i left my heart

I found a new love. It's name is San Francisco.

Liam and I joined my family for the joyous occasion of the sealing of my brother Clark to his lovely bride, Kate in the Oakland Temple on Saturday. And it wouldn't be a Winegar family vacation without squeezing a bunch of fun into just a little amount of time.

We arrived Thursday evening to Concord, California where our lovely accommodations were located. Upon arrival there was a freaky lady in the parking lot that immediately focused on Liam which made me super nervous. While my dad was checking in she hung out in the lobby with all of us and just stared. Then after we went to go and unload all our stuff she followed us and hung out by our cars. I mentioned this to my dad because the last thing I wanted was to have her be an employee and have access to a key to come in and steal Liam. He asked the front desk and they said she was a guest here. Not the thing I wanted to arrive to but after we got our stuff in the room, Liam and I went in the hot tub and then went to sleep.

In the morning, we ate breakfast in the lobby and my sister and her family was there from New Hampshire! SO so excited to see them! Caroline just came to me and wouldn't let go. I was so happy that she recognized me! Creepy McCreepface was there with a notebook this time and was also super interested in my nieces. She was writing everything down: names, birthdays, who belonged to who...freaky. My brother in law confronted her and she said that she didn't have to take his harassment and told him she was a trained psychiatrist. Whatever...I think she received her training from all the times she had been seen. Come to find out she is a resident in a program there that houses stable mentally challenged patients. After that we just brought food to the kids in our rooms.

Anyway...that morning we headed off to Alcatraz. It was an adventure getting there, we made our boat with just two minutes to spare. But are you kidding me? The city is gorgeous! I was in awe as we drove over the Bay Bridge and there was the ocean stretching on as far as my eyes could see. When we got on our boat to take us to Alcatraz Island, Liam asked where we were going and I told him we were going to an old jail. His whole demeanor changed and he asked me if we were going to stay there. After I told him we were just visiting, he felt better about the whole thing. I never realized how beautiful the grounds were. I wish I would have taken more pictures of the flowers there but I guess that just gives me a reason to go back.










After our tour, we headed down to Fisherman's Wharf to Boudin's to eat. It was a darling bakery--they make sourdough bread in the shape of different animals and had lots of yummy treats to choose from. I have been craving clam chowder in a bread bowl since I went to Boston and I finally was able to have it. Muy delicioso. We also caught a glimpse of the seals that hang out around Pier 39. This city has so many things going on and has such a fun vibe. We then started walking back to our cars to head to Chinatown and my sister Erika and I were scared by a random man on the street dressed as a shrubbery. I didn't particularly love Chinatown but it was good to hang out with family. I got my diet coke fix for the day there and watched Liam throw poppers on the ground that would startle a few unsuspecting people sauntering on the sidewalks. It was the best 25 cents I think I have ever spent and Erika and I felt justified in our run in with the scary bush.






We then rushed back to the motel to get ready for the wedding dinner and I finally was able to see my brother and his cute love. Her family was so down to earth and I am glad to see that they love him as much as we do. It was in Kate's parent's backyard and it was perfect. We ate yummy food and visited, told stories about Clark and Kate, and Kate's brother in laws (and soon to be hubby) serenaded their ladies with Earth Angel.







Saturday we all headed to the temple! The Oakland Temple is absolutely stunning. The sealing was beautiful. One of my favorite things the sealer said to the new couple as they were looking in the mirrors was this: "Clark, (he actually called him Kenneth but I will say Clark) how many of you do you see?" Clark: "Just one." "And how many of Kate do you see?" "Infinite." "Kate, how many of you do you see?" Kate: "Just one." "How many of Clark do you see?" "Infinite." The sealer then went on to say: "This always comes out a bit feticious but it is not meant to be. Only seeing yourself once is enough." I thought that was awesome. I feel I have been quite selfish lately in my marriage and this really helped me dedicate myself to being a better wifey.



















We were planning to make a run into San Francisco between the sealing and the reception but there was not enough time. At the reception my sister Erika asked me if I was bummed if we didn't make it to Ghirardelli Square for ice cream since I had been dreaming about going there since I found out we were coming to San Francisco. I also had wanted to see the Golden Gate Bridge--when I say see, I wanted to physically touch it. I said yeah, but it was okay because I am totally planning to come back with Justin sometime. My cute aunt said she would go back with me after the reception if I wanted to go. I said if she was serious I was totally up for it. Then everyone jumped on board and I was able to have both my wishes come true. I ordered a dark chocolate mint sundae which should be outlawed it is so darn delicious and I was completely content. Then we drove across the Golden Gate Bridge each way. Ah, I am a lucky girl.







Goodbye San Francisco. I love you. And, I will be back.

Mother's Day 2010

What a great quote by Elder Russell M. Nelson:

“During my professional career as a doctor of medicine, I was occasionally asked why I chose to do that difficult work. I responded with my opinion that the highest and noblest work in this life is that of a mother. Since that option was not available to me, I thought that caring for the sick might come close. I tried to care for my patients as compassionately and competently as Mother cared for me."

Many years ago the First Presidency issued a statement that has had a profound and lasting influence upon me. 'Motherhood,' they wrote, 'is near to divinity. It is the highest, holiest service to be assumed by mankind. It places her who honors its holy calling and service next to the angels.'

It is no secret that I would love to be a stay at home mom more than anything in the world. I have been feeling overwhelmed at all of the responsibilities of teaching my boys what they need to know, helping them with homework, taking them to their various activities, supporting them when they are sad, rejoicing with them when they have done something they think is super cool when I am so tired from working. I want to be involved in their lives, not just sit on the sidelines. I love this quote from a talk by M. Russell Ballard:

"There is no one perfect way to be a good mother. Each situation is unique. Each mother has different challenges, different skills and abilities, and certainly different children. The choice is different and unique for each mother and each family. Many are able to be “full-time moms,” at least during the most formative years of their children’s lives, and many others would like to be. Some may have to work part-or full-time; some may work at home; some may divide their lives into periods of home and family and work. What matters is that a mother loves her children deeply and, in keeping with the devotion she has for God and her husband, prioritizes them above all else."

Oh how I love being a mother. It is the greatest of all I could ever imagine. I am grateful for my four beautiful and precious boys that have taught me more about myself and helped me grow as a person as I try to raise them the best way I can. I am grateful for excellent role models: my mom, my grandmother, my mother in law, aunts, my sister, my sister in laws...each have added so much to my life. I watch how my sister and my sister in laws interact with their little ones and I gleen what I can to incorporate it into my own child rearing and I hope as I get older I can have the wisdom that I see in my more experienced examples.

Here is a snippet from President Hinckley: "God bless you, dear friends. Do not trade your birthright as a mother for some bauble of passing value. Let your first interest be in your home. The baby you hold in your arms will grow quickly as the sunrise and the sunset of the rushing days. I hope that when that occurs you will not be led to exclaim as did King Lear, “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child!” (King Lear, I, iv, 312). Rather, I hope that you will have every reason to be proud concerning your children, to have love for them, to have faith in them, to see them grow in righteousness and virtue before the Lord, to see them become useful and productive members of society. If with all you have done there is an occasional failure, you can still say, “At least I did the very best of which I was capable. I tried as hard as I knew how. I let nothing stand in the way of my role as a mother.” Failures will be few under such circumstances."

Happy Mother's Day to all!

milestones

In the obstetrical world, as of April 28, 2010, I am now considered old. My eggs are tired and I have hit the ominous sounding milestone of advanced maternal age.

It sounds horrid, doesn't it? Because at 35, I don't think you should be considered old. So I am living up to the wise words of "You are only as young as you feel." I guess that would make me in my mid twenties.

It was a good day, pretty uneventful, but good nonetheless. I worked the night before and the night of my birthday and it was wicked crazy at work but I was able to usher in a couple babies in on the best day of the year. The boys made me breakfast so it was ready when I walked in the door in the morning and when I woke up there were balloons and a cake to enjoy. I am just glad it didn't pass by like any other day. I know I am old but I still like to have a day that is just for me.

Then, two days later, cute Luke had his eighth birthday. I know, I can't believe it either. He was the only one that I went into labor on my own with. He was due in mid-May and I was so excited to have a May baby--I don't know why but I had always wanted one. May just sounds so fresh and lovely. So, in classic Luke tradition, he showed me who was boss and came on the very last day of April.

The very next day he was baptized. What a fabulous day. We had many people there to support Luke on his special day. He was so nervous and excited and smiley. Our ward was in charge of the program that day so it was fun to have more participation in the event had we not been in charge. Nick and Andrew played "I'm Trying to be Like Jesus" on the violin and we had the grandpas say the prayers. Luke slipped and almost fell into the font but luckily caught himself before tumbling in. The baptism went smoothly and he came out beaming. Justin gave a beautiful blessing for his confirmation and we are so lucky to have a worthy priesthood holder at the head of our household.

Then after the extended family left, we celebrated Luke's birthday with the family. He got everything he wanted and then some. And wait until you see the awesome cake Granite Bakery made up for him.

 

Shut up, isn't it the most awesome cake ever? Granite Bakery is the bomb. I have gone there for cakes three times and they are so delicious and so darn good looking.

Then on Sunday, we had our final milestones of our weekend. In Sacrament meeting Andrew got up and bore his testimony ON HIS OWN and was so cute up on the stand. Luke was ticked that Andrew got up first because he said that Andrew took what he was going to say. So he must of thought of something quick because he got up and bore his testimony and also did a fantastic job. I was so proud of both of them!

Then after church we picked up a little something the boys have wanted for a long time:

Cute little Maisy Kevin Scott. Kevin is for Liam because that is what he wanted to name her. When I told him that it was a boy's name he said "No, it is a girl's name. The bird on UP is named Kevin and she's a girl." I ran it by Justin and he said no way so it is now her middle name. She is so cute and so fun and so potty trained that it is fantastic.

This post is forever long and even though it was a super awesome weekend I am glad that there aren't so many milestones coming up this weekend...I am exhausted!

unconditional

Liam is very interested in heaven and space right now. He is constantly asking me where heaven is and is it in space and is it far, far away.

We were chatting at my parent's house with him sitting on my lap with his little arm around my shoulder asking and we were talking about heaven. He absolutely adores my sister Erika and I told him that he and Erika were probably good buddies up in heaven.

He then said: "Then we were borned?"
I said: "Yep." And then we went through a whole list of loved ones that were "borned."

Then he sighed and said: "That Heavenly Father is a pretty great guy."

I love that Liam is so, so innocent. He is very conscious about wanting to do the right thing and everytime he hears a new word the first thing that he asks is: "Is that a bad word?" before he will repeat it. Although I guess that potty talk doesn't count because he doesn't seem to have a problem keeping up with his brothers in that department.

He is such a loving, delightful boy and the happiest child I know. I can't help but think that he truly did have a special relationship with our Heavenly Father while he was in the Spirit world. He is an example to me of how to be more like a little child and more Christlike and I hope that I can exercise these traits more often because I sure can't imagine an eternity without my precious boy.

things that made me happy this weekend

1. With a soccer practice, a soccer game, two baseball games, a baby shower, and working on Saturday I was able to accomplish it all and finally see Nick play a game!

2. Liam's first soccer game was one of the cutest things I have ever seen. When I told him that he just needed to kick the ball into the goal, he said "Oh mom, that's easy."

3. I taught the boys how to play war with cards.

4. Our ward talent show was a blast. It brought me back to Wasatch Ward times and how much fun I thought the talent shows were back then. Nick and Andrew played the violin and they did a great job.

5. Both Liam and Luke fell asleep on me cuddling last night. I will definately take it while I can.

i could do this every weekend

Last weekend was the infamous free trip weekend I won off the radio.

I was a little worried while checking in at the airport that the confirmation number I was typing into the kiosk would be bogus. A huge flashing message would pop up saying "INVALID ENTRY." But no, it was real. We got on the plane, flew to LA via Phoenix, and had an amazing time.




We stayed at one of the original Hiltons--the Hilton Checkers. It was adorable. It had an old school feel to it and the people who work there are super nice. After checking into our hotel, we tromped around the city. We ate lunch at a little deli, saw the Walt Disney Concert Hall, rode on the shortest railway in the world, went to an outdoor market and had ice cream.


If you squint really hard, you can see the Hollywood sign




Does anyone want a sugar cookie the size of a dinner plate?


Then we headed back to the hotel to get ready for the concert. We arrived at the Staples Center and realized we were the only adult people there without a star struck preteen girl and felt a bit out of place. We also realized that the screams coming from these said preteen girls would be at such high decibles that the ringing in our ears would not be gone for days. We had amazing tickets on the front row and didn't want to be standing there like our middle aged-selves and not be singing along or really knowing any of the words. So, we sold them to a cute couple that loved Taylor and we went to dinner at Wolfgang Puck's across the street. My two qualifications for the restaurant we ate at were Diet Coke and an amazing dessert menu. This far exceeded expectations. We sat outside on comfy couches and ate amazing food and it was a perfect people watching spot. We agreed that we totally made the right choice by not going to the concert.




The next day we headed to the beach. We drove along Santa Monica Boulevard and saw Beverly Hills. Justin saw the sign to Rodeo Drive and I wanted to go and to walk along the famous street. Our little rented Pontiac looked very out of place next to the Bentleys, Ferraris, Range Rovers, Mercedes, and Rolls Royces that were all over the place. I am sure that my old hoodie, my unpedicured feet, my bushy eyebrows and our flip flops didn't make a great impression either but we were just keeping it real. We didn't see anyone famous, but did see a local Utah DJ there eating breakfast at a hotel.






After seeing all of that superficial commercial stuff, we saw the beautiful Los Angeles Temple while driving toward the beach. It is absolutely stunning.



Then we made it to the beach. Oh, I love the beach. We walked along the pier, rode the ferris wheel, ate Hot Dog on a Stick, and just sat on the warm sand and listened to the waves come in.








Off again to the airport where I taught Justin how to play gin rummy while we waited for our flight to leave. My plan is to enter as many contests as I can so we can do this again soon...maybe next time we will actually go to the concert.

And, thank you mom and dad for watching the boys...they had a fabulous time as well!

just makes me happy

That's all.