BYU 25th Ward Indexing

Just trying to do my part! But seriously, its easy and worthwhile!

"Hello Sisters!

I just wanted to send out an email about indexing, to get you all a little more familiar with the goal our stake has set & what indexing is. Indexing is the churches efforts to digitize old historical documents like birth records and what not. You can work on a batch over time and do it here and their. One batch can take about 30 minutes and has up to 50 names, this alone can help us reach our monthly ultimate stake goal.

Indexing is explained best in these terms "Volunteers extract family history information from digital images of historical documents to create searchable indexes that assist everyone in finding their ancestors." If you have already started indexing that is wonderful! If you started in a different stake and need help switching your information to our stake let me know and I can help with that.

We have a few computers reserved in the family history lab during Sunday School every Sunday for couples to come in and learn or just to spend some time indexing. The lab is just past the library in room 103. You can also index from home or pretty much any computer using FamilySearchIndexing.org

Once again if you need help signing up or have any questions, I am here to help.

Lastly, If you have not heard about our Stakes goal for Indexing it is a great project! Our goal is to have indexed 1 million names by June 2009. They started this goal back in June 2008 and we want to keep going strong. For us to succeed each ward should try and meet 10,000 names a month.

Here's the info about November from Sister Dicou:

"The BYU 18th Stake is having a terrific month for indexing. Four of Nine wards met the 10,000 name per month goal. This keeps us on track for a million."

The current numbers as of the 29th of November

25th- 4,791
29th- 24,494
59th- 8,512
85th- 7,110
139th- 3,420
147th- 11,083
170th- 21,212
199th- 13,481
200th- 3,767

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We spent the day at Dan's Parents house in Orem with his parents, Mark & Kathy, his brother Matt and his wife Kandace (who came down from Rexburg, Idaho) and my friend Mary!

We had a great meal and lots of fun! The boys have spent MOST of the past 2 days playing xbox and the girls have spent MOST of the past 2 days quilting!!! Kandace and I are in Kathy Calkins Quilting 101 for Impatient Beginners!!!

Saturday we woke up early and drove up Immigration Canyon in Salt Lake and went to Ruths Diner! We highly suggest it for anyone who wants to have a fun experience eating good food in an old train car! It has been a fun weekend and I am sad to see it end!

Whats your Ecological Footprint

It would take 3.3 worlds to sustain themselves if EVERYONE lived like me....

Whats your footprint?

Calkins Weekly Update

We have almost made it to Thanks Giving!!! This week I have 1 class on Monday (and a million projects to work on) and Dan has 3 days of classes... We are excited to spend Thanks Giving at Dan's parents house with Dan's brother Matt and his wife Kandace and my friend Mary!!

A week and a half ago I had a cooking adventure! I made my first Pot Roast! I was pretty excited. I made it for a family in our ward that had a new baby... so I hope it turned out alright! I had to call my mom about 5 times to make sure I was doing everything right!

Before! After!

I have had a few other cooking adventures this week! I do have to say I am getting better! Dan and I had our friend Mary over so she could study on Thursday and I made STEAK for the 3 of us! Mary introduced me to the joy of broiling! It took us a bit to figure out WHERE our broiler was but turns out it was a drawer in the bottom of the oven!

I need to clean... all of this... because of STEAK!

Due to cooking skills increasing and nice Visiting Teachers that brought me some new recipes to try I made this calendar... we are really needing to eat at home like 99% of the time now due to decrease in income that will be coming soon (our choice, we aren't getting fired)... Other than cooking, we held a Recycling Focus Group at our apartment on Tuesday with Dan, Mary, Allyson & Jon! It was fun... They helped me to finish my project (well that section of it!)Tonight we fed the ducks at BYU's pond stale bread and we had a delightful evening around town and enjoyed spending most of the day together!

This week other than Thanks Giving I am going to get some school projects done/worked on and get ready for one of my classes Domestic Violence Awareness Day on Campus December 3rd in the BYU Terrace from 11-2!

Anyway thats all for now!

Doctors

I generally like the doctor I see. She is a nice women who gets to the point and doesn't sugar coat anything. I like that in a doctor. However today was a day when I wanted to discuss things with her, like my future, specifically my future in having children. I was stressed about what to ask and how to ask it all day...

I made it to my appointment on time (it was at 5:20) and got into the tiny examination room by 5:25 and then waited... and waited... and waited... finally (after 1 trip out to the nurses station and a million rounds of Tetris) my Doctor comes in at 5 minutes to 6. She had enough time to tell me that my insulin resistance has improved from an 18 to a 14 and that my cholesterol is great... she printed a new prescription for my Diamox for the next 6 months and sent me on my way. I was a little disappointed and didn't even bother asking any of my questions because I respect that she wants to leave at 6 just as I would want to leave work when my time is up.

I walked out and had to leave through the back exit to get out of the building because everything was closed. I scheduled my next appointment with her for December 12th at 10am! There will be no reason for me to not discuss these things with her then since she won't be shewing me out the door at closing time!

Giving Thanks

My sister in law Lisa sent the family an email this morning asking us what we are grateful for. She is giving a talk on Sunday on Gratitude... I have been in the dumps for the past few days (maybe even weeks) trying to make it through School, Work, Health and personal issues. Seeing Lisa's email helped me remember that there are so many things I can be grateful for!

I am a freak about Lists so in the spirit of Thanks Giving:

1. My adorably sweet patient and kind husband!
2. My Mom and Dan's Mom, both are willing to listen to me talk about what is going on in my life and give advice! (Not to mention Dan's Mom coming over to help me do dishes when I was freaking out the other day!)
3. Our siblings. I love my brothers and Kate as well as step siblings Scott & Penny and Steven & Mindy! I also feel like one of the great bonus' of marrying Dan was inheriting 6 more wonderful friends who have been through so much and I can learn from them and enjoy being around them!
   
4. The Gospel and the Atonement. This is what makes it possible for Dan and I to get sealed in the temple and what gives me hope for a better future. For the first time in my life I feel like theres no way I would want to miss church for any reason. Going to church on Sunday gives me a spiritual recharge to make it through yet another week!
   
5. My sweet little friends and cousins Chainey and Carley. They give me hope that someday I can have kids like them!
   
6. My friends! All of them! They support me and lift me up and make me laugh! I love them!
   
7. My education! As much as I moan and groan I am so thankful that I am nearing the end of my time here at BYU and I am so proud of myself for getting to this point and for making it to the end even though their have been times when I have wanted to give up!
8. My health!!! I am so quick to complain about my current health status but I cannot give enough gratitude to my heavenly father for the fact that my greatest health problem, (or what seems to me to be my biggest struggle) Pseudotumor Cerebri, was not in fact a brain tumor! Just a pretend one!
   
9. I am thankful for the Weight Watchers program because it has helped me so much in my struggle with losing weight in order to be a healthier person!
   
10. Ok this may sound dumb but I am so thankful for Blogging! It has been a great way for me to journal this year having limited time to sit down and write in a journal... instead this is something I can do between classes (during classes) and when I have a minute on the computer here and there! I also LOVE reading blogs! Its so much fun!
    

We Heart Weight Watchers

I usually don't talk to people about losing weight or doing Weight Watchers, but what the heck... its not going to hurt anything!

Dan and I have both done weight watchers before, but I can honestly say its a lot easier when both of us are doing it together! I am so proud of Dan for committing to eat healthier! We have been doing WW together for 7 full weeks now and I have lost 10.2 pounds and Dan has lost 18.6!

Yay for being healthier! I got my blood drawn yesterday for the 1st time in 3 months to test my insulin level! I am really hoping that my insulin resistance has gone down a little bit. I still need to do better about not eating carbs but I am doing a whole lot better than I was 3 months ago!

Healthy Lifestyles Internship

I GOT AN INTERNSHIP!!!! Okay I had to do that! I am so excited!

A little background information:

I have been looking into internships for the past few weeks. I have 2 internships I have to complete 1) for Public health and 2) for Gerontology. I was going to do my Public Health internship at Jamestown Assisted living for elderly and continue and do my Gerontology internship there but I decided I would prefer to do the 2 internships in differing fields.

I started my search out with the idea that I probably would just end up doing my Public Health internship at Jamestown anyway. I had received a few emails from my adviser about some internship opportunities and sent in my resume and set up some interviews. I really wanted to do an internship at the Utah County Public Health department but from what I knew it was hard to find an internship there.

I had talked to someone at the Health Department and she let me know that she was unaware of any opportunities and some of the programs only had openings for Spring and Summer. I interviewed yesterday for a health literacy program and didn't feel really confident that it was what I wanted to do with my internship. I didn't feel like it best utilized my skills or interests. I made a list yesterday of all the new agencies I would call and started making calls.

I don't even know how I got the number for Eric, the director of the Health Promotion department within the Health Department, because I looked back and he wasn't on my list and I couldn't find his number later to cancel my interview. I got a call from a girl named Emilee who said she was over a work wellness program and wanted me to come in to interview. I accepted but once I was home I really wanted to call back and cancel. I just thought that they wouldn't like me that they wouldn't hire me. I thought, how can they hire a fat person to promote health!?

Dan told me just to go and if I really wanted to cancel to wait until the morning. I re thought it and went in. Emilee was really nice and I felt more comfortable once I was there. I was really happy to see that Emilee had a list of exactly what she expected of her intern and she herself had graduated from the Public Health Education program at BYU. I really liked the kind of activities I would be working on like promotion and research!

Emilee called me when I was at lunch with Dan and told me she had spoken with her boss and that they would love to have me as their intern! I was really surprised!

The Healthy Lifestyles program is a work incentive program offered to all the Utah County employees. Participates can earn 500$ a year for meeting specific criteria and if their spouse meets the same criteria they can earn 250$. They use the Apple Program to track the employees health and my job would be to work on activity lists, competitions, newsletters, and brown bag lunch presentations!

None the less I am super excited!

Game Night!

Last night we did a game night with the Cranes, Fillmores and Hubners! It was so much fun! Jon decided we were only true Americans if we had a blind democratic vote on which game to play. Like for Obama, the votes were predominately for the Celestial Companion Game. I was a little skeptic of a "Mormon" game but I have to say it was hilarious and so much fun. It was a good way to get to know the other couples better! We were in last place (by a third of a point)... But we had a blast!

Sweet November

It seriously feels like fall outside (and is starting to feel a little like winter.) I am trying to be optimistic about the weather although it is hard! This week was a fun filled week full of SCHOOL! It was the first week of November and all was well in the Calkins home!

This week on Tuesday I made this bold move:
Which led to this:

As lame as you may think I am because I had to do this (my mom suggested it) it is working for me! I mean my credit card is in a block of ice... not so convenient is it, but still around in case of emergency!

On Wednesday I applied for GRADUATION! I am walking in April graduation but will not finish my last 3 credit internship for my minor until the end of June... This is my last semester of classes. In January I start a 18 hour a week unpaid internship and will do that along side my 25 hour a week job!! I am really excited however to not have exams or classes to attend daily! (Internship location is still undecided).

On Friday this joyous miracle came into our lives:
It may not look like much (because we already had the frame and the sheets and quilt) but underneath it all is a brand new Serta mattress set by Vera Wang (who knew you could get a Vera Wang Mattress?!) It was a delightful way early Christmas present and I cannot tell you how needed it was... It replaced Dan's 10 year old Cali King which was broken on one side! However, in the hustle and bustle of the moving men trying to be as quick as possible, they did this little number to our bedroom door:It took the convincing of my Mother in Law and my Mother to get me to call R C Willey about paying for our door to be fixed. I really don't care that they broke it but my mom reminded me that I will have to pay to get it fixed when we move out because we will be charged. The wood is ruined and I can't re-screw... So yay... R C Willey gets to fix our door now... Poor guys they were just in too big of a hurry! Nice part was they didn't even say anything about breaking our door... just asked if I could sign the paper so they could leave.

Dan had a little mid quarter miracle of his own happen. For any of you who don't have husbands who love their XBox 360, this picture is a sign for Dan's long awaited game, Gears of War 2. He is so cute staring at the screen and well all I can say is, he has been a sweetheart by putting me first (doesn't mean he doesn't pout a bit about not getting to play 24/7). I will be honest though, since well before our wedding Dan really gave up playing video games, he kicked his butt into gear and got really into school and work and spending time with ME! He deserves a break from his horrid schedule so I am glad his game came! (I am however excited for him to beat it... then it won't seem so great!)

Also on Friday my dear friend Chelsea came home (for good) from her nanny job that she has been doing for the last 8 months in Stanford, Connecticut! We went to Sushi and it was sooooo good!

Thats this week in a nutshell. Aside from Obama being president elect and Ashley, Amanda and Kate having babies, this has been our week! OH and I successfully indexed 700 names this week... I was a little obsessed!

I am looking forward to an awesome Womens health midterm this week as well as a fun 4 couple get together on Wednesday with my dear friends Allyson & Jon, Rachael & Milan and Tonya & Kyle!

Breast is Best

I am in a wonderful Womens Health class this semester taught by Stephanie Fugal! She is such an amazing teacher filled with so much passion! On Thursday we were discussing Breastfeeding! Seeing as three of my friends became new Mommy's (or for the 3rd time!) and I have quite a few pregnant ones still out there, I found this interesting and important.

There are many reasons why people don't and can't breastfeed and I understand that however I found this lecture enlightening and made me a little less fearful for breastfeeding my children (once I have them!)

"By breastfeeding your babies, you will give them the very best that money cannot buy."
Breastfeeding is however under attack in our nation. People see a breastfeeding mother and can feel uncomfortable and at times may question her or ask her to stop or leave. Something our professor asked us was "Is breastfeeding a Right or a Choice?" Do breastfeeding mothers have rights? Well they do! Currently, 25 states have laws protecting the right to breastfeed in public (including Utah). No one has the right to tell a mother how to feed or where to feed her child!

Another problem mothers are being faced with is "the bag" that they are often given at the hospital upon leaving... the one thats full of formula to last them a few weeks! Breast milk is the best because it offers your baby immunity that they won't otherwise receive. Hospitals honestly feel like they are doing new mom's a favor by giving them these bags but with the high cost of formula, even just doing a few supplemental feedings can cost hundreds if not thousands in a year. There is a new program called Ban the Bag, they found that in Utah 97% of the hospitals are giving out these bags!

Our class is trying to create nursing stations on BYU's campus so that nursing mothers can feed their babies and store milk if needed for husbands to come pick up and feed babies between classes. Utah County is the baby center of the United States and BYU does not have nursing stations. Utah State has upwards to 6 or 7 nursing stations! We are trying to fix this problem!

Breast is best! I also had no idea that giving a baby cows milk within the first year can help them develop allergies to milk! I am so not ready to have a baby, I have lots to learn!

Congratulations Kate & Ben!

I had the pleasure of getting to know Kate my freshman year at BYU and I lived with her my sophomore year before she married Mr. Brady! Kate is so outgoing and loving and it has been so fun to see her get married and now have her own little baby! I remember when she told me they were trying to get pregnant, little knowledge to them, they already were! Archie Bernard Brady was born November 7th! He is the third baby to be born to one of my close friends this week!!! I can't wait to meet him!

Congratulations Amanda & Zach!

Amanda is one of my best friends from high school! She and her husband Zach got married in 2004 and now they have (as of Nov 3rd) three Beautiful boys!!! Brayden, Noah and Alex! Zach is currently serving our country in Iraq for the Air Force until early next year! Amanda and Zach have been stationed in Anchorage, Alaska for the last 4 years!

Congratulations Ashley & Don!

My friends Ashley and Don had their first baby November 2nd! Her name is Layla Bouge! I am so excited for them! I have been friends with Ashley since I started high school and Don since I started working with them at the bank!

President Barack Obama

Congratulations to the man who made history today as the first African American to run for president and be elected as such!

Awesome Photos

Indexing!

Dan and I received our first church calling as a married couple. We are now the Indexing Specialist of our ward... You may ask how in the world people who have never indexed can be specialist? But I guess in this case the Title comes before the actual expertise. We will be teaching the class in our ward and will be helping encourage other couples to index (I think).

The indexing project, for those who don't know, is the churches effort to take microfilm and census' and other historical documents and digitize them so that they are easy to search through online so that people can find their family names. Our stakes goal is to complete 1 million names in 1 year (so by this June 1st). We have completed almost 400,000 and have 7 months left.

Indexing isn't hard, it just takes some time and you just have to try and figure out sometimes messy handwriting. YAY for family history!
These cursive letters are helpful!