Friday, March 7th, 2025: A temple day and a snow day, Chase bank, Ministering angels, Kathy's request for Owen, "The Way Home" finale

 

Seattle, Washington

19th operating temple

Dedicated: 17-21 Nov 1980

By: Spencer W. Kimball

Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 26:31-27:11

Come Follow Me

D&C 19:26-41

God's blessings are greater than the treasures of the earth.

October General Conference

'Burying Our Weapons of Rebellion'

Elder D. Todd Christofferson

"Another example concerns our physical being. Paul reminds us that we are to glorify God in both body and spirit and that this body is the temple of the Holy Ghost, 'which ye have of God, and ye are not your own.' Thus, we have a legitimate interest in spending time caring for our bodies as best we can. Few of us will reach the peak of performance we have seen recently in the achievements of Olympic and Paralympic athletes, and some of us are experiencing the effects of age, or what President M. Russell Ballard called 'the rivets coming loose.'"

Snow on the ground this morning and it snowed most of the day, but it still looks like only around 2 inches.

We left for the temple a little after 8 this morning for the 9:30 session. This will be my 7th time this year and James's 6th. 

There were 14 sisters and 8 brothers in our session. Before we left the temple we put several family names on the temple prayer roll. We did not stop to eat on the way home. We did stop at Chase Bank and cashed our $500 check to put in our cash closet. 

It was snowing like crazy in Show Low. The closer to Vernon, the less snow. We stopped at the post office and picked up my ministering angels for my Relief Society handouts. 

I got a call from Kathy Crane this afternoon. She would like me to help with a going away party for Owen Peeler. He is moving to Bugaloosa, Louisiana and getting married on April 12th. The going away party will be on March 30th from 4-7pm at the Crane's. Kathy wants to do the food, sliders and coleslaw. She also wants Dave Kostusiak to make beans because Owen loves his beans. She then wants to ask those coming to bring a pie because Owen loves pie. 

She says because I am so "techie" she wants me to do the invitations. I told her I didn't have any experience doing computer generated documents but I would be in charge and get the help I needed. When I was off the phone I went on YouTube to look for instructions. It looks like there is plenty of information.

Instead of deconstructing the enchiritos, I fried them and they were yummy. Fried enchritios for dinner. 

James and I watched the season final of "The Way Home." I'm more confused than ever. A couple of things I did understand: Susanna gave Lingemore to the Landry's. Alice pushed herself in the pond. Elliott is the lost baby. There will be a season 4 but we will have to wait until next January.

Tom is driving me nuts. In and out, in and out. He came in at bedtime but before James got in bed he meowed to go outside. He was out all night. 

Notes & Quotes

"The importance of having a sense of the sacred is simply this: If one does not appreciate holy things he will lose them. Absent a feeling of reverence he will grow increasingly casual in attitude and lax in conduct. He will drift from the moorings that his covenants with God could provide. His feeling of accountability with God will diminish and then be forgotten. He will care only about his own comfort and satisfying his own appetites and desires. He will come to disengage himself from sacred things, even God."

- Elder D. Todd Christofferson

Cuz Rita

Venice, Italy

Prague, Czechoslovakia

The Johnson and Gonzales boys

Nita passed away on the 5th

Here she is again, Rita, with her sweetheart,

Bill.

Thursday, March 6th, 2025: Tom out all night, snowing & the sun is shining, this week's focus is menus, recipes, & nutrition, 120 grams of protein, James & Chuck visit Cary Dobson, Enchiritos, tacos,

 

Tokyo, Japan

18th operating temple

Dedicated: 27-29 Oct 1980

By: Spencer W. Kimball

Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 26:12-30

Come Follow Me

Video: 'The Savior Suffers in Gethsemane'

D&C 19:23 Peace comes from learning of Jesus Christ and following Him.

Henry B. Eyring, 'Finding Personal Peace', AGC 2023

Video: 'Peace in Christ'

October General Conference

'Following Christ'

President Dallin H. Oaks

"He that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another. Behold, this is not my doctrine, to stir up the hearts of men with anger, one against another; but this is my doctrine, that such things should be done away." In His remaining ministry among the Nephites, Jesus taught other commandments closely related to His prohibition of contention."

Tom was out all night. When he went out at bed time I was determined I wasn't going to let him in until I got up in the morning. He was ready. 

It snowed off and on all day today. Sometimes the sun was shining while it was snowing. We are so grateful for the moisture. 

My focus this week is on menu planning, recipes, and nutrition. I want to get more protein in my diet. Sheri said the doctor told her she needed 120 grams of protein per day so that's what I'm aiming for. For breakfast I normally have a Premier protein shake and a turkey sausage. That's 40 grams of protein. At 10:00 I have Greek yogurt, some fruit, and a protein bar, 20 grams of protein.

Today at around 2 I made a tuna, cottage cheese salad with tomatoes, green onions, lettuce, and rice vinegar. This salad has about 25 grams of protein. For dinner I am going to try to have another 30 grams of protein. We will see how it goes.

Chuck and James went to see Cary Dobson this afternoon. They are applying for an agriculture allotment to lower our property taxes. This means they will allow Cary's cows to graze on their land. 

James came home and went on and on about what a nice guy Cary Dobson is. He told Cary that I knew his mom and used to work out with her at Curves. This is true, I knew Carol Dobson, but only from visiting with her at Curves.

I'm making chicken tacos and Enchiritos for dinner. Enchiritos are something you can order at Taco Bell. The Enchiritos were not that great. The flour tortilla's were soggy and there were 8 of them. How are we going to eat all of these if we don't really care for them. As I was putting them in the frig I came up with an idea. Tomorrow I will "de-construct" these soggy Enchiritos. I will take the meat and beans out of the tortillas and toss the tortillas. From there I may fry up some corn tortillas and make tacos. We shall see.

There were lots of dishes to do after dinner and I was on my own. 

We had a few snow flurries throughout the day but nothing that really stayed on the ground.

Notes & Quotes

Affirmation: "I am willing to follow Heavenly Father's plan instead of mine. I trust that His celestial perspective will lead me into a joyful eternity. I set aside self-centered pursuits that may keep me from His path and fully submit to following Him."

Tom, doing what he does best

One year ago we were in California

with Jared, Kacey, and Charlie

Wednesday, March 5th, 2025: Left for the valley @ 7:30, Del Taco, AARA, Hatch's, Chase Bank, Costco, Home Payson way, Home at 4:15, Tom happy to see us, J's @ Beach's

 

Sao Paulo, Brazil

17th operating temple

Dedicated: 30 Oct-Nov 2 1978

By: Spencer W. Kimball

Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 25:27-26:11

Come Follow Me

D&C 19:15-20

Jesus Christ suffered so that I can repent and come unto Him.

October General Conference

'Trusting Our Father'

Elder David P. Homer

"The choice to submit our will to God's is an act of faith that lies at the heart of our discipleship. In making that choice, we discover that our agency is not diminished; rather, it is magnified and rewarded by the presence of the Holy Ghost, who brings purpose, joy, peace, and hope we can find nowhere else."

'God Loves All His Children'

Elder Gregorio E. Casillas

"I testify that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world, that He lives, that He lived and died for you and me, and that He was resurrected  for you and me so that we can aspire to celestial reunions full of joy with those who are already on the other side of the veil."

We left for the valley at 7:30 this morning. Again Tom was asleep on his chair so we left him inside the house. Gas in Show Low and Payson is $3.19 and it is $3.49 in valley so we will buy our gas in Show Low or Payson.

My appointment at AARA isn't until 11:30. We had time to stop at Del Taco for a little snack. We ordered two grilled chicken tacos. James ate one and I ate the other. They were small but tasted good and filled a little empty spot in my tummy.

James dropped me off at AARA around 11:00, 30 minutes early while he goes to find a Chase bank to deposit some cash. He called Greg Hatch and there is a check waiting for him at Hatch's Dental so he drove to McClintock and Elliot to pick up said check and then went to Chase. He was in the Chase line when I called to tell him my infusion was finished. I told him I would walk to Costco and meet him there, which I did. He got there about the same time as I did. 

We got a text from Erik about the Razr. This is what it said: 

Engine needs to be replace, the cam and two lifters are ruined, as well as a cracked block. 

Erik is looking for a used engine with his students, but nothing yet.

Back at AARA, Frances, my favorite, had the day off. Amanda took her place and Alex inserted my infusion. It hurt and was itchy and swollen afterwards. 

James and I struck it rich (HaHa) at Costco. The main reason we came was to buy some Premier shakes. They have boxes of 18. Last week we bought one for $31.99. This week they are on sale for $25.99. We bought one of all three flavors, strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate. We saved $18.00 (HaHa). We also bought some chocolate peanut butter protein bars and some white albacore tuna. A couple of drinks at the snack bar and we are on our way home. This is the quickest trip we have ever made.

We headed east on the 60 thinking we would go home the Globe way and pick up some green chili mixed burros at Burger House. As we were driving along I looked at the time, it was barely 1:00. We are going to get to Superior before 2:00 when they finally stop blasting. 

James thanks me and says he does not want to wait. We get off the 60, get back on going west and make an exit on to the 202 north. We get off on Gilbert Rd. and head for the 87 towards Payson. 

Such nice weather today. Warm, but overcast in the valley making it very pleasant to be outside. We talked about stopping at the Chili's in Payson to get something to eat but we just drove right through. We bought gas at the Circle K in Payson and paid $3.14 with my Inner Circle account. 

We got home a little after 4. I fed time his treat and then he heads outside. James goes to Beach's to pick up Pierce's trencher and a couple of checks. James had told Brother Beach Pierce wanted $100 for the use of his trencher. Brother Beach wrote him a check for $200 instead. James had asked for nothing for his time. Brother Beach wrote him a check for $500. He really is a super nice guy. James loves to work for people like him. Now we can replace some of the $2,000 closet cash that we took out today.

James and I listened to "Follow Him" on the way to the valley and then I re-started the book I am listening to so we could read it together. It's called "Heart of Snow" by Rachel Grow Law. James is trying to catch up to me in chapter 14 so he borrowed my phone this evening.

Stacy called and asked us to pray for her. She is having a bit of an anxiety attack over the stake Easter activity that she and Paul are in charge of. We talked for awhile and it sounds like they have done a lot to prepare. Her concern is that the ward activity chair-people did not show up to their last meeting. I told her to contact their bishops. The key to an activity this size is to delegate and make sure the delegated people are doing their assignments. I think she felt better at the end of our conversation.

We had WW soup for dinner. I love it so much and especially love the fact that it has very little calories and it's a delicious way for me to get my vegetables.

Nita Holtz passed away today. Today is the one year anniversary of Donna Peeler's death.

Notes and Quotes

"As we are sanctified and changed, we can overcome the gap that was introduced at the Fall and then even overcome the gap that existed before the Fall as we come into full emulation, communion, and union with God."

-Kerry Muhlstein

Tom is the focus of our attention

since we have no children here.

Italy

Fat Tuesday masks

Charlie

Tuesday, March 4th, 2025: A skiff of snow, rain in Longview, fire near St. Johns, Paula Deen & Mary Barry, Tanner's card, James's smoothies, Tom likes Harry, windy & cold

 

Washington D.C.

16th operating temple

Dedicated: 19-22 Nov 1974

By: Spencer W. Kimball

Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 25:14-26

Come Follow Me

D&C 19:1-12

"I, God, am endless."

October General Conference

"This Is My Gospel - "This Is My Church"

Elder Dale G. Renlund

"I invite you to commit yourself more fully to the Savior, His gospel, and His Church. As you do so, you will find that the combination of the Savior's gospel and His Church brings power into your life. This power is far greater than dynamite. It'll shatter the rocks in  you, transform you into an inheritor in God's kingdom. And you will be "filled with that joy which is unspeakable and full of glory." 

A skiff of snow on the ground. Flooding and torrential rain in Longview. Extremes here and there. Lakes are filling up and ours are drying up. There is a brush fire near St. Johns. It's going to be a long fire season if we don't get some rain. 

I did some buying on Amazon this morning, I planned another week of meals and wrote up the shopping list for those meals. I watched a couple of cooking shows on my phone. I watched a few episodes of Mary Barry who lives in England. I realized that most of the recipes she made didn't really interest me. I did enjoy listening to her talk. At the end of the last episode I watched she took a bite of something and said: "I'm really chuffed with that." 

I started watching Paul Deen. I liked the things that she cooked, but she is so corny! Oh well, I still enjoy watching her.

I was tired most of the day because I got up before 5. I did some typing for James again today. The other day I typed up an agriculture lease with Cary Dobson. This is to lower the taxes on our property.

Today I typed up James's family history goals for the Vernon ward.

I started writing my second letter to Rowan, Joshua, and Evan and I'm pretty "chuffed" about it. I also worked on my Relief Society lesson, "Live Up To Your Privileges." 

James did some office work and then went to Beach's to work. He mailed Tanner's birthday card for me. Part of my Amazon buying was for Catherine Halcomb's birthday. I bought her a pink leather journal. 

I mended a shirt for James today and now I have to iron it and put patches on his jeans that have holes in them. It's been awhile since I've done any mending or ironing.

For dinner we had BLT's and tomato soup. James also had a smoothie with spinach and pineapple.

Tom gets excited to go outside if he sees "Harry" the new cat. He seems to really like him whereas he doesn't want anything to do with Sammy. The wind made it seem extra cold today so Tom spent a lot of time inside.

Notes & Quotes

"He knows of our anguish, and He is there for us."

- Dallin H. Oaks

I've watched her grow up in so many

Hallmark movies.

He just can't help himself. He wants

to be eye level with his people.