A NICE THOUGHT

Your Testimony Will Never Leave Your Children

“If a child is not listening, don’t despair. Time and truth are on your side. At the right moment, your words will return as if from heaven itself. Your testimony will never leave your children. “As you reverently speak about the Savior—in the car, on the bus, at the dinner table, as you kneel in prayer, during scripture study, or in late-night conversations—the Spirit of the Lord will accompany your words.” Neil L. Andersen, Ensign, May 2010

I'm Gonna Love Havin' My Boy at Dixie High

I am so excited this year to have Jared come to school with me. He'll be a junior this year, and it is our 100th anniversary for Dixie High School, and Dixie College, which is great since he'll be attending both, and I am so proud of him.

He and Kudi will be taking Chemistry at the College together. He can help her with the science, and she can help him keep track of when the assignments are due. He's playing football and has lost 10 or 15 pounds this summer. He looks great! This will be a big year for him-- he'll turn 16 in November and will be able to date and to DRIVE.

I think it's going to be fun, fun, fun to bring him to school every day, and to have him slip in to my office and beg me for lunch money, and when he can drive I can send him to pick up Jimmy John's for lunch for me!

Missing My Kids

I was missing Ian really bad last night. He is at Scout camp for the whole week.
The WHOLE week.

I sent a text message to Laura Swenson (the Scoutmaster's wife):
Heard anything from Bud? I am Really missing Ian. Hope he is not as homesick for me as I am for him.

She wrote back:
talked to Bud a couple of hours ago - all is well - boys having fun but not sleeping much - I'm sure they'll make up for that at home :) - when he calls again I will ask about Ian.

and the next day:
just talked to Bud - Ian is doing great and is happy -

Glad to hear it. Hope that's what I hear when he gets back. I plan on cleaning his room for him, and leaving a surprise under his pillow (big box of Milk Duds) that says Welcome Home. Jared leaves for camp Friday morning, so I will do the same for him.

I remember when Tara was gone for the summer before her senior year, I missed her so much and I would go in her room and sit on her bed and stare at her bulletin board full of pictures and just wish she was home. I kept telling myself it was good practice for me, since the next year she would be leaving for college. It didn't help. When we dropped her off for college in St. George and headed back to Idaho Falls, I cried all the way to Salt Lake. It was awful.

I am soooooo glad we are all together again here in St. George. And I'll be sooooo glad when summer is over and Kudi is done with the paramedic program and the boys are back from all their running around and Tara's back from vacations and school will be in and we'll be back on a schedule. And we'll all get together for Sunday dinner.
Yeah!

My Guy Is Not Like Other Guys

I sent this picture from my phone to Scotty's yesterday.

I have been preparing a Sunday School lesson this week on Elijah. I wanted a clay pot to use as a visual aide to represent the widow of Zarapeth's barrel of flour that never wasted, and the barrels of water that Elijah had poured over the sacrifice in his competition with the priests of Baal. (I teach the 14 to 18 year old class, and I just try to do different things to keep it interesting.) I tried to borrow one from someone in the ward, but had no luck and on a whim, I decided to look at Lowe's, since I was driving by.

So here this pot is. Nine dollars and fifty nine cents on clearance. Part of me thinks this is a dumb idea. I don't HAVE to have a pot. So I take a picture of it, and ask Scott what he thinks. Part of me wants him to say, no, you don't need to spend money on a dumb pot. And if he says that I'll say, you're right, I know.

"I like it," was his reply.

What a sweetheart. I mean, REALLY. Any other guy would have said, are you kidding? In fact, when I brought it home and set it on the counter Jared said, "Seriously. You bought that?"

Not my Scotty. He's a one in a million.

Kudi's Paramedic Graduation

Just a couple more weeks and Kudi graduates from the Paramedic program at Dixie State College. It has been an intense couple of years and she has done extremely well. This girl is a hard worker, a dedicated student, an intelligent organizer, and she is still our soft-hearted, lovable Kudi-bear. She's been at the top of her class the whole way, and we are very proud of her.

My Latest Project

I have been looking for a new bedspread for about two years. It's not that I am so picky, it is that I have a deep mattress, and it seemed impossible to find a comforter to fit the dimensions that I needed. But I finally found one, or so it said.

When I got it home, the sheets fit fine, but the comforter was still not large enough to cover the mattress. But I liked it, and I didn't want to return it, so I ended up using the sheets to make a ruffle. I think it turned out cute. And I bought new towels and rugs for the bathroom.

And, wah-lah, my summer project is complete! (Well, almost. I'm going to quilt a cover for a throw pillow with the rest of the sheet. Then I'll be done. ;-)

The Best Five Dollars I Ever Spent

I bought this little radio for $5 from Walmart a long time ago. Like maybe 10 years. Maybe longer. And I've only changed the batteries in it one time. Seriously. It is a marvel.

So I went to the pool yesterday, and since I was going by myself I decided I needed to take some music. I didn't want to take my Ipod, because trying to balance it on my chest while I'm floating around the pool seemed a recipe for disaster, or at least for a ruined Nano, so I opted for the little blue radio.

After 2 hours, yes, 2 hours (I was really taking in some rays) I decided to try another station. When I couldn't find a good one, I turned the radio off and left it standing, apparently, a little too close to the edge. A few moments later, I hear a "plop" and my head pops up and I see the radio going down! I swam as fast as I could to rescue it, but as I held it up to let it drain, water was dripping from every seam and crack, and I thought, "Oh no, I've killed our faithful little radio." I pulled the batteries out and left it in pieces laying in the sun to dry out. Since it was 108° out, I figured it wouldn't take too long. I tried it when I got home, but no go. Maybe if I let it dry overnight?

And sure enough! It's back! I'm so impressed with this durable little miracle. It really is a marvel.

Monkey Business

When the girls were little we took them to Tsubaki Wild Monkey park. It's only about an hour and a half south of Tanabe, but the road is, as always in Japan, narrow and windy. We got there, parked the car, and started walking down the mountainside, down some switchbacks that led to a cove. We're walking and looking all around and see - NO monkeys. Not any. Anywhere. And I think, oh no, this is going to be like a trip to Yellowstone when you don't see any bears, and we've come so far not to see any monkeys! I had taken our essential supplies in a little red napsack, along with some bananas, because we are going to see monkeys, so of course, I should take bananas. Well, I reached in to my backpack and pulled out the bananas and at the flash of yellow, the very rocks began to move. The monkeys had been camoflaged and had blended in so well, we didn't see them. But now they are on the move and we can see a thousand monkeys from all over coming toward us.

I shove the bananas back in the bag, thinking: out of sight, out of mind. Right? Well, the monkeys keep coming and one gets up on the 3 foot wall behind me, and we're doing the Virginia Reel with the kids trying to keep us all together and keep away from the monkeys, when suddenly the female from the wall jumps down and grabs my back pack. All of our important immigration papers we are required to carry with us, are in there . Along with my wallet. My arms straighten out as she pulls, I pull back and her arms straighten, and she bares her teeth and growls at me. We do that a couple of times. I look at Scott and yell, "What do I do?" "Give her the bag!" he yells back. "NO!" I say.

Then the monkey reaches up and flips opens the flap on the backpack, sticks her hand in and grabs the bananas. She starts running, awkwardly upright, cradling her loot. But now all the monkeys are after her. So she tucks the bananas under one arm like a football, and races off on three legs just as fast as she can go.

I look at Scott, blinking and stunned, and I hear myself say, "I just got mugged by a monkey!"

Observation Point - Scotty's Turn

I really wanted Scotty to see Observation Point in Zion National Park, so I hiked it again, this time with him. I didn't know he had Monday off for Independence Day, so it was kind of a last minute thing, made possibile by Tara, who was willing to take the boys to their dentist appointments I had scheduled. (Thanks for always being so willing to help out, Tara!)

We tried to beat the heat and get on the trail early. There was a great deal of the hike that was in the shade, at least on the way up. Still, it was in the 90's. We each took 1.5 liters of water, and a liter of Powerade, and drank it ALL.

Scotty nearly stepped on a rattle snake. A BIG rattle snake. I only saw the last 12 inches of it's fat body. As it headed under a rock it paused long enough for me to count 8 or 9 sections on it's rattler. I was freaked out enough that I couldn't get a picture.

He always notices things that I never see... for example the hidden camera taking pictures of the trail. Apparently we were being observed on the trail to Observation Point. Kudi called it a "Game Camera." I'm not sure how it could differentiate between game and people, so I'm thinking we got our pictures taken. Or maybe it operates on a motion sensor at night, like the lights on our house. There, that makes me feel better.

We saw lots of little furry critters this time. Again, I couldn't get a picture of it, but there was a bush that was full of chipmunks, sitting on the branches eating the little berries off it. Quite the sight. Then there was and overly friendly squirrel that started following me. I thought it was going to climb my leg. Scotty sat down and tried to give it some nuts. It appeared to be nearly blind, as it had a great deal of trouble taking the food we left on the ground. Scott had to pretty much hand feed it.

As usual, a wonderful day in Zions. Made more wonderful since we got to spend it together.

The Champion Returns

Jared got home from football camp today. A little bruised and battered, but no worse for the wear. I think. I can't really assess any brain damage. But it is possible he had that before leaving. (I guess I shouldn't make jokes at his expense.)

He had a great time, and he said the only thing that was really bad was the food. He got home, showered, and and then asked for a big plate of gyoza (pot stickers). I thought that was a funny thing to eat the second he got home.