a dream.

I've always dreamed of raising my little children in a big home in the suburbs of some cute and quaint city, where people are out in their yards and children are playing in the streets, much like the neighborhood I grew up in. Friends would come over to play with my children, and leave a pile of shoes at the door. We would go on family bike rides, and, as a housewife and stay-at-home mother, I would make dinner for my family in the evenings. There would be colorful flowers in our front yard, and I would take dinner to those in need. My many children would know how much I love them, and how wonderful it was to be in love with someone by the way my husband and I acted with each other. We would be silly, and throw parties for no reason, except that it was a wonderful day. My children would watch out the window for their dad to come home from work, and he would greet them with hugs and tickles and laughs.

That's been probably my biggest dream ever since before I was a teenager. I would daydream about this on a weekly, maybe even daily basis. It's where my heart wanted to be, and I yearned for it so badly; I was excited to grow up and have that.

And today, all these years later, I still want exactly that. I want to be a stay-at-home mother and do house work and cook for my family. I want a big house where my children and I can laugh and play and work and make memories. And in a world where this dream might seem too old-fashioned, or seem to lack ambition, I believe that it's the most honorable thing a woman can do in this world. The ability to slow things down, and sit down on the floor with a child that you've created and teach them to read, or play cars with them. To find the beauty in the little things, instead of constantly being busy. 

I want my children to have siblings to play with, to fight with, and to love. I want them to have a mother and a father who are in love, and show that love every single day. I want to be there with my children when they take their first steps, or loose their first tooth, or have a bad day at school. I want them to have opportunities, and to learn about what makes me the happiest, and where they can get that happiness. I want them to know that I am their mother, and I would do anything for them.

That is my dream. 

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breakfast and the san bernardino valley.

This morning, at a quarter to noon, I sat at the table and ate a breakfast of coconut oil spread onto toasted honey white bread, a sliced apple, and a glass of Simply Orange orange juice while Zac was sick in bed. Today, we are skipping church because he has an icky sore throat, and it's my job to take care of him.

When he woke up, I made him a breakfast of fried eggs and toast. Then, we looked at homes for sale in the San Bernardino valley in Southern California, because we both really want to live there. Why? Let me name the reasons.

1. The houses there are just about as cheap as the houses in Utah. A four-bedroom house runs for about $275,000 (give or take).
2. The valley of San Bernardino is surrounded by mountains to hike! And in those mountains are about three of four lakes. Glorious!
3. The San Bernardino Valley is only an hour away from the beach; and not just any beach--Newport beach, where we went on our honeymoon.
4. It's warm there, with no snow. As much as I love the look of snow, I hate the cold and ice it brings with it. The weather in San Bernardino ranges from about 40 degrees in the winter to about 95 degrees in the summer. This place was made for me.
5. The houses there are gorgeous. I'm not sure where Utah was when they talked about the aesthetics of houses' architecture, but Utah is highly lacking. California? Not so much.
6. My sister, Emily, lives only two hours away from San Bernardino. Family!
7. The Redlands, California temple is nearby. What a beauty!

So you see? Zac and I need to move there. I think it's become my new dream. Just look how appealing it is...

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