December 17, 2006

December 17, 2006

Can Christmas really be so close? Wow! We are hoping for a very enjoyable and relaxing holiday break. This week is a busy one. I work every day but Tuesday, I am working the 7th grade Medieval festival that Marisa is in, the kids have their holiday parties, etc.

On Friday, Marisa’s chamber orchestra had a Holiday Tour. They performed at Cottage Grove and then I met up with them at the mall. I got to each lunch with her and her friends there and then they performed in the mall. It was a FANTASTIC performance and I just can’t believe how good she is getting. The acoustics where they performed were so great. It was so fun to be there. Then we got to walk around the mall and Alayna even got her picture taken with Santa Clause!

A teacher at Excelsior just found out this week she has breast cancer. (She is not a member but her daughter in law happens to be my visiting teacher!) So, I am covering her class this week when she goes in for surgery and then covering in January for whatever chemo or radiation treatment she will need. It will be one week or a 6 week set. I should know Monday which one she has to do. I am worried about her- she is pretty scared. I can’t blame her, I would be terrified.

Other than that, not much else new is going on. I am home with 2 sick kids- bad colds going around. Hopefully we can keep everyone well to just get through this week! Oh, and our family was asked to sing in church next week. We have been practicing and our harmony sounds pretty good, if I do say so myself. Marisa will also be playing her violin for one of the verses.
We are getting excited for Christmas. Hopefully all of you have received our Christmas letter. If not, let me know, or I just posted it on our blog. Enjoy your week and we love you!

Hart Christmas letter 2006

Hart Family Quiz

1. We went on a family vacation this summer to two family reunions. Where did we go?
A) Winter Park, Colorado
B) Grand Tetons
C) Yellowstone Park
D) South Dakota badlands
Answer? All of the above! It was a great trip that was a lot of fun.
It was also our first time actually camping as a family!

2. What happened to Marisa this year?
A) She turned 12 and started 7th grade
B) She auditioned and made the chamber orchestra (playing violin)
C) She is on the Geography Bee team and her life dream is to visit every country in the world
D) She attended girls camp for the first time and was able to go to the Nauvoo temple
E) She played on the 7th grade girls volleyball team
F) She got braces
Answer? A thru E. She has been very busy and loving every minute of it!!

3. What happened to Kayla this year?
A) She turned 10 and started 5th grade
B) She got a pet turtle named “slowpoke”
C) She started gymnastics and is already on the pre-team
D) She started playing the drums
E) She LOVES horses
Answer? A, C and E! She loves 5th grade and plays the clarinet in band. She is doing a great job in gymnastics and was thrilled to be accepted to the pre-team! She also loved seeing her horse again at Grandma’s house.

4. What happened to Tyler this year?
A) He got glasses
B) He got an expander retainer
C) He got a green belt in Tae Kwon Do and started taking gymnastics
D) He turned 7 and started 2nd grade
E) He got baptized this year and started Cub Scouts
Answer? A, B, C, and E! He turned 8 and started 3rd grade.

5. What happened to Alayna this year?
A) She turned 4 and attends preschool
B) She put the camera down the disposal
C) She started karate
D) She took swimming lessons
Answer? A and D! She actually put all the crayons down the disposal- can’t even explain what kind of a mess that was! She started gymnastics too and can already do a hand stand against the wall. She loves preschool with her new teacher and looks forward to her kindergarten orientation in February.

6. What’s new with Kris and Bob?
A) Bob played on a football team and volleyball team
B) Kris started subbing school part time and taking classes to get her middle school endorsement.
C) Bob changed jobs and is now a professional wrestler
D) Kris completed her nursing degree and is now a labor and delivery nurse
E) Kris and Bob celebrated their 13th anniversary this year
Answer? A, B and E!! Kris plans to start teaching full time at the middle school in the fall.

Merry Christmas, everyone! Hope you have a wonderful holiday season!

All our love,
The Hart Family

December 10, 2006

December 10, 2006

I may not have gotten a newsletter up last week, but I did finish the Christmas letters which should be in the mail next week. Things here are a steady stream of “busy”. Thankfully all are healthy and we hope to keep it that way. Bob, Alayna, and I all got flu shots which we hope will help us through this winter season.

We are so excited because we FINALLY finished reading the Old Testament as a family!!!!!! Whoo-hoo!! It took us almost an entire year, but we did it. So, we have started the Book of Mormon again which is SO much easier to understand.

Tyler had his first pack meeting last week, which turned out to be a disaster. It started out great. He was so excited to be there, be a part of something new, etc. He took a shower, even put gel in his hair. Well, half way through, they played a game called “jumping over the mote”. The boys took turns jumping and were put into groups according to how far they jumped. Long story short, I was watching the jumping and then looked over at Tyler who was sobbing. I ran over to him and he told me that this kid next to him (which was over twice Tyler’s size) slugged him in the stomach and punched him twice in the throat just for fun. Tyler was having a hard time breathing and it actually bruised his throat so that his neck was bright red for hours and he couldn’t swallow well until the next morning. That “mother bear” instinct kicked right in and it took all I had not to run over to that kid and beat him into a bloody pulp! How dare he touch Tyler? Tyler begged me to take him home. I did and he cried the whole way home. It just broke my heart. What added to the sting was that when he had scouts this week, we found out when we arrived at the church at 7, that all the scouts had left for the planetarium at 6 and no one had bothered to call us with that info. Once again, he sobbed all the way home. It will be a Christmas miracle if I can talk him in to going to scouts this week. I am not sure how much more of this either one of us can take!

On to more pleasant subjects... We watched the cutest movie last night called the “Ant Bully”, it was quite entertaining. On Friday, Tyler and I watched “Pirates of the Caribbean: the Dean man’s Chest” while the older girls were at a birthday slumber party and Bob worked on the computer. Last weekend, we finally got to see “Superman Returns” as a family. It only reinforced Kayla’s strong desire to be able to fly. I am worried that some day she may actually try it.

Subbing has been going well, I just wish I had more babysitters. I had a great offer this week, but had to turn it down because I didn’t have anyone to watch Alayna. I guess that’s ok though, because I am trying to enjoy being home as long as I can. I finished all my paperwork, but have been apprehensive to turn it into the HR department. I will try to do that before the Christmas break though. They are already starting to hire for the new Elementary school. However, I decided to stick with middle school after subbing a 4th grade class this week. They were adorable and thought that my name was Mrs. Hart because I wore red. I even got hugs but realized that that age just isn’t quite for me anymore. So, as soon as those middle school classes become available, I will get working full time on that. I assume interviews will start in February and March and I hope I will be ready for them.

We are now ready for Christmas. All the decorations are up and the presents have been wrapped. We hope all of you are enjoying your holiday season so far.

Love-
Harts

Nov 27, 2006

November 27, 2006

What a wonderful holiday week we had! The kids had the entire week off of school and Bob had Thursday and Friday off. The kids played so well together: computer, twister, monopoly, you name it. The weather even cooperated so we were all able to go out and play tackle football in the backyard.

This was one of our first Thanksgivings by ourselves. I have to say it was quite a success. Marisa even made a pumpkin pie from scratch. She did a great job! I forgot to put out the rolls and Bob accidently dumped a lot of the gravy on the floor, but other than that, it was a complete success. We watched fun movies and played Clue as a family.

We also worked with Tyler on the science kit he got for his birthday. They made a volcano that we hope to explode this weekend. He also painted the earth and made a dinosaur from skeletons.

Bob and I did actually go out on Friday to attempt to get some great holiday deals. Although we got some shopping done, it was not worth the early rise, the long lines, or the crowds. We won’t be doing that again!

We had a fun birthday party weekend for Bob. He had his birthday on Sunday. On Saturday, we went to Happy Joe’s for pizza- he ordered his favorite taco pizza. The kids and I weren’t fans so he has all the rest to himself. On Sunday we had chocolate peanut butter ice cream pie and opened presents. I hope it was a good relaxing birthday for him (even though he had to teach the lesson in priesthood)

Well, we were back up bright and early this morning getting back into our normal routine and schedule. I know we are already looking forward to Christmas break. The kids were like zombies this morning and I couldn’t get off the couch. We hope you all had a very Happy Thanksgiving!!

Love,
Kris and Family

Trip to Utah

November 19, 2006

So much has happened the past couple of weeks. I will try to give the best update that I can. A couple of weeks ago, before we went on our trip to Utah, Marisa had her first orchestra concert of the year. Her 7th grade orchestra was good, but the Chamber orchestra (that she made through auditions) was outstanding! She is loving being a part of this great program and she is becoming a very good player. We hope to get her private lessons next year which should help as well.



On November 8, we left for our quick trip to Utah. We drove about 4 hours to the Chicago Ohare airport. The drive was fine except for the toll road that sucked up all our change! It took our family 30 minutes to get through the checkpoint. I do understand that they need to make sure we are safe, but I was still upset when they through away our water bottles (even Marisa’s nice school one), my lotion (a small 2 ml size), etc. When he went to throw out my prescription eye drops I threw a massive fit. I explained that it said on the website that eye drops that size were allowed, so he finally gave in and let me have it. (Jerk!) Then Bob’s ticket was in his nickname so, since it didn’t match his drivers license, he had to go back out and get re-registered. It was so frustrating.

The flight itself was about 3 ½ hours and the kids did so well, I was shocked. They colored, played, read, worked on homework. Even Alayna loved being on the airplane. She was more fascinated with the tray tables than the fact that we were way up in the air. (She obviously didn’t realize the danger we were in- I still don’t understand how those huge planes can fly!) We got in to Salt Lake City pretty late. Bob’s parents and Missy picked us up and took us to rent our car. We got this AWESOME black Chevy suburban. Man, was it cool! Then we checked in to our hotel room at Little America. I think we finally got to eat dinner at Wendy’s around 11 and crashed for the night.

The next day we ate a wonderful breakfast at Dee’s and helped Missy and Clark move in to their new apartment. It is a really nice place with a cool view of the Salt Lake Valley. That evening all the Harts went to the BYU/Wyoming game while Alayna and I stayed at the hotel. It was way too cold, but they had hot chocolate and dippin dots and the kids had an absolute blast!! Especially since BYU won. Alayna and I had a great time at the hotel. I worked two full days (Monday and Tuesday) before we left, so we just relaxed, she played and colored while I watched Survivor, CSI, ER and went to bed . It was perfect.

Friday morning, everyone went outside for a touch football game at Liberty Park. My parents also drove in from Logan. That afternoon, the Hart adults went to a temple session all together while our kids got to hang with the Ribera grandparents for the evening. (They had such a wonderful time: pizza dinner, science museum, IMAX movie, swimming at the indoor hotel swimming pool ,etc). After our temple session we went to a fantastic wedding dinner for Missy and Clark. It was a very fancy dinner and the food was so good. It was great fun with great company.

Saturday morning was the wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony and we are so excited for Missy and Clark. She looked absolutely beautiful!! It was mighty cold taking pictures outside the temple, but we were just so happy to be there. We got a special treat at lunch, my brothers and families drove down from Logan and my Grandma Cunningham actually flew up to see us! I was so excited to see them all and the Ribera’s treated us to an amazing lunch at this AWESOME Brazilian grill. My kids are already asking to go back. It had a salad buffet, but then all you can eat meat from their grill, which tasted so great.

That afternoon, we went to the Grand America and took Family Wedding Photos. I have a couple that we took, but I can’t wait to see the final formal ones. After that, we all headed to Jamba Juice for dinner, and then off to the wedding reception. It was held at a place called Cactus and Tropicals. It was like the back of a nursery. It was such a cool place to have a reception. We saw so many friends from college that we haven’t seen since we had Marisa. There were also TONS of people from Macomb, where Bob grew up, so it was like a giant reunion. It made for a very entertaining evening. I think almost 400 people attended or so?

The next morning we were up at 5 since our flight was early. When we were leaving the hotel, I noticed our plane didn’t leave until 8:20 instead of the 7:25 I thought it did. Dang! We could have slept in for 30 more minutes! Our favorite part of the check in is when we each had to go to a chamber that shot air blasts at you to check for chemicals. Kayla was first and it scared her to death. The flight was fine, just seemed longer since we were heading home instead of to a fun party. Again, the kids were perfectly behaved! We drove home from Chicago and got home around 6:00pm. It was a great trip and it was so fun to see everyone.

The next week was a busy one. We got right back in to our routine schedule. Kayla had her first band concert and Marisa had her first choir one. Tyler got “expanders” in his mouth, which are like retainers that go on the back of the top and bottom of his teeth to help push the teeth out and give room to the new ones coming in. The poor guy can’t speak and I can barely understand him. He doesn’t seem to mind and talks just as much as he used to, maybe even more.

So, what is everyone doing for Thanksgiving? We are just staying here. Everyone we know is either leaving town or has family in town, so I guess it will just be us. I tried to talk Bob into just doing Thanksgiving at Osaka, but no dice. It will be good to have a quiet movie day at home, we will just seeing all of you this holiday season. Our best wishes to you all and have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Nov 5, 2006

November 5, 2006

Monday: Alayna and I went with her class to Bloomsbury farm to the pumpkin patch. We went on a tractor ride, played in a hay jump, corn pit, slide, playground, and all the fun animals at the petting zoo. Alayna got to even feed some goats by hand. She thought that was so cool. We even got to pick a little pumpkin from the giant pumpkin patch to bring home with us on the little blue bus. We had such a great time. That evening, Bob took Kayla and Tyler out there so they could see it all. They even went into the Haunted Barn.

Tuesday: Halloween day! I got to go help with Tyler’s fall party in his classroom. They got all dressed up in their costumes, played games, and ate lots of treats. It was fun to be there with him in his class. After school, the kids went to gymnastics and got a lot of one on one time since few kids showed for classes. After that, we went trick-or-treating. It was brutally cold so we only did a few houses down our street. Poor Alayna was so excited, but her lips were turning purple and she was shaking like a leaf. So we came home and she sat patiently by the door giving out candy to people who came to our house.

Wednesday: I subbed 6th grade at Excelsior. It was also Tyler’s first day at scouts. He had a great time. We have his shirt now and his first patches. I guess his first pine derby is in January and we look forward to that.

Thursday: I subbed another 6th grade class at Excelsior. It was also Bob’s first volleyball game with his new Rockwell team. They lost, but there is potential I think.

Friday: Kayla had her Activity Days Recognition night. She is almost completely finished with her faith in God award. It was a talent night and she played the clarinet. She did a great job. I am amazed at how great she sounds even though she has only been playing for a few months. I guess all that practice pays off. She also spent the weekend reading and was proud she finished reading an entire book in only two days!!

Saturday: We spent all day running errands and getting ready for our upcoming trip to Utah. Bob looks awesome in his new black suit. We also made all the lunches for the stake people for stake conference. It was easy to do with so much help from the kids. We also caught up on “lost” from the last two weeks. I have so many more questions- that show drives me crazy but I love it.

Sunday: We will be leaving Wednesday fo Utah so we probably won’t get a newsletter up next week. We are excited to be seeing both sides of the family and get to come out for such an exciting event. So, we will be seeing most of you this weekend. Until then...

October 29, 2006

October 29, 2006

Monday:
The kids didn’t have school on Monday so we enjoyed sleeping in for one more day. That evening we were invited over to our friends house for a very special FHE, along with some other families. It was a very enjoyable evening!

Tuesday:
The three youngest kids had gymnastics. Bob had his last football game and Kayla made cookies at Activity Days.

Wednesday:
I got a last minute call to sub at Wilkins (where Kayla and Tyler attend) I taught a 4th grade class, filling in for a sick teacher. It was such a fun day and a very different experience from subbing middle school. It was extra fun to see Kayla and Tyler at school! That night was our Trunk R Treat at the church. I will post some pics along with this. Tyler went as Luke Skywalker and Kayla went as Princess Leah. Alayna was Analeise from Princess and the Pauper. Marisa went as a medieval princess. They had a carnival at the church where the kids played games, did a cake walk, ate donuts off a string, etc. Then we went outside to trunk r treat. It was fun, but VERY chilly. It was hard to tell what people were dressed up like when everyone had coats on. After that, we went home and Bob played his last softball game and they actually won!!!

Thursday:
Grandma and Grandpa Hart came up from Illinois for the weekend. That evening Corey and I took the 3 older kids and tried “Supper Thyme”. Its just like Cooking cottage, so I wanted to try it out. One of those where you go for two hours, and make 12 home made meals. Corey split most of hers in two so she almost made 24 meals. It was so fun to do with the kids!! It saves me so much cooking time, so I think it is so worth it!!

Friday:
It was my first time to sub at Oak Ridge. It was 6th grade reading, language arts, and math. It was the most complex lesson plan I have had yet to date. I actually instructed every class, gave quizzes, graded papers, did a tornado drill, etc. I was exhausted by the time I got home!
That evening we had the absolute FUNNEST EVENING EVER!!!! Two couples in a different ward put together a treasure hunt. (This tradition has been going on here for 25 years!!) We were invited, so our team of 6 was me, Bob , Marisa, Kayla, Corey, and Hal. (Tyler and Alayna stayed at the church). We met at the Linn County court house along with 19 other teams. It was a night of “Amazing Race” on hyperdrive. When they said go, we read the clue and all took off in our respective cars. (If we couldn’t figure out the clues, there were panic cards you could open) We did great til we had to find Jefferson HS. You would think since we had a navigation system, we would have found it fast. No such luck. We had to do so many things, mostly based on the movie National Treasure: find a boat house names Charlotte, decipher a code on the side of a masonic temple, fine clues in buckets, etc. It was a fascinating evening! We came in about 18 out of the 20 teams, but were also one of the few (possibly the only ones) who used no panic envelopes. They had a huge party afterwards with pizza, pop, and cake. The people who won have to plan it for next year and Bob won an award for being the only person to dress up- he was Ben gates. Anyway, it was so fun we can hardly wait for next year!!

Saturday:
We spent the morning shopping for a dress for Marisa and I for Missy’s exciting upcoming wedding. Then we went to the church for Tyler’s very special day. His baptism was so wonderful and we are so proud of him for the wonderful choice he has made. (He even surprised us today by getting up and bearing his testimony) He was so excited yesterday that he could hardly contain his joy. I will attach pics- you have to check out that contagious smile!!! We came home after and headed to Walmart to get flu shots only to see they were out-ugh! Then they went to see “Open Season” at the movie Theater for Tyler’s birthday. (I stayed home with Alayna. She has been sick for about 10 days with a nasty cold and actually fell asleep a few minutes before we were to leave for the movie) They brought Chinese food home for dinner. Then Tyler opened some very cool presents, we ate his cool dinosaur cake (my friend made) and then watch X-Men III which he has been dying to see. He said it was a perfect day- the best he has ever had!
That evening I got a call from my friend who went into labor. They kept her for several hours and then sent her home, so I came back home with Alayna and Marisa at 5:45 AM. Made me tired today- hope her baby comes tonight for her.

Sunday:
We have had an enjoyable relaxing day with games and homemade apple pie!

Well, I guess that’s it for our fun and exciting week! Happy Birthday to Jonathan- whose was the same day as Tyler’s!! Also Happy Birthday to Grandma Cunningham and Grandma Hart whose birthdays were last week.

Have a Happy Halloween!!!!

October 22

October 22, 2006

We have a fun and exciting week ahead! Tyler’s birthday and baptism, a treasure hunt, trip to Bloomsbury farm, etc. So, I am sure we will have tons of stuff to share next week.

This week I had parent conferences with Kayla and Marias’s teachers. Both are doing so well. Marisa’s lowest grade is a 98. She is now scheduled to take the ACT in February. Kayla is also doing so well, her teacher went on and on about how much she loves having her in class,

Marisa brought home her “baby” this week. It woke her up 4 times that night. It was so funny because she look deathly tired and said even though it was only 4 times that it actually felt like 20. Best contraception I can think of. I will include the picture of Tyler holding the baby. Then Alayna held it and dropped it on its head! Marisa wanted to cry. I wrote her a note so her teacher wouldn’t dock her.

We had Friday and tomorrow off from school. We should have headed to Chicago for a party weekend, but Bob couldn’t take off. Oh well. We did watch “Over the Hedge” last night, which was a completely adorable movie!! I need to see it again. The kids did a GREAT job on the primary program. It was Marisa’s first time in many years to not be in it. Alayna was so cute. We brought her for the program even though she has been pretty sick this week with a cold.

I guess that’s about it on our end. There seems to be a drought of info coming in from family members. Well, everyone enjoy your week. Looks like we are headed for a cold one. Wish us luck....
(Falcon on top of play house)

October 15, 2006

October 15, 2006

Winter actually hit this week with freezing temps and our first snowfall of the year. We had to dismantle our garden and mow down the watermelon patch to prepare for winter since its obviously on its way. So funny since the week before, we had temps up to 80 degrees. Go figure!

Marisa had her last volleyball game this week. She had a sheet with her stats, so I should have her post it for you. I think she made about 21 points this season? Anyway, she loved it. We want to get her in a city league so she can keep at it, but the only one we have found so far meets on Sundays and that won’t work. She is loving school and her extras like choir, orchestra, and book club. She has to bring a “baby” home for FCS class. It’s computerized and keeps track of how well she takes care of it. It should be very fun. She also cooked french toast for us for dinner last night. I love her cooking and being so responsible. She even made mini pizzas for us last week. She has also been given the opportunity to take the ACT college exam for the Belin-Blank Exceptional Student Talent Search. I will let you know how that goes.

Kayla is sounding so great on the clarinet. I am excited to see her first concert which I think is in November. She is also doing amazing things in gymnastics- flips around the bar on the uneven bars, round offs, etc. I really need to take a video camera so you guys can see her.

Tyler had his last football game. It was at 8am in 36 degrees. Not my idea of fun. But he did a great job and would love to continue next year. I had a great conference with his teacher this week where she told me what a fantastic job he is doing, but wished he would stop humming in class. He is so funny.

Alayna had her last swimming lesson this week. Unfortunately some kid barfed in the pool before her class and they had to close the pool. She was sad. She is loving preschool and even learned about email this week. She spends a lot of time singing lately to anyone that will take the time to listen to her songs. It is quite precious.

Bob has still been playing softball and flag football. We even got to go see both games last week. He has also spent a lot of time playing with the kids in the backyard. Yesterday they decided to try out tackle football. Apparently, Tyler can fall over if you just blow in his general direction and Kayla cannot be tackled unless you pick her up off the ground and throw her. They had a hilarious afternoon.

I worked 3 days this week, all teacher requested. I am getting to know all the teachers on all the teams. I REALLY enjoy teaching there and hope a job will come through for me. The kids are also starting to get to know me and actually say hi to me in the hall now. I taught Marisa’s class twice this week and she seems to like me there. She walks down the hall with me and lets me eat lunch with her in the cafeteria. I plan to take advantage of that acceptance for as long as possible. My 3 classes I was supposed to start taking through independent study this month are not completed yet, so my time table is being messed up. They should be done by December which means I will have two months of solid school, but I can do it.

We finally got a break from our busy schedule last night and watched “Akeelah and the Bee”. What a fantastic movie!!! I love inspirational movies we can watch as a family. My favorite quote from it was:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant,
Gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking
So that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We are all meant to shine, as children do.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously
Give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear,
Our presence automatically liberates others.
(A return to love - Marianne Williamson)

On that note: Enjoy your week and remember we love you!









(Alayna in her swim class with teacher Miss Audrey)

Oct 2, 2006

October 2, 2006

A quick update on our week:

Marisa had a home game this week so we were able to go see her play. She did a GREAT job and has really improved. Every serve went right over the net and she was moving all over the place!

I subbed 7th grade science which was fun and turned out to be adventurous as some kid let out a giant praying mantis who flapped all over the classroom. I can honestly say my job isn’t boring.

Bob took the kids to the Harts for the weekend so I could get a million things done. They had a great time! We are back today to a normal schedule- lots to do including the kids dentist appt, Marisa’s volleyball game, and the missionaries for dinner.

PS- Marisa has posted a large map of the world in her room and is trying to gather postcards and real pictures taken around the world, so if you have any extras, please send them our way. She would love it!

Sept 25

September 24, 2006

Great news!! Marisa made chamber orchestra!! She was so excited. Of course, I didn’t realize that involved practices two mornings a week at 6:50am!! But if she is that dedicated to it, then I will get her there. She loves the volleyball team and even won their first away game this week which was also exciting!

Tyler got to play quarterback for some of his football game this week and his team won! He was so thrilled and absolutely loves to play.

We had Kayla and Tyler’s school open house Thursday night. We got to eat a spaghetti dinner and then go see all the fun projects they have been working on in their classes. I was very impressed. I am grateful that they are enjoying school so much.

I subbed Marisa’s 7th grade social studies class this week. I definitely think that is my dream job. She actually enjoyed me being there and we even had lunch together. Thank goodness I didn’t say anything to embarrass her and she has had kids coming up to her all week saying “Your mom is the coolest sub!”. Whew! I also met the assistant principal and we talked for a while. I expressed to her my interest in teaching there and she seemed very positive about the whole thing. I already have teachers requesting me too, so that has been great. One small drawback is how they cut me off from subbing since my license expires, even though I already sent them an updated copy of a new temporary license over a month ago. The frustrations never cease.

The kids had the day off today since it was a teacher prep day. We spent the day cleaning and shopping for winter clothes. We also went out with dad to lunch at Carlos O kelly’s and boy was that good.

Yesterday Marisa made breakfast for the whole family, making these awesome cinnamon sticks she learned how to make in her FCS lab. She did a GREAT job!

September 17, 2006

September 17, 2006

Fall seems to be on its way. We took down our canopy yesterday and next week we will put away all the stuff on the patios. The cooler weather is coming and it is a welcome relief to the hot summer we had. I am getting excited to make hot chocolate, curl up by the fire, and watch all our shows starting this week!
Well, we have been extremely busy. I always think life can’t get any busier, but it does:
Marisa is enjoying volleyball. She is on the red squad and is on team B-3, which made her really mad. She wanted to be on the A team. It had made her more determined than ever to practice more. Her team lost their first game and this week they won their first. She is so excited especially because she is making points. I think she made 2 in the first game and 3 in the second. She is loving 7th grade! She is pulling straight A’s , as usual, in all of her classes. She does have extra homework, which is always hard to fit in after 2 hour daily practices for volleyball, but she is doing it very well. This past week she also joined the Fantasy Book Club League. She said she was the only girl in it until a girl showed up the last couple of minutes of their first meeting. She loves to read so she thinks this will be a fun group to be a part of. On Friday, she auditioned for the chamber orchestra. She will find out if she made it on Monday.
Kayla is doing amazingly well in school this year. She has a fantastic teacher who is helping her continue to love school. She even has the best reading teacher I have ever seen. I can tell its going to be another good year for her. I cannot believe how well she is doing in gymnastics. You would be shocked to see what she can do. She stands by my file cabinet, puts her hands on and slowly lifts her legs until they are up over her head. I have GOT to take a picture of it. Most of the time I talk to her, she is upside down. I really should let her start taking more days a week. This seems to be something she really wants to stick with. She is also doing so well on her clarinet. She practices a lot and I can actually tell what she is playing now.
Tyler started flag football, and I think this just might be his game. He is just solid so people just bounce right off of him. He has been playing center (the one that hikes the ball) and he is doing great. This week he was a co-captain of the team. They have lost both games, but he doesn’t seem to mind a bit. He says he would love to continue, which I am thrilled at. I just think it would scare me to death if he chose to play tackle football. Anyway, he is also loving his gymnastics class. He started his gifted and talented class this week. They are doing a unit on volcanoes called “The ring of fire”, he is ecstatic!
I think three days of preschool a week for Alayna is perfect. On the other two she is doing swimming lessons. The cool thing is that she is the only one in her class!! I thought they would cancel it, but they didn’t, so now she gets private lessons!! She is already starting to put her head under the water. She is also still doing gymnastics, but despite all this, she still has never ending energy. Seriously, if I could bottle this secret energy I would be so rich!!! She can spell and type her own name and can almost spell everyone’s name in our family. She can read her flashcards too. Let’s hope we can continue to channel this “intelligence” for good.
Bob bounced right back after surgery. This was his quickest recovery yet. He is now playing on a flag football team and softball team. He is also working overtime for the next couple of weeks. Yesterday, he had several guys from the ward to watch BYU game on pay per view. You should have heard them downstairs hootin’ and hollerin’. It was hilarious. Too bad BYU lost!
The kids had the chance to go to an apple orchard yesterday with our friends. They picked lots of honey crisp apples and even got to go on a tractor ride. These apples are so sweet! Marisa and I had a great opportunity to go to the cooking cottage this week. (They gave a portion of the proceeds to the kids school) Anyway, you go for two hours and make 12 homemade meals. It has been such a huge blessing. The food has been great and the kids actually eat it. My meals are planned out through the end of the month, and most I can put in a crock pot before I go to work and we have a homemade meal when we come home. We definitely have to go again!
I am basically done with my speech class. I am proud to say I got 100% on all 5 speeches I have turned in so far. I turn in the last two tomorrow and then I have completed that class. I start the next two (6 credits) middle school classes next month. I hope to work every waking hour and complete both by Christmas. I continue to volunteer in 3 different schools which keeps me very busy. I am also into the full swing of subbing now. I subbed 8th grade Health first, what an experience that was. I learned a lot that day, like how you don’t ever say “You MAY use this time for homework”, you say “You WILL use this time for homework”. Anyway, last week I subbed 6th grade (gifted and talented) science and LOVED that! Then the next day I subbed 8th grade math for a teacher that was sick. It went great, especially since I had had most of the kids the week before. I found a note ripped up in the trash saying I was a cool sub, that made my day. This week I am scheduled to sub 7th grade social studies and even get Marisa in my 6th Mod. I am able to do some great networking. I have met tons of staff and getting to know the school and the students. I hope and pray I can get a job there, I would LOVE it!!
Well, must get moving. A Happy Birthday to James and Grandma Annie this week. We love you all and hope to hear from you ALL this week!
Love,
kris and family

September 3rd, 2006

September 3, 2006

Another week of insanity has quickly flown by. We had all our normal scheduled events plus many more. No one can ever complain of boredom here.

Alayna started preschool this week and absolutely loves it! Her class even had a birthday party for her on Friday so we made some fun cupcakes with sprinkles to bring. She starts swimming this week and is still loving her gymnastics class. She got to do a head stand this week , so she thought she was pretty cool.

Tyler finally got his green belt. We are so proud of all the belts he has received. He is loving gymnastics a lot! He likes football too and his first game is this coming Saturday. We also had his 3rd grade parent night this week. There are a lot of fun things planned for his class this year.


Kayla is loving gymnastics and I think wants to start doing two days a week so she can get onto the team faster. She has a fantastic teacher again this year!





Marisa is still doing well with volleyball and all the bruises on her forearms finally vanished this week. They had tryouts this week and she made the red team. I am not entirely sure what that means, but she was happy with it. I don’t remember if I mentioned last week that she was called as the Beehive Secretary. She is pretty excited about that too. She has honors reading and math this year, so she has more homework than she has in the past, especially since she lost her connections class.homeroom/study period)

Bob had sinus surgery on Friday. It was a very long day but the surgery was a success and now he is home recovering for about a week. He looked much better than he did after the last sinus surgery. The doctor said everything went smoothly, so we hope the recovery will be quick.

I spent several hours this week helping a sister I VT pack and get ready to move. She is a single mom of 11 children, her ex just lost his job, so now there is no income at all. She accepted a job ythis week to teach 1st grade in Nevada and so she is leaving this Tuesday. I also spent many hours volunteering at 3 different schools this week. I am permanently scheduled to do the mail at Excelior and Oak Ridge on Thursday. That may sound strange, but it is really helping me to get to know all the staff, particularly the office staff, which I hope will work in my favor. I have my first sub job this week for 8th grade Health. I am excited. I am also about 1/2 way through my first endorsement course. I just find that every waking moment is filled. Hopefully, all good stuff.

Well, we are trying a new way to post our blog. I hope it works. It should come through with pictures attached. Guess we will see how it goes. Love ya!

August 27, 2006

August 27, 2006
* Marisa, Kayla and Tyler all started school this week. Overall, I think all went well.

*Kayla, Alayna, and Tyler all started gymnastics this week and loved their classes. Kayla loves pre-team and I really think she will improve quickly. She was very sad to learn the day that it started that her friend across the street chose at the last minute to go to a different gymnastics place with a different friend and they didn’t tell Kayla. That was frustrating. But I am confident she will make new friends.

*Marisa started on the school volleyball team this week. There are 70 girls and they will be divided into 4 teams. She will get to play every game. They practice every day after school for 2 hours!! They start by running around the school twice. She has been so sore that she can barely walk down the stairs. Her forearms are bruised pretty bad too. But she is absolutely loving it and I am thrilled.

*Tyler also started flag football this week. He has practices two days a week. We finally made his mouth piece. I am not sure what he thinks about football yet, other than his face is bright red after all that running. It’s good for him.

*Kayla started band practices this week which are on Thursday mornings. She seems to really like playing the clarinet. Yesterday, she and Marisa were playing a duet and they sounded pretty great!

*We had Alayna’s school open house this week. We met her new teacher Mrs. Elizabeth. She seems very nice and Alayna is ready to start. She actually starts classes tomorrow and will now be taking 3 days a week.

*We had Marisa’s open house this week as well. For hers, I went with her and we attended each of her classes in the order she does during the school day. So, I got to meet all her teachers and see where her classrooms and locker are. She LOVES school so far. She also has some amazing teachers. In social studies this year, they will do a renaissance fair. She is even taking family and consumer sciences where she will have to take care of a computerized baby doll for a week or so. She is pumped and ready to go!

*I decided to get my middle school endorsement and shoot for teaching middle school. So, I will be doing 10 credits in the next 5 months. I just started one class and will start two more in October. It will be a tremendous amount of work, but I think this is the right direction. My background check finally cleared for subbing so I am now officially cleared to sub. I also already started the volunteer work at Wilkins and will be doing so again this week.

*Today, the stake RS (which is only two fo us right now) traveled to Mt. Vernon to visit today. They are a small branch and it must be a huge challenge. Afterwards, the Schofields invited us over for dinner. It is wonderful and thank heavens the kids were on their best behavior! Marisa just went to her first fireside (now called Sunday evening discussions) where the stake President and his wife are speaking.
As you can see, we are busy busy busy! Have a great week!

August 21. 2006

August 21,
Got lots to do so this will be quick this week.
Hart Top Ten of the Week:

1. We celebrated Alayna’s birthday this week. The canoe trip was completely rained out so we didn’t get to go. ( we were all very disappointed)

2. Went to Kayla’s open house to meet her teacher (Mrs Cummings)and take in supplies.

3. Went to Tyler’s “Meet and greet” to meet his teacher (Mrs Emanuel) and take in supplies.

4. I decided to go for my middle school endorsement only to find massive obstacles blocking my way. Am considering new profession- haha.

5. Whole family taught a Cha Cha routine to about 35 youth for Mutual night. Think it was a success.

6. Alayna decorated her own birthday cake and loved all her gifts.

7. Saw 2 great movies “Hoot” and “Firewall”

8. Hart Grandparents came for bday party and helped steam clean all the carpets in the house

9. We had the Schofields over for dinner last night and had a wonderful time! We also did a quartet with Bob’s parents for church.

10. The kids started school today. They are excited. Alayna and I took them to school and went to the parent donut party.

First day of school!

Kayla and Tyler doing the Cha Cha

The cake Alayna decorated with an entire bottle of pink sprinkles

gifts from her siblings

Alayna's new fairy dress up

Fairies

Hanging out on Sunday afternoon

Alayna turning 4- blowing out candles

Kayla being a basket

Tyler testing for his green belt

Alayna practicing her hand stand