Fall Soccer Season - Will

Will played soccer this fall with the Prosper " Eagles " and though it was the rainiest fall in the history of Prosper, ever and literally; the soccer season was a win! A win for more than the fact that Will made a goal as a finishing and winning point in one of the games, and not because they left the season with a win, which Will loved; but because Will said almost every time it was time to play, that he didn't want to go; SCORE Mommy and Daddy because he went anyways, with the discussion about what it means to support a team and do things that you need to do to grow and help others! Each game Will left knowing that he did something to help his team, because he literally did; Will was a major component of wins as he stole the ball and passed at the right time, like the smart boy that he is should have done.

Good job Will for working hard and helping your team, even when you didn't feel like doing it!

Brooke's a Historian!

Brooke has been enjoying being one of the young ones in the varsity choir at her middle school.

I was a bit surprised when Brooke came home from school and told me that she was going to run for an office in choir; only because that's pretty bold and brave for a first year varsity girl to do among all of the 8th graders as the major majority of her class; but, I was proud of her confidence in herself that she can add value to her school programs.

After showing a sample to her choir of what she could do as the " Choir Historian " ,
( Brooke is a tech wiz, and master video producer) Brooke was voted to win the office of " Historian ".

I quickly learned while attending the first choir concert of the year, that I am the " Choir Historian " too; since you can't take pictures while you are singing in most of the performances!

Brooke is ambitious and hard-working. She is showing that in many areas as she continues to grow taller than me, and becomes an even greater blessing to everyone who knows her.

Halloween!

Halloween Festivities!!! Every year it gets to be very exciting as Halloween nears. Will changes what he wants to dress up as no less than 3 times, and finally he decided on a storm trooper this year ! For the first time in 6 years Brooke was NOT a cat! She and her friends all went as Hogwarts Students.

One rainy night the kids took up pumpkin carving to themselves! I found some half carved pumpkins and was grateful that they at least had their Mom to finish up with them! First time in 36 years that I ever carved a pumpkin! Can you believe it! Looks like my children are more ambitious to learn how to carve a pumpkin on their own than I have been.

I enjoyed the middle school giggles from girls as I trick or Treated with Brooke and her friends.

Always remember your value

Brooke continues to catch up and soon will surpass me in height. Besides the hormonal mood swings of all teenagers, Brooke seems to be anything but a 7th grader. Brooke continues to be responsible and intelligent beyond her age.

A few weeks ago I received a letter in the mail which stated that Brooke scored a 96% on the Texas Star Testing, and has been selected by Duke University to participate in an academically talented resource to help " gifted children reach their full potential".

Brooke will be prepared at a young age to take the ACT and SAT.

The letter stated that very few students qualify for the resources and talent search that Duke provides, so of course Brooke has been enrolled.

Brooke,
I am so proud most of all of your testimony of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. You know how important the journey here on earth is Brooke, and I know that because you prepared your own lesson to give to your church class, the day after you were assigned to teach. When I asked you if you wanted to bring a treat to share with your class on Sat. Morning before your lesson you said, " No! " You said that you did not want it to take away from your lesson and you did not need that. I asked if you were sure, because it would be fine and fun and you knew that was not the important part about giving your lesson.
I am so proud to be your Mom, Brooke.
You like to be productive, and often tell me during your free time that you just wish you were old enough to get a job. Sometimes I find you cleaning up or doing math without me asking. You do not procrastinate your work Brooke.
Because of your testimony and desire to be productive in your life, I know the Lord will have great work for you in His Kingdom.
I hope you always remember how I see you. I hope that when the people engrossed in the lighter matters of this world do not praise you for your spirituality, or eternal value, that you will remember how those who aren't blinded by the fog of the world see you; like me and of course, Your Father in Heaven.

           I am grateful to be your Mom. I love you Brooke.

                 Love- Mommy

2nd Grader Will

As I walked Will into the school for his first year in second grade he told me he was worried the other kids were going to think his Mom is a teenager. That actually made me feel bad, but I know someday he is going to get a laugh out of it when he reads this.

He kept going on and on...I said, " I am not a teenager Will." Responded Will, " But, you look like one .You are the size of one, and you and Brooke are almost the same height."

Will though very active, is taking in everything very deeply. I am often shocked that he recalls things that I, or someone has said.

Will helped me out by listening to the spirit as I was sad the other day.

Will gave me great advise. Will said, " Mommy, when you are sad, you should not think about what people who don't love you think, you should think about the people who love you and what they think of you, and I love you and think you are the best Mommy in the world. "

I could hardly believe at eight Will was telling me to focus on the things that matter most- like him.

Will later in the conversation also advised me this, he said, " Mommy, even when bad things happen to you or anyone, they are actually good; because sometimes to get to a good thing, something bad has to happen first. "

I agreed in shock again and said, " Will, how do you know this? "

He gave me the credit! He said, " You taught me."

I thought...when did I tell him that?
I could only remember teaching him about Joseph being sold in Egypt and that having to happen for him to later be in a position to save the Israelites with food, and land, during a famine.

The last thing that Will said that I thought...you know what!? I should use that line in a song..

Will said, "Mommy, we sometimes see shadows, but there is always light. That's what helps us see the shadow."

Will,
Your advise to me was a blessing of the Lord and He has greatly blessed me to have a son whom also often shares testimony of Jesus Christ, and is clearly close to the spirit. You were speaking with the tounge of an angel as you comforted me. I write this for you to see that the Lord has and will use you in your life to help His children, or all of our brothers and sisters here on earth..You are wise in all things spiritual and even though you had a few min. In sacrament this week where you were impatient, when church was over, you wouldn't let me carry my bag to the car. You said, " Mommy, let me carry your bag." You practically were dragging it down the hall...but you were determined to be of service to me. Never forget what a precious spirit and soul that you have been blessed with Will. The world will pull you from every limb to satisfy your own glory and vain ambition, but I know because of who you are now...no matter where you go...you will always end up with me and Our Savior Jesus Christ.

Love you my prince,
                           Mommy

Spirit makes intersession- Brooke

Brooke is quickly and steadily growing into a young woman that I am very proud of, and speaking of growing, she is barely shorter than me now! Her foot has out grown mine and well, her intellectual abilities have always seemed to surpass mine!

My little gifted girl, is not a little girl anymore. The thing most impressive about Brooke is her drive that takes initiative on the things she is learning.

In the Young Womens Program at church Brooke is being encouraged to develop her own spirituality and while I have always promoted that in my home, she is listening to her leaders and I have pleasantly found Brooke reading her scriptures individually and she has been excitedly telling me things that stuck out to her.

Brooke,
I am so thankful that you asked me a wonderful question a few nights ago. You said, " Mom, Something is happening to me as I read my scriptures." I said, " What? " You said, " Other words come into my mind about what I am reading and they are thoughts from someone else." I asked, " Are they thoughts pertaining to you and your life? " You said yes. I explained that the spirit is making intersession for you to hear your own individual scripture messages from the Lord. I was very excited and happy you asked this, because that happens for me also, as I read my scriptures. I felt so thankful that you could verbalize something very special that is happening to you; because, along with other tender mercies the Lord has given me personally through you, this was truly a tender mercy for me to know that I am allowing for the spirit to influence on you as your Mother, and that your righteous desires and my righteous prayers that your testimony will be strong are indeed being answered. Brooke, I know that life is full of trials and tribulations, but I hope that you will look back at this someday and remember that the spirit is with you and making intersession for you to know the will of the Lord and that your Heavenly Father loves you so much and you even at a young age felt His spirit speaking to you. You are a blessing to me as my daughter and I am honored to be your Mother .

                 Love,
                       Mommy

Ice cream with Will

Will and I had a Mommy/son date and I have to say that it was the sweetest / funniest and for sure the cutest little date that I have ever been on.

As we were deciding where to eat Will kept telling saying, " Mommy, I want to go where you want to go. "
He was looking at all the places that we were around, and I suggested a few. Three times he insisted on me telling him where I would want to go, and upon my decision I told him that I would get him ice cream and his response was, " Mommy, are you sure that's in your budget? " I said, " Will, my budget can stand to get my little boy ice cream." He said, " But, I don't want you to go over on your budget. You have spent a lot of other money this week. "
I was determined at that point that little boys shouldn't be worried about their Mom's budget and instead be thinking about what flavor of ice cream they could choose?

When eating his ice cream,Will said, " Thank you for the ice cream Mommy. Do you like the cherries on top? Why do they put those? " I said, They put them to make it look better." He said, " You mean this isn't meant to be eaten? It tastes good! "
You would have thought Will had never ate or noticed the cherries before, since he was so enthusiastic? It made me want to go buy him a box of chocolate covered cherries. So, I told him about the chocolate covered cherries. and asked him if he wanted a box? I shouldn't have been surprised with his concern for my budget, when he said, " Well, you can just get me those at Christmas Mommy. "

I asked what else he wanted to do and he said, " It probably isn't possible to bring Beckham with us? " ( his friend he is obsessed with ) Will was being so sweet that I texted the mother right away.

As we continued on our drive Will said, " Why do you think commercials like to trick people? " I said, " What makes you think they are tricking you? " He said, " I don't think they are tricking people, I KNOW they are tricking people! " I said, "How? " Will went on to say, " Well they say their products are half price but really they just doubled the price." I said, " Okay, I guess they are tricking us sometimes."

Will then told me that he thought I should be a singer. I said, " Will, I am a singer." He said, " But, you should sell your music to the radio." I explained it is hard to make money on music because the music industry has everyone just stealing music, or not paying for it. Will said, " Mommy, why would a robber want to steal a song? That's not what a robber would want to steal! "

After getting Will a gift of a Lego he wanted Will said, " I think I should work for this Mommy, so when we get home I will do things like vacuum and wipe tables."

I said, " Okay, but first lets go pick up Beckham and you can do that later."

When we pulled up to Beckham's house Will said, " I have a gift for you Beckham."
He pulled a dollar coin out of his bag, handed it to Beckham and Beckham said, " Thanks, wow this is a rare coin."

What a sweet Will.

Will's Baptism

 Will had been talking about getting baptized for lots of years. This past weekend the time finally came that he could have his special, long awaited day.

There was a great amount of love and support shown to Will as we shared the date Will would be baptized.

And though Will asked a number of times throughout this year, if I could baptize him, I know that Will felt just as secure with Grandpa Pack as the one to baptize him.

Uncle Allen came all the way from Tennessee to be a part of the special weekend.

And when the Holy Ghost went through so many wonderful Priesthood holder's, it was said that there was a power felt, that truly Will received the Holy Ghost as his constant companion.

I have known for years that Will has a love for the Restored Gospel and he often shares that testimony right in His home as he tells his Dad to read the scriptures and that the prophets are real.

One of the most touching things about the weekend of Will's baptism was when Will affirmed his beliefs through action on the first Sunday as an actual member of the church.

Given the choice to not stay for three hours of church as family was in town, Will when asked said he wanted to go to ALL of church, and later that evening upon being out to drive family to their destinations, Will proclaimed as pulling up to a drive threw, " I don't want to go here on Sunday."

Though he is only eight and there will be so much to learn about love and respect in others choices, I feel proud that Will is determined for himself to follow what he is learning about being a disciple of Christ.

Will,
You help me want to be the best Mother that I can be because you have such faith in Jesus Christ. Will, you often tell me that you can't wait to meet Jesus because you want to know who created the very first thing. You ponder the beginings of the Universe and understand principles of the gospel very well. You do not like to go to bed without our moments together, watching a scripture video or reciting a memorized scripture. Will, when you recite Romans 1:16 which states, " For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation; first to the Jew and then the Greek. " I .Know that you are surely not ashamed, and though life does get hard and our faith and devotion is tried, I just know that you will always try to follow your Savior Jesus Christ, and I believe that Heavenly Father knew that you could handle these turbulent times, and that you would be willing to sacrifice your time and talents for the building of His kingdom.

Love,
      Mommy

Will's Eighth Birthday

Happy Birthday to my precious son whom recently said when I reminded him to say his personal nightly prayer, " Mommy, I am never going to forget to pray and when I have kids, I will teach them to pray too." Today Will turns eight-years old! He has a love for battling bad guys, his friends, and his pets. Will loves his Savior Jesus Christ. Will wonders and comes up with many conclusions on his own about things. Recently Will told me he needed help with something, "but only Jesus could help him". I asked what it was and he said, " I don't want to be allergic to peanuts anymore." I said that I was sorry and I will take him back to the allergist and they can test how allergic he is. After explaining the skin test to him, Will said, " Well, I guess if that doctor gets paid so much for wiping peanuts on someone's skin, then I should do that for a job when I grow up? " He said, " I will just have everyone line up and I will wipe something on their skin and see if they get a rash. Sounds like no one should pay more than two dollars for that Mommy."
Happy Birthday to my smart, handsome, faithful Will. 💝

Keep your tips up

It was fun to have some time on the ski-lift with just Brooke this year. I took a risk telling Brooke how awesome she was doing compared to me with ski-lifts. I didn't want to make her afraid of the lifts by telling her, but I figured she would not take after me! I told Brooke how Grandpa Pack had to physically pull me off the lift as a little kid, because I was scared to get off the lift. Brooke laughed and gave me her own tips as she said, " Mommy, just put your TIPS up in the air and let the lift push you off."
I actually felt better with her reminding when to begin doing that! Ha!

So, Brooke taught me some other ski-school tricks about getting from one lift to the next, to some hills she  liked, and I heard Grandpa Pack in me when I had to tell her to not be scared and make wide turns to slow down, if you want to go slower.

I definitly did not know how grateful I should have been for my Father teaching me, until I saw what it was like to ski with new skiers.

Will skiing!

Getting the chance to take Brooke and Will to some beautiful winter mountains was a blessing this year. We went to Copper Mountain with Kevin's friends again, only this time Will and Brooke had more skiing skills under their belts. Skiing with my children that ski very well ( for being Texans ) , took me down memory lane of skiing with my own parent or Grandpa Pack. I told Brooke and Will about the way Grandpa taught me to ski for the first time, and how the first day I learned, I think the only fun I had, was when Grandpa Pack took a king size Snickers Bar out of his pocket and told me I should eat it! The second day was fun because I could finally ski and was gifted with candy and hot chocolate by Grandpa.

Will had his own ideas on how to make skiing more fun this year. It was quite unusual. I guess when your Mom lets you eat candy bars too much, you have to find your own strange ideas of fun?

I noticed Will was sticking his tounge out each time we skied down the hill, and not just for a moment, but for the whole way down the mountain, and Will doesn't like to go slow so he flew down the mountain with his tounge out like he was a panting dog!?

When I asked Will what he was doing this for? he said, " I think it is fun to freeze my tounge with the cold air and then melt it back in my mouth when I get down the hill."

Haha, looked funny! But more than funny, were the cute little skis, snowbibs and confident turns into between trees by my little prince.

Bridged into Young Women

 Brooke graduated from Primary at church! It was a long awaited day for Brooke to move into the Young Women's Program at church. The last few months being in Primary can be brutal for a pre-teen that suddenly feels so much more mature, and wants to learn from the older girls, not Sunbeams.

She will always be a Sunbeam to me, but I am certain that Brooke has a lot of great experiences to share with the Young Women in her class. When Brooke heard that the Young Women now each take turns teaching, some Sundays, she was not nervous, but very excited!

Brooke is growing into a beautiful and strong young lady, that I know Father in Heaven sent to this earth at a time that she could make a difference, because of her strengths.

Brooke,

Your kindness and responsible nature often inspires me and I know I am special to have received your spirit, to nurture and teach the gospel to, while on this earth. 

Love, 

Mommy 💝

Brooke is my pre-teen Turano!!
And, it is apparent that her and I are both females with shifting hormones and mood-swing sometimes! Haha! It is fun because now we really enjoy getting our nails done together and arguing in small moments about what she wants to wear and who has the more correct opinion? Bella from Twilight or Katniss from Hunger Games? Haha! Brooke loves and has read every teenage saga there is!

Brooke had a very fun birthday party this year! Brooke has been Ice skating private lessons and on a team, so she was eager to show all her friends what she had been working on at the rink.

Though I saw proud moments for Brooke with teaching her friends and helping them on the ice, I think that Brooke's brightest talent showed yet again, as it frequently does, as she without being asked, suddenly swooped Will's hand in hers and skated awhile with her little brother, even at her b-day party.

After hot chocolate at the rink, Brooke and her friends had pizza and pazookies ( a delicious warm cookie with ice cream on top ) , while they took selfies and played question games with each other while eating at one of Brooke's favorite restraunts. Pre-teen Turano!

Bursts of love from Will

Time has been flying and Will keeps growing up way too fast! Will has been considering all the options in this existence.

A world of wonder Will sees is still not the most important thing to him. Though Will comes across as just ball of energy, ready to combust at any moment, Will actually is a deep thinker, esspecially considering he is 7 years old.

Will asked me a few days ago if I thought he could go live in space, in a space station. We discussed the need for extended education and he said, well, maybe I won't do that?

A few days after Will asked me about joining NASA, Will said to me, " You know, I really do want to go back to Heaven and live with Jesus again, but I really like earth, so I think I will stay along time. I hope I live along time Mommy."
 I said I hope he lives a long time too!

Will has lots of friends at school. Each time I go to his school little boys are constantly screaming his name like he is a celebrity and waving.

When Will brought his own money he earned to the book fair that his school recently had, Will showed he appreciates all of the friendships he has; Will bought all of his friends invisible ink writing pens. He had a bag full of them after school. As if that was not enough of showing kindness, Will surprised me even more when he ran with his bag of pens, laid them on the floor, and grabbed his stash of sharktooth necklaces and laid one sharktooth next to each pen.

The next time I visited the school, sure enough one little boy ran over to talk to Will and he had on a very familiar sharktooth necklace.

As much as I felt like those necklaces were bought for Will, I refrained from saying anything as I was happy that Will wanted to share his love with his friends.

Will went to the recording studio with me a few weeks ago. I was really looking forward to this because Will always tells me that he likes my music .Sometimes after I have been out for church callings, etc. When I come home Will says, " Oh were you gone making another song!? I love your songs Mommy! "

Will thought all the guitars were cool and the headphones that make you hear yourself as if you were inside your own voicebox.

If you notice in this list Will has described himself in, on this leaf on a tree in his classroom, Will has mentioned two of his friends at school. Will also mentioned his cats which are a great joy to him. Will even gives them baths!


Will, Thank you for being so sweet and for bursting out moments of love as your energy spins around our house.

Love ,
        Mommy 💝

Brooke is almost twelve

My princess Brooke is almost twelve-years old, but if you ask me, I feel like she is going on thirty-years old.

A few days ago I saw a plastic bag on my front porch on my way out the front door. I thought, oh well, I will see What that is later.

When I returned I found a receipt on the door which read, Thank you for your dibation, to print your tax deduction reciept go to this link...."

On this receipt there was a picture of cats and dogs.

I asked Brooke what it was and she told me she had signed up online for a pick up of you balls and toys for orphan cats and dogs! Apparently that is what was sitting on my porch! Brooke had taken action in something she wanted to help with and her passion of loving cats!

I guess I shouldn't be surprised if she turn stands up for animal rights someday! Haha,

The impressive thing is that Brooke is a child that has straight As, has read " Twilight, Hunger Games, Divergent, and Mrs.Perigans Home for Peculiar Children " series, in the past couple months, and yet she has enough brain space to think about setting up charitable donations for animal, pickups at the house?

4 entire book series, gifted and talented straight As, piano lessons, private ice skating, team ice skating, charitable dobations, and she has taken up Family History that Grandpa Pack taught her today.

She found thirteen ordinances for ancestors and with tears in her eyes she said to Grandma, Grandpa and myself, " I really feel the spirit."

She could move out tomorrow and I would even wonder if she could figure out how to manage in life.

Thank goodness it is 12 and not 30, however amazing she is, I still have lots to share with her in my home.