BEST YEAR EVER! Well….the parade that is. The rest was a bit rough. We stayed at the Sheraton because the Hyatt has decided not to open their club again. We are so bummed! The Sheraton is a beautiful hotel, but the food in the club isn’t quite as good or as varied. We got a late start and almost weren’t able to park. Carlie and kids also wanted to come see Halle, and they got downtown even later and had to park like a mile away. It was stressful.
We hit up the Giving Machines, which we always love. But everything was rushed. We ate a quick dinner of Fettuccini and cheese and crackers and then made our way to our spot. There were vendors selling light up flyers that used a rubber band to fling into the sky and then they would spin down. The kids were having the best time flinging and chasing. While rusty was buying the fliers another lady was trying to get one for her kids but her Venmo wasn’t working. Rusty bought it for her and she was so cute and grateful. She made each of the kids come and shake his hand. The weather was spectacular this year! Luke got so hot running around he decided to take his shirt off.
I was so excited to see Halle I could hardly stand it! I’d make a couple of light-up signs for her and we were loud and proud as CSU went marching by. She blew us all a kiss. We cheered for Cam the Ram, and flashed our Rams hand sign. I realized we would be on the wrong side of the street to see her, so I booked it to the other side for some pics Then I had a great time chasing the band through the rest of the parade route so I could get more pics and videos.
How fun and how special to have Halle participate in the parade. Her first parade was when she was probably 4 or 5 years old and I think we’ve only missed one or two since. My mama heart was bursting with pride–it was just magic.
Then, reality. People were in a grumpy mood and Sarah wouldn’t let Max and Blake hang out, which made Blake really mad. There was A LOT of tension going on. I think we were all relieved when it was bedtime. I was sharing a bed with Jane and at about 2:30am I woke to barfing sounds. Jane was leaning over the side of the bed puking her guts out.
We called the front desk who informed us they have no overnight housekeeping and our only option was to switch rooms. So, that’s what we did! We packed up all our stuff and moved down the hall.
Rowberry’s woke up super early to get to church to see Elder Soares, who was speaking to our Stake in a special Stake Conference. It’s not everyday an apostle comes to visit! They made a mad rush because they really wanted good seats. We were excited for Elder Soares, but were content with sitting in the back, so we had breakfast and then hit the road. Sarah saved good seats for us–we were not expecting that! It was so nice! We felt a little guilty that we had done none of the hard work, and still got to reap the rewards.
Elder Soares taught us about the blessings of being covenant keepers. He said it is vital that we feel the love of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. That love helps us move forward in our challenges and is one of the greatest joys in life.
He said covenant keepers are entitled to a special kid of rest. We can be at peace, even in complex circumstances. There is an extra measure of love and mercy.
He promised, in the name of Jesus Christ, that in one way or another, the Lord will protect us in the difficult circumstances in our life when we do our part. We will have a feeling of confidence in our heart. We will have the power to move forward.
Since we were all so rushed and leaving at different times, we didn’t get our annual Christmas Tree pic, so we took a photo after church so we could always remember this special day.
