Family Blog

We closed on our new house on Friday!!! We’re moving in this weekend, and in the meantime, Ben is working hard to get the kitchen complete after the destruction from the past few days! Mom, Dad, Kevin, Wanda, Forreste, and Brennan made for a lively crew this weekend to help with the painting, and I think the house will be more or less ready for us on Saturday. That’s definitely the highlight of my life for now- otherwise, it’s the normal drudgery of working and going to school. Oh! I have discovered the wonders of Facebook- Ben and I are on there, and so is Gretchen.  I’ve mananged to reconnect with most of the people from high school that I actually like, and most everyone from the old College Park Ward days is there too- I highly recommend setting up a profile there if there’s anybody you’re trying to get in touch with. That’s about it for now- I just wanted to share the happy news!!

So, the offer on the townhouse that I originally posted about fell through long ago. We offered on an identical townhouse that’s a shortsale and we STILL haven’t heard back from the seller about that offer. We also offered on a single-family house with a pool and got outbid. So we offered on another single family house - and we got this one!!! We are just awaiting the ratified contract from the bank (the house is foreclosed already so the bank is the seller). I was worried because IndyMac owns the house, but it looks like they move pretty quickly. Ben and I have our financing all lined up, so we are hoping to close 8/8!! That gives us a couple of weeks to do some cleaning and hopefully replace the kitchen before the lease on our apartment is up on 8/31. We’re very, very excited, and I will post some pictures as soon as we actually own the place (I don’t want to link the online listing because it includes the address). The house is in Sterling, Virginia, much closer to Ben’s work and close to shopping, eating, everything else good. We’ll also be really close to Dulles and we’ll have a guest bedroom - so come visit!

I know it’s been a while since I last posted- but where are you all!?! We here on the east coast have survived our first heat wave of the summer, and we’ll be “cooling down” to a mild 85 degrees today from our heat index values of 105 - 110 this past weekend. In the midst of all that, Ben and I have been actively househunting, trying to find a nice, affordable place while we still have a buyers’ market here. The townhouse pictured above is what we made an offer on yesterday afternoon! It’s just funky enough to make us happy, and more than big enough to last us for the next few years. It’s 3 beds, 2.5 baths and just under 1300 square feet. It’s got a decent-sized back yard with big (huge) slate slabs forming a walking path. Lots of sunshine so I can plant vegetables, and lots of room on the inside for food storage, which is one of our primary goals for the coming year. The real estate market here is starting to turn around, and someone else made an offer on this the same day we did- so we’re a little nervous, but really hopeful! This time period here is probably a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us to actually be able to afford buying a house in this area. We should know by Friday whether or not we’ve gotten it.

So, now that it’s summer, I want to know what you all are up to! Hopefully by mid-July we’ll have a new place with a guest bedroom available for visitors (hint, hint). We love and miss you all!!

I don’t have a ton of time to post this, but I am attempting to load our photos from this past weekend so you all can be adequately jealous. We had a great opportunity to go to San Juan on the cheap, so we treated ourselves to a decent 5-year anniversary present (crazy, huh?). We had a great time wandering around, the hotel was a block from swimmable beach, the weather was amazing, and everything was gorgeous! We had great food and a lot of fun too! We arrived late Saturday, grabbed some dinner, explored the closest beaches, wandered around, and grabbed a late dessert at a really nice Italian restaurant. Sunday morning we rose early to hit the beach- perfect weather, warmest ocean I’ve ever been in, with beautiful crystal blue water. The ocean was rough enough to make boogyboarding fun, and we all got at least a little sunburned. That afternoon we had a great quiet lunch, enjoyed a siesta, then headed to Old San Juan to see a fort (it was closed by the time we got there) and just drive around. We got stuck in major traffic because of a street fair, but it was more fun than frustrating. Monday morning we rose early again, this time to go to a different fort on the other end of San Juan - it was HUGE and awesome. It was really windy, which kept the temperatures down, and there were a ton of people flying kites. After that, we walked around Old San Juan to do some souvenir shopping and find more tasty food (even though we ended up at the Hard Rock Cafe). That night was the best part- we headed 30 miles outside of San Juan to Fajardo to see the bioluminescent bay. It’s a brief kayak trip through some mangroves, then you get to a lagoon that glows with every motion through the water- your hand will glow, the kayaks glow, you can even see the streak of fish swimming through the water. It was absolutely amazing! Tuesday was not so fun, with Ben and I sitting in Concourse B of the San Juan airport for 8 1/2 hours, but we eventually got home safe and sound. I don’t know about Ben, but I am definitely planning on returning!
So there! Hopefully the pictures will load successfully…

I was supposed to write something earlier in the week and got distracted by life. Stupid life. Anyway, I am team teaching with the sisters this morning so I have time to update everyone. Thankfully, nothing exciting is going on. I was sick all weekend and missed Mia’s birthday and my in-law’s surprise 60th birthday party on Saturday. I hear they were fantastic, though. Chris spoke at the Why I Believe on Sunday and did a fantastic job! I am so proud of him, and lucky and happy…It’s just disgusting ;o) Work has been very challenging lately. There are several very sick people on the unit and we’ve lost a couple as well. One of the reasons I love this job is that we really get to know the patients and families over time. Unfortunately, that can make the end very hard.

We got a letter in the mail yesterday - Bubba got accepted into the Dual Language program to start in the fall.  We are so excited!!  The community is starting to become aware of the program, unfortunately some people don’t educate themselves about it.  One lady chose to write a letter in the newspaper and I had to respond.  Maybe the next person will do a little research before entering a public forum.  We are so happy with the program.  Kehli is up to a Spanish reading level 10 and has caught up to about half of her class.  She’s supposed to be at a level 18 by May.  I don’t know if she’ll make it or not but I know they are watching her closely to see her progress as she is the only one that started in first grade.  We are so proud of her!

I got Mark good for April Fool’s Day - it actually started last week.  He thought I was pregnant again (one of my pregnant friends took a test for me).  By the time he actually accepted the fact that we were having another baby it was 10:30 on Tuesday night and I told him it was all a joke.  He laughed, but not as hard as I did.  I knew I could only do it once so it had to be good.  Does that mean he’s ready to have another???  Tell him congratulations the next time you talk to him - he’ll laugh.

Baseball is fun.  Planting season is crazy.  Evan is finally gaining weight after being sick for 3 weeks.  Bubba is…well… Bubba.  Erin is attending a High School Musical clinic next Wednesday to learn all the dances and cheers.  Kehli keeps asking when she gets to play basketball again.  I’m exhausted from trying to keep the house spotless every day.  That’s our life in a nutshell.

It sure would be fun to hear from the rest of you *hint* *hint*
Have a great conference weekend!
Love, Gretchen

Here is a picture of Brett pitching.  His first game was flawless and it was fun to hear the other parents talking about him and his accuracy.  His second game he pitched to 19 batter’s and only walked two.  He still says he’s nervous, but I think it’s getting easier mentally for him.  He’s scheduled to pitch only one inning today because his arm is sore from throwing 52 pitches in the last game.  It is so fun to watch him play.  A few weeks ago we were talking at dinner and I asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up.  He said a professional baseball player, then he paused and said, “But they play games on Sunday don’t they?”  We told him yes then he said, “I better do something else then.”  We explained that there are many LDS people on professional sports teams and that it is part of the job, just like a doctor or fireman.  It made Mark and I smile inside knowing he was thinking about keeping the commandments.

I was able to go up to Spokane last weekend to Time Out For Women.  There were five of us that stayed together and we had a blast.  Here are a few of us with Michael McLean - he is always a treat to listen to - I laughed, cried, got inspired.  It was a wonderful weekend and I even had some free time by myself to do some shopping!!  I found the cutest pair of creme patent leather Mary Janes.  One of my favorite quotes from TOFW was by Carolyn J. Rasmus:  “The gospel of Jesus Christ is not insurance against pain - it is a resource to deal with pain.”  You can substitute so many words for “pain” and it can apply to every aspect of our life.  I bought her book called “Simplify” because it is something that I need to work on right now.  It is great so far, but I’m only a few pages into it so far.

Mark started potatoe planting today so I’m a single mom for the next 5-6 weeks.  I get so spoiled over the winter having him around so much that I’m the one that really has to adjust to the new schedule.  Baseball will keep a smile on my face!!

We’ve been preparing for baseball season for a few months now.  Mark built Brett a portable pitching mound so he could practice in the back yard and he’s had lessons since the beginning of February.  He also earned a new bat (dang those things are expensive!!)  Brett had baseball tryouts on Saturday and was drafted to Team Pepsi.  Their first practice is tomorrow and their games start next Saturday.  There are only 2 returning players to the team and 10 new players so it will be interesting to see how the season goes.  His coach, Jeff, was at the Batter’s Box (indoor batting cages) when Brett was having one of his pitching lessons a few weeks ago.  He came over and offered Brett $20 to tell him his name.  So when Jeff called last night to tell us which team Brett was on he said, “Just to be sure I have the right Brett… was he at the Batter’s Box getting pitching lessons a few weeks ago?”  Mark replied yes and Jeff said, “Oh good, I got the right one.”  That put a smile on Brett’s face and really boosted his confidence!!  Anyway, you can’t tell that I’m excited for baseball season can you?!  It is just so much fun to watch him play.

On a sad note, our house selling contract fell through for the buyers, so we are back to square one.  We’re starting to stress out a little because if we don’t sell the house before summer, we won’t be able to start building.  All prayers in our behalf are most appreciated.

We have two very exciting things happening this year and you all are invited.  Brett gets ordained to the priesthood in May - that will take place on May18.  Also, Kehli is getting baptized on December 6.  We’d love to have any of you here if you can make it!!  Also, we are in Utah for the weekend of July 4 if anyone is planning trips out west this summer.

These past two weeks have been very busy and stressful for me, but, somehow, I have also managed to squeeze through some coherent thoughts. First and foremost, yesterday (2/28) was the first anniversary of Jay’s passing, and I know that Ben, Jeni, and I each processed that in different ways. Jay Reed’s funeral was a really wonderful service that seemed to book-end what has been a truly death-filled year. What I most took away from that was the importance of being a pillar to the people close to me. As much as it seemed that he relied on others, literally, for his life, it was very apparent that many people will be utterly lost for some time without Jay. And it was the same with our Jay. This past year has been a time for us to prove that Jay’s years with us were not wasted- that we took as much light from him as we could, and are using it to go forward. At the exact hour of the anniversary, Jeni was toasting his memory with a friend who was with us that night; Ben and I were both stuck at different points on the outer loop of the Beltway. I turned the radio off, and said a prayer of sincere gratitude- thankful for the gift of memory. I feel like that is probably as close as I’ll ever get to the meaning of life. If the Book of Mormon is to be believed- all we have to do is remember- blessings, trials, revelations, traumas, commandments, examples. It’s all given to us, if we would only remember.
I think that’s all the coherence I can handle for the evening. I can share, though, that my company “passed” our audit, and we are being “recommended for certification” - with no nonconformances! (And that never happens, so it’s pretty incredible!)

I just had to post these three things that Bailey said recently: