My Christmas Story

Ten years ago, Christmas definitely didn't mean the same thing that is does to me today. Sometimes I find that Christmas is hard for me, for anyone to understand the change that has taken place you have to understand, where I have been. 14 years ago, my life changed completely. My maternal grandma had died, and my grandpa(age 89) came to live with us in our small/modest home. There was an instant bond between us, not just a biological bond, but a tie that bound us together. My days with Grandpa were wonderful, I would come home from school and immediately go into his room, and spend the afternoon cuddled up watching old westerns. When we were not doing that I was making up games that we played at the dinner table. On Sundays we would go for long drives through the country. Our summers were filled with trips that included lots of fishing (I hated eating the fish so if I caught any, Grandpa would eat it for me). This was my life, and I loved it. Don't get me wrong, grandpa and I had lot of ups but we had our downs too. It was nothing that I couldn't fix with a kiss and three little words(I love you).

In mid-November 1998, I don't remember the date, but the memory is there is if it were yesterday. I came home from school and ran in to grandpas room to watch some old westerns
and as I threw back the curtain to him make shift room, his bed was empty. There was no need to search the house, I knew he wasn't there. I remember inquiring to my mom about grandpas whereabouts, she told me that grandpa was sick. I begged my mom to let me go with her to the hospital, but not just to visit, I wanted to stay with grandpa. To my delight she agreed, I missed two weeks of school and I could have cared less. My aunt is an educator and when she came up to see grandpa, she told mom that I needed to go back to school. Reluctantly I went back to school, I waited everyday hoping that the inevitable would not come. The day did come, I begged Heavenly Father to bring him back to me. When I realized that he would not give grandpa back, I begged him to take me with him. Apart of me died that day, my heart felt like a big chunk was taken, I hurt physically and spiritually. All I wanted that year for Christmas I couldn't have. I ended up in a depression, For several years after that, I lived in a dark world. I dreaded Christmas, I couldn't find anything happy or exciting about Christmas or about life. I always loved getting presents, It was after the days festivities were over that I found myself remember better days, wishing and wanting for things that I felt I could never have.

Life got so hard for me that I pleaded for help from above. I remember what one of my young women leader had told me about the atonement. I learned that the atonement was not only to take away my sins, but that Christ suffered every pain and illness. He was the only one who knew what any of us is possibly going through. So I started to pray, and ask for the comfort that I needed to move on. I got the comfort that I needed, but it didn't happen over night, it took time. To this day my heart still hurts a little, I find myself out of the blue, crying because I still miss him.

Over the years I have been able to fill my void with things that I love, ie: My wonderful husband, my loving little boy, and my love for my Savior and his gospel. It is because of the Saviors birth and his subsequent atonement that I am able to love life again. It is why I am here today, it is why I am able to find joy in life. To this day I still rely on my Savior, I need him everyday.

It is always nice to get fun gifts this time of year, but the best gift we have ever been given was our Savior. If you get nothing else from this post, please remember that no matter how hard life gets, there is always one person who knows exactly what you are going through. Never hesitate to turn to Him, his is your true friend and advocate with the Father.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all!

Change

I'll admit it, I HATE change. I have a slight problem when I find something that I like, I don't like to change it. Some people rearrange their furniture every couple of weeks, and I like mine just the way that it is. I mean why change a good thing, right? For better or for worse, in the last couple of months the Wierschke household has under gone LOTS of changes. Some for the good and others, well I guess we will see.

For some strange reason, I have decided to change our Blog. I loved the colors, don't get me wrong, but we just needed some change. After the holidays are over and I have more time, I will be make more changes to the blog. Please check back in a couple of weeks, it should be exciting. I also see the need to change our family photo, I think that I look a little more flattering now then I did when we took the photo. I am excited cause that photo is really old.

I am excited and a little hesitant to share a personal Christmas story with you. For some reason I feel a strange and overwhelming need to share it, or I would not be doing so. I am currently working on it and will most likely be our next post.

Until then, 16 Days til Christmas!!

Santa??

Just thought that I would share a picture of my cute little Santa Clause!
I can't wait for Christmas!

Just Keep Swimming

We just got back from our thanksgiving break last night. I have already started decorating the house today, I think this is the longest I have gone after thanksgiving before I whip out christmas decorations. I think that I deserve a little pat on the back. No offense to those of you who start putting them up after Halloween, but I feel that cheats thanksgiving a little. I wait atleast until the day after, although sometimes I think I should wait until december officially begins. The anticipation kills me too!

I am starting to feel better, we are crossing our fingers that this will be it. I have vowed not to go to the hospital(mainly ER) ever again.

School for Jon is winding down, he finishes regular classes this week and then it is on to finals. After that we hop a plane to my parents house for a short little break.

So I have to share some very exciting news. Before we mom and dad wierschkes, mom gave Jon a little bag and when he got to the car(I was already in the car) and handed it to me. I figured that it was misc. stuff that we had left. I opened it up and there on the top of the pile was the Mormon Tabernacle Chior Christmas DVD with the King Singers!! I have been looking foreward to that all year, and had every intentions of buying it. Mom and Dad beat me to it and got it for me for Christmas. Tonight we are putting up our Christmas Tree and Watching King Singers!

Just found out about Elder Wirthlin. Sad day, but I am glad that he is with his beloved wife.

So Far Behind!

(Note: Our computer crashed a few weeks ago(We were able to recover all of our data last night) and we are borrowing a laptop, which I can not type on. So if there are a few more spelling or word errors then normal I blame the laptop)!

Ever since I went to the ER, I have been in this rut that I have not been able to pull myself out. I am so far behind in EVERYTHING. From dishes to vacuuming, I just can't seem to keep up. I wonder if it is even worth trying to catch up. As I have been trying to get better, I have had tons of help from visiting teachers(and others in the ward who have taken Brett to go play) and Mom and Dad Wierschke who have cleaned my house top to bottom. Some how after everyone leaves and we start making messes again, I find myself feeling helpless. I do have to say that I managed to get the laundry done this weekend and by done I mean washed. It is by no means folded, we just have little piles everywhere. Sometime I wonder if there will ever be a day when I have conquered all of my piles and everything will be in its proper place. Days come and go and I look back and realize that I did nothing that day. It is hard as a wife and a mother to know the my responsibility it to take care of my little family, and I can't, my poor body is just way to weak. Bless Jon's heart, he has stepped up and taken alot upon himself. He just does what needs to be done around the house, and when that is done he works on his school work. Often there isn't enough time in the day for him to get his work done, but I am grateful for what he does do for me.

Anyway long post, but I just felt like I owed it to the blog and to those who check this thing everyday. As for pictures the top on is of my boys cooking. Brett loves to hang out with dad and when dad is cooking this is the only way it works, to Bretts satisfaction. The bottom picture is of Brett after he helps grandma do the dishes. You can see the everything around the sink is soaked!!

Sad Day

Neither BYU(48-24) or U of M(42-7) won their games yesterday :(, It was a sad day yesterday. There is always next season, we still have some faith in our teams!

U of M Medical Center

Life in the Wierschke household has been a little crazy. It all started with a little cold and something that I thought I would be able to conquer on my own, as I have done in the past. Turned out that on Monday I had to go to the hospital and stay the night, because I had a slight chemical imbalance. As long as I stay on my meds and drink plenty of fluids I should be ok, and we won't have to go back to the hospital!!

I hate being in hospitals, I always get so restless. Not to mention that I always feel sicker then I really am. Even though U of M has some pretty amazing facilities, I can't say that I enjoyed my little vacation. I cant even call it a vacation, I missed my little family so much. Thanks to all who watched Brett for me on such short notice.

P.S. You know that saying that says something to the effect of, always put on clean underwear before you leave the house cause you never know. Well after my little experience on Monday I have a few other things that you should always do before you leave the house!!

Halloween

So for Halloween Grandma Hodgson sent Brett a puppy costume. Which he sported at the ward Halloween party. I wanted to play it safe this year, and not risk tainted candy, so we "trick or treated" at the church. He was super cute and had tons of fun. He also realized that there are sweeter things in life besides cookies(which are his favorite). We are slowly rationing out his candy and he enjoys every minute of it(and so are we).





Brett checking out the cute little Lion. Actually I don't think it was the lion he was after. Not pictured is a CD Player and if there is something that my boy loves, it is electronics!!

I Voted!!

Since I Voted via absentee ballot, I did not receive one of the cool little "I voted" stickers. So I figured that I would let you all know that I did my civic duty and voted. Thanks to the First Presidency for reminding me that even though I hate all the candidates, that I still needed to vote.

I voted against the proposition to raise Washington states sales tax(8.2% is too high). I voted for elderly caregiver to have a more strict rules and regulations and back ground checks(had personal experience). I voted against terminally ill patients to receivee lethal drugs(who are we to play God??). I voted against opening HOV lanes during certain hours to relieve congestion(which would also include more taxes).

As for specific people that I voted for I will leave that a mystery, I will tell you that I did vote for a few democrats and a few republicans. Man, I deserve a sticker!!

Who Are We Voting For?

Many people wonder who I am voting for this election, and I have tried to stay out of the all the politics for as long as I can. Sadly I just can't keep quiet for much longer, so for those of you whose vote hinges on mine. This is who I am voting for:

It isn't that I can't make up my mind, I can not in good faith vote for either candidate. I feel like they both will mess up and make things worse, no one can convince me otherwise. I am a registered republican, I agree with MOST of their ideals, I am a conservative. However I believe in crossing party lines to vote for someone who will get the job done RIGHT. I do not believe that either of these men can do that.

At one point I vowed not to vote in this election, but as I prayed about it I have felt that I need to vote now more then ever. As I have continued research, I have heard so many say that want to vote for the man that will help usher in the second coming(good idea). My only fear is that this election might not coincide with the Lords timing for the second coming, and then the economy will be even worse.

Our decision as a couple is to vote for the man who we believe is the lesser of the two evils. Then pray, pray that the Lord my guide them. Pray that they will pray, and listen to the Lord. There is nothing that the Lord doesn't care about.

I encourage you to pray about your decision before you vote and then pray for those who will eventually run our country. We need the Lord now more then ever!

Dentist Update

Brett went in Monday for a routine 6 month cleaning. Lets just say that he didn't like it at all, I have never heard Brett scream like that in his whole life. The dental hygienist took our picture and gave Brett a toy boat.

I do have to say that I love dental insurance, let me show you why:


Initial Exam-$72.00
Child Cleaning-$62.00
Fluoride Child-$45.00
------------------------
Grand Total-$254.00
------------------------
We Pay-$9.00(Priceless)

Didn't that sound like a Master card commercial??

Here is the suspended train track!! Brett loves it when it goes Choo Choo!!

Someday the dentist office won't be so bad, until April and October will be bitter sweet!!

Free Handbag

Check it out! http://www.handbagplanet.com/
Who doesn't like free stuff??

The Final Count Is.....

So for those who happen to care, I am in the process of finalizing my graduation plan. I will receive my bachelors of University Studies, with a Minor in Business and History and a Cluster in Photography! Here is the break down...

University Studies(I guess I didn't completely waste my time, while I was there)
23 Credits=9 Classes

Business Minor
24 Credits=8 Classes

History Minor
24 Credits=8 Classes

Photography Cluster
3 Credits=1 Class

Total
74 Credits=26Classes=8 Years to complete it in

The Dentist

Brett got to make a surprise visit to the dentist this morning. Tuesday night he fell and chipped his beautiful front tooth :(. So we had to quickly find a dentist, after six calls and no one taking patients, I found Dr Wilson. She looked at his tooth and told me that there was no visible damage, but to watch it. She told me to remember C.A.M.P.
C- Color
A-Abscess
M-Mobility
P-?? (Shoot I already forgot, I think it was pain. Actually I don't think it was pain, gee I am a horrible mom!)

If any of these symptoms show up, then it is back to the dentist. She did have to smooth the tooth and Brett did not like that at ALL. I have never seen his so scared in his life, but like most things he got over it quickly. I did just for kicks schedule a routine cleaning for Monday!! I would recommend a pediatric dentist to anyone, they have cool offices(This Dr had suspended a train track from the ceiling.) I will try to get a picture of the damaged pearly white, but no luck so far!!

My Favorite Time of the Year!!

Since we don't live in Utah anymore, we had to go to the church to watch conference. This by the way was the first time in my life, not being able to lounge in my jammies and eat whatever I want. I was a little aprehensive about Brett, and how I would be able to keep a very active from not distubing others. We brought lots of toys and snacks, we even brought the pack and play for nap time!! Luckily Mom was able to keep him entertained, while I was left to cross stitch(a little something for my ADD mind).

As I sat there and I listened to the speakers, I was waiting for my annual "You could do better" talk. I was surprised when after the first session was over, and I still hadn't heard something that I needed to change. I just figured that I must not have been listening. I did love the comment that Elder Oaks made when he said that Music can be a great teacher(something like that). For anyone who knows me know that I love music, and I love it when general authorities say things that I firmly believe in(Makes me feel like I am on the right track).

At the end of the second session, I still had not recieved any inspiration, I was confused. Usually I am making a like of things that I need to do to better myself(or to help my life run smoother). As the Childrens Chior sang the closing hymn, We Thank Thee O God For A Prophet, I felt the chills run over me, the Spirit was strong. Then they sang, "When dark clouds of trouble hang o're use and threaten our peace to destroy, there is hope smiling brightly before us and we know that deliverance is nigh". I felt a reassurance, I felt strength, I knew that was my answer.

Lately I have been so short with just about everybody, I am kind of in a rut and trying desperately to get out. I found myself flying into a fit of rage for stupid little reason, that should not have set me off the way I did. I have found myself with no motivation to do anything. Life has just been a little rough for me personally. Those 28 little words, brought me so much strength, to know that I need to be a little more patient, for the Lord is there for me.

As I think back on todays sessions, I am realizing that there was more for me then I realized. I have angels, ones that I can call on when I need help, they are there anytime. Hope there is always hope and when life gets rough, tie a not in your rope and hang on for hope. Last piece of info I got is the age old advice of, "Forget yourself and get to work." As you serve others you will forget all of your problems, and you feel good too.

I Thank Thee O God For A Prophet!!

Sorry it is long, but I had to share this with you. Thanks to my physical angels, you have blessed my life many times. I can't wait for tomorrow!!

Sarah Palin

I know that I have a million things that I want to Blog about, some how all my ideas have left me. So I am going to Blog about the most recent/funniest thing I have seen lately. SNL political skits, but not just any political skit on SNL. Political skit involving Sarah Palin. Before we go any further, I want everyone to know that I still don't know who I am voting for, and come November I might just write in my own name. Here are my two favorite skits, I hope that you get the same good laugh that I did. P.S. these skits are pretty clean(or I didn't get the joke), or I wouldn't be posting them. I can't get the second one to work right now, so I will keep working on it!!

Migraine Time

I am finally able to take life back from the migraine, I have had it for about two weeks. Actually I still have it, but at least I can function now. I forgot how hard school was when I had migraines, I think I read one of my assignments last week five times before I even had the slightest idea what it was saying. I figured I would give you all an update about what is going on(football, church, teeth, school, etc.), but when I logged on to my Google reader I noticed that I have 87 blogs to read. Every possible blog that we read has at least one post if not more. Luckily for me homework next week should not be bad, so I should have plenty of time to catch up.

The Football games yesterday was great!! The first half was horrible, with Wisconsin leading 19-0. I stayed faithful to the games, while others around the US changed the station, to watch a more eventful game. Some how in the second half Michigan was able to hold on to the ball long enough to make the score 21-19. With four minutes left in the game and lots of turnovers we were able to hold off the Badgers and win(27-25) the game by two!! Then it was off to the Church for the RS broadcast, before post game traffic hit.

The Broadcast was amazing!! There were so many things that I needed to hear. You know when the spirit bears witness that things that are being said true, and you get that tingly feeling. Yeah I had that feeling the whole time! I really needed that meeting, I came home energized and a better person.

I am getting a new calling today, and by the time you read this I will be sustained. Therefore I don't feel bad telling you. I am going to be the new nursery leader, which means Brett gets to start Nursery early. Which is a relief for Jon, now he can actually pay attention in Priesthood.

Brett's top molars are struggling to come in, the poor kid is in a little bit of pain. I am in the process of finding a pediatrician, so that we can get his official weight and height!

School is going good, I just found out that I am going to have to take 28 classes. If they approve a Photography cluster then I will only have to take 25 classes. I plan to be done in 3-6 years, but I have eight years to complete the program before they kick me out!! Jon's school is going good. The only problem he is having, is the fact that we always need the computer at the same time. So we are looking into a laptop, we will see we don't have a lot of money.

I am planning on going into the doctor(as soon as I can find one for me). My heart has been fluttering/racing(I don't really know how to explain it). Plus I am going to go back in to see if a new set of doctors can figure out my migraines, so I am going to be in for a lot of fun. Nothing gets me more excited then needles and MRIs!

The weather here is great, we have not had to turn on our air conditioner in two weeks. Which is super nice. The leaves are starting to change, and I will post pictures when the trees are full into fall. That is all of our news!

Growing Up Too Fast!

When I was a little girl, I couldn't wait to turn 16. People would say that I shouldn't rush to grow up, but I didn't believe them. There was always something better when you got older. When I finally turned 16, I couldn't wait to get married and it just kept going on and on.

Now that I am a mom and I have a little one of my own, I just want him to stay my little one. He is just growing up too fast for me. Within the last week, he has learned how to take all of the outlet plugs out of the wall. Thankfully he leaves them in little piles around the house, which makes my job easier(we just installed the swivel face plate kind). He can open his dresser drawer, with out the knobs(I removed them) and then commences to throw his clothes all over his room. He has learned how to say water, food and dad in sign language, which adds to his every growing list of things he can sign(Yea!!). He is learning to speak new words like: Monkey, lion and night night. He can walk backwards and drink from a straw(not at the same time). He just cut another tooth about a week ago. He is very independent, which he gets it from Jon ;), and very helpful in the kitchen(you know changing the setting on the dishwasher, so the it skips the most important cycle, gotta love the help).

When I was little Christmas never came fast enough, now I am 24 and Christmas just flies by, sadly so do the Birthdays. I am finding myself wanting things to go a little slower, and realizing the truth in what people were saying to me when I was younger. Life is just getting crazier and there still is not enough time in the day to get everything done. I am definitely trying to spend more time with him, before won't kiss me anymore and he starts telling me he hates me.

Where are you going, My Little One?

Where Were You On 9/11

I woke up this morning to a great documentary on the History Channel about the World Trade Centers. The images and video clips brought back memories of the day it happened.

I was in Seminary, when the call came that the towers had been hit. There was a great panic as we tried to finish our lessons. Parents called to tell their children that they were being pulled out of school for the day. Now you might think that they were overreacting a bit, but we lived right next door to a Nuclear plant(Honestly I don't know why anyone would attack our plant, there is nothing else around. Nevertheless the thought crossed a lot of people's minds). I went to school, scared for all of those people in New York. The thought of, "What now?" kept crossing my mind. First period(Contemporary World Problems and Government) came and went, with no lesson taught, we just stared in disbelief at the TV. Second period(Economics) again no lesson, the towers collapsed. The thought came, "Did everyone get out?" We later find out that there was no such luck, we still can't believe what we saw. Lunch came and went, I don't think anyone really felt like eating, we just keep watching on the closest TV.

The rest of the day was like a haze and still is. We later find out that police and firefighters died in a resucue attempt. That hit to close to home for me, My dad is a firefighter. They are Heroes, he is my hero.

Years later phone conversations, and stories surface about the many brave men and women that tried desperate to save as many lives as possible. That was a defining moment for those people, they chose to save others then themselves (Luke 17:33). Men, Women and Children have lost loved ones. American is angery, we want revenge, we want solace. Hatred and Love are both sought and found.

Where were you on September 11, 2001? What were you doing? What do you remeber? I want to know(I don't care if you read this post a month later)! WE should NEVER forget. United We Stand, Divided We Fall.

School Has Begun

Not only for Jon, but for me as well. The pilot program is going well, lots of work to do. For now I am a little ahead, I am focused and excited. I forgot how demanding school was, I thought that this was going to be easy. I think I was wrong, nevertheless I am still up to the challenge. I am currently working on my graduation plan. As long as I don't have to take 30 classes, I think I can stay excited. Sadly I think I am going to have to take that many classes, so we will see. I will keep you updated.

Other then that we have just been trying to have as much fun as possible. What boy doesn't enjoy building a fort with his dad, in the living room? Brett got so happy about the fort that he eventually knocked it down in all the excitement.
Bubbles in the bath tub!! Neanea bought the bath bubble maker for his birthday. This was the first opportunity that we had to break it out of the box.The only way to play the piano! Father and son love to share a musical moment to together. It is always music to mom's ears!!

That is all of our fun!!

Still Alive

We have just extremely busy, here is the quick run down.

Saturday the 23rd, we arrived at our apartment. The Elders Quorum Pres, told us on friday that there would be people here to help us unload. He wasn't exaggerating, I bet we have 15-20 people here to help us. Plus this homeless guy that saw the all the people helping us move, and stopped by to help. I had no idea he was homeless, until we talked to a guy that helped us move and he told us the whole story.

Sunday was filled with greetings and introductions. We have some brilliant and amazing people in our ward. That night we drove to Mom and Dads house, their car broke down right as we arrived at our apartment on saturday.

Monday we drove back home, and finished unpacking some boxes.

Tuesday we got internet, and so we checked our email. We also have a new phone number, if you want it leave a comment with your email and I'll send it!!

Wednesday we relaxed.

Thursday Jon had orientation, and we got a microwave.

Friday we picked up mom and dad, and brought them back to Ann Arbor.

Saturday we got our washer and dryer, and have been working like crazy to get the house in order before school starts.

Today school started, we are excited! I was going to get a picture of Jon heading to school, but I forgot. Maybe I can coax a picture out of him tomorrow.

Other then that life have been good, it is nice to be settled. Ann Arbor is beautiful.
I have learned a few lesson while being here, and I will share them over the next couple of days. I decided that I was going to buckle down and teach Brett a few signs. Over the last month he has mastered: Thank you, please, and he is getting the hang of cookie and water. We are starting, milk, food and more. Jon and I are having a hard time remembering to sign, but the more we sign the better we get. We are not pros by and stretch of the imagination but we are trying. Thanks to Brett's signing books and my dictionary, there is no word that we can't sign.

Brett is starting to talk like crazy. He calls everyone Mama or Mommy. He can say cheese, light, and some times when he points at things I think he says, "whats that." Call me crazy but other people have heard it too! He is such an independent little boy, he prefers to feed himself. He does however have some of the cutest little mannerisms, which always seem to make us laugh. My little boy is growing up so fast, everyone can see the changes in him but me. It is only when I go back through my millions of digital pictures, that I am able to see how much he has grown in such a short time. They really do grow up fast.

There is a cute little video on the side bar of Brett's first swing ride. I think I need to up the quality on my camera. Anyway enjoy!!

Unpacking

I am working on a post, to update you all(should be up tomorrow or tuesday). Sorry it has taken me so long, there will be pictures to make up for my absence.

Yep, Were Moving(again)!

Jon and I drove to Ann Arbor(A2 is what they call it) tuesday night, and found a house. Not ideal to me by any means, but we put money down on it just in case I didn't find anything else. I have been hunting like crazy to find something, and have not found anything. So I have given up looking, and am now in the crazed packing mode. Lucky for me we didn't unpack a whole lot, but I still have to go through everything and figure what is going and what is staying in storage (aka mom and dads). Other eventful news(more drama then anything) is as follows:

The 17' Uhaul that we ordered for tonight, is not available. We have to drive to Coldwater(45min away) to pick up a 14' Uhaul. Dad has to take off work to go get it, cause Jon can't.

Our brakes have been squeeling, so dad checked them last night. We have a crack in the rotor(for those of us women who do not know what that means, it is very dangerous)we missed the warranty on them by six months. So dad is going to get off even earlier from work, so he can get the stuff to fix our brakes.

I got the gas and electric turned on just in time, we got lucky, the meter was never turned off.

We have no internet, phone or cable at the apartment yet, I'll deal with it on monday(sorry no blogs, until late next week, if we are lucky)

We hope the bishop(ann arbor) got our message last night, or we are unloading a uhaul by ourselves.

Our apartment doesn't have a washer or dryer, and I can't find any on craigslist.

Brett is running around the house, getting into trouble(He thinks it is funny).

Gotta run!

100th Post!!

I was going to do something fun for our 100th post, but life has been to crazy. So you will have to be happy with an update (sorry).

Friday we ran to Ann Arbor to find housing, everything we looked at was a dump. One of the grad students showed us her apartment complex and at 6pm we finally signed a contract. I was so happy that we had finally had a place to live, granted it was smaller then I had imagined we would live in. A home none the less is still a home, (I was starting to wonder if we were really going to have to live in a cardboard box).

Brett was amazing; I was the one who got cranky half way through our adventure. What I ever did to have such a great kid, I don't know. I just hope that whatever it was, I did good enough to earn the right to only have great kids.

We ran to Toledo Ohio, to see that Felts. We had so much fun, I am so glad that we will only be 45 minutes away (still too far if you ask me, but we are still closer). I am so excited, we love them so much. We had some pizza and chatted until 9:45pm, with a 2 hour drive ahead we figured we had better leave.

We made good time, and arrived at our toll road exit at 11pm. We didn't get through the toll until 12:30am. The Indiana governor just sold the toll road to an Australian company, and they decided to get rid of all toll workers. So it was a self service thing, and the machine wasn't working. It took 5-10 minutes a car and in some cases 15 minutes, I was so mad when we got up there to stick our ticket in the machine, it spit it back out at in 8 times before it took it(some people drove through without even paying). Yeah I am calling the company tomorrow, that was ridiculous.

Church was good today, we said good bye to all of the wonderful people there. When we got home, we had a phone call from the apartment complex that we signed with. Apparently, Jon doesn't make enough money (they don't want rent to exceed 40% of your income) and I don't work, we don't make enough money to live there. So we are in a mad dash to find more money (anyone have $400 a month lying around??), or look for a new place. Tuesday we will be running to Ann Arbor again to find housing.

Some how it will work out, the Lord loves us, that we know. Thanks for the prayers!!

A Perfect Ending To A Perfect Day!!

Yesterday, I decided that we were going to finally go on a date!! So through out the day I came up with a few different date ideas, figuring that when Jon got home we would go do one of them. Well Jon got home and he just looked trashed, so in my head I scrapped date night. After we had dinner, Jon went out and set up the Badminton net and he took me out to knock the birdie around a few times. I am ashamed to admit that I am so out of shape that I was sweating so bad and I am so sore today, and I stink at badminton!! I had SO MUCH FUN, so that is all that matters right. Then Jon took me for a walk around the lakes by the house, and then it was time to head back to the house to put a little boy to bed.

As I am sitting down relaxing for a quick second, before the night time routine begins. Jon and Brett were gone for several minutes longer then it took to do a diaper change. When they finally decide to join me, I questioned them. Jon replied that they had been in the den checking e-mail, I responded with my normal question, "Anything interesting?" Jon's response was, "I got 10 e-mails (which by the way is unusual)." "And (He added) I got my GSRA (graduate student research assistantship)." I didn't know what to say, I asked him if he was joking. He offered to show me the email and I took him up on the offer. As I saw that email, I was on the verge of tears (I still am). You have to understand that we had NO HOPE of going to the U of M this coming year. No hope whatsoever, they told us to forget it and find a job. I was so weighted down with how everything was going to work out. We would have to start paying on student loans, find health insurance, a job, housing in a new area, etc. I told Mom on Wednesday that unless money literally fell from the sky that there was no way we would be able to go. We had just gotten news tuesday night that our only chance with a GSI fell through. I was so discouraged, but I had been praying that I would, be able to accept the Lord will.

I had, by Wednesday I knew that it was not meant to be, sad as I was I knew that we would be taken care of. One thing that really helped me and gave me comfort was something that was said in a book called "Fire of the Covenant" by Gerald Lund. It is about the Martin and Willie handcart companies, but it was something that Joseph Young (Son of Brigham) said to the pioneers. He said, "Brothers and Sisters, We have found you at last. God has heard and answered your prayers. And ours! Now, let us set out to work and do all we can to bring about your temporal salvation." When I read that the thought came to me, "I have heard your prayers, now let’s get to work." I can tell you that even though I read that on Sunday night and we still had no idea, what we were going to do. That was such a comfort to me, to know that I had been heard.

As I prayed last night, I couldn't thank my Father enough, for the great blessing he has given me. I prayed for more faith, because I need it! We were so excited that we went to Kroger and bought ice cream and some diet coke with mentos.

Tonight we are going to continue our celebration, with diet coke and mentos, some more badminton and a nice bon fire, and lots of prayers of thanks!!

Thank you to everyone who prayed for us, we couldn't have done it without you!! We LOVE You!!

Lots Of Late Nights

Brett has been having a problem sleeping through the night lately. At first we thought that he was teething, but when I checked his mouth I couldn't see anything. After about two or three weeks, I noticed that Brett's bottom right tooth was coming in. I was so excited, and figured that must have been what was causing the problem. On Monday, Jon was holding Brett and they were laughing. Jon caught a glimpse of something white, he asked me if I knew anything about it, and I told him no. So I stuck my finger in Brett's mouth and sure enough, he has a molar that is mostly out(He only has a little piece of gum, holding it down). I just thought that it was so weird that a 14 month old has a molar, since I had only heard of kids 2 years and older getting molars. So I decided to do a little research, and I found a helpful diagram that tell you at what ages certain teeth "should" come!!All in all Brett has eight teeth: His top four(Central and Lateral incisor), his bottom three(soon to be four), and his bottom right first molar with the left one coming in slowly!!

Summer Fun

It has been so hot lately that I had to start swimming. Yesterday Jon decided that he was going to put up this kiddie pool that Mom and Dad Wierschke have. He filled it in the morning and by 1:30pm it was at least 75 degrees, so we had to get in. I slathered baby sunscreen SPF 50, all over Brett and we got his swim diapers on and headed out for some summer fun.

I decided that with my pastie white body that I needed a little color, so I passed up the sunscreen. At first Brett didn't like the water but once he climatized he loved every second of it!! It was so worth it to us to put the pool up, when we heard his little squeals of joy. We took out our camera and got video of the little guy, just having fun and splashing. Unfortunately I was so white that I burned pretty much right away. Lucky for me Jon noticed it and made me go into the house, if it were up to me I would have stayed out longer. The Lord created water for me, he knew how much I loved to be in it!!

Before

Brett also got a haircut yesterday, and I must say he is just a cutie!! One lady at church was disappointed that we cut it, she loved his long hair. I have to admit that with church at 9:30am, we have to get moving in the morning, so that we can make it on time. I know that I might sound like a bad mom, but I don't have time to comb it and take car of it. So it had to be cut!! He loves it and that is all that matters, and he still is a little cutie!! Lets see if I can find some before and after photos, hmm.....
After

Yep those pictures should do it!! Huge difference if you ask me, still cute too!

Still no funding/job.......we find out tomorrow if we are going to school or not. We are still optimistic, and will keep everyone posted!!

Latest News

We are still waiting for funding, we find out Friday or Saturday if we get the GSI position(Which is what I am praying for.) Jon has applied at Cook Nuclear Power Plant, in Benton Harbor(Benton Harbor is an hour west of Sturgis.) As a backup plan, he is pretty confident that we can get in. Life is still up in the air, which makes it very stressful for me. Other then that we seem to be holding up pretty well.

Brett took his first swim on Monday, at first he didn't like it and then he got used to the water and was enjoying himself. I can't remember if I had told you that Brett has 6 teeth now or not, but he does!! Brett has been chewing on everything.....Literally. He chews on the couch, on his binky, sippy cups, blankets and even occasionally on us. Which as you can imagine is not very enjoyable. Brett now weights a whopping 24 pounds, that little boy is solid!!

I just gave in and signed up for facebook, I don't know how faithful I am going to be to it, but I wanted to get in touch with some friends, so if you have facebook feel free to add me as your friend. I have been doing a lot of do-it-yourself projects lately, which has been kind of fun. I will post before and after pictures later.

All in All, life is still good!!

I love INDEXING!!

The church has put out a wonderful program called, Family Search Indexing. Which is extraction work on your home computer. You go to the website, sign up. You go through the tutorials, and start indexing.

Why do I love it so much?? Because you can if out so many interesting things about people, and occasionally find family. Indexing brings such a spirit to my home. The best thing is that, all of the names that I index will be made public online to everyone.

If you can see this picture pretty well, it was an index that I did yesterday from the 1920s in Alabama. The highlighted portion is the name "Nila." Which for those of you know don't know is my moms name. I thought my grandma made up the name, but voila here it is in the 1920s. You might think that it is lame, but I think it is cool.

I just finished the Washington State death records for 1880-1950 and that was so much fun. I really enjoyed it, I got to learn about different cities from my home state and I got to learn about some of the names Indexed. Granted it is all about perspective.

I am not in to that whole trace you lines back as far as I can go genealogy yet, but I can do my part to help others find their family, while I am waiting for mom to do all the work so I don't have to :).

BYU-Idaho's BUS Program

BYU-Idaho is starting a trial run of their BUS Program. No, it is not a bus route paid for by the University. It is however their Bachelors of University Studies, which is alot like the BGS(Bachelor of General Studies) for BYU. Which mean that I will be able to go back to school and get my degree!!

BYU used to offer the BGS to students who had attened BYU-I, but as soon as I found out about it, they discontinued that part of the BGS. I have been waiting for BYU-I to get something like this started, and have been checking the Universities webpage often. Mom Wierschke is in BYU's BGS program, and we were talking about it one day, and I decided to check BYU-Idahos Continuing Education webpage just for kicks.

There it was the BUS Program in its infancy!! They are only doing a pilot program right now, so I called and got my name on the waiting list, and the director told me that I might not ba able to get in for the fall. They had already sent out their invitations to the select few(35) who get to test the program, I was still hopefully.

About a month passed and yesterday I got an email that said, "We would like to invite you to apply for the Fall 2008 pilot cohort in the BYU-Idaho online degree program." I just about died, I am so excited!! I am actually going to be able to finish my degree, eventhough it is such a general degree.

I have always felt stupid cause I didn't get my degree and it seemed that a lot of other women had it before they had kids. I have always regreted not finishing, although I have never regreted what I did instead by marrying Jon. I have always said that I would go back, I just never knew when. Now here is my chance!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JON!!!!

Even though I am not capable of writing a post about him for his birthday, like the one that he wrote for mine. I did want to let him know that I love him a million times over.

I am so grateful for him and the example he is to me. I love watching him play with Brett, those two share a great bond. Brett loves running to the window to watch Dad come home, then run to the door and give him a huge hug.Brett love his Dad, and I have no doubt that they will be great pals.

Thanks for working your tail off so that we could go to grad school and have a good life, and for always being there for us(at the same time). I am thankful that I married a man who is so patient with me, and who loves his little boy. WE LOVE YOU DADDY!!
*I know that this post was nothing compared to the one you did for me, but you are more eloquent with words then I am!! I do love you so much and hope that you have a Happy Birthday!! You are my rock, Thanks for everything you do for us!

Rain Drops Keep Falling On My Head

We have had a lot of storms lately, one of the worst ones was last week. We got 3+in. in less then 4 hours. The next day as we were out and about, we kept hearing stories of power outages and tornadoes.

Apparently 125,000 people were out of power for 3 days, luckily our lights only flickered. People in our ward were out of power. The paper reported a few days later that, there had been a tornado that came through, just north of us.

I managed to get on the internet and get a few pictures for you. When I saw them I couldn't believe that the storm had been that bad.

As you can see, some people got stranded in parking lots. The storm hit so fast, this was one of the many pictures of peoples cars stranded. Even intersections were buried in water, the Kalamazoo Gazette showed a picture of a car under an over pass that, was buried 3/4 under water.


It knocked down a lot of trees, as you can see. It looks like it just pushed them over.


This picture is a little small(it was big when I downloaded it) but if you look close, you can see a little boy swimming in the street. It is not everyday that you can swim in the street. Anyway that was our storm, the Lord blessed and kept us save and sound, with plenty of electricity!! THANK YOU to the Kalamazoo Gazette for the amazing pictures!

Shipshewana

Mom and I decided that we needed to go birthday shopping for Jon, before his birthday! So as we headed out this morning in 93% humidity(I am a true westerner, I can't breath when the humidity is that high) and storm clouds hanging over us, we contemplated staying home. Still determined to get the job done we left.

Our first stop was Shipshewana (Amish tourist town), we had to take a detour, because there was road construction, but we ran into tons of Amish and I got a few pictures. I have to admit that I felt bad taking pictures(They don't believe in having their pictures taken), but since I promised you pictures, I took them anyway(I can't say that they are too interesting though). after we picked up the part to the lawn mower that we needed, we decided not to finish the rest of the trip to Southbend, due to the menacing clouds overhead(and mom had a bad gut feeling.

WE got home at about 12:00pm, Brett and I took a nap until 2pm. Jon Called from work at 2pm and told mom that 4 countys in north Indiana, had flash flooding(Way to go Mom on that gut feeling)!

Amish Man Riding His Bike!!
An Amish Buggie With Bucket Seats!!(this was our favorite)

The one thing that I thought was crazy was, even though the humidity was really high and it was raining. The Amish had their clothes out on the line, It is completely beyond me how their clothes get dry. I have been told that they do dry, I would have never guessed. I just thought that they were crazy!! The Amish never cease to amaze me!

Brett is walking.....and other news!!

Well the news is kind of old for us, but Brett is officially walking, with few stumbles. We bought him new shoes a few weeks ago, and now he is trying to learn to walk in them!! I uploaded a video, mainly for my family to see, but I hope that the rest of you enjoy it too!


Brett is also cutting two new teeth, which is exciting. Anyone with kids know all about it, the crankiness and sleepless nights. Yes, cutting teeth is always a celebration at first and then a dreaded nightmare that seems like it will never end!!

For the Fourth of July, we washed/waxed the cars, the guys got fishing permits, we are still working on chopping the trees down form the storm that we had while in Colorado, we had a BBQ, and we played games until midnight!!

Today we traveled to Battle Creek, and did a bunch of shopping(we still have tons more to do). We were all exhausted, when we arrived home. So nothing to exciting today.

We do however need YOUR HELP!! Jon still does not have funding for school, which is a big deal. There has been some talk, that he might have to postpone his schooling another year :P, which I am totally against. Because of the economy, funding has been cut short, very short. There is one last chance to get funding, and so we are praying and fasting that we get it. PLEASE pray for us, we need all the prayers we can get(I'll know if you didn't pray:))!!

Thanks for being so dedicated to our, we love each of you!!

Brett Loves To Help His Daddy

Brett Loves to help his Dad!! He was so excited when I took him down stairs, and he saw his Dad putting together his crib. You can already tell that Brett looks up to Jon!!

No Time For Blogging

Life has been super crazy!! We have been running around here and there, trying to get things done. Luck for us Jon does have a job this summer, which makes things a little easier.

Our movers dropped our stuff off two weeks ago and a lot of stuff was beat up bad, so that means that I have to go to a claims outfit to re coupe some money to get things fixed. If you ever need a moving horror story let me know, I will probably post everything after we are finally done with this company.

Brett has been teething(one on each side of his top two). We are having way to many sleepless nights and my baby is growing up way to fast. He is walking like crazy and he loves it(I will post video), and I think he is trying to give up naps:(!

We had a little outing to Ann Arbor(I remembered my camera half way there, so no pics) on Saturday to try to find housing. The whole time we were there I kept thinking to myself, "We are definitely not in Utah anymore." As I saw a lot girls in very very skimpy clothing and men half naked(I never thought that I would miss Utah, but I do). Luckily for my Jon will be spending all of his time up on North campus(They moved the Engineers far from central campus) so we won't be seeing a lot of naked people. Engineers have a tendency to dress a little better. We didn't find any housing and I am getting a little discouraged. We are going to make a few more trips up there, and we have a few contacts, so we will see. The picture is of the North Campus Bell Tower.

We are suppose to be heading up to Minnesota this weekend to see family. If we make it I promise to take my camera and get tons of pictures(Just to make up for the ones that I didn't take in Ann Arbor)!

The Biggest reason I have not been blogging is........I am reading a good book!! I know, don't be shocked, I can actually read. The big problem with reading is that I have to have a book that just sucks me in. Anyway so I highly recommend the Children of the Promise series by Dean Hughes. It is about a family in SLC during WWII. I can't put it down and have had to borrow all of the books(I plan on buying them eventually).

For those of you who check my blog several times a day or every day, I will get on the ball!

I miss all of you!

40% Chance Of Precipitation With A Little Lightening

We finally got our first real storm last night!! I was so excited, that Jon and I sat on the porch swing and watched it. Then I had this great idea to get my camera out and see if I could capture the lightening. Well we had some lightening strike, super close and it scared me to death. Jon estimates that it struck about 1/8th of a mile from the house. It scared me so bad that my heat was racing, my knees were shaking and I was almost hyperventilating, It was so loud that I got a bad migraine. Luck for me and you I got it on video!! Unfortunately we do not have any video editing software yet, and so this video is a little long. If you click the little thing(I can't think of what it is called right now) at the bottom, so that it jumps to 35seconds into the movie. That should be about the right time for the lightening!! It doesn't sound scary but it was, trust me!! ENJOY!!

A little of Michigan

Ok, at the request of McKenna.....a little about Michigan. The humidity has been pretty low since I have been here(which for a westerner like me is nice). Mom Wierschke is keeping me busy, our first weekend here we got up at 6:30am and went to pick strawberries. I love strawberries and at 70 cents a pound, who couldn't resist right? We were so excited that we picked 100 pounds, we just finished our last batch of strawberry jam yesterday, YEA!!

We also went do to a little town in Indiana called Shipshewana, to visit the Amish and cash in on there cheap food. We are planning another excursion to see more "Amish" sites, at a later date(I will post pictures)

We have had a few storms, nothing to exciting. For those who do not know, storms in the midwest are a million times better, then the storms out west(as I am sure you are hearing all about on the news). For example today was a beautiful day, as I walk out of relief society, I look out the window and not only is it raining but hailing and blowing. Once again nothing spectacular, but it was a great little storm. I am waiting for a really big storm, those my friends are always super fun. When the lightening hits, it lights up the whole yard(we have a big yard). Sadly we missed the biggest storm, that came though right before we arrived in Michigan, it was so strong that it knocked down four trees in mom and dads yard, so this week we get to clear all of the trees out of the yard. I am also looking forward to the fireflys, right after we got married, we moved in with Jon's parents and at night we would catch fireflys. I want Brett to catch fireflys, I think that he would like them a lot.

We have several trips planned this summer, the first trip this this weekend we are heading up to Ann Arbor to find housing(wish us luck) and the second is on the 4th of July we are heading up to Minnesota to see dads family( I am super excited).

For those of you who live in a big ward, please be grateful and take every advantage of it. Our ward is huge boundary wise, but very small in numbers. Last week I had mom list off all of her callings and she has a grand total of 10 callings( with one on the way). So the next time you think that you are burned out or overwhelmed, you can think of Sister Wierschke. On our first Sunday here, Jon was asked to say the opening prayer in sacrament meeting and was then given a speaking assignment (that always happens, they get way too excited about new people).

So that is all of our fun for now, I hope to have lots of cool stories and pictures coming :)!

Fierce Flyer

We left Denver for Michigan Monday morning(9th). I was super sick and asked for a blessing before we left for the airport, I was very weary about traveling that day and pretty much begged mom to postpone our trip by a day. No Luck, we got to the airport and this guy at the curb pretty much begged us to let him check us in. We gave in and in no time we were heading down to security, now the bad part is that all of the bags that we had, needed to be carry ons(once we landed in Chicago, we had to run to meet our shuttle). We had 3bags, a car seat and a stroller. We waited for over an hour to get through security, once we got up to where we drop off our bags, mom wanted to go through a slower line. I pretty much told her no way, and that I was an expert flyer(I am always way more prepared then most flyers, with my plastic bag of "liquids" before I even get to the airport). As our bags go through the the detector, I am informed that they need to go through my bag because I have a liquid in there. I shrugged and let them go through my bag. What did he find......baby applesauce! For those of you who don't know applesauce is not a sauce, it is a liquid and could be potentially hazardous. I was so wiped out and sick that I didn't care and told that man, that I was sorry I had no idea that baby food had to go in a bag. He then got really mad at me and in his Russian accent asked, how I had no idea that it needed to go in a bag, I should have known that it belonged in a bag, and not to forget it next time.

With that out of the way, I figured that everything else would be easy. We would gate check the car seat and stroller and the rest of the bags would go with us. I also thought of the nice flight ahead of us, I thought that it was a four hour flight, you can imagine how excited I was why I realized it was only two hours. Right before our plane landed I went to go get tags on the car seat and stroller, as I walked passed a bench(a guy was sitting on it, with his arm around his girl) this older man walks up to the guy on the bench and says(this is a direct quote), "Could you move your arm it is in my way!" The guy on the bench looked at me, a little surprised/shocked I am sure that the older gentleman didn't say please. Seriously I felt awkward, I shrugged my shoulders and kept walking.

Everyone loved Brett(naturally, what is not to love about that little guy) and offered the same advice, that we should have checked all of those bags on. Thankfully we didn't have a full flight. which meant that mom and I had three seats. Brett slept the first half of the flight, and I got a little much needed nap. After Brett woke up it was snack time, so we pulled down out little tables, we were just getting ready to put our tables up in a few minutes, when Brett started to pat on the middle table(Mind you he was not beating on them, nor was it more then three pats). And this nasty man turns around and says, "Could you make him stop beating the table it is annoying." Yes I recognized that voice as the nasty man in the terminal, however he was sitting in the isle seat. The girl that was at the window turns around and says, "yeah and it is driving me crazy!" I guess it didn't have far to drive her huh? Everyone around just looked at us and shrugged their shoulders. Anytime Mom or Brett would do something after that little incident, I would oh no we shouldn't do that I don't want to annoy anyone(yes I said it loud enough for them to hear)!!

As we started to de-board the plane everyone around us started telling Brett how good he was on the plane. They made sure to say it nice and loud for the nasty man to hear. Obviously that man in all of his years never learned the words please and thank you. He also must not have any kids, anyone with kids would know that Brett was phenomenal on that flight.

Everything else after that is not worth mentioning. Sorry that took so long, and thanks for the vent :)!! I promise, promise, promise to update pictures tomorrow, sorry if you have been waiting for them. Please also vote on the poll I really want to know, and if you want to comment I would love that too :)!!

Brett's Black Eye

While in Denver, Brett just started walking a lot. My sister in law has a tile floor and one thing led to another and he fell. At first we thought no big deal, we picked him up and there was a purple mark right above his eye. I naturally freaked out and grabbed some ice and by the time I got it on his eye, it was swollen about a half an inch off his head. Then it turned the darkest purple I have even seen a bruise turn, and he could not open his eye all the way with out his view being obstructed. A few days later Brett whacked his other eye, so he matched. I only have a photo the bruise a week later, we I am trying to get photos form the other people who have them. So just imagine this bruise where the yellow spot is on his brow.

Come to find out little wobbly boys and hard metal chairs do not mix very well. As Brett continues his adventures with walking, I am sure that he will get a few more bruises. Brett is doing better however, he can pretty much walk all over the house now. He's still a little wobbly but sometime I think he walks better then I do!!

Next UP, Our travel to Michigan with the...........FIERCE FLYER!!