July thru Dec. 2021--Berkeley to Christmas

July thru Dec. 2021

We helped Paige move her stuff into her new little apartment in Oakland.  She is officially all grown up!!  We loved walking around the campus and seeing the historic architecture and grounds. Her studio apartment is small, but cozy.  

Michael, Jackson and Hugh went on the fishing trip of a lifetime to the Sawtooth Mountains.  They went in on horseback and had guides that helped them cook, fish and camp.  I was so happy to see Michael fulfill this dream with his dad and son!
 

McKell spent the month of August at a beach house with her friend Kate.  They loved it!

Mike and I celebrated our 30 year (actually 31 because of Covid) high school reunion in Utah. We had a good time catching up with some of our old friends and classmates. 

Jackson went to work in Idaho at the end of the summer.  He found this stray dog (whom he named Nala) in AZ the day before he left.  She was running around in a thunderstorm.  He picked her up and took her in his truck all the way to Idaho.  We tried to tell him not to do this, but Jackson pretty much does what Jackson wants to do.  He hid her out in his room for 2 months and then flew her back to AZ with him the day before he was leaving for Hawaii.  Miraculously his friends took her back to the neighborhood where Jackson had originally found her and the first house they came to was the owners.  The little kids yelled "Lizzie" and hugged the dog.  His friends didn't have the heart to tell them their dog had been in Idaho for a couple months.  

McKell found love at the beach when Jo came to visit.  Both our girls have found two awesome individuals that love and adore them!

We celebrated our 28th wedding anniversary in September.  We love each other more today than ever.  I'm lucky I found such a good man!

 

Sydney turned 17.  We love having her around!  We spent our fall break in NYC, Philadelphia, Gettsyburg, Palmyra, and Niagara Falls.  It was easy to navigate with just one child.  We finally saw Hamilton on the third try and enjoyed seeing new NY sites like Chelsea and Highline Park.  We also loved the historic sites in Pennsylvania.  Sydney became very good friends with all of the older retired people on all of our historic stops.  She was a good sport for the most part.  

Jackson took off on another adventure to Hawaii in September and stayed for two months.  He turned 20 in October and celebrated all by himself.  He enjoyed surfing, buying a cool truck and motorcycle, and living the island life.  But on Halloween night he found himself without a place to live and realized he needed to come back to AZ after a few homeless nights in a hammock on the beach.  He is an experiential learner, and realized he needs a support system more than a cool truck or beach lifestyle.  We have enjoyed him at home for the holidays and we are excited for his next step of living in Utah near McKell and starting college.  

Sydney went to her first school homecoming dance with David Olsen.  We love her tennis feet!  She had a good time, but likes boys as friends at the moment.  Her first love is tennis. 

Mike helped my mom buy a new car.  I'm so happy she loves it!

We flew up to Utah for the weekend and went to a BYU game.  It was such a close score with lots of touchdowns so it was exciting to watch. We spent some time with McKell & Jo, Licia, the Redds and Parks.  We enjoyed the quick trip! 

THANKSGIVING was so different this year because we had two boyfriends staying with us.  Everyone seemed to get along great with each other.  It is fun to see your children in a new stage of life.  Chad and Christy and Aerin and Annie also came for Thanksgiving.  We had a good time talking and watching What About Bob.  

Matt's mom passed away in December and so they came and stayed with us for the week of her funeral.  We loved his Irish drinking song homage  he gave to his mom at her funeral and enjoyed having lots of time to talk with both he and Licia here in our home.  

CHRISTMAS was quiet this year.  We were missing Paige and Jonny.  This was her first year away from us (besides her mission).  We went out to Olive Garden with Grandma and Grandpa and saw West Side Story for a second time.  I love that movie so much!  2021 has been a very difficult year with my Ogden family this year.  I'm hoping there will be more peace and less pain in 2022.