busy bee

ok, so i thought that taking online classes would be a fun, albeit challenging, undertaking. i have had the hardest time this semester!! i feel so scatterbrained and unable to figure out and follow deadlines, and the simplest directions look like a foreign language!! at the beginning of the semester, i was hit with a whopping dizzy episode, but since then, i haven't had one. so that is a huge blessing. i am in world religions, which is actually very enjoyable and i am learning a lot. i had to read a very thought provoking book and go talk to my professor about it. (these are online classes, and i hadn't been to campus in a long time! eek!!) i am also taking geology of arizona. now, i thought this was going to be my easy ride class. rocks, what's so hard about that??? ha. a lot!! we don't have a book, so i thought it would be a cake walk. boy was i wrong!! we have a powerpoint with 20-50 slides each week we have to go over, an activity involving 5 or 6 puzzles with questions about the material, a supplemental reading and a quiz for each week. i pretty much had this part under control, but was not doing super well. the part that threw me, was the special activities due every 3 weeks for the first part of the semester. i had the dates wrong in my head, and like i said, can't seem to look at a planner. i missed the first 2 completely!! by the time i realized my mistakes, i had a 43 in the class!! i emailed my professor asking if i should bother continuing with the class or just drop it. he advised me to do better, and not miss any more assignments, and i would be fine with a b or c. that isn't failing, so i agreed. it has been much better since i got my head on straight. now, those 2 classes were for the whole semester, but i thought it would be fun to test my sanity and throw in small group communications for the second 8 weeks. oh my. it has required so much more work and time than i even thought i had!! i am spending an average of 4-6 hours a DAY on the laptop for these classes. i am so behind in my housework it is not even funny. rachel is enjoying all of the tv and computer time, but the older kids are starting to get annoyed when i have done NOTHING but homework all day. sheesh. add in the kids activities, choir, and being ward choir director, and you have a busy bee for a mommy!!

my baby got baptized

of course, i always post pictures in backwards order. but here is the whole family after rebekah's baptism.
rebekah with her baptism blanket made my grandma gresko

bekah and her daddy
rebekah with mom and dad
rebekah the sweet

so i was unprepared for the experiences we had yesterday. i was expecting a little bit of a hectic day, hard to feel the spirit of what was happening in my baby girl's life. it was so much more than that. we wanted to perform the ordinance when everyone could be there, so we went for in between conference sessions on saturday afternoon. conference ended at 11, and it was an hour to fill the baptismal font. we decided noon would be a good time to hold it. our bishop was scheduled to be on duty, where he is the fire chief in a nearby town. the other counselors were up at conference in salt lake, and working. it was a hard day to get ahold of the necessary people we needed for keys and such. it all came together though, and everything was set. the family were all there on time, and we began. we had talks and songs, and the baptism and confirmation were great. my sister was asked to give the closing prayer, and she said what we were thinking and feeling, but couldn't express. she said that we all feel the presence of our deceased grandmother, and know she is proud of rebekah. after some more sweet things were said, and with tears rolling down my face, because of the confirmation that sandy was indeed there, i hugged my sister, who was crying as well. she said, i don't know what happened, i was supposed to tell you that. then, grandpa gresko gave rebekah the blanket that sandy had made and wrapped a year ago for her. i was unprepared for the card attached to it. she had written a personal note to rebekah, which was so perfect and eloquent. rebekah squealed and wrapped herself up in it. it is beautiful and perfect. then, when we came home, and i was looking at the card again, i noticed that it opened up, and the inside was written in as well. it was filled with more of sandy, and we treasured it. what a day!!!