2. Monta Loma movie night - I volunteered to run the movie night for Monta Loma Elementary School this month. Michelle Badger usually runs the event, and I don't think it would be too bad except it takes a while to learn the ropes when you are new at something. Preparations went pretty well, and several people volunteered to help, but the one thing that made me nervous was getting the projector to work. I didn't actually succeed at getting the projector and speakers figured out until a few hours before the show started. But we did it! We watched Madagascar 3 and had a great time.
3. Great Great Grandma Hales - This month Great Great Grandma Glenna Hales passed away. She was 100 years old and was ready to pass on to the other side, but even so, it was sad to see her go. I believe she passed away on Wednesday. They planned the funeral for Monday. I had to see the movie night to completion, so I couldn't really get started packing until Saturday. And David had lots of work he needed to finish, too. So he worked until after midnight on Saturday night. We really prefer not to travel on Sunday, but this time it was the only way we could manage things, so we went to church to take the sacrament, and left right after the sacrament and made the 12 hour drive to Utah. The kids did so well. Let me rephrase that. The girls did so well. Davy had a bit of a struggle, but I would be miserable, too, if I had to be 5-point harnessed to one spot for 12 hours! Even with playing the part of the entertainer and reading and moving around in the car, I almost went crazy! But the girls did great! They were really good and went to sleep before we arrived and were pretty quick to go to sleep after we got there. But they were still exhausted at the funeral. We sat in the very back, but I still had to take Haven and Davy out of the building, so I missed most of the service. We found Callie had a fever towards the end, so we sent David on for the burial and I took the kids home for naps. We were sad to see Grandma Hales go, but we rejoice in our belief in eternal families due to a loving father and merciful Savior.
4. Thanksgiving - Grandma's funeral was just before Thanksgiving so we were able to celebrate with the Michaelis family this year. We went up the Great Grandma's, and had a nice dinner with lots of the Michaelis clan. But I realized that after being hours away from family for the past eight years, I've never once cooked Thanksgiving dinner! Amazing! And with moving back to Utah, I don't think I'll be roasting a turkey for many a year.
5. Davy's First Birthday - Davy's birthday was also on Thanksgiving Day. Although Callie and Davy's birthdays are four days apart they have both celebrated their first birthday on Thanksgiving. We took some cupcakes up and sang "Happy Birthday" and Davy got to enjoy his first cupcake. We're so excited to have made it this far with him. He contributes so much fun and happiness to our family.
6. House Hunting - While we were in Utah we thought we might as well check out some houses. We found two that we really liked. One was beautiful and really a layout and home style that we could love, but it was on a busy street and the yard was smaller than we would have preferred. The second house we looked at was new and although it had plenty of space we didn't care for the style. It had a large yard, but it was barren and lacked any fencing, but it was in a cul-de-sac and was close to BYU and good schools. But what actually sold us on that house was the neighbors. The little cul-de-sac was full of super friendly neighbors that were also BYU professors. When we got back we ended up making three different offers, but the seller eventually decided he didn't want to sell, since he would be attending law school soon. So the hunt continued...
7. Callie's 8th Birthday - Callie turned eight right after we got back from Utah. I really didn't have time to put much together for her birthday. But she was a great sport. We decided to just take our kids and Olivia and Sevrin Lumley to Chuck E Cheese. Callie had wanted to go to Chuck E Cheese for a long time, so I was glad that she was happy with that. Callie has grown up so beautifully. She is really maturing and becoming such a good big sister and helper. Callie also made the choice to be baptized. Grandma and Grandpa Michaelis and Grandma Great and Grandpa Great were able to attend. Patti and Dave (and Sam and Thomas) also made it for the occasion. We were also pleased that some of Callie's school friends were able to come, too. Karla, Katya, and Katie all attended. Grandma Great also made Callie a beautiful white baptism dress. We're so grateful for her wonderful talents. Everything went smoothly (except that we didn't take pictures!!! Aaaargh! I think Patti snapped one for us. Bless you Patti!) and we are so proud of Callie. We had a small luncheon at our apartment afterwards for those that attended. We were glad everything went well. I do have to add that I was sad to realize how quickly Callie is growing up. She'll be off to college before we know it. It makes me realize how much I love being a mother, and how dearly I love these children of mine!
| Callie Alyssa, and Haven sang "When I am baptized". So sweet! |
8. Made me smile - Haven told me that she couldn't go to Joy School because she was blethewing. I had her repeat herself a few times before I realized she meant "bless-you-ing". She'd been sneezing in the kitchen earlier that morning. :)
9. Another chuckle - I often make corn muffins when I make chili, and we often call them corn cupcakes to entice the kids into gobbling them up. One evening in recent past, they were remarkably soft and sweet. The kids ate them right up and loved them. It wasn't until a few weeks later, that I suddenly realized I had forgotten to add the cornmeal! They really were cupcakes! Ha! The things my brain will do!
