Lots Done

This has been a crazy busy week!  I know that the telling will leave lots out.  Oh well.

I started a Moneymaking Website class on Monday.  I have writing and exercises and a weekly online class.  I’d gotten the written materials early and had read through much of it.  My goal was to have all 330 pages read, then go back, re-read, and actually work through the exercises. After the Monday lesson I finished reading and started researching.  I’ve been trying to get some research accomplished each day. 

However, on Thursday, I decided to follow up on a spec assignment I’d sent the end of December. The reply:  Didn’t you get my reply of the 4^th?  AKK.  No!  So he resent.  There was more work involved.  I agreed to get that back to him by Monday (tomorrow).  So then I had all this work that I needed to research and write.  It’s fun, but a little stressful.

The houses are moving forward.  Kitchen cabinets are in the Main St house now, and vanities in the baths… but still no flooring or toilets available.  Ray has been doing great work.  In the Church street house, the painting is all done and the carpet and vinyl went down on Friday.  Wow!  It looks good!  It’s the details—switch-plate covers, faucets, trim pieces.  Each step makes it look better.  The pictures are taken after painting and just as they were laying carpet and preping the vinyl laying.

Tom spent time painting and cleaning up another rental that just became empty.  It had a BLUE bedroom which is now a quiet beige.  He hired the leaf raking, but attacked the bushes himself.  This week we had a day or so that barely got above freezing with a brisk breeze.  It made one not really want to do outside activities.

Wednesday I had a meeting in Springfield—from 7:30-9:30.  I didn’t want to drive both ways in the dark, so I left early and had dinner there.  I planned to do a little work there, but ended up doing the work at home and just reading for the half hour before the meeting.  It was a great meeting—Stake Council.  I’d never been to one before.  I was so impressed with the Stake President’s concern for each person in the stake.  I went in my calling as Stake Seminary and Institute Supervisor.  I got lots of ideas and thoughts about how we could do better as a stake with seminary and institute.  Now I need to get busy.

When I left Mountain Home, it was 55 degrees.  When I got out of my meeting at 10:15 pm—it was 34 degrees and sleeting.  On the way home I had dry spells, sleet, snow, and rain and got home safe and sound at 12:30.

Thursday I worked, then I took a neighbor shopping and ran errands.  I raced home to change to be ready for a 4:00 meeting with our attorney and arrived on time! … and found out it was really a 4:30 meeting.  Sigh.  I had a chance to read the newspaper.  We talked about LLC’s to protect our assets.

Friday Beth came and cleaned the house.  Ah, so nice.  Beth found little stashes of toys and things as she cleaned.  We finally packed away the last of the outside lights, the wrapping paper and the last of the Christmas things.  We had an incentive—Bishop’s Youth Discussion is at our house on Sunday.

Saturday we cleaned the church in the morning.  Then we went to a baptism at 2pm.  Then Tom had a meeting at 4pm.  We decided we have not had a date night or taken time much for ourselves.  Why have Netflix if we don’t ever use it.  So we found Robin Hood- a BBC series and have watched that the last two nights. It’s been fun.

Sunday- I’m still getting used to being “free” on Sundays.  I get a chance to visit with people.  It’s so nice to catch up on what’s happening in people’s lives.  We have one less active who was going through a really tough time with her daughter, boyfriend, and baby. She, her mother, and her daughter and boyfriend all came to church today.  The lessons and talks seemed to be just meant to be supportive of them and comforting to them.  I hope they will be back.  I went to the Gospel Principles class with them.  I do like that class.  Just the Fundamentals.  And they are so true.

A note on the chickens.  The American seems to have repented of her neglect.  She’s been producing eggs nearly every day—lovely olive colored eggs.  And the Red Rocks have been chipping in with a brown egg now and then.  This morning I got the bright idea to not bother changing into casual clothes to feed the chickens—just run out in my winter pj’s.  Note to self: Check the temperature before doing so.  I race outside.  Put bare feet into cold rubber boots.  Got the water and food.  Noted the frost on the ground.  It was 33 stinking degrees!  I think there are better choices to be made.

We had 18 youth for BYD today.  The youth started by making their refreshments—Brownies.  Then they had… by my account… a raucous activity… but spiritually based, too.  We also had ice cream and chocolate sauce to round out the refreshments.