August 2025

 New Venture! We had spent lots of 2024 and all of 2025 up to this point just trying to figure things out professionally/financially. We built out more dog kennels to board more dogs, Richie washed windows, he helped move pianos for a guy in our ward, he helped hang blinds for a lady, I was still trying to sell soap, I was still pushing the basket business, I was flipping furniture.... 

A few months earlier, we came up with a more long term game plan. We would keep boarding dogs, I would open a preschool in our home, and Richie would become a Chaplain in the National Guard. We were moving forward on those plans in earnest when Brett Bowman, Richie's next door neighbor growing up and friend, called him with an opportunity. Brett and his family now live in Meridian and we'd connected a few times since moving here. Brett is a serial entrepreneur and wanted to buy a restoration company franchise called "RestoPros", but he needed someone to be his right hand man. Enter Richie.  He gave us his best offer and laid out responsibilities etc, and then we had to make a tough choice. Both professional paths came with pros and cons. We fasted and prayed and ultimately felt like going with Restopros was a safer bet and simplified things a lot. So Richie became the head of sales (and jack of all trades) for RestoPros in the treasure valley.

I write all this down not because it's fun to relive the professional roller coaster that had been our lives since 2020, or admit so many "failures", but because all of this is part of our family's history. And if our kids ever come and re-read this section as adults, I want them to know 2 things. One: Their parents were willing to do literally anything to provide for them because we love them so much. Two: If they ever find themselves in a similar situation, I want them to know that they'll make it. They have the grit and creativity to weather the storm. Things will work out.

Davy's friend Theron was going to be one of my preschool students. I had told his mom Stephanie all about it, and she was planning on it. When we decided not to do the preschool, I felt awful to throw a wrench in their plans. Instead, we decided Theron would come over one day a week and hang with us. :) It worked out great. 

Another year of football for Miles! Only this year, he could drive himself to all the 2-a-days! :) This year, he was on JV and got a lot of playing time. 

For our ward youth conference this year, they had an epic trip! They went up to North Idaho and rode the Trail of the Haiwatha and went to Silverwood! This is the only pic I have of proof! They were also able to do baptisms at the Columbia River, Washington temple. They had such a blast!! 

Really most of the rest of August is self explanatory. The garden was huge and amazing this year and we were getting ready for school to start.