A cool way to send Kayla a letter

This is soooo awesome! You can go to http://www.dearelder.com/ and write Kayla a letter (for free) and they will deliver it the same day. This will work while she is in the MTC - November 18. I know she would love to hear from everyone!

You need the following info:

MTC Box #113
Mission - WA-SEA
Est date to leave MTC - 11/18/08

My Beautiful Family!

I finally got the disk with our professional photos... (remember the misquitos?) Shan Renee did a fabulous job! Here are a few of my favorite:

The girls... Oh how I love my beautiful girls. Shea and Kayla have such a wonderful relationship. I don't think a mom could ask for anything more!

The boys... What handsome men they are! The Professor, the college man and the musician. I am so proud of them!

The Family... Sometimes I can't believe that my kids are so grown up and wonderful! I'm just grateful I've been there for the journey.

The Mom & Dad... Do we really look old enough to have these kids? If you love us, you'll say no! Except for the wrinkles - which have all been proudly earned.

Kayla.... What a beautiful person. Inside and out. We miss her. It's weird having her pink car here and not her. I am blessed to be her mother.

Andrew... I'm so proud to see how well Andrew has become a man. He is going to be a wonderful husband and father. Many, many years from now.

Braden... A great leader and wonderful friend. I'm proud to see the person he is becoming.

Shea.... A joy from the moment she joined our family. I love her creativity and the happiness she brings to our home.

Our first letter from Kayla!

I'm feeling like a rotten mother... I just got a note from Kayla, and I haven't even mailed her one yet! Kayla has a loooong history of being a terrible letter-writer, so it must have been all that threatening I did.

I'll just share one part:
"I absolutely LOVE the MTC! After I bore my testimony that I Heavenly Father and Christ love me and how I have been called to share this with others, one of the branch counsellors came up to me and said "You are the perfect sister to share that message. You truly are one of God's angels sent to preach his gospel.""

And yes - I did send her a package today. Letters from everyone along with her coat that she forgot. Pretty sure she'll need that in Seattle!

Empty nest... or rather, empty car!

After the whirlwind of getting Kayla off to the MTC, Robert and I spent a couple of days in heaven.... um, I mean Estes Park, CO. We drove from UT to CO through Vernal (not pretty) and then the Rocky Mountain National Park (divinely pretty).


I found the perfect spot for my cabin by the lake. The only problem is that the road is closed during winter. And it is on public land. And I don't have money to spend on a cabin (those darn kids keep using it all!) But hey - I'm a problem solver by nature... Nothing is impossible!


This big elk was right outside our balcony each morning... along with his 12 girlfriends.








Waterfalls are my favorite!




The first day, we hiked five miles and saw five lakes. The next day we hiked a shorter trail, which was good, because man was I sore! I wish we lived closer to mountains.... I wouldn't mind "delayed onset muscle soreness" (thanks Dr. Robert for labeling my pain) if I could keep up that kind of exercise.

We even decided to stay an extra day (after I talked myself out of feeling guilty for not being at the first primary program practice - thanks Melissa & Lee Ann!) The only problem was that they messed up our reservation for Saturday night. Now - for those of you that live on another planet, Saturday night was THE game between Texas Tech and Texas (#1). We didn't have time to get home by the start - so we called Sterling & Ann in Manitou and asked if they wanted company. It was great fun. My sister-in-law is the sweetest thing. Except when she is watching football. Lots of yelling. Swearing. Jumping up and down. It's pretty funny to watch - if you don't have young children to protect.

Really though, we had a wonderful time and I am so glad our reservation got messed up! It did help that Tech won in the last second... Texas is no longer #1! Go Red Raiders!

Kayla's Address

I know Kayla would love to get mail... so here's her address (until November 18):

Sister Kayla Sawyer
MTC Mailbox #113
WA-SEA 1118
2005 N. 900 E.
Provo, UT 84604-1793

I will keep her address posted on our blog and share parts of her letters. I pretty much threatened her if she didn't write every week!

The Big Good-bye

What a week! Robert and I just got back from taking Kayla to the MTC (and spending a few days in the mountains - I'll post on that later). It was a wonderful experience, even if I did cry too much) Here are the photos....

On Monday, we drove to Manitou Springs, CO (in Kayla's tiny pink car - hey, 37 miles to the gallon! Every penny counts when you have a missionary!) We stayed with my brother and his wife. My favorite Aunt & Uncle were there as well. Don't know why I didn't take pictures there!!

We stayed in Heber, Ut with Grandma Zee and Tammy Law. It was absolutely beautiful - but a little chilly the morning we took Kayla to the MTC. Kayla was SO happy - and it was almost fun helping her get all the last things ready. Yes - my sweet, wonderful daughter hadn't noticed that the paperwork mentioned she needed a flu & meningitis shot before coming to the MTC. I panicked a little bit - but Kayla was fine with it. She was worried about bigger things, like if she should wear her shirt tucked in or out.

We are all in front of the MTC - there were literally hundreds of wonderful volunteers helping us get where we needed to go. Missionaries everywhere! It was a beautiful fall day in Provo, UT and there isn't any place I would have rather been! I am so proud of my wonderful daughter.

I love this picture. Kayla was so happy to go in this door (it said New Missionaries enter here). I wasn't feeling quite as happy, until the volunteer said I would meet up with her inside. I wasn't ready to let go yet!

Kayla had me put her name tag on... yes, I cried. But they were happy tears.

A note about Shea... She and Kayla are VERY close and Shea started crying Sunday night and was still crying Monday morning before we left. She even made a drawing of her "Grid of Tears" showing us that her tears were 40% happy and 60% sad. A year and a half seems like a long time for a 9 year old! But she and Kayla were able to talk a few times until Kayla went into the MTC on Wednesday. We will only be able to email and write from now on. Kayla can call home only on Christmas and Mother's Day. Shea misses her sister!!

Kayla's Open House

Last night we had an open house for Kayla... it was wonderful! There were so many people that wanted to wish her well and say goodbye, we had a house full the whole time! Shea was the official photographer, so take a look at the slide show below. It was very touching to see all the people that love Kayla and the notes they wrote her and gifts they gave her. Make a Smilebox slideshow

Happy 21st Birthday Kayla!

Yesterday was Kayla's Birthday... WOW! 21. Where did the time go?? Just a few days ago, Kayla was that 9lb 10oz baby with huge blue eyes and beautiful red hair. I am so grateful for the time I have had to be Kayla's mom. I just wish it hadn't gone by so fast!

I thought I would share my top 10 reasons I love Kayla.

1. Kayla is kind and compassionate. To everyone.


2. She plays the piano beautifully and is always willing to share her talent.


3. Kayla is a wonderful example to everyone she is around.


4. She is always willing to help. (run errands, pick up the kids, cook, clean etc. Everything except the bedroom. That one she complains about for days before doing it)


5. Kayla is beautiful. Inside and out.


6. She lives what she believes. Every day.


7. Kayla tries not to complain about my bad jokes and not so funny comments.


8. She LOVES children and is going to be a wonderful mother. (especially when we send Shea to live with her in about 6 years.)


9. Kayla makes great snickerdoodles.


10. She is willing to do things even when she feels shy, uncomfortable or unsure. She is brave.

Now... just so you don't think I am biased. Here are the top annoying things about Kayla.

1. She procastinates. Just barely read all the way through her mission book. Ugh!


2. Nervous packer. "Just throw it in!" says the mom.


3. Doesn't clean her car. "Ick... that chocolage goober is from 2 years ago!"


4. Isn't a good letter-writer. We're going to have a serious chat about that one! 16 hours in the car - plenty of time for me to nag.


5. Is grumpy in the morning.

But I love her for the good and bad! Happy Birthday Kayla!

Dinner at Cracker Barrel

2 beautiful girls in a clean room. 1 happy mom.

Father/Daughter turns into Brother/Sister

Shea had a father/daughter pumpkin paint party on Wednesday, but Robert teaches a graduate class so Andrew took Shea (and her friend who's dad also couldn't come) They had lots of fun! The bottom left picture is funny because Shea told me they were both were thinking about what to paint.. and don't they look alike?

My Day...

This is a picture of me right now... at the end of a very crazy day. I was up at 5:30 to finish work on a new product my company was launching. The launch came after an intense 1 1/2 hour online Webinar at 12. This resulted in an onslaught of calls and emails that I was determined to get to before the end of the day. I don't think I'll be making much on this venture any time soon in this crazy market - but the ultimate hope is that it will fund 3 1/2 college educations, a couple of missions, weddings and a cabin in the mountains. Oh - and a boat for Greg the egg.

I also had to finish up work on the Primary Program and Fall Festival - both of which I am in charge of. I think I only screwed up on a few things. Then I had to write an article for my next newsletter and edit a guest article.

It didn't end there... I started painting the last coat of the "not-because-I-wanted-to-remodel-it" bathroom project that has taken 3 weeks. Luckily, Robert was home by this time and was doing the detail part I hate. I took a break and wrapped Christmas presents to take on our trip next week. Finished a quilt (I won't tell you who it is for) and worked on details for Kayla's open house Sunday.

I made a few visiting teaching phone calls, cooked dinner and filled out Kayla's shot record for her to take to the MTC. When I got frustrated at her disaster of a room (it looks 10 times worse than the picture below) Kayla said it is my fault for not making her clean her room as a teenager - so she has bad habits now. That didn't irk me at all! She must want me to look forward to her leaving!

It's 10 p.m. and I'm happy... that's an awful lot to face in one day and I did it! Tomorrow is another day and the to-do list is shorter. Sounds like a good one to me.