The R family on Christmas Eve

One of my favorite families, besides my own, is the R family (the initial is for privacy reasons.) When I became best friends with Ryan, they welcomed me into the fold with no reservations or hesitations. I went to see them on Christmas Eve after going to church to see Sidney sing in a Christmas program, then to see Dad sing in another Christmas program. I gave Ryan his gift (sadly, it was two gift certificates) and then took a few pictures of the family.

Among the many R family members that I love, Jason is perhaps one of my favorites. The reason for this is because he reminds me of my nephew Caleb. He was born a month after Caleb was. Since my beautiful Caleb has left this earth, I measure how big he would be and his development by watching Jason. Jason is expecting a baby sister in a few months. It is strange to think that Caleb was perfectly healthy when he was born but then left us. Jason, on the other hand, spent the first week of his life in the NICU and had more than one serious operation. It never ceases to amaze me how life turns out. At one time, I couldn't look at Jason without crying. Now, I just look at him and smile. In the picture to the right, Jason is throwing cushions off the couch just like an active little boy should be.

Above is a picture of Ryan, my best friend. After much harrassing, he finally smiled for the camera. He, I'm sure, is very grateful that I didn't put some of the other pictures that I took on this blog. They were not very flattering.

Slade belongs to Dave and Haley. He is so cute and is crawling in his own unique way. Like most R kids, he is a curious child who is very loved by his family. In this picture he is playing with his Grandpa, a back scratcher, and his Mom.

Party at Jen's house

On Saturday I headed off to work. Wow, the day before Christmas Eve has got to be the slowest day at libraries across the land. After work I went over to Jen's house for a get together. I got some great pictures of everyone. After munching on food and talking, those with kids had to leave. Brandon, Erin, Jen, and I ended up watching Elf. After Brandon left, the three of us girls watched episodes of Greys Anatomy and talking until 2 am. It was a lot of fun.


<--- Ben and his son Caleb

Lyns and Caleb ---->

Rayanne, Ryan, Boston, and Grant (the boys were very shy at first, but then warmed up to all of us scary grown-ups.)

Jen

Brandon
and Erin ----->

Boston and Grant blowing out candles

Meme

Another Meme:

Death matches
Who would win the death match between...

1. The Care Bears vs the Smurfs - I think it would be the smurfs. The Care Bears are too nice to hit anyone.
2. Barbies vs Bratz - I would have to say Barbie. Not only is she older with more experience, but she had GI Barbie along with Scientist Barbie, Teacher Barbie, etc. Bratz are just annoying teenagers.
3. He-Man vs Terminator - I would say He-Man because he has the element of magic on his side.
4. The Power Rangers vs The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Sadly, I think the Power Rangers would win because of all their cool weapons.
5. Batman vs Spider-man - I would have to say Batman would win. He has cooler toys and a more underhanded way of fighting.

Christmas on Friday

On Friday, the whole clan got together for a Christmas celebration. I was a little late because I had to work until 6. Dinner was just about to start when I arrived. After an excellent dinner of twice-baked potatoes, ham, rolls, and salad, we unwrapped gifts. It was so cute to see the babies try to unwrap a gift. They all ended up trying to eat the wrapping paper. Sidney was confused as to why she didn't have as many gifts as other people until I explained that she would be getting more at her house on Christmas day. I received clothes, some books, and dishes including tupperware and glassware. (There are times I think that being an adult isn't that fun :)

After a great many presents were opened, we had some wonderful desserts provided by Josh and Britnie. Brit made some amazing chocolate/Carmel cake and Josh made, so I hear, some wonderful fruit pie/tarts. All in all, it was a wonderful night.

Wednesday

Today was a fun day. I woke up with a new perspective. Instead of feeling sorry for myself, I was going to press onward. Yes, I didn't get the job I wanted, but I refuse to be pulled down by it. I am sure there is another job out there for me.
Sidney woke me up when she came to get me for breakfast. Someone, probably Dad, had made breakfast cake and fruit. Yum. Sidney and I then played with Christmas ornaments and put a few more on the tree. She also decided that we needed to hang some garlands of nutcracker men around the house and put together the nativity scene. Wyatt was in a fairly good mood until after lunch when he became sleepy. He is so stubborn. He was exhausted but refused to take a nap. Jordan and Isaac joined us in the large amounts of fun. Sidney and I finally got out of our pajamas and went to the craft store for supplies to make candy cane reindeer. Even though we got distracted by the wind chimes, we managed to get candy canes, brown pipe cleaner, red puff balls, and some plastic "googly" eyes. It was messy to glue together but they ended up fairly cute. Wyatt had Clementines (a type of citrus) for the first time. Mom made chicken noodle soup and bread sticks for dinner. Josh, Brooke, Jeremy, and Alison joined us and it ended up being quite a family gathering. Aunt Diane stopped by on her way down from Idaho to visit Grandma and Grandpa R. Well, it is now after 11 and I have to be to work by 8:30 am. Guess I should try to get some sleep. Goodnight dear blog readers.

Ye long week...

Well, finals are over. Yeh!!! This past week has been insane. After a final on Tuesday, I went to work. I babysat Wyatt and Sidney on Wednesday because Mom went to Idaho to help with Grandma R. I don't know how mothers around the world do it. Attempting to entertain and feed to kids and get anything done is impossible. The only reason I managed to get dinner on the table is because I started it before Wyatt arrived at noon. I ended up making chicken crescent squares.
On Thursday I took my last final. I was one of the first ones done with my Victorian Lit test, which included a matching part, short answer, and essay. I hope being the first student done isn't a bad sign. I feel ok about it; not necessarily really good or bad. After my final, I went home, changed, and then drove to Provo for an interview at the Provo City Library. I had a hard time getting any feedback from the two women who interviewed me. After the 1/2 hour meeting, I drove the hour back to work and slaved away until 9pm. I was so tired after Thursday I went to bed early.
On Friday, Dad and I went to work at the cannery. We then went shopping and fielded phone calls from Grandma J, Mom, and Aunt Peggy. Dad took me to lunch at Tony Roma's after I got a phone call from the Provo Library asking me to come in for a second interview on Monday. I did some laundry and Jordan and Isaac came over for a little while. When it was time for Isaac to be fed, Jordan and I took him to see his Mom in Ogden. By the time Friday night was over, I was pretty tired.
On Saturday morning, Dad and I went to the temple and then to see Grandma J. at the hospital. She was still pretty upset that she hadn't been moved to the rehab center on Friday. According to a nurse, she had found Grandma on the floor of the bathroom the night before. Grandma doesn't remember anything about it. Apparently the nurse had given Grandma a sleeping pill and left her alone. Grandma then woke up and decided to go to the bathroom by herself. The nurse figures that Grandma fell asleep on the toilet and slid off. Nothing is broken or even bruised though. After a brief chat and blow-drying Grandma's hair, Dad got me home in time for me to get ready for work. I worked until 6, then went to Sherma's house for a party. All the old Kaysville City Library staff were there. It was nice to catch up with people I haven't seen in months. Erica is pregnant with her second child, Nikki is looking for a house, and Mike is getting ready to move away to college. Sadly, Karen, Jo, Eric, Hillary, and Kim couldn't make it. The food was wonderful. I got home at 10ish but ended up staying up much later on the computer. It was nice to know that Mom was finally home after a week of being in Idaho.
Sunday was a nice day of rest for all. Church went well with a Relief Society lesson on unity. The rest of church was equally as interesting, especially the three musical numbers from the choir. I had tithing settlement, then made dinner: pasta, marinated chicken, and salads. The pasta was way too spicy but the chicken turned out perfectly. It was strange on Sunday night to realize that this was the first weekend in months that I didn't have to study for a class on Monday. Dad helped me get the Christmas Tree up and put on the lights. I then decorated it. I decided to put some photos of the family on it and I think it turned out to have a simple and homemade look.
On Monday I had my second interview at the Provo City Library. It went well and the director along with two other librarian's seemed to like me. I went away with a positive feeling. I then picked up some food on the way to work, where we had perhaps the slowest Monday night ever. My co-workers demanded a recap of my interview and gave me their opinion's on the situation. After work I went out to IHOP with Ryan, who I hadn't seen in a while.
My Tuesday morning began with a phone call from the Provo City Library saying that I hadn't gotten the job. It ended up being a contest between me and two other people. Sadly, I didn't win out. I lay in bed thinking about what my next move would be when I heard someone enter the house. It turned out to be Jordan and Isaac. Jordan presented me with a belated birthday gift and then made me a wonderful lunch of pasta with red sauce made from scratch. I got to play with my darling nephew, talk with my wonderful brother, and forget my problems for a while. Without them being there, I suspect I would have sobbed. Anyway, after they left I took a shower and waited for my parents to come home. Dad came home late and almost immediately we left for Salt Lake to pick up Mom. I told Dad about not getting the job and started to cry. Thankfully he let me cry in silence and pretended not to notice. After picking up Mom, the three of us then met up with Jen, John, and Lauren for dinner. The food at Rinos was good although a little expensive. Mom, Dad, Jen, and John then went to see a play at Pioneer Theater while I babysat Lauren. Lauren and I read books, played with toys, and looked at the Christmas tree. Lauren touched the branches and needles but then wanted to eat it. We discussed it and decided that it wasn't a good idea. (Actually, I won out on the argument because I am the bigger of the two of us :) It was dinner time so I warmed her bottle and let Lauren eat her fill. Her night ended with pajamas, another book, and a song from her Aunt Jess. She was asleep by 8:20 pm and I watched a movie since I had left my book in the car. I had forgotten how much I like the movie Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Driving home with Mom and Dad, I couldn't get Monday's interview out of my mind. It is strange to have such a wonderful interview and not get the job. I guess the person they chose must have been amazing. Anyway, it has been a while since I have had a week that has been this crazy. I am hoping this week will be a little less insane. Thus ends the week report.

One final left

I am so excited. Thursday morning is my last final. (Then I will get to read anything I want. Yeh!)

Last week of class

This week has been crazy. It was the last week of classes. On Monday I gave a presentation in my Lit Crit class. Oddly enough, my presentation was on a painting. The assignment was to take a piece of literature and critique it using three literary theories. Many people did fairy tales, serious classical works, or poems. Boring. I asked my teacher if I could do something a little different. In an earlier post, I showed a picture of The Kiss by Klimt. This is the painting I did my presentation on. Using biographical criticism, feminist criticism, and deconstructionism, I critiqued the painting for the class. While my fellow students seemed a bit confused, Dr. Cheney seemed to like it. In the History of Christianity, I found out that I got a good score on my last paper (47 out of 50). Considering how hard of a grader Dr. Francis is, I felt pretty good about myself. The week ground on with school and work. On Thursday I didn't have school or work. This was a very good thing since I had three papers due on Friday. I worked most of the day and night on them. (Yes, I procrastinate) My view of pre and post-Victorian class structures in England using literary examples ended up being 9 pages. It was supposed to be 10 but I just couldn't squeeze another page out of my head. The dissection of Song by Rossetti was the perfect five pages long and the write up of my Lit Crit presentation was finished by Wednesday so I didn't have to worry about it.
For my History of Christianity class, I wrote a paper about Christianity in the 19th and 20th centuries with an emphasis on Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. The poor man was a good writer but was fighting an uphill battle. He was fighting the war of faith in Europe. After World War I, most Europeans went through a crisis of faith that they have yet to rebound from. According to a 2000 Gallop poll, while 88% of Europeans said they belonged to a religion, only 20% said they went to church for something other than weddings, funerals, or Christmas. In contrast, 91% of Americans said they belonged to a religion and 47% of Americans attend church regularly. It's an interesting statistic. C.S. Lewis was trying to bring people back to faith and Christianity. Currently, religious scholars seem to feel that Christianity and faith is dying. What a sad statement.
Anyway, back to the main topic of this blog entry. I felt much better after turning in all my papers. I have a final on Monday and another on Thursday of this coming week. I am so excited to be done with this semester. I only wish it was my last. Oh well, wishing won't make it so. Tomorrow the family is meeting for a dinner to celebrate my birthday and the birthdays of my two younger brothers. Yeh, I love family bonding! (Not to mention that I will get to see my cute nieces and nephews :) I can't imagine belonging to a family that doesn't basically like each other and get along.

Meme #2...it's a long one

Another Meme for your enjoyment:

1. Flip to page 18, paragraph 4 - of the closest book to you, what does it say? "Now, as in the past, cultures define themselves by the songs they sing and the stories they love to tell." This is from the Norton Anthology of English Literature, Volume E.
2. If you stretch out your left arm as far as possible, what are you touching? The wall of Mom's office is less than a foot away from where I am sitting. Not a long stretch. If I reach up I can touch a framed photo of a tree and a pond.
3. What's the last program you watched on tv? For more than 5 minutes? I guess that would be Doctor 90210. Last night while typing on the computer, I had the tv on. I saw/heard about 30 minutes of it. It is a reality show about plastic surgeons in Beverly Hills. (P.S. Dr. Ray's wife should leave him. He is way too selfish.)
4. Without looking, guess what time it is? I would guess about midnight. (Just looked at the clock, it is now 12:23 am)
5. Except your computer, what can you hear now? Itunes. I am listening to Itunes on the computer. The current song is Dyslexic Heart by Paul Westerberg. The song before that was The Dreame from the soundtrack to Sense and Sensibility. Bonnie Raitt is next.
6. When was the last time you went outside and what did you do? I went out to go shopping. I ended up doing almost all of my Christmas shopping this afternoon.
7. What are you wearing? My blue scrub bottoms and a red sweatshirt.
8. What did you dream about last night? I dreamed that my extended Roberts family moved in and took over my bedroom. I had to sleep in the fruit room.
9. When was the last time you laughed? Less than an hour ago. I was reading a blog by a librarian. She was describing something that happened in her library with a patron.
10. What are on the walls of the room you are in right now? There is a photo of a tree and pond taken by Dad, a shelf, and a bulletin board.
11. Have you seen anything strange lately? Does strange include a woman coming within a foot of hitting my car with her own. I hate driver's who talk on their cell phones and can't pay attention to the road. If you can't multi-task, don't talk and drive.
12. What do you think of this Meme? It's pretty good. I can reveal a little about myself but nothing too deep.
13. What's the last film you saw? Stranger than fiction. It was excellent.
14. If you became a multimillionaire, what would you do? I would buy myself a small house and a new, but modest car, buy my siblings new houses if they wanted, and then travel. After a trip or two (accompanied by various family members), I would return to Utah, deposit a million in a bank account to watch it grow, and start helping people who really needed it. I think I would keep my job at the library because I love it. Plus, I would lose my mind without something to occupy it.
15. Tell us something that most people don't know about you? Whenever I get really stressed in my life, I get a rash on my stomach around my bellybutton.
16. If you could change one thing in this world, without regarding politics or bad guilt - what would it be? That wars were actually waged with rubber bullets, feather knives, and cotton-stuffed bombs. It could be like the sock wars that I had as a child.
17. Do you like dancing? Yes, although I can't say I'm any good. I have a recurring fantasy about slow dancing with a handsome man who is in love with me.
18. George Bush? A president who can't be re-elected. Enough said.
19. What do you want you children's names to be, boy or girl? I have always liked Samantha for a girl. Basically, I am in favor of names that can be shortened. That way, when the parent is mad, they can use the full name.
20. Would you ever consider living abroad? I'm not sure. On one hand, it would be a wonderful adventure. I think I could make friends anywhere. On the other hand, it would kill me to live an entire country away from my family.

Thus ends the huge Meme.

Almost done

I found this cool site, LetterJames.com, that you can custom-make signs on. Hopefully I can get my blog updated this weekend. After writing four papers this past week, all I have to do is take two finals and the semester is done. Yeh!

Klimt painting

This is a copy of "The Kiss" by Klimt. I have this print hanging on the wall of my bedroom. I have always been intrigued by it. It was painted in the early 1900's . I really wish I could get to sleep right now. Instead I am typing or reading. Grrr. I think I will try to climb into bed in a few minutes and will myself to sleep.