My Christmas Gifts arrived last night

And I am soooooooo excited. Kenneth got me a Cello and a Violin for Christmas and they arrived ... finally. The Cello is black and the violin is pink. Yes, pink. I am 35 and if I want a pink violin, I can have one. It has been 20 years since I played, and I am excited to get reacquainted. I am also looking forward to teaching myself to play the Cello. I have wanted to play the cello since I was little and now I am getting the chance.

We have a couple of young people in our ward that play and they have offered to help me learn. I need to take the cello into a music store and have them put the bridge on and string and tune it and then I should be able to get playing. I am also looking forward to torturing my family with screeching as I did when I was young....

I will keep you all posted and maybe if your lucky I will post a practice session sometime soon. Keep your fingers crossed and make sure you invest in a good pair of earplugs.

Our Family Photo Shoot at Olan Mills

On Monday, December 20, 2010. our family went to Olan Mills to have our family pictures taken. It has been 3 years since we have had them done professionally and I got quite a good deal on the package, plus, I got a CD with all the pictures they took and the copyrights to them so I can print them when and how I want to. Our photographer was fairly new to the industry but she took some great shots,many that showed our "Harmon Personality". Below are some of my favorites:

They turned out great. If you see any that you would like copies of, let me know and we can make arrangements for them to be printed and sent to you. I will be sending the family picture on the black and blue background to everyone once the package we ordered arrives. I hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoyed taking them.

P.S. Kenneth and I still goof off regularly...even at family photo shoots.

A Goal for the New Year

So, looking back at my blog for 2010, I realized that I got off to a great start, but somewhere along the way, pretty much gave up. I have decided that for 2011, I want to blog more regularly and I want to try to make an weekly entry, maybe even two or three if I am organized enough.



I want to be able to keep our friends and family appriased of what we are doing as we are not together as we don't live close to each other. I want to share our joys and sorrows, accomplishments and failures, the good, the bad, and the ugly with all of you. I also want you to get the opportunity to get to know your grandkids, cousins, nephews...(whatever the kids might be to you) and stay acquainted with them as they grow.



As we have officially become foster parents, with the license and all, I want those of you who are not with us to still know the wonderful children that will be part of our family for a time. I want you to know them as we will know them. I want to share with all of you our love for them.



This is one of my "New Year's Resolutions" and I hope that all of you will help me with this. Your comments are appreciated and I love to know that someone is reading the blog besides me. We want to wish all of you a very Happy New Year and let each of you know that we love you and pray for you regularly. We send you our best wishes for success, happiness and laughter in the coming year. May 2011 be a journey your enjoy taking.



Love ~



The Harmons!!

The American Flag

I came home from work yesterday to find that Kenneth had put our American flag on the front of the house. It was so great to see and it reminded me how much I love this country. When we were cub scout leaders for the wolves, one of the things we spent a lot of time teaching and talking about was our country and the symbols that remind us of the freedom we enjoy.

I usually put a flag up before memorial day and it stays up through labor day. It is a wonderful reminder of those that gave/give of their lives so that we as citizens of this great nation can enjoy the freedoms that we do.

I made this scrapbook page about my trip to DC and the cemetery and it truly expresses the feelings that I have about the sacrifices of the men and women of our military and their families that shared them with us.

The next page is our trip to the 4th of July Summerlin Parade of 2009. We will be going again this year too!! It is fun to go to the parades and see the floats, old cars, motorcycle gangs, and watch the boys chase after candy and other "thrown objects".

The HARMON FAMILY would like to wish all of you a safe and happy 4th of July and may we all take a moment to remember the great blessings we enjoy living here in the United States and thank those we see that are veterans or active military.

Bountiful Baskets

While Kenneth and I were without work, we had to really look for ways to save money and not spend what we didn't have. We came across a really neat opportunity to save money on fresh produce and baked goods and even though we are now both working, we are still participating.

It is a food co-op called Bountiful Baskets. Each week, you can sign up online to participate and for $16.50, you receive a laundry basket full of fresh fruits and vegetables. Each week, you can also add fresh baked goods, like 9-grain bread (yummy, yummy!!), fresh-made tortillas, cakes and crackers, breakfast bars and tropical granola. The prices are all very reasonable.

Each week, in the baskets, there are usually 5-6 fruits and 5-6 vegetables. We have had all kinds of neat things and are even learning to eat fruits and vegetables we never would have bought on our own and because of this, we are eating new and different foods so that we don't waste the food.

We have enjoyed apples, bananas, oranges, strawberries, kumquat, coconut, blueberries, blackberries, lemons, limes, nectarines, plums, peaches, pineapple, watermelon, cantaloupe, honey dew melons, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, bok choy, sweet potatoes. brown and red potatoes, corn, broccoli, onions (green, white, yellow, and red), celery, chard, spinach, green and red peppers, and the list goes on and on. We love the 9-grain bread and the tortillas remind me of the ones I ate daily on my mission. The crackers are really quite interesting but taste pretty good with melted cheese over them.

After participating for a few weeks, one of my girlfriends, Haley, and I decided to start a sight of our own. We co-coordinate the receipt and distribution of the fruits and vegetables and for doing it, we get a free basket on our week. It is a pretty cool thing that happens.

A truck drops off the produce at 6:30am each Saturday morning at a local park near our home. We distribute the produce into baskets (thus the name, Bountiful Baskets) and then wait for those who participated to pick up their offerings at 7:30am. We have a bunch of people who arrive early each week to volunteer of their time to help us get the baskets prepared. I am amazed each week at the willingness of the volunteers to show up early and stay until the last basket is picked up, the last basket and box are loaded and all are headed home for another week.

I love the produce and the quality of the fruits and vegetables. Most will last several weeks in my fridge before going bad and that gives me plenty of time to eat it all without have to throw it out because it has gotten moldy or gone bad. The produce seems to be fresher then what we usually get from the store and my grocery bill has decreased by $50 - 60 each week. What a find and one that I am glad we found when we did.

SO I have a few minutes...

Life is so crazy & never slows down, not even for a minute. The boys have been out of school for the summer now for 3 weeks and although they are loving it, the routine (what little one we had) went right out the window with the books, homework and classrooms. I don't think my boys have bathed in a week and they have forgotten how to do chores.

But, they are happy and I am glad for that. They are attending a community school this summer and love it. They are with a BUNCH of their friends and all they do all day long is play. Every Monday, Kenny gets to go swimming at the municipal pool and he loves that he gets to ride a school bus. Kale has cooking class every day and is learning to play tennis (or at least is claiming to). They come home really tired and that's OK with me too!

About 3 months ago, we met with and applied to become foster parents with an agency in town called Olive Crest. They are a christian based agency and of all the ones we have been looking at over the last 2 -3 years, they seemed the best fit for our family. However, they only accept about 50 new families a year and their process is much more rigorous then the County's process. We were accepted into the agency about 2 months ago and are about 1/2 way through the training and paperwork phase.

We hope to be licensed sometime this fall and have children (2-4) in our home by the first of 2011. We are really excited and feel great about all that is going on. This has added to the chaos though, as we are in training 2 - 3 nights a week and 1-2 Saturdays a month. We are also making all the necessary adjustments and upgrades to the house that are required. That alone is a full-time job.

But - WE ARE LOVING LIFE AND WE ARE HAPPY. Kenneth is finally working again and although the first few weeks have been a bit nuts with swing shifts, graveyard shifts, unpredictable schedules, and some up and down in the hours, it looks like he has proven himself useful and will be working 34-40 hours every week going forward. This makes him very happy and if he is happy, I am happy and if I am happy, the rest of the family is happy!

We have truly been blessed these last 9 months. Although our financial struggles have been the cause of many sleepless nights and some tears and a great amount of worry; we have made it through and come out on the other end stronger, smarter and happier. I have gained a very strong testimony that the Lord does know us and he gives us what we need. Much of what he has given us has not been what we thought we needed, but looking back, we have grown closer as spouses and family, friends have come into our lives that wouldn't have otherwise and we have learned to serve and be served. Waiting on the Lord is never easy, but he always comes through.

I don't know if anyone else would agree with me, but my faith has been strengthened and I don't worry as much anymore. I have learned to do what I am asked and have patience and faith and I have seen it all work out.

Off to Bountiful Baskets (a story for another day). Remember to Live for yourself and others, Love like it was your last day on earth, and Laugh more then you Cry!!

I know...It's been a while

So much has happened and time has gone way too fast. I have been working now for about 2 months and I am finally beginning to get the hang of things. I think I have identified most of the personnel issues and now we just need to work at finding solutions that create harmony rather then discord. I am also beginning to identify the inefficiencies of the company and put into place policies and procedures to help eliminate them.

The boys are about 2/3rd's of the way through school and are enjoying their spring break. They love school and are both doing great. Kale has graduated from his speech class and is now talking like a "normal" 4 year old. He is so excited that he will get to go to "the big school" next year. Kenny is really excelling and doing great in reading, writing and spelling. He still struggles a bit with his math, but we are working on it with him and he is seeing consistent progress.

Kenneth is still not working, but is finding things to do to stay busy. He is helping people complete "to do" projects, working on prepping the house for foster kids and continuing to rebuild his motorcycle. He is making a little money here and there, working on the side and has started looking for other ways to make a living, as the construction industry is just not coming back as quickly as we need it to.

We are going through the process to become certified in Las Vegas to be foster parents. We are kicking around many options and are thinking about taking in siblings (3 or more) and seeing how that goes. We may also take children that have "challenges". Most are mental or emotional challenges and the agency that we are working with provides support, training and assistance as needed.

There are many changes going on in our lives right now and things seem to change from day to day. I am striving to stay positive (and failing miserably right now) but trying none the less to show my trust and faith in my Heavenly Father and work so that I can be ready when he directs. This is all in his hands now and we are crossing our fingers, praying fervently and hoping with all our hearts that whatever happens, happens so that we recognize the Lord's hand in our lives.

I know the Lord loves our little family and has great things in store for us. I also know that it must happen on his timeline and that no amount of begging, pleading, or asking will change that timeline. I keep praying that whatever it might be, that we can survive until them and find joy in the journey.