Moritz Life

Kathy - 10 pounds and 7 inches

Lloyd - 9 pounds and 3 inches

It's finally cooled off enough that we can enjoy being outside. Our patio furniture has been used 3 times in the last week (more than all summer long). It just gets too hot here to eat outdoors or for that matter spend much time outside unless it's in the early morning hours. Spring and fall are our best hopes for getting to be outside. I've even taken the opportunity to sit outside to read a couple of times in the last week. What a joy! Thank God for the beautiful weather. By the way, I'm talking 30+ celsius to get to be outside! I thought 30 was too hot when we lived in Edmonton, now it's just perfect! :)

After almost 4 years of using my first cell phone, it was about time to get a new one. the last couple of months I've been noticing the screen on this phone has been acting strangely. Once in a while the screen would display nothing at all, and this last week, the screen would display a backwards and upside down image. This would make reading anything on the screen possible only by turning it upside down and looking at it in a mirror. Needless to say this was a slight inconvenience.

I looked at a bunch of different options for both a new phone and a new cell phone plan. I decided the best option for me would be to stay with Cingular, but change to a Prepaid Plan, and with this I would get a new phone, namely the Nokia 6030. I am especially happy with the phone, and am still getting used to the plan, but everything is working out well so far.

You can ask anyone who lives in our house, "where's mom?" and someone will say she's studying. Yup, it's pretty non-stop hitting the books. I am really enjoying it though. Stressed as I was that my books arrived late and I started an 8 week course almost two weeks behind everyone else, I'm doing very well. My first two assignments garnered full marks - 100% on each paper. Not bad for someone who hasn't taken a college course in well over 2o years! I have two classes right now, a transfer student course for no credit (which I already completed 3 weeks before it is scheduled to be over) and English Composition II. So it's a lot of reading and then writing essays. I've completed 4 essays to date and have two more due one week from Sunday. So I am caught up and even working ahead. Lloyd calls me a keener. Jonathan says I make regular students like him look bad. Oh well, that's their problem - I'm here to learn and do a good job too! Your continued prayers are appreciated. It's a big adjustment around here as both Lloyd and Andrew have to pitch in and help a little more. Although (don't tell them) they already help out a lot! I'm really going to need your prayers for my next course...College Math :( It's a good thing I'm live with a bunch of math geniuses! God is Good.

Almost four years ago Luke bought his first car, a 1986 Ford Tempo for $880. It was in rough shape when we bought it, and we never really expected it to last. But, it got Luke to work. Eventually he bought a "real" car, but since then Jonathan used it regularly to go to college in Visalia, and more recently Andrew learned to drive on it.

But, it finally met its demise. The transmission (the second, or maybe third depending on how you count) got real bad in the last few weeks, so we decided it was time to give this car its deserved rest. Today we donated it to the High School so that students could dismantle it, and hopefully learn how NOT to build a car. 

Ok, so yesterday I registered to take the CBEST. The CBEST is the California Basic Education Standards Test, and the next test date, and the time I will be taking this test is October 7th. The CBEST is a test for California and Oregon that people take if they want to teach (or in my case substitute teach) at schools in one of those two states. It just makes sure that you have a basic knowledge of math, english, etc. so you are at least able to answer some questions kids in your class might have. In California, if you want to Substitute teach, you need to take the CBEST and have 90 units towards an undergraduate degree. Once I take the CBEST (and pass) I will have both requirements taken care of.

So, this brings me to my job. Once I get everything taken care of to teach, I plan on substitute teaching at Lemoore High School (where my Mom used to work) on Fridays, and possibly Thursday afternoons. I don't have class at either of these times, so I figured it would be perfect for filling with something that would both make money, and make a difference. I've been told in the past while "teaching" classes that I am a good teacher, so we'll see how it goes when I get paid for doing it.

It's hard to believe that August is long gone, and that just over one month ago I submitted my resignation to the church here in Hanford. Life has been busy, and it's not likely to slow down for awhile now.

Apart from all the considerations surrounding our upcoming transitions, the last month has seen much activity. August 16-20 Kathy and I were in San Francisco for the 50th Anniversary Celebration for Shaklee Corporation. Our Shaklee business has been an integral part of our lives, and it was tremendous to spend five glorious days in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. And, it was done first-class, staying at one of the finest hotels (The Grand Hyatt) and experiencing top-notch food and entertainment. There were 10,000 people at the convention, demonstrating the incredible growth that Shaklee is experiencing under its new ownership. On the Wednesday evening the company took over AT&T Park (the home of the San Francisco Giants) for a time of fun. During the convention we were able to listen to top-notch speakers including Wangari Matthai (2004 nobel peace prize winner), former New York city mayor Rudolph Giuliani, and Erik Weihenmayer (the first blind person to climb Mount Everest). The convention was capped off on Saturday evening with a high-class, sit-down banquet for all 10,000 of us under one roof (one of the largest on record, ever), and music by Earth, Wind and Fire. Our trip home featured Luke, who flew into San Francisco after spending three months in Edmonton.

The hectic activity continued once we got home. Within a few days I was on an airplane for Nashville to attend the Strategic Planning Conference of the Church of God. This was an intense three days of dialogue and meetings. It was a tiring, but productive few days.

The latter half of August has also seen much activity for the four students in our family. Luke began his senior year at Fresno State University. Jonathan moved on campus at Fresno Pacific University to complete the final two years toward his degree. Andrew began his post-secondary education close to home at College of the Sequoias, and began a new job at Target. And, Kathy began her quest to finally complete her degree, through Warner Southern College.

Life has not been boring around here!

I just finished my first week of my last year of college (knock on wood). It's kind of exciting, but a little scary, cause the last 3 years have gone by VERY quickly.

My trip back to California was really nice. I got to drive down with Ryan Jones to Moscow, Idaho (he attends the University of Idaho). Ryan and I split up the drive by stopping near Lethbridge, AB to spend some time with the Petrinchuks. When we arrived in Idaho I got to see the University of Idaho campus, help Ryan move a bunch of his stuff into his apartment, and hang out with Ryan for the last time in a while. Next day, Ryan drove me up to Spokane, WA and I flew from Spokane to Seattle and then Seattle to San Francisco. My parents, who were at a Shaklee convention in San Fran, and leaving at around the same time I'd be coming in, picked me up at the airport, and we drove back to Hanford together.