Nigel Plymouth (aka Cole)

Cole's class has been working very hard a little class play called The Mystery of the Ghost of Plymouth Castle. Yesterday Jenna & I were lucky enough to go see all the hard work pay off. They had their entire classroom rearranged with a whole stage set up and chairs for the audience. They had costumes and a fun set and sound effects and lighting effects and it was so much fun. All the kids had memorized their lines and were so cute.

Cole as Nigel Plymouth.
Cole with 2 of his friends. Aren't they so cute?

Study or Sleep?

This summer I am taking an online class (my last prereq for nursing) and it is turning out to be a little more stressful and structured than my last online class. This time there are strict deadlines to follow versus a go at your own pace class. Lastnight I worked a grave shift and was only able to get 2 hours of sleep today, so I am going on 38 hours with only 2 hours of sleep. The question is do I get caught up on studying or sleep?

Preschool Graduation

Today was Jenna's preschool graduation, I cannot believe it. My baby is five and done with preschool. She loved her teacher and all her friends at preschool and I know she will miss them (most of them she will still see) and all the fun activities she enjoyed at school. Until recently she was not excited about going to kindergarten but now cannot wait. She keeps asking when she gets to go. This may make for a long summer. Today I also took her to her 5 year well child check (yes that included getting 4 shots). The Dr. said she is growing and strong and already for kindergarten. There was only one concern, a heart murmur. He never noticed it before and he wants her to see a pediatric cardiologist for further tests. He didn't seem too concerned and I am hoping that means there is a good chance it won't be too much to worry about. I scheduled her appointment as soon as we got home and now have to wait a month to find out. In the meantime I will be doing some research on heart murmurs so that I am informed and prepared for whatever they say.

Family Reunion, Day 3

Sunday afternoon we all (78 of us) headed to Pine Valley, about 40 minutes northwest of St.George, to see where some of our ancestors helped settle. We went to the cemetery first to see where many of our ancestors are buried and to hear stories about there lives that were filled with sacrifice after sacrifice. My mom, my cousins 5 boys, my grandma, and others shared stories. My mom had my Grandma and Grandpa stand about 30 feet from each other and asked us how we could connect them without moving them. We all made a huge circle and then my sister's kids sang Come Come Ye Saints. It was a very powerful experience, one I will never forget, and I hope my kids will remember it as well. We headed to the church next to have a tour and hear some more history of the area and our family. My mom said she had no pictures of Harrison Burgess and was so excited to see one hanging in the church, as well as one of one of his wives, Sophia. More family members shared stories about these great people and my cousin who spent a year in Iraq shared some stories with us about that. My family is awesome! There are 93 total (if I figured right) from my Grandparents, there kids and spouses, and grand kids and great grand kids. 78 of us were there and felt of the great spirit of each other and our family members gone before. We are very blessed to have freedom and religion and the necessities of life. Thanks Mom for planning this incredible reunion, especially this day. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for being examples of love and unselfishness. Thanks to all my aunts, uncles, and cousins for your love and kindness. What a family we are!

Family Reunion, Day 2, part 2

On Saturday night we were lucky enough to get the brand new Washingotn City Rec Center to ourselves. (my cousin works for the rec center in Lehi and had some connections) We BBQ'd and then swam in the fun pool for a couple hours. Everyone had a great time! There was s big slide that even my 78 year old grandpa went on. We couldn't convince Grandma to go though. Jenna and Mara (my neice that lives in Vegas) were very excited to see that they had the exact same swimming suit. They looked like 2 peas in a pod and were inseperable. My cousin's little girl Maleia loves the water and it was so fun to watch the pure joy on her cute little face when she would stick it in the spray. My sister, Leah, tried to push me in (I was dressed and had my camera and cell phone in my pocket) and it turned out bad for her. She was the one who ended up all wet and I stayed dry. It was a fun night!

Family Reunion, Day 2

On Saturday some of the guys went golfing (even Mike, who has never really golfed before) so the rest of us went to a family fun center. The kids rode on the kiddie cars (none of them were tall enough to drive the go karts) which went about 1 mile an hour, if that. They liked the bumper boats a lot better. Not only were they faster, they could squirt each other too. They played miniature golf, arcade games, and on the big jungle gym. They each got a turn to ride on the go karts with one of the adults. It was fun to just hang out with all my cousins and their kids and let the kids play with each other and have a blast!

Family Reunion, Day 1

So we left Thursday evening for St.George and my family reunion. Friday we met up with a bunch of my cousins to do some hiking at Zion's National Park. We were all glad that the weather for the weekend was suppose to be cooler than normal but the rain started just as we were meeting up. It rained pretty hard for awhile but we decided not to let a little rain ruin our day. We got on the shuttle and headed up and by the time we got to our first hiking destination it had stopped and it was perfect! weather. Sunny and not too hot for hiking. We hiked first to Weeping Rock, which is named for the water that is constantly dripping from the huge rocks above. I don't even know how to explain how beautiful it was and pictures can't do it justice. INCREDIBLE!!! We got back on the shuttle and did another hike that followed the Virgin River. We hiked about a mile back right to the beginning of the Narrows (which was actually closed because the water was still so high). The kids all enjoyed throwing rocks in the river and scaring the parents as they would get too close to the freezing, fast running water. It was a beautiful day and amazing to see this magnificent place that nature and God have created. We will definitely be going back to Zion's and I would suggest to anyone who has not been to go.