It's a Rainy Day

So I think I'll do some blogging. We got back last week from our wonderful vacation month in the Ogden area. It was such a wonderful trip with lots of great memories. I may add some later, but I'm just gonna give a here and now update.

Ryan's got pneumonia. Fun, huh? We're hoping it should be gone soon since the Dr. said it was a mild case. Poor guy. He's toughing it well though. He's good enough to help out around the house a bit and get out of the house every once in a while. I have to twist his leg to get details on how he feels. :) All he really has now is the cough and congested feeling in his lungs. I hope he's good as new by the time school starts in a week or so.

We've got visitors coming tonight! Our buddies Candace and Ginny are gracing us with their presence in our very humble abode. We are so excited to share our new home here. This is our second visit from home-towners and we are so happy about it. Anyone is always welcome!

That's what's going on. Ryan is trying to get better--getting lots of rest. I go in for my first plasma donation next week--hoping they take my plasma. I am volunteering at the temple in the laundry and baptistry and am looking at getting a few more shifts. I am also spending tons of time doing genealogy. It is thrilling stuff! Let me tell ya! I almost have a heart attack of joy every time I find something I've really been looking for. I am learning how CRUCIAL it is to have the Spirit with you while doing it. Or while doing anything and everything for that matter. Still working on that one...

While on our trip to Utah some DISTANT relatives came to visit the Sonognini family from Switzerland. We got the chance to hang out with Ronald and Candida in Salt Lake and go to the family history library there as well as see the sights (Ronald has a MAJOR genealogy hobby and that is how he and my brother-in-law Mike met--because they are distantly related). Meeting them was like a turning point for me at the time because I was struggling with a few usual things and they were like a breath of fresh Swiss air. They are the kindest people and I felt the Spirit the whole time we were with them. I am happy to know if I ever traveled to Switzerland I would have a warm welcome and could still feel like I'm at home. And what an amazing thing genealogy is. Not only does it bless our family on the other side in crucial eternal ways, but it blesses us immensely while we are here on this earth: forging connections, friendship and love with otherwise strangers--bringing joy and fulfillment where there was before an unknown void. Yes I was very moved by this experience and so happy to learn once again that no matter where you are in the world--the Spirit helps us feel and remember that we are all brothers and sisters and can feel just as connected to "strangers" as to our own immediate flesh and blood. What a sweet and welcome thought this is. Love truly is the universal language. :)

OK I'm getting going now so here are some trip highlights:

-Waking up in the middle of the night to hear Ryan sleep-singing: "I went down to the river to pray, studying about that good old way..." Ah...classic. He actually pulled all the covers off of me and THEN sang the song. If he hadn't maybe I wouldn't have woken up to hear it. Good thing.

-Going on a hike up to waterfall canyon with Brent, Stuart, Mary, Joseph, Ella and Ryan. Ella drank some stream water, Joseph got stung by a bee and we all survived! My favorite part was seeing how Brent can distract children so well from being tired or hot by having them describe the smells or sights they see. What a great father! Also, going on hikes with kids may take more time, but you sure don't get as tired!

-Patti getting the car stuck in the sand in Bear Lake. :) Funny stuff. I loved how she didn't let herself worry and just had confidence we could get it out. I would have been an unnecessary mess about it. A kind park ranger brought some wood and he and Ryan and Howard got it out. I learned you just can't freak out about things. Ever. Have faith and hope and it will all work out. And it does. This is Ryan's philosophy that I am slowly, SLOWLY learning.

-Sarah finding clay in Bear Lake and Mary making cool vase-things with shell decorations and all of us copying her. I think Dalan's is the only one that didn't crack when it was drying.

-Spending a night in Willard bay with Mike and Jenn's family. That camper is awesome. Oh, and those campfire-toasted-strawberry twinkies were soooooo good. We got to use our tent for the first time! Also my first fishing trip for catfish at night. Don't know about doing that one again...but you never know. :) We now have year passes for fishing in Utah--hoping we'll use them next summer. I would like to try some daytime fishing.

That's all I can think of at the moment but there will be more. Pictures will follow. I sadly didn't take very many...