Bye Elder Daniels

Last week Nate, aka Elder Daniels, went into the MTC (Missionary Training Center) to start his mission. Heidi, Deric, Mom, and Dad went with Nate to drop him off in Provo, UT. I thought I'd post some pics that my Mom gave me when she visited.

Mom, Dad & Elder Daniels in front of the Salt Lake Temple .... soo pretty.

Elder Daniels will wear his new name on his chest for the next two years!

Almost time to say goodbye!

These are all of Nate's possessions for the next two years.

He sent us a letter, via email, today that said he is doing great. He hit it off with his new companion, Elder Hitchcock, who is from Idaho. He said they get along well and they both like Sponge bob Squarepants.

If you want to email him you can at n_zero_33@myldsmail.net

I don't think he can email you back though. I emailed a missionary in Mongolia last week (to find out some info for my primary class), and he had his parents email me his response. But Nate will probably respond with snail mail. Let me know if you want to be added to his friends and family list and you can get his weekly emails.

Well, Portland has placed a pile of toys at my feet, so I had better play with her.

To sleep or not to sleep

I would imagine that after you've taken your dog for a long walk, or played really hard in the backyard, that your dog would come in and lay down. Or at least lay low for a few hours.

I took Portland down to the dog play area to play frisbee. We played for a while, ran for a while, and by the time we were done she could hardly walk up the stairs. Now you might think it is cruel to run your dog to the point where they walk up the stairs like an old man. But once she was back in the air conditioning, had a drink of water, and a good 10 min rest, this is what she did....

And after she was done with that she circled the room a few times and did this....

Now do you think this dog is tired?

She is. Trust me. If I sit on the floor with her for a few minutes she will be asleep in seconds. But if I continue doing chores, moving from room to room she will follow me getting crazier and naughtier as I go. I feel like she is at the tired two-year-old stage. Where everything is either hilarious or a catastrophe. She is on the verge of sleep but she wants to stay awake soooooo bad.

Sew

Our ward moved to another building last week, so the Relief Society was forced to clean out their closets (we shared the building with one other ward so they took advantage of all the extra space and things sorta piled up over the years). The RS president, Sally Tracy- whom I loved even before I met her because she has two first names, decided that "If it isn't blessing the lives of the sisters by being in this closet, it is out!" So among some other surprises, they found two working sewing machines, and they gave me one of them! The idea, of course, is that when I get another one or don't need it any more that I will pass it onto another sister.

So for weeks I've been planning everything I could sew as soon as I got the machine. After our Friday hike (I'm in charge of the hiking group for my ward, and we go every friday to Kennesaw Mtn), Sally gave me the machine and I raced home to use it. I opened it up... turned it on... and realized that I have no idea how to use a sewing machine. Well not no no idea, I just don't really know. But after an hour or so I figured out how to use the different stitches and go forward and backwards, and re-thread the different parts.

Then I tried to make something. I made a box, without a top or a bottom. Weird I know. But the idea was stuck in my head so I made it so the idea would go away. I don't know if that happens to other people, but sometimes I just have to make an idea, no matter how dumb it is, in order to make it go away. Then I tried "free-styling" by drawing a pattern on the back and following the line to make something on the front. You can see my efforts below. Super awesome I know.

The other pics are of Portland with her new sqeaky toy, and hiking on Kennesaw Mtn. Portland and I go two to four times a week and alternate the full 1.2 miles up the mtn, and some other short circle at the base. I can't take her with other people yet because she would rather play with the other people than walk in a semi straight line.

One up one down.... Still.

Bat ears! She also does Yoda ears.

People kept walking through this area, so she would only sit for a few seconds before deciding to say hi to someone. I didn't have the guts to get another shot, I was pretty sure I looked lame trying to take a pic of my dog in front of a cannon.

Ikea Toy

Brian couldn't resist getting this little toy for our dog when we were at Ikea. It replaces the empty boxes she ran through as a puppy. However she doesn't always understand that this toy isn't for eating or chewing.

Part I

Part II

I don't know how to convert videos from our nice camera, they are too big, so I'll just keep using our point and shoot till I can figure it out. Sorry about the weird clicking and crapy resolution.

Happy Anniversary

August and September are the ultimate anniversary months. So Portland wanted to give a little shout out to all our family and friends who got married in these months. Just to name a few: Brian and I, Heidi & Deric, Scott & Meredith, and Randy & Eileen.

Unfortunatly, Portland now thinks it is okay to shread all paper. So we are going to have to work on that.