There has been an

Ashton family Christmas party going on for 90 years.  It started with Gary's first grandparents and is now into the great-great-great grandchildren.  They had it tonight because December is just too busy.  It was nice because both Janice and Frank and Geniel and Dickson came up for it.  

Instead of a wedding

cake, Natalie and Trent want a cupcake display  with a small cake on top that they can cut.

After spending much more time than I needed to, searching all the options, I found this stand.  



I'm collecting images for inspiration.

(Natalie actually wants a cupcake

shaped cake on the top)

Of course, the colors, varieties, and such will be different.  I think I've got more than a little cupcake experimentation ahead of me!

You know some of those things I get

a little OCD with?   

Like flower pens, flower pins, and key fobs?

I haven't had key fob hardware for a couple of years, 

but I have some now.  

So if yours is worn out, let me know.

I'll happily make you a new one.

i hope that in

40 years I'm as lovely and healthy as the beautiful lady in pink. 

She is in her 100th year!

We had a goodbye lunch for a neighbor, Patti (sitting on the left)who is moving. I think Patti is in her 80s and she is amazing.  And, it was my cousin, Maisel's birthday (standing on left) and she is 80 something today, too. Amazing.  Sorry to keep saying Amazing, but there is no other word for them.

This was such a touching

gift that Tiffany gave us.

And they bring tears to my eyes

each time I look at them.

Other than the headstones at the cemetery,

 

we don't really have any tangible remembrances 

of our two stillborn daughters, 

Annalee and Emily.  

It means so much to have them remembered,

and I look forward to getting to know them.

Ashton Michael Idiart

turns 12 years old today!

He has some pretty amazing goals and is just plain amazing.

Here are some of his answers to my interview with him at Christmas time.

Favorite subject in school:  Geography, Maps, and countries

Favorite pastime:  Reading, drawing, friends, ipod.  (He didn't mention it, but he is amazing at Origami)

What do you appreciate about your family:  That my parents are my parents and do lots of stuff for me.

What do you think you will be doing in 10 years?  Going to BYU and studying engineering.  Making stuff using electricity.  Developing electronic fingerprinting.

Grateful for:  Food, life, electricity, earth, sports.

What would be his perfect day:  All relatives and friends would live in my neighborhood and across the street are amusement parks.  

When you have felt closest to God:  At Aaronic Priesthood camp having a Joseph Smith experience.  30 minutes of reading and 30 minutes of praying.

Happy day:  At Disney World on the Hulk roller coaster.

Where like to serve a mission:  West Indies

He also wanted to make sure that I wrote down that the eyes on the wooden Joseph and Mary (shown behind us in picture below) kind of creep him out.

Grandpa and I love you, Ashton!

A little experimentation

tonight with the message cookies.

We need to up our decorating skills and maybe try a different recipe.  This recipe that came with the cookie stamps works great, because the letters really show up, but they are not the sweetest cookies.  Well, we've got a few months to experiment.    

A member of the ward called

today and said he is giving a lesson on marriage next week.   He asked me if I would write down the some answers to the question of:

"I really appreciate, or love, it when my husband ______"

Here are my answers, just to name a few.

I really appreciate and love it when (and because) Gary  . . .

1. Wants to be with family and knows the importance of building those relationships.  
2. Sees that something needs to be done, or that I need help, and pitches in without being asked.
3. Is supportive of projects and activities I am interested in (and is good natured about any messes those activities entail).
4. Works hard to support our family.
5. Is very unselfish in our relationship and very generous in what he gives.
6. Has always made striving to live the gospel, and fulfill his callings, a high priority.
7. Likes to take me out to dinner J

  

We've decided on a place

for Natalie and Trent's wedding.  

It will be fun to start thinking about how to decorate now.  Misty and Tiffany will come in for Bunny Hollow in April.  Guess what our craft projects this year will be?   So fun!  

I went to

lunch with the "Lunch Bunch" today.  Dianne asked me if I have been doing "The Happiness Project."  I told her I had been thinking about it.   I guess that's better than not thinking about it.

The once concept that I have been more aware of is that if something will take 1 minute or less, just do it now, and don't put it off.   There is a lot of sense in that. The second thing I've been thinking about is to do a 10 minute walk through of the house and pick up anything that doesn't belong and put it away.

Well, I've just done a 1 minute blog entry, and now I am going to do a 10 minute pick up around the house.

I'm making some progress, don't you think?

Right now

I'm regretting my resolution to blog (not jog) every day.  It is 12:20 in the morning and I'm now doing yesterday's entry.   Pretty boring.  It has been a full day, though.  Visiting Teaching, shopping, wedding venue visits, dinner with Natalie and Trent, and finally working for 5 hours.  

Remnants

of Christmas still on the fridge.

In case you can't read this one, it says

"The best day of my life.  

Grandpa admitted I was right."   

Love, Lydia 1-3-15.

I really look forward

to the weekly emails from Jackson.  It is amazing to hear of his experiences and of all the growth he has shown.  He is now living in Centerville and has the assignment over 6 single adult wards.  He is encouraged to play in all their sporting events, which is so funny.  It's a good thing he loves sports.

Here is today's email.

Hello everyone! 

I have had a great week and a very sad week.. Attached below is two pictures... One of Sevanna who was baptized this past Saturday. The other of Elmer. Elmer passed away Sunday morning. I received a call from Sister Weidmeyer and she was just crying and crying and I couldn't help but cry.. I felt so close to him. She keeps calling me randomly to "talk". She really misses me and I don't know how to help her. I feel so bad. I will be up in Layton again this weekend for the Mestas family baptism. I will go visit her again, but please keep her in your prayers. She needs them. 

Sevanna was a "dry Mormon". haha When I first met her, she had read the Book of Mormon, the Bible, and the Doctrine and Covenants!. She was prepared well before I was able to teach her the lessons she needed to be baptized. She gave me the opportunity to speak at her baptism and I felt honored. Tons of people showed up and the spirit was so strong! She didn't feel ready for baptism when it came time, but she was more than prepared and I kept reassuring her of that. It was very spiritual and its times like that that I look forward too and will always remember.  

The YSA area is going really great! There was tons of activities this week.(basketball four nights this week, volleyball, and football) So I am actually sore! Most of you think that I am just playing sports for my mission, but through this sports I was able to get nine people to come to church that have been less active for a long time. So sports is the way to many kids hearts!(: So don't judge me. 

This is the last week of the transfer and by next week I will know if I am leaving or staying or what! I hope I stay. I love this area! Thanks for all the love and support. I love you all!

Love,

Elder Bishop

I am so proud of him.

One of my favorite things at

Christmas is receiving Christmas cards and letters in the mail.  Sometimes it seems like a big expense and a lot of work to send out as many as we do, but I love staying in touch with friends and family and I love receiving cards and photos from friends and family.

Here are the card holders that I put up each year.

And here is how it looks by Christmas.

(By the way, don't you think it is time to replace the 1972 paneling?)  

I've had this song

going through my head all day today.

"The hearts of the children turn to to their fathers.  

Malachi prophesied the hearts shall turn.  

Elijah fulfilled the prophecy.  

And families can be sealed for eternity."

It has been on my mind for a couple of reasons.   First, we went to the Temple today, which is is a fulfillment of that prophecy.  And, second, the Stake theme this year is Family History.  "And he (Elijah) shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children and heart of the children to their fathers."  Malachi 4:6

As Stake Primary leaders,  we go to the Wards in the stake and do a sharing time for the Ward we are visiting.   For part of the sharing time, we ask the children if either of their parents are in the room. (Usually there are a few that are teachers or leaders).   It is very sweet, because first the children turn to face the parent.  But then they go to give them a hug, showing that it does not mean just to turn, but to embrace and love our families that are here and have come before.

The "Spirit of Elijah" is very real, and not just in a church setting.   Through the years, as I've done family history work, I have felt that strong link to those who came before.  And, I have no doubt that once I've passed on, my heart will be turned to my children and grandchildren.    

    

I was given this set

For my birthday. You basically set the message like a letter press and stamp it on the cookies before baking.  I'm anxious to try them.  Maybe spell out sonething like:

"Natalie & Trent

June 20 2015"

We'll see how it goes.

"Grandma Ashton said I'm

good at cracking eggs."

Misty texted this picture of Marshall when she was trying to convince him to let her help him crack eggs at home.

I so have lots of faith in this little guy, and what difference do a few egg shells make anyway?

The Happiness

Project.   

Ok, here is the long story, not the short one, of how I first heard mention of the "The Happiness Project" book.  

Last year when I was dropping off Misty and Tiffany at the airport after Bunny Hollow, there was several hours between when Tiffany's flight left and Misty's did.  So Misty and I went to the Barnes and Nobles store in the Gateway Mall.  It was there that Misty told me about the book that her cousin, Angie, had told her about.

I was intrigued, so I bought the book, but then I totally forgot about it.  A few months later I was talking to my friend, Dianne, and we were discussing being more positive and energetic.  I then remembered about the book and told her about it.  Amazingly, she also had the book but had not done anything with it. So, since August we have been trying to get together to start the project.

So here we are, in January, and we really are going to get together to start.  I went to the website and was intrigued by the test to help help identify your tendencies.  Very interesting.

Take the test here:     http://www.gretchenrubin.com/

 
I tested out to be an Obliger.  

Obligers meet outer expectations, but struggle to meet inner expectations. They’re motivated by external accountability; they wake up and think, “What must I do today?”

Obligers excel at meeting external demands and deadlines, and go to great lengths to meet their responsibilities, so they make terrific colleagues, family members, and friends. Others rely on them tremendously.

However, because Obligers resist inner expectations, it can be difficult for them to self-motivate—to work on a Ph.D. thesis, to attend networking events, to get their car serviced.

Obligers depend on external accountability, with consequences such as deadlines, late fees, or the fear of letting other people down. In fact, Obligers need external accountability even for activities that they want to do.

Behavior that Obligers sometimes attribute to self-sacrifice or lack of self-esteem—“Why do I always make time for other people’s priorities at the expense of my own?”—is often better explained as need for accountability.

The weight of outer expectations can make Obligers susceptible to burnout, because they have trouble telling people “no.” They may describe themselves as “people-pleasers.” They may, in fact, reach the point of Obliger rebellion, a striking pattern in which they abruptly refuse to meet an expectation. They may rebel in symbolic ways, with their hair, clothes, car, and the like. 

So, it is a good thing I'm starting the project.  If I kept up with my obliger ways, the next time you see me I could have orange and purple hair.  

There are some days,

like today, where I get angry with myself.  I spend so much time on things that really don't matter (like lots and lots of Christmas decorations - which I've now taken down but not put away).  I go from one project to another, without cleaning up the first one, and then end up stuffing it out of sight somewhere.

Simplify.  Simplify.  Simplify.   If I could only learn how.  

   

Good bye Christmas Decorations

I'm feeling a bit of pressure to get all the Christmas put away.  I have a meeting tomorrow night, which is a reason, but the real pressure is for Wednesday morning.

I was watching Bree and Zoe last week here at the house, and Bree asked me why I still had Christmas decorations up, because Christmas is over.   I told her that next time she came I would have them down.  Then today at their house, she asked me if they were down yet.   Wow, I don't think I could handle the censure if I don't have them down by Wednesday morning when I watch them here!!!  They are so cute.  They remind me so much of Misty and  Tiffany at that age, because Zoe echos everything Bree says and does.

 So the decorations are going down.