A Stressful Week

Monday:  Sterling Singers Christmas Concerts at Libby Gardner hall (UofU).  I left work at 3:00 to make it on Trax (with Briana and Bestest-Friend Brittany) to the U.  We sang till our chops were busted.  I took a call from my dad between rehearsal and our first concert.  He was informing me that Mom was having a single mastectomy on Tuesday the next week.  I cried, and many of the SS-es came to make sure I was OK and give me a hug.  Some of them were people I didn't even know!  Kind people are a blessing. 

We got home at 10:30 p.m.  It was a very long, cold walk from the Trax station to the Conference Center, where our car was parked.  Bri and I have decided that we have already seen enough of the Christmas lights on TSQ.  Our family disagrees.

Tuesday:

Woot, woot!  I drove home, picked up Ash and Landon, and we headed to Murray High School for Eagle Gate College's graduation.  Both Spencer and Briana graduated with highest honors, thus the gold ropes.  I'm so proud of both of them!  Afterward we took other pictures and did some visiting, then went to dinner.  We got home around 10:00 p.m.

Wednesday:  My first day of school at WGU, but the computer was having issues.  I was so frustrated!  I didn't get much done, but I made a showing.  Between shopping trips for...

Thursday:  The ward Christmas party, which was my last activity because the Quorum of the Twelve love me just enough to change the Handbook and eliminate this position altogether.  I left work early so I could get set up at the Church.  Briana and Landon helped me set up tables and chairs.  Many HUGE thanks to Stacy, Brenda, and Jen, who decorated multiple tables each.  Some of the YW in our ward also did tables; Ashtyn and Briana decorated the stage.  Did I take pictures?  No, of course not.  You'll have to take my word for it--it was cute!  We had dinner and played a game involving white elephant gifts and Christmas music.  Then we cleaned up and came home.  I was home by 8:30, so I went to school for a little while.  More computer issues, but not as many as the night before.

I also booked a flight to Sacramento for next week's surgery.

Friday:  Spencer had massages, so I came home and went to school for a long time.  And FINALLY got a lot done.  We went to bed after 11:00.

Saturday:  Did a bit of early shopping with my sweetheart, then headed to Magna for this:

This Beverly Hillbillies/Woolus Atkinson load, headed to the dump, is what is left of the carpet in my brother and sister-in-law's house, along with some couches they are dumping.

Then I came home and went to school while Spencer and Briana went to help lay flooring.  You'll have to check out Becky's blog for those pictures.  Spence is pretty sore today.  It's taking a long time to heal from that ladder fall.

This is what Ashtyn did with her day:

Ashtyn's projects are always expensive. We purchased:  Meringue powder, powdered sugar, candy canes, hard Christmas candies, SweetTarts, gumdrops, Dots, Neccos, Smarties, pretzels, sugar cones, LifeSavers, Skittles, licorice pull-aparts, Gobstoppers, another cake-decorating tip, and probably more. But it turned out darling, and she had fun doing it.  Her house is even made of real gingerbread!  Because of the expenses she incurs, we always tell Ashtyn she's fired, because we can't afford her.  But who could really fire Ashtyn (who had a stressful week of her own)?

Taylor--who sleeps here, but we never see him because of WJHS Madrigals performances--called to see if he could bring the Mads over last night.  There were about 15 kids here, in addition to our 4 and Logan.  Colton POH-lujek said I'm the best mom ever, and some of the kids said I could be MadriMom.  I think that was because of all the candy lying around the house, but I decided to just say, "Thank you."  This group even sang a couple of songs for us.  We love it when our children bring their friends over!  (I bet the Fishes downstairs don't love it quite as much.)  Spencer and I went to bed at 11:00.  I don't know what time the house quieted for the night.

Work was also crazy-busy (just the way I like it) this week; and also my headlights died just as I was leaving for work one day, so I was very late that morning.  I had to wait for the sun to come up before I could drive anywhere.  Why do stupid things like that always happen in the winter?

I am looking forward to a day of worship today, before beginning another hectic week.