I Must Have Flowers

The Landscape world is full of men!  They do a great job with shrubs and trees.  But when I tried to hire a landscape designer to design my flower beds, he just gave me shrubs!  On my planting plan, he labeled simply "annuals."  It was such a disappointment because that was the main reason I hired him.  

Although he did have some other great ideas I've used.

I love shrubs too.  However, I need flowers.  

My favorite quote by Claude Monet: "I must have flowers, always and always"

There are lots of people like me who want to incorporate flowers into their yard.  They are expensive to buy from the store.  It's so fun to have them right out in the yard and to bring inside whenever you want to fill your house with flowers.

Growing so many varieties of flowers in my yard has helped me to learn when they bloom, what their water and sun requirements are, and how to propagate them successfully.  I've also learned valuable lessons on what not to do!  It's part of learning. 

Flowers are not an afterthought.  A garden that has a perfect sequence of seasonal delight is my goal!  And that is why I'm studying landscape design.  So people will always have something blooming and there will be always something coming on to look forward to.  

Also, Miles helped me with this logo.  I asked him to help me and within 5 minutes he had something pretty close to this!  Amazing.

 

Putting my Plan into Place

I've used my creative outlet time for planting this past year.  So my blog took a backseat to digging, lots and lots of digging, weeding, pruning, putting water lines to all those new plants, stalking all the local nurseries, learning, trying new things.

I spent the first few months of the year taking Landscape Design at BYU and then doing a USU Master Gardening course and community service hours at the same time.  I was also working at the nursery.  We had a long planned trip to Australia.

I had not intended to take these BYU classes so soon, which compounded the time crunch.  But after working at the nursery for about 6 months, I realized I needed to keep moving forward with my grand plan of doing landscape design.  So I emailed a professor at BYU and asked which masters or online programs he recommended.  Assuming that since I already graduated from BYU I wouldn't be allowed to come back for more bachelors level classes.  But he recommended some select classes and said I could petition for those and he would add me!  Which I didn't realize was a thing.  I was so excited!  But I had to wait to register until the day before school started.  Still, I knew it would all work out because I had a very direct feeling that this is where I'm supposed to be.  When I saw that Landscape Design Lab when I took the floral design class with Elise, I knew this was it.

Anyway, it was SO fun.  I loved my homework!  It was a very time consuming class.  I learned to measure, sketch, use cool architectural lettering, and to create a landscape design for my own yard.  Usually the professor recommends a project that is 1/4 acre or so.  My project is my yard, 1.1 acres.  I had to get a different size of paper to make it work.  And it probably took 4x longer.  But it was so rewarding to know all about my yard and to re imagine some of the spaces with the landscape design principles that I learned about.

Luckily having a large garden and yard for so long, plus working at the nursery, gave me a leg up with plant knowledge.  So that part of the class was super fun.

Anyway, it's been fun to learn about the landscape design principles and to incorporate those into my design.  

Design Principles

Form Follows Function

One thing I really enjoyed was how every space has a function.  Form follows function.  And although I wanted to leave some parts of the yard grass for lower maintenance, my TA convinced me to think outside the box.  If I didn't need more grass, and its not being used as it is currently, what other use could it have?

One day I was looking out at that side of the yard.  It's kinda sloped.  It's on the North side of our lot.  We have some huge spruces that will only get bigger and I'm not crazy about.  And I realized we just need to take out that unused portion of grass and make a really big cool garden.  Have you ever had a dream that you found a secret door in your home and had all these extra rooms?  This is what it felt like to me!  Like "of course!"  For a flower lover like me, big garden wins over unused sod.

I'm not sure exactly when this is all going to happen.  I have a one man crew and that consists of just me and sometimes my family that is already burned out from our large yard.  We did not hire anyone for anything this year!  We did all the lawn care, edging, weeding, and flowers and tree removal.

I learned so much from the process.  It was super fun.  And since then, I've been really enjoying having more of a planting plan.  When working at the nursery it is really easy to see something pretty and bring it home with no plan.  Which is also fun and I learn by trying new plants.  But design-wise, it's nice to have more thought going into the purchases.  

Rhythm and Repetition

The goal is to have a cohesive landscape using a consistent theme.  So with this process, it was cool to learn that I would need a lot more of the same plants.  Usually I'll buy just a few of something.  But I have a lot of ground that I'm trying to cover.  I want a cohesive, more planned look.  So that takes lots of repetition, large drifts of perennials, and lots of time to establish!

I planted 70 Rozanne Geranium.  Again, it's easy to just plant a few of something.  Especially when it's a popular plant that is always sold out!  So whenever I saw Rozanne Geranium, I bought it all up.  And eventually it is all around my pool.  I love it!  I bought a few other types of hardy geranium/cranesbill.  Some from last year.  None bloomed like the Rozanne.  It is the RHS plant of the century for good reason.  It bloomed nonstop from May to October, no deadheading required.  The ones I planted last year and filling in so nice!  If you see some, buy it before I beat you to it.

Here is my poolside garden I planted last year.  It's a hard space with concrete and lots of heat close to the dirt.  Things have not really taken off in this area previously.  I tried different annuals but just wasn't in love with having to buy so many plants each year.  It costs so much!  I bought nearly all perennials this year.  With a few things that aren't for our zone but I'm hopeful will come back.  I planted a few pansies, white annual vinca (not the invasive vine!) and just a couple other annuals.

Last year.  Yikes.  Not loving these colors or the plants.  My plan for this area was colorful annuals but they just didn't ever thrive.  So we went with drought tolerant perennials instead and I like them much more!

I left the artemisia and the lambs ear.  Added more plants in the colors I wanted.  Removed the orange.  Everything matured.

2025 progress

Spring (Going to change the colors of the tulips these were not the variety on the package)

Late Spring

Early summer (going to remove the Russian sage)

Late Summer-fall!  Loved the Verbena Bonariensis and the guara

My steps at planting.  Very bare area!  But couldn't figure out what would do well here under a pine tree with both sun and shade and that would fill in and spread.  Hostas weren't really working.  

The Rozanne Geranium was perfect!  By the end of the season it really covered a lot of the ground.  

I am excited that I will continue to be able to divide these plants I invested in and put it into different parts of the yard.  I'm looking at my yard like its own little nursery.  I will copy/paste certain gardens which will save me from having to buy so many plants.  I still have a lot of areas that are just bare mulch and trees.  Which isn't a bad thing.  But the more plants, the less weeds grow.  And plant coverage means I don't need as much mulch replaced.

Balance

My front semicircle garden is just not working and I do not like it.  Probably because the balance is thrown off by a huge boulder that is impossible for me to move.  So I need to plant something alongside it to balance out the weight.

Scale and Proportion

One of my greatest pet peeves is HUGE trees and shrubs that need lots of maintenance to stay the right size.  So now, everything will be planted to minimize maintenance.  Even though a plant may look tiny, you have to think of the mature size.  Or else you will spend a lot of time and money, and probably sacrifice beauty, to keep it small.  Right plant, right place is very important.  

Focal Points

One of my favorite things was coming to work and seeing all the beauty that my two coworkers would create with their displays.  Breonna and Cathy were geniuses at using what was in season to make a focal point with a fountain, some beautiful trees, bench, etc.

I am working on this in my yard!  The sightlines from each seating area, or path.  And implementing a focal point that has a little vignette of eye pleasing color/shape/texture.

Edit

When something doesn't work, we can generally replant!  Or just remove.  Unless they are screening or providing needed shade, take it out if it's not great.  

Color Wheel

It's been fun to think about bloom times and color schemes.  I've learned a lot about this from the displays at work and also from seeing what combos I love.  This is probably one of my biggest strengths.  I know which plants bloom together.  And its fun to play with the seasonal colors.

Texture

I've really fallen in love with grasses and textures!  It creates a visual appeal with the light and the different seasons.  

Form

Combine forms (upright, mounding, weeping, spreading) for dynamic compositions that are interesting.

Line

Direct movement and define space.  Curved, Straight, Vertical, Horizontal.  Use a theme throughout your landscape to add cohesive appearance.

It's been such a fun subject to learn about!  I'm currently in the petition process for this next winter semester.  Fingers crossed!  I had to take just one class before because it was a prerequisite and these classes are super expensive.  I'm hopeful that I can take a full load this time to really maximize the cost.

I'm most excited to learn how to do everything in Sketch Up and with CAD software.  I like the hand drawn look, but with my level of experience it requires lots of copies at Office Depot which is often sub par quality.  I hate that!  I just want it to all be printed, nice and clean.

Something I wish I could do is the National Collegiate Landscape Competition, which BYU took first place at last year.  One of the categories is Annual and Perennial ID.  Hello!  I need to be on this team!

I'm having to remind myself that in the midst of all of these things, I still am really wanting to have flexible time for my family.  And I don't mind giving that up when needed to work toward my long term goals.  But my family is the priority for me.  Miles coming home from his mission, helping Elise after her complicated miscarriage, getting Simone all settled into her new place and helping with her yard, spontaneous roadtrips and attending all their races and events.  That's my focus!  

And so when I'm feeling like I need to do more to get my business up and running, I also know that I have unlimited time.  I want to gain the education I need and have this going in the next 18 months.  But it doesn't all need to be done now.  

I've been getting lots of friends and family asking for design help with yards and plant selection!  That part has been super fun.  I love doing that.  It doesn't require a ton of sketching to help with plants.  So for now, that is keeping me perfectly occupied!

God's Love

I feel like by nature I don't have the same feelings of guilt that I've heard from some of my friends.  I'm not sure why, but I think it is partly because of my belief in the nature of God.  I'm sad to see that some friends are so consumed by this feeling that it feels better to leave our religion than to feel like they aren't making the cut.  

Maybe part of this preoccupation is wrapped up in feelings of inadequacy.  I've had those plenty of times!  They can be a result of hormones, as they are for me.  It's so crazy how our feelings can be influenced and directed by our bodies in this way.  It's less mind over matter, and more straight biology for me.  Which is interesting.  For me I know the pattern well.  And when I start feeling inadequate, I know that in a couple days I'll feel good again.  And I know I don't need to "do" anything or "fix" anything.  But I realize that some people don't get that escape.  For whatever reason, their biology is such that they don't feel good a lot of the time.  That would be extremely hard.

God made us mortal with natural man tendencies and bodies.  He knew we would mess up.  He does not want us to obsess over feeling bad about this.  We ALL sin.  It's part of the plan.  It's how we were made.  He loves us unconditionally.  He wants us to be happy.  There is a pattern that we can follow that is most likely to lead to happiness.  He's cheering us on, but he doesn't get disappointed in us.  He is in "relentless pursuit of us."

We were never meant to be perfect as mortals.  God made us imperfect and created a plan for us to learn.  We were given a Redeemer.  This process requires repentance.  We are here to be better.  To try.  And when we mess up, sometimes over and over again, it takes courage to "endure to the end."  To keep trying.  

Some people have bodies that are extremely challenging both mentally and physically.  We believe that those who are born with challenges will not be judged with the same standard.  If a child has a cognitive disorder, clearly they cannot be judged the same as someone who does not.  And therefore, I also believe that it only makes sense that other challenges (mental and otherwise) will of course have some compensation as well.  I look forward to the day when all of our bodies are made perfect.

Some say that Mormons believe in works.  And that is partly true.  "Faith without works is dead."  We believe good deeds are a manifestation of our faith.  But we also don't earn our salvation.  What most Christians believe is that once we come to Jesus we will be saved, no matter what we do.  We go a little further.  Those who never accepted baptism, those who never had the chance to hear about Jesus, ALL will be redeemed by Jesus.  People have opportunities to choose to accept Jesus in the afterlife as well.  It doesn't end with death.  This also makes sense to me.   The plan of salvation is somewhat detailed.  And I love it so much.  But all of those details are not easy to concisely explain here. 

One of my cousins was having a faith crisis and mentioned that LDS people do good deeds because they are afraid of going to hell.  That was interesting to me because he should know that we don't actually believe in hell or burning or anything of that nature.  Eventually, aside from a very small handful of people who are truly evil and denied Jesus even with a perfect knowledge, we will all go to a place that is far better than the Earth. Through the atonement of Jesus Christ, all people will be resurrected, with their spirits reunited with a perfected body. This is a gift that is given to everyone, regardless of their beliefs or actions.  Everyone is assured of a place in one of the different kingdoms of glory after the resurrection.  I was happy to hear that eventually this cousin was able to feel God's love.  

I loved his process.  Instead of praying for an answer, he changed his approach and instead defined what would allow him to believe again.  And waited to see if this threshold would be reached. It was.  Interesting way to look at it.  Personally heavenly reward has never really been a focus of mine. My motivations, if I had to define them, are wanting to be a better person, wanting the world to be better, having the spirit guide me in my daily life, and feeling peace.  

I've been in a very dark place where I wondered, "does God really exist?"  and I was so sad and desperate for an answer.  My answer did come, like over a year later.  After shelving the issue for a bit, then trying again, but this time with more effort.  Reading the Book of Mormon cover to cover, going to church, fasting.  Experimenting upon the word.  Eventually I had an experience that showed me how God feels about each of us.  It was the most beautiful experience of my life.  And it was like Gods love for me was infused right into my heart.  And it helped me understand his nature.  His love for all of us.  And why we want to be with him again.  Prior to this, God was such a nebulous thing.  And afterwards, it was concrete.

I had a little quote that I loved at the time that said, "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye."  from The Little Prince.  That was true in this instance.  

for my LDS friends who are struggling with belonging, with feeling like they aren't enough, you are loved.  There is no fixed starting or ending point or scale by which we are judged.  We are all here just trying to improve.  I wish I could replace your stress of guilt and make you remember all the things you have mastered.  And maybe that is part of it.  If there is an issue that makes you feel stuck or unworthy, shelve it for a bit and try to focus on the other things that you are doing well and that you feel you can control.  Progress is the whole point.  And I do think that the adversary knows this and the feelings of shame and being stuck are his tools to frustrate us.  At the end of the day, God knows our heart.  And sometimes those struggles give us the humility, charity and compassion that allows us to connect with others in a way that many can't.  These same friends that are struggling with their imperfect mortal bodies are also some of the best people I know.  Loving, kind, humble, connecting.  

"Heaven is cheering you on, today, tomorrow, and forever."

"Let God prevail." 

Moroni 7:47 

"But Charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever, and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him."

And if words don't reach you, maybe music does!  A few of my favorites:

A Child's Prayer

Our Savior's Love

The Miracle 

Where Can I Turn for Peace

Think first

So recently I've been extra horrified by how people respond to tragedy online. 

I read about a fatal car accident yesterday where a 20 year old died in the canyon.  It was a one car accident.  The driver is dead.  His family is likely devastated.  So without knowing any of the details, how do people respond?  

They respond by saying he was probably under the influence.  Or he shouldn't have been out that late.  It was likely distracted driving.

And it just really gives me a pit in my stomach to see these kinds of comments.  We don't have details.  Why assume.  What if the family sees this?  How is this helpful?

When I was a 17 year old driver who was doing everything I was supposed to do, I still ended up in a fatal car accident.  I don't feel guilty or blame myself for the accident because I was driving and I know there is NO way I could've done anything to avoid hitting the car that turned left right in front of me.  From the moment I saw the car I wrenched that steering wheel in attempt to turn but I KNEW there was no chance I would not hit.  It was just too close.

So yes, while I know what happened, I also know how painful it was to be involved.  To see the grief and witness the pain and suffering that resulted.  To be at the hospital when the family had to make the decision to take their cherished son off of life support.  And then to hear the rumors circulating by all the people around me.

here are a few of them:  

1. She didn't even try to stop!  (because of the length of the skid marks measured by a dad not an expert--there was 2 inches of water on the road but whatever the skid marks were they weren't taking that into consideration.)
2. She was speeding (I was going under the speed limit because of the heavy rain)
3. She didn't have her lights on. (They were still on when the cops got there on the one side that wasn't smashed)
4. She was driving a big black SUV (Nope gray minivan)
5. She didn't even care that he died (depression for months)

So when I hear these tragic stories, it just makes me sad to see how people react in this blame sort of way.  The thing is, even if I had made a mistake that led to my accident, we are humans.  We have all made mistakes while driving.  And we are SO lucky when those mistakes don't amount to a tragic loss. 

And you never know what someone is actually going through.  I tried to put on a good face.  I wanted to be strong and to "not let it affect me."  I didn't understand grief.  I didn't understand that you can grieve someone you didn't know.  I felt like I "shouldn't" be sad.  I always said how this was "so much harder for those who knew him."  And that is obviously true.  They had a completely different level of loss.  But it was still life changing hard for me.  In the midst of it, I didn't know how to face that.  I ended up feeling very sad, depressed, overwhelmed and lonely.  I slept all the time because it gave me escape.

So when the toddler gets hit by a car, drowns, or when any other freak accident happens, I will not be the one to compound the sorrow of those grieving by casting blame at such a sensitive time.  

Yep I know that there are occasions when the law steps in and I'm grateful for that.  But accidents are not always negligence. Sometimes they are just people who have a momentary lapse in focus.

And I understand why a person who is grieving might be angry, blame, or act out in their sorrow.  That is a normal part of the grief cycle.  And sadly some of that anger was directed at me for awhile because although Dustin went to my school, we didn't know each other.  The three people in the other car were all friends.  I was the easiest target for both the other families, even though not technically at fault.  But I don't understand why uninvolved, uninvested random people on the internet need to pipe in.

Although I've been lucky enough to avoid ever having a car accident where I was at fault (aside from barely hitting a couple parked cars when I just got my license) I know that at any point, it could happen.  I was very grateful this week for a car with autopilot that can drive me home because I am still, even 31 years later, very anxious driving in the rain.  

And I think what stands out to me today, is the sweet notes and cards that were brought to me by friends and even people I didn't know.  That is the kind of response I want to have when my friends or anyone I know is grieving.  Support, love, reaching out.  Doing anything.  And just letting people know that you care and remember them.

Roadtrip with IFA x REI x Cabelas

Simone and I decided at the last minute to go to Albuquerque for the Yank and Yard competition.  She was thinking about going with friends, but I thought it would be fun to make a road trip out of it.

It's a 9 hour drive so we stopped in Arches and Canyonlands along the way and stayed the night in Moab.  We didn't have many hotel options and I didn't want to camp so we stayed at the Wolfe Lodge.  I loved it!  Will stay there again for sure. Arches was beautiful!  We got there late since there was construction traffic so we couldn't hike.  We woke up early to see Mesa Arch at sunrise.  Such a cool experience.  I love the metaphor of seeing the sun come up.  It just fills me.  I love the warmth, the hope and the whole experience.

We drove the truck so we would have lots of room and not have to charge.  Jared at home gets alerts if the gas gets low on an app.  When we went to Canyonlands, I noticed a gas station right outside the turn off, but didn't want to fill up til after so we would have more time with the sunrise coming soon.  I knew he would be nervous about us running out of gas but hoped he'd be asleep.  Sure enough, I got the call a few minutes later.  I was laughing and thought it was so cute that he is always checking in on his girls.  He's been like this since day 1.  Before cell phones, I'd drive to my grandmas out in the California desert and like clockwork, I would forget to call him to tell him I arrived, and he'd call within 30 minutes.  Making sure I arrived safe.  I really love to know that he's thinking about us.

Simone is funny, and up for anything!  We passed tons of farms in Colorado.  She always on the lookout for what animals they have.  I loved hearing about her goals of living on a farm someday.  She's just like her dad.  Every time we roadtrip, he's dreaming of buying property and having animals.  We passed an IFA.   I told her that when she was younger, I couldn't tell if she was going to be an REI kind of outdoors person, or a Cabela's kind of outdoor person.  Cause she loves camping, being outside, fishing, hunting, etc.  But then I realized an important element was still missing.  A more accurate description of Simone is: IFA X REI X Cabelas.  We can't describe Simone without animals being included.  I remember seeing a show a long time ago called "Must Love Dogs."  Not being an animal lover myself, it really didn't mean much.  But then I married Jared, and I raised Simone.  And I realized the animal love runs deep in some people and it is just part of who they are.

I like that we like the same kind of food.  And she had a great time at the comp.  I think she was worried about letting me down if we drove all that way and she didn't make finals because the girls that were going were such great climbers.  Well that's never been what I'm about.  She's fun to watch and making finals is irrelevant to me.  It's just fun when your grown kids want to hang with you.

We had a great time!  The comp was super fun, high energy, great venue, lots of people, music, really fun.  Her skin was so bad.  The holds here were all new and just sand off their fingertips.  So she, and all the other girls, were all bleeding by the end of their 3 hours.  She was excited to get invited to climb with some of the women she's been watching all these years.  Siena is 24 and just so awesome to give Simone some good beta and tips during the red point style qualifiers.  Simone topped 3 of the 8.  She's been climbing a lot outside for only about 6 weeks.  So in another year, she's going to be seeing some good improvements.  She was very pumped after a few attempts and wants to work on her endurance.

Siena won the finals and got $3500!  Her friend Alex got $2000.  SO cool.  It was fun to cheer for them while simultaneously watching the BYU game.  

When we got home, everyone was here for Sunday dinner.  Simone was catching up on some emails and someone who bought her holds on Etsy had a question about the Magnolia Playroom pegboard.  Simone, being 18, had never heard of Magnolia.  So she was confused.  Elise and I explained that Magnolia is a huge brand, store, magazine, TV network, etc!  I love how they use classic and vintage pieces and have the cutest renos.  And the irony is I was just thinking I'd love a trip with my girls to the Silos.  

Anyway, we looked it up, and sure enough her holds were featured in their new series Mini Reni the Magical and Multifunctional playroom.  She found the order and verified that she made these! 

This is very cool cause she has a beautiful natural stone unique holds.  She's never done any marketing.  Now that she is moved out and all independent she really loves the idea of growing her climbing holds business so she can have more flexible work (gotta get that farm dream going).  So she's so excited to have this beautiful feature to use in her listings.  Anyway, it was such a fun surprise to come home to and gave her a little boost.

Closing up Shop

It's getting chilly!  I'm ready for it--I think.  I like the idea of having time to work on the inside of my house and wrapping up the garden tasks.  I still have pansies and bulbs to plant and dahlias to pull.  I cut a bunch of dahlias today and haven't arranged them yet.  But they were pretty anyway.  

I was waiting for my hydrangeas to get more pink.  But then they started turning brown.  So I hurried and cut a bunch this morning to dry.  Sprinklers are off, pool is winterized.  Closing up shop!  Ready for cozy season.

pretty sunrise

What I've learned by being a kid in a relationship

Break ups are hard!  But part of life.  Who would we even be if we never had a broken heart?  I've learned a lot by going through these experiences myself as a teenager.  And I've learned even more by watching 4 of my 5 kids go through them as well.  Soren is still too young for all this stuff.

When I had my first big breakup, it felt like a death.  I was unsure if I'd ever meet anyone as great as that person ever again.  And later I realized, that is not how it works.  I found someone who was the perfect match for me.  And that other guy, he's just right for someone else.  

It's okay to be angry for a bit.  That's part of healing and the grief cycle.  It's how we detach.  And it goes away with time.

Another common theme I've noticed is the tendency to doubt if the other person was sincere in their feelings.  Like did they ever really care about me?  And we all think like that!  It's normal and it's also just part of it.  Try not to overthink it.

Lastly, we sometimes break up with people we love because the timing just isn't right.  Especially when we're young!  Being with the same person forever is just fundamentally not age appropriate thinking for a teenager.

And yet, for people like myself, it's very hard!  Because when I care about someone, there is literally no one else.  I might have been that person that would date the same guy my whole life.  And I'm so glad that's not what happened!  You learn so much from all the different experiences.  I learned what I liked by dating.  When I met Jared, I'd already had several relationships.  It was helpful.  I'd dated lots of people and I knew the traits that were important to me.  When I met Jared, I had a greater appreciation for him because I knew what it was like dating those other guys.  I loved his humor, his happy disposition, and how he was so all-in from the start. 

In young relationships, we are limited in our emotional responses, thoughtfulness, communication, etc by immaturity.  People get better with more experience and age--generally.  So give grace and have patience. 

Mom perspective:  young relationships are best when they are light and fun!  Serious and stressful isn't a great thing for teen brains.  

But what I know is that it works out!  Have faith in the process and try to not take everything personally.  There are a lot of factors at play.  Don't let it rock your confidence. 

And Then There Was One (Kind of)

We're down to having only one kid living at home!  Thankfully we see the others nearly everyday as well cause otherwise we would be very lonely!  Miles and Simone still have rooms here so they come and go and I love it that way.

Elise said to me the other day something about "do I love that my kids still want to come home basically everyday?", and that answer is a resounding yes!  

I love when I pull up and I see their cars out front.  

I am loving helping them get their places all set up as well.

Miles moved to Provo and has a place with his friends from high school and also a comp from his mission.  These are such great guys and I love that they are having fun together.  We still get to see him lots because he it dating Josie who lives close, and also taking Soren to Jiu Jitsu classes.  I think it's sweet that Miles takes great interest in doing guy things with Soren.  He is very invested in making sure Soren is not just super kind, smart and very sweet, thoughtful and agreeable, but also cool.  Haha.  He feels that Jiu Jitsu is a "cool" sport.  And when I hear him talk about that, it reminds me of when Miles was about four and he looked out the window and saw our neighbor Tate in his football uniform.  Miles looks at me ands says, "No one can beat a football player.  Except maybe a wrestler." Jiu Jitsu combines wrestling with martial arts, which Soren already loves.

We got Miles moved into his new place in August just after his homecoming.  I love how excited he was about getting an Instant Pot.  After living in Brazil, this is a real commodity and he's always talking about how expensive a "pressure pot" like that would be in Brazil.  

Back in July, Simone was doing some work getting one of Grandma's houses ready to re rent.  When she decided to ask grandma if she'd consider renting to her and some friends.

Of course grandma said yes.  It's a super cute red brick house.  The previous tenants turned off the water to the yard because they didn't want to pay for the water.  So all the grass and trees died.  And there was a ton of weeds and junk left behind.  Just the kind of challenge Simone and I love!

So I sent my mom the info on the Utah Water Savers program in Salt Lake.  Basically the city pays $3 per square foot to change the yard from grass to low water drip and plants.  With a 3000 square foot yard, there is a lot of plant potential here!

Its been so fun to teach Simone how to care for her yard and bring the grass back so we can apply for this program and create a better low water plan in the future.

We've hauled three truckloads of concrete, tree refuse, and junk to the dump.  She tilled a future veggie garden area, hung up string lights, planted some evergreen shrubs to hide a deteriorating porch cap.  She reseeded the grass, put down the weed killer, fertilizer, etc.  The grass has to be green in order to qualify for the program,  which is ironic but also makes sense.  

We got a cute free outdoor sectional on marketplace.  And we had an extra set of solar string lights in the garage.  So we put those up yesterday.  We got a cute planter for fall set up.  and she wants to have a fall backyard party soon with a fire, making pizzas, outdoor movie and pumpkin carving.

It's such a cute place with a lot of potential!  Four bedrooms, two family rooms, two laundry rooms, two bathrooms, and a big yard.  Grandma replaced all the carpets and painted everything when she was getting it ready to rerent.  It's mainly the yard that needs some TLC.  Which has been fun!  I'm very excited for that transformation.  A cute group of U of U boys rented the apartment next door and are very nice too.

It's been a little stressful to find roommates and navigate all this new stuff and it was a quicker timeline that we originally were thinking.  But also super fun!  The reward is that she lives with people she loves.  Good climbing friends from her team that she's known for years.  They climb all the time together and Simone is excited about that.

She has been working a bunch at the restaurant.  She's also earning her real estate license with plans to do property management.  And she's also got her rock holds business orders coming in.  Which is great because her shed at home is the headquarters so that means I get to see her a lot.

Anyway, it's been a fun time.  I was so busy when she first moved in with getting things done at home I didn't have much time to go to SL and visit.  It's slowed down a little now.  So fun to have this project to do with her!  I can't wait to see how it looks next summer.

Baby grass starting to come back!  Hopefully we can get it looking good soon.

And then, we found the cutest little sectional and coffee table for only $100 and got the basement family room furnished.  She had friends over to play Catan.  Of course.  Nice to have a few options with four girls in the house.  Now if one is studying or someone has guests over they have another area to be in besides their rooms.

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He's Home!

It is so amazing to have Miles HOME!  I'm just reveling in that post-mission angelic phase.  I love that he's still the same, and just better!  Sweet, loving, more mature.  He came home with a perspective on the world that has really shifted.

In 2020 Miles made a tiktok that went viral.  It was the one when we were in Lake Powell and he tanned a flag into his back.  He got some free stuff out of it and a couple shirts.  He really liked wearing the shirts.  But he was still growing and growing and eventually they were dingy and small and he kept wearing them.  So I finally was doing laundry one day and just threw the Rodman shirt out.  I felt like I was helping him.  But then when he kept asking about his shirt I felt kinda bad!  But I didn't want to come clean so I just said it must be lost.  Haha  pretty sure he was skeptical.  Sometimes clothes I don't like go missing around here.  Anyway, while he was on his mission I was making a pile of high school memorabilia to do a quilt for him and wished I had that iconic Rodman shirt back for the quilt.  So I searched it up on the internet and found it!  So we all bought shirts and wore them to the airport!  We thought he would think it was so funny.  But he didn't really say anything haha.  Come on Miles, give me something.  It was kind of embarrassing to wear this shirt.

Some of his friends were on the same flight home!  I am very excited for them all to hang out soon. Miles was excited to see four of the other friends at the airport!

I bought him some things I knew he would need.  One thing I got was some socks.  And he was like, "oh socks!  Yes! I haven't had new socks in forever."  It was cute.  And I got him some Nikes to match Soren's.  And he was like, oh these are REAL.  Cause in Brazil everyone just wears knockoffs.

And on a side note, I love that he has the same humor.  He took off his shoes in the car on the way home and he made a joke about his socks being modest in the front and when we saw the bottom they were full of holes!  I truly don't know how he wore those like that.  They look so uncomfortable.

On the way home from the airport he saw one of the new temples and he's so excited and saying how he just didn't have a good understanding of how important the temples are until his mission.  He was explaining how it's an event that takes a lot of planning and sacrifice.

He was saying how surreal everything is.  The nice cars in the parking lots to when we pulled onto our street.  He was just in awe.  

We invited the grandparents over for lunch and we all visited for awhile.  Elise was able to come over shortly and everything went well with her D&C and she was feeling good.  Soleil was shy about Miles, as I knew she probably would be!  But by the end of the day she was warming up and when he went downstairs she was asking about him.

We all loved hearing Miles tell some of his stories that happened right before he came home.  One of his favorite baptisms on the mission.  And one of his early baptisms was sealed to his wife in the Sao Paolo temple the Saturday before he left.  He loves that couple and was so excited for them!

We went to our Stake President to get released last night and it was super sweet to hear his comments.  I loved some of the things he said.  How the gospel knowledge created potential energy for answering questions and doing a good job as a missionary.  How grateful he was for the daily schedule and hard work and how satisfying it is.  Even though you are working hard and giving up so many things that made life easier at home, the fulfillment he felt when he saw how peoples lives were changing made it all worth it.

He's sleeping in today!  He went to Josies after getting released last night.  She got home 10 days ago.  So I'm sure he's happy to talk mission with her.  It's been days of traveling to get home.  Long bus ride to Ribeirao, then to Sao Paolo, then the long red eye flight, packing, goodbyes.  It's all such a long process.  He got to go to the temple in Ribeirao, and then attended the temple in Sao Paolo.  I can't wait to see all the photos.

I realized the night before that our big nice camera is missing.  I'm so sad we didn't have it at the airport!  Hopefully we will find it soon.

Twelve More Hours!

 We are all so excited to see Miles tomorrow!

Soren wanted to nail down the hug order and I said he could have the first if he really wanted as Miles' only brother.  Miles challenged Soren to read the Book of Mormon a few months ago and he finished it already!  I'm so proud of him.  He's done this all on his own without any nagging from me.

We've been busy preparing!  We bought him some of his favorite foods, some new clothes and basics that he might need so we don't have to run out anytime soon and do errands.  And we've hung the banners.  And we've been cleaning and for some reason edging the lawn was a priority although I'm pretty sure Miles won't care at all about that stuff.

Soren and I visited Simone at work and ordered catering for tomorrow for his requested meal.  It's easier than trying to find a restaurant that can seat all of us.  And with Miles's red eye flight and long travel days, we aren't sure how exactly he'll be feeling.

Elise is sadly going to miss the airport because of surgery!  I'm sad for her because I know how much she wants to be there.  But also relieved because I've been worried about her and just want everything taken care of ASAP, and this was the earliest option.  She had a missed then incomplete miscarriage, followed by a hemorrhage that required a transfusion.  It's been a rough month both emotionally and physically, and a lot longer process than expected.  She is mourning having that sweet little brother for Soleil and having them closer in age.

I have a hard time being flexible when life happens and my vision of some anticipated event doesn't match reality.  But I'm trying to learn to roll with the punches and just let it go.

We will all be together soon!  I'm so excited to hug my boy.  Every time I've thought of him these last few weeks I've had this ache!  Like anticipation, excitement and an actual ache.  I'm very excited to see him.