Tuesday, May 28th, 2019

Sydney, Australia

28th operating temple

Dedicated: 20-23 Sept 1984

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ, Divine Sonship

Alma 6:8

And Alma went and began to declare the word of God unto the church which was established in the valley of Gideon, according to the revelation of the truth of the word which had been spoken by his father, and according to the spirit of prophecy which was in him, according to the testimony of Jesus Christ, the Son of God who should come to redeem his people from their sins, and the holy order by which he was called. And thus it is written. Amen.

Book of Mormon

Alma 7:14-27

New Testament "Come Follow Me"

Matt 25:14-30; Mark 12:13-17; 41-44; Luke 21:1-4

General Conference

Prepared to Obtain Every Needful Thing

David A. Bednar

"The programs and activities of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are becoming ever more home centered and Church supported, as evidenced by the series of adjustments announced in recent general conferences. President Russell M. Nelson has counseled us: 'There is much more to come. ...Eat your vitamin pills. Get your rest. It's going to be exciting.'"

We sold the book, "Signing Naturally," today and made over $20.

I got my next "Done For You" list and bought several more books. I then repriced 25 books in our inventory. 

This afternoon James and I did some errands. First we took a "Come Follow Me" manual to my friend Marie. She seemed happy to get it. 

Next stop was the bank to see when our stocks would be put in our checking account. James went in and spoke to Jeremy. He said that they would be put up for sale this week and the money should be in our account by Friday. That's good news because we need it for propane and new tires and my crown and maybe even some could be used to buy more books.

James dropped me off at Dollar Tree so I could buy some cards. Their cards are fifty cents to a dollar. If I went to Walmart to buy cards I would pay a lot more than that. James went to Lowe's to look at barn doors for the Howard's. 

When I was done shopping at Dollar Tree I walked over to Taco Bell and James met me there for dinner. I had my usual, a taco and a tostada. James had a tostada and a chicken quesadilla.

When we got home there was still enough daylight for James to work outside. James got a bottle jack? out of his truck and jacked up the deck, put shims under the posts to hold it up. My guy can do just about anything when it comes to construction. Not so on the computer.

It was a beautiful day today except for the fact that there was a prescribed burn around Timber Knoll. They know how to ruin a beautiful day at the Lakeside Ranger station.

Joshua sang "We Will Rock You" at his school's talent show and the kids loved it!

 Looks like a perfect Hallmark moon

 James used to do handyman work for Susan

before she got remarried. I use to joke and called

her his "other wife."

Clouds

 Part of our book webinar today. Talking about Amazon fees for

fulfilled by Amazon.

 I love the quote on the wall!

 Kissy face

Monday, May 27th, 2019

Boise, Idaho

27th operating temple

Dedicated: 25-30 May 1984

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ, Divine Sonship

Mosiah 15:3

The Father, because he was conceived by the power of God; and the Son, because of the flesh; thus becoming the Father and Son -

Book of Mormon

Alma 7:1-13

New Testament "Come Follow Me"

Matthew 25:1-13 The Parable of the Ten Virgins

General Conference

Good Shepherd, Lamb of God

Gerrit W. Gong

"At this Easter season, we celebrate the Good Shepherd, who is also the Lamb of God. Of all His divine titles, no others are more tender or telling. We learn much from our Savior's references to Himself as the Good Shepherd and from prophetic testimonies of Him as the Lamb of God. These roles and symbols are powerfully complementary - who better to succor each precious lamb than the Good Shepherd, and who better to be our Good Shepherd than the Lamb of God?"

I spoke with my friend Debbie today about her cataract surgery. A Dr. Pfister from the valley came up to Barnett Delaney and did one of her eyes, and then two weeks later, did the other. She said the first thing I needed to do was to call my doctor and tell him what my plans are.

Brian and Kim left this morning. We were sad to see them go but grateful that Kim is feeling a little better.

While working and walking today I watched some of the Countdown to Summer favorite movies from past years. The first one I watched was "Summer of Dreams" starring Debbie Gibson and Pascale Hutton. Debbie plays a washed up superstar who coaches  a choir group at a high school in Ohio. It was fun.

The number one favorite countdown to summer movies was this year's "Paris, Wine and Romance" starring Jen Lilley.

I love the digital photo frame Kim and Brian gave us last year for our anniversary. They showed me how to load more photos from my phone so I am excited to do that!

It was windy today so of course I stayed inside. James is a little more adventurous than I am and went outside to work on the deck.

We watched a new Hallmark movie, "Love in the Sun." Here is my favorite quote from the movie by Kai: "There aren't any alligators, the sharks ate them all."

Ben wrote a letter to Sheri and gave quite a sermon on repentance today.

Ben has such a strong testimony and is not afraid to share it with others. What a preacher!

 The corner of Dobson and Willis

Jesse and Valoise

Sunday, May 26th, 2019

Mexico City, Mexico

26th operating temple

Dedicated: 2-4 Dec 1983

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ, Divine Sonship

Mosiah 15:2

And because he dwelleth in flesh he shall be called the Son of God, and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father, being the Father and the Son-

Book of Mormon

Alma 5:53-6:8

New Testament "Come Follow Me"

Review: Matthew 21-23; Mark 11; Luke 19-20; John 12

 General Conference

Exercising Our Spiritual Muscles

Elder Juan Pablo Villar

"I have come to realize that spiritual gifts behave in the same way. They also need to be exercised to grow. The spiritual gift of faith, for example, is not just a feeling or a mood; it is a principle of action that frequently appears in the scriptures linked to the verb exercise. Just as reading and learning about muscles is not enough to build muscle, reading and learning about faith without adding action is insufficient to build faith."

As we were driving to church this morning I got this text from Brian: I'm sorry Karen. We won't make it today. We've been up most of the night. Kim is very sick and dizzy. I almost took her in to the ER a few hours ago. She's resting now but if it doesn't improve I'm going to take her in. If we are here when you get back, can you ask Jim to help give her a blessing? My blessings don't seem to work.

Poor Kim. She has had so many health issues in her life and more so recently. This dizziness is one of the worst things to experience. 

Our ward was full past the second overflow today. There are a few times each year this happens. James had 13 kids in his tiny Primary classroom. 

Brother Peeler was the main speaker today. I love him and his wife Donna so much. He says he is the oldest person in our ward. To me he looks like the stately southern gentleman. 

Brother Peeler started out by saying that we are cleansed and changed by repentance but we must ask ourselves, "What lack I yet"? He began quoting the Articles of Faith and discussing them. He said that in his day you did not graduate from Primary unless you could quote all 13 Articles of Faith. The Articles of Faith help us stay on the Covenant Path. He also spoke about following the Prophet and our local leaders. He said we should ask ourselves, "Was my bishop called of God?" We must pray to know our spiritual gifts and work to develop them. He said that the Articles of Faith help us live a higher law. He then began speaking about the temple and it's importance in our lives. The temple teaches us the higher law. How do we as a people treat one another? He said that in his "prenuptial" agreement with his wife they agreed they would never belittle one another in public or private. 

Diana Curtis gave the lesson in Relief Society based on Sister Eubank's conference address, "Christ: The Light That Shines in Darkness." It was a great lesson and we had lots of good discussion. We had 18 visitors and several of them gave some good comments. 

When we got home James and Brian gave Kim a blessing. Afterwards she gave both of them a big hug. She does feel a little better than she did this morning. She says that many of the problems she has relate to the fact that her neck is straight instead of curved as most peoples. She feels a numbness in her head. Brian says when they get home she is going straight to the doctor.

For lunch we had raw veggies and bacon, cheddar cheese burgers. The burgers were delicious. After lunch we all took naps. When I got up from my nap I had a message from Jared that he and Charlie wanted to Facetime. I cleaned up and combed my hair and told him I was ready. Charlie is still not interested in me. I tried to play peek-a-boo but she wasn't looking. Next time I am going to grab a stuffed animal and see if that gets her attention.

I worked on my blog this evening and then the four of us watched "When Calls the Heart." Kim and Brian like it as much as we do.

Lukas Bouchard proved that he is a good guy. Next week is the finale.

James wrote a letter to Ben while I was finishing up on my blog and then we went to bed.

 Scarlett, our little southern belle

 I don't quilt but I love quilt, especially ones

with geometric designs

 The desert is beautiful in the spring

 I love this!

Our sweet Charlie girl!