We had a good weekend. It was my birthday Saturday and we went to a shower for Weston Hadlock's fiancee Deanna Schroeder. They had a birthday cake for me also and sang happy birthday. Dad and I took time out and went to a open house to see Ray Davidson, a friend of his from when I was little. He used to read a story with so much expression that I still have a soft spot in my heart for him.

Mom and Dad gave Larry and I some money for our birthdays so we went to the Melting Pot Restaurant in Salt Lake City. We spent way too much money for one meal but it was so fun for the two of us to have an intimate dinner of Fondue.

When we got home Maren and Landon came over and gave me a blouse and skirt that they had picked out and Larry a classic movie. It was fun to have them over.

Then Erick and Heather came home and announced that they were planning on getting married on December 20, 2008 in the Manti Temple. We were all so excited because we approve of the match. Erick was lined up with Heather by his step-sister Michelle.

The first picture is a picture of Abby taken on Friday. The second picture is Maren and Guage on his blessing day. The third picture is of Ashton on the trampoline.

We just arrived home after Gauge Even Gentile's baby blessing. He was blessed by his father Landon. There was a lot of family on either side there for the event. Landon and Maren had a luncheon at Landon's parents for all those that attended. The grilled hamburgers and polish sausage and hot dogs. There was lots of fruit and salads and cake's and treats. It was a fun day for everyone to be together. It was a good day and did not rain but it has been hot. Evan and Shirley's house was air-conditioned so that helped. They had set up several shade maker's outside on the patio so that was nice also.

All of the brothers and sisters that are close here in Utah were there except Jake. Jake had an emergency appendectomy a week ago last Friday and was recovering from that when he became ill this morning and started throwing up. He has been going to his Annual Training at Camp Williams this week and doing light duty but he got sick this morning at Camp Williams and had to come home. Nikki said they thought it was food poisoning. She came up with the kids for the blessing and then went immediately home. She said that Jake is feeling somewhat better and was able to eat something this evening and keep it down.

Holly was not able to come down because she had to work. BJ came down and was having fun with the kids. BJ called this week and was able to get a discount set up for Larry and I on our Verizon account through the school district. I appreciated his willingness to help us with that.

My phone has been a problem this week anyway. A week ago I dropped it in the dish water when I was talking to Kirsten. I got it out immediately and tried to get it dried out and we took the battery out. The next day it worked for a half a day and then it quit for good. Luckily it had insurance on it and I was able to order a new one but they were not able to retrieve any of my data from the phone so I am having to start over on everything. I am hoping that my pictures were saved from my card but I have not looked yet. They do not show on the phone so I am thinking that maybe they were not saved on there. I am learning the hard way that I need to back up data.

I finished up my Master's classes for the summer at the U of U. I was taking website design and Adobe Photoshop and Flash and Fireworks. I still have a lot to learn but I was able to start a website about Grandpa Jenkins's stories that he wrote and told to us as children. It is at www.larsejenkins.com. Grandpa seemed to be please with the beginnings of the website. Brinli and Ashton liked the Flash illustration of "The Little Seal". Brinli came in and asked me to read her the story yesterday and then after I read it she said,"I want to see Grandpa" so she has liked it.

Larry's sister Judy Trolinger was here for a week to visit last week. We went to the Genealogy Conference at BYU for four days. It was fun to have her here and get to know her better. I felt bad because both Larry and I had homework to do somedays to finish up our classes and so Judy studied the things from the conference while we did that. We were able to go to Temple Square one night and out to dinner with Michelle's family and we had most of the family over for dinner on Sunday the 3rd of August and had August birthday's while Judy was here. She got to go with me to Tooele to see Jake in the hospital so she got the tour of part of Utah and the Great Salt Lake.

Nathan and Sara are going to St. Louis, Missouri this week. Sara's brother Matthew is getting married this week and they are going for the wedding. David started school last Thursday so he will miss a week of school.

I went to Herriman and got Ashton on Friday and we went to a primary activity here in Kaysville that I had to go to and then he came home with me and jumped on the tramp and played with the kitty's and fed the fish. We had lunch and then Kyle came over about the time that we were leaving to take him back. He rode with us to pick up Larry from work and then we went to the park in Herriman that Ashton likes. We were able to visit with Jake and Nikki for a while and spend some time with them. Then we met Maren and Landon for dinner in Salt Lake City because the traffic was so bad going into Davis county because of construction.

Michelle and Daniel are home schooling their kids this year. They started school last week. The kids seem to like it and there is a lot of curriculum that is available to work with. They also went to Daniel's Uncle's cabin this weekend on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. They are going to Yellowstone Park next weekend so they are getting in a lot of travel.

Jeff and Misty are busy with life. Jeff works everyday while the kids and Misty have explored some of the new parks. They have found a few that they really like. Leah starts kindergarten this fall around September 2nd or 3rd. They are growing up fast.

Kirsten and Jon are still fighting the custody battle with Jon's ex. Kirsten is working two jobs right now so is often stressed. She had a headache for three days last week. She ended up being sick for Stephen and Ashton's wedding. Kyle starts school in two weeks. School starts here on the 25th of August. He was excited Friday because he got the teacher he wanted.

Erick spends all of his time at Heather's or has Heather over here. He said the other night that she was a keeper because she liked onion rings but that is about as serious as he has got with us. He did go to Flaming Gorge with his ward on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. He said that he had a good time learning to water ski while he was there but he came home early on Saturday.

I start preparing to teach school next week on the 18th and then like I said school starts on the 25th. The University of Utah starts that week also so I will have class on Thursday of that week. Erick will start then also. Landon has been accepted to Utah Valley University in an online aviation program but I don't know if he has started yet. Larry starts one class as soon as the next one is over. They have homework that they have to complete for the first day of class. A lot of it is online. He is taking a statistics class this time and is not enjoying it but he will survive.

They talked about the blessings of Family Home Evening in church yesterday. I decided that if Larry is gone on Monday's with class and Erick is usually at his ward family home evening that I could spend the time writing in the blog and keeping in contact with other family members.

Erick is actually downstairs watching a movie with a girl that Michelle lined him up with and he has now gone out with three times. He has been busy drawing deck plans in his spare time this week for Kirsten and Jon. They need to rebuild their deck on the back of their house that collapsed this spring. Erick also found a house to rent that is located in Bountiful. He will have two roommates from his ward. He is planning to move out around the 1st of September.

BJ is on his Annual Training somewhere on an island in the Indian ocean right now. He has been gone since the 5th of July. BJ is supposed to be home this Thursday but they are worrying about a tsunami near Singapore that may delay things. Holly is adjusting to a new nursing job.

Maren and Landon just got back from a trip to St. George and Las Vegas for work. She had the kids pictures taken in St. George and will be sending out announcements about Gauge Evan Gentile shortly. I thought she was really together (or crazy) taking a two week old baby on a trip. They let me use Maren's car while they were gone and I was able to get a few more places than usual. I was also able to get my homework done at their house because our computer was in the shop being repaired. They are talking this week about going to Idaho Falls for work. Maren says they stay in nice hotels and Brinlie can swim and play but I am getting old and tired and it sounds like a lot of work to me.

Kirsten and Jon are trying to get their deck rebuilt. They are still fighting a custody battle with Jon's ex-wife over the girls so they are spending a lot of time working on that. They could use your prayers for them. Kirsten is working a second transcription job so I don't know how she finds time for anything but they do like to go to the drive-in in Riverdale with Maren and Landon. They all went to see "Batman" this last weekend and liked it.

Jeff's birthday was last week on Friday. Larry talked to him and he sounded like he was doing well on his job. He took a lot of time off to help Grammy after her surgery so he doesn't have any leave until October he said. They just got back a couple of weeks ago from Kansas where Misty's brother was married around the 4th of July.

Jake and Nikki's new baby Abby is really growing. She has really filled out in the last two month's. They were all sick about a week an a half ago. We had a cousins slumber party at my house for all the cousins over seven years old and Lexie was not able to come because she got sick the morning of the party. They had high fevers. Jake is going on Annual training soon or has already gone. I forgot the dates they told me.

Michelle's family went to Bear Lake last week and had a good time. Michelle and Daniel went to Cayman Islands to celebrate their anniversary this year and left the kids with Daniel's brother and his wife. We had everyone over for June and July birthday's at the beginning of the month and Michelle's was one of them. Last week when they had the shower for Stephen's fiancee they took their kids to the This is the place state park and then Michelle and Hailee came down for the shower for a while.

Nathan called last night and was really tired. He had pulled a 24 hour shift during the week and was still dragging. He and Sara celebrated their wedding anniversary last week by going to "Batman" this weekend also.

Grandma's sister Hilda fell on a family outing and I think they said she ruptured a disk in her back. She will be down for about six weeks. I'm sure she could use our prayers. They said that after she fell she walked down a path from the picnic area they were in. That surprized me.

Weston Hadlock is engaged to a Deanna Schroder or Schrader. If I go back to the email from Annette then I will lose this so I will send you the email. They are getting married on the 26th of September. They are getting married in the Vernal Temple so put that on your calendars now and start planning for it.

Larry's sister Judy is coming up next week and we are going to attend the BYU Genealogy conference the 29th through August 1. We are excited to have her here and will probably have a family dinner so everyone can meet her.

I have been spending a lot of my time on a website I am building for Grandpa Jenkins's stories. Erick and I went down last night and got some pictures from Grandpa and then we got a video from Craig of Grandpa telling the little seal at the family Christmas party last November.

Larry has been really busy with his classes this summer. He stayed home last night so that he could work on his paper for his class tonight. He has a cold but seems to be weathering it pretty well.

We got central air conditioning for the house this summer and it has been a real blessing. Sometimes I get almost too cold.

We have had a busy weekend. Yesterday we went to Herriman to see our granddaughter, Lexie, baptized. Erick and I went and Larry had to work. It was a great service. Their were three girls from the ward that were baptized yesterday. BJ was asked to give a talk on the Holy Ghost. Jacob baptized Lexie and confirmed her. The three girls sang the song, "If the Savior stood beside me". Lexie is normally kind of shy but she sang out beautifully and not shyly. I love that primary song. Today we went down and Jacob blessed Abigail Dawn their new daughter. Nikki's sister's baby Natalie was also blessed at the same meeting. I felt like I should bear my testimony at the meeting even though it was not my ward. I started to say what I thought I should say but ended up saying some things that were dictated by the spirit about the blessings of having a son who is righteous. I sincerely meant it but it came from the spirit and I knew it was what I was supposed to say.

Both days we went to Nikki's Mom and Dad's house for something to eat after. Yesterday they had a barbecue and today they had meat trays with croissants with lots of yummy desserts. They have a lovely house with lots of luxuries. It is really a nice home. They have a good attitude though. I told Brent he had certainly been blessed and he replied, "Yes, I have lots of children and grandchildren."

Last night we went to see Hailee's dance recital. She had two yesterday but we were only able to go to the one in the evening. She did a jazz dance last night. It as a well produced recital with a theme that made it enjoyable to watch.

Maren and Landon were involved in the wedding of one of Landon's friends yesterday. They went to the wedding in the morning at the Salt Lake Temple and then to the wedding luncheon and then Maren was a bridesmaid and Brinlie a flower girl for the reception. Landon was stressed because he had to be dressed up all day. Brinlie ripped her dress so Maren was exhausted by the time the wedding was over.

Holly and BJ have been down staying with us. They went to Nate Cragun's wedding reception last night and had a good time seeing ward members. Then they went to see the new Narnia movie with Kirsten and Jon and Kyle. They were out until about 1:00 a.m. Even though they were able to sleep in today they were tired going to Herriman.

BJ got me a new phone last week. I have been trying to figure out what it will do. I got the VZ navigator that Verizon has for their phones and have had fun playing with it all week. I was suprised to find out yesterday that when you ask for directions to somewhere it functions like a GPS. So I have had great fun programming in where we need to go and watching it work.

Friday was the last day of school for our school. I was there until about 5:00 p.m. trying to finish up grades and fines they had to be in by Saturday so they could print and send out report cards. I still need to go back and finish checking out tomorrow but school is out. They are remodeling our school the next two years so it is going to be interesting how things work out.

Larry has been busy working on a paper that he needs to complete for his class tomorrow. He has to work with a team and each one does part of the report and then someone has to compile it all together. I laugh at him though. When I stay home to work on homework that is all I can focus on. He stayed home on Wednesday to work on his paper and when I got home he had done all the laundry and cleaned the kitchen. I teased him about it once and he said that he has to do something else to help him think. So I always like the days he has to work hard on school.

Erick hauled me around last Saturday and this Saturday too. He is also good to work on the yard and do other things around the house. He went on a date on Friday with a girl from his ward named Amber. They went on a hike up on the Ogden Canyon trails. He is trying to get in more dating with school out.

Kyle left to go to his dad's today for a month. He is getting so grown up for his eleven years. He came over this last week and had a trophy that he got for soccer and he had been to a team party at Jake's over the top.

I have been learning Dreamweaver 8 in my one class and Adobe Photoshop in my other class for school at the U of U this summer. I have classes on Tuesday and Thursday. Normally Larry comes and picks me up and then takes me to my class then I ride home with a classmate. On Tuesday he called me at 4:00 p.m. and said that he was stuck in traffic. I called Erick and Maren but they were committed to doing something with Erick's old friend Lynette. So I went out and got on the bus and rode down to Salt Lake. At that point I was picked up by Larry and got to class only 10 minutes late. On Wednesday I had an appointment at the U of U with a professor and because Larry had stayed home to work on his paper I tried riding the bus to Salt Lake and picking up the TRAX flex train to the U. I was about 50 minutes late for my appointment but I learned alot about TRAX. I then rode the TRAX back to downtown and took the new Frontrunner train to Davis county home. I could do all that for free because I am a student and can get a UTA pass at the U. It was a real adventure. The next day I took the bus and TRAX to the U of U for my class and got there early because I had learned what I needed to know to catch the right busses and trains so I didn't have to wait so long.

It was cold and rainy last weekend but it has gradually warmed up all week and today it was in the 90's part of the day on the car thermometer.

Well I have after lunch coma so I will finish for now.

I hope everyone is having a good Memorial Day.

Nathan called today and said that they were having warm weather and that they had banana peppers, tomatoes, jalapenos, corn, artichokes, and other things growing in pots at their house. The peppers and Tomatoes are getting ripe! I guess that is an advantage of living in the south. David was excited about the plants and that they had rearranged their house and he had a new room. Isaac told me about a "scary movie" they had gone to see. It turned out to be the new Indiana Jones movie that just came out. They had gone to a drive in. Sammie was not feeling very good today.

Maren and Landon, Kirsten and John and Kyle, and BJ and Holly went to the drive in here last night to watch Indiana Jones also so that must have been the thing to do in our family this week. We tended Brinlie and she was showing me the actions to "Popcorn popping on the Apricot tree." She also had a good time with Uncle Erick on the trampoline. She loves to do "Ring around the rosies" on the tramp.

BJ helped me get a new phone called the Flip phone through his work that I can take pictures with that are 3 megapixel. I spent the day yesterday trying to get that going and working on homework and talking to a sales person for air-conditioning. Erick was nice enough to take me around while Larry was at work.

I was really excited because 11 of 28 of my students passed the state foods test. That is the most I have had pass before in about 8 years of teaching. The average for the test is about 37% that pass with 80% or above so I am within the averages for the state.

Larry and Erick worked really hard in the yard and cleaned off the patic yesterday. It looks better but we have so much to do in the yard still. I am excited though because we are further along on our yard this year than we have ever been. It has been a cold rainy week so that has not helped.

Maren and Landon went to Roosevelt today to be with Landon's family and they passed the old house. They said there are 4 or 5 houses built in the field next to the house. She said that they are right over onto the property line so they look like they are almost on the house.

Jake and Nikki have a lot coming up. Lexie gets baptized at 10:00 a.m. on the 31st of May and then the next day they are going to be blessing Abby at 1:00 p.m.. They will have a dinner at Nikki's parents house because Nikki's sister Heather had a baby two weeks before her that is also going to be blessed.

Michelle and Daniel are going to a family party for his family tomorrow. They needed us to babysit Friday, I think to go to the temple, but we had already made plans to go see Paul so I did not get to talk to her kids this week. Hailee has a dance recital or competition coming up on Saturday I know.

Uncle Paul Christiansen got in a car wreck last week and broke his hip and femur. He has been in intensive care. Pauline said that they are also worried about some blood clots on his brain. I'm sure he could use all of our prayers. Larry and I went down on Friday to try to see him but he did not want to see us. Marcia had already left to go home so we talked to her on the phone. The trip was not wasted though because we had dinner with Grandma and Grandpa Jenkins and had a good talk with them.

Tomorrow is Grandpa Jenkins's family reunion at Jay Neiderhausers in Heber. We are going there and Maren and Landon are meeting us. BJ and Holly are coming down to go with us and Erick is going. I don't know about the others.

They had some great talks today in Sacrament meeting on repentance. The pointed out that unless you have faith in Christ and turn to him you have not truly repented even thought you may have stopped what you are doing. I have found that turning to him for anything always turns out for the best. He is truly there and will answer your prayers if you will just ask.

Well it is past my bedtime. Have a good Memorial Day

This week I was able to catch up on alot of work at school. But last week was a really busy week. Thursday Jacob and Nikki's baby came a month early. She weighed 7 lbs. and 8 oz. and was 19 inches long. They are naming her Abigail Dawn. She is a cute thing. Nikki has some pictures on snapfish.

Last Friday Holly graduated with her associates from Weber in Nursing which apparently is what is an RN now. We went to her graduation on Friday and then went to Salt Lake to see the new baby.

Last Saturday Larry graduated with his Bachelor's Degree in Business Management from the University of Phoenix culminating 6 years of hard work. A picture of those who where there is attached. That evening Jeff and Misty took us to the Roof restaurant in Salt Lake City to celebrate.

This weekend was Mother's Day. Erick and Maren had organized all the kids to help them get Larry and I a new stove for the kitchen. The one that was there was the stove that was in the house and I have never liked it. The new one has ceramic top and electric clean so I am much happier with it. I really appreciated getting it. It is also the Father's Day present for Larry because he does a lot of cooking also. I attached a picture so those who contributed that are far away could see what they paid for.

Well it is past my bedtime. Maren and Landon just came from their trip to Disneyland this week so I had to stop and now it is too late to write much more.

Today I have tried to do something but have not felt like doing anything. It snowed most of the day today but it was a light snow that melted on impact. I think the weather probably was activating my arthritis. Larry and I went to choir and to church. After eating a good breakfast we realized that it was Fast sunday because of General Conference next week so that was frustrating but Larry has to eat anyway because of his diabetes. I felt the spirit at Sacrament meeting despite the fact that I was struggling physically.

Yesterday was an exciting day for two reasons. Maren and Landon and Brinlie were sealed in the Bountiful Temple yesterday. It was a beautiful ceremony and went well. Some people had told Maren that sometimes the children cry but Brinlie was an angel and enjoyed the whole thing. The person who sealed them said that she was amazing! The other reason that the day was exciting was because Larry went into extreme pain after the ceremony and I had to take him to the hospital emergency room. We had visions of a hernia or appendicitis but it turned out to be Kidney stones and after they got some pain medicine in him he has been okay. He even went to church and choir today but he slept some this afternoon. He is supposed to go to a urologist tomorrow to see if they can so more as the stone has not passed to his bladder.

Larry is graduating from the University of Phoenix on May 3 at 10:00 a.m. I am really proud of him. He has earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Management. He is now working on a Master's in Business Administration he is supposed to be finished with that next year.

Jeff called today and they are coming for Larry's graduation on the 3rd of May. They wanted us to go out to dinner that night with them. Grammy is coming also. I thought that was nice of her. Jeff said it snowed there today so the kids were thrilled. They really like it in Seattle.

Nathan is busy just trying to learn to fly. He was able to get an extension so he can retake his test he was worrying about. David had a school program this week. Isaac is getting potty trained and he spent about 15 minutes last Monday talking to me on the phone so he is really getting to be a talker. Sammy is trying to walk. Sara is trying to hold it all together.

BJ has been complaining that he didn't have a job in the ward they are in so the Lord listened and today he was called to be the Finance Secretary to the Bishop. He was feeling a little overwhelmed but he will do okay. Holly is busy preparing to graduate this spring. She will graduate on the 2nd or 3rd of May at Weber. We are praying for the 2nd so it is not the same day as Larry's graduation. but whatever comes we will work something out.

Kirsten has been busy trying to do extra work at night. I think she is really pushing it. Jon works from 3 to midnight so she is alone with Kyle and feels like she has the time. Kyle has a ballroom dance competition on April 18th at 7:00 p.m. if any one would like to come. The did really well in the fall and took first place.

We had Michelle and Dan and the kids over for dinner last Sunday. They we all played phase 10 for a while. We had a good time. Maren and Landon ended up coming also so Brinlie was able to play with Kallise and we all had a good visit. Nathan also called and we were able to talk to him.

Friday night we tended Michelle's kids while they went to an adult ward activity. The kids are fun. Ethan always wants to play something on the super nintendo that we have or the computer. Hailee usually visits more. She was really hyper but it felt good because she hasn't felt good for a while and it was the first time in a long time she seemed like herself. Jaron and Kallise went for the cookies but I didn't have any. So I fed them all some of our Easter candy. Jaron and Hailee also ate a TV dinner so they must be growing.

Erick has been working and going to school a lot so he is seldom home. He did go to several ward activities this weekend, so he wasn't working all weekend. His friend Lynnette got engaged to someone else so he was suffering withdrawal for awhile but he is finding some other girls to date.

Aunt Marva Neiderhauser fell flat on her face on Friday and broke her nose and really banged up her face so she called and was not able to come to Maren's sealing. We need to pray for her.

Kathy and Kelly Frandsen came for the sealing so I told Maren that must be a sign that her dad was pleased. Kathy is John's niece.

Well it is past my bedtime when I get up so early. Hope to be writing more again before next month but who knows?

Larry is watching the Super Bowl and working on a paper for his class. I laughed because he decided he did not want to go to choir because he thinks he does not sing well enough. Well today they called him to be the Choir president for our ward. He accused me of having something to do with it but it was just the Lord saying "Uhhem".

I have felt better this week. I am somewhat approaching normal. My knees are doing very well but I am just tired. I panic yesterday because I realized that I was supposed to be reading six chapters for my Master's class and I thought I only had one to read the last three weeks so we are in fast forward trying to catch up.

We bought a snow blower this week so Erick won't be so overwhelmed with school and work and the snowstorms everyother day. Larry and I felt like we were helped by providence to find one because he went to three places and everyone said there are no more even in the warehouses. The Larry found one on the floor at Home Depot that they did not think they had and was able to purchase that. He actually came home and did the eight inches we got on Friday morning. It was beautiful yesterday but it is snowing a lot again today so it probably will not be a waste of money.

Last Sunday we celebrated Brinlie's birthday at our house. It was a week late because they were all in Hawaii on her birthday. Maren worked really hard and decorated a birthday cake and got all the food and it was just here because we have a basement for the grandkids to go to. Jimmy and Shelley Coray and their kids, were here along with all our family except the ones out of state. Brinlie had a good time and we all had a good visit. At the end when everyone was getting ready to go Holly got a text from a friend telling her that President Hinckley had died so we all got online and turned on the TV to see if it was true, which it was.

Last night they celebrated Kyle's birthday at Classic Skating. We had Pizza and Brownies with pop at Kirsten and Jon's and then everyone helped take the kids to Classic Fun Center. They spent their time Bouncing on the air blow-ups and playing lazer tag. Larry and I watched all the coats and purses for about 3 hours while everyone else dealt with their kids. I was too tired to do anything else. Kyle's birthday is actually this Wednesday the 6th of February.

Larry had to work all day yesterday and so did Erick but Erick was able to watch President Hinckley's funeral while he worked on the computer. I was at home and spent time exercising and watching the funeral. We also had our basement furnace switch break so I was waiting for the repair man for part of the time. It was a wonderful funeral. Lots of good stories and lessons for everyone and a time of rejoicing in all that President Hinckley has done. I was glad they had it on the television because I was too tired to go anywhere. It was a beautiful day also for the funeral procession and graveside service. Larry said I paid too much for the switch (to the furnace) but that is what he gets for leaving me to take care of it.

Erick and Maren and Landon have been painting her old room downstairs for me. It was Erick's Christmas present to me. They finished it and showed it to me last Monday. It was a surprize. The painted it a sunny orange so it is very bright. They said that when Brinlie saw them putting the color on the undercoat that she said, "You're coloring!" They are planning on putting my sewing supplies in there and maybe the exercise equipment.

I called Grandma and Grandpa Jenkins and Grandma said they had taken her to the emergency room with what they thought was a heart attack but it wasn't. She wouldn't let them do any tests on her heart but she was worried because her cholestoral was a little high when they went to a health fair in Lehi.

Sara met her mom and went to Nashville this weekend for the funeral of a high school friend and to see family. David got to go to a Pizza place to make pizza for a field trip this week. Nathan said that he was pretty excited when he came home. Isaac has had an ear infection. Nathan is still learning to fly.

Daniel painted the entry way to their house while Michelle was at Kyle's party. He is leaving soon for 8-10 days of working in California to train another person. He gets to come home for Valentines but may have to go back after that. Michelle was taking him to the airport tonight. Kallise did not like the jumping at the party but the rest of the kids did. Michelle had to take her to another activity called the pirates. Michelle just called and had a flat tire by Sam's Club so Larry had to go help her.

Jake was busy trying to program a GPS system he got for his phone at the party last night. Nikki had to work. He said that she is feeling pretty good most of the time but not all the time with the pregnancy. Lexie and Ashton both had fun jumping at the party. Lexie missed the lazer tag because the had to wait so late to go through.
The had 12 inches of snow this morning and the snow plows had not been out so their Stake President canceled their Stake Conference, so he said they had a church snow day.

I haven't talk to Jeff and Misty for a while. They do not answer tonight so I assume they are having a good time somewhere. We got pictures from them of the family for Christmas that are really cute in frames from Seattle.

Kirsten and Jon had worked hard for Kyle to have a good party. They had some of Jon's family and some of ours there. They are working hard to implement the Total Money Makeover concepts and making some good head way.

Erick is trying to work his forty hours a week plus go to school and help us out with snow and painting. He did take time to go to a dance activity with some people from his ward last night and enjoyed part of it but a lot of the weekends he is working Friday night and Saturday trying to get his hours in. He was grateful to get the snowblower even though he told me he thought we needed other things more.

BJ was the top sales person at his station this last month so he is feeling good about that. He and Holly have been busy with school and work. They have no TV so they have plenty of time for homework. He was telling me that they do not plow the streets very good in Logan and they have had a lot of snow. He said that the streets were all unplowed on Monday morning when he had to go to class.

Maren and Landon went to see BJ and Holly on Friday and got Maren a new phone and took them a table that Maren and Landon did not need anymore. She said they had a good time. They went to dinner

Brinlie was really good the night they came to paint. She sat on the bed and colored and watched Beauty and the Beast. I was really tired but maybe she knew that because she usually is a lot more active. She is starting to talk in sentences. She was a real nightmare last night at the party. Maren was tired because she had worked all day and had a lot of clients and she wanted to bounce and climb but she could not climb herself. Landon was good to go in with her but she really had a fit when he went into Lazer tag and didn't take her. She was probably tired because it was about 9:30 p.m.

Adrienne and Drayton and their kids came to the party as well which was pretty good considering it was Adrienne's birthday. She had celebrated it the night before. Adrienne is my niece. It was fun to see and spend time with them.

Well Larry was thouroughly disgusted about the Patriots letting the Giants win before he left so he was not happy with the ending but it was exciting to watch.

I am going to bed.

This week has been one of the hardest of my life. I went back to school and I did okay but I really don't have the stamina for all day yet so I came home ready to go to bed every night. It was a busy week and coming back from a substitute is always hard and this time was no different. We were finishing up sewing in the other teacher's room and students were supposed to be finished by Tuesday but they were about three days behind so we had to push hard to get out of the sewing room. It is also the end of the term so I have to finish up grades and everyone wanted to know what they were missing and I did not know somethings. Friday I was really hurting when I came home. I still have grades to finish before Tuesday so I am glad for the holiday.

Larry and Erick were sick all week too. Larry has not been that sick since I have known him. He told Michelle today he has not been that sick ever. He went to bed when we got home Monday and did not get out except to go to the Doctor and the bathroom until today. He went to church today and teased me this morning so I think he is on the mend but he is still not talking good. He has had a bad cough and other complications. The doctor thought he had pertussus but when the antibiotic did not help he decided that it was probably viral. Erick stayed home all day on Friday and seems to be doing okay now but he was not feeling well during the week. He seemed to have the same thing, a bad cough etc.

Nathan has called a few times. He sent me a picture of David's favorite shirt that I will try to post. It looks like maybe they got it when they went to Georgia to see Amber and Nate Robison. I have posted a link to Sara's blog that will help you to see what she is up to. She has an exciting blog. I don't know where she finds all these things. David talked to me tonight. He was all excited about a game they can play online with a virtual pet.

Michelle and Daniel were just over and Daniel helped me to figure out how to post the links. It is easier than it used to be. There is a link to Daniel's blog. Michelle is all caught up in controversies at the charter school the kids are in. She has spent a lot of time talking to Larry about the situation. She is president of the parent council and is really getting her introduction to the politics of school. They are taking their kids for an overnight retreat tomorrow to one of the condos they have.

Jake and Nikki are having a girl it looks like from her blog. She has posted the ultrasound pictures if you are interested. She is due in May so she says that she is past the half way mark. Ashton has been sick with this stuff also Jake said. Lexie is back in school this month.

Jeff and Misty sent pictures of the family this week. The kids are growing so big. Leah is going to have her tonisls and adenoids out on the 24th of January. Misty has a blog now also so she has posted more about that. Her's is the one about "under the table and dreaming." They are going to California soon to see Grammy and they are planning to come for Larry's graduation in May.

Kirsten and Jon are working opposite hours lately. Jon got a promotion to Journeyman but it means he has to work from 3:00 p.m. until midnight. Kirsten is still working from 8:00 to 5:00 p.m. Kyle has a pinewood derby this week that they are building a car for. They had the girls this weekend so they have been busy.

Erick is really busy with school and work this semester. He came home a little overwhelmed the first day of school but he is doing better now, he had Larry give him a blessing. He has had to work late on some days and Saturdays to make his hours lately but he is lucky to have a job that will let him do that. He had a good time last week at a ward family home evening bowling night he went to so he does get out some. Lynette is up tonight, but they are just friends.

BJ and Holly have been busy with work and school also the last three weeks. BJ was down last weekend for his Naval Reserve so we got to see him for a few minutes. He had to get a camaflauge uniform ready to wear last weekend so he stopped in to sew on the name tags. He said that they were able to get a laptop computer with some of the school loan money they had so they have that for school.

Maren and Landon and Brinlie have been in Hawaii for the last week with Landon's family. That is the present they got from Evan and Shirley for Christmas. She has called a couple of times and they picked a good time to go. It is in the 70's over there and it has been in the 20's and 30's here. It is supposed to snow again this weekend sometime. They have had a big house to live in that the family rented. She said that Brinlie has been good but she has had her moments when she wanted to be down and they had to hold her and she was not happy, like on a boat out sightseeing for whales.

Well I will post David's picture and call it a night.

I just pulled my TED hose on for the night. I swear they make your wear those after surgery because they want you to get your arobic exercise trying to put them on. I have been grateful they have not bothered me as much as last surgery. They seem to make my leg feel better. I have been trying to not take my extra percocet today and for the most part I was successful except for once this afternoon. It has been good to see that I may be able to get off the pain medications without having to go cold turkey and get sick. I feel like the spirit is helping me to know what to do and to have the strength. But I called Nathan to wish him a happy birthday and started crying telling him about the day so I am still on the edge.

Nathan is 34 today. It is hard to believe that. I don't feel old except for the arthritis.

We had the family Christmas party last night. It was great. Everyone except Nikki was able to come. We missed her. We had lots of food and good conversation. Larry and I were able to give the kids their presents and I was able to enjoy it better than I think I would have at Christmas. Everyone seemed to have a good time. Larry and I didn't fix anything except a turkey but we have plenty of food for the week that was left here.

Erick had an Italian dinner for some girls in his ward on Saturday evening. He always fixes enough for 15 even though there are six coming so we also have plenty of that to eat this week.

Larry was home all day today working on a presentation for his final class for his bachelor degree. He will have it offically once this class is finished. He will not be able to walk for his graduation until the first weekend in May but I am really proud of his accomplishment and hope that many of you can plan to be at his graduation in May.

Maren came over with Brinlie in the afternoon and we had a good talk. She never seems to get upset when I tell her the same stories over and over. They gave me a spoon display so she helped me get up the display this afternoon with all the spoons that my kids have brought me over the years. I was surprized at how many I had but now I need you all to bring me spoons from where you go around the world to fill up the case.

I have been thinking lately how lucky I am to have such a good family. I appreciate all they do for me and help me to learn. I am grateful that many of you are getting blogs that help us to know what is going on in your lives. Thank you for being good human beings. I appreciate all that you do to help me and love me.

I was able to sleep last night from 9:30 p.m. until 4:30 a.m. I considered that a miracle and felt like I had been blessed by the Lord for taking time to say my prayers even though I was hurting a lot. Larry got up at about the time I went to bed and put ice in the cooler wrap for my leg. He had been asleep but he got up and did that and it helped to keep the swelling down. I have felt like I am getting more control over the pain but I am still on the pain pills. There was a freedom in my spirit today and I didn't feel the pain as much as yesterday. I wrapped presents for the family Christmas party this Sunday, and read my email and worked on the budget. It is amazing what I can accomplish while laying on the bed with my leg in a machine.

Well, It says that the last time I published anything on the blog was October so I guess I have been rather deliquent. We had problems with only one computer working online but we have solved that problem so today I can work online from my bed where I am recouperating from another knee replacement, this time on my left knee.

I had the surgery on December 17th. So it has been about 13 days. I have done very well. I have been walking on it well from almost the start. I have a better pain medication for me that does not give me anxiety attacks so that has been helpful.

Larry as usual has been very helpful. He works hard to make sure everything I need is in place before he leaves to go to work. He is really patient with me and does laundry and dishes so that we can have what we need clean.

Erick has been good to help also. He fixed dinner for Christmas with Larry's help and he has kept the walks shoveled with all the storms we have been having for the season in Utah.

Erick made his famous Italian lasagna for Christmas dinner. BJ and Holly were here and Maren and Landon came also. Maren made Baklava for dessert so it was a great dinner. Jake was able to come up earlier in the afternoon with the kids while Nikki worked but they left to have dinner with her in the evening.

Kirsten and her family and Maren and her family came on Christmas Eve long enough to read the Christmas story from the scriptures and unwrap "the" Christmas Eve present and then they went home to prepare for Santa coming.

We all pitched in and bought Larry a laptop computer that he can use for school for his Christmas present. We gave it to him early on the 16th when it came so he could use it for his classes. He has needed a computer ever since the last laptop whe had died. Larry bought me a better watch for Christmas and we also got the wireless internet for at home so we can use the laptop at home.

We are not haveing the family "Christmas" Party until next Sunday because of the conflict in the family on times we could get together. Jeff and Nathan and their famiies will not be able to come anyway because of the distance they live away. I told Kirsten she was in charge this year because of my needing to recover from surgery so that is when she decided that we could all get together.

Michelle and Daniel went to California for Christmas to spend the time with "Grammy" Marie. While they were there they got to see "Wicked" and they went to Disneyland. They got together with Marie's family on Christmas Eve and opened presents.

Nathan and Sara had Christmas with her Mom in Alabama and then they left at the end of the week to go to Tenneesse to have Christmas with Sara's dad and all the family. Nathan was excited because he passed the first third of his flight lessons before the break for Christmas. The boys are all growing and learning to talk better everyday. They spent alot of time telling me about their Christmas. Isaac (or Ike-Ike) took the phone and took me on a tour of the apartment, showing me all they had for Christmas. It was not a camera phone however.

Jake helped me get the computer for Larry through the Military exchange. We were able to get a backpack too go with it with the Air Force Logo on it. He ordered it and brought it up on the 16th and wrapped it for us and then we were able to get together at Kirstens house and give it to him. Nikki has to work a lot of night lately so we do not get to see her as much as we would like. Ashton spent more time talking to me on Christmas than he has for quite a while. Lexie likes to chase Uncle Erick and Uncle BJ and Aunt Holly.

Matthew had his third birthday on the 6th of December. They went to Chuck-e-Cheeses for his birthday and then got together latter for a Family party at Misty's mom's I think. Jeff called on Christmas and had the kids sing Merry Christmas to Larry. We had a long talk with him.

Kirsten made quilts for all of her kid's beds and for the bed she and Jon have for Christmas. She had all of us help her on the 16th with Kyle's quilt. She almost had bitten off more than she could chew......but she got them done. They had the kids for Christmas and the first part of the holiday but they have been at their other parent for the last part of the vacation and so that is part of the reason our party is so late. Jon's brother Allen has been living with them for a while but he is leaving this week to go to Iraq with the Air Force.

Erick put up the Christmas decorations for us this year. We have been kind of scrooges because of all we had to do with work and school. It looks nice and I was grateful that he would take the time to do it for us. He is looking for things to do on the house lately now that school is out and he has time to worry about it before he gets the next set of classes. I guess we will leave the Christmas decorations up until next week so we can have them for the party.

BJ took Holly to Las Vegas for her birthday and they went to the Bowl game there that BYU played against UCLA. He was thrilled with the game. Especially the ending where they were able to block the kick by UCLA to win the game 17-16. He called us at the end of the game about as excited as a person can get. He said that he almost got killed though because their tickets were in the UCLA section. They came home through the storm on Christmas Eve and were only an hour and a half late for Holly's famiy Christmas party because of the snow.

Maren is just getting over a cold that she had for Christmas. They had a lot of fun getting ready for Christmas. She really had fun buying the presents that she gave this year. But she was really proud of the fact they did not overspend. Brinlie is really growing. She is getting taller and talking all the time. She repeats everything that people say to her. Landon is really excited about the snow so he can go snowboarding but Maren is sad because she cannot go while she is pregnant. They are expecting in July.

Well the wedding is over and BJ and Holly are officially married. It went well yesterday. It rained as predicted and snowed at times but not so much that we could not do what needed to be done. We went to the temple at 9:30 a.m. The sealer that they had, John Kunz, was very funny but had some great messages behind his humor. There was a great spirit in the room and I think Holly is the first bride I have seen cry (I hope for joy) as they were being sealed. She looked beautiful and BJ was radient. It was really raining when we got out of the temple so we took a lot of the pictures downstairs by the atrium that the Bountiful temple has. It cleared up during the wedding luncheon so BJ and Holly were able to go back to get a few pictures outside.

We had the wedding luncheon at the Eldredge Manor. It was really nice and a comfortable atmosphere. They had a great video player over the fireplace so everyone could see the video that Amanda had made of their growing up and growing together days. The fireplace was lit to match the weather. The food was good and we had almost every place setting covered so that relieved a lot of worries.

We drove to Logan for the reception about 4:30 p.m. It was really hailing around North Ogden and it was snowing in Sardine Canyon. I thought maybe it would continue to storm all night as had been predicted but people coming through the line later said it was not bad and that it had dried out. We drove home on mostly dry roads. I apparently snowed three inches in Kaysville during the time of the reception so there was only one brave couple from the ward that made it. Several famiy members like Kimo Coray and Craig and Corinne came and said it was not bad after you got past Kaysville/Layton area.

The Alumni House in Logan is a great place for a reception. We had a good time. Amanda took more pictures of the family. Hopefully the pictures will be on her website soon so you can all see them. Erick took some pictures she didn't get like of BJ and Holly trying to get into their car after the wedding whem all of their brothers and sisters and friends had decorated and stuffed it with ballons and wrapped it in cellophane. Maybe I can get him to help me post some of those this week. I think that everyone we knew from Logan area came to the reception and there were alot of people from Holly's hometown of Cove there.

We went to dinner with Kirsten and Jon and Maren and Landon and their children after the wedding reception at a place called the Coppermill on Main Street in Logan. We had a good talk and it was good food. Larry and I ordered a 12 oz. Prime Rib to share. When we got it, it was about 2 inches thick and looked more like 22 oz. I was sure glad we were sharing. Even Larry could not finish his piece.

I was worried that the drive home would be bad. But it was mostly dry all the way. The three inches of snow in Kaysville had even melted and the streets were just wet. I was worried about whether BJ and Holly had made it to Park City where they were going okay so I called and they were already in Park City when we got home. (They did not stop to eat.) I felt like we had been really blessed because the weather men had been predicting snow all night and Sunday morning. We need the water but I was grateful that it did not snow as much as expected.

We had all our family to the wedding except Nathan and his family and Jeff and his family. Some of the highlights for me were watching Hailee, Lexie, Kallise and Brinlie twirl in their dresses in front of the line. Brinlie layed on the floor and put her legs in the air and kicked to her hearts content with her dress up above her face and her diaper waving in the air. Kyle looked so handsome and he was able to wear one of the regular pink ties that all the guys had. Ashton talked to me like he liked me and told me about a car he has at his other grandma's that he has to have a helmet for. Hailee kept sitting by me at the luncheon and wanting a hug. Uncle Erick was the offical babysitter at the luncheon and was playing with the kids tossing them in the air especially Jaron. Erick introduce Lynnette as his "mutual friend" at the luncheon so his siblings teased him all day because they think they are in love and just do not want to admit it to each other. Michelle kept telling Ethan to sit on his knees for one of the pictures and he would do that. Finally she communicated that he needed to kneel and not sit to be seen.

It was good to see Ray and Sally Hunsaker, they were some of our best friends from when John and I first got married. I was glad that Aunt Marva and Uncle Charles finally had to just drive across town to be at the wedding. They have been so good to travel long distances to other weddings we have had. Steve and Christy Kropp and Ben were there. All of my brothers and sisters or part of their family made it to either the luncheon or the reception so that was nice. Nathan called BJ at 5:45 a.m. to talk so BJ got an early start.

Well Maren and Landon are here to play games with us so see you soon.

Well I have not posted for a long time. We only have one computer that I can get to work on the internet and I can't make myself move the other one so I can get to a computer on Sundays. Larry was using it a lot but then they changed his class to Monday and he doesn't have one until the 22 of October so he doesn't need it so much right now for homework. He got all of his homework done for the first class of a new series and rushed down there for his class on the Tuesday following his last class and when he got there he found out he did not have class for three weeks and this next class is on Monday so he is set when that day comes.

We had a great party when BJ came home. Larry barbequed several things and we had the trimmings to go with it. We sang Happy Birthday to Daniel and had a good time eating cake and lemon squares with ice cream. Holly stayed the weekend and we have some good pictures of her and BJ together if I can get them from BJ.

So now it is October and we have October birthdays to celebrate today. Kirsten decided to have it at her house because Brooke and Jon both have October birthdays and she is also inviting Jon's family. We are going up there at 5:00 p.m. It is also Jake and Leah's birthday in October. Jake with be here after he gets off his weekend guard and we had to mail Leah her birthday now that they are in Washington. We talked to her around her birthday and she said it rains alot in Washington but she likes it there.

We got all the dresses for the wedding but now Nathan and Sara and Jeff and Misty cannot come to the wedding. We were disappointed but it is fairly expensive and Jeff and Nathan could not get off of work.

The family had a shower for Holly last weekend and they got a lot of groceries for their kitchen. She has had a couple of other showers also and the wedding presents are starting to trickle in from people who do not want to go to Logan for the wedding reception. And Holly's extended family does not want to come to Bountiful for the wedding dinner!

Scott Hermansen my nephew is in the LDS Hospital in a drug induced coma and has been for the last 10 days. He has some rare syndrome that they have just discovered in the last few years that turns the tissues in the body paper thin and makes it so it is very hard to breath. Because it starts out like a cold it is hard to diagnois and he has been going to doctors for about 10 months trying to find out what he has. A doctor in St George finally diagnoised it correctly and sent him to LDS for a treatment but when they did the treatment they tore his trachea so they had to put him in the coma to heal after the surgery they did to repair it. I saw Mallory, his wife, yesterday and she said that they were hopeful that he was healing and coming out of the coma, although the disease has a two to five year life expectancy after they find it, so the prospects are not good. The family fasted for him today and could use your prayers and contact at this time.

BJ and Holly are eagerly anticipating their wedding. They are getting married at 10:00 a.m. on the 20th of October and then we are having a wedding dinner at Eldrege Manor in Bountiful at noon. The reception is that night at the Alumni House in Logan from 6:30-8:30 p.m. We just got the invitations and got them out this week so you should have received an invitation by now.

Erick has had Fall break from school this week so he has had a little more time. He mowed the lawn and cleaned the downstairs. He brought in the Herbs that he planted in planters and made a nice grouping of them downstairs by the window. So maybe we can have fresh herbs to cook with all winter.

Maren and Landon had a good time in Montana and Yellowstone. Now they are planning to go to Disneyland and then to Las Vegas for Halloween. Landon's business always has a convention in Las Vegas at that time. Brinlie is going to be a pirate and she carries the costume around saying "Pirate, on; Pirate, cute." She is really getting good at talking and singing so you understand her.

Kirsten has been going shopping with me helping me pick out clothes for Kennedy for the wedding and clothes for me for the wedding. She had some good ideas for helping me to look "with it." Jon is finishing up an internship that will make it easier for him to get a promotion. Kyle is just finishing up soccer. We went to watch him play in the rain about two weeks ago .

I went down to Lexie's soccer game yesterday. It rained but not as bad as the last two weekends. We went to the Artic Cirle and got treats after. Ashton and Lexie had fun playing on the playground there and Lexie let the cat out of the bag that Jake and Nikki are expecting in May. There are some fun pictures of Ashton on Nikki's blog.

Michelle has been busy as usual. The kids are still working on their choir and instrument lessons. Kalisse can say "I love you" now. She is really getting more grown up. Ethan has his last soccer game next week and I didn't make it to one of his games yet so I guess I will have to go in the spring. Daniel says he is still working and mowing the lawn for fun.

Jeff hurt his leg working out so he is hurting. Leah is riding a bike without training wheels now. Matthew is terrorizing Owen by taking away his toys to make him scream. And, Owen is running around and talking more and more. Misty works from 8:00 p.m. until 4:00 a.m. and Jeff works during the days.

Sara's mom is really sick again. Sara mentioned on her blog that she went in the hospital again. Nathan and Sara were fasting for her today. We probably ought to mention her in our prayers also. Nathan is flying helicopters now and trying not to crash them. He has been trying to talk Landon into joining and coming down there to stay. They got an older used car so they would have something else to get around in so Sara is not always stranded. Nathan drives the older car. Sara has some cute pictures of the kids on her blog.

Well it is bedtime for me and Larry. Hope you have a good week.

Today we went to Kirsten and Jon's ward to watch their kids in the Primary presentation. They all did a good job singing and doing their parts. They had parts that were a lot longer than the parts our primary did but then our primary is about twice as big.

Larry is taking a nap right now. He has been tired again lately. We bought the book "Total Money Makeover" and have been reading that together to learn some tips for getting out of debt. We read it yesterday as we went to Logan. We went to Logan to get Larry measured for a Tux for BJ and Holly's wedding. We got that taken care of and then he saw a suit on sale there for $99. It was a good deal because it was normally a $300.00 suit so we got it for him. Then we met Holly at the mall to look for dresses for the granddaughters for the wedding and while Holly and I were looking for dresses Larry traded in his phone for free for a new one on Verison's new every two program so he now has a new phone.

I went back to school full time this week. I did okay during the day but I was surprised at how tired I was in the evening. I wanted to go to bed everyday about 7:30 p.m. or earlier. My neice, Amy, got married on Thursday and I took the day off so that I would not be too tired to enjoy the experience. But I made it through the rest of the days okay and even relatively organized.

My knee is doing really well and it is great to be able to do things that I could not do before. It still has days it hurts or bugs me but I have found that on the days I exercise it feels better so that encourages me to exersize.

BJ will be home on Friday from his naval A school. We aren't sure what time yet. We are having a birthday party for Daniel and Ashton on Sunday the 30th. Everyone who can come should be able to see BJ and I know he is looking forward to seeing each of you. And of course I know that some of you already had other plans.

Jeff called on Grandparents day and had the kids wish us a happy grandparents day. It was cute to hear them even though he said that Leah was not very happy about life at the time. They were getting too close to bed time.

Maren and Landon have been busy lately. They left today to celebrate their 2nd anniversary. Shirley got to tend Brinlie because they are staying overnight. Brinlie would be happy with that because she is not very happy being with me right now. We went to Amy's wedding reception on Friday and Maren and Landon were just leaving, I went to give Brinlie a hug and she pushed me away and said "NO!" She is a real parent's baby lately. She is starting to sing the words to songs she learns from TV. and say a quite a few words. Maren and Landon are going to Montana next weekend for Landon's cousins wedding so they probably will not be here for the family party.

Jake and Nikki had Ashton's birthday on the ninth at their house. We had a fun time with all our family and Nikki's there. Ashton got a lot of really nice toys but he was really excited about a raceway that Maren and Landon gave him. He really likes cars, like his dad. Jake and Nikki and family are going to Las Vegas this weekend with Nikki's parents so they will not be here for the family party but Ashton had his family celebration anyway and he is sure a cute 2 year old.

Lexie, Ethan, and Kyle have all started soccer again this fall and seem to be having a good time playing. I am hoping to get to at least one of their games this fall.

Michelle went for a stomach scope last Monday. They found polyps. They gave her some medication for it. They haven't told her anything else. But, Daniel says the medication they gave her is known to cause polyps!! Daniel is working everyday and for extra curricular activity he mows the lawn. Hailee is in piano lessons and two dance classes. Michelle is the leader of the Christmas program at school this year again (As well as being President of the parent organization). Jaron is in pre-school and joy school and in choir. Kallise is singing and talking but they don't know yet what the words are.

Nathan is busy a lot with his school. Sara says that he is gone for about 12 hours each day with classes and studying. Sara is stuck at home when he has to take the car because they only have one car. Sammy has two teeth and is starting to sit up. Issac is talking in sentences but only his mother can understand him. David is enjoying school. He rides the bus. He got the things we sent to his class.

Erick is busy with school and work. He works alot on Friday and Saturday. He did go to a party on Saturday night with some people in his ward. They put him in as Elders Quorum Secretary so he is busy with responsiblities related to that. He went with us to Amy's wedding at the temple and to Ashton's birthday so we get to spend sometime with him. He does not go to school on Tuesdays and Thursdays so sometimes he lets me use his truck. The person who was mowing our lawn quit so he is now mowing our lawn when Larry or I can't.

It has been pouring down rain several times today and we are supposed to get snow in the mountains tonight so I guess Fall is more than officially here.

I have had a few days this week that have approached feeling normal. Thursday I was worried about how long the day was. I went to physical therapy in the morning, which takes about 2 hours. Then I went to school for the afternoon. I was actually able to teach a class that I was somewhat enthusiastic and fun about my teaching. I finished my homework for the U on my prep period and then felt good going to class. I was much more alert this week. It really surprised me. It was a good day except for the fact that I ruined the keyboard on the new computer at home by spilling a pop on it.

There was one benefit to not being able to eat much this last two weeks. I had to go buy some new clothes because my clothes do not fit. I was excited that I am finally down to a 16 Women's size. I haven't been that small since the first year I moved to Kaysville. Kirsten took me to the mall with her yesterday and helped me find some things. It was fun to spend the time with her. It was funny too because while I was there I saw my cousin Susan who lives in Lyman,Wyoming shopping at the same store. We had a great short visit. I couln't believe that she had come so far to go shopping. But there is not much in Lyman.

I think it has been good for me to start school even for a half day. I think it has picked me up to have to do something, but it has been one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. I felt like I was in a fog on Wednesday, but Thursday and Friday went better.

Larry made the switch to balance transfers on Saturday so he had to be to work at 7:00 a.m. It has been really nice while I have been recovering that he has had a flexible schedule so some days he was able to stay home longer and help me stay sane. But, all that is in the past and he now has to be to work at 7:00 a.m. But if he goes early he can come home earlier so that is great. It is so nice to have a patient loving husband that thinks you are wonderful.

Larry's sister Judy said they were able to escape the floods where they were. They did a lot of preparation but the floods did not make it to them.

Nathan said it was a really stressful week for them in Alabama. He had a stressful class and Sammy has been crying alot because of seperation anxiety, so both he and Sara are frustrated.

Michelle went to the hospital last week because stomach pains that she had been having for about a month intensified. The decided that she has an ulcer but that she had a virus also on top of it. She says that she is feeling better with the medicine that they gave her. I teased her because she didn't call and tell us. We found out when a lady that is in her ward ask Kirsten at work how she was doing. So we finally found out on Thursday.

Ashton's Birthday party is going to be on Sunday the 9th of Sept. at 6:00 p.m. at Jake and Nikki's. Everyone is invited. Nikki is trying to get you an invite out but she has been working a lot lately. She has been working weekends about twice a month as well as during the week. They bought Jake a new car this week because they have had so much trouble with the one he bought about 8 months ago. They have had to have two transmissions put into it in that time and they would not take it back as a lemon because with the new transmission they said it was fixed. Lexie is playing soccer again starting next week and Jake also has to be to Governor's day so they are going to be busy Saturday.

Jeff and Misty moved into a house in Tacoma, Washington last week. He said they felt very fortunate to find it because many people are having to live in 2 bedroom apartments. If you need the address call me. They seem to like where they are. They were having a birthday dinner for Misty's birthday with her family tonight.

Kirsten was busy dealing with BJ's car registration this week. He had her get the navy plates to put on it. They had the girls this weekend and took them shopping for shoes. I was glad that Kirsten could take me shopping with her because I had no car because Larry was at work and Erick went to the Mountain Man Rendezvous at Fort Bridger with Lynnette. The kids thought that it was real novel that I had lost so much weight that my clothes did not fit.

Erick had fun at the rendezvous. I was surprized it did not take them longer. He left here at noon and had to pick Lynnette up in Sandy and he was back again at 11:00 p.m. after taking her home. He decided to go to this activity because he is taking a dance and cultural diversity class at the U and has to go to several cultural festivals like this.

Holly went back to see BJ on Saturday morning. She said that her plane would either leave at midnight or 6:00 a.m. She ended up having to change her flight because of a class change at USU that made it so she had to stay for Friday. When I talked to Nathan he said that he had talked to BJ in the morning and she was not getting in until 2:00 p.m. so I assume that she didn't leave until 6:00 a.m. BJ said he was going to take her to the Cheesecake Factory restaurant there because she loves cheesecake. He hasn't called so I assume they are having a good time.

Maren and Landon came by tonight and we played Uno. They went to Fayette earlier in the day for Landon's Brother's baby blessing. They stopped by Grandma and Grandpa's and Grandpa had the rocker that I had had for my kids fixed for them. Grandpa did a really nice job. Brinlie is really beginning to talk. Maren asked her about the animals on my FHE board and she could tell us that the cat said, mew mew and the birdie said, cheep, cheep. She was sure a Moma and Daddy's girl tonight. she didn't want to talk to us until she could say good bye.

My sister Kathy's daughter, Amy, is getting married on the 20th of Sept. They have been thinking about it all summer but didn't set the date until this week. They are getting married in the Salt Lake Temple at 4:30 p.m. I know his name is David but I don't remember the last name. Annette has motivated us to have a shower for her at Mom and Dad's this weekend on Saturday at noon. It is the least we can do after Kathy has had so many showers for our children.

It is also Mom's 80th birthday this Friday so she was hoping that most of you could come by and see her and come to the shower also. My brothers went down yesterday and painted the garage with the cement paint they have now that makes the finish better. That was their present to mom because she was talking about how it would make things nicer.

Well have a good Labor Day.

It was good to go to church today. There was a good spirit there that helped me to feel more nourished than I have spiritually. Larry always says that it only takes three weeks of not going to start falling away. I don't know if that is true but I know it felt good to be back at church and feel the spirit. I have felt the spirit many times this week but it was not as nourishing as it was today.

I went off of my narcotic pain medications cold turkey last Saturday after a huge anxiety attack. I found out that I can develop anxiety with Lor-tab and I just went off of it. I also had only been off the oxycodone for only two days and was just taking lor-tab. I have survived but I would not recommend it. I went on aceteminiphen for Saturday but then I had to add ibuprofen every three hours on Sunday just to manage the pain. The doctor said on Sunday that I was half way through so I might as well finish it out but I couldn't eat anything except soda crackers and water for two days. Larry got me some caffeine free Dr. Pepper and I drank that for several days and then on Tuesday I did eat a piece of toast for lunch and Maren and Landon invited me for dinner and I ate a half of French dip sandwich. The next night Kirsten and Jon invited me for dinner and I was able to eat more than a cup of Pasta with chicken. But on my birthday, Thursday, was the first day that I actually had a hunger pain. I have been eating since then but only certain things look good to me still. I can't tell if this is still the effects of the narcotics or if it is just the effect of surgery still on my body.

I looked on line and they said that you should be able to walk with a cane by six weeks. I have been walking with no cane for almost two weeks now and my knee doesn't hurt except when I have to push it in Physical Therapy. So despite the set back with the pain medications I am doing very well. I have been trying to go to school at least half day, some days I have spent longer. My Master's classes at the U of U started on Thursday evening so it was a long day. My bed sure felt good that night. I also am sleeping better. Erick and Larry gave me a blessing promising that I will have the strength to do what I need to do so I am just trying to hang on and work on building up my strength until I feel less vulnerable.

Larry has been a jewel of a nurse. He takes such good care of me and listens to me complain daily. He keeps telling me I am okay and that he loves me so that has been helpful. He also is great on laundry, dishes, getting soda crackers and ice, and pain massage. The washing machine broke down on Thursday and he spent most of the morning trying to fix it but we finally had to call a repair man so we both got a working washing machine for our birthdays. I was really surprized that I found someone who could come on Saturday afternoon.

Larry is interviewing for a new job at Discover. If he wanted to keep the job he has had lately he would have had to move to Phoenix. We are wondering what will come from that but do not know for sure. Larry has also been busy with his classes at the University of Phoenix. He had to go to class on his birthday also this week on Tuesday night because of a final presentation so we ended up going to dinner on Friday for our birthdays.

Nathan called and said that Sara has been sick this week with something diarrehal. He has been learning how to load the helicopter for Medical evacuations so they were in class all week. David is enjoying school. Apparently they have full day kindergarten on the base so he goes all day. They are still calling Isaac, Ike-Ike and he is growing well. Samuel turned over onto his back this week and scared himself to screaming.

Michelle is busy being President of the Parent Organization for the school. The other night Daniel called and had the kids sing, Happy Birthday to me on my phone message and then they each said,"Happy Birthday" It was really cute.

Jake and Nikki have been busy working. Lexie is in school. Jake was up with the kids when we had the August birthday party. Maren said that Nikki came up to get her hair done but she had Landon tend Ashton because I had just had surgery. I was disappointed I didn't get to see them but it was probably for the best.

Jeff came by on Friday of last week and got somethings to take to Misty. He was able to talk to us for a few minutes and then he left to drive all night to try to get to Seattle that next day. I assume he made it. He said that they need to look for a house and get organized and then they will let us know on addresses.

Kirsten and Jon have been busy trying to find places for the kids while they work. I had Kyle and the girls over here with me three or four days. They actually were good help some days. The girls went back to their mother on Sunday of last week so things are a little less hectic. Kyle came over on Monday about noon and I took him and Jake swimming at the neighbor's pool. We have a neighbor that invites the whole neighborhood over on Monday afternoon all summer long to swim and then she doesn't have to take requests for people to come swimming. It was a good activity for me because I got out of the house and could talk to some people in the neighborhood and I just had to sit there while Kyle and Jake had fun swimming.

Erick started at the U of U this week also. He only has to go to the U on Monday, Wednesday and Friday for his classes this semester so he is excited about that. He let me use his truck on Tuesday to go to Physical Therapy and on Thursday he let me use it all day because I had to go to my class at the U and Larry could not help me get there. I figured that was a pretty good birthday present.

BJ has had an up and down week. He called on Wednesday saying it had been an awful day. He had failed two tests that he needed to pass, and had been dealing with some harrassment by another sailor. I tried to encourage him and listen. I finally told him to go to bed and hopefully tomorrow would be a better day. When he called the next day it was. He passed his gun test with 40 pts higher than the day before. He had been stressed about it because if he did not pass he would not be able to come home for two weeks later than planned. He is really putting alot of stress on himself trying to get home for the wedding.

Holly is going out to meet BJ next weekend so he has been working hard to plan that also. Hopefully it will work out to be a fun weekend for them. Holly has been really busy with School starting and she has a new job, plus she is planning a wedding with a groom 2000 miles away. She said that she has the envelopes for the invitations that she is bringing down this week so it is getting closer.

Maren is going to be working all this week because two girls in Super Cuts quit this week and it is the week before school so she will probably have to work on Monday and the other days this week. School starts on Wednesday. She came down on Wednesday and helped me put some numbers on my kitchen unit. She has really been helpful with the surgery also sometimes she has been here three days a week trying to help me. Especially in the beginning. Landon has been attending his flight school again and is working on getting more hours. He went on Saturday but came home sick. I had Brinlie for about 4 hours on Saturday and all I could do is watch Brinlie. Larry and Erick took her for about a hour when she first came.

Grandma Jenkins canceled her party for the 8th of September at the Chuck-a-Rama. She just wants people to come and visit her or write. She doesn't want presents. She would like some service help at the house if you are able.

My old roommate, Vicki Bishop,and her husband Dan came visit today. It was nice to visit with them. They are living in Northern California right now but had come up to visit with their kids. It was interesting talking to them. Vicki is doing better emotionally now she has some medications for Bi-polar disorder.

I am so excited. The physical therapist came today and we went through all the exercises that I have to do. He had me do the stairs without crutches. He thought I would not be able to do them leg over leg but I was able to. He said I was doing really good. I climbed the stairs and I was so excited because because climbing the stairs before my surgery meant that I would have to pull myself up. I also had a pain that went from my buttocks clear down my leg that pulled and hurt as I tried to go up the stairs. That pain is all gone. It was so exciting because I finally am seeing that this will eventually be better than it was before.

Maren was over today with Brinlie and helped me with some things. Kirsten's kids have been here. We watched a couple of movies, "Failure to launch" and "Two weeks notice". They were fun. We also watched President Faust's funeral on TV. I was excited because I did not need any pain pills for about 12 hours this morning.

Well it is Monday night and Larry will be at work until about 9:00 p.m., he said, and Erick went to his University Ward family home evening so I decided that the best thing I could do for Family Home Evening is to update the blog.

I am gradually feeling better. I can do exercises with ease that were really hard two weeks ago. The home health nurse came today and said that I could take the bandage off and get the wound wet now. It felt really good to get in the shower and wash all over. Especially since today was really hot. I also have a lot of episodes of being over heated that may have to do with the medication but it felt really good to take a shower this afternoon.

Larry is having to work late because he stays home each day and makes sure that everything is in order for me and set up so I can do the things I need to do to get well. Today he went to get some medications for me before he left so it was almost noon before he left. He has been working really hard to keep the house in order also. This would have been a much harder experience without his help. He spent alot of time last weekend also making sure the lawn was edged and the sprinklers were fixed. And he does all this despite the fact that he still has homework from his school. But he is often uptight because of all he has to do.

We had a party for the August birthdays last night. Jaron, Misty, Larry and myself have August birthdays. It also was going to be a goodbye party for Jeff but he couldn't make it so we had the birthdays. Larry cooked a ham and all the kids each brought a dish to go with it. We had a really nice dinner. Everyone seemed to enjoy the time they had together and I learned that I am not indispensible.

Jaron's birthday was on Tuesday and Michelle and Daniel had a party for him with his friends on that day. They had a pinata Jaron really liked. We bought Jaron a game and did not know that he liked it or anything but Michelle said when he opened it, that he always wanted to play that game and they had lost some of the pieces for it. Just before the party he had wanted Michelle to buy the game for him but she didn't want to because she was sure they would find the parts. Anyway we bought him the game and I felt like it was maybe inspiration on our part that got him the game he wanted to play.

Nathan called yesterday and said he was back from his three week training. He had just got in. Sara and the boys had to miss church to pick him up. He seemed tired but was excited to talk. He also called Landon and Jake to talk yesterday. He was trying to talk them into going into flying so they would have someone there with them in Alabama. He said that David had started school already and seemed to be liking it.

Nikki had to work last night so she could not come. Ashton took a while to warm up to us but then he seemed to have a good time. I had found a picture of Jake when he was about Ashton's age and showed it to him and ask him if he thought it looked like Ashton. He said yes. Landon thought that it looked like Brinlie so that was interesting. Lexie has also started school already so she is busy.

Jeff ended up working one more week here to satisfy is boss in Utah. He leaves this Thursday I think to go to Seattle and then he starts on Monday in Seattle. He will come by to get some things to pick up on his way and then he will head to Washington. We bought all the bridesmaids outfits so he has to take Misty's up to see if it fits. We were passing those out to others at the party.

Kirsten got BJ's car fixed from when we were in the accident. It looks good. She and Jon have been working hard to get caught up on their finances. Jon will finish up his journeyman internship by the first of the year and then he will be making the highest salary possible with UTA for a journeyman. I had their kids over here today to help me and to tend them while they both work. They brought lots of movies for us to watch. Maren was also here and they were good help with Brinlie.

Erick had Lynnette up on Friday for dinner and he made homemade Macaroni and cheese. We ended up also having Maren and Landon and Brinlie for dinner. Then Erick and Lynnette went shopping for me for Jaron's birthday present so they were the ones that were inspired. Erick spent a lot of time helping me with my exercises on Friday and Saturday and went for walks with me outdoors now they are requiring that for Physical Therapy.

BJ called a lot this week now he is at A school and can call more often. He has had a lot of things that he needed me to do for him to work towards the wedding plans and get some of his financial things worked out. We also spent Friday evening going over the ward list deciding who he wanted me to invite. He seems to have a lot more free time than he did in Basic training.

Holly came down on Thursday evening and we worked out some things for the wedding. Kirsten and Maren and Michelle worked out things for the final Brides maides outfit with her and they went shopping for those. She was showing me the announcement that they are going to use maybe. We went through old pictures of BJ for a wedding video and she got those in order so she could get them to Amanda. She brought her sister Lauren with her so we got to meet her.

Maren has spent everyday that she did not have to work over here helping me with things. She came again today and worked on things with Kirsten's kids. It has been fun to have her. She worked on revamping the photo wall in the kitchen and it looks better. She and Erick have been working at coming up with colors we could paint the various rooms in the house and She and Erick spent some time washing walls so they can begin painting.

Well I am getting tired. I go in and out of feeling weird with the medicines I am on for my knee. Right now I feel okay, just tired. Mom and Dad came up yesterday to visit and to bring a skirt they had bought for Misty for BJ's wedding reception. We got talking about the miner's that they are looking for in Emery county by Huntington and I mentioned that I thought they were probably dead because they had not heard any thing from them. Dad told us about a Miner that had survived a cave in for 9 days that he knew and the claustropobia that I got just thinking about that made me feel really ill. But I guess this will pass.

I went to sacrament meeting yesterday for the first time since I had the surgery. I did okay but I felt weird because of the pain medicine and I came home and slept for three hours after going which was unusual for me to sleep that long in the afternoon. But things will get better. They have already.