a lot of captioning

Here I am.  Thinking to myself.  A lot.  Which I am grateful for.

I have been thinking about the importance and ranking of important things.

Is it nice?
Is it good?
Is it vital?
How am I spending my time?

Am I spending my time honestly?  By nature, I am not a dishonest person.  But I don't use my time to the best that it could be used.  Passively busy or anxiously engaged?

Good questions to be asking, I think.  And I need to ask them more often.

One of my very favorite shows on television right now is called Turning Point.  It is a production of BYUtv and it is amazing!  It is a show which highlights how people are making a difference in the world for good.  I cry every time I watch it because these people use the gifts and inspirations to change the world in small, but mighty ways.  It helps me to keep my eyes open for opportunities which might be right in my way, in which I could help other people.  Turning Point speaks to that which is good in my soul and my heart.

And now for some updates:

Barrett wanted to try out for ODP again.  So he did.  The results were posted yesterday, and he made it again.  Which I have mixed feelings about.  It is something that is a good thing.  Not vital.  But it is good.  Barrett really enjoyed the whole process last year and was glad to do it again.  He was especially glad that he had so many people that he is friends with that also tried out!

 The setting at tryouts was so beautiful.  I had to take a picture of the mountainside.  The weather for the first two weekends was amazingly perfect for soccer!!

 Barrett isn't in this picture.  

 Barrett with the other friends that tried out for ODP.  We stopped for lunch at Zupa's!  It was so fun!  Really, we were able to spend time with some great friends and play a lot of soccer during these tryouts!  Barrett is the one sitting down in the chair.

Barrett and his friend, Jaxon.  We stopped at Krispy Kreme on the way home from our last ODP tryouts in Utah Valley!  IT WAS SO COLD!  The donuts were deeee-lish!  They were sports enough to wear the hats for the picture!

Thanks, guys!

We also stopped at Sensuous Sandwich this time!  It is the best!  It was also my friend Marianne's birthday!  I am so glad that I got to be with her, and we just really enjoyed being together with our boys!

Barrett's second team took second place in their division last season, so he got a medal!  He was so excited!  He loves both teams he plays for, so much!  One thing that is hard for me as a parent, is that he is so carefree at times with soccer.  I know it is a good thing that he genuinely loves it and has such a great time.  He genuinely loves his team mates and coaches and has a tendency to be a bit goofy and excitable in practices and games.  I know he will never have this time back again, so I try not to be too serious, but it is very difficult when I see his potential and know what he could do with the skill that he has been given if he would be more focused on what he is doing during practices and trainings.

I AM TRYING TO FIND OUT THE NAME OF THIS QUILT PATTERN!

I can't remember what it is called.

I wanted to make one for a baby shower coming up, but can't find it, so I have been looking online for it.  To no avail!  I think it came out about the same time as the third installment of Lily and Will from Bunny Hill Designs was released.

The trusty van turned over 100,000 miles this month!

I think it was on the way to Lucy's dentist appointment, but I am not sure.

I'll have to ask her.

Someone found my camera during conference to document his building extravaganza.  Awesome!

 We went to Lehman Caves over fall break.  It was amazing!

The surrounding area was just so beautiful.  I was able to collect a large amount of these beautiful pine cones.  They are amazing.  I am hoping to use them in an art project for Christmas, someday!

 Robert had the kids both bring a friend with us to Lehman Caves.

Barrett brought The Great Calvino, and they had SUCH a great time together!  Calvin has had a lot of outdoor experiences, so he was a pro at knowing how to listen to what the instructor was telling us, and he took it as seriously as Barrett did.  Which, was pretty serious.

 Lucy brought her friend Megan.  Megan is a friend from soccer, and she was fun to get to know better!  

Robert and I inside the caves. 

Being inside the cave makes you realize that you are more claustrophobic than you think you are.  It was WAY cool, and way worth it.  There were a few times that I felt like I was worried about the situation I was in.  But I didn't freak out, so that is good!  I like this picture of Robert and I because my nephew Trenton took it.  Plus, it is just a good picture.

 After visiting the cave, we were able to stop and make a fire to cook hot dogs and have smores!  It was AWESOME!  Everyone had such a fun time!  This trip was even better because we were able to go with my brother's wife and kids!  The funnest part of the whole trip was the fact that we brought the walkie-talkies and were able to hear Jack-Jack and Addie tell us jokes over the air waves!  So funny!

 The picture above and the picture below are taken at the spot we stopped for dinner after visiting the cave.  The big pine trees were spectacular and the little stream was so beautiful.  The kids were able to go and jump over it and play right around it, without any worry!

The picture below doesn't show the stream as much as I would have liked, but it is there.  I am so glad I went back and got the clearer picture of the stream!

 Jack and Addy, on the way back to the cars, after a quick adventure in the near by camp ground!  There were pine cones everywhere and little streams, too!  So much fun!

All the cousins and friends that went on our little day trip!

 Barrett got to go to the local corn maze twice in October.
Once for a school outing and once with his second soccer team!

He had WAY more fun with his soccer team! Even though it was much colder when he went with their team.

We doggie sat for a tiny little Yorkie named Lucky.

He is adorable!

On Halloween, we had friends over for pumpkin carving and trick or treating!  Lucy brought her friend Ashley.  Barrett had his friend Jeff over.  They had a blast!

Barrett and Robert went as The Aquabats!  Not all of them, just two of them.

Lucy went as a donut.  It was a very, very cute costume!

Her friend is a rock climber!

Jeff was a zombie scientist, I think.  I feel bad I didn't get a picture of him with Barrett, with both of them in their costumes.  I missed that one!

Lucy organized and counted her candy.
She made sure to have inventory, so that she would know if someone took anything that didn't belong to them!  She really made the haul with Kit Kats and M&M's.  It was fun to watch her counting it all.

Barrett dumped all of his candy into a bowl and put it on the counter with a sign that said something like:  "Eat what you want, just don't eat it too fast."  I hope the sign is somewhere around here, so I can get a picture of it, and post it here.
It was pretty dang cute to see both of them on opposite sides of the self spectrum.

I told Lucy this was her last year to be allowed to go trick or treating.
She agreed, but kind of halfheartedly.

Can I just say that I am SO THANKFUL for my camera!?
I seriously love being able to look at the pictures I've taken and remember where I have been and what we have been involved in!  I don't think I could remember half of what my camera is a witness to!  What a blessing in my life!