Ashley and Nick waiting for the play to start in Murray Park.This picture was supposed to go with the other post but I couldn't get it to leave and go to the right place. :(
Family pictures taken in Idaho Falls, Idaho after Jordan's baptism.May 2011I have decided that I am going to try and be better about keeping in touch with the family blog this year. I may be the only one who ever reads this but it is a way of documenting what is going on in our lives. We are way behind on posting pictures but I have decided not to try and catch up--because that makes this task all to overwhelming--but just to start from here. The most exciting thing that happened this week was that Portland/Vancouver got some rain that turned to snow and then back to rain again. I serve in the Portland Temple every Wednesday during the early shift and that was the day that the weatherman was predicting that we could get some snow. I was stressing about it a little because our car pool leaves Vancouver at 5:00 AM and we were hoping not to have slick roads. The weather man said that the snow would probably turn to rain about 7:00 AM because of a warm front that was coming from the south but I wanted it to turn to rain earlier than that. I carpool to the temple with Sister Stinchfield from the Salmon Creek Ward and she is the shift coordinator and I am one of her assistants so we felt extra pressure to be able to get there. When I went to be Tuesday night I felt pretty calm about the whole thing--because we all know that we have dealt with many snowy days and icy roads while living in Utah and Idaho. I woke up about 2 in the morning and looked out the window saw a scene right out of a postcard with a couple of inches of white snow covering the yards and the street illuminated by all the streetlights. It looked very pretty and peaceful--and even then I didn't feel worried. By the time I pulled out of the garage at 5:00 AM I could tell that the snow had already turned to rain and we were just going to have to deal with wet slushy roads just like what we would face with an end of winter snow in the spring in Rexburg. "Piece of cake" I put the Trailblazer in 4 wheel drive and headed to the Park n Ride but Sister Stinchfield was alreading waiting for me there and volunteered to drive her Suburban. We got down to the temple without any trouble. The roads on the freeway were just wet and we had more snow in Vancouver and didn't even see snow again on the side of the road until we got to Lake Oswego. We had a really quiet day in the temple because everyone else must have been afraid to come out on the roads. The only patrons that came in all morning were 4 different groups of Elders from the Portland mission. It was still the best place in the whole world to be that day and I feel very blessed that we weren't in any danger on the roads. Now--for those living north of us and in Seattle--it was a different story. The temperatures were much colder up north and they got more snow and their rain became freezing rain and their roads were a mess. It is still raining most of each day and for a day or two this week places south of Portland have had some problems with flooding. Rain is still in the forecast but for now I feel so thankful that we are safe, comfortable and warm in our little home.
I am heading out for more adventures this week. I leave on Wednesday to fly to Omaha to see Kris, Cami, Jordan, and Joseph. I get to be there for Joseph's 3rd birthday. Then on January 31st I will fly to Phoenix to visit with Mom for a couple of weeks. I am going now because I in on some good flight prices and I also have some time off from my duties at the temple.
I am also having a little bit of a health issue. I have had numbness and tingling in my fingers and toes since the beginning of December and after several trips to different doctors and physical therapists blood tests have shown that I am low on Vitamin B12 so I have been getting a shot every day. I have noticed that my energy level is up but the numbness is still there. When I get back from this trip I will probably have to have more shots.
This morning in Relief Society our lesson was on President Monson's talk given in Conference last October about 'standing in Holy Places'. While re-reading his talk I noticed this quote,
". . . that there is nothing which can bring more joy into our lives or more peace to our souls than the Spirit which can come to us as we follow the Savior and keep the commandments."
That is my thought for the week. Love, Mom
