Friday, January 30, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
I am waiting for... (Dad)
I will wait for many things even though it's hard.
The second coming
Another paycheck
A time when kids are back home again
A cruise to Spain
Mom to get out of the hospital
To lose some weight
To see my Dad again
But hardest of all today? Is to wait for little baby girl Bassett to arrive to earth and get a new name.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Max's birthday party! (Dad)
Thought ya'll would like to see the party we had for Max last night. On his bday we will take him to dinner...any suggestions?
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Inauguration Day 2009 (Dad)
Hi Family,
Just a few comments on this historic day...the inaguration of a black President of the United States - the first black man in history.
- I am so happy to live in a country where this could happen...where there would be overwhelming and record-breaking support for a new President of the country. There was so much dissatisfacation with the presdiency of George W Bush, that it is so refreshing to see the country get what it wants.
- It is amazing to feel the amount of support for anyone. It gives me a sense of joy that we are more united with the rest of the country than we have ever been. I pray for his success.
- It was fun to see Harry Reid lead the country in a toast - when as an LDS High Priest, he doesn't drink. It looked like his glass was full of water.
- It was fun to see Senator Bob Bennett in charge of everything. He led the committee for the inaguration, and spoke, and was complemented publically by Pres Obama for his work.
- It was exhilarating to see Pres Obama and his wife get out of their limos during the parade and walk without fear of being shot.
I will pray for Obama to be able to make the kinds of decisions which will continue to unite and not divide the country. I will pray that when choices arise which will lead to more protection for the Constitution that he will suppot those choices...however, I have my doubts on this one. But I'll continue to pray for him.
Anyway - just some thougths on this historic day!
Loves.
Just a few comments on this historic day...the inaguration of a black President of the United States - the first black man in history.
- I am so happy to live in a country where this could happen...where there would be overwhelming and record-breaking support for a new President of the country. There was so much dissatisfacation with the presdiency of George W Bush, that it is so refreshing to see the country get what it wants.
- It is amazing to feel the amount of support for anyone. It gives me a sense of joy that we are more united with the rest of the country than we have ever been. I pray for his success.
- It was fun to see Harry Reid lead the country in a toast - when as an LDS High Priest, he doesn't drink. It looked like his glass was full of water.
- It was fun to see Senator Bob Bennett in charge of everything. He led the committee for the inaguration, and spoke, and was complemented publically by Pres Obama for his work.
- It was exhilarating to see Pres Obama and his wife get out of their limos during the parade and walk without fear of being shot.
I will pray for Obama to be able to make the kinds of decisions which will continue to unite and not divide the country. I will pray that when choices arise which will lead to more protection for the Constitution that he will suppot those choices...however, I have my doubts on this one. But I'll continue to pray for him.
Anyway - just some thougths on this historic day!
Loves.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Life is Precious (mom)
Dear Family,
I wanted to write a quick letter to those I love the most. Even though I've talked to everyone a little bit here and there, I REALLY miss everyone today (even Max and he is just at school).
Well after car fires last week, this week has been rather dull - thank goodness! I need things to slow down every now and then to rejuvenate. As far as the car is concerned, we got lots of good advice from Emery and appreciated that. However, we realize it takes a certain personality-type to meet those kind of demands and no one involved (Bret, Janey or I) possess that. Let's just say we are doing our best. I talked to the service manager yesterday and he listed off the many repairs they are making (many on Emery's suggestion list, plus others) He told me what the warranty would be and assured me they would be covered for 12 months/1,200, He told me how carefully they have looked at the car and are doing everything that has any damage. And I just had to trust him. They aren't replacing the battery or alternator like Emery suggested and when I asked him directly and he had a good answer so I just couldn't push it. It is hard to be pushy on a subject that you feel you know so little about. I let him know we are in no rush to have it done (I just talked to Janey and she likes the loaner car fine) and that we just want it done right. Then I keep praying about it and figure I am doing the best I know how to do. So we'll see.
On a more delightful note, I have been doing some shopping for our upcoming trip. At the risk of rubbing it in, can I say how excited I am for it! And I have found some KILLER DEALS shopping for clothes. Between the 60-80 percent off racks at different stores I have only spent around $100 for sparkly formal night jackets, several causal and dressy tops, sweaters and some new shoes. And, I realized why I like Sams Club so much - it is their clothes closeout tables. I got some slinky pants that are as comfy as pj's but that I can wear with a fancy top for semi-formal night. I'll try not to go on and on but I really have had a fun time shopping. Course now I have a ton of stuff to take back (you can't try anything on at Sams so I generally get several sizes and then take them all back) so it is a little more work. But it has been fun! I did a fashion show for dad last night and for Nancy this morning. Oh and don't worry, I found a shirt for dad, too (okay, yes that is one shirt, but he has plenty of clothes and he gets to just wear a suit and be done - men are so lucky to not have to get creative.)
I think you all know that Max is playing on a Jr. Jazz team. The nice guy who is coaching them is not even a dad of any of the players, but just a good guy in somebody's ward. They are having several practices a week so suddenly I am thinking how excited I am for Max to be able to drive himself places (course then we would miss out on all those fun conversations) Their first game was last Sat. against a team that had been playing together since they were fetuses, okay maybe kindergarten, and it was a hard game (14 to 63!) But our guys played hard the whole game and keep their heads up even though as a mom I just wanted to cry!! Also, Max is in the middle of trying out for Valley's basketball team and made the first cut so that is fun, too. We'll see. My big current worry is how he will get all the places he needs to go while we are on our trip, especially if he makes that team and has early morning practices.
Most of you probably remember the Carlson Family in the old 16th ward. Brother Doug Carlson passed away on Monday morning. His health started declining about 10 years ago when he had kidney failure. Then a couple weeks ago he went in for heart surgery and got an infection and died. I love their family so much. I worked with his wife in the Stake Primary Presidency back in the 80's so I got to know them well. He had such a great sense of humor. Recently he served in the temple and was one of those people who always had a fun thing to say everytime you saw him. They have kids close to you guy's ages. Dad and I went to visit them on Monday night and their bishop was there helping them with funeral plans. All four kids were with him when he died (the youngest is a senior in high school) and I guess he was lucid to the end, trying to be pleasant. They said he was in a lot of pain, however, and they kept saying how glad they were that he could be released from all the pain. Course you all know how good I am at "mourning with those that mourn." I kept my emotions pretty much in check while I was with them for our short visit, but then I sobbed all the way home. Tonight is the viewing and tomorrow the funeral. I think Rosey is coming for the viewing since their daughter Jen was such a good friend.
We got to tend baby Bret last weekend and that was fun. Dad started ward conferences on Sunday and those are going well. Nick, Stef and Bret came for Sunday dinner and games and we used the fancy china. Max is finishing up another term at school which meant lots of reading to catch up on AR points! I'm trying to pull together our Eat-A-Book schedule for another year as the self-apponted secretary.
That's our life in a nutshell. I love you all so much.
Love, Mom
PS Rosey, it seems to me that you have something BIG to report on!!
PS
I wanted to write a quick letter to those I love the most. Even though I've talked to everyone a little bit here and there, I REALLY miss everyone today (even Max and he is just at school).
Well after car fires last week, this week has been rather dull - thank goodness! I need things to slow down every now and then to rejuvenate. As far as the car is concerned, we got lots of good advice from Emery and appreciated that. However, we realize it takes a certain personality-type to meet those kind of demands and no one involved (Bret, Janey or I) possess that. Let's just say we are doing our best. I talked to the service manager yesterday and he listed off the many repairs they are making (many on Emery's suggestion list, plus others) He told me what the warranty would be and assured me they would be covered for 12 months/1,200, He told me how carefully they have looked at the car and are doing everything that has any damage. And I just had to trust him. They aren't replacing the battery or alternator like Emery suggested and when I asked him directly and he had a good answer so I just couldn't push it. It is hard to be pushy on a subject that you feel you know so little about. I let him know we are in no rush to have it done (I just talked to Janey and she likes the loaner car fine) and that we just want it done right. Then I keep praying about it and figure I am doing the best I know how to do. So we'll see.
On a more delightful note, I have been doing some shopping for our upcoming trip. At the risk of rubbing it in, can I say how excited I am for it! And I have found some KILLER DEALS shopping for clothes. Between the 60-80 percent off racks at different stores I have only spent around $100 for sparkly formal night jackets, several causal and dressy tops, sweaters and some new shoes. And, I realized why I like Sams Club so much - it is their clothes closeout tables. I got some slinky pants that are as comfy as pj's but that I can wear with a fancy top for semi-formal night. I'll try not to go on and on but I really have had a fun time shopping. Course now I have a ton of stuff to take back (you can't try anything on at Sams so I generally get several sizes and then take them all back) so it is a little more work. But it has been fun! I did a fashion show for dad last night and for Nancy this morning. Oh and don't worry, I found a shirt for dad, too (okay, yes that is one shirt, but he has plenty of clothes and he gets to just wear a suit and be done - men are so lucky to not have to get creative.)
I think you all know that Max is playing on a Jr. Jazz team. The nice guy who is coaching them is not even a dad of any of the players, but just a good guy in somebody's ward. They are having several practices a week so suddenly I am thinking how excited I am for Max to be able to drive himself places (course then we would miss out on all those fun conversations) Their first game was last Sat. against a team that had been playing together since they were fetuses, okay maybe kindergarten, and it was a hard game (14 to 63!) But our guys played hard the whole game and keep their heads up even though as a mom I just wanted to cry!! Also, Max is in the middle of trying out for Valley's basketball team and made the first cut so that is fun, too. We'll see. My big current worry is how he will get all the places he needs to go while we are on our trip, especially if he makes that team and has early morning practices.
Most of you probably remember the Carlson Family in the old 16th ward. Brother Doug Carlson passed away on Monday morning. His health started declining about 10 years ago when he had kidney failure. Then a couple weeks ago he went in for heart surgery and got an infection and died. I love their family so much. I worked with his wife in the Stake Primary Presidency back in the 80's so I got to know them well. He had such a great sense of humor. Recently he served in the temple and was one of those people who always had a fun thing to say everytime you saw him. They have kids close to you guy's ages. Dad and I went to visit them on Monday night and their bishop was there helping them with funeral plans. All four kids were with him when he died (the youngest is a senior in high school) and I guess he was lucid to the end, trying to be pleasant. They said he was in a lot of pain, however, and they kept saying how glad they were that he could be released from all the pain. Course you all know how good I am at "mourning with those that mourn." I kept my emotions pretty much in check while I was with them for our short visit, but then I sobbed all the way home. Tonight is the viewing and tomorrow the funeral. I think Rosey is coming for the viewing since their daughter Jen was such a good friend.
We got to tend baby Bret last weekend and that was fun. Dad started ward conferences on Sunday and those are going well. Nick, Stef and Bret came for Sunday dinner and games and we used the fancy china. Max is finishing up another term at school which meant lots of reading to catch up on AR points! I'm trying to pull together our Eat-A-Book schedule for another year as the self-apponted secretary.
That's our life in a nutshell. I love you all so much.
Love, Mom
PS Rosey, it seems to me that you have something BIG to report on!!
PS
Friday, January 9, 2009
Thank you (Stef)
Thank you everyone (especially M&D) for a great Christmas. It was so fun to be around family again! Everyone was so nice and thoughtful with their gifts and also with the sleeping arrangements. It probably would have been nice for B&K to have the whole basement to their little family, but we appreciated the comfy matt from M&D and B&K sharing!!! We had so much fun visiting (even though I like to go to bed early :).
We also really really appreciate everyone helping with Bret. After being in St. George with no family around, we REALLY appreciated the help even more! We are glad that he is finally comfortable around you guys and thanks so much for helping! Like always, we look forward to the next time we will all be together! And thanks Mom so much for all the great meals and for doing our laundry. Wow, we were spoiled! Love you all,
Stef
We also really really appreciate everyone helping with Bret. After being in St. George with no family around, we REALLY appreciated the help even more! We are glad that he is finally comfortable around you guys and thanks so much for helping! Like always, we look forward to the next time we will all be together! And thanks Mom so much for all the great meals and for doing our laundry. Wow, we were spoiled! Love you all,
Stef
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Bassetts in 2008 (Dad)
Hi Family -
I went through most of the pictures we took in 2008 and I pulled out pictures of B&K's family, N&S's family, Jane, Rose, Max, and Mom and I. I did this to find pictures we could use for our 8x10's we hvae posted in the house. But there were so many pictures I decided to post them for you guys to come out and look at.
GenerallyI only got pictures of the individual (eg. Rosey), or the whole family (eg. Blaine, Kristi, Gwen, Bentley) and not partials (eg. Blaine w/o the rest of his gang) or not pictures with others in the frame (ie. Max w/ Gma Bassett). But you'll see some exceptions to that rule (eg. Rosey and Jeff) especially with babies.
Anyway - feel free to go through the photos and find pictures you'd like to print. Mom and I will pick pictures we like to go on our wall.
Let us know if you have any recommendations.
Loves to all.
Dad
I put them in a slideshow left, but if you want to buy a print, they are located here on webpages:
Car problems...major ones! (Janey's point of view)
This is a journal entry which is why there is so much history. :) If you want the really exciting part of the story, skip to January 7, 2009.
2001: Dad purchased a brand new blue Hyundai, Santa Fe. I was super excited because I was 15 years old at the time and would get to drive it. I thought it was a nice car…what teenager wouldn’t want to be in it?
2001-2007: Dad took it in occasionally for oil changes and tire rotations, the usual. The largest expenditure they paid was for a 50,000 mile tune-up. A great car to only have to not have to have any repairs!
August 2007: I got home from my mission and needed a car to get me to American Fork for work everyday. Mom and Dad were ready to get a new car, so they sold the Santa Fe to me at a good price.
September 2007: I started having problems with my brakes, Mom and Dad were nice and repaired that for me since they had just sold the car to me and didn’t mean to dump a problem on me. Thanks again! I also bought some new tires and felt like the car was brand new.
September 2007-September 2008: Worked great! I got my occasional oil change/tire rotation and felt like the car life was smooth.
September 2008: Right after school started (so I just paid tuition and now no longer had a full time job…less money…perfect timing) my car started being weird. I could just feel it kind of shake when I turned it on. After a few weeks of this shaking, the “maintenance required light” came on and I decided the time had come to have someone look at it. I took it up the road to Big ‘O Tires and they figured it was just spark plugs, they looked pretty old so they replaced them. The car felt better but still wasn’t its “usual” self. I figured it was probably just me being weird and picky (because I am just like that), and I tried to just ignore it because it wasn’t too bad. Plus, I had paid like $250, so they had to have fixed the problem…right? As time went on, it wasn’t getting any better, but the maintenance light still hadn’t come on…I didn’t do anything.
January 2, 2009 (Friday): I was coming home from a friend’s house when that scary “maintenance” light came on…bummer.
January 3, 2009 (Saturday): Because I had to work, I didn’t get the car into the shop until only an hour or so before they closed. I knew I wouldn’t get it back that day which created a little bit of a problem because school started on Monday.
Problem solved: I would just go with Rosey in the little Honda Civic. We left the car at the Hyundai dealership thinking it would be done by Monday, Tuesday at the latest.
January 4, 2009 (Sunday): Let’s just say that when Rosey and I come home for Christmas break, we seriously move at least half of our stuff home. Sunday evening rolled around and we decided it was time to “move” back to Provo. Rose got all her stuff in the car and as soon as I started bringing my boxes out, she said, “Sorry Jane…no room, no room, there is no room for your stuff” (that’s a family joke- all you Jordan North 2nd Ward choir singers better get that). Anyway, Dad was nice and said I could take his car down and then just bring it back on Monday when I would hopefully be able to pick up my car. If my car wasn’t done, I would just ride with Nick who is currently living in West Valley until his apartment in Provo is available.
January 5, 2009 (Monday): The dealership called in the morning to say that it would be ready by that afternoon…hurray! I knew they had to get a part for my car from another dealership so I was really surprised and excited that it was going to be done today. Then the snow came. Because of the hard snowfall, it slowed down the process and they weren’t able to get the car done…bummer, but not the end of the world. I took Dad’s car home and caught a ride back to school with Nick on Tuesday morning.
January 6, 2009 (Tuesday): I was quickly realizing how much I rely on and love having a car. Throughout the day I made plans for the rest of the day, only to realize that I couldn’t do half of them because I didn’t have a car. Aaahhh! Good thing I was going to get it later that day.
Later that day: The dealership called and said they were sorry, but they laid off (sp?) the guy who had been working on my car and there wasn’t enough time for someone else to finish it before the end of the day. Okay, I knew I could make it ONE more day!
January 7, 2008 (Wednesday): I was so excited to be reunited with my beloved car. Oh how I missed it! The dealership called and said it was ready. I was getting a ride with Nick, who wasn’t going to be able to leave until 5 pm. The dealership closed at 6 pm so Mom and Dad were so nice and went and picked it up for me around 5.
As Mom was driving home, she realized there was a little smoke coming from the hood of the car. She pulled over and called the shop. They said that it should just be some oil and some other thing they had used that just needed to burn off. The guy said it should just burn off in the next few miles. Mom got home but the car was still smoking. Max had a Jr. Jazz practice, so Dad decided to take my car to just finish burning off that last little bit of oil. On his way back home, Dad had the guy in the car next to him yelling, “Your car is on fire!” Dad gave a little smile and wave and said, “No, it’s just the oil burning off.”
A little bit further, he had a police man (who wasn’t in an official car, but in an unmarked police car which had those sneaky, hidden lights). So the cop turns his lights on and Dad pulled over on 4100 South and 4000 West (right across the street from Article Circle), right where the lane is starting to end and there is no shoulder. Basically, we are sort of blocking one land of traffic. They could see flames and drops of melted something coming out of the bottom of the car. The fire truck came and parked his car in such a way to block all lanes of traffic (let me remind you that we are in the middle of rush hour here.) The opened the hood to reveal flames which they quickly put out. Dad had called Mom and she got there for the very end of that excitement. She called me (I was almost home) in a panicked voice and said, “You’re car is on fire. Meet us at the Artic Circle.” WHAT???!!! I just got it fixed!
By the time Nick and I got there, it was just police car with flashing lights and us, waiting for a tow truck to come and pick up my little blue Santa Fe. We went with the tow truck to drop the car off at the dealership. The service portion of the dealership was closed, but the sales people took the car and gave me a rental car until we figure out what will happen. It was hard to see the full extent of the damage, but the flames were pretty big so something had to have happened.
We don’t know what the future will bring but we did have lots of tender mercies, so many that I can’t even go through them all, but some of the big things were:
1) We decided to go to the dealership, and not some little tire shop or even another dealership. Mom and Dad don’t really like the Hyundai dealership and didn’t usually take that car there when they owned it. Because I had problems only a few months before, I decided it would be best to take it to the dealership we purchased it at so they could figure out what the problem was and I could have my “shaking” car taken car of once and for all!! If we would have taken it anywhere else, I am pretty sure we would not be able to dump the car on them and say, “Fix it! and in the mean time give me a car!”
2) Mom and Dad picked it up and not me. If I would have been able to get down there earlier, I would have probably just picked up the car and headed straight back to Provo. If I would have had to have dealt with that, I would have freaked!
3) No one was hurt. Although it seems like something like a car blowing up only happens in the movies (and it usually is) the car could have blown up. I mean honestly, how often do you see a car on fire with flames? We were blessed that the cop pulled Dad over when he did, or else we might not have noticed and thought that it was “just the oil burning off.”
4) Nick was living in West Valley so I was able to get between WVC and Provo easy (thanks again Nick, I will miss our conversations!)
5) I have thought have a million more throughout the night. I am just so grateful for Mom and Dad and their kindness in helping me, and that everyone is safe.
Well, when we find out with the outcome is, we’ll let ya’ll know. Hope your life is great! All you car owners, show appreciation for your cars (maybe give it a little kiss or something… :)).
2001: Dad purchased a brand new blue Hyundai, Santa Fe. I was super excited because I was 15 years old at the time and would get to drive it. I thought it was a nice car…what teenager wouldn’t want to be in it?
2001-2007: Dad took it in occasionally for oil changes and tire rotations, the usual. The largest expenditure they paid was for a 50,000 mile tune-up. A great car to only have to not have to have any repairs!
August 2007: I got home from my mission and needed a car to get me to American Fork for work everyday. Mom and Dad were ready to get a new car, so they sold the Santa Fe to me at a good price.
September 2007: I started having problems with my brakes, Mom and Dad were nice and repaired that for me since they had just sold the car to me and didn’t mean to dump a problem on me. Thanks again! I also bought some new tires and felt like the car was brand new.
September 2007-September 2008: Worked great! I got my occasional oil change/tire rotation and felt like the car life was smooth.
September 2008: Right after school started (so I just paid tuition and now no longer had a full time job…less money…perfect timing) my car started being weird. I could just feel it kind of shake when I turned it on. After a few weeks of this shaking, the “maintenance required light” came on and I decided the time had come to have someone look at it. I took it up the road to Big ‘O Tires and they figured it was just spark plugs, they looked pretty old so they replaced them. The car felt better but still wasn’t its “usual” self. I figured it was probably just me being weird and picky (because I am just like that), and I tried to just ignore it because it wasn’t too bad. Plus, I had paid like $250, so they had to have fixed the problem…right? As time went on, it wasn’t getting any better, but the maintenance light still hadn’t come on…I didn’t do anything.
January 2, 2009 (Friday): I was coming home from a friend’s house when that scary “maintenance” light came on…bummer.
January 3, 2009 (Saturday): Because I had to work, I didn’t get the car into the shop until only an hour or so before they closed. I knew I wouldn’t get it back that day which created a little bit of a problem because school started on Monday.
Problem solved: I would just go with Rosey in the little Honda Civic. We left the car at the Hyundai dealership thinking it would be done by Monday, Tuesday at the latest.
January 4, 2009 (Sunday): Let’s just say that when Rosey and I come home for Christmas break, we seriously move at least half of our stuff home. Sunday evening rolled around and we decided it was time to “move” back to Provo. Rose got all her stuff in the car and as soon as I started bringing my boxes out, she said, “Sorry Jane…no room, no room, there is no room for your stuff” (that’s a family joke- all you Jordan North 2nd Ward choir singers better get that). Anyway, Dad was nice and said I could take his car down and then just bring it back on Monday when I would hopefully be able to pick up my car. If my car wasn’t done, I would just ride with Nick who is currently living in West Valley until his apartment in Provo is available.
January 5, 2009 (Monday): The dealership called in the morning to say that it would be ready by that afternoon…hurray! I knew they had to get a part for my car from another dealership so I was really surprised and excited that it was going to be done today. Then the snow came. Because of the hard snowfall, it slowed down the process and they weren’t able to get the car done…bummer, but not the end of the world. I took Dad’s car home and caught a ride back to school with Nick on Tuesday morning.
January 6, 2009 (Tuesday): I was quickly realizing how much I rely on and love having a car. Throughout the day I made plans for the rest of the day, only to realize that I couldn’t do half of them because I didn’t have a car. Aaahhh! Good thing I was going to get it later that day.
Later that day: The dealership called and said they were sorry, but they laid off (sp?) the guy who had been working on my car and there wasn’t enough time for someone else to finish it before the end of the day. Okay, I knew I could make it ONE more day!
January 7, 2008 (Wednesday): I was so excited to be reunited with my beloved car. Oh how I missed it! The dealership called and said it was ready. I was getting a ride with Nick, who wasn’t going to be able to leave until 5 pm. The dealership closed at 6 pm so Mom and Dad were so nice and went and picked it up for me around 5.
As Mom was driving home, she realized there was a little smoke coming from the hood of the car. She pulled over and called the shop. They said that it should just be some oil and some other thing they had used that just needed to burn off. The guy said it should just burn off in the next few miles. Mom got home but the car was still smoking. Max had a Jr. Jazz practice, so Dad decided to take my car to just finish burning off that last little bit of oil. On his way back home, Dad had the guy in the car next to him yelling, “Your car is on fire!” Dad gave a little smile and wave and said, “No, it’s just the oil burning off.”
A little bit further, he had a police man (who wasn’t in an official car, but in an unmarked police car which had those sneaky, hidden lights). So the cop turns his lights on and Dad pulled over on 4100 South and 4000 West (right across the street from Article Circle), right where the lane is starting to end and there is no shoulder. Basically, we are sort of blocking one land of traffic. They could see flames and drops of melted something coming out of the bottom of the car. The fire truck came and parked his car in such a way to block all lanes of traffic (let me remind you that we are in the middle of rush hour here.) The opened the hood to reveal flames which they quickly put out. Dad had called Mom and she got there for the very end of that excitement. She called me (I was almost home) in a panicked voice and said, “You’re car is on fire. Meet us at the Artic Circle.” WHAT???!!! I just got it fixed!
By the time Nick and I got there, it was just police car with flashing lights and us, waiting for a tow truck to come and pick up my little blue Santa Fe. We went with the tow truck to drop the car off at the dealership. The service portion of the dealership was closed, but the sales people took the car and gave me a rental car until we figure out what will happen. It was hard to see the full extent of the damage, but the flames were pretty big so something had to have happened.
We don’t know what the future will bring but we did have lots of tender mercies, so many that I can’t even go through them all, but some of the big things were:
1) We decided to go to the dealership, and not some little tire shop or even another dealership. Mom and Dad don’t really like the Hyundai dealership and didn’t usually take that car there when they owned it. Because I had problems only a few months before, I decided it would be best to take it to the dealership we purchased it at so they could figure out what the problem was and I could have my “shaking” car taken car of once and for all!! If we would have taken it anywhere else, I am pretty sure we would not be able to dump the car on them and say, “Fix it! and in the mean time give me a car!”
2) Mom and Dad picked it up and not me. If I would have been able to get down there earlier, I would have probably just picked up the car and headed straight back to Provo. If I would have had to have dealt with that, I would have freaked!
3) No one was hurt. Although it seems like something like a car blowing up only happens in the movies (and it usually is) the car could have blown up. I mean honestly, how often do you see a car on fire with flames? We were blessed that the cop pulled Dad over when he did, or else we might not have noticed and thought that it was “just the oil burning off.”
4) Nick was living in West Valley so I was able to get between WVC and Provo easy (thanks again Nick, I will miss our conversations!)
5) I have thought have a million more throughout the night. I am just so grateful for Mom and Dad and their kindness in helping me, and that everyone is safe.
Well, when we find out with the outcome is, we’ll let ya’ll know. Hope your life is great! All you car owners, show appreciation for your cars (maybe give it a little kiss or something… :)).
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Losing things (Blaine)
First of all, let me thank everyone for the great trip (it's like trying to come off a drug, leaving all that fun behind) and for the various things you've written about it. I've commented on most but I also wanted to give a shout out to Dad for his great bark letter about sacrifices. What a great list--it really was all the sacrifices that made it so magical (I really don't think we would get the same magic if we all lived somewhere in the valley and just visited each other a few times throughout the season, you know?).
Anyway, I keep meaning to write my own take on the trip--a journal entry of sorts about all the fun things I remember and so forth--but, alas, that's not what this post will be. Instead I thought I'd record a few thoughts I've had in the past few days as I lost my wallet. Let me start out with some background.
Saturday night: We pulled into Round Rock late and stopped at Chick-fil-a for dinner. While the kids played in the play land, I ran to Walmart for milk and a few necessities, then came back and went down the slide with Bentley and played around for a few minutes before going home. We unloaded the car and tried to unpack a few important things but soon collapsed in bed after a very long day.
Sunday: We went to church, came home and took a nap (seriously, you can't believe how tired being in the car for two days makes you!), and finally got around to starting the real unpacking. We unpacked bag after bag of our old stuff and cleaned up and threw out more stuff to make room for box after box of new Christmas presents. Since it was Sunday though, we tried not to work too hard. :) By night time the house was still a huge, messy disaster.
Monday: I went to work early in the morning and Kristi worked like a trooper all day. Load after load of laundry, more organizing, rearranging, and putting things away. After a long first day back at work I was about to leave the office and realized something--my wallet was not in my back pocket where I always have it. I looked around my cube a bit since it often falls out of my pocket when I sit in this weird chair with jeans on but it wasn't there. I must have left it home.
Thus began that long sinking feeling that we have probably all experienced at one time or another. I got home and told Kristi. She had not seen it. And it was not on the dresser. We tried not to panic at first--it would turn up. We looked in the cars, pant pockets, under couch cushions, all the obvious places. I started to think back. The last time I knew I had it for sure was at Walmart. Since then I had been back to Chick-fil-a (and had slid down a slide backward, great), church, and work. I called Chick-fil-a, it wasn't there. It probably fell out of my pocket at work and would be in the lost and found or something. Try to stay calm and get some sleep. It would turn up.
Tuesday: It wasn't in the lost and found. Not at work, not at the church, not at Chick-fil-a, and not at Walmart. Kristi spent the whole day procuring keys to the church to check it out, going around to these other places, crawling up jungle gyms and coming down slides (just in case), and searching/cleaning the messy house. I spent the day staring at my computer screen trying to concentrate on something other than my lost wallet. I have tons of work to do, but try as I might I could not think about anything besides the pit in my stomach. It did not help to read the different articles that came up when I googled what to do when you lose a wallet. The articles advised that you take your list that you keep of all the lost wallet phone numbers--your credit card companies, the credit bureaus, the DMV, etc.--and call them immediately. Unfortunately, I do not keep such a list. And I was not really sure what all I had in there (I did know, however, that my social security card was in there, which is like the biggest no-no in all of lost wallet literature). Actually, I should clarify. There were two schools of thought about when you should consult this list and start calling and cancelling everything. Many experts say you should do it immediately, but some believe in a more practical approach: take 15 minutes to an hour first to retrace your steps before making the calls. Uh-oh. What if you've waited 72 hours and your social security card is in there? That was the question that was really at the focal point of my concentration as I sat there trying to work.
So by now the prayers were really starting to flow. Kristi and I had emailed discouraging news back and forth all day (me trying to think of places it could be and her actually going to all those places and looking) and there really wasn't much left to do but declare defeat. The lucky thing is that there were not fraudulent charges on our account yet so we decided if we didn't find it that night we would begin the calls first thing in the morning.
I finished my work day and began driving home. I had the full half hour drive to think about things and some lessons that I was learning:
Heavenly Father knows where my wallet is but he also knows what it is like to lose things. One thought that hit me hard as I was driving and silently praying for help in regaining what I had lost was that I need to be a better home teacher/missionary. Heavenly Father could help me find some leather and paper and plastic any time but he needs my help with something that is lost to him that is so much more valuable. There are people I need to be there for, to help find, or to help them find Him. I didn't really "cut a deal" with Heavenly Father but I did promise Him that I would be more quick and happy to help Him "find" those who are lost. In fact I turned off my music and reached for my phone to try to set up a home teaching visit (unfortunately, I had left it home that day, but anyway...) There's worse things to lose than a wallet and Heavenly Father knows that feeling.
I have a wife who loves me. Kristi never complained or acted frustrated that I had lost such an important thing. She never gave me a hard time about anything (i.e. "Why do you keep your social security card in there anyway? Don't you know that's like the dumbest idea ever?") She didn't save the "hard searching" for me (i.e. "Why don't you stop and pick up a key to the church and climb around in the playland on your way home?") She just heard the situation and went to work. It took her whole day but she never once complained.
I can't necessarily find it in the house, but I can be 100% sure it's not there. I'm not sure what the underlying principle is here but this was a powerful thought that popped in my mind. I guess sometimes it's easy to focus on all the things you don't know, all the things you can't do, all the ways in which you are helpless, but none of that matters. You have to look at what you can do and start there. So that's what I decided to do when I got home. I still felt like there was at least a 50/50 chance my wallet was somewhere in the house. The weird thing was that there were a very finite number of places I could have left it outside the house, but because of all the unpacking and rearranging, there was almost nowhere in the house that I could be sure the wallet couldn't be. So I decided that would be my evening. I would check every cubic foot of our home (all the external places had already been checked) and then if I didn't find it, we would know it was gone and could start taking the necessary measures. It wasn't a fun-sounding thing to do, but somehow it gave me peace to realize that there was something I could do. I wasn't helpless after all. I had a plan.
Finding things takes real humility. So I got home and started searching. I literally was scanning every square inch. I pretended I didn't even live in the house and I tried to force myself to forget everything I knew about where I had been in the last few days. I realized that finding things is hard because you usually only look in places you think it could be. If it was in one of those places you would usually find it so fast you wouldn't ever consider it lost. For something like this, I realized, it would be somewhere that it couldn't be. That was a big revelation to me and made searching easier in a way. I didn't have to think about where it could be; I just had to look everywhere in the house. Looking takes a long time but at least it comes without the headaches that thinking comes with. The trick to it was the humility. I looked in places it could not possibly be. I looked in places I knew I had already looked. I looked in obvious places again. I didn't even ask Kris where she had looked. It didn't matter. I would scan every inch of the house and then I could be sure.
I went through this humbling monotonous exercise for about an hour.
And then I found it.
It was mingled somehow with other junk in a very conspicuous drawer I had cleaned out and that I was sure we would have both looked in previously. It didn't make sense how it got there (it still doesn't), but it was there. Our prayers were answered! We didn't have to lose all the cash and make all the calls (best case scenario) or go through years of bad credit and similar nightmares common to victims of identity theft (worst case scenario). Work was still stressful, the house was still a mess, our finances were still tight as we try to catch up from Christmas, but I hadn't felt so much peace and relief for some time. (Maybe since that birthday in the mission, as dad reminded me...) What was lost was found and it was an amazing feeling that I just had to share with you all.
And besides the wallet, I gained something more. I learned all these lessons. I learned to not carry around my social security card. I learned that my wife loves me. I learned how to be humble and to listen to God's promptings as I would want him to listen to my prayers.
In retrospect, losing my wallet really hasn't been all that bad of an experience at all. :-)
Anyway, I keep meaning to write my own take on the trip--a journal entry of sorts about all the fun things I remember and so forth--but, alas, that's not what this post will be. Instead I thought I'd record a few thoughts I've had in the past few days as I lost my wallet. Let me start out with some background.
Saturday night: We pulled into Round Rock late and stopped at Chick-fil-a for dinner. While the kids played in the play land, I ran to Walmart for milk and a few necessities, then came back and went down the slide with Bentley and played around for a few minutes before going home. We unloaded the car and tried to unpack a few important things but soon collapsed in bed after a very long day.
Sunday: We went to church, came home and took a nap (seriously, you can't believe how tired being in the car for two days makes you!), and finally got around to starting the real unpacking. We unpacked bag after bag of our old stuff and cleaned up and threw out more stuff to make room for box after box of new Christmas presents. Since it was Sunday though, we tried not to work too hard. :) By night time the house was still a huge, messy disaster.
Monday: I went to work early in the morning and Kristi worked like a trooper all day. Load after load of laundry, more organizing, rearranging, and putting things away. After a long first day back at work I was about to leave the office and realized something--my wallet was not in my back pocket where I always have it. I looked around my cube a bit since it often falls out of my pocket when I sit in this weird chair with jeans on but it wasn't there. I must have left it home.
Thus began that long sinking feeling that we have probably all experienced at one time or another. I got home and told Kristi. She had not seen it. And it was not on the dresser. We tried not to panic at first--it would turn up. We looked in the cars, pant pockets, under couch cushions, all the obvious places. I started to think back. The last time I knew I had it for sure was at Walmart. Since then I had been back to Chick-fil-a (and had slid down a slide backward, great), church, and work. I called Chick-fil-a, it wasn't there. It probably fell out of my pocket at work and would be in the lost and found or something. Try to stay calm and get some sleep. It would turn up.
Tuesday: It wasn't in the lost and found. Not at work, not at the church, not at Chick-fil-a, and not at Walmart. Kristi spent the whole day procuring keys to the church to check it out, going around to these other places, crawling up jungle gyms and coming down slides (just in case), and searching/cleaning the messy house. I spent the day staring at my computer screen trying to concentrate on something other than my lost wallet. I have tons of work to do, but try as I might I could not think about anything besides the pit in my stomach. It did not help to read the different articles that came up when I googled what to do when you lose a wallet. The articles advised that you take your list that you keep of all the lost wallet phone numbers--your credit card companies, the credit bureaus, the DMV, etc.--and call them immediately. Unfortunately, I do not keep such a list. And I was not really sure what all I had in there (I did know, however, that my social security card was in there, which is like the biggest no-no in all of lost wallet literature). Actually, I should clarify. There were two schools of thought about when you should consult this list and start calling and cancelling everything. Many experts say you should do it immediately, but some believe in a more practical approach: take 15 minutes to an hour first to retrace your steps before making the calls. Uh-oh. What if you've waited 72 hours and your social security card is in there? That was the question that was really at the focal point of my concentration as I sat there trying to work.
So by now the prayers were really starting to flow. Kristi and I had emailed discouraging news back and forth all day (me trying to think of places it could be and her actually going to all those places and looking) and there really wasn't much left to do but declare defeat. The lucky thing is that there were not fraudulent charges on our account yet so we decided if we didn't find it that night we would begin the calls first thing in the morning.
I finished my work day and began driving home. I had the full half hour drive to think about things and some lessons that I was learning:
Heavenly Father knows where my wallet is but he also knows what it is like to lose things. One thought that hit me hard as I was driving and silently praying for help in regaining what I had lost was that I need to be a better home teacher/missionary. Heavenly Father could help me find some leather and paper and plastic any time but he needs my help with something that is lost to him that is so much more valuable. There are people I need to be there for, to help find, or to help them find Him. I didn't really "cut a deal" with Heavenly Father but I did promise Him that I would be more quick and happy to help Him "find" those who are lost. In fact I turned off my music and reached for my phone to try to set up a home teaching visit (unfortunately, I had left it home that day, but anyway...) There's worse things to lose than a wallet and Heavenly Father knows that feeling.
I have a wife who loves me. Kristi never complained or acted frustrated that I had lost such an important thing. She never gave me a hard time about anything (i.e. "Why do you keep your social security card in there anyway? Don't you know that's like the dumbest idea ever?") She didn't save the "hard searching" for me (i.e. "Why don't you stop and pick up a key to the church and climb around in the playland on your way home?") She just heard the situation and went to work. It took her whole day but she never once complained.
I can't necessarily find it in the house, but I can be 100% sure it's not there. I'm not sure what the underlying principle is here but this was a powerful thought that popped in my mind. I guess sometimes it's easy to focus on all the things you don't know, all the things you can't do, all the ways in which you are helpless, but none of that matters. You have to look at what you can do and start there. So that's what I decided to do when I got home. I still felt like there was at least a 50/50 chance my wallet was somewhere in the house. The weird thing was that there were a very finite number of places I could have left it outside the house, but because of all the unpacking and rearranging, there was almost nowhere in the house that I could be sure the wallet couldn't be. So I decided that would be my evening. I would check every cubic foot of our home (all the external places had already been checked) and then if I didn't find it, we would know it was gone and could start taking the necessary measures. It wasn't a fun-sounding thing to do, but somehow it gave me peace to realize that there was something I could do. I wasn't helpless after all. I had a plan.
Finding things takes real humility. So I got home and started searching. I literally was scanning every square inch. I pretended I didn't even live in the house and I tried to force myself to forget everything I knew about where I had been in the last few days. I realized that finding things is hard because you usually only look in places you think it could be. If it was in one of those places you would usually find it so fast you wouldn't ever consider it lost. For something like this, I realized, it would be somewhere that it couldn't be. That was a big revelation to me and made searching easier in a way. I didn't have to think about where it could be; I just had to look everywhere in the house. Looking takes a long time but at least it comes without the headaches that thinking comes with. The trick to it was the humility. I looked in places it could not possibly be. I looked in places I knew I had already looked. I looked in obvious places again. I didn't even ask Kris where she had looked. It didn't matter. I would scan every inch of the house and then I could be sure.
I went through this humbling monotonous exercise for about an hour.
And then I found it.
It was mingled somehow with other junk in a very conspicuous drawer I had cleaned out and that I was sure we would have both looked in previously. It didn't make sense how it got there (it still doesn't), but it was there. Our prayers were answered! We didn't have to lose all the cash and make all the calls (best case scenario) or go through years of bad credit and similar nightmares common to victims of identity theft (worst case scenario). Work was still stressful, the house was still a mess, our finances were still tight as we try to catch up from Christmas, but I hadn't felt so much peace and relief for some time. (Maybe since that birthday in the mission, as dad reminded me...) What was lost was found and it was an amazing feeling that I just had to share with you all.
And besides the wallet, I gained something more. I learned all these lessons. I learned to not carry around my social security card. I learned that my wife loves me. I learned how to be humble and to listen to God's promptings as I would want him to listen to my prayers.
In retrospect, losing my wallet really hasn't been all that bad of an experience at all. :-)
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Wet Feet (Janey)
I too want to thank everyone for the fun times! Although I am happy to moving forward with life, it would definantly be fun to re live the past few weeks.
INSIDE the classroom (classes) are going well, but OUTSIDE the classroom is miserable (really only trying to get from class to class). It snowed yesterday afternoon and took me two hours to return dad's car (thanks again for letting me borrow it dad), and then it took 45 minutes to walk home from school opposed to the usual 20 minutes because as mom said it is still snowing! I don't ever remember it snowing this much my previous years at BYU. It's not too bad when you walk class to class on campus, but as soon as you get to a street corner...there is no hope...your feet are bound to get wet, thus giving you a wet shoe and sock feeling all day! Ugh! I got to school early today because Nick gave me a ride back to Provo because I still don't have my car. I stepped in a huge puddle on the way to school and debated about going to the library bathroom to "blow dry" my socks before my first class (the library is the only place that I think still has those hand dryers). Don't worry, I didn't do it. I stuck it out throughout the rest of the day and had cold feet.
Other than that, life is the same. I still don't have my car and I think it has kind of been a good experience for me because it has shown me just how spoiled I am to have a car and gave me a new appreciation for those college students who do without. Multiple times throughout the day I have made plans that included my car, only to quickly realize those things just can't happen because I don't have my beloved car. Good experiences are hard sometimes.
Thanks for the fun memories over Christmas!
Love, Janey
INSIDE the classroom (classes) are going well, but OUTSIDE the classroom is miserable (really only trying to get from class to class). It snowed yesterday afternoon and took me two hours to return dad's car (thanks again for letting me borrow it dad), and then it took 45 minutes to walk home from school opposed to the usual 20 minutes because as mom said it is still snowing! I don't ever remember it snowing this much my previous years at BYU. It's not too bad when you walk class to class on campus, but as soon as you get to a street corner...there is no hope...your feet are bound to get wet, thus giving you a wet shoe and sock feeling all day! Ugh! I got to school early today because Nick gave me a ride back to Provo because I still don't have my car. I stepped in a huge puddle on the way to school and debated about going to the library bathroom to "blow dry" my socks before my first class (the library is the only place that I think still has those hand dryers). Don't worry, I didn't do it. I stuck it out throughout the rest of the day and had cold feet.
Other than that, life is the same. I still don't have my car and I think it has kind of been a good experience for me because it has shown me just how spoiled I am to have a car and gave me a new appreciation for those college students who do without. Multiple times throughout the day I have made plans that included my car, only to quickly realize those things just can't happen because I don't have my beloved car. Good experiences are hard sometimes.
Thanks for the fun memories over Christmas!
Love, Janey
The Snow Globe (mom)
Dear Family,
You all got away just in time as it is STILL snowing. I think it was Kristi's who commented when she was here that having it snow while being in the family room is like being in a snow globe. I loved that. Yesterday and today are definately snow globe days! And poor Janey doesn't have her car (it is still in the shop) and has to walk to school in this and Nick is having to commute back and forth to Provo in this - ug! I'm so happy B&K made it home safely before it all rolled in.
How can I thank you for all coming home for the holidays? What a wonderful couple of weeks we spent together. From the bottom of my heart I appreciate everyone's sacrifices to be here. I love you all so much and feel like Heavenly Father really blessed us during our time together. Yesterday I woke up feeling absolutely rotten and couldn't even drive carpool, but all I could think was how happy I was that I never felt that way while everyone was here. (I'm feeling much better today.) I felt like we were all blessed with such good health and good spirits during the time we were together. Even little Bentley got better so quickly. I bore my testimony on Sunday and tried, through my tears, to express my gratitude for the blessings of family. To the marrieds, thanks especially for making time for extended family. I know it is hard but how we appreciate it! Thank you everyone for being kind and thoughtful to each other and for helping me keep the house tidy while you were all here. I appreciate everyone's efforts to do their part. Thanks, too, for the fun gifts. Everytime I use that yummy smelling lemon soap, wear my groovy new green shirt and jacket, look at my calendar, use my slim wallet, and eat my dark choc m&m's I feel the love! And speaking of love, after taking all of Christmas down, and rearranging my bookcases and family room decor, I have set up a "love" table behind the sofa. I have wedding pictures from B&K, N&S and mine and dad's wedding. It is the Valentines table of love!!!
We have a cruise planning meeting tonight at grandma Winder's house and I am in charge of the food so I best get going. Let's all do our best to keep in touch. Thanks for reading and writing.
Much love, Mom
PS Snowman lost his head a few days ago. I cleaned up all the accessories and put them away for another day. The remaining balls are covered with several new layers of snow and as I look out the window here it looks like we have a huge bowling pin in the yard. Bowling anyone?
You all got away just in time as it is STILL snowing. I think it was Kristi's who commented when she was here that having it snow while being in the family room is like being in a snow globe. I loved that. Yesterday and today are definately snow globe days! And poor Janey doesn't have her car (it is still in the shop) and has to walk to school in this and Nick is having to commute back and forth to Provo in this - ug! I'm so happy B&K made it home safely before it all rolled in.
How can I thank you for all coming home for the holidays? What a wonderful couple of weeks we spent together. From the bottom of my heart I appreciate everyone's sacrifices to be here. I love you all so much and feel like Heavenly Father really blessed us during our time together. Yesterday I woke up feeling absolutely rotten and couldn't even drive carpool, but all I could think was how happy I was that I never felt that way while everyone was here. (I'm feeling much better today.) I felt like we were all blessed with such good health and good spirits during the time we were together. Even little Bentley got better so quickly. I bore my testimony on Sunday and tried, through my tears, to express my gratitude for the blessings of family. To the marrieds, thanks especially for making time for extended family. I know it is hard but how we appreciate it! Thank you everyone for being kind and thoughtful to each other and for helping me keep the house tidy while you were all here. I appreciate everyone's efforts to do their part. Thanks, too, for the fun gifts. Everytime I use that yummy smelling lemon soap, wear my groovy new green shirt and jacket, look at my calendar, use my slim wallet, and eat my dark choc m&m's I feel the love! And speaking of love, after taking all of Christmas down, and rearranging my bookcases and family room decor, I have set up a "love" table behind the sofa. I have wedding pictures from B&K, N&S and mine and dad's wedding. It is the Valentines table of love!!!
We have a cruise planning meeting tonight at grandma Winder's house and I am in charge of the food so I best get going. Let's all do our best to keep in touch. Thanks for reading and writing.
Much love, Mom
PS Snowman lost his head a few days ago. I cleaned up all the accessories and put them away for another day. The remaining balls are covered with several new layers of snow and as I look out the window here it looks like we have a huge bowling pin in the yard. Bowling anyone?
Monday, January 5, 2009
Christmas in January! (Kristi)
I was just going to send this in an e-mail to mom and dad, but I know that extra blessings get sent your way if you post on the Bawb, so here goes nothin...
I just finished filling up and sealing my first gamma lid bucket! Half of me feels like an old fogey for being so excited about receiving food storage items for Christmas, and the other part of me is just as giddy as Ralphie who got his Red Rider BB Gun for Christmas. I am loving the food storage stuff and if I had it all to do over again I would have stocked up on more of it while I was there. Love the buckets and lids and I especially love (more than I thought I would) the smaller containers that you guys put the popcorn and stuff in. They fit perfectly on my shelf and depth wise I can fit two. Maybe if Janey comes to Texas for Lorie's wedding she can pack all of her stuff in those inside of her suitcase. I wish I had about ten more! I'm excited to make wheat bread tomorrow with my wheat grinder! I can smell the new Scentsy that Nick and Stef gave us (it's a plug in up in our bathroom), Blaine's new running watch is charging anticipating his first run (lucky us, we brought the Utah weather home with us, Saturday it was 75 and yesterday was only 30 and now it's all rainy!), I use my bathrobe from Blaine every day. I am excited to hang the picture frame from mom and dad and Gwen has already done many of her crafts. It was a great Christmas!
Thanks for putting us up and putting up with us : ). It was weird to pull into Austin and feel like we were coming home. Our home really is here even though our family is far away. And it is nice to have two places in the country that we feel completely comfortable and happy in. We hope you guys aren't missing us tooooooo much!
Our drive was wonderfully uneventful! What a blessing! We outran the snowstorm and drove in crystal clear weather the entire way. Our car functioned beautiful, gas was inexpensive, kids were healthy and happy for the most part. They each had a meltdown for about thirty minutes each day, but as Blaine put it... if that's the price we have to pay for 12 hours of happy kids is just one half our of tantrums, that's not too bad! We stayed overnight in Albuquerque, ordered pizza in our hotel and watched Supernanny, er....the Utah game....actually we toggled back and forth until I fell asleep at which point I think Blaine just stuck to Supernanny (kidding, I mean the game). We woke up the next morning at 4:15AM. GAG. But we were blessed because as I took the first shift driving that morning through the New Mexican desert there was the most beautiful meteor shower. We were out in the middle of nowhere and the stars were bright and I literally saw several meteors every minute until dawn. What a fun little blessing huh.
It was funny to note the difference between our drive to Utah and our drive home. I am two weeks further along in my pregnancy and it showed. On our way there we only stopped a total of four times during the two days and I drove a lot of the way. On the way home after about an hour of driving I would get SO tired and would have to go potty. So we stopped about every two hours on the way home. Blaine and I drove about 50/50 if not more like 75(Blaine)/25(me). And I was actually able to get some rest as a passenger (unusual for me!). We had lots of great conversation, lots of junk food and an overall good time. When we finally made it back home at 9:00PM Austin time I took off my shoes and was surprised to find that my legs were totally swollen. I have never had any swelling before during pregnancy or ever, and as you all have seemed to notice, my ankles are usually pretty tiny little things. I am not kidding when I say they were about the same size as my thighs. It was kind of freaky, and because I had been wearing tennis shoes my actual feet were normal size. It was really weird.
We took baths and showers and went to bed really early. And now here I am writing to the BAWB rather than unpacking.
The point of this whole e-mail is to say thanks for a fun Christmas and that we are home safe.
Oh and also we didn't bring home your pillows. We did, however, bring home your umbrella stroller, snow scraper, and belt (which I guess was used to hold the high chair in place), and... I am not sure what else. Sorry about that, we'll send it all home with Mom when she comes : )
Love,
Kris
I just finished filling up and sealing my first gamma lid bucket! Half of me feels like an old fogey for being so excited about receiving food storage items for Christmas, and the other part of me is just as giddy as Ralphie who got his Red Rider BB Gun for Christmas. I am loving the food storage stuff and if I had it all to do over again I would have stocked up on more of it while I was there. Love the buckets and lids and I especially love (more than I thought I would) the smaller containers that you guys put the popcorn and stuff in. They fit perfectly on my shelf and depth wise I can fit two. Maybe if Janey comes to Texas for Lorie's wedding she can pack all of her stuff in those inside of her suitcase. I wish I had about ten more! I'm excited to make wheat bread tomorrow with my wheat grinder! I can smell the new Scentsy that Nick and Stef gave us (it's a plug in up in our bathroom), Blaine's new running watch is charging anticipating his first run (lucky us, we brought the Utah weather home with us, Saturday it was 75 and yesterday was only 30 and now it's all rainy!), I use my bathrobe from Blaine every day. I am excited to hang the picture frame from mom and dad and Gwen has already done many of her crafts. It was a great Christmas!
Thanks for putting us up and putting up with us : ). It was weird to pull into Austin and feel like we were coming home. Our home really is here even though our family is far away. And it is nice to have two places in the country that we feel completely comfortable and happy in. We hope you guys aren't missing us tooooooo much!
Our drive was wonderfully uneventful! What a blessing! We outran the snowstorm and drove in crystal clear weather the entire way. Our car functioned beautiful, gas was inexpensive, kids were healthy and happy for the most part. They each had a meltdown for about thirty minutes each day, but as Blaine put it... if that's the price we have to pay for 12 hours of happy kids is just one half our of tantrums, that's not too bad! We stayed overnight in Albuquerque, ordered pizza in our hotel and watched Supernanny, er....the Utah game....actually we toggled back and forth until I fell asleep at which point I think Blaine just stuck to Supernanny (kidding, I mean the game). We woke up the next morning at 4:15AM. GAG. But we were blessed because as I took the first shift driving that morning through the New Mexican desert there was the most beautiful meteor shower. We were out in the middle of nowhere and the stars were bright and I literally saw several meteors every minute until dawn. What a fun little blessing huh.
It was funny to note the difference between our drive to Utah and our drive home. I am two weeks further along in my pregnancy and it showed. On our way there we only stopped a total of four times during the two days and I drove a lot of the way. On the way home after about an hour of driving I would get SO tired and would have to go potty. So we stopped about every two hours on the way home. Blaine and I drove about 50/50 if not more like 75(Blaine)/25(me). And I was actually able to get some rest as a passenger (unusual for me!). We had lots of great conversation, lots of junk food and an overall good time. When we finally made it back home at 9:00PM Austin time I took off my shoes and was surprised to find that my legs were totally swollen. I have never had any swelling before during pregnancy or ever, and as you all have seemed to notice, my ankles are usually pretty tiny little things. I am not kidding when I say they were about the same size as my thighs. It was kind of freaky, and because I had been wearing tennis shoes my actual feet were normal size. It was really weird.
We took baths and showers and went to bed really early. And now here I am writing to the BAWB rather than unpacking.
The point of this whole e-mail is to say thanks for a fun Christmas and that we are home safe.
Oh and also we didn't bring home your pillows. We did, however, bring home your umbrella stroller, snow scraper, and belt (which I guess was used to hold the high chair in place), and... I am not sure what else. Sorry about that, we'll send it all home with Mom when she comes : )
Love,
Kris
Thursday, January 1, 2009
First Post in the new year (dad)
Hi All,
Happy New Year. Of course I could walk in the other room and wish you all a Happy New Year in person (as you are all sleeping at our house!) but I want to kick off the BAWB for the new year and be the first to post. So if you get a prize for bawbing first in the month, what kind of super-prize do you get for being first to bawb in the year? Wow!
It's been an incredible year for our family...and I may get enough strength to start a bawb post listing the major events...but for now let me just thank all of you for your good works, your great spirits, and your loyalty to the gospel and the family. It is an inspiration to be connected to each of you.
Loves to all,
Dad
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