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| Attending Hamilton with Dad, Michael, Mom, Bentley and Seth |
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| (to be updated when he comes home!) |
Andrew continues his studies at BYU in biochemistry. He worked overthe summer for Michigan Sugar. We are excited to spend Christmas break with him - his brothers have missed him! Andrew makes us all laugh daily with his meme posts in the family chat - and then he educates most of us as he explains the chemistry ones. He has a real gift for teaching others, and his sense of humor is the best!
When Chandler visited in the spring,
we got to celebrate his and Clayton's
birthdays together
(to be updated when he comes home!)
Chandler is also at BYU, and has settled on a Mechanical Engineering
degree. After finals, Chandler will take a quick visit to Anaheim and then he’ll also be coming home for Christmas; we’re so excited to have the whole family together again for a week or two. He has been working as a Physics TA this semester and really enjoys it. He’s been asked by 4 different professors to TA a class (math and physics). He is a great teacher and we love seeing him use this gift of knowledge to help others too.
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| Pizza, cake and a movie? A perfect combination for a birthday party! |
Jordan worked at McDonald’s in Idaho at the beginning of this year, but came home from BYU-Idaho during the Covid shutdown in the Spring and took up his old job at Greater Michigan Oral Surgeons. He helps clean instruments and also works the front desk some days. It keeps him busy! He is considering a career in dental hygiene or something in the dental field. In the meantime, he’s enjoying earning money and continuing on his road of independence. His brothers have sure enjoyed having him around (he lives in the basement) - every time he walks in the door they’re asking him to play with them or teach them something. He’s such a kind loving brother.
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| Golfing with Mike, Bentley & Mom |
Seth (16, junior) is taking a couple AP classes, and continues to play the cello in orchestra (as much as that can be a reality these days!). He is really shining on the piano - he’s close to conquering Moonlight Sonata - all 3 movements! He’s got a Youtube channel in the works that will be published any day now. He also has a few music students (cello and piano). He continues to have 100% attendance at seminary. He also did the tennis team again in the fall. Seth is very self-driven and diligent, and at the same time optimistic and funny. He inspires everyone around him!
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| Homemade pizza using our garden tomatoes to make the sauce! |
Michael (14, freshman) has had an interesting, to say the least,
introduction to high school, with all the virtual, half and half in-person and virtual, and then back to all virtual learning. He’s taking a drawing class and discovering some hidden talents there, is doing well in his honors coursework, and is also in early morning seminary for the first time this year. He joined the tennis team with Seth and had a great time. He also is in orchestra, but boy it will be nice when things get more normal - that’s pretty tough to do over zoom. Michael also loves to cook and improves his culinary skills daily! Michael is still our funny man. He’s quick on his feet with his jokes, but also with his problem-solving skills! I can depend on him to fix things around here with his 3D print design skills.
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| The huge catfish Bentley caught before releasing it back. |
Bentley (10, 5th grade) is very responsible and self driven. He attends
all of his virtual classes (there was a blessed 3 week period where he got to attend every day!) and does all of his homework without any problem. He puts forth his best efforts and has a great attitude considering all the circumstances. He is progressing quite well on the piano this year, and is beginning to branch out into more “fun” music. He is also following his brother Seth’s example and tries to eat healthier, plus he is working on running a faster mile. Bentley still amazes me with his insights and questions - he doesn’t takes blanket statements or explanations for granted; he wants to know, “but why, but how?” until it really makes sense to him.
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| String art! One of many covid projects |
Clayton (6, 1st grade) is such a fast learner! The first few days of at-home learning Mom thought she would have to sit by his side all day. He wanted to do as much as he could on his own, and now he’s an expert! He’ll call her in for help spelling a few words here and there, but he’s mostly independent. He is my best worker, and fights to set his alarm as early as possible each morning so he can get all his jobs done before school. He has consistently done all his jobs every day since school has started! He has also started playing the piano this year and has a great sense of rhythm. His tender heart is such a blessing to our family. Recently, he served his brother Seth by doing all his Friday jobs and kept telling mom over and over how good he felt inside. What a great example he sets.
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Joseph baking and frosting a cake |
Joseph (3 ½) has amazing observational and experimental skills. You have to be real careful what you do in front of him, or in the next moment, he’ll be doing the very same thing, confident that he is just as capable (he loves to work the apple corer/spiralizer, peel carrots, cook and butter toast and bagels, and so on). He’s also decided he can go on runs just like Seth, and I can barely keep up with him as he runs down to the end of the street and back. The sweet phrases he says each day touch our heart: “I need you Mommy!” “I love my Mommy.” and “Okay!” even in response to something he might not want to do. He brings us such joy!
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| Greg presenting about creating patents at an Optum conference in India. He arrived home from this trip on March 13th, the day that everything started shutting down. |
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| Golfing with friends for our anniversary - one of our few dates this year that wasn't takeout and a movie at home! |
Greg and Sherie are still the early morning seminary teachers. We currently teach over Zoom, as we have been since the Spring. That was a big adjustment, and not our favorite, but there are some things we’ve learned to love about it. We’re most grateful for the great spiritual start it gives for us each day, and the consistency it’s provided in our upending lives. Greg continues to work for Optum (the technical division of United Health Group), building up their patent culture and adding to his own patent portfolio.
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| Fun at the beach at Lake Michigan |
Our family outings this summer were both camping ones. We enjoyed camping on Lake Michigan in July, and on Higgins Lake in August. Both were with good friends and left us with such great memories. Early in the year the older ones enjoyed going to see Hamilton in Grand Rapids, and the Blue Man Group in Midland. It’s been an interesting year. Not easy, but, as we’ve counted our blessings, we have found ourselves happy and optimistic.
We are most grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ, and for the blessing that God sent His only begotten Son. We are grateful to focus on this gift during this season of Christmas. We pray you will feel the love of our Savior and Heavenly Father during this time. We love you all!
Love,
Greg, Sherie, Andrew, Chandler, Jordan, Seth, Michael, Bentley, Clayton and Joseph
