Scorching the World

4/30                               My phone started dinging with text messages before got up. I ignored it until it was dinging a lot. I actually had begun to get dressed when I saw that there were some emergencies happing with Clean Queen. The team leader locked her keys in the car so they were stuck at the Murray train station for nearly 1 ½ hours until someone went to unlock it. So I had to contact all the clients to let them know we would be running very late.   At the same time I was getting lots of texts from clients wanting appointments and changing appointments, so it was quite a while before I got to finish getting dressed! I stayed busy all morning and it was a good thing I had told Alexa to remind me when to leave for my dentist appointment or I might have forgotten.   Just before I went in to the dentist I got a text that had to be answered immediately, and as soon as I got out...

4/29                                  For some reason I just could not go to sleep last night. I like to blame all my problems on sugar and I do acknowledge that I ate some sweets, but I was also itching all over. I had a few mosquito bites – it’s that season again – but every part of me seemed to itch. I guess it is also allergy season. But whatever the cause, I finally went to bed at about 4:00 am and got up around 6:30am so I was really dragging all day.   I didn’t have to go anywhere today, for which I was grateful, but I sure had a lot of Clean Queen phone calls and texts. Around noon Tom was ready for a nap so we laid down, but within a minute I got a text, and every time after that when I fell asleep, I got another text. It was almost funny because later I counted out many, and in a period of 20 minutes I received 21 texts! Tom slept through it all.   So I stayed busy with...

4/28     I love Sundays. I can remember when the kids were little, Sundays seemed like the longest days and it seemed hard to find things to keep them occupied through a very long day. Now Sundays fly past and I hate to see them end. Today I was visiting another ward relief society that happened to meet in my own building just before our meeting. So I went in my own car and met Tom there later. The other ward relief society was really good. I love visiting other wards and getting to know other people in the stake! Then it was time for our ward. Tom was the main speaker for Sacrament Meeting and he sure was nervous. He asked if I could sit on his lap on the stand to help calm him down. He was doing well with his talk, and I had something I needed to put in my calendar before I forgot, so I took my eyes off him for just a minute when the lady next to me told me he was trying to get my attention. His throat was so dry he almost couldn’t speak even though he had cough dr...

4/27/19                             Thursday and Friday are a blur and a little boring. Tom worked long hours and I stayed home and did what I do.   Today Tom happily worked on the yard; he ‘s such a happy little landscaper/groundskeeper! I worked on stuff inside – a little cleaning, a little on a puzzle leftover from Easter, and a little on Clean Queen. I need to remind those who work on Saturday that I don’t. Course I can use the hours, so maybe I don’t care unless there is a day when I can’t work on a Saturday.             We were invited to a birthday party for Carla, a 10 year old in our old Spanish ward. Her parents are good friends and we knew there would be great friends from the Spanish ward there, not to mention great food, so Tom wanted to go. I told him it is definitely a cultural thing because nobody I know, including me, would invite all ...

4/24/19                           Yesterday Tom worked far away and was gone more than 12 hours. I had an appointment for a temple recommend interview and went to that in the evening. That’s about all that happened yesterday. Today I woke up with a headache so I took it easy all day. Tom almost stayed home today but then remembered that he needed to go somewhere and left about 9am. He got home about 5pm and had a little snack before leaving for an antique car show. I couldn’t go with him because I was scheduled to go do a training for a new ward RS presidency of the Echo Ward. I was glad that my headache had mostly gone by then and I could drive and talk coherently. It was fun meeting with Sandra Fernandez and Mayte Tellez and pretending we knew more than they did on the newest program. They are amazing women and will do great! When I got home, Rosie Smith came over to visit for a few minutes. She was thanking ...

Tom got to stay home today so we got to have all day together. It was beautiful. Tom got lots of yard work done (it is never done!) and I did lots of Clean Queen. I received so many calls and texts, I thought it would never end. This is a busy time of year and Lily has cut down to one team, so we are booked out a couple of weeks.   In the evening Tom tore himself away from the yardwork, cleaned up, and we went to our friends Sue and Mel Davis’ house for family home evening. It turned out we were the only couple coming this time, so we had a little intimate lesson and strawberry shortcakes. It was fun. We watched a documentary about 3 Amish families who converted to the gospel, the trials they faced and their expressions of gratitude. It was very interesting and thought provoking. Made me a little more grateful for growing up in the Church.

4/21/19                             Easter Sunday Tom got called to teach the gospel doctrine class about 6 weeks ago, but there has been general conference, stake conference, ward conference and on the other weeks it was Priesthood/Relief Society weeks. So he was very well prepared for today, but was still a little nervous about teaching so we went over the lesson again for a while, then went all the way through it to time it. After that he felt much more ready.  Our meetings don't start until 11:30, so we sure have a long morning at home. I got the ham into the oven, and got other things ready to make as soon as we got home. We left 45 minutes early because Tom was nervous about getting the copies made that he wanted, and getting a tv set up and hooked up to my computer and to make sure everything worked. Church was really good; the m...

4/29                                  We invited Tanya and family, along with Cai and Devin who are here visiting, over for the day and they told us they would be here at 10 for breakfast. They just got back last night from a week in Los Angeles where they went to the beach with Pettus’ and went to Disneyland so we were excited to hear all about their adventures.   With so much time before breakfast we got a whole lot of things done in the yard before they came and still had everything ready for them. But they came without Caeli and Todd. Tanya said Caeli stayed home because her dog was sick and Todd needed to get ready for tomorrow so he stayed with her.   After breakfast the Knudsens (and Cai) watched a bunch of stuff on tv but then got a text from Todd so she left to go be with Caeli. We found out later,...

4/19                                Tom got to stay home again today. It’s so nice when he is home. The first thing he did was warm up the tiny baby bottle of milk to go feed the squirrel. He let it stay in the special cage he built  outside last night because it was the warmest night we’ve had this year. Sadly when he went out he found it dead. He was pretty sad; he had become quite attached to it. He thought it was getting better, but who knows what internal injuries it had - it at least had a broken leg and never was active at all. The best it ever did was suck vigorously on the bottle. Other than that, it just slept all the time. So sad. The funny thing is that EVERYONE I talked to about Tom’s baby squirrel said the same thing – squirrels are evil and need to be destroyed. I thought that was pretty funny. But Tom has a tender heart for all creatures and especially squirrels. Now he has a b...

4/18                                 Tom got to work from home today. So nice! He cared for Buddy, his little baby squirrel, off and on through the day and thinks she is doing better. Maybe it’s just the warmer weather that makes her a little more active. But clearly she has a broken leg or something because she can’t walk. I did some Clean Queen, but mostly it was a little too quiet until it was time for me to leave for my dentist appointment. Suddenly the schedule tried to fall apart and I had to be on the phone with the team leader, Natalia, and Lilian for more than half hour. I finally said what I needed to say, and then went in for my appointment and left them to figure it out. I’m getting an implant. The process is very prolonged. I had to tooth pulled last year – December, I think and have been waiting and waiting for the implant. Today they finally made the mold for the crown on the imp...

4/17/19                           Tom left around 9am and was gone until about 6. His truck was leaking oil so he took my car. Normally I don’t go anywhere, but today I had presidency meeting, so that meant I had to drive the Oldsmobile. It didn’t feel quite as huge and boat-like this time I drove it – maybe because when I drove it before I was used to driving the Miata. Now I’m used to driving a normal sized-car. But even though it wasn't as bad to drive as I remembered, I didn’t want to drive it to run other errands, so after the meeting I just came home.   Tom’s little squirrel has stopped eating. He’s sad about it and just hopes she gets better, but it isn’t looking good.

4/16                                  I didn’t do much today and really enjoyed every minute. When Tom got home he worked in the yard. His little squirrel isn’t doing very well. He’s trying to decide if he should put her out of her misery or hope she gets better. So far he’s choosing the latter.

4/15                                  Tom got to work from home today and didn’t have much work to do, so he took it easy all morning and did yard work all afternoon/evening. He especially put a lot of energy into building a special habitat for his pet squirrel. He has named it Buddy, and today he said Buddy eats so little he has started calling her Bud Light.   I’m not sure what else he did outside, but he was there long after dark and came in veery tired. We decided it was too cold outside for the squirrel so Tom brought her in and fed her one more time. She isn’t doing very well. I did a lot of Clean Queen except when Tom needed me to help outside a little bit now and then. It was still nice outside – very pleasant. In the evening we practiced Tom’s lesson. He asked me to prepare a Powerpoint presentation to go with his lesson, so we need to practice to make sure it flows and ...

4/14                                We haven’t got together in the Bay Area for several months. I really miss my kids and grandchildren and wish geography and work schedules weren’t such an issue and problem, but they are so we do what we can. We went to Sacrament meeting, which was fast and testimony meeting and quite nice. I think this was the 3 rd time I’ve been in our own ward since we got transferred back from the Spanish ward. It was nice; we’re making some friends and getting to know people. After the meeting I took time to get my temple recommend renewed, even though we were in a hurry. Once we got home, we quickly packed and Tom took care of necessary things to be able to take the little squirrel with us. She can’t be left home alone that many hours yet. Consequently, we left for the Bay Area much later than I had hoped and didn’t get there until after 4pm. We were supposed to pick up C...

4/13/19   Tom and I got up slowly and were taking it easy when Todd and the boys showed up at the door. They had gone to the vineyard and got done early so they came over to kill a little time. It was fun to have them here. To, and then them was about to go do yard work, so he enlisted and was grateful for extra help. He got them to help rake and put in the garbage all the debris that blew into the yard when we had severe winds last week. Our whole yard was a mess of leaves and branches, so it really needed cleaned up. With their help he got it done quickly and then they left. I was hoping they would hang around longer, but Todd had things he wanted to do at home.   We spent the day just doing stuff that needed done. It was so nice to have a whole day without interruptions where we could stick to a project until it was done. I painted the closet floors that hadn’t been done yet so that I could finally put away all the painting stuff. It was a project because there was a...

4/12   Tom got to stay home for work today and said he only had a couple of things (which he would need my help with) and then he would be free to spend the whole day working on the yard. But there are so many distractions that he actually didn’t get to the yard until about 4pm. Part of what took up his time was caring for Buddy, his baby squirrel. In the evening he said, “I don’t have time to raise a baby squirrel.” He really doesn’t; Buddy needs almost constant care right now.   The squirrel was getting very smelly from her injuries and from having milk pour all over her with every feeding. So Tom decided to give her a bath today. He sure loves taking care of her. He has wanted a pet squirrel ever since he was a little boy.   After the bath, Buddy seemed almost dead. Tom took her out in the back yard and carried her around in the sun for a long time to help her dry off and she was limp and lethargic. He was scared he had killed her but she finally perked up i...

4/11        I could have finished the floor painting – the floors in the hall closets – but I was just still to tired and achy, so I took it easy and didn’t even feel guilty about it. I did, however feel enough energy to sew. There is another baby shower tomorrow and I decided to just do the same gift I made for the last one. Maybe it will become my signature gift. I made a carry bag, a little smaller than a grocery bag, and made a baby quilt- receiving blanket, actually – to go in it. So I spent almost the whole day working on it. Many hours. And when it was suddenly 6pm and Tom was home, I still had lots to do to finish it. Caeli came over a little while after gymnastics and I gave her the prom dress I had altered for her, but kept on sewing instead of watching tv with her and Tom. When Tanya picked up Caeli at 9pm, I was still sewing. I did finish them both and tomorrow I just have to add a bow and wrap it up. It was really fun and hard to stop, even t...

4/10     Tom worked from home today, but had a lot of work to do, so he was busy with that almost all day. I did my little bit if clean queen, then worked on painting the floor. I had finished all the areas where it was easy, so now I needed to start moving furniture and doing bigger areas. I got quite a bit done, then went to the store and got more paint. While I was gone, Tom finished his work and was ready to help me paint.   He started helping me about 4pm and by 6pm I was exhausted! My hands hurt so much I could hardly hold the roller, my head hurt (maybe from the fumes?), and my shoulders and arms ached. Too much detail, but I hurt all over and we weren’t quite finished yet. Tom said he would finish up so I could rest but I needed to get ready to leave for another ward’s Relief Society activity. So much of the pathways through the house had wet paint that it was tricky remembering where we could step and where we couldn’t.   The activity was fun. The...

4/9     I received about 10 new requests for cleaning this morning! I couldn’t believe it. They just kept coming in. But even with that, I worked less than 2 hours. The phone was so quiet I decided to paint the floor a little more. It is very easy, just slow going because there is so much floor. We really hope it will wear well because it sure looks better.   Tom texted me when he was on his way home that he was bringing home a new homeless friend. That sure worried me, with just a hint of panic, but when he arrived, he showed me this tiny squirrel the he found almost dead. On the way home he picked up some squirrel food, a baby animal bottle and some baby animal milk. IT MAKES HIM SO HAPPY! I didn’t get to hang out with Tanya when she came while Caeli was in gymnastics because my ward had our Relief Society Birthday celebration. It was fun. They had “Mad Hatter” type decorations, and a fun game, then refreshments. When I got home, Tom was still...

4/8                               I had a lot of Clean Queen messages, emails, and calls to follow-up on that accumulated while I was at the funeral and traveling Saturday, so I dove right into those when I got up. I thought it would keep me busy a long time, but surprisingly, it was all resolved in a short amount of time and then the phone was pretty silent the rest of the day.   Tom got to work from home today, which was sure nice. I love it when he’s home. He called Phil about Tami and found out that she continues very down, depressed, and despondent. There just has to be something we can do to help her, but we haven’t thought of anything yet.   I spent most of the day getting ready for family home evening at our house tonight. It was supposed to be at the Davis’ house, but they were going to be out of town, as was another couple. I sent out a reminder to the remaining couples about it, an...

4/7      We invited Tanya and family to come over for breakfast and to stay to join us in watching conference.   It’s always more fun with family. Tom got up and picked oranges which we juiced, cooked a ton of bacon, which all got eaten, fried potatoes, made some scrambled eggs with green beans, and I made pancakes. Last night he sliced strawberries and we got whipped cream to go on the pancakes, so it was quite a feast! They got here at 8:30 and it was all consumed and cleaned up (sort of) before conference started.   We enjoyed being all cuddled up on the couches through the first session. The beautiful and inspiring talks and music were wonderful. I can’t wait to listen to them over and over. There are so many things we need to work on!   Between sessions I pulled out some paints, tiles, and rocks. I’m making a rock garden for the back yard, and there is a place in the front where Tom wants to put tiles that we want to be painted by family. So we fi...

4/6                                    Of course I got sick from eating so late; I had a very upset stomach and headache most of the night, so for breakfast I had a Sprite and potato chips. It helped some.   We watched the first session of conference on my phone while we got ready. It was good. The hotel was so nice, we really didn’t want to go home and definitely never want to ever stay in a Motel 6 again. Now we’re SPOILED!  This is a wall hanging. It looks like a painting of birds, but when you get close, you can see that it is white paper that they have cut angles, then folded the cut paper back revealing different colors behind it. I thought it was way cool! Our room:  The bathroom sink, counter, closet, and dresser are all behind the bed headboard/wall. It's cool how the headboard i...