January 11, 2004: Rachel's sweet 16th

"I was dropped on my head when I was a baby.  That's my excuse...what's yours?"

--Roxanna Willardson

Crazy Picture of the Month

The *REAL Story Behind the Picture  

By Rebecca Willardson

My dad's ancestors were mean, cruel, and horrible Vikings!  As a part of my father's deep interest in his genealogy, he decided that he, too, would adopt some of the Viking's habits.  Upon learning what Vikings actually did, he decided that he'd just wear the costume and leave it at that.

*This story may be fabricated to some extent.

The "Old Maid" Game

By Rachel Willardson

I turned 16 this month. Woop-dee-do! Since then I have had to work hard to evade being asked out. I shall now proceed to lie through my teeth.
I didn't really have to interact with any guys till the Wednesday after my birthday, which is the night I attend Young Women Activities. I tell you, the boys who go to scouts are pathetic and the boys who don't are even more so. I basically had to beat them off with a stick. When I went to any Stake Activity is was even worse. They flocked and proceeded to beg. I must say, I was at breaking point. If I hadn't then thought of all those pitiful people who actually look forward to, then I might not have made it out of there alive. So to make a long story short, I haven't been asked out once. Much to my pleasure. I knew that something good would come out of living in the middle of no where. Thank goodness I'm not very popular, and that the boys from church are scared of me (I'm not really sure why...I think someone used the word 'intimidate' once).  So all in all, I am not going to break Aunt Charlene's record of being engaged at 17 or anything of the sort. That said, who's up for a game of Old Maid?

Artistic Venture of the Month

By Roxanna the Great

Three Blind Mice

By Rebecca Willardson

I'm sure you're familiar with the children's rhyme:

Three blind mice

Three blind mice

See how they run

   See how they run...

Well, we got to see how three blind mice run alright.  After mother caught a mouse in the trap she set, the baby mice were left without a mommy.  This was probably the most profound experience of the entire month, as sad as it seems.  Because we couldn't feed them, there were only two options: (1) let them starve to death, or (2) put them out of their misery now.  As soon as the mice were caught, mother fed them to the dog.  Tears were shed by all the female members of the household saying goodbye to the poor little mice. I guess we're just cry babies.  It was a life changing experience for us all...*sniff.*

Personal Achievements of the month

The Great Fall 

I'm not talking about the fall of Adam or anything like that; I'm talking about the fall of Ruth.  Our mother decided to be very clumsy and she fell.  She thought that her ribs were broken at first, but now she just has a huge and ugly bruise. 

Boys! Yuck!

Rachel's biggest achievement of the month is not getting asked out.  That's what she says anyway...I don't believe it though.

The Peanut Slave

When I asked Reid what he would like to boast about, he said "Make something up.  Make me look really good.  Oh, and while you're at it, make up a story about me being a slave on a peanut butter farm."

A Work in Progress

Roxanna has been slaving away this month on her personal progress in Young Women.  Not only did she make a 72 hour kit, but she is also working on a cross stitch piece of the Young Woman torch.  She is very proud of her work.

Where He Belongs

Rodney was called as the primary chorister in the Anza branch this month.  He is very excited about his new calling and is looking forward to being reunited with his age group.

Structure!

Rebecca is very excited to be going back to Mt. San Jacinto College this month.  She has really missed structure in her life and is looking forward to getting it back.

No Comment

I tried contacting Ryan to get his accomplishments listed here.  When I called, his butler/agent answered and wouldn't give me any information as to where Ryan was.  All he told me was that Ryan would "Deny everything" and say "No" to anything I wanted.  I think Ryan's butler/agent needs to get a life!

Dish Duty Triumph

Reanna is very pleased this month because she did not have to do dishes every day! (Note: the dish rule is that if you don't finish your dishes on your dish day, you have to do the next day's dishes, and Reanna usually does dishes for a long time when her turn comes around). 

Educational Rest

Rosi was very happy to get a break from school for the holidays and play computer games all day.  That is what she considers to be her greatest achievement of the month.