Thanks to all

I'm glad you are all willing to drag me along on this computer adventure. You're probably wondering why Keri posted Gary's pictures. I had no idea how to do it! Someday, I'll join the 21st century. Thanks, Keri. The digital camera saga continues with Gary. Hopefully, he'll have a new one next time he writes. I'm glad he has a companion who is willing to share his camera right now. Gary mentioned the "impatience and righteous anger" in a P.S. from our last letter. We simply said: "P.S. BUY A NEW CAMERA, DANG IT!" We want more pictures. We're not asking for too much. Anyway, Lindsay and Andrew will have to tutor me more in the blogging area. Thanks for listening. Love, Jill

happy happy day!!

happy happy day!! happy birthday mom!! i lava lava you! you are the greatest!! i love you and i am greatful for all you do for me..thanx for sticken by me with everything..! you are the light in my life! i love you! HAPPY DAY!! muah!! loves and hugs!!

Results from tryouts

Well I thought instead of leaving you all with sleepless nights over me, I would let you know how tryouts went. I played really well and I'm happy about my performance, but I didn't make first cuts. As for a little more constructive feedback, I happened to be put on the same team as a senior who is in my ward that has started for Viewmont since he was a freshman! This was great because he is (although over-confident [ I would try to spell caucky, but I would get it wrong]) anyway, he is really good and knows me and helped to set me up. Then we separated into sophmore-freshmen, and junior-senior teams and I ripped it up. I scored 4 goals and 1 assist. I think the biggest reason that I didn't make cuts was because I didn't go to conditioning which was Jan-Feb. I couldn't make these because of my band deal that I think you have all heard about. Anyway, write lots of supportive comments so I don't lose sleep tonight crying in my pillow. (As you may have had I not written this :-)
Shua

Oh and for Thomas: The reason that it stinks to tryout indoors was because it is hard because #1 players to play their best indoors, because soccer is and outdoor sport and #2 the coaches cannot make a fair judgement as to how the players would play outdoors.

FINALLY - Some Pictures from Paraguay!!

Trying out the blog

Hey guys, I would've written about my 3-point competition experience, but I see that my dad already filled you in. I'm trying out for the viewmont soccer team tomorrow. Due to the snow on the field, we have to tryout INDOORS, which totally stinks. Oh well, wish me luck!
Shua

To Brad, Andrew, and Josh

This message is for Brad, Andrew, and Josh. I just remembered something pretty funny: pumpkinapplefritter!!!! hahahaha!!!!

HURRICANE HOCKEY

So i had the opportunity of being the team manager for the BYU-IDAHO Hurricanes Ice Hockey team. I didn't know a thing about hockey but decided to embrace the challenge. I was the manager and my roommate Sara was the "water shaker" (a serious job up here in the frozen tundra because the water freezes inside the water bottles and then the players cant get a drink...tragic). The Hurricanes dominated all season long only losing 1 game in overtime. My favorite was the 5:30am games on the weekend...NOT!! Sometimes i was really scared to come home because i was afraid i would have toes floating around in my socks from the -30degrees it was some mornings!! We played in the championship game tonight (in the wind and heavy snowfall) and beat the team we lost to last week 7-2!! It was amazing...Here is a picture of the team after winning and the water shaker and manager are in there too!! I loved being the manager even though i didn't really do anything...i learned a lot about the game and even got to be a referee at one game. BYU-IDAHO sports are so unique in the fact that everyone is helping each other even if they are on opposing teams, they start and end each game with prayer, AND each player is required to read a conference talk and answer questions about it before being allowed to play in the weekend games!! I LOVE IT!! what a neat program the Lord has designed for HIS university!

Baby Shaq

Speaking of hoops (I just read the story about Josh), I have a story about Chris on Wednesday. He has been playing lots of basketball this winter, but it is his first love and he is doing quite well. The only thing is, he is a little height challenged. On the Jr. High team, he is the starting power forward but about the same height or a little shorter then the point guard. However, he does have some muscle behind that shorter body. He should be a fullback on the football team or even a center, but we are digressing...

Anyway, on Wednesday, Chris's rec team was playing against the tallest player in the league. He is 6th grader, but about 5'10". He has been dominating in the 6th grade team for the year and just reaches over the top to grab rebounds and put shots back up. Well, the first time down the court, he went to post up down near the basket. Chris saw the play coming and bodied up on him and started to move him out. He did everything with his body as his hands were straight in the air. By the time Billy caught the ball, he was about 10 feet away from the basket and near the foul line. He was not a happy camper, but took the shot. Chris turned around to block him out on the rebound and Billy reached over to try to get the ball back. Whistle and foul. Billy did not get the rebound (Chris did) and he now had his first foul. Billy was really frustrated by the end of the quarter. He had no points, 2 fouls and 1 rebound (defensive).

By the end of the game, Billy had 2 points and 4 fouls. His coach was really unhappy as was Billy's dad. I listened as the referees calmly explained Billy and a teammate were not allowed to climb over the back of another player and sorry that they had not called it before but they would in the future and that the way that Billy was being moved out of the post was not illegal because the other player did not use his hands. Even when Billy was pushing back with his body, he is not nearly as strong as Chris and my bubby just held his position. Most important, he kept his temper the whole time. His Jr. High coach who coaches with me in the rec said that Chris is definately Baby Shaq.

I Can't Smile Without You

I don't know if any of you have ever noticed but that Matthew Crowley has a smile that could melt the Winter Warlock's icy heart. I am so lucky because I get rewarded with that million dollar smile all day long! It is usually accompanied with a "Tank To Mom" translation "Thank You Mom." Like Heidi, I too feel too pretty for the housework I do sometimes but that little munchkin's smile makes it all worth it..

P.S. Oh yeah here's Matt's latest conversation:

Dad: "Matt do we like the Utes?"
Matt: "NO, Utes are weak."
Dad: "What color do the Cougars wear?"
Matt: "White and Blue"
Dad: "What colors do the Utes wear?"
Matt: "White and PINK!"

We are raising that boy right. :)

Josh's Amazing Night

Read about how Josh spent his Thursday night.

The Sense of Smell

Luckily we have been blessed with 5 wonderful senses; touch, taste, sight, hearing and smell. No offense to the other 4 but the sense of smell is what has been catching my attention today. Smells are funny things. I like the smell of my Burberry perufume, my fabric softener, my shampoo and conditioner, the smell of a shoe store, fresh baked cookies, brownies, cakes, pizza, my house (in california), my second house (in farmington), the smell of rain, the smell of the flowers my mom got for Valentines day, mens cologne, lotion from bath and body works, vanilla-the kind you cook with, the smell of gasoline, sharpies, and the beach. I'd like to thank my sense of smell for allowing me to enjoy these smells often. Unfortunately my sense of smell is a double edged sword. My little nose hairs don't filter out the smell of gas (the kind that people give off), nail polish remover, my house (in provo), pickles, fish, smelly feet, body odor, public restrooms, and old lady's perfume from my life. I guess I can be grateful that my list of good smells is much longer then the list of bad smells that sometimes have to fill my nose.

The Happiest Place

In just over a month, the Crowley's will be heading down to sunny SoCal to enjoy the wonders of Disneyland. Thanks to Elizabeth's conquests at the lunch with the Mayor (see below for details), the drive down should be quite entertaining. But the truth is, we're not very experienced at this Disneyland thing. We were wondering what advice you can all share for making the most of our Disneyland experience. We're planning to get the 3-day Park Hopper passes, so hopefully we'll have plenty of time to do it all.

So, how 'bout it? What are your best Disneyland tips?

Becoming Domestic

I've recently realized that I need to become more domestic. So tonight I decided to cook my new specialty...chicken alfredo pizza. Now I know that you are all really impressed and that you are now realizing that no suitable young returned missionary should read this because he will want to come marry me immediately because of my domestic skills. But wait....my domestic skills go far beyond that....in the last month I have gotten down the art of loading the dishwasher (I HATE unloading but I love to load), I have cleaned a filthy bathroom with bleach on my hands and knees, I have unclogged a hairy drain a few times, I have bleached my kitchen and vacuumed the hall. You see I think these talents of mine are just being developed. I can't wait to accumulate many more within the next couple of years and just see what is down my domestic road. I am thinking that one day I'll take the meaning of housewife to a new level. Heaven knows that I am way too pretty for all of this dirty work so I better have a husband who appreciates it (unlike my roommates) and he better be a man who doesn't expect it of me, he better not make me do all the work and he better give me a couple of days a week to recouperate from all of the household labor....

Dear California...

I would just like to thank you for the best weekend of my month. You have rejuninated me enough to be able to survive until we meet again. You supplied me with the great joy of being able to stick my feet out of the window and not see my toes turn from pastey white to purple. Instead I believe they went a little tan. You gave me the joy of In-n-out burger. You allowed me to feel the warmth of the sun and remember what 83 degrees feels like. You blessed me with the smell of the ocean water and the feeling of sand between my toes. You accented my red toenail polish with your grains of salt. Your roads guided me to the baptism of my close friend from high school. your roads helped me spend time with my best friend. You filled the vacancy and the void of my longing for my family. You are the one that I can thank for my immense joy and the greatest weekend. I have you to thank for the sick feeling in my stomach when I glanced at the "Welcome to Utah" sign. You are responsible for my feeling that I have the RIGHT to wear shorts in February. But then I come back to the cold, snowy place that I temporarily call home I do get a little spark of happiness inside me that reminds me that I get to look at the prettiest mountains, and go to an awesome university and live with fabulous roommates. Utah will do for a short time California. But you are the place that my heart will always long for. You have stolen my heart. I love you.

Hey Everyone

hi everybody. nobody else is writing anything so i thought i might. it's been a while since something was posted so i'll post something. write lots of comments on this so that i feel loved.

the day of LOVE

today is a day that can either be a day of celebrating a significant other or a day of sorrow, chocolate and a good romance movie ("an affair to remember" maybe....). well, with all of my 18 years of wisdom to back me up, i have come up with an alternative plan to celebrate this years valentine's day. I am celebrating all of the fabulous relationships i have that are not romantic! I am celebrating my love for my mom and dad. my love for my sisters and brother. my love for my aunts and uncles. my love for my cousins. my love for my roommates. my love for my ward. my love for my bishop and his counselors. my love for my home teachers. my love for my visiting teachers. my love for my classmates. my love my best friends. my love for dark chocolate. my love of my two feet that are able to get me around provo. my love for my red high heels. my love for the gospel of jesus christ. my love for modern technology. my love of this great country. my love for california. my love for the beach. my love for children with autism. my love of learning sign language. my love for a cute pair of jeans that do all the right things for all the right places. my love for life.

to you from me!!

HAPPY LOVE DAY!! i heart all of you!! muah!

WHAT THE.....

keri what in the world is that.. i look like a retard!! sick!! get that out of here! hahah! thanx fam! i sure love and miss you all!! (brad!) thanx for everything you do for me.. heather i promise sometime i will come and visit you.. that would be a blast and a half!! and yes uncle dave i turned 17! YAY!!! muah! loves and hugs!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR LINDSAY!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!

Have a wonderful birthday!!! We will all be thinking about you!!!

hey hey hey!

thanx for calling heather! i love ya!! and yes it is my birthday!! YAY!! haha!! love you all and thanx for all you do.. drop in a note sometime! muah!

oh the embarrassment...

So as I sat in my sign language class today i realized that some things are better left unsigned. I had just been working dilligently with my group on our ABC story that we have to present to the class (an ABC story is one where we have to sign a story using only the letters of the alphabet, no other "real" signs). We were having trouble with a certain letter and couldn't think of a way to use it in our story. Then the inspiration came to me! I knew how we were going to use this letter! I really am a genius and was so happy to keep my group moving along. Well, we decided to ask the teacher (who is deaf) if this was okay to use. (he is picky about certain letters and how we can use them in our stories) When I finally was able to get his attention, he came over to us. I then proceeded to sign "for this letter can we do this sign?" i had to explain a little bit of our story so he would know what was going on. then my teacher then got a look on his face that i never hope to see again and looked at me and signed "Do you know what that sign is?" thanks to being naive i had no idea. i told him i was not aware that that was a sign. As he began to fingerspell out this word, I felt my face turned bright red! Luckily I am able to read fingerspelling pretty well so he didn't have to respell it for me. After fingerspelling it he asked me if i understood. I responed with a definite YES! I then began to profusely thank him for letting me know so i didn't humilitate myself in front of the class! needless to say, i was very hesitant to ask him about any more signs today!

Our House

Hey

I just sent a reply to Keri on my original post. In short, we are suffering from computer problems that will be solved by the end of the week. I am not having any problems at work so I can post already. Shirley, Brad and maybe David and Chris should be able to post by the end of the week.

Dave

Janet....

Jan, i was just wondering if you got the package i sent yet? Just curious! Love you tons!!

Happy Monday,

We are still getting things set up at home, but I am having no problems at work. We will have the gang set up by weeks end I am sure. Chris had a game on Saturday against hated Moapa. It was a hard fought game, and we had a shot at the end, but missed. Chris had his best game as a Jr. High player. He had 5-6 rebounds, and 4 points on 2 for 2 shooting. He played a very good game. Also, Brad is doing track. He says he is going to run the 100, 200, 400, and maybe the 800. I thought he would be an 800 and 1600 guy.

Also, most of you will have talked to Rich about John. We are really going to need to help with this so that Mary does get a vacation and John is not in a nursing home. Details will have to follow.

Uncle Dave

The Sweet Life of Elizabeth Crowley

Wednesday morning the elementary school called me at home. My first thought was, "Great, who's sick and are they really sick because I have a ton to do and it would just be great if you could just get whoever it is a bowl or something and let me get on with folding socks and watching Trading Spaces." I was pleasantly surprised when the secretary simply asked for my permission for Elizabeth to go to lunch with the mayor. "Whew!" I thought, "It's a good thing because I am really busy here and I'm DYING to see what great design Doug comes up with." I gave my consent and went on with my day.


Three hours later the school called AGAIN. I was sure something must be wrong this time. But no, more good news. The secretary called to let me know that Elizabeth had participated in a drawing at the mayor's luncheon and won! I thought maybe she won a t shirt or something. Wrong! She won a portable DVD player! NO WAY! I couldn't believe it. Neither could the secretary. Neither could the principal. He had the secretary call me so that when she came home with this DVD player I would know it was on the up and up. Good thing too--we're really trying to work on Elizabeth's little shoplifting habit. (jk)


Anyway, it was a fun day for her. Needless to say her brothers are a little jealous. I am too. I won a drawing once in Miss Gill's second grade class and all I got was an ugly little stuffed dog. Times have changed...

Baseball Game Outcome

we lost. yes it's true. it's hard to admit it, but we did. 5-1. they are a good team though and i did pretty good though. i was 1 for 3 with a single and the two other times i got out but i made good contact and hit them right to people. now i'm done with baseball for like 3 weeks for a nice break so yeah. just thought i might let you guys know.

...roomies!!!

So after seeing heidi's fun picture, i was inspired to put one up of my fun and exciting life...as you can see this is not all my roommates...just the sane ones!! haha This is Sara and I and we are having way too much fun up here!! Life in Rexburg is always much more exciting when you have a partner in crime...so we stick together!!We dont go outside much just enjoy movies on the laptops so we dont freeze to death!! haha

A glimpse at Fox 44

So I thought I would share with everyone about my fabulous roommates! We refer to ourselves as the foxy ladies due to your apartment name and we live up to the name!! We have way to much fun and are the best of friends. They come from places like Oklahoma, Lindon, UT, and Vegas. We do crazy things that we attribute to youthful naivety...such thing will not be published at this time for the sake of the younger children and for my parents sake. :) The "Y" is the place to be and I am enjoying it all. Oh yeah...I do have classes too. But they are secondary to my real life experience. My favorite classes are Sign Language and communication disorders. Well...I'm off to play!

THE NILSEN CLAN - November 2006

Baseball Game

hey everyone. i'm just letting you guys know that i have one baseball game today at 2:00. it's a team that we've played 5 times and only beat once and we are very equal in talent. so wish me luck!!! i'll let you know how i do later.

My Hero!!!

This is cool isn't it? Thank you sooooo much honey for setting us up. What a great guy, I should marry him--hey! I did!!!


Does anyone know John and Mary's email address? We need to let them know too.

whoops

i accidently did two. my bad.

This is cool

hey guys. this is a pretty cool thing. just wanted to see if this worked. hi everybody.

hey guys. this is a pretty cool thing. just wanted to see if this worked. hi everybody.

The Frozen Tundra

I am just trying to figure this thing out so if this isnt right...sorry!! Just wanted to say that I am alive in Rexburg!! Dont worry I can now say that I have survived and been outside in -30F degrees...disgusting but I did it without complaining!! You should be so proud to call me family!! We were able to see the grass yesterday but it is getting covered with white stuff from the sky again! Snow is what they call it here, something very foreign to me and i have no desire to become aquainted with it!! haha CALIFORNIA GIRL!!!!

Hey Guys!

I am on the plan/blog. It is a great thing. I loved the news report. She looked way cute. I am sure the calls are coming in for the dates in the next few weeks. Hope everyone is doing good. We are in the middle of basketball for Chris. 24 games between Feb.1 and Apr. 15. He is having a blast. Shirley is looking great. Her new diet/exercise plan has been super. She didn't even gain a pound over the holidays. We will be talking to you soon.

Uncle Dave

Thanks John!

Hi Everyone! Check out how Heather is the key witness for the prosecution in the case against the Rexburg Panty Caper http://www.kidk.com/news/5703626.html?video=pop&t=a We are so proud of her!

Thanks John - the brother in law

Thanks John for setting this up!!! Wahoo!!! Lets all use it so we can stay up to date on everyone's lives. I love our family!!!

Hello from Heidi Ho in Provo

Oh my goodness!! This is the coolest thing to hit the Nilsen family since Hobgoblins!! Think of all the fun that we will have on this latest fad....oooo the possibilites are endless!! So just to let everyone know whats going on in good old P-Town....its warm!! (It sounds like blasphemous coming from a southern california girl!) It has been in the high 40's! I've been thinking I should work on my tan! :) Well... I hope we all embrace this marvelous opportunity that is before us and can stay connected! I love you all and can't wait to read about your lives!!

Welcome to the World of Blog, Nilsens (and Crowleys)

Finally, here's a spot that we can all use to connect and share the big and little events of our lives. Blogging is so fun. I don't know how many of you are familiar with this phenomenon, but it is so easy to use and provides a frequent connection—especially for those we don't get to see often enough.

We want to make everyone in the family an official "author" so that you can add main posts as well as comment on others posts. We'll need to collect e-mail addresses to do that, but it shouldn't take long at all.

The most important thing now is to USE IT. Let's not be timid or shy (like that's really a worry with this group :-)

Let the blogging begin!