NEWPORT BEACH FOR FALL BREAK!

 Over the summer my friends asked me if we wanted to go with them to Newport Beach for fall break with a bunch of families. We said no because we had big plans to be up in Provo with Emma so the boys could see her, see her place and we could hang out - it would have been about a month and a half since she had left so it seemed like she would be due for a good bit of family time. Then as break got closer and closer and  Provo became the hot spot for Covid, we were feeling uneasy about staying at Ashley's and possibly getting her family sick, things were closed, not a whole bunch to do, plus if we stayed home we could attack are hideous year that needed a lot of work, so we just decided to cancel Provo - with Emma's approval. 

The day I flew out to surprise Emma when she needed me, it was so last minute and Jared was in a very important work meeting he couldn't get out of, so I called Kati and she took me to the airport and on the way she told me, you should just come to California with us. Adam can't come till Wednesday and you can share my room with me and my boys would love it. This actually seemed like the perfect solution. Jared could stay home and take care of the yard and all the people who were supposed to come and do work on it, I could take the boys for a much needed vacation for them and we still got to be with our friends. 

So we did! And I am so grateful we did. So grateful Kati talked me into it. We caravaned out to Newport with them on Sunday and came home Wednesday morning - which happened to be Eli's birthday. The kids had the GREATEST time! They just ran around for 3 days straight with 5 million kids they knew from our stake. Eli ran around with Braxten, Jake, Kate and a new friend and then the twins ran around with Mikey, Nash, August, and whoever else. They would just run from beach house to beach house, playing in the ocean all day, playing 9 square on the beach, surfing on their boogie boards down a sandhill into the ocean, boogie boarding, seaweed jump rope, riding in a red floating couch, Eli and his crew rode bikes to a donut shop one morning, the twins snuck off to August's beach house and played video games for a little bit, it was just back and forth all over and everyone LOVED IT!! I already said - we are going again next year!!!! 

SURPRISE EMERGENCY TRIP TO SEE EMMA!

After a long 72 hours of nothing going very good (chemistry lab issues, Sodalicious drink breaking inside her backpack and drowning her new MAC book Pro, being hit by a car on her bike heading to the bus stop (TOTALLY fine just a headache and sore neck) this chick was done! She hit rock bottom. 

We had talked to her that morning after she was hit and sounded super annoyed but fine. Then while at work she sent me a text that she was trying to pull it together, but that she was just done.  My mom gut told me I needed to get up there and help her! But Jared had just talked to her on the phone and said she was fine. It still wasn't sitting right with me. 

By the blessings of Heaven and a few very special friends and family members - I was able to buy a plane ticket and 2 hours later I was in the sky flying to her! I texted Stephanie at work and asked her if she could come in for me and she did, She showed up at 11:15am and then by 11:20am I was driving home and told Jared to by me a ticket. I called Kati Hall and asked her if she could drive me cause Jared was stuck in a meeting he had to go to. She showed up 15 minutes later ready to take me and had made me a sack lunch! I texted Ashley and knew she was heading to pick up Emma at 4pm to take her to Best Buy so she could buy a new laptop and asked her to swing by the Provo Airport and grab me because my flight landed at 4pm. 

We got to her apartment and I surprised her. After the shock she gave me the tightest hug ever, sobbed in my shoulder and her little body shook! We took her and she got a new laptop, we hung out that night and even stayed up late eating Chipotle and watching a movie with Maddie (I promised the girls I wouldn’t post their pic so they are unicorns now 🤷‍♀️)and then Emma slept on the couch and gave me her bed. I woke up to the sound of a Hot Air Balloon right above her apartment complex - so random.  Then the next day while Emerson buckled down and did her chemistry and got caught up on homework. 

While I was there I was able to do all her laundry, clean her kitchen, bathroom, mop, empty trash and of course get her room back in order which I hear always looks good till the last 72 hours, took her to get a flu shot and her left her money for the treats her and Maddie are making to enjoy during Conference. I flew home the next day 26 hours after landing but she was back to her old self by the time I left. It was so good for both of us. I will be forever grateful for that quick trip, helping my girl and for those who made this crazy thing possible within a 20 minute notice! So grateful to Heavenly Father who also made everything fall perfectly into place! 

POLITICAL PARTY!

 The twins got extra credit if they had a political debate watch party! So we borrowed Sara's 4th of July decorations and hung those up over our Halloween decorations and the twins and Mikey watched the debate between Biden and Trump! They didn't last long, but we got a picture so now they get the credit! 

YOUTH CONFERENCE!

 A lot of planning went in to having Youth Conference this year. We really wanted to do something to bring the youth together since we haven't been together since March. We decided to make it an all day affair. It started off with breakfast made for them by the Elders Quorum, then they listened to Taryn Bashford speak, then they broke out into their age groups and did different service projects, after that Kona Ice came. Then Jared and I took the boys to their first tackle football game and then came back just in time for the virtual fireside speaker, Cafe Rio for dinner and then swimming and hanging out until 9pm. The next day was a fireside testimony meeting. The boys had a great time. My favorite part was the end of the night when the boys and girls would all just mix and play some giant game of capture the flag and there wasn't anything awkward about the boys and girls mixing! Good memories and the boys really enjoyed themselves. Made all the planning and meetings worth it! 

DALTON'S BAPTISM!

 In 4th grade, we were super bummed we didn't get Ms Palomarez for the twins 4th grade teacher. We got someone we didn't know - which means you never know what you are going to get. We got Ms. Dalton. Turned out she was a perfect fit for the twins. When we walked in her room on the first day and it was filled with Superhero stuff - I knew we were in the right spot. I would do Art Masterpiece in the class that year and bring Alyza with me to teach and Ms Dalton would color with her, etc. 

Fast forward to last year when I got Alyza signed up for Haley cheer with Ms Dalton. Then RJ and her became friends and they ended up finding out they live 4 houses down from each other. 

Then fast forward to many phone calls over quarantine about many different things. I felt a very strong prompting - even though it was way out of my comfort zone and I was fighting it - to ask her if she would like to have the missionary discussions. She did! We secretly got all the kids out of our house without them knowing and had her over for the discussions for an hour with the sister missionaries over zoom. 

Then over time she would meet with them on her own at her house, call me with questions, I dropped her off some magazines from Deseret Book, her friend Christie helped her a lot, etc. 

Then one night she was having a really bad day and I was talking to her at 10:30pm and I felt like I should ask her if she wanted a priesthood blessing. She did. I looked at Jared who had just crawled into bed and turned on TV and told him, sorry we need to go. 

He got up, got dressed in his church clothes and we went over to her house and were there till probably 11:45pm. Jared gave her a very touching and powerful blessing. She is an incredible lady. Jared said it may have been one of the most powerful blessings he had ever been a part of. 

Then one night while we are sitting at tackle football she called us and asked if she could come over but we told her we weren't home so she facetimed us and told us she was going to get baptized and wanted Jared to baptize her, I was her witness (first time ever) and Jared confirmed her a member of the church and I gave a closing prayer. 

Dalton met with our Bishop and her Bishop and decided for many different reasons she wanted to be apart of our ward. She was able to get the exception and so we moved forward with it. Her best friend Christie and I got together and planned her baptism for her. Christie did flower arrangements and the program and I did the dessert table afterwards. I was able to secretly invite some of her former students and families in our ward to come and be apart of her special night. 

This was one of the greatest missionary experiences I have ever had and probably will ever have. We are so lucky to have her in our ward, we got her hooked up with the best home teachers, she sits with us every Sunday, we got her hooked with the activity days leader - perfect calling for her and everything is awesome! 

GRANDMAS KNOW BEST!

We love visiting Grandma Joyce!! We also love that at 96 years old she does NOT love ripped jeans. She warned Emmerson that her new ripped jeans should not be taken to Utah because the holes would make her cold! Em politely smiled and nodded! Fast forward a couple months later....I get these two pics from her today. “Ok Grandma Joyce was right! I’m wearing my new grey ripped jeans and my Sherpa and I’m freezing!” I promised her I wouldn’t tell grandma she was right!