MK's Pre-season Workouts

[At Cy's birthday party]

I'm calling them MKade ... because I want to

Ah Darling, please don't go...

Nice hops!

[In Hawaii...]

MK organized a team bonding workout at BYU-H: 80's aerobics class, haha

That girl knows how to have fun

Cam and a Conversation

Cam's RASKAL (Random Acts of Service, Kindness, and Leadership) award

His window drawing with messages from Mia and MK

His self-made schedule

Friends

One night Cam started asking me details about Elle's death. He had seen some pictures that day of someone in a hospital.

He said, "I don't want to feel any pain when I die. Do people sometimes die like that? without pain?"

"Yes."

And then, "Did Elle feel pain in the hospital?"

"They gave her medicine, so she didn't feel any pain." 

He wasn't finished, "Did she see it?" 

I knew he meant the car. I sat down. Cam was sitting on the counter with his feet on a stool just a couple feet away from my chair at the kitchen table. I wanted to be honest.

"I think so. When she woke up in the hospital, we asked her if she knew what had happened. Her eyes got wide, and she nodded yes. I wanted her to know that Dad and I knew what happened, so I said, 'You got run over by a car,' and she widened her eyes again and nodded."

I told him how she had lifted her arms to be held, but the doctor said we needed to put her back to sleep so she wouldn't begin to feel the pain. 

I thought to myself again how unprepared I was for those few moments I had to talk to Elle. I couldn't think of what to say, and I thought I'd have a lot of time with her after things settled down. 

I reassured myself as much as Cam, "I didn't know we wouldn't get to talk to her again, and the main thing was we wanted to make sure she would not be in pain, so we let the doctor put her right back to sleep."

He thought for a little while and then said, "I would be scared in the hospital."

"Hmmm. Well, when Elle woke up, she knew me and Dad were right there, and she saw Grandma and everyone around her bed. I told her everyone was there to help her, so she probably wasn't too scared." 

And then I told him something I've hoped, "And, sometimes when people are dying, they visit heaven. Especially in the helicopter, the paramedics said Elle died, so she might have gone to heaven even then. Heavenly Father might have said, 'Go back and say good-bye to your family for now.' Can you imagine what she could have told us?!... but she had a tube down her throat."

He asked, "Did she try to talk?"

"Yes. She was moving her lips but couldn't make any sound."

He wanted to know, "Did she have any expression when she tried to talk?" [he said expression—that boy]

"Mmm, not really, but I could tell in her eyes that she wasn't afraid or in pain."

He seemed satisfied.

He got off the counter and walked over by the kitchen desk, playing with something in his hands. I sat quietly... waiting to see if he had moved on. He looked down at his hands.

"When I was carrying Elle's casket, I didn't know I wouldn't see her again."

I was struck by his words, and I was struck by his ability to articulate his grief. We were both crying now.

I tried to talk through my tears, "You were only 6 years old. It's hard for 6-year-olds to understand that. It was hard even for me to understand that."

He continued, "But when I was 8 and now I'm 9, I'm noticing that she's not ... you know."

Yes, I know. 
But I've told myself something about that, too. "That she's not coming back in this life?" I wiped my eyes, "It sure is a long time for us, but pretty short for her! Time is very different in heaven. But, ya, for us it will be a long wait."

Then he said, "If I die when I'm 12, it won't be too long."

"Don't die when you're 12." (!!!)

Then he hugged me. 

And I cried some more.

I said, "I'm glad we can talk about Elle like this."

"Ya."

My 45th

Not one of my best days, I have to say. Started out with Cam's meltdown over Pokemon cards and went from there. I've repressed the rest ;) All I wanted for my birthday was for Rob and I to take the boys to the temple to do baptisms. This would be Cy's first time. So, that night we changed into church clothes and headed to the temple only to find that its maintenance closure was extended for another week or two.... 

So. 

After persuading the boys (and Rob) that we could just drive to another temple, we arrived at the second temple to find that a large ward youth group had just arrived and were lined all the way down the stairs ahead of us. 

What to do.

We took a picture in front of the temple and left for home.

Fail

I resigned myself to watching a movie in the basement. 
About 10:30 at night, I get this text:

It amazes me how small things like that can turn your day right-side up. (Have I told you, Kenz, how much I love your boy? No pressure... haha)

A few days later, I decided the best time to do baptisms in our highly-populated Mormon county would be during school. It was a tough sell, but the boys were willing to leave their studies.... 

Rob officiated, but the rest of us have wet hair in this pic. 

It's not fair, is it girls?

In related news, Rob and Getty got a special home teaching assignment to visit five ladies at the Developmental Center. They are all between the ages of 50 and 70. Four are blind, and three are both deaf and blind. They all have severe mental handicaps. They like their shoulders rubbed and one who can see some light likes people to wave their fingers above her eyes. Getty spent time with her by her window making shadows with his fingers. It made her so happy that the nurses giggled.

Getty's excited about the VIP passes they get to wear :)

Rob said, "That Sunday [when we visit] is at least one day every month that I won't complain about... anything."

So, cancel the complaints about my 45th birthday. 

I have so much to be grateful for. 

Back to School, 2014-15

MK: "YAAAAY for the last day of first day school pic... basically."

(She's on track to graduate from BYU-H this school year.) 

Back in Utah...
Rob gave the kids their traditional back-to-school blessings.

For Cam, we asked that he would be able to cope well with his sensitive emotions and not worry about making mistakes or 
take himself too seriously :)

For Cy's back-to-school blessing, we asked that he be protected from injury (because sports is his life) and that he would be a peacemaker at school, as opposed to looking for his "first fight," which he had slyly mentioned to me as a goal for this year!? 
I don't get it.

My fashion sense is so sick

Cy's commentary as he admired himself in the dressing room mirror at Old Navy went something like this:

"I look good."
"Look at this one, Mom. Pretty fresh."
"Don't you love this shirt on me? look how tan I am."
"These jeans are purrrfect on me."
"No, this shirt is my favorite. Check me out."
"Oh, these shorts were made for me."

And so on...

First day of school outfit

 Can you tell who enjoyed back-to-school pics the most?... (me)

I didn't catch Getty the first day of school before he took off on his longboard, so this was several days later after school. 

This is what he actually wore the first day of school—the same t-shirt and jeans as the first day of school last year:

2013


This year, 2014:

For Getty's back-to-school blessing, we asked that he be blessed to have the kind of friends he could be his best self with (because he's 15!). 

 Mia not wanting to pose when cars drove by...

SENIORITIS

Her tweet the night before the first day of school....

It's 4-year-old Mia 


For Mia's blessing, we asked that she would be prepared this year for her goal of serving a mission next year.

2014-15, The Adventure Begins!

Last Day of Summer

We took MK out to breakfast before her flight to Hawaii. She had gotten all of 3.5 hours of sleep the night before. 
Pretty sure this was the only time she smiled.

Noticed the beard?

The kids begged Rob not to shave for a week, 
which turned into two. 
He's just so attractive. sigh*

Anyways...
SORRY MK! Not our first choice to have fun without you, but since you are in Hawaii and all... 

Alpine Slide down the mountain

Waiting for the new Coaster

That Coaster is quite the speedy ride. They tell you the safest way to go is full throttle down the mountain... and I actually believed them. My hat flew off in the first five seconds. 

This is an Instagram jab at our friend John who couldn't get these spicy wings even near his lips before his sinuses cleared and he opted out of that fiery deliciousness. 

Favorite wings, loaded nachos, and molten chocolate cake before we headed home.

Summer, you were good to us.