Sept 29th - Another Day with Paula!

We were on the go so much yesterday, that we took it a little easier today, but we were still busy and had a great day.

Once we were up and going, we fixed a nice breakfast.  My cousin Gene had given me a dozen eggs from his farm, so Paula and I fried some of those for our breakfast.  There is a huge difference in range fed eggs and store bought, let me tell you.  The yolks are a deep yellow and they taste better.

We spent the rest of the morning working around the house, cleaning the kitchen, and various other odds and ends, talking being the most important one.  Then we went out to lunch at the Red Lobster with some of her friends. One of them had a birthday earlier in the week and they were celebrating that event. 

We went back to the house, did a few more things around the house, and then took naps.  I am not quite used to staying up so late every night, especially when I wake up at pretty much the same time every day anyway, so a nap felt really good today.

We fixed a late dinner - grilled chicken and sides - since we had eaten way too much earlier!  We spent the later evening at the computer again, playing with her family tree on Ancestry.com. 

It is amazing that we can talk so long and still have things to say!  We have really had a great couple of days.   

Sept 28th - Day with Paula!

Paula and I have had a very busy day.  We started early doing some errands - going by to renew her license plates, breakfast at Village Inn, shopping at Kohl's (so I could use my $10 cash bucks before they expired), post office, driving around looking at some things, etc.  It took most of the morning.

After relaxing a little at home, we went out for lunch at Applebee's.  Then we came back to the house and tackled a little organizing that needed to be done.  Paula has had things in the house get away from her a bit, so we managed to get a table that was piled with paper work completely cleaned off and everything put away.  We both were cheering when we finished, as it made the whole place feel so much better!  There is a lot more to be done, but having that one area spotless is encouraging.

We made a run to the grocery store to pick up things for dinner and then came back and grilled pork chops, made some buttered parsley potatoes and corn on the cob, with brownies for dessert.  We were very proud that we were able to sit at the beautifully cleaned table, and eat in elegance!

In the evening, we spent some time on the computer - checking out pictures on Facebook.  Then we went onto ancestry.com and started a family tree for Paula.  We were so excited to find her father and then tons of additional information.  She was especially excited to learn about two of her father's siblings who had died young.  One was killed in a car/train crash in 1939, just four years after graduating from high school.  We found newspaper articles about the accident and learned things that were completely new to her.  The other child was a girl who had died at age 3 of rheumatic fever.  We finally shut things down around midnight!

So, we had a very busy and fun day! 

Sept 27th - Day with My Cousin

My grandfather was born in Sweden, and although I have some genealogy on that line, the truth is that I never knew the cousins or other family.  I had connected with a 2nd cousin, Gene Person, a few years ago who is as into genealogy as I am.  We have emailed and written, but have never met.

Today I drove out to his farm to meet him and his wife.  The live in Batavia, in south central Iowa.  From the moment we met, we hit it off.  What wonderful people they are!

We got acquainted and then started in on the genealogy.  He had taken the time to gather copies of many things to give to me and had also been working on a book about the family line.  I had earlier shared some things with him via email.  I had my little computer with me, so we were able to look up some things.  He does not have his tree on the computer and was excited to see some of the resources that are available.

His wife cooked us a wonderful lunch and then just sat on the couch, knitting and listening.  What a wonderful day! 

I left there around 5:00 and drove over to Davenport to stay a few days with Paula.  We had a good time going out to get dinner and then just talking.  It should be a fun couple of days!

So, this has been another fun day for me!  I am loving my vacation!!!!

Sept 26th - Day with the Girls!

Today I spent the day with some of my high school girlfriends.  We met at 9:15 at a coffee shop in Marion.  Well, six of us met there: Jean Gross, Barb Oldenburg, Peggy Halverson, Donna Franzen, Doris Walker, and me. 

At 11:00 we moved the party to The Fieldhouse, a sports bar/restaurant and Jane Vandeberg and Paula Loftsgard joined us.  We were there until 5:00!  We decided we should leave before their dinner crowd started to arrive.

Then I went with Paula to her sister Sandra's condo.  We then went out to eat at a little place near there.

We had a great day - catching up, laughing, even crying at moments as we shared some hard times.  It was wonderful!

I grew up in such a great place at such a great time and have always loved my childhood/high school friends.  What a terrific way to spend a day!

Sept 25th - Day with Dad

I pretty much spent the day with my dad today.  We didn't really do anything special, just talked and spent time together.  We were in the office in the morning and I was on my computer.  They have wi-fi there, but he doesn't have it in the house. 

When Rita came out, we went in to McDonald's for some lunch.  During the afternoon, I brought out the photo album that my cousin had lent to me.  It was his dad's pictures (my dad's brother) and Dad enjoyed looking at them, as many were when they were children.  I also picked up a couple of tidbits about his parents that I had not known.  I went through the boxes of pictures in the closet, too, and "borrowed" many of them!  Just for the record, my dad knew I was taking them.

In the evening, we went over to Willie's for a while, then watched TV and had popcorn back at Dad's place.  It was not a particularly eventful day, but I really enjoyed it. 

Sept 24th - On My Own!

Did it again - written, but didn't post.

We got up really early this morning so we could get Bill to the airport to catch his 6 am flight back to Atlanta.  All went well and he was back in Atlanta by around 11 am.  It takes a little longer since there are no direct flights from Des Moines to Atlanta, or at least there are not any in the affordable price range!

After dropping him off, I went back to Billy's and slept another couple of hours.  I stayed around long enough to do some laundry and get packed back up.  Billy came home for lunch and I left shortly after he went back to work.  I came on over to my dad's to spend some time with him.

For dinner, we picked up a pizza and then went to my brother's Garage Mahal to eat it with him, since Kalee was off at a meeting.  We had a good time, just the three of us.

I didn't do much today, but I did get some more details worked out on visiting family and friends over the next couple of weeks.  It was nice to spend some quality time with my dad and brother.

That all adds up to another good day!

Sept 23rd - Lazy Sunday!

We had the laziest day ever today.  Billy doesn't attend church, and Bill had not brought church clothes, so we didn't try to go.  Instead, we slept in and just relaxed all day.

Bill and Billy spent most of the day watching football.  Billy subscribes to the Red Zone, so they were keeping up with every game that was being played.  I thought it was like watching TV with a remote control freak the way it kept switching from one game to another.  They seemed to enjoy it, though. 

I spent my day reading, which I have not had the chance to do in quite a while.  I actually read one whole book - it wasn't all that long, but I still read the whole thing.  At one point, they went out to wash the car - which I was not that interested in doing.  Bill had been beside himself ever since we drove on a gravel road and the car got covered with dust.  They also went to some car place and picked up a kit for shining up the headlights.  You would have thought it was Christmas, he was so excited about the way the headlights looked when he finished!

Since we had breakfast so late, we were not hungry until late in the day.  Billy ran out and picked up pizza, wings, and cheese bread from a place he had not tried yet.  It was good, especially the cheesy bread. 

What a lazy, wasted day!  I need and like days like this once in a while and it was a good chance to spend some really relaxed time with Billy.  I thought it was a great day!

Sep 22nd - First Day of Fall

What a beautiful day today!  It was cool and breezy - felt just like fall, which is appropriate since it was the first day of the season.

We got up and going this morning so we could get over to Dad's for the day.  Billy dropped us off and then went on up to Cedar Rapids since he had a couple of things that needed to be done.

We enjoyed chatting with Dad in the office.  When Rita joined us, we headed down to Willie's Garage Mahal to watch the Iowa game.  Willie and Kalee had gone camping for the weekend at Kent Park which is only a few miles away.  They had gone to the Legion to watch the game. 

During half time, we went up to North Liberty for lunch at a new cafe there.  Then we headed back to Willie's to watch the end of the game.  It was not a good game for Iowa.  After the game, Willie and Kalee came by and we all sat around and talked for a while.  Calvin was even there for a little while. 

We finally broke up the party with Willie and Kalee heading back to the campgrounds and with us heading back to Des Moines.  When we were finally hungry again, we went out to Texas Roadhouse for some steaks for dinner.  We had thought it was late enough that the peak crowd would be finished, but we totally missed that call!  Even so, their steaks were as good as they usually are and we enjoyed the evening.

So, it was another good day in Iowa.  I am certainly loving the weather!  And I am enjoying seeing family and friends, too.

Sep 21st - Fun Day with Billy

We had a good day with Billy today.  We all slept in and spent much of the morning just talking.

Mid-morning, we went out to a furniture store and bought a new TV stand for Billy.  He had a built-in wall for his TV in his condo, but not so in the new apartment.  He had his TV sitting on the floor, so it was a perfect gift to buy for him.

We then took a ride around Urbandale to get a better feel for the area.  It was interesting to see everything, including where he works.  While we out, we stopped for lunch at a Mongolian grill.  It was very good.

Once we got home, Bill and Billy put the TV stand together and then we watched a little TV.  I guess we needed to be sure that it really worked!  We were all so lazy that we ended up taking a short nap.

We then decided to go to a movie and went to see the Clint Eastwood one about baseball - Trouble with the Curve, or something like that.  It was actually pretty good; predictable, but enjoyable.  We ate plenty of popcorn for our dinner.

Back home, we watched more TV and talked until I finally had to go on to bed.

Great day - very relaxed and enjoyable.

Sept 20th - Happy Birthday, Bill!

Today is Bill's 69th birthday, which we spent mostly on the road.  We slept in and after breakfast started on the last leg of our trip.  Because we were making good time, we were not pushing it.  We stopped in Mt. Pleasant, IA, for lunch at a very nice little Mexican place right on the downtown square. 

Then we decided to stop at Dad's, so we went on up to North Liberty and visited with him for a couple of hours.  It was good to see him.  He is looking very good for someone who is approaching his 85th birthday!

Then we drove on over to Des Moines to Billy's.  We got there around 6 and after a little visiting, we went out to Macaroni Grille to celebrate Bill's birthday.  We made a stop at the grocery store to stock up for breakfast and then we talked and watched TV (lots of football on Thursdays) until I finally gave up and went to bed.

It is great to be here now and we are looking forward to the next few days with Billy.  Bill flies back home on Monday and I am planning to stay another couple of weeks.  Should be fun!

Sep 19th - An Ending & a Beginning

Jo Anne and Richard left today.  We all got up, packed, washed sheets, and then they left around noon.  We have had a great week with them - more memories, lots of laughs, and a great time.

Shortly after they left, we loaded up and took off for Iowa.  We drove to Shiloh, IL, and spent the night there.  We are listening to a book on CD, so that makes the trip go quicker.

Not much to share when one is only riding in a car!

Sept 18th - Last Full Day!

Today was the last full day that Jo Anne and Richard are here.  The rain from Monday was still here and it looked like it could last, so we kept fingers crossed that it would break before the end of the day.  And we cheered when we finally saw some blue sky!

I started the day with the water aerobics class.  Came home, showered, and got ready for the day.  We went out to lunch at Del Rio, which was really good, and then ran a few errands.  We started off by going by Lisa's so Bill could pick up the other key to their car.  They fly out tomorrow for a vacation in Colorado and will park their car at the airport.  Then, when Bill flies back from Iowa on Monday, he will pick up the car and drive home.  He will pick them up when they come back on October 6th.  We also enjoyed visiting with them for a bit.  Brooks was napping, but Ashby was in her usual playful mood.  She was talking to Grandpa while she had her lunch, and at one point she said to him, "So, how is your day going?"  Where does she get these things?

After our visit with Lisa, we stopped by the library to pick up the books on CD that I had requested for our trip.  Then we did a quick spin through downtown Lawrenceville so our friends could see our big town.  By then it was time for naps.  We have been staying up so much later than usual that we are all tired by the middle of the day! 

By 5:00 or so, when we had planned to go to the fair, the clouds began to break open and there was actually sun and blue skies.  We enjoyed the evening at the Gwinnett County fair.  I was disappointed in the 4H part - there were not many animals and almost no competition exhibits.  Those had always been a really big part of the fairs when I was young.  They did have an exhibit hall, but there was much less than I would have expected.  Even so, there was a booth that some people from Peru had where they were selling items from Peru.  I bought a couple of tiny nativities that were carved from volcanic rock.  They are really cute.

They have a fabulous midway with tons of rides (we did not ride anything) and lots of food (we ate plenty!) and we enjoyed walking around seeing that.  For dinner we did the corn dog and curly potato thing, and had a funnel cake just before we left.

It was really a lot of fun and the weather had turned so nice.  The rain was gone and the cool air moved in so it is starting to feel a little like fall.

Sept 17th - Rainy Monday!

This has been our first day of rain in a while and we certainly needed it.  The downside is that it puts a little "damper" on things!  It also seems to always cause a rather severe sinus headache for me. 

Richard and Jo Anne had made plans to visit several people today - friends and family - so they were off on their own all day.  That was good for me, since I laid back down late in the morning to rest and try to get rid of the headache.  I had a nice nap!  And, best of all, I felt much better when I got up.  In between, I did some laundry, some RS things, and some other stuff that I needed to do.

In the evening, we had Empty Nesters FHE, so I made some deviled eggs to take for that.  We had a nice turnout and had a great time.  The Walls did a story telling program for us, which is always fun as they are very good at it.

When we got back home, Richard and Jo Anne had just gotten back, too.  We spent the rest of the evening talking and sort of watching the Falcons game.  When it was clear that they were going to beat the Broncos, it occurred to Bill and Jo Anne that our other friend Gary, who lives near Denver, was probably watching the game and this would be a great time to give him a call.  It was fun to catch up with him.  So, while they were visiting us, we also talked to both Bill and Gary.  Maybe the foursome wasn't all together in person, but at least we all touched base!

So, the rainy Monday turned out to be a very nice day.

Sept 16th - Sunday!

We had a quiet morning, mostly.  We chatted, read, etc.  I got everything ready for dinner that could be done ahead.  Everyone except me had stayed up until 2:30 watching the BYU-Utah game, so no one was moving too quick this morning!

Church meetings were good as always.  The high council speaker was good, as well as the others.  During Sunday School, we spent the whole time talking to Bridget Lohnes.  She grew up in Plymouth, England, and Richard had served in Plymouth when he was on his first mission.  They had fun trying to remember all the people who were there at that time and what had become of them.  Then we went to RS and enjoyed a really good lesson about being on the Lord's side of the line.

When we got home, Lisa and kids were already here.  Brooks didn't sleep long - we were probably too noisy and woke him!  We finished getting dinner on and then enjoyed plank grilled salmon, grilled veggie kabobs, sweet potatoes, fried green tomatoes, watermelon, and fresh rolls.  It was all very good!  David was in Louisiana on hurricane relief, so Richard had to do the grilling and did a wonderful job!

We spent the rest of the time talking and watching the grandchildren, as we usually do.  After Lisa left, we still found things to sit around and talk about.  Needless to say, everyone was tired, so we didn't stay up quite so late! 

Sept 15th - A Little Slower Today!

We took it a little easier today, since the reunion is this evening and we were already tired from last night's late outing.  Bill had an estimate first thing, so the rest of us just lounged around, chatting, reading, etc.  When Bill was on his way home, he called and we went into "brunch" mode.  Richard fixed pancakes with cornmeal.  Yummy!  We used up the bacon that was in the fridge, as well, so we ate a rather substantial breakfast & lunch combo.

Our friend Rob Jenkins had a book signing for the release of his book, so once we finished brunch and got things cleaned up, we headed out to my favorite book store, Books for Less, to support Rob and buy one of his books.  We wanted to get the book signed, because we figure he will be come rich and famous and we want to have an original signed copy of the book!

We were so excited to run into the Garrisons' at the book store, too.  He was the bishop who sent Jason on his mission and was our support during his fight with cancer.  We really love them, and it was so good to see them, as it had been quite a while.  We didn't know they had just moved to Orlando.  I am giving Nathan, their son, a hard time about that one!  We see him every week, and he knows how we feel about his parents.  He is sure he told us, and because of the possibility of senility, I think it would actually be wise on my part not to say too much!

We then browsed around the book store for a while.  This is a new and used bookstore and I love to "graze."  I have been going to this store since it was located in a tiny little place and the books were literally piled on top of each other.  They have been in this new, very nice, location for a few years now, and I still love to go there.

After the book signing, we ran a couple of errands and then headed back home to rest and relax.  Richard and Jo Anne took off for their reunion around 4:30, which was just about the same time I headed over to Lisa's to babysit for Brooks while she and Ashby went to a baptism at church.  Lisa had to play piano for it.  Brooks and I had a ball.  He usually has competition with Ashby when we babysit, so it was fun for him to get the undivided attention of Grandma.  He never got more than three feet from me and laughed and played every minute.  We had a ball! 

By the time I got back home, Bill had left to help chaperone the stake youth dance.  That meant the house was empty and quiet.  I fixed a light dinner, watched a show on Netflix, and then got ready for bed, and started reading Robb's book.  I am enjoying it a lot.  It is about being a father and is very funny.

Jo Anne and Richard got back around 11:00 or so and Richard started watching the BYU-Utah game which had been recording.  When Bill finally got home from the dance, he stayed up watching the game, too.  I am afraid that I did not support that particular activity!

All in all, it was another very fun day.  They will be here until Wednesday morning, so I am looking forward to a few more adventures!

Sept 14th - Another Fun Day!

We had another fun day with Jo Anne and Richard.  Bill had a small job to do, and Richard wanted to go with him.  That left Jo Anne and I to go shopping, of course!  We spent some time at Kohl's and then Richard called to say they were finished and on their way home.  We stopped at Chadwick's to pick up some veggies before going on home ourselves.

We then headed on down to the Varsity for lunch.  The Varsity was the big handout when Bill and Jo Anne were in high school and it is a must on every trip to Atlanta.  After lunch, we drove around a little, looking at things, like the old Ponce church building, going by the temple, finding the place for their class reunion on Saturday, etc.  It was a lot of fun and we had so many laughs.

When we got home, there was time for a little rest period before we took off again.  Richard has a step-brother that lives in Duluth and we all went to have dinner at their home.  We had a very nice evening with them.  They are both from tiny towns in south Georgia and were so gracious and full of the kinds of southern stories one would expect.  He is a record producer, so that added to the store of stories.  We enjoyed touring his recording studio and work area in his basement.  All in all, it was a very nice evening.

It was almost 1:00 when we got home, so we were all pretty tired.  So, another great day completed!

Sept 13th - What a Beautiful Day in Helen!

Our day started with me taking off to do my water aerobics class.  By the time I got back, everyone had eaten breakfast and was sitting around talking.  I took a quick shower, got dressed, and then we took off for Helen.

I love Helen - a small, north Georgia mountain village.   (Of course, it was designed specifically for tourists, but it is done nicely.)  It is about an hour's drive up there.  The first thing we did was have lunch at Troll's, outside, overlooking the river.  It was such a gorgeous day - perfect temp, sunny - that we thoroughly enjoyed lunch.

Then we walked up and down the main street, stopping in several shops, buying a little, but mostly just looking.  By then it was mid-afternoon and we were getting tired of walking, so we drove on down to Cleveland to visit Babyland General Hospital.  I will admit that this was not something the guys wanted to do, but they didn't argue.  Maybe there were a few grimaces, but no words!  We enjoyed walking around looking at the dolls, taking a couple of pictures, buying a few things, and watching the birth of the newest cabbage patch kid.  Lots of fun - at least for Jo Anne and I!

On the way through Cleveland, we stopped at the DQ to get an ice cream, then drove on home.  We were all very tired and had decided we were not going to do anything for dinner, just a snack or something, since we were all still stuffed.  In the middle of the evening, Bill decided we needed to eat and ran out and got a pizza and some bread.  Then we really were stuffed!

We had an interesting evening as Richard shared the notes from a religion class he is taking.  This lesson was on the apostasy - what is is, when it happened, how it relates to today, etc.  We had a great discussion.  I guess our FHE was on Thursday this week!

We still sat up and talked forever - we were all exhausted, but there is always one more story to tell!  As it turned out, we had a great day from beginning to end!

Sept 12th - Our Company Has Arrived!

I woke up this morning with some vertigo and nausea.  I have a touch of vertigo from time to time, but it always passes in a few seconds.  I have never had nausea like this.  Needless to say, I had to lie down a bit more this morning until everything passed.

When I felt up to it, I did a few of the last things I wanted to get done before company arrived.  Bill had just an estimate to do, so he was here most of the time, too.  We rehung the curtains (Bill had washed windows the other day and I washed the curtains while he had them down.)  We got our bedroom and bathroom cleaned - they didn't get finished the other day.  On his way home from his estimate, he stopped at Costco for lunch and called to see if we needed anything.  I gave him the grocery list and he got almost all of it right there.  He did make the comment that it would have been cheaper to have gone to McDonald's for lunch!

Our friends from Utah, Jo Anne and Richard, got in around 5:00 or so.  They rented a car at the airport and drove up since they want to have their own car so they can do some other visiting while they are here for a week.  We had a great evening, talking and catching up on everything.  We sort of mapped out our agenda for the week, so that everything they really wanted to do would get covered.  Then about 11:00, when we were all in bed, Jo Anne knocks on our door.  Her brother, who is also part of our group of friends that get together regularly, was on the phone from Okinawa.  He and his wife are on a Military Relations mission there and this was the first time he had called.  He thought Jo Anne was still in Utah, so it was exciting to get to talk to him and find out how their mission is going.  Great timing!  It sounds like they are having a wonderful time. 

When the phone call ended, we were all very tired!  Wow, a great first day with them.

Sept 11th - Another Day with Nary a Breath!

This has really been a day on the go -  I prefer days that have a little breathing room here and there!  I started with my water aerobics class at nine.  I came home from that, changed clothes and took off to visit teach one of my sisters.  She and I love to talk, so we visited quite a while!

When I got home, I had time to fix a quick lunch.  I was just finishing that when Lisa arrived.  She is going to clean my house. (I had mentioned maybe hiring someone to come and give it a good clean and she said she would do it.  I intend to pay her, although she says no.  We know who will win that one!)  David and the kids came over, too, so after a few minutes of chatting, they started working.  I had a list of things that I needed to do, too, so all of us were hustling around here for the next few hours.

The cutest thing was at one point when Ashby wanted to help clean, too.  She had been watching both Lisa and David with rags scrubbing every thing in sight and she wanted to do it, too.  They gave her a wipe and off she went.  Pretty soon, Brooks was there, too, and he wanted his own rag.  I think my coffee table got cleaned better than any piece of furniture has ever been cleaned!

When they finally finished and went home, it seemed so quiet - and so clean!  I think I might hire them to come do this more often. 

I fixed something to eat and then had several things to finish up in the evening while Bill was at the youth activity.  My friend Paula (truly BFF - since we were 5 years old!) called and we talked for the next couple of hours.  Well, truth be told, I mostly listened and she mostly talked.  It was great catching up with her.  I am planning to visit a couple of days with her when I go to Iowa and we also discussed some of the group getting together for lunch while I am there.

When Bill got home, we had to run the car over to the shop to get routine check on it before we drive to Iowa.  We left it there for them to have first thing in the morning.  By the time we got back home, it was 10:30.  I am usually in bed reading by 9, so I was exhausted!  (I still did some reading.)

Sept 10th - On the Go Today

We had a presidency meeting this morning, starting at 9 - so I was out the door a little earlier than usual.  We had a good meeting and got a lot accomplished.  It is hard to believe, but we handed out all new VT routes on Sunday and we had to make some changes today!  The biggest struggle is always about VT.

When I got home, I called my new companion and chatted with her quite a while.  She has some serious health issues, so is not often able to actually get out to visit, but she is excited to go when she can and will also keep in touch by phone and email.  Then I called a couple of my new sisters and talked to them, as well.  One of them has her husband just home from the hospital after some surgery, so she is not quite ready for anyone to come by.  I set an appointment for tomorrow with the other.  With my company coming Wednesday and then leaving for my trip to Iowa, I won't be able to visit later in the month.  I tried calling another of the sisters, but got no answer, so messaged her on Facebook.  The fourth sister I am seeing in the morning, so will talk to her then.  I am excited about my new route.

The rest of the afternoon was spent like a normal day - some cleaning up, some computer time, etc.  Not normal, but definitely needed, was a nap.  Bill visited one of the seminary classes this morning and had set the alarm.  He did not turn it off when he got up, though, and was in the bathroom and didn't hear it when it went off.  I finally had to get up and turn it off and by then I was completely awake and couldn't get back to sleep.  I don't sleep late, but 5:00 is a bit early for me.  So by late afternoon, I was dragging!  Thank goodness for a nap.

I felt like a lot was accomplished today - most of it related to Relief Society.

Sept 9th - My Mother's Birthday!

It would have been my mother's 83rd birthday today.  She was born in 1929 and died in 2001.  I still love and miss her.  And I thought about her on her birthday.

Sunday services were good, as always.  The sacrament meeting talks centered around revelation - the First Vision, Lehi's Vision of the Tree of Life, and how we can receive personal revelation.  All good talks that I enjoyed.

The Gospel Principles lesson was on Talents - recognizing our individual talents and using them to serve God and others.  We had two non-members in attendance.  One is the husband of an active member and he has been attending on and off for a little while now.  The other was the boyfriend of a woman who came back to the church a few months ago after being inactive for many years.  When he introduced himself, he said that it was his first time to attend and that he felt good being in church.

Relief Society was a special visiting teaching meeting.  All the sisters from Primary and Young Women were in attendance while the Priesthood brethren covered their assignments.  It was a very good meeting.  Our VT coordinator gave the lesson on visiting teaching and did a beautiful job.  She also asked a sister who visits her to say a few words.  She really loves VT and expressed a beautiful testimony about it.  There was a good spirit there and I really hope the sisters felt it and will make new covenants to fulfill this very important assignment.  We then handed out all the new routes.  I didn't get any negative feedback, but there were a few positive comments made, so I am hopeful.

When I got home, the kids were all here.  We got dinner on and enjoyed eating and then just hanging out.  They didn't leave until almost 9:00.  It helps when Brooks takes a late, long nap so he can be up a little later in the evening.  He and Ashby both put on quite the show for us.

Just after they left, I got a call from my new visiting teacher saying she had some muffins that she wanted to drop off.  She had planned to come a little earlier, but had forgotten a meeting she had to take part in.  I told her she could come on over.  We had a nice little chat and she brought some chocolate chip pumpkin muffins.  They were really good!

So, I had another wonderful Sunday - always the best day of the week!

Aug 8th - Cleaning Day - and Other Stuff, too!

I managed to start my day with a burst of energy and got the house pretty much cleaned up - at least as much cleaning as I do anymore.  I even mopped the kitchen floor, which was badly needed.  I did a couple of loads of laundry, changed the sheets on the guest bed so they would be fresh for company this week, etc.  Regular housework is definitely NOT exciting! 

I also had time to do some things on the computer - like getting my RS email out, and whatever.  The best was that I found time to work on family history for a while.  I have done very little the last while and it was fun to get into some serious searching.  When Lisa and David went to the temple to do sealings the other night, they took all our family file cards.  The temple sent one back to be checked.  They questioned whether Fred Franklin Allen should be sealed to Clifford O McBride.  I think the name Clifford threw them!  So I did some further research to check whether it was correct - and it was!  Not many women named Clifford, but no doubt on this one.  Among other things, I found the family in the 1940 census, her gravestone, and her obituary.  We will get the sealing done the next chance we get.

I won't bother to mention all the things on my to-do list that are still there - maybe Monday!

Aug 7th - Boring? or Just Normal??

There isn't much to tell about my day today.  I was busy, as usual, but I didn't really do much worth retelling.  You know, "the usual," straightening house, dishes, working at computer, RS, etc.  I even watched a couple of episodes of Rosemary & Thyme while I had my lunch and later some popcorn.  I got my 3 month storage list and inventory finished, which took a while.  I got my RS weekend email prepared, which also took a lot of time.  I am trying to get prepared for Jo Anne and Richard coming next week and then for my Iowa trip.

That pretty much does it - I like my boring (or is it normal?) life, so am not planning on changing much!

Aug 6th - What a Great Day!

Bill didn't have a job today so we decided to go to the temple this morning.  It is our ward temple night, but we can't go this evening, so this seemed like alternative.  We made the first session at 10:00 and really enjoyed it.

On the way home, we stopped at the Cheesecake Factory for lunch.  That was nice, too, although we did not get any cheesecake!

By the time we got home, it was mid-afternoon and we were both tired, for some reason.  So, we ended up taking naps.  I don't do that often, but I sure did enjoy it!

Then we left about 5:00 to go over to Lisa's to babysit with the grandkids.  She and David had signed up to do a sealing session at the temple.  We always have a great time with Ashby and Brooks.  They are so excited to have Grandma and Grandpa there.  We played, ate dinner, played some more, and then Brooks was asleep by 8:00 and Ashby was asleep by about 8:40.  They were both so good - they are both  adorable!

Yes, what a great day!

Sept 5th - Another Day at Home!

Oops - forgot to post this.

I had another busy day at home.  I managed to do four loads of laundry besides several other things.  I also spent most of the morning scanning some pictures.  I had borrowed a photo album from my cousin a few years ago when I was visiting in Iowa so I could scan some of the pictures of my grandparents and their families, along with a number of other old pictures.  I had done it and then somehow or other my computer deleted them all!  Since I didn't have them backed up, I had to start all over.  I have been putting off doing it for the last couple of months, but I have to return the album when I go to Iowa the end of this month, so I finally crossed that big one off my list.  And, yes, I will make sure they are backed up this time!

The rest of my day was pretty normal - you know, rather boring, but very busy!

Sept 4th - Trying to Get Back to Normal

I enjoy Monday holidays, but it really messes up the rest of the week.  You know, Tuesday becomes Monday, etc.  So today I was trying to do all the things I should have done yesterday.  In other words, I didn't do anything all that interesting!

I did go out to do a few chores, including getting a haircut.  I also ran by the dollar store to pick up a few things.  I am trying to get a few things cleaned out before guests come next week, so I needed a few organizer things.  I also cleaned out under a couple of sinks.  I don't like messy sink areas, but it is so hard to keep them neat and I have reached a point where it just has to be done again.

I spent some time working on my three month food storage list.  I pretty much have the list done and today I inventoried what I already have.  I also started entering the info into a spread sheet, so I can keep it up.  I hope to have it completed so it can go out with the weekend RS email.  It encouraged me Sunday when one of the sisters said how much she is enjoying following along and trying to do it.  She said she feels like I have done the hard part and she can just do the same.  It is always nice to know that someone is responding to something one spends a lot of time preparing!  Of course, getting my own storage better organized is the real benefit.

There were several other little projects that I crossed off the list and my "to do" pile on my desk is considerably smaller than it has been.

So I managed to survive my Tuesday Monday without too much problem!

Sept 3rd - Lazy Labor Day

We did almost nothing on this Labor Day holiday.  After all, isn't it supposed to be a bread from labor?  I ran a quick errand first thing in the morning and never left the house again.  I actually cleaned house and spent time at the computer doing a number of things.  I finally got a chance to do a little family history by the end of the day. 

Billy called later in the afternoon and I had a nice chat with him.  He had been over to Cedar Rapids doing the final cleaning out of his condo there.  He will go back again next weekend with a trailer to take the few remaining furniture items over to Des Moines.  He also plans to meet with a couple of realtors to see about selling it and also a property manager to look into leasing it.  He is really missing CR.

Bill spent the morning helping one of the young men on an Eagle project.  Then, after a nice long nap and watching TV for a while, went out to get the grass cut.

Talk about a lazy day!  I think we would have won if there had been a contest!

Sept 2nd - Another Great Sunday!

My Sunday posts seem to be repeats almost every week - well, I guess that is good since Sunday is always such a great day.  It is nice that it keeps repeating!

We had a good testimony meeting at church today, followed by good lessons in both gospel principles and Relief Society.  We had a visitor in the gospel principles class who is not a member, and that is always especially nice.  There was also a man who was baptized just a couple of weeks ago and a couple and a single mother who have all come back to church after being inactive for extended periods of time.  The lesson was on missionary work and they all had some interesting comments that really added.  The RS lesson was on faith and again there was a wonderful spirit there.

When I got home, the house smelled so good - pot roast in the oven - and the kids were all here.  Brooks was sleeping, everyone else in the living room.  It is fun to walk in the door and see bodies all over the place!  Especially, when the smallest one jumps up and shouts, "Grandma!"

They were able to stay until around 9:00, since Brooks took such a long nap and didn't need to get home to bed quite so early.  It was particularly interesting watching Ashby and her daddy "skating."  Ashby has been watching the Disney on Ice on UTube and loves the skating princesses with their princes.  She especially likes the lifts and she has perfected the look, every foot and finger pointed just right, as her daddy twirls her around.  The cutest is when she holds on to one of feet, just like the real skaters do.  She has even perfected the bow when she finishes her routine. 

Brooks wanted his turn being spun around, but he is definitely not into the princess look.  He just wanted to go around like an airplane!  What can I say - all boy!

I am grateful for another wonderful Sunday!

Sept 1 - Ashby Day!

Since Ashby spent the night, it meant she also got to spend the day!  We had a great time.  She woke up a couple of times during the night and ended up in our bed.  I guess she really got comfortable, because she slept until 9:00! 

Right away, she started talking about doing a "fish craft."  I have no idea what she was talking about, but assured her we would do some crafts after we did our chores.  We fixed some french toast for breakfast, cleaned up the kitchen, made the beds, got dressed, etc.  Then we went up to the craft room.  Not knowing what she really wanted to do, I just cut a fish out of some scrapbook paper and we glued it to some background and started decorating it.  That seemed to satisfy her.  She really loved the glitter glue! 

We played the rest of the day, doing all sorts of things, including reading a ton of books, playing in the pool with the barbie dolls, building a huge house with the big legos, etc.  Bill got home from work mid-afternoon and Ashby was all excited to play with Grandpa for a while.  Then Lisa and Brooks go here and things really went wild!

Eventually, they all went to the park to play.  Bill went with them since he hadn't had much playtime with the kids.  Needless to say, we were both tuckered out by the end of the day!

Aug 31st - Busy Day

And I forgot to post this this morning.........

Had a good day - after sleeping in and trying to get caught up on things, and doing 5 loads of laundry, Lisa called and she and the kids were heading out to lunch if we wanted to join them.  Which, of course, we certainly did want to do!  We met up at Chli's, had a great lunch, and then Bill went off on his errands.  I went with Lisa to the dollar store for some big shopping.  Why are dollar stores so fun?  We spent $15 and had a cart full of stuff!

Then we came over to the house so Brooks could nap and Ashby play.  While all that was happening, Lisa went out to run a few errands by herself.  Ashby was into playing by herself for the most part and had a great time.  Brooks slept until 5:00 and was happily playing when Lisa got back.  We threw together some spaghetti for dinner and then Lisa and Brooks left.  Ashby was spending the night!

We had a great evening with her.  We spent a long time upstairs in the craft room, mostly playing with stamps.  Later, she got ready for bed, had a snack, and watched a video.  After a little more playing, she brushed her teeth, we read a couple of books, and she went right to sleep.

We had a great time.  It has been a while since she spent the night with us and is getting big enough that we need to do it more often.  And, she is so into making crafts that I really need to get me some kid craft stuff together.