Behind the Scenes - AnnMarie

This year is like living in a dream that used to sweep across my mind in the midst of survival mode. It's strange how you find yourself in certain stages of life that seemed so far away. We moved into our new house last August, and even though parts of it feel like home, I find myself missing the familiarity of houses past. Memories from Tri-Cities and Argentina have been more clear than ever before. 

I love the incredible excitement of every day. AnnMarie is one in a million- and it's truly a gift to live with her. I feel that way about each of my kids, but as I'm experiencing a sence of departure, my heart recognizes all things uniquely AnnMarie, as I consider how different life will feel in her absence. On Valentine's Day she woke up at 5:30 am in eager anticipation of her favorite day of the year- but it seems like she has more than a dozen favorite days. Every day is the best day ever, and she's been saying that since she could talk. 

Last September she came home from school- so over the moon excited about a scholarship opportunity that included a trip to Washington D.C. It was through the United States Senate Youth Program, which selects two youth delegates from each state to receive a $10,000 schloarship and a one-week trip in Washington D.C. to experience the government in action. She poured over the essays and spent every spare moment she had on perfectly preparing the application. 

We were so blessed to have Steve Faulkner in our corner- the two of us have such a rare relationship. He is the Commander of the local Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post, and ever since being a jury member in the trial on behalf of my dad, he has a deep and abiding love for our family. I'm so grateful for everything he's done for the girls- and for giving AnnMarie the opportunity to be the Youth Representative for the VFW, a leadership role that proved to be crucial in the application process. 

After receiving word that she was a Top 10 Finalist, we began making plans to take her to the Capitol Building for a day of interviews and small panel discussions. She surprised people in her soft mint green suit and was given a hot pink pen for notetaking and response preparation. I knew her word choice and charm would work its magic, and boy was I right. Fast forward one month later, while I was in Las Vegas with Jared, when I received an email asking for AnnMarie to call Leslie Younger as soon as possible. I thought- could it be? Could she really be the chosen delegate? I was shopping in the basement of Marshalls with Cindy Grauberger- and I literally melted into a puddle of tears. It was a beautiful moment that I will never forget. This opportunity will prove to write her ticket to the university of her dreams, and I feel a rush of awe when I consider Heavenly Father's majestic plans for her future.  

Speech & Debate is a world of its own that has been a platform of huge success. Last year she was chosen as an alternate for Nationals in Congressional Debate and was able to go to Arizona with Josh Williams and several other qualifiers from Madison, which was the first time in many years that Snake River was able to send students to Nationals. It was a big deal for our school district, especially since they were both sophomores! She wasn't able to compete in Congress, but as an alternate, she was allotted entrance into supplementals, so she chose expository speaking and wrote and delivered a speech entitled "July 11th" - all about medical malpractice and the excessive misuse of anti-depressants. She has used that speech at many tournaments this year and ended up placing every time- not to mention her many trophies and wins in Communication Analysis and Congress. 

I'm totally in awe of her life when I reflect on her childhood and the experiences that have prepared her for her life ahead. I think about the courage it took to go to school in Argentina and move around- oh, the many moves. She's always been an absolute light, and anytime we've moved, it's left a huge void in her grade and social circles. Here we are living in a big house with empty walls, and all I want to do is cover them with pictures of my children and the moments they've etched into my heart. 

Last summer she got her driver's license, and I was so overwhelmed with emotion sitting in the park, impatiently waiting for her to come around the bend of Airport Park from her driver's test. The instructor just got out of the passenger side of the silver Chevy Cruz and gave me a big nod with a thumbs up. I was so proud and so happy- it just took my breath away. I knew how hard she had worked and how cautious she had been, and she did it. I love the moments we've shared. 

Just last week I watched her during a Congress round in the old Pocatello High School. She truly commanded the room! It was unbelievable listening to her defend and oppose bills, one of which she had authored. Now we're working through Distinguished Young Women (DYW) together, and this morning was the talent review. For the past five years I've sat in talent reviews thinking about the day I'd be there as a mother, and there it was- definitely a surreal moment. I'm so grateful for my beautiful daughter and her testimony. Families are eternal and the greatest blessing I could ever receive. I'm not sure what I ever did to deserve her, but I know I'll do everything I can to keep up with her. 

Becoming a Sister Again

 In the midst of chaos, we've been exploring how to grow older without growing up. Or worse, growing apart. It's easy to get sidetracked by all the things that have become a part of our lives in recent times: completing a first semester of grad school, making new friends, taking gym class, and trying to find our new normal. After all, this is a new community, yet not. Because this is a place that should be familiar, but people can change so quickly in such little time. We are proof of that. One thing has always remained unchanging though -- family. Becoming a sister again has helped me rediscover what is really the most important part of our lives. Our family is what links all of these little moments in our lives together, and gives us a piece of our childhood we will always remember. 

AnnMarie Juliet

(a reflection of November 2018 -- a feeling of becoming)

Moroni's Quest

This past summer, June 20th-23rd, Jared and I had the awesome opportunity to be Tribal Leaders at a youth camp called, "Moroni's Quest." We had the privilege of camping and working with a tribe of 10 different youth, ages 14-18 yrs. old.

In preparation for the Quest, we had numerous meetings (starting in March) with various stake and ward leaders in order to get to know the youth, become familiar with the purposes of "Moroni's Quest," and understand all of our specific responsibilities as tribal leaders. We had several "Get to Know You" activities on a ward level, but since we had over 40 youth in our ward, we didn't really know who would be in our tribe until a few weeks before the Quest.

Basically, our main objective was to help the youth draw nearer to the Savior by increasing their understanding of the events that took place in the Book of Mormon. We led 8 different discussions with our tribe up at Helaman's Camp - each lasting about 30-45 minutes long - all related to the numerous reenactments we'd watch on an outdoor stage.

Jared was committed to studying the Book of Mormon from start to finish leading up to the Quest, which was such an inspiration to me! He labeled the various topics of the discussions very specifically with notes alongside the margins, including colored tabs to facilitate efficient discussions. I, on the other hand, did my very best to just have energy and seek inspiration related to my desire to personally connect with each of the youth (since I was 16 weeks pregnant at the time of the Quest).

Jared was absolutely amazing to make sure I had a nice air mattress along with a cooler of snacks and drinks in our tent (including cereal and milk) for my own personal use whenever necessary! We had to wear two authentic costumes large enough to wear over our own clothes, reminiscent of Biblical times.

I saved a file of all the details surrounding the numerous events of the camp, but aside from the reenactments and discussions, our schedule consisted of other activities including meals, tower building, war training with subsequent wars, and a sacred "Savior" experience that ended up being my most favorite part of the whole Quest! I'm so grateful that we made the effort to participate in this opportunity when called to do so, and I hope that our own kids will have the chance to do something similar someday.

These are just a few of my favorite pictures -- along with a VIDEO that was created and shared at a special fireside in August for all the participants.

moments I want to remember (from Farmington, UT)

Hello! My goodness, I can't believe this week is baby week! We are so excited to welcome a new family member into our world on Friday...or really, any day now! I've been cleaning pictures off of my iPhone, scrubbing bathrooms, finishing up assignments for the semester (I survived!), hanging pictures, and trying to give the kids as much attention as possible before a newborn enters the scene.

I've been wanting to share a number of pictures from this past year. I think the only way to really do that without taking multiple days to update every memorable snippet of our life with a lengthy write-up is to share some of my favorite photos from 2018 with quick captions. I'll still probably take multiple days to go through these photos, but I'm okay with that, too. I could do an entire post on each of these pictures, but for now I'll take heart in knowing that these special times were acknowledged.

I joined a produce co-op while we lived in Farmington, UT made up of about 20 women. Two times p/month I would walk around the corner to my friend's house on the next street over to help sort baskets and subsequently, bring my share home. Luke would drive his gator and insist on loading up our goods in the back of his "vehicle." He felt like such a big boy, and I'll always remember how reckless he drove on those sidewalks while I chased after him to "Slow down!"

I sat on the boys' bed a lot at night, especially in those early months of pregnancy, and told them all sorts of stories -- fairy tales, Book of Mormon stories, and memories from my childhood. It seems like we read Elmer the Elephant and Scuffy the Tugboat a lot, too. The girls would sneak in after their showers and listen before Jared shooed them off to bed.

Carlie did such a wonderful job in gymnastics at USA Gymnastics World in Woods Cross, UT with Coach Kera. She was on the Hot Shots Elite Team, which was an intersquad group that competed only against their personal best scores (and each other) at several different intrasquad meets throughout the year. We loved watching her on all the events, and by the end of the year in late May she had finally reached her goal of getting her back handspring in the Level 3 floor routine and getting her mill circle on the Level 3 bar routine. I'll always remember sitting on those cold bleachers while she practiced twice p/week, trying to study for my Audiology Rehabilitation class -- so glad that's over, btw! Occasionally, AnnMarie would come with me to pick her up. One time we realized that we were dressed exactly alike, which was definitely worth having someone take a picture of, haha!

Our wrestling experience in Utah was truly remarkable. It was our first time jumping into the wrestling world as parents, and we couldn't have handpicked a better location to initiate ourselves into this upcoming lifestyle than Davis County, UT -- because let's be honest, when you marry into the Wolfley family there just really isn't much of a choice, haha!

Gabe was a member of the Tech Youth Wrestling Club in Centerville, UT, and Jared volunteered a lot of his time in helping to coach the beginner group. The facility was especially nice, which accommodated some pretty intense practices, and Gabe took to it so quickly. He's a nervous wreck most days, and we feel like wrestling is a great tool for him -- channeling the perfectionist in him, building character, and teaching the value of hard work and integrity. I can't even begin to count how many tournaments he participated in between the Winter Folkstyle Season and the Spring Freestyle and Greco-Roman Season. Ultimately, he ended up winning State Champion in both the Freestyle and Greco-Roman state tournaments at the Legacy Center for the 42-lb. weight class. These are moments that will undoubtedly stay with me forever.

I'll finish the night off with this sweet picture of Luke that brings back a flood of good memories. Being renters certainly had its perks. There were so many little house things that didn't even bother me, and I spent a lot of afternoons just pushing Luke in the swing while the other kids were within walking distance at school. Such a warm, homey neighborhood that will always have a piece of my heart.

Being a Mother (and Kuna, ID)

"Mothers decide to stay home not just because they are tired of juggling family and career; not just because they want to "be there" for the first word and the first step; not just because they have found that a rich home life requires persistent personal investment.

They want to be home because in some quiet moment caring for their children, they have suddenly experienced the vastness, the intricacies, the delicate nature of this work. While performing some entirely routine act of nurturing, they have unexpectedly stumbled on a moment of insight so luminous as to reveal with imposing clarity that the greatest opportunity for success they might ever have is nestled right there in their arms." -- Linda Burton

We are so excited to welcome a new little boy into our world this November! And fortunately for me, this pregnancy has been kind thus far.

I've never intended to be sporadic in my blogging approach. Most days, I dream about keeping up with this blog, yet a part of me feels like God is calling me in other directions -- trying ever so carefully to lower my expectations, NOT lose my temper (as there are behaviors in ALL of my children that trigger some serious frustration), monitor the way in which I spend my time, and foster a safe place for all of us to land. I'm so grateful for each new day that allows me to start fresh and try again.

Kuna, Idaho is quickly becoming a happy place for me. The kids & I went there for nearly a week following their last day of school. My own mom has a special way of filling my tank -- giving me alone time, feeding all of us dinner every night, talking me through challenges, and entertaining the kids with various activities. I love the Thornton family and feel so grateful for the goodness they've brought into our lives.

Specifically, we women did the "Bubble Run" in Boise on an early Saturday morning, spent time as a family roasting marshmallows over the fire, and overall - just enjoyed a lot of time in the water & sun.

Eat, Drink, & Be Scary

Last October we were still in the woods as far as life in Utah was concerned. It was hard to see the forest from the trees, and I spent a lot of time just putting my energy towards helping all of us adapt to our new surroundings...different friends, a different school, and different living quarters. So many changes! But Halloween brought a lot of fun-filled activities that helped all of us feel more at home: our ward's traditional outdoor dinner and carnival (right here on our street), the annual elementary school's costume parade, and of course, trick-or-treating.







It must not have been enough though -- because in addition to all of that, we decided to go completely crazy and cave to our daughters' pleadings to host a bash for 15 little girls, haha! A few years ago, I started thinking about how much fun it would be to throw a Halloween costume party for the girls when AnnMarie became a 5th grader, mainly because my parents threw one for me when I was that age. My Mom went all out, too, by hosting a 4 course meal (complete with menus -- all items disguised in creepy names), ghoulish games, a costume competition, and a piñata to finish off the night -- so I knew that if I was going to do it, I had to do it right! She set such a high standard in so many areas, haha! (I never anticipated doing something like this right after a major move, but I've realized over the years that life just doesn't stop amidst life changes.)

The invitations turned out SO CUTE, so of course we invited double the amount of people that we originally planned on, but hey -- it was a great way to jump in and get to know the neighborhood! The dinner was WAY trickier than we expected -- and Jared and I were completely exhausted halfway through the party -- but all of the girls were well-fed, and they LOVED being surprised by the many different combinations of food on their plate.

AnnMarie and Carlie helped me plan the menu, which was so fun in and of itself.

Witch’s Brew (drink)

Werewolf’s Road kill (meat lovers pizza)

Rotting Worms (ramen noodles)

Giant’s Toes (large steamed carrots)

Zombie Boogers (fresh cut corn)

Bat Eyes (olives)

Witch Fingers (dill pickles)

Skeleton Bones w/Pumpkin Guts (little hard bread sticks w/cheddar dipping)

Ghost Poop (marshmallows)

Harvest Moon (sherbet ice cream scoop)

Slop Catcher (napkin)

Grave Digger (spoon)

Back Stabber (knife)

Vulture Claws (fork)









I obviously don't have a plethora of pictures to document the madness, but it was very memorable, and considering everything we learned (via trial & error), we might just have to do it again in a few years.