Much of the beginning of our year was spent trying to get a grasp on dealing with the failing health of Steve's parents and the changes that brought on. For those who don't know, Steve's mother went into the hospital last December due to her diabetes getting out of control. She spent a few weeks in the hospital before being moved into a nursing home. In April, she and Grandpa Garvin moved into an assisted living facility in Tacoma, Washington.
The facility seems nice, but it was a challenge to lose some of the independence they have enjoyed for so long. At the same time, many of the stresses they have had have been reduced or eliminated. Since moving into the facility, it has become more apparent that Steve's dad's health is also failing. Both parents are dealing with diabetes, but Steve's dad also is beginning to get confused more frequently and severely.
When Steve's parents moved into the assisted living facility, his older brother, Tom, moved to live with us. That was a bit of a challenge with limited space and combining different families, and due to the fact that Tom didn't have as much to do here as he had back in Washington. In June, Tom was able to move into a 'family group home' north of Asheville. That has worked out better. Steve, and Martha particularly, have been able to continue to offer support to Tom while everyone is able to have some of the distance that seems to have been needed.
Another focus this year has been home improvements. We have been able to replace quite a bit of the siding that was getting old and damaged. We have also replaced half the windows in the house with plans to replace the rest in the next year. In addition, we have been able to (finally) paint the exterior of the house. There's still much to be done on home improvements but at least we feel like we have made some progress.
The summer was busy with a
scout camp to Cumberland Island in south Georgia (near the Florida border).
Steve was able to go along for the whole week with Benjamin and the troop. They
had a good time hiking and seeing the sights on the island. The island was
beautiful and still had a sense of being removed from the world. They actually
had the beach to ourselves. (They did have to hike in three miles to get to
their camping spot.)
Benjamin and Steve, and some of the other scouts, were able to go on a few 10-mile hikes. The island was once the private reserve of the Carnegie family, so there were some interesting ruins of former mansions. Some of the buildings are still standing but 90+% of the island is now national park land. One of the wonders—that soon became commonplace—were all the wild, feral horses. A former owner had stipulated that the horses that had been brought to the island be set free and preserved.
The Cumberland Island trip helped Benjamin move along towards completing his Hiking merit badge--one of the last of his required merit badges and ones he needed for his Eagle. He is now complete with the merit badges—yeah! He is now working on completing his Eagle project which will be planting a dozen trees around the picnic shelter at Lake Julian park that is accessed from the Hendersonville Road entrance (where the old campground was.) The ward had a picnic at that facility on Labor Day. While it was a nice experience, the setting did seem a little barren so we are glad Benjamin has taken this on as a project.
During the summer, we also enjoyed going on a trip up to Palmyra to attend Patrick and Beth's wedding and see the sights in the area. It was a beautiful wedding and nice to be there with the family—especially considering the then upcoming move of the DeFrancos to Texas. (They're missed here.)
Visiting Palmyra was a great experience. So much happened there. However, it really struck Steve how so many of the people in the area were totally unaware of the restoration of the gospel that took place there. (It's understandable—just eye opening.)
While on the New York trip, the family also enjoyed going to Niagara Falls. What a natural wonder that is. The size of the falls really can't be appreciated without being there.
We also took the opportunity to come back down through West Virginia, where Steve served his mission. There they were able to stop at Cooper's Rock, another natural beauty, and the New River Gorge Bridge, which is both in a naturally beautiful area but also an engineering wonder. The bridge is currently the third highest vehicular bridge in the Americas and the third longest arch bridge in the world.
Jessica, who has been terrified of heights—especially while driving—was able to come to grips with her fear and overcome them to a certain extent on the journey across the bridge. She had just hiked down to a viewpoint where the family could see the entire span of the bridge from down below, and she got really worried when she realized that we would have to cross that bridge to continue our trip. As we were crossing the bridge, Steve told her to be aware of where she was and what she was doing so that when they got across the bridge she would realize what she had accomplished and had made it. After getting across the bridge and on the road a few mile, Jessica exclaimed that she was ready to do it again. We were thrilled for her success. She was so excited to have overcome that fear!
Benjamin missed the New York trip as he was having an adventure of his own at a regional LDS youth conference at Eastern Carolina University. There were over 1,500 LDS youth there along with numerous LDS leaders; Brother Arian Ochoa of the Young Men General Presidency and M. Keith Giddens, Area Seventy over North and South Carolina and guest speakers Thurl Bailey, Troy Dunn and Elizabeth Craig, and musical performers Jon Schmidt, Greg Simpson, Jericho Road, and The Fading Point. The theme of the conference was “One, but not alone.” Everyone seemed to have a good time and got spiritually fed.
We've enjoyed seeing family this year whether it be at Matthew and Amelia's wedding reception, Patrick and Beth's wedding or locally here in Asheville. It was fun for us to be at the Kellar's on Jessica's 13th birthday on August 7th . The Kellars made our family feel very welcome, as they always do, and put on a big birthday feast for Sunday afternoon. It was fun and a good way to spend Jessica's birthday.
This new school year, both Jessica and Joshua have started playing instruments in band class. Jessica is playing the clarinet and Joshua the trombone. Despite all the stereotypes about how awful it is to hear the kids practicing their instruments, it has really been nice to hear them practice. For Steve, who has never played an instrument, it is amazing how quickly they have begun to make nice little musical pieces. They are short and simple but still nice.
Benjamin has had the opportunity to take a cooking class in high school. He continues to develop his skills as a budding chef, and the family often gets to enjoy the rewards of his efforts. Interestingly, he seems to have a particular interest in making desserts despite a constant concern for watching his weight. He is still quite thin
Martha began formal nursing training after completing all the prerequisites that she has been working on for some time. She will be done in less than two years now. She is enjoying her studies and the opportunity she has to do clinicals and work with patients. As you all know, Carolyn has been staying at Grandma's and Grandpa's while Martha has been at school, which, including time Martha has set aside for studying, turns into being gone as long as the older kids are, almost. It is a good situation, though. Carolyn starts every morning by saying “No, I don't want to go!” and every afternoon by saying “Mommy I missed you” and almost immediately “I had such a good time at Grandma's!”
Carolyn has also really been enjoying nursery. As most children do, she is very happy when she finds out that it is Sunday and she gets to go to nursery! She loves the activities, she loves the singing, and she loves her teachers. She started this year as the only child attending regularly, so she had her teacher (Sister Hardy and sometimes Brother Hardy as well) all to herself. Then a couple of families moved into the ward, a couple of children started coming more regularly, and a couple of the younger children turned 18 months, and suddenly she had a roomful with her. She went up to Sister Hardy after a couple of weeks of this and asked her “Are you still my teacher, too?” She has adjusted well to the change, and will adjust well again in January when she joins Primary as a Sunbeam.
So that is a quick summary of our lives. We hope you all enjoyed it!
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