WHERE'S WALDO!

 For combined mutual we did Where's Waldo in the Queen Creek Marketplace! We had teams meet at the church and we gave them all clues to find all 8 Waldos. The youth LOVED running from one Waldo to the next! One was a landscaper and a lady told him he missed some leaves, one was a window washer and someone asked him why he just kept cleaning the same window over and over, Jared was a Target worker and pushed all the shopping carts back to the store the entire time and shoppers kept bringing him their carts...he was the hardest one for the youth to find beause he blended in so well! It was an awesome night! 

AN EMOTIONAL WEEK!

 The emotions of sending out a missionary are brutal! You will be doing fine with the fact that they are gone and then BAM! out of no where it hits you that they are gone. On Sundays we like to relax and watch a movie together as a family. So on Sunday the 4 of us did just that. Except I cried. Then I stopped. Then I cried some more. Then I belly sobbed and Jared had to pick me up and take me to our room and he told me he was giving me a blessing. I missed him something terrible and he should have been with us. There is no place else I would prefer him to be, but for some reason, Sunday movie night hit me hard! The Friday was his Pday and by the time he was able to call us after us being done with work, school, the Temple, etc.....the wifi and power kept going out at the CCM so he couldn't call us. For the most part I was so busy it was ok. But by the time it was bedtime....I was not doing good. I went to bed trying to hid my emotions. Then I got up in the middle of the night and went and laid in his bed. I missed him. I needed to hear his voice and make sure he was happy and doing ok. Luckily I got to wake up to an email from him and messages from him letting us know what had happened and that he would be calling us later in the day. I was so freaking excited when my little facebook messenger started ringing and it was my Eli! I got to talk to him for an hour and 12 minutes! I love seeing his cute face, hearing his laugh and having him tell us about everything. He's only been gone for 2 weeks, but WOW the growth we can see in him already! I am amazed at what these missionaries can do! I am also so in love with my husband! He is the most supportive, kind and loving man. He holds me when I am upset, gives me blessings, tells me its ok to cry and not to apologize to him for it....He has been my rock while my baby is gone and I am missing him! 

JUNIOR YEAR HOMECOMING!

Thank heavens the twins are in STUGO this year so that they HAVE to ask a girl to the dance or they fail the class...it's the only way we could get Tyler to go, ha ha! As the boys were making posters he was checking with all of them to see if they were going to knock on the door or just ditch the poster and run. Tyler made it to Berkeley's door and knocked and ran! Then after they pulled away, Tyler got a phone call and she called him and made him go back for a picture - she's my new hero!! Tyson asked Jaycee, I'm so excited about it! Can't wait for the dance!! 

OUR FIRST FACETIME WITH ELDER JENSEN!

 Today was Eli's first p-day and so we finally got to facetime him. He did call us for a couple of minutes the first night and then called Jared another time because he needed help accessing his debit card....but today....today was the first time it was facetime and we got to really see his face, hear his tone, we pulled the twins out of seminary to talk to him for a few minutes and he showed us all over the CCM, told us about his schedule, how the Mexico Temple is his new favorite and they had to do the session in spanish. His face is so cute....I just wanted to reach through the phone and kiss his little cheeky! Fridays are going to be my new favorite day of the week!! 

ELI'S FIRST MESSAGE TO US!

 Later that night after we tracked his air tags all day and watched all 4 finally make it to the CCM we felt a little better about life, but we were still so sad. Finally we got his phone and sent us a short email, but it filled my soul. We felt so glad that he was flying on a plane with 5 other missionaries, but it turned out he flew with 44 other missionaries!! They were all sitting in the back of the plane together!! Then this little punk, I warned him over and over....get in the front right corner for the group pic....he would give me a hard time and tell me he was going in the back...well....he was literally in the back left. I didn't believe him, but he didn't realize that that was when they were taking the picture! I had to zoom in, find his suit, and then got to see a blurry pic of his face....but I'll take it! 

ps - the day Eli left was the only day Tyler willingly let me snuggle him without saying anything....I just laid there and silentry cried to myself. 

SAYING GOODBYE TO ELDER JENSEN!

 The day finally came...it was time to for Eli to fly to the Mexico CCM! This was harder than I ever imagined! No one tells you how hard it really is! There is no other place I would rather have him be...but dang! As soon as we got home there was an absence in our home that we knew would not be filled for 2 years. The emptiness hurts...but gosh we love this boy of ours so much and are glad to share him with the people of Peru! We love you more than you'll ever know Elias Grant! Praying for you and all the missionaries around the world! Only 24 Fast Sundays to go! 

(As soon as we walked into the house there was a palpable emptiness inside that kicked you in the gut the moment you opened the door! How is it possible that it could feel like this and he has only been gone an hour. Even Tyson walked in the house and sadly said, "so this is it?! just us 4??)