I share a lot of things on my blog about what’s going on outside of family, and every once in a while, if you’ve been reading long enough, you can get a small glimpse into what happens on the inside. Today I thought I’d share a few of those kinds of things.

Our most current excitement is the arrival of grandbaby number one. One of our daughters had her baby last week. Baby and mom are healthy. Mom and dad are exhausted and a little bit shell shocked. Everyone is settling in well though, and it’s been so fun to have this new addition to our family.

When the baby was born, I had this overwhelmed feeling of anxiety. I reverted back to when I had babies, all the care, all the stress, all the time and energy. Then, it suddenly dawned on me. I am not the one in charge of this baby. I now play a supporting roll, mostly supporting my daughter as she needs help, needs a break, whatever. Boy what a relief.

I now get to snuggle baby whenever needed, change the occasional diaper, be here if help is needed in the middle of the night, and feed all the adults so I know they’re getting the nutrition they need while they adjust. It has just been pure joy to have this opportunity.

Our other daughter is also pregnant and due in January. I am so excited to head down to see and help there when grandbaby number 2 arrives. Unfortunately, this daughter got her dad’s genes, and she has been sick most of the way through so far (my other daughter and I didn’t get sick at all). I now wish they weren’t so far away so I could have helped take care of that part of things. I am also excited to get out of Alaska for a month during the coldest part of the year!

Our 2 sons are still serving their missions for our Church. They have grown so much over the course of their missions so far. It’s so fun to talk to them each week and to see them on our video calls. I love seeing how much they’ve learned. Some lessons are hard, some companions are hard, some area’s are hard. But through it all, they have pushed through with a happy attitude, and they are really enjoying serving the Lord in this capacity.

Our older son is in Canada and will be home in April 2027. Our younger son is in Brazil and will be home in September 2027. Neither of them are ready to come home. They love the people who they have the opportunity to teach, and serve. It’s such a unique opportunity to get out into the world, get out of their own minds, and care about and see other people from an eternal perspective, as brothers and sisters, literally. I’m grateful they chose to serve.

Because our boys are gone I have been working for my husband, thus the project updates. When we first got married I worked with him every day. I enjoy the building process, and enjoyed spending so much time with him those first 5 years. But now, I am not so excited to go to work, I have a lot of other things I need to get done besides his jobs. However, once I’m there, I have found that I really do still love the building process. Dirt work is still my least favorite part, but working with the wood, seeing the project come to fruition, and being a part of every step of the way is still fun. It’s rewarding to build something you know will last for many, many years to come.

This summer we have also had and will have a lot of visitors come through. We had my son-in-laws mom here for a couple of weeks just before and after the baby was born. She was an immense help not only with the baby, but she kept my house clean and fed us while I was working during the days. We enjoyed her company and were sad to see her go.

My parents, sister-in-law, nephew and niece will be here this week for a long weekend trip. We are excited to have them come, and super excited to show them some of our favorite parts of Alaska. We have had such rainy weather for the month of July, but it’s supposed to be nice this weekend. My brother is smiling down on us I think.

After that, we’ll have about 3 weeks and then our daughter and son-in-law will arrive for a week in August. They will be here to get firewood for some people they housesat for last winter, as well as just enjoy Alaska. The Alaska State Fair will be happening, and that’s one of my daughter’s favorite parts of fall. But mostly, we’ll just get to enjoy being with them for the time they’re here.

So, that’s us. I feel like we live pretty regular lives, but it’s our regular lives, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world!

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