From False Call to Mission Call

Man a lot has happened since the last post. Sorry I haven't been dedicated about updating the blog. I thought once school got out I would have more time to do those kinds of things. As I said a lot has happened and I suppose the best place to start is where I left off.
The next two weeks in May were pretty calm (comparatively) Roy got home on the first of May and was able to help Dad take care of Zach while Nyki and Mom were at work. Zach as gotten so big he no longer is content to just sleep all day which makes him rather fussy when he is not given your full attention. This made it very difficult for Dad to take care of him. Before Roy got home Ashlee and I would come home during lunch to calm him down and get him to sleep. It worked out pretty well except we were often late for class; our teachers were fine with it when we explained the situation but it was a great relief when Roy was able to take over Zach Duty.
Finals for me were a pain but I made it through or else I would assume so (I never actually saw my scores) because I was able to graduate with honors. Looking back I think Heavenly Father was blessing us with those few calm weeks to give us the strength for what he had in store the last week of May.
Late Monday the 25th Grandma, Grandpa, Jacob, Josh, and Brandie arrived at our house for the week's events. On Tuesday I got to go to Lagoon with all of the Seniors of Bonneville High school for our senior trip. It was a blast! My friends and I got stuck on top of the White Roller Coaster for almost 20 min. while it poured buckets of rain, it was great fun! On the way home Mom informed me that Aunt Betsey had just had her Baby Boy so Grandma, Grandpa and Josh had gone up to Rexburg to help out with her other four kids.
Wednesday was even more exciting. After a grueling three hours of graduation practice some of my friends and I decided we need some sugar to get us through the next few days so we went and got Ice Cream at the local dairy (Reed's Dairy is the best Ice cream you will ever have, even better than Aggie Ice cream and that is saying something, it must be the potato flakes.) while we were eating our Ice cream and reminiscing about high school, I got a phone call from Dad, We Got The Call! Oh my Gosh I thought I was going to explode I was so excited!!! One of my friends drove me home (in his Mustang) so I could see Mom and Dad before they left for SLC. I was afraid I was going to miss them but when we pulled into the driveway they were still there, they had been waiting for the other kids to get out of school so we could have a family prayer before they left.
Ashlee got home shortly after me and was balling because she thought I would feel forgotten because Mom and Dad weren't going to be at graduation. Several of our Young women's leaders had showed up to offer support and to promise me that they would be there cheering me on tomorrow.
Before Mom and Dad could even get out the door the Relief society had already showed up with enough food to feed a third world country. Mom and Dad got on the road a little after four and made it to SLC with plenty of time to spare.
When they arrived at the Hospital they were told they would have to wait until after midnight because the donor had not yet died. When they were Finally ready to harvest the organs (around 4:00 am) the doctor discovered none of the organs were healthy enough for donation, so they ended up sending Dad and several others home without transplants.
Dad was starving he hadn't eaten anything since the breakfast sandwich I made him around 10:00 Wednesday morning. So Mom and Dad got breakfast and then drove as far as Tremonton where they stayed for a few hours to take a nap and rest before they got home to the chaos that awaited them there.
They got home with an hour or so before graduation. Graduation was just like any other nothing exciting happened except that all of the graduates gave the Principal a key for him to use to try and unlock his car which we had unbeknownst to him chained to a tree, his daughter had the key he needed but by the time he got to her he started sticking them in the diplomas when he handed them to the students ( I don't know how he Finally got his car free, that should teach him to never give away something his daughter gives him.)
After graduation we had a small party where I was extremely spoiled with gifts ranging from a small TV that was probably made in the early 80's to an amazing blender my favorite sister and my cousin gave me. I will no longer have nightmare about not being able to make milkshakes while I am at college. After that Dad set up a drive in movie for my friends and I in our driveway so we could have our own Senior all nighter instead of going to the athletic club and paying an outrageous price to swim and play volley-ball. It was great fun and lasted almost to four. I however fell asleep several time during the movies but I don't think I am the only one.
Friday we spent getting ready for Jacob and Brandie's wedding on Saturday. Saturday we went to a Baby Shower for Betsey and then threw together a Wedding in just a few hours. It was a chaotic and frustrating experience but it happened and now Jacob and Brandie have been married for almoste two months.
On Sunday we blessed Zach and the family left. It is kind of weird going from a house that is bursting at the seams with people to just us but it is so nice at the same time.
Roy turned 19 on the 19th of June. Roy completed his mission papers and submitted them by the end of June.
On the second of July Dad, Mom, Ashlee and I went to Utah for Dad's swim team reunion. Mom, Ashlee and I felt a little out of place but Dad had a great time reuniting with his swim team buddies. We got home mid-morning on the Fourth. Mom had to drive up to Rexburg to take care of some family drama that cropped up between the little boys and Grandpa, it got pretty tense there for a little while but it seems to have worked out now so we will see what happens. Latter that night we made our own little firework show in our driveway and had a blast blowing things up with Mom.
Ashlee turned 15 on the fifth, Mom made her a Delicious cake that we took Rexburg and shared with the whole Long/Smith family because Betsey and Trent were also blessing their baby Colman that day.
On July 8 Roy received his mission call to the Seattle Washington mission, he leaves the 19 of August! we have a big map on our wall in the basement with sticky-notes where everybody guessed he would go and where all of our family members have served. It is really cool to see how far the Long/Fulgham/Smith family has gone to serve The Lord.
On the 13th Timothy turned 10 and we had a nice little party with a Giant Oreo Cookie Cake. he was so funny because all he wanted for his birthday was a clock, a watch and a Pocket watch, you would think he was having a hard time keeping track of time or something. It is funny to see him walk around the house with a watch on both wrists and a pocket watch hanging out of his gym shorts. Ah little brothers you never know what to expect with them.
Roy had his interview with the Bishop and Stake President on Sunday and is now a worthy temple recommend holder (Sunday is exactly one month after his birthday and he leaves on the 19 of August two months after his birthday, kind of cool hu?). He is planning on going through the temple sometime next week.
We have the big Donald and Elberta Long Family Reunion in Lagoon the the 24th and 25th and so we are getting ready for that. we have had some issues getting work schedules straightened out and figuring out transportation. The way it looks right now most of us will be riding up with Betsey and Trent Thursday night because Dad is not up to going. Ashlee has invited her best friend Acacia from Colorado to come with us. Acacia will be flying into Idaho Falls on Friday night and so Mom will be driving her up to spend Saturday in Lagoon with us. It is pretty exciting.
August looks to be an other crazy month for our family. Nyki has recently become engaged to Paule Knight, a nurse that works at the Life Care Center where Pat is. He is a great man and seams to really care and love Nyki and Zach. He seams very mature and has been preparing for Nyki and Zach to join his family. They will be married in August and then we will have a reception for them in September.
Aaron doesn't turn 13 until the 9th of August but he is already acting like a teenager, butting heads with Dad and doing the exact thing you tell him not to. It is probably a good thing I am going away for college, I won't be at home fighting with Aaron and making everything harder for Mom and Dad.
Of coerce Roy enters the MTC on the 19th, we are planning on all going. We will leave Monday so we can get a Steak and Cheese Sandwich from the Italian Place on Tuesday and then dropping him off at the MTC on Wednesday. When I say dropping him off I am serious, no longer is the family allowed inside the MTC you have to just drop the Missionaries off at the curb and go. It is going to be a hard trip home.
This week is going to be especially hard for Mom because she is not just loosing Roy on Wednesday but I leave for College on Friday. I however am just going an hour away to Idaho State University in Pocatello. I will be staying in the dorms with Kelsey Jones a friend of mine from school and a fellow band nerd. It should be lots of fun.
Hopefully these next few weeks will be fun and memorable. Though with our luck we will probably get the call right in the middle of all of it. As crazy as that sounds, we would just be happy to get Dad better.
Well I think I have probably bored you out of your mind now so I will stop writing, not to mention I think my fingers will start bleeding soon from all this typing. As bad and crazy as our life may seem it is so full of blessings and it is never hard to see God's Hand helping us along the way. Thank you again for all of your prayers and support.

We Love y'all
Annie