FAMILY LETTER 11.12.17

Dear Loved Ones,                                                                                                    

This has been a great week!  We started out Monday with a Family Night about gratitude, wherein we rang in the holiday season by putting up our Thanksgiving Tree and adding some thankful leaves. After FHE, Rich took Niles and James to see the Thor movie (the girls had already seen it and the boys were jealous). I stayed home with Ammon and made tissue paper poof balls for Addie’s upcoming birthday party, while watching the Ken Burns documentary on New York City (it is fascinating to me! What a crazy history!).

 On Tuesday we had a little morning playdate with Lincoln and Harrison Baker and Callen Kling. Ammon loves having other kids around and they did everything—played toys, built mega blocks, play dough/ kitchen, and jumping off the stairs. It was tons of fun, and Ammy was worn out when the boys went home at lunch time. He told me, “Mom, I’m a wibit [little bit] tired; I need to lay on your bed and watch Daniel Tiger.” So we did! Later I spent 2 hours at the middle school Parent-Teacher conferences (and got to talk to 2 out of the 12 teachers I needed to meet—long lines!), then came home and watched “The Glass Castle,” which just came out on DVD/streaming. I loved the book, and of course the movie couldn’t capture the whole story, but it was pretty well done.

Wednesday morning we had a visit from Ammon’s pre-school teacher. We did some paper work and visited and made some plans for Ammon. He should be able to start school right after Thanksgiving. In the meantime, we are cracking down on potty training because he should have it down for school! That afternoon, James had a friend (Kinnick) over and we made oven fries to go with burgers for dinner. The boys loved their dinner and went with Rich to scouts at 6:45. I got Ammon and Niles ready for bed and made a big fire. They watched “Polar Express” while I wrote the Christmas Sacrament Meeting program. I had been getting promptings all week for it, so I figured I’d better sit down and put it together. I’m so excited for Christmas music!  The choir is going to attempt a women’s 3-part “Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring” and I just love that song!

Thursday we finished up PT conferences, then had the Dixon Family over for tacos before they move away. They have felt like family since day one and Addie and I have loved being Cali’s visiting teacher and watching her become a mom. All the kids will miss playing with little Laney Mae, who is already going on 9 months old! I’m grateful for social media in situations like this—it makes good-byes a lot easier because I know we will still get to watch Laney grow up and we will all keep in touch.

Friday morning, Addie and Heidi were both under the weather, so they slept in while I went to Costco and Target for supplies for upcoming festivities, the most urgent being a case of IBC root beer for the Winter Formal-anti-formal pizza dinner Saturday night. I came home and finished the laundry, cleaned the kitchen and basement, and took a rest to watch some more New York documentary. I cut paper snowflakes to relax—it’s so zen! We had chicken pot pies for dinner, and then we divided for movie night. The boys watched an animated movie with Rich on our bed while I watched “Dead Poet’s Society” downstairs by the fire with the girls. We loved it, of course, though Heidi was full-on ugly crying at the end. She’s scarred for life—but aren’t we all? Oh, captain, my captain! I sound my barbaric YAWP over the rooftops and write beat poetry with Nuanda and we all gang up on Neil’s dad and Headmaster Nolan #justiceforKeating!

Saturday was unexpectedly consumed with Winter Formal preparations. Addie got up and took a lavender soak in my tub and got all fresh and relaxed for her first legal date (even though she isn’t 16 for 9 more days!). Heidi had a birthday party all day and night with her best pal, Sophia. The boys went to Bozeman with daddy to get stuff at Home Depot and Walmart. So I did Addie’s hair and nails, then we went to lunch at Gil’s and to the store. We came home and tried a few different up-do’s before settling on a half-up do with her hair pinned into a bow. Before we knew it, Spencer was on his way to meet up with Addie. Rich and the boys got home just before Spencer and his family arrived. We did the whole corsage thing, then met up with Joneses for photos at 4:30. At five, all the seminary kids met up at the Denniston’s house for a make-your-own-pizza dinner. I had planned on just dropping off Addie and Spencer, but it became obvious that Vicki couldn’t transport all the kids in one car, so I stuck around to drive them to the bowling alley at 6:30. Addie and Spencer played a few games, then I took them to the high school for the Grand March and the start of the dance. As soon as the dance began, they wanted to return to bowl with their friends, so I drove them back to the bowling alley. I snuck home and grabbed something to eat and visit with Rich, then back to drive the kids from bowling back to Denniston’s for a PJ movie party til midnight. They brought Addie home a little before 1am and she was on cloud nine. I love that those kids have so much fun together! They are hilarious, and I think/hope Spencer had a great time as well.

Today at church, Heidi and Addie sang “How Great Thou Art” with Clara and Jeanette. They sounded so lovely together—sister voices are always so harmonious and gorgeous. Heidi continues to conquer her stage fright, thank heaven—she really does have the prettiest alto voice and great pitch. I’m so happy to see them sing together.  They were asked to sing at the Ward Christmas party, so we practiced, “Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella” tonight. SO PRETTY! I love Christmas music!!! I also got to sub as Primary Chorister today, which is always the best. The kids are singing “Thanks to Our Father” in Sacrament Meeting next week –it will be so cute for TG. Rich has gotten 2 new deacons this month (James’ friends William and Kinnick) –it’s nice to have fresh attitudes in scouts and Sunday meetings.

All is well with us. We are excited for Addie’s birthday party this next weekend, and then THANKSGIVING the next week. Sara’s family, Laura’s family, Mom & Dad Melin, and possibly Dad Post will be joining us for dinner, and we get to keep Sara’s kids over the weekend for some cousin bonding time (they have lived across the country the past 14 years, so we need to make up for lost time). We are all very excited about this! We wish you all a happy, healthy week! Keep in touch!

Love, Jamie and Rich and Family

Heidi (right) at her choir concert in Monday's Livingston Enterprise newspaper

It's winter out there!

Thankful Tree

13 years of thankful leaves

Walkin' with my buddy 11/9

11/8/1889 is MONTANA'S BIRTHDAY

Laney and Ammon 11/9

Jaimen Dixon playing with Niles 11/9

Winter Formal 11/11- Addie and Spencer

Clara and Addie-besties 11/11

Jeanette, Addie, Clara

Checking out Robyn's photos

Pizza at Denniston's
(Wesley, Clara, Lincoln, Orrin, Oliver, Spencer, Addie, and Jeanette)

Root Beer toast

Yummy Pizza

Pool Sharks

The Grand March at PHS

Spencer and Addie "On the Boardwalk"

Add caption

Back at the bowling alley
(Oliver sitting, Orrin, Spencer, Addie, Clara, Mikayla, Jeanette, Lincoln)

Jeanettr and Mikayla

Spencer & Addie ready to bowl

Addie filming Spencer

FAMILY LETTER 10.29.17

Dear Loved Ones,                                         

My hands smell of pumpkin as I type since I gutted all the pumpkins during naptime today. I know it’s a little control-freakish, but I like to open the pumpkins and clean them out and brine the seeds and clean up before the kids carve their jack-o-lanterns. This has two main benefits for me: less mess and ALL the seeds—I love to eat them! Tonight I am making cinnamon ginger and Cajun spice and toasting them sooooo well. They are gonna be delicious! The fire is roaring; it has been the best kind of Sunday: RAINY and cold. A storm blew in during church and it has been a quiet cozy afternoon. Uncle Mark (Rich’s little bro) is visiting from Colorado and he came over after church for chicken noodle soup and rolls: perfect rainy Sunday lupper. Grandpa and Grandma Melin had a speaking assignment in Cody, so we got to have Mark with us for a while. This week has been very Halloween-ish.

Last Monday (10/23), Ammon had a dental appointment in Bozeman so we did that and a little shopping and brought home Chicken artichoke pizzas for dinner. We had a nice little family night and homework before bed.  Tuesday James was home sick, so I hunkered down and worked on laundry and we watched the old “Becket” with Peter O’Toole and Richard Burton. I remarked on Facebook that they reminded me of Brad Pitt and Russel Crow together, appearance and mannerisms-wise. There were lots of great little sermons in that movie. We watched “The Inn of the Sixth Happiness” a few weeks ago and thought the same thing. Some gospel truths were just a given back in the day, even in the movies. Tuesday night the girls and I went to a Relief Society meeting to make a Halloween craft. We got the time wrong so we were late and didn’t finish, but we have 3 cute cheesecloth ghosts which I will someday trim with Halloween banners (I don’t where all my crafting time went, but it’s GONE).

Wednesday was Autn Jill’s and Uncle Jex’s birthday, but I don’t think Ammon knew that when he had a fit and begged for birthday pancakes (which are just pancakes with sprinkles mixed in and a candle on top). We did some errands and sewed up Niles’ leggings for his Halloween costume. IN the evening, Uncle Mike and Uncle Mark came over for bulgogi bibimbap bowls for dinner, and then Rich and the big kids ran to YM/YW (getting ready for the Trunk or Treat). Niles’ friend Winston came over cuz his parents had meetings, and they and Ammon watched Russian dashcam videos with their Uncles for a while. I finished sewing Halloween costumes upstairs while listening to St. Olaf’s choir online (beautiful!). When Wintston went home, we put the boys to bed.  Thursday was Uncle Will’s birthday and we just did chores and errands, nothing memorable. The whole family was home for the evening and THAT was unusual and pleasant. 

Friday was all about the Trunk or Treat. After we took Heidi to school, Ammon and I went and got fresh ingredients to make cider and chili for the Trunk or Treat.  They both simmered all day long. We cleaned up and took a rest to be ready for the fun. After school, the kids began to hurry and get ready in their costumes. Addie made up a last-minute masquerade-ball type costume, James was a Hunter, and the little boys were luchadors—Nacho Libre and El Scorcho. Heidi was a creepy clown, Pennywise from “It.” But she took her costume to school and wore it to the middle-school dance/party after school. She won the costume contest with her friend Sophie. They met us at the Trunk or Treat. My chili did not turn out awesome, but there were like 10 fantastic chilis to try, as well as homemade root beer and cider. Grandpa and Grandma Melin got to come to the party with Uncle Mike and Uncle Mark, too. The youth did the Thriller dance for the ward, followed by carnival games and trunk or treating. Bonnie Speas won the chili cook off and the Carters and Bakers shared the prize for best trunk decorations (a fall scene and a “Trolls” movie theme). Niles won the boys’ costume contest as Nacho Libre. It’s a small thing, but I am glad two of our costumes won because that was an awful lot of sewing for me! After the party, Addie’s friends came over and all changed into HER pj’s and watched “Pride & Prejudice and Zombies”—great fun!).

Saturday (Uncle Jess’ and Uncle Michael’s birthday), everyone was a little under the weather. The boys soldiered on and went shooting and to Chico Hot Springs with Uncle Mark (except sickie Ammon stayed with me), the girls and I stayed in our jammies and watched Stranger Things 2.  In the afternoon we got ourselves together and went to Bozeman. We picked up the invitations to Addie’s birthday party and went to Macy’s to find a tie to match her dress for Winter Formal (she is going with her friend Spencer—they had a Spiderman themed promposal). Heidi bought a Stranger Things T-shirt and Ammon got a strawberry Julius and everyone was happy, but tired. We headed home at 5 with a few Little Caesar’s pizzas because James had friends coming over for pizza and games at 6:30pm. It was a nice quiet evening…until the boys fell asleep and coughed their heads off. Heidi was also feverish, so she and the boys just piled into our bed this morning while we headed to church early for meetings and Sacrament meeting. I left Addie and Rich at church and came home to be with the kids after sacmtg. We had high council speakers this week (Sister Richards and Brother Carter) and their messages about sharing the gospel were fantastic. Our little choir that could sang “Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee” at half time and it turned out beautifully…I never get tired of those little musical miracles!

And so here we are about to start another week and ring in November! I’m not gonna lie, I’m kinda excited there in a little snow in the forecast. Now that most of the leaves are gone, I need some of that sparkly beauty! We are so super excited for Thanksgiving and Addie’s Sweet Sixteen and all the magic of the season…bring it on!

We hope you all have a grrrrreat week!  All our love and prayers!

Love,  Jamie and Richard and Family

10/25 Ammy's Birthday Pancakes

Addie's Formal "Promposal"

Ammon counting mom's pills

Niles & Ammon watching Oso

Three snuggle bugs

10/27 El Scorcho and Nacho Libre

10/27- Bros: Mark, Mike, and Rich Melin

10/27- Trunk or Treat

James the Hunter, Curtis, Gavin, Porter, and William (William is Rich's newest Deacon)

Heidi with Laney

Addie and Jeanette after the party

The pajama party after Trunk or Treat

10/28- Shooting with Uncle Mark

James and Uncle Mark

Niles looks pro!

James

James, Uncle Mark, and Niles taking the "Nestea Plunge" at Chico Hot Springs

Heidi and Sophie at Trunk or Treat

FAMILY LETTER 10.22.17

Dear Loved Ones,

Greetings on the last day of Fall Break weekend! We have truly lived it up this week.

Monday was a calm quiet day at home doing chores ending with dinner and family night. Tuesday Ammon had some friends over (the Baker boys) and we made our first pumpkin dip of the season and ate it with perfect gala apples. After the play date we made up and menu and went to Costco for groceries and came home and prepped them. Tuesday night Heidi went out to Gil’s to catch up on her English (I ‘homeschool’ her for ELA) and Personal Progress. It was jazz night at the Murray Bar and we heard lots of great music and saw lots of the high school jazz band people performing. It was a fun date. Wednesday I finished up laundry and packed up for a little over-night girls’ trip to Billings.

When the girls got home from school, we headed out to see Flogging Molly at the Pub Station. It was a small venue (maybe 400-450 people?) but pretty fun. We went in and bought our merch first thing while one of the openers was playing (Jon Snodgrass). We all got Tshirts and headed over to the ballroom to claim our patch of floor before it got too crazy. We kinda made friends with the people around us so when I had to make my way back to the restrooms; our cool friends protected Addie and Heidi from the drunk weirdos around us. The next opening band, Radkey, was so fun. Three black brothers from the Kansas City area. They play funk-punk reminiscent of Fishbone and the Misfits (imho) and I had a very time-warpy experience watching them. It felt very much like a 1986 Fishbone show. I was glad my girls liked them, too. This was their first experience with a mosh pit, which always annoys me. It broke out right next to us, and we got soaked with a few pints of beer within a few minutes (who brings a full open glass onto the the middle of a dance floor like that? Many people had one in each hand--so dumb). But our cool friends totally blocked anybody from slamming us and also from weaseling in front of us when Flogging Molly came on. We were about 20 feet from the stage and it was so fun to see the band so close up, although the acoustics were gnarly (so loud you couldn’t make out vocals). After the second song Heidi was feeling way claustrophobic, so we left Addie with our bouncer friends and headed toward the back of the ballroom to get some fresh air. We found a tiny booth by the bar where we could catch our breath. We hung out there for 4 or 5 songs and this acquaintance from Livingston found us and came and sat down by us. She was three sheets to the wind and so funny. When she walked away, Heidi said, “Drunk people are hilarious.” Yep. We returned to the crowd for “Rebels of the Sacred Heart” and “The Devil’s Dance Floor” and “Tobacco Island.” Dave dedicated “If I Ever Leave This World Alive” to the crowd, and then Heidi wanted to go to the car. I walked her there and locked her in and went back to meet Addie at the door. She was exuberant. It was great! To top off the night for the complete punk rock show experience, we went to Denny’s for midnight breakfast. It was fancier than I remember, and twice the price (remember Grand Slams were $3 for, like, 15 years?) but it was super fun. We spent the night and Grandpa and Grandma’s apartment by the temple.

We got up and headed to the temple in the morning (okay, mid-morning-- we got there at 10:30, but the grandparents had been there since 6). We all got changed and grandpa asked us to meet him in the chapel. He had the girls read Doctrine and Covenants section two, but first he read the heading with them and talked to them about Joseph Smith for a minute, and bore witness to them that Heavenly Father trusts teenagers and teenagers can do great things. Then he discussed verse 2 with them and asked, “Who are the fathers and mothers? And who are the children he is talking about?” They established that our ancestors are the fathers and mothers and we are the children. And by coming to the temple we are showing that our hearts have turned to them, and by performing the ordinances, we are being promise keepers. Heavenly Father promised them there would be a way home to him and that by us all the kindreds of the earth would be blessed. He had tears in his eyes as he told them, “Thank you for being promise keepers today.” We got hugs from him and grandma and went to do baptisms. It was so lovely and such a wonderful way to start the day and wash away the previous night (as fun as it was). I loved that both girls told me at some point during the concert, “I’m so glad we get to go to the temple tomorrow!” We had fun, but we know where we belong. I also love that their grandparents take time to make the temple so special for them. I would have loved to spend more time with my grandparents in the temple, and to be able to do baptisms with my cousins the way my kids get to. It is a wonderful time to be alive and doing Our Savior’s work! The girls and I had lunch at HuHot Mongolian Grill after temple, then did a little shopping, and headed home at 3pm (after filling our mugs with MINT LIMEADE ;)). It was nice to come home to enthusiastic boys. James went to a birthday party and we had a quiet night at home.

Friday we had to catch up on some chores and we babysat Laney, maybe for the last time *sad face* She had such a fun time with the little boys home this time. The girls did stuff with friends and I took the kids to the park for just a little while--the wind was 50mph with many 70mph gusts--not fun to play outside! At 3, Rich and James took off for a backpacking trip and after dinner, Heidi babysat while I took Addie and friends to the All-State Music Concert at MSU in Bozeman--it was BEAUTIFUL! Just as we were leaving town, the power went out at home. It stayed off for 3 hours and Heidi got scared, so I texted the Dixons and they went over and got our kids til the power came back on about an hour later, bless their hearts!

Saturday I committed myself to finishing Halloween costumes. I like the idea of sewing, but I am easily frustrated to I have to really psych myself up to do these things. I made Heidi a Pennywise clown costume out of an old dress shirt and a top sheet. Rich and the boys worked on the garage and got their backpacking stuff cleaned up. In the evening, Rich took the 3 big kids to a youth Corn Maze activity in Amsterdam and I snuggled the littles and finished sewing.

Today was Cassidy Larson’s mission farewell talk. She is headed to the Utah Orem mission, MTC on November 1st. We had choir practice before sacrament meeting, and I sang a solo at half time. It has been a good Sunday. Now we are snuggled by the fire watching some Curious George and finishing up some missionary letters/treats. Life is good. Our 3rd hour lesson was on Elder Christofferson’s April talk, “A Voice of Warning.” It made me think of ways to be a better watchman, and live the gospel more fully so that our lives--everything we do--testifies of Christ and His restored gospel and draws others to Him. It’s big work. The best work.

We love you all and wish you a wonderful week of Halloween fun. Happy Birthday to, like, 20 of our family members this week!

Love,

Jamie and Rich and Family

30 Days til Sweet Sixteen!

Luchadors!

10.17 Jazz Night downtown with Heidi

10.18 Ready to rock at Floggin Molly

Lovin' it!

Beer-soaked concert T

Almost all 7 band Members

Dave rockin' out and Bridgit fiddlin'

New Shirts ready to rock

10.18 Seesters

Midnight at Denny's, of course

Premiun Quality Punk Rock

10.19- Good Morning Billings Temple!

We love to see the temple

10.19 Driving Home

10.19 Another Awesome Girls' Weekend

The drive home from Billings was gorgeous

Jeanette is the best babysitter!

10.20 All-State Choir Concert- pointing to Clara Jones

Mitch and Addie cheering on their All-State buds

Addie, Mitch, Eden, Lope, Robyn, & The Repschers
watching All-State 10.20

10.20-10.21- Daddy and James got
snowed on on their backpacking trip!

James cozy by the fire Friday night 

James cozy by the fire Saturday Morning

A meme I made for the girls, lol!

Heidi's Pennywise costume, sewed 10.21