The real November 17th post

Today is beautiful again although it snowed last night and most of the day yesterday.  Larry and I just went for a walk and it was great.  It is about 48 degrees and very sunny.  It seems that the Sun does not want to give in to November and we have had some fantastic weather.

Today in church they talked about gratitude.   I have learned in the last few years that we have much to be grateful for.  We have so many comforts and luxuries that people of past decades did not have.  Some people attribute this to science but it seems to me that all this wonderful work that just keeps getting better started about the year 1830 when the church was established for the last time on the earth.  The Lord has blessed us immensely so that we can bring forth the truth to the earth.  Today I realized that the comforts that we take for granted were not enjoyed by even kings of the past.

Nathan's stroke and my first husband John's cancer have helped me to be grateful for what my body can do and what a miracle that it is for us that our bodies work everyday even if we have chronic illnesses.  To me it is a miracle that Larry and I are so healthy at this time and can walk and have lost so much weight and are able to do more than we have for the last 20 years.  It truly is a miracle what God can do for you.

Dad's grave decorated for his birthday and Veteran's Day

Nathan has been texting me a lot lately.  He is getting pretty bored in the afternoons and on the weekends when Sara and the kids cannot be there.  He was asking me what he should do.  I gave him several suggestions and yesterday he announced that he was going to text me everyday about the day and such.  He has never been a writer even before the stroke but I am excited to see what he texts to me.  Yesterday he simply said that he had a good day and that he had a chance to go outside and that he just sat and enjoyed it. He also said that it was getting cooler in San Antonio.   He said this morning he was sitting by the window looking out and that it was Sunny but it had been gray.  What he says is simple but I think that the fact that he is getting bored in the hospital is a sign of progress.

Last Monday we went to Weight Watcher's in the morning.  I gained weight (.8 lbs) and so did Larry (2 lbs.) so I decided that I needed to get serious about what I was eating and not go over my food points into the weekly points so much.  I also worked really had to get my exercise in and have actually been able to keep my points for exercise up in the 6 and 7 point range.  Considering that I have been in the 2-4 point range that is a big change.  It takes me about 3 hours a day to get that many points in though.  I am hoping that it will make a difference tomorrow on my weight loss and I also am aiming to set another goal as far as how many days I have been able to reach my goal.  I have to get 4 points each day to reach that goal.

Larry and Heather bagging leaves

Monday was Veteran's day so we went to Golden Corral to eat lunch because Larry could eat for free.  I thought I did a pretty good job of staying within my points until I put hot fudge on my no sugar soft serve and it was 9 points a serving.  But I had a good meal and it was fun to have some time out.

After that we went home to rake the leaves because it was such a beautiful day.  We had a lot of leaves in the back yard particularly on the south side.  Larry was able to mow the leaves in the front the week before but the back was still full.  About 1:00 p.m. we had them in piles and I thought, "Ryker would love to play in these," so I called Heather to see if she had time to bring him over.  She said she needed to finish feeding him and then she would come.  A while later they were there.  Ryker ran for the leaves one time and then did not want to play in them.  He wanted to go in the house.  It was funny.  I got a few pictures of him that I will post.  We did get him to stand in the leaves if he could kick the soccer ball he got out of the garage but he was adamant that he was not going to play in the leaves.

Ryker hiding from the camera

In the evening we went to Kirsten's for Family Home Evening and she gave the lesson on how to keep out of trouble and stay close to the Lord.  She is in the Young Women's organization as a teacher and it came from the new youth curriculum that the church has.  It was a great lesson.  Unfortunately or fortunately depending on how you look at it, Taylor fell asleep for the whole thing.  Larry and I took cantaloupe for treat.  Then Kirsten gave me my Christmas Present she bought for me.  She had gone online and bought a new Polly Pocket game like the kids like to play.  Because it is no longer on the market and she had to buy it from someone who had also bought the game a while ago it was no small feat I can't remember where she found it.  I was impressed because lately the game has lost a lot of pieces and all the kids, even the boys seem to like that one when they come.  The one we had I bought for Maren about 20 years ago.

Tuesday we went to the gym and then I started making cookies for my Usborne books party. I got out the freshest shortening I had in my pantry but after working for about 3 hours and making snickerdoodles and peanut butter cookies I was disappointed because they didn't taste very good.  They were okay but they had a stale flavor that I could not deny.  When Ryker came over on Wednesday he would not eat the snickerdoodles but he did like the peanut butter cookies.  Because I had so few to my party no one ate them except me and Larry that day.  I made about 5 doz cookies for the party so I took some to the neighbors so I wouldn't eat them all.

Almost found his face

 
I had the Usborne book party to help Kirsten out with hers because I had no money to buy anything.  I invited 20 people in my neighborhood and 195 on facebook and I had two people come to the party. two of my best friends Kelly Jenkins and Carol Harris.  I did have two people order something online before the party and I have a few people that have said that they would like to see a catalog before the party closes Wednesday but I have decided I definitely do not have a good sales approach for parties because Usborne books are a good product and it is Christmas time.  Although the two that came to my party had never heard of Usborne books, which surprised me.

Wednesday Larry was getting ready to go to the VA for a check up on his feet and I was working on curriculum when Maren called.  I got up and walked while I talked to her.  We had a good talk.  Then Kirsten called and was talking to me so I kept walking.  We also had a good talk but  I got so tired I finally had to sit down because I think I walked for an hour and a half, but I may be wrong.  When Larry came in  I told him I didn't need to go to the gym for the morning because I had my workout and then Ryker came about noon and I tended him for the afternoon while Heather had a root canal.  I spent a fair amount of time following Ryker and lifting him up to the Basketball banker so he could make the shot.  We had a good time.  After we had dinner we went to the gym for an hour again I got my 2nd highest score on Active Link 122% of my baseline or 7 points.  The only other time I got 7 points was when we were in Minnesota and we walked around at Ashton's baptism and then walked at the Mall of America for three hours!

If Ryker is throwing it is okay to take a picture

Larry's doctor at the VA said that he had the best looking feet of anyone he had seen that had neuropathy as long as he has had it so he felt good about that.

Thursday we got up and went to the Temple because we could not go on Wednesday with Larry's VA appointment.  We ended up doing sealings because we had about seventeen sealings we still had to do from the names that John and Judy had given us.  We were able to complete them all and now if I can just get in the cards that I gave out to my kids I will have all of those names done.  Some of the cards were also left from the names I did for Mary and Theo Pollock's family.  It was a good feeling to have those done but now we have no names for the Ward Temple night this month so we better get working.

Thursday Evening we went to a presentation by Diversify Financial at the Davis Conference Center.  It had an interesting perspective.  He pointed out that the market will always come back up and if nothing else business can prosper by taking what we have in America to other counties.

Friday was our LDS Employment mission.  We are really having a slow turnout lately so some people must be finding jobs.  Frank Sano our manager says that it always slows down around the holidays.  We only had to work half a day and then they had staff meetings where they train us.

Ball's gone!  Great Throw!

Right after the mission we went to the gym and had a good workout but then I came home and paced for an hour to get the extra workout because I knew I would be low with being at the Employment Center all day, which is mostly sitting.

Saturday Morning is Family Search Center time from 9:00 am to noon.  We were relatively busy this day.  We had several phone calls which is unusual.  We had people come in but I did not end up helping them as Marion Peterson the director was there.  I went on my pedigree and put in sources for my Great Grandparents Earnest Elijah Jacklin and Emma Miriam Casper.  Grandpa Jacklin only lived to be 27 and then he died from Typhoid Fever that Grandma Jenkins said he got from tainted well water on their property.  I found that Grandma Clegg, as we called her because she remarried, was on the 1900 census twice because it was enumerated on June 6 when she was home and she was counted again on June 18th in American Fork where she worked as a servant for a couple when she was 18

Grandma Clegg front in rocking chair

 I also learned that Grandpa Jenkins's Grandma Murdock who is named Margaret Sedina was listed as Maggie on one of the censuses when she was young so I guess Nathan named his daughter after another relative without knowing it.

We talked to some people we have been working with on Financial Planning from the Legacy Group and started the process for wills for both of us on the way down to see Mom.

I had fun talking to Mother about the things I had found on her Grandmother and we did some vacuuming.  Mom had to go to a funeral for a friends son that had died so we worked while she was gone and when we finished I walked in circles around her stairs and we watched TV.  When Mom got home we went to dinner with her at Denny's.  It was fairly late when we got home and I still had to pace at home to get in my exercise but I was able to pace back at forth while I watched the news and make it to my goal or 4 points.

Well got to go walking...

Emma Miriam Jacklin and her 4 children

Ernest Elijah Jacklin

Great Ward Conference

It is such a beautiful day today.  In the sixties and bright and sunny.  We walked to church today and it was almost warm enough for no jacket on the 10th of November.

It was ward conference today so all of the Stake officers were there and the Stake Presidency.  The Bishop spoke in Sacrament meeting and talked about how all of us are loved by our Heavenly Father.  He said that he has become overwhelmed by the spirit telling him this as he was called.  He also challenged us to find a time to go to the temple regularly that works for us.  He promised us that we would feel the spirit more in our lives if we made this a commitment.  He told of how his wife and children were attending the temple more than him at one time and that after he made the commitment to go regularly that he felt the spirit more in his life.  His wife gave a talk in Relief Society once where she told of the struggle she had when she made the commitment to go every week but then the spirit was able to open things up to her after she kept making the commitment.  Larry and I decided we wanted that blessing so we are trying to go on Wednesday morning.

Our new Relief Society President Ann Shunn gave a wonderful talk in RS on how we need to have patience with ourselves and faith in Christ.  She told us that non of us was perfect and never would be without the help of the Savior.  She pointed out that we need to be forgiving of ourselves do the best we can and that is all that Heavenly Father expects.  He doesn't expect us to work beyond our capacities but we should be moving in the direction of Christ.  It was a great talk and helped me to feel better about myself and my inadequacies and seemed to answer the prayers of a friend of mine who felt like she was a failure because she had not always done what her church job had required of her.

After Relief Society Carla Whitaker share with me the special experience her daughter had in being able to do the temple work for a women that she had baptized on her mission with the permission of her daughter.  She was able to be the proxy for the lady while she was sealed to her parents and she said that the spirit was so strong she felt like Edith, the lady she did the work for was there.

Tonight we are going with Kyle to a youth fireside with TC Christensen as the speaker.  I am anxious to hear what he has to say as I loved both his movies, "17 Miracles" and "Ephraim's Rescue"

I feel very busy lately and yet when I sit down to write this it is all so blah.

Monday was a semi-busy day.  We had weight watchers in the morning.  I felt good because I lost 1.8 pounds again despite the fact that it was not a good week for me for following my diet.  I went over my main points every day and used up all but 8 of my weekly points so I was within my limits but sometimes in the past I have not been able to lose when I used my weekly points.  I concluded that it was because of my increasing exercise that I am losing weight.  Only three more pounds to go before I am at the top end of my ideal weight, 174 pounds.

After we went to Weight Watchers we went to the gym where we were supposed to get a free workout with a personal trainer but it was more of a sales pitch.  He did tell us that I was at 35% body fat and Larry is at 30% He also told us how to do the weights and machines to get more lean muscles.  He would help us for some amount of money that we could not afford so we are trying to do the weights and machines by ourselves with a warm up and walking.

After eating lunch we worked on the budget which was good

At 4:00 p.m. we went to a class at our Family Search Center on the premium websites that they offer at the Center.  It was informative because neither Larry or I have used all of the sites that are available and we needed to learn more about what they were for. Larry was already using one yesterday when we went to the center.

Our ward had some people that wanted to try an Empty Nester's Family Home Evening once a month so we decided to go to that.  I think every older couple in the ward was there.  I was a little disappointed because they only talked about how we wanted to organize the meetings and I thought they could have had a spiritual thought but that is me.  Larry said it had to be that way at the first.  We have been trying to meet with Kirsten and Taylor and Kyle because Jon is at work after 3:00 p.m. but that can still be accomplished the other three weeks of the month.

Tuesday we got up read our scriptures and said prayer together ate breakfast like we normally do every morning then Larry took off to Sam's Club to get a fruit tray for the evening when we went to Financial Peace University.  I started to work on the budget again because I had not finshed yesterday and as we were down to the wire.  With some checking of the accounts and the envelopes we were able to make sure that everything should be taken care of for the rest of the month.  I was feeling pretty good about this until an unexpected payment came in yesterday.  So tomorrow it is back to work and what can I sell to get some money in.  I also need to cancel the payment.

After that we went to the gym.  After doing the elliptical and some machines and walking at least 1.7 miles we came home at took a shower and it was time for lunch.  Time flies when you are having fun.  Going to the gym is really invigorating but I still don't know if I could make myself go if I had to work 8 hours a day.

In the afternoon I worked on the Marketing  curriculum that I am writing for Northridge Learning Center. I almost had a chapter finished but I had to add the questions and review for the material I had written.  Larry usually fixes dinner so I can work longer on Tuesday but he went and ran some errands and made some deposits from the work I did in the morning.  We had dinner at our class that night and we already had our contribution.

We drove to our class and it was fun but there was a lot of food there.  We went over our points but it was all good.  I was glad that we had taken the fruit tray though because most of the other food was points.  They had meatball sandwiches, Chicken salad sandwiches,  chips with and artichoke and chicken dip, little hot links, our fruit, a pasta salad with a lot of vegetables, and even thought they said to bring our own drinks they had a big bottle of Diet Coke.

Dave Ramsey is an Evangelical Christian he gave a great lecture about the benefits of giving a Tith to the Lord and helping others.  I think that about 99% of what he said goes along with doctrine in our church.  It was a good tape.  We found out though that the leaders of our group were also Evangelical Christians when we went to discussion.  Our leader actually apologized to us for having so much of the Bible in this lecture.  I got the impression that he believes that we do not use the Bible in our church, which surprised me.  We told him that there was nothing offensive in the discussion and it ended well but I was surprised that someone could live in Utah and not know that we believed in the Bible.

Wednesday morning we got up and went to the temple like we had decided to do.  It was a good session but I have to get to work again because I do not have any of the names left to do that we had processed to do.  So we have to do some serious family history work.  The Stake has challenged us to provide our own names for the temple or do names that someone in our ward has processed.

I love the new temple film and hope that if you have not seen it you will get the chance to go soon to the temple.

We went to the gym when we got home and worked really hard.

Wednesday afternoon I worked on Curriculum again.  I finished the chapter I was writing and sent it to Dana and then started studying for the next chapter.

Merrilee decided that she did not feel well enough to go to Weight Watchers so we went to the gym.  Despite all our work though we did not get very high points on the active link because we did not reach our base line until about 6:30 because we did not go to the gym earlier.  I do not like that about active link.  We worked for the same amount of time but because we did not do much after we went to the gym we were low on points.

When I got to this point last week we went to a fireside for Youth that they had in our stake.  It was TC Christensen the producer of "17 Miracles" and "Ephraim's Rescue".  Both are major films dealing with the pioneers moving west.  We took Kyle with us and it was so good.  He told about filming things in 90 degree temperatures that the pioneers had to go through in freezing temperatures and having his staff and extra's feeling very cold in the water.  He was funny but he had a testimony of what the pioneer's endured strengthened their testimony.  He had those who had relatives in the Willie and Martin Handcart companies stand.  He said that it does not matter where he goes to speak that usually about a third of the audience had descended from them.  He felt like maybe they had to go through what they did to cement the testimony of theses people that was passed down to their descendents.

Probably the only other thing I want to mention is that on my Dad's birthday I made a Memorial Group for him on Facebook.  It is located at https://www.facebook.com/groups/539405079483982/?bookmark_t=group if you want to post something or just take a look.  It would have been my dad's 92nd birthday. We went to Mom's and Mom got some flowers and we took some flags to the grave that we got for Memorial Day so they would be there for Veteran's day.  Several of the other kids came down and did things with Mom also.  Dad was a great man and so many people loved him.

Fasting makes perfect

Our ward is having it's annual fast for members of the ward that need help.  We always meet the night before to start the fast and each person who wants their name mentioned is prayed for by name.  It is a great unifying influence in our ward and it helps us to become aware of those who are in need of help.  Many people who were on the list testified today of being able to feel the spirit in abundance.

Ryker in his new Sunday Clothes

This is the first year in a long time that Larry and I have not been asked if we want our names on the list and we are doing so well we did not choose to have our name included.  We have truly been blessed with health and strength.  It makes me feel so good when I can walk for about 4 miles at a time and feel better than when I started.  It really is true that exercise makes you feel better emotionally and physically and I think spiritually as well. We bought the Weight Watchers active link that we wear and it is really pushing us to do better with what we are trying to do for as activity in our daily lives.

Taylor as Princess Sophia the First

Larry has been a member of Gold's gym since he went to medicare.  They have a free membership that they can get on that.  We decided to purchase me a membership as well now that there are some days that are getting colder.  We have gone there everyday this week to walk and tomorrow we are having a personal trainer help us decide which of the machines that we need to use to help with our health and weight loss.  I can truly say I cannot remember a time for a long time when I have felt better.  And at the gym I can watch a movie or other things on TV when I walk.

Last Monday was a busy day for Larry and I.  We weigh in at Weight Watchers at 9:30 a.m.  We walked before that.  I hit my goal of 40 lbs lost last Monday.  Larry lost several pounds and has lost 61 lbs so far so we have almost lost the equivalent of a whole person between the two of us.

We always work on our finances and other paper work on Monday.  We spent most of the day on that.

Taylor as Sophia and Ryker as a Ghost

My visiting teacher came at 4:00 p.m.  It is always good to visit with them.

At 5:15 p.m. we realized that it was our zone in the ward's turn to clean the building.  We went over and I have a key to the church so we started working.  We worked for almost 3 hours and another person did not show up.  We vacuumed the chapel and all the halls and classrooms and cleaned the restrooms.  It took us until 8:15 but we were not too upset because we got lots of activity points for Weight Watchers!  But I wonder if we missed a memo by going to Kirsten's church on Sunday.

Maggie as the Rainbow Princess

I think that Tuesday is the day we joined Gold's Gym in the morning.  After that I took my friend Kelly Jenkins to lunch for her birthday.  We went to Sizzler's and had a good talk while we ate but I tried to be in line with my points and did not do so well.  That afternoon I worked on curriculum until about 4:00 p.m. until Taylor came for us to tend her. 

Abbie as a Power Ranger

Kirsten and John were going to spend the night somewhere for their anniversary so we had Taylor and Kyle overnight.  We took Taylor to her other Grandma's for a while at 5:30 p.m. so we could go to our Financial Peace University Class.  Taylor stays up late at their house because John works until midnight and so sometimes she is up that late.  Needless to say she did not want to go to sleep when we usually do.  I took my pills that I take at night and I was falling asleep but Taylor was not sleepy.  I tried to tell her a bedtime story but my pill that helps me sleep made it so I could not concentrate on the story and I began wandering off like when you are in a dream and saying strange things.  We got up once and got her some treats and her aspirin that I had forgotten and then she finally went to sleep about 11:30 p.m.  I tried to go back to sleep with Larry twice but she would always wake up and come and find me so I spent most of the night with her.

Max, Ellie, Gauge and Brinlie

Wednesday morning we were able to have some one on one time with Kyle before he went to school.  Then when Taylor woke up I took her visiting teaching with me.  We walked to the house which is about two and a half blocks away.  We talked and than walking back I asked her if she had a fun time.  She said no.  Even with the lady offering her the toys her grandchildren play with!  I laughed.
Kirsten and John came about 11:45 am to get her.  After that Larry and I went walking for awhile.

In the afternoon we had a lady come from the insurance company that insures the retired teacher's association.  In the Dave Ramsey class he says that you should get long term care coverage about in your 60's so we wanted to find out about the plan.  Unfortunately we found out that we did not qualify because of the combination of things I have had done and because of Larry's disability classification so I guess we won't worry about that.  Also the lady said it is best to try to get it in you 50's before you have several things wrong with you.  We also talked to her about Dental and Vision because we will lose Larry's cobra with Discover in March.  They have very good plans so we felt good about that.

Max Skelington

Merrilee said she did not feel good enough to go to Weight Watchers so we exercised and then relaxed for a while in the evening.

Thursday morning I got up and had to get my hair done at 9:00 a.m.  It looked much better when she finished because my bangs were getting to long. Maren called while I was driving down there and I had a good talkd with her.  She was feeling good about several of her accomplishments so I was glad to have a chance to talk with her then.  She made a darling costume for Max for nothing but her time because she is such a good seamstress and had some scrap fabric.

 Larry went to the gym while I went and then I went when I got back.  Then we went to Golden Corral and listened to a sales pitch on a type of insulation that is supposed to be really good but we didn't have the money or like the fact that they wanted you to schedule that day to have it put in tomorrow.  You should be able to think about things.  But we had a good dinner at Golden Corral which was again over points.

Matthew, Owen, Leah with two friends

Of course Thursday was Halloween.  When we got home I was able to work for a while but then Taylor and Kirsten came about 5:30 p.m. and Erick and Heather and Ryker came shortly after that.  It was fun to get some picture of the two cousins together and they went for a while in our neighborhood.  I put on my grim reaper costume and answered the door to give out candy.  It was fun to see the looks on some of the kids faces when I answered the door.  One mother had to explain that it was just Sister Presser in a costume.  Some of the kids this year also commented on the wall hanging I put on my door every year.  Someone wanted to know if the house was really haunted and some of the little kids thought it was a scary picture.  I don't think I have had anyone comment on it before so it was a fun night for me.  Larry went to the gym after Taylor and Ryker had come.  I think that Michelle's kids had decided to do something else they said.  We did not see them all night.  We were able to see a lot of our grandchildren that live far away on Facebook.

Erick and Ryker with the pumpkin the carved

When Larry got home we watched Elementary, a program we like that is on that night and then began to get ready for bed.  I didn't make it until 1:00 am.

Friday is our LDS Employment mission.  We are there from 8-5 except for an hour for lunch.  I was able to contact all of my people on the list I have to work with.  It was a really slow day on Friday though.  We had a few people come in but not very many.  There are a lot of good jobs right now with call centers in our area.

Found out texting with Nathan that he had been able to go to the ward party on Halloween night.  He liked that and I think it was an answer to prayer because he was texting me last week about how he wanted to go home.

Taylor and Ryker

Friday night we went to the gym for date night.  I walked about 3.4 miles on the treadmill and got to watch Hocus Pocus on the TV so it went by pretty fast.  Unfortunately, I had to come home to finish part of the movie but that was fun also.  Was able to lay down for that part!!!

Saturday morning we walked over to the Family Search Center where we work from 9-12.  There were only two people that came in but I was able to get some sources on John Henry Michaelsen and his kids, that I found the week before, attached to Family Tree.  I was also able to find sources for his wife Ella Elizabeth Anderson and attach those.  I really love the new feature they have that you can search for documents in Family Search right in Family Tree.  We walked home and then after lunch went to Mom's.

Nathan with the family at McDonalds

About noon Sara sent us a picture of Nathan at McDonalds with the caption "We busted him out and went on and adventure.  I am sure he enjoyed it because he didn't text me that he was depressed this weekend.

At Mom's I vacuumed all the floors on the main floor.  So I got some activity points.  Larry didn't have much to do this week because my brother Craig and my nephews Josh and Weston were there with their families in the morning raking up the leaves.  Mom said that Craig hauled off 38 bags of leaves.  10 of them were from when Kathy and Gary worked last week.  And Kathy and Gary put another 4 in the garbage so they had a lot of leaves to rake.  There are still some that we will have to get next week.

Mom wanted to go somewhere for dinner so we went to Culver's with her.  I was craving a pumpkin shake so I got a mini pumpkin/cheesecake one with my sandwich.  Again I went overboard on my points.  But it was so worth it.  I only have 4 weekly points left of my 49 so it is a good thing that it is fast Sunday today.

When we got home we thought we could go to the gym but found out it closes at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday so we went home and watched NCIS on Xfinity while I walked back and forth for an hour from the bedroom to the kitchen.  It was worth it though, I got more points.

Life in Kaysville

Today we had a fun time at church.  We went to Kirsten's ward and watched the Children's Sacrament Meeting presentation.  Taylor is in the Sunbeam class (the three years olds) she had a small part along with her friend Taisha that has been going to church with her.  When it came time to say their parts both she and Taisha were too shy to say the part into the microphone so the teacher said it for them.  They both did a great job of singing "The Spirit of God"  and the primary had taught them hand movements to go with the song and she raised her arms so high and did the hand movements.  I love the Children's Sacrament Meeting presentations.  The Primary had a great program planned and the spirit was there.  We went with Kirsten to Sunday School but when she had to go teach Young Women's we came home.

Nathan has been texting me quite a bit lately.  He texted me this afternoon and I was able to talk to him for a while.  Then he decided to read.  He texted me a lot last weekend and on Friday.  I think that he gets bored and needs something to do on the weekends.  But he is also dealing with some depression about all the things that he still needs to learn.  And I think that sometimes his mind is confused because it is not yet healed.  Sometimes he texts me to find out what he should do about a certain situation.  Sometimes the answers are not easy.  He also misses the kids and Sara when they cannot come up to the center.

John and Judy called and wanted Larry to bring back the trunks that he has that belong to them so they said that they would pay for us to drive them down.  We decided to go for Thanksgiving so we will leave on the 25th or 26th.  Even though we just got back from visiting with Nathan and Sara we want to be there all the time to see how things are coming.

Larry and I are attending Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University on Tuesdays, it has been a nine week course.  We have spent a lot of time going through our finances and trying to get out budget to work for us.  It is a nine week class.  Every week when we attend I want to have all my kids there to see what is being presented so they will not end up as financially strapped as we have been.

We went to a presentation on Wednesday about a firm called the Legacy Group.  We liked what they had to say so we asked for an appointment.  We are now working on refinancing our house to a 15 year fixed term mortgage.  That is something that is recommended in the class.  We have tried to do this in the past while the interest rates are low but we could not qualify because of our income.  But since Larry got his VA pension we can go through the VA for the loan and we can qualify because of our income. It will save us thousands of dollars. Heavenly Father is really blessing us because of paying our tithing.  We are hoping to get the refinance done before we go to San Antonio again.

I decided to go with my cousin Merrilee to weight watchers on Wednesday nights.  It has been fun to go with her and see her family more and I have learned something new about the program at each meeting the last two weeks.  Larry and I usually weigh together on Monday mornings. I was excited to lose 1.6 lbs. this week.  I only have one more pound to go and I will have lost 40 pounds!  I am also getting excited because I will be at goal weight after I lose another 6 pounds.  But the way I lose weight that could be another six weeks away.

I have also been spending the afternoons on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday writing the marketing curriculum that I agreed to write for Northridge Learning Center.  I am getting closer to the end but it has been an overwhelming project for me.  I have learned a lot about Marketing though.

Friday's we have our LDS Employment mission.  We had training on the 18th but then on this Friday we just worked with our clients.  It was really slow this week.  Not a lot of people coming in for some reason.  I guess by Friday they are getting tired of looking for a job.  We will finish this mission in January and we decided that we will not ask for an extension.  We would like to go somewhere on a mission.

Last Saturday when we went to help Mom we did a google + hangout with Nathan.  I thought that she would enjoy seeing him but the talking was so buffered that it was hard for her to understand him and people just look funny when they are hanging out with an IPad.  It was dark at the time and he looked different than he does in real life.  But I think that it was good anyway and it gave Nathan a chance to see Mom.  He cried quite a bit when he first saw her, but later he was able to get control of his emotions.

Yesterday at the Family Search  Center I was able to find some information on two of, my first husband, John's aunts and their families and some new stuff on his Grandfather on his maternal line.  I was able to save it in the source box but I still need to attach some of it.  We only had one person come in yesterday and he knew what he wanted to do so it was a quiet morning.  Larry and I also took the application papers for the loan there to work on so we could drop them off on the way down to Mom's.  The lender we are working with is in Draper.

Last night we got to tend Ryker.  He is really a smart guy and is so fun to tend.  He likes to play with the bucket of miniature cars downstairs and we watched Despicable Me.  He also likes to see the ecards on Blue Mountain so he is not hard to please.  The first thing he says when he comes in the door is "I want to see puppy."  There are two yappy birthday cards with dogs on and he really likes both of them.  But he also likes several others once we get started.  He also loves the wii so he wanted to play the Ninetendo 64 because it looked like the wii to him.  We had to have Larry show us how to get it going but then it went pretty good.  As usual I did not do well at that game!  But I guess that is because I only play it when the grandchildren or children want me to so I don't get in much practice.

Larry and I have felt like we have really come a long ways with our health. We would recommend Weight Watchers to anyone. We are walking about 4 miles a day and found out that we can also walk down town and still get in the same walk.  It is exhilarating to both of us.  We walked down to main street and went to a movie and got something to eat and then walked home last Friday.  Several times we have walked to Bowman's and got a few groceries and then walked back.  It is really showing up in our health.  I have been able to cut down on the pain pills I take and Larry is so much better in keeping his Diabetes in control.  Sometimes I just feel giddy about it.  It is hard to believe that Larry and I retired for our health and could hardly walk around the block and now we are both feeling better.

Well, I did not take any pictures this this week so you will just have to go with the written word.

We're Home!!

It is good to be home although sometimes I want to go back to San Antonio because it is colder here.  It hasn't been really cold but walking in 40 degree weather requires a sweat shirt and gloves for me.  Larry has not pulled out his coat though.

We had a good lesson in church on the importance of the prophet.  I think that is one of the things that makes our church unique that we believe in continuing revelation.  That makes it possible for us to know what is important to us today in following the doctrine of Christ.  Many people criticize us for things that past .prophets have said that appear to be contradictory but that is the beauty of our system.  What the current prophets say is the most important and they will always preach the doctrine of Christ.

The first snow fall on the mountains

Today was the primary program.  It is always one of my favorite programs.  There were a lot of people at church today because of that and a set of twins that was recently born in our ward were also blessed so they brought in family also.

I wore my hair in a pony tail today and wore my jacket that makes me look skinny over my new dress and so several people finally noticed that I am losing weight.  Brother Peterson said he voted for the pony tail when I told him I was trying to decide whether to keep it or to cut my hair in layers so that it would curl better.  He said it made me look 15 years younger so it was great to have a compliment day from him and several others.

Some of the family are fasting and praying for Kyle because the scout master has lost his record of what he has passed off and Kyle does not have a record so he may not be able to get his Eagle.  We are praying that the record can be found.  But if the Lord says no then we will have to accept that.  Kyle thought he had passed off up to his First Class but they have no record of him doing anything.

Ethan being presented his Eagle

Our grandson Ethan got his Eagle a couple of weeks ago.  He really did a good job.  His parents, Daniel and Michelle, really went all out for the court of honor and it was a nice affair.  Hopefully I can post some pictures that we took of his court of honor.

Ethan pinning his parents

Yesterday we worked at the Family Search Center.  I was able to help a couple of people with problems they had with the way the pedigree was showing that was incorrect.  I also found a census with Larry's grandfather that they called Daddy Jack living with an Uncle and Aunt in Montana in 1910.  Larry was not aware of that.  I looked up some things on the Uncle, James Ferris, and found on one census that a George Ferris was living with his family in the 1870 census.  He was much older than the other children so I am curious if that was his dad's brother but I have no information on the parents of the Father so I was not able to find anything yesterday.

In the afternoon we went down to help Mom.  Keith was there with Caleb and we were able to show them and Mom the pictures of Nathan that we just took last week.  Annette came while we were there and we were able to have a good conversation before we left, after we worked at vacuuming and dusting etc.  Annette was in for the blessing of Weston and Deanna's new daughter today.

Friday was our first day back from San Antonio.  We had our LDS Employment mission.  I was able to make 4 placements so I felt good about that but I was able to help a sister that I have been working with for sometime get a good lead on a job.  That felt good and I hope that she gets it.  The Spirit was really there helping Friday.  I think it was because I was more sincere in my prayers that day.  Sister Mckinistry was not there as they were going out of town so Sister Alvey came in for the afternoon.  She is really a spitfire at 86 and she is so much fun.  She was excited because she had had twin great grandbabies born the day before.  She was also sad because one of them had stopped breathing for a few minutes so she was in the NICU.  We talked about that and everyone was excited to hear about how Nathan was doing now we were back.

Friday evening we walked and watched TV and worked on the budget.  We spent too much in San Antonio and I had made two mistakes that totaled $328.00 so it was not a good night.  But we will be okay.  We still have things to sell.

Thursday was a bittersweet day.  We were excited to come home but the week with Sara and Nathan and the kids had just flown by so fast.  We went to the Polytrauma Center in the morning after packing.  Nathan was in Occupational Therapy.  He was working on taking off and putting on his socks and shoes.  He was able to do it but it took several tries.  I just count my blessings every time I see him having to work so hard to do a simple task.  He has learned to put his own shirt on again but he is still learning to put on the shoes and socks and his pants.  By the time he was finished with that we had to say goodbye.  He cried and said it had been too short for him also.

Some of our fall leaves.  I thought this was interesting because the leaves on the inside were yellow and the leaves on the outside were red

After we had left the hospital we had to hurry and get something to eat and get to the airport.  Larry wanted to try one of the Mexican stands by the side of the road.  We tried one and they only sold their tacos etc. by the dozen and half dozen so we went to another.  We had to wait fifteen minutes for the food and it wasn't that good.  We got home so Sara could take us to the airport about the time we had wanted to be at the airport.  Sammy and Isaac had early out that day so Sara had left the Polytrauma Center to get them and then we were going to leave.  Maggie of course did not have preschool on Thursday, so we were able to say goodbye to them at that time.  We said goodbye to David in the morning because he is in middle school now so he is in a different school.

We made it to the airport fine and were able to get checked in once they realized that they had canceled our reservations when they transferred us to Delta the week before.  But it didn't take long so we made it on the flight but were late for our priority boarding.  Oh well!  When we got to Houston we thought that we would have to go a long distance to our next flight but it was in the next section over right there where we deplaned from the first.  That was easy.

Erick and Heather and Ryker picked us up from the airport.  It was fun to see them but it was noticeably colder than San Antonio.  We had a good ride home talking about what had happened with both of us.

Wednesday we went to the Polytrauma Center after getting ready in the morning.  Nathan was just finishing up Recreational Therapy in the courtyard playing bocci ball.  Larry knew what it was but I had never heard of this game.  I played one round with him and won but it was beginners luck.  Then we went to what we thought was going to be occupational therapy but it was a double with physical therapy.  We had scheduled a hangout on Google plus with BJ for 11:00 am and so they were very accommodating and scheduled his occupational therapy for the afternoon and worked on his physical therapy then because the physical therapist was leaving later.  They had him up on all fours for a while working with his arms and legs and shoulders.  His knees got tired after a half hour of this so they had him lay on his belly.  They had him bend his legs up backwards towards his bottom and it was surprising.  He is usually stronger on the left side but he had to really work to get his left leg to lift up and his right side was just coming up with ease.  They worked on that for about a half hour or more.  Then they had him slide along the edge of the exercise mat sitting up and stand up by the walker.  Sliding is going well but it still takes him quite a bit of time to accomplish, maybe 5 minutes to slide 10 feet.  Then they had him walk with the walker over to his wheelchair.  Right now he has to be held with the belt because sometimes he cannot get his bottom to stay up.  He is just learning to coordinate the movement of his arms and legs and body and it is a lot to focus on when you are having to open up new synapses in the brain.   Again it makes me so grateful for the things that my body can do that I take for granted.  He walked 27 ft. mostly by himself with a wheelchair behind him just in case but he did not need the net and his therapist said she was doing minimal helping.

I tried to get some exercise each day by walking in circles around the exercise mats and walking in circles in Sara's kitchen/family room area.  But Larry said I was driving everyone crazy on that day and Judy was frustrated with it also so I finally quit.

We actually got Google hangout to work on Google + and Nathan was able to see and talk to BJ.  I was surprised to see that he did not talk more on the visits that he had with his brothers and sisters.  But we were able to get it to work on my computer.  He and BJ talked for about 45 minutes and had a good talk.

John and Judy had to leave at noon that day because the prescriptions they had ordered were in and they didn't want to take a chance that something would happen to them.

Larry and I left for lunch and went to Larry's favorite, when we are in a place where they have it, Jack in the Box.  Driving down Larry noticed that the car was heating up.  We ate at the restaurant and then we began to think about what we could do because we did not want to burn up the engine.  I called our insurance and they said that the insurance follows the car so if we were in someone else's car we were not covered.  Larry tried to lift the hood but couldn't so we were trying to figure out if we should call Sara.  Then Larry suddenly gets out and lifts the hood.  He told me later he prayed about it.  Anyway we determined that it was the radiator was dry and the van was low on oil.  We took our cups and carried water from the rest room and filled up the radiator and we stopped and bought some oil and the problem was solved we thought but when Sara took us to the airport it was leaking so we told her that she better get it checked.

We missed Nathan occupational therapy with the work on the van but she told us the next day they worked on putting on shoes and socks.  She recommended that he get some half socks to make it easier.

We decided to walk down to the courtyard with Nathan.  It was so fun to have him all by ourselves and just talk.  We talked about all kinds of things.  It is so good to be able to talk to him and not have to struggle to understand what he is saying.  He is pretty proud of his kids and liked talking about them.  He also explained how hard it is to have so much to still do to get his body working better.  He also mentioned that it is so good to be able to eat again after not eating for 4 months.

Sara and the kids came in about 3:30 pm and she stayed so the kids could get some exercise for a few minutes.  She was excited because she had been to parent teacher conferences and Sammy had done his writing that day.  She said that he usually refuses to write even though he can write.  The handwriting she showed us was very nice.  I was impressed because she told us several things that this teacher was doing to help Sammy like she lets him lead when they wake somewhere and they are supposed to do what Sammy does, so if he sticks his arms out they did the same things.

While we were sitting there Nathan called his sister Maren and was able to talk to to her and Brinlie and Landon.  It was good to hear them talk but the connection wasn't very good so I think it was hard for them to understand Nathan.

That night we took the kids to McDonald's for dinner and home and got them to bed so Sara and Nathan could have some one on one time.

I typed up what had happened on Monday and Tuesday but I lost it on Sunday.  I am trying to reconstruct it now more than two weeks later so I am having a hard time.  That is why this was not posted on Sunday.  Sometimes computers are so frustrating.  I lost 2 hours of work when I tried to post the pictures and this is the first time I have had time to work on it again.

Nathan walking with the walker

Tuesday Nathan was able to walk 15 ft with a walker and the therapist holding him with a belt.  It was exciting.  I was able to follow him with a wheelchair just in case he needed to sit down but he made it the whole way with no sitting down and the therapist said that she gave minimal help.  He worked really hard before that working on other parts of the body.

Tuesday Mike Trolinger came up to see Nathan and to see his parents also.  We went to lunch at Golden Corral and were able to have a good visit with him while Nathan started speech therapy.  Apparently the speech therapist is heavily involved in helping him learn to eat again.  She was showing him how to move his head back and wanted to know if he could cut his meat.  He had mainly been eating the meat by picking up the whole piece and biting off pieces so they got him a rocking knife to cut his meat with.

Judy Trolinger, John Trolinger, June Presser, Larry Presser, Mike Trolinger, Front: Maggie Christiansen, Sara Christiansen, Nathan Christiansen

We went back to the Trauma Center after lunch and were able to spend some time talking to Nathan.  He called Kirsten and talked to her for a while.  She was excited to talk to him but just before we talked to her BJ had texted us and ask us if he could contact Nathan the next day on Hangouts and so while he talked to Kirsten he was trying to sign up for Google+.  This is typical Nathan behavior.  He used to do  things before when he was talking to you on the phone so I guess that is confirmation that he still has the same personality.

We took left about 5 pm and went home so Sara could go to the hospital and be with Nathan one on one.  She made some yummy tacos and we did things with the kids and put them to bed.

Monday Nathan worked on some exercises and walked on the bars with the physical therapist.  The occupational therapist often works with the physical therapist and they go for two hours.

Sara got home on Sunday night late so we let her sleep in and took Maggie with us to the hospital.  We went for lunch to Joe's Crabshack with Judy and John.  Maggie was hesitant about the big shark they had hanging from the ceiling but when I told her that it was just pretend then she relaxed.  It was fun to go there and have some time to relax.

We went back up to the hospital for the afternoon.  Sara came up after the kids got home from school.  They decided to stay with Nathan for a while.  The kids were watching the Crood's again that Kirsten had sent and they wanted to have Family Home Evening.  We wanted to spend some time with Judy and John so we left them at the hospital and went with Judy and John.

We went to a place called Logan's Steak House.  We had a good time talking about Family History and eating.  John and Judy said that we eat to fast, that we need to enjoy our food.  We were not aware that we were eating fast.  It was a fun night and we had a good time.  When we got home Sara and the kids were already in bed.

San Antonio

Today we have been in San Antonio for 4 days.  Sara went to a concert in Austin with some friends and so we were babysitting all weekend.  No one is really a baby so it was not too bad.

When we got there on Thursday afternoon Nathan was excited because he had finally passed a swallow test for solid foods and he was able to eat regular food.  They told him he had to take smaller bites though and chew them up good.  He still cannot drink liquids though so they give him this nectar substance like drink for his water and drinks.  He drinks soup through a straw.  He is a lot happier being able to eat and he is gaining a little weight because he had lost too much weight on the feeding tube.

Friday we went to see Nathan after dropping Maggie off to preschool.  She attends a preschool that is run by a Methodist church in Universal City and it is really nice.  She attends two days a week.  Wednesday's when she goes then Sara is able to run errands and Friday when she goes then Sara is able to have some one on one time with Nathan.  This Friday however Sara left for the concert after she dropped off the boys to their schools, so Nathan got us.

Larry's sister and her husband, Judy and John Trolinger, came down from Ingram, Texas and are staying here in San Antonio and they meet us at the hospital each day.

Nathan learning to walk

Friday we were able to attend Nathan's physical and occupational therapy.  He is starting to walk more and is able to pull himself up into a standing position with a lot of help and coaching. They are working each day to strengthen his shoulders and hands and legs.  I took some pictures of him walking in the parallel bars.  The picture looks like he is just walking but it is hard for him.  Because of the stroke damage he has to concentrate on standing up straight and keeping his bottom tucked in and balancing all at the same time.  Maybe we learned this as a child when we were learning to walk but it makes me appreciate all the things that my body does naturally that I take for granted each day.  He says that it is hard to keep going.  Some days he feels better than others but if he doesn't work it doesn't help him get to his goal.  He wants to walk. 

Therapists working to help Nathan position his hands

The picture I took of him standing looks like he is just standing there against the wall pushing on it ready to do a push up but it took his therapist several minutes of working with his hands to get them to open and working to get his balance and then they walked away for a few seconds while I snapped the picture.  He is still rather precarious and they had to hurry back in to steady him.

Standing up is equally as hard he has to concentrate on where his feet are and how far he has to lean forward to be able to stand up and where his hands are placed but, considering when we were down here three months ago and at that time he had to be lifted with a machine to stand he has come a long ways.

Three months ago he also was just learning to transfer from his wheel chair to the bed or a mat with a board.  Today he was able to transfer from his chair to the exercise mat without a board and he is able to move himself to the right or left while sitting all with great effort.  His right side is harder to work with than the left.

We have not been able to attend the other therapies yet but hope to be able to do that before we leave.

Friday we needed to pick the kids up from their schools about 3:00 pm  John and Judy wanted to go get something to eat about 12:30 pm so we went out to go and luckily we took the van that Sara was letting us use.  It had driven fine in the morning but when we started to go at noon we had a flat tire.  We called AAA and got the tire changed and then took it to a Discount tire to get it fixed.  By this time it was 2:00 pm and we barely had time to grab a bite to eat at Jack in the Box (One of Larry's favorites) and start to get the kids because we had to be at the visitor center of Randolph Air Force Base at 2:40 to get a pass on base and we were at least a half hour away.

Nathan standing on his own for a few seconds

We arrived at the base at 2:50 pm and just as we were getting there I realized that I had left my license at the hospital in my computer bag.  We went in to get the pass but they thought we wanted a pass I guess for a long time because they were saying that they could not give us a pass.  When they finally understood that we just needed the pass for that day to pick up the kids from school then they gave Larry a pass because he was driving but by now it was about 3:10 pm.  So we were 15 minutes late for picking up David and Then about 20 minutes late for Isaac and Sammy and about a half hour late for picking up Maggie.  The preschool had called Sara to ask them where we were and Larry had to go in to pick up Maggie because you had to have a license to pick her up if they did not know you.

Larry and John went to get the tire put on.  He left his phone plugged in because it had died.  I thought he would be back in about 20 minute but it was about 3 hours before he and John returned.  John had no phone so we were frantic wondering what was taking so long.  The kids were hungry but I had no money because Larry had it and so we raided some of Nathan's treats and ate the fruit we had taken to the hospital.  They survived but just barely.  It turns out the tire looked like it had been intentionally poked with something like an ice pick and Larry had to buy a new tire.  When he got there they had not even picked up the tire from when we left it 2 hours ago.  Frustration!!!!

The rest of the evening went better.  We visited with Nathan with the kids and then took them home to eat and go to bed.  We asked David where was a good pizza place and he directed us to a Little Ceasar's that has way better pizza than the one's we have been to in Kaysville area.

Saturday and Sunday we took the kids up to the hospital to watch conference with Nathan.  We were able to set the computer up so it showed on his TV for all of us.  All though there were times when Nathan had to help us figure things out which shows that his thinking brain is fine.  John and Judy even watched a lot of conference and considering they are not members of the church that is a big deal.  Sara had packed a conference bag with lots of goodies and things to do in it and I had printed off the activities on the lds.org website so we were able to keep the kids relatively quiet and focused but it was a challenge.  We were able to hear most of the talks but I am looking forward to going back and reading or watching them because there were potty interruptions with Maggie and Sammy interruptions trying to safe guard the equipment and of course it was more fun to talk about their toys and such than be quiet.  But, it was all fun and we enjoyed it.

Between conference sessions we went to McDonald's on Saturday and went to the outdoor alcove they have for the patients at the hospital and played Hide and Seek with the kids on Sunday after eating a picnic we packed.  We got lots of Weight Watcher's activity points for both days.

Sara got home late last night so we suggested that after she took the kids to school she stay home and rest.  We took Maggie with us.  Nathan was way disappointed so I had to apologize to him.  He was upset for a while but he soon got into his therapy.  He is talking soooo much better than last time.  It was so hard to understand some things that he was saying last time and now you can just understand him.  He does still have a deep voice though.  I am sure talking has helped him to feel better emotionally.  He is doing better about not getting upset so easily this time also.  He still gets emotional when we tell him some things but he seems to be getting over his short term memory problem that caused him to be upset and angry before.

He did a lot of the same things in Physical and Occupational Therapy today as he did on Friday.  He was playing a Wii game in Recreational Therapy.  They have a machine that they can pull him to a standing position and then help him to sit down slowly.  He uses it to use the bathroom but they were using it today to help him stand to do the wii game.  He no longer has to have the diapers on and is able to use the bathroom using this machine.  He has learned to feel when he has to go which I imagine is a great feeling.  He did not like being changed when we were here three months ago.

Erick and Heather had made a video of some of the Family Reunions that we had this summer with people giving Nathan messages of encouragement.  When it came they were not able to get it to play in the DVD player.  This afternoon we tried it in my computer and he was able to watch it.  He cried when some of his cousins told him that they expected him to be there next year.  He seemed to really enjoy it.

Sara came up with the Boys this afternoon.  They put on the movie "The Croods"  that Kirsten sent to Nathan.  This is about the 3rd time that they have watched it since we came.  They all seemed to be enjoying having Sara back so Judy and I took sometime to talk about Family History.  They went to get treats so they could eat with Nathan and then we all went home.  Larry and I went to dinner with John and Judy so Sara could have some time alone with the kids like she wanted.  When we got home they were all in bed.

To Minnesota and back

 Last week we left on Friday morning and flew to Minneapolis, Minnesota.  It was our grandson Ashton's birthday and Baptism on the 7th of September so it gave us a reason to be there.  I was really afraid that we would not be able to go because we were really in a financial bind since we both retired.  When Jake asked if we could come I really thought there was no way but then Larry got assigned classification as a Disabled Vet and we were able to get a monthly paycheck plus back pay from when he filed almost a year ago and that really made it possible.  It was truly an answer to prayer.  However we had to miss Mom's 86th birthday party because Ashton was born on Grandma's birthday.  She said it was very nice.

Nikki and her parents came to pick us up.  Jake and Nikki also allowed us to stay with them.  The baptism was on Saturday about 1:00 p.m.  Their church that is just around the corner is being remodeled to a stage 2 building and so they had to travel about a half hour to the Cottage Grove building for the baptism.  His grandpa Brent Taylor baptized him.  Nikki is Primary President and so she had to get there early for the baptism that they were having with Ashton's to make sure everyone had baptismal clothing and that things were set up, so we went a little early.  It was a good service.  Lexie talked on the Holy Ghost and Larry was able to be a witness for both baptisms.  The other baptism was a girl but I cannot remember her name, her grandpa talked on Baptism and his name was Mark Jones.  I got several picture before and after the baptism that I will post.

Ashton standing in front of the baptismal font

 

Ashton, Abbie and Lexie with Abbie in Forrest Gump's big shoes

After the baptism we went to Mall of America for dinner and the kids and Jake and Nikki went on the amusement rides while we walked the Mall.  We went to a place called Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.  It was really good and again we were able to get a pail of seafood for not very many points that was very satisfying but their buckets have the water from steaming still there so it is a little more messy than at Joe's Crab Shack.  It is patterned after the fact that in the movie Forrest Gump he is a shrimp fisherman with his buddy for awhile in the movie.  The food was good and the kids seemed to like it.

Myles standing by the glass in front of the baptismal

 font

The next day Nikki's parents Brent and Dawn Taylor left to go home as they had already been there for a week.  Even though they went to the Cottage Grove ward for the baptism they had made an agreement with the Seventh Day Adventists in town to rent their building for services each week.  It was interesting to see the building and it was a good meeting.  The contractor for the building spoke with some other people in the ward.  They have a ward that is really growing.  Mark Jones, the Grandpa from the baptism, was the Gospel Doctrine teacher so that is why I can remember his name.

After lunch and resting and watching Myles start to walk with things we decided to show Larry Lake Pepin on the Mississippi.  We all crowded in Jake and Nikki's van and drove around the lake.  It is a really pretty area with a lot of greenery and vintage homes from when it was settled.  Jake stopped in the town of Pepin, Wisconsin on the other side of the river and showed us the lock and dam there.  We learned about the 27 lock and dam's that were built to even out the river from the top to Missouri in the 1930's by the Army Corp of Engineers.  It was interesting to see.  Later in the week he also took us to see the lock and dam by Red Wing where they live.  I noticed in Pepin and Lake City, Minnesota on the other side they have several of the old homes for rent.  It might be fun to spend a weekend there with the family.

Ashton with his parents before the baptism

The kids had to go to school on Monday.  They leave early like the students here in Utah.  Lexie is in High School there and she had to leave at 7:00 am to be there.  Ashton and Abbie had to be at the bus stop at 8:15 am

Back:Lexie, Nikki holding Myles, Christ, Jake, Front: Abbie, Ashton

After the kids left we played with Miles for a while and talked and then Jacob and Nikki took us to see Xcel Energy where he works.  It is about a half an hour from Red Wing but that is a much shorter drive than he had here in Utah.  While we were out there he showed us the lock and dam by Red Wing.  It is within walking distance of the plant but not too close.  He said that in some emergencies that he would have to come there for water. 

Close to the plant is the Treasure Island Indian Casino.  It is on the Indian land there.  Jake and Nikki took us there for lunch and it was a great buffet, even had artichoke hearts on the salad bar.

In the evening they canceled the kids soccer games because it was too hot.  In the 90's that day so we had a relaxing evening and Nikki made some yummy taco's.  Every evening they read scriptures, and some evenings if it was not too late they read a story from the friend and a chapter from a classic book.  This time they were reading The Secret Garden.

June in front of the big boot at Red Wing

Larry in front of the big boot at Red Wing

Tuesday morning we went into downtown Red Wing and saw the giant boot at the RedWing shoe store and factory outlet.  It was interesting to see the shoes that they had.  They have some shoes that are made in America but they are about $330.00.  The also have a line that is less expensive that are made overseas. We ate at a place called the Sub House there in Red Wing and then they took us to the airport.

At the airport I almost didn't make my flight because they didn't want to accept my temporary driver's license that I got when I renewed my license.  They went through all my things and rubbed it down to make sure it did not have traces of explosives and of course they had to pat me down.  It would have been better if our Gate was not G22.  We literally ran through several layers of moving escalators to get to the plane at 11 minutes before take off.  Kirsten picked us up from the Airport and we got to see Taylor also.

Ellie at her birthday party with cake

When we got home we were scheduled to go to a Financial Peace University class here in town.  By the time we got to bed I was a grumpy tired.

Larry and I worked on paper work and I wrote curriculum on Wednesday.  We also picked what peaches were left on the tree, in the wind, so they could be canned.  They were almost too ripe.   Heather had picked some on Monday and canned for us and her family.

Thursday I went over to Heather's to can peaches.  We were able to get 5 bactches done from 10:30-4:00.  I felt good about all that work but I was disappointed to find out that the Active link that we wear for Weight Watcher's did not count standing for that long as an activity.  My body counted it as an activity though.  It was good to get them done so fast.  Larry stayed home and worked on paper work he had to do.  I was able to play with Ryker for a while before I went home.  He loved to toss the ball over the slide and roll it down the slide on his other Grandma's swing set.

Friday was our Mission at the LDS Employment center.  I was able to help two people find leads on work and get signed up online in addition to my regular duties.  Friday night we ate popcorn and watched a movie on Xfinity called Epic.  It was cute, and it was fun to have a relaxing date night.

Weston and Deanna's new baby Zoey Kate Hadlock

Friday the 13th was also Ellie's 4th birthday. Maren sent the above picture of her smiling in front of the cake.  Maren said that when she got my card she told Ellie, "Grandma sent you $25 that you can spend on Amazon."  Ellie then said to Gauge, "I have $25 Amazon dollars from Grandma."  Of course then Gauge said, "I want $25 Amazon dollars"  Maren had to explain to both Gauge and Brinlie that they had got their money for their birthdays.

Yesterday we were able to go to the Ogden Family History Conference.  It was a great conference and it is free.  We are thinking that we may go there more often.  Larry got inspired to do some 4 generation work getting all the sources he needs.  That is not a problem on his line but he also wants to get Diane's four generations and that could be more work.  I enjoyed some of the classes on telling stories.  Maybe that is why I am taking time to write this.

This morning we read lesson 18 in the Lorenzo Snow manual.  I felt like I was being chastised.  I began to search my soul for whether I was trying to help people with the gospel because I wanted the glory or if I was seeking for the glory of God.  In church today I had two experiences where I felt like the Lord guided me to talk to people who needed my help so Larry agreed with me that maybe I had been guilty of this in the past but that I was working for Christ now.  It was a wonderful feeling to be able to help someone that wanted the help you had to offer.

Nathan texted me several times this week and he is doing so much better.  The doctor's told him that he could swim now but he has to go to Fort Sam to do that so they have not taken him yet. It is fun to beable to text with him and talk about stuff.  Larry and I are excited to go stay with them in October 3-10th.