Empty Nester Diaries: September Highlights

September 2025

Everyone keeps asking me how it feels to have an empty nest, and to be honest, so far it feels a lot the same. Aubrey did a good job of weaning us over the past several months. She worked 3-10 pm four evenings a week and was often hanging out with friends the other two. Luckily, some of those hangouts were at our house, and we also enjoyed being with our Aub Daub on Sundays. I think another huge help for me is that Tanner and his family live here. It's awesome that we are in the same ward, and that they join us for dinner and FHE on Sunday evenings. Tanner and Kaide will usually stop by at least one other time during the week, which is the best.

I am filling my days with work on Tuesdays and Fridays, working out, service opportunities, walks alone or with friends, house cleaning, bills, my t-shirt business, blogging, family lunches, phone calls/Marco Polo chats with my out-of-town kids, and my new calling as ward Relief Society 1st counselor.  Brian and I get to visit about our days in each evening, and we occasionally play a couple of games or find a show to watch together. So my "empty nest" life goes on one day at a time.

Aurelia Muniz, me and Bro. Jesus Rodriguez (wearing the hat)

We had our big Just Serve stake Relief Society activity this month. I enjoyed volunteering at the English Connect class at church a couple of times. The first week, I was trying to help a lady from Cuba who spoke no English. It was rough! The second week, I was helping Brother Rodriguez from Odessa 3rd who could actually speak English pretty well. He may have even been there to help other people?! I'm not sure, but we had a great time visiting about his family, and he did get to practice his everyday English.

Erin and I also went to the Sibley Nature Center to help with gardening. We signed up for this one last year as well. It was really nice to be outside, and it's a good one for Kaide to join in as well. 

The last few years, I have been serving in the stake RS and have been on the organizing end of things. I'm not going to lie, it was pretty sweet to just be able to participate this year! (I did make the 330 shirts for the event, but I did get paid for that so it doesn't really count. My small business is another thing keeping my occupied while empty nesting though.) These were most of the Odessa 1st Ward sisters who made it to the luncheon in Midland. I love these ladies. 

I wore a 2023 shirt because I stained mine right before the luncheon.
Back row: Tylor Current, Shari Martin, Cathy Bonifay, Debbie Carlston, & Ashley Sequeira
Front row: me, Anna Guidry, Sandy McKown, Blanca Hendricks, Melanie Ormsby

Here are some other notable September happenings.

Parker and Tanner had a boys' trip this month. Parker drove to Minnesota with some of his BYUI friends, and Tanner flew out for a few days to join in the fun. They enjoyed boating, fishing, golfing, and more. It was fun to get picture updates to our family group text. It was clear they were having a great time together. (From this picture, it might not seem that Tanner is having fun, but everyone who knows Tanner knows that this is his picture taking smile--crazy kid.)

 

According to Tanner, Park caught the smallest and the largest fish.

Tanner wished he could have fished more. He was also glad to add some infamous, in Parker's circle anyway, "Ben's Bait" gear to his wardrobe. He bought a hat and a jacket.

While I'm talking about Tanner. He is such a good Dada. I love seeing him interact with Kaide. Usually, they are doing something active together like playing football or soccer. In this picture, Tanner was sharing a Family Home Evening lesson he adapted from the Friend magazine.

Erin is the sweetest mama too. She is very attentive with Kaide and takes the time to get on his level when she has something she needs to explain. She has had a calling in Primary the past couple of years, and I just think those kiddos are so lucky to have her. She received some big news this month....drum roll please....she got into Texas Tech nursing school and will be starting in January!

Tanner had his 21st birthday. We had a little celebration with a candy bar cake and gifts on Sunday night after our dinner. 

Some Gigi and Kaide day highlights:

We played hide and seek, and it was the most adorable thing. He had the hardest time finding me, even if I was curled up in a ball beside the couch. Also, he hid in the exact same place each time. It was really tricky to find him! 

We were having the missionaries for dinner that evening, so Kaide helped me make some cookies. He wasn't interested for long, but it was still fun to try something new together.

We have also been enjoying obstacle courses. We have an outdoor chalk course we draw or a more elaborate/physical indoor course that we set up.

-You can watch an outdoor video here: Chalk Obstacle Course (I love his backed-up running start.)

-Here is a video of The Inside Obstacle Course. I love the lunge he wanted to add right after his first jump off the bench.

His "animal game" (charades) obsession is finally easing, and we've been able to introduce some other options like a modified version of Guess Who.

Also, here is a cute picture of Kaide and Papa at a Friday night football game.

Moving on to Aubrey. She is loving her BYU life and is settling into her classes and becoming better friends with her roommate, Hannah. They made this giant cardboard cutout of whoever this guy is. They also made a "hot guys wall" for their apartment. Silly girls.

She recently received her first calling: ward mission committee. The bishopric member told her they would need to get creative because there was only one person in their boundaries who was not a member of the church. She is excited to work with Alex, the ward mission leader, because he is one of her good friends.

Anja, Hannah, Aubrey, and Lauren

Parker started back at BYUI mid-September. He is doing an on campus internship/entrepreneur class for his business minor that makes up the majority of his credits this semester. He has several friends taking this course right now too. He thinks it will be a pretty cool experience. 

He is also living his best life in nature. He loves all of the outdoor opportunities Idaho provides. He often sends pictures like this with very brief explanations or none at all.  

Salmon run

He gave no explanation, but I think it might be the Garden of Eden.

Park recently deeply bruised his eardrum after trying a new trick off the diving board and slamming into the water. It was very painful. He had drainage for over a week and couldn't hear out of his right ear.  He went to the doctor first and then to a specialist when there was no improvement.  He also had an eye infection in August from wearing his contacts too long. 

Two words: FRONTAL LOBE.

Okay, more than two words, I hope Parker survives himself. I think he feels invincible, and I hope he can mature more quickly before he incurs permanent bodily damage.

On to lighter topics...

Aren't these two lovebirds cute? Derek recently started student teaching at Wasatch High School, and they decided to go to a football game there for date night. Derek seems to really be enjoying the challenges of preparing lessons and teaching history to high school students.

Brinley started her externship teaching speech at an elementary school. She is loving it. She is also so grateful she is feeling much better pregnancy-wise although she feels much more tired each day.

Also, Brinley celebrated her 25th birthday this month. We sent her a necklace, maternity shirts, and a couple of gift cards. We also had to include a couple of tiny baby outfits! (The Expo markers and a few other random school supplies were for Derek and his teaching semester.)

And lastly....good news....Kaide decided to finally give his Spider-Man birthday costume a try. He still isn't too sure about it though. He says he just wants to be Kaide.

Dorm Sweet Dorm: Moving Week for Aubrey

 Aug 27-Sept 1, 2025

Aubrey's big move in day to college finally arrived. We flew in on Wednesday and after gathering all the luggage (so much luggage!), finding our Turo rental car and picking up dinner, we made it to her dorm about 8:00 pm. Brinley was awesome and met us there with more stuff Aubrey had brought up earlier in the summer or had shipped from Amazon to Brinley's apartment. 

The move in felt a little frantic. We were on a time crunch. It was late in the evening. Her other five roommates had moved in earlier in the week. New student orientation started the next day, and Aubrey wanted to spend the night in the dorms. Also, we had to make one million trips up to the fourth floor because this girl did not pack light.

Home Sweet Home-Heritage Halls #6

Aub and Bryn--I love this picture (I'm not sureAubrey would- I never quite know with her.)

It was also exciting though. It was fun to meet a few of her roommates. It was fun to see Aub processing her new environment. I loved that Brian was able to be a part of the move-in experience. (I helped with Brinley and Parker while he stayed home and earned the big bucks and took care of the younger kids.) We were like worker ants, and it was fun to see Aubrey's room unfold into a livable space.

Aub and Bri

Me (How she found room for all her clothes is a mystery.)

Her living area is shared with 5 other roomies. I love the big windows.

Brian and I made it to our hotel in Orem around midnight Texas time, and I noticed Aubrey's carryon bag in the backseat of our car. It had her phone charger and debit card in it. Ugh. I texted her but she had gone down to checkout a welcome party near the sand volleyball pit. I went to bed knowing this would be her first of many starving college student experiences where she would learn to figure things out, but I did worry about how my somewhat anxious girl would handle it. 

Headline: She Survived. 

(She borrowed a charger from her roommate, skipped breakfast because she had no food or money, and really appreciated her first free lunch at college during student orientation on Thursday.)

Thursday, Brian and I headed back up to campus for parent orientation. There was an info fair in the corridors of the Marriott Center. There were lots of information booths set up sharing opportunities on campus: service clubs, tutoring, campus safety and so forth. The booths had brochures, pens, stickers, and candies, and the area they opened for the 5000 visiting parents was definitely way too small. 

Then we went into the arena, the parents in one area and the students in the main sections, and they showed us BYU. It was called a Cougar Rally. It made me so excited for Aubrey! They had the infamous dunk team plus Cosmo come out and show off their skills. Then we saw performances by the Folk Dance team and some singing groups. They showed a video w/ campus activities,  and the sports teams' achievements. They had the Yo-Yo club perform. Honestly the whole thing had me a little teary. It really made it clear that there was a place for everyone, no matter interests or talents, at BYU.

Following the Rally, there was a convocation, where two students and President Reese spoke. Then we broke for lunch and breakout classes. They had 10 classes offered, and you chose the four you wanted to attend. Brian and I decided to divide and conquer, so we could double our information. I went to a class on the counseling services provided on campus, the Women's Service Center, the amazing resources available in the library (stuff and staff), and parenting in this new young adult phase. Each class was only twenty minutes, and honestly, they were all exceptional. There are so many resources and opportunities available on campus. I left the day knowing it would be helpful if I remembered some of the resources available to help direct Aubrey when she is in panic mode. Also, I left knowing she was in good hands: amazing professors, solid resources, and many opportunities to get involved and succeed.

This is BYU's sesquicentennial year.

Thursday evening, we met up with Brinley and Derek for dinner, and then Brinley and I went to a pep rally thing at the stadium. Derek needed to prep for his student teaching, and Brian wasn't feeling great. The incoming class was taking their "Y" photo, and then they had the band, cheerleaders, football players and coach inspiring the audience. The stadium event ended in a really cool drone show. My favorite was probably when an image of Brigham Young, in between Go Cougs and Cosmo dancing, lit up the sky. It was so unexpected and made everyone laugh. I wonder, looking down from heaven, what he thinks of that?! 

Aub is in the top left-ish area

Friday morning brought an unexpected call from Aubrey. We were planning on grocery shopping later that afternoon, but she had ditched student orientation and was ready to finish up her room. We picked her up for lunch at Zupas, and we headed back to Walmart for storage options, food, and lots of miscellaneous items. It was so nice that Brinley had a flexible schedule this week and was able to join in and help often.

The checkout lady complimented Brian on his quick thinking on getting both of his girls set up for college at once. Also, several times throughout the week other students were sweet to introduce themselves and welcome Brinley. She was very diplomatic in her responses, but it was funny. She is married, pregnant, 25 next month, and in her final year of her Master's program. 

One kind of funny thing happened Friday afternoon. We had unloaded groceries and were in the middle of helping Aubrey hang pictures, organize her room, put together rolling carts etc. Her roommate, Maecee, walked in and casually invited her to go to Swig.  Aub dropped us like hot rocks. It was kind of hilarious and also awkward. I was glad she was making a point of being social and getting involved. It did leave me alone in her apartment finishing things up until Brian was back from the store buying duct tape for a broken drawer. Silly girl. 

Getting there....

Saturday morning, we were all able to go to the temple together. Brinley had booked reservations a month earlier, and Aubrey wasn't 100% on board. She wanted to leave her schedule open so she wouldn't miss out on social opportunities with new friends or roomies. She was also worried about getting good seats at the football game. I get it. I didn't want to pressure her, but I was really hoping it would work out, and it did! She invited her roommate, Maecee, and we were able to do baptisms at the Provo City Center temple. 

Then we headed to Great Harvest Bread and Jamba Juice for lunch for the girls. Brian dropped Aub and Maecee back at Heritage and met back with Brinley, Derek, and me to get food-manly food-at Burger Supreme. We had a couple of hours before we met back up at the Hale Center Theatre to see the musical Footloose. I am taking a break from purchasing theater tickets when we are in Utah visiting. The tickets are expensive, and the last two have been disappointing. We decided to slip out during intermission to head to our VRBO to watch the BYU game and enjoy the evening together.

Brian and I knew it would be a busy time settling Aubrey into school, but we were hoping to see his family while we were in Utah. However, they were all out of town for the long weekend. It was kind of weird being so close to where Keith, Jeff, and Bruce live but still so far away! It was nice that with our Utah and Idaho trips this summer, we have enjoyed some time with our Gwilliam fam.

We weren't sure if we'd see "the kids" again before we left, but luckily it worked out. After church, we headed back down to Provo/Orem. Brinley and Derek were sweet to whip up a chicken fettucine meal, and Aub had a break between afternoon church and ward prayer so she could join in. We visited and played Skull King, Ransom Notes, and Monopoly Deal. 

Overall, it was wonderful. 

I loved that 1. Brian was able to be a part of the college move-in. 2. We could see Aubrey feeling less anxious/more settled by the day. 3. We were able to spend more time with Brinley and Derek. 4. We were able to serve in the temple together. 

We will miss our girl, but we are so excited for the opportunities she will have at BYU. While she is adjusting to her freshman year of college, we will be adjusting to our empty nest stage of life. Here we goooooo!

Wrapping Up August 2025

Wrapping up August 2025

Can I just say watching Stake Conference from home is THE BEST. If we go in person and want to sit anywhere near the front, we have to leave 1.5 hours early. If we leave 45 minutes early, we are at the very back of the cultural hall, and it's pure chaos. (By pure chaos, I mean chairs scraping, people talking, a constant flow of children and adults in and out of the side doors, phones not silenced, uncomfortable folding chairs, etc.)

It was beautiful being able to see and hear the speakers. There was a children's choir, and they were sweet. We picked out Ella in the group. Erin and Aubrey worked on bracelets. Tanner and I quietly kept Kaide happy. Brian, sadly, had to be at work this weekend.

I scored all of these boxes of beads, plus four more, for $30 on Facebook Marketplace. I am hoping we can utilize these for a Relief Society activity one day soon.

I think the bracelets they created are the cutest.

This was one of Kaide's quiet projects during conference. He found this game in our game closet and was very interested in the colors and shapes.

Brian and I had a fun date night. We went to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat performed by a local community group. It was outdoors, and I loved having a chance to just be on a date with my guy.

Tanner and Erin come over every Sunday night and Tanner will usually stop by at least one other evening during the week. It's the best. Here is a picture of Papa and Kaide getting in a little football fun.

One Gigi and Kaide day, I introduced Kaide to a game our children loved, "Kids on Stage." It's a charades game, and he is obsessed. When he walks in, he goes straight to the game closet, and we immediately play at least one full game. He loves acting out the cards. He is also really good at counting the die and moving his piece along the board. Aubrey, Erin, Tanner, Bri, and I have all played this game with him so, so, so many times, but it is never enough for this little boy.

One Saturday, I took Kaide to the duck pond again. It was so cute watching him take care of the ducks and the birds. 

Afterwards, we picked up Papa and headed to the donut shop. This is actually the first time we have taken him anywhere for a treat. His parents are good to feed him a healthy diet, and he especially loves fresh fruit. Tanner and Erin did give him a donut last month on his 3rd birthday, so I figured we could probably get away with it.

He knew right away that he wanted a red donut. He had no interest in trying one of my donut holes. He also had no desire to get his fingers dirty. It was hilarious watching him try to carefully eat his donut without getting anything on his hands. 

First he tried not using his hands at all. Then he switched to delicately holding his donut with the tips of two fingers and a thumb. 

The frosting on his face didn't seem to bother him at all. 

We sure love this little boy.

A fun Taco Villa Monday on Wednesday at Fudruckers. I actually didn't go to this one, but I heard it was happening. Gram was able to go, and it unique because it was mostly just cousins aged 17-20.

Brit, Aub, Becca, Braddock, Gram, Grandpa, Erin, Kaide & Tanner

The weather was a little bit cooler one Sunday night, and we all headed outside. The cousins had an awesome touch football game going. Everyone, from Kaide on up, had a blast.