babysitters

I did the babysitting job at church for many years. I am thankful that I had a wonderful elderly home teacher, Brother Johnson, who sat with me every Sunday when our meeting time was from 4pm - 7pm. (That is what happens to the last ward, when 5 wards meet in a building.) I had three little girls under the age of 4 that didn't quite "get it". While my husband was on the stand, I was "managing".

Today, Doug and I had offered to help with babysitting duty. The two of us did a reasonable job (as long as you don't count that one little incident when he grabbed the wipes and threw them with all of his might into the back of the head of the woman sitting in front of us.) Okay, so except for that, the one little boy we were watching was actually very good especially considering the fact that he is almost two!

So, fortunately, I was able to enjoy and be inspired by the words his parents were speaking. Okay, I am prejudiced and all, but Chezzie and Tanner really gave great talks!

unlike the men...

...in our family, who feel the need to store brand new items in their closets unworn...

My husband bought me some adorable red shoes on Friday. For me there was no need to let them age for any length of time. I wore them Saturday and Sunday and felt quite special!

let freedom ring!

Thank you Kyle!

sick as a dog

Doug left for Argentina on Friday. He was coughing and sniffling all the way to the airport. When I talked with him on Sunday, he said that he had been in bed since he arrived. Apparently, some Priesthood brethren were coming to the hotel to give him a blessing and the sacrament. He said that he can't remember ever having had that experience before.

The trade show starts today. I hope he is feeling better.

mom, do i have manners?

Saturday, Brianna and I went to a Faith in God luncheon entitled, "Mom, do I have manners?" It was a great stake activity and probably the last Primary activity Brianna and I will do together. She is counting the weeks until her 12th birthday. Nine...in case you were wondering.

enjoying clark

There is something so joyful about watching a child discover this amazing world. All of the people including myself at the photography lab were thrilled to hear his excitement and giggles as he played with these two little doggies. The man who brought them in was having them secretly photographed as a gift to his wife.

When I went to download the picture from my camera I was surprised to see, but happy to remember a recent day when Clark's same infectious laugh delighted me as I watered and he played in the spray.

He is having trouble getting along with Melody, our chicken, who gives him a serious peck when he sticks his finger near her. Thank heaven the little doggies were so friendly!

chezzie on the lookout

Last night Chezzie called us just before 11:00pm. She was worried about our well-being. That would be because she was watching a tornado drive up 441. Of course, we were aware that quite a storm was going on. Doug had only come from church meeting just half an hour before. But we were not aware of the strength and magnitude of this particular storm. Cherylyn mentioned that it was throwing down rain at the rate of 13 inches an hour. Thankfully, it did not rain for an hour, but we did get a significant amount of rain. The tornado landed just a few miles from our home. Doug walked the 10 block path of destruction and devastation this morning. He chatted with our senator (who told him that he was supporting Mitt Romney, btw). Since the cleanup efforts were well in hand they decided that the church would not send a team. In spite of the fact that 50 homes were damaged including 30 that are uninhabitable, no one was hurt. That was a blessing.

school days

So I have been working...full time. Just for journaling purposes, I should probably recap the past few weeks.
1. One week before school started, the teacher who transfered to RoundLake to be my teaching partner took another job. I could hardly feel bad. We never even met.
2. One week after school started, Kathy Chestnut was hired. She is a friend of Mary Gronlund's and practically lives at the school anyway. You may remember her from a previous blog.
3. She worked for less than a week, I think it was four days to be exact. Her two year old was having daycare issues and she quit.
4. The job gets posted again.
5. My prayers are answered when someone applies for the job who seems really great.
(She went online looking for a job for a relative and saw a part-time job. She had a baby in the spring so she was just planning on subbing this year because she didn't want to work full-time. She was very happy for the opportunity.)
6. It takes a few days for the school to get the paperwork done. They call her yesterday and tell her she has to officially apply for the job online, even though they are definately hiring her.
7. But the job posting had already lapsed. So now, the job has to be reposted, which only happens once a week.
8. After which, she can apply for the job and the school can access her information and hire her.
9. Did I mention that the principal himself called HR today to no avail?
10. THE GOOD NEWS: My homeschooler YW have been coming into class and helping me. That has been a huge blessing. Thank heaven for them.

things that go bump in the night

Living in a big house in the little woods has its upsides and downsides. One of the main downsides, of course, is the wildlife that occasionally comes in the house for what they deem a more hospitable living environment. Little do they know how truly unwelcome they are and what the consequences will be, with the exception of the baby bat that got returned to its mom. We have spurned cohabitation with rats, mice, lizards, spiders, cockroaches and possums.

Recently, I told my husband that I thought something was living in the food storage underneath the bed. He closed the room up and took the food storage out and checked out the entire area and found nothing. Hmmmmm.

A few nights later, or actually it was early morning...I hear IT again. Doug is downstairs and I yelled to him to come up since I was afraid to even leave my bed. What if I stepped on IT?

There is only about a five foot U-shaped pathway around the bed. He came in and closed the bedroom door. It was still completely dark. Then he closed the closet door and both bathroom doors all of which open into the bedroom. He sits on the bed.

rustle, rustle

rustle, rustle, rustle

Then it is very quiet for a bit. And then there was the biggest loudest thump, breathing, moving sound that you could possible imagine. Doug looks at me and says, "You have got to be kidding me!"

I am near tears. "I am so afraid," I say.

He puts me into the bathroom and then follows. Then he turns on the bathroom light hoping that it will shed at least a little light into the bedroom. He is stretching and looking, mostly keeping himself in the bathroom behind the door. Stretching and looking again.

And then he sees IT.

"Shooter, what are you doing in here?"

Doug ultimately finds that the back door is wide open, and we figure it probably has been most of the night. I just hope that the other "IT" left when the big dog came in.

We only have one question...how was it possible that Doug could come in and walk all around the bedroom and close all those doors and not run into the dog? Very weird.

well done B

Brianna Carter

Language Arts

Florida Virtual School

goodbye Berges

Dylan, Megan, Kirsty

Tonight the Berge kids are going home. We have loved having them stay with us. They said that their favorite things about staying here were:

5. Playing the Wii

4. The comfy beds

3. The antiqueness

2. The food (with specific mention of waffles, eggs and bacon, chicken and rice and macaroni and cheese)

and without a doubt

1. Playing on the tubes at the lake

labor day

Yes, well, what did you think we were going to do for labor day?

sunday night

This week we have done schoolwork, and I am pleased that I still remember how to do some algebra. We have cleaned the house, and I am grateful for my wonderful helpers. We have played very hard, and this are a group of water lovers. Today we fasted and worshipped and tonight everyone is relaxing.

saturday adventures

The first crew up on Saturday morning were the golfers. Doug, Tanner, John and Mecedes left at 7:00. Brianna was next out the door at 8:30 to go up to Gainsville with the Teets family to watch Gator Football. After breakfast, Zack and Kirsty decided to try out the Airhead tube. They were a great pair! And I never would have guessed the strength and stamina of those two. At lunchtime, we all went over to the Ingalls house for Roxanne's very own homemade and extraordinarily delicious pizza. We met up with the Bush family there. Ultimately, we all headed back to the lake. John decided it was time to learn to ski on one. This is a picture of us returning after he had a little too much of the lake to drink.

I was quite pleased that I was able to pull Kevin Bush. He is quite the skier!

Oh, but the day was not over until we had dinner at Tijuana Flats and then back to the house for BYU football and games.

I loved it all, and I was very, very tired!