MERRY CHRISTMAS

Well, we got Nathan off at the airport last Thursday, we had a short message on the phone on Sunday. he is doing great. Everyone else is just working, school, etc. We are all well and hope everyone else is too!

Halloween was awesome!

Halloween was so much fun! Kyle had the best time trick or treating. We had a great time watching him. I found a pattern on e-bay to make his costume and he loved it. We gave out small bags of chips to the trick or treaters and they went crazy for them. There is another house in our neighborhood who gives out cans of pop! Halloween is definitely more fun with little kids!

WHAT A GREAT VACATION!

We just got back from a great vacation this afternoon. We went to the Wyndham vacation club resort in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. We were able to have everyone with us for at least part of the time except Christopher. Brittany and Nathan flew in on Saturday Aug 1 and home again on Wednesday, Aug 5. The rest of us (except Chris) left in the motorhome on Friday, July 31 and arrived that evening. We had a great time swimming, playing sand volleyball, playing tennis, learning to line dance, having root beer floats and attending a "wine and cheese" reception. We all went on a small hike to Treasure Falls. On Wednesday before Brittany and Nathan had to go to the airport, everyone but grandma and Kyle rented tubes and went down the San Juan river twice. Unfortunately, everyone but Robert and Daniel got horribly sunburned and spent Thursday just resting and trying to get better. On Thursday, Rob and I went on a 6 mile hike to see another waterfall. It was a really hard hike three miles in and three miles out. It started out down hill and went across and then up. Which means the last part coming out was up! We played games and watched movies together. On the way home we were able to see the Indian ruins at Mesa Verde. It was pretty amazing to see homes built so long ago. We appreciated the time and took advantage of the fact that we will not be together for the next three years with Nate on a mission and Daniel going soon. We are thankful for our time together!

SIERRA LEONE FREETOWN MISSION

Nathan's mission call came today! He has been called to serve in the Sierra Leone Freetown mission on the western coast of Africa. He will be reporting to the MTC in Accra Ghana on December 4, 2009. We are all very shocked and excited at this unexpected place. It is one of the poorest countries in the world, 60% Muslim - it will be a challenge! He is assigned to speak English but they said he could be re-assigned according to the mission president's needs. We have a lot to do!

A Mission Call Will Soon Be On Its Way!

Our newest news is that Nathan has an interview with the stake president tomorrow night! When they are finished the stake president will push the "Submit" button and the mission papers are in the hands of the mission department! We are very excited! The bishop said it would be about two weeks. Stephanie and Nathan both had their wisdom teeth removed in the last week and a half. They are both doing well, but still have some soreness. They both went to an oral surgeon and went to sleep for the removal. We went camping last week Wednesday through Friday. The bad part was that Rob was having trouble with his back, so he laid on the bed most of the time. Thursday it rained all day, so it was ok that he was laid up. I had to come down to take Nathan to have his teeth out. (We were in Big Cottonwood at the Spruces). It was a relaxing time and we enjoyed it. On the 4th we went to Cole and Jessica's house for a barbecue. It was a nice time. The other big news is that I (Ronda) got a job! I have been looking since April and I have applied for 50 jobs. This was the only one that called me in for an interview on a Thursday, and they hired me the next Monday. It is a place called ACS (Applied Computer Services) and I will be doing data entry and customer service from 6 am until 2:30 Monday through Friday. I start training on July 14! I am nervous but very excited! We will be calling about the mission as soon as we know!

Our Last High School Graduate!

The first week of June was a crazy busy week for us. We had the final concert for vocal ensemble which is called Pops Concert. The kids all sing popular songs and it is a great show. This year was Dr. Bentley's last year, so this concert was extra special. Daniel and Mrs. Bentley had a vision of a great tribute to say good bye. We contacted alumni of VE through facebook and picked two songs from Wicked (Dr. B's favorite show) to sing. We had two practices on Sundays at our church building. The night of the concert we had the 30 current VE students along with about 270 alumni of VE singing. All of our children were able to participate together. It was quite a sight! We had graduation on June 4. Daniel is officially a High School Graduate. Life is beginning a new phase for us. College kids only. Come September Rob and I will be living in our home alone! Friday night we had the final party for VE. Usually it is held at the Bentley's home, but due to circumstances this year, they do not have a home right now, so it was held in our home. Another dinner for 32 people plus parents! We had a really good time and about 20 of the kids ended up staying all night. Now that the new week has started, it is quiet around here, which is good. Last week, every day we had at least 20 or more kids here endlessly! Daniel did a great job this year and he learned a lot as the choir president. We are proud of all of our kids.

The Wonderful World of Disney!

We just got back from the performing arts tour! We had such a great time. We went to the beach, we saw Mama Mia! at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood, we went to Disneyland for four days, we went to Sacrament Meeting, we went on a cruise around the bay in Newport Beach and we went to Easter Mass at St Pius V Catholic Church in Buena Park. Daniel performed in three shows, two at California Adventure and one at Disneyland. We went on Grizzly Rapids after dark and discovered that it is much more scary in the dark when you can't see the water coming! It was a blast. We had 150 teenagers and 30 adults with us on this trip. On our last day in Disneyland Rob and I had fun on rides with 14 of the kids. We went on California Screamin three times in 30 minutes! The kids performed their Hayden Mass at the Catholic church for Easter along with some of their other pieces. They sang three of their songs at the Sacrament Meeting in Fullerton. The cruise on Sunday afternoon is awesome, the boat is beautiful, lunch is served and it is a very relaxing time. The kids saw seals sunning themselves on some of the boats and thought that it was great! Mama Mia! was more raunchy than we thought it would be and the production was not one of the best I have seen, but the music was fun and they had a great curtain call where they re-did several of the songs and the kids danced in aisles - it was fun to watch them. (For any who don't know, Mama Mia! is full of songs by ABBA). We got to attend several workshops backstage at Disneyland - the kids got to do some great stuff. The shows Daniel was in were the Partner Dance (it was disco) with the Dance company, He sang and danced in the Productions Company show and then on the last day Vocal Ensemble did their song and dance show. They did such a great job and were on a total high for the rest of the day. They had some fun stuff to sing, especially the 50's medley they ended with. Stephanie and Ian came down as a surprise and it was fun for them to be there too! The best part was that Rob and I got to fly down and back and didn't have to do the two overnights on the bus! It was a lot of work (I was head chaperone in charge of a LOT of stuff) and we were very tired but it was so fun and I am glad we got to go. It is obviously our last time since Daniel is graduating. Also, the director, Mr. Bentley announced that he is not teaching music after this year. There were lots of tears, but he got a very clear answer that he should continue as the IB director and let someone else do music now. The teacher that has been splitting choral music with him since last year when he started IB will be taking over the entire choral music program. I always told him he had to wait to leave until Daniel was done . . . I am glad it worked out that way.

Performing Arts Tour!

Well, we are in the countdown to performing arts tour! We have only 28 days until we leave. This will be our last time to go since Daniel is graduating in June. Robert and I have the priviledge of flying down with the directors wife early this time and we don't get to ride the bus overnight (bummer?!) We always enjoy seeing our students perform at Disneyland and other locations. They get to attend some awesome workshops at Disney and some of the colleges and other places in the area. One of the highlights is the performance at Easter Mass in the St. Pius Catholic Church. Especially since we got all this lovely snow in the last two days, we are looking forward to some sun and fun. (yes, it is fun even though we are there with about 160 teenagers!) Daniel participated in the Solo and Ensemble festival last week at school. His solo and his ensemble group got high enough marks to be sining in the Region solo and ensemble festival tomorrow. He is pretty sick today, I hope he will be well enough to participate. Christopher and Brittany are doing well, we don't see much of them since they are both working full time and going to school as well. Nathan and Stephanie are enjoying their classes as well. Jessica and Cole and Kyle have their own blog if you want to keep up with them. Rob is still working hard on his music for the temple dedication. Jessica and Cole will get to attend the dedication on Saturday, March 21 in the temple. Rob will be in the temple on Sunday for the 11:30 session. The rest of us get to watch at the stake center on Sunday to hopefully see Rob on camera for at least a second or two. We are looking forward to this occasion. We enjoy reading everyone's blogs. I echo the question that Melinda wrote about why people do or don't comment. I usually get VERY few comments, I guess I don't have many readers!

Renaissance Feaste

This last week has been very busy! We have had the Renaissance Feaste at Hillcrest. Daniel, being in VE and the choir president was Lord of the Feaste. All of the VE kids and Chorale kids dress up and do a Renaissance show with music, Hamlet, dinner and much more. This was our last year to participate. I am in charge of costumes, making sure the kids all look great and also all of the food prep and serving. I had two women to handle the organizing of the food and all of the food prep. I had nine moms on stage with me serving about 250 people each night for three nights. It is a really fun event that is a fundraiser for the choir. Yesterday, on President's Day my girls and I went to the Shade clothing sale at Provo High. I don't think I have ever been anyplace that had that many people in that small a space at the same time! We got some good deals though. Then we got some stuff done for mom and dad's party tomorrow. The activities never end!

50 Questions

1. Were you named after anyone?
Not that I know of
2. When was the last time you cried?
I don't remember
3. Do you like your handwriting?
No, it is pretty awful\
4. What is your favorite lunchmeat?
Thin sliced turkey
5. Do you have kids?
Yes, two girls, three boys, a son-in-law, a daughter-in-law and a grandson
6. If you were another person, would you be friends with you?
Absolutely
7. Do you use sarcasm?
Of course
8. Do you still have your tonsils?
Yes
9. Would you bungee jump?
I don't think so
10. What is your favorite cereal?
Multigrain cheerios
11. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off?
Not always
12. THERE WAS NO NUMBER 12
13. What is your favorite ice cream?
rocky road
14. What is the first thing you notice about people?
Are they smiling
15. Red or Pink?
PINK
16. What is your least favorite thing about yourself?
my weight (but I am fixing it)
17. Who do you miss the most?
My husband when he travels
18. Do you want everyone to complete this?
They are fun to read if people like to do them, then do them
19. What color pants and shoes are you wearing?
Light brown workout pants and white Nikes with pink laces
20. THERE WAS NOT A # 20
21. What are you listening to right now?
The music on Andrea's blog
22. If you were a crayon, what color would you be?
Yellow
23. Favorite smells?
Rain and my husband
24. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone?
Daniel Kenner
25. Do you like the person who sent this to you?
YES
26. Favorite sport?
I don't like sports much
27. Hair color?
Light brownish/a little gray\
28. Eye color?
Blue
29. Do you wear contacts?
Sometimes
30. Favorite food?
chicken
31. Scary movies or happy endings?
Happy endings
32. Last movie you watched?
TAKEN
33. What color shirt are you wearing?
Tan with pink and brown
34. Summer or winter?
Summer
35. Hugs or kisses?
BOTH
36. Favorite dessert?
Creme Brulee
37. Favorite candy bar?
Hersheys Milk chocolate with almonds
38. Favorite Drink
diet coke
39. What book are you reading right now?
Ghost of a Chance
40. What is on your mouse pad?
No mouse pad
41. What did you watch on TV last night?
No TV last night, I was working at Renaissance Feaste at school
42. Favorite sounds
Kyle laughing
43. Rolling Stones or Beatles?
Beatles
44. What is the farthest you have been from home?
Tahiti
45. Do you have a special talent?
I don'tknow
46. THERE IS NO 46.
47. Whose answers are you looking forward to getting back?
Everyone
48. How did you meet your spouse?
He was my home teacher at BYU
49. Do you strive for happiness or the dark side?
HAPPINESS
50. One word to describe you
content

Daniel - our star

Daniel was in another show last week.  The Productions Company did a Disney Broadway Review.  Daniel played Terk in the Tarzan portion of the show and was also in all of the big numbers for Lion King, Mary Poppins, High School Musical, Newsies and Aida.  He sang the song "Son of Man" and did the "Trashing the Camp" from Tarzan.  It was a really fun show. He loves to sing and dance and had a lot of fun.  In one of the number from Aida, he was a henchman and they had knives in their dance number.  I did not know that most of the boys had real knives (Daniel's was rubber) and one of the other boys was off a count and stabbed Daniel in the hand on the last night.  He was dripping blood from his hand for the rest of the dance.  I am not sure that the teacher even knew that most of them brought real knives for the show.  He has a pretty deep cut on his hand but he will be OK.  It will be his memento from a great show.  It was really fun to watch.

Temple News

I read Andreas post and she said that they are going to the Draper Temple for the open house on Friday.  This temple is exciting for us, because we will be in the Draper Temple District.  We are taking our family to the open house on Saturday evening.  On Saturday morning we get to do a session at the Mt. Timp temple since our nephew Scott is going through before his mission.  Since we are in the district for the Draper temple we also get to do a bunch of things for the open house and the dedic ation.  Cole is doing transportation and security for this Saturday.  On January 31 Jessica and Cole and I get to usher for the open house.  On February 28 Jessica and I get to host the cookies for people after the tour.  On March 22 we get to attend the dedication.  Since only two of the dedication session are broadcast, the rest of us get to be IN the temple for our dedication session.  Robert is the luckiest of all because he was chosen for the choir at our dedication session on the 22nd and he will get to be IN THE CELESTIAL ROOM WITH THE PROPHET!  We sure are looking forward to all the festivities and the dedication.  We are also looking forward to attending the temple in Draper (even though there is NO cafeteria and NO place nearby to have dinner, except a Chevron station down the road.  I guess we could go for hot dogs!)  Our other news this week is that Robert turns 50!  I am having an open house for the ward members to come and see that he is still going strong at 50.  He says it is not necessary to have a party, but I think he is excited too!

Wow! What a great Holiday!

We had such a great holiday season together.  The kids were back from BYU for the whole time.  We had Grandma and Grandpa Kenner over for a lunch on Christmas Eve because they don't like to be out after dark.  That gave us the evening with our own family.  On Christmas Day we had fun watching Kyle with his presents and everyone was happy with what they got and happier with what they gave.  It was exciting for me to watch my married children surpise each other and to watch all of my children exchange names and plan carefully how to surprise the person they gave a gift to.  We spent time at Grandma and Grandpa Fernelius' house with all the family on Christmas Afternoon.   Rob's niece Courtney and her family were here from Pennsylvania for three weeks.  WE had the opportunity to have lunch with them one day.  On the 27th Rob's brother Hal flew in from Minnesota for a week.  On the 28th Courtney and Matt had arranged to have their son Riley ordained a deacon in Matt's parents ward and we were able to be there.  On Tuesday the 30th Rob and Hal and I spent most of the day at the Bountiful temple.  The guys did initiatory work, but I did a session because the women said it was too busy for me to do the initiatory.  Then we had lunch together and did another session.  It was awesome, especially since we were doing family  names mom had given me.  New Year' Eve we celebrated with our family Brittany's birthday.  On New Years Day we had 35 of Rob's family over, including two cousins and their families - that was 45 people with our family!  Saturday we attended Jackie and Travis' son Gavin's baptism.  Today we are all back to our regular activities.  Stephanie and Nathan are back in Provo at school, Daniel is back to school and eveyone else is back at work.  Kyle and I have our time to hang at home.  I have costumes to make by Saturday for Daniel's productions revue the end of the month.  It is all Disney if anyone is interest in coming, I will post dates later.  We are very thankful for the family we have and the good times we will all remember.