Surgery/ First Day of School

Last Friday was kind of a busy day for us. It was meet the teacher day at the school AND Jess had shoulder surgery. He had to be there at 8:00 am. There, being a good 30 minutes away. Maddox was meeting his teacher at 9:30 am and Mason was meeting his teacher at 11:00 am. Thankfully my mother in law took work off so I wouldn't have to drag the kids everywhere. I ended up taking Jess and waiting with him until they took him back. Then, I came back, did the meet the teacher thing, and was back out to get him by noon. They called me back 15 minutes after I got there so I was feeling pretty good about my timing. Well, poor Jess ended up sitting back in a cubicle for two and half hours waiting to go back for surgery. Whatever! They are so lame with their scheduling.

Anyway, he is doing really well. He went back to work today but I don't think he would have been able to if he isn't working in the office right now. This one has been harder on him than his knee surgery and he has had to dip into his pain pills. He is still a great patient and doesn't really ask for much. I had to post this picture of him 'cause I think it's hilarious. You can tell how drugged up he is. :-)


Oh, the first day of school. As I was walking Mason to his line, the smell of the day was exactly how I remembered it being when I lined up for third grade. Weird. I think I am especially excited for him this year because I remember third grade being a big year for me. You finally felt like one of the big kids at the school. He was pretty excited and he had a great day. You'll notice in the pictures that Mason and Maddox both have student teachers this year. Mason's actual teacher is the one in the white shirt that is only about 2 or 3 inches taller than him. I couldn't believe it. :-)

Maddox was just kind of like "whatever" to starting kindergarten this year. If you know him well, you know what I mean. He handled it all pretty well. He was just like, "K, see ya!" Then after school I said, "Did you like it?" He said, "yeah." I said, "Was it fun?" He said, "yeah." He just had no real emotion about it at all. The only thing is that he is in afternoon kindergarten and I think he wishes he was in morning. He is up when Mason is up and so waiting three hours to go is torture for him.

I have a little video I took of the kindergartners saying goodbye. The video is actually for Lara, Marie, Chelsea, Carolyn, and Lindsey! :-)

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Summer Update

I know I've been kind of a blog slacker this summer. I've been reading a lot and so the computer has taken a back seat to my free time. Hopefully once school gets started, I will be on a better schedule. Staying up until 2:00 am to read has really made me very unproductive. But the 16 books I've read this summer have been worth it!

Anyway, last weekend we had our Annual Prisbrey Campout up on Big John's Flat. It's up Beaver Mountain, but most people I tell about it seem to know where it is. It is always so beautiful and peaceful up there. We love it! And, there is nothing like 40 to 60 degree weather when you are used to 95 to 115 degree weather. It's just a nice little break for the day.

We actually stayed at my brother Chuck's house in Beaver and then rode up the mountain for the day. Then, a few hours in, Jess, Mason and I rode back down the mountain to get stitches for Mason. He cut his leg open pretty good. There was fat and everything hanging out. That's not something I'm too good at. ICK!! I'm still gagging when I think about it. :-( But, he was tough! I was very proud of him. After a VERY quick in and out of the Beaver ER, we headed back up the mountain and had plenty of time to play. There is NOTHING like a small town ER!! The trip was a lot of fun and we look forward to going again next year!

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A few weeks ago I took a little sewing class through the ward. It a lot of fun and I learned a lot. Kathy Nelson taught us how to put in zippers, do a gather, do a no show hem, and read a pattern. We also made these cute little aprons. I can't believe how much I really enjoyed it. I am anxious to find some cute little skirt and dress patterns for Claire that I can attempt. Of course, I will probably run into a lot of problems on my own. I'll keep you posted on that!


Now, for the list of books I've read this summer....

Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare (Fantasy)
1-City of Bones
2-City of Ashes
3-City of Glass
* I really liked these. They were kind of a little mix between a Twilight and a Harry Potter. If I had to rate them I would probably give them a PG.

Another Series I read by Anita Stansfield (drama)
4-The Sound of Rain
5-A Distant Thunder
6-Winds of Hope
* Um, these were okay. Obviously, if you are familiar with Anita Stansfield- this is totally her style. I am about a quarter of the way through the 4Th one in the series and I got bored. But, I did make it through three of them so they did keep me going. Hmm, rated G.

Okay, so I probably shouldn't even put these on here, but whatever! It's definitely rated R. I'm not recommending it because of that but obviously I like the story because I can't stop reading them. This is the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris. (Sci-fi/fantasy)
7-Dead Until Dark
8-Living Dead In Dallas
9-Club Dead
10-Dead To The World
11-Dead As A Doornail
* I am reading the 6Th one now and there are 9 all together.

12-Gregor The Overlander by Suzanne Collins (Fantasy)
*Rated G- I liked it once I got into it but there were a few things I had to get past. I'm not fond of the creepy crawlers! First book in a series.

13-Wake by Lisa McMann (Sci-fi)
*Probably rated PG13 or R- The author occasionally threw out a cuss word here and there that would catch you off guard. But other than that, the story was pretty unique. First book in a series.

14-The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan (fantasy)
*Rated G- I actually liked this. It is Young Adult and I have looked at it several times in the book store. I was excited the other day when I saw a preview at the theater for it. So even if you don't read this one, you can see it. First book in a series.

15-The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams (drama)
*Rated PG 13, I think. The author did great work on this. It is a fictional story about a 13 year old living in a polygamist colony. I definitely recommend it but prepared to be ANGRY! I read it in under a day.

16-Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson (hmm, I think comedy)
*Rated in the G or PG area. This is very Pride and Prejudice era. I really liked it. It was just amusing.

Okay, so hopefully I haven't bored you to tears but I know there are some of you that will appreciate my little book review. Of course, I do realize that I lean more towards sci-fi and fantasy than drama. Reality bores me to tears. But if someone gives it a good review, I'll give it a try.

Mason's Baptism

Mason was able to baptized last Saturday, August 1st. It was such a neat experience for me as a mom. I am not a big cry er. When I do cry, I try not to do it around people. But as I felt the spirit and as I watched my little boy fully aware of and understanding the decision he was making, I couldn't help but to release some tears of joy.
For the last year I have wondered if he really understood the decision he was making. I told him that just because he was 8, it didn't mean he needed to be baptized. I told him that he needed to believe the church was true and that if he didn't know, he should wait. But every time he would say to me, "Noooo, I know it's true!! I want to be baptized!" Still, I had my doubts that an 8 year old could really comprehend. (Especially when he finds the need to torment his brother, but that's for another time.) But as I sat in his interview with the bishop and as I watched him at his baptism, listening and answering questions with full understanding, I was completely amazed and over joyed at the young man before me. My baby is growing up, both physically and mentally. It is both a sad and great feeling. But in that moment, it was very happy and I was a very proud mom.

The baptism was wonderful. Mason was able to be baptized with his best friend Trenton, which he was really excited about. I was able to get a picture of them in their suits together but some how I missed the photo op of them in their whites.

After the baptism we had milk and cookies and were able to just sit and visit for a bit. We were so grateful to have the family and friends there that were able to make it. It really made the experience for Mason that much more special. It is already a great memory!