Wally Turns 12!

Wally has done all kinds of growing lately! He turned twelve in March.
At church, the age of twelve is a milestone. For girls, it marks their entrance into the Young Women's program. For boys, it means starting with the Young Men's program, officially being considered a Boy Scout, and being ordained to the Aaronic Priesthood. For both boys and girls, it means they can enter our temples and preform baptism by proxy for those who have already died.

As a bit of a explanation, Mormons believe that we are still entitled to revelation directly from God in THIS day. We believe that just as God was involved in the lives of those people in the Bible in ancient times, he is involved in our lives. He loves us and wants us to have all the guidance he offers. He has provided the Bible, for direction, as well as another book full of important truths about Jesus Christ, as a companion to the Bible, the Book of Mormon.

When Joseph Smith was directed by Jesus Christ to re establish his church upon the earth, he was given the power of the priesthood by the laying on of hands. This power is still on Earth today and can be held by worthy men, beginning at the age of 12.

It is the power to serve God. It opens the doors of Heaven to allow Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ to heal and comfort our bodies and minds, and give direction and continued revelation to us, as well as preform baptisms, sealings that will last throughout Eternity. The men who hold this priesthood are expected to be humble, clean, worthy servants of the Lord. Abuse of the power in any way makes them unworthy, and ineffectual.

So… it is a big deal to watch your amazing, cute, little boy, given this opportunity to serve the Lord! Wally can now pass the bread and water to the congregation in Sacrament Meeting. He can learn what this responsibility of holding the priesthood means, and grow to be ready to progress in the priesthood as he ages.
I love watching my kids pass these milestones. It is amazing to have healthy, able children that can have these experiences. I love seeing my children face happy times and hard times, and how they handle them. I love knowing that I can pray to Heavenly Father to succeed in helping my kids understand their purpose. I love that we all age, grow and change, and the joy it brings to watch that with your kids!

I have loved the twelve years I have had with my handsome Wally! He is SUCH a good boy! He tries so hard not to let anyone down. He has a sweetness about him that I hope he always keeps. He is a great soul that our family is blessed to have! We love you Wally boy!

Both my parents and Del's were able to come visit over Wally's birthday and be here for his ordination. It is a privilege for my kids to know their grandparents so well. It is a blessing to have those memories. It is amazing that both Del and I have such supportive parents.

My parents wanted to get to the city one more time before we move, so we decided to head down to the Field Museum. We saw the Viking exhibit and it was very interesting! I learned a lot.

Lydie came with us to she could meet Sue the T-Rex. She was not impressed, and instead concentrated on eating her hands.

Me and my Mom.

Christmas 2014

Wowza!
I have got to get our Christmas update on my blog! I have been trying to gather all the pictures from all the different cameras and phones in our lives for this post. That has only made me delay putting posting, so I am going to post what I have and edit later as I find them! I am really slipping with my blogging efficiency, but if you care to, check in every so often, because I am determined to keep things as up to date as I can!
Before leaving for our trip to Utah for Christmas, we had to make our stop at the bank to see the bank Santa. He is the best Santa!

The kids all look like they are getting so tall in the Santa photos!

Lydie had her first Santa visit this year!

Georgia getting into the Holly Jolly spirit before church.

We had to be calculated with Christmas gifts. We flew to Utah and planned to do all the gifts there. We knew we would have to mail a box of gifts home, but when the kids asked for these giant stuffed animals, I knew we needed to amend our plan a little. Santa came a bit early to deliver the stuffed animals, and left a note explaining that they wouldn't fit in the suitcases. Georgia, Walker and Lydie were thrilled!

Christmas Eve at Grandma and Grandpa Rinquests house always brings lot of matching jammie photos with cousins! This is one beautiful group of girls! It will be so much fun to watch them all grow up and see what amazing things they do in life!

We were home for a white Christmas! It was fun to let our families meet Lydie!

Georgia's first Christmas with a sister!

Speaking of sisters… I have a few myself! Sisters are the best! Blurry photos, not so much.

We got 40 tickets to the Jazz game for our families for the second year in a row. It is always so fun to have everyone cheer them on together! This year my sister's husband, Christopher, who is a SLC police officer, knew the officer doing security on the floor. He got us in to snap a few photos down on the wood during warm up at the half! So fun!

Del and I snuck away for a night to Midway. We wanted to check in on the land we bought to build a home there over the Summer. More on our upcoming move to Utah to  come in a later post!

We stayed at the Homestead which will be just behind our neighborhood. With our sidekick, Lydie.

After my Grandma Clark's viewing we stopped in down the street at Leatherby's for some ice cream. This is an old high school hang out for me and Del. It is one of the first places we did a little flirting after a foot ball game. I remember I put together a surprise gathering for my sister Emily who was a Senior with Del. I brought a cake and he offered to carry it to the car for me since most of it did not get eaten. We were both distracted by our flirtations, and he left it sitting on the counter in the restaurant. The next day he went back to see if they kept it, but they had thrown it away. I think he brought a cake over to our house to apologize, but I am not sure. Oops! Ha!  A little harmless flirting in a ice cream shop can lead to a family of five children! Georgia was thrilled with the Sunday as big as her head!

Because we delayed our flight back home to stay for my Grandma's funeral, we ended up having some unscheduled days. One of Del's friends from high school hosts a Polar Bear Plunge to raise charity money every year. He invited Del to participate. This is one of those "Bucket List" type events. I hate the phrase, "Bucket List," but you know what I mean.

As we pulled up we saw that the fire department was cutting a big hole in the thick ice. The water did not look inviting.
Del took off his shoes and sweatshirt and headed out onto the ice. He said the ice on his bare feet was the worst part. He jumped in and swam like a crazy man in shock to the other side of the hole. What a champ. I think he got his fill of Polar Bear plunging. The event had a great turn out though, so apparently not everyone has.

I hope I follow throughout with my updates as I find pictures! So this post may change from here!