Dating panels,service projects, babysitting, decorating...and dancing!

How do dating panels, service projects, babysitting, decorating, and dancing, fit together? With-in a weeks time, because of my calling at church with the youth, and my commitment to house sit for our friends, all these things took place. Me and the girls in our ward planned and executed a really fun (and entertaining) dating panel for a devotional. We also planned a combined youth trip to the cannery where the kids got to can items for the ward members...and we also got to decorate for the stake dance...and then I got to be a chaperon (Whew...goodness...are my girls in charge of planning EVERYTHING? Of course not, it was just our turn)...all this while I had moved in at our friends house to watch their kids while our friend was having a 7 day bio-chemo session in the hospital, and his wife was staying there with him. But it all worked out. I loved being able to help out our friends who are going through such a hard time fighting an aggressive cancer, but I also loved being with the youth of our church for these other neat events. I had friends come into help with the kids while I went to the church events, and John was at home with my kids being Mr. Mom (one of the benefits of being out of a job...lots of TIME on your hands...gotta see the bright side of things). The youth events went so well. I LOVE the youth in our ward and I am so impressed by their willingness to serve and to have fun while they do it. They did a great job at the cannery, and also an AMAZING job at decorating for the dance. And my time at the Whetman's was wonderful too. Such a beautiful spirit in their home. Their family has taught us so much about faith and hope, and we pray for them continually.And about the dance...it was so much fun. Call me crazy, but I love being a chaperon at the youth dances. It so takes me back...and... I love to dance, and to my daughter's dismay, I jump out on the floor with the girls quite often. Actually, Kinsey is so used to me, it doesn't phase her at all, and she sometimes even encourages me. The dances are usually the place where I get to talk with all the kids the most and where we all have the most fun. Besides...someone needs to be the one to push the boys out on the dance floor...right? Oh...and another benefit: I love being able to spy on my daughter. Yes...I said "spy". I would not get half the details of her life from her if I were not at some of these events. Kinsey tells me about things, but the short version. She is just not my "talker". Kennedy on the other hand...speaks VOLUMES, and I mean VOLUMES about what happens in her life, so by the time she is old enough for the dances, I will be able to get a detailed account of what everyone wore, what they were doing, what kind of gum they were chewing, and maybe what she thought they were all thinking. But in the mean time...I will just follow Kinsey around. I am always the one with the camera, and these kids love to pose, love to have pictures for Facebook, so it works out for everyone. I document their fun, and I am accepted.
I think our decor turned out so great. We had lights and hearts hanging from the ceiling.

Clay Roe, and Savannah Raskey even did a little "performance" at the dance. They take ballroom dancing classes and they learned the waltz from HSM3, and decided to showcase it at the dance. The kids around here really get into this stuff, so it went over so well. They did an amazing job and I was so proud of them. These are two of Kinsey's best friends, so I know she was cheering them on.

Kinsey and Clay doing a little swing dancing. Love it!!!!

Kinsey and some of her best buds. Mason, Savannah, Clay, and Adam

Okay, so me and Sara had to get in on the action too. We had to try out our brilliant "photography background" that we threw together at the last minute that morning (and was held together by packing tape and string...and these poor plants). Sara is one of my BFF's and she just got called as young women's president, and I am still the 1st counselor. Yay to work with Sara. She loves the dances too, and we had a fun night. We thought we would be cute trying to copy some of the girls poses. Okay, not as cute when we do it...but worth a try.