777

No, these numbers are not from a winning slot machine in Vegas. These numbers are how much the Dow fell today. It is the most the Dow has EVER lost in ONE day. Things are starting to get real scary. I was out and about today and feeling a little shocked and numb at what occurred in our market. I expected people to be talking about it and talking about how things are getting ugly. But no one did, it was business as usually. I guess there is nothing we can do right now. So I guess dwelling on it will not help things. I have to remember this. I just hope this crisis will be resolved sooner rather then later.

Walk-A-Thon

This year for Paige's school fundraiser they had a Walk-A-Thon. The kids got pledges for how many laps they walked in a two hour time period, or you could just donate a flat fee. When I heard that we (Yes, Paige wanted me to go with her) would be walking for two hours I thought that it would not be all that fun. But I was proven wrong. It was a BLAST! They had music playing and had tables set up with treats. Every time you went 5 laps you got a treat. It was a lot of fun. By the end everyone was hot and ready to stop but I didn't hear many kids complain while we were doing it. I think this was a great hit. It beats selling Christmas wrapping paper!

Death

It seems lately that I have been reading a lot of blogs that deal with the death of a loved one, usually the death of a child. I am not sure why I am drawn to these blogs. I have always been somewhat fascinated with death. For instance I love to read obituaries. I share this love with Julie John's sister. I have been drawn to these blogs because they feed me spiritually. These people are so close to their Heavenly Father and the veil is so thin. It is so amazing to me how strong these families are. It also reminds me how short this life really is. Today I am reminded of this after I received the news that someone that John went to MBA school passed away this past Weds. We had known that he had cancer and probably would not make it but it still came as a blow. It made me realize that someone can be taken from us at anytime. No matter how young or old they can be gone so fast. But I am so grateful that I have the knowledge of eternal families. That I know that after this life we go to a more glorious place that is beyond our comphrehension. I don't know how people who do not have the gospel in their lives deal with death. It must be extremely depressing. In my limited experience with funerals, I can tell you that when you go to a Latter-Day Saint funeral there is a different feeling. There is a peace and hope and love that is so amazing that is not found at any other funeral. I am so grateful of the knowledge that I have of the purpose of this life and the knowledge that my life and the life of others does not end here. I know that I am so blessed to have the gospel in my life. And I am so glad that we have missionaries around the world to teach others the gospel. I am always reminded that the word gospel means good news. Isn't this so true. The gospel is such good news.

Happy Birthday John!!!!

(Devon, John and Bill at the BYU vs. Utah game)

(John and Johnny at a BYU basketball game)

(John and the kids at his MBA graduation)

(John and Coen)

(John and the boys)

(John and I pre-kids)

(John at Yellowstone)

(John on Wall Street )

(John and Johnny)

(John, Paige and Johnny)

Happy Birthday John!!!

We Love You!!!

Love- Michelle, Paige, Johnny and Coen

"Basketball Sauce"

This is what Johnny refers to as "basketball sauce"

Where Were You When The World Stop Turning??

I don't think there are any Americans that could not tell you where they were when they heard about the attack on our country seven years ago today. John and I were living in Walnut Creek California. We were getting ready for work that day. We never had the TV on before work because we usually were so busy trying to get ready that we didn't have time to watch . This day for some reason I decided to turn on the TV. It was at this moment that the pictures I saw will forever be etched in my mind. The first plane had just hit the World Trade Center. I yelled for John to come and see what was going on. We were both in shock. How could this happen? We watched the television until we both had to go. John had to go catch BART to the city so we couldn't watch much longer. When I got to work. Everyone was in shock. It was at this point we heard of the other plane hitting the other tower and then we heard about the plane in Penn. Everyone at work was just in shock, literally. It wasn't long after this I got a call from John to tell me that he was coming home. Apparently they told him to go home since he worked in San Francisco and worked in a relatively tall building. At the time there was a belief that one of the planes was headed to San Francisco. It was a very scary time. I remember coming home that night and writing in my journal . I remember looking up at the sky and thinking this is probably the only time in my lifetime that no planes would be flying. I remember the patriotism that our country showed after the attacks. I remember flags being flown with pride. I remember people being proud to be American. I remember people pulling together and uniting as one. We had one purpose and that was "this is not going to happen again!" I wish those feelings of patriotism were here today. We are so blessed to live in the country that we do. There will never be a time in my life where September 11th is just another day. It will always be a day to remember those who died and those who fight to keep our country safe on a daily basis. I will never forget.

"Mom, there's Buzz Lightyear"

Yesterday I was driving in the car and Johnny kept telling me that he saw Buzz Lightyear. I knew he didn't have Buzz with him in the car so I was a little confused on what he thought was Buzz Lightyear. He kept repeating himself so it lead me to believe that whatever he was seeing he really thought was Buzz Lightyear. I kept asking him where Buzz was and all he would say is "over there". Well, "over there" is pretty vague when you are driving on the freeway. So I asked him again and he said in the sky. And this is similar to what I saw...


After I saw this I started to laugh. I told John this story and he posed the question "Does Johnny know Buzz is not real?" My response was "I don't think so."