The House of the Lord

Mom and I had an opportunity to go to the temple together while I did a baptism, confirmation and initiatory for me great aunt Virginia who died last 2007. It was a experience I will never forget. I feel so grateful that I can do the Lord's work and come to a place of perfect peace here at the House of The Lord..

Love

"Love is a state of Being. Your love is not outside, it is deep within you. You can never loose it and it cannot leave you. It is not dependent on some other body or on some external form. It is found here....now.

-Eckart Tolle

Only every three months!!!!

It seems that I have started a pattern of only posting every three months! I know...shame on me! I need a good spank'n!

My kids

Wow!! Has it really been 3 months since I've posted anything.......I better get back on board. I'll start off slow and then maybe I can gain some momentum in posting more often. I guess I'll post a picture I took of my three cuties a couple days ago. I love these little ones so much it makes my heart hurt.

What we're up to now.

Ahh! It's been 3 months since I've put anything on the blog! To let all of you know, we are doing great! We are enjoying being back in Utah around our sweet family again. I stay busy with my little ones, our home, finding the time to read and to work out. Leah is a speed reader and finds time everyday to draw me a piece of art work that expresses her admiration for me. She tells me she loves me soooooo much about three times a day or more. =) William just got his Kindergarten shots yesterday. He is a tough little dude. He was excited to get the shots until the fourth one out of six. He is so animated about eveything. I love his bright blue eyes. He is a little masculine one through and through. Stanley is showing interest in the potty. He is afraid he will fall in though, so we have to get him a toilet to suit his mini bumbum. His eyes are full of wonder for the world and he is into eveything with a spirit of discovery. He loves his dad and immitates his every move. I found him yesterday putting Gold Bond powder on his little feet and all over the carpet. =) Jeff is working his hynee off at the shop. They should be ready with the skeletal structure of the place this week and after that the exciting cosmetics come! I will be helping with paint and they have asked me to paint thier logo on the wall. You all are welcome to come see it soon! They are planning on opening their doors on March 8th!!!!!!!!
I have to say that I am soooo proud of my Jeffie! He is so brilliant. He has helped me be the person that I am today. I see his business really taking off and being successful here in the valley....in fact in all of Utah. Go Blackball Performance Cycle!!

High on Candy!

This is after the kids went trick or treating for 3 hours. We got one huge bowl full of candy, plus their pumpkins were all half way full after that. I have been eating all of the chocolate. =) The Lion, the Witch and the Pirate met other monsters and ghosts in the neighborhood. There is one house here where a handicapped child lives. Halloween is his favorite holiday and so his parents dec out their house with at least a dozen BIG, blow up figures. Visiting that house was the highlight of their Halloween night. Thanks to Andrea from William for sending him a pirate patch. He is not wearing it in this pic, but he was so happy to have it. =)

Lion and mommy

I love my little lion cub!

Happy Halloween from the Pope kids

Happy Halloween! We had fun at our yearly party and got lots and lots of candy! We sure miss everyone back home though. The kids had fun this year and it is good seeing how happy it makes them.

Vocabulary Day at school

For Leah's school Halloween party they had the kids dress up in costumes. They all wore signs with vocabulary words describing what they were or something about their costumes. This year Leah was a duck or less expressed, "a fowl." She was quacking all day. =)

Life and Times in Saudi Arabia

I was so happy to have my parents come down to help me with one of our quarterly Relief Society meetings. Mom helped me make Tabouli (a Saudi type salad), Umm Ali (a Saudi bread pudding) and other Arab dishes. They brought all of their Saudi keepsakes and we displayed them in the RS room. Dad gave the most interesting presentation on their life's experience in Saudi Arabia, as well as Lehi's trail through the wilderness. Dad looked very handsome with his suit on and I was so proud of him. I will make this an official THANK YOU to them for going out of their way for doing that for me. Thanks so much dad and mom!

Love, Julie

The Arlington airport "Fly In"

Today we went to the air show they put on every July. People come in from all over to show off their planes and flying skills. There were so many different kinds of airplanes!!! It was a good time!

p.s. Yes, I know my blogging skills suck!!

Helicopter fun

The helicopter on the left is the same helicopter on the right. We got to see inside after it landed.

Crazy people in the sky

The planes did amazing acrobatics!

War stuff

There were all sorts of war displays. They had Lynard Skynyrd
playing. I thought that was a good touch.
William loved the truck full of riffles and weapons.
That is a dummy behind Will if you were wondering.
Stan was a little scared of him. He did look dead if you ask me.

Canadian fighter jet

Towards the end of the show the fighter jets came out. They were very fast and reminded me of Gulf War times. This one just didn't seem as mean being Canadian and all. =)

Want to see a good movie?

If you want to see a good movie with good action as well as content rent: Taken

Loosing teeth like crazy

Two days ago Leah lost her first tooth! The upper left, biggest one was the first one to go. Today she was savoring a yummy grapefruit and lost the second one on the bottom left underneath the first tooth. She likes sticking her tongue through the hole. She will be getting more money from the tooth fairy tonight. If she keeps this up the tooth fairy will have to take a vacation, or not because of lack of fundage. =) It is fun to see our little girl grow up. =)

Thinking of my Parents

Today is the very last day of over 19 years that my parents have lived in Saudi Arabia. They have packed up all of their stuff and are traveling out of the country as I write this. I've thought many times what it would be like to live close to my parents again. As many of you know I moved up here to Washington about 6 months ago form Pleasant Grove, Utah. My dad and mom are moving into their beautiful home in American Fork, Utah, about 10 minutes away from where I used to live. This was a very difficult move for me because I knew that my dad and mom where coming back for good after almost two decades. Fifteen years of which I lived away from them. I thought, "What, I have to move away when my parents are just moving back so close?" This prevented me, for some time from receiving the Lord's answer to my prayer, which was that we should move here. I struggled with it, although through some inner searching I realized that distance does not separate the heart. In fact distance makes the heart grow fonder. As my heart has grown in fondness for my parents over the years there has also been a longing to be with them in body. I am so happy for my mom and dad. Both of them are examples of love to me. I know now, that I will see them more often and that our relationship will continue to grow and take on new sides. I'm excited for this new time and new horizon that is before them. I think that the most beautiful part of any relationship is the joy that is felt in being and letting the moments flow. =) This is the peace that is found when we let live and love. Love you dad and mom! I am excited to celebrate with you in the sun.

Oak Harbor at Anacordes

Yesterday the kids and I went to the beach to enjoy the nice weather and to appreciate nature. It is so beautiful here in Washington.

Curious beach

Will picked up big rocks and chucked them in the water while Stan picked up handfuls of sand. Stan tried to run in the water a couple times.