Andrew's 11th birthday

Andrew is now 11! 

He requested Chuck-A-Rama for his birthday meal, so he could eat all he wanted.

He had a red velvet cake that we took to Nona and Papa's house on the same night the cousins got their Christmas jammies.

 

He was supposed to have a birthday party when he turned 10, but it was in the thick of the pandemic before vaccinations last year. So in early December of this year, I said he could pick four friends for a late-over birthday event.

Millie and James made it seem like a bigger crowd. We had pizza and cupcakes with Mandalorian toppers Andrew helped me print out, cut out and glue to toothpicks. We went to three stores and couldn't find any Star Wars cake toppers.

We found this Baby Yoda piñata at the store, but he wanted to keep it, and asked everyone to be careful while whacking at it for the candy.

Ben's 14th birthday

 Ben is now 14! 

Here's his requested red velvet cake that we had at Nona and Papa's house.

And a kissing picture in front of one of Nona's quilts.

Here's a little "Heavy, heavy hang over thy poor head" action going on with a present.

Posing with his new shoes

The afternoon of his birthday, I took him to Target with other Student Body Officers from school. They were shopping for Sub for Santa families. I think he had a great experience, serving others and thinking about the things the other family needed and wanted to have a good Christmas. It made him feel more grateful for his own comforts.

And here are some throwback pictures to baby Benny and Benny-hana 

My brilliant career

(If anyone has ever seen the movie "My Brilliant Career," let me know. I had mixed feelings about it when I watched it in film class in college.)

My blog posting has slowed down as I've learned how to do my new job at Church News. For kicks, here are some photos from KSL NewsRadio.

Hosting the morning show pre-pandemic

Talking to Amanda from the side booth on October 29, 2021

Reflecting on my last day

Here are my new staff photos from the Church News newsroom upstairs in the same building, but in a completely different world.

And one taken outside

My brain hurt for the first two weeks as I learned how to use a Mac instead of a PC, learned the Google suit of products instead of Outlook, re-trained myself on AP Style and added in Church News Style, and learned all the new software and publishing processes. This week I've been training in web posting and I feel like everything has finally clicked! I'm faster and more confident. 

From the first day I felt a big difference in myself. I sleep better, I am less stressed, I feel so grateful for the chance to meet Church leaders and others who are working so hard every day to spread the gospel and do good in the world.

My beats are Welfare, Humanitarian Services, Latter-day Saint Charities and JustServe. But I have also written stories involving apostles and devotionals and Church members. And it is all uplifting! 

I hope everyone will get the Church News app, read online, or subscribe to the paper.