Lucy's Birthday Trip to Banff

We had a couple days off school so took a girls trip to Banff National Park to celebrate Lucy's 17th birthday. 

 

Hermana Nunn Comes Home!

 We definitely counted down the days until Hanna got home from her mission! We are so thankful for her service and proud that she conquered a covid mission, but we missed her so much.

She left Toronto about the same time we left to go to the Calgary airport. I tracked her flight on a flight app all across the country (and possibly shed a tear when her flight took off).

We got to the Calgary airport, and the signs at the airport said she was coming out of gate A. So we stood there and waited and waited. After a long time, I looked over and she was walking down the long walkway towards us. She had come out of gate D, and there was no grand entry to welcome her out of the doors. She didn't have a phone with her, so there was no way for her to contact us. So a little anti-climatic, but so excited to see her.

The Leishmans were also at the airport because Maddie and Jill were flying out later that day. Hanna was excited to see her best friend Maddie for a couple minutes.

We got her luggage and drove to Lethbridge to meet Jill and Larsen. We got to listen to Hanna's missionary playlist, which includes lots of Spanish songs, since she was still a missionary. The Perkins had been driving up from Utah (I also was tracking them the whole way) We met at Montana's Restaurant for dinner.

Next we went to the church so Hanna could get released from her mission by President Ferguson. She met with him, and then we all got to go in and she bore her testimony to us. Then the bitter sweet moment of taking off her missionary nametag.

For months she told us she wanted to get home, eat, and then ride her horse. We told her it was too late at night and that we would ride tomorrow. But Austin had it all arranged to surprise her with her horse, Lena, at the Agridome. Wyatt Olsen had picked up the horse and taken her in, and then Grandpa Buck had her saddled when we got there. She was so surprised, and the first thing she said was, I don't have any clothes to wear (as she didn't want to ride in her dress). But we had thought of that. Then she made Lucy go with her to the bathroom to change, since she was used to having a companion with her every hour for 18 months.

She hugged Lena and rode her in the arena for a few minutes!

On Sunday, she gave an excellent homecoming talk, along with her testimony in Spanish. We had a lunch at the Leavitt Community Centre after church with family and friends. Thanks to friends like Connie Quinton who cooked our roast for us (which includes getting up the middle of the night to check it and turn the temperature down).

We also got to go with Hanna to the temple while Jill and Larsen were still here. It was only Hanna's third endowment session, as she only got to go once before she left because of Covid, and only went to to the temple once in Toronto because of covid (a couple days before she came home), and now this time with us in Cardston.

Jill's Baby Shower

We decided to take advantage of the time we had with Jill when she came to Canada for Hanna getting home from her mission to have a baby shower for her.

She scored in the baby blanket category. It was fun for her to see her people. So many people have had such a great influence on Jill's life. And people are so generous.

And Hanna was modeling how excited she was to be able to wear jeans after 18 months.