What a long and busy week it has been. It was mostly long because I was sick for most of it, so I didn’t have a lot of energy, and everything seemed to take longer than it should have. I am finally starting to feel a little better. It was nothing serious, but it was an annoying cold and cough that just lingered on and on. I am going to blame it on all of the little Kindergarteners that cough on me daily. To make matters worse, as soon as I started feeling better, I got a huge cold sore. 2 weeks of sickness followed by 2 weeks of embarrassment... lovely.
Jonathon flew out to Denver on Tuesday to speak at the American Society for Human Genetics Conference. Nanopore (the company that Jonathon uses for his sequencing) had a booth there, and Wasatch BioLabs now has a partnership with them. He presented all of their newest research, and it was all very well received. People were really excited about it, so Jonathon was really happy. It was a fast trip, and he was home by late Wednesday night. He felt it was definitely worth the trip to get the word out about their company. Apparently, several people there had already heard about Wasatch BioLabs, so that is exciting since they are still so new! We will see what happens over the next few months, but it is good news so far.
On Wednesday, our YW group held a “Friendsgiving Dinner.” Kim Bennett, my second counselor, decorated the room so beautifully! I was shocked when I walked in and saw it. She had fancy place settings, candles, garland, fall leaves, and even decorations hanging from the ceiling. I am so grateful that she took care of all the details because physically I just couldn't do it justice. Connor Bennett cooked the turkey, and then each of the girls brought a side dish or dessert to share. It was delicious and fun! We ate, talked, and laughed for an hour and a half. It was a great night, and I think the girls enjoyed it too. Activities like that are my favorite because it helps me get to know the girls better.
Grandma Ogborn turned 84 years old on Saturday. Aunt Diane flew her and Hayden to Utah to celebrate with a big family party. Hannah and Jake decided that it was much closer to come to Utah than to try to go visit in California, so they made the trip down on Friday and stayed with us through Sunday. It was so fun to have them here. Alan loves Andrew so much. He spent the whole trip following him around and asking him to play dinosaurs or jump on the trampoline. Andrew was a good sport about it (most of the time!). Poor Owen wasn’t feeling well the whole trip. They were initially worried about an ear infection, but it seems like it just might be that he is teething. He was up several times throughout the night and had a fever off and on. Hannah and Jake were pretty tired, but they seemed happy to be here.
On Saturday, I went with Hannah, Jake, and their boys to visit with Grandma during the afternoon. The actual party didn’t start until 7:00 pm, so Hannah was worried about the boys needing to go to bed. I think it was a wise decision to go early. We spent about an hour at Aunt Diane’s house catching up with everybody. Grandma seemed like she was really enjoying the trip and was happy to see Alan and Owen. It was nice to be able to chat in a smaller group than at the party later that night.
After the visit, we headed home for some games (Rook and Decrypto) and dinner before our family and Hannah headed over to the party. It was held at the church and many people came to see and celebrate Grandma. All of Aunt Diane’s family was there, along with Uncle Corwin, Aunt Peggy and some of their girls, Uncle Brian, Cosette, Uncle Geoff and Aunt Holly, Jaqueline’s family, Leah, Hayden, and a few others. They had cake and other desserts and a photo area set up for pictures with Grandma. We showed the birthday video, and it was well received. I ended up putting all the pictures to a song called “Thank You.” I think it turned out really nice. I tried to make sure that every member of the Ogborn family was included.
When the party was over, we went home to watch the BYU vs Utah football game (nicknamed The Holy War). It was the wildest, most improbable ending I have seen in a very long time. The game itself wasn’t very good. Utah’s defense was excellent, so our offense never really got into a groove. At the same time, Utah started a brand new quarterback, so we weren’t really prepared. They scored three times in the 2nd quarter and led 21-10 at halftime. It was really a downer because Utah isn’t very good this season and to have them upset us and ruin our perfect season would have been devastating. In the 2nd half, we figured out how to stop their offense, but we didn’t score much still. With 90 seconds left in the game, we were still down 21-19. We were backed up at our own 5 yard line, and their defense was killing us. On 4th and 10, they sacked Retzlaff in the end zone, and we all thought the game was over. Then the Refs called a holding penalty on Utah and gave us a first down. It technically was a hold, but it was pretty minor, so Utah fans were pretty ticked that it was called. We then had one minute left in the game and no timeouts from our own 19 yard line. Through a couple of amazing plays, Retzlaff got us down into field goal range, and Will Ferrin kicked a perfect field goal to win the game 22-21. We honestly could not believe we won. It seemed so unimaginable, but that really describes our whole season. Utah was really upset (understandably), but we were ecstatic. We were jumping around and screaming (as quietly as possible so we didn’t Hannah's kids) in the living room at midnight. There may have even been a group hug involved because we were so happy! To put it in my teenager's lingo, it was a SICK ending. It will be a good memory for years to come! BYU is now ranked #6 in the country at 9-0! Go Cougs!
Although we were thrilled with the win, it was unfortunate that the ending was controversial because it garnered all the attention. The Utah athletic director went to the press conference afterward and ranted about the game being stolen by the refs and how they didn't want to be in the Big 12 any more. It was frustrating that he took everything away from the amazing things BYU was able to accomplish for the miracle win and instead put it all on the refs. It was a really bad look for Utah and their fans. Not only that, but their fans were throwing trash on the field and a water bottle hit a BYU cheerleading coach and knocked her unconscious. If the situation were reversed, I'm sure BYU fans would have been upset as well, but I hope that we would have behaved better. The rivalry is intense, but I am sad that it was taken to an extreme.
On Sunday, we had the Primary Program. It was the last one for Hyrum. I can’t believe he will be a Deacon in January. It is definitely the end of an era for our family, but he is ready to learn and grow in the YM program. Hyrum had a short part that he delivered with confidence. He also sang all the songs and did a great job being a good example for the younger kids. The Primary sounded really good, and there were a few funny moments (like always) to make us smile.
I taught the YW lesson this week. It was hard to prepare because we had so much going on and company staying with us, but I did the best I could. Andrew had to teach the YM (Teachers and Priests) this week too, so we did a 2 for 1, and I helped him prepare as well. Luckily, the lesson was on one of my favorite subjects, miracles, so I ended up having plenty of material, and the lesson went well. I was so happy that it worked out how I hoped, even though I didn’t have a lot of opportunity to prepare. I started by showing pictures of miracles from the Old and New Testament, and then I asked, “Have miracles ceased?” I testified to them that miracles still happen and told them the story of Grandpa Christensen giving Matt's bloated steer that was near death a priesthood blessing and it living. Then I read them the quote by President Nelson that said that we will see greater manifestations of God’s power between now and the 2nd coming than at any time on the earth and that there will be mighty miracles. We then jumped into the scriptures and talked about Mormon chapters 7-9 and the various things he teaches about miracles. My favorite part of the lesson was when the Young Women got a chance to talk about the miracles they have seen in their lives. I know that when we have faith and look for the hand of God in our lives, we will see him there. I have experienced so many miracles, big and small, and studying these chapters made me realize how important it is to recognize and record them in our daily lives.
The scriptures teach that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Mormon 9:19 says, "And if there were miracles wrought then, why has God ceased to be a God of miracles and yet be an unchangeable Being? And behold, I say unto you he changeth not; if so he would cease to be God; and he ceaseth not to be God, and is a God of miracles.” I love that the concept is so logically written by Mormon. It just makes so much sense! I know that we can pray for and expect miracles as we follow the commandments, have faith in Jesus Christ, and strive to do our best. Sunday was a great ending to a long week.
