An Hour til April

There are times when this year seems to be moving slow.  Those times happen to be when I find myself strapped to this here computer for my online math class.  Then there are moments like just now when I realized that there is an hour until we are in the month of April and I am shocked by just how fast the time is going.  It is a wonderful thing.  Hopefully the month of April will disappear quickly as the end of April represents the end of the semester and I am ready to be done.  I think it is the math that is wearing me out big time right now.  The time commitment alone for that is overbearing and since math simply is not my favorite subject it makes that time commitment even more painful.  I am glad that I am pushing through it and learning things and that is obviously worth something.  It just isn't a subject I find a lot of personal satisfaction in.

April is a month I look forward to with great anticipation as it is time for General Conference once again.  I love conference and am excited to hear the Prophet and other leaders of the church speak.  There is great power that comes into my life as I review these topics and try to learn from them over the course of the next 6 months.  In fact this morning I just finished listening the the October conference once again.  There are powerful lessons of a lifetime from men and women I love.  Any who know the last talk of the October conference was given by Elder Bednar and in his message he shared powerful lessons of a lifetime that he has learned from members of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve that have passed over the course of the last eleven years that he has served in the Twelve.  That is what I reviewed today and it is a message that I loved hearing.  I look forward to the talks that will be shared over conference on the 2nd and 3rd.  I look forward to the stories, the testimonies and the spiritual insights.  I look forward to the things the Lord wants me to know.  As I have gotten older and learned to listen a little better, I have found so much more in conference that I need to hear, things that uplift and strengthen my resolve to carry on and press forward even when it seems so hard to do so. 

Well, now it is 37 minutes until April.  Looking forward to it. 

Rough Week

We are having experiencing some unusually busy nights at the restaurant this week and that is causing some headaches.  Because things are usually slow at night I staff accordingly.  This week I have added an additional waitstaff member.  That has not been enough and the staff is being overwhelmed.  Because of that they are stressing out a bit and that is causing the service to suffer this week.  We are already under a microscope because someone screwed up last Friday night and we got a bad review.  Once that happens it just seems to escalate and suddenly everyone starts piling on.  What I would give for a few positive reviews to hit the food review page right now.  I feel like I'm beating my head against the wall. 

A Quickie

I just pulled this up and realized that I still have an assignment due for another class.  Sweet.  I just finished my math which only soaked up 5 or so hours of my life today.  I am so ready to be done with math.  Well, crap.  I'm a bit tired.  Trying not to be completely burned out on school at the moment. Need to stay strong for a few more weeks.  I'm going to cut this short this evening because I need to get on this other assignment in order to get it in on time.  Love the student life. 

Back to the Weight Room

When spring break hit the campus was closed so I transitioned my workouts to my little workout room.  When spring break ended and campus re-opened I did not go back to the weight room but continued to workout in my workout room here at the house.  I need to have 45 workouts logged at the weight room on campus in order to get an A in my circuit weight training class.  I was sitting at 35.  Today I returned to the weight room.  With 9 more visits I will have secured my A in the class and then if I feel like returning to the home gym I will or I will continue on in the weight room at the school.  Either way I am doing my best to log in some cardio and weight lifting everyday.  I may not be the most fit person out there, I carry some extra weight.  Underneath that layer of insulation I much prefer to have strong and active muscles.  I don't like it when I let myself get weak.  Everything tends to hurt in that situation and that just isn't a lot of fun.  Shedding a few extra pounds won't hurt my feelings either.  If I can manage some of that along the way you will hear no complaints from me. 

Easter 2016

The "easter bunny" was up quite late last night getting everything together for this morning.  There were plastic eggs to stuff and hide.  There were little goodie baskets to put together though I didn't actually mess with baskets.  I really just set up three different goodie stations.  Don't know if that even makes sense.  Anyhow, I got it all together and then got to bed a little after 2 AM.  I pushed sleep as long as I could and we got up and the kids started hunting around 8. It was a quick hunt and I had to give some hints on a few eggs that were not found.  It was good and the kids seemed happy.  We then raced to get ready for church and then got over to church just as the meeting began at 9.  I suppose I could have done something to make the morning more special but the kids had fun and all was well.  

We had a great Sacrament meeting today and it helped me to ponder the Savior and his love for each of us.  Truly his life was a gift and the blessings of the resurrection that we celebrate this Easter Sunday are wonderful.  I am so very grateful for a loving Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ.  What a blessing it has been in my life to have a testimony of the Gospel and of the Savior.  Through times of struggle and tribulation it is that testimony that I have turned to and it has helped me as my faith in Father in Heaven and Jesus Christ have lifted me out of darkness.  I am humbled and grateful for the Savior.  I know he lives and I know he loves each of us.   

This evening we went over to the folks house and enjoyed a family Easter feast.  It was good.  We invited Annie Draper to join us as she was home alone today.  She said she was feeling lonely and was happy to come and hang out with us.  It was a good time.  Had fun playing with my kids and with the three nephews in attendance.  They are good kids and such a source of joy.  Grateful for these wonderful spirits and grateful to have enjoyed a wonderful Easter Sunday.  

Something Hit the Fan

Woke up this morning to a message on the food review about a customer that walked out last night after they were seated and then missed by the wait staff.  Fabulous.  Pretty much makes me want to puke.  Having waited tables I know how hectic it can be and how hard it is to remember and keep straight everything that is going on. At the same time I think our people spend too much time doing things that are not productive and are not customer oriented.  And so this crappy review that others jumped on lead me to send out a straight forward message to all of my front end employees about customer service, about taking responsibility, about stepping up and not dropping the ball.  When I read these kind of revues I just want to curl up in the fetal position and cry, okay, maybe that is a stretch.  I think I would much rather go beat the crap out of the punching bag.  It is really frustrating because our problem was not lack of people last night it was someone missing an assignment and no one else paying attention to it.  And so we refocus. We apologize to those who were offended.  We do our best to train the waitstaff again on the importance of every customer, every table, every time.  We trust that our people will do the job right.  Often times they do and it is good.  Those positive messages are always wonderful to see.  Unfortunately when a negative message comes up it seems to fester and inspires additional comments that rip on our business.  That is a bit upsetting.  I don't like it when something hits the fan.   

Small Problem

I have a small problem at this time of year.  It's called Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs.  Oh my gosh.  I just need to stop buying them but it is so hard to resist these tempting little morsels of chocolate peanut butter goodness.  It certainly is not helping my biggest loser aspirations.  No, I indulge and it's not just a one and done scenario.  They are too good for that and since they are only around for a limited time you have to take advantage of them while you can.  Dang it Reese's.  Why do you have to do this to me every spring?  I thought maybe I should buy a few extra bags and throw them in the freezer but I think that would be counter productive.  I need to get this stuff out of the house not stock up on it in the freezer.  So yes, I have a small problem, a delicious small problem. 

Busy Day

I had 5 assignments due today, just 5.  I also had a meeting with my group for our group project/final. Somewhere in there I handled some financial things at the restaurant then went back later for a meeting about a catering job.  I didn't quite get to generating the invoices for the catering job and will have to add that to my schedule tomorrow.  Had to run Jack to scouts and then pick him up again. I managed to move a sign, by sign I mean one of our old Little Brick House Antique Shop back lit signs, anyway I moved it out of in front of the house where it has been since we moved in two years ago. I also cleaned up that area of the front of the house, tried to add a bit of soil to a couple low parts in the grass and watered it in some. That was probably the highlight of the day as it was outside work which makes me happy.  Natty watched me do my thing and then had the nerve to make fun of the way I walk around the yard, stare at the grass and do things.  That is peaceful to me and I love it. I can stare at the grass for a long time and just have joy. I also had to take the kids to the store, buy treats for Andy's class.  They are having an Easter egg hunt or something so I not only bought treats but also eggs and then we stuffed said eggs with said treats.  Wonderful.  Then there was Andy's homework to do and the other routines of the night.  I actually just finished the 5th assignment, math, go figure. Now I am pretty well beat and think I'll call it a night.  It's quarter to 1 in the AM.  That's an early night for me.  

Mad

I know I did the math mindset thing and I know that it takes work and all that. I believe in the growth mindset idea that one can learn things.  That is all fine and well.  I am kicking my own backside trying to learn and understand math and I think I've done okay with this online class and be that as it may, I don't like math. It isn't that I suck at math or that I can't do math, I just flat out do not like math.  The math mindset program didn't address that.  Quite frankly I find it extremely frustrating and it just pisses me off.  I don't like doing things with math when I see no practical application to my life and right now I am finding it very difficult to see where the math that I am doing right now would have made a damn bit of difference in my personal 42 years on this earth.  People keep telling me that math is where the money is for teaching.  Well, that's nice.  I don't think I would enjoy teaching math, not even in the slightest.  What would be the point of becoming a teacher if I stuck myself in a subject that I don't enjoy?  There would be no point.  I have been trying to not swear but when I am working through some of these math problems I find myself swearing.  I hope the Lord can exercise some patience with me and some foul language because I have another semester to go in math and I dare say it is going to be difficult to mind my tongue.  Of course, that assumes I will pass this semester.  Not so sure about that right now.  I'm just mad tonight. 

Voted or Whatever

Today was the Utah Caucus.  I went to my Caucus meeting this evening, in the snow might I add.  Our precinct meets at South Elementary in the library.  The precinct is pretty much made up of the ward boundaries of the Cedar 8th Ward.  That is who we saw at the meeting tonight along with others who reside in the boundaries as well as one additional street to the west and folks that live on 400 South.  I think it is a pretty neat thing to participate in that event.  We got to vote for a state delegate and 4 county delegates in the caucus.  We also got to cast our vote for the republican nominee for President.  I proudly voted for Ted Cruz.  I happen to like Cruz.  I certainly like him a lot more than Donald Trump.  Donald Trump is currently leading and it is going to be difficult for Cruz to catch him but we will see how it goes.  The big question at the moment is will any of the candidates reach the number of delegates required to win the nomination out right or will they be short, leading to an open convention?  There are those that are hoping for the open convention. I don't know what to think though I find it difficult to be excited about Donald Trump as our eventual nominee.  This political season started out with several great candidates who have fallen one by one to Donald Trump.  It almost feels as if the Republican Party has been taken hostage by a bunch of angry people who are falling all over crafty rhetoric that lacks substance on the part of Trump.  He is saying things a lot of people identify with who are upset with the status quo but his plans aren't extremely clear or well developed.  We certainly know that Mr. Trump knows bad deals when he see's them and he is a great deal maker.  Sounds great I guess, I'll give him his due there.  Does that qualify him to lead the country?  I don't know.  Does that enable him to enact good policy for the American people?  I don't know.  Does that make him the kind of moral leader we want at the head of this great country?  I don't know that it does.  Certainly any man in the spotlight  of the presidency is going to be examined and there will be faults found, weaknesses exposed, character flaws present.  No one candidate seems to be perfect. Can we live with the candidates that are left standing?  Can we in good conscience vote for one of those candidates?  Tough questions.  I absolutely despise Hillary Clinton and more and more it is looking like she will be the democrat nominee for President.  Pulling the trigger for her would be an extremely difficult thing for me to do. There is rampant corruption that surrounds her and her husband. It would be an extreme challenge for me to cast a vote for her and I am not so sure I could in good conscience do that.  Can I be facing a lose lose situation?  Those are not good situations, in fact those are bad deals and I know a thing or two about deals... 

That Tooth Had No Chance

Sometime yesterday evening Jack mentioned that he had a tooth that was just starting to get loose.  I laughed that he would probably have it out before the end of the night.  He didn't.  Today he worked the tooth a little more and then after our nightly routine of scriptures and prayer and reading time he began a tug of war with the tooth.  He was unsuccessful, he had blood on his fingers and on his face.  I told him to let it go for another night and work on it again tomorrow.  I also told him he needed to clean himself up.  It was no surprise when from the bathroom I heard a big YES! He pulled that thing out.  As he came in to show me the tooth he said he thought it had a cavity on it.  When I said he would probably only get a quarter from the tooth fairy because of the cavity suddenly it was no longer a cavity, or at least it was a very small cavity.  Funny kid.  Factually speaking, the tooth really had no chance.  At some point it was going to come out.  It definitely had no hope of an extended stay.  As soon as Jack discovered it was even the slightest bit loose he went after it.  With that kind of determination it should definitely fetch more than a quarter from the tooth fairy.  Maybe 50 cents will do.  Maybe not.   

Temple Dedication

Today instead of regularly scheduled church meetings we had the opportunity to participate in the Provo City Center Temple dedication.  I had a small panic attack before we went as suddenly I thought we were one white handkerchief short.  I thought we had all attended the Ogden Temple re-dedication and therefore figured I had four.  I even knew their location.  As I retrieved them and discovered only three I thought maybe that had happened before Andy was 8.  Then I asked Natty if she had a handkerchief.  She thought at first that she did not but then she opened her top drawer and there it was tucked in the corner just like I had the other three.  Phew.  Nice to know I am not completely losing my mind.  We were off and we were treated to an excellent meeting.  The speakers were wonderful.  The messages of hope and of healing were powerful.  I love what this Provo City Center Temple represents having been destroyed by fire 5 years ago and know made into a magnificent Temple of the Lord.  It is a wonderful thing to think of what the Lord can do with us.  Oft times we may feel downtrodden and of little worth, we may be suffering the effects of sin and think that all is lost.  When we turn our lives to the master and trust in him, we too can turn what may seem lost into something magnificent.  That comes only in and through the Savior.  I am grateful for his life and his love.  I know he lives and I know he is aware of each of us individually and he is able to lift us and strengthen us even when all seems lost. 

The Crap

Sometimes when you deal with employees you also deal with the crap they sometimes bring to the table.  That really doesn't sound right when I consider that I deal a lot with waitresses at our restaurant. Crap they bring to the table - not referring to the food we serve or our actual tables.  I'm simply referring to having to deal with personal baggage of employees.  Yesterday I had an employee that has been with us for a while suddenly start messaging me repeatedly about needing to find someone to work for her because her foot was hurting.  She couldn't find anyone and because she couldn't find someone suddenly it was my problem and she got a bit snappy with me.  I was in the middle of studying for and then taking a math test which, as I mentioned yesterday, I totally bombed.  Whatever, this girl obviously had issues with her foot that demanded my immediate attention.  What was my surprise when I went in this morning and whilst catching grief from my morning people about a few things that weren't done and then explaining that this one employee was out last night with no one to cover for her, I find out this employee was out last night and posted all kinds of stuff about what she was doing on social media.  That kind of rubs me the wrong way.  I received a message from her later this morning asking if it would be okay for her to not find a replacement for herself tonight because there were 3 other waitresses on duty tonight.  And so I replied, let her know she would definitely need to find someone to take her spot and then I kindly made a suggestion that the next time she isn't well enough to come into work she shouldn't go posting things all over social media about her night out and about on the town.  Interestingly enough that employee showed up to work her shift tonight and even stayed an hour late to help out as things got busy right before she was scheduled to be off.  So, to any that are trying to work your employer over with some lame reason of why you can't go into work, do yourself a favor and don't post all about your escapades on the social media, that tends to rub your employer the wrong way and makes you look like a total douche.  You are employed to help carry a certain load by doing your job.  When you don't show up the work doesn't suddenly disappear, someone else has to do it.  When you dump your crap on your employers lap so you can go play you can be dang sure your employer is not going to be happy about it and chances are your employment will be short lived. 

Not Happy

After spending several hours studying and practicing and re-practicing and studying some more I went and failed my math test.  Oh it was wonderful.  Obviously I struggled.  I spent well over an hour in the testing center trying to get the problems done right but this stuff was just hard.  I got confused and I completely bombed it.  I mean, I got over 50% so that is good but really it was just barely over 50%.  If I had bombed it without studying, without putting in the hours it would be much easier to swallow.  But putting in the hours and then sucking so bad is a slap to ones own face.  Pretty disappointed in myself.  Maybe spring break in the middle of this chapter didn't help much.  I don't know, not real happy tonight.  I went in and worked for a few hours because an employee was out and then I came home with some dinner for the kids and I put on the gloves and hit the punching bag for a while.  Now I got to get back on the horse and press forward with the next assignment.  It certainly doesn't stop just because I had a poor test. 

Lesson Done

Got to teach my lesson today.  I thought it went okay.  There were a few things I could have had down a little better but ultimately I think we had a good discussion, a fun activity and a successful lesson.  I then attended a lesson that was rough.  I couldn't here what was going on.  The gal teaching the lesson was very quiet, the content was hard to follow and didn't make a lot of sense and, well, it was rough.  The group did do something I thought was pretty fantastic and that was a game of jeopardy at the end where information shared in the lesson made up the jeopardy answers.  That might have been the most effective part of the lesson that garnered the most attention.  The last group I went to was awesome.  They did a team building activity in the lesson.  We had to construct the tallest tower using tape, string, spaghetti and a marshmallow.  The marshmallow needed to be on the top.  We gave it a valiant effort but we did not succeed.  We came up just short of the other group.  It was a fun activity. 

The Madness is Coming

My favorite part of March is the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.  I find it quite fun to pay attention to college basketball for the pretty much the first time all season as I sit and fill out my brackets.  I put out three this year for the family challenge.  I have no idea how I will do.  Based on my knowledge of the game, probably not well.  I think that every year and I usually surprise myself and have managed to win the family group a couple of times.  I didn't win last year and I will likely not win this year but who cares?  I certainly don't.  It is just fun to see if my guessing is actually any good.  The tournament begins tomorrow and so I will look forward to the end of the day to see how I stand.  Chances of perfection, not good.  Chances of a fun time, excellent. 

Late Nights

I don't think I have quite adjusted to the switch for day light savings time that we just had.  I need to start getting to bed before 2 in the morning especially when I am getting up around 6:30 for kids and school.  The last two mornings I have gone back to bed around 9 for an hour or so instead of going to my work out class.  I can't keep that up as I need to get enough attendance in the class to produce an A in the class.  I will be close but really it is more than just getting the needed visits for the A.  I'm still trying to drop weight and strengthen my body.  I don't mind carrying a little weight if it is more muscle weight.  I've certainly noticed my body getting stronger and feeling better over the first couple months of the year.  Need to keep that going.  So it is 20 after midnight right now.  I can wrap this up and be in bed in a few minutes.   That will help with the late night problems.  I'm sure it won't be a problem falling asleep.  I can do that just about anywhere. 

Taxes, Done!

There comes a day, usually in the month of March though sometimes I put it off until April, anyway, it is the day when I sit down and do my taxes.  Today happened to be that day.  Actually, tonight was the night.  I started late and it took a while but it is done and for that I am thrilled. Because I basically live on the poverty level I don't end up having to pay taxes though I do have to pay a little something to the State of Utah this year.  Wonderful.  Anyway, it is a fine day.  I suppose I could put in a plug for Turbo Tax.  They asked how likely I was to share something about them with my friends and I didn't bother answering the question.  Well, here we are.  I use Turbo Tax.  I've used them for many years.  I keep going back to them because it is easy since I have answered all their questions and most of the process involves confirming that information is correct.  I still have lots of questions to answer but it isn't difficult.  Most of the questions don't apply.  Anyway, I recommend them.  I don't really have anything to compare them to because I really haven't used anything else.  Well, if you are looking for tax prep software I recommend Turbo Tax.  

Training

Tonight we had a Stake Sunday School training.  We were asked to take part and lead a discussion or a role play on orienting new teachers.  We did a role play and just showed the group what it is that we do.  At one point in our presentation I asked how many presidencies were out visiting new teachers and going through the program with them.  Not a single group raised their hands.  I was a little shocked by that.  It is one of the things that we feel strongly about and something that we feel helps our teachers know and understand what is expected of them.  I hope that our role play and the things we testified of will serve as inspiration for others to do the same.  It is such a neat part of our calling in the Sunday School and really helps us to build a relationship with the teachers, it helps them to know what is expected and helps them to clearly see the resources that are available to them to help them be successful.  It is wonderful.  The church has so much available and has put so much effort and time into the curriculum and the teaching of the gospel that it would be a shame not to utilize what has been provided.  We also got to sit and listen to another ward discuss some of the things that they are doing and we all learned something from them and have things to work on in other areas of the Sunday School.  Glad I went.  Grateful for good training. 

Cleaning Makes Me Feel Good

I took a few hours today and focused on cleaning the house.  I enlisted the help of the kids. Jack got on the vacuum, Andy helped load up the dishwasher, Natty was supposed to have cleaned the bathroom (I haven't actually checked that) and she also emptied the dishwasher.  Things are neat and organized and that clean and tidy feel in the house makes me feel good.  I should probably be more disciplined in daily cleaning routines but sometimes I get a bit caught up in studies and homework along with the boys homework and other parental duties and cleaning takes a back seat.  I might need to take the 5 minute pickup page out of my moms book and start implementing that as part of the nightly routine.  It couldn't hurt and, well, cleaning makes me feel good. 

Not Yet!

Spring break is drawing to a close and all I can say is Not Yet! It went entirely too fast and I didn't get near as much done as I wanted to.  Painful.  And then there is the spring forward portion of daylight savings time.  Let me say again - Not Yet!  I think that particular day is my least favorite day of the year.  The sudden shock to the system when an hour is lost is not so much fun.  Tomorrow is Saturday, one more day to try and get a few things done and have some enjoyment.  I don't know that I am ready to go back to school but it's going to happen either way.  I guess i'll have to roll with it regardless. 

Hitting the Trails

Today the boys and I went out to the Kolob Canyon portion of Zion National Park.  It was time to get out and get some hiking done.  We started up at the top with a quick hike to an overlook.  I can't remember the name of the trail, I want to say Timber Creek but creek doesn't seem right for this particular hike.  Anyhow, it is a quick 1.15 mile (round trip) hike and we enjoyed it.  There are some great views of the five fingers and I have to say it was a little more challenging than I remember it which was nice.  For some reason I was picturing something of a paved path hike but that was not it at all.  I must be mistaking a different hike somewhere else for that one.  Anyway, it was a good hike and the boys had a good time.

We then went back down the canyon and stopped off at the Taylor Creek/Double Arch Cove parking area.  We didn't have enough time to do the entire hike but we wanted to get some additional trail time in so we set the timer for 40 minutes and hit the trail.  We would go as far as we could for 40 and then turn back.  I had a couple of visits to do and had to get back to Cedar before 6.  It worked out well other than severely rolling my ankle.  Usually I can walk those off pretty good but this one was pretty bad and has got me hobbling.  We still had some 20 minutes before our turn around time so I just sucked it up and we went further.  Well, with 5 minutes or so to go I asked the boys if we were good to stop where we were and they were happy with that.  They hung out for a few minutes and checked some things out and then we started back.  That part all worked out just fine.  My ankle is hurting still and the stairs are a bit of a challenge.  No doubt I will survive but I'm hoping for a quick recovery.  I'd like to get everyone back out on the trails soon.   

Pool Time

Tonight Andy told me he really wanted to go to the pool so he, Jack and I made the trip.  We went for about an hour because that was as long as it was open when we finally got there but we had fun.  Did some lazy river, the boys did the water slide, I launched them into the pool repeatedly and we did a little line wrestling thing that I came up with.  It was good times.  I could certainly tell that my shoulders were quite sore as I was swimming. Pain and popping.  Wonderful to have slightly messed up shoulders.  It was good.  I am assuming it has been busy there this week as the water was quite murky. It is certainly much nicer to have clear water to swim in but I think we will all survive.      

Fun Night

Had plans with my friend Karry tonight.  We met at the St. George Temple where we had a quick bite to eat and then did a session.  Following the temple we went to her place and just hung out and talked for a while.  It was good.  Lots of laughs.  I enjoy hanging out and laughing with Karry.  It is always a fun time. 

When I got back to Cedar it was late and I needed to get a few things at the store so I went.  I figured the kids would have gone to bed.  They had.  Jack however woke up and then was all chatty about it.  He said he really wanted to read scriptures and pray.  We did.  What a boy. 

Anyhow, It is late and I must sleep.  Grateful to the Lord for a wonderful day. 

One Down

It is spring break this week and one day is already down.  It's in the books.  It's done.  Makes me think this week is going to go by really quickly.  It could have been a more productive day I guess but as it was I got some equipment for the exercise room put together after sitting in a box for 6 months or so.  That was great.  I also got a bit of a workout in though not at the PE Building, did it at home.  I thought it was good.  It'll pass anyway.

My goodness.  I am exhausted.  I did have to go in and clean out the clean out for our drain line coming from the sink and dishwasher.  It was wonderful.  Wow, I am ready to get away for a while.  What I really need to do right now is get ready for bed and call it a night. 

Additional Thoughts

I've had some additional thoughts on our visit and tour of the Provo City Center Temple yesterday.  There were moments when I had a hard time remembering that this building was completely destroyed in the interior.  At one point in the tour we were going up a spiral stair case and I was thinking about how in the past there were many who would have walked up that staircase and wondered if they braved the thin inner step or walked on the outside of the staircase where the steps are much wider.  Thoughts of "they don't make things like they used to" ran through my head but then I remembered the fire and the fact that all of this is new and yes they do make things like they used to.  It truly was magnificent. 

As I have pondered the Temple and the things that transpired with the tabernacle catching on fire and being destroyed with exception of the exterior walls I thought about how sometimes people are a lot like that building.  The tabernacle was a wonderful building that served many for a long time.  I am sure there were many wonderful meetings held within those remaining outer walls.  Testimonies were strengthened and faith forged through mighty sermons and messages of the gospel.  And though these things are wonderful the Lord had a new and higher purpose for that building.  Before being able to be rebuilt it had to be brought down a bit.  Now it is finished and it is majestic and beautiful and will bless many more lives both the living and the dead.  Sometimes we go through trials and troubles.  We may feel that we are being tested even as if by fire.  As we our faithful and trust in the Lord we allow him to mold us to something better, with greater purpose. 

Is there a type in this?  Does the Lord sometimes lift us from the ashes and from despair and help restore and mold us into something better?  I believe he does.  

Boys Temple Run

We have been planning to make a trip to the Provo City Center Temple open house today for a while now.  Andy woke up not feeling 100% but we got him showered and ready to go and gave him some meds and he was doing great.  Jack was fine and he was rolling.  Natty on the other hand was not feeling so well.  She ended up not making the trip.  So we had an all boys trip up to the temple.  Well, we were meeting the folks and Laura/Nigel and fam.  Unfortunately I miscalculated time and was a little delayed with sickly kids this morning plus I had to get some beef for the Brick House on our way out of town and so we got there about 40 minutes after everyone else.  It ended up not being a big deal because the lines were not crazy like they were for the Payson Temple.  There were still a lot of people and it was certainly busy but it wasn't what we saw in Payson.  This new temple is beautiful.  I was amazed out just how beautiful the woodwork and all other craftsmanship was.  The footprint for the old tabernacle was not huge and so the temple itself is limited in space.  The use of the space is absolutely magnificent. 

I was a little distracted in our tour because I was totally worried about Andy.  We stopped in Nephi on the way up because he had to use the bathroom.  Not long after that we arrived at the temple and again he had to use the restroom.  After we watched a video and got in line to go in Andy started complaining about his stomach.  Suddenly I began to fear that he would end up throwing up in the temple, I wouldn't be fast enough to get him somewhere that he wouldn't get it all over the place and then he would carry the burden of having puked in the temple.  Truly he would become a legend in Mormon lore and I would ever feel guilty for taking my poor child to a temple open house when he was potentially ill.  Well, fortunately none of that happened and we made it through just fine. 

We caught up with the fam over at Jay and Sara's house where we got to enjoy some fresh baked bread.  So good.  We hung out and talked story.  It was a good visit.  The adults then went to get dinner and the cousins all hung out at Jay and Sara's.  The boys had a great time.  They got to check out the chickens and play a little bit with them.  Somehow Jack managed to get chicken poop on his pants and they ended up in the laundry.  Awesome.

When the pants were done and our bellies were fed we hit the road.  We got back to cedar a little after 10.  It was a good trip and fortunately no one had any challenges with health.  I am quite happy there wasn't puke all over the car or all over Andy.  

Drained

Had a big catering job tonight.  It was in house which was nice.  Spent 9 hours or so on my feet working this one job.  It was a lot.  It was good though and now I am ready to call it a night.  My body is feeling it.  The feet are hurting.  The lower back is feeling trashed.  I am pretty much just drained.  The possibility of a little cold coming on feels very real right now.  I have a number of employees that have had bouts with colds recently, Jack has been sick, Andy seems to be coming down with something and tonight I am starting to feel it.  Not what I am hoping for with Spring Break this week.  Who wants to be sick for that?  Not me.  Hopefully a good rest will allow for swift recovery. 

Let's Get Through It

Next week is Spring Break.  I am looking forward to it if for nothing else I won't have to do math every day.  Though I do want to do some math during the week to try and get ahead and to keep the current material fresh in my mind.  We have a test the week we get back and I don't want to scramble that week.  As we return we will have roughly 6 weeks of school to go.  That is a thrill.  Going back after Spring Break was hard last year and I imagine it won't be much fun this year either.  I know there was a point when I just wanted to get through it and be done.  I suspect I will have similar feelings as the weeks continue on.

I have a couple big things I need to do tomorrow for school as well as a big dinner party tomorrow evening that we need to be prepared for.  I have to write a paper and then I need to work on a major lesson plan so there will be no rest for the weary.  I guess I also need to get out the schedule for next week as well.  Sweet.  My favorite thing to do.  For now I am off to bed.  Looking forward to a bit of slumber. 

Back on Track

This latest chapter of math has been kicking my backside.  I have been behind for a few days now but as of right now I am back on track.  It was a little stressful but it is nice to be caught up at least.  I like to try and stay a day ahead and may be able to do that with Spring Break approaching.  Lot's to do.  I don't know that it will amount to much of a break.  We do need to make plans for hiking and maybe even for biking.  We have had some fantastic weather as of late but I understand we are projecting snow next week.  Hey, it's Cedar City.  That's the norm.  At least it is March and not May though there is a very real chance we could get snow in May this year as well.  We've had it the last 2 years.  Well, time to call it a night. 

Killing me Softly

Math, it may be the death of me.  It is killing me lately.  I have been sitting in my chair here working on math on the computer for probably 6 hours today.  I am tired.  I realize that I can do math and I know there are those who say that those who say they are bad at math are just lazy.  Well, I struggle a great deal with math and I work my butt off to try and understand it but I would not say that I am good at math. It is not something I am strong at or excel at in any way.  I struggle and I get frustrated and dammit I swear a lot when I am doing math.  So call me lazy if you wish and I will continue to swear and struggle as I try to learn and understand math. I am a little fired up at the moment.  I am operating one day behind in my math class and I am not happy about it.  Maybe tomorrow I can get caught up but only if I have 6 or 8 hours to give to the cause.