Ayres Insanity

    What a year! It's almost over so I figured a recap was in order.    Taevin is 15, he's had his learners permit since January and has become a pretty decent driver. He'll be turning 16 and getting his license in about 3 weeks, and is so excited! I'm excited to have someone to run my errands for me, but the doubling of my car insurance... not so much.  He's in the middle of his sophomore year, he doesn't love school work, but what teenager does? He does work hard though and has amazing friends, and a crush named Maddie who lives in Highland. He still loves to run and is playing the Cello in chamber orchestra.   Ryler turned 13 in November and it's weird to think that I have 2 teenagers! He is in 7th grade and playing the trumpet in band. He gets good grades and loves to be outside with his friends as much as possible. He definitely loves his mama and for the most part is helpful and sweet.   Zoey is in 4th grade and really enjoys school. She has some wonde

      My sweet grandma Whitney passed away this year. It was on November 10th, Ryler's 13th birthday. We knew it was coming, she'd been declining for a while, and it had gotten to the point that we were all praying that Heavenly Father would bring her home to her husband. It was just time.   It's been about 7 weeks now, I miss her, and it was weird not spending Christmas Eve at her house, but I'm so grateful to know that she's happy and reunited with my sweet grandpa. I'm grateful for the amount of time I got to spend with her throughout her life, and the spirit I felt as I sat at her bedside at the very end. Death is hard for those of us left behind, but the knowledge that is isn't permanent brings peace.  I was asked to speak at her funeral, so here is the talk I gave. It’s been nearly 27 years since I stood at a pulpit much like this one, sharing a tribute about grandpa. Now I only bring this up because it’s almost impossible to talk about one without men

  My last post was in March. It was the beginning of the "pandemic" as people are calling it, but over the last several months, it has become alarmingly clear that our country is changing, and not in a way that anyone ever expected or wanted. America used to stand for freedom, and we were proud of that, but this virus has been used by people and politicians as a means to get gain & power, defy the constitution and steal the freedoms of the American people. The COVID-19 virus, although real and somewhat dangerous, has become a modern-day secret combination.    Here in Utah, and several other states, we are being forced by tyrannical governors to mask our faces, despite the massive scientific evidence that they not only are ineffective in preventing the spread of this disease or any other, but are highly detrimental to both the physical and mental/emotional well being of people. The survival rate of COVID patients is 99.97% as of the last study, yet mental illness, child tr

  Just so I NEVER forget... This is what is going on in our world right now, and one day it will be a story I tell to my grandkids, like the way my grandma talks about the the way she remembers the great depression or WWII. We are making history, and I want to remember the good & the bad.  Gas price a mile from home was $2.35 School cancelled - We are all home/ online schooling Gyms - closed!  Social distancing measures on the rise. Tape on the floors at grocery stores and others to help distance shoppers (6ft) from each other. Limited number of people inside stores, therefore, lineups outside the store doors. Non-essential stores and businesses mandated closed. Parks, trails, entire cities locked up. Entire sports seasons cancelled. Concerts, tours, festivals, entertainment events - cancelled. Weddings, family celebrations, holiday gatherings - cancelled. Churches are closed- this is also being done at home. No gatherings of 50 or more, then 20 or more, now 5 or mo

  I just wrote about the crazy virus and how pretty much everyone is self-quarantined right now.    Well if that wasn't enough, we all woke up this morning to a 5.7 earthquake. Just after 7am, my bed started shaking, waking me up totally panicked and  disoriented. It didn't last long, but it was scary for sure. Dan called to make sure we were ok & once I got my bearings & realized what time it was, I called Russ but couldn't get through. I knew he was on the road coming home and was worried about traffic, but he showed up about 10 minutes later. Turns out he didn't even feel it!    We were supposed to start home-school today but my phone was going crazy so we got a late start. There were several aftershocks (although I only felt 2 of them), but we still managed to get the kids school work done.   The last while has been difficult. I have been feeling pretty miserable for probably 18-ish months, I'd been to the doctor and couldn't seem to get an answer

Surreal: marked by the intense irrational reality of a dream. Also unbelievable, fantastic or dream-like.    This is the only word I can think of to describe the situation we are in right now. And when I say "we" I don't mean just my family, I mean the entire world.    The media calls it a pandemic, and I guess that's accurate. It's a strain of the coronavirus called COVID 19, a new strain that spreads rapidly, and because of its newness, we have no immunity built up against it, or at least that's how I understand it. It manifests itself in flu-like symptoms and is currently taking America by storm.    It started in China, then moved to Italy, and has now spread here, causing people everywhere to panic. The stores are sold out of toilet paper, hand sanitizer, soap and disinfecting wipes, and shelves are completely cleared out of canned & frozen foods and bottled water.   All events, including General Conference, and even church have been cancelled for

     Rage waiting... that's a thing. I saw it on a meme the other day about parenting, and it totally resonated! I usually write about the great parts of our life, the positive highlights and such, but parenting is so freaking hard! Most days I really do feel like all I do is repeat myself and rage wait while they ignore my 27th request to put away their laundry or whatever. Someone tell me I'm not the only one.