The Perfect Job!

So my mom called me one day and asked if I would be interested in taking the extended day kindergarten job this year.  It is the same job she had last year, only it would be all day instead of just half day.  I thought about it, talked it over with Shawn, and then decided to take it.  It is only some Fridays (holidays throw it off a little), it is 8 hours, for 14 weeks.  Add to that the fact I get certified teacher's pay, and I'd say that's a pretty good job!  This class is for kindergartners who need some extra intervention.  If they go to kindergarten in the morning, I get them in the afternoon, and vice versa.  In my morning class I have 8 students, and in my afternoon class I have 14 (yeah, a little bit of a handful, but I also get an aid to help).  I've taught two sessions so far and it has gone great!  I really enjoy being in the school again, but I don't feel like I'm neglecting my duties as Mom too.  Like I said, perfect job!

Temple to Temple Relay-September 24, 2011

My sister, Tamara, talked Shawn and me into running on her team for the Temple to Temple Relay as part of  BYUI activities.  Neither of us has run a race since the Powell family put a team together for the Teton Dam Marathon relay...in 2007?  This was kind of a fun race because it starts at the Rexburg Temple, snakes along highway 33 towards Menan, around the Menan Buttes, along St. Leon in Lewisville, and to the Idaho Falls Temple.  A total of a little over 37 miles.  There are three different types of relays.  8 team, 4 team, and 2 team.  We were luckily on an 8 member team.  Shawn ran the 1st leg starting at the Rexburg Temple.  His leg was about 2.8 miles, and he made pretty good time despite not training at all.  We decided his time was about 22 minutes.  I ran the 4th leg, which started at the North Menan Butte trail head and ended at the Menan Stake Center.  This was kind of a blast from my past because we would run that road for high school cross country practice.  My leg was about 4 miles, though after the 4 mile marker I still had about a quarter of a mile left!  My time was about 40 minutes, which I thought was great considering I hadn't trained as hard as I should have, though I did put in a few more training miles than Shawn :)  I decided running races is like childbearing.  It sounds like a good idea at first, and you think, "I can do that!  No problem!"  Then you get into the middle of the race and think, "What was I thinking!  Never again!"  Then you finish, the endorphins have kicked in, you feel good about your accomplishment, and you think, "Well, that wasn't so hard!"  It may take a little while afterwards before someone is able to talk you back into another race, but we tend to forget what it was like in the middle! 

In other news...Kassity is finally walking!  She sort of started walking the beginning of September (about 16 months), but wasn't brave enough to try it without hanging on to something.  Then, September 20th she decided she could run across my mom's living room.  She considered it a game though and wouldn't walk just to get somewhere.  Then she took off on October 6th.  She still crawls and scoots, and she falls down a lot, but she will walk a majority of the time now!

A sampling of our updated family pictures taken July 2011

Aren't they cute? I spent several weeks this summer making "summer" bedspreads for my girls. These were my first two quilts ever! I even got to quilt them using my mother-in-law's long arm quilter! The one on the left is Kassity's (the picture shows it before I trimmed and bound it), and the one on the right is Brooklyn's. Did they choose? In a matter of speaking. As I was binding one, Brooklyn got my scissors and took a snip into the binding. That one is now her's, though I did a pretty good job of hiding it :) I can't say she was being naughty, I did leave the scissors right where she could get them, I wasn't paying attention, and she's seen me do lots of cutting on fabric.

And we're back after a little break! This has been a fun and busy summer for our family. I'll just give a quick update on what's been going on.

In May, Kassity turned 1! She still scoots along on her bottom, though she will crawl when she is being silly (eye roll :) ) She has really picked up on sign language. We've been borrowing Signing Time from our library, so Brooklyn uses it too. It has been fun and educational for all of us! Still no walking from Kassity, but it is only a matter of time...

Brooklyn surprised me yesterday when we went with a friend to the park. Usually she needs me to play with her and be close to her. Yesterday she took off with my friend's son (about 6 months younger), and they had a grand ol' time together on the swings, slides, and just generally running around. My little girl is becoming so independent! She has just started singing along with me when we sing songs. Before I would sing a few words, and she would fill in the gaps. It's been fun, and it makes roadtrips really interesting when we have to sing the same song over and over and over...

Shawn and I just celebrated our 5 year anniversary last weekend! We left the kids with Grandma and Grandpa McLain, and we took off to stay at the Powell's cabin in Island Park. We rode motorbikes, swam in the lake, meandered through tourist West Yellowstone, and watched a lot of TV and movies. It was so pretty up there, and the weather was very nice. Now that we are home though, Kassity won't let me out of her sight without a meltdown. Dealing with the consequences is worth it!

My mom got a job teaching morning kindergarten. I guess the school called her the afternoon before school started and wanted to hire her. Talk about stress! I think she will be great. Dad is a little concerned about her getting a job, but you can't get a much better part time opportunity.

Spring is coming?

Kyris here, with the newest...well...news of our family. The smell of rain is in the air, the rain is on the ground...but it isn't snowing! The girls and I took a walk to the park to play for the first time this season. It was so good to get out of the house and let Brooklyn run around while Kassity wished she could run around :) We met up with Shawn's mom, LeAnn and his sister, Kristen along with my nephew, Zac and my niece, Tailey. They all head to Ohio tomorrow where Brandon has been stationed for his military assignment. We will miss getting together with Kristen, Brandon, and the kids on a regular basis! I'm pretty sure Brooklyn does not understand that her cousins are going away, but I know she will miss playing with them. I have to spread the word...my newest obsession (I guess that's a way to describe it) is Flylady.com. Everyone should check it out! I wish I had known about it when I was working outside of the home because I know I would have felt a lot less overwhelmed by my housework and general housewife duties! Also, just to advertise a little...the Rexburg Tabernacle Orchestra is having a concert on April 27, 2011 at 7:30. The highlights are a cello concerto and Wagner's "The Mastersingers of Nunberg." Ciao!

TaDa!

Now you all can be extra proud of us. Not only do we have a family blog, we also have internet so I can take a second once in awhile and update it!
To fill you all in for the past year+...
We love our house, even after spending a whole year in it (seeing it from all "angles").
Shawn graduated (hooray!) from BYU-I with a degree in animal science on April 9, 2010. Now he works on the farm full time with the dairy, crops, and Forefront Genetics. Check out their website at forefrontgenetics.blogspot.com.
We had a little (ok, not so little) family crisis last April when Dad McLain had a stroke that baffled doctors and left him lucky to be alive. He's still improving, but slowly... It's been a nightmare and a miracle all in one!
At the end of May we added a new one to our family. Meet Kassity Nadean Powell. Delivery was much easier this time! Mom felt a lot better after this one and was even in her "normal" jeans by the time they got home from the hospital! Since then she has lost 45 lbs, and she doesn't plan on finding it anytime soon!
Brooklyn is now 2. She loves walks, playing with her babies, playing with her sister, and spending time with her dad. Her mom is doing a little preschool 3 days a week where she is the only student. We aren't sure how much she is really learning, but she loves her "mom time" anyway.
Did I forget anything?
Just know that we are grateful for our testimonies of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Because of our faith and the faith of friends and family we have seen miracles, big and small, in our lives this past year. Jesus is our Savior and Redeemer. His atonement is real-we have felt its power. Love you all!