Farewell Glorious July!

 The Month Of July by Catherine Pulsifer

July, how we adore thee,

A month of warm and sunny glee.

With thirty-one days in your keep,

We wish for more time to play and sleep.

Cool ocean waves and sparkling sands,

Barbecue grills and ice cream stands.

Yet fleeting are your precious hours,

We savor them like summer flowers.

Oh, July, please slow your pace,

And let us bask in your warm embrace.

A New Chapter!

Today, I did something really cool.
I am really excited to share and write all about it,
but it's too soon.
It's a new chapter in my life.
It's change.
It's growth.
And, it's scary and exciting all at the same time.

Camping & Craig

 Tonight our favorite person in the whole wide world, 
Dr. amazing Craig Mangum came over for dinner and helped

us map out the Nielson family's upcoming backpacking trip.

Craig and his family have (I'm pretty sure) backpacked and hiked

 every trail in North Carolina.

He's the man to ask.

This camping trip will be epic, and everyone is really excited.

Jane is in charge of the food.

We will use fresh ingredients to prepare all the food and then dehydrate it. 

This will make it much lighter to pack and carry, 

and it will be absolutely delicious.

The girls are slowly checking off things and events from their

Hot Girl Summer List.

This epic camping trip is at the top of the list....

...and Summer is fading. 

Then my boy, Ollie, called from Brazil.

I love that kid so much!

Oliver in Brazil: July 2024

July 2024 is in the books!! 

 Only SIX MORE MONTHS TO GO!!!
I am so proud of Ollie!  He is the best leader, full of energy, 

(except that one time this month when he was super sick for a whole week).  

He's full of love, and the spirit of God!  Last call we had, 

he told me he was feeling a little trunky.  This happens.

I'm trunky for him, too!

But he's still on God's time, so we'll both have to patiently wait.

Enjoy Ollie in July:

Temple:

Baptisms:

Food:

Companions/Missionaries:

Friends:

Brazil:

Random/P-Day:

Go, Ollie, GO!!!!!!!!

Kitty

 Saturday with Kitty looks like this:

She sights a Bird – she chuckles

by

Emily Dickinson

She sights a Bird—she chuckles—

She flattens—then she crawls—

She runs without the look of feet—

Her eyes increase to Balls—

Her Jaws stir—twitching—hungry—

Her Teeth can hardly stand—

She leaps, but Robin leaped the first—

Ah, Pussy, of the Sand,

The Hopes so juicy ripening—

You almost bathed your Tongue—

When Bliss disclosed a hundred Toes—

And fled with every one—

Hold On

 

My cousin Jayne (in the center) sent me this fantastic 

photo of us with Katie, her sister. We were at a church activity. 

We look like Wilson Phillips:

It's so weird that I haven't seen this photo of us before, and seeing 

it brought back so many memories. It's so bittersweet.

When I look at this photo of myself, I feel a pang of sadness 

because 15-year-old me doesn't know what 

challenges lie ahead.  Yikes!

But it makes me so happy, too, because I really

had such a wonderful childhood.

It was mostly drama-free and completely phone and social-media-free.

I feel for the youth worldwide who are constantly bombarded by

 messages, noise, and distractions. 

And the fake.

So much fake.

It's frightening and disheartening at times.

Social media can certainly be a wonderful tool to connect with others 

and share goodness, but as President Nelson counseled:

“The downside of social media is that it creates a false reality,

everyone posts their most fun, adventurous, 

and exciting pictures, which create the erroneous impression that

 everyone except you is leading a fun, adventurous, and exciting life. 

Much of what appears in your various

 social media feeds is distorted, if not fake.”

I think that, as a society, we will always struggle to

 determine how to manage and handle social media.

As a parent, I feel the heaviness of it as I raise my children,

  hoping they have and are making healthy 

relationships with their social media feeds.

It's really tricky.

There are days when I wish my children could experience 

growing up in the 80s and 90s. 

It had its challenges, but it was also pretty amazing.

I think the Wilson Phillips song "Hold On" really 

captures the struggle of kids dealing with social media.

Allow me to demonstrate:

"I know this pain (I know this pain)

(comparing and FOMO)

Why do you lock yourself up in these chains? (These chains)

(addictive grasp of social media)

No one can change your life except for you

(agency)

Don't ever let anyone step all over you

(addiction)

Just open your heart and your mind

(take a break from the fake)

Is it really fair to feel this way inside?"

(constantly worried about what people think)

Someday, somebody's gonna make you wanna

Turn around and say goodbye

(the prophet, the spirit, your conscience)

Until then, baby, are you gonna let them

Hold you down and make you cry?

(caring about what people that you 

don't even know think about you)

Don't you know?

Don't you know things can change?

(take a break from the fake!)

Things'll go your way

If you hold on for one more day

Can you hold on for one more day?

Things'll go your way

Hold on for one more day,

(you can do it!)

You're welcome.

Achy

 It was SO HOT AND SO HUMID today.

A perfect day for Lottie to reorganize her room!

Christian helped her move the bed, and then she shut the door and

was in there for hours, listening to music and rearranging her things.

She is NOT looking forward to the girls leaving next month

but is excited to not have to share her room with Jane.

It's been pretty crowded here in Stillestead

but in the best way.

Later, Lottie invited me upstairs, handed me the remote, a cold DP,

and did my hair while we watched Flicka.

It was the best afternoon EVER.

Later, the girls, Christian, and I went to serve in the temple. 

I'm going to miss these days; my heart is 

already achy thinking about it.