The Re-Report

Dave & family,

Enjoyed your report. However I would like a report how you and the family likes your house, Boise, your job or jobs, the neighborhood, ward, and all the other things involved in moving to a new neighborhood. Emily's reaction to it all. I would guess that being close to ty & family would be great. They both are swell people and I am honored to be related to them. Course, that goes for you guys too. Love to all
Grandpa & Grandma Stahn

The Report - Other Details:

The House:

• It's big enough, that's for sure. We love having a yard the kids can play in. I actually like going out and mowing it after work or whenever I need to get some stress out.

Boise:

• Meridian has been good to us. It is okay having things close and we still feel like we're far enough out on the edge where there are still farms and some open land. If we want to we can go to the park or drive up into the mountains.

My Jobs:

• Well, that's a more complicated story. With the nature of my first job I am talking with teenage boys, their families, or their probation officers most of my day which is kind of disturbing at times. Overall I like the work and the place I work at treats me very well. I have my own office, they feed me, and they pay for me to get to and from work, so I don't spend much on food or gas.

The Neighborhood:

• The people out here keep to themselves. They are friendly enough when you bring up a conversation with them. We haven't seen any of the cop cars, the loud fighting, or the unkempt house-fronts like a couple of our neighborhoods in Idaho Falls. Seems like our neighbors are busy with their lives, they work, and they take care of their families. The houses are nice, the neighborhood is pretty new and clean and Hayley goes to school (starts tomorrow) about two miles away.

The Ward:

• The leadership in our ward seem to be pretty much on top of things - Every Sunday, they invite new move-in families to meet with the ward council members right after the sacrament meeting. They pulled us in, learned our names, took down our information, and started finding out how they could help our family that very first Sunday. Emily and I were called to help teach the primary almost immediately. I know Emily has had callings in the Primary before but this is the first time I've had a calling with anyone younger than seminary age. We teach the Sunbeams. Because Matthew is too young for Nursery, I have not been able to help Emily teach much. She has taught several lessons by herself while I have hauled Matthew around the hallways.

Moving in:

• We have been holding off on buying several things for the new house until I have a few paychecks. Now that a couple of them have come in and we see what the regular bills will be, we think we'll just keep holding off for a while. We feel like we've go things situated pretty well and have established routines which work well enough for the family for now. Nathan says he still wants "to live in Kansas, where we used to live."

Train Video Test

Here is the closest thing we can get to streaming video from our camera. This is a quick shot from the model train that runs in the Sumpter Junction restaurant we visited on the way back from Ocean Shores. The kids were FASCINATED by this wonderful train which runs all the way around the restaurant while you eat.

Hayley's first day of Kindergarten2

In her own words:

I left the house and I got on the bus and it drove to the kindergarten. When I got there, I went to Mrs. Stred's class, but first the teacher wasn't in the classroom. Then someone walked up behind us and asked us who we were looking for - and I said that we were looking for Mrs. Stred, and she said she would look for Mrs. Stred. And then Mrs. Stred came and told us that she would show us how to get to the playground. When we were done on the playground, the bell rang and everyone went in, but I was left all alone outside. But then someone opened the door and I went in and found Mrs. Stred's class with another teacher. Mrs. Stred asked me where I had been, and I told her how I was left alone and she said to work on an A through Z paper. And we colored in the letters and then Mrs. Stred showed us the date on the calendar and the month and the year. And she said that we would put sticks inside one of the pockets until we got up to 180 days of school. And she changed the number to 1 -- that meant the first day of school -- and she put 1 stick in the pocket. She said that when we got to 180 days of school, we would have a big celebration for the last day of school. Then she said that she was going to teach us some things about the school. She said for us to raise our hands when we wanted to ask her something, and in the hall we should be in a line as straight as an arrow, and hands to the side and mouths shut.Then she showed us the nurse's room and the PT room where we do gym things. And she showed us the bathroom so we know where to go to the bathroom. Then we went to recess. Then we came in and finished our sheets of paper from A to Z. Then she gave us a special award that said "I had a great first day of school," and at the top were our names. We put that with our A to Z paper and then I went with my Mom and went home. I met Luke and Grace and Faith and Stewart. I don't remember anyone else. But we had a great first day of school.

And there you have it. More detail than we'll probably get all year. (But at least she learned that when the bell rings, you really have to go inside, or you get left "all alone.")

I have attached a couple of pictures. The one of Hayley, the bus, and my unsuspecting neighbors didn't turn out very well - but I didn't exactly have time to set up a good shot. Ah well.

Have a great day :)

Emily

Hayley and Nathan Compare Jokes

Hayley:

• "How are trees and elephants alike? - they both have trunks!"
• "How come big horn sheep can never talk to each other? - because they keep butting in!"

Nathan:

• "Why does the pheasant cross the road? - to get to the other side to pick pineapples, ha ha ha! Isn't that funny!! ha ha!"
• "Why does the pheasant hang upside-down? -Because he wanted to play, he he! isn't that funny?! It's so, so funny bunny!!"

Off to School

8/23/07

After work, our family went down to the welcoming night at the brand newly-minted grade school in our neighborhood to meet Hayley’s new teacher. On Monday morning, Hayley will get on the bus and ride to kindergarten for the first time.

The brand new school is impressive. Hayley’s teacher seemed to like her and assured us that there are ways to keep Hayley engaged.

Hayley and Nathan were excited to have balloons. Much woe followed when they each accidentally let them go – the mourning, weeping, and wailing lasted until long after we had returned home.

The Ridleys to go the Western Idaho Fair

Emily and I took Hayley, Nathan, and Matthew to the fair last night. After polling the family, the brief report of things we remember and enjoyed, we want to note:

• Matthew and Nathan both broke out in several spontaneous and energetic "dance, dance, dance" moments throughout the evening as we passed by various musical events. Both drew small crowds of their own.
• Matthew enjoyed petting the baby rabbit. Emily recalls the giant French Lop rabbits. Nathan was impressed with the giant turkey (bigger than him). But we declined to pay three dollars per person for a brief peek at the world's largest pig.
• Hayley swung her feet over the spectators as she smiled down from the huge spinning swings. "I was waving to mom," she recalls.
  
• Hayley was even harder to pull out of the driver's seat of the tank than Nathan. Later, Hayley and Nathan got to climb into the cab of a Semi truck.
• The whole family enjoyed a humorous (and LOUD!) comic diver's skit which culminated in a grey-haired fat man diving EIGHTY FEET into a ten foot pool. (apparently he holds or held the world's height record at 172 feet).
• Nathan said he "had lots of fun" riding on the elephants (David rode with him on a pink two-seater Dumbo knock-off). He says, "I did enjoy that."
  
• Emily re-lived her childhood by riding down a very large (fifty foot?) Super Slide slide. Nathan tells us, "I liked seeing mom go down down on a BIG, HUGE, BUMPY SLIDE!. I wanted to go on that."
  
• Emily accompanied Nathan and Hayley on the Wacky Worm Coaster which they thoroughly enjoyed.
• Hayley adds, "I liked seeing the donkeys and the horses....I liked petting the big cow with horns."
• "I liked seeing the farris wheel and the merry-go-round," says Nathan.
  
  
  
  

We're happy to report that none of us got lost and had to use our safety plan to find each other at the Ferris Wheel. We want to give special thanks to Ty and Sara for scouting out the events for us the night before and for offering to take Matthew. As it turned out, Matthew was too impressed with all the activity and excitement to fuss and give trouble. A good time was had by all.

The Worth of Souls

Multnomah Falls

8/21/2007 1:10 AM

Journal

Friends
Today I called an old friend who I have been apart from for a very long time. It reminded me how great is the worth of souls in the sight of God [see D&C 18: 10 ]. Maybe it is just easier to feel the worth of some souls; maybe because they most clearly reflect the Lord’s image in their countenance [Alma 5: 14, 19]. As we talked about life, families, challenges, and blessings, the feelings of regret for years lost faded in the joy of the warmth of the fire of faith and friendship.

I think of the words oft’ quoted by President Monson from Charles Hanson Towne’s "Around the Corner" [see In Search of Treasure] regarding the inadvertent loss of such invaluable friends through neglect. I’m so glad I called!

Children
It was the cool of the day and the grass was high. The time was right to mow. Hayley (who we forget is only five) stepped to the back patio and said with a curious expression: “You come home from work and you hardly have time to play with us. So I’m confused: Isn’t playing with your children more important than doing this?” So we compromised – Hayley pushed the mower and I guided it. We had such a good time, we hated to stop.

Prophets
I have a goal to finish the Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Therein, I feel I have been instructed to keep records. In the recent funeral services and subsequent BYUTV media focus of President James E. Faust, I have also felt prompted to read my patriarchal blessing. I’m trying to comply with both messages which are converging nicely into the prevalent theme in this whole entry – the confirmation that our souls our time and our interwoven life events are of such great worth.

- David

Ocean Shores & Then Some

We successfully moved ourselves to Boise Idaho. And Dave found a job pretty quickly – so we’re very happy about that. It doesn’t pay quite as much as would make us comfortable, but he gets to count all of his therapy hours at work towards getting his license – so we feel blessed. He also will get a few extra hours every couple of weeks doing some interviewing and paperwork for a small agency nearby.

We are slowly getting used to the area and getting to know a few people in our ward. Dave and I have been called as primary teachers. It looks like we will be alternating with another couple to teach our class, which means we will be able to attend our meetings on occasion. We have enjoyed getting together with Dave’s brother and his family, and also visiting my grandparents.

Nathan says: I’m pretending I have the hiccups.

We went to Ocean Shores on the Washington coast. It was lots of fun. We played in the sand and the water. We played ALL day on the beach. And then on Tuesday we went ALL back home. And we went to a train restaurant at night to have ice cream and pie. There was a train there. The restaurant was called Sumpter Junction (in Baker City Oregon). And it was lots of fun. The train goed on the train tracks all around the restaurant. It was fun with the train in Sumpter Junction. We saw it at breakfast (on the way to WA) and dessert (on the trip home). Matthew is running around – literally. He always wants to be outside; all three kids love the fact that we have a little backyard now. Matthew is trying to talk more and more. So far he only says a few understandable words, like “go,” and “up,” but he’s really trying to talk to us. He is still very happy most of the time. And now I turn it over to Dave to finish off our letter . . . .
Hello. I think the above pretty much sums it up. So much to do!

Random facts: I’m enjoying being a therapist.
I like our house. I want to find some good ways to save money (like eating only at the cafeteria at work and encouraging the home consumption of more potatoes and rice) so that Emily can continue her time-honored tradition of not working outside the home. Maybe she can give piano lessons or tutor some local school children. I like living closer to the temple – I was able to go there to do some sealing work yesterday, which was great. I have been learning a lot about the Kirtland and Nauvoo periods of the church through History of Joseph Smith by his Mother, Lucy Mack Smith. I actually enjoy mowing my lawn – we have a little motorless push mower thinger which was cheep and is my only real exercise program right now.

Love,

– Our Family