Elder Sweetpea Home!

So I posted this on my redhead blog but wanted to put it up here special too...with a picture.


Today my younger brother returned home from serving a two year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

As he came striding down the terminal, my mom and I began gleefully jumping up and down (yes, also clapping and screaming) while grandma stood on the sidelines shaking her head - apparently she doesn't want to claim us. Anyway, I saw coming down the escalator, a man I had never seen before, a man who had just accomplished something spectacular and he was glowing to prove it.

Just hearing him speak, you can tell how much he has grown. I'm sure he could go on for hours listing all the things he learned on his mission and how many ways he's changed physically, emotionally, spiritually not to mention all the lives he has touched. Of all the many wonderful things a mission does, changing the missionary is one of the most impressive. I myself have never served a full time mission and have often wondered what this kind of selfless sacrifice might have done for me. It takes a certain type of person to accept the intense commitment a mission requires and I never really had faith enough in myself for it. But there he is, standing with pure confidence in front of me, my little brother demonstrating what willingness to give in pure service is, and with that sparkling smile everyone knows he served well.

I recently had a discussion with a good friend about what it means to be a man. Despite my continual protests and shameless jabs, I walked away with an understanding that only the individual can decide when he truly is a man. Other people can sternly tell you, "you are now a man," but it is only when the boy himself walks the bridge to claim his manhood that it becomes real. Without question, a mission is one of the most difficult bridges but my brother crossed it, and he is now a man.

This is not the first of my family to serve a mission and it will certainly not be the last, but with each experience comes even more respect and appreciation for both my family and my church. Two years ago we sent off a 19 year old boy with a brand new suit and an eager heart and today he came home with 30 more pounds and an overflowing spirit of new wisdom and love. I stand in awe of him today, for who he is, for what he has done and for standing strong in faith. Even more, I stand in awe for his ability to do it all with such grace and then to still walk with the humility to ask what more he can do.

I love my brother. I often tell people he is the male version of me (minus the red hair), which I have always felt to be true and certainly explains our great relationship. Today, he is more than that - he is also a man and for his extraordinary example of strength I could not be more grateful.

Rubin and Ed

The other day "you've got to admit that... (I don't remember what had to be admitted)" was said and it made me think of Stephanie's favorite movie, Rubin and Ed. :) "You've got to admit that your cat's dead. You have to admit that." I even looked it up online, and apparently it's a cult classic. On imdb.com someone from Milwaukee, or Minnesota, or one of those "M" places somewhere east of where I live had put a comment on there saying it was a must see movie and great if you have a quirky sense of humor, and some other stuff. It also had some of the famous quotes, so I thought I'd share this lovely memory with y'all so you could go back and watch it whenever you happen to come across a copy of Rubin and Ed.
"My cat can eat a whole watermelon!"

Traveling

So with the weather warming up to the sixties on a good day I've been getting out a bit more.  On May tenth I got up bright and early and drove to Madison to meet up with my parents and Rachel.  We all piled into one car and made our way to Northern Iowa.  Over the last few years my dad has been working on finishing his bachelor's degree at one of Upper Iowa University's satellite schools.  His graduation ceremony was held on the original campus, hence our commute.  It was a lovely school and the ceremony was nice.  There was an emphasis on encouraging students to be global citizens, I thought it was an appropriate topic.  It's been nice to live close enough to take part in special experiences with my family.  Here's a collage my mom put together of the day. 

 

 

Jason worked Memorial Day so I headed out to Madison again and went kayaking with my mom and sister Emily.  We didn't take cameras due to the whole water thing, but it was a blast.  We saw frogs, turtles and lots of fish while out on the lakes.  We worked our way through a chain of lakes and had a good time.  The wind in the middle of the lakes reminded Emily and I of our Boundary waters experience.  It reinforced my affinity for kayaks though, they really are fun to be in. 

 

On Saturday of Memorial weekend Jason actually had the day off so we hiked and picnicked at a beach along Lake Michigan and then went on a tour of the Sprecher brewery.  They are a microbrewery in Glendale that makes fantastic root beer soda and several other sodas.

 

Jason and I just got back from an overnight trip to the Twin Cities to look for apartments.  We kind of covered everything from old and dumpy college apartments to "luxury" living, that wasn't really luxury.  In the end we found a modest apartment we both like that will be quiet, warm and a 5-10 minute walk to Jason's work and the grocery store.  I'll be busing or driving to school, but it's not impossibly far and fortunately the bridge collapse will not impact the exit I need to take to get to school.

 

In other news, my painting class is over.  I really enjoyed it and feel like I learned much more than I expected to.  In the realm of arts I also made a music connection with one of my patients.  He has two pianos and invited me over for four-handed, two piano duets.  (I got to play on their baby grand Steinway - yes I was loving it!)  We got together at the end of May and had a great time playing various duets including some great Brahms waltzes I was not familiar with.  He and his wife are really great people I have enjoyed getting to know.  Playing duets on two pianos was a new experience for me, it really changes the type of music that can be played.  We're hoping to get together at least once more before I move.

Hot hot hot!

Well, it's half-way through May and we've made it so far without it getting too hot yet. But alas, the forecast for early next week says it's finally going to hit 100+ degrees. And this is what Rachel thinks about that:So we're going to Utah for Memorial day weekend to escape the heat--in fact it's supposed to only be in the 60s for highs. Brrrrr! Rachel only has like 2 long sleeve shirts. I guess we'll be staying inside mostly.

And just so you know, I don't just sit idly by watching my daughter cry while I snap pictures. She was a little cranky that night, and was sitting there watching Baby Einstein, and about every 2 or 3 minutes she would decide to remind us that she was cranky and cry for 5 seconds before getting back to the DVD. This is mostly what she looked like:

Small World

Behold the power of Crown 9 and the friendships formed.  I just got back from a stake relief society conference and ran into Coralie.  Do you remember her?  I think she lived in the apartment on the second floor just North of ours.  Anyway, I was wandering around in an activity and thought I recognized her.  So I asked if she went to BYU and she even remembered my name.  We chatted for a few minutes.  Apparently her husband is from out here and they have lived here about a year.  It was funny to hear her say refer to Crown 9.  You would have been proud of the way she said it.  Way to keep the reputation of a crazy bunch of girls!

Oh, so speaking of small world, do you guys remember a Stacy from our freshman ward?  I believe she lived immediately below us.  I ran into her at my parents ward.  Apparently she married a guy who grew up in Sun Prairie.  They are out in San Jose California if I can remember correctly.  There are no such things as goodbyes in the church, you always run into people again.  I'll try to start taking pictures of these people to help jog memories if I think of it.  We just need to run into each other a little more frequently. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY WENDI

Happy Birthday Wendi, you crazy monkey!!

The Milwaukee Art Museum

Last Saturday I finally convinced my sister Rachel to come to the art museum with me.  They were holding their version of art in bloom so it was a must see event.  We went to the Minnesota institute of art's art in bloom last year.  Local flower artists are invited to create an arrangement inspired by pieces within the museum.  I have included pictures of some of my favorites.  Some of the bouquets are obviously linked to a certain piece.  Others took awhile for Rachel and I to figure out which portrait brought it to be.  I apologize for the fuzzy pictures.  There is also a snapshot from Easter thrown in there.  It was probably the most challenging hunt ever due to the snow.  The eggs sunk in and you could walk by them several times and not see them.

 

I would like to take this moment to publicly thank all institutes that offer student discounts.  They rock!  I have had some amazing experiences at theaters, museums etc. from their understanding price break.  Hoorah for going back to school!

 

Fruit anyone?

 

So I have been doing a fair amount of temp work over the winter.  It brings in a little extra money and helps fill the weekend when I'm not Jason's at the clinic (which was every weekend).  Temping usually involves setting up a day in advance to sub for another hygienist at any given office.  (I have gone as far as thirty miles away to do this.)  I have also been called the morning of asking me to go in if possible.  In short, this experience has been less than pleasant.  It seems that with the exception of one office, most of these places are what are termed hygiene mills in the dental community.  I get 30 minutes for children and 40 minutes for adults to: take x-rays, assess their gum health, update their records, remove all that has been left on their teeth (The last part is very difficult because most of these places have scanty and inefficient tools), get an exam, record what I did and make it a somewhat pleasant experience.  Of course that's all moving around in someone else's area and with their dental products.  I have seen cleaning practices that make me uncomfortable and perio protocols that are seriously lacking.  I was even in an office where they dip their radiograph films by hand to chemically process them.  (That hasn't been done as accepted practice in decades.)  Fortunately, I haven't had to do any cold sterilization; I promised myself I would simply walk out of an office asking me to do that.  At the end of the day I'm exhausted and often wonder if it's worth the extra effort.  Now that the weather is getting better, I think I'm going to be much more selective of the temp jobs I take.  It definitely makes me grateful for the positions that I have.  They were certainly worth the wait and have been wonderful places to work with kind people and high quality care.