20 January 2026
We got a dog! He's a 4-month-old black lab/husky mix (or so we were told) and he is absolutely adorable! He came from Texas, where animal overpopulation is very real. He and his litter-mates were found in a box by the freeway, in the hot Texas sunshine, with no mama dog around. A rescue picked them up and placed them with a couple who knows how to bottle feed, which they did for the whole litter until the pups could eat mush and then normal dog food. When he came here, we named him Jax. Here's the picture they got of us just after he was put in my arms. Don't we look like a happy family? His page has been added to the Family tab, though obviously we only have a few pictures so far.
12 January 2026
I posted the pictures for most of the last year on the Pictures page (click the tab above).
Enjoy!
9 January 2026
Another year is here. I did better, for a time at least, in regularly updating this blog last year but there's still room for improvement. I guess I better start off by summarizing the last quarter of last year.
BYU continued to do very well, finishing the regular season with only two losses - but to the same team (Texas Tech, ranked #4). Not bad at all! They were left out of the College Football Playoffs but played in the Pop-Tarts Bowl against Georgia Tech. The opponent was supposed to be Notre Dame but they basically threw a tantrum when they were also excluded from the CFP and said "we won't play in any Bowl game if we aren't in the Playoffs." Their loss. BYU was able to eke out a win by scoring the winning touchdown with 2 minutes left in the game and intercepting the ball when GT tried for a touchdown on 4th down. The hubby watched part of the game from an airplane, as he and my brother were returning from vacation in Alaska at the time, but made it home in time to watch the last 5 minutes virtually with us. Such a precious moment to share!
BYU's QB, Bear Bachmeier, enjoying a Pop-Tart next to the trophy... which doubles as a toaster!
Marisol successfully completed her time at OYCP, earning enough credits that she only needs to pass a single English class when she returns to the local high school for 2nd semester. She's taking some fun classes as well so she'll be eligible to do all the fun extracurricular stuff but she only needs to pass the one. Such a different situation than she was facing a year ago. I'm so proud of her. She had a surprise for me at her graduation when she signed the National Anthem. Ain't gonna lie -- that was special. Really special.
Marisol with the family and friends who attended graduation.
Marisol signing the National Anthem while other cadets sing it
For Christmas, we went to Alaska, at the invitation of my mom and her husband. We had a FANTASTIC time. We ate far too many cookies and good food, visited various animals (Reindeer Farm in Palmer, Wildlife Refuge in Portage and Sealife Center in Seward), were gifted far too many presents, played in the snow and otherwise completely enjoyed ourselves. I'll put some pictures up shortly.
