random happenings

Well, we've had a busy time since my last post on Jan. 25th.

On Wednesday, January 28, we went to the new Draper Temple open house. I didn't take any pictures because (1) I forgot the camera in the car and (2) it was 8:30 at night and way too dark to get any good pictures. We enjoyed the tour a lot. One interesting fact was that the wood in the temple came from Africa. The temple is beautiful and is set up differently than the other temples here in Utah. Patrons will start in one ordinance room for part of the endowment and then move to another one for the rest. The first room is painted in murals depicting scenes from the area and there's no veil. The second room is plainly elegant (no murals) and has a veil. Then patrons will go to the celestial room. As far as I could tell, there are only the two pairs of endowment rooms. Christie liked the brides' room. After the tour, we exited to the church that is on the grounds for refreshments. There's also a display of pictures about temples around the world and the Church. A great missionary tool. I saw several Sorenson employees that I know are not members there so that was cool.

I have started mentoring again. Last November, the former specialist quit suddenly. I was on the committee to interview and hire a new specialist and as of January 5th, Emily Tanner is our new specialist. She asked me to be a Lead Mentor for the Salt Lake area. Basically I will be her assistant. I will do initial visits with new families, introduce families who have been waiting for a mentor to their new mentor, do observation and evaluations of SLC-area mentors, help solve problems with mentors and/or families, plan area activities, help interview and train new mentors, provide ongoing training to the mentors as a whole and other such tasks. We have a lot of work to do to rebuild trust and bridges with the families in the program, the Parent Advisors, and the deaf community in general because the former specialist was not very good (and that's putting it mildly). Emily also asked me if I would take one family. Steven was OK with me doing that so I am working with a family that lives in South Jordan. Emily really wanted me to take this family because one of the deaf child's grandfathers is a big shot in the state legislature and they could be a real advocate for us when it comes to getting what we need to keep the program going well. I had my first visit with them last night and it was great to get back into it. We have a very long waiting list and so maybe later on when Alex is a bit older, I will take one or two more families.

Steven got a promotion and a raise at work. That was great news, especially in these challenging economic times. Unfortunately, this past week and a half he has suffered from bronchitis. Not fun.

Christie and Jordan continue to do well in school and have fun with their friends. They are looking forward to their birthdays. Jordan is excited to get baptized.

Alex has slept through the night all this week so I am thinking that on Sunday I will move him into the crib again. He has been taking his naps there and has no problem so I don't think we'll have any transition trouble. He turned 4 months yesterday and is such a joy to us! I will post pictures and more about him in another post.

Last week we took the plunge and ordered tile for the kitchen and contracted an installer to put it in. He did a great job and the tile is done today! We need to seal the grout (will do that Monday) and then we'll paint before we put the fridge and stove back. We're going to paint the walls green (Home Depot's Behr brand paint in Asparagus). I'm still not sure what we're going to do with the trim--leave it white or paint it? I guess we'll see after we get the walls painted and see what looks good with the tile. It's been a little crazy the last couple of days with moving everything out of the kitchen in to all areas of the house and living without a range. But the kitchen looks great and it will look even better after we get the walls painted and everything put back.

I can't remember if I posted about this before but another thing I am involved with is the Miss Deaf Utah Ambassadorship Pageant. I am the executive secretary. My responsibilities are mostly record keeping and thank yous for donations. The pageant is June 13th.

There's been no change in our Church callings.

Love you, Mom and Dad. Time sure has flown--can't believe there's only a few months left!