Watch Out!

The big day finally came.  I took Brett out to Hurricane yesterday so he could take his test to get his learner's permit.  It should be no surprise that he passed on his first try!

Last night I took him out driving.  He did so well.  I've heard horror stories about teaching kids to drive but there were no problems teaching Brett.  He did fabulous!

It was getting late and I needed to get home but he didn't want to go home.  He told me to call Brian.  So Brian came and we traded places and Brett drove with Brian until dark.

After school today he wanted to go driving but the car wasn't here.  I told him the Suburban was a beast of a thing to drive but he said he could handle it and went and started it up.  I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that he handled it just fine.

So already he has 2+ hours of driving done towards the required 40 hours to get his license.  It could only be better if gas prices weren't so high!

Way to Go Brett!

Just have to share how proud I am of Brett!  Yesterday he took the Accuplacer test at Dixie State College.  It was required in order for him to have his Physics class count for college credit.  He scored 116 out of 120.  Just about as good as he could have done.  Seriously it is amazing what he has accomplished in the last 2 years.

BTW- This should have been posted weeks ago when he went to EFY.  Here is he with 3 of his roommates at EFY at SUU at the beginning of August.

First Time Blessing the Sacrament

Brett blessed the Sacrament for the first time on Sunday.  I was praying the whole time he would get through it without any mistakes. It was so fun to see his smile and relief when he got through the prayer perfectly.  It's hard to believe he's gotten so old.

Happy 16th Birthday Brett!

Where does the time go? Brett turned 16!

I took Brett and 3 of his friends out to lunch at Brick Oven for his birthday.

We then went to Jumpin Jacks.  You're never too old to have fun.

Happy Birthday Brett!  You are a great kid and we love you.

100 Year Celebration

Last month there was a 100 Year Scouting celebration out at the fairgrounds. The scouts spent the day having fun. I don't know any more details cause I wasn't there but obviously there was a rock climbing wall.

Teachers' Campout

A few photos from Brett's campout with the Teachers Quorum.

Brett's Hike

A clip from the hike Brian went on with Brett & the scouts

Catching Fish

A short video of the boys catching fish while hiking.

EFY

Saturday morning I picked Brett up from EFY. He had an awesome time! I hope we can send him every year. I also wish we had sent him a camera so we could have had some more pictures. I snapped just this one of him & his counselor before he jumped in the car.

A Lasting Impression!

Tuesday night we were invited to an awards assembly for the Middle School. We were told Brett was getting an award so off we went. At first I thought he was just getting an award for Honor Roll but then found it they were only giving awards for High Honor Roll - 3.75 or above all 4 quarters and Brett had a 3.6 one quarter so that couldn't be it. Then I figured it must be an award for Math. Brett has worked his butt of in math this year and his teacher has told me she can't believe what he has accomplished. But the math awards came and went with disappointment at his not having received an award. Looking over the remaining awards I started to get a little nervous.
Leadership award, spirit award, service award - Brett wouldn't likely be receiving any of those awards. That left only the Heart of Thunder Award or the Principal's Award left. That momma bear instinct started to emerge -- Did they screw up and invite us to an awards night and not have an award for our son?



Thankfully that was not the case!


Brett received the Heart of Thunder Award in recognition of dedication and actions that will leave a lasting impression on the DHMS community! Wow Brett way to go!

It is absolutely amazing what Brett has accomplished this year. At the beginning of the year after scoring poorly on his first Algebra tests he was put in an Algebra A class which went at a slower pace. He didn't like it because it meant he would spend 2 full years in Algebra. He wanted to go back to his class with Mrs. Anderson. In order to do so I told him he'd better start studying. And start studying he did. On his own he made it through the entire Algebra book in just over a months time. I approached the counselor about having him put back in regular Algebra but told her I wanted him tested before he was allowed to move back up. He was tested on 2 of the chapters he had taught himself and to the astonishment of the school counselor & teacher he passed with flying colors. But it didn't stop there. With his birthday money and the money he got from selling all his video games he purchased Geometry, Algebra 2, Trigonometry & Pre-Calculus textbooks and has worked his way through those books over the last 5 months. Currently he is teaching himself Calculus.

There was a point that long ago where I feared he may not be able to graduate for high school due to the requirement to pass the UBSCT math test. There are people to whom school just comes easy. No studying required for good grades. This is not the case for Brett. He has to work very hard to get good grades. This past semester he earned a 3.83 grade point average!What an amazing turn around Brett has done. His teachers have told me what a wonderful student he is.

We are so proud of him! Congratulations Brett - You most definitely deserve The Heart of Thunder Award.

Ninjas

I was just heading to bed when I heard some odd noises coming from outside. "HI-YA" was the most common thing I was hearing. I thought the boys had gone up to the high school but nope they were in our front yard playing Ninja. A game I couldn't quite figure out. I asked them if they made it up but no it was something they had learned in PE.

What have I done....

In the last General Conference President Monson gave a talk called What Have I Done For Someone Today? We put a sign on the wall by our kitchen table that asked that question.

This morning at breakfast I looked up to see that our sign had changed:

I burst out laughing as did the rest of the family when I showed them the new sign.
Brett is so funny. He usually doesn't have much to say but he has a great sense of humor and often says and does things that make us laugh.
Now on to Kylie. Lately we've been playing a lot of CandyLand. Since it is Kylie's game we play by her rules. First rule - She get the deck of cards ready and she goes first. Miraculously the first card she draws is always the "Lilypop" (aka Lollipop). We then take turns as normal but if she draws any other picture card such as the gingerbread man which would make her go backwards she declares that she's skipping her turn. And since it's her game it's ok for her to skip her turn. Thus Kylie always wins and usually wins quite quickly.

Can I just tell you that life has been wonderful this week. I think I figured out the reason why: We have been going to bed early every night and thus getting enough sleep. Why the need for change? Brett had not been getting enough sleep lately. He had been staying up late to study and then going to bed way too late and then had to get up early for seminary. He is an incredibly light sleep and wakes up at every little noise. The consequence of this was after weeks of not enough sleep he was a walking zombie. I honestly thought he had mono or something physical causing his extreme fatigue. A trip to the doctor this week and some lab work showed nothing so we were told to give him Benadryl at night to knock him out. We started doing bedtime at 8:00 so everyone was downstairs and settled with lights out by 9:00 thus giving Brett the chance to get enough sleep. What a difference not only in the kids but in me as well. I've been getting 8 hours of sleep each night and the younger kids have actually been waking up on their own fully rested. Yes I know bedtimes are important but I guess I never realized just how important and what a difference it makes when EVERYONE gets enough sleep. Our home is a happier more pleasant place this week with kids that are less ornery and it's actually cleaner because I have the energy to clean and be a good mom.
Last night I guess Bradley said it best. It was his turn for a date this week and I took him to Wal-mart. On the way home he said - I'm glad it was my turn for a date today because you are so happy today. It's amazing what a difference sleep makes!

Birthday Fun!

We had 5 of Brett's friends over on his birthday. We had cake and ice cream and then I took them and dropped them off at the movies.

Later we went to Wendy's as a family for dinner.

Happy Birthday Brett! We love you and am so grateful to have you as our son.

Happy, Happy Birthday Brett!

Hard to believe but Brett is 15 today! Where did the time go? He requested Pancake Puff for breakfast and then we let him open a couple presents we had bought him. Brian just took him to Radio Shack to buy a remote control car. He has friends coming over to go to a movie this afternoon. He requested In N Out for lunch and Wendy's for dinner. Should be a fun day!

Pioneer Trek

Our stake is having a Pioneer Trek that started this morning and ends Saturday at noon. I heard they will be walking about 18 miles over the course of 3 days. The high this week is only supposed to be 87 here in St. George and a high of 70 up where they are trekking which I understand is from New Harmony to Pinto. Great weather for the trek which sure beats the typical 100 degree weather we usually have here in June.

All set and ready to go. Everything Brett took had to fit in this gunny sack.

Oh and someone answer me this. How can this boy eat so much? He ate 3 double stacks from Wendy's for lunch yesterday! I hope they brought a lot of food for the kids to eat or he's going to starve!

Brett wasn't to sure about having to wear a hat & suspenders as well as long pants & a button up shirt. I assured him that everyone would be dressed just as he was.

This is the group going from our ward. Hopefully it will be lots of fun and a great experience for Brett.

Boys Will Be Boys!

I kicked the boys off the computers and told them to find something to do outside. The found soemthing. What could be more fun than making mud?

Quilting

Last night for the combined mutual activity the youth were tying quilts. This picture of Brett & his friend Josh was too fun not to share. Way to go boys!

Brett Turns 14 - Happy Birthday Brett!

We spent the day celebrating Brett's 14th Birthday. He got to pick all the meals and spent the first part of the day playing computer games.
In the afternoon we went to see Disney's Bolt as a family then went to Fazoli's for dinner.

Brett got a new bike for his birthday that was a joint gift from grandpa and mom & dad. He's eager to try it out after he gets off his crutches, hopefully tomorrow!

Happy Birthday Brett! You are such an awesome kid! We all love you and are grateful to have you in our family!