Winder Move, Part II

We wanted to send the Winders off with some great last memories in Pocatello, so we invited some of their friends over for their send-off.

Each friend designed a page of a calendar, so Michelle has 365 days of memories of great friends.

Priscilla, her husband, Del, and Farhana enjoyed some of the great food we snacked on.

We have teased Joe for years about the fact that he won't sit on a couch with a women other than his wife, feeling it is inappropriate.  Although we think it is admirable, it is also funny to tease him, so I pulled out the camera and whispered instructions to Kassie to stage this picture.  We thought Joe would jump off the couch the second she plopped down next to him, but he was a good sport and lasted about a minute.  

As usual in our parties, the men and women tend to separate and gravitate together.  We don't intend to be segregated; it just always happens that way.  Maybe it's the fact that the men discuss politics and construction (Boring!) and the women tell funny stories and crack each other up!  Guess who has more fun?

It looks like a tender, emotional moment, but really they were laughing so hard they were crying!

Joe must have been exhausted from all of the moving because he dozed off for a while.  We tried to arrange a picture with everyone around him, but he woke up just as they were posed.

The Winder Move, Part 1

These are not genuinely happy faces, but it was the best we could muster under the circumstances.

Moving really stinks.  Especially when your best friend is being dragged off, kicking and screaming, to an abyss called Wyoming.  Michelle had been dreading this day for months, and we'd all been pretending it wouldn't really happen, but it did. The best thing a friend can do in this circumstance is to pitch in and help, so that's what we did.

Myndee Wells and Michelle packed up the master closet.

Photo Book

Click here to view this photo book larger

Emergency!

You know those 72 hour kits that we all faithfully pack, so we'll be prepared in case of an emergency?  Well, apparently you need to update their contents every now and then!  Who knew?!  Recently we cleaned out our garage and found our emergency backpacks.  I know!  Having to "find" them is the first mistake, but we've been finishing our basement and somehow they got lost in the garage over the last few months (or possibly just a tad bit longer :).  Anyway, the girls started digging through their packs and had a great time discovering what I had included for each of them.

Emma would look like Cinderella's stepsister to try to shove her feet into these tiny shoes!  She liked the Veggie Tales t-shirt, but since it was way too little it went straight to DI.  

Maren's clothes weren't any better.  Her size 5T jeans would have made good capris if she could have zipped them up.  She was excited to find that the cheap mp3 player she had put in her pack years ago still worked, although her taste in music has changed a little since she was 6.  I had no idea she had put it in there, and I'm really impressed that the batteries still worked!  I'm sure that in an emergency we'd all be thrilled to listen to "Old McDonald had a Farm" and "I've Been Working on the Railroad," so good thinking, Maren!

I didn't have the guts to see if I could still fit into the pants in my pack.  Too depressing and too out of style!  And I didn't bother to check on the status of the food after 8 or 9 years of neglect!  I guess it's time to update our packs so we can be fashionable and well-fed in case of an emergency!

Bittersweet Reunion

Well, it's not what we had hoped for and it wasn't in our plans, but nevertheless, we're very happy to have Devin back home with us.   We have known for a couple of months that he was struggling with depression in the MTC and in Mexico, but we hoped that with fasting and prayer he'd be able to find the help he needed and finish his mission.  Unfortunately, that wasn't the answer we received, and Devin needed to come home to take care of his health.  

For all of you who have been asking about how he is doing, thank you for your concern and here's an update.  He is feeling better and making plans for the future.  He has been home for a week now and in that time he has been filling out countless applications for jobs, college, and financial aid.  He has applied to Idaho State University in the fall and plans to go through a Mechanical Engineering program at the Vo-tech.  He has planned on going through that program for the past two years, and we think it's a really good choice for him.  He has natural inclination toward that field, and the program has a history of 95% job placement within 3 months of graduation and a good starting salary, so it should be a great career for him. In the meantime, grandma has been keeping him extremely busy putting in a pool at their house for the grandkids.  It's an 18 foot above ground pool, and Devin spent many hot hours outside, digging rocks out of the area and leveling the dirt.  Now it's ready for the 4th of July weekend, and I'm sure his cousins will be happy about that!

Devin feels like he was able to learn much in his 3 1/2 months on his mission, and we're grateful he had that opportunity.  He really loved the ward members and even had the privilege of baptizing a young man while he was in Mexico. All in all, his mission was short but it has still been a blessing to us all and we're proud of him and his willingness to serve the Lord.

Playing catch-up

Here are a few more things that have happened in May.

Maren got a big surprise on Wednesday at her band concert when she was awarded Outstanding Band Student of the year!  We were all very surprised and excited for her, and I was so glad I had invited my parents and James (who is still visiting) to come to the concert!  Unfortunately, since I had no idea it was happening I didn't have a camera.  Darn!  She also decided to form a quartet for festival, and they received a Superior rating.  I'm so glad she's having these experiences because I'm sure they will motivate her to stay in band.  She has signed up for it in high school and wants to stick with it.

I often wish I had made Devin and Chris continue with band in high school, but they weren't interested in being in Marching Band, and at that time you had to do both so it took up too many credits.  It's better now that they are on trimesters and have more credits for electives.  Chris took Drama this year (which totally surprised me!), and he has really liked it.  He's signed up for it again next year, and he wants to try out for a small part in a play or musical.  I can't wait to see him in a musical!  He has been working hard to learn to play the guitar, and he's planning on buying an electric guitar soon.  Now that, I can wait for.

Emma is going to play Violet in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory in two weeks.  She's just about got her lines and songs learned and can't wait until the performances.  They have 7 or 8 shows, so she'll have lots of time to enjoy the limelight!  Today Emma and I are going on a train ride to learn about safety issues with trains.  The best part about it is that it is for work, so I get paid to have fun with my daughter!  I love my job!

Devin is in Tijuana now and seems to be doing well, although he needs any extra prayers you can send his way.  We got a letter from the mission president and it has a picture of Devin with his mission president and his wife.  I could instantly tell from the picture that they are wonderful people!  I hope they aren't responsible, however, for the awful haircut Devin got!  I know they need a nice, short haircut, but his is extreme!  Oh well, it'll grow back, I guess.  I've asked him to send some information about his companion and Tijuana, etc, so I can give everyone an update next time.

Life has been busy, but school is almost out and then things will slow down a little.....I hope.

Trevor and Jane Tie the Knot

 

 I don't know how he did it, but I am SO excited that Trevor caught Jane, 

and I'm so happy to have her as a sister!

The wedding was beautiful because my new sister-in-law has amazing taste.  

The setting was lovely, the flowers were perfect, and the bride was stunning!

Becky took their pictures, and they were gorgeous...except the group ones that she didn't have control over.  I come from a long line of unphotogenic people, and I'm definitely the worst of the bunch!  

Look at these faces!

Fortunately, we were able to get a nice group shot and not ruin their pictures completely.

 I was so glad James made it to Salt Lake for the wedding. 

 It's been a few years since he's visited, and it was great to catch up!

 Welcome to our crazy family, Jane!