Non Stop

Had one of those days that just didn't stop moving.  So much to do and I just kept going.  It was totally fine especially after the last two days were spent at the computer trying to do a lesson plan and to complete other task requirements.  That was not fun and though I still am not finished and must continue those labors, I had other things take priority today.  Tomorrow I will likely be back at the table working on this lesson plan and hopefully submitting it.  Tired of it.  It looks as if Saturday will be another one like today with a church cleaning assignment, a ward Christmas party, and the SUU playoff football game.  It should be a good one, like today. 

Tired of the Plan

I am trying to put together a lesson plan for the task I have to submit for my Mathematics methods course.  I am not doing very well as I struggle to put together this lesson plan.  I am not a big fan of lesson planning in these tasks as I really find them to be a pain.  I have grown tired of the lesson plans and would really like to not have to do them.  There is no way out of it so I will press forward and try to get this done.  I just don't have a lot of confidence and that bothers me.  Have to keep moving forward. 

Manipulatives

Working on a task for one of my classes and have to write a lesson plan based on mathematical manipulatives. I am not a math guy and am not very familiar with manipulatives so I found this project somewhat interesting as I got to explore both physical manipulatives and virtual manipulatives.  There are lots of cool things out there that I never had seen before in my life.  I have seen some things in picture form in a math book but never knew about actual products that could be handled and worked with.  That is pretty cool stuff.  I think there are a lot of things that would really be beneficial for students and would love to see my kids using some of these tools to help them better grasp a concept.

Things have been a bit on the challenging side for me this semester.  I need to knock out some credits and need to get this task submitted so I can keep moving forward.  I have things moving a long pretty well and know what direction I am heading with the lesson plan so that should help things progress.  I want to have the lesson plan finished and submitted by tomorrow and then take the final assessment for my phys ed and health concepts class.  Just trying to keep on track.  

Doctors and Meetings

It was a full and busy day for me today. Started out by taking Natty to the doctor. Well, technically it began with getting everyone up for prayer, getting Natty off to seminary, getting to boys to school also. Following that Natty and I drove to the doctors. It went well.

Later in the afternoon I ran up to the middle school and sat in an meeting for Andy.  That went well. Got some work to do.

Grateful for all I am blessed with and for my wonderful children.

Jack Spoke

Jack spoke in church today and did a pretty good job. He had the topic of gratitude. Dan and Amy spoke in church as well and both did a great job. I do want to note that reference was made to our feast and thankstimony on Thanksgiving day and how all of us Fontanos are big cry babies. It is important to note that the man who likes to tease us because of our emotions actually got a bit teary eyed in his talk. He tried to say something must have gotten in his eye but we all knew better. 

The messages shared were great and I enjoyed them. Grateful for family and for the gospel of Jesus Christ.

So Tired

Is holiday lag a thing?  It's kind of like jet lag but doesn't involve air travel... I don't know what the deal is but I am feeling it, am ready to go to bed. So I will

Back Home

We had a little outing with Jay and his boys today. Went to the nickel arcade. It was a good time. Played a variety of games and won some tickets. The boys had a good time.

Natty was out shopping with her aunts and cousins. They seemed to have a good time.

We got on the road sometime around 3 and got home between 5:30 and 6. Got pig buckets collected and taken out. Collected empties and brought them home and washed them. Good to be home.

Thanksgiving 2017

Had a wonderful day with the fam. Really enjoyed it and managed to take the votes for first place in our appetizer competition. I did mozzarella bricks with marinara. I actually really enjoyed the other appetizers and fully expected to lose because the others were really good. It was a fun part of the day. Well done all.

We also had a great time sharing thoughts on what we are grateful for. It was a great meeting and it was a bit emotional as we Fontanos seem to be.

I have not played volleyball for years and years. Tonight we had some fun with a volleyball game. It was a blast. Need to do that again soon. Each of the kids participated and they did pretty well for first timers.

It was a great day and I have much to be thankful for. Most especially grateful for Jesus Christ and all he makes possible for me and my family.

North to Springville

Today we got up, got the house cleaned, got some things taken care of for work, helped Dan with a roof, got things loaded up and then we hit the road heading North to Springville. The fam got together for a soup and pie night. It was a good time. We had some good pies and soup. I made a couple of cheesecakes which were ok. I thought they would be a little better than they were. Pretty heavy and not as flavorful as I had hoped.  Anyway, looking forward to thanksgiving tomorrow and more quality time with the fam

Sad Move

The deacons got together tonight to help the Vissers pack up their belongings to move. Kade has been a great friend and leader for Jack and he was determined to be there. A while later when he came home he was in tears. He was sobbing pretty hard. It was a tough moment for him. He was pretty emotional for the next two hours. I don't know who will be called to replace brother Visser but I certainly hope they will be the same kind of leader and friend for Jack.

Sleep Testing

Do not be confused by the title of this post.  Sleep testing is not a method whereby one tests a variety of sleeping patterns to determine what is best.  Not at all.  Sleep testing is what I was doing in the middle of trying to take a test beginning around 11 PM.  My body was done as I sat down to take this assessment and I could not keep my eyes open.  63 questions becomes a very long test when you are staring at a question for who knows how long because you are in sleep mode.  Brutal.  I had no confidence in my answers and just tried my best to come up with the most logical choice.  I kept having to read, and read, and read because I was seeing words but not understanding.  Well, I managed somehow to survive the sleep testing experiment and passed the exam. I've got some things to review but this was good.  Just trying to keep things moving in the right direction even if I am half asleep while doing it. 

Prime Time

Prime Rib is a delightsome meal. I have never personally made it until today. Pete and his fam came up today and are here for a few days. We had a meal at the Brick House and the prime rib was pretty dang good.  Had a great time with the fam. Glad for my kids to have time with their cousins. It definitely made for prime time.

Champions

For the second time in three years SUU sits on top of the Big Sky Conference. They have had an excellent season and it has been fun to be on the field for their games. Today's game was excellent. It started out pretty tight and Northern Arizona looked way tough. After a tough first quarter SUU took control and dominated. I might have quietly cheered on a couple of those and did my best to keep it quiet.  Well, fabulous win SUU.

Sit Ups

Tonight Andy started doing some sit ups. He managed to knock out 30 of them. It was a bit of a struggle towards the end but he got it done. I was impressed. Jack decided he wanted to go and compete.
Oh my goodness I am wiped out. Jack wanted a try and he got 40.  Andy was having none of that. He went again and knocked down 70.  It was cool. I like the way they they did it.   Jack did go again but stopped after 7.  Love to see them pushing each other to do better.

Must sleep

Can't even do this. Body is hurting. Need to sleep.

Off My Feet

Today was a very full day for me. I was on my feet for the majority of the day only sitting to drive between locations I needed to be at. Had catering this morning and then had a busy day at Brick House that didn't stop. There was picking up tje catering, cleaning up equipment, running to the store and things just kept going. It felt so good to finally sit down. Tomorrow may not be as busy for me which is completely okay with me. 

Sleep

Oh my I need to go to sleep. I am drifting pretty quick.  It has been a fine day. I can't stay awake. Must rest.

Sister Fontano

My niece has been out serving an LDS mission in North Carolina for the last year and almost a half.  She will be returning home in some 24 days if I remember the detail correctly from my brothers commentary on her weekly letter today.  It is amazing to think that she will be home in such a short amount of time.  Her weekly letters have been a major part of our weekly family home evenings.  I usually read her letters while the kids listen.  Sometimes they have to endure an emotional moment or two as I often find myself choked up.  What a wonderful gift it has been for us to partake in this correspondence and to feel the testimony and love of Sister Fontano.  Jim pointed out that there will only be three more letters before she is back home.  I am sad that this part of our weekly family gatherings will end. 

As we read through the letters I ask the kids to share something that stood out to them.  They all have something that they enjoyed or that made an impression.  That has always been fun and a highlight to see what impresses them the most.  Natalie has always made a comment about how she see's the tremendous growth in her testimony and in her love for the Lord.  I am grateful for the example Sister Fontano has set for her cousins.  I hope that those spiritual promptings inspire each of my children to do better, to be better.  Thank you Mernal! You are wonderful. 

Make A Plan

Today was our Teacher Council Meetings during the 2nd and 3rd hours of church. It was my month to lead the discussion and I quite enjoyed this one. It was simple but there was so much to learn about preparing and planning. Both hours went well. I feel very fortunate to be serving in the Sunday School at this time in my life. I am so grateful to have such a hands on experience. 

Football

Today I worked on the chain crew for two playoff games for the high school state championship. It was good. My body was a bit sore and stiff, had to have been the temple tours yesterday. Well, it was a good time. I enjoy that. Next Saturday will be our last game of the season. Sad but true. Well, I am wiped out. Must rest.

Tours

Worked up at the temple today as a tour guide. Managed to take four groups through. I an pretty tired tonight. Must sleep. Will right more

Don't Hand it to Me

Played racquetball tonight with Kaden. I have yet to beat him in a full match. I beat him once in a game to 7. Anyway, I thought I had him beat today. I had him point to 7 and then he staged a remarkable comeback. I tried and tried to close him out but he just kept chipping away. There was no handing me the victory and I respect that. When I do beat him I will have earned it. I was so close today. Tough loss. Two days in a row with tough losses in my life.

Lost to Nally

I was the reigning chili cook off champion for the last two years and tonight I put my title on the line once again. I put my heart and soul into this chili. It is a great recipe, made from scratch, full of flavor and high quality ingredients. In years past the competition hasn't been real close so I had some confidence going in that my chili would hold its own.  My friend said he would be bringing a chili to the competition but didn't really have high expectations as it was Nally chili out of a can. Another friend brought a fantastic chili that was easily one of the best ones in the competition.  Then another friend brought a Philly cheese steak chili that was also quite good and one of my top ranked. When the announcements were made I was announced first as the second place chili. My friend Gary took third with the Philly cheese steak chili. At this point I fully expected Mike to win with his excellent chili that pretty much had it all. Not so. Tyler was announced the winner with his canned chili. I may have thrown up a bit in my mouth. That made the loss kind of hard. I don't know that I will continue to take the competition seriously if canned chili takes the cake. It was a tough loss but that is okay. In the end, my crock pot that was full of chili was empty, just about scraped clean. Somebody must have liked it.

Student Aid

Feeling much better today. Made a run to the store to look atvlightinv options. Ran into Craig Cardon and his wife. When I saw her I asked if she knew who I was and she put it together. Mrs. Cardon is an aid at Cedar Middle School and has worked with Jack since he came up in 6th grade. We had a chat there at the store and she told me how much she loves Jack. She shared some things about her dog and how that is something that helps to calm Jack down. She showed me a picture Jack drew of her dog. We had a great conversation that got a bit emotional. I am so very grateful for wonderful people in my life and in the lives of my children. I am grateful that Jack has someone like Mrs. Cardon who loves him and makes a difference in his life.

Got Worse

Today I woke up with a headache once again.  It was not bad but got progressively worse.  I don't know if it was connected but I ended up sick to my stomach.  I ate some food and tried to take some ibuprofen for the headache. After a bit I began throwing up.  It was a very pleasant day.  I laid down and slept for a while and then got up with a headache still. I had a lot I had to do so I had to buckle down and just suck it up. The headache finally faded. I still felt sick to my stomach but managed to get some liquid down. I was able to get through most of the crap I had to get done and then had to run to the store to look for a light bulb for the Depot and then ran and got some pizza for the kids.  I came home and my friend Greg was over with a picture he is donating to the open house along with some gift certificates.  We visited for awhile and I was finally starting to feel better.  It was not my funnest day and I am hoping that whatever this has been will be gone.  Headaches that lead to puking are not my favorite kind of headaches.   

Hurting

Had a fine start to the day but had a small headache. It turned into a much bigger headache as time went on. By the time church was over I couldn't stand to have my eyes open. I don't enjoy this kind of a headache. When we got home I had to eat something so I could take some medicine and then I laid down for a while and slept. I am afraid I might be trying to get sick. After a nap I felt a lot better. Hopefully I am not coming down with something.

11/3/2017

Busy day. I managed to stay busy all day with a variety of things. I had a catering job that should have been easy but ended up being a bit of a struggle. I got it done but it should have been much more efficient. That ended up delaying other things like making fudge. In the middle of fudge I had my dear friends come to the shop and I had to visit with them. That was a great time. I then finished up the fudge. I got through that and made it home to visit with John Schatz, Nick and Vonnie Schatz, and Julia. They were in town and we enjoyed a nice visit at the restaurant and then they came over to the house later to see the kids. Oh my, good times. Ready for another busy day tomorrow.

11/2/2017

Wonderful day.  It was a full one, lots going on.  The week started a bit slow for the business but today has been pretty busy. Nice.  I've got a lot of stuff to do tomorrow and still have to try and get through my test for my math class. I can't procrastinate the school much longer and have to speed things up.  No more time to waste there so finding the time to do it needs to happen. 

Had a good conversation with one of our loyal customers today.  He is a great guy with a level head. In the course of our conversation we talked about the culture we enjoy at the Brick House and how we associate with our employees.  It has been something that we have always been grateful for and something that we value deeply.  I would love to say that everyone has been the model employee but we have had our share of struggles and people that just didn't work out. We work through those situations and try to foster a positive atmosphere.  We learn a lot as we go and certainly don't have all of the answers and have most definitely made some mistakes and still do.  We are trying.

Tomorrow is another day.  I will go forth and try to do my best to accomplish the tasks that are in front of me.  

Tired

I am tired.  By tired I don't mean I need a nap I just mean I am tired. Sometimes life can be exhausting. Things never end and when you do think things are getting easier and there is less to deal with, a new problem always seems to arise.  My life isn't a grand tale of hardship and struggle.  I think the Lord has been very kind and has seen fit to bless my family in a number of ways.  I am grateful for that and I will continue to press forward and do my best. Sometimes I get tired.  Life takes a lot of work, a lot of effort.  That can become tiresome.  Well, I will continue to press forward and do the very best that I can do, even when I am feeling a bit on the tired side of things.