Servant of God: July 2024 – A Mix of Emotions...!

July was a busy month with lots of emotions. A lot of the month I was busy working on the house. German was working on another job for a couple weeks which gave me time to clean and organize so he could continue onto the next section of the remodel. I also helped with a couple interviews at work since we needed to hire more cert teachers. Thankfully, we had quite a few good cert candidates that applied, and we were able to fill the spots quickly.

Matthew helped out with the youth service project by doing night security at the firework stand. One of the nights his numbers started dropping, so I had to race out and bring him some sugar to get them back up. Cooper joined him for a couple nights to keep him company. On the last night, I decided to surprise him and bring him out dessert and visit for awhile since I was so busy during the day that I didn’t see him at all.

Enjoying apple and caramel treats...

Bringing Matthew sugars to raise his numbers...

Surprise treat for Matthew...

Of course, we went over to Mariah’s parents for the annual 4^th of July party. The weather did not disappoint and was sunny and hot like usual. I brought my mate and enjoyed watching the Argentina game during the first half of the party. Afterwards, we enjoyed hanging out with everyone and watching the firework show.

Enjoying the game with Mariah...

Toasting the 4th of July...

Argentina wins in penalty shootout...!

Ready to light it up...

Matthew's favorite Holiday!

Cooper joined us this year...

Enjoying the firework show...!

Caught Mariah in action...

Fun decorations...

I was able to sneak away from the crazy busyness of it all by helping Brooke out after her surgery. It was a lot of fun to visit with her and just relax for awhile while she took a nap. Unfortunately, it never fails that once my body relaxed, I ended up getting sick. So, I spent the next couple days sick and then passed it on to Matthew.

Since construction was on pause for a couple of weeks, Alyssa and the twins were able to come over and visit more often. It was a lot of fun having them over and getting the twins more comfortable with being at our house. I know that once they get into a routine and the house is not under construction, they will settle right in. I love all the hugs and snuggles I get with them being at the house. It was the first time, that Alyssa was able to celebrate her dad’s birthday with us so that was an extra special treat for Cooper. He too is loving the time with his grandchildren and daughter.

Christopher

Amelia

Twins riding on the lawn mower...

Matthew and Amelia..

Shane and Christopher...

Celebrating Cooper's Birthday!

Amelia putting on make-up!

Posing with the twins...

Matthew in his bee suit...

Amelia and Christopher loved it!

Showing off the bees...

Another special treat was having Keila send a message that she was in town and wanted to stop by to visit. Thankfully, we were home, and we were able to show off the updates on the house. Seth came along with her, so we had a nice long with the two of them in Mom and Dad’s home before they headed off to see more family. Unfortunately, Matthew was still under the weather and didn’t get to spend any time with them.

Keila & Seth with Aliya & Karen...

Keila & Seth out for a visit...

German invited us over to his house for some Argentine food to watch the Copa America final game. The game was delayed when fans started breaking into the stadium, leaving people with tickets outside not being able to enter. It was a good game between Argentina and Colombia and stayed close until the very end… thankfully Argentina pulled out a win in overtime.

Vamos Argentina...!

A yummy Argentine Asado...!

Watching the final game...

Goooooooool...

Di Maria leaving as he retires...

Argentina won two years in a row!

On the way home from the game we picked Cooper up to come stay with us. The day before, his dad had called us needing help with some electrical work and wanting some spaghetti. I got all the supplies out to make him a batch of spaghetti and asked my dad to help him out with the electrical work. Then around 4:30 am we got another call from him, but he hung up after saying Matthew’s name. Matthew called back and he sounded confused and didn’t know who Matthew was or why he was calling. We assumed he called in his sleep. The next morning, I was uneasy about the call still so Matthew tried calling and it went straight to voicemail. We started to get more concerned. Shortly afterwards, we got a call from his good friend Dean, who found Dail trapped on the floor halfway out his front door. He immediately called the medics. It didn’t take long to determine he had a stroke. Our hearts were crushed as we had to make the phone calls to Cooper and Alyssa. Unfortunately, it was a massive stroke and the doctors said he was not going to recover. It reminds you how fragile life is…. We went from preparing to make him spaghetti to Matthew and Cooper going to the hospital every day as they prepared for the call that he had passed away. Thankfully, Alyssa was able to take the twins to meet their great grandfather for the first time… since he always cancelled whenever she tried to bring them in the past. I was able to snatch some sweet pictures at the hospital and say goodbye myself… promising to take good care of Cooper for him. Cooper was able to stay with us for the week until we got the call a week later that he passed away in his sleep.

His last request...

Meeting Great Grandpa Dail...

Fascinated by the lights...

Alyssa spending time with her Grandpa...

Cooper telling his Dad he loves him...

Rest in Peace... we love you Dail.

Matthew and Cooper went to the hospital one last time to say goodbye and then got up in the morning to serve at the youth fundraiser at the church. To be honest, I’m not sure how they did it… I was holding back tears myself all day. It is amazing how many details you have to take care of after someone dies… how one does it while grieving is beyond me.

Needed extra time with God...

Just when you think that you have had enough of an emotional rollercoaster… Matthew got a text that a truck similar to his was in… so he went to go take a look at it. The truck he ordered was not supposed to arrive until October. This one was an upgrade as it had the Bison package added. I knew that when he left, that he would be coming home with his dream truck… and he did. After waiting almost 7 months… Matthew finally has his new truck… and it came just in time for our trip to Montana. A couple days before we left for Montana, I asked him if he thought we should still go with everything going on and his answer was, “YES, we both need a break…” Matthew knows me so well… the only way to get me to rest was to get me away from the house. Of course, he spent the next couple days showing it off to everyone. I even got to drive it to my appointment and show it off too. I have to agree with him… it is a very nice truck.