December ended up being a busy month. It has been over a month since I wrote. So much happens in our busy family. The kids enjoyed their winter break and now are back in school. Ruth was glad that finals ended and she made it through another semester of high school. Caleb loved his class parties and activities at the end of the year. Andrew and Spencer did well in their school term too. Now they are back at it and amazed that the school year is half over.
December 8th was the model train club meeting. Caleb has decided he wants to try going to train club and that was his first official meeting. They had some fun with the meeting and then they went to a train club members home for a lunch pot luck party. The boys enjoyed some time with their train friends.
Monday December 10th was the winter band concert. Spencer’s beginning band is progressing to playing things in harmony and sounded good for a beginning group. Andrew’s band sounded great and I enjoyed hearing their music. The boys like being a part of the band and playing music. I enjoy that Andrew likes to whistle and Spencer hums while they play with toys.
Spencer's band above, Andrew's band below (can you find them?)
Wednesday the 12th I went to a pot luck lunch for the library volunteers. I enjoy being a part of that group, they are nice women. I brought some mint brownies to share. One of the women who came late, who is LDS, picked up a brownie and started eating it and said to another volunteer who is LDS, “these taste like BYU brownies.” I laughed and told her I made them and used the BYU recipe. We had a good laugh at that and she complemented me on how good they were. Then we talked a bit about our memories of BYU and found that we had overlapped in our time there.
On the 13th we had Peter and Louise come over for dinner. We enjoy having them over. We are their ministering family and this is a service they like, coming to eat dinner with our family. They are a younger couple and we enjoy talking and being with them. Louise is from Australia. I told her our nephew Peter is serving a mission there and she thought that was great.
Friday the 14th I went to Caleb’s class lunch. They had a project to learn about how Christmas and winter holidays were celebrated in different countries. Part of their project was to make a traditional food from that country and bring it to a lunch. Parents were invited to come and taste things too. It was a fun activity and lots of yummy food. Caleb did his project on Brazil and we made little buttermilk donuts. They were good. That afternoon Neal took Ruth and Andrew to the temple to do baptisms. With the changes that were announced that day with moving up a groups with the youth, Spencer will soon join them in the temple. Spencer is turning 12 this August and will be ordained a deacon next Sunday. Andrew turns 14 in August and will be ordained a teacher. Ruth turns 16 soon and will now be a Laurel. So this change effects all three of our older kids. Spencer was excited that he was completely done with Primary. He enjoyed his first youth activity this week and likes being with the older kids.
Saturday, December 15th, in the morning we went to the church for a Ward Christmas breakfast. It was fun to do the activity in the morning. They had some tasty food out and the kids came in pajamas. I enjoyed visiting with members of the ward. I especially enjoyed talked to Holly about how to educate a gifted child. Her son is a few years older than Caleb and she always has great ideas to share with me about his education. That evening Neal, Ruth and I went to a production of the “Nutcracker” Ballet. Ruth’s friend, Zaida was dancing in it. Zaida’s parent also attended the performance and Neal and I enjoyed visiting with them afterwards while the girls were talking. I enjoyed the performance and doing something fun.
On Sunday the 16th our ward choir sang in church. Ruth, Andrew and I sing with the choir. We had rehearsed four songs that we sang that day. Holly, who is an opera singer, also sang a beautiful solo. It was a nice meeting with beautiful music. That evening our friends, Ben and Erin Newton, invited many families over for caroling around their neighborhood. We had around 30 people walking around singing. It was nice. We stopped at friends homes and sang for them. Then we went back to the Newton’s home for treats and visiting. It was a nice evening.
December the 19th brought us back to the middle school for a jazz band concert. Andrew played well with his solo. He gets some good sound out of his trombone. He really enjoys jazz band. His jazz band was chosen as an honor band this year by the NM music educators association. This week on Tuesday his band was treated to a pizza dinner at a local parlor and given awards. Andrew got the “Taming the Beast” award. I believe this was to recognize his efforts in making the trombone loud and sound good. Last evening their jazz band performed at the opening activities of the NMMEA all state music conference. I didn’t attend but I understand from those that did that the band sounded good and Andrew did well with his solo again.
Andrew and his friend Aiden decided they want to earn money. They want to start a yard work business. So far they have worked in Aiden’s neighbor’s yard, raking leaves and clearing snow. Andrew is happy that the neighbor is willing to pay them and he can earn some money. Andrew bought an engine for his train layout and finds that there are always more things he would like but never enough money to buy them.
On Friday the 21st we drove to Utah. The kids were happy to be out of school for two weeks and on our way to visit family. The evening before we left we opened some of our gifts from each other so we didn’t need to take everything with us. Caleb was so excited to get a new globe. He has been talking about needing an updated globe that had all the right countries names. The globe we had was an old one from the 1980’s. We had a good drive and arrived at my mom’s home about 3:30 in the afternoon. We had a nice visit with her that evening. After dinner the kids and I helped Grandma make gingerbread for the big party the next day.
Caleb and his new globe
lots of smiles with the gift giving
Saturday the Hancock’s gathered for our annual Christmas party. We made gingerbread houses, visited and ate a meal together. It was nice to have my sisters all together. I enjoyed visiting with them and hearing what their families were up to.
my sister Rachel
Spencer with his completed house, below Caleb with his
house (he buried it in cotton candy snow)
Ruth and Andrew with their houses
Sunday we went to church at my sister Mandy’s ward. Mandy’s daughter, Grace, was singing a solo part with their ward choir. It was a nice musical meeting. On our way home from church we stopped at the Orem cemetery to see Dad’s grave. It was a peaceful place to stop. We enjoyed visiting with family that afternoon and evening.
Rachel and Mom were with us at the cemetery
Andrew enjoyed setting up Grandpa's electric
train around the tree and playing with it.
We had some music time, Caleb learned some songs to play for everyone
Christmas Eve we spent with the Hancock’s. The boys were a great help to Grandma by working hard in her yard to clean up the last of the leaves from the trees that had fallen. She had had lots of help from members of her ward but our crew finished off the job and got her yard looking good for the winter. That evening the Hancock family gathered. It was good to see so many of my nieces and nephews come over too. We had a nice program of reading the Christmas story from the Bible and having the younger kids act it out. The kids all love Grandma’s tradition of letting the grandkids open their gifts from her on Christmas eve.
Spencer and Andrew were excited for Christmas and even put on
their pajamas at 5:30 on Christmas Eve
The children's Nativity
Christmas morning was a happy time for us too. The kids opened a few more gifts and we had a good breakfast. We visited with Mom and Rachel for the morning. We then packed up and drove the 40 minutes to the Hubbard’s home. We had fun with them through the afternoon. The kids opened more gifts from the Hubbard’s and had fun playing with new toys and games. Dallin’s family came over too, so they had cousins to play with. We had a wonderful Christmas day with family.
Rachel and I above and Mom, Ruth and I below.
Ruth was excited about a nutcracker
We spent a few days with the Hubbard’s and did some fun activities with them. The best was playing games at their home. Dallin gave our boys some drones (he bought them used) and the boys have had fun figuring them out. It snowed a little and the kids had fun playing in it. We went to the aquarium one day. It was interesting to see so many things there. We spent most the day there and enjoyed looking around. Then we went to Dallin’s home to eat dinner and play with cousins.
Above at a park playing with their drones. Below, Spencer with Jake
visiting at Hubbard's home and playing in the snow
at the aquarium
Dallin and Emily
Caleb watching the jelly fish
Friday, the 28th, in the morning Neal took Spencer and Andrew down to Vineyard (close to Orem) to see some construction equipment. Susan’s friend, Larry, had talked to Neal on Christmas Eve and invited them over to see his equipment. The boys had fun seeing things and even getting to try driving and operating the small loader and diggers. (I don’t know what they are called.) That afternoon we went out to eat at a buffet with the Hubbard group. Then went over to Dallin’s home again for play and visit time. We enjoyed our time with the family.
On Saturday the 29th we drove home. We had good weather and clear roads for the drive, which I am grateful for. I know that the drive through the mountains isn’t always so good. We enjoyed our week in Utah. When we got home and were eating some dinner Caleb said he had had too many sweets that week and wanted to know if it was okay if he took a fast from sweets. We decided it was a good idea and we all decided to not eat any sugar for a day. It was a bit hard with all the treats sitting around we had brought home from the Grandmas houses but we did it.
On Monday the 31st Spencer and Caleb enjoyed playing with Jonathan most the day. They had fun talking over their Christmas adventures and playing with new things. That evening our family went to a party at the Isakson’s home. They had invited us, the Allen’s and the Duran’s for a news years eve party. It was a fun evening. The kids had a lot of fun playing and the adults enjoyed visiting. At 8:00 Neal drove the teen agers to a party at the Golightly’s home, then he came back to the Isakson’s. About 9:00 we did a count down with the kids. When we got home Caleb really wanted to stay up until midnight. Neal needed to stay up to go pick up Ruth and Andrew from their party after midnight, so Neal and Caleb played games until midnight. Caleb loved being able to welcome the new year in with lots of excitement. Spencer and I went to bed.
On January 1st Caleb slept until past 10:00 in the morning. We had a nice day at home. We had some snow that fell that day and the next day. The kids loved playing in it. They went to the elementary school and played on their big field that has a slope on one side. There were other kids out there playing on sleds too. We had around four inches of snow total. The roads were bad enough that the city asked people to stay home on the 2nd if they could, so that they could try to clear the main roads. They don’t have lots of snow equipment so the few trucks they do have were working continuously to try to keep up with it. They never plowed the neighborhood streets, so they still have icy areas where the snow was packed down. It has been cold all week and we still have snow in our yard in the shady parts. Neal stayed home for an extra holiday since Sandia Labs closed their office on the 2nd and told their employees to take an additional holiday. We enjoyed our time with Neal over his vacation. Now he is back at work and busy with things again.
looking out from the front window
the back yard
Spencer had an idea to make a candle. With Neal’s help he melted some old crayons and poured them into a mold Spencer had made out of a cardboard tube. Spencer had a string going through the middle for a wick and they were able to get a candle to form. They did it outside and used snow to help the wax set up quickly. Spencer was excited that it really burned. He enjoyed watching it burn down and how it all dripped. He has ideas of how to make it better next time. Caleb has enjoyed playing with his blocks. He wanted more city blocks for building (they are slender slat wood blocks). He got more for Christmas and now has 600 blocks! He has fun making some fun structures.
On January 3rd and 4th Ruth babysat for Amy, who she has babysat a few times for now. Amy needed to go to work but the kids were out of school. Ruth babysat for about 7 hours each day. The two children are fun and creative in their play and enjoyed having Ruth with them.
Andrew had an orthodontist appointment that I am glad I remembered to take him to. His teeth are moving in a good way and things are looking good for him. On Saturday Andrew had a jazz band rehearsal to prepare for their performance last night. Spencer and Caleb went with Neal to Mr. Hovey’s home to work on trains. Mr. Hovey is the leader of the youth model train club. They enjoyed learning some things from him and running trains on his big train lay out. Neal and Andrew worked a lot on the HO layout here at home and have it completely wired and functioning now. Spencer and Caleb will get the fun of “decorating” it and making it look like a little city or country, whatever they plan to make around the tracks. Saturday afternoon I went to the baptism of Olivia Rule, a girl in my primary class. It was a nice meeting and the spirit was strong there. I am glad I was able to go. I like going to the temple too and was able to go last week. It is so peaceful there. I need those times to remind me of the important things in life and that we can have peace, even in a busy world.
Monday January 7th the kids went back to school. They were sad to see their break end but happy to get back to friends and routines. That evening Dallin’s family came. Dallin is finishing medical school and applying for residencies. He had an interview this week at the UNM hospital. That would be fun if they move here. We enjoy being with their family. May Bo and the kids were with me at home for a couple of days. This morning Dallin and May Bo, with baby Jake, flew to Oregon for another interview. I will babysit their three older kids until Saturday night when they return. Then on Monday they will drive to Arizona for more interviews. They have been all over the country doing interviews at different programs and are almost done. Then comes the hard part of making all the decisions of what program will be the best fit for Dallin and his family. It is different for me to have young children in the house. We had to watch Jake close because he is getting into everything and climbing everywhere. The older kids are pretty good with entertaining themselves but get the house rather messy with their play. Spencer has had a hard time with the toys and clutter and noise when he comes home. Yet, Spencer plays so well with Jake and likes helping out the kids. Caleb loves having cousins here to play with when he gets home from school. Ruth has been a help with playing with Emily, who is three. And Andrew has had fun showing the younger boys things in their play. So far things are going well with it. I hope the kids can stay happy with their parents gone.
I have embarked in a big project. I bought a digital film scanner for Christmas and have started my project of scanning negatives. My mom let me bring home a box of negatives from the 1970’s through the 1990’s. It has been fun to do some of them and see how it is working. I am enjoying seeing pictures of myself as a child and it is bringing back many memories.
Christmas 1979, I am in the middle of two of my sisters
I am thankful for a new year and hope it goes well as we work hard to do good things.
