Sunday Night Walk

Tonight we went on a wonderful Sunday walk.  We walked around OU campus.  Wow, what  a beautiful place.  The flowers and the sculptures and the buildings and the fountains.  I could spend so much time just sitting and drinking up all of the beauty.  

The picture above is all four of our children enjoying one such beautiful fountain that was donated to the university by the class of 1935.  I vow that we will have many more such walks in the future.

Change

Last night I had a dream.  You know those dreams that you have that bother you even while you are dreaming it? Well, it was that kind of dream.  I dreamt that Doug was asked to move to Seattle to teach there and we were going to have to leave Oklahoma. In the dream we were packing and driving away from our current position.  I remember that I cried and cried.  In fact in the dream I remember realizing that I was crying much more than I had when I had to leave Idaho.  Despite how sad I was I remember that our extended family was super excited to have us so much closer.            I woke up.


It was then that I realized how much I love being here in Oklahoma.


Last week our ward here in Oklahoma incurred some boundary changes.  CHANGE.  Many people in our ward were a bit melancholy today as we went to church, because they were missing some of their dear friends.    It didn't hurt our family too much, because we are still learning who is who in our ward.  In fact, there are less people now, so now I hold out some hope of getting to know everyone a little bit better and a little bit faster.

Perhaps this is what brought on the strange dream I had.

As we were in church today there were three speakers, all the members of our bishopric, our leaders.
One is a new friend who actually used to be the bishop of another ward (and by 'used to be', I mean up until last week. His family was affected by the re-allignment of the ward boundaries, and our Bishop called him in place of his counselor that was affected by the boundary change as well).  All the speakers today spoke about the same topic:  CHANGE.  Our new friend shared a conference talk that had a beautiful analogy about a root bound plant.  It is so great that I have decided to share it with you:

When a choice plant became root bound and began to deteriorate, a young friend of ours decided to transplant it to a larger container. Carefully he lifted the greenery from its small pot and put it into its larger home, trying to disturb the roots and soil as little as possible. The novice gardener watched and waited. To his dismay, the plant still struggled. Our friend expressed his frustration to an experienced gardener who offered his services. When the plant was placed in the gardener’s hands, he turned the pot upside down, pulled out the plant, shook the soil from the roots, and clipped and pulled all the stragglers from the root system. Replacing the plant into the pot, he vigorously pushed the soil tightly around the plant. Soon the plant took on new life and grew.

How often in life do we set our own roots into the soil of life and become root bound? We may treat ourselves too gently and defy anyone to disturb the soil or trim back our root system. Under these conditions we too must struggle to make progress. Oh, change is hard! Change can be rough.

The Lord does not want His church to become root bound and stagnant. Constant revelation through the prophets is needed for the growth of His kingdom.

There is nothing so unchanging, so inevitable as change itself. The things we see, touch, and feel are always changing. Relationships between friends, husband and wife, father and son, brother and sister are all dynamic, changing relationships. There is a constant that allows us to use change for our own good, and that constant is the revealed eternal truths of our Heavenly Father.

Marvin J. Ashton, Progress Through Change

If you are interested in reading the rest of this great talk, you can go here.

I suppose that the reason that I feel so impressed by this talk was because lately we, the Sturges Family, have gone through quite a bit of change.  We moved from our home in Melba.  Melba truly was our home in every way.  We put all of our heart and soul into that small community.  It hurt when we had to leave.  Melba helped Doug and I become who we are today.  Melba is a major part of our children's childhood.  

It was challenging for a while.  I have missed much of our Idaho life.  But, now that we have been here for three months I find that I am growing.  I am changing a bit.  I am becoming exactly what my Heavenly Father wants me to be. He is blessing me in so many ways.  Our children are also feeling the comfort of Heavenly Father's blessings.  It hurt some to have my roots pulled apart, but hopefully in a year or so I will be a more beautiful plant that has learned to take on new life and GROW.  

How have you found that CHANGE has blessed you?

The last few weeks

The last few weeks have been full.  Mostly of adventures we would rather not have.  Doug has had some complications that have resulted from his knee surgery, and he has been through many doctor appointments.  Last Friday he was meeting in OKC with a physician and if we had not gone through this experience, we would not have met Howdy.  Howdy was Doug's nurse.  She is a woman of about 45 years of age and had some fun stories to tell.  I just thought that it was super fun to say,"See ya later Howdy."  What an oxymoron sentence.  How often does one get to say such things.  Well, what I didn't know was that as I left the parking garage I was going to meet a parking attendant named Yajuanna.   That's right.  As I read her name I asked her how she pronounced it.     How would you say this unusual name?   You wanna guess?

You Wanna.

  That is how you would pronounce it!  So on my way back home I called my friend Peggy and told her of both of the unusual name I had come upon in the last hour.  She is always good to cheer me up with a laugh.  I also called Megan (my sister-in-law) and she and I chuckled about these for a bit.  I always need a good laugh, so I decided that this was a blessing from Heavenly Father.





This we Doug and i were blessed to have my step-mom come into town to enjoy the role of Grandma.  When we were still in Idaho we learned that there would be a Husband and Wife Conference in Dallas that was in October.  We arranged with Sharon to come and she was super happy to help us with this need.  I gotta say that the kids were equally as pleased.  They were able to go on adventures with her and be spoiled by her.  I don't think the visit will ever be forgotten.  It was so good to have her come and it felt like home with her here.

As Doug and I went to Dallas we followed the directions to meet at the front of the Dallas Temple in our athletic gear. ( I loved meeting there.  I had forgotten that the Dallas temple and the Boise Idaho temple were built around the same time, so they both look very similar. Another blessing to me.)  As the group gathered we were told that we were going to run "The Amazing Race", and we were handed our first clue.  Doug and I were super excited about the theme of the conference because this is our all time favorite TV show.  We love the challenges and the travels.  The amazing race that we ran was as a couple and each clue was to teach us how to unite together.  During the first leg of the race we had to do numerous exercises, stack cups, find our name in a room of 1,000 cups, and list characteristics we love about each other.  The second leg began the next morning and we were thrust on a train into downtown Dallas.  We had to take pictures of ourselves next to four different "features" of Dallas.  The third leg of the race we had to share painting a picture and then finish the race with running a three legged race.    Honestly, I believe that this conference could not have been more custom made for Doug and I.  We had a blast.

Sometimes I think Heavenly Father must look down from heaven above and just laugh.  Am I crazy or have any of you had this thought as well?

I was so nervous about going to this conference.   I wonder if God giggled in excitement for what He had in store for us.  He knew that Doug and I needed the conference to be planned exactly the way it was planned.  He knew how much fun we would have with the challenges and also how we would be able to come closer together with them.  We also were able to get to know other couples better by going through some of the challenges with them.

I am so thankful that Heavenly Father knows what I need.  I am also so glad that He knows my future and is concerned for me.  Heavenly Father has built me up from my past experiences for a reason, and He has a path for me to go.  I am very happy that I don't know the future.  I know that if I knew the future that I would shirk from what I need to go do.  I also am so thankful for personal revelation.  I can communicate with my Heavenly Father and through personal revelation He can communicate with me. He can guide and direct me if my heart is pure.    I am so thankful for the examples of those that are around me.  I love that I can follow what is good from each of their lives.  I am so blessed.

My maiden name is Bowers

Brody went on a campout with his 11 year-old scout troop this last weekend.  His first scout campout.  He loved getting out and adventuring as any boy his age would.  He was assigned to design and bring the troop flag, and he also helped to create a chant for the troop.  He was super delighted to come home and tell me that he won first place on his flag and second place on his chant.  This was a campout with many other troops so the competition was there to be had.  He was super delighted to have such success and acceptance.

Caleb last week realized the wonderfulness of 7-eleven slurpies.  We only live about a tenth of a mile away from a 7-eleven, and alas he has been very happy to go back twice to purchase some.  He was very generous and shared his new found addiction to his little brother and sister while Brody was gone on his campout.  

Doug announced his first event for OU last Friday.  He sounded great.  It was a girls soccer game and the kids and I sat just outside the fence to listen to him.  I believe that he really could get places with that great voice of his. 

For me the last week has involved me becoming a bit of a loose cannon.  You never know when I am going to let someone have it.  I have not been to excited about it, because along with a great story to tell, there comes some serious regret, retrospect, then repentance.  After communicating with my most adored sister in law Megan, I realized why I am flying off the handle and loosing my self control.  I have been so anxious.  Anxious about Doug.  His knee surgery has healed, but it also has caused some other issues that have bothered me.  I have been very worried and very unsure about what I should do.  I love that man of mine and I don't want to hover over him, but I am very much a mother and wife, so I feel like I need to hover just a bit.  What do I do to help him?  What should I feed him?  Do I make him get up and walk it off?   Do I call someone? I have been very unsure about so many aspects that I am feeling very out of control of everything.  Thus I need to apologize to the Lady at Sonic who honked her horn at me very rudely, I am so sorry for the confrontation that you had with me as I tapped on your drivers window asking in a not-so-sweet manner "What DID I DO?!"  Also I need to apologize to the bank teller who was just following protocol, I am sorry that you had to hear exactly my thoughts on the matter.     Luckily I kept it together when I went to Doug's follow up doctor appointment this week.  Instead of telling him all my thoughts, I just decided to keep my mouth shut....completely shut.  (He probably thought I had super glued my lips together.)  I did not make a peep at all.  I probably wasn't too warm and cozy, but at least I didn't explode.  

I don't know when this will get better, but it will.  I did get to see a bit of sunshine today...I just hope for more in the future.  I pray that with whatever comes my way I can practice taking it all very gracefully. I just need to remember my maiden name is Bowers.  

 written by Camille

A Prayer Answered

No, this is not a post about some amazing miracle that has happened. It would be wonderful for many of us if it truly was, but this is a post about something very simple. (Which sometimes is the miracle)

Over the last couple of weeks I have realized that I don't laugh very much.  I watch my sweet husband giggle through out the day at several things, and I wonder sometimes why I don't find all of what he finds comical. Why am I so serious all of the time.  I have really been pondering this since my sweet new friend Patrice asked me this summer when the last time I really laughed was.  Now, I do find things funny at times, I am not a grump or a Scrooge, I just want to have a little more laughter.

Thank you to step-mom who reminded me that as I ponder and think about things that they too are a prayer to the righteous.  So I guess according to her I have been praying for more laughter.

Well, the giggle bug hit.  I have laughed at people that I noticed are too serious.  I have laughed at my little treat in the mail that my father sent me. I have laughed as my son complained about how I pray too long.  I have laughed at a text that my dear, good, wonderful friend Peggy sent me. I have laughed at myself playing pool.  I have laughed!  I am so thankful for a Heavenly Father who would bless me with the ability to laugh.

I remembered this quote from Sister Marjorie Pay Hinckley, “The only way to get through life is to laugh your way through it. You either have to laugh or cry. I prefer to laugh. Crying gives me a headache.” 

Sometimes we all take life just too seriously.  Let's have a good laugh.

What a Week

This last week we....
Enjoyed a relaxing Labor Day and let Doug rest to let his knee heal a bit more.
Watched Caleb play in his first football game, as his proud daddy announced.
Lost all of Drake's shoes, then thanks to Caleb found Drake's shoes.
Served lunch at the Institute for Friday Forum.
Let Doug stand in as a grandparent for Leah's school's Grandparent Day celebration.
Went to Leah's elementary school book fair.
Taught Leah to mow the lawn so that she could earn money to spend at the book fair.
Made a cute ruffly apron for my sister for her birthday.
Dropped Caleb off at a "Camp and Shoot" campout for the Boy Scouts.
Went cowboy/cowgirl boot shopping, then bought me some cowgirl boots.
Helped to clean the church.
Took Drake to a birthday party.
Picked up our first Bountiful Basket here in Oklahoma.
Watched the OU football game.
Started Fantasy Football.
Created more Art.

We did all of this along with the regular dishes, laundry, cooking, homework, grocery shopping, etc.
We are breaking into the wonderful life of living in Norman.  It is fun.  I mentioned to someone this week that it always surprises me how much there is to do.  I guess we are never done.

Today we went to a missionary farewell in a little place called Anadarko, OK.  We found that there is a family who had moved from our old Kuna ward a few years ago to Oklahoma.  Funny thing is that part of Doug's new assignment is over this area.  So we have been in contact a few times with this family in the 2 months that we have lived here.  We even invited them over for dinner and thoroughly enjoyed our time together.  When we lived in Kuna this family lived just at the end of our street, and I worked in  Young Women with Sister Bateman, and Doug was the Young Men's leader and seminary teacher for their two oldest boys.  Brother and Sister Bateman's youngest son is currently getting ready to serve a full time mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Ohio.  He is going to be a great hard working missionary, and we were very honored to have been invited to come and visit.

I highly enjoyed the drive out to Anadarko.  It was about an hour drive from Norman.  I had been mentioning to Doug that I would love to see more of the surrounding areas so that I can visualize where some of the other places are that he visits.  As we drove to the Bateman's home for the open house I was awe struck at the beauty.  I love the red dirt.  I love the rolling little hills.  As we drove to the crest of one of the hills and I looked out I realized that it did look quite a bit like Melba.  I didn't feel homesick, I just loved it.  There is a beauty out there that not everyone appreciates, but I can tell you that I certainly do.

The Bateman's attend church in a smaller building with a smaller group of members of our church. This is often referred to as a branch rather than a ward.  The members of this branch were all so welcoming. I met some great people there that were very willing to visit with both Doug and I.  I noticed as our children came from their church classes that they had had a very pleasant experience as well. (Even Caleb our oldest who is usually very reserved I observed was visiting with a boy his age.)

As Doug and I drove home we both were very happy with our choice to go out to support that good, good family.  Hopefully our relationship can continue during our time here.




One of my most favorite things to do in our daily routine is to read to the kids a bedtime story.  I first start with the little kids, then move over to the older two.  Tonight I decided to snap a few pictures of this most delightful part of my day.

Aren't they just the best little treat to have at the end of they day?  Leah and Drake get a little Five Minute Story,and  Caleb and Brody I read to from The Hunger Games.  I love how ALL of them love to listen to a good story.  How it settles their spirits and lets them get ready to go to sleep.  I hope one day that this will be one of their memories of growing up.



Last but not least..... a little bit of a fun story.

So, I have been very impressed by the size of bugs that live here in Oklahoma.  I have to admit, I am not a fan.  As I looked around my yard the last week I mentioned to Doug that it sure would be nice to have a pair of artificial inseminating gloves that my dad uses so that I can work in the yard with out the fear of getting those giant creepers on me.  Well, Doug called my dad and look what came in the mail.


I must truly be loved.  Apparently there was even an offer of sending the gloves with a little "fertilizer" already on them. (the gloves came fertilizer free)  This little package made my day.  Thank you DAD!  I am sure that it is an uncommon request.  You sure know how to make a daughter smile.


written by Camille Sturges

Adventurous Pictures

Here are some pictures of some of the things that we have done since coming to Oklahoma.  Every week it seems that we have more added to our list of places to go and things to do.  I love it!

Leah loving the brass tortoise in the Oklahoma City Zoo 

Brody, Leah, and Drake enjoying the Splash Pad!

Having a great day at the Natural History Museum near  our house.

Brick Town Water Tour

Matinee Movie in Brick Town, OKC.

Seven Stitches for Brody.

Split open for a good game of tag.

The Oklahoma City Temple

My Anniversary Golfing Date.
We made it 14 years!