Luke Finishes Flag Football

Luke finished up his flag football season. The team that he was on last year disbanded somewhat as most of the boys were too old to play. This meant that his coach quit coaching because his son wasn't playing anymore. Luke got a new team and a new coach. We realized the season would be interesting when, at the first practice, the coach asked the kids who wanted to play to win and who wanted to play to have fun. Luke and one other raised their hand in the affirmative of winning. Because most of the kids wanted to "just have fun," the coach took a relaxed attitude in coaching and let the kids play whatever positions they felt like. Luke did get an opportunity to play quarterback which was fun to watch. He also scored a few touchdowns through the season. Despite these highlights, his team lost nearly every game. I think he has decided to give tackle football a try next year.

Luke Turns 14

Luke celebrated his fourteenth birthday. I can't believe he is another year older! Time sure flies. He didn't actually get his regular breakfast in bed this year because he has become accustomed to waking up at 5:30 am and I don't wake up that early. (He insists that he feels more refreshed and enjoys the early morning time to himself.) Due to this early morning habit, it was necessary for him to wait until I woke up to make him his birthday breakfast. After breakfast, he opened his presents. His favorite gifts were a Kindle and a Lego Set (those were about his only gifts as the kids' tastes get more expensive as they get older.) When we hit the weekend, Luke had a birthday party with his friends. They came over and hung out, playing games, eating pizza, and watching movies. I've decided that I enjoyed these parties more when they were younger and I could keep track of everyone. Now that all of his friends are teenagers, they like playing night games and running around the neighborhood. I felt like I was continually doing a head count and making sure no one got lost. I shouldn't worry so much as most of them have cell phones and I'm sure could get home if they had to. I just feel responsible when they are here. It's a whole new ballgame at this age, I can only imagine when they are all old enough to drive. The Sunday after his birthday, Luke was ordained to be a Teacher at church. It was a neat experience. They invite the Teacher Advisors and the Teacher Quorum presidency to attend. They are all invited to share some thoughts. I was very impressed that the young men shared their testimonies as they welcomed Luke into the Teachers Quorum. They did this without being asked or prompted to do so. They did a beautiful job inviting the Spirit and getting Luke excited to advance into this new Quorum. Our young men's program has done a great job implementing the Duty to God program. Each week the boys share what they have learned and studied. This gives the boys many opportunities to share their testimonies. Their implementation of this program has come to the attention of the General Young Mens' Presidency who have been in contact with our ward leaders to discuss how they have done it. As I watched these young men so easily share their testimonies with Luke, I knew that their experiences with Duty to God had prepared them for these types of experiences. What a great blessing to experience.

Field Trip to Pumpkin Patch

Matthew and his preschool made their annual field trip to the pumpkin patch. Matthew and his friends had a lot of fun despite one small mishap. One child from a different class was throwing rocks and no one stopped her before she lugged a golf-size rock. We all watched it sail through the air, finding its target on the forehead of one of Matthew's friends. It was almost slow motion watching the rock fly. None of us reacted in time to move the friend and the poor kid ended up with a small gash on the top of his head. This accident didn't stop the kids from enjoying the many festivities at the pumpkin patch. They had fun going down the slides, bouncing in the bounce-house and playing in big tires. Of course, they all came home with a pumpkin.

Journey to the Temple

Luke and Lindsey had the opportunity with the Young Men and Women to bike and then hike to the Bountiful Temple. The girls have been training for some time, going on regular bike rides and building up stamina. The boys just showed up and started the journey. If I understood the distances correctly. They biked close to 20 miles then hiked the 3+ miles up the hill that leads to the Bountiful temple. They started at 6:30 am and arrived at the temple around 11:30 am. Once at the temple grounds, the youth were greeted by their families. Everyone got to listen to a special speaker who did a great job tying in all the symbolism of the journey as one prepares to go to the temple. The speaker had actually made the journey a couple of days beforehand so she would know what the youth had done. Her words related well to what the youth had experienced. Luke and Lindsey both said it was a difficult journey. Lindsey ended up with two flat tires and eventually had to use a spare bike and Luke was just unprepared as were most of the young men, but it was a great experience for them. I really hope it made an impression on them and they will look back at some point with fondness at what they learned and experienced.