Hey everyone,

Well on to the mudane life of Anne. Today I woke up, went to work for 1/2 and hour, then to class, then onto work and then onto Student Athlete Advisory Commitee, and then onto vball practice. Today my head coach had to leave early to fly to Denver to recruit at a Club vball tourney which required that our assitant and volunteer coaches run practices. It did not run all to smoothly. All of the girls were very upset at the way the coaches handled practice today. Anyways, it is over and I have a break from vball until Monday. I have been going non stop with vball every weekday, 4 hours a day for the past 3 weeks and we haven't even had a tourney or game to play in to really see how we are doing. It will be nice to have a break and be able to give my shoulder and my ankle tendonitis a chance to rest and not have to be constantly jumping on it. Other than that, VOLLEYBALL IS GREAT!!! HAHA!
School is going well. We had grade checks and I have 4 A's and 3 B's right now and I am happy. I just can't wait for the summer when we will be in Mississippi for 7 weeks and I won't be doing anything but relaxing and working out. By the way, Mike and Brooke I was hoping to come out and visit for a week or so while we are there since I am sure I will be getting bored easily while Peter is working 10 hrs a day. Being busy sucks sometimes because you just get drained beyond belief. But I know it won't get any easier as we begin our family.
I love you all and can't wait to be all together in August for Kim's wedding.

Love, Anne

Ok Stinchfield girls.... it's official. Knee length "bermuda" shorts are officially in style. I agree, I never thought I'd see the day when they would ever be in vogue. I think however, I will stick to my favorite capri alternative but thought it was my duty to spread the good news. hehe
Buffy

Hey everyone,
Okay, finally got the date for the wedding planned after I heard that Mike and Brooke couldn't come... August 6th now in the Portland Temple at 11 am. The reception will be later that night in the backyard at our house.
Mom, I think I am just going to have Marnie and Anne just be my bridesmaids. Also I want to have Treven take me through the temple and I was thinking of just waiting till the week before to receive my endowments. Just call me about it!
Love you all! Thanks for everything!
And Dad you scared me sooo bad! Love ya!
Kim

A new book has been released about Operation Anaconda, "Not a Good Day to Die" by Sean Naylor. If anyone was interested in the combat action I was a part of, this book handles it very well.
I just attended a lecture by Pulitzer Prize winner Rick Atkinson ('In the Company of Soldiers", "An Army at Dawn", "The Long Gray Line") which was fantastic. It was about combat leadership in his view but mostly about the mission of embed journalists. He is one of the big writers for the Washington Post. It is always amazing to listen to truly intelligent and successful people. He received massive applause (an audience of only army leaders) for his response to a question about US end-objectives in Iraq, "All you have to do is study 5000 years of Mesopotamian history to know that this isn't going to end well". Depressing and accurate at the same time.
Dad,- although your "segway" into your posting was eye opening, it was mostly the surprise of you actually posting that had me in shock.

Mike

Mom and I have found a position in Denver, Colorado and will be moving in about 4 months, or after we have sold the house. It is too good to pass up and the benefits from the clinic are awesome. My personal income will increase by 2x and the opportunities for mom to be employed increase greatly. Actually, she has a lead on an offer to allow her to do what she does best, customer service. If you have read through the last five lines in astonishment, you shoule. I just felt like Raymond's father on Everybody Loves Raymond and thought I'd stir the pot a bit. We are quite settled in our current lifestyle and working situation. I know mom would love to have employment, but I can tell you that the benefits of having her at home and doing what she likes to do, including temple work, really overpowers the idea of working and slaving for someone else. I do feel those old desires to get into my own clinic, especially everytime I pass the building near our home where I was negotiating a lease. It is tough, but, we know we are very well employed and have to be thankful that we have what we have. We are working now on getting a refinance on our home which may allow us to complete our deck and hot tub dream for our back yard. Still waiting for the final date for Kim and Treven as I have to put in my leave papers, just like in the military. So, Kim, what's up? 6 Aug, for sure???
Mom is at the temple all day today and loving every minute of it. We spent the first half of yesterday looking around Washougal for homes for the Japan Stinchys and sent out pictures and such to them. Kinda exciting seeing our extended family working its way to our area. The cruise was sublime. Aside from work we do in the church, there are few rewards as nice as sitting out on your private balcony with the ocean 80 ft below you as you travel the tourquoise blue waves enroute to the islands of the carribean. We had a ball and we plan to take the 7+7 of you on a trip in 07 or 08, whenever it is available for all of you to go. It is 100% on this one...so, we'll wait until we can get you all out there. Anyway, I am at work and have to get on to my next assignment. So, if you liked this input, enjoy it and there will be more. Love, Dad

By the way the picks MUST be done by Wednesday night

Thanks
Brent

Hey Guys,
The website you want to go to is the following:

http://tournament.fantasysports.yahoo.com/

Go to create or join group
Then select join an existing group
Then select join a private group

Group ID# is 26991
Password is chalet

fill out the info and make your picks
IT IS FREE

Just for fun. Men, Women and Kids can do it.

Thanks
Brent

Kim, We just wanted to say congrats on your "official" engagement! Now I know we get to visit good 'ol WA this summer and for a great reason too. :)
Brent & Buffy

Today I got home from work at 4. I had a 2 day weekend. This is revolutionary. Today I biked 25 miles, spent 6 hours in the classroom, read 3 chapters of a book, mowed the lawn, walked the dog (with the bike, foot still hurts) and Brooke got the tires for the Probe which I will put on tomorrow. Should be able to get it tuned up by the end of the week and on the lot for sale. It is just amazing how good it feels to have a life back.

Brent, I need the name and password again for the march madness thing

Anyway, my mundane life is just fine with me. It is just nice to start eating away the honey-do list finally. I actually feel like I am contributing to the housework! I am sure Brooke will be pleased.

Tom, sorry about not playing this weekend. I could not find my cell phone which is the only place I had your number. I can play any night this week!

Mike

Not to complain but I had to laugh when reading your blog Marnie because we still have a solid 6-8 inches of snow and we're happy when it hits the 30's! Mike called yesterday to talk to Tom and I told him it would take me a minute to get him because he was out scraping the snow off the car and Mike just laughed and said it was 80 at his house! I suppose we'll just have to wait until we are enjoying the mild 70's in July to have our turn to laugh. (Atleast that is what I keep telling myself to help get through this cold!) :) So August 6th works out great for us, with Tom being in school year round nothing is perfect so he'll just come for whatever he can and I am really flexible. I'm so excited! Congratulations Kim! You're ring looks so pretty! I can't wait to see it in person!

Things here are great, in spite the weather. In fact, the weather really isn't bothering me as much as it did last year. I am sure it has a lot to do with the fact that Hayden is older and it's easier to get out and we aren't sick all the time. But I do look forward to the coming of spring, although that wasn't until May last year. Hayden is starting to talk so much that I can't even keep track of all the funny things he says. They are really only funny because I am so shocked that he has the capacity to say them! For instance: at the grocery store they have a Cookie Club where Hayden can get a free cookie every time we go to the store. So we went to the bakery for his cookie and she was extra nice and gave him two. After eating them both he asked me for more. I told him he was so lucky he already had two cookies which was enough. So he got really quiet and thought for a while and said "I want three cookies!" We practice counting but I had no idea he was really understanding it so well, I thought he was just repeating me all the time. I was shocked and said "You want three cookies?" and he said "Ummm...no four cookies!" What a clever little guy! Another funny thing he learned came from Sesame Street, they had a clip where the kids are jumping and saying "salta" which is jump in Spanish. If you tell Hayden to salta he will start jumping! But his biggest obsession of all is Toy Story (this will probably last until Tuesday when the Incredibles comes out), anyway, he takes his Woody doll and puts it in Buzz's face and shouts "Buzz, you are a toy!!!" His favorite line from the movie. He has also entered the "I'm a big boy" stage which is really quite nice because we can convince him to do things because he is a "big boy," like putting on his coat and such. We went to the indoor waterpark and he loved it!!! He loves to swim and enjoyed the slides a lot!

As for the mundane, I still babysit three days a week and it's going well. Our car has had a few strange problems like the mirror continually moving on it's own, but the fabulous warranty is covering it all. We still love our Hyundai! I had my last indoor soccer game yesterday, I suppose I never even mentioned that I was playing on a team. It only lasted 6 weeks. It was just a group of other dental students wives, we were the only team in the league who had children and the only team that wasn't an actual club team that played several other games during the week. So needless to say we lost every game but had a good time and all our kids thought it was great fun to run around on the field after game. I've also started to play in a Bunko group, have any of you heard of that? And lastly, I just finished reading Harry Potter 5 today which is relief because I have been ignoring everything else in my life while I've been reading it! I am looking forward to the chance to start in on some of the other books that you have all recommended lately.

Well I suppose I have written enough for today, I'll work on writing more often...oh wait one more thing on the non-mundane side: Friday night Tom left the door to hamster cage slightly ajar (we have a black teddy bear hamster named Little Jerry after thr rooster on Seinfeld.) Don't ask me how he forgot to close it! Anyway, when we woke up Saturday morning it was gone. Pessimist me said he was gone forever, our house it too old with too many weird holes. But, optimist Tom said we could find him and after only 20 minutes of searching and placing piles of sunflower seeds everywhere, Tom heard it down in the heater vent! But it was apparently unable to climb back out of the vent because the walls were too steep and slick. So, we had to unscrew the vent off the wall and drop a towel down the vent for traction and he climbed right up and we returned him to the cage! It doesn't seem like much now, but it was a big thing at the time! I was so certain we were going to live with a hamster lose in the house! But atleast for now it's safely locked up again!

Here it is!  

Well everybody... Treven surprised me this morning and proposed! I guess he flew in last night to Salt Lake City. He dressed up in one of my friend Matt's clothes and so I thought it was him. Matt told me he was going to come over to get some things. And he came in. Then he took off his hoodie and it was Treven! Then he proposed and I said yes! So it's official! I am going to post a picture of the ring so don't worry about that!
August 6th or July 30th??? Mom has gotten me confused with things... haha anyways! Love you all!
Love, Kim

Ok, so in between all this studying so I can remain a grad student at CSUN (that is, not get kicked out for getting below a 75 on Monday's exam) I agreed to judge a dance/drill/colorguard competition. Let me tell you, I have never judged any competition though I have loads of experience. I said I would cuz hey, how can I say no to a 100 bucks! Basically, it's a fundraiser for the colorguard I'm helping but those mostly junior high kids competing and parents take it VERY seriously. I kinda felt like I was a pretend judge though I had to make audio comentary tapes while watching the shows and give written feedback with itemized scores... VERY nerve racking! Once I was done judging an afternoon full of dance solos, totally 80's style drill teams, prop teams and a couple iffy colorguards, I took my money and left before awards were handed out.... who wants to hear the response to the scores you gave them? Anyway, it was very wierd to judge but I can't complain about the money. Oh, well, I guess it's study time again!
Buffy

One of our activities that I forgot from the first day....a safety drill! Silly picture!

Kim called me after she read your posting, Brooke, to reassure her that you were kidding. I did figure that you were since it was so extreme! Although I'm sure you would like to do a few of those things!!! I guess I'm not as gullable or gullible as some of my progeny!!!

Well, Dad and I just got up on Saturday morning. He is getting frustrated with his laptop since it won't hook up with Tom for the webcam. We need to go to a Stake Humanitarian Day today at 9 so I have a little time to write about our trip.

Well, our trip....We left on Friday, Feb 25 and flew to Miami. We didn't get in until about 11 pm. We had a great suite in the hotel...kind of a waste for just midnight to 9 am but it was all that was left in the hotel when we made the reservations. We wanted to stay in that one because Ginger and John and family were staying there. We had breakfast with them and then went in a van with a trailer behind with our luggage with their group. There were about 16 of us. Our van crunched together with all the other vans and trailers and buses by the dock. It is really quite a sight. There were at least 4 large cruise ships loading up. This happens at least every Saturday..not sure about the other days of the week...The ships come in in the morning, unload, and then load in the afternoon and leave. They never stay overnight in a port because of the port costs. It means a lot of traffic on the dock.

When we got on, we gathered at the back of the boat by the pizza place since we couldn't get into our rooms until 1:30..they are madly trying to clean them from the last group. John's kids had surprised him by inviting a large group of his family...sisters, cousins etc. This was a total surprise so it was fun to observe. Most of them are from Minnesota. When we finally got into our room it was great...a king bed...couch...nice size bathroom and a deck on the side. Very, very nice! It took until evening to get our luggage which was a bit inconvenient, especially since some new pants that I had purchased for the trip ripped as we were getting our luggage out of the van. Fortunately, my top covered the rip but it still made it uncomfortable (as an aside, I was able to return them). We had our first dinner that night in the dining room. They assign you a table...the group was all together in four tables. Each night they have the same set-up although on two nights you have to dress formally. They do have another buffet option upstairs but the food is much better in the dining room. They have the full silverware lineup, 2 knives, 2 spoons to the right, 3 forks to the left and 2 spoons and a fork on top. There is a full menu every night, starter (appetizer), salad, main dish, and dessert. You can get as many of each as you want...but there are limits to the human body!!! One night, Dad asked the waiter to pick dessert for him...and he brought him all four desserts!!!! The food and service was very good!

We did some exploring of the ship. It had three pools and four hot tubs on the level our room was on. It also had a multitude of deck chairs on different levels. That level also had the buffet dining area, a 24 hour pizza place and unlimited ice cream cones, a grill...and two bars (not that we frequented those) We spent a lot of time on the ship on that deck sitting with family and just visiting. Above that deck they had a great gymnasium where I'm proud to say that I exercised at least four times during the week. They also had a spa there but we passed on the massages. It would have been nice but Dad found a Blue Angels watch in the gift shop that was a great deal...but took the money that we might have spent on massages!!!! More lasting satisfaction! He volunteered to work an additional Monday to pay for it!! They also have a large theatre where they have shows every night. They had an amazing Magic Show that left Dad and I scratching our heads. We bought a CD for David showing the tricks since he is into magic tricks. They also have a casino, gift shops and many, many bars everywhere. There was an internet cafe but it didn't work for most of the time on the ship.

On Tuesday, we came into San Juan, those are the pictures coming around by the fort. We docked at about 5 pm and pulled out by midnight so it was pretty short. We went off the boat with Ginger and John who have limited stamina for walking. After walking toward town, we left them on a bench and went to look for the shopping area. Dad was looking for a new bathing suit (which by the way we never found...until we got home). We were specifically looking for Del Sol. When we walked into the store, this clean cut guy says to us..."How was Utah?" We were a bit confused but finally figured out he had noticed my garment line underneath my white shirt. A bit disconcerting. Anyway, this guy was a student at BYU down there doing an internship with his wife and working in this store. I didn't know that the store is run out of Utah. They have shirts that are black and white but turn into colors when you go out in the sun.

Most of the other stores were closed...the activity in town was primarily the bar scene so we went back and picked up Ginger and John and went back onto the ship...

I need to stop here to get ready for the Humanitarian activity....I'll write about the rest of the trip later today or tomorrow.

Mom

I know it's long overdue, but I can't use the excuse that I don't know how to use a computer 'cause it seems like I spend the good part of my day in front of a computer with school and work. Since everyone is interested in the mundane stuff here it goes. Today me and Anne had another couple over and we watched a movie tonight. They are in our ward and he is in the civil engineering program so we can make fun of eachother and our nerdiness. Speaking of nerdiness, I enjoyed teaching the students in the soils mechanics lab today about how to run a consolidation test on a soil sample. Who knew playing in the sand box as a kid could lead to a profession later on in life. I really am enjoying being a grad student and the opportunity to work closely with my advisor on our research. It's a great experience. I'm looking forward to our adventure to Mississippi and experiencing a bit of the South I've heard so much about. Anne is looking forward to long sunny days lying next to the pool and taking a break from school and volleyball. I am also one of these wierd marathoners. I am training for the Salt Lake Marathon which is on April 23. I'm running 16 miles tomorrow. Provo is really a great place to be a runner with all the trails in such a close proximity. If I can make it through the Salt Lake marathon and still think about running again I'll run the Portland marathon in October with Brent and Dave. I think that will be totally cool to run it with you two. Well, time to get to bed and rest up for a long run in the morning.

Peter

Hey Guys,

So you got me Brooke. I thought you where serious. Anyways I created a yahoo tournament pool for the NCAA tournament. Peter is the only member of the family to sign up. If you want an invite and did not get it too bad. Just Kidding. Let me know and I will email you the info. And yes it is just for fun. I know Adina used to do this at the Y. I just came back from playing in a church basketball game. We are in the playoffs. We won 55-53 and I had 28 pts. Yes they keep track. I feel like I am single because Buffy is studying so much. As for work, it is busy and we are coming into inventory at the end of the month. Plus the store I took over had some past issues and when we were audited the other day the store failed. Bad news we failed, good news it does not reflect me. My score that counts was from the Palmdale store which pasted with flying colors. Any how congrats Kim and please let us know if he (Treven) gets in. Does he know about the initiation to the family? Right Peter? Everyone have a great week and good luck on everything you are doing. Love you guys
Brent

That's a question for you, Brooke. Either that or you need to get one of those Carbon Monoxide detectors in your house.....you seem a bit tipsy. Maybe you are just in that joking kind of mood. You had me going though, you know, we gullable Stinchfield's.
That title won't mean anything unless you enjoy watching Dumb and Dumber. As far as the dates go, we are hoping to be back before the 1st of August or earlier, however that is still up in the air, it all depends on what the Navy will let us do. We should know in a couple of weeks. The 6th should be fine for us.
Dave

Brent, maybe you should find a new job. Retail??? Doesn't that ruin all of the holidays? Okay, I was totally kidding. I didn't think anyone would take me seriously. August 6th works out just Georgia peachy for us. Congratulations Kimmy. I want all the girly details. Colors? Dress, food, flowers, as they're decided. We love you.

P.S. He wants just your hand in marriage?