Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Here's an "update email" I just sent my grandparents. Some of it's probably repeat info, since I don't think my grandparents check the blog, but hopefully there's something new in there. I just figured, I need to update the blog, I just spent an hour writing this email, so I'll kill two birds with one stone. You can call me lazy, I'm sure I deserve it! ;)

We're busy, but happy and (mostly) healthy. Adam's got a little bit of a cough that kept him home from church yesterday and kept us up the past couple of nights, but he seems to be feeling better today. We're pretty much snowed in today, though - we've got about 5" of new snow, and 9 or 10" total from this storm combined with the previous storm that never totally melted, and since we don't have anywhere to go, we're sticking around here today. I'm glad it hit today - Jared is leaving for San Diego tomorrow evening, and when he was in Mexico a couple of weeks ago, we got a huge snowstorm while he was gone, and I had to shovel the driveway so we could get out. That was hard work! My neighbor's husband was also out of town, and she has a new baby, so I shoveled her drive for her, as well, and I was sore for several days after! Hopefully this is it, and it stays clear for the few days Jared's gone (he arrives home Thursday night).

I have to say, I'm a little jealous of Jared's trip to warm, sunny San Diego. His company recently made some structural changes and his company was basically dissolved and reabsorbed into their parent company. Jared had been doing a lot of work on one of the parent company's other side projects, though, and was offered to work with them rather than going back with the parent company (confusing enough for you?). He spent all last week thinking about it and talking to the bosses of the two entities, and decided he's going with the smaller company (called Localeze) that he's been doing most of the programming for. It was kind of a tough decision, because the parent company is very stable and extremely profitable. They're really doing well. However, Jared (and the bosses) think this smaller company he's going with is really going to take off. It also gives him more potential to move up than he had with his previous company. The nice thing is that this 'startup' company he's going with is still basically under the wing of the parent company, so should anything happen, he can still go back and work with the parent company. As his boss put it, he's in a position to get all of the rewards from a startup, without the risk. For now, he's basically doing the same job he's been doing all along, in the same office and everything. He has to travel to San Diego every now and then (this is his second trip in 6 weeks), since about half of the company's employees are located there, and the other half are here in Orem. Jared said it's likely we could transfer to San Diego if we wanted to (he should know better than to ask me that on a snow day!), but we really don't need to. The only time that would come up as a necessity would be if the parent company sells off the smaller company. We don't expect that to be for several more years in the future, at least, so for now, things are pretty much the same. Jared says the best part of it all is that it's much easier to explain what this newer company does. I asked him what they do, and he said: we help a business be found online, and we help customers find a business online. He's pretty excited for the new opportunity.

I've just been trying to keep up with the kids and the housework, squeezing in visits with friends and reading books wherever I can! I was released from my Sunbeams calling at the beginning of the year and, while I miss the kids and being in Primary, it is nice to be able to attend Relief Society and Sunday School, and get to know some of the other adults in the ward. I've been in Primary most of our married life, so it's a little bit different, but I've been enjoying it. They haven't called me to anything new yet, but I've been assured that won't last for long! I've been enjoying the slower pace of January after a somewhat crazy December. We had all of our family here, of course, with Julie and her family up, and James home, and all of Jared's family was also here. We spent a lot of time with both sides of the family, which we were really thankful for, but not much time at home! I'm making up for that, I think - between the snowstorms and Jared's trips, and the cold, I've been quite the homebody.

Audrey's doing great - she's still enjoying preschool, for the most part, though I often have to coax her quite a bit to get her going in the mornings (I know I deserve it - I was terrible about getting up for school in the mornings!). She's still into princesses/dressups/Barbies, etc. She also really enjoys drawing, coloring, and getting out messy art projects. I've been watching Food Network lately, and both of the kids love Rachael Ray. Audrey loves to get various ingredients out of the pantry, grab a few interesting utensils from the drawer, and mix it all up in her own version of a cooking show. It's fun to watch, but kind of a mess to clean up! Though she still prefers dresses, she has finally agreed to wear jeans on the really colddays. For the last two or three years, it's been dresses only (I knowI had that one coming to me, too!). I actually had to go out and buy afew pairs of jeans since none of the ones I had for her fit. It's really fun to see the world through her eyes. The other day, we were in the car and saw a herd of 6 or 8 deer in a neighbor's yard. She said, 'Uh oh, Mom, I see some deer traffic!' She's becoming quite social and most days ask me who we can have over to play with her. It's kind of a tough year for her, as most of her friends from church started Kindergarten this year and are gone every day - most of them in the afternoons. Audrey goes to preschool 3 days a week, and is gone in the mornings, so we've had to start playing with some new friends that coordinate better with her schedule. She and Adam are also great playmates, and seem to enjoy each other (when they're not fighting!).

Adam is a bundle of energy! The other day, I was talking to my dad and he asked if Adam had been a good boy - well, aside from dumping his cup of milk, pouring out a Costco-sized bag of Craisins (to use as loads for his dump trucks), poking his fingers into all 8 of the mini-loaves of banana bread I made, and squeezing toothpaste all over the carpet - yeah, he was great! That's a fairly typical day, unfortunately. I've really got to keep him busy and stay a step ahead of him or we're in trouble. He absolutely loves trucks, especially those of the construction variety (big dump trucks, backhoes, cranes, etc.). He's recently become particular about his clothing, insisting that his shirt has to have a truck on it. We've got about 4 truck shirts, so I've got to keep on top of the laundry! He loves letters and points them out any chance he gets. He also loves to count. A few weeks ago, I put him down for his nap and went back to check on him a little while later. He was still awake, just laying there in bed, counting his fingers. He doesn't seem to be too interested in potty-training yet. A few days ago, my mom was changing his diaper and asked him if he wanted to start using the potty. He told her, 'No, I love diapers! I asked Santa Claus for diapers!' (He actually asked Santa for a truck, but I guess he's forgotten). In most things, he's really quite agreeable (for a 2-year-old), and the majority of my requests are met with a sing-song 'Okay!' He does have occasional tantrums, but I think I paid most of my dues during his fussy newborn days and aggressive early toddler days. He's in a 'big-boy' bed now, and only naps about 1/2 the time. If he does take a nap, he's up until 10 pm or so, but if he doesn't, he falls asleep over dinner around 6:30. He's learning and growing and changing so fast, I can hardly believe it!