Plan-a-holic

I am neurotic, I am a freak. My life is so up in the air with our Texas move that I would like to make a plan for something, anything! I have been watching the back and forth on the reunion stuff, and I am not sure if we have firmed up anything. Since I don't know if everyone will go back and read the thread on an older post, I thought I would just make a new post to reopen the dialogue (I must have a plan!). I suppose I should include an apology for throwing a wrench in everything when we informed everyone that we no longer had a conflict in the later part of July since Theo is not doing a running camp this year. We are hoping to be moved by July if Providence smiles on us. With that said, I would vote for the July 13th-17th dates (Durango is WAY closer to us than SLC). I know this is a problem for Skip's family because of a scouting conflict. Is there maybe a camp in SLC that Blake could attend while you are in town? I would even go so far as to say that I am sure we could pass off a ton of cub stuff with the activities we will be doing in Durango! (= Then there is the Harry Potter factor. I admit that I am having all kinds of giddy thoughts about donning a Gryffindor scarf and staying up until midnight with all the big kid cousins for a last hurrah at Hogwarts (did you just feel the chill right now too?!). Then there is the cherry on top of that whole weekend with the baptism of Jackson! The Gillelands have always been the most dedicated attendees at family milestones that I would love to return the favor! OK, as I have typed this, I realized I am kind of making a pushy case for the date change. It is the planner in me (curse you Ross compulsive planner DNA) that is hoping we can all come to an accord soon. If we stick with the original dates that will be OK with us too. We most of all just want to see everyone and to hang out. So let's hear it Rosses, what are your leanings?

Best Family Ever!

Mom, Dad, and Kim were such a wonderful help bringing us all kinds of beautiful decorating items and furniture to "stage" our house! Here is a small sampling, and I don't think the pictures show how great everything looks due to my amatuer photography skills. Thank you so much Hannays and Mom and Dad! You were a huge help in getting us ready!

Spring Break

In preparation for selling our house, we have had many projects both big and small. Since this week was our spring break Theo decided it was time to tackle two of the big ones. He put the boys to work shoveling dirt, hauling brick, fetching tools, and then some. We managed to finish a new patio area in the back yard and to build a pantry.

Now that the week is about out, we are trying to finish up the smaller stuff in hopes to get this house on the market. Pray for us that we can sell quickly! (=

Ross reunion dates

Hello Rosses! I am finally posting about our reunion dates. We had tentatively gone with July 6-10, but I would like to do July 13-17. Martins are able to come that week, and it would be much better for us. Jackson will be baptized on July 17th and we would love to combine those 2 events. We are actually thinking of doing an early morning baptism if the ward let's us. Thoughts? Concerns? Conflicts?

Rex's baptism

Hey, Page-ites, we need a good recommendation for a campground for the weekend of Rex's baptism. We've been wanting to do a lot of camping this summer (now that I am not pregnant, and Gideon is doing so well with walking), and this Page trip is a great opportunity! Do you have any good ideas for where we might camp?

Rex's Baptism

We want to officially invite the Ross clan to Rex's baptism. We are having it on his birthday, April 9th which is a Saturday! We hope you can all come celebrate what may be our last big milestone in Page (no pressure)! Let us know if you think you will make it!

Miriam von Yum-Yum

Deep in the Heart of Texas....

We are MOVING!!! After lots of though, consideration, and prayer, we have decided to go back to school. Theo is realizing a longtime dream to become a physical therapist. Several months ago we started applying to a few programs, and today we got an acceptance to our top choice, Texas Tech! The school actually has three campuses in Lubbock, Amarillo, and Odessa. We are still waiting to hear which of the three he will be assigned to. We did make a trip out to Texas a few weeks ago when Theo had his interview (thanks again mom and dad for watching our kids!), and we are excited about our prospects there. There will be lots of decisions and hurdles to clear in the coming months as we prepare to go, so pray for us! More details to come as we learn more!

Happy B-Day Nate

My baby is turning 16 tomorrow!















Hard to believe. Nate's 2 best buddies live in our neighborhood. All of them turn 16 within 3 weeks of each other. So, we thought it would be fun to have a surprise party for them together.















We rented out the theater room at Noah's. The theater room has 24 recliners and a projection TV. It was so fun. The kids ate pizza, had treats, played our Xbox Kinect dance game, played pictionary, and watched Mega Mind. What fun!!!

The Bracket Is OUT

Bingham has been named the #1 seed from Region 3!!! Eric is so excited to play at Weber State in the big college arena. The state tournament starts on Nate's birthday, Monday, February 28th. View the bracket HERE. It will be updated as games are played. GO MINERS!!!

Missionary Mail

It's February!!

Thanks Martin Family for volunteering to send Ty a care package. Remember, nothing fancy or expensive. Even have your kiddos draw pictures or write letters. Elder Hannay will LOVE it.

Elder Ty Hannay
2700 West 16th Ave. Apt. #143
Amarillo, TX 79102

(Transfers are around the 23rd. So he may have a new address by then.)

Upcoming Schedule -
March - Brad Ross Family
April - Grandma Hannay
May - ?
June - ?
July - Grandma Ross

Reunion Question

Would the weekend of the 4th of July work for the reunion?

Question for Kim and Grandma/Grandpa

My little sister is looking into buying a house in the Salt Lake Valley, and she is seeing some really good ones in West Jordan. Is that a nice place to live? Are there neighborhoods to avoid? What are the schools like?

If you have any intel on this, she'd (and I'd) sure appreciate it!

When can you NOT come?

As we try to set dates for the reunion, what are absolute CANNOT attend dates?

Family Reunion 2011

It's that time again...

Durango
July 13-17

Please let us know if this works for your family.

Possessions Aren't Important

The Lord wanted to remind me about the relative importance of possessions. You'd think I'd know this, but I have to confess that I've been coveting a new home recently. I was browsing the home listings yesterday and I saw a home for $150,000 that is almost the same size as our house--but on one level. Plus, there is an equally large unfinished basement. That is a total of over 3,000 sq-ft. Plus, it was built only a few years ago. That means current plumbing and electrical that I wish our current home had. Oh, the bounties for the buyer of the short-sell.

But as much as I want that snazzy new home, I just can't afford it yet. I'd need to have a sizable down payment with the tighter lending standards. And I'd have to be able to sell my current home or have enough financial cushion to be able to surf the uncertainty of the rental market. In short, I just don't see it happening, as nice as that would be.

God knew I was still fantasizing, though, so he allowed me to have a reminder that the most precious thing in my life is already here. My wonderful wife and family were in a car accident today. They were all an their way up to my office to spend lunch with me and then head up to visit Keryn's sister in Salt Lake. The freeway was very congested and a whole bunch of traffic braked all at once. Keryn ended up rear-ending the person in front of her and the person behind her rear-ended her in turn.

The van is pretty smashed up. We'll hear within a couple days if the repairs will be less expensive than the value of the car.

As I zipped down to pick Keryn and the kids up, I found that I was just so incredibly grateful that they were all okay. I didn't give two figs about the van. I was just happy to be able to load all the kids into the borrowed car and shuttle them back home. Ezra has a bump on the back of his head and Keryn has a sore knee, but other than that, we seem to be doing great.

The thing that matters most, my family, is just fine.

Missionary Mail

Everyone - Steve's sister Lori had a brilliant beyond brilliant idea. She asked me to see if any of you were interested in helping out. She thought it would be fun to organize ourselves and send Ty a package each month.

She wanted to send him a package for Christmas as many of you have, but realized that Ty would get a lot of mail and then none. So, she thought we could each take a month and send him a care package. It doesn't have to be anything big. You can even just have all your kids write him or draw him a picture. He would love getting the mail. (As all you former missionaries can attest!)

So please post a comment as to what month your family would like if you want to participate. I will fill in the gaps. Let's just do 2011 for now then see how it goes.

THANKS!

The Last Airbender

Too bad Halloween is over. I think that if you put him in a monks robe, handed him a staff, and painted an arrow on his head, Gideon would be a dead ringer for the Last Airbender cartoon guy. :)

St. George anyone??

Hey all you investors. The Ross Family is looking for a "time-share" investment property in St. George. We are trying to get the best real estate bang for our buck while still staying under $200K. Nicole is looking at a couple properties we found online this Saturday while she is there doing some Christmas shopping. (Condo with pool and clubhouse $125,000 and single fam. home fixer-upper on 1/2 acre for $135,000.)

We want to give everyone an opportunity to "buy in". The payments will be under $250 per month depending on how many of you are interested. Mom & Dad are in with Steve & I for sure. Nic & Theo are interested as well. We are not in a rush as we believe interest rates will remain low over the next year. We are waiting for the right opportunity for a family "get away" vacation home.

Details of how we will share the time and expenses will be hammered out among those of us who are interested. Please leave a comment YES or NO so we can go forward (the more of us that pitch in, the bigger better property we can acquire).

Electronic Overload

OK, so we had the kids write their Santa letters in anticipation of traveling this week to places with actual stores in which we might Christmas shop. They ALL want electronics, electronics, and more expensive electronics! What happened to TOYS?!!! So, I need feedback from you tech savvy peeps. Give me your reviews on:

The iPad (enough memory for stuff like video editing? compatibility issues?? no USB port a problem???).....

The iPod/iTouch (New nano- how much memory do I need? Is an iTouch worth the bump in price??)

Kindle (Do I just grit my teeth and go for the iPad instead?)

Help me out here Family! I need advice if I am going to have to shell out this kind of cash! The gift count may be small this year. (=

Zone Leader

I got my first letter from Elder Hannay today! He wrote us a paragraph each day for the first few days in the MTC. He loves it! They selected district and zone leaders the third day and Ty was made zone leader and sr. companion. Steve can't remember exactly what that entails at the MTC but Ty sounded very excited. I was so happy to hear from him I cried! I am so pathetic, I've called his cell phone a few times just to hear his voice mail message. (He recorded it when he first got it at age 14 and he sounds so little.) We are going to disconnect his phone soon so I'd better get my fix. Ty also signed his name in the dust on my old computer monitor upstairs. I may not dust for 23 more months. ;)

Cub Scouts in Space (The Sock Monsters Attack!)

New Handbook

At the yummy dinner last night at Kim's house, we talked about the new Church handbook and orientation meeting. Both the handbook and the video of the meeting are available online now. Enjoy, especially for those who were traveling or hosting family this weekend and couldn't attend!

We had a great time this weekend. We sure missed those who couldn't be there, too! Love you all.

John is old

Everyone say a little prayer for John today as he is having knee surgery! I am excited to see everyone this weekend! :)

My Kind of Football Play

Sorry if you already saw this. I thought it was the most clever trick play I've seen in a while.

CONGRATS TO THEO AND THE LADY SAND DEVILS- STATE CHAMPS!

An Eventful October

Our October has been busy and fun. Drake and Corbin ran a bunch of cross-country races all over the Rez. Corbin even made the move up to the varsity team by the end of the season!

Every year the boy scouts have a cardboard boat race. This year Drake and Corbin got to participate after a campout at Wahweap. All boats actually stayed afloat this year which is a big improvement over years past!

I got to carve pumpkins with Rex's class for their Halloween party.

The stake had a trunk-or-treat and carnival. It was great to see our big kids help out with some of the booths.

We sure love spending time with our kids and friends in a place that we love!

Outside Our House Today

A Tender Mercy

I have enjoyed watching my family rise to the occasion as we try to meet the challenge set to us by Grandpa Ross! Of course, we have prayed a lot about how to deal with what Debbie is facing. It has been frustrating at times as there is not a lot out there that specifically deals with transgenderism. Last night I was up at the church to drop off my boys for a scout activity and to get my Bishop's signature on some scout forms. He wasn't there yet, so I sat in the little waiting area for a few minutes. With a few moments to sit alone and reflect, I turned to the look at some papers left behind on a nearby table. Someone had abandoned a copy of a talk by President Uchdorf. It was written for me! Heavenly Father loves us so much. We are so blessed. Read the talk at this link http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=fe0fde009da38210VgnVCM100000176f620a____&vgnextoid=f318118dd536c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD

A Link

An interesting link about Pres Packer's talk