Guatemala

Once again it has been a few weeks since I wrote and during that time a lot has happened. At the end of February I had the life changing opportunity of going to Guatemala to build houses. On the 13th 8 of us took off on this adventure with no plans on where to help or who. We spent 10 days helping build houses, stoves, walls and other odds and ends for people who just don't have the money to help themselves. One of the first days we were in the country we drove out to the coast where the poverty level is absolutely unbelievable. We were told about a women whose husband was murdered last year and she was left a lone with 5 kids under the age of 12. When we arrived she was so surprised to see 8 gringos ready to build her a home and help her family. After talking with her for a few minutes we noticed there was no food to be found. I asked her how long it had been since they had eaten and her response was a punch to the gut. "tres dias" 3 days since they had last eaten... Since this women has no way of working outside the home with so many kids and no husband we decided to build her a stove where she could cook and sell tortillas for the neighbors.

The following day we met a family that lived in a small home... when I say home this was a mixture of sheet metal, cardboard and old wood that was about 15x15. 4 Families lived in the small area with about 10 kids. They had a table where they cooked food for the family and another similar for cooking tortillas to sell. As we were looking for things we could do to help we came across one of the husbands laying on the dirt floor. Come to find out he had fallen from a tree 3 years earlier and was paralyzed from the neck down. The hospital told him to go home a die, but he has survived for 3 years passing the time on the ground. Amazingly enough he has tried to do his own therapy in the back yard on make shift therapy wood bars. During this time has been sleeping on the floor and was bruised up and down his back. Long story short I have never seen anyone so grateful to have something so simple as a new bed. I had to leave the room he was so overwhelmingly excited and grateful to have a bed to sleep on you could see the emotion as his eyes swelled with tears. This trip was truly eye opening and life changing.
It's humbling to see how most of the world lives and what they live without. It has helped me realize how much I don't really need and more important to appreciate the simpler things in life. I'm grateful for the many blessings that I have and for the opportunity to help these people as they blessed my life more than I ever thought possible.

If you are interested in donating money to this cause or joining us next year we are setting up a organization right now to help the many people who are in need in Central and South America. If you want to help let me know. Thanks!

New Chapter

We took a big step this week and started plans for our new home! We are hopefully going to break ground before the end of the month. We are crossing our fingers. It has been a lot fun so far as we pick out all the details and figure out what we even like... I have been surprised how many things we have agreed on for the house. We just like a lot of the same styles which has made the process much easier. Since we are going to be the general contractors we are looking for framers, flooring, rock, and all the other jobs that will go into building the house. So if you know of anyone who has anything to do with the process of building a house please let me know I will be pricing shopping. If anyone has suggestions to avoid pitfalls that would be great as well. Here we go another chapter and adventure!

WINTER!!!

Once again it has been forever since I posted anything on this blog, but today I have some time and finally some pictures of Christmas. These pictures are a few months old, but you get the idea we celebrated Christmas with the fam and had a lot of fun. Gentry and I drove to Idaho to visit my Grandparents on Christmas day and if anyone remembers what the weather was like that day... WOW it was the scariest drive of my life! It took us about 4 hours and 2 of that were spent in four wheel drive with zero visibility in the middle of nowhere Idaho. I has sure happy we had a truck to make it through the storm we wouldn't have made otherwise. So here are some pictures of the holidays.

'Tis The Season

One more day until Christmas! We decided this year to save our money and just do some small gifts for each other. Ya right! This didn't last long for me since Gentry has been wanting a dog and of course I thought that was a good idea... Until the first night when the puppy yelped all night.
That's right I bought her a little Shih Tzu last week as her first Christmas present of the year. I wanted to keep it a secret until Christmas, but what do you do with a dog for a week and half before Christmas? Anyway it has been a lot of fun so far, however we need to figure out how to potty train the little guy so if anyone has ideas we are open to anything. He has been a lot of fun but I think we are in for a lot more work than we planned on. Here are a few pictures from my phone we will post some more after Christmas. We hope everyone is doing well and that you have a Merry Christmas!

Traveling the World

I'm sure you have guessed already that we have been kind of busy and that's why I haven't posted. So let me give you some updates on life with the Mickelsen's Gentry has been doing the school thing trying to get finished and start student teaching. She is so close and I don't know who is more excited her or me! She is almost done working at the bank which is also exciting we will have some freedom as of the 19th. We have been busy with the Holiday's coming up and all the family, work and church activities that surround the season of Christmas. On the 29th we celebrated my 26th birthday I can't believe it! I always made fun of people that old. I'm working on school right now taking financial accounting and it's killing me with the debts and credits... I'm just happy people like accounting so that I can just hire one if needed. Other than school and the normal day to day life I just got back from Sweden, Norway and Denmark a couple weeks ago. Gentry wasn't very happy that she didn't get to go, but it was a busy work trip and she probably wouldn't have had much fun anyway. It's OK though I'm going to take her back in the spring when I go back to visit accounts. Here are some pictures from the trip I hope you enjoy!

Busy Days

It has been way to long since someone posted on this BLOG! In an attempt to get Gentry to take over the blog I haven't written anything for awhile... obviously. So I guess we know who wears the pants...

Anyway we have been really busy lately with math classes that are making wish I payed better attention in high school math. I thought it would be a good idea to take online classes for math and to make it better I thought it would be a better idea to take the accelerated version. This means 2 upper division math classes in 10 weeks. Those 10 weeks ended today and I'm done with Math forever! So what did I learn?

I should have taken a decision making class! The last 10 weeks were hellacious!

Gentry: She is finishing up the teaching program at UVU and quiting her job at the bank in December which she is excited not to work there any more and I'm excited that I don't have to hear about all the drama at the bank. She is working hard trying to finish school and we are having a lot of fun together.

Sorry I have so much to write about... We just celebrated our 3 year anniversary October 6th (I think.) We spent the weekend up in Park City where we had a lot of fun, but spent way to much money on dinner and at the mall. Oh well you only have one 3 year anniversary. (Hopefully)

Work: I recently started working the international side of the business at QuicKutz (End of Aug) it has been crazy trying to learn this new side of the business and it is going to get even crazier as I leave for 12 days to Sweden and Norway in a couple week. Gentry isn't to excited that I will be visiting Scandinavia without her. Well I think that's it for now so you are caught up with out lives as of today. WOW!

Pictures Of New York

Sorry this has taken so long! Here are a few pictures from the family in New York.