The Small Plates

So this past year Brydon has been trying hard to share our family news with everyone in what he calls "The Small Plates". Just little tidbits to share with our family and keep them posted on our life so they would feel connected in some way. Now we can share these on our blog instead of email. He wrote one today that we can post as our first Small Plates.

"Many argue; not many converse."- Louisa May Alcott
“When it comes to luck, you make your own.”- Bruce Springsteen
"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."- Eleanor Roosevelt
"A fanatic is one who can’t change his mind and won’t change the subject."- Sir Winston Churchill

I know that it has been a while since the last small plates but you would not believe how buried we have been. Caleb read a stop sign for me today. He said Dad that sign says stop. That is an S and that is a T and that is an O and a P and they say S-T-O-P. I know, I know the kid is way too smart. We have also started a fierce battle about the amount of mess that he can make in about 2 seconds. Yesterday he had all of his toys, clothes, mattress, bedding and some books in a massive pile in the middle of his floor. It was the most trashed room I have ever seen. (He did have help though) You could not make it in the door and the mess was about 3 feet deep. Jennifer is doing well. She continues to stir the pot, and has found several things that are helping our Liberians remember letters better. They will be reading before we know it now. I am about to start school again in a few weeks. I know everyone else already started but their vacation did not start in July. This term I will be taking Environmental and Occupational Hazard Assessment, Occupational Toxicology and time to do my thesis. I am still working out my exact research question as I am still immersed in the literature. I will be working with the National fire fighter near miss reporting system though. The door is wide open, nobody has looked into this type of firefighter system and safety yet. Dad is somewhere in the wilderness chasing the Elusive Stone Sheep. So hopefully he will reemerge from the backcountry in one piece on the 8th. The lucky guy won this hunt. Tabitha is still lost at sea, and Scott has not called off the search. Jamie is busy getting ready for number two. She is in the 7th inning stretch now. Mom continues being a near widow. She will be coming to visit us at the end of the month. I guess she thinks that she needs to see Caleb before he decides to go off to college soon. As for the Barton clan not much has changed. Jami now gets to try her hand at running her clothing store, and Allen got ran over by a car. Personally I think Jami should be having more fun and Allen seems to be on the mend though. We hope that this finds you well. Bruce McConkie said that for a true disciple of the Lord no relationship but that of Eternal marriage would truly be satisfying, and Joseph F. Smith said that he would rather go himself to the grave rather than associate with a woman out side the new and everlasting covenant. Of all the things the Lord cares about I am not to sure that he wavers much from the desire that we are doing our best to make and keep covenants.