It's 5:20 a.m. on June 30 - the first day of Nicky's mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Yesterday Nicky spoke in sacrament meeting (and also in stake priesthood meeting). Then we had family and friends over for brunch. It was a darn good, exhausting day.
In sacrament meeting, Nicky got to speak with one of his best friends, Cameron. Cameron is currently serving his third service mission, so he talked a little bit about his mission and how much he loves to serve.
Nicky bought matching ties for him and Cam, and Cam was so excited to twin.
Nicky spoke on a message from Elder Uchtdorf about Five Messages We All Need to Hear. He talked about his 6th grade teacher, and how she helped him feel seen and loved. His teacher stopped by outlet house last night to bring him a gift.
He also talked about how we don't need to be perfect, we just need to be willing.
Right before Nicky spoke, Zoe gave a quick testimony. A couple of weeks ago, Zoe said to me, "So... what do I do if I want to give a speech at church?" Then she told me she really wanted to "give a speech" on the same day as Nicky. Zoe has never been willing to do anything like that before, so we figure we better try and make it happen. We talked to the bishopric and they said that would be great, so Zoe bore her testimony about eternal families (she picked the subject matter).
Our kids also sang "Consider the Lilies" for a musical number. There is nothing "Von Trapp" about this family, so this was an unusual task for us. Nicky loves that song, though, and he asked the bishop if he could sing it with his sisters. They did a wonderful job considering it's not our niche.
While we were enjoying the meeting (and crying our eyes out because it was so sweet), my friends manned the kitchen and got all the food ready for the brunch afterward (the one we're not supposed to have... but I can can talk about that with God when I report back someday). Over the past two months, I made and froze 150 breakfast burritos. I had no idea how many people would come (we had 120 people come when Nicky opened his mission call. We have a huge family, and Nicky has a lot of friends, and it's kind of the culture in our area for all of them to go to each other's mission call openings). 150 burritos ended up being just right. I have no idea how many people came to the house, though.
We also served banana bread (which I made and froze a while ago to use up bananas and then realized it would be perfect to use for Nicky's open house), corn dip and chips, Gogurt (for the little ones who haven't learned to appreciate a good, hearty, breakfast burrito), fruit, and funeral potatoes. We also had cupcakes, cookies, and rice krispie treats.
It sounds like a lot, and maybe it was, but I used quite a bit of stuff we already had (like a big bag of malt o meal crispy rice I needed to get rid of), and I've also been working on food for girls camp, so I was able to be resourceful and piggy back a lot of stuff. The key to success, for me, is to prep early. The freezer is my best friend.
The bad part about the event was that it was really, really hot. We set up tons of canopies, my brother-in-law brought misting fans (bless his heart), and I put hand fans on the tables. I think it was pretty comfortable for the guests, but for me, running around from place to place, it was so hot. I was drenched in sweat. I ended up doing a complete wardrobe change in the middle of the brunch because I needed to be dry and have a reset (and get rid of a layer because I was wearing a slip). By the time people started leaving, I was nauseous and had a horrible headache from the heat. It absolutely kicked my butt, and clean up was brutal.
Also, I didn’t get very many good pictures, so as a note to other moms going through this - when people ask what they can do to help, ask them to take pictures (if you’re a picture person - which I am).
BUT... it was all worth it because it was a really nice day.
At 2:00, the stake president came over and officially set Nicky apart as a missionary.
Later last night, we found out one of Nicky's friends has decided to submit mission papers. This is a friend that was not going to serve a mission. He pulled Nicky aside yesterday and told him. Nicky was the only person he had told at that point (I think a few friends know now, but his parents don't). The entire situation makes me weepy. For the past few weeks I've felt very concerned about this particular friend, and I've repeatedly urged Nicky to reach out to him (which he has done). I also felt a strong desire to make sure this friend was coming to Nicky's sacrament meeting talk and that he knew he was welcome and wanted there, as well as at the brunch afterward. I just felt like Nicky needed to be by this kid's side. Hopefully everything goes well with him pursuing a mission, and he finds himself on a path that feels right for him. I'm excited for him and hope for good things to come.
Yesterday was a beautiful day, and Nicky is as ready to serve a mission as he can be. His first MTC class starts in about two hours. He's still asleep. I leave for girls camp today with Daisy and Zoe. Then we are coming home tonight to attend my sister-in-law's memorial service tomorrow. Then back o camp for Wednesday. So things at our house are a bit wild right now. Scotty and Eva will tag team as Nicky's mission companion, and our home will be a temporary Mission Training Center, so I need to watch my mouth.
I'm dead tired. Tired in a way that is physically painful. It hurts to be awake. But I can't sleep, so onward I go! To camp!
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