This Week

Ok I am going to start posting our weekly updates on the blog, to update anyone that may not me on the mailing list!

ITS FINALLY SPRING!
We experienced the first sunburns of the year, though they were mild...it only proves that the sun does shine in IN!
What a beautiful week we have had. We had wonderful weather at the beginning of the week which made the rain on Friday tolerable. Thursday morning we woke up to an earthquake, that was an experience, it was a 5.4! I haven't been in an earthquake since I was 4, and our family lived in CA. Its incredible how everyone viewed it as the "Lords Wake up Call"...there were lots of different conversations about how this related to the end of the world... Jeff and I don't have the guts to tell others, that its really not that bad...compared to what it will be like before the 2nd coming!

I had a wonderful conversation with a neighbor, it lasted for 2 hours. Another wonderful missionary experience. She had asked me how I had become such a wonderful mother ( what a complement!) I told her that 90% of who I am was learned from my mother, and the mothers that I grew up around...aunts, grandma etc... but the other 10% was learned through my religious beliefs and the support network with in the LDS church. I don't feel pressured to work out side of the home, I am encouraged to have neat and orderly home, a place peace can reside. (Even though my home isn't perfect its nice to think that I am on the right track) She then asked questions about what we believed it. She is a devout Bible reader, and says her prayers 2x a day...she's doing better than me. ...anyways it was another wonderful experience. I offered her an extra Book of Mormon, to read she said she'd think about hit. She really didn't get the reasoning for a second book...if the bible is true (even if as far as it is translated) why do we need another book? The whole "missing truths" explanation didn't sink in at all. So I'm learning how to be a missionary, its an experience but I am enjoying it. After all I want to be a life long seeker.

Jeff is still busy with work and school, a major piece of equipment that he uses ALL THE TIME broke... don't worry it only cost 7k to fix it... so who knows when it will be up and running again! He has finals next week, and is preparing for them, in 2 weeks we will be all done. I have a German presentation on Thursday and then my final will be next week. Wish us luck!

Ehre and I are continuing to have daily school time. Our goal is to have her "simple reading" by the end of the summer when she starts preschool. We just finished making another batch of File Folders. Several friends have used my patterns to make some for their kids...its fun to see them through out the ward...stake!

Benjamin is a grump lately, go figure? I think its because he realized how much fun it is to be outside...and then with the rain, and a Sunday, he's a little upset to be indoors. I was giving him his routine hair cut this week...and he jumped....oops now his hair is a lot shorter...in fact he let me BIC it while he was in the tub. Now we won't have to cut his hair again till the end of the summer..... don't worry he still looks really cute!

Well that's our family's week in a nutshell! Future plans include: Finals week, Going to WI for Nicholas' blessing, Stacie and Grant coming to visit sometime this summer, camping, Frisbee golf and swimming lessons for Ehre!

We love and miss you all, have a wonderful week!
Jeff, Ann, Ehre and Benjamin Maas