October was a pretty good month! There were lots of new experiences – some of them were pretty scary at that, but I guess that’s what happens when you live in the country and deer are everywhere.????
I met new people, visited new places, and experienced fresh snow.
On the morning of October 1st I awoke to my mom telling me to get up quick and look outside! To my surprise a light dust of snow covered the ground!!! I quick whipped out my mukluks, but the snow was all gone by noon.This is just a random photo of my school work…Last semester I took a Psychology class online and one of my projects was to complete a research project. It was rather stressful – as I had never done one before, and because the class was online I didn’t have a teacher to ask. So I drew a bunch of charts to help me compile my data, this helped my peace of mind but not much else I’m afraid…????The weekend of Cassia’s birthday my Dad was invited to speak at a conference in Phoenix, and so he took Cassia with him! She tells me she had a ton of fun – and I believe her, given all the texts she was sending late at night describing her days!????Then while Dad was gone I left a window open in our brand new car… And of course, we got a dump of snow that night – but nothing was wrecked, thankfully, and now I always double check the windows to make sure they’re closed.On Saturday a bunch of us from the Gospel Hall went down to Minot for a Casting Crowns concert! We went down early to go shopping, and because we ran out of things to shop for, Charity began trying on the prom dresses!????I think half of us teens are in this photo from after the concert!Sunday night Cassia and Dad arrived home, so we celebrated her birthday with a Young People’s! The next day, October 8, Cassia’s birthday, there was no school so I did a mini photoshoot with her, and all the new clothes she brought back from Phoenix!Cassia is the most outdoorsy of us all, so I guess you could say this photo was taken in her natural environment.The corals in our yard make for a nice backdrop…But I think my beautiful sister completes the photo!She went along with my photo ideas…And the intensity of this photo still scares me to this day.Happy 14th Birthday!!!In ELA I had to write a formal essay on a mental health disorder, and I chose PTSD. When I got my essay back I thought the remark about how my essay had “just enough style to be a Raquenna” was pretty accomplishing…????♀️Then to continue on with my amazing track record in our car, I hit a deer coming home from a young people’s one night. Cassia was in the car with me, and I was going UNDER the speed limit when a small deer jumped out of the ditch and dashed across the road in front of me. I slammed the brakes as hard and as fast as I could and just nicked the back legs of the deer. I came to a screeching halt, and the deer – literally – performed three summersaults into the ditch beside me. I sat in the middle of the road (thankfully on the gravel there’s never anyone on the road) and shook. The deer got up and ran away after less than a minute and I eventually stopped shaking enough to pull over to the side of the road, put my hazards on, and phone my dad. I woke him up, and he calmly told me to drive home if the car was driveable, and that he’d check the car out in the morning. After I hung up, Cassia got out and made sure everything was good at the front of the car. Once she got back in she told me everything was fine and then offered to drive home for me, to which I replied that that would be even scarier than hitting a deer…???? I finally arrived home, got a hug and then went to bed. The damage on the car was minimal, just a few cracks, thankfully, and insurance took care of it all. Moral of the story: be thankful I hit a deer and not a moose…????A week or so later, my Dad and I left for Chatham, ON, where he was speaking at the Healing and Hope conference held there.While we are traveling Dad is teaching us to navigate the airport system on our own! So when we got off the plane I’d be standing there waiting for him to lead me to our next gate, and he’d be doing the same thing to me until I’d realize what he was waiting for.????Our first leg of our journey was Regina to Toronto, on a regular passenger jet, but from Toronto to Sarnia we flew on this little guy!!! And yes, I know that is not at all the correct way to refer to an airplane, but the plane was so cute, and definitely one of the highlights of my travels to and from Regina.The plane had one seat on either side of the aisle and there was only a curtain between us and the pilots!Coming into Sarnia after flying over one of the great lakes, was absolutely beautiful and exhilarating because we were almost there!The Snooks kindly picked us up from the small airport and then we went out for supper! My dad and I split the most amazing thing ever… It was like a pizza but the crust folded in on itself and then was deep fried! The conference was a ton of fun, and I made several new friends! The best part was most likely when we went to McD’s during one of the breaks and then got caught out in the beginnings of a hail storm. We were running back to the school where the conference was being held and I was freaking out cause I was having minor flashbacks to the hail storm that hit in July, and then the rain began to pelt really hard. The only shelter was some trees up ahead, and everyone knows “Don’t stand under trees” but it was either that or get shredded by hail. Thankfully someone pulled up in a minivan who some of the guys knew, and we all piled in, seconds before the heavens were opened.???? I had a blast that weekend, thanks to these people who let me tag along on their adventures throughout the weekend. There is so much that happened and so many other people that I didn’t mention, because to do so would mean a paragraph a mile long. So I’m just going to close with it was an amazing weekend and I hope to go back again someday! (LtoR: Andrew, me, Gabby, Sarina, Alex, and Isaiah)Sadly, the weekend had to end, but it meant I got to fly on an airplane again so…???? This airplane was a little bigger but still just as fun!Sadly, Mom began to get sick while we were away. It started out with a terrible cold, then merged into the flu, and then finished as Pneumonia. Four days after she got sick she went to the hospital and they admitted her immediately. She spent a week or so in the hospital, which meant we got to wear a ton of masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer. It was really scary while she was at home, but a bit of the weight lifted once she was in the hospital. Some of the women at the Gospel Hall brought suppers for us, which was so greatly appreciated, because Dad and I had to pick up the housework, and with Dad still having to work, it would have been incredibly stressful to try and make supper…???? I enjoyed going over to the hospital from school to eat lunch with my mom when possible, and I’m pretty sure I talked to her even more than I normally would… But that’s not necessarily a bad thing.????Mom teaches the Young People their song for the SS Program, but this year Kirsten also helped out! This turned out to be an extra blessing in disguise because Mom got sick halfway through practices. One Sunday, everyone who was at practice masked up and drove over to the hospital to sing for her. It was a little awkward singing through a mask as every time I breathed in the mask would get in my mouth, but we got through it, and I think the fact we came touched her more than how we sounded anyway!
October started out as a good month, and ended okay as well. We were really busy, but then things slowed down – travel wise – after mom got sick. I’m glad to tell you that Mom is back to “normal” and I think doing even better than before she got Pneumonia!
Thanks for bringing us up to date on your fun fall! I love it that you and Cassia have gotten to do trips with your Dad. Special times! Lots of love from Auntie Biz xo
You girls are very fortunate to get to travel one on one with your Dad. Pretty neat. We do enjoy all you write for it lets us know more about your lives when we are miles apart. Love you. Grampa & Grandma
Thanks for bringing us up to date on your fun fall! I love it that you and Cassia have gotten to do trips with your Dad. Special times! Lots of love from Auntie Biz xo
You’re very welcome! Sorry it was so late though…????
You girls are very fortunate to get to travel one on one with your Dad. Pretty neat. We do enjoy all you write for it lets us know more about your lives when we are miles apart. Love you. Grampa & Grandma
We think we’re pretty lucky too!!! Glad you enjoy the updates!