Thanks for the update on Amy....always appreciated....

Mom

Hey All, I thought I would post what my sis is up to since most of you (or all) know her. I'm pasting an email I got from her today... they are in transition while waiting for their house in Olympia to be finished. Buffy (I know she's not a Stinch but close to it!)
Hello!
Just wanted to update you on the house. We are still about a month out (hoping for end of May) but all is well. Our apartment is smaller than what we are used to but it definitely has it's advantages. And for the moms I'm writing to, this is going to be a bit hard to believe, but I've actually survived the entire month without a T.V. in our apartment thanks to the courage of someone else I know who has done it. There were a couple reasons why, one of which was the brain drain on the boys and the other more tangible reason was that I didn't have anywhere to put the T.V. where Bradley wouldn't be able to find a way to break something (a bit too curious). At times I could really use some vegging out time, but over all I think it's a good break. Of course we will have it in the new house but on a more limited basis than before.
We are so glad to be in Olympia, finally! It only took half a year With one car it is so nice to be close to Evan's work again. The boys and I are finding that there is much to do in Olympia. We are just a few miles from the new house so I find all kinds of excuses to drive past it almost daily. As of Wed. they were painting the inside. I can't wait to see the exterior color go on because I've forgotten what color I chose! HA! I had the boys with me and it was kind of a fast eeny meeny minny mo.
I just finished taking a couple classes that are required for my daycare licensing. One of which was a CPR/first aid class which was taught by a paramedic that happens to have a stand up comedy troop on the side. He had us laughing about all sorts of things that we probably wouldn't normally be laughing at. Anyhow, if you need CPR or the heimlich I'm your girl.
That's all I have time to write. Hope all is well! Amy~

Forgive me if the bruise shot is too disgusting. Pete got his in (sorry man). I felt it was too cool a bruise to pass up. It doesn't feel so cool. You see my leg was good enough to play football on Thursday, until a shoulder or knee met my hip in a mass collision. So I am hobbling again. But as you can see, I am fine. Sadie and I had a blast at the Braves game last night. Mark Mulder and Tim Hudson (both A's pitcher from last year and good friends) faced each other in Atlanta. We only had to get one seat since Sadie is only 2 so I got a pretty nice one. Turner field has the largest HD television in the world, it is like 150 feet diagonal, and Sadie got about 20 seconds of dancing on screen during the 7th inning stretch. She thought that was the bomb, so did I.

Love you all.

Mike

Left hip - nice bruise, but heart shaped

Jane and Sadie playing with bubbles in the streets of Savannah

Family picture in Savannah by the house of "Midnight" fame

Rock Climber Sadie

Sadie the Brave Fan

Mulder pitching to Huddy

Tom should appreciate this

Daddy Daughter Night in Atlanta

So I'm posting since I was threatened to but all I have to say is.... boy am I a slave to school! I just got back from a 6 hour round trip down to CSU Long Beach for a photocopy of a journal article that I was desperate to get for a research assignment. Did I mention 6 hours? My class was randomly assigned topics to research and find good journal articles and present it to the class. Somehow my partner and I got a horrible topic that has very little research with regards to PT. ..UGG!!!! Since the presentation is Monday, there was no time left and not even the USC library had it.
The up side is that I only have one more year!!! By the way, happy birthday Tracy. I hope you have a good night out.
Brent and I are going to Downtown Disney tomorrow night to meet up with my cousin and her new boyfriend who live in San Diego. I can't wait to meet this guy cuz apparently he reminds her of Brent and my aunt and cousin have both said they hope she ends up with a nice guy like Brent... hehe!
Happy Friday to all,
Buffy

Well, Peter's nose is obviously crooked and we are thinking about getting it put back in to place probably when we get back from Mississippi at the end of June. He definitly enjoys the Loritab that they gave him. We just got back from Costa Azul...a new place that is exactly like Cafe Rio but a couple bucks cheaper. The place is great and we go there all the time. We are going to definitly miss it the next 2 months.

Today has been good. We attended the UVSC graduation this morning where one of the Brazilian girls from our team graduated. It was cool...Steve Young spoke and he was very good. We went home and Peter had to go up to campus to take to his graduate advisor about the research he is doing. I rode up to the office with him and ran back home. I figured it would be a change of scenary from the places I've been going so far. My visiting teacher had to clean her apartment this afternoon so I offered to take care of her 5 month old for the hour that she had to clean. It was fun and she fell asleep about 30 minutes before her mom came to pick her up. Very cute little girl. Makes me anxious for the day it will be my own. Anyways.... We Love you all and will be sure to post as often as we can.

Love, Anne

It isn't interrogation, it isn't Big Brother, it is simply encouragement and interesting to see how many times people actually look at the blog.
All of y'all just settle down....
Dave

Hayden loved the picture of the banana phone! Thanks!! We were looking at family pictures again last night and he can always point out and say Papa and Grandma Barb but he gets so confused with all his uncles. He frequently just thinks they are all “daddy!” But at least he finally figured out to say “that’s me” when he sees a picture of himself instead of saying “it’s Hayden.” Thanks for all the birthday wishes, my day is going pretty great so far. Tom made me breakfast in bed which was really sweet of him and saved my morning since I woke up so sick. Now the kids are napping and tonight Tom and I are going out so it should make for a great birthday! Thanks for the gift Adina and Dave, I’m saving it to open tonight at the birthday celebration!
Well Dave, I’m really trying to follow the guidelines of blogging more often so you are all now stuck listening to me babble everyday! Brooke thanks for the offer, just reading about the suppositories made me start laughing and feeling better!
Other crazy news from our house: Tom bought a salt water fish tank. He has so thoroughly enjoyed our freshwater tank that he is ready to graduate. We bought the tank off some 4th years that are moving and it’s a pretty nice set up. We of course will have to get some Nemo and Dori fish for Hayden, he gets so excited when he sees them at the pet store. The Debaltzo’s gave us their old fish tank set up so our current freshwater fish will be moving into that tank which is now located in our bedroom. The sound of the water is very soothing; I think we’ll enjoy going to sleep to it… unless we can’t sleep because we’re constantly running out to the bathroom because of the water sound!
Well it’s my birthday so I’m going to skip cleaning the house and I’m going to take a nap! Enjoy your weekends everyone!
Tracey

Papa likes bananaphones too!!!!

Remember that Dad knows very few Primary songs. His family joined the church when he was 12 so he entirely missed that aspect of LDS childhood. He also has never taught Primary! Maybe we should suggest some remedial work to the Bishop!

I was glad to see that the count just shows the hits...which for me is probably at least 6-8 times a day...with only a blog written every week maybe!!! So don't feel bad, Brooke. However, it was great hearing from you....any of you that take the time to blog. It is one of the high points of my days to hear the news of all.

Happy Birthday, Tracey. There is a message for you on Tom's e-mail...and a gift on the way! Also, I am posting a picture for Dad....bananaphone for Hayden.

Love,

Mom

Dave is watching, Dave will catch you if you don't blog. Dave will separate you from your family and interrogate you until you fess up to the intentional Blogging Ommission. Consider yourselves warned. He will count your blogs and the number of hits and if the numbers do not match, Woe unto you all. Maybe we don't want him back in the states, he can only threaten from Japan.

Now that I've warned you all I also want to wish Tracey Happy Birthday from the Michael Stinchfield family. Funny that when I was so sick with Ellyn (flu and morning sickness) they sent me home with suppositories. Nausea won out. I just couldn't do it. They are, however, available for mailing. Just post it in the blog that you want the suppositories and I will send them right out. I know the idea behind it is so you don't throw it up but I think Dr.'s just have a sick sense of humor. Enough of my musings. See this is what you get when Dave makes you blog.
Brooke

In German it means the same...
Come on dad, this was one of the catchiest tunes in primary.
And for those of you saying, "I didn't know it either, Dave"....Come on to you too!
It's a classic, one of those songs where you try to add all these foreign words, so that it just sounds like a "mush" of words when the kids sing it.
Dave

1. Tracy..........HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. I don't know the primary song they're referring to so I won't attempt to add words here. Have a great day...and...take it easy.

2. Valentine? About the only thing I remember about Valentine is the boys playing in the city garbage dump and celebrating their find...the carcass of a dead bovine.

3. 57 days...................Luckyyyyyy............:)

4. Kim is visiting and she looks like she is very excited about her upcoming event...close.

5. When the Titantic was sailing over here from Ireland, it was little known that the ship was carrying 500 cases of mayonaise from a famous exporter in France. It wasn't well known at that time, but these cases were headed for the political regime in Mexico. Well, you know what happened, "lost at sea". In memory of that tragic event, the Mexican government, at the time, chose to remember this terrible loss as, "Cinco de Mayo". And that is the end of the story.

6. Bad joke.

7. Marnie is becoming a beach cruiser. We all are eagerly awaiting the blog photo of her new wheels. Come on, Marnie...let us see the Schwinn.

8. We are counting down the days when we will see all of you again, if even, for just a short time.

9. The fact that we spent only 4 years with all 7 of you at one time in the home is disturbing to me. All of a life time and you get to spend just 4 years raising your group as one family in one place..............hmmm.....makes you realize how very important quality time with your children is. I know this is why parents long so much for visiting with their grown children as the years pass along. We really do miss and love you all. And, we love the heaven-sent grandchildren. They add so much to our lives.

10. Mom and I are really pushing to get back into our post Vinson deployment-shape. She has posted our photo from that period in our lives and we realize that it is possible to get out of this veg state and back into flexible activity. My goal is to break away from this "no running" edict and do an occasional 5 k.

11. Keep 2007 open for the cruise trip for the adult members of our family. We are making the plans and desire that you try to come up with a unaminous available time in that year. Obviously when is important depending on where we go. Weather makes a Big difference and you know how much I love temps <70 degrees, but I am willing to take on all temperatures if it means we can do this together.

End of my meanderings...love, Dad

FYI, I added a counter to the blog, so if you scroll down to the bottom, you will see how many of you look at it without blogging....
Things going well here. Hot and humid, dad would've hated his visit if he had been here this week. Dad, we know well of your allergy to heat. Nothing like sleeping in subzero Valentine, Nebraska with the windows open and a breeze coming through the house. Ok, that is a little extreme, but I felt like that sometimes.... You know what I do remember about Valentine, is how you would put the radio on in the morning to wake us up (the intercom thingy) and there would be a bank commercial on every morning that would end by saying "this bank is FDIC insured". Don't know why, but that has stuck in my mind ever since then. It is probably just a David memory, something that nobody else picked up on, but my strange mind picked is out and seared it into my memory pod.
Counting down the days, 57 left, until we head back. Really looking forward to it. Unfortunately you will likely hear us say that many times before it actually happens. It is just kind of a big change/step in our lives right now.
It is Friday night, tomorrow we have baseball games and we are taking one last trip to Noritake to complete our china settings. Very beautiful, and really a bargain, probably 20% of the cost that you would buy them for in the states. Can't pass that one up.
Everybody take care, love to hear stories about everyone, including the grandkids. If we can't be close, we can at least form a picture of their personalities through your stories, and that is fun. We love you all and look forward to seeing everyone in August.
Dave

Well I thought I would continue with the primary song. Well Tracey, Happy Birthday and we hope you have a good one. We love you!

Love, Anne and Peter

Tracey - Happy Birthday! Wanted to be sure to wish you a great day, before the weekend arrives and all of our time disappears! We sure hope you have fun and that you don't feel too sick - at least keep your birthday cake down!
Love you!
Dave, Adina, Isaac, Taylor, Parker & Morgan

The other day Hayden was on our bed watching a movie and I went to sit down by him. He took my face in his hands and looked me in the eye and said “I love you mommy!” Moments later while I was still sitting there feeling so loved and happy he pushed me off the bed! I just kept laughing because it is exactly the kind of thing Tom would do!!! I was gone to Super Saturday last week so Tom and Hayden went out for the day. They went to Toys R Us and got a nerf dart gun. Tom pointed it at Hayden and said “Say your prayers Hayden!” so now Hayden runs around pointing it at things and saying “Say you prayers!”
Well, the nausea has hit full force this week, much worse than when I was pregnant with Hayden. It starts in the morning and lasts all which is lousy but at least I’m not throwing up. I know being sick is a good sign so I’m grateful for it. I think Hayden is grateful for it too because I was feeling particularly lousy this morning so I didn’t feel like making him breakfast so he ate goldfish crackers and m & m’s, he was in heaven! I can’t wait to see what he gets for lunch!
Tracey

Well another trip to the fantastic ER (actually we were in and out in 1 hour...fastest ever!). Peter was at his weekly elder's quorum basketball playing at the church when I received a call at home saying that Peter had broken his nose and that I needed to come ASAP. So I ran over and he was in the bathroom covered in blood. We headed over to the ER where we sat for about 45 minutes in the waiting room then talked to a doctor who said without xrays that it was obviously broken. We are going into BYU health center tomorrow to get xrays because we only have to pay 10 bucks for xrays there. Other than that things are going well. We are almost completely packed for our trip out to Mississippi. We found someone to sublet our apartment for the 7-8 weeks while we are gone. We are leaving all of our furniture and they will be using it all. Finals and School are over for now. It is a great feeling to have things done and over with. Well not much else to say, we love you all and can't wait to see you all this summer.

Love, Anne

Well this is the result of Church Basketball...elbow to the nose, trip to the ER. 

Hey everyone! Thought I would write in since I haven't in a while and I keep waiting for someone else to write in. Sorry I don't have any cute children stories! Not quite there yet!

Things are going well here in San Diego. I just have two weeks of classes left before I am done. I don't think it will really sink in until next fall when I don't go back to school. It is coming up quick. Graduation is still May 21st! I can make it.

I am still searching for jobs and apartments. I am getting more progress this week on the job front, sending in resumes and such. Pray for me!

I ordered my new beach cruiser on Tuesday so I should be getting it this weekend! Woohoo! I will post a picture of it when I get it. I am pretty excited. My friend Kelly got a beach cruiser last week and on Saturday me and Kelly rode from her house to the ferry on Coronado then over to San Diego and we rode around downtown then back on the ferry to Coronado. It was really fun. Purely San Diego fun! It was great!

That is all I can think of right now! I hope you are all well. I love you all!

Marnie

Yeah Dave, It was me (bigger, stronger joke..haha) Hope you had a great birthday.
We had Adam's (Brooke's brother) family here last week through the weekend. We went to our favorite place to take people when they visit: Savannah. We devoured shrimp, mussels and crab over the fire, listening to Jimmy Buffet at the Crab Shack. It is a fun place out on the island where you eat outdoors. It was a bit chilly and windy, but otherwise very pleasant. You will be shocked to learn that the next morning, Jane "Seafood" Stinchfield had Krispy Kreme Donuts, fresh Georgia Strawberries, and, yes, 1/2 pound of leftover peel-and-eat boiled shrimp. Fun trip, I will get pictures up as soon as we can find the USB cable for the camera. You should of seen Sadie climb this rock climbing wall at the playground. She negotiated it like a pro. With her character, I can see her as the rock climbing type. She will be a tough woman... with curly blonde hair. A funny story: When we were at the Crab Shack, Sadie spilled her water, for which I scorned her. So when she proceeded to spill her chowder some time later, she immediatley blamed it on her cousin by pointing her finger at her little 2 year old cousin, "she did it"
I am about four weeks away from the mid-point of the course. That is when the homework load is supposed to lighten up a lot. We find out where we are going May 10th. Two items of good news: I verified that the request for the unit I want to go to at Lewis got Dep. Army approval, now just waiting on Infantry branch to work it out. Also, it looks like that unit won't deploy to Iraq this year.
Brooke and I read a book on the trip that really is compelling (I read aloud while she drives). It is called Freakonomics by Levitt. Brent, he is a quirky economist, if that picques your interest. Somewhat controversial, but it really makes you pause to think about how things work in this crazy world. Don't miss it. The economist is purely objective with his findings, the journalist that helped him write it, a little less so. Is drug dealing really profitable? Do Sumo wrestlers cheat? Do teachers cheat? Did abortion lower the crime rate? Should you have a gun in your home or a swimming pool? You will finish it in a day and at least be more informed. Let me know if anyone wants to borrow it.
Great recent XBOX games I have through Gamefly- Psychonauts and Jade Empire. I bet Dave's kids would love the latter if they liked Gladius. The first one is pretty quirky. Probably just me would like it, maybe Tom.
My leg is getting better. I ran 3 miles Friday which is great but it took until today for the pain to subside... so that is bad. But, before I couldn't run 3 steps up the street, so...progress. I am loving swimming and biking, both of which I will be doing when I am 80.
Brooke got her MRI today. She has a small reherniation of the disk in her back (L5-S1) and a load of scar tissue pinching the nerve. We are meeting with the surgeon again. She will probably get cortizone to affect the scar tisuue. Who knows what else. She has picked up swimming too.
Jane is doing great in school-a true model child.
Ellyn still refuses to walk. She just likes being a baby and loves to be held. I can't complain.
Funny Sadie story. Today Sadie was saying stupid, stupid, stupid repetitively. Brooke asked her to stop several times before threatening her with a Time Out. So she starts out "stu...Brooke gives her the evil eye..."stuper-duper Mommy, STUPER-DUPER!!"

Mike

I just love reading about the day to day antics of the kids....thank you for filling us in on it. I can just see Taylor's grin and wave on the way back to the dugout. The snow in Cleveland is somewhat unbelievable. We saw it on the news also with the daffodils and tulips peeking out above the snow. It must be fun for Hayden to have someone older to play with since he is 2 going on 5!!! We are so looking forward to getting all the kids together and having them get to know their cousins better.

Kim is home for semester break. We are busy getting wedding plans set up....it looks like it is all falling into place. Kim and Treven are going down to Brian's on Saturday to have him take some pictures for their invitations. We're heading out in a few minutes to the rental place and Michael's to see what is available.

They will be starting to build the deck on May 31 about the time the hot tub comes in. It should be done in a week or so. Then we need to fill around it with plants. Dad and I went to the Clark County garden show in the rain on Saturday and got some ideas. Last night, the power flashed off. A few minutes later Treven and Kim went out and called us to tell us that there was an accident on 29th right around the corner. A car had crashed into the utility pole bringing it down. Dad and I walked down there and found out that the occupants of the car had fled into the woods...and our housing development. The police were tracking them down with dogs...not sure whether the car was stolen or they were drunk or what. The way the accident looked I'm surprised that they were not hurt. Anyhow, never did know whether they found them but we did keep our doors locked!

This morning I had an Enrichment Committee Meeting here. I have a new Enrichment Leader who is the old RS President so I couldn't get any better !!!! When Kim gets out of the shower, we'll be going out.

Love you all,

Mom

So sorry to hear that there is family still donning coats and mittens. We never experienced such a late winter during our time there in Cleveland, though we did hear rumors of them. Sure hope it warms up for you...as for us, we are definitely into Spring here. Kids actually ran in the sprinkler today and I am sporting a really nice farmer's tan from all our baseball games.

Dave is officially as old as me for a few months, coming in at a whopping thirty-one! We are showing signs of aging though...Dave had the MRI done on his shoulder and they found no indication of a torn rotator cuff, so he is back playing baseball and working out. He has his PRT this Friday, so we hope he has made a full recovery. He has also started running regularly again - his knee pain didn't improve with rest, so he figures he might as well run if it is going to hurt regardless. He suffers form serious "senior-itis", wanting to get out of here and start working with Dr. Davis. But time is flying, and he will be there in no time. I must say, Dr. Davis is also anxious for him to get there, but I think he wants to take him fishing more than anything. He is a real outdoorsman...boats, fishing, horses, etc.

Kids are all great. Isaac got a 100% on his Science Project -The Effects of Different Drinks on the Color of Human Teeth. He is one of the best hitters on his baseball team, although he is easily discouraged when he doesn't do perfectly. Taylor does his best, but he is the youngest on the team and has a lot of learning to do. Fortunately, he is not easily discouraged. He will strike out for the third time, then flash me a big smile and a thumbs up as he is walking back to the dugout. Parker is a total daydreamer out there, putting his mitt on his head, picking clovers, spinning around in the dirt - but he hits well when he is up and is a riot to watch. Morgan insists she is also playing, though she is not. Parker is on the Blue Jays team and Morgan is convinced she is a member of the elusive Pink Jays - though I have yet to see this team.

Life is busy - time is flying by - we will be out of Japan before we know it. We have a job, a car, a place to set up camp for a while (Thank you Kenn & Barb), and plane tickets. We are stopping in Hawaii for a few days on the trip home to break things up and relax a little before things get really crazy. Every week, I am getting rid boxes of stuff that I don't want to pack out of here and unpack there. It is becoming more and more of a reality...

Anyway - dinner is done and I must feed the troops. Love hearing from all of you...
Adina

Yesterday Hayden was watching Sesame Street and Bert and Ernie were having a phone conversation on a banana. Well, I just walked into the kitchen and found Hayden “talking” on a banana… it made me crack up! (It also made me start to think about how much TV influences these kids! Yikes!!) I mentioned in a previous blogg that it was going to snow this past weekend but I had no idea what we were in store for! By the time we got out of church on Sunday it had snowed over 8 inches and several cars, including ours, were stuck in the snow!!! Tons of trees were broken because they had already bloomed and couldn’t handle the weight of the snow- what a crazy storm! I’m also babysitting for our neighbor today because of the snow. In the building next to ours there is this young guy named Mike who adopted his nephew when his sister passed away. He can’t be much older than Tom and his nephew is 5. Anyway, the little boy’s preschool/daycare declared a snow day and closed today. Obviously Mike still had to go to work so I have been watching the little boy all day. Hayden has loved it; he just follows him around and laughs at everything he does! I can’t wait for Hayden to get together with all his cousins in August!
Tracey

Hope your day has been great!!

Love, Marnie

Happy Birthday Dave! We got you an Odyssey- you just have to make the payments! Enjoy!
Tom, Tracey and Hayden

We love you Dave and hope you have a great birthday!

-Anne and Peter

From your bigger, stronger brother...

Thank you everyone for your words of support and encouragement! I have several random thing to write so I decided to do it in list form, here they are:

1. The other day Hayden woke up from his nap and pointed to the cross stitch hanging over his bed and started saying “Grandma Barb made it!” I thought it was cute he remembered!
2. Yesterday Hayden got an “ouchie” and he used the booboo bunny and when I asked he said it really helped- thanks again Buffy!!
3. Tonight Hayden went to his first big kid birthday party where we just dropped him off so he could go all by himself. When we picked him up he just kept saying “Mr. Incredible’s Party!” and “Happy Birthday Cake!” He seemed to really enjoy it but I don’t know how they handled all those 2-3 year olds!!
4. So have any of you watched the show “Numbers” on Friday nights? We have seen it a few times and quite like it. It’s different, you should check it out.
5. Tom’s current project is fixing up fish tanks. The Debaltzo’s tank got a leak so they gave us the tank and Tom is trying to fix it. Plus, we have an old tank in the basement that leaked so he’s trying to fix that too. It’s a good thing we have a really small house and can’t have more than one fish tank or we might be tempted to keep these new ones. We are really enjoying having fish and find it to be a really fun hobby to do together. Anyway, we’ll be giving the other tanks to friends so they can share in our fish joy! (We hope!)

Well it’s supposed to snow here tomorrow so I’m not too excited about that but we have had some really nice days lately so I really shouldn’t complain. I am sure it will get nice again soon! I hope you all have a great weekend!
Tracey

Tom and Tracey, I am so excited for you. I read the good news yesterday but it wasn't letting me post. I hope everything goes well and you don't get too sick. I will write more later, my brother Adam and his wife Mindi and their two girls are here for a couple of days. We will write again soon. Love, Brooke

P.S. Adina, thank you for the bread facts. They were just as I suspected. I will give you the details of Nature's Own sometime soon.

Hello,
I'm relieved at the fact that I survived another exam packed week and can take a momentary breath before I study for more exams next week. Tracy, I am so happy for you and Tom! I can't wait till the day that I can slip that phrase into a blog or conversation. Adina and Brooke, I was thinking the same thing about both of your daughters looking like you. And this last picture of Jane was the first time I thought that of her. Adina, thanks for the nutrition info. I love anything of that nature. I always get whole wheat but I never knew how white compared.
I am real excited for this Saturday because Brent has it off and I cannot remember the last time that happened. We will finally get to go on a hike at a local trail... fun!
Barb, just so you know, Brent and I could always stay at my mom's and there is another extra guest room with a full size brand new futon (it's comfy) and love seat.
Happy Thursday (uhh, and Friday for those in Japan)!
Buffy

Sorry, just trying to get it written quickly and left out an "n".

Peter

I thought you might enjoy reading this article Ken. I found it on CNN.com
http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/books/04/21/people.janefonda.ap/index.html

Peter

I wanted to do something cutsie to tell you all but Tom wanted to just stick the simple statement it in the middle of a blogg like this to find out who really reads the bloggs and who just skims them. Well, I guess you all passed his test! I know it’s really early to tell you all but we just can't keep a secret and we figure you’re family and it certainly won’t hurt to have the extra love and support should something go wrong. We got this good news not too much after I had posted that blogg about our desires and that we were finally coming to terms with being patient. Needless to say we are so thrilled and just can’t wait. As we already know there must be something really special about people born on December 23rd and that is when I’m due! It just made me laugh when I figured it out. Morgan and Hayden already share their birthday with so many people why not add one more? (Okay let’s be honest, how many people deliver on their due date anyway?) So yes, this makes me only 5 weeks pregnant but it’s too exciting to keep it a secret!!!! The great thing with being due on Hayden’s birthday is that all my maternity clothes are for the right season and if we have a boy those will be for the right season too! Plus, I should be feeling good by the time we come for the wedding in August, not too sick and not too big yet!! Woohoo!!!
Tracey

We are so excited for you guys! This is great! Nice way to sneak it in between a Target story. haha!

I go home tomorrow night thank goodness! I have one final left tomorrow morning and I am done. I got a B on my Biology final which is great because i have a 79.5 in the class right now. AHH! I hate those kind of grades. Anyway, this semester was great! I have great roomies now and all the drama of my downstairs apartment went away! I can't wait to be home though and have a break! My schedule for the summer is going to be soooo hard! ha ha just playing! I am taking Aerobics Monday through Thursday and Advanced volleyball on Tuesday and Thursday... then Women's Health Mon-Thurs and Book of Mormon Mon-Thurs. I am also going to be playing in Intermerals (sp?) for Volleyball because they are having it first block! I am pretty excited to start volleyball again! Hopefully the knee will do fine..... Crossing my fingers... Nothing much is going on. We will be putting together a lot of wedding plans when I get home. So I will be a busy girl over the ten days... I just can't wait to be home!!!! Well sorry for not blogging because I have been really busy with clean checks and finals!

I love you all! And can't wait to see you all in august! Congrats again!

Kim and Treven

Brooke - I think it is ironic that you say Morgan's picture looks like me. That last picture of Jane that you posted looks like you. Usually, I think she looks more like Mike, but I saw that one and thought - "That is Brooke!" Anyway - she really is growing up and looking more and more like a young lady.

As for the bread...here are some basic bread facts for you. Everyone else...if you are not interested in bread facts, I would urge you to stop reading here to avoid boredom!

• Both white and wheat contain virtually the same amount of calories, fat, sodium, protein, and iron. Where they differ is usually in the fiber and calcium content...wheat having more fiber and white having more calcium. If you don't drink a lot of milk, white bread may be the way to go - but most Americans consume far less than the recommended amount of fiber, so it is always a good choice.
• Wheat bread naturally has more Vitamin B6, E, magnesium, folic acid, copper, and zinc. But white bread is usually fortified with these vitamins. Fortification is common and does not alter the nutritional value of the food - although this kind of supplementation may not be as readily absorbed as it is in it's natural state.
• The American Academy of Pediatrics does state that 'whole-wheat bread offers a nutritional advantage over white bread.' Remember that 'wheat' breads that do not say that they are 'whole wheat' are a mixture of enriched white flour and whole wheat flour, and so will likely have less fiber than whole wheat breads. 'Whole wheat' will be listed as the first ingredient if the bread is made from 100% whole wheat.

Nature's own could be adding more preservatives to make the bread softer - your best bet is to read the label. If it doesn't say "Whole wheat flour" as the first ingredient, then it is not whole wheat bread and doesn't have the benefits. I tried to look at Nature's Own website to see exactly what they did to the White-Wheat bread, but that information wasn't available.

Hope this helps...
Adina

Congrats Tom and Tracey!! That was pretty slick!

Adina, that message was not meant for you, it was meant for my dad. Sorry I wouldn't be so rude to you only the man that gave me life!!

Marnie

I was thinking originally that everyone will cram in here....it will be crowded but we can manage, I think...We have the airbeds and couches. I think we also may have another house in our ward where we could house some people but it is across the freeway...closer than the Bennett's but still a drive. I'd still have to ask the sister if it would be okay. She is single and has a large house. I know other people have used it for overflow. Not sure whether that would be preferable or not. Brooke and Mike could stay up at the Bennett's maybe and come down during the day...maybe a few others...not sure of the Bennett's current household population. Anyway, we'd love to have everyone for the week for meals at the minimum!

Mom

Can't believe how you buried your good news in your message!!

Congratulations! When are you due? We are so-o-o-o-o-o excited! I'll have to get moving on my crossstitch!

Barb and Kenn

Tom and Tracey,

Congrats from Anne and Peter! I am sooo jealous but I guess I will have to wait a little longer. I am so excited for you guys and for hayden to have a new sibling. We love you and hope everything goes well!

Love, Anne and Peter

Dave & Adina

Tom and Hayden just got back from a surprise party for Dennis Debaltzo’s 40th Birthday. I’m sure you’ll be able to read about it on their blogg soon. Tom said they had a good time and Hayden fell asleep on the way home so I thought that was great! I would have gone too but I had that baby shower for the girl I visit teach. I had a great time at the shower, it’s so much fun to just sit around and talk with other women for a change! It was a much needed break for me. I spent the weekend at my brother’s house and it was great to see them but it’s always hard to be away from Tom. So between that and all the driving I got pretty worn out. And then of course I had my babysitting job all day yesterday and today, plus then last night I babysat for our neighbors who had their graduation dinner from 6-10:30. They have a two year old and 5 month old. Tom was gone all night at a softball meeting so I had my hands full trying to keep the baby happy and making sure Hayden and their little boy were playing together nicely. Hayden really enjoyed having his friend over and they were to excited to go to sleep so they ended up lying on our bed watching a movie together. I’m pregnant. Today we went to story time and then to Target. When we pulled in to the parking lot at Target Hayden shouted “Hooray Target!” and started clapping! I’m glad he shares my feelings!
Hayden was looking at all the pictures online today of his cousins and practicing saying their names, hopefully he’ll know who everyone is by the time we see you all in August. Like Anne, I have been wondering when other people will be arriving in Vancouver and what the plan is for lodging arrangements and such. We would love to come for the week before the wedding arriving on July 30th and leaving on the 7th because Tom has school the 8th. But we’re flexible and just want to do what works best for everyone. So anyway, please let us know what you all think. Well got to go to bed, talk to you later!

Sorry for the delay - it took some time to upload all those pictures to O-foto! Anyway - I did put together a sampling of the pictures and e-mailed to all the family using O-foto. If you did not get them, then I need a correct e-mail address from you. Enjoy and more later!
Adina

Okay, I'm saying that for two reasons. 1. Morgan looks just like you, she's beautiful. That picture is gorgeous. 2. Nature's Own is a brand of bread here in the states. I've always bought their wheat, no sugar version. Now they have this "white wheat" bread. It is supposed to have all the benefits of wheat but the soft pillowy loveliness of white. Is this possible? I would think that if they are injecting the bread with vits and mins it just might not be as good as the real thing. I would love your expert opinion on this. Love, Brooke

Are we going to be able to see the pictures from Japan ever? I think we need some ofoto action on this one! Thanks!

:)
Marnie

"My name is Moh-gan Cafryn Stinchfield" 

Isaac is taking a photo class at school - if not for the diligence of parents and grandparents, this camera would be sitting somewhere on Miyajima Island.  

Taylor & friends at his 7th birthday party - look at all those cute girls! 

It's a bird...it's a plane...It's INCREDIBOY!  

Just a few words this morning as I have a ton of stuff to get accomplished today. We arrived back from Japan about mid-day yesterday. We went around with a dark cloud over our heads until we crashed at 6 pm. I just returned from Curves this morning...Dad is off to work and we are both feeling more like human beings now. That flight is a killer!!!

We had so much fun with Dave and Adina and kids. They did a great job of showing us their area of Japan. I may say it is comforting though to be back in a world where I can read the signs and people drive on the right side of the road! It really made me realize how important the blog is to their family. The times are so out of whack that the blog is the best way to keep in touch with everyone's news.

Anyway, we love you all,

Mom

Hey Everyone!

Sorry about that outburst yesterday. I was kind of frustrated. I have resolved my problems mostly though. I have decided to look for apartments other than at my friends Kelly's house. After talking to her dad and her and thinking about it, I want that to be my last option. So I started to search again. I looked at a couple of places this weekend but they are all available too soon. I don't have to move until June 1st and I don't want to pay anymore than I have to. One of the places I was looking at is going to let me know if they don't find any one by then but I will continue to look for places where the lease starts in June.

So I am going to pump out some final school work this week. I still have about 3 weeks of school left. Just a couple tests and a couple small papers. Shouldn't be too bad. I am passing all of my classes so that is good. :)

I have jury duty in mid-May so it is a good thing I am not going to NYC with Matt. (I don't think I mentioned that, I was thinking about it. He is going for a business trip) I don't know why I have it again. I had it like 2 and a half years ago and I was on a jury! Aren't they supposed to take you out of the lottery for a few years if you are actually on a jury? Oh well, I think I am going to try to get it switched to El Cajon instead of downtown because then parking will be easier and Matt's sister and her husband work there so I could hang out with them.

I am continuing to look for a job. I need to put more effort into it and I will. I am going to send out some resumes this week and hopefully something will move forward.

So anyway, that is what things look like down here. I hope you are all well. Anne, I think that Matt and I will be coming up sometime around the 1st of August and probably leaving on the 7th or 8th. To be honest we haven't really started thinking about when we will be up there! But we are coming. I can't wait to see you all! I love you all.


--
Marnie

Testing flickr

I will definitly have to say that I am guilty of looking at the blog and being upset there are no new blogs for me to read, and yet I don't post myself. I decided since this is probably one of the only times I will be able to blog this week, I might as well.

2 weeks left and it is all over! School can be such a pain sometimes. I have a project due tomorrow, a paper due wednesday, 2 quizzes to take in the testing center between tuesday and thursday, and an anatomy lab final on saturday. And then Finals will actually begin for me. Peter is done this week with finals and will be researching his bootie off for his thesis paper while I finish up. We are leaving for Mississippi May 1st and Peter will start work on the 3rd. I can't wait for a time of relaxation and actually being able to have a summer for once in my life(at least since college started for me).

Peter has been called as Assisstant Ward Clerk in our ward, and we are still the oh so wonderful Librarians. My visiting teaching partner has asked me to fill in for her next sunday teaching relief society. I am kinda freaked out because I have never taught a class before. I may be calling mom and some of the sister-in-laws for help on it. I probably shouldn't have accepted to teach with all of the busy stuff going on for me but I thought it would be somewhat fun since I have never done it before.

I am over the sickness but I am still going to see a doctor about it. We've gotten a couple names from friends around here and I just need to check them out. Well, I probably should get going, I've got classes still to go to. Our last day of classes isn't until Thursday. We love you all and miss you tons. I've been a little sad lately because I realized how long it has been since we've all ben together. I will be counting down the days until We are up there for Kim's wedding. By the way, when is everyone getting there? I will be heading up on the 29th of July and Peter will be joining us on the 3rd of August because he has a summer class he has to be at. I cannot wait to see you all again.

Love you ALL!
Anne and Peter

Mom sitting and reading on a beautiful Sunday afternoon at Saikai Park 

Figured I should add something since it seems to be moving slow (the blogging I mean). I think the "blog suckers" comment by Martha is totally appropriate here.
Mom and dad left this morning and they are still in the air I am sure, it is about a 24 hour trip. They are probably looking down on Alaska right now. Anyway, we had a really fun time when they were here. Going back to work was really hard because we are preparing for an Inspector General and JCAHO (hospital/healthcare facility) inspection. A big deal, but I have a hard time getting really 'into' it when I am at the 8 week mark from leaving here. My motivation is lacking, yet I have to go to all these meetings. Not too fun, can't wait to be my own boss.
There are a million other pics that dad took but I will let him post them, he always adds some good comments to them.
One of my earliest memories of WaWa. It was at that reunion in California somewhere. I remember being amazed at his 'floatability'. That man could float with 10 kids on top of him. His buoyancy was unmatched. I remember being in that pool with him swimming around. He was that island in the middle of the ocean that saved me time and time again from drowning. Though a simple memory, it is extremely vivid in my mind and I can close my eyes and picture it as if I were there. It is amazing how the mind works.
Looking forward to seeing all of you, and miss you all.
Dave

I wish I could reread everyone's blogs while I was posting because I always forget something I was going to comment on until I publish and then I think "Oh yeah, I was going to ask about that," as I read the blog right below mine. So Buffy your dog story was very scary. More and more I'm thinking there are just some breeds that should be against the law to own in the United States. I don't care if they say they can be trained right or it's infringing on their freedoms blah blah blah. You are infringing on our freedoms when we go out running or walking etc... and worry about some stupid dog attacking. Okay, there's my little tangent. Things are going well here. The weather is absolutely gorgeous. We have been spending as much time as possible outside. Mike had 16 guys over on Friday for a BBQ lunch and then they did their briefings in the backyard. It was alot of fun and they brought me a huge flower arrangement of lilies for letting them use the house. If they do that they can come once a week. My house smells divine. We had our second soccer game yesterday and we tied. We have another one tomorrow night. These kids are so fun to watch. The girls are doing great. Sadie is really into playing with friends all of the sudden. She has become very close with the little girl that shares our house. They were so cute yesterday, Mike bought them both pink drumsticks from the icecream truck and the two little blondies sat side by side on the back hill eating icecream. This was after they had admired each others dresses and underwear (Sadie was wearing Barbie and Brayden was sporting Elmo). Jane is still flying through the Little House books and is finally fully recovered from her surgery. She only has a month and a half left of school and she's getting very excited about spending time at the pool. Ellyn will now actually walk with you holding her hands. Her two top teeth are so close to popping through her little gums are gleaming white. She is such a sweet baby.

So that is what is going on here. We are biding our time, waiting for our house to re-rent, our car to sell, Mike's orders to come through and trying our best not to worry but just to have faith and enjoy our time together. Kenn and Barb your trip looked fabulous. Some day we'll get over there. We should have done it when Mike was doing Degree Completion. Well we love you all. Love, Brooke

sorry i just had to get that out

--
Marnie

Very serious discussion with Dave 

Oooooh.....the color.......... 

Three kids almost in a fountain..... 

Peaceful day at Suizenji Park, Kumamoto, Japan 

Ok, Dad, lets get up and over the bridge. 

Kintai Bridge circa 1600's, in Iwakuni, Japan 

Ok, one more supersize...for the boys 

"Morgan, DO NOT lean over the rail" 

We promise to stop the supersizing....it dwarfs our guards. 

Mom in the Springtime, Cherry blossom festival, Japan 

Two authoritative individuals 

"In My LIfe........ 

Fairlady Z 

Ground Zero, Nagasaki