It Begins Again

Happy, sad, excited, scared, lonely, anxious.....the feelings are all here once again.  Boyd got his mission call yesterday and I am so proud of him.  I will worry and miss him like I do with Cortnie, but with faith all will be well and things will be okay. 

It has been another rollercoaster ride.  Boyd decided it was finally time to apply for his call about a month ago.  He met with the bishop and was found worthy to be a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  Bishop released his paperwork and we began to get it all ready.  He had his wisdom teeth pulled last summer and met with the doctor and got clearance from them both. It took him only one day to complete the paperwork then was back at the bishop's door.  He was so excited when he walked out and released that this was getting real.  President Miller was the next step.  I took him to Kingman for the appointment and he was really quiet.  I talked to him about his feelings and he was pretty nervous.  I was worried that he was not ready and did not really want to do this.  However, the smile on his face upon exiting President Miller's office was larger than life.  I knew then that he was prepared and finally exited.  He was relieved to have the interviews over. 

President Miller told us it would take about ten days for the call to come. I was not sure whether to believe that or not as that is what Cortnie was told too and she had to wait another week.  We figured if it came it would come on Wednesday or Thursday.  The mailbox was empty on Wednesday.  We kept teasing him though about it coming when it really had not.  He is such a fun person to tease.  Anyway, Thursday he was the first one home.  I really wanted to be here when he opened the mailbox, but he was alone.  I texted him from work and asked him if the call had come...and he said "maybe".  I knew that it had.  I hurried home (as everyone else was already there by this time).  I asked him where it was when I got home and he said he had hid it.  Funny kid.  It took us about an hour to get everyone on the computers or phone and then we were ready.

Boyd was still playing around.  He asked us all if we were ready and I asked him if he was. He started to get up and said "no, let's wait one more day" then laughed and sat back down.  He was a little bit nervous but soon the envelope was opened.  Brittnie was standing to the side of him and slowly inched her way over to where she could read the letter. She saw before he did where he was going and covered her mouth.  He began to read:  "Dear Elder Beatty, You are hereby called to serve as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the Virginia, Richmond Mission."  I could sense a tiny bit of disappoint as I knew that he really wanted to go foreign...but it was okay.  He continued to read...." You will report to the Missionary Training Center is Mexico" - we all started to scream and laugh and he threw back his head. We knew what that meant - he was going to be speaking Spanish.  He was so hoping to not have to learn Spanish either.  He kept reading to find out that he will enter the MTC on July 30th. Since he goes to Mexico, that means that we put him on the plane in Las Vegas to travel by himself to a foreign country where he will be all alone - well kind of. 

As we spend the rest of the night calling everyone and posting it on facebook, he became more and more excited. I think our Sister Missionaries were more excited than anyone - especially Sister Toyn. She just left that MTC about three weeks ago. She is so excited for him and was telling him all about it tonight and what to expect and who to see.  Another tender mercy that Heavenly Father gave to me by sending them here. They will help train him  - he will go out with them and they will speak Spanish to them.  Boyd said last night that he knows now this is where he is supposed to go.  He will probably freeze his little tail off but he is excited. 

He will be  great missionary.  I have known that for a long time, but it is still not easy.  I am just going to get one home (61 days to be precise) and then the other will leave. Boyd still seems so young to me and has never left home for more than a week.  He is such a big teddy bear and really watches out and takes care of me.  I will so miss his big bear hugs and his kisses.  He is the most loving boy a mother could ask for.  Once again, my faith is being tested and the tears are starting to roll, but I am trying not to show that side to him.  The time will come for that all too soon.  I just pray that my Heavenly Father will keep him safe in his arms and watch over him.  Two years will be a very long time.  I am proud of you son. 

Fun Pictures

Not sure who they all are...but thought you might enjoy some pictures.  Also, check out the song on facebook under my name. 

Beautiful Day!

It is such a beautiful day!  The sun in shining, it is a little bit overcast, I am enjoying a wonderful weekend with my three children who are home and my husband and I love very minute of it.  We got to go to a temple dedication today to see the dedication of the Gilbert Arizona temple and the spirit there was so strong.  I could not keep the tears from rolling down my cheeks. I wish that I could bottle up that spiritual feeling and open the lid to pull a little bit out when I am feeling down and not quite so happy.  It is so uplifting to go to church each week, but to see a prophet of God and listen to his words was incredible.  I wish I could hug him just like a couple of the little kids did today.  It was so awesome!

I love weekends like this one. We all worked in the yard yesterday and no one even complained about it.  We have lots of yard work to get done to make it look better at there and I can not do it alone. I am so grateful when my children will pitch in and throw or rake manure or take out the trimmings.  It is just so fun to work together.  There is nothing that I enjoy more than spending time with my family.  Spring Break is coming up and I want to do something even though we do not have very much money.  I want to just get away and spend some time with them - but still reserve my Tuesday morning to talk with Cortnie.  That is another high light of my week.  I really could not be happier right now and am so grateful that I am allowed to be.

I have two new "daughters" that I have adopted even though they may not know it.  We got sister missionaries about ten days ago to replace our elders and they are straight from heaven.  I have so much love for them and want to take care of them all the time.  Maybe it is because they make me feel so much closer to my daughter.  I am not sure but I just want to make sure they are happy and love having them in my home.  They make us laugh and smile and give me big hugs - hugs I miss from my own daughter. They take Brittnie out on lessons with them and she will even go.  My whole family just loves them to pieces.  They make us laugh and bring such a spirit with them.  Yesterday they showed up to help us do yard work too. It was starting to rain slightly when they got here, but they did not care. They pushed the lawnmower and trimmed the train all while the rain was drizzling down. It was so awesome to look at the rain coming down and their smiling faces as they continued to work. They want to come back tomorrow and help us some more - on the day off!  I just want them to feel loved and hope that they do.

Cortnie is doing well. Can you believe that there are only 73 days left until she comes home!  It does not seem possible but yet I am so excited. I  want her to finish strong and keep telling her that.  It is hard to believe how fast it has gone by.  She is such a trooper and has the best companion. They work so well together and it is fun to hear their stories.  We each have a countdown going that allows off to mark off one more day each morning.  Rob and I are going to go back to pick her up. I really wanted all the kids to go too, but it is the last week of school and Boyd can not miss finals. He graduates the week after. We are going to Disneyland a couple of weeks after we get home though so that will be awesome too.  Exciting and busy times lie ahead for our family over the next couple of months.

One more piece of excitement, Boyd has turned in his mission papers. They actually were electronically sent in this morning and should be back within about ten days.  I can  not believe it will be that soon and I hope for his sake it will not take three weeks like Cortnie's did.  I can not believe I will be sending another one off this summer.  I am so excited but yet so sad.  I worry about where he will go but know it will be where the Lord wants him. Rob and I have told him we would like him to go to Fiji, New Zealand....anywhere exotic so we can come a couple weeks early and pick him up.  I just want him to be happy and ready to serve.

My life is wonderful.!  I am busy and sometimes wonder how I can do it all.  My sisters are sometimes very needy but I am fortunate enough to have a good presidency and we work well together.  I just want everyone to feel the spirit like I did this morning.....to know that the temple allows us to be together forever!!  What a blessing that is

Quick Update....Life is Good

So, a new year has started and we are off to a great start. We had a wonderful break over Christmas and got to see lots of family members. It was so awesome to share some time with them and with each other.  I love being with any type of family at any time. We try to be there whenever we can.  It was such a nice break too....our nephew left for his mission, our niece went to Germany to be a nanny and everyone was happy. We spent lots of time just talking and laughing. I love to watch my son and his two cousins hug and slap backs as they said good-bye - not knowing if they will see each other again before their missions.  It was a wonderful site.

Boyd has begun meeting with the bishop to start his paperwork. He has finally come to the conclusion that it is time and he is excited about it.  It still does not seem possible to me but we have another one getting ready to leave the nest.  We are trying to plan vacations and summer outings, but it is hard not knowing when he will leave.  I can hardly wait to send in the final paperwork and get that answer back.  It is so exciting!

We also got a letter this past week from Cortnie's mission president ......letting us know her release date and info about her coming home.  It does not seem possible that we are even talking about that kind of stuff but we are. She will be home on May 14th!!  Rob and I are going to go out and pick her up and bring her home. We wanted to take the whole family but it is the last week of school which means finals and concerts so we decided to just go by ourselves. That way we will have more money for our Disneyland trip that we have planned before Boyd goes.  I can not believe she will be home in less than four months......I just hope it goes by quickly.

Life is good....I am happy.  Work is stressful right now and I am working way too many hours, but I am plugging along. It is all great and I love being home with my family. I am so grateful for my awesome work schedule that lets be home when they are. I am able to have time off when I need it and I get to be in charge of some things.  It is good....I am so blessed. I just pray that it will continue to go that way and we can count our blessings everyday.  I love being happy!!

Waiting........and waiting

Can you believe it is Christmas Day again already?  It does not even seem possible that the presents are all opened and the house mostly cleaned up.  Christmas came and went so quickly this year - except for one part.  I am patiently waiting for Cortnie to call.  I will say that I am very anxious as I keep wandering around the house. I am trying to pack up some things for our trip, but don't want to go too far away from the computer.  What if I miss the Skype call?  I will not miss her again this Christmas.  She told us she would call about an hour ago but nothing yet.  Everyone keeps checking the computer to see if she is on so I know that it is not just me.  I can hardly wait - but at the same time, I am sad.  I have not seen her pretty face since Mother's Day and my heart is at peace.  I am worried that seeing her will open up the wound again and make it hard to move forward.  Her mission president even said he does not like Christmas cause all the missionaries get "trunky" after their phone calls and have a hard time getting back into the work.  I ....WAIT, there she is!

Wow, she looks so good!  She was so happy and laughed and yes, she cried.  It was so wonderful to see her face and actually see her as a real person instead of just someone in my mind.  She said that she missed our hugs - if she only knew how much I miss those too.  I don't think I will stop hugging her when it comes time to pick her up.  She told us all about her Christmas - the sleepover at the trail center, the opening of gifts, the candy that we sent and she did not get much of, the breakfast casserole, the telling of traditions and other sisters wondering why she does all of that.  I just wanted to soak it all in and not forget about it.  We opened our presents while she was online and it was wonderful.  Boyd got an Elder Beatty apron, Britt got Cortnies' missionary ring, Skyler got a shirt, dad got a DVD and I got the most beautiful Christmas hymn book.  And then there were the letters that she wrote to each one of us.  We read those when she was gone and I cried some more.  That hour went by way to fast.  As it got to be close to the time for her to leave, the tears started to fall down her face.  That started my waterfall too.  She did not want to hang up and said she could not do it. We blew kisses and told her Ohana and then she was gone.  I found comfort in Rob's arms but it still hurts so bad.  I MISS HER!  I pray that the next five months go by just as fast so soon I can have her in my arms again....until she falls asleep.  Please, keep her safe Heavenly Father - she is my baby girl.

Now to snap out of this for the rest of my children. We need to have a fun day. I need to quickly pack for our trip to Utah and then it is games and movies.  We all had a wonderful morning. I woke up to my children laughing as they were pushing each other off the beds and waiting to wake us up. They even gave us an extra half an hour this year.  They all got what they wanted - well, except for Brittnie cause she never tells you what she wants so you just get her whatever.  I love watching them get excited and happy.  I love Christmas. 

I am so thankful for our Heavenly Father's son and His love.  Without him, we would not have today.  I pray that we can enjoy the next week and our families.  Merry Christmas!

We Made It.....so far

Wow, if you look at the last time I wrote you can tell I have been one busy little girl.  In fact, I hardly have time to breathe it seems like.  I work all day then come home to work all night - whether it be church or family.  My entire Sundays are spent doing church stuff but service is always a good thing.  I just feel like I am letting my family down and they need to be first.  This month is really bad as I have the needy families to buy for, the ward Christmas party, activities at work and my family.  There is only three weeks until Christmas and I am so not ready. Usually by now, I am done.

However, I needed to stop for a moment tonight and express my thanks for all that I have.  One year ago today I left my baby girl as she walked up the sidewalk of the MTC to begin her service to our Heavenly Father.  That was one of the hardest days of my entire life.  I cried so hard that night and today have shed a tear of two. I  still miss her like crazy but my heart is at peace.  I know that she is happy and she is taken care of.  I know that she loves her mission and her only desire is to become more like Christ and bring others to him.  A year ago, I was not sure she would make it.  She was so homesick and lonely. It was so hard to try to encourage her every week when inside I was so torn apart. I wanted to just tell her to come home but I knew that I could not do that.  Now, I want her to stay and be the best missionary she can be.  Don't get me wrong, I am counting the months until she comes home but I do not want either of us to dwell on that.  I am so proud of her. She finally had her first baptism a couple of weeks ago and to see the glow in her face was so worth it.  I want more of that for her.  We are being blessed greatly here as she serves.  Our money woes seem to be disappearing. WE still have no air conditioner or heater, but the medical bills are all wiped clean. We went from having to pay almost $1200 down to $72.  I can not explain it other than that my Heavenly Father is answering my prayers.  I just pray that He will continue too. 

I remember so well holding Cortnie in my arms as she cried that last night we were together.  I tried to be so strong for her, but the tears silently rolled down my cheeks too.  I held her so tight and did not want to let go. The next morning the house was so quiet as we all got ready to go knowing what lie ahead of us.  It was oh so hard and my heart still aches...it will until I get to hold her in my arms again.  She is a trainer again and is even learning some Portuguese. She is so happy and even her migraines have gone away.  Miracles and blessings.....

This past week was Thanksgiving and we had my family here - Tina's family and my parents.  My parents have not been here for a few years. It was so awesome.  My tiny house was crowded but we had a great time.  I love playing host and cooking for everyone. I loved running a 5K with my father and Tina.   I love shopping with my sister.  I love my little Taysha to come running into my arms and give me the biggest squeeze. She truly knows her favorite aunt.  I just loved it all.  I have so much to be thankful for that I could not even begin to put it on paper.  I know where it all comes from and I try to thank Him everyday.  Hopefully we will continue to smooth sail along and blessings will continue to come.

We found out Brittnie is doing okay. We switched her doctor and he does not want to do any meds or anything right now.  He just wants to watch it and see if it changes in four months.  After going through many tests we do know she has thyroid nodules but they seem to be okay. They are not growing and her activity level seems to be calming down.  I pray that it will continue that way.  The boys are growing like weeds. Skyler does nothing but sit in front of a computer.  I tell myself every night that I am going to play with him or read with him and then something comes up.  I have to change or he will never have a life. Boyd is able to start his mission papers now but is very hesitate.  I am not sure if he does not feel worthy or if he is just scared. He told me he does not want to leave all of us but that he wants to go.  I pray every night that he will have the courage needed and take that giant leap of faith. 

Life is good. I have a great husband and wonderful kids. I still feel bad we cancelled our 25th anniversary trip  - we will never have another 25th anniversary.  We just felt like we would need the money for medical bills. Little did we know.  I just hope he knows how much I love him and treasure him in my life.  I am not complete without him.  This is the best time of the year - from being thankful to giving service.  How I love the holidays - and my countdown is begun too cause in 19 days I get to talk to my daughter!!