Great Intentions

So, I was going to update my blog daily while on vacation, but as you can all see, that didn't happen. Give me a couple of days and I will get the rest of the vacation fun up (including pics and maybe videos, if I can figure it all out).

I will also get Kale's birthday party stuff posted as well. We had soooooooo much fun with the HUGE Slip 'n Slide. All the kids had a great time. I need about 5 more hours in my day. It can be difficult keeping everything going and finding time to update the blog. Be patient with me, one day I will figure out how to organize my time to get it all done. Until then, you will just have to keep checking back!

And we are off…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s about 8:30am on Monday Morning and we are finally loaded, fueled (both gas and breakfast) and on the highway headed to California.  It is about 100 degrees in Las Vegas and the idea of temperatures in the 80’s is a wonderful notion.  Getting away from the busyness of normal life, work, and other responsibilities and heading to a small mountain town, to enjoy hiking, playing in the lake and all the “touristy” things that are available in Big Bear City makes me smile and think how lucky we are to have this chance to get away and just enjoy being a family.

We arrived in Big Bear at about 1pm and had a few hours to burn before we could check in to the cabin so we found the Alpine Slides.  The kids had a blast seeing who could get to the bottom the fastest and Dad even flipped over once.  Check out the fun we had:

 

 

 

 

 

After we got settled at the cabin, we changed into our suits and headed to the lake for some water play time.  They boys (all four of them) had a blast and played in the water and on the beach for a couple of hours.  They did some snorkeling, diving off the dock, built sand castles, and just had a great time.  Here are a few of the pictures we got:  

 

 

 

 

 

They played and jumped and swam and threw each other into the water and even played with the seaweed.  Dad even brought Mom a present, much like a cat brings to the doorstep of their master.  Mine was green, slimy, wet, long and just plain yuck!! Seaweed balls are definitely not my favorite thing!  Check back daily for our vacation updates and you can share in some of the fun we are having.  Enjoy!!

Kale Turns Four (July 19, 2009)

Kale turned 4 on July 19, 2009.  He is getting to be such a big little boy.  He is still the lovable little guy that we have always known, but I am watching him become more independent and showing more courage and determination to try new things. 

He is such a joy to have in our family and brings so much love and laughter to our home.  We had a small little party for him, with just the immediate family members.  We will have a big party, with all his friends on Saturday but we wanted him to know how important he is to our family.

  

So we came home from church and put a cake in the oven and then let him pick the color of the frosting and the decorations he wanted on it.  We shared the cake and the ice cream together as we laughed and played. 

We also gave him our gift to him; a camera.  He is quite the little photographer.  He loves taking pictures and is learning to play with the zoom.  He has quite a good eye for photography and for only being four, seems to understand focus, centering and light.  Here is a photo he took of his Dad and I.  Pretty good for a little guy, don’t you think??

As we head out on vacation this week, he will take his camera with him and as we review the photos each night, I will post more of what he see’s through his eyes.  I am so excited that he is growing up and showing interest.  I hope he continues to find joy in the gifts and talents his Heavenly Father has given him and works to increase his abilities and skill.  I love my “little man” and am excited to watch him continue to grow into his own this year.

A Visit to the Temple

 

 

Kenneth and I went to the temple last night.  It has been a while since we were both there together and it was wonderful to sit with him in the house of the Lord and enjoy the outpouring of love from our Heavenly Father through his Spirit. 

As I sat and read from the Book of Mormon and pondered the words of Alma, I was reminded that it takes very little to receive the blessings of God.  I was reading in Chapter 33 about what little effort was required of the Children of Israel to receive healing.  They simply had to look.

It is the same with us.  No matter what kind of healing we are looking for, all we need to do is turn to the Savior and look to his atonement and we will receive the love and healing power he has to offer us.  Whether it be physical, spiritual, sin, emotional, … He knows and understands all things and can make all our burdens light if we will allow him to share the load.

I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to attend the temple and feel the love of my Father in Heaven.  It fills my heart with great joy to know that there is a place I can go to leave the cares of this life and learn and grow closer to the things of eternity. 

Kenny’s Last Day of School

OK – so it has taken me a bit to get back to this.  I posted Kale’s last day pictures a few weeks ago.  Kenny and his Dad decided to cut Kenny’s hair the day before and, without Mom’s knowledge, cut it with a Mohawk.  I decided to let him keep the Mohawk with the understanding that as long as we didn’t see a change in his behavior, he could keep the haircut.  But  if he began behaving as he “stereotypically” believed those with this haircut should behave, we would cut it off.   He did great!! We actually let it grow for several weeks before he requested we cut it off.  I was very proud of him.

He was quite the hit at school too!  The girls thought he was cute and the boys thought he looked tough.  And even his teacher liked it.

He wanted to give Mrs. Lagesse a thank you gift but wasn’t sure what to give he.  We went looking and he found some nice purple flowers and then we found a blue pot.  Blue is her favorite color and Purple is one of Kenny’s favorite colors.  He thought it was cool that he could give her something that was a little part of him.

Kenny had a roller coaster of a year in first grade.  He learned a lot, made a ton of new friends and had a lot of fun.  He also got in a lot of trouble and learned a great deal about making choices and the consequences that follow our choices.  He also began to learn the importance of making good choices with his friends.

Kenny hung out with several fifth graders this year and they helped & encouraged him to make some of those “not-so-great” choices.  We talked about peer pressure and being courageous in standing up for what we believe is right.  We also talked about being good examples and helping those who make bad choices see and want to make good choices.

I think Kenny really grew this year and although it was really tough at times, I wouldn’t change any of his experiences as they have helped him learn some really important lessons.  I believe the younger we learn to make good choices the better we are at making good choices when the choices get really hard to make.

Surfing in the Gutter

Last Saturday, someone up the street was running the water and the gutter was fuller then is ever gets. The boys were hot and wanted to cool off, so I told them to ge play in the gutter. They were so suprised that I would give them permission to do such a thing that they just sat and starred at me for a moment. When they realized that I was serious, off they went. At first they just splashed around a bit, not sure how I would react if they got really wet. It didn't take long for them to realize, however, that I didn't really care if they got wet only on their feet, or from head to toe. Soon they were seeing who could make the biggest splashes as they jumped up and down. Then they were kicking water at each other. And finally, they were laying down, rolling around and even riding their skateboard up and down on their bellies, pretending to bodysurf.

4 Generations of Harmon

(From Left to Right: Kenneth Briyan, Kenneth Layne,& Kale Dane Harmon, Don & Hermina Harvey, Carolyn Harmon, Louise Harmon, Kenneth Bruce Harmon, Keith Kenneth Harmon)

While at the baby blessing for Jack, Danette and Ryan's son, we were able to get a picture of several generations. This was a great opportunity for the great-grandchildren to interact with their great grandparents. It was also a chance for a family to be brought together in celebration of their growing posterity. We are blessed to have this many generations on the Harmon side. The Ericson side only has one great-grandmother left and not much time is spent with her as she is not very willing. I hope that the boys take every opportunity to come to know and love their grandparents and great-grandparents while they are blessed to have them in their lives. I also hope that they will remember the times they shared with them so that when they are gone, returned back to Heavenly Father, they will have memories to help them REMEMBER.