2011 June

Jerika and I drove to Utah to check her into summer term at college.  

Here we are parked in front of her cousins' house in Utah Valley.

Jerika and her good friend in her dorm kitchen.

Our new house!  

The week after checking Jerika into college, we moved into our new house! 

It is a single story with basement on one acre.

2011 May

 Jerika and her date for Prom.

 

 

Gideon received his Bobcat rank in Cub Scouts.

Gideon was baptized by his father, Jerry.

Jerika graduated from high school.  Both of her grandmother's were here for the event!

Happy Spring, Happy Easter!

Dear Family,

Well, spring is here in AZ. We've harvested all of our oranges from our orange tree and received over a gallon of juice! YUMMY! The oranges get sweeter the longer they're left on the tree, so we resisted harvesting until March. Now, the new citrus buds are forming and the air smells so sweet! Well, OK, that was last month. With the start of April the oven door has opened and we're running the A/C in the car during afternoon errands. Oh, well. We can pray a cold front will come through to put off the triple digits just a little while longer.

These past few months - Jerika has begun a part time job at a dental office, helping to schedule patients. As it turns out, it is Cathy's dental office! Jerika went with her HS orchestra to participate in a Music Festival in southern California. They won best of festival!!! She was so excited! Jerika and friends volunteered to be models for a Prom Fashion show. They had a lot of fun and looked beautiful!

Tori spent two months involved with the production of "The Music Man." She was cast as a townsperson and it was so fun to watch her animations on stage! She really knows how to bring a character to life.


Over spring break Jerry took Tori and Kyler to the dunes for a few days. Tori had her first official wipe out - the quad rolled over on top of her, but sand is a soft place for a landing so she came home unscathed. Tori -
Jerry was able to finish spring break at the annual Varsity Scout Mountain Man Rendezvous. He loved it! Jerry is on the far right ...

Me, I'm enjoying teaching my preschool class and have already completed registration for next year's class. I have also felt progress in our new non-profit, Gilbert Supporters of the Gifted. We've been able to make connections with some of the staff at the district level as well as the school board and superintendency.

Kyler has been involved in the chess club and 7th grade band this year. He also had fun on a snow camping trip with his scout troop (yes, there IS snow in Arizona - you just have to be near the Grand Canyon to find it. :) This past weekend he attended the Priesthood session of General Conference for the first time. He went with Jerry and Uncle Eric and really enjoyed it.

One of the photos below is a good shot of Gideon in his new glasses. He was excited that he could read the street signs as we drove home from the optometrist's. :) He is really becoming a super reader and loves reading Calvin and Hobbs.

As a family we are participating in the Mesa Easter Pageant again this year. Our first practice was a Super Saturday - 8am-4pm. We set up shade covers on the temple lawn, threw on the hats and sunscreen, and spent the bulk of the day rehearsing our 3 multitude scenes with the group. The photo below is our "tent city" in front of the stage. It was perfect weather. As a family, we are excited to be participating in Pageant again. Our lives have been so busy, that we are looking forward to the peace that we receive as we act out the Savior's life in the Easter Pageant. We wish you all a peaceful and very Happy Easter!

Merry Christmas from the Newitts

Merry Christmas from the Newitts ... and George Washington's home at Mt. Vernon

The Mt. Vernon shore of the Potomac River

The "Ha-ha" wall at Mt. Vernon which separates the formal lawn from the animal pastures.

December 2010

Dear Family & Friends,

We wish you a very merry Christmas! We have enjoyed 2010 and the new and fun adventures that it has brought us and wish to share a few of the high lights with you.

As a family, we planted a spring garden for the first time in years and harvested about 20 cups of peas! Yummy! We also took our family to Utah for Easter so we could attend General Conference. It was a first time event for our children and it was a wonderful experience to see the Prophet and hear the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing. Grandma Susie visited us in the spring and the fall and we enjoyed our Hartley family gatherings. In July we made another trip to Utah, this time to go camping with Jerry’s brothers and mom at Fish Lake, though NO fish were biting the entire time we were there! While in Utah we also enjoyed time with Jerry’s brother Ken and his family, celebrating the 4^th of July.

Our BIGGEST and most favorite adventure of the year was our trip to Washington DC to spend our fall break with our dear friends, the Jamisons. We loved connecting with them again and also touring the National Mall, the National Air & Space Museum and Mt. Vernon. At the National Mall we saw the original Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights. We toured the Capital building, visiting the original and current chambers of congress. We enjoyed the joke about the “Ha-ha” walls at Mt. Vernon. We also enjoyed the National Treasure 2 tour and seeing the basement at Mt. Vernon. We loved the chilly weather of Virginia, the changing of the leaves, hot chocolate and good times with good friends.

Our individual high-lights are:

Jerika (17) has her driver’s permit and will be getting her license soon; and, after three years of working on it, her Jeep is running! (Hooray!!) Her cat Daisy had kittens. Jerika enjoyed going to Spring Prom and Winter Formal. Over the summer, she attended EFY at BYU-Provo with some girlfriends. It was a big road trip and adventure as after their time in Provo, they went to BYU-Idaho to visit the campus and family there. Then, it was back to Provo for an official tour of the Provo campus. She has really enjoyed spending time with her friends this year. She has submitted college applications and we hope to hear some good news in a few months. Now in her senior year, Jerika has enjoyed playing cello in her school’s symphony orchestra. Her DC trip favorite – Time with Emma, Mt. Vernon, Halloween dance with Emma.

Tori (15) is in 10^th grade and is enjoying her cooking class this year. Over the summer she went to EFY in Flagstaff at NAU and really enjoyed the classes and dances there. She also enjoyed her time with her Utah cousins this summer – shopping with Samantha and hanging out with Mitchell & Keeton. Tori was a 4^th year at Girls Camp this past summer and especially enjoyed swimming in the river, being with friends, and talking late into the night! At camp they had fun doing skits and jokes with the Zac Efron cutout. Tori now has her project car – 1967 Mercury Cougar. It is already running, but still needs care before it is fully drivable. Aunt Diana came out for a visit in August and Tori especially enjoyed camping with her. Her DC trip favorite – Time with Emma and the Halloween dance.

Kyler (12) finished the 6^th grade last spring. High lights were building a model castle, complete with trebuchet, and making the Honor Roll. Over the summer he attended Scout Camp for the first time and earned some great merit badges. This fall he started 7^th grade at the Jr. High School and enjoys participating in the Chess Club. Kyler recently turned 12 and was ordained a deacon and now helps each week to pass sacrament to the congregation. He has really enjoyed the quadding trips that he has made with Dad & Gideon. His DC trip favorite – Washington Monument.

Gideon (7) is in 2^nd grade and has become an avid reader. Last spring he enjoyed playing coach-pitch baseball and this fall he has had fun playing on his soccer team – the Fireballs. This is his second season of soccer and he is a confidant soccer player. It is fun to watch him on the field. He enjoys quadding with Kyler and Dad. DC trip favorite – Washington Monument and playing with Eliza and helping her take care of her dog (yes, Stephanie is allergic, so Gideon will never have that opportunity here at home!).

Jerry took his scouts to the annual Mountain Man Rendezvous again this year. They had a great time preparing their gear and attending the rendezvous. He enjoyed time with his family camping in Utah, though he wishes the fish had been biting. He has enjoyed taking our boys on a few quadding trips. We have undertaken a small remodeling project here at home and Jerry has ripped out the carpet from the upstairs study and installed wood laminate flooring for Stephanie’s workroom. Jerry’s DC trip favorite -- Visiting with the Jamisons and seeing the Air & Space Museum with the Orbital rocket.

Stephanie has returned to teaching preschool again this year after having taken a year off. She is also a Sunday School teacher at church teaching the 13/14 year olds. They have been a great class and she will miss them when they move up in January. Over the summer, Stephanie was ward girls camp director at the stake girls’ camp. She really enjoyed getting to know the girls of the ward. Stephanie has been really involved in the workroom makeover – packing, painting, unpacking, & organizing. The newest and biggest undertaking for Stephanie has been to establish a local non-profit support group for gifted children, their families and educators – Gilbert Supporters of the Gifted. You can check out her website at www.gilbertgifted.org. Stephanie’s DC trip favorites – Visiting and cooking with Jennifer, Mt. Vernon, the Declaration of Independence and the original Star Spangled Banner.

We look forward to spending time with family this holiday season. We wish you all a Christmas full of the love, joy and peace that comes from our Savior.

Love, the Newitts

Newitt Fall News

In early October we had a major storm come through the valley. In our neighborhood we had marble sized hail. Due to the hail hitting the house, we have "stucco" confetti on the porch and the leaves of our citrus trees in the front yard look like they were blasted with a shot gun.

For our one week of Fall Break, we joined our friends the Jamisons in Virginia and we toured Washington DC! It was a blast!
Click here to see our photos of our trip to Washington DC

For our ward's Halloween "Trunk-or-Treat" - Tori the Thief and Kyler the Card

From Avatar: The Last Airbender - Gideon was Ang and Jerika was Kitara

Baby Nora! Our newest niece, blessed by her daddy (my brother Eric!) on November 7th.
In this photo - my mom and Eric, surrounded by his brothers,
who all came out to AZ for this special day!

Jerika & Gideon with cousins on Nora's blessing day.

Tori & Kyler with cousins on Nora's blessing day.

School's In Session!!

Gideon, on the 1st day of 2nd grade!

Kyler decided to be artistic with the back lawn and "carved" a smiley face.

Happy 15th birthday Tori!!
(Yes, Hartley fans, that is LEMON CAKE her cake of choice! YUM!!!)

Aunt Stephie with newest niece, Baby Nora Hartley! So cute and kissable!

Happy birthday Jerry!
He requested homemade ice cream cake --
chocolate cake with fudge ripple ice cream topped with whipped cream.
MAJOR YUMMY!!!!!

Kyler received his 2nd Class Scout rank and pins his mother.

Summer is over!

Well, summer is over and it was a BUSY summer, with lots of comings and goings!

Jerika & Tori each enjoyed a week at EFY. Especially For Youth is a week long camp hosted by our church at various universities around the country. It gives the kids a taste of college & dorm life in an atmosphere with BYU standards. For the activities, besides dances, they have lots of confidence and team building classes and workshops. Tori went to NAU in Flagstaff with a friend and Jerika attended out of state for the first time at the BYU-Provo, UT, campus. Jerika had quite the adventure with her group of friends ... after her week at EFY they drove up to BYU-Idaho and toured the campus there and visited Yellowstone Park, among other things. On their return trip to AZ, they stopped at BYU-Provo again for a guided tour of the campus. Jerika had a GREAT experience and is gearing up to fill out college applications this fall.

Gideon & Tori playing cards, "Ol' West" style with their IBC root beers.
What goofy kids!

Kyler went to Scout Camp for the first time this year.
Jerry went too.

Kyler, working on the Rifle Shooting merit badge.

Jerika received Stratego for her birthday -- Watch out world!

Jerry's family likes to have campout reunions. This summer we met up at Fish Lake in central Utah. Our kids loved playing with their cousins.

Jerry & his brother Ken.
The kids enjoyed playing cards together - Nathan, Jerika, Kresten, Kyler & Sara.

Gideon with Grandma Vickie.

The cousins played the card game "President-Scum" more than any other game!
Jerika, Ketton, Tori, Kyler, 2nd cousin Joelle (Samantha's baby), Nathan & Gideon.

Tori took this shot of me. She enjoys photography.

A windy walk around Fish Lake! Don't get blown away!
Mitchell, Jerika, Kyler, Tori, Uncle Ken, Gideon, Nathan & Jerry.

Jerika, Mitchell, Nathan, Kyler & Gideon boating on Fish Lake.
Jerry was the pilot. (I'm the historian :)

Jerika, Tori, Mitchell, Nathan, Kyler & Gideon working on the fort at Fish Lake, UT.

We spent the 4th of July in Pleasant Grove, UT and toured Timpanogas Caves with Wittern cousins. Cousin Amanda is a ranger there.

Jerry & I visited my Uncle Jim & Aunt Linda Hartley in Murray, UT. Jim is my dad's youngest brother. I hadn't seen them in years and it was a great visit.

This year I was asked to be our ward's Girls Camp Director. I enjoyed working with the girls and helping them prepare for our Stake Girls Camp. It was my first time attending camp since I was a teenager and I loved that I got to see Jerika & Tori there. It was Tori's 4th year at camp this summer so she participated in the High Adventure trip - overnight backpacking, canoeing, and repelling! Tori's high adventure group joined us at main camp on the 3rd day. This year Jerika was a Youth Camp Leader at Girls Camp and worked on certification with the 1st Year girls. Below is Jerika with 2 of her YCL friends. I was a cabin mom for the 1st Year girls from our ward. I loved that I got to see Jerika on our 1st Year hike!

Jerika with some of the girls from our ward on the 1st Year hike.

Our "last hurrah" of summer was our ward campout, so needless to say, we got our fair share of camping in this summer between Boy Scout Camp, Girls Camp, Family Reunion Camp and well, the Ward Family Campout.
In fact, we are the Camping Maniacs, and we are, officially, camped-out!