Carly's Birthday - Sweet 16!!

 Carly turned 16 on April 29, 2024!

Carly had a pre-birthday celebration when she went to with Austin to his conference in Edmonton. They stayed at West Edmonton Mall and they took Carly's friend, Presley Butler (who also turned 16 this week). While Austin went to his conference, Carly and Presley went shopping and to the water park. Carly bought some jeans and shirts (modeling in this picture).

On her birthday, we had German pancakes with buttermilk syrup for breakfast. We cooked steak for dinner, and then she had a few friends come over for ice cream cake.

For her birthday, we gave her a slingshot and paintballs, some bath and body works soap, and a t-shirt with a frog on it (her request). Then we bought some cowboy boots when we went to America.

She was most excited to get her driver's license. She has driven a lot, especially in the last few months. We spent a lot of time practicing parking. Then she took her driver's test, and she didn't pass. She had 110 demerits, and you can only get 75 and still pass. The nice testing man took us back and told us the things she needed to work on. So we scheduled another test - a week later. So we went back to the car and Carly shed some tears. We tried to soothe the tears with a McDonald's ice cream cone. She stayed in the car and watched a movie and then went back to school after lunch. 

The best news was that we scheduled another driver's test for the next week, but they called that afternoon and said they had an opening the next day. So she took it on Friday and passed!!!

Kaden & Kali Lee's Wedding

Kaden got home from his mission to Chili in November, engaged to Kali Torrie in January and married April 27, 2024 in the Cardston Alberta Temple.

They had their luncheon and reception in Taber. It was the most interesting (and longest) father of the bride speech I have ever heard. Kali's dad quoted scripture, had lots of advice and analogies about trees, etc, and then he dubbed Kaden a knight with a toy sword.

After the reception, they wanted to send off floating lanterns but it was too windy.

 

March - Sweetheart Dance & Easter

 

Carly's Basketball Season

Carly played on the Junior Varsity Basketball Team at Cardston High School with Coaches Erica Burt and Kate Nish Miller. 

Carly's team has 9 girls in her grade and one girl in grade 11, Ryanna Elliott. Her team has been mostly been playing together since grade 4, and they are actually pretty good and pretty fun to watch.

Their first tournament was at Western Canada High School, and they were the tournament champions. Carly got the Tournament All-Star award.

They had a tournament in Lethbridge get cancelled because it was -30.

Then they had a home tournament, and they were the champions. 

Their next tournament was at Holy Trinity School in Okotoks. They were the champions. 

They are a hard working team. They do all come away with bumps and bruises.

JV Zone Tournament

Carly's team won their first games of the zone tournament, so then they played in the championship game at the University of Lethbridge.

They ended up losing to Medicine Hat so they got 2nd place.

What a great team and a fantastic season!

 

Lucy Starts Her Mission

 

Lucy started home MTC on Monday, February 12. Her teachers were from the Mexico MTC and she did a Spanish zoom class in the mornings, a workshop for all missionaries that started this week from the Provo MTC, and then a Preach my Gospel class each afternoon. After the first day, she wasn't so sure, but it got better.

Then she got to hang out with us in the evenings.

We went to Calgary on Monday night so Lucy could fly to the Mexico MTC on Tuesday, February 20.

We got up at 4:15 am and took Lucy to the airport, checked her bags, hugged her goodbye, and she was off through security.

Missionaries aren't supposed to take a phone - they just give you a phone when you get there. So we couldn't talk to her through her travel day. But Tanis Hardy convinced me to put an air tag in her bag, and I was glad I did. I could see when she made it through security, then when she landed in Dallas and found her new gate, and then when she landed in Mexico. I did also track her flights on flight tracker - it was probably made for missionary moms.

Then I just got a one sentence message - This is Lucy, I made it to Mexico.

On Friday she posted a video Facebook with her companion speaking Spanish - her Spanish teacher gives that assignment (2 videos and 2 pictures so far) I was so happy to see her cute face.

She had a few hours of free time on Saturday night, and so we got to talk to her for the first time. She seems happy and doing good. She said there was another sister missionary and two elders on her flight from Dallas to Mexico City - so she had someone to be with as they went through immigration and met the MTC worker and rode the MTC bus.

She got called to be the Apartment Leader - mi casa mama

It's a pretty MTC campus ... the weather is warm... she said they told her the Mexico MTC is the only place in Mexico City that has birds, every where else is too city