Winter Storm coming

 There is a storm coming and so school is canceled for Friday.  We're stocked up on food and snow clothes.  I really hope and pray that the power will not get knocked out.  We'll have to figure something out then.  This year we hope to get the fireplace fixed so we can have a back up for indoor heating.

Internships

 I've been doing some volunteering and job shadowing in SLP situations.  I'm excited to see patients with conditions I have heard of or read about and become more familiar with the reality of those conditions.  I am flexible on the population I want to serve and I'm grateful for these opportunities to see SLPs working with these children.  I look forward to seeing SLPs in medical situations.  That is completely unfamiliar to me.  I am optimistic that every thing will always be so interesting!

End of Year Goals

We have had a year with many ups and downs.  It has ended well.  I very much hope that next year is not just like this year because it was a lot of horrible before it became OKish.  We have been very blessed in the many, many adverse things that happened in 2024.

 

This year as a family we:

Read 1 Corinthians 15

Started having scriptures and prayer before dinner

Watched Jeopardy

Hiked Chapman Mountain Nature preserve

Kayaked from one launch point to another with no current 5 miles!

Started “Gratitude 1000” and got to the 600s.  We’ll keep working on it in the new year.
Dad

Built beautiful bookshelves

Took mom to see the brass band concert

Took mom to see a concert in Decatur with “O Magnum Mysterium”

Got a new teaching job

Installed the TV in his classroom higher.

Made a bookshelf for lP

Replaced the kids’ bedroom light

Conducted Stake Choir

Played in the Christmas Orchestra

Mom

Wrote music for “Think Celestial”, “Liken then Apply”, “O Holy Night”, “But God Still Visits Me”

Learned the names of the kids in Primary

Made another Egg Pie

Served as singing time leader and loved it.

Made all the thanksgiving dishes in November

Went caving with M and a group of church members

Got A’s in her first semester of Grad School

Played in the Christmas Orchestra

Read a lot of books to the boys and cried too

G

Moved to Florida

Got an apartment and started classes

Worked through a lot of hard things

Was an awesome big brother

Rode the bus to visit home for Christmas

M

Made Chocolates with Grandma C

Helped hold doors

Served on the loading crew

Assistant conductor

Applied for college and got into college

Joined buddies club

BOA Grand Nationals

Joined a Gym

Played in the Christmas Orchestra

lP

Auditioned for Solo/Ensemble

Did not kick small children

Hung frog

Told everyone she hadn’t seen them since last year

Reed Day

Joined the indoor percussion group

learned the trombone

Art Club

Took over the world with Crochet dinosaurs

B

learned the trombone

Robotics Club

Chess club

memorized all 12 articles of faith

Made freezy treats

Made carmels

Went to school

Earned a Nintendo Switch by practicing the piano a lot.

Gave L hugs

L

Earned Rock’em Sock’em Robots

Helped earn the Nintendo Switch

Got good at the piano

Helped Animals

Got candy from the bus driver for good behavior

Passed off many Articles of Faith

Made so much progress at school

Nighttime story time with Magic Tree House, Life of Fred and Encyclopedia Brown, School Mouse, Best Christmas Pageant Ever.

 

We did a lot more things than this.  These are the things we made goals for on our goal chart, and a few more things I can remember at the moment.

Christmas 2024

 

bell choir fun

 Tonight we met with the H family and did bell choir fun.  There was about 10 ringers.  It was really nice.  They humored us and did 5 songs several times each.  I loved it.  I haven't done the bells at that level in a long time.  The best ones have a simple chord or counter melody and the melody is sung.  I have a nice arrangement of "Silent Night" that is so simple but also so sweet.  For "Ring Out Wild Bells" I have verse 1, 3 and 4 to simplify things.  Verse 1 and 3 have more of a chord feel.  Verse 4 has more of a bells clanging on every beat feel.  It's very nice.

There are so many cool people I've been able to get to know this last year.  I miss knowing people but it is also nice to meet new people.

First Semester of A's and an internship

 I got all A's for the first time in my life!  I'm so grateful to be studying now in this season when I have learned so much.  I already have note guides set up for 2 of my classes for next semester.  I figured out some strategies for taking tests for one of the professors I'll have classes with every semester.  Yay!  

Back in November I applied for an internship and got connected with that just in time to do a lot of the hours over the break.  I just signed up for 40 hours.  I think I'll be able to get my 25 hours of observation signed off with this.  More importantly I'll get to see a wide variety of patients.  This clinic follows various specialties that aren't available in this area.  I probably won't see the same patient twice, so that's 40 different situations I'll see.  So cool.

Last week on my last day before the kids went on break, I went on a date with the grad school ladies.  We went to a bagel restaurant and then to a thrift store.  I got some really nice shoes, coats, backpack and a flat light bright!  So much fun.

Life is really great.  I got a new calling and have the dubious privilege of choosing the person to take over my old calling.  I really loved that calling.  Callings are tricky.  It's a little like reencarnation.  What have I learned since the last time I had this calling?  What has changed about the calling in 9.5 years.  It turns out, a lot.

Bike accident

 G had a bike accident and broke his collar bone.  I flew to Florida to see him through surgery.  What a bump in the road.  He had to miss 2 weeks of classes and ended up withdrawing from classes.  He's registered for the next semester and moving on.  It could certainly have been worse.  He wasn't wearing a helmet (!) but didn't hit his head.  He was approved for medicaid days before the accident.  I'm grateful that as bad as it was, it could easily have been so much worse.