Homecoming…
After serving a mission, returned missionaries are given the opportunity to speak in church and share some of their experiences.
A week and a half after Hallie got home, she spoke in church with two other missionaries who were leaving on missions. Hallie shared a beautiful testimony. While serving in upstate New York, she spent a lot of time in the Sacred Grove and other church history sites which greatly contributed to her testimony. She had some sacred experiences while wearing that black name tag and you could feel of her love as she testified of Jesus Christ and his outstretched arms. In her words, “I know Him. I love Him. And I’m excited to continue having experiences with Him.”
She wanted her mission to change her, and I think part of her was slightly disappointed when she didn’t feel that change as she expected. She imagined returning home as a different person, marked by some dramatic spiritual transformation.
But the truth is, she left 18 months ago, already deeply devoted to Jesus Christ.
She didn’t arrive in the mission field searching for a testimony. She already had one.
What changed wasn’t the foundation – it was the depth. Her understanding of God’s love became more personal and she felt that love for others. Her capacity to trust Him expanded. The mission didn’t change her like she was expecting – it refined who she already was.
She had a wonderful support crew with her at church that Sunday. We had so many from Steve’s family, my parents flew down from Idaho, and countless family friends showed up – not to mention so many watching on zoom, including her mission leaders and fellow missionaries.
We hosted acai bowls at our house afterwards. I wish I had pictures of everyone who came to visit, instead, I caught pictures sporadically and somehow didn’t even manage to get our own family!
Most of her friends are still on missions but she has a few in town for the summer.
And because the gathering after church was large and meant to be social, we gathered again the same evening with family for the traditional Pothier mission report. Where she talks a little bit about her mission (the details only family members want to hear) and then family members get to ask her questions. We’ve been going to these for years for all the cousins and its fun to keep the tradition alive even when most of the cousins have left the home!
Post a CommentLast-minute concert…
Some nights almost don’t happen.
One of my favorite artists was coming to town and I never pulled the trigger to buy tickets. As the concert drew nearer, I kept checking prices and asked Hunter if he’d want to join – which he agreed to. But I didn’t buy tickets, until…
I was sitting at a soccer game, just four hours before the concert started, and found tickets for $40. I bought two and figured I would find someone to join me. I immediately texted Hunter, unfortunately, he’s a high school boy and he had already mapped out his evening.
I started texting friends to see if anyone wanted to come with me, but everyone already had plans. As I drove home from the soccer game, I slowly accepted the idea that I was probably going to end up going by myself. And honestly, the whole drive home I kept thinking how much Hallie would have loved it and wishing she was home because I knew without question she would have gone with me.
When I got home, Steve asked if I had found anyone to go with me. When I told him no, he reluctantly agreed to come with me.
Which, if you know Steve at all, is a true level of love because the man does not like concerts.
And somehow that made the whole night even sweeter.
The venue was tiny – standing room only. No giant screens. No complicated stage effects. Just a room full of people singing every word. From the very beginning, it was obvious we almost missed out on one of the best nights.
At one point during the concert, Calum Scott announced he was going to come out into the crowd. Somehow, out of everyone there, he ended up standing directly in front of us. And then he sang one of my favorite songs.
I still can’t believe our luck.
The whole night was magical and I can’t believe it almost passed me by. I’m glad it didn’t.
And I’m especially glad Steve joined me.
Funny Comment…
One of the funnier parts of parenting is hearing my older kids recognize that their younger siblings are being raised in a different household than they were (as much as we’ve tried to remain consistent!)
Hallie’s still adjusting to life back at home and learning the rhythm of our home and lifestyle. One of those rhythms involves Briggs getting home from soccer practice after 9.
Just the other night, Briggs walked through the door after 9; Hallie looked at him in disbelief and said, “That could never be me at his age — rolling in at 9:22pm with his hands full of Dairy Queen and milkshake spilled down the front of him!”
And honestly, she wasn’t wrong!
There was something so funny about the comment because it captured the reality of birth order. She was raised in a very structured home, with bedtimes, consequences, and additional sizes of clothing and shoes in her closet. Briggs is being raised a little differently. There is still structure and consequences, but we’ve learned to loosen up on things that don’t matter quite so much. (Which seems like an injustice for those who endured the stricter environment!)
And truthfully, I loved getting my kids to bed early when they were younger because it meant I had some personal time to do what I wanted. But now that I have kids staying up late into the night, it doesn’t seem like that big of a deal to let the youngest stay up a little later because it’s not like I have personal time at night anymore!
Father Sons Campout 2026…
The tradition of the boys going on an annual campout is still going strong!
Hunter had a school responsibility Saturday morning so he was unable to attend but the other three boys were more than willing to participate.
They prepared tinfoil dinners – precooking everything so they just had to warm them up instead of cooking potatoes over the fire. Not their first rodeo.
From the sounds of it, most of the time revolved around exactly what boys hope a campout would include: pocket knives, roaming with friends, campfires, late-night laughing, and as little sleep as possible. They got the full camping experience.
Bennett is a full-blown teenager and I was a little surprised he wanted to go but he had a group of friends going which is a game changer.
Steve saw very little of him, but he managed to make his way back to the tent long after Steve and the younger boys had fallen asleep. Living his best teenage life.
I enjoyed the quiet house, working on projects late into the night – and may have wished the campout was extended another day. 🙂
Last day of school…2026…
School is out and we’re looking forward to some fun summer plans!
We hosted our annual last day of school water fight and every year I wonder how it can get any better, and then it does. More balloons. More kids. More water.
Surprisingly, Hunter and Bennett made it home from school just in time to participate on the outskirts. Bennett did less participating and more hiding. Hunter threw his fair share.
Hallie has missed this event for years (high school and mission) and everyone gave her a warm welcome and made sure she stayed cool.
Per usual – there were some tears; a face shot never feels good. We met some new neighbors with kids who ride the bus in our neighborhood. We had kids who avoided cleaning up the balloons by leaving and others who pretended to help. We had a lot of parents laughing as they enjoyed tossing a balloon or two at their kids. We had sibilngs targeting each other. And every one is always trying to get Steve. We handed out a lot of popsicles.
And the party didn’t stop. The kids all went to different houses hosting grade-level parties and they all swam the afternoon/evening away.
Summer is already off to a great start.