June 29th - Sunday

This was a pretty normal Sunday.  I had my last class with the family history group.  The class will start up again in September.  Since this was a fifth Sunday, the third hour was a special program.  This time it was on family history and the goal was for everyone to find a name to reserve for the temple.  Obviously, we didn't actually accomplish that during the few minutes we had, but we did have most people with their computers/devices and made sure everyone was set up with a FamilySearch account.  Those that already had an account were given some ideas on programs that would help them find sources and names.  It went well, but the time was just too short.

The kids didn't come over for dinner, so we just had sloppy joe sliders, fruit, and chips.  It was actually very good.  Of course, it helps to be hungry!  The kids did come over a little later and we had a couple of hours with them.  They stayed until the little ones were so tired that they were getting cranky.  It is fun to have whatever time we can get together.  Tonight, they were into the lincoln logs and built cabins. 

Another great Sunday!

June 28th - Nice Lunch Today

This was a Saturday with no obligations, so we didn't overdo.  My house is clean, thanks to my house cleaners, although I did have laundry to do.  Other than that, I got myself buried in family history and that is where I spent most of my day.

Bill decided we needed to go out to lunch, so we went to Red Lobster.  Very good.  In the afternoon, I was tired (maybe overdid it yesterday?) so I did take a short nap.  Other than that, my afternoon was also spent on family history.  Part of the time, I was checking for completed ordinances, bringing Roots Magic up to date.  Part of the time, I was doing some cleaning up on Family Search, using findarecord.com.  Of course, that required a little research to make sure the cleaning up was correct.  I did find a good source for some additional information on Henry Andrew Smith - an early history of Kossuth County that had a bio about him.  It had a few things that help to clarify his timeline.

So, it was a good, fun, relaxing day and I accomplished a lot. 

June 27th - Certainly not a Quiet Day Today!

I was up and ready early this morning, so I could be at Lisa's by 8:45.  She and I and the kids headed down to Palmetto (south of Atlanta) to go to a play of the Wizard of Oz.  It was a beautiful setting.  It is an old farm that has been converted to cabins, a camp, activities, petting zoo, and a theater.  However, the theater is literally the "yellow brick road" and the audience sits on chairs or blankets on either side of the road and the play happens all up and down the road.  It was a fun experience and was quite well done.  Being outside in such a casual setting made it fun, too, as sometimes the audience was pulled in to the story.

When the play was finished, the kids enjoyed the petting zoo for a while, then we took off to find a place for lunch.  As there were not a lot of options right close, we ended up at DQ.  It wasn't great, but it worked!  Then there was the long ride back home.  We really had a fun day.

While I was gone, the two young women from the ward came over and cleaned my house, so it was wonderful to walk in to such a nice house.  They have done it several times, so they know where things are and what to do, so I just left the door open for them and the money on the table.  I was not disappointed!

I had only gotten back home for a short bit when the sister missionaries stopped by.  One of them was new and they were going around meeting some of the members.  We had a nice chat and they were just about ready to leave when Bill got home, so they stayed a few more minutes.

By then, it was time to get ready to go to Lizzie's birthday party.  The family hadn't gotten together for a while, so it was fun to see everyone - at least everyone who could make it for the party.  We had hot dogs and hamburgers.  Everyone is so excited that we only have 7 days and a "sleep" until we will all be at the beach.  That was a major topic of conversation!

So, while I have some quiet days - and enjoy them - today was not one of them.  I was on the go the entire day.  I will probably be exhausted tomorrow!  But, today was a great day.

June 26th - Visiting Teaching Kind of a Day

My companion picked me up and we went to visit teach one of our sisters this morning.  Good thing is we had a great visit.  Bad thing is that we didn't pay attention to the time and we were there way longer than we should have been!  Oh, well.  Good thing she is a great friend, too.

When I got back home, I did the few things that needed to be done around the house, including finishing up the load of laundry from yesterday and getting another one done today.  I spent some time at the computer, trying to do some from family history, but FamilySearch was acting funny and I couldn't do what I wanted to do.  Made for a frustrating afternoon!

I finally gave up and went to lie down and read a little and promptly fell asleep for a short nap.  There is always a solution to every problem - and sometimes a nap is it!  I actually cooked dinner tonight - big surprise! 

End result - my day was not a total loss, as I accomplished some good things, but I sure didn't accomplish what I had planned on the family history.  Good day - bad day, I guess.

June 25th - Yes, Family History Day

This is the day I work at the Family History Center, so my Wednesdays are pretty much the same every week.  This week I picked up my friend and she and I worked part of the time on a problem she discovered.  If Family Search tree were to be believed, her great-grandfather was only 3 when his daughter was born!  Yeah, I think there is a problem.  We didn't get it solved, but we did confirm the birth date of her grandmother.  We are thinking the parents are wrong - duh!

When we finished there, we went to Chipotle for lunch - always good! - and then made a run to Target to pick up something.  After I took her home, I stopped by the library and picked up a stack of books that had come in - I think I have myself in trouble again, as 6 books all came in at once.  Then I stopped and got my haircut.

By the time I got home, I didn't feel like doing much else.  I even forgot that I had left a load of clothes in the dryer, so I will need to take care of that tomorrow.  Oops!  I am usually pretty good about not doing that, but there are days............

Naturally, I sat down and did a little more work on my friend's problem, trying to find some possible ways to get some answers.  I like solving the problems.

So another Family History Day - aka Wednesday - is finished!

June 24th - Lunch with Friends

Normal morning, not too exciting, but around 11:00, I headed over to the home of the sister who is my visiting teacher.  She was having a little luncheon for the sisters she visits.  Well, there were two of us, plus her daughter-in-law who is currently living with them.  We had a lovely lunch and a lot of fun chatting.  Her husband popped in after we had eaten and got excited to learn about my dad's airport, so he had to google earth and see it.  Fun.

This afternoon, I worked on some family history for a while and did a few other odds and ends, but again it was a rather lazy day.  I guess I need to push myself a little more - but why?  I keep busy and enjoy myself, so that should be enough!

June 23rd - Day of Recovery

I am wondering if I am getting old.  It seems like I need a day to recover whenever I do anything that requires any energy at all.  We had such fun with the kids here, but I was tired today.  I got the Monday morning straightening done and all that goes with that.  Other than that, I was pretty much lazy the rest of the day.

I spent some time on family history, though, but that doesn't require much energy.  I also took a short nap - gotta get recharged.  Somehow I was busy all day, but I sure didn't accomplish all that much. 

We found out today that a niece was out walking the dog and took a bad fall.  Her arm sustained a compound fracture, both bones, and she had to have surgery to repair it last night.  She is still in the hospital.  Bill was able to stop by and see her on his way home from work.  She hopes to go home tomorrow.  The birthday party for her youngest, which is scheduled for Friday, is hopefully still on, but someone else is going to have to do most of the work!  We leave for the beach in 12 days, so she is not going to be doing much ocean swimming this year!  Hope it heals quickly.

June 22nd - Fun Day with the Kids!

Brooks and Ashby both did well through the night, although they went to bed a little later than normal.  Brooks slept until almost 7 and Ashby got up around 7:30.  She did get up and climbed into our bed around 5:30, which is good for her.  She often spends most of the night with us.

They were excited to play and had a great morning.  They especially like the time that Grandpa was able to play with them.  Then it was time to get ready for church.  They needed lunch first and, of course, chose mac & cheese.  At least they had full tummies!  Then it was brush the teeth, get dressed, put some books in a bag and off we went.

They were both really good at church and we didn't have to take Brooks out at all.  His parents are not always that fortunate!  Then I went to get my class set up and Bill took them to Primary.  After all the meetings, I went by to pick them up.  They both had had a fun time and were smiling and happy.

As we rounded the corner on our street, they were excited to see that Mommy and Daddy were already at the house.  They could hardly wait to get out of the car.  It was cute - Ashby made straight for Daddy and Brooks headed straight for Mommy.  That about says it all!

Lisa had dinner all cooked.  I always have everything ready to go, so it will get done as quickly as possible when we get home.  It was so nice to walk in and find that Lisa had gone ahead and gotten everything done.  We just changed clothes and sat down to eat.  Sure easy for me!

They stayed for a while after dinner.  Ashby seemed to need some private play time, so she entertained herself in the playroom, while Brooks headed out to the backyard to play on the playset.  Both had a great time, but they were really tired when they finally headed home.

We had a great sleep-over with them.  What fun!  I love this grandparent business!!

June 21st - Spend the Night!

This was pretty much a normal Saturday, with the usual chores, laundry, etc.  Bill had to get up early to help pick up scouts from camp and then he had a job this afternoon, so I was home alone all day.  I got the chores done, the laundry done, a run to the store completed, and then I did---- what did you expect?  Of course, family history.

I am trying to get more familiar with Fold3, so I looked up my ancestor Edmund Bacon, who was in the Revolutionary War, to see what I could find.  What I found was the widow's pension application.  It contains about 20+ pages of information, including several affidavits about his service.  I printed it all out.  I am looking forward to studying it in more detail.

Later in the afternoon, Lisa called to see if we could watch the kids for a while so she and David could go out for dinner.  Final decision - they would just spend the night.  So, we had a wild and woolly evening with two of the cutest kids ever.  They finally headed off to bed around 10:00.

A day can sure go from quiet to exciting in a split second!  It is fun to have them here.

June 20th - "The Kids Wore Me Out So I Needed to Recover" Day!

Yeah, they wore me out yesterday - it was hot, busy, and fun, but I was tired today.  Of course, being up late because of our friends' accident and then not sleeping that well because I was worried didn't help either.

So what did I accomplish today?  Well, three loads of laundry got done.  That was good.  Also good was getting the house straightened and the dishwasher emptied.  I worked on family history for a while, especially looking over Fold3 which is the topic of my next presentation in September.  And, of course, there was a nice long nap - I don't nap every day and usually it is just a quickie when I do, but not today.  I really went under.

Bottom line, it wasn't a totally wasted day, but I sure didn't move too fast!  Oh, and I actually cooked dinner - well, I cooked bacon so we could have BLT's, but that is more than I often do!

June 19th - Babyland and Helen - Fun, Fun, Fun!

Up and at 'em this morning.  I had to be over at Lisa's by around 9:00 so we could all have a fun day together.  Ashby was just fixing her own breakfast (toasted bagel with butter and cream cheese), but everything else was about ready.  Once we were loaded up, we took off for Cleveland.

Cleveland is north, just where the mountains are starting, and is the original home of Xavier Roberts, who made the original cabbage patch kids right there.  A few years ago, they built a new Babyland General Hospital.  They had outgrown the original hospital in the middle of town.  I have been there a couple of times, but Lisa had never been to the new facility and the kids had never even heard of it. 

They had a ball!  We must have been there an hour and a half, at least, and they were entertained the whole time.  We walked through the "nurseries" first on the way in and saw dozens of dolls.  Then it was announced that a cabbage patch doll was about to be born at the cabbage patch, so we went to watch.  They do it all up so cute and the kids thought it was fun to see another new "baby" come from under the cabbage leaf. 

Obviously, the whole point of the place is to sell dolls, but they have turned it into a science!  There are plenty of things to play with, so the kids are entertained and, of course, want everything they see!  Here are a few pictures:

Being Grandma and all, I of course bought them each what they wanted.  Ashby picked out a cute doll and renamed her Ashley Brook.  Brooks, on the other hand, didn't want any dolls, but he found a golf club and a space gun that he was thrilled to get. 

From there, we headed up to Helen to have lunch and look around a little.  Here is a picture Lisa took of me and the kids - notice they are holding their new toys!

We had lunch at my favorite place (because of location), the Troll Tavern.  We ate out on the deck overlooking the Chattahoochee and watched all the rafter going down the river.  It was a lot of fun.  Big surprise - our waiter was Brad, who was our waiter when my roommates and I ate there two years ago and then again last year when MA and Charles were here.  We teased him a bit when it was the four of us, so I had to take his picture again and send it to the roomies. 

We then walked just a bit - the kids were getting tired - and got an ice cream (well, funnel cake for me!) - and then went to the wooden toys stores, where Brooks was in heaven.

From there, we headed back home.  They were very quiet on the trip home.  I do believe they wore themselves out!  We had so much fun, though.

Bad news this evening, as we learned that an older couple in the ward were in a very serious car accident today and are both in ICU.  Bill went with a member of the bishopric to the hospital.  Two other members had gotten there earlier and given them both blessings.  They both have multiple broken bones, one a punctured lung, one a fractured eye socket, other internal bruising, as well as lots of scrapes and bruises.  They will be in our prayers as they both face a rather long recovery.  It did not look like their injuries were life-threatening, but by the age of 80+, it doesn't take much to create other problems.  He is just recovering from open-heart bypass surgery, but it appears that her injuries are the more serious. 

June 18th - Wednesday - Family History Day, of Course!

I got up and ready so I go leave early for the Family History Center.  Today was Genealogy Study Group meeting and I had a presentation, so I needed to get the projector and screen set up, make copies of my handout, as well as get the computer running and ready to go.  We had a good turnout for the meeting, including a couple of new people, and the presentations went well, including mine.  The steering committee met afterwards to make plans for the coming months.  Either Brother Peoples or I need to prepare a presentation on Fold3 for September.

Following the meeting, I came on home and worked on things around here.  I spent a little more time on the South African genealogy, sent a couple of emails to the person I am helping, and decided that I had done all I can for the moment on that. 

I had a few other odds and ends I am working on, but I need to get things a little better organized again, so I will do that the next time I sit down to work.

I always enjoy the genealogy meeting days and this one did not disappoint.

June 17th - Mostly a Family History Day

There weren't many chores that I had to do around the house this morning, since I had cleaned so well yesterday, other than emptying the dishwasher and a quick walk-through to make sure everything got put back last night.  I did throw a load of beach towels into the washer.  They had accumulated with the kids being here on Saturday.  They seem to to go through 2 or 3 towels a piece!

I spent most of the rest of my time working on the South Africa family history.  Ancestry was down a good bit of the day again, and even when it was finally back up, it wasn't really working well.  Even so, I got a few things checked out.  I think I have done about all I can on that until I meet with him to see if any of this is even his family.

I was also pretty tired this afternoon, so I managed to get in a pretty good nap.  So lazy!  I love it.

In the middle of all this, I did also make a run to the library.  I had two books due and one to pick up.  I love my library.  I have added a bunch of books to my reserve list, so I am probably going to get hit with a lot coming in at once again.  Oh, well.  When I hear about a book, I just have to reserve it!

So - a quiet, but productive and relaxing day.  Any day spent doing some family history is a good day - and it is really fun helping out other people. 

June 16th - Empty Nesters

We hosted Empty Nesters family home evening tonight, so most of my day was cleaning the house and getting ready for that.  I had to actually do all the cleaning that got ignored on Saturday when the kids came over at the last minute.  Got it done, though.  I also made a cake for refreshments and got the popcorn maker moved into the dining room, so we could also have popcorn. 

In between all that, I worked on family history.  I am trying to help one of my class members who is from South Africa and has almost nothing so far.  I spent a good while just trying to find out where to look for things, since Family Search and Ancestry are not producing any information.  I found a clue and am exploring that now.  This may take a while, but it sure is fun!

We had a nice turnout this evening, considering that it is summer and so many are away on vacations.  We had to plan the activity, so we made it really simple!  I found a quote from Audrey Hepburn about laughter.  I shared a little about the benefits of laughter and then we just shared funny stories.  It was a fun evening.

June 15th - Happy Father's Day!

This has been a good father's day and a good Sunday.  I talked to my dad on the phone this morning.  He sounded good.  I got a kick out of him saying that when he turned 90 (he is now 86), he was going to jump out of an airplane, just like President Bush.  Then this evening, Billy called and talked to Bill for a long time and I spoke to him for a few minutes, too.  He seems to be doing well - busy with work and classes.

In between, we had our regular meetings which were all good.  The kids were already here when we got home from church.  In fact, Lisa had everything ready for dinner.  I had left a list with the menu so I can get things together quickly when I get home, but she had done everything.  All that was waiting was to actually grill the veggies and the steaks.  She did that, too, and the steaks were perfect - nice and rare! 

We then had a fun couple of hours before they had to head home.  The kids played out on the playset and we pulled the lawn chairs up close.  It was a lot of fun. 

After they had left, the sister missionaries stopped by for a visit and we enjoyed a little time with them.

By the time they left and Billy had called, we were pretty much done for the day.  I was ready to climb into bed to read my scriptures and then to lose myself in my book.  It has been a very good day.

June 14th - Whew! What a Great Saturday!

This morning, Bill and I were sitting here making our plans for the day - all pretty simple things.  Like, get the house cleaned up and some laundry done for me.  He had a couple of errands to do, to clean his spray gun, and do some yard work.  Just then the phone rang.  It was Lisa wondering if we wanted to have them come spend the day.  It is amazing how quickly plans can change!

As it turned out, I got half the house dusted and four loads of laundry done - that's all.  Bill got his errands run and cleaned his spray gun just before it got dark at the end of the day.  All other plans were abandoned.  Instead, the kids all came over and spent the day.

Actually, it was David's choice, as the whole day was his to plan since it is Father's Day weekend.  He wanted to come and work on the play set, so that is what they did.  We had a great time.  They got the ladder built, the slide installed, and the climbing wall built.  The kids had a ball playing on the slide.  They put the hose on it, so it was a water slide.

We also had the pool out and they were in that most of the day.  They had picked up a slip-n-slide on their way here, so the kids played on that, too, although it had a flaw and wouldn't spray water, so it will have to be returned.  It was a very fun and busy day.  Sometimes the unexpected changes are the best!

Ladder and slide.  And you can see the green hose making it a water slide.

They love this big blow up pool.  They swim from one end to the other.  Kids can have fun in any water - it doesn't have to be a big pool.

They actually finished the climbing wall, which is where David is working in this picture.  I just failed to take a picture of the completed structure.

Now all that is left is the swing part.  I wonder if that will take another year?  The play set was given to us a couple of years ago.  They got it stained in the fall and last spring, they got the fort built.  Now it has the accessories.  We will see when the swings get done!  At least, it will be more fun to play in now.

June 13th - Mostly Lost in Family History - Again!

I am thinking that my life is pretty boring - family history again today.  Well, I did do a few other things and even got out to the library and to the grocery store.  But, the truth is, mostly I was working on family history.

There is a new website associated with FamilySearch called findarecord.com and I was checking it out.  I had done some things a few days ago and wanted to try out a little more.  Naturally, I got myself immersed in something that ended up pretty much filling my day!  Good website, but will be better as they tweak some parts of it a little.

I had awakened so early this morning that I was exhausted by afternoon, so I even took another nap - this time one of those really deep ones.  I think I needed it.

So, on with the boring life!

June 12th - Let's See - What Did I Do Today?

Nothing special, I guess.  We took the car in to the garage first thing.  It needed some brake and alignment work.  Back at home, Bill headed off to work and I did the usual routine stuff around the house, including a couple of loads of laundry, and then spent some time working on my lesson for Sunday.  They want more about researching, so I was working on the tree of one of the students, hoping to find some things, plus figuring out what other websites to show them.

Bill got home early and we headed out to an early dinner.  We went to Pollo Carnival, which is supposed to be such a great place to get chicken.  They failed my test, though.  It was OK, but hardly worth a second trip.  What killed it was that the roll was cold - just one out of a box, with no butter or anything.  I won't go back. 

From there, we went and picked up the car.  Back home, we just relaxed.  I did a few more things on the computer, but nothing of great importance.  I guess I actually got quite a bit done today, but it seemed like a lazy day.

June 11th - Family History Day

This morning, I picked up one of my friends and we headed on out to the Family History Center for the morning.  We worked on her line that we worked on last week and found a couple of things.  This is a line that she has been unable to find anything on for many years, so she is excited that we have found any pieces at all.  It may take a while, but we will get it figured out!

We then went to lunch and I took her home and headed home myself.  I had a few odds and ends to do, then I worked on family history at home.  There is a new website that I heard about yesterday, so I wanted to check it out.  It is another one that links to Family Search, and is at findarecord.com.  It is pretty good, but I did sent a response about at least one thing that I didn't like.  After all, they are trying to find out how to make it a good site and they needed my input!

Bill got home from his out of town job in the late afternoon.  We just had a quiet evening.  We were both tired!

June 10th - Home Alone - Again!

I woke up with a headache this morning, so I was a little slow on getting things done, but eventually all that routine stuff was finished.  I then spent the whole day doing nothing - well, nothing of value, I guess would be more correct.

I worked on family history, though.  I think I have the children of my confederate soldier all figured out finally.  I already have his parents pretty much up to date, but his siblings are a mess.  I am debating whether I even want to tackle trying to get that straightened out!  One of the hardest things about the Cantrells is that they had so many children and they all stayed right together, so sometimes it is impossible to tell which child actually belonged to which parents.  I was looking at an 1850 census today that had about seven families listed - all but one of them Cantrell!  Talk about confusing.

I actually broke down and took a nap this afternoon.  I haven't taken a nap for a while, but I was just so tired.  Other than that, I was pretty much lazy.  I guess we all have our days!

Judy 9th - Monday with the Grandkids!

Bill took off for his job this morning and since it is so far away, he will probably stay over for at least one, maybe two nights, depending on how things go.  That means I am again home alone for a couple of days.

Lisa and the kids took care of that problem today, though.  They had swimming lessons this morning and then came straight over here afterwards.  They had brought their lunch with them, so were ready to play.  Lisa had some errands she wanted to run, so she took off and the kids and I stayed here.  They were both really good.

Brooks was supposed to try to take a nap, so he happily went into bed and I thought he was going to sleep when I heard the "Grandma!" yell.  He had been quiet for half an hour, but then announced that he wasn't "ready" yet.  Since there is no point in fighting naps, he got up and they both played together.  Eventually, he took the mighty machines out to the dirt and played in the backyard for a long time. Ashby meanwhile was busy entertaining herself.

It was a fun couple of hours with them here.  But, when Lisa got back, they had to take off.  I spent the rest of my alone time working on family history.  I am still trying to get the family of my confederate soldier figured out.  I spent most of the day trying to figure out one of his sons and whether he was married once or twice and whether both of his wives were named Georgia or Georgianna or what.  It is getting closer to being solved, but not completely there yet.

I didn't get any of my usual Monday routine done - but there is always tomorrow!  My day was a good one just the way it was.

June 8th - Sunday, Again!

I seem to struggle with what to say on my Sunday posts - they are all so much the same.  All good, of course, but not much new and exciting to talk about.  Ditto, today.

The morning was spent getting dinner cooking - pork roast, new potatoes and onion in crockpot and fresh green beans simmering on the stove.  I also cut up the cucumbers and onions to start soaking up the vinegar - yummy.  I even snitched a few slices for my breakfast.  The rest of my morning was spent on family history and some other things at the computer.

Church meetings were good.  I finished my last formal family history lesson, which is on how to submit names to the temple.  We have three more weeks in the month, before I leave for vacation, so I asked if they wanted to continue; and, if so, what they wanted to talk about.  They all agreed that they would like more time on finding documents so they could extend their family trees.  Sounds like a plan to me!

We had not expected the kids for dinner, but as we rounded the corner, we saw the car was already in the driveway.  That is always a nice surprise!  David is in New York City with his mom, sister, and nephew, so Lisa and the kids just came straight over.  Of course, there was plenty of food, so we enjoyed our dinner together.  I got a kick out of Ashby being so grown up at dinner.  She needed her own table knife, so she could cut up her own potatoes so she could put gravy on them.  She had a big plate of food and ate everything.  I guess she was either very hungry or loved dinner.  Brooks, on the other hand, ate pretty well, but could hardly wait to start running around!

They both had the best time playing with Grandpa.  They usually get a little rough-housing type play with their dad in the evenings, but he is out of town.  They were so ready to play and run and laugh with Grandpa.  They ended up playing hide-and-seek and were so funny.  They were both looking for Grandpa and would get scared when they found him and he jumped out at him.  The funniest was when they had been looking forever and just couldn't figure out where he was.  We asked if they had checked behind the shower curtain in the bathroom.  They went running back and then we heard them each trying to convince the other to open the curtain - they were both scared!  It was so cute.

After they left, I baked a pineapple angel cake, one of the latest rages - angel food cake mix and a can of crushed pineapple.  It was so good!  Bill loved it so much that I think between us we ate half the cake!

So, another Sunday, not much different than every other one, but still the best day of the week!

June 7th - Another Quiet Day? Not as much!

My day started about the same, since Bill was still at camp.  I was up, had laundry started, and the routine chores done early.  However, being Saturday, there were a few extra things on the list so I didn't get to play family history all day long.

There were four loads of laundry, for instance, along with things like planning Sunday dinner, a little better cleaning than usual, cleaning out the frig, etc.  Then there were the errands that I had to run out and do.  All in all, I actually worked a little.  Well, as little as possible, but I couldn't get out of everything.

I did spend the rest of the time on family history.  John Jones Cantrell was my focus again, as I did a little background on the Battle of Perryville, where he was wounded.  I worked some on his family, as well, trying to get the complete picture. 

Bill got back late in the afternoon and he was exhausted!  They had a great time, but it was all physical - what else would you do with a bunch of 16 and 17 year old boys?  This morning they did rappelling, although Bill said he chose not to try it.  He is smarter than I thought - Ha!

I enjoyed my couple of quiet, alone days, but it is nice to have him back home.  

June 6th - Home Alone!

With Bill off with the priests at camp, it was a very quiet day today.  I was up about 6:30, as usual, had my sheets stripped and in the washer, dressed, house straightened, breakfast, routine stuff, and computer stuff all finished before 8:00.  That pretty much gave me all day to have fun!

Guess what I did!  Yes, indeed.  Family History.  I felt like working on something different today, so I randomly picked someone in the Cantrell tree and started working.  It turned out to be a great choice.  He had been a confederate soldier in the Civil War, was wounded by a gun shot that fractured the bone in his left leg at Perryville, KY, was taken prisoner, and exchanged so he ended up at the US hospital in St. Louis, where he died.  He is buried at the Barracks National Cemetery there, in a confederate soldier section.  I ran across copies of his military file that someone had posted on Ancestry.com.  Needless to say, I was totally absorbed.  I have a little list of questions to answer tomorrow - maybe I will spend all day working on him again!

Well, I just had a great day!

June 5th - Some Mall Time

We got Bill of to scout camp this morning, then I just relaxed a little.  I did a few things that needed to be done, but as little as possible!  I was at the computer when Lisa called to say they were going to the mall for lunch - did I want to come.  Of course!

We met up at the food court, had lunch, then walked down to the play area.  We were there until they started getting a little bored, so they did a train ride before we took off for home.  Ashby came home with me and Lisa took Brooks home to nap.

Ashby and I had a fun time.  We played Barbies for a while and then she found the Connect 4 game and we were playing that when David came by to pick her up.  It was the first time she had played the game and was so excited when she would win.  Of course, I won once or twice, too, as children need to learn to lose, as well as to win.  We had a lot of fun.

Once she left, it was rather quiet around here.  I did some of my usual computer stuff, which quickly fills the time.  For dinner, I had some popcorn and watched some Law & Order.  I had eaten chicken and rice for lunch and wasn't really that hungry. 

I then curled up in bed, reading my scriptures and then my book, while a rather wild storm raged outside.  Sure hope it wasn't too bad in north Georgia where they are camping. 

June 4th - Family History Center

Well, it is Wednesday - that is always Family History Center Day.  I picked up my friend, along with a second friend, and we all headed out to the center.  I spent my time helping the second friend, who has been taking my class, but is still confused about how to do things.  Of course, she is in her 80's and not computer proficient, so it is a bit of a challenge!  We also had another patron come and my co-worker helped him out.

When we finished at the center, the three of us went out to lunch, which was fun.  Then I took them home and headed home myself.  Bill didn't have a job today and had a long list of errands he planned to do, but he was home by the time I got there.  He will be going up to join the priests for their high adventure tomorrow (they have been there since Tuesday), so he was getting things ready.  He discovered one more errand to run, so he returned my library book and picked up my prescription at the same time.

That meant that I just got to stay home and play on the computer (mostly family history - what else?)  It was a busy first part of the day, so I enjoyed my quiet ending.

June 3rd - Family History All Day!

This was one of those days when the house was already clean, no laundry to be done, and no other major plans, so I just started in on some family history.  The next time I looked at the clock, it was 1:00!  I got to working on newspapers from my childhood and found things involving my family, my uncle, my grandparents, etc.  A lot of it was just interesting, others helped me date some photos I have, and a few gave me some dates that I was missing.  A lot of fun!

After a break to rest my eyes from the computer and to finally have some lunch, I spent most of the afternoon doing the same thing. 

Makes for a rather boring blog, but a great day!

June 2nd - Visiting Teaching

We had an appointment this morning to visit teach one of our sisters, so that pretty much filled the first half of my day - by the time I did the usual morning routine, got myself cleaned up, picked up my companion, and did our visit.  It was a really good visit.  It was the first time my companion had visited with this sister, as it has been a difficult time for her over the last couple of years.  We had a wonderful visit, though, and loved sitting on her screened in back porch.  It was so beautiful.

This afternoon, I pretty much worked on family history.  I am trying to get FamilySearch updated to match what I already have in my personal files - like adding documents, standardizing dates and places, checking for duplicates, making corrections in information, etc.  Takes a little while, but it is nice when I finish a person and everything is up to date. 

A good day to begin the week - now hoping the rest of the week is as productive and enjoyable!

June 1st - Quiet Sunday - Too Quiet!

This morning was our normal Sunday morning - getting last minute things ready for lessons, getting ready for church, getting dinner ready to go.  Today it was boneless pork ribs that I put in the oven on 300 while we were at church, along with boiled potatoes, fresh carrots, and corn on the cob.  I added some left-over canned pears and it turned out to be really good.  The kids were not coming for dinner, so this was all just for us!

Meetings were good.  It was Fast and Testimony meeting and it was a very good one.  There were a lot of priesthood brothers who bore testimony today, which is not always the case.  Usually it is mostly sisters and children, with just a few men.  I enjoyed it.  Then my class went well.  We talked more about documents and sources. 

The house smelled wonderful when we got home!  It took about 20 minutes to finish up the sides and we were able to eat.  We had planned on the kids coming over and having popcorn and dessert afterwards, but Lisa called and they were not going to make it.  She had fallen asleep and David didn't awaken her, so she slept until almost 6:00.  It was a bit too late by then. 

That is what made the day a little too quiet!  We enjoyed our Sunday, but we missed having the kids over. 

May 31st - Wedding

Today was Saturday - what else is there to say?  I got the house cleaned a little better than a normal day, did several loads of laundry, and spent time at the computer doing a number of things.  I think I am prepared for my lesson tomorrow.  Bill spent most of the day working outside in the yard. 

We attended a wedding this evening.  It was held at the home of the groom, a family we have known since we moved out here.  The oldest son is not active in the church right now, but is a really good young man and we were honored to be invited to this small wedding.  It was nice.

And thus ends another week and another month!  They just seem to roll by.