I am a bit behind on updates...ugh! We have stayed busy. Here’s what has been happening the last three weeks with our family. Daniel continues to be a new missionary trainer. They had a New Missionary Training a few weeks ago. Here is Daniel and his Greenie:
Here’s the group that attended New Missionary Training:
Daniel is learning a lot on his mission. He did get an interesting hands on real life education about tornadoes last week. Here’s our conversation through Messenger about his experience:
I didn’t get a picture of Josh’s though.
We celebrated Noah’s birthday as a family on a Sunday instead of his actual birthday so we could all be there including Grandma T and Matthew. Noah chose to have stuffed hamburgers for his dinner with an ice cream birthday cake:
He was able to blow out all of the candles:
The next day Aaron and I took him to the Driver’s License Division to take his test to get his Learner’s Permit. He passed the test on his first try. Wahoo! Here he is getting his picture taken for his Learner’s Permit:
We then took him out for some lunch before he got checked back into to school.
Aaron is currently an Ogden Temple worker, however, he will be transitioning to be a Syracuse temple worker when it opens in June. He got asked to a Baptistry Lead which he is excited about. The new Syracuse temple will have two different and separate baptistries so he will be able to help out there. He got his first Syracuse temple training last week. I am jealous because after the training inside the Syracuse temple they got to take a tour by a member of the temple presidency. Aaron said the temple is beautiful. I guess I will have to wait and see it like all the other chumps when the public open house starts. I am excited, though, because our family was able to snag five ushering spots to help out on the very first day the open house starts. Wahoo! We are excited to have the temple five minutes from our house!
Aaron a few weeks ago got asked to spearhead the food committee for AP Camp (Aaronic Priesthood Camp) in June. He did this a few years ago and it was pretty stressful for him, but I guess they liked his work since they asked him to head it up again. He will get a designated food committee to help him this year which will be nice. He met with all of them for the first time last week. He is still pretty nervous about it, but I am sure it will turn out amazing!
Noah had his pictures taken for soccer. We got them back last week. Here they are:
On his actual birthday Aaron got up early and got him 15 donuts to celebrate for breakfast. Luckily Noah was willing to share with his siblings after he got the first choice. Aaron wrote on the box, “Happy Birthday Noah, Love, Dad"
As for Josh we waited to celebrate his birthday on the Sunday after his actual birthday so Matthew and Grandma T could join us. Josh chose to have ribs for his birthday dinner. He also chose to have a Better Than Anything Cake for his birthday cake. His actual birthday was on a Tuesday. I had to leave early that morning for an interview and then I had a clinic down in Gunnison until late that evening so I didn’t even see him that whole day because by the time I got home from my clinic he was already in bed since he had a really early morning the next day. He did mention later that birthdays as an adult aren’t as fun as they were when you are a kid...Yep, I agree.
Aaron did get up early before he left for work to make sure Josh got his 22 donuts. They were ready when Josh finally got up later that morning. Don’t worry he shared them with everyone--haha!
Noah had his first track meet. He ran the 800 meter. It was great to watch him run.
Sarah and Noah had their piano recital last week. They both did fantastic. It is awesome to hear them play the piano. I got so used to hearing them practice the same songs repeatedly that I will miss hearing them now they have moved on. Noah played three songs.
Here’s all the piano teacher’s students. Noah was being a dork and stood on his tip toes so he could be the tallest in the picture...***insert eye roll here--haha!
Here’s some more soccer last week. Noah was goalie and got to kick the ball away. He’s in the blue goalie shirt:
Daniel’s girlfriend Katie got her mission call last week. We were invited to watch her open it last Thursday evening. It was awesome. She is going to the Copenhagen, Denmark mission leaving in September. She will leave about the time Daniel will hit his year mark of being out on his mission. We also invited her over to our house to join our call with Daniel on Easter. We are excited for her and know she will do great.
Grandma T stopped by and dropped off an Easter bag of goodies for all the kids last week. There was a bag for each kid, but they got to them before I could get a picture of all of them so I got a picture of just one--haha! The kids love this annual tradition.
Sarah had Prom this weekend. However they did their big date Thursday evening. The group was kind enough to wait for Sarah to get done with dance before they went to do some Top Golf. Here is Sarah taking her turn:
Putting on the corsage and boutonniere with Adam, her date:
Here’s some of the pictures they took that evening after she got picked up:
They had some dinner:
After dinner they took pictures:
Then they made it to the dance:
Sarah got some exciting news. She passed her Biliteracy test for ASL. In Utah, high school students can earn a Seal of Biliteracy by demonstrating proficiency in English and at least one other language which in Sarah’s case is ASL (American Sign Language), at the intermediate-mid level or higher. This proficiency is usually demonstrated through a standardized test. She passed her test with a level 6 and anything above a 4 a student is considered bilingual. The Seal recognizes and honors students who have attained a high level of proficiency in multiple languages. She won’t get the actual Seal of Biliteracy until next year when she graduates with her diploma, but just passing the test is an amazing accomplishment.
The next morning was Easter. The kids got up early and got to find their hidden baskets. The Easter bunny hid them really well this year so it took some time for everyone to find their own.
Josh:
Sarah:
Noah:
Daniel got an Easter package through the mail, but he won’t be able to pick it up until Monday so his Easter will be a day later....
Looking:
Matthew:
To celebrate Josh’s birthday during the day Sarah and Josh went out for lunch at The Olive Garden.
Josh found out a few months ago that his first Mission President, Steven Shumway, would be speaking in General Conference in the Sunday morning session in April. Josh tried to get tickets, but was not successful. However, Sunday morning at 8:40 am as Josh was walking upstairs from his bedroom he got notification that one of his friends had an extra ticket. He immediately got dressed and drove down to Salt Lake leaving at 8:50am. Aaron and were sure that he would not make it in time. They usually have everyone seated in the Conference Center by 9:15-9:30 and then whatever seats are left are given to the stand by line. We live 40 minutes away (when you drive the speed limit) from the Conference Center. Amazingly he made it (I don’t want to think about how fast he drove down there, though....). He was not able to sit by his friend (that seat had already been given away) but got to sit in a different section. He was just excited he would get a chance to hear his old mission president speak in person. Here’s his view from his seat at the Conference Center:
Afterward all the returned Chicago missionaries met up with the Shumways after it was over to catch up in between Conference sessions. Here’s Josh with his old Mission President:
Here’s all the old Chicago missionaries that made it to that session of Conference:
While Josh was down in Salt Lake that morning the rest of us enjoyed a hearty traditional Conference morning breakfast cooked by Aaron. It was yummy and we look forward to this tradition every 6 months!
Josh found out that he will be able to work as an Area Coordinator for FSY (For the Strength of the Youth) program this summer. He will work for 9 weeks. He will spend a week at the U of U, Snow College, three weeks at BYU (two weeks of that are training), two weeks in Las Vegas (UNLV) and two weeks at Purdue in Indiana. We won’t see much of him this summer, however, he will be here for the 4th of July which is awesome!
Noah had his second track meet earlier this week. He got to participate in two events the 1600 meter (1 mile) and the 800 meter. The mile run was the very first event.
Then three hours later he got to run the 800 meter:
He did great. It was such a beautiful day I stayed at the track the whole time, however, I didn’t wear sunscreen other than my face--ugh. I am starting out the warm season with a funky sandal line already....
