November 1, 2020
It’s hard to believe the year 2020 is wrapping up. So many great things have happened lately! We had a wonderful summer, an awesome trip to Lake Powell with the Westons, and a fun trip to the beach with the whole Jacobsen family. We were so grateful to be able to start school in person. Many other areas stayed with online school, due to COVID. I was nervous about the kids going back full-time with masks on, especially Lance starting Kindergarten! But so far, the kids have been amazing. Masks haven’t been too bad. And we are just grateful every day for anything that feels normal!!
In August Emma moved to BYU. It was exciting and heartbreaking at the same time. Emma and I got a lot of alone time moving her stuff into her dorm room. She is staying in 2109 Hinckley Hall, in Helaman Halls on the BYU campus. Her roommate is from Alaska: Layna Debenham. She has a twin sister, Kate, in a different room in their hall. Emma has loved meeting new friends, starting college classes, and dating. Her room is so cute and cozy, and her life is so fun and happy. I stopped feeling sad as soon as I saw how happy Emma is and how much fun she is having. She has had so many dates that it is hard to keep track of it all! Haha. I miss my beautiful Emma every day, but I am so happy for her and her life! Because of Coronavirus, she has mostly online classes, and she has to wear a mask around campus, but that hasn’t stopped life from being super fun! Another big thing for Emma is that she trained for and ran a marathon! That saved her summer—she spent so much time training with her best friend, Emma George. It helped a little to heal her heart after her senior year and track season got cancelled. It gave her purpose and drive and helped get her out of her sadness. I got to be her “assistant” and help them every step of the way. I stayed with them in their hotel room and stood at the finish line to cheer them on. She got the incredibly fast time of 4:05, and I am so happy for her for reaching her goal!
Julia has had an amazing year so far. She is a junior in high school. She got her drivers license a little after her birthday because everything shut down in the spring, but she was so excited to get a new car!! She drives the cutest red Honda Civic. She also got to go on her first date to Homecoming with a neighbor boy, Jared Romo. Julia looked so gorgeous with her tan skin and short white dress. She had a lot of fun at the dance which was held on the Sand Hollow Golf Course. It was a fun night. We’ve also been soooo happy that the high school volleyball season continued on normally. Julia started as the middle blocker and played every second of every game! They were the Region Champs, which was so exciting! The night they clinched the title was such a happy night for our family! My mom came to almost every game, and it was so much fun all season. We just went to the state tournament which was moved to Richfield this year. It was held at the Sevier Valley Center Arena. Julia played so hard! We lost early in the tournament to Snow Canyon, our rivals. We had already fought so hard to beat them twice during the season. And as everyone knows, it is almost impossible to beat a good team three times. Ugh! We came back to beat Uintah and Dixie for fifth place. I was so proud of Julia. She is a beautiful, kind, amazing volleyball player!
Miles surprised us all by joining the cross country team this year. His cousin Eliese joined with him. I have been amazed by Miles every step of the way. He has gone to practice early in the mornings, in the heat of the afternoon, twice a day all summer and fall. He has run and run, exhausting himself. He has had to be brave enough to go with the older kids, to make new friends, to go to high school parties and races and events. He has improved sooo much. The other night we went to a two-mile race at Pineview High School. Miles did such an amazing job! He ran the first mile in seven minutes flat. He finished the whole race at fifteen minutes. I was just so proud of him for working hard and improving so much. He has gotten so tan and strong and confident. This has been such a blessing for him. He is so smart, and he’s also practiced the piano for HOURS and hours and hours lately. He is an amazing piano player, delighting us all with his video game theme songs that he has learned.
Austin has been doing really great at Intermediate school. He rides to school with his friends. He is learning the clarinet and really loving that. He also LOVES his computer and all of his technology! He worked SO hard all summer earning money. He mowed lawns, tended the Earldey’s dog, Libby, and also earned money from me by doing exercise activities. He was riding his bike six Miles a day, running a couple Miles on the treadmill, and swimming 50 laps to earn money. He eventually saved up enough to get his Virtual Reality headset, which he loves and is so good at! I was very proud of him for setting a goal and getting to it. He is also on the Desert Hills sixth grade basketball team. Greg is the coach. They practice twice a week for two hours. Austin is working hard and getting better every day. He was an in-n-out worker for Halloween and went around with his friends, racing from house to house getting candy. He is still a happy, happy guy!
Owen is in third grade this year. He is super smart and loves going to his High-Ability-learning class in the afternoons. His most exciting thing lately has been his soccer team. He was so nervous but I convinced him to try out for a club soccer team. He made a team called 7-Elite. From the very beginning, Owen was determined to be the goalkeeper. I wasn’t so sure, but he really was excited about it. He had zero experience at goalie, and not much more at soccer, but he has worked and practiced and improved a lot. He has saved many, many goals for his team, and I am really proud of him trying so hard. He has a lot of determination in his little body and I am excited to see where life takes Owen. He is a leader and a worker. What a great combination!
Lance has been thriving in kindergarten. He has some little friends, and he is incredibly smart! He surprised us all one day this summer by reading some hard words in a game we were playing. We all looked at him and said, “Lance, can you read?” and sure enough he could!! Now he is reading chapter books, taking his turn on scripture verses, and amazing us all! He got to play his first little soccer season this year. Greg coached (and I helped out) and it was the cutest thing ever. Lance would just run and run and get so sweaty and hot! He loved it so much.
Greg and I have been working on eating healthy and losing weight lately. It is so hard, but I’m so proud of Greg. We are doing great together! We’ve lost weight and gotten healthier and we feel really good! We also just bought a new SUV this week. I was SO sad to let go of the Escalade. We made so many happy memories in that car, but as Greg and I went on our date on Friday night in the new Expedition Max, and sat on the back eating Island Grinds and looking out of the city, I knew that we would make many new happy memories in this new car, and that it would all be okay.
Halloween was really fun with school parades and parties, pumpkin carving, candy eating, trick-or-treating, good weather, fun costumes, and best of all, we helped Miles finish watching The Office—our favorite show! We all cried when it ended. That’s been one really fun thing to come out of quarantine—we got into The Office!
We are all so happy and healthy and having a great life! We are looking forward to basketball season, Thanksgiving, getting Emma back home, and a wonderful Christmas. Sometimes I wonder how my life could be so blessed and good! I am so grateful for a loving Savior, who helps me when I struggle, who comforts me when I’m sad, who lifts me when I need help, and who loves me enough to die for me. I can’t wait for the temples to open back up so we can return to the temple, but in the meantime, I’m grateful for the spirit in our home, for Greg and Miles who prepare, bless, and pass the sacrament each week, and for the kids who are all so good and striving to be righteous. I was also released as Relief Society President, and I’m happy and grateful for that experience. Life is so good and blessed.
