The more tender your feet......

The more tender your spirit.

Those were words spoken by a teenage girl about Trek. I could not have said it better myself. It is so true. But not just your feet. Your body, your mind, your everything!!!

There were so many beautiful and marvelous things that happened on Trek. It is not for the weak in spirit. It was the hardest thing both physically and mentally I have ever done. And for that, the blessings I have received have been insurmountable.

For starters, I could not have done it without this man. He kept me going when I thought I could go no more. He took care of our kids and our camp with pride. He made sure everything was as easy as it could be under our circumstances. From setting up camp, to packing the handcart, he is a man's man. It was no easy task, and he did it without complaint. (Or at least none that our kids could hear! I may have....)

Thank you for allowing me to do this Jason. It changed my life forever. And I know it strengthened our marriage.

This is the last passage of water we went through. It was more a mixture of manure and mud really. We still had another day to trek and my feet were still fine, so I chose to jump the water. But I did not have to. The day prior we had heard a devotional about the crossing of the Platte River crossing. We were told of a 16 year old GIRL that carried 17 members of her company across a frozen river.

When I came to the place that the women were crossing, there was a girl, approximately the same age, with one foot in the muddy water, helping others across a thin log. She sacrificed her own dry shoes and socks for us to keep ours. We live amongst amazing youth.

MA & PA Blue in all their glory!

A tender moment within our sweet and loving little...cough...cough...10kids!

Rosalyn~ What a wonderful YW she is! She was so helpful and has such a wonderful spirit.

Marlon~ Ok, we are in the same ward as Marlon. But he did not know that! He was so funny and sweet. And occasionally bored.....(that was quickly fixed by making him go get water, or our food box)! His brother's Brando and Hyrum were on trek too. If we could not find Marlon, he was with his brothers. I thought it was sweet.

Bri~ What an interesting character. She was quiet, and then would say the funniest things. One of which is that she thought we should do the trek in Nebraska next time because it's flat.

Trenton~ He is 12. Need I say more? He was fun to have around. He loves candy and was always into some! To the point where I had to hide the Jolley Ranchers I brought for the kids to have while walking! Trenton also announced during a devotional that the spirit was telling him to go see Harry Potter. (It was the night it came out). I gave him the look. You know the one!

Chandler~ This boy pulled our handcart 99% of the time. We had to pull him off to take a break. But then he was right back on. I want my daughters to marry a guy like Chandler. He was the best son a Ma and Pa could ask for!

Nathan~ This guy is a wonderful person! He was delightful, and helpful, and just such a pleasure to be around. He is a spiritual giant! Another boy my girls to marry! He loved our rice baby David. He even fashioned several outfits, and slings for him to wear!

Bailey Rae~ Well, we all know how much I love this one! SO MUCH! She was thoughtful and kind. I needed her on Trek. She kept me sane, when I thought I may lose it!

Jared~ Our other 12 year old! What a sweet boy this one! His Mom was so worried about him going. Her prayers were answered! He was amazing to have! His hand was always on the cart! I miss this guy!

Megan~ Our mini ox. Megan pulled for 2 straight days! She was funny, and adorable! I thought it a pleasure to be her Ma!

Alex~ This guy got some serious blisters starting day 1. He NEVER complained. If we needed anything he was right there to help! I loved having all these awesome boys!

The last 1/4 mile we were given the chance to walk in barefoot. We heard the most amazing story of sacrifice. How could we not do it? We were the second to last handcart and actually walked closer to a mile barefoot. It was dirty, rocky, and there were lot's of little thorns. But Jason said that the Spirit was so strong you could not feel them.

(Megan's tootsies)

We had such a spiritually significant time that I am finding it difficult to blog about. They are tender and personal. I hope you understand. But in these words and pictures, I hope you get the feel of the love we had for this special adventure!

On a funny note. One night we played Mafia with the Barne's family. That is one hour of my life I will never get back. And I have no IDEA what happened. And I as the police! LOL!

Boom and a Crack.....

We had so much fun visiting with Candace and the kids! I am even more excited that they are coming back in August! We enjoyed the pool, s'mores and lot's of laughing!

My friend Dina has a cupcake business called Crazy Cupcake Lady! Every Sunday night she designates a place and posts clues or pictures on FB. The first 2 people there get the cupcakes. It was rather fun! We came in 2nd and enjoyed delish Andes Mint cupcakes! Although there was some speculation we cheated....I assure you it was all on the up and up :) Thanks CCL for the fun night! This is her daughter Bailey in the Victory Picture with us!
Our friends the Miner's invited us for a swimming/BBQ party. We had a blast and a close call, but all was fine! Brandon is actually Jason's new boss. He won't be working at Centennial next year. Sadly, not coaching either. With his school schedule for BSU, we would not see him until the weekends. So we had to make some sacrifices and coaching was one. Jason was truly broken hearted about it. But I am thankful he put us first. Thanks honey.....

I am in love with Lilly. She reminds me sooooo much of Natalie and Taylor when they were her age!
This is BAILEY! (as previously posted) She hung out with us for a while before fireworks last night. We headed to her house and sat in the drive way to watch all their crazy neighbors literally light the road on fire. It was fun though! Good times! Thanks Gardners for having us!
And last but not least. During our YW's meeting we were talking about Trek and what needs to be done to get ready. I mentioned that I have got to QUIT drinking Diet Pepsi or I am going to be crippled by headaches while Trekking! Well. In case you are ever in the same room as Dina Gardner and Ursula Tingey......Don't mention that you need help quitting something. Cause these two ladies are NOTHING BUT A HUGE HELP. ;)
Ursula came straight to my house and confiscated my stash. SERIOUSLY. My world was NOT refreshed. It's all for the best. The next day was hard, but by today, I am drinking lot's of water and seem to be on my way!

ToOt ToOt~~~

That is the sound of my own horn. Cause I'm tootin' it! We met our Trek families for mutual last night. Jason and I had delivered cookies the Sunday prior to introduce ourselves. The kids were all delightful. There were only two boys that were not home. At mutual we were to make our family flag for during trek. It's to identify your family. We also have blue bandanas. We also had to make a verse to The Handcart Song. The guys actually worked on that and did a GREAT job. They came up with this for the first verse:

"WHEN ALL THE BLUES WENT ON THE TREK,

THEIR FAMILY WAS A TOTAL WRECK.

FROM BIG TO SMALL WE LOVED THEM ALL,

AND AS THEY WALKED THEY GAVE THIS CALL......."

Then the chorus is: (this part is the same for everybody)

For some must push and some must pull, As we go marching up the hill;

So merrily on our way we go, Until we reach the Valley-O.

As for our flag, I really had no idea what we were going to do. So we went to Walmart and as I looked at some fabric I had a great idea. I was a tad intimidated. Mostly because some of the flags I had seen prior were incredible. But I presented to the kids and they loved it. We cut out all the pieces there and I came home and started hot gluing. (I bought iron on fabric glue and it did not work. Why I stray from hot glue I have no idea. It's a gem every time!)

The people/handcart are all hot glued on. Then for the letters I used Heat n Bond. I cut out letters with my Cricut. I am so proud of the way it turned out. I put our names on it with a fine tip marker and then added some detail.

I know it is probably over the top, but it makes me happy. The work was minimum, and overall I think the kids will love the flag.

Jason and I are in front of the flag. We are the host family for Bishop Berg and his wife. They will make camp with us and eat with us if they want. We are to also include them in family activities.

We have been collecting our supplies. And to our surprise we actually had a majority of what was needed. The clock is ticking and we are so excited to go! We also have a big family reunion the week before, so July is going to be crazy for us!

Snarky

Hi. My name is Alli. I am sarcastic.

Hello Alli. Welcome to the SARCASM support group.

I can be snarky. I am not sure at what point in I decided that being sarcastic was a good life choice. I would like to say that I was born this way, but I don't think the Lord installs the ability to give somebody a good tongue lashing. Over the years I have honed in on my skills. I primarily use them for good and not evil. Although sometimes I can feel somebody creeping under my skin and the one liners start compiling in my head.

I would like to say that being sarcastic is a fault. But really I am blessed to be quick witted, and light on my feet with my words.

My friend posted this picture on FB and I had to steal it. It made me laugh. I was still in bed with a full bladder and thought I better hold off on posting it till I was, you know, emptied!


So have a good laugh on me. And have a happy Wednesday!

2 pigs and a dog.

Well good day to you! Thanks for stopping by!

My allergies have been so killer this year. One night last week I used an entire roll of toilet paper just blowing my nose. BOO! But I am feeling better!

If I looked how I felt this would be it:

Not sure what was up with Graden.

And there is no excuse for this! :)

We hit the Meridian Dairy Days Parade this year again. It was fun and the kids got a TON of candy. (oh joy)

Our friends the Robertsons were in the parade! I am so glad they saw us! They were walking with the adoption float! Look at how DARLING Ashlyn is! Serious??? I could eat that girl up! Sadly, Collin's dad passed away the next morning. We are so sad for their family. He was a wonderful man.

Every summer my wedding ring shrinks. Ok, my finger swells to the size of my thumb. It kills me not to wear it, but it is humanly impossible for me to get it on. And if I do squeeze it on, I would have to call 911 to get it off. And they would have to use the Jaws of Life. No way. So each summer I treat myself to a new wedding band. Come on! $6.88 at Walmart and I have a new ring and a green finger by the end of the summer! This was my pick this year. Way more realistic than the 3 carat whopper I picked last year! hehe!

Now on to the MOTHER OF A LIGHTNING AND THUNDER STORM from the other night! Jason and I sat on our porch and watched. One of the thunder's scared me sooooo bad I flinched and nearly pulled every muscle in my neck! IT WAS HELLA SCARY YO!!!

I would like to name this the Second Coming Cloud. Cause you betta be on yo knee's prayin' somewhere when this bad boy rolls into town again.

Yep. He's mine.

We have had time to spend with the Browne's. Oh blissful joy! We have enjoyed Candace's MIL's pool. NICE!

And this is what happens when you do not communicate with your spouse. You end up with two Guinea Pigs and a dog over the weekend! I agreed to babysit my sister Jennifer's pigs for a couple of weeks while they travel to New Mexico. (Not the Old Mexico like my girls thought). Rocco and Jack Jack are fun to have! (Odorless I may add!!!)

And Jason agreed to watch the Hazen's dog Meeka while they go to San Diego for the weekend! My kids are in HEAVEN! It's all going very well so far. Meeka is really chill and so are the pigs!

Nuff' said :)

Although for just a visit, my heart seems fuller with her here.

Thank You Heavenly Father for my CanDance.

Genious {Not me, I sure stole the idea}

A friend of mine posted on FB how her kids were loving a new method of doing chores. So of course I had to ask......

It's basically a bowl or jar with folded up chores that they pick randomly. So far.....it has been 95% awesome. We are working out the kinks as we go! It has chores like sweep the floor, wipe down the table, pick a window and wash it, put laundry away, mop, and some special ones to like wrestle dad, 5 minute break, sing a song....etc... They get a star bursts for each chore they do. (not for the fun or silly ones though) I put some harder ones in there today. Taylor had to sweep and mop, and Nat had to clorox wipe each toilet. For those I made them worth 2 starburst!

Graden's slips are green and at his level. I am lucky to get him to do anything. So he has to vacuum, put toys away, etc... He does not like starbursts either so he get's another treat!

The road bumps we have hit are if one get's done faster than another they get more slips, therefore more starbursts. DRAMA. So tomorrow I am going to give the girls their own color. I hope that helps. Nat also got the two fun ones today as well, and that did not go over well! :(

So far our summer has been pretty darn clean! And I like it!

Sew awesome!

My MIL is SEW awesome! When she came for Spring break she was working on the most

a.d.o.r.a.b.l.e. skirts for her grand daughters. She picked out the fabric that she thought
would best suit each girl! The style she picked for my girls was RIGHT ON! I loved it! Well,
she finished up and sent them in the mail this week! Nat & Taylor were so excited to open
the package! It even had Graden and Burke's name on it too! (They got fruit snacks and
smarties! Thoughtful for them to not be left out!!)

Sunday!! They were dazzling in their new skirts! And the best part??? They TWIRL! Like really twirl! Like I had to tell the girls not to twirl at church cause people could see their undies!!!
The skirts look like they were purchased they are so professional! Teri is a methodical
seamstress! (Although she is scoffing right now!) TAKE THE COMPLIMENT MOM!

Well, she ain't the only one that can sew in this family!! Totally joking! I just thought I
would hem the girls jeans into shorts for the summer! My sewing machine does some really
cute stitches! I did several designs! This was just one of them! (PS.....how do twins, who
share pants get holes in the right knee only in EVERY pair we own??) Let me know when
you think of the answer!

I am thankful to have such a giving MIL. She is wonderful about sharing her talents with her
kids and grand kids! We are blessed to be her family! Love you Teri! (Is this not better than
being in the list of my blessings??? You got your own post woman!!!!) ;)

Negative Nancy

Or Debbie Downer. Or Wanda Womp. Or Alli Blue? Nah......

I decided somewhere along the way that life is too short to worry about things you have no control over. That does not always stop me from trying, but I generally have a pretty firm grasp on my reality.

Instead of listing all the things that I want to pull my hair out over, I thought I would list all the things that bless my life. (And of course not ALL of them, but the ones that come to me. Or before Graden wants lunch. Whichever comes first!!!)

• My marriage.
  
• My children.
• My faith in the gospel.
• Jason's job.
• My kids have insurance.
• Chex Party mix and Diet Pepsi.
• This warm day.
• My new neighbor I met today.
• Faithful Friends.
• Laughing at Denny's.
• Volleyball (even when hit with the ball).
• Netflix.
• My sisters.
• Judy.
• Creativity.
• My no soliciting sign.
• My iPhone.
  
• Candace and the kids coming for 2 weeks.
• Jason going back to school.
• My kids' teachers.
• People in my ward.
• My calling.
• MIA MAIDS.
• Trek.
• Health.
• Reality TV.

Well, this is just my short list. I have many more. I know sometimes it's hard to see the good when all you feel is bad. But it's there. Just have to open your eyes, and your heart to them!

Botanical, Zoo and the #31!

The month of May is so busy! But it's almost over and so far we have made it! Both Graden and the girls had field trips and I was able to go to both! Thankfully! The boys and I went to the Zoo. A week later than planned because of rain, but we had a great time on a chilly day! I think it is so funny when I am with my boys and people think it is great that I have 2 boys. Then when I tell them I also have 2 girls.....the face is priceless! Sometimes you would think I said I had 20! lol!

I love this picture of Burke because he is trying to pick this poor penguin up off the ground! He is so small that he is able to lift more than his own weight. He is awesome at balancing too. He is crazy strong! {Or so he thinks??}





Here are some pictures of the girls and I at the Idaho Botanical Gardens! I had not been in years. It was green, and lush, and beautiful!


Oh, and I turned 31! BOOYA! My big day fell on a Sunday and mine was filled with church and meetings! Go figure! When I came home from my YW's meeting the front of the house had this BEAUTIFUL sign Jason had made! I knew I was in for a treat!
Say hello to the Hill Billy Birthday Party! I think he used every decoration in our party box! All the kids past birthday parties were represented! It was AWESOME!
Candace sent me this a.d.o.r.a.b.l.e necklace from ETSY. Sorry the picture is side ways. It's a charm necklace. A tree, an OWL...and the oval says ALLI. So cute huh? I love it! And I wear it everyday!

I also finished the book THE HELP! It's a must read if you have not! It will be released in the theaters August 11th! Better read it so you are hip to the know!