it's true

we do have more fun.

blondes, that is.

er, fake blondes, that is.

a new nephew

derek alan young

born april 22, 2016

to kenny and emmelie young (and big brother, luke)

sixth boy young family grandchild in a row.

dance dance revolution

it's that time of year again!

debonair

okay, so this pic needs its own post because 

who else just wants to gobble baby dallin downey jr. up here?

killin it.

mother's day dresses

and ties!

after taking an unintentional hiatus for a few years, mother's day dresses (and ties!) are back at the wheelers. 

i waxed eloquent about this tradition five years ago and its basis in the fact that my mother and my grandmother taught me how to sew. both would (and have) probably say that they didn't really teach me how to sew citing that the time they spent in actual instruction was minimal or that my skill exceeds their own. 

but they taught me how to thread the machine. they taught me how to read a pattern. they taught me that "that which is worth doing is worth doing well" (something i bemoan every time i unpick a row of stitching). they taught me that i can get better (at almost anything!) with work and practice and more work and more practice. and they put in the time if ever i asked for help. 

because that's what mothers do.

you hold the bike, you push the bike, you let it go... ...and, don't get me wrong, they'll definitely fall flat on their faces a few times (or more). 

but one day, one fine day: they'll fly.

mes enfants

"To all mothers in every circumstance, including those who struggle--and all will--I say, 'Be peaceful. Believe in God and yourself. You are doing better than you think you are. In fact, you are saviors on Mount Zion, and like the Master you follow, your love never faileth.'"

--Jeffrey R. Holland, "Behold Thy Mother"

ma mere

"No love in mortality comes closer to approximating the pure love of Jesus Christ than the selfless love a devoted mother has for her child. [...] This kind of resolute love 'suffereth long, and is kind, ... seeketh not her own, ... but ... beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.' Most encouragingly, such fidelity 'never faileth.'

...You see, it is not only that they bear us, but they continue bearing with us. It is not only the prenatal carrying, but the lifelong carrying that makes mothering such a staggering feat.

...To all of our mothers everywhere, past, present, or future, I say, 'Thank you. Thank you for giving birth, for shaping souls, for forming character, and for demonstrating the pure love of Christ.'"

--Jeffrey R. Holland, "Behold Thy Mother"

caleb and the fire truck

preschool field trip rite of passage.