Journal

Last month James got laid off.

His boss called on a Wednesday to tell him his job was "safe", that they were letting the other tech go and his job was secure and then he got a call the following day that Shell was pulling out of the entire Rocky Mountain region and he no longer had a job.

Wow.

We didn't really see that one coming.

He's had an interview with Stat Oil in North Dakota and they have been trying to coordinate a second interview for about 2 weeks. Trust me when I tell you it's not us with the scheduling conflicts. Hopefully it will be this Thursday - but we've been put off so many times, I'll believe it when it happens.

Luckily real estate has been gangbusters so we'll be fine for a bit. 

In other news......

Devree got a 24 on her ACT and that with her 3.9+ GPA will earn full tuition at Snow next year!

And in not so great news, she did not make the basketball team. She was pretty bummed about it but we sort of knew with it being her senior year and not playing last year due to drill, she didn't have much of a chance. 

Alex decided to join the wrestling team and lasted all of one day. Here's our texting volley while he was at his first practice:

Alex: There is no one I know here.

Me: Great way to make new friends!

Alex: They are all 12th graders.

Me: That's okay. Next year you'll be the oldest. Just check it out.

Alex: Everyone is big.

Me. Are you the smallest? You only wrestle with guys your size. They will really need you if you're the smallest. 

Then he came home and announced "wrestling just isn't my sport". After further prodding (because he's like a clam sometimes) he told me it was because everyone (including the coach) uses the F word. He was just recently asked to be the president of his teachers quorum and felt that he shouldn't be around that kind of language. (Melt my mothers heart!) AND he knocked his tooth lose. Luckily it seems to have tightened back up but since we spent 5K on his mouth.....I'm okay with this NOT being his sport! Back to water polo we go. (Well, we never really stopped, just thought we could add wrestling in until water polo started up again  in the spring.)

We are also frantically working on Alex's Eagle Project. We're so close. Just waiting on final signatures and then we will be soliciting everyone we know for donations and support!

Austin is surviving his 1st semester of college. He HATES his math class and complains that it takes all his time. Hopefully he'll find more joy next semester when he takes more business classes?

Both Rylee and Devree got a 4.0 last term! 

Kambree is doing awesome in nursing school. I worry about her, she doesn't sleep much and she and Cameron have so much on their plate running that motel and going to school. I don't see or talk to them half as much as I'd like to and they're rumoring about moving to Alaska. ALASKA!! I just have to put it out of my mind or I'll go crazy. 

My Ry is dancing six hours a week getting ready for her Christmas recital. She has also become a social butterfly and taken up with a fun bunch of girls that like to get together spontaneously for parties, movies and game nights. Unfortunately none of them can drive or live within walking distance so that make parents spontaneous cab drivers every weekend.  

Joy.

Ella's been having weirdness. Panting and shaking and the trying to nestle into our necks. We took her to the vet and she said she needed her anal glands expressed. It solved the problem for a couple of weeks but then we had another attack. We've diagnosed it's eating table scrapes that give her tummy aches?  So James researched dog foods and bought a high quality one in hopes that we don't have any more issues? She has gone cold turkey off of table scrapes - and she's not loving that. 

We're taking Thanksgiving to our married kids this year since they can't leave the motel. It was 4 years ago we took Thanksgiving to James in Pinedale. Wow. Four years ago everyone was living at home, Alex had been home for only six months and everyone was shorter than me! Now my boys are taller than me, I have one daughter married, another heading to college and the other passing for sixteen instead of her sweet age of 13. I don't feel like I've changed until I get really close to the mirror and realize.....I have changed. Luckily, I don't get close to the mirror very often and my eye sight from a distance gives me a blurry younger look? James eyesight is going too so... we're both a little blurry - which is why you should not marry a much younger person than yourself? It helps if you both age and get bad eyesight at the same time!