Happy Fathers Day! I would like to pay special tribute to my sons and sons-in-law for assuming their sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another, observe the commandments of God, and be law-abiding citizens wherever they live.
It was a beautiful week with lovely weather the entire time. Following the adage that it is easier to maintain a weed free garden than to retake it, I spent time each morning removing all those pesky unwanted volunteers. We have enjoyed snap peas and fresh lettuce so far.
I spent time at the rent house each day this week. Finally got the interior painted; pressure washed the exterior; hired a friend to paint all the exterior trim and the front; and on Friday I installed a floating floor in the kitchen. I am hopeful that work on this house will be completed by week's end.
We had a week of loud laughter and the sound of little feet up and down the stairs. Miranda and her four arrived Tuesday afternoon (they brought pizza for dinner). And then Deborah with five of hers (Sarah was at girl's camp) arrived Wednesday. Miranda prepared yummy lumpia for dinner Wednesday. Thursday evening I had invited the sister missionaries for dinner, so we had hamburgers and hot dogs.
Some of the grand children had expressed an interest in earning money; the challenge was to find things for young ones to perform successfully. The chicken coop had gone several weeks without being mowed; it was interesting to watch Ethan trying to push the mower in the tall grass. He had the desire, but it was almost more than he could do. So I helped him some. But they were very helpful in getting several chores done, and even more important, inspired me to work off a couple of items on my to do list as well. It was a win win situation. And it was great to see how well the cousins worked together in accomplishing a common goal.
The highlight was on Friday afternoon. A dead tree had fallen; with the prospect of a bonfire, I had plenty of help cleaning up the debris and putting it on the burn pile. Then after dinner, the coals were ready for roasting of smores and the day ended on a most yummy and happy moment.
Since both families were leaving Saturday, the girls planned a Father's Day meal for Friday; Deborah fixed Bourbon Street Chicken and Miranda baked a rhubarb pie. Miranda made some peppermint patties and peanut clusters (some of which have been consumed during the typing of this blog).
And then by 1 pm Saturday, it was suddenly very very quiet. We do enjoy and appreciate family visits. Sandy did learn a painful lesson this week: do not pick up 25 pound grand children: she hurt her back and has been to the chiropractor twice already. Friday she connected with her primary care physician (actually it was a nurse practitioner) who prescribed a steroid, non steroid, and something else. Unfortunately, these caused some nausea with upset stomach. A check with the family pharmacist (thank you Robert) confirmed that she needed to cease taking the steroid if she wanted to overcome the nausea. She was better today, but did not trust her stomach to attend church (that was a good decision). It's tough for her to keep adding problems to her life-- abdominal issues, then back pain, then nausea and not being able to keep anything down.... Despite her set backs, Sandy continues to amaze me with her positive attitude and perseverance.
Sad news of the week: my computer screen died and a new one was ordered but won't arrive until Monday. (It was interesting how the grand kids clammored to play on the computer, but once it was dead, there were no complaints and they happily played board games or played outside.) One of our chickens died and worst of all, our long haired calico cat, Athena, died. Not sure what was the cause of her death, but it was clear she had been dead for a couple of days when I finally found her.
We hope next week will bring better news. On the plus side, we had excellent speakers in Sacrament meeting with one young man leaving on his mission early July. It has been impressive to see him mature. We had a good Sunday school lesson on the Atonement of the Savior. It helped remind me of the importance of taking the sacrament to always remember the great and eternal sacrifice of the Savior.
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