Mission prep is in full swing! We are making our way through the list of needed items: white shirts, belts, ties, pants, luggage, garments, and a few baptism items. It is so crazy. I cannot believe the time is going so fast. When he got his call, December seemed so far away. We are now getting close to October and I want to slow time down. I am so excited for Luke and for all of the amazing experiences that await him but I will miss him so much. He is going to be the best missionary.
So it turns out that Tag hates Fall! Who knew? In his words, "Fall is the worst!" I went to his parent teacher conference today. His teacher loves him and that is such a blessing. On the wall outside of his classroom there were pictures and papers that they had written to express their opinion on the season fall. Tag said the only two good things about fall were Halloween and Cornbellys. The three reasons why he thinks fall is the worst is one, jumping in leaves is not fun because there are lots of sticks in the piles. The second reason is that people say the weather is just right but it is either as hot as if 50 suns were in the solar system or as if the source of heat was Neptune. So funny! The third reason was that some people say that their birthday is in fall and that is kind of just bragging. Not only was I so impressed that Tag could write such a long opinionated paper, but I love his thought and reasoning. What a gift after an amazing report from his teacher. I know that writing is not easy for Tag and I am so proud of him.
Harlee and I decided many months ago to go to St George with Jackie and Ari. We were so excited. We left on Friday at 10am and made our way down south. We chatted the whole way and decided to stop in Filmore for lunch. The timing could not have been more perfect for the girls- five minutes after we got there a whole football team came in for lunch. All signs pointed to a wonderful trip! We made it down to SG and around 2pm. One of the reasons that the girls wanted to go was to meet Tammy's twin grandsons. As the weekend got closer, Tammy realized it was Homecoming weekend so the girls would not be able to meet them. Or so we thought... The girls were out front on the driveway when Gavin, one of the twins, pulled into Tammy's driveway. We headed over to Tammy's and the girls got to meet him. He was super quiet and slightly awkward, but the girls had fun. After Tammy's we went out to dinner at Viva Chicken and then home for the girls to get ready for the football game. The girls were excited to go see the boy crop in SG. They had fun watching he game until they met Garrett the other twin who was way less than nice to them. Oh well, it did not dampen their spirits. They went to Iceberg after the game and Jackie and I went to Flake. We went home to go to bed and rest up for the next day. The next day was full of shopping at the mall, Ari finding a homecoming dress, the Porkbelly's for lunch (so amazing). Then we went home to spend a few hours by the pool. After some relaxation we went to Pizza Factory for dinner before dropping the girls off at Dixie Rock. After the rock was less than successful, we went home to relax. The girls hung out and Jackie and I watched a movie. We woke up early on Sunday morning and cleaned the house. We left for home around 11am after a quick stop at Pinkbox donuts. It was such a wonderful trip full of fun and strengthening friendships. I really hope that we can do it again.
On August 22nd Luke and I started 75 day hard. This is a program where you exercise twice a day for at least 45 minutes- one workout has to be outside. You have to follow a meal plan, drink a gallon of water a day, and read 10 pages of a book each day. The whole reason that I committed is because Luke and I could walk together each day- cherished time before he leaves for two years. It has been hard but some days are harder- especially when it is pouring outside. Check out that commitment! So glad to be going through this journey together. Only 51 days to go!
Since tomorrow is Labor Day, we decided to go up to hike at Timber Lakes in Heber. We drove there and once we made it there we realized that we could not go in due to the cabins/private property. We drove around and every lake we saw was on private property. On our way down we did see a little lake that we could get out and see. We practiced skipping rocks and spent time chatting as a family. Perfect moment in my book. We then dropped the kids off at home before going to pick up the pie for dinner. I am so grateful for a day off and beyond grateful for family time.
They asked Tag several weeks ago to give a talk in Primary but then switched him to another week. He was sick so we rescheduled for the following week and then totally forgot until we were reminded an hour before church. Thank goodness for Tag's willingness and for Joey's ability to come up with a talk so quickly. Besides Tag taking out his gum and stretching it between his fingers, the talk was perfect. Great job Tag! We all love him so much!
We are finally bringing back the dates! With not too many months left in the year, we are making an effort to follow through with the Christmas Eve gifts. We have Tag's, Gray's, Har's, and Luke's left. Today we decided to take Tag. We went to the Sandy Nickelcade which although fun, Tag let us know that he liked the other Nickelcade better ; ) We spent about an hour and a half playing games and winning tickets. We also played air hockey where Tag completely beat me. It was so much fun. We went and got Tag an icee for his treat after. Such a fun afternoon with the best company.
Nash has been thinking about getting his patriarchal blessing for a little while now. Harlee told him of how they did a devotional at HXP b...
