So Much Gratitude

We have had one incredible and memorable week.  On Wednesday, August 12th, after 2 long years Elder Jeremy Nelson came home from serving an honorable mission in the New Mexico Farmington Mission.  Wow, he really grew specifically over the last few months of his mission.  I wondered what he had learned and how he loved God, our Savior, others and himself.  He's always been a talker.  In fact, he talks and talks and talks.  I kinda think he comes by that pretty naturally being related to me and all.  But he didn't talk that much about growth in his letters up until he served in Dilkon, AZ among the Navajo people.  He came to that area with a very negative report by the companion he was serving with right after the transfer to Dilkon.  He worked and worked as hard as he could, but not a lot of success or joy came of it.  At the next transfer, he received a companion that stretched him to the breaking point of a missionary.  They didn't like each other at all.  They tried to tough it out for a while, but, again, success and joy eluded them both.  Then they turned to the only one who could "fix" the problem; they began to fast and pray.  They did that for the people of Dilkon and for their companionship.  Humbling themselves worked like nothing else could.  They began to see what God sees in the people they served and they began to love them with Christ-like love.  Miracles began to happen.  Not only for the people of Dilkon and for their companionship, but for my precious boy as well.  I am so proud of the man he's becoming.  

On that Wednesday, we went to the Pasco airport at about lunchtime to pick him up.  The airline must have known how eager I was to give him a hug as they kept moving up the arrival time of the plane.  It was so wonderful to see him again!  

What a fantastic day that was.

The following Monday brought something else that would also change our family.  The mailman delivered this:  

 Mykalyn received her mission call.  She turns 19 at the end of October and she made her availability date for November 1.  Pulling that envelope out of the mailbox made the reality of her leaving oh so real to me, but I am so proud of her decision serve.  She has prepared herself with study, prayer, journaling and temple attendance.  She serves as the 1st counselor in Primary in our ward, she loves people and lives what she learns.  I am so proud to be her mother.

Anyway, she made us wait clear until Wednesday night to find out where she would be serving.  I didn't much mind the wait because that meant I could put off the thoughts of her leaving that much longer.   But Wednesday came and among friends and family, we found that she would be serving in the Colorado Denver North Mission, reporting on November 18th.  Yes, that means no Thanksgiving or Christmas 2016 or 2017 with our little Blondie.  That will be some hard times ahead for a mama who has a daughter as one of her best friends, but I guess you can't miss them if they aren't gone, right? :(  Just trying to look on the bright side of things.  She will be an awesome missionary and I am so happy that she will have this growth experience to call her own.  

That was our eventful week.  This year has been one giant adventure after another starting with our Stake adding two more wards to it in March and our family being in one of the newly formed wards (created about 50%/50% from two wards) and with me serving as the RS President, then we moved to a new to us home in May (in that ward) and worked on renting out the other house - water damage, removing two big trees to save the septic system, replacing a window, screen and blind when Mother Nature was ticked with us cutting down and tree and sent a tree branch into the window, air conditioning problems, water heater problems and the need to paint the rooms at the old house "neutral colors" because renters wouldn't like the two pink bedrooms (BTW: the renters ended up having two children - both girls who LOVE the color pink) and a few other things that just about sent us over the landlord edge, but we made it.  Now we've had these great experiences to add to the year and the fact that Tyler made the USU football team as a running back so we are looking forward to going to some football games.  I have sure missed watching my boys in that sport in my life.  Brigster starts high school this year and that's all new as well.  I'm back to driving carpool for the next two years.  Hopefully, the bus will be a good alternative - at least for pick up in the afternoon!  I am thinking that around January, things might just slow down.  Looking forward to the future!