Hales Angels: We All Have Our Moments

Emma and Gracie in the clean living room

Friday morning, we all got up early and attacked the "To Do List". We needed to get our jobs done so that we could play on Saturday. We have divided the chore list into two, since Matt left, we needed to revise things, like dishes, lawn mowing, and cleaning the house. Gracie was Bryce's buddy and Emma was Tyler's buddy for the day. I helped both of the boys with their jobs. We first started with the Living Room. I needed to rearrange the furniture and clean out behind the sofa. I love to rearrange stuff, it makes it feel new again. We found some little doll shoes, hair clips, and a couple of books. The living room is my favorite room in the house. It gives me a sense of peace when the rest of the house is in chaos.
After finishing the living room, we started on the kitchen and dining room. At this point, Gracie went and laid down in the hallway and started to cry. "I wish Matt was here so he could play with me" she says. "I know, me too honey." I replied. "Can we just go and pick him up from the MTC so he can play with us?" She asked. "I wish we could, but he is helping Heavenly Father right now, and he needs to stay for two years." My heart was aching for him to be home, but I know he is where he needs to be. It was really endearing to see her want him home so much.
We worked hard and fast to finish the cleaning and then sat down for lunch. It was Gracie's turn to pray, and she always blesses Matt that he will learn his Spanish, and that he will hurry home. Tears welled up in my eyes and I started to cry, thinking that this is hard sometimes. I keep trying to stay busy, and when the tears come, I try to think of something else really quick. It wasn't working. "Oh shoot!" I think, "I can't stop those darn tears." After the prayer, Tyler looks up at me and says, "Are you alright mom?" "Yes. It's just a moment." "Oh," he replies, "I had one of those when I got my letter from Matt."
This made me laugh a little, and I quickly dried my eyes and started talking to the kids of the events for July 24th. Bryce and I left at 5:45 for the 5k and then Tom and his family met us at the finish line. It's been good to share running time with Bryce to keep us happy!
Here are some shots of the 24th of July parade in Salt Lake City. It's our favorite parade. The highlight every year is being able to see the Prophet or one of his counselors. What an awesome feeling to be there.