What's Cookin'? by Mom

Here it is Friday, and I've got a few minutes here at school. This is Memorial Day weekend, and there's no telling if we'll wind up spending the weekend in Circleville or not. All I know for sure is that Dad wants me to head right up there after school today. He's been there since Wed working on the septic system so we can have real live running water...soon:) So yesterday in English class I asked my little student Cindy if she'd prepare a lesson for Sunday school just in case I'm not there. Now that the Kendalls have moved up to Salt Lake, I'm teaching both classes and don't have an easy substitute anymore. I just ask my students to fill in for me.

We bought the new DVD Phantom of the Opera Tuesday night after we went to the temple. We didn't get home until 10:30, but we went ahead and started watching it anyway. At 11:30 we had to tear ourselves away from it because it was just getting too late. Wed I watched it with Nicolas, but the missionaries dropped in so we got somewhat disrupted, but it was still wonderful. Then Thurs I put it in after school while I ran on the treadmill, and I set it to French. It's such a long movie, I ran for an hour and 20 minutes, and it still wasn't close to being over. That movie must be two and a half hours, and I decided it's better in French. It really moved me, all the story, costumes and music.

I just sent Matt another package. This time I bought some granola bars and planned to put a couple in to fill up the envelope, then eat the rest. You know those dang envelopes are so roomy that all eight granola bars fit in, and I didn't get to eat a single one! So he will get to enjoy them all! :)

This week I got a little immature and decided to pass around my yearbook for students to sign. I was overwhelmed by the beautiful messages they wrote, and it even brought me to tears. But I have to tell you about my favorite, of course they're all my favorites. My little Damian, el presidente, wrote in French, then switched to English, and ended with, "like we Chicanos say, 'Besos con queso!'" Isn't that cute? I also have precious entries in German and Chinese. So I guess I'm really done with this year and I NEED to have my vacation start. Don't you think that's what they all say!

It's in the triple digits here, and this weekend there's thunderstorms in the forecast. Do you suppose it will feel the same as it does in DR or Philadelphia? Dad says the river's still flooding in Circleville. I've heard that there's another month's worth of snow to melt off the mountains, so we'd better brace ourselves. Also it's a record year for rattlesnakes. Last week I found a little one that fit into a Pepsi bottle. I brought it home, gave it to Streets, and Mark (and his Mom) took it to school to show his class. Apparently it fit right in with his rattlesnake projects. When Dad phoned last night, he said he's found 3 really big ones that wouldn't come close to fitting into a Pepsi bottle. I guess he just killed them and cut off the rattles. I wonder if he cooked them too? I hear it tastes like chicken :) Maybe we can cook some up for our dinner at the reunion. You'll all have to research some recipes for me! Maybe we could even play Martha Stewart and have cooking demonstrations of exotic dishes at the reunion! I guess that's enough of that. So take care everyone-- love, Mom

Whitneys: P.S. . . .

Hello, We hope everyone is doing great. We are busy trying to wrap up the school year and start the summer . The weather has been hot so I guess we have made it to the summer season. Leslie and Bronson both had birthdays in May so that was a ton of fun. Leslie had a big party and we ended up with 18 six and seven year olds. Chris had more fun than the kids. We had a visit from my family and we spent two days at the lake and another three on the four wheelers. Leslie got a little 90 for her birthday so she had to show off for everyone. We had a lot of fun. Madyson is having the potty training blues, sorry that would be me. I can't remember how you potty train. We have some good days but we seem to have more bad ones. I know that Becca is feeling my pain. We are in the middle of planning a big trip to Canada. We are flying out on the 23 of June and we are staying for 8 days. We are excited. I can't wait to see everyone at the reunion. Well I don't have any thing else to report except that my children are the most wonderful, smart, beautiful, and kind children I know!!!!! I needed to add that remark to remind myself. Have a great month.

Love, Summer and the rest P.S. We are expecting a baby in Jan.

Tanners Go to the Beach

Hi Everyone. We hope you've enjoyed May. We did for the most part. We passed the halfway mark of our time here in Philly. Hooray and boo-hoo. Time goes too fast! I'm a little sad. Not that sad though. In fact I'm probably more happy than sad that we only have two years left! Anyway, May was good and it's fun to begin the downhill mark of our "Philadelphia Experience". Now, in the month of June, Jeremy gets his first patients. He's been so excited for tomorrow to come. I just hope they show up. At the beginning of May we got beach crazy a little too soon and made a premature visit to the beach. It was chilly and windy. We froze! Lyle won for being the bravest. Despite the bitterly cold wind and water he still ran straight for the waves and let them crash against his goosebumpy blue body. We haven't gone back. It's warmed up some and I think we'll try our luck again in a few weekends. Mel got the running bug in me and I ran in a 10k race. The race took place through historic Valley Forge. It was a beautiful experience. My favorite parts were the breathtaking scenery and passing the sweaty and panting men up the steep hills. Hyrum is crawling and sitting up. He's a big smiling ball of butter. I always like my babies better when they don't wake me up at night and I think Hyrum has finally reached that stage. I think everyone likes me better when I don't get woken up at night. This in turn makes everything better. If you want to hear a cute boy, call our house and hope you get the answering machine. Take care and enjoy June. Love, The Tanners

Bryces: What's your credit score?

Another month has flown by already?! (Or was the newsletter just really late last month?) Nick is doing pharmacy rotations now. That means that technically he has less than a year left. There is a good possibility that he'll be doing a six-week rotation in Brazil in October and November.

This month I learned a lesson in proper credit card disposal. American Express issued me a cash rebate card almost two years ago that I could use like a credit card to tap straight into my earned cash rebates. I never did use it so after receiving a notification that American express had changed the process for redeeming cash back bonuses and the card could no longer be used to spend the earned cash rebates, I thought to toss it. It was about a month later when I was cleaning out my wallet that I threw it in the garbage. I didn't think about it again until Nick opened a Mailgram a week later that I had ignored thinking it to be a new way to send a credit card application. Turns out it was a notification that there were some suspicious charges being made on our American Express account. Apparently the cash rebate card had turned into a regular credit card??? I still don't get it and American Express didn't explain the difference either. As long as they deem the purchases fraudulent they'll pick up the bill. Here's the crazy part: the first purchases made on the card were the day after our garbage went out! What a mystery...are there people hiding in the dump sorting through garbage bags with flashlights? So the lesson to be learned: cut up everything! (Even if it is a useless card with a credit logo.) At least now I know that all those credit applications I rip up before I throw out are not destroyed in vain!

Now that Nick has started his pharmacy rotation I'm finding more empty time throughout the day. So Jonathan has been going to the library three times a week. He enjoys picking out a book and a movie. When Estelle is in her room taking a nap he sneaks in and reads her a book. I've been trying to teach him to wait until after she wakes up. He continues to crack us up with his speaking. He has given me the nickname, "Moms." He'll ask, "What ya doin Moms?" He has also become very good at playing with Estelle. The two of them can play for almost an hour when moods permit. He especially likes to tickle her.

Estelle's newest trick is being able to scoot on the floor. She doesn't notice that she's doing it most of the time. If Nick or I put out our arms for her to scoot to us she just stays in the same place and gets frustrated, kicking and flopping around. If we put something interesting in front of her then she'll scoot up to it and start playing with it. She has also become very good at playing with Jonathan. She can keep him busy for almost an hour.

MK KGW SR AC

Dear fam May was a good month. It started out that we went to Tucson for a visit. It was a lot of fun. Nick and Becca taught us about those deli rotisserie chickens that you can buy in the grocery store. Now we really like those and always take those out on picnics.

When we got home from Tucson, the bishop called in Keresa and I and asked me to be the Young Men's president. So I still get to hang out in the priest's quorum, just more meetings.

We got rid of Keresa's car and picked up a 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix. Keresa is glad to have this one. It's got the best feature a person could ask for in this town-- AC.

We planted our garden one weekend in May. We put bell pepper, anaheim peppers, crookneck squash, spaghetti squash, and cantaloupe in the ground. Hopefully they survive this brutal heatwave long enough to produce some fruit.

Tillin'

We took a trip to Logandale to see Leslie and Bronson for their birthdays, and Mom treated us to a rousing game of Bocci ball. Then Chris took us out for a bit of jet ski fun at the reservoir.

MK has enjoyed a nice break from school for most of the month of May. But now is envious as he hears the youngsters say they are in their final days of high school because he is going back to summer session on June 6.

Keresa is all the way set up at home now, so she works for 2 different law offices from the home set up we have while MK works full time for one of those law offices.

For Memorial Day weekend we went to the lake and swam, got some sun, and ate watermelon. It was a very enjoyable day for all, including Sydney, who sat in the playpen under the shade for most of the day. We introduced her to the water and she gave a couple little squaks before she got used to the cool water.

Sydney has learned to roll over, so now we have to watch her a lot more closely. So far the only roll over accident has been rolling off the couch at Keresa's parents' house with one of the kids baby sitting her. The main consequences of that roll accident were both the baby and the baby sitter getting a big scare.

Still looking forward to the reunion.

MK & KGW

Right now were working with a really humble and loving family. They have a daughter that's 14 years old that my companion and his last companion baptized like two or months ago. The other day we taught them the word of wisdom, and all though they agreed with us on every point and told us about how bad and horrible all of those things are for the body, she told us that she drank coffee (not that much, just in the mornings and afternoons and sometimes in the evenings when I get my headaches). We tried to have a really spiritual charla and commit her quit coffee for 24 hours, but over and over she declined our invitation saying that she wanted to quit, but just little by little and that she planned on drinking coffee the next day.

So the next we came prepared with a 5 x 7 picture of Christ, a jar of instant hot chocolate mix, and a "spiritual bodyslam." We talked to her about how much she loved her daughter and wanted to protect her. And thus, she puts certain rules for her daughter like don't walk alone out in the streets after 10 PM and the like. But she puts these rules because she loves her daughter and doesn't want anything bad to happen to her. Then we took out the picture of Christ and testified that in the same way, Christ loved her as a daughter of God. And in the like, he had given her commandments to help protect her and have her receive more blessings. And like she would feel if something happened to her daughter because of disobedience to the rules, Christ feels horrible when we are unwilling to obey him and do ourselves harm by putting dangerous substances into our body like coffee. Then we taped up the picture of Christ above her stove (where she makes her coffee) and committed her to quit drinking coffee for 24 hours (and gave her the hot chocolate to have something to drink instead of coffee!) And she did!

When we returned to congratulate her and recommit her for 24 hours more, she said, "Ay, Winni, yesterday 24 hours and today 24 hours and the next 24 hours and the next day after that! Also you've put Christ in my kitchen and I get scared to do anything bad!"

But on the next day she told us that she had drank coffee. We gave her a picture cut out of an old Ensign of Christ in a boat with his apostles calming the sea. We read her the scriptural account and asked her, "By his word, Christ calmed the wind and the sea. Who do you think is more powerful, Christ, or Coffee?" Certainly Christ. Then we had a touching conversation about our reason here as missionaries and that we were here trying to help her change her life because we know that the things we teach are true and also because we love her and know that her and her family can be happier in the gospel. After that, she promised us that she wanted to quit coffee and she would try. I didn't feel that committing her to 24 more hours was appropriate at this time.

However, at the end of the charla, I pulled aside her daughter and told her to hide her mom's coffee maker. So for three days now, with the help of her Savior and her daughter, she's been coffee free!