New Bathroom

This weekend we remodeled the basement bathroom. We put in a new floor (getting rid of the linoleum/carpet) and replaced the counter top and sink. Now when I say "we", I don't mean that Jarom and I didn't much of the work. Jarom's brother Jake and his friend Jamen came to senver for an extended weekend for Beeline, and they agreed to do the bathroom for us. They worked doing pest control during the days and worked on the bathroom at night. Thursday night was spent buying material. Friday they did the tile floor. Saturday they did counter and back splash. They did an excellent job!!!

Busy , busy, busy....

This past week has been CRAZY!! A few days before school started, I decided to cut my class load because I was getting really stressed and it hadn't even started yet. Now that classes have started, I'm thinking it was a GOOD IDEA! Here is a rundown of how my week goes:

Monday and Wednesday
8:00-9:00 answer phones and return messages for Beeline while getting ready for classes
9:00-1:20 classes plus commute into Denver
1:30-4:00 answer phones for Beeline
4:00-6:30 piano lessons
6:30-8:00 try to do homework while answering phones
8:00-11:00 frantically try to read read read for the next day's classes
11:00-11:45 run

Tuesday and Thursday
8:00-1:00 do paperwork while answering phones for Beeline
1:00-5:45 classes and commute to Denver
6:30-7:30 piano lessons
7:30-11:00 dinner and reading for next day's classes

Friday and Saturday
answering phones, running errands, and trying to catch up on missed readings

If you notice, Monday-Thursday are VERY full!! It has been crazy!! So if you are thinking of calling or getting together with me, it's safe to assume that I'm busy.... but call anyways, cause I might need the break!!

On a good note, I'm taking pretty awesome classes!! US History 1932-present, US History colonial-end of civil war, Civil War and Reconstruction History, and Nazi Germany History. Can you tell what my major is?? ha ha. I'm covering almost every time period in US History. I'm only missing the time between reconstruction and WWI (cause we cover that in Nazi Germany).

Death Cab For Cutie

We went to the Death Cab concert in July. ( I know, I'm just getting around to posting about it.) It was AWESOME!!! It was at Red Rocks and it was great!! Death Cab is one of mine and Jarom's favorite bands. They were just as good in person as they are on CD, which is always saying something for a band. We took our friends with us, Becca and Ryan. Because they parked in one fo the back parking lots, they left right after the band left the stage. Unfortunetly, they missed the encore. And it was AMAZING!! They did 4 songs, 2 of which are my favorite. If you are interested in looking them on, they are I Will Follow You Into The Dark and Transatlanticism. I highly suggest both!! Funny thing, so this girl ran up on stage after the first encore song, but didn't last very long after she got to the lead singer. Later, he said, "Man, if you could see the look on that girls face when she grabbed me and realized how sweaty I was. It was like 'ooh.... ewe!' That's why I wear a cowboy shirt. It works for the cowboys." I was laughing so hard!!!!! Anyways, if anyone gets the oppotunity to get a CD or see them in concert, I would be disappointed if you turned it down!!!

http://www.myspace.com/deathcabforcutie

http://www.deathcabforcutie.com/medias/

Fall 2009

Our summer weather has finally reached us, and already the reality of fall is quickly approaching. I'm trying to drag my feet, but I'm about to be thrown, head first, into the oncoming obligations. ahhh.....

Our lives don't seem very exciting. I've been hanging out with my sister a lot. I've gotten her into painting her toe nails. We have fun!! Fun colors and flower stickers! It's been fun to hang out with her and makes me happy that I moved back to Highlands Ranch. We are too much in common, it's fun! Maybe annoying to Jarom when I disappear for a "quick run to Laurel's" that ends up taking 2-3 hours. ha ha. One benefit to hanging out with Laurel, is that she is a deal finder. I've been shopping with her at Goodwill. Here in HR, they have really good stuff at Goodwill. And a lot of the time they still have the tags on them. The great thing about shopping there, is that I can shop more often and get more because everything costs 1/4 less than regular stores. I have missed shopping so much!!! It is wonderful!!!!!!

I've also been able to hang out a lot with my sister Layna since we both moved back to denver. This summer she moved to Littleton, so we've seen a lot more of eachother. Just last night we went and spent the evening with Layna and Matt. We had a blast!!!

I've started running. I'm not good yet, or even fast, but I'm working on it. I think the benefit for my lungs out weights the losses in my weight. I will just have to eat more. Just yesterday, I was running, and I was thinking to myself, "If someone is looking out their window watching me, they must be thinking 'man, when she is running, she doesn't move much faster than when she is walking.'" ha ha. I'm ok with that.

Work has been busy (particularly in the mornings). Jarom is considering hiring another tech because our current tech is leaving for college soon. (Hint hint if you know anyone looking for a full time job.) We already have another office girl that will start training next week when her kids go back to school. We have high hopes for her!! : ) (It's my sister, Laurel)

I start classes at METRO Aug 17th. I'm nervous about going to a different college. I just don't know what to expect in teachers, work load, etc. I'm taking 18 credits, and I should be done next spring (making it only 2 semesters, but 2 very full semesters). I will still teach piano lessons in the afternoons and some evenings. It will be busy, but hopefully worth it!!

This fall will be busy busy, but I'm trying to see it as "very scheduled." haha. That's about it from the Walz home.

Father's Day!

WOW!! What a weekend we have had! Friday night around 11:00pm, Layna and Matt called us because they decided that they wanted to spend Fathers Day with our dad, who is serving a mission in North Dakota. We emidiately agreed to come with them. So we left Denver early Saturday morning, telling almost no one where we were headed, including mom and dad. After driving all day through WY, SD and ND, we got into Bismarck around 6:20pm. One problem, mom and dad weren't at their apartment. so as we were waiting for them, we drove around the close resturants looking for them and trying to call from my cell. When I finally got a hold of Dad, they passed us in the car. I chatted with them (never mentioning that we weren't in Denver) while they unloaded groceries. When hey finally went into heir apartment, we snuck up to the apartment, knocked on the fron door and yelled "happy fathers day!" when dad answered. Mom was changing and didn't realize it was us. She was QUITE surprised when she came out expecting from young single adults from the area. It was a WONDERFUL surprise!! Probably the only fathers day gift dad would happily accept! Mom and dad showed us around Bismark, showing us the church bld, temple, capital, parks, and river. We ended with dinner at Golden Corral, where everyone got whatthey wanted, including dessert.

Sunday morning Dad made us an excellent breakfast of friend potatoes and sausage! YUMMY!!!! We drove 2 hours with them to the branch at McLaughlin. There were probably 16 people there besides us and mom and dad. We only stayed for the sacrament and then had to leave. It was a tini bld with wonderful members! It was a tearful goodbye and we wish that we would have had more time with mom and dad. It was so WONDERFUL to see them, see where they are living, see a little of where they travel, and see the wonderful work they are doing!!

On the way home we stopped through the Badlands, Mt Rushmore, and Crazy Horse. It added a few hours to our trip, but we were already so close! The drive here and back were beautiful!!! Everything was so green and we loved seeing the great plains!!!

Bismarck is lovely and we could easily see why mom and dad love it so much!! What a wonderful weekend, however short it was!

Update

So I know I haven't updated very well since we moved to Colorado. I think that I was always waiting for something to happen. What I'm realizing is that I've been waiting for big news. So here are some of the smaller things:

Business is going. Winter is always a slower season for pest control. Bed bugs are big, which has given us enough work. Now that it is warmer and spring is coming, business has picked up. Last week Jarom was pretty busy. Busy enough that he bought another truck to get ready for hiring another technician in May. YEA!

Great Strides. This is a 10k walk for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. We are gearing up for the walk on May 16th. We are looking for people to join our team and walk with us, and also looking for donations. This is very important to me because I have Cystic Fibrosis and so does my brother. In the past, the research was all about treating the symptoms. Now, they are focusing on treating the problem, and so far have been very successful. This is wonderful because these medications could stop all the problems of having Cystic Fibrosis. They could make it disappear. This is the next best thing to a cure!! So we are getting pretty geared up for May 16th!!

Living back in the Ranch. Oh, it's been hard!!! I feel completely isolated because of the lack of people my age and same situation. I'm not sure if Jarom feels the same way (because he isn't one to complain or talk about things like that) but it's been hard for me! I feel like I should be going to the singles ward... except that I'm not single. It is just very very frustrating!!

It is sunny in Colorado! It has been such nice weather. I burned myself last week on Tuesday and Thursday from sitting in the park. It has felt so nice!! Unfortunately, it is suppose to snow this week Wed or Thursday. UGH! The good thing is that we need the moisture!

That is it from the Walz Home. We love and miss everyone!!

American Sign Language

My senior year of High School, I was ready to be done! Through my high school, I took american sign language (ASL) through the local Community College. I worked the system at the high school to get off 1st and 2nd period for those classes that were held after school. (If you know me, you understand that getting the mornings off is vital, because I don't work well in the morning, which always makes me late.) I LOVED ASL!!! I loved my teacher, the class, the language, the responsibility of college, etc etc. Although I've tried and failed other languages in my life (French and Russian), ASL seemed to come naturally to me. I understood everything my deaf teacher was signing, and I could remember the sign for almost every word I had learned. I felt like I was one of the best in my class, and my teacher was impressed that I had never signed before. It is easy to say that ASL was the highlight of my school year!

When I decided to go to college in Rexburg, I knew that I would not be able to pursue sign language. That was ok because I had other reasons for attending college. But it has always made me sad that ASL made me so happy, and I was kind of left at a dead end in Rexburg. So over the past 4 years I have forgotten a lot! I still remember one story that I told for my midterm, but it doesn't come up in common conversation very often. ha ha.

Since moving back to Highlands Ranch, I have jumped head first into sign language! I am teaching sunbeams with a deaf girl. I sign and speak every lesson I give in class. I don't interpret for sharing time yet, but I watch. I attend a sign class every Wednesday night. I visit teach a deaf woman. I still have a long way to go to even get back to where I was in high school, but I'm remembering and learning so much! The family in our ward that uses sign language is so nice and patient! It has been a lot of fun getting to know them and using ASL! I still feel almost sloppy with my signs, but I understand so much of what is said. I definitely feel like the Lord is blessing me in this progress.

We Made It To Colorado

Although we moved to Colorado before New Years, we are just feeling like it is more than a vacation. Most of our stuff is still packed in boxes in the garage, but our bed and dresser etc are up and in the master bedroom. So at least that room feels like our place.

Jarom and I got put to work right away in our new ward (which is my old ward too). We are now Primary teachers of 9 brand new Sunbeams. They are SO cute! One of the new Sunbeams is deaf, so the Bishop was excited for us to be moving back into the ward. I've been remembering my basic signs, and I look forward to remembering the sign language I learned in High School. Jarom is so great with the kids! He is especially good with the boys that don't sit still. It is very cute to watch!!

I have been spending a lot of time with Laurel. We are helping each other with my parents' departure, and she has been helping me make new friends in the ward. thank goodness for a good sister that I like hanging out with!!

My parents go into the MTC next Monday (January 26th), but they left today to spend the rest of the week visiting family in Utah. They have been working very hard to pack up their things and get ready to make the big move to Bismarck, North Dakota. We will miss them greatly, but appreciate the good example they set for our family and friends. I think they will really love their time on their mission!!

The business is up and running!! The ads in the phone books weren't suppose to come out until the end of February, but Laurel called us a few weeks ago to let us know they got their new phone books. Since then, we have had about 1 appointment a day. We are so greatful for the business and hope that it will continue and increase. (Hint hint) It has definitely kept Jarom busy! I'm sure he is greatful for that!

That is about it from here. I will try to post more later.