Fabulous Fall

On the very first day of October, Elder Bayles transitioned from at home MTC to the MTC in Provo. It was an emotional transition for Clark's family. Jonny is their baby and the last one to leave the nest. He is their fifth missionary. 

Jonny and Di

Hailey, Bailey, Jonny, Di, Clark, and Molly

On Thursday the 2nd we went to the Payson temple and were able to seal 16 children to their parents. It was three different families, one with six children, and two with five each. What a beautiful experience. We love going to the Payson Temple because they know us by name and make us feel very comfortable.

Without planning it, Ruth Seamons and I had on the same dress! We had to take a picture so we did it at iHop where we spend so much time.

And we couldn’t leave the old guys out!

On Friday the 3rd, Dad was back at the temple - this time in Orem to serve on his shift.

Because of General Conference, BYU played West Virginia on Friday. Riley, Bailey, Molly, and Jayden joined Grandad - so basically he crashed date night. The Cougars won - thank heavens!

Grandad, Molly, Jayden

Riley, Bailey, Grandad, Bailey's mom

We got our first snowstorm on the 4th! It’s always beautiful to see snow on the mountains.

The first weekend of October was General Conference. It was much needed with all the things happening in the world right now. The talks on being peacemakers and on strength in trials were wonderful. It was very different to have conference without a prophet. President Nelson was very missed. We are grateful for modern day revelation and the leadership of the Twelve Apostles. Dallin H. Oaks has been prepared to be the prophet for this time. 

Bethany’s birthday was on the 6th. She is the perfect wife for Scott. Her yard is like a page from Better Homes & Garden. It’s beautiful.

It was another Orem temple day on the 7th. We are thinking of purchasing a temple timeshare. If we go to the presentation, we get a free dinner at Golden Corral. 0

On the 8th, I mowed the lawn! It had rained too much for Erik’s family to mow over the weekend so I decided to give it a whirl. (Raise your hand if this sounds like a bad idea.) I used the battery operated mower. It almost ran away with me, but I finally figured out I could let go of the controller to make it stop. Our sweet neighbor Sr. Anaya finished the job for me.

On Thursday the 9th, after the Payson Temple, we went to visit Jess Christen. We had learned he had terminal cancer. He is so young and it was so sad. Even though he was heavily medicated, we could tell he knew who George was. He passed away a few days later so we were very glad we got to see him. Afterwards we went to visit Vicki Jones at a nursing home. She had a stroke a few years ago and has not been doing well. She was also excited to see us. George worked with both Jess and Vicki at Centennial Middle School. They have many fond memories together.

George and Jess at Centennial

Friday the 10th Grandad took Cameron to the airport so he could go to the Arizona game with his dad. 

On Saturday, Clark and Di hosted the fall harvest. This year in addition to apple cider and honey, they also made grape juice and strawberry jam. This is always such a fun event that involves a lot of family and neighbors. Everyone pitches in and works hard.

Riley, Bea, Will

Ashley and Hailey

Work Crew

Supervising

The BYU-Arizona game was a nail biter in terrible weather. The Cougars finally won in double overtime. Too stressful!

On Sunday the 12th, we fasted for Baylie. She has been diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder that is eating the cartilage in her hip. It has prevented her from playing tennis, which has been sad for her.

On the 14th, it was back to the temple. Later that evening, we were able to watch the twins play volleyball again. It was their senior night.

On Wednesday, Grandad made granola and then we canned some salsa. We also collected eggs at Scott's while they're out of town. That night was Baylie's senior night for tennis. Even though she's not able to play, she is still team captain.

Thursday night Tiff and the twins came up from Vegas for the BYU-Utah game. Kristin's family flew in on Friday. We all picked them up at the airport and we headed to Gardiner's Village. It's always such a fun place at Halloween time.

Clara and Baylie

Jalen and Lauryn

Four witches and a warlock

Lauryn, Jalen, Baylie, Me, Clara, Grandad (on tip toes as his grandchildren are taller than him)

Tiffani, Lauryn, Clara, Jalen, Me, and Baylie with our treats

Saturday, Clara got up early before the game to run a 5K while most of the rest of us got haircuts. We love it when Tiffani's nephew, Carl, invites us to his amazing tailgates.

Back: Grandad, Jalen, Kristin, Tiffani, Cameron
Front: me and Asher

Thomas, Carl, Cameron, Clara, Tiff

Erik and Shanelle dropped Asher off at the tailgate so he could see his cousins for a little bit since this was such a quick trip. 

Me, Lauryn, Clara, Baylie, Grandad photobombing, Baylie's friend Kaitlyn, Jalen

It's a good thing we took so many pictures at the tailgate because we forgot to get a group picture at the game. BYU beat Utah 24-21 in an exciting game that was closer than it should have been. It was such a fun game to watch in person. They announced that no one should storm the field or BYU would be fined, but the field needed to be stormed. It was a massive celebration and in the end, the fine was waived.

Jalen, Kristin, Baylie, back of my head, weird dude that looks like a Viking

Baylie, Clara, Lauryn - thought about storming the field and then chickened out - mostly Baylie

Tiff, Kristin, and Cameron (somewhere storming the field)

It was a super quick trip since the girls just brought their kids for the game, so both families went back home on Sunday. Kristin's family got bumped once, but still made it home just a couple of hours later than planned. We won't be all together again until Thanksgiving. We will be in mourning until then 0.

Kristin smuggled home some of Grandad's welding projects. They did lead to an interesting conversation with the TSA.

She gave the cow a bell.

We attended Jess Christen's funeral on the 20th. In addition to working with George, he also worked with Erik and was Clark's high school wrestling coach. His loss is felt throughout our family.

On Wednesday the 22nd, we harvested a ton of veggies from the garden. It's such a blessing to have so much food right in our own backyard.

Saturday the 25th, Dad had another playdate with Max and they created more fun things. This time they made a hiker.

That same day Dad covered a shift in the temple and missed the BYU-Iowa State football game. It was another nail biter (at least in the first half) and the Cougars probably wouldn't have won (41-27) if not for Grandad's sacrifice.

We were surprised on Monday, October 27, to find deer in the neighborhood! What a fun treat.

That same day, Grandad and Max made turkeys. Our house is going to be full of horseshoes!! We will be the luckiest people on Earth!

On October 29, Grandad had an MRI on his head to try and find out what’s wrong with his eye. It came back negative. (Not negative for lack of a brain, but negative for a foreign substance.) And while that's good news, it's frustrating not to know why his eye hurts so much.

Dad finished the month on the 31st with his latest creation - a Christmas tree! How cool is that?! (Not sure Kristin can get that one home in a suitcase.)

As usual, much of our family went all out for Halloween. Kristin's daughter Baylie dressed up with a friend as The Amoeba Sisters.

Clark and Dianne were Bernard and Bianca from the Rescuers, accompanied by their grandkids: Will as Airbender, Simon as a Minion, and Bea as I'm not sure what. Molly and Jayden were Cruella and her henchman with Riley as a dalmation.

Continuing with the Disney theme, Erik and Shanelle were Ratatouille. Parker and Jessa were from Jurassic World.

Tiffani's kids: Cameron as something scary, the twins and friends as Lost Boys? and Peter Pan, and Titan thrilled to be a pumpkin.

Ashley's family needs a second photo op because there were several costume changes. More Airbender, Prince Charming, Cinderella, and Will as a scientist.

Missionary Updates

Jonny and his cousin Izzy at the MTC

Jonny - 5:47: Peace, peace be unto you because of your faith in my well beloved, who was from the foundation of the world. "I really like this scripture because it says faith is all we need for peace. This scripture has helped me a lot with feelings of inadequacy this past week, we don't need a perfect knowledge of the scriptures, or to never mess up, all we need is faith and the rest will come while we keep adding faith."

Jonny received a couple of tender mercies when he ran into his mom, Dianne, at the temple and then his sister, Hailey, on the train. How fun is that?!

Hailey and Jonny

Lily (left) and a companion

Lily - "...the Lord is hastening His work and we ALL need to be apart of it! Just like our beloved, amazing (and super old) prophet said in October 2024 in, The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again, "My dear brothers and sisters, do you see what is happening right before our eyes? I pray that we will not miss the majesty of this moment! The Lord is indeed hastening His work." DONT MISS THESE MOMENTS! Help gather Israel because us 18-21 year old kids can't do it by ourselves!" (written before the passing of President Nelson)

Lily is now training a brand new missionary.

Camden at far left in Poland with missionaries

Camden - "We had a phenomenal devotional with Sister Freeman which was so good. Phenomenal. There was so much stuff that I learned but the things that stood out the most was when she talked about the good Samaritan and pointed out something that she'd always wondered about and thought about. Why did he have the oil and the wine to treat the wounds? Why did he have the bandages? How did the inn keeper have the trust that he would come back and pay him? Why did the inn keeper not question the nearly dead guy given him? Was it maybe because he'd done this before? How many times had that good Samaritan traveled that same path searching for lost souls and helping and healing them. How often does our savior walk our path just to pick us up and take care of us when we've fallen. It's awesome to think about."

He is so close to coming home. His homecoming is the week of Thanksgiving. How perfect!

As usual, it's been a very busy  month. We are grateful for the time we get to spend with family and look forward to seeing more of them in November.