Jeff's Chance at the Regional Science Fair

Jeff did a GREAT job at the Gulf Coast Regional Science Fair this week! His project won 4th place for Biochemistry, 1-3 grade. There were over 900 projects at the Science Fair and probably 20-30 in Jeff's category. He was so pleased to hear his name called at the awards ceremony and to go up on stage in front of a huge crowd! We are so proud of Jeff! 

SURPRISE!!!!

This past Monday morning we got the surprise of our lives....WE GOT ORDERS TO ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, GUAM!!!!

Dustin surprised me by showing up after my fitness class at the KROC center with an invitation to lunch. We headed over the hospital on base (my choice) and after we had eaten he asked me to scoot around our round table to sit right beside him. He asked me to close my eyes while he pulled some papers from his coat pocket. He let me read the first one, it read in bold type, "Congratulations on your PCS orders!!" I looked at him and said, "Where are we going?". He told me something like, "It's cold. You're going to need your coat!" You all should know by now, my utter dislike for cold weather and anything like it! Only he was smiling. Then he handed me the second paper. The font was tiny and squished close together. I couldn't find the sentence with the location. Then he said it at the same time I found it! GUAM! I cried I was so happy!! I was shocked to say the least. I said I very fervent, happy prayer of thanks! We are all so excited! So now we are in the research, research, research stage. We've got 6 months to get ready. I hope it's enough time!

Blue and Gold Banquet

February 28, 2013

We enjoyed a very nice Blue and Gold Banquet this past Thursday! The boys did a great job on their skits- so cute! Henry was awarded his Webelos Badge as well as his Religious Square Knot Patch. Jeffrey earned another bead and is super, super close to his Wolf Badge!

Elder L.Tom Perry

On February 17th we were blessed to welcome Elder L. Tom Perry to our Stake Conference. The Stake chose our small women's choir to sing for the conference. It was AWESOME!! It was so neat to sit on the stand and feel his great spirit as he entered! It was also an amazing blessing to be able to sing for an apostle of the Lord. I had to really keep it together and not get emotional! I didn't realize until the day or so before that I would stay on the stand for the whole conference. That meant that Dustin was blessed to sit with all 4 children all by himself! It was a great conference! 

Career Exploration Day

5th graders who scored well on last years state testing got to participate in Career Day in February. Although Dad was technically on R&R leave after his deployment he took Henry into work anyways. They did PT, learned about Dustin's job, played Chino, and had a great day just the two of them!

USS Alabama

With our house currently on the market I kind of need to keep it clean. Since Dustin had gotten home I hadn't been so diligent. I asked Dustin to take the kids away for an afternoon so I could get things back in order. He took them over to Mobile, AL to see the USS Alabama. They had a great time! It was much needed Daddy time and I got the house clean without someone coming behind me to mess it up again!!

Happy Birthday, Dustin!!

Dustin requested a visit to the cousins, complete with swimming, pizza, and cake, for his birthday on the 8th! We drove up to Montgomery to see my brother and his family. We went swimming at the local YMCA, we ate yummy pizza, and cake from Publix- YUM!! The kids had fun playing together and Ben and Emily entertained us with the flute and baritone. So fun!!

Boating with Dad

February 2, 2013

Boating on the Back Bay

One our favorite family activities is boating on the Back Bay! We enjoyed a beautiful afternoon on the water. The kids went fishing, but we didn't have a bite. We had a wonderful picnic on the boat and really enjoyed having Dad back with us!

Making Pizzas

Although he hadn't slept in more than 48 hours the first thing Dad did when he got home was make pizzas for the kids! I thought he was crazy but he was as happy as could be!

DADDY'S HOME!!

 Waiting, waiting, waiting...Dad's flight was delayed twice!!!

We are all SO HAPPY to have Daddy home!!

January Pack Meeting

This was out last Pack meeting before Dustin would be coming home from his deployment. Jeff is doing really well in Scouts and is well on his way to earning his second rank in Scouting- his Wolf!

The Aquarium of the Americas

Our zoo passes from earlier in the month also included Aquarium admission. We headed back to New Orleans with the Masters again for another animal filled day. This time we headed for the aquarium and had a great time. There were lots and lots of neat creatures to see. There was even a touch tank with Rays in it. Jenna was a total Ray magnet. They kept swimming up to her and flapping their "wings" like crazy. It was so funny. The other funny thing was the parakeet landing. The birds were totally crazy! They were climbing in and out of my purse, dive bombing us, and acting just plain crazy. Jeff and Sulieti did not like it AT ALL! I thought it was so funny!