I Can Sing My Testimony

I have had the amazing blessing of serving as the Primary Chorister for the last two years.  As happens in the church with regularity, callings change, and now I have been called to serve as Relief Society President.  I am so sad to leave the dear children of my ward.  It is THE BEST CALLING in the whole church.  It has been a joy and I will miss it terribly.  As my farewell to the children, I put together this little poster to give them.  The thing I hope they will remember from my time with them is that when they sing they are bearing and building their testimonies.  Songs touch my heart and soul and uplift my spirit.  Music has given me comfort and strength and answered my prayers when the words to a song flow into my mind.  I Can Sing My Testimony.

Mother's Day

Here is a contemplative post in honor of Mother's Day.  It has really made me think.  Maybe it's because I just sent a missionary off.  Maybe it's because I'm preparing my youngest to enter Kindergarten soon.  Maybe it's because I'm feeling guilt over needing to work away from home.

We sang this song for Mother's Day - one I have never heard before.  It turns out it was an award winner in a church music contest.  You can find the music here.  I love the words and wanted to share them.  Time slips away so fast.  Please Lord let me enjoy the little moments with my little flock - - -

"Keeping Sheep"

I have a little flock of sheep,

And they are mine to tend and keep,

And I must guard them ev’ry day,

For little lambs, when left alone, will lose their way.

So many voices say to me,

“A sheep-fold is no place to be.

Your time in there is dull and slow,

And lambs leave very little room for you to grow.”

Oh, If I ever start to stray,

Deceived by thoughts of greener pastures,

Remind me Lord, that keeping sheep

Will lead to happier ever-afters.

Oh surely there will come a day

When all the lambs have left my side,

And I am free to roam about,

And go exploring other meadows green and wide.

Yet something whispers in my heart

That when my sheep have left this pen

I’ll long to stroke their little heads,

To draw them close to me and have them young again.

So, if I ever start to stray,

Deceived by thoughts of greener pastures.

Remind me Lord, that keeping sheep

Will lead to happier ever-afters.

So while they still are in my care,

I pray that I will clearly see

These little lambs within my fold

Are tender gifts a loving Father has given me.

Text:  Lynne Perry Christofferson

Music:  Lynne Perry Christofferson

Missionary Update

So I've neglected our blog a bit.  Since I last posted, so much has happened.  We moved into our new home at the beginning of February.  Wesley did receive his mission call to Milwaukee Wisconsin.  I took pictures of our prediction map and of him opening his call.  Tragically, we had a problem with the iPad and we had to do a restore and the pictures disappeared.  I have been rather depressed about several things that were lost, but the loss of these pictures was the saddest.  But, it really is my own fault for not posting sooner and for not backing up the iPad like I should.

Time has flown by by so fast, and this week, on May 1, Wesley entered the MTC.  As tears flowed freely, and Quinton was concerned, I told him, "these are happy tears".  He replied, "they don't look like happy tears, Mom."  But truly, they were tears of joy.  We are so proud of our boy.  Here are the last couple of pictures we took before he was whisked away from the car and off for the next two years.  A great big thanks to family and friends who supported us at his "farewell" and have generously given suppot to wish him well.

Mission Predictions

Our bishop just let us know that according to the computerized mission tracking system (not sure if that is what it's really called), Wesley's mission call has been issued.  We should receive it in the mail on Wednesday.  For family night we read this story:  The Envelope in the Sept 2010 Friend

Then, we all made our predictions for where he will be called to serve - we'd love to add your predictions to our list.

Update

Here is the big reveal - well at least the plastic is down - still some work to be done, but it's getting close.  The color of the stucco came out a bit lighter and slightly more yellowish than the samples we chose - the painter said that is really hard to get a good color match with stucco.  Apparently you should choose a shade darker than you want because it will always appear lighter. It looks ok though and we are just glad it didn't end up looking pink.  Picking colors has really been the hardest thing for me.  Any suggestions for a color on that front door?  We are wondering if we should keep it natural, or go darker to match the garage door which will be brown.

The work inside is proceeding.  The paint is finished and the wood (well laminate) flooring was installed.  They also finished the closets - and I'm loving the amount of space in my pantry.  

Here is how the tile looks for the bathrooms - the tile work is the only thing that hasn't been what I expected.  I don't quite understand how the edges look and how the border just ends.  I thought they would finish the edges with edging tiles, but they just used the squares so you see the edges of the tiles instead of a rounded over look.  To me it appears unfinished.  But looking on the bright side - it is soooo much better than many of the existing homes we were looking at, so I shouldn't complain.  It's just we paid a hefty upgrade for this and I was expecting more.

This week they've been installing the cabinets. Apparently they wait 'til the very last to put the doors on so they don't get damaged.

We are supposed to be closing in about 10 days - I think the holidays slowed us down a bit.  There is still so much left to do:  final electrical and installation of light fixtures, the finish plumbing (faucets and toilets) and water heater installation, carpet, attic insulation, counter tops, appliances, mirrors and shower surround, and the most worrisome - the driveway.  It's hard to imagine they will be able to get it all done in time.  The concrete is what could hold us up the most though - it has to be above freezing to pour, so we are praying for a good warmer day at the end of next week. 

All in all, we are VERY happy with our builder.  They have been very attentive to details and have gone above and beyond what is necessary to build a very quality home - customized the way we wanted.  Of course we had to make some sacrifices because we couldn't afford EVERYTHING we would have ideally wanted, but we are going to have an awesome kitchen and great room - which is where our priority was.

Merry Christmas

We have not sent out Christmas cards this year. It is strange to just be in a temporary situation - and know this will not be our permanent address.  But, we do want to do a brief update.

Of course we moved from Tooele this year and are building a home in north Orem.  It should be finished in late January.  Though we are NOT looking forward to the process of moving again, we are really looking forward to moving into our new home and actually unpacking.  We only unpacked the necessities here, but inevitably, we are down in the basement or garage searching for the box that has ... (fill in the blank)  When we move in, we'll send out cards to share our new address.

The kids are adjusting to their new schools, and so far we are happy with the programs and teachers and new friends they are making.  Heather is in two choirs and loving it.  She also made the Pro-Start chef team and will be competing in February.  Haylee is in the advanced choir and in band.  She also enjoyed ball room dance this term too.  They do have real classes too (Heather has 2 AP classes and they both have honors core classes), but they love the arts and the opportunities they have had here.

Quinton is ANXIOUS to move so he will have friends nearby.  Right now, there are no small children to play with, but there are about a dozen in his Primary class in the new ward.  He is doing online preschool called "Upstart" through the Waterford Institute.  He is learning a ton and can read at a mid Kindergarten level.  I have been impressed with the quality of the academics of the program (this coming from a 15 year preschool teacher).  It is very developmentally appropriate (even if it is a bit repetitive), entertaining, and engaging.  A lot of music is incorporated to reinforce skills.  We have been supplementing it a bit and participating in the amazing library story times here.  He misses his friends, but has adapted to all the changes remarkably well.

Amanda reached a major milestone and has completed her degree from USU.  She was blessed with a great internship for the last six months as a technical writer and intellectual property specialist for the church.  Now she is looking for a new job in the "real world".

Wes started his Freshman year at BYU and has LOVED it.  He is studying mechanical engineering, but is contemplating other majors too (this one is HARD).  He has his mission papers completed and will submit them this week.  He hopes to leave early in the summer after he finishes winter term.  We'll update you all when he gets his call - feel free to leave your best predictions/guesses of where he'll be sent in the comments below.

Troy is still working hard at UDOT, and missing his calling as Gospel Doctrine Teacher.  I (Pam) enthusiastically accepted a call in our new ward as the Primary Chorister (a calling she held for a only couple of months before we moved.)  It feels like a tender mercy from the Lord as this is absolutely the BEST calling in all of the church.  It has been strange to not teach preschool this year and I do miss it more than I thought I would.  I have been teaching computer classes at the Provo Senior Center, and just got hired at Sylvan Learning.  I also just completed all of the points I need to renew my teaching certification and am in the process of getting my license.

We do miss running in to people we know and still feel a bit insecure with all the changes of this year and those still to come.  But, we know change is the way we grow.  We are grateful for the support and love of our friends and family.

The Beginning of the Finish Work

On to some of the finish work - the carpenter has been installing doors and moldings and the stone work is progressing.  I love how the door trims are turning out.

House Update

The house is progressing so nicely.  Shingles were put on and window installed December 1, and that night it rained.  To me it was a minor miracle to have been able to get the house completely closed in before it was exposed to any precipitation.

These first weeks of December, things are going on like crazy inside.  Insulation was blown into the walls, then drywall went up.  The outside is being prepped for stucco.  Dec. 12, this is how things look -

I really like the arches - so cool.

Last week, they finished with the mudding/texturing inside and did the stucco and stone work on the outside. Since it has been super cold, the house is draped while they do the exterior.  Haylee affectionately calls it the "ghost house" right now.

Excitement builds

The roof is finished.  A lot of progress is being made inside as well.  The HVAC is is place, and the plumbing is roughed in with tubs in place. Things are moving quickly.  So far the weather is holding - we are almost in the clear.  We've had awesome 60 degree weather - amazing for November.

Decisions, decisions, decisions

We are swimming in decisions this week, trying to make final selections for the house.  Building a custom home means you can have it just the way you want it - well within your budget at least.  But the choices can make your head swim a bit.  The last time we built a home, the selection process was basically pick your shingle color from one sample board, your siding from another, and your carpet color from yet another.  Then choose which of these three cabinet finishes you want -- all done.

This time around, we can practically pick any style or color that we can dream up for cabinets.  Walls and walls of tile and carpets await our decision.  The stone yard was full of exterior stone styles, textures and colors, and then that could be matched with any paint color to mix in to the stucco.  There have been hours spent pouring over the lighting catalog, and multiple trips to appliance stores.  And then, there are shingles, window frame colors, glass textures, door knob styles, faucets, wall textures, molding styles, and on and on.  This really has been the fun part, and it's going to be so nice to have our home truly reflect our tastes and style - it's just been hard to identify exactly what that is amongst the seemingly endless options.  Honestly, our heads are swimming a little and I have been obsessing a bit - ok a lot.  But, we feel like we 're narrowing it down, and we've only changed our minds at the flooring store 3 times now.  I've been spending a bit too much time on Pinterest  collecting ideas that exceed our budget - too many cool kitchen things.

We have a roof

Walls!!

We have all the walls now -- so cool.  It is also awesome to have all my kids home for Thanksgiving!!

Oooo, and a cool arch!

Framing

This week the progress on the house has been amazing. The framing has gone so quickly - it seems that the house has just sprung to life. We love seeing it take shape and finally getting a feel for the spaces that so far have just been dimensions on paper.

Monday - Basement

Of course another fascinating big machine - "mom take a picture of that one"

Tuesday - main floor

More progress

This week they placed the window wells, back-filled around the foundation, used a machine to vibrate/settle the floors,  and today, poured the cement in the basement floor and garage floor.  It started raining about 2 hours after they finished, but didn't seem to cause any problems. I feel very blessed to be building a home in November, and so far to not have weather cause problems.  Quinn liked the big pumper truck, but he still loves the backhoe (he calls it the claw) the best of all the big machines so far.

Drains

Today they laid out the drain pipes in the basement floor, and did the tar coat.  I know - exciting huh.  Sadly, every little thing is incredibly exciting to us.  It snowed several inches over the weekend, but it has all melted and should be good the rest of the week - hope the weather will hold out through the framing process (fingers crossed).

Basement view

We can see windows now.

Foundation Stones

Something cool is happening every day.  The foundation walls were placed today, and the great big pumper truck was filling it all up!  So fun to watch.  Quinn says now he wants to be that guy that runs the cement truck.

There was a great little story in the October 2012 Friend that we read for Family Night.  It was called Abby's Scripture Rock.  The children received rocks, and then wrote the reference for their favorite scripture.  The rocks were then included in the foundation for the Newport Beach Temple.  Since we are at the foundation stage for our house, we decided it was a perfect activity for us to think about what scriptures we want for the foundation for our home.  We each came up with a scripture or two, and even got the kids away at college involved.  We wrote them on our rocks and dropped them down with the foundation before they backfilled.

Footings

We have footings.