What have we been doing?

For all my dear family members whom I have not yet personally called or emailed within the past few months to let you know what is going on in our lives, I thought that perhaps this blog post might help!

Greg is wonderful as usual, and is working on his Master's in Mechanical Engineering. He is going to do research during this summer, and may even be finished with his degree by April 2012 - we shall see how research goes :) He is working on some exciting research, developing microneedles that are tiny - think teeny tiny! Greg and I were recently blessed in such a way that we were shocked and amazed to receive it - a blessing where we felt there was almost not room enough to receive it. Greg applied for and received (with the kind help of his awesome professors) a fellowship from the National Science Foundation - and only 2,000 students throughout the whole U.S.A. get these! It is a fellowship that pays for his tuition, and gives a very very very generous stipend in addition to that - for three years! Greg is thus going to go on and do a PhD - so we may be coming east within the next few years! We are sure that we are not going to do his PhD at BYU, but at another school. We are so grateful, and so proud of Greg!

I am finished with school! Since April 1 actually. Since I only had two GEs to finish in order to get my degree, I finished them through independent study. I had to have taken the final exams by April 1st, and thus March 31st found me in the testing center taking my last calculus final EVER. It felt good :) I have since been asked the question, "So, what are you doing now?" Well, Greg and I look forward to the time when our family will grow larger, but as that time has not happened yet, here is a snapshot of some things I am doing:

Window/Container Gardening! I am excited about the onions (yum!), carrots, and cucumbers we are growing. I also am trying to grow wheat sprouts, as I hear that they are really nutritious, and I hope that they are good in sandwiches as a substitute for lettuce.

They are sprouting! I love spring! I love the experiment of planting a seed, and hoping it will grow, and then watering it diligently, and seeing the fruits of labor and faith! I love getting my hands in the earth, and knowing of the potential for good growth there is in soil. 

I have been knitting a little too - Greg gave me this knitting loom for Christmas! I have loved making scarves on it, and am now trying my hand at making a blanket....

I have been reading - and really enjoying this book. It helps me to appreciate the fact that no matter what we think we may know, there is so much more to a person and his or her decisions than what others say about them. Pres. Bush is a man to be admired, in my opinion. Other books that I have enjoyed reading recently include "To Kill a Mockingbird," "Uncle Tom's Cabin," and "The Little House in the Big Woods" Series again :)

Did you know Greg and I are going to Portugal in May? We are! We are excited to spend time there visiting the people that he taught when he served his mission there, as well as tasting pastries, and eating good portuguese bread, and seeing castles, etc.

I have been trying new recipes, and enjoying the time I have to practice my homemaking skills.

Yet, this book was not my favorite - it reduced homemaking to something of a science - and while it would be a useful handbook to have on hand to know how to care for every type of fabric known to mankind, it is not as illuminating as the words of the prophets are when it comes to how to create a home atmosphere that will keep a family safe and strong.

I have been cleaning, vacuuming...

I have been making bread...

And I have really enjoyed putting gems that I find as I read up on this wall in front of the desk where I keep my computer. One of my all-time favorite quotes is this: 

"But whatever the era, whatever the times, one thing will never change: Father and mothers, if you have children, they must come first. You must read to your children and you must hug your children and you must love your children. Your success as a family, our success as a society, depends not on what happens in the White House, but on what happens inside your house" (First Lady Barbara Bush - Washington Post, 2 June 1990, pg. 2).

I look forward to the time when I can put this into action. I firmly believe that I can help to change the world by teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, and that the most important place where I can start to do that is in our home.