Thursday, February 8, 2024
Despite the challenges of yesterday, we woke up at a good hour and got a good start in the day. Betty was working on salsas, and I’ve been working on figuring out how we can stay warmer and dryer on these hikes.
One specific revelation to me was waterproof socks. I didn’t know such a thing existed, but apparently they do. And if Amazon Reviews and YouTube videos are to be believed, they actually work!
The problem is that they are pretty expensive, and we have already spent so much on gear.
After dropping the kids off at seminary, Betty, River, Ian, and I went to run some errands. One of our stops was Runner’s Corner in Orem by Costco. I love that place, and our family has been buying shoes from them for decades. We went there because we were looking for some sandals for Betty -- and because she needed a potty stop ;)
After just poking around for a while, we were just about to leave when I saw a clearance rack, and lo and behold: waterproof socks for 60% off! They had enough pairs to cover River, Betty, Ian, Alicia, and Anahi. That leaves only Kimball and me. It was such a tender mercy and made me feel like God continues to watch out for us.
After that we picked up the kids from seminary, and we all went out to the outlets at Traverse Mountain to grab a few more pieces of gear -- especially some good warm clothes for Betty. If she can stay warm on this trip, we will all be so much happier. While Betty and I looked for clothes for her, the kids goofed around in other stores.
Finally, this good day was topped off with a dinner visit from Carlos and Reyna Aburto and their daughter. They have been our dear friends since we were first married, and it was awesome to just catch up. The kids were especially thrilled because Reyna is a bit of a hero for them. They have seen her general conference talks and her YouTube interviews many times. And the Aburto’s had great stories about their world travels while Reyna was in the general relief society presidency, and the experiences she has had working in the highest councils of the church. But more than any of that, it was just great to be with our friends again. We love them so much, and we’ve been through a lot together.
Oh, and they might know of someone we can stay with in Paris. I told them we’ve had a hard time lining things up, and Reyna encouraged us to just reach out to church leaders to see if they can help us find people to stay with. We will try it out to see.