The Boys of Fall

This is Bryce's first year of Tackle Football.   I have mixed emotions about this.

I discouraged Micahel from playing football because I was afraid he would get hurt, but he did play basketball during high school, was good at it and loved it!  Now that we have become this football family, I regret discouraging Michael from playing because I think he would have been a great football player.  Bryce is excited but still trying to figure out what poisition he likes and if this game is really for him.  I think he will do great and I'm so excited to watch him play!

Stephen on the otherhand is a football player through and through.  This past week they have been working on different plays and he has been having a blast! Coming home with a big smile on his face every day. He is a sophomore and they have been scrimaging with the freshman.  He has been "BEAST" as he would say, however, I think the coaches could see that and so yesterday they started having him play with the Varsity team and he came home looking like this.  I laughed so hard...you have to know Stephen.  He is very competitive and he can't quite take down the "big boys" like he could the kids he own age.  So, who knows where he'll end up. 

I just love my boys of fall!

I absolutely love this video! Hope you love it too...Cant wait for football season to begin!


(dont forget to go to the bottom of the page and pause my playlist before watching this video)

The fruits of his labor

28 Years ago August 1st Mike and his companion Elder Kramer baptized this family in Argentina.  They are the Chaparro family.

Last weekend these 2 missionries were able to reunite with this wonderful family here in Utah.  Unfortunately the father has since passed:(.  This is the bunch that live here in Utah now (shown with Elder Nelson and Elder Kramer)

 We had no idea that they lived here until about a month or so ago.  Now that we are here, we have been able to visit with them and last weekend they held a special bbq on behalf of "their missionaries".  We also watched a slide show of pictures from these 2 missionaries.  The family was so excited!  They are the nicest and most loving people you will ever meet!  The youngest daughter married a Nelson (not related as far as we know).  The original family actually consists of mom, dad and 4 girls and 2 boys (only part of the family is shown here) 2 girls still live in Argentina.  We had a blast getting together with them.  They are so humble and so grateful to these 2 missionaries for bringing them the gospel.  There is nothing better than sharing the gospel with someone.  This is just he icing on the cake!

This is how they have grown...some family members missing.

And this is the whole bunch of us!

To see the fruits of your labor is truly a tender mercy of the Lord.

A fun filled week of family

Crawdad fishing

Jeff, Stef, Max, Sam and Bryce

Lovely arent they?

First time Sophia actually held one...she couldnt bare to look

yes, we ate them!  in this stew...didnt taste like much...

Bryce and Max shooting bow and arrows

Hung out at Grandma and Grandpa's watching movies

Got to see Brad and Jamie get married at Stephie and Ryan's in Highland on Saturday

such a good looking wedding party!

All the boys

All the wives

Such a cute wedding, Such a cute family!

We even had some special visitors on Saturday, our Bishop's family from Sacto!

We love the Hogge's! They can come visit us anytime!

On Sunday we attended Beth and Adam's blessing of their first little baby Dexter.

My niece Tamra was there with her kids too (here she is holding Rex)

and here are Layla and Joey!

I always love getting together with my sisters!

On Monday we dropped the kids off at EFY

We had an eventful week that's for sure.

oops!

Okay, that was so stinkin' scary!  Almost home from Salt Lake and someome tried to merge into my lane and I tried to slightly merge onto the shoulder of the road until she saw me, after which she would realize I was already there and would just stay in her own lane. But NOOOO she kept coming into my lane...so I quickly jerked over and my car decided to spin and fall backwards off of the shoulder of the road where they are doing road work.  So, this was during 5:00 traffic and I was scared out of my mind...the kids say I said a bad word...but I dont remember doing that...I dont say bad words....not usually...or it's been a loooong time anyway:)

final word

Brandon Curtis was a great leader and friend to so many even to a new incoming Sophomore California boy!  Stephen lays on is bed in his red gym shorts, no shirt and various markings on his tanned body (that he came home from practice this morning with) such as BC, #30, Cutris, and "do ur best" written accross his knuckles all in the color Red.  We will have moved to Springville 2 weeks ago tomorrow....and already our lives have been changed forever...

The team ran a mile around the track this morning and as they waited for the last boy (a freshman) to finish, a boy got up and went out to meet him, pretty soon the whole team was with him as he finished...they then approached  their coach who had tear-filled eyes.

Coach Mitchell spoke to the boys of stories in the book of mormon and likened the Springville Football team to being built like the barges that the jaredites built, tight like a dish and unbreakable...he said that the storms will ALWAYS come but if they stay tight like a dish they will ALWAYS make it through the storms and stay strong....only in Utah will you find  high school coaches teaching from the book of mormon, bearing their testimonies, and young aaronic priesthood holders invoking the power of the priesthood to be with them as they knelt in prayer in the middle of the parking lot of their high school.

I know we are where we are supposed to be.

cont'

Stephen was very quiet all day yesterday and he continued to recieve updated text messages throught out the evening.  Finally he had recieved so many mixed messages that he decided to get on the computer to see if he could find out what was really happening.  It was about 9:30 and the only connection we can get right now is at my in-laws home.  Since Jeff and Stef just arrived the night before from Kentucky, they were already going to bed.  After a slight emotional outburst from our football player, I decided I needed to take him over to the house to get onto the computer.  Stephen looked up Branden on fb and found him.  But since he was not previously a friend of his he could not get all of the information he felt he needed...and he began to breakdown again.  We tried to find out what might have been reported on the news but there was no new information.  We then went home and at about 10:00 last night Stephen asked me to please take him to the HS as all of the kids were going to the hospital.  So, I took him there and there were many cars leaving to go.  They all sat outside the hospital waiting to hear any news.  At 12:00 last night they came home with no new information. ( I hope Branden knew they were there).  This morning Stephen got up at 6:20 to go to his 6:30 football practice as usual.  But at about 9:00 he came home showered and left for the school again.  He said they had not practiced but were waiting to hear how Branden was doing.  He said they were getting ready to do some tests on him.  My guess is that the team will resume practices as soon as they know how he is.  The whole team(that is all 3 teams) is still there at the school together waiting to hear....

An emotional day for Springville football players...

So, every morning around 11:00 I go to pick Stephen up from football practice at the high school.  As I wait in the parking lot, many of the players are drivng up from another field in their trucks piled with as many football players that can fit comfortably in their vehicles.  So, this morning as I came to pick up Stephen I noticed as we approached the school parking lot that there were people running to one area in the parking lot.  As I looked towards the area they were running towards I could see that there was a Jeep that had rolled and was on its side and their was shattered glass.  I knew immediately what had to have happened...the boys were hurrying into the parking lot and possibly swerved and had rolled the jeep.  As we (my mother in law and I) got closer we could see that as they pulled the jeep over there was one boy who was laying face first on the pavement...my heart sunk!  I began to get very emotional.  As we got closer we could see that many of the football players were just coming on the scene and were red faced and crying.  As we got out and passed by the jeep we could see another boy inside the jeep and blood covering his leg.  I then frantically searched for Stephen who I saw just walking up on the scene.  There must have been at least 100 football players gathered around.  One of the boys was sitting on the ground with a bloody knee, as the rest of the boys all gathered around in a huddle for a prayer,  I went over the the boy sitting by himself and asked him if he was in the car, he said he was the "driver".  He was so upset and I tried to comfort him but he could not stop crying.  The authorities then asked all the boys to please stand back as a helicoper may be coming soon.  I then told one of them about the driver and they came to get him to take him back to where they were tending to the other boys.  It was a very emotional time for all of us.  They finally got all of the boys into the ambulences and they drove off.   There was one boy in particular that they had used blankets to make a wall with to sheild him as they were trying to revive him and he was also taken away.  Soon all of the boys left to go back to their homes.  I was able to hug a couple of these tough football players as they cried in my arms.  I could not even imagine what they must have been feeling.  It was bad enough for me as a mom to wonder "what if that had been my son".  It was a very quiet ride as we drove Stephen back home.  After a couple of hours he announced to me that the boys were going back over to the high school....that's where he is now.  I got a text from him and he said they were writing letters to the boys and that all would be going home tomorrow except one who is in critical conditon.  Many prayers are being said for these boys and their families....please join us.