callings

Surprise, surprise. I don't have a calling right now. Although, yesterday at stake conference the first counselor in my ward's bishopric shook my hand and said, "Has the bishop talked to you yet?" I answered no and he responded with, "Oh, well, we've got you on our radar." So, one can take that anyway one wishes. Who knows, maybe something is in the air.

P.S. Those pictures are absolutely darling. I love the look on Mercy's face. It's like she's saying, "Fine, I'll sit here, but I'm not sure why."

Happy Halloween!

Callings

I'm actually really enjoying my callings right now. I have two: Enrichement Committee member and Neighborhood Leader (which just means I'm on the activities committee). I've never really been a big fan of ward activities and this calling is definitely giving me more perspective. Every month that there's not a ward activity, Tyler and I plan a smaller activity for the people in our "neighborhood" (our building). There are 12 couple and a few children in our neighborhood, so we have fun. However, our last activity didn't work out. One person showed up for it.

And as for Enrichment, this month, we're planning a service auction. It should be really fun and I hope everything works out right for it. So, I'm really enjoying my callings.

Nursery

Three years ago, the calling I least wanted--the calling I feared the most--was nursery leader. I would have rather been a Cub Scout leader (also a calling which scared me) than a nursery leader.

It's funny what two kids and a couple of years do to your point of view. I spent the second and third hour of church today in the nursery (one of our nursery leaders rarely shows up, and the other had a sick kid today, and we still haven't gotten a couple called to take up the other two spots), and I had a BLAST. I really did. We played with toys, we sang songs, we ate snacks, we played ring-a-round-a-rosy, and we colored. There were six kids, and two leaders, and it was really, really fun. I could totally dig that calling.

But I really love my calling right now, too--second counselor in the Primary Presidency. It is SO fun, and really different than anything I've ever done before. I have a question for everyone--what is your calling right now? I used to know what a lot of the callings were, and now I know...um...Mema and Daddy's. And Brad's. I think that's all I know right now. So speak up!

Videos

I just uploaded a couple of videos of Ezra on his second birthday to our web server. If you want to view them you'll need the most recent version of QuickTime installed. You will find links to the videos and to install QuickTime on our webpage. If any of you would like us to host small videos for you, just let us know.

question of the week

This is probably one of the hardest questions I could have been ask. I have 100's of children's books because I love them. At first, I was unsure how to respond, because I have to admit, I have different favorites for different moods. For example, when I am thinking about my family, my favorite book is All the Places to Love, by Patricia MacLachlan or The Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann Hoberman. But I am feeling in a more comical mood I love Piggie Pie by Margie Palatini or The Secret Knowledge of Grown-ups by David Wisniewski. After reading Telima’s entry, I started thinking about a children book I can remember from my childhood, not something I have found as an adult. I remember all the books already listed, even Zeralda’s Orge. I did my first lesson, way back before I was actually in the El Ed program, on Where the Wild Things Are and the first children’s book I actually bought on my own was Heckedy Peg. But, there are two books I remember from way far back in my childhood. They are Little Bear, who loved his mother and whose mother loved him (that what I remember the most about that book) and Tikki Tikki Tembo, Arlene Mosel which I vividly remember checking out of the library numerous times either by Mom or by myself.I brought my copy in Hawaii. Hence other memories.

Re: Question of the Week

Okay, my favorite childhood book was...hard to say. I seem to remember really liking a book called Mouse Soup, but I don't remember what it was about, so it must not have had too much of an impact of me. I think that probably I'd have to say that Heckedy Peg by Audrey Wood (although I must say that I always thought it was spelled Heggedy). Most of you know that it's about a woman with seven children named Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. They get kidnapped and turned into different foods by a witch named Heckedy Peg while their mother is at the market. When she gets home, she goes to rescue her children. In order for the spell to be broken and the witch not to eat her children, their mother must guess which food is which child and she doesn't even get one mistake. Of course, she guesses which food is which child by what they asked her to bring back from the market for them. They chase the witch out of her house and almost all the way back to their own house. She ends up falling into a stream and is never seen again. It's a great book.

RE: Previous post

"Brought to you by Oreo, GE, and Ford."

Well, brought to you by Cottonwood Wash Tuff, leftover birthday cupcakes, and LaDale's LOTR's CDs, at any rate. And a late night.

Re: Previous post

The previous post has been a late night, deep thought by Keryn. Brought to you by Oreo, GE, and Ford.

All joking aside, well, maybe not all. Sure I can see your point. Weird.

Lamanites and Lord of the Rings

Doesn't this guy look exactly the way you imagine Zerahemnah or Amalickiah would have looked? Yes, he is one of the bad guys riding a mumakil in the battle of Pelennor Fields, but who is to say that a mumakil isn't a curelom or cummonby another name? Hmmmm?

Happy Birthday, Ezra!

Dum-dum-dum-dum! Announcing Ezra's second birthday!

Ezra Owen Ross is the cutest Ross boy that ever there was.

He doesn't love naps (NO-naps! NO-naps!).
He doesn't love bedtime. (Crying: "Goo-nigh, goo-nigh!)

He loves rice krispies ("ay-KAIP-ies!"), cheerios ("doe-does"), and spaghetti.
He loves orange juice and apple juice.
He loves Mercy.
He loves Baby Einstein.
He loves to play outside ("ouu-side?")
Right now he is adorably coloring in his Winnie the Pooh coloring book.

And we love him. Happy birthday Ezra!

I wonder if this will work

It WORKED. I am so excited. I have used the computers on ASU campus to add pictures of my family to the blog. What is more, these pictures were taken with our very own digital camera. Notice the picture with Adam and I. We are standing in from of our new house. Adam and Kip were so excited last time we visited it. OK. I'll talk to you all later.

Cuteness update

Just a little update on the two cutest Ross kids ever!

Mercy has a tooth! Her front right bottom tooth broke out on Saturday, when I discovered it when she chomped down on my thumb. She is two months ahead of Ezra in that respect, but a little behind Ezra in the whole babbling thing. She favors high-pitched screeches, whereas at this age Ezra was saying "da-da-da-da-da-da" and "ba-ba-ba-ba-ba".

And Mercy is crawling. Or, at least, scrunching her whole body forward toward stray Cheerios, Ezra's sippy cup, or anything that makes a crackling noise when smushed in a hand. Nothing is safe from this little girl, not anymore. Ezra isn't very happy, but is learning to adjust to having drool-covered toys.

And Mercy is drinking from a sippy cup. She absolutely refuses to take a bottle, no matter how hard I try. But Saturday morning, after the tooth discovery, I walked into the family room and found her happily sucking away on Ezra's sippy cup. Love that apple juice, she does!

About Ezra--well, he is about the cutest little blond two year old you ever did see. He is learning about "please" and "thank you", and responds to the question, "Who loves you, Ezra?" with "Gaw-MA". Not Momma, or Daddy, or Mercy, but Grandma. It is SO cute.

RE: QOTW

My favorite children's book (at least one of them) is "Zeralda's Ogre" by Tomi Ungerer. This is an old book that I used to check out of the Charleston Heights Library (no longer a library). It is a story about an ogre who eats--yes, eats--little kids. (And I don't mean the goat kind.) You even see a picture of a child in a cage. Very un-PC, I must say. Anyway, Zeralda gets kidnapped by the ogre, but instead of being eaten, she offers to cook for the ogre. She makes the most wonderful, splendid, non-kid meals, and the ogre stops wanting to eat children and just wants to eat whatever Zeralda makes. In the end, all the children are now safe, and Zeralda--get this--marries the ogre and has a family. No, I'm not kidding.

Why did I love this book? I have no idea. I just did.

new question of the week

We've been thinking a lot of how all 4 of us look forward to the day when we can all move into our own home and settle in. This thought reminded me of my favorite children's book. "Where the Wild Things are".

So the new question of the week is
What is your favorite children's book?

Mine is "Where the Wild Things are". No matter how many adventures you have in life and how much fun you can have and new friends to make and being known as the most wild thing of all and having wild things at your command. Home just always feels better.

RE: Pictures

Hey, Samuel, happy anniversary (early), but why were we supposed to check our email? Did you send us some awesome pictures? Because my email box is distressing empty of any and all adorable pictures of cute Tobler and Roy children.

Pictures from our camera

So here is the message to check your email if you see this first. I gave Caren a digital camera for our anniversery. We did open our gifts a little early. Caren gave me the Harry Potter Scene It game. We love you all.

P.S. The smell of an oderless powder is always in my memory. Every time I don't smell anything my mind is triggered of the memory of iocane powder. ;-)

RE: QOTW

First, how is the smell of iocane powder memorable, which as stated by Samuel is oderless? Just wondering...=)

Second, my most memorable smell....well, I have a few, but most of mine have already been said, including Grandma's house, spaghetti sauce on Fast Sundays, rain, and pine trees...in other words, everything that everyone has already said (except for the exhaust). So, I have decided on coconut shampoo as my most (well, almost most) memorable smell. Everytime I smell coconut shampoo, I think of my last year of Girls' Camp, when Brittanie, Audrei and I would wash our hair every day in the cold water from the spigot. We called them our "coconut parties." So, that's my most memorable smell after everything else was already taken. I need to answer these things more quickly so I have more of a choice of answers. =)

The stay-at-home-geologist

So this week was the annual meeting of the Geological Society of America. In even years the meeting is held in Denver, in odd years it is held in cities around the country (Reno, Boston, Philadelphia). This year it was held in Salt Lake City, at the Salt Palace (convention center; not to be confused with Saltair, the old dance hall on the Great Salt Lake. Am I the only one who gets these confused?). Dr. Christiansen thought it would be a good idea if I went, and thanks to the generosity of my sister-in-law Kim (she lives in South Jordan) and my wonderful sister Telima, I was able to drop the kids off and go!

As far as the science goes, it was fabulous. I went to the igneous petrology sessions, the Snake River Plain/Yellowstone hotspot sessions, the Mt. St. Helens sessions, the volcanology session (of course); off topic of my favorite subject but still fascinating, I went to the Katrina/Rita sessions, introductory geology teaching sessions, some talks on Mars and Saturn, and an interesting talk on Lake Bonneville spit emplacement and the location of the Pleistocene jetstream. (Didn't know anyone cared, did you? Oh, you don't care about the Pleistocene jetstream? Sorry.)

On the non-scientific side, it was still fabulous. I haven't been without the kids for more than a few hours since Ezra was born (excluding Girls Camp, and as anyone can tell you, that's just exchanging one set of troubles for another), and, while I did have to run back to Kim's during the lunch break so I could nurse Mercy, it was very...liberating. I remembered that I was not only a mom, but a geologist with opinions and insights that some people might actually find interesting! And it is fun to wander around the exhibit hall and look at things without wondering if Ezra or Mercy are going to reach out and grab something that shouldn't be grabbed by drooly, messy fingers.

That said, I'm glad to be back to a more normal, regular routine, and to get to spend quantity and quality time with my kiddos. I wouldn't give up my kids for anything, and I wouldn't want to have to compartmentalize my time with them the way many working moms must. So I enjoyed my adventure at the Salt Palace, and am enjoying being at home again too!

I'm back!

Sorry for the long absence from the Chateau! I thought I'd better catch up on the questions of the week, first.

Where would I live, if I could live anywhere?

Well, if anywhere would automatically be safe, and someone would invent a transporter beam like in Star Trek, then I would live in Jerusalem for a couple of years. But we might do that anyway, so long as it stays safe, even without the transporter beam. If someone would invent the beam, but everything wasn't automatically safe, I would live in Waimea, Hawai'i. It's on the Big Island, but on one of the older volcanoes that are extinct, and it's not on the beach (so fewer of the monster cockroaches), but pretty high up, so it's cooler in weather. It's a smallish town, but close to Hilo and to the active volcanoes (of course, anywhere on the island is close to anywhere else). It's SO green, but not the tropical green, but a softer, mistier green. It's a great place.

But without the transporter beam, I pretty much don't care as long as it is fairly close to my family. Everyone within a day's drive, yay! I love Spanish Fork, too, so this works for me!

Okay, about the smell: Caren took the first thing I thought of, which is rain; and of course my second response was going to be iocane powder, so thanks to Samuel I had to go to my third most memorable smell--Christmas tree and fireplace smoke. If I smell just the right kind of pine tree (and I don't know why some are right and some aren't), then I instantly think of Christmas, and I just feel happy. Add to that fireplace smoke...wow. Christmas is coming, everyone! I am so excited!

secret agent

It's like having a secret agent in the house. I doubt the conversation between Benjamin and Heather would have happened in front of their mother. Yet, there was have it, a couple of brokers discussing a deal right before their secret agent of an aunt. Thanks Caren for sharing. It's part of what makes this blog so much fun!!! I, on the other hand, am gearing up for a twelve hours drive to Vegas. It's a beautiful trip, but a touch long. Oh, for the love of airplanes.
Let me also quickly add my smell to the list of others. Grandma Tobler's house. I certainly can't pinpoint the smell and the smell that I remember from my childhood, did not follow my Grandma to her new place next door to mom and dad. But I remember that Grandma's house had that unique smell that was not found anywhere else and that I always associated with Grandma and not Grandpa even though he lived there as well. Sometimes I still catch the scent, especially when Grandma bakes roast. Which brings me to taste- because for whatever reason, Grandma's food always had a unique taste as well, very good, of course, but unique!!!!

Gas and Tooth prices are on the rise

this morning i overheard Benjamin and Heather scheming on a way to earn money to buy Heather this toy in this catalog. The only way they could see earning the money is if Heather could start losing teeth. Apparently the tooth fairy has made payroll adjustments to match inflation and gas prices almost. These guys get two dollars a tooth from the tooth fairy. The next generation is movin' on up. I remember getting 50 cents a tooth back when i was little. I didn't have the heart to tell here about the added cost of shipping and handling as well as tax. {All of Heather's teeth will have to go EVEN AT TWO DOLLARS A PIECE.}

Re: Question of the Week

Well, after much soul searching, I would have to say the smell of exhaust. No, not he most pleasurable, but definatly the most memorable. I doubt that many of you know but I started working for my dad when I was 14 (a little while after I met Telima). That makes almost five years in the tow trucks before my mission and a summer in a pick-up since then. So that would be it, ahh the smell of burning gas...well actually it is more the deisel burning smell but I might be the only one who can appreciate the difference.

so little lillian

so the baby was brought home today and i was comparing my 6 month old to Jen's new born.
I said to her "my baby could eat your baby"! and she said "yeah, all in one gulp"
She's a cutie!

Re: QOTW

So here is my favorite smell:
The smell of iocane powder. Yes, that colorless, oderless, powder that desolves instantly in liquid, used by thieves from Australia. That being the place that I smelled this wonderful powder. ;)

On to other, more pleasant smells. I love the smell of spaghetti sauce when I walk in the door from church on a fast Sunday. That smell is quite possibly one the most memorable smells of my growing up life. Love you all tons.

new question of the week

i know you all are just hanging on the edge of your seats asking yourselves," what will she ask next?" {he, he, he, just kiddin'}
Thinking back to childhood and everything else, and how certain smells are associated with certain things, for example: the smell of vanilla in the house, would usually mean chocolate chip cookies were in the oven. {an excellent smell, i might add, as of course i'm sure a lot of you might agree.}

My question of the week is what is your most memorable smell?

My answer is going to be rain in the air, especially, right before it starts raining and you smell that smell and you just know that it's going to rain soon. I remember always looking forward to rainy days because of that smell. Yes i'm completely odd.
have fun with your answers.

Re: QOTW

Actually, at this point in my life, how could I pick any other place the where I am right now. It is true that there are many places that I would love to visit, even visit for an extended length of time. It would be wonderful to return to my mission area, the south of France for a few months, maybe even a year, but no longer. I knew that even as a missionary, I mean that I wouldn't want to live there permanently. But if you stay for a few months, you really get to know a place, unlike a few days where one only scratches the surface of a place. But, I have to admit, right now I am loving Colorado. Colorado Springs, even, although I wouldn't mind a place a little more out of the way, where I would need that four wheel drive to make it up the mountain pass. But that dream will have to wait, because first I need that silly, illusive man who seems to be missing from my life. I suppose that first I will need to search the world over to find him, then settle down in my (opps- our) cabin nestled in the pines and aspens. Well, there you have it, some mountains in the Colorado wilderness with snow and a roaring fire and such!!!!
P.s. You can't see the cabin in the picture but it will be there, of course, this is only assuming the Air Force Academy will sell me the property as that is where this picture was taken.
LaDale

QOTW

I know, I know, I've never answered a question before, but no time like the present, right? If I could live anywhere, where would I live? hmmm...I don't know that I'd want to live here for long, but I think it would be so fun to live in the Caribbean. The water is so clear there that I've heard you can see for miles into the ocean (well, I don't know about miles, but a really long way, nonetheless). The weather is warm and water is warm (I'm all about warm weather, but I don't like the heat so much). The only thing about it that I wouldn't necessarily like is the hurricanes. I'm not a big fan of those. But other than that, I think it would be really fun.

If not there, then pretty much anywhere that Tyler is. He'd like to live in Guatemala, I'm sure. He really misses it there. Anyway, that's my answer: the Caribbean.

News and Updates

Hey everyone! I wanted to write to you all and let you know something that Tyler and I decided recently. We are going to Arizona for Christmas this year! Our original plan was to spend Christmas with Tyler's family, but when we heard that even Keryn and her family were headed that direction, we decided that we probably should too. So, we're going!

Also, just a quick update on Tyler and me. Tyler's keeping busy with school and work. He got an offer to TA a class that he took last semester which he loved, but after studying the options, he decided it would be best to stay where he is. The TA position would not be a permanent thing, he would have to reapply every semester and the pay isn't as good. So, even though it would be great experience and look great on a resume, he decided to stick with his current job for now. We're thinking that maybe his Senior year he'll apply for a TA job so that he can get the experience that it provides. As for me, well, I'm still looking for a job. It's really hard. I've been trying everywhere and yet, still nothing. But we're hoping. Anyway, that's us. I love you all!

Here are the other pictures of Arabella that I couldn't get on before. I forgot my camera last weekend and I will have to wait until Jenafer emails those to put them on the blog.

October 10, 2005

It's october 10, 2005, and 5:30 in the morning. I awake in the basement and wonder why I have not heard Nathan and Mariah leaving for seminary. But I don't worry about it because they have never failed before. I wake again later a little worried because I had heard absolutely nothing and I always have heard something. I snuck upstairs and there was a backpack, then another one and no cereal bowls in the sink. But the reason was soon apparent once I glanced out the window. White, white, white and it's not even the middle of October yet!!! According to the weather report we will be back in the 60's by Friday. Can you believe it??? Yeah!!!! Behold- SNOW!!!!!!
LaDale

new question of the week

when thinking of home and everything. My home is wherever samuel is {kids obviously being with us, til' they become of age and move out, serve missions, etc,}. When it comes to Samuel i think of the scripture in Ruth chapter 1 verse 16. To paraphrase Ruth is telling Naomi she will go wherever Naomi does and be there for her.
Obviously, home has been a lot on our minds, waiting for our new home to be built.

My question of the week is, if you could live anywhere. {with your spouses of course and anywhere you went was your particular job friendly and affordable to live}, where would you live?
{not limited to just the united states either}
Mine would be a toss up really and of course biased by missions served. I liked texas, i loved living there, i loved the people and of course the accents some had. Plus everything is big in Texas! I did not like the barbeque sauce with brisquette. That was gross! But yes Texas is do-able for me. My other would be Australia, for that i'd have to visit first, but it would be wonderful, to see what my husband enjoyed for 2 years. There you have it Texas and Australia.

Knock, knock, knock

G'Day family,

Let me tell you of an opportunity that just knocked on my door this week. It all started about 2 weeks ago at a free dinner to the new graduate student in the physics department. Faculty were invited to this dinner to meet the new grad students. I went, of course, for the food. I was not expecting anything because I am already doing research this semester with several subatomic professors. I met several people and ate some good food. Then I went home to talk to my wife. (She was still in Vegas at this time.)

Then it happened. Last week on Thursday, I recieved an email from one of the professors I met at the free dinner event. He expressed that he was looking for a new grad student to join his group and was interested in me. He informed me to go talk to him during the next few days. This particular Thursday was the same day I took my first test and was traveling to Vegas to spend time with my family. I went to his office and arranged to meet with him the Tuesday after my return.

Then came Tuesday, this being a few days ago. I met with him and we talked about the research he was working on. As a minor note, he is working on Silicon nanowires, or REALLY small wires. We even went to his lab and took a little look around. During the discussion he mentioned that there was a possibility of becoming a research assistent starting as early as next semester. He made it clear that this was not an offer but could turn into one. I said great and I would love to do a little here and there to become more familiar with his research.

Then yesterday, Thursday, came. I was checking my email right before going home and I found another email from this professor. He made the official offer the do research starting next semester. This means I will not be required to TA for physics classes to get paid. I went and talked to him today to confirm the offer and say that I was interested in the offer. This offer will be treated as a trial run with nothing long lasting beyond the semester. If it does turn into the research that I will do my discertation on then great.

Useful things that I was not aware of that will come with this offer. This professor has great connections with IBM research and at a national lab. If this does turn into the research I will do then these could become future jobs.

Needless to say, Caren and I are happy and excited about this. I just wanted to share this news with those in my family.

Re: Suicidal crickets

I laughed so hard at this story that I cried. Poor little cricket. Maybe he thought you needed the extra protein.

Our state bird is a regurgitating seagull! (Sorry, the crickets made me think of that!)

Suicidal crickets are offensive to me and make me want to throw up

i'm making tacos for dinner tonight. i started out with completely clean dishes . i cooked the hamburger and got the collander {strainer what ever you call it}. it was clean too. I drained the meat put it back in the pan and turned around and put the collander in the dishwasher. next thing i know jen pointed out that there was a dead cricket in my pan with my meat. The nerve!!!! It wasn't there, when i cooked or drained the meat The cricket probably just jumped off the ledge and said "i can't live anymore!". I wanted to YACK!!! I threw the offensive meat away. {it was only half of a pound thank goodness. Washed the dishes and started again. Ick!!!!} The nerve. Jen and i were debating if it had been one of our husbands doing the cooking. What honestly would they have done. {shrugs} who knows and maybe i don't want to know.

Yay for the 100th post!

LaDale, with her "Oh, the weather outside indeed!" post wins our prize (a right-smart pat on the back and warm, happy feeling). Samuel is runner-up with the 101th post (your prize is a warm, happy feeling, but sorry, no pat on the back). Hard to believe we are already 100+ posts in!

Couple of questions: Jen, how are you doing? Caren, how's living in Phoenix? LaDale, is it raining in Colorado Springs today?

And a bit of bad news for all those who have natural gas powered appliances (is that just me?): Natural gas home-use rates are slated to rise 80% from last winter. Ouch. Looks like the kids and I will bundle up a lot this winter!

Re: leaf and DVD

I am making a wild stab in the dark but it kind of looks like a maple leaf. But I always think of Canada (eh) when I think of maple leaves.

And yes, the DVD player made the trip tons easier. Kip slept nearly the entire way, no thanks to the DVD player. Adam watched 2.5 movies without a fuss other then for a drink and food. The .5 was when he complained he was tired and we turned off the movie. He was asleep in a few seconds, or so it seemed. The DVD player is one with a screen and it came with a second screen. Caren kept the base with her in the front seat and we strapped the extra screen behind her seat so Adam could watch. He loved it. Until later.

Oh, the weather outside, indeed!

I wanted to post a few of the pictures I got on a hike this week. Of course, no picture can really capture what I saw, at least not one of my pictures. The one in the top corner hardly does justice to the true scene. It is of yellow aspen leaves but a camera can not capture the true beauty of an aspen which is it's enthusiastic wave. I love the way aspen's wave, fluttering to and fro, whether they be the yellow of fall or the silver green of spring, I love their greeting to the wind. They truly dance unlike any other leaf I've encountered. When I watch them, I think of a flag about to be torn away from it's pole during a fierce gale. However, it doesn't take a strong wind to whip the aspen's leaves around. Even in the gentlest of breezes, they quiver like they will fly away at any moment. They give the impression of madly clinging, yet their grip is true. They are holding on to dear life. And when they do finally release their hold upon the tree, they tend to flicker, over and under, over and under, as they descend to earth. Do you know, they move that way because their stems are flat instead of round like most leaves? Check it out the next time you are near an aspen tree. Next to the aspen picture is, of course, an aspen leaf upon a pine tree (which is my second most favorite tree, because, guess what? I'm not allergic to them!!!!). On the bottom, you find other colors of fall, although, again, the camera could not capture the true colors and these pictures look worn out and bland compared to what I remember seeing. P.S. If anyone can identify the leaf in the bottom right hand picture wins a prize.
Love you all!!!
LaDale

"Oh, the weather outside..."

...Is equal parts frightful and delightful, in my opinion. No, it's not snowing (that would be cause for much excitement in the Ross home), but it is raining, pouring, and COLD. It's frightful because it certainly puts a damper on any outside activities ("Mama, 'side? 'Side?"), and because I'm resisting turning the furnace on, on account of high gas prices (the horror of $150+ gas bills is looming). On the other hand, it's AUTUMN!!!!!! I bought some Indian corn and some gourds at the Farmer's Market on Saturday, the leaves are changing colors, people are using their fireplaces again...yay! I adore this time of year!

RE: The life of my siblings

So, Samuel, is this DVD player one with a little TV? And did it make your trip like 600% easier?

RE: The problem

I have had the exact same problem! So, who is this big cheese...oh, wait. That probably would be me.

I actually have an answer. The problem most likely lies with our website host. Because we didn't want this blog to be public, and because Brad and I already have a website, we chose to host the blog on lavalane.org. ArisHost is the name of the company that hosts our website, for something like $30.00 a year, which is dirt cheap. They've been great for the basics, but for the more complicated stuff...like publishing a blog...they are not so hot. But we already paid our bill in April. Next April we are going to move to a better web hosting company (as yet unknown), but until then...we just have to suffer through it. Just to let you know, I think everyone now has told me they have had the same troubles, so it's not your computer or your connection. Sorry!

I have had the same problem

Samuel, I have had the same problem but I have no idea how to fix it. That will have to come from the BIG Cheese of this family, the creator of this blog, the (hey, the spell check is back on!?!?) all knowing of blog woman, the, okay enough!!!.

Publishing this blog

OK. Random comment. When ever I try to publish a post on the blog it takes forever and in the end I usually have to stop the publishing and do it again. The second time it publishes extremely quickly. Does this happen to anyone else? I would think it has to do with the computer I am using but it always does this. WHY???? So there you go. Random thought: by Samuel

The life of my siblings

I enjoyed reading about what was going on in LaDale's life. It was a great break from homework or grading. I enjoy reading about the lives of my siblings. Especially those who live farther then 1 hour away. But life goes on.

I have joy in my heart. Adam had a great birthday. We got Jen and Jeff's around 10:30pm Sunday night. Kip had a rough time sleeping at Jen's because he slept nearly the entire way of the trip. Adam loved the DVD player we got with him in mind. Caren and I are extremely happy to be together. Caren, of course, is excited to see the work done on our house. All in all, life is good for the Samuel and Caren Tobler family. Peace out my siblings.

Favorite General Authority

C. Scott Grow

I love it when people's names are a complete sentence.

spell check

Okay, I am sure you have already picked out the spelling errors, but I have noticed that for some reason the spell check is not working right now. Sorry! But look at it this way. It will increase your brain's inner working to have to puzzle over what word I meant to write. Think, context clues.

my life at the moment

I really hope that you all don't mind reading about my life. One thing about living alons is that there isn't anyone simply around to talk to on a normal basis. Don't get me wrong, I know I can call you anytime and I have tons of friends around here, but everyone, all the friends and all of you, have families, most with little ones and sometimes it is not appropriate. That's what I love about this blog and what I love about my family. I can just talk on here and, well, if you don't want to read it, don't, but don't tell me. Just smile and say,"Uh, huh," every once and a while so I think you're paying attention.
This week I went with a couple of friends from my old ward on a hike on the Air Force Academy grounds. One of the sisters lives there or we wouldn't have been allowed, but it was gorgious. The leaves are really starting to change in the higher elevations. We are going out again next week to see the aspens, which are among some of my favorite trees, especially in the fall. Yeah, fall. If I get some good pictures, I'll post some. I took some pictures this last time, but I am still working on learning the best use of my camera and these last ones weren't too good.
I spent this weekend babysitting at another friends house, again from the old ward. They have three girls at home, a 15 year old, an 11 year old and a 6 year old. The 15 year old was around much, having had play practice until late Friday night and a slumber party Saturday night, so it was mostly the younger two and myself. They were actually very good, although there were times I had to lay down the law!!!. Interesting enough, I slept in a bedroom that could house my entire apartment within it's four walls and that is not counting the bathroom or closet. It was simply huge. And the bathroom was so white, I was afraid I would stain the counter top putting on my makeup. It was a beautiful house, but noy my style. I can't imagine cleaning it!?!?! The girls were good about letting me watch conference. There were only a few talks I missed and then only part of them. At one point, I returned to Elder Faust talk to hear him say, "Number seven," and realized I'd missed one through six. Good thing I will get the Ensign, not to mention finding them on-line before that. (I know, I know, for those of you with children, I am sure that you missed much more than that for good reason, but I just into it with two kids this time and couldn't work up to it with a little one). Actually, I watched more than I thought I would be able and not knowing what their parents usually had them watch, I had the girls come in for each of President Hinckley's talks, which is actually three different talks, if you think about it.
I am home again and am hearing in the background, "There's no place like home," not to mention my own bed and no dog who seems to think I love him. I couldn't go anywhere without Buddy. He was constantly trying to sit with me and most of the time succeeded, although he didn't sleep on the bed with me, he slept under the frame, exactly under my head, which means that when he's having a bad dream, I hear all about it. (Did you know dog's have dreams and whine and bark in their sleep?) I didn't until now, although it took me many long mintues at 2 a.m. this morning to figure out what had awakened me and even longer for my heart to calm back down.
Anyway, this is a few of the highlights for my week!!! I am looking forward to the week to come!! Can you believe it is already October???
Happy belated birthday, Adam!!
I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!
LaDale

Happy Birthday, Adam!

Guess who is TWO today? Adam Tobler, stellar oldest son of Samuel. I don't really know all his likes and dislikes, but I would venture to guess that he doesn't like being told "no", and that he really loves Momma, Daddy, Kip, Grandma, and Grandpa! Happy birthday, Adam! Love, Ezra, Mercy, and the rest of the Ross clan.