Splendid September and Spa Days

We started the month by making SALSA!! It's always so pretty in the jar and it's satisfying to know it's made from the peppers and tomatoes from our own garden.

It was also Jessa's Birthday. She's such a sweet person inside and out. She has transitioned beautifully to motherhood with her sweet Hallie. We miss seeing them, but know they are doing great things in Washington. 

We bought a couple Sunday shirts. Our Costco doesn't carry them anymore so they're not as easy to find as they used to be.

On the second we had another flood. Some people's cups runneth over. For us, it's the pipes. Maybe they got tired of dwelling in a dirty cabinet and decided we needed to clean it out. Scott came over and got everything fixed up. Again. We're grateful he has the skills and willingness to help us out with these kinds of things. Grandad supervised.

I had a hard time at the temple. I fainted and needed to use a wheelchair. I'm going to tell people I'm like the Book of Mormon stories where people are overcome and fall to the earth. It sounds more spiritual that way.

Clara and Baylie started at BYU. Erik, Shanelle and Asher took them a good luck treat. Such a sweet thing to do. We love seeing these kinds of thoughtful actions in the family. What more could a parent wish for? (Okay, we could wish for a lot of things, but this is a good one.)

The 4th is a birthday bonanza in our family. First is Clark. He is such a hard working man, a good husband and father. He has been a wonderful son. He also has an incredible head of hair.

Lauryn and Clara's birthday was bittersweet this year since they won't be together for the next two. They had thought they wouldn't be together for this one, but things changed and they were grateful to be together. They are such sweet girls and we are proud of the choices they are making.

The Bates Motel was back in business that weekend as the Jennings were in town for the BYU-Dixie football game. (Grandad refuses to call it Utah Tech.)

Conjoined Twins??

We love having a housefull.

Clara, Grandad, Tiffani, Baylie, Lauryn

The Nebeker's came over before the game.

Leslie Nebeker, Clara, Tiff, Lauryn, Keven Nebeker

We met up with Tiffani's nephews for a tailgate. They always do an amazing job with the food and set up. They also dress all out. I didn't get a picture.

At the game with Hermana Jennings. (Home MTC is so weird.)

Grandad cheered for BYU while still holding out loyalty for his beloved Dixie College where he will always be captain of the last undefeated team.

It was nice to go to church with some family members. It also gives us an excuse to skip out on the second hour. 

The 7th was another welding trip. If you want to see all of Grandad's creations in one place, Kristin put them on her blog. She's missing a few though.

On the 9th day, we rested. (We worked in the garden first.)

Erik and Shanelle took Asher, Baylie and Clara to the temple to do baptisms. We love that they do this.

Tiff's family went home just in time for Kristin to come in. Housekeeping had to rush to get everything ready. We may need to increase our rates. Kristin got in later than planned so we got Baylie from BYU and drove straight to the airport. 

From there we drove to Eccles Primary Children's Outpatient Services so Baylie could see a pediatric rhematology specialist about her hip. The doctor was very thorough so we got to have a 2-hour nap in the truck while we waited.

We stopped by Blaze Pizza on the way home for dinner. Kristin had brought all of Baylie's belongings left behind so they delivered those to the dorm and then went grocery shopping. Kristin got almost all the way back to our house when an alarm went off in the car. Turns out it was Baylie's phone that had been left in the car. So she had to go back to the dorm to deliver it. It was midnight by then!

The next morning - the 12th - was a great day because so many family members came over. Clark and Di came first. 

tending to his bees

Grandad let Di into the man cave. 

Next Asher, Shanelle, and Erik came to mow the lawn.

Kristin, Asher, and the photobomber

Shanelle mowed the front. She's such a trooper!

Erik and Asher mowed the back.

Kristin, Clark, Erik

Later that afternoon was the BYU - Arizona football game. This week Molly and Jayden came with us. Baylie, Cameron, and Kolton were somewhere in the ROC. Kristin was in Logan for her 40th high school reunion. (She's so old!) 

BYU had a rough first half, but had a great second half and won easily.

Baylie sang in her student ward on the 13th. It was so beautiful, I cried, which is really odd because I hardly ever cry. We were not allowed to attend (per Baylie's request) but we got a video. Kristin went to church with us so we had an excuse not to stay for the second hour.

She was supposed to have flown home that morning, but Baylie said she wanted her to stay an extra day so they could spend "time together." How they spent their time...

Kristin flew home the next day - the 14th. It was a day of mourning so we will not speak of it.

The 15th and 16th were temple and garden days. (Most days we don't write about are either garden or temple days. Or days when we can't remember what happened or read what we wrote.)

The 17th was a happy-sad day for the Jennings. If you ask Tiff, just sad. Lauryn completed her time with at home MTC and headed to the Mexico City MTC. Saying goodbye to her at the airport was very sad. The boys seem to be doing okay, but Tiff and Clara are ready to apostacize.

Lauryn on the other hand seems to be doing fantastic.

Can you find her??

On the 18th we finally had some much-needed rain. Not enough, but we'll take what we can get.

Chef BoyarBayles was at it again on Saturday the 19th. He made us a delicious feast of eggs and pancakes.

Later that day we watched the BYU - Colorado State football game from the comfort of home while Tiff and family watched it in Colorado. BYU is now 3-0 (knock on wood...).

On Sunday the 20th we were feeling adventurous so we expanded our Sunday hamburger menu to include Polish dogs. In honor of Camden. (Not really, but it makes it sound cooler.)

Monday the 21st was David's birthday. He is such a fun person and great dad. He wanted to celebrate at Waffle House where the waitress, Smiley, had everyone sing to him. We highly suggest that everyone visit a Waffle House at least once in their life times. It's a truly cultural experience.

Grandad did some welding and then he and Titan spent some quality time together.

Apparently Baylie wanted to join as well.

On Saturday the 26th Clark drove us to Cortez, Colorado, so we could eat good Mexican food and meet up with Grandad's siblings and celebrate Mark's 89th birthday. It is such a blessing that they are all still living and it was wonderful to get together. 

Eric

Eric, Lyman, Jean, Bill, Julie, Mikki, Shawn, Clark, Katie, Me, Sharon, Stoney
(Mark and Kay are hidden behind me)

Eric, Lyman, Jean, Bill

Julie and Mikki

Kay, Mark, Grandad, Me, Stoney, Eric, Lyman, Jean, Bill, Julie, Mikki

Many memories and falsehoods were shared. We were grateful that Clark drove us and we think he had a great time as well.

Sunday we had the weekly invasion of the grands. There should be a scientific study done on the amount of laundry college students go through in a week. It is not physically possible to wear that many clothes.

Baylie and Clara - our coeds

That evening Erik and Clark and some of their families came over so the boys could give us priesthood blessings in preparation for a surgical procedure the next day. We are so grateful to have sons that are worthy to do this for us. The spirit was very strong and it brought us a great deal of peace. This is one of the many blessings we receive through the gospel. I wish we had taken a group photo.

Monday morning we went on a couples trip to Timpanogos Regional Hospital. (We wanted to splurge and spend a lot of money.) Tiffani was our chauffer and even pushed us around in mobile chairs. Everything went well although the food wasn't as good as we had hoped, especially considering how much we were paying for the experience. 

Heated blankets and pre-spa preparation

While we enjoyed the private accommodations, we also wanted to spend some time together. 

The staff was very friendly and accommodating, although I felt the online reviews were a little misleading and consequently my expectations did not match up with the reality. I'll probably only give it 4 stars.

Now we are back home and finding more excuses not to work in the garden.

It has been a very eventful month. We are grateful to be living together in our own home surrounded by so much family. Life is good.

Missionary Moments

We now have two missionaries in the field again and we love their updates. 

Jonny

Jonny has hit the one-year mark. It seems to have gone by quickly, although I would guess Dianne feels differently.

"God always has a plan for you even if it's not what you think it should be. Always trust in Him and His judgement, even when it seems bad and not the best. Just trust in Him."

Lauryn

Lauryn and a freshly shaved Grey

"...the brother interviewing me said 'It's okay to cry. There will be good days and bad days, but remember to cherish the bad days because that is when you grow.' (This is paraphrased of course, my memory is no bueno.) This was so helpful and comforting to me and I'm so so grateful for all the support I've had."

The Month Before Football

We started the month working in our beautiful garden. It's a lot of work, but it sure is lovely to look at.

Speaking of gardens, Kristin thinks Tiffani's pomegranate tree looks like the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Thoughts?

On Sunday the 2nd, Cameron came over. (The twins were in Vegas.)

Monday we went to the Seamons so Dad could weld and Ruth could pick out my crocheting. (She undoes what I've done wrong and helps me fix it.) 

Latest projects: 

dog

angel

Mr. & Mrs. Claus

Titan missed me so he brought Tiffani back on Tuesday. Who would guess I used to be a cat person?

We got hit with yet another scam when Grandad got a notice from McAfee that the security system needed to be updated. Fortunately he figured out that it was a scam before he gave them any information. We sure get these a lot. It's so annoying! (Note, if you get an email from "squishybytes.com," it's probably a scam.) 

Wednesday was a typical water the garden, mow the lawn, make some sourdough kind of a day. Followed by a typical Thursday Payson temple day and Friday work in the Orem temple kind of a day.

Erik and Clark came over on the 8th. Dad and the boys worked with the bees. We had a mishap because for some reason, the bees that were living in the blue hive and the red hive decided to relocate. We did learn that bees don't like red hives, but we don't know what happened to the blue hive. Maybe they didn't want to be Utes or Cougars.

Cameron was back on Sunday. It's been fun having him and the twins. Soon we'll be adding Baylie and losing Lauryn.

We were back at the Seamons for welding on the 10th, but Dad injured his Achilles tendon. We also went back to see our heart doctor, Dr. Luni, after getting bounced around a bit by a new doctor. We were glad to be back with him.

I had a rough night on the 11th. Tiff must have left at some point because she came back that night. I can't keep their goings and comings straight.

We were back in the yard on the 12th.  Grandad auditioned for his role as a grass person in the next Bad Bunny halftime show. (He's becoming one with the grape vine.)

Can you find Grandad?

On Thursday the13th, I fell while getting into bed and scraped my back up pretty badly. It left me with a long, rough scab and still hurts a couple of weeks later.

On Thursday the 14th we got news that Grandad's brother Eric would be coming to Provo to have his kidney removed. We hope that this surgery will help him beat cancer.

Eric

grandchild, Sharon, me, Stoney

That evening we were caught by surprise when Tiffani sent us a video of Clara opening her mission call. She hadn't told anyone she'd received it! She will be serving in the Toronto, Canada, mission and will leave in January. That means we'll have three grandchildren serving in January.

On Sunday the 16th, we took veggies to church. This week's Come Follow Me lesson was on Job. It seemed very appropriate as there seem to be so many trials around us right now.

Monday, Tiff came (apparently she had left again) and took Cameron to a new doctor. She found out the previous doctor had prescribed him the wrong medication. It is so good to have him getting the right kind of help so he can feel better.

I was very dizzy that day.

Saturday the 22nd, we headed to Vegas with Cameron. (Tiffani had returned home. Again.) Erik, Shanelle and Asher also drove down while Kristin and her kids flew in from South Carolina. We were all in Vegas to be with Clara when she went through the temple for the first time and for Lauryn's missionary farewell.

It's always so nice to have several members of the family together.

Erik, Shanelle, Asher, Dave

Cameron with Titan, Grandad, Erik, Shanelle

On Saturday, we joined Clara when she went through the temple to receive her endowment. It was wonderful to be in the temple with so much family. 

Lauryn, Tiffani, Cameron, Grandad, Clara, Me, Dave

Lots of friends and family, including Kristin and Erik's families.

While most of us were in the endowment session, Baylie, Asher, and Jalen did baptisms for the dead.

Jalen, Baylie, Clara, Asher, Lauryn

Erik flew home that evening as he had church responsibilities. The rest of us joined Tiffani's ward at an activity at a hot spring - Warm Springs Ranch. It was a really cool location that was once owned by Howard Hughes. He later sold it to the church.

me, George, Baylie

Shanelle, Kristin

Asher, Baylie, Lauryn, Grey, Clara, Jalen

We wore them out!

The 22nd was also Nixon's birthday. He is now 15 and is quite an athlete. He is a great brother and son.

Sunday the 23rd was Lauryn's farewell. She will be serving in the Mexico City Northwest Mission. She gave a beautiful talk and is so prepared to serve.

Clara also gave a great talk and the cousins got to join the youth of the ward in singing.

Jalen, Baylie, Lauryn, Clara, Asher

That evening they had a huge open house with lots of food, friends, and family.

Grey, Clara, Lauryn

We decided to head back since Jalen had to do homeschool the next day. The kids rode with Shanelle and Kristin rode with us. Once we got home, we were all glad we'd decided to come that day because we were all tired and wanted to sleep in the next day.

On Monday, Grandad worked in the garden and picked LOTS of tomatoes.

Jalen got busy with homeschool. He works hard.

Tuesday the 25th David flew in so he could help Baylie move in the next day. We picked up Asher and went to the new Lindon temple to do baptisms.

Asher, David, Baylie, Jalen, Grandad, Me

The flowers were lovely.

We were sad to learn that the same day, Dolly Parton passed away. She did so much good for so many people. Few celebrities are as loved as her.

Wednesday the 27th was finally move in day. Baylie had been waiting forever! Kristin, David and Jalen spent most of the day moving her in.

The 28th was Erik's birthday. He is such a good man. He's a good father, husband, and now grandpa. He is serving in the stake presidency of a YSA stake.

Asher, Erik, and Shanelle at Boone Plantation in South Carolina

That morning we went to the temple with the Seamons. Usually we don't do that when family is in town, but we felt like we needed to do something from our regular routine.

Tiffani came back that day and Kristin and David went on the Walk with Christ in Heber. David had missed it when the rest of us went in June.

David and Jalen flew back to South Carolina on Friday while Kristin and Tiffani went to the BYU parent orientation.

That night Kristin and Baylie went back for the evening activities while Tiffani, Lauryn and the boyfriends moved Clara in to Helman Halls.

Saturday the 29th both the girls went home - Kristin flew back (First Class!) and Tiffani's family drove back to Vegas so Lauryn could get set apart on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Asher went fishing at Strawberry Reservoir and caught a big one!

We got to be on our own Monday before Tiff comes back on Tuesday and Kristin comes back next week. We love having visitors, but it's sure been a crazy month!

Missionary Moment

Jonny - on the right

"So there's a thing where when a new missionary comes on a mission they have a super strong drive that we call "greenie fire" - or like a fire to do the work. Well if I'm being honest, mine definitely faltered for a little bit, but mine is so back. My greenie has shown me how much fun the work really is. This is a great work and so much joy is brought through it."