HalloweeNIE

After school today, Lottie and I watched a Halloween cartoon 

while we worked on creating spooky ghosts to line our driveway. 

Gigs, my tall man-child, agreed to help me after school on Thursday

to tie the ghosts to tree branches that hang over the driveway. 

I've had this vision in my brain since June.

A few days ago, after school, Gigs took Lottie to the Dollar Store, where she

bought a cute string of skeleton lights and draped

them over her bed.  It's adorable.

She's a HalloweeNIE for sure!

See You Later

This morning, I woke up at 5:45 to make sure that Gigs 

was up and ready for Seminary. 

While he was getting ready, I did a Barre class before my 

7:00 alarm when Lottie wakes up, and I take her to school.

While I was in plank on the mat, Gigs walked in and said,

"Mom, did you happen to see if Candace's cage was open 

when you came to wake me up this morning?"

All I could think about was how 

I probably shouldn't have had those THREE Dr. Peppers

over the weekend because I felt weak and 

moving was proving to be super challenging.

"Ummmm...."

I said in plank on the floor, looking at his shoes.

Then I remembered it was super dark

when I woke him up, and I needed my phone light

to find my way to his room.

So, no, I didn't remember because I didn't even see

 Candace's cage.

"Gigs, seriously," 

is all I could muster.

"Oh, boy.  He said as he made a beeline for the front door.

"Make sure Kitty doesn't go in my room.

See you later."

Bling!

 

Lottie spent her Saturday making the cutest rings

from clay.  I love that she is so creative!

Also, Jane, come home!

Lottie needs her nails clipped, and you're the

best at it!

Teenage Boys

Tonight, Christian, Lottie and I went to get dinner, and

 then over to the grocery store to grab a few things.

While shopping, Gigs somehow talked Lottie into eating a little chunk

of an Aloe plant, and I thought she was going to throw up.

After getting mad at Gigs, I made him

take her to the bathroom so she could wash her mouth.

Boys!

Teenagers!!

Teenage boys!!!

Sometimes, they are so dumb.

Also, it's Friday the 13th!

 

Seat Warmer

 

It's different waking up in September.

The air changes; it's crisp and cool

Few and far between are the mornings of humidity and heat.

(Thank goodness!!)

Lottie wears a jacket to school, and I always bring her blanket so

she can cover her legs in the car.

I even turned on the seat warmer this morning!

Christian and I are in training for our new adventure

this weekend.

I can share the news as soon as a few more of our ducks line up.

It's looking good.

I'm excited and nervous.

Change is scary and unpredictable.

But I'm ready.

Spiritual Stretch Marks

I saw this photo pop up on my phone and instantly

 got a pain in my stomach.

These were hard, dark days for me.

I remember feeling so overwhelmed because I was trying to be attentive

 to my children, but feeling physically so sick all the time.

I just hurt all over.

I wanted to curl up in a ball and disappear.

I was convinced that I had failed as a mother, burdened by guilt for 

being sick and away from them in the hospital.

  The frustration was almost unbearable.

Sister Yee has described hard, unbearable times in our lives

 as "spiritual stretch marks."

That spoke right to me.

My whole life feels like it's been one giant spiritual stretch mark.

But I'm proud of these stretch marks!

I've learned so much from them.

I am grateful for them.

And I got through it.

I didn't give up.

The Nies got through it, and they didn't give up!

And we are all braver because of what we've been through together.

We've been stretched personally and as a family, sometimes to our limit,

 but we did it.

We're still doing it.

Yes, I still feel guilt sometimes when I think

about it those days, but the Lord knows what we've been through.

Of course, He knows.  

He never gave up on me or my children.

His arms are stretched out still.

He, too, has carried me and will never let go.

And that knowledge is purifying!

"Perhaps like me, you have pleaded for help to not be left alone 

during some of the most emotionally, physically, and spiritually 

demanding seasons of your life. These intense seasons of growth 

have left what I call “spiritual stretch marks” on the soul. 

But I bear witness that 

He has carried me, and He will carry you. He has graven you upon 

the palms of His hands (see Isaiah 49:16; 1 Nephi 21:16). 

He has been there as you’ve sought “to be righteous in the dark.” 

He has not forsaken me, nor will He forsake you. 

And I will love Him forever for it."

-Kristin M. Yee

You Can Do It, It's Not That Bad

 Today, I took Lottie and Gigs to their yearly well-child check-ups.

Gig's last since he'll be 18 in just a month!!!  (WHAT?!)

The nurse explained that Lottie was due for an immunization 

but that Nicholas was not.

He was so relieved and excited.  He took an audible breath, 

relaxed in his chair and even helped encourage 

Lottie when it was time for the needle,

"You can do it, Lod.  It's not that bad."

Then he said to me,

"I totally could have gotten a shot if I needed to.  I wouldn't have cared."

Nicholas is a trypanophobia- fear of needles and has been since forever,

and that's easy to say when you're not the one getting the shot!

After the doctor checked out my two Nies 

(everything looks great!!  SO thankful!)

and we were ready to leave,

the nurse popped her head back inside and said, 

"Nicholas, it actually looks like you do need a 

follow-up shot to your last one.  Hang tight; I'll be back in."

The mood in the room took a turn.

And Lottie immediately went to him (in jest) and said,

"It's OK, Gigsie, you can do it.  It's not that bad."

When it was all over we went and got donuts.

We ALL deserved one.

,

Senior Nicholas

 Today, I got Nicholas's senior photos back in the mail. 

He looks really sharp! 
And today, a photo popped up of him in 2007 

when he was 1 in Christian's arms on a 4-wheeler at the ranch

with Claire in the back.

His cheeks, though!!!!!

I'd pay a large sum of money to have him

be that age for just one day!!

Courage To Watch

 Tonight was the live digital premiere of Courage Rising!!

Jane went over to my parent's house to watch it together.

It was her first time seeing the film since she 

was on her mission when we had the live premiere in Arizona last year.

There are some photos in the film that my kids have never seen.

Photos were taken by the police at the scene of the crash.

They are a little graphic and scary.

For the most part, the Nies aren't interested in seeing those,

or even asking questions.

I think it's too painful.

Especially for Jane.

So I knew the film might be hard for her to watch,

so I was incredibly thankful my parents were there with her

watching it and supporting her.

After it was over, we sent voice messages to each other and

I asked her how it went, and she said, through tears,

"I connect with the story, but sometimes I can't believe that happened to

me.  To us.  I feel like I'm watching someone else's story and living

vicariously through someone else's experience.

And Mom,  it's so sad!!  I know it has a happy ending, 

but it's such a sad story.

Also, you and Dad were soooo young when it happened.

Our family was so young!

We were just babies!

But you did it!  I loved the ending of the movie 

and that you eventually do get better, hike that mountain, 

and our family heals!"

A BIG Thanks to everyone who watched it!

All proceeds go to the new.  

Diane & Bruce Halle Arizona Burn Center.

The movie will still be available on Kino until November 7th!

Courage On The Mountain!

 Since tomorrow is Courage Rising's digital premiere, 

I thought I'd share a few photos from Kilimanjaro!

This hike and its purpose mean so much to me.

I am incredibly grateful to a part of this team!

To watch, go HERE

Thank you in advance!  All proceeds from the film go to the new

 Diane & Bruce Halle Arizona Burn Center – Valleywise Health.

Prized Pumpkin

This afternoon was spent outside in the garden.

I have this GIANT white pumpkin growing.

I've been so proud of it, and today I noticed that it was rotting!!!

I wanted to cry. 

The bottom was soft, juicy, and stinky!

I thought this would be my prized pumpkin,

my blue ribbon masterpiece!!

It was not to be.

Out of fear,  I decided to harvest all the pumpkins.

I also ripped out all my Zinnia's in the font because they got diseased,

and it spread like wildfire through a village.

It was sad having to do that, but the harvest I got is 

absolutely stunning, plus my other flower bed has tons of blossoms

still and are doing great.

AND, my Dahlia's have decided to join the party!

While I was in Utah, I asked Gigs to harvest and cut down the corn stalks

and lay them up to dry.

They are going straight to my gate as decoration.

Growing up, my mom always bought corn stalks to put on our

side gate with ribbon and a homemade scarecrow

using my brother's old clothes and shoes.

When I showed my kids a photo of the scarecrow, Ollie couldn't

believe his eyes.  Mom had used my brother's 1986 Larry Bird Converses

as the scarecrow's shoes.

"Mom, today those would sell for like hundreds, 

of dollars!  I can't believe they

sat like that in the rain and sun for years!"

Trained Guard

 This afternoon, I was organizing and cleaning up from

 last week when the girls left. There were many things 

they had left that needed to be organized. 

I hung up our new star in my window, adding to my collection 

of family-themed stars. The colors look beautiful!

Kitty was right under my feet the whole time.

Is that just a kitty thing, or do all adult cats do that too?

It wasn't until I gave her some tissue paper to play with that she completely

 disengaged from me and spent hours playing with it. 

She wrapped herself up and pounced on it, which was incredibly cute.

Then she disappeared.

I entered Nicholas's room and saw her beside a pillow like a trained guard.

I couldn't figure out what she was doing

until I lifted up the pillow, and one of Gig's spazzy giant lizards darted out.

I screamed, and Kitty jumped into action.

I threw the pillow back onto the lizard, and Kitty sat down calmly 

next to the pillow, patiently waiting.

I called Gigs, who was on his way home from school, and asked him

if he had any critters missing from the zoo in his room.

He was quiet for a minute, then said,

"Maybe. Why?"

Then I told him about the giant lizard that Kitty was guarding in his closet, 

and he said,

  "That's Kelly!  I'm so glad she's alive! I'm on my way home,

don't let her escape!"

I looked at Kitty and knew Kelly wouldn't be going anywhere.

Not on Kitty's watch.

Finishers

 We have two cows in the pasture near the house that are our finishers,
which means they are on deck for slaughter.

They are spoiled and eat lots of corn, oats, 

along with their delicious fresh green grass.

They'll be enjoying this treatment until October, when they'll

move on to greener pastures (so to say).

Gigs' goats, Gump and Gus, happily eat right along with them.

Christian told me yesterday when he came back from

feeding the cows,

"The goats are growing on me."

Gigs is planning on selling the goats for his mission money,

so it's not a good sign if Christian is falling in love with these

two monkeys!

The truth is, they are actually super cute.

Today after school, Christian and Gigs went to minister

with the full-time missionaries.

I love that Gigs is getting these incredible experiences with the missionaries

now, since he'll be doing the same thing in about a year.

When 9:00 rolled around, Lottie and I had already

had dinner and cleaned up when they walked through the door. 

Gigs came home in a super good mood.

I thought, oh wow, he's on a service high!  I love it!

Later, when Christian and I were in bed, he told me that

he and Gigs had been looking at a motorcycle together on the way home.

And they bought it. 

 A 1974 Honda CL360.

"I thought about how cool it would be to fix it up with him,

and I couldn't help myself.  But I told him he had to do all 

the jobs and projects you've asked him to do first.

He can't lay one finger on it until you say so."

Labor Day In Virginia

This morning, which turned into the afternoon because of

unforeseeable issues, we finally left, bound for Virginia, where

 we will pick up our newly fixed truck and see Claire!

We got to campus and reunited with her, which was so good!

I love her!

I miss her so much!!

She's doing so well and is so happy!

We drove around showing Lottie and Gigs her campus,

and around her town of BV, then went to lunch.

Christian is looking into buying a stock trailer to transport his cattle,

and it just so happened that there was one he was looking at for sale nearby, so

we went to the farm to check it out when, out of nowhere, a

serious downpour took over, but only for a few minutes, and then the most

beautiful double rainbow popped out of the grey clouds.

It was amazing.

Claire will be joining Lottie and Gigs in late September, while Christian 

and I travel to Oregon where I have been invited to speak near Portland.

I'm looking forward to that!

Get UR Tickets

 I have been looking forward to this Sabbath day ALL WEEK!!  

I have needed peace and quiet that only the Lord's Day can offer.

I welcome this day with open arms, reflection, and naps.

This Saturday is the premiere of Courage Rising,

the documentary film following 8 burn survivors 

(including Christian and me) attempting to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro!

We're really excited about it!

Go HERE to buy a ticket & more information

Jay Leno will be there, will you??

A good article HERE

Tomorrow, we are headed to Virginia to pick up the fixed truck,

and spend some time with Claire.

Speaking of Claire, have you seen THIS??