ABC Tag

I got this fun tag from Sherry and thought I would post it here....

A- ATTACHED OR SINGLE: Very attached to one husband and 5 sons.
B- BEST FRIEND: Paul.
C- CAKE OR PIE: Sour Cream Lemon Pie.
D- DAY OF CHOICE: I like them all, especially school days -- I know, I'm such a nerd!
E- ESSENTIAL ITEM: Running shoes and contact lenses -- so I don't run into any sign posts.
F- FAVORITE COLOR: It varies daily.
G- GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT: I'm not finished yet, so I'll get back to you on this one.
H- HOMETOWN: Rexburg, Idaho
I- INDULGENCES: Good shoes; Books, books and more books!
J- JANUARY OR JULY: January -- my birthday and snow skiing.
K- KIDS: 5
L- LIFE IS INCOMPLETE WITHOUT: My family. And the occasional bit of chocolate.
M- MARRIAGE DATE: May 17, 1985
N- NUMBER OF SIBLINGS: 5 older sisters, 2 younger sisters, 2 younger brothers. 7 sis-in laws and 10 bro. in-laws.
O- ORANGES OR APPLES: oranges and orange juice.
P- PHOBIAS OR FEARS: Heights.
Q- QUOTES: "I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it."
- William Shakespeare
"Are you telling me no?" -this one's mine.
R- REASON TO SMILE: Life is good!
S- SEASON: Summer and Winter.
T- TAG THREE FRIENDS: Deaun, Debra, Alysha.
U- UNKNOWN FACT ABOUT ME: Hey, Dad...I've become a morning person!
V- VERY FAVORITE STORE: I don't really have one. Clothing stores are good. Sierra Trading Post online gets alot of my business.
W- WORST HABIT: I kind of like to have my own way...is that a bad thing?
X- X-RAY OR ULTRASOUND: Neither would be very welcome at this point in my life.
Y- YOUR FAVORITE FOOD: This is very seasonal -- fresh fruit in summer, hot cocoa with a scoop of ice cream in the winter, salmon all year.
Z-YOUR ZODIAC SIGN: Capricorn.

2008 Summer Olympics - Rexburg

Paul went to Lincoln Elementary School's Olympic Field Day with Cameron and Jacob on May 16. Opening Ceremonies began with the Parade of Nations. Each class marched onto the field, representing a different country, complete with flags. Cameron's class was France and Jacob's was Iceland. After a picnic lunch, the athletic events began.







Jacob ran the 100 yard dash and Cameron ran the 50 yard dash. They brought home "Gold" medals (like all of the other kids).

Cameron took his turn in the dunk tank.





This was his favorite part of the day.



Shaved ice was a popular treat...



...and so was cotton candy.



Getting sprayed by the firetruck was Jacob's favorite event.

Gentlemen, start your engines!

Saturday afternoon, Paul and I went to Idaho Falls to test drive cars that don't consume the same amount of fuel in one week as the entire nation of Kiribati.



Parker was in charge of keeping Hayden, Cameron and Jacob out of trouble at home. Surprisingly, we only got one call in the 4 hours (we drove a lot of cars!) that we were gone . It was for a non-emergency type issue, so we were feeling pretty good about the whole thing. We finished shopping and headed for home. When we arrived, we were told by an anonymous source (brothers make excellent informants) that Parker had decided since Jacob was now eight, he was old enough to be introduced into the exciting world of truck driving. So they headed up the hill to the dirt road and Parker let Jacob steer the S-10 while sitting on Parker's lap. Apparently this seemed like a good idea in the mind of a sixteen year old male.



I can't say I would agree. Fortunately, no one was hurt and no vehicles were damaged.

This is what 23 years of marriage will do to a couple...

In celebration of our anniversary on May 17, here's a little quiz:



1. What is your husband's name? Paul Jay Carling

2. Who eats more? That would be Paul, but he needs more fuel.

3. Who said I love you first? Paul did. But I was a close second…kind of a Mutual Admiration Society.

4. Who is taller? Paul, he’s 5’10” and I’m 5’6”.

5. Who is smarter? Okay, it all depends upon the subject. I like to think we have a symbiotic brain trust going on…what I don’t know, he does, and vice versa. Paul’s better with mechanical/mathematical issues and I specialize in arts, literature, and of course, useless trivia.

6. Who is more sensitive? That’s a tough one. Neither one of us is really mushy. I guess it’s a good thing we have boys!

7. Who does more laundry? I win (or lose, depending upon your viewpoint); although, he does have the ability.

8. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Me. I have no idea why, that’s just how it’s always been. It doesn't make much sense, hardly any, really. It places me the farthest from the bedroom door and the kids throwing up in the night…hey, maybe there is some sort of subconscious reasoning behind it after all.

9. Who pays the bills? Me. Paul’s too busy.

10. Who cooks more? I do. Paul used to cook Sunday dinners, but then he was called to serve on the High Council, then in the Bishopric…wait a minute…he doesn’t do either of those anymore…I believe it’s time for a policy change!

11. What meals do you cook together? When we have a barbecue we cook together and when we have company.

12. Who is more stubborn? We are both fairly flexible, so I’d have to say neither. Paul is the easiest person to get along with.

13. Who is the first to admit it when they are wrong? Both of us are willing to admit our mistakes.

14. Who is more clean? I think we are on an equal footing here, although he does track mud and dirt into the house more than I do (except for this morning).

15. Who has more siblings? With 7 sisters and 2 brothers, that would be me. Paul has 2 brothers and 3 sisters.

16. Who wears the pants in the relationship? Both at times (except on Sundays, when I wear a dress). We are coequals in our relationship.

17. What do you like to do together? Anything: Skiing, riding dirt bikes, kayaking, grocery shopping (hey, you gotta take together time wherever you can), camping, hiking, watching good movies like, oh, I don’t know…Pride and Prejudice…(Paul is a good sport about watching chick flicks with me).

18. Who eats more sweets? I’m not sure, because I don’t know what kind of treats he gets during the day. I like my sweets, but I try to run them off the next day.

19. Guilty Pleasures? For me: Jane Austen novels and movies; for Paul: buying crazy motorcycle boots off E-bay ;o)

20. How did you meet? At an LDS Institute dance at Weber State (quite possibly the one and only dance that Paul went to. Do you see the hand of Providence at work here?) He was there with a guy I knew from my home ward.

21. Who asked who out first? Paul invited me to go snowmobiling on New Year‘s Day. He was impressed when I dared to go 80 miles an hour my first time out. Pretty stupid of me, but producing excellent results!

22. Who kissed who first? Paul asked me if he could kiss me on my birthday (Jan. 11). Of course, I said yes, and kissed him back!


23. Who proposed? Paul did. We were going to go skiing, but we decided to go to McDonald’s for Happy Meals, instead. Mine came with a diamond ring.

24. Best features? His eyes, smile, personality, sense of humor, shall I go on?


25. What is his best quality? Paul is a friend to everyone, especially me; respectful, hard working, honest, a good father, and he makes me laugh!

Good news, bad news...

Paul was scheduled to have his PET/CT on April 29, but the clinic called him on the morning of 24th and asked if he could come at 11:00 that day. Everything went well; he even slept through most of the process, he was that relaxed (Ativan will do that). I called and moved his follow-up appointment with the oncologist to this past Thursday (May 1)so we wouldn't have to wait the extra week for the results. When we met with Dr. Hancock, he said, "There's good news, and bad new." The good news was that the spot of cancer in Paul's right femur was shrinking. But the bad news was that a bunch of lymph and other tissues in his esophagus area were lit up. He said it didn't make any sense to him why the leg would have improved, but the other area had gotten worse...until Paul told him that he thought he had pneumonia. He asked him when the symptoms had started, which had been just before he started his course of oral chemotherapy. He had gotten progressively worse as the week went along. By the time he went in for the scan, he was feeling pretty rotten. Things made more sense now. Apparently, the infection lights up on the scan like cancer would have. The doctor is confident that that is what he was seeing. He said it was kind of a "perfect storm" scenario, with Paul's compromised immune system and picking up whatever bug it was that eventually turned into pneumonia. So, now it's "good new, good new". Well, maybe "good news, not as bad news". Paul still has to get over the pneumonia, but he was well enough to baptize Jacob today. Thanks to all who were able to be here with us for Jacob's special day. We appreciate your love and support and continued prayers for Paul and our entire family.

It must be springtime...

The snow has finally melted and it's departure marks the arrival of that harbinger of spring...the muddy armed boy. Today after school, Cameron and Jacob came in through the front door, hung up their jackets and backpacks, and went out the back door. I was working on homework, so I didn't pay much attention. I checked on them after awhile and saw them playing in the backyard. An hour later, I decided I should see what they were up to. I was greeted by the sight of two boys with mud up to their elbows and multiple splatterings covering their once-pristine, fairly new school shoes, in addition to their shirts and pants. The sound of the back door opening sent them scurrying around the side of Paul's workshop...they knew they were busted! Before letting them in the house to get cleaned up I took pictures, as I always do (for evidence, I mean, posterity). Their children will thank me later...

What I've learned so far...

Winter semester is over and I have a little more than a week before Summer semester begins. I thought it might be a good time for some self-assessment. Here's some of what I've learned:

Number One - The heroes of the Book of Mormon were ordinary people. The thing that set them apart from everyone else was their reliance on the Savior to accomplish the great things that they did.

Number Two - William Shakespeare was a literary genius with an incredible sense of humor. But, then you already knew that, right?









Number Three - There's no such thing as an original line...they're all stolen from Shakespeare. For example, when John Wayne says, "We're burning daylight" in the Cowboys,he's quoting Romeo and Juliet and the Merry Wives of Windsor.




Mr. Spock from Star Trek is not the originator of "Live Long and Prosper", he swiped it from Romeo and Juliet. Okay, so he changed it a little from the original "Live, and be prosperous", but not by much. Any parent who has told a child they couldn't go with their friends is giving a nod to Shakespeare's original "Be patient, for you shall remain with us.--"
When you say "I hope we don't get caught", you're just rephrasing the Bard's "I hope they will not come upon us now." And the ever popular "Go, girl"? Shakespeare.

Number Four - The Law of the Harvest: You reap what you sow. If you work hard, attend class and do what's required, you get good grades. It took me several decades to embrace this philosophy, but I am reaping the dividends.

Number Five - As a man (or woman) thinketh, so is he (or she). If you think you're too old to try something new, you probably are. If you think you can't learn anything new, you probably won't. If you think you can't be successful, you won't be.

A Grand day at Targhee...

Lynn, Brent and Cory came up Friday night so they could go skiing with us on Saturday. The day started off kind of snowy, windy and cold. Lynn told me he'd been skiing at Grand Targhee two times(including this time), and both times were horrible. Someone must have heard his complaint because the sun came out, the skies cleared and the wind calmed. It turned out to be a great day. Everyone had a good time and there weren't any serious injuries (how's your thumb, Lynn?).



Today I presented my final project in English. I think it went well. Everyone laughed a the right moments and clapped at the end, so I guess that means they enjoyed it. I'll have to wait awhile to find out what grade I earned. Thursday is the last day of classes for me. I have a six page paper to hand in for my Book of Mormon final. Then I'm off until April 21, when summer semester begins. I'll be taking the second half of Book of Mormon on campus and a Sociology class online.

Everyone is doing well and staying busy. Paul is feeling pretty good and working hard. He, Parker and Hayden are going to do baptisms for the dead on Friday night with the youth from our ward. I guess Cameron, Jacob and I will have a party. Speaking of parties...Paul will be turning 45 tomorrow, so feel free to call him and wish him a Happy Birthday!

It's A Girl!

...a slightly distracted, sometimes absent-minded one. Okay, I admit it...I don't know my own phone number! (In all fairness and in the interest of full disclosure, it is a new phone with a different number). Twice in the last week-- come to think of it-- twice in one day, I was called upon to share my digits with another person. On the first occasion, I confidently wrote my phone number on a work order for some copies I was having made at the University. I then proceeded on my merry way, oblivious to the fact that the number I had written down was not even remotely close to my actual number. Well, the last four numbers were correct. When I returned later in the day to pick up the copies, the girl told me they had tried to call me, but the number was wrong...oops! Then I was making a phone call for work. The girl I was talking to asked if she could get back with me. I said,"Sure", then suddenly realized I couldn't remember what my number was. I quickly asked if I could call her right back. I then looked my number up on my phone and called her again. I eventually printed it on an adhesive label and stuck it firmly to the back of my phone...problem solved!

2008 Lincoln Elementary Fairy Tale Ball



Today marked the last time I will be in charge of decorations for the 2nd grade Fairy Tale Ball! I have done them for Hayden, Cameron and now Jacob's class. It was fun, but now it's time to pass the torch to some other unsuspecting, I mean, deserving mother. Jacob went dressed as a King and did an awesome job dancing! He even waltzed with an older woman with two left feet (a.k.a. his Mom). Lots of parents came to support their children and everyone had a great time.

Thou almost makest me waver in my faith...

How is it possible for such a tiny bit of metal to hold full-sized people? Parker took us over to the Blackfoot lift today. Paul said it's about 50 years old. He may have been exaggerating slightly. But it did not inspire greater confidence in the welds that hold the thing together.



Well, at least now I've tried all of the lifts at Targhee. Just don't ask me to ride that particular one again. Not only was the lift a little dicey, but the run Parker chose was NOT GROOMED. Call me high maintenance, but I like my runs to be manicured. As you can see from the photos, we had beautiful, blue skies today. No serious falls or broken bones to report...all in all a great day on the slopes!

History repeats itself...

What is it about seven year old boys that compells them to try walking home from school instead of riding the bus? When Parker was seven, he and a friend agreed to walk home from school together. The only problem was that Parker's friend lived about a block and a half from school, whereas we live about 2 1/2 miles from school. Parker made it home alright, he was just very late and very cold. When he didn't show up on time, I called the school and was told that yes, the bus was running late. Parker walked in the door a few minutes later, so I didn't think anything of it. He then told me he had walked home! Needless to say, I called the school and had a chat with them.

Fast forward nine years...Jacob came home yesterday and told me that he, too, had decided to walk home with his friend. He lives about a mile from the school. The bus driver saw Jacob walking down 5th West and gave him a ride the last half mile to our home. Later that evening, she called to make sure I knew about what had happened. I guess there needs to be a standard "no walking home from school" speech given every year.

Paul to the Rescue

The boys didn't have school yesterday because of District teacher inservice, so we decided to go skiing. Tyler and Brandi came with us. Paul brought his snowboard and skis so he and Tyler could trade halfway through the day.



Just after lunch, Paul and I were coming down a run when we came upon a girl in obvious distress. She was about 12 years old. She was standing in the snow next to her snowboard, with her gloves on the ground, crying. Paul asked if he could help her. Between sobs, she told him that she had gotten into deep powder and gotten stuck. The group she had been with kept on going, not realizing she wasn't following. She had taken her gloves off to get her board off, but her fingers were so cold and stiff that she couldn't get them back on. She didn't know where her group was, or her parents, for that matter. She was pretty upset. Paul tried to get her gloves back on for her, but they were soaking wet. Paul took his gloves off and put them on her. He asked her if she could make it to the bottom of the hill, but she was too cold and didn't think she could. So he picked her up and skied down, carrying her in his arms. I grabbed her snowboard, his poles and mine, and followed them to the bottom. When we got there, the lift operator came over, thinking that she was injured. Paul explained to him what had happened. The guy took her into the lift shack to warm up while they found her group. Who says chivalry is dead?

Keep it Coming!

Winter is still hanging around, but we aren't complaining. This morning Paul and I went to a wedding, then raced home, changed our clothes, grabbed the boys and our gear and headed for the hills. Parker hitched a ride with friends earlier in the day. We got a good couple of hours in before Targhee closed. They got 14" of snow in the last 24 hours and almost 500" this year. We got about 4 inches here at home from this last storm. The snow was fablulous! Paul took his snowboard this time and loved it. It was his first time back on a board since last year. He's feeling pretty good. He starts round 3 of the oral chemo a week from Monday. His next PET scan will be at the end of April.

The boys are doing well in school. Parker says he's starting to think in Spanish, so I guess the immersion class is working. They are only allowed to speak in Spanish and the teacher uses no English. Hayden has found a new series of books that he enjoys reading. Jacob has been busy practicing for a play and learning to dance for the 2nd Grade Fairy Tale Ball. The kids get to choose any fairy tale character and come dressed like them. Jacob has decided to go as a troll. Is a Yoda costume close enough? I get to be in charge of decorating the gym, again. I did it when Cameron was in 2nd grade, too.
I recently started working part time as an office manager for a friend of ours who owns his own company. The best part of the job is that I can do it from home and pretty much set my own hours. I'm learning alot and enjoying the challenge. School is great. I have about 4 weeks left of the semester. I've been working on a major project for my Shakespeare class. We get to choose one of the plays and develop a film adaptation proposal, complete with budget, cast, advertising and merchandising ideas, etc...It's been alot of fun. I've made a trailer for my "movie". Maybe I'll post it later on. After Cameron watched me putting a movie together for my project, he's decided he wants to make one of his own. He has been busy getting footage ready to edit and add music to. We'll let you know when the world premier will be held.

College is easier when you actually work at it!

Well, midterms are over, and I am pleased to announce that I aced both my tests! I got the top score in both classes. It's amazing what can happen when you're going to school to learn, rather than socialize! Just after I got my midterm grades, I got an e-mail from the Registrar's Office stating that I was in academic peril. It seems that my past poor performance had come back to haunt me. Fortunately, there is this lovely program called Academic Renewal. In a nutshell, it makes it possible for you to petition to have the University ignore a semester's grades where your GPA fell below 2.0. They're still on your transcript, but it doesn't affect your cumulative GPA. I had to write a paragraph explaining why I was making the request. It was approved and now everything is okay. I thought it was funny that at the bottom of the e-mail it said that a letter would be sent to my parents. Be watching the mail for that one, Mom and Dad. I promise, I'll do better this semester!

We got more good news today. The company that makes the chemo drugs that Paul is taking has a Commitment to Care program where they provide you with the medicine for free. We went through the application process, but were denied. They said we hadn't paid enough out-of-pocket yet, but should fax them our receipts after another month. I did that today, then followed up with a phone call to make sure they had gotten the fax. They said a case worker would contact us if there was anything else they needed. About an hour later, a woman from the company called to say we had been accepted into the program for 2 years! That will save us over $19,000, our portion of the cost. We are so happy and grateful that we won't have to worry about how to pay for Paul's medicine.

Hey, Cameron! Where'd you go?

We spent the day at Grand Targhee yesterday. We had decided that it was time for Jacob to start skiing without the help of an edgie wedgie (two clamps with a piece of rubber hose in between, used to keep ski tips together). We let him make 2 runs with it on, then took it off. The first run after removal was a little rough, with 3 crashes. But then he got it figured out and did great the rest of the day. Cameron had a new experience, too. Only his wasn't quite as much fun. We were waiting to get on the lift and the chair stopped a few feet in back of us. The lift operator had us back up and have a seat on the quad chair while we waited for the lift to start again, which we did. When it started, Cameron must have stuck the tips of his skis down, because he disappeared from the chair and landed, plop! into the snow under the lift (not as bad as it sounds, he fell only a foot or two). The lift guy helped him up, had him move to the side while the next chair loaded, then stuck him on a chair by himself. He wasn't hurt, just a bit scared. He'll probably make sure he keeps his ski tips up from now on! Parker did an accidental backflip on his snowboard, too. He probably won't repeat that either. Look for ski photos later. Cameras work better with fully charged batteries, a fact I discovered yesterday after going to the trouble of hauling mine up the hill, telling the boys to wait at the top while I skied down to get into position to capture some excellent action shots and then finding out there was just enough juice in the battery to open the telephoto lens, but not close it again. No pictures. Someone should check these things out beforehand, don't you think?

Rexburg Temple Dedication

Sunday was the dedication of the Rexburg Temple. Paul, Parker, Hayden and Cameron and I went to the 9:00 session that was broadcast to our stake center. It started about 40 minutes late. President Monson, Elder Nelson and Elder Bednar were supposed to fly into the Idaho Falls airport, then drive to Rexburg. But the fog made that impossible, so they landed in Pocatello instead and had to drive from there. And President Eyring was planning to come, but he broke his ankle and had to stay home. It was a great meeting, anyway. President Monson was quite a character during the cornerstone ceremony! Paul and I were also able to attend the 4:30 p.m. session in the temple. Then on Monday morning, we went to the temple marriage of the daughter of our friends. It was neat to see alot of people we know serving as the workers in our temple!

The weather has warmed up some, enough for the roads to clear off (finally!) The boys had school every day this week! Yippee!!! We are planning on heading to Targhee tomorrow and Monday. They got 8 inches of snow yesterday.

Everyone is doing well. School is going fabulously! I have my first test in English sometime in the coming week (depending upon when the professor gets it posted to his webpage). We've finished Henry V - play and movie - and will start on Romeo and Juliet next week. My midterm test in Book of Mormon class was to write at least 5 pages about what I have learned so far in my reading. I wrote about what I have learned from the righteous women in 1 Nephi. I can't believe that the semester is almost half over! I am working on my class schedule for summer semester. I plan on taking the second half of Book of Mormon in the first block (which ends in early June)and something online so I can be at home with the boys during the summer.

Well, hope you all enjoy the weekend. I plan to!

Enough, already!

Well, we are on week three of a shortened school schedule. The first week we had Monday off for Human Rights day, followed by Tuesday for Twenty-five-Below-Zero-Day. The next Tuesday, it was Frostbite-Inducing-Windchill Day. This week, we observed Forty-Mile-An-Hour-Wind-Blowing-The-Snow-And-Drifting-Over-The-Roads-So-No-Buses-Can-Get-Through Friday. The boys are enjoying it, though. Hayden and Cameron have spent the day digging snow caves into the mountainous drifts in the backyard. I prefer to stay inside, wrapped up in a blanket. I finished reading Henry V for my Shakespeare class. Paul is working, and Parker and Jacob are "cleaning" their room. I haven't been upstairs to check, but I suspect the "cleaning" involved quite a bit of PSP-playing.

Last Saturday, Hayden went to the Klondike Derby with his scout troop. They came in first place in the sled race. Their prize was a wooden warchest filled with sugar in one form or another, which they divided among themselves, to spread the cavities and dental bills out evenly. They were so proud!

Paul started on Temodar, the oral chemo medicine, on Monday night. So far, so good. He has noticed that he feels a little more tired, but it hasn't kept him from doing anything he wants to do.

The temple dedication has been pushed back a week to accomodate President Hinckley's funeral. I feel happy that he has finished his mission here and can be with his wife again. But I will miss his goodness and optimism.

Br-r-r-r-r-r-r-r!!!!!!!

We spent Saturday up at Targhee. They got about three feet of snow last week. It snowed most of the time we were there, but we didn't mind.



Parker took me on a new(for me) run up the Dreamcatcher lift. With all the fresh, deep snow, it was quite a workout. My legs were pretty burnt by the time we got down. Parker was very patient with this old, slow skier/mom. Hayden, Cameron and Jacob are improving every time we go. Jacob gets off the lift and takes off down the hill. He could care less if anybody is with him.





After a break for lunch and hot cocoa, we hit the slopes again. We all slept well that night! Sunday we had our interviews to get our recommends for the temple dedication. We are going to the 9 a.m. session that will be broadcast on February 3 to our Stake Center. It will be our only Sunday meeting on that day. Jacob is about three months shy of eight years old, so he won't be able to go. But he is very understanding.

The boys were blessed with an extra long holiday weekend. In addition to having Monday off for Human Rights Day, they also got to stay home on Tuesday. It was 20 below zero with a windchill factor of -35! I, on the other hand, did not get the day off. BYU-I never closes. It took trying three different vehicles to find one that wanted to run and wasn't buried under three feet of snow, to get to school. I had Parker drop me off and come pick me up when I was finished. Turnabout is fair play! He also was privileged to be in charge of his younger brothers while I was gone. No E.R. visits were required, so all in all, I'd say it was a good day! School was back in session today, although it was still very cold. It's supposed to warm up for the weekend (25 degrees) so Hayden and his scout troop won't freeze to death at the Klondike Derby.

Paul went to the doctor today to look at his PET scan results and to make sure the infection in his side has cleared up. His scan looked pretty good, just a couple spots lit up. The oral chemo should take care of them. His blood counts are all within normal ranges, so the antibiotics did their job. Dr. Hancock gave Paul a prescription for some medicine that should help with the neuropathy pain in his feet.

Everybody else is doing well. Jacob is going to be in his class musical. He will play the part of the Wombat King. Parker and Hayden just got home from church ball. They won 35-33. Cameron is learning French in his Discovery class. Tyler got a haircut. The rest of the boys need one. They are getting rather shaggy, Paul included. Maybe we'll wait until it gets a little warmer. They could use the extra insulation to protect against frostbite!

"Your mom goes to college..."

Well, the anticipation is always worse than the reality. I started back to college after a twenty-three year hiatus. Thankfully, I'm not older than my professors. I am easing back into academia slowly, just two classes this semester. I'm enjoying them both. I start my day with Book of Mormon and finish with a bit of Shakespeare. I haven't been offered a senior citizen discount at the bookstore, so I guess I don't look too old. I'm looking forward to a midwinter thaw, since the cold, windy walk from the parking lot brings tears to my eyes every morning. Welcome to Rexburg!


We had a nice visit with Lynn and Carol and family last week. They came for the temple open house. Before they left for home, Lynn took Carol for a spin on Paul's snow machine.
You can tell by the grin on her face that she's hooked (ha ha ha!)


We also saw Cathy and Brian and their family when they came to the open house on Tuesday. As luck would have it, our kids were home because school had been cancelled. So Cameron and Brandon got to play together.

Paul is making good progress with his recovery and rehabilitation. He is working full time so he comes home pretty tired. But he is feeling much better than he was even a month ago. The rest of the family are well and look forward to Saturdays so we can go skiing. We're hoping for good roads and blue skies. If not, then we'll settle for halfway decent roads and anything but tornados. We may try and sneak in a few runs on Monday, too, since there's no school! If any of you would like to join us, come on up!

Happy New Year!

We thought a day at Grand Targhee would be a perfect way to start the new year. Apparently, so did half the free world! Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating, but there were alot of people. Fortunately, it's a big resort with fast lifts, so the lines weren't too long. We all had a great time. Hayden decided to ski instead of snowboard this time and had some major equipment failure...that's what happens when your boots are nearly twice as old as you are...but Mom came to the rescue with the belt off her ski pants. Problem solved! We also learned that the cat track isn't alot of fun with beginning skiers who have a hard time keeping their momentum going up the hills. Paul was pretty tired after dragging Jacob most of the way. We'll save that run for a time when Jacob has a bit more experience. The weather was perfect, blue skies and not terribly cold and best of all, no wind. Parker enjoyed it so much, he turned around and went back again yesterday with his friends. I think he's single-handedly trying to make sure we get our money's worth from our family pass! He's been seven times already.

The boys were able to drag themselves...with some assistance... out of bed and catch the bus for school this morning. Tomorrow might be a different story, since we changed the day and time for our Rexburg Temple Open House tickets to tonight at 9:30 p.m. It'll be late by the time we're finished, but it's worth the sacrifice. If any of you would like tickets, they've opened more spots for most weekdays. Go to www.lds.org/reservations for information. We hope the New Year has started well for you. If any of you are planning on attending the Open House, give us a call. We'd love to see you!