September So Far

The First Half of September 2026

Bri and I made it to the temple, and it was perfect timing because it’s closed for the next two weeks for its yearly maintenance. The sun was right in our eyes for this picture, and Bri was giving me a hard time about my insistence that we needed to take one—which explains my extra-big cheesy grin. He may have been a little grumpy about the picture, but he humored me anyway. I know he loves me!

ChatGPT for the win. It removed the shadows in seconds-sweet.

Brian has been working on this huge foldable table for his new CNC machine, and this month he finally got it finished enough to start putting the CNC to work. He is such a hard worker and can figure out how to build or fix just about anything. I’m glad he has hobbies and projects like this that he enjoys.

A practice piece

Cal is 6 months and adorable as ever. (He has pretty great parents too.) We are looking forward to Bryn and Cal visiting next month.

I bought two new swimsuits from Amazon and Tanner, Kaide and I have gone for a quick late afternoon swim at Grandpa Vore's a few times this month. Brian joined in one time as well. It's kind of ironic because we didn't do this once all summer. It's still plenty hot here, and it was nice to do something outside of my normal routine and with my (adult) boy.

Also, the Ector County Fair was in town, so I took Kaide for about an hour and a half. It was dollar day for the carnival rides, which was perfect. It was blazing hot (which was not so perfect), and everything was set up on the black asphalt, but we still had a fun time. We ran into Brit and the girls, and they were so cute with Kaide—going on some of the rides with him and watching and cheering him on for the ones he rode by himself.

I look forward to Sunday evenings when we have dinner and FHE with Tan, Erin & Kaide. Pretty soon this little family will be a family of four. 

They went on their first family vacation to Sea World last month, and Kaide has a great suggestion for his baby brother's name.

My nephew Kyle and his wife Sarah  had their first baby: Millie. 

It's seriously been so hot for so long. I've been trying to walk for about 10 minutes after meals to help with my insulin resistance. Don't worry, as of September 18th at 6:30 pm, we're only at 92 degrees. (insert eyeroll) Nevertheless, I've been faithful and my A1C has dropped a bit, so that is great news.

And since we are heading into a new season, I decided I wanted to come up with something different for our mantel. I took a picture and asked Chat, "what simple decorations can I add for fall?" 

Chat's suggestion:

What I found/bought/put up:

My fireplace is already pretty busy with all of the texture, plus I prefer simple. The lantern with the battery operated candle makes me happy. I am on the look our for some greenery to add a little softness to the lantern side. Overall, I love it.

Book club was in Midland this month at my friend Diana’s house. The book was good, although it wasn’t really one that led to a lot of deep discussion. Plus, only four of the seven ladies there had read it. We had lots of delicious treats, and I really enjoyed the drive there and back with my friend Debbie.

However, I think my book club days may be coming to an end. I gave it a go for a year, and while I really like the idea of being in a book club, I tend to leave feeling a little disappointed. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but I think I’d enjoy it more if our get-togethers focused just a little more on the actual book and discussing what we read. I’m glad I gave it a try, though, and I’ve enjoyed some good books and time with friends along the way.

My dad has been bringing the baby to church for my mom the past couple of weeks, and it's the sweetest thing. I wish I had a picture of he and my mom and the baby, but I don't. Here are some cute pictures from the past two Sundays.

Tanner & Gram

Hudson

Adam & Britney

Erin Noel

Also, this week Mom was DONE. Right before Sunday School ended (and before RS started), she was already headed outside. My dad was gathering up his supplies (he teaches said Sunday School class), and Mom pointed straight at the car and told me, “In there.” She isn’t able to say much anymore, so every once in a while when she manages to make it very clear exactly what she’s thinking, it’s pretty fun. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the keys, so I spent the next few minutes trying to convince her to stay in her wheelchair and wait just a little longer until Dad came out. She was definitely ready to go home!

Parker is always fitting fun adventures into his life. He and some friends went to the Tetons the week before BYUI started. They even saw a bear.

The first week of school there was a flash flood in Rexburg. Parker said it was a lot of fun--crazy college kids.

Here are a few pictures of my girl. Isn’t she beautiful? I love getting to talk to her each week and hearing about all the highs and lows, the friends she is teaching, and the good things she gets to be a part of in Argentina. I sure love her and love getting these little glimpses into her life there.

Love this one-it's so Aubrey

I got to pick Kaide up from preschool, which is close to my house. I carried his bike with me, and then we walked/rode home together. When our kids were young, we lived close enough to the elementary school that we could walk to and from school, and I always loved those days. It was sweet getting to do a little version of that again with Kaide. He was confused at first, but then pretty excited. He kept bringing it up to me throughout the week. I can't wait to try it again!

And there you have it—the first half of September. Lots of ordinary life, family time, a few fun outings, kids and grandkids near and far, and temperatures that still refuse to acknowledge that fall is coming. :) September has been good to us so far.