Is it spring yet?

I’m afraid my daffodils have not looked at the calendar.  They are coming up… as are the hyacinths.  And I even have a crocus blooming.  While I love the signs of spring, I worry that there is still winter ahead.  We have had days as warm as 70 and nights as cool as 15 degrees.  Poor plants.  No wonder they are puzzled.

It feels like this week is “same old, same old,” But I guess I’ll share it anyway.

I worked.   I am still collaborating on the financial sales letter lead.  I write.  It comes back with comments all over it.  I rewrite…. It comes back.  You get the picture.  Wayne asks if I’m dismayed by the comments.  Not really.  I’ve realized I don’t know enough about the product.  And Wayne has his vision, too. The goal is to mesh our visions into a great sales piece.  I think Wayne can’t actually WRITE it… he can just REWRITE it.  So at least I need to start the process so he can then gain his vision.  And I look at it as a good chance to learn something new.

Tuesday I went and did clay.  I am starting with a new batch of white clay (I buy it in 25# bags) and it is much moister clay. It takes longer to dry.  So I brought home a bunch of half finished projects.  I was working on cut vases and Marian says to do three so you get the hang of it by the third one.  I think my beginners luck is over.  I had problems with two of the three of them.  One, I mended.  The other one all my decorations fell off, and so it will now be a plain vase.  (Once the clay is dried to greenware, you can’t go back and put wet clay on it… at least I don’t think so.  You see, the clay shrinks, like 10-14% so if you add wet clay to dry clay, it will crack as it dries.)

Wednesday I did some writing and worked on the clay in the evening while Tom was at Bishop stuff.  It was still wet enough for me to cut the vases and overlay more cut-work where the space was.  Hard to explain.  It didn’t come out quite like I’d hoped, but I’m learning. (The tree motif was supposed to wrap around the small vase.  And it did... until I grabbed it too tightly and it cracked off. sigh.)

Tom has been working on the shed in back.  He found some metal siding and put it around the bottom of the shed as skirting to keep the critters from making homes under it.  It looks nice. He also repaired the water damaged door and it looks good as new.  He’s been sorting through stuff in the shed.  Which means I’ve been sorting through stuff, too.

I have the Family Home evening boxes of lessons that are looking for a home and some old dolls and.  I went through my treasure box and found “duckie” and baby caps crocheted by great Auntie Lou, and a hand bag knitted of string by Grandma Swarthout’s Grandmother.  Also plaster hand prints of my children.

Thursday we had our favorite builder come and tell us why we have some small cracks appearing in our walls.  He didn’t seem to think they were of more than cosmetic concern.  We also discussed putting a beam up downstairs and taking out the post to give our family room more furniture arrangement choices.   In the afternoon I went for a massage.  Actually it was a raindrop treatment and massage.  Ummm.  Sure felt good.  I’d like to do that monthly.

The tenant moved from our Church St. House so we went to look at it. It’ really looked good.  It’s a cute place.  Needs a little touch up paint where she screwed the TV holder to the wall.  And a screen door.  Tom can’t understand why I chose beauty over function—with a cute screen door over a functional storm door.  The front of the house just needs “cute.”  Later that afternoon I went visiting teaching. 

Sister Dale finally got moved back to mountain home.  She’s my favorite 90 year old I visit who had MRSA and had been in a hospital 3 hours away for over a month.  She’s in a nursing home now and she has a much better chance of getting better with people who love her close by.  Tom and I went to visit her on Wednesday, and my visiting teaching partner and I went on Friday. Her thoughts are still a little muddled.

Elance asked for photos of where we work—and to be creative.  So with Tom as my photographer, I posed for pictures working in the tree house, in the pasture next to the model A, and by the pond.  Don’t know if that’s what they want, but it was fun to do.  I just learned if I recommend someone to Elance, I get $10… so if you are at all interested, let me know. I’ll send you a link and help you with your profile.

Today was a good day.  Nice testimonies.  I had my visiting teaching interview.  Our seminary teacher is leaving to go on a mission so she was released and a new one called today.  So I did a little training with him, too.  I’ve written grandchildren.  I’ve written the elders and sisters serving from Kisumu and Busia.  And now I’m writing you.