little letters

dear sleep
can you just take over don't you know how tired i am and my tired eyes need to go to bed at a decent hour and stay there...dear autumn
i love you with all your colors, flavors and chill...i wish you could last forever

dear frc
i am grateful for you with every crazy situation, person and challenge that you give me...i love you for giving me the chance to grow, learn and change

dear chriser
how sweet you are to me, i will try to be more selfless and kind to you as you have been to me, you teach me so much and loved me even more. thank you
dear travel
you are calling my name please take me somewhere soon

dear YW
oh how i love you...if you only knew how important you are and how much you are loved by so many

dear to do list
could you get any bigger you are overwhelming and keeping me up late at night

and dear life
can you fill me in on the details to come....i like to plan for the future... i am grateful for your blessings, peace and goodness but please let me know what is ahead

Naples Grape Festival

One of our favorite things to do in the fall is take a drive south around the finger lakes. Naples is a tiny town on the edge of lake Canandaigua. it is surrounded with beautiful vineyards, rolling hills and has the best grape juice, grapes pies and really fun little shops including a quilt store.


The leaves are not in full color yet so we will have more color in the next few weeks.



We bought a large bushel of concord grapes, green ones as well as the little red ones. yummy!!





Along the way we always find a few farmers markets full of pumpkins, seasonal veggies and beautiful mums....this one was really cute with the farmer in his overalls and the field of pumpkins right off the road.

182nd Anniversary

Saturday we spent a beautiful morning here at the temple as well as here at the sacred grove.

i really take it for granted that we live so close to both!

I love our little temple. We just finished our stake temple days this last week so we had an amazing time with many of our youth and a great time on Saturday with a large session. Not only are our temple missionaries getting ready to leave but our temple presidency is about to be released. Our adoptive grandparents are among those going home and I am so sad to say goodbye. I know they are excited and will enjoy being home with their true families. They have helped us feel at home and as if we really have family here in the east.


I do not always think about Joseph Smith and the first vision when I think of the blessings of the gospel in my life. I taught many people about those two things in Brazil and I know that they are true. I knew then just the same as I do now. It has not changed but the amazing thing is we are creating so many memories here. We visit them often and talk more often about the impact it has had on our lives. Youth Conferences, sacraments and special speakers....my own knowledge of the godhead and the Lord's gospel on the earth has been increased. I am truly grateful and blessed for that first vision and so appreciate the time that I can spend in these amazing places.


Sunday was our annual Sacrament at the Hill....and it just so happens that we were also celebrating 182 years.

182 years since Joseph Smith received the plates from the angel Moroni.

after fabulous talks by the hill we enjoyed a huge spread of food with 100+ people. that was a huge amount of white and red hots. yummy!

What a cute apron~thanks becky....somehow chris still managed to get ketchup on his tie and grease on his white shirt?? mysterious...

it was a beautiful fall day and a very fun weekend....i pulled out all of our fall decorations on saturday night and now the house looks like it as well.

a little feisty?

Chris has been describing me for years as FEISTY....what kind of a personality description or compliment as he calls it is that? I do not see myself as opinionated, determined and fiery.

I do however think marriage is like a mirror where we can see ourselves in true form. We can reflect the good things we do, the not so good things and see ourselves in all our selfish glory.

I should just claim it and live up to it. But no~I still think I am kinda awkward, shy and quiet. Perhaps only with Chris am I feisty and fiery......poor thing I put him through a lot. And he handles it all so well. I am also a planner and an organizer but recently I have had to let go of some of those tendency and just trust that the Lord is leading and guiding us. Faith. I think I have it until I need it and then I find myself lacking.

I am loving the pioneer woman...such fun ideas and photos. Cowgirl up!

Fall is coming and I love that there are little signs showing up all around us. It is my favorite time of year in upstate NY.

happy 4th of July next year....

I started this quilt square in HS at a YW activity and years later I figured it was time to finish it... I found some fabric that would make it look more like the 4th of July and quilted it. I did a combination of free hand quilting (stars and swirels) as well as stitching in the ditch! Very fun!! I will just have to remember to put it up next 4th of July!

travel

A weekend in Utah

we finally completed a baby gift for.....yes 2 month old Tobin. Sorry it took so long but finding fabric of bikes or climbers was not easy.


What a cute little guy! Thanks for the picture Chelsea. We are so glad we got to meet him.

This quilt was fun because I tried to do some free hand quilting. Even though there were lots of mistakes. It was fun and different to try.

We also saw the Millers before they embark on their long trek east! Yep moving closer to us~8 hours any way. We are excited for them!

The trip to Utah was for grandma packer's funeral and the grandparent's gravesite burial. It was a wonderful service and we got to visit with so many family members and friends. It was a wirlwind of a trip but so worth it.


The four Packer kids sang "How great thou art" and Cami sang a solo at the beginning of the service. It was beautiful as always.





The Packer Family plot was nice to see and remind ourselves of the legacy left. What wonderful people and stories.



Logan, Utah

And these two could not keep their hands off each other....but they are soon to be engaged and we could not be happier for Katie!! What a nice (and cute) guy~welcome to the family Jameson....We even bought a dress on Saturday!! Wedding bells at X-mas?????


Mary~those kiddos are the cutest.
And of course a thrilling game of kickball with all the siblings, kids and cousins. We laughed too much!


This was a strange trip to Utah, mostly because we felt like visitors while there. We lived here for a few years and so many family members still live there but it is not for us and we were so glad to be coming home to NY. That was a first to feel so much like this is where we belong. It was a great trip. A little sad in lots of ways, busy with family but so fulfilling and even renewing to feel the strength, love and support of so many family members.

We stayed with the Sowells Sunday evening before we flew out. What a wonderful family. They are great people and wonderful examples to us. Chris expressed that every time we are around them they make us want to be better people!

It was fun to walk around campus, drive by our first apartment and reminisce about dates, classes, blessings and the hard times in our earlier married life.