First Day at BYU

Nathaniel and Emily are doing great at BYU.  They had their first day on August 30.  The week before, Emily had orientation and she was in the traditional Y picture  She is in the area that is circled.

All ready for their first day!

Have a great semester kids!

Another licensed driver!

Andrew got his license today!  He was so nervous about his three-point turn, but they didn't even make him do it!  

Great job, Andrew!  Drive safely!!!

Emily is going to BYU!

Once we realized that Emily's stuff was not going to fit into her Corolla, I called Dad and asked if he wanted to come with us and help with the driving and he jumped at the chance.  He had planned to visit the week before but he couldn't because Debbie was in the hospital.  So, this worked out great because Papa was able to spend some time with Emily on the drive.  We left on Monday morning and made it to Provo by the evening.  On Tuesday, Michael drove the Pilot home and Nathaniel drove Dad to the airport.  Michael made it home that evening.  Dad wasn't so lucky.  His flight was canceled and rebooked Tuesday morning to go through Chicago instead of Dallas.  Then his connection was canceled and he was stuck in the Chicago airport overnight.  Thankfully, he finally got home on Wednesday.

I was able to stay until Wednesday evening to help Emily get settled in her apartment.  We got most of the work done on Tuesday.  Nathaniel and Emily's friend, Sabrine, helped us move everything into her third floor apartment and we got the furniture all situated the way she wanted.  We took a break and went to lunch and to Walmart to buy supplies and spent the afternoon getting her organized. Then, on Wednesday, Nathaniel, Emily, and I all went to campus and walked around to see where their classes were and buy their textbooks.  We made a second trip to Walmart to buy groceries and finished hanging everything in her room.  She made all of the decorating decisions; I was just the labor.  I think it looks wonderful!

All packed

Her cute apartment

Taking a little break

Emily and Nathaniel live in the same apartment complex and they will be in the same ward (congregation).  This is where they will meet for church on campus.  It's in the fine arts building.

I love this spot by the library

Those beautiful mountains!

We couldn't go into the library last year because of Covid, so I'm glad we were able to go inside this time.

This is one of the old study carrels, like the ones I used to use when I went to school here.

This is what the new ones are like.  Pretty cool, huh?

More views of the library

Saint James Bible on display in the library

The Talmage building is my favorite because that's where I had most of my math classes, but it was closed for remodeling.

Nathaniel showed us the best entrance for Emily to get into the Joseph F. Smith Building where two of her classes will be.  He had one in there last year.

Also in the Joseph F. Smith building

One of her classrooms

This is where Nathaniel will take his calculus class

 

Another view of the library

All finished decorating!

Emily, your room looks fantastic and I know you are going to do great things!  We love you!!

Andrew's 16th Birthday

Andrew had a fun birthday!  I can't believe he is 16!  He will take his driving test next week.  We went out to dinner as a family on Monday to Texas Roadhouse.  We had a lot going on Wednesday night, which was his birthday, so we did the family dinner early.  On Wednesday night, we had cake and presents.

On Friday night, he had a party with his friends.  He originally planned to invite 12 friends, but apparently some of them asked to bring other friends (and some didn't ask but brought them anyway), and we had at least 20 kids there at one point.  They started arriving right at 6pm.  They hung out and played games for a while.  The pizza took forever, but Emily finally brought it home at 7pm.  I bought six pizzas and two orders of cheesesticks and they were quickly devoured.  Jonny and Emily able to have a few pieces, thankfully.  Daniel was at a party for his friend.  They all sang to Andrew and then went to the park.  Some of the kids left from the park, so we ended up with a lot of leftover cupcakes.  Michael had gone to Safeway to buy more when we saw how many kids were there.  

They had fun at the park and then came back to hang out some more. Everyone seemed to have a great time.  Andrew was happy to have so many friends there.  As soon as everyone left, around 9:30pm, he started cleaning up right away.  I'm so proud of him and he is such a great kid.  We love you, Andrew!  Happy Birthday!

Carol's funeral

After a long illness and many months in the hospital and rehab facility and back and forth, Michael's mother Carol passed away on August 10.  The funeral was very nice and Michael and Erin both did a fantastic job on their speeches honoring her.  We will all miss her.  

Jonathan's 12th Birthday

Jonathan had a fun birthday party at Jake's Unlimited!  He had three friends at his party and they all had a great time!  I can't believe he is already 12!

He wanted this Fornite cake.  He chose the design and I had it made for him.  The cake was delicious!

Fun at Jake's Unlimited

Happy Birthday, Jonathan!