The joys of electrionics and other things.

It has been a crazy weekend once again.  Nathan planned to go to a Wounded Warriors picnic at the Phil Hardberger park on Military Highway with all of us when the kids were here and when he woke up his wheelchair was not charged completely so he was worried about that but we decided to go anyway.  We got there and decided that it was not wise to go on a 1.8 mile trail so we went to the playground.  When we got there he tried to go up a small bump and his wheelchair shutdown and said it had a low battery.  He could not go up.  Larry decided to go get the van from where we had parked it while we stayed there and let the kids play.  When he got back Nathan was able to back down from the area and go to the van but the wheelchair would not go up the ramp into the van.  I decided that I needed to find out what was happening with Nathan so I went over to see and Larry was trying to push the electric wheelchair up the ramp and it was not going.  We worked together and eventually got it to the top of the ramp but the ramp was below the entrance and the wheelchair would not go up over the bump.  So we let the wheelchair down and put the ramp in and out again and thought that would solve the problem but we had the same dip when we got him to the top of the ramp again.  We decided that we needed to tip him the opposite of what seemed to be natural and then we tried but we were not making it.  Then an older couple there at the park noticed our predicament and asked if we needed help.  Larry went around and tried to tip the wheelchair down and the three of us tried to push it back and over.  After several attempts we finally got him in the van and I went to get the kids that were playing.  We were glad that we had not attempted the trail.

When we returned back to the apartment then Nathan was able to go straight to the apartment from the van but after charging the chair for two hours and having it die as he attempted to go to the living room he and Larry decided that something was wrong with the charger.  They called the VA wheelchair repair facility but they said that they could not come out until Monday.  So Nathan thought "no problem, I will just go to the manual".  But he was so tired that was more than he could do some of the time.  Larry and I were panicked that he did not have a way to secure himself in the van as they put a device on the electronic wheelchair to attach it to the van but, luckily Nathan knew that we still had the straps to secure him in and David was able to install them.

I took the kids swimming for about 3 hours and finally talked them into coming back after that.  The pool seemed a little cool and it was cloudy part of the time.  We went to the hot tub before we came home and I finally felt warm.

Nathan decided that he wanted to go in the manual wheelchair to get David a phone like he had planned and Larry had fallen asleep so I said that I would take him.  We left the other kids home with Larry who woke up about the time we left.  We made it but Nathan does not like the way I drive and then when we got there it was hard to get him in.  It didn't take long but it was too long for my body and Nathan's.  We decided that we would not go anywhere else for the rest of the day although by now it was about 3:00 p.m

Isaac at the end of day camp

All this week they had a day camp for Isaac and other bears and cub scouts everyday from 3:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. Nathan decided he wanted to go and be with Isaac every day.  Some days I took him.  Some days other friends took him and one day he went the 3.3 miles by himself in his wheelchair.  I was impressed that he went everyday but I think that he overdid because he was exhausted last night when he went to bed from using the manual wheelchair and all of the accumulation of the days at Day Camp.  He went to bed early and was visibly stressed.

If it had been a normal weekend we would have had him stay home from church and rest but Larry and I and David had been asked to speak at church this morning and so he insisted on getting up and going to church.  He was able to get up and get going okay but it was harder than usual.  He has a harder time transferring from the manual wheelchair to things because it is about 2 feet lower toward the ground.  We have one of those high tables in the apartment and when he doesn't have the electric wheelchair he is not able to raise his seat up to meet the table and it is hard for him to reach the food and eat.  But he made it and we were able to talk today.

We were asked to speak about what it is like to be a Senior Missionary and what others needed to do to go on a Senior mission.  I talked about how we came to be on the mission and how to find out the opportunities for a mission.  Larry talked about the importance of missionary work and why we do it.  I did not hear Davids talk because Maggie had to go to the bathroom just as he started to talk and so I barely made it back to give my talk.

Larry and Nathan took naps today after lunch but I figured that someone needed to keep and eye on the kids.  The kids played some games and David played with his new phone and then we watched some things on Mormon Channel that they like and we read some scriptures that Isaac was supposed to read this week for his Primary Class.  Then we ate some more and then Sarah came for the kids about 6:00 p.m.

This week was a stressful week at the mission as well.  It was transfer week and so we always have a lot to do during that week.  Larry also had a regional manager from Salt Lake City for cars here on Thursday so he was not able to help me drive a new car to Austin for the transfer meeting there.  He thought it was worth it though because he learned that there were a few things that he had been doing that should be done by the assistants so they are more insightful about who can drive together.  He spent 6 hours with him and said that he really liked him. 

We thought that his manager would be here on Wednesday so we had traded the Williams to do Tuesday Lunch for them and have them do Wednesday lunch for the incoming missionaries.  Elder Williams ended up getting some kind of stomach flu on Wednesday and the boss did not show up so I worked with Sister Williams on the two meals on Wednesday and Larry helped on Wednesday night.  It worked well that Nathan was at the Scout Day Camp in the evenings because we were able to do the things we needed for transfer week without too much problem with coordinating with him.  Wednesday night was the day he drove down in his wheelchair though and I was not feeling very calm about him leaving because we do not live on a seculed street but he didn't care what I thought.
It rained a lot that morning so it was pretty muddy at the day camp.  When he got home it took about an hour to get all the mud cleaned off the wheels of his wheelchair.  The video at the top is of the rain pouring down in our parking lot in the morning when it was pouring.

When we went to Wal-Mart to pick up our food for lunch on Monday they said that we could not go in because the rain had knocked the power out so they were closed.  We asked if we could pick up the sandwich that we had ordered.  They went inside and asked and came out and said that we could because the sandwich was ready but that was all we could do.  When we got inside the manager asked us what we were in there for and we told him.  I asked him if we could get the other things that we needed as the lights were only out in half the store.  He said yes as long as we did not go into the part that was dark.  Luckily all the things that we needed were on the lighted side and we were able to get the things we needed with no problem.  We really felt like the Lord had blessed us because they did not let anyone else in the store.

Larry with the other veterans

Friday I went to the dermatologist again because I woke up burning all over my neck and face with this rash I have on my neck and face.  She didn't have much of a solution for me so she took a biopsy of one of the spots to see if they can determine what was causing it.  Larry went with me and was frustrated that the office where I had gone will not take VA payments when they gave him and appointment so he spent the time trying to get an appointment somewhere else.

We went back to the office and tried to get all our work done until 7:00 p.m. and then went to the closing ceremony for the Day Camp that was supposed to start at 7:30 p.m.  Sara met us there and we watched the program and then took the kids home for the weekend.

Nathan Standing in his wheelchair

Nathan standing for the song.

At the ceremony at the end they had all of the veterans in the audience come down and they played God Bless the USA while the cub scouts held flash lights on them.  Larry went down but Nathan was too tired and it was a really rocky area to navigate with his wheelchair.  But when they sang, "I'll gladly stand up and defend her yet today" Nathan stood up in his wheelchair for the rest of the song.  It gave me great pride and respect for him knowing how tired he was.

June 22 and before

Sorry, I just cannot think of a clever name each week for this blog.

Ryker and Erick playing at the lake

We had Nathan's kids for Friday night and Saturday night.  We finally got smart and had Sara bring some of their blankets to stay here so we have the blankets we need.  Now we just need to get some pillows.  Nathan tells them that they have to sleep with him if they want to use his other pillow.  Sometimes they like to do that.

Ryker Eating breakfast or lunch on the campout

This morning we were late for church and it was mostly my fault so I have learned I need to get ready faster.  I took my purse in the bathroom last night in the middle of the night when I was looking for a benadryl and I forgot that so I spent 10 minutes looking for my purse. I took my brown purse even though I was wearing black because I just could not find it. When we got home I instantly remembered where it was and went right too it.  I just do not understand why I was prompted to know where it was after church. But I do appreciate finding it.

Jeff and Misty and the kids at Mariners game.

I had a hard time learning anything in Sacrament meeting.  Maggie had to go out and use the bathroom three times.  But I know from my experience as a mother that you need to go when they tell you at this age because if you don't they will probably have an accident.  I did understand that the theme was missionary work though.  Larry and I are talking next week with David, Nathan's oldest son.  We are talking on missionary work also but they wanted us to focus on the work that senior couple can do.

Owen, Matthew, and Leah at the lodge

Sara took the kids home after church so we had a very relaxing Sabbath.  We ate and then I took a nap.  Larry came to join me for a while but he was not there as long as I was.  Nathan does not like to nap during the day.  I know that it is okay but I keep thinking that there are many things I could be doing to help others to come unto Christ so I feel bad when I sleep so long.  Then we ate again and now I am doing the blog.  Larry is studying something and Nathan is watching Netflix.

I mentioned before but I just have to say how cool our back yard looks.  It is like a mini forest in back and by the patio.  Isaac was having fun watching a doe and her fawn as they ate outside our window on Saturday morning and earlier in the week Nathan saw several type birds and the squirrels eating the bird seed that Larry puts out.  They will leave if they see you move inside the apartment but it is amazing that they will live within the apartment buildings in this little wooded area.

Holly and BJ with Andrea and Nate

Nathan wanted to take the kids shopping on Saturday with his friend Reed Johnson but he was planning to leave about 9:00 a.m. and Reed did not come until about 10:30 a.m.  David and Isaac were all excited about some contest that was on Roblox and it started at 11:00 a.m.  Nathan realized that was important to them so he took Sammy who was anxious to go somewhere.  It was really boring for a while waiting for him.  We are used to getting up to clean the church and going all day but we were just here at the house.  The kids have wanted to have some goggles for swimming so we had promised them we would get them but it ended up that Nathan and Sammy picked them out for everyone and brought them home.

At church in Hawaii

David was able to use my computer to go to the online thing he was excited about and he spent the entire time on the computer working with it and looking at the contest from about 10:00 a.m. until it ended about 5:00 p.m. and then he stayed on for the rest of the night playing the game.  He is very interested in computer games and such.  It said on the website when he downloaded it that Roblox was an educational game but I worry about the amount of time he wanted to spend on the computer.

The first casual picture of BJ and Holly in something besides swim wear

Nathan got home about 1:00 p.m. and the kids were excited about their goggles and he had also bought them cooling blankets which Maggie was more interested in.  After we had lunch they all wanted to go swimming except David.  We went down to the pool with them and it was very hot.  Not much shade and I didn't want to put on my swimsuit as I had a hair appointment st 2:00 p.m.  Larry got his suit on and went down with the kids and Nathan came later after he and Reed had built the weight he was wanting to make.

Picture on the Big Island

I liked the lady that did my hair but she sure made me blonder than I have ever been with my highlights.  She didn't pull the dye through my ends because she said it was not good for your ends.  She has been doing hair for 27 years she said but she is the first person that has not pulled the dye through the length of my hair at least every other time.  Larry was a little hesitant to say he liked it so I guess that means he doesn't want a blond.  I had her wax my eyebrows and everything went fine until she put on whatever it is that they cool the red with.  Instead of cooling my under eyebrows it burned terribly.  It still was burning when I got home and I put my lotion on it to try to neutralize the burning but that burned also.  This morning I have 1st degree burns on the under part of the eyebrows.  I tried to make it look like eye shadow but I don't know if I succeeded.  I think it is part of the skin problems that I am having and not her fault.  My skin does not like San Antonio.

Just to mention a few things that happened this week:

Maren and Max enjoying his presents

Monday Larry and I went to weight watchers in the morning and were disappointed that we had gained weight again this week.  It has really been hard to have food for the Grandkids and go to Bingo night and have food at the office that is high points.  I only have about 7 lbs to lose before I am at goal but it seems like it is just going up and down above the goal.  We need to exercise a little more but it is hard to do when you are so tired at night and the morning is already filled with activities.

Gauge likes money for a present

Larry got four new cars this week that he has to get switched with the other cars that are to be sold.  He has been very busy getting the cars and working with the missionaries that he has to get them too and get the cars from.  He also got in a truck for the moving Elders and he was really disappoint that the day after they got it someones garbage blew off onto the car on the freeway and did some damage.  He has also had two or three accidents this week.  So far none of them have been the missionaries fault but it is frustrating none the less.  He worked most of the morning on Saturday at the office to try to get caught up with what he needs to do.

Blowing out the candle on the cake

I spent most of the week at the office typing in referrals and baptism and confirmation records to send to the church headquarters.  I sent in 19 on Friday that were the ones that I typed in just on Thursday and Friday.  We also get the mail and sort it.  The address on the pictures that we had printed on is the address to the mission home so we will always get mail that is sent there but that is not where you would come to visit us.

Thursday we had a fun afternoon with Judy and John Trolinger and their son Mike and granddaughter Allison.  We went to lunch with them at Logan Roadhouse which is a restaurant chain here is Texas They have good Steak. When we got there Allison was very upset because she had lost a ring just a few minutes before that her boyfriend had given her the day before he left for something.  She spent the entire time looking for it but they never found it.  We had a good time visiting with them despite Allisons misery and stayed for about 2 hours with them.  Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures of anyone.

Sammy and the others on the playground at WWFSC

Nathan came back to the office with us after that and we worked for a while before going to bingo night at the Wounded Warrior Family Support Center.  I was surprised that the grandkids showed up just as we got there.  They were really good and all played bingo but they didn't want to eat much of the food.  I ate some of it but had to quit because I got too full.  I took some pictures on the playground with the kids but only one of them ended up saved on the camera so I guess I am getting sometimers about how to use the camera.

Gauge opening a present

It has been busy at the office because they have been working hard on determining what the new transfers will be. This coming week will be transfer week and so it will be busy.  Also Larry has the regional manager for the cars coming to visit on the 25th of June.  On Tuesday and Wednesday we were able to have lunch with the assistants and President Slaughter.  Wednesday Sister Slaughter and the children came up for lunch.  I had a good time visiting with Sister Slaughter and she told me that the mission doctor recommends that the missionaries take benedryl every 4 hours for the rashes that they get at first to break the cycle.  My itching has got better but it is still there and so I had just bought the benedryl that the PA at the dermatologist recommended.  I felt like as she was talking that the Lord had sent her to help me know what to do.  It has been much better but it is still there.  It feels kind of like when you get hair down your neck after a haircut but it is on all the parts of my body that are exposed to the sun.

Annette was obviously happier about fishing than I was.

Heather and Erick went camping for Father's Day weekend and they posted some pictures on Facebook this week so I thought I would share those. Also Erick has been sharing several old pictures as he digitizes the slides that I had at home.  I am posting one that is of me and Annette when we went camping up at Flaming Gorge just after John and I got married when Mom and Dad came out and we had a family weekend at the lake.  It was probably in June of1973

Gauge and a friend with the cake

Maren had a birthday party for both Max and Gauge this last Friday I think.  She posted a lot of pictures on Facebook.  She rents a giant water slide from the post and then they have the whole neighborhood come and have fun on the slide.  Usually she has Landon to help her put it up but this year he was not available.  She also gets a canopy so that they have some shade to eat in because they have no trees big enough to provide shade.

Brinlie and Ellie with a friend

Jeff and Misty did some activities with their children this week.  They went to a Mariners game and then went to a special lodge of somekind.  I did not understand exactly where they were.

BJ and Holly had her Sister Andrea and her husband Nathanial come over to Hawaii and they went to the big island.  It looks like they are having fun with them in the pictures they posted.  The one of BJ and Holly on the beach did not look like them on my phone so I asked her who it was.  She thought that was pretty funny.  When it is enlarged it looks like them but it sure didn't that day.

Well it is bedtime.  I hope that you are reading your scriptures and praying together.  It is the way that Christ can teach us how to be happy.  Love to all.

Happy Father's Day

Well today is Father's day.  Grateful for all the Father's in my life.  Especially my own dear father who has passed to the other side.  He was an ideal father and I was so blessed to have him in my life.  I am grateful for the father of my children.  I am grateful for Larry and the good example of a husband that he sets for my children and grandchildren.  He is truly a self sacrificing person and I love him so much.  I hope all my children can learn from his loving example.

We had a really good lesson on the oath and covenant of the priesthood today in Relief Society.  It pointed out the ways that both men and women obtain the priesthood and the blessings that the Lord promises to those that magnify their calling in the priesthood.  It also pointed out that women magnify the priesthood by magnifying their callings.  I have never had a problem with the fact that I am not ordained to the priesthood because I have all the blessings of the priesthood but it was a good lesson to clarify what the oath and covenant really are.  She pointed out that the covenants are what we promise God we will do and the oath is the blessing that God promises to give us if we keep our covenants.

We had the kids all afternoon for Nathan for Father's Day and they stayed overnight last night.  We ate lunch and made cookies and had Family Home Evening.  Then the kids and Nathan did different things on their electronics.  Maggie took a nap for about 2 hours so I was able to read and watch some videos on lds.org on Family History and Missionary work.  Larry really got into helping the kids today too. Larry didn't get much of a Father's day dinner because we focused on what the kids liked to keep it simple.

Erick has been working on digitizing some of the slides that John and I took over the years that I had not already done and he posted some pictures of Annette and Rex and I on Facebook that were fun.  Annette looked a lot like Maren in the picture.  Then Jeff posted a picture of Larry when he was a baby so it was fun to see the old pictures of ourselves.

Last Monday Larry and I found ourselves very behind on our work at the mission.  The Williams had been gone for a little more than a week with their family and we had been going to Zone Conferences and had Mission Leaders Conference the week before so we needed to spend some time in the office.  We determined that we would not go to the Zone Conference for Round Rock and Round Rock East Areas on Tuesday.  It would have taken most of the day to drive to Austin and back.  So we sent the materials with the Assistants and stayed in the office.

On Tuesday I spent most of the day doing referrals and typing in baptism and confirmation records.  Larry has mileage reports that he has to do at the first of the month so the gas credit cards that the missionaries have can be reloaded with money for the month.  He really had a lot of receipts out for so late in the beginning of the month.  He also has some cars that need to be sold and some new cars coming in.  He has to get the cars that need to be sold repaired so they are like new so he was getting estimates on that.

On Tuesday and Wednesday I ran home to feed Nathan and on Tuesday he was out going to somewhere with a friend and the door was locked and I had forgot to bring my keys so I just had to go back and eat snacks at the office.  On Wednesday he had the Senior military missionaries feeding him Kentucky Fried Chicken so I stole some of it for Larry and I and went back to the office. 

Nathan is going to the VA on Monday's and Friday's now for Physical Therapy.  They come and pick him up so it works out well for all of us.  Sometimes he spends most of the day there if he has another appointment and he is getting so he can endure that better but sometimes he is really tired after a full day like that.

Tuesday the Williams came back and got some work caught up but they had to leave again because Elder Williams mother was dying.  They flew out for Colorado on Wednesday morning.  In talking to them later in the week, she died before they got there but it was good to be there and help with the arrangements for them.  They got back on Friday but have to go again this coming week for Tuesday and Wednesday to Dallas for the funeral.

On Thursday I typed in 26 Baptisms and it took me most of the day but I was finally caught up. I was at the mission all by myself that day and because they were having a Finding by Faith training in San Antonio for all the areas here and all the missionaries were there it was really quiet.  I liked that. They are baptizing about 50 people a month in this mission so I was behind about three weeks.  I learned that the ward clerks start calling you if you are behind because they cannot issue a call or record their tithing or do a number of other things if their membership has not returned and if I have not submitted the Baptism record then it does not come back.  So no more getting behind.

Nathan was frustrated because someone submitted something to the VA stating that because of a report that was issued in July of 2013 he may not be competent to handle his money and they wanted to appoint a fiduciary for him.  He had 60 days to prove to them that he was competent.  Larry has been frustrated that the VA has not recognized that I am his wife yet for his disability payments even though he gave them the papers with the initial application and resubmitted them again in August of last year.  So they went together to the Disabled American Veterans to see if they could get some help with their cases.  They went at 7:30 in the morning because they do not take appointments and it took them until almost 2:30 p.m. to finish being seen as they had 23 people before them. 

But it was a good trip for both of them.  The lady that Nathan saw took one look at him and talked to him and said that she could solve his problem with a phone call to his psychiatrist.  So he just needs to get them to call them soon.  Larry was thrilled because he found out that a lot of the cases have been transferred to other organizations like the DAV because of the complaints about the length of processing of some problems at the VA and so by going in he basically put his case to the front again and they should have it processed soon they said.  He was also excited because when she found out that he had neuropathy and a few other things she said that he could be declared unable to work and he would receive more money.  I don't know if that is good considering how much we are doing for the mission and Nathan but we know that part of the reason we are doing so well is because of the Lord's blessing us to have the stamina to keep doing what we are doing.  He is also blessing us with the ability to do the work better than we could do by ourselves.  But I still wonder if it is honest.

Thursday evening we went to Bingo night again.  Warm Springs Rehabilitation Center was providing the dinner for the Wounded Warriors that evening and because that is the last place that Nathan stayed before he came home he was able to see all the people that he worked with there and renew friendships.  I think that was fun for Nathan.  And of course we did not win!! As always.

Friday was a fairly quiet day also.  Larry was there with me this time though.  I had a dr appointment with the dermatologist in the morning for my itching neck and then I got to the office about 11:00 a.m.  We worked until about 6:00 p.m.

Friday evening I did not know if we would have the kids at first and I was really tired.  When we got home Nathan said that they were not coming until Saturday about 3:30p.m.  That was the greatest present that Sara could have given me.  I was just tired and though I love them to death they wear me out sometimes.  So we took Nathan and went out for chinese and then watched a Bones when we got home.

Saturday morning we got up early and I went with Larry to pick up a new car about 8:00 a.m.  Unfortunately they did not have it ready so I dropped Larry off at the office even thought it was our Preparation Day and he wanted to work all day.  I went home and was able to get some pictures sent to the kids outside of Utah that have needed to be sent since before the mission.  I also sent some to family that we did not get to visit on our way to Texas as our car broke down at the MTC.

At about 10:30 a.m. I took Nathan to a shoe store that sells good orthodic shoes to get him a pair of shoes that will fit over the brace that he should wear on his right foot.  It is too big to fit in his shoes if he wears his regular size and so we determined that he would need to get a larger one.  They determined that he needed a 14E to fit the brace.  They did not have it in but they were able to order it and he will have it in about 2 weeks.  In the mean time he has a different brace he is wearing that fits better in his shoe but is not as solid as the new brace.

Nathan treated me to lunch at Chipolatas grill.  I really liked the concept of building a taco, salad, burrito or bowl the way I like it.  We got lunch for Larry also and then we took it to the office so that I could take him to get the car that was supposed to be finished at 12:00 p.m.  It was the first time that Nathan had been able to go to the mission office and go inside with us.  Sister Williams was there trying to get some work done also and some of the Assistants.

We got home about 2:30 p.m.  The kids were supposed to be there about 3:30 p.m. and so I worked on getting my 2 visiting teaching people from the Woodlake Ward Contacted.  I had to write a letter to the one as she has no phone listed on the record.  The other one was on vacation with family in Elsinore, Utah so I had to just talk on the phone with her.  I got that finished and then we waited and worked on paperwork until the kids finally came at 5:00 p.m.

In the mean time Nathan had invited a family from the Woodlake ward over for the evening so we dashed to the store to get Isaac and Sammy some new church shirts because Nathan thought that theirs were getting too small and then we came back and went swimming and had pizza with the Eric Alonzo family.  They brought a salad and some soda and as they have kids about the same age as Nathan's kids I think that everyone had a good time.

Well it is too late so I must finish.  Sorry no time to do pictures from Facebook and I did not take any this week!!

June 8th And before

Today, June 8th, is our grandson Max's 2nd birthday.  He is Maren's youngest son.  In honor of him I posted this video that Maren sent of him showing his parts of his body that he knows.  He is such a cute boy, but Grandma's are not prejudice.  

 On the 29th of May we went with the Wounder Warriors to an evening event at a special amusement park they have here called Morgan's Wonderland.  It is designed so that handicapped people can participate in the rides and amusements that are offered.  You can see that Nathan was able to ride the train with all of us without getting out of his wheelchair.  They kids really enjoyed the playground and Nathan was interested in a Wheelchair soccer teams that they presented at the gym there.  Below here are several pictures of our time at Morgan's Wonderland.

 

 They had a sound playground where the kids could play all sorts of instrument type things to make music.  They kids really liked this as Nathan's kids are very creative.  They also had a regular playground that was designed so that those in wheelchairs could go right up on the play equipment.

 We have had several zone conferences in the last two weeks that we have had to attend throughout the mission to speak at as missionary office couples.  On May 30th we went to Eagle Pass which is on the border of Texas and Mexico.  As I had never been to the Mexican border before I had to get some pictures of the border.

Just across the river there is a large Mexican Flag that you can see for a long way.

This is a picture of part of the bridge that goes across the Rio Grande River to Mexico

This is the entrance to the bridge crossing over into Mexico to the town of Piedras Negras

 On the 31st of May we had the kids like we do for most weekends.  After cleaning the church  and going to buy some cheap swim toys, we went to the Northstar Mall and I bought a swimsuit so that I could go swimming with the kids and help Maggie get into the water.  Nathan took the kids to the lego store and bought some legos and then we had lunch and went home to swim.  Senior missionaries can swim!!

Can you recognize the Teen age face on David?

 

Maggie and I both had ruffles in the front of our swimsuits so we took a selfie but mine aren't showing too good and I still have a hard time smiling in a selfie.

 Then we went home to the pool and swam.  The boys swam for about 3 hours that day but Maggie was tired and didn't want to swim and went back to the apartment with Nathan.  Larry was off trying to figure out what he could do about our car's transmission.  He found a place that said they could fix it so we decided that was cheaper than a new car.

 On June 4th we had to drive a car up to the Oak Hills section of the mission in Austin for zone conference and to take a new car to some Elders.  One of the Sisters there, Sister Davis, needed a ride to San Antonio for a doctor's appointment.  Despite that beautiful smile, she is the one in the center, she suffers from rheumatoid Arthritis.  We had two cars to drive back and so she road with me.  She was so fun to talk to to and we had a great time.  She is from southern California.  I started talking to her and wasn't looking at Google Maps like I should.  Sometimes it switches routes on you without looking.  We were planning on going home on the Freeway as usual, but we ended up having a lovely ride through the back country of Texas that was very beautiful.  So we learned a new way to get to Austin.

Sister Davis with the threesome that she was working with.

Our Selfie.  Me, Sister Turpin, Sister Davis and Sister Greenall.  Sister Greenall is a visa waiter hoping to go to Brazil eventually.

 Most of the week was spent doing mission work this week.  The other office couple was out of the office all week so it was a very stressful week but we were able to survive.  We had two zone conferences and Larry had three more accidents to deal with.  The one day he went home saying that he had more to do going home that he had when he came and we worked all day.  Thursday was Bingo night and then Friday was Mission leaders conference where we had to feed the participants and I spent two days getting all the supply orders together for the zones that had ordered them so they could be picked up at the conference.

Friday night we had the kids overnight again.  They wanted to go swimming and so we went swimming from about 6-8 p.m.  Nathan slipped out of his wheel chair and was able to sit on the side of the pool and dangle his feet in the water.  He is trying to be able to do more and that was a first step.  Maggie was tired and would not get in the water and spent the entire evening holding her beach ball because she did not want anyone to play with it but she did not want to get in the water either.  A group that were holding a party on the barbecue patio took pity on her and offered her food hoping it would help.  She liked that but she did not quit whinning that night.  I think that she was tired.


Saturday we went to clean the church again.  David had a practice for a young men's sacrament presentation during that time then we came home and ate lunch.  The kids made their own pizza's with english muffins and everyone enjoys that except Sammy.  Then we filled water bottles and went to the park.  It was about 95 that day so it was hot but we were able to see the Blanco side of Phil Hardberger Park.  We have three very nice parks within about 10 minutes of our apartment here.

After that Nathan and Larry both took naps because Nathan was tired from trying to sleep with both Sammy and Isaac in his bed and Larry has been fighting a bout with gout this week in addition to all the other we had.  The kids and I went to the pool.  It was about 2:00 p.m.  The kids swam all afternoon.  They did not get out except for the occasional bathroom break until about 7:30 p.m.  Larry and Nathan woke up about 6:00 p.m. and went to get Pizza.  Sara showed up for a while after work to bring clothes and blankets for the kids as she was working in the morning early.  We ate Pizza by the pool and then went home to get ready for bed.

I saw the lady that had fed Maggie the cake and she said is this the same child you had last night.  Maggie decided for some reason that now the boys could use the beach ball and that she could get in the water and had fun all day.

Today was Sunday and so we went to church in the morning.  We had a couple talk in church that are moving to another ward.  She talked about the importance of Music in our lives and for setting the stage for feeling the spirit.  She also read from the For Strengh of Youth pamphlet that talks about how to pick music that is uplifting but one thing that she mentioned was a study that they did with mice.  They played Johan Strass Waltzes for some of the mice.  They played disharmonious music for some other mice and then they left others in the quiet.  After several weeks they tested their ability to find their way through a maze.   The mice that had listened to the Straus music did the best.  The mice that had listened to the disharmonious music actually had trouble executing the maze and so they concluded that music can affect the performance of how you think about performing certain tasks.  I thought that was interesting.  I had to take Maggie to the bathroom during the second talk so I did not get most of it.

This is Isaac in the swing, but when was swinging in it she fell asleep she was so relaxed even though we were pushing her quite high!

 This afternoon we had lunch and watched several church productions for Family Home Evening.  The kids really liked the animated Matt and Mandy shorts from the Friend.  There is also an animated short about Presidents Uchdorf's mothers experience about leaving her children one the train to find food and coming back to find the train gone and then she prayed and was able to find the train after in another section of the train yard.  Maggie is just fascinated with that one and replayed it several time.  Nathan also found the children's Book of Mormon Stories from the Books online.

After Family Home Evening Maggie and I went for a walk and the boys built legos.  Maggie had the children's song book and as she cannot read she decided by the pictures what the song was we were supposed to sing.  She sang me the Let it Go song from Frozen and then she thought of several song from primary that we sang.  Then she started making up her own songs and singing songs about what was happening to her.  She talked the entire walk.  I concluded that she is related to her Grandmother and has the gift of gab!