SNEEZY WEEK

Monday, July 25, 2016
My day started off with a visit to the dentist - for Jonathan. For his mission. Come to find out, he needs his wisdom teeth out. Great. The oral surgeon? In Lawton. Great. Lovely start to the week.

The mowers are out on the sides of the highways. Grass pollen is up. I am itchy, sneezy, drippy. Gotta love it.

After my weekly visit to Hobart (Finally take out graduation and put up "fall" and Grandparents' Day. There's always a holiday to celebrate with Hallmark!), I do my normal stuff. Shopping, laundry. Then, down time. This body needs a break!

Tuesday, July 26, 2016
More highway driving, more mowers. Ah-choo! I am headed to Wichita Falls, an hour and a half drive, to do a revision at a Wal-mart. Believe it or not, I am the third most expert in the group, after the Installation gal, and the gal who works that store. The other three ladies working are all new-hires. One is only two weeks into it! I told them, though, that revisions/installs are good ways to know the nuts-and-bolts of Hallmark set-ups.

Installation gal says that, starting in August, we'll be doing Walgreens. I hope mine is one of them! It is such a mess. I guess every store that Hallmark services gets a revision yearly. To keep things neat and fresh.

This evening, Analiese and I go to our friends from 4H - the Snows - to work on rabbit agility. Alice is not super-excited about it, but it is hot and humid.

She also wasn't very excited about Java trying to mate with her again. I don't know if he succeeded or not, but eventually, she'd just whirl around to face him and growl!

Oh, but my allergies were SO bad there! One of the gals was grooming her white mini rex and the fur was flying everywhere! I was sneezing and sniffling so bad. I only lasted an hour and a half, which was sad, because we really enjoy visiting there. Could have been the grass, too, on top of it, come to think of it. We ARE on a farm.

Wednesday, July 27, 2016
I stayed to work at Walgreens after taking Jonathan there to work. Analiese was only at home alone for a little bit because her YW leaders picked her up to take her and the others to the swimming pool on base. They say it is better than the city pool. I don't know, I've never seen it.

Coming home, I faced my allergies again and decided enough was enough. A nap was in order. I woke up just as Analiese came home. She's fine. Jonathan's fine. Ken's fine. It's just ME.

Went this evening to the church to transfer stuff from the closet in the old room we used for Seminary (where the font is) to the new room (Primary room). I have more room in this closet, so I could put some boxes of stuff from prior years in there, rather than keep them in my home. I pulled down all the photos of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The old room looks sadly bare now. I didn't have time, though, to put them back up in the new room. I only had time for the closet, really, because I had to go fetch Jonathan from work.

Thursday, July 28, 2016
Today was one of those "Best Laid Plans" kind of days. Since the missionaries were coming to dinner this evening, I had planned on making rolls and zucchini-pineapple cake (which reminds me a lot of carrot cake - moist and with cream cheese frosting). But, I had to drive to Lawton instead (more mowers, more sneezing!) because I had to take Ken's Honda to the dealership. Something was wrong - either with the key or the ignition - because the key didn't want to go into the ignition. Once it did, it started just fine.

I sat in their waiting room for a couple of hours while they figured it out. Turns out, it was the key...all worn down. Good thing: that was the cheaper fix. The wait was, well, the boring wait. I made some phone calls and texts regarding Seminary, drank a free soda from the dealership, and read my library book. Their TV was blaring stupid daytime TV stuff, but I managed to ignore it. Plus, my book is pretty good. Follow me on Goodreads if you want to know what I'm reading.

Got home mid-afternoon and stopped by the store to pick up rolls and dessert. You know, it would have been cheaper (and tasted better) if I made it myself. But there just wasn't time. Ken smoked chicken breasts wrapped in bacon with apple wood. It's a favorite of ours and we only do it once a year. It was very good, and the missionaries enjoyed it.

My nose is so red and raw tonight. My lips are all dried out, too. I don't dare take extra allergy meds in the daytime because they make me so sleepy. But I'll take some tonight!

Friday, July 29, 2016
A day with a little reprieve! I was a little sniffly at the beginning of the day, but by the time I got to work, I was okay! Thank goodness, I need a rest.

The weather was funny. Ken thought it might rain, at least that's what it looked like on the radar. The wind picked up and gray clouds rolled in. Thankfully, the air grew cooler. Maybe we got a few sprinkles (I don't know, I was in Wal-mart most of the morning), but not enough to justify me not watering my garden.

Made zucchini-pineapple cupcakes this afternoon (think carrot cake, only with zucchini). The recipe is for a 9x13 pan, but I'm taking it tomorrow to a pool party where they're only serving finger foods. So, I made cupcakes! First time I've ever done that without a box mix.

The other little change was in flavoring. I only had enough for a very scant teaspoon of vanilla, and the recipe called for two. Rather than just go buy some more, I used about half a teaspoon of coconut extract and half a teaspoon of rum extract (No, no real alcohol!).  Trust me, it was fabulous!

Baked and cooled, I'll frost them tomorrow. And make "pickle things" for the party.

Saturday, July 30, 2016
Lots to do today. I started by doing some more set-up at the church. I put up all the pictures, and displayed the posters I want to use.

I'm pretty much done putting together binders and such. I'm getting really close to being ready for the 9th!

Went home, took Jonathan to work, picked up some more vanilla for the cream cheese frosting (I didn't want to mess with that), and spent my afternoon making pickle things and frosting cupcakes.

The party, I thought (and had on my calendar) was at five. We get to the Snow's...it's at six. Analiese kept insisting it was at six, but I was sure - because it was on my calendar - that it was at five. That's okay, they were ready for us and we all went into the pool.  Because, even though today was a little cloudy, it was sticky warm humid. Not nice. And the pool felt great.

We had a lot of fun and, for some reason, the party was all girls, even down to the mothers! The goodies I made went over well and, after eating, the girls all rushed back to the pool

while we moms sat out and talked. These ladies are so fun, I enjoy every one of them.

We left around eight so that Analiese could get showered and changed and go with one of the girls from Rabbit Club to a local coffee house (trust me, it's a safe hangout that Jonathan and his friends like to go to) to hear the girl's brother perform. Jonathan would join them later when he got off of work (it's down the road from Walgreens). So I had a quiet couple of hours to myself to clean up my kitchen. Yippee. But I stayed up to wait for them, mainly Analiese, to see if they had a good time. Which, with that good group of friends, they did.

Sunday, July 31, 2016
We're all a bit tired this morning. Jonathan went back to bed after breakfast and I had to wake him to get ready for church. I need to start going to bed later and getting up earlier in anticipation of Seminary. Plus, I don't like yawning in church.

Sacrament meeting was lovely today. The topic was temple work and blessings. Plus, we had a viola/piano duet from a new family in our ward of a mash-up between "If You Could Hie to Kolob" and "Adam-Ondi-Aman." It was so beautiful! My kids even said they were moved by it. After church, Jonathan remarked how strong the Spirit was in sacrament meeting. Good!

I took some basil from my garden to church to pass out to various sisters who'd shown interest in having some. I have a tendency at my house to hang onto Taco Bell cups when Ken brings ice home for me from work. Today they, and the lids, came in handy as I parceled out basil in TB cups with a little water and lids on them. Made people happy and everything smelled good!

Jonathan had a friend over this afternoon (brother to the brother and sister from yesterday - confused?) to play games and watch movies. They include Analiese, so that's okay. Especially, if they don't get too carried away. Sometimes, with schedules, it's the only time they can see each other.

20 YEARS OF MARRIED BLISS

Monday, July 18, 2016
What happens when you have a very busy weekend and don't look at your garden? Monster zucchini grow - seemingly overnight! Oh dear! And two of them!

A very clear morning - not a cloud in the sky. It's a good day for flying, at least the turkey vultures and C-17s say so!

Work at Hobart was pretty uneventful. In and out. The drive was very mellow. No worry, no hurry. Back in Altus, I had lunch at Taco Bell and even got to have Ken sit (for a short minute) and chat. I get tired of TB food, but I go more to see him than anything else.

Only a couple of weeks until Seminary starts, so my brain is tuned to that channel a lot lately. I got the O.K. from the bishop to move us from the one room to the Primary Room, so there's that arrangement to think about. Time to move stuff to a closet over there as well. So, it's a good thing I'm not super-busy with work right now.  Except, now my boss wants me to do an installation in Wichita Falls next week.

Tuesday, July 19, 2016
Happy Anniversary! 20 years ago, Ken & I...

Hard to believe all that time is gone. In our disposable world, it's nice to see not everything fades so quickly. We're not all that trendy, anyway. After twenty years, we're pretty comfortable with each other. Perfect, nah. But like when we were talking with Jonathan last night, we fit each other. Our perspectives help the other see better when we might be stuck in our own limited view. We don't have to be cookie-cutter the same...we aren't and function all the better for it!

We're not doing anything today - we both have to work. But we're going out Thursday. You'll hear more then.

There's no way to make a day better than by receiving a package! My sister, Wendy, had been in Hawaii a couple of weeks back and had brought some goodies back for us. It came in the mail...and boy did we have fun documenting it!

Oh, the heat was brutal today! I felt head-achy most of the day, and when I went to Walgreens, I felt rather flat. I went home...and took a nap. I felt a little better after that, but I sure related to the elders when they came by for a drink of water and a chance to get out of the sun.

Wednesday, July 20, 2016
Today was a headache day. I'm not exactly sure why. Heat? Allergies?  All I know is that I woke up with it and it didn't go away until about an hour before bedtime. Left me feeling pretty flat all the day long.

Ken and the kids went bowling this afternoon. The local bowling alley has a summer special running and they wanted to go. The last place a person with a headache wants is to be in a bowling alley, hearing pins dropping continually. So I stayed home.

Thursday, July 21, 2016
Ken and I left early this morning for Oklahoma City. This was our day to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary so we went where it started...the temple. Okay, not THE temple - that was Los Angeles, but A temple, where the same covenants are made...and renewed. Our problems seem so very small when we are there. There is so much peace; I just want to curl up there and sleep the sleep of the innocent. Too bad we don't get there often enough!

After that, we went to lunch at a place Ken wanted to try - the Saltwater Grill.

I had a pretty good prime rib and sweet potato fries, while Ken had steak and potatoes, but the best were the fried mushrooms he got for an appetizer. The dipping sauce for them reminded me of the old Hoff's Hut dill dressing they served with their fried zucchini. Made me remember how much I love dill.

After a short stop in Lawton (Sam's Club, where else?), we got home. And Ken packed up the car with Jonathan and went camping up at Steed Lake. Jonathan really wanted to go and Ken realized he won't have many of those options for much longer, so I urged them to go. Analiese and I had a quiet night.

Friday, July 22, 2016
Busy day. Besides the normal stuff of laundry and Hallmark work at Walmart, I also had to do something with my zucchini and lemons. The solution was to make lemon-zucchini bread!

I had one store-bought lemon, I don't even remember what I purchased it for. I compare it here to the Carr California lemons.

They're not as pretty, but are much juicier. The store lemon was a large portion of rind and pith! I just juiced everybody; it's my juicer I bought in California when we moved to Corona and I had an orange tree.

Then I had to shred all the zucchini. One of them weighed at least three pounds! I think I got six cups of shredded veggie total. Bummer, the recipe only called for one! That's okay, there's plenty more lemon juice, buttermilk, and cake flour (hey, that's what the recipe called for) to make more.

The batter was SUPER liquidy and nearly filled the bread pan to the top.

I was afraid it might go over. It took a little longer to bake (my oven), but cooled nicely and the glaze went on prettily. And tastily, I might add.  I'll take it to the church tomorrow for the baptism. After I cut a few slices for home!

Saturday, July 23, 2016
This heat is so brutal. I really think this is what's causing the headaches...especially when I have to go out in it.

The baptism was at eleven. I played the piano; Jonathan gave the opening prayer. It was very nice. The bread was well-liked among the goodies, too.

But I went home to flop down and rest. Good thing the only other place I have to go today is to take Jonathan to work at five. I really feel wiped out.

Sunday, July 24, 2016
Didn't have to lead the music in Sacrament meeting today. One of the sister missionaries did, so her companion came and sat with us. That was nice. Jonathan didn't bless the sacrament, but passed it. He said it's been about two years since he's done that. Hey, that's okay.

I didn't have to sub in Primary, so I got to sit in Sunday School for a change. That class is always full, even when it's summer and people are gone on vacation. I wonder why that is? It's a great class, maybe it's just really popular!

Now, in Relief Society, besides playing the piano, I taught the lesson. I was asked to do it well over a month ago, so I've had a lot of time to think, pray, and prepare. I was using President Monson's talk from last General Conference on "Choices." But it was so very short (sad face), that I also used a priesthood session talk from 2010 that he gave - also on choices - to augment the lesson. I think it went well. I felt the Spirit...I hope others did, too.

We stayed after church for a bit; luckily, Jonathan didn't have to work today. But Analiese had BYC (Bishop's Youth Committee) and - as the only young woman (not to mention no YW leaders) from the presidency there - had to represent them all. She said that, when they sang a hymn, she felt like she was squeaky high because of all the deep voices around her!

CRASH BANG BOOM!

Monday, July 11, 2016
Today is warm. Too warm. The Hobart Walmart is a sauna. I literally had sweat dripping on my glasses. Not a pretty picture, I know. Doesn't seem ladylike. But when have I ever really been that genteel?

The air conditioning in the Honda feels marvelous. It made the drive seem all too short, even though it was only a little over half an hour each way. Plus, I had to go grocery shopping. Errands are never fun in the heat.

But...not only is the cantaloupe in my garden growing large

, I found a watermelon coming up about the size of a baseball (currently).

What a thrill to see those green stripes! I'm learning, though, that I'm going to need to build those extra boxes for next year. Between the melons and the zucchini, they are taking over everything!

Tuesday, July 12, 2016
Jonathan and I spent this morning at the doctor's office. Now, don't worry. Nothing was wrong. I needed to see the doctor so he'd renew my prescriptions. Jonathan needed a physical...for his mission paperwork!

It took all morning, too. The medical group had just switched to a new computer system - that day. So we spent a good bit of time downstairs first at the sign-in desk. They had to enter a bunch of stuff into their system. And we had to "fill out forms" on the tablets they gave us. Then we had to go upstairs, wait for the doctor, and then he took a while because we had to go through a whole bunch of questions on his computer for the system. Plus, all this time, he was trying to figure out what was where!

After the appointments, we had to go back downstairs to the lab so Jonathan could get some lab work done. I tee-heed at him when he left their office to go down the hall search for the bathroom so he could pee in a cup! What a mother I am! The doctor had also given him a TB test, which he'll have to go back and have read on Thursday.

The morning was pretty much gone by the time we got home. I still had to go to Walgreens (luckily, my hours there are flexible), so I stopped, ate lunch, and then ran off to do my Hallmark stuff. The rest of the day was pretty dull and average. Home stuff, taking Jonathan to work, making dinner, etc.

Wednesday, July 13, 2016
Garden duty today produced two more zucchini. That makes seven - from one plant! This is why I never plant more than one. If I was going to can them, maybe I'd make more. But keeping up with what I've got now is enough. Plus, they get sneaky...I found a bigger one today, just lying there, getting huge. The plant has such big, bushy leaves, you never know sometimes until they jump out at you!

I do not know what is in the air, but my allergies are acting up. I've been through a ton of kleenex, scared Alice to death with my gigantic sneezes, and drank up the orange juice. By mid-afternoon, I took an extra allergy pill to stop the sneezy drip. But that stuff comes with an enormous side-effect. It puts you to sleep!

So I spent a good part of the afternoon in a fog, eventually giving in to a nap. I really don't get much done when I'm like this. I managed to do some finance stuff, like bills, but I can't say how well or fast I did anything.

At the church building this evening, as Analiese was in Young Women, Ken and I started taking apart the Seminary classroom. We basically took everything off of the bulletin board and I cleared all the Old Testament stuff out of the closet. We are currently debating a room change (to the Primary room) for next school year because of the increase in students. Hopefully that will be decided soon, because I'll have to transfer General Authority pictures and other things to the back of the Primary room and move my stuff to new closet space. I can't believe it, but it's less than a month until Seminary starts again!

Thursday, July 14, 2016
It was a very happy day in the garden this morning...I got to pick green beans!

 Too, I have a calendula in bloom.

It's a flower I planted that helps repel insects, Supposedly. But anything growing (that's supposed to) is great!

Our home teacher came for a visit this morning with another brother from the ward. He's a great home teacher and the brother with him shared his wonderful testimony. I bragged a little and shared my garden (and some of it's bounty - namely, zucchini).

I'm still in my summer straighten-and-clean mode. I moved a shelving unit out of one room and into the kitchen for more storage. Before that, we were storing plastic storage containers in cardboard boxes on the floor behind the kitchen table. Besides being ugly, it was in the way and inconvenient. The new set up looks much nicer.

Friday, July 15, 2016
Another thunderstorm last night, but no rain this time. It was all flash and noise and a whole lotta wind! So it took a while to sleep. I am really tired today.

It was too busy of a day to be lazy and tired, though. I had to contact someone about a job - maybe more on that later! I also had to go get the registration on the van done, but their computer was down. Apparently, all the tag agencies in Oklahoma (tag agency = DMV) were down. Terrific. I left them my information and they said they'd call me.

I had to go to Wal-mart. I needed stuff to make my soup for the Relief Society activity tomorrow. I also needed to pick up my meds that I had the doctor renew. I had to give them my new insurance. My new insurance wouldn't let me have a 90-day supply of both my cholesterol and "happy" pills. Why? I dunno. But then the pharmacist had to mull over that a while. It took longer than anticipated.

Back at home, I had to make the soup. I wanted it done and in the fridge for reheating tomorrow. I made tortilla soup, so first I had to cook the chicken breasts. While they cooled and I cut them up, I put bouillon, spaghetti sauce (secret ingredient - trust me, it's yummy!), herbs, and carrots on to simmer. Once they were soft, I put in the chicken again, sliced zucchini (garden - of course!), a can of corn and a can of black beans. They simmered a little bit longer. Then it all went into the fridge. Now, it tasted good today...it will be even better tomorrow!

After that I went to work much later than usual. That's because co-worker had to come in later It was three hours and twenty minutes of work for the both of us because we had seven boxes of stuff...mainly cards. I was tired when I got home at seven, but I still heated up some frozen meatballs with spaghetti sauce and served it on buns with mozzarella for a late dinner. Cuz my family was hungry!

Now, the blessed thing was that my husband came home while I was gone. How was that a blessing? Well, he took Jonathan to work, but I had asked him to do that, if he could. If not, the boy would have had to hoof it. No, what he did was fold and put away our laundry. Otherwise, I would have had to face that, too. I nearly cried with gratitude..

After dinner, Analiese and I spent some time on Pinterest looking for crafts we could do together. I think she's leaning towards pom pom rabbits. You know, anything rabbit is going to catch her eye. I told her we'd choose one and get the stuff and do it together next week. Sometime. I hope.

Then there was the dishes. Ken was in bed; he'd had an early morning and had another one to face tomorrow. Everyone takes turns doing them and, generally, I get out of them because I do the cooking. But the way schedules went this week, Jonathan had lots of work in the evenings. So, not wanting to make Analiese do it an extra time, I just did it myself. As it was, with the soup and then the meatballs, I used two big pots. Plus, I had made myself another batch of laundry detergent in the morning and had grated soap for it in my food processor. I wanted to make sure that was cleaned well.

Now, I'm just really tired. I think I shall sleep well tonight.

Saturday, July 16, 2016
Nope! We had a humdinger of a storm last night. I've never seen so much lightning and thunder! The wind, too, was gusting around 70 mph - boy, did that make a mess! There was rain, this time, too, and the wind would push it against the house with a lot of force, like it was sand or gravel.

And...the power went out. This is now a weekly occurrence, and the power company takes at least two hours to get it back on. In the meantime, we couldn't open what windows we could because of the driving rain. I laid in bed and tried to sleep, but only breathed a sigh of relief after midnight when things came back on. Gotta love it.

Today was not a day to be lacking in sleep, either. It was the Relief Society "Christmas in July" activity and I was involved. I had a lot to pack into the car: soup, cookie making supplies, etc. I think I took 1 box of stuff, two bags, an insulated bag, the crockpot, and my box of cookie cutters. Lug it to the church...and then back again.

First thing, we made cookies in the kitchen. I taught them about rolling out the dough, what kind of cutters to use for what (we did some jelly-filled), and how to make and use an egg yolk paint to brush on the cookies before baking. It was messy fun!

But we had to get out of there quickly, because the gal demonstrating homemade cinnamon rolls was right behind me. Actually, I was glad, because my stuff was done and over quickly. I hadn't signed up to do anything, so I hung around tables and talked to people.

We had lunch after a while...and my tortilla soup was a hit! I know of one sister who had three bowls of it! I had a bowl, too, and good thing, because every last drop of it was eaten. All I know, is it smelled so good. I wanted nothing else.  I did have a little side-salad, though, to be good (and have some fresh spinach and mushrooms!).

After that, Analiese (who'd come with me and was my kitchen helper) and I did origami ornaments at a table with some sisters.

By then, things were getting silly. Analiese and I had fun with the camera making videos of her messing around with our origami cranes.

We cleaned up and got home before two-thirty. I had to take Jonathan to work, so we unloaded the car, put stuff away, and I went out for the last time of the day.  Oh, and did I tell you? There was a dead cat in our garage when I got home from the church.

Yeah. Jonathan thinks I hit it with the car when I left this morning. Now, I'm sad; I don't want to injure a living animal, but I'm not going to feel guilty about it. For one, I didn't see it or even feel it.
It was a kitten, from a recent batch of the feral things our neighbors feed and I've found them cavorting in and out of the garage a lot lately. Jonathan thinks it crawled in the garage to die. I really don't want them around and don't like having them all over (being allergic to them makes me a lot less sympathetic to their plight). But I wouldn't intentionally hurt one. Still, lucky Ken got to take care of the corpse. Charming.

Sunday, July 17, 2016

Busy day at Church and I had little energy for it. Ken hadn't been able to find anyone to lead music (I think we should have a class to teach some people!), so I lead in Sacrament meeting. Energetic songs today, too. I really felt them - spiritually - but also physically.  And I wasn't done for the day.

Next was Junior Primary. Between sips of water, we sang and sang and sang. I put on a sunbonnet and we did pioneer songs (we walked and walked and walked and walked, if you know what I mean!). They ate that up. At one point, they weren't singing much, so I asked if they'd lost their voices and made them look under the chairs, grab their "voices" and put them on their throats. Guess what? They sang!

Senior Primary was very small in number - only six, and two of them were visitors. But their volume did not suggest their head count...especially when they got going. I did the bonnet thing again, and had one boy wear a straw cowboy hat and a girl wear another bonnet. We did a remove-the-word song thing, with each one choosing another child to come take away a word off of the board. They did great; it was lots of fun.

But...I never made it to nursery. I had put stuff away and gave a few instructions to the Primary leaders for next week, because I'll be teaching in Relief Society then. Then, I stopped to talk to the bishop about moving our Seminary room - more on that in a moment - and I spoke with a Seminary student parent. After that, there was only four minutes left of time and I know the nursery people could do the music (and often did) without the chorister.

I was SOOOOOOOO tired. But, I went back to the Primary room after the meetings to check out a closet for us and talk to the Primary president about the move. Then it was home, a quick bite of lunch, and taking Jonathan to work. Only after returning and doing some scripture study with Analiese, that I was able to sneak in a little nap. This has been a long, hard week.

STARTING JULY WITH A BANG

Monday, July 4, 2016
HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!
To be honest, this day started pretty much like any other. Well, except no going to Hobart today. Big Hallmark thing - NO working on holidays.

But, I got out and watered my garden this morning. Now I'm daydreaming about future garden plans. To be honest, puttering outside with my veggies makes me happy. They are happy, too. The zucchini gave me another squash today and the watermelon and cantaloupe are just all over with vines and blossoms. I'm watching the tomatoes like a hawk this week because as soon as they are ripe (even if only the super-big one is), I am making fresh tomato pizza...a summer tradition with me when I have a garden. And this year, I have fresh basil and oregano to go with it!

Other than that, it was laundry and grocery shopping. The kids and I spent the afternoon watching "patriotic" movies (to them) - Captain American (the first one) and the Avengers (the first one). I'm movie-ed out now.

Jonathan had to work this evening, but Ken was home early enough to go with Analiese and I to see fireworks. First, though, we thought we'd start a new tradition and stop at Braum's for ice cream, cuz what's more American than that?!?! Ken had a sundae while we girls had shakes (in Analiese's words, much more portable).

We were invited by someone in our ward to go sit in the field behind the local mortuary and watch the reservoir's fireworks. It turned out to be so lovely outside. Not hot, just warm with a nice breeze. Of course, there was a backdrop of a thunderstorm to the southwest, but it didn't hit us. It was clear, comfy, and I wanted to go to sleep in my camp chair!  But, no! The fireworks show wouldn't let me do it.

The show was nice enough, but fizzled out at the end...apparently they had a problem and a fire! Sad. Still, we enjoyed our evening out, especially Ken. It was just peaceful.

Tuesday, July 5, 2016
I had to get up at 6:30 to take Jonathan to work. After a late night shift yesterday, he had the 7 a.m. shift today. Not super nice...to both of us! We awoke to another thunderstorm, this time with a bit of rain. The morning light was a strange orange-y color. Driving through neighborhoods is always "fun" when it's been raining for a while, too. We don't have good drainage here in the city. Lots of puddles everywhere. I keep think of washing my van, cuz it's really dirty (as in red dirt dust), but until the rain slows down, it seems a little pointless.

Went to Hobart today. Had enough time to clean up the flippers (that's the areas underneath the cards at the bottom where we store stuff). It really needed it - what craziness!  I moved card racks and metal pieces and hooks and plastic storage thingies - they have official names, I just don't know them! I cut myself on my hand doing it, too, though I didn't notice at first. I glanced at my hand and saw blood running down it.

Oops!

Had to hit two stores today. Coming back from Hobart, I stopped for a bite of lunch (Hint: NOT Taco Bell) and a bit of relaxing before going to Walgreens. Jonathan was very busy there, but I got my work done in an hour and a half, which was good. I kind of have to cut the time back a little there to make up for over half an hour of time over budget setting up after Fathers' Day. No excuses, though. They may have budgeted six and a half hours, but that was a seven hour job!

Wednesday, July 6, 2016
Putterin' around today, pulling weeds, dead-heading rose bushes, harvesting (more) zucchini, evaluating my tomatoes (will they EVER be ready?). All before ten a.m. Why? Because it gets too hot too soon.  In fact, did you know when the hottest time of the day is? 4:00 p.m. And it takes forever to cool off. Morning is really the only decent time to get anything done.

By the way...our garden spiders from last year are back. Well, at least one of them.

It's a bit smaller than the trio we had last year, but still striking. Ken saw it caught a bee in it's web and it took care of it with rapid skill. Amazing!

Another storm came up this evening. A short one, to be sure, but powerful. The Weather Channel said we might have 80 mph winds. It was pretty windy; my back door rattled quite a bit. A few more branches came down from the trees, but little thin ones, nothing destructive. Yesterday, tree guys came and took care of some of the neighbor's trees between our houses, probably just in time. They got rid of a dead one between our garages.

Thursday, July 7, 2016
Sleepyhead this morning, I got up around eight-thirty. I don't know why. But boy, did I feel rested!

I am in full summer clean-up mode. I've been working on cleaning up paper messes, filing, and just getting rid of junk. Today, I got rid of a box made from palm leaf fronds that we got in Hawaii when I was pregnant with Analiese. It was time. Too, I'm trying to (still) get my house back in order from the great fix-and-pain escapade of last October. And, I'm getting my house ready for an eventual visit from my parents when Jonathan gets his call and is going on his mission.

Which, by the way, became more real today as we did Medical paperwork online and made appointments for medical and dental physicals for him. We had to do a special piece just because of his club feet, but we'll see what they say. He gets around really well, actually, with only needing his orthotics. He rarely has any difficulties.

Ken is in an ice cream mood. We went to Braum's after Family Home Evening. Again. A friend of ours who works here said, "Weren't you just here the other day?" Other than Jonathan - who was working - the answer was "yep." Frankly, ice cream in large amounts doesn't agree well with me. We'll see how I feel tonight and tomorrow.

Friday, July 8, 2016
Today had the potential to be normal - laundry, working at Walmart. Stuff. And it did, for the most part. Until the evening hit.

Another storm, but this one came with a warning - 80 mph winds. That's pretty hefty. When it got started, I knew it. The back door rattled and shook. A kind of wheezzy sound pushed past the windows.

The rain, when it came, was torrential. Hard and abundant, I knew we were looking at roads flooding. Jonathan wanted me to take him to a friend's house. I only had the Honda; Ken took the van to Taco Bell. I told him I wouldn't do it in a little car. The neighborhoods definitely flood and even the main roads are bad on the sides. Sometimes you practically have to drive through the middle. Not to mention visibility. I also canceled a meeting with the sister missionaries at eight o'clock.

Just in time for a blackout! These are starting to become weekly occurrences. I don't mind being without lights, though it makes me sleepy. My body just assumes it's time to sleep! The biggest problem - in the summer - is being without air conditioning. Now that is hard to sleep through! Especially since I have so few windows that open.

Jonathan talked his friends into picking him up, so Analiese and I faced the darkness alone. We read by the lantern and played a few hands of Uno. We started to settle down at ten, when Ken came home. Taco Bell was powerless, too, so he came home. Shortly after finally going to bed, the power came on...blessedly. Now I could sleep!

Saturday, July 9, 2016
I spent a good part of my morning prepping for Primary tomorrow. Since the Jr. Primary doesn't have a lot of readers, I have to make up actions or pictures to describe things in the songs that I'm trying to teach. Now, Sr. Primary, we can use words. I tend to teach them an extra song, too. They are smart enough. Yes, this is just a temporary (read: Summer) gig. And only for another couple of weeks, because I promised Relief Society that I'd teach a lesson the end of this month.

This morning, in the wet grass of my back yard, I plundered some of my garden bounty. My gigantic tomato was ready!

I clipped some basil and oregano, too.

Time for my once-a-year indulgence - Fresh Tomato Pizza!

Really, there's nothing like it and I only even make it when I have garden-grown tomatoes. Store-bought tomatoes are just too sad. I snipped the basil and oregano and let them sit in olive oil with garlic and salt and pepper. Then this evening, I put it all together. I didn't make a pizza crust this time, I bought one of those pre-baked ones. Not because I like them better - I don't - but because using fresh tomatoes means liquid and sometimes the dough doesn't get cooked all the way. I brushed the crust with olive oil, layered some mozzarella, then put some thinly sliced tomatoes on top. I brushed them with my herb-oil infusion and then sprinkled on some Parmesan. After about 15 minutes, we had heaven! Frankly, no one likes it as much as I do, but oh! I don't care, it's only once a year and is soooo yummy!

Sunday, July 10, 2016
One of the sister missionaries led the music in Sacrament meeting today. So I didn't have to. I could actually sit in the congregation. I kind of like that better; no one is staring at you. You don't feel like you have to be on your best behavior every second in case someone catches you. Catches you, what? I dunno, I just feel scrutinized. Slightly paranoid, I know.

Primary went by in a blur today. In Junior, we didn't even get to all the songs I planned. Well, neither did Senior, but by then I had it figured out and skipped some on purpose. I guess better too many than too few. Nursery was funny. Those little ones have a routine and you HAVE to sing those songs in that order. I had a little girl screaming at me a song I just had to do! Okay! I won't get in the way, I guess.

A quiet Sabbath afternoon at home was on the books. Jonathan didn't have to work...though he did run off to his friends (snuck off, if you ask me, while I was napping!). It is a bit warmer today, but then, there's no clouds in the sky to cool things off. Still, I feel at great peace today. The Spirit was in all of the meetings, and I feel like I've been productive this week. Those things make me happy.

GROWING GARDEN

Monday, June 27, 2016
It's actually quite a beautiful day. There's not many clouds in the sky; what is there is just a light veneer over the bright blue. It doesn't even seem as hot as I would've thought, but then the rain last night and the cloud cover probably cooled things off.

Hobart today and I was running late. (I had to help Analiese with her work. Yes, it's summer, but I hate brain drain and she needs to have something to occupy her time.) Usually, I only have to slow down to get through the towns of Blair and Lone Wolf. But today, as I turned west past Blair to head through the Quartz Mountain area I got stopped by a construction crew and a road filled with gravel.

Usually, traffic around here consists of someone driving slower than you. Not this time. I do not like driving on dirt or gravel. I worry about my tires and my windshield. Plus, I feel every little bump in the road. The cars are being escorted in either direction by a pilot pick up, taking us around the workers. I think some of the gravel trucks were going backwards!

Firework stands dot the landscape right now. Everywhere along the highway you can see them. We can't do them in town, it's against the law. But if you go out into the country or to someone's farm, you can do as many as you want. It's big business around here.

Tuesday, June 28, 2016
Hot and sunny...again. Glad I don't have to be outside.  I only went out to take Jonathan to work and do my work at Walgreens, too. I used all my time today, because I had a lot of cards to install. I do make it look good, though.

This evening looked ominous. The sky darkened, but things didn't cool off. I went to pick up Jonathan from work and wondered when the storm would hit. As I sat in the parking lot, waiting, the wind picked up...a lot! Dust flew and the air pushed at the van, making it's metal joints creak. Just a little unnerving, if you ask me! The traffic lights on the corner were swaying and birds were fighting the air currents. It didn't look pretty.

Jonathan came out to the van, complaining about the dirt and grit that had flown in his face as he was throwing away garbage for Walgreens. We drove home carefully, the wind still whipping around us. And big drops of rain began to fall.

We got home just as the worst of it hit. For some reason, we cannot just get a plain rainstorm here. There always has to be accompanying thunder and lightning. With that and all the wind, it was no surprise to find that our power was out. Analiese had been in the shower when it had happened, but wasn't scared. She just thought her brother was home and had turned the lights out on her on purpose.

We are certainly not unprepared for outages, here. By now, it's expected from time-to-time. So we brought out the flashlights and the battery-powered lantern. We sat in the living room with the blinds up, waiting for Ken to come home. We hoped our light could guide him into the house.  Then we all went to bed. Being in a dark house makes me sleepy!

Wednesday, June 29, 2016
In the middle of the night, the power came back on. I was trying to sleep in the living room where a window was open, because it was too hot in the house. With the power on, the air conditioning and the fans came back on, so I went back to sleep in my own bed. And slept in a little longer than I usually would.

I took Analiese to the library this afternoon for the Tween "Chess Club." She got to meet some new friends (they were all girls) and brush up on her chess. Oh, and have treats...gotta have treats to get 'em in the seats. And she came back with coupons for free things at Sonic, Applebees, and Whattaburger. She made out! She's going back next week for a Pictionary night where they'll have pizza.

We had another small storm on the way home from the library. Someone was saying there that this is the wettest summer on record for this area...and it's only just begun!

After that she went early to Mutual where they all traveled to Frederick to go to a park, play games, and grill hot dogs. Why Frederick (which is half an hour away)? Because one of the young men lives there and they thought it would be nice to bring the activity to him. I found that touching.

Thursday, June 30, 2016
Drove to Hobart...again. I had to go meet my boss at Walmart to redo a couple of sections...or so we thought.  By the way, the construction is done??? I didn't think they worked that fast, I was dreading having to deal with that for several weeks. I even left the house fifteen minutes early in order to get to Hobart by 9.

Got there and found out that, besides a bunch of shelving units, I had TEN boxes of product. That's unheard of at this store...except during a revision/installation, and that happened two months ago! No, it's true, they sent us stuff for ANOTHER revision. And it was just boss, fellow employee from Vernon, and yours truly.

Well, we didn't do the whole thing. We couldn't. Not enough people, not enough time, not enough budget. So we did the things we had originally planned on, which took enough time - about four hours. Then we had lunch together in town and went our separate ways. When we will finish the project? I have no idea. Boss will tell me when. I suggested I could do a little at a time each time I went out, but until we have more hours budgeted, I'm not doing anything. Past the normal stuff, of course.

Friday, July 1, 2016
Jonathan asked me today before I went to Walmart, if I'd only be a couple of hours. I told him I never know with this store. And it's true because today we had NINE boxes, Which ended up being three and a half hours of work.

I picked my first veggie from my garden! It's a zucchini!

It got bigger than I like them; I'd rather have them small and tender. If they get too big, they are tougher and seedy. Not good eats. But more are coming! And my tomatoes are ripening, that makes me happy, too!

Saturday, July 2, 2016
Lots of little things to do today. Dinner had to be fixed up in the crockpot - creamy ranch chicken. I am still subbing in Primary, so I had to work on Singing Time for tomorrow. On top of that, I had to make a cheesecake. Yes, had to.

See, when I was in California, our Relief Society back here had an activity with things for "auction." Even though I knew I wouldn't be there, I offered to make a cheesecake. Apparently, the bishop's wife "won" the cheesecake. I took my cream cheese cookbook to church a few weeks back to let her see and choose what she'd like. It kind of wows people - I have a whole chapter in there just on cheesecake. On top of that, I've been known to find some winners on Pinterest, too.  I don't think they are too hard to make, just time-consuming and somewhat expensive, especially with the fancier ones.

So I went to work and made a chocolate caramel pecan cheesecake. It has a vanilla wafer crust, a caramel layer, chopped pecans, and chocolate cheesecake. That is going to be very rich! It was a bit messy to make, but it's done and in my fridge for delivery tomorrow after church.

It's raining again. And the sky is grumbling about it. To think, I watered my garden this morning. But to be honest, I wasn't expecting another storm.

Sunday, July 3, 2016
You can tell this is a (mostly) military ward. Testimonies today had a definite patriotic ring to them. Well, some of them. We have another new family in the ward, too, with a seminary-age student and a young man getting ready to leave for his mission. He and Jonathan got to know each other today. I'm glad...Jonathan hasn't had someone to relate to in the ward for a while. He seemed very happy about it after church.

Ken couldn't find a substitute for ward chorister. That meant me, again. Along with subbing in Primary, that's a lot of singing and is hard on my voice, especially since I'm still dealing with lingering throat stuff from before.  Plus, we sang the national anthem as the closing song. You have to sing that with gusto!

In Primary, I did a "pick-and-choose" kind of thing, where I had sketched a temple (use your imagination here, people) and cut it into pieces and put songs on the back. The kids really liked it and one of the boys in senior Primary wanted to know if he could borrow it and use it for a Family Home Evening lessons. Cute! (NOTE: Sorry, no photo of it. I totally forgot to do it.)