2010 Year End and on to 2011

I have some time to breathe and get caught up on some things. I was rather crafty this year when it came to presents for Grandpa Raul and Justin's parents this year. I decided to make the presents for them. I made them each a fleece blanket and pillow cases.

The material above is the material that I used for the blanket. It stated Live, Love, Laugh and had wine glasses on it. It reminded me of Grandpa Raul. He told me though right now he is not on the wine cycle but is on the chocolate and sweets cycle. The pillowcases were a Susan Winget fabric and it was pine cones and pine branches.
I finally got pillowcases made for Justin from the fish fabric that he picked out a year ago. I really used my gift from last year to make gifts this year. I am starting to plan the gifts that I will make next year and give to people. I also thought of somethings that I can make up and have on hand if there is a birthday or anniversary and we need something. I was told that the gifts I did last year and the few that I did this year were very creative and different. I hope I can keep that going.
Michael was very excited with his gifts this year. He had gone to Big 5 and found some shoes that he wanted just before Christmas. I had him put them on hold and then went back and got them with the intent to give them to him as a gift. I also had him pick out a new baseball glove that he wanted for the upcoming season. I went and got that too. I had the box from an order that I had just received from Boy Scouts and so he was totally thrown that here was this box and I had it packed in such a way he was totally stumped as to what it could be. We had been at Costco around Thanksgiving and he saw a sled/bodyboard and since it was under budget we got that as well. I had the large bags for wrapping and it was behind the tree. We were able to surprise him with his gifts this year which was a nice change.
Justin was totally surprised that I was able to find a game for his PS3 that he had been searching for months for. I also got him a charging system for the controllers for the system as well so that they can be charged together and not just one at a time. I found a jacket and 2 shirts that he wanted as well. I know that he was shocked and overwhelmed. He was kind of upset to think that I only had 3 presents to open when he had about 6.
Justin got me a Pan digital ereader. I am rather excited as I can carry that with multiple books and it fits in my bag. It can also access the Internet, email, etc. Not too bad. Michael gave me the Whistle Stop Cafe cookbook as well as an Indian Cookbook that I had wanted. So over all not a bad Christmas for us.
We felt so bad as Grandpa Raul was alone for the Holidays. We made sure to call him and make sure that he was okay and let him know that we love him. He spent most of the day at church serving at masses. I guess not a bad way to spend Christmas but we would have liked it if he was here with us and able to relax and enjoy. Had to laugh as he said that he had tamales and he had eaten some of them. When we were talking about it he said that his favorite was pork with red chili so I guess that I better work on making them and see if I can have some for him next year. Not a bad thing to have to work on to perfect. LOL!
We have been blessed this past year with great friends and good times as many blessings and tender mercies from our Heavenly Father. The last fight/hurdle that we had for the year was that the VA was trying to declare him incompetent and that he would have to appoint a fiduciary's. We were able to get good direction from Brother Palmer at church who had actually worked with the VA and visited with vets that were declared incompetent. He had advised us that we should get letters from Justin's psychologist, psychiatrist, and any creditors that we could that would vouch that he was competent to handle his finances. The greatest letter came from his psychiatrist Dr. Alan Radant who stated that most that were incompetent were ones that had issues paying rent, basic necessities, gambled or drank and in the entire time that he had been a patient that had never been the case. The same was also stated by Dr. Jerry Butler his psychologist. They notified us on the 21st of this month that they signed off and that Justin was deemed competent. What a weight lifted!
This year has given me medical/prescription insurance since Justin's disability rating is now 100% totally and permanent. This is such a huge relief as well.
We were not sure in November when we got the letter from Dr. Radant if we would ever get home. On November 22nd we had gone over to Seattle for Justin's appointment and then after we decided to go to the Supermall in Auburn. We do not get to go often so we took the time. We got Justin something from Casual Male XL Outlet store, had lunch and then headed home. We thought we would be home in an hour or so we thought. I decided that I would drive around instead of going back up and taking the ferry. That ended up being a good choice and must have been a prompting from the Lord. Once we crossed the Tacoma Narrows bridge and got close to the Kitsap County line the weather decided to go south. Snow up here is rather out of the ordinary and so it does not take much to shut down most everything. The closer we got to thinking we would be getting home the longer it took. We were on the road for about 4.5 hours for what should have been about an hour drive.
The snow became heavier and it grew colder. The speed we could travel was slower too. The scary part was when we were coming around the bend in the sound/bay and people were not paying attention to the road and that it had become like driving on a bed of ice. We got stuck when someone ended up backed into the center divide and everyone stopped. I was up on the shoulder as I was trying to keep traction and just kept saying/praying "Don't Stop". Well, needless to say I started to slide sideways and just kept praying that I would not hit the car(s) beside us. Thank heavens we stopped and did not hit anyone. I finally got moving again and got past it. We spent about the next 3 hours trying to go less than two miles. We sat at one corner for over 45 minutes. The hard part was that we live in a very hilly area. You must go up and down hills at some point. We finally got to an area where I could get around and I said prayers each time that I knew that I had to deal with a hill. Justin was very anxious and I did my very best to stay calm. I was able to get over all the hills and get home. We noticed on the corner that most were without power. We got home and were rather relieved that we had power. Well that was until we got to the door of the house. Poof! Power went out. It was about 7PM. We were lucky. We sat around for a bit to talk and unwind. We gave up and went to bed at about 8:30PM. I fell asleep because I was exhausted from the drive. I was awakened by the light in the room around 11PM so I guess we did not turn off switches before we went to bed. I got up, turned off lights and fell right back in bed. Over all we only had about 6 inches of so of the white stuff but it shut down the entire peninsula until Thanksgiving. We had prepared and we were safe. We had our fireplace and blankets so we made it through. Others were not so lucky as many were still without power on Thanksgiving.
The year is drawing to a close. It has been a good year and although we have had our bumps it has been smoother that others. Michael is now 14 and will go to the Multi-Stake New Years Eve celebration. They go ice skating and then to a Ward building for more festivities. It is over at about 12:15A. Justin and I get a nice, well hopefully quiet, (if they do not light off too many fireworks, that does a number on Justin) evening at home. I will make a Prime Rib Roast and then Ribs for New Years Day. I guess it could be worse. I could have to pay for those dinners if we were to go out.
I will still be working on perfecting Indian dishes this year. I am looking forward to it. Bring it on 2011, we are looking forward to a new year. Tomorrow, Justin sees Dr. Butler for the last time as he is retiring and then has an appointment on the 7th with a new Dr. to continue the work with the PTSD. We will see what happens and if it is a good fit. Dr. Chalmers seems to be very good on paper anyway. We will take each day as it comes. Hope everyone had a great Christmas.

Christmas Letter 2010

Happy Holidays! It is hard to believe that it is December already. Time has gone extremely fast this year. Maybe it is me and the fact that I am getting older. 2011 will be here before we realize it. We have had a rather good year considering that it could have been worse. Just days before Thanksgiving we were hit with a snow storm. We got about 6" of snow, which may not sound like much but, for us that is a hefty amount. We were out as it hit and spent 4 hours trying to go 16 miles to home. It shut down the city for the week. It was also power outages because of wind that made things rough. We made it though without much problem.
Michael is in 9th grade this year. He is a freshman but is still at the Jr. High. He played on the football team and did very well this year. He is going to baseball practices already and try outs are at the end of January. He really wants to play this year for Olympic High. He is doing well with grades and is working already to make sure that he is accepted to BYU. We went to a seminar that is on a 3 year rotation and he is planning. This summer just after school was done he went on a pioneer trek with the youth. I will talk about it more later.

Justin is doing okay. We received notification around our anniversary that he was given the status of 100% total and permanently disabled by the Veterans Administration. That was not an easy road but we did it. He still battles migraines sometimes daily as well as the insomnia. One physician is trying to look at the big picture to see if there are other factors that may be contributing to that. We have to keep working on it. This ruling gives Michael and I medical coverage, which is such a relief. We now teach Webelos/Cub Scouts and so that is a new adventure for us. He keeps busy with college courses, helping me with the projects for the boys as well as playing games on the computer.

I am still working at the Family History Center each Wednesday from 2P until 6P as well as still doing PR for the Kitsap BlueJackets. I enjoy it. Then teaching the cub scouts, keeping all of the schedules together and straight, running Justin to his doctor appointments and keeping my head on straight is quite a load at times. Typical Mom chores.

This summer as I said, Michael did a pioneer trek with the youth from church. Justin and I were called to work on the base camp committee. We helped plan and prepare all of the meals that were served the 4 days. We were supposed to be around Mt. Rainier but just a month before the location was changed to the border of Washington and Oregon by the Columbia River in Eastern Washington, Near Tri-Cities. We had cool weather and going there it was 95 and humid. The participants had a hard time because of it. Lots of blisters, heat & hydration issues, rashes as well as bug bites. I got them really bad on my arms and legs. They sent me home early the last day because they wanted me to get Benadryl in my system on a regular basis. I have some good scars from all the bites but okay none the less. Michael was the biggest kid in his family and ended up being in the yoke of the handcart 98% of the time. He had to step out when they did the women's pull but then took over again. His Ma & Pa really praised him for his help and his attitude. They sent us a beautiful letter telling us what a special spirit they feel he is. We are very proud of him.

In July, we went down to California to visit with friends and family. We were there for 2 weeks. We had a great time. Grandpa Raul was gone but came back just in time that we could spend a day with him. We would have been really disappointed if we had not been able to see him. We spent 3 days in San Diego with the Martin's and that was a great visit. We love them so much. In Los Angeles we were able to visit with the Vargas' and get together with Brain & Sarah Thomas and their girls. They now live in Minnesota. It was great to catch up with them as well as others we do not get to spend much time with. We also spent some time with Justin's parents while in California.

In August, we experienced the loss of my Great Uncle Ray. He was 94. In some ways I was happy to know that he was freed from the confines of his earthly mind and body, but the loss still hurt my heart. I do miss him He was always so active both physically as well as mentally until almost the end. The positive side of this was that we are so glad now to have the contact with his daughter Linda, her family and his son Don and his family. We are so glad to have communication with them now. Uncle Ray will be missed but he is now with his parents and family that have been patiently waiting for him. I am sure it was a glorious reunion. In retrospect it does not seem like it was 7 years ago this month that we lost my mom. Uncle Ray actually died the day before her birthday. I am really missing her.

In September, we had gone down to Astoria Oregon to the Commercial Fisherman's Festival. I called my Uncle Ben who lives over in the Portland area to see if it was possible to stop by and visit with him. I did not realize that we were so close to the Portland area being here in Washington. That weekend we took the opportunity and went to go visit with him and his wife Kathy. Justin and Michael had never met them. It was great to see Uncle Ben after so many years. I had forgotten that family had told me that he was due to have heart surgery at the beginning of September. He was looking great when we visited. He said that immediately after the surgery that he felt so much better. It was kind of fun to be able to tell him some things that he never knew. I told him that Uncle Ray was 2 years older than their mother (my Great-grandmother) was at the time of her death. It was nice to walk down memory lane a little, as the last time I was really in Portland was to visit him and his family when I was maybe 8 or so. I remember that his kids had been sprayed by a skunk and they had to bathe in tomato juice to get rid of the smell. I am pleased to find that both of his girls are here in the area of where we live and his son is there near him. It was a great visit and we hope to see him and Kathy more frequently. I hope to also be able to get together with his girls since they live in my neck of the woods.

It is so good to be able to be in contact with a lot of my extended family on Facebook. I am under the impression that I have some cousins near in the Vancouver, BC area as well as here in the Puget Sound. It is a blessing to find that there is family so close.

I have rambled on long enough. I will close this newsletter for this year. We sincerely hope that all of you have a wonderful Christmas season. We are busy but cherish our friends and family. Please keep in touch. May God Bless you and keep you in the coming year. We wish you a Merry Christmas & Happy New Year. May 2011 be filled with many blessings and fun filled memories for you.



Love and Holiday Greetings,

The Leyva Family ~ Justin, Shirley, Michael, Smokey, Sylvester, & Shadow

VA Health Rating

Woot Woot!!!! We did it! We just received the award letter this morning! Justin is Permanently and Totally Disabled by the VA 100%!!!!! Michael and I get insurance!!!! Wow this has been a huge fight. What a relief. Thanks to all the friends and family that rode the roller coaster ride with us!!!! We can relax and breathe. Thanks most of all to our Heavenly Father for blessing us and keeping us in his watchful care.

It's October

I have been trying to get on here and get this updated for the last week, but being down sick makes it rather hard. I have not felt like getting on here to update it. I am feeling better now so that's a plus.

Football season is in full swing, as is school. Michael is playing football and is doing rather well. He has been playing defensive tackle and making major plays. On the 23rd of September was the first home game and he was playing Sedgwick Junior High. Ridgetop won 24-22. We worried that a storm would roll in and start while they were playing but it held off until later that night. That was a plus as I was not looking forward to sitting in the rain with umbrella's. Michael is keeping his grades up and is passing grade checks so that I am very pleased about. That same week Michael was interested in attending a BeSmart Seminar/Fireside about the church colleges. It was crazy as they wanted us to go to Tacoma on the night of his game and Justin and I also needed to teach Webelos that night. We did find out that they were also doing it in Seattle on the 22nd. I left early from the family history center and we went to Seattle. He is very interested in planning for college and so that is a good thing. Friday the 24th, Justin and I went with some other couples from the ward to attend the temple in Seattle as well. It was a very special evening and we had a good time.

This past week, I have been down. On the 25th, I woke up with a severe sore throat and my ears were killing me. I did well until Tuesday and by then I gave up and stayed in bed. Wednesday was Michael's only night game and played at the high school. I was not able to go as I was afraid I would get worse. I felt really bad. They lost. It was the crosstown rival game against Central Kitsap but they might get another chance to play them if they can win 3 more games. We shall see.

Thursday night was Pack Meeting for the Cub Scouts and the Webelos were in charge of the Flag Ceremony and song. I was worried because there was no way I could sing as I was struggling to talk and not cough. I ended up with 4 boys. I was not sure we would have but one until just before we started. They did a very good job even though they really only practiced for 2 weeks. It is going to be interesting to cram a 2 year program into 1 and push the religious knot and Duty to God programs. It is a challenge but we will get it done. I just need to get them organized.

Friday, I went to lunch with Janice Crook for my birthday. She is so much fun to be with. She is funny and so sweet. We went to Panda Inn Mongolian Grill. It was good food and good company. We need to do it more often and have a laugh. We need it as mom's. I felt really bad as Leila Wilkins was supposed to join us but at the last minute on Thursday, we got a message that they had to leave for Spokane with a family emergency. We are praying that it is nothing too serious.

Saturday, was General Conference and my birthday. I am 48 now. I feel no different than when I turned 30. I am feeling better but still battle a cough at times as well as some congestion. We had plans to go to dinner with friends Jacqui and Ryan to a place called Fujiyama's. It was good but I was soooo mad with the service and seating us that I contacted management. We had a reservation and arrived about 5 minutes early with everyone there. They were so rude and seated parties with  reservations at 6:30P even though we had a 6P reservation and were made to wait until 6:30P before we were seated. When the one girl said that she was sorry, I was not nice and told her, "No you're not!" I know she was shocked but I contacted the restaurant last night and then today the manager contacted me. He agreed that the service was not acceptable as this was the first time to the restaurant, my birthday and then not a good impression. We will see how the make-up attempt goes.

Today again was General Conference of Church. It was so nice to hear the talks from the last two days from the prophets and apostles that lead us today. I called Bonnie my friend in San Diego yesterday. She had been on my mind and I knew something was wrong. She is really having a hard time dealing with her son Jared. I promised I would not share what is going on so I won't. She is really hurting. As I was watching conference, I really felt that a couple of the apostles we speaking directly about the situation. I hope that Jared was watching and that he heeded the words spoken. I also hope that Bonnie's heart, as well as her sweet husband Dave, were comforted by the talks. I think that this is a hill that has to be conquered and that in time it will.

It has been a great weekend. I have a great group of friends. I received lots of wishes and had a nice time.
Thanks to those that contacted me with well wishes. My in-laws on the other hand say one thing and do another. Oh well! I refuse to let them ruin my time and celebration. I still have coupons for free pie and ice cream at places for my birthday. Yum! I still get to celebrate. Yeah!

Michael is doing well this year in school, lots of improvement. I and including an email from one of his teachers showing what his teachers are saying:

"Mrs. Matz, ASL (American Sign Language) teacher has this to say about Michael.

Michael Cross is such a nice young man with a curious mind. I love having him in my class. I also talked to Coach Detweiler today and he commented on how Michael is working so hard in football and he has noticed a difference in attitude. Mrs. Chamberlain also said the same thing earlier this year. Lots of us are really pleased with his change in attitude, behavior and effort.


LoisAnne Sykes - Achieve Teacher"

As part of Achieve, Michael was take a test called Explore that will help him know what he needs to work on for the ACT/SAT Tests. It will be a savings of $10 and 3 hours on a Saturday. Michael is taking American Sign Language, Algebra, Pre-AP English, Science, Strength Training, as well as the Achieve class. The Achieve class helps them with study habits, being able to learn to advocate for themselves and many other skills that are needed as they continue to look toward college. I am so glad that I found out about this and pushed Michael to take it.

Michael is attending his first year of Seminary (early morning). He is tired but he has to get used to it. I know it is a pain but it is well worth it in the end. He likes his teachers and those in his class. I know that helps a lot.

We are being told to prepare for a wet winter so we are. Hope that everyone is doing well and looking forward to the Holiday's. We need to get through October before we are in full swing for the holiday's.

Commercial Fisherman's Festival Astoria, Oregon

We left yesterday and went to Astoria, Oregon. We are at the northern point of Oregon and near the mouth of the Columbia River. We are in a hotel that is right on the water. On the rocks and piers there are a huge family of Sea Lions. I am guessing that they are sea lions as they are rather large. They are very vocal. I miss seeing so many as I used to see them in the LA harbor.
It rained most of the last 3 days, but this morning we did awaken to some sun for the morning anyway. By 1 PM it was really raining. We were at the Fisherman's Festival but it was very different. There was a swimming rescue demonstration by the Coast Guard which was interesting to watch. It was rather odd because they were really low to the water and they usually are not that close to the water. We bought a small buoy for Michael to get autographs. CatchCon is for 21 and older. This was nice because it did not matter the age. Michael had the chance to meet the crews of the Northwestern, Cornelia Marie and Kodiak. I was looking at the picture and I did not realize that Michael is as tall as a couple of the guys and then just slightly smaller than even some of the tallest guys on the crab boats. They were shocked to know that Michael was just 14. I think next year that we will attend the Seattle Fisherman's Memorial celebration and go see the boats on the docks in Ballard. I am sure that Michael would love to tour the boats as we did.
The funniest thing has been listening to the chorus of barking from the sea lions tonight. They were making me laugh so hard that I could not even play a game. I wish we knew what they were saying to each other. I think that it would be very funny to know. We were sitting here and Justin said they were saying "yummy, yummy, yummy, yummy, tummy". Then to hear the other people here in the hotel and they are making fun of the sea lions. They make noises and then all of a sudden you hear loud chorus of replies from the sea lions.
It has been funny to hear this. At least it has made us giggle.
I called my Uncle Ben in Portland. He had a pacemaker/defibrillator installed about 3 weeks ago. I had forgotten that he was to have the surgery. He sounded really good on the phone. We are planning to drive over to Portland so we will see him before we start the trip back home. For Michael this is his great great uncle. My grandmother's baby brother. He is the last one alive. Uncle Ray passed away last month and bless his heart was 92. If I did my math right Ben is about 82. His daughter Karrie lives in Renton and so I hope that we will be able to see her soon as well. I have not seen Ben in over 22 years. I have not seen him since his sister (my grandma) died and maybe even before that. I like being able to get away as a family even if just for a weekend. Wow the sea lions went quiet there for a minute. That was on the scary side. LOL!!!

First Football Game - Ridgetop 16 Marcus Whitman 20 They Lost :o(

Today was Michael's first football game and it was an away game. I knew it was going to be kind of a hard one as most of the day it rained. The game started at about 4PM and he was finally back at the school just shortly before 7P. He was rather disappointed that they lost to Marcus Whitman 20 - 16. He said that one of the kids threw an upper cut right at the base of his ribcage and where the shoulder pads end. It was not called by the refs. One of these days someone is going to catch them and it is going to be a sad day. He said it was not an easy game as he said that he was soaked to the skin. From now on he needs to make sure that he takes a full change of clothes in case this happens again.
He was really hungry so I think we need to pack him some extra food to eat before the game so that he is not starving by the time he is finished. He was very lucky because normally he would go from his game to YM and tonight they met early and were working on Cameron Crook's Eagle Project. They were not sure that much could be done as it was raining pretty good.
Better Luck next week. Ridgetop Raiders vs John Sedgewick but this game will be here. Will keep everyone up to date.

Cooking & Recipes

Well, I am asked quite a bit for recipes that I use or try. I decided to make a blog and share it with everyone.
Here is the link to the blog: http://jskitchenadventures.blogspot.com/ I will be posting here the recipes and hints that I tell people. My friend Jacqui and I will be adding to this as much as possible. When she and I get together we laugh and have a good time. It is a way for me to relieve some stress. Hope you like it.