Charles is doing well in Africa. Several weeks ago he found a scale and was able to weigh himself. He's lost 10 lbs since he's arrived in Africa. We're thinking that'll probably stay put now that he's got a new groove of eating/moving while he's there.
The youth in our ward had a winter campout; they stayed in cabins and went sledding. They have a good time together. I'm grateful for their leaders who sacrifice their time to participate in fun and uplifting activities with them. They're great role models.
We try to have a fun family outing night weekly. Some weeks are busier than others but we try to work it in somehow...like this particular week we had things every night so we decided to have family night at Roxberry smoothie since Annabelle was working there that night. She doesn't like to be in pictures in her work clothes so you only get the back of her in this picture because she quickly whipped around and walked away when I pulled out my camera.
Elisabeth and Annabelle went out to Pocatello again, Saturday to Sunday, to visit E's boyfriend Tayson (and his family). They did an ice barrel plunge and stayed in for 3 minutes.
While there, Annabelle's eye started hurting. By Sunday night it started swelling. For the next few days it was swollen and painful. But by Thursday it started feeling better. We think she had an allergy to something.
Elisa L and I run together on Tuesdays. Years ago(starting back in 2007) we used to get together regularly for play dates, but once our kids were too old for that, we had to be more intentional about planning time to get together. So we've got our running day once a week and for the last year we also have our scripture study group we do together on Fridays. We also are in a bookclub that meets monthly, and we hike together in the summer. They say you end up becoming like the few people you spend the most time with, and we do think very much alike and we sometimes even accidentally dress alike.
Jane turned 15 this month! I feel like the toddler stage took forever and now time is flying by and I wish it'd slow down. Jane recently had cheer tryouts. She made the team again but is on the 'injured and pending' list to determine if she'll be on JV or Varsity, because she wasn't able to do a full tryout since she's still experiencing symptoms from the concussion she sustained in November during practice. She is currently being seen by a Dr and a cognitive therapist who specialize in sports concussions so we're hoping we see more progress soon.
Elisabeth heard from the mission department after 6 months of waiting. When she came home in August, it was with the understanding that it'd be for 2 transfers(a couple of months) and then she'd be back out, which would've been October, the same time Charles left for his mission. She got a seasonal/halloween, part-time job working at Cornbellys which we figured would give her something to do during the week, until she left, plus she was going to the temple with Sugar once or twice a week. October came and went, and that job ended. We waited. And then November, December, and January went by.... we'd heard there were a couple of miscommunications etc. but continued to wait. In February she got a full-time job at a preschool and daycare since too much time doing nothing is not good for anyone, emotionally/spiritually. Then part way through March we received word: It would be a reassignment to the states and she would finish in the end of August. After thought and prayer she decided to stay home; she'd served for 14 months in Ecuador, and after so many months of not hearing anything, she'd moved on. So she'll continue to work at the preschool until she begins her position as an FSY counselor for this summer and then she'll head to BYU-I; she's transferring there because her boyfriend lives in Idaho (she met him in Ecuador, they were both serving missions at the same time, but they didn't really start talking until she was home and they connected after about a month). Her mission was a beautiful and sacred experience, one where she planted seeds and saw many come unto Christ, and where she herself deepened her relationship with the Savior, as she got to know him and saw him in the details of her life. Once we heard from the mission department and she made her decision, she was asked to give a homecoming talk in our ward, which was Sunday March 30th. We are so proud of her and all she's doing.
Life is an adventure. It reminds me of running a marathon. It requires grit and embracing discomfort. Consistency over time brings progress, but it isn't always linear. There are ups and downs. Times of peace and pain. The trick is to keep your eye on the goal (returning to Jesus) and focus on the blessings along the way.
