The circle of love!

When our family was sealed in the temple apx ten years ago, we lingered together in the sealing room, huddled in a circle. We felt the power of being eternally sealed and did not want to break our circle, knowing our family would soon be branching off in different directions with boys on missions, college and all things that scatter a growing family. We stayed linked together and committed no matter the miles between us, the power of the family circle seal, will fortify us as we face individual challenges with an eternal perspective and together we can conquer all!

I love circles, hugs, polka dots and round dinner tables that include everyone! Now the circle had power and significance in a new way to our family, and through the years, it's been a cliche, "feel the power of the circle" slogan that offers a nitro burst of energy. It sustains and comforts during the stretching times of our lives.

So it's particularly touching when we gather as a family and encircle arms of love to bless a new baby or offer a blessing of health. This weekend we were blessed to gather in gratitude that our family circle has grown to include new baby Gavin, and witness his first blessing.

The power of the circle! xo

Moving on!

Like many others, a diploma means packing up and moving out of Provo!

That's their apartment on the top floor and now their lives stored in that truck!

Yep, 3 flights of stairs makes a for a great workout!

Ash and Bobby drove to Philly for the summer and Todd and I drove the Penske to Texas where they will reside in the Fall!

Hearts comin back home! xo

a happy day!

Jumpin for joy!

A memorable time to rally as a family in celebration of a sweet victory!
Happy to have both Grandmas to hug!
We are proud all four of you are finishers and college grads! yippee!




You have brains in your head,
you have feet in your shoes,
you can steer yourself
in any direction you choose!
~Dr. Seuss~

BYU Commencement with Uchtdorf & Nelson

Heather and I enjoyed running ahead of the 6100 graduates to capture pictures of the famous walk to the Marriott Center.
President Uchtdorf walked up on one side and Nelson on the other, married in the middle, proceeded through the tunnel and sat for all the graduates to pass by.



Cell phones are great because we could give the girls a heads up to look for us on the bridge as they passed through.

They were so excited President Ucktdorf gave them a special wave and wink!




Education is the power to think clearly, the power to act well in the world's work, and the power to appreciate life. ~Brigham Young~

... and life is great! xo

No more school!

This is it! Finishing strong and studying for the LAST final of Ashley's college experience!



So what do Hickson's do?
CELEBRATE of course!

Crazy to still have so much snow in April, but we sure enjoyed having the mountain to ourselves - the rest of Utah was tired of it!


Cash was not so sure about the heavy helmet and snow gear for a Texas boy, but loved the snack breaks!

A little glitch!

This is why we ALWAYS begin the day with prayer, as we were all grateful Andy walked away from this without any broken bones or scars! These rocketships sometimes had a mind of their own despite your intentions.


Cash and daddy happy to snuggle safely in the hotel!

Running wiggles out in the park!

Takin a break from graduation festivities and enjoy a fire-ant free park with a beautiful mountain backdrop!



Tanner's first time on a big boy swing! Just like a pro!

We always seem to find something to challenge each other on!



Gettin a little hungry!

Leave your mark!

Happy to add to the years events that Youth Conference 09 ~ Extreme Makeover for Haltom City Senior Park is now complete and was a great success! Woo hoo!
It's been months of planning, prayer and great faith the Lord would help us provide a tough opportunity for the youth to strengthen testimonies by losing their selves in service, experience team cooperation, leadership, skill building and also offer a rewarding humanity element.

Prayers were answered!
We framed up and poured a 1/4 mile 6' wide walking path for the Haltom City Senior Citizens Center, and subsequent landscaping embellishments like clearing fence lines, grooming the ballpark, assembling picnic tables and painting playground equipment.

As this project materialized, it was evident to me Andy and Todd had to be the General Contractors, as I knew they would share the same vision of hard hands-on work opportunities for the youth, high expectations and a finished task to feel the pride of start to finish accomplishment. That we did!

It was quite a feat to stage truckloads of lumber, rebar, sand, mulch and concrete to keep 240 youth busy to complete this task in two days.

The boys pulled strings to get 11 concrete trucks on Saturday over Easter weekend to allow us to literally leave our mark. Not only did the youth learn skills, but were able to strengthen their testimonies and draw a few seminary lessons from the process of framing a strong foundation, anchor, tie and cement with the gospel.
Heather was in town for Easter weekend. Traditional holiday it was not, but so grateful she was there to share in the project with us. She quickly got involved and served lunch to the masses! Not traditional, but fitting on Easter, to follow the Savior's example and render service to our fellowman.

The little ones enjoyed visiting the site and playing on the equipment. It was especially entertaining to watch the guys pull out the sunk concrete truck that held us up for an hour.

The hickson-hickson-hickson-hickson team!
I am filled with gratitude the project provided the youth with an experience they will never forget, but even moreso, grateful for the opportunity to work so closely with the boys and strengthen the bonds of our circle. They were absolute rock stars in making this happen - I choose them on my team EVERY time!


"The things you do for YOURSELF are gone when you are gone.
The things you do for others, REMAIN AS YOUR LEGACY."
~H. David Burton ~

FHE - walking the legacy! xo

the prince's new clothes.

once upon a time in a land far away a [beautiful] princess made baby shoes for the newest little prince.  she rummaged through her closet and scrapped together an old pair of pants, cardigan and turtleneck to make little lovelies to fill prince gavin's royal wardrobe.  after much trial and error, the princess had created the most adorable and tiniest baby shoes in all the land.  

worried that prince gavin would not have any coordinating tops the princess crafted a tiny train, plane and [rockstar] neck-tie. 

upon meeting the little prince [and his not-so-little toes] the princess learned that "0-3" patterns [and onesies] do not often fit all the name would imply.  luckily, little princes sleep a lot and are quite squishy to be squeezed into costumes to entertain all the kingdom.  

...and they all lived happily [and well-dressed] ever after.

a million years ago.

i found this little number while culling my hard drive and just love it.  i love her killer dance moves and that she is mouthing the words.

ps. this was november 2006... so *just* under a million years ago.

spring has sprung.

I love dc in the springtime.  judging from the crowds today--I am not the only one.

I also love love love my camera.

and lets be honest--the last picture is just to show how long my hair is. (shameless, I know.)