OUT . . . and . . . ABOUT

. . . school is out . . . yay! This ends my crazy schedule of a 2nd grade and kindergarten student (in two more years we will try that again and see if I learned anything:) early breakfast, early lunch, late dinner . . . You will be glad to hear I have already adjusted my summer schedule and we stay up late, get up late, and eat all day long! Seems to be working right now but the reality of it is, time is slipping through my fingers. I can't believe it is already the end of June and school will start again in 7 weeks. I am enjoying it while I can:)

Here's my little grad - about to jump off the stage from pure excitement!!! They performed a song and did the actions from the "Macarena" (do any of you remember that??) and I about fell off my chair laughing. It was so cute and you should have seen the hip movements - priceless!!!

Here's Grandma celebrating with the boys!

This is the only pic I have of our reservoir, a-hem, I mean our backyard. My garden is under there somewhere. I haven't been to sad about it until I went to a friends the other night and their garden is amazing. I am officially depressed about it now. However, I believe it has saved the water from going into our basement so I am not going to complain anymore . . . I am trying a little container gardening at this point. I will keep you posted.


June 15th was D-Day so we went out for Pizza with Gpa and Gma Leak, Jason and Sam (Matt's cousins), and Gma-Great. We came back to our house for a Hot Fudge Sundae, Platt-style (delicious recipe from my younger days. mom would make it almost every Sunday! mmmm). Then Grandpa thought it was funny to wrap the kids up in the blankets so tight they couldn't escape. They loved it!! Here are Trey and Kace giggling while Gpa wrestled with them. Thanks to everyone who helped make this day possible. We wish we could celebrate it with everyone, both near and far, and are hopeful that someday we will.

I can just here him saying "cheeese" in this pic! What a joy he is to have in our family!!


LaLa just chillin'. We went to Tony Grove last week with some friends from Corny-town. It was cold and sprinkled on us some but the kids had a great time. They even found a sledding hill, complete with snow, and had a great time sliding down on someone's raincoat!

We hiked around the lake - that would be a first for me - so this is a view looking to the east. It is a beautiful spot!

YS REPORT . . .

. . . well . . . it's over . . . and for my first try I don't think it was so bad:)
I have excellent support and help from friends and family. I could not have done it without you all!! Our original plan was to go from 8 to 2 but around noon it started raining so we moved under the covered parking and didn't have much traffic so we closed up shop. My goal was to make at least $500.00 and we surpassed that so I am terribly PLEASED!! Thanks again to everyone that helped.
* Court and Sonnie made some adorable flower clips for little girls that were a hit (website coming soon)
*My sister Merrilee sold hot dogs and Mattie and two of her friends sold lemonade. (Uncle Denny did a great job at teasing/flustering the little girls and their lemonade stand. He is also great help whenever I have such hair-brained idea's)
*Mitch, Mark, and Dan helped put price tags on everything and move furniture around. They are pro's. I think Mitch should open his own professional yard sale stand:)
* Thanks Mark and Alisa for coming and helping with everything. I owe you big time!
* Thanks to everyone that donated something: Gma Leak, Natalie, Cheri, Joni, and Alisa all made goodies for the bake sale (which was a BIG hit), and Holly, Joni, Rob and Holly, Zac and Marcy, Shalice, Shauna, Merr, Court, Sonnie, and random stragers for donating to the cause.
*I really do not wish to leave anyone out so I appologize if I do but I need to give a big THANK YOU to my mother-in-law. She is always so supportive of my ideas and always helps in so many ways. THANK YOU, THANK YOU.

YARD SALE

MULTI-FAMILY

FIGHT . . .

. . . against cancer!!!

Saturday, June 20th, 8 am - 2 pm

756 E. 1000 N.

Logan, UT

All proceeds will benefit the American Cancer Society

Items for sale: electronics, baby items, toys, clothing, home decor, books, and much more!!

We will also have goodies and drinks available:)

Stop by and see us or if you still have things to donate please let me know by Friday!!

Thanks for all your support and GO TEAM LEAK

Mr. Hustle

Kael attended a basketball camp last week for three days. He was the smallest one there by about 5 inches but we know he doesn't come by height naturally:) The last day they gave out awards and they awarded him 'Mr. Hustle'. On his birthday, the coaches put him on their shoulders and sang Happy Birthday to him and then lifted him up to the basket so he could dunk it! He had a good time and I even think he picked up on a few things. He came home dribbling under his leg and behind his back. Impressive!

We celebrated his 6th birthday last week - so exciting! He wanted a suit for his birthday and to move. Guess which one he got?!?! Matt got him a toolbox and tools. He has been hammering non-stop for a few days now. Thanks family for spending the evening with us and spoiling him rotten.

We had blood taken last week but it was unchanged from the week before. We go again tommorrow for more blood work and then we see where we go from here. Dr. Afify says if he isn't up this week we will for sure drop med dosages again. They are assuming his body is just trying to fight off an infection of some sort. We have been off of meds now for three weeks but hopefully tomorrow's counts are good enough to start them again.

Race for the Cure

Friday night we went to my sister's house to have a high-carb dinner and watch the twins open their mission calls. What an exciting time. I had never witnessed a mission-call-opening before so it was great to see two-in-one!! Jordan will serve in the Kentucky Louisville mission and Justin will serve in the Texas San Antonio mission. They leave on August 12th. Congrats lil' brothers!!

*Obviously with 9 siblings and being the youngest, not everyone could be in attendance. That is why both of them are on cell phones. There were about 5 others on their phones too, just so everyone was in on the action!!


Saturday morning we got up bright and early for the Race. Everything went smoothly . . . oh, except trying to park at the Trax station:) . . . but we were still early enough to get a spot close to the front! Thanks everyone for coming and running with us!! I had a great time and thought our team was represented well. Can't wait to do it again next year!

(Jordan, Rhonda, Peyt, Mom, Justin, Chelsea, Crystal, Me, Kirby, and Randi)

Just a few of the people there to support breast cancer research! I think they said there was over 18,000 people. Awesome!!

P.S. Thanks to the 'twinners' for staying and babysitting Trey and Kace and helping Mattie get on the bus* while I took Kael to clinic.



* Mattie is very independent when it comes to getting on the bus. I get stuck outside some mornings with chores and she is so good to do everything on her own. I guess she got all ready on Monday and a few minutes before the bus came she had to go wake the twins up and told them "if you want to see me off you better wake up!"

Clinic

We had clinic again on Monday, complete with back poke. His counts were way low so we will keep him home from school this week. It's pretty awesome we have made it through the year without having to take him out before now:) Dr. Afiffy was concerned with his biliruben #'s so she had them run blood work on his liver. One of them came back high (unconjegated) but the other was normal so we went ahead with chemo. I will take him to Logan Regional next Monday for a blood draw to see if we can send him back to school. We have taken him off his chemo he gets every night for now. The doctor thinks he is still just having a reaction from the higher dosages we had him on a few months back.
He was so cute when they were putting him out for his back poke. He was trying so hard to stay awake! They put the versed in and he just kept talking so when she changed syringes to the ketamine he says "I love this part". When he woke up he kept saying "where am I". (I hate that part.) He was wiped out and slept most of the evening but no puke to clean up!!! Back in four weeks:)

MIA . . .

The tooth has finally made it's disappearance! He lost it at school so we have no proof for the fairy. To bad that dang fairy forgets everything. She must have a no-tooth-no-loot policy. Taking applications for a new one:)

The kids had a Primary Talent Show. The following pics are what we took for their display.

Mattie: Painting

(totally staged and yes she is in her PJ's)


Kael: Basketball

Trey: Milking Cows

Kase: He didn't have a talent but here he is loving music. Matt had his headphones on the other day and he thought they were awesome:)

Check this DUNK!!!

JUST FOR FUN

Who Am I?

Vote on the side bar!!
A. Mattie
B. Kael
C. Trey
D. Kace

Enjoying Spring

I am loving the weather the past few days (I even have a small tan)! Grass is green and freshly cut, some tulips have peeked through and I am getting a few other flowers blooming (I am not sure of the variety so I can't tell you what they are - they were left here from the previous owners). Just trying to find the energy to get my vegtable garden mapped out and ready for seed. I am making it my major project this year. It was a lot of work last year but very satisfying so we will see what I can make of it this year.

Random pics of what life is all about:

My T-bird. Everyone should have one! One of my very favorite things he does is tuck his shirts inside his 'unders'. What a great kid!!

Mattie doing her thing . . . reading and riding!

Kael takin' a spin on Meeg's. (The kids saddle looks like an English saddle on our chubby horse but believe me we have not changed preferences)

Kael and Trey waiting to ride up to 'Gamma Shauna's'. We rode up Easter night and stayed to late so Grandma had to bring us home in the truck.

Kace and his favorite swing

OuR Mardi dog . . .

Matt and I decided she is a great family dog but stinks at farm dog. Oh well, you can only be really good at one thing right?

ENJOYING MATT . . .

I was teasing him the other night that if I didn't have him I would probably be living in a single wide trailer somewhere with 12 kids driving a white '87 Chevy Corsica. What a great guy he is to me. A great father and family man and such a support to me. I love you!

ketchup

(Really this post has nothing to do with the condiment, just catching up on life!)

Conference weekend found us in Jerome spending time with family.
We visited my mom, Grandma, and Aunts before they left for Oregon on a little vacation and then spent the rest of the weekend with Jordan, Barbara, and their family. The kids had a blast and the weather was decent enough to send them outside:)


Jayden and Trey enjoying a little H2O















Kace enjoying some R&R

Trey, Jayden, Rylee, Kael, and Mattie

I couldn't resist taking this picture. Matt, Barb, and Jordan listening to conference (obviously not watching it!!) Where are the 7 children we should be watching?!?! Thanks for showing us such a great time! Can't wait to do it again:)



EASTER

Just before the big hunt.

Kace really enjoyed himself this year!

We spent Easter Sunday blessing Court and Dan's little one and spending time with the whole family. We had a great time together. Thanks for the delicious meal!!

CLINIC

Last week we had to have blood drawn and they decided it would be best if we decreased med dosages. After clinic yesterday they decided to keep him on the lower doses. Dr. Affify says it is okay if this is as high as we can go with him. She is very pleased with how he is doing but we are all still puzzled about the tremors. They have shown up again these past few weeks but we have exhausted all avenue's so we wait for another 18 months and see if they disappear when we are finished with treatments. He wore his Wal-Mart shirt (complete with his name and patches) to clinic and everyone had to make a fuss about it:) Thanks DAD!!

And the winner is . . .

Rhonda

Congrats for winning our Bracket Challenge!

Thank-you to those who participated!

Can't wait for next year!

kid-funnies . . .

The newest addition to our animal family arrived about a week ago. We usually have one or two babies a week but this one got a name so she joined the ranks of an official "Leak Family Pet". Milly had her leg stepped on by another cow and she didn't fare to well. I couldn't take a pic of it unbandaged (seriously gross) so here she is with her first cast. The swelling has finally gone down so only time will tell if we are doing her any good. She is a fighter and gets around on it quite well.

and now on to some funnies:

- Kael was informed at school, for whatever reason, how dogfood was made. Mattie is my tenderheart and has really been in to the "Phantom Stallion" book series. I have never read any of the books but she has a new mission in life, to save mustangs. She has her own "Imagination World", complete with binder and drawings of wild horses. It is quite complex and she has even written a few chapters of her own book to someday be published. She was sitting at the table the other night writing some more of her book, not having a great day anyway, when Kael looked up at her and said, "Did you know they make dogfood out of horses?" Mattie: "What? That's not true, is it mom." Mom: "Yes". (Mattie's head drops onto her books and she starts to cry). Luckily Matt was there to save the day because I was trying to hold in my laughter. I wasn't laughing at her I was laughing at the fact that Kael has her number dialed and knows exactly when to call!

-Kael came home from school the other day and says "Mom, my belt buckle has just been givin' me the geef all day!" I laughed so hard. I am sure his teacher said something about it causing him grief and this is how he remembered it:) What a kid!

- Trey's new thing this week is "Mom, I just wanna be mean". Mom: "Trey, don't hit Kayson", "Trey, be nice to Kayson" Trey:"but mom, I just wanna be mean".

-Trey has also figured out how to sneek out to the barn while they are milking. Francisco has taught him how to say 'let's go girls' in spanish and then showed him how to run the pneumatic gates that let the cows in and out of the barn. We put colored bands on their legs so the milkers can tell the sick cows from the fresh cows. Trey now has to walk around with colored bands on his legs. He constantly asks me 'who is milking tonight mom'. I love that he is so facinated with it all, I just hope he still has a love for it when it is his job:)

I have pretty much been good-for-nothing this week. Too bad none of you were here to witness it:) The weather has put me in a funk that I am struggling to get out of. It is suppose to snow here again on Sunday or Monday. I am thinking of putting up the Christmas Tree. Maybe we can at least have Christmas again so my brain isn't trying to think "rake, plant, mow, be outside, enjoy the sunshine and some FRESH AIR!"

Love you all - may you enjoy some sunshine in your neck of the woods!!

a day @ primary's . . .

Kael is doing so well that they increased his meds again. His body is tolerating the med increase from last month so they want to increase them enough to knock his counts back down. He is such a fighter and has done so well but they have to keep his body killing any cells that may replicate. He is on his 5 days of steroids again and seems to be tolerating it better this time. I did get a perscription filled so I am ready with some Prevacid if his stomach starts to bother him again. We are so lucky that we have been all winter without him getting to sick. He has a great teacher and she does awesome at keeping things sanitized and clean. We appreciate all other precautions that have been taken to insure his health.

Thanks everyone for all you do for us. Grandpa Leak gets major kudo's this week for going to clinic with Matt and Kael. He was such a good sport and waited all day for Kael and Trey to see their other dr. too! It was a long day and a big sacrifice on his part but we just want him to know how much we love him and appreciate what he does for us!! Thanks Grandpa Leak!!

NCAA Bracketology

First and foremost - Great job and good Luck AGGIES!

I am doing a bracket challenge to help raise money for 'Team Leak' and Relay for Life. I thought this would be a unique way of earning some money for our Relay Team. Please visit http://tournament.fantasysports.yahoo.com/t1/register/joinprivategroup_assign_team?GID=107016&P=teamleak to set up your bracket. We are asking for a $5 donation to the American Cancer Society Relay for Life for each bracket filled out. There will be a gift certificate awarded to the winner! Grab all your basketball groupies and join in the fun! Anyone is invited so please pass the word on to family and friends.

P.S. I will be collecting money if that is easier. Write checks to the American Cancer Society and send to :13322 N. 4400 W., Cornish, UT 84308

THANKS!

Girls Get-away

merr and rhonda

Last friday I went to my sisters house in Spring City for some TLC sister-stlye! Rhonda was our host and did a wonderful job entertaining us. We went to dinner at the local steak-house, laughed, cried, and did our best to not talk about the economy and anything else having to do with depression:)


The theme of this year's get-together was 'Love Story'. We all had to write down a version of our "Love Story". Quite the homework asignment. I actually got some involvement from my better half so that helped a lot but I have decided that my Love Story isn't about how we met and while we dated (although that plays a big part). My Love Story started the day we were married and has been writing itself the past 9 1/2 years. Each year is a chapter filled with many memories, both happy and sad, but tells they story of our married lives and our childrens childhood. I obviously only wrote our "How I Met Your Father" (not to be confused with the sitcom, never seen it, but if there are similarities it is strictly coincidence!) story but am excited to sit down and muddle through pics and memories to write my own true "Love Story". You all know by now how intrigued I am with personal histories but I need to get my own on paper so my posterity has proof of where their quirks came from!!



My mom and dad have started writing their own history in storybook form so mom gave us their Love Story chapter. Thanks mom, it is priceless and thank-you Rhonda for helping us remember how lucky we are to have such great spouses!!



landree

kirby

(only nursing babies can attend these get-tegothers and we were lucky enough to have 2 this year. landers has is down right and knows who her favorite aunt is, kirb doesn''t care who has him. he's just an easy-goin' kid!)

then there are the camara nazi's. these two are always vying for position. and what is this look crystal has on her face - I will get this flat board to balance on this round ball so we can have a picture! these two have the only group pic available and I have waited a week to post so i could share a group pic, so this is my way of pleading for one!

We had such a great time together and I am looking forward to next year already. Thanks to the hubbies for tending their own kids for a full day. I'm sure you all found it worth your while:) Matt did an awesome job with all four and was quite proud of himself until he read an e-mail from a friend that said ' I am just getting ready to watch the kids for a week so my wife can spend some time with her mom and sisters'. He was greatful it was only one day!

Answers from my kids.

I had this idea sent to me on my facebook profile. Matt and I sat down and asked the kids these questions. It was so great, I only wish I would have video taped it. It was so fun to share 20 minutes of pure laughter with one another:) Enjoy!

*Mattie, 8, Kael, 5, and Trey, 3.*

1. What is something mom always says to you?
thank you for helping me (M),
water the animals (K),
no treats for us (T)

2. What makes mom happy?
us doing our chores (M),
me (K),
no treats (T)

3. What makes mom sad?
if we don't do our chores (M),
me and mattie fighting (K),
when you's make you's self mad(T)

4. How does mom make you laugh?
by forgetting to do something (M),
tickle me(K),
i'm not tellin' (T)

5. What was mom like as a child?
loved to ride horses a lot (M),
blonde hair(K),
child (T)

6. How old is mom?
28 (M),
eh (buzzer sound)19 (K),
4 (T)

7. How tall is mom?
5 foot (M),
19 (K),
up to the door (T)

8. What is mom's favorite thing to do?
go shopping (M),
sew (K),
go swimmin' (T)

9. What does mom do when you're not around?
tends the boys and sews (M),
play (K),
wake up and have cereal (T)

10. If mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
because she is a really good goat tyer (M),
letting us play games (K),
because we have to go to church (T)

11. What is mom really good at?
tending 4 kids at a time (M),
go fish (K),
play with kitty-cats, puppies, and Mardi-dog (T)

12. What is mom not very good at?
tennis (M),
shapes (K),
pooping her pants (T) (thanks Trey!)

13. What does mom do for a job?
chores (M),
do chores outside (K),
goes downstairs (T)

14.What is mom's favorite food?
pancakes (M),
tomatoes (K),
frosted flakes (T)

15. What makes you proud of mom?
her helping me with my homework and listening to my problems (M),
doing chores (K),
hooking up trailers (T)

16. If mom was a cartoon character, who would she be?
Jerry from tom and jerry (M),
Giselle(sweet) (K),
Big Blue (T)

17. What do you and mommy do together?
have a girls date (M),
go to clinic (K),
shop (T)

18. How are you and mom the same?
we both like horses (M),
nothing (K),
feed baby calves, horses, and pigs (T)

19. How are you and mom different?
She doesn't go to school (M),
because you have brown eyes and i have some (K), *(we both have brown eyes)
she goes downstairs (T)

20. How do you know mom loves you?
by helping me (M),
because i do my watering and drain the hose (K),
Kiss and a hug (T)

21. What does mommy love most about daddy?
that he can work for Cargill and he gets money for us (M), *(Matt says my kids know me well)
me (K),
kiss on the lips (T)

21. What does dad like most about mommy?
that she has wonderful kids (M),
you do chores together (K),
kiss on the lips (T)

22. Where is mom's favorite place to go?
shopping (M),
shopping (K),
sow side (outside) (T)

*I tag everyone. Even if you don't post them (record them some other way) it is worth every comment and answer they give!

Crazy 8's

8 Favorite TV shows:
1. King of Queens
2. The Office
3. American Idol
4. KUTV 2 News @ 10:00
I can't even list 5. We TiVo these and usually watch them after 10. If I had more time I would love to fit in a little 'Everybody Loves Raymond'.

8 Things I did Yesterday:
1. Chores
2. Drove Mattie and Kristen to choir
3. Helped in Mattie's class
4. Got Kael on the bus
5. Reconciled bank statements
6. Showered
7. Went to a gardening seminar
8. Talked to my sis

8 Things I look forward to:
1. Sister Saturday
2. Spring
3. Evenings at home with my family
4. Haircut
5. Monday's
6. A ride in my freshly cleaned van
7. School being out
8. Taking a road trip with the RV

8 Favorite Restaurants (in no paticular order):
1. Maddox
2. I cannot recall the name of it at this moment but it was a delicious Steakhouse in Madison, WI that Matt's Aunt and Uncle took us to.
3. Costa Vida
4. Applebee's
5. Firehouse Pizzaria
6. Big J's/Pizza Villa (most visited)
7. Chili's
8. Rodizio's

8 Things on my wishlist:
1. Updated kitchen
2. More hours in a day
3. Spring
4. An awesome horse I could just get on and ride so Mattie and I could have some girl time:)
5. Quilting Machine
6. A Nanny
7. $16 milk but I would settle for $12
8. A trip to North Carolina

8 People I Tag:
whoever want's to and hasn't done this before:)

walker, talker, betty crocker -

After 15 months of staying horizontal, Kace has figured it out! (Not that his vertical leap will be anything impressive, given his parents height) He has been standing on his own for a few weeks and I thought he would take off before now but I am not complaining! Sorry you don't get a video (I have no patience for that right now) but swing by sometime and he can show you all of his tricks:)


We celebrated Gma Leaks 80th birthday on the 21st of Feb. It was a grand time! We did a great job suprising her and enjoyed spending time with family!

The Child family (Dan and Court) welcomed their second baby girl to their family on the 19th and they were able to make it to the party as well. She is a cutie and fits perfect in their little fam. Congrats guys.

"This Chicks Had IT!"

So I really have nothing else to bore you with and I haven't made a habit of taking pictures of paperwork, diaper changing, or my messy house yet so I will share with you some of the other projects that have been keeping me busy. This is my wall hanging that reminds me of my lil' sis'. We call her 'Rooster' so now evertime I look at it I think of her. We love you "Rooster"!!

This tablerunner was made from left over material from my "New York" quilt. I haven't got the quilt quilted yet - that may be a year or sew (ha ha) but I have been needing something to go on my entry table and this works perfect!

Plus I had the kids pics taken the end of January and I want to show them off. Matt made me that frame for my bday a few years back. Lot's of red in this arrangement but perfect for ME!!

Spent last night with Matt's mom at a seminar for vegtable gardening. I am so glad she invited me - I have a lot to learn - but am ready to take on the challenge!

This has been my life the past few weeks . . . what about yours???

Clinic

Last week was crazy so I am just getting around to posting about clinic. Kael had clinic on Tuesday because of the Monday holiday. We woke to a snow storm that we were not to nervous about until we actually got on the roads. It was worse than we thought. We usually do not take the Canyon (Sardine) but had to take Kace to Aunt Merr's house for the day so decided we would go that route. They had closed it earlier that morning but had just reopened it before we left Merr's. We took it anyway, and once we reached the freeway the roads were fine. Needless to say we were 1/2 hour late for our 9:30 appointment. They got him right in and took care of chemo and everthing but it was backpoke day so we had to wait until 1:00 before they even took him into sedation. Kael and Trey had another appointment @ 3:00 so we had to hurry them along so we could make it on time to it. We barely snuck in lunch and made it on time. By the time we got perscriptions it was 5:00. Long day. After we got home Matt realized he had left his backpack w/ his laptop in it @ the pharmacy. Luckily the staff retrieved it and he was able to pick it up first thing the next morning. Kael did great with his backpoke but was groggy for quite some time after. I was sure we would have some vomitting but he did awesome!! They decided to up his meds so now we are @ 125%. I can tell it is taking a toll on him this week. He has been crouched over complaining that his belly hurts for two days. I'm sure this has to do with the increase in medication, especially the steroids. I am out of prevacid (lines the stomach so the steroids will not damage it) but am calling the clinic tomorrow if it hasn't gone away. Other than that he is doing well. He is doing well in school and has started reading. His teacher just loves him so I hope between that and his good looks she will forget about all the homework he "forgets" to hand in. I found his Valentines (the ones he was to hand out) in his backpack last week. His excuse: "I lost them mom".

Check out the side bar . . .

I have been cleaning/reorganizing my craft room the past week and had some fun finishing up some projects. I haven't had much time to sew the past few years and it has been longer than that since I have scrapbooked, therefore, I have managed to collect drawer-fulls of kids drawings, trip memorabilia, and other scrap-a-ble memories. I hope to have it all in books before I go grey!! I have had an awesome trip down memory lane, if you will, and have tried to re-open the creative side of my brain. I hope I can find time to use it all before it closes -up shop again!!! Occasionally some of you have asked if I have anything made for birthday or wedding gifts. I use to have a variety of items when I was doing shows but have been low on inventory for sometime. Anyhow - here are a few aprons I have made up if you are needing a last-minute gift for little girls! I will be continuing (and hopefully finishing) my cleaning project this week and will post whatever else I find:) Good Luck to me!

Also, a good luck this week to Aunt Courtney - we get a new baby in the family and we are so excited and can't wait to meet him/her!!!

On another note. This week is Food Check-Out Week! Each county (in every State) has representatives from the agricultural community in their local grocery store handing out information and occasionally free groceries!! The Cache Co. Women's Committee will be at Macey's on Saturday from 10-2 to educate consumers on nutritious food items and how to do it by spending less!! (Now I am climbing on my soapbox) Growing up on the family farm has already become a thing of the past for most of us. In the early-mid 1900's everyone owned a few self-sustaining acres, milked a cow, gathered eggs, grew their own fruits and vegetables, textiles, ect. Clothes and equipment were used until they were worn out and any excess food was traded/bartered for other much needed items. Time goes by, advancements are made, research proves otherwise, and slowly overalls and water boots are replaced by Armani suits and dress shoes. Credit cards, second-mortgages, and to little Vitamin-N consume are lives and we rely on cell phones and tv for a higher education. Each generation is farther removed from the self-reliance that made America what it once was. PETA, the Humane Society, and other such organizations are heavily affecting agriculture's future and shaping America into a country that depends on others. The FDA and USDA have strict regulations for those of us that provide food for public consumption. If these organizations keep getting their way we will soon be importing food from Mexico or other countries that have NO REGULATIONS!!! I don't know about you but THAT SCARES ME!!! So as each generation becomes farther removed from their 'roots', misconceptions take the place of facts and common sense. Great things are at our fingertips and we are so blessed to live in this free country so let's educate ourselves and others about issues affecting our community and nations food supply! I know you are all thinking that you cannot possibly make a difference but every positive thing said is a step in the right direction. If we don't make a difference, PETA will!!
Thanks for listening:)
Lena

So . . .

. . . what random things have been happening at your place? I hope you all enjoyed you Valentine and your Valentine's Day!! Matt and I celebrated on Friday night with Eric and Shaniqua. We went to dinner (this was all a suprise to Shalice and I) and then to a movie. Before I tell you what movie, make sure you are sitting down. Twilight. I never, ever, ever dreamed Matt would go to this movie. I wasn't really sure I would. I am pretty sure he and Eric had a motive!! Anyway, I didn't mind it. I have only read the first two books and frankly - I am just not in to fantasy type things but I believe the books are very well written. The characters were dead on how I had imagined them, Edward took a little getting use to but by the end of the movie I thought he fit in perfect. So anyway it was a great evening! Thanks Grandma Shauna for taking the kids and the cute Valentines!!

Baptism

By now you should know I am a week or so behind my life . . . so here are a few pics of the baptism. I thought it went well and I was so excited to have #1 go through such a great experience. Uncle Jordan Leak (Mattie has 2 Uncle Jordan's) spoke on Baptism and Uncle Wade spoke on the Holy Ghost. They both did such a great job and the spirit was so strong. We are so thankful for such great family and the support they gave Mattie.

Brit, Mattie, and Rylee. These three cousins all turn 8 this year.

They sang "When I Am Baptized" for the program.

Gma and Gpa Platt

Gma and Gpa Leak

Thanks everyone for making this day so special for Mattie!!

Short Story

This is me.
This is my firetruck.
This is me and the stairs.

This is me after riding my firetruck down the stairs.

THE END

Trey-ler almost ready for chores. He is the best chore helper!!