Ryan family move..... update!

Wow, it's been a long time! It seems that way anyway. I just wanted to let everyone know that we are completely 100% moved, maybe 75% unpacked? We love the new house and the neighborhood. More on that later....

I wanted to tell you about our amazing new ward. Let's just say it's a little bit "different" from the wards we have become accustomed to attending. Here's a few differences:

John is a high priest, yes, yes, I know- he is young, but he was called to serve on the high council 9 years ago and gets used to the run down each and every time we move:

"You look too young to be a high priest."

"Thanks, I'll take that as a compliment." And then he explains how and when, etc.

This last Sunday was especially comical for many reasons. Sacrament meeting is the last meeting in our ward. John's high priest group started out with discussions on wearing your medical necklace in case of an accident, shingles, and hearing loss. Okay! Next came Sunday School where the discussion led to changes in technology... "Do you know how to use a digital camera?" and talk of not wasting time.... "We shouldn't spend our time playing games all day." (Hmmm.... I really don't have a problem with that.) Also, someone in back fell asleep and let out a HUGE snore. John and I were having a hard time not laughing. We held it together. Can you guess the demographics of our ward yet? Yes, about 85% of the members are 70 or older! There is retirement housing right behind our house and so we are blessed to be a part of the same ward.

The Primary is teeny tiny. On Father's Day, 14 children (3 of which were mine) stood to sing to their dads. Our new friends that live down the street have 6 children. When they moved into the neighborhood from Colorado, they were told that their family alone doubled the Primary. What? This is Utah, right? She told me that they prayed our family here. I told her that it worked! No wonder everything fell into place so nicely.

Anyway, I'm not done with last Sunday yet. As we gathered for Sacrament Meeting and listened to the opening announcements, the bishopric member announced the opening hymn, "Number such and such, 'Let Us All Pass On.'" .....?????..... "I mean, 'Let Us All Press On.'" This group laughed for a full 30 seconds. Classic.

Ask and ye shall receive... really!

Rewind to the middle of April. When we moved to Suncrest with John's family in January, we thought, "Oh, we'll be here maybe a couple of weeks, a month at the most." We weren't really sure, though, so I brought a lot of food just in case! April rolls around, and we're thinking, "We don't know when we're going to be able to move! It looks like we'll be here through the whole summer!"

When we moved here in January, we did not pack anything like summer clothes. Winter coats, boots, snowpants, YES! But no summer clothes. Not even one. So, I was getting really worried about my daughters, especially, and going to school in winter clothes in the middle of May. John's job was starting off well, but we didn't have "extra" money to buy the girls a whole summer wardrobe. So, I said a prayer in my heart that we would find a way to get them some summer clothes.

That very afternoon, John's mom came home from visiting teaching. You already know what happens, right? Well, the sister she had just visited has a daughter Allison's age and she had had a major growth spurt this last year. Did she think that Becca and Allison could use some summer clothes? She brought home a whole bag. And, they look brand new and most were bought at the very stylish (and expensive) Justice. Flip flops included. I cried all afternoon.

Fast forward to June. John's parents have been amazing and wonderful throughout our stay here. It can't be easy to share your home with 2 other grown ups and their 3 loud children. We couldn't ask for better! But, we were feeling an urgency to move and be on our own again. That's really the way it should be.

So, I prayed again. Please open the way so that we can move. Things again fell into place quickly. I couldn't foresee how any of it would happen. But, here we are, getting ready to move this Saturday! We are moving to..... South Ogden! The home is very nice and the owners got about 100 calls on it. When we went up to meet them last week, they were very enthusiastic and offered the home to our family. I'll post pictures later, but we feel we couldn't have gotten a better deal (completely finished, a room for everybody, yard, fence, fruit trees, etc. etc.)- we are so excited! Also, we are still a one-car family, so I was especially grateful to find that there is a pool 2 blocks away, a park with splash pad right behind the pool, Wal-mart is within walking distance, and the elementary school is about 4 blocks away! I am very grateful for these "perks" that the Lord lined up just for our family!

When we unload our storage unit, it's going to be like Christmas. I'm sure there are many things there that we have forgotten about. It just goes to show you, you really can live without it. Of course, we'll always be in touch. (I'm talking to all my awesome Riverton friends- you guys are the best!) And we'll be making multiple trips back for plays, rehearsals, etc. Thank you for your prayers, thoughts and comments on our behalf! ;-)

A Great Mother And Wife

For those of you who know Heather, this will come as no surprise. I wanted to share a few of the many great things she has done for our family over the years:

1- She always puts other first (she is usually the last to eat dinner, and the first to help clean it up). She likes to make quilts, hats and other things for poor and distressed people.

2- Humility and Kindness describe her character. She never brags about herself... The focus of her words is always towards others.

3- She knows how to make the best of a bad situation. And, we've been through a few these past couple of years.

4- She is beautiful in many ways (this is where she would want me to focus on her spiritual beauty! So, I will...). She reads, prays and lives the gospel of Jesus Christ every day. And, it has really been an inspiration to us all. As a side note, she does have the most incredible blue eyes :)...

5- Her favorite activity is being a mother. I'm personally glad that she has chosen to stay at home. Not just because she's a much better cook than I, but because having her home really makes our house a "home".

6- She knows how to have fun. And reminds us all to "Turn off the TV and read a good book" more often...

7- Recently, she's helped us all to remember the importance of the Temple. She's set a goal for us to try and attend once a week. I hope we can do it...

So, thanks Heather/Mom for all you have done for our family! We love you very much...

Love,

John, Allison, Rebecca, Tommy (and Matthew)

'Tis the season for.... babies!

Our family has been blessed, blessed, blessed with so many babies this last week! These are my two new little nieces, Mataya and Jane. Mataya was born on June 4 and is my sister Lindsay's baby. Little Jane below was born June 8 and belongs to John's sister, Mary. We love them so much! We also both had cousins that had babies on the 8th and the 9th of June. Welcome to all these little sweet ones! Congratulations to their families!

The President's Club

So, I realized that I brag on my children a lot on this blog, and John misses out a little bit. He will probably make me delete this when he sees it, so hopefully many will see it before then!

As most of you know, John started a new job at the end of February and he sells commercial cleaning/ janitorial accounts for a company called Jan-Pro. They are currently the #1 growing franchise in America right now! No matter how the economy is, people still need their buildings cleaned! So, John is doing great at it and has had experience in the field. It wasn't his first choice for a job, but this one quickly fell into place for us. We had our own cleaning franchise a few years ago and had chalked up the experience to a big waste of time and money. But, what the Lord tells us is true, all things (especially the hard things) are for our experience and our good! What I'm leading up to is that Jan-Pro released their 2nd quarter sales numbers last week and John was #12 among about 250 sales people! He's in their "President's Club" and is the first one from the Salt Lake Jan-Pro to be in the top twenty- way to go, John! What's in future for him? He's looking to start his MBA soon, and eventually get a Doctorate degree so he can teach business at the college level. We'll just be cheering him on!

Say it isn't so!

So, my daughters brought back these certificates from school and the principal there is telling me that Allison is being advanced to the 6th grade and Rebecca has advanced to the 4th grade. WHAT? How can it be true? These numbers seem unreal to me. Does every mother go through denial at the end of the school year?