2021 Spring Newsletter: Salt Lake City

Walk outside. Do you smell that? Fresh-cut grass, turned-over dirt, worn leather, peanuts… It’s baseball season! The most wonderful time of the year! 

As you all know, sports looked quite different in 2020. The Major League Baseball season was shorter than usual and didn’t start on time. The same thing happened with my son’s baseball season, but we were happy we eventually got to play a few games last summer. 

I am one of the coaches for my son, Michael’s, baseball team. I couldn’t enjoy it more. I’m truly fortunate to have a child who loves the game of baseball as much as I do (well, almost as much). Our team played in a tournament in St. George, Utah in March, which unfortunately got cut short due to a “this never happens” snowstorm. We got a few games in before the snow. And now we look ahead to a “normal” start to the season in April. Michael is also playing soccer. Games have already begun (yes, it’s been cold). And when Michael is not swinging a bat or running out on the pitch, he can be found playing basketball with his buddies. All sports, all day, every day.

Our daughter, Coraline, is finishing up her first year of middle school and her first year of cheerleading. Unfortunately/fortunately she is one of the smallest girls on the cheer team, so she is a “flyer” – yes, one of the girls who gets tossed up in the air. It makes our hearts stop each time, but she absolutely loves cheer and all that it has to offer – especially the tumbling and tossing. Many of the events the girls cheer at were cancelled or limited this year, so she hasn’t been able to perform as often as she would have liked. But it has still been a fun learning experience, and we’re looking forward to a more “normal” season next year.

Yes, baseball is my first love, and I’m quite excited for the upcoming season. But something even more exciting has happened: My wife, Erika, and I received our COVID-19 vaccinations! It’s hard to believe that just one year from the start of the pandemic and lockdowns and masks we have a vaccine to keep us safe. Science is utterly amazing. Our kids have decided we should have a “Vaccine Party” once our entire family is protected. Sounds like a plan.

At this time last year there was no way of knowing how 2020 would end up, or how different life would still be in 2021. Some of the “normals” we grew accustomed to in the past may never return. That’s okay. We are embracing life and its challenges as they come. And, as we do, we are grateful for our continued health, our family, and our enduring spirit. Looking back on the past 12 months it’s hard to believe we made it – but we did. And we are stronger for it. Thank you for trusting Elevated Retirement Group in the good times, the bad times, and the crazy pandemic times too. Together we look forward to brighter days ahead.