Batman in AF!

So my 5 year old nephew LOVES Batman. You can't even begin to understand his adoration of the caped and masked hero.

He asked his mom and dad the other day if he could become Batman of their city. Then he proceeded to wonder who would be the commissioner. You know...important things like that.

So another sister of mine was relating the story of Ander's dream to her husband. Their kids were in the back seat of the car. And not wishing to have Ander become a target of teasing from his cousins, she related the story quietly to her husband. They both could not stop themselves from laughing about how cute and determined that Ander was about his goal. As they talked to each other, their kids did overhear them and instead of laughing about Ander's dream, they instead started discussing among themselves the logistics of what it would take for Ander to become Batman of American Fork. Like the fact that he would probably need a jetpack etc. I hear their discussion lasted for a while. They obviously had no problem with Ander realizing his dream.

Oh, to be a kid again!... And don't you feel much safer now that you know American Fork is being protected by such a willing superhero? I bet you all wish your city was protected!

Jason, never forgotten.

(Some of my nieces and nephews at Bumper's grave.) 

Jason, we will never forget you and the huge struggles you went through. 

Love you so much. Miss you so much. And we look forward to reuniting with you some day. Always know we are thinking of you. And if your story can even stop one person from drinking alcohol then that gives us some comfort. But always know that we will forever miss you and are very sad that some people never knew the real you. We are glad we did. Thanks for being the real you when you were able to. And thanks for letting us feel your spirit all around us. Always.

Opps- I forgot to post my Wicked Playbill and Ticket...

Ah, such a fun evening!

The Big Apple...My trip for work...and fun!

So I got to go to New York City again for work (the last time I did this was 3 years ago) and we had a great time looking for ideas for stamp sets in shops and the National Card Show at the Javitz Center. We walked all over, took the subway all over, took taxis, and generally just had a good time.

These are the elevators in our hotel. Yes they kind of looked like alien ships. This was looking up from the 8th floor. The desk where you check in and out is the 8th floor. Then to get to the street you go to the first floor.

This is the view out my hotel room. I was on the 35th floor of the Marriott Marquis on Times Square. Yes, I could see into offices across from me. One office had a big Spongebob Squarepants sitting by his window. Funny.

This is to the left when I looked out my hotel room window.

View of my hotel room to the right. You can see the river.

I am not a huge hot dog fan but I just had to have a New York hotdog...Yum yum...

Me at Madison Square Garden. Okay...

 A person dressed up as the Statue of Liberty. He covered his face...he wanted money to get his picture taken. Makes sense...

A New York pigeon...I wonder if he is friendly...

Here is the Statue of Liberty, lego style. 

This is in Toys R Us too. Huge dinosaur that was electronically animated. And it growled.

A life-size Barbie house in Toys R Us..Yes, Lana and Lissa, two of my nieces loved this. I sent them the photo from my phone. I guess Barbie is the big 50 now. 

One of our stops was at the MOMA gift shop. (No, we didn't make it to the MOMA. Too bad!) Oh, it stands for Museum of Modern Art. Cool chandelier display all made out of paper. 

We took the subway quite a lot. This is when we were going to Union Square...obviously.

Finally after 3 years of hearing about Wicked, I got to see the play in New York City! At the Gershwin Theater. So great! I love the music and now it is fun to know who is singing what songs.

Yes- we saw the play Wicked! This is the stage. The only picture I was able to take. As you can see we sat up quite high. But it was still an amazing production. The play was so great and their voices were all amazing. Glinda the good witch stole the show. Loved it! 

We went to Max Brenner for dinner in the Union Square area. It is known for its chocolate...Yes, I know it was wasted on me... but the food was pretty good. We went there twice. The 2nd time was an 11pm visit after we saw Wicked. I got garlic mashed potatoes the 2nd time. Yum!

Here is Union Square Park. Pretty little park.

Apparently Union Square Park has a lot of demonstrations. This one was a peaceful one. We were told this by the Brooklyn cop. There was another demonstration going on next to them where a guy was being really loud. 

The Brooklyn cop who talked with us is the tall one in the middle in the blue. Very strong accent. All the accents are so fun! My favorite part of the trip. All the different people. The statue is of George Washington.

Apparently Union Square Park has the friendliest squirrels... We were told by the Brooklyn cop.

Exciting to be able to go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. So much to see! And be amazed at.

Amazing detail the Egyptians created. I love the design.

Ah, Rembrandt. 

Beautiful Vermeer painting. I remember it from my Humanities text book. Amazing to see it in real life.

Another beautiful statue. This is of a boy. Girls would be jealous of those curls!

So soft and pretty. Amazing to me that it is marble. And that someone chiseled it all into a beautiful face.

I love this plaque. Amazing all the detail! 

It was a good trip. But I am also glad to be home. Next time I go to New York, I want to go strictly for fun... though having work pay for my room and board was a huge plus!

I also was around a lot of French people. I love their accents. So fun. 

Monday...a good day for new possibilities

Today is a good day. The start of a new week. A day of wonderful possibilities. And who knows what lies just around the corner! 

So I need to smile. And think of all that I have in my life.

And be thankful for all the experiences I have had and will have... because it is helping me to grow into the person I am supposed to be. May I live up to my potential. And forget the trivial things of the world. 

"Love the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thy own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths." Proverbs 3:5,6

A Little Tough of a Day Today

Mother's Day today was a good one to celebrate my sweet mom. We all gathered at her house today after church. Of course there was an empty spot because Jason wasn't there. Though I like to think he was there in spirit. And yes, I still feel him close by. No question. But I could tell it was a bit emotional for sweet Mom because Jason was missing from the loud bunch of us. I think it was a tender day for all of us. I know I felt the inevitable tears welling in my eyes at times. But then that is almost a daily occurrence for me. Certain things trigger the emotion. Like driving to mom's I saw a white Rodeo SUV and I was picturing Jason driving his. Or when my lawn mower happened to start right up yesterday after a long winter's nap, right away my first thought was that Jason did it for me or helped me out. I know, it might be silly to think that, but that is how I feel.

I think this will keep happening to me for quite a while. I think it is part of the process. Love you Jase! And I miss you. Stay near by us all for a long time! I like the comfort of feeling that you are near by.

Glad

glad... it is Friday

glad... I have a family who loves me

glad... I get to draw and design all day

glad... I get to work at the temple

glad... I have lots of friends who care about me and love me

glad... I have the gospel and the knowledge it brings...peace, comfort...and overwhelming gratitude

glad... that I am working towards goals in my life

glad... that I realize the blessings I have

glad... that it is sunny today

glad... that I have a blog that I can just write random thoughts and just be me

glad... that I am where I am in my life and that it is the plan for me

glad... just because

Now This Is Funny!!!!

I think it is important to laugh...and I know that it is good for the soul... so here is a laugh for today... hehe. Don't worry- we know Batman and Superman are cool and manly. But they are so manly that they can handle this mockery of sorts...I am trying to decide if Batman is putting on a "I am so cool!" look or if he is thinking, "Hey, who is touching my cherished cape?" Maybe Superman is just straightening it for him? Anyway, life is good and it is good to laugh. 

A Different Perspective on Life

After losing my brother, almost a month ago, I have thought a lot about things in life. And how even more so now, what is really important to me. 

I am also even more so grateful for all the blessings that I have and the experiences I have had. It has made me who I am, good or bad, and I hope that I will slowly but surely learn from my mistakes in my life and move onward and upward. Because for sure I want to be able to see my brother Jason again. And I hope I am worthy to do that. I know you should never do the "I wish I had done this...or been more compassionate about that..." because there is a reason he had to leave our earthly family for now. But I do pray hard that he can forgive me. I just feel that I didn't handle the situation the best way at times. And I know he had that terrible disease and that I didn't understand what he went through a lot of times...but I could have done better.  Love you, Jase. I feel you near me a lot. And I know you are okay now and don't have to deal with all that stuff anymore. And I am so happy for you. But we will never stop missing you.