Newly Baptized And A New Year.

Preston bravely reentered the world of the living by taking me to the adult new years dinner / dance.  Dinner was Tri tip and he "couldn't" dance.  We left early after one line dance for me. Which very few participated in. Ugg I needed my sisters.  It was quite the dilemma when to have Maces baptism.  oh you could do it on your birthday?  No thats my birthday.  On Carson's Birthday?  No that's his day!  Christmas Eve would be special? Isn't that Jesus Birthday?  Ok New years Eve?  Yes then Everyone could celebrate with me.   Perfect!!!  And it kind of was.  Mace Mcky Kelly was baptised by his father Preston in the Wendell Stake Building December 31st at 5 pm.  We had lots of family and friends. Proctors and McPhauls joined Via Zoom. His video was set to the music my cousin Ethan did as a restoration project in college. Malena was my technology specialist. when she turned on the TV it immediately started playing.  I was helping the boys get dressed so I didn't get to see it. I was a little disappointed but it was alright. It ended just as we came out so no long awkward wait time. We gathered back at our house for games. food. family and fun the rest of the night.  Brooke brought a "friend" with 3 little girls. They fit right in- pink fohawk and all.  Marc had his camper to escape too. No fights or yelling.   Hattie tried to strangle herself on the xbox cord and pulled down the projector.  that was the only real drama.  Mid-night was met with noise makers, whistles, sparkling cider, and cheers.  I have a good feeling about this year. 

2023 world happenings (not that we heard about them.  If it wasn't on tick tock or facebook or your hometown chances are it went largely unnoticed.  Technologically connected...emotionally distant.)

Jan- A mass shooting occurs inside a house in Enoch, Utah.  Father shoots mother in law, wife and hunts down five children (4-17), then himself.  Cristiano Ronaldo joins Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr for the “biggest salary ever in football”173 mill.  72 year-old gunman shoots and kills eleven people, injuring nine, at dance studio in Monterey Park, California. 

Feb- At age 45, Tom Brady, regarded as the greatest NFL quarterback of all time, announces his re-retirement after a 23 year career and a record 7 Super Bowl titles.   Powerful earthquakes strike Turkey and Syria, first 7.8 magnitude & second 7.5 magnitude  Death toll 59,000 in Turkey, 8,000 Syria.  LeBron James scores 38 points to become NBA's all-time leading scorer surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's 38,387 career points. Rihanna performs half-time at the Super Bowl, in her first live performance in six years in Glendale, Arizona --three months prego.

March- 171 trillion pieces of plastic now litter the world's oceans. Russia begins major missile attack on Ukrainian cities and their infrastructure. Utah is the first state to limit social media for minors. Supercell storm produces powerful EF-4 tornado in the Mississippi Delta, which stays on the ground for more than an hour and over 170 miles, killing 26 people.   Female shooter kills three children and three adults at private Christian school Convent Elementary, in Nashville, Tennessee.  This is19th US school shooting in three months. 

April- Footage of deepest living fish ever recorded, the snailfish found at depth of 27,349 feet (8,336 meters) in the Izu-Ogasawara Trench, .  Myanmar military kill at least 133 civilians, including children, in an airstrike on Kanbalu township in an area not under control of the military.  Tucker Carlson, Fox News most popular prime-time host, is fired from the cable network. Japanese M1 spacecraft crashes on the moon, in its attempt to become the first privately-owned spacecraft to land on the Moon US President Joe Biden announces his bid for a second term saying he has a “job to finish” Elon Musk's SpaceX launches its first test flight of Starship. The device explodes shortly after launch.

May- While Bill Gates pushes for AI advancements Geoffrey Hinton 'the Godfather of AI" resigns from Google to speak out about the dangers of AI - eliminating jobs and creating a world where many may “not be able to know what is true anymore”   Coronation of King Chares III and Queen Camilla at Westminster Abbey, London - first monarch crowned in the UK in 70 years.  Death toll from flash floods and landslides in Kalehe, Congo, passes 400. First children born in the UK with DNA from three people, using mitochondrial replacement therapy (MRT) - in attempt to prevent baby from inheriting mitochondrial DNA mutations.  Second strongest storm on record in the North Indian Ocean Cyclone Mocha makes landfall on Rakhine coast- 400 killed.  Martha Stewart is Sports Illustrated oldest-ever cover model at 81, appearing as part of its swimsuit issue.  Man with paralysis walks naturally for the first time in 12 years after a Swiss team created a neurological link between the brain and spinal cord.  Surgeons complete world's first whole eyeball transplant with a partial facial transplant,

June- UK's Prince Harry published his memoir "Spare". He is the first senior royal to testify in court in 130 years, accusing Mirror Group Newspapers of hacking his emails.   Debris field found for missing Titan submersible with all five on board believed dead after it suffered "catastrophic implosion" near wreck of the Titanic.  South Koreans become a year or two younger as country drops two traditional age-counting systems to align with international standards (used to be aged one at birth)  Fort Bragg, originally named for Confederate General Braxton Bragg, is renamed Fort Liberty

July- Hottest global temperature ever recorded as average global temperature tops 17.18 degrees Celsius. City of Phoenix, Arizona breaks a five decade heat record recording 31 consecutive days of temperature at or above 110°F.  Wildfire season in British Columbia becomes the most destructive on record, burning 14,100 square kilometers of land. India bans export of non-basmati rice, raising prospect of global price rises

Aug- Wildfires on Hawaiian Island of Maui kill at least 97 and destroy historic town of Lahaina. 24-hour approval granted to two rival robotaxi services in San Francisco - Cruise (General Motors) and Waymo (Google).  US 30-year fixed mortgage rate rises above 7% for the first time in 21 years. Gymnast Simone Biles (26) wins her record 8th US Championship

Sep- Collapse of two dams after heavy rain from Storm Daniel leaves over 4,000 dead and 8,000 missing.  Rise in overdose deaths from fentanyl laced stimulants mark the "fourth wave" of the overdose crisis in the US.  MSG Sphere Las Vegas with its 15,000-square-metre wrap-around screen opens with a concert by band U2.  The national debt rises to $33 trillion.

Oct- World record set for heaviest pumpkin, a jack-o’-lantern gourd weighing 2,749 pounds, grown by Travis Gienger from Anoka, Minnesota - enough for 687 pies. Wild beavers re-introduced to Ealing, London, from Scotland after being absence from the city for 400 years. Annular solar eclipse a 'ring of fire' visible across parts of the US, Mexico and South and Central America.  Kevin McCarthy is ousted as Speaker of the House, marking the first removal of a speaker by a vote in the House.

Nov-  Cherelle Parker (51) is elected 100th Mayor of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - first woman and first Black woman mayor

Dec - Taylor Swift is named Time's Person of the Year. New report reveals homelessness in the US increased by 12%, with more than 650,000 people experiencing homeless.

Cards and Brags

    LFO could write my Christmas Card this year. “Life is good, Life is great, Life is unbelievable, Life is hard, Life is cruel, Life is so beautiful, Life is unbelievable”
    Katana 12 – At Girls Camp she got a wedge of wood under her toe and ended up loosing her big toe nail. She stays busy with Drama Club. They did Sound of Music and are working on Frozen Jr. She is getting really good on the clarinet. She has an entrepreneurial spirit selling little slime cups, homemade scrunchies and candy from her backpack.
    Axel 10- Continues to excel academically. He helped me butcher our goat. Then proceeded to tan the hide. Grandpa Calvin helped him turn it into a “hair on” toiletry bag, wallet and knife holder.
    Mace 7 or 8 - (birthday is Dec. 2nd) He will be baptized new years eve 2023. It's a celebration after all. He had a great time in sports (soccer and basketball) Medically it was a bit intense. He had bouts of unexplained nystagmus, dizziness, nausea, & stomach issues. He had some dental work and his Tonsils / Adenoids removed. After several trips to the Pediatrician, ENT, eye doctor and a brain scan they all said “We'll see?”
    Zara 4 – started the year by getting 8 caps on her teeth all at once. She learned to ride a bike. Started Preschool with MOM. Dyed her hair royal red for the summer. She begged for a short hair cut cuz she hates brushing it.
    I (Sierra) started and finished my fall quilts before fall even started. I had so much fun with them. #1-multi-sized pinwheel pattern in denim #2- A Puzzle Piece pattern quilt. I got an industrial size popcorn machine for my birthday and Lasik eye surgery for the rest of the gift holidays.
    Preston has had a banner year for medical too. We finally got him on a Cpap machine so I (Sierra) can sleep. His thyroid was way off too. He got a nail avulsion, 2 precancerous moles removed, Tonsils, Adenoids and Septoplasty.
More news:
Pip the chocolate chip Shipoo was added to the mix. Got our well fixed and their truck burst into flames in our yard. We had no water to help put it out. It was exciting. We bought a bus. The Green Machine--Epic memories await. We bought 2 new mini ponies & had 2 colts from last years mares. Two family reunions back to back. A few river trips. “Fake fishing” at the hatchery. Went rappelling with cousins. Preston took Zara tandem style. I didn't look. Drove to Nevada for totality of the Ring of Fire Eclipse. Celestial phenomenons are must sees.
----Keep Swimming Ya'll

Since we were all together at church today (woot woot), we decided to snap a pic. And since we didn’t

send out Christmas cards this year (bah)— here are some of our highlights this year.Brody got his undergrad degree in Health Care Admin. He’s managing a disability clinic in IF. He has a bajillion friends and we love to be around him!

BreAnn and Cameron gave us our greatest obsession - grandson Dayton Wylie. Bran graduated in Psychology and Child Development and is such a natural at being a mommy. Cam is a rock star hubby and daddy and will be finishing his degree in Computer Science next year.
Brinley finished her mission in Denmark and went back to continue her studies at BYU Provo. She is studying neuroscience (which I’m not sure I can even spell correctly….) We love to see her on breaks!
Bridger is a high school senior and super passionate about climbing, swing dancing, and hanging out with friends. After graduation, he plans to get in a couple semesters of college and then going on a mission. He is so lovely to be around.
Evan and I still really dig each other. We all enjoy off-roading every chance we get…in the Jeep, the UTVs or the motorbikes.
Most importantly, we are so grateful for this time to focus on the Savior — His birth and His life. We hope you all have a blessed and joyful Christmas season