tim and jill mathews

Thank you Deb for continuing to remind me that there are others in my life that care about what happens in my small part of the world. It is good to know that I have a family that cares enough to read emails when they receive 25 a day.

We are doing well. Jill and I are becoming accustomed to going to the Mormon church on a regular basis. I think I got to the point that it was only a pipe dream to go every week and now that it is here, it can be a bit overwhelming. Jill is doing great! She really likes her calling because she gets to learn about the gospel from a young woman's perspective and can really relate to the girls in her class. She is the second counselor in the young women's and has to teach classes, plan activities, and execute them all without much guidance or help. She loves that she can make it her own and she has another project to work on in her "spare time". She is so awesome and will work sun up to sun up to make sure that her family is taken care of and happy. She has also begun to work hard at taking phone calls for infomercials. She will sit up in our bedroom and talk on the phone with people who call to order a magazine and will get them to buy 10 more. She should get paid on commission. She said that she likes doing it because she feels that she contributes to the family. She has recently gotten her mom to start and we hope that it will help her to have extra spending money as well.

Elle is doing really well. She is a home body like her dad and loves to stay at home and play with her dozens of princesses and their castles. She knows that if any of them break she can put on her puppy dog eyes and ask her parents for another one. They are cheap, but she literally has dozens of them. She has recently learned, thanks Santa, that if Daddy or Mommy will not replace her broken toys that she will, "just write a letter to Santa and he will get it for her." It was great to see her open all of her presents on Christmas and play with them for days. Elle is involved in dance, play groups, reading time at the library, and checking out books that she will read or have read to her. Her latest manipulation involves a friend named Claire, that lives in Utah. Anything that she does that would earn her a consequence, she blames it on Claire. We will say, "honey, you haven't seen Claire for a long time", and she will say,"but Daddy, Claire pushed me and wouldn't let me play with my toy." It takes me back to when mom used to call Deb the "little neighbor girl." We assume that this "Claire" is the perverbial excuse, so no offense to Deb and Claire Bear. We have really debated on how to use this to our advantage, it would be so much easier if she used another girl she knew, not a relative. I think it is really funny.

Liam is a bulldozer. This past year, he has almost broken my nose with his head, it started to bleed, and last week he gave Jill a huge black eye and scrap on her face. He doesn't feel a thing. He is crawling around on the floor like a truck and will almost run into things and stop just shy and then sit up and laugh. Mom and he have a game where he starts to rub his hands like crazy and she will do it and he will crack up laughing. It is one of the first belly laughs that he has done, so it is really special.

I am doing well in my new job, it is very different than being in Las Vegas, the weather, atmosphere, people, no mexican food, everyone is rude and blunt, so I fit in just fine. The campus and people that I work with are good for me, they are very different, but I am learning how to deal with different people. Gettting into middle management, you have to be so careful in how you deal and talk with people, while at the same time, getting the desired results. It's an art form. Last Sunday, I received two callings, sunday school teacher for our Spanish folks and teacher in the Elder's quorum, so that will keep me busy and going to church.

We love you all and appreciate your concern and love for us!

Love,

Tim, Jill, Elle, and Liam-