Lots of snow

10AM We have been completely surprised by the amount of snow that we've been getting here in Virginia. Yesterday, another major storm this season dumped 20 or more inches on most places in the region, and we have had three or four smaller storms (3-8 inches). We did lose power in our home for about 2 hours Saturday afternoon. Fortunately, that was the only time we have lost power this winter.

We certainly did not anticipate this much snow when we were packing our things in August. All of the kids snow pants are in storage. We left the sled and other snow shovel in Cleveland. We figured that a move south would mean less snow, not more, than Cleveland. Rebecca even put off buying a new winter coat because we just didn't know where we would be next winter, and her fleece-lined, micro-suede jacket should have been enough. She is now wearing Jacob's coat because he outgrew it this year, and he's running around in a hoodie just like every other high school-age kid.

7:00PM I just got back inside after attempting to drive my car around the block. It took about an hour to unbury the car, and the road look clear enough around our house. I think it had been plowed at least once because there are piles to the sides and some bare asphalt patches. I turned and went down the hill, thinking it would be easier to go down rather than up, and it was the easiest way out of the driveway. I ended up getting stuck in the snow at the bottom of the hill. Fortunately, some neighbors, my kids and couple of drivers that I was blocking helped to shovel the car out. I was testing the road because I thought I may have to go to work tomorrow. On the way down the hill, I heard on the radio that the federal government is closed in Washington, DC, tomorrow. 

All of us are a little tired of being together in the house. I will have to organize a hike tomorrow and get us moving and away from the house a bit. We will also need to dig out our snow cave and see how long we can make it. It's currently at about 10 to 12 feet deep with a 18 inch ceiling. 

Christmas Letter 2009

Doing Things Differently

By Tom

Last Thanksgiving, I promised Rebecca that we would do things differently during the coming year. Little did I know how different our lives would be. Last December, I received notice that I had passed the Foreign Service Officer written exam. After experiencing many dead ends last year, a door had opened to possibilities of professional, personal and family growth. Now, I have a new career with the State Department, we will be moving in six months to Brasilia, the kids are in new schools, and Rebecca and I are exchanging words of endearment in broken Portuguese. 


Toddler Steals Identity

By Rebecca

Friday, September 3, 4AM, Provo, Utah. My cell phone rang, awakening me from my cozy bed at the Marriott. I heard Tom’s terse voice demand, “Where did Abby put my driver’s license?” He had 20 minutes before he had to leave for the Cleveland airport to join us in Utah for my sister’s wedding. But his DL was not in his wallet. Abby was the most likely culprit since she had been playing with his wallet on Sunday, and she had been known to move similar items to her purses. Somehow Tom managed to talk his way through airport security using an expired passport and old student ID cards. 

A week later, we returned to Cleveland Heights to load up the U-Haul and continue our search for the license. Due to flight delays, we were running two hours behind schedule, and in the rush to finish packing and load the van, our vital records file got put in an unmarked box and placed at the front of the van. Tom was still without valid identification and now did not have a birth certificate or Social Security card required to get a replacement DL before leaving Ohio. And Virginia would not issue a DL to Tom because without a valid DL, he needed a third source certifying his identity, but our nicely framed marriage license was on route to a storage facility in Maryland. (Other valid documents included court records or parole cards, but Tom didn’t have those either.)


Our desperation increased as we searched every box and opened every file. Without a valid photo ID, Tom would not be able to get his security badge when he reported to work on Monday. Fortunately, the State Department wasn’t as picky as the DMV and accepted his 23-year-old passport. He existed again and was able to get a replacement DL when we returned to Ohio for Emma’s birthday and baptism. It also came in handy when he got a traffic ticket the following week.


By the way, Abby was exonerated two months later when Tom’s license showed up in the bag of swim gear, exactly where he put it when we took the family to Cumberland Pool one last time before we left for Utah. 

The Big Move

By Emma

Packing was boring. We had to clean up the messy rooms, and go through all the books, all the stuff in the dressers, and all the stuffed animals and toys. It was hard deciding which stuff to put into storage, which stuff to take and which stuff to give away. I liked taking apart the bunk beds because I got to use the tools for taking out the long bolts.


Moving was boring. Sometimes we had to listen to the radio instead of watching movies. I didn’t get to ride in the truck because Sam was in it the whole time. Sam, Daddy and Jessie rode in the truck because our mom is allergic to dogs. Once we were in Virginia, we got to play in the empty boxes and make a giant clubhouse. 


Virginia is fun. We have a forest behind our house. It has a creek and there are fallen logs that we can use to cross the creek and then stand on a beautiful bank and see the sun glittering off the water. The school is also really great. There are nice teachers, and there are lots of vacation days. I also like the Brazilian restaurant. (churrascaria) 


My Parents RUINED My Life

By Lillian

It all started when my dad got a job with the Foreign Service. Before I could say, “NO!” my parents accepted and started packing. I cried my heart out. I wanted nothing more than to say, “STOP! DON’T TOUCH!” Pack-out day was hectic, and I really tried hard to remain calm as the movers took away our stuff. I found the easiest way to do that was to sing in the rain, meander around and eat the treats.


Everything has been hard: my stinky brothers are super annoying all the time, I have to share a room with my little sisters, I don’t know very many people at my new school, and most of my stuff is in storage. Worst of all, I left all my friends behind in Ohio.


Now we’re going to move to Brazil, and I have to learn Portuguese. I wanted to go to London or Athens. My first choice was Paris but that wasn’t even an option. Everything is going to be so different, and we will be so far away. But I have heard that I might get to ride horses in Brasilia. That would be OK.  


Language Lesson

By Abby

Pata. That means potty in Portuguese. Pata. That means put on shoes. Pata. I am done.  


Wildlife Report

By Sam

We didn’t see that many animals in our backyard this year. At our house in Virginia, there are lots of trees. It goes down a hill into trees and a river. We saw a deer with two fawns, a fox, and a stag. Emma and I found a salamander under a log. It had blue, orange and red on it. We have also seen lots of squirrels and birds. The squirrels in Virginia are much smaller than the squirrels in Cleveland. I also found a katydid and preying mantis. There are also lots of ants in our kitchen.  


The Sports Report

By (His Royal Highness) Jacob

Many family members participated in various sports this year. For several months, Emma participated in ice skating lessons, advancing to Level 5, when her dreams of an ice skating career were crushed by the move.

Last spring, I was a member of my school’s track team, running the mile and half-mile events. Mommy has also run many miles on the treadmills at the gym. My dad rode his bicycle to work most of the summer, at least until he got a flat tire that he still hasn’t fixed. In June, Lillian joined the Cumberland Pool diving team. At the Annual Water Show in August, she demonstrated her ability to jump off boards into water, proving her eligibility as a pirate’s captive.  


Also during the summer I was a member of the Cleveland Heights swim team. Even though I missed almost three weeks of practice for a road trip to Alaska, I still managed to have my best season ever. At the league championship I was on the 1^st place medley relay team and placed 3^rd in the 13-14 year-old boy’s backstroke. In November, two weeks after marching band ended, I continued my swimming career by joining the Falls Church High School swim team.  


After moving to Virginia, both Abby and Sam signed up for sports, being Dance and Soccer, respectively. Overall, the person who did the most sports this year was Joseph, who played more hours of video games then I can count, including six or seven Zelda games. 


SO inc.

By Joseph

In 2008-09, my school district started offering Science Olympiad as part of the Middle School Scholars Program, a pull-out program where students get to do interesting stuff. Naturally, I joined one of the two teams at Roxboro. My events were Human Anatomy and Amphibians & Reptiles (I placed 6^th in this at regionals). My team made it to the state competition in Columbus. We stayed in a hotel and got a pasta dinner! As it happens, this is my new school’s first year of SO, and so I joined one of their teams. My events are Write it--Do it, Shock Value, and Disease Detectives.  I am currently unsure if I’ll win any awards or go to states. 


Arts and Culture Report

By Rebecca

2009 marked our 5^th and final year participating in This is Kirtland. We will miss our many Kirtland Stake friends we have made through the play.  I was blessed with five great costume assistants to train, and Tom got the opportunity to play the role of Joseph Smith. He had a lot of fun with the part and enjoyed singing the show’s love song. Lillian was cast in her dream role as Helen Mar Kimball, the girl who screams in the school scene when a boy pulls her hair. She was also very pleased to be a member of the young ladies’ chorus instead of with the children.  Emma played Lovina Smith, Hyrum Smith’s daughter. Though not in the cast, Sam and Abby enjoyed running around backstage during rehearsals. Sam did get his chance on stage as a Mary’s very cute little lamb in the Kindergarten fall play. 


Jacob played mellophone with the Falls Church High School Marching Band. Since he missed band camp, he only marched for the first number of the competition show. But years of forced piano lessons finally paid off because he was able to jump right in and play marimba in the pit for the rest of the show. 


Lillian’s flute playing skills have really improved this year despite having an “always broken” flute. Her favorite piece to play is the theme from the Harry Potter films.


Though not involved with any formal choirs, Joseph flaunts his skills of improvisation by singing verses as he reads the scriptures to us. He and Abby also provide counterpoint alphabet concertos in Japanese and Abbynese ensuring adequate stimulation to a peaceful evening.


The Great Alaska Trip

By Jacob

The day after scout camp, Lord Jacob and Thrall Joseph flew unaccompanied to Utah in order to go with Grandma and Grandpa Allred, and uncles John, Paul and Enoch to Alaska. On the trip they endured long drives, a lost wheel, crowding by pillows, 85°F weather in Fairbanks and close encounters of the ptarmigan kind. Overall it was quite an excellent adventure.

Acknowledgements

As always, any big endeavor is not possible without the help of many people, and we thank those who have helped us. Specifically, those friends, neighbors and strangers who helped us sort, inventory, pack, clean, load, unload and care for our stuff and our children;). We are also grateful to you for helping us celebrate special events in our lives. We are especially thankful to our parents for their continued support despite our apparent lunacy during our midlife crisis. This change still costs less than a sports car or plastic surgery. Thank you.

Eighth Grade Recognition

Well, it wasn't called 8th grade graduation, but it behaved like one. It began with marching the kids in to that graduation song, announcing each person by name. There talks by student council members and the principal, and music provided by the challenge choir. Special awards were given out to outstanding students, and special recognition was given for achievements like 4.0 GPA and student of the year.

Jacob was recognized for many academic achievements (one of two with 4.0 cumulative GPA, high scorer on the ACT, third place Knowledge Bowl team in the state of Ohio, honor roll, member of the mock trial team) but he did not receive any of the subject area Outstanding Student awards. One was given per section, and the awards all went to the other 4.0 kid. Outwardly, Jacob didn't seem too disappointed. He was especially not disappointed when a classmate dropped a 5lb. Hershey's chocolate bar off. It came from the teacher who ordered the awards and got it as an incentive gift. This teacher felt Jacob deserved some recognition for his achievements, and Jacob agreed that the chocolate was much better than a plaque.

He has grown so fast, especially in the last couple of years. He's at least a eight inches taller than he was in sixth grade. It's hard to believe that I will have a high school student living in my house next year. I think that I must be getting older, too. I certainly have more grey hairs, and I can easily keep track of most of them, too. I am pleased Jacob had a successful middle school career. He's determined to do something with international relations, like the foreign service. He's the most eager to begin worldwide travel and other adventures.

Canal Park

I was able to take a half day off work a couple of Fridays ago, so we decided to go on another family hike. This time we hiked a 1.5 mile trail in Canal Park of the Cleveland Metroparks in Cuyahoga Heights. This trail took us to the tow path trail and around an area called Hidden Valley. This is an area that is under a railroad spur that connects the north and south parts of Cuyahoga County and was once a place for many family farms. The Cuyahoga River and Ohio-Erie Canal also flow this park. There is also a nice visitor's center with exhibits detailing the industrial and natural history of the area.

What I found most surprising was the beauty of the area. It being late spring, the trees are now fully leaved, many of them are still flowering, and the wildflowers are blooming as well. It was a calm, sunny day that just reached the low-80's. This park is particularly nice for learning a bit about the industrial history of Cleveland, and seeing how much reclamation has been made to make this area a nature preserve. We could see the train bridge, sewer pipes, gas lines, electrical towers, giant oil tanks and other structures. We also saw swifts, a great blue heron, mallards and lots of Canada geese. I am amazed at how well the Cleveland Metroparks mark out peaceful respites within the and surrounding the city and suburbs of Cleveland.

The path we followed was fully paved, and took us on loop off the tow path near the Cuyahoga River. There were some implements from an abandoned farm and a couple of cut throughs to the river. This is where we could see the giant oil tanks. Cleveland used to have a large number of oil refineries, but now imports all of its oil. These tanks are 15 stories high and hold millions of gallons of fuel. They were built in the 1950's. People can build some really big structures.

I think the kids enjoyed the walk. They found some switch grass to make swords with, and Joseph kept poking his siblings. Abby walked about half of the way, and then hitched a ride on my shoulders. She even managed to use the pit toilets. The kids liked seeing the 15 or so goslings.

Memorial Day Parade 2009

This year we did something a little different for the Memorial Day Parade--we walked to the parade site from our home. It was about a mile and a half to get there, and we all survived. Lillian received an invitation from her best friend to view the parade with her and then go to a block party. Lillian was asked to take her bicycle, but it would have been nearly impossible to fit her bicycle and all of the members of our family into the van. I figured that the best thing to do would be to walk. We wouldn't have to worry about finding a parking space or squeezing a bicycle into the van, and we would all get a bit of exercise, including the dog.

Well, I am not sure everyone was on board. Joseph and I were working on cleaning the trap of the downstairs bathroom sink. It was draining slowly due to four years of build-up from soap scum, hair, toothpaste and a couple of band-aid wrappers. It was very disgusting. Rebecca and Lillian went to JoAnn fabrics to take advantage of a few discounts. They got back in time, but Joseph and I were not yet ready to go. It took another 15-minutes to get all of us out the door, and since we had a couple of drop-off times to meet, the front half of our caravan moved much quicker than the back half. Along the way, I traded places with Sam and Emma in pulling the empty wagon, and they rushed ahead to be with their mom and siblings. I pulled the wagon faster but soon got stuck maneuvering around slower moving groups, and then I noticed that the back gate of the wagon had fallen off. I was too far from the vanguard to tell them that I had to backtrack and so I pulled the wagon back about five blocks to find the gate in the middle of the sidewalk and the very point where I began my turn with the wagon.

Jacob marched in the parade with the middle school band. This was another logistical issue I had not fully considered: How will we get Jacob home? Originally, I thought we would just hike as a family the last mile to John Carroll University at the end of the parade route. But then we would get stuck in the massive crowds and festivities there and still have to haul the family back home, which turns out to be uphill from the parade route. If Joseph and I had planned this out, it might have a made a nice 10-mile hike for Hiking merit badge, but I probably would have the one hauling all of the family in the wagon all of the way back. Fortunately, Rebecca came up with a reasonable plan: hike the family home, send Dad in the car later to pick up Jacob. This gave us a shorter route home, and Jacob some time to hang out with his friends.

While at JCU, Jacob was approached by and older woman who said she had played French horn, too. She pointed out that Jacob had a relic instrument--it's a 1920's horn--and asked him if it was for sale. I would have sold it to her for $400.

The parade was fun and epitomized small town America: scout groups, church groups, drill teams, Shriners, the Rocket car, political candidates, historical re-enactors, flags, fire engines and lots of classic and sports cars. Oh, and candy. It will be interesting to see what kinds of parades are done in other countries.

Sex Talk with a Two-Year-Old

About a week ago, Rebecca went shopping at a thrift store with the girls. Her primary purpose was to find straw hats for making bonnets. These bonnets will be used in This is Kirtland play. While there, the girls saw many items that they thought they needed, such as purses, swim suits, pants, shoes, stuffed animals, etc., and they negotiated and pleaded with their mother and managed to convince her to purchase them.

Abby saw a pregnant woman, and then said, "Mommy, I want a baby in my tummy." Rebecca told her that she was too little, and even if Abby could have a baby now, Mommy would not let her get one. Abby then pleaded, "Please, Mommy, please" using the same tone she uses when begging for candy or to sit on the couch and watch a video. Rebecca and Abby continued to negotiate until some other item of interest caught the 2-yr-old's attention.

A couple of days later, Rebecca was with Abby in the bathroom trying to get Abby to use the toilet. Abby said that she wanted to go pee standing up. Between observations of Sam and I using the toilet, she knew that such a thing was possible. Rebecca told her that because Abby did not have a penis, it would be very difficult for her to pee standing up. Abby said, "I want one of those." Rebecca then explained that Abby could not have a penis because she is a girl. Undeterred, Abby insisted that she get one and refused to sit on the toilet and urinate. Rebecca then said, "Instead of a penis, girls have a vagina and uterus so they can have babies." Abby considered this for a moment, said, "OK," and proceeded with her business sitting down.

When Rebecca related these incidents to me, I realized that Abby would be our only child that doesn't automatically get the "where do baby's come from" talk because it is very unlikely that Rebecca will ever be pregnant again. This past May, I have delivered over 25 presentations on this topic and puberty to about 2,000 5th and 6th grade students, but I have yet to do so with my 2-yr-old. I did take the youngest three with me to do parent presentation on what I was going to tell their kids, but Abby slept through most of it. Emma and Sam only talked about the pretzels and playground after sitting through my presentation on puberty.

Jacob in Quebec

Jacob went to Quebec a couple of weeks ago with other French students for the CHUH middle schools. About 31 kids went on the trip. They stayed up there for 5 days, visiting Montreal and Quebec City. This trip gave the kids a chance to practice using their French language skills and be embedded in another culture. I am really glad that Jacob was able to go. He is very interested in international relations and languages.

The trip started with an early morning meeting at the middle school. Jacob and I were the first ones at the school at around 5:45AM. We took Jesse with us. She likes to go in the car to pick Jacob up from track practice. I tried to get a picture of Jacob, but he kept closing his eyes with the flash. Also, several of the photos came out blurry. It turns out that the camera was set for close-up shots. Jacob met his roomates, a couple of boys from one of the other middle schools, then they got on the bus and left. We didn't hear from them again until they returned. Well, Joseph heard from Jacob. On the return trip, one the chaperones (Joseph's social studies teacher) used her cell phone to call Joseph at school and had Jacob speak to him at school.

I missed the full report because I had to work the evening Rebecca talked Jacob into telling the family of his adventures. Rebecca says that the kids listened to Jacob for over hour tell his stories. I'm sorry I missed it. Jacob reported that the host family he stayed with was really cool, and he enjoyed playing with the little siblings in that family. Considering the sibling conflicts we have at home, it's nice to know that Jacob is pleasant when with others. Sometimes I think we are less "good" at home just to relieve the stress of being more "good" at work, school, church and other public places.

Jacob also says that he was an influence on his peers, setting such trends as purchasing hats for souvenirs (Jacob brought home a camoflauge fedora and a coonskin hat) and trying new foods, such as a fried potato and gravy dish that sounded a lot like chili cheese fries. He also had a traditional Canadien breakfast of lard and meat and real maple syrup. Mmmmm.

I am not exactly sure of all the places Jacob visited, but his pictures are of monster trucks (set up at a rest stop), unusual signs (hare crossing), cathedrals and icons (monkey paintings?), armour (swords, helmets, cool stuff), roller coasters, sculptures, and no people. Despite spending a day in a French school, hanging out with friends for a week, going to a circus training site, and riding on a bus for many, many hours, it seems that no one actually lives in Quebec. They're just like the photos I took at his age on my school trips.