Thank You Virginia!

We would like to introduce you to Virginia. She comes to us from Catamarca, Argentina. My good friend SueAnne's (whom I've worked with for years) oldest son Nate served his mission in Argentina. As many missionaries do, he fell in love with the country, the people, and one girl in particular. He took several trips back to Argentina and kept in contact via email, phone calls, etc, and built a relationship with this beautiful girl. It took quite a few months to get everything processed so that she could come to the United States.

She arrived here on March 26, 2010 and is here on a "fiance visa". Nate and Virginia will be getting married May 20, 2010, and plan to return to Argentina next year to be sealed in the temple so that Virginia's family can be a part of the wedding/ceremony.

Virginia is a very sweet, kind, loving individual who is very smart, focused and driven. Before coming to the States she was going to college. She is studying to be a doctor.
While growing up she often helped her mom who ran a very successful day care/preschool in Argentina. Moving to a new country is a big adjustment: a language barrier, can't work (no green card) and nothing to do during the day..... well? We have an idea!!

We have decided that Virginia will watch Kristian and Addison on the days that both Jon and I work. The kids and I went over there Sunday to meet her and to see where they would be spending a lot of their time. At first they were nervous, but the kids quickly started to warm up and when it was time to go, they didn't want to leave.

The kids spent yesterday and today with Virginia. They LOVE her!!! Day 1: I had to chase Addison down the sidewalk because she didn't want to go home.. Day 2: Kristian made the request that they get to stay there "All Day". He made it very clear that he didn't want to get shorted on his time with her.

Virginia can read/write English well, but speaking is more of a challenge. Virginia is learning quickly and will be taking English classes I believe. She will also be teaching the kids Spanish as well, which I am excited about. (I just hope I can keep up with what they'll be learning).

Virginia is adorable, and I honestly couldn't be more happy and excited that she will be taking care of the kids. Because I have had, and continue to have such a mix of emotions with all the changes in regards to work, day care, etc. I can't explain what it means to know that my kids are in good hands. My heart is full of gratitude. Its strange that I feel so strongly about a person I met only a few days ago. I honestly believe that she came into our lives at the right time and is exactly what the kids need. I am so excited to watch them learn from her, as I feel she has so much to offer!!

Virginia, all I can say is Thank You!! SueAnne, thank you for opening your home to my kids. I appreciate you, and your family, and your willingness to welcome my kids into your home.

Land Before Time

Mom going back to work full time has been an adjustment for us all, and we are still learning how to adjust to the change. My goal is to make Saturday's a fun and special day for the kids. So this last Saturday we decided to take the kids to Thanksgiving Point to the Dinosaur Museum!! Wouldn't you know it...I forgot to take my camera!! I'm very frustrated with myself, but luckily I had my camera phone, so I got pictures but they are not the best quality so I apologize.

Forgive me as I talk in "Land Before Time":
This would be "Little Foot" or a "Long Neck"

"I'm a long neck too! See? .... Alright, I'm not a long neck, I'm a big-mouth! But I am all alone I am." -Ducky

We couldn't believe how big these animals were!! It was amazing to see their size... Addie was in awe too!!

Let's take a ride on the dinosaur!!



Dad, Addie and Kristian looking at "Cera".. or the triceratop! I thought this was a cute picture!!

"Sharp Tooth!" This is the 'favorite'! The T-REX!! Again, its amazing to really see just how large these animals were. What a fun experience.

They had several activities that the kids could do throughout the exhibit. They had several computer stations where the kids could click and learn more about the dinosaurs, and then they had these and other fun interactive activities:
Here they were able to pull up their sleeves and play in the sand and water. They had toy trees, toy dinosaurs, and the kids just played in the dirt and had so much fun!!

I think this was one of the most favorite parts of the day... Digging For Fossils! The kids took off their shoes and socks and got to work. They had little brushes and they were able to dig in and uncover and discover dinosaur bones!!!

Kristian got excited every time he found some new bones, and Addie? well... Addie had fun covering them back up. It was funny to watch because just as Kristian would uncover a bone, here came Addie with a handful of sand to dump over it and cover it back up. The kids had SO much fun!!

It was a fun day spent together as a family! It was something we had meant to do for a long time and I'm so glad we finally went and did it! We all had so much fun playing and learning about the dinosaurs!!

Back To Work

Family and Friends:
I wanted to let you all know that I have decided to go back to work full time. It was a decision that took a lot of thought and prayers but I feel this is the best thing for me and my family.

I have been offered a job working at the new Intermountain Medical Center (IMC) in Murray, working in an Out Patient Care Clinic. Our office is a liver and kidney transplant unit. I have been hired as a "clinical assistant" and so far I understand my job as the following:

There are 7-8 doctors who have their own clinics throughout the valley, who work out of this clinic. When patients become too sick to see their regular doctors, they come to us. We evaluate them and make sure they are ready to under go a transplant. My job, as I understand it thus far, is to work with the Registered Nurses to make sure and coordinate all the tests and procedures the patient will need to ensure they are healthy enough to withstand the transplant. We take care of the patients prior to and after their transplant surgeries.

I'm very excited for this opportunity and feel like this job happened and the right time and is the right place for me. I had actually interviewed with Wells Fargo to be a personal banker, and was actually offered the job too, but this transplant job, for me, is definitely the better fit! I'm excited to learn more about what my job involves and what I'll be doing. I start my new job Monday!!! March 8th!!

I have had concerns about leaving my kids in the care of someone else, and often wondered if I'm making the right choice. There is a lot more behind this decision than many of you will ever fully understand. I see a lot of good coming from this change and knowing that I have strong kids who can withstand the changes helps me push forward. We have found a fabulous young girl to watch our kids. My co-worker and dear friend SueAnne, whom I've worked with for years, can't say enough. I'll have to give you more information on the day care situation another time. She will be moving here from Argentina the end of March. I am excited and as soon as we meet her I'll post pictures and then explain how this decision was made. :)

Thanks to all of you for your love and support in this decision to go back to work. Thanks to all of you who have helped with the kids until my permanent day care goes into affect. I most importantly want to thank my husband. Without your love and encouragement I would never have found the courage to withstand all the interviews and rejections and more importantly the acceptance of this job. You have helped me find my confidence in taking on this new adventure. I don't think I could be making this change without your love and support. Thank you Jon. I love you!!

Amanda

Rock 'N Roll!!

The kids worked hard to help me clean the house today. So we decided to have a little "Rock Party" before Dad went to work. So we got out Rock Band! Kristian and Addie were all to eager to play their tunes on the guitars!

Addie took her turn on the drums and was awesome!! She found herself a little chair to use so she could play.

Kristian is a hard core rocker!! He knows how to rock out and put on the moves.

The kids had fun! It was a fun way to spend some time with Dad before he went to work tonight! I forget that we have Rock Band and its so much fun, even for the kids. We'll definitely have to try and do more of that. We'll have to invite you all over to our house for our next Rock Band Party!!