As I was looking back over this year to write this post, I felt like the events of this year happened ages ago given all that has happened over the past month, but I am saving that for the next post.
I started this year by cracking a tooth and getting a crown in January, and then repeating that activity again in February. I did some physical therapy for my ankle, but the insurance didn't cooperate well, and I was too embarrassed to go back after that. Laurel cut her own hair, which was really frustrating as her hair grows pretty slowly. She also had her first dentist visit and did great. For Valentine's Day, I made everybody their own giant heart cookie.
Soon after that we found out that Mark's dad had pancreatic cancer. He passed away in March. Mark and I sang in a quartet at the funeral. Mark's sister rented a fancy carriage from her neighbor. It was a beautiful day together as a family. We are still quite devastated by this loss.
In May, Mark completed his Bachelor's Degree! I am so proud of him and all that he accomplished. He got a promotion at work and a large raise. The boys finished up the school year and got awards in their classes
Summer was pretty awesome. We went on 5 camping trips. We got some new gear this year and we had to put a rack on top of my car so we could pack all the stuff we needed. Our first trip was to Browne Lake where we met up with Mark's brothers. Our car had some trouble and we had to turn around from Bear Lake and get it fixed. It died in the canyon, but thankfully Mark's brother Tyler helped us be able to get it to the mechanic. They fixed it quickly and we were only one day delayed. We spent free fishing day there and the kids went fishing for the first time. Mark cooked our fish up for us as I got a migraine. We enjoyed the drive and trying out our new gear. Our second trip was just up Logan Canyon along right hand fork. We ended up in a sunny spot and cleared out early, but explored the beaver dam nearby and Rick's Spring. Our third trip was to the reunion of a boy scout camp Mark worked at as a teenager. His brother Tyler also went. It was a blast, and I hope we get to make a yearly tradition of it. It was neat to see the kids become instant friends with the other kids their. Our fourth trip was to Christmas Meadows in the Uintas with my family. We had so much fun with cousins and Saggy Hags. Our last trip was the huckleberry trip. The berries were nowhere to be found, and it rained excessively. We had to spend hours in the tent reading books. We also got a blow up pool for the backyard, and enjoyed a few swimming days at home.
All summer long, I had gall bladder attacks. The first week of school I ended up getting Covid-19 from the ward campout. I didn't know it was covid, and it made me extremely nauseous, and the gall bladder pain was pretty extreme as well. I ended up in the emergency room, and they referred me to surgery to get my gall bladder removed. The surgery got delayed a month because I tested positive. Everything went well, but I had a hard time recovering. I still struggle with an occasional bout of nausea, but it is improving.
Mark got some tickets to a USU football game from his company. We got to attend in the company suite. It came with an assigned parking spot and dinner. It was a pretty sweet set up. Well, that sums up this year up to October.
