Selling The House

I've had several inquiries about the status of the sale of our house so I thought I'd post a quick update. We put the house up for sale 4 weeks ago today. It has been shown 7 times (including 3 times within 4 days last week). Our agent (Jeremy) told us that the average length of time a house (currently) is on the market is 90 days, and the fact that our house has already been shown 7 times is good.

We rented a storage unit and have taken lots of stuff over there to alleviate the "crowded" look in our little home.

My Dad painted our family room and hallway downstairs, including all the doors and trim. Mike put a new ceiling in the basement bathroom and installed new towel holders.

I am working on removing wallpaper in the kitchen and getting it ready to paint. Every day we have to be ready at a moments notice to leave the house so it can be shown to a potential buyer. We've had a few (7) quick pick-up the house and escapes, and so far so good. There is still much to do but it is a work in progress. I'm leaving for BYU Women's Conference on Wednesday so Mike and Caitlin will be in charge of keeping things going smoothly.

We've had LOTS of questions about our new home. We don't have one. There is a home we really would like but there is nothing definite yet. As soon as our house sells we will be in a much better position where that house is concerned.

Here are a few pictures of what is going on in our busy-house-selling-life!

My Dad (being silly as usual) is always willing to help us out

The finished hallway (except for the blue tape I hadn't removed yet)

The before version of the family room

I painted the shelves after Dad painted the room (ooops! more blue tape)

Miss Avery came over for a visit when I was painting the shelves

This is the house we hope to buy

The back of the house; it is beautiful inside also

Family Friday: Featuring My Daughter (by marriage) Emily

Throughout my life I have known many women who I admire and respect....the women in my family are no exception; they are all wonderful. The first of the women in the family that I am featuring is my daughter-in-law Emily.

My very first memory of Emily was when she was in high school. She came to our home one day with a friend and they were in the basement talking with Jeremy, I was in the room immediately above the room that they were in and I could hear their conversation clearly as it drifted up the stairs. Emily was telling them a funny story that involved ice-cream (you know the one Em). They were laughing and I laughed too; it was a funny story.

When Jeremy and Emily started to date we were immediately endeared to her. I thought that she was such a cute girl, and so friendly and fun to talk to as well. That is one of the things I love the most about Emily, she is herself and we've always been able to talk very comfortably with each other.

One of my memories of Emily is when she, Jeremy, and I went skiing at Deer Valley during spring break in 2001. I hadn't been skiing for several years and the first run was a little to much for me. Part way down the slope I decided to "crawl" the rest of the way. Jeremy had already taken off down the hill, but Emily came back to help me and stayed with me until I finally felt that I could get up and continue skiing (I quite happily spent the rest of the day on the bunny hill).

Jeremy left for his mission to Canada in September of 2002 and Emily left the following February to serve a mission in Brasil. I can still remember the last time we saw her before she left. She came to our home one evening to say good-bye to me, Michael, and Caitlin and she brought me a gift; a beautiful bracelet which I treasure. When it was time for her to leave we had hugs all around, I remember her standing at the front door and looking up at us as if for "one last time" before she left. Caitlin and I stood hugging each other and crying as Emily drove away. We didn't know then that Emily would someday be a part of our family.

Jeremy and Emily returned from their missions within two months of each other and were married in the Salt Lake Temple on 05-05-05, and well....the rest is history.

A few interesting and fun things to know about Emily: She is a wonderful homemaker, her home is always spotlessly clean and organized. She is very creative and crafty; whether it's a party or a dinner, she knows how to bring a table or a room to life with her decorating skills. She loves to try new recipes and is a wonderful cook. She is very family oriented, and loves family gatherings. She is loyal. She is a wonderful wife and mother, I have been especially impressed that she taught Mason how to do baby signing. It just amazes me to watch Mason communicate in that way. She is always willing to serve others in any way that she can; last summer she spent an afternoon school shopping with Caitlin and I, and more recently she did all of the decorating for Caitlin's 16th birthday party. She is a make-up artist; at our family "girls night" last summer she did makeovers for everyone. She does whatever she is asked to do in the church diligently, her current calling is Young Women Camp Director and I'm confident it will be a memorable camp experience for the YW in her ward. She loves animals. She is sensitive to the spirit. She speaks Portuguese. She does really great impersonations. She graduated from BYU in 2007 with a degree in Sociology. She enjoys learning new things. She's a great hostess. She is fun to be with.

I am so grateful that Jeremy and Emily found each other. She is an important part of our Leger family as well as our "extended" family, and we love her.

One of several pom poms that Emily made to decorate Caitlin's 16th birthday party

Emily doing Jessica's make-up at our "girls night" last summer

Feliz Navidad Has Passed, But JULIO Is Less Than 3 Months Away....

I know it's been a few months since Christmas, but my "sista Ririan" just talked me through the how-to's of posting a video. This is one of my favorite piece's of video from the family Christmas party, my three sons and three of my grandsons are the performers. Be sure and watch 'til the end for Jeff's big finish!!

Family Friday: Featuring My Niece Rebecca

I had to start Family Friday with Rebecca (as I mentioned previously the first and last FF features were pre-determined, everyone in between was picked randomly), it was because of her that I got the idea for the series.

One Friday morning a few months ago I was on my daily walk and was just passing Granpa and Granma's house when I decided to go in and say "hi". They were just getting ready to eat breakfast and Becca (who is usually there on Fridays) was setting the table. I was invited to stay and eat with them. We all sat down together, blessed the food and started to eat. Granma had just made some fabulous raspberry freezer jam and there was a plate of toast on the table all ready for the delicious jam to be spread on. I ate some toast and near the end of the meal saw that there was one slice left that nobody was taking. I really wanted it, the jam was sooooo good! When I picked it up Becca said as serious as can be, "I was going to eat that piece." I looked at her plate where there was almost a full slice of toast just sitting there. "Becca you still have a piece on your plate." I was genuinely confused. Her face broke out in the biggest smile, "I'm just being like Granpa, that's what he always says!" She got me hook, line, and sinker. I laughed so hard which pleased her very much. That was exactly the kind of trick that Granpa pulls on all of us.

When Becca was a toddler she didn't like me at all. When I came over to her house she'd run down the hall to her bedroom and shut the door. Every few minutes she'd open the door and peek out to see if I was still there. Once in a while Granma and I would arrange to meet at a designated spot and we'd walk together. The minute Becca saw that I was walking towards them she'd sink back into the recesses of the stroller as if to say, "if I can't see you, you can't see me." I'm not sure when things changed but I'm glad that they did. Just a few weeks ago I had a voicemail on my phone from Becca saying, "Auntie Lesley I love you."

She is a smart little girl and so funny. Once at a church activity (we live in the same ward) where Mike was all dressed up and playing a part in a murder/mystery, Becca looked up at me and said, "your man is silly." Last summer at our ward campout she kept our campfire group in stitches with all of the funny things she said.

Once while looking at my family picture she pointed at 18 month old Caitlin and said, "that's me."

"No Becca, that's Caitlin."

"No, that's me." No matter what I said she wouldn't be convinced that it was a baby Caitlin and not a baby Becca (she can be very strong willed).

When Granma came into the room Becca said, "Granma, that's me." Granma knew exactly who it was but....

"Yes sweetheart that's you."

Becca turned around and gave me the most triumphant look and said, "it's me."

Rebecca truly is delightful to be around. We love her and are so grateful that we have her in our family.

Becca checking out her "makeover" at our family "girly party" last summer

Mike & Les: Together Forever part 2...

"Wake up, wake up, it's April 15th!!" That was me on the morning of my wedding, running around the house to all of the bedrooms and waking up the entire family. I couldn't believe that the day was finally here.

It was a beautiful spring morning, Mike and his Grandma Richards picked me up at my house and the three of us drove to the Salt Lake Temple together. When we arrived at the temple, Mike and I were able to spend some time together sitting in the beautiful Celestial Room before we were escorted to the small sealing room on the 2nd floor. There were only about 14 people in attendance, including Mike and I and President Boyer who sealed us.

After we were married we went outside to greet the rest of our family and friends and to take pictures. I came outside through the East gate entrance (where the brides and grooms come out now) but Mike came from the north (where everybody else comes out now). When Mike saw me he ran the length of the sidewalk to get to me, everyone thought that was so tender. After we were finished with having our pictures taken we went to the Lion House where we had our wedding breakfast (it's really a lunch) which was hosted by Mike's parents, and that evening my parents hosted our reception which was held at our church. Now you may laugh at the colors of the tuxes, but our wedding reception was very fashionable in 1977. It really was a wonderful day, although there were a few "minor" mishaps that occurred. While changing out of my wedding dress at the temple the zipper broke (maybe in the comment section my Mom will express her feelings about that), later in the day when setting up the reception at the church my brothers spilled several gallons of punch on the floor. The mishaps really didn't bother me, I was married to Mike and to me that was all that mattered.
Epilogue: It has been 32 years since our wedding day, and so much of it is just a vague memory now. As I look at the picture above I momentarily step out of my skin and become the observer so to speak. What I see is a young couple who are happy and in love. They have absolutely no idea what their future will be. They don't yet know about the challenges or the joys that having a family of their own will bring. They don't know that they will go through the trial of losing a precious daughter to death, and that that very experience will strengthen and unite them and their children in the commitment to be an eternal family more than ever before, and that their faith in the Savior and their gratitude for Him would increase so much. That very experience brought a deeper perspective to what Lesley said to Michael on their first date...."I am going to get married in the temple...."

I am one of the two people that know them the very best. I know that they love each other so much more than they did on April 15, 1977 and I'm sure back then that they could not have imagined that possible. I know that 32 years from now they will love each other even more....that too, is hard to imagine to be possible.

What's In A Name? A Prize....That's What!

When I was 10 years old there was a television show that I loved called Here Come The Brides. It was set in the 1800's and was about a community of loggers and mail order brides in Seattle. The main characters were three brothers whose names were Jason, Joshua, and Jeremy. Jeremy (my favorite on the show) was played by Bobby Sherman who became a teen idol in the 70's along with David Cassidy and Donny Osmond. I loved the name and thought that someday I might like to name a son Jeremy, which I did. So...if you chose Jeremy you were correct; but....only one person can win. I wrote everyone's names on slips of paper and then folded them up teeny, tiny and dropped them on the floor. Mike picked one up and I opened it and the winner is....




EMILY (Jeremy's wife)

*Tune in tomorrow for the final installment of the "Mike & Les" series

Coming Soon To The Computer Nearest You....Family Friday

It's coming next week, the first installment of Family Friday. I will introduce a different family member on my blog each Friday for the next 46 weeks. With the exception of the first week and the last week (family members I previously picked), all of the names for the weeks in between have been randomly selected (drawn out of a Tupperware bowl) and written in my planner, in pen on their assigned week. With the exception of baby Turney (who will be born during the series, but has a scheduled week) any new babies that we don't know about yet, or new family members due to marriages that could occur before the end of the series will be added at the end. I will try my best to give the best review possible with the knowledge that I have or "my good opinion" as Mr. Darcy would say, of each individual. I hope that the family (and non-family) will offer comments about our loved ones as well. Hope you will all enjoy! I'm going to.

There will be no interruptions in the series due to Presidential news conferences, March Madness, breaking news stories, technical difficulties, storm watch, NBA finals, World Series, Super Bowl, the US Open, the British Open, Wimbledon....you get the idea; but....

if I get a cough or a cold, I may have to throw in a rerun.