Thursday, December 19th, 2024: 3:30 up to shower but no hot water, leave at 4:30 am, Payson way before construction, Barrow Brain & Spine next to Chandler Regional Hospital, take it easy & no chain saws, 80 degrees in valley, Hatch Dental w/ Armando, Lois & Dawn's, Caldwell's BBQ w/ Sheri, Ben & Cayli, Costco, Globe way, Vernon @ 5:30pm

 

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

143rd operating temple

Dedicated: 4 May 2014

By: Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Book of Mormon

Moroni 10

Come Follow Him

"Follow Him" 

October General Conference

'Seeking Answers to Spiritual Questions'

Sister Tracey Y. Browning

"Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf has taught that 'asking questions isn't a sign of weakness,' but rather 'it's a precursor of growth.' Speaking directly to our personal effort as seekers of truth, our prophet, President Russell M. Nelson, has taught that we must have 'a deep desire' and 'ask with a sincere heart and real intent, having faith in Jesus Christ.' He has further taught that 'real intent' means that one really intends to follow the divine direction given."

'Mortality Works'

Elder Brook P. Hales

"We should not be surprised when hard times come upon us. We will encounter situations that try us and people who enable us to practice true charity and patience. But we need to bear up under our difficulties and remember, as the Lord said: 'And whoso layeth down his life in my cause, for my name's sake, shall find it again, even life eternal. Therefore, be not afraid of your enemies (or your problems, challenges, or the tests of this life), for I have decreed . . ., saith the Lord, that I will prove you in all things, whether you will abide in my covenant . . . that you may be found worthy."

I got up at 3:30 this morning to take a shower. Oops, there was no hot water. I had to "make do" as there is no time to go upstairs to shower. We had to leave around 4:30 in order to make it to Barrow Brain & Spine in Chandler by 8 am. We went the Payson was before construction work began. We arrived at Barrow Brain & Spine at 8 am, one hour before James appointment so we could finish up some paperwork as we were instructed.

When James told the girl at the desk why we were here an hour early she said to him, "Oh, we have all of your paperwork." Do you mean that we could have slept at extra hour? This is not acceptable and is poor communication on their part. We sat and waited an hour before James was called back and then we had to wait for Dr. Wilson to get out of surgery. Finally, he's here.

I thanked Dr. Wilson for saving James's life. He said, "of course." 

James's CT scan looks good. Here was what Dr. Wilson said about going forward: Take one baby aspirin a day, but still no Plavix. See Dr. Memon, you cardiologist. Take it easy, and no chain saws. You next appointment should be in a month where you will bring a new CT scan. Thank you Dr. Wilson.

The high today in the valley is 80 degrees. A perfect day for winter visitors. Our next stop was at Hatch Dental where James had a meeting with Armando. From here we went to Mesa to the Landings and James and Armando had a meeting there to talk about an upcoming job.

Finally we got to Lois and Dawn's for a visit. They gave us homemade candy and an amarylis from Connie. We talked about our kids and grandkids coming to their house caroling last night and how much they enjoyed it. After saying goodbye we headed to east Mesa where Sheri invited us to lunch at a place called Caldwell's BBQ. 

We met Sheri, Ben & Cayli. I think Sheri paid for everyone. I had tri tip with macaroni and cheese and it was delicious. James agreed, except for the mac & cheese of course. Thank you Sheri.

After lunch we headed for the Costco on Sossaman's since we are going home the Globe way this was not out of our way. The only problem is, we did get stop for road construction because it was not yet 2 pm. I drove until right outside of Globe where James took over. We got home to Vernon around 5:30. Hello Thomas, did you miss us?

Happy Birthday Michael!

Kim made the cake with very little frosting

at Michael's request.

Michael and Namira

Thanks Sheri for lunch.

Cayli took the picture.

I wish she was in it.

Alex went to Costa Rica on the 16th 

with Shayna's family.

 

 

Wednesday, December 18th, 2024: James working on a bid for a Chinese company, J-Dr. Moffat while I shop - Ross, Dollar Tree, JC Penney's, Book Barn, pickup James, Walmart, Culver's, J has fatty liver, gall bladder stones, "3 Men and a Little Boy", Caroling @ Grandmothers

 

Gilbert, Arizona

142nd operating temple

Dedicated: 2 Mar 2014

By: Thomas S. Monson

Book of Mormon

1 Nephi 1

Come Follow Me

"The Faith to Ask and Then to Act"

President Henry B. Eyring

October 2021 General Conference

October General Conference

'I Am He'

President Jeffrey R. Holland

"How did Jesus love? First, He loved with 'all of His heart, might, mind and strength,' giving Him the ability to heal the deepest pain and declare the hardest reality. In short, He is one who could administer grace and insist on truth at the same time."

After family prayer and Come Follow Me James began working on a bid for a tenant improvement on a building that will be rented out to a Chinese company. I'm not sure about this one.

At 10:15 this morning James and I left for town. He has an appointment with Dr. Moffat and while he is at his appointment I am going shopping. After dropping James off at Change Point, where Dr. Moffat practices, I drove to Ross. I was looking for some more blankets but I only found one. It was larger than most that I buy so I think I am going to give it to Palmer. After Ross I went to Dollar Tree and then on to J.C. Penney's. I found several blankets I liked at J.C. Penney's. I went to the local Church bookstore, The Book Barn and bought some calendar's to give to the sisters I minister to and to the Crane's. After The Book Barn I went back and picked up James and then we went to Walmart and then Culver's. I am just about finished shopping for blankets. 

After putting things away I got comfy on the bedroom recliner and took a rest. James continued to work on the bid he was working on this morning. He had a phone meeting regarding the bid and he said it went well. 

Here is a brief report from James's visit with Dr. Moffat. The doctor says James has a fatty liver and gall bladder stones. James said he was very thorough but made the statement that James never told him he had a headache when he came in for his last visit and that Kerri didn't record him having a headache either. He is just covering his tracks to avoid a lawsuit. It makes me think less of him.  All James said was: "That's the reason I made an appointment."

No matter what I have done during the day, at the end of the day this time of year, I always want to watch a Christmas movie. Tonight I watched "Three Men and a Little Boy" the sequel to "Three Men and a Baby" starring Andrew Walker, Paul Campbell, and Tyler Hynes. It was written by a Hallmark actress, Kimberly Sustad. I really enjoyed it and so did Tom. 

Some of our kids and grandkids went Christmas caroling to Lois and Dawn this evening. I think this is the first time that Jared Ammon has gone with them.

Christmas Caroling at Grandmother's

Great to have Jared Ammon and both Trina and

Darrel here together!

Thanks to Kim for taking so many great pictures, but

I didn't see you in any of them. 

Kim said Ben & Cayli came, but they left early and

she didn't get any pictures of them either.

Tuesday, December 17th, 2024: Ate poorly & acted badly today, Organ Stop - Gonzales family photo, Giraffe photos, Stacy's call, we stay there, they come up Christmas day, wrapping in our bedrm, Anthony Romyak,

 

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

141st operating temple

Dedicated: 17 Mar 2013

By: Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Book of Mormon

Moroni 10:3-7

Come Follow Me

I can know the truth of all things by the power of the Holy Ghost.

October General Conference

'In the Space of Not Many Years'

Elder David A. Bednar

"And thus we see that the Spirit of the Lord began to withdraw from the Nephites, because of the wickedness and the hardness of their hearts. And thus we see that the Lord began to pour out his Spirit upon the Lamanites, because of their easiness and willingness to believe in his words." Perhaps the most stunning and sobering aspect of this decline into apostasy by the Nephites is the fact that 'all these iniquities did come unto them in the space of not many years.'"

This was not a good day for me. It's as if I had an evil bug inside of me or a chemical imbalance. I ate poorly and I acted badly.  I did manage to do my two blog posts today.

I got a call from Stacy. She was a little stressed. Jared, Kacey, Charlie are flying in to Arizona on December 31st. They will visit Lois and Dawn and then drive up to Vernon for the rest of their stay. 

Here is the problem. Joshua says all he wants for Christmas is to come up on Christmas day and stay until the following Sunday which is the 29th. Stacy said they can't afford to come back but she really wants to see Jared, Kacey, and Charlie. Because Joshua said that going to the cabin was all he wanted for Christmas of course that's what they made plans for. Maybe Stacy can see Jared's family when he goes down on Saturday, January 4th to go to the Mesa temple. Sheri is babysitting Charlie so that's when she will see them.

Stacy said she would get Paul to clean the carpet in their spare bedroom when Jared Ammon stayed and we can stay in the there from the 22nd until Christmas day. She said it is twin beds and she doesn't have sheets for the beds so we will need to bring our own sheets. No problem.

I have my wrapping station all set up in my bedroom, now I just need to get busy and wrap some gifts. 

I went to the post office this afternoon with James. We got a Christmas card from Pam Giles and one from Peter Ray's family with family photos. My favorite was the card we got from Autumn, Palmer, and Scarlett. 

I also got the burrito blanket I ordered for Joshua, a new credit card to replace mine which was hacked, and a $4,700 check from the Glendale Airport.

Our friend, Anthony Romyak, called James this evening. He said he was frustrated because he was kicked out of the Vernon post office. He can no longer receive his mail in Vernon. He is so upset that he called his congressman. Anthony knows how to contact people to get things done. He is losing his eyesight so he contacted Social Security and Medicare part F (never heard of it), is helping him with his eye care. 

I watched a movie with Tom while James did some walking.

Sunflowers from Anthony.

He also bought us a carrot cake when he

found out about James's hospital stay.

 

Monday, December 16th, 2024: A quiet house, slow-moving today, Need 10 more blankets, What to do with the Razr, Kathy Crane, Sammi the leg swiper, Ben's birthday, Love my tree, fireplace, and nativity

 

Calgary, Alberta

140th operating temple

Dedicated: 28 Oct 2012

By: Thomas S. Monson

Book of Mormon

1 Nephi 20, Moroni 10:2-3, Moroni 10:32

Come Follow Me

Dec 16-22

"Come unto Christ, and Be Perfected in Him"

Moroni 10

Introduction to the lesson

October General Conference

'The Man Who Communed with Jehovah'

Elder Kyle S. McKay

"Joseph's life of regular repentance gives me confidence to 'come boldly unto the throne of grace, that I may obtain mercy.' I have learned that Jesus Christ truly is 'of a forgiving disposition.' It is neither His mission nor HIs nature to condemn. He came to save."

'Embrace the Lord's Gift of Repentance' 

Elder Jorge M. Alvarado

" Joseph's sincere desire to repent and seek the salvation of his soul helped him come to Jesus Christ and receive forgiveness of his sins. This continuous effort opened the door to the continuing Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ."

Tom is grateful for a quiet house but he is still cautious before leaving the bedroom. I was slow moving today, especially this morning. 

I have all of the Christmas blankets on our bedroom floor, picking out which ones I want to give to who and putting names on them. I still need to buy 10 more.

What are we going to do with the Razr. James is thinking seriously about taking it to Epic Motorsports where we bought it. They have the diagnostic equipment to determine what is wrong with it.

James worked inside on paperwork most of the morning. This afternoon he went outside and used the log splitter. Kathy Crane happened to be here as I ran off her family Christmas photo for her. She was very worried about James overdoing it.

I did two blog posts today, November 20th and 21st. Will I ever catch up?

Sammi, our outside cat, is what I call a leg hugger or more accurately, a leg swiper. When I go out to feed him he goes back in forth in front of me rubbing up against my legs in gratitude. It makes it rather difficult to walk.

I watched a couple of Christmas movies today as I was working on the computer and read from President Nelson's book, "Heart of the Matter." I don't think I am going to finish it before the end of the year.

Vickie texted today to see how James is doing. She checks on him from time to time. 

I wore my new hearing aid for about 30 minutes today and so did James. Tomorrow I am supposed to add 30 minutes to that time and everyday after in an effort to get use to it.

I am trying to fill out paperwork for James's appointment at Barrow Brain & Spine on Thursday. Some of it is impossible and I guess we are going to have to go in early to do it before his appointment at 9:00. 

I love the meaning of Christmas and I love my nativity, tree, and grandkids stockings hung on the mantle. 

What do you want for Christmas?

Happy Birthday Ben!

Is this the apple biscoff cake?

Sunday, December 15th, 2024: None of our company come to church, Rowan leaves, people happy to see James, visit Tignor's, Finish BofM,

 

Brigham City, Utah

139th operating temple

Dedicated: 23 Sept 2012

By: Boyd K. Packer

Book of Mormon

Moroni 10

Come Follow Me

Sunday School class

October General Conference

'The Joy of Our Redemption'

Sister Kristin Yee

"Just as the depth of my gratitude for the Savior grew as He mercifully helped me to repair the 'unrepairable' painting, so has my personal love and gratitude for my Savior intensified as I've sought to work with Him on my weaknesses and to be forgiven of my mistakes. I will forever be grateful to my Savior that I can change and be cleansed. He has my heart, and I hope to do whatever He would have me do and become."

Not one of our guests came to church with us. Rowan left for home and Paul said he didn't bring his church clothes. Everyone else had the same excuse. Michael promised that next time he would bring his Sunday clothes.

We sat on the back row in the chapel and James kept looking back into the overflow to see if they were here.

A soloist, a young man from the Lakeside ward, sang the prelude. I'm not sure the name of the song he sung but it was about Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ and it was magnificent. The congregation was totally silent, no jabbering before sacrament meeting like there normally is. Here is how our program went:

Easton Crane was the youth speaker. He talked about getting a phone and how he uses the gospel library app on his phone plus it helps him to keep in contact with his parents. He said that phones can be used for good or evil, it is up to us. Fill you life with positive, uplifting experiences and read from the Book of Mormon daily.

Joshua Harris - He thanked the soloist for his song and said he had not heard anything that beautiful for a very long time. He talked about missionary work which is appropriate since he is one of our ward missionaries. Gathering Israel is like gathering family. He said he needs to be a better missionary. He told about being raised in the Church but being inactive during his teenage years and how one of his return missionary acquaintances became a good friend to him. He stayed with this friend one summer and this friend got him to go to church. His friendship lead Joshua to become active in the Church. Joshua then said that the people in the Vernon ward, many of them, will drop anything to serve others. That is how it all starts.

Crystal Flake - sang a solo, what shall I give. It was very nice.

Travis Hamblin - a high councilman was the last speaker. As part of his introduction, he said he lives in a small house with his wife and 12 kids. Conversion is changing. We got to school to know and we live the gospel to become. We need to make quality, quiet time with the Savior. Brother Hamblin told a story of rounding up cattle with his dad when he was 7 years old. He was by himself when he lost a cow. He stopped and prayed. Soon he heard his Dad. It surely is in quiet times that we will "hear Him." Daily maintenance. The world says: 'Be your authentic self.' The gospel says, 'Follow Jesus Christ.' Mary, the mother of Jesus, is an example of letting God prevail in our lives. we need to be waiting on the Lord.

Many people in the ward were happy to see James and came up and told him so. Today I was supposed to go to the teacher training class taught by John Wilhelm, the Sunday School president. I totally forgot and went instead to Brother Applegate's gospel doctrine class. 

Brother Applegate had three people tell of their conversion stories, including himself, Cyndi Pronger, and T-Bo Tignor. He also asked us a series of questions about the Book of Mormon: 1) What do you think about it? 2) What will you do differently since reading it? 3) What will be your behavior? 4) What did you feel?

At the end of class  Bishop Hunsaker and Brother Allen came in with goodies left over from the party last night and gave them to anyone over 65, which is a good share of the class. 

Wendy DeWitt came over to speak to me, something that very rarely happens. She had gone in to the teacher training class and was complaining that she isn't learning anything and it isn't helpful and she would rather be in Brother Applegate's class. She doesn't see the point of the teacher training class and wanted to see if I agreed with her. I told her I felt bad for missing the class. I didn't really agree with her but I listened and was nice about it. When I got home I texted Brother Wilhelm and apologized for missing his class. It is only once a quarter and I can attend a class that is only once a quarter.

We spoke with Brother Peralta as we were leaving. It was nice to see him. When we got home James had beans for lunch and I had shrimp linguine. Afterwards we took naps. When we woke up we took the last loaf of pumpkin bread and headed for the Tignor's. We had a nice visit. They are leaving this Thursday for Farmington, New Mexico to visit family and friends. T-Bo has a daughter and granddaughter who lives there. 

When we got home we finished the Book of Mormon while sitting in front of the fireplace. We also listened to President Nelson's talk from the October 2016 General Conference, "Joy & Spiritual Survival." James stayed in front of the fire while I went in to work on my blog. I also tried to watch a Christmas movie, "Bring Him Home for Christmas", but the movie kept skipping back to the beginning and then the end was cut off. 

Tom slept on the recliner tonight.

Gingerbread Houses

Goodbye guys, thanks for coming!