OTHERS October 2009

Samuel was the first one to send in a submission for this month's newsletter and here it is! A picture of him working at his new job - Jamba Juice. Doesn't he look official in his visor and apron washing those dirty dishes?



WARD WIDE WEB

JEREMY took the family down to southern California for a whirlwind fun weekend! He took us to the beach, to the LaBrea Tar Pits and to the LA Temple. Here's a sample of the tar pits in action!

JENNIFER is having a fabulous time working with the Young Women. She works with a great group of ladies that work so hard to make a good experience for the girls.

TREVOR turned 10 in September. He celebrated the same way he did last year - with an awesome party at LASER QUEST!

LOGAN is our soccer superstar. He scored the first goal of the season for his team.

LIZZIE is loving kindergarten! She got to be superstar of the week last week and got to make a poster picture collage to share with her class. Here is her 3 month baby picture that made it onto her poster.

JACKSON finally started his own Joy School! Here he is with some of the boys in his group. They are a fun bunch of kids.

OTHERS September 2009

McKanda Mail

Summer is ending and Amanda and I are celebrating by working really hard. I'm down in Oregon City helping an investor get a Motion Graphics company off the ground, and Manda is working at the Nike World Campus for the Nike Foundation. To learn more about the Nike Foundation go here, and to learn more about Motion Graphics go here. Amanda is also working weekends shooting and assisting at various weddings around the Portland area. Last week she was privileged to participate in her first lesbian wedding, and we are all so proud of her (and by participate I mean take pictures and stuff... just didn't want you to get the wrong idea). A bit foreign, but the pay is good.

We also recently went to the state fair, and before that Ryan came up for a little guy time in the mountains, and before that we bought a VW Passat, and before that I went white water rafting with the venture scouts. You can read all about it on our blog found here.

So there you have it. I'm working, and Amanda is working.

much love,

McKay and Amanda

LA FAMILIA DURAN

We thought we had nothing to do this August cause there was nothing written in on our calendar, so we made plans to scrape all the popcorn off the ceiling in the family room. Thank goodness Jordan stepped up and did it for us cause August hit us like a storm, one big wave after another.

We all helped with the YSA Conference, Louie did security and ushering, (he thought it was way cool that he got to wear his gun at church and guard all the money) the rest of us (ThomasAmyJenniferJeremyMarcosMelodyJordanSamuelTimmyMicaElizabeth) helped with the dance and other activities. Big job. Thanks to John and Suzanne for the assignment and to all for making it such a success. It's just nice to know that you can depend on family.

We added a new member to the "Antonio Club" in our family. (Louie, Marcos, Trevor, and now Mason are members of that club!) Our beautiful Mason Antonio Duran was born August 14, but had to stay in ICU for a few days so we all worried and fretted over this new little guy and his new mama and daddy. Melody had to have an emergency C section and was a wreck, Mason had problems with his lungs working - you do need to be able to breath if you want to live, and Marcos forgot how to sleep. Mason is 3 weeks old now and all seem to be on the mend. Mason is sooooooo cute.

Louie was released from Worker’s Comp and went back to work. Before going back to work though, he took Trevor and Logan fishing a couple of times and out to to eat to the Dam Diner. Hmmmm, the place with all kinds of bad words on the menu, just what every elementary kid needs to learn. Anyway, Louie thinks he has to make up for all the overtime he has missed since October. Think he has worked 60 or so overtime hours in the last two weeks. Really.

Samuel moved to Sacramento to go to school. He downsized everything he owned by selling or giving away all his stuff and then putting as much as would fit in his car and the rest in our garage. He got a job in Sacramento working at Jamba Juice a few hours a week and has been exploring the area - a park on a river with a wharf you can walk onto out over the river - sounds beautiful!

Jordan had a car accident. Backed into someone who backed into him in the parking lot. Not much damage. Just one more thing to add to the "stress level" of the month.

Mica and Elizabeth started school. School is good for both. Mica got all her classes and is liking them. Elizabeth gets to work in math this year. Hallelujah - no more science!

By the way, Jordan did a great job on the ceiling. The popcorn is all gone. Wonder what is going to happen in September?

OTHERS August 2009

Pismo Cousins 2009

Great Scott!
Ben, Toni and Rebekah

It's been a while since we've updated everyone! We've been having a really fun and eventful summer.

Ben recently got a new job at PetSmart as a department manager. He's liking it pretty well, still looking for something a little better, the hours have him out a lot, mandatory overtime and opening and closing shifts. It's nice having him working full time again though.

Rebekah is in Preschool, and loves every day. She always asks if we can go to school, even on the weekends. I'm so glad we have her in a place that she loves so much. Potty training is slow, and as she's passed 2 1/2 now, I'm really starting to get frustrated. Hopefully something will click and it'll happen before the winter.

We also recently moved into a house out in Magna, UT which is where I (Toni) grew up! My mom lives just a couple blocks away, and Rebekah is loving being so close to her Grammy. Our house is wonderful, two bedrooms with a big living room and den. The backyard is the best part, it's huge and we have a huge covered porch off the garage. We've already had a big barbeque and there was plenty of room for all. I've posted pictures on the family blog, you'll probably just have to go back to July to see them, and I put our family picture of the three of
us on our front porch above.

We hope all is well, and hope to see you all at Pismo next year!


Waddell's
Well, I don't know if you all heard the news yet, but we're pregnant with number two, about 12 weeks along and we're moving into a rental house near Denver, CO. Much better than our three story apartment that is small confining! We're calling in all moving favors, so if we've ever helped you move, we expect you to come out here and help us down the three flights of stairs with all of our things. See you all this Saturday!


WARD WIDE WEB
JEREMY & JENNIFER took a day to go hiking. Just the two of us. We went up to Chilnualna Falls in Yosemite - 4.5 miles in + 4.5 miles out = sore legs for a week. The falls were beautiful, the one on one time was much needed, and it was all worth that soreness.

TREVOR was the fishing KING this summer! He got his fill at Family Camp in Shaver and at Pismo offf the pier. He caught around 15 fish this season!

LOGAN turned into a muscle man mermaid one of the days we were on the beach. That sand felt so warm and cozy that he almost fell asleep while daddy dug the sand all around him, molded, and shaped for about 30 minutes.

LIZZIE was the boogieboard princess at Avila this year. She really got into it! She stayed out there for hours with and without a wetsuit. Does she look like she's having fun?

JACKSON almost got eaten by a pelican! We were hanging out on the pier, this pelican was sitting on the railing, Jackson went over to pick up his candy off the ground - right under where the pelican was sitting, the pelican reached down and wrapped his beak around Jackson's head! Jackson pulled away and the pelican flew off!
Thankfully, Jackson was ok. His mama had a small heart attack, but quickly recovered also.

OTHERS July 2009

WADDELL's
We're in DENVER now! The expected 16 hour trip turned into a 36 hour trip somehow. We managed to underestimate how slow you drive in a huge truck pulling a trailer through crazy terrain and up to 11000 ft elevation. We all crammed into the cab of the penske and watched countless movies and ate countless snacks. Lucas did remarkably well and the hardest part was coaxing him back into the cab after stops. Luckily bribing him with the keys to the things for a few minutes did the trick. He felt powerful trying to drive it! We're in a small, nice apartment on the THIRD FLOOR and are looking for a nice BIG house to rent with a yard on the ground. Caralee is tired of carrying milk and Lucas up the stairs and the altitude here isn't helping her breathe better after such a feat! Eric likes his job and enjoys being outside all day long. Caralee packs his lunch everyday and thinks that he eats more food than two adults do in an entire day for that one meal! He has a nice neck tan now. We may be coming to Pismo, but may not as well depending on Eric's work schedule. We'll definitely be in town for a few short days at the end of July though. We miss Fresno a ton and can't wait to see you all again!



WARD WIDE WEB
JEREMY got to ride along with the scouts in our ward for a hike to Half Dome in Yosemite. (He was released from this calling a couple of months ago, but loves hiking - he couldn't pass up this opportunity.)
JENNIFER fell off the face of the internet in June. School got out and we've been busy, Busy, BUSY with activities, chores and outings. (Check out those FREE MOVIES at Regal Theaters on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday if you haven't already.) We are too busy having fun!

TREVOR did Cub Scout Day Camp in June. Logan and Trevor both started water polo last month. They love the sport already and that alone makes their daddy so proud.
LOGAN got baptized the first week of June and is LOVING being 8! EIGHT IS GREAT! Trevor and Logan got to go together to Cub Scout Day Camp and had a blast shooting off rockets, fishing and shooting bows and arrows.
LIZZIE swam like a champ in her swim lessons. She was the smallest kid in the class, but she was also the fastest and strongest swimmer! She beat out all those big kids in every race! Way to go Lizzie!

JACKSON started swim lessons for the summer. He did a 2-week basic beginner course and did not pass. He was the biggest chicken! He had a few more lessons at home with daddy and is finally doing great! He's gotten over his swimming fear and is ready to conquer the pool. Now if only we could convince him to conquer the potty-training....



MCCRARY NEWS
You know that this was Jacob's very first Pinewood Derby. So here are the pictures I took along the way. He had so much fun doing it with his dad and he told me that he wants me to have a baby boy so we can do it even more times. He called his car "THE STINGER". You will see why. He didn't win but he had a ton of fun and won a certificate for "The Best Body Style." He didn't stop moving almost all night long while we were there. He was running back and forth or just standing in place bouncing up and down out of sheer excitement. It was so funny and so cute to see him that excited about something. He LOVES cub scouts.

OTHERS June 2009

Texas Scott News:
We are all doing fine! Its another month???? I (nancy) looked at the Boggs' sibling picture in the newsletter after Michael's funeral and discovered that I am now the shortest one of the siblings? Does that mean I am next? Today, June 1st is the first day of Hurricane season. Nothing has changed except that we had Vidor, TX graduations this last Saturday. I am still working and looking forward to Pismo..... John is still taking care of me so I can work and go to Pismo. Our Boy Scouts are all going to Philmont this month. Not to pismo! John had a cat that adopted him. John now feeds the cat too. It is not going to Pismo. Jody and kids are back from England. Living in Houston. They want to go to Pismo too! Well I guess this is all for now! See you at Pismo. Pismo is after Jacobs baptism which is June 6th. Wow! Another 8 year old! Way to go Jacob!



Waddell's
We're moving, it's been approved! As of June 16th, we'll be Colorado-ite's and no longer Californian's. We're driving the 16 hour trek, so wish our car and our child well. We'll so sad to leave everyone, but just think, when you're in Denver you can always come by for a visit! We can't wait to get out of the heat and into a town with even more stuff to do than Fresno, but I dread the snow! Oh well, it's the price you pay for clean air I suppose.


WARD WIDE WEB
JEREMY took the family for a day trip to Yosemite. We had a great time marveling at the magnificent waterfalls and going for bike rides. This trip satisfied one of the items on Jeremy's "life list" - the family bike ride. Each of us on our own bike. He's waited his whole life for that moment and it finally happened! Jeremy put together a great video of that trip click HERE to watch.
JENNIFER got to tag along on Jeremy's work trip to Anaheim for the California Distinguished School Award. Jeremy and Jennifer went ALONE, with no children, to stay at the Disneyland Hotel and do the theme parks. It was a much needed getaway for both. The grandparents were fabulous, taking the kids, while Jeremy and Jennifer were away. The highlights of the trip were eating at the Blue Bayou cafe (the restaurant in Pirates of the Caribbean) and using those Fast Passes to walk past those long lines right up to the front.
TREVOR ran in 2 track meets this month. He did the shot put at one meet and did the 800 meter run at both. He did great and met his goals to run the whole race and not stop once. Click HERE to read all about it!
LOGAN is EIGHT! He celebrated with an awesome American Gladiators themed birthday party. It was a wild and crazy time with almost 30 kids running amok in the backyard. And, No, those are not gangsters - it was the RED team vs. the BLUE team. [Check your email inbox for Logan's baptism announcement for this weekend.]
LIZZIE finished off a great year of Joy School. Last month she got to do some super fun things - a trip to the zoo and making homemade Green Gage Plum jam for Mother's Day were 2 highlights. She is sooo looking forward to kindergarten. Lizzie loved learning and spending good time with her friends Sarah and Preston.
JACKSON started gymnastics. He has been longing for his very own activity. We found a class for his age group that meets the same time as Lizzie's. It was perfect! Click HERE to read all about it and watch a short video or 2 from his class.

OTHERS May 2009

============NEWSLETTERS==========

Waddell's
We are all alive and Eric is home! It's been a year year and now he's home to stay and is looking for a civilian job now believe it or not! Lucas is thoroughly enjoying having a permanent playmate and Daddy around to play with and Caralee is glad to have her husband home after all this time. We'll come home from our visit to KY on the 8th of May and after that we'll be out and ready to hang.



TEXAS SCOTTS:
We are doing well in our new home. Jody, kids and dogs have moved to England to a new job. Jody stated it is cold in England and they have a curfew. She is working for KBR. Other then that they are doing well. John is now working in the Houston Temple once a week. He still plays in his band, fishes, is gardening and teaching gardening to members in the ward here in Vidor. He has made 24 pints of strawberry jam and picked and made blackberry jam. We have a pond when the big storms come through but we are still high and dry with all this rain. We have knee boots now! Schools in Houston, Ft Worth and San Antonio are closed for Swine flu. Nancy is working and has most of the house unpacked this month.

John/Nancy Scott

John Marshall Noose - by Suzanne:

We are grateful that our life is fairly uneventful! We have loved visiting with different family members these past few weeks. We've enjoyed company from out of town, seeing family at Michael's funeral and attending different family events and parties. It has been great to see all of you.

John is still at home waiting for a work assignment. He is keeping busy with his woodworking, house painting and of course.... golf. Lots of golf. Lots. Suzanne is working (does that seem fair?!), redecorating, and not playing golf.

We were released from our team-teaching Primary calling, and called to be co-Activities Chairmen. Our first activity is this weekend. If it fails I'm thinking that we will only get a lecture from the Bishop and not get released. We are wondering if our marriage can survive working together on activities (parties) for the ward?!! Our marriage survived the primary team-teaching, but this?! What was the Bishop thinking?!

We love you all, and are looking forward to getting together this summer. Let's have a couple of family reunions!



Hey everyone! (From Tiana)
Last night my family gathered around (in person, or via phone) to witness the opening of my long awaited Mission Call!!

Are you ready to hear? Drum Roll Please...

I have been called to serve as a missionary in the Russia Novosibirsk Mission, Russian speaking! I will report to the MTC on July 15.

I am very excited to be able to teach the gospel, and to learn so many wonderful tings, and meet so many wonderful people.

It is great to know that I have a big family out there who loves me! Thank you for all your love and support!

- Sister Tiana Boggs

OTHERS April 2009

============NEWSLETTERS==========

McCrary News,

written by Carolyn

John: has been to Utah, Idaho, Montana and Spokane several times. He came home early when the basement flooded, moved all the furniture out of three rooms with the help of friends, tore out what was left of the carpet pad and relayed the new pad in the three rooms and hallway after the carpet and floor dried and was sealed up again, painted two bedrooms, transplanted many of our raspberry vines so they are in a straight row and not so close to the fence, cleaned and reorganized the garage, took out part of the chain link fence, then re-cemented in the posts on the back of the house so we can put a gate there instead of on the middle of the driveway, pulled weeds in the garden that are still alive from last fall, planted two new peach trees and fertilized all our fruit trees, pulled a tooth, helped a friend relay all the carpet and then helped put everything back in the basement in a new location according to my directions. What a great guy!

Katelin: went to achievement days and learned how to ???, I can’t remember right now what she learned, but it was really fun. Got good grades on her 3^rd quarter report card. She also tried out for a few different solos in the school choir and is waiting to hear if she got any of them. She took charge of a lemonade stand and earned $5.00 in which she went to Wal-Mart and bought stick on fingernails. They were French manicure. Oooooh ! Beautiful! She helped paint her bedroom and after the furniture got put back in she cleaned out both her closets in her room which is an amazing feat and the thrift store loves us now. She went shopping with mom and bought new fleece blankets for her room and pretty sheets to match with a soft fuzzy pink pillow. Now all she needs is curtains and wall décor. It’s a great start.

Jacob: lost his first tooth. I told him that if he let daddy pull it out that I would give him $5.00. Well, it took a while, but he let daddy pull it out. It was very stressful. Then he put his tooth under his pillow that night and the tooth fairy brought him four quarters. You need to read our blog about his tooth. http://mccrarylife.blogspot.com/ He doesn’t really know what he wants to do with the money so he is saving it for now. I actually paid up and gave him the five bucks…from John’s wallet. (Not making that kind of deal again.) His other tooth is loose now and he asked me the other day if I would give him $3.00 if he let daddy pull that tooth. I said no. Jacob also got good grades on his 3^rd quarter report card. Woohoo! Jacob had this to say about what he did the other day, “ I was rolling a rock, like, not really a rock, but it looked clear and sparkly, in the bathtub.” Don’t ask. I don’t know what he is really talking about either, but it must have been fun and now everyone knows that he took at least one bath this month.

Ella: dumped pink bubbles on her bedroom carpet, orange jell-o on the carpet in the kitchen, smooshed play dough into the carpet, breathed heavy so she could see her breath and licked the front storm door several times, wore various outfits daily (none of which matched) but she knows she is a princess, climbed up the shelves in her closet and threw all her clothes on the floor, opened up a box of Scooby Doo bandaids and shared them with her friend next door in which they managed to cover their legs and one for each hand, then they took them off and put them on the walls, sofa, floor and bed frame, continuously gets caught using the sofa and loveseat as gymnastic equipment and trampolines, wrote her name backwards on her little tikes table with a pencil, redecorated her yellow and white dresser using a black crayon, pulled too hard on the tape measure and broke it with her friend next door, convinced the same friend next door to use colored sidewalk chalk on her toy wooden kitchen and pantry and then climb on top of them to color the walls (she must have forgotten we have a chalkboard), used a pencil on the inner etching of the panels on her three panel closet doors (it’s still there), had a pretend tea party in her room with the twins down the street but seemed to forget that you don’t really put water in the cups. Ella did a lot of cleaning this month as well.

Carolyn: threw all the bubbles away she could find, hasn’t made anymore jello, keeps the front door locked up high, threatened to throw away all Ella’s clothes, moved what’s left of the bandaids and other medicine to the top of the kitchen cupboard and above the washer and dryer way up high, threatens to put Ella out front in the snow if she jumps on the couches again, has confiscated all pencils, and the crayons and chalk are on top of the fridge. I love my carpet cleaner and my magic erasers. Oh no! I forgot to buy a new box of magic erasers today when I went to Wal-Mart. On top of that helped clean up the flood in the basement, helped paint Jacob and Katelin’s bedrooms, went through all their clothes and toys with them before putting them back in their rooms, reorganize our food storage, made a lot of thank you gifts for all our neighbors that helped when the basement flooded and am learning how to use facebook. I seriously can’t wait for spring break.

Two questions: Am I the last one on earth to get on facebook? AND Does anyone want a cute little princess for a week or so?

Carolyn McCrary