'Tis the Season for Recitals

The Christmas Recital was held on Monday, December 14th. The girls did such a great job. Jocelyn had both of her songs totally memorized and didn't even take up her books. Jessica made great improvements this year. She is doing much better at sight reading and loves just to sit down at the piano and play through songs. It is fun to see the progress that the kids have been making.

Jessica played Rudolph the "Red Nosed Reindeer" & "Rockin' on 6"

Jocelyn played "Good King Wenceslas" & "Swat a Fly Boogie"

Jessica's orchestra concert was on Tuesday, December 15th. She has really been doing well with the violin (especially when she practices).

Happy Birthday and Trains!

Jared's birthday this year landed on Thanksgiving Day so we celebrated it the day before. He didn't get to celebrate for long however. He had blueberry cheesecake and opened presents, then the boys decided that his special day should be over. Ever since last Christmas when we took down the Christmas train the boys have looked at the box and kept asking when we will get it out again. About a month before Jared's birthday I remember them asking again about the train, so I told them we would get it out after dad's birthday. It wasn't mentioned again until Jared opened up his last present. Jacob said, "Let's get train out now!" Jared and I didn't know what he was talking about until he took us to the train. So that night we got the box down and let them look (their definition of "look" and my definition are not the same) at the train until we got the tree up a couple days later. The love when Jared comes home from work because they know that is when they get to play trains with him again. Love you Jared. Thank you for sharing your special day with the boys and their train!

First Turkey

Jessica helped make Thanksgiving dinner this year. She was such a big help to me and it was a lot of fun to get to visit with her. She made the pumpkin pie filling and got the turkey ready to go in the oven. After a few tears I finally convinced her to put her hand in the turkey and get out the giblets and put onions and stuff inside. Now she can say that she has done her first turkey so the next time won't be as tough! Congratulations on a job well done Jess!

Doctor Visit

The boys went to the doctor on Monday for their 3 year old check-up. After they weighed the boys I couldn't help but be grateful that I started pushing the stroller to school every day when they were just little fellas. Pushing them to school the last couple years has prepared me for pushing them today (over 60 pounds combined). I hope that our stroller will hold up until they can walk to and from school themselves. The doctor said that if the boys continue growing like they are now, they will be taller than me when they are 10 years old. CRAZY! Maybe in a couple years they can start pushing me around.
I knew that this doctor's appointment was going to be loads of "FUN", so I took reinforcements this time. Jared took the morning off to go with us to the doctor. WHEW! I was so glad that he was there because the kicking and screaming bloody murder started right from the start when we were asked to take their shoes off. They made such a stink that they banned Jared and I into another room so that they could try and get their weight and blood pressure. We finally got them settled back down from the trauma of being on the scale and then the doctor came into the room and we started all over again. Okay, I exaggerate, it wasn't quite as bad when the doctor came in. They were so exhausted the rest of the day. Poor little guys (or should I say poor mom and dad?)!

Picture taken 1st day of school, around August 13th, 2007

Christmas Spirit

This is what we watched for part of our Family Home Evening tonight. What a great way to add the Spirit in our home. May we all feel the Spirit of Christ in our lives this Christmas Season.

Doctrine & Covenants

YEAH for our family! On Monday we finished reading the Doctrine and Covenants! It took us 13 1/2 months but we can finally say that we finished it as a family.

This school year we started something different with the kids. Before, either Jared or myself would read and the kids would stare off into space (I think that they were sleeping with their eyes open). We started having them bring their own scriptures every morning at 7:00 to the living room where we all take turns reading a verse. This has especially been helpful for Jocelyn. She has blossomed in her reading abilities. We used to only give her the shortest verses, but now she can read any verse with just a little help on the harder words. It has been fun to see the progress that our family has made as we have been reading.

Santa's Naughty List

These 2 little boys might find themselves getting a lump of coal in their stockings on Christmas Day or maybe they will find a used up container of lipstick and mascara. I came into the living room today and found that the boys had found my brand new, never been opened, Mary Kay mascara and lipstick. I had ordered them from a friend and just received them in the mail. Both are a complete loss. I am so glad that I could fund their "creativity". I wish that I could say that they only put makeup on their faces. Let's just say that I found out that it is easier getting mascara out of the carpet and furniture than it is to get lipstick out. In case you're wondering: the house IS safe from 2 little boys while I type up this post because they are sitting HERE.

Joy to Everyone

Last night for Activity Days we let the girls watch, "The Nativity Story" and eat pizza and popcorn. The leaders beforehand bore their testimonies about the Christmas season and our thoughts and feelings about Jesus Christ. The feeling in the room was awesome last night. It was so great to hear the girls all tell what they were feeling after they saw the movie. I have been thinking about that feeling and the movie all day. I was so excited when I came across this website today. It made me happy. I get so caught up in everything that needs to get done for Christmas that sometimes I forget the true meaning of the holiday. The video and music are beautiful. Take a moment and have a listen; it will make your day even better. Enjoy! Click on Joy to Everyone to get there!

Name Calling

I love that the boys have started calling Jared and I "MOD". They must have figured out that if they meshed the words mom and dad together they would always get it right. It wouldn't matter who they were talking to. The funny part of the story is that they get so upset when someone calls them by the wrong name. Hmmmmmmm.....

Halloween 2009

Mother-Daughter Activity

The girls and I got to go to the Mother-Daughter Activity for the Activity day girls. It was a fun afternoon. The girls made a bracelet and learned about decorating cupcakes. Jessica and Jocelyn had a ball decorating their cupcakes. It is nice to have these activities every once in a while so that we can stop our busy lives and enjoy a little one-on-one time with our kids.

Jessica and Jocelyn I want you both to know how proud I am of both of you. You are such good examples to me and you help me to want to be a better mom. You are both so beautiful and I am so proud of you!

Garage Sale

We did our first ever garage sale in November. It was a lot of work preparing for the big event, but we sold a lot of things and decluttered our house in the process. The boys were put up for sale, but there were no takers that day.

Congrats Jessica!

I'm a little slow at posting, but there are a couple things that have happened to Jessica lately. First off, Jessica made the Honor Roll (you have to have all A's & B's) for the last quarter. The school that the girls go starts doing letter grades in the 5th grade. She was so excited to get on the Honor Roll. She said that she really wants to work hard this quarter to get on the Principal's List(you have to have all A's).

Second up is Jessica's new haircut. She went in a couple weeks ago and got it all cut off. She got over 7 inches cut off. She was hoping to donate it to Locks of Love, but her hair wasn't quite long enough (you need 10 inches).

Jessica helped with all of the cooking this year for Thanksgiving! She was so determined to help. She still didn't like touching the turkey, but you could tell how proud she was that she did it! She made the pumpkin pie pretty much herself as well. It was so nice to have a little helper in the kitchen this year.







She is growing into such a little lady and I am so proud to call her my daughter.

Foot Surgery Update

Today I found out that I don't have to take blood thinner anymore. I have been on it for 6 months. People that have foot surgeries should have a very low percent (1% or less) of getting a blood clot. This being said, they don't really know if it was the surgery that caused me to get a blood clot. Because of that I will be taking an aspirin a day to help prevent me ever having a blood clot again. I feel so blessed that Coumadin was around to be able to help me and save my live, but I also feel very blessed that I can stop taking the stuff. This is truly something to be thankful for!

As for my foot. I haven't been released from the doctor yet. I am hoping that my next appointment in December will be the last one.

Thankful

Is it silly that I am thankful for 2 great cleaning products that I recently discovered?

Sprayway Glass Cleaner is by far the best window cleaner that I have ever used. It is totally streakless and it is has made my sliding door and mirrors so great to look at! Love it!





Pledge I just found out about this week. I have known about using Pledge with wood, but did you know that you can use it to clean your stainless steel appliances? I wish that I had known about this 4 years ago! It works great. Good-bye stainless steel cleaner; Hello Pledge! (Thank you Bree for the great tip!)

Just For Fun

"I Bleed Orange"

After 5 1/2 years Jared was released from the Varsity Scout program. Many of you know how much I have wanted Jared to get released. Now that it has finally happened, it is really sad. Jared was such a great leader and friend to all of the boys that he has taught. He absolutely loved camping and was always willing to learn a new skill to teach the boys if they wanted to learn it. Jared said that he went through 3 bishops and 8 bishopric counselors while he was in the Varsity program. He took the boys to 3 Mountain Man Rendezvous (these happen every other year); 4 On-Targets; 4 triathlons (he participated every year in the triathlon); and 6 high adventure camps including Philmont Scout Ranch that was a 12 day backpacking trek. Jared's favorite color is now orange which drives me crazy because every time he sees an orange shirt he has to buy it. Orange is the Varsity color in case you are wondering.

Jared wrote an email to the guy in the district that is over Varsity scouts. It said:

Now that I have turned the paper work in they go and release me. I will now be serving in the EQ presidency. It is tough to give up the best calling in the church. Between Coach and Assistant Coach I have been in the Teachers quorum for over 5 years.

When I first got called the then scoutmaster (Steve Sowards) in our ward said, "I'm jealous… I bleed orange." I gave him a stupid look and did not know what he was talking about. I never had an YM calling before. I didn’t even know there were different scouting charters for the older boys let alone colors. He told me to get trained.

I remember reluctantly going to my first huddle. I did not want to go learn cheers and chants from over zealous scouters. I had never been to a roundtable or huddle before. I went with the intention of trying it once and if I did not like it I would probably not come back. I remember you and Vanessa introducing the 2005 Rendezvous. It sounded really cool! Then I went to a breakout session on knife making with Trader Joe. I left wanting to go to the rendezvous and with the desire to make a knife. I got a lot out of it and have rarely missed over the passed 5+ years.

After that I got trained and took a few boys to the gold card service at RC to winterize the cabins. It has just gotten better ever since.

Since then, I have taken boys to 3 Mt. Man Rendezvous (each one was a gold card team), 4 On-Targets, 4 triathlons (I participated each time), 6 high adventure camps including Philmont, and various other outings. I got an amateur radio license and CPR certification along the way. I now have leather pieces, leather working tools, knives / knife parts, half made moccasins, double ball sticks, capotes, backpack, camping gear, etc in the garage. I started with one Dutch oven and now have 3.5 (one has a cracked lid). It has been a good run.

Thank you for your help and support along the way. You really do a great job of instructing new scout leaders.

I bleed orange,
Jared Kelm

Jared got an email from the guy in the stake that is over the Varsity program. It said:

Jared,

I want you to know what a pleasure it has been working with you.

You are truly one of the best Varsity Coach's I have ever worked with. Your total commitment to the boys and the program show.

I know you will be an asset to the Elders Quorum and that you will bring to them the same dedication you brought to the Varsity Program. And some day you will be involved with the Varsity Scouts again. Yes, like the rest of us, "YOU BLEED ORANGE"

Thank you for being you.

Brother Latimer

Jared, it has been a long run and we as a family have learned a lot and grown a lot from your experiences in the scouting program. I love your dedication that you showed the boys. I know that my attitudes towards the scouting program changed when I heard Jared give a talk recently about scouts. He said that he is teaching boys right now that are basically the same age of the boys that our girls will one day marry. He said that he hoped that our future son-in-laws will have gotten the same experiences with scouts because it will make them better people and husbands. I had never thought about that before (kind of scary to think about my girls getting married!) but when I heard Jared say that I broke down and my attitudes changed.

It is hard to believe that I am saying this, but I really will miss scouts. I have enjoyed watching all of the boys grow up. I will miss watching them interact with my kids every week. I guess that I can say as a Varsity Leader's wife, I also bleed orange (well at least a little bit).

In case you are wondering, Jared is now the 2nd counselor in the Elder's Quorum Presidency. We replaced one set of meetings with more meetings!

Big & Little

I was showing Jacob & Jayden some pictures the other day when we came across this one. Jacob was so excited about this picture. He started pointing to himself (the one on the right) and said, "Big" and then he pointed to Jayden and said, "Little". Poor Jayden started crying and said that he wasn't little that he was big too. I was impressed that Jacob was able to tell the difference between big and little, but I felt bad for Jayden that he was called the little one.

San Diego

Jared and I were able to go to San Diego for a couple days in July for our good friends' wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony right on the beach. We were lucky enough to have our trip overlap a little bit with my aunt and uncle, who live in Virginia. We hung out in Old Town for a few hours before we started our long drive back home. We were also able to hang out with Jared's brother and his wife. We walked around the gaslamp district and had dinner.
JoAnn & Jared and Aunt Jeanine & Uncle Cordell Viehweg; Old Town, San Diego

JoAnn & Jared; Old Town, San Diego

Jared & JoAnn Kelm and Misty & Warren Kelm;

New York Strip Club, San Diego. This restaurant was different because you had to grill your own steak (strips of meat).

Jared & JoAnn on the beach in San Diego. This was taken after the wedding of our good friends, Adam & Chanci!