Elder Nelson White

My brother entered the MTC on Wednesday, October 20. That morning he and our parents flew to Salt Lake from Los Angeles. We all had lunch at Magleby's here in Provo. It was fun to hang out with my parents, grandparents, cousins, and of course, my brother.

Since he went off to college it's been near impossible to spend time with him. Even over holidays! I would come home and he'd be off everyday with his friends. One of my favorite days was when my mom and all four of us kids went to Disneyland last year. Nelson came and it was wonderful to spend a whole day with him.

On Friday, October 22 Nelson had a seizure. He has never done well with change and going into the MTC was a massive change. I got to spend all day with him on Saturday while he was in the hospital. I am so glad that he is alright. He's my only brother! He's very special to me. It was a unique experience where it was just us, one-on-one, talking about how he felt about his mission, this new trial, and what he wanted to do. Nelson told our mom, after the fact, that he really appreciated my being there all day.

Nelson went back to the MTC on Sunday, October 24 and on Thursday, October 28 he had another seizure. He is being given a medical release and is going back home on Sunday. This is a challenging time for Nelson and I feel so bad for him. Not only was a mission hard, but he worked incredibly hard to get himself on a mission. He is a good young man and I am proud to be his sister. I really hope that people don't assume things about why he's coming home. We're telling people the truth. It's purely medical. I have faith in Nelson. I know that he will do everything he can to get back on his mission.

On a very selfish note, I'm really excited that he'll be around for the holidays. I hope that this year he'll spend more time with us. Tyson and I will be there for two weeks. It's tough for Tyson because we live so far away from my parents so he doesn't feel super close to them. He sees the relationship I have with his parents and he wants that for himself with my parents. I'm glad we have the chance to spend a lot of time with my family this Christmas. I think it will be good for all of us.

Me, in the hospital, hangin' with Nelson.

And the cookies I made for him!

They Paved Paradise

September 10, 2010:
BYU has got a lot of construction going on right now: by the McKay, the Clyde, and now across from the Bean Museum. Everyday I walk passed the construction next to the Bean Museum. BYU is building new dorms for Freshmen. That's a good thing, right? Well, on this particular day, I was minding my own business when I witnessed this heartbreak:

You may not be able to see it very well, but that machine tore down a tree. A TREE. How is that okay? I watch BYU grounds crew plant, uproot, and re-plant flowers all over campus but they'll kill a tree? Not okay with me. At all.

New Plates

September 13, 2010:
It's official. I received my Utah license in the mail and changed the plates on my car. I was waiting until my license came but once it did, I had no excuse.


It was really depressing to change the plates on my car. I know I am a novice frowner, but really. I was sad.

Now it takes me a while to find my car at BYU because everyone else is from Utah too. I'm still a California chick though! Promise!!

Introducing Agatha, the Betta Dame of the Royal House of Remy

September 21, 2010:
My dear friend Natalie got married at the beginning of August in California. Tyson and I were able to go to her open house here in Utah. It was great to see her and her parents again. I love them so much!
They had set up many round tables and on each table was a Betta fish in a glass vase. The fish were so beautiful but I was curious to know what Natalie's family was going to do with all the fish. So, I asked. They said they weren't sure. I asked if I could take one. I'm not sure if that was the wisest choice because not only did we leave the open house with a fish, we also left with a plastic box of about two dozen croissant sandwiches. You know, the ones with the grapes in them. Apparently, there was a ward camp out so a ton of people were gone aka LOTS OF FOOD. That's alright though. We took them back to Tyson's house and everyone chowed down.


For a while we kept Agatha in her glass vase from the open house. I decided she needed more space, so Tyson got her this aquarium and some plants; the blue rocks came with the original home vase. I know this isn't a stellar picture of her, but she is beautiful and I love having her. When I told my dad about her, he said, "You're like a real family now!" I guess Tyson and I weren't a real family until we got a fish. I think my parents still want to have me to have a baby asap so they can be grandparents. Oh, weird thought. GRANDparents. Once that happens, they'll be REALLY old.