Category: Uncategorized

Today Lily and the girls flew to Manila to start their journey home. While in the Manila airport, Lily told me that this trip was the best trip she had in her life. Here are some of the reasons why it was so special for her:

• She was over the moon about being with her family in the Philippines
• She loved the beauty and history of the Philippines
• She loved high tea in Hong Kong
• She’s in love with Asia overall and feels she could spend a year there
• She was so thrilled she and the girls connected to their Filipino roots
• She loved the orderliness of Hong Kong and Japan
• And the list goes on

Before leaving to Manila, they had one last day in Bohol in the Philippines. Lily has loved Bohol and told me about the 5 or more incredible pools (some with long lengths for swimming) at the Bohol resort. She had so much fun swimming there. They also had some great outings. First they went to a zoo.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

They held a giant snake!!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

After their fun at the zoo, they headed back to the resort:

This is one of the amazing pools Lily was raving about:

Cousins!

Then they all enjoyed some beach time. What a great day in Bohol!

• 

• 

• 

Back at the homefront, I had a monster day and I was so touched by how my family and Todd supported me today. First of all David and Olivia picked up Ammon and Clarissa and took them to see Wish in the morning. Clarissa and Ammon both have wanted to see the movie, and Clarissa especially has been begging, so it was such a nice thing for David and Olivia to do. Plus it was just so neat that they got to spend time together. It looks like they had such a fun time. Here is a really cute picture and video:

After they picked up Ammon and Clarissa, I went to Georgia’s and helped her pack and did two loads of her things in the Subaru. It was amazing to see how Georgia was up and doing to help with the move. It’s a big effort for her both mentally and physically and she was up for it. I was reflecting on how she’s actually in better condition now than she was a few years ago when she first entered the care facility, and I’m hopeful that she wont need memory care in her new facility, and she might thrive more without it. Also, over and over, I’m getting staff telling me that they miss will miss her, and they are so sad to see her go and they love her etc. One staff member told me she cried when she learned that Georgia was leaving. Also, a couple of the guys in the choir that sings there periodically read Georgia’s autobiographical book she made, and gushed to me about what an incredible person she is. It’s amazing that all Georgia is going through, she is still brightening the lives of those around her so much so that they are genuinely sad to see her go. I am sad for her to leave this community, but I know she will make friends in this way no matter where she goes. She told me that God told her at this facility her mission was to love the people, and she certainly did that well.

After some hours working on Georgia’s things, I met my dad back at the house. He picked up the kids from the theater and brought them home with him. Then my dad and I cranked on the house for almost 7 hours. My dad is 66, and I marveled at how healthy he is. He is very focussed on his diet, and sleep and he takes a lot of supplements and he said right now he feels he’s at one of the healthiest periods of his life and he feels great. It was amazing how much he knocked out with me over such a long period of the time. He helped me move furniture and boxes (some very heavy). He took down our Christmas tree decorations and the tree. He helped pack boxes, and helped me pack the container. I was energized by having his support, so I was moving very fast, and 1+1 truly equalled 3. We want from having the second container about 15% full, to having it 85% full. It was a massive achievement and it made me feel like the hardest parts of the move are behind us. It was a huge relief. Also, it was just so fun to chat and pal around with my dad in the process. I also played some Bob Marley while we worked. Bob Marley is an artist we’ve shared our love for for many years after I introduced him to my dad as a teenager, and then my dad went deep and got many many albums and played them a lot while I grew up.

Halfway through working with my dad, my friend Todd came over. He borrowed his dad’s pickup truck so that he could help us go pick up Georgia’s red reclining chair. It was also so fun to see him, he is such a good guy.

So much got done today, and so many fun things happened, and it was all thanks to my incredible friends and family. My dad, David and Olivia and Todd all really showed up big for me and I was very touched by it. It turned out to be an amazing day, and at the end I collapsed at a massage that I booked for myself to finish off the day. It was an incredible massage.

When I got home, I tucked in Ammon and Clarissa and they asked for Smash hugs. A smash hug is something I started a year or so ago and the kids love it. A smash hug is when a kid is in bed and I try to smash him/her as much as possible in the process of giving him/her a hug. Sometimes I even grab the mattress to pull myself in for an even greater smash. The kids love it. One time, after giving Clarissa a smash hug, she lifted up the covers and evaluated herself. She told me, “I’m seeing if I am flat.” She is so adorable!

What a great day!

Lily, Lydia and Mary are still enjoying Bohol. They have really enjoyed being with Clark, Swathi, Soren and Meera. Here are some cute scenes of cousin time:

• 

• 

Their two big outings today were going to the Tarsier Sanctuary and going to the Chocolate Hills. Keep in mind, these may have been on separate days for them (due to different time zone), but they were during my day here in Utah.

Lily told me all about Tarsiers. She said at first she wasn’t very interested in seeing them because someone mentioned they are a bit like rats, and they have a tail. Pictures of them really aren’t that cute. But after she saw them, she thought they were so cute. She said she just had to block out the fact that they had a tail. She really raved about how cute they are. Apparently their brains are tiny (in part because their eyes take up something like 2/3 of their head). And the funny thing is that even with eyes that big, they can’t see well! Yoda and other characters have been based off of Tarsiers. They just look so interesting. Here are some pics and videos:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

After the Tarsier sanctuary, they went to the Chocolate Hills. They are so beautiful. Many years ago they were all underwater coral reefs, and now they are the beautiful chocolate hills:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

After the Chocolate Hills, it appears they had an amazing boat, dinner, dance and cultural experience.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

All in all, they had a great day in Bohol!

Back at the home front, I continued to work towards packing the house. Ammon and Clarissa were very cute to have along at Lowe’s. We also got a board for the piano mover while we were there.

Here is a beautiful drawing that Mary made that I found while cleaning. The poem is very apt as Mary and Lily are getting so much time together and Lily has reported that they both have been perfect the entire trip. They really have both bloomed into such incredible people.

I finished clearing out the basement today!

This is one of the kid’s craft tables. I love it both because it makes me think of the hours they spent their crafting and also because I love it as a work of modern art.

Clarissa has done some fun crafting to pass the time. This is a house she made for Barbie. Clarissa was so intentional with each part of the house including the clothes rack, the couch (the bra pad) and more. Each item in there had a specific purpose (I’m just not quite sure what each one was).

And this is a house she made for Ken. She said Ken’s house is more plain.

Lily, Lydia and Mary went to Cebu with Clark, Swathi, Soren and Meera today. They took a tour of the city and had a really nice time. Lily said the tour guide was not super knowledgeable and she didn’t find Cebu to be as interesting as some of the other places she went to, except at the end, Lily was blown away by the church. It was a very old a beautiful church that had a lot of tradition going back to Magellan. If I understood Lily correctly, the church was associated with a Christian revival that happened in the Philippines when a relic (I think a cross) that Magellan gave to the Philippine Queen was found in a well. The Queen had rejected the gift and threw it out, but when it was later found in a well, it was interpreted as a sign of Christianity and that started the revival. Here are picture from their day in Cebu:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Here are pictures and videos of the church Lily was so fascinated by. The placard on the church gives details about the story of Magellan’s cross:

• 

• 

• 

• 

They also drove by the Philippine LDS temple in Cebu:

Back at the homefront, I had my first full-on day at work. I spent most of the day having one on ones meeting with my new reps in Provo. I really enjoyed meeting everyone. I also felt super fortunate, because the Jazz suite happened to be available tonight, and I arranged to take all of my Provo-based employees to the game as a team-building experience. It was such a great way to bond together, and the game was absolutely incredible. In the last 31 seconds, there were 4 back to back three pointers that sent the game into overtime. I was worried the game wouldn’t be good because the Pistons are the worst team in the league and only recently snapped a 28 game losing streak, but they came to play and it was the best game I ever saw live. The Jazz ended up winning and breaking a record for most points scored in a game at home, and they tied an all-time franchise record for points scored in a game and they also broke a franchise record for total points recorded in a game (across both teams). The energy in the building was great! (see the video below). What a game to be at, and what a way to bond as a team! Also, my dad and Suzanne watched the kids, which, once again, was so incredibly helpful.

Lily, Lydia, Mary, Clark, Swathi, Soren and Meera all recently arrived in Cebu. It has been a wonderful change of pace for them since their agenda has been so packed. In Cebu, they will get a lot more time to relax. Here are some scenes from the day, I think all from the resort:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Below is footage of tinikling. Mary and Lydia had done it before in their elementary school and it’s so amazing they got to do it in the Philippines with professional dancers and their cousins. This is hard faught footage, because Lily tripped and strained her ankle while getting a video of Lydia tinikling. I should also mention that Lily and Lydia have been wrestling with sickness throughout the whole trip (especially Lily who has a raspy voice and cough almost every time I talk to her). But they are all very happy and loving their trip!

• 

• 

• 

• 

Today was a really good day because I got a lot done, but (fresh on the heels of my self care conversation with Chris and Jenn) I stayed with in my limits, paced myself correctly, and found joy along the way.

I had so much fun chatting with Chris and Jen before they all left at 9:45 in the morning, and then I just relaxed for a couple of hours. I watched Top Gun Maverick which was an incredible movie, truly sensational. Then I got lunch for everyone and took the kids on a bike ride because the weather was nice. Just was we were starting we got to have a nice conversation with Lily:

Another great milestone is Clarissa just learned to ride on Lydia’s old bike. She’s a little small for it, but she will grow into it and she was getting too big for the purple Schwinn (which I will always love). Here are Ammon and Clarissa riding around the neighborhood with me!

After biking, I moved some things into the container and then blogged the rest of the evening. I didn’t push myself too hard and I stopped for breaks. Like when I found myself sitting at the top of the stairs, then lying down, then asleep, lol. It was a nice little nap. An I also played Smash Brothers with Ammon and Clarissa at the end of the day, which was so fun, it is at the level of of Wingspan with Lily for me. I really love playing Smash Brothers with my kids! I keep accidentally calling Ammon “David” lately and I think it is because when I play with him, he feels like my little brother. I’m having so much fun with them!

Also, I have loved our tree so much. It makes me happy every time I see it. Thank you Lily for reminding me to get the good tree to cheer me up while half of my loved ones are across the world!

Today Lily woke up early to go birdwatching with Swathi and Louie. She said the birds were amazing!

As a rough overview of their time in the Phillipines: Lily and the girls started in Manila, then went to a resort at Coron, and then have spent the last 4 days or so at the resort in El Nido. Today they flew to Cebu to stay there for two days, and then they stay in Bohol before coming home (via Japan which just had a major earthquake). What a trip they have had!

Here are some pictures and videos from their last day at El Nido in Palawan.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Today Lily and the girls had the best time snorkeling near their resort at El Nido! Here are some pictures:

• 

• 

Here are some more pictures from their fun day today:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Back in Utah it was a very exciting day for us because Chris and I took all the kids skiing and this is the first time Ammon and Clarissa ever skied. Jen stayed home and bonded with Basil 🙂

Everyone were such champs. Clarissa, Ammon and Gigi all did lessons with an instructor on the bunny hill. I hung out with them some to get video and see them, and also got a few runs of my own up the mountain. Chris and Caelan also spent time on the bunny hill. Then we all had a delicious lunch. After lunch the kids wanted to keep skiing. After observing Ammon and Clarissa for a bit, I was convinced they were ready for the lift (Gigi and Caelen had already done it before). So I took Clarissa two times, Gigi two times, and Ammon and Caelen two times (Caelen also joined with Clarissa once). Everyone did such a great job and made it down the mountain with no problem. I was so proud of everyone!

• 

• 

• 

• 

It’s incredible to track Ammon and Clarissa’s progress throughout the day. I put these videos in order so you can see how they progressed, from barely being able to stay upright on their skies to bombing down the mountain by the end fo the day. I’m so proud of them!

In the video below, Ammon is so excited to tell me about the progress he had made!

Lunch at the lodge was delicious!

After lunch we hit the slopes again. We spent time on the bunny hill until I felt Ammon and Clarissa were ready, and then we all spent time on the slopes. Here is footage from our time on the bunny hill:

• 

• 

• 

• 

And here are videos from us going on the lift. This is Clarissa’s first lift ride and run down the mountain!! She went down the whole thing without falling once except for at the very end. She did so well!!!

Here’s is Gigi’s first run of the day down the mountain!

Here’s Ammon’s first chair ride and run down the mountain ever! Caelan was with us also, and he did great!

I was so proud of all of them. Gigi also progressed so much since last time, and Caelan was doing great on the snowboard, and I think snowboarding is much harder to learn at first than skiing.

It was such an incredible day. I felt true happiness skiing with all the kids, participating in Ammon and Clarissa’s first ski day, and seeing them all have such an incredible time and progress so much. It was a 2023 highlight for me.

Speaking of 2023, Jen bought a delicious French pie to celebrate New Years’ Eve. We took turns sharing a high, a low, and a high from 2023. The kids mostly all shared things from today or this week, which the adults thought was funny (a little recency bias). My highs for this year were running half-marathons and having my job situation work out, and my low was my challenges with mental health. It was so so fun to spend New Years’ Eve with the Deans and I’m so glad they chose to spend it with me! I had such rich conversation with Jen and Chris after the kids went down also. We talked about self care during challenging times and Jen had great insight that she has picked up in her demanding work with refugees. What a wonderful famly they are!

• 

• 

Right now Lily and the girls are staying with relatives at a resort in el Nido. I think they spent time during the day in Bacuit bay (according to Google Photos). They had fun both day and night!

Day:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Night:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Today started early for me. I got some waffles going for the kids, and Jenn kindly finished making them while Chris and I picked up most all of Georgia’s furniture. I’m i love with his truck which has a huge bed. We were very proud that we fit all of her furniture in it:

Afterwards, Chris, Jen and their kids left to meet up with friends and family for the day. I worked on the house and packing and while doing that, I took this picture. I think it could hold its own with any piece of modern art, but what makes it special is that it is our kids crafting table (one of them):

This picture is just to remind me of all the time I spent in this garage (which I love) loading the containers. I love listening to the CDs of my youth on our garage CD player while I work.

Below are three videos of Loki playing with Basil. It is so good for Basil to have a playmate. Unfortunately, though, Loki is way more excited to play with Basil, than Basil is to play with Loki. Basil did enjoy some play with Loki, but you can tell by the third video, Basil feels totally done, but Loki felt like he was just getting started. It’s really cute because I actually put Basil in the car so he could relax and not constantly have Loki trying to play with him. After I put Basil in the car, Loki ran upstairs looking for him, looked left, looked right, even looked up on the couch. He was visibly sad that his playmate was gone. He is a very cute dog.

After working on the house, I took the possessions of my friend Nick Barnes to mutual friends house near my mom’s house. After Nick got kicked out of his apartment here in Utah, I helped him move out and I have stored his things for him, however, I am not taking the things with me, so Dan and Anna (mutual friends) were kind enough to let me drop his things off. Nick has had his disability payments removed, is hit with medical bills when he goes to the hospital for being suicidal, was hit by a truck (so lost his car and hurt his arm), has had trouble finding employment, was fired twice, was kicked out of a friends’ house, is struggling with massive psychological issues, spent time in a homeless shelter, and the list goes on and on and on. It breaks my heart to see all that he is going through. Although I am grateful there are a number of people in his life who care about him, and who have been investing in him and trying to help him move forward.

After dropping Nick’s things off, I went to my mom’s Christmas gathering. It was a week postponed becuase she has been so sick (she had Covid and another bug on top of it). It was so nice to see everyone including Kurt and Naomi, and Victor and Melody and their families. I hadn’t seen them in a very long time! I had fun giving Christmas gifts to people, and I was delighted to see that Ozzy loved the olives that I got him so much. He was really happy about them! He also played the magnetic drawing board I got him for a long time at the party and was really into it. It was so fun to see him enjoy his gifts! We also got Kizik shoes for my mom and Jay and I got Baerskin hoodies for David and Jere, and a Cotopaxi gift card for Olivia. It was super fun to see people enjoy their gifts. I should also note that David and Olivia got us the game Animal Crossing for the Switch and I’m dying to play it with Clarissa and Ammon.

• 

• 

• 

• 

After eating at my mom’s we went to see my grandma Forsyth and got caught up on life. It was so nice to see her.

Then we went to the ski shop to get everything we needed for skiing tomorrow. Clarissa was barefoot in the shop because she left her shoes at my mom’s (lol). I had to carry her to see my grandma and have her sit on my lap or on a chair so her feet didn’t touch the ground.

At night I was truly exhausted, but it was a very very good day. I also had a really good time hanging out with Chris before going to bed.

Also, this picture and video were of Lily, Lydia and Mary at the start of their next day (still the same day in my time zone):

Today, Lily and the girls traveled with family to Culion by boat. Culion used to be a leprosy colony and it was where Lily’s dad was raised because his parents were there to help the people with leprosy. His mom was a nurse and his dad was an administrator. Ben, Lily’s dad, was always ashamed that he grew up there, but in truth, it is a beautiful place. Here are pictures of the boat ride to the island:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Here are pictures from their time on the island:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

While in Culion, they went to the archives building, and learned all about the history of Culion as a leprosy colony. Lily took a trillion informative photos, but I’m capturing them all here because of how important Culion is to our family history.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Here is some related information from Ancestry.com

Here are more pictures from their time in Culion after the archives museum, heading back on the boat, and beach time at their resort.

• 

• 

• 

• 

Back at the home front, I finished packing our container (not Pod). I was very proud of how tightly I packed it, and I took this picture. I did start to worry that I was over the 6,000 pound weight limit though:

When the man from Pack Rat arrived, he picked up the container and weighed it and it came in at 8,000 pounds. My heart skipped a beat thinking I would need to unload a bunch of things, but he said that it was probably showing a little heavier than actual, and as long as he could lift it, he would take it. I was so relieved! I was also interested in how his truck worked.

After loading in the morning, and finishing work in the afternoon, I prepared the fixings for hamburgers (and Gigi peeled and arranged the oranges), and then Chris grilled while I picked up Georgia to come over for dinner. It was so fun to all enjoy dinner together!

• 

• 

After dinner, I dropped Georgia off and then Chris and I took the kids to the arcade. Clarissa went right to her favorite roller coaster ride and Gigi followed. Gigi and Clarissa played a lot of games to get tickets and they both got really fun prizes at the end and Ammon and Caelen played a lot of games together.

• 

• 

• 

After the arcade, I borrowed Chris’ truck and loaded a ton of old furniture we are getting rid of, and took it over to Georgia’s place for her to use as temporary furniture since we are taking almost all of her furnature to Raleigh.

I will also note that it has been really fun having Loki over. Sometimes Basil, gets stressed out because Loki ALWAYS wants to play with him, and sometimes Basil also wants to play and they have a lot of fun together. In either case, I think it is great for Basil to have socialization. Loki is so darn cute!!

• 

• 

Also, as we were wrapping up our day in Utah, Lily, Lydia and Mary were starting their next day in the Philippines. I’m not sure what these photos are of, but here they are!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Today I found Ammon and Clarissa horsing around in front of the Alexa. Their recording reminded me of really off the wall Gregorian chant, so I texted this video to Lily so she could start her day by seeing it. She thought it was hilarious!

Today, Lily and girls left Manila and went to Coron, Palawan in the Philippines. It appears they had a nice boat ride and that their resort was extremely scenic. It looks so beautiful there!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Back at the house, I readied our house for our guests and continued to pack up our container. Ammon and Clarissa had used a ton of game pieces to play shop. They were so helpful to clean it up dutifully, but before they did, Ammon insisted on getting a video of his shop.

Also, while I was packing, I found this cute sign above Mary’s desk. It made me smile. The Deans arrived around 2. After they arrived, I finished up work and then we all got Thai food in the evening, and Chris and I chatted at night. Our kids had so much fun playing together!

• 

• 

Today Lydia had her hair done. She didn’t want to get it done, but some good old-fashioned family pressure did the trick, and I think she looks great! Also, Lily is looking fantastic with her newly darkened eyebrows!

• 

• 

• 

I’ve still been staying at my dad and Suzanne’s place, along with Jere. My dad and Suzanne have been beyond wonderful to us. They have fed us, played with the kids, given us very comfortable accommodations, and of course, they have just been so fun to hang out with and chat with. One of my favorite things I ate was a huge serving of my dad’s salad. He chops up so many different ingredients, and it’s delicious. I’m going to miss being farther away from them!!! But I am so glad we got this deep time with them before the move.

Today I worked and spent time lining up our home insurance and rental insurance. While I was knocking out tasks, Ammon and Clarissa played a little Nintendo Switch. OK, they played a ton of Nintendo Switch. Look at Ammon’s thumb!! I’m so glad they love the Switch so much!

• 

In the evening we went to the Darais Christmas party. I had a great time talking with relatives, eating the good food and then playing basketball at the end. I’m sad I will be farther away from all these wonderful people who are such a beautiful part of my life, but I’m glad I got to spend so much time with them at the party!