New Temples

So I was looking at the Church website seeing if by chance they had finally anounced a temple for Brasilia when I saw that they had announced 2 new temples, but not in Brasil. You guys probably already knew, and have just failed to relay the news, but they announced a new temple for Gilbert, and one for the Gila Valley. I thought it was pretty cool.

PS this is Jason

Thank you Ashley!

So Ashley put together our amazing new layout! She did a great job huh!? I just wanted to tell her thanks for doing that for us.

What a day!

I'll warn you first off that this might be a lengthy post. Yesterday was quite the roller-coaster. We went in to the Doc to listen to the fetal heartbeat and all. We waited for 2 hours, but finally got in for our 2 minute visit. All is well. It is week 16 now and we scheduled an ultrasound for week 20, and it falls on dad's b-day. Anyway, I was heading up to the school at about 5:30 for a study group and called Sherrie. She was staying late at work because the Doc took so long at lunch. At about 6 she called me, but I didn't answer because I was in my study group, and deep down she knew that. She called again as soon as it stopped ringing, and I just figured that she wanted to leave a message and hung up on the first call out of habit, so again I didn't answer. Call 3 was right after call 2 quit ringing, so I decided I'd answer. She was crying and could hardly talk. She was on her way home from work and had to pull over because it felt like she had been hit in the kidney. So of course I go running from the library in a frenzy, run every red light on the way to her car, all while thoughts of kidney failure, dialysis and transplant, saving the baby and my wife. I was a wreck. I just pulled the truck over by the car, left keys in it and all, jumped in the car, and flew to the ER.

I pause now for a comment on the marvels of modern medicine and science. They can send ultra-high frequency sound waves through a probe, rub it on your belly, and the waves will reflect a picture of your fetus growing inside. Simply amazing and astounding, yet the hospital has not come up with a way to get the hurt patient into the ER and the car into the parking lot. NO VALET PARKING at a hospital? What if I had to drive myself to the ER? Is that not the biggest neglect or oversight on earth? 

Back to the story. They put her on an IV, just out of practice mainly, then drew some blood and had her give a urine sample. After about 30 minutes she was back to normal, yet they didn't know what the problem was. Of course they wanted to check the fetal heart beat, so a nurse walks in the room with what looks like a toy they picked up out of the little kid's waiting room and turns a speaker on to listen to the heartbeat. Apparently it was an ultra-sound machine, but it looked like that little microphone and speaker that Heidi and Hil had so many years ago. I'm pretty sure this thing was made by Toys R Us. So the genius nurse turns the speaker on and then probes, and COULDN"T FIND THE HEART-BEAT!! It took her about 2 minutes to find it, all while we are both listening. Wouldn't it be better to find the heart beat and then turn the speaker on? She finally found it and it was just fine. They couldn't tell anything with the urine or blood, so they sent us to real ultra-sound man to check the bladder and kidneys. The ultra-sound was still inconclusive, but while he was probing her belly I pointed out our little fetus. Ultra-sound man was surprised because you still can't tell Sherrie is prego. He was amazed that I could see the fetus, so I pointed out that although my formal training is in Equine Health, I can still see my own fetus. 

Another pause to recall my first comment on this site about a SURPRISE and how I thought I saw a penis. Well, it is still only week 16 and they usually wait until week 20. I told ultra-sound man (I kind of like saying ultra-sound man) that if it was a Hall then we could tell what it is at 15 weeks. So alas, he probed a little more, the fetus waved hello, and behold, this will come as no surprise, I am right!! IT'S A BOY!!!!! (And no, this is not some freak joke. I'm being serious.)

Well, back at the ranch, the Doc was still not definitive about Sherries pain, so they put in a catheter and got a fresh urine sample. I'm sure that was like Christmas morning, but they finally got blood in the urine and said it was a kidney stone all along. Poor girl! We were released at about 11:30 and she is staying home from work. Needles to say I will answer my phone on the first call now. She is feeling fine this morning and thinks that she already passed the stone. And that concludes my post.

Hilary

Anyone that loves our little sister needs to ask her about her date last night. She wants to share.

A worthy idea

I have been thinking lately about how easy it is for me to argue with everyone. I have many opinions, and if I do have an opinion then I am positive it is right. I think that it would be a good idea, not just because mom said it but because I have been thinking about it a lot lately, for me to not be demeaning or argue with every little thing. Heather mentions my comma use and I go over and over each and every future post just to make sure the grammar police doesn't pull me over. (I still maintain that comma use in a blog is somewhat subjective.) But enough already. I am going to take a vow of arguing silence. If a job doesn't pan out in CO then I'll probably apply to law school and argue for a living, but I am trying to just ignore the stupid little things that bug me. I know, how can anyone rationally believe that BYU doesn't "compel in all things?" much less not offer a comment about it. But I vow to try, unless of course, your idiocy is outright. It is kind of ironic that I am writing this "non-argument" post during a class where the lecturer is droning on and on about the "severe eye-sore" of the wind-mill generators that are all over the landscape in WY, MT, and some of UT. He even made points about how horrible the reflection is on power lines and how it would be best to paint the power poles and lines in order to decrease the reflection and contrast that they produce. In my heart I'd like nothing more than to beat the hell out of this guy, but alas, I must coral my anger and shut my mouth. AAHHH!!!!! 

Hello Hello!

Hey family! I haven't really blogged much these past few weeks, mostly because I have absolutely nothing to share. However, after reading the extremely pointless (although still enjoyable) posts of my siblings, I have decided to blog once more.
I really don't have much to say. School is ending, and I am both sad and extremely happy. I will be glad to see the end of this semester of classes, but I love my roommates and will be sad to leave them. But I am also very excited to come home, so needless to say there are a lot of emotions flowing in me right now.....not like there isn't always a lot of emotions flowing inside of me, but still.
I do have some news for you. Today in my ward I played a special number. I was part of a trio where I played the piano, a girl in my ward played the flute and another boy played the clarinet. It was an arrangement to "If You Could High To Colob". It was pretty, but honestly that has never been one of my favorites anyway, so it wasn't that great. I was very nervous because I am not the best pianist in the world, but I did pretty good until the very last page (of course) and I completely lost my spot and messed up. It was so embarrassing and I was shaking like a leaf and I was turning red and it was horrible. I am not being dramatic....it was bad. I felt like the biggest loser! But.....it's over now so oh well! I have learned something from this, and that is to never tell anyone that you can play the piano! It's not worth it!
So that is about all that is happened to me. I know, I have a boring life! But I would love to go to the Valley that weekend, I also want to go to El Paso Mom, so we need to chit chat. I love you all and hope you are doing well! Pray for me and my finals! I definitely need them!

Evils of Contention!

Dear children, if we are going to quote scriptures to each other, I would just ask for your attention to be turned to D&C 136:23, which reads "Cease to contend one with another..." I'm certainly grateful that you each have enough self-esteem that you are confident enough to be different and feel free to share your opinions. I really do enjoy reading your thoughts.

Heather and Heidi: I won't be coming to the valley this weekend, your father and the boys changed their packtrip to the 7th-10th of May. I was wondering if that would be a good time to come? Hil will be home and maybe she can come for a day or two. We could celebrate Heather's birthday a week early. Let me know what you think. All of you be good!!!!! love ya lots.

Suns game

So I don't know if any of you watched the game today. Almost everyone lives in Utah now so you are probably all Jazz fans now. If you are all not that stupid, I am sorry. But I just don't know what to expect, what with SOME of us ruining the good Hall name by being BYU fans. Anyway, on with my story...

If you didn't watch the game, you need to watch this series. This game went into double overtime...it was so good. I was at work the whole time, and every time that the shot was made to tie the game I was taking an order, but it was still exciting. So pay attention to the Suns. I think this family needs to remember that we all come from Arizona.

PS I am really just trying to kill time. I am procrastinating doing a little homework, and the game is still fresh on my mind. Besides, wasn't it Justin who said that's the point of a blog. to blog.

Hilary, Where are you?

Thank Goodness It's Friday!

Well family, I am not purchasing a house, or changing jobs, or moving anywhere. The most exciting thing I have done today is kick a kid out of class for swearing and calling other kids really mean names. However, this is the first time in my long career of teaching that another student has thanked me for kicking a kid out. There is at least some justice in the world. The good news is that tomorrow is a Spring Holiday. Normally, we would have Good Friday off of school, but we can't call it Good Friday because that's religious, and so we have Spring Holiday. And even though it's not Good Friday tomorrow, we have to keep up appearances so no one will suspect that we get a religious day off of school. So I will be celebrating Spring tomorrow. Lest you all think teachers are lazy suckers who get too many days off, let me assure you I will be grading essays tomorrow. But if you want Spring Holidays too, you should all consider the teaching profession. Happy Spring Holiday!

Who Is This?(Notice I only used 1 question mark!! But I don't have any control over the exclamation point- signed Jennifer)

Damn, I knew it. It seems my email has been hijacked by my wife (I know because at the bottom of each post it says Jennifer, even when I do it. I thought these computers, and Al Gore's almighty internet was supposed to be smarter than that. You can also which one of the posts are Jen's because she swears a lot. She started this post with a swear word, and I just happen to be the one who has to clean up the mess.) I don't have much more to add. I like checking the site and seeing what's happening, so keep it up. I don't like the fact that I've never been so self-concious of my grammar knowing that Heather is reading and probable keeping a separate file on her computer of how everyone's posts should have been if they were typed using correct grammar, and now that the punctuation police have decided to set up camp on the site I'm just a little bit on edge so cut me a little slack. That's all, and I'll let you all sit and wonder if each post was actually written by the person's name at the bottom.

Test

Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3?

Update

So I had my interview today. I got the externship, but alas, it was not quite as ideal as I thought it was. It is only one 12 hour shift every 2 weeks. But the experience in the hospital will still be great. However, I still have to make more money, so I have to talk to Applebees and I also spoke with the tutoring company I work for about getting more hours there. If I can tutor a couple hours a night Monday through Thursday, then I will be all set. They are trying to set something up for me, so we will see. Anyway, I am so glad we got to hear from Justin. It is always enlightening. Sounds like he is in academic decathlon, agricultural style. Fun stuff. Good luck!!!!!!!!!!!

No News

Hello everyone. I get on here a few times a day, mainly because my classes are boring, I am unemployed, and my wife is pregnant. Sounds like the recipe for success right? I am not worried about boring you with the mundane details of my daily life, because that is basically the point of a blog right? to blog? Anyway, Sherrie is doing well, but won't go and buy herself any new clothes because, well who knows why. Her current wardrobe still fits, but she is having a hard time thinking that she isn't getting fat. Trust me, you can't even tell. But, I am trying to be supportive and tell her how hot she is, all to no avail. I've tried reverse-psychology and told her she's about to blot out the sun, which would account for the temperature fluctuations in Cache Valley, but that approach doesn't work either. What to do? What to do?

On a totally unrelated note, reading everyone's posts, especially Hilary and Heidi's, reminds me of that Seinfeld episode where Elaine breaks up with the perfect guy because of his careless use and disregard for the exclamation point!! I know you two are excited to communicate to your loving family, but seriously, think about it the next time you hit shift + 1. 

Well, I am almost done. With class that is, not my pointless rambling. I have been searching for jobs in Colorado and posting my resume online wherever I can. If any of you have any hook-ups or know of anything in CO then please let me know. I am getting a complex about having my wife knocked up and me being unemployed. I get to visit the great city of Laramie, WY next weekend for an Academic Quadrathalon. I am on a team of 4 and we won the district competition and are now going to the regional in Laramie. If we win that then we get to go to Nationals at the Houston Stock Show next year. The school pays for it all, even if we graduate and are gone next year. Pretty cool eh? Well, that's all for now. Have a lovely day. 

Finally....

Hi fam. So I just wanted to let everyone know that I think I finally got an extern position. For those of you who have not heard me talking about this, it is pretty much just a paid internship which means that I would be able to quit Applebees and I have been trying to get one for awhile. I am setting up an interview for one (hopefully this week, but I have yet to hear back) and then hopefully I can start from there. I just wanna tell mom and dad thanks for praying that I would get one, cuz I asked for their help. Now if everyone could pray that I get it and that I am able to start soon, that would be great. And don't forget to pray for me to pass nursing school. In the meantime, I am prayin for all of you too!! And, if I get this job, I am so coming to visit El Paso cuz I SHOULD have every Saturday off. How great!!! Anyway, love you all! I will keep you posted as this develops further. I know you are all breathless to find out...

Hi everyone! Jason and I have been doing some house hunting YEAH!! it is very exciting. We are not looking into getting a house till our contract ends in the apartment which isn't till June but we are still very excited so we have been everywhere looking! We found this house that we LOVE. I don't know if we will get it but I wanted to share anyways :) It's actually pretty well priced which is great for us but there are a billion other houses that are cheaper. And there is a chance that we could decide to stay put, we have to see how things go here. Everything else is going great with us. We

had a wonderful time with Grandma and Grandpa :) It's always nice to spend time with family. well I better get going hope everyone is doing great. We love you all!

You are my Blessings!!

Dear Family,
Just want to say "hi". We had such a good time in El Paso. It was so good to see Jas, Jen and our boys. We had a great time. I'm with Hil - Conference was awesome. It always makes me kinda homesick for Wyoming and you guys. So many times I've wondered why I was so blessed to be born when, where and to my parents, and especailly being blessed my whole life with the gospel. I often think of all our ancestors who have gone before and the sacfiices they made for the gospel. Everyday I pray that I can be as committed as they were. I love the mountains and think of the hymn "Firm as the Mountains Around Us", and hope I will always be that "firm" in my convictions and testimony. I feel so blessed to have each of you in my life. I appreciate the way you are living your lives, nothing gives me more joy than to know you are trying to "walk in the way of the Lord." Keep up the good work and know dad and I pray for you each day. Love you all!!!

One last thing......

In institute our teacher showed us this clip on YouTube about growth in the church.....and I thought it was really cool to see. I added it to the side of the page, you just have to click on the top one to watch it. But make sure you turn off the music player first, or it kinda ruins the mood! :) It's just cool to see how much the church has grown! So anyway, just thought I would share. Hope you like it!

Hey Family!

So, I just wanted to make a quick post about Conference. I wasn't going to, because I don't want to be all preachy, but there were so many times in Conference that I thought of how grateful I was for my family. The Saturday morning was my favorite, even though I loved them all! But several times throughout the Saturday morning session I thought of how blessed I am to have such an amazing family. Moving out has made me so much more thankful for you all. I think we all know what I mean! Being homesick makes you realize so many things that you took for granted.
So I basically just wanted to let you all know how grateful I am for every single one of you! Being the youngest is the greatest. I have 6 amazing examples to look up to and to help guide me in the decisions that I make. It really makes my life like 10 times easier! I loved in Elder Ballards talk about being young mothers. Not that I can really relate to the mother part.......but I loved when he said he wished he would have enjoyed the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less. I know that that is something I need to start doing.
That is pretty much all I wanted to say! Thanks for being such a great family! I never really realized how awesome we are......but we really are an amazing family! Yay for us! :) I love you guys and missed being able to watch conference with everyone at Granny's. Conference always reminds me of her.......anyway, I hope everyone is doing well! Love ya lots!

Quick Update

Hey everyone I just wanted to update you all.. We had a doctors appt with the boys today. Tallin can hear yea!!! Both his hears looked great so I don't know what was up at school but I am happy that he has no problems. As far as Colt goes there is a still a huge hole in his eardrum but it's not infected anymore so that is good. His hearing in that ear is not great now but when or if the hole heals his hearing could be fine. So far it hasn't healed at all on its own. We have to go back in 3 months to get it checked again if it doesn't heal on its own then he will have to have surgery in a few years when he is about 4. Hopefully it will heal and we won't have to worry about it. They gave us these earplugs "ear putty" to put in his ear when we swim and stuff and I already know that is going to be a huge problem and not going to be fun but we will do it.
Other then that we are doing good as always. Hope everyone is doing good. Love you all! Have a good day and smile :)