Exciting Changes

Changes...good or bad they will always come and we need to be ready for them.  Other times I wish we could change things even faster and make it a perfect world.  I have so many dreams and hopes that I really wish I could make happen every day, but I have to hold on to those dreams and have faith that one day dreams will come true.  Life is good though.  We are healthy, happy and have many extras in life.  I wonder why we are not farther ahead in life and I truly worry if we will ever be able to afford another home, but those dreams will come true one day as well.   I will have my dream home with a large kitchen and bedrooms to spare with places for people to come visit and want to stay.  I will have a place where grand kids can run and be wild while jumping on grandpa.  I will have a place where my kids will always want to bring their families....but no matter what, I will have a place where the Spirit of Christ will dwell and it will be my little bit of heaven on earth.  Dreams....they are the source of my reality right now.  I have so many hopes and dreams coming up that they seem to constantly invade my mind - sometimes in the wee hours of the morning sleep is taken from me as I ponder how I can make them all come true.  They all involve my family and them being happy.  They involve being together with lots of laughs and hugs and smiles.  Families are forever and I am so grateful for the one I have - my children, my husband, my parents, my siblings, my in-laws  I am thankful for it all. 

This past few months as brought more changes which have brought challenges yet happiness to our family.  I am so proud of each of my children and hope they know that. I love them beyond measure.  Skyler had a rough year at school as he choose to not be the  straight A smart student this year. We had many a fights about his homework and his grades.  He is way too smart to have C's in his classes, but that is the path he choose.  He did tell me at the end of the year that he made a huge mistake and it should not have been that way. I just pray that he has learned from it and will try harder next year.  He can get so many scholarships and opportunities if he will put forth a little bit of effort. We seem to be somewhat closer as we do not argue as much anymore. His testimony is still wavering but seems to be getting stronger. He told me has has challenged himself to read the Book of Mormon before school starts - I pray that he will. EFY is so worth it to me to spend lots of money to send them too.  Hopefully it helped him. He has started saying he is going on a mission next year so hopefully that will stay the same as well. He is my last one at home and I want to enjoy this last year with him - but sometimes he does not want to enjoy it with his "mom".  I love him anyway.

Boyd finished his first year of school and had much better grades the second time around.  That first year is always the hardest.  He had fun in some of his classes and also found out the school had him in the wrong program. So, needless to say, he took a bunch of classes that he did not need to take.  I am glad I noticed it before he took a bunch more but now he is on the right path. The sad thing is he could be so much farther ahead.  He had a rough moment though when he was let go of his job for not meeting all the expectations they wanted him to meet with out the proper training.  I think in a way it was a relief for him. He seems so much happier now.  He came home right after that for his birthday and stayed an extra week with us.  As we took him home, he finally had two interviews scheduled for another job.  He was given one of those the next day. It is similar to what he was doing but he says the company is so much better and they have trained him well. His training is now over so we shall see. I pray it will work for him as he also signed a lease to move into an apartment in the Fall and get out of my parents home.  He needs more friends and to be involved so I am happy with his choice. It also means he will need lots more money and this job will do that.  I miss him so bad. The ten days he was here was so special and wonderful.  How I wish he was around more. 

My heart is breaking for Brittnie as it seems that her dreams are so far away. She is trying so hard to do what is right and reaching out to everyone. She is friendly and kind but seems like things never go her way. Her lease is soon up for her apartment but she has had the strongest impression that she is to stay there in the ward she is in. She had a room all lined up with a good friend and then that friend decided she did not want to pay the increased rent so she left - after  Brittnie had signed her contract.  So now she has no choice but to stay but she still feels like that is the path for her.  I pray that it is the right one. She will be one of the oldest in her ward so not many chances for dates. Of course, if she would just ask someone out it would be nice.  She needs to make the first move. Her roommates she has right now are not very nice to her and boss her around a lot. They are gone a lot so she is all alone with is not fun either. Her best friend (Cortnie) moved out about two weeks ago so she now no longer has her sister around. She broke my heart last week when she told me she cried herself to sleep after another bout with her roommates and feeling so alone.  Boyd is doing his best to try to make her feel happy and lately she has done more with her ward so that is nice.  Hopefully she will soon come to find out why she is supposed to stay. She feels stuck and like her dreams never come true - but one day they will. 

Cortnie is the biggest change of all.  Her dream since she was just a little girl was to work at Disneyland and to create costumes.  She wants to make a dress for Miss Piggy. This past year she worked her tail off to finish up school. She was costume manager for three plays at school plus worked full time. There were many days she did not sleep at all. She finally walked across that stage and got her diploma in April and graduated with an extra award and medal - the outstanding costume designer at BYU.  wow...what an accomplishment. That is not the big news though. She started to apply for an internship at the Disney parks back in February. She put her heart into the portfolios she submitted and the essays she wrote.  She was pleased to have an interview with  Disneyland and made it to the final one.  Then one morning she got a surprise call from Disneyworld asking if they could interview her that afternoon.  She of course said yes.  That interview went very well as well with the lady calling back to ask for more pictures of the costumes she has made.  Cortnie told her she would send them after work. Well, not 20 minutes later, she gets a phone call from the Disney recruiter letting her know that she is being offered both internships - a very first in history for the parks. No one had ever been offered two internships on the same day before. The choice was hers as to which one she would take.  My heart pleaded for Disneyland as it was so much closer but i know she would be going to Florida.  That internship was the one she really wanted and would give her the chance to create many more designs.  In the long run that is the one she took.  She finished up her last month at her job, did yet another play as costume manager, and then we were on our way to Florida.  Life was so full of unknowns as we headed there but with faith it would all work out.  She has been blessed with two roommates who are very outgoing and include her in on things.  She has a good student ward; she was given her name badge by Mickey Mouse himself; and she has been to the muppet land already.  Life is so good for her.  She is so happy.  Rob and I had the chance to fly out with her to help her get settled and ready to go. We spent a couple of days just playing in the parks and enjoying time with her.  It was so special.  We were able to help her set up her apartment and be with her when she first entered the doors of the casting shop.  However, leaving her there was not something to be desired.  It was so hard and i felt like my heart would break in two.  Part of my world was going to be so far away. Yes I did it before when she went on a mission, but the best part is I can talk to her everyday. Today we skyped with her and saw her beautiful face.  She is living her dream and hopes to continue it with a job when this one is over.  I want her to be happy but I wish she was closer to home.  However, seeing her loving it is all worth it. 

As for me, I work and take care of my sweet husband and best friend ( of course  Skyler falls into that bracket at well). I cherish small moments we can spend together so much. I love for date nights and for work to be through for the  day just so I can see him again. I dont' know if he realizes he still makes my heart flutter after all of these years.  I so pray that we will have many more together and that we can have many more dreams.  Things are in the works for hidden surprised coming up for our children and for the chance to be with them.  I am so thankful we have jobs that allow us to spoil them and to see them.  How I pray that they will know that I love them and cherish them so much. They are my dream.  From the time I was a little girl, my dream was a wonderful family to take care of. So I guess you can say that I am living my dream after all.