State Science Fair

Remember all those eggs?  Remember that post awhile back about district science fair?  Yup, Caleb is awesome and was able to advance to State Science Fair!  He was so happy, and he told me that all week the only thing that helped him be excited for school was looking forward to state at the end of the week.  He is a great kid.

 It started out early in the morning.  But he popped right out of bed and got ready.  I even made him a new robot bow tie for the occasion.  Everyone deserves nice things sometimes.

 He was at school bright and early for them to bus him down to BYU.  He worked hard on getting his presentation right and trying to remember everything.  We even redid his poster and journal, just to make it better.  It is weird sending your child off somewhere, without you, and hoping that all goes good for him.

 Haley and I were going to go see him at lunch time.  They were feeding the students pizza for lunch, but I knew Caleb had soccer practice that night and might need something on the trip home.  So, me (being a crazy, dork mom) came up with this "brilliant" lunch idea!  Put all his foods in plastic easter eggs.  Get it?  Eggs, egg science fair project....I am cheesy and cool.

 We got down there and he was happy.  He said he had been nervous and forgot a few things, but overall felt good with his judging.  He got a lot of time to read his book because he was judged last of all in his group.  But he did not mind that.  He also did not mind going on the mini ropes course 4 times.  He loves stuff like that.  He was also very happy that he won one of the door prizes, this cool puzzle that you work with marbles and stuff.  Very brainy and fun.

 None of this could have been done without terrific teachers to help and support and teach.  Mrs. Wilson has never taught Caleb but was there at the science fair.  However, Señor Bertoch taught Caleb last year and he is AMAZING!  Senor Bertoch is such a fun teacher that really engages the kids.  But he also cares about them and really tries to help each student succeed.  Such a great experience for Caleb to go through.  Although he did not advance, sadly, he was happy with what he did accomplish.  Another thing that Caleb was happy about is that his project can really apply to everyday life and has already helped his dad.  Grandpa Terry even tried it out and it worked for him too.

So, even though he did not advance, he still got his favorite dinner.  What is even cooler about this picture.  Look.  One very tired kid, after a really long day, with his favorite dinner, doing his homework for the next day.  He is AWESOME!

Moving up in Scouts

Last night was a very cool night for Peter and William.  We had pack meeting for scouts and each of the boys were given some important advancements.

Peter received his Arrow of Light!!!  Such a great accomplishment!  It takes a lot of work and time to learn everything to advance from Cubs Scouts to Boy Scouts.  With the help of terrific leaders and time on our part, he accomplished everything he needed.  In fact, he earned more electives that are required, just because he is that cool.  Sister Kuene, his den leader said she always enjoyed having Peter in her den because he was so "easy going and helpful."  He is such a great kid.  Not only that, but the transition into Boy Scouts (so far) has not been too bad.  Peter has really stepped up to the plate and show responsibility in getting his scout homework done and having a pretty good attitude about it all.  Yeah!

Here we are with Sister Kuene.  She has such a great personality that really helped Peter feel welcomed in the troop and also helped Peter want to go to scouts.  

 William also received a rank advancement, he earned his Wolf.  Love this boy!  And he really enjoys scouts.  He also has some great leaders that plan fun activities.  Plus, William has a broad range of interests, so it helps him learn a lot of things in scouts.

 We had lots of family support there at pack meeting.  All 3 sets of grandparents came to support the boys.  What a great feeling of love and support they have around them.

We cannot forget the terrific leaders they have to back them up.  The man with the walking stick is the Cub Scout leader, he has such a great love and dedication to each of the boys. The two other men are Peter's Boy Scout leaders, and they will help him learn a lot.  On ward and upward, for new things to learn and a lot of time and work ahead.

Remembering blessings

So, the last couple of weeks have been filled with prayers and thankfully, those prayers were answered and they really helped our family.
First off, Rob.  No photo of him but he has had some prayers answered over the past few weeks.  I cannot speak personally if the prayers we have offered have helped him in work, I hope so though.  But I do know that our prayers for him to get better when he was sick worked out.

Diedre; well, I can definitely say, I am grateful for the body I have been given that is able to bounce back and deal with pain.  Last week sometime, we were passing out flyers for Scouting for Food.  Dangerous business, people.  I was merely walking up some cement stairs to hang a flyer on the door, I guess I misjudged the height of the step because before I knew it, I rolled my ankle on the stair and you could tell it had a bump.  There was more work to be done, and I could still walk on it, so William and I finished the route and when I got home I grabbed some ice and started elevating it.  OH, I also said a few dozen prayers that my foot would not be broken.  Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers.  By the next day my foot was still tender, only a tiny bit swollen but I could get around on it.  No break, only a minor sprain.  I have had friends and family go through the same thing recently.  Only their ankle/foot was broken.  I am sure they were praying for only a sprain, no major injury.  I cannot say why sometimes things work out for only minor problems/inconveniences and other times Father in Heaven wants us to go through a bit more.  I can say that I am so thankful for the blessing of having a foot I can walk on, and being able to recognize the blessing of prayer and faith in our life.

Caleb; cool awesome man.  Two weeks ago he woke up at 3am with MAJOR stomach pains!  He could not sleep, he could not find rest or relief.  We prayed, he threw up, we tried to rest as best we could.  Did I mention prayer?  The entire 2 and half hours he was in pain I did not stop praying.  Finally, call it an idea or inspiration, I thought to go grab some Alka Seltzer and see if it would help.  He was tough and drank it, even though it was "nasty."  About 20 minutes later, he was able to sleep. Ahh, blessed sleep.  He woke up the next morning, he still felt exhausted and icky, but the pains were gone.  Turns out, he passed something on to Haley, Peter, William and Rob....but we survived.  One other blessing to mention, his good attitude and never giving up.  Soccer has been different this season, maybe not as much keeper. But he is still giving it his all and doing so good out there on the field.  Not to mention the fact that he has pulled straight A's for the 3rd term this year!  Wow, a lot of work on his part, patience on parent's part, and terrific teachers to help him along the way.  Those teachers are definite blessings.

 Peter, man this boy has a good heart!  Like I mentioned, Peter got Caleb's weird stomach thing.  No major cramps or pain, just throwing up and feeling yucky.  But he handled it like a champ.  He was back at school the next day and I am so thankful that I was able to rely on prayer and know that Father in Heaven would watch over him while I could not be with him.  Also, he is doing so good with this Boy Scout role.  He may not want to do it, may not want to go to the meetings, but he has stepped up and really been responsible.  He chose the chore of unloading the dishwasher, BLESSING!  Plus, he has randomly comes up to me and offers any help at dinner time, help with laundry, or help with Haley.

William, got the stomach bug, but with prayer and help from Rob, he made it through the rough part.

What else is an unknown blessing?  He fights me every single morning in getting ready for school, but somehow he gets up and is ready.  He has not been late to school once this year.  Also, he is working through his, "I do not like church" phase.  Slowly but surely, we are getting this sweet little boy back to happy when it comes to church.

Haley, got sick - but it was UGLY!  When she was sick, we are talking throw up every stinking half hour!  NOT EVEN KIDDING!  She and I were up all night long, and when her body finally said it did not have anymore, she was able to sleep for an hour at a time, before waking up to dry heave.  Ugly details, but the truth.  The blessing, she made it in the tupperware every time, no big messes to clean up.  The other thing I want to remember, at 11 pm, when I was downstairs getting a heat pack ready and just praying - I remember praying that it would just be taken away.  Just make her better instantly.  But at like 12:30am, I started realizing, it could be worse.  At least we were not in a hospital.  At least we were managing it ok.  At least there was nothing horribly wrong.  Sure, it was no fun!  But I just started holding her and asking that somehow, we would be able to get a little sleep and relief.  My prayers had changed, but I had also realized to look at things a little differently.  We made it through.  She got better.  The next night we went through this scary dream time, where I was just as worried about her as when she was throwing up.  But again, with a priesthood blessing and love, she was able to sleep and feel better.  Now she is back to princesses, soft cute stuffed animals and sleeping well.
So thankful for how life is rolling right now.  Not perfect, but trying to remember to be thankful for the moments that are good.