The Trumbo Tribe

New Smith Family Blog

2010-04-09T08:17:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd post some pictures of me and David, the night before he flew to Utah to report to the MTC.

Also, with living so far away from family, and leaving friends in Utah, and soon Michigan, behind, Cameron and I have created our own family blog to stay in touch with everyone. It's private, but we would love for you to read it and keep updated on the Smith family. So, if you haven't already received an invitation and would like one, please email me with your email address!

Argentina trip

2009-05-13T06:54:00.000-07:00

We had an awesome trip to Argentina, words don't even do it justice. We made some friends for life, yet we may never be able to see them again. It was very bittersweet. We're so happy to have Sean home. He's looking for a job, unpacking (yes, it takes a long time) and generally getting back into the real world. He's doing great and we had a wonderful weekend with family and friends. Sean reported his mission on Sunday and I felt he was really able to convey the spirit of his mission through his words. It was wonderful. Here's a little slide show of some of our pictures from our trip and also some pictures from last weekend.

Tofu's FIRST Birthday!!!

2009-04-09T13:40:00.000-07:00

Tofu turns one years old today! Seems like yesterday that he became part of our family. We are throwing a birthday party in his honor this Saturday. His doggie friends are coming, and everyone else who wishes to celebrate with us is welcome too!
Happy Birthday, Tofu. We love you!!!

Hospital Pictures

2009-04-01T20:34:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of pictures from cheyenne's stay at the hospital..

UPDATE

2009-03-30T12:33:00.000-07:00

Hi guys... No real news on Cheyenne other than we discovered she's having a different type of seizure without knowing it during the day. She didn't have any of her typical gran mal seizures while in the hospital so she'll have to go back again when insurance clears it. Thnaks again for all your prayers, fasting and love. We had an incredibly busy weekend with Sunny and Chad and i din't have time to post any pictures from the hospital. Maybe tonight...

UPDATE ON CHEYENNE

2009-03-25T19:04:00.000-07:00

HELLO AGAIN...

SAW THE DOCTOR FOR THE FIRST TIME THIS MORNING AND HE SAID EVEN WITHOUT HAVING HAD ANY SEIZURES YET, SHE STILL HAS EPILEPTIC ACTIVITY ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BRAIN. THEY NEED TO GET A COUPLE OF RECORDED SEIZURES OR SHE'LL HAVE TO DO THIS PROCESS OVER AGAIN AT A LATER DATE. I NEVER THOUGHT I'D BE SAYING THIS BUT PRAY FOR SEIZURES. I STAY OVERNIGHT EVERY NIGHT. SHE'S IN GOOD SPIRITS. I'LL POST PICTURES OVER THE WEEKEND. THEY'RE GOING TO TRY AND INDUCE SEIZURE TONIGHT TRYING DIFFERENT METHODS. SHE'LL BE RELEASED FRIDAY. THANKS FOR THE LOVE,PRAYERS AND VISITS. YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST FAMILY IN ALL THE WORLD. I MEAN THAT.

Actually, we have to cancel the Cali Trip! :[

2009-03-23T11:07:00.001-07:00

Sorry Everyone. We've decided not to go to California in May. My work won't pay for my time off, and we need to stay here and save up because we actually might be moving to Korea in September to take an English teaching job there.

We'll have to see you all around. Sorry!

Giovanni and Jennifer

CHEYENNE HOSPITAL INFO

2009-03-23T10:59:00.000-07:00

HELLO EVERYBODY... THANK YOU FOR THE FASTING AND PRAYERS YESTERDAY FOR CHEYENNE. TODAY SHE IS AT UCI IN THE NEURO SUB DIVISION UNIT ROOM NUMBER 5622. THE DIRECT PHONE NUMBER TO HER BED IS 714-456-3154. THE NURSING STATION NUMBER IS 714-456-7878. HER PHYSICIANS NAME IS HOWARD, KIM. CHILDREN UNDER 12 ARE NOT ALLOWED ON THE UNIT(CHAD HAD AN EARLY BIRTHDAY THIS YEAR !) VISITING HOURS ARE 9AMTO9PM. NO PHONE CALLS OR VISITS BETWEEN 3-4PM. CALLS MADE BEFORE 9AM AND AFTER9PM GO DIRECTLY TO THE NURSES STATION. SHE'S DOING GOOD. I'LL ADD PICTURES .LATER. I LOVE YOU ALL AND THANKS AGAN...

David/Caryn family sealing weekend pics

2009-03-21T14:44:00.000-07:00

Sunday Fast and prayers for Cheyenne

2009-03-20T15:44:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to invite any family or friends who would like to participate in a day of fasting and prayer for Cheyenne this coming Sunday.

Any notes, letters or well wishes, please send by way of email to Patrice at
pwallin01@yahoo.com She will print them out and take them in to Cheyenne while she is in the hospital next week.

If anyone who lives locally would like to visit or send a card, here is the address:
UCI Medical Center
101 The City Drive
Orange, CA 92868

Also here is another way to contact Patrice:
(714)316-3056 Patrice cell

Axel is Engaged!!!!!

2009-03-17T16:33:00.000-07:00

Most of you already know, but I decided to make it official.
Axel and Laura got engaged Saturday night. The date is August 15th here in Provo.
They are probably going to get sealed at the new Draper Temple.
Wow!!!

FINALLY... HELP FOR CHEYENNE !!

2009-03-17T15:50:00.000-07:00

HELLO AGAIN... DOES ANYBODY EVER ACTUALLY COME TO THIS BLOG ANYMORE BESIDES GIOVANNI?

WELL, CHEYENNE IS GOING INTO UCI HOSPITAL ON MONDAY, MARCH 23RD FOR AT LEAST THREE DAYS. SHE'LL BE HOOKED UP TO A CONTINUOUS EEG THAT WILL MONITOR HER BRAIN/SEIZURE ACTIVITY. SHE HAS HAD ELEVEN GRAN MAL SEIZURES IN THE LAST SIX WEEKS. PLEASE PRAY. FOR ANYBODY LOCAL, VISITORS WILL BE GREATLY APPRECIATED. CALL ME ON MONDAY FOR ROOM INFO. THANKS...

2009-03-07T12:56:00.000-08:00

The belt presentation was Thursday night. Chad has been working really hard at tkd and I was hoping his efforts would be noticed by Master Kim. I told dad and Dennis I thought Chad should get some kind of award but, of course, every mother thinks that of her child, right ? Well, he didn't just get an award... He got this !! It was for MVP !! It was a perfect opportunity to teach Chad that hard work does pay off. I am so proud of him. Cheyenne and Sunny have a room full of trophies, ribbons and medals but none of them as big as this trophy! I knew early on with Chad that he wouldn't be a team player and it's a beautiful thing to watch him excel at tkd.

Chads TKD Belt Testing

2009-03-07T12:32:00.000-08:00

Chad recently tested for his brown belt. As part of the testing he is required to break some boards which the video clip will show. He did great!

2009-02-23T08:53:00.000-08:00

Good morning... Just want to ask you to keep Cheyenne in your prayers. She had another gran mal seizure last night at work. Could one of you please put her name in at the temple? I can't figure out the right number to call. Thank you.

2009-02-16T17:29:00.000-08:00

Hi guys... we had mom and dad over for dinner sunday night. We had steak salmon, salad, garlic bread, baked potatoes, sliced tomatoes and for desert we had banana split ice cream cake. As you can tell, it was delicious. Just wanted to say hello... Love Chad

New puppy

2009-02-11T18:49:00.000-08:00

Here's a picture of our new puppy Roxy. She's 12 weeks old. She's a cross between an Australian Shepherd and a miniature poodle. I guess she's one of those designer dogs called an Aussiedoodle. She follows Barkley all over the place trying to get him to play with her, but she has way too much exuberance for poor old Barkley. We're having a lot of fun with her. She's a smart dog, sometimes too smart. We're hoping to teach her how to play flyball. If you don't know what that is, check out some of the videos on youtube. Roxy says she'd also like to play with Tofu some day.

State Champions!

2009-02-09T13:25:00.000-08:00

Dakota and Kassie won state this past weekend. It was really exciting!

Tofu the Lion!

2009-02-03T12:41:00.000-08:00

Tofu is getting cuter and cuter every day! Giovanni and I like to spoil him by taking him on long walks, cuddling for hours on end, and playing catch the monkey with him (aka a plushy, squeaky, heart-bedecked valentine lovey we just bought him!).
Today was finally the day Tofu would be bathed and groomed after a desperately-needed appointment with the groomer, and we wanted to give him a brand new look. Giovanni was already at work, but this is how the conversation played out between me and the sweet little old lady at the groomers:

Me: Could you just give him an overall trim...

Old Lady: sure, no problem!

Me:...and a lion tail?

(Silence...)
Me: You know, trim his tail and leave a little poof at the end...or whatever you think looks good

Old Lady: (eyeing me suspiciously) well that my dear, would be a matter of personal taste!

I'm sure ours was an odd request, but we're happy with the result. We think Tofu looks like the cutest, cuddliest, friendliest little mini lion out there!

Adoption and Sealing of 2 new Trumbo's

2009-01-13T19:55:00.000-08:00

Welcome Home Axel and Hello everyone!

We wanted to let everyone know that we have and official adoption day. February 17th 8:30 am in OC Family Court (on City Drive, across from the block of Orange) Courtroom L-31. Everyone is welcome to attend if they would like. Cameras are allowed, but you must tell the Sheriff's that you are there for an adoption. Also bring your parking ticket with you and our Social Worker will validate it for you. We hope that the court will be running on time, but as we can attest to, it can run late.

The even greater news is that we have a Sealing Date. Saturday February 28th @ 11:30 In the Los Angeles Temple, Andrew Allen Trumbo and Lily Rose Trumbo will be sealed to our family. Any of you that can be there are invited to come.

Following the sealing we invite everyone to join with us at our friends home (the Chang's in Yorba Linda) for food and celebration of our great day (3:00pm).

Invitations will be sent out in a couple of weeks, but I wanted to give you head's up so you can put it on your calenders.

The picture of our family was taken in December at the official adoption signing with Social Services.

Axel's Home!!!

2009-01-09T09:12:00.000-08:00

Jan 9 2009, 12:05 am

Axel arrives at the Salt Lake City airport!

Most of this video is before axel arrives. I didn't capture too much of Axel unfortunately since there were only a few of us there and I wanted to talk to axel face to face, but enjoy the little that there is.

Axel has a deeper voice and looks a little taller. He's as fit and healthy as ever, and his French and Chinese are amazing (according to Jennifer and my-self's assessment.

Its great to have Axel Home!

Watching Power Rangers

2009-01-03T21:15:00.000-08:00

Watching the power rangers with Alan, Maggie, and Malcolm.

Tofu Christmas!

2008-12-26T15:40:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from Giovanni, Jennifer, and Tofu Trumbo!!!

We're in Arizona and having a good time.

We'll be back in Provo for New Years, so hopefully everyone could be there! (the Lutz and Thompson Family will be there I think, but we need the rest of the family too!)

Lets have a big Skii-Snowboard Trip! :]

Anyway, Happy Holidays,

Gio&Jenn&Tofu TRUMBO

Snow, buffets and hiding a puppy

2008-12-26T15:01:00.001-08:00

We're getting lots of snow here and what makes it fun is that it came during school break. The kids are loving it. We had a fun conversation with Sean on Christmas day and had a neighborhood buffet at our house that afternoon after a traditional trip to the movies. We also had to hide a Christmas puppy for our neighbor for a couple days-a task the girls had no qualms about. Sorry Gio, looks like since Barkley is deaf and blind that he doesn't mind having other dogs around after all....Sorry Tofu....

Christmas

2008-12-26T10:04:00.000-08:00

We are having a great time here in California. The weather is so much nicer than at home!
We've been shopping and most of all, EATING.
The christmas eve dinner was wonderful and so was Christmas at Toni's. It's fun to see everyone. I could only wish I had the rest of my kids with me....

Alex sings a christmas solo

2008-12-13T19:12:00.000-08:00

He did an awesome job in front of 500 people.

2008-12-11T20:41:00.000-08:00

2008-12-11T20:38:00.000-08:00

2008-12-11T20:34:00.000-08:00

Here's another...

Dennis and Patrices Wedding

2008-12-11T20:04:00.000-08:00

Hi guys... here's a few from the wedding !

Christmas Wish List

2008-12-11T18:07:00.000-08:00

We got a good laugh over Nikki's Christmas list this year. First of all she starts asking for such big girls things, which is totally understandable. But then look at #9!!! What's that?? Where are we supposed to find a real elf? Craigslist....Is Will Ferrell available for adoption? Let me know if any of you have any ideas.

Axel in Poitier

2008-12-08T11:40:00.001-08:00

Elder Trumbo...Tyler Trumbo....

2008-12-05T15:38:00.000-08:00

I just talked to Lisa because I was curious about Tyler and he has been writing home regularly.
She said that at the beginning, his letters were random notes that didn't really make much sense, but now he begins with "Dear Family" and he ends with "Love, elder Trumbo" .
In one of his letters he said:" Dad, nobody here thinks farting is funny!"
That is so him!
But anyway, I just wanted to let you know he is doing well and his email address is tylertrumbo@myldsmail.net.

Tracting

2008-12-04T08:26:00.000-08:00

Sean is really enjoying getting out there and talking with people and I loved getting this picture from him.

2008-11-30T19:46:00.000-08:00

YAY... I FINALLY GOT BACK ON THIS DARN BLOGGER DEAL (THANKS KATH !). I'M WITH THE REST OF YOU ON WANTING TO SEE MORE PICTURES. BELIEVE ME. WE JUST HAVEN'T RECEIVED THEM FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHER YET. NOT ONE SINGLE PICTURE DEVELOPED FROM EACH CAMERA AT THE 18 TABLES WAS ANY GOOD. FRUSTRATED? ME ? YEAH... A LITTLE. WHEN DENNIS GETS HOME FROM OREGON (I MISS HIM MADLY) WE'LL GET THINGS MOVING ALONG.
I OVE YOU ALL.

Thanksgiving at Thompson's

2008-11-30T18:47:00.000-08:00

Here's a few pictures from our adventures. We were having so much fun that we totally forgot to stop and take the camera out. But we had a beautiful dinner, played lots of fun games, watched football, ate again, went to the movies, ate again, etc, etc.

Patrices children at the wedding

2008-11-30T17:20:00.000-08:00

We only had enough battery for one photo at Patrices wedding.

I think it's a pretty cute one though!

What a beautiful day, congratulations Patrice and Dennis.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

2008-11-26T14:29:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is a time for togetherness... it's an occasion to be spent in the warm and loving company of family, loved ones and friends enjoying turkey and pumpkin pies. Thanksgiving is an opportunity to renew the ties that bind us with the ones we love... it is a time for remembering, cherishing, and above all, being thankful for all the good things we have been blessed with. The Starr's wish you all a 'Happy Thanksgiving'

Axel's Baptism

2008-11-24T18:26:00.000-08:00

I
You have probably already read his last email. Well..I don't think I sent the last two since I was in Spain, but they had 3 baptisms this weekend. You can see how happy he looks!

Thanksgiving

2008-11-21T10:55:00.000-08:00

We are very exciting about going to Idaho for TG. I am sorry Kathi, but I haven't really work on finding recipes, but I will be ready. I promise.

Jenn is going to make a couple of dishes that have been tradition in her family for a long time.

Anyone will like to come to our home for Christmas?????

2008-11-18T19:22:00.000-08:00

If any of you have not seen the news regarding the current fires in the OC here is a picture of Brea on fire. I received a call from Kathi and turned the TV on Saturday to view this(picture). At Parker's school several families lost their homes. It is such a horrible and devastating loss for many here. Luckily the Lutz family home was fine. For those of you not aware their home was evacuated.

Tasty Thanksgiving meal for Barkley!

2008-11-18T07:24:00.000-08:00

Not since South Carolina when he chased, tore apart and delighted in a big meal of opossum, duck, and snake has he been so excited. When the raccoon and alligator got away from him he was upset. So he consigned himself to chasing after the weiner dogs next door until they had to get a constraining order on him. Such a sad day for dear little Barkley whose only delight in life is protecting his domain, his family. After all, his breed is known for being very territorial. He has not lost a battle to this day against any encroaching enemy. And please know that we are a humane family with an acre backyard that will make a nice resting place for any possible remains of such perceived enemies. Thank you Barkley for helping us feel safe.

Barkley, in all his 14 years, has never even tasted Tofu (oops, I meant to use lower case t), so I showed him your picture and he licked his lips (a good sign that he has international taste). I told him he has to wait until Thanksgiving for the big meal just like the rest of us. He said he'll wait anxiously by the window until that day.

Final Petition for Tofu Trumbo!

2008-11-17T21:30:00.000-08:00

This post is intended for our loving Kathi, and anyone else who would like to throw in their opinion. It has been voiced, that our newest grandchild in the family (besides Isabella), namely Tofu Trumbo, is being excluded from our Thanksgiving get together, and I am writing this post not to convince, or to try to overturned a decision already made, but to inform you of who Tofu is.

Despite the lipstick incident, Tofu is a super well behaved dog! He's more like a person really. NEVER has accidents inside a house (always asking to be let outside) takes long naps by himself, plays with everyone and never bites, and is surprisingly good with other animals (and other animals seem to love him too).
So if the decision of not letting Tofu come had anything to do with these doubts, i would ask for you to reconsider.

Now I know having someone bring over a dog for 4 days, is a weird and risky move... but jenn and i will miss him! And we don't want him to be lonely!

So anyway, I don't expect anything from this post, but just wanted to throw that out there! And Kathi, we absolutely respect your decision, and it makes total sense to us. As we have never been away from him overnight, you can imagine our heartbreak!

I'm Giovanni Trumbo, and I approve this message

2008-11-15T09:11:00.000-08:00

Finally figured this blogging thing out! If I can do it, so can the rest of you. I made it up to Allen's for Tyler's farwell. Very windy and right know have wireless access (duh). Don't know how long it will last though. Looking forward to a fun weekend with the family.

2008-11-15T09:06:00.000-08:00

Well... hello everybody ! just one week to go until the big day. I AM SOOOOO EXCITED. Dennis and I are going to spend the first night on the Queen Mary then take a helicopter over to Catalina the next morning. We'll be there for three days then head back the same way we went. I/We had no idea that Catalina is where grandpa and grandma trumbo also spent their honeymoon there. Kind of cool since we're getting married on the same day they were. I love you all...
Patrice

Roll Call

2008-11-15T07:52:00.001-08:00

Just checking to see who's been able to access the blog. If you're reading this, make a quick comment (click on the word comment right under this) or post (in the upper right of the page) and say hello.

My Bruiser

2008-11-14T09:01:00.000-08:00

This is Harold's idea of having fun. He decided to go to the park with the girls and play tag....not a good idea! It actually looks pretty good here, you should see it at night. It's like he's growing a watermelon inside and of course, since he's "doctoring" himself, he doesn't think he needs to see anyone for it. He's quite a "bruiser" don't you think? what a hunk :)

Where is everybody?

2008-11-14T04:22:00.000-08:00

It seems like Kathy, Jan, Gio/Jenn, and I are the only ones who use this blog.

I want to send out a hollar to everyone! Hollaback as a comment to this post! Hopefully there are more than 5 Trumbo's on "The Trumbo Tribe" blog.

If you won't listen to me, maybe you'll listen to Tyra.

And my update for the day. It's a beautifully sunny day in Barcelona. I woke up, rolled out of bed, had an apple, and sat on my balcony watching the sun rise over the mediterranean sea. Priceless! Well, there is a price, but you know what I mean.

I am kind of sad that I'm not going to have a true thanksgiving this year. Spain, as you know, kind of skips it. However, we're planning on gathering a few anglo friends and celebrate it anyways. Who knows, maybe we'll make it popular. :D

Lipstick Jungle

2008-11-11T21:33:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, we are the proud parents of Tofu, our six-month old Pekingese. He is cuddly, furry, and absolutely adorable!--most of the time that is...
Recently we've started to allow Tofu to sleep with us so he doesn't get cold in his kennel. This morning, as usual, Tofu had wedged himself in between us and as I struggled to pry him from off my leg, Giovanni awoke with a startling cry.
Tofu was COVERED from head to paw in some sort of red sticky substance. At first we thought he had injured himself or killed a small mouse while we slept...however, upon further investigation we discovered that whatever was slathered onto his face and paws was more of a liquid waxy substance.
In a sleuthish frenzy a la Sherlock Holmes, we set out to determine the source of this bizarre situation. We immediately pulled our bed away from the wall to see if Tofu had made his mischief in secret while we slept. The beginning results looked promising: we identified several red paw marks along the carpet.
Giovanni courageously let his blind hand pull out every object within reach under the bed: pens, boxes, and even a pair of my favourite shoes Tofu had cached away. Then all of a sudden: my valiant husband gingerly held the key object of evidence pinched between his thumb and index.
Jenn, is this yours?...
I let out a cry of both horror and amusement as I beheld the crumpled remains of my favourite tube of Red Lipstick!!!
We were both in an uproar over Tofu's comic preference of a midnight snack. But it really came as no surprise: Tofu loves other girly things like having his hair brushed and blow-dryed, his pink leash, his daily bath and his own doggy spa robe.
Nevertheless, Giovanni and I were very excited to catch Tofu "red-handed" :)

"Hospital del Mar"

2008-11-07T00:48:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!
Great idea Kathi, a family blog is brilliant, 50+ heads are better than one, I always say.

Yesterday I got (I think) my first "public" health care experience. When we lived here before, we had private health insurance, so we would go to these posh hospitals with doctors that would know what they were doing and all.

Last night I fell off my bike riding home, and after a few hours of swelling up at home, Ryan forced me to go to the hospital. The thing is, my left elbow was swelling in a very strange way, kind of freaky to look at, (Dr. Thompson is probably rolling his eyes right now). For my defence, I knew it wasn't broken or fractured, but hey, good chance to try out this oh so famous public health care system...right?

My first indication of what I was getting myself into came when I walked into the ER and everyone was just laying around the waiting room coughing up a storm. I go up to the counter and the first thing I asked for was a face mask. They looked at me like I was crazy. "Are you a doctor?" they asked.
After arguing with them for a few minutes, I convinced them that yes, it was possible that I could breath in unwanted sicknesses, and they finally, though reluctantly, gave me a face mask.

Good thing is my arm "trauma" looked a lot worse than it was, so everyone expedited my progress through the many different departments, taking x-rays and such. The x-ray was great, instead of putting some kind of shield or barrier they just said, "put your arm out and lean your head back as far as you can, you don't want it getting zapped!" -_-

It ended up not being anything at all, just a lot of swelling. Got an armsock and some Paracetamol, and got to walk out without paying a dime :) (Oh ya, and the nurse was about to put the armsock on without cleaning and wrapping my open wound, I told her to do so and she did after rolling her eyes).

Now having experienced public health care, I am definitely going to sign up for prive through my work, 30€ a month, not bad at all.

The best part was being able to send a text to my mom saying just "I am in the Hospital". As expected, 1.5 seconds later I was getting a call. :P

Katie and Graigs wedding

2008-11-06T19:42:00.001-08:00

Here are a few photos of Katie and Gregs wedding.

Jan

Getting Started

2008-11-06T19:19:00.000-08:00

I think it will be easier to keep in contact if we just have a blog. Our other family website kept requiring all of us to remember names and passwords. This blog is open for all of you to post at any time, just bookmark the site and have fun. Feel free to add whatever you like, pictures, slideshows, videos, etc. Let us know what you're up to. I'm hoping this will be easier for all of us. I'm still in the process of tweaking things, so some of the layout may change, but basically it's ready to go. If you have any questions about how to do anything, just ask. Have fun! Your sister, aunt, sister-in-law, etc, Kathi

Gio, Jenn, and Tofu

2008-11-06T19:17:00.000-08:00

Hello to Everyone from the Gio-Jenn-Tofu Family!
We're doing great here in Provo UT. Jenn is taking classes and prepping for her graduation in April 09, and I'm hard at work at NuSkin. Tofu continues to grow and he's as cute as ever.

We're excited to visit the Thompson's during Thanksgiving, see you all there!

Giovanni