FLYIN' UP HIGH

State Diving 2008! Maraea just wrapped up her high school diving career this weekend with a 5th place finish in the 4A Dive championships at KCAC. She has had a great run in high school, qualifying for state each year. This year Newport moved up from 3A to 4A which made the state competition a little tougher but she still did well! Now its off to consider college possibilities!

Just call me Juniper Exterminator!

An addition from the Miller Branch:

I just wanted to show off to Momma's crew something new at their casa.

While Kevin and I were there visiting last month we decided we wanted to tame the unruly junipers. I don't know what is wrong with me, but I have had an issue with those junipers for years, and when they are so overgrown it makes me particularly crazy. So, we went out to trim them and ended up convincing mom that they just needed to go. There are many more to remove, but I think we are half way there. (Back in my high school days I got obsessive one night and removed a big clump of them while mom and dad were gone.) Before taking out the whole bush we were a little concerned about leaving the house so "naked" but I think in comparison, naked is all right. And, last time I went on a rampage, mom recovered well and planted a really cute garden spot where the juniper had previously covered. [Side note, please Aunt Toni, don't start screening your calls. You are our master gardener and we all know mom is always looking for an excuse to get you to Washington.]

So, without further adieu, the Before and After Photos:

Before:

After:

In addition to that great adventure, we also had a great time in Seattle going to Pike's Place (yes, again...but Kevin hadn't been since high school). And, we pretended to go to a pumpkin patch. For the Fruit Stand, I mean Pumpkin Patch adventure, Brian and his girlfriend Sophia joined us and they brought her son, Skylar for a photo op too. We had a ton of fun taking pictures of the cute little ones.
It's always fun to be with family, even if they are just using you to get to your child. We had a great time, and everyone enjoyed loving on Madi.

Genealogy... Mom is doing it... Our Genealogy!

Mom has been so diligent at working on the family genealogy... Adding multiple names to the family tree by the week! She is so good at this and does it so quietly. If you have a minute, I would encourage you to take a look at her progress... Family Search is a great place to check it out. You'll want to register as a new user on the new Family Search website (click here). You'll need your membership number and confirmation date, which can be found on your temple recommend or with a member of your bishopric or a clerk. Jump on it, because it's pretty amazing!

Also, all males of the family, by blood or marriage... Mom would gladly take you up on helping complete temple work for some of our male family members who she has researched recently! Give her a call.

I love family history but have not done nearly enough to even begin to be able to support Mom in her incredible efforts... Maybe we can inspire each other more in this way. What an incredible heritage we have to hold to as Skeens and Behrens!

Patience

I dubb mama and papa, bri and maea official blogging mastas and mastesses for this family blog now that we are not connected at the hip as of late.
In their honor, though, I must say that PATIENCE is a virtue mom and dad teach me a lot about. In my most recent path-changing adventures, I am again learning that there is much need for greater patience and TRUST in Heavenly Father.
Remembering always that He will never support us and lead us to do one thing and then leave us high and dry in the details is so important. "He is the same yesterday, today, and forever." He will not change from that which He says or does. This is why we are invited to, "Cast not away, therefore [our] confidence..." (Heb. 10). We will never realize fully what our Father has in store for us if we do not hold on with patience, heeding the enticings of the Holy Spirit, trusting and sincerely seeking and living that we can be close to the Spirit in decisions, small and large... The moment that we choose to just settle when it "doesn't feel quite right," is the moment that we compromise the greatness of the gift, or "reward," that He so badly wants to give us... Good things often just TAKE TIME... There is no formula, as far as I am aware, to the amount of time one reward takes to receive or another, and I don't think Father in Heaven doesn't see it that way... Time is often of great importance to us, but it is the experience (timeless) that is of great importance to Him and can become more important to us. He loves us so much that He not only wants to reward us with finding the right place to be, the right person(s) to be with, and the right tools to obtain, but he wants to reward us with BECOMING like Him- receiving Christlike attributes... Gaining experience, and obtaining joy that is not temporary but lasting, even eternal as we continue to seek and obtain true rewards.
So, my point is, learning PATIENCE can be very rewarding, both temporally and spiritually. Seeking this virtue can only bring us to a realization of greater joy and peace... And who doesn't need more joy and peace today?
Well... I have gone on much longer than I planned. Still learning! Press on!
I will connect this more completely to specific experiences in a later email or posting of some sort.

Sleepless in Seattle...really!

July 08 An epic adventure! Teri's cousin, Tomato, from Hawaii, came to visit for a week. Sis. Toni came from CA to join in the fun! We've never had time to chill as 'girlfriends' before - no schedule, no funeral, nothing... We did our best to show her the best of Washington! A ferry ride, Pikes Place, Ballard locks, Lincoln Square for dinner and a movie - "Mama Mia" One of her favorite outings was the trip out on the boat, we cruised to Ivar's on Lake Washington for dinner, looked at the homes on the lake then ended the evening with a beautiful sunset in the west and a big full orange moon rising in the east. As icing on the cake, we were entertained by Jenni skiing and Brian wake boarding as the moon shone behind them. A glorious evening! It was a lot of fun, Tomato (she's 60something) ran us ragged - she has more energy than any of us and wakes up cheerful, too! She grew up with our MOM so it was fun to hear Chang family stories and get to know each other better. We did a little genealogy, she is better at 'who's who' among the Aea Chang side, she knew most of them!!
A great week, we must do it again soon!

Interviews in VA

Seeking to start her first teaching job in a new place for adventure, Jenni went to Virginia, near WA D.C. for interviews. It was a great trip, and she had some great interviews and was offered math teaching positions in middle school. Choosing to take an offer south of Arlington, she will be only about 20 minutes from D.C. working with students who have not excelled in their past math classes. She is very excited for the challenges ahead and feels great about the decision. Currently she is waiting to hear back about Licensure details as Utah's teaching licenses are different from Virginia's.
While in Virginia, she stayed with a very nice family whom she got connected with through people she associates with in church in Bellevue. The family was so welcoming and she feels blessed now to have another family to be close to while she is out there away from her family.
One of the highlights of the trip was forging her way through the streets of DC to visit a few of the monuments and then making a trip to Maryland to the DC temple in Kensington. She's a little more comfortable with the different traffic patterns and culture there but still has more to learn... Hahaha.

Madison- Baby Blessing

Celebrating July 4th on the road to Boise and then with Kristen and Kevin made for a unique Independence day! The ride was very nice considering we had Joey along for the ride... Frequent stops were refreshing though it stretched out the travel time a fair amount. Nonetheless, we made it, and we were welcomed into the Brookings home by the new family of three! Madison is so darling, and we always love seeing Kristen and Kevin, thus it was well worth the drive. Sunday, Andrew and Rachel joined us in Boise and we all go to be at church with Craig and Marvel and other family to witness Madison being blessed in sacrament meeting. It was sweet. Really.
So, we proudly and joyously welcome, one more time, Madison Naomi Miller! She has two fabulous parents and a great life of experience ahead of her!
Sad to say good bye, though only temporary, to our siblings/kids and niece/granddaughter; weary to hit to road home... Dad and Mom get major props for the safe return in the wee hours of the morning!