He’s Alive!

Not that there was any doubt, but we now have photographic proof that Nathan did indeed arrive safely in Texas. We also got a phone call from an employee at the Trek bicycle store in Hurst, Texas requesting payment for assembling his bike before they released it to him. The gentleman I spoke to had a fantastic accent and very respectfully called me ma’am. You gotta love the south! 

And just in case you needed reminding, Nathan is very tall. This photo with the mission president and his wife is proof. 😂

Alone to the Lone Star State

Yesterday was the day Nathan left the MTC and flew to Texas. He was traveling alone, but was so, so excited to get out into the mission field. We expected some kind of message to let us know he had arrived safely, but when nothing arrived, I suspected things were in disarray down there. Nathan sent me a brief message this morning saying he had, in fact, arrived safely. (Which I had assumed. If he had died in a fiery plane crash, I’m pretty sure we would have been notified.) He was the only missionary that arrived yesterday and it is a week before transfers, so not a normal day for incoming missionaries to arrive. As such, the routine was a bit skiwampus. The mission president had a meeting with the senior missionaries (all of whom Nathan got to meet) and was unable to pick Nathan up at the airport, so the AP’s (the assistants to the president for those of you who may not be up to date on all the missionary lingo) met him as he arrived in Texas. 

On Monday there was some concern about whether or not he would be able to travel as scheduled. There were severe storms with hail and tornados happening in Texas on Monday and several companionships that were slated to enter the field that day had to return to the MTC when their flights were cancelled. (One set will fly later this week and the other has to wait two more weeks because of flight availability.) But the storms passed in plenty of time for Nathan’s flight. I’m working on the assumption that Nathan was terribly relieved that he won’t need to spend two more weeks in the classroom. When we talked to him on Monday, he was very clearly more than ready to get out into the world and start working.

I suspect there will be much more info about his travel and arrival in the Lone Star State when we talk to him on his next P-day. This is only the second time he’s ever flown and it is definitely the first time he has flown alone, so there are bound to be some stories. But he’s officially in the field doing the Lord’s work! 

A Sneak Peep at Easter

One of the fun things about having a missionary is the planning and sending of creative packages. I try not to send things that will make my missionaries super homesick or keep them focused on home rather than where they are. Yes, there are going to be times when they miss home, but I try to be as upbeat and supportive as possible to help them remember they are in the right place doing the right thing, but that we think about them, and they are loved. With Daniel, I tried to send about one package a month and that is kind of my goal with Nathan as well. With the package guidelines in his mission that come due to some somewhat dishonest practices concerning package delivery in Texas, we need to send his packages extra early to make sure they get to him on time. That means Malia (my package co-creator) and I are already working on his Easter package.

At Easter I really try to keep things focused on the Savior. We have never really done the Easter Bunny thing, instead choosing to give our kids some kind of reminder of the Savior along with their chocolate bunnies and jellybeans. As such, Nathan will have a religious gift in his package, but I wanted to include some fun stuff as well. He will get a chocolate bunny and some Cadbury chocolate eggs as well as an advent calendar of sorts that will walk him through the last week of the Savior’s life. And of course, there need to be some Peeps. We always have a few Peeps at Easter. If nothing else, they make pretty good smore’s and it is fun to watch them explode in the microwave. But normal Peeps are pretty boring and the special edition flavors have a tendency to be pretty appalling. (This year’s limited-edition flavors appear to be doughnut shop coffee and Hot Tamales. Gross.) However, the internet provided me a perfect way to up my Peeps game.

As usual, today’s kitchen creation can once again be attributed to Pinterest. Malia and I had a great time creating these little missionaries and included enough that Nathan can share with his fellow servants of the Lord. I hope they make him smile.

Immersed in Our Culture

If you recall, we didn’t give our kids any experience gifts for Christmas because we weren’t sure what was coming and what they would be interested in attending. The last couple of years have been so wonky that we didn't want to make any promises we couldn't keep. We had more than enough of that in 2020. We have, however, been watching for options.

Several months ago, Matthew told me that he’d like to see “Shen Yun” sometime. About five years ago, I took Daniel and Nathan to see this New York based Chinese Dance Academy perform and they loved it. I didn’t know it at the time, but apparently Matthew was jealous. Shen Yun didn’t tour in 2020 and I don’t think they toured last year either, but this year they came and luckily for us, there were still plenty of tickets available when I started looking in January. I figured Malia was old enough now to, so I purchased three tickets. 

This afternoon was our outing, and it was a nice break from the hard week we’ve been having. For several hours we got to sit back and enjoy the lovely, fluid traditional dances of the Chinese people. Matthew was paying attention to the tech as well as the performance (a side effect of being on the stage crew) and was excited by their use of stage fog. He was also impressed by how flowing the dance style is, gracefully moving from one step to the next with no abrupt stops and starts in movement. Malia loved the flowing skirts and sleeves of the costumes and was highly amused by the story of the monkey king that they portrayed. 

I loved all those things as well, but what really caught my attention was the over arcing story they told of the divine creator in the heavens who foretells a great calamity for the earth and asks the other divine beings, “Who will go to the earth with me to renew all things in the end times?” That scene was how the show started and after walking through five thousand years of culture, the modern day was shown. The focus was on students of three highly held Chinese virtues of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. The students were tormented by gangs and thieves and then the great calamity occurs in the shape of an earthquake and a giant tidal wave. That is when the divine creator appeared and saved the students of virtue. Sound familiar at all? It is always interesting to me to see how there are bits and pieces of truth to be found in so many cultures and religions.

As I mentioned before, we have had a rough week here. It has been long, so long, and we are all feeling weighed down and weary. (You would think that the adversary knows that we sent a missionary to the MTC this week or something…) So spending several hours immersed in music and beautifully choreographed and costumed dancing was a bit of a balm to mind and heart.

Go Forth with Faith

I was in Deseret Book a few weeks ago picking up some items for Nathan. While I was there, an image caught my eye. It is one I’ve seen once or twice in the past, but it resonated with me in a much more personal way on this occasion. Most artwork about Helaman’s band of stripling warriors features just those righteous, courageous young men as they prepare to march into battle. But this one focuses on a point earlier in their story. What caught my attention was the mother of the two young men in this painting. She had lovingly trained her sons, taught them to have faith and courage, encouraged them to rely on God in all that they did, and then she had to let them leave the safe haven of home and entrust them to the Lord. 

I think I have an inkling of how those faithful mothers felt as their sons marched off to defend their lives, their families, and their God. I have raised and nurtured my children, taught them about the Savior and his gospel, helped them develop a testimony of their own and encouraged them to live their lives with faith, courage, and integrity. We have our own wars in this dispensation, spiritual wars that are fought every day in every country by every follower of Christ. Like those faithful, obedient women of the past, when my children leave home, I can only pray for their safe return and trust them into the Lord’s keeping.

Today was another day of temporary parting. After many long months of anticipation and many long hours of zoom meetings over the past week, it was finally time for Nathan to head to the MTC. Home MTC has been good for a number of reasons such as getting a peek at what missionary training is like for those of us who don’t know, being able to participate in Nathan’s preparation, being included in some virtual family events, and still having Nathan here for a rousing hand of Uno or Phase 10 from time to time. However, it has also had its challenges like the previously mentioned long zoom meetings, trying to teach with companions you have never met in person, and trying to schedule companion study with a threesome of missionaries all of whom are in different time zones. For these and many other reasons, Nathan was incredibly excited to head to the MTC in person.

Matthew had jazz band at 6:30 this morning, so he said his farewells to Nathan last night. When asked on the way to school in the wee hours, he wasn’t sure how he felt yet, but I do know that he is going to miss Nathan. Over about the past year as Matthew as gotten older, his relationship with Nathan has improved. They have some similar interests and experiences in the middle school arena (stage crew, participation in the musicals) and having those commonalities and some maturity on the part of both has helped them take many steps closer to being friends rather than just brothers. Matthew will be more than halfway through high school by the time Nathan returns, so my hope is that they will be able to pick up where they left off and continue developing their relationship in positive ways.

Malia had a bit of a rough morning because she had to say goodbye to Nathan before leaving for school, but Nathan left her a bit of a parting gift. Malia has not been talking much about how she feels despite being frequently questioned by Kev and I. However, for the past several days Toothless (her favorite dragon stuffed animal) has been making her emotions known by saying that he wanted to sleep with Nathan for his last two nights at home and wishing he could fit in Nathan’s suitcase. I’m incredibly grateful that Toothless would pipe up about those emotions and I’m more than grateful that Nathan was willing to accommodate Toothless’s first request. Apparently Toothless snores and Malia thought that was hilarious. As Kevin, Nathan and made our final preparations to leave the house, Nathan left Toothless and Lilianna (one of Malia’s dolls) at the front window watching for her return. And she loved it. When she arrived home after school, she knew Nathan was thinking of her.

Kevin and I took Nathan to lunch prior to his drop off time and our mealtime was such that we ended up with about an hour to spare afterward. We were taking a leisurely drive in the vicinity of the Provo temple when Daniel started texting. As I mentioned in a previous post, Daniel is in Las Vegas this week so has been unable to join us for our final days before Nathan’s departure. We had plenty of time and it seemed Daniel was in a spot where he was available as well, so I encouraged him to call to talk to Nathan one last time, which he did. They were able to chat for a good thirty minutes. The timing working out just right was one of those tender mercies that we have been seeing in spades over the past several weeks and was a blessing for my two oldest boys. They have become quite close over the past months at USU, and I know that they will miss each other. 

I didn’t shed any tears until we actually drove down into the underground parking at the MTC. Our final farewell was short, as the MTC has the drop off procedures are fined tuned to meet the needs of many arriving at the same time, but I’ll admit that there were a few tears shed. In my defense, I’m a mom whose child is leaving for two years and while I know he is doing the right thing at the right time and he is ready, willing, and excited to get going in this great work, it’s still an emotional thing for a mom. However, the sadness at our temporary parting is greatly tempered by the fact that we will get to talk via video chat weekly. It’s not the same as in person, but it’s a vast improvement over the twice a year phone calls of years past.

Parenting is not for the faint of heart. It is hard. Some days are harder than others, and the days when my children leave are some of the hardest thus far. However, I also know that motherhood is an eternal role. No matter how far away their lives may take them and no matter how long it is until they return, they will always be my children. That is the big prize at the end of the eternal race: eternal life with my eternal family. That reminder is one of the things that keeps me going on hard days, days like today. I am so proud of Nathan’s desire to serve the Lord. I know he is in the very best of hands. I hope that this time away from us will be to his eternal benefit and the eternal benefit of those he may teach.

How to Give Your Fifteen-Year-Old a Heart Attack Early on a Tuesday Morning

Last week we were informed that Matthew had won an award at school. It is the same award that both Daniel and Nathan received when they were in middle school, but the school admin has changed things up a bit. Rather than making the announcement of the winners in an assembly for all the kids in each grade level, they invite the families and recipients to a small ceremony and breakfast before school. We were asked not to tell our students they were receiving that award, so we put the event on our mental calendars, and I made a small batch of cinnamon rolls so Matthew would be able to enjoy the same treat-disguised-as-breakfast that everyone else would have. 

While most of the families were able to take their kids to school a bit earlier than normal under the guise of having a 7 a.m. meeting or something, getting Matthew to the event was a bit trickier. Jazz band is held at 6:30 in the morning so Matthew is already in class during the time the event would be held. Kev and I opted to take him to band as normal and just pull him out just before 7:00. When we arrived at the school, I headed to the media center to save several seats and Kev headed to the band room to fetch Matthew. When they both walked into the library, Matthew was looking just a bit wild eyed. Apparently, Kev showed up in the band room and said, “Grab your stuff. We’ve got to go.” With no other information, that gave Matthew a license to conjure up the worst possible scenario and gave him a good adrenaline rush. 😂

Humor aside, I am so proud of Matthew for his selection for this award. This is one where the teachers nominate the students and then as a faculty, they discuss all the nominees and decide on one boy and one girl from each grade for each month of the school year to receive the award. Along with making the actual receiving of the award an event for families rather than inviting us to attend and event held for the student body, they have made it a bit more special by giving each recipient a personalized plaque and some written comments from their teachers. Matthew’s faculty comments made me laugh because he had comments from one of his seventh-grade teachers as well as the choir teacher, who has never even had Matthew in his class. I know that being on stage crew allows him to work with all the performing arts teachers, I just thought it was so great that he has made good impressions both in and out of the classroom.

To sum things up, we gave Matthew a bit of a heart attack, provided him with cinnamon rolls that are far tastier than the cafeteria fare we sampled, and are so proud of him for being a force for good in his school community.

And Thus, He Begins

Nathan began his missionary service today. He will be in home MTC for a week and a half and then spend a week and a half in the Provo MTC. Before Christmas he was well occupied with school and social events but he has spent the last several months counting down the days. He hasn’t squandered his time at all, filling his days with institute classes, mission prep and at least three visits a week to a variety of the temples in the near vicinity, but he has been very excited to start which on occasion has made the time seem long. On the flip side, the past two months have flown by, and it is hard to believe he is really leaving us next week.

One of Nathan’s tasks over the past several weeks was to get his study space ready for his home MTC time. He has packed up his room and put away things that would be a distraction. The info he received suggested that he put up some pictures of Christ as reminders, but Nathan already has images of the Savior and other religious artwork plastered all over his walls, so other than packing up things and making sure all his materials were close at hand, there wasn’t much to do to ready his space. On Saturday morning Kev helped him get all his tech arranged and with scriptures, manuals, and journals at the ready, all he had to do this morning was turn on the computer and log in to his classes. 

Every time he had a break, Nathan would dash out of his room for a few minutes and share what he had done and learned during that block of time. The tight schedule was a bit of an adjustment after running on his own time for several months now, but it was all good. He had an amazing day, is super excited to keep learning and continue to get to know his companions better, and by the end of the day he was exhausted by all he had done. It was one of those situations where he sat at the computer for the majority of the day but was so mentally weary by the end of the day that he was completely ready to sleep by the time his day ended. But he had a great day and is so happy that he is finally able to get started on this amazing new adventure. Hopefully we will be able to retain that joy and enthusiasm as he moves forward in his mission service.

Family Focused Weekend

In anticipation of Nathan’s imminent departure for his mission, Daniel came home on Friday night so we could spend this entire weekend together as a family. Nathan will be home for another week and a half, but Daniel has to go back to Logan for school on Monday and will be in Las Vegas with the pep band next weekend, so this weekend was our last chance to gather together until Nathan comes home from Texas in two years. We all made this time together our priority and tried to take advantage of every minute.

Yesterday we all showed up to cheer Matthew on at his Youth Harmony Day concert. Kevin and Matthew had planned to dash off to Provo for the last BYU basketball game of the season as soon as the concert was over, but a last-minute change of heart took Matthew to the high school instead to see his friends perform in the school musical. The basketball game had remained on the calendar because Kev and I both felt like giving Daniel and Nathan some one-on-one time while the rest of us were otherwise engaged would be a good thing. Daniel and Nathan have become good friends as they have grown up, and Kev and I felt that giving them some time together needed to be a priority. So having Matthew opt to go to the school was just fine and still allowed my two oldest boys to have some time together.

The last-minute change of plans for Matthew and Kev didn’t alter plans for the rest of us. We headed home via Tsunami, our favorite sushi and Japanese food restaurant. Daniel, Nathan, Malia and I had a tasty meal and enjoyed some lively conversation and plenty of laughs along with our food. I think our tendency to laugh when we are together is good. The lighthearted moments help balance out the stresses of life and is one of the things I love about my family. As my kidlets have grown up and the amount of contention between them has diminished considerably, our time together has most definitely become more of a delight. 

After dinner we headed home where Malia and I went off to our showers while Daniel and Nathan had some quality brother time playing the Lego Incredibles video game. The kids have discovered that they enjoy playing dual character games from time to time. In fact, Daniel even figured out how to play two player games via the internet so he can play with his sibs while he is in his apartment in Logan. While it may seem trivial, this video playing time and the conversation and banter that accompanies it has become one of the ways that my kids can enjoy their time together. Malia had her turn with Nathan playing the Lego Marvel video game and then we switched to card games and proceeded to stay up way to late. I think the late hour was fine for the kids, but I’m getting old and don’t function as well as I used to in the wee hours of the night. 😉

Sunday started off with a delightful breakfast of strawberry waffles. The weekly waffle routine began as a way to keep feeding eggs to Matthew on a regular basis, but since then has kind of turned into a Sunday morning family tradition to which we all look forward. After we consumed far too many waffles covered in berries and cream, we played games until it was time to head to the stake center for Nathan to be set apart. Both Kevin and Daniel were invited to stand in the circle as the stake president set Nathan apart as a full-time missionary. Some of Nathan’s questions and concerns were addressed in the blessing and he was promised some amazing things. He came away feeling calm and imbued with the Spirit. As for the rest of us, it was one of those moments when things suddenly get very real. Nathan put on his missionary tags as soon as the blessing was over, and it was a visual reminder that his time here at home is very short indeed.

Sunday afternoon and evening were spent playing even more games and having dinner and dessert together one last time before Daniel headed back to school. We have decided we should start revisiting all our FHE favorite treats from times past, so we ate a delicious carrot cake. It was accompanied by huckleberry ice cream, which is an unusual pairing, but Kev happened to spot some Aggie Ice Cream at a new market that just opened in our area and grabbed it knowing it is one of Nathan’s favorites. Not only is the huckleberry one of Nathan’s favorite flavors from his local university creamery, but it also invokes fond feelings and warm memories of his semester at USU and makes him look forward to the time when he can return. Since we aren’t certain that the Aggie ice cream is safe for Malia, we also ended up with some Meadow Gold huckleberry so she could enjoy the same treat the rest of us were having. Even Matthew got to sample the huckleberry goodness due to one last jar of huckleberry jam we picked up on our trip to Yellowstone three years ago and had tucked away in the basement. He stirred some into his vanilla ice cream and quite enjoyed it.

After we ate far more cake and ice cream than was good for us, we read through the letter that is sent to the families of the missionaries to help us know what to expect as Nathan starts his home MTC time together. One last family prayer followed our discussion and then a couple more rounds of games until Daniel had to head back to Logan.

This past week has been hard. I don’t know about everyone else, but for my family, we have discovered that the adversary picks at us extra hard when are approaching a significant spiritual event in our lives. This week has been an incredibly hard one with every single member of my family feeling the weight of the adversary. It has also been a week of wild emotions and some incredible spiritual experiences. After all those ups and downs over the past week, this weekend felt like a little bubble of peace. My family has been surrounded by calm, by the Spirit, and although I know there are hard days ahead for all of us as Nathan leaves for a time, this weekend has definitely been a joyful one filled with love and quality family time. It will be two years before we get to do it again and as such, I feel all the more blessed that we had such an amazing weekend.