A Fine Trip to Fine Lake, Michigan 2015

Before school started, we had to squeeze in our one last trip.

Mom and Dad bought a little lake house before their mission. And they rented it while they were away.  

This summer they returned and began the renovation.  And I must say, they turned their house into a beautiful little lake cottage.  It is perfect.  Not because it's actually perfect, but because it is charming, and pleasant, and beautiful, and the sweet soft grass runs right along a white picket fence, right to the edge of the shallow, clear water.  And the dock walks  directly out to the boat, which beckons you to go for a ride whenever it tickles your fancy.

And the sunsets.  Oh, the sunsets! I took so many sunset pictures. 

Michigan is where my Dad is from, it's where he grew up, and it's a place I have visited my entire life.  When I was nine, Mom and Dad bought a 240 acre farm about 5 minutes from this lake.  We visited almost every year and saw my Grandmother Edith Abbott and Aunt Kathy and Uncle Chuck. And every time we drove out to the farm, we'd pass this lake and I would pick out which house I wanted to be mine.

The fact that they live there now, seems ironic and expected at the same time.

I absolutely hate having my parents so far away.  Especially after nearly 10 years of them living within five hours.  But after visiting them in their new little house and staring out the huge picture windows onto the lake, a view they have always talked about having, I can't fault them. I can miss them, but I can't fault them.  

Riding the boat and swimming in the lake were our everyday activities.

And wouldn't you know, Finn pulled up for the first time and it wasn't even on dry land.

My brother Ian's family drove over from Chicago and stayed a few days too.

And Finn ate ice cream in his pajamas in the backyard.

And loved it.

And I just kept taking pictures of sunsets.

Michigan has lightening bugs! I've missed them.

We went blueberry picking too.

My parent's house is the little gray one in the middle.

I love it when my mom does the everyday things that she used to do for my kids when we lived so close to each other.  

We wanted to go over to Lake Michigan and the little town of South Haven.  Apparently we picked the day of the Blueberry Festival so it was very  crowded.  But it also meant they had a ton of food trucks and stands set up along the water way.  So we ate lunch and watched the boats before heading to the beach.

South Haven has a light house.  And Max didn't want to be in the picture.

We're big fans of Lake Michigan because it's so big you feel like you're at the ocean, yet there's no salt water and no jelly fish.

It was a cloudy day but it turned out nice because it wasn't too hot.

Meanwhile, we came home so I could take more sunset pictures.

We took the kids on a tour of Abbott Family Sites.

Here is the house my dad grew up in.  This is the house I visited, that my Grandma lived in until I was married.

We saw my dad's old football stadium.

And we stopped by my brother Aaron's grave.  This pictures makes me so happy and I don't know why.

My parent's house is wonderful but it does lack a tub, which means you just use the sink.

Riding the tube was a favorite.  After watching his cousin, Santi, do it, Luke got brave and rode it surfing style.

Finn looks angelic enough but that kid is hard to travel with right now. In fact, he's  kind of hard to live with right now.

I don't want my kids to grow up, but it sure will be nice to take a trip without a terrible two year old.

And this was us on the airport shuttle bus back in Denver.  

Wiped.Out.  But it was a wonderful trip.

Luke's Baptism, August 1, 2015

The danger in not blogging frequently, for me, is that in the absence of necessary brain cells, I lose track of details.  

Luke's baptism was wonderful.  I'm sure it was.  If only I could remember what happened.  Let's see, perhaps if I retrace my steps...

The week started off with Girl's Camp.  I was the Laurel advisor (I have since been been put in cub scouts which is a different blog post entirely.  And at the rate I'm going it will be published next Spring.  Or never.)  But anyways, I went to Girl's Camp.  And had a fun time, didn't get much sleep, and missed the camp experiences of my Texas past.  Camp in Dallas was truly an inspired endeavor, and sometimes you can't appreciate something fully until you don't have it anymore.  The way the Stake operated and involved the girls, from beginning to end, made a difference I won't forget. Still camp was enjoyable.

Okay. So. I went to camp and had a fun time and then late Friday night, after testimony meeting, I returned home at 12:30 am in preparation for Luke's baptism the next morning. While I had been at camp, both my parents and my in laws had arrived in town.

In the morning, I prepared the talk on Baptism, got everyone dressed, and we were on our way.

Luke shared his baptism day with another boy in our ward named Andrew. His mother gave the talk on the Holy Ghost.

When I got up to speak to those boys about baptism, I was impressed to tell them that the Lord had a great work in store for them to do.  I felt the Spirit so strongly as I looked into their faces.  I know they both have wonderful things ahead of them.

The boys and their siblings then sang, I am a Child of God and it was lovely.  Even Finn could participate because that is one of his favorites.  

Following the baptism, we had a few of the boys' favorite treats, brownies (made by Ava the Baker) and root beer floats.

I told Luke he could choose how we spent the rest of the day.  He decided on a hike with the family in El Dorado Canyon, followed by hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill at home.  

It was wonderful to have our parents in town to celebrate with us.  

For months leading up to Luke's baptism we talked about the significance of the promises he would make.  And even moreso, the significance of the promises that the Lord would make in return.  I am so grateful for a Heavenly Father whose plan covers every detail and provides for every mean of getting us back to Him.  And for a Savior whose willingness to complete and sacrifice for that plan, for us, enables us to draw closer to heaven, everyday if we'd like.  And I'm grateful for a son, who at the tender age of 8 years old, recognizes the importance, even if not fully, enough to make this choice to follow Jesus Christ.