MARCH ALREADY!

This weekend has been such a spiritually charged weekend!  The Temple Cultural Celebration took place and the dedication of the Gilbert Arizona Temple.  The Cultural Celebration was just fantastic even though is poured rain through the entire performance.  The 13,000 youth involved put so much hard work and dedication into this event and not even the pouring rain could stop it from being an awesome event. Both Keaton and Bailey Rose were able to participate and they were so pumped with excitement.  They both came home soaked to the bone and freezing but they were filled with the spirit and I can tell this experience of the Celebration and  being in Pres. Monson's presence will be something they will never forget.  The Prophet of God was here in our valley this weekend to dedicate the Gilbert Temple and the dedication was just BEAUTIFUL and the spirit was so strong is was just all so powerful.  Testimonies were charged up to high capacity this weekend and our family is feeling so blessed to have the Gospel and the blessing of the temple in our lives.  Families are Forever and I am so grateful for this Gospel principle it means so much to me.  I am so excited to be able to go and visit this beautiful temple often and be surround by it's beauty!  


                                              GILBERT ARIZONA TEMPLE

We were able to go through the Temple with the kids before it was dedicated and my kids were just in awe of the beauty and the peace that they saw and felt there.  They have both been able to participate with the youth in Baptisms for the Dead and to see other rooms in the Temple was a wonderful experience for them.  To go through with my children was a very happy and emotional experience for Kevan and me.  For the first time we were all together as a family in the Temple.  It will be quite a few years before that happens again so it was such a gift.  Both of my kids made the comment that they could not wait to be able to go back someday and see the inside the entire temple once again.  Our Bishop said that the youth in our ward would be going to do Baptisms for the Dead in the very near future and they are excited to go again and participate.  I love that they love the Gospel!

                                                              Keaton & Bailey Rose
                                                               Gilbert Temple 1/29/2014

Well, it has been six months since my surgery and I still am waiting for the part of recovery where I feel like I am 100% again.  I feel 100% better then I did six months ago but not 100% and it has become depressing for me.  My doctor tells me it could be a few years before I feel like myself but, being impatient as I am I do not feel like waiting around for that to happen.  I find that I try to push the envelope trying to do and live as I use to and it just wipes me out and throws me for a loop but, I guess I figure if I keep trying I will be able to get to that 100% quicker.  It is stupid thinking really but, I can't help myself.  I have not been myself for so long that I feel like I am drowning, and falling behind.  I am not getting any younger and now it feels like I am wasting what youth I have left on not being able to do what I once did.  It is so FRUSTRATING!  I can however stand to look at myself in the mirror again.  My scar had faded a lot and though it is still noticeable to me it is not noticeable to others right away.  Time does heal some wounds!

6 DAYS POST SURGERY

                                                                6 MONTHS LATER

We went mini golfing at Golfland when the kids had a day off from school a few weeks ago and it was very enjoyable.  The weather has just been perfect.  Not too hot and not cold at all!  When you live in the Arizona desert you have to take full advantage of this type of weather while it lasts.  We know all to well what is in store right around the corner.  We already have a jet skiing trip planned for the weather ahead.  Can't believe the kids are down to about 11 weeks of school left!

Keaton has been going to the Stake Dances with his friends from the Ward these past few months and enjoys them a lot.  Bailey cannot wait to turn 14 so she can go to the dances too but, this summer she will only be 13 so she a little bit of time.  The kids just really love the ward and are so involved with the friends they have made.  Bailey Rose has also been babysitting like crazy!  She has more money on hand then she knows what to do with.  Both the kids are doing well in school with the exception of math for Keaton. He has had quite a struggle trying to keep that grade up. He hates math and is convinced that math hates him.  I personally think it is because he got my math skills instead of his dad's, poor kid!

Well, I assume the month of March will fly by fast just like the last two previous months.  The 2014 year has been a good one thus far.  Hopefully I can continue to keep up to date on the happenings of the family.  Unfortunately,  considering this is my first post of 2014 I am not been off to a good start!

Very Overdue Catch -Up Post

It has been quite a while since I last posted anything and the Roth's have had many changes. To name just a few we moved from Mesa about 8 miles into Gilbert. It was not a move we were anticipating but, then the opportunity arose and we grabbed it. It is safe to say that not everyone in the family (the kiddos) were on board but, it really has been a blessing in our life. We left our Ward family of 11 years which was probably the hardest thing about the move and became "newbies" in another ward in Gilbert. The kids have never been happier! Bailey Rose who is now 12 and in the Young Women's program just loves the girls in the ward and has so many friends. Keaton who is now 14 has enjoyed the kids in the new ward as well and he has made many friends. He also serves as the 2nd counselor in the Teacher's Quorum. We have now been in our new ward a little over 9 months and are no longer considered new but, Kevan and I have been serving in the Nursery program so I sometimes feel like I still do not know a soul. We are also Family Church History consultants and have enjoyed helping others learn how to start their family genealogy. What a wonderful program! Keaton started High School this year and also Seminary and always says it is his favorite class. I feel so blessed to have a front row seat in watching him gain a stronger testimony of the Gospel. It has been such a privilege to listen to his excitement as he talks about the scriptures. I LOVE it, what mom wouldn't? He is still playing trumpet and is taking both Jazz and Concert Band this year. Bailey Rose started Jr. High this year and loves it! She is in the Drama Club and as usual she is just a go-getter! She got a brand new guitar for her 12th birthday and I love to hear her play. If she doesn't have her nose in a book she is playing her guitar. She learned an old slavery song to play for her Social Studies class as part of her Civil War project. She says she is nervous to play in front of so many people but, I know she will do fine. She is still quite the social butterfly and if you let her she will talk your ear off on just about any subject that comes up. Kevan will graduate in less then a year now and will be so glad to finally have his degree in Business. It is not easy to go back to college in mid-life but,he did and I am so proud of him. He has decided once he has his degree in hand he will start applying to the Labor Relations Dept. at Coca-Cola. It is a job that will have him traveling all over but he looks forward to it. He has been in his Supervisor position now coming up on 4 years and he is wanting something a bit more challenging and more involved with Coca-Cola Headquarters . He loved being a part of the Union De-certification 4 years ago and since it was the largest Union De-certification in Coca-Cola he is well known in the Labor Relations Dept. for the role he played in making it successful. Having a "foot in the door" will help too! My life normally does not change from being a wife and mom and the things that go with those roles, which are roles I love and treasure but, this last summer I was diagnosed with hyper-parathyroid disease. I knew something was wrong, I was just so fatigued, and my body and bones and joints just hurt so bad. I however played it off as just getting older until I became so sick that I wasn't sleeping at night, my hair seemed to be falling out, and I was sleeping all the time with no relief from the fatigue. I finally went to the Dr., turns out I had a parathyroid tumor. The only cure for this disease was surgery so I had the tumor removed end of August and I am still recovering. I have about a 4 inch scar in my neck where they removed the tumor and a large thyroid nodule which had become engaged with the tumor. It was a four hour surgery and I ended up three days in the hospital. The worst is over, now it is about getting well. This disease caused Osteopenia which occurs before osteoporosis sets in. I am grateful it is reversible and am working at doing just that. It has been a difficult trial for me but, I feel so blessed to have such an awesome husband who literally played the mom and dad role for over a month so that I could recover and rest. I am a lucky woman to have such an loving, supportive and helpful hubby!

SPLISH! SPLASH!

MY KIDDOS HAVE ALREADY BEEN SWIMMING IN THE POOL QUITE A FEW TIMES FOR ABOUT THE LAST TWO WEEKS! GOTTA LOVE THE ARIZONA SUNSHINE! IT'S HARD TO BELIEVE WE HAVE LESS THEN THREE WEEKS FROM SCHOOL GETTING OUT AND THE KIDS CAN FINALLY BEGIN THEIR SUMMER BREAK WHICH ALWAYS INCLUDES DAILY SPLISH SPLASHING,SOMETIMES A COUPLE OF TIMES A DAY!