May I?!

May is such a fun month! Spring still lingers a bit and summer hasn't come yet so the weather is lovely. I was outside today with Jillian and the sun felt sooooo good. I can't say that I like the warmth of the sun very often; I'm always hot, but it felt so nice today. I just finished posting a billion and one pictures over on my family blog... but I wanted to post a few of my favorites here. It has been a long month and especially the past few weeks! With my grandfather's passing, my trip home, Chris getting in a car accident, the move coming up... I feel that I've been twirled around and around and around and then shoved out into traffic and told to make my way safely across the street!!! It's a bit like the commercial that says, "Life comes at you fast...". Too fast sometimes!!
We went to pick up a rental van a few days ago and it has been so very nice to have 2 cars!! I feel free again! The rental is a Chevy Uplander and I really don't like it. For one thing, it stinks. Literally. I hate that smoked-in smell. Secondly, it just isn't my Toyota. I believe I have turned into a Toyota snob. I love my Sienna. Toyota knew what they were doing when they made that van! It has a place for EVERYTHING and it is comfortable and smooth... I just love it. I've been totally spoiled for anything else. It's been the best car we've ever bought.
Back to the pictures I posted... the first one just makes me laugh everytime I look at it! Jeremiah had the hat and scarf in his backpack through all the winter months. He took them out the other night and Jillian grabbed them up and wore them around the house all evening with her little flip flops clicking on the floor as she went. It was adorable. She never fails to make us laugh each and every day!
The second picture is of me and my brothers and sisters. The back row is me, Ben, Emily, Amy, and Rebecca. On the floor is Jake, Sarah and Sam. (James is missing from the photo because he's serving his mission in Mexico and loving every minute of it!) I love this picture because it felt like it had been so long since we took one and because we all look pretty darn good! I have such beautiful sisters and handsome brothers. Both Amy and Rebecca are expecting babies this summer. Boys! We have a lot of boys in our family. I have 2 of the 4 girls and Ben has the other 2. The rest (8?) are boysies. Lots of fun.
The third picture is of my grandfather's casket draped with an American flag. This photo is so meaningful to me. I love that I am a member of a church that teaches such beautiful things about life after death. I know that I will see my grandfather again. I know that he is in a beautiful and happy place with those ancestors who have gone before him. I know that he will be there to greet me when I eventually leave this earth. His funeral wasn't a sad occasion for me. I was initially upset at the news that he had gone, but then I was filled with so much peace knowing the truths of the gospel and the plan that Christ has given us. We will sure miss his sweet smiling face at all our family reunions. We'll miss having him pull up in a new car anxious for a bathroom break and some of Mom's fresh baked cookies! We'll miss his intelligent conversation and his great advice. His physical presence in our lives will be missed but his spiritual presence will never leave us. It was a sweet and special weekend for me to be able to share memories and remembrances of him with all my family. I will treasure those memories for always.
The last picture is of me and my brother, Ben. Ben always makes me laugh. He always has. I thought I was going to pee my pants at least twice as I would break into fits of laughter over something he said or did. We sat and played a dice game on Saturday night and he had us all laughing so hard. I don't even remember what got us going, but I know my stomach muscles were sooooo sore the next day! It seems that every time we get together as a family, laughter just pores out of all of us! All my brothers make me laugh. They just have a way about them. I love them all. It was definitely Joy and Rejoicing all around as we spent some time together. My grandfather always used to say that. Joy and rejoicing. As he would look around at his posterity, he would say it. He had a great posterity. He and my grandmother had 12 children who, in turn, had large families and it has just grown and grown. One of my cousin's brought her new little baby to the funeral and I think he made the 40th great grandchild. Pretty amazing.
Sorry if this post has dragged on or been a bit random... I think my thoughts are always a little crazy in the early evening. The genius doesn't come out till well past midnight... hee hee. Till then...