Jon Mark: He's not up to much of anything new. He is rocking family law. I always knew he would be great at being an attorney. He's got the charisma and the intelligence... not to mention good looks and confidence. Yup, he's pretty much the whole package and he's mine. He's an awesome dad and husband. I'm in Texas right now with his parents. The kids and I are visiting Great Mommom and Papa, and we all miss Jon Mark, but we are glad for the opportunity to see relatives.
Ralae: Well, I am rocking it at being an awesome mother (if I do say so for myself). Of course, there are lots of areas for improvement, and sometimes motherhood kicks me in the pants and makes me feel insane, but overall, I rock it like a boss! Haha! I am anxious to move into our own home, the countdown is on! Only 15 more days!! I am excited to open all of our stuff that has been stored in Lindsay's garage. It will feel like Christmas in June when we are all set to make up our home! :)
Joshua: He is all boy. He loves soldiers and armies. He plays with his little soldier set and sets out some "scouting" soldiers all over the house. Sometimes he forgets where he places them. He tells me that I need to keep an eye out because they are tricky, they are camouflaged. The other day, he drew a Nazi flag (don't worry, he wrote "bad guys" underneath the flag). On the other side, he drew an American flag and wrote good guys. He drew a large X over the Nazi flag. He loves nonfiction stories, especially stories about WWII, hence, the Nazi's v. the Americans. The other day, he had a tunnel over him and he was spinning around. He told me that he was a tornado. He said that I shouldn't worry because he was only hitting the government. He said he was a natural disaster and couldn't control his path. Oh, dear. He is a sweet boy, too. When he isn't playing "army" he is making his younger siblings laugh. He is a good example to them of choosing the right. Grandma reads with him every morning and he is catching on so fast. Spelling in front of him is a thing of the past. Also, Mommom has taught him how to play checkers and he is pretty good at it.
Mercedes: She is missing her daddy like crazy right now, but she is still able to have some fun. She loved playing monster with Papa Mac last night. She loves puzzles and she is great at coloring and writing. There really is a difference between boys and girls on that front. The other day, Lukey was pitching a fit and Grandma said, "it's not like it is the end of the world". Mercedes looked up from what she was doing and said, "yeah, Luke. If it was the end of the world, then Gavin and Jesus would come back". She prays every night that Jesus will come back to earth soon so that she can see Him and meet Gavin. She is a sweet heart. She told me that she can't see the Holy Ghost but she can feel him in her heart and that He feels nice. She tries to do what is right, and she is very remorseful when she makes a mistake. She is very introspective and can recognize when she has done something wrong. When Mercedes apologizes, she means it very sincerely. And, when she has been wronged, she will hug the offender and say that she forgives them, she does that very sincerely too. She is such a special little girl.
Luke: Lukey Bear is very loyal to me. He is very sensitive and needs lots of cuddles. He is very independent and wants to do everything himself. He is a big boy and he wants everyone to know it. He has been very proud of the backpack that I packed for him for this trip. He wears it everywhere. He likes it because Joshua has a backpack and so now he feels big because he has one. Yesterday, Mommom told him that if he didn't eat something then he would blow away. He took it quite literally, so now when he doesn't eat his lunch and I ask him to come back and eat it, he looks up at me with a concerned expression and says, "so that I won't blow away?". He has potty trained himself and does pretty good. He needs reminders from time to time. He is such a cute little guy. He makes my dad laugh because he can be very obstinate.
Hannah: Hannah is so funny. She is learning so much. She tries so hard to talk and babbles all the time. She makes voice inflections to match ours, and sometimes it sounds like she is talking. Papa Mac was playing a game with her in the car on the way up here. He would tickle her and make her laugh. He tired out before she did. He turned around and tried to take a nap. She waited a few moments and then said, "Papa?" then she would let out a little giggle. It was so cute. She walks like a pro and gets into everything. Also, every time I go to give her food, she folds her little arms first for prayer. If I say that the food is hot, she starts blowing and blowing like she is going to hyperventilate. She is a cuddly little banana and I adore her.
Life is good for our young family. We are counting our blessings and trying to live our lives for Heavenly Father and Jesus. This world is confused and our country is on a slippery slope. But, there is a lot of goodness in the world, too. Our family is blessed, we feel so thankful to our Father in Heaven for all that we have.
