Everyone Knows it's WINDY!

GUST - O'WIND

Today, the winds were so strong, our trampoline flew into our neighbor's backyard. The net is totally trashed and it landed on a glass-top patio set, a BBQ grill, a swing set, and some bikes. YIKES! It's not even the windy season yet!

Gabby

The newest Wilcock

Well, as usual, Jacob is TDY and we bought a new puppy - I know, I know ... the poor guy! It's just not safe for him to leave me alone! Okay, so I'm not totally honest with you all - Jacob knew we were going to get Gabby beforehand - it's just funnier thinking he didn't!

Melissa, Austin, Ang (the navigator) and I went to pick up our little Gabby-meister on January 14th - she tolerated the car ride home and once we got here, started exploring and marking her territory :) We took her to the vet the next day and found that she has a really bad case of ear mites (they are quite common over here) and we are now enjoying the wonderful world of "trying to get them in her ear without causing too much trauma". She has been very playful and likes to chew on everything. The kids, especially, have been waiting for another dog to come into the house - we all miss Spot terribly!

Gabby has already acquired some new 'nick-names', i.e.,

- Gabby Girl
- "you little schnitzel"
- Baby
- Gabby Gabby
- Gabby Good Girl (triple G)

Here are some phrases she has heard so far:

- Leave my bra alone!
- Stop chewing on the computer cords
- Why are you eating the couch?
- Where are you, Gabby? I can't find you!
- Gabby go potty! Good potty!
- Give me kisses!
- Stop chewing on my sock!
- Gabby go poo-poos!

Temple Trip

the Youth of Thetford

Well, 31 youth and a number of adults went to the London Temple on Friday, December 29. It was Melissa's first time going to the temple to do baptisms and we drove down with her friend Kim, Kim's brother Jeff and Kim's father. We arrived an hour early and unfortunately, the temple was running behind. That was okay, because youth always find ways of fooling around! We all had a fun time and over 300 baptisms were done! Woo Hoo! Spirit Fingers!

Curse of the Pharaoh

Murder Mystery Madness

Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Egypt - April 23, 1894. The excavation season will soon be over as the baking sun makes digging unbearable, but the archaeological team from Oxford University led by Sir William Saville have made a startling discovery!

Tonight, the team and their guests prepare to enjoy a slap-up dinner party to celebrate the uncovering of a previously unknown XIV dynasty pharaoh. But while the archaeologists make merry, dark clouds gather, internal tensions among the group burst to the surface and one of the local diggers is brutally murdered ... welcome to Curse of the Pharaoh!

Have you got what it takes to solve the murder, achieve your goals and keep your guilty secrets hidden from everyone else? It was up to us!

This year for New Year's, I thought it would be great if Jacob and I would get together with friends and play a 'how to host a murder'-type game. The Curse of the Pharaoh is a live-action game you play with 6-10 people. We were given detailed character backgrounds before we arrived. We were given goals to accomplish, contacts to make and (ssshhhhh...) secrets! You might have a secret identity, you might be rich, you might be poor - you might even be the murderer! We could decide who to talk to, who to trust - and who to betray!

The cast for the evening included:

Ang Campbell ..... the Servant (Oi, you!)
Josh Campbell ..... Sir William Saville
Jacob Wilcock ..... Shahfeez Merouf
Krissy Wilcock ..... Helen Mackinnon (
Wes Takacs ..... Hugh Carlaw
Jennifer Takacs ..... Ariadne Price-Evans
Cory Olson ..... Alvy Spanheim
Amy Olson ..... Eva de Chalons
Jane Smith ..... Lindsay Wilde
Bethany Smith ..... Robert Tregarne

In the end, it was Hugh Carlaw that murdered that poor man! It was shameful that he insisted that I, Helen, was possessed by a Egyptian Queen (named Bity) and was hypnotized and forced to do her bidding. Shame on him! Good times were had by all and we are looking forward to another chance to see "who dunnit"! (three cheers for the chef ... hip, hip, hooray! hip, hip, hooray! hip, hip, hooray!) Ang made a delectable meal including shish kebobs and feteer bel asaag ... mm, mm, good!