Happy Halloween

I know this is a week late, but hey we've been crazy! Our ward had a trunk or treat Fall Festival last weekend and so the girls got all dressed up in their Pirate costumes and became......

"Daddy's Pirate Wenches"

There was food, games, activities, and of course trunk or treating. We had a good time visiting with friends and letting the children have fun. The weather even cooperative, no rain, but it was chilly.

Are We Ever Moving? Part 2

And the answer is......YES! We finally got our orders this morning!!! We have our plane reservations now too. We leave Venice, Italy on the 15th of December. We get to be home for Christmas!!! Yeah!!!

Are We Ever Moving?

Are we ever moving? That is question I keep asking myself every day for the past month. You see our moving hinges on orders from someone sitting at a desk at Randolph AFB, TX. Do they care that our visas expire in about 60 days? Apparently not. Do they care that we have a child in school that needs to have records copied so that we can transfer to a new school? Of course not. Do they care that I have to carefully plan for a major move that requires 14 hours on an airplane? Absolutely not!!! We are all going insane trying to make plans for the holidays and we don't even know where we will be. Dave has been letting and bugging people about needing orders to make these arrangements for at least 6 months. UGH!!! So frustrated!!!

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I finally went back to the doctor for a follow up for the RA that I was diagnosed with a year ago. The new doctor ordered new tests and a series of x-rays because he was not happy with the results of the last. Last week we got all the results from 4 sets of x-rays, both hands and both knees, and about 9 vials of blood. I do not have RA, I actually have Chronic Fibromyalgia Syndrome or FMS. I have done a little bit of reading on the subject and realize that many of the health issues I have had over the past 20 years can be attributed to FMS. I have thanked my Heavenly Father several times a day since last Thursday for the thoroughness of the doctor. I can now take the things I learn about this ailment and get my life back. I do NOT want to be a slave to the pain I experience constantly. Fibromyalgia can be explained as constant pain at varying degrees in varying places at varying times throughtout the day. Fibromyalgia affects everything in the body, from the top of the head to the bottoms of the feet, from the inside of your vital organs to the outside of the skin. Fibromyalgia zaps your energy within minutes of waking, that's IF you are able to sleep.

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Earlier this month we enjoyed a wonderful trip to Bern, Switzerland, to visit the LDS temple before returning to the states. We were looking at our pictures and realized that we didn't get any pictures of the temple!!! We got pictures of our drive up and back! We enjoyed a quiet, unhurried six days of family and new friends. Here are a few pictures of our journey up and back. Hope you enjoy.

These pictures were taken on the border of Italy and Switzerland, in Como.

Our beautiful daughters in the Swiss Alps!!

The leaves on the trees in the Swiss Alps are starting to change colors the first full week of October. I love the many waterfalls that we could see around every turn it seemed.

September

We took a drive one evening in mid September and ended up at this really awesome, cool little park in Polcenigo. There is a restraunt, an outdoor cafe, walking path, and the BLUEST pond I have ever seen in my entire life with fish that had to be at least two feet long and ducks and geese every where. It was beautiful!!! Enjoy these pictures.

September Day-Trips

I know this is kinda outta the blue or late....whatever you want to call it, but I found my camera and uploaded all 121 pictures that have been taken over the past six weeks or so. I realize I haven't really posted anything on our blog lately so now that I have pictures I'll post and try to get all of you caught up on our family. I hope ya'll enjoy.

Here is Kaitlyn on the beach at Caorle. It's one of the resort beaches on the Adriatic.

We have been to Bibione a couple of times, but always during the off-season. This time we decided that since this was going to probably be one of our last chances to go during the tourist season we would go to one of the beaches we hadn't been to. Wow, what a difference!!!

The sun was out, the tourists were sunbathing, little children running around naked (that's how they roll in Italia), the water was nice. The tourists ride around on these crazy motorized two-seater bicycles. Pretty Cool!!

I was surprised how organized the beaches were, I know that sounds weird huh? Any way, each hotel has a designated area and specific chairs or color of chairs that they use. Very strange for us who don't do beaches.

We saw jellyfish again.

There was actually a church on the beach. I don't understand why because out of respect you need to be DRESSED in order to go in. But hey whatever works.

And here are all three of our beautiful girls!!

Here We Go Again

Yup, it's the beginning of a new school year and we are back to a 'normal' routine. The night before the first day of school the girls receive a father's Priesthood Blessing, a tradition that was started when I was a child. Each child sits in the chair, in our family it happens to be the computer chair, and at the hands of their Daddy receives that special council from their Heavenly Father. The council is always unique to each child and is something that they need to hear. This year was no different, Kaitlyn received her blessing and was counciled to choose her friends wisely and to choose the right so that the Holy Ghost will always be with her so that she will make the right choices. When she was done, Aimee said that she missed getting those Father's Blessings each year, so Aimee recieved a blessing also, then Wendy said she would like one. So this year was a little bit melancholy for me as I realized that I only have one child in school now.

We are happy to say that after a LONG night of worrying and fretting about our first day of school, Kaitlyn did great. She made a few friends and is going to love the fourth grade!!

I know that Aimee and Wendy have put their lives on hold the past year or so waiting for us to return to the US and that once we do return they will be flapping their wings and going out on their own. For me that is exciting and a little bit scary. Did we teach them everything we were suppose to? Did they listen when we taught them? I sure hope they did.

In other news, we have added another family member to our home. A parakeet named Leo. Had you scared there for a minute didn't I? ;0)

Book Review....

I just finished a really cool book, "Bitten & Smitten" by Michelle Rowen. It was a funny read. For some reason I have been in a Vampire mood, it seems that at least one of the books I am reading is about Vampires. It must be part of the 'Twilight' craze, but I like my books a little bit more on the mature side.

The synopsis:

'Dear Mom,

'I might be a wee bit late for Cousin Missy's wedding. It's bee a tough week. Turns out, my blind date from hell was literally from hell. Guy bit me. Next thing I know, I'm being chased all over the city by vampire hunters. And did I mention that I got fired, too?

'Bright side--I met a man. Thierry de Bennicoeur. How great is that name? Anyway, he's sexy, six hundred years old, and a tad suicidal, but no one's perfect, right? And we have a deal--he's gonna show me the ropes of the vampire world, and I'm supposed to help him end his existence. Or maybe I'll just try to convince him life is worth living--no small challenge with the mostly immortal, let me tell you. I'll admit it's a complicated relationship. But with any luck, I just might have a date for that wedding after all.

' Hugs and kisses,

'Sarah'

Sounds funny right? Here's a little more:

'As soon as the blood touched my tongue, the pain vanished...It was like fine champagne; strawberries and cream; Kahlua chocolate sauce on French vanilla ice cream; ambrosia--food of the gods. Pick one.

'Thierry's arm was tense for a moment, but he slowly relaxed. I looked up at him. His eyes were dark, and he wore an unfathomable expression on his face.

'"Enough, Sarah," he said, and his voice was ragged. He squeezed my arm and roughly brought me up to my feet.

'I thought he was going to push me away and leave the room, but instead he grabbed my shoulders to pull me against him and crushed his lips against mine, drinking me in as I'd just done to him. I wrapped my arms around his waist and kissed him back, deeply, so deeply that I thought I might drown...

'Okay, maybe being a vampire wasn't so bad after all.'

This is a series of books and suprisingly they are pretty clean as far as language and sexual content. A great summer read and funny!!!