The Rail Way

How We Look - How We Feel

2012-02-12T09:47:00.000-08:00

I have been trying rip:60 for the past couple weeks.

It hurts. A lot.

And when it gets real painful, I think of that picture I see on Pinterest about Zumba...how we look and how we feel.

One time when it was hurting a lot, I thought, I sure would rather look like Jim Carey in a tutu than how I do right now.

So I kept going.

It still hurts.

But I will get over it.

Weighed and Measured

2012-02-03T07:48:00.000-08:00

This blog has become a history for me. It is a place that hopefully will not be lost (like my wallet which I left on top of my car yesterday while driving out of the Smith's parking lot).

Thank you cloud computing.

So for history's sake, my children have been weighed and measured, and I will record it here so that I can throw away the hard copies.

Steele:

24 pounds (16.9%)

33 inches (43.5%)

Sarah:

42 pounds (74%)

45 inches (92.6%)

They are a little thin for their height, which makes my perfectionist tendencies want to feed them a lot of Greek Yogurt or something. But then again, I wish that I were thin for my height.

They are perfect.

Chinese New Year

2012-01-30T11:17:00.000-08:00

I cannot describe the weekend I had with my cousins. A joyful time. A sacred time.

In my mind, 'cousin' is the world's best word. Probably because of the ones that I have.

Cousin Sheralee (on the end) put together a road trip to get to Aunt Julie's Chinese New Year party in Driggs, Idaho. I am positive that there were more people there who, while busy beyond the veil, could not resist a Bagley get-together. We could not resist either.

The five of us laughed and talked (oh, how I love these activities), and felt an amazing strength of spirit. These are good and wise and joyful people. I recognize them for they are like me (I being on the lesser end of the good and wise). We were raised by the same people. Extraordinary people.
We got to visit Uncle Terry, who we are praying out of the hospital. Me especially, for he is my Dad's great friend, and business partner. Life is just better with him around.

And the party. Aunt Julie and Uncle John served a mission in Singapore/Borneo (I hope I have that right). Here are two of their children. Good looking and funny.

I loved hearing stories from these two. I have known cousin Julie (the blonde in back) my whole life, but it is only on this trip that I heard about how she: Gave Danny Kay a ride in her new car in Las Vegas, played shuffleboard with Charlton Heston every morning after Italian lessons on her high school trip to Europe with her mother, ate dinner and chatted with Grace Kelly at the captain's table on the maiden voyage of the Leonardo De Vinci, and watched her mother be bridge partners with Omar Sharif.

My cousins also married great people. We exclaimed over and over how glad we were that they married such wonderful people. I would die to have a Sarah and Stephanie live close to me. Instead they chose the perfection of Driggs.
I wanted to be a better person around all of them and I learned how.

Aunt Julie is really as gracious and lovely as all of the family folklore says. I could talk with her and be in her presence forever.

We stayed the night with the keeper of family relics, beautiful Aunt Liza, just across the state line in Wyoming.
She showed us dresses we had only seen pictures of, gave us a glimpse of Gran's wedding band, on the fingers that Gran married Grandad for,
and let us hear voices of our past, which felt very much the present. Time came together with her.
Sorry about the out of order pictures. These are back at Aunt Julie's.

This is the pedestal I broke. I thought that I was finally old enough to hang out in Aunt Julie's beautiful home. I was wrong. I hope that they were not attached. Or that the matching one the balanced the table did not necessarily need its partner.
For breakfast, Aunt Liza used Gran's Rose China. It was so beautiful. I am sure Gran was there with her China to share in the fun and stories.
I love these mountains. I have never met a family who has a better view out their kitchen window. It helps that their family claimed the spot over 100 years ago.
I am so grateful for this family. I cannot believe that I was born into it. I am so glad that I was.

Applying for Schools

2012-01-13T20:22:00.000-08:00

Not for me, but for Sarah. She is entering Kindergarten and we live in a State that will let you choose your school...if there is room
So here we are furiously applying to many of the top schools with fingers crossed that the lottery of our choice will be in our favor.

Thanks for your help with the paperwork, Steele.

Homemade

2012-01-12T20:46:00.000-08:00

As mentioned, Katrina, the one who took after Mom in creating things of beauty, suggested we have a homemade Christmas. I just have to post my efforts:

The Crayon Letter ala Family Fun magazine.

Take your crayons, shed them of their paper wrappings, cut them to about the same size, and super glue them to a paper cut the size of the frame paper. Glue the crayon letter paper to the back of your frame.
It was a surprising hit. Thank you Lleida and Cairo for boosting my creative self-esteem by being so enthusiastic.
I take no credit for these. We received this rocking family of aprons and oven mitts handmade by Katrina. Sadly, we only took one picture, which is a risk, because my camera struggles from time to time, so I normally take several of one moment. Hopefully you get the picture.
The paper roses wreaths. I became one with my glue gun as I destroyed two books to make three wreaths for my family. Thank you, Pinterest.
Now, I am onto crocheting Japanese Amigurumi toys. Super cute. I might just post my efforts.

Ski for Free

2012-01-12T20:10:00.000-08:00

Did you know that Alta Sunnyside lift on the Albion Basin is open for free from 3 p.m. til close? And that the Bunny Hill is free all day?

I took advantage of this great news while wearing 18-year-old ski pants (with a nice rip in the bottom), toting 15-year-old borrowed skis (thank you Katrina for taking up snowboarding), with a 4-year-old who grew out of her high-water snow pants last year....

But it did not matter for we had a blast on the sunny, bunny hill of Alta. Thank you Alta for letting us ski free every day until Sarah is thoroughly addicted and shaking to conquer your more advanced slopes.

Until then, this why it is great to live in Utah.

No Purchase Necessary

2012-01-11T20:38:00.000-08:00

Ben and Jerry birthday ice cream. Our favorite birthday coupons are the ones with no purchase necessary, i.e. Benihanas, Noodles N Things, and this coconut beauty from Ben and Jerry's.

We take no purchase necessary seriously. One scoop of ice cream for the four of us. Yet totally satisfying.

The Birthday Meal

2012-01-11T20:25:00.000-08:00

We eat out with vigor two times a year. December and July, my birthday month and Andrew's birthday month respectively.

For this is the time that our free birthday meals are emailed to us. The best birthday coupon of them all is Benihanas.

This is us approaching our $30 of free Benihana birthday food. Unpictured is us walking away because it was still closed. We should have checked the times.

So, I returned to the restaurant after the children's bedtime. Yes, alone. It was the last day before my coupon expired (December 29), and my little family was exhausted. So was I, but for some reason, free food rallied my reserves.

It was surprisingly nice to eat part of my birthday meal by myself (no one throwing chopsticks), and then pack up the portions that I ordered for Andrew and have an even better time at home.

Happy Birthday month to me.

Christmas Morning-not so long ago.

2012-01-10T19:41:00.000-08:00

Our children are still young enough that they do have trouble sleeping the night of Christmas Eve. In fact, we had to wake them up in order to open presents before Church.
They were exhausted after a full and festive Christmas Eve.
Regardless, it was still magic, for they are old enough to be very very grateful
for presents (these from the Magic Kingdom)
even the smallest ones. We could have stopped with just two dollar gifts for Steele. It was overwhelming for him to receive so much.
He only has two hands, you see.

How I wish that I could have them this age forever.

Merry Christmas 2011.

Never too late for a Christmas Eve Post

2012-01-10T19:21:00.000-08:00

Does anyone else love Christmas Eve even more than Christmas?
Every Christmas Eve we have a family get-together, complete with gift exchange (this year Aunt Katrina had the brilliant idea of a homemade Christmas-I will post about that later),
talent show, good food,
and family.
There are other traditions we love, including the Christmas Eve Dance, our newly institute Dollar Store Stocking Stuffer run, and a Nativity which sometimes is chaos, but there is a great peace to it.

Happy my favorite day of the year.

Liam is blessed

2012-01-09T21:03:00.000-08:00

It is these times that make me want to move back to Rexburg. The land of my birth. The current home of most of my family.

William Snow Bagley (future prophet sounding, no?) was blessed.

Because of a baptism that Andrew was conducting, we did not arrive in Idaho until very late the night before; just to turn around and rush back to Utah after witnessing a 2-minute event.

But is was well worth it. Every moment was fun and spirit-filled. Dad, by the way, was doing awesome considering he underwent major surgery on Thursday. He was also in the circle.
My little family was sad to leave.
We had to promise to ourselves again and again that we would return soon. We will.

Singing of the Savior

2012-01-09T20:00:00.000-08:00

Since marrying Andrew, who is a lover of great Christmas music (not 'Jingle Bell Rock'), the excellent carols of Christmas have become my favorite part of the season.

Being married to a super guy, he sacrificed to give me the opportunity to join a great choir. One with a greater choir director who makes me think higher.

I felt the birth and life of our Savior as I sang. It was a gift to me for Christmas.
Andrew took this picture from the seats where he was babysitting our little ones.

I encouraged him to hire a babysitter for this after-bedtime concert, but he wanted to have them listen to good music, and be in the habit of supporting each other in everything.

Thank you John, Sharalee, and Ben for also braving the snow and coming to listen. It meant so much.

The Bow Tie

2012-01-08T21:22:00.000-08:00

I finally learned how to tie a bow tie. I cannot lie. I am super proud of myself.

This came after several failed YouTube tutorial attempts. A nice boy at Banana Republic helped me master it on a mannequin. Today, I tried it on a real man. So pleased am I.

Her first Violin Recital

2012-01-08T18:59:00.000-08:00

We were so excited. We practiced and practiced, and on December 15, 2011, Sarah had her very first violin recital.
The littlest violinists (like Sarah) only had one song to play (Jolly Old St. Nick), so they were put on bells for the duration of the concert.
And Sarah played those bells like they have never been played.
We even practiced bowing, and she did it with flare.

The end.

A Slightly Different Christmas

2011-12-25T03:42:00.001-08:00

My friends, this is a very personal posting by Drew (originally posted on Facebook).

Christmas Eve is slightly different when your four year old daughter is scared of Santa and is sick, another beloved family member is suffering from a potentially life threatening illness, and we pause to think of another one who left this life earlier than expected.

But the house was filled with spirit. The spirit of love, of traditions, of the power of the Priesthood and Priesthood blessings, of gratitude knowing we are bound together as family for eternity because of the Temple, of Elijah and the desire to do family history work, of Christmas. Of the Spirit of God.

Happy Christmas to all.

And to all, a good night.

ps - We told Sarah and Steele that Mickey emailed this card to them. But when looking at it, they both spoke of Baby Jesus rather than the Disney characters. I was so proud.

Bagley Family Reunion 2011: Disneyworld

2011-12-20T10:12:00.000-08:00

So grateful.
That through the generosity of Gran and Grandad Bagley
5 siblings, 2 nursing babies, 2 dog leashes turned to child leashes,
3 strollers, and 4 children-in-wonderful-laws, and 13 grandchildren got to go to Disneyworld.
Together.
My children talk about it 17 times a day. Every day.

Resistant Ovaries

2011-11-10T05:44:00.000-08:00

We went to the doctor last night for an ultrasound to hopefully see the miracle of me actually ovulating.

Except I was not.

Darn resistant ovaries.

Onto stronger medicine.

I was going to write more, but I am a little sad.

For Those Who Pinterest - Six Simple Rules for Pinterest

2011-11-06T06:15:00.000-08:00

So I (Andrew) have been on Pinterest for a couple months now. I honestly think it is brilliant, for reasons I will not go into here.

Now as you know, I follow many of you Pinterest. I (Andrew) am not stalking you, Pinterest made me do it, we are Facebook fans. I am glad I am. You have style and great ideas. They also made me follow a bunch of people I had never known before, 8 of them with the last name of Wang.

After playing with it for a couple of hours, I found some people I followed did somethings that really made it easy for me.

1. Pin the blog post, not the entire blog

Sometimes I see a pin and I think, "That is way cool!" So I click on the pin and the item featured is nowhere to be found. That was because the blog was pinned and by the time I visited your pin, the blog has been updated. But if you pin the actual blog post (click on the blog post title) rather than the blog in general, we can find it easily and rejoice in your choice!

2. Organization is key. Make your boards specific.

If you name a board "Cool to Me," and then put cute skirts and dream yachts in there, potential followers who are looking for either dream yachts or cute skirts (but not both) will not get it.

Here is an idea. Keep the board, "Cool to Me" and pin the cute skirt or dream yacht twice. Once in a board that folks can follow (ie, Hair) and then again in "Cool to Me."

Example:

So I dig the buffalo bites, but you lost me with the bridesmaid dress and the pic of Gone With the Wind.

3. Make your blogs more Pinterest friendly.

When you create a blog post about an idea you have, include a good picture of the idea in the post. Then people can share your incredible ideas with lots of people!

4. Do not be upset if someone unfollows a specific a board.

The Denver Broncos or deer antlers just may not be their forte. If you see a board that is not your forte, just click on the board name, and then click the white box that says "Following." This will fill your Pinterest home page with pins you would find more interesting.

5. For your spouses:
You may want to create a board that has birthday gift ideas/date ideas/things I dream my sweetheart will do ideas, whatever you want him to see. Have another board that says "Important Dates" with cute pictures of calendars highlighting a specific date (anniversary, etc).

6. Tell your spouses about the boards you made with them in mind.
Do not assume they will ever look at them, even once. Even if you have been married for 37 years, mind reading is never a fun game to play. Explain to them the significance of the board.

You: Sweetheart, I want to show you something

Sweetheart: Yes?

You: See this "board" that I made?

Sweetheart: Huh?

You: On Pinterest

Sweetheart: Huh?

You: There is a web site that I can take note of what is really important to me or what I like. They are divided into "boards." Take a look.

Sweetheart: How come all I see are skirts and hairdos?

You: Skip all of that, this is what I want you to see (then walk them through how to find the boards that you made with them in mind). You see these? This board is important to me because of (then clearly explain...then repeat with the boards you made for your sweetheart).

Sweetheart: Okay

You: So at Christmastime, or on our anniversary, you will know where to come to find out what I like or want or to just get inspired.

Sweetheart: So no more mindreading or trying to guess what you want?

You: No

Sweetheart: And I can wait until the last second to buy something or spending too long in a store thinking because I know exactly what you want?

You: Yes

Sweetheart: How do I find this again? Can I bookmark it?

Regardless of whether they say the last line, show them how to find it again. And when they forget in the future, show them again. Do not get upset with them. Learning is always about repetition.

There is one more rule. Rule number 7. Ditch these six rules and do what you want.

After all, your boards are all about your own style and what you find Pinteresting.

11/1/11 First Snowfall

2011-11-02T10:21:00.000-07:00

When I saw that it was snowing, I resurrected our cold weather clothes, put away the summer ones, and suited up.
This occurred the day after the most beautiful Halloween weather. And Steele was still shoeless.
But snow requires footwear. So I found Sarah's old boots (thank goodness brown was in style. You cannot see the pink lining inside). They fit perfectly, and he never complained.
Again, Steele has a problem with eating anything, and I promise as I was taking the picture, I was proclaiming how yucky sidewalk water is, and prying him off of the porch.

Then he had to try some more.

I love the emotion in his face. He could not get his gloves on. It was so sad. If anyone has advice on toddler glove wear let me know.
Happy first snowfall.

Sigh of Relief

2011-10-25T19:01:00.000-07:00

When the following event occurred, I sighed with relief. It was a sign to me that we were doing okay.

At Church, Andrew drew a picture like this on his tablet:
He said, "That's Mommy".

Sarah said emphatically, "That is NOT Mommy" (too angry).

Thank you Sarah. I would die if my children thought of me as an angry Mommy. Stern Mommy, I have no problem with. Strict Mommy might even be a complement. But mad or angry...never.

Cheerful Mommy of well-mannered children is the goal (we are working on it).

Also, Steele has been saying "Thank You" all of the time, and an occasional "Excuse Me". I never taught him that. He just picked it up from his family.

Sigh of relief.

Fall life

2011-10-25T09:14:00.000-07:00

I thought that I would post some pictures of our daily activities this fall.

Steele practicing using a spoon. It was cottage cheese. He alternates right and left hands. I am anxiously waiting to see if I bore lefty number two. I have always felt sorry for left-handed people in a right-handed world. Do left-handed people ever feel a little disadvantaged, or is it just really special? Any advice for my left-handed Sarah? What are you, Steele?

Thank you, Ikea, for the high chair and fabulous bib.
The only craft that we did for Halloween. This year, our pumpkin was a jar with a candle in it painted orange. Very festive.

Wait a minute, Sarah, you are using your right hand. She alternates too, but favors the left.
We go to the park nearly every day. Thanks, Sammy for letting us borrow your ride.
Even though we have been frequenting this park for YEARS, I am always amazed that children find new things to be entertained with.

This trip, it was the flagpole.
We could do this for hours.

Sarah has been going to a Chinese class every week. I LOVE it. I get to go too. It is right after soccer, so she always shows up in a yellow shirt and shin guards.
It is my favorite part of the week. I actually wish that I could always go to school with her.

So far, we are really good at colors, numbers 1-10, and body parts that go with the song, "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes".

Life is really good for us. I mean life is Hau Bang!

The Planet and the Meteor

2011-10-19T10:19:00.001-07:00

In our life, Steele is usually a planet and I am his sun, but sometimes, in inopportune places, he becomes something else. I think he is more like a meteor shower that is often crashing into me, but at times is found careening away.
The object Sarah is riding was Steele's 1st birthday present. He has rarely used it for it has become Sarah's ride. I am still usually a sun to her planet. This just keeps us going.
It is a quick way for us to get to the park, to Church, and today, all over the sprawling BYU campus.
Again, Steele the meteor about to crash into a work of art. If you notice, he has crossed the book display atmosphere. I was running to him before the collision.
And why do they hang priceless paintings low enough for little boys to reach? I envisioned our life earnings come into jeopardy on this museum trip.

Thankfully, no harm was done. My little meteor.

A Little Sundance

2011-10-17T15:23:00.000-07:00

My barefoot wonder. Oh, how much longer can I allow you to go shoeless? Steele gets excited when I slip shoes on his feet, but after a few steps, he pulls them off.

As winter approaches, duct tape might be called in to keep his boots on.
On Saturday we accidentally drove to Cascade Springs. What a wonderful accident.
We just wanted to see the Fall colors, and the Sundance area is ethereal.
Behind Steele, Sarah and Dad are hanging out with the Moose...Meese...two large Mooses.

I am a lover of Aspens. The white bark and yellow yellow leaves. The way those leaves look in the wind. I wish that we could have photographed the breathtaking colorful vistas. The windy roads prevented this. We just could not stop the vehicle. Even this picture was risky.
Oh, Sundance, how can I choose between you and Lake Powell as my Primary Residence in the next life?

Eating Habits

2011-10-17T12:34:00.000-07:00

To add onto Steele's list of eating ANYTHING, we include Ivory Soap chips and Old Spice Deodorant.

The Haircut

2011-10-11T08:13:00.000-07:00

I cut my hair. When I showed Andrew, he said,

"Cute. It is very 1998-99. The year I fell in love with you."

Thank you?

Trying to love Fall

2011-09-26T06:43:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday we trekked to Temple Square to enjoy the last days of Fall.
I am one of the only people in my world who struggles with Fall. For some reason, I treat it like an ominous entry to a long winter, instead of the cool start to a new...football season or something. I have been working on just rejoicing in it.
For Fall is a thing to rejoice in.
My only two pregnancies have begun in Fall, and while I LOVE being pregnant, the first trimester is incredibly rough for me. Hence, the smell of Autumn makes me nauseous.
I put these pictures in, only because I like it when the blogger actually shows pictures of herself. I wish that I were not drawn to sweats and t-shirts after church on Sundays. My clothing clashed with the beauty around me.
I looked all over the grounds for the Forget-me-not Flower ala President Uchdorf. Is this it? It has five petals, but it does not look like the one in his talk. Regardless, the flowers on the square were gorgeous, and the smells were wonderful.

Happy Fall.

The Violin

2011-09-17T21:17:00.000-07:00

Sarah has been taking Violin lessons for a month now. No, she still does not have a real violin (this one is cardboard, and the bow is a stick).
We have been working up to that. Everyday we practice feet position, finger placement, hand and arm exercises, parts of the violin, and of course, bowing (the opposite of curtseying). When we clap, she is supposed to bow, not clap with us as she has been trained since a baby.

I did not realize that she loved classical music. Particularly the violin and flute. Our new favourite music station is the classical music station, and we are Jenny Oaks Baker super fans.

We are not sure where the preference came from. I would like to thank the classical soundtracks to every Barbie movie, Little Einsteins, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Andrew singing to her every night, and the millions of ward choir practices and performances that she has attended. (Our T.V. remote is also dead, so we have not watched T.V. for a millennia, and, oh yes, our truck's CD player also gave up the ghost).
And I love all of it. I never learned the violin and I am ecstatic to study with Sarah (Suzuki violin requires the parents to be at every lesson, every practice session, and listen to the music CD constantly. It is intense, but I really like intense.)

Andrew takes her to her lessons. Even though I wanted to, he insists, and considers it Daddy Daughter time. He takes notes and pictures, and then they teach me what to practice for the week.

Even in only a month, I have seen her grow. I am astounded how quickly children learn, and I love seeing her learn and get better every day. Since she turned four, I feel an urgency to teach her well and much during this time. I only have one year until I turn her over to her (cross my fingers) excellent school district.

Above was the CD insert of Sarah's surprise today. Jenny Oaks Baker's Disney CD. She was the reason why Sarah pulled out her cardboard violin. She pretended to play the music while we danced and pretended to play the piano and the banjo.

Yay for the violin.

The Accident

2011-09-06T18:54:00.001-07:00

On the last week of their Mission in Wyoming, Dad fell off of the roof of the Visitor's Center which they personally helped design and build with their own hands.
It was 30 feet up.
So for Labor Day weekend, we went to see our walking (with a cane) miracle of a Dad. We are so grateful that he is not only alive, but he came away with only: a broken shoulder, foot, chipped elbow, and a few stitches. This is our Brother-in-Law, Zach removing Dad's stitches a 6 days after he fell.
This is our family, having Family Home Evening, conducted by Dad, who was in and out due to his pain killers.

As I watched him over the weekend, I recognized how much pain he was in, but he said that even more painful than his injuries, was not doing anything. So, to the consternation of my Mother, he was up and around, having meetings, and working as he always has.

Secretly, I was proud of him for frustrating her so. Not that frustrating Mom was a good thing. No, I loved his character in getting up and working despite all obstacles. I honor him for that, and hope to be a little like him.

Where are Mom and Dad now? 7 days after he fell off of the roof, they are back in Wyoming, on their mission. You see, they still have 5 days left.

Happiness is also...

2011-09-03T06:03:00.001-07:00

Seeing a group of youth walking to the temple at seven in the morning to perform baptisms for those who have died.

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Happiness is...

2011-09-03T05:58:00.001-07:00

The last spot of street parking next to Temple Square at seven in the morning.

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Primary Extra Credit

2011-08-30T19:28:00.000-07:00

I have to say before this post, what a trooper my husband was in going to the Bagley Reunion. He sacrificed a weekend that he could have spent with his brother and drove forever only to get run over with a handcart. That kind of selflessness will secure me yours forever, babe.

Sarah is giving the talk in Primary this week, hence the name of the post. I, the over-excited Mom, took the subject, 'Missionary Work' (preaching the Gospel to every Kindred, Tongue, and People) maybe a little far.

I thought it would be awesome if we hiked Ensign Peak, and, like Brigham Young did, raise our yellow-bandanna-tied-to-walking-stick Ensign at the top of this mountain. Maybe it would be a great addition to the talk, I thought. Maybe she will remember what she did as a 4-year-old, and it will inspire her in the future. I hope.
I almost used the word 'Ensign' as Sarah's middle name. Although, 'Luella' won out, I felt that she would be an Ensign. It was her title. So watching Sarah wave her Ensign moved me.
Some people raise doctors and lawyers. I always felt that we are raising missionaries.
Who will wave their yellow flags all over the world.
Look out world, we have a couple of mighty Ensigns on their way.
Hopefully, her talk goes well.

The Bagley Reunion

2011-08-12T15:43:00.000-07:00

While everyone is posting their first day of school entries, I have to write a summer event before I forget the details.

I cannot begin to describe how I felt about this experience...the Bagley Reunion. Now, this was not your normal egg-tossing, potato salad feasting reunion. We met in the middle of nowhere-I mean, Wyoming, for a Pioneer Trek in the actual place where the Saints were rescued.

It turned out to be one of my favorite reunions...and I have always LOVED the annual Bagley Reunion.
Since we are getting older, and my cousins now have grandchildren, the annual reunion turned biannual (that is the one every other year, right?).
I am grateful for diligent family members who persist in gathering us. I forget how great it feels to be with cousins who are like me. We were raised by the same kind of people, and we like each other very much.

I feel strong around them.
Probably because they are strong. And funny.
And excellent storytellers.
But mix that with walking on sacred ground. Not merely Lava Hot Springs Ground, but a hallowed place...
And you get a lot of joy.
There was a great spirit.
I feasted off of the leftovers for days (leftover spirit, I mean-like post General Conference).
I am related by blood and marriage to some of the best people on this planet
and several others

in my opinion.
I also felt, more than any other time
the power of the pioneers who died here.

and of God's miracles.

My parents, and two sets of Aunts and Uncles are currently serving at this sacred place, and they made excellent guides.
This was definitely one of my favorite things that I did this summer.
Hang out with people that love and protect me.
Go Bagleys.

Fun

2011-07-28T14:31:00.000-07:00

Life is infinitely happier with children.
Before Sarah, watching 4 year old's play soccer would have killed me.
But it is the highlight of my day, now. (Sarah has been going to a ReAL Salt Lake Soccer Camp)
Without Sarah, I wonder if I would have approached the Paremedic booth at the Pioneer Day Festival in Cottonwood.
I had as much fun as she did.
These guys can rescue me anytime.

Facepainting? Bring it on.
And who doesn't want to look a little like
A Raggedy Anne/Punk Rocker
with a snow cone?
Life is so fun with children.

Steele's Numbers

2011-07-26T17:20:00.000-07:00

Height-55% (percentile)

Weight-9% (percentile)

Spoken words: 22 that I can think of

Age: 14 1/2 months

Naps per day: 1

Teeth: 2

Bedtime 6:30 p.m. I am so close.

The Kid Wash

2011-07-09T17:46:00.000-07:00

Our favorite magazine presented me a challenge. It had an article on their 20 best summer crafts and activities. I, of course, wanted to try them all...and blog about them.
I decided to start with the one that looked the hardest (but 'had the biggest payoff'). It really did.
Introducing the 'Kid Wash'.

It cost me $25 worth of PVC and accessories, a hacksaw, and a mallet.
It took me 2 1/2 hours.
And I could not be more delighted.

See here for instructions.

A Great Woman

2011-07-04T07:48:00.001-07:00

She can buy all the mustard colored bedding she wants. I am just grateful I have such an amazing wife.

Wouldn't you agree?

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Lofgrans, Cache Valley, and a Son of Helaman

2011-07-03T19:20:00.000-07:00

Friday night I laid out our clothes for a huge Saturday. We woke up before the summer sun, and drove to Idaho for a baptism and baby blessing.
The timing was perfect, and we walked in just as they were beginning. Above is my sweet sisters picture, and below is our newest family member, Cara, and her older sister, Ava.
As I watched Steve baptise Laurel, I could not help but think how worth a 3.5 hour drive was just to feel that spirit. And I detest long drives.

But I would do it again and again, just to feel the way I felt that day.
While I love ordinances, there is nothing that compares to ordinances of family.
I was so glad to be there.
We then drove to Cache Valley to hang out with friends, get some cheese and milk from our favorite Gossner Dairy, and enjoy Cache Valley Days.
My yardless kids LOVED the sprinklers. Our friends bemoned the fact that they did not have electric sprinklers, but my children were grateful for this little beauty.
They had an oldschool swingset that looked circa 1949, and was sturdy enough for all of us.
I mean all of us.
I was going to throw in parade pictures in Cache Valley, but so much joy was had on this swing, that it eclipsed everything else.

We fell into bed that night.

Since I am writing this on Sunday evening, I had to throw in today's after nap activity.
We visited Brigham Young's grave, toured the Conference Center Roof, and then hung out on Temple Square. After watching the Helaman video several times, I decided that when Steele grows up, he is going to be like those good warrior boys, and I was going to be like their Moms.

Happy Sabbath.

Youth Conference

2011-06-29T07:00:00.000-07:00

In my own personal Heaven, Lake Powell would be my backyard, and we would have Youth Conference every week.
And even though I might be in Primary (like now), they would never forget to invite us.

I am still basking in the residual happiness from ours on Friday.
I had forgotten how much I love teenagers. They are the best. Luckily, Andrew and I are really good at games, so we were invited this year to preside over all of the game activities.

I was grateful they did not ask us to be over logistics...like food, transportation, or even thinking of ordering porta-potties or bringing bug spray, which might not have occurred to me. But games...bring it on.

We had the youth make up their own commemorative Manti youth conference line dances, played bird-on-a-wire, Indian Chief, Ooga Booga, and for team building sake, made them stand on blankets and flip them over to the other side without stepping off of the blankets.
Not easy.

But they did it.
They can do anything.

Sarah and Steele came with us.
I am grateful for those nurturing types that show up at youth conferences who love our children almost as much as we do.

Our children were in Heaven too.
I am grateful for our rockin' leaders who are definitely going to the Celestial Kingdom after this.

Yah, Heaven is usually up, but this weekend, it was in Manti, UT.

The Color of...

2011-06-28T11:31:00.000-07:00

I bought some new bedding from Crate and Barrel. It was soft and fabulous.

Except that, when it arrived, Andrew said that it was the color of diarrhea.

I guess he did not realize that diarrhea has been 'in' for a few seasons now.

I am returning it today.

He was a mighty Hunter

2011-06-28T07:06:00.000-07:00

Sarah has been practicing our full family names.
One of Steele's names is 'Hunter' because that is the kind of missionary he will be.
He may not look that intimidating. He still only has two teeth...
and he has as much hair as some cancer victims...

Yet he is a mighty Hunter.

Cowboy Poetry

2011-06-15T12:31:00.000-07:00

I remember thinking, "nothing is going on this weekend...or last...or the last."

I was wrong.

I was merely looking at the wrong calendar.

Andrew and I used to get all of our cultural event information from the Salt Lake Tribune calendar. It was amazing. We WERE culture in Salt Lake. If it was free, fun, and maybe educational, we were there. Then the Trib's calendar changed. And we could not find anything to do.

Well, Drew found the event database that powered the Tribune's old calendar: SpinGo. All I have to say is, "Thank you, SpinGo, for deleting the words: 'nothing is going on today' from our family vocabulary."

I have not blogged FOREVER, so I would like to share some photos from Andrew's Tablet of an event we found on SpinGo.

Antelope Island, Utah, hosted Cowboy Poetry and music. We ate amazing Dutch Oven, rode horses, listened to excellent music...

Can you see the beautiful Great Salt Lake in the background?
Tried to rope with a baby on my back (though I do not know how much I would improve without the baby), and had a wonderful, educational, super free day.

Yee Haw. Thanks SpinGo.

Making a Third Rail the inexpensive way

2011-05-23T10:01:00.000-07:00

Dr. Hammoud gave us Steele in record time. Last Thursday, we returned, for help with a 'third Rail' and loved him as much as we did the first time we met him.

I felt once again as though he really heard us...and went directly to the solution...again.

Have you ever heard these words from a doctor? "Let's do this the inexpensive way".

I am a Bagley, and there is something in my blood that makes those words sweet, sweet, music.

He said it after we said the words, "Candice is uninsurable" (When you are on individual health insurance, insurance companies flee from anyone who has taken fertility drugs...which I had).

So, sweet doctor Hammoud is once again helping us make more Rails...we will keep you updated.

She Also Sings

2011-05-13T16:57:00.001-07:00

Candice's debut performance in the Tabernacle. She would love you to join her next year. The choir is called We Also Sing, but should be called And the Angels Sing.

Come join the angels sing.

I sure love listening to mine.

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Our Family Picture

2011-05-08T17:01:00.000-07:00

I recently pulled this almost forgotten art out of our storage and immediately hung it on the wall right by my bed. Every time I look at it, I think, "it really happened-I have two children".

We bought the picture in Taiwan, at I point in our lives when I dreamed of being a mother, but it was just not our time yet, despite my strong desires. Our time would come several years later.

This is our current Family Picture. This is exactly where we are at now. And so it hangs on our wall and every time I look at it I am blown away with gratitude at the miracle that is ours.

This has been the happiest Mother's Day, yet I am acutely aware of people who go through this day without children for one reason or another.

But miracles still happen---like my Family Picture coming to life.

Eternal Life and The Mothers in My Life

2011-05-08T14:06:00.000-07:00

‎"For this is life eternal, to know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom (He) sent."

Happy Mother's Day to my mother and my wife who have each taught me how to know God and His Son. Happy Mother's Day to the women who gave me life, both mortal and eternal.

Love.....

Drew

Best Art Museum Display. Ever.

2011-05-07T11:51:00.001-07:00

If you are even remotely close to BYU, you have to head to the lower level at the Museum of Art and look for the electronic media display.

And take your kids.

Fun for many, many minutes.

Guaranteed.

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Lovely, Was the Morning.

2011-05-07T06:01:00.001-07:00

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Fun....No Really

2011-04-30T11:43:00.001-07:00

Sarah insists this is fun. Took the kids to the Food Truck Rally at 3300 South 3150 East. Come root for Salt Lake's own Chow Truck. This is a Food Network competition. They are supposed to be here until 7.

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Follow up on Sarah and Skiing

2011-04-28T10:24:00.000-07:00

I love to snow ski.

My best childhood memories were skiing with my friends and even better, my family. I remember long talks with great friends while riding the ski lift, lying down on the hill in the middle of the run just to laugh and tell jokes, and with Katrina, I recall tales of figgy pudding on a breathtaking snowy night on the Skier's Lane ski lift as the snowfall froze our braids stiff.

And now I live in the world's best ski country. Italy and Switzerland pale to what we have. And I do not have a ski partner. I am old school. I actually snow ski. I have never snowboarded, so that ruled nearly all of my neighbors, and half of my family.

I decided that I wanted to create my own ski partner out of my oldest child...my three-year-old.

With the maiden ski voyage, I had worried because people had told me that if the child has a bad experience, it would take some time to overcome it, and I wanted a ski partner more than I wanted to breathe.

So, after studying youtube, I hesitatingly took Sarah, with the rest of my family as cheerleaders (Andrew and Steele).

I needn't have worried.

Sarah LOVED it. Love is not strong enough of word. She was a natural. We skied 'faster than a racecar'.

She never wanted to stop. The only thing that took us off the hill was a raging sunburn, and my shaking arm muscles from holding on to the tow rope for both of us again and again.

We live in such an amazing area. It only cost us $10 to rent the little skis for Sarah, while I used the former skis of a current snowboarder. Alta will let you ski free on two enormous Bunny Hills (at least compared to Kelly Canyon the teeny little ski resort of my youth) for free all day.

Then, if you feel brave, they have a free ski lift that opens at 3:00 p.m. daily where you can try your skills until it closes (time enough for about five runs).

So a birthday ski trip was more than economical, and the day was stunning. We skied most of time with our coats stripped off...and then got wicked sunburns, but that did not matter (until the cancer sets in).

Sarah wanted to go on the ski lift, but she needs to work on her 'snow plow' first.

So, that was our main activity on Sarah's birthday, followed by visits to friends, and culminating at her Granny and Papa's place for cake and candle blowing.

Sarah is my miracle. My greatest gift. We waited so long to have her, and are glad every day for her.

Thank you, Sarah, for being my miracle, and my ski partner.

Fish Cake

2011-04-27T14:39:00.000-07:00

Andrew loves Sarah so much, that when Sarah saw this cake in the Family Fun Magazine-he made it for her.

It only took him like five hours.

My Profile

2011-04-27T08:54:00.001-07:00

Two Conferences ago (or a conference and a half) Elder Nelson suggested I do this:

"If you have blogs and online social networks, you could link your sites to mormon.org. And there you can create your own personal profile. Each profile includes an expression of belief, an experience, and a testimony. Because this is a new feature, most of these profiles are available in English. Profiles in other languages will follow."

These profiles can have a profound influence for good."

http://mormon.org/me/462Q/

I hope that this is my small part of a "profound influence for good".

More like a four-year-old

2011-04-25T18:00:00.000-07:00

Decorating Eggs. I bought this kit at an After-Easter-Sale last year and I could not let it go to waste, even though we were so busy this weekend that we decorated our eggs on Monday-the day AFTER Easter.
I love having a four-year-old. She never knew the difference.
She was just as overjoyed to decorate post-Easter eggs as she would have been before.
I promise to get better...when she is five.

I feel almost sacrilegious posting these next pictures taken from Andrew's phone, but I admit that church brings me more joy than just about anything. Not just my religion, but actually going to church. I love it.

I love that Andrew took a picture (from his phone) of Steele playing peek-a-boo.
With no one in particular. (Our ward seems to fill from the back first).
Sarah sang with the Primary this week. I wonder if a Mom who has six children bursts with the same happiness as I do about my one singing in front?

Andrew again. So Sarah stood in the front of the group to sing in Church, then stooped down so you could only see her head over the podium. I am not sure if she sang (hard to tell with the hiding) but after the singing, the children left the podium. Sarah was the last one down. She looked over at us (near the back of the room) and said

"Mommy, "I'm so hungry."

I also wonder what it would be like to be in a ward with a 400 member primary; one with three nurseries. Our Primary is not quite that big.

Another gift of having a barely 4-year-old: it does not take many eggs in the city Easter Egg Hunt to bring her over-the-top joy. In fact, when Sarah found one egg, she spent most of her time relishing that egg (jumping up and down-showing us, then talking about it afterward).
I want to be more like that. Rejoicing in the one thing that I have. Jumping up and down for joy, instead of pushing other kids out of the way, greedily trying to find another of what I already have, and do not appreciate.

I want to be more like a barely-four-year-old.

Resurrected Bike

2011-04-25T13:57:00.000-07:00

Sarah is our Easter miracle. That is nicer than thinking of her as our tax day baby (born on April 15).

Andrew picked up a cast away, dead, purple bicycle from Deseret Industries for Sarah's birthday. We asked Brother Don Banford in our ward what to do. He lovingly took the bike into his garage, scrubbed a pound of rust off of the chain, replaced the see-through-tires, and oiled her 'til she became a smooth ride. He even threw in a helmet to keep our Easter Miracle Safe. He presented it to her on Easter Sunday.

Thank you Brother Banford for this other Easter Miracle:

The Resurrected Bicycle.

Air Drummer

2011-04-20T10:54:00.000-07:00

When Andrew was young, he was playing air drums on his desk and one of his friends asked if he really played the drums.

Andrew was like, "yeah".

He totally thought that he did. Because he watched MTV.

This video takes desk drumming to a whole new level. Thanks Ashley for sharing. I love it. I was having a difficult day-not really, it just feels difficult when one of my children is going through an aversion to his crib. So I pulled him out of his crib and saw this:

And noticed, to my gratitude, that my face was getting a smile ache.

So this is Andrew...and what really happened was I was 12 sitting in the back of a van on our way to a temple trip in Mesa, Arizona. We were living in El Paso at the time. We were talking about our musical talents, and I told them I could play the drums (which I honestly believed I could).

When they were amazed, I showed them my skills....in the air.

And yes, I explained that I learned from watching MTV.

Imagine my horror years later when I actually sat down and tried to play an real drum set. My confidence took an embarrassing beating that day.

White

2011-04-18T12:20:00.000-07:00

I found my first white hair today...not just one, but six. On the right side of my head.

I have always trusted my body not to decay. I felt young for I looked young (I have a baby face). For some reason, at least for today, the white hair was my signal that the rest of my body should start dying soon.

I know that is extreme. I need to be more moderate in my view.

I actually really love white hair. Truly white hair. I love people who have white hair, because they are like angels to me. White hair looks wonderful with white temple clothes.

I do not even know how to care for white hair. Do you need a special shampoo for white hair? Is there product specifically for white hair, or things that I should or should not use? Does it take color well? I have been trying to grow the highlights out of my hair. Is my hair highlight-able or do I need to dye it brown?

I am at a loss. Me and my six white hairs.

Couldn't Be Prouder

2011-04-15T13:27:00.001-07:00

Not sure who I am more proud of. Sarah for doing so well her first time skiing, or her mom for achieving her year long goal of getting Sarah on the slopes before she turns four (which technically happens after 11 tonight). Who gets your vote?

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So Proud

2011-04-11T07:34:00.000-07:00

I was so proud of Steele as I watched him devour the broccoli and cauliflower that I had made. He will also eat Spinach, Onions, Asparagus, Brussel Sprouts, and honestly anything that I give him. You name the grossest looking baby food ever, and he will eat it.

Well, as I was basking in the healthy eating habits of my baby, I took note that he will also eat toenail clippings, my ponytail holders, and salty-greasy McDonald's French Fries with the same vigour.

He is a goat.

Steele needs Sunday Clothes

2011-04-08T14:54:00.000-07:00

Andrew: "Why are we looking at clothes?"

Candice: "Steele needs Sunday clothes."

Sarah: "Mommy, here are Sunday clothes for Steele. He can dance in them."

Andrew takes a picture with his new "phone"...more on that later.

Notice Steele's expression.

True story.

Andrew had posted this on Facebook, but for all those (like me) who are not Facebook frequenters...I had to share.

Kitchen Secrets

2011-04-07T09:39:00.000-07:00

I have this book, that has become one of my favourites. It is a 'Kitchen Secrets' book. I gives me hints on how to clean, cook, and make life a little easier.

For example: Put wash cloth in a microwave tip to sanitize it. I placed my nasty wet kitchen wash cloth in the microwave for two minutes and it worked beautifully. I wondered though, if I was not supposed to put it in the microwave wet.

So I put it in dry today.

And set it on fire.

Definitely sanitized.

Lovely weekend

2011-04-03T17:22:00.000-07:00

A not-yet Latter-day saint and lifetime Utah girl mentioned that it was Conference Weekend. I was surprised and pleased that she was aware of it. It is kind of like someone being aware of your birthday, but better. It happens to be my very favorite weekend (x2) of the year-trumping my birthday.

She mentioned that it almost always rains on Conference Weekend. I had honestly not noticed. I just notice that every 6 months, the Church is truer, and I understand what I need to do to be a little happier.

Well, I noticed the rain theory this Conference weekend. What in the world!? And not merely rain. Is blizzard too strong of a word?

(this was taken Sunday morning as we were getting ready to have Breakfast with my beloved in-laws)
Oh, Bernice, if you ever find my blog, please know that God loves this church even though he does not make Utah weather miracles for it. Wait a minute...moisture is a desert miracle!

***************************************

I have peaceful in-laws. I write that because I am super intense and come from an intense family. It is a sweet thing for someone like me to being around such...calming....people. I love them for that, and a thousand other reasons.

My children love them even more than I do, which is a lot.

Andrew took the children to the park on the Conference day that was actually outside tolerable. He taught Sarah to play baseball with a real bat. None of those hollow plastic things.

I thought this picture was interesting because of Steele's locale. Can you find him? Over by the truck. Away from all adults.

Andrew swears that the picture makes him look a lot further away than he really is.

I am sure that baby boy Rail is not really closer to the road than to his Dad. It is just a camera trick...right?

Spring!

2011-03-31T19:07:00.000-07:00

I feel like we have been inside for months waiting for spring to come. It sometimes comes in for a moment, only to be whisked away with a cold dry wind trailing snow flurries.

I almost missed the warmth of today. I had looked outside and thought the blue sky I saw was merely toying with me.
But it was not. In hurried celebration so as not to miss it, we went to the park-twice. And we picked up these beauties for $3 at Deseret Industries for some neighborhood cruising.
Sarah and Tutti would be the best of friends. They both have awesome roller skating skills. No inline skates for us. We like the old school.

And we LOVE March 31, 2011 for it finally felt like Spring.

Never had a Spring Break

2011-03-23T05:21:00.000-07:00

I hear the words Spring Break whispered all around. This is a new concept for me.

I have never had a Spring Break, and I am glad of it.

Not that I am glad never to have had a Spring Break, because it might have been fun, but I am glad of my great alternatives.

Alternative number 1: Spud Harvest Vacation

Between September and October, the Idaho Potato Farmers tell their School Boards when they will Harvest. Then, all of the students are released for two weeks to help in that endeavor.

I wonder if you wish that you were from Idaho now.

It is a great time to go to Disneyland, because not many other places have a Spud Harvest Vacation in lu of Spring Break. Really, would you rather go to the Magic Kingdom in October with the Idahoans, or during Spring Break with the rest of the world?

Alternative number 2: End School earlier.

I went to BYU. They had a great idea to send their students into the summer work force a little faster, or get a spring semester in. So, instead of a crazy spring break, we finished winter semester in April and got to work, maybe nabbing summer positions before the competition.

Then I got married. Marriage, thank goodness does not have a Spring Break. No need.

Still Winter

2011-03-17T11:27:00.000-07:00

Does it seem that this winter is one of the longer ones?

Well, it is not yet July and snowing, but I have been mistakenly thinking that 'spring is just around the corner' for a few months.

Anyway, in celebration of a spring not yet arrived, I took my sequestered, backyard-less children to the park. Liberty Park. The fabled Central Park of Salt Lake City.

We were the only ones who had that great idea.
I did not have long to wonder why.
My little-ones were sadly under-dressed for the weather. But since PBS Kids had recommended one hour of outside play every day, I had to keep them out there for at least an hour (I take recommendations seriously).

I knew that I had probably taken it a little far when Steele's tooth started chattering. Violently.
But we still had a marvelous time and will return again tomorrow.

Dressing Problems

2011-03-15T19:52:00.000-07:00

Today I felt as if I were doing really well. You know, getting the hard things done while running as fast as I could. I did my Visiting Teaching, sent in my tax documents, ran to Primary Children's for an emergency visit to my cousin, worked, took the kids to the park-twice, wrote a note to an old friend, returned my library books the day that they were due, paid for my Girl Scout cookies...

Yet, as I was leaving my visiting teachee to race home because Andrew needed to make his own hospital visit (not HIS own, but to help in a blessing) I noticed something-

I had two different shoes on. Socks, maybe. But shoes?

Steele my Heart and the Loch Ness Tooth

2011-03-14T21:04:00.000-07:00

Steele turns 10 months old today! I will say this every month until he is 100 years old, but I cannot believe how time has flown and how much a adore him. As I said his name today, I could not help but add 'my heart' to the end of his name, 'Steele'.

He is an amazing communicator. I feel at times that he can truly talk, mostly with his eyes, using complete and utter eye contact. He also uses his body, and I feel that he has an excellent ear for sound in that he mimics us astonishingly well.

And he has a tooth. Finally. It arrived three days ago.

This is part of the "Steele finally cut his first tooth three days shy of his tenth month" photo shoot. No, try as we might, the tooth was not captured on film.

So it's the Loch Ness Tooth. We realize people in blogland will just have to have a little faith that it exists until we capture a blurry shot of his physical accomplishment. But aren't all photos of the Loch Ness blurry anyway?

It feels like a big one too.

Something New

2011-03-13T19:24:00.000-07:00

Last week I wrote that there was nothing new, but today there is.

I got a new calling today.

I HAD been in the Young Womens for over three years. I LOVE Young Womens. When I am 95-years-old, I will still love Young Womens and being with the youth, shakin' my 95-year-old body at the youth dances, and cheering at Girl's Camp. I will probably be a Young Womens leader in the next life too. That, or in the Relief Society, but I will have to have lived a Super Celestial life to deserve that one. Nothing touches Relief Society in wonderfulness.

My most feared calling is Primary. I am not sure why. I have always dreaded it. That calling or Ward Librarian. Those are two callings that I willed not to come to me.

I was called to the Primary.

Thank goodness the Church is True, because even while I sat sobbing through Sacrament Meeting as they released and recalled me, I felt myself change, shift.

I have changed into a Primary Teacher. I will love it. I am pumped.

A Family Set Apart

2011-03-08T09:43:00.000-08:00

My cousin Keri just shared this with me, from the youth pages of lds.org.

One of the stars is my Dad. He is the pilot and the one giving the fireside. He built the museum that houses the airplanes and owns most of them.

Cool hobby, huh?

It is fun to have something a little bit different...a little bit special in your family that sets you apart. I was blessed to be born into a family with a rich family culture of being a little out of the ordinary in a great way.

I am still trying to come up with something that sets my tiny Team Rail apart. As my children grow, I believe that will be more defined.

I want to have a great family culture. I want it to be cooler to be a Rail for my kids than being on any sports team, club, or group of friends (although those are great too if they are making good choices).

I want this because I want to get my entire family back to Heavenly Father with me more than I want to breath. I want our kids to desire to be with our family forever so vehemently that they will choose Team Rail over anything.

Go Team Rail.

What is new?

2011-03-06T18:21:00.000-08:00

Saturday, I went into Banana Republic for a short shift. I had not been there for a week, so when I saw other associates, they asked me, "So, what is new?"

I could not think of anything. I had not been skydiving lately, we had not moved, I had not learned a new language, no new children, I have not traveled to another country, or won any awards as of late.

I wanted to have done something new and hard. Something that would have made time slow down. For example, when you begin a new semester in school, or begin a new job, or have a new baby, time slows down, and a week stretches to a month. That is what I wanted to have done.

And I would have had a cool answer to that question.

Here is my picture for the week. I love Steele's long eyelashes. I love his wise eyes. I love the way that he looks at people, observing them until he can call them friend.

Facebook today

2011-02-28T14:45:00.000-08:00

I look at my Facebook every few months. I miss a lot. Yesterday, I was pondering where to send Sarah to school and I needed advice; Facebook was the logical place to ask. It is indeed becoming the next great search engine. I did get some great advice, and I am pumped to follow up on it.

Facebook is also a place to find and to be found by old friends from all over the world. Today I got this message from the Philippines:

"Tumaba na si Marimar, but still beauty pa rin...Kumusta."

It was very Filippino. Tagalog mixed in with a little English, and oh, the translation:

"You have gotten fatter, but still beautiful...How are you?"

I love it.

In her defense, to be told that you are getting fat is a compliment in the Philippines. So. basically she was saying, 'You look like you are doing well'. At least I hope that is what she meant:).

And, I got ridiculously thin on my mission...near unhealthy thin. The Filipinos would say that I was getting thinner, and while my American brain took it as a compliment, they were really saying, "it looks as though you are having a rough mission".

So thank you my Filippino friend for telling me that it looks like life is really great, because it is.

I had to add a picture. This is from Andrew's phone. I am always amazed at Sarah's complete and utter unsqueamishness. So proud am I.

Aquarium bliss

2011-02-23T21:03:00.000-08:00

In the bleak Midwinter, we were given VIP tickets to the Aquarium in Sandy. Aquariums are great, but not as great as when you have a three year old. Three year olds make potentially boring aquariums (a.k.a. fish zoo's) magical wonderlands.
Sarah practically swam with the Sting Ray. I thought that he was gross, but Sarah spent an hour with him.

Sarah post sting ray visit. Note the state of her 'I swam with the Sting Ray' clothing on this bitter cold day.

I love this girl. And I love her for granting me aquarium bliss in January.

Songs One and Two

2011-02-23T05:44:00.000-08:00

This is the first song on our nightly dancing playlist. Andrew heard it on National Public Radio, and we have been fans ever since:

She is the same person who sings with Shakira in the Waka Waka song which is also in the playlist. Shakira looks way better than us doing the Waka Waka dance. I become a soccer fan every time I watch it.

10th Anniversary

2011-02-20T19:01:00.000-08:00

During my blog break, we celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary.

I am in one of those great marriages that gets better with time. Some people try to resurrect 'the way that it was'. Luckily for me, my marriage is WAY better now than it ever was and it gets better every day. In 5,000 years I will probably look back and think the same.

Andrew is my fortress. He has created a world of safety and happiness for me largely due to his confidence and faith. I am a happy woman.

Oh, for posterity's sake, I gave him a towel. I know, so romantic. Andrew really loves showers and I thought that he would love his very own 820 gram weight pottery barn classic towel. I am not allowed to use it to remove my makeup.

Happy Anniversary, babe.

The non-chubby picture

2011-02-18T20:25:00.000-08:00

My sister Katrina mentioned in my comments that she thought she looked a little chubby in one of the pictures of our Texas Sister Vacation. I laughed and laughed.
So, here is the non-chubby looking picture of Katrina taken the same day.

Sweety, I always thought that we had the same body-type so you give me hope...that if I just worked out 3 HOURS A DAY 6 DAYS A WEEK, I would look like you.

You are beautiful inside and out. That is why we constantly migrate to you. You are our favorite.

The Dress

2011-02-18T05:29:00.000-08:00

We had not posted in a while, and now I am purging with missed posts, which I might never catch up on...but maybe I will. My blog is a real history for me, as well as a place to communicate with others that I love because I lose my cell phone all of the time.

So I am trying to communicate again.

Sarah has spent serious dancing time these last few weeks due in part to her dancing dress.

She picked it out at GAP, and it is the best twirling dress ever made, in that the twirl begins just below the shoulders (i.e. the armpits). Brilliant.

She wears it all day, every day. When we go out, she wears it with a sweater (because the dress is immodest, and it is freezing outside), and blue moon boots from Walmart; the dress because it is beautiful, and the Moonboots, because she can put them on herself and I am lazy, regardless of how horrible moonboots look with a pink dress, or any piece of clothing.

Every evening when Andrew gets home we run upstairs, where he puts on our family dancing playlist. We all love to dance, and we do it all together every day a few minutes. I will have to post our dance list sometime. We are big on South Africa music.

Sarah actually prefers classical ballet music, though, because it goes better with the dress.

Happy Birthday, Mom

2011-02-17T07:05:00.000-08:00

What does 60 years old look like? I know I have said it a thousand times, but in my mind it does not look like my beautiful Mom. Happy Birthday good mother of mine.

I was blessed and blessed and blessed to have been raised by you.

I took this picture on their last mission visit to the Church Historical Department. We gave her an early birthday present.

Have a wonderful day today, Mom.

Sister Trip 2011

2011-02-16T10:57:00.000-08:00

In the bleak midwinter, my Idaho sisters decided that they needed some warmth and sunshine. So a completely spur-of-the-moment sister trip was executed. I was so glad. Right behind Andrew, my sisters are my truest friends and the people I most love to spend time with.

We gathered in Houston, Texas because Texas is awesome, and Katrina, our youngest sister, lives there.
This picture was taken in Galveston ,TX (for Twilight buffs, this is where Jasper became a vampire). I was taking a picture of Jaclyn. I did not notice my other two sisters were posing for the shot from the window.

For those who know my family, I will give you a familial update:

Katrina is still an L.A. fitness instructor, and teaches something like 12-14 classes per week even in the throws of her first trimester of pregnancy. It will be her third. Jon, her husband has one year left of Dental School, and I am hoping that they will move to a warm place that is as close to us as possible. Because I really like her.

Jaclyn is the mother is two and is waiting for the third to come into their lives quite how the first two came. On this trip I loved her excellent sense of fit and color, and that she has the same worry about keeping people waiting that I do. Her husband is a P.A. in Island Park, Idaho.

Brandi is expecting a baby girl. I heard that genetically, the better looking the parents the greater the likelihood of a girl. Well, this is Brandi's sixth girl. You decide.

They are living in Rexburg where Steve is the busiest of doctors and they recently bought their dream property.

We have plans for our next trip two years from now. If Mom is not on a mission we would love for her to be there too.

Sisters are one of the sweetest things that Heavenly Father gives women. I was blessed with the best He had to offer.

Steele

2011-02-16T10:30:00.000-08:00

Steele is 9 months old. It is hard to believe, because I feel like he was born a few weeks ago. As I write this I am uploading the pictures from his birth. Practically a year of photos.
Right now he can go from lying down to sitting position, he will eat anything I give him (hooray for a veggie eating baby), he can cruise, but does not enjoy it immensely, will tour around in his now thrashed baby bjorn for hours, has been told that he is teething since he was 2 weeks old, but has yet to break a single tooth, has the longest eyelashes, fingers and toes, and best of all...
He adores me. How can I resist someone who looks at me with such love?

I cannot.

A Wealthy Weekend

2011-02-16T10:20:00.000-08:00

While I was gone, Sarah and Dad had their own staycation. They went swimming, to a music store to try out child-size violins, to a children's playplace in Ogden, and on the back of their swim passes there were free tickets to the University of Utah's Women's Gymnastic meet, so they could not pass up that opportunity.

Andrew came home the other week and said, 'poor people give their children many things...wealthy people give their children many experiences'.

Sarah had a wealthy weekend with her Dad.

Future Olympian

2010-12-29T20:26:00.000-08:00

Sarah went ice skating for the first time today.

I worried for a moment about a 3 year old daughter who might be timid. I did not want to traumatize her on her first ice experience.

I had no need to worry. She was confident, balanced, fast and brave.

While we circled the rink, I began again to expect no less than Olympic level athleticism out of my eldest.

No pressure, Sarah. Okay, maybe a little pressure, Sarah.

Every round on the ice we were greeted by our biggest fans pictured below:

On the right, Dorah the Explorer (one of Sarah's mentors), Steele, Sarah's littlest friend, and of course the unpictured Dad, who loves Sarah more than any daughter has the right to be loved.

It was more than a wonderful time. I was button bursting proud.

Christmas 2010

2010-12-29T19:48:00.000-08:00

Some pictures from last week

2010-12-20T09:15:00.000-08:00

Sunday night (my 36th birthday night)we went to Temple Square again to catch some Christ-mas spirit.
I thought while we were at it, we might try to take a family picture with all of us. This is rare, because one of us is always holding the camera. So, as the light faded from the rainy sky, we propped our camera on the granite ledges of the Conference Center and got two whole pictures with three out of four of us looking at the camera.

Since Steele has been born, Sarah has been very nurturing to her dolls. I do not even strap Steele into his highchair, yet her baby is secure.
But I do dress him. This poor doll needs clothes. We do not usually eat in the nude.

I am holding my homemade birthday present from Dad. He is quite the craftsman on his missions. It is an oak jewelry box. We had the chance to see them when they had a meeting at the Church's Historical Department.

Happy Birthday week to me.

We are now off to BennyHana for my free birthday month dinner. Yay.

35 was a banner year

2010-12-19T13:52:00.000-08:00

I am 36 today. And it has been a banner year.

For some reason I have been ridiculously happy this year. Gratitude, gratitude, gratitude. I cannot pinpoint exactly why.

Maybe it is the gallons of happy serotonin pumped into my body from a 7 month old who would never take a bottle.

Maybe it is because of a husband who spends most of his time thinking of ways to make me happy.

Maybe it was from being pregnant, and while my pregnancies are few and far between, they are good times for me.

Maybe it is Heavenly Father saying, "have a great year".

Oh how I hope for another year such as this...or another life such as this.

Becoming American

2010-12-15T10:20:00.000-08:00

Sarah, Steele and I went to witness a spouse of one of Andrew's cousins become an American citizen at the overflowing Rose Wagner Theater in Salt Lake City.

I did not expect it to be such a spiritual experience. It was the Gospel to me. It was people so grateful to renounce allegiance to former countries and finally be Americans...and I felt the blessings, peace, and opportunity that would follow for generations.

The judge presiding over the 'court' had people from different countries express their feelings about becoming American. It was as sweet as your favorite testimony meeting.

I heard words like Peace (from Refugees of war torn countries), Freedom (to choose their own religion), Education, Gratitude, Limitless Opportunity, and Sacrifice.

A man born in Somalia said, 'If I were to become a citizen of Russia or Germany, I would still be Somalian. But today I am American.'

So am I, and I remember today why I am so blessed to be one.

Midway Creche

2010-12-06T09:20:00.000-08:00

No one does Christmas like Germany, and a close second entails taking a trip to Swiss settled, Midway, UT.
Sunday, we drove to the other side of Mt. Timpanogas and viewed my favorite Creche exhibit at the Midway LDS Stake Center (165 N Center).
These are pictures of us dressing up in Nativity Garb for the free pictures they take and give to you. The kids LOVED this.

Sarah ended up watching the Czech Marionettes three times with and without her cousins as the puppets magically reenacted the Savior's Birth.
Andrew specifically took a picture of this drawing, although I am not completely sure why...maybe he liked that the angel looks like Casper.

This is Andrew....I liked how among the angels that visited the shepherds was one of Pac-Man's Ghosts.

The ghost angel helps me understand why the Shepherds might have trembled a little. It is pretty scary.

Better eat your power pellet, Good Shepherd.

The Happiest of Thanksgivings

2010-11-28T17:08:00.000-08:00

We feel blessed multiple times a moment, in ways that we can say and ways that we must keep in our hearts.

We were invited to our neighbors for Thanksgiving. They are a part-Russian family who was celebrating their first American Thanksgiving.
People who asked looked skeptical when we told them of our plans of Borscht and smoked fish Thanksgiving. Our favorite meals, though, have been when our foreign friends invite us over for celebrations. The Ethopian confirmation we attended was amazing, our Ramadan feast with our Jerusalem friends was delectable, and my Saudi Arabian women's party cannot be equaled.
This Thanksgiving with a twist was no different. It was super-delicious. It had Russian elements combined with turkey and mashed potatoes, but to be honest, I was so stuffed by the time I got to the American fare, I could barely enjoy it.

This is Sarah with her Borscht. Thank you, Olga, Scott, and Katya.
Black Friday was Fabulous! We walked into REI at 8:00 a.m. when it opened and were handed $40 in gift cards to spend. Steele got some REI pajamas for free that he could climb Mt. Everest in. Sarah got a coat and boots...from Sears. Not quite Everest worthy, but wonderful nonetheless.

Then we pulled out the decorations.
It cannot get more magical than decorating a tree with a child. We were blessed with economical Christmas decor, for we got the tree for free when Banana Republic at Trolley Square closed last year. The tree topper was in a meats gift basket that was to be thrown away. We bundled it up, wrapped the included ribbon and tied it on the tree.
On Saturday, we pulled out all of our warm clothing and went sledding at Sugar House Park.

Followed by Andrew's awesome hot chocolate.
A visit from Uncle Shawn and Aunt Chantal.
An attempt at Monkey Bread.
We also cut Andrew's hair while listening to the BYU-Utah game. Andrew felt like it would be good if I did it, so after watching three different YouTube haircutting demonstrations, I went for it. It turned out astonishingly handsome. Blessedly, Andrew has a lot of good hair to work with.

It was a perfect weekend. I wrote about some of the outward things that we did, but I wish that I could express all of the small things that happened where we knew that angels were sending gifts from the kindest of Fathers.

Happy Thanksgiving 2010. It was the happiest for us.

The Day Before the Day Before Thanksgiving or How to Cook a Perfect Turkey in 3 Hours or Less

2010-11-23T16:47:00.000-08:00

It is the day before the day before Thanksgiving. This is the time that we start brining our turkey. If you have not had a brined turkey yet, what a great year to start the tradition.

We have made it our tradition to wait until at least Thanksgiving Day to listen to Christmas music, and then we we become Christmas music superfans.

Three staples for the Rail's Thanksgiving:

Rail-Good Eats Turkey (as in Alton Brown, but the brine is not from him)

1 (14 to 16 pound) frozen young turkey

For the Brine:

2 quarts apple juice
1 pound brown sugar
1 cup kosher salt
3 oranges, quartered
4 ounces fresh ginger, thinly sliced
15 whole cloves
6 bay leaves
6 large cloves garlic, crushed

For the aromatics:

1 red apple, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup water
4 sprigs rosemary
6 leaves sage
Canola oil

DIRECTIONS

Day 1:
In a large saucepan over high heat, bring the apple juice, brown sugar, and salt to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar and salt. Cook for 1 minute, remove from the heat, and skim off the foam. Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature.

In a 5-gallon plastic bucket or other container large enough to easily hold the turkey, combine 3 quarts of water, the oranges, ginger, cloves, bay leaves, and garlic. Add the apple juice mixture and stir.

Remove and discard the fat from the turkey cavity. Reserve the neck and giblets for another use. Rinse the turkey inside and out, drain, place thawed turkey in the brine, turkey breast side down, cover, and refrigerate or set in cool area (like a basement). If necessary, top with a heavy weight to make sure it is completely immersed. Turn turkey over once, half way through brining. Refrigerate for 24 hours.

Day 2:
A few minutes before roasting, heat oven to 500 degrees. Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick, and cup of water in a microwave safe dish and microwave on high for 5 minutes.

Remove bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard brine.

Place bird on roasting rack inside wide, low pan and pat dry with paper towels. Add steeped aromatics to cavity along with rosemary and sage. Tuck back wings and coat whole bird liberally with canola (or other neutral) oil.

Roast on lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees F. for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cover breast with double layer of aluminum foil, insert probe thermometer into thickest part of the breast and return to oven, reducing temperature to 350 degrees F. Set thermometer alarm (if available) to 161 degrees. A 14 to 16 pound bird should require a total of 2 to 2 1/2 hours of roasting. Let turkey rest, loosely covered for 15 minutes before carving.

Rail-Mama Stamberg-NPR Cranberry Relish (been making this for ten years....it is amazing....I love, love, love it)

2 cups whole raw cranberries, washed
Pomegrante seeds (new we are trying this year)
1 small onion
3/4 cup sour cream (we have tried yogurt to cut out on the fat....do not try that...it gets watery and watered down...sour cream is worth the extra 8 minutes on the elliptical)
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons horseradish from a jar (red is a bit milder than white)

Grind the raw berries, seeds, and onion together (do not puree).

Add everything else and mix.

Put in a plastic container and freeze.

Early Thanksgiving morning, move it from freezer to refrigerator compartment to thaw. (It should still have some little icy slivers left.)

The relish will be thick, creamy, and shocking pink (think Pepto-Bismo pink, but you will looooooove this)

"Loves me some" Aunt Liza Rolls

With commentary by Candice

In one mixing bowl combine:

2 1/2 cups hot water (not too hot, you should be able to put a baby in)
2 tablespoons yeast (she used the quick kind)
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup oil
2 eggs
1 tsp salt (unbeknownst to me this kills the sugar feeding yeast)
No more than 6 1/2 cups of flour (begin with 3 cups, mix, and add until the dough pulls away from the sides.)

Cover and let rise until double. Punch down and form into rolls, placing on cookie sheet an inch apart.

Let rise for about 15 minutes or desired size.

Bake 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

Any other recipes to share? Post them on my facebook page! And if we ain't friends yet, well we should be!

After the Funeral

2010-11-14T19:45:00.000-08:00

Even with the knowledge of the Resurrection, losing a dear one still hurts.

But, with the knowledge of the Resurrection, coupled with the sweet Gift called the Holy Ghost, there was joy too.

Forever family became a little sweeter, and ever stronger.

We were ever grateful for Ministering Angels sent to save us. (These are the women at McDonalds who scooped up Brandi's babies and watched over them while Brandi tended to Juliet).
For family members a little closer to the veil. The man on the right is Uncle Terry, our family Patriarch. Besides being the eldest, he spends the most time in the temple making him downright angelic.
And the ones closest to the veil on the other end.

I was amazed at even more angels from the Hibbard 5th Ward. Never has a family been served better from a ward. They thought of ways to serve that I had never considered.

The Gospel has always been everything to me and mine. Now it is Everything with a capital 'E'. It is the reason we smile, with our arms wrapped even more tightly around each other.

Because you lived...

2010-11-13T06:59:00.000-08:00

Because you lived, Juliet, we all lived. Only better.

We love you and look forward to the day we will hold you again.

"(T)he closing of a grave is but the closing of a door which later will be flung open with rejoicing."
Grandfather Robert Lofgran quoting Neal A. Maxwell at Juliet's funeral

Editor's note: This video will in time be replaced with another one. We are just missing a couple of pictures that need to be included.

THANK YOU and Funeral Information

2010-11-08T13:24:00.000-08:00

First of all I would like to write a big THANK YOU to everyone-people that we know and people we do not, but are kind enough to make room in tens of thousands of prayers.

This has been a powerful experience.

Juliet's funeral will be Wednesday, at 11:00 a.m. at the Hibbard Wardhouse 2001 N 3000 W, Rexburg, ID. Her Viewing will be at Flamm Funeral Home on Tuesday from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Mom and Dad Lofgran (Juliet's parents) are at peace. Thank you again for lifting them and us with your faith.

You can find more information by clicking Juliet's funeral

We know where she is

2010-11-05T05:51:00.001-07:00

Juliet passed away at 4:00 a.m. this morning.

Mom and Dad Bagley are flying Brandi and Steve home to Idaho as I write this. Juliet has five other siblings and one on the way waiting at home for them.

Dear Juliet,

We all love you, and will live so that we can spend a trillion more years with you. Our heavenly girl.

Love,

Aunt Candice

An accident...prayers needed

2010-11-04T15:48:00.000-07:00

There was an accident today. My sister, Brandi, took her children to lunch at McDonald's as a treat. A driver of a truck in the parking lot did not notice little Juliet until her body was entirely under his wheel.
They wanted to life flight her to Primary Children's, but she could not be stabilized and they lost her twice. After surgery in Idaho Falls, she and her Mom were life flighted to Salt Lake City.

Mom and Dad met them at the airport.
Juliet just finished her second surgery (11:00 p.m.). You see, her liver was crushed. Three masterful surgeons worked on her to save her life. She should be conscious in a week.
I asked Brandi if I could send the word out about the accident. She said yes. In her thinking, the more people who know, the more prayers will be offered.

Juliet needs prayers (as do her Mom, Dad, and siblings)

So, if you have a little room in your prayers for this little one, I would be grateful.

The best part of our day

2010-10-30T21:58:00.000-07:00

I was just taking a relaxing bath (the kind you take when everyone in the house is asleep, and you are waiting to give the baby a dream feed so he will sleep through the night), when I thought about the best part of this day. It was between parties. We were sitting in our living room together, with "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown" streaming over the internet. We were taking turns drawing a face on a pumpkin patch pumpkin with permanent black marker. The pumpkin had turned from traditional jack o' lantern into a mermaid pumpkin. Sarah was dancing in between artistic endeavors. Probably on a bit of a sugar high. Steele was squealing and laughing. There was a sweet spirit in our home and we were happy.

That is when we are happiest. When we are together. All together. Andrew, Sarah, Steele, and I. We are always happy when we are all together.

In fact, our family theme song is "Better when we're together" by Jack Johnson.

I met triplets today while at Banana Republic. I loved them. They were sisters in their 70s with a palpable bond. I basked in their closeness and relished their triplet stories. I told them that I had always wanted to be a multiple or have a multiple.

My reasoning was forever friendship. I have always believed that if you are or have a multiple, you have instant companion. I was ALMOST a multiple. Brandi is my almost twin, being 11 months younger than me. She was my other half growing up. Then came Jaclyn and Katrina, and we were practically quadruplets..."the girls"-always grouped together, but we never minded. Then came our adored brother Shawn. They were my favorite friends, and still are. My siblings are my great companions.

Now my companions are Drew, Sarah, and Steele. There is not a day that goes by that I hope for more children so that I can have more best friends for our family.

Anyway, enough of my 11:20 p.m. rambling. I am late for Steele's feeding. I just did not want to forget the best part of my day.

Mermaid Spirit

2010-10-30T19:40:00.000-07:00

Halloween is not a joy without children. It can be fun, yes, but not a joy.

Sarah is finally at the age where she appreciates this strange candy-filled holiday, and we love her for it. Today would not have been as fun without our Mermaid (you cannot see it, but she has a fish tail).
She was originally going to be a Peacock. Not of her own choice. I had found a lovely peacock costume at the Pottery Barn Outlet in Memphis, and decided then that Sarah would be a peacock, and she had graciously resigned herself to it.

But, Heavenly Father loves Sarah the Mermaid (she has been in mermaid mode for several weeks now), for I misplaced her peacock costume on this day of our Halloween festivities. Really, it was gone.

So Dad went to Pottery Barn Kids this morning and got Sarah Mermaid a costume that went with her Mermaid spirit. Blessedly, it was $30 instead of the original $70.
It is also sized for 7-8 year olds. Our three year old is totally pinned into this outfit. I was glad, though, for she will hopefully be a mermaid every year until she is 18. That would be great, because my sewing skills are in their infancy.

This is Drew at the Fall Festival our Stake puts on every year. He said that he was Linus, and he is carrying the Great Pumpkin. At our final party (we attended three Halloween celebrations today), Drew was carrying a blue Linus Blanket.
This is us on our way to our last party of the night. The poor kids were so tired.
Our poor ward Trunk or Treat was moved inside because of rain. Then it was moved outside because of smoke...and the church fire alarms telling us to evacuate.
The poor Firefighters. Two other chapels in our area had been set fire and severely damaged this morning. It is painful when something sacred is desecrated. I hurt for the displaced members of our Stake. Arson was suspected.

This visit, though, was just too much smoke coming from the kitchen. Thankfully.

Drew will be guarding our Chapel tonight on shifts with other priesthood holders. He will keep our House safe just as he keeps our Home safe.

Swim Lessons

2010-10-19T11:57:00.000-07:00

Fearless. Without Fear. Ready to go. No tears in this pool.
Sarah finally started swim lessons. A new baby held us back during the summer. She is the only child in her class without previous lessons, and she is holding her own.

We do not have the usual sweet teenage swim teacher, and Sarah's instructor is a little harsh (she is a 'yeller' but it does not seem to phase the children...just their parents).

Nevertheless, Sarah will have thousands of multi-tempered teachers in her lifetime, and she will learn good things from every one. That is my hope.

A Lady killer with Manners

2010-10-17T20:39:00.000-07:00

I wish that I loved to cook. For me, cooking is not a joy, as much as a means to an end.
My end is to hopefully make my family civilized. Civilized people sit down at the table to eat; they have manners. Studies show that families who sit down together for meals are stronger. It is a way to teach children how to function in society.

Our family cannot do these things unless meals are cooked, and we are sitting at the table to eat them.

If it were wholly up to me, I guess we would be eating a lot of raw vegetables on the run; but because awesome people keep mentioning it in General Conference...and my parents taught me well, I have to do things like borrow Andrew's subscription to Martha Stewart Everyday Food (he wrote out my menu for the week).
The reason why I mention this, is because Steele finally got a high chair; so that he could be civilized with us.
He now has some of his meals at the table.
We are practicing his manners for when he goes on a mission:
or for when he woos virtuous women. He will be a lady killer...a lady killer with manners.

Sixth Crossing

2010-10-13T13:28:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad are again on a mission. They are the director's of 'Sixth Crossing' in the middle of Wyoming. Before I went, I was not quite sure what Sixth Crossing meant.
The name signifies the sixth crossing of the Sweetwater River as settlers came west on the Oregon, California, Pony Express, and Mormon Trails (I hope that I have that right). It is also the place where the Willie Handcart Company was saved.

The land was untouched, and felt holy by the sacrifice of 500,000 pioneers, particularly our pioneers. I loved feeling the land, and breathing the clean air.

When I went to Jerusalem, I had hoped to walk where Jesus walked. Well, when I got there I realized that Jerusalem had changed and I was walking streets maybe 50 ft. above where He walked.

In Wyoming, you really walk the same trails and see the same things the Pioneers saw (thank you Sun family for preserving it). It is an amazing experience, and Mom and Dad are EXCELLENT tour guides.

'Willie', the Sixth Crossing dog. Sarah was in Sarah heaven playing with Mom and Dad's new mascot. She took this picture.

The Sweetwater. We were told that it was far larger and deeper when it brought the Saints to their knees.

Sister Bagley (Gran) and Sarah walking to Church at Martin's Cove. Dad is in the Branch Presidency, and most of the missionaries have gone home for the winter. Only a few remain, including Mom and Dad.

I had not bought any winter pajamas yet, so Steele went to his Wyoming bed in his Halloween Pumpkin costume. I am a firm believer that costumes should be worn more than once.

When arrived in Wyoming and were greeted by hot homemade bread. My favorite.
This is where Mom and Dad will live, and where they will brave the winter (I cannot help but think of the difference between their beautiful home in Idaho, and this trailer. But, in true Mom fashion, she made it welcoming and beautiful).

I think that the sparse winter missionaries are called 'polar bears'.

On the drive back, we stopped at 'Little America' in the middle of nowhere. I think that was its charm. We met people from all over the world, and got these gargantuan 50 cent ice cream cones.

Have a great Wyoming winter, Elder and Sister Bagley. We love that you are serving, and we loved visiting you.

Warmer clothes

2010-10-06T12:06:00.000-07:00

Our drooler. I do not think that my children swallow saliva. All of the wet spots around him, including on his onesie came from his mouth. The poor boy is 24/7 soaked, and I am constantly asked if he is teething. Maybe. Sarah did not get her teeth until she was close to one year, and she stopped swallowing her own saliva shortly after birth.

He was weighed and measured today. Because he was only in the 5th percentile in weight, I was given multiple suggestions on how to help my skinny boy gain. Everything from dressing him in warmer clothes, because it takes calories to keep warm, to pumping the foremilk before he eats, so that he can get more of the creamy calorie dense desert at the end.
I was told that his lankiness was probably hereditary. "His father is lanky, right?" the nurse asked.

That is when I start to worry a little. Andrew and I had absolutely no natural skinniness to pass on to this boy.

I will dress him in warmer clothes.

Ramblin'

2010-10-05T15:28:00.000-07:00

This came in the mail yesterday.

Andrew received it because he was being uber enthusiastic about gourmet jellies on the phone...with the marketing director of the company. I was grateful that it did not cost us a fortune for this early Christmas. Just kind words.

Speaking of kindness on the phone, I love Medical Bill people. This week, one 'took care of' a $300 bill for me. Another one, cancelled a $200 bill. To say that I was happy was an understatement. Merry Christmas to me. I felt blessed, and am in love with all people who work in medical billing.

This girl is another one of my blessings. Because we do not have a back yard, Sarah is incredibly Park Playground savvy.

We go nearly every day. Rain or shine. This was a rain day, but I LOVED the clouds overhead.
I kept reciting the line from an old Reading Rainbow book, "THE BIG BLACK CLOUD, ALL HEAVY WITH RAIN, THAT SHADOWED THE GROUND ON KAPITI PLAIN"

This was in preparation for our Friday night Pre-Conference family date. I had to get a picture of us doing things we do a hundred times a day. Like put our shoes on. I do not have enough daily life pictures of my childhood. We seemed to take mostly special occasion pictures.
Well, this is part of our life. We put on our shoes...while balancing babies.

Without Drew...

2010-09-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

I never would have known why exactly I was Republican.

I never would have watched an entire football game, nor cared about the outcome.

I never would have read Narnia aloud.

I never would have subscribed to The Economist Magazine.

I never would have lived in China.

I never would have listened to NPR every day, nor BBC.

I never would have turned to the Food Channel.

I never would have eaten Stinky Tofu, Birds Nest, or Scorpions.

Have you ever wondered what you would have missed if you had not married who you did?

Without Drew, I never would have known how much Heavenly Father loves me.

Yummm- Cheese in Cache Valley

2010-09-25T19:12:00.000-07:00

Friends. Andrew grew up with these awesome women. I want Sarah to be just like them. They are the most exuberant, generous, genuine, spreaders of light and happiness I have ever met. I cannot write enough good about them. They took my breath away with their sweetness.
We went to Logan today for Andrew's best friend's (besides me, of course:) baby shower. Cami, and Tiffany (pictured above) were at the shower.

We wondered what to do in Logan pre-baby-shower, and we caught wind of the Gossner Cheese Factory. We LOVED it.
Free samples. Rich milk. Squeaky cheese. Rockin' prices. When I asked Andrew how he felt while we were there, he said, "It is like Christmas".
Trying to take a picture of Sarah at the Cheese Factory.
Oh, how she suffers.
I loved Logan before; truly, there are few places on the earth better than Logan. Now, I love it even more, thanks to the Gossner cheese factory, and their awesome ultra-high-temperature milk that you can shelve for months.

Try their Root-Beer flavored milk. Seriously.