After a full winter of feasting on Kettle cooked potato chips, chocolates and other sinful indulgence, when spring came this year, the pants I have been wearing for the last few years seemed to have shrunk at the hip. It has been a little hard to take. But I've finally stopped groaning. When my mom visited me in the summer, she agreed I was in fact, fat. The same summer, I picked up my sister who I haven't seen in seven years from the airport, she looked at me up and down for a while, and kindly shared her observation with me: "Your stomach is a little bit big." If you think it's just my family and that they say crazy things, wait till you hear this: There is an elderly Chinese grandma who walks her grandkids to the bus stop every morning. I haven't seen her since autumn of last year. I saw her this fall in the beginning of school year, after greeting one another, she said: "Hey, you look like you've gained weight."

If you remember, I wrote a farewell post about the ill manners of Sage. Afterwards, I rolled up my sleeves and went to work on training her to be a good citizen. I am happy to say that she is mostly pleasant these days. But of course, her being Sage, I should've known that she would save her treacherous ways for a more worthy foe - her elder sister.

Andrew and I had the opportunity to be Ma and Pa for our stake youth conference this year. We took the youth to Palmyra New York to visit Hill Cumorah, Gradon bookstore where the book of Mormon were published, the Smith's log cabin and the Sacred Grove.

My son Kirin is a great writer. I've enjoyed many of his insightful and descriptive writings. I think that he often feels cheated to be the only boy in the family. He endures his solitary status with some occasional outbursts of frustration. Every so often, he asks for a pet. He does it so very solemnly, very low-key. But because he asks so submissively, my heart aches a little every time I say no to him.