Change...

Life is not ever stagnant. We must be ready to move with the tide. That doesn't mean, by any means, let the tide sweep you whatever way it wants. It does mean we must move but do it firmly in our belief set and standards. Let it help you grow and learn. 

This last week the Marx family took the next step in a big change in their lives. Hayden graduated and will attend DePaul University in a few months. DePaul held an orientation for freshmen. Hayden and Andie went to the orientation. It would be on a Monday and Tuesday. 

Andie, bless her heart, sent me pictures to share in this moment. I particularly loved these two. Andie was in the student center on the second floor overlooking the entry door. She got pictures of Hayden entering the building. I only post these two. First, he approaches the door. Then he is inside and he looks up to find his mother taking his picture. The look is priceless. Love this mother/son interaction after all his 18 years of life. It reminds me of our son, Jake, sending a box of things he had collected while on his mission home to us to save for him. In that box was his journal. Being the mother I am, I read the journal. When I got to the bottom of the last page, Jake had written "I love you Mom!". He knew I would read it. Love that relationship!

These are pictures of Hayden in what will be his new surroundings for school. He is looking forward to this opportunity. Can't believe he reached college age so very quickly. Whew!!

Before Andie and Hayden went to Chicago for the orientation, they spent some time Sunday in Muskegon visiting with family there. They only had a few hours but they made great use of that time. 

Andie with Emelia. Hayden reading to Raelyn. Andie with Paul. Hayden with Raelyn, Hayden with Emelia. Andie, Joel, Katelyn and Nissa. Andie has been tutoring Raelyn via video chatting in reading. This time, they did their lesson face-to-face with Emelia watching and joining in from the side. 

How I love these pictures of family being together. My girls and their kids. Times do change!

Today at church I was released from serving in Primary. I have been the 2nd counselor. I was then sustained as the secretary for the Relief Society. This should be a fun calling. Our new Relief Society president is Janessa Dymock, 1st counselor is Jessie Rayburn and 2nd Counselor is Heidi Barney. They will make a great presidency and I look forward to supporting and serving with them. I will miss Primary every Sunday. The kids are delightful. Such a fun spirit in there each Sunday. But, I look forward to seeing what I will do as Relief Society secretary. I have been Relief Society president in two wards and Stake Relief Society president once. Never been the secretary. It plays to my wheelhouse so I look forward to that. Change is good and I really look forward to this new calling. 

I think of the great quote by President Ezra Taft Benson who was President and Prophet for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: "The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from the outside in. The world would take people out of the slums. Christ takes the slums out of people, and they take themselves out of the slums. The world would mold men by changing their environment. Christ changes men, who then change their environment. The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature."

Change can be and is a good thing. I will embrace it and use it to move forward for the remaining years of my time on the good earth.

Little Things...

Today my mind has caught on the subject of 'Little Things". Often, little things may get missed or not truly appreciated in the day-to-day of life. As Claude and I continue in the healing process for him from his surgery, we find ourselves looking at the progress and realizing it comes in little things, little steps. As I ponder on that, I am reminded that a lot of life is lived in little things, little steps that combine to make a great whole. 

I tried to think of a few of my favorite scriptures and poems about "little things'. Here are a few:

Alma 37: 6 Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise.

“Little drops of water,

Little grains of sand,

Make the mighty ocean

And the pleasant land.

So the little moments,

Humble though they be,

Make the mighty ages

Of Eternity.

So the little errors

Lead the soul away

From the paths of virtue

Far in sin to stray.

Little deeds of kindness,

Little words of love,

Help to make earth happy,

Like the Heaven above.”

― Julia A.F. Carney

James 3:4-6 King James Version (KJV) Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth. Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things.

"All the water in the world

No matter how it tried

Could never sink the smallest ship

Unless it got inside.

All the evil of the world

And every kind of sin

Could never damn a human soul

Unless we let it in." 

~~ Author Unknown

I find, in this healing process, that we are careful to pick an activity that will stretch Claude in his healing. 

We went to two movies this week. The first was on Monday, July 10th. It was "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny". We have been big Indiana Jones fans since the first movie came out. This will be the fifth and the final movie. The Georgetown Theater was showing the movie. We went and totally enjoyed this last grand adventure. I particularly loved the ending . The movie alluded to things in Indy's other adventures. It was so good to have Claude out and about. A little thing but a big step forward.

The second movie we went to see was "Sound of Freedom". We saw it Thursday, July 13th. This is a true story about human trafficking, particularly of children. The movie is not easy to watch but it was extremely well done. It isn't easy to watch because of the topic. I felt they did a masterful job of letting you know what horrid thing was taking place without you having to actually watch it. Jim Caviezel is an actor Claude and I both really enjoy watching. We were both felt good that we saw it, we would recommend it to others so the topic is understood and watched for by others, lots of lessons in this one. Again, a little outing, but a lot learned on a topic level, as well as Claude healing level. 

I follow David Attenborough on Facebook. This picture popped up on his news feed. I would title it "Bloom Where You Are Planted". The understanding that we may not be able to control the trials and difficulties that come our way, but we can always choose the way we will deal with those circumstances. Little behaviors can make a difference in living a positive life...no matter what is happening around us. For me, it goes back to being grateful for each little thing. Even when things are at their worst, find the little thing that you can be grateful for. I mean, really, if I am riding along in my car having the worst day of my life and I look down beside my car and see that beautiful flower coming out of a drain, I am going to be grateful for that little flower and the lessons it teaches me. I am going to know and feel the love of my Savior, Jesus Christ in the little flower in a drain placed in my path that day. Little things!

We missed an important event which we always attend. Our Mini's have marched every year in the Oldham County Day's parade in LaGrange, Kentucky. We always go over and watch that little bit of time, only a minute or two, as they march past in the Oldham County High School Band playing their instruments. It takes 1 1/2 hours to drive over and 1 1/2 hours to drive home. You must park at the bottom of a hill and hike up the hill to where you will place your lawn chair. Then you sit till the precious few minutes of the band marching by come and you cheer for that young soul that carries your genes. That young soul knows they are loved and what they do is important because of all that effort for those little minutes. This year, it would only be Bailey marching. Hayden has graduated. I am grateful that we have cellphones and Andie and Michael took pictures and we had video and pictures in minutes of the parade happening. That is another little thing but is such a rich blessing in today's life. Instant connection with family over miles. Love it. 

Our first-born grandmonster had a birthday this past week. I posted these pictures and this comment on our family Facebook page: "A little one can sure take your heart and make them your own. One little girl did this in our family on this day in 1992. Join me in wishing Katelyn Roper a most Happy Birthday. The pictures are from 1992 and 1993. Our first grandmonster! Love Ya Bunches, KT Nickels!" A tiny little bundle that taught Claude and I how to be grandparents to her and all of our other grandmonsters and great grandmonsters.

So, there you have it. A week with lots of noticing 'little things'. From little healing steps with Claude, to little moments with family, to gratitude for little blessings along life's journey. I love noticing the little things and then seeing, as the accumulate, the big impact they have on my life and the lives of those I love and care so deeply for. Little Things!!

Pictures & Lessons from The Book of Mormon...

Wednesday, July 5th, it was time to try 'normal' again. For the previous two weeks, I stayed close to Claude. I gave up most of what I would normally do in a day, so that I could care for my hubby. Now, he was starting, slowly but surely, to get back to his normal. I moved my laptop back to Sandiland from the dining room table. I started the oven cleaning. I started the dishwasher, I started the laundry, Then I did the ironing and set to work catching up on my laptop work. Even got the bed linens changed. It was a full, very productive day. 

Have you ever made a really good friend online and not ever met them in person. After a couple of years, you finally get the opportunity to have a face-to-face meeting with that person. It just feel really good. Jake, our son, had this experience with Erica. So very happy they actually saw each other in person. Friendship is great!

Thursday, July 6th, the Marx family visited the statue of David. Andie posted this comment with these pictures to Facebook. "Logged some quality time with David this morning.  Can report that his abs are on point but he seems in need of a pedicure..." 

Paul posted this picture. He was at work and wanted to have a place to sit. So, enterprising young man that he is, he made himself a throne and sat down!

Saturday, July 8th, the Marx family was still on their cruise. Andie was able to participate in a towel folding class aboard ship. If you have ever cruised, one of the fun things is returning from your dinner hour and finding a different towel animal in your cabin each evening. I took one of these towel folding classes on a cruise Claude and I went on. I even bought a book to continue doing this at home. Andie is holding the animal she made. It is a monkey. When she got back to their stateroom, she made an animal and left it for their cabin steward. He was pleased with her efforts for him!

My hubby felt well enough blow the debris the patio. He loves doing this and has sorely missed it. For him, it the dessert after cutting grass. I have cut the grass twice but have not edged or run the leaf blower. The patio looked so much better with all the twigs and leave off of it. Yeah Claude!

While he was outside, Claude came to the door and called for me. He said, "Go out front and check out the clouds." We were due to have severe storms Saturday afternoon and evening.  I went out and found this looming in our future. I posted these two pictures on Facebook with the comment, "Something wicked this way comes! Batten down the hatches!"

Sunday, July 9th, another good Sabbath Day. Claude was up at 6am to participate in a Zoom meeting at 7am. Then we both went to sacrament meeting. Claude left after to come home to rest a bit. I stayed and played the piano for Primary. Then Claude came and picked me up and we went to Wendy's for lunch. Home we came and he is taking a nap while I catch up on my Blog. 

The Blog is pretty lean this week. Mostly we tried to get out a time or two. Claude is now driving us. We actually went to Lexington on Friday for our meal-O'-the-day at Chipotle, then Staples to buy ink cartridges for my printer and Bed, Bath & Beyond to check out their sale items. That store is closing its doors. We found two pillows for our bed and a set of flannel sheets for the guest bedroom this winter. The rest of the time we watched a lot of Monk and Big Bang Theory. We tried playing the TriBond game that Andie and Michael gave us. So, we really only did what Claude felt up to with a little bit of a push to stretch himself a bit as he heals. 

I did want to share this, mostly for Katelyn, our oldest grandmonster. Her basket is very full as she mother's four little children, works two jobs, tries to be a good wife, does her calling a church and, somewhere in there, tries to find a little time for herself. This story from the Book of Mormon has kept rolling through my brain as I think of Katelyn. Today, one of the speakers in sacrament meeting, referenced it in his talk. 

Background to the story, Noah had been king. He was very wicked. Two of his priests were Amulon and Alma. Abinadi came to teach them the gospel and call them to repentance. Of all the people in Noah's court, Alma was the one touched by Abinadi's words. Alma believed. Eventually Noah would burn Abinadi for saying things he didn't want to hear. Later king Noah would also be burned to death. Alma escaped and found a hiding place at the Waters of Mormon. The people would come to him and he would teach them Abinadi's words. Many were converted and secretly continued to meet with Alma. Eventually they were found and had to flee for their lives. They found a place built a city for them to live. The Lamanites would get control of them. The Lamanites placed Amulon, who had gone over to the Lamanites side, as the person in charge of Alma's community. Amulon knew Alma and did not like him. He became a severe task master over Alma and Alma's people. He placed burdens on their backs that were heavy for them. Amulon also commanded the people that they could not pray. The people did not pray out loud, but the prayed in their hearts. Alma prayed for his people. This is the scripture record of what happened to Alma and his people from Mosiah 24 in the Book of Mormon.

    13 And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord came to them in their afflictions, saying: Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage.

    14 And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions.

    15 And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord.

    16 And it came to pass that so great was their faith and their patience that the voice of the Lord came unto them again, saying: Be of good comfort, for on the morrow I will deliver you out of bondage. 

I have always loved this story. So many valuable lessons in these few verses. The Lord could have, but did not, immediately take away their taskmasters and their burdens. Often, we pray and feel we will have an immediate relief from our difficulty. Not so. Why not immediately? Verse 14 tells us that enduring will help us be the best witness that the Lord does visit us in our afflictions. How does he do that? Verse 14 tells us the Lord strengthened them so they could bear their burdens with ease. We learn through the difficult things we live through. I have told Claude that NONE of us would ever ask for a difficulty to endure. We all want happy and comfortable lives. However, that is not when we do our best growth. The Lord will give us His peace and His strength and His comfort to endure well and learn. How did Alma's people respond? Verse 15 tells us they cheerfully submitted with patience!! Wow!! After some time, their faith and patience were rewarded and in verse 16 we learn the Lord would deliver them out of bondage. 

Great lessons for each of us in whatever our circumstances. Our Aubrey is a singe-mom. Not easy at all. These lessons apply to her. Claude is recovering from surgery. These lessons apply to him. I love this lesson and the story that teaches it so well. The Savior's Atonement covers all these situations. He knows exactly how we feel. He endured well. His enduring gives us the ability to endure and learn what life is meant to teach us. 

There, a little preachy, but things I know and believe with all my heart. I am grateful for the enabling power of the Atonement in my life. 

Yardwork, Healing & Family...

Tuesday, June 27th, my major goal was to cut the grass. While this should be an easy thing, I find it exhausting. I often wonder if my little covid episode left me a little less strong in my lungs. Could be because I am really out of shape. However, I told Claude I could do this if I could do it in pieces. My intent was to get the front yard cut on Tuesday. If I ran out of steam, I would do the back yard on Wednesday. I dressed appropriately, went to the shed and set up the lawn mower and went to work cutting the front yard. When I finished it, I went inside, rehydrated and rested for a bit. Then, I went outside and tackled the back yard. Turns out, that was the right way to get it done. The back yard had trees and offers shade. The front and side yards do not, so the sun adds to my difficulty. I was so happy to get both the back and the front done. There was no edging and I did not blow the grass away from sidewalks, patio and driveway. Just got that grass cut.

On Monday, I noticed this mushroom by my little petunia. I thought it was so pretty.

When I cut the back yard, I was pleasantly surprised that the mushroom had opened up and there were more around the petunia. Nature at its best! 

Wednesday, June 28th, my outside chore was to chop up all the limbs and trees that fell in the previous rain/wind storm. I got those done and in the garbage. Yeah me!! 

While doing this, I noticed that the mondo grass along our stepping stones up the little hill now have little flowers down in them. Splendid!

I had an afternoon appointment with my ophthalmologist. Dr. Richardson is very good. He thinks really, really quickly and speaks at that speed as well. I have to listen carefully and try to translate the technical words he is using to layman terms. I have total confidence in this doctor. I did that awful clicker test watching the little lights with one eye covered. This time I noticed a darker area when I tried to see all the little tiny flashing lights. I explained that to Dr. Richardson. I also told him I have had a few times when my vision was fuzzy. I am used to seeing clearly except for reading and close work. For that, I wear readers from Walmart. These episodes were not long and are very random. Not even once a week. My vision is not unlike what I was experiencing with the drops he had put in my eyes. This set Dr. Richardson to work. He was almost giddy trying to figure out what was happening. The clicker test was markedly worse that six months previous. He was already concerned about what that was about. My eye pressure is good. He carefully checked the optic nerve and retina. He did some kind of prism test that refracts the light so he can see more clearly into the eye. He asked if I had albinism in my family or macular degeneration. Nope. I will now go back in a month for another of those awful clicker tests to see if it was a fluke. And, he increased my eye drops to help with eye pressure issues. 

Thursday, June 29th, my outside chore was to put new dirt around the mondo grass on the hill by the stepping stones. I also added dirt to the two flower planters that blew over during the storms. Claude asked if I could use the left over dirt to fill in the spots on the hill where I tried to grow ivy and the grass has not quite filled in. So, I did that as well. I was a mite dirty when finished but felt very good to have the things done in our yard. It was difficult for Claude to watch. He is very much the man that wants to do these things so I don't have to. I appreciate that. I assured him that when the tables have been reversed and I was healing from surgery, he did my things and his. We have a reciprocal agreement. 

Friday, June 30th, I looked out our bedroom window to check for rain damage. I found that my Lucifer plant was in bloom. I love the color and shape of this plant. I purchased it several years ago at the Kroger in LaGrange. They grew enough in Sadieville that I would have a nice burst of red flowers for a while. I brought this one plant with me from Sadieville and this year it put forth this amazing bloom. Let's me know it is healthy and will send up more plants as the years go by. Makes me happy. The clematis on that side of the house has set forth its next bunch of blossoms. Be still my heart at this burst of purple!! I posted this on our family Facebook page about these flowers: ""A thing of beauty is a joy forever" ~~Keats  Or...at least till the petals fall off. Unless, of course, you take a picture. Then, you will see it forever."

Katelyn posted this great picture of our Raelyn in her new glasses. Raelyn has one eye that pulls to the center. The glasses help this eye stay in the forward position. Raelyn is a beautiful little girl and she wears these glasses well. 

Our Marx family is in Greece. We had a Trivial Pursuit question on June 23rd that read: "Geography: Where's the famed Arch of Hadrian?" The answer is Athens, Greece. It seems the Marx family arrived in Athens and their shore excursion has them drive right past Hadrian's Arch! The van driver had Wifi and Andie sent us a picture from the drive-by and then from the back. (Andie and Michael).

In the birthday department, our grandson-in-law had a birthday. I posted this picture and comment on our family Facebook page: "One of the times I appreciate Drew the most, is watching him love his children. Happy Birthday to Daddy Drew!!"

Saturday, July 1st, 2023, it seems the lead article on the front page of the Georgetown NewsGraphic was about Georgetown. According to Fortune.com, they rated a city in each state as the best in which to live in that state. Georgetown is the one for Kentucky. It is 32nd out of 50. But it is first in Kentucky. Yeah Georgetown!

Remember those tooth fairy pillows I made for our great grandmonsters. They were just in time. Raelyn lost her first tooth! 

Sunday, July 2nd, I was able to substitute for the chorister in Sacrament Meeting and to play the piano in Primary. I do love music.

Claude looked out in the backyard and saw something that didn't look quite right. I put on my shoes and went out into our yard to assess what was wrong. We have had major storms with lots of wind and lightning. I learn that a branch on our tree had split in the middle. It wasn't broken off. It was simply split in the middle and couldn't support the weight. 

I sent a text message to Jon Zimmerman with the pictures. He trimmed the trees when we first moved into our home and cut the grass our first two summers. I explained the problem and asked if he could fix it. He assured me he could and would come Monday morning. We had medical appointments through the day. He quoted me a price and Claude wrote the check. 

Monday, July 3rd, we were up and out of the house early. We were at the hospital at 7:40am for an 8am procedure to be done on Claude. When we returned home, Jon showed up as promised and that branch was cut and drug to the front yard so quickly I had to hurry to get a picture of Ryan carrying it out to the front of the house. The branch is a goner!

I would then go to my dermatology appointment. The sad news here is the precancerous spot on the end of my nose is still not right. Dr. Wilson has burned it off twice. Now he has prescribed a chemo cream to be applied twice a day for two weeks. This will cause a lovely red spot that will have to heal. I should be absolutely stunning for a while now. My advice, wear sunscreen!!

In the afternoon we had an appointment with Claude urologist, Dr. Slabaugh. He assured us all the cancer was gone and Claude would have to continue recuperating for a few more weeks. He can drive again and begin to do what he feels capable of. He has a stern taskmaster for a wife who will monitor that to be sure he doesn't over do as he continues healing. So very happy with his progress and the good work by Dr. Slabaugh.

Tuesday, July 4th, Independence Day. I woke up before Claude. Actually, it was 6:30am. Way too early for a holiday. It was a good thing because I was able to text with our Andie. The Marx family is in Europe on a cruise. They were in Greece and some of the islands. They experienced three things that fit in our family history. 

First, while on the ship, they experienced a "butt-kickin'" wind! Years ago when Andie was a teen, we lived in in Maryland. Windy Rieger was the reporter on our favorite local television channel. There was a mighty storm coming in from the Atlantic. Wendy was sent to Ocean City, Maryland to report on the storm. As she stood at the edge of the water with the wind whipping all around her so that she couldn't hardly remain standing, our sweet reporter said, "This is a butt-kickin' wind!" We have loved that statement ever since. Andie sent me a video and asked if I could understand what she was saying. The only word I understood was Messina. However, I could read Andie's lips and tell by the setting Andie was saying, "This is a butt-kickin' wind!" Andie posted these pictures of Hayden and Bailey standing in that wind.

The second thing was Andie's love of books. As a child, she read the Alex Hailey book "Roots" several times. We would find her in the basement bedroom she shared with her sister, Nissa, under the covers with a flashlight reading a book when she was supposed to be asleep. Now she teaches elementary school. This coming year she will have a class of second graders. Imagine her delight in finding one of those Little Library boxes when people leave a book they have read and don't need anymore and may take, for free, a book someone else has left. Andie found an Eric Carle book in Italian. This book reading, school teaching daughter-of-mine, was very happy with her find.

Third, involved Michael. When I had my hysterectomy in 2000, Michael, my son-in-law came to stay with me the first three days I was home from the hospital. I was absolutely NOT hungry until that third day. Then I called Michael into my bedroom, told him to go look in the fridge and get the pound of bacon. Then he was to cook it and we would eat it. He did and we did. Fun memory. As Claude was healing, he started to get an appetite back. I sent a text message to Michael saying, "Claude wants bacon! You're up!!" Now, I knew he was half way around the world and had no clue when Michael would get the message. I thought it would be fun to include him in Claude's recovery in a tongue-in-cheek kind of way. July 4th, I received a response from Michael. He said, "I'm a bit away from him right now, let me see what I can do." There was a link to a Google map with his location at La Giara, a restaurant in Anacapri NA, Italy. It seems they were eating. I received this picture from Andie saying they didn't have bacon, but would prosciutto do!! Love our family. Love that we can communicate from around the world.

Claude and I wanted to do something to celebrate the 4th. But, we are still in recuperating mode. Not easy for Claude to do some things. I suggested we start our day with mini-biscuits from Chick-fil-A. He loves these and we were up early enough to get them. Claude actually drove us over. First time he had driven in two weeks. Then we stopped at CVS to pick up my prescription from Dr. Wilson.

When home, Claude took a nap. Then he sat at the desk and worked for bit. When he finished, we drove to Panera for a salad. Again, Claude drove. Things were beginning to feel a bit normal again. We were also going by Zaxby's to get some wings for Claude. They were closing early for the 4th. We didn't get wings. Claude came home and took some out of the freezer and cooked them up himself. Things are getting back to our normal!! We spent our evening watching the Eagles in concert in Australia. We did go outside for a bit to listen to the cacophony of sound with ALL those fireworks going off. Georgetown was having fireworks at the fair grounds. Neighborhoods were having fireworks shows. And LOTS of families were doing their own fireworks in their yards. If I had not known it was to celebrate freedom, I would have worried we were being bombed. Add to all of those fireworks and smoke from the fireworks, the fireflies. It was amazing outside. We went back inside and let the Eagles drown out the noise outside. It was a good way to spend our 4th of July.

I took these pictures and posted them on Facebook to celebrate the 4th of July.

There is a home in a neighborhood near ours that goes all out for holiday decorations. This is their decoration for the 4th of July. They have a wooden fence surrounding their back yard, they are a corner house. Attached to the fence are large flags. The large flags are also in the windows and on the porch in the front of the house. Surrounding the yard along the sidewalk are little flags. In the front yard is a fully dressed soldier with a skeleton also dressed in uniform and a sword through him on the ground. There is even a cannon in the yard. 

We will now try to get back to our 'regular' routine. Happy to have our sweet little home. Happy that Claude is truly on the mend. Happy that we have family we can connect with all the time and over the miles.