Home

Home. I miss that place. It's amazing how much we rely on having a place to hideout and escape and eat and sleep and read and write, and watch TV. 

I miss my home! We are doing good.  I haven't been posting because not much is changing day-to-day and I don't have easy access to the computer. It's been nearly two weeks since our basement apartment flooded, and it looks to be another week or two until we can move back in. The floors and lower walls were ruined, so the apartment is kind of gutted right now.

For now, we are staying upstairs in the attic guest room. Our neighbors are currently at the hospital presumably giving birth to their second child. I feel terrible that we are invading their home during this special family time! But, I'm trying to make the most of it and be helpful for Becky.

Last weekend we packed up all of our bedroom and living room stuff in boxes and moved it to the garage. We didn't realize it would be so long--so we only left out clothes! There is amazingly nothing much to do! 

Also, we just found out that the kitchen and bathroom floors will need to be replaced. So, tonight we are packing up the rest of our belongings. And, while the floors are all ripped up, they may be cutting concrete and doing some major sewer repairs. 

And...as long as we are getting new wallboards, carpets, and linoleum--we are going to go ahead and paint the walls, too. 

Ugh. It will be lovely when it is all done...but, until then it is really weird to be somewhat homeless. 

I am thankful for all the good in our lives: for ward members that have us over for dinner (I'm SO sick of eating out!), for people who donated boxes, for family that spent a day moving boxes to the garage, and for good friends that are letting us live in their house. 

I am thankful. I'm trying to be patient. But I just miss being home.

Cleaning and Packing

Found some old photos that my good friend Rachael Preston (in picture above) gave me last time I saw her. I think that they are photos from my Junior (?) band, choir, orchestra tour to St. Louis, MO.

Me with a girl who I think is named Cecily. Can any one confirm that?

Just now, in the bathroom

3 stalls, 1 in use.

I step into an empty stall and hear this greeting coming from the stall next to me:
"Hello, how are you doing?"

I was certain she was on her cell phone (which is just gross if you ask me), so I waited for her follow up response.

Nothing. Not another sound was uttered.

I don't think she was on her cell phone.

To Jesus, with love

This last week at church, one of our Sunbeams (age 3 kids) had drawn a picture during class. He also had a small card with a picture of Jesus. He went to his teacher and said, "I want to give these pictures to Jesus."

Ah. How adorable. "That's so wonderful." She says. Then, confused, she watches him walk resolutely across the primary room and hand his pictures to my husband Alex.

Alex, completely oblivious, grins and says, "Thank you!" Then, pointing to the card, "Who is this a picture of?" Beaming, the child answers, "Jesus!"

"That's right!" commends Alex.

Upon his return, the boy's teacher says, "Um, I don't think that is Jesus, honey. That is Brother Carmichael." The Sunbeam looks at a nearby picture of Jesus...looks back at Alex...and firmly replies, "Yes, I'm sure it is Jesus."

Lucky kid to have Jesus as his Primary Chorister!

Here comes the flood...

Hmmm. I could word this post in such a way as to complain about the flooding of our apartment last night. I could lament about the inconvenience of sleeping on an air mattress in the living room because the bedroom is full of wet and the bed is full of stuff. I could moan about the amount of clean-up and my lack of time. I could explain about how Alex and I are busier at work than we have almost ever been. I could expound on the hardships of our upstairs neighbors: their half of the basement also flooded, they need a new water heater, they have a new baby due any day, and the husband is also super busy at work. I could. I could complain about how inconvenient this all is. It is. But I won't.

Instead, I hope you will indulge me while I list a few of the things for which I am grateful:

1) I'm grateful my good husband has a job (well, 2 jobs) during this time of financial instability in our nation. I'm grateful that he works so hard to provide and save for our growing family.

2) I'm grateful that I have a job that I love and will continue to put my best effort into this job while I am in this stage of my life.

3) I'm grateful that I have a house to sleep in. I'm grateful for electricity, yummy food, and great house-mates.

4) I'm grateful that we are getting new carpet and an additional room now so that we can prepare the house to fit one more soon.

5) I'm grateful for a great extended family: for siblings that I continue to grow closer to, for sibling-in-laws that have become an integral part of my life, for loving parents, living grandparents, and nieces and nephews that have become some of my best friends.

6) I'm grateful for my Savior. I'm grateful for the knowledge that God will not give us more trials than we can handle! I'm grateful for a Savior on whom I can cast my burdens.

7) I'm grateful for my calling in Young Womens and the joy it brings me to watch this girls grow in the Gospel!

8) I'm grateful for wonderful landlords that are so much more than that. I'm grateful that we are good friends and can look to each other for support, dinner, or a good laugh.

9) I'm grateful for this new life growing inside of me and the excitement it brings me every day!

10) Can I say I'm grateful for my husband again? I'm grateful that he loves me so much...that he tucks me in at night...that he thinks of ways to lighten my burdens, even when he himself feels so heavy laden, that we make a good problem solving team, that we like each other, that he is an amazing male primary chorister, and that he is such a good friend to me!

Sorry if this is a bit personal and/or cheesy. I'm just trying to keep some perspective. A friend at church has to watch her husband endure another 8 weeks of chemo. A family member is grieving over the loss of a child. A friend is faced with intense financial hardships.

Plus there are all those kids starving in Africa, right?

A weekend of surprises...

Last weekend we jetted down to Utah for a quick weekend full of surprises. We left work early on Friday, picked our friend Danita up in Portland, and headed out about 3 pm. Despite the successes of previous marathon road trips, there was no way I could drive all night (for reasons that will become clear in a moment). So, we stayed the night in Boise and finished the drive Saturday morning.

We got to listen to the morning session of General Conference in the car (for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints). It's so much more difficult listening in the car. It always makes me realize how blessed we are to be able to watch conference in our p.j.'s at home!

Anyway, we got there in time to make a few final party preparations before we all met at 4:00 at Los Hermanos in Provo (one of dad's favorite restaurants).

(pose for the camera Grandma!)

It was so fun to put a party together with all of my siblings. It was kind of the first time we have all worked together to create something as grown-ups with spouses. Peter was our emcee and coordinated the planning, and Peter and Tayva gathered and scanned many of the photos for the dvd. Adam helped Stef & Darin put together some music from dad's collection. Stef created a memory book with each person supplying a memory about dad for the book.

Candice & Adam put together the decorations and enlarged this picture, matted it, and we all signed it for dad.

Ryan and his girlfriend Kaylee brought some really cool balloons to the party, and Ryan price-checked the group gift--a record player for Dad's old records (=

Mom had completely tricked dad--he had no inkling that there was a party that night. She talked him into buying some 70s clothes and to reminisce about their early years together (it was kind of a dress-up party: "come dressed in clothes from any decade Lester lived through"). She even let him choose the restaurant (knowing he would chose Los Hermanos!) He said later that as they walked up the stairs to the upper room, he noticed a big happy family having a birthday party and singing happy birthday. It took him a few moments to realize it was HIS big family singing HIM happy birthday!

(The staff had him stand on a chair while we all sang to him. I ALMOST got a picture of Grandma Betty with her hand on my dad's behind. She was terrified that he would fall! Once a mommy, always a mommy).

The highlight of the night (for me) was the slide show I had put together. It was a time line with pictures of dad from 6 months up to last year (complete with music from his teenage years). We paused the dvd throughout as Peter narrated and asked dad's parents, mom, and dad to fill in with stories from dad's life. It was so fun to get to know my dad better. Here are a couple of my favorite pictures:

Me & my dad at my baptism

Me & my dad at my 2-year college graduation (mom & dad drove up and surprised me)

The slide show ended with "2008: Lester turns 50!" and a credit-style list of contributors. The movie faded to black and the music faded out. A few moments later, the music fades back in...

"2009...Lester....becomes..........a Grandpa! April 2009"

Alex snapped this shot of their initial reactions (look at Grandma Betty's face...I though she was going to choke!"

The next response was..."Who's Pregnant?" (we do have 4 of us married off...)

I threw a t-shirt at my dad that says "Grandpas Rule" (a reference to his favorite t-shirt "Old Guys Rule")

Then the most amazing thing happened...my parent's eyes got all smallish and squishy. Then their voices got unusually high...then their eyes got all shiny and wettish as they realized that finally, FINALLY, they are going to be grandparents. It was a great day.

We caught this sweet picture of my parents walking to their car after the party, mom carrying dad's balloons, and dad keeping his sweetheart out of the rain (=

(p.s. if it wasn't obvious, I was the one making the big announcement. We are due mid-April (so we don't know if it's a boy or a girl yet...but we do plan to find out. I will keep the blog updated with any pertinent information!)

Breakfast Disaster

)=

I just spilled my Cinnaman Toast Crunch all over my lap and the floor.

Darn.

That was the last of the box.

Humph.