Entertaining Statements of the Day

We have been pretty tired after our quick trip up to Idaho and back this weekend. It was definately a fun and worthwhile trip, but it has taken its toll on us.

Although part of the day has been a little trying, the kids helped to lighten the load a bit by making some very funny remarks. I thought I would share them with you tonight before I go to bed, so that I would not be leaving them amoung the volumes of funny quotes that are left unrecorded - to be forgotten.

This morning it was Aliece's turn to choose a Sunday movie for the kids to see while Amber got things ready for church. She asked Aliece, what movie did she want to see. Aliece stopped and pondered for a moment, and then said in a rather casual tone, "Oh, I don't know, something amazing, I guess".

Then Johnathan was working on an art project after church. Amber was sitting on the couch reading her scriptures. Johnathan interrupted her and said, "Mom, it would be WONDERFUL if you could help me with this!" - How could a mom say no!

Finally, we were sitting at the dinner table tonight. I had planned on giving the kids a father's blessing since school starts tomorrow for Aylee. In order to help them look forward to this event, we repeatedly mentioned throughout the day that I would be giving them a blessing. In our final attempt to help them understand what we would be doing and the importance of it, I asked Johnathan across the dinner table, what he thought might go on when I gave him a blessing. Just before this conversation, Johnathan had been walking around telling Aylee that he was going to have a blessing today. Well, when I posed the question to him, his face lit up and he said in a quiet reverent, yet excited, voice, "You are going to give me the Aaronic Priesthood!" That kind of threw me off pitch a bit. I guess Amber and Johnathan have been reading the scriptures in the D&C and talking about the Priesthood. Johnathan had somehow connected the upcoming blessing with receiving the Priesthood. I was relieved that he remained excited (and was the first in line) to receive his father's blessing, even though it did not include his receiving the priesthood at this time.

Alyee and Johnathan wanted an Air-Hockey game. Of course they knew that I would not buy them one to put in the small confines of this house, so they improvised and made one out of legos. I was pretty impressed by their improvizations. It was a pretty cool setup - and they were able to play hockey to their heart's content. Please note their competitive faces. :-)
 

A Free Spirit

We all love Aliece, but we know that she is somewhat of a "free spirit". She just likes to go where she wants to, do what she wants to, without any concern for rules or laws that have been set in stone for ages by her parents.

Amber was having a pre-school meeting with other moms at our house. All of the moms had their kids playing in our back yard, so the mothers met at the picnic table in the yard to make sure the kids would be fine during their meeting. Well, their meeting started and the kids played joyously in the yard near them. I guess Aliece kept the kids well stocked with snacks...during the meeting Aliece went into the house, opened the pantry and got out peanuts, fruit snacks and in the freezer she got out popsicles. After emptying our pantry and freezer, she then proceeded to hand them out to all of the kids outside. Amber was aware of this until it was too late and only a couple of packages of fruit snacks were found in the bottom of the retail-sized box.

When the mom's were leaving, Amber was helping them gather their things and their children. After they left, Amber saw Aliece playing with a metal flag lawn decoration. She knew that it wasn't ours and was tried to figure out where she had seen that ornament before. After a few minutes of pondering, Amber realized that it was from a neighbor's house that was clear around the block on on the other side of the street. Sometime while Amber was helping the moms gather their things, Aliece had left the back yard, walked around the block, crossed the street and snatched the lawn ornament and returned.

Amber was exhausted and exasperated. She was venting to one of the neighbor ladies a few doors down about Aliece's adventures. Her fried told her that was funny, but Aliece has been "Delivering" their newspaper to them every morning. Both Amber and I are usually home in the morning getting dressed and ready for the day, but I guess Aliece makes it a daily routine to leave the house, walk a few doors down, pick up the neighbor's newspaper, ring their doorbell, and hand their paper to them. Then she returns home without us knowing any better.

The Little Snot

Johnathan is going through a stage right now that we all hope ends soon - it is the stage of "I'm the older brother and I can beat up on my little sister if I want to".

Yesterday Amber was reading Aliece a story in her bedroom in preparation for naptime. While she was reading she heard Alayna screaming like she was really mad. It didn't sound good, so Amber got up and left Aliece to go and check on Alayna. She found Johnathan grabbing Alayna by the ankles and dragging her on the kitchen floor - face down. Alayna was screaming and trying to stop with her hands as her nose kept scraping the floor. Needless to say Johnathan got a severe beating by his mother.

The beating really helped because we it was Back to School night and we had visited the classrooms for Aylee and Johnathan. Amber had to go and write some checks for the many "donations" asked for by the school, so I took the kids out on the playground. I was visiting with a member from our ward in the play area and I saw Johnathan carrying Alayna by her armpits. Alayna did not want to be relocated and was screaming in protest. I yelled at Johnathan and told her to put her down. Well, he did just as I said - he let go and Alayna and let her fall to the ground.

I think I'll go and purchase a whip.

Alayna after eating her ice cream pie on her very first birthday today! Alayna got a lot of good presents today - thought she didn't enjoy opening them as much as her brother and sisters enjoyed helping her. We had a little party tonight for here where Amber made some delicious Florentine shells for dinner and then a yummy ice cream pie. Jen, Dave, Jake A., and the Kosmickis attended. We all had a great time.
 

Busy Sunday - one more visitor to the geocaches

Today has been a very busy Sunday. I was home from 4:30pm - 7:30pm and then back after 9pm.

Jake and Shantell, and Jake Reed and his girlfriend, Paige, came over for dinner and dessert.

I had another person write today saying they visited some of the arbon caches on Saturday...

Big Onion Cache:

You did a great job on placing these caches, so many of them made it more worthwhile to make the drive through Arbon valley. I also have rounded up cattle on the Onion a few times as a teenager since I grew up to the East of Arbon in Downey. Thanks for the fun tour of Arbon. T- horse L-duck keychain.

Ripley Road:

Part of our family grew up just over the mountain and I have never really been to Arbon Valley, I knew a few people from Arbon when I did rodeo in highschool, we enjoyed the drive. Thanks.

Rocky Ridge:

Kudos to you for setting your caches in such a way that we got a wonderful tour of Arbon Valley. You did a wonderful job, Thank you.

Arbon Church:

This was a cute little church, we haven't seen one this small for a long time. Coming from Utah the churches are much bigger. Thanks for bringing us to your quaint valley

Cemetary:

We came in through Malad from Cache Valley on our way to visit family. We particularly liked the old windmills and the rustic, western look of the cemetery. Thanks for placing so many fun caches. We enjoyed the drive and exited Arbon Valley via Hawkins.

The Arbon Caches have been visited!

Just wanted to let you all know that the seven geocaches that I left in Arbon last week have all been visited by a guy that goes by ScatStomper.

By the way FTF stands for "First to Find" - it is what people put in their logs if they are the first to find a cache.

Here are the notes that he recorded on the geocaching website:

Watch for Cavities (Bull Canyon Cave)
FTF!! This was #1 of 7 for the day. Never been in this part of Arbon Valley. Took tube of toothpaste and left spool of dental floss and two packets of Wet Ones wipes. Thanks, ScatStomper

Ripley's Believe it or Not (Ripley Road)
FTF!! This was #2 of 7 for the day. TNLN. Thanks, ScatStomper

Rocky Ridge Freight Road (Rocky Ridge)
FTF!! This was #3 of 7 for the day. TNLN. Thanks, ScatStomper

You've got mail - end of the lane (I made this one a puzzle where they had to research prices of postage stamps in different years to find out the real coordinates.)
FTF!! This was #4 of 7 for the day. I liked researching the 'net for USPS first class postage stamp history. Good idea! Thanks, ScatStomper


Arbon Church
I can't claim FTF on this one. The log sheet showed that some of the Andersen clan had signed it. This was #5 of 7 for the day. Good little puzzle. I hate to see the old church house being replaced with a new one, but I guess that's progress. Thanks, ScatStomper


Resting Place - Arbon Cemetary
FTF!! This was #6 of 7 for the day. My mother had sisters buried in this cemetery. Thanks for the memories, ScatStomper

Arbon Valley Roundup - Above Frank and Loretta's old place where we used to take the cows up to the onion
FTF!! This was #7 of 7 for the day. Quite a view of the valley. The wind was stirring up a duststorm. I took nothing, and left a Sponge Bob T shirt. Thanks, ScatStomper

ScatStomper then wrote me an email:

I thought I should give you a little insight into who I am, since I logged 7 of your caches today.
When I was seven years old my folks moved to Arbon from Pocatello to my grandpa's farm. Grandpa was James R. Bailey and my mom, Merle, was his youngest daughter. She passed away in 2000. She told me about the post office being in their home. I went to school in an old school house a few miles from the farm for the 2nd and 3rd grades. My brother and I would ride together on one bicycle during the fall and spring, and on one horse during the winter.
That schoolhouse closed, so for the 4th grade I went to school in the schoolhouse by the Arbon church. My most vivid memory of the 4th grade was when a girl blew off her two fingers and thumb when she stuck a compass point down into a blasting cap. This was right in the classroom. My brother was in the seat in front of her and little brass pieces went into his back.
Today at the cemetery, I saw the grave of Elmo Jack Andersen. He was one week older than I. We played together the summer of '42 before my folks moved to Malad. I remember Willard and Mamie and Jack's sister, who we played with, but I can't remember her name
I live in Malad and my name is Darrell Christensen or ScatStomper!!!
I really enjoyed going down memory lane (gravelled roads) today. Thanks much.

Also I got another email today from a guy that saw my geocaches on the internet:

Hi there Arbonboy, are you really in Arbon? I haven't been to Arbon for years; looks like these caches will get me there. I am really looking forward to visiting all the locations. I really wanted to tell you that I appreciate the bits of history surrounding the cache location. Each of them sounds truly intriguing and will definitely warrant a visit from Explorer's 3.

This has been a lot of fun! It is neat to think that those caches have helped people relive some memories or learn more about the Valley.

Guess who's walking!

Well, it has happened, Alayna is now claiming to be the sixth bipedal hominid in our family. Yesterday she was walking to get places. Amber and I watched her for a little while last night - I think the record was 17 steps in a row before falling. It is fun to see her teetering a little here and there as she wends her way to her destinations.

On Thursday, Amber and I went on a date. We spent a couple of hours hiking in Provo Canyon and nearby to do some geocaching. Our last cache was on a small hill overlooking all of Utah Valley. We had a hard time finding a good road to get to the hill with all of the new home construction. So, we didn't get there until after the sun had went down. So, we had a fun hike in the waning ambiant light from the sun that had already disappeared behind the western hills. It was a beautiful sight atop the mountain - all the valley was lit up in street lamps and house lights. It was a fun end to our date. We came home and shared some orange julius to top it all off! 

Janae's Very First Geocache - On Wednesday, Janae and I went hiking on the mountains near Novell to do a little geocaching during my lunch hour. We did a little hill climbing and got some weeds in our socks. It was a two part cache where you had to find a small film canister with a second set of coordinates to go to. I used my experienced eyes to find the film canister. Janae then beat me in finding the second part of the cache which was this ammo can that she is holding. Our experience wasn't memorable just because we were geocaching, but because Janae nearly stepped on a Rattlesnake! She showed me the snake. It was the first rattle snake that I have seen (know Dad killed some before, but I never was close by). Anyway, I tried to take a picture of it, but it rattled fiercely at me and then slithered into a hole in the rock. 

Phase II Testing

I decided that I had better post what happened during my phase II testing with the FBI last week. Last Monday and Tuesday I was in Phoenix, Arizona for some 115 degree weather. Wow, I don't think I could ever live there. The trip to and from AZ went well. The FBI reimbursed me for the miles driven, parking fees, taxis, hotel, etc. The trip was completely free. They even gave us a $45/day spending allowance. What a fun vacation :) !

When I arrived in Phoenix, I found the other two testing candidates that were on my flight and we split a taxi . We arrived at the hotel to find that we were really going to be spoiled. It was a Hilton that must have been a luxury hotel. My room had a large bathroom with very nice towels and a very comfortable robe. When I'd step out of my room and looked down on the main floor, I felt as though I were in the Star Wars inter-Galatic congress. Do you remember that large room were the people from different planets met and voted on things? This is what this hotel felt like. It was very nice.

The testing went well. I started out with a 90 minute writing exam where we were given information and asked to write a report on it. I'm sorry I can't give any details of either part of this test.... I am forbidden by law :). I felt as if I really nailed the written portion. I actually ran out of time. I do wish I would have had 60 seconds more just to finish a couple of sentances. But overall, that went well.

The next part of the test was a 60 minute interview in front of a panel of three FBI agents. They would only ask questions. They would not clarify questions, ask more in-depth questions or even talk to you in any manner. You just spoke to a wall, essentially, for 60 minutes. There were 14 questions and they were very difficult. I did very well until the end. I kind of flubbed up a couple of questions toward the end. I should find out in a couple of days what the result is going to be for this test.

Another thing worth mentioning is that we were on a very tight schedule to return. We caught a taxi to the Airport and ran through security to catch our plane. My carry-on, however, threw some red flags and security wanted to rescan it. They did. That did not satisfy them, however. The guard called for a manager to come and go through it by hand. She came and took me and the bag to a secure area. I was thinking, I only have clothes in this bag, what could possibly set off the alarms? So as we arrived at the secure area, she asked me if there were any sharp objects in my bag. I told her my keys were in there (I suppose they could be sharp). The them felt as if she had trapped me and she told me, somewhat accusingly, that they had scanned a knife in my bag. I laughed and told her to do her best. She pulled out my suit, my underwear, and then finally my shaving bag. She opened the shaving bag and pulled out a sereded butter knife! I about died. The guys who where with me were anxiously watching from a distance and they started laughing. I still have no idea how that knife got into my bag. She called for security and they checked it out. I told them they could keep the knife if they wanted. After some deliberation they put the knife back in my bag and sent me on my way.

This was a very fun trip. I hope it is one that I will remember for a long time. And, thanks to the blog, I will have record of it forever :).

No Movie Tonight

Tonight was our 3rd Annual Block Party - arranged and coordinated by that organizer we all know and love - Amber A. Andersen. It was a fun event full of people, good food, and fun activities. It is an occasion we all look forward to. The kids enjoy having the street blocked off to thru-traffic so that they can play and ride their bikes up and down the street all night.

Amber and I had originally planned to watch a movie together following the block party. We knew it would be late, but we were planning on sleeping-in tomorrow morning anyway. Well, as we were bringing things in from the party, Amber noticed a putrid smell coming from our hallway. Upon examination, we discovered two very large spots of human feces - you got it, in laymans terms, poop...all over the hallway floor. All of our kids were playing outside.

Detective John first hauled in Aliece for questioning. She ephatically denied anything to do with the stinky area. For some reason, I chose to believe her and didn't accuse her...instead I sent her in to get changed into her pajamas and go to bed. Next was Aylee. Of course she had no clue what had happened so she was sent off to change into her nighttime clothes.

Finally, I brought in Johnathan. I showed him the incriminating evidence - sure enough, he said he was the one that had the accident - not quite making it to the bathroom. He said he didn't tell us though because he thought he had cleaned it up and went back out to play. Of course his way of cleaning it up was to use toilet paper to wipe it all over the carpet and spread it further into the hallway. He was then stripped of his clothes, cleaned off, and sent to bed in just some whitey-tighties, which upset him greatly, but I didn't care (See that article I copied about mutton busting and child abuse).

Instead of watching our movie, cuddled up together on the couch, Amber and I have been spending the past two hours borrowing gadgets from neighbors and working on getting these memorable stains out of our carpet. The word is spreading too...neighbors are knocking on the door with concoctions and advice.

Well, we almost have it out now, although Amber swears she can still smell it. Just a little while longer and we will truly deserve our sleep-in tomorrow morning.

For all our brothers and sisters out there, this will be you, sooner or later - so don't laugh too hard.

BTW: I figured I wouldn't send a picture with this log...maybe next time.

Yesterday was Johnathan's birthday. We had a great time celebrating throughout the day. We spent over three hours at Seven Peaks playing in the water and on the slides. It was a hot day, so it was perfect for a good swim. We came home and had Jen, Jake A, and Jake R share a birthday bbq for Johnathan and opened presents. Amber made this cool star wars ice cream pie for Johnathan - it features Obi-wan Kenobi fighting Anakin on hot lava! Johnathan had a great day. He is now officially Five Years Old!!!
 

Tonight we took the mutual kids to the Seven Peaks Ice Skating Arena for a Combined Young Men / Young Women Activity. I never did fall down, but did some interesting acrobats in order to stay on my feet. This is a picture of me running into the plexi-glass barrier. Ouch, I think I'm going to be sore tomorrow! 

I Am Engaged!

Well, as the family all knows by now, I am engaged! I have explained how it happened so many times that I think I will forgo telling the story again. I just want to say that we've chosen 12:30 on Sept 3 for our wedding date and time. We will be married in the IF temple. I am going to marry the most beautiful girl in the world!

We spent Saturday with the Call side of the family in Aberdeen, Idaho at the American Falls Reservoir. We had a real enjoyable time there visiting with family and playing in the water. This is a picture of me on the tube with Johnathan and Aylee. I had to convince both of them that tubing in the water would be fun. Both of them were kind of "forced" onto the tube by me as they were kicking and screaming (please refer to my earlier post regarding mutton busting and child abuse). However, when we started going, they were in love with their new water sport. Almost makes me want to go and buy a boat....um...naw, that can wait five or six more years. 

Amber and the kids on our first family Geocaching adventure. I have a friend at Novell that is letting me use his old GPS device for a while. On Friday, we were heading to Idaho, so I had Amber drive while I learned how to use the unit. We stopped just outside of Malad and found our first Geocache with the GPS unit. It was fun. Aliece is holding up the plastic purse they chose out of the cache. We left a little Novell key ring in it's place. I think I could get into this stuff!
 

Mutton Busting - Child Abuse

In today's paper a California woman wrote the following letter to the editor that I thought was profound...

Springville rodeo event smacks of child abuse

The adults at the Springville Little Buckaroos Rodeo were abusing their children.

I visit my sister in Springville every June to enjoy Art City Days. We attend and have fun at all the events. However, I was so upset and unnerved by the child abuse at the rodeo, I had to leave.

What exactly is the purpose or lesson to be learned by placing a small child (3-5 years old) on the back of a sheep to be tossed to the ground, stepped on, frightened and -- in almost every case -- ended with a crying and sobbing child? There were only two children out of dozens who seemed to enjoy the event.

Why would a loving, devoted parent do that to their young child? Why is it even allowed?

I read this article and realized that everything that has gone wrong in my life is because I was forced to do mutton busting as a child. That is not the worst of it. I remember my Dad making me hop on a two wheeled bicycle (without the training wheels) and pushing me down the gravel driveway. I would fall, get cuts, scratches, and bruises; notwithstanding my wounds, I was coerced to hop on again.

The inhumanity that is found in this world is amazing. My heart goes out to all you "mutton busters" out there who fell off.

This past weekend we spent Thursday, Friday and Saturday down in Bryce Canyon National Park. It was our first time there - what amazing sights to be seen! We camped at a campground with the Smarts and Dayleys - neighbors of ours. The kids had a great time as did we. We attempted to do some of the beautiful hikes in the canyon, but as they were all small paths over steep cliffs, we couldn't stomache the desire of our kids to run off down the trail by themselves. While we were looking at one of the amazing canyon formations, I was standing by Aliece. She started to exclaim, "Wow, beautiful mountains...." I smiled thinking that she was really learning to stop and take time to enjoy life's wonders when she, in the same breath said, "Ok, lets go!" And off she was again. All in all, it was a great trip - we enjoyed ourselves immensely. 

Geocaching Adventure

Last friday was the Bishopric night for Girl's Camp. As a tradition, our bishopric takes the day off and goes fishing before heading up to Girl's Camp. This year we went a little earlier than normal. We went up to Cleveland Reservoir and fished for a few hours. Clark Jensen the first counselor caught a nice big rainbow trout within three minutes of his casting in. However, that was the only catch of the day.

Around 1:00, we decided to take a break from the fishing. The bishop had brought his new GPS device and was going to teach us how to do "Geocaching". This was my year to drive, and since I am the only one with a pickup, Bishop decided to take advantage of the vehicle and brought some high-clearance-vehicle-required geocaching tips.

Before long we were bouncing around in the cab as we drove through muddy, rutted out roads in the national forest. The GPS systems are only accurate within 15 feet. So, you read the coordinates given on the geocaching website and go to those coordinates. Then, you start looking around for the hidden container of treasures. The hardest one we had to find was a five gallon bucket that was buried all the way into the ground and had some rocks covering it. Inside the bucket was a bunch of trinkets, pens, toys, and what-nots. We fished through there and found a letter-opener (we have been needing one in the clerks' office for a few months now). We took the letter opener and left a "For the Strength of Youth" church pamphlet in it's stead.

The rule with geocaching is you take something from the cache and you replace it with something else. There is a log book inside the cache that you sign and date. We left a message in the log saying that we were a bishopric out on our way to a girl's camp.

Geocaching is a pretty cool adventure...I bet our kids would love it. There is a website out there that lists thousands of geocaches around the world. I did a search and even found one in Arbon Valley. The cool thing about it is that the world doesn't know these things exist...you have to have one of the satellite GPS systems to find them. It is pretty cool.

So, if anyone is feeling particularly generous, I now want a GPS device. They only run from $100 - $600. So, don't forget me on my birthday!

Here she is: Elyvia Ashlee Carter. She was born last week. Ashlee is doing fine as well as the baby. Sounds like Brett has two weeks off for Paternity Leave. Lucky! 

We went to China Lily tonight for dinner - Our waiter was a Mr. Jacob Park Reed. We had a delicious dinner with superb service. At the end of our meal, Jake presented us with a plate of fortune cookies. Of all the fortunes read at the table, I thought Aliece's was the most appropriate. 

I'll teach that girl...

Summer tends to bring new opportunities, adventures, and yes, new challenges. Amber and I have noticed that our kids have been having a hard time going to sleep at night, now that it is summer. Of course, when I say kids, I mean Aylee and Aliece :-).

Well, Aylee was up until past 10:30 last night. It was a fight all night long just to keep her in bed and quiet.

Amber got the sinister notion that maybe I could wake Aylee up when I exercise in the mornings around 6am. That way she will get some exercise with me and she SHOULD be a little bit more tired in the evenings. Well, today is the day we will find that out.

I woke Aylee up at 6:30. I was going to run while she rode her bike. However, I had done some lower body weight-lifting yesterday, so I was too sore to run. So, Aylee and I went on a bike ride together. It was really fun! She and I biked about 5 miles together and talked the whole way (she talked, and I listened). It was pretty fun.

She is excited to try out the new regime, and she didn't even complain about having to get up at 6:30.

Hopefully this helps our night time routine...and hopefully she will get into the good habit of daily exercise.

Johnathan and I spent last weekend on a Father's and Son's campout up near Payson Lakes here in Utah County. Johnathan had the time of his life roaming the mountains with his friends. We spent some time hiking together, just he and I. We even did a little fishing. The campout prompted him to tell me that night as we were going to bed in our tent, "Dad, I like camping with the girls, but I sure LOVE camping just with the boys".
 

A(nother) tightwad in the family

For Family Home Evening tonight, Aylee was assigned to be in charge of the activity. A while back, all the kids got a dollar as a gift - I think it was for Valentines day. Aylee wanted the activity to take place at "All-a-Dollar" where the kids could each pick out an item to spend their money.

Aylee wanted her activity to be a secret so that the kids would be suprised. After our Family Home Evening lesson was over, Aylee announced what the activity would be. Once she had notified us all of the activity, Johnathan burst into tears. He was freaking out - saying, "I don't want to spend my dollar! I want to save it!!"

Amber and I assured Johnathan that he didn't HAVE to spend his dollar. That he could save it. However, that would mean that he wouldn't be able to buy anything at the store. He was just fine with that.

I figured that once we got to the store and he saw things that he wanted, he would relenquish tight hold of the currency. All to my suprise, however, he held firm. He followed Aylee and Aliece around the store as they each picked out the treasure that would take their savings. The boy was unphased. He was content to follow his sisters in their hunt, and needed no prize to carry home, other than his little green George Washington dollar bill.

Catching you all up!

Well I figured since I haven't blogged for a long time that I would give it a try again. As you all know I have switched from working as a paralegal at the law firm to working as a secretary and aid at a Physical Therapy place. I am loving my job. There are defiantly not as many responsibilities which is kind of nice but, I kind of miss it too. I like having something that needed to be done immediately at all times. It kept me on my toes. But, it is nice to not have as much stress and to be able to kick back and just enjoy the day at work. Although it does get boring sometimes.
School will be starting in about 2 months and I will be back in the college town of Rexburg. Possibly. You see, my boss just talked to me yesterday about a position that will be made available about the same time that I would be leaving to go back to school. The position is that of an Office Manager of Highland Physical Therapy. (the name of their business when they merge with the other office.) She said that it is something to consider. She said it would have a significant pay raise and would be full time with some over time. So I will be making my decision soon I hope.
Other than that there is not much happening. I am loving living at the collegiate. It is so fun to live right next to Joe and our friends. It is really nice to have something to do when ever I want to do something.

Firm FBI test date

I received a call yesterday from Karen Bullock from the FBI. She said that I now have a firm test date for phase II testing. It will be on July 18-19 in Phoenix, AZ. They will fly me out for the 18th where I will stay at the Hilton :). Then on the morning of the 19th I will begin my 4-5 hour testing.

The testing consists of a lengthy interview in front of a panel. Here I will be asked a series of 15 questions where I will have to answer in the following format. I have to describe the situation, how I responded, and the outcome of my decision. After the oral interview, I will be given a topic upon which to write. I will be given a scenario, graphs and charts, and a few facts to go by. Then I will have 1.5 hours to write a letter as if it were being sent to the press, FBI report for a trial, etc.

Since this test is a little more than a month away, I will spare the details for now. I have been told that I will know the results of the testing within 7 days after test completion.

Power Hungry

Ok, so we had a great time this weekend up in Idaho Falls at the family reunion. The weather was nice for camping and we had a good time socializing.

Aliece, however, again worries me. It was Saturday, around noon. We were all cleaning up our campsite, putting sleeping bags and blankets away and everything else. well, our campsite was situated on a nice green grassy area with a gravel road through it for the RVs and other cars to go and park or exit the campground.

Well, as I was rolling up one of my sleeping bags, I looked up to see a nice big blue diesel pickup truck with an RV trailer at a standstill in the middle of the road. When I looked to see what was stopping this massive pickup from leaving the campground, I was shocked to see our dear little Liecey standing in the middle of the road, right in front of the truck with her arms outstreched from her sides - I couln't tell if it was an expression of "Go ahead, just try to run me over" or "Hey, I'm in control here and I command you to stop!" Either way, I had to run and grab her and pull her away from her "traffic controller duties".

Man, she sure can make us look like irresponsibile parents sometimes. :-)

I Only Want To Be Normal

As many of you know, I grew up being a little different than the rest of the kids in school. Sure, I could hide it for the most part, but deep down inside I knew...and the people who knew me best knew...that I wasn't quite "normal." That bothered me.

Some people believe that weakness makes us stronger. Ether tells us that the Lord gives unto men weakness that they may be sufficiently humble. I began to tell myself that my 'difference' actually made me better than those who mocked or scoffed at me (not exactly heeding Ether's advice of humility, now was I :) ). But after all of these years, I decided that I just wanted to be like everyone else. I wanted to be normal.

Well, here is the big news, family. I got it removed. It is gone. No more jokes. No more teasing. Where a once proud & strong molar stood, only a crater remains. The extra blessing that made me a better chewer than most has now seen the end of its time. The extra tooth in the roof of my mouth was extracted yesterday morning at 7 am.

I'm not sure if I should say what the biggest advantage of this is - but I will. Shantell has not known about this strangely located object in my mouth. Now, as our relationship matures, I don't have to worry about her 'accidently' finding it. I guess in a month or so when the crater is completely gone I will not be afraid to take our kissing to the next level.

Naked Daddy

This morning I had just gotten done running. I was already late for work so I was trying to figure out the quickest way to get to work. I had undressed from my running clothes and went to get in the shower when I realized that Amber was nearing an end to her shower. I decided to go have breakfast while she finished and then I would hop in real quick and get ready for work.

I threw a robe on and went into the kitchen to fix me some cereal (as if one can really "fix" cereal). About that time, Aliece woke up and I had her come in the kitchen and I poured her a bowl of cereal also.

Aliece and I sat on opposite ends of the table while we were eating. I was reading the newspaper and she was watching PBS. It was not long that I was interupted by my scolding 3 year old. Aliece was pointing to me and chastizing me. I guess while I was sitting there, my robe came open a bit to reveal my bare chest. Aliece was appalled that I should not be in the kitchen in my birthday suit - even with a robe. She exclaimed, "Daddy! You're naked! You get in your room right now and get some clothes on!"

Luckily about then the shower stopped. I quickly drank the last dregs of my milk and ran into the bathroom to shower and "get some clothes on". :-)

Nice Movie Joe

Thanks to Jake for posting the movie that Joe made of branding. It was really quite fun to watch. Joe really has a talent for those kinds of things. (If anyone has ever seen Jake's "Home Teaching" movie, you would say Jake has a talent for those kinds of things also :>)

Since the file was so big, I had to remove it from the link that Jake posted yesterday. We left it on there for day so that those that wanted could download it. If you still need a copy, let us know. I am going to try to make a DVD out of it. I would love to get a collection of movies and slide shows that Jake and Joe have made and put them all on a DVD if the DVD software I have can translate those movies without any problem.

Branding was a lot of fun - as it always is. Thanks Mom and Dad for going through all the stress and prep work getting everything ready for the occasion. I know you could do the same amount of work with only two or three extra hands, but we all enjoy it.

Batting Cages

Shantell and I went with Mark and Jenny to the batting cages yesterday. They have an incredible deal that lets you hit 50 balls for a buck. The 4 of us ordered 400 balls (total) and had a great time yesterday. What I like the most about it is that it only cost me $4 for both Shantell and me. I think we're going to try to do that 1ce/week with Mark and Jenny.

It's been raining here in Provo quite a bit the last couple of days. It's hard to believe that we live in a desert after a spring like this one. I am just very happy that our branding weather was perfect. I don't think we could have chosen a better day. I also want to thank Joe for making the slide show for all of us to see. Different people here at work have watched it and they think that we had a lot more fun this weekend than they did.

I have tried to email the slideshow to a few of you, but you are unable to receive it because of attachment size limitations. You can download it from here. A word of caution, however. It is a very large file so don't attempt to download unless you have fast internet. Mom and Dad, you already have this on your computer. The link is: http://zornec.com/downloads/Branding2005.wmv

Last Saturday Amber, Jen and I took the kids on a hike up Y mountain here in Provo. It was a beautiful day. The mountain was a lush green, yet the path was dry. The kids all hiked on their own except for Alayna who rode on my back. Johnathan and Aylee raced up the hill and acted like this 50 minute uphill trip was only trivial. Even Aliece did pretty good, getting up to the bottom of the Y by herself. I wanted to go to the top of the Y so I picked up Aliece and carried her the rest of the way. Once up at the top we enjoyed a quick snack and made phone calls to grandparents to tell of our triumph. It was a fun little 2 hour excursion! 

The Scriptures - Animated!

Hello everyone. I just wanted to let you know that I've found a way to make scripture study more exciting. This new strategy does not make me sleepy, does not require a marking pencil, and is a little more enjoyable to me. I now study the scriptures through video!

As some of you know, I just purchased about 50 VHS tapes of the Book of Mormon, New Testiment, Old Testiment, etc. Now I can study the scriptures while eating, doing pushups/situps, or even when I'm too tired to read. I just leave my scripures in the pickup next to my sunday papers so that they are always ready for church. I wish I would have thought of this years ago. Plus, I think when I get married, I might even enjoy family scripture study :).

Our newest social butterfly

I just thought I ought to inform you all about the latest social develops in the Andersen household. We all know that the girls in our family love to talk and chat and visit. However, the boys, AKA John Jr. and John Sr. are mostly listeners.

Well, Johnathan broke that mold and is turning into the social sensation of the century. A few weeks ago I was watching the kids during Adee's graduation for a few hours. During that time I decided to take the kids to the McDonalds Playland for lunch and let them play for a while.

I let the kids go into the playland while I ordered the food. Once the food was ready, I had the little ones come on over to the table that I had selected. While we were diving into our cholesterol-based snacks, Johnathan suddendly pointed his finger to the top of the playland gym set and yelled, "hey you, in the striped shirt! What's your name?" Well, I nearly fell over. I am not used to Johnathan yelled to kids he doesn't even know, asking them for their name.

Of course the kid didn't know that Johnathan was talking to him, so Johnathan repeated himself two or three times in a very loud voice. Finally, when he had the kids attention, he followed up with a "My name is Johnathan".

Johnathan then snarfed down his hamburger and took off for the playland to go and meet his new friend. We were there for about an hour. All of the energetic girls were now sitting on my lap pleading for us to leave - but Johnny was up playing with the kids and did not want to come home.

The other day we went to a park and Johnathan did the same thing...except to two 11 year old girls. They tried to ignore him at first, but he would not have it. He kept loudly following them around saying, "Hey! What's your name?" Finally the girls responded with hopes that would satisfy him. But no, we went on to instruct them, "My name is John. Girls call me John and the boys call me Johnny." He then would tell them about bionicles and the other most important things of life. Amber and I got him distracted and the girls were finally left in peace.

Amber can attest, however, Johnathan's newfound social trends do not limit themselves to the playground. Johnthan constantly hounds Amber asking who can come and play, or where can he go to play with some friends. The family room computer has been a little lonely as Johnathan has been pursuing more "fleshy" companionship.

I guess this means I had better improve my own social skills now, so that I am do not become the lone social misfit in the clan.

Kindred Spirits

I just want to make it known, that I now have confirmation that Aliece came from the same mold (somehow) as her Grandma Reed. This morning she was busy playing outside, when she came running in the house for a pair of scissors. I couldn't see any reason to object, so I allowed her to take them. After a few minutes I decided I had better go check to make sure she wasn't cutting her hair again. To my relief she wasn't! Instead, she was cutting "rolley-polley's" in half!!!
How disgusting! I think that rates right up there with gopher slaying and bee slicing!!

Name being sent to FBI for phase II

Good news everyone....The update for the FBI is that SLC is sending my name to recommend me for phase II testing. This doesn't mean that headquarters will take all of their recommendations but it is a pretty good chance that I will do it sometime during the 18-22 week of July. It's nice to see the wheels of the application process moving, albiet slowly.

Joe is down here in Provo and will be here until Saturday. We played bball with the NuSkin team this morning and it was fun to play with him again. Our team won 2 of the 3 games that we played. I forget how well we play together until we whoop up on everyone.

Thanks to Dad for installing Arbon Valley's very first rest stop. As we move into the new century and the new millenium, it is good to know that Arbon Valley is moving forward with the times. Hopefully this rest stop will bring more travelers through the valley, knowing that part way through, there is a little piece of home - should they so feel inclined. 

Watch Out Aliece - Say hello to Competition

One of the good things about me watching the kids in Amber's absence last week was that I was the first person to see Alayna crawl! She only did it once, and it was not natural for her or very quick, but she did it.

Well, when Amber got home and gloated to her about Alayna's new talent. Well, there is nothing to gloat about now. Alayna is flying around the house pulling herself up on things and getting into trouble everywhere we turn. You can't put that little rascal down without her being into something within 30 seconds. Gone are the days of working on the computer and having Alayna sit quietly on the floor playing with toys - no sirree - she is trying to turn off the computer, get scapbooks and photoalbums off of shelves, etc.

Also, on a final note...she has two little teeny teeth poking in the bottom-front of her mouth.

Man, she is exploding with progress. It kind of makes me sad that she is growing up so quick.

What 'Day to day' interactions will teach you

As you all know, Shantell moved down to Provo late Saturday night. On Sunday evening, I went over to her new place to visit her. I helped her get some of her last things out of the car into her 3rd floor apartment. We were ready to get her things situated.

We started in her room. There was a bed on cinderblocks, a dresser, and a desk with a chair. It wasn't placed in a way that would take advantage of the space she has in her room. She has quite a few things (mostly clothes) so we needed to move some furniture around.

Shantell asked me to move the bed over to the wall and then the dress next to it with the desk to a new location as well. I liked how it looked. She liked it too, but wanted to see a few different arrangements as well. I must have moved the bed 3 different times (remember it's on cinderblocks so I have to rearrange those as well) before I finally said, "Shantell, I think you need to decide where you want everything before we move things around. Then when you know for sure, we can move things to their final locations." She replied with, "I need to see how it looks in those locations before I know if I like it or not."

I was patient on the outside but very impatient on the inside. But, those of you who know me well are probably well aware that I don't hide my frustrations with people very well.....I tried, but she read my face like a book. When she'd ask me to move the dresser to a place I knew she wouldn't like - I wouldn't say a word. I would just look at her with a frustrated / pleading look of "can we just decide on a spot and begin unpacking?!?" She told me that she could do it herself if I wanted to go home. I had to leave, anyway, for ward prayer.

On a side note, it looks like the furniture is arranged pretty close to how I suggested that it went in the first place. I don't dare tell her that, though..

What did I get myself into?

Well I have been working from home most of the week in Amber's absence without too many terrible incidents. However, this morning I was sitting here working on the computer and Aliece was in here playing. She was being quiet, so I didn't pay much attention to her. Soon, she was putting stickers all over her arms. I have seen her do it all the time and she has liked it. So, I didn't protest when she came over and started putting stickers randomly on my arms. Before I knew it however, I looked down and my arms are both plastered with stickers - probably 15 on each arm.

I continued to work and then started to feel some pain. Aliece took it upon herself to start removing the stickers from my hairy arms. At my first yelp, she strongly assurred me, saying in a professional tone, "I know, I know, this is going to hurt."

She refused to let me take the stickers off myself. I had to sit here while she removed every last one. I don't think I have any hair left on my arms anymore.

Thinking I had suffered enough, I went back to work. I have been keeping notes for work on a piece of scratch paper near the computer of things that I had noticed that needed to be done. I glanced at the paper and couldn't find my notes. What had been my note paper is now the repository for all the stickers that had been removed from my arm. So, now, over every word I had written, there lies an unremovable sticker with a few hairs stick out from underneath it.

Could teenagers be worse? I dare not ask...

Article of faith 1.0

I have been in the computer industry now for nearly a decade. I guess I never thought I would let it affect my family, however, it looks like the computer ways are forming into my children and their vocabulary.

For those of you familiar with computer software, versions of software normally come out with numbers. For example, PrintMaster 10 and Novell Linux Desktop 9. When computer companies make small revisions to the software, without major functional differences, they start adding decimal points to the number, such as Windows 3.1. Sometimes when they make bug fixes or very minor changes they go even further like, Novell Netware 4.1.2.

Anyway, I didn't think my kids knew about this convention, but as we sat down to read scriptures this morning, I asked Aliece which article of faith we should recite together. She emphatically stated, "Article of Faith One Point Zero".

I am raising a family of nerds...

shpreshen zee doytsh?

I've got some sad news. I just found out yesterday that I will not be going to Germany next month. They have decided to send about half of the team instead of all of us. I guess it is wise and it will save some money, but it would have been fun nevertheless. I suppose the only reason I wanted to go, anyway, is just to say that I went there. I really wasn't looking forward to the long plane ride (20 hours each way).

Shantell is Coming to Provo!

The time has finally arrived! Shantell will be arriving here in Provo on Saturday, April 30th. She is taking finals and working until Saturday afternoon. Then, around 5pm, her mom will arrive in Logan to help her pack and bring her things to Provo. She will be living in Old Mill, the place where Jenny used to live.

Some of you have asked about an update on Shantell's internship position. Well, she got the job to teach at Provo Canyon School. Before Shantell can be a real teacher (earning full salary), she must teach while attending an internship class at USU. Since it will be long distance, she will merely be emailing her professor describing how everything is going. USU, however, does not offere this class during the summer. So this means that Shan can still teach, but she'll make an intern's salary until she finishes that class which will go from August - December. Then she will be a regular teacher. If she could have taken that class this summer, she would have been a regular teacher by August. But, she is still very excited to teach her own class next week!

Easiest $650 I ever made

Well, I took my pickup to the official Geiko adjuster to find out exactly how much they would pay to repair my tailgate. The $$ they offered me ended up being right in between the two estimates that I had received. They will send me a check in the mail for $650. Now comes the difficult decision....do I fix it or do I take a bonus :).

Shantell is coming down this weekend to find a place to live. She will not be able to make it out to Arbon on the 30th for branding. She will be moving her things from Logan to Provo that day and she will also be preparing to start teaching the next (work) day, May 2nd. She actually starts teaching before her finals are over at USU. She has a final on the 4th and then she is done with classes! I will then get to see her everyday!

I should be honest about this

Well, I have let this sit for a couple of months now, but I need to get something off of my chest. Hopefully I can be straight forward about it and not beat around the bush - it hurts, but I will try to be direct.

We had a great time on our family's cruise at the end of February. However, the events of that cruise turned out to have an affect on me that I did not really want or think about at the time.

The week after our return from the cruise I left work a little early and went to the church house. It was time for a regular interview at the church. As I waited in the foyer for my interview, I pondered the ramifications of some of my actions on the cruise. I figured that I needed to bring it out in the unavoidable interview. I sat nervously, not sure of what would happen. I pulled the white piece of paper out of my wallet that I always carry to this interview and wondered what I should do.

When I was ushered in, the interview went well. However, near the end of the interview I mentioned about the cruise and about going on the beach in Costa Maya. When I mentioned the happenings there in that part of Mexico a concerned look came upon the face of my dedicated interviewer. We talked and as I brandished my white piece of paper, he explained that I would be required to wait probably one year before using it again.

He comforted me in letting me know that my efforts and honesty were appreciated, but that there is no way around this one year period. During this year, I must abstain from the actions taken on the cruise or my time would be extended.

I left there feeling quite down. Although the cruise was worth it, it will be hard not to go every eight weeks or so as I have done in the past.

So, please, don't embarrass me. It is not often we ever go as a family, so I don't know if it will come up or not, but if the family DOES decide to get together and attend a WARD-SPONSERED BLOOD DRIVE, please don't ask me until march 5th, 2006.

Cami & Jake Are Over

Hello family. The biggest news I have to report right now is that Cami and I decided not to continue with our relationship. I want to see where things go with Shantell and she wants either all of me or nothing at all. We left of good terms and left our options open for the future.

As far as Shantell goes, she will probably be moving to Provo within the month. She got a job at Provo Canyon School District as a teacher. However, she is now running into problems with USU as to whether they will accept the internship or not. I guess the USU teaching department is much more difficult to work with than BYU seemed to be with Marie or Katie. I will keep you updated on what happens there.

I guess John's kids are having a hard time keeping up with the names of the girls that I date. Aylee said that she almost called Shantell Cami the other day. Things should be much simpler now ;).

Free Ice Cream

Brett and Ashlee posted this on their blog and thought we should include it on ours:

April 19th is free cone day at numerous scoop shops. This means that anyone who walks through the doors on that day will get a free cone. I've heard the lines can be long but usually move pretty fast.
I did some quick looking and the scoop shops in Provo, Spokane, and Philly are all participating. You can check it out here: http://www.benjerry.com/

Sorry Idahoans...no Ben & Jerry's in Idaho. But you can always come to provo for it! :-)

Woops!

I was sitting here just now blow-drying my hair before I put on a helmet to ride to work. I was enjoying myself reading some blogs. I had Alayna on our bedroom floor playing next to me. While I was reading I heard Alayna start to make short gasps and sharp, staccato yells on the floor. Panicing, I jumped off of the chair to search for my baby. I had visions of her with a marble or piece of plasic sticking out of her mouth. When I saw her, a chuckle came out of my throat. Alayna had grabbed my mug of water and had dumped all 32 ounces all over herself. Her clothes were soaked and she had puddles of waters in her eyes. She was wobbling everywhere trying to figure out just what had happened.

She has such a good personality and sense of humor though. As I was drying her off she and I shared a good laugh.

Lousy Dentist, anyway...

Last week our entire family went to our brand new dentist. It was good news and bad news for us all at our visit.

I had been to the dentist last October. It was our old dentist that I had before our insurance changed in January. Anyway in October he told me that I had a cavity plus there was a crown that we had been watching that needs to be replaced because a cavity is growing underneath. With insurance, my portion of the bill was going to come to 400.00. That made my day. I didn't reschedule an appointment because I wanted to save up the money so that I could pay such a horrendous amount.

Well, our insurance changed this year and we scheduled an appoitnment with a new dentist. I went in for my checkup. I didn't tell them that I had any problems, I thought I would just let them fish around. Well, I had x-rays and everything. At the end of my appointment, the dentist declared my mouth "just fine". hmm....why did my old dentist want to "fix" two of my teeth last time? Did he want to go on a vacation?

Although in the end that was good news to me, the kids got some lousy news from the dentist. Upon examining Aliece's teeth, the dentist asked Amber if she (Aliece, not Amber) sucked her thumb. Amber said no, but that she stuffs her blanket in her mouth all the time. The dentist said that her teeth are being moved improperly because of it. If she quits now, they may correct themselves. Soooo....upon returning home, all the kids (except Alayna) retired their beloved blankets. We had a few hard days following that, but they haven't complained over the last two days.

All in all, we survived the dentist. We'll see what changes come about on our next appointment in six months.

Oh...that grandma

This morning I put Grandma Mamie's life history on my palm pilot. Throughout the day, in my spare moments, I have been reading parts of her life history. It is hilarious! I don't know if any of you have read it yet, but it is so fun to read - I mean, it is probably the funnest Auto-biography that I have read (granted, I am only on page 12) - and I have ready my fair share of auto-biographies.

There are so many things that I didn't know about grandma...That she was born outside while her mom was starting a fire - she just fell right out and her granny caught her. Also, where she got her name! That was funny - they didn't name her for weeks, and when they did, her brother came up with the name Mamie because that was the name of the girl he was dating...her mom didn't like the name but didn't know what else to call her. My goodness, this is fun reading!

Phase I....Done

Hello everyone! I thought I would write a quick blog to tell everyone that I received notification in the mail yesterday that I had passed phase I testing. They were very careful to state in the letter that "thousands of applicants are at the same stage in this process as you" and to realize that there are many stages of testing left. It is nice, however, to have cleared that hurdle. I could be tested for phase II within a couple of months or it could be up to a couple of years, depending on the critical needs of the FBI. I will keep you updated.

My house is getting pretty close to being ready to sell. I still have to paint around the trim in the extra bedroom and bathroom and paint my bedroom door and closet doors. I am hoping to have that finished by the end of the week. I will probably put the "For Sale" sign up next Monday.

I am excited to come home for conference weekend. It has been a while since I have been out there and it will be good to go home again. I am excited to see you all.

Update - by Mom

Hello family,
It's our turn to clean the whole church this week. Me and Lynn, Joe just came back from doing it. It was so nice to have Joe's help once again.
Lynn has just left for town to get a few things we need. The toilet drain has some broken flanges in it. They are plastic and just glued inside the drain. He doesn't know if he can get them out to replace them or if he will have to buy a whole new drain.
My boy's worked so hard yesterday. Joe's hand swelled up from swinging a hammer all day. His gloves he wore had a whole in them just by where the thumb and 1st finger join. The there was no cushion between his hand there and the hammer. So that is where it is swollen. It's still pretty tender today. HE is outside now burning weeds where he wants to put a garden.
I had told Lynn earlier that I wanted just a little space for a garden to grow Chard and some peas and carrots. Just a small one. We have had a hard time deciding where to put it.
We decided today and while Lynn is in town, Joe is burning the weeds off. I am so excited to have his help. He wants to plant some peas but it never seems we can get a garden in early enough to plant peas. With all Lynn has to do this year I know it couldn't happen that early. So, since JOe wants peas I know he will get it all ready. YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My only problem is he may get me too carried away and make it bigger than I want. HIs enthusiasum is pretty catchy.... BUT I MUST BE STRONG! Hee Hee.
I am going to get the church vacuum and start cleaning this dust dirty house. The furniture and everything is a mess. If anyone wants to make a comment to me and since I dont' get e mail, use the blog. Love ya all. MOM

I need my space

In our normal seating arrangment for dinner time, Aliece has the grand priviledge of sitting next to Amber. Well, lately, (or not-so-lately) Aliece has been very clingy with Amber and has been scooting right up next to her while they both eat. This invariably lends itself to red, slimy, and chunky food being transfered from Aliece's hands and face to Amber's nice white shirt.

Well, the other day, Amber had enough of it. She told Aliece, "Hey Aliece, I need some space! Scoot down to the bench a bit". She then "helped" Aliece scoot down a few feet away.

Well, two days ago, Aliece was really having a not-so-happy day. She was honery and not very obedient. As Amber related to me, Aliece did something that Amber had told her repeatedly not to do. So, Amber sent her to her room. Aliece wouldn't go, so Amber grabbed her wrist and started walking her to her room. All the way to her room, Aliece kept demanding, "Mom, let go! I need my space!"

Dumb or Just Inexperienced??

I bought a sewing maching in December and have only sewed on it a few times. I have been sewing on denim so it's heavy sewing but my maching is new and strong right?? Well. . . now there's a ticking noise in the bobbin area. I've taken it apart as much as I've dared and tried to clean it out and see if I could see any problems but couldn't see anything out of the ordinary (that I would notice). So today, I finally took it into the shop to see if they had any advice before I shipped it off to Florida to be fixed. They were very nice and said they would take a quick look at it to see if they could tell what was wrong. They sewed on it for a second, then took the needle out and compared it to a new needle and it was easy to see that it was worn down pretty good :) They put a new needle in for me and the noise was gone! It's amazing! They didn't charge me a thing but I'm sure they had a good laugh after I left. They did ask if I wanted to buy some needles, and how could I say no! I bought a few and went on my way!

I'm excited to start sewing again and to be sure it fixed my problem but I'm pretty sure it did.

Thanks for the pics mom! Wow. . .they look like they've already done a lot! Way to go Joe and Dad! I'm excited to see it!

Love you all!
Jen

It is sad to see change sometimes

Amber and I stayed in Spokane after the cruise until Sunday morning. We headed back on Sunday. We stopped for Gas in Pocatello and drove by Lou Avenue. I parked the van and walked around the brick and cement remains of what once was Grandma and Grandpa's house. Since they had removed all the wood portions of the house, only the chimney was left standing - almost as if it were a tribute to the years of Grandpa's heavy use of building his warm fires. It was wierd to search for the covered sidewalks that so often we would use as we would walk up to the door to visit Grandma and Grandpa. I stood and tried to picture the green grass and the flowers in the flowerbed. Fond memories of the peppermint plant in the corner of the flowergarden just outside the door reminded me of the first time I had tried a leaf from a peppermint plant. I also noticed the faint rows of the vegetable garden harvested long ago.

As I stood there on the empty foundation of the house, I fought back a few sentimental tears. The empty basement reminded me of another foundation that I viewed on that same spot when I was only a few years old. I remembered helping the family tear down the old white house that we lived in for a time. Once we had torn down that house, I remember standing by the old foundation with curiosity and wonder at the new house that would be built for Grandma and Grandpa. Now, as I looked at this second foundation, there was less curiosity and excitement for the new, rather a lump in my throat as I remembered times gone by and days soon to be forgotten.

I turned from that spot and walked slowly back to the van. I let my mind wander and I tried to picture how Lou avenue looked some 25 years ago. I wonder if my kids will ever really know how it was to walk from Lyda's house, down the lane to the old white house. Or how it was to live in the red house next door to Grandma and Grandpa's house. They probably won't be able to look at the shopping complexes and comercial buildings and imagine acres of pasture with horses and other animals that we would see as we strolled from one relative's house to another on Lou Ave.

I guess it is progress. I should understand that word, I am in a business that promotes and thrives off of change and adapting to the latest inventions. But deep down, I am a sentimental one. It is hard to say goodbye to so many icons of bygone days and cherished memories. I am glad, however, that they are all memories that I want to hold onto rather than forget.

So, as I stop and look at the foundations, chimneys, and desolate flowergardens of years gone by, I am grateful for the good memories that I can treasure in my heart. It is time to bid farewell to Lou Avenue. Thanks for the memories and good times had along your short span of road.

Here is a pic of Cami (and me) getting a pic of ourselves. I held the camera out and took it myself :). I'll have to send a better one later. 

Souvenirs Anyone?

It has been quite a while since I've given many of you the 'dating' update. I met this girl, Cami, at a Valentines Day dance and we've been out quite a few times since then. I think you have heard about that. Well, I took her out on Saturday night and she gave me a post card from Provo that she had written on saying that she hoped I had fun and that this is a little souvenir that she picked up from a place she was visiting (aka Provo).....kind of cute, I liked it. Well, I just thought, "Oh, no! I didn't pick up anything for her in Mexico!" I about died. I told her that I had something for her in the pickup so I took her to it, opened it up and gave her some Mardi Gras beads that I had picked up or bought somewhere. She seemed pleased and I think I got off the hook. Close one, I know.

On the same topic, t omorrow is Shantell's b-day andI really wish that I had picked up something for her as well. I have no idea what I should do for her on her special day when our relationship is at the state that it's in. Any ideas? If so, please put in a comment ASAP! I might just call her up and wish her a happy bday.

I went to another tile laying class on Saturday (at Lowe's this time) and I feel like I am ready to start laying tile any time now. However, I think that I should probably paint first. If my power painter arrives by this Saturday, I might see if I can begin then. If not, maybe I'll start painting next week. Amber and Jenny said that they'd help, so I'll have to see what days/time is best for them. I will be nice to fix up the place a little. I still have to find a place for the bowflex until I sell the place. I'd like to keep it if I could; I'd even let someone use it for free while it's in their garage. Everyone would win. Let's see if there are any takers.....

I love you all.

Last night Johnathan was sleep walking. Amber and I just happened to be up and visiting in the family room. Johnathan came in, not saying and word and just sat on the couch, just like this! We tried talking to him and he wouldn't respond. He was just sound asleep. I was working on our broken VCR, so I asked Johnathan to hold it and I set it on his lap. It didn't even phase him...he was out! After Amber and I got done laughing, I picked him up and took him to bed. He didn't even wake up.  

Our family on Amber's birthday. Amber turned 29 last week. It won't be long until she hits that big 30! 

Neglect?

Well, after reading John's last two blogs, you may all be wondering what exactly Amber does around the house all day, and how these "accidents" could possibly occur with a dilligent mother in the house. I just wanted to write and defend myself. In both of them he stated that I walked in the room just in time to see.... (whatever Aliece was doing). Well, although I cannot ALWAYS be in the same room as her, I try very hard to avoid leaving her alone for any amount of time, because she can get into trouble so fast! And, I NEVER leave Alayna alone with Aliece. John misrepresented me, unintentionally I'm sure, in both of these instances. I was actually sitting right there when Aliece put the marble in Alayna's mouth, and I was in the same room, just putting rolls in the oven, when I heard a scream and figured Aliece had punctured her ear. That girl definitely keeps me on my toes.

Donations will be accepted

Well, we have decided to open up a trust fund for medical bills for our kids. After our crazy month last month with the myriad of illnesses, medicines, and doctor visits, Aliece decided yesterday to take a wire and poke it in her ear. Amber walked in right as she did it and Aliece started screaming. Amber examined the ear with her new Otoscope that Reed gave her for her birthday. It looked red and there looked like a little puncture.

Well, sure enough, Aliece woke up at 1:30am crying. I checked her temperature and she was 102. So, I gave her some tylenol and slept with her all night. She had a very restless night. When she woke up this morning I asked her if her ears hurt and she said yes. Sheis now sleeping in my arms as I write this. Amber will take her to the doctor in about a half an hour.

I think the doctor is going to be able to go to Europe on the proceeds from our visits in the last few weeks.

I have set up a bank account for any donations. If you are interested, please let me know :-)

Call Me Bond, James Bond

Though people claim they watch James Bond for the action, the wit, or the intrigue, when these men really think about why they watch those movies they realize.....it's for the women. Yes, the British have their fair share of beautiful women, but, did you know that there are even more attractive ladies right here in the USA? It's true. And the real men who will discover their discreet locations will be our brave men in the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This Bureau is full of men who are loyal, brave, and true. It's the same bureau that has invited me to proceed to take test 1 on March 15, 2005.

The application process takes approx 1 year to complete and every step of the process weeds out about 50% of the applicants; I have only passed step 1 - the initial application review. If I pass the upcoming exam, there is another application and a background check. Next, there is test 2, then a physical fitness test, and finally a polygraph test. If you pass all of those, you begin your life as a Special Agent for the FBI on probation for 1 year. If they like you, you stay.

Being single was very good for Bond. He didn't need to worry about danger to his wife and family, leaving his loved ones for extended period of time, or being in trouble with the misses when he found himself in someone else's arms at night (for investigative purposes only). Bond was a man who loved justice. I hope my experiences will be equally rewarding.

I'm Gonna Soak Up The Sun!

Hello! According to our workout site, there are only 9 days until we leave for our vacation! Yee-haw! I have only been tanning once and that was a month ago. I guess I will go tanning a couple of times before I go and if I don't look tan I will just do the spray on stuff. I am not worried about burning, I just want to look good :). It's too bad that this month has been the worst in a long time for eating junk food and not really doing much for cardio exercise. Oh, well.

I don't know how many of you know this, but I was going to buy a condo with Brett Bailey that was on a short sale. It's value is in the low 90k and we could have gotten it for 75k. We were trying to get it for around 70k but someone was willing to offer a little more than we were. 75k would have been a great deal for someone to buy and live in, but it would make it difficult to make it worth our effort to pay closing costs, time and money to fix up, and then time and money to sell. Then we'd pay taxes on any earnings. I wish we would have gotten it, but life is much simpler when you don't have to worry about things like that.

Yesterday was Valentine's Day, so I had Britton buy some flowers and deliver them to Shantell. She loved them :). She called me last night to thank me for them and then there was an email for me here at work when I arrived thanking me again. She said that they made her day. I'm glad Britton lives up there. I should have utilized his services more often.

Hello Taxman!

Hello everyone! Just writing to say that I have filed my personal and S-Corp income taxes! And since I did it electronically, I should get my refund next week. It sure is nice to have it all done. I'm also proud to have all of my receipts and records organized into a folder in case I ever get audited. This is the first year that I've done that.

Mom and Dad's computer is healthy once again. I had to reinstall the entire Windows Operating System. Since we had the hard drive partitioned to have the data on one drive and Windows on the other (I believe John did that), all of our personal information has been saved. The pictures, movies, Quicken data, Outlook Express data, etc has been saved. I believe I have it looking very much like it was before this escapade happened. I was telling Mom that since I've reinstalled Windows, we won't have any of the weird problems that Mstar caused. So, that is one benefit of all of this.

I wish that I had something adventurous to write about. I will keep you updated if something happens. I'm excited for the cruise in 13 days!

I can totally see Aliece doing this...

I saw this article at cnn.com. It is hilarious. I can totally see Aliece trying this out!

Sorry...it is copyrighted, I can only post the link:

Could this be Aliece? (CNN Article)

Will we ever feel well?

Well as most of you know, most of our little family has been sick for the past week. I am starting to feel better, though I STILL have a cough and congestion. Amber is a day or two behind me in feeling better. Aliece and Johnathan seem to be doing a little better today (and they slept through the night) but they are still sick. We are doing our best to keep Alayna and Aylee healthy. It is a nasty flu, that is for sure.

On the bright side of things, I have not weighed this little for years - I say 196 lbs today. Of course, it is probably all muscle loss from the past 10 days of non-exercise and illness, but it is fun to see that weight anyway.

Johnathan on the slopes for his first time skiing - what a champ! 

A fun day skiing

On Saturday Amber and I left Aliece and Alayna with some friends. We then took Aylee and Johnathan up to the Alta Ski Resort in Salt Lake. We had borrowed some skiis for Johnathan and I had bought some skis at the DI for 12 bucks. We just had to rent skiis for Amber and Aylee. Alta has a free bunny hill that is open all day long. They also have a bigger run that is free everyday from 3pm-4:30pm. During that time they rent their skiis out for $5.00 a person. So, we rented the skiis from there.

We had a GREAT time. The bunny hill only had a rope tow, so that was probably the hardest part on our bodies. It wore us out quickly. We skied for about an hour and a half. Aylee did great - she didn't use toe clips at all. It was Johnathan's first time skiing. Man, he was snowplowing in about 30 minutes. He is really getting it down - what a natural! It was fun to see that he was having an awesome time.

Amber did great and was able to ski with Aylee while I helped Johnathan.

By the time the resort closed in that hour and a half, we were all bushed. It took a lot to ride that rope tow.

Johnathan, Aylee and Amber all want to go again, so we are going to have to figure out another day to go.

As we were driving home from skiing, we talked about how good it felt to do that as a family. It will be a memorable experience for sure!

These Days

I will just write a quick update for everybody. In case you didn’t notice, I no longer live in Provo. Last Thursday, I moved back up to Idaho. I came up on Thursday and I stayed in Arbon with Mom and Dad. Then on Friday I came to Pocatello to pay for registration and tuiton. $2,250 later, I was all registered. That was only after waiting in lines and going from station to station. Earlier that morning I email the lawyer about the job and while I was registering, he called me and wanted to meet with me. So I went and me with him and we talked for a moment. He asked me if I was going to school and he asked what my schedule was. I told him I had MWF classes and then one class on Tuesdays. He said that it wouldn’t work because I would have to work Wednesday mornings. He said that if wasn’t for that, he would give me the job. So I told him I would see what I could do with my schedule and get back with him later. So I had to go back up to ISU and see what I could do to completely switch my schedule around. The advisor wasn’t too happy with me because most classes were full and it was the last day for registration but we found a schedule that would work. Work is going well. I started on Monday at the law firm. I will be mostly doing billing and filing which will keep me busy enough I believe. It has been going well. The 15th of ever month is when we send bills out so that is what I did today. But when I printed all of the bills out, I accidentally put the dates from Jan 15, 2004 instead of 2005 so I wasted all that paper and ink. But we got them all sent out. I went and played basketball last night with the guys that I used to play with before the mission. I got there an hour late and when I walked in, they were all excited to see me. It made me feel good. We played and then talked until about 12:30. It was a lot of fun. I found out yesterday that a guy that I went to high school with now has MS. He has had it for about 2 years now. I play basketball with his dad and his dad was telling me about it yesterday at basketball. He cant even get out of bed anymore. It is so weird to think about it. Last time I saw him, a couple of years ago, he was fine. It is crazy to think he wont live much longer. I learned a great lesson today. Don’t walk in a slick parking lot with your hands in your pockets.

The apartments that I moved into are right by the university so I can walk to my classes. That is really nice because I dont have to battle with finding a parking space. All of my classes are right by eachother so that is really nice too. It is a three bedroom apartment. The kitchen and living room are pretty big, but the bedrooms are kind of small, especially if you have to share a room. I had wanted my own room and that is what I had been looking for, but I didnt find anything that I liked with a good price. So because of necessity, I decided to move into this apartment complex. For a shared room, it costs $150/month and for your own room it is $250/month. I chose to be cheap and I got a shared room contract. Right now there are three of us that are living in this apartment. I moved in first, and then another moved in the day after and another a couple of days later. So we are all paying for a shared room contract, but because there are 3 of us in a 3 bedroom apartment, we all get our own room. Well, I had been looking to move in with a friend that just got back from his mission, but we didnt find anything that we both liked so I decided to do it alone. Well he now wants to move into the apartment with us which would mean that I would have to share a room. I tried to discourage him from doing it because I dont want to have to share a room, but last time I talked to him (yesterday) he was going to call the Collegiate Apartments to see if he could move in. So I guess we will see what happens.

Put not your faith in the arm of Missionaries

We had the missionaries over for dinner last night because Amber has been helping them teach a neighbor lady and her kids.  We were going to have dinner together and have a family home evening, but the lady canceled three minutes before she was supposed to come over.

 

We still fed the missionaries.  They needed to run to another appointment, so they asked if they could leave a spiritual thought with us.  Of course we agreed.

 

Their message was on faith.  It was an object lesson.  The elder asked me if I trusted him (he noted that trust was an essential part of faith).  Of course, I said I did.  So, he asked me to give him my hand.  I did so.  He stood an unraveled tea bag on my hand and told me he was going to light it on fire.  He told me to have faith in him because the when the flame reached my hand it wouldn't burn me. 

 

He lit the top of the tea bag on fire and our kids excitedly watched as Dad held the flaming tea bag.  The missionaries didn't look nervous, so I let it burn down, down, down.  It was near the end and man, it was getting hot!  But, I figured I would see this through.  Well, the tea bag finally finished burning and my hand was hurting!  The missionaries were saying stuff like, "wow, that has never happened before...darn it didn't work"  All the while my hand was starting to kill me.  I wanted to run over to the sink and put my hand in cold water, but I didn't want to make a scene.  The missionaries wanted to try their object lesson again, but luckily they had the tact not to ask me to do it.

 

One of them did it to themselves and it worked right...when the flame "nearly" reached their hand, the remained of the burning tea bag floated in the air until the flames went out.

 

We congratulated them and let them prepare to leave, and I subtly went to the bathroom to soak my sore hand.

 

As they left the house, the one elder turned to the other and asked if he had the props for the object lesson at their next appointment.  The elder confirmed the question and asked him to make sure there were enough matches in their bag.  Man...I hope their next object lesson goes better than this one. 

 

I wonder if an investigator could sue the church when missionaries light their hands on fire?  I guess that could be a way to baptize them...Oh...your hand is on fire, hop in the water and we'll put it out! :-)

 

Call Me Pres

I just found out that John and Amber did not know that I was called to be the Elder's Quorum President a little while ago, so I decided to make it public here on the blog. I'd like to tell you how last Sunday went.....
Sunday School was coming to a close and Priesthood was about to begin. I asked a couple of our teachers who was in charge of teaching this week and no one seemed to know. One of the teachers told me that they never had a specific schedule; Luke would call them the beginning of the week he wanted them to teach. I about died. I had about 2 minutes until Priesthood started. I got one of my counselors (the one conducting) to have us sing "I Believe in Christ" because it is such a long song. Then I had another counselor get the VCR for me and the BofM video and cue it to when Christ appears to the American people. During the song and the announcements, I had enough time to mark the lesson manual and get it ready a little. It was an ok lesson and we ended with the movie. I don't want to make this a habit :).

My Wallet is Gone!

Yesterday I logged on to my Discover card account to see the message, "Call this number immediately regarding you account [phone number]." I called the number and spoke with a nice man. He asked me if I attempted to withdraw money from my account numerous times last night around 1 - 2 am. I told him no. We deactivated my account.

I decided that I had better call Wells Fargo to see about activity on my Debit card. Sure enough, someone had went to 3 gas stations in the middle of the night and then ate at Betos for breakfast. I cancelled those accounts as well.

Being a very angry person right now, I went to the establishments where my card was used and asked to see their security cameras. The gas stations told me that their cameras aren't actually hooked up to anything. They're just used to make people think they can't steal gas. I went to Betos and asked them. They said that the security camera repairman is coming today to repair the cameras (they were broken). Oh, just my luck. I asked to see the receipt and they found it....unsigned. I am unable to track them down.

Discover Card is putting some investigators on the case. My last chance of catching them is due to the fact that they attempted to use ATM machines which usually have security cameras in them. Since the transaction didn't go through (they didn't know my PIN) Discover does not know, as of yet, which ATM's they tried to use. However, if we figure that out, we might be able to see who it is through the security cameras. The detectives won't be on the case until tomorrow. I cancelled both the Wells and Discover cards before $100 was even used. I hope that they don't decide to just close the case and pay the money they lost because it was so little. I have their number and will do my best to make sure that this care is really investigated.

I also set up fraud protection on all three credit agencies so that no one can open an account or apply for credit without me personally authorizing it.

I, of course, lost a lot of info that is useless to the thieves but very valuable to me: Drivers License, Temple Recommend, Provo Rec, Moto and Pickup insurance, receipts from EQ activity that I need reimbursement for, receipts for different presents, Student ID card, as well as many other things I can't think of right now.

I am investing in a wooden baseball bat. I'm anxious to see what the ATM cameras show.

Wedding Bells are in the Air

Well, the Reed family is one step closer to getting more grandkids in the family :-). Reed announced this past weekend that he is engaged. He is engaged to Michelle Johnson. She currently lives in Philadelphia, but her family lives in Washington - they are in Verne and Ann's ward. She is the fourth of 11 children...so maybe we can expect great things :-).

She is a nice girl. We are excited for them. They expect to get married sometime in May - probably having the wedding in Washington State.

Not a creature was stirring...except for a mouse

Hi there everyone!

Can you believe the holidays are over and we're back to the grind again? The holidays were perfect for me. I got to spend some time traveling and being with all of the people I love, had some lazy, lazy laid back days, and had some busy, busy productive days at home. It is so fun to have the kids getting a little older and really getting into the spirit of things. They are also getting to be quite fun to play games with. Our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day festivities were so enjoyable. On Christmas Eve we had a family home evening and acted out the Christmas Story, sang a bunch of carols, ate some yummy treats and set out stockings and cookies and chocolate milk for Santa, then tucked the kids into bed. John and I played some games, then got all of our things taken care of and got ourselves into bed. About 3:00 am we became aware of a very loud rucous in the bathroom. Was it the kids? No. They were asleep in their beds. Was it Santa? No. We could hear it very loudly in both bathrooms, coming from inside the walls. A few days earlier we had become suspicious of a mouse in the house because of curious black droppings we had seen in various locatations around the house. (Especially the kitchen). The tramplings within the walls heightened our suspicions, but since we had set traps out for several days, with no success, and had no confirmed sightings I continued to HOPE that maybe it was a fluke. Well, Last night John was standing in the kitchen when he heard loud stirrings from the plastic bags in the pantry. At first he thought it might be one of the kids, but upon opening the door the elusive mouse sprinted for the coat closet. Bad choice. My experienced husband squealed with glee as he ran for the traps. He baited and set the traps, and then we waited. A few minutes later we heard the trap snap closed. Excitedly we opened the door to find....an empty trap. That tricky mouse had managed to escape after it had eaten some peanut butter and set off the trap. Well now John got serious. He set the traps again, and this time shoved a blanket under the door, so there was no escaping, and then we went to bed. As John had nightmares all night long about battling the mouse, the mouse was apparently having a little battle of its own. When we checked the traps this morning, there was a mouse allright (disgusting!), but there were also 2 holes in the towel, and a huge pile of towel shavings. I am hoping and am very near to praying that that is the end of our mouse saga. John is humoring me by letting me believe that there was only one, but in the meantime continues to check the bread board for more mouse droppings. I am nominating him for the heroic husband of the year award.