I am taking a cake decorating class. It is so much fun, but I am not very good. A sweet lady from church is teaching the class in her home. I go once a week. It's really fun. Today we learned to make flowers on a flower nail. Let's just say that you couldn't tell what type of flower I had made. I have enjoyed shopping for new tips. The class does not cover working with fondant, but I wanted to try it anyway. For my first time, my cake turned out okay. I need to get some pointers from anyone who has worked on it before. It just looks so pasty and dry. Is there a trick to keeping it shiny? My hands are sore from kneading in the color. Ugh, I didn't know it was so hard at first. I have a hard time piping straight lines and writing, especially today. I am always a little shaky, but today it was a little worse than normal. Normally, in the course of my day, my shaking doesn't' really interfere. But, when trying to make a small straight line with icing, it was really bad. I had intended to outline the dots with white royal icing, but I couldn't do it. Even my small dots today are a little bumpy. Oh well, I guess Fondant was made for me. Maybe, if I continue to work in my fine piping lines, I will be able to compensate somehow. I have been baking a lot. The kids love it! Only because they each have a high metabolism! It has been so much fun learning something new. Maybe by the time the girls birthdays roll around, I will be able to make a gorgeous cake! Other than that, everything else in Oregon is moving along. The girls are doing well in school. We are excited for our upcoming trip to Florida. The girls and I are going to visit my grandfather. He is a having a hard time and the girls haven't seen him in nearly 8 years! William and I saw him about 5 years ago. We leave on the 10th of February. I would love any tips on fondant! Send them my way!

Has it been that long?

Time is flying by so quickly. I can't believe it's been so long since my last update. I will give you a quick run down of the last month. New Years has come and gone. I can't even remember what we did that night. Oh well, I am sure it was fun. We have been skiing/snowboarding a few times. William and Camille ski, Zac snowboards and that left me and Megan. I have skied on and off since high school and Megan has skied just a few times. She wanted to try snowboarding and I agreed to try with her. I will just say this, I have never been so sore! For a girl that picks up most things fairly easily, this was a tough one. I may have done better if Megan had not been with me and I had been able to just worry about myself. I spent several hours on my rear. So, the next time we went, I was back on my skis. Megan stuck with snowboarding and is doing very well. It has been a lot of fun spending the weekends together. The weather has been gorgeous. But,we need more snow! The girls don't have school on Friday, maybe the three of us will go ski a half day. Life is busy and fun. Yesterday, William and I spoke in church. Megan was the youth speaker. It was the first time, since I was married to Troy, that I had been asked to speak in church. We have been in this ward for 6 years. I have made it nearly 10 years without having to speak! I was more nervous than I could have imagined. So strange for me to be nervous about talking! I think it went well. William gave a beautiful account of his conversion. I was so proud of him. It was like he spoke in church often. Megan gave a wonderful talk on this year's Mutual Theme and what she can do to embrace it.

I am anxious about the inauguration tomorrow. I hope everyone is safe. My nephew, Brad, is attending it with a student group. He and Megan are the same age. I am so excited for him to have this experience but pray that he is safe. I am sure he will have a fantastic time!