A Blessing from Heaven--Ryan Lemuel Arrives

Though it was a scary arrival for Ryan Lemuel Wilcox, we are so thrilled that Rob and Kathryn have the opportunity to adopt this handsome little boy.  He was born June 7 and weighed 6 lb. 11 oz.  The cord was wrapped around his neck, with no heart beat, so it was pretty scary at first.  However, the two doctors in Burley, knew what to do, and also helped Rob give him a blessing before he was flown down to McKay Dee Hospital in Ogden. 

Before he even got there, his breathing had improved and his heart was going good.  They said he would be in the NICU two weeks, but it ended up only being four days. 


We feel it was truly God's answer to many, many prayers.  Andrew and Amy opened up their home during the 4 days he was in the NICU which was a huge help to them; Lila was able to go up and provide her  love and support.  We kept the phone lines and FB posts pretty busy for those four days, and it was great to see the steady progress he made.  They had a web cam on him while he was in the NICU, so we got to watch him several times.

It was truly wonderful to have him come home and get to see him for the first time.  He is so little, and cute, with such a lot of hair.
It was wonderful holding him for the first time, and having such a welcome addition to our family.



One of our first visits with Ryan.  Ethan is really being a good big brother for him.  Ziggy wonders who he is!



Updates from the Kaysville Kiddos

Here are the crazy fishermen of the Kaysville Clan (except Mom, who isn't that crazy!)  The current news on their famly is that they have already been camping, and survived the wrath of the killer winds the last weekend in May.  As a result, however, they have purchased a pop-up trailer for camping and have already successfully tried it out .  Everything works and they got a killer deal on it.
     Andrew got a raise, after working at his new job for only six months.  The only complaint is that he works too fast, and they can't keep up with him!  Hooray, for Andrew!!
    Their current farm animals include midget goats, ducks and dogs.  They put in a big garden again with Connie and Denny.  Amy's brother Kelly and Rosie have moved to Uraguay to be close to her famly.

Incentives for Summer Reading

One of the things we never had to contend much with while raising kids was the invasive and addictive nature of video games creeping into family and recreation time.  I'm glad that all of our children and their spouses are making a concerted effort to teach balance to their children, and involve them in more physical and mental exercise instead of spending so much time in front of a screen.

Sam's 7th birthday cake made in Blanding.

Sometimes even the best thought out plans backfire, however.  This past week, Ashley sat down with Sam to discuss things he could do instead of playing video games.  They determined that reading would be a good choice and she agreed he could have a Lego Star Wars toy if he reached his goal.  She then asked him how many books he thought he should read to get that $11 toy.  He figured that 75 books would be a fair amount!
     Though somewhat surprised by the high number, she agreed.  Then Sam scoured through the house and gathered up every book he could possibly read, and in two days had reached his goal and earned the prize.  Talk about motivation!
   Mom's decided now that Sam's next goal needs to be reading something a little more challenging like chapter books instead of the usual picture books that 1st graders read.  I am always amazed at how well these little first graders and kindergarteners in our family read!  That's because they have moms and dads who value it!    Way to Go Sam, and Ashley!

Quilt Camp 2012 -- Ethan the survivor!

“Tell me and I’ll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me

 and I’ll understand.”

Had a great, though very busy day at quilt camp the past two days, May 31-June 1.  The kids really worked hard and got their projects pretty much finished up by noon on Day 2. 

I had such a fun time helping Ethan learn to sew, and everything went terrifically, until Day Two when he was rushing to finish his quilt top for the group photo shoot.  I had just left to find a good spot for the photo, and got called back, with an emergency.  Ethan had somehow had a very "pointed" encounter with the needle, while sewing.  With the strong pointer finger that he has--the needle broke twice on its way THROUGH his poor finger!  It was pretty traumatic getting the last piece out--through the bottom, but thanks to these smart quilters, one lady had medical tweezers with her! 

He did great regain his composure, and within an hour was making jokes about the experience -- one which he is sure to always remember.  He made a really cute quilt for a new baby brother, we hope arrives soon.

You can see he'll never forget that wounded finger, and how the sewing machine attacked him!  I love his quirky sense of humor and his zestful curiousity.

I also worked with two neighbor girls, who took a lot of time and attention.  My original teacher-partner never came, but Bobbie Holt graciously help me out, day 1, and Eve Lynn Perkins helped on day two.  It would have been even more stressful  without them.  It takes a lot of patience and instruction to teach a child how to sew, and some take more than others.

The only thing worse that Ethan's experience happened to Sister Stubbs.  When she and her grandkids went home in the afternoon, they took everything with them hoping to do some work that evening.  Unfortunately, Brian was not  informed that all their things were in the trunk of the car, and he let Jessica take it to Salt Lake later that  afternoon while Silvia was napping, so when they went to get their things--they couldn't do anything, nor participate the 2nd day.  We all felt so bad for them.

I was the Quilt Guild chairman over the camp, found the teachers (19 of them, plus 5 teen assistants).  Three of the teachers weren't able to come, or we would have had 22.
Each teacher found her own students, and prepared them for the camp experience.  That meant giving them hands on experience with a sewing machine, finding cloth, chosing a pattern, and cutting it out prior to camp.  So it was quite a commitment.  I really appreciated all the good ladies and youth who helped us. Here they are!

During the camp, I made sure we had photos of all participants, handed out recognition treats when they finished their quilt top, and organized where the stations would be.  USU and the Arts and Events Center did all the set up, and provided snacks, lunch, and break out activities.

The reason I love doing things for the youth coorelates with this wonderful quote:

Oliver Wendall Homes said, “Man’s mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions.”  And quilting is definitely a mind stretcher!

More Visits on the Way Home

We did a little Treasure Hunt for Autumn's Kids
Just checking to see if these 5 and 6 year olds really know how to read!  -- They did, and figured out clues pretty quickly.



."No time for Grandpa to sleep today --  he'll miss the soft pillows


"Feeding Leah is important every day --but don't let her eat the clue."


"Under the bench you'll find the final clue"

 

Twinners!  Who are growing up way too fast!

CJ's Big Dates this school year. 

Homecoming and Junior Prom! 

CJ is a  handsome young man and fun to talk to. It looks like he associates with kids with good standards.  That makes us mighty happy and thankful. 

Kylee completed her birthday quilt recently.  Here it is!  We gave her jelly rolls to sew into a quilt.  The girls also performed several songs for us while we visited with them.  They should be all ready for the family reunion program this summer!

Michael will be a Freshman next year, and is growing taller and taller.

This is what it looked like in Moab when we drove home on Saturday.  It had blown like crazy in SE Utah for three days!  You couldn't even see the sky.

One of the bright spots of my garden are these columbines I started from seeds my sister Nancy gave me from her flowers in Teton.  There were especially beautiful this year, and should reseed well.

Gilbert Ganderings and Tooele Tidbits

  We stayed with Quent and Bev's family for three days and had a chance to catch up with their lives.  Brig always keeps things pretty interesting and has this commanding presence about him.  I'm sure he'll be a drill seageant, coach, or radio announcer some day!  

The girls are doing really well in school and are in an accelerated program, which encourages some high thinking skills.  We didn't get to play any games, but did enjoy swimming with them.  It was wonderful and relaxing.  Friday night we all went to a big bar-b-que at the Reidheads to celebrate Anthony's graduation.  I think the kids had fun and the food was delicious.  I forgot to take any pix, until Sunday...sorry Ava, I didn't get you in a picture!

Ashley's parents headed back to Utah about 5:30 AM Sunday morning, May 20.  Quentin took Steve over to meet them. Later that morning, I went to Sacrament meeting with Quent and Bev then he took me to the airport at noon and voila!  in just over an hour I was in Salt Lake. We appreciated their hospitality and help getting us everywhere we needed to be.  I'm so glad I was able to fly,  so much better than a 12 hr. car ride!    Doesn't Brig look spiffy in his fancy suit!

Isabella is getting lots of TLC from everyone in the family.  She is such a pretty little girl, and looks a lot like Laurie did when she was a baby.

Nathan picked me up at the airport about 4:40, and I spent the next 5 days helping out so Tammy could just concentrate on the baby.  Brendan and Laurie are pretty responsible, just needed a few reminders to get themselves up and ready for school. I mainly cooked and got the kids to school on time usually walking them there (more for my exercise, than an actual need) but it was fun talking to them as we walked.  Also got the flower beds planted and a couple of pots.  Made fresh strawbetter jam for their family and ours.  That kept me busy for two days! (When I got home finally, our strawberries were coming on --so got to make even more!)
Two of the days were filled with appointments getting help for Isabella, so she will start feeding better. 

Teacher on the right is Clarinda Langston, who was in Nathan's class at SJHS and one of my former students.

 On Wed. I went to the awards program, and both Brendan and Laurie earned academic awards for high GPA.  Laurie also had 100% attendance, and Brendan only missed 1 day.  The big excitement, however, was when Laurie's name was drawn out from the 5th and 6th grade girls reading tickets (1 ticket per 100 minutes) and she won a brand new bike.  She had been telling me just the night before that she hoped her dad would get her a new bike for her birthday in July !!  We were so excited about it.

Steve kept pretty busy while I was gone keeping everything water up--both my flowers, and his garden.  He also rigged up the hoses so three sets can run at the same time from the well.  He also repaired a leaking hose in the front, that I never remembered to do.  It's nice to have a husband who fixes things without being asked!

Celebrating the Last Day of School

Friday was their last day of school so while walking to school, we planned a cookout to celebrate, then ran it by Mom and Dad. I also did a treasure hunt for them. Brendan said he "hoped it wouldn't be like the last one his Dad did, which involved a lot of math calculations!" I promised him it wasn't like that.

Clue: #1 Life's not always a picnic--but you can make it so. Just whistle while you work and keep a happy glow.

#2 Find this quote:

"I will go and do the things the Lord hath commanded...."

#3  Summer is coming so watch out for bees.

If you're really to use the deep freeze.

 

#4  A bright greeting at your front door

Carefully look for what's in store....

#5  When Wii work together

Sunny is always the weather!

#6  Last clue was to look for something "blue" used in doing work.  (The treasure was in the blue mop bucket! which Brendan has learned how to use!  He mops the kitchen floor by himself.)

Finished product--Summery bird houses.

It was a lot of fun doing things with the kids and I know they will be a huge help to mom and the new baby this summer!

Arizona Trip and Law School Graduation

Due to a little calendering hiccup, we celebrated Logan and Ashley's birthday a month early the day the Farnsworth's arrived in Blanding on May 17.  Then we hitch hiked a ride with them in the Farnsworth-mobile for the law school graduation trip to Arizona.  Grandpa Sam Burdick, Ashley's parents,  Kerry and Kelly, along with Anthony, Ashley, Sam and Logan, and were all part of the entourage. 

We had a great trip down, with nice warm weather and no wind while we were there.     

    We all went to Karen and Stan Reidhead's on Friday night for a big celebratory bar-b-que for Anthony and Ryan (his study buddy and his family) and for Loren who just graduated from ASU.  Mark was also back from Russia, so there was a lot to celebrate.  I also forgot to take photos there also.  Nonetheless, the food was delicious and we all had a lot of fun.




Logan and Sam kept entertained with their i-pads while we waited for the ceremonies to begin.  I'll have to admit they are more efficient in reducing noise than the quiet books we used to use!




Ryan Smith and his wife with Anthony and Ashley.


















Saturday was the actual
graduation. Here Anthony is marching in with all his pomp and ceremonial
regalia.

It was wonderful seeing Anthony and Ashley attain this challenging goal of earning a law degree, and to see how focused and attentive Anthony was in not only studying the material but absorbing and remembering what he was taught.  His grades reflected his hard work as he graduated summa cum laude and also was selected to work on the Law Review after his first year.  It was truly a team effort and worth it. 

Isabella Felice joins the Wilcox Clan

Nathan and Tammy are the proud parents of a new baby girl, Isabella Felice who was born May 9, on Jens' birthday.  She weighed 9 lb 1 oz, and was 21 inches long.  She looks so content and happy to be here with her family.  Brendan and Laurie are being such good helpers with her.   Autumn and I, and her kids took a quick trip out to Tooele after Anthony's Swearing in Ceremony to "Ooo" and "Aaaah" at the newest little Wilcox grandchild!

We're so glad she's here.  Two of her grandmas got to share the joy together. Tammy did a lot of pre-prep classes in child birth, and hypno therapy so she could have a totally natural birth.  She did so well, and was only at the Birthing Center two hours before having this wonderful new addition.  Congratulations to the Tooele Tribe!

Our retired neighbors! Brian and Silvia Stubbs

 

Imagine our envy and surprise when Silvia and Brian showed up in this snazzy red convertible!  It's time they spoiled themselves -- (by borrowing it from Sheila for a fun spin around the block!)  What great neighbors they've been to us over the years.  They deserve a red car and more!  Silvia has been my most trusted and understanding friend.  I really feel we are kindred sisters, as we are so much alike in many ways.  I have learned so much from her, and her great giving spirit.  She has taught me a lot about the power of prayer, endurance, and compassion.