March: Maybe it could rain some more.

Hola. We come to you from a month of rain and snow. "We're thankful for the moisture we've received" is a phrase we aren't saying in our house lately. #overit

We were bad at picture taking this month, so I don't have tons of memories, but here are a few pictures that aren't purely utilitarian/super boring:

I always appreciate brainy Skeletor teaching me a thing or two. This made me ELL OH ELL.

Pip: She continues to terrorize us with her naughty behavior, and then she does weird stuff like this and we laugh at her and decide to keep her. She sat up like a human and let me scratch her for quite a long time.

Have I mentioned we're turning the garage into a studio/woodshop? It's been a whole thing. The walls, ceiling and floor are finished, and it's time to move everything in. Hoorah! Next, we get a carport! Hopefully sooner than later! ;) 

Insulated the attack above the garage. Good times indeed! 

Nils and I spent a couple of days in Boise at Click Funnels HQ to meet up with people who are in the same coaching program that we are. We made a few good connections and got to hear form this guy for a few minutes. He's the face and founder of CF, so it's kind of a big deal to people in that world. 

Sometimes kids can be real turds, and sometimes they leave you notes that make you feel like you're not totally failing at life. 

Life updates: 

NilsyNils: Working hard, trying to figure out the balance of opportunities, what makes sense to spend time on and where to place energy. Is excited about the garage space and being able to do what he wants as far as woodworking and filming. He loves tickling my back every night and doesn't get tired of it at all. I would go so far as to say it's his favorite thing in life. JKJK. I do love him so. 

Katrina: Also trying to balance the things. Eager to make this Click Funnels thing work for us- I'm happy to have met some people in Boise who we can hire to help us with that. Totally unrelated, but my shoulder has been really struggling for awhile, with multiple dislocations in the last several months. It dislocated a couple of weeks ago and I decided enough was enough. I've had an MRI and CT scan in the last week, and tomorrow meet with the surgeon to go over results and see what we can do to fix it. I'm dreading surgery, but I also need to get it done so I can live normally again. We shall see! 

Anders: Exciting things for Anders lately. He started a new job last week doing software development. It pays well and is what he's been looking for for months now, so we're all very thankful. It's remote, so he works from home. Speaking of home, he moved into a townhome yesterday in Orem, so that's a big deal. He sold his little van a couple of weeks ago, and is working on fixing up the mini truck to sell as well. He also placed an order for 7 more vans, so those should be in a shipping container and crossing the ocean very soon. Things are going well for him now, after an extremely difficult year of trial, heartache, and major struggle. Did I mention we're thankful? We're thankful. 

Addie: Exciting things for Addie, too! She took her medical coding certification exam and passed, so she's now a certified professional coder! She's not looking for medical coding jobs at the moment, because she was just offered the job of being the manager of the outdoor pool this summer. She loves the outdoor pool and looks forward to it all year. She'll probably start looking for coding jobs at the end of the summer. We're proud of her for all the things. 

Aani: 4.0 student, works at Mickey D's, goes to mission prep every Sunday, likes a boy named Aiden (who also goes to mission prep every Sunday), calls herself a basic white girl, is fine with her siblings also calling her a basic white girl, loves all things beauty and hair and fashion. Fun to talk to and joke with and we love her. 

Ava: Getter of good grades, player of tennis, player of the clarinet, watcher of YouTube, struggler of room cleaning (still), haver of a good attitude, always down to hang out with mom and dad. She had a band concert the other day, and instead of dropping her off at her call time which is a half hour before the concert, I went in with her. She wasn't expecting that, so when I got out of the car at the same time as her, she was surprised. I asked if she was embarrassed to walk in with me, and she said, "You're my mom, why would I be embarrassed of you?" So I listed all kinds of things I could do to be embarrassing, and I think she really enjoyed the visuals I was providing. 

It's been a good month. A year ago, March was not a good month. It's been a year of challenges, changes, struggle, blessings, heartache, tears, and more blessings. It's weird to have that dichotomy of blessings and trials. That's life, though, ain't it? 

Wishing you a happy April! 

February Whirlwind!

Heyyyooo! Boy oh boy, time sure does fly. It's been a month, indeed. 

The wall printing business has been taking tons of Nils' time. It's good because they're getting jobs and there's lots to do. It's bad because Nils has too much to do already. Doug and Dave are the main guys running this thing, but sometimes there are things only Nils knows how to do. It's been a little nuts for all of them.

We've been getting Spanish and Portuguese language tracks added to YouTube videos, been working on a new website, and trying to stay afloat as usual with all the things to do in life.

Addie finished school and will take her certification exam in a few weeks. She's teaching lifeguard certification classes for the next couple of weeks and will be quite busy. 

Anders' mini-truck and van arrived and he's working on getting them fixed up and sold. The van is especially amazing and he's in love with it. It gives great joy to all who see it, and he doesn't really want to sell it. 

We went to Chick-fil-a one night while it was raining, and this is how they were taking orders outside. Too funny! 

A big mystery was solved in our family. For a couple of years, our car has had a mystery smell coming from the vents and none of us could identify it. For some reason Nils and Ava decided to change the cabin air filter, which requires the removal of the glove box, and they found the filter full of dog food. So the theory is that for a couple of years mice have been transporting Pip's dog food from the container in the garage to the cabin air filter in the Telluride. Disturbing to say the least, but now the Telluride smells normal, and we hate mice even more. 

We took our annual trip to SoCal and Disneyland for our winter sanity. 'Twas pretty great. 

Our last night we had to hit the beach. It was Valentine's Day, so there were an awful lot of couples there attempting romance. It was a little cold for romance, in my opinion. We didn't last long. 

Aani created this amazing collage, which Anders described as "brain rot". Disagree. 

We always do single rider on the Cars ride. You get on so fast that way. I was in this car with a bunch of strangers, and the little girl in the back was freaking out the entire time. Like unreasonably hysterical. When I saw this picture at the end, it was the greatest gift to me because when she was screaming bloody murder, I was chuckling, and now I can remember this moment forever. 

Anders and Aani searching for Anders' wife. She wasn't in Star Wars, unfortunately. 

Throwback to when Nils did a picture that gave me three legs. 

Hey Anders, maybe you could try to look like you're part of our family. *Anders takes another step away from us*. 

My favorite ride by far. Nils hates it. 

We went to Knott's Berry Farm for the first time ever. It was great! It made our love of Snoopy grow a great deal. They have the craziest roller coasters there and we had a fun day. 

And, of course we had to hit up Wahoo's. Yum yum! 

I could probably live in Southern California and be happy. Except for the taxes and politics and cost of living. But give me that weather and the vibe any old day! 

I think that's all I have. Here's to a banner March! 

January Things

Let's start things off with a moment of silence for my water bottle. I've been dragging this thing around for who knows how long and it's served me well. I left it on an airplane and now it's out of my life. I liked this cute sticker, so that's what I'm sad about. RIP, water bottle. I hope you're loving your new life on that airplane. 

I know I've said it before, but Instagram has my number for the funnies. I laugh and laugh. 

Nils left his passport in his pants pocket when we got home from Europe, and it got washed. We had a work trip to Mexico at the beginning of this month, so we had to drive to LA so he could get a same-day passport. We left on Thursday, got the passport on Friday, drove home Saturday. We did some LA things like sitting in traffic, going to the observatory, looking at the Hollywood sign, and having cheesecake with Shiloh and Brian and kiddos. 

Then on Monday, Nils and went to Cancun for a YouTube training. I didn't want to go, and the night before we left, some of our children were melting down. Then I melted down. 

Then next morning we got on a plane and flew to Cancun. Then I decided to enjoy it. It was 85 degrees, which helped. We stayed at a nice resort with great food and that helped. We saw YouTube people and that helped. While we were in Cancun, Utah was getting pounded with snow every day, and I felt sad about that so I would drink a pina colada and that helped. 

Birthday month. Birthdays were pretty lackluster this year due to travel, but that's fine, because look at my cute husband. 😍

We got in the ocean in Cancun, and it was angry. I got thrown around a lot, and sand got in my ear. A couple of weeks later, I basically went deaf in one ear, so I went to the doctor. They spent an hour cleaning out my ears. I think they must have really loved that. I know I did! But wow, I can hear now!

New Year's Eve partay at the Marriotts! Food, friends, and bunco. Good times. 

One of the YM leaders got free Jazz tickets for the boys. What a bunch of lucky kids. Then they were able to get free pizza somehow. 

We're hoping this year has good things in store. We have lots of plans to move forward with business ideas and diversifying income streams. 

Anders has been working a contract gig and is working on getting a full time job. It's been rough. He also has a mini-truck import business that he's been working on for months and that's getting real. His first truck should be arriving any day. He's working hard at getting well and is feeling a bit better at the moment.

Addie is done with her course work for medical billing and coding certification and just has to take her exam. She's looking forward to not going to school (she hasn't had any breaks since she started this program her senior year of high school). She's still working at the indoor pool doing various things. Head guard, teaching lifeguard certification classes, etc. We'll see how quickly she'll start looking for medical coding jobs. 

Aani is still working and Mickey D's and likes it. Wrapping up her junior year and planning her future. She wants to do hair and is planning on hair school next year. We're trying to convince her to get on the YouTubes with the hair stuff. 

Ava has been doing some work for us and is living her best 8th grade life. She was able to earn enough money to buy Nils' old AirPods Pro, so she's happy about that. 

Life feels crazy and busy and full. Yesterday someone texted Nils to ask him if he had lunch plans, and he said that he and I were having a taxes day (true). Then I said I needed a taxes day lunch, so off we went to Jimmy John's. You know how I love an unwich. 

Things Nils and I love:
 
• Costco trips 2-3 times a week

• Jimmy John's

• In-n-Out

• Staying up late

• Going on walks

• Planning and strategizing

• Watching shows at night, but lately I don't have any shows I like. So Nils watches shows and I read or fall asleep. 

Cool list, amiright? Well, thanks, January. You were pretty okay this time around. 

Roma, Funerals, Christmas and More!

Well it's been a few weeks since we returned from our European Adventure. We spent the last few days of the trip in Italy, mostly in Rome. Our last cruise port was in Palermo, Sicily. We took a street food tour and saw some of the sights. It was fun and we made friends with a German couple who were also on the tour. They told us to come visit them in Germany- how weird would that be if we actually did? We don't remember their names, but it's fine. Anyway, the food was good, and the tour guide was nice enough to get some GF offerings for me. Thanks, Fabrizio. What a fella. 

The cruise ship literally dumped us off in Civitavecchia, about an hour away from Rome. We had no idea how to get to a train station, and the buses were swarmed with hoards of people trying to get on them- it was mayhem, and we had had enough of rude Italians pushing and shoving their way around on that cruise. Seriously it was out of control. I'm sure not all Italians are like that, but they were something else on the ship. Anyhoo, after learning that the buses would only accept cash Euros, of which we had none, we dragged ourselves and our suitcases to a train station by foot, about an hour walk. 'Twas good times. 

We made it to Roma, made it to our apartment, which was in the shadows of the Colosseum. It was also Ava's birthday, and we cobbled together a sad birthday cake for her. 

And had a fine dinner of pasta.

We took a tour of the Colosseum, Roman Forum, and Palatine Hill. Of all of them, I think The Roman Forum was the coolest. The Colosseum is iconic and a must-do, but I do think you could watch a documentary about it and get the same or better effect. The tour felt a little rushed and it was supah crowded.

Just my family of models. 

Bidets in Italy- we were a little confused by them, because we're stupid Americans. We have a bidet attachment on our toilet here at home, but it's not a whole separate unit. Maybe we should have done some research before we went. 

Also, the bidet in the kids' bathroom was growing a sprout, so that was a fun surprise. 

McDonald's right by the Vatican. 

Anders got to hold the flag for a minute on our Vatican tour. Pretty special. 

The kids liked seeing all the curled under pinky toes on the sculptures. 

Ooops I accidentally took this picture in a place where you're not supposed to take pictures. Did you know you're not supposed to take pictures because the Japanese people that paid for the restoration of the Sistine Chapel want all the rights to the media? When I heard that I accidentally took this picture. I always thought it was to preserve the art or something. Pssshhh. 

This has been a bucket list item for me for 25 years. I expected it to be more mind blowing. The hundreds of other people packed in the place diminished it a bit. I also thought it would be bigger. Hahaha. Still, good job, Michelangelo. 

Also a bucket list item to see the Pieta. Also thought it would be bigger. But again, Michelangelo was a master. 

St. Peter's Basilica is crazy huge and mind boggling. Could spend days here.

On our last full day in Rome, we visited the Rome temple. Guess what? It's also smaller than I thought. But, it was a nice change of pace from all the sensory overload and it was a nice way to bring things full circle and feel the Spirit. We had a fun time visiting and talking with the sisters there. Our only American contact for 2 weeks! 

We had the Uber driver take us from the temple to the Trevi Fountain, and that place is just out of control with Instagram models. What a madhouse. 

Walked to the Pantheon where we sat outside of it and ate gelato. We recapped our trip and considered what we would do differently were we to do it again. 

#1: Probably not do a spontaneous European adventure- months of research should be done before embarking on this sort of trip.
#2: Not do a cruise with Costa Cruise Lines.
#3: Figure out how to not be so jet-lagged.
#4: Do more research on food. We were underwhelmed by the food in general. I know that's sacrilege.
#5: Go to Spain next time.
#6: Become best friends with some cool Italians who can show us around and feed us good food. 

Addie making good use of her travel pillow- adjustable in all sorts of ways. We were so ready to come home. Our European Adventure was indeed an adventure! It was uncomfortable in many ways, but that's not a bad thing. Lots of memories for sure! 

The 3rd death in a month in our ward happened while we were gone, and the funeral was about 36 hours after we got home. I was happy to be here for it, although I've had a few people tell me I looked like I was on mushrooms later that night at our ward Christmas party. It was too much. 

The RS Christmas dinner was the following week:

Have I mentioned that I have the best presidency in all the land? They make everything beautiful.

Then Christmas. Nils and I bought a new Christmas tree on the 23rd. It was 50% off. It's a little bit flocked and has glitter all over it. So... we've been vacuuming glitter non-stop, but it is a pretty tree. 

We had a nice Christmas day. Opened presents, made liege waffles, saw Wonka, had a steak dinner, and then chilled. 

This year has been a total dichotomy of amazing and horrible. We've been abundantly blessed in so many ways, and also had the most difficult trials. It's been a rough one on li'l old me. Through it, I know I'm blessed and fortunate, and I'm thankful for my people.

2024, be gentle. Soft hugs.