We are finally home again. I couldn't be happier. It has been a really fun few weeks, but it is just so nice to be home. The party for my parents was awesome...they were totally surprised and we got 57 people there. It couldn't have been better. Thanks again to Kenn & Barb for coming - I know it meant so much to my parents. The rest of the trip was fun - we went to Santa Cruz - the Boardwalk - on our last day. Great weather, fun rides, greasy food - it was great. We got home tonight at about 7:30 - we hit horrific traffic and trudged along for about an hour - in which time, Morgan threw up. So - all in all - a typical road trip.

It is nice to get home and get re-connected with everyone. Tracey - sorry to hear about the tragic accident you witnessed - but I've no doubt that you did your best. It was very interesting to read your blog and it serves as a good reminder of our own mortality and the importance of every day. Hope you're feeling better...

Marnie - no Vans yet, but I will be sure to let you know when they get here. Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes for Isaac - not sure what our plans are yet for the family celebration, but I'm sure we'll get it worked out. Can't believe he's 11.
Brooke - thanks again for taking care of Bailey. She was so happy to see the kids again. Nice note on our white board - I didn't get it at first, but Dave did and started laughing hysterically. Anyway - sorry you have to know us that well. :)
Peter & Anne - love the pictures. I shared them with my family and they were very excited for you.

Gotta go - I'm beat. Love you all...
Adina

First...I have been very negligent on getting on here...especially to wish all well on their birthdays...Brooke..on Sunday...Jane...on Monday and Isaac today!! Our August birthday run! I think the trip down to California and Dad's biking trip so close on the heels of it really disrupted any possible brain I have left. We were going to celebrate all on next Saturday so I'd mentally put it down for that...then Brooke and girls will be going down to Utah for the Bennett family reunion. So hopefully eventually, I'll make it all right. Brooke and the girls are coming over tonight. I'm going to make that yummy salad that Tracey made with the frozen raspberries in it.

The last two weeks I've been substituting on another shift at the temple. So I've been spending both Tuesday and Friday mornings there. It kind of puts a hole in your week but is great for my spirituality. Yesterday, down in Oakland, we went up to the visitors center at the temple and saw the Joseph Smith movie. Dad hadn't seen it before and really enjoyed it. By the way, in rewatching the movie, I did see that they did show the aaronic priesthood ordination prior to the baptism. However, it is very brief..probably about 10 seconds if that and just says something about John the Baptist giving authority to baptize. They then show Peter, James and John giving the Melchezidek Priesthood...but I'm not sure they even say Melchezidek. Anyway, it makes me feel better that they didn't reverse it!!!

Well, at that point, Brooke and the girls got here...we had dinner...Buffy came home midway through dinner so I haven't had as boring of a night as I anticipated!

Grandma was in pretty good spirits today. The owner came and handed me an envelope with $5 in it. Apparently, she keeps trying to pay them for her dinner and gets very upset when they won't take the money. So, the agreement now is that they will take the money and then just give it back to me. Meredith called her and had a pretty good talk with her.

So excited about your apartment, Marnie....and Andrew looks just great...obviously thriving.

Love,

Mom

Isaac, we all hope you are having a great birthday. I can't believe that in one more year you will be a deacon! You are such a good boy and a caring cousin. We love you.

Love, uncle Mike, aunt Brooke, Janie, Sadie, and Ellyn

Great pictures Anne and Peter! He looks so cute! It is crazy how fast they grow! Seems like everyone had a fun time in Fremont. It was pretty cool on Sunday we got me, Tom, and Dad's computers hooked up in a video conference chat. It was cool because Mom and Dad were at the Carlile's house and they were all there along with a few of the Bodily's. I haven't seen any of them in quite a while so that was really fun. You should all get on that!

Anyway, update on San Diego life I guess. One big thing is that I am going to be moving at the end of the month...no, not to Washington...just a few miles away from where I live now. I found a 1-bed condo that is being rented out. I don't know how many of you are familiar with San Diego neighborhoods but it is on Mission Gorge Rd in Allied Gardens just east of the I-15 Freeway and north of the I-8. It is more of a house-neighborhood as opposed to a apartment-neighborhood and there are a lot of families but still sufficient singletons because it is somewhat close to SDSU. It is about the same distance from work as my current place (closer north-wise but farther east-wise). It is bigger than my current place with newer appliances (dishwasher!!), a/c (!!!), assigned parking (glory be to God!), and a little patio with a cool view of the golf course across the street. It is also in a complex of condos with a pool and jacuzzi and quite a bit of security (there are about 3 locked gates to get through before you get to my apt) so that makes Mom and Dad feel a bit better. It is also really close to a shopping/food center so that is nice. There is a Vons less then a block away so I may actually go grocery shopping! So anyway, I will be moving in there over Labor Day weekend. Should be a better place for me and I am excited about it.

Other than that I have just been working. Work is getting busier with a few projects having just been thrown at me. So that is nice, I will have something to do. I think I will be going to Disneyland this weekend since my Southern California Annual Pass will start working again (darn you blackout days!) and it is my friend's birthday. I haven't been since I went with Mom and Dad so I am ready to go again. I haven't even seen the new Pirates yet so that will be cool.

Happy Birthday Brooke, Isaac and Jane! I am hoping that Isaac's shoes have already gotten there. I just got an email from Vans saying that the shoes that I got for Jane that she wanted have been discontinued!! So I am going to need to talk to her to see what kind she wants now and I can get them out to her ASAP.

Well that's about it from me. Hope everyone is doing well! Love seeing an active blog! :)

--
Marnie

Happy birthday to Brooke, Jane and Isaac this week! Plus Happy Anniversary to Mom and Dad! We have been and still are super busy with the last 2 weeks of school. We will definitely blog more after school is over and there is a break. Everything is great with us though!
Again, Happy Birthday!

Kim and Treven

Hey everyone,

These are some pics from this last week when our camera was still working.

-Anne

We wanted to wish Brooke, Jane, and Isaac Happy Birthday from Anne, Peter and Andrew. We love you guys and hope these birthdays are great for you all.

Love,

Anne, Peter, and Andrew

Well I have been meaning to post for a few days to try to get back in the swing of things. Here's a quick update of what's been going on here. Tom and kids are doing well, really enjoying a nice cool temperature this week with tons of time outside to enjoy it. Tonight we went to a BBQ for a friends birthday. Yesterday I ran 5 miles, my personal longest, and it wasn't that hard. My friend and are trying to do one long run a week so next time we'll try for more. Tom had his softball championship tournament this morning, his team took 5th place. Danica is getting really close to crawling, rolling around everywhere and trying to dive for things. She can go from sitting onto her hands and knees but then doesn't know what to do. Hayden has learned how to draw pictures of people, they are really cute. He drew me really tall, I liked that!

I would say that things here are great except yesterday there was a horrible accident right in front of our house. A 30 year old man on a bike was hit by a car and killed. I was standing near our front windows and heard the accident. I called 911 and was the first person outside to respond to scene. I ran to try to help the man but as I approached I could tell it was too late. Needless to say I was panicked and traumatized. People started to come out of their houses and I saw my landlord and yelled to him asking what we should do but he just stood there. I was panicked and went into "task mode." I tried to calm the driver, a 31 year old woman who was screaming and going into shock, then I ran back and forth telling cars to turn around and find a different route. It was all really a blurr and I just kept thinking that I needed to do something besides just stand there but I wasn't sure what to do. I ran back in my house and closed the blinds. Luckily Hayden was in the booster seat eating a snack and watching a cartoon. He had heard the 911 call I made and wanted to come out and see but I just tried to pretend everything was fine and made him stay where he was. Danica was napping. The ambulance and police then arrived and things just went from there. Fortunately, Tom came home just about 15 minutes later. I was shaky, nauseas and had a headache most of the afternoon and cried some from the stress and trauma. It was like a bad movie that wouldn't stop replaying in my head. I took some Ambien to help me sleep last night and I feel much better today, I am sure I will continue to improve. The newspaper article said that he lived just about a block away, he lived alone and was just going on a bike ride. They believe he lost control of his bike and veered into the car.

So please pray for the man's parents, and the woman who hit him, they all need it right now. It makes life feel all too fragil and just makes me want to hug everyone or something. How thankful I am for the Plan of Salvation and the peace I can recieve from the Lord. But that said it was still horrible and I am sorry to post such a depressing story, maybe I shouldn't have written it, I'm sorry. As I said, I am feeling much better today and it will be behind me soon.

We just finished playing a game of LIFE, Hayden played with us and he beat me! He's now in bed and Tom's asleep on the couch so I think I'll go to bed as well! Good night!

Tracey

We are four floors up in our hotel room watching the local motorcycle gang in the parking lot below run their bikes back and forth for their "show". Looks like about 100 or so bikers and their sweeties. We are in a Holiday Inn Express in Newark, CA awaiting the celebration for Adina's parents' 40th Anniversary across the street in about 2.5 hours. It is a surprise for them so we are avoiding them like the plague.

We got into Oakland this morning at 1000 and rented a car. Drove to Fremont and visited with Mark and Cole and took them to lunch. Jonna and Jenni were in San Francisco doing a mom and daughter "one last time" before Jenni heads off to BYU in Provo in two weeks. Brittany was with friends and Rochelle in Sacramento for a pageant cast member party.

We are going to church here tomorrow and then visit with friends in Fremont. Monday we head up to Berkeley to visit with Cathy and Everett before we leave for the airport to fly home.

Tuesday through Friday I and another YM leader are headed to Bend, OR with 13 boys for a bike trip through the Cascade Loop along with some fishing in the local lakes.

I still haven't figured out how to transfer my files from my new Canon 600 digital camera. The I-Photo says it is loading but the pictures do not get loaded on the computer. Hmmm. I'll have to play with it when I get home.

That is about it for now. I have to go to a bike shop and find some repair kits.

We're off for the rest of the day. Will return tonight and see if Tom or Marnie can be I-Chatted. Tom tried to chat me a few minutes ago but we were knapping from the early morning rise for the trip to the airport.

later, Dad

We're off again - headed to Fremont til Tuesday. Most of you know, I think, that my brothers and sisters and I are throwing a surprise wedding anniversary party for my parents. We're expecting over 50 people at a dinner reception - it should be a lot of fun. Dave created an awesome DVD - photo montage - that we will present to them at the party. Yes - he did it on a Mac and it couldn't have been simpler. Praises to Mac....

Anyway - as soon as Isaac makes it home from his first soccer practice, we'll head. It's a good thing we all love road trips, or this wouldn't be half as fun. We'll drive as far as we can tonight, stop, then finish the drive tomorrow morning.

Thanks to Brooke & girls for looking after Bailey while we are away. Hope you all have a great weekend -

Love, Adina

So you guys like fantasy baseball and football, huh?? Well...how about this!?! I found a fantasy celebrity league today! It is just like fantasy baseball or football but you have certain celebrities on your teams. When they are in the news or tabloids they get points and that is how you rate them. There is a draft and everything! It sounds like fun so I have started up a league. There are only a certain number of spots in the league and they are filling up quick so if anyone is interested in playing along let me know and I will send you an invite! It is at www.fafarazzi.com if you want to check it out. My league is the 3M Chanklas. Now this is my kind of sport!! :)

Marnie

Well,

Andrew has begun his "messing with mom" skill. This morning, I had to change him as always and like lately, he decides to start peeing after I have taken off the diaper. I have gotten used to it. Anyways, while I was cleaning him up of that mess, he decides to spit up...another thing I have gotten used to. So I picked him up, still naked I might add, to clean his back and the changing table of the pee and spit up and all of a sudden, he decides to poo onto my foot and the floor. Lovely mess to clean up :). But hey I still love the little kid even though he decides to come out of all ends while I am trying to change him. Just thought this was a blog worthy story.

Love, Anne

I am wondering if you would be interested in a nursing blanket. It's light weight cotton with a velcro strap that goes around your neck to hold the blanket in place and a little peice of boning that allows for a "window" so you can see your baby and give them a little air (while maintaining privacy). I made one for myself and just bought some fabric to make another one. If you don't already have something like that and think it sounds good I would like to make one for you. Kim saw the one that I have and I told her I will make one for her before Melia is born. Just let me know if you're interested and send me your address so I can get it to you this week before Andrew grows up too much!

Thanks!

Tracey

Well, here's the story about our car. We were going to Idaho Falls for our anniversary dinner and everything was fine. We get off the exit and our car sounded really strange. We pulled off the road and noticed that the engine looked like it was shaking and we noticed a hose was cracked. We took it into a mechanic who said we have a hole in our exhaust that will cost 400 dollars and they have to do a tune up that costs 500 dollars. We thought that seemed a little expensive and we have a friend from the ward who worked as an automechanic for a while so he knows what he is doing. Treven and him called in to the place today to see exactly everything that they were planning on doing in the "tune up" and found out that Treven and our friend can do everything that needs to be done except one thing that won't cost a lot to have them do. Anyway! we are going to go pick the car up today to do what we need to do for it and then take it back to them to do the part we need them to do. If that story was boring to any of you.... sorry!
We have about 2 weeks left of school and then we will be done until January. Treven is looking for a full time second job for the fall right now. Melaleuca has some openings so I am hoping he gets in there. Melia is doing great... she is definitely growing though! I can't get any comfortable position at night. Oh! and Treven and I had to get used to the full size bed again after the reunion. We got used to the King.
We are heading down to Salt Lake City this weekend with some friends to go to a waterpark in SLC. We will be staying with our friends that live at Thanksgiving point so that will be fun. On the 19th I am going to Laura Warner's reception (from San Diego) in Idaho Falls which will be fun to see her and her family.
That is really all that is going on currently with us. 12 more weeks to go with Melia. It is crazy to think about! Well, love you all.

Kimberly

The site is at Kayak.com. It is really cool because it searches the internet for the best prices and displays them all for you. Just FYI.

marnie

...in case you do and you are interested the new Official LOST Podcast is a just about full recording of the LOST panel from Comicon. It is just over 50 minutes long but I like it :) so if you have time and are interested, it is entertaining I think but that might have been because I was there. You can download it here: http://abc.go.com/primetime/lost/podcasts/111248.html

-
Marnie

I have been reflecting this weekend what a busy weekend it was this time last year. Hope you had a great day today. I tried to call but all circuits were busy. Hope nothing dramatic happened in Rexburg!!! Amazing to think a year has already gone by.

Had Grandma over for dinner tonight. It was the first time back here in the house but I don't think she remembered it at all. Three hours pretty much tuckered her out.

Still have the gang here so I'll write more later.

Love,

Mom

First off, Congratulations Anne and Peter! Andrew looks so cute!!! I am so jealous of all those who got to go and see him!! We have been telling everyone how excited we are for our new nephew, sorry we didn’t get a chance to post sooner! Secondly, thanks again to Lexi and everyone who made for such an awesome reunion. We had a fantastic time! Third, thank you Brent for sending us the Gap discount card, we went to the regular Gap, Baby Gap and Gap Outlet this weekend… we got a lot of great stuff for the fall!

And now for my exciting news: She did it… she really did it! Danica slept all night without waking up!!!! The first night we were home she did her standard waking up and at 3:00am I couldn’t get her to go back to sleep… in desperation we pulled Hayden out of bed (they share a room) put her in the crib and walked out and closed the door. Hayden took my spot in bed with Tom and I headed for the couch, expecting a LONG night… 20 minutes later she was asleep and didn’t wake again until 10:30am!! (That’s 8:30 in Utah time) The next night was just as great! After putting her in bed she woke up a few times but cried only a few minutes and after waking briefly at 2:00 she didn’t wake again until late into the morning! Then last night she didn’t wake at all… it truly seems like a miracle!! After her first failed attempt of crying it out that lasted two miserable weeks this really does feel like a miracle and I figure now that she’s got it I just won’t turn back and things should be good from here on out!!! HOORAY!!!!

I suppose moving onto other news… yes, we made it home safely. After the reunion we spent a few days in Utah running around visiting old friends. We saw BYU and then the last night we went up to Snowbird with my parents to ride the tram, zip line and Alpine Slide. It was a lot of fun. Coming home has been nice and it’s great that Cleveland feels like home.

We got our packet from the Navy with all the info about applying for the AEGD. I am so nervous about doing all of this and dealing with the detailer and such. I hate feeling like someone else has so much control of your life and saying one wrong thing can ruin everything… I know, I know, welcome to the military! I’m still getting used to this idea! We really want to go to San Diego but I’m trying to be prepared for anything. Really going somewhere else would be fine since we haven’t seen as much of the East coast as we would like to while we’ve been here.

As always, Hayden is hilarious. The other day he gave Danica a huge kiss and said “I’m pretending she’s my wife!” Then, he was hugging his toothbrush and said “Now I’m pretending this is my wife!” Another day he was sitting in the backseat of the car and suddenly said to me “Mom, if you were the sun and I was a tree and Daddy was the sky, we’d be best friends forever.” Random!

Okay, I am sure I forgot to say a lot since I haven’t written in a month but I’ll stop there and post this while I can. Great to hear from everyone!

Tracey

Well this will be a quick blog as Andrew is beginning to cry for me to feed him. Just wanted to stop in and say all is well in the Olsen home and Andrew is beginning to adjust pretty nicely to our family. Happy Anniversary to Kima nd Treven! Hope this last year was a good one. We love you all!

Love, Anne