13 December 2015

Hi everybody,
   Just a quick funny story first. The other night, I was watching the news with Grandma and Grandpa, and a story came on about Donald Trump. Grandma says quietly, "I don't like him," then waves her arms in the air and makes a face, imitating him. Then Grandpa says, straightfaced, "You have to control yourself, mother." But you could see how cute he thought she was.
   Dad got home from his trip...eventually!  I drove to Boise after work on Thursday, to pick him up at about 9:30. He flew from Houston, changed planes in Denver, and after all kinds of delays, including a man having to be escorted off the plane, he finally made it to Boise at about 1am.  Then he had to be at a 9am meeting at the Riverside hotel. I was able to sleep in!  Dad was able to let me know about the first couple of delays, so I stopped in Gooding and had a nice visit with Uncle John. Annie was at an English class, so I didn't get to see her.
   Friday afternoon, after Dad's meeting, we did a little bit of Christmas shopping, then had a nice drive home; got home about 8pm. Then Dad had to be at WalMart the next morning at 6:30, to be the photographer at the Shop With a Cop event. I think he finally got a nap Saturday afternoon.  He'd had a crazy, busy couple of weeks. But I think his cold is pretty much gone. 
   Thank you, Ben, Sam, and Natalie, for your letters last week, and all the pictures!!  So nice to see what all the kiddos are up to, and read your commentaries.
   I'm sure there have been other things going on...can't think of a thing right now...but I did remember to take a couple of pictures of the pickup!
   Since we won't be able to see any of you during Christmas, we'd love to hear about all your preparations, concerts, etc..., and see any pictures! 
   Love you all so much!  Mom/Johanna/Nana
P.S. I'm also including a little educational info...something I had been confused about, and wanted to understand better.

E.g. vs. i.e.

The abbreviation e.g.—short for the Latin phrase exempli gratia—means for example. It is different from i.e.—short for the Latin id est—which means that is, namely, or in other words. The two are sometimes mixed up, but other than being abbreviations of Latin phrases, they share no common ground.

E.g. is easy to remember because both it and example start with e. With i.e., just remember that it and that is are both two syllables, or make a mental connection between i.e. and the two-letter i words is and in in that is and in other words.

I.e. and e.g. are lowercase when they come in the middle of a sentence. Most American style guides recommend following e.g. and i.e. with a comma and including the periods after each letter, and this is usually borne out in edited American books and publications. Outside North America, the periods and the comma are often omitted.

There is no need to italicize e.g. and i.e. in normal use (we italicize them in this post because we’re discussing them, not using them). English speakers typically italicize words and phrases from foreign languages when they are new to English, but i.e. and e.g. have been in English for hundreds of years, so they now go unitalicized.

Examples

It’s early, and factors beyond anyone’s control (e.g. the euro, Iran) could impact the race. [Washington Post]

The Harvard report compared “professional” reviewers (ie those working for newspapers and magazines) with their new competition. [Guardian]

Prohibition of illegal substances (e.g. LSD or MDMA) has also prevented very important clinical research from continuing. [Sydney Morning Herald]

In 2005, America had the lowest personal savings rate since 1933. In fact it was outright negative — i.e., consumers spent more money than they made. [Chicago Tribune]

[T]he announcement … was so intoxicating to the world’s sci-fi geeks (e.g. me) that they’ve been gearing themselves up for a work of genius.      [Independent]

The bulk – ie, about $3b – of new spending priorities announced today are reallocations of money from other uses. [Stuff.co.nz]

Whoohooo!! Sweet lookin truck! Glad Dad made it home safely. Please tell Grandpa I'm right there with him on Trump - his days are numbered leading the pack on the Republican side. Once things thin out a bit, his numbers will fall. 

Now we just need a pic or two of the new Hessing hot-rod............

Samuel Humphries

Sorry it took me so long! Meet the Super Sub. We love it!  - Dixie

Looks great Dixie! Think we can borrow it? I'm missing my truck today. - Ben

Hi everybody,

    It looks like there's some snow in Denver! That's awesome. Things are going good here. I am working enough to not get bored, but have enough time off between missions that I've been able to go to the gym pretty regularly. I sure like the new wheels that are in the family. Last week I got to transport four Land Rover Defenders as well as an up-armored Toyota Land Cruiser (non-America version). I'm including a time lapse that I took on my phone recently. My phone fell shortly after starting it so you're getting the part after we were almost half way done unloading. Hopefully you are all able to see it. 

Johanna, I got the package yesterday. Thank you so much for the gifts. Love you guys.

-Kevin

P.S Please don't share those images with anyone else or on social media. Thanks.

Looks awesome!!! Happy for you guys - now it's time to drive it to Minnesota....

Samuel Humphries

Hi Everyone! 

Sorry I haven't written in such a long time!  I'll try not to make it too long!!

But first!  HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM AND DAD!!!!!  I'm so thankful for both of you!!!  Thankful that you chose each other, thankful that you were sealed in the temple, thankful for the best example of a healthy marriage I've every seen, and just so thankful for the wonderful people you are and the love you have for all of us.  Thank you, thank you!!!  We love you!!!!!

So let's see....I haven't written since before Thanksgiving!  Yikes!!  I'll include a couple of pictures of Thanksgiving and Noah's baptism that Dad took.  It was SO nice to have so many people with us for that weekend.  And it made me really miss everyone and want to go visit all of you!

Since my last email, the three girls have had a piano recital, Stephen did a ton of work on his airplane, Noah started Cub Scouts (and is SUPER excited about it!), Naomi had a band concert, Naomi and Noah had their school Christmas concert, the girls and I had our dentist appointments (no cavities!!), Ellen had her first appointment at the orthodontist (more about that in a minute), and just today Annie had her band Christmas concert where she got to play the timpani for one song.  I'll try to include a bunch of pictures and maybe a video or two.

Ellen has only lost 9 baby teeth so far and at her dental appointment, the dentist expressed concern that she might not have all her permanent teeth.  Plus the teeth she does have a very spaced out so he recommended that she go to the orthodontist.  She went yesterday.  There we found out that she does actually have all her permanent teeth, they are just taking their time coming in which is just fine.  She may need braces to help with spacing, but that won't be for at least two years!  Yay!  And we learned that she doesn't have any wisdom teeth!  Woohoo!  She is a lucky kid!

Also, winter finally came to Moscow!  We woke up to 6 inches of snow!  We got three more by 9am.  Pullman and Troy (the two towns on either side of Moscow) both cancelled school today, but our kids went!  Stephen invited a non-member friend to Seminary this morning which meant they wouldn't fit in the normal carpooling car, so I drove them to Seminary and then to school.  Traffic around the high school was so slow!  Just a combination of slippery, hilly roads and more people driving than usual.  I did see a couple people toughing it out on their bikes though!

We are going to Montana for Christmas.  My phone doesn't work there, so I'll call all of you before Christmas and maybe again after Christmas to see how everyone's day was. 

Love you all!

Aimee