Joy In The New Year

I stole this picture from a girlfriend's blog (thanks, Trish) as it really intrigued me. I'm not really a resolution setter, more of a goal breaker within a couple of weeks. However, I really like this thought of creating JOY in our own lives.

"JOY" is our family theme during the holidays. During my mission, my mission President's wife gave a lesson about using JOY to help direct our focus. Things should be done in order:

Jesus first
then Others
finally, think of Yourself.

Trish used this phrase in a UFO (UnFinishedObjects) challenge regarding sewing/craft projects. What a great relief to get all those things that have been started, but not finished, out of the way. I was thinking about all our projects, and in a new house there are MANY, but I was also thinking of relationships. How many unfinished resentments, grudges, or appreciations do I have stored up about people that I need to get out? Just plain letting go of the negative, and sharing the positive with those who really need to hear it.
Consider this a challenge for your own UFO's.

Another New Years idea that I read about was picking a word for the year. Then tacking that word up somewhere so you'd remember to live by it and help you make a change. Some examples were: "finish", "persevere", "nurture". I think my mantra for 2010 will be "DO IT". I know it's an oldie, but it's still a goodie. There are so many times when I feel inspired to talk to someone, reach out, or want to try something new, but fear holds me back. This year I want to step out of my comfort zone and grow a bit in different areas of my life. And also, use it as a motivator to get to work and do the things on my list, not just keep adding to my list. :)

However you mark this New Year, I really hope for you peace. Whatever trials/pains, joys/happiness that comes to you, I hope you have a good foundation to get you through. Peace is such an amazing gift, and I'm grateful for the peace that I'm starting 2010 out with.

Chop Shop

I have a girlfriend who decided to add a little color in her hair. She has pink bits going through and it looks great on her. I have another friend who went in for a color and she got a shock when her hair turned out much darker than she planned. (In her words, "goth", but I think it looks good). It had me hankering for a change, but I was not as bold as my friends. Here's as far as I went ...


Just short! (Don't you love the close up on the wrinkles? Ha!) I haven't been short like this in years. I am still trying to figure out how to make it work, but I love that it takes so little time to "fix" in the morning. My hair is so thick it takes forever to dry. So far I am lovin' the change.

House Warming

We have been in our home for over a month, and I've gotten so much grief from family and friends about not posting pictures. We had a FABULOUS house warming party last week. We estimate that at least 70 people came through the house, shared treats, and then walked through the neighborhood. It was so fun to share the holidays with friends.

In order to appease the far away friends who aren't able to visit, here is a little snippet of what the house looks like.

Here is the front yard. Believe it or not, we already removed 10 trees. Crazy! Can you see the little elf on the window? Click on the picture to see it close up. Aubrey and I painted that. Then the rains came and washed half of it away. (Note to self, install rain gutters before next year.)

The house is full of stained glass windows. I can't decide if I like them or not. It's kinda cool that it's custom, but it also seems a little "grand motherly". Our hope is that we'll live here forever, so someday I'll be a grandma and then it will fit, right?!

View from front door. The banister is so much prettier with lights and Christmas garland. :)

Good thing we took pictures before we moved in. It hasn't been clean enough for pictures ever since. :) We hope to change out the lights soon, but for now it's very functional.


This is the upstairs laundry room. We almost bought this same model house back in May and decided we would move the laundry room upstairs. These kind people did it for us. It's bigger than I would have planned, but it is so nice to have extra room and extra storage.

Not the best shot of the pool, but it's still pretty. You can't see it well, but the far side has a pretty water fall coming off the rocks.

My favorite spot in the yard, the fire pit. I love how they made seats out of boulders.

Holiday Photo

Our ward did a great money maker for the Young Women's camp fund. A guy in the ward did family portraits behind the city hall. I've never seen that area, it was really pretty. Most of the money goes to the girls, so we couldn't resist helping out.

This will probably be as close as we get to sending out holiday cards this year. We definitely feel blessed that we've made it through the year with our health and family in tact. Brian's job is going well. The kids are doing good in school and activities. We are all very happy with our new ward and new home.

We hope you all have an amazing holiday season. Full of love and the spirit of giving and hope. From the words of one of my favorite people: "Life is good. It may not be easy, but it is always good."

We love you all!!! Merry Christmas!

Teacher Conference Vent Session

Today was the final of our parent/teacher conferences. We weren't much surprised with what the 2 teachers had to say about our kidlets. However, there was one part that irks me sooo much, and I can't let it go.

Aubrey is brilliant. There, I said it. If you don't believe me, just ask her. She has so much (often false) confidence in her own ability that she is almost unteachable. However, math is her strong subject. She (usually) loves it. This is why it's been such a concern that she comes home every day telling us that math is boring. This is where I just don't get public school.

The teacher tells me today that the new math book that the entire district is using is kinda lame (paraphrasing the teacher). They start at the very basic of an idea (stuff these kids learned in 2nd grade sometimes) and then go forward. Aubrey hates wasting a couple of days on stuff she already knows, and then gets so frustrated when there are kids that are asking questions ... when they should have learned the material in 2nd and 3rd grade. (yeah, she's really patient too). I ask the teacher if there is something we can do for GATE kids that are losing interest. She says "no, this is the book we have". So, my kid is literally being turned off to math because "this is the book we have". Seriously?! There's no extra work that can be given to her? No other way of teaching "outside of the box" when you see a kid is walking away? If she was a low scoring kid would that be same response?

We're at the point where we are just going to do extra math lessons outside of school. Fun stuff that challenges her and keeps her motivated. If any of you have any suggestions, please feel free to comment. While I really do like her teacher, seeing a kid turn off and allowing it to happen is intolerable. Am I wrong here?

New-ish Calling

We've been in our new ward for 3 Sundays now. I was called into the Bishop's office last weekend and given my new-ish calling. Guess what it is??? C'mon, I'll give you a hint.

You got it! Young Women's!!! I'm the Mia Maids Advisor. In all my adult years of marriage, I've been called to serve with the Mia Maids in 3 different wards. I love the YW's program. I love the opportunity to help these girls grow their testimonies, and seeing my own grow.

On the other side of the coin, I feel like I'm clearly not learning something that I should have 2 wards ago. So, is it wrong to have a heart to heart with Heavenly Father and just lay it out on the table. I wanna tell him, "Um, here I am ... again. Seriously, I don't think I'm getting it. It's just not going to happen. Whatever lesson I'm supposed to learn from this calling is going to have to be MUCH less subtle. This is a thick skull you're working with."

Whatever the reason for me being here, I'm going to relish the fun and the adventures. This ward seems to go a little more hyper on themes and matching napkins. I'll have to step it up for this. I'm so looking forward to getting to know the girls. My attitude right now is: BRING IT!

They called the entire family into the Bishop's office this last Sunday, but only to ask Brian and I to speak. I love that we get to speak on the same Sunday. Brian is a little restless without a calling. He's so used to being busy at church. He'll get his soon enough, I'm sure.

Halloween Creep Fest

It really happened ... and I was there! (dim the lights and move in close for story time)

A few weeks ago, Aubrey was having her soccer practice at a local soccer park. At the back of the park there is a little stream and a path that is rather hidden from the park. Jon likes to go explore, but can only go with a buddy. This particular day, I was his only option, so we went exploring together.

The stream is very small and the mosquitoes were buzzing around and bugging us (pun intended). There was a very strong stench coming from the tiny bit of water. I don't mean to brag, but I have what some might call a "super smeller". If you've seen Psych, you know what I'm talking about. I have a pretty good sense of what I'm smelling, and I could almost swear I was smelling a dead animal decomposing. Jon and I had our fill of exploring and we quickly returned to the fresh air by the practice field.

Fast forward about 3 weeks later. (start reading here with a spooky voice) It's Halloween morning ... around 8 am. It just so happens that Brandon is assigned to play his soccer game at the same local park. As the parents are sitting on the sidelines cheering, we are talking about all the noise that the tractor is making over by the little stream. It appears that it is clearing out the brush in the area. All of the sudden, the tractor stops and shortly there after blaring sirens of an ambulance and firetruck are getting nearer. They come right into the parking lot, along with 3 police cars. (insert suspenseful music here)

It turns out that a body was found by the tractor worker. It was a suicide that appears to have taken place a few weeks ago. The body was very badly decomposed. Could it be that the awful stench of dead animal that I smelled was in fact a poor man's body hanging in the trees not far from where we were exploring???

It is a very creepy thought and I am still a little queasy over the possibility. It makes for a great ghost story, huh?! I just wish it was something I read and not something I was that close to. ICK!

Appreciation

For reading time last night Aubrey and I were playing a question answer game created for 3rd graders. Yeah, not quite her level, but we're working her up to it. Ha, ha!!! Just kidding!

Anyway, the question was: "There's a leak in the kitchen sink. What worker should we call to fix it?"

The obvious answer: "Daddy"

It is very clear that this family relies so much on Brian and appreciates all he does for us. It's not Father's Day, but we can use any day to send out a tribute to a good dad, right?!

Happy Dance

We just got the all important phone call. We have been given the GREEN light to move into our new home on Saturday! Woosh-oo!!! That means we won't be homeless until escrow closes!!! I'm so relieved. Let the packing continue.

For those of you with kind husbands living close by, we will be moving early Saturday morning. Feel free to come over for the donuts and orange juice ... and then stick around for the no cost full body work out that comes from moving furniture and boxes. Seriously, since we weren't able to announce the move at church, I'm really worried about whether we will have any help at all. EEKS!

Catching up!

It used to be when I got super busy that my journal was the first thing neglected. Now this blog is what is ignored. So much has happened in the last month. Let me do a "not-so-quick" run through.

#1. Most important, Jonathan turned 8 and was baptized.


He was so excited to get baptized by his dad! His smile didn't leave him all day.


Brian's parents and sister came for the baptism. That was very nice to have family here. They did a great job reminding him about the importance of what he was doing. The kids loved having family visit.

Brian's sister, Heidi, is very allergic to cats. She hasn't been to San Diego in 5 years because of it. This time it worked out well. The week they were set to come visit, we put our house on the market and were having people come through to check out the house. We all agreed it might be best to have them stay in a hotel. They were great sports about it. But I still think Heidi was very relieved, and literally breathed easier because of the situation.

Another milestone for turning 8 is joining the Cub Scouts at church. Just Jon's luck, he got in just in time for the Raingutter Regata.

Neither Brian nor I actually graduated from BYU, although I did attend for 1 semester before my mission. My kids are very loyal and act as if they have it in their blood. Jon was so excited about the making of his boat and planned his design weeks before his birthday. I love that they are so into scouts. In our family it's "no wings, no wheels". In other words, they don't drive until they earn Eagle scout. We just have to get them to that point before life gets more interesting than scouts. Ha!


#2. Family Traditions. Brian grew up in St. Louis, so going to Utah was a big deal. When the boys turned 12, they got to go with their dad to General Conference at the Tabernacle. Brandon thought that was a great idea and wanted to do the same. We told him he could go anywhere, but he chose Utah. I secretly think he was hoping for snow and could maybe get a ski trip out of it. Still he really enjoyed the trip.

He did see snow at the family cabin near Fairview, Utah. Don't let the pictures fool you, it's a beautiful area, but the cabin is as run down on the inside as it is on the outside. They had a great time hiking and being out in nature, but they didn't actually stay at the cabin.

They went on to Orem, Utah and stayed with some of our favorite friends, the Chuns. We've known this family since before Brandon was born. They are as close as family to us. And they took good care of the boys while they were in Utah. Brandon came home asking how come we didn't have a baby. Thanks a lot, Andrea! :)


Brandon was really impressed with Priesthood session of conference. I think it had an impact on him, and it definitely was a special time for he and Brian to be able to play and talk all weekend.

#3. We sold our house ... again. It's been the craziest ride ever. The day before Brian took Brandon out of town a house came on the market. For some reason we felt like this one could be "it". Brian filled out all the paperwork just in case I saw the house and wanted to put on offer on it. Before he came home from Utah, the offer was accepted and we were in escrow.

Our house was quickly put on the market and by the first weekend we had 4 offers, two of which were cash offers. (Who does that???) Mind you, Brian still hadn't even seen the house we were buying yet. The tenants of our prospective home wouldn't let us in to see it because they were mad the owners were selling and didn't want to do them any favors.

With Brian's parents in town, we thought it would be so fun to show them the new place, but the tenants weren't budging. They did say we could see the backyard once they moved their stuff out. Brian loved it as much as I did. It's a 1/2 acre lot with so much room for both work and play. As we were getting ready to leave the house, the maids drove up to clean the empty home. I was able to chat with them and talked them into letting us see inside ... there are benefits to speaking Spanish. So, 3 days before all contingencies were taken off our home, Brian finally got to see the home he was working so hard to buy. I'm telling you he is a man of great faith to put so much trust in my judgment. On my mission we used to ask, "es fe o estupidez?" In this case it was all good. The inside is as nice as the outside and he was 100% on board. Unfortunately the house was taken off the listing, so I have no pictures. I'll try to get some next time we have access to the house.

We decided to accept an all cash offer which means we are on hyper speed to get out. They asked for a 7 day escrow and we talked them into a 14 day escrow with the option to rent for an extra week. That means we have to be out by Halloween. The new house is vacant so we're hoping we can rent it starting this next weekend and start moving in. We won't know until tomorrow. If they don't agree to that, we hope to be able to put our stuff in the garage and then rent a hotel, or mooch off the kindness of friends. If that doesn't work, we'll have to put everything in storage and go with that mooching option for the family.

This is a lot of work, but all still feels so calm inside. The ward is much smaller where we're moving to, but that hasn't hampered our excitement. I'll try to update again when I know something ... hopefully very soon. Today at church we were asking the Young Women what they were going to be for Halloween. I think our entire family could go as homeless people ... literally! ha, ha! It's all for our experience and learning, right?!