Ray got a new bike recently (since his was stolen years ago) and then
he gave me bike helmets for my birthday and took us on a family bike
ride. We realized there that Tia and Susan had outgrown their bikes
(they grow so fast!). We were excited the next weekend to find a bike
at a garage sale just Susan's size, which meant she could give hers to
Tia. So Tia started riding without training wheels--not easy when you
live on a rocky driveway and a dirt road. But she has picked it up
quickly and we had a great time riding around at the church parking
lot by the temple yesterday while Ray did a session (despite my church
shoe blisters). We are finding Tia to be a pretty determined little
thing when she has a goal she wants to accomplish. Her latest goal
was conquering the monkey bars at school, and after doing pull-ups "to
get more muscles" and practicing swinging her legs for the reach,
she's got them down.
Susan still loves her glasses! She and Tia are doing so well in
school. Susan's reading comprehension is off the charts. She is doing
a report right now on the giant panda for her culminating event about
Asia.
Raymond seems to have grown up a lot lately, and is as active as
ever. He is most frequently found running downhill at full speed with
a big grin. Since he gains momentum by throwing all his weight
forward, he is constantly taking nose dives when his legs don't keep
up. But he has such a strong arch he still has a record for never
splitting his chin! He's a blast. One of our favorite moments each
week is when we announce him at Family Home Evening, and he does his
little victory dance.
Boyd's favorite past time of late is throwing. Since we live on a
cement slab and things are breaking, we hope this phase passes soon.
We also hope he grows out of the biting phase before he goes to
nursery. His brother hopes he does even sooner. Despite his biting
in frustration, he is a softie and we all delight in his morning hugs.
This last month the girls had a day off school and we took a tour of
the Ford Rouge Factory. It was really interesting to visit an actual
factory and see how trucks are made. But we did have to snicker at
their attempts to pose themselves as ecoconscious--planting grass on
their roof while they produce gas-guzzling trucks underneath. I wish
Henry Ford was still alive--I get the sense he was an innovative and
dynamic leader who would swiftly make changes to his huge factory,
making cars and trucks that run on alternative forms of energy. With
the sun out and gas nearing $4/gallon, we are wishing for a solar-
powered car!
Ray's schedule has been packed lately with all those culminating end-
of-the-year events--concerts, faculty meetings, graduation. As his
things will now start to slow a little, ours at home will escalate.
The girls' Dream Girls show is coming up in a few weeks, and the ward
Relief Society retreat that I have been planning is the following
weekend. Hopefully the Lord will help see it all through.
I loved Elder Bednar's conference talk about praying in faith--with
the intent to act. It has come to mind so often as I have prayed for
certain blessings for our family or ward members, and it has inspired
me to pray and then get up and go to work. Elder Bednar specifically
talked about praying and acting in faith with regards to missionary
work. So we have been praying to that end and have felt to act
accordingly. Some of you have met Mike and Dawn Lewkowicz. They are
our good neighbors and we would love for them to experience the joy of
the gospel. We have had some good discussions and they came to
Susan's baptism, but we still had not invited them to visit with the
missionaries. Well, the missionaries asked to come to dinner
tomorrow, so we took the plunge and invited them too. We were so
excited when they said they would come. Keep them in your prayers
tonight. We are praying they will have a desire to learn more.
What a privilege it was to fast with you yesterday, Wilsons. Thank
you for asking. It helps shrink the miles and draw our hearts
together. We send our love and prayers your way.
We love you all and wish you a great month of May!
Love to all--
Julie
And thanks to Ray for the camera....
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