Happy 30th, Andrew!!

My favorite son-in-law turns 30 tomorrow (which now seems ridiculously young to me), and I couldn't resist the urge to blog a bit about him.  I remember thinking when my kids were little that somewhere (hopefully!) in the world, another family was raising their sons and/or daughters to grow up to be my children's spouses.  I used to wonder what those boys and girls were like and prayed that they were being raised well in a home in which they were loved and taught.  Just over three years ago, my daughter Karen married Andrew, and one of my prayers was answered.

I am so grateful for this man who was patient enough to wait for my daughter.  She was nineteen when they met, and I think she knew pretty quickly that she loved him.  However, she was scared to settle down when she was so young.  Lucky for us, one of Andrew's virtues is patience, and he hung in there through a couple of mini break-ups and Karen freak-outs until she saw the light.  We feel blessed!

I had fun perusing pictures from the past few years to find some fun ones of my son-in-law.  I'm so pleased with how well he has fit into our family and how much joy he brings to all of us.  Quite simply, he feels like one of us (only better!).

Andrew first came to meet us just after Christmas 2008.  We dragged
him up to Bogus for tubing down a groomed hill.  Fun but cold!

Andrew popped the question on Valentine's Day 2009.  We
were almost as excited as Karen was!

Wedding Day:  June 20, 2009

One thing I hadn't anticipated was how much my boys would enjoy their new brother.  Rachel likes him, too, but they're still trying to figure out the brother-in-law/sister-in-law thing.  Andrew just has two brothers, so Rachel was his first sister.  They do like each other, but I think things will get easier when Rachel gets married.  We shall see.

Can't figure our whether Andrew brings out
 the goofiness in my boys or vice-versa. 

Clearly, the girls don't have much influence on them. . .

Andrew happily accompanies Karen to all of the family events. 
Here he is at Matt's senior graduation family party.

At cousin Camille's wedding in Los Angeles (August 2011)

Of course, the reasons I probably most like Andrew is because he loves Karen and has made her happier than she's ever been in her whole life (and yes, those are her words!).  My daughter married well.

These two are pretty in love. . .

We got to watch him blow out birthday candles last year. 
This year he is in Colorado with his side of the family. 

Andrew and Karen were pretty excited when they found out they were going to have a little Peanut.  Emily is eight weeks old now, and I realize that they are going to be awesome parents.  They love this little girl even more than they thought they would.

December 2011:  Yup, there's a bun in the oven!

One of my favorite moments ever was watching Karen and Andrew
 give Emily her first bath.  They were so nervous and yet so in love
with their precious baby girl.  Very fun to watch!!

Thanks, Andrew, for joining our family and adding so much to it.  I love your happy, calm demeanor, and I admire your testimony and the way you treat my daughter.  I also appreciate the way you interact with the rest of us and make us feel loved.  (Adam has finally found someone he can talk sports with to his heart's content!)  I hope you have a very happy 30th birthday and that you know how much we love you. 

The Eagle Has Landed. . . Again

I'm happy to report that our family has its third Eagle, four if you count Andrew, but we can't take credit for that.  Adam received his Eagle Scout Award a week ago Wednesday.  Way to go, Ads!  This is the culmination of many years in scouting, beginning as an eager Cub Scout and progressing all the way up to the BSA's highest earned rank.  I'm proud of this wonderful accomplishment, and I'm particularly pleased with the way he earned it.  He was thorough in his work and very intent on learning to organize and lead so that he could successfully carry out his Eagle project.



When asked to give the oath, the slogan, and the law,
he nailed all three without a pause.  Strong work!

Those who know me well know that I struggle a bit with the scouting program.  I think when it is run well, it has the potential to help a boy mature into a young man.  A boy can really learn a lot if he honestly fulfills the requirements for every merit badge and rank advancement.  Unfortunately, I've seen a few cases where the parents are more focused than the boy on earning the coveted award.  Case in point:  Mike and the boys were in a priesthood meeting in another ward a while ago.  The person who was conducting announced that a boy needed help with his Eagle project.  When the man asked the Scout for more details, the kid replied, "Well, I don't really know exactly what we're doing and where we're meeting and stuff.  You'll have to ask my mom."  Okay. . .

I've also sat at Courts of Honor after scout camp where boys have been awarded 15+ merit badges that they earned in five days at camp.  Really?  I wonder if the young men really learned anything or took the time to gain the skills connected with each merit badge.  However, I'll jump down from my soapbox now and just enjoy Adam's accomplishment.  I know he did his best.  (He even once turned down a merit badge that his scout leader said he had earned, but Adam felt like he hadn't completed it to the degree he wanted to.  I thought that took some guts.)

The Court of Honor was cause for celebration, and we were honored to be joined by my parents and Karen, Andrew, and Emily.  My parents were in Bulgaria on a mission when Matt got his Eagle, so we were super glad they could attend.  We put them to work by having Dad speak and Mom give one of the prayers. 

It was fun to see my mom kidding around.  I didn't know she had it in her.

Dad, on the other hand, has long been known as
"silly Grandpa."  He loves to joke around with his grandkids.

We were particularly pleased that Karen, Andrew, and Emily would come
 up from Brigham City.  It was Emily's first trip to Nana and Granddad's house.
 Her shirt says, "I love my uncle."  Wonder who got that for her. . .

I thought this was a cool picture of the Eagle's Nest because
you can see Mike, Adam, and Andrew all at once.

Good job, Ad-Man!!

We missed our missionaries that night, but we certainly wouldn't wish them home.  Rachel is doing great in Buford, Georgia.  Her new companion is named Sister Hinckley, and the local ward members call them the prophet sisters.  Meanwhile, Matt is working hard to learn Spanish and how to be a missionary in the MTC.  He should leave for Honduras in two or three weeks.  Mike's dad is still serving as the Hermosillo Temple president, so he and Mom Young earned a pass as well.  We know they all would've come if they could've.

Shredding the Sawtooths

Adam signed up to run the Sawtooth Relay last year.  The event takes place, as the name implies, in the Sawtooth Mountains, and while the scenery is breathtakingly picturesque, it's a pretty strenuous race.  Six competitors split the 61.9 miles, each running two legs that total about ten miles per runner. Unfortunately, he got injured last year and had to give his place to another runner.  After last year's disappointment, he was bound and determined to run this year.

He and five other runners formed Heredegen's Army, in honor of Centennial's head cross country coach, Danny Herdegen.  Last year the team did quite well and finished second in the high school division, but honestly, they wanted to win it this year.

They assembled a good team:



(l. to r.) Micah Drew, Daniel Zarkou, Shaunton Stubbs, Adam Young, Justin Senecal, and Conor Smith

All but Conor run for Centennial.  Justin, Shaunton, and Daniel just graduated, but Micah and Adam will be back in the fall to help anchor the cross country team.  (They're settling for nothing less than a trip to state!) 

The race always takes place the second Saturday in June, so one would think that the weather would be fairly reasonable.  Rachel and I ran it about four years ago, and it was a wee bit cold in the morning but really quite pleasant.  Not so this year!  They woke up to snow and 27 degrees.  The snow came and went throughout the day, but it got downright nasty at times.  Adam's first leg may have been the worst.  Mike said visibility was next to nothing.

Here are some pix, which may tell the story better than I can:

Daniel ran the first and seventh legs. He has ridiculously
long legs which make for an impressive stride.  His dad, our
stake president, ran on an "old guys" team.

Justin, bound for Idaho State on a track scholarship, ran legs #2 and #8. 
As you can see, the snow was coming down pretty hard on this leg.

Shaunton took legs #3 and #9.  He had been injured and hadn't done
much training, but in true distance runner fashion, he dug deep and
ran like a champ.  These kids seem to like pain.  Crazy!

It was blizzardy during Adam's first leg, which was #4.  By #10, it had lessened
somewhat.  I think he's running with his eyes closed to keep the snow out. 
He said you couldn't see anything anyway.  What a fun summer run!  Beast! 

Conor, an Eagle Mustang, was made an honorary Patriot
for a day and obliterated legs #5 and #11.  He put his school
allegiance aside and ran super fast!

Micah got the honor of running the summit, a climb of
1331 feet in 5.35 miles. He ran it in about 39 minutes.  How
is it possible to run that fast up a mountain?!  He was
rewarded with the flat 2.63 mile finishing leg.

And the winner of the high school boys category was. . . Herdegen's Army!  In spite of the blustery conditions, this year's team ran more than fifteen minutes faster than last year's version of Herdegen's Army.  The team placed third overall.  First place went to a team of college and high school runners who either graduated from or currently attend Bishop Kelly.  Second place was claimed by runners from College of Idaho.  I was super impressed!

Here's the "after" shot.  Not only are they all still standing, they're even smiling.  They are obviously hardcore runners if they thought that was fun.

All the participants and support staff were so cold and wet that they didn't even hand out awards.  The organizers said they'd send them in the mail.  I really hope they get the hardware.  They earned it!

P.S.  I may show this picture to Adam when he asks if he can sign up for next year's race.

Emily Time

We've had the distinct privilege of seeing our granddaughter a few times in the last couple of weeks, but I am still missing her a lot.  Four hours puts her just out of reach for enough visits to fill my Nana heart completely--my son-in-law may be heaving a sigh of relief--, but I am SO grateful for the time we can spend with her.  She just has me completely wrapped around her little finger.  How can one baby bring so much joy?

Memorial Day Picnic

We invited ourselves to Brigham City for a picnic on Memorial Day.  We told Karen and Andrew that we would bring the picnic if they would bring the baby.  It was less than a 24-hour visit because we couldn't leave until Sunday afternoon, but we had a great time anyway.

Sunday night snuggles.  Oh, this must be what heaven feels like!

Her hair just seems to get puffier and puffier.
Isn't this cute?

I got to tend Emily for a couple of short periods of time while Karen and Andrew ran a couple of errands.  My only two complaints were that (1) it was never long enough and (2) it was hard to hold her AND take pictures of her.  What to do, what to do. . .

I did manage to get one shot of her that showed how much more alert she is than she was as a brand new baby.  She's much less of a lump and more of a little person.  We just sat and looked at each other for the longest time while we were alone.



I always wonder what babies are thinking about. . .

Emily's first picnic was at Willard Bay.  It was a little mosquito-y, but we had fun anyway.
The food was good, and the company was even better.

This kid looks SO much like her daddy!





Blessing Day

We made an even quicker trip for Emily's blessing day.  I had to work on Saturday, and Adam didn't get back from the Prefontaine Classic until after midnight.  We left a little after seven on Sunday morning.  At least Mike was alert enough to drive.  Adam and I kind of conked out.

Emily was beautiful that day, and Karen and Andrew had so many people there to support them.  Andrew gave her a thoughtful, promise-filled blessing, and then we gathered at a park for a yummy picnic.  It was really fun to have so many people there from both sides of the family.

My parents are loving their first GREAT-grandchild

almost as much as their regular grandkids.

Just short a couple of missionaries. . .

Oh, how I love this little family!

The star of the show.  I hope she enjoyed her day

as much as we all did.

Yup, being a grandma is just as cool as everyone said it would be.  I look at Emily and feel ALL of the love and NONE of the responsibility.  Can't wait to see her again!