All the shades of purple and green

Ooooh...the skies have been good to us lately. This spring, I have seen some of the prettiest northern lights I've gotten to see yet! On one particular night, we went a few minutes out of town, and stared up at the sky, watching it shimmer and change right before our eyes. There was a pulsating flicker of light that took my breath away and, despite my frozen fingers and toes, I could not move my eyes from the show above me. I'm so thankful for moments like this. 

 

February and March Birthdays

In February and March, our family had some pretty important birthdays!

Jessica, Radar, Jeanne Gladding, and GRANDPA are some of our favorite humans (and creatures) ever and we were SO glad to get to celebrate them!

Disclaimer: The following pictures don't really belong with the topic of this post but it'd be a shame to not plug them in somewhere. I mean, this kid is growing up on us too. 

 

Basketball season in photos...

Provincials for the three stooges

As March approached, it became apparent that our Varsity boys and girls teams would likely get the chance to compete at Provincials in Edmonton. After competing in Lethbridge at zones, it was determined that both of our teams would get to go to provincials as wildcards, making that potential trip to Edmonton a reality, not just for Sam but for Jessica as well, as she had been floating up, playing with the older girls whenever possible. 

Jess and Sam stayed at a hotel with their teammates, while Nate, John, and I stayed somewhere else.

I can't find a picture of it, right now, but Nate was also competing in provincials that weekend, only in Archery, not Basketball. 

Though we didn't know it at the time, Nate's archery team would win zones, and provincials, and then go on to win nationals for their division, as well. While in Edmonton, I went with Nathan and watched him shoot while John went between Jess and Sam. 

Neither Sam or Jess's teams placed in the top ranks, but the boys did take home the award for consolation. 

The girls placed 16th (out of 16) BUT let's not forget, they were there as wildcards anyways. They grew a lot, ok! 

Jess actually REALLY enjoyed herself and actually had a coach from NAIT (Northern Alberta Institute of Technology) approach her about attending some basketball camps, etc. This scout was really interested in Brooke, who graduates this year, but Jessica caught her eye too, which was flattering to her. 

It was a great way to wrap up a busy season!

 

Sam Seniors night

Sam definitely had a basketball season to remember! 

I had such fun watching him play, and always enjoyed it when others would approach us with positive things to share about him. 

* He brought energy to the court

* He was fierce

* He always thanked the refs

* He was a great teammate

* He practiced hard

* He was the defense guy...

These were some of the things that were often said of Sam. It has been fun to watch him grow in strength and in confidence this year. I have felt so proud to be his mom. 

Toward the end of February, Sam played the final home game of his High School Basketball career. "Senior night," as it is called is always a big game and it was fun to work with other moms to try and make it a great evening. 

We definitely love our #4!!

 

February Changes

February brought a lot of changes to our lives. Some were bigger than others. 

Jessica got her braces off!  She was beyond excited, as this was apparently the only thing keeping her from kissing her boyfriend. (jokes...but not really).

John helped his Dad sell their family home. What a hard thing! 

Back in August, John and some of his siblings helped Max move into the Chinook Lodge, something Max had agreed to do, but didn't really want to, in his heart. When Max decided to sell his house, we knew that it wouldn't take long for him to find a buyer. Within a week, purhcase plans had been settled. 

John's sister had done a lot to get rid of things in the house, and John handled the listing, showing and other legalities of selling.

On the night before they turned the keys over to the new owners, John took Max over for one last look around. John took the opportunity to thank his Dad for all of the years of happiness and teaching that happened in that home. 

The sky night sky was exciting in February, with multiple nights where Auruora was visible. 

Any time I saw a notice about it, off we would go, towards Leavitt. Me...Jess..Nate...and anyone else I could drag out of the house, close to midnight. 

It's a magical thing to watch the lights dance in the sky, changing by the minute, and even by the second. 

Sweet 16

Jessica's February birthday was a landmark one for her. 16 is NO joke and she had been waiting for that day for a long while. 

Of course, she'd spent a lot of time in deep, thoughtful, serious study and practice as she prepared for her upcoming driver's test.

It was a gong show of a test, starting with being late and then having to scramble to find a car (last minute), but thanks to the good things Jess did do well, and possibly her charming demeanor, she squeaked through and pulled out a PASS.

No joke - one of the most vulnerable feelings I've ever felt, as a parent, is the feeling of turning over the keys to a vehicle and praying that your child will always be safe.

As part of her celebration, I booked the Cobblestone Manor so that the kids could all go there and have the restaurant all to themselves. I hope that they had a fun time together. (Pssst...the boy next to Jessica happens to be her "not a boyfriend" right now, which means they hold hands and flirt incessantly.)

 It's a whole different gig this parenting 16-year-olds. 

Heaven help us all!

Abby- Temple

Abby had moved up to Edmonton in September, with the plan to work up there until she left on her mission in the spring. She secured two jobs that saw her through the Christmas season, one at EB Games and the other at the Edmonton Zoo. As the new year began, Abby found that those beautiful holiday hours were no more and she was back to working less than full-time. Still, she loved her roommates and wanted to stay up, if she could. As a mother, I worried about this. I wanted for Abby to feel productive and driven, which is hard to do when you are not fully employed. 

Shortly after receiving her call, Abby made the decision to move home. She could see that her focus had shifted and was wanting to earn as much money as possible while having as few expenses as possible. 

So, on February 5th, Jessica, Sam, and I drove up to get her and bring her home. 

It was fun to see her with her roomies, who were all sad to see her go. 

One of the things a mother wants most is for her kids to find good, caring friends.

On Feb 7th (if I remember correctly, these "catch up" posts are hard) Abby went through the temple to take out her own Endowment. What a JOY it was for me to be able to go through the temple with my daughter. Aunt Rachel, Aunt Jewel, Mya, and John were able to be there, in the session, with her as well.

It's become a reality that I don't take for granted, that I have been able to witness more of my children's life than my mom was ever able to. It brings me to my knees with gratitude as I consider that and I pray often that I might be able to remain to witness more of my children's important "life moments."