Emily Rocks!

Well, Emily's color guard girls from the high school she works for took first place at their competition in Austin last weekend! They won by quite a ways, and she was so proud of them and their hard work (along with HER hard work with them!) She's listed on their web page as "staff" and that's fun for her too. She just got offered an assistant manager position at Domino's last night, and she's in the process of buying her first car, a red volkswagen bug. Things are going pretty good for her right now. She's floating on her own cloud. Rock on, Emily, rock on!

Just thought I'd let everyone know that we really are fine. I've had a bunch of questions wondering if we're okay and we are. It's been a little bit of a trial, but we're coming through it just fine. We appreciate everyone's concern and prayers.
We're just having a normal Sunday morning before church; we just can't get into the habit of going at 1:00 in the afternoon. That's nap time for me! Hopefully I can make it through without falling asleep on the couch in the foyer.
Alex has been asked to perform with the Crossmen this summer...they are a world-class drum and bugle corps that tours the country all summer performing in different places. It costs a few thousand dollars to join, so I don't know if it's feasible or not, but it's something he'd really like to do. Usually they audition, but he was asked to join so that's an honor all by itself.
Well, I'd better start getting ready for church so I'll check back in later. Have a great day!

Getting Better

Things are going a little better now with time to process what happened. The kids are getting through this better than I hoped. Anthony's funeral is tonight so we will be attending that. I'm looking forward to the chance to meet his mom. I wrote her a letter and tried to express the fact that she will see him again. This has been a growing experience for our family and helped us discuss gospel priciples with each other. The community has really come together and is banding together although everyone is mourning. The boys say school has been eerily quiet (interspersed with crying) all week. Hopefully we will all grow stronger together.
Adam auditioned for an entertainment role at Six Flags and got a callback yesterday. They're acting like he has it, so hopefully he does. He'll be singing and dancing in the pavillion where they have their restaurants for the guests, so it should be something he'll really enjoy. Of course, that commits him for the summer, so it looks like the mission papers aren't going in yet.
Emily is still working hard with her color guard girls at the high school. They have a competition this weekend in Austin so it'll be good to see if all this work is paying off!
The rest of us are plugging along; trying to work hard and stay busy. We feel really blessed to have the gospel in our lives and are thankful for Christ's sacrifice for us. We love you all!

We're So Sad

Last night about midnight Adam and Emily both got texts from friends at Domino's that said "Anthony's dead". We were so shocked to find out that there had been a terrible accident just down the road (we could hear the sirens for a long time) and that their friend Anthony and the friend he had been driving with had been going too fast and rolled their car over several times, throwing the driver from the car and crushing Anthony inside it. Anthony had a twin brother named Nick, and Adam left our house immediately to go check on Nick and stay with him until his parents got home from the hospital. We were up most of the night with all the kids, since Alex and Evan knew him from school, talking about what happened and what will happen with him now. Even Adam asked, "what is happening right now with Anthony in heaven?" and I told him that Jesus is holding him. Adam said "I sure hope so." It is still so new and shocking; I couldn't go to work today and we all just stayed home together and it was very comforting to be here with just us. Having a 16 and 17 year old die so senselessly and so violently is very upsetting to the mom of teenagers, and I am so glad we have our testimonies and our faith to lean on. Please keep our family and the boys' families in your prayers. Thank you.

Let's Catch Up!

Well, it certainly has been a while! Let's see, Emily finally came home and we've been so happy to have her back. She had a terrific time in Utah and is trying to get back into the swing of things. We're all pretty much the same as we've ever been. My parents came for a quick visit at Thanksgiving and we were so happy to see them. Then December slipped quickly away for us amid band concerts and wedding receptions and jobs and school. We definitely looked forward to a break at Christmas time! When Christmas finally got here, the main present for the kids didn't get here! And has yet to get here!! That would be the Xbox 360 that we ordered in NOVEMBER...the Rock Band stuff got here and Emily's laptop got here, but not the game system, so we haven't even been able to play! Hopefully it will be here in the next couple of days.
Tom and I both took off the week after Christmas and enjoyed staying home and hanging out with the kids. We played a lot of games and watched a lot of movies together. Fun was had by all! Now we've got school starting back up tomorrow and work for Tom; I'm still off until Wednesday. Adam and Emily are still working at Domino's and Emily is still working at the high school with their color guard. She loves it. She is looking at starting school herself either in the next week or so, or maybe waiting until spring. She is looking at going local and then transferring to the University of Oklahoma or BYU; I think she prefers OU. Either way I don't want to let her go! She is excited though, and it's fun to see her make her plans.
Well, this was just a catch-up; hopefully I will do better to stay on top of this. Our love to you all!

Nothing New!

Well, Emily's been gone to Utah now for two weeks and we miss her tons! She is having a great time, playing in the snow, visiting her friends, shopping and travelling. She is going to spend a few days at Thanksgiving with Tom's parents so they'll get to spend some time with her. She will be home Dec. 4th and that can't come soon enough for me. I don't know what I'll do when she goes off to college.
We are so waiting for the weather to change down here. It was 85 degrees today! Where's our winter weather?? Last year it was freezing on Thanksgiving day for the ward Fun Run and Turkey Bowl, so maybe there's still hope for some cooler days ahead.
There's not a whole lot of new stuff going on right now. The boys are done with marching season and on to Jazz Band and Regions if they make it. They don't really want to but it's required so it'll be interesting to see how hard they try! It's nice to have them home in the evenings and not at practice til 8:00.
We're all just moving along with our everyday lives, just like you all are. We think of all of you often and send our love.

Happy 18th Birthday, Emily!!

Happy 18th, Emily! I can't believe the tiny little babe I used to cradle in my arms is an 18 year old woman now. And quite a beautiful one at that. Her birthday was yesterday, and we had a couple of her closest friends over to have cake and ice cream with us after dinner. We had such a good time that the girls were laughing until they cried. It was too much fun!
Emily and I are going to Time Out for Women this weekend; just the two of us. We are going to spend the night on the Riverwalk after the Friday night session and walk over early Saturday morning for that day's events. We are very excited to get to spend some time together before she leaves for Utah next week. No boys allowed!
Alex is healing nicely after his "severely sprained" ankle from last week; he even went to school today with no crutches. He's been hopping and hobbling around the house since someone jumped on his foot (accidentally) on a trampoline after a dance last Saturday night. It was humongously swollen and gross and purple for a good week afterwards but looks much better now. The doctor thought he might have broken the foot or the ankle; it was so swollen that we couldn't tell if it was the foot or ankle, but the x-rays were negative, thankfully.
Adam is looking at working at the UPS store in the time he's not working at Domilno's so he can save money faster for his mission. I personally just think he should go and let us worry about paying for it, but he's trying to help. He is a good boy...or man, I guess! Oh, and anyone wishing to donate to the "send Adam on his mission" fund is welcome to contact me! Hee hee!
Evan is doing great and just plugging along. He's doing a great job on the drumline and really enjoys it. He's trying not to get a big head since the drumline has a reputation as being the most prideful members of the band, but I think it's grown a little!
We send our love to all our friends and family and hope to see you guys soon! Great day to all!