Toothless Goes on Spring Break

Tiny Toothless has been on the go again and as Nathan is his traveling buddy, Nathan has been traveling as well. This week is spring break for USU and Nathan, who has jumped back into college life with not quite as much abandon due to his continuing headache but just as much enthusiasm, took the opportunity to spend a few days in St. George with some friends. It has been a long, cold winter in Logan, with lots of snow, and they were all ready for some warmer weather. They rented a house, went hiking, visited the children’s museum and basically had a grand old time. The headache only really hit Nathan after their hike, but other than that he managed things well and had a good time. I think one of the highlights of the trip for Nathan was their visit to the St. George Tabernacle because they let him play the organ! He is looooooving his organ lessons and having the opportunity to play some of these old pipe organs is a completely different experience from playing the electric organs in the practice rooms. He tells me that just like pianos, every organ is a bit different.

Daniel has also been on the road this week. He had the opportunity to go to Las Vegas with the pep band which was providing support for the Utah State men’s basketball team. Vegas is most definitely not Daniel’s favorite place in the world, but he made the best of it and went to the temple. Talk about some stark differences. He gratefully left the strip and stepped onto holy ground. Just goes to show that no matter where you are, there are sacred spaces to be found. 

Mixed Feelings

There are lots of conflicting emotions at our house today. Nathan arrived home and he looked weary and headachy and thinner when he stepped off the plane. He’s relieved to be home because it means he can actually stop and give his body the time and sleep it needs to begin the process off breaking the headache. He knows home is where he is supposed to be, but he’s also worried about some of the missionaries he left behind. He’s glad he has an appointment with the neurologist first thing tomorrow because he is well and truly tired of having a headache. He doesn’t know what it feels like not to have a headache anymore. I can understand that completely. He also said that the 90-degree weather with nearly no humidity felt nice and cool.

I’m relieved he is home so I can finally do something to help him. I’m also worried about him and anxious to get him to the doctor so we can start the process of finding what his body needs to help improve the headache situation. I’m sad for the time he won’t have in Texas and so, so sorry that the headaches he has inherited from me have thrown a monkey wrench into his life plan. But I’m also at peace, knowing that coming home was the right choice for him to make.

Kevin is also relieved that Nathan is finally home and has worked really hard over the past week to have everything ready for him to arrive so that he can just crash and sleep as long as he needs. He’s trying to anticipate Nathan’s needs and is working hard to give Nathan the time and space he needs to figure out what is next. 

When we told Daniel that Nathan was coming home, Daniel laughed. It wasn’t a mean or hard-hearted laugh though, just a “isn’t life ironic” chuckle seeing as Daniel came home just a couple days after his six-month mark and Nathan’s arrival home followed almost exactly the same timeline. With Daniel away at school, his day-to-day life hasn’t been changed much by Nathan’s absence, but they have become good friends and I know that having him back in Logan whenever his path leads him back to school will be nice for Daniel.

For Matthew, having Nathan home is strange because it was definitely not the plan. The unexpected arrival home of his brother who was supposed to be gone for much longer is kind of making his brain spin as he reestablishes what our home life is like right now. Mentally he had planned to see Nathan again when he was more than halfway through high school, so he is trying to realign his expectations with our newly adjusted family plan.

Malia is just glad Nathan is home. She and Toothless created a wonderful welcome home for Nathan before she went to school this morning. Being the youngest has been a bit hard for her because she feels like all her brothers are leaving her behind. There’s nothing we can do to change that, and we wouldn’t if we could since we have raised our children with the goal of having them become independent, responsible, and confident adults, but it has been hard on Malia. Nathan having Tiny Toothless as a travel companion was all about having a personal connection to Malia and Big Toothless here at home relinquished his shirt, tie and missionary badge at the same time Nathan did.

So yes, there are lots of varied feelings at my house right now. But that’s ok. As we all know, life leads us down unexpected paths and all these ups and downs are giving us opportunities to learn and grow. In addition, as we learn in the Book of Mormon, there must be opposition in all things. (2 Nephi 2:11) These many mixed feelings are definitely a good example of that opposition.

We are a Two Missionary Family

Malia has a crafty streak. She gets creative with paper, glue, ribbons, fabric, paint, etc. Often her creations involve her toys and stuffed animals. For example, she had a few weeks where she was using jewelry wire and seed beads to make collars for her Littlest Pet Shop animals. The LPS have also been the motivation for making tiny books. Her stuffed animals have all benefited from the creation of polar fleece pillows and blankets. And Woody, her toy horse, is currently sporting horseshoes made of sticky back craft foam.

Toothless, her stuffed dragon of “How to Train Your Dragon” fame, was the recipient of her efforts today. She borrowed a shirt and tie from one of her dolls and then used some cardboard and two magnets to create a missionary tag. The tag reads “Totally Teaching Toothless Teddy Too.” To give you a little context, I started calling the smaller Toothless that Nathan took to Texas “Tiny Toothless.” When Tiny arrived in the field and acquired a cowboy hat, Malia dubbed him “Totally Texan Tiny Toothless.” Now the big version has joined the alliterative name game by becoming “Totally Teaching Toothless.” That moniker was Daniel’s contribution to the whole endeavor. And since Toothless carries a tiny teddy bear strapped to one of his wings, his tag includes his little friend. 

I love that Toothless and Tiny Toothless are a way that Nathan is connecting to Malia even though he is far away. It has been good for her. And fun for the rest of us!