First Week of March 2023

Posted by Chandra March 05, 2023

First Week of March 2023

Last weekend was Tanner’s birthday and he celebrated with his parents in Mesquite. His brother drove down from Blackfoot and Tanner drove up with Parker and Kaydence. He golfed with his Dad and brother, ate out for dinner, and had a nice time chatting with his family. He drove home on his actual birthday which was a Sunday. The kids and I ditched church and watched sacrament meeting at home and held our own little primary hour. We made a big poster for Tanner and baked lemon brownies from scratch. Oh! And we juiced all of the lemons.

The moment Tanner walked through the door, though, he immediately started fixing the dryer (which stopped heating up) and so I think his birthday was a little anticlimactic. Luckily, he’d taken the opportunity to celebrate a lot in the days prior to his birthday.

The kids celebrated Dr. Seuss week at school and we had tons of fun! On Monday after school/play practice (and I stayed ALL day helping Rayleigh’s teacher after my shift) we went to Cheesecake Factory. It rained all evening and the kids and I were so hungry. We sat down in the booth and dived into our bread and relished reading the menu. We played little games and laughed so hard. Our favorite was when we all tried to harmonize and the best of all was when we made up silly rhymes to Green Eggs and Ham. (I will not eat them in the rain, I will not eat them on a train!) This went on and on until Tanner met us and I can’t tell you how much joy I felt sitting there, eating delicious food that I didn’t have to make, laughing with my children. I was glad tanner could join us at the end.

On Tuesday, we had a Relief Society activity. I’ve been doing this calling for over 3 years and I’m wondering how much longer… but it was fun and the activity turned out nicely. We “speed dated” and asked each other questions one on one for a few minutes and then switched. We had yummy food and it was good to gather together.

Wednesday, Parker came to school to help me and he is doing such a great job! The head of the PTA had a chance to chat with him for a while and she was singing his praises! Tanner came down to the school and we all got to sit and watch Ella receive an award! Way to go Ella! (It was dress up like your favorite book character- hence the Ana costume) The girls had dance and then I went to my Mom’s and led the book club discussion. I tried my best to prepare and we had a wonderful evening of talking and learning. I’m grateful for my mom’s book club and the opportunity to rub shoulders with good, smart women who know and love God and who are much wiser than I am.

Thursday was another cold and rainy day. The mountains are COVERED in snow and Jack has only been to ONE soccer practice because of the weather. I’m ready for Summer! The amount of snow and rain we’ve received is gnarly! But it was crazy hair day and we also had a visit from the Lizard Wizard. It was cool to see all of the reptiles but his presentation was way too long and Jaxon could NOT sit the whole time. We also got cookies and churros from the PTA which was a nice treat! And Ella found an egg on the playground and we didn’t know what it was! She took such good care of it and made it a little nest but the next morning, Rayleigh cracked it open and there wasn’t anything unusual inside. But the kids did great at MCO and it was, once again, so wonderful to spend a few precious minutes with my parents.

Earlier on Thursday, before the kids got out of school, I reached out to my friend Tanya and she was NOT doing well. So I cruised over there and we went for a walk. That walk was good for the soul.

Friday (yay!) was pajama day and we had a sub in class so I tried to hide as much as I could and not get overwhelmed with the kinders. It worked! The kids got special ice cream from the PTA and we met the Cat in the Hat. Parker went to the temple, per the usual, and I’m so proud of him and the young man he is… even despite the fact that he DOES make mistakes sometimes and when Jill randomly texts me awkward things about Parker. We had planned to go to the school’s bingo night but the kids were so tired and just wanted to be chill. So we stayed home. Tanner brought me some food for dinner and we had a nice night. Parker hung out with the girls on Friday night and went to a dance in Huntington on Saturday with the boys!

On Saturday, I drove to Vegas at 5:30am and attended a Women’s Conference that Andrea helped plan. Hilary Weeks was the keynote speaker/singer and hearing her voice really threw me back! She is beautiful and she brought the spirit so strongly. I loved being there with Andrea who has ALWAYS been my person- consistently for the last 20 years and carried me during my darkest days. I am so incredibly grateful for her and have so much love and respect for the person she is. We attended a few classes on the stained glass windows in temples, dating your spouse, and finding faith in Christ taught by an extraordinary lady who was so funny! We had a delicious Chinese chicken lunch and created our “I will…” statements. I will be more kind in thought and word. After the conference, I made a quick stop at Andrea’s house before driving home. I listened to my book, talked to Tanner, and truly enjoyed my hours in the car! I watched the sun rise on the way up and the sun set on the way down.

It was a good week and I felt like I was very intentional with my time and the way I spent it. I served my friends, led my peers, and did my best at work. Tanner and I were 2 ships like always. But we are doing ok. I’m thankful for this life and for all the many ways we are blessed. I know the Lord is needing my hands right now and though it’s hard, I’m trying my best to utilize the atonement fully so I can be all that He needs me to be.