Dear Kids,
          Sorry we skipped out on the sledding party on New Year’s Day, but we were anxious to get back to our plumbing. Our office cabinets had been installed on Wednesday, but when the installer tried to put in the new bathroom vanity, he saw that one water line and the sink drain line were behind the drawers. That wasn’t going to work at all. He suggested that we get a plumber in to move the pipes, but thanks to what we learned from John the week before, I was pretty confident we could do it ourselves. The water line was no problem, thanks to the simplicity of pex (you can rent the crimping tool at Ace for just $5.00), but the sink drain was a little more complicated, since we had to run it through a 2x6, and there was an air vent attached to it. But between the two of us, we got it done. Another problem with our installation was that we were missing some trim pieces, which we had to go order from Home Depot, and pay for, and wait for. But in the meantime, we ran into Scott True at John’s house, and he’s ready to frame our basement! So there’s lots of excitement to keep the January doldrums at bay.
          Like most of you, we had incredibly cold weather just before New Year’s. It was -15 here one night, which meant it would have been -20 at the cabin. I knew it was coming, thanks to weather.com, and I was worried about our cats, sleeping in the garage. I went online to Amazon and found a cat warming pad that’s pressure-sensitive; it only warms up when it feels the cat sitting on it. (Actually, it’s a 2-cat warmer, since it’s a long rectangle.) I ordered the pad, and for the first time ever, I paid for overnight shipping. It came the next day, and I set it up, but the cats didn’t seem grateful. They always think they ought to be inside the house. Still, they’re always curled up on the pad together now.
           I have new callings in the Spanish branch, because some of our old people are gone, and new ones have been called. (I mean Caucasians–they do most of the heavy lifting.) One of the new ladies is going to take over as Primary president, and I’m going to be teaching Relief Society. I was also released as chorister and sustained as organist. I’m excited about both these callings! I like playing the organ better than leading music, because I’m not the greatest singer. And Primary was fun, but I’m glad to move on from that, too.
          I hope you’re all enjoying the new year as much as we are! Love, Mom