San Diego Day and Other Things

 Tanner and I did a good job meal planning last week and even though we ate dinner at 7:45pm because it takes Tanner 3 hours to cook dinner, we ate really well and I’m very grateful. The kids are thriving in school and sports. Rayleigh loves lacrosse and wants to keep playing. Jack is a soccer rocker, and Ella is slaying soccer and enjoying her time on the field with her teammates. No one ever complains about rushing off to sports and for that, they are amazing.

I went to lunch with Bettina after work on Monday which was super fun! Valerie and I attempted to do our ministering together one night while the kids were at mutual (painting night for Ray) but no one was home. We had a zoom meeting with Parker’s mission leaders and he was VERY overwhelmed after. But he’s going to do great and he’s going to LOVE it. I think the biggest obstacle is going to be finding strategies to help calm and balance him after a stressful day because the normal “go to” tools aren’t going to be available to him like playing video games, taking a long bath, or watching a movie. They were also adamant about NO VISITORS which I took as more of a guideline. Better to ask forgiveness than permission, right? But in all honesty, I would never do anything to impede on his progress as a missionary. We took some time a couple days later to go through all of the new stuff I’d bought him and he tried on his new suits. After that, I think he felt a little better about it all.

The kids are loving MCO and Tanner is surviving his new job as Grand Chorus manager. Bryan and I are holding down the parking lot and I think we are pretty cool.

Ella had a Friday night soccer game and Jack started the Friday night soccer clinic, so that was fun! And the kids are enjoying theater club! They are working on the play, Aladdin and have watched the movie a couple of times which makes me 90’s child heart soar.

Saturday, I was reeling. My hormones were on the attack and I was a wreck. The kids had soccer games and a lacrosse game and even though, for the most part, it was all good, I was in a funk. Sitting at the lacrosse game, Erika did that thing she always does where she goes, “oh my gosh! Chandra! Have you been here the whole time? I didn’t even see you!” As she was sitting next to me for 20 minutes. I told Angel to pray for me and it honestly helped. We had a good conversation with Haley and April and Erika and all was well. I miss them and the friendships we had. So it was good to have a little reminder of the good times.

Ella was sad because the fat old ref wouldn’t let her play in the game because she had earrings on. She is phobic about taking them off so she sat out the whole game. Tanner chewed the ref out after the game (Jake and Ella played at the same time so he was with Jack- who scored a goal!! Go Jack!!!)

But after all that, Tanner took me to 7-11 to buy snacks and a slurpee because I was having an emotional breakdown for no reason. Then he quite literally took me by the hand and sat me down at the local salon and “forced” me to get my hair cut. He knew I’d been wanting to cut it forever and it was just the self care I needed. The stylist was in awe of Tanner and his loving qualities. Ok fine. He’s a good husband! Just kidding. He really is. He bought pumpkins while I was getting my hair cut and sipping on my slurpee like a child. He’s the best. We watched the new Bettlejuice that night with the kids and all was right in the world.

How could it NOT be when the kids were in the Primary Program the next day!!?! Jack started the meeting off with an excellent talk about our adventures on the East Coast last summer- specifically mentioning the sacred grove. Because we only have 11 kids in the primary, each kid had several parts and the big kids all gave talks. Jack and Ella were outstanding and they sang so well! Ella especially HELD that primary up with her singing voice. My parents came to see it and we sat in the center of the chapel for the very best view. We were beaming with pride! And it was fun to have chicken and rice and apple pie with my parents after church. These are the days!!!!

The next day, we didn’t have school due to parent teacher conferences so I planned a San Diego Day for the kids and I. We took advantage of the “kids go free” promotion in October and explored Balboa Park for the first time! We visited the botanical gardens and the Fleet Science museum in the morning. There were so many cool exhibits for the kids to explore and we really enjoyed the Blue Angel’s movie on the IMAX before lunch. We ate a picnic outside by a big beautiful fountain and then walked around the Natural History museum. It was mostly natural history of California which involved a lot of bees, spiders, and snakes. But it was cool to see the ancient sea creature fossils and the kids had fun drawing pictures in the art area.

We ended the Balboa Park portion of our day at the Comic Con museum which was…. Weird. They had a whole Dr. Who exhibit which we didn’t understand and then a bunch of Japanese anime stuff that we could care less about. But that’s ok! We did it and now we know!

We then drove to the USS midway and ran around the gigantic naval ship trying to see as much as we could. Sadly, we ended up on a slow tour that showed us the bridge and captains quarters which was REALLY neat, but we ran out of time to see below decks- the chapel and infirmary and galley. The kids loved the flight simulator and sitting in all of the old planes. By the end of the day, we were all staring so we grabbed dinner at the Old Spaghetti Factory in the Gaslamp Quarter. We each ate a 3 course meal and it cost me $41. So…. Ya. Totally worth it!

We snuggled up on the drive home and seriously enjoyed our day!

We had a week of minimum day which was really fun! The kids all had excellent student led parent/teacher conferences and are doing incredibly well in school. Ray is organized and happy, Jack is reading above a 12th grade level, and Ella got an award for Language Arts! Tanner was able to make it to Ella’s conference and stay to see her receive her award. We could not be more proud! They had a super fun Falloween Festival at school on Thursday and as luck would have it, they didn’t have MCO rehearsal that night so it worked out perfectly! They went to sports and then straight to the party and had so much fun running around with friends. We ended with a Boo Bath (and a Boo Shower for Jack) and it was a super fun night!

The day before, I had a dentist appointment and then went to dinner with my parents at Nordies and of course, chippers for dessert. It was such a treat being able to spend that time with them! Love them so much! I came home and went out to Starbucks with Lisa from the ward who is now leaving the church. She was pretty much the only primary teacher Ray had and in my mind, she’s a saint. I love her so much and she can do nothing to minimize my love for her. She’s got some issues with the church and that’s ok. I just wanted her to know that I love her and her name is safe with me.

Life in the church is kind of wild right now. We’ve been getting a lot of press and things are changing- not the least of which is our new Prophet, President Oaks. I love the gospel and I love my savior. There is nothing that could take me away from church and my testimony is precious to me. I’m so proud of Parker for his decision to serve a mission and devote 2 years of his life to the Lord. And I’m proud of my kids who stand as witnesses of Christ every day at school. It’s clear that their teacher and peers see the light that they exude. I strive my hardest every day to share that light as well. And even though my hormones are making a mockery of my efforts by sabotaging my energy and good will, I know my Savior lives and loves me, too. And I will keep trying my best every day to share that love with others!

Jack Primary Part:

This year we are studying the Doctrine and Covenants and we have been learning about Joseph Smith.

When Joseph Smith was 14 years old, he was confused about which church was true. After reading in the Bible in James chapter 1 verse 5 which says, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God…”, he went to a nearby grove of trees where he could pray privately.

Last summer I was able to visit Joseph Smith’s home and walk through the sacred grove where Joseph Smith prayed. I even went back at night to catch fireflies there which was really cool.

But, when Joseph started to pray, Satan tried really hard to get him to stop. My mom says that Satan does this still today. When we are about to do something very special for Heavenly Father, Satan tries his best to sabotage our efforts. But Joseph stayed strong and continued praying. Soon, God and Jesus Christ came and stood before Joseph and told him that none of the churches were true.

So, Joseph’s mission began and his first task was to find the gold plates, obtain them, and translate them. He found them in the Hill Camorrah (another place I was able to visit this summer). This was NOT easy for Joseph, but he was successful and I’m so grateful for that because now we have the Book of Mormon.

I am grateful that Joseph Smith was curious enough to ask questions and brave enough to follow through with what he was asked to do. Because Christ’s church is restored on earth today, we can enjoy ALL the blessings God has in store for us.

And I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Story for the Liahona (kidding! But please read)

With all of the money we’ve spent getting ready for Parker to leave on his mission, our credit card balance is abnormally high. I try to pay off this card each month but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to do it this month. I decided to pay out tithing after putting it off for about 4 months so that payment was substantial and we were cutting it close with finances. I asked Tanner if he had any money stashed away anywhere and he said, “no, but I’m finally getting my frost bonus in forever on Friday!” Yay! Problem solved. Friday morning I checked our account and was supposed to see a pending deposit from the IRS. I asked Tanner if his bonus was coming from the government and he laughed and replied, “No! And it’s not coming THIS Friday, it’s coming next Friday.” Confused, I checked the account again and sure enough, there was a random deposit from the IRS! This deposit came THE DAY after I paid our tithing and get this, it was within TEN dollars of the exact amount owed on the credit card!!! Coincidence??? I think not! I truly feel like the Lord blessed us when we paid our tithing. And truly it felt like He was saying, “Hey! Let ME pay for Parker’s suits and ties and white shirts! I got this!” WOW. I know we are supposed to expect miracles but this was undeniable and very generous! If Parker wasn’t ready to accept that going on a mission is what God wants him to do, he is now!