We enjoyed a family gathering last night with Stuart and Heather, Karen, Steve and family, Brenda and Scott. It had been so long since we had seen anyone, we had a great time visiting and celebrating a few birthdays.
What went on in February?
Auriana wonderfully gave her memorized speech on Abraham Lincoln, stovepipe hat and all. She won her class spelling bee and a few days ago read The Bridge to Terebithia all in one night. She often comes upstairs an hour after we thought she was asleep because she’s been reading. Isaac finished up basketball with remorse -- it will be a long wait until baseball. He also read The Bridge to Terebithia, and both he and Auriana are looking forward to seeing the movie. Bjorn and Isaac went to a BYU game and had a blast. Natalie nominated me as a hero at school for helping her when she has to do hard things, and we won. She was delighted to be recognized in an assembly at school. She hung a medal around my neck and later that week we both had our picture in the local newspaper. Enoch realized today that when you stay in the bath too long you don’t actually turn into a raisin, your fingers just look like raisins. He has started taking mother-taught piano lessons and really enjoys it. Miriam went to her first birthday party. She went in very timidly, but had a really fun time. She can often be found locked in her room, playing (with Natlalie’s toys -hence the locked door), and singing to herself. Ellie walked all the way around the block with Isaac cheering her on. She waves, runs, smiles a lot, and shrugs her shoulders and we all think she is very cute. She has added several words to her vocabulary, including bottle, ball, and Brenda (“de de”).
Bjorn surprised me the day before Valentines Day and we spent a very relaxing day and night at a cabin in Sundance. We were grateful for Brenda and the Shumways for watching the kids while we were away. We’ve had a few teeth come out this month and we have a few teeth trying to come in. We painted the kids rooms on President’s day – the kids proved to be very proficient and diligent painters. They didn’t give up until we were done! When it was my turn to teach preschool we learned about fire safety and took a trip to the fire station. We though we were entering Spring with wonderfully warm weather, but the Winter returned. We have had two weeks of snowstorm after snowstorm.
Bjorn here – I thought I would emerge from my cave long enough to look at the sun and write a bit in the family letter. This has been a very busy couple weeks for me. I have been up late almost every night and up early most mornings trying to stay on top of projects and demanding deadlines. It was sure nice to enjoy a relaxing Sabbath today – I needed it more than I can describe. I told myself when I started my business that I would never work on the Sabbath no matter what, and that has been a real blessing to me. One of my clients is opening an LDS bookstore and art gallery that sells the books put out by The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship (formerly FARMS) and Truman Madsen, and features the art of Joseph Brickey, one of my favorite LDS artists. They are the same client that I did the Journey of Faith stuff with. Anyway, I got to design the big outdoor sign on the building and all the other signage inside the store as well as window displays and advertising. I still need to put together a couple of websites for them, but it has been a really fun process. They had their special opening on March 1 for all the Maxwell Institute scholars and leadership who were in town for a conference and said that everyone was blown away. We have given it a very rich, old world feel. I’m also finishing up the 700+ page biography: Anson Bowen Call: Bishop of Colonia Dublan. It mentions Helaman Pratt several times saying that he was a good friend – even has a map showing where his home was in Colonia Dublan, and covers many of the events that I’m sure Mom’s family experienced there in the colonies. Helaman Pratt’s daughter, Dora, was one of Bowen Call’s wives. The Call family first came to me four years ago to start working on the project. It is going to press first thing in the morning. Can you hear the sound of trumpets triumphantly heralding the event?!
I had fun taking pictures of Stuart and Heather yesterday in the freezing cold. Hopefully some of them will show up in the video they’re going to have made for the reception. We’re trying to figure out how to work out our dilemma of having the Pendleton family reunion at the same time as their wedding.
Well, enough for now. We hope Alan and Konnie are enjoying their travel abroad and that Mom and Dad are enjoying day-to-day parenting again for a short time. We love you all and appreciate our interactions with you whenever and however they occur.
What went on in February?
Auriana wonderfully gave her memorized speech on Abraham Lincoln, stovepipe hat and all. She won her class spelling bee and a few days ago read The Bridge to Terebithia all in one night. She often comes upstairs an hour after we thought she was asleep because she’s been reading. Isaac finished up basketball with remorse -- it will be a long wait until baseball. He also read The Bridge to Terebithia, and both he and Auriana are looking forward to seeing the movie. Bjorn and Isaac went to a BYU game and had a blast. Natalie nominated me as a hero at school for helping her when she has to do hard things, and we won. She was delighted to be recognized in an assembly at school. She hung a medal around my neck and later that week we both had our picture in the local newspaper. Enoch realized today that when you stay in the bath too long you don’t actually turn into a raisin, your fingers just look like raisins. He has started taking mother-taught piano lessons and really enjoys it. Miriam went to her first birthday party. She went in very timidly, but had a really fun time. She can often be found locked in her room, playing (with Natlalie’s toys -hence the locked door), and singing to herself. Ellie walked all the way around the block with Isaac cheering her on. She waves, runs, smiles a lot, and shrugs her shoulders and we all think she is very cute. She has added several words to her vocabulary, including bottle, ball, and Brenda (“de de”).
Bjorn surprised me the day before Valentines Day and we spent a very relaxing day and night at a cabin in Sundance. We were grateful for Brenda and the Shumways for watching the kids while we were away. We’ve had a few teeth come out this month and we have a few teeth trying to come in. We painted the kids rooms on President’s day – the kids proved to be very proficient and diligent painters. They didn’t give up until we were done! When it was my turn to teach preschool we learned about fire safety and took a trip to the fire station. We though we were entering Spring with wonderfully warm weather, but the Winter returned. We have had two weeks of snowstorm after snowstorm.
Bjorn here – I thought I would emerge from my cave long enough to look at the sun and write a bit in the family letter. This has been a very busy couple weeks for me. I have been up late almost every night and up early most mornings trying to stay on top of projects and demanding deadlines. It was sure nice to enjoy a relaxing Sabbath today – I needed it more than I can describe. I told myself when I started my business that I would never work on the Sabbath no matter what, and that has been a real blessing to me. One of my clients is opening an LDS bookstore and art gallery that sells the books put out by The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship (formerly FARMS) and Truman Madsen, and features the art of Joseph Brickey, one of my favorite LDS artists. They are the same client that I did the Journey of Faith stuff with. Anyway, I got to design the big outdoor sign on the building and all the other signage inside the store as well as window displays and advertising. I still need to put together a couple of websites for them, but it has been a really fun process. They had their special opening on March 1 for all the Maxwell Institute scholars and leadership who were in town for a conference and said that everyone was blown away. We have given it a very rich, old world feel. I’m also finishing up the 700+ page biography: Anson Bowen Call: Bishop of Colonia Dublan. It mentions Helaman Pratt several times saying that he was a good friend – even has a map showing where his home was in Colonia Dublan, and covers many of the events that I’m sure Mom’s family experienced there in the colonies. Helaman Pratt’s daughter, Dora, was one of Bowen Call’s wives. The Call family first came to me four years ago to start working on the project. It is going to press first thing in the morning. Can you hear the sound of trumpets triumphantly heralding the event?!
I had fun taking pictures of Stuart and Heather yesterday in the freezing cold. Hopefully some of them will show up in the video they’re going to have made for the reception. We’re trying to figure out how to work out our dilemma of having the Pendleton family reunion at the same time as their wedding.
Well, enough for now. We hope Alan and Konnie are enjoying their travel abroad and that Mom and Dad are enjoying day-to-day parenting again for a short time. We love you all and appreciate our interactions with you whenever and however they occur.
