This morning in the Come Follow Me study guide on page 8: 1 Nephi 3:19-20; 5:10-22:6. "These verses could inspire your family to keep a record of important events and experiences from your lives. Maybe you could start a family journal, similar to the records Nephi and Lehi kept about their family's experiences. What might you include in your family record?
TA DA!!! High/Lows. We have been keeping a family journal now for several years. Thanks to all for contributing. Means a lot to me, and now we can feel a double pat on the back b/c we are doing something that Nephi and Lehi did. Oh don't we feel so good!!!
xoxo
From Dan & Lara:
High for 2019 - Maui trip, Arizona spring break, East coast summer trip, Lara finishing her Masters and teaching, Daph getting a scholarship to Utah State and guitar business taking off, Zane state swim, baseball championship and fun football season, Scarlet rocking 8th grade, setting up a home theater and seeing Dear Evan Hansen, Brau watching Bryce Harper live, wake boarding and getting his hunting license, Levi striking out 5th graders and Oregon beating Utah to go to the Rose Bowl.
Low for 2019 - Scarlet wrecking an uninsured snowmobile, Zane's friend wrecking an uninsured Rzr
Decade Highs - Levi being born, moving to Idaho
From Heidi:
2019:
Highs:
A specific moment snorkeling in Kauai with Seth and the boys. I had a total “I’ve got to remember this” when we were all out snorkeling watching a sea turtle do it’s thing. Overall trip to Kauai was awesome and 1000% the right decision to leave penny behind with grandparents
East coast summer extravaganza
Skiing with the boys
Snuggling Penny before naps and bed. Time is fleeting and I’m trying to soak it in. Watching her grow and hit milestones.
Feeling more at home in St George
Lows:
Watching loved ones go through hard stuff- mostly hard marriages/divorces
Political climate/Donald Trump
Influenza over Christmas break
Decade:
This was the decade of starting, growing, and completing our family unit. Gangs all here now! It was a wonderful decade of growth, travel, moving, living in new cities, having babies, raising babies, toddlers, and preschoolers. The decade of long days and short years. The magical years of bedtimes stories and tuck ins, make believe, dress up, wild imaginations, tantrums, picky eating, potty training, sleep training, learning to read, learning to ride bikes, learning to swim, starting school. Ah, I’ve loved it. It’s been tiring of course, but best years of my life so far.
From Seth:
High: great job, live where we live, fun trips (rehoboth and east coast, kauai w older kids, Montana, hobble creek/sundance)
Low: job stuff/staying up all night
Decade high: finished medical school and residency and finally found a great job, had all of our kids except taft this decade
Decade low: losing baby at 17 weeks, missing out on our st george house because our realtor dropped the ball
From Jake:
2019 high: Hitting my stretch goals at work
2019 low: Travelling too much
Decade highlight: Finding Gallup and my current ward
From Mel:
Highs: Making new friends and creating costumes for the middle school musical, spring break in West Virginia with my family, exploring the diverse landscapes of Iceland with Jake including snorkeling between the tectonic plates, our epic summer of quality time with extended family, learning to surf in Hawaii and waking up at 4am with Rachel to star gaze, purchasing a pizza oven.
Lows: Trying to get Tommy to see an ENT (several attempts 1-cancel due to snow storm 2-doctor calls in sick 3-power goes out at the hospital), the one day I was sick this year was the day planned to go to my grandma’s and see cousins and uncles and aunts I haven’t seen in many years, waking up regularly at 5:30am for seminary, Tommy’s second losing season of flag football, having to dye my hair so much because I’m really gray, losing Lily in NYC.
Decade highlight: living in some great places here on the East Coast (NYC, Princeton, Yardley) with the best family ever.
From Noel:
Noel:
Highs sold and bought a house
Low forced change of jobs
Decade high: crazy move to Hawaii
From Natalie:
Getting a/c after 1.5 yrs without it (and yes we need it in Hawaii with highs in the 90s all summer)
Getting a 2nd car after 2.5 yrs w one car
Bryn’s dance competition and making dance team happen again this school year (it was a miracle we got the funds and support again this year)
Going with isa on her big island field trip
Taking tori on her horseback ride
New Zealand. Been dreaming of that trip since I was a kid!
This summer’s East coast trip
Sale of our house in Texas went smooth and fast
Buying our house in Hawaii
Finally seeing Hamilton
Waking up to a white Christmas
TWO Hour Church!!!
TWO Hour Church!!!
Low
Saying goodbye to our house in Texas. (Lived there from bryn age 2 months to 11 years old)
Our car getting totaled
Trying to sell off our storage unit in 1 week while noel was on a business trip and sentimental items accidentally being sold at garage sale by friends who were helping from boxes I hadn’t had time to unpack
Noel’s job change was hard but it ended up being a good thing too
Tori’s leg needing physical therapy 2/week and stretches 3x/day but also glad we caught it now so we can fix it with hopefully minimal intervention
Natalie’s decade:
Tori came to earth
Moving to Hawaii
From the PortuGALS
Bryn
high: all the vacations. Our summer trip and Christmas trip and Christmas Day was perfect
Getting a new house and new car
Low: losing my shoe for 10 minutes
Isa
High: same as bryn. that’s exactly what I was going to say
Awesome field trips
Low: allergies in Hawaii
Decade low: hurricane threat In Hawaii was scary
Tori
High: my mermaid birthday party and riding a horse
My mom finally figuring out I wasn’t walking on my tip toes by choice
Low: when I didn’t want my mom to go to temple without me
From Nicole:
High: Sharing Rehoboth with my girls
Low: realizing this is my last year as a stay-at-home mom
From Steve & Felicia:
2019
High: Visiting Rehoboth and NY. Felicia’s brother getting married. Finding out about our new baby-to-be. Meeting up with the Simmons at a BYU game and finding out Janelle is from the same part of NY that Felicia is.
Low: The pregnancy being so hard. Saying goodbye to some good friends who moved. Not being able to visit Saudi this year - plans fell through.
Past decade:
Felicia and Steve met, dated, got married, had Kent. Easily the highlight from the past decade.
From Tom:
2019
Highs -
Spending more time with my kids and grandkids (#1 for sure)
Rehoboth Beach - I feel at home there for some reason. Seeing my brother and cousin again. I love them both a lot.
Finishing Heber - Even though it cost a lot more than we thought, we got a good finished product (I think).
Teaching for IDARM - So far I've had great assignments. It can't last.
Realizing we only need one car (so far)
Our trip to France, Germany and Belgium - The yacht show in Monaco, Paris, biking the Rhine again, and especially Belgium and seeing all our old friends - They still remember (and love) us. What a great feeling that was! Maybe a taste of the next life.
All my kids and grandkids healthy and active in the Church - 3 John 1:4 - "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth."
Living 20 minutes from world class skiing
Rediscovering TV after 30 years
Lows -
Heber - Paying a lot more for the renovations than I had planned and them taking a lot longer. Dust everywhere. Will we ever have a home?
Presidential politics
Not making it down to San Diego
It's cold in Heber! I mean we're talking cold!
2010-2019
Highs -
Realizing every day I'm living my dream in every aspect of my life. "I've given you everything you've ever asked me for. Just what more do you want from me?"
Working for NATO, living in Europe, giving my wife and children the chance to live in Europe (like I had when I was a boy in Germany)
Working for LDS Charities in Italy - What an amazing gig that was! I had a great companion.
Teaching for IDARM - What an amazing gig this is!
Great family! They are all amazing!
Great Church callings
Lows -
Where did the time go?
Where did the gray hair and extra 20 pounds come from?
From Anita:
High: Finished Heber house, ski Park City, Family visits, Hamilton with Natalie, visit to Brussels!!!, tubing the canal in summer and front yard in winter, Rehoboth reunion, 2 hour church.
Low: Heber house $ and time, Colie's worries & troubles, renovating my house and my mom's flooded basement, and her rental property all at the same time.
Decade High: Living downtown Brussels, retirement and all kids, spouses and grandkids visit Brussels and Mission Call (2016)
Since 2010 we have been blessed with 10 more grandchildren (including our new 2020 grandchild!)