I've been reading President Oak's biography. In it he sent a weekly letter or e-mail home throughout his life. Once upon a time I was an avid journaler and when the kids were little I blogged weekly. I love the gratitude and reflection it allows me and also wanted a way to connect with parents, grandparents, family and friends. I plan on printing our posts in an annual yearbook. There are so many of us now, with so many things happening even weekly feels like a lot of ground to cover, but I'll do my best!
Isaac- Has a really fun custom home underway. It's not the biggest he has built by any means but detailed, pretty big and cool. It sits on a bench in providence with a beautiful view of the valley and is currently bright green because of the sheeting type used in the framing process. If you look East while driving you can see it from nearly anywhere in lower Millville and Providence. It's fun for me to spot and admire him in that way. He has been loving this fall. BYU is 8-0! It's been such a fun season the highlight of which was beating Utah at home and watching the kids run onto the field.
Sheena- I love what I do. Taking photos of homes around Cache Valley everyday feels like a dream come true. I love the flexibility it allows in my schedule and that it doesn't require the same energy as interacting with people for family photos! I'm a little more introverted than I recognize and those family photos while super rewarding take a lot out of me. My favorite thing is flying the drone. There isn't a spot in Cache Valley that doesn't look gorgeous from up above. Last week I went to Tommy's field trip to Macey's and to Vivians class Halloween party and parade. The freedom to attend those things without a second thought is incredible. Our home remodel is taking a toll on me and the most exciting moment of my week was when Stacey and Brady delivered our "new" temporary oven and my exciting moment of the month was waiting in line for the new Garment style! It is awesome.
Cami- Cami and I poured ourselves into BYU application essay's last week. We spent about 3 days at the computer stopping only to eat and sleep. We worked tirelessly to fit all of the best things into the 1500 character count. We literally laughed and cried recounting fun stories from her life that really tell who she is. In 4th grade they had class student council tryouts. Cami's teacher e-mailed to tell me that even though there had been a tie, Cami won. She was the only student trying out who had not voted for herself. Another story I love is in 5th grade the recess aid told the kids if they picked up trash she would trade them for bouncy balls. Cami's collection of bouncy balls was enormous! We reached out to a lot of friends to read the essays and give us feedback. It was truly fun to reconnect, laugh and share. We're now praying she gets accepted or that the Lord has a different and greater plan in store for her. My days with her in our home are numbered and I feel it every time I look at her. I'm simultaneously excited and devastated to have her moving on and growing up.
Allie- Allie is 2 weeks from turning 16. She is taking her drivers test soon and spent an hour parallel parking between our cars on the street yesterday. She is loving her AP seminar class which is essentially literary analysis. She is an avid reader and loves talking about sociology/psychology right now. She and I are both INFJ's and she likes to point out favorite book characters who are the same; for example, Dumbledore, Remus Lupin, Atticus Finch, Elsa, Jane Eyre and Mother Teresa to name a few. She is so pretty, sometimes she comes out of her room and takes my breath away. But, like the famous country song, "She don't know she's beautiful." She is working towards making JV tennis in the fall and has a private coach from Romania. When she hits well he calls out "Perfecto", when she hits ok he says "good" and when it's a lame hit he says "uh Ok."
Tommy- Tommy's youth football team won their mini bowl for the 3rd year in a row! He had a 2 point conversion one game that was the highlight of our season and a broken arm that was the lowlight! He is doing well in school and really floats through friend groups with ease. He is pretty dang likable, but his sisters might tell you otherwise. He loves to get under their skin. He's been growing out his hair for the first time, much to Isaac's dismay and got his first perm. We aren't certain about it yet. He has also loved this fall and is a big fan of Bear Bachmeier. He never fully got behind Retzlaff so it's been fun for him to love the quarterback this year.
Vivian- Viv's made a hard decision to leave her competitive dance team a few weeks ago. She is still competing in a jazz solo to the song Ms. Kiss Kiss Bang. It should be a lot of fun and she's loving her free time. She is registered for basketball and plans on tennis this spring. She's a big tease, loves being nearly as tall as Tommy and Allie and is counting down the days for Cami to move out so she can have her own room. From sunup to sundown she talks non-stop!
