To Love

Readers.
Maisie and I splurged and got pedis.  (Three days later both our polish is peeling.  What a waste.  But it wasn't.  We were together.  That was enough.)
Ryan joined our daily workouts.
Another three hours of Marshalls this week.  Grandma B. came with us this time, but she wandered off.  We really did have to find her.  
Saturday we deep cleaned the windows and screens.  Mostly the attitudes were cheery.
And then the week was over, like a blip in time that was nothing special but still victorious in the small gains.
 

We (Maisie, Molly and me) shopped for three hours in our new Marshall's.  We tried on all sorts of stuff and gathered even more.  Core memory.
Maisie convinced Maddie and Eddie to go to the Conan Gray concert with here.  They did.  So fun.
That same night Austin and I took Molly and Ryan to dinner with us.  "Order whatever you want," Austin prompted.  Ryan did -- so much so that Austin started erasing all of the "extras" he circled.  "That was fun," Ryan concluded at the end of our dinner and Walmart run together.  It was.
Spontaneous backyard games of football, four-square, spike-ball and tramp time.
Rappelling with the Bliss family.
These girls sang in church; I was the accompanist.  It was horrible.  We did such a bad job of it.  (Maddie laughed in the middle.) No need to remember, hope to always forget.  And still, it's included.
We went to Sedona and watched "Hoppers."  I should have napped, but the company was fun.

I think our city scape is so beautiful.
Our resident reader has taken up resisidence in a hammock.  "I've read eight books since coming home."  The others follow. 
Wednesday came and we journeyed to Utah in our reliable bus. (Which got a broken tire belt in Scipio, but Austin stopped and we came away with a slight 30 minute delay and no injury.  Bless him.  Bless Him.)
Standifirds hosted our family -- mother's house was already quite full.  Molly, Kate and Hazel had sleepovers every night.  (So did Lucas, Eddie, Ryan and Beckham -- I often found them gaming at 2am. .....). Ashley and Tyler fed us, included us in their workouts and shared their brand-new space.  We felt so loved.
Thursday was memorable, because the temple was filled with so many that I love.  Gabby and Asher's  wedding was a sacred space.  I looked around to see my Dad, but I couldn't find him.  Luckily, I could feel him there.

Ron and his son, Jace.

Tyler and Emily (not married)
Ashley and Aunt Carolyn
Mom, Melanie and Maren
My brood and Gandma Goodell (she's 96).
Besties.
Little brothers Jim and Mark with their wives Ale and Mandy.
This is Natalie and Mickey's family.  Look at her 10 children (Gabby still in the temple), daughter in law and grandson.  Glorious.
Mom and my sisters -- minus Natalie.
The happy couple.
Another very happy couple.
And yet another happy couple.
Post wedding and luncheon we spent lots of time at Mom's house with cousins and cookies.  
We then celebrated the newly-weds as an entire family in a cultural hall.  The groom's father was the DJ, and when Meg asked for a Killer's song and "Mr. Brightside" came on, my little family went HAM!  

The Good Doctor took us to In and Out for supper, and we ate readily.

Zane is the fellow we picked up along the way.  He's been in our home for years -- via a headset and Fortnite.  He's a boy from Nelson's neck of the woods, but we all know him because Andy has nurtured him all these years.  Becca just quietly watches Andy take care of so many friends.
Our annual Girls' Day had to happen because all the sisters were in town -- Emily, Natalie and I live out of state and Kimmie lives 1.5 hours away -- and because Grandma Goodell was there to celebrate with us.

Kimmie brought all sorts of games for us -- nose hair waxing, eye-brow dying and under eye bag sheets.  We had the most pleasant time together.

I loved spending that time with my babies.

Then it was all over.  But not before Austin and I found time to be in our temple together.  How wonderful that we were married there almost twenty-six years ago, and livng within our covenants we made there has proven to be the perfect framework for so much happiness and hope.

Together we watched Ryan and Molly in the youth talent show -- look at Ryan "riding the waves."
Maddie is winning track races.
Ryan asked to make cookies -- he did it all by himself.  So good -- both the process and him.
Now more than ever we miss our missionary, Nick.  Maisie pines for him whenever his picture crosses the Google Home or when we are laughing and singing.  He is working hard in the heat and mold.  We have a new plan for washing the mold out of his clothes -- it's a vinegar bomb.  We're all amazing when he switched in rapie-fire Portuguese.  "He's so wholesome," is Maisie's summation of him.  She's right. He is.