Laila's Golden birthday

 Wayne and I went down to Oceanside for 4 days to celebrate Laila's golden birthday!  She turned 22 on January 22nd!  It was great to be with her and Markus.  

We got Laila a new iphone– surprise – her phone was so broken she could only take phone calls and hear people when it was on speaker phone– so she didn’t answer her phone much or talk to her mother… ( there was an ulterior motive– wink, wink). We also ate at a lot of great restaurants including our favorite - Din Tai Fung , got Jet groomed,  had Salt and straw ice cream and amazing gelato, also Parlor donuts every morning, worked on Markus’ truck, and did a lot of shopping.    We stay at a Marriott in Oceanside and walk the beach every morning.

A funny notice going into a grocery store.

Our Birthday girl

Din tai Fung...and the napkin bra trick that Grandma Butters taught all of us.  

Morning beach walks

Parlor Doughnut

Enjoying the sun with my girl.

Salt and Straw deliciousness

Grand kid Game night #1

Our first Grandkid Game night was a success.  We are going to gather the 2nd friday of each month.  We had everyone except Poppy and George.  

We ate nuggets, quesadillas, apples and papa’s bread– and candy all night.  We made family chain people and talked about being connected and loving each other.

We played 4 games- Sleeping Queens, Uno Flip, trash and cards and marbles.  In between all the games, Sophia totally entertained us by taping on a paper mustache and doing commercials for a card holder.  She’s a hoot. We were all in stitches.  Andrew just eggs her on.  

January happenings

 New Year same me... except I got heavy bangs!   I'm always in a constant cycle of cutting bangs in and then growing my bangs out.   

We celebrated January and some December birthdays on Wayne's Jan.7th birthday.  We had a family dinner with the usual suspects ( minus the Buzellis and our California kids).   It's great to live so close.   Lady came in the door and announced," I don't care if everyone forgot my presents, I just want to hear how much they love me."  We go around the table and tell what we love about each person...it's a beautiful exercise.  Laila Facetimed in and she shared what she loved about our birthday people with tears in her eyes and in her voice-- about Wayne she said, "You are the most Christ-like person I know."  

Our Sidetracked band gave Wayne this t-shirt for his birthday and celebrated with maple bars-- Wayne's favorite.

We kicked off our Primary year with "Bee- like Jesus", hence the bee shirts and me dressing up as a BEE to explain it all.  The kids were shocked and loved it. 

As we study the Book of Mormon this year, we will focus on BEE-coming better disciples of Jesus.  BEE-lieving the scriptures, BEE-longing in primary and Bee- aring  testimony.   

As you can tell we are all in on a BEE theme and it’s going to BEE a sweet year. We are also working on random acts of kindness this year— just like Bees pollenate flowers to help them grow, so these RAOK will help us to grow and become more like Jesus.   We will have a honey jar to fill up with pom-pom pollen that represent a kind thing that a child did each week. 

I was having a kind of sad week, taking down my Christmas decorations, getting sick and looking outside and realizing I'm in Layton and not Bountiful.  I kept my fall and early winter really busy so I wouldn't have to sit with these thoughts so much.  then out of the blue Alfie gave me this card.  He got a new wax seal and wanted to try it out.   It was just what I needed.    

It's been so cold outside- so me and my new walking partner, Bonnie Benedict are trying to find warm way s of doing it.  We tried to get into the Layton Hills Mall-- but we go too early.  So our next option..we walk the aisles at Super Target... at 7:30 in the morning. It's awesome

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Life of Faith

What does it look like to live a life of faith?

Allow for growth and change in my faith and looking forward to the transitions.  Knowing my faith won’t be black and white forever if I have things that don’t “fit” then I will move into a nuanced faith.  And knowing this I also realize there are some black and white faith people who will always be there.  The world works for them-- nothing to fit or fix.  And I need to have love for them as well, and not be frustrated by them. 

Gather people of faith to discuss things. Share podcasts and talks and insights. Ponder on spiritual things.

Have questions and doubts and move forward anyway within the church, because I choose to have a life of faith. 

Want to be in the scriptures.  I do this daily with Book of Mormon chapter, a Come Follow Me podcast about it and a chapter in the New Testament- which keeps me close to Jesus. 

Want to be interested in what the Prophet says at General Conference.  

Want to serve in the church. This is a blessing for me and helps in my growth.

Living a life of faith means I sit in uncomfortable feelings.   Be completely honest with myself and with God when I struggle.   Know that I can have difficult conversations- (I actually look forward to these.)

Jesus Christ served and loved and physically went to the outsiders, the marginalized.  Do as he did and challenge my self to seve the ones on the edges; the ones not like me.

My life is a Love story.   God loves my people more than I ever could.  I do what I  can to preserve relationships whether in or out of the church.

I can rest in the fact that GOD - the all powerful, all knowing eternal God in heaven is far more interested in the soul of my child than I ever could.  

Prayer

 Wayne and I tried something different this past year.  We posted a board in our room entitled Prayer 2023-- and we wrote on it what we were praying for. It's nothing fancy.  It lives on the back of our bedroom door. 

 This was a good exercise.  It kept things and people top of mind in our prayers and throughout our day in our hearts.  We saw many miracles around people and circumstances.  We prayed about moving and then having everything fall into place this year-- including actually selling our home--which many thought would never happen, but the Lord said would happen the end of June was so faith-promoting and testimony-building for us. We prayed for Monson's jaw tumor to stay away-- and it has.  Praying for our children's struggles and our work and figuring out how to get on a mission sooner rather than later is all on our prayer board.  

I'm taking this down today and starting with a fresh clean board for 2024.

Happy 2024

We had a low-key New Year's Eve with Wayne and I visitng Wanee and Holly and our Bob and Diane Lake friends.  Wayne made some more of his Sour Dough Bread.  He's made over 100 loaves in the last 2 months-- he's amazing.  And I made a coconut cake.  We watched Reacher on Amazon Prime and went to bed by 11:30-- Happy New Year. I love to party, but I was a little bit partied out by the time New Year's Eve rolled around.  It was weird having it on a Sunday.  And the past 2 years we were at the Rose Bowl over New Year's, so we didn't have to have plans.  

New Year's Day-- we got up and walked in the gorgeous sunshine.  Had our Seafood lunch and Addison's and Monson's families.  This is a fun BRE tradition--and if you aren't wearing a bib and cracking crab on New Year's day then are you even living?   

We watched the Rose Bowl with Michigan winning with our big Michigan fans Monson and Lexi's family.  We cheered and screamed when they won!

-- Wayne made the best ribs of his life-- they cooked extra long which was the key -- and his amazing sourdough bread.  

Looking forward to this new year and to see what it will bring! 

Landon, Alex and Matt were in San Diego for New Years...so was Truman, so they took Laila nd Markus out to dinnner!  I love when my kids love on each other.  

2023 reflection

Last year I wrote down 23 things I wanted to do in 2023, and here's how I did.....

I wanted to host at least 6 dinners at my home -- and I did.

I wanted to read at least a book a month.  I did much more than that: 

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. 

1. Our missing  Hearts
2. Lessons in Chemistry
3. Verity
4. The Covenant of Water
5. The Girl who drank the moon
6. The Summer before the War
7. The Boys from Biloxi
8. Remarkably beautiful creatures
9. Mad Honey
10. A time for Mercy
11. Hello Beautiful 
12. Carrie Soto is back
13. River Sing Me Home
14. Book of Delights
15. The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeyset
16. Tom Lake
17. Homecoming 
18. Better than Happy by Jody Moore
19. Who is Maud Dixon
20. Faith after Doubt

Visit one new country✔️ Austria 

Follow through on kids book with Addison. I didn't do this...but it's still on my list for this year.  I want to get on it now so it's ready for Christmas 

Be in a show. ✔️. A Christmas Carol on Ogden 

Redo stools✔️ and chairs ✔️

Go to temple once a week.   I didn't get in once a week, but more like twice amonth.  I will work on this.

Reach out to Gary more.  All my siblings connect on phone weekly 

Once a month sibling lunches / dinners ✔️

Lunch date every week with someone

Figure out all of my thousands of pics - hmmmm

Duolingo. Practice Spanish out loud daily✔️. I'm at a 420 day streak at this point

Read the Gospels over and over.  I read Matthew, Mark, Luke and John 12 times this year ✔️

Love my body✔️

Bear my testimony 6 times ✔️

Create a fun file. Schedule deliberately with grands 

Workout/ walk  5 times a week. 

Meditation 5 minutes  a day. 

Learn school programs ✔️

Get rid of one bag of stuff to DI a month- de clutter organize spaces ✔️ moving took care of this. 

Spend more time outside.  

Volunteer.    Directed SNAP  program ✔️. In charge of Girls camp ✔️ helped Rosalinda✔️

WOW-- this year was a year of change.  

Last year at this time the thought of moving our of my beloved Bountiful hadn't even entered our heads or hearts, yet here we are in Layton.

This was a big life-changing decision, and mostly, I'm glad we did it. I do miss my big tub, and sunset views.  

In our RAINBOW home, we have added more cement and put in a basement door and will finish that space in the next few months.  We will rent out half of the basement and keep the other half for a downstairs family room/playroom. 

We have made some new acquaintances-- hopefully, we can call them friends soon as well.  I now walk with Bonnie Benedict twice a week.  She has lived in this ward for over 20 years and we walk the streets and she points out where people live , tells me old ward stories and fills me in on different aspects of her neighborhood.  She lives in the upper third of our ward, I live in the lower third and then we also have a lot of apartments and townhomes.    This ward feels very "mission fieldy."  Lots of need.  It's like we called ourselves on a mission to Layton.

Wayne and I are on a Layton Temple committee now..this would never have happened had we stayed in Bountiful.  

We have new church callings with Wayne over the priests and me over the Primary.  I have been blessed with the counselors and secretary that help me.  Marilee Ellsworth, Jayne Merrill and Jill Swenson are all dedicated, awesome  and fun to work with.   Wayne has 17 priests he's over with only 4 active ones...it's a challenge, but he's up for it.  

We are closer to Monson's and Addison's homes so we do help with and see our grands more.

It's been a year of loss as well.  Preston Brown's suicide was devastating.  AND our dear friend Eric Johnston's death was impactful as well.  

It's always amazing to me how the years just keep rolling along and everything changes and everything stays the same. 

It will be interesting to see what 2024 brings.