Thursday, March 13th, 2025: Trip to valley, Sheri's roof, cleaners, Costco, Cafe Rio, Lois & Dawns to see Carmen, White Cap, Dust storm, rain storm & snow storm

 

Papeete, Tahiti

25th operating temple

Dedicated: 27-29 Oct 1983

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 31:1-21

Come Follow Me

D&C 20:38-60

Priesthood service blesses Church members and their families.

(Same as yesterday, oops!)

October General Conference

'Aligning Our Will with His'

Ulisses Soares

"One of the most glorious moments of mortality occurs when we discover the joy that comes when doing always those things that 'work for and please the Lord and 'what works for us' become on and the same. To decisively and unquestioningly make the Lord's will our own requires majestic and heroic discipleship! At that sublime moment, we become consecrated to the Lord, and we totally yield our wills to Him. Such spiritual submissiveness, so to speak, is beautiful, powerful, and transformational."

We left for the valley at 6:40 this morning. Tom was asleep on the chair again so inside he stayed. I talked James into going the Payson way convincing him we would come back the Globe way. 

We stopped at Arby's on Southern & Country Club again so James could use the restroom. This time he came out with a Reuben sandwich. I had a couple of bites but I'm saving up to go to Cafe Rio for lunch to get a sweet pork taco. 

We met Armando at the Landings where he and Henry were working on a fence. Armando gave us a check for $3,790.00 from the Landings. We brought some cash to deposit so we headed for the Chase bank on Chandler Blvd. and Alma School. James ran in to Armando who was cashing the check James wrote to him. After the bank we went to Circle K to get a drink and then on to Sheri's to check out her leaky roof.

James examined the leak and told Sheri

how Ian could fix it.

Sheri gave me lots of gifts from Italy and Switzerland. She gave James some dark chocolate.

James and I agreed that these were the best

chocolates we have ever had!

Chocolate box and two little lambs,

Sheri knows I collect them

The best basalmic vinegar and

olive oil on the planet

Deep purple Italian leather purse.

Tom approves!

Thank you Sheri, so much!

After leaving Sheri's we dropped off some dry cleaning at Monterrey Cleaners which Sheri will pick up for us. We then went to the Chandler Costco. We walked in, picked up four cartons of Premier  Protein shakes and got in line to pay for them. James sold my little trailer to Paul Peeler for $100 and then gave me the money. We spent them on these shakes which were still on sale, $6 off a carton, $25.99 each. James said this was the quickest trip we have ever made to Costco and he was right!

From Costco we went across Chandler Blvd. to the Cafe Rio north of the Chandler mall and had lunch. There were one or two people having lunch when we got there so we beat the crowd. I ordered my sweet pork taco and James had a fire-grilled chicken tostado, only this time he made the mistake of getting a hotter pico de gallo and didn't really enjoy it as much as last time.

I like getting some guacamole to go on my taco

After finishing our lunch and the place was beginning to get crowded, we left and headed north on the 101 freeway for Tempe.

We had seen Dawn leave Sheri's neighborhood when we were going in so I asked her what she was doing in Chandler. She said today was Terry's birthday and she was taking him his gifts. Cathi had hernia surgery yesterday so he is staying home with her. I'm glad she mentioned Terry's birthday because it gave James a chance to wish him a happy one.

We gave Carmen a hug and enjoyed visiting with Dave, Laura, Rebecca, Dawn, Lois and Carmen. Dave was replacing a shower head and he and James had a nice visit. The women, except for Lois who was in her chair, were all seated around the dining room table making greeting cards. Laura said she wasn't making any cards because her hands were too shaky but she was sitting and visiting with everyone else. Dawn helped me make a "hearts" card. Carmen made some Christmas cards and gave them to me. I should have thought and made a couple of Easter cards to give to Charlie and Scarlett. Why do I always think of the good ideas after the fact. 

Carmen told some interesting family stories and I am so glad we came because this time helped me to feel closer to all of these sweet "sisters" of mine. I'm sorry Cathi couldn't be here.

The card I made was supposed to look

like this one.

The outside of the card. Dawn

did this for me.

I did not take any pictures of anyone. I am so miffed with myself. You can see Carmen in this picture. Everyone is getting together to play dominoes on Monday and I am going to ask Laura to take some pictures for me.

We said our goodbyes and left around 3 pm. James needed to stop at White Cap, a construction company located on McQueen and Baseline, before leaving town. He picked up what he needed and we headed out on the 60 towards Superior into a dust storm. 

Visibility was okay because the dust

storm was in the distance.

In the mountains past Superior it began to rain, and it rained hard.

We stopped at the Walmart in Miami/Globe to get a new charger cord for our phones as the one in the car no longer works and we want to listen to our book. It was raining and the wind blowing so hard it turned my umbrella inside out. James fixed it and we trudged in to the store.

You would think this would be a busy, messy Walmart like the one in Show Low. Not so. It was quiet and clean and we enjoyed shopping in it. James picked out a 6 ft. pink, sparkly cord. I picked out a pair of sweat pants in a size smaller than I have worn in years and after checking out we trudged back to the car in the rain and wind. 

Lois had given us a container of her enchiladas when we left her house and I munched on them instead of having to stop for dinner. James said he wasn't hungry and would wait to get home to eat.

Raining hard but out visibility is still ok

We are so grateful for the moisture our state is receiving!

Just before getting in to Show Low it began to snow. Between Show Low and Vernon it was snowing so hard, the visibility was limited. The line of cars we were in were going about 20 mph. Some of them turned off at the Y and we went a little faster, around 40 but no faster.

It was past 7:30 when we got home. Tom was so happy to see us!

We were grateful to be home safe and sound. James was going to leave the car outside of the garage but I reminded him we were going to the temple in the morning and we didn't want it to be covered with snow. 

 

Wednesday, March 12th, 2025: Up @ 4am, So much to do, so little time, Finished Joshua's letter, CFM helping w/ RS lesson, James preparing income tax records for accountant, Owen Peeler's invitation,

 

Santiago, Chile

24th operating temple

Dedicated: 15 Sept 1983

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 30:1-18

Come Follow Me

D&C 20:38-60

Priesthood service blesses Church members and their families.

October General Conference

'Be Thou Clean'

Elder D. Martin Goury

"I testify of a kind and loving Heavenly Father. Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of mankind. I testify that the Atonement of Jesus Christ is real and that as we learn to follow the guidance of the Holy Ghost. He will lead us to repent and use the power of the Savior's Atonement in our lives. President Russell M. Nelson is the true and living prophet of the Lord, with all priesthood keys on the earth today. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen."

Back to getting up at 4 am. If only I wasn't tired by 9 am. So much to do, so little time, and I am so slow. I finished my letter to Joshua today and now I need to write one to Evan. I've already done Rowan's. 

The "Come Follow Me" lesson this week is all about the Church government and the priesthood. It is helping me with my Relief Society lesson.

James worked on income taxes all day long. He is going through our credit card statements with a fined-tooth comb. We both decided this needs to be done on a monthly basis instead of at the end on the year.

I worked on making an invitation for Owen Peeler's farewell party. This is what I came up with:

I'm not sure why it printed in white and I didn't know how to change it so it's going to have to do.

We had tacos and veggie soup for dinner. Tomorrow we are going to the valley to see Carmen. Sheri also called and asked if James could come and look at her roof. There is one spot where it always leaks when it rains and the valley has been getting some rain this week. 

We also are dropping some items off at the dry cleaners and going to Costco to get more shakes. James also has to go by and check on a couple of jobs and we need to go to the bank. We figured we should leave around 6:30 and start home around 3 p.m. 

Ben's photos of Lake Como

Rowan's day trip, not

sure where this is.

 

Tuesday, March 11th, 2025: Happy 91st Birthday Catherine! Fluffco strikes again, James takes Virgil to the stake center, WW Veggie soup

 

Nuku'alofa, Tonga

23rd operating temple

Dedicated: 9-11 Aug 1983

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 29:1-14

Come Follow Me

D&C 20:37, 75-79; 22

Sacred ordinances help me become like the Savior.

D. Todd Christofferson, "Why the Covenant Path," AGC 2021

October General Conference

"Ye Are My Friends"

Elder David L. Buckner

"I worship on Sunday as a reminder that we need each other and together we need Him. Our unique gifts and talents that differentiate us in a secular world unite un in a sacred space."

Our roustabout night cat is a sleepy cat during the day.

I have a major war here at home. It's called the war against dust. Because it has been so dry there is dust everywhere. Dust is something that really annoys me!

I wonder if my friend Becky Skousen's Facebook account has been hacked. On Sunday she posted about graduating from a bitcoin class and being a bitcoin expert. That's fine, this could be true. Yesterday she posted about building a huge home and how it would be their new home in 3 months. I messaged her and asked if she was moving out of our ward. She said, "After the project is done, we will decide whether we stay or not." This doesn't make sense when in the Facebook post she said the home would be theirs in 3 months. I wonder what is going on. I plan on asking her at our next Bunco meeting.

James left to work at the Beach's before Alex got up. When Alex got up, he was ready to leave for home, still not feeling well he wants to get home in time to take a nap before going to the airport to pick up Sheri and those coming back from Italy.

Even though he doesn't feel well,

he still looks good!

James went in to town after working at the Beach's this morning. Between 6am and 11:59pm gas is 40 cents off a gallon as part of Circle K's Inner Circle. He filled up his truck and he said he saved $10.00. He also went to Walmart and got me some yogurt. 

I worked on my Nokbox today. Nok stands for Next of kin. This is a system of everything my "next of kin" will need after I am gone. It is quite extensive and I have a long way to go to finish. I also have to encourage James to finish revising our will, but I think I will wait until he is finished with the taxes. 

This afternoon I began mending James's work pants, taking them upstairs where the sewing machine is. While upstairs I found the book, Lucian Bonaparte Maxwell that my dad gave me. 

He looks rather "rough" doesn't he.

I'm not sure how we are related.

I also found a book I have been looking for, The Infinite Atonement, by Tad R. Callister. I want to make it a part of my study of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. 

A little after 3 I went to visit Catherine Halcomb. Today is her 91st birthday. On the way I stopped at the post office to pick up on of her gifts, a journal like this one, only it is pink.

I love these journals and they come in 10 different colors. I am tempted to get one in each color. I also gave Catherine a candle, some pastel markers, and some pretty pink, Black Cherry, hand soap.

Catherine and I visited for awhile and she showed me a blue jean quilt she is working on for Lynda Finnell. Kerri was there too, she was suffering from allergies because of the juniper trees.

This evening James took Virgil Cooper in to the stake center to get his temple recommend signed. He stopped to get gas in the car at Circle K and they were still giving 40 cents off a gallon. Woohoo!

I made Weight Watcher veggie soup while James was gone so he would have a nice hot meal when he got home. 

Notes & Quotes

"Obedience is a hallmark of prophets; it has provided strength and knowledge to them throughout the ages. It is essential for us to realize that we, as well, are entitled to this sour of strength and knowledge. It is readily available to each of us today as we obey God's commandments."

- Thomas S. Monson

Sheri's post. Why so many ooo's?

England

Paul's sisters son

Alex's boots

Sleeping Tom

Monday, March 10th, 2025: Slept in because of lousy sleep @ night, Walmart, beautiful weather, Lemon & Garlic Shrimp Linguine a hit, Alex sick but getting better, "When Calls the Heart"

 

Apia, Samoa

22nd operating temple

Dedicated: 5-6 Aug 1983

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 28:17-32

Come Follow Me

D&C 20-21 Jesus Christ has restored His Church. 

Dallin H. Oaks, "The Need for a Church", OGC 2021

October General Conference

'Welcome to the Church of Joy'

Elder Patrick Kearon

"We do not gather on the Sabbath simply to attend sacrament meeting and check it off the list. There is a significant difference between the two. To attend means to be present at. But to worship is to intentionally praise and adore our God in a way that transforms us!"

Alex is sick. He is asking for Advil and we don't have any so I am going to the store. I slept in and didn't get my early morning study in or finish my blog. James and I did have prayer and our study time. 

Around 11:30 I left for town. Alex also wants some Gatorade so I put that on my list. Alex assures me his sickness isn't from something he ate, he says it's more flu-like with chills. I had promised him I would make shrimp linguine for dinner and I needed to get the ingredients. I also picked up my Tramadol prescription. James did not go with me. He has two projects going on right now. First, he's getting ready to pour concrete at the Beach's. Second, he is still working on getting income taxes ready to hand over to the accountant. 

I came home, put groceries away, and took a nap. After my nap, it was time to fix dinner. The most time-consuming part of making lemon shrimp linguine is mincing the six cloves of garlic. For some reason Walmart is carrying elephant garlic. The cloves are huge and the flavor is less pungent than regular garlic. Juicing and zesting the lemons takes a few minutes too. Sauteing the shrimp and boiling the pasta are easy peasy. I got medium shrimp instead of large. We had a lot more shrimp than we would have had if they were large. James was a little miffed because I didn't remove the tails. I promised I would the next time I made this recipe.

Alex and I both loved the dish. James isn't a huge fan of pasta but because I cut the red pepper flakes down to 1/8the of a teaspoon and it wasn't at all hot, he liked it too. He added parmesan cheese to his and he says it makes it so much better. I will try that next time.

After doing the dishes, breaking a black bowl, and cleaning the floor I went in to work on my blog. James had my phone walking and listening to "Heart of Snow." I asked for my phone back around 8:30 so I could watch "When Calls the Heart." Little Jack has type 1 diabetes. This was very serious back in the early 1900's. 

Tom was outside on one chair and Sammy on the other. Both James and I called him in but he just stared at us. Obviously he wants to stay outside with Sammy. Maybe they are becoming friends. He was outside until about 3:45 a.m.

Notes & Quotes

"You've got this because Jesus Christ has got you!"

- Bradley R. Wilcox

Sheri's post

Ben's post in Switzerland

Sunday, March 9th: No clouds today, nice day, but no moisture, James's haircut, John Finnell & Collin DeWitt, Rosie teaches RS, Rdy for Alex's visit, He comes just after 5, homemade pizza, nice visit, Five Crowns, Kim's call not coming until the 21st

 

Atlanta, Georgia

21st operating temple

Dedicated: 1-4 June 1983

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 28:1-16

Come Follow Me

Mar 10-16: "The Rise of the Church of Christ" 

D&C 20-22 Introduction

October General Conference

'His Hand Ready to Help Us'

Elder Juan Pablo Villar

"If I think celestial, I know that we are not left alone in this life. While we must face challenges and trials, our Heavenly Father knows our capabilities and knows we can bear or overcome our difficulties. We must do our part and turn to Him in faith. His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, is our rescuer and will always be there."

No clouds today, the clouds have gone away. It was a nice day, but there was no moisture. 

I gave James a haircut before church. It's the shortest one I've ever given him, but I like it! 

We sat behind the Waypoint guys in sacrament meeting. There were two of them, Micah and Johnny. Micah had on a sweatshirt that said on the back: Dear Person Behind Me, The world is a better place because you are in it. Thank you. After the meeting I told Micah I liked the message on the back of his shirt. He thanked me and said that his mother had given it to him. He must have a nice mother.

John Finnell was the first speaker in sacrament meeting. His topic was the love and compassion of Jesus Christ. He mentioned the song "I'm trying to Be Like Jesus" my favorite Primary song. Some examples of Jesus showing love and compassion. 

Mark 6:34-34 Feeding the five thousand was not only a miracle but an act of love and compassion. Next we went to John 11:30-44 Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. Jesus had compassion on Lazarus's family and even wept with them. 3 Nephi 17;18-24 Again Jesus wept. He took their little children and blessed them. Christ was moved with compassion. Jesus's compassion and charity are at the root of the Atonement and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Luke 7:44-49 The woman with the alabaster box. Jesus had compassion on her because of her love for Him. Those who love much are forgiven. Linda S. Reeve: "Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love us. They feel the depth of our suffering. Jesus Christ knows how to succor us. 

Collin DeWitt He asked Sandra Wilhelm to ask her children what the message of the Prodigal Son. Johnny said the message was: "You can always come back." This is the message of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Luke 15:29-30 For this my son was dead and now he is alive... (to the older brother) all that I have is thine.  We need to welcome those who are coming back. We can never sink so low that we can't come back.

Rosie Lauritzen taught Relief Society as Wendy DeWitt is in the valley. The lesson is based on Elder Uchtdorf's talk, "Nourish the Roots, and the Branches Will Grow." Here are some pictures of her visual aids:

I love this tree!

I love Rosie and she did a great job today. I spoke with her afterwards and she was concerned because she thought there wasn't enough discussion. I told her she did a beautiful job and the discussion was enlightening. I love Rosie, she is the sweetest.

I sat by Kathy Crane and Joanna Patrick during Relief Society. Lynda Finnell and Oksana sat in front of us. Oksana is a non-member and a friend from Bunco and a security guard at the prison in St. Johns. She pants, a baseball cap and a camo jacket. It doesn't matter, I'm just glad she is here.

I visited with Tamara after the lesson and we talked about the house she and Jimmy are building. She is concerned that it is a little ostentatious. I said it would be known as the "Vernon mansion"and we laughed about it. 

Back at home we had some lunch and then took naps. Tom came and napped with me. I got up around 3 to finish getting ready for Alex's visit. I finished cleaning the wood floors and then went upstairs and cleaned the bathroom in the Trezise room. I also cleaned the bathroom downstairs in the basement in case Alex wanted to stay down there. Alex arrived a little after 5. I had just started preparing homemade pizza dough. Here is what our pizza looked like:

One side is a little bare because Alex didn't want olives or

mushrooms. The pizza was quite delicious.

After dinner and the kitchen was cleaned Alex asked if we could paly a game of Five Crowns, which we did. Alex did all of the shuffling as neither James nor I are very good at it. Alex ended up winning and I ended up losing. We enjoyed his company so much. He is so smart and interesting to talk to. He told us about school and the classes he is taking. He wants to be an English professor, or teach creative writing and he wants to be a published writer. He writes all of the time. He told us about his work. He works at a very exclusive restaurant in Scottsdale called Oceans 44 as a busboy. He explained bitcoin to us and just seems to have an all around knowledge of the world around him. Oh how I wish he had a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He would be an amazing disciple. Tom likes him too. Alex and James were talking in the family room and Alex was holding a blanket. Tom came over and jumped up on his lap. 

I texted Wendy DeWitt today and told her I missed her and asked if she was okay. Here is what she wrote back:

"I'm doing so great! We're officially snow birds and have a darling apartment here in the valley right in the middle of all our children and grandchildren. I've seen more of my family in the past 2 weeks than I have in years. Collin still has to work for a little while but he comes down as much as possible. Thanks for thinking of me! 

This is what I wrote back:

Sounds great but we miss you here. Hope to see you when the weather warms up. 

She wrote back: Thanks.

Kim asked if she could come up on the 21st instead of this next weekend because one of the girls in her class is getting baptized and wants her to speak at the baptism. I told her that was fine and she would be here when I gave the lesson in RS based on Emily Freeman's talk. 

These girls get to spend a couple

of days and nights together.