Science Fair Project

Jenna and Micaela have been working on their science project for weeeeeks!  So many hours have gone into it, and trying to get together with two busy schedules was challenging.  But they did it!  Five different brands of baggies were tested for durability and freshness. A slice of bread was placed in each baggie, and an Oreo cookie was placed in another set of baggies. The bread and Oreos were left in the baggies for a week and then tasted and observed for freshness. The baggies were also filled with water and dropped several times from a two-foot height to test the strength of the zipper and durability of the plastic.  In the end, on brand came out on top for freshness (Stater Bros), and one brand for durability (Fresh and Easy).  The girls one an honorable mention for their project which was really nice.  It wasn't first, second or third place, but more like fourth.  They'll take it since many projects were not recognized with ribbons. The hard work paid off!  Good work girls!

On one of the project nights after Jenna had been working really hard, we all went out to dinner at Islands to relax.  I took this cute picture of Heather and Kelly, and it reminds me that these two have great, easy-going personalities that render them nearly always happy.  They are both fun to be around, and they add a great balance for Jenna and I who tend not to be super "up" all the time.  Oh, and the Tardis cracked me up.  This was what Heather doodled on her Kid's Menu as she waited for dinner.  Very creative Heather.

Sariah at 5 Months

(This is a picture of Sarah and Sariah at 7 weeks and at 5months)

Sariah is still all puppy and growing, growing, growing.  She bounds around, runs into walls and likes to jump up when she's excited to see us.  We find her in the cutest sleeping poses, and we are apparently very fond of those moments as evidenced in our photos.  She is still dealing with some teeth, and although most have grown in, the chewing continues.  Her favorite chew things are water bottles and sticks from outside.  If she's especially bored or wanting attention, she'll bring several sticks in and shred them.  We had to stop allowing sticks in the house.  Sariah had her first trail experience near our house, and it went well. She's learning "heel" pretty well, and we've used her new collar's beep sound to train her to come to us from a distance.  This will be beneficial when we're hiking and she gets out ahead or off trail.  She does very, very well with that command.  We're proud puppy parents.  We're still keeping her away from other dogs and populated areas until next month when her shots are completed, so any little outing is a joy for her.  She had her first camping outing on our Youth Conference camping trip. She loved the open area, and the kids at Youth Conference loved hanging out with her.  The worst damage yet was done during that Youth Conference weekend on Sunday.  Sariah had had enough of us being in and out and gone for long periods of time.  She dug us a nice little trench in the living room carpet.  What can you do?  We're still happy it hasn't been the furniture (and that we hadn't replaced our carpet yet).  All in all, she's been pretty good about what she chooses to gnaw on.  We can't wait to get her out socializing with other dogs and running the trails.  It won't be long now!

Youth Conference

This weekend was our church Youth Conference weekend. Friday afternoon through Saturday morning was our overnight campout in the mountains.  Kelly and Heather headed up early with Sariah to set up the trailer.  The kids enjoyed the campfire, games, food, speakers and service project.  One of our youth was afraid of dogs, so Sariah didn't get a lot of roaming time. She did get some visitors though which was fun for her.

Saturday afternoon started with a speaker and a scavenger hunt, and then progressed to dinner and games.  The Beehives all found each other at one point and hung out together.  First Youth Conference for them!

We had another great speaker on Sunday morning, and then we gathered at the Bishop's house for his inspiring talk and some refreshments.  Sunday was my favorite day as far as speakers went. We heard a lot about unity and reaching out to each other no matter what.  This was a great message for a new ward where some have really struggled being separated from friends in their last ward.  The changed seemed great for our family, but we felt for those who had a hard time.  I hope the weekend made a difference.

Oh, and the picture of the torn up carpet was courtesy of our dog who was left alone for a few too many hours this weekend while we were wrapped up with Youth Conference.  Although she had food, water, access to the yard and plenty of toys, she was missing us and went a little crazy.  Maybe new carpet is in our future?  Or maybe we'll just wait until she's not a rambunctious puppy anymore.

President's Day Weekend

Heather was in Fresno from Sunday through Tuesday at the CA Indoor State Championship track event. She must have been having a great time because she didn't stop to take photos.  Hahaha.  We did ask for one of the venue so we could see where she was spending most of her day on Monday. The high school didn't do anything spectacular at this event, but it was definitely an experience that Heather was proud to be a part of.  Only 4 Freshmen qualified and were invited to attend, so that was pretty cool.

Jenna spent Monday with Sarah celebrating Sarah's 12th birthday. She celebrated by taking her girlfriends to the mall to support her while she got her ears pierced.  The girls had lunch in the food court, posed on the escalator (escaposing is what it's called), and they supported Sarah and shopped at Claire's.

After the larger party, Sarah and Jenna hung out for a while.  We took them to Kohl's for some birthday shopping which was a fun treat for both girls. Our family had planned to go to Souplantation for dinner, and Sarah's family had also, so we ended up sitting together for further fun and shenanigans.  It is always the best to spend a day with your bestie!

New Beginnings

Our New Beginnings evening was a great success.  It was the first one I've been in charge of in 20 years, and I'd quite forgotten how to do it.  Luckily our manual has instructions as to who is to be involved in the planning and what needs to be included, so it was all good.  The girls chose the theme from some choices I put together off of Pinterest, all of our leaders pitched in to help paint the plaques and decorate with the cute travel theme (the cute cake was made my Sister Corey), and the new Beehives (six of them!) were adorable.  Jenna, Lauren, and Sarah were twelve just before, and just after the evening which made for perfect timing.  The rest of the girls come in around summer.

For anyone reading this who doesn't know, when a young woman turns 12, she enters the Young Women's program in our church, a group for young women ages 12-18.  The New Beginnings evening introduces the program to all of our new girls.  There is a theme, logo, motto and they have weekly activities as well as age appropriate Sunday services.  There is a values program called Personal Progress that they work on during those six years similar to the scouting program.  It's a big deal and some of the most fun years of their lives in and out of the church.  We're so happy that our girls are choosing to embrace the program and further lay the foundation for their life-long faith.  We love this program!