Spotlight 2020: Andrea

Andrea

2019

Highlights from 2019:

2019 was SUCH a wonderful, memorable year. We took our favorite cruise ever, visiting new countries that were beautiful and taking amazing excursions together.

We had both sets of grandparents, Grandma Cuca, Mark and Taylor and their kids, and Destiny all come out for Brandon's graduation. I loved having all that support.

We went to the Outer Banks with my parents, Cuca, and Mark's family. The road trip was phenomenal. Carson and Sydney joined us for part of it. We visited several national parks: Arches,
Sequoia, King's Canyon, and Yosemite. LOVE getting to explore this beautiful world with my kids.

We moved Brandon in to his apartment in St George and he started school at Dixie. He is working HARD and I'm happy to see that his transition to college has gone smoothly. I miss his quick wit, but get little tastes of it when we skype with him most Sunday nights.

Andrew got called to be the Stake President.

We've had some neat experiences with general authorities along with his new calling: Elders Whitney L. Clayton and Peter M. Johnson extended his call. We got to have two dinners with them and some special spirit-filled interviews with them. Soon after, we got to have lunch with Pres Eyring and Elder Gary E. Stevenson. I really do find joy in consecrating our time and energy to helping build the Lord's kingdom. But this calling is HARD for Andrew. There are some weeks that are fine and others that are emotionally and spiritually EXHAUSTING. We're both hoping it gets easier as time goes on.

*Something you're good at: Planning vacations.

*Something you're proud of: The hard workers that my kids are growing up to be

*Something you earned, won, or accomplished:

My 6.5 USTA combo team made it to states in Wilmington AGAIN. Woo hoo! We didn't do so well there, finishing second-to-last. :( But it's always fun having a weekend getaway with my tennis friends. My USTA record was not great this year, either. I went 6-4 in my 3.5 doubles. I went 1-4 in my 4.0 doubles. And I went 3-6 in singles play. 

My Gate City league went great, though. Adams Farm ended up winning the whole thing! We finished in first place out of 15 teams in our divisions. So cool! I was 13-3 throughout the year.

AND I won my fantasy football Super Bowl!!!

*Any other notable changes/events for 2019:
I had my second seminary graduate of my three-year tenure: Brandon made it! Yippee!
Caroline graduated from elementary school. It's weird to not have any kids at Pilot...
Whitney had to change dance studios since Miss Shelley moved. She's at Dance Center of Greensboro now.
I started volunteering with the New Arrivals Institute. It's an English school for immigrants and refugees. I volunteer once a week for 3 hours at a time. I LOVE it. The students are so fun to talk with and my worldview is expanding. I have friends from Yemen, Iraq, Mexico, Sudan... The world feels like it's getting smaller.

Hopes for 2020:
*That Andrew's calling will get easier as he adjusts to his new church responsibilities.
*That Brandon will keep his GPA above a 3.5 to keep his scholarship at Dixie.
*That we'll have a fun spring break trip to Universal Studios in Orlando. Especially looking forward to visiting the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Yay yay yay!
*That we'll have a fun summer. Not sure yet if we're going to road trip or not. Both girls want to go to church girls camp, which might mess up my plans...

Follow-up from last year's hopes:
*That Brandon adjusts well to living on his own and has good experiences at college.
Yes!

Love getting random pics like this one,

where he decided spur-of-the-moment

to run a 5k with a friend.

Or finding a pic of him on Dixie's Instagram page. :)

*The Andrew is able to finally get his shoulder pain resolved.
Nope... It has gotten better, but he still endures a low level of pain.

*Another Spring Break cruise--our last with B at home.
Yes! My favorite cruise ever!

*Road trip. Yes! It was amazing! Brandon chose to have us visit LA. We spent some time in Orange County with the Peo's. One day in downtown LA where he wanted to visit some fashion stores that he had never been to. And several days in the national parks there. It was new for us and oh so fun.

Hobbies: Tennis. Piano. Reading. Talking on the phone. Organizing lunches with girlfriends. Fantasy football. Walking.

Something you like about being a homemaker: Flexible schedule, especially to be able to serve.

Something you don't like about being a homemaker: Dishes.

A job you might want when you're older: Teaching English as a second language.


FAVORITES:

Restaurant: QDoba, US Sushi, Southern Roots

Sport:  Football to watch, tennis to play

Recent reads: A Spool of Blue Thread, Becoming Mrs. Lewis, The Printed Letter Bookshop

Candy or other treat: Gummies from Ikea's bulk candy selection

Color: Red, black, purple, turquoise

Animal: Baby monkeys or baby gorillas

Snack: Popcorn, Crackers with pepper jack and/or gouda, honeycrisp apples

TV show:  Survivor, Jeopardy, we recently started watching Lego Masters which we like

Place:  The beach and the temple

Season:  Spring

Meal:  Chicken and rice and beans with homemade tortillas

Song: Whitney singing "I Need Thee Every Hour" or "Silent Night"

Game:  Pandemic, Space Invaders, Coin Pushing

App: Words with Friends, Walmart Grocery App

RANDOM FACT: Andrew and I have a side hustle of being "advantage players" at arcades. We go on half-price Wednesdays, earn tons of tickets (mostly from playing Space Invaders), and buy Fire TV Sticks or video games that we sell on eBay. We've made over $500 so far! Cha ching!

Spotlight 2020: Andrew

Andrew

2019

Highlights from 2019:

*Going on our cruise

*Ordaining Brandon an Elder

*Many fun getaways with Andrea

*Having Brandon start college

*I dunked

*Getting called as stake president

Rough spots from 2019:

*Getting called as stake president
*Having my job change where I was taking on new responsibilities faster than I could offload my other responsibilities.
*Having to fly to work meetings in Bangkok instead of helping Brandon move in at Dixie State.

Something you're good at: Fantasy basketball

Something you're proud of: Our happy family life and watching Andrea and the kids succeed

Anything you earned, won, or accomplished: I won my fantasy basketball league. Earned a small promotion with my new responsibilities: Director of Human Resources--PSD, Global commercial, Innovations.

Any other notable changes/events for 2019: At work, I no longer lead total rewards, which I enjoyed. But I won't miss my evening calls with my teams in Hong Kong and India.
I began writing for At The Hive, SB Nation's Charlotte Hornets website.
My friend, Michael Aagard, moved, leaving me with no social life outside of my family.
I never fully recovered from my two shoulder surgery in 2018 and still deal with pain.

Hopes for 2020:
*Good health
*Panthers make the playoffs
*Lakers win the title

Follow-up from 2018's hopes:
That my shoulder surgery is successful.
*Nope.
That I win my fantasy basketball league.
*Yep.
That the Panthers make at least the divisional round of the playoffs.
*Nope.
That BYU football isn't so awful that it makes me want to burn all my hats and shirts.
*Nope.
That my job at work of leading compensation and benefits is something I enjoy.
*Yes.


Something you like about your job: The flexibility of working from home.

Something you don't like about your job: Working with global teams means the work never stops.

A job you might want when you're older: Writing about the NFL, NBA, and fantasy basketball.

FAVORITES:

Restaurant:  The Deck House

Sport:  Football

Recent reads: Saints: Volume 1. Truman. I rarely rest books anymore.

Candy or other treat:  Peanut Butter and Chocolate Ice Cream, especially from Baskin-Robbins

Color:  Blue

Movie:  A Christmas Story

Animal:  Cat

Snack:  Spicy Nacho Doritos

TV show:  Survivor

Place:  The Caribbean

Season:  Fall

Meal:  Hawaiian haystacks

Game:  Pandemic with Andrea

RANDOM FACT: I put my milk in the freezer for about ten minutes before I drink it.

Spotlight 2020: Whitney

Whitney Amelia

Tell us some of your favorite memories from 2019:

*Being in A Christmas Carol. That was super fun.

*Having more of my church friends go to Penn Griffin, riding the bus together and carpooling.

*Driving has been fun.

Something you're good at: sight reading music

Something you're proud of: Going to Honors Chorus

Something you learned this past year: Always signal before you brake.

Favorite recent reads: The Uglies series

What did you earn, win, or accomplish this year? I kept a 4.0 GPA at school. Getting roles in Shrek and A Christmas Carol.

Any other changes or events from 2019?  Going on a spring break cruise.

What do you like about being 15 years old?  I can drive. I can go to dances.

Who are your closest friends? Joya, Skylar, Ember, Ivy, Mallory

How would your friends describe you? Hard working. Kindly blunt. Happy. Perfectionist. Calm. A nice, loving and intelligent young lady with a caring and funny personality but knows when to tolerate different things and is someone with a soul that shows that God is in your life.

Something in 2020 that...

*you wish you were better at: sports

*you wish you could buy: some really good markers

*you hope you can learn: US History

*you are looking forward to: YASE

*Goals for 2020: Keep up my good grades. Get a job. Keep being awesome.

Hobbies: Playing piano, reading, drawing, Minecraft

Something you like about school: Chorus

Something you don't like about school: Mean people

A job you might want when you're older: Dental hygienist

A pet you wish your mom would let you have: Chinchilla

Some important things you do: Homework

Things you collect: Key chains and glass bottles

What do you like to spend your money on? Peppermint stuff and presents for my friends

What are your favorite ways to spend your free time? Making music and sleeping


FAVORITES:

Restaurant: Subway

Sport: I hate all sports

Book: Pretties

Candy or other treat: Peppermints

Color: Teal

Movie: National Treasure

App: Idle Super Market Tycoon

Animal: Pheasant

Snack: Almonds

Show: Avatar, the Last Airbender

Place: My bedroom

Season: Spring

Meal: Haystacks

Song: You've Got a Friend by Carole King, People from Funny Girl

Game: Werewolf

RANDOM FACT: As of right now, I have a 50 day streak on Duolingo

Anything else? This year, I got to see My Fair Lady, Sound of Music, Anastasia, Aladdin, and Cinderella.

Spotlight 2020: Caroline

Caroline Rose

Tell us some of your favorite memories from 2019:

*Holding a sloth

*Holding a sea turtle

*Yosemite

Something you're good at: rock climbing

Something you're proud of: A honor roll for the whole year

Something you learned this past year: How to hold a sloth

Favorite recent reads: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

What did you earn, win, or accomplish this year?  A honor roll the entire year. I took fourth place in regionals and 9th place in divisionals for bouldering. I made All-County Chorus.

Any other changes or events from 2019? I finished elementary school and started middle school. Brandon moved out. No more rock climbing and more volleyball.

What do you like about being 11 years old? I have my own room.

Who are your closest friends? Sarah Geraldi, Alexis Gray, Ka'Loni Whitehead, and Shreya Acharya

How would your friends describe you? Smart and kind.

Something in 2020 that...

*you wish you were better at: Overhand serving in volleyball

*you wish you could buy: A cat

*you hope you can learn: Pre-algebra or algebra

*you are looking forward to: Volleyball season starting again.

*Goals for 2020: Learn how to type.

Hobbies: Minecraft, youtube

Something you like about school: Most of my friends are in my class

Something you don't like about school: The learning aspect of it

A job you might want when you're older: Lawyer or therapist

A pet you wish your mom would let you have: Cat or dog or hamster

Things you collect: Harry Potter merchandise

What do you like to spend your money on? Food, candy, and Harry Potter merchandise

What are your favorite ways to spend your free time? Playing and watching Minecraft


FAVORITES:

Restaurant: Chick-fil-a, McDonalds, and Panda Express

Sport: Volleyball

Book: Any in the Harry Potter series

Candy or other treat: Haribo gummies, ice cream (esp. mint, neopolitan, and anything chocolatey)

Color: Teal

Movie: Any in the Harry Potter series

App: Probably messages

Animal: Sloth, llama, or cat

Snack: Cheez-its, carrot chips, or popcorn

Show: Survivor, Lego Masters, America's Got Talent, Mineclash, One Life, Dogcraft

Place: Wherever the nearest cat it

Season: Fall

Meal: Japanese

Song: We've Gotta Go Save the Dogs Today by Stacyplays

Game: Minecraft

RANDOM FACT:  I pack my lunch every night before I go to sleep.

What January Looked Like

Care Bear went to the trampoline park with Finley.

They had a great time.

Comfort food

aka Chicken pot pie

I got a sneak peek at Whitney's tap class.

She gets to do some partnering.

Quality time with my fave toddler twins

My friend, Julie, invited me to play in a member-guest

tournament with her. It was indoors at Piedmont. 

It was so much fun.

I love playing with Julie.

She is a super consistent teammate

and lets me go for everything at the net.

She's a member at The Cardinal,

where I have lots of friends,

so we had a great time visiting

in between matches.

AND we ended up winning our bracket!

I left with lots of great prizes!

Great way to spend a cold Sat night.

Caroline is having a great time in YW.

They got to do cake decorating for one of

her first activities. She nailed it. :)

PGSA winter concert

Caroline somehow ended up being her class representative

for the school spelling bee. After her experience in fourth grade,

she told me she never wanted to do another spelling bee.

She invited me to come watch.

It was a very casual affair around a table in the media center.

Even though she didn't spend any time studying,

she did well, taking fourth place.

She was the last girl standing.

She hated it, though.

Too much pressure.

Temple date night!

Love it!

In January, we always do a service project in 

honor of Wyatt. This would have been his 13th birthday.

We actually picked two this year.

Caroline's school is collecting items

for foster families.

They had a wish list. 

The four of us got to go shopping together and fill

our cart with items for the foster families.

Then on MLK day, the girls and I went to 

an elementary school in High Point to 

help assemble new classroom furniture.

There was a BIG turnout,

so the work went by fast.

Afterward we met friends at another trampoline park. 

Splits across america!

Piece of cake for this climber

Fun, fun, fun

The girls actually had a four day weekend,

also having the day AFTER MLK day off.

I wanted to go on a road trip,

but my homebody girls wanted to stay home.

We had a great time.

The US Figure Skating Championships were in town!

Lucky!

The early sessions have very affordable tickets.

We got to watch the Junior Pairs.

It was fantastic.

They had a Fanfest downstairs that was free.

We were some of the only people down there.

It was so cool!

Fun photo opps

We got to help color a giant mural.

 Bouncy slides.

They also had a little bounce house,

free popcorn and drinks, free video games,

and there you could watch the skaters at the

practice arena.

So happy we could be part of this event!

Young Women's basketball has started!

Whitney isn't playing this year,

but Caroline invited KK, so the two of them are playing. 

They are both so LITTLE compared to some of 

the YW. But they seem to be having fun out there!

Grateful to the Greenwoods for coaching.

Whitney got to cash in on her Christmas gift--

tickets to watch My Fair Lady down in Charlotte. 

We stopped for a yummy dinner at Panera.

Also had time to do some shopping before the show.

Overall, the show was REALLY good.

So many familiar songs.

And the sets were cool,

done in a vanishing perspective.

There was just one scene

(Eliza's Dad's bachelor party),

where they took some liberties and

made it skankier than the movie.

I could've done without that.

Great actors. Great voices.

Love going to shows with my girl!

Shelley's mom passed away this month.

It has been devastating.

My heart breaks for Shelley, Shannon, and their Dad.

I decided to go down to Orlando for the funeral. 

Stayed the night with Marianne on the way down.

Their home and the stake center are right across from

the Orlando Temple. Got to spend some time on those

beautiful temple grounds.

The first night we were there happened to be R's birthday. 

I'm glad it gave us a reason to celebrate.

During the viewing, Kelly (who ALSO came down from NC)

and I watched the kids. 

We did a photo shoot and walked around the temple.

It's easy to feel helpless when you're friends

are going through tragedies.

I was so happy we could help in this small way.

The funeral itself was really nice.

Their friends from Tucson flew out

to be the speakers.

Being with family during the hard times is helpful.

Friends forever.

After the funeral, I helped get things cleaned up,

but then felt like I should let the family be together. 

So I headed to Disney Springs and walked around.

Also decided to head to Universal CityWalk

 while I was in town.

The next day I hit Cafe Rio on my way out of town. 

Yummy, yummy, yummy.

It was a super quick trip, but I was so happy I could

be with Shelley. And I'm grateful that Andrew could

take care of the girls while I was gone. It was not an easy 

weekend to be away. Whitney had Wingate, an overnight

field trip. So he had to drive to Wingate, back home to get

Caroline after school, back to Wingate to stay the night.

Watched her perform on Sat afternoon, then drive BACK home.

What a great husband and dad!