Snow Flurries In Utah

Early this morning, Christian took me to the airport, 

and I flew to Utah to participate in the Gathering retreat, 

then, later this week, teach Jane's religion class on campus, 

and spend as much time with her as possible.

I stopped by Jane's apartment to pick her up, and she was so surprised! 

She thought I would be arriving later that evening.

 We then drove to my hotel room, where she would be snuggling

in the same bed with me for the next week and continued up glorious

Provo Canyon to Aspen Grove for the first day of the Gathering retreat.

I spoke (and almost fainted because I was so dehydrated.

It was the weirdest thing.  I made a recovery mid-speech after asking

for water.  It was embarrassing.)

I was so glad Jane was with me!

Having her all to myself this whole week will be so much fun!

Utah is so beautiful!

I love this time of year!

On the way home, I even saw snow flurries!!

Happy November, indeed!

This Is Halloween!

Once again, the Nielson household was transformed into a 

vibrant display of Halloween magic! 

The air was filled with Halloween Hygge around Stillestead!

I remember feeling super sad when I woke up from my coma to discover

 that I had missed a full Halloween!

 Seriously, I was sad about that. I promised myself that

 I'd live every holiday with celebration, not only for the holiday but for life!

 It's such a privilege to be alive and enjoy traditions and family!

For dinner, we enjoyed:

-My famous double cheddar Mac & Cheese

-Hummus with a variety of vegetables

(and pomegranate seeds to look like blood in the hummus)

-I roasted our pumpkin seeds in garlic and parmesan.

-I made a loaf of sourdough bread and served it with honeycomb

and an assortment of cheese. (With flies!)

-And for dessert, I made a

 double chocolate cake with marshmallow spider webs.

We played Clue around the dinner table while

drinking root beer with dry ice from goblets.

Lottie was Ladybug from the series Miraculous!

To end the evening, we drove to an actual neighborhood

so we could see people in their costumes, 

and enjoy the Halloween vibe.

...we stalk the shadows, dark unseen...

Goodbye 'till next year, HALLOWEEN!

Happy Halloween

 Happy Halloween!

Halloween Blast from the Past:

Happy Birthday, Claire Aurora Toad

 

Today, my firstborn daughter, Claire, turns 23!

Bright, beautiful, wise, ambitious, brave, strong, rooted

are a few words that describe my beautiful girl.

I'm excited to see what this year holds for her.

Whatever happens, she is faithful and trusting of the Lord

His timetable and His ways.

We make plans and pray they work out, and often they don't.  

It's confusing and disappointing.  

Claire has worked so hard, and when these bumps happen, she's

always been able to pivot and work through it.

  She pushes on.

She has a pioneer spirit, and I love her so much for it.

Happy Birthday, my little Toad!

I'm counting down the days until I see you for Thanksgiving!

Influence

 This morning, we were lucky to have our favorite missionaries 
come and chop wood with Christian and Gigs. 

 We had a cedar tree in the pasture topple over with Hurricane Helene.

They chopped it all up and piled it neatly on my front porch.

It smells amazing.

I made a pot of beans, and we made burritos for lunch.

Cheap labor.
These Elders are the cutest!  I am so grateful for them

 and the selfless lives they live.  

They make me think about Ollie and how much I miss him.  

I've seen Elder Nielson's photos, and he, too, is serving

 families in his area in Brazil.

This is what missionaries do.

They serve, help, love, and teach people about Christ, 

who they are representing.

They may be young, but they are powerful and wise.

I have loved their influence on Gigs.

They have been a huge part of his personal mission prep.

Oliver in Brazil: October 2024

Happy October, Elder Nielson!

(Friendly reminder, 107 days until you are home!)

Food:

This month, Ollie made several loaves of bread,

spaghetti sauce, rice pudding, and more pizza.

Every week, I get a recipe request from him.

I don't actually think he's going to make it, but he does!

Missionaries & companions:

Brazil:

I don't know what this was, but it looks like he

had some sort of white substance poured on his head

by his loving companions at a church function.

I bet he loved that!

His favorite Brazilian family:

He needs new shoes:

Last week at the Jones wedding, I met one of Ollie's companions,

Elder Brooks' parents!  It was so much fun meeting them

and talking about our amazing boys!