April 2012 General Conference in Utah

We were finally able to take a conference trip this year. We drove up and stayed with Bethia and Jeremy in Orem.
It was really great to visit with them. We also met their dogs Julian and Mason. They are so awesome and trained well.
We spent a nice afternoon at the Church History Museum after attending the Sat AM session. Our seats were on the top balcony right in the front row.
We brought binoculars and could see the General Authorities up close. There was a strong feeling in the room when we stood for the Prophet as he entered.  After our session, we went across the street to the brand new mall and ate at Chik Fil A. The line was so long, I was sure they would run out of food, they didn't.
On our last day, we visited with Cici, Kye, Wesly and Marion. We went to Cici's house for breakfast before heading home.
In the car, we listened to The Hobbit on audio disc. We needed to prepare for the movie coming out this year.
All in all, it was a great experience to see the Prophet, Apostles, family and spending time together.

Linden Ward Valentine's Party

 This year, our ward had a party where you signed up with other couples and you were responsible for everything for your table.  We were with Scott and Heidi Hastings, Greg and Julie Dunford and Jerry and Joan Hunter.  The decor was nicer than any other we saw.  We ate malaysian chicken on wild rice, spinach salad with fruit, rolls and chocolate mousse with raspberry sauce. Delicious.  Joan's daughter is a chocolatier and made 8 special chocolates (sitting in the middle).

The conversation was very nice. We laughed much.  There was also a deejay and a dance following.  Scott and I danced a little, but mostly we were able to visit with friends.

Goodbye, dear Jojo

Jojo started to swell in her abdomen and get skinnier everywhere else.  She was quite old and couldn't run and chase after rabbits or go up or downstairs anymore.  The vet said that she had a tumor in her stomach, and it ruptured and she was suffering.  We were able to say goodbye to her before she was put down.

I have to admit, sometimes I was annoyed by her, she wasn't house-trained and shed like crazy, but she was a constant in the lives of our kids.  They couldn't remember not having her.  She provided protection for our family and was a great running companion.  She was someone to go to when you needed to cry, she sat and loved you (and licked your tears).  She was loyal to the end.

Kill the World..............With Kindness!!

This week at institute, the teacher asked if anyone of us had a family moto. Well, I very enthusiastically raised my hand and said "Kill the world, pause, pause, pause with kindness".  I sat so proud of myself.  A few others said theirs, and then it hit me, it sounded a little lame.  Sorry, family, it's really not lame but more of an inside joke that I couldn't explain in a religious class.

Sloane's Ski Trips

Sloane asked Santa for skis this year.  Here she is with her Salomon 155s.  She goes with her Jr High on ski trips every Wednesday for 5 weeks.
I understand she shreds the slopes.  She goes up to the Black Diamonds and goes straight down at mach speed.  No fear, I guess.  I just hope there are no broken bones in store for her.  She prefers to ski while Scott and Sydney like to snowboard.

Andrew lost his first tooth!

Finally! We thought it would never happen. Andrew's tooth wasn't even very loose last night. This morning he woke us up telling us his tooth was out. He worked very diligently, hoping to get some $$ from the tooth fairy. BTW, he's 7 1/2!

Happy New Year 2012

We welcomed the new year with fun, fun, fun.  Scott and I went to Ron and Lisa Reed's house.  There were about 5 couples and amazing food.  We watched Brian Regan's "I Walked on the Moon", laughed our guts out, then played canasta.

The Tuck family used to play canasta ALL the time.  In fact I remember when we were moving from Sioux City Iowa to Denton Texas, after the moving truck was loaded, we played canasta on the floor. 

We also played it in Taipei with Ralph and Lisa Thompson.  Good times...

Anyway, we picked it up again rather quickly and smoked everybody.

We really had a very good time!