Let's Go Footballing

Dear Ty,

I can’t get my email to send, so I’m going to try separating the text and the photos.

This is version 2 of my weekly email. RIP version 1! It was so fun to talk to you tonight. Thanks for giving us a good laugh at your expense! I’m sorry you haven’t been feeling great, and even more sorry that you had to deal with such a terrible bathroom situation ! Hopefully this is a one-time thing, and you are able to regulate your diet a bit better. And hopefully this is also a learning experience! Always be prepared with TP and wipes! I’m so glad you found some success teaching and finding this week. Keep working hard and doing your best, and you will find payoff moments.

This is what we’ve been up to:

1. Ryan and Kelsey’s family was in town this week and came over to play a few times. We spent a few hours together at Cherry Hill too. It was much less crowded than last week. The water was clean and it was much more enjoyable!

2. Ryan closed his dental practice and went to work with some other dentists. He’s really happy with the change. He’s learning a lot from the other dentists, and doesn’t have to run the business. That means less stress for him and more time home with the family. They are home schooling the kids, and the twins are walking now. They bought goats and chicken, and every day must be an adventure!

3. Uncle Andrew had been interviewing for jobs for several months, and continues to just miss out on the offers. He was just recruited to apply for a job in Lehi and the interviews appear to be going well. So hopefully he will have a good offer in hand soon!

4. I worked at Northridge High and Syracuse Arts Academy taking yearbook photos this week. I felt like I was thrown to the wolves! It was a lot of fun and I’m learning how to set up photography equipment and pose the kids. I got to work with Natalie in Tuesday, and on Wednesday I worked with Bailee Minnick from our old ward. I remember Averee Dorius was friends with her and told me that she had been dating Brandon Geckler before he left to Brazil. Bailee has been apprenticing under her aunt who is a photographer and has her own photography business. These young girls are so impressive. It’s so different from when I was their age.

5. Ethan had basketball camp at Centennial all week. He’s really hoping to make the 9th grade team, and we’re all rooting for him. He will also be playing volleyball. This week he needs to decide if he wants to try out for a comp team like Hard Knox. He wants to play if he doesn’t make the school team, but he doesn’t want to be over scheduled if he makes both teams. Tough choices!

6. Friday night was Phoenix night at the high school. Jett played around 4:00, and then it started to rain. And then POUR. I was scheduled to sell tickets from 6-9, so Tate and I hung out inside the school, and pretty soon they evacuated the stadium and made everyone come inside because of lightning and wind. They had to collapse all of the canopies and bounce houses and it was a huge pain. But they managed to get the events back on track and it was a great event. Fireworks at the end of the night got interrupted too, and everyone had to leave the stadium in the dark! lol. I’m so glad I wasn’t in charge of all that!

7. Varsity scrimmaged against the JV team and they wiped the floor with the younger kids. Blake played on the offensive line, but also a little bit on the defensive line. So I guess we will see how that goes this year.

8. Jett’s team played in the Jamboree on Saturday morning. He hasn’t been very excited about football this year. But a few days ago he prayed to have a better attitude, and came home saying practice was great. He said something like “I glory in pain.” lol. That kid is dramatic!

9. Saturday afternoon we picked up Grandpa Bramhall and drove to Riggins to hang out with Michael and run the river on Monday. Blake couldn’t join us because he has practice on Monday. Bummmer. Today we went to church in the tiny branch here, and then spent the day driving around Riggins. We visited a “secret” garden, picnicked at a lake, and drove up the mountain to a lookout point. It’s pretty smoky here because of nearby fires, so the view wasn’t great, but just fun to be together. The lake was beautiful and clear. We weren’t going to play in the lake today, but the wind blew one of our paper plates into the water and we had to retrieve it. By the time we got the plate out, Tate, Jett, and Ethan were all soaking wet, and Jett was having a minor panic attack about a spider he saw. Michael tried to console Jett by telling him that we all inhale spiders while we sleep, and that didn’t help at all.

10. The kids have been bickering non-stop lately, and I’m so grateful for when they are watching their screens in the car and leaving the rest of us alone. Ethan, Jett, and Tate spent about 10 solid minutes making barfing noises in the car while we drove down the mountain this afternoon. Dad finally made them stop and that’s when the farting sounds started. Sigh. I’m sad to see the summer end, but it will also be good to get these kids back in school so they stop tormenting each other (and myself). Not gonna lie, I’m looking forward to some peace and quiet.

Love you Ty!
Xoxo,
Mom  

Ps. Inquiring minds want to know if you’ve seen any cool birds in Malaysia?