Mo's Blog

A Proud Day

2009-05-03T23:23:00.007-06:00

Last Friday we had 2 new graduates in the family. Okay, Rachel isn't exactly new because she was done in December, but both Eric and Rachel participated in their college commencement ceremonies - unfortunately on the the same day! So Paul and I had to divide and conquer! I spent the day in Orem and Paul traveled to Logan. Here are the photos:

Noah fell asleep and missed the whole thing!

Rachel earned her Bachelor's degree in Music from Utah Valley University.

Eric, receiving his hood, earned a Masters degree in Electrical Engineering from Utah State.

The Best Birthday Ever!

2009-05-03T22:53:00.003-06:00

Turning 50 really doesn't feel a day different than . . . turning 49! It's really okay (for any out there who are dreading it)! My wonderful husband did something that I've never heard of before - he threw me a surprise party in the temple! Without going into too much detail, here's how it played out:

Early in the day on a Friday, I get word from Paul that the Stake President wants the presidency and their wives in the temple that afternoon for an emergency or something. I had already been to the temple that week! I thought I was done! I murmured . . . and I felt bad about it so it was not a good day. (Didn't help that the skirt I wanted to wear no longer fits me!)

We get the to the parking lot and he informs me that no one is waiting for us in the temple. After some sweet surprises, we head on in. I should have clued in when one of the workers told me that another Sister Ruben had just come through. Thought my sister-in-law must be there. So we walk into the chapel and there are all our married children and their wonderful spouses taking up almost a whole row! I was immediately caught by a flood of emotion. Words cannot describe my gratitude! Simply put, it was the sweetest moment of my life. With family starting to scatter a bit, I don't know when this might be possible again.

Side note: I might add that Adam was home during all this time babysitting 4 neices and nephews! Yes, the Adam who has never babysat in his whole life. All during the session I was either weeping or smiling from ear to ear whenever I thought about Adam! Here are a few pictures from the party afterwards. Paul had purchased dinner and we ate at home - a good idea! Thanks so much to my kids for the Cricut machine! And to my fabulous husband for my new elliptical!

Catching Up

2009-05-03T22:32:00.002-06:00

Got some catching up to do on our missionary! He sent me these pictures a few weeks ago and I haven't had time to blog them until now. For those of you that are used to getting an email forwarded each week from Nate, well you're not getting them because we're not getting them! I do get short notes in the mail each week that lets us know a smattering of what's going on. Basically, I can tell you that he's been transferred and is serving as an office elder now - "in the position I never ever wanted to be." I'm getting the idea that at least one week he was too busy to write home and some of the others were because he was too busy to push the "send" button! In a nutshell, here is what he's doing these days: hearing missionary complaints, fixing cars, selling cars, distributing cars, etc. Soon he will be adding the work of a departing office couple: Housing! All I can tell you is that he is now LOVING this transfer and expects to be doing this for at least 6 months. Proselyting is still happening in the evenings. These photos were taken before his transfer, back when "life was slow and oh, so mellow!" Simply can't wait to talk to you next week, Nate!

"Oh how lovely was the morning . . ."

Sunday Good Times

2009-03-10T17:42:00.005-06:00

Remember that Sunday dinner I just told you about? Well, here are some pictures from that. Definitely good times!

Noah and Kennedy - getting reacquainted again.

I have no idea what Sydney is doing in this picture! Trying to give Noah Dumbo ears?

Hangin' with Uncle Eric.

Fun game that Grandpa likes to play - drag them around on a blanket. Such joy!

Sweet Maci Jane

My Little Darlings!

2009-03-10T17:16:00.004-06:00

All I wanted last weekend was a picture of all five of my adorable grandchildren together! So we had a chance to all be together for dinner on Sunday and I made this the first thing on my list before little ones started running all over! This is what we came up with - pretty cute, huh!!

I wish like crazy that I had turned around and taken a picture of the paparazzi behind me because that was hysterical! Camera flashes were going all over the place and as you can see by the stunned looks on those faces, those poor kids had no clue what was going on. Only Sydney knew she was supposed to be smiling for this mayhem!

Here are some more pictures of the ever-changing new baby Maci with her beautiful mother this time!

Our Little Maci Jane

2009-02-24T10:43:00.002-07:00

Wow! What a time they had getting her here!! These are pictures we took of Maci on the evening or her birth, Sunday, February 22. She weighed 8 lb. 6 oz. If you haven't heard of her traumatic birth, I'll refer you to Eric's blog (earuben.blogspot.com) for the whole story. I'll just focus on what a beautiful little baby she is!! She's still a little beat up in these pictures, but Eric says she getting prettier every day. Who'd have thought that after a picture-perfect pregnancy, her delivery would be so dramatic! We couldn't be more grateful. Way to go, Andrea! And a big congratulations to the happy parents!

Trying to get those eyes open!

The End of an Era

2009-02-11T09:16:00.003-07:00

We are officially DONE with swimming (competitive swimming) in this Ruben family!!! Boy, this swimming thing started a reaaaallllly long time ago for me, because I used to watch Paul swim in high school! Now after 3 boys going through the Murray High swim program, I'm not sure how to feel about all this - happy that I don't have to sit for hours on hard bleachers watching my kid swim for . . . oh, at the longest, about .53 seconds at a time! But I must admit, part of me will miss the excitement and the adrenalin that runs rampant at those state meets, the determination that surfaces all season to swim just a little faster every time, and the elation that comes when that happens. I will ALWAYS be grateful for what swimming has taught our sons. They have learned stamina, teamwork, and just simply how to get up and get going early in the morning! Not to mention that they've all had pretty nice builds as a result! I guess swimming is not really over in the Ruben family. Though Nate is obviously not doing any of it, Paul and Eric continue to swim to stay in shape and now Adam has launched a full-blown triathlon training program. Okay, well, I won't miss those bleachers!

On the medals podium receiving a 1st place in the IM relay. Adam swam freestyle.

Adam is the bottom guy in the air, swimming in the 200 Free relay. They took 2nd.

Notice all the hair!! No shaving this year! Swim caps works just fine!

I almost forgot - the team took 3rd in state this year. Not what they had hoped, but not bad either.

A Painting Party!

2009-02-11T08:02:00.002-07:00

A few weeks ago, Sydney and Lisa came over to help me paint our family room in the basement. The thing I love about Sydney is that she wants to help . . . with EVERYTHING! So we let her! Still trying to get used to this color - what do you think? Too late now! It's a done deal!

Oops!

Three generations of painters.

Noah's First Pickle

2009-02-11T07:47:00.003-07:00

This reminds me of when Lisa was a baby and I would leave Paul in charge for a bit. His favorite thing to do to keep her entertained was to put her in her little chair that hooked on to the table and give her a pickle. She would then keep herself very occupied sucking the insides out of the pickle. Wish I had a picture of that . . .

This is Noah enjoying his first pickle - he LOVED it! As you can see, he was having a hard time getting close enough to it! One thing about Noah is that food, of any kind, is a GREAT BIG DEAL to him!

I've Been Gone Awhile . . .

2009-01-15T07:31:00.003-07:00

I guess the holidays sort of took over . . . and then I got out of the blogging habit! Here are some pictures that Nathan sent recently. The boy's doing great!

One of our many dinners outside when the member forgot her husband wasn't home.

Not a happy Santa! I swear he never, ever moved!

The Martinez Family baptism, just before Christmas.

Another sophisticated dinner . . . outside!

Delicious brownies!

SURPRISE!!

2008-10-27T11:50:00.003-06:00

For about 3 weeks now, Lisa, Kim, Rachel and I have been planning a surprise party for Paul's 50th birthday. Well, we pulled it off last Friday without a hitch! I had to be a bit sneaky sometimes. Kim wanted to put together a video of his life with pictures that I had scattered in every nook and cranny in this house! And since Paul WORKS here at home, that was a trick! So I pulled out all the kids school pictures and pretended to be scanning them for a project for them (which I'm still doing). That worked great! The 10-minute video was a hit! He loves it! Then I proposed dinner out on Friday with a trip to Costco afterwards. Of course, everyone knows that spending an hour and a half in Costco when you're not in a hurry is very feasible! I was delighted to find that the check-out lines were long, since we were a bit early to be going home yet. (Kids were home decorating, etc.) But, no, eagle-eye Paul was watching for a new line to open up, which it did and he rushed to it. Now we were half an hour early. So I suggested that we stop at the video store to get a movie to watch while we "babysat Noah so Rich and Rachel could go to a haunted house with friends". And, of course, I had to check out ALL the titles because there have been so many movies we've missed! At about 8:05, I called Rachel to see if "their friends had arrived yet" and we'd be home in a couple of minutes.

Well, needless to say, he was SURPRISED! Looking back now he can see things he should have picked up on like "Why was the house so clean?", "Why did I wait for him to walk in first?", "Why was Adam's car home on a Friday night?", stuff like that! But it all happened too fast and his birthday isn't until the 29th, so I guess we caught him off guard! Thanks to Adam for setting up all the technical equipment and keeping us in tunes all evening. Thanks to Rich for the fabulous invitations that I got so many compliments on. Thanks to Kim for the video, a new family keepsake. Thanks to all my daughters for the refreshments and decorating. Thanks to my awesome son-in-laws for helping set everything up and then clean up afterwards! Thanks to Eric and Andrea for being my excuse to have the house all clean. They were too far away to be of much help, but made the effort to get there in time! And they almost did!

First fleeting thought: "How am I going to get rid of all these people so we can babysit?" He thought they were Rich and Rachel's friends!

All together (except for Nate, of course) - A rare occasion!

And let me just add that I've known this amazing man for over 34 years now and each year just gets better and better! What is truly amazing is that at age 15, I was smart enough to latch onto him! Happy Birthday, Paul, and thank you for making life for me sweet and wonderful and for so many others, as well!

Nathan Update

2008-10-06T15:44:00.008-06:00

Got a few more pictures from Nate last week so I thought I'd post some of them. Some are when he was still in the MTC and some are from his first area in California, East Los Angeles. He's doing great! And just in case anyone might be wondering what his address is, here ya go! This will be his address for the entire mission:

Elder Nathan E. Ruben

California Arcadia Mission

170 West Duarte Road

Arcadia, CA 91007

Departing MTC missionaries

With his good friend from our ward, Elder Rob Nelson, now in Australia

An MTC class (I'm assuming Spanish)

New to California - at the Los Angeles Temple. Elder Deibert (center) from St. George is Nate's companion. He's due home in February.

Elder Deibert with the groceries. (I sure do appreciate my mode of transportation more now than ever!)

Boy, I never thought Nate could get his hair to part!

The old way of studying . . .

old . . .

still old . . .

New way to study!!

He bought a "gargantuous" binder for all his stuff.

Guess it's helping!

A happy missionary!

A Beautiful Day

2008-10-01T10:34:00.003-06:00

Our Stake was invited to attend the Women's Conference this year at the Conference Center. Typically, I like to just watch that from the Stake Center (or even better, at home watching the rebroadcast). But this year, my girls and I decided to brave it and headed downtown with a million or so other women! It was a beautiful evening and a wonderful conference - as I'm sure many of you know! Rachel was smart enough to bring flip flops to wear for the long trek, changing into shoes just as we went in. Afterwards we booked it to the Gateway for dinner at the California Pizza Kitchen, beating most of the other ladies there. I have a nice blister on my little toe as a result, but it was definitely worth it! Good times!

My beautiful daughters . . .

Hiking in Logan Canyon

2008-09-21T09:12:00.004-06:00

What a beautiful place! We took a family hike in Logan Canyon yesterday in celebration of Josh and Eric's birthdays. One more week and those colors will be absolutely glorious! But it was plenty pretty anyway - the rain subsiding just in time. Dinner at Cafe Rio topped it off for a very fun day. Thanks Eric and Andrea for hosting all of us!

So Long MTC . . .

2008-08-29T08:50:00.003-06:00

Is he going to miss the MTC? He's loved it there, but I think Nate's anxious to get to California. He leaves on Tuesday, September 2. Here are a few recent pictures:

With Elder Elwood

Sewing . . . I guess

Nate was very proud of his embroidery on his tracting bag. Very fine stitching for one so untrained!

His MTC district - hard-working guys!

Here's a little excerpt from a letter he wrote to his dad recently. I sent it in for the ward newsletter, but I wanted the family to know how incredibly he's doing:

"I’m trying to be like Jesus. I know I can help people even before I leave the MTC, even before I can really speak the language. I know I can still play a necessary role. Sometimes I get down on myself, it’s hard not to feel inadequate. I read a quote that Elder Holland voiced here at the MTC about why missionary work is so hard. He said, “This work is not easy, because salvation is NOT a cheap experience.” Elder Bednar once said, “When you come home, don’t leave the mission field.” I don’t want this to be a 2-year experience that brings me back to where I started. I don’t want to look back 30 years from now with any regrets. This is the greatest gift God can give a 19-year-old boy: a mission. I can’t help but think that if every young man understood the sheer immensity of a mission (I scarcely understand it), the lives it could change, how close to the Savior you could come, they would do anything to prepare themselves to serve, ANYTHING!"

Is This Guy Something Else??!!!

2008-08-19T21:39:00.002-06:00

I love swimmers! All of my favorite guys are swimmers. I have been absolutely amazed at this guy with the most perfect swimmer body! (My favorite swimmers have never had the perfect swimmer body! - close, but not perfect!)

I just have to mention the sweetest thing I saw throughout all the Michael Phelps stuff - and I watched just about all of it! Right after he was awarded his 8th gold medal, he left his teamates to make his way through the gazillion photographers in the bleachers until he got to his mom and sisters - reaching way up to give them all a big group hug. Did you see that? Brought tears to my eyes, but that doesn't take much these days.

Family - that's what it's all about!

Trial Lake 2008

2008-08-10T08:39:00.007-06:00

Every year I really don't want to go to all the work involved in a family camping trip. And every year I'm so glad I did it! This year was especially fun because all our kids who could come, did! (Even if it was only for a day.) We missed Nate this year - that darn MTC wouldn't give him leave! One new element we added this year was scuba diving. Adam and Paul . . . and Eric (after a crash course) dove in Trial Lake. They found all the big fish at the bottom - the smart ones who know how NOT to get caught! Paul and Adam even did a night dive, looking for crawdad delicacies. None to be found. Sydney had an especially great time this year and even caught 3 fish! She would tell you it was "probly 5". Her best line as she was reeling in her first fish - "It's getting real heavy!" She did a lot of practice casting with her new fishing pole from Lake Powell and got quite good at it!

My personal favorite part is the singing around the campfire.

She's a little thief, but I still think Tanner ends up with the most food!

Adam's most excellent roasted bread stick!

Lake Powell 2008

2008-08-04T13:48:00.002-06:00

Another great year at the lake has come and gone! I'm never quite ready to leave that beautiful place. We will be forever grateful to Jeremy and Sharla for letting us do this each summer. It must be such a hassle for them. I must admit, I wasn't being very careful to get a well-rounded selection of photos of each family - my camera seemed to automatically be pointing at the kids! Here are some of my favorites:

Take a close look at adorable Allie - the aspiring model!!

They sure had a great time with those fishing poles!

Thanks again, everyone, for a wonderful trip!

Chillin' at the MTC

2008-07-25T14:18:00.002-06:00

Nate sent us his memory card about a week ago - much faster than I expected!! It was a happy surprise. Unfortunately, something is set wrong on his camera because the photos came all grainy. He's apparently working on it, but I thought I'd post these pictures anyway.

His companion, Elder Watts, from Houston, Texas. This picture was taken on their first day.

Nate described this as a "hooded robot monk" and still to this day does not know who it was.

Typical missionary fun!

He labeled this picture as his "happy place".

One Day Old!

2008-07-21T08:58:00.002-06:00

Here are a few more pictures taken on Sunday evening. Rachel tells us he's a great little eater so we're expecting a chunk real soon! And we all think he has Rachel's mouth - cute little curvy lips!

Everyone comes home this afternoon. Yah!

Our New Grandbaby is Here!!

2008-07-20T08:12:00.005-06:00

Saturday was a big day around here! Moving day . . . and Noah's birthday! Rachel and I have been moving and unpacking all week, but the big move was on Saturday, which both sides of the family accomplished without Rich and Rachel! (Hope they can find all their stuff!) They will be living in Nick and Kim's basement apartment for a time - nice and close! And maybe it just takes a move to get this labor thing going! Worked for Rachel anyway - they headed to the American Fork Hospital at 4 am and Noah Brett Poulsen was born at about 4:15 pm weighing in at 8 lbs. 10 oz and 20" long. Rachel did great and was surprised at how much time there was to just lay around and wait . . . thanks to the epidural!

Mommy and baby are doing great and are expected to come home to a new home on Monday afternoon. Here's the little cutie!

A Bittersweet Day

2008-07-03T14:55:00.004-06:00

We dropped Nate off at the MTC on Wednesday. It felt a little like we were on platform 9 3/4, sending him off to Hogwarts with all the other luggage toting guys!! This time was not as painful as when Eric left, I guess because we knew what to expect with the MTC routine. It was all the same except that Nate got his badge before we left. Actually, I got to put his badge on him! And just like Eric, he was soooo excited to get that badge!! The right words are hard to come up with when you know you won't see your son for two years. It helped that the last thing he said to me was "Mom, I'm so happy." How can I be sad after that!

With Sister Sarah Squires, another missionary from our ward heading for Warsaw, Poland.

And this, of course, was not at the MTC! I just liked this picture of me on Sunday with my favorite sister!

Summer Fun!

2008-06-27T08:29:00.003-06:00

No one is too old - or too young - for a spontaneous water fight!! This one was instigated by the dad and grandpa of the family - Paul! Sydney really got into it and even Tanner and Natalie didn't mind the occasional shots that came their way! It was a great way to spend a summer evening!

Lisa found a more powerful gun - Sydney didn't like it so well!

Archuleta Mania!

2008-05-11T08:56:00.005-06:00

What a week!! Our trip to LA was incredible. We feel so grateful that we were invited to see David sing. And to be there on the week that he "crushed the competition" - Wow! As wonderful as it was to attend the shows and see all the hoopla that goes on there, my favorite part was being able to visit with David afterwards. We talked with him outside his apartment on Tuesday night for almost 2 hours. David Cook came back during that time and we were able to meet him. He's really very nice. Maybe all that cockiness is just a show for the camera!

On Wednesday we were able to take David and his dad out to dinner at his favorite Thai restaurant. He was exhausted that night, but once he started eating he perked right up. I cannot find the words to describe how great it was to talk to him again. It truly felt like we were back in Murray, chilling in the family room and talking into the night - just like old times! We all felt that he didn't want us to leave.

It was obvious to us that David really didn't know (before Friday) all the mania that was happening back home because of him. We told him about his main fan site (http://www.davidarchuletafanblast.com/ for those interested). Not only does he NOT look at stuff like that - or anything else media related - (trying to stay focused), his comment about it all was "That stuff is just silly". We came back to our hotel having been brought back down to earth a bit. It's true - we're all getting just a bit out of control.

However, my opinion is that living in a world where there is not much on the news or in the papers to be joyous about, it's just simply FUN for a change to have something to be silly about!! So I intend to be "silly" for as long as I can!!

Enjoy our pics!!

Another highlight of this trip was when Paul and Nate attended the Los Angeles Temple. Then we all drove to his mission home (only about 40 minutes away) and visited with the office couple there in Arcadia. There was a Zone Conference going on so we couldn't meet his mission president but that's okay because there will be a new president by the time Nate gets there. Great way to get really, really stoked for your mission!!

These next pictures were taken at the big celebration at Murray High. Wow - Murray just went crazy on Friday!!

More Fun at Grandma's!

2008-04-08T20:31:00.004-06:00

More of the same the last couple of days - sleeping and playing. I discovered the babies like canning jar rings, but not when Sydney dumps the whole container on the wood floor. Scares Tanner to death!! Nate, Adam and Martin bought softball gloves and were practicing in the backyard. Sydney wanted to watch outside and didn't have a jacket, so you'll see how we remedied that!

Natalie can't keep her bumbo tray on anymore. She gets her little toes under the lip and straightens her little legs until it falls off and food goes everywhere! So we took to sharing Tanner's tray. He gets very anxious if he thinks she's getting more than her share. He'll fill both his little fists with snacks just so she can't have them! Sydney makes sure they have more than they could ever eat!

More Fun!!

2008-04-07T09:38:00.003-06:00

On Saturday, Mary and Sydney spent the day together. We made mini cupcakes for their tea party. Grandpa had fun teasing Natalie and they both enjoyed cupcakes for lunch. (The rules just don't apply at Grandma's house!!) Mary keeps trying to teach Sydney how to dance and Sydney just isn't into it. She'd rather do stretches. The babies just spend their days playing and sleeping - how would it be!!

Fun With the Grandkids!

2008-04-05T09:55:00.004-06:00

For the next 5 days we have the grandkids with us while Josh and Lisa cruise!! So far so good - here are some pictures - mostly for thir parents because they are going to miss them terribly!! Watch 'em grow!!

Yesterday, among other things, we played with Grandma's dried up wipes (so much fun) and baked cookies.

Busy Boys

2008-02-14T21:44:00.006-07:00

Wow! If anyone is still checking this blog, you'll sure be surprised to finally see a new post! It's been a busy time and Adam and Nate have been especially busy this month - starting with the State Swim Meet. Nate took home 2 medals in a relay and a tie for 5th place in the 50 yd. freestyle. Adam made points for the team this year with 16th in the 50 free and 14th in the 50 fly. The boys teams took 3rd place this year, being edged out at the very end by our new rivals, Snow Canyon High!!

Adam on the block

Here's a picture of Nate racing his cardboard boat for the Physics competition. His team did really well - 2nd place. We didn't get there quite in time to get pictures of Adam's boat, but rumor has it that it sank right to the bottom in about 10 seconds!

Today they held the Prince Charming competition at Murray High (senior boys nominated by different clubs). Nate got nominated by the National Honor Society and has been super busy with dance rehearsals and such. We're all very glad it's over - and happy to report that he won!! Here's the video of the group dance. Nate is on the far left side.

Here's a short clip of his talent - dancing to an original song composed and sung by Nate called Dancing Man.

And the crowning . . .

Well, that's about all I can handle for one day. Add to that 4 new scuba certifications and getting to pet the nurse shark on our open dive. That was one that hadn't even made my list of things to do before I die!

Grandpa's Mission Photo

2007-10-15T10:22:00.000-06:00

Check out this picture from Dad's mission (Central States) back in 1950. He's 2nd from the left on the back row. Notice the prophet on the front row - the one with the beard? That's President George Albert Smith. He visited the mission and Dad got to spend an evening with him and just these few other missionaries. I thought it was pretty cool, thought you might, too. I spent several days in St. George with Linda last week scanning about 120 of Mom and Dad's photos. Got lots of great ones and learned lots about my parents that I didn't know. It was awesome!

A Perfect Autumn Day

2007-10-04T22:34:00.000-06:00

Before Paul and I were grandparents, we looked forward to a time when our grandchildren would enjoy Wheeler Farm (since we live less than 2 minutes away from it). Well, we're there with Sidney!! She never gets tired of hanging out at the farm. Yesterday was a beautiful autumn day - the calm before the storm. It's coming in today. Here are a few pics!

There must have been something good at the
bottom of the pond! Most of the ducks were
doing this bum in the air thing!

Why did the chicken cross the road . . . ??

Picking Grandma's tomatoes, and . . .

. . . making fresh salsa!

Good Sunday Times

2007-10-03T17:58:00.000-06:00

One of my favorite times is when the kids all come home for Sunday dinner. We rarely get them all on the SAME Sunday, but we got lucky on Eric's Birthday last month. Unfortunately, for some reason we didn't take pictures on that one!! We'll catch Eric and Andrea another time. I'm afraid I've had to regress back to my childhood and learn to share all over again - that is, share my children with another family! But they all have great in-law families and we feel especially blessed that our married kids all live relatively nearby for now. So here are some our recent "Good Sunday Times".

This is Great Stuff!!

2007-09-26T11:25:00.000-06:00

Okay, I'm new at this, but I can be taught. I figure this is a great way to write in a journal . . . not that I've ever wanted any of you reading my journal . . . okay, this is a great way to keep current on what's happening in our fabulous family!

While Josh and Lisa's family were staying with us during her recovery, I got to bond a little more with our grandchildren - it was great! One day Sydney and I were watching an email that my mother-in-law had sent - cool pictures with music - and an image of the Savior came near the end. Sydney perked right up and excitedly said, "That's Jesus Christ Amen!" Thank goodness for children . . . and for their parents who teach them to pray.