A SPLIT EDITION. . .

Little did I know I was going to be so long winded and that this truly would end up being a split edition! I also have to mention how fun it was to hang out with Emily, Shelley and Mikayla. Thanks for putting up with a wild, sick, giggly, kid free Mom. Hail to chocolate chip cookies Mikayla, Amen to no pantyhose Emily and to Shelley, may your good eye for black widow spiders always be sharp. :) And Em, nice hunting, it died a brutal death. We missed you Jill, Melinda and Sarah! Of course, we have to include their hubbys, kids and Whitme. :) It just would have been even better to have the rest of the Mac clan with us.

On the home front, Darin was AMAZING. I would have awarded him the best husband and father award ever in the past with ease. But after this weekend, he blew all past accolades out the window. He had Kate, Sarah, Abby and Ellie at the soccer field by 7:30 am on Saturday morning. Kate's first game was at 8am so he had her in uniform, hair done and with required bow even. :) He watched Kate score two goals and even got some pictures. (that scored big with me!) GO KATE!!!! Then he got Sarah and Abby, gear and all ,to there soccer game at 10am. While there he chased Ellie, cheered Sarah on as she scored a goal (alright Sarah!) and tried desparately to get a very scared Abby on the field (it's okay Abby, next time!). He watched the BYU game, with four kids none the less (thank you so much Rasmussens!) and still managed to get kids in bed on time and bathed. Then he had them to church, hair done and all by 9am. But here is the kicker: he managed to get a roast, potatoes and carrots in the crockpot too. Then he was set apart as the stake YM secretary and had his first meeting. Then had the kids in PJs and in bed by 7PM that night. Words are inadequate. Do I need to brag anymore?? He blows me away. Thanks Darin so much for doing it ALL. I was so grateful to be with my family and you made it all possible. Although, he did such a good job, I think I should just step aside and retire. He does a better job than I do! LOL!

Split Edition

For those of you who know me well, I do enjoy the Today Show. I find I watch it less these days, but I still do watch it a little. I think the reason is I miss Katie Couric. What can I say, I liked her a lot. Not that Meredith is not good, but well Katie is Katie. Anyhow, as they are often saying when one anchor is in one place and one in the other, they have a split edition. So was the case at the Phippen home this past weeknd. I ran off to Redlands, CA to be with my parents, two sisters, a niece, an aunt, an uncle and four cousins. It has been one year since my grandmother passed away and we were excited to do her temple work for her. I joined the party Friday night and stayed all the way through Sunday afternoon. It is an extremely emotional thing for me to go to Redlands. Let me explain. My parents were raised in Redlands and the surrounding area. They met, fell in love and were married in the LA temple. Both sets of my grandparents lived there for all most of my growing up years. In fact, both my paternal grandparents died there. As you can imagine, we spent many, many summers there visiting them. I have so many memories there. And then in the last 8 years we lived in Phoenix and here in Visalia. When we lived in PHX it was a quick 4 hour trip and we were blessed to make it many times. And then moving to Visalia, we have made the trip again as it is only 4 hours south this time. We've made it our stop on our way to see my parents in Goodyear, AZ. It is a pretty little city. And even now as I type this I can't help but well up. I lost my maternal grandmother and paternal grandfather last year within two weeks of each other. My physical ties to this sweet place are gone. Their homes have been sold and that chapter of my life is closed. The chapter is long, full of dear memories. I didn't want it to end. And even now a year later, as I drove into town I couldn't help but cry for my grandparents. I miss them so much.
It is so appropriate that a temple has been built there and we gathered as a family and did the work for my grandmother. It meant so much more to us to do it there then another temple. We had brought her to the open house and had walked the halls of the temple once with her before. And it felt so right to be there again. It also brought such sweet memories forward of my other grandparents. My Dad pointed out in the celestial room where President Hinckley had stood and where my Grandpa and Dad had sat for the dedication of the temple. It was like being home again. I will always feel that way about Redlands.
I loved too, that my Mom and her sister and my aunt Vicki were sealed to their parents. And that my Grandmother who was orphaned at 3 was sealed to her parents. She didn't remember them in this life and what a sweet day for them to be together for eternity. My Grandma was the last of her siblings to pass on and now they are all sealed together. My Mom's cousins came from Idaho and Utah to be there as well. I love each of these strong beautiful women as well. They are who introduced my Mom and Aunt to the gospel and I am so eternally grateful to them for they example and the love and support they have ALWAYS shown my Mom and Vicki. They are just amazing and it is incredible to be with all of them in the same room. They are a hoot. Never has there been a group of 6 women that can laugh more. I loved being with them. I love you Marti, Leslie, Karen, Eileen, Vicki and Mom!!! What great examples you are to me.

Right of Passage

There are certain things that kids do that are inherent. They just DO them. They are different for boys then they are girls. Boys have their legos and cars, trucks and action figures. Girls have their barbies, crowns, wands, dolls and babies. For whatever reason, they need no prodding to do these things and like these things. They just happen. In our house, we are inundated with GIRLY things. You cannot imagine. Darin and I have a favorite quote from "Steel Magnolia" (said with a southern accent) Julia Roberts: " My colors are blush and bashful." Sally Field, "Her colors are pink and pink. It looks like the church has been sprayed with pepto bismol." Our house has definitely been sprayed with pepto bismol! But back to my philosophical thinking. :O) The other day, Ellie came to me with a dress up dress in hand and said, "Help me!" I was so surprised. I knew it was inevitable, but it means a turning point for me. My baby is no longer a baby. She has become a true little lady. And now all of our girls have walked the path to fantasyland.

Jill

You've had a birthday shout hurray. We want to sing to you today. One year older and wiser too. Happy Birthday to you!

With much love and adoration

We send this out to you

To let you know how much we care

And want the best for you

THE TOP TEN REASONS TO LOVE JILL

1. Her smile. It is radiant! It helps you look younger Jill. MUCH younger. Ha ha. Did you get your driver's license yet????

2. Her laugh. Have you ever noticed that it comes from the gut, but yet is still so feminine? It makes me smile.

3. She always does crafts with her kids. If only I could be half as good.

4. Jill is a great dancer, putting us all to shame. The only one in the family with good old fashion rhythm. Go girl!
5. She sticks to her guns and doesn't let anyone sway her.

6. She flew all the way from Michigan to help me during my darkest time while pregnant. She's a life saver in very real terms.

7. Jill is a PhD wife. She gets an award for pulling through years of college life with awesome patience and good attitude. Your almost done. And so are you Colter! Great job!

8. She loves her family and the Lord, unconditionally.

9. She let me do her flowers for her wedding. Brave girl!

10. She gets up at 5am to teach seminary. Talk about dedication and sacrifice. You're my idol Jill.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JILLO! Love you tons.

Yaquina Head Lighthouse

Growing up nowhere near the ocean, I haven't ever seen a lighthouse, let alone climbed up in one. We saw two while in Oregon and our favorite was Yaquina Head. Once inside, you saw where they stored the oil, a work room and then the black spiral staircase that led to the top. It was exciting to climb up to the top with Abby, Sarah, Kate and Darin. I even got some pictures from up on top. Here's looking up to the top on the inside. Sarah, Darin and Kate climbing to the top. The actual "light."

The view from the top.

Tide Pools

Kate loves to read this blog so it is she that I write to next. I really am bad about writing in my journal so this has to count, okay Kate?! I have to post about the tidepools we saw in Oregon because they were so awesome and that was your favorite part. On the way down to the beach and the pools, you see signs everywhere that say not to walk on the mussel beds. My sister Shelley and I had no idea what they looked like, but figured we would figure it out. Looking out on the pools it looked like there were large dark rocks everywhere. It wasn't until we got up close that we realized the rocks were COVERED in mussels. I don't know if you can tell from the pictures or not, but it was really neat. Behind Kate, are some of the mussels. All of the spots that look like little dark rocks are actually mussels. Another great shot of them is the picture below with one of the orange starfish.

Scattered all over were starfish. I have never seen one in "real" life and obviously not this many. At one point we had to be careful where we walked, there were so many. The colors were awesome too. We saw orange and a red/maroon color.
We also saw a ton of sea anemones. All of the bright green spiky plant looking things are anemones. Don't you love my technical terms?

Kate also found a number of crabs. If you use your superpowers and look REALLY hard you'll see a red crab that we caught moving under water. Also, under the rocks everywhere you could find crabs and hermit crabs in their shells. It was wacky thinking that under you were millions of crabs. Plus don't you just love how the beautiful the rocks are? They were so perfectly smooth. I wanted to pocket some. Too bad we weren't allowed.

Tid Bits

We were reading in 3 Nephi as a family during the chapters where Jesus Christ visits the Nephites. We were discussing with our kids in chapter 19 about how it looked like the disciples were surrounded by fire. We were asking our girls what they thought that meant. Sarah and Kate were both guessing that it had something to do with the power of God. They were looking for words to describe it. Darin told them that the Spirit of God was so bright and brilliant, that it looked like they were surrounded by fire. The girls were shouting out what they thought when Abby lit up and said, "It was awe inspiring!"

A few weeks before we were reading still in 3 Nephi about when Jesus administered the sacrament to the Nephities. We were asking who blessed the sacrament for us on Sunday at Church. Sarah said, "The breadmens do." We were roaring. Kate was rolling on the floor. :) Happy times in 3 Nephi.

My Mom

Today is an awesome day!! It would only be even better if I were in Goodyear, AZ celebrating with my Madre! Happy Birthday Mom. I wish we could be there. So we could give you our card that we have, but didn't get in the mail on time. :) :( I'M LAME. And so we could have some ice cream. Okay no the real reason is so we could give you lots of hugs and kisses. The girls would be smothering you!! But in tribute to you and your special day let me share some of the reasons why we want to smother you. :)

We love you because:

1. You stayed sane while raising 6 kids. That earns you a noble peace prize.

2. You cook the best swiss enchiladas on the planet. And cinnamon rolls!

3. No one can decorate for holidays like you can. And we LOVE it.

4. You have a swimming pool.

5. Puzzles are your specialty.

6. You love to laugh. I'll never forget the time that you and Grandma Mac let loose once you laughed so hard. Hee hee.

7. You love the Lord.

8. You taught us all to love books.

9. You read to us. Kate cracks up when I tell her stories of our summer reading when you dozed mid sentence. LOL!!!

10. You love your grandchildren.

11. You are a cancer survivor.

12. You keep in touch.

13. You wrote that story at the reunion last year that made us cry.

14. You have done our family history work.

15. And because you did that I had one of most spiritual experiences of my life.

16. You love games and now we do too.

17. You let me spend your money and decorate! (alright people I'm not spoiled-it was her house) LOL

18. You love the temple and faithfully go.
19. You cried with me at the dining table when I told you I was miscarrying. And you were there with me at the doctor's office.
20. You are unafraid.

21. You lost weight, not that we cared what you weighed, but we love that it will help you be with so much longer. You worked so hard. . .

22. You are sewing Kate's baptism dress.

23. You make every effort to be with us at important times in our lives.

24. You were a pioneer, joining the Church, altering our eternal course for generations to come.
25. You showed us how to live the gospel.

26. We love you because you are our Mom and Grandma! This list could be endless.

Happy Birthday Madre. We love you so much.- Darin, Amy, Kate, Sarah, Abby and Ellie

Father's Blessings

I think one of the best parts of the first day is getting a father's blessing. I am so grateful for my own Dad, (LOVE YOU DAD) for always being worthy to hold the priesthood and give me a blessing before every year. There was always such a wonderful spirit and it always calmed me so much. I want so much for my girls to feel the same way. Darin gave each of the girls blessings on Tuesday night. I had YW's on Wednesday and didn't want to rush through it, so we did it a day early. Abby went first and the thing I remember the most about Abby's was that she should always remember to pray. That if she ever felt alone, that she could pray and know her Father in Heaven is near. Sarah went next and she was told she has a duty to be a good example to her friends and sisters. Afterwards, Abby said, "Sarah has a duty!" It was adorable. She was LISTENING! Then it was Kate's turn. What stuck out in my mind was how Darin blessed her to work hard and try try try. He also blessed her to choose her friends wisely and that if her friends ever made bad choices, that she needed to stand tall for the right. After each blessing we took a picture with each daughter. Then Ellie climbed up on the chair by herself and folded her arms. Darin and I were shocked and awed at her sensitivity to the moment. Darin gave her the sweetest little blessing and then she too gave hugs all around. I was so proud of Ellie, for noticing what was going on and for having a pure desire to be blessed by her Daddy. For Kate, Abby and Sarah for their GREAT example. And for Darin, my love and my rock. Thanks for blessing each of our precious girls. I love you! Here's Ellie after her blessing. Ahh the joy the gospel brings!!

A New Era

So this morning I sent Kate to 3rd grade and Sarah and Abby to kindergarten. I think I would have been a nervous wreck if I hadn't been praying and worrying now for months. I even fasted, along with Darin, for them and well for me too. It sounds a little nutty, but I cried and prayed so hard for these three little girls this past Sunday. I know they are young to send, but we it seems like the right thing to do. Yet at the same time, I can't help but worry they'll listen or follow instructions. I worry if they'll have friends and then worry they'll be good ones. I worry they'll not understand or fall behind. I worry worry worry. I am so grateful for the sweet feeling I had on Sunday after ending our fast. Of course that doesn't mean the road will be easy, it just means we can know our Father in Heaven will be at our side as we walk the road.
Kate was so excited for this morning that she was dressed and had her bed made by 6:15am. She got very shy when she got to the classroom, but I think she'll do great. She has a male teacher once again, Mr. Ferrera. He seems outgoing and easygoing. It'll be a different year. Last year's teacher was the artsy type and her teacher this year hardly has a thing on his walls. Abby and Sarah were excited as well and had no problems getting in and finding their name tags. They got right into looking at books. The Lord watched out for us and gave us the most patient teacher ever. She is so sweet and loving too. It went about as smooth as I could have hoped for. Now if I just won't worry too much. . .

Here are my cuties on their first day:
Go my Oak Grove Owls!

All of them got home and reported:

Sarah, "We're in kindergarten and I will like it everyday! There will be happiness in kindergarten. And I love Mrs. Simons." :)

Abby: "I just love kindergarten. There are two Abby's in my class. There are two Sarah's too." When asked if she liked it she said, "YES!"

Kate: "Third grade is so awesome. I had a great time. I made some really nice new friends, Angel and Anna. Mr. Ferreira is funny."

The Mom said, "Now if we can only keep these positive attitudes until JUNE , we'd be in business. :) I'd say we are off and running folks! Here goes the rest of 2008."

NOT what you think. . . .

I am cracking up! I don't know if I should point this out or not, but if your like me you notice right away that it looks like Sarah is flipping the camera off in one of the pictures below. She is holding up a penny that we had pressed into a an oval that has a starfish on it, but it certainly doesn't look like it on the blog! I have wild children (don't you know it), but I don't think we have reached the point where our children are obscene. Well, I think they flashed Darren a few times, but that doesn't count does it? Sorry Darren! Someday I'll teach them to get dressed in their room. hee hee

More Oregon

These are tidbits of our adventures. I love Mikayla running from the freezing cold water. Her face says it ALL. Loved it Mikayla! The pictures from the aquarium turned out amazing. Wish I could show them all. Darin and Ellie on the beach-I love it when I catch those awesome moments. Kate on the beach-her smile says it! Sarah and Abby loving the water and lastly one of the many starfish we saw at the tidepools.

We did it!

PHEW! I can't believe we made it! Three one week vacations in six weeks could do anybody in. Not to mention doing it with four girls 7 and under. Oft times I look back and wonder how in the world we always think we can do this?@?! But amazingly, this time it actually worked. Our first trip was over the 4th of July to ARIZONA. Visiting Papa and Grandma Macdonald during the hottest time of the year only works because our girls love to SWIM. What fishes we have! Sarah and Abby both figured out how to swim without floaties on this trip. It helped that they swam at least twice a day for 5 days! They loved it and it made me wish, dream, and hope for a pool. It has lead me to break one of the big ten commandments. I COVET their pool. :) After all it is not that much hotter there than it is here. My only regret is that I didn't take more pictures! (I know Heidi, I need to be better!!!!) Thanks Mom and Dad for a great time.

PS Now you all need to go visit them! Darin and I painted their family room as our Christmas present. It turned out good (if we say so ourselves, hee hee) And that sent Mom on a path that could not be altered. I mean that positively. Now Dad has painted the kitchen and the living room. GO Mom and Dad! It must be a whooooole new house. We all need to check it out!

Secondly, as I mentioned before, we went to Utah. I finally got my act together and took almost 400 pictures. (Heidi, you are beeming with pride now aren't you?!) As the months pass and I have nothing interesting to say, I'll have to send out random pictures. It really was a lot of fun and there are already plans in the works for next year in Utah. Can we vote for California in 2010??!! :) Thanks Mom and Dad Phippen for a great time! And for all the cousins, who helped wrangle our kids. We are so blessed to have such nice nieces and nephews on both sides. And especially Camille and Carri who let Darin and I go on a hike and a four wheeler ride kid free. ALONE. WAHOOOO!

Poor Ellie, As you can see she is fast asleep on Darin's back. She was so exhausted, she had to find a way to sleep somehow. She just laid her head down and she was OUT! This is us at Cedar Breaks National Monument- July 24th

Our last trip was to Lincoln Beach, Oregon. Last year, Shelley(my eldest sister) and her husband Darren mentioned we should get together in Oregon. They live in Washington so it would be a meet in the middle if we hit OR. We readily agreed since we have not yet explored any of northern CA or Oregon at all. Little did we know at the time what an awesome trip it would turn out to be. We first met our dear friends Young and Rob Powell outside of Sacramento. I met Young in high school and I grew up with Rob in my ward for years. Young joined our Church her senior year and we have shared a bond that will last the eternities for sure. We have had the hardest time getting together and I was determined to meet. We had a few hours together and it was SOOOOoooo good to see her and her four girls. Yes, FOUR girls. What can I say? Bosom buddies think and well I guess reproduce the same. Ha ha. They are darling girls and we wish we were closer. Here they all are lined up!

We then went on to Redding and spent the night and went to Church. A very fascinating chapel by the way. I wish I could have taken a picture of the inside. It was interesting to say the least. That is for another entry. But we did go see the Sundial Bridge on Saturday evening. It is a glass topped bridge that spans the Sacramento River. As the name implies it tells the time (although not acurately). It was amazing. Our girls loved it and it was spectacular. They light it up at night, but we had to miss that so that will have to be for another trip. It is beautiful, especially to us who have not seen very many bridges. SLC and PHX don't have too many bodies of water to cross!
After Redding, CA, we headed on up to Salem and met Shelley and Darren. They have two girls, Mikayla and Whitney. Shelley and Darren took us to Silver Falls State Park on Monday morning and I think it has got to be one of the prettiest places on earth. It was Garden of Eden green. We saw like 7 (or was it more Darren?) different waterfalls in a 3 mile hike. It was waterfall after waterfall and so pretty in between too.
From there, we headed to the coast to enjoy a house we had rented a block from the beach. We got so lucky that the house was so nice and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Yea, we didn't get the sunshine we had hoped for, but what do you expect? It is Oregon! In some ways it was almost a welcome sight for us sundrenched Californians. The water was freezing but our kids did not even seem to notice. Ellie ran out yelling wa wa (water) and joined her sisters in the water. But the minute her toes touched the water, she said that was ENOUGH for her. She cried and seemed mortally afraid of the noise and afraid we were going to put her back in. Eventually she seemed to like it a little better. We went to an aquarium, climbed two lighthouses, saw some tidepools, saw several whales and even a seal. I think I almost broke Darin's eardrum when I caught sight of the whale. We were walking down the street hand in hand (thanks Shelley and Darren for some alone time, ahh it was sooo very nice) and I saw it out of the corner of my eye. I screamed "WHALE, WHALE!!" I was going nuts with excitement and probably embarassing Darin to death, good thing he loves me! I was yelling so loud I am sure everyone on the block heard me, but nobody else seemed as excited. Boo hoo. Come on people. It was a WHALE! :) LOL! We even sort of flew a kite. It was windy up until we bought a kite, and then everyday we tried after that there was hardly any wind. It was funny to see Darin running up the beach like a mad man trying to get it up. (Yes, it was funny!) But one day, it mostly stayed up! The kite must of been a little doomed from the start. We parralled parked along a main street and I sat in the car with the kids while Darin went in with the Wilkes to get a kite. I got the scare of my life when a motorhome tried to take off the side of the van. I screamed bloody murder, honked and chased them down the street before they stopped. Only they took off after I went to check on the kids and get Darin. That got my blood boiling. I don't know how they live with themselves not knowing if someone was hurt or how much damage they did. (thankfully it wasn't much, just the side mirror, but we salvaged the poor thing from off the sidewalk.) But enough with the one dark moment. The tidepools were one of the kids favorites and it was fascinating after going to the aquarium to go and see all of the sea life in their true habitat. The whole trip was just so fun, being with the Wilkes (we love you guys! thank you SOOOO much), seeing a new state, and being on the ocean. It has to be one of our favorite vacations. All in all, Kate still wins the prize for the best summary: "this is the best summer ever!"

It is TRUE

See it is proof. On the last blog it says Sarah and Bob, by Ellie. I need "Blogging for Dummies". Really. I do. And I know you aren't arguing with me either. LOL

Yankee Meadows

Sarah and Abby

Christina and Kate

Ellie

Sarah and Bob

Kate and Christina had a ball together. They are only a 9 months apart in age and you could tell. There was a fort that previous campers had built and the two of them were always in there. Once I went to check on them and Kate said they were fine and to go away(nicely of course), they were talking "girl stuff." It begins. . . .
Ellie is such a little sweetheart. It is a good thing too, because she has a scream that will shatter the sound barrier. She is unafraid to use it to her advantage too. She melts your heart with her sweet kisses, hugs and hellos. Our hearts were also melted on the this trip as the poor thing tripped so many times I lost count. She cut her lip, scratched her forehead, nose, knees, hands, arms and got two huge goose-eggs on her forehead. She even got hit on her temple with a 2x4 that had been hung by previous campers as a swing. The kids loved it, but so did Ellie and she and Abby collided and Ellie got the worst of it by far. She seriously looked like an abused child by the time we left. Luckily, you can't see in this picture. Maybe I'll find one that shows all her Owies better. :)

Bob and Sarah got to also go riding. It is not suprising that all four of our girls loved the thrill of the four wheelers, yes even Ellie rode with Bob. They are all daredevils. Does anything scare them?

Sarah and Abby were fascinated by the fish in a "this is cool and icky all at once" kind of way. Uncle David was egging them on, trying to get them to touch the eyes! Way to go Josh-he's the lucky fisherman! Great catch!

PS I still don't get why my entries don't look the same here in the create section as they do when I post them. I know you professional bloggers are laughing at me because I am a retard. What the heck!?!? I can't figure it out. :) And do you know I have erased 5 pictures trying to rearrange them and the text. Someone help this brainless woman!?!?!?!?