18th anniversary

Ken and I just celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary. I took him to an old historic mansion here in Provo that was turned into a bed and breakfast. A nice getaway close to home.

Christmas Letter 2011 We are happy to be putting down our roots here in Provo. We have loved the many opportunities there are to raise a family with gospel support here. We’ve also been blessed to see so much of both sides of our families here. Andy(almost 7) is learning to read and write really well in first grade. He has started taking piano and loves hapkido martial arts. Adam(8) is making great leaps through the programs he’s involved in to help with his Asperger’s symptoms. He loves being a cub scout with his dad as the cub master. He continues to do well in piano and hapkido with Andy. Betsy(10) enjoys being in 5th grade and is a great student. She performs in a musical class called stage crazy and recently won 3 medals at her first Irish dance competition. Marcus(14) loves being a trumpet player in an undefeated marching band in high school with Jared. He enjoys driving home with Jared for lunch during the school day and is a straight A student. He had fun with his dad on a band trip to Las Vegas. Jared(16) is always entertaining us and has a great sense of humor. He played a piano solo in church and did a great job. He continues to play with the symphonic band as well as the French horn in orchestra concerts and the pit in the school musical “Thoroughly Modern Millie”. He is looking forward to performing at Pearl Harbor with Marcus over Thanksgiving. Ken has a very demanding work schedule and very difficult situations to deal with there. Somehow he manages to carry on and make a difference in babies and their families’ lives. He loves being involved with our children’s lives. He is always so supportive of their activities and school work. He loved helping the cub scouts shoot off air rockets for pack meeting last month. He will be a BYU season ticket holder “for the rest of his life.” I recently sent off my parents on an 18 month CES mission to Barcelona Spain. I’m so proud and happy for them. I am happy to be working with Betsy and the activity day girls in primary. I am so glad that all our children are healthy and happy and thriving here in Utah. We hope you all have a happy holiday season!

sister's retreat

We had a relaxing 24 hours at a cabin in Sundance as sisters. We did lots of crafts, visiting and eating. We enjoyed a photography lesson from Krisi and put it into practice on a mountain hike. This should be a yearly tradition!

Missionary Parents

My mom and dad are serving an 18 month mission in Zaragoza, Spain (which is in the Barcelona mission). We miss them, but are so proud of them!

family update letter

Hello from Provo! Spring has finally found us, but we are wary of all that snow up on the mountains that has to melt sometime! We have so much enjoyed our many visitors and especially our “BYU Cousins” that we get to see a lot. Here’s what we’ve been up to:
Jared -- Just turned 16 and passed his driving test. He also got a car and a local billboard posted with a birthday message for his birthday. Jared scored really well on his practice ACT and is getting good grades. He is very busy with Symphonic Band at Timpview High School and raising money for their Pearl Harbor commemoration trip this fall. He enjoys playing piano for priesthood and home teaching with Ken.
Marcus -- Was just called as the new Deacon’s Quorum president. He is working on his Eagle project, which is recording and editing children’s books on tape for our elementary school. He is busy earning his lifesaving merit badge (even though he doesn’t need it for Eagle!) and going on lots of campouts with the scouts. He also will play in the Timpview Marching Band this summer for the parade season and this fall, and will go on the Hawaii trip with Jared. He still enjoys playing trumpet and piano. He got to participate in a physics day at Lagoon. He is known in our ward for his thoughtful testimonies.
Betsy -- Enjoys acting and dancing. She is in a dramatics class and had several performances this year. She also takes Irish step dancing. She won a school poster contest for her drawing of a bald eagle, ran a 5K, and got selected to play piano for the school talent show. She loves Activity Day girls with her Mom as her leader.
Adam -- Has been going through a lot of testing so we can help him with his social challenges. He continues to function at a 6th to 9th grade level academically although he is only 7 and in 2nd grade. He placed in the top 5 for the all-school spelling bee earlier this year. He takes piano lessons and is getting his purple belt in Hapkido. He is the student of the month at school and is enjoying the attention. He looks forward to becoming a Cub Scout in July and going to pack meetings with his cubmaster Dad.
Andy -- Is 6 and finishing kindergarten. He too is receiving his purple belt in Hapkido and loves his sports club at school. He is slowly but surely becoming a good reader. He just started T-ball and loves to ride scooters outside. He finally decided that he is right handed. He loves climbing on his BYU Richardson cousins when they come over.
Jenni -- Has enjoyed volunteering in Andy’s class this year. She is refinishing some furniture and trying to stay on top of a big home and yard. She enjoys working with the Activity Days girls. She has taught several voice lessons and has sung solos in sacrament meeting and Relief Society. She enjoyed going to women’s conference with her mom and sisters. She is happy to see her parents once a month as they will be leaving soon on a mission to Barcelona Spain on Sept.5th.
Ken -- Enjoys working at Utah Valley Regional with a great staff and “the best NICU in the country”. He has been busy teaching Jared to drive and Has also been helping him in a couple of tough classes at school. He always enjoys being involved with his children’s’ school and scout activities. As the cubmaster he takes on a lot for pack meetings and recently ran his first Pinewood Derby. He loves being a member of the Cougar Club and going to BYU sporting events – basketball, volleyball, softball, and rubgy most recently. He got pretty involved in “Jimmermania” along with the rest of Provo and is looking forward to football season this fall.

Happy Birthday Betsy

Betsy just turned 10! We love our girl and are so proud of her. She had a great Owl birthday party and got to see 24 cousins on her birthday!