The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

We had a pretty rough start to the week.  Somehow we didn't lock the car Sunday night and we discovered our GPS was stolen Monday morning.  I got a call from someone sounding desperate and in need of help while Elder Quincy was working on the remodel.  I agreed to pick her up from a local motel at noon.  I started the laundry, including our sheets and went grocery shopping for just the essentials for that night and tried to call Elder Quincy, the district leader, and everyone I could think for to know what to do with this crazy sounding person.  I got home with the groceries and found Elder Quincy home with the terrible news that he's found bed bugs on our stripped bed! We picked up the woman, and while she went into the Burger King to get food Elder Quincy got the mission president on the phone he said we couldn't help this woman.  We had to let the Bishop take care of it.  We took her to the church and finally got through to the Bishop. She didn't want to take his offer of help and decided she wanted to go to Conroe to the Catholic church there.  So we drove her there, all the way listening to how a true Christian would help her AKA give her money to do what she wanted with.  So we left her in Conroe at the Bleeding Heart Catholic church.  It turns out she's been scamming several people in our ward into payng her motel bill for at least the last week.  Each of them had a different name for her, but we all had the same description.  So we were pretty much out of time for our regular Pday stuff, but stopped at Walmart for Bed Bug killer.  I managed to get taco salad stuff put together while we were sterilizing all of our bedding and spraying the bed springs.  Apparently the bugs hadn't made it past our mattress cover.  We sterilized it, move the mattress into the exercise room, and we've been sleeping in there until we are sure we've killed all the bed bugs.  They can go 300 days without eating!!

We had a great end to the day though!  The Allen family loved my Taco Salad.  We showed them The Prince of Peace video and read The Living Christ together.  It was amazing!  We were all crying and the Spirit was really strong.  Tammy and Sonya's mom, Babara, asked for a priesthood blessing!  Huge breakthrough!  Ashley received her patriarchal blessing Sunday.  Tammy asked her about it and it was really cool when she said that until she had her blessing, she hadn't realized how much Heavenly Father loves her and how well He knows her.  It was a really awakening experience for her.

 

Infested

Our Erstwhile bedroom.

The first Sisters from our first transfer here went home this transfer.  Sister Fisher sent me this picture of them and the married couple from the mission The Jones at her Homecoming! 

I was walking by myself a couple of days ago and heard a larger than usual animal in the vacant tree filled lot we walk by.  I thought I heard a snort and wondered if it was a wild pig.  The next morning I found this poor dead pig in the road.

Elder Quincy has been spending about 8 hours a day working on 2 service projects.  The bathroom remodel and a wood floor and paint prep at a blind guy's house.  He's had Br. Sneed with him all the time and Br. Bright some of the time.  They've got a lot done!

In the middle of demolition.

Walls mudded and taped.

PaintedShower liner and cement board in

Tile in on the shower floorAlmost done with the bathroom floor. Man this ward is going to miss Elder Quincy!

We visited Sister Jernigen today and she is really failing!  Elder Quincy gave her a blessing and told her to be at peace and she seemed to really settle down.  We thought she was going several times.  I am going to miss our Sundays with her!  She is so ready to go though!

It was a big contrast to go straight from there to this fun, loud, young energetic group to celebrate Easter, and the births of Logan 5 years ago, Alice 3 years ago and Jason 37 years ago! 

This sweet Mary is very huggable.

Jane loves getting her picture taken.

Alice loves her new dress!

Somehow this is the only picture I got of Sydney.  She wasn't feeling great!

Even Avery posed for me.

Logan!

Dean is so creative!

The Princess castle was a big hit!

 I finally got a picture of our district.  Here they are eating pizza after District Meeting for Elder Brinkerhoff's birthday.  They are great missionaries. 

My cute nephew and his family after having his adopted step son sealed to the family! 

This bunny is a less active Sister visiting the family who just lost their daughter, the Masons. 

I can't even begin to describe how happy it makes me to have her serving them.

It was awesome to see Luke bless the sacrament today!  I love that he has so many mentors in the ward.  More than one man in the ward offered to help him.  His Home teaching companion has been meeting with him to train him and gave him "The Continuous Atonement" to read.  And of course, Br. Bradley hired him and so he works with him every day.

We got a new Relief Society Presidency today!  Already they've made a visit to the Jernigens!  They are going to be amazing! 

Have I mentioned how much I love the Prince of Peace videos?  We've been showing them to lots of people and everyone seems to get touched! Firsts this week were driving to the Bishop's Storehouse alone, without a GPS!  Getting robbed!  Killing bed bugs!  Getting a REFUND from taxes!  Mission two thirds done!  Man it goes fast! 

61 trips around the Sun

This week has been a long time coming!  Not just my 61st birthday, but Tammy's baptism!  We had our first lesson with her on Sept. 5th.  And then 7 months later she did it!  I love this good lady so much!  This is Tammy with her daughter Cheyenne (still to be converted) and granddaughter Kylie (wants to be baptized NOW!)

My birthday was awesome because we got to work on the bathroom remodel.  Well Elder Quincy does the work and he lets me take the construction garbage out.  Then we picked up the Lees and took them to the temple for the first time in 4 years!  They live in the boonies and have had trouble making it to church, but at the start of the year they committed to come and to be able to go back to the temple!  Annie called me a week ago and said; "We just left the Stake President's office!  We have recommends!  When can you take us to the temple"?  It was a 200 mile round trip to get them, take them to the temple, take them home and go back to our house.  I can't think of a better way to spend my birthday!

I have to share my texting with Tammy on Tuesday;  She said she was meeting with the Elders that night to go over the baptism interview questions and was scared.  I told her that she was soo ready to be baptized!  She said "thanks I needed to hear that".  I told her that I remembered when she said she was scared to read the Book of Mormon because she knew it would change her whole life.  And that it had changed her life, but all for the better.  She said yes it has changed everything and all for the better.  It really made me happy to have her say that!  She of course had no problem with the interview questions.  I felt privileged to be asked to speak at her baptism.  It was really a highlight of my life to meet and teach and love this great family! Here's 3 of the 12 missionaries who've taught Tammy the gospel.

Tammy's sister Sonya has been crying ever since the baptism, she is soo happy!

Family kept arriving, but here's the first picture of them. 

Tammy with Kylie and Ashley's 2 kids.

Luke and Ashley with Tammy.

Last to arrive, Sonya's husband, Lloyd.  He's the only hold out that hasn't been to one of our Monday night meetings at the Allen's. 

Elder Quincy has been working all week on that bathroom remodel, so Saturday I went with the Sisters and helped a member take down some wallpaper. 

The bathroom is now gutted and the new stuff in going in.

Ashley's daughter, Laney turns 3 this week.  She had a huge birthday party at which we met more of this family!  So much more work to do with them! 

 Stake Conference was last night and this morning.  It was great and such a joy to see so many members of our ward there.  This morning they held a special session for new members since the last conference at 9:00.  We were followed there by Tammy, Sonya and Jaycie.  Ashley and Luke met us there with the kids.  Ashley got her Patriarchal Blessing!  So sweet Glenda picked up Sandy and brought her.  Br. Soper and Christine brought her kids, Megan and Zak, The Martinez family from the Cleveland branch were there, too.  Cleveland totally dominated the meeting.  There were only 5 other converts there from the whole stake!  Anyway, the Stake President had them all stand and introduce themselves, tell what ward they are from and tell what their  "aha moment" was when they got  a testimony.  It was really cool to hear and be there.  And then they had reserved the first 2 rows in the chapel for us!  Great seating is a good perk.  Its been a good week!  Firsts would be our longest trip to the temple.  Our first new member conference session, and me talking at a baptism here. 

Temple work and play

Another awesome trip to the temple!  We worked really hard all week to get ready for this one.  First we had to remind the Bishop to ordain Luke a priest on Sunday, then we had to make sure he got his temple recommend after that. Oh and we had to get one of the office staff to go in to the office an extra day to get his membership record entered, so that he had a member number!

Monday we had a great FHE with the Allen family and Luke.  It was awesome because Luke had to testify right along with the missionaries about every point.  At one point Tammy, who is getting baptized Friday the 7th at 7:00 pm asked Luke if he's afraid that the old Luke will come back and the New Luke will disappear just as suddenly as the new one came.  He said no, because I'm expecting trials.  I'm going to keep close to the Spirit so that I'm ready and can overcome them!  Just what Tammy needed to hear! 

Wednesday we met with Luke and Sonya to get their names for the temple trip.  We got Luke's LDS account set up and found his grandpa and discovered he needs his mom's permission to be baptized for him.  We did get names for Sonya and Ashley to take on Friday though. 

Our Book of Mormon class was the best yet!  There is just such a great spirit there and everyone is so involved and loving and caring for each other! 

Thursday morning Luke came early for a blessing.  He'd had a tough night. 

Thursday was one of those magic days were we find everyone home.  We visited 14 people that day!  And were able to be there at the right moment to help 3 of them with some service!

Friday Luke came after work and with his mom's permission we printed off his grandpa's card.  We showed him how to iron his shirt by putting it in the dryer with a damp cloth and Elder Quincy printed off instructions on tying a tie.  He went home to shower and we picked up hamburgers for all of us to eat on the way.  Picked up Luke, then went to Kingwood to get Elder Taylor and his comp and drove to the temple.  Ashley and Sonya brought the Sisters.  And we got picture and had a wonderful experience!  Elder Quincy baptized and confirmed them all.  I handed out towels.  It amazed the temple president that Luke had only be a member for 13 days. 

The sun is suddenly at the angle that we actually have shadows on our walks.

The trees are all leafed out and beautiful here.

We took dinner to the Masons on Monday.  We went to the viewing for their sweet Sophia on Tuesday night.  It was sweet to see her dressed in a tiara and a Sophia the First dress.  Sad day for the family, but Sophia is in a much better place. 

Saturday we watched conference and had our second biannual Chili cook off before Priesthood meeting.  We had about 50 people there!  While the men watched priesthood session, I helped Angela Graham get an LDS account and found 3 generations of her family on Family Search.  We fixed breakfast for the members and missionaries between sessions Sunday and we had lots more to feed than 6 months ago. Then we had the Bradleys over for dinner after conference.  Way too much cooking this week-end! 
Firsts; Shannon Watson had her patriarchal blessing and she said it answered every question she had about her life!  So cool!  She and Ashley Evans and the Grahams are going to take the Temple Prep classes!  The other first was that little Laney gave the prayer for us at the Preschool lesson this week.  I can't tell you how big a change that is for her!  We got 2 new great missionaries!  Elder Brinkerhoff from Mesa, Arizona, and Sister Gray from Boise, Idaho.