Family Top Ten, 2014

It has been a wonderful, memorable year for our family, filled with blessings and learning experiences.  Here are our top ten events of 2014:

#10:  Winter Olympics in Sochi/World Cup:  We spent many hours together as a family, cheering on team USA in both the Olympic games and the World Cup. So exciting!

#9:  Trevor and Megan's Wedding: Such a beautiful event, made even more special because Grandma Smith, Nancy and Linda were here to celebrate with us.

#8:  Summer Bucket List:  We had a great time crossing off all the activities on our list.  It kept us busy all summer!

#7: Fall Break at Zermatt:  A fun family weekend near beautiful Park City. 

#6:  Temple 2 Temple 5K/Thankful 13 Half Marathon: What a great way to get some exercise, stay in shape and enjoy a fun family activity.   

#5:  Cheer Competition in Anaheim/Disneyland: We enjoyed the warm California weather, our beautiful hotel and supporting Stefanie. 

#4:  Smith Family Reunion in Indiana: Super fun summer adventure at beautiful Lake Patoka.  We also spent an awesome afternoon sightseeing in downtown Chicago.

#3:  Stefanie in High School:  She has thrived as a sophomore at LHS, including her experiences as a member of the LHS Cross Country Team and going to the Footlocker race in California.

#2:  Braden's Mission in Honduras: We will never forget this year of supporting our full-time missionary son. Such a bittersweet experience. We love and miss him so much! 

#1:  First Grade Teacher at Lehi Elementary:  A dream came true for me and the answer to many prayers. I couldn't love it more!

And there it is, our top ten of 2014.  We are so thankful to our Heavenly Father for the incredible blessings he has given to each member of our family this year. Truly our cup runneth over.

Last Missionary Letter of 2014

Hola, my son, happy New Year! It was awesome talking to you on Thursday, we loved it!  You looked and sounded so great!  Definitely the highlight of our day. 

After that, Rachel and George took off and we spent the rest of the day playing with our new toys and electronics. Here is Stefanie with her favorite Christmas stuff.

On Christmas Eve we saw the new Hobbit movie and went out to dinner at an Italian place in Salt Lake. We love our Christmas Eve traditions! Monday we had a fun FHE with the Smith fam…Curtis and Marla and girls, Sarah and Derek, Billy's family, Trevor and Megan...a houseful of people! Maren stayed overnight with Stefanie, they are cute cousins!  

Dad is in the middle of a Christmas basketball tournament, it started on Saturday. All three teams won their first game, hooray! Dad will be gone most of the day today and tomorrow, the championship game will be played on New Years Eve. Hopefully Lehi will be in it! We were planning to go to Preston for New Years Eve, but we can't make any out-of-town plans. Rachel and George and Stefanie will drive up to Preston that day, then maybe Dad and I will follow them later on, depending on the status of the tournament.   

Stefanie has some good news…on Saturday she passed the Driver's Ed. test to get her learner's permit! She was pretty excited. She was hoping to beat both you and Rachel by passing on the first try…but unfortunately it didn't work out that way.  You hold the record by taking it twice…both girls ended up passing on their third. Stefanie will take Driver's Ed. in the spring, she can hardly wait.

Well, not much news to tell you since we just talked on Thursday. I guess I will sign off with a spiritual thought. One of my favorite Christmas moments this year was one morning when I was awake before anyone else, so I turned on the Christmas tree lights, snuggled up in my electric blanket and read the eighth chapter of "Jesus the Christ".  It is all about the birth of Jesus. Here is an excerpt that was meaningful to me...

 "The testimonies concerning the birth of the Messiah are from two extremes, the lowly shepherds in the Judean field, and the learned Magi from the far east. We cannot think this is the result of mere chance, but that in it may be discerned the purpose and wisdom of God. He raised up to Himself witnesses among the people to testify that Messiah was born. But there were classes of people among the Jews whom these lowly shepherd witnesses could not reach. Hence, God raised up another class of witnesses--the wise men from the east--witnesses that could enter the royal palace of King Herod. So indeed God raised up witnesses for Himself to meet all classes and conditions of men--the testimony of shepherds for the poor and the lowly; the testimony of wise men for the haughty king and proud priests of Judea. So that of the things concerning the birth of Messiah, His disciples could say, 'these things were not done in a corner''."

So cool!  I had never thought about it like that. I will never look at another nativity scene in the same way.  

I hope you will have a super fun p-day today with Elder Glassett!  I gave him a big hug last week and told him to pass it on to my boy!   

Have a great week! Love, Mom

Christmas Card, 2014

Merry Christmas from the Smith Family, 2014

Jazz Bear Shopping

Hola my son, Feliz Navidad!  Your second and last Christmas as a missionary! We are so excited to talk to you on Thursday!  We will have everything ready to go with our SKYPE account, we are just waiting to hear what time.  It will be the highlight of our entire season. 

So how was your week?  How is Elder Porter doing, is he back to good health?  I am happy for you that you got assigned to a companion that you like.  It seems that you have had some really good companions throughout your mission and gotten along well with them all, what a blessing!  I know that is not always the case for everyone. We have been praying for Franklin this week and hope he is progressing in the gospel. Looking forward to an update. 

We had a good week, the Lehi basketball team is on FIRE! We are now 7-0, can you believe it?  This week we beat Maple Mountain by three after a ten point deficit. The Lehi gym was louder than we have ever heard it.  The fans are pretty excited, we are getting a bigger following every game. So exciting! 

You have another new cousin!  Luke Palmer was born on Tuesday morning. That is three new little cousins you will get to meet when you return…Paige and Luke on the Kindred side, and Lydia on the Smith side. We haven't officially met baby Luke yet, I think we will go for a visit sometime this week. 

Do you remember Jazz Bear shopping at Christmastime with elementary students when you were in high school?  This year I was asked to be a chaperone for the kiddos from Lehi Elementary. Oh my goodness, it was so awesome!  The entire high school gym was filled with LHS volunteers.  

We rode the bus from my school to the high school, had breakfast, a visit from Santa, then back on the buses for a quick trip to Walmart.  Those little kids were so thrilled to be the center of attention.  What a great program, it really put me in the Christmas spirit!  I think I will volunteer to help every year.

Last night Dad and I went to Elder Glassett's home.  Their family is heading to Honduras on Christmas night so Sister Glassett offered to personally deliver a package to you!  Hooray! We ended up staying at their house and visiting for over an hour.  They are such nice people, we love them! Zach told us lots of stories from the mission, he made us laugh so hard.  

It was such a fun week in my first grade classroom!  We had a school "Christmas Sing" for all the parents--I got to choose and direct two songs sung by the entire first grade. Then on Thursday we had a class party by three of the moms, and on Friday we had a big assembly where Santa made an appearance.  So fun.  

Love you!  Hope you had an awesome week!  See you on Thursday!  ~Mom

Choir Concert

Hola my son!  We know you had changes this week, Elder Yac finished his mission, and we have been anxiously waiting to hear about your new companion and if you are still in Choluteca.  Did you travel to Tegucigalpa?  Did President Bowler do his big Power Point presentation, with all the suspense and excitement?  Can't wait to hear all about it!

This week was good for the Lehi Basketball team, they had two intense, hard fought games this week and won them both!  On Tuesday they were at Mountain View and beat them by 3 points. On Friday they played at Provo and beat them in double overtime--the second overtime win of the season! Lehi is now 6-0, awesome!  They have one game this week, then a tournament between Christmas and New Years, then will start region play.  Super exciting!

Monday we had a couple of cute visitors at our house...your little cousins Shane and Paige! Tami and Brady had a work Christmas party in Draper so they dropped off the kiddos  for a few hours.  It was fun, we don't have little ones at our house very often! Rachel and George came over and we all just played all evening.  Cute kids!

Last night (Saturday) was the highlight of the week for me...Dad and I got tickets to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert. Oh my goodness, it was wonderful! We got there early enough to walk through Temple Square and see the lights, then we took our seats in the Conference Center.  For the next two hours we basked in the Christmas spirit, I loved it.  We sat next to Grandma and Grandpa Kindred and Kevin.  A magical evening! 

 

So that sums up our week! This is the last week of school before the Christmas break, my little first graders are buzzing with excitement!  I'm pretty sure there will not be much learning taking place in my classroom this week, haha!  I really love this time of year, and especially the opportunity to think about the birth and mission of our Savior.  We can't wait to see you and talk to you on Skype on Christmas day!  So glad President Bowler had a change of heart about that!  Do you know what time you will be able to call?  Is there still a 40 minute time limit?  Can't wait!  I love you so much and hope you've had a great week. 

Love, Mom

Footlocker

Hola my son, how are you this week?  Did you have a good week?  We are well into December now, I hope you are feeling the Christmas spirit. Did you get the chance to watch the First Presidency Christmas devotional tonight?  I loved Elder Christofferson's talk.  It is always a privilege to hear the words of our prophets and leaders. 

We have had a good week, Stefanie just got back from Footlocker!  I dropped her off on Thursday morning and we just picked her up from the high school about an hour ago. We have been listening to all her funny stories.  Here is a word from her...

"Hi brother, this is Stefanie. I went to California to footlocker this week. Did you and Michael throw water balloons out of your window?  Cause that's what I heard. Lehi got kicked out of that hotel because of you, haha.  Footlocker was good lots and lots of big hills in the race there, and it was super warm for december! Coach Rowe also told me a few funny stories about you! You were a crazy child! and we also went to the beach and swam in the ocean! Hope your mission is going swell.(:" 

So Dad had quite a week, he coached three games this week! West, Hunter and Jordan. The best game of the week was Saturday night when the varsity team beat Jordan in double overtime! The JV and Varsity are now both 4-0, sophomores have lost once. The season is shaping up to be a good one!  Here is a word from Dad...

"Hey my boy, Dad here.  Couple of things that I wanted to chime in about. I was thinking about the time I was a zone leader. There were two types of ZLs: those who thought that they were somehow better than other missionaries, they talked down to us and had a superior attitude.  Then there were the ZLs that just wanted to help each missionary reach their full potential. They tried to bring out the best in everyone and help them grow. It's like being a missionary coach!"

Point two: Western Wyoming might be the only solid offer you get before you return home. All the other schools want to see you first, and have you as a walk-on type of a situation. So if you want a sure bet it is probably going be at Rock Springs. if not we will take some road trips or wait to see on BYU and then go from there.  

Proud of you and all your letters. I love to read them. Stef thinks you're  weird but I love the insight and growth I've seen. Keep working hard and good things will happen.  Love you, Dad

Mom again…just wanted to remind you how much I love you and how proud I am of you. Can't wait to read your letter.  

Love, 

The Fam 

Thankful 13

Hola, my son. Happy Thanksgiving! As I was counting my blessings this year, at the top of my list was my wonderful missionary son.  I am so thankful that you are a valiant servant of our Heavenly Father. We had a great day, starting early in the morning when we dropped off Dad at the "Thankful 13 Half Marathon" starting line.  There were over a thousand runners in the race, many of them dressed as pilgrims, turkeys or Indians, haha.  Dad's goal was to cross the finish line in under two hours, see for yourself his end result…

Haha, it was a fun morning.  The runners started at the MATC building across from Thanksgiving Point, then ran through a couple of neighborhoods to the Jordan River trail, to the river bottoms near Tyler Richin's house, and then back.  Rachel, Stefanie and I tracked Dad in Rachel's car for a few miles, we kept stopping  at intersections to cheer him on.  Then we headed back to the finish line.  He looked great and finished strong!  We were super proud of him!  It was the highlight of the day, even better than the big turkey dinner, although that was pretty good too!  Did you even remember it was Thanksgiving? We thought and talked about you multiple times all weekend, and wondered if you thought about us or missed us this week!

In other news, this week was Dad's first basketball game of the season against Taylorsville--a clean sweep!  All three teams won big, a great way to begin the season. This week he has three games, Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday. Three more wins would be nice!

Today was Caleb Rodabough's mission farewell, he is heading to Mexico. He did a great job on his talk, and even mentioned YOU!  He said you were a great example to him and told about something you had taught him regarding priesthood authority. He will be a good missionary!

This weekend I have been busy decorating our house for Christmas. It looks very festive around here!  I have been listening to nonstop Christmas music from the radio next to the kitchen sink.  Every time the "Charlie Brown" theme comes on the radio we all comment that it reminds us of you!  Sure miss hearing you play the piano!  I wonder if you will remember all your songs when you get home? You will definitely have to brush up on this one in time for Christmas next year.

One funny story from Dad, he was running the half-marathon a few miles in, he was concentrating on his pace when he heard this loud voice call out, "Is that Braden Smith's dad?"  Dad looked up and there was Landon Jacobsen standing at a volunteer station along the race route.  Dad waved to him and Landon yelled, "Tell Braden to come play soccer with me!"  Dad just had time to nod his head before passing by. Haha. Sounds like Landon wants you as a team mate!  

Well, that is all our news for this week. We love you and hope you will have a great week. Are you still in a trio? Is Elder Yac doing better? Sure hope so!  I put his name on the prayer roll this week--and yours too! Keep working hard! 

Love, Mom

Scholarship Offer

Hola my boy, some awesome good news for you this week!  Did you read the scholarship offer from Coach Atkinson at Western Wyoming?  Not bad!!!  He called on Thursday night and talked to Dad for about 20 minutes.  Dad had lots of questions for him, we like him a lot!  He told us there are several returned missionaries on the team, himself included, he served in South America.  He also mentioned that there are some Spanish speaking athletes on the team, including one new recruit from Peru.  He said training at WWCC will begin the first week of August.  So that is cutting it kinda close, but definitely doable. Now you just have to let us know if you would like to accept this offer, and we will take care of all the details.  But before you do this, keep in mind that you are being considered at other schools.  Just this week I got an email from Coach Tim Busen from Adams State University in Alamosa, Colorado. He had some questions about you, and wanted us to send some video footage, which I did yesterday. Your uncle Kevin said that college coaches monitor each other, they know who is being pursued and which offers are being made, and it can get quite competitive.  So it is possible that after one offer comes in, more may follow.  Also, it is a strong possibility that you will be accepted at BYU, on Brother Hammock's recommendation.  BYU applications are due on December 1st.  So you have some things to think about! No need to rush this decision, but we do need to respond to Coach Atkinson in the near future.  So exciting!  Heavenly Father has some pretty cool blessings in store for you!!!  Let us know your thoughts.

In other news, we had a good week!  Saturday your cute little cousin Ava was baptized, her family traveled to Utah so Ava's grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles on both sides could all be there.  She is a sweetheart!  It was fun to see everyone again, only two weeks after Allie was baptized.  Ava asked me to play the piano at her baptism so I got to be part of the program.  I love the spirit I always feel at a baptism!

Saturday afternoon Trevor invited all five of us to UVU to watch his cute wife, Megan, play basketball.  Last month she tried out for the UVU women's basketball team and made it!  So cool!  She only played the last two minutes when her team was up by 20 points, but she did great for those two minutes and looked cute sitting on the bench!  Trevor is so proud of her!

Daniel Madsen got his mission call!  He is going to Baltimore, Maryland, leaving in February.  Happy for him and his family!

We celebrated Rachel's birthday today, she is 22!  My kids are getting very old!  She and George came over for Sunday/birthday dinner, and we opened presents.  Can't believe I have been a mommy for 22 years!

So how was your week?  I hope and pray everyone has recovered from the sickness that was sweeping your zone, especially your companion, Elder Yak.  I saw on Facebook that Hermana Randall came home a few weeks early to get some medical care, poor girl.  

How is your investigator, Rupert and his family? We have been praying for them all week. 

Thanksgiving is coming up this week!  Will the American missionaries do anything to celebrate? 

Well that is all for today.  Oh, how we love you!  We are all excited to hear about your week, and your thoughts about Western Wyoming.  Love, Mom

Cold!

Hola my son! How was your week? So I have to tell you, last Monday night we had the BEST family home evening EVER!  We did exactly what you suggested--we read the intro to the hymn book, then each of us chose our favorite hymn and we all sang our hearts out.  Then we looked up the scriptures for each hymn.  It was amazing!  We had Rachel and George here with us, and Stefanie's friend Swan joined us too.  Super awesome, thanks so much for the idea!  I think we will have to do that again sometime soon.

The high school basketball season has officially begun, Dad had tryouts last week.  No surprises at tryouts, and Dad has high hopes for this season.  He says his team is already way ahead of where they were last year.  First game is a week from Tuesday.

Thursday night was Stefanie's cross country banquet, it was very nice.  We ate pizza, they gave out awards, and she got a certificate with her name on it.  She seems to have lots of friends on the team.  She is all excited for the Foot Locker race in California in a few weeks, I just got her registered for it.  Also her first term report card came out a few weeks ago, she is doing great in high school!  Her GPA was 3.7! She got all As and Bs. Super proud!

It has become cccccold here! We had our first snowstorm of the year!  Last night was another BYU football game, Kevin got us two tickets but it was only 20 degrees outside so I gave my ticket to George.  Dad said the stadium was only two thirds filled, I think the cold scared away a lot of fans. We wish we were in the tropics with YOU!

Well, I hope and pray that you and Elder Yak had a successful week!  I hope you had a few investigators at church this week!  I hope you have found a few investigators who are pure in heart and ready to accept the gospel.  I am so proud of you and grateful for your worthiness to serve.  I love you so much!  Love, Mom

p.s.  I have been thinking about your camera situation…can you buy one there in Honduras?  I will transfer some extra money to your account! 

Proud of My Missionary Son

Hola my boy.  How are you doing this week?  I am so glad you are starting to feel better.  That dengue is nasty and wicked, so glad we don't have that in the USA.  I wish I could have come to take care of you!  My sweet baby boy, sick in bed, he needed his mommy.  Remember when you used to take hot baths in my deep tub?  That always made you feel better.  I hope you have had a better week, and back to 100% health and energy, and no diarrhea!

Today was my primary program!  It went so well!!  The spirit was very strong, especially during the songs. How I love my sweet primary kids!  I will miss them so much if I ever get released. 

Yesterday was a fun day!  Dad and I had my primary program practice in the morning, then we went to Alpine to see your little cousin Allie's baptism.  She is a cutie!  Blake gave a talk about the Holy Ghost, he did a great job!  And then we went to Amy's big beautiful house for lunch.  Nice to visit with a few Kindred relatives.  That evening we went to UVU to see the Lehi volleyball team play for the state championship.  Oh, it was exciting, a HUGE purple section of screaming Lehi students! 

Sadly, Lehi lost after four games, but each game was very close and very hard fought.  Great run for Lehi.  Volleyball is awesome!

Here is a message from your big sister:  

Hi Braden!! 

What is up!?!? I can't believe that you only have 8 more fast sundays and then you are home!! Yay! Is time flying by for you too? I feel like you just left! How is your spanish? We have some people that come in to my work that mostly speak spanish and it always makes me think of you! RSL played tonight in the semi finals, and they lost 5 to 0. so that sucks… In the words of Stefanie, "It sucks to suck!" Landon Donavin got a hat trick. I will be cheering for LA to win it all now, since it is Landon's last season. Nothing is really new here, George is going to school full time, and so that is new. We just locked in our RSL season tickets for next season! So we will have to take you to a game or two when you get back! Well, We love you lots and are so proud of you!

~ Rachel

PS tell your mission president that he is lame for not letting you guys Skype on christmas! LAME!! Love ya! 

Love you!!  Can't wait to read your letter!  ~Mom

Halloween, 2014

Hola my son, I am very anxious to get your letter today.  I have been praying for you all week that you were able to recover from your illness and regain your health and energy. We held TWO family fasts on your behalf this week and your name is on the prayer roll.  I know the dreaded dengue is sweeping through the mission, many of my "missionary mom" friends  are worried about it. Is that what you were suffering from last week? I hope you are drinking lots of water and using bug spray day. I'm very grateful that it didn't keep you from your temple trip last week.  Heavenly Father knew how important that was to you, so he helped you to endure.  It sounds like it was absolutely amazing, I am so proud of you that you worked so hard to make it a success.

Happy La Dia De Las Brujas! How was it this year? We had a good one, one of my most favorite EVER, I got to spend it with 23 first graders! 

My favorite part was leading my class in the school costume parade, I've always wanted to do that!  Made me feel like a REAL teacher, haha! That evening Rachel and George came over for some burger beef stew (yes, we did eat some for you!) 

And then Stefanie went out trick-or-treating with her neighborhood friends and Dad and I sat on the porch and handed out candy to all my primary kids. Super fun day.

Did you read the letter from Coach Atkinson from Western Wyoming? Oh my goodness, we are so excited for you!  I called Kevin and read it to him, he is excited too!  Of course it is not yet an actual offer, but it sounds extremely promising.  I am still finishing up your application to BYU, who knows what will come of that...but you may soon have some difficult but awesome decisions to make. The Lord is definitely opening some pathways for you.  Love it!

Today we have gone back to Daylight Savings time, which means we are now an hour behind you.  It was nice to get an extra hour of sleep this morning, but we pay dearly for it in the spring when we lose that hour and suffer jet lag for the rest of the week.  I wish they would just do away with it completely, it is a pain to change all the clock around the house and in the cars. But at least I won't hae to wait so long to get an email from YOU!

Today in primary we worked on the primary Sacrament Meeting program, it is coming up next Sunday.  Please say a prayer or two for us! It is always a big job to get it ready, but the spirit is always very strong in that meeting and the kids do such a good job with their singing and speaking parts.  I am excited for the meeting, and also excited to have it done for another year.  This will be my fourth Sacrament Meeting program as primary president!  I hope it will go as well as in years past.

Well, I sure love you.  Hope you have a wonderful, healthy week with lots of blessings and success. Keep working hard!

Love, Mom

Pumpkin Carving

Hola my son!  I am very anxious to hear how your temple trip to Tegus turned out.  I have been praying all week that it was wonderful, that everyone showed up, that the buses worked well, the baptisms all took place, and the spirit was super strong.  I went to the temple last week and put your name on the prayer roll with this experience in mind, how I hope it was everything you wanted it to be!  Can't wait to hear all about it.  

One thing I forgot to ask you about last week…we heard on the news that there was a huge 7.3 earthquake in Ecuador that was felt in Honduras.  It sounds like there was not much damage, but still scary anyway.  Did you feel it?  Do you know people who were affected by it?

We have had a good week, all the high school fall sports are winding down.  The cross country state meet was Wednesday.  Dad's team did OK, his best runner came in 3rd overall.  AF won the championship for both boys' and girls' teams, Lehi took third in both.  Another great XC season has come and gone.   

Monday night for Family Home Evening we got together with Bryan's family for our annual pumpkin carving activity. Awesome as usual!  

While we were together everyone wrote letters to you to include in your Christmas package, but most of Bryan's kids got confused and wrote "Happy Halloween" instead of "Merry Christmas". Haha, just know you were thought of and remembered that night!  And the good news is you will be here next year to carve your jack-o-lantern with us, what an awesome thought!

Today was Hailey Blackwell's mission farewell, she leaves this week for the Mexico MTC, then to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania.  This now makes five missionaries serving from our ward…soon to be six.  Alonso Lopez, you, Annika Hancock, Kierran Steele (new family), Hailey, and soon Caleb Rodabough.   

I had a fun couple of days this week.  On Thursday and Friday I was invited to attend a conference for Elementary teachers in Deer Valley on the importance of literacy.  I rode up with two other teachers from my school.  It was held at a fancy hotel, they fed us breakfast and lunch, and we got to listen to several key note speakers and children's authors.  I really loved it!  I hope to be able to instill a love of reading in my students.  

Dad and I have been working on your BYU application this week.  We had to send in your high school transcripts, get a recommendation from your seminary teacher, we even had to contact President Bowler.  Now for some feedback from Brother Hammock on your essays… he said your first one (What is the hardest thing you have been through and what did you learn?)  was excellent, outstanding, exactly what the admissions board is looking for.  He had some suggestions for the second question (Why do you want to attend BYU?) so with your permission I will take his advice and make a few changes.  As for the third question he wants you to think of a positive trait you learned from playing soccer such as setting goals, being part of a team, working hard, etc..., how has that trait been reinforced on your mission, and how will it help you as a student at BYU?  Sorry to ask you to write another essay!!  I know you would rather spend your P-day relaxing and having fun!  Just give me a general idea and I can flower it up.    

I love you!  You are awesome!  You are doing great!  Keep working hard!  So proud of you!  Love, Mom

Fall Break

Hola my son!  I have a lot to tell you about this week!  But first…how was your week?  I am so excited about your giant temple trip coming up on Saturday, and all the baptisms that will take place that day.  I have prayed every day that everything will fall into place for it to happen, and it will be a highlight of your mission.  I went to the temple this week and put you and your entire zone on the prayer roll…I hope that will help!  Can't wait to hear an update about it, I sure hope everything is progressing forward.  What an amazing experience it will be!  

Today Brother Hammock came over to our house to help us begin your application to BYU.  It is a long process!  We can take care of nearly everything, but we do need a little help from you.  There are three short essays, 250 words or less.  If you will give me a general idea, Brother Hammock and I can flower it up.  Here are the three essay questions…

1. What is the most difficult thing you have ever done or experienced?  What made it difficult, and what did you learn?

2.  Which school would you most like to attend and why?  (BYU, BYU-Hawaii, BYU-Idaho, LDS Business College)

3.  Tell us anything else you want us to know about yourself that you haven't had the opportunity to describe elsewhere in the application. Include any special circumstances, experiences, talents, skills,  etc. that you think would have a positive impact on the admissions committee.

Brother Hammock says to be specific and express your feelings.  He definitely thinks you could use mission experiences if you would like.  Could you do this today?  No need to put too much time or thought into it, just give me something to go on and I will make sure it is awesome!  

 In other news, Friday and Saturday was Fall Break!  Finally both Jordan and Alpine School Districts were off the same days!  So we had to go somewhere fun.  We ended up going to Zermatt Resort in Midway.  

We met Rachel and George in Park City, did a little shopping and went out to dinner, then we drove to the resort where we checked into our hotel, did some exploring, went mini-golfing and hot-tubbing, then back to our room to bake cookies and watch football.  The next morning we slept in, Dad went for a run, and we made a big breakfast in our room. It was a fun little get-away! 

Wednesday night I was asked to speak at "Career Night" at Young Women.  I was very honored to be a guest speaker!  I told all about my experience of being a school teacher, my education and background, what I liked most and least about my job, some advice on how to be a successful teacher, and a question and answer period.  There were four other women who spoke, all with interesting careers.   Stefanie said I did a very good job!  Nice to be recognized for my efforts and achievements!  I really do love my job. 

One other thing…I have been posting all my letters to you on my blog, along with a few pictures. Not sure if you are interested or if you have time, but if you ever want to see a few pictures from home you can click on this link.

That is all for this week!  We love you and think you are awesome.  We are so proud and grateful to have you serving as a representative of Jesus Christ.  The restored gospel is true!  Hurrah for Israel! 

Love, Mom

Region Meet

Hola my son.  How was your week?  Your Consejo De Lideres last week sounds like it was awesome!  How exciting for you to be able to spend time with Presidente Bowler and the other leaders of the mission.  I will be excited to hear how things change and improve in the mission as a result.  

The highlight of our week was the Cross Country region meet.  The Lehi boys are headed to state as a team for the first time in four years!  That was your sophomore year!  Lehi came in second behind AF.  The girls' team is going too, they were third.  Stefanie ran great in the JV race, she has improved every race.  She is excited to go to the state meet on the 22nd to cheer on her teammates.  Copper Hills did great too, both of his teams qualified for the state meet.  Stefanie has really grown to enjoy cross country, she complained a lot at first, but I think she is glad for all our encouragement.  She is sad there are no more races this year, but she wants to go to Footlocker in California in December, and has already said that she wants to join the track team in the spring.

We are enjoying fall, my favorite season of the year.  The maple tree in our back yard is bright red…

...and the big tree in the front yard is beginning to turn gold.  We picked all the pumpkins from the garden and put them on the front porch, along with the scarecrow and the big scary spider.  We have a Halloween house! 

My first graders are super excited for Halloween, they talk nonstop about their costumes.  Fun stuff!  This week is Fall break, we are not sure where we want to go, but we are kicking around the idea of going to Moab or St. George.  It will be nice to get away for a couple of days.  

I had my first parent-teacher conferences this week, on Wednesday and Thursday, they went great!  They were very long days, but I was happy to get to know the parents a little better.  They all said their children love being in my class.  Touched my heart!  Dad had his conferences too, we were both glad to get them over with.

Question for you…Brother Hammock asked what your plans are when you get home from your mission, he has offered his assistance in getting you admitted into BYU if you would like to apply.  Of course it would be Dad and I who would do most of it, but you would need to write a paragraph or two about why you want to go to BYU, and your qualifications.  Are you interested?  Until you have been officially signed to play soccer somewhere it might be a good idea to keep plenty of options open. Let me know what you think.

We loved the pictures you sent last week, especially of the birthday party. I hope the Hermana did not mind having eggs thrown at her head!  haha.  Birthdays sound kinda nutty down there!  But lots of fun.  

That is all for this week!  We love you!  We constantly pray for you!  Have a great week.  Love Mom

p.s.  Hope your companion, Elder Yak, is feeling better.  Especially hope you did not catch whatever bug he had last week!  Where is he from? 

General Conference

Hola, my boy!  Loved your last letter, especially the story about Juan.  I have read it several times and it brings tears to my eyes every time.  I hope he felt the spirit during and after his priesthood blessing, and that he will have a desire to learn more about the gospel of Jesus Christ. What a powerful experience!  Also, I loved the pictures you sent of Agua Caliente, what a beautiful, peaceful place.  I would love to walk along those trails with you!

It has been a great weekend, General Conference was outstanding!  What a privilege to get to hear our prophets and apostles speak the word of God.  Were you able to watch all the sessions?  Which were your favorites?  Did you notice any recurring messages or themes?  Dad's favorite talk was on Saturday morning from Elder Lynn G. Robbins, "Which way do you face?"  I loved Elder Ballard's talk, "Stay in the Boat."  We noticed a couple of recurring themes, especially following the prophet, and the importance of the sacrament.  Dad said the Priesthood session was good too, he told me about the missionary choir and I watched it online.  Your cousin Mark sang with that choir, he has only been in the Provo MTC for three weeks.  In his last letter he wrote, "Saturday I had choir practice.  Our choir director said that when a choir is asked to sing in General Conference they are given months to practice, but we only have two weeks!"  They were great, couldn't help but feel the spirit as they shared their testimonies through song.   The entire conference was inspiring, and I loved knowing that YOU were watching it too!  I am looking forward to reading and studying their messages for the next six months.   

Thursday was Dad's birthday, we were invited to Rachel's house for birthday dinner and presents, it was so nice of Rachel to do that for her daddy! 

My present to him was tickets to the BYU/Utah State football game on Friday night, Stefanie, Rachel and George came too.  

Oh, it was a disaster of a game, we lost 20-35.  BYU was undefeated so far this season, and nationally ranked.  The Salt Lake Tribune called it "the most devastating loss in school history."  Our quarterback suffered a broken leg in the first half and it was all downhill from there.  Ugh.  Dad said if BYU would have won, they would now be in the top ten. As Stefanie says, "It sucks to suck!"  Haha.

We have some exciting things coming up this week, Dad and Stefanie have their region cross country meets on Thursday and Friday…go Stef!  And I have my first parent/teacher conferences this week, I am actually looking forward to that.  Some news from Rachel and George's house, George has decided he does not want to be a baker for the rest of his life, he will start school tomorrow!  He will be a full-time student at the tech school by Thanksgiving Point, he is studying to become a computer tech.  We are proud of him and hope he can handle working at the bakery all night and attending classes during the day!  

We hope you have had a good week.  We love you so much!  Excited to get another letter from you today.  

Love, Mom

Birthday Week

Hola my son, Elder Smith!  Well, that was very exciting, unexpected news last week for us to find out you had been changed from the city back to the south!  We were very surprised and happy for you.  And wow, you are a zone leader!  That is so cool, even though you have to solve everyone's problems and deal with angry, verbally abusive people, haha.  So tell us about your new companion, Elder Yak.  Where is he from?  How long has he been out?  How do you like working with him?  Any investigators? Lots of exciting stuff happening to you in Honduras.  

Well, today (Sunday) is my birthday!  It has been an awesome day, I went to Ward Council meeting this morning, spent time with my primary kids and taught an awesome Sharing Time lesson.  This afternoon Rachel and George came over for birthday dinner, presents and cake, then we went for a long walk along the beautiful Jordan River trail.  I really loved my day and am so grateful for the gift of 45 years of life on this earth.  I feel very blessed, and one of my greatest blessings is my missionary son whom I love so much. 

Thursday, October 2nd is Dad's birthday, Rachel volunteered to make lasagna and have us over to her house for birthday dinner.  That will be fun.

One piece of news you may be interested in…this week we sold your hyundai!  A couple of weeks ago we found a post-it note stuck to the back window with a phone number written on it.  It said to call if we were interested in selling.  So Dad called, the guy came over the next day and tried to start it…nothing.  Then we tried to jump it…still nothing.  The guy left and we thought we'd never hear from him again.  The next day he called and offered $200, and Dad immediately accepted the offer.  The guy brought over ten $20 bills and the next day when I got home from school it was gone.  I kind of miss seeing it there on the side of the house, it hadn't moved since you left!  But it is nice to have some extra driveway space.  Bye bye Hyundai!

I am still loving my job at Lehi Elementary school.  I absolutely love the 22 kids in my class.  This week I had my first evaluation from my principal, it went great!  Of course there is plenty of room for improvement, but my principal said I did a good job.  His exact words, "I am so glad I hired you."  Wow after a dozen interviews and rejections over the last two years that was GREAT to hear!  It made me so happy!  One day this week Stefanie got out of school early, so she walked to Lehi Elementary and waited in my classroom until I could take her home.  She sat and laughed at all the funny things my kids did and said.  First graders are a hoot, they are easily distracted, cannot sit still, cannot focus for longer than 5 minutes, constantly interrupt with unrelated comments and stories.  They really are funny, I'm glad Stefanie was amused. It was fun to have her in my room and introduce her to my class.  

Not much else to tell you about this week, we are just doing great and loving the changing of the seasons.  Fall has officially arrived, my favorite season of the year. Sure love you and hope you have had a good, healthy, safe, successful week.  Can't wait to read your letter.  

Love, Mom

Happy Birthday to Me!

So grateful for the gift of 45 years in this life! I had a wonderful birthday today.  I went to Ward Council meeting this morning, enjoyed Sacrament Meeting sitting next to my sweetie, spent time with my primary children and taught an awesome Sharing Time lesson. This afternoon Rachel and George came over, Kent made me shrimp scampi for dinner, we all went for a long walk, then I came home and wrote a letter to my missionary son.  What a great day!  Loved every minute.  Here is my annual birthday interview...

What were your biggest accomplishments this year?  Getting hired as a first grade teacher at Lehi Elementary school! It happened on my anniversary, August 18th. And making it through a year as a missionary mom!

What was your happiest moment?  That phone call from my new principal saying, "Are you ready to come to work?" First I screamed, then I cried!

What was your proudest moment?  Sharing the news that my dream had finally come true, and I was a "real" teacher! This was my Facebook post (that I had actually written the day before with much hope in my heart...)  "So excited that I've been hired to teach first grade at Lehi Elementary!  I will really miss teaching at Saratoga Shores, and all my cute kids and wonderful friends there.  It is not easy to walk away from a job I have LOVED for eight years.  But I am ready for a new challenge.  Now I just have to figure out how to get my new classroom ready in LESS THAN A WEEK!!"

What was your most spiritual experience?  A strong confirmation while in the temple a couple of weeks before I was hired. 

What was your most difficult experience?  Getting my classroom ready to go with only a week's head start.  Also, teaching is not easy and I have had several overwhelmed moments.  

What was your biggest disappointment?  All the many interviews and rejections in the weeks and months and years leading up to my hiring.

What will you remember most about this year?  Having a missionary son, and getting hired as an elementary school teacher. 

Here's to turning 45!  I could not be more blessed.  My cup is over flowing!