Our son served an honorable mission in the Canada Calgary Mission for two full years, to the day. He came home on July 31. I don't know who clung more tightly, me or him.
Today is May 1. That means that our Tay has just 3 months to go on his mission.
Just sayin'.
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| What was pinned |
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| What I did |
I just had a phone call from the sister of a woman in Canada who lives in the ward where our Elder Hill is serving. The Canadian sister is going to be in town visiting the woman who called me, and they offered to let me bring something over so she can take it back to Elder Hill if we want. This is the third time this has happened (different people each time). We've also had two different people write or email us to tell us about their love for our son.
I will never look at a missionary the same again. It is wonderful to know that people are watching out for our son and are willing to take care of him while he is far from home.
Thank you, Canada! I love you.
On Sunday, April 28, we went for a ride up the canyon after church. We came home pretty late. When it was time for bed, I took my phone to the charger, and I realized that I had missed a phone call. When I looked at the phone number, the caller ID said, "Indiana." I listened to the message, and it was from Bri's mission president. By that time it was 10:15 p.m. in Utah, which is after midnight in Indiana, so I could not return the call. Needless to say, I had a difficult time getting to sleep that night. And when the alarm went off on Monday morning, I jumped out of bed so I could call the mission.
The short version is that our daughter has been struggling with some mental and emotional challenges for some time. She's visited with professionals, and that weekend it had become clear that the best thing for her was to have her come home and get some help.
From the very moment of that conversation, my heart and Spencer's heart were calm and at peace.
On Thursday, May 2, our beautiful Sister Hill came home and was honorable released as a missionary for our church. Here are some pictures:
I sent Sister Hill our Benny card so she can go get contact lenses. She did not understand how it worked, so she contacted the mission mom. Sister C gave her permission to text me and find out all about it.
So this morning I got to have a text conversation with our daughter. It wasn't much and it wasn't about anything important, really. (Well, ya know, except her being able to SEE). But it seemed awfully nice to get to "talk" to her.
When I started working for this corporation 5 years ago, I was replacing a woman named Jessica. Jessica was having their first baby, so the division got special permission to hire her replacement two months before she left. That allowed her to train a replacement (me) and work on some projects before her baby came. I became sure that if we had really known each other, I would really love Jessica.
Enter the blogging world and Facebook, and Jessica is now someone I love very much.
Today I received a text. It was from a local area code, but I did not recognize the number. I decided to open the text, and there was a picture of Jessica and OUR SISTER HILL! Jessica's husband is working on a Master's degree, and they are living in Indiana for the summer. So Jess went and found our daughter, took her some treats, and sent me a picture.
What a wonderful treat! What a kind thing to do! What a cherished friend!
On Tuesday, July 31, our son was set apart as a full-time missionary for our church. Here is a picture of the group of boys we've seen a lot of at our house for the past two months:
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| Craig, Chris, Tay, Ryan, Logan giving "The Smoulder" |
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| Ryan, Chris, Jace, Taylor, Craig, Logan, and Landon (above) |
Last night our oldest son was set apart as a full-time missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. More on that in a bit. For now, I want to tell you about my eternal companion.
Taylor had invited about 6 of his friends to join us in our home for his setting apart. These young men are fabulous people who feel like our own boys in many respects. We were also joined by our bishop, two of my brothers, and a sister-in-law. When the stake presidency came to our home, they made it a very full house. President Hansen and Spencer stood in the entry way, quietly talking for a moment while everyone was exchanging handshakes and greetings.
After everyone had been greeted and seated, Spencer took the lead in conducting the "meeting." He was gracious and marvelous as he welcomed everyone to our home. He called on Becky to pray (thank you, Beck!), and he turned the time over to the stake president. President Hansen outlined how the evening would go, which included testimonies from me and Spencer.
As he was about to stand and invite Tay to sit in the chair to be set apart, Spencer gently said, "President, these young men have been singing together for a long time. I think it would invite the Spirit of the Lord to be here if they sang for us. Would that be alright?" President Hansen was in agreement, so the seven boys (Taylor, Logan, Chris, Ryan, Craig, Jace, and Jake) stood together and sang "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing."
I love those young men, but even more, I was so grateful for my wonderful sweetheart. He is a good man. He is an exceptional husband--so much more than I ever thought I would have! He is a terrific father--what would our family be without him? He is a worthy priesthood bearer, who has more than just priesthood authority. He is authorized and worthy to hold priesthood POWER, and I am so grateful for him!
After everyone had gone home, Spencer stayed up visiting for a few minutes with Taylor and Landon. I don't know what the conversation was, but I walked out to get a drink of water, and my heart took a picture of my three men smiling and talking together in the kitchen.
Yesterday was Taylor's "farewell" in our ward sacrament meeting. At 9:00 a.m. he attended the farewell of one of his high school friends, and we attended another one in our stake. Apparently, all of the "kids" (mostly choir members from WJHS who graduated in 2011 or 2012) from both previous sacrament meetings decided to come to our ward, too, as did many friends from Tay's YSA ward and other single activity groups. That really touched my heart. There were DOZENS of kids there. (And actually, I shouldn't call them kids. They are talented, beautiful, capable, WONDERFUL men and women!) My two Utah brothers and their families were there. My uncle and aunt from Heber came. Our dear friends from Magna came. All three of Spencer's parents were there, as was his sister and many of her family members. We are so grateful for the wonderful support group that our son has!
Taylor really struggled with putting this talk together. He studied like you wouldn't believe all week long, but still it just wasn't coming together for him. He stayed up late on Saturday night and said that he was on version 3.0. By the time we had sacrament meeting, he said it was version 3.2. Whatever version it was, he did a great job.
After Tay spoke, he, Logan, Chris, Craig, and Ryan sang "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing." They sang a cappella in 4-part harmony, and it was LOVELY. They've held practices at our house during this past week, which was also a wonderful blessing.
Our stake president asked that we stay for our entire block of meetings. Taylor didn't really want a "party," so we didn't do anything at our house afterward. Because I had a Primary lesson to teach, I didn't get to do a lot of visiting afterward, but it was a marvelous payday for sure.
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At 7:00 a.m. yesterday, the stake presidency held a combined high council / bishopric training meeting. They invited all of the missionaries who are leaving within the next month and their parents to attend the meeting. One of the 8 who was there was a young man who just returned from his mission. All of the other seven are young men leaving from our stake in the next month. There was one young man with special needs who will be gladly serving at the Jordan Institute, which is just a couple of miles from our home. The rest were boys who we have known since they were in elementary school: TJ, CJ, Chris, Taylor, Kjel, and Mark. They are going all over the world, including North America, Africa, South America, and Central America. The stake president invited each of those 8 young men to stand and share their testimonies. They each took just a couple of minutes, but they bore powerful witness of the Savior. It was a marvelous way to begin a Sabbath morning. My goodness! The power in that room!
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Our "sons" Craig and Chris were endowed in the Jordan River temple on Saturday evening. We asked if it would be alright if we came, and they both said they would LOVE that. It was so fun to walk into the endowment room and see Taylor and two of his dear friends sitting there. Each of the boys, Craig and Chris, waved at me once I was seated, and it made my heart melt a little bit.
Craig's mother was adorable as we greeted them in the Celestial Room. She expressed her love for Taylor and her gratitude for our support of Craig. Craig goes to Seattle, Washington, in early September.
I sat next to Chris's sister during the session. She pointed him out and told me that was her brother. I said, "Hey! That's my son!" Chris enteres the MTC on August 15th. He will be learning ASL to teach in Mesa, Arizona.
We have "sons" in Washington, D.C.; Mexico; New York, New York; and other areas throughout the world
I know that in 9 days--when Taylor leaves--life is going to change a lot. Those young men will be friends in a special way for their entire lives, but things will be different when they come home from their missions. They will go to school and get married and get jobs and have babies and move away. I am so grateful to have had the chance to be their Mama Hill during this season!
Sister Hill just finished her 2nd "transfer." Sister Williams was transferred. Bri was not. I'm anxious to hear from her tomorrow and know how things are going. She is loving her mission and the wonderful people in Indiana!
Landon completed 9th grade, which means we just left middle school for the final time. I think I've died and gone to heaven. He finished on a high, too. That boy earned straight A's for 4th quarter!
Ashtyn's commencement exercises were on Thursday afternoon. You should have seen her. Not only was she beautiful (duh!), but she was glowing with happiness. It was a great day.
And our Taylor received his mission call! He is going to the Canada Calgary mission, reporting to the Provo MTC on August 1.
What a wonderful, wonderful week!
Colton is Tay's friend and our adopted son. We love him very much. In November he received his mission call to NY NY North, and today he left for the MTC. He invited us to his setting apart last night, and it was a sweet experience.
It was sweet to watch his older brothers and sisters try to wrangle and control their little children. I was sweet to think that those children will learn to pray for "Uncle Colton in New York," the way our children prayed for "Uncle Gavin in Argentina."
It was sweet to watch Logan and Chris and Taylor rally around to celebrate with their friend/brother. It was sweet to know of the loving, serving, and singing friendship they have formed. It was sweet to think that the other three will soon be following Colton into the mission field, and they will continue to celebrate with and support one another.
It was sweet to receive a hug from Colton's mother and his sister, both of whom thanked me for loving Colton and for allowing them to Taylor.
It was sweet to watch Colton's mother fight the tears as--on their 43rd wedding anniversary--their son was set apart to serve a mission.
It was sweet to listen to the stake president give counsel and direction to Elder P.
It was sweet to feel the Spirit telling me that all will be well with this young man.
I am grateful that we were invited to participate with Colton. I am grateful for his love and his friendship. I am grateful for his service.
Briana got to call from the airport today. I know I mentioned this already, but it was a pretty big deal. Especially since I didn't know if that was really allowed, and then HELLO! There's a call coming from Colorado! Yayayayay!
We had such a wonderful conversation. But I digress. I wanted to tell you about Bri's MTC companion, Sister D. Sister D.'s mom is having a really hard time having her daughter gone. Sister D. is getting like THREE letters a day. Every day. She gets boxes of stuff every week. Sister D's home is about 2 miles from the MTC, so she is constantly seeing people from school or the neighborhood or the ward. And to top it all off, Sister D's sorta-boyfriend-but-not (whatever that means) teaches at the MTC. Monday night, as they were packing everything, Sister D said to Sister Hill, "Can you believe we are 1/18th through our mission already?"
Bri is telling me this story, and she says, "Mom, I just can't think that way. I mean, I've been out for almost a month already. Sometimes it's seemed really long, and sometimes it's seemed really short. But mostly it's just been about living happily while it's happening! I don't wanna think about a countdown to get to the END of my mission. I want to ENJOY every minute of my mission!"
Every once in a while there is evidence that you really did teach your children something, and I think that was one of those things. Because while there have been endless days sometimes, there have also been days that fly by. I've always tried to live carefully and deliberately in the moment, because all-too-soon that moment will be gone.
Today our daughter called us from the airport. Just yesterday she was in 6th grade, getting ready for a class dance she did NOT care about. The day before that she was wearing her dad's work boots and a dust mask that covered her entire face. I'm so glad I didn't miss any of it by wishing for the next stage to come!
Briana sounds WONDERFUL, and my mommy-heart sighed a huge sigh of relief.
After Spencer read the letter to me--and we laughed and smiled and sighed and celebrated--we passed it on to Ashtyn. I handed it to her, she looked at the first line and literally sighed one of those huge, contented sounds that lets you know that everything she wanted or needed at that moment had just been fulfilled.
I will never stop looking forward to these letters, but I feel so much more calm now than I did just a half hour ago. :)
While Ash had her Sweethearts Day, I spent a lot of time with Briana. We did some last-minute shopping and lots of visiting and laughing. I'm so glad to have had Saturday to mostly veg with our lovely daughter.
Sunday was another nice day. You already saw the Pinterest activities I worked on. Church was a lot of fun since they needed to combine our class from last year with this year's class. Can you say, "LOVE"? Briana got lots of hugs and well wishes, and I think she was mostly ready to be done with all the good-byes.
Monday was a good day at work, and at 8:30 that night there was a large gathering at our house. Uncle Brant and Aunt Laurie and family, Uncle Derek and Aunt Becky, Stacy, Bestest Friend Brittany and Mike, Lisa, and our family all gathered tightly into our family room. We were joined by the stake presidency, who came to set Briana apart as a missionary. We opened with prayer. President Hansen explained a little bit about what would happen at the MTC. He invited whoever would like to to share their testimonies with Briana. It was a sweet experience to listen to the testimonies of these people who love our daughter so much. The stake presidency, Breezy's daddy, and her brother then stood in a circle to set her apart as a missionary. She bore her testimony, and the "party" broke up.
But we gathered our little family together and discussed the things we had heard as she was blessed. She wrote a lot of our thoughts (and hers) and impressions down in her missionary journal. After a while we were simply sharing thoughts and feelings and experiences together. Finally we were all laughing together. It was the best FHE EVER, and no one wanted to leave the living room. Spencer and I finally broke up the party at 11:30, and everyone was in bed shortly afterward.
Since she needed a companion, Briana came to work with me yesterday (Tuesday). I'm sure it was all kinds of fun for her. She went to staff meeting with me. She joined me for a fix-the-world lunch with Annette and Kim. We left work early and ended up running a few errands. Ashie and I helped Briana pack. We all went to dinner together.
Since Monday, it's been pretty quiet at our house. No one is sure what to say or what to do. We know Bri is leaving, and it's kind of a bummer. I'm not sad about her choice to serve a mission. I could not be more happy about who she is, what she's choosing, and where she will be. But it hurts my heart a bit that my little girl is grown up enough to leave, and I will not be a part of every single thing she does.
Taylor's boss gave him the day off work, and the other two kids stayed home from school. We all went to the Jordan River Temple this morning and participated in baptisms for the dead. It was lovely, and it is a blessing to be in the temple. But it was pretty subdued. We came home and Briana got showered and dressed and ready for her first day in the MTC. We had some lunch, then we drove to the Provo Temple. We all got out of the car and gave hugs. Then the boys left, and Spencer, Ashtyn, and I took Bri to the MTC. The volunteers there--including the young elders--were wonderful and helpful and patient and caring. Ashtyn is a sad girl, and she did a little bit of clinging, and that was the undoing of me. Anyway, we kept our good-byes short and sweet. Then two elders took Bri's luggage and she followed them down the sidewalk. There are pictures on our camera. I'm going to begin a blog for Breezy's mission, so I'll post pictures there (probably this weekend).
Bri didn't cry, but she looked afraid. My eyes have been leaking off and on all day.
We stopped at Grandpa and Grandma A's house since we were there. Grandma was gone, so we visited for a short time with Grandpa. I don't think we were great company.
After we came home, both Spencer and I took a nap. I figured a good snooze would help me be more able to cope. When I awoke, I wished I was still asleep. You know that kinda depressed feeling? I hate that feeling. So Spencer and Landon went to a guys' movie while Sassy and I went to a chick flick. We talked about what she wants to do with Briana's stuff and the bedroom. She's in no hurry; we will take our cue from her.
Thank you for your kind thoughts and prayers and words. Thank you for the emails and notes and phone calls. I am looking forward to hearing from Breeze the first time and even more the second time. I'm anxious for things to go back to normal at home, and I pray that things will feel normal for our daughter very soon. Please keep us all in your prayers. We can use them.
When I was a girl, when a young man or woman was leaving on a mission, we held a "farewell" sacrament meeting. It was a lot like a Mormon funeral--happy, with bursts of tears.
We no longer hold "farewells" per se, because the focus of sacrament meeting ought to be on the Savior and his teachings. However, the person leaving on a mission is usually invited to speak in sacrament meeting shortly before leaving on his or her mission. In that respect, today was Briana's "farewell." She was asked to speak on missionary work. She did a BEAUTIFUL job. Remember how I'm a lucky mom? Yup, I remember, too.
So many friends and family to came to our ward to support Bri, and after sacrament meeting we went home and had a light luncheon. It was standing room only at our house, and it was wonderful. All of our children had some of their friends come. Spencer's parents, his brother, and his sister (and their families) came, as did my grandparents and two of my brothers and their families. Spencer's aunt came, as did two of my uncles and an aunt. We had so many friends there (Hi, Giffords!)--we feel so incredibly blessed.
And THEN we all (ya know, the close family and friends) went to the Jordan Institute, where Taylor was ordained an elder. Glorious!
This was a total parents' payday, and I loved every minute of it.
Except now I'm overstimulated from the noise and really tired. It's 7:25 p.m. Good night.
Taylor gets his wisdom teeth out today. Exciting, right? Well, he's excited about it, because it is the very last thing he needs to do to complete his mission paperwork. He meets tonight (THAT oughtta be interesting) with his stake president regarding receiving the Melchizedek Priesthood. Then President goes out of town for 3 weeks, so paperwork will still have to wait at least that long.
Anyway, the oral surgeon said Taylor should have a responsible adult with him for 24 hours after the surgery. Briana is going to take him and bring him home. I sacrificed (heeheehee) and took the day off work.
Responsible adult? Questionable.
But I'm here for you, Son!
Yesterday the bishop informed Briana that ward conference is on February 12, so she gets to give her missionary talk next Sunday. We had family planning on coming into town, so we were going to have a luncheon afterward. I feel like since we already invited people we need to follow through on that, even though we doubt that people will come from out of town now. We are determined to go with the flow on this, because of course the most important thing is that Briana will share her testimony with our ward, friends, and family before she enters the mission field for 18 months.
Yesterday we went to Amber's for mission pictures. Because it's winter and because I was hoping for a more studio'd look, Amber gave me a great deal in exchange for letting her play around. She is fabulous, and I can hardly wait to see the finished products!
In the meantime, here is a little preview of Sister Briana Nicole Hill:
Taylor has had a heck of a time getting through his mission papers. It took him WEEKS to have his first bishop's interview, because he could not get hold of the executive secretary to make an appointment. When he finally got an appointment, the bishop re-scheduled twice.
Finally he was able to get his paperwork and get started. It took him two days to fill out all of the information. He got into the doctor, but he couldn't get a dentist appointment for 2 1/2 weeks. He called them after a few days, and they moved him up a week. When he got there he learned that he had lost two fillings, and one of them resulted in a cracked tooth. He had one new cavity. And he needs his top wisdom teeth removed. More waiting for appointments.
He called the stake executive secretary to schedule a time with the stake president. He thought that appointment was for last Sunday, but it was for yesterday. He waited all week, missed "Christmas" dinner with his grandparents, got to the stake offices, and... no stake president. He called the executive secretary, who rescheduled with him for next week.
This is our text conversation which followed:
Me: What happened to meeting with the stake president?
Tay: He wasn't there.
Me: So did you call?
Tay: Yes. Reschedule with secretary. Satan doesn't want me on a mission. He also doesn't want me to get the Melchidezek Priesthood. I don't blame him. I'd be scared, too.
Me: Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Tay: Dun dun dunnnn!!!
When this man gets into the mission field, look out!
