The Undaunted

"To be 'undaunted' is 'to be unwilling to abandon one's purpose or effort; to be undiminished in courage or valor.'"
Last night I started reading The Undaunted by Gerald Lund. This is his first novel in seven years and it's a great one!
I first became interested in the book after preparing to go to one of Mark's family reunions. I knew that some of Mark's ancestors were a part of the "Hole-in-the-Rock" pioneers. But I didn't know their story or history. At the reunion I learned a little bit about this expedition and what role Mark's ancestors played in it all.
Mark's great great great grandfather was Lemuel Hardison Redd Sr.
Now, 3 weeks later, I started the 800 page book and can't seem to put it down. It's amazing to learn of the sacrifices and trials these people endured so that we might live a better life.
In the preface Gerald Lund quotes Gordon B. Hinckley on the importance of studying history, "It is good to look to the past to gain appreciation for the present and perspective for the future. It is good to look upon the virtues of those who have gone before, to gain strength for whatever lies ahead. It is good to reflect upon the work of those who labored so hard and gained so little in this world, but out of whose dreams and early plans, so well nutured, has come a great harvest of which we are the beneficiaries. Their tremendous example can become a compelling motivation for us all."
And that is what I have gained so far from this book. Motivation. And also a little faith, hope, and love. Hope you get a chance to read it. I'll let you know my thoughts again when I'm done. Who knows how long it will take. (Joi read it in 4 days.) Hmmmm.....??????

Cheering at the Football Games

Well, the cheer season is now in full swing. Last Saturday Keri cheered at one of the football games over at Timberline. It was so HOT that day! Good thing we had extra drinks and ice. The cheerleaders did great in the humid weather. They cheered their hearts out! (There was a little whining but only a little.)

Back to School

This is crazy!!!
Yesterday the kids went back to school. It seems so hard to believe that the school year has started already.



Cole is now in 8th grade, Keri is in 5th, and Carson is in 4th. Wow!!!


No more sleeping in and staying up late. It's back to the rigorous routine of homework and school. I know they look happy in this last picture but they actually are not excited to start school again. This picture was taken after lots of encouragement and persuading and the biggest breakfast I've made so far this year.
When I went to wake Keri up yesterday morning she was grumbling about how she didn't want to go to school. I told her that this was the best day of the year and that she should be excited to start the new year. She told me that this was the worst day of the year and that the best day of the year was the last day of school because then you knew it was over. I laughed and told her she was probably right. But what are you going to do?
The house is definitely a little bit more quiet without them home. I do get a lot more done. But I miss them terribly...

My Jersey Trip

My Uncle Gary used to say...
"Any day you can put your feet in the sand is a good day."











This past week I got to put my feet in the sand for the 3rd time this year. My days at the Jersey shore were spent soaking up the sun and spending time with my family...
Every day we got to the beach early...



We flew kites, went running, laughed at the kids, told stories, played ladders, tried to get Bryan to put his feet in the water, and drank way too much Diet Coke.
We spent most of our nights on the boardwalk, shopping and eating...



Grammy bought some hermit crabs for me to take home to the kids. They have been bugging me to get them each one because some of their friends have gotten them. (I won't mention any names.) I wasn't sure if I would be able to get them on the plane. I wasn't even sure I wanted to bring them home. But after seeing the little fellows on the boardwalk I caved. (They are kind of cute and kind of easy to take care of.) In order to make sure I got them home safe I "sort of" hid them amongst some other shells in my carry on bag. But lucky for me no one in security at the airport noticed them. No questions asked...Hmmmmm?????.....










There were many moments throughout the week when I teared up as I remembered my childhood trips to the beach. They were fond memories that I had placed on a shelf. And this past week I pulled them down and remembered...
My favorite part of it all was spending time with everyone. But I also enjoyed the quiet moments I stole here and there...


I can't wait until the next time when I can put my feet in the sand, watch the tide roll in and out, hear the waves crash against the shore, and smell the salt air all around me...

Cole's Court of Honor

Cole advanced to the rank of "star" in the Boy Scout Program. We are VERY proud of Cole and all the hard work he has done to achieve this rank! He also earned 8 additional merit badges. Way to go!!!

Crazy California Trip

Last week our family went to Huntington Beach to visit Mark's parents and to spend time together as a family...

I have great memories of my childhood summers, going to the Jersey Shore and spending time with my family. Every year we would take a trip to New Jersey for a week and stay at my Aunt's condo. It was heavenly to sit on the beach all day and walk the boardwalk at night. Seeing my children love the beach as much as I did as a child warms my heart. I asked them several times if they would want to go to Disneyland or the beach and every single time they all said,"THE BEACH!"

So we left our home in Highland and headed for the California beach...



Our first day there Keri and I spent a perfect day at the beach together just soaking up the sun...



While we were soaking up the sun the boys went to an Angels game with Grampy and Dad.
There was a little bit of rivalry going on now that Cole is a Yankees fan. But they kept it a clean game...:)




Every day we took walks on the beach at night...



The kids learned how to ride the waves with a little help from Grampy...





We built sandcastles...



Took naps...



Ate at Rubys...



Found a starfish family...



Flew kites...





And caught crabs...




But during the last 10 minutes of the last day of our trip, Keri got stung by a stingray. We had to take her to lifeguard headquarters and they had her soak her foot in HOT water for over an hour...




That put us behind schedule driving back home. We hit all the traffic going from California to Vegas. Ugh!! We ended up driving all night. But it was so worth it to be able to experience California during the summer. Thanks Grammy and Grampy for some awesome memories and for letting us invade your home for a whole week. Hope we didn't remind you of "fish" too much. We love you!!!

P.S. The lizard never made it home. He escaped in our garage about a week before we left. He's probably in the field out back somewhere grateful he's free of the Cooper family, especially Mark and Carson.

4th of July

This summer is goin by so fast!! I finally have time to catch my breath and post...
The 4th of July was a blast. We went over to Aunt Celeste's house for a great dinner and then we went to the Bees game. It's turning out to be a family tradition. One I'm sure the boys will love every year, now that they consider themselves baseball players. Carson was so cute at the game. Within 1/2 hour of the game he knew all the players and their records. It made watching the game a little bit more fun for me.