Hi family!!

THANKS to Reed for asking us to get a post out today.  That's so nice of you to help everyone be aware of how important it is to stay in touch.

Also, I decided I'm never ever complaining about boring months again.  January was blissful compared to the craziness of February.  February had a lot of good news, and a lot of bad news, and just lots of news.

I turned in my application for a Master's in Organic Chemistry at BYU on February 1st.  The program is pretty sweet.  They pay you a little stipend in addition to paying your tuition for all of your classes, you get to learn a lot, you get to work in a lab, and you get to TA.  The Master's is only 2 years long, and it works out perfectly so that Trent and I will graduate within the same year (if not on the exact same day...).

About a week later, I found out that I got in!  I'm so excited!  I've already gone in and spoken to a few professors about the possibilities of working in their labs.  In the research world, 2 years is very little time to get a project completed, so I would much rather know where I'm starting from day one rather than kicking around for a few months making a decision.  There are two really interesting professors with room in their labs.  One is working on an anti lung cancer drug, and another is working on an anti kidney cancer drug.  I offered to volunteer in their labs during the summer to get a feel of which lab I want to work in, and then I can hit the ground running once school starts.

The really difficult thing about getting my master's in chemistry is I wasn't technically a chemistry major.  This means I have to take linear algebra, differential equations, multivariable calculus, and physical chemistry all online before I start in the fall.  MIT has a really cool program where they stream classes for free, and give you access to all the homework and test problems...so I am using that to prepare myself.  It is a lot of work though.

Four days after I found out I was accepted to BYU, my company lost funding and had to lay almost everyone off.  It was effective immediately.  It was pretty unexpected, and I went home that day without a job.  They gave us two weeks' severance, but the job hunt began in earnest.  I sent out about 4 applications a day for a week.  Last Thursday I heard from a staffing agency, and they had found a pretty decent job (full time, decent benefits, right in Provo) for me.  I start tomorrow!  I feel very fortunate to be in a position where I was able to find work so quickly.  I also have an interview this week for a job that is slightly better, so fingers crossed that it goes well.  Either way, I feel very loved and blessed through this whole experience.  I also tutored a little bit in my job lull.  Becky was so nice in helping me find some clients...such a great older sister.

Trent has been hard at work in his classes.  We just spent 2 hours going over organic chemistry for a big test this week.  He's also been organizing the Pinewood Derby for our cubscouts this week.  Pack meetings and his o-chem tests fall on the same day EVERY TIME.  It's pretty stressful, but Trent's a really good sport about it.  He's good to prepare and gives full effort to both.

We are super pumped about the BYU win last night.   Fingers crossed that we get into the NCAA tournament.  Trent is setting up a march madness bracket for our family in two weeks, and will send out all the information to you guys.  It'll be super fun to all fill out brackets and see who does the best job. :)  I'll take first, I'm pretty sure.

Trent's also been volunteering at the Utah Mental Hospital every Friday.  It's been very rewarding.  He just goes and plays games (basketball, chess, dodgeball) with the teenage boys for two hours.  Most are there because they've come from really hard, damaging family situations.  Some are there simply because they've been clinically diagnosed with a psychological condition.  Trent is really good to spend time with them and help them understand normal social standards and how to react to things that don't go their way.  It's been really neat.

I love you all so much!  I hope everything is going well!
Love,
Mary and Trent