Well, It's About Time!

I think this is the longest I've gone without posting. I don't have a good excuse, but some interesting things have happened since December 14, so I'll fill you in.

Neil sent us a calendar for Christmas. Guess who is featured on every month. That's right--our favorite missionary! He has begun taking his medication again, and is feeling much better about things. We got to speak with him on the phone on Christmas Day and it was wonderful! The four year anniversary of Neil's accident came and went without our hardly noticing it. He's come so far; so have we.

We spent New Years with this adorable boy and his family:

Unfortunately, he was a little under the weather, but he was cute as can be none the less. Sure do love that little family!

Eric played his first improve solo in a jazz concert:

He loves to play. I love to hear him play. It's a win-win!

Scott took a job in South Carolina, so we're getting the house ready to sell. It's kind of a big deal. I'm trying not to freak out. We'll be fine. We'll be just fine.

Welcome to the Library

Neil sent this picture and entitled it "Secret Door." Because he works in the vaults of the Church History Library, he has an access card that allows him to be in the more secure areas. There's a feeling of authority and importance that goes along with having that card. He likes it. I like it for him.

Elder Stone has multiple jobs with different responsibilities. I'm not sure what they all are. They seem to change from time to time. I think he inputs new library acquisitions into the computer system. He also works in the basement. Part of that job involves breaking down the cardboard boxes that the books come in. He tells us that another part of that job requires him to be a daredevil on a ladder, reaching for boxes up high. I'm not sure exactly what that means and it makes me nervous, but it makes him happy, so it's okay... He started a new job this week, as well. I'm sure we'll hear more about it in his email tomorrow.

Looks like he was well fed for Thanksgiving. He had dinner on Thanksgiving Day with the other missionaries, and another party with a group that he works with. I'm sure he'll be taken care of for Christmas, as well. Speaking of Christmas, we'll finally get to talk to him on the phone!

Two more things I need to mention. We've been asked to please advise family and friends not to visit. I guess it's kind of a distraction for him and the other missionaries. We keep reminding Neil to follow the mission rules. That's good advice for us as well.

The other thing:  Once again, he could use your prayers. In the spirit of independence, Neil has decided to stop taking his medication. He has been on Ritalin since the accident to help him cope with the effects of the injury, and things are not going so well without them. Unfortunately, without the medicine he is a bit harder to reason with. He doesn't seem to grasp how much he needs them and he won't admit that so much of what he finds difficult, could be made easier.

We love him, we miss him, and we're so proud of him.

Two Feasts and a Visit from Grandma

Scott's mother came for Thanksgiving, and to make for a less stressful holiday, we made reservations to eat out for our Thanksgiving dinner. The Olde Mill Inn was lovely and even kind of homey. We were seated upstairs in the library. It felt a little like we were sitting at the children's table--far away from the adult hubbub and chatter. We took the elevator downstairs and wormed our way through the crowded dinning room to get to the bountiful buffet. The food was fine, but not amazing. When we got home there were no smells of roasted turkey and stuffing, and no leftovers to nibble on. But there were gluten free pies and homemade ice cream that I had made earlier, so it wasn't all bad.

Two days later, it was my shift to help with Mormon Helping Hands. When I got home, I found Grandma in the midst of making a real Thanksgiving meal! We had turkey breast with all the trimmings and her delicious candied yams--the dish I had missed most from the restaurant dinner! There was even some pie left over from the first go-round. It was wonderful to have our traditional dinner, the way it's supposed to be. Thank you, Nadene!

P.S.  I know I am way overdue to post some news from Neil. We exchange emails faithfully every Saturday, and he's having a wonderful experience--working hard and overcoming challenges. I promise the next post will be updates on our faithful missionary! Meanwhile, here's this:

Cast Your Vote

I'm trying to choose which of Eric's many wonderful senior portraits to frame for my entryway. Here's my favorite:

Here's another:

Scott likes this one:

I think Eric likes this one:

But this one probably best represents Eric's current state right now:

The band just got back from a weekend trip to a national championship where they placed 18th out of 87 terrific bands from around the country, only to report back to the school three hours later to compete in the state championships where they won first place! I think he deserves a nap.

Thanks for the great pictures, Amy!

Hello Again

So, thank you to all the friends and family who have inquired after our well-being. We were without power for a week and lost one tree in the back yard. That's it. No damage to our home. No power lines across the driveway. No storm surge up in our neck of the woods. Scott was able to get us a generator, and gas was easy enough to purchase down in South Jersey where he works. We were safe, and we are grateful.

Like you, our prayers have been pouring out in behalf of the many who are struggling. We have friends who are still waiting for lights, heat, and power, and some have lost homes. You have, no doubt, seen lots of pictures and footage of the devastation. Probably saw it before we did, cut off as we were from TV and Internet. But here are a couple of shots from our neighborhood:

School is finally in session for most of the district after a week and a half. Some roads are still impassable, as you can imagine with all the trees down. It will take a while for this part of the country to recover. We are expecting to be involved with some clean-up efforts that our church is organizing. Many have already been out there working on it. It will surely last a long time.

My biggest personal complaint is that I missed the chance to visit with Emerson the Adorable this weekend, due to cancelled flights. Here is a taste of what I didn't get to witness personally:

I'll survive, but only if I can have a few extra Skyping dates!

Emerson at One

Some of my favorite shots of Mr. One-Year-Old:

And if that's not enough cuteness, HERE'S a link to a charming little video Grandpa Carl made of Emerson getting his first haircut. I just gotta say, it's torture living so far away from this little sweetie!

Near and Far

Photo by Harry Brochinsky

Last Friday night I had a charming escort as I was led to center field during half time at the high school football game. The tradition at BRHS on Senior Night is that each of the band and color guard seniors get to honor their parents and supportive family members with a flower and a photo. You may ask why I am all alone with my tall and handsome second son in this photo. Well, you see, his dad was busy doing this:

Shh--don't tell!

So what if Scott happened to be in Utah and happened to be attending Music and the Spoken Word at the Tabernacle in Salt Lake City at the same time that Elder Stone happened to be there! It's open to the public, right? Scott's report is that Elder Stone looked great and sounded very happy!

Needless to say, we are very proud parents and feel so privileged to be associated with these two wonderful young men.

Click HERE to read about Eric's satisfying win at the recent Yamaha Cup competition!