Zachary

My brother is so amazing and this post is dedicated to him. Last week was a big week for Zack! On Tuesday and Wednesday he competed in the Southern California Championship Decathlon. This meet determined the top competitors in Southern California who would go on to compete in the state championships. For those who don't know what a decathlon is, it is 10 track and field events over then span of 2 days: 100 M, long jump, shot put, high jump, 400 M, 110 M high hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin, and 1500 M. The top 6 competitors qualified to go on to State, and guess what? My studly brother made it! He took 6th place and will go on to the state championships! I'm so pround of him. It was SOOOOO close... in fact, it came down to the last event, and if there had been just a couple more seconds between Zack and the 7th place guy in that last race, he would have been pushed out of 6th place. Talk about nerve wracking!

Then on Thursday, He got a very special letter in the mail. My baby brother, my little Zacky-Poo, has been called to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in the Mexico Merida Mission, will be learning Spanish, and will report to the Missionary Training Center on September 1. I am more proud of him than words can express. Serving a mission is not an easy thing - leaving your home and family for 2 years to go to a country you don't know and speak a foreign language with only 12 or so weeks of preparation... I'm not sure I would have the strength to do that. He is so excited to serve the Lord and the people of Mexico. Zachary has grown up to be such an incredible young man. He is smart, funny, athletic, and most importantly, has a testimony that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer and he is eager to share that testimony as a missionary.

I don't have any pictures of Zack opening his mission call, because the little butthead couldn't wait and opened it without me... So you'll just have to settle for these pictures I took at his decathlon.

Pole Vault

Long Jump

I believe this is the 100 M

Javelin

110 M High Hurdles

High Jump