April 21st, 2013
My dearest brother,
What a crazy week it has been! I was very relieved to
receive your letter this week saying that all of your medical tests came back
normal. I hope that you can find some comfort and relief soon. Have you been
able to do a whole lot yet?
As I mentioned in my brief letter last Sunday, I was up
until after 1:00 am last week helping mom and Zac with his SBO posters. They
turned out amazingly well and I hope mom and dad have sent you pictures but, if
not, I will try and send some today. Although… I do have a lot of pictures to
send to you!
Jake is doing well although he hasn’t been able to get as
much time in on his schoolwork as he would like to. Hopefully we will be able
to improve that this coming week. Not a whole lot is new with him. He continues
to be amazing and wonderful and the best friend I could have ever hoped for!
Abrielle started Karate a few weeks ago and loves it. She is
in the Tiny Tigers class at our local United Studio of Defense. She has a cute
uniform and everything and I need to get a picture of her in it. I really like
the format of the class – they start with some group activities and then move
into a workout portion of the class where they practice counting while they do
jumping jacks and pushups and such. After that they usually practice their
kicks and punches and then they do a self-control portion where they practice
stillness. It has been really good for Abrielle so far and since the class is
only once a week for 45 minutes it isn’t hard to fit into our busy schedule.
She still loves preschool and will be very disappointed when she realizes that
she will be off for summer break in a little over a month.
Nathan is quickly moving away from being a baby to being a
full-fledged toddler. He is talking more and more and he understands a lot of
the things that we tell him. He continues to be very happy although he is a bit
rough sometimes and we have to remind him to be gentle. Normal boy though,
right? He is a major momma’s boy and I love all of the cuddles and kisses that
I get.
We spent some time at the hospital over the last week
visiting with Matt, Alyssa and Serenthia. She has been struggling badly after
her surgery and getting pneumonia but they finally released her from the
hospital on Wednesday. She is still having a lot of trouble with pain
management but I think she is (slowly) on the road to recovery. I admire Matt
and Alyssa so much for their continual patience in the situation. I know how
exhausted they must be and they just keep plugging along. I am grateful that we
were able to help them out this week and to draw a bit closer in our
relationship with them.
A week from this last Friday my friend Cari DeCoursey
married her sweetheart, Paul Warner, in the Oquirrh Mountain temple. The
ceremony was wonderful and Cari looked so beautiful in her dress. After the
festivities we went over to Jordan Landing to meet some friends for lunch at
Costa Vida while Abrielle went to Karate. As we were about to park someone
pulled out from another parking spot and hit our car. Luckily, Jake was able to
move enough that we caught it on the back end of the car instead of on the
door. The car, thankfully, is still fully functional although a bit less
beautiful. The situation turned out to be a major blessing in disguise as the
guy paid for the damage out of pocket well above our expectations and given us
the opportunity to build a savings to buy a bigger car for next year when we
plan to expand our family.
School is winding to a close for me and we are in pretty
dire crunch time now. There is so much that needs to be done before the end of
the semester and I am trying to not stress too much about it… I’m not really
good at that all of the time though. I have enjoyed many of my classes this
semester but there are definitely a few that I will not be sad to see over
with. I will be taking 12 credit hours this summer courtesy of the Continuing
Student Tuition Waiver that I received based on my GPA. They pay for all of my
tuition and I just have to cover my student fees. Such an incredible blessing!
I also decided that I will need to take 15 credit hours this
Fall…. There are just some classes that NEED to be taken in a particular order
and this is the best way to go about it. Those 15 credits are mainly comprised
of 3 big classes: Organic Chemistry 2 + lab, College Physics 1 + lab, and
Designing Training Programs. The other credits are just workout classes. I am
quite peaceful about the decision and, although it will be a difficult 3
months, I feel that it is for the best.
PLUS…. All of my hard work will be rewarded with your return
and our family trip to Disneyland!!! That should give me PLENTY of motivation
to get through the rest of this year.
We got to end our week with the beautiful marriage of Ben
and Charly. You will be glad to know that the day went wonderfully and Ben and
Charly looked like they were going to burst with happiness all day long. I know
that the only thing that could’ve made it better for them would be if you could’ve
been there with them but I also know that they are so proud of you for the service
and sacrifice that you give every single day. I am very excited for all of the
fun times that we will get to have with them as part of our family in the
future. I am sending pictures to you of the big day although I am sure that
Charly will send lots more when they get back from their cruise. Zac did his
part and made sure to represent you during the dancing portion of the night. He
danced with Charly to your song and they waltzed and span all over the dance
floor. Alyssa and I were snapping pictures and mom was bawling. J Mom and I had quite
the time controlling the waterworks – you are definitely missed! But really, we
are so proud of you and glad that you are serving the people of Finland. That
is where you belong right now and we wouldn’t choose for it to be any other
way.
I love you so much, dear brother. I think about you
constantly and you are always in my prayers. I look forward to the day that we
are reunited again. Until then, may God be with you to bless you and to keep
you.
From across the world but always with you in Spirit and
love,
Shayla
At Tucci's with some wonderful friends
At our Aunt Deanne and new Uncle Luke's Reception
Brother Zac Photo Bombing while I was avoiding the camera
My darling niece, Zakiya
Nathan's favorite part of the McDonald's play place
Happy birthday to Jake from the Bentley family!
One big breath!
Abrielle was ALL over getting a piece of that cake!
It had been a very long day...
My beautiful cousin Charly at her bridal shower
The darling necklace my sweetheart surprised me with
Congratulations to Charly and Benjamin Anderson!
Charly dancing with our Grandpa Troff
Even though my brother is half way across the world he was still there in spirit!
The great decorations - my family is so talented!
The awesome balloon wall
I thought it was really cool that their cake had a bunch of romantic sayings on it. Great job Melissa!
True Love
I am not sure how often they took their eyes off one another... not often. :-)
Family friends Ashley and Scott having a good time
My brother Zac is awesome!
Action shot
SBO Posters
Working working working... after midnight...
38,000 double crochet stitches later the BHS on the wall and attached with industrial staples and gorilla duct tape. The industrial staples were attached to three different tacking strips.
I colored this one, did the letters and made Zac's jacket out of pieces of newspaper!
I had to color that chess board too... that was a lot of black lines!
This is my musical contribution.
Team Zac mascot!
Loves...Shayla
No comments:
Post a Comment