Brigham City Temple ground breaking ceremony

It turned out to be serendipitous that we were in Utah for Aaron's family reunion when the Brigham City Temple's groundbreaking was. Since I grew up in the Brigham City area, this temple is special to me. We left Aaron's family early Saturday morning and headed north. We went to my parents and then traveled to their stake center to watch the ceremony. We wanted to go to the temple site but we didn't have tickets and fighting the crowds with my mom's bad back and knees is not something any of us wanted to do.

What an amazing ceremony! President Packer, who is from Brigham City, presided. He talked about how the God had prepared the temple site for years. It used to be an elementary school. They tore it down in the late 90's. Since that time, they have tried to develop it into a strip mall of sorts, but it never worked out and has been a vacant lot for over around 10 years. He said that this temple site has been waiting for the time when this area was ready. And now it is!

"I am home," said President Boyd K. Packer in his opening remarks at the Brigham City Utah Temple groundbreaking held Saturday, July 31. President Packer, president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and his wife Donna are natives of Brigham City. President Packer had attended elementary school 80 years before on the very site where he stood. He continued, "I can see in my mind's eye a temple sitting here in about two years time. It will be gorgeous, it will be white. You will see in the design of it reflections of previous temples that have been built, particularly the Salt Lake Temple. It will be a beacon from all over the valley."

Here are some picture highlights from www.ldschurchtemples.com.

Van de Merwe Family Reunion

At the end of July, we were able to go to Utah for the Van de Merwe Family Reunion. We flew out and Miles travels like a pro! He was such a good baby! For the trip I found the neatest thing on Craig's List--it's a backpack, chair, and stroller all in one. It was so nice to have a non-bulky stroller while we were in the airport as well as during our adventures in Utah. Unfortunately, we forgot our camera so there are no exciting pictures.

It was so good to see all of Aaron's siblings and extended family! This was the first time that any of them had met Mr. Miles. He sure did enjoy meeting all his cousins and his aunts and uncles and 2nd cousins and great aunts, great-uncles, and great grandparents. What a great time! We hung out at East Canyon and enjoyed the beautiful weather. We also had the opportunity to go to Deer Valley and hear the Mormon Tabernacle Choir perform with the Utah Symphony. That was really special--thanks Grandpa Van de Merwe for making it possible.

July

It was wonderful to celebrate the freedoms we enjoy this month. We even got patriotic in our clothes! Look how cute Miles and Aaron are in their matching shirts!!


He rolled over for the first time from his belly to his back on July 3. I didn’t quite believe it so I put him on his belly several times and he rolled right over---until I got his daddy to come see and he decided that he had had enough! A few days later, Aaron was able to see it as well.

He loves his "Johnny Jump Up" chair (it's a chair/swing that attaches to the door frame--thanks Tiffani). He is quite content to sit and watch the world around him and bounce around.





Miles is such a good little eater! He loves any food that we give him. I try to make our own baby food since it's so expensive. So far he has had green beans, carrots, and broccoli. The carrots are his favorites so far. Let's hope he continues to be such a good eater.