Update from Me

Well I heard you had a fun time at the Christmas party.  Too bad I couldn't be there to see your happy shiny faces.  I was sad to hear that more people couldn't make it.  Since you had a chance to catch up without me I will send my love and info here in the blog.  I encourage those who also were not able to attend to do the same.  If you need blog lessons just give me a call and I will hold your hand through the process : )

Things are pretty good here.  Life has it's usual struggles but we manage to push through.  Our oldest Nathan just applied to colleges and we are crossing our fingers that he will get in to BYU Provo.  There is a chance.  If not he may end up at BYU Idaho or Utah State.  It's weird that I have a son old enough to go to college, but there it is.

Evan is doing well in school and taking piano.  Cross country running ended well for him with a personal best at the end of the season.  Nathan ran too but mostly just for fun and sometimes he just decided to do homework or other stuff instead.  We were happy that he finished 4 years of this very difficult sport.  Evan has a fun group of friends he hangs with from church.  They have movie nights at someone's home just about every other weekend.  It's good to see him choosing good friends.  Evan is a good kid.

Drew is becoming a stellar violinist and can now play duets without trouble with his brother Nathan.  When I think about how they struggled/ fought to get some duets together this time last year for Audrey's baptism I still get sick to my stomach.  It was a gut wrenching process then but now it's easy peasy lemon squeezy.  So they played a few numbers for the ward Christmas party and have already been commissioned to play on Christmas day in sacrament meeting.  They were quite agreeable when asked too.  I had to pick up my jaw off the floor after that.  Drew continues to be a great student and hard worker.  He may end up with an ulcer one day but he'll have good grades.  He is happy most of the time though and fun to be around.

Audrey is a keeper for sure.  She is just a really good girl.  Do I sound braggy?  Well probably because I am bragging.  But we love her.  She recently cut off 10 inches of hair for Locks of Love (an organization that makes wigs for cancer patients).  She went into a bit of shock afterwards but she seems to be getting used to it.  It sure is nice not to have to brush though all those tangles now.  I can see why Mom always had me in short haircuts.  She liked to cut corners.  Here are some before and after shots for you...

ready for chopping!

still smiling here

a bit pensive...

no turning back now

It was fun for her to do.  We have found all kinds of quick hairdos for her too.  Once all the attention died down she seemed happier.  I don't know where that comes from.  I am an attention hog (as you all know).

Eliza is our little stinker.  She's a good stinker though.  She is extra good at snuggling, and she gives me lots of hugs every morning time.  It is our ritual for her to come and find me and before we start our day we have a few minutes of laughing and hugging in my big bed.  I eat it up because I know this will be my last serving.  It's awfully nice to have a loving child around when your teenagers give you so much grief.  Eliza loves gum- so if you ever get to meet her, just keep gum handy and she will be putty in your hands.  It used to be chapstick, but now it's gum- I think it's best to keep you relatives abreast of her likes/dislikes in case you ever pop in and see us.

We are hoping to make a stop out West this summer.  If anyone is daring enough to come out and see us we would be super welcoming.  There's lots to see and do and we have lots of room (well- sorta).

Lots of love and holiday wishes to you all this time of year!!!

Kelly (The Wide Mouth Frog)

IT'S ALL KELLY'S FAULT......

It's all Kelly's fault that we can all claim to have a neurosurgeon in the family.

It's all Kelly's fault that I got a bit jealous when my boyfriend showed me some nice lightening photos he took while sitting up at "make-out-point" with Kelly (He had to explain that Kelly was his little sister.)

It's all Kelly's fault that the niece's and nephews in this family rarely said, "Please" or "Thank You", but rather thought, "You're my favorite aunt" was a great substitute for either. (To which I whole-heartedly agreed!!!)


It's all Kelly's fault that my children have seen neither Gone With the Wind nor My Fair Lady (Chris seems to have a strange aversion to both movies,.. go figure?)

Likewise,.. it's all Kelly's fault that I'm going to die laughing if either of her daughters marries a boy with the last name Higgins who happens to be pursuing a degree in phonics.

It's all Kelly's fault that we have ample opportunity to go visit D.C.

It's Kelly's fault that I think of more than just the Veterans on Veteran's Day!

What else is Kelly's fault? Well,.. that's what we'd like to know! Submit your comments to: "It's all Kelly's fault that ____________..."

After all,.... isn't that what this blog is here for???

(Oh, and come to think of it... that's her fault too!!! :) )

Kelly baby, I'm writing this for the second time just to let you know my commitment, I got distracted the first time and it got deleted. I knew it was someone's birthday on Nov 11 and I even thought it was Kelly's for a moment but I did nothing about it as Kelly would have. I don't think that is too bad considering I have 12 sibilings 7 kids & 1 wife and I have forgotten my wife's birthday twice in 30 years, that didn't go to well for me, I wouldn't suggest it to anyone else.

What can I say about Kelly the blog queen? It's hard for me to picture Kelly as the sofisticated woman that she is when I still remember her as the little girl that used to perform various skits from children's TV shows like S Street & Electric Company for us at campouts & for my dates when I brought them over to the house. Those usually went on for a few mintues until I thought of a treat I could send her off for our told her to "Go tell Mom she wants you" which seemed to end in tears about 1/2 the time, not my shining moment as a older brother.

My favorite Kelly skit was the story of the Wiiiidddeee Mouutthh Frog who would go around asking all the neighborhood animals "Whaaat do you feed your BAAAABBBIESSS" everything goes fine for the frog & little Kelly's sweet face until she get's to Mrs. Alligators with the answer she feeds her babies "Wide Mouth Frogs" then the worried look & the closed mouth "oh" with a quick retreat.

Kelly is far more amazing today than she was as a little girl when I was growing up with her. She moves around the country with relative ease raising kids sometimes on her own with a deployed husband. Juggling music lessons & parent teacher conferances, finding the best schools & the best shopping, Flying out to sisters Weddings & staying in touch with recalcitrant siblings who refuse to embrace technology, or big words for that matter. Kelly I'm glad to have you as a sister, and a friend, you keep me more informed from a long ways away than I stay living close to most of my siblings. You make up for a part of what we lost in this family we we lost Mom and I know she would be very proud of you for the love that you are spreading around our family. That is the best compliment that I could give anyone.

I love you Kelly!

Love your second meanest older brother, Roland

It's My Birthday Too Yeah

I know that no one will be posting a long lavish glowing tribute to me on my birthday over here at KGC but I thought maybe as a birthday gift to me you could try and comment on the blog.  Just try it!  It could really be a great way to keep our out-of-touch family more connected.

I am having a great birthday get away with my husband thanks to Dawn coming from Utah to stay with my kids.  What a great gift.

Hope you are all doing well too.

Here's to turning 43~!

Kelly

MATTHEW DANIELS

One of the perks of being a teacher in a small(ish) town, is that no one thinks twice if you decide to "pick off" a couple students in your yard at Halloween. For the last 16 years, Chris has "put an end" to the more memorable students in oh-so appropriate ways. You know teenagers,.... sometimes they forget to breathe, forget to put on the emergency break, spend too long with their electronic devices, and tend to play unsafely with carnivorous chickens.

Years of cardboard headstones have given way to these custom dry-erase versions. But with new cousins in the area, we just couldn't help including them in our favorite of Halloween traditions. HAPPY HALLOWEEN MATTHEW & DANIEL WHATCOTT! We just love having you so close by!!!

Great NEWS!!!

For those who have been living under a rock and don't know yet, Eric is out of surgery.  The tumor was removed and was encapsulated.  This means they most likely got everything.  JoLynne told me that the nerves they thought were going through the tumor were just resting on top and were able to be saved.  A surprise and a miracle if ever there was one.  He will keep more of the feeling in his face that way.  Only some lip numbness!  Who hoo for lip numbness!!

Reconstruction went well and they had to take less bone from his leg than they expected.  He will run again.  I am almost tempted to start running (even though I hate it so much) just to be able to run with him.  Seth is planning a surprise visit from China.  Should be arriving soon I believe.  I would love to be there for that surprise.

The other miracle that I feel is coming is the pathology report.  So far they have refused to say for sure but it may be either a low grade sarcoma (low grade=better than high grade), or a benign growth (benign=best news we've had all day!).  So keep praying for that one.  It will take a few days to officially say what the tumor is.  It's a complicated tumor.  I am so excited for all this good news.  I am sure we all are!  Keep up the prayers folks.

Paula

After just spending some time with Paula this past week, I am not certain she wants to be recognized on her birthday here at KGC.  She didn't seem too excited about remembering another birthday.  But as I told a guest at Marcy's wedding, my sister Paula is so well preserved we think she sleeps in formaldehyde at night.  She may not be a teenager laying out in our back yard killing ants in her belling button any more, but really....she should be doing cartwheels (if she could) to be feeling and looking so good at her age...  What is that age again?  Maybe we shouldn't say.  That's my present to you Paula- not saying your age here on the blog.  Happy Birthday!  Do you like what I got you?

One thing I really love about Paula is that she has the ability to make others feel that she is truly interested in what they have to say.  She asks questions and listens.  That was the way our mom was.  She always seems happy to see me.  Especially because of our traditional hug/jump move we do when first seeing each other.  One thing we have noted is that we must be in sync when doing such a move, or it's kinda unpleasant.  That bouncy hug always makes me laugh.  Paula too.  She has a wonderful laugh.  Whenever I am around Paula we laugh.  She is super happy almost all the time too.  That is probably why she earned the name of Saida while we were in Morocco.  Saida means happy in Arabic.  My name was Jamilla which means beautiful.  In full discloser I should state that I picked this name for myself.  Saida did not.  She really is a happy person and so fun to be around.

Saida in Morroco! (Doesn't she look happy?)

Whenever I am around Paula/Saida my voice gets a bit higher.  I start talking and acting a bit more like Paula.  I guess if imitation is be best form of flattery then I am really in awe of my oldest sister.  Here are some good reasons why:  Paula is a great cook.  She makes great pot holders, she is a super hygienist, she has 4 great kids, she is genuine and kind.  Paula is active and walks every day.  She taught/inspired me once by telling me she only eats 2 Oreos at a time.  She treats her doggie Conan like a favorite child.  She loves my kids which I really appreciate.  She keeps in touch and understands what it's like to be a military wife living far away from family.  She supported me with a very timely visit when my husband was deployed and I was going crazy, I will always be so grateful to her for that.  She keeps her mind and body active by being an EMT.  She is such a great EMT in Moab that she teaches EMT classes!  She's really great, thrifty, kind, and reverent.  Except when we sit together in church and then she might be a bit too chatty.  Speaking of sitting together in church, Paula can really sing.  She sounds just like Mom's pretty alto voice and I love sitting next to her and harmonizing.  She is really amazing and super dee duper.


In case you can't tell, I really love Paula!  I wish her the best of birthdays this year with many more to come.  And don't worry Paula- even though my daughter called you 'grandma' the other day, you still got it baby!

Paula at the Smithsonian