Time has passed by fast

Time has passed by so quickly since I last updated the blog.  We had a great visit to Utah at Thanksgiving.  We were able to meet Bradley and Jennifer and had a great time.  Jennifer and I even did some black Friday shopping.  I was able to spend some great quality time with all my brothers and sister.  I would later learn that the time I spent with my brother would be the last time I would see him:(  We enjoyed our Christmas break and enjoyed spending  most of it at home.  Timothy participated in a soccer tournament in Loma Linda, CA.  We went to wonder lights at the living desert and stayed in Palm Springs for a few days.

Sariah turned 7 in January.  It is hard to believe she is that old already.  We enjoyed watching Timothy play soccer all month long.  We even traveled around a little to watch some away games.  In February I received the sad news that my brother passed away.  I was volunteering at the Navy Relief and am so glad that I had so many wonderful people by my side.  I flew home to be with my two beautiful nieces, nephew and sister in law.  Nothing in life really prepares you to say good bye to your little brother and friend.  He had called me the night before and told me he loved me very much.  He was always there for me and was the best Uncle a kid could have.  The kids have so many memories with him.  He bought a swing set that they have all played on over the years.  He went to Tiijuana with us, he came and took the kids off roading in the Joshua Tree National Park.  He came when Sariah was just a few weeks old with his wife and daughter.  I have so many great memories of my brother and I will continue to hold those memories close to my heart.  Life is short, take the time today to let all you love know that you love them .

CIF Prelims

Timothy made it to CIF prelims with the boys cross country team.  We enjoyed a great day in Riverside with friends that were also there to cheer him on.  He had the best race he has had up to this point!  He ran an 18:11 and his best prior to this was a 19 flat.  He enjoyed the season and we are very proud of him.  Here are some pictures from the race:)

School, life and Scouts

                                 After Timothy's presentation at the city council meeting!

                                          Sam and Sariah, their last year in the same school:(

                                          Sariah won first place in the pie contest!:)

                          Tim at the race in Yucca Valley he had a PR of 32 seconds on the hardest course.

                              Sam got the Student of the month award for September!

We made it back home from vacation in one piece and had a wonderful time.  School began immediately and so did cross country for Tim.  Timothy got his Sophomore schedule and was very excited that he would finally have his dad as a teacher.  Samuel and Sariah were very happy with their teachers as well.  Timothy received an award at the football game for keeping a 4.0 GPA his entire freshman year.  We are very proud of him as parents.  Timothy had to speak at the city council meeting in September to present his Eagle project to the council.  The radio said he wowed the audience with his adult presentation. :)  He then did his board of review and we now officially have an Eagle Scout and are proud of the young man he has become on this journey.  Nathan is in full swing coaching both Sam and Sariah's teams in park and recreation soccer.  I continue to serve as the Relief Society President and am always busy.  I will be starting my first job on Monday after an almost 15 year break.  I am excited and nervous at the same time. :)  We are all excited for fall!  

Day 20 – Home!

All has gone extremely well today.  We got through all checkpoints and to our gate C1 with 30 minutes to spare and boarded in the A-group.  All of us slept at different times and the flight is one-third full!  The stewardess is the most accommodating we have ever seen and Sariah didn’t complain or even get up to go to the bathroom once in 4 hours! 

We got off the plane at 7:30 in Las Vegas and then made our way to baggage claim.  Amazingly, the first 6 pieces of luggage off the plane were ours and we went out to wait for the shuttle for 15 minutes.  Easy trip back to the La Quinta Inn Airport South and our van fired up right on cue.  We got some water and other snacks for the trip home, gassed up and then hit quick breakfast at Burger King (cash) and McDonald's (credit) all on our way down Eastern Avenue on our way to the 215.

Our trip home went smoothly and we arrived at our house at 10 after noon and so glad to be home.  Our new bathrooms, laundry room, hall ceilings and lights greeted us warmly and so did our mailman Casey who told us the smoke rolled into 29 Palms yesterday (just in time for us!)

We are so grateful for the safety, memories with each other and friends and family, and all of the fun times together!  We are now ready to tackle another school year!

Day 19 – Hiddenite back down to Atlanta.

We made sure to get everyone to bed by 9:30 the night before and got up at 6.  We loaded and some had a bowl of cereal for breakfast (Tim did not because he was playing video games).  We were planning to leave by 7:00, but Sariah had a fight with Tim about seating and she was so emotional that she had a meltdown.  This delay cost us around 20 minutes and Amber, Weston and Kelly were there for every minute of the ordeal.  This information is being added to keep the day real…she was able to finally get in her seat and buckled after Dad put his foot down.

The entire western portion of North Carolina was rainy and in the low 70s, which made everything more picturesque.  We made our way on country roads for 30 minutes and then got Interstate-40 for less than 10 miles before heading south again on a state highway to reach I-85.  We were on this only a few miles in North Carolina before reaching South Carolina.  Rolling hills and lighter traffic made all of western Carolinas our favorite part of the driving trip.

We made a nice 15-minute stop at Abbott’s Farm Outlet Peaches for Solinda.  She absolutely loved their peach cider and we purchased some.  She also purchased a jar of peach jelly for her father, Gary, and some strawberry licorice.  Back in the Dodge Caravan and onto a 3-hour stop some outlet stores in Georgia.

We got lots of good deals on backpacks, clothing, shoes and socks and then headed over to the Country Pride restaurant for breakfast during lunch – of course it had some southern style to it.  The waitress was a wonderful southern grandma and really doted on us as it wasn’t very busy and she like our family.  We ended with a stop at Wal-Mart for fruits and breakfast foods for the evening and early morning without a car.

V

Atlanta traffic was very heavy going into the city and our toll pass covered us and saved at least 45 minutes!  We got into downtown and we were so happy to pick up Sariah and Solinda’s dresses at the downtown Quality Inn from a full two weeks earlier (Solinda had called ahead several days earlier to verify and they had located them still in that room).  We checked into a much nicer Quality Inn at the convention center and got a room on the sixth floor overlooking the airport and runways.  Sariah really loved the view.  We drove around the airport for not even five minutes to turn the van in, and then caught our shuttle back to the hotel.  Laundry, organizing luggage and dinner rounded out the evening with lights out around 7:45 for an early morning.  A big thunderstorm rolled across all of Atlanta and the airport and we had a romantic, relaxing view of it all with our kids in the background.

Day 18 - Hiddenite Sites and fun with the Pratt family

Everyone got to sleep in until 8 am and then got up for breakfast and everyone headed over to Rocky Face for a fun hike together.  We hiked about 3 miles on the blue, then red, then green trails.  Rocky Face is the furthest east Appalachian - as we learned.  The view was incredible and we got lots of talk time and sweating in.  Sariah whined for about half of it and Tim ran off ahead and scared his mom, but we still had a great time.  We hiked a little over two hours and had a great time looking at all the homes and farmland to, from and during the hike.

Amber fixed deer meat tacos and we all (including Sariah) devoured them.  Most of the party cleaned up as well.  Eric went to work and we went to the Hiddenite Mansion House and Museum, built around 1900.  Impressively, the home has had visitors from all 50 states and 30 foreign countries!

Weston and Kelly really wanted to take our kids mining, so we drove north and east to a precious gems mine where all 5 enjoyed sluicing for many different minerals.  Highlights were emeralds and amethyst.  Lots of fun for all - it rained on us as we were leaving.  The rain continued off and on throughout the evening.

By the time we got back, Eric was done with work for the day and we all piled in both cars at different times to go down to Weston's football practice.  Nathan, Tim and Sam played soccer for about 30 minutes, Solinda and Amber talked and Sariah played with Kelly.  We all snacked and Nathan went over to the practice and watched and talked sports with Eric. Weston really likes football and is the center as he was 2 years ago for the Packers in 29 Palms.

We all drove about 10 miles over to Scott's Restaurant in Taylorsville for some great cooking and a wonderful local feel.  A great and memorable meal together.  The kids sat in a corner booth and the adults got some great talk time.  We then went over to Alexander High School and got to see Eric's worksite and the stadium and other facilities.  He is very happy and loves his job.  We are happy for that.

We loved the rain as we drove back through the rain on windy back roads and followed closely behind them until we reached their home on Goble Road.  What a wonderful day.  We really got to learn lots about their family with all of the quality time in a short day and a half!  Our friendship was strengthened and all of us loved this last stop so much!  We are planning on continuing our friendship in the future!

Day 17 - West Columbia Ward to the Pratts in Hiddenite, North Carolina

We had a nice hot breakfast and then drove about 7 minutes (according to the navigator) to the West Columbia ward house for 9 am sacrament service.  We had a nice time and then headed back to the Sleep Inn to change and check out by 11, which was a nice change from the previous 2 Sundays.

We visited the South Carolina State House and then walked around it as a family and took different pictures on all 4 sides.  After that, we drove almost 30 minutes to the Columbia South Carolina Temple, located in the southeastern Columbia suburb of Hopkins.

Our drive north on the Interstate 77 was nice and short with nice views of a major North Carolina lake and Charlotte.  We ate and gassed up in South Carolina at Bojangles for some unique southern fast food.  Our drive was relaxing and uneventful.  We arrived at the Pratts at 3:00.  Weston was standing outside waiting and smiling for us, which Sam immensely enjoyed seeing.  We ate a wonderful meal and talked outside on the porch while the kids played until 11:00, which came up extremely quickly.

We are grateful for the Pratts' friendship and are so happy to be here. They are so very happy with their new community and life and we are enjoying seeing their new life. This is a wonderful area and one of our favorite stops of the trip.