The Browns at Disneyland

Well here are the pictures of Disneyland. We did have a lot of fun. Jack loved space mountain and went on it like 10 times. He also loved hugging Princess Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) Meg loved dancing with the princess's at their castle and the little roller coaster in toontown. I think Im good with vacations for awhile but we did get alot of fun pictures. Enjoy.

Matthias Turns One!

Okay, so we're a bit late with this one. Just wanted to share some photos of Ty turning one. He had a great day. Lots of presents, balloons and a yummy Elmo cake that I had a lot of fun making. The professional shots are ones my friend Julia took. Anyway, hope you are all well and we are so looking forward to conference! Enjoy

ps: I don't know why the pictures look so off. Still working on that.

The Browns update again

Do you all love that I write in like once a week, oh well I guess Im a true blogger anyway. I had to show you all the new pictures, Jack on his first day of school and Jacks first soccer game. I love that school has started, and the weather is getting cooler, you all know that I love the autumn time and Halloween. We are off to Disneyland in less than a week and the kids are so excited. Im sure I will have plenty of pictures next time too. Have a good week all

AF Happenings

August started out with a fun date at USANA ampitheater where we saw distinguished country singer Martina McBride perform. Tickets to see the show were actually a birthday gift to Jen this past May. We had a great time though and very much enjoyed seeing her perform and listening to her great songs (and she has many). I, myself, am not much of a country genre fan, BUT, there are a few country singers I really do like and she is one of them. Mainly because her songs keep that country "twang" to a minimum and the lyrics are full of God, faith, hope, and love.  Anyway...it was good to get out and we thank Mom and Dad for watching the kids while we had that fun evening.

Soccer started up for Lydia and Joshua during August. They are both quite the stars on their teams and do a good job. They are fun to watch and we're grateful they get to use their talents. (Rebekah is a good player too, but opted out this year due to everything else she's involved in). Dance started up too...Jen continues to teach for a few hours once a week and Rebekah and Lydia are in her classes which is fun. Joshua started scouts officially and is working on his Wolf badge; Rebekah continues taking piano lessons; Sarah has a blast at both pre-school and a dance class of her own; and all the kids have great core teachers this year for which we are grateful. Matthias is officially walking all over the place and has FINALLY cut four teeth. He continues to be a joy for all of us. All in all, the kids stay busy though we have tried not to overschedule them as we've been directed by our general authorities :)  Family time is still the funnest time and we love Monday nights and Jen and I love to see the kids enjoy playing together at least once a week as we have a "family day" and give the friends a break.

Our garden started really producing this past month and I think the kids are officially "squashed" out. We have so much squash that we've been freezing it to use during the winter. The beans have been yummy and our tomaotes are finally turning red. It's been a great little harvest and even the kids have looked forward to watering the garden and picking off the goods for us to intergrate into our meals.  Thanks again to Dad for his help in getting it up and going.

While Jen, Rebekah, and the two youngest stayed home from the Bear Lake excursion, Joshua, Lydia and I really had a great time. We want to thank all of those who were there who gave of their time, their food, and their water-expertise in helping us have an enjoyable couple of days. You guys are great!

On a sad and somber note, we had quite a tragedy hit our neighborhood this past week. One of the families I home teach--the dad--was turned over to the authorities for molesting his 5-year old daughter. As sick as that is, it's also very sad and heartbreaking to see the ripple effects within the family. The mom and the seven or so kids are hanging in there and we're all praying for them as much as we can. As the word got out and the kids found out, we had to deal with the subject--and tried hard to explain things at a level that was appropriate. This was challenging and not very fun, but I think we did OK and they are praying for the family as well.

Well, before ending this post, Jen and I just want to say how grateful we are to a loving Heavenly Father who keeps us going even when we're stressed and life is full of challenges. We've come to understand that when we are weak, then we truly are strong. Relying on Heavenly Father and having faith in Christ is the only way to live this life and to feel the joy and happiness that's available to feel. As we seek inspiration in our callings and in our conversations and dealings with our kids, we know we'll be OK if we're trying to live right. 

Talk to you all soon!

PS: I've started my own blog just out of a desire to write and also out of a desire to heed the suggestion of Elder Ballard :)  There aren't a lot of entries yet and I don't post that often, but you can take a look if you're so inclined...

thoughts...

Dear Family,
    Probably, when you see that I have written something, you don't want to read it because it is always so preachy.  I guess once a parent, always a parent, always trying to teach when you can and do all you can  to fill that responsibility.  Dad and I don't lead a very exciting life, full of tales to tell you all, but you knew that already.  I will say that there have been some things on my mind, and part of the reason I haven't written for awhile, is I get carried away.  You are all wonderful and we love you very much.  You and your families bring us much joy.  We love watching the kids grow and you grow as parents in your abilities and understanding.
    The last while I have thought about the big and spacious building.  For as long as I can remember, I have termed it "the world" or the bad stuff that is out there, but it seemed a little ways off, especially when I read the story in the Book Of Mormon.  People pointing fingers, laughing at our ways, scoffing at how we dress or talk or the goals we have.  Lately I have realized, that ole' big spacious building might not be so far away as we would like it to be.  In fact some of those people in the building may be some that go to church but during the week they laugh at us, point their fingers or see nothing wrong in looking and talking like the world.  The brethren have said that it is becoming harder and harder to tell the saints from the world because we are beginning to blend in a bit too much.   When we go to the temple and they turn on the lights a little more towards the end,  I think it is symbolic that we are asked to walk a higher path, one that sets us apart from the world.  The world slides in so carefully.  We don't even notice sometimes how quietly little things begin to change because we don't pay close attention or it becomes the "in" thing.
    Each week at the sacrament table we promise to keep the commandments. Not conveniently, "but always remember Him  and keep His commandments which He has given them."  It talks about exactness in keeping the commandments, and I see in my own life, if I am not careful, I begin to think something is not as bad as it used to be, because of .....there really aren't any excuses.  I think we have to be willing to be complete in our desire to do the right thing even if it is hard.  I ask myself some questions often and when totally honest some of the answers aren't what they ought to be.  Some of these questions are,  What does my heart really desire--really deep down?  What is most important to me?  What am I willing to do to make sure those important things come to pass?  Are the things most important in line with the teachings of the Savior?  Is Christ and His teachings really first in my life?  Do my children know  by what they see, hear, and participate in that Christ is the center of our family?  Is my house built upon the rock, or is the foundation starting to get sandy?                                             I think of the scripture included in the Young Women's theme, I will stand as a witness at all times, and in all things, and in all places and as I review my day I wonder if I have done that.  All of us can work on  becoming exact in keeping the commandments, being complete and full of integrity to ourselves and to others. 
    Really, we want no empty chairs at our table, including ours.  As I stated before we love you so very much and we recognize all the good you are doing.  You are serving your families, in your wards and stakes, and your communities.  You are doing so many good things.  Maybe this little rendition is just for me.  Love one another and stay true to the faith. We will always love you.                                                                Mom and Dad

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Dear family,                                                                                                   Sept. 1, 2008
    Another week come and gone.  I hope you enjoyed my slightly longer letter last week.   This week's will be short again seeing as we had to do some serious shopping.  Good news is though, is that the cereal was on sale so we stocked up big time.  You would have laughed to see us checking out at the grocery store.  We also had to finish moving today.  I'm not sure if I mentioned it but we are now living with a different family.  I'm still adjusting to the change a little.  We live kind of off in no man's land and our living quarters are small but they are very nice.  Sometimes a little change is good to keep ya on your toes.
    Well, the update on Wayne is a good one.  He is continuing to read, pray, and come to church.  We found a good fellowshipper for them and his wife finally joined us for a lesson and seems interested as well.  The greatest part is that they have both recognized blessings in their lives because of the gospel.  Wayne admits that he is considerably more happy and confident.  It is really cool. 
    I must mention that the highs and lows of this week were, shall we say, very extreme.  I think in order for me to continue to progress I needed to be humbled a bit.  I have recognized over this past week that there are some major weaknesses that I need to overcome.  I am doing my best to do better and to pray for help, but the hard thing is that there is never enough time to really evaluate and make plans as to how I can improve in the different areas.  Time just goes so fast it's like I'm just trying to get by.  I guess I just need to really make it a priority because now is probably the best time I'll ever have to work through many of my imperfections.
As a companionship Elder Williams and I are really trying to work on applying things we learn and study about.  That is always the hard part, applying it.  It has been fun to see us grow.
    The ward here is trying to get the members more involved in the missionary efforts.  President Jensen gave us some direction from Elder Perry on how that should work, so we are trying to make it happen here.  But it is tough.  Members are so busy and are so scared to share the gospel.  It is kind of frustrating being only 19 because I want to make so much happen but I have to be careful not to overstep any bounds.
    Well family, life is good.  Challenges and trials push us towards becoming who God wants us to be and for that I'm grateful.  Stay safe and be happy.
                                                                                                                                                      Love, Elder Pitt

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