school
Every year, after having a carefree time of summer, the inevitable arrives…going back to school. Some kids love going back. Others hate going back, and some have mixed feelings about it. Still, there is a level of excitement for most kids, even if it’s just about new clothes and reconnecting with friends that they haven’t seen in three months. Some kids just like the routine of school, and feel bored in the summer, while others love being able to sleep in, and hate the idea of the routine of getting up, getting ready, and getting to school. At this point, most people are thinking about which of the above descriptions is them, because each of us fits in somewhere.
These days, even if kids don’t love going back to school, the 
latest tradition is to post pictures of the first day of school, along with what grade they are going to be in this year. Then, at the end of the year, they post last day of school pictures. The contrast between first and last day is often…amusing, as well as surprising. The first day, many are a little dressed up, or at least showing their new sense of style for the coming year, while the last day brings a very relaxed look showing that they can’t wait for summer’s arrival. Let’s face it while many kids love school, the human mind needs a break sometimes, and that is all there is to it. Anyone who doesn’t think kids need summer break, was simply never really a kid.
Some kids are heading off to college, or back to college. Some kids are continuing their elementary school 
careers, starting middle school, or starting high school. Some are taking their last, first day of school pictures and some people are taking their first, first day pictures. Whatever the case may be, each one is a unique and very special memory, and one that will be cherished forever. Each picture shows how much the child has grown and changed. It also shows a child who will never be the same again. By the end of the school year, that child will have grown and become someone entirely different. That’s what school does to kids. They spread their wings a fly, even if it’s just for a little while and for a little way. The child they were is quickly becoming the adult they will be, and the pictures simply show the journey each child has taken to reach their destination.
When someone is being bullied or even just ignored, they can get depressed, or they can do whatever it takes to better their situation. Sometimes that means switching schools, because the one you were at won’t help the situation, and sometimes it means standing up for yourself, but sometimes it means both. That is the situation my grandniece, Aleesia Spethman found herself in for the past two years at her school, and it turns out it was the boys doing the bullying. One even threw a metal water bottle in her face, chipping her tooth. The school refused to do anything about it. So, her parents, Jenny and Steve Spethman switched her from one school to another mid-year, and it has been the best thing for Aleesia. She is away from the problem kids, and she has become tougher, so she doesn’t let that happen to her again. Things like this really make me mad, because Aleesia is a sweet young lady, and she shouldn’t have to put up with such nonsense. The school should have protected her. It is completely unacceptable that they stood by and did nothing!!
With Aleesia’s move to a different school, came a whole new group of friends. This part of the transition was really important, because it added to her confidence. Aleesia decided to cut her hair and get a new look too, 
and it really does make her look grown up. She said the “new do” makes her feel older too, and more herself. This year will bring yet another school change, because Aleesia will be starting middle school. Aleesia has always been pretty mature for her age and really doesn’t like drama, which is another sign of maturity. Only the immature kids have to stir up drama as an attention getter. It’s ridiculous. Aleesia is learning to play the electric guitar, and she really enjoys it. She comes from a long line of guitar players, so it isn’t surprising to me. She will be a great guitarist.
For Aleesia, the first day of summer means hitting the pool with her mom and a friend or two. Aleesia loves to swim and is quite “at home” in the pool. They go to the Rec Center pool a lot, probably because of the slide and such. While she is quite social, Aleesia is also a “home body” and doesn’t like to be away from home a lot. She 
doesn’t spend the night at other people’s houses, with the exception of her grandmother, Cheryl Masterson. She does, however, like to have friends stay the night with her, and so she regularly has “slumber parties” with multiple friends staying at her house. The next year really is looking up, and she is very excited about it. Yep, life’s changing, and it’s for the better. Today is Aleesia’s 11th birthday. Happy birthday Aleesia!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
My grandniece, Zoey Iverson is a very special girl. From her birth, as her mother, Cassie Franklin’s second child, Zoey was the “oldest” child, because her brother, Lucas Iverson had Down Syndrome and would need a lot of help. Zoey was just the girl for the job. She is a very loving and caring little girl…and mature for her age. It’s just in her nature. She is a true mother’s helper.
Zoey has changed so much since she was six and seven. Eight has been a landmark year for her, as she has really grown up a lot. Some kids make that transition as they turn ten, or even eleven or twelve in some kids, but every so often, you find one, usually a girl, but not always, who matures at eight. It’s usually because they are the big sister, and often because their siblings need some extra help, such as special 
needs kids. For Zoey, it’s not just her brother. Zoey has a new little sister named Alicen, and Zoey is absolutely thrilled about that. She loves to help her parents with the baby, and Alicen really loves her big sister. They are best friends, and Alicen wants to be with Zoey all the time.
Zoey’s family loves to forage in the woods near their home for things like mushrooms, apples, herbs, and flowers. Zoey’s mom, Cassie Franklin makes and sells candle and soaps, as well as resin dishes, jars, and some jewelry. The things they collect during their forage trips are used in cooking and in Cassie’s products. It’s fun for the whole 
family, and they give everyone lots of outdoor time. While Zoey is really enjoying the summer, she also really loves school, and she is at the top of her class. She loves being “class leader,” which allows her to go around the room and help the other students when they don’t understand the work. Who knows, maybe she will grow up to be a schoolteacher. From what I have seen of this little girl, she would make an excellent teacher. While Zoey is easy going in many ways, she can also be stubborn. Having a “stubborn” child, who is also such a sweet and helpful child is really a blessing, and not a hardship at all.
I have had the great pleasure of watching this little girl grow up from the day she was born, and while some might call me biased, because I am, after all, her great aunt. She is a wonderful young lady, and I know she will grow into a wonderful adult someday. Today is Zoey’s 8th birthday. Happy birthday Zoey!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
Since both my mother, Collene Spencer and mother-in-law, Joann Schulenberg are in Heaven now, Mother’s Day has taken on a new meaning. I think of my “moms” often, and I miss them both very much. They were a huge part of my life, and since I was part of the team that took care of them at the end of their lives, I think I actually grew closer to them in those latter years. I think everyone on the care teams did. Those latter years were hard on the “moms” because they couldn’t get around as easily as they had before. Struggling with mobility makes life harder. Nevertheless, they were both happy ladies. They enjoyed the extra time spent with family, and that really made the work of caregiving worth the time spent. While it was work, I would love to have the time back. Funny how you don’t really know what you have until it’s gone.
Of course, these days, I’m the mom and my girls, Corrie Petersen and Amy Royce are the moms, and we also 
have granddaughters, Karen Petersen and Athena Salazar (soon to be Petersen) who are the moms too. Mother’s Day can evolve and grow to include new moms all the time. There is always room for more “mom love” in our lives. Some of the memories I have of my moms are beginning to repeat themselves with only slight differences. I remember the bell ringing at lunch and running out the doors of the school to head home for lunch. Mom would have soup and sandwiches waiting for us. My favorites were Chicken Noodle soup and Grilled Cheese Sandwiches or Cream of Mushroom soup with toast. Yummy!! At that time, I was sometimes jealous of the kids that got to eat their lunch at school, but when I went to junior high and had to eat my lunch at school every day, I sometimes missed those days when I could run home for lunch.
I was a stay-at-home mom for the grade school years of my girls’ lives, but they rode the bus to school, and so they ate lunch at school. Karen babysits and so she is a stay-at-home mom, there for lunch before her 
daughter goes to school, although when Cambree is in school fulltime, it will be too far for her to come home for lunch. Athena works parttime and will often be able to be home with her son, Justin. My girls worked, so their kids ate lunch at school. Nevertheless, while mom life is and was different for each of them, the love that their children have for them and the love they have for their children is exactly the same. Every person who is blessed with a good mom knows just what a wonderful blessing that is. Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there!! Have a wonderful day!!
For thousands of years, people have wanted to feel like they left a mark on this Earth…a way to say, “I was here.” Not everyone could be famous, and in fact most people aren’t famous, nor would they want to be. Still, they want to feel like their life mattered…like someone cared that they had lived. Many of us, in fact most people are not famous. They are just everyday people who go about their daily lives…working, raising families, going to school and church, and spending time with families. Their lives would not be thought of as spectacular. Still for most people, someone…somewhere cares that they existed. Nevertheless, in 100 years it’s quite likely that no one will even remember their name.
These days that may be changing with sites like Ancestry.com, My Heritage, 23 and Me, and probably others, people find it easier to be “known” by the masses. Still, many people don’t even notice if a friend lands in Facebook Jail…until they get out and tell everyone. Really most of us just live our lives…day by day, expecting everything to be normal and no real excitement. With that in mind, some people found a new way to leave a 
little piece of their lives in a safe place to be found by someone else, years later. In fact, it has become a big deal…called a “Time Capsule” but it isn’t new. There was a time capsule at the high school I graduated from, and its opening years later was documented by my niece, Liz Masterson, who graduated from there too, and now is a teacher there. There was also a time capsule in a local restaurant that was found when they did some remodeling many years later. Some time capsules are even older, such as the one found in 2015 in the Cairngorms National Park in Scotland. This one was a 121-year-old time capsule, and it was discovered by construction workers on a section of the Ruthven Road bridge.
Time capsules can be any kind of container. They just need to be able to stand up to the environment they are placed in. A wooden box is ok in a place that won’t get wet, and most times people try to place things in such a place. The Cairngorms National Park capsule was a metal box, similar to a safe-deposit box at a bank. The excitement around the time capsule grew, and when it was opened, the items inside that were found included…
a bottle of whisky, a newspaper from 1894, a scroll, and some other items. As often happens, the items and the box itself were donated to the nearby Highland Folk Museum to be studied. As to the timeframe, it is believed that the time capsule was placed within the structure of the bridge when it was originally constructed at the end of the 19th century, so the 1894 newspaper wasn’t far off. Of course, unless there were specific names in the box, the people in the particular show of “I was here” will remain a mystery. Still, they will be remembered, even if we don’t know exactly who “they” were.
My husband’s aunt, Esther Hein, as a young girl living in the country near Forsyth, Montana, spent some of her school years living in a “boarding house” of sorts. It wasn’t really, but it may have seemed like it to her, except that the owners of the “boarding house” were her half-brother, Walt Schulenberg and sister-in-law, Joann Schulenberg. The problem Esther’s parents, Vina and Walt Hein, faced was that Esther needed to go to school on a regular basis, and the Montana winters had a way of creating a “snowed in” situation for the people who lived in the country. The people living in town could still get their kids to school, but the long country roads could not always be cleared, and when the snow was deep, they mostly couldn’t. So, they often didn’t try. That meant those kids living in the country didn’t get to school when the snow got deep, and as we all know, missing too much school means that the child isn’t going to pass.
So, in what is really one of the sweetest and funniest stories about Aunt Esther that I know, Esther moved in with her brother and sister-in-law. Things usually went smoothly, but you must understand that Esther was a child, with child-like ways at the time. There were times that she didn’t get along with her brother, sister-in-law, and cousins. It was nothing major, just kid stuff and maybe a little sassiness. My future mother-in-law, and Esther’s sister-in-law, Joann sometimes got tired and annoyed. She might have been able to spank her sister-in-law, but she might not have felt comfortable doing that either. That said, when she was annoyed with Esther, her common comment was “Don’t Esther!!” This might seem like it isn’t very funny, but later in life, my mother-in-law had Alzheimer’s Disease…which isn’t exactly funny either.
Nevertheless, my mother-in-law had her “funny” Alzheimer’s moments, as they all do, if you look beyond the disease. She didn’t always like things like going to bed, taking a walk around the house, or especially telling her to stop scratching her itchy skin. Since I was her caregiver quite often, I was the “bad guy” that made her do 
these things. Her very itchy skin, and the fact that she scratched too hard, caused injury to her skin, so I had to stop her from scratching. Whenever I try to stop her, she would say, “Don’t Esther!!” The first time she said that I was shocked, but once I heard the “Don’t Esther” story, I finally understood that she was mistaking me for Esther in those moments. For me it was liberating. That meant that sometimes when my mother-in-law was mad at me, I could let Esther take the blame. Sorry Esther, but it worked for me. Today is Esther’s 82nd birthday. Happy birthday Esther!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
My aunt, Sandy Patton is the youngest of my grandparents, George and Hattie Byer’s children. Life for a youngest child is normally very different than that of the oldest child…especially in a large family. My grandparents had nine children. From almost the time Aunt Sandy was three years old, basically from the time her first memory, there were babies in the household. The older children had similar experiences, but it’s a bit different when the babies are younger siblings…or maybe it isn’t. The nieces and nephews were there a lot, but they did go home too. Nevertheless, as a young girl, she always had playmates…at least when she could play.
Aunt Sandy was a sickly child, and often missed school, so in reality, her best friend was her mom. They spent a lot of time together while her mom care for her ailing daughter. When a child is sick, they need bedrest, but when they aren’t sleeping…that can make for long boring days. So, to ease the boredom, Grandma Byer told her daughter stories of the past…Grandma’s past and Aunt Sandy’s heritage. Some of the stories were about 
Grandma’s childhood years, and others were about her ancestors. Aunt Sandy learned about the Cowboys and Indians, the lives of farmers and homesteaders, early automobiles, and about Aunt Sandy’s older siblings’ antics. When she wasn’t sick, Aunt Sandy had to take on the job of catching up on her studies. I don’t imagine that was fun, and I would think that there were many times when Aunt Sandy, thought about quitting school, but she didn’t…and maybe Grandma wouldn’t have let her do that. Whether Aunt Sandy liked school or not really made no difference, because if there was one subject she did like history. She loved hearing about the past, probably because her mom made it so real to her…almost like she was right there.
Aunt Sandy still loves hearing about family today, and really enjoys hearing about all the new additions, and the exciting things everyone is doing. She is the keeper of traditions, which stands to reason, since she is the youngest. It seems like tradition always falls to the youngest child eventually…at least until they pass the baton 
to the next generation. Sometimes it’s hard to pass that baton, because you never know if there will be a child of the next generation who is willing to pick that baton up and run with it. It was the hope of her parents, my grandparents that we always find a way to keep the family as close as possible. Aunt Sandy tried her best, and hopefully now, we will continue to try our best. Today is Aunt Sandy’s 77th birthday. Happy birthday Aunt Sandy!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
It has been a rough couple of years for my nephew, Tucker Schulenberg. On January 19, 2021, he lost his mother, Rachel Schulenberg to a stroke. It was an extremely difficult grieving process for a boy who was barely 13 years old at the time. Suddenly, he felt very alone, even though his dad, my brother-in-law Ron Schulenberg was there. The problem was that they were both grieving, and that makes it doubly hard. Then, when Covid hit, and school wasn’t in session, Tucker really became more of a recluse. It was a tough time.
Things are getting better now, after a long hard road. Tucker is in a new school, with smaller classrooms and it seems to be going a little better at now. This school has shown good 
success with other students, and now Tuckers grade are better too. I don’t know what Tucker would like to do as an adult, and I’m not sure he does either, but I’m sure that he will find his way. Ultimately, most kids do, and Tucker is a good kid.
Tucker really enjoys the monthly family dinners that our family does. He likes kids and it gives him a chance to play with his cousins, Reagan, Hattie, Bowen, and Maeve. When we go to their house, there is a lot to do. They have lots of farm animals, plenty of dogs, and a trampoline, which is always an attraction. Being around the cousins is a good thing for him. Since he is the only child at home, the only other social time he gets is at school, and as we all know, you shouldn’t really be socializing in class.
Tucker also has a brand-new nephew, which is very cool. Since his brother, Riley Birky and his partner Sierah 
Martin, live in Powell, Tucker doesn’t get to see a whole lot of them, but I imagine that this summer will give him the opportunity to go for a visit, and since Powell isn’t terribly far away, Tucker gets to visit every once in a while. Tucker is also going to be an uncle again, when his sister, Cassie Franklin and her partner Wesley Burr, have their new baby, coming in January 2023. Tucker is a good uncle, so I’m happy for him. So, for Tucker, there is a lot of new things going on. It is my hope that the new year will bring much healing of Tucker’s broken heart, and much joy as he sees these new babies in his life. Today is Tucker’s 15th birthday. Happy birthday Tucker!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
Children, especially young children, don’t really understand what their working parents do every day, and sometimes can even feel abandoned when they are especially young. It’s not their fault. They love their parents, and all children experience some separation anxiety at some point. Once they get used to it, they are fine, of course, but those early days can be tough.
I don’t really know the motivation behind the day they call Take Our Daughters And Sons To Work Day, also called Take Your Child to Work Day. It is a national day that gives children in the United States a brief look at what goes on in the working world…more specifically their parent’s working world. Of course, it’s not always completely authentic, because many of the organizations set up special events for that day. I personally think it would be better to make it as real as possible for the child…if the goal was to show the child what their parent does for a living. The program was developed by the Take Our Daughters And Sons To Work Foundation, which is a non-profit educational organization. As the name depicts, the day revolves around “parents taking their children to work to expose students to future job possibilities and the value of education.” Originally, it was called Take Our Daughters To Work Day, but was expanded to include boys in 2003. I think that originally, the focus was on office jobs, which were considered more for the women, and the jobs men had might have seemed unsafe for children. I suppose that is still the case, but you can’t really discriminate on those jobs either, even if taking a child on a police ride-along might be dangerous.
Take Your Child To Work Day is celebrated in over 200 countries, but in the United States, it takes place on the fourth Thursday in April every year. The most recent Take Our Daughters And Sons To Work Day took place on Thursday, April 23, 2020. I suppose that Covid-19 Pandemic stopped them after that and I don’t know if companies are planning them for this year or not. Take Our Daughters to Work Day originated in New York City in the summer of 1992, started by the “Ms. Foundation for Women” and its president, Marie C. Wilson, the 
Women’s foundation treasurer, Daren Ball, and with support from foundation founder Gloria Steinem. It really began as a part of the Women’s Liberation movement, I suppose, but today it is very different than it was then. I am definitely not a “women’s libber” kind of girl, so that idea does not appeal to me at all. The first celebration took place on April 22, 1993, and has since been celebrated usually on the fourth Thursday of April in order for the 37 million children, parents, schools in over 3.5 million workplaces across the country, in addition to participants in over 200 countries around the world, to plan ahead for the annual event. The day is generally a school day for most children in the United States, so schools are provided with literature and encouraged to promote the program. Schools are provided with materials for incorporating career exploration into classwork on the day before or after the event. In 2007 the “day” became its own separate foundation, the Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work program was turned over to Carolyn McKecuen, a MacArthur Award recipient, who took effective control as its executive director before relocating to Elizabeth City, North Carolina, where it continues to this day. Gloria Steinem continues to maintain a role with the Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Foundation as a member of its board of directors.
The idea is that employees across the United States and around the world get to invite their own children or relatives to join them at work, but the program also encourages employees to invite children from residential programs or shelters who may not be exposed to many adults in skilled professions today. I have never worked in a company that specifically participated in Take Your Child To Work Day, but rather where I worked, at The Stengel Agency, we had an informal option to bring a child in randomly. Mydaughter, Amy Royce and granddaughter, Shai Royce both actually worked with me, and my grandchildren, Chris Petersen, Shai Royce, Caalab Royce, and Josh Petersen have all spent time with me when they couldn’t go to school for whatever 
reason, including not feeling well. They have slept under my desk, because they wanted to be by Grandma at that time, and my boss, Jim Stengel, being the wonderful man that he was, made allowances for my needs. My co-worker, Carrie Beauchamp brought her daughter, Amanda Ingram to the office, and now she is also an agent in that office, so while we didn’t have a formal program, our children and grandchildren not only spent time in the office, but actually went to work with us in the office. I hope companies continue this program, because I think it is a great program.
Some people have a way of letting you know what just might be coming, by the look on their face. My uncle, Wayne Byer is that way. Uncle Wayne is a character, and the first sign that something is about to happen is the mischievous grin that appears on his face. As the youngest of, in my mind, the famous “Byer Middles” and the “Mischievous Three,” Uncle Wayne learned his mischievous ways from the very best. Uncle Larry may have been the leader of the pack, and my mom, Collene Spencer was probably guilty by default…at least at first. She could get into trouble with the best of them, because she looked up to her brothers, and always wanted to be right there in the middle of whatever it was that they were planning that day. Being the only girl in the “Mischievous Three” didn’t bother her one bit, in fact I think she rather liked it. The boys did things differently, and for my mom, that was all the more fun.
Uncle Wayne Spent much of his career around kids. He worked in the schools, as a bus driver, then as the supervisor over the bus garage. I think everyone of the kids in the family, whether we rode a bus or not, thought it was great that Uncle Wayne was in charge of the whole operation. Running all those busses for a large school district was no easy job, and Uncle Wayne did a great job of it. Everyone liked Uncle Wayne, and when they knew we were related, we were liked too. 
It made us very proud of his accomplishments.
Uncle Wayne loved kids, and he lived making the kids laugh. Maybe that was the biggest “take-away” for him being the youngest of the “Mischievous Three” for all those years. Some things you just don’t grow out of, and as many of us know, it’s very hard to take the “little boy” out of the man. Once they are goofy, they always seem to be goofy. They just love to see people smile and laugh, and that is really who Uncle Wayne is. Today is Uncle Wayne’s 84th birthday, although he really doesn’t seem 84. His is still a kid at heart. Happy birthday Uncle Wayne!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
