Grandpa Reynolds

I had this cute picture of Katelee and Grandpa Reynolds that I never got around to posting when they were here. After traveling to Nauvoo, they came back and helped us pack some boxes for a few days. It was wonderful to have them here. They were able to go and watch some of Katelee's swimming lessons and spend some quality time with her. One afternoon Katelee was sitting doing puzzles when I looked over to find Grandpa had quietly joined in. I snapped this sweet picture. We love Grandma and Grandpa Reynolds!

A Summer of Reading

If I had to choose only five words to describe me, one of them would have to be 'reader.'

I have always been a reader. I love and devour books. My life feels empty without a good book within reach.

Although I'm always reading something, the quality of my reading material goes in spurts. Sometimes I go long stretches without finding a book I really love. But this summer has been a lovely summer of reading! I have been very lucky to read one amazing book after the other (thanks in large part to the wonderful reading lists of my sister and my friend, Lisa).

So, if you are looking for something good to read, here is my

Top 10 List of best books (or series) I've read this summer

(in no particular order):

1. The Books of Bayern by Shannon Hale

These books have definitely made my 'must-buy-because-I'll-read-over-and-over' list. I LOVE this series, which includes: The Goose Girl, Enna Burning, River Secrets, and Forest Born. I had read the first two books in the past, but discovered the last two this summer. So, of course I read the whole series again. It's beautifully written, full of wonderful characters and a rich story line, and these books are very clean without seeming juvenile. I highly recommend these books to any reader!

2. The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

A story of a young girl living in Germany before and during WWII. This book took me a little while to get into, but about halfway through I couldn't stop reading and thinking about it. It's a very thought-provoking and haunting story; I think my favorite thing about the book is that it is told from the point of view of Death. Sounds gruesome, but isn't so much. The point (as I see it) is that humans can be much, much more terrible than Death, and Death can be rather humane.

3. The Last Lecture by Randy PauschVery inspirational. The last words of a young professor dying of cancer. Very real and beautifully written, this book will definitely make you think!

4. The Smile by Donna Jo Napoli

A historical fiction novel, this book tells the story of the girl who becomes the model for DaVinci's Mona Lisa. A love story. I especially loved learning about the turbulent history of Florence during the Renaissance.

5. The Luxe Novels by Anna Godbersen

There are four books in this series: Luxe, Rumors, Envy and Splendor. These books were so fun to read; I had a hard time putting them down. But take note, they are really for entertainment purposes only. ;) They really have no other redeeming quality but that they are oh, so fun to read! They follow the lives of New York City's top-class young socialites. I recommend reading all four, if you're interested, because they get better throughout the series.

6. Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction by David Sheff

Wow. An amazingly honest book. This real-life memoir is written by a father whose son struggles with an addicted to meth. He tells the story of his son's birth, childhood, teenage and adult years. I thought this book was both inspirational and heartbreaking. Full of information, it opened my eyes more to the power of addictions and made me very grateful for the atonement.

7. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

This novel is a historical fiction retelling of the story of Dinah from Genesis. I will say now that I don't think the author's interpretation of the story is exactly correct. However, I still loved this book for its historical and cultural information about the family of Jacob, and because it really made me think about the biblical characters as real people and decide for myself what I think is true concerning their lives. And because it was simply fascinating to read.

8. Gallagher Girls Series by Ally Carter

I stumbled on this series by accident, but I think it's completely charming! These books are definitely written for the junior high/high school age range, so if you're not a fan of YA lit, you might find yourself rolling your eyes at these books. But personally, I found them very entertaining, clean, fun, and creative. The basic premise is that there is a secret school used to train genius girls to become future spies for the U.S. Government. The girls in these books are brilliant at what they do, but they are still teenage girls. :) There are apparently four books in this series, but I've only read the first two: I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You and Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy.

9. The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Set in Mississippi in the 1960's, this is a great story about the racial tensions that existed at the time of the Civil Rights Movement, about those brave enough to cross the boundaries. I loved the characters in this book and couldn't stop thinking about them.

10. Graceling and Fire by Kristin Cashore

Okay, so these books are not exactly a series. They are both set in the same land, but not the same time period. These are definitely fantasy/sci-fi books, which I used to think I didn't like but am learning I love if well written, as these definitely are. I loved the characters and the plot of these novels, and didn't want to put them down!

Oh, and even though I didn't read them technically this past summer, I recently read and loved The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger and The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.

So, what about you? Have you read anything good lately? I'm planning to read Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert, the Percy Jackson books by Rick Kiordan, and The Hunger Games books by Suzanne Collins now that the last one came out. But I'm looking to add to my list, so please share anything else that you read and loved recently!

To My Blog

Dear Blog,

I know, I know! I'm a terrible friend! Lately I've gone days and weeks without any communication with you. You probably feel like I've forgotten all about you, that I don't care. But I promise that's not true. I think of you everyday. I have a million excuses, like how life has been so busy that I've run myself ragged, and how I have been feeling under the weather for awhile . . . but they're just excuses and I know you don't want to hear them. So, I'll just say, I'm sorry. Please forgive me! I'm back, and I promise to be better at keeping in touch.

With that said, do you want to hear about what I've been up to lately?

Yes?

Well, we are getting settled into our new apartment. Slowly but surely. The decor for the bedrooms and bathrooms is still sitting in a corner, and I still need to hang a curtain to cover our laundry room closet, but one thing at a time, right? I promise I'll send you pictures when we get things fully settled.

Oh, and I'm still teaching tons of piano lessons! I have 28 students and counting. We have our 'Music from the Movies' recital coming up in September! The students and I are really excited for that! After that it will be time to start working on the Christmas recital - CRAZY!!

I did two major cake orders this past week. One was a wedding cake! My first non-family wedding cake. :) I think it turned out okay in the end, though we did have a bit of trauma in transportation. Sorry, no details; I don't feel like reliving that particular moment. But all's well that ends well.

(More pics here.)

That reminds me! I was also in charge of two HUGE Relief Society activities in the past two weeks. Well, they were related, but they were each a big undertaking. Maybe this is a story for another letter, it would take too much room here.

So, Gerald just finished his first week of school. He's getting back into the swing of things; it's going to be a busy semester! Speaking of school, Katelee is LOVING her preschool. She cries on the days there is no school, she loves it that much. Probably her very favorite thing about preschool is Show-and-Tell. About once a week, each student gets a chance to do Show-and-Tell. Katelee was so excited for her very first Show-and-Tell. She chose to take the seashells we found at the beach this summer with Grandpa and Grandma Thurston.

She told her class all about her first time at the beach and about her grandpa and grandma who she loves so much!

We've also done a lot of play dates and swimming and park days and babysitting. It's made for a busy but fun few weeks. We're trying to enjoy the end of summer while it's still here. Katelee has especially loved all the kids we've had over lately! One day we were especially lucky to babysit the sweetest little baby girl ever. Katelee was in heaven! She smothered that little baby with love and attention! Luckily, the baby didn't mind one bit. ;)

Katelee also had a stake primary activity about creating. Every primary child in the stake was invited to create something (anything!) and submit it to the 'Creation Museum.' Then, the children were invited to come and visit the museum. After much indecision, Katelee finally chose to do a painting. She worked very hard and very seriously on her painting. This is the face of a true artist.

When her painting was complete she named it The Jelly Bean Bug Dance. Isn't that a great name? She was very proud of her finished artwork and had fun seeing it displayed at the 'museum'. Oh! Blog, I almost forgot to tell you the most exciting news of all! My favorite brother*, Tyler, just announced his engagement to the sweetest girl in the world, Taylor. (Tyler and Taylor - isn't that cute?) They will be married in November!

Congratulations, both of you! We are so excited to have Taylor join our family! (You did good, brother!)

So, blog, there you have it - a pretty complete update on our lives. Again, I promise to not neglect you so much anymore. Keep your eyes and ears open, because I'll be in touch again soon.

Love,

Jennifer

*Okay, so Tyler is also my only brother. But he's still my favorite!

School Days

I can't believe it, but my baby has

started school!

Okay, so it's only preschool, but it is 4 days a week for almost 3 hours a day.

The preschool she is attending is wonderful, and done through the school district. It can be a very expensive program to get into, but they offer free preschool to some families so I applied just to see what would happen. Katelee was accepted for free tuition, but when I found out how many hours a week it is I almost backed out. (What happened to 2 hours twice a week?!?)

At first I really felt that Katelee, at four-years-old, did not need to spend so many hours out of the home. I'm in no hurry to send her out of our home when I feel very capable of teaching her in an environment that I can control. But what I cannot easily offer is the social aspects of preschool.

So Gerald and I talked about it and prayed about it and finally decided to give it a try. Like it or not, this may be the best thing for Katelee.

And so far, she LOVES it!

If you know me at all, you know that back-to-school time is my very favorite time of year! I love fall, I love school, I love school supplies, and as a student or a teacher I always LOVED this time of year! So, I was so excited to share the 'back-to-school' experience with Katelee!

First, I took her on a 'date' and we went shopping for school clothes. This meant that she could pick out two new shirts and get a new pair of shoes. (Hooray for Kohl's cash and $10 off coupons!) She had fun trying on new clothes.

After shopping, I let her choose one place to go as part of our "date." She picked a new park, where we played hide-and-seek. When she hid underneath the slide, the static cling made her hair stand on end.

Before school, Katelee also got her hair trimmed from a lady in my stake. I tried to convince her to chop it short, but she was not interested in discussing it.

And she wanted me to paint her finger and toe nails.

The Sunday before school started, Gerald gave Katelee her first 'school year' father's blessing (with Uncle Geoff standing in) and it was a very sweet, sweet experience.

The day before school started, we went to an open house where we met Katelee's wonderful new teacher, Ms. Judy, and the kids were able to explore and play in the classroom while the parents were given all the needed info.

Katelee was so excited to wear her new blue dress to the open house! (Thanks, Jessica!)

She was literally dancing in excited anticipation of meeting her new teacher.

On her first day of school, Katelee insisted on wearing her new 'Hello Kitty' shirt despite the heat. She looked so cute, and was excited to finally use her new princess backpack!

While getting ready for her first day of school, I told Katelee that she looked beautiful. To which she replied,

"I've never felt so grown up!"

When I picked Katelee up after her first day of school, she was all smiles. She was excited to show me the snack 'place mat' she had decorated and tell me all about the play dough, puzzles, and playground. She loved story time, and told me all about the book they read which was about a dog who goes to school by following his boy's school bus. She loved meeting new friends and she loved her teacher.

Overall, she loves school, and I hope that she feels that way forever!

Our Little Fishy

Katelee recently finished a round of swimming lessons. She loved them so much! My good friend, Tiffany, taught the lessons. Tiffany is a very gifted teacher, and Katelee loved learning all the fun games and activities that Tiffany used to teach the swimming concepts. Katelee learned some basic swimming skills and learned to love swimming more than ever!

We were so proud of how brave Katelee was with her swimming lessons! There were some things that Katelee didn't exactly want to do, and times when she felt nervous, but she still tried everything anyway. She is a very courageous girl!

Katelee took the swimming lessons with her best friend, Gracie. We carpooled together everyday. I took this darling shot of the two girls holding hands after one of the lessons.

After the lessons ended, Katelee's teacher wrote her this note:

Katelee, you are my most improved student! You were so nervous to swim on our first day of lessons but now you put your head in the water and swim with "ice cream scoops" by yourself and don't even think twice about it. Way to go! Now that lessons are over, keep working hard at being able to swim with "ice cream scoops" (on tummy) or "rainbow arms" (on back) really far, without anyone's help. You're well on your way to being able to do that! :) I'll miss you, cute girl. Best wishes next time in Level 2!