I posted this before but needed to post it again dedicated to my sister and her family

The following story is a great example of how the Lord teaches and molds us through life's trials.

There was a group of women in a Bible study on the book of Malachi. As they were studying chapter three, they came across verse three which says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver." (Malachi 3:3) This verse puzzled the women and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.

One of the women offered to find out about the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible study. That week this woman called up a silver smith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest in silver beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver. As she watched the silver smith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities. The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot--then she thought again about the verse, that he sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.

She asked the silver smith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left even a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed. The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silver smith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?"

He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy--when I see my reflection in it."

Author unknow

April's Here

So it is finally April which is my month! I wish it would get warmer though so more tulips and daffodils could be seen. Well spring break is over and we actually did a lot of fun things with them, today was the highlight we went ice skating! We had won tickets last year to go and had never used them yet. The kids did sooo good. I am definitely putting them all in lessons next year. Jason has been reading the Twilight series this week and should finish by morning! I love discussing the books with him it has been really fun. Tomorrow is General Conference for our church and I am so excited to spend two days hearing all the talks. I am so in need of the peace it brings to my life. The last conference in October was the day before Avarie was diagnosed with Cancer and I know without a doubt that it was the most meaningful one of my life. I truly hope that this weekend will bring the same comfort to me as well. I love that my birthday is so close every year to it and this year even Easter shares my birth week. Hopefully one of these times we'll make it to Utah to see it in person. Well I have to get up early to get everything ready for the fun. We print out packets for the kids so they have things to do while watching it. Our rule is they have to be in the same room and sit quietly. So to make that a reality I have lots of quiet things ready for them a long with snacks. Did I also mention we all camp out in the office, we might try our room though this time. Anyways I hope that you all have a chance to watch it.

Spring Forward

I cannot believe that spring is finally here! I have always loved Spring. I love all the flowers especially my favorite flower tulips. I also love that my birthday is in spring! I have been having lots of fun on scrapblog , if anyone was wondering about my new header. Jason has his final on Monday and then is off for two weeks for spring break. Then he will be in his last quarter! General conference is right around the corner and I am very ready for it too. The last most exciting thing about Spring is it starts Garage Sale season and who could deny the absolute thrill of a bargain.My sister Michelle's husband just got an acceptance letter from a PT school today so without question they will be moving soon. I am so glad to see things work out for them. There have been so many changes in my family lately it and the stress has been very apparent. Half the time I want to crawl under a rock so I don't have to worry about what I can't see. It is so hard to watch those you love worry about things out of their control. Sometimes I fantasize about winning a lottery that I don't play just so I could help my family members out. I am queen of brainstorming and seeking resolutions but this time I am up against the toughest problems and seriously the lottery is the only way serious sacrifices won't have to be made. I have faith that there is a plan for each of us and that the refiners fire truly makes us stronger but not much is mentioned about those that have to endure watching their loved ones in the flames.

Our Cookie is 6!

This past week we attended Jason's Grandpa's funeral but we also had our baby girl Brooklyn turn 6! her birthday fell on Jackson's pinewood derby so we opened presents before and hurried off to that. The next day she got to go on her date with dad to see the movie Bolt and to eat her favorite food Mexican! We also had a family potluck in her honor yesterday. So although her birthday wasn't exactly as planned at least she felt loved and was happy. so here we go
1. Brooklyn loves the feel of hair as a baby if you touched her with it she couldn't resist sucking her thumb(still can't)

2. Brooklyn does not hesitate to compliment others, she always tells me how adorable my clothes are or how simply beautiful something is!

3. She has always been drawn to the color pink. At 18 months she loved to color but would only do so with a shade of pink. she would dig through the box until she found one.

4. She did not wear pants until she was probably 5 even now she still prefers skirts and dresses.

5. She is not shy! she will dance anywhere and everywhere and loves to have an audience!

6. She loves animals and has no problem going up to strangers to ask permission to pet their dogs my older kids follow behind her. She has always been the "Boss".

Brooklyn Foushee Gutierrez has such a sweet spirit and seems to have been born with the spirit of determination. She likes to be incharge but has always been very sensitive and I have never had a problem with her hurting others. I love being her mom and watching her dance and sing her way through life!

Great to be 8!

Having computer issues but oh well!
This last week was crazy. Jason's Grandpa was put on hospice so we drove Thursday up to the Tri-cities which is 3.5 hours away. We had a good visit and the kids love visiting with their Gutierrez family. We then drove home the next day. Friday was actually Jackson's Birthday although we mainly celebrated it on Saturday we did take him to Multnomah Falls on the way back home. Saturday Jackson was baptized and confirmed a member of our church! We bought him a suit and afterward he looked so cute! He also is now officially a cub scout which also came with a really cute shirt! I am so proud of the young man he is and is becoming. I so appreciate all those that showed their love for us and came yesterday. I know that giving up a Saturday and enduring chaos is hard but I truly appreciated all your presences. So here are 8 things about Jacksy-boy!

1. He taught himself to read at 6 months before kindergarten started.

2. He used to refuse to get started for the day until he cuddled with me.

3. He is my pickiest eater and will not touch fruit except for mandarin oranges and regular oranges.

4. He could eat pancakes all day long! He also loves raw vegetables like cucumbers, carrots,celery and broccoli. Don't even consider that he dips them in anything though, always plain and raw.

5. He is a wonderful artist and loves to do nothing more than draw and paint or work with clay.

6. He naturally is gifted with an understanding for computers , well game systems also. He figures things out quickly.

7. He loves to sing and dance. He does not mind performing in front of people. His soccer coach said, while describing him, that he will probably end up on one of those dancing shows one day!

8. Jackson has a very tender heart he has always cried after getting into trouble because he didn't want me to be mad at him.

Jackson has always had a lot of energy and at times I thought I would lose my mind in raising him but somehow overnight he became this responsible well mannered kid. So for all you out there struggling with a 3 or 4 year old boy hang in there it pays off. And that might be why I am having an easier time dealing with Harrison, so waiting for that to pay off!!!!

My Monkey Turned 4!

Well here is my post to my rambunctious, fun loving, fast moving, sweet Monkey boy Harrison Thomas. What can I say I love him and want to handcuff him at the same time!
Here is 4 things you may or may not know about him
1. He crawled at 5 months went downstairs himself at 9 months and walked at 10 months

2. He loved guacamole as a baby and his favorite snack now is chips and (medium) salsa

3. He can get himself on PBSkids.org and can navigate around like a pro, he is also quite good on Super Nintendo!

4. Addalyn is his baby! He loves her so much and is finally "allowing" the other kids to touch her!

He had a Spiderman/rollerblading party with all his cousins, he had a blast! Then on his actual birthday he had his Daddy date. Harrison is obsessed with riding in Jason's car so that alone was a treat, he then got to go to Chevy's( which is wear he got the sombrero) and to the movies with just Dad! he fell asleep on the way home and slept for at least an hour once he came home.
I love you Harrison!!!!

A different kind of Valentines day

Sorry I have been so busy. I want to post pics from Harrison's b-day but I'll do that later. I just wanted to post and wish everyone a happy valentine's day. I know not everyone actually "celebrates" it but I hope this year you all take the day to express love and hold all your loved ones a little closer. i have always loved V-day but this year I want to make sure that I take the time to truly instill in my children the love I have for them and for their father. In NC I put hearts all over the walls with notes on them for each kid. I failed at countinuing that last year but am planning on giving them a heartattack again this year! I am challenging each one of you that read this to do something extra this year forget about expecting "him" to shower you and go all out for him. One more thing please use this day to set a date to give blood. Got to run!