My Girls

This is Lauren helping me cover the 1" water pipe so I could see if the water would come out all the places other it should in my sprinkler system. She got a little wet, but it was fun.

Rylee & Lauren bought new hats

Nice bum shot of Rylee. We went to Bear Lake yesterday, that place is amazing.

Rylee has been telling us alot about her imaginary friend named Della. Della came to church with us today. While Rylee had Della on the phone I told her to tell Della to come to dinner but she had to bring me $1 Million bucks. Della agreed and said she'd be over for dinner. Anybody want her phone number?

With her birthday money, Lauren & Rylee both bought some stuff they wanted. These little beads that melt together. . . ????? I don't understand why girls like that stuff. They're not interested in race car sets and laser tag- no, no, no - melty beads and a track for their wind up doll pets. ???

Elder & Sister Mangum at Provo Temple

It was on mom's camera, i couldn't resist.

Tradition

Elder & Sister Mangum at the Traditional MTC Photo spot. They entered the MTC on August 2nd, and we picked them up on August 10th. They had some great stories to tell, found some past friends, made some new friends, listened to devotionals, and sang Called to Serve with all the other missionaries. They stayed with us for two nights before flying out of SLC airport to get back home to Leesville. I hear the rest of our family was there waiting to greet them and hear the stories of the MTC and get some good detail on the whole experience.

Papa and Rylee shucking corn, these two got along well and Rylee still talks about Nana & Papa coming to visit and then going on a mission. This has been a great experience for my girls to see Nana & Papa don the missionary tags.

I have this photo on my computer background, Mom saw it and told me I should share with everyone. She's right, and she is still my mom - so here you go.

The Field is OPEN

It's true, he's back. Elder Mangum I has returned to the mission field, and this time he's brought his own companion.

The picture above was taken in front of the MTC, however, the favorite picture spot with the stone engraving that normally reads, "Missionary Training Center" was gone. Naught but a large chiseled cavity in the wall on both sides of the street. So we settled for the field sign which certainly does apply in more ways than one.

Since that great day back in June when we had a surprise retirement party for mom & dad, they have only had one thing on their minds. . . "Get the house in order so we can get into the mission field." Today was that day. Yesterday was the day I was telling all my friends at church, "I am taking my parents to the MTC tomorrow." The tables have certainly turned, and it was a marvelous experience to see mom & dad take on that missionary countenance which they brought with them to Utah.

When we pulled up in front of the MTC and spoke to the Elder who was assigned to greet incoming couples, I laughed when he told me to take my parents to the Super 8 Motel thinking surely he was joking. He wasn't. The MTC is currently undergoing renovations, including the facility that normally houses the couple missionaries. They put mom & dad up in the Super 8 Motel a few blocks away near the football stadium.

We unloaded luggage from the truck in the Super 8 parking lot, then we shuttled mom & dad back to the MTC.

It brought back memories to walk along the sidewalk in front of the MTC. The last time I walked these grounds was when Laurie & Tim brought me here 17 years ago. I can't believe it's been that long, I had to double check my math just to be sure. Not to steal any limelight from mom & dad, in fact, the last time dad was here was to meet Harold B. Lee for an interview followed by a setting apart done by Elder Ezra T. Benson. Top that, eh.

Mom was nervous, but you can see that she was much more composed than she normally gets for big events - there was an element of commitment in the mix of emotions she was feeling. Once they greeted mom & dad by name when we pulled up and she saw they were expecting her and had a place for her to stay, food for them to eat, and a fairly demanding training schedule for her to follow she seemed to relax. Not a single tear at the departure door when we said goodbye. Just hugs all around, smiles, excitement, and a very strong missionary spirit.

You can't look at this couple now without seeing the Lord's hand in supporting them during all their hard years of work to get here. This was truly a crowning day.

Welcome Back. . . Darth

If you ever want to learn at least 10 new creative techniques for bowling that have never been thought of before - you go bowling with a bunch of Kindergardeners. This was the last field trip of Lauren's school year.

Rylee's gymnastics recital went well. She is so shy when she is around people she doesn't know. A room full of strange adults watching carefully doesn't make the performance any easier. But she can do an Excellent cartwheel, and a handstand into a back-bend.

Lauren has this daredevil streak inside that comes out occasionally. It's fun to watch because I know exactly where she gets it from. . . . Janna. I never did anything like this.

Rylee and I had a preschool field trip and went fishing together. This is at the local fish hatchery, fishing is really not a sport here. You literally put your bare hook in the water and can pull out the fish. So we capitalized on this and Rylee landed 4 whoppers that day. The shortest one was 11". Of course, I didn't want to fish in the kiddie pond with all the other pre-schoolers so we went to the pond with all the "big fish." Somehow, I'm the only one that eats them though.

I coudn't resist. It's been a while since Darth has made it onto my blog page. This picture makes me laugh every time I look at it. Please tell me if you can figure out the context here.

The large driveway is going to have to do until we get grass in. Our yard consists of wicked hard clay and rocks right now. Progress towards having grass is slow.

This is my bathtub. Funny enough, I've never used it though. The girls seem to enjoy it several times a week.

Matt & Cameron Berghout came over IN THE RAIN to help me move some large rocks into place in the front yard. How do you move a 500lb rock 2-3/8 inches to the right?

Poncho Villa came to help me lay sprinkler pipe - and guess what - it rained again. Refusing to be beaten by the rain Adam and I donned some rain coats but gave up when we stood 6" higher each and could no longer lift our 50lb shoes. The best part: Adam didn't have any clothes on under the poncho.

1st Walk Through

It started out sunny this morning, I knew it was going to be a great day. We had our first walk through inspection of our home. As of today, all that is left to do is some caulking around the tub & showers. Obviously, we are all looking forward to moving into our new home. Closing day is scheduled for March 31st.

Soon after we started our walk through tour, the snow began to fly. It would last for about two hours before sunshine again. Spring is such an amazing time, the weather is indifferent and torn between light and darkness.

Our kitchen is ready for our um. . . white refrigerator??? It will have to work for now.

The ground is calling to us for stone stepways, green gardens, Kentucky Blue grass, and a swingset with my girls' laughter to bring it to life.

This picture was taken courtesy of Rylee. We had the stucco repainted, it was initially the same color as the face of the house.

My favorite part. . . the broom so I can sweep the crumbs off the kitchen floor.

Warm enough to Skate

50° on a Saturday in March after a cold winter? Get out the roller skates.

Who Knew?

Lauren & Rylee were insistent on getting another rat for a pet. Who knew they would make such great pets? They don't bark or poop in my yard, they don't get hair all over or claw my furniture, no allergy problems, they're naturally potty trained (only in one spot in their cage).

Meet Sophie & Rosie:

Brick

February 27th, 2010. Brickwork is complete. Wire, trim, and corner beads are up and waiting for cement and stucco.

This is the only time it's okay to coat the entire kitchen floor with mud. Furthermore, make sure it's spread out nice and even. Pantry is in the far corner, sink will be under the window.

That third car garage is calling to me. We almost bought a 4 door Nissan Frontier this week, it was sporty, I loved it. Turns out it would need almost $3000 in body repairs, new tires, and new parts before it will pass a safety inspection. We backed out. Big thanks to my good friend Nathan Kester for a thorough mechanical inspection at Firestone that saved me a lot of money and financial pain.

The large piece of paper is a sign that reads: "No Entry. Wet tile, do not step."

Front entry behind the girls and the garage entrance on the left. Texture is on the walls and ready for painting.

Sunbrook Progress

We worked out a deal where they are going to let us keep the scaffolding in the living room.

Master bedroom with a trayed ceiling, it's waiting for me to mount a fan & light.

some strange wall texture Janna chose.

Rylee runs by our stack of bricks.

Rat's can do the Wheelbarrow?

It's true, we bid Bianca a sad farewell this week, she passed away on Wednesday night. We saw it coming and endured two days of rough emotions as we were helpless to heal her. You might say, "good riddance!" If so, I would say you are blatantly misinformed about rats. We have known since we got her that the lifespan of a rat is very short (2 years on average), but that doesn't make it any easier for two little girls who were very fond of her. She loved to come out of her cage and play with the girls everyday. She never once bit anyone or complained about being forced to do the wheelbarrow (Rylee). When hamsters or gerbils escape they hide and don't want to be found. Rats escape because they are stunningly smart and just want to explore. After a few minutes of exploring Bianca would get lonely and want to be where the people are and would climb right into your lap. The jury is still out whether we will replace her with another rat or try a different pet. If rat's lived at least 10 years, there would be no question about it - we would get at least two more. We buried her across the street from our new home in an area that will remain undeveloped and the girls marked the spot with two yellow roses.

In better news, Lauren completed her next course in swimming lessons and officially has been labeled as a fish. She jumps off the diving board in the deep end and can swim all the way across at age 6. She says she want's to swim in the olympics - at this point Janna and I are thinking: "Well, why not?"

Rylee decided to cut her own hair. Those bangs didn't stand a chance.

Bedtime can be entertaining. Fairy stories, gas, princess pajama's, and night shades.

Lauren's idea. "Dad, let's take a picture wearing mustaches." Man, I wish I could come up with ideas as cool as this.

Jan 10th - 20th

View from the back yard.

View from the living room window. Maybe we should leave it like this - it gives a more "open" feeling.

1st floor is completed, begin on 2nd floor.

Snow in the pantry, in the kitchen, in the hallway. . . it was a little discouraging.

Mark and Janna

Dance of the Sugar Plum Kitchen Fairies

This is the "make dinner faster!" dance. . . you should see my version of this.