Mission accomplished.

 Wednesday, July 28: Prepping

I was so grateful that Britt and Shi were available and willing to use their amazing creative skills to make signs for Mar's homecoming.

Friday, July 30

We planned to have a dinner at my mom's house after Mar got home. Most everyone had gathered early in order to be at the airport on time. Sister Syddall's flight from Denver was supposed to get in around 4/4:30 (I will edit the details if/when I come across the information). We started getting delayed flight notices shortly before then.

After about 4 hours of delays, we finally headed to the airport. I was grateful that I hadn't planned a HOT meal. We also had to reschedule the time Sister Syddall was to meet with her Stake President (he was in CO, so they were meeting via zoom).

The plane! The plane!

**I am actually unsure exactly WHAT airplane is Mar's... but it's one of them**

It seemed like we waited forever, even after the plane had landed.

But, finally...

She's home!

**It probably felt a little strange because "home" was not the home Sister Syddall left. She actually came and joined us in the limbo stage, so no actual home, and a new state. She handled it all like a champ**

Mar's mission friend Devon (aka Sister Roberts) came and hung out with us so she could be at the airport to greet Sister Syddall. She probably wasn't banking on being with us for so many hours as we waited for the flight delays. **Apparently the delays were due to the previous flight from TX to DEN. It's seriously a 45 minute flight from DEN to SLC, so seemed crazy to have so many delays.**

I loved riding with Sister Syddall and my mom in the back seat on the drive home:

Mar was excited to see the pups. They lived to see her return, which was her one wish ;-)

I think we were eating around 10pm haha. We were HUNGRY.

We slipped away from dinner to meet with our CO Stake President. He shared the following scripture with Mar:

Dear and well-beloved [sister, Mauri Syddall], verily thus saith the Lord unto you: My servant [Mauri], it is no more required at your hand to leave your family as in times past, for your offering is acceptable to me. I have seen your labor and toil in journeyings for my name. I therefore command you to send my word abroad, and take especial care of your family from this time, henceforth and forever. Amen. (D&C 126)

Loved this sweet sentiment. President Anderson (who had also been her seminary teacher her senior year) told her it is time to focus on her family - including her future family - but that she can still be a missionary for the rest of her life. I may or may not have shed a few tears.

I love missionary shoe pictures ♥

Well done, Sister Syddall!

A Seminary sayonara.

 Bill and I combined for an end-of-year Seminary breakfast.

This was the finale of my four years of teaching Seminary. It was definitely one of the hardest callings I have ever had, but was also rewarding and an amazing growth opportunity. I did my best. I loved my classes and the individuals I taught. I had some students that, despite my efforts, I couldn't connect with. That is the most discouraging part for me. I also had many, many students that I consider my dear friends. 

This year was a particularly challenging one because Bill and I each taught a class (vs the team teaching we had done in pre-Covid years), and they were both for students who wanted to be online only (the other option was to be hybrid, returning full-time to the classroom if local guidelines allow).

It is HARD to connect when half your students don't even turn on their camera. Our students were from all over our Stake, so I had students that attended 3 different schools (unlike the previous classes that had students that all attended the same school). The previous 3 years I had taught sophomores - this final year I was asked to teach seniors. With only a couple months left in the school year, both Bill and I had students added to our classes because their teacher had received a new calling. Everything about this year was challenging.

I'm not sure if a single student will remember a single thing about the entire year of Seminary. I missed the daily face-to-face interaction with the students, and I felt a sadness and a disappointment at the end of the year that perhaps I could have - should have - done more.

I know I did my best.

And all I can do, is all I can do. That is a mantra, not an excuse ;)

So, of the 35(ish) students between our two classes that were invited, 7 attended our end-of-year breakfast. We held it at a park near our Stake building.

We made introductions (many of them had never met in person), had a yummy breakfast, and played some Throw Throw Burrito. The weather was beautiful, and one of the students shared her experience with choosing which college to attend, which was a fantastic testimony of personal revelation. Despite the small numbers, I felt the activity was a success - and such a reflection of the year as a whole.

I really do love these kids.

Also on this day, my brother married the lovely Katie Sullivan.

It was a small ceremony in southern Utah.

I am so happy for them!

**Last day of Seminary from past years**

My first year teaching - 2018

2nd year teaching - 2019

No pic of my 3rd year - thanks, Covid :-(

Milestones.

Bill and I finally took our seminary class their supplies that had been left in our closet in mid-March as we adjourned for Spring Break, not knowing we would never gather together again. It sat in the church building for a couple of months before we were told we could retrieve it (back on May 14). It felt weird to be back at the church, and even weirder to be in our deserted seminary room.

I am terrible at remembering to take "before" pictures, so, once again, you just get an "after."

We wanted to personally drop off each student's supplies with a little treat and a gift, but we waited FOREVER for the "gift" part to arrive in the mail, so our bags sat idle for another month +.

Finally, after an email to Emily Belle Freeman (from Don't Miss This), to check on the status of my order (which I had received an email a month earlier saying it was ready to be shipped), and the discovery that it had apparently been lost in transit to the USPS, we received the MMLX bracelets we had ordered. I made a little card to go with the bracelet, knocked out some giant rice krispie treats, and the bags were ready.

We made a couple trips around the area to drop them off (knocked on the wrong door and had a half-dressed Asian man who didn't speak English answer... oops, wrong house). We met parents we had never met before (very enlightening), and saw firsthand where our students call home. It gave me new insight into some of them, so I may attempt to visit my students' homes early in the school year this year. (Bill and I have been asked to teach another year... this will make 4 years for me. I think I can. I think I can. I think I can.)

We were also dropping off a few grad gifts along the way.

I made these for the girls:

And these for the boys:

I didn't do gifts for all the grads that sent us announcements, just those in our ward and close by, everyone else got a gift card sent in the mail :)

We also dropped off a baby gift for a young sister in our ward, who had had a baby shower A YEAR AGO. I intended to go, but didn't make it, so needed to drop off the gift, but instead it sat in my closet, then in my front room, forever. Yes, I feel sheepish. I had told her I had it for her(on several occasions), and that I would drop it by. Luckily it was only baby shampoo, a bath toy, and a hooded towel. I think her 1-year-old can still use it hahahaha.

It was immediately following our drop off of this gift (after a long day of dropping off seminary gift bags), that we realized that our odometer was about to reach a milestone. We decided to drive to the high school nearby as it did.

06.28.20

12:56 pm

I love a car with longevity and reliability.

I hope it can make it another 100,000 miles.

We finally made it home for home church and our weekly fill of Nora Jane

 and Evie Rose.

I love them.