your name is MUD

These could be my favorite pictures of the kids together so far in LIFE! You should have seen the bathtub after I cleaned all this mud off. Why do I ever buy them toys?! (Please forgive that both children are without pants in this picture!! What kind of mother am I?)

We're going to the Zoo Zoo Zoo, How bout you you you

We had the most wonderful time at the Zoo with our dear friends the other week. Everything about the day was just wonderful, especially being with my friend and her adorable and well-behaved boys. I mean, they are 5 and 3 and they opened the door for all of us girls all day. I'm glad my little Sammy got to observe such manhood in his near peers. Hopefully he can "ape" their behavior....get it...the next picture? I know, I know, but I couldn't help myself.





I don't have too many pictures but you can see the whole story and some great shots here.

I will mention something so, so fun. It was worth the whole price of admission. There's one of those big marble looking balls that has water flowing all around it somehow and kids can rotate it...they have one in Disneyland too in Tomorrow Land.
Anyway, most kids love water and mine take that love to the extreme. I got a huge kick out of Sammy. He was yelping and laughing, he was so excited just to be out of his stroller and touching the water. But then he wanted to DRINK the water. He tried to put his mouth down into the drippage area but his head kept hitting against the huge ball. So sad. I was laughing. But he was the smart one because he quickly figured out that if he angled his head against the ball just right, the water would flow down his forehead, over his eyes, nose, and cheeks, and dribble into his mouth.
HA. Little bubba. He was SO wet. Miranda got a little wet too.

We had such a great time. It is GREAT when you end up loving your friends' kids as much as you love your friends. Thank you Ace for coming up so we could herd our own little zoo together at the zoo.

Memorial Day

We had an early "Memorial Day" trip on Friday and Saturday. We wanted Xiao Yu to see Logan and we wanted to visit our family graves. We had the extreme joy of staying at the Maughans (I hope I spelled that right!) in Wellsville. Their home is just ideal and the company is even better. We all had a wonderful time and were even treated to gourmet Belgian waffles. Anyone who has ever tasted the kinds of foods served at that home can vouch for the deliciousness of it. THANK YOU Israelsens and Maughans for being such wonderful hosts!

This is Great Grandparents Reed and Ruth Johnson's graves in the Logan Cemetery. I remember her by the books I have with dedications from her inside, and from all the times I went with my grandmother to care for her as she suffered from Lou Gehrig's disease until she died. Grandma would take Grandma Johnson's dentures out to clean them and we would laugh because she looked like a cabbage patch kid. I didn't know her well when she was well, but I feel a closeness to her because of the way my mom feels about her and because I spent so much time there with my Grandma and felt Grandma Johnson's spirit even when she was sick.


Here is the marker for Joseph Sr. and Ardella Clawson Baugh, great grandparents buried in the Logan Cemetery. He died when I was a baby, but I remember her very, very well. I remember her soft voice and ways, her handwriting, the kinds of candies she served, how soft her skin was, the smell of rose in her bathroom, the toys she had downstairs, how she valued being a lady and behaving appropriately and respectfully, sailing boats down the gutter across the street, her kindness and reverence, and most of all, sitting on her front porch as the sun set, talking and drinking her sweet grape juice while my dad mowed her lawn. I always think of her when I sing "O My Father," which I also sang at her funeral.



We had dinner at Cafe Sabor, the renovated train station down beautiful Main Street in Logan. Samuel's Latin roots came out when the Mariachi band played. He danced a rythmic salsa of sorts while strangers watched.



Miranda in front of Grandma and Grandpa Johnson's old house in Logan. I couldn't bear to take a picture of Grandma and Grandpa Baugh's old house, because it doesn't at all look the way it looked when she took care of it.


The drive out to Wellsville was beyond picturesque. We felt like we were in Scotland or something, at least England, it was so green. And we saw so many baby animals along the way. We stopped to take a closer look.

Xiao Yu. Oh how we'll miss you in a few short weeks!



Just basking in the post-waffle glow at the Maughan estate. Kenz and Craig with Miranda


We drove through country towns in Cache Valley to get to Clarkston (where the Martin Harris marker and pageant are), and I would have liked to go all the way to Clifton to see our Howell side, but we didn't have time. I didn't get a picture in Clarkston because we were busy searching for the right headstones and it was so windy. I didn't remember to snap a shot.
But I did get a picture of the Joseph Rulon and Mary Myler Standing site in the Fielding Cemetery. These are my great-grandparents on my dad's mom's side, and I knew them BOTH very well. There are so many "grandpa" things I see in my dad that I remember from my grandpa Standing. He was all smiles and always made us laugh. They would both just talk with us for hours. You could tell that family was their joy. They had such a fun way of teasing each other. I liked their relationship a lot. They had a beautiful home that we spent lots of time in, and a perfect backyard complete with a climbing tree that also produced wonderful cherries. They always had candy, pop, and Popsicles. I loved the way they talked. I interviewed my grandma Standing not very long before she died and I treasure that experience, and I left every single colloquialism in the transcript. I miss hearing them talk. With my grandma and grandpa Standing, sometimes I forget they are gone and wish I could stop by.


Then we went to Hooper to our Belnap side. These are my Great Grandparents Belnap, and I remember only her. They had the most amazing little pioneer home there. I loved going up into the attic and just imagining living there, looking at every antique thing in her home. I loved that music was such a big part of her life and that she had her organ there in the house. I always think about her baking 12 loaves of bread every day and know I can do better at my homemaking. We used to go out into her garden and my dad would make us hold the fat, spikey green worms in the tomatoes. Sometimes they would flood the front yard to water the lawn and the frogs would come out. We only got to see that once, I think. Sometimes I wish there were some way for my little family to move out to Hooper and live in that house. I have very fond memories of her and the feeling I had in her home.


This is my children sitting ON the gravestone of their great-grandpa and mine that I never met, Gary Devar Belnap. He passed away when my dad was 3. I think a lot about my Grandma whenever I visit that headstone and how she must have felt trying to comfort her 4, 3, and 2 year old children while she herself was experiencing such grief. I think about my Grandpa Howell too who stepped right into being the father to those three little kids and what a blessing he has been to her life, and my dad's life, and mine. I think about how it will be so wonderful to meet my grandpa Belnap someday and I loved seeing my little children sitting there on his grave. I thought he would have liked them and then my mom said she's sure they already knew him. That was a very nice thought.


I guess Memorial Day is a strange holiday, but I've been raised to love it. I read this morning about Lehi searching the plates after Nephi had recovered them, and how it gave him a genealogy of his fathers, and how he discovered he was descended from Joseph of Egypt who he had been sold into Egypt and had to go through all that to be able to save his family from the famine. I thought, it must have given Lehi a lot of comfort and strength as he sat there reading in the wilderness, far from a destination he did not know and from the home he had known, to think about what his ancestor had gone through and that there was a greater purpose in it. I'm also grateful for the direction these great-grandparents and grandparents of mine have provided for me just by the goodness of their lives. I hope by taking the kids around for Memorial Day like this whenever we can they will be able to benefit in the same way I have.

Ode to Pace's Dairy Ann

Since I was in Jr. High we've been going to this little old 50's restaurant called Pace's Dairy Ann in Bountiful. We went after my cousin's wedding a few weeks back and we really enjoyed our fresh lime slushes, greasy salty fries, perfect fry sauce, and, mostly, the atmosphere. It's strange how the restaurant gives me a feeling of continuity not only within my own life but with my dad who also grew up in the Bountiful area and even with each person that comes in...it's a great place. I was glad it was one of the last Belnap family outings with Katie and also that Xiao Yu got to go there before she and Patrick return to China in a month. A month! Too soon.
The only major mishap we had at Pace's was that Miranda was ordering a grape slush with my mom from the girl at the counter. She was quiet for a few seconds which is usually a precursor to some highly interesting thought finding its way out of her mouth. She leaned in close to the cute little 16ish girl behind the counter and said, pointing of course, "Are those zits?"
The girl didn't hear her but don't worry, she repeated herself a few times.
LUCKILY they were freckles but my mom had to go through an explanation on freckles right there in front of the girl and whoever else was at or around the counter at the time. OH embarrassing.
Later we stopped by my great-grandparents' old house in Bountiful since we were in the area, and these adorable older people who knew my great-grandparents and their kids and grandkids, including dad, came over to the van and my dad introduced them to everyone. The old man was SO nice and had a few wrinkles so Miranda was just...hesitant. Hesitant is a good word. But then she warmed up a bit as they were talking with us and she said, to the old man, loudly, "You have chicken in your mouth."
I was worried that maybe he had some sort of problem, disfiguration or some other thing going on with his mouth so I shushed her and he asked, "What did she say?" But somebody asked him a question right then or something because he left to the front of the van. WHEW. But she kept saying it quietly. I've tried to teach her to make observations about people quietly to me instead of frankly to the person so we don't have incidents like when she told a sister missionary from Africa at Temple Square that she had a chocolate face. I've heard many a quiet observation since then that I was very, VERY glad she did not speak aloud.
Anyway, I saw the old man checking his teeth as I observed from inside the tinted windows of the van. So he must have heard her.
As we drove away I started in: "Miranda! We don't...." I tried to think of how to phrase my instructions so they'd matter or make sense in any way. So many weird rules that I thought we'd never need or keep went through my mind. "Never mind," I said, and, as an aside, "It's not worth it."
My dad joked, "I'm glad you've realized that so soon, Sharon." And then we told him what she'd said to the old man about the chicken and that we had no idea why she said that. Dad said, "Oh, he DID have chicken in his mouth. He had just come out from eating."
Well, okay. I mean, I guess you can't blame her for that, really. People usually don't chew chicken as they introduce themselves to her.
But back to Pace's Dairy Ann. You should go there, if you haven't. Those of you who have, isn't it a great place? Are there other places we should go to like Pace's Dairy Ann? By the way, Fernando is still in our family, he was just at Scout Camp. I didn't even save him one fry. Sorry honey.

family resemblence?

What great genes this kid's got. (Sort of writing with Yoda grammar today I guess I am.)

Soccer mom

So, I'm not the most athletic person. Is this an understatement? Perhaps. Perhaps it is more accurate to say that I'm not the most coordinated person ever, even though I do enjoy being active. Anyway, you'd think all of this would make me the ideal soccer mom...you know, low expectations, quick-to-cheer.

Well, I do cheer easily but I've found myself getting stressed at Miranda's games! I know I need to work on this because in the period of 2 days I read a blog post about a friend who is really positive and happy at her son's games, and an article by a mom who reads books at her kids' games to ensure she doesn't get too involved.

I think my problem has been that Miranda has always taken to thinks quickly and easily and has been just a bit beyond her years in some ways. That hasn't exactly been the case with soccer. So far. Fernando says that Cesar, our amazing soccer player brother, didn't really show a lot of competetive interest for the first few years.

The truth is, I really don't care if she likes soccer or not or if she's good at it or not. I'm not sure why I feel anxious at the games! I wonder if I'm falling into the trap of thinking that my less developed soccer genes have cursed her and that I've got to help make up for the difference.

I think it will balance out my "wonderful motherhood" post of a while ago when I say this: During the 3rd game, before we got out of the car for the field, I said, "Just play you best. And Miranda?"
"What mommy?"
"Just enjoy yourself, okay?"
"Mom, I promise to enjoy myself, and you promise not to get upset with me."
TRUE CONVERSATION! Can you believe it!?! I'm a horrible person! Aren't ego-involved fathers supposed to be responsible for such treatment?!

Of course I assured her that I was never upset and apologized and I have been better since. And, she's been better at playing since then too! (Meaning, she runs after the ball vigorously for at least 15 seconds at least 2 times during the game.)

Miranda kept telling me she wanted to play soccer, so I signed her up, even though she was a bit young. She's definitely the youngest on her team and probably on the field at every game. The players' parents all seem to appreciate the entertainment she provides. Her most exciting moments of the game are when her coach tells her she can sit on the side with her mom and rest. She does actually love to be a part of the team and she actually even enjoys the practice...kicking the ball into the goal and passing the ball to her teammates. And she gets that you don't touch the ball with your hands. So, it's just the part where she's trying to keep up with a Poynesian kid who is a foot-and-a-half taller than her and also almost 5 years old that she doesn't like. Can you blame her?

I've told her things to try and help her stay in the game. I told her that her foot was a magnet and it had to stick to the ball. Nope, didn't work. I told her that she had to follow the leader of one of the players on her team. She chose the blonde girl who languidly does handstands on the field and, like Miranda, would rather be on the sidelines with her mom. I told her she had to stick to a person on the OTHER team. She did great on that one! She even went over with him to their team huddle during halftime and stayed on his side of the line during the kickoff. I told her she had to get the ball from the other team and not let them get it. She was thinking intensely about this one, and after the final whistle blew and the game was over, she basically wrenched the ball out of this little girl's hand and almost got in a post game brawl. She has been tripped and fallen on, tripped over, and elbowed in the face. Why am I doing this to my little girl??!!!

I tell myself she'll get a little exercize, learn the beginnings of being on a team and of soccer's rules, and that she'll eventually at least learn to play a little bit. Then when people ask her if she plays a sport, she'll be able to say "I've always played soccer." And she'll always feel a part of her extended family who all have always played soccer. And we'll have something to laugh about when she's older and we remember this first experience with soccer.

More likely, I just should have forgotten about soccer this year and waited until next. I wonder often how much my children will have to suffer in life because of mistakes like this made by their mother, or because of my personality flaws. I don't remember much from when I was two so I tell myself that at least she won't accutely remember the mistakes I'm making right now. Then I heard about a woman who remembers every single moment of her life and I thought, well, I should probably do better. On a selfish note, I actually am grateful that I'm learning right now to just take it easy when it comes to my kids' extracurriculur involvement. I'm learning to actually enjoy that she spends the majority of the game doing stuff like this:

(I call it field ballet) because she'll grow out of that so fast. Too fast.
And I try to also celebrate those moments, however brief and far between, when she's having fun and trying and feeling proud of herself. And I've realized that no brilliant soccer experience is going to make her glad that I got "upset" with her. I think if I can learn that, I'll be a better soccer mom from here on out, and it might just help me to be a better person too.



On a side note, Sammy seems to love soccer. He babysprints to either the ball or the net every chance he gets out of my arms, But I won't have to address that for quite awhile.

Go Jazz

In fitting tribute to the Utah Jazz and as a vote of confidence against the Lakers (sorry Seminario family) here at home tonight, I post this picture of Fernando and I. We went to the first home game against the Lakers last Friday. It was an AWESOME game. We also got to watch Archuletta sing the National Anthem and even though I don't consider myself a crazed fan I did find myself screaming like a text-messaging 13-year-old after the song. I kept up my crazed identity throughout and even found myself talking about what the players should do as if I actually know what I'm talking about. Fun!
The game was close and GREAT and the fans were out of control. Especially this one Lakers fan right in front of us. Who prompted many otherwise insane people to turn rabid and attack him in the most embarrassing yet hilarious ways. If only I had been unscrupulous enough to use my video camera even though I saw a sign asking me not to. You gotta take the good with the bad when it comes to a strong conscience.
So this is Fernando and I after the game. We had a blast.

mad skills

So, Sammy has these massive paws. Well, for a baby size person. We've noted it since the first month or two. The other day Xiao Yu and I went with the kids to Discovery Gateway and in one of the areas a little girl was playing with a toy car at a table. She had no chance. Sammy just grabbed it away with his giant baby hands. We gave it back, of course, but we were laughing because his hands were so much bigger than hers. Funny.

Well, on Saturday he figured out a great new skill utilizing his hands. He can hold himself on a swing! We were at a cousin's house following a baptism and he spent pretty much the whole time swinging. Maybe all 1-year-olds can do this, but Miranda couldn't and I find it so cute and hilarious at the same time! Such a cute guy, Sam.





And some amazing acrobatic skills (with the assistance of his trainer). What a kid!

thoughts in China

I came in here this morning to post some fun pictures of the kids and I ended up reading more about the earthquakes in the Sichuan province, where my sister is at right now in a BYU study abroad. My heart aches for all of the people who have lost everything, including their loved ones.

Katie is okay. She and the other girls in the study abroad were on the 2nd floor in the hotel when the quake began. She said they got under the door frames, and then there wasn't enough room so she and some others had to run to another door frame in the bathroom. She said it felt just like the rolling and shaking earthquake rides some amusement parks feature. One of the girls started singing "A Child's Prayer" and a few others joined in. She heard another girl yelling to them to pray. Katie just felt a peace come over her and she knew they would be okay, even though she still wondered if the floor was going to fall out in places. The quake lasted through the whole "Child's Prayer" song so you can imagine how massive it was.

They had to evacuate, go back into the first floor, then evacuate again during the aftershocks. They'll be able to go back into their rooms once the building is inspected, and they have food and the faculty in charge plans for the group to remain where they are and continue the study abroad.

We're obviously really, really thankful she's safe. But the moments of wondering and waiting have made me think of all of those who did lose loved ones in the earthquake. I wish there were more I could do. For now we'll just keep praying.

this is what it's all about

Apologies to anyone who already heard any of this on Sunday from the pulpit, but I've been blessed and I wanted to record it here so it can become one of the major themes of the blog. I feel I've neglected it thus far.


Saturday we went with Rosie, Nance and a family friend Cody :) to Temple Square. We've been on the tours many times before, but we haven't been with the kids recently. Samuel was good and chilled most of the time there in the double stroller. But even through her constant wandering I could tell Miranda was feeling and thinking eternal things.

She always wants to go to the big Jesus when we go to Temple Square. This time we went to the Conference Center first and she kept asking about if we were going to go to Pa's work with the big stone fountains and the big Jesus. I thought, OH BOY it's going to be tough holding her off through the whole Conference Center tour.


So we sort of hung back out of necessity during the tour while the rest of the group heard all of the amazing facts about the building and the lovely things in it. This gave us a good chance to talk, which I ended up being very grateful for. We put our fingers in the fountain in the center of the plaza level, and then we took a few steps into the still vastness where everyone comes to sit and listen to a Prophet's voice.

I looked up at the pulpit and memorable moments flooded my mind. I stopped and leaned over to Miranda, "I always feel the Holy Ghost in this place."
I started walking with her again and she pulled my hand, and looked up at me with happy, wide eyes. "I feel it too! And I feel Jesus!"

We walked down near the pulpit. Miranda practiced the alphabet by saying the lit up letter at the end of each row. I was trying to listen at this point to the tour guide and I thought she was distracted by the ABC's (nice that somebody thought of that to keep kids quiet during the tour...heh heh). It was time to go to the next point so I took her hand and she was looking over the rows on rows of seats, balconies of seats spreading far and wide. "This is like a field," she said. "A field of chairs."


I loved that. I think I'll write a poem about it later. I must have been spiritually minded too at that point, benefitting from the holiness in that place, because I started to think about planting seeds and no more than desiring them to grow, and how living water comes out of that pulpit into the field, and the swelling motions produce fruit desirable above all else. Maybe the poem will express what I was thinking better.

We went up a few floors and I enjoyed her remarks about paintings here and there. Before we got to the hall of prophets on the top floor, she had noticed a picture of President Monson on the wall.

She was really excited about this because she's been working on always praying for him lately, and so she ran over and we said his name, and then President Eyring and President Uchdorf. I started thinking about how much of her life she may know President Monson as Prophet. She still prays for President Hinckley, too, actually. She prays that he won't die. And you know, he hasn't died since she's been praying for that.

Well, we spent some more time looking at a stainglass of "Healing at the Pool of Bethesda" by Carl Bloch.

This painting always has and always will remind me of my dad, who also has a copy in his home. So Miranda is familiar with it and likes to talk about all of the people in it...the little girl (boy?) with her mother gathering water, other sick people, etc. We turned from it to see my husband's favorite sculpture, depicting the Father and the Son appearing to the boy Joseph. The metal stretches all the way from Joseph up to the Father and Son quite a bit higher, like a strong, solid pillar. Everyone had gone on and Miranda and Rosie and I held back. I said, "Remember the story of Joseph Smith when Heavenly Father and Jesus came and told him not to join any of the Churches, because they were going to help him make a new Church that had nursery?" She loves nursery. So I've used that of course. She looked up at Heavenly Father and Jesus, pressed her little hands together in a prayer and said, "Thank you for making my new Church! I love Nursery!" I thought how special it was and looked at Rosie when Miranda turned back to them and added, "But I don't like Sacrament."

Then we went to each of the busts of the prophets in the room and she asked me their names and wanted to repeat each one. Wilford Woodruff was probably the hardest. But it was so, so cute to hear her say each important name in her 2 1/2-year-old voice: "Spencer W. Kimball." I loved it.

Another special time for me was when we went through the new "Families" exhibit (it might be called "God's Plan") at the South Visitor's Center on Temple Square. For any of you that haven't been to that exhibit, GO. It's fairly new, and we hadn't been before. It follows a cute little family from room to room in their house, and even to their Grandparents' house, and teaches about the eternal nature of families. I felt very uplifted by the Spirit. Miranda sat next to me the whole time and listened. It is definitely kid friendly. I won't spoil the ending but the presentation gave me a chance to talk about really important things with her, and to see her little face taking it in. After I explained one of the things to her, she turned and smiled at me and hugged me, without any major reason. I just knew she was feeling something wonderful, and I was too.

My favorite times are when she does something kind or good and tells me, "Mom, I'm feeling the Holy Ghost in my heart right now!" Her favorite times at our house by far are Family Home Evenings, and she wants her dad to show her a scripture book every night. I realize at these times that we don't feed her as much as we should. She loves holy things so much. I let her spend, and I spend, so much time on things that don't matter. I could write about a thousand times when I or the kids or both are not behaving in very holy ways, nor dwelling on the things of eternity in either thought or action. But in many moments, my kids show me what my own focus should be.

I feel so grateful for these experiences and for the chance we'll have with Samuel to experience the same and different things. Sister Beck talked about "Mothers Who Know." I've been thinking a lot about that concept lately. I feel like these kinds of experience give me a taste of what our lives could be like if I truly embraced my role the way He could help me do.

I realize as I'm writing that the people who I know read this blog are very well aware of the beauty of families and motherhood and likely do not lose sight of their role the way I often do. I appreciate all the wonderful examples and friends I have to remind me, and I thank you, especially as we head into Mother's Day.

I find myself more thankful than ever for the doctrine on the family that we know to be true. I know in my heart that the little things we do every day matter, and that they probably matter most. It is a testament to the kindness of God that his plan is for us to be always with our family. It is a testament of His kindness to me that I can always be with mine.

FINALLY...our DC Trip

Fern and I went on a vacation a while ago. It was wonderful! Here are some highlights. You might actually have to ENTER the slide show in order to see the excellent captions, heh. Thanks to those of you readers who made some or all of the trip possible for us!

sabbath

Isn't it a great part of the plan that we have a day of rest built into every single week?