No More a Teacher

Nothing gets me back to blogging like a major change in our lives. Brad is going to be leaving his teaching job at the beginning of January. He has taken a new job in Salt Lake at the Utah State Office of Education. He will be the state science assessment specialist. This decision has been a very difficult one. It is very hard for Brad to leave his class in the middle of the year. It is not a pay raise but for the first little while it is actually a decrease in pay. Brad will no longer have 3 months off in the summer or long Christmas breaks. He will have to commute to Salt Lake since we have no desire to move closer to this new job. So, why take this new job? Because this is the job that Brad wanted when he got his master's degree a few years ago. He has worked with the guy who had the job and loves being involved in making sure that testing is serving the purpose of seeing what a student knows not just what the student can guess by elimination. When Brad was deciding what to get a master's in and evaluating what he would do with a master's degree, he felt that besides the pay raise he would be most interested in this particular job at the State level. This job became available at a good time in our lives. Brad still has a lot of time left before retirement that he can devote to this job. He has completely enjoyed teaching but feels ready to move on. And mostly, after much prayer, this really was the right thing to do. Eventually the pay will not only improve, but will be better than what he would ever make as a teacher. It is just hard to imagine Brad doing anything other than teaching Physics at Pleasant Grove High School. Maybe someday I will adjust.
Since I am finally updating, I will give a run down on the rest of the family. I was called to be the Relief Society President in September. This has been a hard change for me. I loved working with the young women and I still miss that calling terribly. I do admit that I enjoy not having to plan an activity every week but I love the girls and miss being with them. Relief Society President is not a bad calling. I am loving the opportunity to get out and meet people I don't know. I have found that with this calling comes a great love for each of the sisters in our ward. And I have had some wonderfully spiritual experiences that let me know that Heavenly Father is helping me with this calling.
Laura has made many committments about college. She is going to go to Utah State University in Logan, Utah. She has already received a scholarship for half tuition which is really cool. She has two friends who will be going there also and she is already signed up for an apartment with them. It is crazy to think that she is going to be moving and living on her own. It is a good thing that I still have most of a year before this happens. I will miss having her around.
Joseph is turning 16 this next weekend. He is excited and is working on getting enough driving hours to get his license. He still has plenty of hours left to go but hopes to go to Payson a lot over Thanksgiving weekend because we have told him he can drive and that will give him hours more quickly than our little trips around town. Joseph has also been able to attend every BYU home game this year by selling programs with a school club. He has been able to go for free and has loved being where the action is.
Heather is also having a birthday next weekend and is turning 14. She just finished her second school play and is already anxious for spring and the next play. She really loves being involved in drama and doesn't mind the time committment that is involved. It is fun to see her finding something that excites her and allows her to shine.
Nathaniel is just a busy 5th grader who spent all of September and October getting to school half an hour early in order to put up the flag each day. When it finally turned colder I was able to convince him that he didn't need to do the flag every day and that other kids might like a turn also. He agreed and I am happy that he is not standing outside so long in the cold.
For an update on Kent check out his blog. His killing chickens story is absolutely gross!!!

Finally a New Post

Yes, I am finally writing something new here. I forget how easy blogging can be when I stop doing it. I just need to make myself write more often. So a quick run down of some of the things happening in our family.


Brad is happy to be going back to school. Summer was almost too busy for him but his highlight had to be building a deck on the back of our house and then finishing the backyard. It is a beautiful yard and I love being able to sit out there and read a good book.

I am busy trying to get everyone ready for school to start. I also think we have played too much this summer and now I am the one with all the little things to do. My highlight for the summer had to be helping to plan and organize the Talbert reunion that we had. It was a major success. Everyone had fun, there was space for sleeping and plenty of food. We played until we were exhausted and after the week was over I was completely worn out.

Kent is busy being a missionary and you can read about him on his blog. See sidebar for link.

Laura is looking forward to the end of August but not because of school. In April Laura was in an auto accident (someone else was driving the car and rolled it). Anyway, it took until the end of July to find out that her collar bone was broken and so she has been wearing a sling and brace on her left arm for the past 3 weeks. It does seem to be healing and she is looking forward to seeing the doctor and hopefully getting rid of the sling before September comes.

Joseph has many things that have made this summer great - some of these are having Brian spend a total of 3 and a half weeks in Utah, hiking to the Y, getting some driving time, and going to his first stake dance. However, the true highlight has to be that he is growing - he has grown two inches since April and looks forward to one day being taller than the deacons.

Heather's great accomplishment this summer was spending a week at her cousins' in Vernal. After a week with eight other girls, Heather came home and has been doing her hair every day since. I have tried to accomplish this for years and it only took them one week!

Nathaniel's summer has been busy and good and not a lot stands out for him. However, he did help plant corn in our garden and then has been so excited to watch it grow. I think waiting for the corn to be ready has been the hardest part. However, his patience is paying off and we will have corn on the cob tomorrow night and since his braces came off in May it will taste even better!

I think that is about it for now. I promise not to wait so long before I write again.

Elder Talbert

Kent is amazing. Every letter we get from him is filled with such enthusiasm for his mission. No matter what the challenge he loves what he is doing. I love how he is learning to adjust to life in a different culture. I love that he is trying new food. I love that he is learning to love people who's life is so different from his own. I love that he is willing to give up the technology that he loves in order to do what Heavenly Father wants him to do. I love that even in Jamaica he is true to who he is, whether it be budgeting, writing instructions for future missionaries, making jokes about life and bugs, still playing with his rubiks cube, or following the rules he is given. I also love having a missionary and the spirit that this brings into my house. My other children are so much more focused on preparing for their own missions and on missionary work. They are also much more interested in learning the gospel. What a great example Kent is! 

All about Me

I am writing about the different members of my family and I thought I should include myself. I love my job. It is so good to be making a difference in the lives of those who are the future of this world. I also love that I have finally gotten a routine down and am able to get the house clean on a regular basis and get the errands done that just have to be done. I love my calling with the Young Women. I am always amazed at how the Spirit guides me in this calling. The girls will plan an activity and before I know it I am getting promptings on how to make the activities not only fun but something that they can learn and grow from. I also love Facebook because I love being able to chat with my sisters and to be friends with the young women and my children and to see what they are up to and to share in the cyberworld that they live in so much of the time. What more can I say except for life is good and I am richly blessed.

The Love of My Life - Brad

Brad is the perfect match for me. I have really been enjoying my time with him lately. I think this is because we have been doing more active things instead of just sitting around the house. I have especially enjoyed playing racquetball with him. It feels great to get exercise and to have the one on one time with Brad. I am still not sure I enjoy getting up at 5:00 in the morning to play but maybe I will get used to it eventually. I also love that Brad is so capable of doing the things around the house that need to be fixed. This week he has helped with the yard and fixed Laura's car and the faucets in our tubs. He is also making plans to build a deck on the back of our house and to rebuild the fence on the south side of our yard. Along with all of this he is so hard working - he is always doing something extra at school. He is also getting ready to go to a conference in California where he will be presenting and then he will be going to Missouri to help write and evaluate questions for a company that creates materials for students and teachers. Most of all I love the extra gospel insight that he has. I have especially noticed this since Kent left for a mission. Brad's letters to Kent always contain good gospel insight for Kent. I wish I could be more like that.

A few random thoughts from Brad

So I just thought I'd toss my two cents' worth in here. We got word from Kent's mission 'mom' that he and his companion arrived in Jamaica safe and sound. They need work permits before they can start working and the government was shut down for Ash Wednesday, so their fist day was spent hanging around the mission home. I assume that he got his papers on Thursday and got to work.

Things always seem busy at our house. Just when I think that some event will happen (i.e. Kent finally leaves for his mission) and then stuff will calm down, it fails to really happen that way (Kent left, but things didn't calm down). We have begun playing racquetball twice a week, but that's just something new to fit into the schedule. Oh well, its tons of fun so I guess we'll just have to keep it up.

I've got two student teachers, I share with the other Physics teacher to give the student teacher's the best possible experience. Paradoxically, I am busier than ever. I still teach three of my sections and I have to supervise, mentor, and critique theses two really good students.

Wendy talked about the things that make her happy. I try hard to keep the house put together and the electricity working and the plumbing to not leak etc, etc. I love projects. When I don't have one I generally invent one. Sometimes to invent a project I take stuff apart that I probably shouldn't. Wendy just rolls her eyes and walks away. It's best that way.

I know what makes me happy - Life. I just enjoy stuff and people. Some things make me complain, I'm even happy when I complain about them. But generally, I just enjoy the ride. I like to follow roads just to see where they lead.

Well, I'm just rambling without purpose so I'll wrap up. I've got a great family.

Things That Make Me Happy!

I just thought I would list some things that make me happy and bring peace into my life.
Brad - he is such a hard worker and he always does my dishes.
Clean Bedrooms - we have just rearranged many of the bedrooms in our house and all the children have their own rooms. They are doing such a wonderful job of keeping them clean. If only it would last!
Racquetball - our family has started playing this on a semi-regular basis and I really love this sport. I especially enjoy the one on one time playing with Brad or with one of the kids.
Work - I love my job! Junior High kids can sure be a challenge but they have so much potential. Hopefully I am making a difference in their lives as they are in mine.
Missionary Work - I love having a son on a mission. It brings such a peace into our home and it is so great for him. I love how he has grown in the gospel. I have also been studying from the Preach My Gospel manual and wow, it is great! I don't know why I haven't done this before. It is so full of just the right messages for me and adds so much to my scripture study.
Prayer - He is there and He answers prayers. Can anything be more peaceful?!

A Blog for Elder Talbert

I only have time for a quick note but Kent went into the MTC today and you can check out the blog I created for his mission at the link on the sidebar of this blog. As he emails us, I will include those emails on his blog. Just know that we are busy but oh so grateful for a son who sets the example for his other siblings and friends and who follows the Savior.

Time Goes By Too Fast

It is hard to believe that it has been almost a month since I wrote on this blog. I have so much to say I don't know where to begin, so I will just have to jump in and see how it goes.
Christmas Vacation: Christmas was absolutely wonderful. We spent a lot of the time just hanging out with our family and enjoying each other. It was so great to see Joseph enjoying himself - he was so sick last year and this year he had so much energy and is feeling so great. Between this and the fact that Kent will be gone next Christmas, I just wanted to savor every moment and make it last forever.
Josh: In January, our nephew, Josh Talbert moved in with us. It has been good to have him with us. All the kids have enjoyed having him around. He was able to get a job quickly and will be busy working full time. Josh will only be living with us for a short time while he saves up money to get himself into an apartment. For this I am grateful, because while I am happy to help Josh out, I am looking forward to separating Joseph and Nathaniel into separate bedrooms and dejunking the mess that they currently have.
Kent: Kent will be leaving for the MTC and Jamaica in just about two weeks and it seems like time is just flying. We have finished most of the shopping and he will be speaking this Sunday. He is so excited to be 0n his way. One of the highlights of getting ready for a mission is when they go through the temple. Kent took out his endowments about a week ago and it was so wonderful. It is probably the very best thing I have ever watched one of my children do - it was just so perfect and is truly the real step to being grown up.
New Job: My new job is wonderful. The flex program is a program where students receive a progress report every day and during a 30 minute time set aside for this program, students with an F or an I report to their teachers and try to get caught up. If they have passing grades then they get to go to other activities, including a movie, video, computer, or board games, scrapbooking, sports in the gym, etc. I am so excited about this program. There are so many students that need to feel the success that comes from passing their classes and if they use this time it can accomplish this. I spent my first week of work going to other schools that have this program already in place and observing. I was especially impressed with the increase in students passing their classes. It has had a real impact and I know from subbing in the junior high that this is exactly what Orem Jr. needs. My job includes running reports and creating progress reports for each student every day. These reports are small, you can fit 10 on a page, and I have to cut them so that each of the 839 students receive a report every day. The students then use these as their tickets to activities or remediation. I am loving being out of the house and busy. So far the kids have adjusted really well. Nathaniel is able to go to and from school with Austen and his mom and that is a big relief to not have to worry about him. All in all things with the new job couldn't be better.
Joseph: Joseph just had his annual biopsy and things looked great. He is having no rejection and shouldn't have to have another biopsy until next January. Hooray!!

Christmastime is Crazy!

December is always my least favorite month because it is so crazy. Of course, I added 3 children's birthdays to the mix (Joseph and Heather's are officially in November but since they fall after Thanksgiving I consider them as part of the December craziness.) Joseph and Heather's birthday was a lot of fun due to the fact that we still had all of our Thanksgiving company around. They took their cousins and went to Nickelcade for the afternoon and then we did the cake and ice cream at grandma and grandpa's house.

Their cakes were topped with powdered sugar instead of frosting and Joseph blew as hard as he could in order to share his powdered sugar with Heather!










Laura's birthday was a lot more calm. We had a family party and she got lots of love from her friends. They decorated our sidewalk with chalk, filled her locker with confetti and stuffed animals, and decorated her room with snow (fake snow!). She knew she was loved by the end of the day.


















Laura with her new guitar.
















Other things of note:
We are excited to have our nephew Josh Talbert moving in with us in January. We plan on this being a short term move in until Josh is able to find a job and an apartment, but we are excited to have him living close to us.
I have a new job. With Kent going on a mission and the financial help we have had from Joseph reaching it's maximum, I have been looking for a job but not very hard yet. I figured I had until February before I had to get really serious. Well, I found a job I know I will love and they hired me. I will be working at Orem Junior High as their flex coordinator. This is a new position, as is the flex program that I will be organizing. The flex program is in place of their homeroom reading time and it is for those who have missing assignments and low grades to work with their teachers on improving their grades and for those who are caught up and have passing grades to be able to participate in activities such as sports or movies or learning new skills. I am excited about the job. It will start in January when school resumes so this is my Christmas vacation as well as the rest of the family's. I am sure there will be a lot of adjusting that needs to happen for our family, but it is amazing how Heavenly Father takes care of us and provides for our needs. I just feel so blessed to have this job and to have it be something that I will enjoy, to have it before I need it, and to have a job that has the same schedule as the rest of the family.

Brad played Santa Claus for his parents' Ward Christmas Party.

Thanksgiving fun!

First let me update on Joseph. He endured the shingles and was thrilled to have his prayers answered and to feel better by Thanksgiving and by the day after he felt really really good and since that was his birthday, his life wasn't so bad as he had believed. From a mother's point of view, the shingles were horrible, even the pain medicine only took the edge off but the pain was still there.
Now, on to a fabulous Thanksgiving weekend!! We had a total of 34 people eating dinner at mom and dad Talbert's house. This was our trial run for our family reunion that we will be having this summer. Those who were present were Richard and Susan and family, Deborah (Jeff was in France) and family, including Deborah's sister Mary and her daughter Rebekah, Jim and Debbie and Josh, Jake and Sara, Charlie, Kevin, as well as our family and mom and dad. For sleeping we split between our house, Aaron and Diane's, and mom and dad's. This worked out very well. We also were able to have enough space for eating and for playing games. On Thursday and Friday, we set up 5 card tables and had 20 people playing the same game. It was wild. Brad had to set up a spreadsheet to help keep score and after every 4 rounds we rotated tables with the goal being to try to get to the top table by having the best score. Mostly this holiday was about laughter and friendship. It was amazing to have that many people together and there was no arguing, complaining, or any other difficulty. The Talbert family is truly an amazing family and I am so blessed to have become a part of this family.
Along with lots of family and food, on Friday we had a baby shower at my house for Lenay. Her and JC were not able to join us for Thanksgiving because she had family visiting but we were excited to have a shower for her since her family was around as well as so many Talbert's.

Lenay opening her gifts, Kelsey is on the side.



Susan, Bobbye, Diane, and Sara enjoying the shower.


Lenay again but check out the diaper cake that I made. I forgot to take a better picture than this but it turned out really cute (if I don't say so myself!).

So, Laura needs to do homework so the rest of the fun will be in the next post!

Joseph is Miserable

It always seems that Joseph has more up and downs than most. The good news is that he is done taking the steroids and is going through his last round of withdrawals. By Thanksgiving he should not feel the effects of the steroids at all. The bad news is that Joseph has shingles. These are horrible and he is in so much pain. His shingles are on his leg from his knee to his lower back and it makes moving extremely painful so he is spending all his time lying on the couch or in bed. We are hoping and praying that he will feel better by Thanksgiving and that he will be able to enjoy the holiday and his birthday and most of all his favorite cousin who will be visiting from Ohio.
Other than helping Joseph to endure the pain I am busier than ever with projects. We had Young Women in Excellence and it was a wonderful evening. Next it is on to Thanksgiving, 3 birthdays, a baby shower and Christmas. I have been working on Christmas projects and am almost done with those and I even have some of the shopping done for Christmas. If only I knew what to do for Joseph and Heather for their birthdays. Hopefully I will get some inspiration soon.

Jamaica!!

Kent received his mission call yesterday and he is going to the Jamaica Kingston Mission. He will be speaking English and is quite relieved over this. He took 4 years of Spanish and didn't enjoy it at all. Kent will be going into the MTC on his birthday which is so cool! This is something he has planned and hoped for all along - to go on a mission as close to his 19th birthday as possible. It is amazing how just receiving the call has brought such a wonderful spirit into our home. I can hardly wait to see how that spirit grows while he is on a mission (not to mention how fun it will be to watch him grow as well.) I have been researching to find out more about his mission and I found out that it includes Jamaica, Nassau, Bahamas and Freeport, Grand Bahama, Grand Cayman, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and the Turks and Caicos Islands (at the lower end of the Bahama chain but a separate country). It is going to be an amazing experience for him.

Great News!

This has been a great week for our family. It started by Kent having his mission papers sent off to Salt Lake. Now we are just waiting for his call which should come either this week or next. Joseph had his biopsy on Tuesday and yesterday we got the results which were "perfect" (this is the exact word they used). He is having no rejection and the best part of all of this is that we are weaning him off of the steroids and in two weeks he will no longer be on those nasty things. In a month we will be able to evaluate his other medicine and take him off of several other things he has been on that have helped to combat the side effects of steroids. It is great to have everything looking so good for him. He will have one more biopsy in January and then he will have them annually. Hooray!!

Happy Halloween!

Halloween is one of those holidays that I could really do without. I especially need to do away with the candy because I can't stay away from it! This year Halloween was really easy since I only had to get a costume for Nathaniel. A couple weeks ago he wanted to be Batman so we bought some accessories to add to the Batman costume that we already had. Well, last week was our ward Halloween party and I had gone to the store before the party. When I came home Nathaniel was dressed as an old man and it was an adorable costume. I tried to convince him that he should be Batman since I had spent money on his costume but he didn't want to. He was also okay if I wanted to take back the Batman stuff and he would just be an old man for Halloween. Who could ask for anything better! I had a happy child and I didn't have to spend any money on his costume! Nathaniel is also the only one who is still allowed to go trick or treating at our house and since he doesn't really like candy he gets bored with it pretty quick. This means that before 7:30 he was done and ready to watch a movie. What a deal! Laura had to dress up also this year for a special needs mutual Halloween party that she had to attend.

Life Goes On

Life certainly seems to just keep moving along. Last week both Nathaniel and Joseph were sick with the stomach flu. Nathaniel got better quickly but Joseph has had it lingering for most of this week as well. This has been the first real illness that Joseph has had since his transplant and it has been rough for him. He has never been a good patient when he gets sick and so he drives me nuts and that doesn't help. The immune suppressing drugs don't help either because it takes so much longer for him to get back his energy.
Speaking of Joseph and Nathaniel, after a conversation I had with Susan while we were visiting Vernal, I decided to try putting Joseph and Nathaniel on a nutritional supplement to see if it would help them emotionally (they both get upset a little too easy) and if it wouldn't also help them to grow a little. After 4 days of trying this I have definitely seen a difference in Nathaniel. He is so much more enjoyable. Even last night when he had a major amount of homework for a fourth grader and he was up until 10:00 doing homework and the other things we had to get done, he was happy the whole time and he was focused and he never got overwhelmed. This is exactly the opposite of how he normally reacts. So far I haven't seen much difference in Joseph but I told him I need to give it at least a week before I decide if I will have him continue.
Joseph also had to have his biopsy delayed because he was sick. That was really frustrating since we cannot get rid of any more medication until we have a biopsy. It is scheduled for next Tuesday but he is thinking he may have a cold coming on and if so we will have to reschedule again.
I have been doing some serious crafting this past week. I am in the holiday zone for being prepared. I have been working on a project for most of the extended family as well as deciding what I want my Christmas card to look like. I am also working on a craft for our Young Women in Excellence night at the end of November. But my greatest accomplishment is that I put vinyl letters above my clock in the party room. It looks really nice. The saying I used is "There's always time for family". I finished putting it up last night and then I woke up this morning from a dream where I had gone out to the party room and all the letters had fallen off the wall. The dream was so real I had to have Brad go look to make sure it really was a dream. Of course, all was well!
Kent has to meet with the Stake President and then his mission papers will be turned in. He is hoping that the interview will be on Sunday and then he can start the countdown.

UEA Vacation

Brad and the kids have been on vacation this Thursday and Friday and it has been wonderful. Thursday our family just worked around the house and then the kids hung out with friends. It was a nice quiet day and a much needed break for our family. On Friday we went to Vernal to visit with Richard and Susan and their family. This was such a great little get away. We came back home Saturday evening but the day and a half that we spent in Vernal was perfect. Heather and Laura, of course, loved every minute of hanging out with the Rust girls. If they had their way we would never leave. Nathaniel also really enjoys his Rust cousins. Joseph sometimes gets overwhelmed by all the girls in that family but even he really enjoyed his time in Vernal. He especially loves hanging out with Richard but he is finding that Kelsey can be a lot of fun also. Brad and I always enjoy being with Richard and Susan and one of the things we really enjoyed this time was playing a game called "The Farming Game". It is a rather addictive game once you get started playing it. We are already looking forward to playing it with them again sometime.

This past Tuesday I had the opportunity to volunteer with Intermountain Donor Services (IDS). This the the regional organization for registering and promoting Organ Donation. I went to SLC to the church office building to help with a health fair. It was a lot of fun. I helped run the booth and encouraged people to sign up as an organ donor if they hadn't already. I am hoping to continue to volunteer every now and then with IDS. I have reached a point in my life where I am interested in volunteering and serving especially in areas where my life has been touched and impacted.

Kent has been working on his mission papers and is pretty much done except for a phone call to answer an insurance question and whatever interviews that need to be done. He can't officially send in his papers until the end of October but it is coming soon and he is hoping to have everything done by then. This is a very fun and exciting time for him and for our family as a whole.

Conference was Great

Conference weekend is always something I look forward to and this one was especially nice. My favorite part was that my children are finally growing up enough to truly sit and listen to conference without so much interruption or disruption. I think all of our family came away from conference feeling uplifted and inspired. I especially had a few moments when thoughts and ideas struck me. I also heard some things from Sister Dalton that will help me with my young women/relief society lesson that I am teaching this weekend. This is also my most pressing matter at the moment so I am glad I felt some inspiration there. Some of the other talks that I really enjoyed are President Monson's about dealing with change and just enjoying each day as it comes; Elder Oaks' about the importance of sacrament meeting; Elder Bednar's on prayer; President Uchtdorf's on hope; and Elder Cook's on sometimes the things that are hardest are also the best.

Another thing of note- the piano is back home and life is wonderful. It is amazing how much more interested in playing the piano my younger children are now that we have had a month long break.

No More Peaches!

Since I last wrote I think all I have done is peaches. I have dried peaches, I have bottled peaches, I have made peach pie and peach jam and frozen peaches. I have also eaten peaches and picked peaches and I even went to the cannery and helped can peaches there. Needless to say I am tired of peaches. I am currently drying my last two batches of peaches and then I will do no more until next year. I ended up with so many peaches because I thought there were not very many on my tree so when people offered me their peaches I said yes. It turned out that there were a lot more on that tree than I thought there were.
Other things of note, I have started substitute teaching again. I am trying to only sub a couple days a week. This was my first week and the first day I was so unmotivated to go and I was wishing that I hadn't taken the job but once I got there and got busy I loved it. I really enjoy working with children and I am glad to be subbing again.
Nathaniel's 10th birthday was today. We celebrated it on Tuesday since this week was way too busy. It is hard to believe that 10 years ago we were having a child with heart issues and we were not sure what to expect. It has turned out so much better than I could have imagined then. Except for the three surgeries Nathaniel has had he has never had a complication or had to go to the emergency room. What a blessing that has been.
Well, I began this on Thursday night and had to save my draft when Kent needed the computer for homework so now I will try to finish this- of course as I write this instead of arguing over who's turn it is for the computer there is now arguing over who's turn it is for the shower. Oh well, it is usually because at the end of the day everyone is just too tired to work things out.
Saturday Brad and I spent most of the day celebrating our 20th anniversary. The actual day was on Wednesday the 24th but we were so busy we hardly saw each other on that day. Saturday was really nice though. We went to the temple and then out to eat. After that we went shopping until it was time to go home and be the parents again. Later that evening after the Relief Society Meeting we watched a movie. It was an especially nice day and it isn't often that we can just relax and enjoy each other without other things to occupy our time.
Other things of note are that our piano has been in the repair shop for almost a month now and it is driving Kent and Laura nuts. We hope it will finally be fixed this week. Kent has had his wisdom teeth out and is very glad to have that miserable experience overwith. He is also having the medical part of his missionary papers done this week. I can't believe that in just a month he will be able to send in his papers and will be waiting for his call. Wow time flies. It seems that just yesterday he was a toddler getting into everything and causing chaos in my life.

Catching Up

Things of importance since I last posted to this blog are 1) girls camp, 2) new calling, 3) Brad and kids back in school, 4) Brad earning extra money, 5) going to Idaho.

1) Girl's Camp was great. This year instead of snow we had rain. It rained (poured) every day we were there but our ward had the cabin behind the pavilion which was larger than the others and we also could use the pavilion all we wanted so we were able to do all our activities without having to be cramped indoors the whole time. It was a fun and crazy week and I especially loved being at camp in August - the wild flowers were beautiful! It was also fun to be there with both of my girls.

2) About two weeks after camp I received a new calling - to be the second counselor in Young Women's. I was kind of sad to leave the camp calling as I already had some ideas of things I would do differently next year. However, I am loving my new calling. The beehive class is great. It is fun to have the same calling as Paula and to be able to compare notes with her. It is also great to continue to hang out with all the young women and the other leaders who have become good friends as well.

3) Brad and the Kids are back in school!!!!! Yea!!!! Yes, I am excited. The whole family was excited as well. Brad is always ready to be back to work and has been so busy that he hasn't quite caught up with everything he is trying to get done. Kent was going nuts because BYU didn't start when the rest of the family did. He was so ready to be in school he has even admitted that if he were rich he would be a student forever. BYU is working out great for him. He loves his classes, especially Calculus and Physics and the fact that the classes are more all at the same level rather than in high school where the teachers taught at the speed of the slower students. Laura is adapting to her classes. She especially loves her health sciences class and her music theory class. Joseph was very, very excited to be back in school. More so than everyone else but that is because he missed most of last year. It has been good for him to be back with all of his friends. Heather is loving jr. high and growing up. She has adapted very well and is the queen of volunteering/trying out for things. She has tried out for the school play (she will find out on Monday if she made it) and she volunteered to play the piano for one of her choir songs. Nathaniel had a hard time adjusting to school at first but now he is on track and doing much better. In many ways it has been good for him to be the only one of our family going to his school - it has helped him become more independent and improved his confidence. He is also biking to school every day with one of his friends and that is good for him. I am loving everyone being back in school. The first week I went to Education Week at BYU and it was wonderful. Probably the best thing I got out of it was at the devotional. Elder Hales spoke and he encouraged us to be "better than your best". If you can't figure out what that means let me know and I will tell you. It has become a great motto for me, especially as a mother. After Education Week I have been cleaning closets and cupboards and the storage room. This week my major accomplishment was to rearrange the kitchen cupboards. It all started because one cupboard was always a mess and things were always falling out of it. So far, I am liking the new changes and I think it is easier for the kids to keep the dishes in the correct spot.

4) Brad has been involved in evaluating test questions for Western Governors University. This has included many evenings of online meetings. For these meetings Brad would set up in the family room with his laptop and the phone on speaker phone for 2 to 5 hours and a group of teachers would evaluate physics questions. Brad enjoyed doing the work and we had looked forward to enjoying the extra money but it turns out that the piano decided to die and had to be repaired and Kent is working on his mission papers, especially the dental part and is having his wisdom teeth out next week. That pretty much takes care of the extra money, but it is nice that we have enough money to be able to handle the extra expenses.

5) Over Labor Day weekend we went to Idaho to Blake and Paula's house. Except for our Disney World trip this was our first vacation in a year due to Joseph's health issues. It was wonderful to get away for a couple of days. It was overall more relaxing than the Disney World trip. It was also fun to have Dad, Joanne, and Amanda come up on Sunday. Amanda stayed for the entire day and we had a blast. We played karaoke and then Cranium for hours. It was one of the best times I have had in a while. On Saturday, on our way up to Shelley, we stopped in Malad for a bathroom break and the joke was we could visit my family while we were there (of course, the only family left there happen to be in cemetery). Nathaniel didn't get that we were joking and kept wanting to know when we were going to visit the dead people. On Monday, we decided to stop at the cemetery on our way home. We bought some flowers and then went to the cemetery to put flowers on the graves of my grandparents. It was really a sweet moment and something I hope we find the time to do again.

Well, I think that about catches things up for now. Maybe it won't be so long before I do the next update.