weeks & years

my life is now being calculated by weeks and years, and in a couple of weeks; i think it will be days, weeks, and years.

an explanation: last monday was memorial day. as hailey and i were driving out to matthew's gravesite, i found myself wondering..."in three years, how many more graves will i be visiting?" (sad but true.)


then, as i was getting ready that afternoon for the little bar-b-que party i found myself wondering..."in three years, will the little girls still like to come over and swim and party at aunt susan's?"


hence, everything about my life now, in las vegas, i think about how it will all be three years from now. when i return. to my homeland. it is weird. normally i wouldn't wonder about things far away, i would just let things happen, day by day, and take the changes as they come.

when we get to santa rosa, i believe my life will be counted in six week periods. everything happens every six weeks. new missionaries come (trip to the airport and orientation), some depart (big dinner and farewell party/testimony meeting), zone conferences (i don't really know how much that will involve me), interviews with president (maybe i will be hanging around visiting with companions and getting to know them), and many other things i don't even know about yet. i just know these things happen once - every six weeks. so for the next three years, my life will be divided into six week intervals. strange.

last tuesday marked four weeks until we walk out of our house here at shenley court, kiss it good-bye, and leave for three years. four weeks from yesterday, we will be set apart and report to the mtc. four weeks from today, i will be sitting in the mtc from 8am - 8pm, being instructed by prophets and apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ. ok. it is real. sometimes i am ready to just get on with it, and sometimes i still can't believe it. sorry.

on to what has been happening this past week - some things to remember.
1-hailey's 8th grade dance! she loved every minute! she looked adorable! she had fun! and now it will be even harder for her to leave and join us in santa rosa :(.


jessica worthen did her hair SO cute!


hailey and sara ness


a pretty girl!


a sassy girl!


friends!


the whole gang! kristie andrews, sadie garrett, sara ness, hailey, chad lords, cole white and hunter clark.

2- beau michael david is the cutest!





3- memorial day! with some of my favorite people!












4- i never thought these two daughters looked alike until last night...they look like twins :).


5- a farewell dinner for jon from his "people". we went to vitner's grill last night to share the evening with jon's direct reports and their spouses. the food was good, the company fun, and the laker's won. a great night from start to end! :)



now i am caught up!

Awards Nights

this week has been fun as we have attended awards nights for megan and hailey.

monday night we were at bonanza high school, which will soon become megan's alma mater. she received two awards and was honored for receiving her scholarship from uvu. she received an award for high honors and one for receiving an honors diploma. way to go megan!! we are very proud of you!



last night, we were at johnson jr. high for hailey's awards. she received two VERY cool awards!
first was the president's award for outstanding academic achievement...signed by our new president.


second she received the principle's award for academic excellence. to get this award, you had to achieve a 4.0 gpa all three years she was at the school. there were only 9 recipients. only one boy.


jon's comment to tod, "Hailey has a 4.0 for all three years. AmaZing. We are smart after all." we have had to live under the shadow of the "smart" bunker's all of these years, staring with bill and jon. the trend has seemed to continue. we'll give hailey credit where credit is due, with no undue pressure from her loved ones to be the valadictorian of her graduating class. we are very proud of her as well!


hailey and cute chad lords...our next door neighbor.


sadie did hailey's hair and make-up for this special evening. didn't she do a good job?

this afternoon megan heads to disneyland for grad night at the park. just seniors from 11:30pm -6:00am. i wonder if she can stay awake. :)
tomorrow night is hailey's 8th grade dance. the festivities of the end of the school year continue. live it up you two and have lots of fun. it's the end of an era for both of you!!!

second annual stewart girls trip

seattle, washington
may 14 - 16
participants: michelle, melanie, jen, amber, susan, kristen, sadie and hailey
fun activities: three hours at the make-up counter at macy's, grease, pikes market, beautiful scenery, ferry ride to bremerton, seeing mt. ranier, angels & demons, the duck tour, walking aimlessly around downtown
good food: mod pizza, jimmy johns, fresh peas, sourdough bread, sweet nectar, bremerton tacos, the italian spot (can't remember the name), starbucks donuts and muffins, every bakery in town, mrs. fields cookies, p.f. changs, anthony's at the airport
memories: endless stories including laughter, michelle trying to perfect a photo pose, good deals, seven people helping me find mission appropriate clothes and having to fashion show them all, perfecting the duck whistle, enjoying every minute (even when my feet were tired and my body exhausted) with these wonder women i love! i am so blessed to call them my family!
to those of you that could not attend: we missed you! maybe sometime over the next three years you can plan something in my mission and i can frolick with you again! if not, nyc, fall 2012!

a grandfather and a patriarch

almost the day we found out that we were leaving for california, hailey decided she better get her patriarchal blessing before we leave. it is a pretty special thing to be able to get your blessing from your very own grandfather! last night was the night.

after we arrived we visited with grandpa for awhile and he shared some pretty profound thoughts from president thomas s. monson (october 1986 conference) about patriarchal blessings. i wanted to write them down.

"a patriarchal blessing is a revelation to the recipient, even a white line down the middle of the road, to protect, inspire, and motivate activity and righteousness. a patriarchal blessing literally contains chapters from your book of eternal possibilities. i say eternal, for just as life is eternal, so is a patriarchal blessing. what may not come to fulfillment in this life may occur in the next. we do not govern God's timetable...
your patriarchal blessing is yours and yours alone...your blessing...is not to be framed or published. rather, it is to be read. it is to be loved. it is to be followed...your patriarchal blessing is to you a personal liahona to chart your course and guide your way."

thank you grandpa bunker for being prepared and worthy to give hailey such a beautiful, wonderful blessing. what a sweet night...one we will always remember!

a boy and his uncle

this picture is classic tod!

my father, a distinguished nevadan

yesterday, may 9th, we got to attend unlv's 2pm graduation ceremony, where the nevada board of regents conferred the distinguished nevadan award upon my father, alden levi stewart and two other men. i believe there were two other recipients in the 9am ceremony. what a sweet experience!

when they nominated my father he was pretty embarrassed and maybe confused at why they would nominate him. he wasn't sure what he had done to distinguish him from any other nevadan. but by the time he was actually chosen, and things had been written about him and what he had done (thank you crystal, ryan, rhonda and craig), i think he truly felt honored and excited about receiving the award. upon his nomination, rhonda told the people on the committee that they were asking a lot of a 92 year old man to stay alive long enough to be present to receive his award. during the following months we did almost lose him, but instead, heavenly father allowed him to stay and celebrate his 93rd birthday and in fact attend this ceremony yesterday.

earlier this week all of the recipients attended a luncheon, where they were presented and then given a chance to speak (impromptu) as they accepted their awards. i wasn't able to attend (sob. sob.), but i think my father was able to touch many people that day at the luncheon. i think most of the recipients talked a little about the things they had been able to do to help nevada and how they had contributed in one way or another. dad was the last one to speak, and as he stood, his words were more about his love for nevada and his gratitude at having been born and raised in this great state. he expressed his gratitude for how good nevada had been to he and his brothers and then his children and now their children. i have heard my father speak on many occasions, and even though i couldn't be there in person, i can imagine the power that was in the room as he humbly and gratefully expressed his love for his homeland and his family. regent wixom called a dear friend twice on wednesday, the day of the luncheon, and just couldn't get over how great my dad's acceptance was. his comment was, "it was like the bases were loaded, and when he got up to speak, he hit it out of the park!"

yesterday while we were waiting in the green room before the procession began, each of the regents came up separately and greeted my dad. i'm not sure any of them had ever met someone quite like him before! as dad came forward at commencement, and they read his little bio, and what it was that he had done to earn this award, they mentioned that he had been married for 62 years. that got quite a reaction from the crowd. and then as they continued and told that he had six children, 27 grandchildren and 47 great grandchildren (two on the way), the crowd went crazy. he was on the big screen while they were making the presentation so you could see when he got a little choked up and emotional during the reading. yes. he touched some lives during the past week, as his light was able to shine again, for strangers and loved ones alike. we are a blessed family to be able to call him our patriarch.


all decked out in his cap and gown!


brent getting ready to be his escort!


his adoring fans. in the box and in the crowd!



easy to spot in his wheelchair!


standing on the podium.

congratulations dad! you truly are a distinguished nevadan!

grandma susie

happy mothers day :)

i think megan made this post, but i wanted to write a little about mothers and being a mother today. i think this has been my best mother's day ever! really. why? well, it started very sweetly at sacrament meeting. megan gave a short little talk that touched my heart very deeply. all 15 seniors in our ward spoke today, so they all were very short. but megan quoted elder ballard and i wanted to share his thoughts.

"There is no one perfect way to be a good mother. Each situation is unique. Each mother has different challenges, different skills and abilities, and certainly different children. The choice is different and unique for each mother and each family. Many are able to be “full-time moms,” at least during the most formative years of their children’s lives, and many others would like to be. Some may have to work part-or full-time; some may work at home; some may divide their lives into periods of home and family and work. What matters is that a mother loves her children deeply and, in keeping with the devotion she has for God and her husband, prioritizes them above all else."
Elder M. Russell Ballard

i'm glad he says that there is no one perfect way to be a good mother. because when i compare myself to others, i am always way short of their greatness. i feel like i love my children deeply! i hope they can feel that. i also pray that they always know that they are my priority...especially over the next few years.

then we got home and had a delicious big breakfast for lunch. thanks everyone! each gift i received i absolutely loved. they were all very thoughtful. then i had a l.o.n.g. nap. i wondered if i will get to have any of those kind of sundays, when you feel exhausted and can take a l.o.n.g. nap while i am on my mission? i can wonder right? then i got to eat some yummy cookie dough that megan was making. (i know, the list is long, huh?) then me and my youngest three girls ran over to my parents, so i could wish my own mother, "happy mother's day!" i always feel a little sad when no one else is there when we show up on sundays, but today we had such a great visit. just us and them. it is a day i will treasure and remember...actually good enough to last for three years!


my mother is wonderful! she has taught me everything i know about how to be a strong, kind, loving woman. i am so grateful to be able to honor her today! to all the mother's in my life, happy mother's day!!!