Warning: Political Rant

Like most other Americans I am so disappointed at the choices for US President 2016.  I am not a super politically active person, largely because I feel like the process has become such a joke.  The person with the most money often wins the nomination and it is so hard to be informed when candidates have no qualms about lying.  I honestly don't know how to sift through all the distortions.  I know that our culture is often politically apathetic and at the same time obsessed with reality TV so it should really come as no surprise that we have a criminal (Hillary) and a mentally unstable egomaniac (Trump) on the ticket.  It seems like most people I know are voting against one or the other.

What is frustrating to me is that I actually believe Americans agree on more than we disagree on.  A perfect example is the immigration issue.  It's in the best interest of media and politicians to keep us all divided on this important issue so it appears that there are only two extreme options:
1) you are a racist who hates all Mexicans and wants a giant wall built  (Cue Donald saying "It just got 10 feet higher!"  sigh)
or
2) You are for wide open borders and literally millions of undocumented people streaming over the border each year.

Really?!? These are my options?  What about the Rule of Law?  How about we appreciate the immigrant contributions and work to make the process of coming to America easier/more affordable but at the same time we secure our borders so that criminals and terrorists don't have an open door to just walk in?  Is that so unreasonable?  I mean, would you leave one side of your home completely open for just anyone to walk in?  I think most Americans and in fact most humans would agree with this.

And for people who say we can't afford it, well I don't know.  When you add up the costs of education (the cheapest school districts spend about $9000/year/student on education.  If only 10% of illegal immigrants in the US are children in school that is still one million extra kids.  Multiply that times $9000 and the number is pretty big).  I haven't even mentioned the costs of imprisoning illegal immigrants.  The internet says 5%-37% of our federal prisoners are here illegally.  No idea why we can't get more accurate stats than that, which brings me back to my point about being an informed voter.  Good info is hard to come by.  But even if it's only 5%, that's still a lot of money.  Our prisons are expensive!

But please don't think this is a rant against illegal immigrants!  The truth is that if I lived in Mexico I would break laws to come to the USA too.  And living in Texas I have had the opportunity to meet many Mexicans and I think they are terrific.  Hard working, family oriented, the kind of people we want in America.  But having a wide open border just seems crazy.  What other nation does that?  Not Canada.  Not Australia.  Not Sweden.  (Naming all the "nice" countries out there).

It's also interesting that at this same time, many democrats are pushing for universal healthcare, more money for schools and free college.  Basic math tells me that an open border with millions who are not paying taxes and who are sending much of their earnings back to Mexico AND expanded social programs is the perfect way to bankrupt America.  And maybe that's the idea.  I know there are many, including our current president and his wife who are not proud of our country and who want to fundamentally change it.  This is literally the only reason I have considered voting for Donald Trump.  I  worry that our country will be completely bankrupt if we continue on this path of high spending, raising the debt ceiling and not securing our borders.

Having said that, I just don't think I could pull the switch for Trump.  I have images in my mind of him making fun of Marco Rubio's sweating and the disabled journalist and then... well honestly there are too many to name.  It's everything.  I think he has turrets and is very quick to lash out if he ever feels threatened.  Not great qualities for diplomacy.  And the fact that Vladimir Putin seems to like him should tell us all we need to know.

But then Hillary is seriously a criminal.  She will do whatever the highest bidder wants.  Yuck.  She has no respect for the law and is only interested in money and power.  I personally am not a fan of big government and she is definitely on that side of the isle.  And I hate that she is fine with abortion anytime/anywhere.  Have we really become so hardened as a nation that we don't care that 3rd trimester abortions are happening as a rule now?  I mean it is pure infanticide and we are all looking the other way.  I am strongly opposed to abortion and it has nothing to do with choice or freedom or women's bodies.  It's that other body that I feel protective of.  That baby.  But even with feelings that strong, I could probably endure the concept of 1st trimester abortions, as a compromise.  But babies at 8 months gestation?!  I'm just blown away that everyone is fine with this.

I can talk all day about poverty and education and healthcare and housing prices and wages.  At the end of the day, this country became great because it's citizens were largely moral and hard working people.  America was founded on Judeo-Christian values and as we turn our backs on those we will see more of the same.  True change will come when individuals care once again about concepts like steadiness, integrity, loyalty, impulse control and charity.  Our massive social problems would all but disappear if families were committed to each other.  The crude, vulgar tone of this nation will change when we return to God and remember to pray to Him and to honor His Sabbath.  And no politician can make any of those things happen.    

Guess I will get on my knees.

Philmont

For a couple of years now, our scout organization has been talking about going to Philmont. To be honest I had never heard of it but have learned that it is basically Boy Scout Mecca. It's a camp located in NE New Mexico. Scout organizations can choose what kind of hike they are up for. One troop from our area did a trail that was 40 miles long. Ours was 80+!

Curtis and Jonah made the decision to go and our troop was planning to send 12 people, 4 adults and 8 boys. Preparing the gear and working out the logistics took a lot of work. They had to decide whether to drive 22 hours to get there or to fly to Denver or Albuquerque and drive the rest of the way. They decided to fly and catch a 5 hour shuttle to Philmont.

They spent a lot of time walking and backpacking around Katy (wearing their hiking boots!) to prepare. Curtis was a little nervous and spent many mornings driving Jonah to seminary and then walking/jogging during the class.

A week before they were set to leave, we had a terrible shock. One of the adult leaders, Craig Meldrum, was out walking with his family when he had a heart attack. He passed away almost immediately, while his wife and 14 year old son tried to revive him. We were all devastated. Craig was truly one of the most Christlike men we've ever known. He was only a few years older than Curtis and very close to his son. His funeral was held a few days later and so many tears were shed but we were all strengthened as we reflected on his life of service and obedience. I believe without a doubt that he is back with Heavenly Father and many loved ones, doing work on the other side. Craig's son decided to stay home from Philmont and the others in the group continued with their preparation. The adult leaders in particular were so affected by this turn of events but tried to remain positive and hopeful.

Philmont, trail #30 is an 80 mile hike (if you don't get lost) over the course of 12 days. There is a shower half way through the trek and each night they meet at camps for dinner, activities and much needed sleep. The ground is very rocky and almost never flat, so they said sleeping was an adventure, even though they were exhausted each night. Some days were 6 miles, others more like 12 or 15. The food was mostly freeze dried and not great. In fact, when they came home Jonah absolutely scarfed my dinner of Teryaki chicken and brown rice down. He's not a huge eater so that was unusual. I think he appreciated my cooking after Philmont. :O

There were different activities available, like mountain biking and rock climbing. Halfway through the trip the boys had the option of using a couple of burrows. Apparently this is a bit of a gamble because some are more work than help. Thanks to Jonah, however, the burrows they got were wonderful. They were able to carry about 100 lbs of equipment so the men and boys could get a little bit of a break. Jonah's new nickname is BW (Burrow Whisperer).

They made it to the top of Mount Baldy at 12,400 feet elevation! It was quite windy and the air was thin so they didn't stay long. Curtis said the boys were amazing on this climb. It was very steep and they were carrying heavy packs. They were positive and strong! All of the leaders were hopeful that they boys would catch the vision that they can do hard things. I think they did. Curtis said that the hike back to base camp from Baldy was actually the hardest part. Psychologically they felt like they were done or almost done but they still had 2 days of walking left.

They loved showering and washing their clothes back at base camp. The next day they took the shuttle back to Denver and flew home. When I saw them standing on the corner at the airport I couldn't believe it. They all looked so rugged and grown up (and Curtis so cute in his mountain man beard!). They had lots of stories to tell and we had such a wonderful reunion. I am so happy they were able to do this and hope that Isaac and Daniel can go in a couple of years.    
 

Katy Stake Trek Spring Break 2016

Curtis and I were asked to be a ma and pa for Trek this year.  Our stake puts on a Trek every 4 years so each teen gets an opportunity to go once.  This year everything was set.  So much work had gone into the preparation for this event.  Then it started raining.  And Texas received record flooding.  The areas where we were supposed to hike were under 8 feet of water.  There was talk about cancelling.  Then it went down to 4 feet and then 2.  Our fearless leaders decided we should go ahead but change the route a bit.  

Preparing was a lot of work, even for us mas and pas.  We had to get our gear together.  We spent a lot of time worrying about shoes but in the end just wore tennis shoes and brought an extra pair and lots of socks.  This worked perfectly.  We were also supposed to hold activities and get to know our kids.  We had 13 of them, which is a little larger than ideal.  Our group was amazing.  Honestly the best kids ever.  We loved them all and just had a great time getting to know them.  They were kind to each other and patient.  No complaining at all and lots of singing and friendly roasting.  And yes we had a rice bag baby.  It was actually quite tiring holding that little baby.  We all took turns- wish I had thought to bring one of my old slings.  :)  Each baby was based on a real baby who traveled with the pioneers.  Some did not make it.  Ours had a miraculous story of dying but being revived.  

Another special moment was the women's pull.  The boys and men were called away during the most treacherous parts of the trail.  It was a silent pull so there was no talking.  Some of the girls from our family went back to help another wagon that was stuck.  There was a steep hill where only 3 of us were pulling (plus carrying the baby).  We almost went backwards but managed to hang on.  Curtis said it was very difficult to watch but not be able to help. 
One afternoon we had games and a square dance.  So fun!  There was a bull ride and archery and a hair washing station, taffy making and races.  We all had a great time.
The weather could not have been more perfect.  Not too hot or cold.  And no rain, except for a little right before we left.  Roughing it is a great reminder about how much we have to be grateful for.  It also gives us a small amount of empathy for the early saints of our faith.  We heard many powerful stories of faith and fortitude.  In a day when college students can often be found in footed pajamas and arrested development is pretty much a pandemic, I think fortitude is a trait we could all work on. 

















There was great music (including an awesome rendition of "Down to the River to Pray" and "Come Thou Fount") and we all enjoyed singing together. Jonah was in a different family but in our same company so we got to see him. He had a great time.  I honestly didn't hear any kid say anything other than they loved it.  No one complained about it being too hard either.  I think these young people enjoy being challenged.  They feel respected when they face a difficult task and rise to it.  I'm so thankful we went.  Curtis and I were definitely blessed to be a part of it.  I love my church.  There are so many inspired programs and activities that I get to participate in.  I wish everyone had access to this kind of network that we Mormons have.  

I'm grateful for faithful early latter day saints who were unwavering in their belief and constant in their obedience.  These are not traits that are admired today.  Words like sheeple and blind faith get thrown around whenever you talk about obedience or submission.  But they've missed the whole point of Christ's message.  He submitted to the will of the Father.  He said again and again that the servant is the greatest and the first would be last and vv.  He could've confounded those who put him on trial but remained quiet.  His humble birth and life was no coincidence.  He was always teaching us how to be.  Reminds me of one of my favorite scriptures:

Alma 37:6
"...behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise."

And a Tolkien quote that I LOVE:

The Temple

I love having the Houston Temple so close to our home.  It's about a 45 minute drive and Curtis and I usually on weekends and I often go with girlfriends during the week.  I love the perspective I get from going to the temple.  It's a powerful reminder of why we are here and what really matters.  I know many people are curious about Mormon temples and it's really so much less exciting than people imagine.  But I love learning about the creation and quietly thinking in the Celestial Room.  I also find it really empowering to participate in ordinances where women only are laying their hands on my head.  I have felt such a sweet peaceful feeling doing this work and am so grateful to have access to it.  
I absolutely love the viewpoint my faith has on Adam and Eve.  I read a book a few years ago called "Eve and the Choice Made in Eden."  I actually got to hear the author, Beverly Campbell speak and her life has been so interesting.  I find it hard to believe that many people blame Adam (and more specifically Eve) for all the suffering in this world.  A God whose plan fell apart so easily in the Garden of Eden doesn't seem very omnipotent.   So much confusion has come from difficulty in translation, most especially with the word "beguiled."  This is a Hebrew verb that has not been used in centuries and the meaning is complex.  It implies an intense emotional and spiritual experience. This interpretation dramatically changes that part of the story. Suddenly Eve is not weak and naive.  She is someone who sees the big picture and understands that staying in the garden will frustrate God's plan because she and Adam need knowledge in order to have children.  We don't know how long Adam and Eve were in the garden or how much they talked and walked with God but I believe that they were valiant and brave and we owe so much.  
I love my faith and and so grateful to have it, especially in a day when values seems to be changing on a weekly basis.  I appreciate the clear voices of prophets in our day, reminding us that we are God's children and He cares about our individual happiness.  I love this letter written by Terryl Givens: Letter To A Doubter.  I think it's harder to be a religious person today than ever before and God wants us to chose faith.  

Austin Swimming Holes and Water Biking

Texas in the summer can be so miserable.  (I just really wish they would consider year round school but that's another post.)  It's too hot to even be at the pool and so many indoor activities are over crowded and over priced.  My girlfriends and I decided to head to Austin for a couple of days to visit some swimming holes there.  We had a terrific time and the kids did too.  We all stayed at a Hotel together with rooms close by so the kids could play board games together in the evenings.  The hotel staff was so accommodating to our large group (16) and even fed us all pizza one night. 

The places we visited were:

McKinney Falls State Park- This was gorgeous and the water was cool.  It was a little scary to jump off the rocks but other people there showed us where it was safe to jump and then we went at it.  All of our kids are older and are good swimmers and we all stayed close together.  It was a lot of fun!

Water Biking under the Congress bridge to watch the bats emerge was a great time.  We had a perfect view of the bridge and rode around while the sun was setting.  We saw plenty of bats but not the huge cloud that you will see in August or September.  Lucy and I rode together and it was amazing how quiet it seemed in the water, even though there were people on the shores and bridge.  Something about being on the water was just really peaceful. 

Barton Springs Hiking and Swimming- I loved this area and it was actually free.  The hike was probably half a mile and since it was in Austin and shaded it was actually quite pleasant.  The Springs were cold and we enjoyed climbing around the rocks and practicing our backflips and other tricks.  We spent hours there and when we eaten through our stash of Nutella and Ritz we headed over to Round Rock Donuts to have the World's biggest donut!  I have to say it wasn't actually very good and I was super tired by that point but fun to say we went.  :) 

The last day we stopped by Barton Springs dam and just hung out for a bit.  It was actually not my favorite part.  It didn't seem especially clean.  Too many people and dogs and too little water.  :(
I like Austin but I don't think I'd want to live there.  Definitely a great place to visit though!

Yep we went on a cruise

Never say never.  Okay?  If you had asked Curtis and I a few years ago if we would ever go on a cruise we would have quickly said "No!"  For many reasons it just didn't sound like our type of vacation.  But now we live close to Galveston, an hour and a half to be exact.  And they started offering a trip that includes Roatan, Belize City and Cozumel.  Pretty much perfect if you're hoping to go SCUBA diving in a few locations.  So when our friends suggested we go (and the prices were so good) we said yes. 

It was a 7 day adventure so we needed a great babysitter.  It actually worked out perfectly that my good friend's daughter was coming home from her mission to Romania 4 days before we were leaving.  My kids are in school all day so Taylor would be free to see her family and decompress during the day.  And I felt so great about having her.  She is the oldest of 8 and just an awesome all around person. 

The cruise itself was a lot of fun.  I actually really enjoyed the part where we hung out on the ship.  I LOVED not worrying about where to eat and thought the food was all around terrific.  We had bagels with lox, capers, onions and cream cheese a couple of mornings.  The lunchtime salad bar had fresh arugula and everything else you could want.  The appetizers at dinner was always amazing and most of the main courses were great too.   I tried escargot and it was so yummy!

 I actually really enjoyed the time on the boat.  I loved walking laps on the deck or reading in shady corner.  I thought the food was great and the room wasn't even that horribly small.  They had a library/game room where we could play cards and boards games.  There was also a basketball court, rock wall and a wavejammer.  We also saw a few shows during the trip and the quality was terrific.  They had an Elton John impersonator who was hilarious and his "Benny and the Jets" rocked.  The ice show was also really fun and there was a guy playing piano in a bar every night (JT?)  and his voice was amazing.  He even sang Christopher Cross's "Sailing" for me.  awesome.

Curtis surprised the guys with tattoo arm bands so they got to look tough for a night. 



We did big excursions on all of our stops and that was actually quite stressful. They just don't quite give you enough time so you are up early trying to get off the boat and stressing about making it back in time.  But the excursions were all very good.  Well the dive masters in Honduras were not ideal for beginner divers but it was still beautiful country and more practice.  I learned in Honduras that my buoyancy control is not very good and I really need to work on it.

The middle trip was to Belize and that was a lot of fun.  We drove for about an hour and reached the jungle.  Then we hiked up to a cave and tubed down through it.  Our guide, taught us all about the trees and life there.  Curtis and I actually ate termites.  I guess you can survive on them if necessary.  He said they tasted "minty woolly" and he was totally right.  Not bad at all.  :)
After the tubing we rode on zip lines over the jungle.  It was pretty fun and I wasn't scared at all.  I think it would have been more fun if they had been longer and higher.  Our guide had the most delicious lunch of chicken, rice and beans waiting for us after the zip lines.  It was SOOOO delicious.  Our friends were really stressed out that we would miss the boat so the car ride back to Belize City wasn't a lot of fun but the good news was that we made it in plenty of time.
The next day we stopped in Cozumel.  I always thought Mexico was pretty ghetto but honestly Cozumel was the most beautiful of the three stops.  The water was that amazing turquoise I've been dreaming of!
Thankfully our amazing dive master, Blanca, in Cozumel was an incredible teacher and she really helped me a lot.  The Cozumel diving was unbelievable.  The current was so strong that we just followed it.  We swam through coral walls and saw huge sea turtles.  The water in Cozumel was such a brilliant blue- we were surprised to find that Mexico was actually our favorite destination on this trip anyway.  Unfortunately Curtis got a mild case of the bends and we both had some kind of stomach bug for about 10 days after the trip (it was either the water they shared with us in Cozumel or the fresh watermelon).  ooops  We saw several massive turtles right up close and swam through coral caves.  It was stunning.  Unfortunately Curtis got a little mixed up and filmed when swimming and turned the GoPro off when he thought he was filming.  So we have no pics or vids from that amazing dive.  But we will definitely go again.  Totally redeemed diving for me. 
  Since we brought our own diving gear we had to lug it around and then try to rinse it off and hang it in our tiny cabin aboard the ship.  Not the best idea.  I mean it was fine but I would just rent equipment next time.

The last day was cruising again.  We had so much fun watching TJ sing and play piano down in the bar.  He had a beautiful voice.  We saw an ice show that was really entertaining.  We also took Cha-cha lessons and sorta overtook the library with games of Trump, Bananagrams and Hearts.  Having friends with us definitely made the trip more fun. 

Some of my favorite moments were

1) getting up early and walking around the deck with Curtis
2) playing "knock out" at night
3) a killer round of Round Robin Ping Pong with our friends
4) taking cha-cha lessons from professionals- okay the cha cha is hard
5) getting super close to a 4 foot sea turtle
6) that super amazing blue ocean water
7) card games with our friends
8) hanging in the cafe promenade eating pizza, cookies and croissant sandwiches
9) watching a movie while sitting in the hot tub on deck
10) reading my book/taking random naps on a lounge chair

It was a fun trip.  Not sure if Curtis wants to go again- he would prefer to just travel to one place and be able to enjoy it for several days.  But I think a Girls Cruise could definitely be in my future.

Conference, Bluebells, Bluebonnets & EASTER!

I think we found a new tradition.  Well it was fun this year anyway.  For Saturdays General Conference sessions we decided to get in the car and drive to Brenham, Texas.  It's about an hour away and we were able to listen to conference on our XM radio.  We got to Brenham and the Bluebonnets were everywhere.  People seriously stop on the freeway and lug their kids out to the fields to get pictures.  I heard somewhere that there was a nice field behind the Home Depot so we checked that out.  It was so pretty and not too many other people.  We took some fun pics and then headed over to the Bluebell factory for ice cream.  Yum!  Then we listened to another hour of conference on the way home.  We were able to have a little downtime before the boys went to the priesthood session. 

I really love general conference and look forward to all the talks but it is a lot of listening in a short amount of time.  This little road trip mixed it up so that we were able to just stay home on Sunday and listen on our computer.  I loved Elder Eyring's talk on "Fasting."  I have been thinking about the untapped power in fasting and prayer and appreciated his words. I need to reread them all but Sister Wixom, Elder Nielsen, Elder Holland and President Uchtdorf all gave talks that really touched me.  In a world with such an overload of information, it was nice to listen to inspired words.  :)

I wish I had a picture to share but I didn't take any of our amazing Easter Feast!  An awesome family from church invited over 50 people to their home to have dinner.  The food was amazing, the company was so fun and interesting to talk to and we just loved celebrating such a special holiday with so many people we love.  We watched this video earlier in the day and loved it:
http://www.mormonchannel.org/watch/collection/easter-videos/because-he-lives

Annual Spring Break Camping Trip

We visited Pedernales Falls State Park a couple of weeks ago for spring break with several other families.  The weather was perfect in the day but a little chilly at night.  (75F and 40F)  We need to rethink out air mattresses for spring camping because they are just too darn cold!  Or we need better sleeping bags. 

We usually go to Huntsville State Park with these friends but tried something new.  Pedernales was very different.  The individual sites were very private.  The rocks and falls were beautiful and it was hilly.   Huntsville is better for a big group because it's quite open and you can call gather easily for games and fires.  But we had a lovely time and made some memories.  Oh wait, except for the last day when I totally melted down.  This will be addressed in another post. 

Brandi and I made cinnamon roll dough and froze it before the campout.  Then we let them rise overnight and cooked them over the fire in a dutch oven.  They worked pretty well but next time we will cook them out of the firepit and only using coals.  They got a little burned.  But they were good and it was fun to try something new.  I was really committed on this trip to having lots of interesting and fun camping foods.  Crescent Roll dough in a sandwich cooker with cinnamon was a big hit.  I also made a chocolate cake with whipping cream and it was simple and really good. 

The boys!  And check out the background!!

That's Isaac swinging on the rope swing in the freezing river water! Brrrr

The kids played Capture the Flag, Flag Football, Zombie Tag, Kiss Marry Kill and lots of cards and Bananagrams