Merry Christmas

I love that there is a special time of year especially to remember Christ and his birth

and spend time with family.
Oh that I could keep more of the Christmas spirit all year long.

Trial and Error

For the first time ever I tried making Candy Cane Bread. (This is a special bread with filling that my mom usually makes every year around Christmas). Um...

...better luck next year. They didn't turn out too pretty, good thing I wasn't submitting them in the fair or some contest. All I could think when they were cooking was "these are such a joke". Luckily, after taking them out of the oven I was able to put them all very close together on the pan and that helped to close them up a little. The good news, they tasted good! I gave them to people at work and those that ate theirs at work liked them a lot. Now, I just have to get the look down.

C-O-W-B-OY-S

Yea for the Cowboys and their New Mexico Bowl win yesterday against Fresno State! I was cheering and singing (the fight song of coarse) and texting Beth (so it could be like I was watching the game with her) while I watched the game. The end of the game drive, the 1st overtime goalline stops and the 2nd overtime were all very exciting, but my favorite part of the game was probably when I got a phone call from my neice Caitlin.

Her: Hi Annie. Are you watching the game?
Me: Yes. I'm watching the game.
Her: What are you doing? (because she cannot have a phone converstation without asking this most important question)
Me: I am watching the Wyoming football game. Are you watching the football game?
Her: Yes...Dad, are we watching football?
Him: Yes.
Her: Yes, we're watching football too.

Then the rest of the conversation was mixed with a lot of things I couldn't quite understand, but I was glad that she called :)

Winter trip to Wyoming

In November, my mom and I found a killer deal that Southwest Airlines was having, so we decided to take an early December trip up to Wyoming to visit Beth and fam. It was definately a winter trip, as the weather was bitter cold. However, since we left (last weekend) it has only gotten more cold in Wyoming. I guess they pulled out the warmer weather while we were there :) In explaining the fun trip, I will talk about each of the pictures above (in order as if you were reading a book).

1. I felt like I needed to show proof that it was so cold...on Sunday night (and Thursday night) it was below zero. All I can say is Brrrrrr.
2. Ashlee loves climbing on things, including my mom's, Grandma's, suitcase. She was also checking out what she can buy her mom for Christmas.
3. Caitlin and Ashlee like to dance so they were having a little dancing party with Beth.
4. We had a nice dinner on Sunday night. In case we can't tell in the picture, we were famished.
5. Chris and Caitlin pulling a cracker. They are doing '12 Days to Christmas' this year and making and pulling crackers was one of the activities. A cracker is a Scottish present that you pull and the winner gets the gift inside. We each had our own cracker, filled with candy and awesome Christmas rings.
6. Making Scottish shortbread was another of the 12 Days to Christmas activity; which Ashlee was helping to make.
7. Mom, Ashlee, Beth and Caitlin making gingerbread men ornaments (another 12 Day activity).
8. When Beth and Chris lived in Scotland they got some plaid fabric. My mom made jumpers out of the fabric for Caitlin and Ashlee and they were posing in them before we left for church. They are super cute jumpers.
9. Me and Ashlee. She liked me and mom being there because we would hold her a lot.
10. Caitlin concentrating on making her gingerbread man.
11. Caitlin taking her turn at helping with the shortbread.

It was a fun trip. I am thankful that there are such convient (and sometimes quite cheap) ways of traveling now so it is much easier to visit family and friends all over the country.

Houston and the Blue Bell Factory

Hurray for vacation so I can take annual trips to Houston (this was my 3rd year in a row visiting Houston in November). David, Julie and Bailey were kind enough to let me come for 5 days. There was plenty of fun with hiking - rather nature walking, shopping on Harwin Street, playing games, watching football and Dancing with the Stars, taking walks, and going to the Blue Bell Factory. Blue Bell ice cream originated in Brenham, TX, which is only about 30 minutes from Houston so one afternoon we headed there for a tour. It was really interesting to learn the history and see how they make the ice cream, however the best part was the free scoop at the end! Since only 19 states have Blue Bell ice cream, not everyone can enjoy it's goodness. So I'll tell you, it is really good ice cream (although not as good as Baskin Robbins). Although Bailey doesn't look to enthused in the pictures, she liked the tour as well and she loved her small vanilla scoop.

I did it!

I stayed home this year and handed out candy to trick-or-treaters. This may not seem too shocking of a task unless you are familiar with the insanity of my subdivision on Halloween. A newish subdivision, sidewalks, and houses which are fairly close together = ideal situation for trick-or-treating. Each Halloween it seems that 1/2 the valley takes advantage (1/2 is probably an exaggeration). Usually there are students from the college criminal justice department who stand on the corners amidst flares and direct traffic. This year there were no traffic directors, however still plenty of people, cars, and chaos. From about 6:00-7:00 I had a pretty steady stream of kids coming to my door...344 to be exact...until I ran out of candy and had to turn people away. It was actually a much more pleasant experience then I was anticipating and I enjoyed seeing all of the kids in their costumes. I also got tons of compliments on my pumpkin. I'm not sure how much they count coming from kids under the age of 10, but I was glad they liked it.

Last weekend

my mom and I took a trip to Phoenix for Time Out for Women. This is a 2 day conference put on by Desert Book to help lift and rejuvenate women. It was really good, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I especially enjoyed Jenny Oaks Baker who plays the violin, she is superb. Also the talks by Emily Freeman and Kris Belcher were excellent. Time Out for Women is definitely something I would take time out to go to again.

Since we were heading to Phoenix, we decided to get a hike in. We love hiking and try to hit new trails when we can. It was a fun hike, but not without some lessons learned.

• The second week of October in the middle of the day is not a good time to hike in Phoenix, it is still PRETTY WARM.
• When hiking in the desert, watch your step so you don't step on a 2 1/2 foot snake in the middle of the path. (Unfortunately I didn't have my camera out yet to capture the snake. I know Chris is really disappointed).
• Don't step on the small pieces that fall off of the fluffy (they only look fluffy) white cactus. It is quite a chore picking it out of the bottom of your shoe.
• The desert is dry, but it has it's own beauty.

The Bags and Wyoming

Beth and I decided back in the summer that we wanted to make some bags, Birdie Sling's to be more specific. This was an idea we got from our friend Michelle who has made several bags and they look awesome. With Beth coming in September and me taking vacation it was the perfect time for the project. We got the pattern and material and got started. After the first day we had succeeded in cutting out the fabric...this was maybe going to be a bigger task then we first anticipated. After about 4 days of working on the bags (working for several hours each day) we finally finished. Yeah! They turned out very good. We are proud of our accomplishments. The worst part of making the bag was having to pick-out stitches. When I was almost finished I had to unpick the entire thing I had just sewn and I was frustrated, to say the least. Beth, being a nice sister, helped me piece it together again so I wouldn't have to unpick it again. Before this I was thinking of making another bag, but after the last step I thought no way! However, I'm encouraged after finding out that even Michelle (the inspiration for the bags and a seasoned sewer) has to unpick things. I think maybe I'll make another bag or some other creation this fall :)

On a different subject, last weekend I flew up to Wyoming. David, Julie, Bailey and I met in Denver and drove up to Laramie to meet Beth, Chris and their girls for a Cowboys football game. It was a great game; perfect weather, great company, tons of Pokes fans, lots of "Cowboy Joe" and a win. Tons of fun. After the game we walked around campus seeing what was the same and different; it sure brought back great memories. After dinner at an awesome Mexican restaurant in Laramie, we drove to Beth and Chris's house in Rock Springs. It was fun staying with them for the next 1 1/2 days before we had to fly home.

Visit from the Will girls

Last week Beth, Caitlin and Ashlee came for a visit. I took off 3 days from work to spend some time with them since I was in Africa last time they visited. We had a fun time while they were here. Some of the highlights - in writing and in picture:

• Going to parks to play
• Reading books
• Playing games and doing puzzles
• Cooking - with Caitlin helping and wanting to try every ingredient. It's funny that she doesn't like most things for dinner but she does like flour, wheat bran, soda, etc.
• Visiting dad's choir
• Picking apples at the orchard
• Spending time together

It was a great time. I always like it when I can spend time with Beth since we haven't lived by each other for a while. I also love playing with Caitlin and Ashlee. To end with, a story from their visit:

Mom: Caitlin, who is Annie's mother?
Caitlin: I am. She's my Annie
Mom: (After reviewing the Beth is Caitlin's mom) So, who is Annie's mom?
Caitlin: I think she don't have one

Caitlin is pretty funny, as I'm sure all 3 year olds are. She is convinced that I am "her Annie".

Listen...

...that is the glorious sound of monsoon finally making it to Arizona. It was a little late in coming, but finally we had some rain to cool off the HOT weather. Here is a view from my front porch (as you can see, rain gutters are not a norm in AZ, so the corner of my rose garden gets it's more-than-fair-share of run off). The few days of rain showers was so great! I love how the rains dusts everything off so the outdoors becomes vibrant with color.

Good news...

...maybe not for anyone else, but it is good news for me. Back in Africa I took some videos when I was in Lubumbashi but I couldn't get them off my camera (recall the story here). Yesterday I tracked down the software for that camera and, whala, I got the videos. (I realize whala may be spelled completely wrong but I am not the greatest speller and that's how it sounds to me.) This first video is of small kids from a school crossing the street. It was rather disorganized and oh so funny. Also the music playing in the background was authentic Congolese, we listened to that tape about 75 times during the trip.

Did you catch the little girl falling at the end? How sad :( At least she was ok.

The next video is of a parade going through downtown just as we drove up. It was a group from a church all dressed in green and white and singing. I'm not sure what they were saying, but they were very enthusiastic about it. It is kind of fuzzy, but it gives a feeling of the culture there.

A New Car

Here's how is happened. It was my last Friday night in Africa and I was doing my usual nightly activity, checking email and/or blogging. I had a new email from my insurance company with subject, "your recent claim". Funny I thought as I haven't made a claim, maybe it is somehow related to having just paid my renewal so I will skip it for now. Then I get to the next email from my dad with subject, "your Pontiac". The email said something like, "mom was in a fender bender, she is ok, the back of your car is wrecked, call". Hum...I was feeling a bit concerned. I tried to call home, but I either could not get through (it was very difficult to get through at night in Africa because there were 600 lines out that 3000 people were trying to use. Those are just number I made up, but you get the idea) or when I did get through my parents phone was busy. I tried using email to communicate with Beth to find out what was going on, but the wireless that we were "using"' from the house across the street was not working very well. Needless to say, I finally got a hold of my dad and then my mom. My mom was driving my to Phoenix to park it at the airport for me as we had planned and in Mesa someone rear-ended her. My car was towed away because something was rubbing on the tire and it couldn't be driven, but she said the damage didn't look too bad. After returning from Africa, having some rental car struggles, and a few insurance company struggles I finally found out that my car was totaled. I have no pictures of it but, my mom was right, it didn't really look that bad; only the back was smashed. The impact ended up bending the frame, which is why it was a total loss.

After looking around for a while I finally decided to buy a 2009 Honda Accord. I bought it in Mesa one day when it was 115 - in case you are wondering, that is REALLY hot and I do not recommend looking for a car in that kind of heat. It has been a good car so far and hopefully it will be a good car for the next 10 years.

The joys of nature and home ownership

Oh the joys of owning a house :) Remember a couple years ago when they were worried because so many bees were disappearing?

Back in April I was mowing my backyard one evening when I noticed a few bees flying around one area. Upon closer inspection I discovered they were coming in and out of my sprinkler box. Hum...what should I do? Maybe open the sprinkler box - possibly a really dumb idea but I decided to give it a try. With my shovel I stood as far back as possible and pried the lid up...about 1/4 inch on one side, not even enough to do anything. Then reality hit me and I decided it was a really dumb idea. The next day I called the exterminator. He came right away, got decked out in his bee outfit, opened the sprinkler box and sprayed the attacking bees. From the safe confines of my house it looked like there were a lot of bees, maybe 75 or 100. When the exterminator finished his business he left me a small piece of honeycomb (about the size of a flat grapefruit) which was the smallest of 8 pieces. What!?! And said there were several thousand bees. WHAT!?! On second thought, I'm pretty sure it was the spirit telling me not to open the sprinkler box.

Fast forward to July.

Katie and Ryan came to visit last weekend and I opened the sprinkler box as I told them the story of the beehive. Boy was I surprised by what I saw (all the brown is bees).

Today I decided to clean this up (don't worry, I wore gloves). There was so much is it almost filled a grocery bag.

All that remains is some honeycomb left on the cover and some powder to make sure they don't come back. I also included an after picture of the box so you can compare to the pictures above to see just how many bees it really was.

Vacation!...in Rock Springs

Last week I was on vacation. I was in Rock Springs, WY which is not much of a destination but it was fun anyway. And it was very nice to have some relaxing time after 7 weeks of 6-days-a-week working in Africa. I visited Beth, Chris, Caitlin and Ashlee for a week and here are some of the highlights:

• Standing in the driveway so Caitlin could ride around me on her tricycle
• Going on walks with Beth and/or the girls
• Listening to Caitlin copy exactly what Beth was saying
• Caitlin talking non-stop during meals and explaining to us that "after I eat my piece of corn bread all gone I am going to have that piece and then that piece" (sure Caitlin )
• Ashlee waving and clapping
• Finding a steal of a deal on long jeans at the mall - buy 1 get 1 free - resulting in $10 jeans for Beth and me
• Meeting up with Taffy and her kids in Green River for the afternoon
• Riding to Green River and Logan, UT with Chris wedged in the back between two car seats - he was a really good sport about that
• Helping Caitlin put on "sun scream" and playing "membory"
• Reading books
• Visiting Grandma and Grandpa and the Stuarts in Logan

These are some pictures of us playing "membory". Ashlee was not very content with just sitting on Beth's lap and watching.

10 Year Reunion

I have been very busy since returning from Africa, therefore adding no posts. I am now however back in the saddle :)

Last weekend Beth and I attended our 10 year high school reunion in Laramie. Back in May I convinced Beth that we should go and we are super glad that we did. It was a good time and really great to see high school friends. There was a mixer on Friday night followed by riding in the parade and a picnic lunch on Saturday. It is amazing how much yet how little everyone has changed. This is a picture from the picnic, taken by my "coolest person on the face of the earth" brother-in-law Chris. In case you don't see me, I am on the top row (for those 6' tall or taller) in a purple shirt next to Beth in a green shirt. It was a great weekend. The only down side was missing those classmates who couldn't come to the reunion.

Last night in Africa,

I am leaving in the morning! I have had a great time here and really enjoyed the experience but I am excited to be going home. I'm in for 2 long days of travel (over 11,000 miles) however I'm heading home so I don't think I will mind it. As my last post from Africa here are a couple of pictures from the landscape. A beautiful flower, a valley with "Africa trees" as I like to refer to them, and a termite mound. Yes, there are many, many termite mounds around here. Some active, some inactive, all very cool looking.

Dimanche

...that is Sunday in French. French and Swahili are the main languages here, so I have learned a little of both. Well actually some French and a couple words of Swahili. I have spent 7 Sunday's here in the DRC and have not been able to go to church. It makes Sunday different, but I have tried to make due as best I can. Each Sunday I have my own little church; sing some hymns, read my scriptures, read a lesson from the Teachings of Joseph Smith manual, read a couple talks from last General Conference, and say a prayer. I am grateful for my "church" time because I can feel the spirit and it helps the day feel more like the Sabbath.

Now a correction from my last blog. The sun actually rises in the east here and sets in the west, the same as the northern hemisphere. Don't think I am a complete retard, I was just misinformed when I arrived. However, now that I know the truth it has made everything clear to me. I am always able to naturally tell which way is north, however since being in Africa I was always confused. The way that I thought was north wasn't really north because the sun was rising in the west and setting in the east. Now that I know the truth I realize that the way I think is north really is north. I'm not sure if you followed that...I am sure glad that I got it all figured out three days before I leave :)

Sunrise, sunset - Africa style

As I am in the southern hemisphere, the sun rises in the west and sets in the east. Admittedly it took me a week or two to realize that the sun was setting oposite from what I am used to. I have not failed to notice the beauty of the sunsets however. Usually the sun and sky around it turn red as the suns nears the horizon, it is really awesome. I tried to capture the wonder...

...they do not do justice to the real life thing but at least it is a glimpse.

Transportation

Most people in the DRC do not have a motor vehicle, a fact I was not surprised about. I was however surprised when I saw the number of bikes. Tons of people have bikes! It's awesome. The bikes act as single person vehicle, taxi, and/or trunk or truck. I have collected some pictures to show the many possibilities the bike can offer:

It's amazing to me how many things they can pack on a bike. One time I saw this guy hauling two 10 foot long rectangular metal bars (they reminded me of rain gutters). He had them standing up on either side of his bike - it was incredible. I just think about what I would do if I had to haul something, like a mattress for example. I would never in a million years think of my bike as an option, in fact my car wouldn't even be an option. Maybe when I go back to Arizona and it cools off a little I will try hauling a large load on my bike. Ha, ha, I'm sure it would turn into a complete disaster. Anyway, I really admire the Congolese people for using the bike so well.

In contrast, the transportation for me and my fellow FMI employees is a lot less physical. Most people drive a white, 4-door, manual, diesel, Toyota Hilux truck. If you have never hear of this truck it is because it would not pass emissions laws in the USA. There are some other vehicles as well - some Toyota SUV's and Land Rover's, but mainly white trucks. When I first arrived a wondered how in the world anyone knew which truck was theirs when they all look the same. I soon learned that a) they don't really look the same b) you just know which truck is yours c) each truck has a number painted on both sides and the back. I was lucky enough to have a truck secured for me when I got here, #595, which is great because then I don't have to go to work at 6:30. Although the seats are completely covered in dirt, grease and I'm sure other things, it gets me from point A to B so I have no complaints. (In case you're wondering about the flag on each truck in the picture, that is called a buggy whip and it a requirement for any vehicle driving in the mine).

Base Camp

The area that the company owns here is called the concession and there are two "camps" on the concession, Bravo and Base. I stay at Base Camp; which I am thankful for because Bravo is basically a man camp. Bravo is also very barren as it is all simple houses and rocks while Base is very green. Bravo also has a few thousand people living there while there are a few hundred at Base. Please join me for a tour of Base Camp...

Base camp is surrounded by a gate and razor wire. There is one entrance; through a gate which security opens and closes. This is a look at the gate from inside of camp. You can't see it well because one side is open, but the yellow and blue thing in the middle of the picture is the gate.

This is facing the other direction; what you see as you drive in through the gate. There is one main road through Base Camp.

The first 1/2 of Base is offices, a lab, security, geology, HR, small vehicle garage, etc. - basically places where people work. There are geology core samples all over the place, as is shown below.

There is also a clinic which serves the Base camp occupants as well as some people from Fungarume - I think it is just families of people who work for the company but I'm not positive.

About 1/2 way down the main road is the mess hall and the housing buildings. This is the mess hall; there are tables inside and out.
The commissary. I haven't been in yet, but the prices for the limited amount of goods are pretty outrageous.

To the left of the mess hall (up and behind) are rendavos (I have no idea how that is spelled). These are cute houses that people call chicken coops.

Across from the mess hall to the right are these housing buildings.

There are also a lot of housing building that look like this. This one - H4 - is where I lived the first 2 weeks I was here.

A look at some of the housing from the main road.

Continuing on the main road past the mess hall and the housing buildings, you start to get to the houses. This is where many of the people who are working here permanently live. This picture shows the end of the main road at which point you can turn left or right.

Left takes you up a small hill to where more houses are being built...

...to the social club where they have pool tables, outdoor sitting and beverages (most people go there to drink)...

...and to the tennis court and gym.

A right at the end of the main road takes you to some houses, including Mark and Anna's house where I am living. (You can see Mark and my trucks parked in front of their house).

This is a small portion of Mark and Anna's yard, it is very green and pretty. The tree in the middle is a banana tree. If you look closely at the right side you can see bananas growing.