Can we make a difference in a child's life?

Well, Colby stated that it had been so long since anyone had blogged. So here it is Colby.

I had all intentions to write about my Dad for his birthday and that was May 13. But, I will wait on that and write about my time in California.

I flew to my brother's who lives in Vacaville. His daughter, Westley, 12, needed to go into the hospital for a 2 week treatment. You see, she has Cystic Fibrosis, CF. Here is the description of Cystic Fibrosis from USA Health.

Description of Cystic FibrosisCystic fibrosis

(CF) primarily affects the respiratory, digestive and reproductive systems, as well as the sweat glands. The mucus secreted is very thick and blocks passageways in the lungs and digestive tracts.
Cystic fibrosis is transmitted to a child when both parents carry the recessive gene but do not have the disease. When such a couple has children, there is a 25 percent chance that one of their children will develop cystic fibrosis; there is a 50 percent chance that the child will carry the gene, but will not have the disease; and a 25 percent chance that the child will be totally unaffected.
Cystic fibrosis is the most common fatal hereditary disorder for Caucasians in the U.S. About 1 in 2500 Caucasians are affected, and more than 10 million people (one in 31 Americans; one in 28 Caucasians) is an unknowing, symptomless carrier of the defective gene.
The average lifespan of a person affected with CF is between 28 and 30 years of age. As with any "average" this means that some with this disease now live well beyond this age. With the introduction of medications and drainage procedures, children with CF, who years ago would have died before reaching adulthood, are now often living into mid-adulthood and beyond. The cause of death in CF patients is usually respiratory tract infections or respiratory distress, coupled with enlargement of the right side of the heart (cor pulmonale).

So I was able to stay two nights with Westley at the hospital. This is very hard for Westley and they other children there. Believe me, there are alot of children there. At UCSF Hospital, they have set up a school room that they do different experiments, or play games there. They have an All Star room, where they have Play Station or Ninetendo. They also have 6 computers set up for the children to use during specific hours.

Here you wouldn't see kids with skater shoes or the latest Holister or Roxy clothing line being adorned. Here you see children with no hair, with 5 different IV bags full of medicine bags on their IV poles on wheels. They have their hospital gowns on just enjoying the time out of their rooms. This was the time Westley enjoyed the most. She would down a can of ensure, which she can't stand, just to go to the Allstar lab and get on the internet to communicate with the outside world.

Seeing this got me thinking, is there anything that I can do to help? Is there local or national companies that can donate time, computers, games, and services to help these children enjoy their stay at the hospital a little more.

Honestly, I could not tell you if our local hosptials are set up nicer or if they need help in this department. This is going to be my quest. Does anybody have any ideas or connections? Let me know. http://www.cff.org/ is the website for Cystic Fibrosis Organization

ceiling fans

Ceiling Safety

by Elyssa this blog is all about ceiling safety. the most important thing to remember is to SECURE ALL BOLTS AND SCREWS!!!!!!! and if you here the fan shaking CHECK IT OUT!!this is why you need to know this safety, cause this can happen to you.

well, this last tuesday i was home, it was about 10:00p.m. and Tyler and Bryson were downstairs getting ready for bed. my parents were on their way home and i was wanting to show them a few things. after 10min. i decided that i would show them in the morning. so i went up stair and turned on the ceiling fan. i went towards my bed and dropped a few papers that i needed to look at, but that wasn't the only thing that dropped. my fan fell from my ceiling and smacked me right on the top of my head.
i had no idea what to do! so i just started screaming. i actually felt like a kid at that moment. when you scream at the top of your lungs. at the time it didn't seem like it really hurt, it was just unexpected. so now i'm crying, i can barely breath (i'm starting to get an asthma attack), and i'm hunched over on the floor coughing my lungs out, all at the same time. Tyler and Byrson probably didn't know what was happening. so i'm like this for about 5 min. then my parents came home and they helped me with calming my breathing and once i was at little bit calmer i went into their bed and put so ice on my head. my mom called Tyler and Bryson up and told them what happened. when the pain got worse and in my point of shock of not being able to talk without my voice shaking i asked them to give me a blessing. and i just want to thank them for doing that for me. that was really nice of them.
so i had to stay up till about 11:30p.m. just to make sure that i didn't have a concussion. in the end i had a major goose egg on my head and a terrible headache. but now i'm all better and i don't have a concussion. but that is what happens when you don't pay much attention.

Colby's April 23, 2007

Alright, so it is the first P day here and it is way rad out here. I left the MTC at 4:00 in the morning on Monday. I said my good byes and departed from Elder Shaw, my MTC companion, and all of the other elders who were going to other places than Montreal. I saw everyone, my family, at the airport. We then flew to Chicago, and were at the airport for 45 minutes and then we arrived at Montreal. After we flew in, we went to the president's house and just chilled. It was actually a nice relaxing time. Then we had dinner, then we had FHE and then we went to bed.
The second day was way awesome. It started off with some initiatory things like training and whatever. Then we met with the president. We then went on some exchanges with a bunch of different elders. I went with Elder Applegate. We went to a question and answer meeting with a 20 yr old Hatian girl and that lasted quite a while. Towards the end of the meeting, her mom came out with two bowls of soup for Elder Applegate and me. So we started eating as she continued to ask questions. Elder Applegate answered the questions and I just try to keep up with the conversation trying to translate in my head. Translating is very exhausting and my head hurt quite a bit. Back to the girl, she went out of the room for a second and Elder Applegate pulls something out of his mouth and said, "I will tell you what that is in a while." So I continued eating my soup and it was way delicious. She kept asking questions and he answers them, while I try to translate in my head while eating the soup. Then it came time for us to go and so we left the apartment. On the way to the bus stop, I ask him what he pulled out of his mouth and his response was, "well my friend that was a cow's toenail...yes you just ate Cow Foot Soup." I mean how awesome is that...I ate Cow Foot Soup on my first day and it was so good.
My area is really sweet. My trainer is Elder Welker of Idaho Falls. He goes home in two months, so I think he is a little trunky, but whatever. The work is still moving, and my area rocks. We have a family, the Draou, that were Muslim but they are really close to baptism. They are amazingly nice and it will be fun working with them. By far the coolest part is a recent convert and his wife that we are still teaching and then another couple in the ward, the Cantan family. (So I am going to go off here for a second. Let me tell you about my first area in Canada, I am on the Island of Montreal. Speaking French and learning French is really difficult, with contacting and teaching etc...) So back to the RC (recent convert) and his wife and then the Family Cantan both couples are deaf, so now I get to learn French Sign language also. How cool is that!!!! Oh, I am so excited. It is so much fun to see and pick up different signings here and there, it is just awesome. We also have a ward member Martine that does most of the signing. She is very good at signing and that helps out a ton. She teaches us sometimes too.
The only thing I can think to tell you is that we had a meeting with a 7th day Adventist. That was very difficult because he was there to bible bash with us. There was just a lot of contention in the room and so I ended up saying, in my broken French that the meeting was ridiculous, and we were here to share with him the Book of Mormon. We invited him to pray about it. He went off again. He was bringing up scriptures in the Bible and trying to convince us that we are going to hell because we worship on Sunday, because if you break one law, you break them all. So he was saying that we will be among the murderers, rapists and other stuff like that in the last day. So it was kind of interesting. That is about it. I will have to catch you all later.


Much love,
Elder Hutchings

Colby's letter April 30, 2007

Well this week has been way rad. We got two new investagators. One is a Haitian lady that is really busy with school. Elder Welker has been trying to get a hold of her for quite some time now and then we taught her an awesome lesson. The other investigator was more of a pass off but we are very excited about that. One day Elder Welker and I talked with this self proclaimed prophet for quite some time. He told us a story of how he was saved at this huge convention and these different stories about what he has seen. He went on for some time, but then we introduced the Book of Mormon. We taught him about it and while we were teaching about it he starts mumbling stuff. We asked him what he said? He then gave us the response, "Oh nothing. I was just praying in tongues about that book there, and the Holy Spirit is telling me it is of the Devil." So that was pretty interesting. It was fun talking to him though. He was a very nice guy and knew his bible very well. Oh yes, he made a prophesy of what Elder Welker is going to do when he grows up. But good old george is awesome.
Like usual we went over to Magdey and then also the Family Cantan's houses. We taught them with Martine (the member that knows sign language really well) and that is always fun, and i am slowly picking up on signing.
I had zone conference this past Saturday. Right after, we went on splitz with the zone leaders and that was really fun. I went with Elder Bradshaw and he is from Sugarhouse. He is way cool. I actually ended up trading a tie with him because he had a worthy collection to trade with. I think that is about it for this week. I don't think i have anything else.
Much Love,
Elder Colby Hutchings

Lordy, Lordy, Look who is ? FORTY SIX!!!!!!!

Well, it has been a long time since anyone blogged. I guess it is another important date to our family. Who could it be?

This person is a male. He was born of "Goodly parents". He loves his parents. He has graduated from High School, and has graduated from College. He loves to ski, ride motorcycles, golf, fish, playing sports. He loves work, computers, cell phones. He loves cameras, taking pictures, working on pictures with adobe photoshop. He loves his friends, his co-workers, his neighbors and family. He is loved by his wife and his 4 children. We love him and respect him.

He has the personality of driving down a dirt road and won't turn back until he reaches the end of that dirt road, he doesn't want to miss out on anything. He brings happiness through his words to his family and his friends. He is a leader. He is the 7th of 8 kids. He is the youngest son. He has visited 44 of the 50 states. He has travelled to many different countries. His favorite is the Eastern Asia countries. One of his favorite movies is Young Frankentstein. He and his wife were engaged on two different days in two different states.

Many people love this man, but mostly his wife and his children. He is turning 46 this year. We love you very much. He is my "babe", he is my friend, he is my husband, he is my confidant, he is my love. Happy Birthday, Babe.

Hey Dad,

Well this is a shout out for my pops. HAPPY BIRTHDAY. Well it has been a good time, you are the greatest. Well as I come closer and closer to approaching half your age it is a good time to reflect on the good times of the past. I have such fond memories of my Dad, even if the event you first blogged about, the one in the church bathroom, has eluded my memory. I have great memories of camping and fishing roadtrips and the ever famous manifold roast (even if Colby couldn't hold it down). Well I have learned a lot from you Dad, you have always been a great example of how to treat others and how to take responsibility for what we do. I have learned a lot and had a good time doing it. Thanks for always being there to talk to after the late night dates. It has meant a lot to have you there and interested. I have to thank you for all the love and support, whether it was having you there and interested at night or writing me weekly in Thailand you have always been there. Dad there is so much that I admire about you, thanks for your example. Here's to you pops. Have a good one this year. Happy Birthday. Tribute.

Much Love,

Yo' Baby Boy

Tyler

hola daddy!!!

Happy birthday! I love you so much. So how old are you?35? 36? Wow you're getting really old, but I will always love you at any age. I can't wait to go on another daddy daughter date. It has been so long since we had one I really enjoy them. I just want you to know of that you've been such an example to me. Ever since I was a little girl you've always been the one I would talk to, expecially when we went shopping. haha. I will always remember the nicknames that you gamv me, like Lyser, princess, magoo, pumkin, lys, etc. One thing that I remember when I go to bed you always say: " love" (me)"I love daddy". So I love you so much daddy!!! Happy Birthday!

your loving daughter,

Elyssa

Dad
Once upon a time…Happy Birthday old man. I hope this is a good one for you. Man you are old, but you know what they say about age and wisdom. There is virtually no connection. Thanks for everything you do. I appreciate all the opportunities we have to talk and spend time together. You are the best Dad a guy could ask for. So I understand this is a tribute to you. I hope you know that you have always been a model for me both in fatherhood as well as a person. I have always looked up to you. I appreciate more than anything the example you have set for us. So here’s to you. I love you Old Man. Happy B-day.

Bryson

Twenty Two years

Twenty two years ago, was a day of delight. I had lost at least twelve pounds of weight. By losing that wonderful weight, I was finally able to see my beautiful little boys, but not for almost 24 hours.

The little guys tried to come one month early. So I was put on bed rest. Man that was very rough. I felt fine, but I was in labor. I thought, if that is what labor is like, it would be a cinch. Down the hall, I heard a hispanic lady that didn't speak any English, and the nurses didn't speak any Spanish, she was screaming very loud for everyone to hear. I thought to myself, I was NOT going to do that. I also asked the doctors why they just didn't take the babies now. They said their lungs were not developed and they would be attached to a lot of tubes. Well, the doctors sent me home to bed rest and some medicine to stop the labor.

The morning of March 28, 1985, my water broke. Dean wanted to take a shower and shave. He didn't want his babies to come into the world with a Dad that was unshaven and unshowered. We were then off to the hospital. We were in our room and guess what? I come a full course of what labor really is. Soon the anetesioligist came by and I wanted to have a epidural. But before that happened, I did let out one loud scream, not long, but loud. The epidural was good, but not quite good enough. The problem is that the pain doctor went to lunch. Didn't he know that I would need him. After llunch, he came to check on me. I told him it was pretty painful. He said he would give me more pain medicine, and he left the room. My back was to the door. I loudly said, "WHERE IS THE ___ DOCTOR!!!!" Dean then told me, "He is right behind you." I was so embarrased. I decided I would be a better patient. To say the least, I was feeling no pain after that incident. The nurse came and checked to see how far along I was. The nurse was

surprised and soon I was being wheeled into the delivery room.

In the delivery room, I was in a pain free mode. The doctor had his hand on my stomach and would tell me when I should push. I could not feel labor pains. Well, six pushes later, the first baby, Twin A, Tyler, was born. However, Twin B's foot was right there too. I believe Twin B, Bryson kicked Tyler out of the womb. They tried to turn Bryson around, but he decided he would slide right into the world. This all took place at 2:47 p.m. and 2:53 p.m. There was a team of nurses cleaning up of my little boys. They wrapped them up and showed them to me and then took them upstairs to put them under a lamp to stay warm. That was the last I saw them until the next day at noon. I had to stay in labor and delivery until my vital were stable. I had toxemia. They took me upstairs the next day, and then I saw my precious boys.

Tyler and Bryson have been so much a like and yet so different. They have always been great boys. They are self motivators, reliable, dependable, great sense of humor and strong in their beliefs. They have always been easy children to raise. They have always did their homework without being asked. They know what has to be done and they do it. They are great examples for their friends, brother, sister, and their parents.

We love them so much and we are so very lucky to have them as our children. Tyler and Bryson, we love you Happy Birthday Sons.

Mexico

RUT 7 – It has been about a month now since my last RUT, and it is about time for me to write again. I had the coolest experience yesterday, and I have to write about it. It is certainly a once in a lifetime experience. Anyway, I am in Southern Mexico right now, in a town called Haultulco, on the Pacific Ocean. My brother, some friends of his and I flew down to Oaxaca last Friday.


We spent Friday night and Saturday in Oaxaca where we went to Monte Alban, an ancient Indian ruin. We left Oaxaca on Sunday morning and drove down to Hualtulco. It is about an eight hour drive through the mountains to get from Oaxaca to Hualtulco. Oaxaca is at about 4800 feet above sea level, and it is desert-like this time of the year. We climbed to over 8,000 feet where it was green, and cloudy. Then we went down towards the ocean, and at about 6,000 feet we went into a very green jungle. Then at about 2,000 feet we were back into the desert. The coast line is very brown right now because we are at the end of the dry season. It was the windiest road I have been on in my life. For those of you who have been to San Francisco, picture six hours of Lombard Street. Anyway, one of us, who shall not be named, left his breakfast on the side of the road on our way up the hill. His lunch was later deposited on the downside of the hill. I have pictures of it, but I thought they were too graphic for the site.

Anyway, the reason for the RUT. We went out deep sea fishing yesterday, and then over to a secluded cove where we went snorkeling. After we finished snorkeling, we were on our way back to the docks when the captain of the boat said he saw a whale about 400 yards ahead of us. First, you have to remember that we were in a boat that is about 20 feet long and seats about eight people. It is not a big boat. Anyway, we took off toward where the captain saw the whale, and then we stopped and waited.

We sat for about a minute or two with me sitting on the bow of the boat with my camera at the ready. All of the sudden, no more then ten feet in front of me, a humpback whale came head first out of the water, and looked me right in the eye before doing a complete belly flop right along side of the boat. I held the shutter of the camera down, but he was too close, so the camera couldn’t focus on him in time, and I didn’t get a picture, but as soon as I saw he was going to come back down in a belly flop, I quickly put my camera behind me, and it was lucky I did, because it was like a wall of water coming over me, and I was soaked from head to toe by the splash. It was only a baby humpback, which was good, because otherwise our boat would have been swamped. Even though it was a baby, it had to have come out of the water by at least ten feet, and it had to have been about as long as the boat.

After he soaked us, he swam off to his mother, and I did get some pictures of him and his mom swimming away. It was certainly the experience of a lifetime.

Today is Tuesday, and we went scuba diving today. We saw a ton of great sea life, including a bunch of manta rays and some moray eels.

Later…

Donald B. Hutchings--a Legacy

Well, somehow I have lost a few days. I don't know where I have been lately. I wanted to have a special blog dedicated to a very special man. This man was very special to me. On March 10, 2002, a great man passed to another life. This man was and is my father-in-law.

He had the most clever, and funny sayings. He loved to keep busy by a numerous different ways. He loved writing his history. He wrote the stories of his life and of his family. They are very entertaining. Donald Hutchings enjoyed painting. He was a self taught artist. He would watch the painting shows on television and then apply the paint to the canvas. He has left many painting for his posterity. Don also loved wood. He spent many hours making shelves, houses, cabinets, bowls, and his famous birds. He taught many of his grand kids how to make these birds. Many people own them and many own flocks of them. Each one is different and finished with love.

Grandpa Hutchings was loved and admired by his friends, family, kids, and grand kids. He loved them with all his heart. Heart is something he was filled with. He would be there to help build a cabin, finish a basement, help in a garden, help a neighbor, and support all those in need of help.

Donald did not do things in an ordinary way. He was a trailblazer. He cut his own path. He will be known for his known sayings, and phrases. His huge red, white, and blue tie. His no tv pills, he gave out to his Church ward members. Donating time and materials, to remodel another faith's chapel. His countless hunting trips, the fishing trips, the desert trips, the beach trips and the Mexico trip. We will all remember the trip to Washington DC.

For all those who drove with Grandpa Hutchings will account for the near death experiences. Though we all live to tell about them, we love him dearly and have great stories.

Though he was called many different names--Grandpa Hutchings, Don, Donald, Honey, Dear, and probably a lot of unmentionables--but know that I call him Dad. He definitely filled very large shoes. My father died in January of 1991. Dad was there for me and took the role of my father. He loved me and supported me. I love him as my Dad. Thanks Dad for being my Dad!

Where did the Spreewells go?

I want to discuss if I might a topic of supreme importance. Most basically stated as where did the Spreewell’s go. For those of you less informed readers this title begs an explanation. Latrell Spreewell a professional basketball who has made his mark on the sport of basketball with many controversial acts made his contribution to society in a different way. HE introduced and popularized the spinner rims. I’ll break it down even simpler. Spinners are wheel covers which spin independently of the wheel itself when the brakes are applied. A trend that found it’s way into everything from footwear to belt buckles, and even onto snowboards. Which brings us full circle back to where did they go?

This seems to be a reoccurring theme among things that I enjoy so much. Among other things I have noticed a similar trend in bling. "Bling-bling" (usually shortened to simply "bling") is a hip hop slang term which refers to expensive jewelry (as seen at Bling Bling Online). And what about those shiny grillz we so adamently loved? And when was the last time you read about a rapper being shot? It has been far to long. It is a disturbing trend and the purpose of this RUD is to address some of the causes behind this trend as well as some of the detrimental effects.

At work I often have the opportunity to surf the web. Lately there has been an increased public concern towards white supremacist attitudes. I read on cnn.com about a resurgence of the klan. Could these unnerving trends be to blame?... All sources point to yes. And what about boys wearing girls pants? 50 don’t roll that way, but that is the subject for another blog.

The question is where does that leave us now? I can’t speak for the entire population, but I know personally it leaves me worried for the future of this great nation. This is the call to action, go out get “a grill”, buy pants that are far to big, buy those spinners (even if they are the wal-mart special, isn’t that truly embracing the culture), and always remember drop it like it’s hot.

Don't forget to dream

Dreams--there are different kinds of dreams. There are dreams when you sleep, but those are not the dreams I am wanting to blog about. The dreams I am wanting to talk about are the dreams you thought about when you were a kid, teenager, young adult, young married, older married, older and elder married.

When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a stewardess. I wanted to help people on the plane and serve them their coffee, tea, or soda, and their peanuts or meals.

I wanted a prince to come save me from a high tower, and sweep me off my feet, and live happily ever after.

As years went on and started to grow older, so did my dreams. My dreams matured, and also my idea of my "prince" matured also. I believe that it is so important to know what your "prince" or "princess" will be like in your teenage years. It will help make your decision during your young adult years a little easier, because you have the thoughts and ideas of what you want your prince or princess will be.

At this time, it is important to have ideas and desires of what you want to want in your life. It doesn't hurt to reach or dream for the stars. It is good to know what direction your life is going. It is important to continue growing in life by striving for your dreams.

As time goes on, some dreams are put on hold, some dreams are fulfilled, and some dreams, won't ever come to be, but it is important to dream. Have something to work for, have something to dream for and dream about

Remember to have your dreams as a couple, but don't forget "your" hopes and "your" dreams.

Ideas for when you are stuck in snow

Information to remember if you get your car stuck in the snow. A few years ago, we drove to Beaver and drove up the canyon. We were in our new Suburban and decided to go on a dirt road. Well it really wasn't dirt, it was snowy, icy roads. Well we started up the road, but soonly got stuck. Our wheels were spinning, which were creating an icy rut. We had a car load of people. We were in four wheel drive and could not get our vehicle out of this rut. Our resources were limited. Since resources were limited, our creativity kicked in. We ended up trying to find rocks to put in front of the tires. But there were frozen in the ground. So we got the garbage out of the car and the dirty clothes. We stuff them under the tires. With a push, we were soon on our way.

This story came to mind, after I stopped to help some kids stuck off the side of the road. Once again, there were icy rut where the tires were spinning. I said there is no traction. The girls said, I know. I don't know what to do. I starting scanning the ground. I found some pine cones and pine boughs. With a push and the pine cones, they were on their way.

It sure give one a good feeling, to help people. It sure lifts one's spirit, when you help someone along the road in life.

Colby's letter in MTC 2/25/07

So you all had a lot going on this week it sounds like. You all had alot of questions for me. I will answer them. I just had a few things to ask before I get to that. I think it would be cool to get Motab music or some Disney. Thank you for the pictures those help a ton. There seemed like there was something else, but I have to say I have forgotten.

Dad---I will start with Dad's green letter because it is right in front of me. Well, I don't have any good idea for blogging. With my schedule I wake at 6:30. I am in class by 7:00, read the Book of Mormon til 7:15---go to breakfast---go back to class for about 4 hours--eat lunch at 11:50---go back to class for another 4 hours until about 4:50---go to dinner. Monday morning we do service and I have gym periods Monday through Friday. Sundays are meetings and personal study, but 7:00, we have a devotional. After devotional we have movie night, and this week they are playing The Testament movie. That will be awesome. On Tuesdays, we have another devotional where at least someone from the Seventies come and speak to us.

You asked about getting up at 6:30 and it isn't too bad. The problem is getting to sleep at 10:30. I have had a slight case of insomnia. I get into my bed and just lay there forever before I fall asleep. It is weird.

Congratulations on the science fair. How did the High School fair go? I think that answers, at least the better part of your questions. It sounds like Rock Springs is going pretty well though. Did you ever get in contact with Darin Woods? Are you still talking to Gregerson a lot? Have you went out golfing since the Jimmy Open? Well I guess, on to Mom's card.

Mom--well my MTC experience is honestly amazing. I will admit though that I have been homesick a few times, but only for a few minutes at a time. Everyone here is amazing. Elder Muir and I get along very well. I could only compare it to Bryson and Elder Herrera, I think, because we aren't companions, but we do a lot together. My comp is rad and Elder Ward is cool, and that is everyone in our room. I have a kid in my district that went to Altara(their elementary school in Sandy) the same time I did, but we didn't have any of the same teachers, his name is Elder Payne. Then his companion, Elder McCarthy, is from New Zealand and I love that kid, he is so awesome. Oh I just remembered the other thing I was going to ask. Elder McCarthy's birthday is in a month, so you should send him a present. I think he took a liking to my towel with "Hutchings" embroidered into it. So if you can send him something like that or anything, because I don't think that he will be receiving much of anything. Since he is from New Zealand. This kid is amazing and has an amazing accent. We have another 4 elders in our district and they are all way rad. One is from Wisconsin, one is from Texas, one if from Kemmerer, Wyoming and one is from back East somewhere.

Elyssa---Congratulations! That is so cool on the science fair. About the survivor from the Holocaust, his book is up in my old room. How is school and choir going? So did you end up taking the cell phone?

Bryson---So did Scott and Becca end up going out again? How is work and school going? Well the language is going great. I have been here for 11 days and have taught the first half of the first lesson in French. That seems like it is a good sign. I don't much time and need to write Tyler's part.

Tyler--What have you been up to? How is Abbey? tell her I am disappointed that I haven't received a letter from her yet. How is school? How is work? Well man I gotta go--peace out now.

Well, family, I love you all and I m doing great. I have spent about $80 on shots between flu and Hep B. I am doing great and hope all of you are also. I am now off to a devotional. Then off to watch "The Testament" movie. I will catch ya later.

Much love,

Elder Colby Hutchings

PS You aren't the only ones who haven't heard from my friends. As of now, I have only heard from Kylee (2 letters) Peace out

Smile from a shovel and the snow

While shoveling my driveway this morning, I couldn't help but think of the last time Colby had a shovel in his hand. It was when he and his friends buried Abbey's car. It made me smile.

Through My Daughter's Eyes

This morning I wanted to write about a teenager that Wows me. This individual has a very strong personality. This can be a good thing if used for good. This teen has so much love to give. (I am going to give a hint now) "She" works very hard in her studies and her grades so it. It is always fun to have her talk to me about her day and she tells me that she is hyper right now, or sometime during the day. She is very organized with her life. She is responsible with her possessions in her life, and her obligations. She is on top of things. She is so loving and caring for the family pets. She has so much fun with the leaders and past leaders in her Young Women's. She is helpful around the house. Just like any other teenager, loves the computer, Internet, and cell phone. She has a love for children and babysitting. Of course, if you know our family at all, "she" is my daughter, Elyssa.

Those are all great qualities, but I want to tell you about a couple of others that I admire. I look at her testimony and I am impressed. For the past six months I have witness the growth of her testimony, and have heard her bear it publically a couple of times. What a strength to know where your strength in life comes from. She loves her Heavenly Father and knows him. Wow!

That may seem little, but I see it as, when times are tough, she knows where to go and who to rely on for strength. She depends on the most dependable.

Another quality I am impress with and probably envious of her ability to perform in front of crowds. As a little girl, she would sing a cute little song in front of the family. She then sang at her brother's baptism. In fifth grade, her teacher asked her if she would sing a solo. That is hard enough, but it would be in front of her whole school. Right now, I believe it would be great to do a comparison story.

When I was in Kindergarten, our school was having a May Day assembly. The sixth graders were weaving the ribbons on the May pole. Anyways, they asked me to jump rope in front of the whole school, because I was a pretty good jump roper. They called me up and I just sat there. Mrs. Williams came to me and tried to get me to go jump rope. I sat there and I started to cry. To say the least, I never jump roped in front of the school. I lack the courage.

Last week, Elyssa sang another solo. She sang one in front of a judge, and in front of the sixth graders at an Elementary school. Wow! What courage she has, and that isn't mentioning the talent of her beautiful voice. Double Wow!

Elyssa, I want you to always remember and never forget that you are loved. You are loved by your Heavenly Father, so walk tall. I know for a fact that your family loves you. Your Mom and Dad are so proud of you. "Through My Daughter's Eyes" I have learned so much.

On one of my entries someone asked the question, "Are you afraid for your kids to grow up?" At first it was no, of course not. Then I started thinking about that question and decided to change my mind. (That's my right, I am a woman.)

These are my reasons:

Well, I have travel down a "small" portion of the road of life. I have experienced and seen many things. There has been many rocks in the road, detours, falling trees, storms, mountains, flowers, and woods. Therefore, I am excited for my kids to grow up and I am scared for my kids to grow up.

A parent would love to protect their children from harm or unnecessary heartache by guiding them down certain roads and avoiding others. It is not to control their lives, but instead to guide them because of experience and knowledge.

Life is to learn and experience, that is one reason why we are here.

My children hope know that when they leave everyday, that they are loved.

I hope that when they are faced with a choice that they choose the decision that means most to you.

I hope that they respect others and most important respect themselves.

There is a country western group that sings a song that sums "My wish".

My wish--Rascal Flatts

I hope that the days come easy and the moments pass slow,

And each road leads you where you want to go,

And if you're faced with a choice, and you have to choose,

I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.

And if one door opens to another door closed,

I hope you keep on walkin' till you find the window,

If it's cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile,

But more than anything, more than anything,

My wish, for you,

is that this life becomes all that you want it to,

Your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,

You never need to carry more than you can hold,

And while you're out there getting where you're getting to,

I hope you know somebody loves you,

and wants the same things too,

Yeah, this, is my wish.

I hope you never look back,

but ya never forget,

All the ones who love you, in the place you left,

I hope you always forgive, and you never regret,

And you help somebody every chance you get,

Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake,

And you always give more than you take.

But more than anything,

yeah, and more than anything,

My wish, for you,

is that this life becomes all that you want it to,

Your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,

You never need to carry more than you can hold,

And while you're out there getting where you're getting to,

I hope you know somebody loves you,

and wants the same things too,

Yeah, this, is my wish.

Colby's first letter from the MTC 2/16/07

Dear Family,

It is Friday. I was suppose to write you on Wednesday night, but I wasn't told that until Thursday morning. Everything is going awesomely. My companion is Elder Shaw from Kaysville. We are rooming with Elder Muir and Elder Ward. They are all preparing to serve in the Congo Africa mission. I am the only one out of the four to be going to Canada. In our district though we have 2 people going to Ghana, and 3 people going to Congo and people are going to Montreal.

The language so far is coming pretty good. We can now pray, bear testimony, approach people and introduce ourselves in French. People tole me that these first few days would be the worst and longest, but they really aren't that bad. The 11 hours you are in the classroom just seems to fly by. The food here is good, which is probably a bad thing, because I am in a classroom for 11 hours a day. I look forward to Saturday because that's our first gym period.

Well, I should probably wrap it up here soon. We just ate lunch really fast and thought we would write our families between lunch and class. Class starts here in 5 minutes. I love you all and hope you are all doing great.

Love,

Colby

PS--You should send me some pictures because I didn't bring any. Oh yes, I forgot to mention to Tyler that 2 of my 3 roommates know Abbey, or at least who Abbey is. Just thought that I would let you know.

Colby's in the MTC

RUT 6 – I haven’t posted for a while, and I wasn’t planning on posting anything today, but when I looked at the Blog, I made the mistake of scrolling down through the pictures and posts that are there. When I got down to the pictures of Colby a lump came to my throat and a tear came to my eye. I’m not going to lie, I miss my Partner.

Right now it is about 1:30 in the afternoon, so if Colby were here, he would by awake by now. It has been nice over the last month or so being able to sit and talk to Colby during the day, and having Colby go on my trips to Rock Springs and Franklin, Idaho with me.

I think the toughest part of his being gone right now is that we haven’t heard from him yet, so I don’t know how he is doing.

The toughest parts of missionary life for Colby will be getting up at 6:30 in the morning and staying awake all day in class. I can see him telling his companion to come back at 10:00 and wake him up. Or telling his companion that he can do without a morning shower and breakfast so to come back and wake him up when breakfast is over. Oh well, by now, I’m sure he will be used to the early to bed and early to rise thing.

I have to take some consolation in the fact that I’ve sent two out and they have both come back bigger, stronger, faster, etc.. I can’t say the time goes by quickly though. It didn’t when Tyler and Bryson were gone, and I’m sure it won’t go by quickly while Colby is gone. Two years is two years. I’m not complaining. I’m proud of Colby just like I’m proud of his brothers. Colby will learn a lot and grow a ton, and I’m glad he made the decision to go on a mission.

Another thing I’m missing – kind of - over the last week, is the lack of people in the house every night. None of Colby’s friends have been coming over since he left, and that leaves the house much emptier. In fact one night last week I went downstairs and everyone was out of the house, the doors were locked, all the lights were off, and the family was all in. It was 10:15. That has to be a new house record. I have to be honest here - I hope we can at least tie that record more often.

I sure hope something comes in the mail today. I’ve gone out to check it about ten times already. I’m going to have to have a talk with that mailman.

The dogs are barking. That might be the mailman with a letter from Colby!!!!

Later…

Can you get too much of a good thing?

Is it possible to have too much of a good thing? I know that when you eat too much ice cream you get sick. If you drink too much water or milk in a period of time, "the gallon challenge", you WILL throw up. Is talking on the phone too much good or bad? Is watching too much TV? What about the computer or internet? What about hanging with friends? How about working too much? Can there be too much golf?

My thought is there should be balance in life. If one put too much in the balance on one side or the other, life becomes out of balance. If you eat too much of your favorite dish or food, your body gets sick, or fat. If one watches too much TV, you loose the chances of experiencing life. If one spends too much time on the internet, life will slowly slip away and you'll wonder what happened to life.

How do we keep balance in our lives? It is sometimes hard to see ourselves, because we are too involved. We have each other to help keep balance in our lives. It is if we will listen. Most of the time, others can see what we are too caught up to see. Just like a picture or a sunset, colors are in full balance and they are beautiful.

History in the making

Well, this marks my entry into the bloging world. I have been introduced previously by my parents briefly by way of story and by photo, neither of which were all that flattering. As they said I am a student at the University of Utah and I work at Fidelity Investments. This week has been an interesting one. We had the opportunity to drop off my brother at the MTC. It was a day full of mixed emotions. Of course I was sad to see him go, but was excited for him at the same time. He will do well, and he will learn a lot.

Dropping off my brother got me thinking of my mission. I thought about all the interesting experiences I had, and even more all the growing and interesting experiences Colby has before him. It will be good for him. I am having a bit of writers block so I think I am going to cut this blog short. I am hoping somehow that it will be a little easier from here on out now that I broke the ice.

Bryson

alright well this is Elyssa,
this week is going to be really stressful cause as you can tell from the other blog i got into the High School science fair and that is this wednesday and thursday and so i have to sign in for that and get everything ready. then i have High School registration on wednesday and thurday so there is the first problem. then on during the day on thursday i have a solo. i'm singing "Defying Gravity" from Wicked and i'm really stressed about that.
school is going great, in a way. i'm really sad that Colby is gone but i'm staying strong. other than that not much is happening.
later....

We Won

RUT 5 - We won. Oh yea. We won first prize in the Oquirrh Hills Middle School Science Fair. Now it is on to the High School to show our project and come away with another first place ribbon.

Later...

RUT 4 – This is going to be an unabashed litany of prose demonstrating the purpose for the pride I have in my son, Colby. So, if you don’t want to hear a bunch of banter about my “Partner”, you may want to go to another blog now.

Anyway, those of you who know the family realize that tomorrow morning my baby boy, Colby, will be leaving the family for two years to enter the Missionary Training Center in Provo in order to prepare to serve a two year mission for the Mormon Church. He will be at the MTC for about two months to learn the French language, after which he will spend the following 22 months in and around Montreal, Canada. Colby has grown up way too fast for my liking. He is my baby boy, so as he gets older, so does his dad.

I’m not ashamed to say that I cried like a baby when both Tyler and Bryson left us to go on their missions two plus years ago, and I’m certain I will be crying like a baby tomorrow afternoon when I say goodbye to Colby.

Since Colby was a baby he has been my “Partner”. I have watched him grow probably more than I have been involved with his growth. He has been a wonderful son, and very easy to raise. I feel more like a spectator on the sidelines then a coach when it comes to Colby. He has pretty much made the right choices and done the right things without a lot of prodding from me.

I remember back to when Colby was born. The kid was huge. He was nine pounds, but he just kind of slipped into the world, the way he has kind of just slipped along through life. We got to the hospital at about 2:30 in the morning. It was raining, and it took us a while to get to the hospital because my car broke down on the freeway. I got it running again, and when we finished the half hour drive to Lakeside, California from Hacienda Heights, Colby was ready to come. It took a while for them to complete the paper work once we got to the hospital, and by the time they got it all done and got Debbie into a room, Colby was on his way out.

He was a big ball of love, and he really has been the same ever since. Of all the people I know in this world, Colby has the greatest ability to love everyone he meets. That is not without its rewards either.

My memory goes back to a time when Colby was about five years old. Our family and my brother’s familywere fishing on Salem Ponds. No one was catching anything. It was quite depressing. Colby took off down the bank of the pond for a while, and I lost track of him. He came back about a half hour later with a string of at least a half dozen fish. They were all cleaned and ready to cook. When I asked him where he got the fish, his response was that a couple had been fishing all weekend. He talked to them for a while, and they were about to leave. Instead of taking the fish home, they wanted to give them to him. He just makes friends that fast.

Another time our family was up sledding. Colby was about six. We would take turns sledding down and carrying the sled back up the hill again. Colby went down on the sled, and we lost sight of him as he went around a corner on the trail. We waited for him to come hiking back up the trail, and after a while I thought I would have to go get him. Just as I got up to go see what was taking him so long, here comes a snow mobile with a couple on it, and Colby on the back. Once again, Colby had made friends with the snow mobilers, and the rest of that day he had a free ride back up the hill every time he sledded down.

Colby continues to make friends to this day. I think that when he leaves, we will feel like the house is empty, because I would imagine his twenty or so friends that are here at the house every night won’t spend their evenings here without Colby. In fact it is 11:00 the night before Colby goes into the MTC right now. He was set apart at 9:30 this evening. There are still about forty kids at the house saying their last goodbyes to Colby. Colby promised he would get the last one out by midnight, but if they are gone by 2:00 in the morning I will be surprised.

I’m certain that Colby will make friends quickly when he gets to Canada too. He is just that way.

I am trying not to make this too long. Colby will be missed by all of us. He is a great son, and I am very proud of him. I love him a ton.

Later….

Slow down, you move too fast

As parents, we look back in life to evaluate life, time, growth, etc... We remember how each of our children were when they were small. We love each one of them and new that each one was a gift of love. We would talk to them as babies and try to get them to smile. We were proud when our babies would smile. Then we wanted them to sit up all by themselves. So we would practice with them so their backs would get strong enough or their bellies were big enough to hold them up. Oh, we were so excited when they could do this task.

We then would want to see them become mobile, so we work with their legs and their arms so that they would be able to be strong to crawl across the floor. Whooaaa We were excited with their progress. **Note: this is when you really have to keep your eye on them, when they are mobile. Anyways, we would then want our babies to get ready for the next step, and that is walking. We would hold their little hands a little forward so that would encourage them to take a little step. We would also set them on their feet and work on their balance. We were always right their to catch them before they fell, if they got off balance.

All of this is within the first 18 months of life. Now our children are well past these stages, and we think where has the time gone? We couldn't wait until they got to the next stage in life and we were so excited for them to get to start the next stage. Now we see our children getting ready to get to the next stage and we want to slow down time and enjoy it a bit before they move on to the next.

When Tyler and Bryson went on their missions, Mom, me, cried alot. I couldn't figure out why. They were doing what their were suppose to be doing. They were serving their Heavenly Father and serving the people of their mission calls. Why wouldn't I be happy. I came to the conclusion why. Life as I 've known it, would never be the same.

So knowing that life won't be the same, as parents with children approaching new stages in their lives, we are wanting to slow this process down a bit. We would love for them to go on the long drives and count the flags, play basketball, play the alphabet game, sing Shania at the top our lungs, snuggle up to their parents while watching tv or talk to each other on our bed at night. We, as parents, want to enjoy the stage before you, as children, hurry on to another stage. We are just as excited to growth and see the strength that our children have in each stage, as they did as babies. We are wanting to slow time down and enjoy the time in each stage and not rush to the next one.

Anyways, parents, don't rush your children through the stages of life so quickly, and kids, don't rush through the stages so quickly. Interesting, the same advice for parents as children. mmmmm

COEEF

RUT 3 – Four days in a row at the gym. I can get all the way up the stairs now without resting on the landing. Anyway, I had an epiphany (A comprehension or perception of reality by means of a sudden intuitive realization) today while I was on the tread mill. Well, not really an epiphany, I just wanted to use a big word. It was more like a random thought. Now, I don’t really want to turn this Blog into a political forum, but I thought since I am posting on the Blog, and my children are the main readers of the Blog, I would try to post some items related to my thoughts or ideas on different subjects that otherwise would go by the wayside. Anyway, let me take you into my mind a bit.

I have to go back a few days first. I was listening to the Doug Wright show on KSL the other morning. Those of you who live in Utah understand that it is the political season here when the legislature meets for a month or so and creates a bunch more laws to make our society a better place to live – sometimes. Anyway, there have been some controversial bills put before the legislature during the session, and one in particular was a bill that turned back the clock on the 1973 Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision. I’m not certain of all of the particulars of the bill, but it supposedly attempts to outlaw most abortions in the state of Utah.

Anyway, Doug Wright, the KSL personality, was taking calls about the bill. First, he made it very clear that he is against the bill because of the estimated $5,000,000 plus that it would cost the state to defend it in court, and because in the opinion of the Utah Attorney General there is no chance of the bill being deemed to be constitutional. Doug Wright’s position appeared to be that there are plenty of other programs that the money could be used for much more effectively to help both unborn children as well as living children in the state. He made it clear that he is in favor of outlawing abortion, but that the bill before the Utah Assembly would not accomplish that.

He took a call from an individual who was completely opposed to Doug’s position. The gentleman stated, “if we save one life with the $5 million, it is worth the money.” Doug tried to help him understand that the money would not go to save a single child, but that it would be wasted in unwinnable court battles. The gentleman continued his verbal support of the bill.

The whole conversation made me think quite a bit. The reason for this RUT is not to discuss my feelings or opinion related to the legalization of abortion. The point I want to make to my children, and I guess anyone else who will listen, is that sometimes we do what we think are the right things, for the wrong reason.

What became very clear to me while listening to the caller on the radio was that he was more interested in “saving” the mother of any unborn child than he was in saving unborn children. He was more concerned about imposing his will on any woman that might feel it necessary to have an abortion than he was in saving the life of unborn children.

I contrast the attitude I heard from this caller with the one I have found in someone I truly respect. I’ve had the opportunity of meeting and spending some time with Norm Purdue. Norm is a pretty ordinary guy, who worked hard all his life to provide for his family. He took his family to Ethiopia several years ago on a service vacation to help work on villages in Ethiopia. Norm found a country with a huge problem. Girls were having children by the time they were 13, and they were dying of AIDS by the time they were in their late teens.

Norm came back to the states and decided that he could do something to help these girls. He took a unique approach to the problem. He also found that the girls in Ethiopia are generally uneducated. His position was that if we can educate them, they can change their lives. Also if they are educated, they will educate the next generation of children, both male and female, which will have a profound positive effect on the entire country.

From Norm’s desire to save these children, he started the Children of Ethiopia Education Fund (COEEF). His organization is now directly responsible for educating over 500 girls a year in Ethiopia. The interesting thing is that it costs about $200 per year to provide books, uniforms and tuition to educate a girl in Ethiopia. Just for fun, let’s do the math. How many girls could Norm save with $5,000,000? The quick answer is 25,000. But as girls get educated, they will tend to educate others, and so the number grows. COEEF’s website can be found at www.coeef.org. Have a look at it, and if you have a desire to save the life of a child, and you can pull together $200 extra dollars, I would suggest you strongly consider sponsoring one of Norm’s kids in Ethiopia.

Later…

What is a Blog

I just googled the word "Blog", and I thought that it would have to be an acronymn, but it isn't. It is short for Weblog. And when you look up the definition it says - Blog is short for weblog. A weblog is a journal (or newsletter) that is frequently updated and intended for general public consumption. Blogs generally represent the personality of the author or the Web site.

Well, I thought about how I would write on this thing, and I think it would be better for me to call my posts RUTS which stands for "Random Unintelligible Thoughts".

So here goes my second RUT. I was at the Gym working out this morning. BTW, this is my second day of my new diet and exercise program. Well, I guess since I went to Olive Garden for lunch yesterday and had "all you can eat" soup salad and breadsticks with a side order of alfredo sauce, I can't really say I've started the diet yet, but I have gone to the gym for two days in a row. Maybe tomorrow I will get up the energy to even go inside the gym and work out. :)

But seriously, things have changed since I was a kid. Now you work out on these computerized machines. You put your weight and age into the machine, and then it comes up with your target heart rate. They even have little sensors that you hold on to while you are working out, and it tells you your heart rate. It tells you whether your heart rate is too low, too high or in the target zone. Now tell me something, by the time I walk up the stairs to where all this fancy equipment is, my heart rate is already above the target zone and into the danger level - does that mean I shouldn't be working out on those machines?

Anyway, back to my RUT - while I was there at the gym (with my heart rate way above the danger line), I was watching a father and his son (about four years old)playing basketball out on the floor. It sure brought back a lot of memories for me. I spent a half hour on this crazy machine watching this kid trying to put the basketball in the hoop. His dad would go shoot a few baskets, and then he would come back to his son and try to teach him the proper technique for shooting. His son was just hucking that basketball at the basket for all he was worth. He was hitting the bottom of the hoop when he threw it up. But he kept trying - and smiling. He finally made it about 20 minutes into my workout. I about came off the bike cheering for the kid. It was fun to watch -

And, as I said, it brought me back to a day long ago when I used to take my boys out to the court. They would mostly watch me play my games and go shoot a few hoops before and after the game and at the breaks. They were fun father and son outings. Except one game I took the boys to that is. It was a Saturday morning game. Tyler and Bryson were 5 or 6 and Colby was about three.

The nerves were running before the game, and I was running late, so I had to stop in for a pre-game leak. Well, the boys needed to go too, and since they couldn't reach the urinal yet, and I didn't have time for them to go one at a time in the only available stall, I decided we would take care of them in a mass production fashion. So, I situated them all inside one of the stalls. Colby and Bryson were on the sides, and Tyler was in the front of the toilet. I got them set up and then left the stall for them to get their work done, and closed the door behind me.

Things were going well for a few seconds. Then something terrible happened. I believe it was Colby who first lost control of his hose. That is when I heard a yelp - not from Colby but from Bryson - who was directly across from him. I guess when Bryson went to cover his face, he let go of his hose. That is when Colby and Tyler started screaming. I guess Bryson was moving around trying to get out of the direct stream which sent water in all directions. By the time I got to the door and opened it, there were three boys dripping wet, with hoses still running. Luckily I only opened the door a crack, and, due to my quick thinking, I immediatley closed it again. I waited a minute or two. It was tough with all the crying and screaming going on, but I'm glad I did. They were still dripping by the time I reopened the door, and now they were all crying.

So what is a dad to do - the game is about to start. You have three boys dripping from head to toe in unpleasentness. I had to think quick. I threw them each up on the counter, and washed them down the best I could in twenty seconds. Then I unrolled a half a roll of paper towels, handed them to the boys and told them to come into the gym when they were dried off. I can't remember if we won the game that day, but I sure had a memory to last a life time.

Enough fodder, back to my original RUT. When I was at the gym, it brought back great memories when the boys were kids playing baseball, soccer and football. I coached the boys' teams when I could, and that reminds me of some good stories for other posts. I have also had a great time watching Colby play LaCrosse the last several years. What a fun sport that is to watch. Advice for young fathers - spend as much time as you can having fun with your kids playing and watching sports. When you are old and grey, you will be glad you did.

Indulge me one more minute. Today Elyssa's science project was due. So, I spent half the night last night finishing it for her. I hope we get a good grade. It was fun to do though. We put together a report on how to determine the speed of an object by taking pictures of the object at a predetermined shutter speed, and calculating the speed based on the distance the object travels. Ask us about the project if you want to know more. It was fun spending time with her working on it.

Later...