The most exciting news of the week is your niece has arrived, right on her due date. AnneMarie was able to enjoy her Thanksgiving dinner before the contractions really began. By 3 a.m. they were at the hospital, where she was determined to be showing enough signs of labor to be admitted. Twelve and a half hours later baby Nora was born; Nora Marie weighed in at 7 lbs. and 5 oz. 20” long, with lots of dark hair. She’s adorable. Just enough squishiness, and big cheeks. I’m in love. You’re an Uncle.
Your pictures in last week's letters must not have loaded. We only were able to view the first picture.
Of course we had to take our yearly forage into the bamboo forest with Uncle Brad. Love that tradition. I shouldn't say yearly, I should say our Tyler tradition. We go every time we're in town. We might have found a new tradition to add to our forage. Sawyer found a 40 foot bamboo stalk he was jokingly carrying out of the forest. We veered to the green belt, and he ended up balancing it on his fingers. I'll try to load the short clip from Luke.
Of course the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang song “Me Ol’ Bamboo” was sung by your sidekick while plowing through the ever thickening bamboo forest.
Miller used his little knife saw, with Sawyer's help, to cut down an overtly green stalk. We discretely left it in the forest to dry a bit, and will check on it in December. Unfortunately, the pole vaulting tradition was left capably in your hands.
We ventured in Spades territory once, with Evan confessing he had been waiting two years to play with Hunter, to not break his winning streak. But since Hunter's home, he partnered with Miller just for fun. Since you and Hunter know how he plays, let's say he didn't disappoint. You never know what you'll get when you play with him, and it didn't work out so well for him this time, against Sawyer and I. Luke is not playing for your two years. So he walked away a bit.
Your brother Sawyer tried to step in and take over your comedy partnership with Luke. He put a few smiles on our faces, tried to arrange a visit for Luke to come to Granbury, but it wasn't the same. You were sorely missed at our Thanksgiving retreat. Even not having you there for food consumption only was very noticeable. Hopefully Hunter and Tanner visiting in December will remedy that large hole.
Of course while we drive to or from Tyler, we pass the Nike outlet store. Cooper is in need of court shoes for spring tennis; Sawyer is in need of basketball shoes now, and running shoes later. So we stopped and spent. Most of the orange boxes are going under the tree. Sawyer needed his basketball shoes now. He was wearing shoes that were too big, and he looked like he had clown shoes on, running up and down the court, with his curled toes. He works very hard on his skills. Yesterday he had a produce plastic bag on his basketball ball, to “make it more slipp9ery” while he practiced.
Miller often practices with him, and is excited to use his new shoes we picked up for try outs. He begins practice this week.
Cooper faithfully practices the piano for Priesthood each week. Love it. He also got his eagle scout bench on a trailer to bring to Granbury, picked a project date, and picked up the donated bench boards from Home Depot. So close!
Breyer and her neighborhood friend made slime on her drive way yesterday. Then they get the idea to sit at the end of her driveway and sell it. The for sale portion was the size of a half dollar. Very small. For $2. Of course I bought some, but was able to talk them down in price $1. Unbelieveable to me is the fact that within 15 minutes they had sold all their slime, and made $9. Especially surprising was when Breyer came in holding all the money, telling me they decided to donate the money to someone in need. She came to me asking if Grampy needed money. I told her to speak with her Bishop. He counseled her to donate it to fast offerings today. Sawyer helped her fill out the slip today. She then informed me her lesson in Primary was on fast offerings, and fasting, and how she was able to share her story. Such an example to me of power in purity, and the opportunities we have as parents to guide our children. Here's another example.
Suppose I had a request from another agency for back up because a female prisoner jumped out of the patrol car and took off on foot through a residential neighborhood. Do I take the time to ask, “How?” Was she in the front seat? Was she cuffed in front? Were the locks not engaged? No. I’d dispatch a unit for the back-up request, and provide the location, suspect description, and a contacting unit from the requesting agency. When I am at work, the training I’ve received guides me in the decisions I make in assisting those I serve. You have guidance of a different sort.
I was reading the General Conference talk by Sis. Joy Jones, a wonderful name during the holiday season, entitled Value Beyond Measure. She said, “Knowing that you are a [child] of God will affect every aspect of your life and guide you in the service you render each day.” How wonderful you know who you are, where you came from, and where you are going. Such a message of hope you’re able to share so far away.
Catching a female all dressed in black, in day light, running through the neighborhood with hand cuffs, is pretty easy. Catching souls is a bit more complicated. Sis. Jones said, “If the pull of the world is stronger than the faith and trust we have in the Savior, then the pull of the world will prevail every time.” You’re out of the world for two years, and have that much more power in the faith and trust you have in the Savior. Your pull is strong.
We love you. We're getting excited for our Christmas call. Return to me.
Love,
Mom
No comments:
Post a Comment