Andrew's Track Season

 The track season this year hasn't been without it's hitches.  Mainly the weather.  Old man winter just kept holding on.  It seemed he was on a ventilator and no one would shut it off!  We missed three invitationals as well as two other meets.  Pretty sad.  Less hardware for my athletes.

Andrew has been high jumping very well this season.  He won every meet except the Shawano Invite.  He didn't expect to win that one since Seymour's Alex Bloom was competing against him.  He jumped 6'10" that day and Andrew "only" jumped 6'1.5" that day.  That was his personal best of the season.  He was jumping what he thought was 6' and when they measured it was and inch and a half higher.  His first major competition was at our conference meet but he ended up jumping 6'2" and won!  Two years in a row as the conference high jump champ!

 He also triple jumps.  He isn't great at it but does a good enough job to always bring in some points for the team.  He has great form but lacks the speed to really make the leaps that could bring him up in the standings.

I love track and field!  I will miss not having any of my children competing.  I love competing and I love watching the competition as well.  I anticipate working some meets next year as well.  I will miss it!

Miracles

In March I began receiving emails from my sister, Bonny.  She didn't always contact me a lot due to her circumstances at home.  Her phone was missing so I had my dad send her a new one.  Then we started talking and texting more and more. 

My dad became ill in early April and after many doctor visits, he still had the chills and felt like garbage.  Finally his physician asked him if he would feel comfortable in the emergency room.  He said he wouldn't feel uncomfortable so I took him.  He spent the night in the hospital.  Many tests overnight and the next morning and still no answers, but no fever.  Still had the chills though.  I stayed overnight with him on Easter Sunday as he was scheduled for a colonoscopy on Monday.  Prior to going in for the procedure he still shook occasionally because of the chills.  After the procedure, the chills were gone and he felt better.  In fact, he felt good enough to go out to lunch and talked about his summer motorcycle trip.  It was an absolute miracle!

In the mean time, I wasn't hearing anything from Bonny.  Her phone had been confiscated because she invited her bishop over.  I needed to let her know about my dad and so finally we called her local sheriff's department and sent an officer over to check on her.  I was right, no phone.  The message was delivered and she went to buy a new phone.  She got her phone back due to a note she wrote about the police being at the door earlier. 

Fast forward a few more days.  My nephew, Tony, got a new job.  The kind of job that is a once in a lifetime and too good to pass up.  His family would be moving to Dallas but until then, Tony would be doing some meetings and training in Austin.  Tony set up a time to visit with his aunt Bonny on Tuesday.  After a visit together, he was able to get her out of the house.  She stayed with the bishop and his family for a few days before we could fly her out.  Initially she would be coming home with Tony, but decided she needed to get out sooner.  Her flight was delayed on Wednesday afternoon due to mechanical problems and then it was delayed again on Thursday morning. Somehow, she got on a flight to Dallas and then to Chicago and finally to Green Bay.  I went with Dad to pick her up.  It was an absolute miracle that things worked out the way they did to get her here.

I cannot adequately express my thankfulness to my Heavenly Father for orchestrating these events.  It must have seems to Him, that my endless prayers were without any faith as I just kept begging for the same things.  He DOES answer prayers and better than I could have ever expected. 

A Fillmore Visit

Jeff graduated from BYU in April and shortly afterward they "packed up the truck and moved to Muscatine!" Sing it like the Beverly Hillbillies, it sounds better.  At any rate, they came to visit us for just over a week.  It was so much fun to have them here.  It was lots of fun to have Evelyn here.  We enjoyed her so much.  I don't ever remember a child who sings as much as she does.  Even with her limited words, I could tell what she was singing. 

 The kids got to play together a lot.  Brock was quite jealous when he had to share his time with either his mother or his Nana.  Love my grandkids!

 Love these happy faces!

Now they are gone back to Muscatine so Jeff can begin nursing school.  We will see them again over the 4th of July weekend and then again at the end of July.  I'm so glad they are only 6 hours away rather than 24.

Stake Prom

 Our stake had been doing a "stake prom" for about four years.  Its a way for our youth to enjoy having a prom without inappropriate music and dress and dancing.  The first two years it was done with a very fancy meal that I believe made them feel a bit awkward.  Since switching the menu to pizza, it is much more relaxed.  Here are a few pics of our beautiful Gresham youth.

Tatelyn and Andrew

 My nephew Tim and ?

 Tana and Andrew

 Tyli and Drew

 Tim and Andrew, cousins and best buds

 Our Gresham crew with Austin hiding in the back.  Tyli and Emma had left by this time.  Natalie Oborn joined in for the pic.

 Kenz and Taylor

 Taylor, Alyssa and Kenz

 LOVE this picture of Tate. Her gown was so "Cinderella."

 Alyssa and Sydney

 Tate and Andrew again

Y M C A
I believe I see a Travola move in my son.

A Mission Call Came in Our Mailbox

Andrew submitted his mission papers a few weeks ago so we have been expecting a large, white envelope in our mailbox.  Today that envelope came.  Clare brought the mail in but put that envelope back in the mailbox so he could get it out himself.

He asked me if I got the mail today, I could honestly answer that I did not.  After practice he and I walked to the mailbox together.  I had my I-pad so I could video him pulling his call out of the mailbox.  He was pretty excited to find it there.  He said he thought this day would never come.  He did wait an extra week because his application had to go through an extra screening process due to his reading disability.

We invited my dad and brother and nephews over along with the Gourleys and got got our girls on Facetime and the phone.  Andrew opened his call and he will be going to the Utah Salt Lake City Central Mission.  He reports July 23rd and will preach in the English language.  I believe he was surprised and relieved at the same time.  Relieved because he knows he will not starve.  (He's a very picky eater.)  The Salt Lake City missions are highly successful baptizing missions.  I feel very peaceful about this call and have that witness that this is the mission for Andrew. 

Very proud of his decision to serve the Lord!

One More Time

It's that time of year again.  Track season began on Monday.  Or at least practice did.  Many years ago when I took the head coaching position, I told the athletic director that I'd like to retire when Andrew graduates.  I reminded him of that last Spring.  So, if nothing changes, this is my final year of coaching track and field.  I do love it though.  Here are my star senior athletes of whom I expect to post many, many photos.

And So It Goes

 I LOVE watching my children compete.   Basketball has been a standard for a lot of years and this is the last year I have a child competing.  Andrew was on a really good basketball team.  He is a great defender.  I know everyone likes to score points, but I think he would rather block someone's shot and keep them from scoring.  All year I have watched him play hard and never give up and always give it everything he's got.

He began the season as a starter but about a third of the way into the season, he was pulled as a starter as the coach changed up his offense and Andrew's position was basically eliminated.  Actually he became one of three guys to play the one position.

 He's a tall, lanky guy with no beef on him.  Thus he gets pushed around under the basket despite his best efforts.  Therefore, another guy got the spot of starting.  He wasn't happy about it, but didn't complain.

 As the tallest guy on the team, one would think he would start the game just for the jump ball.  That only lasted a short time.  Even though he wasn't starting the game, he still got quite a lot of minutes playing so he was happy.

 Once in a while he would get a little discouraged, but he would always pull himself up and get over it quickly.

 He certainly didn't hurt the team while he was on the floor.  He drew some fouls and always scrapped for a loose ball.

 As the season wore on, he got less and less playing time which was probably as frustrating to me as it was to him. The coach told him he didn't have a perimeter game and got pushed around too much under the basket.  This is the same coach who told him when he was open that he should shoot.  Early in the season he took five shots in one game.  He made two of them.  Then he was pulled from the game and asked why he was shooting.  I don't get it.  That was a HUGE blow to his confidence.

 Here's a young man who would do whatever the coach asked him to do and give 100%.  He is obedient and never took the open 3 pointer because the coach told him not to. 

 This is what I saw for the last third of the season.  It broke my heart.  If Andrew stunk at basketball, I would totally understand that he should sit the bench.  But he doesn't stink.  He's a great defender and he even had some great moves of which the coach mentioned to me.

I'm so proud of this young man who didn't complain about his playing time.  I'm sure he was hurt but he just kept playing and practicing hard. I had many people ask me why Andrew wasn't getting much playing time.  I always responded that I didn't know.  However, I did tell them what a great guy my son is and how he isn't an aggressive person who bullied others.  In fact, his gentle and kind demeanor will go a long way in his life.  It will make him a better man, employee, husband, father and priesthood leader.  I loved watching him play basketball but track season starts tomorrow and I LOVE coaching him.  He's a great man with a tender heart who loves others.  I can't ask for anything more than that.