Sweet Rejoicing

Had a great day. It was a full day that included time at both shops, a Brick House shopping excursion, taking in a basketball game at SUU, talking to pops, working on the last part of my task, running over to see Dave and fam at the Brick House, making a temple trip, testing some of the lobster goodness at the Depot and then getting my task submitted.  Wonderful.  It was a time for sweet rejoicing. I am hopeful that it will pass the first time around. Just wanting to get another one down. Need to get through this schooling. It is hard at times to keep things moving forward expeditiously.  I will do my best to stay focused.  It always feel good to get through a class and it will certainly be a day for celebration when I get through all of this. 

Getting There

Today I made some additional progress on my task.  I have three essays to write where I will justify various parts of my lesson plan.  I hope it will come together fairly easily tomorrow as I just want to get it done.  If there is something I can do to distract myself from sitting and writing this stuff and working through this task, I do it.  I went out late this morning and took a break from the books by spraying down the truck engine with degreaser and then shooting it down with the pressure washer.  Well, it then became necessary to take it for a little drive.  It was squealing like crazy with the moisture that got on the belt and so a nice little drive was needed to help eliminate that.  I got back and sat down to get all serious when I received a message that the internet was down at work and I needed to run in and fix it.  I ran in and then spent a couple hours there working on various projects. I left there and had to run to the store to pick up new sink drains as our triple sink is leaking all over the place.  Turns out the sink drains have rusted out and water just dumps right out onto the floor in a couple of the basins.  Not good.  I also found a 5 gallon bucket of semi-gloss paint for $30.  That is great.  I need to paint the kitchen so this was a fabulous find. Lots to do.  I am going to finish this assignment tomorrow and get it submitted before the end of the year. I wanted also to get one more class done by the end of the year but that just didn't happen.  We will push to get it done in the next couple of weeks. 

Our hopes yesterday of pops being transferred to a long term care facility in Cedar came crashing down today.  The antibiotic that he is on is very rare and very expensive apparently.  So expensive in fact that the facility hear doesn't carry it and can't afford the dosage needed as it costs them $500 per day for the products.  That is pretty hefty especially with the idea that pops will be on it for 6 weeks.  There is a chance for a St. George miracle and maybe we will get lucky there.  It isn't a lot of fun.   

Tasking

I am here trying to get through the task for my current PE/Health methods class for elementary ed. I need to get this done so I can knock out another three credits and keep moving towards student teaching.  I don't quite know what to think about this anymore.  So much of it feels like busywork that it becomes less than desirable to do  I can't let that get me down and really just need to keep pressing forward.  It does get a bit old and I would rather just be done but must needs complete the tasks at hand  I made it half way through my current task today and am trying to identify what lesson to focus on in my lesson plan.  Oh boy, never ends.  Hopefully tomorrow I can get through another hefty chunk of the task.  

Truckin

Tonight I took a box over to the dumpster at the Brick House and took over the latest load of pig buckets. I drove the truck. Afterwards I decided to go for a bit of a drive. I took the truck south of town on the frontage road that runs down past Hamilton Fort. I got on the 15 heading North and drove out to the Summit exit about 8 miles North of Cedar.  It ran pretty well and handled 80 MPH well enough. I came back in to town and then took it up the Canyon to where the Kolob Reservoir turnoff is, just before Milts. It ran fine. By fine I don't mean perfect. It was a little rough and had random vibrations coming through the cab. Anyway, it was a good drive and not bad for this truck. It could be smoother and maybe one day it will be... Or it won't because really it isn't that vital or that bad. It was just a good old time this evening. 

Catering

We had a family come in for a meal today that we catered for them. It was the Hawaiian meal and I have decided that I do way too much food for this meal. It was supposed to be for 20 people. They had plenty of food. Would have probably fed 35 or 40 without a problem.  Anyway, that was pretty much my day. Took care of some pig buckets and then feeding the pigs with Dan. Went over and played a new game called Bears and Babies or something like that. It was pretty amusing. Gotta get on the school stuff tomorrow. Want to knock out these classes.

Christmas Day 2017

Had Christmas morning and afternoon with Jim and Clo and fam.  It was a nice morning and I was surprised by a few gifts.  Very thoughtful and very much appreciated. I was thinking that I would be spending the day alone and am glad that I decided to go down to Vegas.  Had a good time.

Went over to the hospital this afternoon to visit with pops.  He is waiting for an echo-cardiogram. It was supposed to happen yesterday but his blood pressure was low so they cancelled.  He is scheduled for it tomorrow and we are hopeful that can happen.  He still seems to be in a lot of pain when it comes to his back. A lot of wincing when the nurse was in moving him around. He wants to be home, with the amount of pain he looks to be in I am a bit nervous about his ability to move when he does get home. I do think he will be in a much better mood when he is home and will have the ability to rest more fully. Hoping he can get this cardiogram done, the MRSA can clear up, and he gain regain his strength.

The drive home tonight was good.  The roads were not busy which was nice. Just got on the highway and drove. I opened the sun roof and sang along to some great music. Twas a fine strategy for keeping myself alert and attentive.

Good to be home. Have a busy day ahead of me tomorrow with some catering. Also have to get through a task and move on to my next course.  

Christmas Evening 2017

Had a wonderful sacrament meeting today. The Corey's spoke and did a great job. Meagan shared something they did this year called the 25 days of Christ. At the beginning of December they started out reading about the birth of the Savior and then every day after that they studied other parts of his life and ministry. I really liked that. I had some pies I needed to make this afternoon and put on Luke 2 and then listened to the rest of the book of Luke as I made pies and then cleaned up. It was pretty neat to listen to the experiences and the parables of Jesus. I enjoyed that very much as it gave me the opportunity to listen and reflect on the Savior as well as my own life. I am so grateful for the Savior and his example. I am grateful for his patience with me, grateful for his love for me, grateful that he was willing to take upon him my sins and transgressions. I love Him.

I drove down to Vegas this afternoon and early evening. Much thanks to Jim and Clo for having me. Enjoyed some dinner and was treated to a Gatrell family Christmas tradition as we watched Ben Hur. It was pretty fantastic. 

Grateful now to rest and look forward to another wonderful day tomorrow.

Work

Made a run up to the temple tonight. It was a great time. I was just so
Thankful for those who serve there. I really was filled with gratitude .

Cold Repair

This evening Dan and I went back to work on the truck. We were reinstalling the new water pump that we put in a couple weeks ago. The job went pretty well. It looks good right now. Hopefully we've got it dialed in.  It was cold as we worked and by the time we got through it we were hurting. My feet were pretty well freezing. It sounded good when I fired it up and drove it home. Granted that was only two houses down the street. Tomorrow I will look at it a bit closer.

The kids made it to Bethel. Their flight was cancelled this morning because of weather. Tonight they were able to go and have made it safely.

The Kids

The kids have arrived in Alaska. They did not make it all the way to Bethel today as their flight out of Vegas was delayed. This caused them to miss their connecting flight in Seattle. Well, after a long day I am wiped out.  .Must rest.

Unhappy Phone

I don't know why. It for some reason my phone has issues at Jim and Clorinda's house. It just doesn't want to charge. A few days ago when we were here I couldn't get it to charge and now today the struggle continues.

The kids are flying out in the morning. Staying the night here so we don't have the long drive in the morning. Cedar is also getting snow right now which is one more thing we would have to fight.

Speaking of one more thing to fight. There has been a storm blowing in. It was a battle on the road the entire drive. Had a bit of a surprise when a tumbleweed the size of a vw bug slammed right into us. That made things exciting. Happy to be here. Need rest. Long day tomorrow.

Temple Cleaning

Signed up for our wards Temple cleaning assignment tonight. Went in a little before 10 and worked for a couple hours dusting and vacuuming. It was fantastic. I love that place and having any opportunity to be there is an excellent opportunity.

Did a little Christmas with the kids tonight before we leave tomorrow. They were pretty thrilled with their gifts. It was a good night. We read a story from Elder Holland that is quite powerful about a Christmas in his past when his father passed away. It hit pretty hard as we thought about our current situation with pops. Fortunately pops is improving and getting stronger. There is still a long way to go. We have hope.  In any case, that is the message from Elder Holland. We have hope through the ups and downs of life because of Christ and all he makes possible. I am so very grateful for my Savior and all that is possible because of him.

No News

Still waiting for an update on dad in regards to treatment. That is a little discouraging. Would like to know what kind of treatment and what we are looking at for recovery. Mom did report that he was more alert today and even smiled at one of her jokes. That is good news.

Keeping busy. Trying to get the kids ready to go. Lots of laundry to be done. Pretty much through the laundry. I want to be packed and ready to go by tomorrow night. 

The Call

Sometime around 1 AM Jim got the call from mom. Pops needed to go to the bathroom but lacked the strength to get up from the bed and go. He got down to Lad Vegas yesterday and found himself in incredible pain in his back. The slightest move had him wincing in pain. Jim had given him a blessing earlier and they had purchased a heating pad for him. He was still in severe pain.

Jim came and woke me up. I had gone to bed about an hour prior and was sleeping pretty well. He told me the situation. I started getting dressed and started wondering if it was a dream, then Jim same back to the room and we left. It was not a dream.

We got to the hotel and found pops looking way out of it on the bed. We tried to get him up but he was in a lot of pain. We readjusted and tried again. We managed to get him up and in a rolling desk chair. Once in the bathroom, we got lucky because there was a lot of room. Anyhow, we finally got him up. I basically bear hugged him and stood him up whilst Jim took down his pants. We sat him down.

He was very non responsive on the toilet. Just sat there. We tried to help but not much happening. He was out of it. We talked about getting him to the ER and decided that based on the fact that he was so weak and in so much pain, He would need an ambulance.

I decided to give pops a toilet test whilst waiting for the ambulance. I asked if he wanted me to get him his phone so he could post something on facebook. He actually perked up a smidgen and asked what was on Facebook?  I don't know if he truly knew what was happening. 

They came and got him and off to UMC he went. We met them over there. The waiting room at the ER was a pretty scary place. It was like a homeless shelter. We all survived.

It took a couple of hours just to get mom back in the area they put him.  Around 4:30 in the AM we were on our way back to Jim's house. Slept until 10 minutes after 8 and then got up and went to church. Mariens homecoming talk was excellent. Loved it and am so grateful for her example.

Anyway, the news came. He has fluid in the lungs and around the heart. The cardiologist team is assessing the situation and are going to do an angiogram. There is a good possibility of heart surgery. The heart is struggling to keep up.

I went in and saw him before we headed back to Cedar. He was completely out of it still. Last I saw him not that way was Friday night. Scary. Talked to mom a bit and she is feeling good about the doctors and the nurse she met. I am grateful for that.

We had to get home for the kids to finish out the semester, get packed, and then head back down to Vegas to fly out to Alaska. Hopefully we will have some improvements over the next couple days and he is looking better when I see him next.

It has been a long and beautiful day. Grateful for the hand of the Lord in our lives. I know he knows and is aware of each of us. So grateful for that. So grateful for the wonderful Spirit at church today and for the impact it had on Natalie. I am grateful that pops is in capable hands.

11/16/17

I just finished typing this and then managed to erase it all.

Jack and I went and participated in a church cleaning assignment. It was a great time. After that I played Santa at the brick house. Rough day, not a lot of excitement.

We are in Vegas. Came in for Mariens homecoming report. Looking forward to it.  Now, I must sleep

Fudge

I made fudge today for Christmas gifts. Knocked out a few batches. Had a lot of running around earlier. Eventually took the boys to dinner. Received a couple of tickets to star wars from chef and his wife. It was great. Must sleep.

Caught Up

I have been working hard with the boys on their homework and getting all missing assignments in.  I probably need to make an adjustment to our daily homework routine because they seem to be forgetting certain assignments and then we have to spend time making them up later.  I ask what they have for homework everyday and they usually forget all about anything besides reading, trombone practice, and math.  Science tends to be forgotten, which is weird because both of the boys really enjoy science.  Well anyway, we have worked hard and I think the boys are now officially caught up on everything.  I hope they are.

The Natty has been hard at work trying to get all of her stuff in and her grade in math up. She had one of her best tests today in math and is feeling positive. That is good.  I am trying to teach her that late assignments are not accepted at the next level and she really needs to learn how to discipline herself so that she can stay caught up.  It just makes life so much easier when you're out in front of it rather than lagging behind.

Well, time for me to go and get caught up on some sleep.  

Passed

Took a test today and wasn't feeling all that confident as I went through it.  I mean, I felt okay about some of it and then I had to use my best reasoning skills on a lot of the questions.  I did pretty well with that as I passed with exemplary marks.  Pretty cool.  I had passed the pre-assessment with an okay score but was low in a few areas. I reviewed some of the material and decided I knew enough to take the final. I guess I was right. That is nice.  Now I have to knock out the task portion of the class and then will move on to the next one.  Have to keep things moving.  Have to speed them up. 

Andy had a band concert tonight.  I would say it was his first band concert but he had one for summer band back in June.  He did pretty well.  It is pretty amazing what the band teachers accomplish at Cedar Middle School.  They have a great system and I am excited for Andy and what he is learning. Wonderful. 

Well, I have to go and move some laundry. It is one of those things I do at midnight sometimes.  Then I am off to bed and ready to start it all again tomorrow. 

Pigs

I am not a pig farmer but have truly enjoyed learning more about these animals.  I'm not saying I really know much about these animals but they sure are fun.  We go out to feed them and they get excited to see us. They jump up and hustle over to the front of the pen. The pigs get eager for the food.  They jump into the trough at times, they don't really move out of the way when I am dumping in the food.  They just let it fall on their heads and then go about eating it.  Interesting.  Sometimes we hang out and give them a bit of a back scratch. They seem to quite enjoy it and push for some attention.  Good times. I take seriously my need to provide them with food.  You will often find me pulling food out of the trash can and putting it in the pig bucket when someone forgets.  I am constantly looking out for the pigs.  We enjoy those pigs. 

BHS

BHS does not stand for some high school somewhere. Well, I know a few high schools with those initials, but tonight it is all about Brick House Santa. We had a special guest tonight, it was fantastic.  The Brick House Santa is likely to return for a few hours on Saturday. Should be a good time. We certainly had a good time tonight. And now, I must pass out.

Dedication

What a glorious day! I was so excited when the announcement was made that Cedar City would have a temple. Today we participated in the dedication of that temple. I don't know how to adequately express the joy I feel for this beautiful house of God.

There were excellent messages shared. One by President Johnson, 1st Counselor in the Cedar Temple Presidency, talked about the writing of the hymn High on The Mountain Top. This hymn was written by one of his relatives in 1853 in Enoch, just north of Cedar City. He talked about how when he wrote that hymn while living in Enoch, there was a very good possibility that he was looking at the very location upon which it now stands. I love that hymn and love it even more knowing the history.

It was a wonderful dedication. I am so very grateful for this temple and look forward to going and providing dedicated service.

Sad

One of the things I have been most excited about in recent years has been the Cedar City Temple.  Tomorrow it will be dedicated.  I am looking forward to taking my kids and participating in that great event.  How wonderful it will be to have a temple right here, a few short minutes from the house.  I am thrilled. 

With Temple dedications come the cultural celebrations that go with it. Natty and Jack both would have the opportunity to participate in that great event for the youth. Today was that celebration.  At 3 in the morning Natty began throwing up. It just kept coming.  She was in bed all day and continued to have the pukes.  I was sad that she would not be able to participate. I really hoped she would be there.

There were activities all day and we knew Jack was not going to do well with the sitting around and waiting so he stayed at home today and then I took him over to join the festivities at 5 PM when they gathered in the old 7th ward building to have dinner. It was not a good start as we walked in and there was a lot of noise and commotion in the cultural hall.  Though this is perfectly normal and expected with a large group of youth, especially after a long day, it is very much over-stimulating for Jack.  He did get himself something to eat and then he wanted to get out of the cultural hall.  I finally located the ward and then found Jack again.  We walked over to where the Ward was in the Relief Society room and Jack was done.  He wanted to be at home.  Nothing I could say would change his mind.

I went through a few different emotions as I left the church and thought about my kids not participating.  There was some anger, there was disappointment, and finally there was sadness.  I am sad that they were not there.  I understand it was great inside the arena. Andy and I watched some of the broadcast and it was quite good.

Well, that is my sad tale.  Nothing more to add tonight.  Hopefully tomorrow will be a much greater day and we will all enjoy participating in the dedication.   

Tough

Andy was bullied at school today and had a rough go. A student told him he should go kill himself.  Andy shared the info with the teacher but the boy and his friends denied it.  The boy is off the hook and Andy is left feeling terrible. He was puzzled by that as was I. Sent a message to the principal and she wrote back and said she would dig into it on Monday and wanted Andy to come see her first thing. I appreciate the speedy response and the goodness of Mrs. Murray.  Now, must sleep.

Passed

Received word back today that I passed my performance assessment.  One more class down and still too many left. I've got to keep the ball rolling forward. The next class I am working on is a phys ed and nutrition class. I passed the pre-assessment for the class a couple of weeks ago.  Now it is time to get the assessment done. Feels good to have one more down. It took me too long to get through that class. I've got to make up some ground on this one and hopefully in the next few days I can get through it. 

In

Got my task turned in. Hope that it passes so I can complete this course. Tomorrow I am going to look at the test for my next class. I passed the pre-assessment and did fine.  I want to crank through and get things done.  My goodness. Passing out...Got to sleep.

Sickly

Today I had Andy home from school. We are both a bit under the weather. He was down and out until around 11. He needed that rest. I had some household things to take care of and did some laundry and cleaning. I did run in to both Brick House and Depot for a bit and then took Natty to the doctor this afternoon. It is hard to not feel well as life doesn't exactly slow down. Oh well, we survived and will continue to do so, gratefully. I certainly am strengthened by the Lord to carry the load. Without his hand in my life I would not be able to do so

Healthy

Sometimes all it takes to make one truly appreciate good health is being sick for a couple of days.  I have cold that I am battling and these kind of battles make me tired.  I think I am doing a pretty good job as I try to beat this thing and certainly didn't let it slow me down today but definitely appreciate being healthy a whole lot more.  To make things better we have dropped from the mid 60's on Saturday down to the mid 30's today.  That is a pretty dramatic jump in two days.  Yesterday was somewhere in between and wasn't too bad but it has been really noticeable today.  Of course I am still out there in shorts and a hoodie.  Maybe that has something to do with my not feeling well.  Jack was actually sick for the latter half of the week, Andy has been hacking a little and so it has been going around the house. Lots of running around today as I went to two stores two different times for the Brick House.  That is always fun. Hopefully the morning will find me well or at least on the mend.  I certainly don't want to get any worse than I am right now. I've had a cough that has gotten worse through the day - it has nothing to do with my shorts and the cold temps.  Anyway, certainly don't want what is in my throat to make its way down into my lungs.  Hoping for the best. 

Playing Santa

Yesterday was a very busy day. By the time I was sitting down to write the blog I was spent.  I had fallen asleep in my chair right after I sat down and began checking messages. I woke up and took care of a few more pressing things and then we did scripture and prayer and went to bed.  Actually, Andy fell asleep on the other chair at the same time I dozed off, we were all a little tired. Must have been the early start to the day as we went over and helped clean the church and helped get a few things set up for the Ward Christmas Party that was scheduled for later in the day.  

I was asked last Sunday if I would play Santa for the Christmas party.  I had mentioned a couple years ago that we had a suit in the family and would let someone borrow it if we couldn't make other arrangements for a Santa. The idea was that someone else could borrow it not that I would play Santa.  Well, the kids are older now and don't require my constant supervision so it really wasn't a big deal for me to put on the suit of red.  As I mentioned, it was a new experience for me and the suit was definitely hot.  

During the week I pondered the idea of playing Santa and gave some thought as to what I might say to the kids that came to see me, well, Santa.  It was a big task. I was representing someone else or some other idea.  Santa means a lot of things to a lot of different people and I didn't want to let any one down.  There were three things that came to my mind and included joy, love, and encouragement. 

Joy was really the tone setter.  These kids were usually pretty excited to see Santa. I wanted them to feel how excited Santa was to see them. It was joyous to see the light in their eyes and the smiles on their faces.  I did my best to show them my excitement and love for them individually.  This was awesome, it was indeed joyous.

Love. These were great kids and I wanted them to know that they were loved. I talked to them about the love that their families had for them and how good it was to visit with them.  Is their really a greater gift than love?  I hope each of the children walked away knowing that they were loved. 

Encouragement was giving them a call to action, an invitation to do good, to be good.  Shortly after beginning to bring the line of kids I received a package from Dan Dotson with wrapped pieces of coal to give out to teenagers and those that might be deserving of it. This was more of a joke for some of the older youth. It was fun and I talked to them about how good they each were. I would give them the lump of coal and then talked about it serving as a reminder to always do good, to do their very best. I talked to each child that visited Santa about showing love for their families and being helpful, especially during the holiday season.  

I asked them what they wanted for Christmas.  Some knew it exactly and spit it right out.  Some took some time to think about it. Some didn't care.  One girl asked me about a unicorn.  I told her they were beautiful animals but hard to come by.  I would have to see what I could do.  One little girl came up to me multiple times to excitedly tell me something knew she had forgotten.  It was great. I really enjoyed the excitement and wonder of the children.  

It came time for Santa to go.  I made my way out to my car and as I pulled away I spotted three little children out on the sidewalk staring and waiving at Santa.  I slowed down and waived back to them. I wished I would have had a few more of those treat baggies so that I could take it to them. Maybe I should have stopped to say hello. Three little ones, out on the sidewalk, thrilled to see Santa and hopefully thrilled that Santa saw them and waived to them.  

I played a part yesterday. I took it seriously and tried to live up to the idea of Santa. Not so much the commercial side of Santa but a Santa that loved and encouraged goodness.  It was a good experience and it sparked in me the thought that everyday I go out and I should be an example of the Savior.  I should treat others as he would treat them.  I should look past their faults and show them love for who they can become.  I should see them as a child of God and love them as such.  

I am grateful for Jesus Christ.  I know that he lives and that he loves each of us.  I am grateful for the things this experience taught me. I hope to do better at remembering Him and striving to be an example of him in all that I do. 

       

the

New Experience

I was Santa at the ward Christmas party this afternoon.  It was cool. Not something I had ever done before. The kids seemed to have a good time and I did my best to try and make their day.  One thing is for certain, that is one very hot suit.

Progress

Today I made some great progress on the lesson plan.  I had an idea yesterday and it came together this afternoon.  There are three parts remaining where I have to write essays about different parts of the lesson plan.  I hope to knock those out quickly but need to make sure I have logical explanations and support to back them up.  Tomorrow is going to be a pretty full day.  Have church cleaning assignment then I have a Santa engagement at the ward party, and have the SUU playoff game to work in the evening.  We want to put up Christmas lights as well and I am going to try and get that going after the cleaning assignment.  I don't know that I will squeeze in the essays and may have to wait on those until Monday.  I've got to keep pushing.  Happy to be making progress. It will be nice to finish.