YOU NEVER KNOW......

 

An interesting day with Patty and Ruth.......a trip out to a friend named Jackie for lunch......she has a beautiful new condo but way on the other side of the valley......nice lunch and good talk.....you would never believe Patty's latest ordeal!!!  I guess it is nice having friends who keep you on your toes.  Brayden called and if the weather is good will fly in tomorrow with his dad and take me to breakfast.....I am so anxious to see him.  He will get his foot operated on Friday morning.

This weekend is General Conference which reminds me of a cute story:

President Monson was returning from a trip and was being picked up at the airport in a Limo......as they drove toward home he told the driver he had done many great things in his life......but never had gotten to drive a Limo.....The driver stopped and changed places with President Monson.  He was crusing pretty good down the road when a police man stopped him.....the policeman got out and went up to the Limo......President Monson rolled down the window and the police told him he was going 70 in a 50 zone....then the police man recognized him......he excused himself and went back to his car and called his supervisor.  He said, "I just stopped this car for speeding but there is someone very important in it what should I do?"  'Who is it asked the supervisor, the mayor....No was the reply, more important"  'The mayor asked the supervisor".....No was the reply, more important"  The President of the US asked the supervisor"  No was the reply. well who asked the supervisor......"Well, I think it is Jesus said the policeman, because President Monson is his driver!"

One more day until April Fool's Day........

ENJOIYING MY YEARS........

I OH SO KNOW WHAT HE MEANS!!!!!!

I hear about all the work my sister is doing to get going again after her foot operation and it just makes me tired thinking about it.......I can't believe my life has gotten to this point.....I always loved exercise classes and walking.....but pushing the grocery basket......something to lean on......is about all the exercise I can handle......my friends and I have all notices  other changes in our lives.....love this story........

             Leaving the store, I couldn't find my keys.  They were not in my pockets, suddenly I realized I must have left them in the car.....frantically, I headed for the parking lot.  My husband has scolded me many times for leaving the keys in the car's ignition.   He is afraid that the car could be stolen.  As I looked around the parking lot, I realized he was right.  The parking lot was empty.  I immediately called the police.....I gave them my location, confessed that I had left my keys in the car......and that it had been stolen .

Then I made the most difficult call of all to my husband......."I left my keys in the car it has been stolen......"

There was a moment of silence.......I thought the call had been disconnected, but then I heard his voice....."Are you kidding me?......he barked......I dropped you off!"

Now it was my turn to be silent......Embarrassed, I said......"Well come and get me."

He retorted, "I will; just as soon as I convince the cop that I didn't steal your damn car!"

Welcome to the Golden Years..........

Quiet day.....Sherrie called and Brayden will have his foot operated on Friday.......in Vernal.

BRAYDEN'S HOME.......

This is my sweet missionary Brayden Christenson (on the left) who has been serving a mission in Spokane, WA.......he has been dealing with a bad foot irritated by a lot of walking.....seen doctors, been in a boot, given  a car to drive, different shoes......finally a decision to send him home to a specialist and get it taken care of.......but still having four months of his mission left........called a soft homecoming......with only his parents allowed at the airport......and brothers.......no grandmas!  They picked him up and headed for Vernal for the Bishop to release him and will be back tomorrow for a doctor's appointment to begin whatever has to be done.....will he go back and finish his mission will depend on his prognosis.  He did call me and I am so anxious to see him and give him a big hug! 

I love it that the boys want to go faraway for 2 years.....Brazil, Mexico etc......but surely do get lonesome!

Welcome back Brayden

HAPPY EASTER........

 

Been a long time since I had been to church on Easter Sunday.......growing up, yes.  We always had a new Easter Dress and church......with my kids growing up.....yes, sometimes but my husband never went sooooo.   I now have a great ward with nice people surrounding me and a desire to share Easter with God.....Church , then a great dinner with my favorite cousin Lucille and her family.   Three of her six children with their children and their significant others filled her little house and her kids are great cooks like Lucille.   Nice after noon....I didn't have to cook!!!!  On the way home I got a call from my daughter and family returning from Easter vacation in  Mexico.....can we spend the night with you and pick up returning missionary tomorrow......so I  hurriedly put together what I could find in the freezer and had another delightful Easter supper with Sherrie's family.  Pannier's fishing in Reno and of course the third daughter has dropped us from her life!.......

I hope everyone had a nice Easter with their loved ones!

HOW SOON IS SOON?

 

So many of my friends are going through this period in their lives .......when everyone moves on and they are left with memories of helping everyone else move on.....their parents, their children, their grandchildren and maybe even their great-grandchildren!  Ok everyone, now is your time to pick yourself up......and get out of your rut.  Had a fun day with lunch and a movie with my oldest grandchild.....she wanted to see a movie, hubby didn't....... so she left the baby with him and made a date with me......I am very honored my grandchildren still think I am fun and enjoy my company.

Today I started thinking about words.....take SOON for instance.  When someone says I'll see you soon, or talk to you soon or we'll get together soon......WHAT DOES SOON MEAN?  Does soon mean a few minutes, days, weeks, months or years????  I don't get soon.....is it even a word with a meaning?  How is SOON measured?  I will graduate soon and it can kinda, hopefully be measured in a few months or years?  Dinner will be ready soon.....a few minutes, a couple of hours if you have remembered to turn on the stove ......or almost now!  Now NOW leaves no doubt.....it is immediate.........I sometimes wonder if we even know what we are talking about sometimes....and SOMETIMES......I am not even going to go there......we are.just saying words.

WELL anyway.......I do know tomorrow is Easter and church day!

THE POWER OF AWE.......

         I feel if I open this door into my secret garden.......I would go Awe!  I don't know what is behind this door, but it is pictures like this that stir your interest an quriousity .......Moments of wonder do more than take your breath away.....they can reduce stress, enhance bonding and improve your health.......Awe is the mind and body's reaction to being pushed outside of their normal way of looking at the world......"you feel you have encountered something vast in size, complexity or power"......watching something being born, something huge like the grand canyon or wall of china....some of God'[s wonderful works like a sunset in Bora Bora.....While many different things elicit awe, we all tend to express it in the same way with raised eyebrows, widened eyes, a dropped jaw, a sharp intake of breath.
       Our culture is awe-deprived......we spend more time looking down at our phones than up at the sky.....and wonderful things around us......But once you know how to seek out AWE, it is easy to find more and reap it's benefits.
       Wonderful news from Sherrie .......who is in Mexico.....Brayden will be home from his mission on the 28th due to the need of a foot operation.....YES!!   Talked to little sister tonight and she had a busy day with doctors and therapy and was worn out tonight.   Rob brought Bree over for the weekend and they are off to Reno to fish in the morning for the Easter vacation!   Tomorrow Mexican Train Day at Nancy's.......

NEVER A DULL MOMENT?????

 

This is one of the most fun guys around......my son-in-law Rob Pannier.  Pam works at negotiations a couple of nights a week and so Rob and I go to a five dollar movie that Pam doesn't want to see or hit Kentucky Fried Chicken's Tuesday special of Chicken fried steak for $3.99......  Pam doesn't eat chicken......Well tonight we couldn't find a movie we wanted to see so we headed to Kentucky Friend Chicken for a nice quiet dinner together.  We ordered......Rob takes off to wash his hands in the men's room.....and having lost some weight.......his wedding ring was lose and slipped off down the drain!......Well, that did cause a bit of excitement all round......the manager ran home and got a big wrench and they took the sink apart and retrieved his ring........thank goodness......I wonder how he would have logically explained it to Pam?  I DIDN'T WANT ANYONE TO THINK I WAS MARRIED TO YOUR MOTHER?  I ate alone and his was cold by the time he got to it.....never a dull moment.

Talked to little sister and she is having a ruff time with her good leg having to do all the work.....really sore.  It has snowed off and on all day and cold again.  I did get my taxes turned in today and not happy with what I have to pay, but it is what it is and life goes on.  ISIS bombed the airport in Belgium today and four of our missionaries were hurt.

TAKE YOUR AGE AND ADD 5 TO IT......THATS HOW OLD YOU WILL BE IN 5 YEARS!

WHAT IS LIFE ABOUT????

Had a great weekend with family......The Christensons came in for Friday the night and spent all day Saturday with me......we shopped, lunch etc.....great day.   Then nephew and son with a friend came by and taught me how to play cribbage.....kinda?  They kids were pretty busy so didn't concentrate much but enjoyed seeing them.  Have Pam's dog for the weekend......and today pooped!  Sister, Leslie had a new ankle put in Friday and have been worried about here, but so far so good.

I like the following story:  "When I woke up this morning, I asked myself.....'what is life about?'....I found the answer in my room......The fan said "be cool"......The ceiling said "aim high".......The window said "see the world".......The clock said, "every minute is precious".......The mirror said, "reflect before you act".......The calendar said, "be up to date".....The door said, "push hard for your goals'......The floor said, "Kneel down and pray"......

I wonder if this works if your laid up in the same room for hours with an operation?  Well first day of Spring so excited about that......

Happy St. Patrick's Day

        MY CHOICE FOR A ST PATRICK'S DAY DRINK.......ENJOY!

Happy Anniversary and St Patricks Day....

Happy Anniversary and Happy St Patrick's Day.........37 years and still going strong.  I am so proud of you and love the 3 beautiful grandchildren you gave me. I am tending your little Bree this weekend so you can be foot loose and fancy free and celebrate!  I know there are many more fun times and years ahead of you together and proud of Pam for learning how to fish so your "togetherness" can grow......maybe someday she will even learn to eat all the fish she catches????
         My St Patrick's Day thought....."I guess we are who we are for a lot of reasons.....And maybe we'll never know most of them......But even if we don't have the power to choose where we come from.....we can still choose where we go from there."

FUNNY GETTING OLD.......

WOW......don't tell me that my life is slipping away.  I can't believe it has been six days since I did a little blogging......I did entertain the Domino Group and Patty came by once for coffee, but other than income tax can't remember what I did.......maybe I spent too much time in my pajamas??  Love this story , it is so true in the golden years!

           Leaving the store I couldn't find my keys......They were not in my pockets.  Suddenly I realized I must have left them in the car.....Frantically, I headed for the parking lot......My husband has scolded me many times for leaving my keys in the car's ignition.  He is afraid that the car could be stolen....As I looked around the parking lot, I realized he was right.  The parking lot was empty.   I immediately called the police.  I gave them my location, confessed that I had left my keys in the car and that it had been stolen.

Then I made the most difficult call of all to my husband....."I left my keys in the car and it has been stolen"......There was a moment of silence.....I thought the call had been disconnected, but than I heard his voice....."Are you kidding me?"  He barked.......I dropped you off!"......Now it was my turn to be silent, embarrassed. I said....."Well come and get me."

He retorted......"I will; just as soon as I convince the cop that I didn't steal your damn car!"......Welcome to the Golden Years........Oh well, nobodys perfect?

Guess I better go around and set all my clocks ahead an hour and then jump in bed and hope I can make it up to early church.........

PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS......

       Can't believe how fast a week slides by......Church today, lunch and a nap and that about does a Sunday.....Our beautiful high 60 weather has changed into rain today with wind and thunder. 
      Sometimes you feel like you are just standing still in the same place in your life and need a little shove or saying to start you moving again......some of my favorites are:
      "Forget it enough to get over it.......Remember it enough so it doesn't happen again.".......
     "We all die.....The goal isn't to live forever....The goal is to create something that will....."  I think of this as YOUR FAMILY!
       "Life has no remote......Get up and change it yourself"
       "Hating someone makes them Important......Forgiving them makes them Obsolete".....
       "Don't worry about the people that don't like you.....Enjoy the ones that do."
       "The greatest success is being yourself!"
Yes, sometimes what we are searching for.....we already have.

A PERSONAL CREDO FOR ENHANCING SELF-ESTEEM....

Just been informed my one and only great-grandson Aaron is a bully!!!  That is what the day care center told his mother anyway???? Does bullying start at one??  He got a nice big red teeth mark on his arm today to prove there might be another bully in day-care or a nice guy that fought back.   WOW.....you get through it with your kids, and then the grandkids .....and now I have to start worrying that my precious Aaron will turn out like the big bully 'TRUMP"?

We need self-esteem and start early working on it.....I embrace the position that I am a valuable human being....I also realize there will always be changes I can make to improve myself......however, these changes have to do with my growth, not my worth.  Have you ever thought....."I might not be the greatest person.....but what is my opinion against dozens of others?"....ha ha......But I do like myself and it is up to me to give approving, accepting and reassuring messages to myself about me.  I must let go of negative labels such as lazy, bad or dumb.....because we all are unique we should never compare ourselves to others.....I realize I have a right to my own feelings, opinions, beliefs and values and that I do not have to defend them.....I can hate Obama without having to defend myself as to why......I will not depend on others to make me happy.......by waiting and hoping that somehow what I need will be brought to me by someone else.  I also take responsibility for my own feelings and moods, recognizing that I create these emotional states in myself and that I can change them if I choose.......sometimes easier said than done!

I have to decide to be happy NOW......to enjoy all the small pleasures of life as they occur instead of putting happiness off until I get rich......get old......feel better....move....go to heaven etc........On second thought.....maybe I will put off being happy until I get my income tax done in a couple of days!......Then I will really be happy.

 

CONFIDENCE.......

 

CONFIDENCE.......is simply noticing what you've done right......instead of what you've done "wrong."  I know I am not perfect, but I also know I have made many good decisions and done many good things in my life.  Each day I try to focus on my strengths, rather than my flaws......and work hard at being a better person.  I like to think I am loving and loveable......capable and creative.....strong and kind.....a practical problem-solver but also a dreamer of better things to come......someone who knows how to get the job done yet leave time for fun.......I like me and enjoy the time I spend with myself   ......which is a lot.  I did enjoy a nice day yesterday with Pam.....she treated me to a nurses fund raiser which was called "Soup and Art".  Hotels and restaurants donated different kinds of soup to taste and many artist displayed their works and donated 30% of what they sold to the cause.  It was a nice day.  Today was catch-up day.....trimmed Gigi, laundry, cleaned the closet and got the car washed......Tomorrow......time will tell.

Gratitude Day;  Greatful when someone tells me my advice was helpful.

Greatful when I don't have to wait in line anywhere all day.

Greatful when I know all the words to a song......no dementia yet?

Greatful when I am ahead of schedule for an appointment or meeting someone......

Greatful for the times I am surrounded by people that I love.......

IN A WORLD WHERE YOU CAN BE ANYTHING YOU WANT......BE KIND

 

THANKGOODNESS FOR HOPE.....

 

HOPE.......Somedays you just have to hope for your life to stay on track and to keep plodding along......Perhaps the butterfly is proof that you can go through a great deal of darkness......yet become something beautiful~.......

Hope and despair are found in the hearts of people ......not in circumstances......and love causes hope to triumph.  When things are at their darkest, love brings hope to light up the darkness.  Martin Luther said that everything in the world is done in hope.....The farmer would not plant seeds if he did not hope for a harvest, a business man would not work hard.....if he did not hope for success and when you get married you have to HOPE for a good family and a happy life or you would not go there......to me what oxygen does for the lungs, is what hope does for our souls......without hope we would die inwardly.  This is my darling fourth grandson Brayden, on a mission in Washington state......I can only hope the two years he signed up for as a missionary has proved to be all he hoped for......I do not like to hear stories about the things a young boy plucked out of a loving caring family where he felt security, love etc......and planted....sometimes in a far away country perhaps.....for two years with strange language and habits and people and expected to continue without HOPE......hope they can do it and make their families proud!  Yes, he and his companion took off on a service project for the church and the GPS took them on a short cut to a man's lodge and they got stuck and lost in a snow storm and had to walk four miles or so and were lucky to find it......but without hope it could have been a whole different scenario....I hope he comes home safe and sound to us in five more months......two years is a looooong time!.

Struggling through my income tax and first of the month chores.....I hope I make it!!!!!!