November 2024

 Watching Waitress at the Phoenix Theatre, getting photobombed by other theatre nerds.

When Dallin isn't teaching people about Jesus, he's playing soccer!

Another Thanksgiving in Rocky Point!

Quoteable Sniders

As a writer who also plays piano, this is how subbing as the primary chorister went yesterday:

-Let's do chapter 2. I mean verse 2.

-What does "pining" mean? You may have heard it in England, or read it in a Regency novel.

-Ok, I want to hear chapter 1. Again. VERSE 1 gahh!

-The "yon" in Silent Night is short for "yonder," I think. You try fitting words into music.

-Time for chapter 3 now. GAHH VERSE 3!!

October 2024

 

Hiking in Flagstaff

Sedona adventure with Jen!

Hiking at the White Tanks

Power Puff Girl!

Quoteable Sniders

Anyone else have an adult child who has been out of the country for months and hasn’t ran track since May but you’re still finding extra screw on spikes all over the house??

There I was at the dentist, doing my five-year "around-the-outside" x-ray which is so cool because I didn't have to put weird metal things in my mouth.

There was a suspicous area of the jaw on the x-ray, so I got to do it again, only this time it showed a 3D of my SKULL AND TEETH. Have you ever seen a 3D of your own SKULL AND TEETH?

"Oh my gosh, if you ever find my body you can identify me! Yes I watch too much true crime."

Like my skull was right there staring at me. It was so Halloween!

OHHHH and my jaw is fine.

September 2024

 

Just Dallin with a donkey lol

Free pumpkins!

At the temple with the Sterrs

Best weekend of the year!

ANWA Writers Conference in Mesa, AZ was amazing. My fifth year attending!

Loved seeing my dear writer friends. Celebrating wins, plotting our ideas, commiserating the hard stuff. Laughing at dorky writerly things.

Then there was everything else. Workshopping a new project. Karaoke parodies. Dinners and lunches catching up. Classes about everything I need to know for all the aspects of writing. Inspiring keynote. Bookstore of attendees. Meeting anthology writers (I helped edit this year’s anthology).

I am the ANWA Communications Chair (newsletter and social media),so I get to see all the behind-the-scenes work the volunteers do all year to prepare. They are such giving people.

At conference, I also get to run around and be a journalist (my fave!) taking pics and videos and observing all the loveliness.

Because of ANWA, I’ve made so many connections, and ANWA has become family.

Being a writer can be lonely, but writer friends make it all better.

My writing has gotten stronger, I’ve tried new things, written so much more (yay for critique groups!) and I’m thriving because of this great organization.

Thank you, ANWA!

Quoteable Sniders

Teenagers with phones. Making "plans" with their text group friends.

Their plans change 100 times! But they only infom you, the parent, during these moments:

Text #1, to let you know you need to give them a ride to whatever thing they're concocting.

Text #100, when the time and place has completely changed, and the need to go NOW, while you're in the middle of whatever you're doing.

Repeated every weekend. LOL

August 2024

First day of school!

 The Craft Desk aka Negotiating with my 10yo

I mistakenly told Brynn “When you’re a grown up you could have a craft room” because she instantly became obsessed with the idea. Thus her page-long proposal. Unfortunately those were all nixed for various reasons.

She happily agreed to a desk rather than a room. Since I hoard vintage furniture I had the very thing, just needed a bit of paint and wax and presto! She’s already organized it and is using it.

Writing retreat with these lovely ladies.

Dallin in Flores, Honduras

Conert time!

July 2024

First video chat with our missionary!

 Mommy is home from New Zealand and all my goofy siblings+ came to say hi

Meridian temple

Montazuma’s Well near Camp Verde, AZ

FYI missionary moms love getting texts of their kid from random people.

“Just ran into Elder Snider in the airport! He loves you and looks so happy and excited. You have a good son! Godspeed Elder! “

Our boy is at the airport. His time at the MTC is done! He’s headed for Honduras.

June 2024

Dallin received his endowments at the Phoenix temple.

Mesa temple

Writing day with this girl!

 How’s home MTC going?

Wrinkled shirt, name tag, shorts.

Meeting all his new mission friends on Zoom, learning mission rules, studying scriptures and Preach My Gospel, learning and preparing.

Running to the kitchen for snacks. Leaving a trail of chaos.

He officially leaves for in-person MTC early early Wednesday morning. He’ll be there for six weeks then head off to Honduras!

My two middle children left for FSY this morning and won’t be back til Saturday.

Elder Dallin is leaving Wednesday!

These were their mostly silly goodbyes.

Justin & Dallin: “See ya.”

Gilbert temple

Behind every missionary are very, very tired but proud parents, piles of his things left behind, a household of people and pets that have to somehow live without him while he’s gone.

18 years with Dallin was SO LONG but SO SHORT.

He was the most perfect premie baby, a terrorizing toddler, a sweet boy, a roller coaster teen. Running ahead of everyone, always so excited about life, always passionately building some thing.

Remember to use your deodorant and not be too much of a chatterbox but always always keep loving and blessing “the whole world and everyone in it.” (His prayer catchphrase.)

Not sure how I was so lucky to be your mom.