Gemma got braces - round two! It's been a revolving door of Bonners at the orthodontist's office for years now: Gemma had them first, along with head gear. As soon as hers were off, Hazel got braces. Jack was next, and now we're back to Gemma.
Todd, Hazel, and Jack are planning to go on a 130 mile bike ride from Livermore to Yosemite over spring break with a group of adults and youth from church and some of their friends. They've been trying to fit in training rides on Saturdays whenever possible. They've all bought biking shorts with padded bums, but still complain after riding that their booties hurt. Todd gripes the most (probably because he has the least natural padding on his butt).
We had the Dix family over for dinner and games. We've been exchanging this creepy stuffy the last year or two, in honor of Suzanne and her reindeer head that we used to hide back and forth. We found him in our shower after they left this time.
I signed up for a new service opportunity. It's with an organization called Ladies Let's Talk that's based in Texas. They match up volunteers with English language learners, all women, mostly immigrants, and we chat in English via Zoom once a week for about an hour. LLT creates a discussion.with topics and questions, and the learners get a chance to practice reading, and then we break off into smaller groups to chat for a while. Each time I've done it, I've been assigned two other women to work with. It's been really simple and it checks a lot of boxes for me; it's convenient, it's literacy-related, it helps women, it feels meaningful.
Todd did a ton to make Valentine's Day feel special this year. He woke up early so that when the kids and I all woke up, he had made us a nice breakfast and decorated with flowers and balloons, and chocolate-dipped strawberries.
We were planning to go up to the cabin for part of the long weekend - Sunday after church and play in the snow Monday. (Hazel wanted to be home on Saturday to celebrate Valentine's Day with Noah.) But there has been almost no snow at all this winter, so we didn't buy a ski pass, and it seemed like a lot of money and effort for a subpar day. We all opted to stay home and relax instead. We have not used the cabin much this winter - good thing it's been a poor one.
Hazel's wrist has been hurting her and it's been swollen, so we got a referral to see an orthopedic specialist. Due to all the pressure she's been putting on it as a hitter in volleyball, she has developed a ganglean cyst, a pocket of liquid that hasn't been able to drain out. Since seeing the specialist, Hazel has been sleeping in a brace at night, and that has helped a lot. If needed, we might have a surgery to drain the cyst in the summer when she's not playing volleyball.
Todd had a dream of having the Nelson clan over to watch Little Rascals. I'm really not sure where that idea came from. But we made it come true! They came over for pizza and salad and we watched - none of the Nelson kids had seen it before, and it was funny to laugh over it with them.
Hazel had a league game the same day our ward had a youth temple trip, so Todd took Gemma and Jack to the temple and I took Hazel to volleyball. It was fun to watch her play. Noah drove himself down after the temple trip and was able to cheer her on for her last match. He's been a good boyfriend for her. I took them out for ice cream afterward.
Hazel gave a talk in sacrament meeting about prophets. I really loved hearing her share her thoughts and her testimony. She also taught young women's the same day, and she was so relaxed about it. She has talents that I do not have! She seems to be really comfortable with public speaking.
Spring blossoms have been out all over town. I love it! They are so lovely and they smell amazing.
We had our second annual game group sleepover at Joleen's. Everyone had to come and go - including me - so it was nice that it was local and we were all still able to be there for part of the time. We fit in so many games and brought snacks for Friday night. Kelly made us all oatmeal for breakfast and served it to us so we could stay at the table playing games while we ate. We had lots of good conversation and realized that we were celebrating TEN YEARS of our game group! We are all so grateful for the dear friendships we have together and know that we need to dedicate time to our relationships to keep them strong.
I had to pop out Saturday morning so I could support Jack in a piano competition. He played absolutely beautifully, but was up against some extremely proficient kids, so no award this time around.
Then it was back to my friends at The Press for lunch - my favorite quinoa, beet, and turkey salad. Yum!
Hazel had a music competition over the weekend as well. Her chamber orchestra was one of only 20 or fewer groups accepted (out of more than 200) to participate in this national orchestra festival. They've been working super hard since last spring to prepare, and man, they were incredible! It was so prestigious just to participate, but they also ended up ranking 6th in the nation. It is so cool for Hazel to get to perform with such a high-caliber group.
Hazel leads the second violins. It's fun to watch her on stage, making eye contact with everyone, nodding her head, sniffing loudly to signal timing. She sways emotionally to the music as she plays. It's really lovely.
