Car problems

Earlier this week we were driving our 2003 Ford Focus and noticed that it was having a hard time shifting gears. Whenever we hit about 40 mph, the engine would rev and then the whole car would jerk into gear. Now I don't know too much about cars, but even I realized that this was not normal and decided to take it to a mechanic. He said that we had transmission failure. Transmission failure=Big Money. We're hoping it will be ready by Monday or Tuesday, and thanks to Clay's mom's generosity, we are not completely car-less. I'm driving a minivan much sooner than I anticipated:) The funny thing is, we were saying a few days earlier that it was a reliable car and that we hadn't had any major problems...I guess we spoke too soon.

Church Bulletin Bloopers

So each month, our ward comes out with a newsletter. In this month's edition, there was a section titled Chuch Bulletin Bloopers. I made the mistake of reading them during sacrament meeting while one of the women in our ward was speaking. I hope she didn't think I was laughing at her....Anyways I just thought you could all use a good laugh:

1. Bertha Belch, a missionary from Africa, will be speaking tonight at Calvary Methodist. Come hear Bertha Belch all the way from Africa.

2. Ladies, don't forget the rummage sale. It's a chance to get rid of those things not worth keeping around the house. Don't forget your husbands.

3. The peacemaking meeting scheduled for today has been canceled due to a conflict.

4. Don't let worry kill you off-let the Church help.

5. Miss Charlene Mason sang "I Will Not Pass This Way Again," giving obvious pleasure to the congregation

6. For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs.

7. The Rector will preach his farewell message after which the choir will sing "Break Forth Into Joy."

8. Irving Benson and Jessie Carter were married on October 24 in the church. So ends a friendship that began in their school days.

9. A bean supper will be held on Tuesday evening in the church hall. Music will follow.

10. Scouts are saving aluminum cans, bottles and other items to be recycled. Proceeds will be used to cripple children.

11. The church will host an evening of fine dining, super entertainment, and gracious hostility.

12. Potluck supper Sunday at 5 p.m.-Prayer and medication to follow.

13. The ladies of the Church have cast off clothing of every kind. They may be seen in the basement on Friday afternoon.

14. This evening at 7 p.m. there will be a hymn singing in the park across from the Church. Bring a blanket and come prepared to sin.

15. Ladies Bible Study will be held Thursday morning at 10 a.m. All ladies are invited to lunch in the Fellowship Hall after the B.S. is done.

16. The pastor would appreciate it if the ladies of the congregation would lend him their electric girdles for the pancake breakfast next Sunday.

17. Low Self Esteem Support Group will meed Thursday at 7 p.m. Please use the back door.

Haha...Hopefully you enjoy these as much as I did.

At the beginning of July, my family came and it was a lot of fun. Part of the time they stayed with us in our two bedroom apartment...needless to say, things were a little cramped, but it was worth it.

While they were here, we went bowling. I kicked trash. Clayton didn't do too bad either, I supposed. Haha. I think I had the highest pin fall of the day as well as the high score: 145. There was 8 of us so we split up onto two lanes; those using the bumpers and those without.

We also spend a day at Lagoon. It was pretty hot out, but we made sure to hit the water rides. We got drenched. I'm a huge thrill seeker, and even though none of the rides there are amazing, it still was a lot of fun. If Clayton decided to go to the UofU for grad school, we'll probably end up getting season passes next year.

The last couple of days that my family was here, we went camping down in Bryce Canyon. It was so beautiful. Pictures don't it justice. We took a couple of hikes and a million pictures. The weather was hot, but the second day we were there, it rained and cooled things down a bit. The rain also made cooking dinner more difficult (wet wood is hard to light), but nothing lighter fluid wouldn't fix. The food was great, the company was even better...I couldn't ask for a better time.

While we've been out...

So as promised, here is an update on what has been going on with the Shaws since last we wrote.

At the end of April, Clayton graduated from BYU with a degree in Exercise Science. I wish I actually had better pictures of him walking, but the department is pretty big and we didn't have the best seating. But here are some pictures from afterwards. This is not the end however. Clay will be taking the year off to improve is requirements for grad school, and we will be applying as soon as August. He'll be going in to Physical Therapy. Right now, our top two choices for schools are UofU and UNLV, but we'll obviously go where ever we are accpeted. Right now he is working with a physical therapist and will soon be taking some independent study courses to improve his GPA. He will also retake the GRE to up that score too.

Shortly after graduation, we took a trip to Disneyland. I swear that half of Utah was there. We ran into a lot of LDS people and it made waiting in lines a lot more pleasant. Not that the lines were very long. The longest we waited in line was 30 minutes, and that was for the Peter Pan ride. We went on on the major attractions three or four times a piece. On our last day, it was overcast and in the low 70's. Because of this, we were able to walk right on to Splash Mountains. After we got back there was no line so they let us go again, this time we got a boat all to ourselves. We seized the opportunity and got a great picture...at least we think so. We also really enjoyed the Tower of Terror, and Soarin' Over California. It was a lot of fun to get away. The weather was great, the crowds weren't too big, and we had a lot of fun.

We are looking forward to see all of our family this summer. Both of our families are coming to Utah within the next month and we are so excited to see you all!

Updates to come...

I have more time this summer so there is no excuse for me not to update more regularly. Wish me luck because we know how bad I am about updating:)

In the next week, I will add some pictures and a new post for some of the more exciting events that have happened.

More waiting...

Well Clayton's letter came from UNL on Friday...He's on the alternate list. So that means more waiting for us. *Sighs* I would really like to know where on this list he lies so that I can decided whether to hold my breath and hang on to that thread of hope, or to just give up. I feel like doing the latter. So we will keep you updated on that!

On to better news, I started a job last week at a place called Massage Envy. I think it will work out nicely. It's a professional environment, and I feel like I'm my own boss. Once I get my client, I'm in control of how the massage goes. The only bad thing is that it's in American Fork which is a little further than I would like to drive, but with the freeway so close by, it's really not too bad.

Interview Status

Well Clay had his interview at UNLV on Friday. Supposedly the letters are being sent out today priority mail to let us know our fate. I'm really nervous, anxious, excited, terrified, going out of my mind waiting for this letter. Hopefully it'll be here by the end of the week. If he doesn't get in, we'll be in Utah for another year, and then he'll re-apply. Clay thinks he did well, so I guess we'll just have to see. Keep us in your prayers!