December 13, 2017

Instead of a presidency meeting, we decided to go on a visit.  That was all well and good, but I was still emotional this morning.  And moving slow.

I have two Rachel's in my presidency.  Rachel Garner and Rachel Ence.  Both are dear friends.  Rachel Ence showed up first.  She lost her dad this year, too.  When she saw my house looking like a disaster, she told me that she felt a little more normal, because usually I look pretty put together.  Well, that got me laughing and crying.  Soon we were both bawling about our dads and hugging each other.  This is the point Rachel Garner entered my house.  I was still crying and trying to gather myself while those two sweet friends started cleaning my kitchen.

We somehow made it out on a really fun visit.  We cheered up and had a great morning.  Then, back at my house, Rachel Ence had to go get her little boy, so Rachel Garner stuck around and helped me with my dishes.  She later texted to see if I was okay.  Which I totally was.  But I told her how much she had filled my bucket.  I'm so thankful for good women who are there to mourn with those who mourn.

Mom's Christmas gift to all of us is The Twelve Days of Christmas.  Boy, were my kids excited to wake up this morning and open the first envelope.  Inside was some money and a note telling us to go see the Temple lights and get a treat.  With the crazy way my day was going, we decided to take it to the next level.  We got In n Out hamburgers and milkshakes and picked up the girls from volleyball and went straight to the temple.  It was beautiful and fun, and I'm so glad that Mom gave us that idea.

Oh, how I love this family of mine!

The St. George Temple.  So pretty!

Emma has been in major turmoil.  She realized that Prom is on the same day as her first volleyball tournament in Salt Lake City.  This has created a ton of stress for us.  We finally, agonizingly, decided that Prom is part of what make high school fun, and she just couldn't miss it.  But it was beyond terrifying to think of explaining that to her coach.  Especially since we feel like he has made some big concession already to let Emma on this team, even though she will not play on Sunday, and this is a Sunday-play team.  But we just couldn't face telling Jed that Emma couldn't go.  It's been so stressful.  Finally today, I used every skill I have in the word department and composed a text to the coach.  I put a ton of thought into it.  Trust me.  Well, it all turned out with flying colors.  The coach called me and told me that he totally understood.  And that the good news was that the tournament was now on Friday, too, and not just Saturday.  I promised to have Emma at the Friday games and he was really happy about that.  He assured me that Emma deserves her spot on this team, and he knows she is committed.

With a HUMONGOUS sigh of relief, I texted Emma at school.  She was so grateful for my help.  She was so relieved.  And somehow, just like I promised her, it all worked out.  I'm so grateful for a kind coach who understands that sometimes it's hard to be sixteen years old.  And I'm so grateful for the relationship Emma and I are developing.  She is really growing into a beautiful woman, and a great partner for me.

So, after everyone was in bed, Emma and Julia and I went out into the dark to finally answer Jed. We went with the Elf theme, and I thought it was hilarious.  It involved sneaking through the night, dumping a huge pile of "snow" on their porch, and an awesome picture of Elf saying, "I'd have to be a cotton-head ninnymuggins to not go with you!" We also included some Elf favorites like a whole roll of Tollhouse cookie dough, a 2-liter of Root Beer, and a candy cane forest.  It was an awesome excursion with my girls.

YES!!!

It was 11:00 by the time I got the girls to quiet down.  But Greg had the hot tub heating up for us, and in his mind, the night was still young.  :)  We snuck out there in the freezing night, and were amazed to see shooting stars racing across the night sky. It was quiet and peaceful, and I wondered why we don't go out there more often. We were also amazed when the pool kicked into emergency freeze-protection mode and switched off the hot tub heat.  We raced, dripping wet and cold, back into the house.

Sure enough, Google let us know that tonight was one of the best meteor showers of the year.  We had just seen the very beginning.  If that hot tub would've stayed warm, I think we would have stayed out for a very long time enjoying the stars in the moonless sky.  This is a beautiful life.  And I'm so glad I'm here to live it.