Layne & Frankie-While writing this note, I am looking out the office window. I can see our peach trees covered with pink blossoms. This is a beautiful time of year here. On the way to church, the hills are covered with green grass and wildflowers. The mountains behind are still covered with snow, so even though spring is here, it may not be where you are. Either way, summer is coming and FAMILY REUNION is not far away.
Family reunion will be at Camp Wilderness near Ponderosa, CA (11 miles past the town of Camp Nelson on Highway 190) in the Sequoia National Forest. It is near the "Trail of 100 Giants". One of these Giant Sequoia trees has a diameter of about 37 feet.
Mark you calendars: June 17-19
All is well with us. Hawaii was wonderful. It was a great break in the middle of moving. Most of you know what moving is like. Almost 40 years worth of precious possessions is quite hilarious. If it wasn't for all the help from our kids, we would still be filling trailers. Luckily for me, most of the inside boxes were unloaded. Layne is not so lucky. Most of the shop boxes are still full and not labelled.
We plan to be in Utah over General Conference weekend. Hope to see some of you then,
Layne and Frankie
Rachel & Rob- Seth & Rayanna- Brandon & Laura- Rebekah & Seth- Caleb & Ashley- Kara & Michael- Jeremy & Leslie- Benjamin & Megan- Mathew & Karali-
Jenna & Kevin-Life is good! It's March 7th today... Yesterday Kevin and I went to the temple with my parents and got to see Ty and Melissa there!!! It was so great to see them!!! :) It's Spencer's b-day today, so we'll be heading to the hospital to eat cake with him! :) The boys are all great! They're dying to start the "next sport!" Hunter turned 12 this month and was ordained a deacon. He'll be gathering fast offerings and passing the sacrament for the first time today! He had the birthday party of his life... He got to invite his whole class plus some to my dad's office for a huge movie party! Afterwards my younger boys said, "I want a party JUST like that!" Hope all is well with all of you! Love, Jenna
Hunter Herald January 2010 Don't forget to pay dues if you haven't!!! Scroll down to the next post to see how. Thank you to everyone who sent in news!!! Please keep it coming! :) Love, Jenna
Neil & Mike-The good news from our house is that Tena is back home. She has been gone since last April. She has been in a few different places receiving help with her mental disorders. She has made great improvements and we are very excited to have her back. There are still some large hurdles to get over where schooling is concerned so we would appreciate you remembering her in your prayers from time to time. Tom is playing basketball for his school and so far his team has won all 8 of their games. Maybe that height will come in handy after all. Rachel has a friend taking the Missionary discussions in our home and so we are enjoying the extra Spirit that brings. Our pasture looks like a huge mud bog after our recent rain storms and the kids are having lots of fun doing their chores with the mud threatening to come to the top of their knee high boots. Memories.....Neil says "It could be snow" and really freezing! I hope you are all enjoying a little lull in your lives after the holiday madness. Love Aunt Mike
LaMont & Evy-Sorry there isn't a lot of news coming from our side on the family. I look around when I get the prod from Jenna to send news and realize we have no graduations, no deaths to report, not one wedding, and in all it seems, the "spectacular", kind of evads us. We are however, if it is news worthy, and you can be the judge, healthy, well, pending an operation to sew Tennyson's feed tube hole up in his stomach, and a tiny operation on Melisa's daughter Elise's finger which is slightly crooked, then we are well.
The boys are wrestling in Reno, getting ready to try out for baseball while being in mid season basketball, in Manteca. Evy and I are basking in the light of great kids and of course wicked good grand kids. Love to all, If you are doing as well as we are, then none of us has a care. Love LaMont and Evy
Chad & Nan- Jaimyn & Paul- Justin & Jana-
Molly & Aaron-We're all doing good and staying busy! Hunter is 14 now and playing basketball for the Jr. High and having lots of fun. He's also getting ready to start his Eagle project here in the next month or so, after it's all written up. He's having fun with young men's too! Tanner is 12 now and loving being in young mens too! He's playing basketball for a city team (the Spurs) and is doing great. Jake is 9 1/2 and is also doing good! He's playing basketball also for the city and he's on the Washington Wizards. He loves cubs and is excited that Uncle Chad is his new den leader. Hailey, 5 1/2, is really great too! She's been out of school and sick all week, but I've loved having her home with me. I know she can't wait to get back to school though. She loves kindergarden and all that is involved with it. She's going to start tennis in March and can't wait for that! Aaron and I are good too! Life is fun and we love the age that are kids are! It's fun to go see them do whatever they are involved in! It's a blessing to have great kids! Hope all is well with everyone! We send our love! Molly and Aaron and kids
Melisa & Tye-
Layne & Frankie-
Rachel & Rob-Time marches on, and it is getting faster and faster. The Fransens are doing good. Hannah is growing teeth she almost has 4. Dale is loosing teeth he has two spaces and two loose. Cody is doing great in school. He won the FFA Creed contest and won $100. He competes again next week. Alex joined the wrestling team and really likes it. Boyd's team won 2nd place in the history day program. He competes at the county level in March. Elizabeth is my shadow. She wants to help me with everything unless I want her help then she often says "No, You". Hannah is scooting around but not quite crawling. She loves to do things with Elizabeth and always has smiles for her brothers. Rob and Rachel are just busy doing all the same things they always do. We have gotten used to our new neighbors (my parents) and the kids love it when Grandpa calls for helpers. Well that's all for this month. I hope everyone is having a good 2010 so far.
Kara & Michael-Dear family It has been a few months since we have sent in any news. It seems like time is just flying by. Were able to enjoy a great Christmas vacation at my parents this year. And we still made it home into to spend the New Year with Jeremy and Leslie. Emily started walking at my parents the day after Christmas. She can really get around. We have been sick here the past few days. The only part I enjoyed was today when we all took naps. I can't complain when I can take a much needed nap. Mike is doing some winter safety training this weekend he isn't looking forward to it. I think it would be great to fun but isn't that how it always is those that would enjoy it can't. Love Kara, Mike and family
Jeremy & Leslie- Benjamin & Megan- Mathew & Karali-
Sheila & Lyle-We had a fantastic Christmas with the whole family... We spent the night Christmas eve at the office. It was nice with plenty of room to run around and have fun.
Jenna & Kevin-Life is good and keeps trucking on. The 1st semester of school just ended for all the boys! They all did fantastic on their grades!!! Kaden and Gavin are loving basketball. Kaden's team is undefeated... and they just beat the other undefeated team last night! They sure are fun to watch!!! Hunter and Kellan finished wrestling. Chloe has been practicing making snow angels on our kitchen floor. :) Kevin says this should be a record month for the business! :) We've been looking for a home to buy. Our lease ends here in July. We're glad the home prices continue to drop! :) Love, Jenna and fam...
Bryce has helped me make it simple for you to pay your family dues.... again! :) Just click on the link below and follow the directions. The funds and information are secure as it goes through my dad's business website. Please remember to type in the comments box (sample image below) which couples are being paid for.
Neil & Mike- I just wanted to wish everyone a very Merry Holiday season. As I prepared my Christmas cards and passed all of your addresses I thought, well I'll just say it in the newsletter. We the Neil Hunters extend all of our love and best wishes. We know in your indivuidual families you will instill in your little and big ones the true Spirit of Christmas and that the Savior's birth will be what is most celebrated. Our thoughts go way back to Christmas's celebrated together and wish we could have a reunion at Christmas time as well. May all of you be together with those you love most at this most blessed time of the year. We will have all of our family together for one glorious day. .. and we will be grateful for that! We love you all!!!!!!!!! Uncle Neil and Aunt Mike
Trevor & Charmayne-It's been pretty busy in our house this past month. We thought things would slow down now that we're done with soccer. However, we decided (Charmayne did and Trevor protested every step of the way) that having the three boys in one room wasn't working out very well anymore. They are just getting too big. They had their bedroom where they slept and changed clothes - wall to wall dressers and beds. They also had turned our family room into their play/homework room. So we gave Race his own room, but he has to share with our vinyl cutter and computer. We're also planning to resurrect the train table and put it up in there, probably after the holidays. Nick and Kinny are getting the family room. So it's taken us weeks to finish the move and their rooms look great. The rest of the house is still holding onto all the "OTHER" stuff we can't seem to let go of. Since our garage is also full we may have to do some soul searching and really decide what is important to hold on to and what is not. Besides that, Trevor is staying warm at work with his new State provided Car-hart jacket. Too bad they can't stop the furlough days. He just got a new smart phone and is enjoying the modern convenience that comes with it. He's been helping the boys make candy canes for sale out of plywood for yard decorations. They are turning quite the profit. Charmayne is trying to work part time and still manage to keep the house up. She now has a new Chihuahua puppy. He's really fun and potty training is going so well...He's also a little thief. Steals anything you leave on the floor and runs as fast as he can to somewhere else. Race is enjoying his freshman year. At the end of the year, he's going to challenge his Chemistry and try to get AP credit for it. He's also finally found a subject that eludes him - Spanish! Nick's in 6th grade and just received his Arrow of Light, Religious Knot and his 20er patch for Webelos. Now he is officially a boy scout. His cholesterol tests are finally in the normal range, however his doctor would like him to grow a few more inches without gaining anymore weight. Kinny is the head of his 4th grade class in math and wants to challenge the fifth grade math test. He may be skipping that year, and is so excited to take after his brothers. He is now a Bear cub and Charmayne is counting down the years before she can finally get a new calling. After 6 years in Cub Scouts, she's ready for something like Genealogy Library Worker. This month is crazy as we look ahead to the next few weeks. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone. Trev, Charmayne, Race, Nick and Kinny
Haylee & Ryan-
Kalli & Terry-Everyone is growing up so fast! Times flies when we're having fun. Wishing you all a warm and happy Chirstmas filled with loving family, great friends, and yummy food! Love, the Hills
Paij & Brent-Paij will be done with her master's in school counseling on Friday December 11th!!! We are so excited and I(Brent) am really proud of her. She has worked very hard and balanced being a full time student and mother amazingly well. Morgan is lucky to have such a loving mother and I am blessed to have such a capable and dedicated wife. It has been an eventful couple weeks here in the Collins home. I took the second part of my national boards and am grateful to be that much closer to being done with my program. I will graduate optometry school the end of April. It is hard to believe that Paij and I are both nearing the end of our student phase. We are excited for this stage to be over, yet grateful for the privilege and opportunities we have had to dedicate so much time to furthering our education. The Navy contacted us and informed us of the openings we have to select from for where we will be stationed next year. We sent in our list of preferred sites and are anxiously awaiting news of where we will be stationed. Unfortunately we do not expect to hear back from the Navy any time soon. Paij was offered a job for next semester at one of the schools she has interned this past semester. We are both excited that she will be getting paid to do what we have been paying for her to previously have the privilege of doing. The job is only a temporary position as we will be leaving for wherever the Navy sends us next summer. We are grateful the school offered Paij the position and that it will work with the limited time we have left here in Memphis. Morgan seems to learn a new word every day, which is usually only discernible to Paij and I. She is our pride and joy. She is at such a fun stage and we are trying to soak every minute of it up before she hits the dreadful terrible two's. We are looking forward to spending the holidays back in California with our families. We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a new year that is full of wonderful memories and opportunities. Love, Paij, Brent, and Morgan
We have been busy clearing, cleaning, and hopefully de-junking. During November, we had visits from Jeremy, Rebekah, Seth and families. They were a great help as we tackled the garage and sheds. Rebekah braved the loft in the garage where rats have been known to live and terrrorize in the past. We finally have cats that our dogs haven't scared off. Unfortunately, I think the rodents just moved to a nearby shed.
Kara, Benjamin and Matthew - families will be visiting at Christmastime. They, along with the Bakersfield kids, plan to help us with our move to Selma. We have purchased a home near Rachel and Rob. The address is:
13602 Van Horn Selma, CA 93662
Please feel free to stop by and visit. We won't make you work too hard.
Hope all is well with you and that you have a very Merry Christmas!
Love, Layne and Frankie
Rachel & Rob-Hello Everyone and Merry Christmas. The Fransens are doing good. We have some fun new neighbors moving in this month. Our children go over and help and then are sent back to borrow stuff. Their dogs have worried our other neighbors already too. We've had them over for dinner and they seem like great people. We hear they have lots of family that visits and are looking forward to seeing their family.
We are heading for Texas again for christmas but hope to see some of my brothers and sisters before we go. Alex is in wrestling. Boyd is starting the small GATE program they have here. Cody is doing well in High School. Dale is the best student in his class. His teacher says she wants to clone him. Elizabeth is a great sister to Hannah. They both keep mom busy. I guess that all til the New Year.
Love Rob, Rachel, Cody, Alex, Boyd, Dale, Elizabeth and Hannah
Seth & Rayanna- Brandon & Laura- Rebekah & Seth- Caleb & Ashley- Kara & Michael- Jeremy & Leslie- Benjamin & Megan- Mathew & Karali-
Sheila & Lyle-Dad (Lyle) turned 60!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Happy Birthday Dad!!! We love you!!! The family surprised him by meeting him for dinner at Tucano's.
Doesn't he look happy to be here??? :)
Jenna & Kevin-Hi Family!!! We are counting the days down to Christmas!!! It's so much fun celebrating Christmas with little excited people!!! :P Kevin and I just celebrated our 14th anniversary!!! I'm sure I'm the luckiest girl in the world to have a man like him! Kaden turns 13 next week. He keeps reminding me that I will have a teenager now. He's had a bit of a growth spurt and finally passed me up! He's 5'5"!!! I got to go to Arizona with Chloe for a week. Kevin's sister has a cyst in her brain and can't do much, so I got to go help her plan her daughter's 9th birthday party. We decorated her house, and I moved furniture around until I was sore. It was fun, hard work!!! :) It made me count my blessings and be VERY grateful for good health!!! I love you my family!!! I hope you have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! Love, Jenna and Fam.
Spencer & Shanille-
Wendi & Aaron-
Adam & Moana-Hi Family, Hope you are all having a great Winter season. Kenneth and Chandler are loving the snow. They built their first snowman!...with Dad's help of course. We've had a fun time celebrating Lyle's 60th birthday party and other holiday activities. We love you all and Merry Christmas! A.M.K.C.
Neil & Mike-Hello everyone, I think I might be coming back from the land of the Lost! I'm sorry I have been such a slacker. This has been the worst year of my life and I just couldn't bring myself to write anything. It's not all that much brighter but a little. Tena is finally out of Juvenile hall and the mental hospital. I won't go into details but that gives you a clue as to our woes. She is now in a treatment home in Chico. It is not nearly so restrictive and we're hoping she is finally at a place in her mind where she can get some help. She has been away from home for 5 months now. I really have to thank my married kids for mothering me through it! I do have some bright moments! Cypress got baptized on Oct. 12th. She has been waiting for that moment for a very long time. She was very excited!! Haylee, Ryan and her family came and Haylee and the kids stayed for a week after so that made it extra special. Halloween begins to loose its luster when you're too old to go trick or treating. (Rachel, Brandie and Tom) So we went to the community Halloween Carnival to boost their spirits and Brandie ended up winning first prize in the costume contest, coming home with a $25 gift certificate to the local hamburger joint. We're all hoping she shares! (they have really good milkshakes). I want to say a big thank you to Jenna for putting up with all of us losers all this time. You're wonderful!! Then I want to thank all of you who write. I so enjoy hearing about all of your families and what's going on in your life. By doing this sharing, we feel like we still know each other at the family reunions. We're excitedly planning to go to Utah to spend Thanksgiving with Haylee and her family. May Donner Summit be dry! We do have so much to be thankful for and as we begin November I shall be indeed counting my blessings. Love Aunt Mike
We have been very busy with our new arrivals. Pompi is our male, black-tri, Australian Shepherd. He has fathered several litters with Rachel's red-tri and Seth's black-tri. Last year we bought a female, red merle, aussie from Benjamin. (He had Missy, a registered red merle). Of course, when we purchased Snowball, Missy's pup, we didn't know that Missy would join our family this summer. Now we have 2 black-tri and 4 blue merle males from Missy & Pompi; and 2 black-tri and 5 blue merles females from Snowball and Pompi. With all the puppies we have had or been involved with over the years, there has always been combinations of male and females in the litters. Needless to say, we were quite surprised to end up with 2 single sex litters. They should be ready to sell a few weeks before Christmas.
We have planned a trip to Hawaii after Christmas to celebrate. If the puppy market is good we may splurge, if not we will have fun anyway. Layne has been working hard with 16 independent study students after school and at lunchtime. I have fluid on my knee and hopefully only a sprained ligament, thanks to the lively dogs. An MRI is being scheduled to make sure the meniscus is not torn. So, I have done my part to deserve this trip, also!
Other than the older age, aches & pains, we are doing great. Hope that all is well with you. Happy Thanksgiving!
Benjamin & Megan- Hi all! October was a cold month here in Layton Utah. We had to go through and pull out our coats and jackets. We went and took a family picture that we will be sending out in our Christmas cards. Speaking of Christmas cards, I need updated addresses from everyone. E-mail them to me at MaMeGirl1@yahoo.com Halloween was lots of fun. The boys enjoyed ringing doorbells and getting candy. Ethan would hold up his bucket again and again until they stopped putting candy in it. I think he got 3 times as much candy as Ben got. It was too funny. Lots of Love, Ben, Megan, Ben, Ethan, and Brynna
Mathew & Karali-
Calvin & Donna- AND NOW... LIVE LOCAL LATE BREAKING NEWS!!!! Calvin and Donna's house broken in to AS THEY SLEPT! Useless alarm dog stays hunkered down under covers as thieves rip off flat screen computer monitors, printer-scanner and more. No suspects in custody. Police investigate and confirm (Barney Fife voice) "What you have here is a point of entry... and some missing stuff. I'd say you were the victim of a burglary..." Well DUH! Natalie and Jared came up and spent some time this weekend for Halloween. All came over and shared our traditional "AFV" viewing. Meredith is still in Mexico. Husband and kids preparing to depart December 30 to hang out "south of thee border" themselves for the semester. Sam straightened out his hair for Halloween. It's a great look for him. Donna is still seeking employment. By the way - our POTUS is a falsehood-bearer. The economy isn't all that great just in case you're asking. Am still awaiting bailout. Maybe next week. Meantime please tune in to the "Cal and Bob in the morning" podcast at http://kblfam.com . That is all. As the late Lowell Thomas used to say... So long until tomorrow. CAL HUNTER - PRESIDENT, HUTH BROADCASTING
Damien & Kacey- Meredith & Bill-
Hillary & Jason-The Rogersons are happy and well and had the cutest little Halloween kiddos ever! I don't know how to attach pictures though so oh well! Jason just worked his LAST graveyard shift and we're hoping for a more routine schedule from the both of us. Hunter almost poked her own eye out with a pencil at school (accident) and Ellie turned 6 this October but says it doesn't feel all that much different from 5. Reese and Max have both had major growth spurts this month making me realize I really don't have any more babies in my house. That went by fast! Hope all is well with you and for those of you locals who may want to see the Madrigal Dinner put on by the Shasta High School music department, public ticket sales are happening this weekend so let me know!
Cayle & Katie-
Sarah & Ryan-Happy fall, everyone! We had a great Halloween here in the McMullin house with way too much candy and lots of fun. We dressed up as a Star Wars family and got lots of oohs and ahs at our cute little Yoda. Douglas couldn't have cared less about the whole thing, but he doesn't mind a little attention. School is slogging along as usual, and we're at that point in the semester where we realize we're going to be accountable for all the information we don't take in during lectures. Not a great feeling! Emma just got back from a quick 4 day trip to visit Meredith in Puebla, Mexico, where they had way too much fun together. You can see Emma's video travel diaries from the trip here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jO7IbCNNTso and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GaG03P6764
The hot humid summer here is finally over and we've moved to the fantastic Houston fall and winter (high of 76 today) that make the miserable summer worth it. Now that Halloween is over the holiday season is here! We're excited to have a house to decorate for Christmas this year. Hope you are all well and recovering from your Halloween sugar overdoses!
Natalie & Jared-
Sheila & Lyle- How are you? I can't think of much to write about:( However...I think I enjoyed Halloween more this year than I have for a long time. Something about the crisp air outside, leaves falling, lit pumpkins sitting next to a scare crow on a bench, carving pumpkins with family and friends, painting faces, hot soup on the stove and walking grand kids around the neighborhood. You get the picture. It was nice. The only thing that would have made it nicer would have been to have all of my family a little closer. Trick or Treat. What else can I say about the Mortimers? Leisha got a little honda civic. Don't get to excited its a 97 but she loves it. She was a nerd for Halloween. Tanner got a new job @ Natures Sunshine, which is an herb shop. He takes orders in Spanish. He wore a terminator costume to work and was one of the five winners. Lyle's dressed up as an escapee in an orange pant suit, his face had acid rain, right Calvin? He only gave me ten minutes to work on him o.k. I was the police officer that arrested him. I know...clever. Thanks to Jenna the costume lady. We are doing well, but can't believe Christmas is only fifty two days away. Oh my. I bet Mike is all done with her shopping. I better get started. I hope you are all well and happy. Happy Birthday Greg and Calvin. Somebody loves you in Utah!!! Love,
Sheila and family The Utah Grandkids. (Kaden and Gavin are gone getting a head start on trick-or-treating.) Chandler (Cowardly Lion), Kellan (Pirate), Chloe (Dorothy), Kenneth (Tin Man), Sage (Grapes), Talmage (Scarecrow), Hunter (Edward from "Twilight"), Quenton (Max from "Where the Wild Things Are", and Emeri (Pretty Bird.)
Jenna & Kevin-We had a great October. Kevin and I went to our first ever "How to Host a Murder" party. Kevin was "Chief Breaking-Wind" and I was "Butch Chastity." The kids enjoyed Halloween ALMOST as much and we did. They trick-or-treated their hearts out.
First term of school was a giant success! ALL my boys brought home straight A's!!! YAY!!! That sure makes parent/teacher conferences enjoyable!!! :)
Kellan turned 6 this month. He is my sweetheart. He lost his two front teeth and now he looks much, much older...darn it! :)
Hope everyone is happy and healthy! I LOVE to hear from you ALL!!!! :)
Love, Jenna and Fam!
Spencer & Shanille-
Wendi & Aaron-
Adam & Moana-We had a fun October with the whole fam! We took a trip down to Sea World. T he boys can't stop talking about Shamu. We carved pumpkins, went to Bryce and Jessica's Halloween party and went trick-or-treating with all our Wizard of Oz children! They were so cute! Hope everyone is doing great. Love you all! Adam, Moana, Kenneth and Chandler
Our "Wizard of OZ" Babies... Chandler, Talmage, Chloe, and Kenneth
Bryce & Jessica- Tanner- Tanner the Terminator and his friend John a.k.a. Edward Scissorhands
Kalli & Terry-We have closed our Bike and Board shop and that's good and bad. (We still have lots of snowboard equipment pretty cheep if anyone is interested.) Terry got a job with Yuba County as a Real Property Appraiser and loves it. Kalli is substitute teaching all around town and enjoying it. Cypress is getting baptized this Saturday (oct. 10). We're feeling really old. School is back in and the girls are already stepping up and getting ahead of their classes. Tyden is loving preschool and learning a lot. Kasen is climbinb on eveything and not trying to say anything! Time goes by quick! Can't wait for all the Halloween fun.
Paij & Brent- Jarom-
LaMont & Evy-We here of the LaMont and Evelyn Hunter clan are doing quite well thank you. Don't get me wrong, nothing big or exciting, but we are healthy, wealth--- uh wis--- ,Well. We here of the Hunter clan are healthy, and when you have your health you have just about everything. Sounds like a kop out but it really is true. Our kids are in full swing soccer, with one in football. Since our kids are from ancestral stock of whom it is said,"could out run a sheep", you know they are doing well and having fun. I read the book of Bishop Edward Hunter who was the church Presiding Bishop for 32 years. He was my great great grandfather if I have figured correctly. What a fantastic man. When He joined the church he gave the Prophet Joseph $7,000 and offered him more off of the sale of some Property, but the Prophet said he had given enough. He became very wealthy. He and a friend collected and buried in a common grave the bodies of Joseph and Hyrum. This guy was Brigham's right hand man when they arrived in Utah and was sent back to organize more wagon train, and hand cart companies to get new converts to the SLC Valley. All of the things I have learned about this great guy and his family, made me stop and do some comparing. Would Neil, Layne, Calvin, Greg or Lyle and their spouses be up to anything like that? And I quickly realized that Bishop Hunter's gene pool is alive and doing well. Love to all LaMont and Evy
Chad & Nan- Jaimyn & Paul-
Justin & Jana-Hi, we hope everyone is doing well. This has been a fun summer for the Reno Hunters. Our ig boys have been playing soccer and doing great. They are gearing up for wrestling this fall. Kaethe is working down the road for a lady who trains and boards horses and I have never seen anyone so eager to get to work! She loves it. She gets to feed, shovel manure(so exciting) and paarticipate in the working and training of the horses. She is in heaven. Tenny has learned some new sounds and has mastered some new words. He has had a long run of being healthy and is making great strides.
We finished our house and moved in early July, so that has been very fun also. Jana is still Primary Pres. and really busy.
Melisa & Tye-
Layne & Frankie-Hi, I was just asking one of my kids if they remembered receiving a newsletter in August but I couldn't remember how to look for the last one sent. I quit printing them or saving them on my computer when I could just scroll through the old ones.
Summer was great but always too short. We finally timed things right and were in Utah and Idaho when it was above 105 degrees here.
Layne is teaching a night class at Reedley College again this semester. He also has about 13 independent study students he meets with during lunch or after school. With all this extra money (ha, ha), we are planning a trip to Hawaii a few days after Christmas. This will be the 49th state Layne has visited.
I keep busy with my 6 young women, genealogy (I have actually learned how to use the new.familysearch program on the computer), garden (a major disadvantage to warm autumns, the garden doesn't die till December or January; sometimes the tomato plants never die), fighting rodents, Harmony (a singing group), Grandchildren, and phonecalls. All you younger moms keep should keep a special journal about what broken bones look like, the symptoms of childhood illness, favorite recipes, ect. so that when your kids call for advice, you will actually be able to help them. I love the calls from my kids but I am afraid I am not much help to them.
We have a place reserved for family reunion but we are still checking out a few other places. Mark your calendars, June 17-19 2010 Father's Day weekend). WOW! We will celebrate our 40th anniversary a few days before reunion.
Love you all, Frankie and Layne
Rachel & Rob- The Fransen's are doing good. After about four years Rob was released from the nursery. He kind of misses it but now he gets to be a Webelos leader. He is going to be great. Rachel is still a councilor in primary but also the Cub Committee Chairman. She has a lot to learn. The boys are all doing great in school. Cody is learning about all the fun extra curricular activities there are to do in high school. He love seminary and does pretty good getting up at 5:00. Alex has adjusted great to 7th grade. He is playing soccer and will start wrestling soon. Boyd is in 4th grade and loves to learn. He is paying soccer again this year also. Dale is in 2nd grade and his teacher loves him. He is doing soccer for the first time this year. He is the goaly. He is good. So far the other team has only scored one goal while he was goaly. His team does a really good job protecting him too. Elizabeth is two and we call her little mommy. She wants to do everything herself. She makes sure things are done the right way and put in the right place. She love helping with Hannah. She was feeding her the other day and was even telling her to open the tunnel for the train. Hannah is 6 months and smiling at everyone. I guess that is all for now. Hope to hear from all of you.
Kara & Michael-Looks like winter is making an early appearance in Twin Falls, Idaho.
Last year we had a little snow storm just before Halloween. But this year, it snowed almost a whole month earlier. We woke up to snow falling, and it continued to fall all day long. It was an exciting day, but the kids only touched the snow and we pulled them back inside. We still haven't pulled out their winter clothes, and we think that it'll probably melt in the next couple of days.
In any case, it looks like winter's coming sooner than later. (I even saw some Christmas decorations in the stores a couple days ago!) Kara chants "Four Feet...Four Feet" everytime it snows. I think she's trying to get under my skin! She figures if it snows that much then we'll all be able to stay home and enjoy the time together. I think I would still end up going to work...it would just be a lot harder to do.
Well, this was a nice long weekend. We went up and visited with my Mom and Dad on Thursday and Friday. It was good to be there and spend some time with them. It was even better to get away from work for awhile. Tommorrow I will start another long hard push to integrate equipment on a tight deadline to meet the Alltel/Verizon Wireless conversion date deadline. Lots of long hours.
We're now coming out of the eye of the storm with new church assignments and pushing to finish up my MBA. With a little luck and some extra hard work, I should be able to finish up the program before summer. But everything is sure keeping us busy.
The kids, Kara and I are all doing well, and hope that each of you are healthy and happy.
Love, Mike
Jeremy & Leslie-
Benjamin & Megan-We moved to Layton, UT late this summer. We were finally getting things put together, but then we went to Megan's mom's house at the end of September and got a bunch of stuff she was getting rid of (beds, bookshelves, books, etc). Now we have a bunch of stuff to put away again. :(
The kids are doing great. Ben and Ethan are too smart for their own good. They get into EVERYTHING. This included finding my meat cleaver and bowing knife and stabbing my couch. Don't worry, the knifes didn't cut them (not sure how) and Megan didn't harm them either. Brynna had her 6 month check up. She is 25 inches and almost 13..5 pounds. Ben is getting into the swing of things with his new school. He is getting his shop and computer lab put together and getting his classes organized. It has been hard for him to teach tool safety when the tools had no electricity ran to them :)Here is our new address for anyone who wants it : 830 E 3400 N Unit B Layton, UT 84040 Love to everyone
Mathew & Karali-
Calvin & Donna- Damien & Kacey- Meredith & Bill-
Hillary & Jason- I was wondering where the newsletter went! Hope to hear from all of you :) There has been a lot of changes in the Rogfam house and IT'S ABOUT TIME! After YEARS of dragging out school as long as possible Jason has completed his MBA and just found out he will be graduating with HONORS!!! We are so proud of him for sticking it out and getting it done. For those of you who don't know Jason had applied for CHP about a year ago now and we were disappointed when we heard budget cuts were putting his background check on hold for 8 months because they take about 4 months to complete. They also told us that there were no new academies scheduled so there was no end in sight for how long he might have to wait. We just got word that his background check has started 6 months early and that there are three new acadamies scheduled!! More good news :) As for Hillary, she has just put in her notice at the restaurant she has been serving at for the last 18 months and accepted a drama instructor position at one of our local charter schools Redding School of the Arts. This is right up her alley and is VERY part time so she is still involved with Shasta High School's annual madrigal dinner. The kids have been enjoying school: Hunter is in a 2nd/3rd grade combo which has been an adjustment (she's a 2nd grader), Ellie is really showing a complete 180 from last year. Instead of fighting tooth and nail on everything she's thriving on the routine school has to offer. Reese and Max are little Bosom Buddies at home learning how to work in pairs to cause even more destruction then they could on their own. :) Our love goes out to all of you and prayers as well. We love this family!!!!
Cayle & Katie-
Sarah & Ryan-Our fun, full summer is over here in the McMullin house, although the weather could still fool me. We shipped off one sister to Idaho (Alex) took in another from California (Emma) and spent a day with yet another on her way to Mexico (Meredith). We love our little house and the dog loves being able to bark a little more freely than he did in an apartment. Douglas just hit the 6 month mark at the end of September and is so much fun! He's sitting and rolling and giggling and doing his best to figure out crawling. (Pictures and videos on our blog.) Ryan is still working with NOV Grant Prideco and finishing his Bachelor's, which he'll gratefully be done with in May, the same time I finish my JD. We've been students our whole marriage, so it will be weird to both stop cold turkey! We'll be home in Redding for a few days for Christmas and can't wait to see everyone and show off how cute our little boy is. Hope you are all well and happy and enjoyed General Conference as much as we did.
Natalie & Jared-
Sheila & Lyle- Lyle:Where do I put the news?
We had a fantastic Month in September. Melissa Moore, author of our book Shattered Silence, was on Oprah on September 17th. Filled up the entire show, during premiere week and with Dr. Phil. It doesn’t get any better. Then the author was on Geraldo for about 5 minutes on September 20th. On October 2, people magazine came out with a 4 page spread. Today (Thursday) she is taping for Good Morning America, which will air Monday. I ran the St. George Marathon on October 3rd. Improved my time by 5 minutes. It was actually an enjoyable run. The most fun long run I’ve ever done. Hard—but fun. I guess that means I’m looking forward to next year when I’m 60. That can’t be true...... Only old guys are 60. The ward is still coming along. Working on my home teaching. Trying to be what I’m supposed to be at home, at school, at play........ What fun thing should we do next?
Sheila: Fam... It's really feeling like fall in Utah. Once snow is on the mountains it stays cooler. I'm loving the sweatshirt weather. We loved conference and have all vowed to drop a "warm fuzzy" in our family jar, as Jenna reinforced it at an FHE.
Wendi and the boys were here. It's always nice to see them!
Jenna, Shanille, and I painted a cute plaid wall in Quenton's "cowboy" room.
Lyle and I will be going to the Governer's scholarship ball at UVU on Friday (we will be sitting at the Governor's table!) Chefs from all over Utah come and after trying incredible hors 'd oeuvres we get an incredible 5-course meal, good entertainment, and dancing afterward. Sounds to me like a new dress is in order. :)
Tanner is doing much better after his long-boarding accident. Still no smelling ability and less hearing out of one ear. He put in his 2 week notice at Los Hermanos and landed a new job at Nature's Sunshine (Herbal line.) He will be taking orders in English and Spanish.
Leisha is enjoying high school and beauty school. She has a "Jungle Fever" runway competition this Saturday. She will be dressing Moana up as a crocodile, with a long ponytail that drags on the ground as her tail.
We enjoyed seeing Calvin and Donna in August.
Congratulations Lisa for making it in the next "T-Tapping" book! (ask her about it!) Come see us! Love you all! Sheila
Moana made a fancy Friday-night-date dinner for us! She's a GREAT cook!
Sheila in all her GLORY!!! :)
Jenna & Kevin-School is in full-swing here at the Brooke home! Back to routines and homework. Kaden, Hunter, Gavin and Kellan are all enjoying school and doing well! Only 1 at home!!! Chloe and I are enjoying the 1/2 day alone together!!! Kaden is enjoying playing the bass clarinet in the school band. He started a frisbee club. Hunter and Kellan are signed up for wrestling. Hunter paid for most of it with his own money. He is a hard worker and is happiest when he's helping and working. Gavin is my helper. He's a sweetheart. He loves to help and take care of Chloe. He's waiting to play soccer or basketball this year. ... and now.... the most exciting and important news in the Brooke home.... Chloe is potty trained!!!! wooo hoooo! No diapers!!! Love you all!!! Jenna and fam Enjoying the concert with the fam!!! Moana's dad gets the best tickets for us all!
Spencer & Shanille- Sage, Emeri, Spencer, Shanille, Talmage, and Quenton behind "Frodo" in the horse cart Spencer made out of metal scraps and bicycles!
Wendi & Aaron-
Adam & Moana- The Nuggets! Kenneth, Talmage, Chloe, and Chandler
Bryce & Jessica-Will life ever slow down? Jessica has a busy schedule. She’s to work by 7am, then comes home from school at 9pm. She loves being active and doing things, but it gets tiring at times. Bryce misses seeing his wife, and having her wonderful cooking. :) Bryce is working at Cedar Fort, working on his company Kahuga, selling through Amazon, and looking for additional work in the evenings to help with some bills.
We continue to count our blessings. We love our new house. We love the ward. We are very optimistic about the future!!!
