Weekly Review August 31 '18

I guess I am going to have to face the fact that summer vacation is over! We still have a long weekend before Seth goes back to school, though, and I know a lot of kids are already back in school. I'm glad we get until after Labor Day before Seth has to go back. At least we will still have warm weather for a while. As a matter of fact, it has been very hot and humid all week--typical miserable Maryland August weather. We did get a break from the humidity and heat for a few days at the end of last week (coincided with out trip to the Priesthood Restoration site, which was really nice!) but after those few days we were back to the usual sweltering heat.

This week was not as eventful and I didn't take any pictures so this post will probably be short and boring. Don't say I didn't warn you!! Unlike last week, we didn't have any activities in the evenings this week. That means I got more reading done with Seth and we are over half way through with Farmer Boy. Seth is enjoying it and now he wants to visit Malone, New York--which is where the story takes place. We went online so I could show him on a map where it is, and we discovered that the farm in the story has actually been restored and there is a museum that you can visit. It would be fun to do that sometime--maybe next summer.

Jared had a really early flight to Utah on Sunday morning. Frank was planning to take him to the airport (although I thought he probably shouldn't do that because of his back hurting and Sundays are always particularly hard for him) but then when he got up he felt like his sugar was off and he was kind of dizzy and shaky so I ended up taking Jared to the airport after all. He had to be at the airport by 5:00 am, so we left here around 4:00 am. I got him to the airport without any problems, though, and made it back home with time to go back to bed for a while. It helps that our church meetings aren't until 1:00 pm. I went to choir practice and substituted for the RS secretary again.

Our week days were busy with all the usual things and a few extra things. I took Seth to the orthodontist on Monday. He still has 11 baby teeth that need to come out before they can figure out if and what kind of treatment he will need. All of them are loose, so they decided to have him come back in 3 months. In the meantime, he is supposed to be wiggling his teeth! It would save us a lot of money and trouble if they come out on their own--then he won't need to have any of them pulled. So hopefully they will come out on their own soon.

Tuesday was really busy because we ended up doing things we hadn't planned to do, in addition to all the things we had planned. A sister in our ward had posted on FB that she was giving away a craft / sewing table and since I'm in the process of trying to get a sewing area set up in the basement, that interested me. My original plan was to just put my sewing machine on a plastic folding table that I have but since this sewing table looked pretty nice and it was free, I figured it was worth going to look at. I took Frank with me, in case I decided I wanted it we could just bring it back home with us. I did decide I wanted it, so we loaded it in the car. That wasn't too easy, though, and hard on both of our backs, so we decided we were going to need help getting it down to the basement after we got back home. So we texted the Elders to see if they were available and they were, so they came over to help us move the table and we also fed them some lunch. Before the Elders arrived, we needed to do some more cleaning out and moving things around since the area where I wanted to put the table was filled with other stuff. We got that done and the table in place, and it is looking a lot better down there than it was although there is still quite a bit of stuff that needs to be either moved or thrown away. It's not at the point where I feel like I can move my craft / sewing stuff down there, but we are getting closer. Anyway, all of that ended up taking a couple of hours. Seth was playing at a friend's house all of that time.

On Wednesday morning my companion for ministering and I met with the RS president for a ministering interview. It was good to talk about our sisters and discuss what we feel their needs are and what the best way to minister to them will be. It was supposed to be about 20 minutes but ended up being longer because the RS president also wanted to know how we are doing (my companion's husband is also currently unemployed). Then after the RS president left, my companion and I ended up talking for a while longer because she is the Wolf den leader so we had some Cub Scout stuff to discuss. We didn't have den meetings on Wednesday evening because it was a 5th Wednesday. I had religion class that day too, as usual, so I ended up going from the interview to the class, only stopping at home long enough to eat some lunch.

Yesterday I took Seth to the park for a couple of hours. It was slightly lower humidity (around 80% instead of 100%!) so it wasn't too bad. Our ward has a playgroup that meets every Thursday and I've been meaning to take him all summer but something else always came up. This was our last chance and we finally made it. I think Seth had fun; quite a few boys near his age showed up so that was nice. I definitely enjoyed chatting with the other moms who were there. Last night we got out Seth's school supplies and marked them all--we'll be dropping them off at his school this afternoon because there is an open house.

Other than that, I have continued to practice ukulele and exercise, and Seth and I are plugging away at the Brain Balance program. For the ukulele practice this week, I got out a book of simplified hymns that Jared gave me and I discovered that I have learned enough chords that I can play the majority of the songs in the book. I didn't expect that, and that was encouraging to me that I have made some progress. I also started learning a few more chords so that I can play more of the songs and I even figured out how to transpose one of the songs into a lower key so that I could sing along with it. It always feels good to figure things out and learn new things. For the Brain Balance program, we are adding in more things and I am starting to remember better all the things we need to do so it is becoming more routine. One of the things he is supposed to do is to listen to music with harmony, interval, quality, timbre, and spatial, temporal, & long-term patterns. There is actually a CD with music that fits these specifications available to purchase and I ordered it for him but it was out of stock and still hasn't come. When I ordered it, the website stated that if it didn't become available in 60 days that my order would be cancelled and I wouldn't be charged. Since it has already been close to 30 days, I decided I should try to find some of the other songs that are suggested in the Brain Balance book. I discovered that through our Amazon prime account, there are many songs available to download for free and several of the songs I needed were available so I downloaded a bunch of songs and put them in a playlist so now I can easily play them for Seth on a regular basis. That made me happy that I was able to find what I needed, and for free too.

Also this week I started looking at job possibilities. Since school is starting, I figure I might be able to find some work to do while Seth is at school. I'm hoping to find something part time (even temporary work would be good) and I would prefer to do something in the accounting field, of course. I started out by looking for jobs that can be done from home and I did find out that there are several possibilities out there but the other thing I discovered (which wasn't too surprising to me) is that I need to update my skills in the technology area. Many of the positions required extensive experience with software programs that I am not familiar with. I do think I could probably learn some of those programs pretty easily, but I don't know them yet. So that was a little discouraging, because I would like to get a job soon and learning several computer programs would take time. I'm definitely willing to put some effort into doing that, but in the meantime--I'm not working. Yesterday I did some more searching online and this time I looked for part time accounting jobs in the Frederick area and I actually found a couple that sound like things I definitely know how to do and that don't require me to know a bunch of accounting programs, so that was more encouraging. However, I really need to put together a resume before I can apply for anything, so I need to do that right away. That feels a bit overwhelming to me--it's been so long since I have worked at all--but the "Finding a Better Job" book that I got for the last self reliance course that I facilitated has a lot of helpful information to guide me through that process, so I definitely plan to use it. I was trying to start working on that last night, but Seth kept interrupting me constantly and I couldn't concentrate, so I gave up on doing that last night. I will try to work on it over the next couple of days.

Today my friend Renata's son, Sammy, is here playing with Seth while she is at work. Frank has been somewhat busy with his business although the last few weeks have not been as busy as the rest of the summer. It is really hard on him not to be busy and he constantly tells me that he feels like "a loser" and "useless". It makes me feel so bad that he feels that way! I've been encouraging him to look for some temporary work also. I think he will feel a lot better if he has work to do every day, not to mention bringing in a little income. He finished all the paperwork for his new job--it needed several revisions, but hopefully he won't have to revise it anymore and it will be submitted for processing. Then we just wait until the processing gets done, and hope it only takes a few months instead of several.

Jared seems to be settled in his apartment (thank you to Amy & Nate for taking him his bike and the boxes that he left at Mom's house!) and he has been looking for a job. When I texted him last night, he said he is working on a resume, but it looks like he is going to be able to get a theater job through a friend. He would prefer a theater job, but if that doesn't work out I'm sure he will find something. There seem to be a lot of jobs available at BYU. Please keep Tanner and Jared in your prayers. They are both feeling the stress of needing to provide for themselves financially as well as to do well in school and balance all of their responsibilities between work, school, church, and relationships. I think Tanner in particular is worried about being able to pass all his classes. I'm not saying that they have things harder than other college students--they don't!--but they could use divine help in learning to manage their time better and in figuring out what career paths they should take. For that matter, Scott is also trying to make some decisions about career path / education, so he could use prayers too. Thank you!!

We got an email from our ward executive secretary earlier this week inviting us to attend church meetings this Sunday to participate in sustaining a new bishopric. We knew this change would be coming soon, so it's not a total surprise. (Our bishop has been serving for a little over 5 years.) It will be interesting to see who the new bishop is as well as how this change will affect all the other callings in the ward. With the exception of the EQ president, all of the leaders have been serving for close to 3 years (or longer) so we're expecting a big calling shuffle to occur in the following months.

That is all the news from these parts. 

Weekly Review August 24 '18

I didn't get a chance to write this week's post yesterday, because I was gone all day (more on that later). When I left off last week, Seth had a mysterious rash. We never did find out what it was. He was slightly itchy on Friday and Saturday, but by Saturday the rash had faded a lot and by Sunday it was gone. No idea what that was all about, but I'm glad it wasn't anything serious.

I can't remember last Friday very well but we did return the pin maps to Seth's teacher and she was really happy with them. I was also able to get the list of school supplies he needs from her. It was sent out by email weeks ago, but for some reason I am not getting all the emails from the school. I need to try to figure out why, or I am probably going to miss some important emails in the future.

Saturday (the 18th) was a very long and busy, but nice day for Frank and I. We decided we wanted to go to the temple, so we got up at 5:00 am and we were on our way by shortly after 6:00. We got to the temple in time to go to the 10:00 session. Our session was full and I ended up in the very back of the room, so it took a while to get through the session and we didn't leave the temple until around 1:00, I think. We did take the time to go up to the rooftop of the arrival center for a couple of pictures. Another family up there graciously offered to take a picture for us:

(This is the LDS church across the street from the temple.)

On the way home, we stopped for some lunch at a restaurant in Delaware--it was actually in the city we used to live in, and the restaurant was only about a mile or so from the hospital where Jared was born. We got back home around 5:30, so that trip basically took all day. It was very lovely to be in the temple again and I am glad that we got to go but the trip was very hard on Frank. His back hurt a lot for days afterwards--as a matter of fact, I don't think he has fully recovered yet. So I guess doing that trip in one day is not going to work from now on; we'll have to find another way to do it (like spend the night in the Philadelphia area). We probably won't be able to go very often but we will do our best. I do feel like we were really blessed for making the effort to be there. That evening, Jared & Jessie went to a wedding reception for a couple in our stake (we saw them outside the temple taking pictures after we got out of our session).

Sunday (19th): In the morning I visited my friend Wanda (she's the one who lives in a nursing home). I hadn't seen her since I got back from Utah because she has been feeling down and hasn't been coming to church. She told me she was doing better, though, and that she would start coming to church again soon. She also asked me to get a couple of things for her at the store and gave me money to do that. I got most of what she needed on Monday (haven't been able to find one thing) but I didn't have a chance to get back to her place to give them to her until today. When I went today, she wasn't there (she went home to see her family) so I just had to leave her things on her bed. Hopefully she will come to church tomorrow and I will see her then. On Sunday I also did some indexing and went to choir practice before our regular church meetings so it was a pretty full day. At church, I sang with the choir during Sacrament Meeting and I substituted for the secretary in RS.

The rest of the week was mostly busy with the usual things, but I found that I was really busy every day and it was a challenge to get through my list of things to do. One thing I added in was doing brain balance stuff with Seth. On Monday I figured out what treatments we needed to do each day (I'm going to do those things with him Monday through Thursday each week) and then on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday we actually started doing the treatments, which took about 30 minutes to an hour each day. I'm still figuring out what I'm doing and we haven't been able to do everything that I plan to do yet, but at least we have made a start. Some of what we do is actual physical exercises (like curl ups and push ups) and other things are similar to the things I did during the assessments, like tracking objects with his eyes or a "smelling test", and some of it is doing workbooks that cover topics where he is weak (such as reading comprehension--he's a great reader, but doesn't always comprehend what he reads). The program also includes some deep breathing, some stretching, better nutrition, and getting aerobic exercise on a regular basis. The smelling test I mentioned involves trying to identify 9 different scents correctly--he is supposed to be sniffing strong scents like garlic, lime, peppermint, and eucalyptus. I had to get essential oils for most of the scents we needed. One of them is onion, and it is so strong that you can smell it even when the bottle is closed and inside a ziplock bag. My whole bedroom and bathroom smell like onion now and Frank is complaining about that a lot. It doesn't bother me as much but I wish I could find a good place to keep it until we are done with it. By the way, so far Seth can't identify most of the scents but he did did figure out the onion!

Our evenings this week were pretty busy. On Monday, Jared and Jessie had YSA family night, but Jessie came here for dinner first and she also joined us for our family night activity and treat before they went to their YSA family night. On Tuesday, we fed the Elders serving in our ward. Neither of them have been in our ward for very long so I hadn't met either one of them yet. They are both pleasant young men and seem to be really good missionaries. On Wednesday, I had den meeting followed by Cub Committee meeting. The Wolf den leader was out of town but she got a substitute to take her place. For some reason the Webelos leader didn't show up, although his assistant did come. The assistant didn't know what they were supposed to be doing, though, so the one Webelo boy ended up staying with our group. We talked about President Nelson (they were supposed to learn about a person whose faith they admire) and we also made a lever and experimented with it. There was time at the end to make a few stick bombs again, which was nice because one of my Bear boys had missed that last week. The committee meeting was pretty short since only me and the assistant Webelos leader were there (besides the cub committee chair and the bishopric counselor who works with Primary; the Primary president was also out of town). On Thursday evening I had book chat. It was my turn to bring the refreshments, too, so I was busy for a while on Thursday afternoon getting those prepared. For book chat we discussed A Fall of Marigolds and now we are going to read Slaughterhouse-Five. As always, I really enjoyed the evening--we have a great group of women! We talk about a lot more than just the books. :)

The rest of the week just flew by with getting all the regular chores done as well as preparation for Cub scouts, brain balance stuff, practicing the ukulele, and exercising. Jared worked at Chickfila on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Wednesday was his last day there (at least until next spring). He spent most of Thursday with Jessie--they went up to an ice cream factory in Pennsylvania where they got to take a tour (which included designing their own flavor of ice cream) and exploring a fun museum. On the way home they visited a farmer's market in Lancaster and stopped for dinner. He didn't get home until shortly after I got home from book chat.

Yesterday Jared, Seth and I took a day trip up to visit the Priesthood Restoration Site. Frank would have liked to come too but after last week's trip to the temple and back in one day, he knew there was no way he could do another trip like that so soon. I'm sure that was the best decision. It was really lovely, but it is a 4 hour drive from here so it took all day and we were pretty tired by the time we got home. We left here around 8:30 and with stops for lunch and a restroom break, we arrived at the site around 1:00. We started at the Visitor's Center, where we were given a tour by two Sister missionaries. First we saw a movie about the events that happened at this location. Then they took us outside to see two statues depicting the restoration of the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods. Then we visited the Hale home (where Emma grew up) and then the home where Joseph & Emma lived for a while early in their marriage (and where a lot of the Book of Mormon was translated). At the end of that tour, I thought they were going to ask us to give them referrals but instead they invited Seth to read the Book of Mormon and to pray about it. I thought that was really cool that they did that, because I was thinking before we went on this trip that one of the reasons I really wanted to visit this place was for Seth, since he will be old enough to receive the priesthood in less than a year. I think Seth does have a testimony of the Book of Mormon (at least a small one) but I felt like those missionaries were really inspired to focus on him. After the tour, the missionaries returned to the Visitor's Center and we went on to visit the cemetery where Emma's parents as well as Joseph & Emma's first child are buried. Then we walked through the grove of trees where John the Baptist appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery to restore the Aaronic priesthood. It is called the "sugar bush". It was very peaceful and beautiful and we would have stayed there longer except we were being eaten by bugs. (I didn't think to bring insect repellent with us.) Then we returned to the Visitor's Center, where there were a lot of interactive displays to explore. After we finished there, we drove to the site on the Susquehanna River where Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery baptized each other. It was also very beautiful and peaceful, and there weren't as many bugs! However, the banks were muddy and slippery and Jared slid and fell and got his pants somewhat muddy (but he didn't hurt himself at all). After we left the river, we headed back home and arrived home around 9:00. As I said, it was a long day but it was worth it. I really felt a beautiful spirit there and I felt like my testimony of the power and importance of the priesthood was strengthened. I took a lot of pictures, so I will finish this week's post with all of the pictures of our trip.

Today so far I have updated the budget and went to visit Wanda (although as I mentioned, she wasn't there.) I didn't even wake up until 8:30, which is major sleeping in for me, so I guess the trip yesterday wore me out more than I realized. I will keep busy the rest of the day since I still need to clean the kitchen floor, mow the lawn, and practice the ukulele. We are also taking Jared to dinner for an early birthday celebration, since he won't be here for his actual birthday. He is heading to Utah tomorrow--his flight leaves at 7:00 am. He is busy today getting packed.

I was really surprised, but really excited to get Tim's text message last night letting me know that Izak had opened his mission call and he had been called to serve in the Maryland Baltimore Mission!! It didn't even cross my mind that he would come here, but we are thrilled that he is and hope that we will see him sometime!

Now here are our photos from yesterday:

We saw this sign on the way and took a picture of it to send to Scott.

 Joseph & Emma's home

The Hale home

Inside the Hale home:

All those photos were the dining room. Now the parlor:

A very small bedroom off the kitchen, where Joseph & Emma stayed for a short time:

The kitchen:

And the pantry:

More kitchen:

Now Joseph & Emma's home:

Pictures of the front room:

Bedroom:

More front room:

Pantry:

The summer kitchen, which had benches for visitors to sit on:

Us in front of Joseph & Emma's home:

Walking to a monument commemorating the restoration of the priesthood:

And the monument. (It was near Joseph & Emma's home):

The cemetery, with gravestones for Joseph & Emma's first baby and for her parents:

The cemetery was very old. There were many stones that were so weathered you couldn't read the writing on them anymore!

On the way to the sugar bush:

The sugar bush:

On our way back to the visitor's center:

Statues outside the visitor's center:

Some of the exhibits in the visitor's center:

(The faster he turned the wheel, the faster the horse in the picture would go.)

Windows overlooking the sugar bush:

The cemetery from outside the church / visitor's center:

Plaques at the head of the trail to the baptism site along the Susquehanna River:

Baptism site on the Susquehanna River:

Flowers along the trail:

Sign in front of the church / visitor's center:

Another fun sign we saw on the way home:

Pretty sunset as we went over a bridge in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: