Nuttall-Rumbaugh Family

Tess is engaged to Shawn!

2011-08-25T21:09:00.000-07:00

We received exciting news, Shawn asked Tess to marry him yesterday at Disneyland. I understand he asked her in front of the "Where Memories Begin" exhibit. Like a gentleman, he called home and asked Wayne his permission to marry Tess prior to the proposal.

The date for the wedding is April 27th, 2012 in the Seattle Temple. Congratulations, Tess and Shawn!

Summer Summary

2011-08-19T17:17:00.000-07:00

The summer is nearly gone! We had two adventures this summer. The first was girls camp, uplifting and enjoyable. The second was Trek. Six of our kids attended the 4 day re-enactment of the sacrifice the Mormon pioneers made as they traveled across the country to settle the Salt Lake valley. Wayne and I were fortunate enough to be asked to be a Ma and Pa. The experience was uplifting and testimony building.

Tess came home for a quick visit before going to Idaho and Utah to visit her special friend's family. She is now currently in California working at Disneyland in their college internship program. She will return home January 2nd before heading off to BYU-Hawaii.

Jessica leaves for BYU-Provo on Tuesday. Amanda, Evan, and I are going to take her down and stay for several days while she gets settled in to college life. Go Cougars!

Ethan has enjoyed a pretty relaxed summer. In fact, he's posted on facebook that he is BORED. At this point in my life I wonder...is that a bad thing to have nothing to do?

Amanda has been busy. Trips to Utah, Girls Camp, Trek, Winthrop, and back to Utah have kept her busy. Too bad Ethan couldn't have tagged along with her on some of those trips. Both Ethan and Amanda are excited for their SENIOR year in high school. Amanda plans to join Travis, Seth and Jessica at BYU-Provo. Ethan plans to go to Green River CC to finish his associates degree prior to leaving on his mission.

Aarun has spent a lot of time with friends this summer. He has participated in Summer League basketball and done some training for Cross Country. We are looking forward to have four children on the cross country team this coming fall.

Evan and Alyssa are both preparing for their freshman year in high school. Hard to believe these two are in high school. They each took two summer school classes to help give them a head start in high school. They earned A's and are ready to begin the year in the "big house". Luckily, Wayne is still teaching at the high school our last five kids are attending.

Seth is coming home from his mission on November 6th. Travis on November 11th. It goes without saying that we are VERY excited to have them home. We will have them back through early January, at which time they will go to BYU-Provo.

I was able to find a photo of Travis at his most recent zone leader conference.

I also came across these gradation photos as I was organizing pictures. Congratulations, Seth, Travis, Tess, and Jessica.

Time Flies!

2011-04-26T18:07:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that it is nearly May! Where has the time gone? For the semi-avid blog reader that I am, it is quite hypocritical that I have let posting on my own blog go for a while. Perhaps because I wonder if anyone reads this blog, or perhaps I've just been so busy with life and I have let this go.

Either way, here is an update. Seth and Travis are down to less than 6 months remaining on their missions. Travis experienced (from a great distance) the earthquake in Japan. Both boys have become fluent in their respective languages. Their testimonies have grown and they are truly becoming men. We have been greatly blessed by their service and are thankful that they have chosen to serve valiantly. Travis is set to come home in October, Seth in November.

Tess came home for Spring break from BYU-H. Ironically, she left the sunny weather in Hawaii to enjoy ten days of drizzle and cold weather here in Seattle. Oh well, she's lived here all her life, she knows what to expect. It was great to have her home. She seemed just the same as when she left. I have noticed that I expect my children to suddenly change when they leave home, but to my surprise they seem to linger in the state they left in. I enjoy it quite a bit. Tess is back in Hawaii through July. The unfair parents that we are...we are asking her to stay for summer quarter since she has a good job and could take a class to get ahead for next year. She will be in Disneyland fall quarter, as she acquired the Disney Internship. She will live on the Disneyland campus, work retail full time, while taking online classes. College kids these days think this type of thing is quite appealing. I guess one should "go for it" when they are young, right? Great Job, Tess! We are proud of you!

Jessica is graduating in just over one month! I cannot believe it! She is already 18 and will be attending BYU-Provo in the fall. She will be joined winter semester by Seth and Travis. She is such a smart, sweet, hardworking girl. She graduates June 18th. I'll post photos here. Speaking of photos, here is her senior picture. I must admit, that I was so happy with how it turned out...especially since I had the pleasure of taking her photos this year.

Amanda and Ethan are both juniors. This time next year, we will be graduating two more seniors and believe it or not will only have 3 children at home. We plan on spoiling Aarun, Evan and Alyssa as much as possible. Poor things have lived their lives in hand-me-downs and the smallest portions of dessert. We are thinking of going out to dinner from time to time and taking some fun vacations. It will be fun to create family memories with the youngest three kids! Amanda has become quite an accomplished water polo player (so has Jessica). Here is a photo of her doing her thing!

Ethan is doing well in track, getting better every season and looking forward to going as far as he can in the post season. He recently ran at an invitational in Oregon and did very well. He placed 5th in his event. Wayne is one of the coaches and was able to travel with the team and enjoyed watching Ethan as well.

Aarun is doing great, he is a sophomore and plays basketball and runs track. He is working on excelling in the classroom to the same degree that he excels in athletics. Living with two educators can be such a curse! We remind him that he is a student-athlete. Overall, he does great in school. We are proud of his accomplishments and his desire to be an award-winning runner. He will go far as he sticks to his goals.

Evan and Alyssa are finishing up 8th grade. It is hard to believe that they will start HIGH SCHOOL next fall. I remember them as three year olds, and then as kindergartners in the same class. They have been together all through school and complement each other well. Alyssa is organized while Evan...is not! Evan loves math, while Alyssa...does not. They both like to read, enjoy track, and have many friends. One would not know they have not been together their entire lives. Well, they've been siblings since they were three, so they have grown up together for a good portion of their lives.

Wayne and I are still plugging along. Wayne is teaching math and history at the school the kids go to. He is coaching, has just joined the bishopric, and is busy with graduate school. I have acclimated to my new job as a high school assistant principal and am hoping to survive budget cuts. I am also in graduate school, and hoping to become a principal soon. Life keeps us busy (too busy to blog) but we are very happy.

Happy Holidays

2010-12-19T18:55:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving in Moses Lake where we enjoyed good food and a lot of snow! Prior to us leaving for Moses Lake, Auburn got several inches of snow as well. Here are some photos of the much anticipated snowfall.

Tess has come home from BYU-Hawaii to enjoy her Christmas break here on the mainland. She had a good first semester at college, learning to being away from home (very far away from home) and taking care of herself. She had a visit from my parents last semester, as they were on a trip to Hawaii. It was nice to exchange pictures and text messages with the Grandparents and Tess. They took her out to eat as she gave them a tour of campus. We appreciate them checking in on Tess for us.

Seth has had a couple of transfers on his mission. He feels that he has a good grasp of the Spanish language. He admits that this was not easy for him, but the Lord has blessed him greatly and he is very appreciative. We don't get a lot of photos from Seth, he is not permitted to take many (mission rules) but he has experienced the blessings of obedience as he focuses on the work of teaching and baptizing. Here are Seth's most recent words home:

Hola Familia-

Well, the transfer came to an end last Saturday, and so yesterday we recieved transfer calls. I was told that I am going to leave Cambita and that I am heading to Padre Las Casas which is in the zone of Azua. I have mixed feelings about this. Padre Las Casas from what I've seen and heard is a really cool area. Literally "cool". It lies in the mountains so it is one of the colder areas in the mission and it has had fairly good success recently. For that reason I am pretty excited to go there. But I am also kind of bumbed out about leaving Cambita because I have really loved it here. Even though the work was difficult and at times mentally straining, I felt like Elder Romero and I were really starting to get things going. We are still teaching Estefani who is progressing pretty well. Her baptism date was Christmas weekend but we decided to change it to January 9th becasue Christmas and New Years are huge here and so we didnt want any conflicts with that. This will also allow us to help her stregthen her testimony especially in the Book of Mormon. We are also starting to teacher her friend Karla which I think will help her also. We also started teaching a family in the last week and a half. The parents names are Cesar and Norkis and for the very first time we taught them together as a family. We've primarily been teaching Cesar and at times his wife. They both realize the importance of Prophets (which is really important here in the DR) and I think that after the lesson we had last night with the whole family that they realize how the gospel is going to bless their family. So I feel like I am leaving a lot behind her in Cambita but I am looking forward to the opportunity to work in Padre Las Casas.

Travis has had many adventures in Japan! He had his first (and hopefully last) bike accident. He broke his hand! His comments were, "I was riding my bike, wind in my hair, all at ease...when before I knew it I was tangled under my bike!" This is classic Travis...always making a joke and looking for the bright side of a situation. His hand was casted and he was "off" his bike for several weeks. He has been transfered and is now back to riding...hopefully he will stay on his bike this transfer. Travis reports:

Well, I said good bye to tanabe and elder chappell :( and now Im in Tsuyama! Its a slightly bigger city than tanabe, and WAY colder. Apparently we could be getting some snow here pretty soon. I dont know if I would like that.... Its soooo coooold!

My hand still has a few more weeks to go, but Im back on my bike! Ive figured out a way to support my left hand on the handle w/o touching it with my thumb, or half of the palm of my hand thats over the broken bone. Everything is very spread out and far away! Church and train station are both about 25-30 minutes away by bike.

My new companion is elder Suzuki - Hes Japanese! We are co-seniors. This will be a good oportunity so improve my language skills! So far ive been pretty pleased to find that we can talk normally, with only occasional need for a dictionary ( Ive learned Jissen - to put into practice and shouryaku - to abbreviate) Hes full of energy and we're going to get some good work done this transfer.

We had a Christmas party with lots of delicious Nabe! Nabe is basically just japanese stew,but you can throw all kinds of stuff in as you go along. Its pretty good! try to look it up if you can! I dressed up as a donkey, suzuki dressed up as a sheep.

As far as investigators go, We found one in tanabe the day before I left, and we have another with christmas baptismal date here in Tsuyama! I wonder what christmas in japan will be like?

This weeks spiritual message is a christmas message! In the book of mormon, Nephi sees mary and the birth of Christ in vision, and understands more fully the Love of God. We can read this in 1st Nephi 11:13-23

When we look at all the things of christmas, the trees, the presents, the food, the parties, do we remember what it all means? Christ was prepared from before the foundation of the world to be our savior! If we remember and follow him, we can always feel his love. Lets remeber to share the love of God with everyone around us this holiday season!

I love you all! Thanks for all your support!

Elder Nuttall

We will be adding some photos and videos later this week. We have a lot to show of Travis, and a few pictures of Seth. Both boys are doing well, and we are thrilled to be able to talk to them in just a few days! I am the most excited of all.

Homecoming 2010

2010-10-18T19:13:00.000-07:00

Jessica and Amanda celebrated the school's homecoming this year as they dressed up and went on a double date. The girls (and boys) had a fun time at dinner, pictures and the dance. It is hard to believe that another fall has come and is nearly gone. With the boys half way through their missions and another senior (class of 2011) it is hard to believe how quickly time flies.

Ethan and Aarun are enjoying cross country, they are doing well and hope to compete in the state meet in a couple of weeks. Jessica and diving and is also hoping to dive in the state meet next month. It looks like she will meet this goal. Amanda is still swimming strong, she hopes to end the season with a showing at state too. Evan and Alyssa are not in fall sports at the middle school,they will be involved in basketballand gymnastics soon, though!

Good-Bye Tess!

2010-09-12T16:33:00.000-07:00

Well, I haven't blogged in a while. A new job, getting a daughter ready for college, and two boys in the mission field who are reaching their half-way point AND are turning 20 has kept me busy. Tess left on Thursday for BYU-Hawaii. She made it safely there and has done all of the freshman activities. She starts class this week and is excited. She was surprised by the small size of her dorm room...aren't we all?

I am sure that she will adjust just fine. Her first task is to find a part-time job to help with the costs of college. She is hoping to work at the Cultural Center nearby. We have suggested that she take whatever job she can find.

Seth and Travis both turn 20 over the next two weeks. They are also close to their half-way point...so hard to believe. Travis is half-way on October 21st and Seth is half-way on November 4th. It is hard to believe that they are nearing half-way!

Summer is wrapping up and fall is setting in and we look forward to cross country, swim & dive, and pumpkins.

Can you find Elder Nuttall?

2010-08-08T15:43:00.000-07:00

Can you find Elder Nuttall? This photograph was taken at a conference when the Japan Hiroshima mission was closed and consolidated into the Kobe Mission. In case you need help, look about six rows up from the floor and about six Elders in from the left. Travis' mission president keeps a mission blog and this photo was posted on it.

The boys are doing well, in October and November they will each have reached their 1/2 way point. They do not want me to remind them that they are nearing that point, they only want to focus on being in the field and working hard.

We have had some fun family adventures recently, and I will post photos of them when I get a chance. For now, happy summer!

Summer is Here!

2010-07-10T18:47:00.000-07:00

The children (and adults) have settled in to the non-routine of summer! The pool is warming up and the kids are happily sleeping in most days. Tess is enjoying her job at WildWaves. She loves being a life-guard. She got her first paycheck this week: a whopping $29. She was delighted and pleased to have earned it herself.

This week the house was quiet! Tess was working most days, Evan was at Scout Camp, Aarun was at Basketball Camp, Jessica and Amanda were in Utah. That left Ethan, Alyssa, and me to entertain ourselves. We found solace from the heat in the movie theater. We watched Despicable Me. It was pretty good, a couple of inside jokes for the adults to enjoy (ie: Lehman Brothers).

We also snuck off to the Old Country Buffet. This is a family favorite for the kids. They have not yet realized that the quality of the food is not great and the prices are WAY to high (by the way, drinks a no longer included in the price of the meal, you have to pay extra to go overboard on soda and chocolate milk). The kids are so caught up in the "all you can eat" aspect of the buffet, nothing else matters. I considered bringing a sandwich from home to eat, but chickened out at the last minute.

Our tradition of the buffet began back in the days when Wayne was out of town with his basketball team. The kids and I would sneak off to the buffet while he was gone. Since he is currently out of town, we followed the tradition again. No guarantee we might not go once more on a hot 90 degree day when I am tired and the kids need a distraction.

We are off to enjoy some camping at Ensign Ranch and then some family time in Moses Lake. Luckily we will have Ryan and Tess to hold down the fort while we are gone. It is so nice to just leave town and enjoy the outdoors with no worries!

Good Things to Come

2010-06-27T21:21:00.000-07:00

Good Things to Come

More Graduation Photos

2010-06-27T19:08:00.000-07:00

Thanks to some good friends, we have more graduation photos of Tess to post. Since both Wayne and I are working at graduation as part of the staff at AMHS, it makes it hard to take photos ourselves. Of course, it is a blessing to be a part of the graduation ceremony for your own children. Enjoy these photos, they are very good ones!

We are looking forward to a summer spending time together before sending our third child off into the real world. It's hard to believe that we have gone from 9 to 6 children in one year's time.

Congratulations, Tess!

2010-06-20T17:50:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Tess, a member of the class of 2010! While the weather didn't exactly cooperate (the class of 2010 sat in blue plastic ponchos in the rain and drizzle) the commencement ceremonies for the graduates was great! A little soggy, but very happy, Tess celebrated her graduation in style. We held a reception in her honor as we celebrated with a Hawaiian-Style dinner in anticipation of her attending BYU-Hawaii in the fall.

Tess is looking forward to her first summer job at WildWaves, where she will be a lifeguard. In early September, she will head off to Hawaii. Tess has worked hard, overcome many challenges and been faithful to herself and her goals to become a righteous young woman. In preparation for college, she will be organizing her belongings, purchasing new things for her dorm room, and taking a break from studying for the next couple of months. Congratulations, Tess. We are proud of you!

Seth

2010-05-31T15:15:00.001-07:00

A busy week has already begun. As mentioned, we are preparing for Tess' graduation, and also checking in with the boy's mission experiences. Seth sent this picture through email today. It is nice to see him with the people he is teaching. It is easier for my mind's eye to imagine him working and helping to spread the gospel when I see images like this. He looks happy and his letters are upbeat. I wonder...what's with the short tie he is wearing? I am pretty sure that must be a new Dominican Republic tie because that wasn't one he left with. His companion has a shorter tie too...must be the fashion of the Dominican Republic. Anyway, both boys are happy and working hard. They just a few weeks away from being out 8 months. I realized a few days ago that when we talk to them on Christmas, they will be over half way through their missions. It must be all the grey days we are having lately that remind me of winter and Christmas. A little sun would be nice!

Class of 2010

2010-05-31T14:53:00.000-07:00

As we approach the final two weeks before Tess graduates from High School, we wanted to share her Senior Photo. This year's Senior Photos became a Laurel Activity at youth night. Tess really likes this photo. The flowers are beautiful as is the lovely girl in the middle!

Graduation is Saturday, June 19th followed by a family luncheon at the Rumbaugh Home. We decided to have a Hawaiian-themed luncheon to celebrate Tess going to BYU-Hawaii. She will be leaving for Hawaii the last week of August.

Luckily, we will be able to talk to her on the phone and share her experiences together. She is looking forward to living on her own for the first time, as well as being a "grown up" college student. We can't wait to see the adventures that await her over the next several months.

Graduation is Nearing!

2010-05-23T19:39:00.001-07:00

This was the big event of our lives just one year ago! Our first set of graduates from high school. We are nearing the same event in just a four weeks...Tess is graduating! As most everyone is aware, she will be heading off to BYU-Hawaii in the fall. Here are some amazing facts about Tess:

1. Tess has lived a life faithful to her baptismal covenants, is a worthy young woman, who I am very proud of!

2. Tess is an amazing artist! She can draw, paint, sculpt, engrave, and envision the most beautiful things I have ever seen!

3. Tess is kind and considerate to others. Tess is able to see the needs of others and steps up in her willingness to be others friends.

4. Tess is beautiful! She has beautiful brown eyes, a sweet smile, and most importantly a glowing spirit.

5. Tess is a leader. She is the first in our family to head to college! Although the boys are living out of the country, Tess is the first to take on the academic challenge of college. Luckily, I can call her on her cell phone everyday.

6. Tess is brave! Tess has faced many challenges in her 18 years. Some are personal, some are just the "regular" types of things all teenage girls face, but Tess has been amazingly brave as she has become a woman.

7. Tess is faithful. Tess has a strong testimony and a strong sense of right and wrong. She will be able to use this gift throughout her life.

8. Tess has good common sense! Tess can sense danger, she can seek out good friends, and is able to listen to the Holy Ghost as she grows and learns.

9. Tess is strong. Tess has the ability to say "yes" or "no" at the right times. She is not afraid to walk away from temptation, she is willing to move forward as she chooses the right and seeks out the good things of this world.

10. Tess is loved! We are so proud of Tess, she is our oldest daughter, whom we have loved and cherished. We will continue to do so, but feel that we must now share her in a way we have not felt before...

Tess will do great at college, and we are already thinking of her coming home at Christmas...or perhaps we should have a family Christmas Hawaii! Aloha!

Mother's Day Phone Calls

2010-05-09T18:28:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day is a special event for any mother, but for those with sons and daughters out on missions, it is especially exciting. We began our evening by calling Travis (Elder Nuttall) in Japan. I was worried because I couldn't get through and couldn't understand the Japanese voice on the other end of the phone. So, I called a ward member who spoke Japanese and she told me that I was getting his answering machine. She suggested that his companion was on the phone with his family. I waited a while and tried back. Travis answered! He sounded so great. He has that missionary enthusiasm. Everything is amazing, awesome, and he is so excited to be serving the Lord. He said that he can speak Japanese pretty well, but cannot understand much of what is said. About 15 minutes into his call, my cell phone rang. It was Seth! Seth sounded much farther away...the connection on the phone was not as clear. He got cut off a couple of times. He sounded great....humble and mature.

Seth is having the opposite experience with Spanish as Travis is with Japanese. He can understand everyone, but has trouble speaking. Both boys sounded like themselves, I was wondering if they would sound totally different from what I remember. Their voices were familiar, and the things they shared made me feel at peace with them being so far away.

We managed to trade two phones around the house for the next 30 minutes. Everyone spoke to everyone and we ended the calls by putting Seth and Travis on speaker and letting them speak to each other. What a blessing this was for them. They have not spoken since Travis left last October. They enjoyed the time to talk. It felt like the family was all back together again. If I were to close my eyes and just listen...we were all back in the kitchen as a family. It was wonderful and a little bit sad at the same time.

Travis has had his first baptism. Baptisms are not common in Japan, so this is a big event for him. He was thrilled to have taught someone the gospel and see them progress to baptism. Seth has had many baptisms, the work moves more quickly in the Dominican Republic. Seth mentioned that the names of people are so long that it makes it tricky when someone is baptized! How different the missions are. How different the boys experiences have been. Yet, they fit the personalities and strengths of each of them perfectly. These are the tender mercies that I am so thankful for.

Happy Mother's Day!

Six Months Out...Eighteen To Go!

2010-04-16T19:04:00.000-07:00

still consider myself a bit of a new "missionary mom". I must admit that I secretly count the hours between Auburn and Japan and Auburn and the Dominican Republic. I feel badly if I don't write the boys each week, and I think about them all the time. By, now, the sting of them being gone has settled a bit, but I still miss them. The 1/4 mark is our first big milestone, with many more to come. Here is an excerpt from each boy:

Elder Travis Nuttall:

It has been raining for most of the week! When it rains in Japan it POURS! We're okay though, we have rain jackets and rain pants (kappa in japanese) so we can stay somewhat dry. My companion and I have been working on improving our english class, and its worked! We had 11 people (as opposed to the usual 3 or four) last teusday! We also found a new investigator from the class - she even came to conference! Conference is 1 week delayed here, we watch it on DVD. I was way exited for conference, because we had 2 investigators coming. It worked out very well because one of our investigators was struggling with resurrection vs. reincarnation, and there were tons of talks about resurrection because it was Easter! Everything was easy for our investigators to understand too. Conference is Subarashii! Another big thing this week was Zone Conference. The entire island of Shikoku has become a zone, so there were a-lot of people there. One new elder is from Brazil! He is learning japanese from english which is tough because english is his second language. Hes doing fine though, the Lord really does help out "after all we can do". Elder Frogley and I are planning on 2 baptisms this transfer. I've still yet to have one, but I know we can do it! We have "baptismal focus plans" for all our investigators, with a very specific vision for how we will help them to recieve baptism. Goal setting is really important! One other amazing thing happened this week. We visited an investigator who we have only known for 2 weeks, and asked her if she was able to read the introduction to the book of mormon like we asked her. She told us she had, and that she had also been reading in other parts of the book of mormon! (which happened to be 3rd nephi 11) She asked us "what is baptism? it talks a-lot about it in here". We were glad to explain it to her! We also started teaching her about prayer and she told us that she already prays everyday, and that she's prayed about the book of mormon and thinks its true!!! It was an amazing miracle - the Lord really does prepare people! We've boosted our teaching pool to over 10 people, and we hope to hit 20 by the end of the transfer. Missionary work is the best work on earth, because we are building up the Kingdom of God! Ill be sure to keep you all posted on how everything's going, and thanks so much for your emails! Love you all!

Elder Seth Rumbaugh:

Well, it was a pretty good week. My companion and I had a baptism this last Saturday. I did the baptising. The kid´s name is Misiyel. He is 15 years old. What was awesome was that the next day at church, after he recieved the holy ghost, he got up and bore his testimony about his conversion and the Book of Mormon. It was really strong and super cool to see. Several of the members thought it was cool too. My companion and I dont have any baptisims planned for this week but we have 5 or 6 planned for the 24th. It will be sweet if all of them can be baptised.

My companion Elder Almonte, and I have quit a few investigators. We have so many appointments that we really dont have time to contact. We are teaching this family right now. There names are Miguel and Ana. They have three little girls. The other day we were reading out of 3rd Nephi 11, the chapter where Christ comes to visit the Nephites. Miguel had doubts that Christ really came to the Americas. While my companion tried to explain to him that Christ did come to the Americas, I started reading the chapter to myself. While I was reading verse 10 caught my attention. In this verse Christ is testifying of himself as the person who prophets testified would come to the world. The word world caught my attention and reminded me of the famous scripture John 3:16 which says, "...God so loved the world, that he sent His only Begotten Son...". I then explained this to Miguel that God loved the world and sent His Son to the world. Not just Jerusalem but the whole world, including to the people in the Americas. This answered his doubt a little bit. I know for a fact that it was the Holy Ghost that was helping me in this situation. It felt really cool.

Everything here in the sizzling hot DR is going pretty good. Luckily it has been kind of cloudy this last week. It is hard to believe that I am almost a 1/4 of the way done. I remember vividly my first day in the MTC. Time is flying by. Love you all and miss you a lot. Until next week.

Well, that's plenty for now!

Salt Lake City!

2010-04-07T17:42:00.000-07:00

We returned yesterday from our trip to SLC for General Conference. The trip was complete with the usual triumphs and hassles! We enjoyed the time we spent together, conference, Temple Square, and swimming in the hotel pool. We are pleased that we survived the LONG car drive (we took two cars, actually). The occasional whining is just part of the territory and was balanced out by the spirit of conference and the excitement of the Easter Bunny. Yes, the Easter Bunny still comes even though we have older children!

We have heard that both boys are doing well in their respective missions. Travis is still in Kochi, he is experiencing the challenges of teaching in a country where Christ is not well known and not well received. He is faithful and hard-working. His companion and him often log the most tracting (they call it "streeting") hours of any other companionship in the area. It nice to see him enjoying the hard work. Seth is adjusting to his new area. The weather is warming up quite a bit...Seth has written home asking for some deodorant. Apparently, the deodorant in the Dominican doesn't quite cut it for him. Neither boy has received their Easter package from home...it is still difficult to predict the speed of the mail (or lack of it).

Enjoy the photos of conference!

BYU Hawaii

2010-03-19T19:40:00.000-07:00

Tess has officially accepted her invitation to attend BYU Hawaii. After some research and pondering, she feel confident that her decision is the right one. When she announced her decision, I immediately thought, "We'll HAVE to go visit her in Hawaii", and then I thought, "Wow, that makes three kids living outside the continental United States!" We feel very blessed that our children have started to become adults and are making good decisions as they are starting to leave home. This is what I have discovered will occur over the next five years: 2010 Tess leaves for college, 2011 Jessica goes to college, 2012 Ethan and Amanda go to college/Seth and Travis return from their missions, 2013 Aarun goes to college, 2014 a break...no one leaves home, 2015 Evan and Alyssa leave for college! Late fall 2015...empty nesters. By my count, that's only five years. Some of my "friends" have reminded me that I could be a grandmother by then...is that really possible? Thanks, "friends"!

The Hand IS Broken

2010-03-06T16:33:00.001-08:00

The big news of the week is that Evan's hand IS broken. The big event happened on Monday in school during PE class. As any child would, he came home complaining of his hand/finger aching. After nearly 20 years of parenting I have learned that most complaint (at least 90%) end up needing nothing more that some ice, some love, and maybe a cookie. So that's what I gave him, along with some help on his math homework.

The next morning, Evan left for school without a word about his aching hand...yeah!! Then about 30 minutes later I got the dreaded call from the school nurse. Whenever my child's school calls me, especially when I am working at the high school and the middle school calls, I immediately feel my stomach tighten. It is never good news. The middle school does not call you at work to tell you what a wonderful son you have. The nurse said something I've heard before, "I think you'd better come take a look at this." So I did, and yes it clearly needed an x-ray.

To make a long story short, Evan managed to chip a piece of bone from his middle knuckle and got a cast in exchange. He is enjoying the cast...and the extra attention he is getting from it. And me, I'm feeling a little bit guilty (especially since this happened once before). I guess the message here is that although ice, cookies, and hugs are nice...they don't fix broken bones.

Earthquakes Everywhere!

2010-02-28T20:05:00.000-08:00

Late Friday afternoon I received an email from a friend that there had been a 7.2 earthquake in Japan. Of course, I immediately got online to find out where the earthquake was, and how close it was to Hiroshima. It seems that it is far north of Hiroshima, and it is likely that Travis did not even feel it. I truly must have not been a big event, because it wasn't even mentioned on the news that evening. Just when I was breathing a sigh of relief, we woke to find an 8.8 earthquake in Chile...with all eyes pointed toward Hawaii for a tsunami. Gladly, both earthquakes and the tsunami seem to have been much less devastating than they could have been. We are blessed, and happy that both boys have escaped any injury the the earthquakes they have both been close to this past month.

Japan Hiroshima Mission Closing

2010-02-15T18:15:00.000-08:00

Shortly after our last posting, we received news from the Kobe, Japan mission informing parents and families that he Hiroshima mission was closing. I was wondering what Travis' response would be, here is his email from yesterday:

In June the Japan Hiroshima Mission will be closing. The mission is being split in half and added to the kobe and fukuoka missions. the news was pretty surprising, but Im okay with it. Im just glad to be a missionary here in japan! Weve been assured that this is not because we are a bad mission or anything, there just arent enough missionaries. the number has gone from 55,000 to under 50,000, so the church has to be more strategic about the placing of missions and missionaries. I wonder if Ill be a kobe or fukuoka missionary in June?

The reason they dont tell your release date is because you have the option to extend it by 6 weeks at the end of your mission! I know you want me home asap, but Ill probably want to extend. This first transfer has gone by so fast, Im scared of my whole mission going by too fast! so much to do, so little time!

I got your package this morning! thanks so much, Ill definetely put the blanket to good use ;). American candy is hard to come by here, so its nice to get some! I especially like the jello; Ive only had japanese jello once here, and it wasnt that good. there is one flavor that doesnt exist in japan: Mint! isnt that wierd? there is no mint anywhere! I guess the toothpaste you sent me should be pretty minty!

So, I have only one request. I have a 4 gb card here that I can fill with pictures. If you could send back the card I mailed home, then I can switch cards and send you the one I have! We can get an exchange going! I can print any pictures　I need, so we should be able to just mail cards and not need to mail pictures.

Anyway, Ill send home another letter today! Love you all!

Well, just a few days after posting this last message about how great the boys are doing in their missions, we received news from Japan that Travis' mission is closing as of July 1st. Travis promptly wrote home with what he called the "Big News", this is what he reports:

In June the Japan Hiroshima Mission will be closing. The mission is being split in half and added to the kobe and fukuoka missions. the news was pretty surprising, but Im okay with it. Im just glad to be a missionary here in japan! Weve been assured that this is not because we are a bad mission or anything, there just arent enough missionaries. the number has gone from 55,000 to under 50,000, so the church has to be more strategic about the placing of missions and missionaries. I wonder if Ill be a kobe or fukuoka missionary in june?

The reason they dont tell your release date is because you have the option to extend it by 6 weeks at the end of your mission! I know you want me home asap, but Ill probably want to extend. This first transfer has gone by so fast, Im scared of my whole mission going by too fast! so much to do, so little time!

I got your package this morning! thanks so much, Ill definetely put the blanket to good use ;). American candy is hard to come by here, so its nice to get some! I especially like the jello; Ive only had japanese jello once here, and it wasnt that good. there is one flavor that doesnt exist in japan: Mint! isnt that wierd? there is no mint anywhere! I guess the toothpaste you sent me should be pretty minty!

So, I have only one request. I have a 4 gb card here that I can fill with pictures. If you could send back the card I mailed home, then I can switch cards and send you the one I have! We can get an exchange going! I can print any pictures　I need, so we should be able to just mail cards and not need to mail pictures.

Anyway, Ill send home another letter today! Love you all!

It sounds like he doesn't know he's already been assigned to Kobe. Since he doesn't read our blog from the mission, we are safe putting it here (I hope). We were surprised, but also glad to see that Travis took the news in stride. Did you notice that he wants to extend his mission for six weeks? He's only been out for 4 months and is already planning to extend...this must mean he is truly enjoying his service. As long as he's home for Christmas 2011, I am glad to see his enthusiasm.

Seth also wrote us today, he is also doing well, getting a new companion and enjoying the work! He and Amanda were able to email back and forth today for a few moments. That was a real treat for them both.

The Latest from Japan and the Dominican Republic

2010-02-11T20:16:00.000-08:00

There is an older missionary couple that oversees 17 missionary companionships in Seth's area and they have a blog where they post regularly. We found this photo of Seth on their blog. Seth mentioned the day they did a "Slip and Slide", what a treat to see a photo of him here! It makes me very happy that Brother and Sister Johnson are there in the DR watching over our son. It gives me great comfort! Seth is adjusting to the weather and is really enjoying missionary work. He tells of a story of a couple that cannot hear or read. Seth and his companion use simple pictures and drawings to communicate with them. They aren't sure if the couple can actually be baptized, but they are enjoying the time they have to teach them. Seth tells us that his Spanish is getting much better. He was starting to get a reputation for being a very quiet Elder, but he is feeling more comfortable now and starting to speak out. Seth has had a couple of investigators join the church, he tells us of their humility and excitement for the gospel. The people of the Dominican Republic live simple, and in many cases, very poor lifestyle, but they gospel is the same in every nation, so says Elder Rumbaugh!

Travis is doing well too! He emailed on Saturday to tell me that he had a special mission conference on his regular P-day so not to worry if I don't hear from him for a while. There is a rumor going around among the Hiroshima mothers that the Hiroshima mission is going to close. The work is going slowly, and the number of missionaries in Hiroshima is falling below 60, that's only about 15 companionships for the entire mission. There is talk of Hiroshima becoming part of the Kobe mission. This is still unconfirmed, we'll probably hear more next p-day. I am glad that he was able to email home and let us know he would be gone on his regular p-day. Travis' emails usually arrive around 7:00pm on Sunday nights, that's about noon on Monday for him. It makes Sunday evenings our favorite night of the week. I find myself looking a the clock once dinner has been served. As mentioned, the work in Japan goes slowly. Travis mentions that people don't seem to be anxious to learn about the gospel, which is a surprise to him, especially considering how humble the reserved many of the people in Japan are. This has been a challenge for him, but he shares how he and his companion talk to everyone they meet and he gets to practice his Japanese quite a bit. He mentions that he is directionally challenged, and without his companion, he would be lost most of the time! He also reports that he can speak Japanese pretty well, but understanding the natives is still difficult. Good luck, Elder Nuttall!

We are pleased that both boys are doing well, and I am counting the days until Mother's Day!

Seth's Experiences with the Earthquake in Haiti & A Letter From Japan!

2010-01-18T15:38:00.000-08:00

We have heard from Seth and his experiences in the Dominican Republic during the earthquake in Haiti. Thankfully, all the members and missionaries are safe and accounted for. This is his report to his family:

"You are probably wondering if I felt the earthquake that was in Haiti. To answer your question, yes I did. My companion and I were in the middle of a lesson when it happened. I was kind of observing the reations of our investigators at the time. I noticed one of our investigators point out some to her mom across the room but I didnt see anything. All the sudden I felt really dizzy and kind of sick. I finally realized it was an earthquake so I jumped out of my seat and was ready to run out of the house. I was waiting for my companion to do the same thing. I did not want to be in that house. Most of the houses here are just made out of cement walls that are held up be posts that are in the ground. There is no foundation at all usually. I did not feel safe at all. The member that was with us ran out right away. My companion eventually casually walked out and I followed him. Our investigator and her mom got on their knees and started praying to God for forgiveness. Eventually the quake stopped after 30 seconds. After everyone was calmed down we continued the lesson. Later on my companion said that he could see the house shaking a little and trees swaying like crazy. He said one of the first things he thought was that it was the second coming. I told him I thought the very same thing. I guess the quake was about a 5.2 where we were. Nothing where we are fell or was damaged. I have heard that Haiti is in disaster though. I´ve heard the capital has been destroyed, everyone in their government died except for the president who is in the hospital, and that there are 2 million orphans headed of the US. I am not exactly sure what is true and what isnt but I know the situation isnt good. I have heard though that the church headquarters there was one of the few buildings still standing and that all missionaries are accounted for. I guess Elder Coleman of the area seventy is working closely with the secretary of state in Haiti over relief efforts from the church. So ya, that was my experience with the earthquake."

I am also pleased to report that we heard from Travis. After over two weeks of waiting he has finally written home. This is what he has to say:

"Hey everyone! Sorry it took me a while to get to a computer. I sent a letter, but apparently it takes 10 days to arrive. Japan is definetly different. There`s no insulation or central heating, so it gets a little chilly. We can usually see our breath in the apartment. summer is supposed to be warmer though. my trainer is elder anderson, he`s from Idaho. We get along pretty well. My area is called kochi, right in the middle of the big city. Our area is enormous, it takes about 6 hours by car to cross it. Since we`re on bikes, we can`t cover it, but there`s more than enough work for us here around the main city. The missionary work here is a little slow; most people have no interest whatsoever in christianity. We have several investigators who are progressing slowly. We had one lady who was doing great, but then her family found out and now we aren`t sure what will happen. many people here just don`t like christianity, even though they know nothing about it. We did find one guy in a park who was interested, he was even willing to read the Book of Mormon! it was a good experience. I can probably understand about 10 percent of what I hear. I`ve only been here for a week and a half though, so I won`t get discouraged. I managed to put together a pretty good talk for sacrament meeting, it went really well. I know enough japanese to get my message across, Its just understanding and coming up with things quickly off the top of my head. It will come with time. I heard there was a massive earthquake in Haiti, I hope Seth is doing ok. well, I`ll write again asap. Love you all!"

Landen and Lillie...Seth and Travis

2010-01-17T17:18:00.000-08:00

We are blessed enough to have the opportunity to have Landen and Lillie come for visits with us on the weekends. The kids thoroughly enjoy having them come to visit...and cuddle with the twins day and night. Landen and Lillie are nearly two years old now and are good talkers...especially Lillie who can repeat almost anything she hears. She is quite the singer too! She has invented a song that sounds like a combination of the "A B C's and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". Landen loves anything that has to do with a ball..any ball.

It has been an anxious week for us as we have been waiting to hear from our missionaries. About one hour after the devastating earthquake in Haiti we received an email from Seth's mission president reporting that all the Santo Domingo West Missionaries have been accounted for and that no damage has been reported to any person or property related to the church. The next day we received an email from the church that spoke to the conditions of the surrounding missions. All missionaries were safe and accounted for. Although there are no full time missionaries in Haiti, the saints there are in need of our prayers.

We have not heard from Travis since he left Provo. We received an email from his mission president's wife asking if we could check with his bank. His debit card was not working well for him in Japan. We were able to make arrangements with the bank, and luckily he can now access his money! But, we have not heard from him. He left Provo on January 4th, and as of today (January 17th) we are still waiting! I realize that it has only been 13 days...so I am trying to be patient. Some friends have suggested that if I do not hear from him this week that I should email the mission home and ask them to remind Travis of his frantic mother back home. I don't want to embarrass him...but I really do want to hear from him. I do know that he is serving in Kochi, Japan and that his companion is Elder Anderson. Beyond that, we have no details!

Returning back to Seth, he emailed us this week an excellent letter. Here is an excerpt:

I am in this city called Azua that is two hours west of Santo Domingo. Our area is called Pueblo Arriba. Its a area that covers the whole end of the town. The people here are really nice and friendly. They have a really hard time pronouncing my name though. I have only heard one person pronounce it right the first time. Most people just say Rambow or something similiar. I guess rambow is some kind of party music which is kind of funny. anyways, the people here love their music and love to play it loud. I saw one truck that had four stadium sized speakers on the top of it. People will play their music late into the night also.
Every block as these little stores called colmados. we get most of our food there. They carry basic food necessites and other things. Stuff here is very cheap, at least the local stuff. Everything that is imported can be expensive.
I better tell you about our house. Its actually really nice compared to other houses aroung here. Most houses here are made of cement and have sheet metal roofs. Most of the houses have some kind of power and running water. They usually have cement or dirt floors. The bathrooms-showers are usually outside. They are usualy about 20x15 feet and have one or two bedrooms. Anyways, our house is really nice compared to others. Its on a second level of a building. It has tile floors, running water and electricity(when they aren´t shut off), and a small kitchen. No huge spiders or other bugs like I thought there would be. It basicaly like an apartment in the US. I have nothing to complain about especially when you compare it to the houses around us. We only have cold water which means cold showers. They arent too bad. Its not like the cold water in washington. I´ll send pictures of the house when I can.
The weather here is HOT. It´s not as humid as Santo Domingo because its farther from the water but its HOT. The mosquitos arent too bad. I dont even use the repellant that I have. The only bites that I have gotten are on my feet because I sleep with my feet uncovered. At night we just have a fan blow on us and that keeps almost all of the mosquitos away.
My companion´s name is elder Barnhurst. He is a pretty cool guy. He´s from Utah like every other missionary seems to be. He only comes up to my shoulder. He knows spanish pretty well and is very helpful. we share the house with two other missionaries that are from the DR. They are really funny. They also love basketball. They try to talk to bme about stuff but I dont speak very well. They are helpful too. They played a joke on me when I first got here. They took my bed out of our room and replaced it with two sleeping pads with bricks underneath it. when I saw it I was kind of disappointed. They told me they were working on getting me a bed. I believed them a course. They like to play jokes like those all the time. My companion´s old companions left a bunch of ties for me. I guess you can get ties at this market for less that a dollar each.
My spanish is coming along okay. I understand people a lot more and usually have an idea of what is going on but I cant speak well at all. I basically bear a really short testimony and sometimes say a prayer during lessons.That is all I really need to do though. My companion says that I need to work on my accent really bad because people have a really hard time understanding me when I do have something to say. All well, spanish will come.
The DR is really kind of like a big farm. When you walk around you´ll see stray dogs and cats, chickens, goats, pigs, cows, ducks, and what ever else that might be on a farm. Every morning you hear hundreds of roosters. It really is kind of like a farm. There are also naked kids that like to run down the street. We dont really go out and procelite until 3 beacuse most people are doind chores and realy dont want to be interrupted. we have study time until 11 or 11:30 and then we might go rum some errends or something else. Then we´ll have lunch.
Traffic here is really crazy. Everyone rides motrorcycles of some kind of motorbike. There arent any speed limits, no traffic lights, and no stop signs. It is basically a free for all. Its nuts. Traffic here doenst stop for pedestrians at all so we have to be very careful especially downtown. One reason our mission doesnt have bikes is beacuse an elder got hit by a moter bike and was seriously injured. If I die on my mission(don´t worry, I won´t) it will probably because I got hit by a moterbike.
Well, when I got to the field, my companion said that we had a baptism set up for saturday. And that is what happened. we baptised this girl named Yeraldina (pernounced like Jeraldina). she is 17. I got to help teach two lessons to her so that baptism counts for me too. we are now teaching her sister who seems pretty intersted. Our main focus right now is this 12 year old girl named Gladis. She is amazing and is a very special daughter of God. She has been going to church by herself for the last two years just because she loves it. She has a really strong testimony of Joseph Smith and the church. She is very mature for her age and you can tell that she is one of those elect that are talked about in the scriptures. I guess missionaries in the past haven´t thought about bapstising her because she was too young and the rest of her family arent members. We went and talked to her mom last night and she said that it was ok and that she supported Gladis. When Gladis found out that she could be baptised she had the biggest smile on her face. If she stays active in the church, which I am certain she will, she will go far. Elder Barhurst and I think that we could get her whole family to be baptised too. i guess her sisters has been coming to church too. Most people here are willing to hear our message at least once. we usually just talk about prayer the first lesson and if we think that they are really interested we will introduce the book of mormon. It is pretty effective. Right now we have about 5 progressing investigators and 4 others that we are still teaching. Oh ya, one thing that is different here than in the USA is that people here will just start breast feeding their babies right in front of you. Its kind of awkward. we just try to focus on their face or other people who are part of the lesson when teaching.

Hopefully, we will have some news next week about how things are with Travis!

Amanda Played Varsity!

2010-01-07T20:01:00.000-08:00

Amanda is pleased to announce that she has officially suited up and played (although not for very long) on the varsity basketball team. This has been a goal of hers since she was a 9th grader last year. So, as a sophomore she is finally playing some varsity. Girls high school basketball is a painful endeavor. Painful physically sometimes, painful emotionally and socially almost always. However, she has handled it wonderfully and and we are proud of her.

We are assuming that both Seth and Travis made it safely to their respective first areas on their missions. We are waiting anxiously for their first P-day and hopefully an email home. We are so pleased to have both boys serving at the same time, twice the blessings! Hopefully we will have some exciting news to share early next week!

And They're Off!

2010-01-03T21:01:00.000-08:00

Well, Seth and Travis leave this week for their first official areas as missionaries! Travis leaves Monday morning, and flies to LAX. He will call us from Los Angeles (I can't wait!) and then fly from LAX to Tokyo. From there, seven of the missionaries will be met by elders from the Tokyo mission. Travis will continue on (via the bullet train) to Hiroshima. He will travel from Tokyo to Hiroshima alone. I am a bit worried...hoping he will get there. I hope he will know when to get off the train, I hope that someone will meet him at the train station in Hiroshima. How will he get from the Tokyo airport to the train station? I am convinced that I am not the only mother to have such worries, but without having done this before I am worried! I have heard that the mission president will notify us that he has arrived safely. He is supposed to finally arrive in Hiroshima late Tuesday night, by my count that is almost 2 days of travel. I'm sure that the time difference makes it a bit shorter.

Seth leaves for his first area on Tuesday. Since he has been in the Dominican Republic for several weeks already, he will travel to his first area by car (or so we have heard). He is a bit nervous...he feels his Spanish is not great yet. We've tried to tell him to give it some time, he can't expect to be fluent in just nine weeks! Seth does not know if he will be in a city or in the country (which if poverty stricken). He hopes to have an American companion that will help him with his Spanish and can speak some English to! Funny how both boys are a bit nervous, as is their mom. I know that they will do fine. The Lord will watch over them.

The two missions are very different. Seth says his president is known for being very strict, sending Elders home quite often. They are not permitted to take a lot of pictures, and must abide by many mission rules. Travis' president stressed the importance of photographs. The Japanese people get to know each other with photos, and are a relaxed and friendly people. The Hiroshima mission is small, in fact Travis was the only elder in the MTC going there. It will be exciting to hear about their missions and how they differ.

Happy New Year!

Happy Holidays...Missing Our Boys.

2009-12-27T19:47:00.000-08:00

We enjoyed a wonderful Christmas this week. We were so blessed to have seven of our nine children home, healthy and happy. As for the other two...I am sure they had a wonderful Christmas in their respective MTC's. We hear from Travis on Tuesdays and Seth on Thursdays, so they will have much to report, I am sure. I have heard from numerous people the Christmas in the MTC is an amazing experience!

It was strange to not have the boys home this Christmas. We remembered all of the funny things they would do as we opened presents, and reminisced as a family on Christmas morning. A few months ago Wayne's brother Ryan relocated to the Auburn area and has been living with us. He is a perfect fit for our family, and helped ease the pain of having Travis and Seth gone. Ryan is so helpful to our family and the kids just love having him around. He can relate to them in a special way that is different from a parent. He is a blessing to us all.

The kids enjoyed their gift and the time we spent with our extended family on Christmas day. Spending time together playing games, eating fudge, and just talking brings great memories for years to come. Our lives are so busy, that we all appreciated the time we spent home on Christmas day.

Speaking of busy, we have been fortunate enough to have our special twins come to visit. You may remember Landon and Lillie from previous posts. They are precious and are going through some adjustments in life right now. We are able to have them over on the weekends to get to know all the kids in our home and play together. The twins are half brother and sister to Seth, Tess, Ethan, Aarun, and Alyssa. It is good bonding for all of the children to play together and have fun. We hope to have the twins on a regular basis (on the weekends) for the next 5-6 months.

Seth and Travis are scheduled to leave the MTC/CCM in the next two weeks. They will arrive in their first areas within the first week or two of January. They are both nervous, and a bit worried about how their Japanese and Spanish are coming along. They have a good attitude, and have great faith that the Lord will take care of them. We feel the same way, and pray for them daily. We are very excited to talk to Travis as he travels from Utah to Tokyo and then by the bullet train from Tokyo to Hiroshima. When Seth left for the CCM (MTC in the Dominican Republic) he called us from Texas and Florida. It was great for us all. I have not seen or spoken to Travis since October 21st. I realize that this is only two months, but it feels like two years already! I am so excited to hear his voice and tell him I love him! When I find out when he is travelling, I am going to take the day off from work so that I can sit by the phone for his call. I know this may sound silly...but I am just SO jealous of all those great stay-at-home mothers of missionaries that get to wait by the phone. Since I am not a stay-at-home mother, I am going to pretend to be one....and wait anxiously all day for his call. It's just one of those silly things we do as mothers. It seems so important to me right now to hear his voice. We do not expect to hear from Seth when he transfers from Santo Domingo to his first area, since we heard from him when he left Salt Lake City. We will be anxious to hear from them both again on Mother's Day (which is a Sunday...so missing work required!).

We are looking forward to a new year, with many new adventures and blessings! 2010 is just around the corner...we hope to continue with our family traditions, and begin a couple of new ones as well. I have developed a new system for cleaning the bathrooms. I am going to give it a test drive once we all head back to school. Our poor children (and Ryan) all share ONE bathroom among the 8 of them. So, you can imagine that it needs a good cleaning everyday. We have not yet developed a good system for this chore...until now. I'll post on how my new idea pans out!

Lastly, I am posting a portion of Travis and Seth's last emails. I think they speak to how well they are doing, and how they are growing so much. Enjoy...

"Hey mom, its snowing today! Guess what, I get to ride the bullet train from tokyo to hiroshima! I'm pretty exited! Christmas here is sure to be exiting! did you get Becca or Grandpa N's addresses yet? I would really love to write them! The picture printers are all fried. I'll probably mail you the memory card soon. I'm sending a letter today! I got your package, thanks so much! sorry if this seems rushed, but I just have no email time right now. I'll send better letters!"

Love, Travis

"Hey Dad/Family-
I didn't get your email, but I would love to see some of those pictures. Anyways, I heard that Duke and Blue ran away. That made me kind of sad. Hopefully Duke will take care of Blue and they'll come back. I miss them a lot. I also heard that Brother May is getting better which is awesome to hear about. He is an awesome guy.

Well, thinks here have been better. My spanish is actually way better that it was a couple weeks ago. I can defintiy feel the Lord's hand in helping learn spanish. Speaking of hands, I had an awesome experience at the temple yesterday, which I feel like is ok to share with you. I was going through the temple for a man named Andres Hilario. Before we started and during the session, I had been praying to know if he had accepted the gospel or not. When the session ended and I had a few moments to myself, so I prayed one more time. Right then and there my hand was warmand I felt like someone was shakingit. I know that it was Brother Hilario and I know that he has accepted the gospel. It was an awesome experience.
I have been reading the book of mormon a lot. I cant stop sometimes and I'll have to force myself to start studying other things. I dont know why I didn't enjoy it as much before my mission as I do now. There area so many things that I have noticed and learned that I have never before noticed and learned. Its amazing. It truly is another testament of Christ.

It has been kind of rainy here in the DR. It's still warm but it rains. The weather is exactly like it is in Florida. Yesterday, before the rain came in, there was the most amazing sunrise that I have ever seen in my life. There were all these clouds which relfected the sun in many different ways so that there were different shades of res, orangs, pink, purple, yellow and so on. It was awesome. I wish I could have taken a picture.
Only two more weeks till I'm in the field. I dont really know what to think about that. I excited but dont know what to expect at the same time. I dont know whether I'll be in the city or in the country, or if I'll have an American or a native companion. All well, I know the lord will take care of me. I definitly plan on buying Raid though for those spiders and any other pre-histori sized bug I might encounter on this island. Maybe some mouse traps too. wait lets make them rat traps. Those will probably be better.

Tell Ethan, Aarun, Evan, and Amanda(if she is healed) to keep dong well in basketball. Alyssa in gymnastics too. Athletics has definitly helped prepare for my mission. Athletics teaches you how to work hard and how to push through hard times. Man, I really miss track. Iget to play basketball here which is fun because there are some elders here that are pretty good, but for some reason I have been missing track a lot. All well, I need to focus on my mission.

Well, I have to go. I miss all of you a lot and love you too. I appreciate all the support you give me. Dont worry about me too much, the Lord will do that for you. have a Merry Christmas and I'll see you in a little over a year and ten months."

Love, Seth

Update!

2009-12-14T19:12:00.000-08:00

Well, it has been a while since I posted an update on the boys. Seth has left for the MTC in the Dominican Republic. He tells us they eat a lot of bananas, have Fruit Loops for breakfast everyday along with large amounts of rice and beans. They are also served some sort of "mystery meat" with lunch and dinner. The weather is 80 degrees each day...Seth is nervous about how hot it will get in the summer! We have been looking forward to the boys calling home on Christmas, but we have learned that they are not permitted to call home from the MTC's. There are simply too many elders and not enough phones. Can you imagine the phone bill? So, we will be waiting to hear from Seth in May, on mother's day. By then he will have been out for 6 months, that's 1/4 of his total mission! Seth is enjoying learning Spanish. He has spent a lot of time writing his friends back home. He has spent less time writing his family back home. I am wondering if he felt that he needs to be a good example and missionary to his friends back home. We are hoping that we will continue to get some letters from him every other week or so. He is able to send a quick email home every Thursday. I look forward to hearing from him! He says he is not able to take pictures without permission from the CCM president. I am wondering if some of the young elders spent a little too much time taking photographs! Seth sounds great, he is maturing each day. He is working hard, his testimony grows more each time we read his emails. I can tell that he is settling into the routine of the CCM very well. Seth was called as travel leader for the trip from Provo to Santo Domingo. He was very nervous. I am sure that he was called because of his quiet, calm nature. He did a great job, he recalls that he had to watch over one elder who got airsick! Good Luck Seth, we miss you!

Travis is on cloud nine in the Provo MTC. He is loving every minute there. He has times when he struggles with the language, but he is persevering and trying his best. I try to remind him that he is not expected to be fluent in Japanese prior to arriving there. He is the only elder in the MTC going to Hiroshima. I have asked him why this is the case, but he has not given us an explanation. He is quite the opposite of Seth, he writes us long letters every week. I enjoy hearing from him! He does not write as many letters to people outside of the family, so we hear from him regularly. He is asking for photographs...quite the opposite of the CCM. Travis states that the Japanese people love photographs, and that is how they get to know each other. I have sent him some, but I know he wants more. Travis has grown so much in the nearly 2 months he's been in Provo. In some ways it feels like he's been gone for a year or more, but then other times it seems like two months! Strange. Travis was called as district leader. His district was composed of only 6 elders, but now they have received a whole crew of new missionaries, so he has more responsibilities. He will be a fine leader, he is very humble and hard working.

Well, both boys are fine. We are so busy that I find several days go by without me missing them. It seems selfish to miss them, as they are doing a great work. I look forward to them being placed in their first areas as "real" missionaries and hearing all about their challenges and successes! We'll try to post more regularly!

Elder Rumbaugh and Elder Nuttall

2009-11-12T21:30:00.001-08:00

Well, Travis has been gone for three weeks now, and Seth for one. We have begun to slip back into "normal" life. Even though we are not exactly the same, life requires that we move forward with school, church, basketball, gymnastics, etc. Part of me wants to think about the boys every minute, not wanting to forget how much I miss them. But the reality is that they are FINE. In fact, they are GREAT. Both boys report that the MTC is awesome. Seth said that it is almost better than Disneyland. He did say that the first two days were intense...he remarked that he thought he might go insane...but apparently, he has adjusted to the pace just fine.

Travis has written us twice and sent two emails. He sounds thrilled with his experiences. He said that he can see his companion's neighborhood from their dorm in the MTC. Both boys have asked for packages and letters. The best way to write them is through www.dearelder.com.

Seth's mission is Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo, West. Box #211.

Travis' mission is Japan, Hiroshima, Box #201.

Dear Elder will let you write letters electronically and they will deliver them free. Look for the tab on the left of the page that states, "Provo MTC Free". The website will deliver letters written before 11:00am will be delivered that evening. Those after 11:00am are delivered the next evening. It is a great service, and both boys have said they really enjoy the letters they are getting.

They have also both hinted at receiving packages being a highlight. We try to send something once a week. It sounds like packages become a dorm event! Anyway, we are glad to report that both boys are on a "cloud nine" of sorts. They can pray, bear testimony, and introduce themselves in their respective languages. Both have said they learned more in their first week than in a whole semester or two at school. So, the status so far is good. I hope things remain good for them!

Seth is Off!

2009-11-04T09:57:00.000-08:00

Seth is in the air as we speak...flying to the MTC. It was hard to take him to Sea-Tac rather than all the way to Provo, but this was the way we planned it, so thus it was. As I mentioned previously, this is a much harder experience than I imagined. And, I'm usually pretty good at estimating how things are going to turn out. T

he house feels different. Our two leaders are gone. The two that helped keep everyone in line are gone. And, to be honest, I am a bit heart-broken. But, as Wayne and I have said to each other many times, our sadness is selfish. We are sad that our family has changed and will never be exactly the way it was two weeks ago. We had 19 great years with the boys, but then one day...they are grown up. Part of me feels such selfishness to think this way when I know that there are parents who have lost children and will live most part of their lives without them. I wonder if I seem like an incredible complainer to them?

Perhaps this mission "experience" is really a symbol that our lives are changing, the kids are growing up, and we have to start letting go. Perhaps I've put all those growing pains into one package, calling it a "mission".

Okay, getting a grip here! Seth was fantastic this morning. Calm as a cucumber. Funny, smiling, confident, and (so he says) not even nervous. His setting apart with President Miles was a joy. It was peaceful and comforting. Seth was cared for by the stake President with the same love and compassion that he had for Travis. We returned home after the setting-apart and held a family testimony meeting, as we did last time. The only two times we have held such a meeting are the nights before the boys left. Wow, what a powerful experience! I recommend it. At the family testimony meeting, everyone said a few things to Seth, bore their testimony and (of course) cried a bit. The meetings sometimes become a bit of a confession with the younger kids, things like "I took your Easter candy when you weren't looking and I'm really sorry. I hope you can forgive me". Or, "Seth, I know I was mean to you, and called you names when the parents weren't around...I shouldn't have done that". You get the idea...it was almost cleansing for some of them. Very sweet and innocent for the younger kids.

So, where to do we go from here? Forward, I guess. Writing letters, sending packages, counting down the days until they return. My friends tell me that the sting lessens as the weeks to by, but for now, the sting still stings a lot.

I guess I am a pretty typical mom, I like to take pictures of the kids, take an extra one "just in case". I require everyone to dress similar when we have a family portrait, those kinds of things. So, in the spirit of such photo taking, I took a couple of Travis and Seth in similar poses. Here they are:

At Seth's farewell, we took this cute picture of the four girls, and I thought I should post it here in a tribute to the joy they add to our home!

In Travis' first letter home, he was so thrilled with his experiences at the MTC. He expressed how much Japanese he has already learned, and how busy he is everyday. He said they have a saying at the MTC that the days go by like weeks, and the weeks go by like days. L. Tom Perry had come to speak at the MTC, which he enjoyed. On Halloween, they took a break from studies for a little bit, and enjoyed a few pranks from the senior companions in the district. Sounds a bit like Scout Camp! Well, that's all for now, I will keep posting as we hear from the boys and as our family has exciting events to report!

Homecoming 2009

2009-10-26T16:30:00.000-07:00

In an effort to take a break from the emotions and excitement of missions, I am posting about Homecoming. Tess and Jessica both attended Homecoming with some friends from the ward. It was fun to go dress shopping (JCPenney is a great place to get nice dresses without spending a fortune!). The girls spent most of the day (Saturday) at a sub-district swim and dive meet. They rushed home, chlorine-drenched hair and all to get ready for their dates.

The boys arrived on time to find out that the girls were NOT ready! So, they waited nervously in the doorway. I tried to get them to come inside and sit down, but they preferred to stand in the entryway. Perhaps they were positioning themselves to make a quick get-away before getting the third-degree from mom and dad.

Finally, the girls were ready, looking beautiful! The group of them went to dinner...where Jessica's date apparently became violently ill and had to abandon the event mid-dinner. Jessica was a good sport, and went to the dance with Tess and her date. The group headed to the school dance...school dances always leave something to be desire in my mind. However, since I was chaperoning the dance, I felt okay about them attending. I think they only stayed about one hour (watching the dance from the side-lines) and left to spend the rest of the evening back at a friends home. Overall, it went well (for Tess) and they enjoyed wearing the new dresses to church the next day.

Tess is already thinking about Senior Prom. We may have to pull a favor or two to get some help in adapting a dress for Tess for the event. This is an exciting year for Tess, she has begun to apply to BYU (Idaho, Provo, and Hawaii). We will know where she will be attending college next year sometime in January.

Travis has entered the MTC

2009-10-21T21:06:00.000-07:00

Well, I have just returned from taking Travis to the MTC. He and I flew from Seattle to Salt Lake City on Monday afternoon. We spent Tuesday visiting the sites around Temple Square. Our events for the day included attending the Salt Lake City Temple, watching the Joseph Smith movie, touring the Conference Center, and spending time together talking, reminiscing, etc. It was some of the best time I have ever spent with Travis...which made the pending curbside drop-off at the MTC even more difficult.

I am not trying to be dramatic, but it was the hardest thing I have ever done. Wayne and I have

remarked how Seth and Travis are looking forward, imagining the future for themselves, while we are looking back into the past. We are wishing for more time, more memories, more experiences, more joy. All of these emotions and thoughts are what made Wednesday's experience so hard. I have cried tears of joy and tears of sorrow...however I know that the work Travis is doing is tremendous. He is so excited, so overjoyed, and ready to begin his "Best Two Years". I would summarize the

experience by saying that I was truly caught off guard at how "unprepared" I was to let him go,

how much I wanted to hang on to him forever, how much I love him. One's children mean so much to them, and it is times like this, times when we

must let them go that we remember how much they

mean to us and how much they have made our life experiences what they are.

So, from this point on I am trying to look forward myself. I am trying to build memories with what I have. I am seeking patience, understanding and long suffering for my family. We will work harder to appreciate each other, and the time we have together. Sadly, they do grow up too fast, and although that statement has not been much more than a cliche to me in the past, it has new meaning today!

Only 729 days until Travis returns

home! I will be giving him a long overdue hug. By the way, Seth leaves us in 13 days. I am trying to prepare once again for a teary-eyed good bye.

Thank you to everyone who attended Travis' open house. The turnout was tremendous, he and I both felt very loved by our ward family. Thank you so much for your support, it means the world to our entire family!

Travis, "God Be With You 'Til We Meet Again!"

The Pumpkin Patch, One Last Time!

2009-10-12T20:15:00.000-07:00

We have been experiencing a series of "lasts" over the past few weeks. Sometime last week we realized that we needed one last trip to the pumpkin patch as a family before the boys leave. I must admit that my attitude about the trek to the pumpkin patch, through the corn mazes, and up and down the rows of overpriced pumpkins was much different this time around. In the past we have enjoyed most of our trips through the pumpkins and corn mazes. Sometimes we have not really enjoyed it...managing such a trip with eleven people can be...what's the word..."tricky" to put it nicely! This year, however, it was nostalgic! This will likely be the last one we will visit as an entire family, at least without flying someone home for the occasion. When the boys return from their missions, we will have two daughters at BYU, and two others who will be high school seniors! Times are changing. For the most part, I welcome such changes as an opportunity for new experiences. I look forward to the next life adventure. But in the past, such adventures did not include a child leaving home (or two children leaving home).

I have decided that the best thing to do is to focus on what is still the same, what good is coming of the boys serving missions, and the blessings our families will experience as a result of Seth and Travis serving the Lord for two years. I would imagine that the blessings will be great, and that our family will be better for them having served.

Here are some more photos from the pumpkin patch...this is one of Jessica and me as the official winners of the corn maze race (with only minimal cheating)!

Here we are weighing the family on the large scale that weighs your pumpkins and calculates the enormous price you will pay for them (sorry for the sarcasm). In case you were wondering, our family weighs 1,553 pounds. Divide that by eleven and we each weigh about...you can do the math!

Continuing with our theme of "lasts" we had one last family dinner on Sunday. We enjoyed the meal with some of the grandparents as they said their final good-bye's to Travis for quite some time. Overall, we are amazed and pleased at our sons desires, willingness, and worthiness to serve missions. We are new parents when it comes to things beyond high school, so we are going to try to enjoy the experience and grow as a family!

Travis is having an open house on Sunday the 18th...this Sunday from 6:00 to 7:00pm at our home. Please call if you have any questions!

In a "Holding Pattern"

2009-09-23T18:35:00.000-07:00

We had a great weekend, as Seth and Travis went through the temple for the first time. It is interesting to view them as adults more so now than before. As the title mentions, we are in a "holding pattern" waiting for the boys to leave on their missions. Travis leaves for Hiroshima, Japan on October 19th. That's less than one month (for those of us who are keeping track). I have decided that I must fly him out to Provo and deliver him to the MTC myself. Everyone's work schedules do not permit us to make a pilgrimage to Provo, but I couldn't bring myself to drop him off curbside at the airport! So, I will be dropping him off curbside at the MTC.

I am not sure if everyone realizes that missionaries are no longer accompanied into the MTC for a short farewell ceremony as has been done in the past. So, we will be arriving on a Monday night, spend Tuesday touring Salt Lake City and the BYU campus...and then it's farewell until October of 2011. Wow, 2011 that's a long time from now.

Seth, on the other hand, will be dropped off at the airport. Seth had the pleasure of spending three weeks in Florida with his grandmother. He had a great time! We made a "deal" that this trip took the place of us flying him down to Provo ourselves. Seth will leave for Provo on November 4th. His cousin, Nick left for the same country (Dominican Republic) today! Both Seth and Travis will be in the MTC together for Thanksgiving...the thought of them being "together" brings me a sense of peace and contentment. Seth will leave the Provo MTC in late November, heading for the Dominican Republic MTC for 9 more weeks of training. Travis will linger in Provo until January 4th. Seth is excited to be serving in an area where he will learn a new language and be able to serve the Lord in a way that he has not done before. The missionaries in our ward have made good use of Seth (and Travis) as they take them on discussions with them. What an exciting time this is for our family. Everyone is looking forward to hearing all about the adventures and challenges that the boys will surely face over the next two years.

We were able to purchase a "countdown" poster from Deseret Book last week...Seth and Travis will have a well documented mission! It was nice to see them pick out a missionary journal along with a new scripture bag and a pocket-sized hymnal. Seth received his missionary suit ( he was told to only purchase one...and that it will be left in the mission home) and a very nice watch for his birthday on Sunday. I guess you could say that our preparations are well underway!

School Begins!

2009-09-07T21:09:00.000-07:00

Well, another summer has come and gone. The kids (and parents) go back to school on Wednesday, September 9th. I think we are the latest school district in the state to start school, or at least it seems that way. Seth and Travis are working odd jobs and preparing to leave for their missions soon. Travis leaves first on October 21st and Seth follows on November 4th. They will both be in the Provo MTC for Thanksgiving. We are looking forward to them heading out on their missions, but with some sadness too. It seems strange to be letting them go.

Our youngest, Evan and Alyssa are all alone at the middle school this year. They are in 7th grade together, and have said "good bye" to Aarun who has entered high school. That really shakes me up...Aarun in high school! Wow, how time flies!

Tess is a senior, Jessica a junior, Amanda and Ethan are sophomores, and Aarun is a freshman. Wayne and I will have an especially busy school year. I am working as the Dean of Students at the high school in the morning, teaching in the afternoon, and being a principal intern with my spare time. As Wayne and I both wrap up our Master's degrees, this will probably be our busiest year yet! Luckily, we don't mind sharing the work load and are pretty good at getting the kids to pitch in!

We are already planning a big summer trip to celebrate a busy school year. Perhaps Disneyland again next summer! The kids really enjoy the sights and sounds of southern California. We hope to be able to have one last big trip before sending Tess off to college next fall. Additionally, I hope to be working as a middle or high school assistant principal in the '10-'11 school year, so a nice trip would be a great beginning for a new adventure.

Grandma Ellen

2009-08-08T22:50:00.001-07:00

It is with sadness and many fond memories that I report that my Grandma, Ellen Lee, passed away earlier this week after a nearly three year battle with Ovarian Cancer. Grandma was so valiant in her battle, refusing to give up, never complaining, and always considering the thoughts of others.

My earliest memories of Grandma are of summers spent on her farm (with Grandpa) on Thorp road in Ellensburg. Every time we drive through Ellensburg I look for the farm house and big barn...it is still there even though the barn is blue instead of the original red. I recall picking lettuce and raspberries in her garden, attending swimming lessons in town, and most of all playing in her square dancing dresses in the attic with my cousin Lisa. As we grew older, grandma never seemed to change. Her house decor was always familiar, her scented lotion the same, and her kind and loving spirit always comforting. I struggle with the thought of not being in her home this coming holiday season...even when she was not well, she always enjoyed the holidays and invited us to her home. If I am counting correctly, she is a grandmother to six children, and a great-grandmother to fourteen great grand children. Her spirit will always be remembered, and my heart aches to think of her not being a phone call or visit away. May my father be comforted, my cousins as well, and may we always cherish our memories of Grandma Ellen. I feel confident that she has been reunited with the many loved ones we have lost and who await our eventual return to our heavenly home. I love you, Grandma!

Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo West Mission!

2009-08-01T12:36:00.000-07:00

Seth received his mission call on Thursday to the Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo West mission! Immediately we realized that Seth's cousin, Nick, is also going to the Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo area. He is in the Southern Mission. How interesting! Seth enters the MTC in Provo on November 4th for three weeks, and then transfers to the MTC in the Dominican Republic for another six weeks of training. We are so happy for Seth! When Wayne and I married, Seth was in 4th grade. Even then he was almost a foot taller than his peers, and that is still the case. We are confident that we will be an outstanding missionary. With one boy leaving October 21st and one November 4th, we will be busy over the next several weeks. Both of them will spend Christmas in the MTC...one in Provo and on in the Dominican Republic! Guess who will be busy sending care packages this Christmas?

Once the boys leave, we will likely turn our focus to Tess, who will be entering her senior year. Senior year is busy with exams, college applications, prom and graduation. With Tess being our first daughter to graduate from high school, we look forward to this adventure!

Still Waiting...A Second Time!

2009-07-26T15:10:00.000-07:00

Well, as promised we are waiting for Seth's mission call! As the girls and I are heading out to girls camp tomorrow, I am sure that his call will come during that time! The boys are divided between deciding if they will wait for the girls (and MOM) to return home, or if they will open the call. If it were me, I would have to open it! Either way, we will have some very exciting news this time next week!

It is also a fun year at girls camp. The theme is the "Wizard of Oz". Most importantly, this is the first year that all four girls will be at camp together. Tess and Jessica are YCL's while Amanda is a 4th year camper. Alyssa is excited as this is her first year at camp. We are all looking forward to a week away from the boys, and time together in an estrogen-rich environment! We will return home on Friday tired, dirty, and ready to cool off.

We look forward to our next posting!

Japan Hiroshima Mission!

2009-07-17T15:19:00.000-07:00

We are so pleased and excited to report that Travis Nuttall will be serving in the Japan Hiroshima Mission! He enters the MTC on October 21st, 2009. This call is such a blessing for Travis. Travis really had a desire to serve in Japan. He took two years of Japanese in High School, and has an interest in the culture and technology in Japan. We have heard that missionaries usually do not get called to an area that they want to serve in! We anticipate that Travis will arrive in Hiroshima near Christmas eve.

As his mother, I am excited, nervous, and a bit scared. I truly want him to serve, and am so excited for the location he will be serving in, but the reality of not seeing him for two years is starting to sink it. Seeing the actual call, and knowing that he will be so far away is a bit scary. How lucky, though to have had him in my life for almost 19 years. I still remember holding him in a tiny little attic apartment in Provo, Utah. I remember thinking what a great responsibility this is, and how special he is to me. Many experienced mothers tell me that the two years go by quickly, and that they come home young men...no longer a boy. I try to imagine how he will look two years from now...taller, thinner, "thicker", deeper voice? Who knows.

Okay, enough sentimentality! We look forward to hearing where Seth is going. His call should come around the 30th of July. I can assure you that I will have something "gooshy" to say at that date as well. I am pretty sure that Seth's mission call will come while I am at girls camp with our four daughters! We'll see how the timing works out!

P.S. Congratulations to Jessica and Ethan who correctly guessed Travis would go to Japan!

Still Waiting...

2009-07-12T17:56:00.000-07:00

Due to the 4th of July holiday (and lack of mail delivery), we are still waiting for Travis' mission call. Be assured that the mail is checked every day and that we are anxious to find out where he will serve! We are also pleased to report that Seth has submitted his papers as well. He has been able to avoid having to have oral surgery, so he is good to go with some minor adjustments to his teeth. We anticipate finding out about Travis' call by Thursday, July 16th and Seth's two weeks from Tuesday. The children have all enjoyed guessing where they will be going. We have recorded everyone's guesses and the one with the closest guess (by miles) wins a prize! We'll see how this finally plays out!

Summer is in full swing, the sun is out and the kids are just starting to say "I'm bored...there's nothing to do!". This is quickly met with, "Well...the lawn needs mowing, or...the garage is pretty messy." This seems to do the trick in diffusing the complaining!

Stay tuned for more information!

Waiting for a Mission Call...

2009-06-30T14:28:00.000-07:00

We are glad to report that Travis' mission paperwork will be submitted to Salt Lake City tomorrow. We have been told that the waiting period is about 10 days to 2 weeks. You can be assured that we will be checking the mail everyday from next week on. We are all anxious and excited to see where Travis will serve and when he will leave. You can look forward to a posting of that information soon.

Seth will be submitting his paperwork as well. He has to get his wisdom teeth pulled before he is fully eligible to apply for a mission. We hope that he will be ready to go in the next couple of weeks. Clearly we have some exciting news in the very near future! Stay tuned...

Class of 2009!

2009-06-14T14:02:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Travis and Seth who graduated with 342 other seniors from Auburn Mountainview High School yesterday, June 13th! The ceremony was wonderful, the weather was just about perfect, and the family celebration was delicious. We are grateful to Grandparents, friends and extended family who have supported the boys over the years, and helped us celebrate this milestone.As mentioned previously, the boys are in the process of deferring their admission to BYU-Provo and are completing the process of serving their missions. Travis will have received his mission call in July (hopefully) and Seth shortly thereafter! Seth needs to attend to his wisdom teeth...looks like he will have to do without them! Speaking of Seth, you will notice a picture here of his state track meet. Seth placed second in the 800 meters, 3rd in the 4x400 relay and 15th in the 1600 meter run. We are so proud of him! The local paper wrote a nice article about him. The article can be found at the following link

http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/south_king/aub/sports/47681972.html

. Seth will be walking on for BYU after returning from his mission. Seth also received his Eagle Scout last weekend...he has been a very busy young man this month! Between prom, scouts, track, and graduation he hasn't had much extra time on his hands!

Travis graduated not only from high school this weekend (magna cume laude) but from Green River Community College with highest honors (suma cume laude). Travis'

talents are academic in nature. He is a natural learner, quick on his feet

and always has a witty sens

e of humor. Travis has spent quite a bit of time these last couple of years helping us drive the kids to and fro, he is always helpful and does not com

plain about having to help out...even though we know he'd rather not be the back up taxi driver! We appreciate his leadership and helping hand! Both boys will become fine men. They will find joy as they serve their Heavenly Father during their missions. We will, of course post mission information on this blog!

We have added some pictures taken of the graduation (thanks, Grandpa Bill). We hope that you enjoy looking at them as much as we do. I suppose that it is normal to be a proud parent. We have enjoyed watching our oldest children grow into young adults, and feel so grateful for all the help that we have had along the way!

The Post-Season

2009-05-23T19:49:00.000-07:00

The post season for Spring sports is in full swing. Tess and Amanda competed at the State Water Polo competition. Their team placed an amazing 3rd (the best of any Auburn team ever!). Both girls were selected as all-state second team. This was quite an honor, especially for Amanda who is a freshman and has only played water polo this season. Tess has worked very hard this season to become the best goalie in the SPSL...great job ladies.

Seth ran in the West Central District track meet this weekend. He was fortunate to advance to state in three events: the 1 mile, 800 meters, and 4x400 relay. We are so excited to see how he does next weekend. His "speciality" is the 800 meter run, we are sure that he will do well.

As we mentioned previously, graduation is on June 13th, and the whole family is excited to experience our first "round" of kids graduating. We will have at least one child graduating every year for the next five years. We will have a one-year break and then Evan and Alyssa will graduate. What will we do with an empty house? Our family reassures us that it will not really be empty. We do look forward to the changes that we will be experiencing over the next few years, and we will keep everyone posted on those changes!

Stay tuned for more photos and news about next weekend's state track meet!

The Heritage and The Prom.

2009-05-09T20:04:00.000-07:00

Spring has sprung, and the school year is beginning to wind down. With the end of the school year comes Prom, Graduation, and college plans. With this post you will see pictures of Seth the night of prom. It was a bit nostalgic to see Seth in his tux, date by his side heading of to the prom.

Graduation is June 13th. The ceremony will be held outdoors at Auburn Memorial Stadium. We are excited for Seth and Travis to graduate, we will be sure to post pictures on this blog. We are hoping for good weather, since it is an outdoor ceremony. With the weather here, there is probably a 50-50 chance for rain.

Travis has been notified by BYU that he is the recipient of the "Heritage" scholars

hip. The scholarship is a four year scholarship. Travis will have to maintain a 3.85 GPA to retain the award. We are very pleased and proud of his hard work.

Both Seth and Travis have begun preparing for their missions. The process is mostly electronic, and they will be ready to "send in" their paperwork early in July. We are excited for them, and look forward to finding out where they will be serving.

Tess and Amanda are heading off to the girls state water polo tournament next week. We will be taking pictures and posting results of the event. Tess is an amazing goalie, and Amanda is an excellent player, one of the top scorers on the team.

Finally, Seth goes to districts in track. He will be running the 800 meters race and the 4x400 relay. In the pictures posted, you can see the 4x400 team. They are each holding up four fingers...its a boy thing!

Happy Mothers Day!

Thank You CrystaLite!

2009-04-15T21:41:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful Easter. We were blessed to celebrate with my parents and grandmother. Neither had met the twins, they enjoyed visiting and getting to know Lillie and Landon. We have been taking care of the twins for three weeks now, and have found a full-time day care provider. She comes to our home each day, and takes good care of the little ones.

We would like to make an official "THANK YOU" to CrystaLite for utilizing funds from their foundation to provide us with a grant to cover the next three weeks of day care expenses. We are so grateful to this company, and look forward to thanking them with a letter and pictures of the kids. These folks have eased the burden of covering day care costs for nearly a full month! If you are interested in finding out more about this company, visit their website at CrystaLiteinc.com.

Seth and Travis have begun the process of filling out their mission papers. The system is electronic, but it is quite an experience to think of these fine young men serving the Lord in just a few short months. We will be so excited to post where they are serving and when they leave. Of course, they must graduate from high school first! Graduation is set for June 13th. This promises to be an exciting day for our family! We will share pictures and thoughts.

Take care! Happy Spring!

Things We've Learned!

2009-04-03T10:25:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the things we've learned (or been reminded of) about our big family over the past week:

1. Two babies are twice the fun of one!

2. Babies don't always sleep through the night!

3. Older children feel empowered when a baby says their name ("Seff" and "Jucka" for Seth and Jessica)

4. Families can hold more love (and children) than you think!

5. Thank heavens for baby gates.

6. Thank heavens for those little plastic locks to keep little hands out of cupboards!

7. Keeping the house clean seems less impo

rtant than it used to.

On a different note, a friend in the state just celebrated the birthday of their late daughter, Mara Adams. This dear family has an amazing and touching story, if you are inclined visit their website at www.maraadams.com. Be sure that you have some tissues ready. These sweet parents are an inspiration to many, they continue to give and inspire as they lament the loss of their daughter.

We are now expecting to have Landon and Lillie for much if not all of April. The older children are excited and enjoy the opportunity to help out. It is interesting when I say "who wants to help bathe the babies?" I get six volunteers. However if I ask, "who wants to clean their room?" everyone quietly sneaks away. Go figure!

Seth and Ethan participated in a school track meet yesterday. Seth place first in the one mile and 4x100 relay. Ethan set personal records and was pleased with his performance. He has three more seasons of growth and experience. Seth is looking forward to seeing his cousin Ben run at the state meet in May. Seth and Ben won't run against each other, their schools are in different divisions, but they still enjoy each others accomplishments. Ben's older brother Nick will be submitting mission papers in a few days.

Tess and Amanda have done well in Water Polo this season. Tess, a seasoned third year goalie is doing great. She really enjoys the aggressive nature of the sport, and is talented not only as goalie but as a field player too. Tess wants to play water polo in college, perhaps as an intramural sport at BYU. Amanda is an outstanding athlete. She's the type who can play any sport and excel! She has learned a lot from Tess, and her basketball experience has helped a lot. She is happy to be playing with the varsity team as a 9th grader.

We were pleased to find out that Evan and Alyssa earned a special award from their middle school for getting straight A's last quarter. I think that they may have even surprised themselves. Aarun has had the great experience of helping to publish the school yearbook. He has learned a lot about writing, deadlines, and publishing! Way to go Aarun.

Jessica is preparing to take the national AP exam for her European history class at school. This test, along with the ACT take up a lot of her time. She is very self-motivated, she studies and prepares without us having to "bug" her about it.

I hope is doesn't sound like bragging, but I always feel inclined to mention the accomplishments of each child. I don't want anyone to be left out...and each child enjoys reading about themselves in each post. We have also enjoyed reading posts from some of your blogs too! I think we've looked at Anna's, Cammie's, and Sarah's. Lots of ooooh's and aaaaah's at Sarah's new baby! Congratulations!

Lastly, I've added some images to this post. You'll see one of Travis, Jessica, Amanda, and Evan with a cousin in Moses Lake. Jessica and Amanda at the Hawaii temple (visiting grandparents who live in Hawaii), and three of Landon and Lillie.

And babies make 13!

2009-03-31T18:55:00.001-07:00

As some of you may have heard, we have the pleasure of watching over a set of twins who are members of our extended family. It has been such a joy having these two as guests this past week. Several grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc., have asked for some photos of the two kids. So, we have added some images of them, they are beautiful and so fun to have around. The children have commented on how fun it is to work as family and pull together to care for these babies.

We are having an outdoor family portrait taken in May, so we will be changing the look of the website next month. For now, however, we've uploaded some snapshots. The photos of the whole family are missing Jessica. She has a part-time job and was not home when we took the pictures :( . There is also one of all seven "Rumbaugh Kids". What a nice looking group of kids. Enjoy! Feel free to leave messages or comments on the blog, the family enjoys reading them.

They're In!

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We are pleased to report that both Seth and Travis will be attending BYU, Provo! Both will be deferring until after they return from their missions. Both will submit mission papers in late June, so stay tuned for a report on where they will be serving in just a few months from now.

Water Polo has begun for Tess and Amanda. Tess is the team's Varsity deep-water goalie, she plays in the field when her team's goal is in the shallow end of the pool. Tess is sometimes referred to as a "wall" as she is superb in her position. Amanda plays in the field for the Varsity team. She excels at scoring points for her team.

Seth and Ethan have begun Track and Field, and as previously reported, Seth hopes to return to state in a couple of running events. Ethan is still getting his feet settled in high school sports.

Jessica is involved in "club diving" at the King Aquatics Center in Federal Way. She enjoys it, and has even done some platform diving from the 5 meter board. That may not seem very high, but it is!

Everyone else is doing fine, happy that spring is arriving. The kids all want a new picture of our family to be posted...one that includes our dog, Duke. So, in the next week or so, we'll get one posted!

Happy Spring!

2009-02-20T10:54:00.000-08:00

Here is a quick introduction of our family. Wayne and Deborah are both currently teaching at the same high school in Auburn, Washington. Wayne teaches math, and Deborah teaches science.

Our two oldest boys, Seth and Travis are both high school seniors. Both have applied to BYU. Travis has been awarded a four-year scholarship to BYU-Provo. Seth should hear from BYU anyday now! Seth is currently reving up for track and field. He hopes to return to state this year and place as a top finisher in the 800 meter run. Western Washington University has expressed interest in him becoming a mid-distance runner for them. We will see where this goes. Prior to college, both boys will be serving full-time missions for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Our two oldest daughters, Tess and Jessica are also busy and accomplished! Tess is beginning water polo season where she is an awesome goalie. She just finished life-guarding classes and hopes to work part time as a lifeguard after water polo season ends. Jessica is a 4.0 student, and has just begun diving for King Aquatics. She hopes to perform at the state diving meet next season. Jessica is also a blackbelt in Tae Kwon Do.

Ethan and Amanda both started high school this year. Both played basketball for the high school, and had decent seasons. Ethan is an excellent artist and has become a great guitar player. Amanda's JV basketball team went 17-1 this year, she is a point guard. Amanda is also a 4.0 student and a blackbelt like Jessica.

Aarun is in 8th grade, and is preparing for high school next year. He played varsity football and basketball for his middle school, and will be running track this year too. Aarun is an excellent athlete and great student, we are proud of him!

Evan and Alyssa and both in 6th grade. Evan is a blackbelt and also a straight A student (do you see a trend?). Evan will be running track and practicing his trumpet this spring. Alyssa participated in basketball, gymnastics, and will be running track too. She is a great student (very smart) and an artist much like Ethan and Tess. Alyssa loves to have sleepovers and is getting taller everyday!

We hope that you enjoy our updates and pictures!