Sorry Picture post overload below!!!

Happy 16th!!

16 years ago... a sweet baby boy was born!! How I got so lucky I will never know.
HaPpY bIrThDaY aNdY-dO!!












Oh my is that what I think it is?

HaLlOwEeN!

Just us dorks!

LOL!!!

Chris and Janae

Chris and Janae have been best friends sense like... forever! We took these pictures at Church when he was here for the 10 days. Don't you just love how one is serious and the other not, then they trade faces in the next picture? Dorks!! Dang, I love these two kids!

Andrew ran cross country again this year and did really good. When he runs with me, he runs past me like I'm standing still. Not to good for my self esteem!! LOL!

Derek and Andrew



Andrew and Logan trying to trip him! Little stink bug!!!

I LoVe AdopTion!!

I think I'm an emotional mess today. This made me cry.


This is Kendra Burton's web page. Go check it out she has some good stuff!!
Story behind Joseph the Guardian Painting...


For nearly 20 years I felt impressed that I should do a painting of Joseph, the Guardian of Jesus. I searched for someone to represent Joseph who would have a kind, tender, heartfelt expression, with the look of awe and wonder in his eyes. His hands needed to be strong, yet gentle and loving. When I finally found the right person, he was honored, saying that his own middle name was Joseph.

After completing the painting, I showed it to a friend who had adopted several children. One of her young sons had been teased at school about being adopted. She prayed for an answer that he could understand and accept. Being directed to the scriptures, she let them fall open. She began reading and realized it was the story about the birth of Christ. She gained new insight about Joseph caring for Jesus. It had never occurred to her until that moment that the Savior of the world, the greatest and most perfect of all, had an "adopted" father, Joseph. She told this to her son. He was happy and completely satisfied with the answer because it made him feel more like Jesus.

I believe that this painting is supposed to help people appreciate all of the wonderful, caring fathers in the world who are guardians of children who may not have been born as their own. It also symbolizes all fathers who care for their children, devoting time, talents, and love in making the world a better place for them and future generations.

My immediate and extended family members have adopted children with many different backgrounds including Romanian, Middle Eastern, Samoan, and African American. One cousin and her husband adopted a deaf, Hispanic boy when he was seven. As I have watched these adoptive fathers tenderly care for these little ones, my heart has been touched by their unselfish love and devotion to all of God's children. Joseph represents them.

Before I began painting, I talked to an author and expert on Hebrew studies. She said that holding the child on the knees was part of a traditional ceremony to accept and welcome a child into a family. She pointed out several significant aspects of the composition including the baby's hand encompassed by Joseph's right hand, being the hand of the covenant.

Following the lines of the heads to the wrist of Joseph's right hand, one can see, symbolically, the figure of a heart. There are also two main light sources. One is from the upper left, reaching from Father in Heaven, diagonally in the direction of Joseph's eyes to the eyes of the Christ Child. The other light source is radiating from the child, creating the shine in Joseph's eyes and the glow on his face.

While painting, I felt a particular closeness and direction from an uncle who had passed away a few years earlier. Then I realized that he, too, had adopted his eldest daughter after marrying her mother. He loved them both throughout his life and his guiding influence in the final stages of the painting witnessed his sweet devotion to them and the significant role he fulfilled in their lives.

I completed the painting one week before my nine year old, handicapped twin daughter passed away. I contemplated all of the many "Josephs", men and women, neighbors, teachers and friends, who were there watching out for her when she needed so much help. They truly gave unselfishly on behalf of our dear little child, representing the scripture that says, "...Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these...ye have done it unto me." Again, their love and kindness to her was symbolic of Joseph with Jesus.

One man stood before the painting and offered the most precious compliment. His son and daughter-in-law had a baby two days before he saw the painting. As tears filled his eyes, he said that the face of Joseph captured the tender feelings of love and awesome gratitude that he had seen in his son's eyes as he held their tiny new child in his arms.

I hope that as people see this work of art, that their hearts will be touched, that they will see what each of us can be as we follow Joseph's example in caring for all of God's children.

Copyright (c) 2001 Kendra Burton

I'm a big fat blogger looser!! I haven't posted in so long that I don't know how I can catch up!!! I have been posting pictures to FB but not here. I'm not even sure where to start! So I will just start with what is most on my mind and that is Chris my oldest. He graduated from high school in may and left for Marine boot camp July 18th and will graduate Oct. 15th! I had no idea that it would be so hard to say goodbye! I absolutely hate him being gone. I do love to get letters from him and am counting down the days for his return. Even if it is only for 10 days. Then he will have to leave us again for more Marine training. I'm posting some pictures of his high school graduation and his going to boot camp party.


High school graduation





Leaving for Boot camp party

My New Life

I have been following Stephanie's blog for a while and love her!! She is such an inspiration to me! I remember what I have to be thankful for and not to take advantage of those things. This video is awesome! Of course I cried through the whole thing.

Testimony of the Book of Mormon

Dear friends,

On May 3, 2010 (perhaps as part of your Family Home Evening program) if all reachable members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints--and any non members interested-- would follow the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkKblIMfmjI and watch the YouTube video of Jeffrey R. Holland bearing testimony of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, we could potentially achieve promoting that video to the YouTube homepage, based on volume of views.

TIPS ON HOW TO ACHIEVE THIS:

1 increased views - multiples views by one viewer count
2 comments - the more comments, the more valuable Youtube sees your video. Comments almost carry as much weight as views.
3 favorites - everyone needs to "favorite" the video.
4 thumbs up - **please take special care to do this as a group of individuals have banned together to "thumbs down" and this can negatively affect the popularity of the video.
5 subscriptions - daily subscriptions have a major impact on popularity. This also has longterm impact on the future videos coming to the channel because they will get emails from Youtube letting them know when MormonMessages posts new stuff.
6 reshare - post the video as a link on your profiles bearing testimony, and also make comments after friends' link so that it shows up in the news feeds, post to blogs and twitter. The more activity surrounding the video the more attention it will receive.

The repercussions of this could be great. YouTube reports:

YouTube Stats (US)
(comScore MediaMetrix April 2009)

"The YouTube Homepage is the highest-profile placement on the site... eleven million unique visitors a day in the US [and] 89.7 Million unique monthly visitors."

The exposure that the Book of Mormon could receive in one day is astronomical. Please keep in mind though, while it is ideal that this video be promoted to the homepage, it is the spirit felt from the message wherein the success lies.

As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints blessed with the knowledge contained in the Book of Mormon I seek to share with the world what I know to be true; what I know to bring happiness and hope in the times of travail; what I know to be the word of God.

For this challenge May 3 is calculated anytime in the 24 hour time period between 12 am to 11:59:59 pm Eastern Standard Time (for those participating from different time zones), but viewing before and after the event is helpful as well. Please invite both member and non-member alike to feel of the Spirit this message carries, mark your calendars and gather round in your families, wards and stakes and join me,
May 3.

I am his MOM

We have all heard the saying “Where did time go?” and now I am saying it! Where did time go? How can my first born son already be a man and making grown up decision?

I can still remember the day he was born. I thought he was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen. Love at first site is what it was!! All I wanted to do was to sit and hold him. At those moments I didn’t think I could ever love a child as much at I love him. Of course I realized how wrong I was when his younger brother was born. I have enough motherly love to give to all my kids… and more!!

Now here I am, my son, joining the Marines and leaving in June. A very honorable thing to do, but I still want to hold and protect him. I am a mom! I don’t want to let him go. Can’t I just keep him here and hold him a little longer and protect him from all the bad in the world?
Yes, I know, this is the way it’s supposed to be. He can’t live with us forever and we wouldn’t want him to. But now that the time is so close I’m feeling a little selfish and I want more. I am a mom who realizes that 18 years, is really not that long.

I can’t help but be a little proud of him and the man he is becoming. I just wish I didn’t, all a sudden, feel so sad. I know it will be fine. Many mothers before me have done the same thing. They are my examples but I still can’t help but think… I am his mom!!
I have earned the right to worry and miss the heck out of him.

Another Snowman

Snowman Jack and the dog is Butch!


This is how my teenage boy and friends start out their project of making the snowman! They drew a diagram with dimensions.

Then it's time to get the project started.

Butch the dog!


Chris says it's a self portrait.

Mr. SnoWman

Meet our snowman Dr. EMMIT Brown! Andrew and Kimmi HELPED Kadee, Braden and Logan build him BUT they were to SHY to get in the pictures!!