My First 10K Ever!

Well, the title says it all. I am going to run/walk my first 10k! Yep, call me crazy call me stupid, but I am bound and determined to do this. I am starting my training now. The 10k will be in September on the 28th. So I have about 8 weeks to train for this. I have lost over 200lbs, and am determined to do this. I want to prove it to myself that I can do this. I want to prove to myself that I can stick to something, that I can finish something that's hard. I want to prove to myself that I have gotten myself into great shape, and that all my hard work has paid off. Now, I'm not saying this will be easy, and I'm not saying that I will run the entire thing, but I will no matter how long it takes me, I will finish it!! I've made my apt. with my doctor to follow me on my training, and I've programed my elliptical machine to help in this. I want to prove to myself overall that I can do anything I put my ind to, and right now I want to run a marathon. 6.2 miles shouldn't be too hard for me, since I usually run about 2.5 miles each night on my elliptical. So again I say call e crazy, or call me stupid either one, but I'm gonna run y first and probably last marathon.

Whats New?

Ok, so I'm sure if you are reading this, you have seen my new layout. See anything different? See anything worth celebrating? See anything family worthy? I sure do. Da da da da introducing the all new

WEIGT FAMILY - {Pronounced phonetically like Vight}

We are changing our name back to the birth name Will was given. We feel it would be a good thing for our family to do, and would mend some feelings. As well as we have a son who will now be able to carry on the family name. All the kids are excited to tell you their new name. It will take about 6 weeks to become legal and official, but we are starting to teach the children now, and we figured we would let family and friends know now. We love you all, and hope to not confuse all of you. I'm sure you will all understand, and be just as happy as we are to be doing this. This is a wonderful thing, and we are so excited for this change.

Will's Grandfather, and coming to America

My grandfather was the younger of 2 boys, and was born in Kiel (Northern Germany). He was only 2 years old when Oma took him, his older brother (Hans, who died just before last Thanksgiving) and herself to America.

Speaking 4 languages, but none of them "English", I can only imagine the difficulty is starting a new life for the 4th time, moving so far away from he family and the cities that she knew and loved. Oma was as proud and stubborn as she was intelligent. She had a husband who mistreated her and the boys, and worked in what today would be considered very menial jobs to support her small family.

In this background, my grandfather, Werner Weigt, was taught the vitality of finding work and working together as a family to make life all that it could be. Oma had a hard time learning English, and paid to take English lessons at night for 2 years before mastering the language (her 5th!). According to Werner, she rarely spoke German around the boys, so that they would have an easier time learning English. They were born far away, but they were to become Americans.

Becoming an American, for myself, was as simple as surviving my 55-hour birth (no kidding...ask Mom!). For my grandfather, being born in Germany became a problem as he entered manhood. Turning 18 in 1943, and having been born in Germany; his Naval Records were stamped: "ENEMY ALIEN" as he was drafted into the U.S. Navy. His brother, being born in Holland, was: "ALLIED ALIEN".

I bristled as my grandfather told me of his naval designation. I asked if he was bitter about a nation that forced him to serve while being suspicious of his exemplary life so far. He surprised me as he recalled that he was thrilled because it would allow him to do 2 things: 1) prove that he was only loyal to America, the only home he ever knew, and 2) earn his U.S. Citizenship.

Staying-on in the Navy after V-J Day in 1945, Werner did earn enough service credits to become an American Citizen. In the many years we shared, I have never heard this man complain about the sacrifices necessary to secure a better future for your family in America.

This Memorial Day, as you enjoy a grilled hot dog, and your favorite cold beverage as the sun sets...take the time to thank a vet for putting their future in jeopardy...to guarantee yours.

The Garden is in...

Will here:

I want the world to know what a great job Amber did in making this garden. While it's true that I helped with making the raised-bed, and putting most of the soil in it; I wasn't much help with the last of the soil, and the finishing-touches, like the cages and mulch. I insisted that she take a few pictures to show everyone (including the landlord company) what a great job she did with a barren, grassless patch of dirt. We'll post more pictures as the season progresses.

Wll's home again...minus his stomach

A big "Thank-You" for everyone's prayers, well-wishes (and caseroles)! Thursday afternoon the kids, Beth and I visited Will in the hospital again; and he was doing well. Imagine my surprise when, at 7PM, that I answered my door to see our friends the Kleinaus, AND WILL standing at the door! Apparently, shortly after my visit, the doctor asked Will if he wanted to go home. Will said: "OH YEAH!", and soon he was back home. Fortunately, all this happened right when the Kleinaus came to visit Will and see how he was doing. Will (being Will) used the opportunity to get a ride home for the best kind of surprise of all. What a booger he was! But I'm so glad to have him home safe...even if he was a booger.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA BETH!!

Since we have this blog now, I figured what a way to wish someone a happy birthday, but online. So happy birthday to my dear sweet Mother in law. Happy birthday mom. We can't wait to see you, and hope you travel safely. Have a happy and wonderful birthday. We all love you. Thanks for so many happy memories and many more to come.


Love, Sabrina, Vanessa, and Isaac

How to be miserable

Hey, Everyone, Will here:

A few years ago, I was asked to teach a lesson in church about happiness, and specifically on how to be "happy". It wasn't long before I decided that it would be far easier to hold everyone's attention if I turned the question on it's ear and added some trademark sarcasm. While I don't pretend that the list below is exhaustive, it is a well-rounded recipe for misery. Enjoy!

1) Think only of yourself

2) Make assumptions about your life

3) Make assumptions about others' lives

4) Convince yourself that you deserve everything that you want

5) Think of "happiness" as a object, not a "state-of-mind"

6) Never serve others without also serving yourself

7) Deny Christ, His Church, and all Scriptures as: "outdated", "foolishness" and/or "exploitive"

8) Surround yourself with miserable people

9) Make inappropriate comparisons between yourself and people you know

10) Make inappropriate comparisons between yourself and people you don't know

11) Forget every offense committed by you against others

12) Remember every offense committed by others against you

13) Consider your opinions and perceptions to be "The Truth"

14) Take all disagreements with your opinion as a deliberate, personal attack

15) Realize that there is never an "accidental" offense against you

16) Hold others responsible for your emotions and actions

17) Remember that you are better than everyone else around you

It is no secret that I am a huge fan of the life and works of Clive Staples Lewis. I must tip my hat to his masterwork: The Screwtape Letters for the inspiration of a couple of chapters that detail most of the above ideas. If there is sufficient interest, I'll post them from time to time.

MY MOTHERS

I am very fortunate to have three mothers on this mothers day. I have my mom whom I love dearly, and I have two mother in laws who are just the best. I want all my moms to know that I love them each individually for all they do for me. Here is my mom Karen. I love her so much. Isn't she beautiful. Will always teases her about her hair. He says it's a wig because every hair is always in place and she looks beautiful every time we see her no matter if its first thing in the morning or late at night. I just know my mom takes pride in her appearance, and it shows. And NO IT"S NOT A WIG!! It's all natural. Anyway as many of you may know I am adopted. This is the woman who adopted me and raised me and took care of me all these years. She cried with me and for me. She is my mother and always will be. I was never treated any differently than my sister or brothers. I was loved (and punished) just the same. She truly is an example of unconditional love. I was a tough teenager for my mom, and I feel bad about all the heartache I caused her, however through all that she was there for me, and never stopped loving me. For that I will always be grateful. She is truly my hero, and I love her always.


Here is my second mom Beth. She is such a wonderful person. She is loving, caring, and most of all beautiful. She has loved me from day one. I hadn't had a chance to meet her for almost a year after Will's dad married her, however we talked on the phone, and she was loving and kind to my children. Once we met all the love and kindness she showed me was proved to be completely genuine. She has one of the biggest hearts I've ever seen. She can take heartache and sorrow and turn it into sunshine and gladness. She truly is a unique and special spirit. We always tease her about what she saw in Will's dad. We know that because of her unique spirit about her she is able to see the good and the love in all people. She is truly the best thing that has ever happened to this family. She exemplifies the true Christ like spirit about her. I love her dearly and am so fortunate to have another mom like her in my life.
Here is my third mom Corrine. This is Will's mom. She is such a great person. She always thinks of others and then herself. Even though she may not have a lot, you are always welcome to what she does have. She is always good to remember Will and I's anniversary and sends us a little gift and card every year. She is such a cute mom. She loves all of my children and spoils them whenever she can. My children just adore her.

So there you have it. All three of my special moms. I love each and every one of them for all their unique qualities they bring to my life. All of my kids will agree that each one of them are very special. I give thanks on a daily basis for my special moms. I love you all!!

Family Vacations Here we Come!!

Here is our most recent purchase. Daddy worked some overtime so that we could afford to get this nice tent. Our good friends the Kleinaus are avid campers and fishers, and so we all wanted to go together. SO we have now purchased our tent. The sleeping bags and such will have to wait till we can get them, but it's a step in the right direction. The kids absolutely LOVED putting it up, and running in and out of the tent. They are so ready for some fun family time. And truth be told so is daddy and I.
Here they are peeking out with daddy. See how happy they are just to have it put up in the front yard. Imagine being out in the wilderness camping with hot dogs and a fire and some marshmallows. Sounds like so much fun. The kids are already trying to count down the days till we can go camping. We will go soon after daddy's surgery.
And here they are again peeking out of their new home away from home. It is a rather large 12 x 14 foot tent that is 7.5 feet high. It is able to fit two queen size mattresses inside with room to spare for all our stuff. SO we will be able to camp in style. We wanted to get a tent large enuf to fit us all now, AND when the kids are much older. This way we only buy one tent instead of one now and one later. Plus there is room for friends in case any of the kids want to bring some one day. They are really looking forward to our first trip. Our friends the Kleinaus have a lot of camping gear, and so we will use their stuff while we are buying ours a little at a time when we can afford it. I'll make sure to post our trips.

Happy Mothers Day

Here are the new dresses I mad for all three of us girls. I love the material. I have made a couple of these lately for all us girls. The material comes smocked on the bodice already and then you just sew down the back, and make straps. Its great sun dress material, but we put cute leggins with it and voila you have two outfits in one. Plus the girls love the fact that they get to dress like mommy. Isaac wanted to wear daddy's dinosaur tie, so daddy tied it for him. Isaac was so proud to be wearing it, and told everyone at church he was a big boy cause he was wearing daddy's tie. They also sand in the primary program at church. They all did a great job and were so cute.
Here is my new hairdo. I've been trying to grow it out so I can have it a little longer now, and t is still in that "ugly" stage. It's almost long enuf to be out of the "ugly" stage, but not quite yet. Soon I will be able to have it a little longer and not look too stupid, but my hair grow really slow, and so it will be a while.

Meet our Family Pet

Here is our family pet (aside from the fish). The kids absolutely adore Peppermint. She is a very loving and fun rabbit. She gives the kids tons of "kissies". She is like a cat in that way always licking to show her affection. They love to chase her around, and then let her chase them. It is so cute to see them do this. At bedtime they all take turns sticking their heads inside the rabbits cage to give her a kiss goodnight, and a nice petting down. The kids absolutely love to feed Peppermint fresh bannanas. Peppermint eats it right from their hands. Vanessa got to take Peppermint to school on Easter and show her to all her friends. Needless to say Vanessa felt very special that day. All the kids in her class loved seeing and petting a real rabbit. THe kids in this area don't get much adult interaction or parental interaction. So when we (Will and Myself) showed up together with the family pet, that too was a wonderment for the kids to see both parents together. It's rather sad, but I enjoy seeing how proud the kids are to have both parents together and interested in their educations. Well, enjoy the pics of Peppermint. We love her, and she is so fun to have as a pet.

FINALS ARE FINALLY OVER!!!

This picture says it all. We all look like this these last few days. Finals are finally over. We have now officially finished our P2 year.

Thank goodness for that. Its been a tough semester. Now we have a few days and I literally mean a few days to have some fun as a family, and then the fun starts up again. Come Monday, Will starts in the Lab doing Cancer research, and he will do that on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, then he will work at his "paying" job Tuesdays and Thursdays and Saturdays. Then for all of June and July Will will teach the 1st thru 6th graders science during summer school. SO we have a little amount of time with each other during the summer too before school will start again in August for everyone.

We also got EXCITING news today as well. We got permission to plant a small garden in our backyard. I am soooo excited. I'm going to finally be able to get real tomato's and beans and squash from a garden. Yipee!!! So in a week or so I will post some pics of my little garden. Wish us luck in producing lots of produce. Any tips on small gardening would be appreciated.

DREAMING

Will and I always go to the huge home shows and garden shows that come to town. Its our way of dreaming of the future. We also take pictures, take brochures, and put together the ideas we want for our home. We have some really cool ideas. Below are a couple of our ideas for our back yard where we will hopefully spend a lot of fun family time together making many memories. This is a fire pit that is outside, but it is no ordinary fire pit. We wanted something that would look unique and classy. We wanted a big fire pit in the backyard for family gatherings to be able to roast marshmallows or hot dogs on, or just gather round and have spiritual family home evenings. But we didn't want to have what everyone else had. So voila here is our solution. Its glass. You see it sparkle with the fire, and then when you pour water over the top of it, all the soot (if any..they said there would be extremely little amounts) would wash right off. It looks so cool.

Now here is a picture of a picture, that's why the funny glare, and I forgot to take my flash off, but you get the idea. It is all stones that have been put into this pattern. This company does any ideas you can come up with or you can choose from theirs. It is so pretty to see all of their ideas. But to have something like this as your patio. What a conversation piece that would be.
So there you have a couple of our ideas for outside. We have so many more, but at times like these (FINALS WEEK ESPECIALLY) we pull out the books and look at the ideas we have and wish for a little while. It really helps us to put into perspective why we are living like we are, and why we are doing what we are doing, and what some of the rewards will be as we continue to move forward.

We also have a book that I have started this year of fun places out children learn about or see in magazines or see on a history channel, and put it into fun family vacation spots we would love to go to. So far Disney World is on top, followed by Disney Land, Bush Gardens, Sea World, The Arches and Zions, Grandpa Greats home in Emery and pick asparagus, Lake Powell, and so on. They also want to go to Alaska and fish and hunt. This one though is mainly Will and his good friend, but they have all the kids wanting to go as well. This one may be a trip where the women stay at the hotel, and the guys and maybe kids go out. We will see. But its fun to dream.

Can we say...YUMMY!

OK, the kids and I got ambitious and decided to make some treats to take to friends, and to enjoy a little bit at home. We looked around our little house to see what we could make. We thought cake, but we were missing eggs, we thought brownies, but same problem..no eggs. So they said popcorn balls, but we were missing jello. Then they said cookies, and same problem no eggs. So I thought for a few minutes, and then got surfing on the Internet. WHAT A WONDERFUL TOOL. I found the perfect recipe. We tried it first to see if it tasted OK, and it was absolutely wonderful. Tasted better than what you bought at the store. TOFFEE POPCORN. I had some toffee bis left over from Christmas sitting in my freezer, and we always have popcorn kernels on hand at all times. So we mixed the two together, and voila. An amazing and fast treat that anyone would love to get. SO I thought Id share it with you all. This also works with nuts as well. It candy coats it, so you can do fancy candy coated nuts in a bakers decorated bag with a ribbon and you have a great little treat to give out any time. So here it is.

TOFFEE POPCORN (AND COATING FOR NUTS)

10 cups popped popcorn~
1 cup whole almonds
10 ounces Skor English toffee bits -- (Hershey's)
2/3 cup light corn syrup

Preparation:
Heat oven to 275 F. Grease large roasting pan (OR two 13x9x2-inch baking pans). Place popcorn and almonds in prepared pan. In heavy medium saucepan, combine toffee bits and corn syrup. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until toffee is melted (about 12 minutes). Pour over popcorn mixture; stir until evenly coated. Bake 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from oven; stir every 2 minutes until slightly cooled. Cool completely. Store in tightly covered container in cool dry place. About 1-1/2 pounds popcorn.

Happy Cooking!!

Kids Museum Fun!

Well, since daddy is studying for finals that are on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, I decided to take the kids elsewhere to have fun. So we all got into the car, and drove to the Kids Museum. They had a lot of fun. They love the area where they get to dress up in costumes and paint their faces. They really have a great time. This kids museum is so awesome. I remember vaguely there was one in Utah but NOTHING like this one. When we are done with school we will really miss the fun museums and art galleries and the zoo. They are all world class here, and can't compare to Utah's. However the people and atmosphere can't be beat in Utah. People there were just so much nicer, and less nasty. I miss living there. Anyway here are some pics from the kids at the museum. Enjoy.

Boogers..Boogers..& more Boogers!

Last night the kids and I had so much fun. Unfortunately Dad couldn't be there with us since he had to work, but we appreciate his contribution to our family. Soon after finals week is over we can do so much more as a family. Anyway, at King Elementary they had what they call "Family Fun Night". And let me tell you it was fun. The kids have been learning all year about how to write and publish their own books, and why reading is so important. They all wrote and illustrated their own book that they had published. Sabrina's class book was so cute. Anyway they also had the author Julia Cook come and talk to the kids about what it takes to write kids books. She also gave each child attending last night their very own copy of one of her books. Sabrina ended up with this one. It is sooooo funny and cute and a little disgusting. It talks about not flicking your boogers, not eating them, or wiping them on others. It talks about how if you need to pick your nose, that you should make a "boogie ghost". It is such a cute book, and right up the alley for kids. I highly recommend it for any parent who has had to tell their kids more than once to get their finger out of their nose. After they met with the author and had her sign their book, they went to the gym for a performance. There was a group of dancers that advocate reading, and so the kids had fun dancing and watching the dancers. It was like an interactive rock concert for kids. Then they served us all dinner. It was yummy chicken and beans and a water with dessert. Just as a side note...the people out here really know their BBQ, and it is YUMMY!!

Another proud mommy moment!

This was recorded a little while back, but I thought it was so cute, and I couldn't get them to do it while in Utah, so I thought I'd send it to you this way. Sabrina is developing such a love for music, and has a lovely voice that is getting better and better every day. Vanessa is doing very well in singing too. THey all love to sing and dance, but this was too cute not to show you all.

Bottle + Push Pins + Water = FUN

Such fun with so little. We don't have the financial resources to give our kids everything that others may have, but we do have a genious of a husband who understands chemistry and physics, and made these awesome cheap squirt guns. First they get to drink a 20oz soda pop. Now I don't know about you, but when I was younger that was a treat. Then when they are done, they clean out the bottle and fill it up with water. They screw the cap back on, and thus creates the "little hands" as my husband taught our kids. Then he punctured one, two or three holes in the lower portion of the bottle with a push pin. Because the lid was screwed on, when he punctured and removed the pin, it didn't leak. Thats where those amazing "little hands" of science work. Then when the kids squeeze the bottle, they have a stream of water, and a great water gun. I think they were playing outside with these for a good three hours. It was a LONG but fun day outside with these cheap and inexpensive toys. What a great thing science is, and what an even better thing is to have a husband who can use it for fun.

This would make any mother proud!

I would have never guessed that having the missionaries over for dinner once a month would have such a profound effect on my children. Apparently it has. What sweet and innocent spirits I have been given. They are so great, and such a wonderful example of love. I thank God for them every night. THey may have gotten the "who blesses who" part a little off, but hey, at least they are learning.

They Sky is Falling..The Sky is Falling!!

OK.OK. I know it's crazy, but it's about time. I finally have broken down, and started one of these things. I guess it was only a matter of time, but yes I finally did it. So now what? Well I guess I am going to be using this as my daily (hopefully) journal. A gal in my Branch had printed off her blog from this last year, and had it bound in a book with all the pictures and such, and it turned out so well, that she taught all of us in the Branch how to do it. It has now become part of her Journal, and it is in an awesome format. So here I am trying to do just that. So wish me luck.