2026, February 9-15

We continue to weather through the storms both physical and metaphorical. 

Here's the family's newest 15 year old. Happy Birthday, Eliza! 

Eliza's birth mom Zoraida sent her some gifts for her birthday, including a stuffed pony. Kai was not quite sure what to make of it. 

Eliza was in love. 

She even got a special drink for her special day. 

Here's another pony pic just to give a sense of its scale. 

Zoraida even made sure that E got cupcakes! Dad got to join in with everyone else on FaceTime. 

Here is a special drink for Hallie. 

She got some Funyuns minis. They look like Cheerios in a Pringles can. It would be a mistake to confuse them either way.  

Fergus has taken to beelining to Hallie's lap (provided it's covered in a blanket).

So here's something funny. Mike and his colleagues uploaded a paper for publication consideration in an academic journal. The editors wanted a picture of the authors, two of whom are not physically with us. So we toyed with using AI to add Mike into a pre-existing image that had the other four authors. Mike's not sure who got added in, but it wasn't him. Also, the AI made a few other subtle but obvious changes from the original photos that you can see if you know what you're looking for.  

Hallie's new school photo, on the other hand, is her through and through. 

We have two Fridays the 13th in a row this year with a third to come all the way in November. Most years only get one. Anyway, here's an interesting feature article on the topic. 

Springville got rain during the week, and Missoula finally got snow on the weekend. Here's the Valentine's Day view from Mike's place. 

Hallie and Eliza went to do a little shopping in Provo. Hallie caught sight of this dress made out of ties. 

Eliza caught sight of this Monty Burns as Dracula (from the 1992 film) sticker. 

Lovely ladies! 

They had to see what Scandi Candi (AKA the Sweedish Moose Candy Company?) had to offer.

Saturday night UM held the Brawl of the Wild basketball games with a pep rally between the women's and men's matchups. Unfortunately, the Bobcats swept the Griz this time around. But at least we had hot cocoa, fireworks, and a bonfire, so that's something. Note that the snow had melted by midday. Mike had mostly rain on Sunday.

People watched Olympics and cleaned on Sunday. Ferg impressed with some massive blep action. Gold Medal effort for sure! 

2026, February 2-8

Having a superb time. We didn't take many pictures this week, but that just means we didn't take the time to pull out the phones. 

When Eliza did take photos, however, they were memorable ones. She has always been curious about a white patch of rock on the side of the mountain to our east, so she decided to ride out and investigate. She saw some pretty views she shared with Dad as she thought he might appreciate them. 

Hi, Kai! Why the long face? 

The spider sharing Mike's apartment has gotten bolder recently. Here it was on Tuesday next to his closet door. 

Hi, Alicia! Hi, Brooklyn! Brooklyn was wearing jammies Hallie had bought her. 

On Wednesday, Mike's roommate had moved to the ceiling in the living room. 

He was treated to a beautiful sunset on his late afternoon walk. 

By Thursday morning, Mike's roommate decided to try on one of Mike's jackets hanging on the front door. Mike was not amused. He decided it was time for the spider to make its home outside of the house, so he escorted it out. Thing is, he saw it (or a relative?!?!?!) later on near the kitchen. Let's hope it's not an infestation. 

At some point in the next few months, Hallie and at least Eliza if not both kids will join Mike in Missoula. This means looking for a house, sprucing up the townhouse, and talking to realtors. We spoke to agents both in Utah and Montana this week, and Mike even got a tour of some local neighborhoods.  

Eliza made this pretty floral arrangement at BUH on Wednesday and then made some dumplings for Asian New Year on Friday. 

Hallie worked at Smith's floral department in addition to her preschool and Starbucks duties. They sell some nice handmade displays too. 

These are the kind of neighbors Mike can tolerate lately. Funny thing is that most Missoulians aren't fans of the deer because they eat everything. 

Going through his office on Saturday, Mike found some pics from his 2015 trip to Kyoto. Great thing is, we went to these places in 2025, so they're doubly memorable! Below are the Yasaka Shrine and the Shimogawara-cho areas of Kyoto's Gion district (near that cool Starbucks located in a traditional-style house) along with the bridge in Arashiyama. 

Here are the real-life buildings: The Yasaka Shrine, . . . 

. . . the Yasaka Pagoda, . . .

. . . a building in Gion, . . . 

. . . the Starbucks, . . .

. . . more Gion, . . .

. . . and the Togetsu-kyo Bridge (with a less-than-enthusiastic Eliza). Seriously though, seeing those postcards made Mike's day. 

This mug pretty much defines recent comfort food culture in Utah, doesn't it? It also is starting to see some wear. Hallie took a picture of it so she can find another one when the time comes.

Eliza got a new 'do. Happy early birthday present to Eliza!

We watched the Winter Olympics and the Super Bowl over the weekend. For the bowl game, Landon went to a game-viewing party with friends, Mike watched from his (spider-free) office, and Hallie and Eliza watched from home with the pets.