Feeling Family Love on the Sabbath

Sundays are really hectic - more so for Del than for me..but yesterday was busy for us both.
We had Lucy's early morning blessing in her ward and then had to rush to our ward for me to play the organ and teach the RS lesson, and for Del to be Bishop...
Mike and Kylie's meetings started at 8:30.  We were at their church before the rest of the family arrived.  Jordan and Lexi arrived first.  I could see them parking their car from inside the building, so I went out to greet little Emerson through the glass doors.  As soon as he saw me, I could see him mouthing the words 'Nana Nana'...I swept him up as he came into the building - then he scurried off to see Papa.  Mike and Kylie arrived with their three kids right after...and they greeted me quickly as they passed me to get to Papa.  I make it sound like it bothers me, but it really doesn't.  I know they love me...but they ADORE Papa; as it should be.
It was great to have Del sitting with us during a meeting.  The grand kids passed between us - back and forth - just amazed that they actually got to sit and be with Papa.  And Emerson just LOVES his little cousins - so he was from Papa to Preston, to back to Papa and then back to Madison.  At one point, Emerson went over to where Preston was sitting and plopped himself up on the bench, sitting so close to Preston that Em was literally almost on Preston's lap.  When Preston turned to Emerson, their faces were so close they were almost touching nose to nose.  It was at that moment, that I looked down the bench to see my two children, Jordan and Kylie, who were sitting by each other, also talking face to face.  I nudged Del and had him look down to see our children giggling back and forth at each other. I smiled and mentioned to Del that 'some things never change'.  We couldn't keep them from talking when they were little, let alone now as adults.
I observed Jordan attempting to parent Emerson during Sacrament meeting, and as Emerson was escaping Jordan's careful eye by crawling under the benches two rows ahead of us, I turned to Jordan and mentioned how 'Karma sucks'...Jordan had made it 3 rows one time before I had been able to capture his eye to come back and sit down reverently.  Kylie juggled Lucy, Madison and Preston and I just smiled and rolled my eyes when I realized how Kylie had Madi dressed EXACTLY like one of Kylie's own outfits at home.  Madi is a mini Kylie.
And there would be several interactions between Jordan and Kylie that would make me remember them as children themselves - I would point them out to Del and we would both sigh with a feeling of contentment, realizing we were watching the results of our years with them as children.
It was a really satisfying moment for me; to see Jordan and Lexi interacting with Mike and Kylie - come to find out from Kylie later...the moment Jordan had turned nose to nose with Kylie, was the exact time Emerson was right in Preston's face - and Jordan said 'We don't believe in personal space in our family'....Kylie had laughed and responded with 'apparently not'.
And then Lexi shared a beautiful testimony in which she expressed several moments of her testimony being strengthened by recent events - and how much she loved family and the church.  It was sweet - and very touching to know that she is strong in the gospel and loves her Father in Heaven.
The day was perfect for me.  I felt a huge desire to be good - to be kind to others - to make good choices and changes in my life.  I sent Kathryn a little text telling her she had been missed and then had the chance to talk to her several times throughout the rest of the day.  I'm so grateful for the choices she is making and that she is finally living a life of happiness -.  One of her texts to me just made me laugh out loud. She wrote ' Mom, I'm at stake conference. So many beautiful men around me!!'
Yes, she is up at BYU.

Lucy's Blessing Day

Lucy Beth Crump - Nov 1, 2015

The Crump Family on Lucy's blessing day - 

What a great experience to attend Lucy's blessing.

It Finally Caught Up to Him

Del is the hardest working man I know.
He works from before the sun is up (usually 5:00 am) to way past the hour the sun has gone to sleep, (usually 10:30/11:00).  His work consists of yard work, garden, chicken coop, his job, neighbor work, Bishop work, husband, father and of course, Papa. In between, he has his scripture study, meetings and personal goals that he works on.  He is busy.
Last week, he made early morning (5:30) Seminary visits; Thursday actually teaching a class for a traveling Seminary teacher, and then Friday morning, as Bishop visiting another class. I took this picture Friday morning at around 9:30 after he had just finished a conference call for work.  He hadn't even changed out of his suit yet.
I just thought I would try and capture a picture before he's translated.

He Has a Sweet Tooth...or Two

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I bake...a lot.  Probably two to three times a week - cookies, brownies, cakes and bread.  Last week, I made this dessert; it's called Cherry Royale.  My mother used to make it, but I didn't really like it when I was little.  But, OH, it's a favorite now.
Del asked me who the dessert was for.  I told him I was taking it to work.  He asked if he could have a bowl of it first.
Really?

Halloween 2015

We had our annual Halloween Carnival at Bliss Orthodontics where I, once again, was the Wicked Witch.  It's fun to see my grandchildren get all dressed up and come to see their Nana and get candy.  Our office had a great time dressing up.  A better turn out this year. Love my little trick or treaters.

A New Little Personality

Yes, you can see the resemblance.  They are siblings.  But just her older brother and sister, this little Lucy (in the middle) has her own little personality

At 5 weeks, she is just starting to smile on her own

And at 7 weeks, we have full fledged mood swings!!  No really, Kylie said she was practicing her tongue going in and out of her mouth and the 'pouty' picture was her actually puckering up to stick the tongue out. But it's still CUTE!!!

Sunday Night Firesides

Sunday evenings in the Fall are the best.
After the Bishop gets home from his meetings and interviews, he changes out of his suit and Papa emerges to spend the evening with his family.  The grandkids LOVE coming over on Sundays, having a big family dinner, and then we go outside and have a big bonfire and the kids play with Papa.  We love to chat around the fire, make samores and just enjoy each others company.  Mostly, it's an evening where our grandchildren love to enjoy being outside and seeing Papa in his element...