School started off well. It's great for the kids to be back at it again. They are all really loving their teachers. I am helping out again in Covey's class and sometimes in Lucy's. And being back to work at preschool, teaching piano, and being mom is kind of kicking my behind and I usually am going to bed at 12 or 1 lately. But I love it all and wouldn't change a thing!
We enjoyed a great little trip on the Beartooth Highway and Cooke City on Labor Day. The scenery was absolutely beautiful! We loved looking out the window and the kids didn't even ask "are we there yet?" We got to go explore a bit off the beaten path and hike around a little, chased cute little chipmunks, checked out views from scenic overlooks, got to go up to the Clay Butte lookout tower and check things out from above, ate lunch at a burger joint and explored Cooke City, got some sweets from the candy store for the ride home on Chief Joseph Highway. It was such a nice day with our people!
Fall started out so beautiful and warm! We have been jumping on the tramp a lot and going to the park quite a bit. Our first snow storm came the end of September though, what!? And then October hit and some nice days with lots of cold and snowy ones. The kids used the term "Fa-nter" or "Wint-all" to describe what was going on here. November hit and bam! Snowy weather! Ended more like winter, but then again, we have long winters here so normal! What a difference a couple of weeks makes.
The football season started off well. The boys got to play flag football again and loved it! They rocked it! It's been especially fun to see Callahan really take off with it now and get it. They played 6-8 graders, and the boys on their team were 4-6 graders. So they put up some good fights and did well despite their size and experience and won a lot of games and were so close the other times. Covey had fun but probably did more dancing than football playing on the field. He was good at entertaining the crowds if nothing else. They did great and learned a lot this year! We usually had the first games at 8:30 in the morning and the last one at 12:30, so most of our Saturdays were hanging out in Billings. So we were glad to see that part of it end. But it is always worth it in the end. Cal is excited to move on to tackle next year...I don't know if I'm ready for that. I'm thinking kicker for life! When Cal was 3, he would set the football up over and over and all he wanted to do was practice kicking. He's always been a little football fan. And now he can't wait for Saturdays when he wants to watch college football all day and practice throwing and catching during commercials. Love my football enthusiasts!
We were able to participate in the Day of Service. This year, we got a list and went out shopping to Winco to pick up foods for the food drive and deliver them. Then we tied some quilts. The girls really enjoyed that, especially Lucy who wanted to do it all day! We made some really cute ones!
Callahan got to go participate in a cross country race for elementary school kids in Billings. He did great and really enjoyed the day!
Part of the fall was a bit rough for me. Lots of little things led up to me feeling really depressed, which is not like me. I was feeling totally blue and discouraged and worthless and friendless. I was getting scared. I am grateful for a good husband and our Heavenly Father and Savior who helped me get through. Satan wants us to feel this way. He knows if he can get a woman to give in or up than he can snatch up future generations too. For me, I did not need professional help or medication. I just needed to focus on my big 5 - study, prayer, service, exercise and a little time for myself. I was maybe slacking in a few of those departments and that's when I started getting down. I know many of my loved ones deal with depression daily. Don't you let Satan's lies take over. Not today, Satan. Not today. You are brave, you are enough, you have worth, you are loved! I am here for you and so is God!! 💙💛
I may or may not have become obsessed with pumpkin spice products. I love all the seasonal pumpkin spice from the eggnog to the chapstick. Hello, my name is Melanie and I'm a pumpkin spiceaholic.
These two... Covey and Lucy! One day they didn't make it to school. 😳 They left to walk to school and I left to go teach preschool and about 40 minutes after school started I got a call saying they were absent and they were calling to check in. The teachers were called to make sure they weren't there. I left right away to go search for them, the policemen all went out to find them and even the principal went out looking for them. I was having a heart attack and was so thankful to be able to find them just a few minutes later (felt like eternity). They were walking in between our house and the preschool and said they didn't feel good and felt dizzy and upset tummies and nauseous and were going to come get me at preschool but just decided to walk home! We had a good talk and I sure hope they don't do anything like this again!! 😟 It was a stressful situation. It makes me grateful that they are being cared for by our community family and watched over by our Heavenly Father though! Lucy also had a "traumatic experience" when she shaved off half of her eyebrow as she was trying to "trim a little of her unibrow" off. She shut herself up in her room and was trying to hide and was bawling. I told her it would be okay and we could use an eyebrow pencil until it grew back in again, which she did religiously every day. She was so self conscious of it but stayed away from my beauty tools...for a while!
Homecoming was a blast! We helped a lot get ready for the parade with the Kid's Club float. The theme was through the decades. Sydnie's age group got the 50's, so we threw together a cute little poodle skirt. She was not happy about the whole parade things and cried a lot. Our preschool kids dressed up like hippies from the 70s. We had fun throwing out candy. Cal, Lucy and Cov were on the hospital float, which they thoroughly enjoyed. Em stayed back with Shannon and helped all of the other Kid's Club school aged kids who weren't in the parade but watching. Shannon told me how great she was to have around. We went to the homecoming game as well and it was a good time and a great W for the Cougars! We got so into HOCO this year, we dressed up our skeleton on the porch in some team gear.
We've had some pretty great built-in dates lately! Went on a tour of the Sibanye Stillwater mine, Kid's Club Oktoberfest fundraiser dinner, and the Chamber of Commerce "HeHaw" themed annual dinner. The mine was interesting as it's the largest employer in this area. It's a palladium mine and is a large operation! It's fun to get a look at it as they only do this every few years by invitation. We got to even do some hands on thing and it was great to see the perspective from the employees. They had a BBQ after and we were able to sit by the cozy warm fire and have a yummy meal. We helped out with the Kid's Club fundraiser a lot, and Emma came and helped too. She helped decorate and set up a photo booth, so we had to use that to take a picture. The brats and pop were good and so was the company. I am glad to be involved in such a great organization with great people. And then, the commerce dinner was delicious, entertainment was great and the hospital table even won best dressed! Love my man! Love my community!
We had Colleen and Shirley come visit for a couple of days. Colleen is moving down with Shirley and Jeff so she was moving all her stuff. So she brought her large bunny with her and the kids thought that was the best thing ever!
In November, we had parent teacher conferences. Most days I feel like a mama fish out of water and failing these five most days, but when I hear about what these kiddos are doing at school, I feel grateful something is setting in. ;) Emma got on the honor roll and was also voted by her peers to receive the Cougar Character award. Em has been struggling with middle school and this was a huge boost for her. Cal's teacher had nothing but the greatest things to say about him. Wonder if he knows what he does after school? The other week he and a friend got out their fedora hats on their way home from school and would sing to older students for money and food, little panhandler! Lucy has been doing well in every subject but math has never been her thing. She recently was the only one who got a 100% on a math test and so she drew this cute "Queen of Math" picture. Hope this inspires her that she can do math and maybe even enjoy it. Cov's teacher said she wishes she had 5 of him in her class...can't even imagine that. But he is doing really well in every way in his class. Sydnie is now finally going to Kid's Club while I teach without any tears! I am so grateful for all of the hard work going into these kids' lives and their futures. Teachers are the best!
The kids had their Primary program and they did awesome! The theme was all about "Come, Follow Me". Listening to my own and church kiddos made my heart full. I was Primary chorister for most of the year and helped the kids learn the songs for the program and got to bear testimony to them each week and learned a lot from them! Each week as they'd come into Primary, I would pass out footprints and we would share a way we followed Jesus that week on them and would put them around the room. I loved seeing their faith blossom! They are a special bunch! Callahan went out with a bang and gave a great talk he wrote all himself. We also learned about the new Children and Youth program. We got together and made personal pizzas and caramel apples before we watched the Face2Face about it. It will be so amazing and we are excited for it! And Sydnie also loves nursery now...it only took about a year...haha! Thankful my little ones have an anchor in this world and that is Jesus Christ and thankful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints which invites us to "come, follow me" and "strive to be" and for all of the Christ-like examples we have surrounding them!
We had World Kindness Day in November and I was thinking about how we always need to be kind because we never know what another is going through and we don't see the whole picture on other's lives. I got Shingles recently (I know, I know... I thought it was only for the older generations until further research) and it was so painful. The pain and rash might not have been visible and I might have put on a brave face and smile, but inside I was hurting bad (seriously felt like labor pains but in my upper back and chest). Not looking for any sympathy here and no I am not contagious. I didn't tell many but those who knew were so kind and thoughtful. But this got me reflecting on how often how many of us have sorrows and problems and situations we might not be able to see in each other so we need to give each other the benefit of the doubt more and just be kind. "Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:32) Kindness is magical and does wonders for us all!
20 years of the Billings temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints! This was a special weekend when the temple was open for 24 hours. When we went in, it was dingy outside but as we came out it was as bright and nice as could be! That's what the temple does for me. It brightens my life. It is my solace. My peace. My direction. My safety. My vision. "...Worship in the temple and pray to feel deeply the Savior’s infinite love for you, that each of you may gain your own testimony that He directs this sacred and ageless work. The temple is the house of the Lord. The basis for every temple ordinance and covenant—the heart of the plan of salvation—is the Atonement of Jesus Christ.” - President Russell M. Nelson
We were able to get together with some friends in the fall. We met up with the Wilhelms for lunch and to hang out. We had a dinner party at the Eckberg's next door with some of our surrounding neighbors. The kids had a blast and took some random pics there but I don't always take pictures of these things. Daddy has had some good work events, like CEO circle and MHA. He even made it into the magazine!
Faces in disguise! These kids are always trying to do "face painting" or trying out mommy's makeup, or hiding like a ninja like Emma. Or trying to make as much as a mess with their food as they can. Luckily, we can wash up anytime. Maybe they just get messy so they can have another bath! One day, the kids and I did some facial masks, they thought that was great! Sure love these faces, whether messy or clean!
We had our first hospital foundation fundraiser here. They call it the Jewel of the Stillwater. The theme was Tough as Pink and the purpose was to purchase a new mammography machine here. The community came out and gave so much! Dave's been involved in the planning and carrying out of this for a year and has spent countless hours and we helped out taking tickets, setting up and taking down, and helping out with events during. He really cares about people. It was a great, uplifting night with good food, great atmosphere and decorations, a nice program, we won a few silent auctions, and they made most of their goal!
Cal's earned his Arrow of Light award for Cub Scouts, which is the equivalent of an Eagle Scout for Boy Scouts. He put in a lot of hard work to earn this and we are proud of him! Now Scouting is going away with the wind here so it is the end of the era for our family in Scouting. We thought about continuing, but the night they have Scouts here in town is the same night we have Young Mens. Good job, buddy!
I got called to serve in the Young Womens organization now. Emma was so thrilled, not! But I'm excited, it will be fun. Emma earned more Personal Progress ribbons and is so close to earning her medallion! They had a Young Women in Excellence night with the theme of "Women in the Scriptures". The girls got to dress up like their favorite scripture hero and portrayed different women in the scriptures. It was very powerful. Emma chose to be Ester, her favorite from the time she was tiny. After, Sue Clark in our branch, gave Emma this large and beautiful picture of Ester. Emma was so excited and loves it and we found a great place in her room to hang it. We also recited the old YW theme and recited the new one. As we have learned about the old one and the new one, the values aren't going away. They are all still in there, just spelled out more! I love the new theme and how personalized it is. Em has been working hard and should earn her medallion in December.
All in all, the fall started off great and ended great. And we had some not so fun times in between, but that's what life's all about. If we didn't have those sick times, those scared times, those embarrassing times, those hard times, we wouldn't appreciate the healthy times, the happy times, the comfortable times, the good times. All is well that ends well!
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