New week, and it has been a whirlwind.  Jamie is in a town called Palmerton, and her branch is the Lehighton branch in Pennsylvania.  Her companion is Sister Johnson, and I appreciate the fact that she has had Jamie out working.  Jamie claims that one of her favorite things to do is tract, and that makes me really happy.  We spoke for a bit on Monday, and she also messaged me back and forth for awhile.  The branch is small, and eager to help, and she eats at member's homes in the evenings which is great.  They are in a car, a brand new car (she claims it had five miles on it), and it is cold and rainy.  It looks old, and quaint, and I am excited for her.  It is a miracle that we send our young people out to serve...especially at a time when most people are the most selfish.  Cache and I messaged back and forth for a bit too, and he is in Amite, Louisiana.  He cannot get over the fact that there is water everywhere, and it smells like moss and mold. He seriously could not get over the smell.  This coming from a guy that was cleaning out a dead calf from a manure stall.   The people have had visions of their own and so they should relate well to Joseph Smith's experience.  Anyhow, we pray for them both nonstop.
     Dill has been full of conversation this week.  She wakes up early and wants to discuss different things.  Ryan asked her the other morning if she loved her dad and she said, "well, I love everyone in my family."  She was also admiring my diamond ring and she looked at me and said, "you married the right man."  Raising Dill is like raising Smart Sage all over again.  Don't get me wrong, they're all smart, but Dill and Sage are at a whole other level.  At times they just outsmart the parent.
     Oak and Sage have had some knock-down drag-outs this week.  Sage and Jerusha are kind of food Nazi's and it just does not jive with Oak's constant need for a ton of food.  Ryan actually always sides with Oak on these types of fights, but it does not prevent the arguments completely.  Also, Oak will irritate Sage, and then wonder why the heck she comes after him.  An excellent example of this was last Sunday at church.  I was in a good spot to just observe the two of them.  Oak had been out passing the sacrament and he purposely sat down right next to Sage.  He began just bumping her nonchalantly on the arm.  She took it for a bit and then finally she grabbed him by the hand and just dug really hard until he couldn't take it anymore.  The speaker was quite engaging, and so that is where it should have ended.  But Oak started bumping her again, and so she just sat and stared at him point blank until he just couldn't stand it.  Of course at that point he looks at me and lets me know that Sage is bothering him for no reason whatsoever...yeah...try again Oak.  You poke at the bear, then you get what's coming to you. 
     So, we also had the problem this week of Dill refusing to go to her class.  Oak is usually good to take her, but last week he had young men's and he felt like it was inappropriate to take her.  So, Jazz offered.  After the week that Dill insisted everyone wear buckets, I was concerned.  Anyhow, Jazz claims she did great, but the Young Women's leader indicated otherwise.  Dill has just got to get in her head that she belongs in her class.  That's it, end of story. 
     Mo, Chlo, and Dill have been outside most afternoons playing in the lovely spring weather.  I love the weather right now.  It is the best part of living in these parts.  Everything is green and smells fresh.  Anyhow, they have some adventure on the trampoline that keeps them busy until dark.  Oak goes out and shoots hoops, and then throws something at them from time to time, just because. 
     Jerusha has been bent on getting her driving permit this week.  I hate the DMV...really shoulder shlumping hate it.  She took the test once, and failed, which meant going back a second day...then she passed, but they rejected the birth certificate I had because of sheer Government bs....the kind of stuff Ryan rails against non stop.  Anyhow, Jerusha threw a fit, and I was like hey....when you deal with the DMV it is a whole lot of bs...just plan on days and days of bs.  So, I had to drive to Utah to pick up another birth certificate, and hopefully today we can go over there and wait all day again so she can have her dumb permit.  Ryan rails against this stuff.  He is so absolutely right, but I do not know how to fix it.  Anyhow, we are talking about a girl who was driving a skidsteer all over the melon fields at age 10.  She is a good driver.  It was good for her to study all of the traffic rules, but she is no stranger to driving.  Heck, Chlo drives the truck in the hay field.  It is just part of the every day on the ranch when we have the privilege to help out there. 
     Dill really likes to assist her Dad when he has tools out and is fixing on something.  She is most enthusiastic about tractor's and big trucks.  She enjoyed an afternoon of intently using a wrench on a bunch of tire rims that Ryan had ordered.  We also took Ryan a lunch one day as he ran the blade to smooth up some roads in Scenic.  She happily rode with him, and probably would have been content on there all day.  She thinks she knows how to turn a wrench, but I am not so sure.
     Sage had the opportunity to go to Reno during legislative session.  She was told under no circumstances was she to speak about our family issues during her time observing the session.  This made me all kinds of mad.  Apparently a few FFA advisors around the state were afraid Sage would hijack the session, and they wanted her removed if she said anything.  I made it very clear that she should follow the spirit of her Heavenly Father on the matter, and if she felt like she should say something, then do it.  I don't give one care if she gets kicked out.  What is ironic is that a few of the assemblymen sought her out to discuss a few of the family matters.  Kind of backfired on those teachers who wanted Sage silent.  I try not to get offended by this stuff, but this week, I had the urge to throw a few darts....not at the teachers, but maybe if I had their pictures, I would have thrown a few darts at them.  One of the biggest lessons that I try to learn every day, is to not hate those who don't agree or understand.  It really should not be a thing to hate over....they are wrong, but still.  No hate. This whole thing has been so good for me.  So humbling and so good. 
     Scripture study this week has been a series of a bunch of interruptions and yoga poses.  Oak and Jazz probably did not hear a word the other day as we read Mathew Chapter 6...probably not one word.  So, I assigned Oak to read and teach chapter 7.  I cannot tell you how much better everything went.  There were a few silent yoga poses by Jerusha, but people were quiet, except for a little squirreling around by Mo and Chlo...so the lesson?  Oak is quite possibly the biggest distraction, so I might just have him teach every night.