11/30/14 Cookies and Pie Party

11/30/14

How was your week? Did you get the sweaters from grandma and the box we sent? Grandma has been worried it got to you so be sure to send her a little note and let her know!

How was your Turkey Day? Did you get double or triple stuffed?

We have had a nice week.  The beginning was super busy with work but since I was at work until 8:30 p.m. Tuesday I got off at noon on Wednesday and was off the rest of the week.  I think that's the longest time I've had off and stayed home and just really enjoyed some days off!

Wednesday after work we went to the new buffet in the mall...the pizza pie cafe...the same place we ate at in Provo when we dropped you off to the MTC.  It was nostalgic as we thought of you!!! (Hugs!!! I love you!!!)  It seems to be a pretty popular place and was pretty busy and hopping.  It was good and not too expensive too.  We'll go back.

Then we went to Grandma and Grandpa's house and helped them with getting things ready for Thanksgiving.  She had some things to do that were hard for her old fingers (tying up the napkins with silverware inside).  I know we did some other stuff but I can't remember what it was.

Thursday the boys did the 8th Ward Turkey Bowl.  Dinner was early, noon this year.  So we didn't do a lot in the morning.  Just heated up our dishes, went for a walk and went over. The crowd wasn't as big as it has been some years although we still had almost 30.  

Afterward we went to Ben and Laura's and played ping-pong.  I think Dad won the tournament again.  Him and Ben were the 1st and 2nd place.  I got out on the first round by AJ's friend Keeton who came and spent a couple days at our house.  Bummer!!!

Box sent to Elder Griffin for
Turkey day!

Thursday evening they watched Dallas lose (bummer again) and we just hung out and chilled.  Lots of good left overs.  

Friday the Riley mom and twins came over and we made 6 batches of cookies and 2 batches of peanut butter balls. (sorry for reminding you!!!)  (They took 4 cookies, 1 pb ball -- they were making neighbor gifts).  I was going to give some of the treats out but I think they are just going to get eaten 'cause I wasn't quick enough putting them away.  Haha.  Plus if just feels a little too early to be taking Christmas treats around to me. SO I didn't really wanna!

Afterward we took the girls for a 2 mile walk.  Grandma and pa needed more help -- moving furniture. getting their tree out.  decorating.  So we went to Bishop's for lunch (Katie, AJ, Dad, me and gma and pa)  Holly went to play. Then we spent a couple of hours getting them ready for Christmas.

Friday evening was a pie party.  I LOVE IT!!! What a cute idea.  Sister Long invites over a bunch of people from the ward and she had a fire in her yard and lawn chairs and cider and everybody shares leftover pies (don't need to bring a whole one) and mingles.  It was fun and a super easy party to host too since everybody just brings all the treats they already had too many of!

Aj and Katie went to the temple together afterward and did baptisms. Aj was totally taking over the role of favorite brother ...he has been teaching her to play guitar, they played board games all afternoon and they went to the temple and got ice cream afterward.  And then he teased her at dinner last night and he's right back in the basement.  3rd place brother!  Hahaha.  

Saturday was another beautiful day (it's been 70 degrees and sunny every day this week!!!) and so I went for a 6 mile hike.  Then came back and dad smoked a turkey and I boiled potatoes and made rolls for a yummy dinner Saturday night.  All afternoon the boys went and watched BYU (had to go out we didn't get the channel...AJ and Dad, Dallas was working).  The girls spent the day at the Wrights painting things for the ward christmas party.  The wright's are in charge so it's gonna be amazing.  Seriously.  

Marlee will be coming by today as she and AJ are getting a ride up to Provo together.  I don't think I'll get to see her though because they are meeting their ride in Toquerville at 4 and I will be playing for primary.  

Dad and I are speaking today. I'll have to mail you our talks so you have time to read them if you want to.

I hope you are finding fun things to do and not missing us too bad.

Love you and so thankful for you and your example.  You are amazing!!! I love you! Love, mom.

11/23/14 3 A's of Awesome

11/23/14

I just watched a video called the 3 A's of Awesome,by Neil Pasricha.  It was a 17 minute video that is really inspiring and makes you appreciate what a wonderful thing life is. The 3 A's are:

Attitude -- you can't choose what happens to you but you can choose how you react to it.  You can be bitter or you can make it better.  You can take it poorly or you can see the good in it.

Awareness -- be aware of all the great things going on around us and for us.  Notice the little things and appreciate them.

Authenticity -- learn who you are and follow your heart.  Do what you want to do because you love it and don't worry about what others say.  He told a story about a big black football player who loved cross stitching. He knitted and cross-stitched in his off time. And he loved it and he didn't care that people thought that was weird.

He was having a difficult time in his life and started a blog naming things that were awesome.  It ended up winning the best blog of the year and becoming a book.

He highlights things like how awesome is it that you can have a waiter bring you free refills as many as you want.  Or when they open a new line at a grocery store and you were last in line and now your are first.

So Julene Shelley talked about him in her spin class yesterday and challenged us to write 10 things a day we find awesome and are grateful for.  By March we'll have 1000 things (which is what his book was, 1000 Awesome things.)

Anyway, I like the idea of having a gratitude journal and I might try it.  When I first thought about it I was thinking the usual, My wonderful husband, my kids, a house...but after watching his video and seeing some of his ideas it kind of opens up the thankful thoughts...the smell of a bakery, shooting the light and having it turn green for you, etc.  I may have to get his book and read it!

*********

Here is where my actual letter starts!  So -- do you have time to read our letters to you? Do you print them out and take them home or do you only get to see them for the few minutes you are on the computer each week?

Do you need some long john's?  Are you freezing there? You never said...when it snows how will you get around? Do you have boots?

K, enough questions for now...

This week has been busy and good.  Football season is officially over and so I get my hunny back for about a week and then we move on to basketball season.  Easy come, easy go, right?!  Dixie High won the championship over Hurricane in a hard fought game.  Dad will have to give you details. But I think it was a pretty exciting and fun finish to the year.

We also finished volleyball this week.  Katie's team finished 5-5.  The most average team ever. For every time they'd win one, they'd lose one.  They were a fun team though and that was much more easy to take then Holly's team...which was 8-2 I think.  Might have been 7-3.  But I'm pretty sure it was the 8-2.  We had 3 boys...which seems like a cool thing.  One of them was off in la-la land.  He will grow up and be a Bill Gates or something but heaven forbid he play with a ball.  Ever.  The other was a total A.D.D. kid...did you see that squirrel.  He could hit and play sometimes.  And other times he was picking up dirt off the ground or shoving the kid next to him.  And the third was no better than the first 2.  I had a little girl that was so timid and shy she probably would have started balling if I said boo to her.  Holly was a full head taller than every other kid on our team.  It's amazing we won any games really.  They would just stand there and watch the balls come and fall down beside them.  Or duck so they didn't get hit.  I am ready to not do volleyball for awhile! 3-4 hours every Saturday was too much!!! Haha.

Monday we did our usual - go to Roy's pizza for dinner and then go to Dixie High School and interview a kid for player of the week.  It's gotten chilly at night so the girls didn't even get out of the car while we did the interview.  

Tuesday was KILLER.  We handled 94 cases from 3-8:15.  (82 of them were from 5-8:15).  That is our most cases ever handled in one evening (we were off last week so it was like a double session).  I didn't get off work until a little after 9 p.m.  Next week Judge Bunnell is out of town and we have a young judge coming in.  We don't have near as many cases but I expect it to be a long session cause he hasn't learned how to go quickly yet.

Wednesday I had piano lessons and the girls did volleyball.  Didn't eat dinner until 7 p.m. ish.  It is so quiet still...just the 4 of us.  Dallas and McKayla don't come around that much.

It sounds like Dallas is really hitting it hard with school work.  The last I talked to him he thought he would be able to pass all his classes (which is an improvement...there was awhile there where he didn't think he could even pass...time will tell).  So I am HOPING he is off studying and working on his school work.

He is doing really well at work.  He has started running the inside counter selling tires and taking money and doing customer service.  He was the top salesman last week selling $6500 in tires -- 50 units...doesn't really mean anything to me but he was pretty happy and excited and was going to be on the floor again yesterday.  Which is a lot easier work than being out in the garage pulling tires off cars.  AND I think he will get a raise.  AND I think he will go full-time soon...although I think he's working 35 hours a week or so anyway so he about is full time.

Dad left Thursday and Friday for the football game.  Me and the girls just did girl stuff...got the car washed, did some shopping, did some crafts.  Nothing exciting.

And here we are to Sunday again already.  It feels like a super fast week with no weekend this time!  We are making cafe rio pork and Gma and pa are coming here because Gpa is in the choir for the temple and has practice tonight at 6 p.m. SO they just gonna come here for a quick dinner then leave.

Is there anything I can do to make things easier for you?  Christmas is coming...any requests? Is your bike holding together and all the equipment (lights, whatever) still working?  

Oh yeah, almost forgot. I went out on what was supposed to be splits with the Sister Missionaries Saturday night.  We visited a neighbor that lives just down in Cotton Meadows.  We were there about 1.25 hour.  We were supposed to talk about the restoration.  Discussions are kind of hard, huh?!  SO we got there and visited a few minutes, had a prayer.  Then they would ask him a question and it would take 20 minutes to stop him talking and the sisters would say a sentence to teach him and then again with his 20 minute answer to a question.  It didn't feel like they taught him at all!!!  I was kind of frustrated...like...did you want to be taught or just talk?!  And the sisters were so timid they wouldn't like speak up and assert themselves to continue on with the lesson.  I guess on the bright side they seemed really happy anyway and invited them to come back.  They are a super neat couple, about 55ish.  They actually seem pretty in tune spiritually speaking.  However, they say they invite all religions into their home...jehova witness, catholics etc. He was some religion I never heard of.  I think they are just lonely.  I dunno.  Time will tell. They would make a great addition to our ward if they would jump the fence!  He said he had read some of the book of mormon but not that much because he had been busy at work.  He promised to read more before they come back again next Tuesday.

Well, I will quit yapping for now.  I love you and hope you are feeling better.  I found some pix of you on the missionary mom website and you looked like you were under the weather.  Sad!!!  That really is hard to keep going when you just wanna curl up and sleep off the icky's.  

We love you and keep you in our prayers and thoughts!  You are such an inspiration.  I want to be better so I can more like my boys!  I know what you are doing is difficult and I'm proud of you for doing it.   I hope that you are feeling the love of your father in heaven and your family.  Hugs and kisses!!! Love mom.

11/17/14 Veteran's Day

11/17/14

Goodbye pumpkins....

So how come P-day got moved to Tuesday this week? What fun are you up to?  How's the new comp?  You guys adjusting and getting along ok? Saw the weather report for your area...burrrrrr. Hope you are staying warm.  You got snow, right? How do you get around? Park the bikes and walk or transit?

So this week has been another busy week.  Let's see...

Monday we went out to Hurricane and interviewed another player.  Afterward we stopped at Sonny's BBQ and had dinner. We kind of love that place.  In fact we've gone there like 5X since we've been to Dickey's.  Not that we don't like Dickey's but ya know.  

I'll miss your cute faces.

Tuesday was Veteran's day.  So I had off work, yeah!!! Last week, BOOOO this week...court is gonna be a doozy from missing last week!  I went to the parade all by myself (dad was working, Katie was in school, Holly was in the parade, Dallas was working).  Every HS band and middle school band in the whole county was in the parade.  Pretty awesome parade!

Yumm!  Pumpkin treats are coming!!!

Pine View Middle School Band

Katie plays saxaphone, she's in there somewhere!

After the parade they had a program.  Holly got to read her essay about why she is thankful for our veteran's in front of a pretty good sized crowd.  Dad said it was about the size of sacrament meeting...so 300 maybe? She did so good.  She didn't even seem nervous at all!  Her choir also sang at the program and then again while they ate lunch.  

I processed 3 pumpkins so we can start having pumpkin treats for awhile.  It didn't make as much as last year...but still plenty.  About a dozen bags of pumpkin.

Wednesday the girls practiced volleyball and I had piano lessons.  

Girls waiting to recite essays

Thursday dad went to SLC until Sunday wee hours of the morning.  Pine View lost to Dixie and Desert Hills lost to Hurricane.  So Dixie plays Hurricane this coming Friday morning for the championship.

We had relief society Thursday evening -- the girls worked the nursery.  I hung out.  

Friday Holly did district level storytelling contest.  She did great!  I don't think she won (they haven't announced it yet which makes me think she's not it).  After the competition we went to chili's for lunch with her friends.  

The girls had girl scouts and learned how to crochet knit hats and girly scarves so they are busy making stuff.  It's kind of funny.  

Saturday we played volleyball - both my teams won one and lost one. Good way to be.  Much better than last week's losers where we lost every game!

Washington Elementary School Choir performs
at Veteran's Day program

Jared and Brittney Squires moved on Halloween.  Mason's birthday was Saturday so we went over and saw their new place and visited a little bit.  It's not as big and fancy as the last place but it is still pretty big and nice.  It's kind of like our house all on one level.  Probably 2500 or so sq ft.  (Ours is 3500 sq ft).  Sounds like they are very busy.  Jared is working full time and trying to do full time school too.  Definitely the hard way to do school!  And kids!  He looked exhausted!

Sunday was a usual Sunday.  In primary they brought in a time machine and had Brother Olsen dress as Alma the younger.  He came and visited and told the story of Alma.  After he left one of the kids yelled out, hey next time can you get Jesus to come visit?!  It was funny!

Tonight was just like last Monday except we went to Dixie H.S. this time.  

Holly delivering her essay at the Veteran's Day Assembly

Well I hope everything is good and you are doing well.  Is there anything you want/need? What treats can we send? I guess we just need to be careful to not send anything nutty.  Are you having a hard time with that? Does your comp have an epi-pen?

Love you tons!  Tomorrow should be a crazy day.  Hopefully you come online when Dad's not at work so he can chat with you a little.  I'll probably not be able to chat too much.  

You are amazing!  We miss you and love you!!!!  Thanks for being such a great example to us.  

Andy enjoying Holly's talk at the Veteran's Day assembly

Love mom

11/9/14 Grandma's 76th birthday!

11/9/14

Another busy week here at the Griffin household.  

Grandma turned 76 years old on Monday.  We went to dinner with Grandma and pa, Eldon, Ben and Laura, Wendy and Eddy.  The girls went to Dickie's during dinner and hung out there.  The weather turned cold so even though Wendy and Eddy now have a pool nobody wanted to use it!  (It's actually warmed back up again but that night it was chilly). I can't remember the name of the place we went but it was pricey and slow.  Dinner took 2 hours.  Not my thing.  

Afterward we went over to Dickie's for cake, icecream and soda and the kids.  Maddie was there.  She looked good.  I think she is going to the dr. this week to see if she can get a handle on her emotions. Not sure if she will go back out on her mission or not.  Most recent thing I heard was she didn't want to.  I guess time will tell.  

Dad had an interview at 8 and dinner took so long that we didn't get to stay and socialize much.  But it was a nice little party.  None of Laura's older boys and kids came, just Taylor.  Sad.  Not sure where the disconnect is but there seems to be a bigger and bigger divide in the family.

Tuesday court was big like usual so didn't get home until about 8:30 p.m.

Wednesday the girls did volleyball practice together (Holly went to Katie's practice) while I did piano and then we had a quick dinner.  Holly did the storytelling festival and won 1st place in her catagory.  (She is such a great little story teller).  So we go on to District competition on Friday at 11.  Lauren Riley also won her category and will be going too.  MacKenzie didn't try.  

Holly also submitted an essay for veteran's day (which Katie helped her write) and she was selected to read her essay to the Veteran's on Tuesday at their luncheon.  

So it's been the week to celebrate Holly's greatness!  

Thursday was my 18th anniversary for working at Washington City.  Had a lousy day at work, ha.  Figures, huh?!  Afterward I just wanted to curl up and go to sleep and cry.  Instead Dad and I went and played pickleball while Katie did her Volleyball for YW.  Ran the icky right out of me!  Felt much better.

(I got a new MAC at work and it is bigger, badder, meaner...and DIFFERENT.  And as with any new computer all kinds of things needed the kinks worked out.  And work doesn't slow down while I fix things, ya know?!  So I'm adjusting and I'll probably really like it soon. But it made for a long week!)

Friday dad went up north to cover football playoffs.  I guess all the southern teams made it.  Dixie, PVHS, DH and Hurricane I think.  And they will all travel up north again Thursday and Friday next week and then again the following week.  CRAZY!!!!  So much $ spent to cart all the kids up north when they all live here!!!  So Dad will be gone alot.

The girls and I had fun walking the new Sullivan trail (connects to Telegraph road), making caramel apples and watching movies Friday while dad was gone.

Saturday we had volleyball games.  Both my teams lost every game.  Ouch.  Long day at the rec center with little reward!  

Hobble creek had a development party to get to know everyone.  Clark's put it on.  It was nice.  They had hotdogs and everybody brought sides.  Lots of food.  Got to meet a neighbor or two that we don't know yet.

Played pickleball again last night. It gets dark at 5:30 or 6 p.m. now.  It is hard to drag ourselves out -- it feels so late!

So there you have it.  The usual at the Griffin household.  

I hope you are doing well.  How's the new comp? Change is usually hard.  I hope you are adjusting well to each other.  

Love the most recent pix you sent.  You look so good!  Keep taking pix for me.  I LOVE IT!!!!!  

Let me know if there is anything I can do for you from here.  LOVE YOU!!!!

11/02/14 Homemade pizza and Halloween parties

11/2/14

Another week in the bag.  It feels like we are more busy than ever.  I guess that's good...keeping the sisters engaged in good wholesome activities leaves no time or energy for naughtiness!

Monday we went out to Desert Hills for an interview for player of the week.  We actually broke tradition and ate at taco time then played pickleball over in Little Valley.  The have nice lighted courts so it was good.  

Tuesday the family made homemade pizza with some pizza flat bread I had bought.  They were yummy and I think they enjoyed making it.  I missed out since I was at work until 8:30 but I had leftovers!

Katie's YW did a Halloween party scavenger hunt somehow church related.  She had fun.  The girls are both doing well with piano.  Did I tell you Katie wrote a song and lyrics and sang it and recorded it for reflections contest?  It's called Lucky and talks about how fortunate she is to have a good family and home and education etc.  Cool, eh?!  She has a pretty voice.

Wednesday I had piano lessons and the girls played volleyball practice.  

Thursday we got ready for the big Halloween party at Holly's school.  Filling balloons with candy and air and making creepy jars for the kids to touch monster parts.  Etc.  

Friday I took off work and went and watched Holly's parade at 9 a.m. (they switched it up, used to be end of the school day).  Then we did her party.  They had mummy wrap, skeleton relay, bone scavenger hunt, pin the wart on the witch, balloon pop, and monster apple creations.  Finished off with bingo and a guess how many bones and skeleton's in a jar game.  The kids were a little rowdy when we arrived (gma and pa came too), but by the time we left they had really settled in and were being really good.  It was a nice party.

Afterward we went to Duena's house for a neighborhood party and then to 8th ward trunk or treat and then trick or treating.  Whew,  Halloween makes me tired!  Dad had games and such so he worked most of the afternoon and evening.

Saturday we had volley ball all morning.  Both my teams won a set and lost a set this week.  So Holly's team is like 1-3 I'm pretty sure and Katie's is 3-1. Both a fun set of kids.  We went rollerskating out in Veyo from 2-4 with girl scouts and then Katie had a birthday party from 6-9 p.m. over at some amazing million dollar home in green valley. WOW. Holly and Dad and I had a quiet evening together.  Weird having just 1 kid!  

Dallas is busy doing his thing and we really don't see much of him.  Seriously days will go by where I might see him for 1 minute in the morning or not at all.  

Turn back the clocks today so everyone is getting in their extra hour of sleep. After this week I think it's much needed!  

Holly and I read a couple of chapters this week of the book of Mormon but we missed a few mornings too.  We will have to try harder next week.  Seems like every time I pickup ANY book and read for a minute or two I'm sound asleep.  

How is your snoring anyway?  Have they been able to find anything to help out with that?  Is it making sleep hard for your comp? Anything we can do to help? We have medical insurance if they thought going to the dr. would help.  Let us know if we can help out!

I saw a bunch of the 8th ward members Friday and quite a few said they have been reading your blog and enjoying hearing how you are doing.  Sister Anderson and Sister Buatte, Sister Scott.  Seems like Lewis' and Johnstones too.  McMullin.  I'm sure I'm forgetting some but just wanted you to know even if they are writing and reaching out to you they are all praying for you and supporting you and learning from you.  You are a great example to us all.  Love you and so proud of all your efforts.  You are amazing!!!  Keep on keeping on!  Love mom!