The Move to Yellow and My Birthday!

It has now been two full months of quarantine and corona craziness. I know this because the state officially shut down right before Jonathon's birthday on March 16th, and they are opening up right after my birthday, which was May16th. This week, in the state of Utah, we are moving from orange (moderate risk) to yellow (low risk). The government is still recommending that everyone wear masks in public and that we social distance, but they are allowing gatherings of 50 people, allowing pools to open, starting up group sports again, and some other things. It feels like progress is being made, but we still have so far to go.

It is also interesting to note that the number of covid-19 cases in Utah has not decreased. In fact, the numbers have increased since the beginning of the month when we moved to orange. This change to a lower risk level just means that Utah still has plenty of hospital space available and corona patients aren't overwhelming the system. That was the original goal, even though some people have taken it to the extreme and don't want to open until the virus is gone (which is unlikely to ever happen). Our governor feels like it is important to get the economy up and moving again, and hopefully we can maintain a low death rate from this aggravating disease.

Amidst all the world chaos, I turned 37 years old on Saturday. It is funny because I thought I was 37 for the whole last year. My kids had to correct me a few months ago, but I still get mixed up when people ask me. That is a sure sign that I am getting old! I actually don't mind getting older very much. After some of the things I have been through, I am happy to age and get to spend these lovely years with my children. I think that I have grown in a lot of ways and am a better and wiser person now than when I was younger. I guess the wrinkles are worth all the blessings.

On the Friday before my birthday, Jonathon came home from work a bit early, which was so nice since he has been working late a lot. At around 4:45 someone knocked on the door. I figured it was just Hyrum trying to get in because he had been messing around outside. I sent one of the boys to get the door, and to my surprise, Turin Olson, walked in. I was pretty much in shock. Soon their whole family filtered in. They had come to surprise me for my birthday! Since Michelle and Jared are some of my favorite people in the whole world, I was so happy, and I was truly surprised! It doesn't happen very often that I don't suspect something is going on, so I have to give Jonathon a lot of credit for keeping his mouth shut.

We went for a walk down the river trail and chatted for a while. Then we went out to eat. That was trickier than it should have been because of coronavirus. All of the restaurants were still closed for sit-down dining, so we had to settle on take out. We got the kids pizza and the adults got Zupas. We took our food to LaVell Edwards stadium and ate on the lawn. It was actually really fun. The kids rolled down the hill, the adults talked, and it was so nice to be around friends again after so much isolation. When we were done eating, a fellow pulled up in a little cart and asked if we would like any cougar tails (HUGE maple bars). BYU made a whole bunch for a big event and had leftovers. They ended up giving us five of the mammoth donuts for free. We split them up amongst everyone (Jonathon and I held strong and passed on the goodness) and still had tons of donuts left to take home. The kids were beyond thrilled! The whole evening was exactly what I needed. I felt very loved and special that my friends would take the time to drive down to see me. It was definitely balm for my weary soul.

Crazy for donuts

The whole gang

The next day, Joe and Kym's family came to visit to help me celebrate some more. We went on a little hike and picnic up by Bridal Veil Falls in Provo Canyon. The weather was lovely, and it was nice to get outside. Everyone else was feeling the same way, however, so it was a bit crowded. We tried to keep our 6 feet distance though and had a good time.

We went home and put the little girls to bed so that the adults could go out to lunch. It is a tradition that we go to Tucanos (Brazilian churrasco) with Joe and Kym for our birthdays, and we found out that it had just opened back up. Yay! It was a bit different than usual to meet all the covid-19 guidelines, but I actually really enjoyed the new format. Instead of having a salad bar and bringing the yummy meats around to all the guests, you just got to order a bunch of items, and they would bring them to the table and serve them family style. It was delicious and really fun. That night we played games and chatted. On Sunday, we did church together again (which has been one of the most memorable things about quarantine!) and then celebrated my birthday with a yummy keto cake and ice cream. It was so delish! And bonus... it totally reminded me of melting cake from a carnival cruise. It was hard to believe it was keto because it tasted so amazing. I was so grateful that they were there to celebrate my birthday.

It has been the weirdest year I have ever lived through, but my birthday reminded me that the most important things in life are family and the people that you love and care about. We probably are going to be dealing with this virus for a long time, but hopefully, 37 will be a good year for me and our family.