April 12 and before

Today I went to church by myself for the first time since I came here.  Nathan was there when I got there so I sat by him. Sacrament was about what we can do to prepare again for conference and how we can implement the teachings of the Gospel in our lives.  I had read a talk this morning about how to get the music of the Gospel in my life from Conference that meant a lot to me and one of the speakers talked about how much that meant to them also

BJ and Cieli

 I had offered to teach primary for Ginger Forbes. She had to leave quickly because her father was ill.  I was teaching the 6-7years old.  The lesson was about being grateful for the things our parents have taught us and about the importance of teaching the Gospel to our children.  We played a game where I read a poem and they had to put their hands on their heads when I said heaven or home.  Then they wanted to do it again and they climbed on their chairs and jumped off when I said heaven and home.  I turned around and the primary counselor was there inside the door.  I asked her if she needed anything and she said she was just worried that the kids were out of control.  I told her no.  So I got in trouble again for my desire to let kids be kids.

Cieli topping the scale at 8.79 lbs.

Holly and Cieli

Nathan decided that he wanted to move out this weekend earlier in the week but the Bishop talked him into waiting until next week to get everyone from the ward to help him.  But he decided to move down to the apartment on Wednesday.  He bought him a bed and then he has been staying in his apartment since then.  His housekeeper Honey Bishop has been driving him and helping him with the kids on Thursdays.  It has been hard because he is acting like a teenager.  He wants out and so he does not tell us much about what is going on.  Honey came to me today and said that he had asked her to stay for the weekend to help with the kids as he has them next Friday but she told him she could not do that and she talked to the Bishop about getting someone from the Priesthood to help him so I guess that we do not get to help with the kids next Friday for the weekend.

Larry was not home from John and Judy's yet when I got home so I ate and then listened to some Conference talks and said some prayers.  I had just started the blog when Larry got home.  We basically ate and then read and said prayers after that and went to bed.  After a while I got up for something and Marcy called to talk because she was driving back from Cedar City and needed someone to help her stay awake.  We talked for a long time.  Finally at about 12:00 a.m. our time she stopped to get some gas and things so we decided I needed to go to bed.  She texted me later and told me she was glad I was her Mother in law.  I am glad she is my daughter-in-law we are on the same wave length.

Back to earlier in the month.  BJ and Holly welcomed their first child on Tuesday the 31st of March.  They named her Cieli (pronounced Chay-lee) Rose Christiansen.  Cieli is the Italian word for heaven.  She weighed 8 lbs and 7 oz. and she is a cute chunky healthy baby.  She is 21 inches long so she is tall like all of our babies.  Holly's Mom was able to go and help for a while.  I really wish we were closer but we will see her soon I suppose.  BJ was able to get some good pictures of her that they have sent by text and posted on Facebook so that helps.

Nathan with the Texas team ready to ski

Nathan started the Winter Sports Clinic on Tuesday.  Marcy sent a picture of him all bundled up ready to ski.  Apparently even though this is a Wounded Warriors Clinic they did not get a motel room that is handicapped so they are having some interesting moments trying to get Nathan in the bathroom and showered.  He seems to like the sports though even though he is not smiling in the picture.  I am glad that Marcy could go with him and help him.

View from temple hill

We had a regular office day but we went to the Temple on Tuesday night so that was a fulfilling evening.  I took some pictures of the city from the temple.  They are not professional but it show how the temple is on a hill.

Maggie in the baby pool

Wednesday I received my supply order for the mission and felt like it was a miracle.  I had forgotten how late it was getting while taking time off to help Nathan with the kids and shopping for ski clothes and forgot to order the supplies for MLC until last Thursday.  I ordered them and then was worried that they would not come in in time to get the orders together because it usually takes 10 working days to get an order here.  But it came in less than 5 days because of prayer and that gave me time to work on it on Wednesday and Thursday.

David trying to convince Isaac and Sammy the water was warm

Wednesday night we took the little kids to McDonalds after picking them up from school.  The boys all had Scouts and Sara picked up David and then she took Maggie and we went to the Family History Center while they were in Scouts.  Sammy had a fun time because they made Flash lights out of toilet paper rolls and some wiring to teach them the principles of electricity.

Thursday I spent all day filling orders for MLC so that I could be finished so that I could take the kids on Friday because they were out of school for Good Friday.  I worked hard and was able to get it done before we left but I was frustrated because the other half of my Book of Mormon order had not arrived and I had had to deny several zones their Book of Mormons that they ordered.  And they were not small orders.  Several boxes each.

Enjoying the water

We got the kids Thursday night later because Sara wanted to dye Easter Eggs with them before they came because they would be there all weekend for Easter and Maren was coming from North Carolina so we were planning on rolling Easter Eggs with her.  That was good she wanted more time because we needed to get some groceries for the kids and we went to get some dinner.

Friday Larry went to the office and I stayed home with the kids.  We did a lot of fun things.  Maggie organized her brothers in the morning into having a picnic on the floor of the apartment.  I was impressed with how she was able to figure out what they were going to eat and play while they did it.  We also went swimming that day in the apartment's outdoor pool.  It was quite warm that day in the 80's but then it cooled down when Maren came.

Maggie's picnic on the floor

Larry called from the office and the Book of Mormons had come in that morning so he and the Williams's got my orders and filled the Book of Mormon orders that I thought I was not going to have and got them to the Stone Oak Chapel before the Leaders left.  It was a true miracle that week how the Lord made it possible for them to have their supplies despite my inadequacies.  I was also glad that Larry would worry about it and help me get it done.

Maggie, David, Brinlie, Gauge and Ellie

Guage, Sammy, Ellie, Isaac and Max

Maren did not come in on Friday night as we thought she would.  They finally made it about 2:00 p.m. in the afternoon Saturday.  I had told them to get a hotel by the airport and so they were only about 10 minutes from us.  We had made arrangements to go to the Riverwalk and have a boat tour by our Bishop here in Texas.  Bishop Alonzo is one of the tour guides for the Boats.  We got there and it took about a half hour to get on his boat but it was a fun tour and Bishop got to meet Maren and her family because there was no church on Easter Weekend because of Conference.  He also did it for free because he can have a certain number of family and friends for free each month.  I thought that was a warm gesture on his part as we did not ask for free.

Bishop Alonzo driving his boat

Larry and June in the River Boat

We tried to get in a couple of restaurants on the Riverwalk but most of them were a two hour wait with it being Easter Weekend.  It was crowded and in the excitement to see Maren I had forgot to take my pain pill so I was not having a good time.  I mention to Landon that we could go somewhere else to eat if he didn't care and he said that all he wanted to have while he was in Texas was some good Texas Barbecue.  I remembered that Blanco Barbecue where we get the barbecue for the incoming missionaries had a playground and good barbecue so we decided to go there.  I was amazed because they do have good barbecue and Landon wanted us to send him some of the sauce they make, but most of the kids ordered the kids meal of chicken tenders and they were huge.  Six inches long.  Hand battered on fresh not frozen chicken.  They were so good that Larry and I have since gone back to get just that.  The kids had a good time and for the most part so did the adults.  They even had a small mini zoo for the night.

Maren, David, Gauge, and Nathan looking at mini zoo

Sunday we had planned to roll Easter Eggs before 11:00 a.m. Conference but we ended up watching the first session and then going to roll the eggs in between.  There is a small dam by our apartment that has worked good last year so we went there.  Nathan had also had me get some Mexican Cascarones which are confetti eggs from a lady in Woodlake ward that was making them essentially for free.  They also had a good time breaking those on each other and Landon's family has a tradition called red eggs where they each take a red egg and take turns cracking them with each other until only one person has an uncracked egg.  We tried to combine all of those and we had a good time.

Landon, Maren, Max and Brinlie at Blanco BBQ

Nathan,  Isaac and David.  See Chicken tenders on left

We went back and had lunch and then tried to watch Conference in the afternoon but I did not get much out of it because I was being a Martha and trying to help those who were there to have a good time.  I have since been listening to them online and having a great experience.  We are so blessed with the communication that we now have that makes it possible to listen to the talks immediately online after conference.  They also had them out within a few days in written form to be read as you listen.

Maggie, David, Gauge, Ellie, Max, Brinlie rolling Easter Eggs

Sara let the kids play a little longer and then Maren and Landon took Nathan's kids home for him and we tended their kids because there is only room for 6 in the van besides Nathan.  I had a good time playing legos with Ellie.  And Max was trying to play something with me too. I was surprized that he knew me so well.  Brinlie and Gauge were busy with their tablets.  I can not believe how much each of them has grown since I was with them for Brinlie's baptism.

It was funny because I thought that Maggie would be so happy to see Ellie and play with her but she was so jealous of sharing her Grandparents and toys and such that it made it hard for Ellie.  I am sure she will grow out of it.  But one time Ellie said, You don't have to be so rude."

David, Brinlie and Maren rolling eggs

Larry, Landon, David, Issac, Gauge, Maggie and Ellie

When they first came Maren and Landon thought that they would not be able to stay after Monday but then Landon's parents wanted them to go to California on their way home so they were able to stay and go to the zoo in San Antonio while Larry and I worked.  Then we met them at the Riverwalk and ate at the Hard Rock Cafe.  Nathan said he was tired from his trip so we bought him some food and took it home. It was fun to have that extra time with them.  They had parked by the Alamo so they went to the Alamo after dinner but Larry and I went home and took Nathan his food and went to bed.

Tuesday I finally talked Maren and Landon into coming by the office to see where we work.  Luckily the President was there because they were working on transfers that week so he was able to meet them. I say that because he is seldom in the office.  It was fun to show off my children and grandchildren.  Maren and Landon left shortly after that.

Brinlie showing her egg.  See the Texas Blue Bonnets growing here

David wearing his Easter Bucket

Nathan bought a bed for his apartment in Converse on Tuesday.  He came back to the apartment that night late on Via Trans.  He asked us to take him to the Church on Wednesday but because we have been banned from driving his van I asked him how we were supposed to do that.  In the past when he has banned me from driving I have talked Larry into driving for him so we could get where we needed to go but this time he refused and I appreciated the support.  So Nathan transferred his meeting to his apartment.  He has not come back to the apartment since then except to move his things with his housekeeper.  He wrote to our Mission President and told him he was done with us and the Mission President and the Bishop each said that perhaps we needed to give him some space.  He has been quite creative in his ways of getting things done without us and I am proud of him actually.  It is too bad that we have to have a fight to help him progress.  He has had his housekeeper take him on Thursdays to get the kids and she apparently also brings him food sometimes.  He had the ward help him find someone  in the Priesthood to stay with him and the kids this weekend while it was his turn to have the kids.

Maggie in her new Easter Dress

David playing with balloons from Blanco BBQ

I decided to go to Time out for Women that is presented by Deseret Book on the 10th and the 11th.  One of the ladies in our Woodlake ward had a ticket to sell so I decided to try it.  I just went by myself.  It started on Friday night and then was most of the day on Saturday.  Larry decided to go visit John and Judy while I was gone and Nathan was staying at his apartment so I had our apartment to myself and I would be lying if I said I did not like it.  I was processing how I felt about Nathan's sudden move and Larry's attitude to it and it gave me time to think.

Lego Frozen Castle the kids got for Easter. Notice the confetti from the eggs

Ellie, Brinlie, and Gauge at Hard Rock Cafe

On Saturday I met some of the ladies from Woodlake ward and sat with them.  It was fun to be with them and they gave me some support.  The talks were inspiring and the music also but I have decided that Time out for Women is a big marketing campaign for Deseret Book and some of their colleagues.  I bought two copies of Meet the Mormons and an entire outfit from Sweet Salt then the next day I bought two more books.  And that was me trying to be conservative!!  I texted Larry and told him to transfer some money and he was cute and just said "Done, I love you!"

Saturday evening I went and bought some food so we would have food for Sunday and  basically ate and went to bed.  I slept for 12 hours and felt like I needed it.

Time out for Women blow up of Stage to the left

One of the singers from the group Gentri that reminded me of Nathan and Dr. Who with the bow tie and checkered suit

June in the blouse and sweater from Sweet Salt.  I seem to be able to catch every wrinkle with selfie pictures

March 30 and before

Today was a normal Monday minus having Nathan with us.  Nathan is in Colorado with a VA Sports clinic for Wounded Warriors.  Marcy is with him and it sounds like they are having a good time.  Today they got a tour of Aspen, Colorado.

Taylor's new hair cut

We got up and read our scriptures and prayed and then exercised and ate breakfast and then showered and got ready to go.  Larry had to get a car going to Walnut Creek that needed to be transported there and he needed to pick one up at Benson Chevrolet that had been fixed.  Then we were off to Weight Watchers.  I lost 2.8 lbs and Larry stayed the same so at least he didn't gain.  We went grocery shopping for food for the office and then back to the office.

David and Maggie at Blue and Gold

The assistants were on the computers until almost 1:00 p.m.  We had devotional with the Williams and then began to try to work.  I went in and worked on updating the transfer board or the "war board"  and Larry was doing something but I do not know what.  Finally I went in and was able to work on my computer and I have a pattern I go through.  I read the Outlook email and then the LDSmail.net email and then the Referral secretary email.  I try to do the things that need done in each so that I don't have to go back to them.  Then I start working on referrals.  I finished all the referrals I had except for those with bad addresses last Friday so today I only had about 10 to send out.  Then I go to Baptisms and Confirmations.  I spent the rest of the day typing those today.  I was able to get in 16 that I submitted to the Convert Data Entry system this afternoon.  Sometimes if I have other things to do I will only spend a limited time on Referrals and Baptisms and spend the afternoon on what ever it is like supply orders and the board and name tag orders or Stake and Weekly reports that need to be entered.  I also have some paperwork to do for the new missionaries coming in that needs to be recorded so we know what kind of bike they are bringing and if they have in all their driving papers so they can drive when they come.

Larry at Ruby Tuesday's

Tonight we ate at Arby's and came home and read some things for Family Home Evening and then read our scriptures and now I am attempting to complete something on the blog.

BJ texted about 2:40 p.m that they had admitted Holly to the hospital and that they might have a baby today.  I am anxiously awaiting hearing the results on their little girl and Holly.

Marcy sent some pictures of she and Nathan from Colorado so I will try to include those.

Boxes Nathan bought to move to his apartment

Last Monday followed a similar schedule except that Larry and I slept in because I was up so late doing the blog.  Also Nathan wanted me to take him to a store in San Antonio that advertized that they had Ski Clothes and that we had visited the week before and they were not there and said that they would be back on Monday.  They were not.

Tuesday we went into the office and worked in the Morning.

Sara had asked us to take the kids overnight on Tuesday and take them to school on Wednesday morning and pick them up from school.  She thought she might come and pick them up Wednesday night late but we offered to have the kids on Wednesday night also and take them to school on Thursday morning because it was going to be 11:00 p.m. before the competition her High School Drama kids were in was finished.  She eventually took us up on that.

Sammy at Blue and Gold

Nathan asked me to come home about 2:00 p.m. and get him lunch and then we went to try to see if we could get ski clothes again.  This time they had a sign on the door that said that they were closed until Sept. 2015 and to call if you wanted some help.  Nathan called the number but they never answered and he finally decided that maybe Marcy could get him some clothes easier in Utah or on her way to Colorado so that is what they did.

Nathan went with me to get the kids after that.  We usually pick up Isaac and Sammy and then go to Maggie's preschool and then go to Randolph Air Force Base where David attends school.  On a good day it takes a half hour to drive down there and an hour to go to all the schools and then a half hour to drive back.  We got to San Antonio about 5:00 p.m. I think.

Nathan at Ruby Tuesday's

The Blue and Gold Banquet was going to be the next day and so Nathan wanted to go to the Scout office to get a uniform for Sammy so he would have one as he is now a new Cub Scout.  It is not to far from where we live and so we took all the kids to the office and went to get that.  Of course we saw other things to get so it took until about 6:00 p.m.

Tuesday night we just helped the kids make sure that they had their homework and got dinner and into bed by 9:00 p.m.  I bought the kids a book called "All about Scabs" from Usborne books and I think that Maggie has had me read that for a bedtime story every night since we had them.

Wednesday morning Nathan was disappointed because David did not have his military ID so that meant that he had to come with me to get me on base.  He was not happy because he bought the kids wallets to keep them in and told them to carry it at all times.  We had to get up at 5:30 a.m. to get ready in time.  I was hoping to leave at 6:30 a.m. but it was 6:50 a.m. before we got away and so I was really worried that Isaac and Sammy would be late for school.  Luckily in the morning the traffic is not so busy that direction and so we were able to make it by 7:20 a.m and they had 10 minutes to spare.  So every one made it on time.  We got home about 9:00 a.m. after dropping off the other two.

Marcy's son Kilor showing off his completion

Wednesday afternoon we thought that we would be okay if we left a 4:30 p.m. to get everyone picked up and get to the church by 6:30 p.m. but we were wrong.  We just barely picked up David at 6:30 p.m. and it takes 20 minutes to get to the church from the base.  We ended up being 20 minutes late and most of the ceremonies were completed when we got there.  It was really embarrassing.  I guess we have to plan to leave at 3:30 p.m. for something like that.  It is so frustrating how the traffic is at that time of night.

Thursday morning I thought I had my alarm set but when Nathan got up at 6:00 a.m. I looked at my phone and realized that somehow my phone had been changed to only ring every other day.  Larry got up to help me that day and he cooked breakfast while I got ready.  We got out the door by the 6:50 a.m. but it was a scamper to do so.  We got everyone to school on time but basically just a few minutes later than the day before.

Marcy and Nathan in Colorado

Driving back Nathan and I got in a fight because he was so rude to me in front of the kids and he told me I could not drive his van anymore because he thinks I am a bad driver so Larry said he would not drive for him either because he was backing me up.  So he talked his housekeeper into driving him to get the kids that night and being with him.  Larry and I went to eat at Joe's Crabshack to help me calm down and then we took a lanyard that Isaac wanted for school to Sara while the kids were with Nathan.  Nathan stayed at his apartment he rented in Converse that night, even though it has no furniture,and his housekeeper brought him home on Friday after we went to the office.  I was heartbroken but I was also aware that Nathan has to become independent sometime and I guess that he is doing that now.

Nathan riding the gondola

Friday after lunch I went home and helped Nathan pack.  He was leaving the next day for Colorado.  We also made him some lunch.  Larry decided if he wasn't going to let us drive that we would go to visit John and Judy Friday night instead of Saturday afternoon so we got packed up and left on Friday.  I had the moving Elder check on Nathan in the morning to see if he needed anything but he said that he had someone to take him to the airport.

Nathan's first night in Colorado

Saturday I was emotionally exhausted and ended up sleeping for part of the afternoon.  When I woke up Judy and I went and met John and Larry at a restaurant in the area and we had a great mid afternoon dinner for a couple of hours.

Sunday John was really sick so he and Judy stayed home while we went to church.  He wasn't feeling much better when we returned.  I was worried about him.  We had a quick lunch with some of his good Texas Chili (no beans) and then we came back to the apartment

March 22 and before

Nathan and Marcy in Galvaston going 

swimming

Today was a normal Sunday in most instances. Nathan got up at 6:00 a.m. as usual.  Larry and I arose at 7:00 a.m. after reading scriptures and saying prayers we got in the shower.  Nathan got in just before us.  The kids started getting up while we were in the shower.  Nathan has the kids help him dress on the weekends when they are here even though he can dress himself.  I guess because he wants them to have an opportunity to serve someone and to understand what he is going through. 

David taken by Issac in car

We have breakfast together.  Larry had bought them bacon for breakfast yesterday so that was a hit.  He had also bought doughnuts on Saturday and we had some left so we had doughnuts and bacon for breakfast with chocolate milk.  Some weekends it is just cereal. I have given up trying to be nutritious.

Then we start to get ready for church.  Normally I have to find the clothes for at least two of the kids even though there are only two places they could be.  Maggie doesn't like to have her hair combed by me so I let her brush it and if she wants a pony tail then I try to put that in without brushing which is tricky.  By the time we get everyone ready to go it is often past time to be at church but today we were lucky and made it early.

Isaac love taking pictures of himself

We didn't take any electronics in the car and the kids were moaning about not having anything to do.  Our trip to church is about 20-25 minutes from our apartment.  I suggested that we play the alphabet game where you find the alphabet on the signs and license plates.  They said that they had never played it before so we tried it and they loved it.  It was the best ride we have had to church in a long time and they wanted to play it on the way back.

It was Ward Conference today so all the Stake leaders were there to meet with us.  The Bishop talked about enduring hardships and the Stake President talked about how to increase our love for and help to the inactive people in the ward and strengthen our weaknesses in doing so.  I didn't get to hear all of it because Maggie had to go to the restroom.  I was also frustrated because they were on one today.  Maggie felt like she had to talk to Isaac and Isaac would talk back to her.  Then after David got there from passing the sacrament he talked to Isaac and played games on paper with him and after asking them about 20 times to be quiet I was very discouraged.  I took things to write on and Friends and New Era's to read but they just could not be quiet.  I feel like I am making the matter worse by reminding them but I don't know what to do.  Any ideas would be welcome.

Maggie opening the ramp for her Daddy

On a brighter note Sammy sat on the stand with the Bishopric because he just got baptized and he was quiet the whole meeting sitting by Jason Christensen who gave him something to draw with.  So at least I could praise him when we were driving home.

We do not have Sunday dinners anymore.  We have food the kids like and we fix them what they want cafeteria style.  Isaac had a peanut butter sandwich and chocolate milk, David had two hot dogs and chocolate milk.  Maggie and Sammy had popcorn and Chocolate milk.  Later they had smores for dessert.  We also had watermelon in an attempt to get some fruits in the meal.

Maggie so proud of herself

We usually do some kind of activity after lunch.  Today Nathan asked the kids to color on the white socs, the VA gave him, some kind of design so they would not be white and boring.  They did a pretty good job of making them the same and coming up with creative designs.  Then David devised a way for the kids to play marbles and saved the day when they were getting restless.  The only calamity in that was Sammy got out first and he cries like he has been mortally hurt when something like that happens.  After that Nathan put on the movie Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea"  and they started to watch that.  Larry and I went into our bedroom and took a nap at that point.

I woke up to Maggie tapping me and quietly asking me to make her some hot chocolate milk.  She had to tap for quite a long time.  I finally got up and made her some milk and then she wanted a s'more.  I asked if others wanted one and Sammy and David wanted one. So I made them one and then Maggie wanted another.  About this time I noticed it was 5:25 p.m. and we were supposed to have the kids home by 6:00 p.m. So we all got up and scrambled to get ready, but the kids were late.  I guess we will have to set a timer.  Sara was good about it though.

This week was a busy week with Nathan.  Luckily it was not so busy at the Mission Office.

Monday we went to Weight Watchers and it was not a good week.  We both gained some weight.  We went to the Grocery Store and got some 0 point foods to have at the office so we could be better.  Then we went to the office.

Sister Williams was gone all this week tending her grandkids in Houston as her daughter and husband are moving to Vermont and they had to go look for a house.  Luckily it has been very quiet.  Part of that is because Sister Williams is so bubbly and talkative and the other reason is because it was Zone Conferences and we did not have to go but the Assistants and Leaders were there so we did not get as many phone calls.  I worked most of the week trying to get caught up on Baptism and Confirmation Records and the Referrals.  A lot of the referrals that I have to get in are the ones that have bad addresses that I have to call to get their address and that can be an interesting experience sometimes.

Larry is working on getting old cars ready to be sold.  He has 8 right now that he needs to get ready for transport.  He also had an accident in Leon Valley that was pretty bad.  No one was hurt bad but the car was totaled.  Then later in the week he had a car towed for supposedly parking in the wrong place.  He was really worried that he was going to have to go to Austin to get the car but this time they were not so picky as the last time and they took the paperwork the Elders had. 

Monday I went home about 2:00 p.m. and got Nathan some lunch and then we went to take Issac to get a military ID as he needed it now he is 10 to get to the doctors on base.  We picked up him and Sammy about 3:00 p.m. from school and then went to Fort Sam.  Nathan had an appointment so it did not take long to get the ID.  Then we went to the PX and got him a wallet and a wallet with a hook for his ID so he would not loose it.  While we were there Nathan decided to buy them some summer clothes for the apartment.  Then we went to eat at the food court in the PX and had a relaxing dinner with just the two boys.  They had Pizza and I had a salad.  We looked around some more and then we drove the boys home.  By now it was about 6:30 p.m. but Sara was not home because of play practices she was having this week and so we waited for a few minutes and Kenneth came home and so we were able to drop the kids off.  I was surprised that Kenneth was there during the week.  Larry was surprised that we were so late when we got home.  I should have called or texted him.

Tuesday I went to the office in the morning and then I had to leave about 11:30 a.m to go and get Nathan to take him to an apartment walk through.  He was wanting to make sure all the things that he noticed on the first walk through had been completed.  He also had Ken Jackson and Teresa Johnson from the ward there as backup in case he got upset.  When I got home he did not want to eat lunch then so we left and got there about 12:30 p.m.  He called the others and had them meet him early so he could explain what he wanted them there for.  The walk through went well.  They had done a lot of work to get the paint job improved and things cleaned up that had not been done before.  Teresa and Ken were able to help him see this and so there were only a few things that still needed to be done.

After the apartment walk through we went to Chick-fil-A for lunch at about 3:00 p.m. Then I took Nathan home and I went to the office for about an hour.

The necklace Maren gave me went perfect with this dress

The third Tuesday is our ward temple night.  We had dinner and then got ready to go.  It was raining so it was a wet night.  Nathan had to wash the wheels on his wheelchair before he could go in.  We went to the 8:00 p.m. session so it was late getting out.  By the time we got to bed it was 11:30 p.m. so I set our alarm for 7:00 a.m. instead of 6:00.

Wednesday we worked at the office during the day.  Then we had to go and get the boys for Scouts.  Sammy being baptized is now old enough to be a Cub Scout.  Sara was doing play practice so she wanted us to get David and the little boys and she had Kenneth get Maggie.  We left the office at 3:30 p.m as it takes so long to get anywhere that time of day but the traffic was not bad and so we had time to eat at 5:00 p.m.  Nathan asked the kids where they wanted to eat and he didn't want to go where they suggested so we ended up going to Bill Miller BBQ.  It is okay but I do not like their lean brisket and for some reason I decided to get that instead of a salad.  I was so disappointed when I saw that Larry had a salad and a BBQ chicken quarter.  I will be smarter next time.  The kids all got Chicken tenders.  But we had a good dinner and still made it to the scouts on time.

The scarf Maren gave me

Isaac and Sammy have their Scouts at 6:30 p.m.  David has mutual at 7:00 p.m. and Nathan had a meeting with the Bishop about Cub Scouts at 8:00 p.m. so it was 9:00 p.m. before we left.  Larry and I did not have anyone come in until the very end about 8:30 p.m at the Family History Center so it was a frustrating night for us.  We finally got the boys home at 9:25 p.m. We got to bed at 11 something again which is late for us.

The Purse Maren gave me

Wednesday I also got a package from Maren with a scarf, purse, necklace and earrings and some perfume for me and after shave for Larry.  There was also some small spoons that Landon had got for me in Dubie and Portugal because he knew that I collect the small spoons.  It was fun to get it and know that she was thinking of me.  She is trying to clean out her home before they move next month.

Thursday was the day that I was able to work the longest and I actually got caught up on things that day. After I went to feed Nathan he wanted to go and get some things for the Pinewood Derby cars at Hobby Lobby.  We did that and then Nathan went with me to the office for a while. We left at about 4:30 p.m. to pick up the kids for our visitation night but didn't get to the house until 6:00 p.m.  We took the kids to Chick-fil-A for dinner because it is right across from Nathan's apartment that he just rented for he and Marcy. Then we went over to his apartment to work on Maggie's car but Nathan decided that we could not do that without more tools so we went on a tour of the Apartments amentities: the pool, the fitness center, the dog park, the basketball court.  The kids were excited about all of it.  By the time we got back it was time to take them home but Nathan ran into a person who wanted to know where he got his van so he talked to him some and we were late again.

The kids walking back to the apartment after the tour

Nathan and Sammy at Papa Dantes

Sara asked us if we could get all the kids for her on Friday and get them early.  She said that Kenneth could meet us with the little kids at Randolph Air Force Base where David goes to school if we could get David.  Again we had to leave early to get there at 4:15 p.m. and we made it at 4:25 p.m. and then still had to go pick up David.  We took the kids out to Papa Dantes a local Italian restaurant in Converse for dinner and then they went home to work on the Pinewood Derby car for the High Priest/ Elders race that was on Saturday.

Nathan and Larry worked together to get Maggie's car finished. They finished it about 9:30 p.m. so that wasn't too bad.  Nathan talked about when he used to make the cars before he had his stroke and it sounded like he put a lot of extra effort into them to make them winning cars.  He said that he would carve out most of the wood so it was just a shell so that he could get the weight exactly where he wanted it.  He also said that he would be up late many times finishing the car.  He was so excited about them that he actually got upset with Sammy when he just wanted to play with the car after he got it done.  I think his kids actually had more fun making these cars as he has brought down his expectations to something the kids can do now.

Sammy, Isaac and David at Papa Dantes

Maggie and I trying to take a selfie

Saturday morning Nathan and I took Maggie to dance while Larry stayed home and did laundry and worked on trying to patch the mattress that we bought and Maggie put a hole in it the next day.  But nothing seems to be working.  The boys loved this as they could play on their Ipads the whole time and not get dressed early.

The kids working so hard on the Pinewood Derby Cars

Nathan and Larry working on Pinewood Derby Cars

We came home and ate lunch and Larry and I actually took a nap while Nathan and the kids bonded.  Then we left about 4:15 p.m. for the Pinewood Derby.  We were one of the first ones there.  We have found for family parties that Woodlake Ward really has Mormon Standard Time.

 I pitched in and helped Sister Alonzo set up the serving table while Nathan and Larry checked in "Elder Presser and Maggie's Car" and the kids found friends to play with.  Dinner was supposed to start at 5:00 p.m. but it finally started about 5:40 p.m.  but it was a good Hot Dog dinner with salad.  The kids were excited because someone brought tubs of cotton candy for a volunteer treat so they grabbed that right up.

Punching the holes for the wheels

The second car from the left is Maggies and Grandpa's

The race started a little after 6:00 p.m.  They raced an Elder against a High Priest.  Larry raced about third and Maggie was elated that they won.  Then they raced again and beat Erick Alonzo's car.  Maggie was thrilled.  But when they raced for one of the race offs they lost so they took 6th place.  Maggie was thrilled because they got a little tiny trophy with a 6 on it.  She didn't quite understand who she was racing though because she told me that, "I beat your man wife tonight Grandma" and she kept telling me that she had beat Grandpa even after I explained that a man wife was a husband.

Getting the track set up

It was a fun night and I think that Nathan and Larry felt good that they had at least placed despite the drop in requirements for a good car. I felt good because I only had one piece of cheesecake from the desserts.

March 15th and before

Monday was a busy day.  We got up early as usual.  We went to the office and I worked on my MLC orders that were due the next day.  I had six more zones to fill and it usually takes me all day to do that many but I was able to complete them in the morning with the Lord's help.  I had ordered somethings next day air on Friday that I knew that we were missing and had hoped that they would come in on Monday but we were not that fortunate.  Larry had to input all the information about mileage reports that come in and are due by the 5th of the month.  He was really working hard on that.

Nathan and Marcy in Galvaston

Nathan going into Pleasure Pier

Monday afternoon we met John and Judy at Joe's Crabshack for lunch about 2:00 p.m.  They had come into San Antonio to take John to the dentist at the VA and so they wanted to meet up.  We went and had a good time talking to them.  We always have a good time but John and Judy's idea of a short lunch is anything around three hours.  But that gave us time to crack our crab legs and Lobster and have a great lunch.

When we got back to the office we had a few things to complete before we went to New Braunfels to the Golden Corral for the Senior Dinner that we have every Monday after Transfer week.  It was fun to meet with those who were there but there were about three couples that could not make it so it was a little sparse.  Also Nathan was not there because he was with Marcy, but the Seniors were excited about his marriage and wanted to wish him well on that.

It rained all week in Galvaston

Tuesday we went to the office and worked all day long.  Luckily the express order came in about 11:00 p.m. so I was able to get the orders finished up and sent to the Stone Oak Chapel before 3:00 p.m. when the meeting ended.  I am thankful for the moving Elders that will transport those things for us in addition to their regular duties.  Larry was working on the Tiwi reports that come in from the cars.  He was pleased to have all of the cars except for a few score in the Green category which means that they did not have any incidents.  There were a few after hours and speeding violations but they were all necessary for the time or could be explained by the road.

Larry, Ashely Bai, June

In the evening we went to meet my niece Ashley Shaw Bai.  We met her at her hotel that was about 3 miles from where we live and then we decided to eat in the Ruby Tuesday's that was adjacent to the hotel.  We had a good dinner and found that Ruby Tuesday's is very Weight Watchers compatible so it was fun to eat there.  We also had fun reminiscing about things with Ashley, especially about the last time we ate there and they had a broken air conditioning unit and we about froze to death in July.  It was fun to be with Ashley.  We brought her back and showed her how close she was to our apartment and took her through the apartment and then we went back to her hotel and she showed us her wedding pictures.  As we were not able to go to the wedding I really was excited about that.  I am also excited to meet her husband who is Chinese and grew up in Bejing but, came to BYU and joined the church there.

Wednesday we worked all day also.  I typed in 22 Baptisms that day which is a lot for me.  Larry was working on I don't know what because I was so intent on getting the Baptism's in.  We had 61 baptisms for the month of February and I had got behind when we went to Zone Trainings and I am just getting caught up.

June at Olive Garden

We have just been eating lunch at the office while Nathan is gone so we have a longer day but we were so tired that we decided to eat out on Wednesday too to relax.  Larry is thinking that people will think that all we do is eat out because that is when I upload pictures to Facebook the most and I guess this week they would be right.  We went to Blanco Barbecue and shared a mixed platter of various types of meats.  It was good but not Weight Watcher's friendly.  While we were there we saw some other missionaries that were there being treated by the Ward Mission Leader before they went to teach a lesson.  Hurrah for the members that feed the missionaries.  They do not have a lot of food money.

Larry at Heavy's BBQ

Thursday we worked all day at the office.  I finally got all my baptisms in and recorded plus I finished the Weekly Zone report and the February Stake Baptism report and sent it to the Stake Presidents from the area.  Larry had a very stressful day as he had a car that was totaled and so he had to get a duplicate title.  After working for three hours to get what they needed he went to the DMV and they told him that they could not take his power of attorney to sign for the church that they needed a letter from the person who issued the power of attorney.  Basically they said that if he takes off the Power of Attorney at the top and the notarization then they would take what he has which does not make sense to us.  He was fit to be tied and not a happy camper when he got back.

Sammy, Isaac, and David at CiCi's

Because we had a gift card from Christmas for Olive Garden we went there to de-stress and have a good dinner.  It was fun.  We found out that they also have lite entrees but it is the breadsticks that you have to watch out for.  Larry was so stressed though that he bought an appetizer so we are in big trouble with our Weight Watchers points.

Grandpa and Maggie at CiCi's Pizza. Maggie is mad about spilling

Friday was a day at the office again.  I accomplished a lot.  I was able to get an abundance of messages answered about Bikes and Referrals and such.  I got all the referrals in the system that were not troublesome because of bad addresses and I finished up some supply orders with new supplies that came in on Friday and Thursday.  Larry felt better because he was able to get the duplicate title and get it sent to Salt Lake.  We were the only ones in the office because Elder and Sister Williams daughter is getting married on Saturday so they took off to get ready and travel to College Station, Texas where the marriage will take place and their daughter lives.

Sammy and David at CiCi's Pizza

Friday we left the office early because Sara said there was problems with one of the main roads to get to her house and  we were picking up the kids for Sammy's Birthday a day late.  We followed her advice and left earlier and we actually got there an hour early because the other roads were not crowded, perhaps because it was Spring Break in the schools this week.  Sara was nice and let us take the kids early.  We went to CiCi's Pizza because that is were Sammy wanted to go.  It was fun.  Larry and I had never been there so our Grandchildren thought we were ancient and really dumb because we did not know how it worked.  But we had a good time despite that.  They had TV's there that were showing the movie Rio and the kids were enthralled with that so we didn't get a chance to talk much.

Sammy blowing out the candles on the cake

After CiCi's we went to Burlington Coat Factory to by a suit for Sammy per Nathan's instructions.  I was surprised that they had so many.  We tried on a Black one and it fit but then I saw one with a subtle plaid and asked him if he wanted to try that on.  He liked it and we tried it on but it did not fit as good.  When we looked at the label it was a 10 Slim.  The Black was a 10 Regular.  We finally decided to take the Black suit because it fit better and it looked really good on him.

Maggie with Sammy's Cake

Then we went to Target and let Sammy pick out a birthday present from Larry and I.  He chose 5 Lego Mixels.  They are little figures that I guess they can mix and match the pieces of different types.  We let him take home two figures and then brought the other three to our apartment.  Isaac wanted me to buy him one also.  When we had been buying Isaac's birthday present I would not buy any thing for Sammy and told him it was Isaac's birthday.  So I told Isaac it was now Sammy's birthday so we were just there to buy for Sammy.  Isaac kept begging for the figure so I told him.  If you want I will buy it for you and then you can pay me back with the money that you have in your bank at the apartment.  Immediately he went and put it back.  He didn't want it bad enough to pay for it himself.

The Elder's in Hondo wearing the Sombrero

After that we took the kids home and tried on Sammy's suit pants there to make sure they did not need altered.  They fit perfectly.  I was surprised that he fit into a 10 but he is growing up.

Sammy dancing with Chuck E Cheese

We went home and wanted to go to bed immediately but we watched a Bones on Netflix and it was a cliff hanger.  We wanted to watch the next one and there were no more on Netflix so Larry went to Bed after we read scriptures and said prayers but I had to stay up to find out where I could see the other Bones.  I found out several ways we could see season 10 and was about to go to bed when Nathan and Marcy got back from Galvaston.  It was about 11:30 p.m.  I talked to them for a while and then I went to bed.  They seemed to have had a good time even though they said it rained all week and the room they got was not handicap assessable.

Elder Presser 97-99 in the middle

Saturday Larry and I got up and went to Hondo because he had to glue one of the Tiwi's onto a new windshield that they had to get for their truck.  It was fun to ride to a more rural area of Texas.  While we were there the missionaries in that area showed us a sombrero that had been signed by Jeff when he was on his mission here.  He served in Hondo for a while also.  They had just discovered it the night before we got there.  It was exciting to see it and see that it was signed "Elder Presser 97-99"  We took a couple of pictures of the hat and the signature so we could show Jeff.  Then we stopped at a local BBQ place called Heavy's BBQ and had some BBQ before we went back.

Sammy in his new suit in a rare quite moment

We got back about 1:00 p.m. We were tired so we rested for a while and then we got ready to go to Sammy's Baptism.  Nathan and Marcy left before us so they could get the program printed.  We were the first one's at the church but it wasn't long before Brother Smith the ward mission leader and the Bishop showed up and we were able to help them set up the room.  It was about 4:15 p.m. and they were just starting to fill up the font.  I was surprised that they could fill it so fast.

Nathan planned the program and typed it up.  He also was able to baptize Sammy with the help of a friend, Jason Christensen, who helped him to have the support that he needed.  Originally he was going to have Larry baptize Sammy but the Bishop Alex Alonzo told him he thought he could do it.  Bishop Alonzo took him to the font and helped him try walking in about a month before the baptism.  He and Marcy practiced in the Hot Tub with Sammy here at the apartment.  Marcy has also had him in the swimming pool several times lately so he could get used to the water.  He actually went into the font and backed up to the wall and Jason was on his side to help him.  He said that it was actually easier to do than he thought it would be.  Perhaps he was blessed by the spirit to do it easier.  It was amazing to watch considering that he could not do anything except blink his eyes about 2 years ago.

Sammy with Bishop Alonzo

They do not let you have refreshments right now in our stake at the baptism so after Nathan and Sara joined together and took all the families to Chuck E Cheese's.  Nathan bought the pizza and drinks and Sara bought the tokens.  We all sat together Sara with Kenneth, Nathan with Marcy and all of the kids plus Kenneth's kids.  That was a great miracle in and of itself.  Larry and I enjoyed the fact that we could go home when we wanted and we didn't have to follow anyone around because there were plenty of parents there.

Sammy and Nathan ready for Baptism

This morning we went to church with Nathan and Marcy.  It is Sara's turn to have the kids.  We attended Sacrament Meeting where they talked about the importance of Service in helping us come unto Christ.  Before we left to take Marcy to the airport the Bishop brought us Sammy's Baptism and Confirmation record.  He also updated Nathan's record to have Marcy as his wife.  Then we took Marcy to the airport.  It was hard to see her go.  She is so good for Nathan and I love having her here.  She is so loving and fun to talk to.  She is truly a blessing from God for Nathan to help him progress.

Now we are just trying to keep the Sabbath Day Holy.  Nathan said he is exhausted but he does not like to take naps so he is playing a game on the computer.  Larry is taking a nap because he does not fear naps and I am working on this because I am not so tired this week.  We are watching some of the I'm a Mormon video clips on Mormon Channel.  So I will just finish this with I am June Presser, I am a teacher, a missionary helping my son, I love to  write my blog and do Family History and I am a Mormon.  There are a ton of I'm a Mormon short clips that you can watch there and at the http://www.mormon.org/ website

March 8th and before

Well Larry and I are alone for the next week.  Marcy flew in today and they went to Galveston.  We had the kids yesterday and this morning because Sara consented to let us have them on her time so that Nathan could work on Pinewood Derby cars with the three littlest.  We had the kids this morning and went to Church with them.  We only stayed for Sacrament and then we went into the Bishops office and He interviewed Sammy for Baptism.  Then the kids and Nathan and I went to the airport.  We took two cars to church because there is only room for six people in Nathan's van so Larry stayed at church the rest of the time.on

Maggie on Nathan's chair at the airport

We got to the airport about 1:00 p.m. and Marcy's plane did not come in until 1:30 p.m.  I was surprised because the kids were thrilled with seeing the inside of the airport.  They were so excited about the baggage movers in the claim area.  I forgot that when they picked me up they always just came in the car and I guess they had never been in the airport.  Isaac said, "I have seen this in books but it is really cool to finally see it."  It is interesting that often we think because we have experienced something that others have had the same experience.  I find this is often true with children.

We arrived home from the airport and fed the kids and they changed their clothes.  Nathan and Marcy hurriedly packed for him and then they all got in the van and Nathan took them back to Sara.  Nathan and Marcy went on to Galveston for the week.

Last Monday we went to Weight Watchers in the morning.  I was thrilled because I had lost 4.6 lbs. so the week started out good.

I had sent out the orders for Mission Leaders Conference earlier last week and so I spent some of my time trying to print out the orders and filling some of them.  I also had a lot of other work to do as it was the beginning of Transfer week.

Monday and Tuesday there was a lot of drama on Facebook in our lives.  It was very frustrating because the person did not feel good and they got mad so they were taking their anger out on Facebook.  I tried to calm them down through texts but that just made things worse so it was hard to see the posts that were ranting about how things were and they were not exactly true.

Elder Nebeker, Tingey, Trammel  Joseph and Jessica Slaughter in back

Tuesday we spent the day at the office as Williams had to feed the missionaries going home.  We have not had so many missionaries coming in lately because they are trying to pare the missionaries down to 200 in the mission.  We had 8 go home and 11 come in this week.  I also had some more orders to fill.  I was able to get half of them filled by the end of the day.  Larry was feeling overwhelmed because he had to fill out the reports for mileage for Salt Lake and he also had to monitor the reports that were coming in for Transfers on the Tiwi boxes they put in the cars.

Wednesday we had to feed the missionaries that were coming in.  It was fun to see them as usual.  We have one missionary that came from South Africa and his parents thought he was coming on Tuesday so they emailed me to find out if he was okay.  I told them that they were just coming in on Wednesday and that I would take a pictures so they could see him.  It was fun to take the picture and be able to send it from my phone immediately so they could see him.  It was also fun to see the appreciation in the emails they sent after.

Elder Jacobs and Aguila Front  Rasmussen background

Nathan got someone to take him to the ward house because he had a cub committee meeting that night.  He is really getting so he can be independent which is what he wants and ultimately what we want.

This week was cold for San Antonio.  Wednesday night they were predicting ice and snow in the morning.  So they decided to have Transfer meeting at 11:00 a.m. instead of 9:00 a.m.  We have a meeting before the Transfer meeting that is usually at about 7:45 a.m. so we got there at 7:30 a.m.  No one was there.  We missed the call that the meeting had been delayed because of the weather because my phone was dead and Elder Presser left his at the office.  So we went to the office to work for a couple of hours after we found out and then went to Transfer meeting.  Because of the later meeting I did not feel that I could go to Austin because I had to help Nathan get his kids at about 4:00 p.m. in the afternoon.  Larry however needed to go to report on the Tiwi's to the missionaries and so he went and I stayed home.

We picked up the kids at school because Sara needed to stay to school to do things.  We started at 4:00 p.m. and finally had them all at about 6:00 p.m. We went to ChickfilA and got food and then took the kids to Nathan's new apartment to work on Pinewood Derby cars.  When we got there they had not put any nuggets into Maggie's kids meal so I had to go back and get the nuggets.  Even though it was just across the street from Nathan's apartment complex it took me about 20-30 minutes.  When I got to the apartment a car drove up beside me and I just thought it was someone at the complex but it turned out to be Larry so it was nice to see him.  It was kind of a miracle that he had found us and so it was good that I had to go get the nuggets.  I was really stressed because in addition to Maggie not having any nuggets Nathan had squeezed his drink trying to put on the lid and spilled it all over him and on to the floor. I cleaned him up but I had to clean that up off the floor when I got back.  It was good to have Larry there to help with some of the derby cars and to get things done.  We started to get cleaned up at 7:45 p.m. but we were late getting the kids back because it took forever to get things cleaned up at the apartment.

Maggie's dance class tap

It was really interesting to see how the kids reacted to Nathan's new apartment.  They wanted to know if we were going to live there and why not and they wanted to know when he was going to move in and they just had a lot of questions to try to sort out why Nathan needed this apartment.

Friday was a catch up day at the office.  I had about 30 baptism and confirmation records that needed to be typed in.  I did not get them all done but I was able to start.

Maggie dance she is in the light blue

Even though it was our weekend to have the kids, because of it being Spring Break and it was Sara's turn to have them for Spring Break we were not supposed to have them this weekend.  Sara agreed to let Nathan have them from after dance on Saturday until after church on Sunday so we could work on the Pinewood Derby cars.  We met them at Maggie's dance lessons and brought the kids home to work on the cars.  I was amazed at how the cars came together on this day.  It was amazing how Nathan knew what needed to be done on the cars and we just had to do it to help him.  But considering that his cars in the past were winners I am sure he is just using what he has already learned.

Saturday was a good day.  We worked on the cars while we watched the Hello Kitty movies that Nathan got for Maggie from Netflix.  The kids played with their Ipads but they also talked to us and we were able to get the cars worked on.