Good morning! We love you! We're getting so excited to be able to see your sweet face. And hear your voice. It's been a long time. The time between Mother's Day and Christmas, of the second year on the mission, is forever to me.
The Spirit of Christmas is etched a little bit more into our home as we were finally able to put up a Christmas tree. I was waiting a bit as I had an appointment for my twice yearly carpet cleaning, and life got away from us. But because I waited, I paid half the price. All the trees are marked down - bonus! And they were all the same price. So why get a 5-6 when a 7-8 fits nicely in your 10 foot ceiling. The tree is massive. Not just tall but very wide. I had to piece all our lights together to cover it adequately. I pulled out two colors of bows as well. Breyer and I spent last night alone decorating the tree. She had spent the morning separating the ornaments for me. She's a very sweet and excitable helper.
We had to use the ladder. We spent extra time putting heavy and breakable ornaments up, and soft ornaments down. Nora's coming to visit! Her tree is blocked off by their couches, but ours is not. As far as I'm concerned she can have at it. I'll even give her a bucket, and we'll learn ON and OFF.
We had extra sand from Cooper's weekend project, and filled up the sand table for her as well.
Cooper spent his Friday evening making a coffee can (#10) forge. He used sand and plaster of Paris, and attached a torch. Sometimes the things he does amaze me. He and Sawyer are serious about their desire to make knives. The man Cooper is working for orders materials for those who want to make their own knives so sometimes they get the scraps.
Cooper and I picked up the flat stone to finish the top on the fire pit. We also got a bag of dirt to fill in depressed areas left from the creation process. But our main purpose in visiting his favorite store, Home Depot, was to pick up a tree.
He actually went back in the day with Breyer, as they have a find-the-Elf-On-the-Shelf activity - which was very discreetly tucked away in the tool section. When you locate the Elf, you tell the front desk where you found it and you get to pick out a piece of candy.
Cooper's other weekend project included hitting the send button on his BYU application. It was due Saturday. He might have had a recommendation outstanding, but he got it in.
Sawyer had a basketball game at home on Tuesday. I got there at half time, and sat with Dad and Nathan's mother. They had another win, now 9-0, and was their sixth game over 70 points. Sawyer had 19 points.
Miller had three basketball games yesterday and I didn't get to see one. I had early morning piano lessons during his early morning games, and due to a stake dance and the stake Laurel-Priest dinner, two cars were needed in Weatherford.
Last Sunday was Miller's last day in Primary. He went to opening exercises as usual, after being presented his certificate, and sat. All the adults were kind of curious as to why he was in class, and finally approached him. His reply? "They'll be coming to pick me up." And while he waited, the ladies soon realized he was thinking of the common tradition of young women coming in to pick up a just turned 12 years of age girl now in Young Women's. When they questioned him again, he got up and slid out the door. His faith that he wouldn't be forgotten touched my heart, and that he was forgotten, touched my tears. He's very much loved. He was greeted on Wednesday with another box of corn dogs and a bag of Arby french fries.
Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught, “The Lord loves each of us too much to merely let us go on being what we now are, for He knows what we have the possibility to become." Miller will be a joy to watch as he grows physically, mentally and spiritually because of the Priesthood he'll receive.
Speaking of not being forgotten, The Brazil Area Presidency of The Church released a statement after a knife attack during a church service left several injured:
“We are saddened to report that this morning (Sunday, December 2nd) a man entered a chapel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Aparecida de Goiânia, Brazil during a worship service and threatened the congregation with multiple knives. Four members of the congregation and the attacker were injured during the incident. All are receiving medical care, and police have arrested the attacker."
I read this and wept. At the time I didn't know it was so far away - those Brazilian names all sound the same to me. Stay safe!
Love,
Mom
P.S. Dr. Park, Dad's professor that agreed to take him as her last graduate student, passed away. You were either going to be Porter or Parker, after her. She has no parents, no siblings, and never married. #LightTheWorld
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