Very Quick Year in Review

It's been a very quiet year on my blog—not intentionally, but things are busy, and I got out of habit. So here is a very quick highlight list of our comings and goings for 2024. 

January highlight:  strawberry picking.  The strawberries are SO amazing here!

Tom won some kind of award (we still have no idea what it was for) from the city government.  We were informed about it 2 days before, and Tom had a board meeting that he couldn't miss.  So the government allowed me to go receive it for him.  He received a trophy and a large sum of money.

Tom's business trip to Japan, the girls and I tagged along.

One of the many amazing foods in Japan is kakigori.  Shaved ice.  To die for.  I'd go back just for that and I'm not usually one to prefer sweets over other foods. That says something....

Chinese New Year crowds. We stayed home to avoid them.

We had the amazing opportunity to be invited into the home of some Chinese people.  We felt so honored and of course, we were humbled by their very humble circumstances.  They were delightful!

Tessa sang in front of 1,000+ people at the company's Chinese New Year event.

Company ski trip to Anji.  

Around Easter, we were moved into an in-person branch. It's a two-hour trip to Church and a two-hour trip back, but it's so good. And partaking of the sacrament regardless of the cost is so important to us.

Hua Shan. I couldn't find a picture to do it justice.  If you look on YouTube for the most dangerous hike in the world, this is that mountain.  Look at the steepness of the cable car we are in.  It was so stunning.

A visit to see the Terra Cotta Warriors.

Free flight mile trip to Hong Kong.  In this mountainous park, I had a tousle with a monkey who tried to steal my backpack.  I won.  However, my glasses that were in my bag came up missing, so perhaps I didn't win entirely....

With the government prize money Tom received in January, we went to a Michelin-starred restaurant in Hong Kong and had the best food we've ever had. This delightful dessert tops it off. The white shell is made of meringue and filled with strawberries. The green on top is basil ice cream, and fresh strawberry juice was poured all around. Divine. 

The girls took up rock climbing this spring.

We found Tessa, an English-speaking guitar teacher, and she performed at an outdoor event by Taihu Lake. 

After the performance at the lake, we walked 6 miles back home because my data had stopped working, and I couldn't get a cab. That's the nutshell story.

Greta finished an enormous diamond painting.

We got to visit my sister while she and her husband were in Shanghai.

A credit from Air Canada Airlines took us through Vancouver on our way back to the States this summer.  This is Victoria Gardens where Tom and I honeymooned.

Chandler married a delightful girl in June. The wedding was beautiful!

Found a famous Chinese HaiDiLao hot pot in California. 

A quick trip to the hometown of Preston.  This is on top of Little Mountain.

Tom and I left the girls in the US for girls' camp and returned to China. While they were gone, we visited a 'local' Watertown called Tongli, which is now my new favorite place in China.

Greta and I returned to the States in August for scoliosis surgery. The surgery was delayed for two weeks, so we were able to go to a BYU football game (her absolute love). It was a tender mercy. I had one extra ticket, which I gave to this amazing young man we met on our flight from Korea who was heading to BYU. It was fun to share BYU football with him.

The miracle and story of the year is Greta's back surgery.  That is a lengthy story.  It has all been a miracle.  She has recovered well and has returned to mostly normal (still not rock climbing, though). We are beyond thankful for all of the blessings we've received surrounding this important surgery.

Mr. Hu took us to a horse museum.  Very unusual. It was like a palace with horses on display.  The horses were from all over the world and cool to see, but sad for the horses to have to live their life on display.

November took us to Korea.  Tessa's dream.

Wild animal encounters in Seoul.

Korean facials.  It was pretty nice!  We quite liked it!

The girls had the AMAZING opportunity to go to FSY in Thailand.  There were 158 kids from 9 different countries flown to a resort there.  It was such an amazing experience for them to connect to youth. They are all so isolated so getting together was so strengthening for them.

Because the girls were going to be in Thailand for FSY right before Christmas, we decided that we would spend Christmas there, since Tom's sister is there serving a mission.  He and I were leaving the temple annex and we ran into friends from Colombia that we met in China.  It was such an amazing coincidence. We cherish them so much! 

We truly hope that in all of our comings and goings, we are able to spread the light of Jesus Christ.  Our adventures are pointless otherwise.  His light is what guides us, propels us forward, strengthens us and helps our efforts become more.  We are so thankful for Him and we hope to share it with others.