The family celebrated Grammy and Papa's 70th birthdays this month! They went on a trip together up in WA which was a bummer for me, but I contributed their vintage 70th t-shirts and also I get to see them next month for Adam's farewell so it will all work out. Mom and Dad are still enjoying serving as mission leaders for the service missionaries. Love when I get to hear all about that. And speaking of home... Katie was asked to homecoming via Crumbl cookies....so exciting! It's hard to be so far away for these types of things! But glad I get to see pictures and hear all about it.
My dear friend Jessica took our family pictures this month- and I think they turned out pretty cute! It was a quick little session just down the road from our house and we didn't have much time to spare as Evelyn was only home a few days- so I was thrilled they turned out. That's always a relief and a lot of work to figure out.
As we prepare for the primary program, singing times have been super fun and more critical! These kids need to know these songs! Last month Blake and I allowed the best singers to add sining measles all over our face, hair and church clothes. It was so funny and the kids loved it. We also decked out the primary room for: Primary's Got Talent- where three judges come and judge the kids based on: appearance, word knowledge and overall spirit and reverence level. It was seriously so fun. I absolutely adore my calling and NEVER EVER want to be released. There is no way anything else could ever measure up to being with the primary kids singing each week-- I've been the leader for over 4 years so I'm scared I might have to move on one of these days.
Ok- let's go back to my birthday for a moment. It was SO FUN. The weekend before I planned out an evening most considered torture -- for all my friends! We went to Howl-O Scream at Seaworld where we enjoyed many haunted houses and scary rides in the pitch black. We also enjoyed a scary show and walking through haunt zones where scary characters chased you around. The best night ever and I loved it so much . I think my friends secretly didn't mind although one friend actually peed her pants she was so scared. I love her for it. She came just to be a good friend but was so scared. I will probably owe her the rest of my life. Haha! Also, on the day of my actual birthday my best friends threw the most beautiful fall luncheon for me. It was SO beautiful and included all of my favorite foods- pumpkin desserts, charcuterie boards, BBQ chicken salad! We did a favorite things exchange and I brought a few games I love. It was such a fun afternoon. Feel so so grateful for my friends. Loved reading special texts and notes from my kids. I spoiled myself and bought three magazines and listened to a new talking book! Sameen dropped by at 9:30 pm with a special NEW flavored- take 5 blizzard. She knew take 5 is my favorite flavor so she dropped that off after work. It was DELICIOUS! Blake and the kids took me to dinner and were so sweet. It really was the best day ever.
With so much going on, we enjoyed a more relaxing weekend just past watching General Conference and attending the occasional soccer game in between. With Anna at Girl Scout surf camp and Evelyn in Utah, it was just Blake and I and the boys. LOVED the quiet and calm and the messages of hope and peace. After conference we went to ice cream and played soccer out back before hot tubbing. We talked with the boys about all sorts of things without Anna around to chime in so much! But then of course we missed her and waited for Anna to return home to watch the new Hocus Pocus movie! A super sweet and relaxing weekend.
Quick notes on all of the kids- Grant has been struggling a little with a choice he's making to hang out with the cool kids or spend time with his church friends. This decision has been weighing heavy on his mind all month. We talk alot about this but I am so incredibly proud of Grant and the special person that he is. I've told him- honey, I know I'm your mom but honestly, you are so so cool. You be nice to those kids individually and treat them kindly and be their friends- but ultimately, find a group of friends that make you feel good about yourself and help you make good choices. You WILL definitely be cool especially as you get older-- you won't need anyone to get you there! You'll be cool just cause you are that person! He seems to believe me. And of course I'd support whatever he chose to do- I just know middle school is awful in this regard and I feel for him. Grateful he has loving family, extended family and church friends along with incredible teachers and leaders in all areas of his life. He'll be just fine I know but doesn't make middle school any easier right now. One thing that stuck out to me about his experiences this past month is his perseverance. He'd been sitting with the "cool kids" who don't invite him places outside of school and aren't particularly nice to him. One day, as he sat down, one of the kids told him- "get out Grant," and made him leave. His other "cool" friends didn't speak up on his behalf. He was DEVASTATED. But that night, we sat down and instead of feeling sorry for himself or deciding he didn't want to go to school, he made a plan of where he would sit, who he would find- how to remove himself from this group of kids who made him feel so badly about himself and who clearly treated others with disrespect too. He called his buddy, invited him over and they decided they'd join the girls from church and make a big group with boys and girls- far from the cool kids. This is all playing out as I write... so who knows how this will turn out in the end, but dang it, I'm proud of this kid for figuring out his life and picking himself up after a set back. Middle school torment: to be continued......
Dane has been keeping so busy with soccer. He is working extra hard with highschool tryouts around the corner. He works on his soccer, he is learning to be a better driver every day. In fact, he's already better at parking then I am! Haha.. my friend and I laughed so hard at my horrible parking job the other day. It felt right that it was so horrible as I have the "student driver" stickers placed all about the car. The ironic thing is that Dane's parking job the next day was spot on! Proud of him. Dane is growing every day. For dinner last weekend he ordered TWO pizzas and this is about right. He loves to cook- especially teriyaki noodles with a special sauce he created all on his own. He learned this from Adam. And speaking of..... Dane is super excited to visit Seattle this weekend for Adam's farewell! Dane has been into thrifting lately and it's been a blast for him- with his friends. They are all into it. And apparently, wearing swim shorts to school is what we all do now. All the kids are doing it. What do I know? Dane has been attending the church dances with his buddies and birthday parties for his soccer friends here and there- but mostly he likes to stay home. This is new and we don't know how long it will last, but highschool can be rough and Dane is trying to figure out who he I've learned that my job is to spend time with him as long as he'll let me and not question so much why he didn't want to go to the homecoming game or dance. It's a little hard on me to see him stay home so much, but the two of us are working on this and I'm hoping he'll feel more like himself soon. He is an INCREDIBLE person and in fact, the other day he reminded me of this! I was laying into him about how he needed to spend more time joining a club or doing volunteer work to build his resume or he'd be in trouble! He spent too much time watching TV, I barked. Instead of getting angry or clamming up as a typical teen might, he gently reminded me that he attends seminary every day without complaint, is getting straight A's and goes to soccer 3-4 times a week plus is busy with games all weekend. He really IS doing a lot- but sometimes I don't see how wonderful he is. I was grateful for the reminder and for a son who teaches me in humble ways.
Anna has been SO busy this month! Highlights have included: Girl Scout Surf Camp for the weekend with all her buddies! Violin lessons! SO MUCH dance!!! An adorable dance and skits for the Primary's talent show. She choreographed it with buddy Silver- and the dance was truly darling- to The Beach Boys: Surfing USA. Cheering in front of the entire school for a pep rally! Field trip to Old Poway Park which she begged me to attend and though I didn't think I'd be able to make it, was SO happy I did. Anna is always a treasure to spend time with and this is my last elementary child- it's heartbreaking! No more field trips soon. So glad she talked me into spending the day with her and her friends. Anna lives for tortellini lately, she loves to play board games like monopoly and tenzi. She is the best pet owner and takes care of Louie all day ever day. She loves to use her imagination and comes up with the cutest ideas: This week alone she created a million sock puppets, blew out the contents of a bunch of eggs and made egg people along with egg people accessories, created a family of dolls and put them in a traveling doll cart, imagined she and Kate were "Karens" who made trouble wherever they went, and pretended to be the choir director for hours on end. This is just to name a few. Absolutely love love love this little girl who is my favorite person on earth.
helping brother with his hurt scraped knee. She always takes care of Dane.
a note Anna wrote to the neighbor to thank her for avocados.
pretending these little jewel dots are "piercings"
Ev is having a blast up in Utah. She went camping this past weekend at the Salt Mines. She had an amazing time back down in San Diego with her buddies and Eli- at Howl o Scream, bowling, dancing, etc. She was a great sis to her siblings and even taught Grant a few things on the guitar and cleaned her room spotless! She is the 2nd counselor in her relief society and taught an hour long lesson last week!!!!! I couldn't believe it! She doesn't take many pictures- but I love when I see her Be Reals here and there. She is loving her classes and learning so much. I'm so proud of her.
So you can see.... it has all been just one big party! The pumpkins and now skeletons sprinkled all over the house have made life feel super festive. We stepped it up a little and hung a few outdoor haunts this year too. Anna helped me decorate and she was the best assistant . All throughout the decorating, she pretended she was a YouTube-er and teaching others how to decorate for fall. At the end she said- "well this has been quite the journey" and it really had been quite the journey. It practically took me all day to gt those pumpkins in place. I laughed so hard! It's been an awesome month and for sure, one with so much to be grateful for.
