Email from Mom: April 9, 2021

From: Mom
To: Kaitlyn.garcia@missionary.org
Subject: TGIF

Holy cow it has been a week so I am SO glad it is finally Friday around here! How are YOU!??? How was the big move this week? I kept thinking that a photo would appear on your drive of your new digs but then I remember that you keep very busy. :)
How was the transfer process? It looked like you got to meet up with some fellow Herrimanites again and with the other Sisters you flew in with? I can't remember all the faces but I do know thye look familiar enough. Once you left the church building was it just a long drive to Rhode Island? Did you have a beautiful drive or was it still pretty Winterish? How is your companion? Do you suppose this will be a good match and you guys will see eye to eye? I am sure it will be nice to not be in charge of the Facebook stuff again and you will be able to take the next 6 weeks and focus on you and feed your missionary soul.
Things here were crazy this week. Tyler was all sorts of strung out and no fun to be around because of work stuff. Josh turned in his two weeks but when Tyler went down to talk to him to find out why, it was easy enough to keep him happy and get his concerns remedied. I don't understand why Tracie wouldn't have had the discussion with him when he submitted his two weeks but thankfully Tyler did and now Josh is good to go and will be with us still. Which relieved one of the 'manic Tyler' moments. He was all sorts of bent out of shape that he was going to have to go in and work the overnight shift but now not a concern or worry. The screen team is a joke. Everyone is as lazy as ever and Tyler says today he is headed down to fire one of them. I can't remember which one but I guess in an 8 hour shift he only reclaimed 11 total screens. (Tyler says he can do that 'easily' in an hours time) Plus this employee also left the premises for a total of 2 hours and never clocked out either. So, add that to the loss that has taken place on the screen print team and Tyler goes back into Manic Tyler mode. :/ I tell ya, it has been a week. Tyler was going to head to the cabin after he went down to the warehouse this morning to mow the lawn and get some sand bags out by the river since it is supposed to be slowly warming up around here. I don't think we had enough snow accumulation to really have much concern about it overflowing but if he wants to panic right now I guess he can. I would have been happy to go and help but not today...he needs some alone time with himself to find some sort of reason in his life and happy again. Wowza.
We went to Les Miserables on Wednesday with Randy and Kristina. Let me just leave it at, Broadway and Hollywood make it so I will never be able to watch anything other than those 2 depictions of that play. This was NOT good over at the Hale Center Theatre. And by the end of it at 10:30pm I felt horrible that Kristina and Randy had that long drive home and it wasn't a great play. I've learned my lesson. I either stick to Broadway and the movies or if I am REALLY needing a fix of some sort I need to only attend plays at Eccles downtown where they can afford to bring in the good actors.
The weather here has proven that we definitely live in Utah and it is definitely going to be a questionable Spring. We were 80' and in the pool on Sunday and by Monday morning when I woke up at 6 there was snow on the ground! Seriously I just don't want to see cold but I especially am over the snow already. It tried to warm up some throughout the week and Brooklyn decided yesterday since it was going to be you know, a balmy and warm 61', that she wanted to have some friends to swim. So she did. The pool water is at 87' but the wind....man the wind. It was cold sitting under the heater downstairs. I don't know how they stayed in the water but she said they all had a good time so I guess that is all that matters.
I finished up the D&C this week. Still probably my all time book of scripture ever. The in depth study this time around confirmed that even more for me. I used the "Don't Miss This" but then took what they had in each chapter and got on the Google and searched a little more in the scriptures. Anyways, at the end of the book in the Official Declaration #2 it talks about how anyone will be eligible for the Priesthood and Temple Blessings as long as they are worthy. In the Don't Miss This book they share a story of a gal named Jane Manning James who was black. She led part of her family to Nauvoo and endured HARD HARD things along the way. Divorce, burying kids, she didn't own a pair of shoes (remember they moved in Wintertime and snow) so her feet got all beat up and bloody, she most often slept on the ground (again snow...) because she didn't have the means to get a wagon before they left. When she got to one particular water crossing she was denied access to the ship because of her skin color. She begged the leaders of the Church, and was even good friends with Joseph and Emma, and everytime they took it to the Lord on her behalf the answer was always 'no'. Even in all of that, her faith and love of the Savior and her devotion to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, she continued on. She even donated anything and everything she could to the building of temples. Buildings that in her lifetime, she never had a chance to go inside. I couldn't help but think of the person who did her temple work for her. Can you imagine the feelings and the Spirit that must have taken over inside those walls?! I can imagine the smile on her face on that day and the celebration that must have taken place in Heaven on that day.
We have the coolest blessing with having scripture on Earth today. To be taught and to be ministered to through Prophets of old, but more importantly to learn of those who paved the way for each of us. To be able to learn from their strength, courage, and faith and then to try and apply those same principles to our own lives. I just love love reading what the Saints went through in order to get such a blessing for me in my hands today.
Our official mask mandate ends tomorrow at 12:01am. That doesn't say much really because most businesses will still require that you wear one but maybe it suffices some who want to see progress being made in a 'normalize' direction. I think I will stick with grocery pickup and try to avoid any of the businesses that require a mask. I am so sick of them, as I am sure you are too. What is it like in Rhode Island Covid wise? Will you be stuck inside all day again or will you have the option to be out and about?
We don't have much planned this weekend and for that I am glad. Brooklyn is going to go babysit with Liya for 5 or 6 hours tonight (and she is even going to get paid too! She is stoked about that), the Braves have their home opener (which I was supposed to be at...thanks a lot Covid), and Christian will work. He is also going to work all day tomorrow too. I guess things have really picked up and there is a huge Closet Candy order that needs to be done and all of them are pre-treated shirts to boot. I think he is okay with going in after chatting with him this last week and telling him that we will sit down and look at his account. He seemed shocked to learn that he spent roughly $200 more this last month than what he actually deposited into his account. Budgeting is going to be a hard lesson for him to learn. I want to help him however I can but ultimately I know it is up to him to make the change and choice. He also has temple prep on Sunday and hopefully they won't cancel on him again because nobody else shows up. Fingers crossed. I did tell him that if that happens he needs to let the Davey's know that Riley and Sophie are flaky and unreliable and that he would still like to have class regardless if they are there or not. We'll see how it turns out for him.
Prom is next Saturday. I went with white flowers for a corsage because a dress color has not been chosen yet. She sent me a text saying one was blue and one was black. I guess white will be simple enough to match both of those. The weather is supposed to be (as of right now) in the low 60's so hopefully they will still come swim and be comfortable while doing so.
Also...breaking news today...Prince Phillip died! The Queen of England is going to take an 8 day hiatus I guess which is normal. Not really that much news wise other than it has to play into a new season of The Crown for sure! Ha ha ha...(I just re-read my line there and it looks like I am celebrating his death. In all reality I am just hopeful it means seasons will continue on Netflix)
YOU HIT 3 MONTHS this week too!!!! Holy holy crap! Time is flying by. Do you feel the same way? I honestly still sit back and look at how fast it has gone and I just count my blessings. Only because I am selfish. I hope you are thriving and loving every minute of being where you are and I am seriously so thrilled for you and proud of you for choosing to serve a mission. I think sometimes what it would be like had I chosen to serve a mission. I wonder what path my life would have taken and what my life would like today. I don't dwell too hard on it because I am happy with how it has all worked out but I wonder.
Tyler and I had our final weigh in this last week. I am officially down 12 pounds and cut my body fat percentage pretty much in half. I feel pretty good about it. I am SO glad to be done with the chicken and asparagus though! Tyler lost 30+ pounds and I don't know about how his body fat ended. He actually started a new round of 23 days this week because he would like to still lose some more. Kudos to him...I just had to finally tap out.
All in all, even though there was a lot going on and mostly all of it through work, it has been an okay week. We are on the countdown for school to be done (wahoo!) and have a total of 30 days left is all that the kids are in classrooms. That is nuts but I am so ready. And I know Christian is too. I don't think graduation will be any different than it was last year so as soon as we have his Senior/Mission photos done at the end of the month I will probably get a yard banner done for him like we did for you. The difference is that we might be able to host people in our backyard for an open house to celebrate him and not have people get crappy because we have too many or we aren't social distancing. Plus we should have landscaping and stuff all done and looking good by then back there too instead of just dirt and a huge old mess. (look at the 3 year photo below. Every single one of them was taken on April 8 just different years!) Brooklyn is just ready to be done period. I am sure you can imagine.
Well, I guess I best get to the day. I have laundry and still a shower to take but I have to get some treadmill time in at some point today as well. UGH...I hate the treadmill but the trails I hear have snakes on them already so I am going to have to embrace the machine because I am not going to make it to the trails at all this year it looks like. Stupid slithery grossness. I love you and hope you have had a good week. I hope you are sleeping well and that you are getting into a new groove with your companion and being in a new place. I am excited to hear how it has gone when we chat on Monday.
I love you to the moon and back. I count you as one of my greatest blessings in life and am so proud to call you mine. I love being your Mom and being able to share all the good with what is going on with you when people ask. I love knowing you are right where you are supposed to be and that you are in the Lords care. Have the best day.
Love you for forever and for always,
Mom

Brookyn had friends over to swim

All taken the same day, just years apart. CRAZY!