Polly's First Talk in Church!!

August 21, 2011 Polly gave her first talk in church.  She wrote her talk herself, while we taking Allison to St. George.  She is an exceptional writer.  The talk was on the 8th article of faith.  She said the article, and then she told a Bible story about David and Goliath, and then she told some of her favorite scripture hero's from the Book of Mormon.  Here she is practicing her talk.  When she got up in church to talk, she was so nervous.  She told me before that she was nervous, but I had no idea how bad.  Her voice trembled right from the start.  She tried to take a breath and collect herself, but it just seemed to get worse.  Then tears started.  She never quit talking, even though she was struggling.  At one point during the talk she had her elbow on the pulpit, and she lay ed her head on her hand and went "hugh".  It was so cute.  Scott and I were right in her field of view.  We were so puffed up with pride.  She was so scared, but she never quit, and she stuck it out and finished it.  She had almost everybody in the congregation tearing up with her.  You could tell that everybody was rooting for her.  When she sat down, she couldn't stop tearing up, it was so very cute.  After the meeting, so many people came up to her, to tell her that she did an awesome job.  Adults that she would never had thought told her thank you for a great talk, and how much the spirit was there, and how "she" was like David, fighting against Goliath.  He didn't quit and neither did she.  She felt so good after word.  I loved how the ward rallied around her and made it a great experience.  She will never forget it.  This was the same Sunday that Lillian got her YW award, and, Tony was our High Counselor, so Grandma and Grandpa were there, Grandma Sherry, and Rachel's family was there, so we had a good crowd of family.  Polly was very brave and did so great and we were so proud of her.






Polly also had to write a paper in school about her favorite relative and it was too funny not to have documented to here it is......




My favorite relative is my dad, even though he is in his forties and seems to be shrinking he still has a whole lot of power strength an determination left in him.  My dad loves to quote movie lines, so out of the blue we will hear him say a movie line and we will all try to guess it the fastest.  Sometimes it is hard to realize what he is quoting because half of us probably haven't sen it yet or it is so old that we don't even know what he is talking about.  He has brown hair with gray splashes in it, he is very buff from working so hard everyday. When we vacation in Mexico the people there always ask him if he is from Spain, now we always say that we have a "true" Mexican in our family.  One of his idiosyncrasies (that we love to tease him about) is that he never uses his blinker light because he doesn't want to where it out.


When I am out in public with my dad, every turn we make he's either saying hello to someone or shaking some ones hand.  He knows everyone.  My dad knows everything and anyone you could think of.  He was the salutatorian in high school and he graduated as Summa Cumlaude with two degrees at ASU.  He is so smart and right about everything.  He played on the high school all-star basketball team.  He is absolutely amazing at any sport, give him a minute to read a book about it and watch some people play it and he'd be going pro.  My dad fought hundreds and hundreds of really important fires that saved millions of lives he is such an important man in my life and in many others.


I love my dad because he is hilarious, loving, Brilliant, very athletic, very brave, and my hero.  That is why he is my favorite relative.

Dallin's First Baptism, August 20, 2011

Dallin the "giant" Luis, Cintia, Elder Nelson, and ........  Dallin challenged Luis and Cintia, to baptism the first few days that he was in Puerto Maydrn.  He was so happy and excited to be able to perform the baptism

I love this picture, it looks like Dallin just finished with one of his big bear hugs, and I love his smile, I guess I just love him.

Elder Nelson, Luis, Cintia, and Dallin.

Dallin and Elder Nelson, he is Dallin's trainer, from Provo Utah

Some part of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir were touring South America, and they made a stop at Puerto Maydryn.

I'm assuming this is Dallin's apartment

Elder Nelson and Dallin on P-day at the coast

Dallin said that on his first P-day the elders took him to the ocean and they saw whales diving and jumping and playing, he said that it was amazing.  He was frustrated that he could only get a picture of the fin, but it's good enough for us.  This next part is Dallin's letter home telling us about the baptism.  He wrote it very quickly, because I just happened to be watching the computer very closely when I saw that he just sent a picture, so I responded as fast as I could and he was there, we were talking back and forth, for just a minute, but it made my whole week!!  I cried.  I said "are you still there?"  and he said "momma?"  oh my gosh still the tears come.

This letter is from Dallin:
"Well I am going to write all that I can really quickly. El Sabado pasado tuvè un baptismo por Luis y Cintia and nothing went as planned. We had planned to meet them an hour early to practice and make shure that everything was OK and we had been there the entire afternoon cleaning and preparing everything ( it was pretty cool actually I got to climb the archaic water-tower to fill the tank so that we had enough water for the fount). Then all of the members started trickling in for the baptism and still no Cintia and Luis. We went to there house to look for them and it was abandoned. We went back waited some more and then E. Perez and Taylor came, so E. Perez and Nelson left to go search for them in the Bolivian party in the streets, while E. Taylor and I stayed back to wait for them. Finally after E. Nelson almost had a heart attack they came and everything work out great from then on. I was really nervous, because I had just memorized what to say when baptising someone in Spanish. It was great and it all worked out. If you asked someone else that same question it might be different, but for me it was great. The next day we went early to church and they were there waiting for us ready to be confirmed. Oh I forgot about this the week before Satan was working really hard on them trying to get them to not go through with this decision and we were over there everyday helping them. There friends were trying to convince them not to go through with it, and they were fighting alot nearly to the point of divorcing. It was crazy, but everything is better now." 

Lillian Received her Young Women Recognition Award August 21, 2011

My baby girl who is 14 years old, worked really hard in the Young Women Program and earned her Young Women Recognition award.  She has spent many, many long hours working on things that she loves to do.  She is exactly what a good young woman should be.  She has righteous desires and goals.  She is a good example of giving to all of us.  We are proud of you Lillian.

We gave her this Willow Tree Young Woman to show her how proud we are of her.  You can also see her necklace, it's a classic gold one.

SAYING GOODBYE TO ALLISON

Dad and Mom took us for a FHE farewell dinner for Allison.  We went to La Paloma.  We had a nice time.  Good visiting and good food.  Thank you so much for the nice evening.

Saying goodbye to grandpa and grandma

  

Polly found a toad.  She cannot see a creature or an animal and not touch it.  She has stealth moves, she was faster than the toad, and without any hesitation picked him up.  Lillian was not happy with her, and Allison and DeWitt were telling her that she would have to ride in the back and not touch anything.  Scott was looking on being a proud papa, and grandpa and grandma were just smiling knowing that they didn't have to give her a ride home.

These are Allison, Dallin and DeWitt's friends.  Tommy Schnell and Jordan Hunt.

A girls (and Carson) going away luncheon.  Rebecca, grandma Sherry, Rachel, Mary, Carson, Lindsay, Allison and grandma Susan.  We all met at Main Street Cafe, and enjoyed some last minutes together.

DeWitt was getting ready to leave and so we had to get a picture, no matter what Allison was wearing, or how soon she had gotten out of the shower.

Polly was getting ready for soccer practice when she was ready to take her picture.  She wanted it by the clock so that we may always remember the time.

Love, Love, Lillian and Allison

 Parenting, when children are young and all around you, asking for things and needing everything is hard.  But you know what is harder......When they leave home.  I can't believe how fast time goes.  When I look back at when my kids were little and we would play dress up, (yes the boys too) and have "Friday night parties" and travel for tennis tournaments, and all of the fun stuff that goes on with younger kids.  I thought that the time would never come that any of my kids would be leaving me.  But it happens and it happens fast, and no advice that I got from my mom or other moms could have prepared me for the emotion's that I go through.  If you think being pregnant is emotional, or post part um is emotional, or even when you send your kids off to kindergarten is emotional, you have another thing coming.  Three months ago Dallin left me, and I wouldn't want it any other way.  He is in Argentina, exactly where he needs to be.  Now Allison is ready to leave my nest and it's good and right.  It's exactly what she needs to do, but what about me.....I feel like the kids are still going to have their sister.  And I will still have my daughter, but my relationship will be different.  I won't be involved in every single part of her life.  I will be taking a different roll.  So after these many years of her being in my home she is ready to branch out into the world.  (And if she didn't then I would really be upset, hehehe) Allison going to college at EAC seemed just like an extension of high school for me.  Allison going to St. George, Dixie State, seems like she went off to college.  I'm rambling.  I am so proud of Allison.  She is such a great and wonderful girl.  I have been so blessed having her for my daughter, she is a wonderful example of everything good in life.  She is always a very positive person.  I'm excited for this new adventure that she is going to have.

Here we go, we're on the way to St. George.  The car is full, but not a full as I expected.

We had a nice stop at Hoover Dam.  The bridge behind Allison is huge.

Next stop....Las Vegas.  Ummmm not the "cleanest place", but now we can say we've been there and that's enough for me.

Allison in front of Caesar's Palace

In front of Caesar's Palace

Had to show the Lord of the Rings slots.  Allison was a bit disappointed that the Lord of the Rings showed up in a casino.

Allison got an e-mail from her landlady that told her to just show up at the apartments and the Key would be in the electric box.

Allison's roommates.  They are super great!!!!
Cassie, Felicia,  Lydia, and Allison

We were able to to spend some time at the St. George Temple.  We did baptisms together.

St. George temple

Allison and mama

Scott checking out the bulletin board in the student center.

We took a self guided walking tour of campus

Allison's new school......Dixie State

This is Allison's new institute building, and also where she will be attending her church meetings.  This building is huge, it has 3 stories with a ton of class rooms.  The moment we walked in we felt like it was home.  Brother Anderson one of the teachers immediately welcomed us and helped Allison with registration and with a quick tour.  I know after the institute experience Allison felt much better about things.

This picture is awesome.  It's in the St. George temple, but it was also in the institute building which is why I have a picture of it.  It is Wilford Woodruff with the founding fathers.

walking away from the institute building to towards the tennis courts and the basket ball arena.

inside the basket ball arena

Her home away from home.  Scott put his arm around Allison and said.  "Well all of your hard work has paid off, you've done it!!"

You can see the St. George temple in the background

This is how I really feel.

This is where we had our "last supper"

This store is in biking distance for Allison so we wanted to stop here and check things out first.  Scott said that they should drop the "H" and put in an "M" so that it would say "Marmons"

My baby girl and her new home.  When we first arrived I wasn't altogether sure about things.  I didn't like the beds, and there was no dresser.  Well we soon left her apartment to look for some things to make her place a little more homey.  We drove past a Deseret Industries.  (heaven sent)  It was a very beneficial stop.  We got her a sturdy bookshelf, a bedside table and Scott picked out a great lamp.  (the lighting in the apartment was horrible).  After we put it together this much, Allison and I both felt much better, and I could picture her happy here.

Allison in her kitchen.  We bought her some groceries, so that she wouldn't be a starving student.

Our last little chat.

Allison's very cool bike.  It was given to her by her second family the Smith's.  It was Tessa's bike and she suggested to her parents that Allison might love it.  They agreed and Allison does in fact love it!!  Scott worked on making this cool bike into a college bike while Allison and I played around organizing her room a bit.

Allison and her Casa.  She lives in apartment number 2.

Why is this so hard to do?  I'm glad that my face wasn't showing.  I had tears in my eyes, that didn't dry until about Wickenburg, and then Scott had to start talking about "her" again.  hugh.

The dada hug.  We love you Allison, you are a super wonderful daughter and big sister.  You'll have a wonderful time at college.