16 Jun 2024
VOLUME 12 – NUMBER 560
Caleb in Provo with his new roommate
This week I finished radiation, which is the last of my treatments for now. All my cancer treatment is officially in the past. It's very relieving, and I'm so grateful. I will still get a final check up in three months to make sure things look good, but for now, I can get back to normal.
So I moved down to Provo this week! I've got a couple of really good roommates who are good friends now. My days are really good. Since I don't have a job, they are mostly full of researching grants and scholarships and applying for them. I’ve also done some reading.
Caleb baking for fundraiser for mission friend
I've mainly been looking for a job. I'm applying to be a teacher at the MTC, but since the application process usually takes a while, and it's not for sure that I will get hired, I also applied for a custodial job cleaning the residence halls. I had an interview, and I got hired! I'll probably be able to start in a week or two.
I also went to the movies with Cougar, Endia, London, and Keaton, someone London has been dating. I didn't get to talk a lot to Keaton, but from what I can tell he seems like a nice guy. We watched IF, which was a lot of fun. Afterwards, Endia, Owen, Cougar and I had tacos, it was super nice of them to buy them.
London and Keaton
Also, Ashton, Endia, Cougar, London, Keaton, and some more friends all did a campfire up in Provo Canyon. We roasted delicious bratwursts and chatted around the fire.
Then on the weekend was the fathers and sons campout! It was a ton of fun. I love camping and this was my first time going in a really long time.
There were a ton of mosquitos, delicious food, arriving late like the usual, late night talks in the tent, and in the morning a bit of adventuring. While taking down the tent, there was a team effort to kill a wasp that got into the tent. Hanging out with Dad and my brothers was so fun!
Tent on fathers and sons campout
This week we switched rooms because Caleb was moving out. Me and Joanna still share a room but we have the bigger room next to the bathroom. Gloria has her own room now, and Isaac and Kai share a room. Monte, Troy, and Quinn are in the basement bedroom.
Gloria and I also participated in a 5th Ward activity. We got up at 5:00am to go on a hike with the young women. It was hard to wake up that early, but it was a really good hike, and it was really fun.
When the boys left for the fathers and sons campout, we had a late dinner and fell asleep watching Downton Abby. It was a good week.
Veidi, Troy, and Mom walking dogs
This week Kai and I have been playing a lot of pickleball with Sophie Zimmerman and her family. It has been really fun, and I feel like I have improved since I started playing. One of the days that we played, we were there for like six hours, and it was really tiring,
I definitely had a lot of fun playing. Kai and I also got new pickleball paddles, so that we could have some paddles to play with, especially since we were playing a lot more.
Brooke and Ellie
My parents were visiting this week, which made for a fun week! It was my sister’s birthday, so her husband rented a boat and we got to spend the day on the lake.
I was bummed that Braden wasn’t able to make it because of work (and my brother in law’s last minute planning—ha ha!) but I was glad we got to go. Ellie and Charlie were very hesitant about getting in the water at first but ended up loving it!
Charlie and Ellie at the beach
A couple days later, my parents took my sister and I along with our kids to Wilmington, since the boys had to work. We spent the days at the beach, which the girls absolutely loved. It was cloudy and a little breezy, so I didn’t think they would want to get in the water, but they did!
We spent hours and hours playing in the water and sand. It was such a fun week, and I’m so grateful we got to join in on all of it. It makes the moments more special knowing that these could be some of our “lasts” in North Carolina, since we are probably going to be moving back to Utah in the fall.
Charlie eating a banana at the beach
This weekend was the father's and sons camp. This year we decided to do something a little different. We didn't get the traditional pizza on the way up, and instead brought our little fridge, and packed stuff to make BLT's.
One tradition that we unfortunately kept was being unintentionally late. We couldn't find the adapter for the trailer, so Dad had to go to the store to buy one, and everything that could go wrong went wrong. A quote from the movie Ice Age comes to mind when Sid the Sloth says, "They do this to me every year!"
Quinn in tent at fathers and sons campout
Other than that, it was a pretty good camp, and when we got there we had some really good BLT sandwiches. There also may have been a story about Dad needing to find a zinger, but I'll leave that up to him if he want's to tell it.
After it got dark, we also talked in the tent about deep philosophical questions about space. Space is really fascinating, and I love how mysterious it is. There is so much that we still don't know about space.
In the morning, we pretty much just packed up, and went home. I had a fun time. Thanks, Dad for taking us!
London in her climbing gear
I’ve really been loving going rock climbing with Keaton recently. This weekend we went down to Maple Canyon for a climbing camping trip. I did my first multi-pitch climb, and it was so much fun! Multi-pitch climbing is when you climb up to a ledge and then take turns with your partner at each ledge until you get to the top.
Multi-pitch climbing allows you to be able to climb way higher, since you have a lot if points where you rest and take turns. Then at the end you rappel down. The friends we went with were super fun too. I’m excited to go back and climb again there.
London, Keaton, and friends
So we went on the fathers and sons campout this Friday. It was a little stressful, cause we had to bring Tessie, and we were worried that she wouldn't have enough miles to get back home. I think we were all scarred two years ago on our last fathers and sons campout when we almost didn’t make it home!
However, this time everything worked out fine. When we got to the camp, we quickly got to work on getting the tent set up. The setup was pretty quick—we were like a pit-stop crew! After we set up, it was about 8:00pm, and we hadn't had dinner yet.
We decided on BLT's for dinner, and Dad had put me in charge of the dinner. I got all of the ingredients for the sandwiches—the bacon, lettuce, and tomatoes—but I didn't really put much work into the setup. I started cooking the bacon, and gradually we realized what I had forgotten for the meal.
Mattias
We didn't have a cutting board for the tomatoes, we didn't have any plates or napkins, and a few other things. It was a little bit of a rough meal, but we worked things out and had some delightful BLT's in the end!
After dinner we all cleaned up, and most of us got ready for bed. We kind of had a mosquito infestation, because none of us brought bug spray. We all got a fair amount of bug bites.
While we were getting ready for bed, we talked about some funny things, and eventually I fell asleep. Overall the fathers and sons campout was super fun, and I loved hanging out with all the boys!
Boys at fathers and sons breakfast
Sunday was Father's Day, and Endia, Cougar, London, Ashton and Owen came over. We played Skip-Bo multiple times, and it was fun. There is also a way of playing with teams, and it went a lot faster than the original way.
We also were able to get on a Facetime call with Braden and Brooke I was in the room but I fell asleep. When I woke up, Ashton, Quinn, Joanna, Kai, and Veidi were playing Liar with the Skip-Bo cards.
I walked over to the table where Endia was setting up Settlers of Catan. I asked if I could play, and she said that I could, I had a pretty bad spot for my resource numbers, and Endia won. No one else stood a chance.
While we were playing, London came over and started cooking chicken pot pie for Dad’s Father’s Day dinner. We ate outside, and it was fun. It was very nice outside.
Fathers Day dinner in the backyard
This week some of our family went over and helped Aura clean her house. Because she is getting more and more sick, it is hard for her to keep things up, and a clean house helps her feel more at peace.
For the 5th Ward young women's activity, we went to Ensign Peak for a morning hike to watch the sunrise.
Later that day, because Caleb moved out this week, we all moved rooms. That took most of the day, but I got my own room! It took forever to get things into place, but I’m really excited about it.
Gloria cleaning Aura’s house
Lately, I have been reading the Book of Mormon more. I have never been the best at reading, so I made a goal to finish by September 5 or earlier. I have been reading in Alma, and I love how most of the chapters are about having hard hearts and how to soften them.
I have been trying my best to have an open heart and mind when reading in the scriptures, so I can learn what God wants me to do. While I read, it helps me grow my testimony, and it helps me to know what is said is true.
Veidi cleaning Aura’s house
I wanted to share this picture with you. I love this picture because it sums up my boys—a picture is worth a thousand words! It also just makes me happy that this is my sons’ childhood.
Mckay, Brigham, and Mateo
I had a really fun time on the fathers and sons camp this weekend. I headed up after work and got to spend the evening and Saturday with the boys and Dad.
I remembered how much I took camping once a month as a scout for granted. It seems like all the fun stories and memories come out in the tent at night time. I’ll let Dad tell his story!
In the morning, when we went to take the tent down, there was a wasp that got in. Anyone that knows me knows I HATE wasps! We battled around for minutes and then finally killed it. Wish we could have gotten it on video because it was quite the funny sight. Let’s just say there was a lot of screaming involved!
Ashton sleeping at fathers and sons
I woke up on Sunday morning, and had Pop Tarts, and then we went to church. In sacrament meeting, Quinn and I sang a song to Dad for Fathers Day. Then we had to sit down and listen to talks.
After church I got to play in the hobbit hole in the basement. For dinner we had chicken pot pie, and we ate outside.
I love my dad! I always want to be with him, and he's always there for me! He's a special part of my life and I love him!
Fathers Day dinner in the backyard
Dad / Arkin
Okay, okay, if you insist, I’ll tell you the “zinger” story that Monte and Ashton referenced, but to tell that one, I have to start nearly 40 years ago…
When I was a teenager, we had two phones—one hanging on the kitchen wall, and a second one in my parents’ bedroom. At the time of this story, my Dad was the bishop of our ward.
One night, I was goofing around in the kitchen, and I picked up the phone and loudly sang a line from a song were were singing in my junior high choir group: “Gotta hold on!” As the words were leaving my mouth, I realized that I couldn’t hear a dial tone. which meant that my dad must already be on a phone call in his bedroom!
I have imagined over the years that he was on a call as the bishop, probably counseling someone through a difficult challenge. when suddenly his goofy teenage son interrupted the confidential call singing, “Gotta hold on!” So embarrassing!
Endia helping to clean Aura’s house
Now I told you that story to tell you this one (one of Grandpa Arnold’s favorite Bill Cosby quotes)…
Earlier this week, after a long day of working at my desk in the basement—I was probably grading papers—I came up the stairs all groggy from my work, looking for a snack to pick me up. As I came out of the stairwell, I exclaimed in a loud voice: “I need a zinger! Something to get my life back on track!”
As I rounded the corner, I realized that Jenny was sitting in the living room with a woman from our ward, giving her advice about her dog. Let’s just say that this sister isn’t known for a sense of humor, and I worried that my “zinger” comment sounded like I wanted to get drunk or something! I could just imagine her thoughts: “Why Brother Hill! How could you!?” How embarrassing!
Charlie at the beach
Story over? Not yet! This weekend at the fathers and sons campout, we were lying in our sleeping bags in the tent at night, and I retold this story to the boys. They all laughed at my “zinger.”
However, the next morning, while we were at the ward breakfast, Brother Peter Pei came over and said, “Good morning Brother Hill. I heard about your ‘zinger’ last night!” Turns out his tent was close to ours, and my private conversation with my sons wasn’t so private after all. Double embarrassment! Will the “zingers” never end?!
Fathers and sons breakfast