MESSAGE FROM MOM AND DAD

Sometimes life flies by in such a flurry that we hardly realize it until we slow down, look back and think, "Wow!" I can't believe we're half way through March already with only a quarter of school left to go. Maybe that last yearbook deadline finally slowed me down enough to relax. I can't believe what a difference it makes to have that out of the way. The entire yearbook class can't wait to get the finished product back, yet at the same time we're dreading it in case the book doesn't measure up to our expectations. What seemed like such good ideas at the time may turn out to be a huge fiasco. We'll see...

Matt's play came and went, and he certainly proved himself an accomplished thespian. What a thrill to see our baby on stage controlling the action with the other actors all looking up to him for leadership and direction. Having Martha and Jeremy come down for the occasion added to the fun and excitement. It's hard to believe that was way back in January.

Then in February I rushed out to spend a long weekend in Iowa with Melanie. They welcomed me with freshly fallen snow and a break in the cold weather-the temperature was in the teens, up from the sub-zeros of the week before. I had fun playing with the kids in their own home and letting them show me all their special treasures. I watched Kambri at her gymnastics class and visited her school class with special birthday cupcakes. Melanie says she just loves it whenever she can steal McKay's birthday away from him :) Michael took it easy as he recovered from his tonsilectomy, but we still played hide-and-seek and watched his favorite old Star Wars movies-they're my favorites too! McKayla was quite the independent young lady whenever she could get me to herself to read, play Barbies and color. I hardly did any work, even though I went to take care of Melanie, and I really had a good time.

Now I'm looking forward to spring break when I get to visit Martha and her new baby. This will be another first, as I've never seen her apartment either. I can't wait to go see where she lives and hangs out and all her special decorating in the apartment. I guess I'll have to wait for Becca to have another baby before I visit her, and that won't be for another eight or nine months at least.

Chris and Summer are soon moving into their new home in our ward. I'm excited that they will be so close, and finally in more comfortable accomodations. It will be so much easier for me to visit and help out when they have their new baby, but that won't be for another ten or eleven months at least.

We finally had the chance to go see Les Miserables, and I took all three of my boys. Although it was a high school production, the Las Vegas Academy did a truly professional job and we thoroughly enjoyed every minute. On one side of me, Ken wished he could understand the songs better, and on the other side McKay and Matt sang right along. I talked a few of my students into going, and they all impressed me by concluding that they prefer the songs in French. What a sweet bunch of kids!

Dad's busy with Circleville, replacing water heaters in our house, and fixing all the crises at school. It seems like everybody needs him for something. McKay is scouting around for work while he waits for the next UNLV semester to start. And Matt has been answering friendly phone calls from U of A professors who like to chat with him.

It's wonderful to reflect on the peaceful productive lives all our children enjoy. What more could parents ask???

MIRACLE MELANIE

We have much news to tell. But I think everyone knows all our news already, so I am not sure what to print. I am so thankful that February is the shortest month in the year. It definitely wasn't an easy month for us! I started the month out with a familiar sort of flu... I have had this three times before and I knew exactly what it meant... but it took quite a bit of convincing before Andy stopped staying "You'll start tomorrow, it's just the flu" So it looks like Number Four will be here in September. Which leads into our next bit of news... She/he can sleep in our 7-foot grand piano Andrew bought on a whim!!! We are so excited about each new addition to our family. But suddenly my little student apartment feels so much littler!

Michael endured a tonsillectomy and adenoid removal. While he was recovering I went to the store early in the morning to buy him more Tylenol, and an armored truck ran over my right foot. That put me out a few weeks. Michael and I just sat on the couch wondering what we would do now. With Andy and Kambri busy in school, McKayla took care of us. She only knew how to fix us fruit snacks or bread and butter which was fine; I was living on a diet of crackers and dry toast anyway. Lucky for us though, just in the nick of time Grandma flew to IA to take care of things! She sure made recovery easier and even enjoyable.

Birthdays came and went: for Kambri 7, and McKayla 3. We fit in crazy parties. McKayla had a Barbie cake and four 2-year-olds come over. Kambri had a cake complete with grass, flowers, and grazing horses. She had 9 very wild guests come over for pizza and Spy Kids 2. Andy and I wished we had Prozac for that event.

Now that March is here things are almost normal (if they ever were anyway) Michael is back to school after a double ear infection and cough. McKayla is watching Raffi and "not touching the 'puter" Kambri is excelling in school, reading at a second-grade level and writing the most creative stories. She told us that math is her favorite. I bit my tongue and didn't share my feelings for math with her. We have enjoyed a couple of snow days where we all stay home. (Except Andy, dental school is never cancelled) Andy is in a new rotation prosedontics, endodontics, and periodontics. He thinks he is a dentist and so do his patients. Actually speaking from personal experience, he is a very gentle dentist.

I am back to cycling at six am. I teach three times a week. Today was my first day back running since my accident. It felt good. My new goal is to make it through the year without hurting my right foot again. Unfortunately Andy reminded me that I don't have much control over my luck.

We can't wait for spring to come, but I am not crossing my fingers... It snowed Monday, Tuesday and Thursday this week.

Thanks everyone for your support and phone calls last month it really helped me, which helped everyone else in my house!

Love Melanie

BONE FIDE BECCA

The past months have been, as usual, hectic but fun. Nick is well into the school semester and is still working part time as a pharmacy intern. When taking time off from studying, he spends most of his time working in the yard. He planted six new daisy plants for me at the end of our lawn. Jonathan now has three teeth, one top and two bottoms. His newest discovery is grinding those few teeth. Luckily he only remembers about grinding them when he is eating.

Lately, Jonathan has been a very funny boy. He laughs at everything and as far as I can tell sometimes at nothing. I guess Jonathan had been becoming quite sick. He was often fussy and wanted to be held all the time. I thought this was his reaction to losing his mom to student teaching. He seemed to be coming down with a cold or at least was getting more symptoms to the cold he'd already had since Christmas, I wasn't sure which. Finally when he got a fever (and our insurance went through) I took him to the doctor. I told the doctor all his symptoms and he looked at me and said, "so basically he has every symptom in the book." I guess that was true, I hadn't thought it to that extreme. Turns out Jonathan had an ear infection in each ear. The doctor said the infections were a five on a scale one to six which seemed to lead the doctor to wonder how long Jonathan had had the infections. Supposedly the infections had eventually caused all of his symptoms. Now after a week of taking his prescriptions, Jonathan has turned into this funny, giggly boy, which makes me wonder how long he had had the infections??!

I am entering my eighth week of student teaching which leaves eight more weeks to finish. Although it is the most tiring thing I've every done, I love teaching the kids. Their comments are so unpredictable I spend much of my teaching trying not to laugh. The school where I teach has children from low-income families with lots of troubles. It breaks my heart to hear what some of these kids have at home.

Since I've been here, there have been numerous acts of vandalism at the school. Pretty regularly I come to school and see the glass people replacing windows. Last week the vandalism peaked when after throwing a rock through a window a burning object was thrown into the building. Luckily the burning object landed in a sink on top of a wet rag! One of the janitors was still in the building (it was about 8:00 pm), heard the glass break, and ran outside to see what was going on. He saw the kids and chased them over a mile before he caught them. The next night around 2:00 am there was a drive by shooting. Three bullets went into the school through windows and into the cafeteria wall. Despite the closeness of the two violent crimes the Tucson Police Department suspects they are not related. As for me, I just count my weeks down until I'm done.

Overall the Bryce's are well and look forward to the breaks from school coming in the spring! Congratulations to Matt on what I hear was an outstandingly awesome school play. When do we get to see pictures ???

MAGNANIMOUS MATT

After months of busy, busy, busy, I'm currently in a bit of a lull. I find myself having time to do odd things such as homework, church activities, reading (wow, it's been a while on that one), and even some occasional Nintendo. Mr. Dalley has started his spring play: the hilarious melodrama, Deadwood Dick. I landed the very comfortable role of "Cowboy #3." So, far my only line is, "Look! The stage from Cheyenne!" It's looking like it'll be a great time for me!

My last major production was an absolute miracle. That's the only way to describe it. A cast of fifty, an orchestra of 40, and a tech crew of 30 came together to perform a phenomenal show (much to the surprise of anyone who attended a rehearsal the week before). But hey, no sweat, no character built right? After an emotional closing night Thursday, the mass of excited students went to the largest and bestest cast party I've ever attended at Sugar's. Even Mr. Dalley made an appearance. They stayed open late to cater us with chicken wings, chips and salsa, potato wedges, burritos, and numerous other goodies that were indeed good.

Two weeks ago, I had the privilege to travel to Reno and stand in front of the largest, loudest, and most awesome pep band in the state of Nevada as we played our basketball team on to a state championship. Again, it was a very emotional time as I did my final conducting of this most talented group of pirates.

Ya know, I'm beginning to see a trend that you can all probably relate too. I hate being a senior in high school! Everything I do is my last! I've already past my last homecoming, my last football game, my last basketball game, my last play with Mr. Dalley (with the exception of "the stage from Cheyenne!), and my final moments with the pep band. Last Monday was the last time I'll ever watch my friends on the Drill Team dance. Today I took my last chapter 11 & 12 English grammar test (ok, ok, so not everything I do is THAT emotional). This week is election week (might I add that it is my final election week). As I watch the Juniors do crazy skits and campaign for every last student body vote, I realize that all of my senior peers and I are about to be dethroned so that the whole cycle can repeat itself. I'm sure that when this process happened to all of you, I was a blissful, ignorant, happy-go-lucky boy. Oh to be there again...

And now for something completely different: the other day in Jazz Band, I guess I was a bit hyper and rambunctous cutting joke after joke and jumping over the occasional chair that got in my way, smiling all the while. Then one girl mentioned, "You remind me so much of your little niece, Leslie!" Does that seem surprising to anyone?

Anyway, it's looking like next fall I will be attending the University of Arizona as an Honors Math Major. Right now I'm studying out what I need to do to be a part of the "Pride of Arizona" marching band and possibly the pep band. I only want music to be extra-curricular, but I definately want it.

And that's all I have to say about that.

Love, Matthias

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