My Doodlebug had quite the exciting past week or so. Last Saturday (3.7.09) she went to see High School Musical on Ice. Chantile won four tickets from a local radio station! Lucky Bug!! So Chatile, Omah (Chantile's mom), Jasmine and a friend went and had a good afternoon despite the colds they all had. Then at school, Doodlebug had two fun accomplishments. First, she was Student of the Week in her class - yea Jasmine!! And she won this Cat in the Hat doll for having the best Who-ville costume. She was pretty excited about that! We also had a fun evening together on Saturday (3.14.09) when Matt took Chantile out for the evening and Jazy stayed with us. The highlight for her was seeing the kids at prom. Park City is a very small school. The graduating class size is usually around 30 or so. Prom is held in the gym and for the first half hour anyone who wants to come is allowed to come and sit in the stands as the kids are introduced and they walk down the "red carpet" in the center of the gym. Then the Prom King and Queen are announced and they have a dance and then all the "non-prom attendees" are kicked out. I thought it was pretty cute. Jasmine was so excited to see all the dresses and was designing her dress in her mind the whole time - Get ready to sew Amber, she has lots of big ideas!!
I haven't forgotten about the blog! I am still here. This weekend I realized how grateful I am for our bathroom. I am getting over a touch of food poisoning or a really nasty stomach bug. I am pretty sure it was some left overs I had that I can thank for the hours of wonderful fun. Things have calmed down and now I just feel like a truck ran over me. Anyway, George took really good care of me. The boys had an activity in Red Lodge and he took them there, drove all the way home to check on me and then all the back to pick them up. He's such an awesome guy. He and the missionaries gave me a blessing and I know I would still be locked in my "tower" without that! On a happier note, Amber has a birthday coming this week ( on Thursday the 12th) so next Sunday we will have a family birthday dinner.....pictures to follow! Hope all is well with everyone out there!
I wish this picture had sound...Dalin was really giggling. It's so adorable when he thinks he is being funny....how wonderful and innocent! We had a fun birthday dinner for George last night. Chantile made Papa some delicious brownies that we SHOULD have gotten a picture of BEFORE we dove into them, but we just couldn't wait! Matt, Chantile, and Jasmine stopped by to wish Papa a happy birthday and drop off a gift and wonderful card. The Kotter's and LJ came over for dinner - taco salad - one of Papa's favorites. Ciara made a beautiful card ALL BY HERSELF, writing and all! It was so sweet. We had a good time and now George doesn't have to admit he's 50 any more!!
We all had a great time at Amber's house after the sealing on Saturday. She put on a wonderful luncheon for everyone - plenty of yummy food for all! It was so amazing to have Amber there with me. She sat at my side in the temple, in the very chair that I, not too long ago, sat in for her as she and Zane were sealed. How many moms can say that? Amber, you are an amazing woman. I am so humbled when I think about how blessed I am to have you in my life. Thank you for making our day so special, for being the example you are to me, and for being my best friend! I love you Amber!!
From left: DawnMarie Neugebauer, Julane Wells, Whitney Wells, Duane Neugebauer
From left: Dan Wells, Mary Bullock (George's sister all the way from Colorado!), Valerie Betts, Dante Betts, and Elder Cheney's back :-)
My sweet Doodlebug came to help us celebrate!
Chantile and I sharing a laugh. Chantile has been so supportive of George and I, on so many levels - thank you Chantile - "YOU ROCK!"
George's Mom and Dad enjoying Amber's delicious food.It was a great afternoon - icing on the perfect cake!
This morning we are preparing to attend the temple. Today George and I are being sealed for time and all eternity. We are very humbled to be given this opportunity and thrilled for the experience. We know it will deepen our firm commitment to each other and open many doors of service opportunities, which we are thrilled about. I will post some pictures on Monday, maybe even later today if there is time. We want to thank all those who are so supportive of us in this. It means the world to us to have your love and support! Pictures coming soon!!!
I thought I'd share some of the old photos that my mom and sisters sent to me for my birthday. Vicky put some on a disc so I can easily share those. The others I am going to scan and put on a CD. I had such a good time looking at these. I can't remember seeing most of them, so it was great to have them!
This is my mom, my older sister, Vicky, and me (the chubby bald one!)
This was PJ (pre-Jenny) Mom and Dad Fuqua with Vicky on the left and me on the right. I wish this one was bigger, Matt really looks like dad in this picture! (Notice Vicky's stylish purse and cute vogue stance......and then there's me......such a little lady haha)
Mom Fuqua, Julie (blurred due to my perpetual motion!), Dad Fuqua, and Vicky. (Dad's got the Elvis look goin' on pretty good!!)
Mighty Snowman creators Julie (left) and Vicky (Right) with Brownie their fearless protector - yea...that's him....rolling in the snow...or maybe ... licking something...I don't know....
Ahhhhh...Jenny arrives and makes us complete! From left: Jenny, Dad, Vicky (back), Julie (front) and Mom. So, does anyone else see Joe in this picture or is it just me?
I have found that gratitude has been something that has always come easy for me. A silly thing to say or even think about I suppose, but I have always been.....well.....thankful for that. Even in the hardest of times I have always been able to find things I am grateful for. As a new year starts and things look a little bleak in many respects I am grateful for all that I have. I am especially grateful today for the kind thoughts and acts of others. This past Christmas was great. I was thinking of the wonderful gifts I received and I thought about how I was just as grateful for the thought that went into them as the gift itself. Matt and Chantile got George and I a cool lantern / radio / cell phone charger that you crank up, so no batteries are needed. They knew we have been trying to follow the counsel from our church leaders and be prepared. Kind thoughts and acts. Amber and Zane got us a foot massager. They knew how it could be a good stress reliever and how George and I both have trouble with our feet at times. Kind thoughts and acts. Joe and Tabby got me a beautiful book with collections of Greg Olson paintings that go with the song "If the Savior Stood Beside Me." I took it to share with my nursery kids the very next Sunday and they were mesmerised with it. The best part of the whole book was Griffin's little signature in the front. Kind thoughts and acts. LJ got us a gift certificate to Pizza Hut. He knows how busy we are and how we often get a bite to eat on our way home at the end of a long day. Kind thoughts and acts. Perhaps the gift that touched my heart the most wasn't for me or from me. I received a call a few days before Christmas. Vicky, my sister, had an unusual excitement in her voice. She had read Amber's blog about wanting a certain nativity set but lamenting that the expense was going to leave her wanting it still. Vicky happened to have the set and packed it up and sent it to Amber. Vicky's joy about the surprise was very contagious and I found myself giddy with excitement to see Amber's face when she opened the package. Well, a comedy of errors pursued with incorrect zip codes (MY FAULT!) and UPS sending it all over the country, but finally the package arrived. And it arrived on a day that I was babysitting so I could see Amber's face first hand! Tender mercies for sure!! Well, needless to say she was thrilled beyond words. I found it hard to hold back the tears as a spontaneous cheering erupted in the room. Zane was snapping pictures, Ciara was dancing around singing, "I love it, I love it!" Dalin was squealing with delight, not knowing perhaps what was really going on, but feeling the spirit just the same. It was wonderful. It was an amazing Christmas gift for everyone. Kind thoughts and acts indeed. I am grateful for that. I am grateful for my family. I am grateful to a loving Heavenly Father who gave us the ability to have emotions.
