Building Bridges

  Some families like pinewood derby... we are not one of them. 

 However, we do like a good bridge building, and subsequent crushing. 

Ever since Jennifer began Physics last fall, Mark and I (OK, not so much Mark) regularly ask Jennifer when they are going to do bridges. The minute she found out she texted me. We gave her instructions months ago to make sure she gets an extra set of wood and glue.

 Christian built his first bridge as a junior in Physics and his second, a year later in AP Physics. We learned on his first bridge that you cannot get the same kind of glue at any store in town and the other types of glue just do not work as well - very slow drying = lots of extra time and glued fingers. His second bridge was 6th overall in the school.

Students buy a kit consisting of 3 ft. long and 3/32 of an inch square balsa wood sticks, glue, a cardboard piece and two wood blocks. They are given  instructions with formulas and information about the pressure each piston will put on their bridge. From this they create and draw their design, cut and glue the beams, and put it all together. As they proceed they are allowed to ask the teacher questions about what makes a good design and are given general answers if they ask the right questions. 

The actual building of the bridge is a long and tedious process but rewarding in the end if you are willing to pay the price. 

The bridge is judged by a ratio of how much the bridge weighs to how much pressure it holds before it breaks. Both regular and AP Physics are tested together with the top 5 in the school receiving cash prizes and the top 5 in the state getting more awards. 

With many of the bridges you can tell that they just threw things together. In general if they just follow the basic concepts and the design given to them, their bridge will hold 1000 lbs... the minimum for an A, taking the ratio into consideration. 

The contest is sponsored by BYU and a Physics professor comes out with his bridge crushing machine to test the bridges. He's pretty funny, and comments on the design of the bridge when he puts it in the machine. When he picked up Jennifer's he said something like, "Wow this is really nice! You can tell what kind of grades Jennifer gets just by looking at this bridge!" 

In the end (as you can see above) it held 1443 lbs. with a ratio of 36.something.

She ended up 5th overall!

(If you want to see the video of the bridge crushing you can check it out on Facebook, both Mark and I posted it.)

GO JENN!!!!

When her friend in the class found out they were doing bridges she told Jenn that her family had been dreading it since she enrolled in Physics.

I guess we are just weird.

What I did over my summer vacation

I've been in denial about school starting again. Not that I don't like school and having a schedule again but it seems like Summer just got here. It was a cold Spring and I was busy with this 

and this

and I'm not really ready for this

followed by this..

BUT in an effort to embrace carpools, packing lunches, and getting up at 6:15 AM.

 I will share with you a few things I have done to my house this Summer.

Starting with something small:

Not the greatest picture I know but it's all I have.

Notice the countertops, 24 year old formica, scratched, cracked in places with wood trimmed edges.  What you can't see is the 24 year old porcelain sink which has long lost it's luster and stain fighting abilities, rimmed with a stainless steel crown, equally aged and tarnished...

Mark has offered to replace these with granite but I'm holding out...

At some point I would like to reconfigure the kitchen a little and replace the tile floor.

So I'll be patient... but still there has to be some way to fix it up without spending $$$.


A google search turned up Giani Countertop paint.
It was reasonable and worth a try. I experimented first in the bathroom in the basement with mixed reviews and decided to try a different color in the kitchen. I also discovered that putting the paint on a little thicker allowed the colors to blend and make a really cool "stone like" texture.
(I realize that any geologist would quickly know it is a faux finish but to the layman it looks pretty good)

I also got a new sink and faucet...

And painted the basement door RED... just for fun.

Coming and Going

It seems this summer has been driven by the calendar but after this week my calendar will be open for a little bit.

Last week Mark, Jennifer and I went to Capitol Reef to support Mark as he rode in the Capitol Reef Classic. The weather was unusually cool... well, cooler than usual and it was a breath of fresh air. Mark rode well, we ate out, watched movies, read books in between races, and got a good amount of sleep. Mark did well, getting second overall and winning King of the Mountain.

Today I am getting ready for Girls camp. Moab. We are hoping for cool weather there too but doubt we will get lucky two weeks in a row. No movies or eating out... more like hiking, cooking, setting up tents, river rafting and then cleaning it all up... but I do look forward to a spiritual week as girls camp always ends up being. I love girls camp. Lots of work... great rewards!

Here is Christian's address in the MTC if you want to write to him.
The best way to do that is on http://www.dearelder.com. You have to set up an account but it's easy and free. They will print out the letter and give it to him that day. In the MTC he only gets 30 minutes on the computer which is just enough to write to the family so it's helpful to be able to read our letters beforehand... he also likes to be able to receive them spread out a little and be able to reread them also.

Here is the information you need:

Elder Christian Zimbelman
MTC Box 375
Arg-Neu Departure date Sept 5

He is also accepting care packages, pictures... etc. ;)

I'll post pictures of the bike race soon.

Stepping forward

Sunday evening the air was cool and quiet as Mark and I began to walk to the park. Over the last few hours the house had quieted down. The food was put away and we had played a few hands of "Up and Down the River". As things settled down I could feel emotions building inside of me. The events of the past few days had been busy and glorious. A building of family and friends into an intensity of joy and love I have seldom felt. Now that the events were over, loved ones began to leave as regular life called us all back into our routines. But the reality began to sink deep inside me that the events of the weekend had redefined my "regular life". Rob and Cecily's wedding not only marked the start of their new life together but Christian's farewell on Sunday also marked only 10 days until Christian entered the MTC.

As dear family and friends gathered for the wedding breakfast I was touched by the love and support of so many people that  had enabled Robbie to get to this day, to be sealed in the temple to a beautiful, strong and worthy young lady. I was touched by the love and support her family offered too and felt confident that with this many people behind them they would be successful. I'm not sure when we had all the grandparents in one place before and don't know when we will have them all together again. It was a true delight. The sealing was such a sacred event and the council my dad gave them before he sealed them suited them perfectly. The reception again was filled with an outpouring of love and support from a wider circle of friends and family. 

On Sunday morning we all gathered at church to hear this young man speak in Sacrament Meeting...to share his testimony with family and friends before he goes to the MTC on July 6th. I sat in awe next to my sweetheart and marveled at the goodness and strength of this young man. I feel so very blessed to be his mother. Once again our house was filled with food, family and friends. 

As Mark and I walked that evening we talked about how much we will miss our missionary and shared tears of joy and sadness. We marveled at how our family had been blessed over the years and wondered how we have been given such amazing children. Each step seemed to ease the weight I felt. The cool breeze washed away the mournings of relationships that would be changed forever. I felt connected to one who knew best exactly what I was feeling and having a hand in mine comforted me. We returned to the house refreshed and exhausted. Tomorrow would bring a new day... one more step away from the life we had only a few days earlier and one step closer to a new and bright future for all of us.

*All pictures taken by The Wright Lens

From the imagination of a 3 year old

This is from Amy's blog dated May 6, 2011

"Meet Ruby's imaginary friends: Milla, Jula, & Greena. They have been around for a while and I am surprised I haven't done a post about them yet.

The only experience I have had with imaginary friends before this is when my older brother had a couple he was little: Gaggio and Gloria. He even let me play with them. So, I was pretty tickled to hear that Ruby had some a few months ago. She knows they are pretend, but they are very present in her day-to-day life.

Let me give you some information about them: they are all girls, all sisters (except Greena, who apparently is a brother but is magic and can turn into a sister). Milla is the main friend, the one she talks about the most, so we know the most about her. She also was the original friend--Jula and Greena have all showed up later and come and go. Milla is about Ruby's age, although sometimes that changes. They often go to school or come over to play with Ruby or Ruby goes to their house. Ruby asks Jordan to look for them at night before she goes to bed, but she tells him that, "since they don't get home until fourteen o'clock, you should just watch the hockey game." She has had to put Milla in timeout a few times, but not for anything major.

This is what they look like (with their names written to the left):"

Milla on top, Jula on bottom, not pictured: Greena 

 Amy also included Ruby's description of Milla - Brown hair, blue eyes...

The other day I was going through our "Valu Pack Coupons" (which I never do) and came across this image on a flyer for the Thanksgiving Point Princess Festival:

I about fell off my chair.

I wanted to call Amy that very second but decided to wait

there is an one hour time difference and she does have a baby...

While I waited I went to the website to check it out. 

Three-year-olds and a parent (or grandpa in this case)

can attend the festival which includes:

"Over 50 fully costumed actors are in character acting out a deliciously scripted adventure at all times.  They playfully and personally interact with every one of our guests through the entirety of the Festival.  For example, after checking in at their ticketed time our “Guest Princesses” are whisked away in a small group by Alice and the Mad Hatter for a 15 minute adventure.  Once they’ve concluded their foray in Wonderland, they discover Beauty and Beast waiting to immerse them in the next journey….. and for 2 hours the adventures continue.  In addition to these guided treks, the grounds are filled with delightful performances including exhibitions such as “The Magic Flute”, Story time with Snow White,  and Twelve Princesses dancing their hearts out."

Sounds PERFECT 

What about dates and availability?

Amy, Ruby and Peter will only be here for a few days before the wedding..

DATES: June 15-18, 2011 and June 22-25, 2011

I found an opening on the 22nd!

Wahooooooooooooo!

Somewhere in my searching Amy texted me, we made arrangements

emailed Mark who was thrilled at the prospect,

we arranged for Christian to go with them to take pictures

and enjoy a day with Ruby before he leaves for his mission.

So... what do you call this? 

Luck.... Serendipity..... Fate...?

Probably all three, but most of all a tender mercy.

Proof that God is aware of the detail of our lives.

PS I could post this because Ruby doesn't read blogs

but it's a secret, we'll tell her when she get's here...

but that's another post.

More information about

Princess Mila and the Princess festival.

One Good Kid

  

Strike that... One amazing young man

He's fun....

Bright...

Creative

Happy

Hard working

Loving

 sensitive to others needs...

the people of Argentina will LOVE him.................and I will miss him.

But I wouldn't want it any other day.

Happy 19th birthday Christian. I love you.

The rest of the story...

I can't tell you exactly how long Mark has had this philosophy on where Christian was going to be called on his mission but it seems like it's been a very long time. 

This is how it goes:

Mark was living in Minnesota when he got his mission call.

Straight down the US as south as you get from Minnesota - Louisiana, Baton Rouge.

Aaron went the the next country down, Mexico

as far South as you can go, Tuxtla Gutierrez.

Robbie when to Southern Brazil, 

to Santa Maria...

  

So Christian would of course be heading to Southern Argentina, 

or possibly southern Chile.

He totally hit the nail on the head!

The mission map is on the right.

We're not sure what to make of it all

except that maybe Heavenly Father is logical too...

or just has a great sense of humor

actually we are sure that both are right.

His  mission is quite large and diverse. A transfer by bus can take up to 24 hours.

Some transfers are done by plane. It includes very nice areas as well as very poor areas. 

Wind and mud are fairly constant throughout the mission, although the desert of Patagonia only gets 5" of rain annualy. He needs to bring a sleeping bag with a liner for his bedding and will likely stay in apartments as nice as our home to a 6x8 foot hut. Patagonia has animals not found anywhere else on the earth. Charles Darwin spent some time in Patagonia and said it was one of his favorite places. Temperatures in his mission range from 110f to 10 below. The Southern areas have a lot of snow, little sun in winter (our summer) and almost constant sun in the summer (our winter). There are beaches, mountains and desert, big cities and tiny villages. He will be speaking Spanish. He leaves July 6th.

Last night was fun, loud, joyful and completely amazing.

I feel incredibly happy and blessed

and a little hungover today.

I think I am going to take a nap.

Life is oh so good!

Submitted

Christian's mission application was submitted this week.

He made his own appointments and got most everything done with little help from me.

I was actually out of town for much of it.

It seems unreal to me.

Is he really this old?

He doesn't actually turn 19 until June 3rd.

His availability date it June 17, last day of Spring semester at BYU.

February 17th was the earliest he could turn in his papers, and that's when they went in.

Because Aaron is the oldest I saw it coming and prepared myself for it.

I was also more prepared for Robbie to go

but it seemed I would have more time...

more time to think about it?

more time to help him get his stuff done?

I don't know what or why I thought that...

It just seemed getting the paperwork done for the other boys took longer and I prepared myself a little more as we were going through the process. 

But the application has been submitted and we begin the waiting game. 

Were and when?

I have tried to imagine what it must be like...

Waiting for an envelope to come in the mail telling you where you will spend two years of your life...what language you will be speaking, the climate you will be living in and the culture you will be immersed in... the people you will come to love.

I do know that where ever he goes it will be by divine design and not by chance.

And were ever he goes the people will be blessed by a wonderful, kind, spiritual young man.

**I got a call yesterday that the doctor forgot to check a box on the application, 

looks like the call may take an extra week**

I'm not sure if the guessing and speculating about where he will be going is helpful but it's something to do...

Any thoughts?

A prosperous time of life

Tuesday Rob moved out.

Tuesday I held my first Kindermusik practicum class. 

Wednesday Christian moved out.

Wednesday Jennifer started her sophomore year of high school.

Wednesday Mark attended the first day of "back to school" meetings.

Mark got back from a trip to New Jersey at about 10:45pm on Tuesday night. It was late and we enjoyed some time to get caught up. It was quite late when I got to sleep. Wednesday morning my alarm went off at 6:15..."Really,.... 6:15... I don't think I got up this early last year and it worked fine". I hit my snooze... just 5 more minutes. (I NEVER do that) Next thing I knew there was a knock at the door and Jenn whispered..." are we still having scripture study at 6:45?" I bolted out of bed, yes.... yes... of course..... be right down. I buzzed around in my nightgown packing her lunch. She sat down and ate while Mark began reading. Her ride came early but she was ready.

(wish I had some pictures, sorry)

I sat down and hoped this is not a sign of things to come.

Mark had a day full of meetings (so much fun!). I came home from aerobics to Christian all packed up and ready to move into Heritage Halls. He did let me shower, which I greatly appreciate. When we unloaded the last of his stuff it was lunch time. Robbie texted me to let me know his first day of classes went well. We decided to meet at Panda Express and have lunch. (Love the mushroom chicken)

"This is a prosperous time of life for you"

I'm not one to take fortunes that you get in cookies very seriously but when I read this in mine, I felt a great sense of peace and comfort. Silly I know, it could have easily applied to either of the boys and been just as fitting. But somehow it felt like it was just for me. I know "prosperous" is often viewed in terms of making money, but with so many changes in my life right now it felt more like being able to grow and embrace the changes and find success. A vote of confidence.

(fortunes found in cookies are subject to the consumer's own interpretation)

So I will end with a fortune for you:

"Live long and prosper"

I'll be doing some catching up too.

18

Last week after Christian's graduation we went to dinner at PF Changs.

The restaurant was filled with graduates and their families.
One of Christian's friends came up to our table and said,
"Christian should get the award for the nicest graduating senior"

I think that most people who know Christian would agree.
He is an amazing young man.

He is amazing with kids.

Loves to create and figure out how things work.

Even though he hates snakes, he is always willing to "escort" them from the yard to their new home. He also emptied the mouse traps for me so I could go downstairs and make breakfast. Not a pleasant job.

Christian has a love for fast moving mechanical things.

Seems to enjoy being sandwiched in the middle(ish) of our family.
He gets along with everyone - age is not an issue.

Last year he watched some of his friends leave for school and now they are leaving on missions. It's amazing to see these boys he's grown up with growing up and leaving home but he's not far behind. Christian is the first of my last two. Five years between him and Rob.

June 3, 18 years ago I was overwhelmed with joy as I held my 9lb 3.5 oz baby boy in my arms. He was sweet and calm and happy. The nurse got permission to watch him in our room, checking his blood sugar regularly - he was a big baby. I was so thankful because I didn't want him to leave my side. Will I be ready to let go this fall? I think so, but mostly because I know what a bright future is in store for him. I look forward to watching him soar.

My heart finally caught up

A scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, cheerful... wait... courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, reverent.



I listened over and over as I made fish tacos last night, checking the exact wording until Christian got it perfect. All year I have been aware that he is a senior and that he is graduating. Come Sunday, he speaks at his own seminary graduation. Thursday he graduates from High School. The week after that he will be 18. I have helped with college applications and then rejoiced when he got accepted at BYU. I helped him get housing in place for the fall, we are currently making sure he can cook some basic meals. Amy took these awesome senior portraits in Salt Lake. (You can check out her photography blog here.) We've talked about budgeting and what he will have to pay for when he moves out next fall... but for some reason my heart didn't catch up with my head until last night.

Christian came through the door after his eagle scout board of review with shouts of joy -
he'd finished his eagle - and suddenly it hit me.

He really is all those things
trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient,
cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.

He has grown up into an incredible young man...
and he will be ready to be on his own very soon.

WOW