see it.'
And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.'
I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does.
No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will
become.'
At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.
I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on.
The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime
because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.
When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, 'You're gonna love it there.'

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.






just loved it. Hope it makes you think like it made me <3

House..fed up!

Alrighty then, seeing as how i reaaaaly need to write something on here and have had all these things going through my head but its 1:40 am and i am going to bed..i will write this: I love my life right now! The only thing that is going wrong is that we cannot find a stinking house! Honestly so fed up with looking online and in papers, asking around, and tiring myself out way more than i need to. So there, i said it! So will someone just build us our dream house in a dream location overnight please? oh and while your at that..fulfill all my other wants and needs please?! Ahh so nice to say that. and even though its so true..i still have to do it! Ive be praying like heck for something to come along and today i went to go look at a house, and yet i had already seen it because it was a friends house. yes that is how tired i really am! bahaha! i knew the address by heart too! anyways..staying up till after 1am doesnt help either, but i was in full tilt of the "i need space" plague that is going on in my household. it was just my turn thats all! so getting to the point, im going to bed! see you in 6 hours when i will be forcing myself to get out of bed and do a workout! wahoo!...(NOT!)

Oh moments!

This is my favorite song for the past little while. It hits home. The nice thing is that I know I am never alone in my life. I have my Savior and the Holey Ghost with me at all times. <3



Never Alone (Feat. Jim Brickman)

May the angels protect you
Trouble neglect you
And heaven accept you when its time to go home
May you always have plenty
The glass never empty
Know in your belly
You're never alone

May your tears come from laughing
You find friends worth having
As every year passes
They mean more than gold
May you win and stay humble
Smile more than grumble
And know when you stumble
You're never alone

Chorus: Never alone
Never alone
Lyrics www.allthelyrics.com/lyrics/lady_antebellum/
I'll be in every beat of your heart
When you face the unknown
Wherever you fly
This isn't goodbye
My love will follow you stay with you
Baby you're never alone

I have to be honest
As much as I wanted
I'm not gonna promise that cold winds won't blow
So when hard times have found you
And your fears surround you
Wrap my love around you
You're never alone

Chorus

My love will follow you stay with you
Baby you're never alone

So when hard times have found you
And your fears surround you
Wrap my love around you
You're never alone

AAAANNNDDDDD......im back!

Long time no type! Tons has happened since the last time i have blogged. Not only have I just slacked off and been too lazy to do any posts, but also I have had my little baby boy! His name is Emery. He has dark brown hair with a reddish golden tinge on some parts (like where his sideburns would be if he had any lol ) But im sure that will go away just like Liam's strawberry Golden hair went away. He has dark Brown eyes too and he has a dark complexion, witch probably comes from Ryan's native side of the family seeing as how my whole family is whiter than snowflakes on snow. He has super long legs and long fingers and HUGE feet. It's a known fact that all my kids are going to be taller than me! My little Emery was born June 19, 2011, other words known as Fathers Day!! He was an awesome Fathers day present for Ryan. My contractions started the night of the 18th at 11 pm. by 3 am we were at the hospital, with my contractions 1-2 min apart. My mom Henriette, and my brother Kevin met us there. My mom came to get Liam and make sure I was ok , and Kevin came to pull an all niter, or in other words.. for the entertainment lol! well and I guess to support me too! :D I was checked in and eventually got an Epidural, witch Kevin left the hospital for to get McDonald's (yes he doesn't like needles that much!) Ryan doesn't like needles either, but i wasn't letting him leave. Finally i was all relaxed and happy. Kevin came back and the guy who gave me my epidural was still there because he had to monitor it for a little bit to make sure that everything was good. Kevin got the McDonald's for free because their debt machines were not working and so he and Ryan enjoyed the free food. Not very nice to a prego lady in labor who cannot eat! bu truly , i didn't feel like eating, just getting the baby out! So we waited for the doctor to come and check me and I was about 5 cm. they told me that If i didn't progress quicker that I would have to have a c-section like I did with Liam. It was an awful experience and i really didn't want it. So after they left me to "rest" after telling me that dumb news I didn't rest at all. I prayed harder than ever saying in my head- "you made me a woman, now let me do what i need to do!!". A couple of hours later about 7am they came back and I was dilated to 8.5 cm. I was sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo excited. this meant that i was going to be able to try natural birth! I very quickly got to be 9 cm and i felt the pressure to push. It was awesome! the nurse was surprised that it was my first time and Bing bang boom, an hour at most of pushing and at 9:11am Emery was finally here. They got me stitched up and cleaned and moved to the room i was going to stay in for a while and people started to come visit! I felt like i could go for a jog! It was an amazing experiance. I was sore of corse but nothing compared to the c-section with Liam. I think people who would rather have a c-section are crazy! one night in the hospital vs. four .....i pick one thankyou! now i am pretty much healed. i still have times where i get sore, like when im working out and busy and stuff, but truly eerything went faster than with Liam. ha ha i feel like Liam will look back on this and be dissapointed. Dont worry Liam, I still love you, you just had a big head is all, and you can blame your dad for that :D !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cousins

Lorelle, Ryan's sister, came to visit in Cranbrook. That is where we were for the long weekend and also this last weekend too. Liam had fun playing with his cousins. There were 5 of them there including Jaiden, his cousin who lives in cranbrook. It was nice weather most of the time and so we all went down to Tina's house and the kids had fun playing on all the little kids quads and there was a dirt bike and a motor cycle, mini ones. but only Kenzie, Kian, Ryan and Horst drove them. The other kids just got a ride. Liam loved it and didnt want to get off. Here is a video:



I love that Liam is smiling having fun, but Horst has an even bigger smile. LOL!I am going to put up some pictures too, I dont know how many will fit, so i may have to put another post with the others on. Hope you enjoy!

my little boy!!

My little ray of sunshine!
pic 1: he was eating a chocolate bar and bit his tongue and then was crying and rubbed his chocolaty hands all in his eye. I know it was mean to take a picture, but i had to!
pic 2: Sleeping while playing with his belly button. His favorite!
pic 3: Being silly and cute. He was laughing at his own "joke"
pic 4: quietly reading a book on the floor. so sweet. I love it when i can just sit back and watch him. He is growing up so fast!

I had to post some pictures. Life has been a little crazy, but really, when is it not crazy??? I feel like my blog is boring to every body because i just make everyone read my long whiny posts!!

i am so thankful.

I have been thinking lately about how blessed we are. People have been so generous and good to our family. Heavenly Father has taken care of us in many ways since we have been married. I was looking around our house, and i realized that almost everything that we own has been given to us. Our couch, china cabinet, fish tank, kitchen table, our bed, Liam's bed, our dressers, toys, blankets, our dishes, our TV, and much much more. What would we have or do if all of our family and friends would not be so receptive to the spirit.

My Son. He is so cute and just wont stop growing and learning. He makes me laugh, and he makes me worry about him. He takes care of me in ways that only he can. He is my first Baby. The first one to call me mommy. I love him more than i can explain. I am so blessed to have him. I love when he is acting silly and trying to impress me. He is so cuddly and lets me know when he needs my love. He is very independent like me. He eats like a teenager most of the time. He helps me think good of the future. I love to remember that he is my future.

I am also blessed to have such a caring and hard working husband. My handy man. He is such a good father . He has the energy to come home at the end of a long day and play and run around with Liam. He takes all my whining about being pregnant, and even tries to help me see the hilarity in some of the things that i do. He gives me my space when i need it. He is my someone who i can joke around with, ensured that he will joke with me right back! He is that guy that i can be myself around, whether im crabby or super excited and annoy the heck out of him. He is my eternal companion, here with me even after i go crazy, even though he says i already have.

Honestly, I am so thankful for everything in my life. I have 25 days left till my due date. Then i will have another little boy to bring me so much happiness and realize how blessed i am. I am so thankful for all my trials that make me stronger, and for the gospel to help me realize that they are just a moment in my life. A speck of dust in time. I have been trying really hard lately to see the positive things in life and to get out there and try and make a difference. I want to share my happiness with everyone. But im not willing to give up my family and friends. I will let people know about my other bringer of life...My church. I belong to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Honestly this church helped me change my life, from what could have ended it. I know that there is someone out there helping me and controlling my destiny. I know that i have a Heavenly Father and that i will Live with him again. I know that this is the true church upon the earth and I know that he loves us all. I am a child of God.I know that it is my job to tell people about this. Please ask me about my beliefs if you know me. If you don't, please please,please, go to LDS.org and look around, or look up your local LDS church and ask to talk to the missionaries. Even if you just have a question I promise that you will be helped and all your questions will be answered.
Thats it for now. Athena.

oh how i missed you bloggy!

Honestly, i haven't written since the day before Mothers day. How awful is that! I found in that time that this blog is helping me keep my sanity! That probably makes me sound crazy, but really, It is nice to put my thoughts and ideas and feelings out there. This last week I felt crazy busy. I went to go see my sister for her birthday. it was fun to see my family again and have some time off, away from home. I brought Liam with me though, but that was good. Liam had fun playing in my parents back yard,(a fenced, grass covered yard. yay!) He got some scrapes and bruises, but it was all good. Oh and Liam had a tantrum while we were there too. Not so fun, but we got through it. Your probably thinking, ooh la la, but really tantrums are a new found thing for Liam. And he is really good at them! No surprise! We got home from Lethbridge and had one night together with Ryan. He went to work that day and then got home we had an uber quick supper and then he was gone for a night to youth conference for our church. He got back Saturday night, we had supper and he went for a bike ride with a couple friends. It was kind of scary for him to get back and tell me that trees were falling down on their trails because it was so windy. I am glad that he was safe though. Then that takes us to today. We went to church today and it was great! I don't know what it was but i was just feeling so energetic. I usually LOVE Sundays. And today was no exception. It was my first day not in primary, so i got to go to Relief society. It was wonderful, but i do have to admit that i felt empty handed and like i was forgetting something. I wasn't, but im sure that feeling will go away soon when i will be carting around a little baby. (soooo excited!)After church Ryan's parents came for supper. we went for a walk and then came home to eat. Liam got a few slivers that were pretty bad on Saturday while we played outside. Ryan's dad brought his really sharp tweezers and they held him down to get the slivers out while i avoided watching my son go through pain. I was there for the comfort though! They really needed to come out, i didn't want them to get infected, and after being in there for only one day they looked pretty nasty. They went home and Liam had a bath to help clean out the sores. Then-the highlight of my night-Ryan has been trying to teach Liam to put his goggles on and stick his face in the water. Ryan will put his goggles on too and then stick his head in the tub. Its hilarious in the first place watching them blow bubbles.Well getting on with my story, today Liam wanted his dad to stick his head in and see the tub. Nothing out of the ordinary.So, Ryan got his goggles on and stuck his head in the tub to look at what Liam was showing him. Guess what he saw? A pooplet floating on the bottom of the tub. HAHAHAHA! Ryan was groaning and laughing and draining the tub and i decided to go see what happened. I had to give Liam a high five because it was so hilarious. Anyways, i hope you find that as funny as i do. Nothing else to report yet. Just relaxing with Ryan watching a movie. Its a guys movie, hence me writing in my blog. But I will write again soon. Love you all

love the weather!

Sunshine! Oh how I LOVE sunshine! Sitting in front of the window soaking it up folding laundry! What a wonderful day. Its my last day today to "relax" this week. I get to finish the laundry and pack to go to Lethbridge tomorrow. It is My sisters Birthday tomorrow and I am excited to go and see her! I am going to be there tomorrow and thursday, then come home by supper time so that I can prepare it and entertain our good friend and Institute teacher L.A. It is the last Institute lesson and we decided to have her over for supper to thank her for teaching us. We are the only people who go to institute here. Then on Friday I have to take the car into Fernie to get some things checked out on it. Then The rest of the weekend Ryan has a youth conferance to go to so Liam and I will be able to have the car and do the shopping etc while he is gone! Sunday we got to church. Monday Ryan drives in his carpool and then when he gets home Liam and I head out for Lethbridge again because I have an early doctors appointment tuesday. I am excited to see the doctor because she is the one who will be delivering me. I have had a hard time getting my doctors to mix and finally the referral worked from my doctor here. (5th times a charm!) Anyways I hope you all have a great week. We will see if I can do another post !

mothers day bliss

Mothers Day was yesterday. It was lots of fun spending time with my boys. Ryan got me some roses and a sweet and very accurate card, it said " i may not be the smartest guy ever..but i got you to marry me, so im not a total doofus either!" It made me laugh! Mothers day always lands on a sunday, so We got up and got ready for church. It was fast and testimony meeting , so we got to hear lots of wonderful inspiring and humbling testimonies. All the mothers received a plant or flower plant for mothers day. I subbed a primary class which was...energetic. Before we knew it, church was over. We then went home and Ryan made a lunch for us all. It was nice not having to do it myself. We then all went down for a nap. Oh, it was nice and refreshing! We all got up and it was about supper time then so we started on it. We made one of my favorite meals, chicken with herbs, garlic and tomato slices on top. soo good, we had it with rice and fried vegetables (cabbage, carrots, cellery onions and garlic!) Its a nice healthy meal that tastes great too! Even Liam ate a whole bunch, but he usually eats lots anyways. We then went on a nice walk and Liam pushed his car the whole time. It was nice to get out,and the weather was just right. After our walk we cuddled and watched some TV, got Liam and ourselves ready for bed and then went. a mostly ordinary day, but a blessing all together!

I belong to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints p.7

We Can Live with God Again

We come to this life to grow and learn and be tested. That all sounds pretty taxing, but it’s not hard to see how much joy we can find here on earth as well. One great part of Heavenly Father’s plan is that all the happiness and satisfaction we get from learning new things and all the love we develop within our families will go with us to the next life.

Just like our family bonds, we can carry the knowledge we gain in this life with us after we die. Contrary to some representations of heaven, we will not be sitting on clouds, gazing at the face of God for eternity. We’ll have more opportunities to grow and challenge ourselves. All these wonderful blessings depend on our faithfulness, here and now, as we work to keep God’s commandments throughout our lives.

Our Spirits Are Eternal

It’s comforting to know that God has a plan for us. We lived with Him before we were born and we will continue to live with Him into eternity if we choose. Our life on earth is fundamental to His plan, as is death. It’s always sad when God calls our loved ones home, but we can be certain that their spirits live on.

I belong to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints p.6

We Can Find Happiness

We often fall into the trap of thinking a new car, job promotion, beauty makeover, or fame will make us happy. And often they do—for a time. But it never lasts because wealth, power, beauty, and fame simply don’t bring lasting happiness, as much as we wish they would.

True Happiness

True happiness comes from following Christ’s example and developing Christlike attributes such as obedience, goodness, honesty, gratitude, humility, love, charity, and forgiveness. It comes from serving others and helping them to follow Jesus Christ. It comes from controlling the appetites of our human bodies and following the promptings of the Spirit. It comes from working hard and having a healthy lifestyle, friends, family, and personal achievements.

I belong to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints p.5

Jesus Christ Is the Way

More than anything else, God wants to help us through this life and bless us with eternal life in the next. He sends His Spirit to offer us this help. But the scriptures say that His Spirit cannot be with us if we are sinful. As hard as we try to live good lives, we all commit sins that separate us from God.

Being separated from God by sin is called spiritual death. We feel a profound loneliness when we separate ourselves from God, our Heavenly Father.

How can we overcome spiritual death and always have God’s Spirit with us if we are imperfect?

God Provided a Savior

Heavenly Father chose His Son, Jesus Christ, in our pre-earth life and sent Him to earth to be our Savior.

If we believe in Jesus Christ, follow His teachings, and repent when we commit sins, His Atonement, or sacrifice, can wash us clean of our sins and make us worthy to return to God’s presence. Christ’s sacrifice and Resurrection also allow us to overcome physical death. Every one of us will be resurrected just like Christ was and live forever in perfected bodies after we leave this life.

I belong to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints p.4

Earth Life Is Part of God’s Plan

Everyone you see around you is a son or daughter of God, our Heavenly Father. He is the Father of our spirits. Coming to earth is part of His plan of happiness for us, which allows us to receive a physical body in His image and continue to increase in wisdom and faith.

God Promised That His Spirit Would Help Guide Us

When we were born, we forgot our pre-earth life, which means we have to live by faith rather than our memory of God. To help us through life, God promised that His Spirit would guide and strengthen us. Each time we feel the quiet comfort of His Spirit, we know that God loves us and cares about us.

During our time on earth we make choices and distinguish right from wrong. We gain happiness and become more like our Heavenly Father when we make good choices.

Because God loves us and wants us to receive the blessings that come from following His plan, He has provided ways for us to stay connected to Him. Prayer is an important way we stay connected with our Heavenly Father. When we speak sincerely to Him, He will answer us through His Spirit and help us through our problems, no matter how large or small.

Other ways we can stay in touch include reading the scriptures and listening to the prophets who have been chosen by God to teach His plan.

I belong to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints p.3

We Lived with God

Wouldn’t it be great if life came with a map, showing us where we’ve been and where to go?

Thankfully, life does have a map. Our Father in Heaven has a plan for us and wants us to know where we came from and where He wants us to go.

Before we were born, we lived with God in heaven as spirits. All of our spirit brothers and sisters were there, too—everyone who has lived or will live on earth including Jesus Christ. In this “pre-earth life,” each of us was an individual with a divine nature and destiny. God gave all of us the gift of agency, or the right to choose for ourselves. Because He is the Father of our spirits, we call Him our Heavenly Father.

I belong to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints p.2

God Is Our Father

There Is a God

We can look up at the sky at night and see a never-ending universe. There are millions of stars and planets, all in perfect order. They did not get there by chance. We can see the work of God in the heavens and on the earth. The beautiful plants, the variety of animals, the mountains, the rivers, the clouds that bring us rain and snow—all these testify to us that there is a God. An ancient prophet wrote, “All things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth, and all things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion, yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form do witness that there is a Supreme Creator.”

A modern prophet said: “If there is a design in this world in which we live, there must be a Designer. Who can behold the many wonders of the universe without believing that there is a design for all mankind? Who can doubt that there is a Designer?”

God Is the Ruler of the Universe

God is the Almighty Ruler of the universe. He made the moon, the stars, and the sun. He organized this world and gave it form, motion, and life. He filled the air and the water with living things. He covered the hills and plains with all kinds of animal life. He gave us day and night, summer and winter, seedtime and harvest.

God is the Supreme Being in whom we believe and whom we worship. He is all-powerful and all-knowing, and He is full of love, mercy, charity, and compassion. He is the Author of the plan for our happiness

(taken from LDS.ORG)

I belong to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

Our Eternal Life

Many of us spend our lives looking for something to hold on to, something that will last. We look for ways to avoid aging or to become famous or rich. But we eventually realize that mortal life is temporary. Friends and family members grow old and die, the famous are soon forgotten, and wealth is lost as quickly as it is won.

Our hope and happiness lie in knowing who we are, where we came from, and where we can go. We are eternal beings, spirit children of an eternal God. Our lives can be compared to a three-act play: premortal life (before we came to earth), mortal life (our time here on earth), and postmortal life (where we go after we die). God has had a plan for our lives since the beginning of the first act—a plan that, if followed, provides comfort and guidance now, as well as salvation and eternal happiness in our postmortal life.

Understanding the following can help us live a happier life now and in eternity.

(taken from LDS.ORG)

The Much Loved Egmont

This is Egmont. Our view, all the time. Pretty nice eh? We love it. Especially Ryan. He has been going since he was a kid and thats all you hear him talk about all year. We go to canadian tire (or other stores like it..) and all you hear is "we should get this for Egmont", or "I plan to do this in Egmont this year". We get flyers in the mail and Ryan is always looking for things for Egmont. I have to admit, when im there i do have some issues, im not really much of a camper, but i am learning to love that part too. Also whenever we go Ryan is no where to be found (usually helping his dad with one of his projects or trying to fish)...So i have lots of time to myself to take pictures like these ones. Ryan and i went to Egmont for a few days at the end of our honey moon. Since then I have gone 3 summers in a row, this year to be my fourth. Liam has gone twice now, the first time he was 2 weeks old, and the second time he was just over a year. It was nuts having a baby in Egmont..very hard especially for a non-camper like me. I am not too comfy with babies, dirt, and bugs mixed together. This year I will have Liam and the new little guy to look after. Its gonna be a new experience...that's the most i can say about it. Even though i have some challenging times when im there i do somewhat miss the nice weather and Pretty scenery throughout the year. Plus it is getting more me friendly. We have a shower, an indoor toilet and last year we got power so we have a fridge now. I wasnt too impressed with the coolers that we store our stuff in forever. Food went bad fast!! And no more generators to wake up my sleeping kids while they are taking their naps. Our plans are to eventually build separate little cabins around so we have more privacy, but so far we all just have tents put together on a clear space of land that we will use for putting up activities and letting the kids play on. Anyways, Ryan was talking about Egmont again today, and i was thinking about how close it is till we go there, and how much closer it is till the baby comes (44 days left!). But tomorrow is mothers day so i will blab more about my babies tomorrow! Love you all!

complaining!

Broccoli: I'm not happy with my looks...I look like a tree! =[
Walnut: and i look like a brain!
Mushroom: that's not too bad...i look like an Umbrella!
Banana: can we please change the topic!?! X___X"

ha ha! just had to post it! I have noticed that everybody is complaining about their looks lately. I know that its never really stopped but i just feel like my close circle is getting worse! Quit complaining people and love yourself! I love you all!

blah! spewy update!

Sorry the posts have been short , I will get to write a longer one soon!...till then i will continue to let my "nesting" take over and get things done, and very clean! I have 47 days left till my due date! ahh so exciting. Theres all kinds of lists that im making :baby names, to do's, people to call when the baby comes, what to pack for when the baby comes, etc etc. Also if any of you have been wondering, i am having the baby in Lethbridge. BUT...I am having issues with my doctors. My obgyn in sparwood has referred me to the obgyn in lethbridge 3 times now , starting 2.5 months ago. The Lethbridge obgyn is not getting the referral even tho my sparwood one has the right fax etc. It is making me go nuts. I feel so behind...maybe thats why my nesting is kicking in so badly! lol anywhoo thats it for now. im gonna go take a tums for heartburn and then go to bed!

Loves to play!

At the park doing his favorite things- swinging, going down the slides, enjoying the sun, playing with daddy! Also a pic from at Auntie Tina's where him and his cousin Jaiden were driving the tractor and the jeep. He is pretty good at it too! I have so many cute pictures and i wish that i could post them all!

Big Boy Liam

He is growing up so fast! Liam has even got a big boy bed that he LOVES! and, like many other people, he is ready for summer! (picked out the outfit by himself!). He cracks me up! doing cute and crazy stuff all the time. Cant wait to have two of these little guys to occupy my time<3

what more could i ask for?

I love my cuddly little boy. He makes me smile. I love our little family<3. What more could a momma/wife ask for!

Crazy Lovely Life.

So things have been a bit busy lately. It has all been unplanned things popping up at us. Most of the things are lovely, others not so lovely , but just as welcomed into our lives. Ever since Ryan has gotten home I have felt like the baby is trying to rush us around so we get ready for him. Liam is growing like a weed and talking like crazy. He is not afraid to tell us off for anything and "no" is becoming a word that he is getting used to hearing even more than usual. Now he can climb over the back of the couch , along the tiny ledge by the fish tank and jump off. Not the safest idea ever, but he is one fearless kid. I think he is understanding more and more about the baby, and how he is going to have a new little brother here soon. Sunday we went to pick up Ryan in Cranbrook, we are so happy to have him home. Monday we celebrated Easter and had so much fun being together as a family. It will be one of our last holidays with only three members of our family participating. Tuesday was a more serious day, we got down to business about looking over our finances. We also had a friend of ours, Murial, over so she could do her Sun Life Financial shpiel for us. We are still thinking about it though. Wednesday was the regular cleaning and such day. We also had the missionaries over for supper and our freezer is getting a bit bare so we fed them fish. I am glad they liked it because its definitely time to go shopping. They even fought over the last piece. We also fed them home made potato salad that had a couple of Liam's colored eggs in it. We forgot to tell them that's what the blue and pink eggs were all about, but they were smart and figured it out (after some hesitation!). Thursday , Ryan really wanted to go for a hike after he got home from work, but the weather was not cooperating with his wants. It was snowing and raining back and forth. When he was getting onto the bus to come down from the mine, Ryan noticed he had an e-mail from his parents that said that they were coming down and that they were going to be there around supper time. So that cheered Ryan up enough that i didn't have to listen to him complain about not being able tot go on a hike. They had brought a dresser and a Highboy for us that their friends were giving away. So now i have an actual dresser to put the mountains of Liam's clothes in. And we are going to use the Highboy to put Liam's toys in , witch i am so excited to clean up and get put away. Friday morning we slept in and then I made crepes for breakfast. they were really good except the last little bit of batter from the bowl that i scraped up had egg shells in it, because i had a crunchy crepe. Not so tasty. But the other ones were awesome! We then packed up our stuff and came to Cranbrook. we were not planning on coming then, but some things popped up and we had to come. It is Stake conference this weekend so we were going to have to come anyways. Saturday (today) we got up and I called Kristin to see if she could bring in Ryan's Bike in from Sparwood. It was all yucky weather when we left on friday so i convinced Ryan that it was going to be like that in Cranbrook. (But of corse it was nice there!) Kristin got Trudy to bring it in for us, but she could only fit Ryan's old bike on her rack to bring so Ryan settled for it. He still hasnt been able to go for a ride on his new expensive nice bike yet. Oh well though. Soon enough. We went for a booster juice in Ryan's dad's truck and met Trudy at winners to get the bike from her. Ryan was happy that he could go for a ride. He left and then came back again because where they wanted to go biking , it was snowing and hailing. Karma I tell you! haha! anyways, we had a blast driving in Ken's truck. Liam can see out of the front window perfectly and he loved it. We wen to a bike shop because Ryan wants to get this bike for Liam. He would much rather have a pink one though (haha!) Then we went home to Ryan's parents and Liam played in the back yard for quite some time in the dirt. we brought him in , cleaned him up, and fed him, then put him down for a nap. I had one too so it was nice. I woke up and now we are getting ready for supper, because Stake conference starts at 6:30PM. We are having Fish and Chips , I am very happy about that. I LOVE fish and chips. It makes me miss my Grandad though , nobody can make them as good as he could! So tonight we are off for Stake conference and then back home later in the evening. Tomorrow we get up and go to church, then we are going to try ad work on the Volkswagen and then head home. Although Kevin, my brother, has a fund raiser thing in Lethbridge with his choir tomorrow, Ryan and I had a long chat about it and i lost the battle and we are not going. I wish that we could go. I havnt been able to see him sing once yet , except when he came home from his mission and sang in church. I am proud of him. I am glad to see him pursuing his new found talents. He even got into the Opera workshop at the U of L. He is awesome! I miss my family and love them more. I wish that they lived closer. We are always, ALWAYS in Cranbrook. But thats what you get when you marry a mommas boy! ( i am so gonna get in trouble when Ryan reads this lol!) Anyways I have rambled on enough. It feels good to get things out there!

The one day you let your kids go wild!

Easter ! so much fun! Kids get to eat candy before breakfast and then get to have the day off of school. They also get to get all messy and colorful while dying eggs and nobody will get mad at them! Truly what a holiday made for kids! Really all of us adults know that Easter is really about rejoicing the Saviors resurrection. some people think that we celebrate his death, but it is his resurrection that saved us all. If Jesus Christ did not go through all that he did for us, there really would be no life after death. I am so thankful and grateful for the Love the Savior has for us. That is why we celebrate and have fun at Easter, to show the Savior that we are thankful and we recognize his sacrifices. Today we had so much fun with Liam. It was his second Easter, and of corse this time he actually somewhat knew what was going on , so it made it much more interesting. We slept in , and got up gave Liam a basket so he could collect all the candy . We let him loose and he kept saying "ooooooh!" It was so cute. We couldnt fit the chocolate bunnies in the basket but he kept trying. He would pick up a plastic egg almost make it to the basket and see another one, drop the one in his hand and it would keep going on back and forth. Then we had a yummy breakfast and did the dishes. Ryan and Liam played while I ran to the store to go get eggs so that we could color them. I got back from the store and by that time Liam was ready for a nap. We all ended up having a nap, because who can call us lazy when its just us? After we got up we colored the eggs. Liam was so excited. I love the designs and bright hues that we got, thanks to Liam dunking them all a billion times. Then we gave him a bath so he wasnt so colorful and now we are getting ready to have supper. I am excited to do all these things with Liam but i cant wait until he will understand a little more what the true meaning is of this day. I hope that you all had a wonderful day with your families also. Hopefully you remembered the Savior and felt his love.

Lots of chocolate and colorful things!
Athena

Two!

Pretty soon there will be two little boys in my life! (Ryan is like my third kid, i know, but i cant go as far as calling him a little boy haha!) Having this week without Ryan , I have had tons of fun with Liam and i have been exhausted beyond belief. I love how he keeps me up and running always and makes sure that i feed him well. (he asks for food every 5 mins i swear!) I know i will be able to do it, i just dont know how i will be able to run around with Liam with another little baby in my arms! at least i will be able to put the baby down every once and a while ,instead of having him attached to my middle all the time! oh how much i cant wait to not feel like a penguin waddling after my son! But i am very excited , no matter what happens!

Liam is always so much fun and making me laugh. he really is a comedian at heart. Yesterday i put him in his PJ's , a sleeper. He loves to play with his belly button so i have to do the button at the top and leave it open a bit so he can play with it whenever he pleases. He WILL tell me off if i forget. anyways, he was all ready and he had about 10 mins before he was going to bed. I decided that i would let him watch tv and color in a coloring book while laying on the floor. He did so well, but got distracted and decided he would copy the seal that was on the tv and slide around on the carpet on his belly. I didnt think anything about it....until i saw the crayon all over our carpet! I guess he decided to put a bunch of crayons in his sleeper in the part that i left open for him to play with his belly button! haha! the crayons stuck out of the hole and drew on the carpet while he was being a seal. oh boy! so funny, i was not really impressed though but i couldnt get mad at him for it! I proceeded to strip him down and take the three crayons out of his sleeper. i cleaned up the rest and put him to bed. I didnt know how to clean up the crayon so i decided to leave it for the next day. Well, today i was making lunch and Liam was playing around everywhere dragging toys out to the living room. he pushed a book partially under the couch by accident and went to get it out. I guess i missed a crayon...because now the arm of our couch is lovingly decorated with pink scribbles. that one i did give him a time out for. and checked for more crayons while in the process. haha! well. now every time he sees his artwork, he gets a really concerned look on his face and mumbles as if to say " who did this, what a bad thing to do!" ahh..what a boy!

He really is a joy to have in good times and in bad. I cant wait to see the times were gonna have when the baby comes along.(2 months today!) many precious moments to look forward to!

no worries!

you know what i like about blogging? Its cute, fun and I can leave it at any moment knowing that Liam is no going to get into it! haha! thats one of the reasons that i never have done scrapbooking, it just takes up too much room, and if i wanted to go make lunch or something i would have to clean it up , just to have to drag it all out again later. With a blog, i dont even have to worry about it! i just type away and the computer saves my progress every few minutes so even if someone closes the page or shuts down the computer i always have what i did! its so fun! I am going to write another post later , but i just realized that i have to start getting us ready to go to get Liams shots today. wahoo! again, blogs are so much more convenient!!

Liam and his Daddy

Liam loves his Daddy. He can do things that mommy can not. Throwing Liam around and wrestling is Daddy's job and usually when Ryan comes home from work Liam demands Ryan to chase him to the living room and throw him on the sack and wrestle. Ryan has been gone since this Saturday to Egmont, a place on the sunshine coast that we camp at every summer. Ryan's parents own the land and we got power there last summer. Ryan went there with his dad to bring power to the sheds , and to clear some land. Just a few things to do before everyone gets there this summer! Since Ryan has been gone, Liam has been missing him tons. I try to fill in for Ryan , i have taken Liam on a couple walks to go check the mail, we have played outside, played video games , but being pregnant, i can only wrestle Liam so much before i get a cramp. I have to say Liam is putting up with me pretty well, but Daddy better have a lot of energy to wear off playing with his son when he gets back! Liam has been wearing his dad's shoes, and pulling his clothes out of his dresser. He has also been waiting for Ryan to get home from work...only to be disappointed. I miss Ryan a lot also! He is so much fun, and he is my someone to tease , and laugh with. I love talking to him, and i miss it.....Liam only talks so much, its hard to have a conversation with an almost two year old! I guess we just cant wait till Ryan gets back home. I hope he realizes how much he is loved and missed!

wowee!

So today was one of those days where i had so much to do and not enough time to do it in. I woke up knowing that i had a long list and yet i still took my time at getting things done. I did some Laundry for Ryan so he would have the clothes that he wanted to go to Egmont with. That was fine and dandy, until i realized that Liam and I needed pants. so I got those in the washer too. then i was sidetracked by Liam. He is really good at taking my attention away from what i should be doing, but he is just so stinking cute and full of love that i cant help myself. He loves food, so i started giving him his snacks that he usually asks for. He likes to play with his belly and we always tease him and feel it to see if its full or not. Today , he decided to feel if my belly was full or not and said "yup!" I had to tell him that my belly was full because of his baby brother and not because of me eating food. He is so funny.

So It finally came down to nap time and I put Liam down and layed with him for about 20 mins or so. I really would have liked to lay down and have a nap for a lot longer , but again i had to get things done. I was going to do the dishes, then i decided that i didnt feel like it and that i should finish the laundry before them. I had a shower and folded some laundry , put some in Ryan's bag for him and got my makeup on , got dressed, put easter treats together for Ryan (he wont be back until the day after) and then Liam woke up. I got him ready to go and then Ryan came home. We packed up the car, made sure Ryan was set for Egmont and then headed to cranbrook. Of corse we almost got out of sparwood and Ryan had to turn around because he forgot his mp3 player..... Anyways , we finally made it to cranbrook, had supper at Ryan's parents, Had Birthday cake for Ryan's mom Shirley cuz it was her Birthday today. Then we went to Ryan's parents best friends house to look at a dresser that they wanted us to take, im excited to bring it home whenever we can. and Ryan's mom went with Tina to the Riverdance show. That was our present to her from all of us. Then I went shopping at super store, said goodbye to everyone and Ryan for the next 10 days. sad to say in almost 3 years of being married its only the 2nd time we have been away from each other for longer than just a couple days. Anyways, then i drove back home to sparwood, witch I usually hate because of all the people who drive 60 because they dont like driving through the curvy mountains at night. Personally , I got to cranbrook often enough i am sooo stinking used to the curves that i could go 120 most of the way and it wouldnt phase me. but I finally made it home , put Liam in bed and then brought in the groceries , put them away, called Ryan to let him know we were safe, and now here i am writing it allll down. Now i am just going to feed our animals and then go to bed. ahhhhh, my lovely bed. its calling out to me!
Ill try and write again tomorrow!
Lots of love
Athena

Finally ?

Well I finally started my own Blog! I have told myself to do it for a while, and so i kicked myself in the butt, knowing that baby number two is coming soon. 9weeks 5days to be exact! June 21 is my due date , if you didnt feel like doing the math. Now all i have got to do is find a boy name that i like and ill be set!

Liam and I are having a PJ day today. he has been sick for..a week and four days now. He has croup. The Docs gave him some type of steroid medicine for his lungs. it worked great, and he is doing better than he was , but he still is coughing pretty good at certain times. I may take him in to see a doc again today if i feel i need to.

I am glad today is a day for relaxing. Woke up with a massive headache and , snow on the ground. Not exactly something that makes me want to jump up and get outside! My headache is better now. And so now im just making a list, for Ryan, so he doesnt forget anything to bring to Egmont this weekend. He is going with his dad and wont be back until Easter Monday some time. So tomorrow we go to cranbrook, Celebrate Shirleys 66 Birthday and Liam and I will head home. Ryan will stay overnight and then leave early in the morning. I will miss him, but Liam and I will have fun. I have the car the whole time so I am excited!

anyways, thats all I have for today!
Lots of Love and Comfy PJ'S!
Athena!

That's about it for today! Lots of Love and comfy PJ's!
Athena