Malik and Zipporah left Utah 1/1/15 in the big Penske. It was sad to have them leave without the rest of the family. Since the closing didn't happen as scheduled, we had to adjust our plans.

 
This is our "new" van. It was very stressful choosing a vehicle by myself. As soon as the papers were signed, I immediately began to regret my decision. (this happens anytime I spend over $500). I guess only time will tell if the decision was a good one.

 This picture was taken before leaving Roosevelt for our journey. We will miss our Aunt Karen while we are gone.

Parker & Jonah at the Vernal Temple. I had thought to stop at various temples along the trip, but found that being the solo driver made it a long day without extra stops and sidetracks. I have some close-up pics of the boys but I like the angle and view of Angel Moroni in this one.

                                     

Best part about road trips are the hotels

                     One nice feature of the van is the DVD player with wireless headphones for (2) kids. You can put the sound over the radio also.  

One night when asking the kids what they wanted to eat, Jo said "Ribs!!" We found a place that had ribs and a buffet to satisfy the rest of the kids.

              


Miles decided to collect a souvenir key chain from each state we passed through.

This is the view from our front stoop. We live on a busy street for sure. There are railroad tracks on the other side of the street. Dominos is also three doors down (which is already proving to be a temptation). When I ask the kids what we should have for dinner they say "lets eat at the neighbors" meaning Dominos. I was nice when the elders came to help us move in and I could just run to "the neighbors" for pizza for everyone. Speaking of the elders moving us... I felt SO bad when it took all of them to get the piano up the dozen or so stairs.

BOXES, BOXES, EVERYWHERE BOXES!!!

This is the view of our rental house from the back. There really isn't a yard so that is very different from our house in Utah.

We are the house on the left with the van :) We share a wall with one neighbor who hasn't complained to us yet about the noise. Its just him and a dog. Malik accidently threw a shoe into his yard when trying to make it to our porch. He went to retrieve the shoe and then later the guy came out and asked what he was doing in his yard. That will be interesting dynamic... 

This is the kids elementary school. Only complaint is that there isn't any grass. They haven't been able to use the playground yet due to the cold/snow.

ZIPPORAH'S SCHOOL HAS METAL DETECTORS. I AM TOLD NOT TO BE ALARMED AS THIS IS FOUND ALL OVER. MY FRIEND FROM CA WAS SURPRISED TO LEARN THAT NOT ALL SCHOOL HAVE METAL DETECTORS.

Parker & Jo in their room. Even though its the "attic" it's the warmest place in the house due to having its own heater.

We passed by this house on our walk to the kids school. Thought Preston's family would like this.

This is the park closest to our house. Its not large but there is a small baseball field next to the playground. Its about 7 blocks away from us.

THIS IS A UKRAINIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH RIGHT BY OUR HOUSE. ONE PART IS NEWER BUT ITS ALL VERY REGAL LOOKING. THEY SELL PYROHY (PYROGIES) ON THURSDAYS SO WE WILL DEFINITELY HAVE TO TRY THAT OUT.

I took Miles to Primanti Bros. the other day. Their sandwiches are good but not amazing in my opinion. We will have to keep looking for our Pittsburgh favorite spots.

SO THIS IS OUR FIRST POST FROM PA. I AM NOT EXPERIENCED IN THIS BLOG STUFF BUT I WILL TRY TO KEEP UP.  :)

New Beginnings

The Why

Okay so there are obviously a lot of questions about our impending move to the home of Pirates, Steelers and, most importantly, the Penguins. The long and the short of it is this. In January/February we noticed that my paycheck from Utah Valley University was no longer sufficient. Really it was never sufficient but we had be making it work for nearly two years. But this was worse. Six days after the paycheck was deposited it was gone. We could not figure out why. In fact we had just paid off a large debt with our tax return so in actuality we should have been better off.

After confirming that this was not some coincidental anomaly that would run its course we made some changes. The worst of which was Melissa going to work full time for the first time since the twins were born. That has actually been hard on everyone in our family. Jonah doesn't understand why his mom is at work so long and I can't figure out how to help out more at the house and juggle everything else.

We will figure it all out and we will make it work but I've never felt more like I'm walking by faith than I do right now because we don't have answers for anything right now.

The Degree

The degree is a Masters of Arts in Food Studies at Chatham University it emphasizes food systems, from agriculture and food production to cuisines and consumption and culture, Food Studies is the interdisciplinary study that includes agricultural and culinary history as well as sociological, anthropological, political, economic, and geographic examinations of food production and consumption.

Job prospects

There are a number of job prospects that I've seen out there.

• Buyer or Purchasing Manager  
• Market Research Analyst
• Organic Farm Certifier  
• Public Researcher
• Foodservice Director  
• Nonprofit business management
• Grant Administrator  
• Food Safety Research, Policy & Outreach
• Community Food Bank Program Coordinator
• Land Stewardship Coordinator
• Sustainable Agriculture Program Coordinator
• Farm Educator
• Community Food Education Program Manager 
• Public Relations Specialist

The Real Goal

My goal is to be a university professor with a research focus in Food Anthropology with emphasis in food in religious communities and other close knit communal settings.  Which would provide the financial stability for me to do what it is I really want to do which is research, write, and speak (and stay in hotels) 

More to the point of that goal, however, is that I have a friend who is an adjunct professor at BYU and she has a goal to see a large number of black faculty at BYU in the future as well as a African American Studies program added to the curriculum. Neither of which is out of the realm of reality as BYU already has and African studies minor program. So the ultimate goal is to return to Provo/Orem to be a professor (and maybe one day Dean) in the Anthropology department of Brigham Young University. Professorship, however, is going to require a very lengthy PhD and I’m not allowed to talk about the PhD.  If the PhD option happens we'll be in Pitt, PA for 7ish years.
In general I figure I have almost 20 years in the food industry and to throw all that away to start all over in another field like graphic design or computers would be ridiculous.  I am still highly intriqued by food I simply no longer wish to cook professionally.  I want to cook because I want to not because I have to.  Besides there are certain aspects of life that our family would like to maintain and we can no longer do so with my current job qualifications.

Change for Charity

Yes siree folks Melissa is changing her hairstyle!  What change did you think we were talking about?  :-)

On 23 June 2012 Melissa and a group of her family will be participating in the Relay for Life walk in Price, UT.  Cancer has quite a presence in Melissa's family.  Just recently her Uncle Charlie passed away from oral cancer.  In 2001 her cousin Tawnya lost her battle to Leukemia. February 1994 her little sister was diagnosed with brain cancer and is currently in remission.  Her father's cousin's wife Kenna is currently battling as is her Cousin Jennifer currently being treated for breast cancer.  And that is just a sample of the numerous cases that have plagued her family.

So to do her part Melissa is participating in the Relay on team Ignite the Dream .  You can make a donation on the site to the team or to Melissa.  As you can see she really needs your help.

But now back to the BIG news - the haircut.  Melissa will be getting her haircut in order to donate to Locks of Love.  Here's the fun part.  For every $5 you donate you get one qualifying chance to choose her new hairstyle.   So if you donate $100 your name goes in the hat 20 times.  On 17 June Melissa will draw a name and then that person will have until 20 June to choose a hairstyle.  On 21 June the hair will be chopped.   This is for the family, the kids, and the world.  So go donate and may the odds be ever in your favor!

Vacation Excitement

The big excitement at our house is that Mom, Zipporah and Miles are taking a vacation to Disneyland with Grandma Marx and Aunt Karen. We will be leaving on Wednesday and are all kinds of excited!!! This is our first time to CA and Disneyland. I really don't think that you can be equally happy if you get to go every year or twice a year or some other nonsense like that. :) The twins were promised the trip for their 8th birthday which is coming up and Karen and I got the invite because growing up we felt cheated out of the Disney experience. Don't get me wrong, I love camping and roughing it in nature is my idea of a good time. However, this vacation will definitely be different. So if you have any Disney pointers then let us know ASAP. (we already know about FastPass and getting there early)

Miles got a library book about homemade pizza and wanted to shape ours into Mickey ears in honor of our upcoming vacation. Looking back I should have put the pepperoni face on TOP of the cheese but it turned out good and yummy.

P.S. Don't feel too badly for Malik. He has already been to Las Vegas and is leaving for Portland tomorrow. Then in May he gets to go to Chicago and eat at Charlie Trotters all for "work". He also gets the chance to play with his two younger boys for a few days before Grandma Hamilton comes to help him. I'm sure it will be a fun time had by all.

Funny, Funny Parker

**FYI We already have a GS cookie order going up to Logan so if you are from the northern country don't hesitate to place your order today!!! thanks.

Parker says some of the funniest things sometimes and I'm not very good about writing them down. I do have a few that I thought would make everyone smile....
Mom: "Parker, who spilled the milk?"
Parker: "Jonah did it."
Mom: "You always say that Jonah did it."
Parker: "No I don't. Sometimes I blame Zipporah."


Parker came in wearing an eye patch that Miles got for Christmas.
Mom: "Parker its time to brush your teeth."
Parker: "Mom, I'm a pirate."
Mom: "ok pirate. Its time to brush your teeth."
Parker: (dead serious) "Pirate don't brush their teeth"
Remembering pictures of pirates, I really couldn't argue with him.

Anytime you ask him when you is going to do something Parker always says "Tuesday". This was especially funny when he was potty training. I asked when he was going to go potty and he always said "Tuesday". I also like that he says "last day" for yesterday or any day not today. I wish that we could bottle him up and keep him this cute forever. sigh....

Girl Scout Cookies

THE PITCH....

I, Zipporah, am selling Girl Scout cookies. My goal is to sell 300 boxes of cookies. My group goal is to sell 2000 boxes of cookies. We are selling cookies to pay for our Girl Scout dues and daycamp. We will also use some of our money to benefit the Utah Food Bank. Would you like to order some Girl Scout Cookies? They make great gifts.

They are $3.50 per box and the money is due when they arrive in March. My favorite is the Thin Mints- they are the most popular cookie that Girl Scouts make. If you want to get more information then check out the website. I can take orders through the end of January.

http://www.littlebrownie.com/cookies/index.html

18 Month Stats

Jonah had his 18 mo. checkup this week. Technically he is 19 mo. already but we were behind on his vaccine schedule and had to wait until after the holidays for his next round of shots. Here are the numbers....

Weight 23.46 lb 18%tile

Height 32.5 in 57%tile

Head 19.7 in 95%tile

So he is a growing boy with a big head. :) We have been so blessed to have Jonah remain healthy. We do try and take precautions to keep him away from sickness, but I must admit that I'm not as vigilant as I should be.

As far as developmental delays, we have noticed a few with Jonah. He didn't get teeth until he was almost one and he is just now starting to say beginner words. This may be because he was a preemie or it may just be because he is different from my other kids. I haven't checked into any of the programs that they have for developmentally delayed kids because I'm waiting to see what happens. And besides he really isn't that far behind.

Jonah's first word was "light" (or a close version). He also says "bye" and "ma" and "die" (which the kids think is hilarious). Even though he doesn't say much he is signing some. He can sign: more, done, milk, water, banana, apple, bath, please, thank you and shoes. I need to teach him more signs because he likes being able to communicate and its fun to see him learn.

Jonah is definitely our most cuddly child. He gives hugs and kisses freely and will snuggle often- even with the kids. Malik can always count on a hug from Jonah when he gets home. Jonah also helps me to wake the twins up for school in the morning. I tell him that its time to wake up the kids and he runs to one of their rooms, climbs up on whoever it is and starts shaking him/her. Somehow they find it easier to wake up to Jonah smiling than to Mom nagging.

Things Jonah loves:

helping mom with the dishes
playing piano
riding the vacuum
hide & seek/ peek-a-boo
being chased by siblings
taking baths & splashing
emptying drawers
candy/dumdum suckers

Jonah has also started asserting his independence at times. If he isn't getting enough attention he bites mom. Unfortunately he has proven to be a bully with toddlers that are about his size also. He mostly scratches and pushes but last week he also bit a little girl on the cheek while at church- ouch!!! He has learned "naughty naughty" as we point our finger then send him to sit alone or in time out on mom's lap (which the doctor claims that he can understand) Of the other kids only Zipporah was a biter and it was mostly to Miles. Hopefully its a phase he grows out of quickly. He really is a sweet boy, I promise.