2025, February 10-16

Getting the shingles vaccine booster felt kind of surreal. Lots of surreal events going on lately. 

Eliza baked Valentine's Day sugar cookies at BUH on Monday. 

While there, Hallie caught sight of another camouflaged deer. 

At another BUH class, Eliza used paint and resin to make this lidded box. 

With Valentine's Day on the horizon, Hallie and company made new drinks. Of course, one should never scrimp on the sprinkles. 

Hallie received gifts from coworkers and students. 

Kai came back after a bit of a weather-related delay on Thursday. 

Fergus chose a stool for a perch because apparently one of his seats was taken. Who can tell?

Hallie took Kai out for a V-Day treat. 

Mike received an email from Springville City regarding one of his flag design contest submissions. Fingers crossed he makes it to the top 5! We are so excited to hear what happens next.

Speaking of flags, Canada celebrated the 60th anniversary of adopting its iconic flag. We flew ours in solidarity with our northern neighbor (or is that neighbour?). 

While V-Day has passed, the fun drinks have not. There will be a new cherry flavor coming out at Starbucks, so Hallie attempted to make a cherry chocolate chip frappuccino. It was better than her coworker thought it would be. Not often does Hallie play scientist. When the drink turns out yummy, Hallie is happy with herself.

Mike got his shingles vaccine booster on Saturday. He's happy for the vaccine but could do without the side effects. He was wiped out most of Sunday. Good thing we have a day off tomorrow. 

And finally, news of the stupid. Seriously, those of you who voted for this, why? Cheap eggs? Scary immigrants? To own the libs? Seriously? How's that working out for you? Unforgivable.

2025, February 3-9

From Groundhog Day to the Super Bowl and a birthday, we had plenty to keep us entertained this week. 

Monday marked Mike's first full day at the new job. It's a split schedule, which means he starts early and gets home late with a large chunk of time in between. He opted to stay at PACE this week during the time between classes so he could try to get his feet under him. 

Hallie got chosen by both pets as she took a break to rest after working at the preschool. 

As Mike and Hallie took Kai on a morning walk, we saw Fergus hanging out at someone's house around the corner. Mike is solidifying his argument that Fergus really does have a second family. Too funny!

Sunset near home was pretty spectacular.

Ferg experienced a post-breakfast blep Tuesday morning as he visited with Mike. 

Later in the day, he warmed up to Hallie. The kitty is not a fan of how cold we keep the house.

Mike's new job keeps him on his feet several hours a day. He did manage to make some time to get creative. 

Eliza accompanied Hallie to the high school while Hallie worked the ticket booth. The girl really had a lot of fun watching the different teams play. At SHS the students sections have themes for the games and everyone really gets into the spirit of the game. It didn't hurt that the Red Devils won.

Mike caught Landon and Kai watching a Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes video after he got home from work. 

We try to get Eliza to do her schoolwork on the days she's not at Yates Place. Sometimes we can, and sometimes she manages to fall asleep. Hallie was successful in getting Eliza to finish schoolwork after she woke up.

Mike feels very fortunate to have Scera Park and a quiet residential neighborhood right next to work. He took advantage so that he could get his daily step count up in preparation for Japan. We hear that people walk upwards of 15-20,000 steps a day while they're there. 

Landon started his new job at Jimmy John's this week. He likes the many food-related perks that come with his employment. 

We had some interesting weather this week, with wind and unseasonably warm temperatures into Friday. Eliza ended up riding indoors on Friday due to a return to rain and snow. 

Mike and Eliza shared a sample of one of the new fruit-and-cream-flavored drinks Hallie is making at Starbucks. Go and try a Midnight Drink with Vanilla Sweet Cream. It is yummy!

Several months ago, Mike got a LEGO yellow delivery truck set at Costco as a goal gift for when he got a new job. He feels grateful that he got to put it together this week.  

Eliza and the happy students at Yates Place have been involved with several projects this year. In history class, she presented a report on Rosa Parks, whom she remembered from our time in Detroit. 

We celebrated Eliza's birthday this week. Hard to believe where the years have gone! Landon toiled into the wee hours making her this paper flower-filled pot. 

Earlier in the day, she and Hallie went thrifting, and Eliza got some new clothes. In the evening, we went over to Gma & Gpa M's to watch the Super Bowl and share some cake. Eliza wore one of the outfits she got. She did not want to have us sing to her, but don't take her face here to mean she felt unhappy. 

Hallie has cut her hours at Starbucks to be home with the kids in the afternoons. She is looking forward to spending more time with them again. 

2025, January 27-February 2

We are adjusting to some aspects of the new normal with more to follow. 

On Monday, Mike subbed at a school and then shadowed a fellow teacher in the evening class he thought he would be assigned to at PACE (more on that later). He felt a bit overwhelmed by the time he got home. 

Many teachers post inspirational posters and theme their rooms, which Mike appreciates and uses as his own inspiration both personally and for his own potential classrooms.   

Landon woke up with a severely swollen upper lip Tuesday morning. We kept him home from school and grilled him about his "extracurricular" activities the day before. 

Hallie and Mike were both quite tired by end of day Tuesday. Landon got this shot of his mama who was trying to keep warm while watching JoJo Rabbit as part of Landon's history class at school. Perfect satire for the times we're living in. We remember when people knew how to identify and repudiate fascism when they saw it. 

Hallie and her coworkers have had to deal with a chronic water leak and other issues at Starbucks which were finally resolved this week.  

Speaking of resolved issues, after a few days of taking antibiotics and rest, a trimmer Fergus has finally gotten his appetite and energy back. He's gone back to hunting and/or visiting his other family too (we don't really know if there's another family he visits. Mike just feels suspicious, and maybe a little jealous?).

Hallie got Mike the LEGO Tranquil Garden as a "just because" gift that she gave hime right before our anniversary. He decided to build it this week in celebration both of the new job and our upcoming trip to Tokyo and Kyoto. 

Hallie and her Starbucks coworkers found this customer's haircut to be quite amusing. Upon viewing the the photo, Mike wondered whether it might have a practical purpose, like maybe the dude wears a hat or helmet at work. Who really knows? No one asked the guy. 

Hallie has had to endure some pretty cold mornings this week bringing in her students from the cold. She and Mrs. Kelly have a student teacher helping out this semester. 

Mike taught his night classes this week and will start his morning classes next week. His supervisor Sofia asked him if he was willing/able to make a change, so he will switch the intermediate vocabulary-intensive night class he was teaching for an advanced grammar-intensive class starting next week. It's been an interesting week, to say the least. Mike appreciates the setting and nature of the work he's doing. His colleagues and students seem like great people so far. We're working with many immigrants from a variety of backgrounds. They are required to have student or other immigrant visas, but even so, many feel apprehensive about new of ICE activities in the state. Sofia shared a resource, Red Cards issued by the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, that works not only for them but serves as a reminder that "all people in the United States, regardless of immigration status, have certain rights and protections under the U.S. Constitution" (despite the current administration and its supporters' actions to the contrary). 

Kai came back on Monday, and we'll have him through most of next week. He's such a cuddle bug! 

On Saturday morning, Hallie, Eliza, and Amanda did a girls' morning out at Rockwell Ice Cream, where they had ice cream for breakfast on National Ice Cream for Breakfast Day. They brought home some breakfast-themed pints of the yummy stuff for the boys to sample as well.  

In-shop, they shared a donut sundae made with French Toast-flavored ice cream. 

We love our Canadian and Mexican family and friends, and we don't think that good neighbors start trade wars with each other. To quote the late Ronald Reagan: "Our peaceful trading partners are not our enemies; they are our allies. We should beware of the demagogues who are ready to declare a trade war against our friends—weakening our economy, our national security, and the entire free world—all while cynically waving the American flag." 

We have only 110 days left until we drive to Vegas for the first lego of our Japan trip. Coincidentally, we'll be going by way of Vancouver (hopefully -- assuming this trumped-up trade war doesn't turn into something more serious before then). 

Zeke came over on Sunday afternoon, and it turned into a cook-fest. The boys made nachos, and the nachos were delicious. 

With Mike's new schedule, Hallie's schedule at Starbucks has been reduced a bit so she can be home with the kids. We are all going to be adjusting to the new new. Hallie will hopefully be able to pick up a few extra hours in the floral depart as Valentine's Day quickly approaches. Landon starts orientation at Jimmy John's this next week, and we hope he will enjoy himself.

2025, January 20-26

We had a health scare for the kitty,  Mike and Hallie celebrated our anniversary, and Mike has found a full-time job. 

Eliza often likes to go back and forth from Smith's to visit with Mom at work. Often she is joined by someone, but just as often she goes on her own. She went with Hallie to work on Monday and returned home on her own.  

Tabitha's Way transitioned to its new location this week, and Mike had the chance to help get things stocked on Monday along with many other volunteers. 

He also hit a milestone on Duolingo. What's funny is that he got back onto Duolingo after several years not using it so that Landon would use it for his Spanish class. As it is, now Mike has finished the Spanish course and is learning some conversational Japanese and quick mental math. 

Having passed his CDL permit test, Mike got contacted by Nebo School District Transportation to start his bus driver training next week. He continues substitute teaching and making art in the meantime. 

Mike got a call from PACE International Academy on Wednesday while waiting for Eliza at taekwondo to have an interview on Thursday. The interview went well, and he has chosen to start working there part time next week and full time starting in February. Just as substitute teaching has been a nostalgic callback to his days teaching in LAUSD, he anticipates working at PACE will feel a bit like his days teaching at the Simi Adult School. 

Mike and Hallie celebrated their anniversary in low-key fashion after Mike did an observation at PACE and brought home some carry-out. Think of it as saving some funds as a raincheck for a splurge when we're in Japan. That being said, Hallie surprised Mike with an Apple Watch. There was a bit of drama in that Hallie had the watch delivered from Sam's Club and ended up with the floor demo model (missing bands) in a blue bag set on the front porch. She and Eliza resolved the issue on Friday, and Mike got a new watch at a discount! 

Landon has completed paperwork for his Jimmy John's job and will be starting whenever the next schedule gets drawn up. His friend Zeke works there, and we've had the pleasure of his company several days this week. Landon has decided to improve his diet and exercise routine by eating more unprocessed foods, less junk foods, and with a calorie deficit as he and Zeke work out. 

Fergus started acting lethargic late in the week. 

By Saturday morning, we decided he needed to see the vet. We always get concerned when Fergus starts acting abnormal. Mike thought he might have eaten a poisoned rodent. Everyone gave Fergus their love before Mike and Eliza took him over to Payson Family Pet Hospital for an urgent care visit. After checking him out, Dr. Fillerup gave Ferg a prescription and recovery plan (thanks to the doctor and technician for being there!). Looks like kitty might have an intestinal bug. By Sunday afternoon, Fergus seemed like he was feeling a bit better. 

We had snow for most of the day Saturday, a welcome sight after seeing so little precipitation this winter so far. Next week is sure to bring all sorts of unexpected happenings, hopefully positive ones.