A Lowe Quality Reunion, A trip to the ER and a Root Canal

That pretty much sums up our week. What we thought was an insect bite & the ER doc thought was cellulitis, turned out to be a tooth that needed a root canal. Except that they didn't call it that because they don't do root canals on baby teeth. Bethany still has 6 or 7 years before she loses that back molar though, so I'm glad her dentist saved it. She is feeling great now and the pain and swelling are almost gone. The dentist did say it was a good thing we went to the ER and got her started on antibiotics over the weekend because infections in the teeth, face, etc., can be bad news. So I am trying to tell myself that I wasn't being a freaked-out-over-nothing mama. I'll keep telling myself that until the bill comes, then I'll probably regret being such a concerned parent.

It's so good to be home. School starts next week for Matthew & the week after for the girls. It has been a fun whirlwind of July and I think I'm ready for school & the routine it brings. Thanks everyone for the great time at the cabin!

Part Three: Oceanside

We played on the beach all day, every day. We went swimming, boogey boarding (?)and kayaking. We spent a week with some of the best friends we've ever had, the Cortes's. We went to an Aquarium in San Diego to get out of the sun one day. We brought home buckets of shells (on purpose) and sand (not on purpose). We took pictures of the girls at lifeguard towers 3,5 and 7, since that's how old they are this year. It was a great vacation.


(Bethany, Gwen & Saylor - Saylor & Bethany are the same age - we moved to Hemet when they were almost 1 & we've watched those 2 grow up together, Catherine is on the left hugging a total stranger.)

These kids belong to us, the Cortes's and the Snow's: Demetri, Ida, Saylor, Hector & all of us on the porch of our beach house - until next year!

Part Two: Nelson Reunion

My brother expressed a lot of how I feel about Ferron Mountain on his blog. I have so many good memories there. It felt good to take my girls to the place I explored as a child, to see them run off with their cousins and to be a part of the group of adults sitting around talking all day.

Our cozy tent

2nd cousins Bethany, Shaylie and Tandy

(mine, Jessie's & Kody's, not sure on the spellings!)

Gwen & Keddy

pretty much the two cutest little things up there, Keddy is Kody's daughter, she was named after our Grandma, Claris, whose nickname was KeddyGwen, Beth & TandyKody climbed this tree, not the Quakie in front, the 75 foot pine tree, he climbed to the very top, & I mean the very top, we could see his head poking out, then my Dad climbed it because, well, if you knew Kody or my Dad, you'd understand why! Bethany played a fiddle song for everyone & the clapping during & the applause afterwards were beyond her wildest dreams I found this old picture of Angela and me to compare with the next one of us all grown up!

(Yes, I am wearing a hot pink elastic belt over my overalls. Does it get any better than that?) Me, Kristy, Angela & Jessie
Gwen & her Great Grandpa (He's a great grandpa to me too!) Kathryn & Catherine

Summer Scrapbook, part one

I have hundreds of pictures to go through from the Nelson Family Reunion and our beach vacation & I need to post some soon because the Lowe Family Reunion is this week. I'll start out with my favorite niece, Eve. Just kidding! She's not my favorite! She's tied with Haylie, Samantha, Carly, Rachel and Alyssa. Isn't she cute though? Don't you just want to eat her up? I wanted to bring her home with me. I don't think my girls would mind, they are as in love with her as I am!

Money well spent

Four ice cream cones & a Six-Piece chicken basket from Dairy Queen: $11.96

One day pass to Sand Hollow Reservoir: $10.00

Getting back on my daughters' good side: Priceless

As if entering the competition for worlds' worst mom, I decided not to go to Corinne today as planned to see Grandparents, aunts, uncles & a cousin, & instead stayed home and made my girls clean the house while I cleaned out the garage. I was not their favorite person today to say the least. We are driving up first thing tomorrow morning, but still, the little Lowe girls were fairly disappointed. We worked hard, and it will be so nice come home to a clean house. I decided we needed a reward. (Matthew is at scout camp this week, hence the lack of a father-figure in today's installment.) Dairy Queen was the first stop and then instead of going back to the Toquerville City Park, I surprised us all by driving out to Sand Hollow. We haven't been yet, pathetic since we've lived here 2 years now, and I'd heard there were nice sandy beaches. There were. We found a quiet spot to eat our chicken (we'd finished the ice cream in the car) and then Bethany, Gwen & Catherine waded and splashed and built sand castles to their hearts' content. You should've heard the cheers I got when I told them we could stay until the sun went down. Catherine caught a lizard and built a house for it. Gwen and Bethany built a moat around their sand castle. They all got very wet and very dirty. It was the perfect way to cool down, expend some energy and eat without getting the kitchen dirty again. The girls were shivering as we drove home because it was 8:30 at night and 102 degrees outside, so I had the AC blasting away. They all hopped in my big tub as soon as we got home and had a bubble bath. And just to make sure I was safely out of Mean Mom territory, I gave each of them an Otter Pop in the tub.

"Make our crossing forth joyful passing!"

I went to a funeral today and it was such a joyful and uplifting and grateful experience. I am so thankful for the heritage that is mine. I feel like being a much better person now, because looking back on the family I came from, I have no excuse not to be. I know that my children will grow up with the same wonder, gratitude and love for their aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins. Precious and rare are the moments when we feel what is really important in this life, when the veil is thin and we feel the presence of our ancestors. Spirits from "beyond sunlight's setting" rejoiced with us today and welcomed Kerry as we said goodbye.

Let Peace Then Still the Strife
Text: David Warner

Let peace then still the strife,
The loneliness and grief,
Come heal the piercing silence of passing.
And sweet familiar strains,
The voices lost in death,
Arise in songs of hope everlasting.
Then let the voices roll
As waves upon the sea;
Come forth and break upon us, refreshing.

And barren coves be filled,
O'erflow with reverie!
Let mem'ry salve as Gilead's caressing.
And though the balm be spread,
Let tender rifts remain
That breaking hearts not yield to forgetting.
For hearts rent wide at death,
Unfolded to our dead,
Hear singing from beyond sunlight's setting.

Then sing, beloved ones,
Reach o'er the summer sea.
Pour forth thy boundless love for us living!
Sweep into ev'ry soul,
Make music of our tears,
Turn all our songs to joy and thanksgiving!
And when we silent pass,
From far across the sea
Let praises ring for life's wond'rous blessing.

Then sing ye living souls!
Sing generations past,
Swell high the tide of life, us refreshing!
Sing forth as with one voice,
Bear silent grief away,
Resound with peace and hope everlasting!
And all who wait and sing
Sing on from earth and heav'n
And make our crossing forth joyful passing!
Amen!

Still trying to stay cool

We went out last night with the Youngs, our new favorite people in town and maybe in the world because they have a boat, and the next best thing to owning a boat is having friends that do. The little ones got to ride on the tube and banana and play on the beach and Matthew and I got to ski and jump off the cliff (which was A LOT higher when we got up there than it was from the boat.) I know that I'm totally bragging, but half the fun of jumping is the thrill and the other half is bragging a little about how high the cliff was (at least 25 feet)!

We got some sad news when we got home last night. My Great-Uncle Kerry passed away. He and my Aunt Donna lived in La Verkin. Mom, Dad, and anyone else coming down for the funeral, our casa is your casa.

Come to Zion, Come to Zion!

Zion means "the pure in heart" (D&C 97:21), the Lord's people or the Church and its stakes. Our pioneer ancestors traveled to Zion from around the world. We have been taught to establish Zion in our hearts and in our homes. Lucky for us, Zion is also in our backyard! We made a quick trip up the canyon this afternoon to cool off.