Saturday, May 23rd, 2020

Colonia Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico

55th operating temple

Dedicated: 6 March 1999

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ, King

Luke 23:3

And Pilate asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answered him and said, Thou sayest it.

Book of Mormon/"Come Follow Me"

Mosiah 28 - Read with James

Inklings

Restoration Proclamation

April General Conference

"Hear Him"

President Russell M. Nelson

"We live in the day that "our forefathers have awaited with anxious expectation." We have front-row seats to witness live what the prophet Nephi saw only in vision, that "the power of the Lamb of God" would descend "upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory."

"Born Again"

James E. Faust

April 2001

I will be kind and patient today.

Ruby and I made pancakes and turkey bacon for breakfast this morning. Addy and Trina declined and went for a run instead. James was gone on a service project for the Elder's quorum, helping Sheba Myers to move. Darrel did not eat but Rowan, Ruby, and Lola did. And so did I. Ruby said it was the first time she had made pancakes. 

I washed and cut some strawberries for Addy when she got back from her run. Actually they were for whoever wanted them but I know how much Addy loves strawberries. 

The older kids wanted to walk to Chocolate Lake, or what used to be The Oaks so Trina took them while Darrel stayed here with Lola. Lola had Darrel playing games with her. They played Book of Mormon Who? until Darrel said Lola cheated. They then played Headbanz. I told Lola I wanted to take her picture with her Headbanz on. After I took it she asked to see it. Darrel said, "no not until the game is over." Lola started laughing. She knew that by looking at the picture she would see what was on her Headbanz.

Darrel asked if he and Lola could ride Luna to find the kids and Trina walking. Of course, and that is what they did. 

She probably couldn't have seen anything

in these photos anyway

The next adventure was to take Darrel's truck up to Green's Peak.

The kids rode in the back. I guess it was pretty cold and windy on the top of Green's Peak.

Lola got out her favorite three hundred piece puzzle for us to do. It's the one with Snow White, the dwarfs and the wicked queen.

While everyone was gone this afternoon I walked for an hour. 

When James got home from working on the road he loaded up the trash in the car and we headed for the dump and then to town to get some oats for Luna. We got some treats at Dairy Queen to eat on the way home. I read a couple of chapters from "Aunt Dimity and the Lost Prince."

When we returned home Darrel and Trina and the kids had already eaten. The chicken that Darrel marinated and grilled was sitting on the counter. James and I both had some. It was delicious.

After dinner James and I watched an episode of "Lark Rise to Candleford" in the bedroom. Darrel, Trina, and the three older kids played Scattergories. Lola watched the Disney channel.

 This is from last year but it's worth

seeing again

 My friend from Chandler, Karen

I was her visiting teacher

 Charlie is a hand holdin' girl

Friday, July 19th, 2019

Memphis, Tennessee

80th operating temple

Dedicated: 23 April 2000

By: James E. Faust

Jesus Christ, Firstborn

DC 76:94

They who dwell in his presence are the church of the Firstborn; and they see as they are seen, and know as they are known, having received of his fulness and of his grace;

Book of Mormon

Alma 35:1-16

New Testament "The Word of God Grew and Multiplied"

Acts 15

General Conference

Abound with Blessings

Elder Dale G. Renlund

"A fire must receive a constant supply of oxygen for the wood to ultimately release its full potential. Faith in Christ requires ongoing action for the blaze to continue. Small actions fuel our ability to walk along the covenant path and lead t the greatest blessings God can offer. But oxygen flows only if we figuratively keep moving our feet. Sometimes we need to make a bow and arrow before revelation comes as to where we should search for food. Sometimes we need to make tools before revelations come as to how to build a ship. Sometimes, at the direction of the Lord's prophet, we need to bake a small cake from the little oil and flour we have to receive an unfailing cruse of oil and barrel of flour. And sometimes we need to 'be still and know that God is God' and trusting in His timing."

Sold a book, "Design Drawing".

After scriptures and prayer this morning James and I went upstairs and he helped me put sheets on the beds. We checked for bugs in the bathtubs but there weren't any. I think we got rid of most of the moths. 

When we were finished James took a short rest because he is not feeling well. He feels like his bronchitis is coming back. I called the doctor and made him an appointment on Monday, exactly two weeks since his last appointment. 

He went to work for awhile at the Howard's, an hour or so, and then came home and we left for town. We are going to get my tire fixed.

We dropped Lexy off at Discount Tire and they said it would take about an hour and a half. We walked over to Chase Bank and had our Green Acres Cemetery papers notorized. Now we need to send them in. Next we walked down to KFC for their buffet lunch. As we were eating we began to talk about Colonel Sanders. James said he didn't like the mashed potatoes and started his own restaurant called The Colonels. I argued with him and then looked Colonel Sanders up on the internet. Here are some things we found out:

Harland Sanders was born in 1890. His mom was a widow and he was the oldest of three children and was forced to take care of the home and his family. This is when he started to develop his cooking skills.

He quit school after the sixth grade saying that algebra's what drove him off. 

Eventually Sanders ran a gas station in Corbin, Kentucky. To make ends meet, he began to cook and sell meals for weary travelers who stopped at the station. His food, which usually consisted of pan-fried chicken, ham, string beans, okra and hot biscuits, garnered him something of a reputation in the region for his skills as a chef. A few years later, he took out the gas pumps and set up his first restaurant. 

By this time, Sanders had begun to perfect the recipe for chicken which is still closely guarded by KFC today. His winning streak grew even hotter in 1939, when he developed a method of cooking chicken via a pressure cooker which cut down on grease and preserved flavor, moisture, and texture without sacrificing cooking time. For over a decade, Sanders' restaurant prospered.

In the '50s, Sanders was struck by two blows of bad luck in rapid succession, putting the success he had finally found at great risk. The first came when the highway junction situated in front of his restaurant was moved to another location, effectively putting an end to the busy traffic which regularly passed by - and proved him with customers. That alone would be enough to put a major dent in his business, but next came the announcement of a brand new interstate highway which was to be built on a location which bypassed the restaurant by seven miles. It became clear that Sanders and his restaurant were about to be left in the dirt.

 Sensing the end was near, Sanders auctioned off the site of his restaurant in 1956, and he took a loss on the sale. With no income, he was forced to scrape by a living on his savings, the proceeds of the auction, and his Social Security check of $105 per month. 

After the closure of his restaurant, Sanders, now devoted to his cooking, attempted a new business tactic. He traveled across the United States, visiting potential franchisee restaurants and offering them his chicken recipe in return for 4 cents on every chicken sold (he later raised it to a nickel). Sanders' first franchisee was Pete Harman, a friend in Salt Lake City. who had seen a boom in sales since beginning to serve chicken made with Sanders' method and recipe.

By 1964, Sanders had franchised over 600 outlets and built a company worth millions of dollars Although, at that time there weren't actually any Kentucky Fried Chicken location, only restaurants that sold their chicken.

Sanders sold his company, KFC, in 1964, for 2 million. He received a down payment of $50,000, the company's assets in Canada, and a lifetime salary of $40,000 per year. He was never truly happy with the deal.

He fought with the company after the sale

In 1971, Brown, Sanders attorney, sold the company and Colonel Sanders became discontented with the direction KFC was taking: the company moved its headquarters to Tennessee, began charging a franchise fee for its outlets and took a percentage of sales rather than Sanders' preferred rate of a nickel per chicken.

Here is the part where James was right about another restaurant named The Colonel. (Really, I should never doubt him.)

Eventually, Sanders chose to open a new restaurant which he named Colonel Sanders' Dinner House. KFC posited that they owned the rights to his name and threatened legal action. He renamed his eatery to the Colonel's Lady's Dinner House, but KFC insisted they owned the rights to the word "colonel." Sanders then decided to sue the company he began - for $122 million. KFC responded by suing him for trademark infringement. They settled in 1975 and the terms have not been disclosed.

He got in trouble with the company again in 1978, when he gave a newspaper interview complaining the gravy now tasted like "wallpaper paste" (James said it was the mashed potatoes), and the new chicken recipe was horrible. The franchise where he gave the interview tried to sue him for libel, but since he was talking about the whole company and not just one location, the judge threw it out.

His final years

Despite his troubled relationship with KFC, Sander continued to work for the company for the rest of his life. He continued to tour the country on KFC's behalf and, for the last two decades of his life, was never seen in public wearing anything but his iconic white suit. In his later years, he also found religion, and donated much of his wealth to charities, such as the Salvation Army.

On December 16th, 1980, Sanders died of leukemia at the age of 90. His body was ordered to lay in state at the Kentucky State Capitol, before he was buried in Lousiville, Kentucky.

In the wake of Sanders' death, KFC's fortunes exploded It became on of the US's leading fast food brands, opened up thousands of restaurants across the world and, in the fourth quarter of 2017, enjoyed a net income of $436 million dollars.

Sorry this was so long but I wanted to prove the point that James was right and I was wrong. I am eating humble pie right now along with my KFC chicken.

Darrel and Trina and the kids arrived around 8:30 this evening. Lola opened her birthday presents and we watched the Hallmark movie, "Christmas Love." 

 Gated DFY books 

Sent to help center for replacement

Summer storm

 I love this picture!

 Who knew? 

Makes sense with all the dust and dirt

 Roxy the chinchilla: 

A face you don't see too often

 Nichols' baby

Saturday, February 2nd, 2019

Louisville, Kentucky

76th operating temple

Dedicated: 19 Mar 2000

By: Thomas S. Monson

Jesus Christ, Divine Sonship

Hebrew 5:5

So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee.

Book of Mormon

1 Nephi 21:22-22:10

What does it mean that the Gentiles will nurse Israel back to health? What are some examples you have noticed?

New Testament "Come Follow Me"

Ideas for Family Scripture Study and FHE

Matthew 3; Matthew 3:11-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22

General Conference

Deep and Lasting Conversion to Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ

Elder Quentin L. Cook

"The new home-centered and Church-supported curriculum needs to influence more powerfully family religious observance and behavior and personal religious observance and behavior. We know the spiritual impact and the deep and lasting conversion that can be achieved in the home setting. Years ago, a study established that for young men and women the influence of the Holy Ghost most often accompanies individual scripture study and prayer in the home. Our purpose is to balance the Church and the home experiences in a way that will greatly increase faith and spirituality and deepen conversion to Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ."

This is how my morning went: scriptures and prayers with James. Unloaded the dishwasher, took a shower, and at 9:50 left to visit Vanessa H. with Kerri. We had to wait a few minutes for Vanessa because she had gone to the church to help the Scott's and the Wood's clean the church.

We had a nice visit with Vanessa who is trying to recover from a bad marriage and a soon to be divorce. Her husband was addicted to drugs and never much of a husband or father to their 5 year old daughter Raelynn.

Raelynn lost her first tooth. She is so sweet, she offered to and gave the prayer in RS a few weeks ago. When I left today she gave me a hug.

After our visit I called James and asked if he wanted to join me on my trip to town. He said no, he was doing a deep clean of the stove and had removed several cups of grease from underneath the surface.

I shopped at Walmart for food for our company, Darrel's family, who are on their way up today. I bought food for 7-layer dip, roast, chicken tacos, and cheesecake. While checking out at Walmart I got a call from my brother Dennis inviting me to lunch at El Rancho for Harold's birthday at 2:30. I had to decline because that is about the time Darrel and Trina are arriving. 

I stopped at Dollar Tree before going home. They have lots of stickers, etc. for Valentine's day and they are all $1.

I forgot marshmallows for s'mores. I texted this message to Trina:

I got stuff for chicken tacos, a roast, stuff for 7 layer dip, strawberries, blueberries, brownie mixes, green beans, broccoli, Hershey bars and graham crackers, forgot marshmallows, Hershey kisses, conversation hearts, bisquick to make waffles, might need more milk.

All I wanted them to get was marshmallows and more milk. My text was confusing and Darrel thought I needed Hershey kisses, conversation hearts, and Bisquick. He called about the Bisquick and I told him I got that so he got Hershey kisses, conversation hearts, and milk. He forgot the marshmallows...

Ruby got carsick and came right in holding a Polar Pop cup for barf, and laid on the couch. The first thing we did was put in "Mary Poppins" for Lola. While watching someone asked where grandpa was and I said outside splitting wood. Immediately Trina, Darrel, Addy, and Rowan went out to help him. 

James split the wood, everyone else stacked it in the Razr and then came down and stacked it on our porch. 

 Trina posted this.

Thank you guys so much!!

Lola, Ruby, and I stayed inside and watched "Mary Poppins."

Trina, Darrel, and Addy came in and played a game of "Settlers."

Rowan got out the collectors "Settlers" game and played with it. After winning her game with mom and dad, she went over and played with Rowan.

Not sure what Darrel is doing here...but Addy won!

Rowan loves to make faces at the camera.

I shredded a roasted chicken and made chicken tacos. We had flour tortillas and corn tortilla shells. I steamed some broccoli and we also had fresh strawberries. Addy loves strawberries!

I started watching episode one of season 3 "Victoria" with Darrel and Trina but James wanted me to go to bed, so I left.

I was sad to see that my Hallmark new Saturday night movie, "Valentine in the Vineyard" did not record. I looked at the program guide and it is playing again on Thursday so I set it to record. All is well. 

I finished my steps in the bedroom before going to bed.

So many cute ideas for Valentines!

Cute little heart animals

 Super cute!

 Niagara Falls is frozen

Sunday, March 11th, 2018

Edmonton, Alberta

67th operating temple

Dedicated: 11-12 Dec 1999

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ Authority of

2 Nephi 10:14
For he that raiseth up a king against me shall perish, for I, the Lord, the king of heaven, will be their king, and I will be a light unto them forever, that hear my words.
Book of Mormon
2 Nephi 29:1-14
* How have these verses increased my appreciation for the Book of Mormon?
Old Testament
Numbers 24
Balaam sees in vision and prophesies of the destiny of Israel - He prophesies of the Messiah: There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel.
Old Testament Favorite Scriptures
Exodus 20:16
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
General Conference

Repentance is Always Positive

Stephen W. Owen

" I have a friend who grew up in a less-active Latter-day Saint family. When he was a young adult, he too 'came to himself' and decided to prepare for a mission. He became an excellent missionary. On his last day before returning home, the mission president interviewed him and asked him to bear his testimony. He did so, and after a tearful embrace, the president said, 'Elder, you could forget or deny everything you have just testified of in a matter of months if you do not continue to do the things that built your testimony in the first place.' My friend later tole me that he has prayed and read the scriptures daily since he returned from his mission. Being constantly 'nourished by the good word of God' has kept him 'in the right way.'"

I was up at 4:15 this morning. I had my prayers and continued working on my Primary lesson, "Abraham and Lot," The Circle of Love.

We left at 8:40 because I wrote personal notes to all the kids in my class.

Andy W. was the youth speaker in sacrament meeting today.  He spoke on his favorite scripture story which was Nephi getting the plates and what an example he was of overcoming trials.

Sister S. Wilhelm spoke on the Church's Self-Reliance program. 

Brother Goodman was the final speaker and what a wonderful talk he gave. He spoke about justice and mercy and how God wants all his children to enjoy all of His blessings. We open the vault to those blessings through our faith and obedience. As we live God's laws we find protection and are pointed toward Jesus Christ. Suffering for sins should help us to change. That is it's purpose.

We had two visitors in our Primary class, the Patrick's grandchildren Rhea and Graham. They are not members but they love coming to Primary. I also had Curtis from the older class, and Liana, Amaron, and Andyn from my class. I spoke with Sister Singleton about Jace and he is in Whiteriver visiting his birth mother. Gracie was not here today and I have written her a note as I did all of the children in my class. Colter was in the valley visiting his sister Brielle with his parents and LeeAnn and Hailey.

When I gave out the notes I wrote to the children in my class, Curtis ran out of the room. It was sometime before he returned.

Sister Hall's mother did singing time today. She was quite good. 

Sister Skousen did sharing time which involved all the children and was based on the scriptures. 

I spoke with Sister Skousen about Sister Gentry and she loves Sister Gentry as much as Sister Gentry loves her.

Liana and Andyn both got to pick two treasures for the two newsletters they turned in. Amaron wanted one too but I had to tell him no. I told him I would help him do the paper which isn't due until the next fast Sunday so he could pick a treasure. I can no longer do these papers every week, but now only once a month.

Andyn took the fishing hat and some colored pencils. Liana took some candy and a doll.

We went home and had lunch and before we knew it Darrel and Trina were here with all the kiddies.  

At 4 p.m. I went to a high priest group presidency meeting with James. They are planning a party for the older single sisters in the ward and they want the wives input. Sister Hunsaker was there too but Sister Curtis is still in St. David taking care of her father who has alzheimers.

The meeting was just an hour long and then we were back home with our company. James cut the chicken breasts in half and I made a honey mustard to marinate them in. I also took out the chicken tenders from the freezer and put them in some warm water and took some rolls out to rise. We had a very nice dinner: Chicken, grilled and fried tenders, green beans, corn, beans, a salad which Trina made, and rolls. It was quite delicious.

After dinner I played Apples to Apples with Ruby, Trina, and Addy.  Addy and Rowan worked on my Provo City Center, "Brick'em temple and then we watched Lindsay Lohan in "The Parent Trap." Of course Lola had to watch her favorite movie, "Brave" before we watched ours. It was after midnight before we went to bed.

Couldn't resist this one.

President Nelson and his wife Wendy

greet some young adults at the 

Nevada fireside.

The last of the Butler brothers.

Salt River Canyon

Such a lovely couple

Trina said it was like they were in a cloud.

Salt River Canyon

Courtesy of Darrel