July Newsletter

(I'm going to start taking over posting these on the family blog since it's a pain in the neck for Wanda. If you've got any pictures you'd like to include with your post, you can email or iMessage them to Wanda or me and we can get them inserted here. -Cherstin)

Mom and Dad

Well - I'm kind of wondering what there is to report since I've been with family since our last newsletter! lol

We left Tennessee on June 2nd for Oklahoma. We were pretty tired heading out as things had been pretty hectic to get to the point where we could leave and I'm supposing things will be just what they are when we return as there isn't much to be done about it anyway.

The trip to Oklahoma was uneventful and we arrived late at night/early morning so we just got a room at the local Hawthorne Inn. We knew that Dan had a briefing in the morning so we worked it out for Cherstin and the kids to could come over to the hotel for breakfast as we knew they would have little in the house. My thought was that the kids could come swim in the hotel pool while some of us went back to the house to do the finish loading prior to our departure...but Dan's brief was much shorter than we anticipated and he ended up with us at breakfast and we ended up all heading to the house so we could just get out on the road ASAP. It was a little bittersweet for me...sometimes I think I'm more attached to OKC than they are! lol

By late afternoon we were on our way. We stopped in Hays, Kansas for the night because we had stayed in a hotel once that was pretty old but had a great pool and water slide and thought the kids would enjoy it after a long car ride. we got in too late for the pool and the next morning the pool was pretty cold - but Abby and Emmett didn't mind much.

We got into Desi and Mike's the next afternoon. Desi had prepared yummy stromboli for supper and the kids all seemed to enjoy seeing one another. Felicia, Tom, and Noah all arrived late that night too. The next morning we prepared for Abby's baptism. I'm grateful for Desi's Bishop and his counselor - he has presided at Noah's blessing, Emily's baptism and now Abby's. They were as gracious as could be, especially considering that two of these events were for our family and not even in their ward. Abby was baptized and confirmed by Dan. And, both grandfathers were the witnesses. Two of Dan's brothers and their families were able to be there and of course, Felicia, Tom and Noah were there, along with Desi and Mike and Family. It was a beautiful occasion and afterwards we all headed to Red Robin to celebrate.

Sadly Felicia and Tom had to be back in Rock Springs for Sunday but Cherstin and Dan were able to stay around until Tuesday before heading off to Alaska. But - before they could drive out of town Rich had to take the kids out to Krispy Kreme for donuts. I don't know who enjoyed it more - Rich or the kids! lol

We stayed with Desi and Mike for another week before heading out to Rock Springs. As usual, we enjoyed our time immensely and were so grateful for Emily sharing her room with us!

At Felicia's we relaxed and enjoyed learning about Rock Springs - the following pics are the BLM's wild horse adoption pens. A person can buy a horse through the BLM's program for about $125! That was just amazing to me...and there were plenty of foals there too!

We also spent a couple of days working on a couple of skirts that Felicia had bought fabric for and was interested in making. They ended up being adorable. Felicia could sent anyone the tutorials she used if you're interested. Sadly, I thought I had some cute pics of them on my phone, but not surprisingly, I didn't!

We then headed west to SLC so that we could attend the wedding shower for CJ and Sarah given by Brittany and Julia. It was a lot of fun to be able to see ALL of my brothers and their families, except Mike and Shauna who were in Lake Powell.

We spent a week there and I visited cemeteries and checked out the house (it's been sold) and rummaged through a few of the many boxes left to go through. And, of course, my brothers and sister-in-laws (except Jim and Maria this time) had dinner together one evening. It really was fun to see everyone and catch up on what's happening in our families.

On Friday (in the early, early, early morning) we headed for California. Levi was having a promotion ceremony for his karate - to yellow

Sunday we had the opportunity to go to church at the military installation. One of Joey's callings is to be a Serviceman's Group Leader there. He provides sacrament meeting and Sunday school for any of the service men and women that come. On this particular day I played the music, your Dad blessed the Sacrament, Gideon passed the Sacrament, Joey conducted the meeting and spoke and Carlie gave the prayers. Joey also taught the Sunday School lesson. All of the family attended. It really was a beautiful service and once again I was reminded of how grateful I am for the Priesthood which allows all to feel the love of our Savior and partake of the Sacrament.

Yesterday Joey, Carlie, Reah, and your Dad and I headed down to Fisherman's Wharf in Monterey. We had some lunch and then headed over to Pacific Grove where Grandma and Grandpa Pehrson had lived before and after his deployment to Japan. I had the opportunity to drive with them when Gideon was blessed as they were here for that event. I tried to remember exactly where everything was but will probably need to go back to the old photos to be sure.

This is a couple of pics of Reah standing with a statue in the park we went to yesterday...isn't she cute?!?!

On Saturday Levi will be baptized. He is pretty excited. Joey told me that they will be purchasing a cake with a rainbow on it from Costco (I Like To Look For Rainbows), when they asked him whether he wanted chocolate or white he was, "WHITE!!!! I'm getting baptized!" Duh!!!!??? lol

I know that this is more of a travelog than anything else...but we have had a great time and will be here a few more days and then be wending our way home back through Utah, Rock Springs, Colorado, Wisconsin, and finally to Tennessee. Wanda reminded me a few days ago, as I was commiserating about the frustration of getting your Dad's INR done at labs all across the country, that we are son fortunate to live in a day and time when we are able to do this. And we are. I'm really grateful that we are on this jaunt and hope that this finds everyone hale and hearty. We love you! Each and EVERY one of you!!!! And, see you soon!!!! :) And, thanks to Gideon - he helped me get these pics on here....just need to do it a gazillion more times to know what he/I did! lol

Tom and Felicia

Not much to report here. It was good having mom and dad come visit for a week! Other than that we're just loving life. We're looking forward to the 4th and being able to enjoy the few months of nice weather WY actually has. Noah still isn't crawling but he gets closer and closer every day. We're looking forward to celebrating his first birthday at the end of the month! Where did the time go?!

Dan and Cherstin

We have been BUSY this month... obviously. We left Oklahoma on the third of this month and arrived in Alaska on the 18th. We have a four bedroom house on base. Get a hold of me if you desperately desire our new address. We would prefer to live off base, but our housing allowance is such that we get the most space and most house on base. It is what it is. We camped mostly as we drove up here and it was quite hectic, but a neat experience. The drive up the Alaska Canadian highway was quite cool with lots of wildlife and pretty scenery.

The kids are having a few issues adjusting and getting used to the new area (some positive, some negative), but I think they're getting along fine. I'm happy that, while our house is two floors, our stairs have a landing in the middle so that means my kids will only fall down half a flight of stairs when they fall. LOL

Abby - Abby got baptized on the fifth of June. She was happy to do it in Denver where lots of family got to be there. We all enjoyed spending time in Denver with Mom and Dad, Mike and Desi, and Tom and Felicia. She's excited to go to an Activity Days' Girls camp they do up here. She is excited to start piano lessons (NOT from me) and maybe take part in some sort of drama class.

Emmett - Emmett was a big help on the move up. He is the strongest and most willing to work most of the time. He has his own room in the new house, which I thought would be a privilege he'd enjoy. However, one of the first nights here he had a really creepy nightmare and is sometimes afraid to go to bed. He's working on that with prayer and some "monster spray." He did try out for a new swim team today, and while he was nervous, he did a great job. This team really focuses on strength and endurance and Dan and I think he'll do well with that.

Ellie - Ellie is still loving her reading lessons. Dan and I don't always love it because she can't sit still and pay attention half the time, but still begs to do it. She is happy with her new primary class. The only thing she DETESTS is that she is not old enough to go to the park on her own like Abby and Emmett are.

Hyrum - Hyrum has finally given up the bottle. YAY! It took him forever, too. We are now teaching him how to get dressed on his own in preparation for eventual potty training. We haven't had to explicitly teach a child to do those things since Abby.

Enzo - Enzo is same ol', same ol'. He's nearly fifteen months and likes to scream for what he wants. With our loud crew, it adds just another layer....and grates on our nerves...ESPECIALLY when he's screaming at Church. I can take him around the halls sometimes, though, and he points at the pictures and says, "Jesus."

Dan - Dan checked into his new squadron today. He says it's a very laid back squadron and is happy he'll have time in the mornings to devote to exercise. He is looking like his desk job will be working stan/eval so he should have a good office.

Me - I sure am looking to having all of our furniture and household goods so we can get our things and figure out where they go and how things fit and a new routine set up in this house. I enrolled the kids in a public charter that will give us funds to still homeschool the way I want. It'll be good for the activities they provide, I think, as well as paying for our internet (because it is NOT unlimited here - $70 for 60 gigs a month!) and extracurriculars we want.

So...things are just rolling along. We're excited to read what everyone else is up to!

Mike and Desi

I guess the biggest thing that was exciting in June was all the family that was here! Cherstin and Dan and their family stopped here on their way to Alaska. The really neat thing was that we got to attend Abby's baptism. Mom and Dad, and Felicia and Tom were also here.

Mike is still plugging away at work. Good thing he enjoys it. He still loves his Saturday morning bike rides and can't wait to start p90x3 that His awesome wife got him for Father's Day/anniversary present.

Desi is excited to start p90x3 with Mike too. We a enjoyed a movie night out to celebrate our 10 year anniversary. It's been a while since we have been to a movie without kids. She will also start the pathway program from BYU-I in September to finish her schooling. She looks forward to the religion class you have to take the first 3 semesters but not so excited that she has to do basic math and english again to transfer her previous credits into BYU-I online courses.

Emily still has her singing group and piano that she participates in. Perhaps the biggest thing for Emily this past month was the passing of her sweet friend, Kalynn Colon. They have played soccer together and her dad, Marcus, was the girls’ coach. She was playing with sheets and making forts/hammock in her bottom bunk when she got tangled up. We don't know if she suffocated or strangled herself. Emily and Desi attended her memorial service and both had a hard time. It's a hard thing talking about death with a kid when it's someone who shouldn't have died. Emily still tells us once a day that she can't stop thinking about it.

Mordecai is still a ball full of energy. He is constantly driving desi crazy! He was a trooper this month with allergy testing. He cried and asked them to "please stop" but he did it. He is for sure allergic to peanuts and most likely tree nuts. He's also allergic to dogs and Bermuda grass. I guess we won't be getting a dog anytime soon ;)

Ruby is still a feisty one. She is currently learning to ride her tricycle, and loves it! She is so funny with the hand on her hip attitude and the grown up phrases she uses.

Ivy is constantly learning new words. Her favorite is "Ruby". She likes to pester Ruby one minute but then turn around the next and be her best friend.

We are headed to Colorado Springs for a little family vacation and get away. We will be there from 6/30-7/3. When we get home Keith and Kim and their girls will join us for the fourth of July...And then some time after that mom and dad get here again. That's it for now. Until next month.

Phil and Hannah

Wow, what a month June was! Hannah celebrated her 30th birthday, Winston turned 1, and William turned 5! Hannah’s parents came out to visit for 10 days and we put her dad to work doing lots of odd jobs around the house. Hannah’s sister Jada is staying with us for the summer and having a live in babysitter is wonderful! At the beginning of the month we went to Jamboree with the Husteds. The kids had a lot of fun and Orion displayed some mad skills by climbing up and over this rope wall thing. William and Orion also started gymnastics. Orion is SOO excited and overdoes a lot of the exercises. The kid needs to slow down and do it right instead of just trying to do it as fast as he can! Overall, we are doing really well and looking forward to a fun filled July.

Joey and Carlie

Reah - still 4... She changed the words to the song "do you want to build a snowman?" to wanting to play with Carlie's phone. She also sang Katy Perry's song "roar" to me yesterday. It is awesome to listen to her sing!!!

Levi - He was promoted to yellow belt this week in karate and is looking forward to getting baptized on the 5th. Carlie found a rainbow cake at Costco for his baptism and asked him if he wanted chocolate or vanilla, he wants vanilla. He said it had to be white.

Scarlett - is having a great summer with many friends, though she has been sad to see her best friend leave. She wanted to go with to North Carolina, if it had been three weeks earlier we may have let her and she could have come back with grandma and grandpa.

Glory - worked all day out at the Spartan Beast and earned a free race entry

Gideon - he ran the Spartan beast and then he spent the first week of summer vacation at chawanakee for summer camp,came home and spent the next week getting everything ready for his eagle project and thine turned around and spent another three days hiking and camping.

Carlie - is happy June is over and Gideon's eagle project is done

Joey - ran the Spartan Beast, top 25%, is happy June is over and Gideon's eagle project is done

Robert and Wanda

I thought things would get easier now that school is out, but boy was I wrong. I do get to sleep in until after 6!

Joshua is turning into a little stinker. When he plays with the shape sorter and I show him which hole it goes in, he’ll try all the others first. Hyrum is learning more and more ‘words,’ he can do just about any with ‘reduplicated syllables’ (think mama, beebee, papa). I’m having to keep Moroni and Adam busy. They’d play online and watch minecraft videos all day if I let them, but they’re also happy playing in the pool and on the trampoline.

Hyrum’s therapists are working on teaching Ruth how to run some of Hyrum’s programs. She’s always trying to get in on the therapy sessions and tries to do what they do, so they’re going to teach her how to do them correctly. Sam just went to scout day camp and nags me to do Webelos stuff. Maybe he’ll be a scouter we don’t have to nag.

Ben and Joseph are house-sitting for a family in Blue Mounds and Ben is getting ready for scout camp - Joseph is relieved he’s done with scouting. Mary enjoyed Youth Conference this year and is looking forward to girls’ camp (unlike her sisters).

Rachel has been doing a lot of personal progress. Rebekah just bought a new-to-her yellow bug. She’s grateful to have her wings back.

Joseph had his graduation with WIVA. It was kinda cool to go to the graduation ceremony… my first graduate! We took him out to Red Lobster after and it was really apparent that he doesn’t get out much. (“Should I have opened my silverware already?” “What’s a virgin drink?”)

Robert and I always seem to be short on sleep and running tight on funds (new back door new water heater). But… as they say… “They’re cheaper by the dozen.” (Yes, we threw that in here to see how many of you read all the way to the bottom.) March 6, in case you’re wondering, and yes, that’s why I’ve been extra diligent on getting this newsletter out. :)

June 2014 Newsletter

Tom and Felicia

Nothing much is new here. We loved getting to see Joey down in Denver at the beginning of the month! He and Desi somehow convinced me to run the Spartan Race with them, which I did pitifully at, but it was still fun! We just returned from Denver again where Tom ran the BolderBoulder with Desi on Memorial Day and we look forward to going back in two weeks to see Abby's baptism! Tom and I are both trying to move to a healthier lifestyle with more active activities and healthier eating. We're definitely looking forward to Summer! Noah still isn't crawling or even scooting BUT, he has gotten quite effective at rolling from place to place. :) We're hoping the others follow soon.

Dan and Cherstin

Good news: Our house is under contract. We are waiting to hear back from the prospective buyers on what repairs they really want as their list was over the contracted $500.  We had the appraisal this week and the appraiser found no major repairs or issue with the agreed-upon sale price.  We pre-sign our closing papers on Tuesday. Prayers would still be appreciated that this sale goes through and the house is one less thing we have to worry about.  I'm hoping this is HF blessing us and trying to have faith that it will work to our best interest.

We have packers coming Monday/Tuesday (2-3 June) and they will load the truck Wednesday (4 June).  Things are really starting to happen and it's rather hectic getting it all done.

Abby had her interview with our bishop tonight and she is all set to be baptized on 7 June at 11:30.  She just had her birthday and was excited to celebrate with friends at an adventure place where they do a ropes course, belaying, kayaking, stand-up paddle boats, etc. She had a great time. She also recently earned her very own (plain) Kindle and is ecstatic that she will be able to take it on our road trip.

Emmett said goodbye to his swim team this last week. It was very bittersweet for him. He has had such good friends and amazing growth in the last year. We are sure he will find a good team in Alaska as well.

Ellie is continuing with her reading lessons when I can fit it in.  She is doing really well. She also had a gymnastics performance where she was given a medal and was very ecstatic to have her very own medal after watching her brother get some for the last year.

Hyrum turned three last week.  We took him to the science museum and a library party.  He still insists it's his birthday, though.  

Enzo is FINALLY walking.  Sometimes I think that helps his demeanor, but sometimes not.  Today, for example, he wanted up, then squirmed to get down, got down only to be Angry because he wasn't up.  He is the kid that is going to be a pain for the three weeks in the car, I'm sure.

Dan has work off basically this week to help with packers and movers which is awesome because I'm not sure I could manage ALL THE THINGS on my own.

There are other things going on, but nothing like the giant move staring us in the face.

Mike and Desi

I don't feel like there is much going on here...

Mike is still busy with work, that's a good thing, but things aren't as stressful since their customer meeting last month. He is excited that our temperatures have warmed up so he can go out and ride his road bike early Saturday mornings, though he's only gone a handful of times. He is also eager to use the pool for early morning swims before work.

Desi had fun running the Bolder Boulder with Tom and her good friend Marci this past Memorial day. She had a goal of running the 6.1 miles non-stop, which she is proud to say that she DID!!!. She didn't beat her previous 10k time of 70 minutes, but she is a firm believer it was because she didn't stop to walk which gives you a recovery time to run faster when you start again. By the way her Bolder Boulder time was 1:15:05. Life is also really busy for her because now she has all 4 kids nonstop because of summer.

Emily finished the play this past month and she did WONDERFUL...but of course we are biased. She is still plugging away at piano and this past Saturday auditioned and made a chorale group (Young Artistry) for this summer. The group is kids from 3rd-8th grade and she is so excited to learn some new songs and choreography for her performances. School officially ended on the 28th and she is sad that it is over. We have felt very blessed with the teachers she has had. She is also excited for the pool to be open.

Mordecai is also plugging away at piano. Mom has slowly been teaching him and this past week he had an assessment piano lesson with Cheryl, Emily's piano teacher. She said that he is doing well and is slated to start in the Fall. He seems to really have a talent for it, just like his sister and Dad. School also ended for him on the 28th, and he is now a 1st grader. He wasn't nearly as sad as Emily was. In fact when Emily said she was so sad school was out Mordecai piped up with, "WHY?!?! I'm not! School is boring".  We plan on working hard this summer so he betters is handwriting before school starts. He is also enrolled in swim lessons at the neighborhood pool. He grew leaps and bounds last year with it, so this year we just want to make sure he can do the deep end with confidence.

Ruby is thrilled to have Emily and Mordecai home all day to pester, which she does a lot of. She is finally old enough to start swim lessons this year which is a good thing because she loves going to the swimming pool and playing in the big pool.  The last few weeks in nursery they take the older children in to participate with the primary kids for closing exercise.  Ruby feels like a big kid when she gets to join in with them.  Ruby is excited that she is big enough to get onto a swing by her self.  She also loves to hang on the monkey bar and loves to show off for people.

Ivy is finally using a few more words that we can understand but we are eagerly awaiting more so we can get over the crying for things.  She does well going to nursery.  I think having Ruby in there helps.  Ivy loves to play with the big kids no matter what they are doing.  She loves playing outside and pointing out dogs by barking.

Everyone is excited for Summer, and all the visitors we are expecting.

Phil and Hannah

May was a pretty busy month for some of us!

Phil got a promotion at work!! WOOHOO!! AND, we finally got a scout master called in our branch, so Phil doesn't have to fill that role on top of his Young Men’s duties. He is super excited about that! He also was a trooper and took the three oldest boys to the Father and Son camp out. It was rather cold that night, and I don't think Philip took enough blankets, so he froze all night. But the boys had a good time.

Orion had a field trip at school. That morning, he was in tears because he didn't want to go on the field trip. It took a little bit to get out of him that he was just nervous because he had never been to the Children’s Science Museum and he really wanted me to go with him the first time so that he wasn't scared. I was a super mean mom and made him go anyway. I talked to his teacher and told her to call me if she felt like Orion wouldn't be able to handle it. He went. He loved it. Hopefully next time he won't be so scared. I don't know why he had a sudden fear. He goes places without me all the time . . .

William has been really busy this month! He finished up his Let’s Play Music class, and had a recital on the 10th. I was a huge slacker and forgot the camera. William did . . . ok. He can't hold still to save his life and was super fidgety while the other kids were playing. He also didn't know all the words to the songs as well as he could have. (Again, it is because I am a super slacker and didn't work on them enough with him.) A few weeks later he had his Spring Sing concert at school. He was so much fun to watch there! (And again, I forgot the camera!!! Poor boy is going to think he isn't cute enough to have his picture taken!) He also got to dress up as a cowboy one day for school, which I did get a picture of, and was super excited that the eggs they have in their classroom started to hatch. He got to watch a baby chick come out of its egg.  He was really sad when they had to send all the chicks to a nearby farm.

Oliver has just been hanging out with me. He asks everyday if someone is going to come over. If I say no, then he asks where we are going. He doesn't really like the days when no one  and no where are the answers.

Winston is doing well. He has gotten super speedy at crawling, and is cruising a lot more. He loves to play peek a boo and patty cake. And really, he just loves playing with his brothers. Where ever they are, he wants to be. He has recently discovered playing outside and LOVES to be outside! Really loves it! He just had another weight check today. He is putting on an average of 18.8 grams a day!!! This is HUGE! We still need to keep him on the high calorie formula, and make sure he is getting 3 meals and 2 snacks a day sitting at the table. We will go back in two months and weigh him again. If he is doing really well, we will switch him to whole milk and start weening him off of his medicine. If he isn't doing really well, we will switch him to whole milk fortified with half and half, and keep him on the meds.

I have just been busy being a mom. Wanda and I decided to put our piano playing talents to good use. We are going to go to a nursing home and play. I have been spending lots of extra time at the piano practicing, which I am loving! It has been so nice to play something besides just the Childrens Hymns. Mothers Day was good. Philip wasn't feeling well, so I got up with the kids. Orion was so excited to give me the mothers day present he made for me in school. Philip made me some chocolate covered strawberries, and bought me a rose bush. And I bought myself a puzzle. It was a great day, and I am so glad that I get to be a mommy. How blessed I am to be entrusted with these little spirits who bring so much joy to my life.

Joey and Carlie

Reah still lives the life of a four year old.  She is not in school or pre-school, though we are trying to get her into transitional kindergarten this year, she wants to go to school so bad.  

Levi, May is his month.  He has been so excited for his birthday, 31 May.  On his birthday he got a donut breakfast and then a fun evening at Chuck-e-Cheese with a few friends. He had a blast.  He is looking forward to getting baptized, though kind of disappointed he has to wait until July.

Scarlett had her first band concert and boy was it terrible!  Scarlett is learning to play the flute and she did great, the terrible part is from the format the school district did it in, California is terrible.  

Glory had her tonsils taken out at the beginning of the month, so she was quiet for the first half of the month :)  Glory has been prepping for girls' camp coming up.  

Gideon has finally gotten his act together, a little and planned and gotten his Eagle project approved.  Joey told him he doesn't get a driver's permit until the project is done and no license until the Eagle is complete.  He also had his third and final orchestra performance for the year.  He will still have some private lessons over the summer and will audition for honors' orchestra in August.

Carlie has been very busy the last few weeks.  She has taken on the role of key spouse mentor in Joey's squadron.  It has included some training and attending several briefs and fun get togethers with some of the other spouses.  She worked one Saturday at a Military Appreciation Day activity at the mall and scored us 7 tickets to a San Francisco Giants baseball game.  The kids made it through the entire game.  We were pretty high up and they didn't know what was going on, but they still had fun.

Joey is always busy... between work and church it doesn't seem like he ever has any free time.  When he does get a few minutes he's running a Spartan race or taking some stupid motorcycle safety class, will it ever end.  He went to Colorado at the beginning of the month and ran a Spartan race with Desi and Felicia, he loved every minute of it and was so happy to spend time with his sister, in case you couldn't tell from the pictures.  He just wishes Ivy would warm up to him like Noah did (Noah didn't really warm up, but he was content to sit with the strange guy that wanted to hold him.)

As a family we've been busy too.  As mentioned earlier we went to the Giants game, but we also took time to visit with Nena and see her new little baby, Vanora.  We spent about 3 hours hiking in Pinnacles National Park on Memorial Day, Reah hiked the entire 2.7 miles like a trooper.  We were also able to visit a the San Juan Bautista mission settlement on our way back from hiking.  The family hiking is fun and serves as great prep for Carlie as she's prepping to hike Half Dome in October.  Gideon will be doing Half Dome in July with his Scout Troop.  Joey is hoping to summit Mt. Whitney in October with Gideon and Glory.  Mt. Whitney is the highest peak in the lower 48, 14,505 ft.

Robert and Wanda

Robert and I have been busy with more of the same.  Robert’s trying to get his feet under him in his new calling and I’m plugging away as mom.  I, like Hannah, am excited to play at the nursing home in Dodgeville.  It’s nice to have something to aim for.  

We enjoyed our branch campout this month.  Robert went home with Joshua and Hyrum and I stayed in the tent with Mary, Ben, Sam, Ruth, Moroni, and Adam (Joseph and Rebekah had work and Rachel stayed home to study).  I think I got the better sleep. hahaha.  Jamboree, our end of school year campout (in a lodge) in Waupaca is this weekend.  The kids that are going are sooo excited.  

Joseph graduated from seminary on Sunday.  He really didn’t want to go, but we kinda forced him.  Now it’s just finals this week and we’ll have a high school grad!!!  Of course, we’re the typical parents and are never satisfied.  Time to get him cracking on those mission papers!

Rebekah is almost done with her finals.  Since Mt Horeb graduated their seniors on Sunday, any classes that had seniors in them had their finals early.  Fortunately she’ll be able to take Friday off and babysit Joshua and Hyrum while I take the bulk of the kids up to Jamboree.  

Soccer is done for Rachel.  I think she had a good time this year.  It was definitely different than rec soccer and the team was barely starting to mesh by the time the season ended.  She also didn’t like her coach as much as her rec coach.  The nice part was the bus that took them to all of their away games.  The sad part was not being there to see the away games.  I think I got to see two of her games this season (the first and the last).

Mary has taken up running.  She wanted to know how far she’s been running each day so we google mapped it… 4.2 miles round trip, and she just started!  I told her to start timing herself so she can start dropping her time.  Unfortunately she mistook the intention and ran hard the whole time.  She was sore for a couple of days after.  Oops.

Samuel is excited for the end of school.  He was sad that his field day is on the same day of Jamboree.  He’s elected to stay home for field day and just go to Jamboree next year.  He’s had a lot of fun at school, especially with Wordmaster, Chess Club, Math 64, etc., but he wants to return to WIVA next year.

Ruth is also excited about the end of school.  Her class has piled up all kinds of field trips for the last couple of weeks of school.  She had two last week and two this week.  She will be skipping school on Friday and go to Jamboree with us.  She cannot wait!!! Her favorite part is the beach with all the inflatables.  The last day of school is June 10th.

Moroni is learning leaps and bounds.  It’s always fun to see the explosion of knowledge when it hits.  He’s still a great big brother to Joshua and is learning how to teach Hyrum.  The therapists have been working with the four younger boys and teaching Hyrum how to play with them and teaching them how to play with Hyrum.  It’s been interesting to watch Moroni use some of the phrases that the therapists use to teach Hyrum.

Adam took quite a beating at the campout this last weekend.  His back was eaten by the mosquitos and then he’s a bit red from swimming at the lake.  He looks like he has some kind of weird disease.  Adam is connecting a  little more with Hyrum too.  There used to be a clear attitude of ‘pesty brother’ that is now turning into an attitude of mentoring.  

Things will be changing for Hyrum, our new three year old.  Emily, one of his therapists has been promoted to a senior therapist.  This means that her hours will be dropping. Also Thom, another therapist, will be taking on another job.  They’re still trying to retain him for a couple of shifts a week, but we’ll see him half as much now.  ACT (the therapy company) is in the process of training two new line therapists.  We’re really happy with all of the babbling that Hyrum is doing now.  He even babbles a lot in letters.

Joshua is finally a full walker now that he can stand up in the middle of the floor.  He also got his first haircut, two molars on top, two more coming through on the bottom and finally the last of his front bottom teeth, all at once.  Everyone, except Hyrum ;), completely dotes on him.  

Dad and Mom

Hmmm....this month has gone by quickly...in fact the whole year has.  So, what's new on our front?  I guess the best thing is the knowledge that your Dad's heart is in good shape and that there's no real damage from the heart attacks 4 1/2 years ago.  I can certainly say that is a relief but the news of the pulmonary hypertension sure knocked the wind out of me for a little bit.  However, we're getting our bearings and doing everything we know to do, to exert as much control as we can.  The real test will be over the next two months while we're on the road.  We're trying to tightly control diet and exercise, as those are the factors that we can do the most to improve, and will result in improving his condition hopefully.  I suspect that our visits to each of you will be somewhat inconvenienced by this, but I suppose it is the price we pay :)

My time has been spent in the gardens, sewing, dr and PT appointments, and working to improve my organ skills and Primary.  It's nothing new, I know!

I'm still requesting copies of birth and marriage certificates PLEASE!!!  

Got news a couple of weeks ago that your ggrandfather, Emmett Bainbridge's remains are at a mental facility in Salem, Oregon.  They are seeking family to claim them.  Who knew?  I don't know any of the back story but I'm trying to find out what I can and perhaps have the remains sent to us.  I'll keep you posted on that! Lol

CJ is being married on the 6th of August in the Logan Temple.  Maria said that they will be having an Open House the week before.  Does that seem weird to just me?  Sarah has applied to graduate school in Logan and CJ has another year to complete his BS.  It is my understanding that he is still planning on medical school after that.  

We are excited to see you all on our trip.  We only have two firm dates - Abby's baptism on June 7th and Levi's baptism on July 5th.  I guess we're "fluid".  We wish we could make it to Joseph's graduation on the 12th?  It's hard to believe he's that old already!  Perhaps we'll be able to make it to the temple when he takes out his endowments.  

We love you all!  Hope things are going well for you all!  See you soon!!!

May 2014 Newsletter

Grandpa & Grandma

Perhaps the biggest thing on our agenda this past month and in the coming months is obviously your Dad's issues.  The heart catheterization results were both terrific and daunting.  The good news is that his heart is good, strong, and there is absolutely NO heart damage from the previous heart attacks!  That, in and of itself, is absolutely amazing.  The cardiologist was surprised about that finding as he had suspected that heart damage from the previous attacks were likely the cause of his discomfort.  Also heart related, is the fact that the stent placed 4 1/2 yrs ago looks great and the arteries that had been blocked anywhere from 75-40% were all significantly better???  The greatest blockage is now at 25% and the others are at 20% or less...all great news.  The valves are good too, as is effectiveness of pumping.  

The negative of the whole ordeal is the finding of high pulmonary arterial pressures.  Again, this finding at first, was pretty unsettling to me, however, I'm feeling much more optimistic now.  There are two types - primary and secondary.  Primary only has a life expectancy of about 3 yrs.  and that ISN'T the type your Dad has.  His is secondary, most likely caused by the pulmonary emboli of a few years back, his asthma, and sleep apnea.  His pulmonologist is running a complete battery of tests in the next few weeks to be certain that this is what is causing his discomfort, rather that just stopping here and making that assumption and missing something that could really be the culprit, i.e. gall bladder, liver, more emboli, sleep apnea not well controlled, etc.  Ideally all tests and their results should be completed for a May 20th appt. and then we can come up with a definitive plan.  Until then he is back on blood thinners, trying to lose as much weight as possible, back at rehab, using oxygen at night, and doing moderate activity as is tolerated.   

So - I guess this must be a warning to all of you with sleep apnea or to those of you who may have it...please get a sleep study if you snore, wake up at night to go to the bathroom, or your spouse says you breathe "funny" at night or even quit breathing.  This is an equal opportunity culprit...women can have it too!  And it is a major cause of organ failure, brain function, energy loss, and pulmonary hypertension.  Please get is checked out and use your cpap (Joey!) every night!  

If you're concerned or want to know more about pulmonary hypertension, there is a good website that can answer your questions, phassociation.org is a good resource and will help you understand more of what he's dealing with.  Depending on the current tests that he's going through, Dr. DiMeo has said that he'd probably refer him to Duke University for further evaluation.  

I would still like to remind each of you that I would like to have copies of your family's birth and marriage certificates for the genealogy files.  And, I thought I would start to work on some specific lines for family work.  I wonder if anyone would like to join me?  I know your time is limited but perhaps we could break down a portion of the research into small bites and see if we can get some done so we can take family names through the temple.

Also - this Sunday is Fast Sunday and I would urge each family to add Dan and Cherstin to your fast and prayers...that they will have success in selling their house.  And Winston...that he'll pull out of his downward spiral and start gaining some weight!  And of course for Hyrum the Elder (Husted)...for his continued growth and development.  I know our prayers, fasting, and faith (ever united) really works and The Lord will bless us individually and collectively.

Again, your Dad and I love each and every one of you with our whole hearts!  We're so pleased you're "ours"!!!!   Thanks for being there for us and for each other.  And give the kids the biggest hugs and kisses ever!!!

Robert & Wanda

It seems like everything is the same and a month doesn’t hardly bring enough change to warrant a mention, but I suspect it does more than I know.  Robert was just called as the first counselor in our branch presidency.  This means he’ll be released as the assistant stake clerk and will forgo the den leader calling they had initially extended to him.  This might mean I actually get to see him more than before… we’ll see.  I, Wanda, on the other hand just found out that I get to go back to school in August and am extremely excited.  Our stake has been given permission to run the Pathway program through BYU-I.  Over the course of the next year I’ll complete 15 credit hours through Pathway and then will automatically be matriculated into BYU-I and can continue from there to complete any of their online degrees.

Joseph is still plugging away through school.  Senioritis is getting worse.  This week, however, he’ll be done with his AP English course and just have the three left to finish.  During April Hannah asked him and Luke (a friend) to substitute for Adam and William’s class in primary.  I absolutely loved walking past and seeing the kids engaged with them.  How fun!

Rebekah is still working a lot.  She usually closes every night but Wednesday (mutual) and Sunday.  I think she’s wearing herself out, but she insists that it’s the only ‘fun’ she has right now.  She just took the AP Chem exam and AP Psych exam, so here’s to hoping she’s a little less stressed.  Finals will be coming up soon and she’ll have a short while to breathe before the ACTs.

Rachel has been playing soccer all month.  She is on the freshman team (wasn’t able to attend tryouts) with a lot of new-to-soccer players.  I’m really pleased with how she supports her teammates both on and off the field.  Lately she’s really into playing with Hyrum and Joshua.  I think she’s trying to be Joshua’s favorite person.

Mary is trying to finish up school.  She should be done with her big research paper soon.  While she’s not done as much babysitting lately (Hannah moved to Dodgeville), I’m really impressed by how well she’s babysitting for me at home.  It’s really sweet to come home to the kids taken care of, the dishes done and counters cleaned, and sometimes the kids even put to bed.  Next year she’ll be off to high school.  She decided that she wants to continue through WIVA.  This came as a surprise to me since her friends had been laying on heavy pressure to go to the local school next year.

Benjamin has also been playing soccer this month.  His Wednesdays are usually shot from babysitting in the morning (for a sister in the ward) and then off to soccer by 3:30, and then to YM by 7:00.  Fortunately institute is now through for a couple of weeks.  Hopefully this will allow him time to finish up school.  He’s been staying up late playing on his Google Nexus and tends to sleep in.  Joseph likes to come home from seminary and wake him up by shooting him with the Airsoft gun.  Waking Ben up reminds me of when we had to wake Phil up as kids.  We would resort to pulling him off the bed, or lying to him and telling him that Dad brought home donuts.  

Soccer is Sam’s sport of choice too.  We actually looked into other sports with Sam, but he decided he wanted to stay in soccer.  He likes the idea of raquetball, but there aren’t any courts for that even remotely close.  Sam is still enjoying chess club and cub scouts.  He’s halfway through his Webelos year, so we better get cracking on that.  May will bring lots of field trips which he is dying to go on.  This was one of the things he was hoping to experience at the local school, but they had them all scheduled for the last month of the school year.

Ruth has thoroughly loved school.  She has found that her best subject is math, but her reading has greatly improved.  Right now she’s into the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.  Her favorite subject is art.  She even made a mobile to hang over Joshua’s crib.  Ruth has also had a lot of fun with soccer.   When you sign up, it’s for both fall and spring season, and she was miserable in the fall, so I didn’t think she’d enjoy the spring.  But she is having a lot of fun and her best friend from school is on her team too.

Moroni is completely finished with his art and math courses.  This is always an exciting time of year for me.  I’m just as excited for summer to arrive as the kids are.  We found a school chart (or rather I made one) that is helping us to stay on track.  Moroni and Adam, ever the buddies also have a lot of fun playing Lego Indiana Jones together.  I’ll set him to his phonics or language.  They’ll quickly finish and then be off on the Wii.  Little turkeys.  Soccer will also end for Moroni in May.

Adam has been enjoying beginning reading.  I’ve known he was ready for it for a while, but there’s been no time to teach it.  We purchased him a subscription on reading eggs and he’s having fun working through the ‘levels.’  He’s currently in the third ‘level’ which puts him somewhere in the twenties.  Adam has also recently discovered the trampoline.  It scares the bejeebers out of him.  He will now get on if there’s only Moroni and Hyrum now.  The big kids (and big jumping) still scares him a little.  Adam’s favorite pastime is watching Minecraft videos.  

Hyrum is still progressing with his therapists.  This probably takes up the bulk of my time.  In the last month he spontaneously said, “dough” (go) and “bay” (bed)!  This is a huge step to decide to speak/communicate completely unprompted.  Right now we’re trying to teach him how to play with Moroni and Adam, and also how to play and share with Joshua.  Another big part of his programming is teaching him ‘tact,’ which is basically labeling objects. With his birthday in May we will be transitioning him to Early Childhood (with the school district) and he’ll be attending preschool in the fall.

Joshua is learning how to walk.  He’s been cruising since he was nine months, but is finally taking steps on his own.  He’s still not stable either, totally doing the mummy walk (hands forward).  First words are also here.  He has mamama, ball, bubu (bubble), dadada, and bu (bug).  He likes to share… especially with Hyrum who doesn’t necessarily return the item.

Joey & Carlie

Joey and Gideon ran a Spartan Super in Las Vegas the first weekend in April, 9.27 miles through the desert. It was a good trip. Glory tagged along with them to Vegas. They ate authentic pizza At Settebello, went to the top of the Stratosphere and checked out the Strip and ate Cici's, they don't have one in Monterey. On their drive back, they drove through Death Valley. During their trip they listened to the book "Flags of Our Fathers" about the marines in World War II that are in the iconic picture of the flag raising on top of Mt. Surabachi on Iwo Jima.  Joey is listening to another book, "A Higher Call" about a German fighter pilot in World War II, give it a listen if you get a chance. Joey is on his way to Colorado to run another Spartan Race at Ft Carson with Desi and looks forward to seeing her and her family as well as Felicia, Tom and meeting Noah. Joey has been busy at work planning a visit for General Rand, the Air Education and Training Command Commander to the Presidio, 4 star generals are high maintenance, he can't wait to be one.

Carlie has decided to take on the role of key spouse mentor for Joey's squadron, a new and different experience for her but very helpful for some of the younger spouses and especially for students’ spouses.  As of late there have been some unseasonably gorgeous days, it got up to the low 80s on April 30th.  Carlie pulled the kids out of school an hour early and hauled them all off to the beach.  The water is chilly but it is still fun.  They all got a little sunburned, very atypical since Carlie is always very serious about the application of sunblock.

Gideon is a lazy 15 year old, though he is very busy.  He doesn't have a lot of free time. Joey keeps him busy with the Spartan Races... There is also seminary, school, scouts, orchestra, oboe lessons, lacrosse practice and he's finally gotten some of the lead out and started working on his Eagle project, should be all done by 21 June. In May Gideon will have his third and final concert of the year. He will also be auditioning for the honors orchestra.

Glory has still been homeschooling/unschooling.  At this point she really sets her agenda of what she wants to learn and goes about learning something about it. She been learning about plants and herbs and has started to pick up some books to learn Italian, she already taught herself morse code.

Scarlett spent her second week of Spring Break at a sports camp where she was able to participate in many different sports. She has loved participating in activity days and is looking a forward to starting Karate in May.

Levi is still the active 7 year old that can't wait to turn eight at the end of May. He's working hard in Karate and should be getting his Yellow belt soon.

Reah runs wild daily with crazy hair from friend to friend. She is the happiest of little girls and knows no real hardship, though we still hear how we don't love her when she has to brush her teeth or go to bed. She loves to sing songs from frozen and we can often hear her singing and asking us if we want to build a snowman from the other side of the door.  

Phil & Hannah

Things are going well in the Bainbridge household. We had an interesting (read that as stressful) spring break. There is a family in our ward who has been staying in a hotel in between rentals. They called monday morning to ask if they could come hang out, and stayed until Friday morning. The boys loved having extra kids here to play with, but I have to admit, I wasn't sorry to see them find a new house!

Orion is still doing well in school. We just got his report card for this last quarter. He is too social and it is interfering with the other kids’ education. But Orion personally is doing great in school. He tested out of the reading mastery program, which is what they do for the first graders here. And at his last reading test, he was reading 117 wpm! For someone who doesn't like to read, and it is a fight to get him to sit down and read a book, I am pleased with his progress!

William  is still loving school. He has finally made a friend in his class. But he can't ever remember the little boy’s name. William is almost finished with his "Lets Play Music" class, and then he will have a recital. I have enjoyed doing that class with him, but will also be glad when it is over. The drive into Madison every week for it is getting a little old!

Oliver gave up on potty training. He really has no desire to make any kind of effort to go potty on the toilet. Sometimes, after sitting on the toilet and doing nothing, he will ask to have a diaper. 30 seconds after he has it on, he comes and tells me he is wet and needs to be changed. GROWL!!

Winston is doing well! We love this new medicine he is on! He is so happy all the time now! And even better, he is finally putting on weight. After we met with GI, we had to meet with a nutritionist. We had to start doing a high calorie formula, and keeping a food diary. The goal for the formula is to get him to take up to 20 oz a day. We are almost there! At first he was only taking about 10-12 oz. Now his daily average is 16. The other thing GI wanted us to do was meet with a failure to thrive specialist. We just met with her last week, and good news! Winston is gaining about 9 grams a day. His target weight gain should be between 8 & 14 grams a day. As long as he is consistently within that range, we won't have to put him on an appetite stimulant.

I am doing really well. One of my little sisters just got engaged and is getting married in September. I am excited to have an excuse to go visit my family this summer. On the other hand, a different little sister ran away about a week ago. Police reports have been filed, but we have not heard anything yet.

Easter was wonderful. We had a lot of fun doing the "Seven Days Till Easter" thing out of the Friend. And we loved spending the day with Wanda and Robert. We are so blessed to have them close by! Wish everyone else was closer too!

Mike & Desi

Mike- just got done with a huge project at work. It was and is under security clearance so I know nothing about it. I do know that he had to wear a suit the day of the presentation, so it must have been an important customer.

Desi- I spend most of my time in the car! I told mike that our next car needs to be a motor home. I'm looking forward to having Joey come this Thursday. I'm going to be running/trying to do the spartan race with him. I also was recently called to be the stake relief society events coordinator.  Which means I'm in charge of planning, decorating and preparing food for ALL stake relief society sanctioned events. The number of events will fall between 6-8 a year. We usually have something after each general broadcast, so that's twice a year, then our stake holds an annual women's conference luncheon, then missionary zone conferences and last but not least I'm in charge of dinners for the stake presidency and any general authorities that come to stake conferences. That's the only exciting part :-)

Emily- she's most of the reason mom is in the car! She has play practice 3-4 times a week! We will be so glad when the play is over... Only 2 more weeks. Then piano one day and soccer practice twice a week with games every Saturday. She is way advanced in class and loves school as you could imagine. This past week she had a little friend in school stay with us while her parents were in DC.

Mordecai- he's the other reason I'm in the car. He gets picked up from school half day. He enjoys school but doesn't love it like Emily. I think it's because he's not as confident in himself. I don't know why because he's advanced in reading and math. We've been working on his writing, and now it's actually legible. He also has soccer practice once a week (of course it's a different day then Emily's) and games on Saturday. This past Saturday he scored his first goal ever!!! He has also recently started taking piano from mom, mostly to have the basics down before we send him to Cheryl reeder.

Ruby- what can I say... She is full of life and energy. She reminds me a lot of myself and Felicia combined. Sneaky, but shy, and very lovable, not to mention all her hair! When you ask her where she got it all from she answers with "Costco". She loves to go to stores and asks daily if we are going to any, and how many?

Ivy- she just turned 18 months and joined nursery! YAY! We also found out that's she has an extra tooth, just like ruby...except ruby had 2 and so far we only see 1 extra. Here's hoping. She's as cute as ever, but we are biased, and she's our baby. We are finally starting to understand her when she talks and she copies everything everyone does.

Dan & Cherstin

We've had a few showings or so.  Other agents all say that the house shows well and is very clean and friendly feeling.  No offers as of yet, but the people that last came and looked said they our house was on their short list of houses to put offers on.  I guess we'll see.  We would appreciate any continued prayers that our house will sell.

We had our medical processing board this past Tuesday.  Because of a few "issues" (asthma and Hyrum's ears), we will have to wait up to two weeks to hear back from Elmendorf to make sure they have the resources necessary for us to PCS up there.  We would have rather had this whole process started sooner, but there is only one Lt.Col. that does it for the entire base and he was out of town for over two weeks.  We have a tentative appointment for TMO on the 15th of May to get the ball rolling on our pack-out.

If all goes as planned, we will leave for Denver towards the beginning of June, baptize Abby there (I believe this is news to Mom and Dad...or not by now) and then head up north from there.  We are planning to camp along the way to save money and allow the kids some outdoor/run around time.  We are actually looking forward to the trip up and have purchased a few new camping supplies (instant tent, and some cold weather sleeping bags).  

Dan's busy training his new replacement in his office.  He might also have to fly next week which I am really, REALLY dreading.

As for my kids....

Abby is doing fine.  She's doing a lot of reading while we're on break.  She's read a few Harry Potters, The Cricket in Times Square, all of the Ivy and Bean series (which takes her like an hour a book), and is currently working on Diary of a Wimpy Kid.  She and Ellie both have a little gymnastics show scheduled towards the end of the month and Abby is very excited to be learning a routine for it.  She's been walking around singing the kings and queens of  England which just makes me laugh.

Emmett just swam in his last swim meet here.  He will continue to practice with his team on Tuesday and Thursday evenings because I NEED him to be out and active.  He's gone through spells of destructiveness of late and he's quite lucky he survived.  He was rather helpful today, though.  He just lost another tooth which is what makes him look even more like he got struck in the face.

Ellie is going through that four-year-old whiny stage.  She turns five in a few months so it's looking like she is riding four out until the end.  The other day I had to threaten to take away her dresses if she didn't start wearing shorts underneath them (because she does all kinds of crazy things even IN the dresses).  She rolled her eyes at me and told me she'd just go naked.  She's enjoying her reading lessons and is counting up until she has her birthday.

Hyrum is typical two.  If we weren't moving, I'd probably start thinking about potty training him.  He was doing great until we went to Denver a few months ago.  Now he's back to holding and flooding his diaper.  At least once a day we have to change his pants because he potties a stream too strong for anything to hold it back.  He likes this show Paw Patrol on Amazon and is constantly pretending that he is a dog.  I have flashes of Abby meowing at the age of two when he does it.  His "dog" is a lot more tolerable than Abby's "cat" so I'll take it.

Enzo is still not walking.  Little turd.  He stepped all the way across my living room (which is not huge but still!) and yet he will not make walking his main mode of transportation.  He can even stand up from sitting in the middle of the floor, though he doesn't do it often.  He's just getting over another chest infection so we're all happy that he's back to happily playing on the floor for even a few minutes.

So...that's us.  I'm looking forward to hearing/reading what's going on with everyone else!

Tom & Felicia

We're doing great! We really enjoyed General Conference, particularly President Uchtdorf's talk on Gratitude.

Noah is getting bigger every day and we wish it would stop. Recently he has begun following more one word commands/prompts. Like if we tell him "gabonk" he'll lean his head forward so that we can gently head butt him, or if we put his bear up to his face and say "give kisses" he'll kiss his bear though, he still won't kiss Tom or me.

Tom and I are staying busy with work/housework and callings. Tom serves as the 1st Counselor in the Young Men's Presidency in our ward and recently, I was released as Webelos Den Leader and called to serve as the 2nd Counselor in the Relief Society Presidency. However, they still haven't called a replacement Den Leader so I am doing both callings until they can get someone called.

Most recently we took a short trip over to Martin's Cove because Tom had never been. It was a wonderful experience and we definitely felt the spirit there. We are looking forward to new adventures in the coming months and to getting to see Joey and Desi at the end of the week!

Can't wait to hear from everyone else!