The B's Bulletin

Welcome 2012

2012-01-16T07:21:00.000-07:00

On New Years Eve we went and so Dolphin Tale with the M's and my parents. It was a really good movie btw.

After that we went to the Training Table for dinner. We just had a fun time hanging out. C had gone with her friends and K had gone to Orem to a party. So it was us and S, CR, and G.

We were going to to to downtown SLC but decided against it since G was not feeling that great. We had heard about this celebration in our little town and so we thought we would try that. We came home and watched some TV and then we went downtown. Well we were very disappointed! There weren't many people and there wasn't much going on. So we went home did some fireworks and waited for the ball to drop at midnight and then went to bed.

It was a quiet but fun night. I can't believe another year has come and gone. The time just goes faster and faster the older you get.

On Sunday for New Years Day we got together to have dinner at my parent's house. We also celebrated G's birthday once again. She is lucky she gets so many parties!

G's 5th Birthday Week

2012-01-01T08:03:00.000-07:00

All year long G has been wanting to go to "Bookdocks" for her 5th Birthday. So that is what we did. She had a blast playing with all the games and in the gym area.

One of G's funny poses!

Before Boondocks while G was sleeping the older girls and I went to the mall to do some exchanges and the girls had to pose by David Archuleta.

That same day in the morning K fell on the ice and hurt her wrist and it was hurting her so bad that we had to take her to the urgent care to get it seen. KC and K went over to get it checked out. It was not broken but they put it in a brace to keep it still.

After those adventures we went home to have our corndogs, blackberries, raspberries dinner as requested by G. C's friends came over to our house to celebrate her b-day (like I have said before G thinks she is a teenager and therefore likes to hang out with C's teenage friends.)

We opened presents and had cupcakes to celebrate!

On Wednesday we went to the zoo with the M's and then off to Park City for some after Christmas shopping.

Thursday was a day at home taking down Christmas decorations.

Christmas 2011

2011-12-26T07:47:00.000-07:00

This year I wanted to make Christmas Eve a little more Christ centered. I made a video with a bunch of Christmas music and a slide show of pictures and videos about Christ. I didn't expect everyone to sit and watch it I just wanted background music with something to look at. I think it was a nice touch. Music has a way to set the mood.

For dinner I prepared a "Bethlehem Meal." This consisted of our traditional Guatemalan Paches, nuts, fruit, bread, veggie straws, etc. all in baskets as in Bethlemem. I tried to make everything seem as peaceful and humble as possible. We turned off the lights and at by candle light that night. I just wanted us to have a more reverent feeling for this night. I think it worked. The kids really liked it so I think we will continue with it for years to come.

After dinner we read from the New Testament in Luke and watched the LDS video clips just released by the church. Neither the kids or I were in any of those scenes but it was great to see a final project from the filming. But they are soooo amazing! Here is a link to watch them: LDS Bible Videos

After we remembered the true meaning of Christmas then it was time for presents. It's tradition in Guatemala to open presents on Christmas Eve (more like midnight on Christmas Eve but we do it a little earlier because midnight? really? How can Santa come then?). So we open the exchange gifts (we each get a name of another extended family member and buy for them a special gift). We open any gifts from the F side of the family. It's a crazy but bonding time for everyone (I think). We had a Bethlehem dessert (flan) before everyone went home.

After the fun of presents the kids get in their pj's and we try to get them to go to bed. After all Santa is coming...

Christmas Day was a little bit different this year because it happened on Christmas Day. Santa came but left all of the presents in big sacks because he knew we needed to go to church first before the viewing of the gifts. This helped a lot because we could focus our attention on Christ in the morning and allow us time to get ready. We had 9:00am Sacrament Meeting. It was a beautiful program with a narration by a family, a few musical numbers and the Choir. KC, C, CR and I sang in the choir.

When we got home we changed and then went to look at what Santa had brought. Just a small breakdown of the gifts:
K = Serger

C = Movie theater popcorn machine

S =Flute

CR = Nook

G = Littlest Pet Shop Treehouse and a Pink Nutcracker

KC & L = Tablets

Family = Exercise bike

Then we went down stairs and opened all of our gifts. For years we have been coming up with some other names to put on the presents instead of our own names and only the parents know who is who. This helped when the kids were young from comparing who had how many presents and the shaking trying to figure our what was inside. So we continue that tradition and this year we had "Dumbledore's Army" names from Harry Potter. So first the kids have to guess who they think everyone is and then we divide up and open. We take turns going in a circle and opening one present at a time. It takes some time to do it this way but this way we get to see what everyone gets.

After presents we had to get ready to go to the M's house. KC made is awesome egg nog and Z&J made Shrimp Etufe. It was all delicious!

We then had the program put on by the kids.

Then we did our white elephant gift exchange.

We stayed and made plans for the week and then we went home. G was so extremely tired that she was crying for everything. So we were glad to get her to bed.

On Monday night for family home evening we finished off the Christmas celebrations by going to Temple Square to see the lights! We also went to dinner at Pei-Wei. It was a fun family night. G was much happier today and had lots and lots of energy!

Twas 1 Week Before Christmas

2011-12-24T08:46:00.000-07:00

On Monday G had her Pre-school Christmas Program. She was so cute!

G asking Santa for a Pink Nutcracker???

Every time we ask G to pose for a picture she does something crazy. She refuses to just stand there and smile. If she does then she will just frown. This is the result of one of those pictures.

S and CR decided to pose with her for this one!

On Tuesday the kids were still in school and I went to do my internship for just an hour because I had an SEOP appointment but the rest of the time I frantically tried to wrap as many presents as I could.

On Wednesday the kids were supposed to be out of school but because we had that wind storm they needed to make up a day and this is the day they chose to use. The high school girls did not want to go because most of their teachers told them that they would not be doing anything. So we made a deal. They went to their first period class and then they could come home as long as they cleaned their rooms. It was a good trade I think! The rooms got cleaned for a day at least! CR still went to school but didn't do much. K also came home on Wednesday night and it was great to have her home!

On Thursday we were just getting ready for Christmas. At night KC & I went to the temple. Our ward does a White Christmas Night. Where all adults attend the temple and we meet and have a short talk by one of the temple presidency and then we all go through a session. It was a great experience. It was nice to put aside the craziness of getting ready for Christmas with the peacefulness and wonderful Spirit that can be felt at the temple.

The residents around the Bountiful Temple have put together through pictures the story of the Nativity. A slide show can be viewed at Boutiful Utah Nativity

After the session KC and I drove around to see and read the beautiful pictures and scriptures.

Here are a few pictures:

On Friday we spent a good amount of time getting the paches ready for Christmas Eve. And also more wrapping and last minute shopping.

This is what the paches look like (this is not a picture taken by me but this is what they look like):

Here is a little description of "Paches de Guatemala".

Tamales are an ancient American food, made throughout the continent for over 5000 years. Tamales have been traced back to the Ancient Mayans, who prepared them for feasts as early as the Preclassic period (1200-250 BC). There are so many kinds of tamales that if one was to try one per day, it would take you over twenty years to try all the different kinds. In Guatemala alone, there must be 100 different kinds if not more. Tamales are usually made with a cooked masa (maize dough), tomato sauce, and a piece of meat; normally pork, chicken, turkey, all wrap around in husks or banana leaves. When I say tomato sauce, I am being over-simplistic since this tomato-based sauce could be as difficult to make as an Indian curry, if not more. A Pache is made with potato dough instead of maize. It is called pache (short) and it is made in all other respects the same way as tamales. In Guatemala, paches are usually sold on Thursdays, I don’t know why, and “normal” maize tamales are sold on Saturdays.

Twas 2 Weeks Before Christmas

2011-12-19T07:13:00.000-07:00

This was the week of concerts! I guess when all the kids play an instrument this is to be expected. All of the concerts were really good! Nothing like hearing Christmas music to bring the Spirit of Christmas into our lives!

Monday was S's band concert.

Wednesday was CR's orchestra concert.

Thursday was C's orchestra concert.

Friday we attended the QC Ward Party (our previous ward). But they asked S and C to participate so we all went to see them.

Saturday we saw a premier of "The Adventures of Tin Tin" with G and CR. And then at night we went and saw the Temple Square Christmas Concert. It was tricky deciding who would go because K got tickets this year but there were only 4. But it all worked out in the end. It was just amazing as usual! The guests this year were Jane Seymour and Nathan Gunn.

Twas 3 Weeks Before Christmas

2011-12-11T16:10:00.000-07:00

When all through the house...there was concerts and parties, etc. etc.

It has been a busy week. Here are just a few highlights...

Sunday we didn't attend Sunday services but instead we cleaned up our neighborhoods. It was amazing how many people came out to help. Almost everything was cleaned up by 3:00pm.

We watched the First Presidency Christmas Devotional and they announced the first official release of the New Testament Vignettes! We did not participate in any of the scenes before the baptism of Jesus but it was amazing to see the final product. They did an amazing job putting it all together. And the truthfulness of it all can be felt very strongly! They called it a gift to the world and they truly are! You can watch the vignettes at:

http://lds.org/bible-videos?lang=eng

Monday was supposed to be FHE but since we all worked together on Sunday and we had a million things going that night we considered that our FHE for the week. Monday night CR was at gymnastics, S had to attend a band concert, and C was doing her nails for the Christmas Dance.

Tuesday night was youth activities and C, S, and CR went to temple square.

Wednesday night was class for me and CR had gymnastics and a big assignment due that he forgot about :(

Thursday night was the Dance Company Christmas Concert.

Friday night C went on her day date for the dance, CR had a fundrasing concert that he was playing in and we went to watch him.

Saturday we went and saw the a premier of "Chipwreked". We weren't too excited about the movie but every once in a while we still have to see these type of movies for G's sake. By the time we got there the tickets were all gone but a nice lady had extras and gave us 4 tickets so we got to see it.

Afterwards we did some Christmas shopping. And Jasmine had a recital that we attended.

Then we hurried home so we could take pictures of C and her group getting ready to go to the Christmas Dance. She looked beautiful. And I guess in between everything else that was going on this week I had to alter C's dress and add sleeves to it to make it modest.

And that's that for this week. Another busy one next week!

Wind Storm

2011-12-04T09:02:00.001-07:00

Just when we think that things are calm... that's when the storm comes! True to this week and to life in general! This week was supposed to be peaceful after Nutcracker and Thanksgiving but... not so!

We had been warned that a strong wind storm was coming on Wednesday night and we did take small precautions but we have had high winds before and it hasn't been a big deal. Well at midnight we got woken up from the loud wind sounds. In the morning the wind was so strong still but it wasn't until kids were going to school that we realized how much damage was happening. Many schools did not have power. The high school kids got sent home after a few hours because they did not have power. The junior high stayed open because it is a brand new school and they use solar power. For the first time for me in Utah they even canceled school on Friday.

We ended up having winds up to 100 mph. Many homes are still without power and everyone is just trying to clean up the mess.

We were blessed to not have much damage at our house except for our garbage cans across the street and a glass table that got blown and hit the side of the house and shattered. Our power went on and off a few times but we never completely lost it! We were lucky not to loose any shingles or anything damage to our house or cars but others had significant damage. We also do not have a fence or big trees and that is where lots of damage happened. Here are a few pictures of what our area looks like:

This looks like C's car but we are so glad it's not!

This are an apartment complex that is being built close to our house. It's so sad to see such damage!

I'm writing this post so early because we found out that our entire stake canceled church services today so that we can all help get things cleaned because there is another wind and snow storm coming tonight. They want to prevent all of the debris from the last storm to get blown around and cause more damage by the new storm coming tonight.

Thanksgiving Week

2011-11-28T07:39:00.001-07:00

It was a short week. The kids and KC only went to school/work for two days. I did my internship for two days but did have to work my 3 hours on Wednesday morning. Kailee also came home on Tuesday night. Wednesday we tried to clean our house up a little bit and then in the afternoon we went and saw the movie Breaking Dawn.

On Thursday, we got together with my parents, the M's family and Leonora and Eric. There were 16 of us there. We had a wonderful time together eating and having fun.

This is the girl's table:

This is the boy's table:

Part of the adult's table:

C made a Thanksgiving video for us and it was hilarious (as usual). It's fun to have these videos that remind us of happy times. This is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iC69SQ

We played a game that I made up called "A Gratitude Game to Z" and the basic rules were that everyone had to write down something they were grateful for for each letter of the alphabet. After-wards we all got together and read what we had on our lists. If no one else wrote down what you had on your own paper then you got a point. The person with the most points wins. Everyone got prizes (silly prizes, cause it was a last minute thing but it was fun!) It was just a small way for us to remember how many things we have to be grateful for that we usually don't think about. I like this quote "What if you woke up today with only what you thanked God for yesterday????" It makes me wonder?

After eating and cleaning up, it was time to look through the ads for black Friday... We were a little upset that they were starting at 9:00, 10:00, and 12:00. We thought about going then but that thought left us quickly cause we were already tired. So we made our lists and decided to go out at 5:00am (usual time). We only went to three stores but got some awesome deals! And we found everything we were looking for. The stores were relatively quiet for black Friday at that time and we didn't have to wait in long lines to pay.

The kids just hung out at home in their PJ's pretty much all day. We took a short nap and just enjoyed the time with the M Family.

I don't think I ever mentioned that our Stake got split and with that split our ward was also. Our two cul-de-sacs were put in a different ward. So we are in the same stake but in a different ward. We got separated from so many of our good friends. It was sad. It's getting better but it was still hard.

Sunday KC and I had to speak in sacrament since we are new to the ward. We got asked to speak on Monday night and with Thanksgiving and black Friday in between we didn't have much time to prepare. Our topic was the Book of Mormon. I spoke mainly on the title page and what we can learn from that to guide us through our reading. KC spoke on why we need the Book of Mormon in the latter days.

One idea that I want to record here is that Satan doesn't want us to read the Book of Mormon because if we do we will remember the blessings he has given us and past generations, we will be reminded of the covenants we have made, and we will know that Jesus is our Savior and that because of Him we can repent and be forgiven. I know the Book of Mormon is true and that if we read it we will stay on the right path and be guided on what we should do, if we ever have questions.

Nutcracker Week

2011-11-20T22:00:00.001-07:00

It was a great but busy week. We only got the basics and Nutcracker done. But I'm glad to say that we survived another Nutcracker. This completes our 12th Nutcracker! I guess we are kind of NUTS! We have been doing the Props committee for 10 years. I co-chair the committee so we are backstage every night. And we get the props put back after the show.

Here are a few pictures of the girls. They were both Snow this year and can I just say that they are both beautiful inside and out! But they are also beautiful and amazing dancers. My dream of having beautiful ballerinas has come true!

While waiting for the show to start on the night that we watched. CR and KC could not help but take this picture.

C and Jeaniece. They have been friends since Kindergarten and they have danced in the Nutcracker together since they were 8 years old! Now they are seniors!

The entire Snow Corps.

On Saturday we had two performances. A matinee and the night performance. The girls had to be at their warm up class at 9:30, the show started at 11:00, it ended at 1:00, we left and CR had a gymnastics inter-squad meet at 1:30 so we went to watch him. We did not think it would take as long as it did. I left early cause I had to be back with the girls at WSU. KC waited for CR and G. So here are a couple of pictures of the meet.

On a final note... We love our kids!

Halloween

2011-11-13T14:26:00.000-07:00

10-31-2011

It's kind of sad that the kids are getting older and they go off with their friends on Halloween instead of coming with us. But I still managed to get pictures of them...

We went Trick or Treating with CR and G. G was so excited and wanted to keep going and going!

G as The Little Mermaid (Ariel)

CR as Harry Potter. He now has the long messy hair for the costume.

S as a nerd. Last minute hurry and find something.

C as Captain America (the costumes were lame so she just bough a t-shirt).

K as Wonder Woman. I didn't even get to see K in person but thanks to her blog I have this picture.

Me as a pirate. (Really just the hat. I get a hat or a wig every year and I call it my costume)

The pumpkin carving activity that almost didn't happen. It was so hard to find a time to carve pumpkins and we finally found a day to do it and then C was so sick that she couldn't do it. Then we forgot to take pictures so after a few days we decided to just take pictures with those that were available before the pumpkins died. So G's is Ariel. KC's is some scary face. CR's is the Harry Potter sign. S's (not in the picture) is Teanna from Princess and the Frog. I don't do pumpkin carving it's too messy. I do get a pumpkin but just decorate the outside of it. Fast, clean, and easy!

Planking Day

2011-10-22T10:49:00.000-07:00

On the Saturday of UEA we let the kids decide what they wanted to do. They didn't really know either they just wanted to do something... We came up with a few things and all that C wanted to do was to plank in various places. We were not thrilled of the idea but we told her that wherever we went we would plank just for her. So you will see that throughout our day that is what we did.

So we started the day by seeing a premiere of "Puss in Boots". This was just a cool poster that we saw as we came out of the movie. We saw a premiere for this one a few weeks before.

K was able to come with us cause she was face-painting at the Expo center but not until noon. So after the movie we went to visit her at the "Kids Fair". The kids got to see their cousins and we just hung out for a few hours.

Leave it up to C to get the grandparents to "plank"! Wow! Aren't they awesome?!

After the Kids Fair we went to the Copper Mine. We had not been here for at least 15 years. We used to go with my parents all the time but we were so tired of it that we had blocked it out of our minds and now the kids wanted to see what it was.

We later went to see Z who was face-painting at the Witch Fest at Gardner Village. We walked around and did a puzzle for a cookie but it was fun.

It ended up being a great family day! We spent it all together and had fun doing lots of different activities!

BYU and Cheyenne Party

2011-10-15T10:49:00.000-07:00

We were already planning on heading down to Provo today anyways because of the Cheyenne Party and then K told us about the BYU lost and found sale so we decided to just leave a little bit earlier so we could attend. C and S could not come with us because they were taking Dance Company pictures at the Salt Flats and they did not want to miss this opportunity.

It was a crazy sale. There was a lot of stuff and there was a lot of people. But it was fun and we found some awesome deals.

After that we walked around campus a little bit and took some planking pictures, while K finished cleaning her apartment and then we went to have lunch together.

Then we were going to go get K's car so we could go and get it inspected but it would not start! Surprise huh? Well, we took K to work and then went to Nelson's to the party. In the back of our minds wondering what we would do with K's car.

We had a fun party. I have been attending these parties since the first one took place 22 years ago when KC and I were just dating. I think this deserves a before and after picture.

October 1989

October 2011

When K got off work and we had to go pick her up we borrowed grandpa's car so we could tow it to the shop. That was an experience in it of itself. But we got it to the shop that was only a few blocks away. Then we went back to the party.

Grease

2011-10-13T06:33:00.000-07:00

We entered to win tickets to some plays in the area. K was the lucky one that won two tickets to Grease in Tuacahn (St. George). I was lucky that she took me with her. Well more like I took her to see the show cause I drove but it was worth it.

I picked her up in Provo at 2:00pm and we headed down. We made it to St. George around 5:30pm. We walked around the outlets a little and then we went to get something to eat.

Then was the amazing show! It was awesome! Because it was outside they can do many things that are not possible inside. This is one of my favorite musicals ever and this one did not disappoint me at all.

We had a fun time with K. Lots of driving but lots of good conversations. We got back around 1:00pm so that K could go to her afternoon classes.

NTP -- Day 7 Peter and John Preach and are Arrested

2011-10-04T07:16:00.000-07:00

I couldn't find a good picture for this scene either. This is the closest that I could get.

This is on Solomon's Porch where this scene was filmed. This is a picture from that the church published.

Day 7 -- TUESDAY OCTOBER4, 2011

PETER AND JOHN PREACH AND AREARRESTED NEAR THE COLONNADE OF SOLOMON’S PORCH

My call time was 6:30am and I got tocarpool once again with my friend from Layton. I knew this would be mylast day for sure because they had already told us that this was the last daythat they would be using women background players.

By this day I was an old proactress… well sort of. There were a lot of extras this day, the most thatI saw in all the days that I was on set. It took me a while to getthrough hair and makeup so by the time I got out most everyone was on theset. Some were sitting on the side but then some were alreadyfilming. This was my first time filming by Solomon’s Temple.

They came and got a few of us at atime and placed us all over the porch and patio. This was a big area andthey wanted to film people coming from far to see what was going on. Peter and John were preaching and we approached to listen. I wasn’t toofar so I still made it in time to listen to them preach. We did this manytimes for some reason. They weren’t catching something just right. One of the many times that we did it a lady in front of me fainted and so wehad to stop filming for that. The medics came and took care of her and wegot a little break from that.

We had lunch and then we went backon set. We sat for a while and then they sent half of the extras home andkept the rest of us. This time we were filming Peter and John being arrested. We were just the crowd watching in the background. They were hoping itwould rain but it did not so I got to see how they made rain so that they couldfilm. I was not sure what we were supposed to be doing but they justwanted us to walk on the porch. We did this a few times and then we gotsent home.

Well this really was my last time onset. Kind of sad but after talking with many people I was one of thewomen that was on set more times than most. The men were needed more sothey got more opportunities than the women (as usual). So I was gratefulfor the opportunity. They told us that they would probably film again inthe spring and they would let us know. So now I have something to lookforward to!

This experience has been like noother for me. I got to see up close and personal how filming works. It takes a long time and you have to do many takes just for a few minutes offootage. It is very expensive to pay the actors and extras. But themost important thing that I got from this is that my testimony grew 100fold. I got to see some of these scenes as if I was there. It gaveme an opportunity to experience the scriptures and gain more of an appreciationfor my Savior Jesus Christ and for his life and for his sacrifice for meand all of mankind.

Ican't wait to see the final product! The church gave us a background lookat the filming. You can read all about it, watch a video, and look atsome pictures here:

http://lds.org/church/news/behind-the-scenes-on-the-jerusalem-movie-set?lang=eng

This is a beautiful picture that is included in the sideshow on the church website.

K's 20th Birthday

2011-10-04T07:04:00.000-07:00

K's birthday was on General Conference Saturday (it often takes place on conference weekend). She drove up for the weekend. She wanted to go out to eat for her birthday but it was kind of tricky to fit it in because of conference and C & S still had ballet. So we decided to go between the afternoon session and Priesthood Session. This was our only available time slot. Here we are at yummy Cheesecake Factory.

The Birthday Girl!

On Sunday we had K's celebration with the family including Tono and Glady's (L's aunt and uncle) from Virginia (they were here for conference).

Then it was time for present opening. And everyone is anxiously waiting...

But we had to get a picture first.

And her big present was.... A camera!!! She has been wanting this forever!

Then it was time for the cake. She requested a Fashion Minnie Mouse Cake and this is what we came up with. I think it turned out pretty good. Except all the birthday cakes seem to be getting more complicated little by little.

She requested the procession so here we come.

We had to pause for her to take a picture.

Yay! I just have to say we love this girl! She has been with us for 20 wonderful years. She brings so much joy to our lives and we are so happy to see that she is doing well at taking care of herself. She is beautiful, talented, and loving. She is the best oldest child anyone could ask for. Growing up is hard for kids and their parents but K is doing very well!

Just playing. K looks like Minnie anyways.

The girls are always stealing my camera and taking random pictures like this one.

NTP -- Day 6 The Savior Carries His Cross

2011-09-29T07:12:00.000-07:00

(This pictures depicts how we filmed the scene very closely)

Day 6 -- THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 29, 2011

THE SAVIOR IS SCOURGED AND CARRIESHIS CROSS THROUGH THE STREET ON THE WAY TO GOLGOTHA

I got to go twice this week. Whata blessing. My call time was 9:30 and I met with a carpool in SaltLake.

I knew this would be an emotionalday just knowing what we were going to film.

We got dressed and ready but theydid not call us on to the set until after lunch. We had a long wait but one ofthe men brought a guitar so those who sang put on a concert for the rest ofus. It was so nice to be there. It was a beautiful day and we couldjust enjoy each other’s company with music. I did not know if this was goingto be my last day or not but I was considering it as if it was so that I wouldnot be disappointed. If it was not my last day then the others would justbe a wonderful bonus.

After lunch they took us to theset. We just lined up the street and got ready for this emotionalscene. I saw Jesus carrying the a heavy cross. He was dressed inrobes that were all dirty, he had blood dripping on his face, and the scourgeswere visible. He walked right past me and John the beloved happened to bestanding right behind me so Jesus looked over in our direction. It was sohard to see him like this. Earlier in the week we had filmed such a happytime and now it was such a somber time. I felt as if I needed to doeverything that I could to make his sacrifice worthwhile for me. What asacrifice. I cannot even imagine. But this brought it to life forme. I did have tears in my eyes to see him like this. The cross wasso heavy it took 3 people to carry it back and forth. During this scene Ifelt a deep feeling of gratitude but also a commitment to be submissive toGod’s will, not matter the personal cost to me, just like the Savior did.

We filmed it a few times and then wewere done for the day. I did meet a lady that is originally fromGuatemala but now lives in Houston. What a strong testimony this ladyhas!!! I met so many people that are just amazing from all over theworld! Another blessing in disguise.

I knew this was the last time Iwould see John Foss (Jesus) so when we were done I went up to him and told himthanked him for being so kind, especially to the children. I was nervousbut I felt that I had to do this because I truly was grateful. This ishow the children will remember Jesus and he portrayed the part very well. My eyes got all teary and my voice was cracking but I was glad I did it. Hethanked me also.

NTP -- Day 5 Jesus Triumphal Entry

2011-09-26T07:07:00.000-07:00

For a few weeks I did not get anycalls for acting and I felt deprived. I needed my spiritual high that Igot every time I went... and luckily more came on September 21st. This iswhat I received:

Following is anoutline of our Shooting Schedule as it currently stands. MOST of thebackground roles are for ADULTS and TEENS, 16 years or older. We do needa limited number of children on the days marked in red, but boys must havedark, longer hair that at least covers part of their ears. Girls musthave dark hair at least to their shoulders. *The days marked in RED are thedays we will most likely have enough roles for everyone who would like toparticipate. The days marked in GREEN are smaller days wherein there willprobably not be enough roles for everyone. Once you express youravailability (see below), we will let you know for which days you are booked.

Monday, September 26th*: “Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem” (Mark 11; Matthew21; Luke 19; John 12) 8:30AM

Tuesday, September27th: “The SaviourEncounters a Woman taken in adultery” (John 8:2-11)“The Saviour declares thatHe is the Light of the World” (John 8:12-14)“The Saviour declares, ‘The TruthShall make you Free" (John 8:28-39)

Wednesday, September28th: “The Saviour Heals a Man stricken with Palsy” (Mark 2:3-12)

Thursday, September 29th*: “The Saviour is Scourged and Carries His Cross throughthe street on the way to Golgotha” (Matthew 28; Mark 15; John 19) 9:30AM

Friday, September30th: “Peter, James and JohnHeal the Sick” and “Peter and John are arrested (2nd time) by the BeautifulGate of the Temple” (Acts 5)

Monday, October3rd: “Peter and John Heal aLame Man at the Temple during the Feast of Pentacost” (Acts 3-4)

Tuesday, October4th*: “Peter and Johnpreach and are Arrested near the Colonnade of Solomon’s Porch” (Acts 3-4)6:30AM

(This is a picture of palm fronds because when I got on set everyone knew what they were except for me. I was all confused that I had never heard this word in my whole life)

(These are the only pictures that I could find. Not quite the way we filmed it but it's at least a reminder.)

Day 5 -- MONDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2011

JESUS’ TRIUMPHAL ENTRY INTOJERUSALEM

On Friday September 23^rdI got an email booking me for September 26^th (The TriumphalEntry). C also received an email. On Sunday morning I woke up to anemail that asked for G and CR to come filming on Monday also. That onlyleft S out. But I emailed them and asked if it was possible for her tocome also and they said YES. So it was a Family trip to Goshen (minus KCand K, they would have loved to be there).

Our call time was 8:30am so that wasnot bad. We just had to leave by 6:30am. We did have to eatbreakfast because they told that breakfast would be done by the time we gotthere. We were running late (as usual). We didn’t leave until closeto 7:00am. Then after I got on the freeway I asked the older girls ifthey had their temple recommends and Sidney did not. So I called Caseyand he met us half way to give it to us. We were now even moredelayed. We were doing o.k (speeding just a little). When we wereabout half an hour away from the set location, we were driving on this smallcountry road; we saw a car go off to the side and dirt fly up in the air. The car got back on the road so I assumed that everything was fine. I waspassing the car when I realized that the car had two flat tires and it was ayoung lady driving. We pulled over in front of her and I went to see ifshe was ok.

The lady happened to be driving toGoshen. She went off the road and over corrected but her tirespunctured. I told her that we were going in that direction and offeredher a ride. She parked her car on the side of the road and came withus. She was so grateful that we happened to be right behind her and thatwe could give her a ride. We had just been blessed with another experiencethat just showed me how Heavenly Father is in control of our lives. If wehad not been running late we would have missed her and who knows if anyone elsewould bring her to Goshen because we had one of the latest call times. She kept calling us her guardian angels. That was a great experiencebefore we even got to the set!

When we got to the set we went towardrobe, hair and makeup. This was different for me because it wasn’tjust me I had to watch out for the children, mainly Gracie. They got usall dark and dirty and then we were ready to go on set. When we got tothe set most people were already in place but they took us to the front whereJesus would be coming through. Little Gracie looked so cute and there wasa photographer from the church taking all kinds of pictures of her. Theygave the kids some palm frams to hold and put down before Jesus came in ridingthe donkey. I think the donkey was Gracie’s favorite part.

As Jesus came in we were justsupposed to be happy to see him. I would pick up Gracie so that she couldsee him better and he usually acknowledged her. Then we followed him ashe walked down the street. How amazing to have this experience with mychildren. Nothing could be better to help strengthen all of ourtestimonies.

We had lunch and then we went backon set to film the same scene but from a different angle. It was so nicethat we were not out in the sun because that made it so much easier. Gracie loved playing in the dirt in between each take.

We got released at about4:00pm. We drove our friend back to her car and we got home at about6:00pm. We even picked up pizza for dinner.

A picture of me and the 4 children as Jesus Christ's followers in Jerusalem. That is us now and it would have been us 2000 years ago.

This picture was published by the church in a news article about the background of the production. I'm glad I can post this because it's the real thing. CR is standing next to G.

Scout Court of Honor

2011-09-25T20:55:00.000-07:00

This is the first Scout Court of Honor that I have been able to attend because they were always on Wednesday night. And I always have class on Wednesday night. So I was glad to be able to attend.

CR receiving his merit badges.

A proud Scoutmaster with his son.

The proud parents. But why do I have to go up in front?

The pinning of the pin. This does make me feel kind of special.

Brother W. saying some very nice things about KC. But I have to agree he is an awesome Scoutmaster. It's a hard job! But he cares so much for the boys and really wants them to succeed.

S's 15th Birthday

2011-09-06T08:12:00.000-07:00

S was lucky to have a lot of family in town for her birthday. All the kids in our family tend to have their birthdays close to some holiday or event that happens yearly. S's birthday is tied to Labor Day and this year her birthday is Labor day. On Sunday we celebrated with the family. This is her cake. She wasn't too picky about the decorations. She cared more about the taste. She asked for an ice cream cake and this is the result.

This is beautiful S. 15 wonderful years we have had her in our family. Although she doesn't say much she is an integral part of our family.

Grandpa Richard, grandpa Otto, Grandma Rosario, and Uncle Jefre.

Presents time... She got an underwater green camera (don't ask, that's what she wanted).

K made her a beautiful purple dress!

On Monday, Labor Day and S actual B-day she wanted to go eat dinner at Buca di Beppo. A fun, tacky (in a good way), Italian restaurant.

Not really our food but it kind of looked like this. This is a fun restaurant cause you eat family style.

I don't know why we didn't get any pictures of our outing but we didn't except for these that we thought were fun.

Happy Birthday Siddy-Biddy!

NTP -- Day 4 Pilate Addressing the Crowd

2011-09-06T06:59:00.000-07:00

(These pictures remind me of this scene. The actor who played the part of Pilate was amazing. He was up on a balcony like this and we were on the ground looking up.)

Day 4 -- TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 6TH

PILATE ADDRESSING THE CROWD

MATT 27, JOHN 18

I was so happy to receive thiscall. I wasn’t sure if this was the scene that I would want toparticipate in but I was glad to go back on set. I found a nice lady onthe ride board that was willing to drive. She lived in Layton and shepicked me up along with 2 others. It was a nice ride down with 4people. We got to know each other and share all of our experiences filming.

We went on the set and this time Iwas finally in the city of Jerusalem. I was so glad to finally get to seethe inside. This is part of the script:

THE BALCONY

PILATE glares down at the CROWD(WHICH INCLUDES JOHN, MARY, MARY MAGDALENE AND MARTHA).

PILATE

Ye have brought this man unto me as one that perverteth thepeople! I have examined him before you and find no fault with this man touchingthose things whereof you accuse him! I have sent him to Herod. He has foundthat nothing worthy of death has been done!

I will therefore chastise him andrelease him! Despite the energy of his scolding and what he has declared, themob is going to have none of his conclusion. PILATEseems to have expected this and quickly offers a compromise.

PILATE

According to your custom at thistime of year, one prisoner shall be released. PILATEnods to the GUARDS and a MAN, shackled hand and foot, is brought to thebalcony. It is clearly the hope of PILATE that the crowd will make theright and proper choice.

CAIAPHAS

Barabbas! Free Barabbas! His minionschime in with him... and then the MOB...

THE MOB

Barabbas! Barabbas! Barabbas! PILATEglares down at them in disbelief.

PILATE

What shall I do then with Jesus, whoIs called, The Christ?

CAIAPHAS

Crucify Him!

THE MOB

Crucify Him!

We see JOHN, MARY, MARY MAGDALENEAND MARTHA. MARY cries out something in defense of her son, but cannot be heardover the blood thirsty chant of the MOB.

PILATE -- MOMENTS LATER ...dippinghis hands into a BASIN OF WATER and symbolically washes them.

PILATE

I am innocent of the blood of this just person: See ye toit. PILATE leaves and JESUS is led away.

I definitely did not like being partof the bad crowd but I just had to keep telling myself that I was justacting. This time I did not want to be on film because of the nature ofthe acting but I happened to be standing right behind Mary and John so mostlikely I will be seen yelling “crucify!” Sorry…. Once again I was justacting.

We filmed the same scene a fewtimes. We were shifted around so that it would seem as if we were abigger crowd. The interesting thing on this day was that after one of thetakes when we yelled “crucify” the sky roared with thunder and then it began torain. We continued to film, and since most of us did not want to yell"crucify", we thought that it was a nice touch from heaven!

Cary & Becky

2011-09-03T07:47:00.000-07:00

I have to say. I have never been to Idaho so much in my life and this summer I went twice. Both for sealings in the Idaho Falls Temple. Cary (KC's brother) got sealed to his beautiful wife Becky. We are so happy that we live close enough that we could be there for this special day. They are blessed to have found each other!

We love mom (grandma) and dad (grandpa).

After the temple and going out to eat we went to see their new home. We relaxed for a little while and then we took of for the Idaho State Fair! That was an experience in it of its own.

G with her cousin Carly.

Here is K with KC.

We bought tiger ears and there wasn't much places to sit. We found this tiny booth and we all crammed in to enjoy. And we did enjoy! Happy times!

C's 17th Birthday

2011-08-24T07:27:00.000-07:00

For birthdays we have the tradition that we get to to whatever (with limits) the birthday person wants to do. C chose to go see Captain America. She is kind of obsessed with this movie but it was a good movie! C is an amazing person! We love having her in our family. She keeps us on our toes!

We celebrated her birthday on the actual day with just our the family. Her big present was a new orange camera.

K made C a dress!!! It is so pretty. And she made it without even a pattern.

This is just a little cake for the night. Cause we have to have cake for dessert!

This is her special cake that we used to celebrate on Sunday with the extended family.

The beautiful birthday girl.

More presents.

Happy birthday to you... Happy birthday to you... Happy birthday dear C... Happy birthday to you!

Back to School

2011-08-23T20:48:00.000-07:00

C starting her Senior year!

S starting her sophomore year.

CR starting 7th grade in junior high.

G starting Pre-K class.

and G starting her modeling career.

I like school because it gets us back into a routine but I don't like it cause it means the kids are getting one year closer to leaving home.

NTP -- Day 3 The Savior is Crucified

2011-08-23T06:55:00.000-07:00

(This is an actual picture of the location where we filmed the crucifixion. I found this picture in a news article.)

Day 3 -- TUESDAY AUGUST 23, 2011

THESAVIOUR IS CRUCIFIED

MATTHEW,chapter 28; MARK, chapter 15; JOHN, chapter 19

Iwas asked if I would be available August 23th when they would be filming thecrucifixion and also on September 26th when they would film the Savior beingscourged through the streets of Jerusalem. I was happy to do both becausethat would mean I would that even if I didn’t get another chance to go inbetween, I at least would have another chance towards the end.

Calltime for the crucifixion scene was 6:15AM. The casting office organized acarpool board so that we could carpool if we were interested. I put myname down and a lady from the Salt Lake area contactedme and I picked her up along the way. That made my trip much nicerbecause I had someone to talk to. It was nice to get to know her. She has Armenian descent. By now I knew a few of the women and weall spent a lot of time together talking and getting to know each other.

They drove us to the set in a vanagain but this time it was a short drive over. It was only on the otherside of the “New Jerusalem” set. We could have walked. When we gotthere they had us sit and wait while they got ready. They took us to thebottom of a hill where the procession following Jesus would take place. The procession included Jesus, Peter, James, John, and the 3 Marys and then itwas the crowd which is where I was. I don’t think I will be recognizablein this scene. We were to follow them up the hill while they filmed usfrom the top. This was a very somber scene. This did not take verylong and then they took us back to the tent.

We waited in the tent for a longtime while they filmed close ups of Jesus and the thieves on the crosses. We had lunch and then they took us back to the set. This time they placedus on the ground next to the crosses. We were followers that had justwitnessed the crucifixion. This was hard to see. They placed Jesuson a high cross, his makeup looked so real. He had the crown of thorns onhis head and blood on his face. They also made him look as if he had beenscourged as he had the marks on his back. It was amazing how theymade it look as if he really had nails coming out of his hands, wrists,and feet. We stood there and had to look up at him. It was sunnyand bright but it was extremely hard to look at him in that situation. The tears came as I know they would have had I been there that day. Jesusis my Savior! He sacrificed his life for me. He makes up the difference where Iam weak. Thank you for this touching experience. To understandbetter what happened that day.

August (End of Summer)

2011-08-21T07:26:00.000-07:00

The month started with a celebration of KC's birthday! We love this man so much! He takes such good care of us and he makes us laugh. I couldn't have asked for a more wonderful person to share eternity with. I love you!

G started taking ballet. This is her new tutu. She love ballet already!

Pre-school graduation.

She is moving up to the Pre-K class. Such a big girl!

Cherry Hill fun!

At the open house of Centennial. Brand new Junior High that CR will attend. Very high tech.

NTP -- Day 2 Jesus Blesses the Children

2011-08-16T06:54:00.000-07:00

(I saw this picture by Liz Swindle at Education Week and I just had to buy it because it reminds me of the day we filmed this scene with CR. I like how Jesus is smiling and enjoying the children's company.)

Day 2 -- TUESDAY AUGUST 16, 2011

JESUS BLESSES THE CHILDREN (Mark10:13-16)

CR and I left the house at4:15am. It was great to have someone else in the car with me for thatlong drive. We got there and there were a few other children. Theyscattered the times of arrival and I think we were some of the first toarrive. CR and I went through the same process of dressing, makeup, hair,etc. We had breakfast and then they took us to the set. Close tothe same location as the previous day so we had to ride the van.

The placed us all on this narrowdirt pathway. We were to play the parts of mothers with children waitingfor this Jesus that we had heard about to come by. We were hoping to haveour children healed. We were given a few props to use this time. CRand I were placed towards the front. The apostles Peter, James, and Johncame first, as we saw them coming we were to stand up and reach out to them,the apostles would push us out of the way as if saying that they had animportant person coming through and he had no time for us. Jesus wasbehind them but instead of pushing us out of the way he said "Sufferthe little children to come unto me, and forbid them not:for of such is the kingdom of God. Whosoever shall not receive thekingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein."

Because we were towards the front ofthe crowd Jesus came straight to CR and touched him, CR being a good actorpretended to be sick and then to be healed. We did this same scene a fewtimes and then we filmed it from different angles.

This was a different day than Mondaybecause of the children. We took a lot of breaks and we were all treatedvery nicely. In between takes the actor Jesus would talk to the childrenand make them feel loved and cared for. This was such a special scene forme because the actor Jesus portrayed the part very well. He treated everyonewith such kindness which is the way that I imagine Jesus being. He evenhad a mint brought to him so he could share with a little girl that was nothaving a good day.

We met a nice family from WashingtonState that drove down so that they could participate in the filming. Iloved meeting all these people from all over the country and even theworld. She made an impact on my life from the very beginning. Icould tell that she has a strong testimony of the gospel by the way that shetalked to her children. They made the trip so that she and her childrencould have this experience. My travels at this point did not seem hard.

We completed the filming at about1:00pm. We changed and then they said we could have lunch before leavingso we did. It was a short day and definitely one of my favorite. Iwas very tired driving home but we made it home at about 4:30pm.

CR and I

NTP -- Day 1 John the Baptist

2011-08-15T06:50:00.000-07:00

(This is just a picture I found on the internet that reminds me of the actual day when we filmed this scene.)

Day 1 -- MONDAY AUGUST 15, 2011

JOHN THE BAPTIST (Mathew 3:13-17)

I left our house at about4:45am. I could hardly sleep the night before cause I was worried that Iwould miss my alarm and not wake up on time. They told us to eat beforegetting there so I stopped along the way to get some food because I was nothungry at 4:30am. It was a long drive that early in the morning. Goshen is in the middle of no-where. We had to drive up this dirt roadthough a gate where everyone checks in and security makes sure your name is onthe list because only those participating are allowed on the set. Iparked and then had to walk to a big white tent.

At the tent there was a lineof people waiting to check in and fill out some paper work. Then they hadus go to wardrobe to get our clothes. I changed in the dressing room (abig open tent) and then to hair and make-up. They left my hair downbut most of it was covered. They didn't put too much make up on me butthey did get my feet and arms look dirty. They we had to go "getdirtied" which meant they put make up on our clothes to make them lookdirty. After that they took us to eat breakfast? Well I had twobreakfasts that day I guess. Little did I know that I would need them...

We waited in the "holdingtent" for about an hour. This gave a bunch of us a chance to get toknow each other and take some pictures. We took a group picture and wedecided to start a Facebook group page so we could share the pictures witheveryone. There was about 40 "background players" (extras) thisday.

They came to get us and they droveus in a van to the set. It took about 20 minutes to get there on thebumpy dirt roads. There is a river that runs through the land and that iswhere we would be filming. I had never done this before and I was in aweat everything. Because I was being baptized they told me take my thingswith me because I would need a change of clothes.

It was going to be about 95 degreesthat day and we were out in the dessert so they were constantly encouraging usto drink water.

When we got to the set they asked uswhat part we were playing. Most of us were either "baptizees"or "gawkers". They took me to the side of the riverand gave me a place to stand. We stood there for a long time while theyfigured out lighting and other technical issues.

We began filming and John theBaptist was in the water and he baptized a few people. The people thatgot baptized said the water was dirty. It was amazing to see this takeplace before my own eyes. It seemed so real. I was playing the partof a believer just waiting on the side to have my turn and be baptized. Ithink I would have been there and ready to be baptized had I lived in that timeperiod.

After a few takes we were drivenback up to the tent and we went to lunch. We had to wait for the"main people" to eat first. By this time it was close to 2pm soI was hungry and getting tired. But, when we finally got to eat it wasvery good. They had many options for us.

After lunch they drove us back tothe set and we got ready to film again. This time we were filming Jesusbeing baptized by John the Baptist. I could hear John the Baptist say very softly and humbly "I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And then Jesus answered "Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness." We filmed it once and it was greatbut once is not enough in filming so we tried to get a few more shots but itwas hard because the sun kept going behind the clouds. The other problem was that if Jesus gotpartly wet we had to wait for him to get changed and dried. This was a very special experience as therewere only a few of us next to the river everyone else was just back waiting forus to be done filming this scene. I wasable to see Jesus be baptized a few times. What a special feeling, I almost felt as if I were there. I got a chance to meet the actor John Fosswho was playing the part of Jesus.

We were supposed to film John theBaptist preaching but we were not able to because the last scene took so longto film. We were sent home at about 7:00pm. We returned all of our costumes and then Idrove back home. I was exhausted but sograteful for this opportunity. I asked “Mandi”from casting if she knew call times for Tuesday and she said I would receive anemail later that night. I got home atabout 9:15pm, checked my email and our (CR and me) call time was 5:45am!!! Aghhhhh. I would not be getting much sleep I guess….

This is a picture of the group of extras for the John the Baptist scene. I love looking at this picture it just brings back so many good memories. I have become friends with many of these people on set and through Facebook. We have a special connection. (Disclaimer: I went back and looked at the set guidelines given to us before filming and it says that no pictures taken on set can be posted anywhere on the internet but it defines "on-set" as the location where the filming is taking place. So the only pictures that are mine are the ones that I took around the tent and where the set is cannot be seen. All the other pictures that are posted are found in news articles by the church and are available to the public on the internet. I mainly write this because there has been all kinds of concerns about this on Facebook.)

New Testament Video Project Pre-Production

2011-08-13T06:35:00.000-07:00

This might be a long post but it well overdue. (I have actually broken it down into the pre-production and each day on set so that the post wasn't so long.) I wanted to finish the project and catch up with the other posts before writing about this. I have been involved with this project for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The church is putting together many short vignettes portraying important scenes from the life of Jesus Christ and the Apostles.

A set was built for the filming of this project. It is in Goshen, UT (it's about 20 miles south of Provo and then about 10 miles west in the middle of no-where). The set cannot be seen from any roads. You have to drive on a dirt road, enter through a gate and pass security to be able to get in close enough to see the set. Once there it is an amazing site. It is hard to describe because I have never been to Jerusalem but as far as I can tell it looks really close to the real thing.

Here are a few links if you are interested in learning more information about this project.

Information and Video about the Set

Here are a few pictures of the set that I gathered from the internet. We are not allowed to post pictures taken on set anywhere.

Sometime around October 2010, I saw a poster posted in the church that was encouraging people to sign up to participate in this project. I thought it might be fun and I seem to have the look that they were seeking, so I signed up myself, CR and S. I also found out that C had also signed up previously. I thought G was too young. KC would have liked to sign up (since he is really the actor in the family) but he didn't want to grow a beard. It didn't even cross my mind to tell K to sign up cause of her busy schedule. In January they had auditions for speaking parts. C went and auditioned. I had never done this before so I didn't want to audition (that's scary to me). I just wanted to be an extra. I had forgotten all about this when I received this email in March:

Dear L,
Thank you for applying for the “New Testament” film production! Over the last few months, we have received over 10,000 applications from around the world. We are grateful for the tremendous response we've had from so many people willing to participate. As you know, the film set and schedule can only accommodate a small percentage of this vast outpouring and you are among those chosen few!

This e-mail is to let you know you have made the FIRST-CUT and are currently being considered as an EXTRA or Featured Extra for the “New Testament” film project.

If you are still interested and able to participate, please allow your hair (and beard, if male) to grow.

I was thrilled to have the opportunity to participate in such a big project. I was still not guaranteed to participate but I was getting closer.

At the end of April I received anemail requesting my availability dates. They said that a filming day is typically 12-14 hours.

In June I received this email:

Ifyou are receiving this email it means you made it past nearly 11,000 applicantsto get through the first cut, which is an accomplishment in and of itself.However, as we near shooting time (estimated for early August), it is time tomake second cuts. Thank you to those of you who have already submitted youravailability dates. This will be very helpful as we make final decisions.

Once again they asked for updatedpictures.

At the end of July I received thisemail:

DearApplicant,Thank you for your patience! We understand that it has been a verylong process. We have been delayed because we received an updated script andschedule just this week. We are working diligently to assess our needs so thatwe may schedule as many of you as we can, as quickly as possible. Regarding thesecond cut mentioned in previous emails, this email is to inform you thatinstead of multiple cuts, the next cut made will be final. We know many of youare anxious to receive the results of this cut as well as shooting schedulesand we will get those out as soon as possible. You will be notified either wayas to whether you will be needed or not.

They also requested my clothing andshoe sizes at this time.

I was getting anxious at this pointand I wanted to know one way or the other. I was really hoping toparticipate!!!

But I hadn't heard anything soI made plans to attend Education Week with the girls. We were planning ongoing on Monday August 15th. But since we all know that many times thingsdon't go as planned...

Finally on Thursday, August 11th Ireceived this email:

Hello!Thankyou for your patience! Congratulations, this is your official acceptance letterfor the New Testament production! We would like you to participate as a backgroundplayer on Monday, August 15th, 2011.

So much for Education Week. But I felt that this filming was once in a lifetime experience and I was notgoing to miss it. I did call BYU and they allowed me to trade for adifferent day. At least I had already arranged to be gone from work forthe day.

Saturday nigh on August 13th Ireceived this email:

Hello! This email isto apprise you that you will be part of a special group of background playersthat will be in the scene with John the Baptist, and you will be gettingbaptized. As such, you will be getting wet.

When I got this email I was outshopping. I got this amazing feeling of joy. Tears swelled up in myeyes. I knew this would be one of those experiences in my life that wouldbe very meaningful.

Late Saturday I received mycall time:

PROJECT: NewTestament film

RE: Call Time,Monday, August 15, 2011 -- 6:30 AM

Dear BackgroundActor,

Thank you for confirming that youwill be on set this Monday! We will be shooting 2 scenes and will needyou in both:

EXT. JORDAN RIVER --John the Baptist baptizes Jesus

EXT. JORDAN RIVER --John the Baptist preaches

This will require afull day. Please plan to be on set as long as necessary to finish thescenes and until you are released. As you have been made aware, you will be oneof those either (1) in the river; (2) at the edge of the river; or (3) wet,having been in the river (having been baptized). After this scene, youwill then change your wardrobe (into something dry) and participate as “Followers”listening to John the Baptist preach. What a GREAT day to be on set!

Wow. 6:30 am in Goshen. Thatwould be an 1 1/2 to 2 hour drive from home! I would have to leave earlyto say the least. But it didn't matter! I was filming this veryspecial scene!!!

When I woke up Sunday morningI had another email from Casting:

Hello! Thank you for your patience!Congratulations, this is your official acceptance letter for the New Testamentproduction! We would like you and your child to participate as background playerson Tuesday, August 16th, 2011. You will be in a scene where Christ isblessing the little children. We would like to use CR as well as L who will beplaying a mother in the scene. We would like to issue a gentle reminder that itis imperative that your children be well behaved while on set. Please explainto them as best as you can the nature of the scene so that they can beprepared.

Two days in a row? But I had to doit. CR would get the opportunity to participate! What a specialexperience for both of us!

The following posts will give more details on each of the days on the set.

Second Half of July

2011-07-31T07:13:00.000-07:00

A cute picture of G with all her care bear's.

The second half of the month was spent with cousins from my side of the family.

Jasmine's birthday! Pony cake.

Festival where Z was face painting.

Temple Square. Always a favorite!

R & C coming out of the Idaho Falls Temple.

At the reception with my sisters.

I don't remember what was going on here... I think they were give each other back rubs?

This describes all of the days. Exhausting but fun. After a while the kids just crash!

Cheyenne/B Family Reunion

2011-07-22T06:57:00.000-07:00

KC's parents were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary and we celebrated by getting the whole family together. We had activities planned for each day. And we all had such a good time!

One of the nights we watched a slide show of various pictures from their wedding. Here are just a couple.

On Friday we went the Buffalo Ranch and went on a tour.

This is the wonderful couple that brought us all together. Grandma and Grandpa we love you!!!

KC and I

Tucker and Julie

Cary and Becky

After the tour we went to Little America and had some ice cream.

The teenagers always have to be crazy!

All of the "adults" or maybe we should say children and spouses of Grandma and Grandpa went out to dinner so we could have a chance to talk without kids. All of us pitched in to give them an anniversary present. We gave them a remodel on their patio. Well more like re-doing the floor. We thought this would be a good present since it is the gathering place for so many activities.

While we were gone to dinner..... C was directing a movie. All of the grand-kids made a fun movie for grandma and grandpa. And K did some face painting.

When we got back we watched some slides of grandma and grandpa. Fun times!!

The next day was family picture day! Nothing else needs to be said...

We also rented a trolley to take us around Cheyenne and give us a tour of places of interest to the family. We visited previous homes, schools, etc.

The only problem was that at the back of the trolley it was so hot that we were almost passing out!

We had a small party for grandma and grandpa. The cake has their original topper from 50 years ago and flowers from KC and mine wedding cake from 21 years

K was modeling grandma's dress and C was modeling Perianne's dress.

The men singing "Let me call you sweetheart"

Jarett's bir

It was a wonderful, fun, busy week and we enjoyed every minute of it. Family... isn't it the best?

First half of July

2011-07-15T15:46:00.000-07:00

C loves making movies. So all of the cousins (especially the younger ones) always come up to her and ask her to film. She is so good at it!

This is at the city's 4th of July parade! Z was working hard face painting and so we had the kids. It was fun since CR, S, and C were in the parade so this gave us a few more kids to have fun with.

CR was in the parade with his gymnastics team.

C & S were in the parade with the Dance Company. They were in the wet portion of the parade!

My Birthday celebration! KC made me an ice cream cake with homemade ice cream! It was delicious!

And then while I was opening presents G got a hold of my camera and took a few random pictures so here are just a couple of them.

My actual birthday was on Wednesday night. Only the night that I have class and that everyone else has youth activities. But the good thing was that K was coming home because we were leaving for Cheyenne the next day. So wonderful K brought me cupcakes for us to have when I got home! K is so sweet and such a homemaker now!

June Pictures

2011-06-30T07:24:00.000-07:00

This is CR dressed up as a 50's cool dude for Decades Day at the school. Doesn't he look so handsome??

CR's 6th Grade Graduation

Swimming Lessons at Surf & Swim

Ballet Recital. This is C's class. Cast A

This is S's class. Cast B. They danced to the same music but the dances were different. C is one level above S but because there are two casts they each dance separetly. Great for the parents! We get to go see the performances twice.

Father's Day. Three great fathers!

And my Papi

We were lucky to have all of these kids at our house for Father's Day! They love taking pictures!

Manti Pagent

The Manti Temple

The Princess Festival

Preschool field trip to the Zoo

G's half birthday! We decided to always celebrate her half birthday as a family since her birthday is so close to Christmas and everyone needs presents twice a year not just once! Except we don't know what we have created but since she was celebrating her 4th birthday again she added another 4 to 4 = 44. So she now says she is 44 years old. She does know that in December she will turn 5 so we just have to go through half a year with a 44 year old at our house.

CR's 12th Birthday

2011-06-06T15:25:00.000-07:00

My one and only son is now 12 years old! He is growing up so fast.

Oh, how G loves her big brother. She had to be right there with him when he opened his presents.

The cake he requested was Calvin and Hobbs. His favorite comics of all time. I don't know if this is good or bad? It's good that he likes to read but what mischief does he learn from those comics???

And of course celebrating with his birthday buddy cousin Shayden.

CR requested that we go to the book festival in Provo for his birthday! So that's what we did with the cousins and then we got to see K.

This is my 12 year old Deacon. It is great to have another priesthood holder in our home! He is such a good example to us. We are blessed to have him in our family!

May Pictures

2011-05-31T16:02:00.000-07:00

There were so many events in May that I just could not keep up with the blog. So here are the last few weeks in May with all of the performances and activities.

5/9/11
CR's Chimes Concert

5/13/11

S's Advanced Art Show

Because I have class every Wednesday night I could not attend the kids concerts since they all happened to be on Wednesdays ahhh!!!

5/4, 5/11, 5/18
Wednesday Concerts

5/26/11
C's Dance Co. Blackbox

5/26/11
CR's Spectrum Graduation

CR does not normally dress like this for graduations but the Spectrum Graduation was right after the Medieval Banquet so they are all still dressed up. He did an amazing job with everything in Spectrum. This was the best program for him and although it was hard it was worth it! He earned lots of awards including his "Master's Degree".

CR and his teacher Mrs. Poulson

5/27/11
Shauna & Cory's Wedding

Shauna is the first (kind of ...at least of the later group) of my YW to get married. She is a beautiful young woman and I love her so much. She got married in the Bountiful Temple to Cory (a very nice young man btw). KC and I were lucky to be there for this most important event in their lives!

5/27/11
Spectrum Olympics

We could not attend the Olympics since it was rescheduled 3 times because of bad weather and the last date was the same date as Shauna's wedding. Luckily K was here for the weekend and was able to attend the Olympics and video and take pictures.

Preschool

5/30/11

Memorial Day

Another rainy holiday for this year. We ended up just BBQing at home and watching a movie with the cousins. K and Z practiced face painting for the busy time of year.

Medieval Day

2011-05-26T19:27:00.000-07:00

The morning of Spectrum Graduation the 6th grade does a Medieval Day. It so much fun for the kids. They dress up and do Medieval activities and then have a feast. They eat their food with their hands just like Medieval Days.

CR chose to be a jester and entertain the crowds. He was great! I got to go and help with the feast and got to see him in action.

This is CR eating his meat.

6th Grade Spectrum

Mother's Day

2011-05-08T17:03:00.000-07:00

I like to have pictures with my children on Mother's Day. But sometimes it's way too much to ask...

Finally after much bribing and laughing...

This is a pyramid by my sister, "my" mom, and I. My sister and I were joking around saying that it would be funny and then "my" dad said that "my" mom couldn't do it. Then "my" mom to prove that she was youthful said "yes I can" and after a few tries this is what we got. My mom is very young and youthful. I love her so much! I am so grateful for her teachings and example!

Just me! So grateful for the blessing and joy of being a mother.

Cheer Banquet

2011-05-05T14:49:00.000-07:00

At the end of the year there is a Banquet to celebrate the year and to welcome the new cheerleaders into the group. It was such a fun year for S and loved watching her cheer.

April Pictures

2011-04-30T14:33:00.000-07:00

My aunt Yoli (one of my favorite aunts in the whole wide world) came to visit us. This picture was taken at temple square. We met at the Family History Center. We walked around a little bit and got to have lunch together.

In this picture the kids are putting together a puzzle. Well G corrected me and said that it was her puzzle (But she wasn't doing any thing to put it together) but then she told the kids "You're doing a great job guys!" It was so funny!

On Saturday we went to see the Joseph Smith movie with everyone. They made a few changes and it is soooo good.

G loves to take cameras and take random pictures. Well this one turned out pretty good.

Celebrating Mami, Zildy, and Jonas' birthdays!

The strawberry cake! Yummy!

And last but not least my funny dad!

Easter 2011

2011-04-24T14:28:00.000-07:00

We went to an Easter Egg Hunt with the neighborhood. G thought it was the best! KC and CR were camping with the scouts.

Then G had to play on the playground.

G modeling her Easter dress!

S Biddy

All 5 wonderful kids.

The Awesome 7 B's

I love my family!

Young Women Reunion

2011-04-16T14:22:00.000-07:00

So I have the most amazing young women from our previous ward! I love them so much but the problem is that they are old growing up. As of this year they will all be graduated from high school! And two of them are getting married.

We wanted to do a little get together before the first of them gets married (Shauna). So after a long, long, long, discussion on facebook we finally found a date and time when we could all meet. And this was the day. We did have a couple of glitches... Candace's little boy was sick so she couldn't make it :( and Kellie the baby of the group was going to prom so she couldn't make it. We thought Sariah would not be there and she was not at dinner but we went over and visited her because she had just gotten engaged!

Sariah and her fiancée.

Shauna and her fiancée.

DARE Graduation

2011-04-13T14:20:00.000-07:00

This is the end of his DARE essay:

From all of the knowledge I have learned, it all comes back to how horrible drugs are. Taking drugs could ruin how people think of you, causing you to lose friends or opportunities for jobs as you get older. Drugs will also diminish quality in sports. I like to play basketball, four square, soccer and several other sports. If I took drugs, I would move slower and not be able to play these sports. My brain would also not work as well, meaning I could not do as well in school, causing me to start failing in school. Drugs are not good for me, my friends or anyone else. Taking them would ruin everything for me in my life.

I feel that D.A.R.E. has been a good experience for me and everyone in our class. It has been very fun (along with delaying math time!). It has given everyone plenty of knowledge. In my opinion, D.A.R.E should continue for a very long time to help drug resistance. I enjoyed this, and I think that other kids will enjoy it, too.

Because of D.A.R.E., we have become more of a complete class, and I have learned to NEVER do drugs. This information will not just apply during our life as a kid, but it will come into play for the rest of our life.

I, Cee Ryle Brown, pledge to never take drugs, to follow the decision making model, always to be drug-free, and to take this information from the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program and always to remember what I have learned.

We are so proud of CR and I know he will live to his promise!

Spring Break

2011-04-09T07:18:00.000-07:00

We didn't go anywhere far for Spring Break but we did do something fun everyday. This is the breakdown:

Monday we went to run some errands like look at flutes, cellos, and pointe shoes. Then we ate dinner and went to see the movie Rango.

Tuesday was girls shopping day close to home.

Wednesday was home day and I had class that night.

Thursday we got premiere tickets to see Soul Surfer so we went and had dinner at The Mayan and then we got to see the movie. Really good movie btw.

We got lucky and K was able to drive up and watch the movie with us.

Friday we went to Boondocks for a while and got to play all of the games and then go bowling. Because Spring is struggling to visit us this year we had to ride the go-carts in the snow!

G was the big girl and had to do all of the bowling herself!

Also... the Flower's Family was on their way back from spring break and spent Saturday with us. The cousins of course had fun making a commercial called "SPEED". Another very good commercial btw. This is the link if you are interested in watching it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mU1Bj1bdkx0

Alice's Broadway in Wonderland

2011-04-01T15:11:00.000-07:00

CR was in the Spectrum Play and had one of the lead roles. He was the Rabbit. He is an awesome actor and did a wonderful job with the part. This play is amazing because although it kind of follows the story line of Alice in Wonderland it was written by the teachers. It's just a great program! Lots of work but worth every minute of it! FYI: I made the vest and we have it on DVD if anyone ever wants to watch it.

March Pictures

2011-03-31T08:00:00.000-07:00

This is my handsome 6th grader CR.

We have been trying to burn down this Christmas tree candle from Christmas. This was as far as we could get. It was impossible to light the wick anymore. Just a crazy thing we did.

S at the State Band Competition. Her band earned a spot in the prestigious National competition for next year. They only choose a couple junior highs so it's a great privilege for them. The sad thing is that S will be out of junior high next year and will not get to go with the band. But S and her band earned the spot and that's what's important.

CR's history fair board on the Emancipation Proclamation. He got Superior at the school level. And honorable mention at the district level.

C's bridge for physics. Made to hold like 200 lbs. Lots of work!

Gymnastics Meet in St. George

2011-03-19T07:55:00.000-07:00

When CR began taking gymnastics I did not know how intense this would be! This was the last meet of the year and we had to leave the night before so we have him there at 8:00am.

This is a video that he presented at his school to get an extra curricular award. It's a combination of various meets but most of them are from the state meet because he improved at each meet.

Celebrity Pictures

2011-02-28T20:09:00.000-07:00

S and Justin Bieber

C and Thomas McDonell

February Pictures

2011-02-27T12:02:00.000-07:00

This is G with her Valentine's box from pre-school. She was so proud of it because she made it herself!

My amazing dad at his birthday dinner celebration! He's only as old as the candles say...

UDOT is trying to build a highway really close to our house and it would split up our neighborhood and take out like 10 houses in our ward. So a bunch of neighbors got together to protest this proposed highway. C made signs to take and the kids were just so excited to participate in their first protest! The TV stations were there and we were in the news! Let's hope it worked! We just have to wait a few years to know the final verdict.

Just a random cute picture of G and her cousin in matching PJ's.

Kid's Fair & Chuck E. Cheese's

2011-02-25T10:11:00.000-07:00

My sister and I love to go to fun free places together so the kids can play and we can bond. It doesn't happen too often but when we do get together we all have a blast! We went to the kids fair and at this table they were teaching the kids Spanish words while they played with play-doh. The teacher was so amazed that the kids could say the words! I wonder why they knew the words already??

Then we went to Chuck E. Cheese's for some pizza and fun! I had bought some gift certificates a while ago and so it seemed as if it was free! The kids had a blast!

Plain Parmesan cheese is always healthy right? I'm such a good mom!

Cheer Competition

2011-02-05T20:49:00.000-07:00

This is our cute cheerleader.

This is the dance they did at the competition. They also did a cheer but I could not get that one to upload. They got first place!

Half Time by Dance Co.

2011-02-04T15:04:00.000-07:00

These are just some pictures of C performing at half-time for a basketball game. They are wonderful dancers!

January Cute Pictures

2011-01-31T11:17:00.000-07:00

There is nothing to say about these pictures they are just cute!

CR Gymnastic Meets

2011-01-15T07:55:00.000-07:00

This year started out with something we had never experienced before. Gymnastics Meets. CR has been taking gymnastics for over a year now and was asked to be on their team. Little did we know what we were getting ourselves into. There are meets all over the state and they last about 4 hours each. Here are some pictures from the meets in January.

The team marching in.

The team getting ready

The Rings

The High Bar

The Parallel Bars

The Pommel Horse

The Floor Exercise

The podium

He got a few medals along the way. Didn't always make it to the podium but he did amazing for his first year competing!

The medals

Because the meets are so long some of the gyms have a place where the siblings can go and play while the boys are competing. G loved it!

With every meet CR got better in the events and we got better at knowing what to do as parents.

We are glad CR found a sport that he enjoys.

Not this year

2011-01-14T11:09:00.000-07:00

CR made it to the school Spelling Bee but got out on the first word. He was very upset to say the least! It's a hard lesson to learn that we can't win them all but it is one that we all must learn at some point. He is still an amazing speller!

End of 2010

2010-12-31T20:42:00.002-07:00

This is what we did the last week of 2010.

Because we told everyone that each family had to present a talent and we never got around to doing it on Christmas...we did it on Sunday. Because I am now writing this in March I have forgotten the details so I'm sorry. This is the reason why we should write things down soon after they happen because we forget very easily and quickly.

Julio and his kids sang a song funny Christmas song.

Z and her kids sang a silly Christmas song also.

K & S performed a duet on the piano.

KC & I sang "Mary and Joseph".

Derick and Alex performed a piano duet.

Mami R. told us a favorite memory of Christmas.

Papi O. told us Christmas memories as a child.

Then Z. had a "special bonding activity" for us. We all sat in a circle and one person sat in the middle and we went around and said something we liked or admired about the person. Well here is C in the middle. It was very emotional for all of us.

Because the activity went a little long and G was getting bored. She used my camera and took a billion pictures of herself and others. Here is one of herself.

Here's another picture taken by G.

On Monday we went to take pictures but because it was so cold we took the pictures inside the capitol building. This one was taken by K and KC & I. Isn't it so cute?

We took grandparents with grandkids pictures and many more that D has not given to us yet :(

On Tuesday Julio had to go home so we took him to the airport and then drove up to Park City to the Lodge. I had these three boys with me and because we were up there a little sooner than everyone else we stopped by the Olympic Park. Of course I'm obsessed by the Olympics and I loved going here. I think the boys did too!

This is the cousins hanging out at the Lodge. We all spent the night there on Tuesday and we had a blast although the sleeping part was not that great. The next day there was a huge snow storm and it took us a while to get home because we had to drive really slow and careful.

This is the Birthday Girl G. We celebrated her birthday in Park City. This will be a separate post later.

This is New Years Eve. We are standing in front of the TV waiting for the ball to drop in NYC.

Our New Year's celebration included a chocolate fountain!!

The party crew! Ellie, G, and Derick.

Happy New Year 2011

G 4th Birthday

2010-12-27T20:42:00.003-07:00

My baby is 4

The young girl cousins just loved playing together! This is one benefit of having your birthday between Christmas and New Years. There are always cousins around.

This is G opening her presents.

The Birthday Girl as proud as can be.

A Rapunzel cake

She loved it!

Let me just say how much I love this little girl. She brings so much happiness into my life. I love the song "In My Daughter's Eyes" by Martina McBride because it rings so true for me. Not just for G but for all my wonderful daughters but because G is the youngest and she came to us after such a long wait.

Happy Birthday G! We love you!

Christmas Day 2010

2010-12-26T15:20:00.001-07:00

Christmas Day began as usual the kids sooooo ready to go see what Santa brought and the parents trying to sleep in. The kids were all so good though cause we told them they had to wait till 8:00am and they did. We were just so lucky to have all of the F cousins together for this Christmas.

There are few highlights of the things that Santa brought:

CR: Nerf Gun

G: Koala Bear Pillow Pet

S: I-Home

C: Just Dance, Stilletos, and Snuggie

K: Sewing Machine

Here are the awesomest kids ever wearing their PJ's that Grandma Judy sent them.

We had breakfast burritos made with fresh tortillas and they were delicious!

And then we went down to the basement to open family presents. There were four families so we each had a little corner for ourselves. We took turns as families cause each individual person would have taken us until 2011.

This is my cute little sister Z and her family.

This is my little brother J and his family.

And this is my big brother D and his family.

This is part of our family. What can I say? We either took up too much space or I didn't think to take a picture of us.

After presents we got ready and went up to Park City where D&C had their timeshare for the week. It was beautiful up there with all the snow.

We were able to use the conference room in the lobby. Lele made ham and we all brought other items to compliment our dinner.

After dinner, we went to the condo and did a white elephant gift exchange. We did one for the adults and one for the kids. The kids one was fine except for the little ones do not understand how the stealing of gifts goes and we had a few tears.

Then we all drove home. It was a wonderful day!

Christmas Eve 2010

2010-12-25T19:10:00.001-07:00

Christmas Eve morning we had to put together the paches since they have to steam for a few hours. So we set up our assembly line and we got them going.

After we all got ready... the siblings wanted to go out for a little bit of bonding time. Since it was almost 3pm we just drove around aimlessly trying to figure out where to go. So we ended up at Paradise Bakery. We were about the only ones there and they were getting ready to close. They let us stay for a some time while they cleaned up and so that was nice to just be there and talk.

Family Picture. Ahhhhhh.

G and her American Doll with matching Christmas dresses.

The enjoyment of the paches.

Most of the girls.

The Christmas program by the children.

The Nativity Story. Always a special treat!

The cousins dancing including Malox!

The opening of presents from cousins. What chaos but we couldn't do it any other way!

Pre-Christmas Activities

2010-12-20T19:34:00.002-07:00

Ward Christmas Party:

I love to see K so happy!! We had a snowball fight with marshmallows! I think this is the most daring and fun thing that has ever been done at a ward party.

G sits on Santa's lap. It was hard to get her to talk to tell Santa what she wanted. Eventually she whispered it but no one could hear. Oh well... Santa is magic so he knows what she wants right?

S's Christmas Band concert.

Christmas Concert at Temple Square with guest star David Archuleta. It was a Lady's Night!

It was a wonderful concert with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and David.

After the concert we went to see David at Deseret Book. The line was too long but after some maneouvering we got to at least get a few pictures.

And then Cat treated us to yummy "The Melting Pot". It was a great night!

The Rockette's

2010-11-30T17:37:00.002-07:00

We went out on a triple date with Z & J, my parents, and us. We went out to dinner and then to see the Rockette's! I have been wanting to see this for as long as I can remember. Not in NYC but close second. The show was AMAZING! Here are a few pictures:

Thanksgiving

2010-11-26T16:48:00.003-07:00

Serving the kiddos! How come the kids always get to eat first and they don't even help with the cooking??

The girl's table.

The program.

Great dance but T stole the show!

This must be the closing song.

I know I'm way behind on my blog and we are now in the new year but I have to go in order or I go crazy. We had a fun Thanksgiving at our house with the M's, my parents and L & E. I'm so thankful for my family and the blessing of living close to them.

Then on Black Friday Z and I went shopping for lots and lots of bargains. We kind of left late and we thought we would be out of luck but we still found pretty much everything we were looking for! We love this tradition. But we are exhausted that afternoon!

Nutcracker Performance 2010

2010-11-21T19:06:00.000-07:00

Fritz playing with the presents!

The Party kids with the maids

Fritz with sister Wal

Snow

Waltz

Finale

C & J (friends since kindergarten)

General Conference Tid Bits

2010-11-07T17:31:00.000-07:00

October 2-3, 2010

“Spiritually Fed” is what General Conference is all about. I wrote down my favorite ideas but I forgot I hadn't posted them yet. So here they are. It's better now anyways cause its a good reminder of the important things that I learned.

We are individually loved of God.

The world will teach our children if we don’t.

When teaching gospel principles it doesn’t matter how much experience teaching we have. What matters is our attitude to teaching and that we feel his Spirit!

The Spirit is not taught but caught!

Principles of good teaching:
1. Immerse yourself in the scriptures (personal scripture study).
2. Apply in your life the things that you learn.
3. Seek Heaven’s help (pray for those we teach, pray for inspiration).
4. Exercise agency and act on promptings received. Act right then!

SLOW DOWN! Do those things that matter most!

The most important relationships we need to work on are:
1. God: Learn of Him, need time alone with him through prayer and scripture study.
2. Family: Dinner, FHE, love is spelled “T I M E”
3. Fellow men: One person at a time, spend time listening
4. Ourselves: don’t criticize, we are God’s creation.

Make our homes holy places. Block out those things that remove the Spirit.

The road of discipleship is not for the spiritually faint!

We become what we want to become by acting in the ways that help us become.

Be grateful for trials that increase our faith.

We are in the middle of an important election. The Lord is voting for me, and Lucifer is voting against me, but it is my vote that counts!!

There are no perfect parents only perfect principles to follow.

Lucifer knows our weaknesses and faults and will try to tempt us in these areas.

Show increase in kindness.