56 Years and Counting...

Monday, February 9th, I slept in. Not sure if it was the barometric pressure changes or what, but I was very, very achy. I found a comfortable spot in our bed under our wonderful flannel sheets and simply didn't want to move because it hurt all over so much. 

I was able to get more done on the baby afghan. I got to the rows that begin to repeat the pattern. This always makes the work go a bit more easily. I have done this pattern before and than helps me read the pattern more easily. 

I also finished the 2nd book in The Book of Enoch. I came across something that I shared with our family. 

        "I am reading "The Book of Enoch". It is an apocryphal book. I read this bit today and thought about our Trivial Pursuit question about the 5th sense. Here are the Lord's words to Enoch regarding creating human faculties (think senses):

        "I gave humans seven faculties: hearing to the flesh, sight to the eyes, smell to the soul, touch to the veins, taste to the blood, endurance to the bones, and enjoyment to the intelligence."

        Just thought ya'll might find that interesting.

Then I finished up my Blog for the previous week and put the pictures away.

This was a bit warmer day. The high was forecast for 46 degrees. I could actually see some grass along the edge of the sidewalk. 

In the evening, I received a message from Katelyn. She was trying to have a Family Home Evening with her kids about Noah's Ark. She knows I love Noah's Ark. She was wondering if I could participate in their Family Home Evening. I quickly responded yes. Then went to Sandiland and found my autographed book of Noah's Ark. I did a video call to the Ropers. Claude held the book while I read the story. It was great to be able to participate like that. 

Tuesday, February 10th, my day was consumed by going to the Vascular Surgeon. The appointment was at 2pm. Claude drove me so we could have a meal together in Lexington. I knew they were going to do an ultrasound on my legs again. This was done last year by another office. I was surprised when she said I had a $200+ co-pay. We have not had to pay anything in a LONG time. We are starting a new year and I haven't reached my deductible yet. Is that really a goal I want to reach!?  

The appointment went well. One tech did the ultrasound on both legs while another tech did a blood pressure test. The blood pressure test has her putting blood pressure cuffs on my arms and at my ankles. The ultrasound was testing the blood flow on the main artery from my groin to my feet. Fortunately, the gel she used was heated. Yeah!! Both tests went fairly quickly and then I went to see the PA to get the results and determine what to do in the future. 

The PA drew a very nice diagram of my heart with the artery running to the tops of my legs where it splits into two arteries doing down the front of my legs. At the ankles it splits into three to cover the feet. All the tests run that day showed I have 100% blood flow at my arms at the shoulder level and 100% blood flow at my ankles. Around the calf area I have some blockage but since I have 100% at each end this is not a concern. If I had diabetes or if I had sores on my feet or legs, there would be concern. I had the option of returning in one year or watching of anything more concerning to appear and calling to come in. I opted to watch and call. I will let Dr. Fine, my podiatrist, be my guide. 

At this point I am happy with the neurology office treatment and feel it is helping. I will continue to go to them every few months. They are the office that did the nerve tests. Between then and Dr. Fine, I will progress as best I can. 

When all of that was finished, Claude and I opted to go to Schlotzsky's for a sandwich for our meal-of-the-day. We were almost in two wrecks on Nicholasville Road. This is a mad street to drive in on the best of days. However, with piles of snow in turn lanes, it was exceptionally dangerous. Claude missed the turn on Tiverton for Schlotzsky's. while trying to avoid a wreck. We went down to Man O'War and turned right and found a back road to Tiverton. That will be our route to Schlotzsky's from this point forward. The sandwiches were delicious. So fun to get to eat something we can't get in Georgetown. 

In the evening, Hayden sent us a funny. This was the first day in many weeks we were out of freezing temperatures. We actually made it to 64 degrees. Hayden is in Chicago. He sent this meme with the comment 44 degrees outside! I assured him he cracked me up!

Wednesday, February 11th, we had a Bojangles breakfast. We got to talking. I ran out of soda. Claude went thru the drive-thru and got us each another. Then we pulled into a different spot with the sun behind our backs. We sat in the Jeep with our biscuits and soda for 3 hours talking. It was wonderful. I do love these biscuit breakfasts. 

I was able to do some more on my crochet project. Actually, I had to undo two rows the night before and I did them again and found that one of them was not right. I undid that row and redid it and added some more rows. All I can say it that it is a good thing this had no deadline to be accomplished. It is a killer for my right arm. But I enjoy it so much. Tylenol is my friend to keep doing this.

I then finished the 3rd book in The Book of Enoch. It was such an interesting read. I didn't get all of parts of it. I found things that sounded like true principles or interesting turns on principles. Those I highlights in pink. I read that Enoch's wife's name was Edna. That kind of took me aback. It was a good read and I am glad I now have it in my library. Now, on to read Lost Horizon by Hames Hilton. 

My cousin, Jean Tubbs, has angiosarcoma cancer. This is a rare, very aggressive form of cancer that  forms in the lining of blood vessels and lymph vessels. It can return and metastasize. Jean had surgery, followed by chemo and radiation. They thought it was gone. It has returned and is in her head and chest. She is now back to chemo. Her daughter, Georgann, has started a fund raiser to help with all the cost of this second round. I admire her greatly for doing this but I don't live in southern Louisiana and really don't want to purchase and have something shipped to me. I wanted to simply make a donation from Claude and me. We were able to get that done this day. It is a little but it is sent with much love and prayers. Jean is Uncle Clifford's daughter. Uncle Clifford is my mother's brother. Uncle Clifford and and Billie had three kids. Sue, Jean and Burton. They are roughly me and my sisters ages. I have so many great memories of us all playing in the woods around Grampa and Gramma Fisch's old home place. 

Claude and I decided to try KFC for dinner. Went through the drive-thru and brought it home. I had my chicken strips but no coleslaw. Such is life. 

We would finish our day by finished watching the Psych television series. 

Thursday, February 12th, would be a productive day in preparation for a weekend getaway.

I was able to listen to a podcast that Claude shared with me. It was about the 85% rule. It was excellent. It spoke to the fact that 85% of people don't live to 82 years of age. This is because of their choices. He described 5 areas of importance and went through those areas two times. He gave great examples of the area and how to apply it in our daily life. I was so impressed by his podcast, I typed an outline of the general concepts and have placed it on our refrigerator as a constant reminder. Here is my list:

Why 85% don’t make past 82 years old.

MISTAKE  /  CORRECTION

1) Long unbroken periods of sitting

        • Every 30 minutes stand and stretch.

        • Intense workout not necessary after 60. Frequency is more important.

        • Build motion into your life.

2) Social isolation

        • 1-2 meaningful regular connections

        • Connection is your job.

        • Don’t leave relationships to chance

3) Voice in head saying “I’m too old for that.”

        • Keep learning. New hobby. Read different book.

        • Treat your brain like a muscle.

4) Bad Sleep

        • Structure. Plan for it.

                o Habits to queue your body it is time to sleep. No screens 1 hour before sleep.
                        No caffeine after 2pm.

        • Treat your bedroom as if it is a temple.

5) Giving up on the future

        • As long as you are breathing, you have a future.

        • Purpose keeps people alive. Find your reason.

        • Refuse to be forgotten.

        • Make plans.

Claude and I had a talk before he heard this podcast about where we were in our lives. We had both been feeling a little sad. We couldn't put our finger on a reason. We are grateful for our lives and what we fill them with. We felt like this very cold, snowy January was part of the reason. We have closed all our blinds to keep out the cold and it can feel very isolating, especially when you are used to having them open all the time. We feel a decline in our physical abilities. How much of that is normal and how much is not. Those kinds of things were what we were feeling and were contributing to the sad feeling. When Claude heard this podcast, it was spot on to what we needed to hear. Now, we simply need to take it to heart and keep moving, interacting with others, learning, sleeping better and not giving up on our future. 

Friday, February 13th, was our 56th anniversary. We were going to fill this weekend with us. That would start with a Bojangles breakfast to eat on the road as we drove to Seymour, Indiana. 

We had a 1pm appointment to learn to make candles. The appointment was at Oma & Opa's Pour House in Seymour, Indiana. After about a two hour drive, we arrived a bit early for our appointment. 

This was a tiny storefront business. This main room had the types of containers you could choose to make your candle in, the scents you could select for your candle fragrance and work tables set with different settings depending on the type of candle you will be making. 

This was my work place setting. I would pour my wax into the blue jar container behind. The little chrome container on the left is for measuring out the fragrance. The wax would go into the chrome cup. I would pour the fragrance into the cup and stir with the spoon for 3 minutes. There was a 3-minute sand clock timer to let me know how long to stir the fragrance and wax together. Then I would pour the blend into the blue jar. The black frame around the top is to hold up the wick as the wax cools and solidifies. The ladies husband makes these frames with his 3-D printer. 

This was workplace for Claude's candle. He chose a wooden bowl for his candle. He had a bit more work to do to put his candle together. The wooden bowl would have three wicks in it. The wicks had a sticker on the bottom that he would remove and place each in a circle cut out of the black plastic guide which is at the bottom of this bowl. Once he had the wicks stuck in place, the black plastic frame was put over them and the wicks were threaded through three holes in the frame. This would keep them up as the wax solidified. Claude chose to combine two fragrances. The glass beaker would be his measuring cup and the metal scale on the lower right of his tray would measure the exact amount he should have of fragrance. The lady put his wax in the metal pitcher on the top left of his tray. Claude would take the metal spoon and stir his fragrance mix into the was for 3-minutes using the a 3-minute sand clock timer. Then he would carefully pour this mixture into the wooden bowl.

A bit about the fragrances...they have over 70 different fragrances. You can use one or mix up to three fragrances. We had sheets with lists on the front and back. The yellow column was the single fragrances. If you mixed, the other columns to the right were suggestions of fragrances that go well together. This was just a guide, you could mix as you liked. I had magnolia in my head as soon as we chose this for our anniversary trip. I grew up in Louisiana. Magnolia is the state flower. My mother loved magnolias. Papa worked for the telephone company. He would walk to Betty Virginia Park on his lunch break and pick a magnolia blossom for my mother. She would place it on the mantel in the living room and the fragrance from one flower would fill that whole room. I loved it. Magnolia would be my choice. Claude went for a citrus fragrance mix of blood orange and citrus agave. We loved our blood oranges when on the Amalfi Coast. It turned out to be a great choice.

The owner took this picture of Claude and I in her shop. We are wearing t-shirts that Nissa and Todd gave us for our anniversary. They say "Love Will Keep Us Alive". This is my favorite Eagles song and it sung by Timothy B. Schmidt. The candles needed to cool before we could take them with us. We would come back later and pick them up. 

We walked down the street to the museum. The Seymour Museum Center, located at Third and Chestnut Streets, features a restored Civil War soldier statue placed outside by the Grand Army of the Republic in 1890. I really wanted to find out who this statue depicted. I believe it was to represent all who served not in honor of one specific person. The museum, housed in the former 1916 post office/city hall, displays local history and is in the downtown area. Unfortunately, the museum was closed. Don't you think the hat and scarf are a good addition for winter?

I asked Claude what he might want to do as we had about a hour before we could check into the hotel. He really wanted a chocolate shake. We drove past the Dairy Queen, which was closed for the season, and found a Steak & Shake. Their chocolate shake hit the spot. We had a bit of time to reflect on our 56 years. 

We checked into our hotel and sat till time to pick up our candles. After getting our candles, we drove a few blocks over to Mae's Townhouse for our meal-of-the-day. 

Mae's Townhouse has been a restaurant in this area for many years. It has changed owners several times, almost closing several times. But the locals love it, so someone has always stepped up and kept it going. It is all home cooking. I had country fried steak, mashed potatoes and gravy (lunch sized portion) and Claude had the fish plate (special for the day). 

As we sat there in our anniversary t-shirts, Claude commented about a cute little girl sitting at the counter. She was dressed in a frilly dress covered in hearts. She was wearing a headband with two hearts bobbing around on top. We grinned at her and kept on talking. In a few minutes, she came over to our table and gave us this piece of plastic. My heart melted. I told her how special this day was to us, that we were celebrating 56 years of marriage, and that 'love' was the perfect thing to give us. She stayed at our table and talked until our food arrived. She was 8 years old. She loved reading and math. I shared pictures of our family with her. It was simply delightful. What a treat. 

After dinner, we stopped at a gas station to get a sweet for dessert and some water for our room. Then back to the hotel for the evening. Other than the television remote not working and the front desk clerk quickly fixing that situation, we had a great evening. We exchanged our gifts. Claude gave me Arwen's pendant which she gave to Aragorn. I gave me gift cards to three restaurants we enjoy so we could continue having fun into our 57th year. Claude also put another nickel in the nickel jar when we returned home. We have 56 nickels, one for each year of our marriage.

Saturday, February 14th, We slept in a bit. Then we went to Dunkin' Donuts for breakfast. Andie and Michael gave us a Highway Showdown game for Christmas. We answered the questions in one of the decks of cards in the box. Trivia can be a very generational kind of game. Some of the musicians and actors we were totally clueless about. That is very generational. We still have the second deck of cards for our trip to Dallas later in the year. 

We had planned to meet Michael and Andie at Red Hot. This is a restaurant in Louisville they tried and enjoyed. It features hot dogs and hamburgers and a couple of salads. Claude had a bratwurst dog with his choice of toppings. I am not a fan of bratwurst so I chose a salad with all veggies and a bit of bacon. This restaurant was set in a place called Mash Up. It featured a number of little restaurants along two outer walls and center of the building. Then other two walls had areas for kids to play as well as a stadium seating area with a big screen where the Olympics were being shown. If I lived in downtown Louisville, a place like this would figure big on my list of favorites to visit, especially if I had kids. 

One of the businesses was a bakery. Michael bought a box of day-old backed goods. He and Andie included a chocolate turtle because I LOVE turtles. This made an excellent dessert for the four of us. We had a lovely time with Michael and Andie. 

Then we headed home. We unpacked and placed our candles in our home. I put my magnolia candle on the little table in the bathroom. Claude put his blood orange/citrus agave candle on the coffee table in the living room. We were told to let them sit for a least a week before burning them. Something in the chemistry helps the fragrance and the wax mixture to bind and cure together. We love these candles. 

Katelyn posted picture of Raelyn. She had her first volleyball game. She is such a bundle of energy. The child has not one ounce of fat on her. She is all muscle. Volleyball could be her game. She does enjoy soccer.

Sunday, February 15th, we determined we would have one more day together. We did talk with Kris, Cordell's wife (Cordell is Claude's younger brother). She gave us an update on Cordell's health. It is really difficult. They are wading through it heroically. We had a nice dinner at Cattlemen's Roadhouse. Claude did participate in a Zoom meeting. It was a nice ending day to our anniversary celebration. 

Katelyn posted a picture of her and Joel having a little son/mother date. So very cute. 

Time to begin year 57!

Sickness, Cold, Groundhog Day, Family & a Great Movie Date...

Sunday, February 1st, and the cold air stays in place. This has been a long brutal time in Kentucky with the big snow and it stays because the temperatures never seem to go higher than the 20's during the day and single digits in the nights. 

I spent Saturday night getting more and more ill. I went to be fine and slept for about an hour. Then my body did what it often does. It wakes and thinks I have had a great nap and should now get up and get busy. I tried to lay very still and relax all of my body for a long time but that didn't work. I got up to go read. As I sat in my recliner, I had a headache come on. I don't get lots of headaches. This kept getting more and more intense. I thought I about going to the bedroom and getting Tylenol but I didn't want to wake Claude. After a while, I really wanted to lay down but I had a strong impression to go to the guest room and let Claude sleep. I followed that impression and it was a good one. My tummy started to feel worse and worse. I felt an impression to get to the bathroom quickly. I did get there just in time to hurl any cookie I ever ate in my life. On my goodness. I stayed until I was sure that was finished. My body was very weak by now. I went back to the guest bedroom and tried to lay down and get comfortable. I was there about 45 minutes until I felt the urge to run back to the bathroom. Again I cleaned out my poor body. Once I felt there was nothing left, I made my way back to the guest bedroom. My alarm was set to wake Claude at 6:30 for a 7am Zoom meeting. When the alarm went off, I went and found Claude sitting at his desk. I told him I would not be going to Church as I was really sick. He had not slept well either. Ugh! 

Claude did his meeting, I sent text messages to the three ladies I was to meet with at church that day alerting them I would not be there. I went back to bed. Claude checked on me after the Zoom meeting. I checked my cellphone. It seems the parking lot at the church was plowed but just between the parking lanes. None of the parking spaces were cleared. We have two congregations meeting in this building. One begins at 9am and ours begins at 10:30am. We were told to get the word out that we would start at 11:30am and only have sacrament meeting. This would work better for people parking. I sent messages to all our ministering families and then headed to bed again. 

Sunday was definitely a down day for me. We wondered if I may have had food poisoning. However, Claude was not ill and we ate the same food during the day. We wondered if it might be Covid. I took a covid test and it was negative. I had a Mello Yello after I woke up and sipped on it throughout the day. When I got hungry, I opened a small package of Ritz crackers and ate them. In the evening, I really needed something. Claude fixed me one of the Lipton soups with the tiny noodles in it. I love that soup and it tasted delicious. I held all of this down. It was a rough day but I was very grateful for Claude, for my recliner, for having things on hand to eat and drink, for feeling a bit better at the end of the day. 

Monday, February 2nd, I would stay down another day. I did start my day with a good shower to get rid of whatever germ was causing me issues. Then I curled up and read some more in The Book of Enoch. I cleared things from the DVR. By dinner time, I was ready to try real food. We went to the Jimmy John's drive-thru and sandwiches. Then back home to eat and have a quiet evening. 

This was Ground Hog Day. We did not watch the movie. I am sure it was on lots of channels. I did find humor in these two items from Facebook. 

Tuesday, February 3rd, I was ready to try doing things that were normal. I had prepared Bailey a birthday card. I needed to go in the mail. I decided it would be fun to put a bag of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups in a box with the card. I got that ready. Then Claude and I dropped the box at the post office.

Cute interchange here. I sent Bailey a text letting her know the birthday box went in the mail and to keep and eye out for it. I told her they could ship it express mail for $35 or I could do first class for $9.20 and it might be there before Sunday. I opted for the $9.20 cost. I shared that with my Bailey Girl in the text. She replied, "That is understandable Grandma, I'd do the same!" Love this girl. 

Claude had a bit of banking to do. Then we drove thru Bojangles for a biscuit breakfast. After that, we made a quick run through the grocery store. 

When we got home, I set to work on the Relief Society lesson I would teach on Sunday. 

Claude came back to Sandiland and informed me the plow had come on our street and we had now piled at the end of the driveway he was going to go out and shovel. Let's face, we are neither in condition to do lots of shoveling. This snow is now heavier with ice from melting and refreezing. I put on my warm clothing and Duck boots and joined him. We got the work done in short order. Of course, working in the yard means a burger for dinner. Claude picked Arby's and we each had a nice sandwich at home for dinner. 

In the evening, I age two dates. I had been thinking about dates. Not sure why. My mother used to buy them every now and then when I was a kid. I liked them then. Jake sent me a text with a picture of the hot sauce he bought with his Christmas gift card. It was Coffee Date flavored. He said the date taste was evident in it and he liked it. I decided that was my cue to buy me some dates. Oh my, they were as good as I remembered. I read about them and they have great nutritional value. I have decided to have two dates each evening. Yum!!

Katelyn posted the fun picture of Joel, her son, and Ramon, their exchange student from Spain. This is what Katelyn said, "We weren’t planning to host this year. We were done. Life was full and busy, and our house already felt complete. Then a last-minute situation came up. A student needed a home or they wouldn’t be able to experience American high school. We had a few options, but Ramón stood out right away. He has siblings close in age to our kids. He plays soccer like our oldest, loves video games like our middle two, and understands what it means to be a big brother. I’m so thankful we decided to host. Joel absolutely loves having a big brother. When we asked him tonight if he’d want another someday, he didn’t even think before saying yes. The girls say they want a sister, but honestly, moments like this are pretty special. Rae and Millie have Julia. Joel and Kennedi have Ramón. 💙

This little fact came up on Facebook. I love these little things I might not notice on my own but that I would definitely find interesting. The information reads: "It’s a “perfect” February 🗓️ With just 28 days, February is the only month that can form a perfect calendar grid. In 2026, it starts on a Sunday and ends on a Saturday—four perfectly aligned weeks. This rare setup won’t happen again until 2037." So cool.

Wednesday, February 4th, we woke up to more snow over night. Not a lot. Maybe and inch. The concern it the temperatures. That is enough snow that, if it melts and freezes overnight, we will have a driveway that is a sheet of ice. We had packages being delivered and didn't want any broken bones. We donned our warm clothing and headed out to do the shoveling...once again. When we finished, I took a pictures of the snow piled in front of our home. The first picture below was taken on Monday, January 26th after the first big shoveling. The second picture was taken Wednesday, February 4th, over one week later. This is proof of the cold we have had. Not very much melting at all. Winter is still on us.

We did yardwork which means burgers for dinner. I had an eMail from Jimmy John's that I got what I thought was a free heated sub. We decided to try that out. I tried to order it online as we drove over. I couldn't get it to work. I cleared the order twice and re-entered the information. It kept telling me I had to enter something else. What every it was, I couldn't find it. Finally, I told Claude I would have to go in and have them help me get it right. I walked into Jimmy John's hand held my cellphone up and said, "Help!!" No one else was in the store but the workers. One girl came over and we went through. It turned out turns out the sandwich was $4 off, not free. Okay. We got it to work and we ate dinner at Jimmy John's. I am NOT a fan of the Jimmy John's app. Worst app of any I choose to use. 

Katelyn posted this cute picture of our our Emelia on our family Facebook page. This was Katelyn's comment, "Somebody lost her 1st and 2nd tooth in school today .... Then lost them on the bus.... Thankfully they were found and our driver has them safe." How cute it that?!

Thursday, February 5th, was a very normal kind of day. I cleaned the guest bedroom linens. I updated my Blog and pictures. The Castle DVD's arrived. Yeah!! I did some texting with Jake and he was happy to have me order him a pizza on Saturday. 

In the evening we had chicken pot pies for dinner with a little salad. When I was grocery shopping with Claude earlier in the week, I saw them as we passed the frozen meal section. I stopped and picked out two for us to eat. I loved these when we were newlyweds and food budget was small. It was really fun to have them again. Food can bring back good memories. 

Friday, February 6th, was laundry day. I also spoke with Katelyn on the telephone. 

In the afternoon, we went to Georgetown Cinema to see "Solo Mio". This is an Angels film production. I read what the story was about and it sounded like it might be a good movie to go see. It turned out to be exceptional. We were delighted and surprised the Andrea Bocelli figures in the movie. What a treat. Kevin James did a masterful job with his role. He is set to be married in Rome, Italy. His bride does not show for their wedding. The story is his journey to accept and make peace with this situation. It take place in Rome and in Tuscany. Delightful and highly recommend this movie. We enjoyed 5 Guys burgers after. 

Drew took Emelia to a "Special Persons Dance". Katelyn told us Raelyn did her little sisters make-up. How cute is that?

Bailey Marx was attending the The National Association for Music Education with other Campbellsville University students at the Kentucky International Convention Center in Louisville. She posted this picture of finding high school friends and catching up. She knows kids from all of Kentucky from all her musical participations.

Saturday, February 7th, was an indoor day. Still very cold. 

I finished my preparation to teach the Relief Society lesson on Sunday. I ordered Jake his pizza. He was very happy. He was spending his time that morning before work writing and the pizza allowed him not to have to stop to cook. Win for both of us. I finished reading the first part of the Book of Enoch. He is actually three books in one. Two more to go. In the evening, I started a baby Afghan. 

Claude tried a new steak and noodle recipe for or evening meal. I love that he does this. This one quite tasty. It was a keeper for sure. 

Sunday, February 8th, the Georgetown Ward only has Sacrament meeting. The snow has not melted enough to allow lap over parking between when the two wards meet. We arrived and Claude found a spot by the door. Yeah!! 

I taught the Relief Society lesson. It was the October General Conference talk by Elder Kevin G. Brown entitle "The Eternal Gift of Testimony". I gave each sister a card and a pen. I started with the slide explains how Elder Brown started his talk. He would use these three foundational principles on that guided him on his journey to a Sure Witness. Love that phrase. 1) God is our Loving Heavenly Father, 2) Agency is the Gift to Choose and Act for Ourselves and 3) Our testimony comes through the Power of the Holy Ghost. I asked the sisters to be aware of these three principles all the way through Elder Brown's talk.

After this introduction, I told the sisters I was going to do something that I do not recommend for a lesson but that I was strongly impressed at the first listening to this talk as the way to share this lesson. I would begin by playing the entire talk given by Elder Brown. I asked the sisters to use their pens and cards to write words or thoughts that they had as the watched this talk. After we listened to the talk, I would then have them share their insights and that would be our lesson. 

The sisters shared and we had a good discussion. Some of the things I highlighted were:

• It is in God's nature to bless us.
• Agency is a sacred gift. The ultimate price for the privilege of agency was paid by Jesus Christ with His precious blood. 
• A witness from the Holy Ghost is great than sight. (I am a believer of walking by faith. This confirms that belief.) What greater witness can you have than from God?
• A testimony is meant to be eternal. The gift from our loving Heavenly Father is meant to be eternal because the giver is eternal. 
• Elder Brown said difficult days of testing and persecution helped him get to the place where he now knows. 
• In whatever way a testimony is given, it still requires a choice to receive this precious gift.
• Choosing to believe is a wise and powerful way to use our agency. 
• Pres. Russell M. Nelson: "I plead with you to take charge of your testimony. Work for it. Own it. Care for it. Nurture it so that it will grow. Feed it truth." Elder Brown said these action words sound to him like an agent being given stewardship over something precious and important. 
• Elder Brown promises us that our testimony will be:
• your testimony will be a “well of living water, springing up unto everlasting life.” 
• It will be an anchor and a motivator.
• It will sustain you through difficult times. 
• It will enable you to develop spiritual gifts. 
• It will help you in your personal ministry and service. 
• It will be a weapon against Satan and your adversaries. 
• Your testimony will be a joy as you see it replicated in your children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren and in those you love and serve. 
• It will be powerful when you share it and use it to testify.
• If you know, you know. I know and I know that I know. 

Such a powerful talk. Such a powerful message. I am so grateful I have a testimony and a feel the strength that knowledge and understanding give to me each day of my life.

We picked up lunch from Panera and headed for home. Claude go his Sunday nap. I curled up in my recliner for the remainder of the day. 

This day was Bailey's 19th birthday. I posted this on our family Facebook page: "On this day 19 years ago, our Bailey burst into our lives. She has grown into an amazing young woman. She loves her horn and her music. We are very grateful B came to our family. Please join me in wishing Bailey Marx a very Happy Birthday!! Love Ya Bunches!!"

It was a good Sabbath Day and a good week. 

The Storm...

Saturday, January 24th, we spent the week preparing for the storm. Laundry was done. Groceries were purchased early to avoid the empty shelves just before the storm. Fresh batteries were purchased and the flashlights moved to the kitchen for easy reach. All the blinds were cold as the temperature promises to be in the single digits and below zero for many days. The original reports said Saturday 8am through Monday 9am for the storm. Well, it now doesn't begin snowing until 1 or 2pm. Hurry up and wait! Actually, we felt off Friday because we were all ready and it still was a day away. It would come. We were ready.

I took these picture to have a 'before the storm' look at the back and front yards of our home from the doors. That will most likely be my vantage point once we have snow on the ground. 

The funny posts were starting to show up on Facebook. I really liked this one and shared with our family.

The prediction this day on my cellphone had this storm warning and these four updates to accumulations through the day and night Saturday and Sunday. 

I liked this map that shows predictions for the amount of snow and ice accumulations for Kentucky. We were hoping for all snow in Georgetown. I talked with a friend who trains thoroughbred horses. She said the horses love the snow. Ice is their enemy. 

I appreciated and loved that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a Ministering program. We are each assigned other families to stay in contact with and help as needed. This doesn't mean you can't help anyone at any time. When things like this upcoming storm are on the horizon, we are all contacting the families we are assigned to be sure they are ready to be shut in for several days. I took a puzzle to one of our families. It is nice to get that contact and know there are others watching out for you. 

Our snow started about 2pm. It was very fine and dry. This was our backyard and then our front yard.

We filled our day with little things. A good shower to start the day in case we lost power or water. Then Blogging and labeling pictures. Lots of texts about whether or not there would be church. It was eventually canceled so all our ministering families were notified.

Claude made bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwiches for dinner. Yum! Then he baked orange rolls for dessert. Oh My!! 

Andie called and we caught up with each other. We talked about how her kids, Hayden and Bailey are doing with the storm. Hayden is in Chicago and Bailey is in Campbellsville. They sent each of the kids some money to get some food for their apartment or dorm room in case they couldn't get out.

Before the sun set, I took more pictures of what we had for snow accumulation. The forecast was for most of the snow to fall while we slept. 

Facebook continues to be a source of humor when facing these big events. Here are a couple of the funnies I enjoyed most. The second picture was posted by the daughter of one of my cousins in Louisiana. They filled their hot tub with water as they were expecting mostly ice. This water could be used to flush toilets and things like that. Bless their hearts. They are in southern Louisiana. I am a Louisiana girl. Think Mardi Gras and you will see the humor in the second picture. 

Our local news channel posted this picture to show the size of the storm. It goes across the entire county. I believe they named it Fern. There was a front coming down from the north. It had dumped a LOT of snow in Michigan. In Muskegon, the kids had not school all week long because the road were so bad. Our son-in-law said they had 18 inches of snow on their roof. That cold front hit and front coming up from the Gulf of Mexico with a lot of moisture. That is why our forecast was for so much snow or ice. 

We went to bed about midnight. 

Sunday, January 25th, I was up before Claude. I took these pictures of the snowfall during the night. The snow had changed to ice and the ice weighs down the snow it lands on making the depth not look as great as it was. There was ice on the windows. I could only open our front door a little way. 

Church was officially canceled all over Kentucky. Claude made us pancakes and bacon for breakfast. Yum. We watched Music & the Spoken Word. 

I finished crocheting the Christmas ornaments to be given as Relief Society gifts to the sisters at church this coming December. 50 little ornaments. They really are a nice dark red. I will need to put the hangers on them and press them.

Hayden posted his thank you to the people who helped him with filming one of his scripts. Very proud of him and his hard work. 

It appeared the snow was going to stop by the evening. On little boy came to the door to see if he could shovel our driveway and walks. I asked him his price. He said $100 - $175. Yike!! I thanked him and wished him well. In the evening, I started putting out feelers for someone to help us clear the snow. Finally, I secured the help of Porter and Payton Hale. They would come Monday at Noon. Yeah!

I did not remember to get pictures of the snow before we went to bed on Saturday evening. We went to bed about midnight and there was a light snow falling. 

Monday, January 26th, after a bad night's trying to sleep, I was up before Claude and managed to get these pictures from our back and front door. Now the front door wouldn't open at all. The pictures were taken through the glass of the front door. 

Claude and I went out about 11:45am to try to clear the little walk from the driveway to our front door. It was all ice by the front door. Claude took a heavy flat bladed shovel that he could pound into the ice to break it up. I started on the walk near the driveway. My first shovel full went very easily. The snow was dry and very powdery. However, I noticed that I didn't see concrete after that shovel full. I stepped out on it and my foot cracked the ice and went down to the concrete. We had 6-7 inches of snow. On top of that was about 2+ inches of ice. Then we had another 2-3 inches of snow on top of the ice. My first shovel full was the top layer of snow. I had to walk on the ice to break it up and then could shovel it and toss to the side. I took this picture when I started. It is not great to show the depth though. 

We managed to get that bit of walk done and Claude got all the ice from the concrete in front of the door. Then we went in for something to drink and to take a break. We left the garage door open. I soon heard the 'cavalry' (as Claude calls them). I went back outside and we talked about what we wanted removed. I told them their first priority was to clear the driveway on the Jeep side so we could get it out. Then my side of the drive way. Then, if they had enough steam, do the sidewalk. These young men are machines. They work very, very well together. It took them about an hour to get all that done. Claude paid each of them. We also loaned them the Lord of the Rings DVD's. We were so happy that was done and we could be in our home. 

Next question was garbage collection for this week. I checked with Republic and this was what I got. Fortunately, Claude and I don't generate lots of garbage. We could probably only put out a full can every third or fourth week. I shared this on our neighborhood Facebook page. 

Tuesday, January 27th, we awoke to find the plow came through again during the night. We have a neighbor across the street and down one house who parks a car on our side of the street in front of our next door neighbor's home. We don't own the street so we don't complain. However, the rule for our development is that all cars should be in driveways or garages so that plows can clear the entire street. Well, with this car parked on the street, the plow went around him and shoved the show from the middle of the street all along the end of our driveway and piled up in front of our mailbox. Ugh. I happened to look out the window and they were cleaning the snow off that car to use it. I quickly put on my shoes and went outside to have a chat. It was all very cordial. I assured them their parking on the street was not a problem except when we had snow that required plowing. I told them we had already had someone help us shovel and now we had to shovel again. I shared that we are too old to be doing this multiple times. I asked if they would just move their car to their driveway for snows that require a snow plow. It was all very pleasant and the cleaned and moved their car to the driveway. 

We called our 'cavalry' (the Hale brothers). They said they could come about 1:30pm Wednesday. 

During this storm, I learned a couple of new terms. The first was when Katelyn said their was a prediction for exploding trees in Michigan. Never heard of exploding trees. The second was front quakes. I sent this to our family so they would also be aware of these possibilities. 

Wednesday, January 28th, we started our morning with cinnamon rolls. Yum! Then we spent the morning time we had doing things in Sandiland and the study. 

Around 1:15, Claude and I managed to get a start on the shoveling before Payton and Porter arrived. When they got to the house, they helped us finish it off. Now we should be able to get mail service and the end of the driveway is clear again. Whew!

Yardwork of any kind qualifies as a day to get hamburgers for dinner. We went to Burger King. This was our first day on the roads since our Friday night dinner date. It was nice to get out of the house a bit and to see how the rest of our little community faired with the storm. 

Jessie Carter called me in the evening and we had a nice chat. We spent the evening grateful for a warm home on a very cold day. 

Thursday, January 29th, I had another bad night of sleeping. This was one of the sleep for an hour really well then you body wakes up and is ready to go. Well, maybe your mind wakes up and is ready to go. I do think my body could lay in those flannel sheets when its so cold forever. I spent a couple of hours reading The Book of Enoch. Very interesting read. 

I checked Facebook and learned our weatherman is concerned about another storm this weekend. Winter is here!!

Claude went grocery shopping while I sat to get a final draft of the Relief Society newsletter for February. While I was working on that, Betty Dixon called. We talked for about an hour. 

We decided to go to the Mexican restaurant for dinner. Good to be out again. Even better to be back in our warm home!

Friday, January 30th, this was another in a long line of very cold days. That made it the perfect day to stay inside all day. 

I was happy to accomplish a few things. I got Bailey's birthday card ready to send the next week. I put together an anniversary surprise for Claude. I sent the Relief Society Newsletter out via Facebook and eMail. Then I got the February announcements and lessons to Jennifer Barber for the Sunday bulletin. 

In the evening, I had some messaging time with Paul. Then we decided to order the Castle DVD's. I was able to do the on my cellphone while in my recliner with Walmart. Isn't life grand!

Saturday, January 31st, I awoke and for some reason determined this was a down day. I would stay inside and warm and, without any regret or feelings of guilt, simply do nothing. Turns out, this was a good choice. 

My sister-in-law sent me a text concerned about us and the snow. I went to the back door and took this picture of a chuck of snow and ice on the patio by our 1/2 bourbon barrel flower pot. If you understand the snow came on Sunday and it was still this large a chuck, you get a feel for the cold that will not let the snow melt. The chuck is about the size of a 1/2 a copy paper box. 

Snowstorm Fern is gone. But she left a lot of snow and ice and frigid temperatures. More snow forecast for our future. It is January after all!