Isn't it Great Emma is 8!

Emma Turned 8 last month.

She was also baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

I really feel that this should be a choice that she can make on her own. So, I called up the full time missionaries for our area and had them come over and teach her the missionary lessons.

I think the missionaries and Emma had a lot of fun with these lessons.

Before Emma was baptized I asked her to write down what she was feeling. She was very cranky about this because, well she was very worried about some thing. This is what she wrote,

Today I'm getting bathptized.

I'm feeling scared and kind of nervous because

I don't want to go all the way under the water,

because I don't like going in the water.

After she was baptized, I asked her how she felt.

She said, "I'm cold mom."

The water was warm, but coming out of the water with all of those

wet cloths on made her cold. We couldn't get them off fast enough.

She was the first one baptized out of a group of 5.

She was the only girl.

Emma was baptized by her Dad, Grandpa Nyman and Grandpa Hardy were the witnesses.

Then she was given the gift of the Holy Ghost by her Father also. Those that stood in the circle were, the full time missionaries Elder Rice and Elder (I will fill this in later, I hope), Uncle Paul, Uncle Jon, Grandpa Nyman, Grandpa Hardy, and Bishop Parker.

We then went home for cake and ice cream. Grandma Norgard made this fun rainbow cake. It goes along with a primary song,

I like to look for Rainbows when ever there is rain,

And ponder on the beauty of an earth make clean again.

I want my life to be as clean as earth right after rain.

I want to be the best I can and live with God again.

I know when I am baptized my wrongs are washed away,

And I can be forgiven and improve myself each day.

I want my life to be as clean as earth right after rain.

I want to be the best I can and live with God again.

Grandma Norgard made a beautiful dress for Emma and these are 3 of the 200 plus photos that her Pa took.

I love the poem that was written by Linda Gay Perry Nelson, 1993

My Three White Dresses

My Mom (Grandma) made me a white dress,

Not red or pink or blue,

She said it was a special dress

Like very other few,

There has been just one before,

A dress now put away,

That I wore some time ago

Upon my blessing day.

As a little baby clothed in my first white dress,

My dad held me in his arms,

There to name and bless.

So pure and clean was I just then,

With time to grow and learn

About the Father's plan for me.

My glory I must earn.

Now I've reached the age to judge

The wrong road from the right,

And I am here to be baptized

In this dress of white.

So once again I'm free from sin.

The path is clear to me.

I'll grasp the rod and hold on tight,

I vow with certainty.

Just as mud would stain my dress,

Sin would stain my soul.

The key is to repent or bleach,

For whiteness is my goal.

And if I try my very best,

Then richly blessed I'll be,

Wearing inside God's holy house

White dress number three,

So today I make this pledge:

I'll strive to choose the right,

Through this sacred baptism ordinance

In my second dress of white.

I am so proud of Emma. I can see what a wonderful person she is becoming. She is a great helper around the house and with her siblings. She knows what she wants to do and she is not afraid to do it. She is strong willed and I think that could help her in many ways. When she was a baby, maybe 6 months old. My Auntie Molly was watching her for me. Aunt Molly was getting her dressed and she was trying to put on Emma's shoes. Emma was okay with one shoe going on but darn it all she didn't want that other shoe on because that shoe was for her and for those gums that needed to teeth on something. No no matter what Aunt Molly tried to do she couldn't get that shoe. Auntie Molly said to me after that something to the effect of, "ya know if you are able to do things just right, you can help her become a very strong lady that can do many great and wonderful things." I know that she is right.

4th of July 2010

We went to Prescott this year mostly for my nieces baby blessing.  She is such a cute little lady!

We stayed out of Prescott for the fire works... we opted for the Prescott Valley ones.  A much smaller crowd.  It is interesting, we went there 2 years ago and the crowd was very large!  But this year there was a very small group of people.  Someone said that the group was smaller because it was Sunday... interesting.

The kids had so much fun... mostly because I let them run around.  I worry so much about losing one of them.  And it is dark outside, I don't know the group of people and it can just be stressful when I lose track of one kiddo.  Grandma made white dresses for the girls, they LOVE them.  It was also fairly easy to keep and eye on them because they looked like angles.  The boys were still in their white shirts so they were easier to see too.

It took a while for the fireworks to get started.  It was like they were sending test fireworks up, just to see if it was dark enough.

The kids liked watching them.  It was kind of like Jacob's first real year, last year we, Pa and I, were installing windows on our house.  So it was really fun to see how Jacob reacted.  At first he was saying, "wow, what happened?"  Then he would say, "No more! No more, stop!"  Or, "Is that fire?"  Then he said, "more, more, more!!!"  And by the end he was throwing his light up stick in the air.

David met a girl there that was fascinated with his light up sicks.  So he let her borrow one and at the end of the show he said, "why didn't she give it back?  I told her she could b o r r o w it not have it."  Then he continued to say, "I guess that is okay, they don't last anyway."  But they had fun, throwing them in the air and then they just sat in the grass and talked.

Emma had fun running around and Abby had fun following Emma around.