Week of July 9 - July 15, 2023

Spiritual

We had a wonderful sacrament meeting. A young couple moved into the ward, living with their parents while working on Master's Degrees and she is pregnant with twin boys, and they spoke. We also heard from one of our youth about his experience at FSY. Sunday was quiet and we studied and prepared for the week ahead. 

Dad was able to attend the temple this week. 

My daily morning foundation of General Conference talk(s), prayer, scripture study and Come Follow Me study continues each day. 

I have indexed 11,461 records and reviewed 18,004 records so far this year.

Family

The Wilkins Family

The Wilkins Family is doing well. Allison continues working on her Math class for her grad school program, plus this week she returns to Spaulding School for four hours a day. Mike is doing great. Adam is ready to start a cool job at the movie theater. Grace participated in the library reading program and earned tickets to a basketball game, so while Allison studied, Mike took the kids to the game. 

They had a great time! Allison has all her classroom supplies ready to move in for the new year, which begins very soon. 

The Ethan Rice Family

Ethan, Cameo, Kaylee, and Wade continue to enjoy fishing on the weekends. They have special visitors coming this weekend!!! From Arkansas. I was lucky enough to receive several Facetime calls as the girls couldn't sleep and were getting ready for their day. Seeing them all together and having such a great time was so fun. 

The Doran Rice Family

Amber traveled to Las Vegas again this week and Kelsie spent time with her ward friends at Girls Camp. Doran and Kooper enjoyed so guy time. On Saturday, Kooper tried out playing soccer with a friend. 

Morgan

Morgan and Cassie are back in Phoenix and the molten heat as they help one of Cassie's dear friends who lost her boyfriend to electrocution. Morgan and Cassie are helping with the kids and cleaning up and selling items. They will help with the rent and share the home. 

Kayty

Kayty had a good work week. She also changed when she takes her insulin, which has been such a game-changer! 

The Nathan Rice Family

Happy Birthday, Jessica on Sunday! The girls Facetimed during the week. They were so excited about their upcoming trip to see their cousins in Georgia. They showed me their travel pillows and blankets and were jumping for joy to be able to go on a family trip. Annie kept texting me and Facetiming on Kaylee's phone. She loved being with her cousins. Kaylee braided Ellie's hair. 

Dad's Garden

The garden is barely surviving the summer heat. 

 

Other highlights

A small memorial service was held on Monday morning at the cemetery for Uncle Loyd McFarland. Dad dedicated the grave. All, including grandma, Susan, Curtis, Jennie, and dad's cousins Bob McFarland and Dale McFarland shared a few memories and then his urn was buried in the grave of Grampa Ethan. Since it was near my dad's grave, I walked down to see it. We all returned to Grandma's house for sandwiches and as the reminiscing continued, I slipped out and went home. Dad spent four more hours there. He most likely will never see these cousins again and so they took advantage of the time together. 

We are doing our best to plan for the future financially. I took a class on Medicare on Tuesday afternoon. When Dad retires, he will be on Medicare but I had no idea it still costs money every month. We will also have to find insurance for me for the two years till I can be on Medicare. Just another expense to plan for. 

Christmas In July

I watched Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer as I sat at my desk and painted ornaments. Almost 40 are complete. On Saturday, we endured the heat watching The Santa Clause 1. 

Week of July 2 - July 8, 2023

Spiritual

We enjoyed another wonderful Sunday at church. Our fast and testimony meeting was full of testimonies of love of God and Country. Our bishop shared a story of his grandfather's military service in World War 2 and many others shared their experiences. 

Dad was able to attend the temple on Friday evening. 

My daily morning foundation of General Conference talk(s), prayer, scripture study and Come Follow Me study continues each day. I completed my sixth time through General Conference and began again. I also completed the Book of Mormon and began again. 

I have indexed 11,248 records and reviewed 17,189 records so far this year.

Family

The Wilkins Family

School has started again for Allison, or I should say Masters Degree school. She is taking a math class and seems to be enjoying it. In a couple of weeks, she will take another Spaulding course and then her teaching begins again. Mike is doing well and continues to look for more full-time work. Adam got a job at a theater and is looking forward to working in the cool. Grace has been busy working on planning fun things for Girl's Camp. Joshua plays video games with friends and works in the yard for Jack Taco pay. Sam is as happy as even and shared a lovely pic of the moon rising as he walked with Mom and Grace. 

The Ethan Rice Family

Ethan, Cameo, Kaylee and Wade so enjoyed watching fireworks on their boat. They were assisted in getting to a good spot by some very kind people and they even shared their yummy shrimp, brats, steak with them. The fireworks show was spectacular and they enjoyed their boating weekend. They called me from their pool in the backyard to wish me a Happy Birthday. 

The Doran Rice Family

Doran and Amber have had a good week. After they visited on my birthday, the had a ward chili cookoff and dinner to attend. Amber will be working in Vegas the next couple of weeks. The kids are doing well and enjoying their summer. 

Morgan

Due to an unexpected death of a friend, Morgan and Cassie will be leaving cool Flagstaff to come to Phoenix and move in with the widow and her kids to help with rent. 

Kayty

Kayty had a good week at work. 

One major and one minor save. She is making some dosage timing changes. We are hoping this improves her situation. She went into seizure so fast this week that I didn't catch the signs of low, and I check her every ten minutes. She ended up on her bedroom floor and I got her on my lap to give her the soda she needed. She banged her head pretty good in the fall but is healing quickly. 

The Nathan Rice Family

The girls shared birthday greetings and an adorable gnome and pumpkins birthday gift. They had a very awesome campout and loved swimming and watching fireworks with their friends. They are very happy in their new community!!

Dad's Garden

Dad repaired the raised bed garden covers this week. We continue to harvest basil. The oregano is surviving the hot summer. 

 

Other highlights

Dad is getting so much done in the yard before work each day. He has finally gotten the mustard algae out of our pool, reconstructed the raised bed garden cover, repaired the lawnmower, blown porches and all the yard leaves, plus hiking. He still needs to repair a bike tire.

My birthday was wonderful as always. Dad took me to Hobby Lobby to see the Fall decorations, which I totally loved. I received Marco Polos from Allison, Grace, Josh and Sam, plus a bonus Marco Polo with Josh and Grace singing Happy Birthday to me. I Facetimed with Ethan, Cameo and the kids, and Anna, Ellie, Emma, and Eve,  plus got early texts on my birthday from Ethan, Cameo and Kaylee, got a birthday visit and gift from Doran, Amber, Kelsie and Kooper, and received texts from Morgan and from Jessica. I also received texts from Scott, Sharynn, friends Alice, Yvonne, Marena, and our neighbors vacationing in Rome, and a call from Mom and Elizabeth, her caregiver. It was hot outside but our a/c made it great. Kayty shared a few fireworks she purchased in the front yard before we headed to bed. 

Christmas In July

Christmas In July began this week. I am working on completing stockings since many will have to be mailed this year. I got my work table all paper covered, selected paint, sealed all ornaments with gesso and am working on tracing all the designs on. We watched the movie Elf on Saturday. 

Week of June 25 - July 1, 2023

Spiritual

We had High Counsel and Stake speakers this Sunday and, surprisingly, their talks were excellent. Primary was good, though my co-teacher taught next week's lesson. The kids got the atonement this week and will get the crucifixion next week. 

Dad was able to attend the temple this week on Friday afternoon. 

My daily morning foundation of General Conference talk(s), prayer, scripture study and Come Follow Me study continues each day. 

I have indexed 10,837 records and reviewed 16,221 records so far this year.

Family

The Wilkins Family

Allison shared:

More summer fun. Swimming. Celebrating Adam's 20th. Fostering a kitten for a few days. Ice cream and more ice cream. Making homemade pretzels. Splash pads. More pickleball. Late night runs. And a date with my fave redhead.

The Ethan Rice Family

Another great fishing weekend for this family. They are loving their boat and fishing. 

The Doran Rice Family

Doran spent a few days with the Young Men in his ward on a campout. He took his camping trailer and slept in comfort. He had a very good time.

Morgan

No news from Morgan this week. 

Kayty

Kayty enjoyed her work week and had a short day on Friday. 

One major low this week. 

The Nathan Rice Family

Jessica shared some cute pics of the girls this week:

Eve

Annalee

Ellie

Ellie, Emma, Annie and Eve

Emma, Ellie and Anna

Dad's Garden

Just basil and heat this week. 

 

Other highlights

Dad spent some time on Monday helping Grandma. He took the trailer and helped haul all of Loyds remaining belongings from the care center. 

Our quarterly pick up pile got picked up, or rather scraped up. They left a terrible mess and dug into the ground. They really did a poor job this time. 

I finally figured out my nailer and got some nails put in the baseboards of last year and got half caulked. Quite a victory for me. 

Week of June 18 - June 24, 2023

Spiritual

We had a very good Sunday at church. We enjoyed talks from new move-ins in the ward. Dad was given a candy bar and a bottle of Dad's root beer after Sunday School and my primary class was very full and we had a good class. I got names ready to take to the temple for sealing work this week after church. We took two sisters to church and home this week.

We were able to attend the temple this week. On Thursday evening, we performed sealing ordinances for members of our family. 

My daily morning foundation of General Conference talk(s), prayer, scripture study and Come Follow Me study continues each day. 

I have indexed 10,306 records and reviewed 15,126 records so far this year.

Family

The Wilkins Family

The Wilkins Family is doing well. Allison completed her first year of her master's degree program and did very well. Her second half begins July 1. She will be working a few days at school this week as a team co-leader doing some coordinating. Mike is busy and doing well. Adam peeked in on the Marco Polo and said hi! Grace shared her new little kitten, Izzy, and talked about her experiences on Trek. Not easy by any means but she ended up enjoying it and learning a lot. Joshua is doing great and enjoying his summer break. Sam is doing well also. They have initiated a new family Summer Program with Make It Mondays, Try It Tuesday (last week, they tried Flan), Water Wednesday (WAter balloon fight)  (I forgot)Thursday, and Field Trip Friday. Sundays are spent focusing one listening to a conference talk, discussing what messages came from that talk, and then practicing the principles learned during the next week. 

The Ethan Rice Family

Ethan now works from home as a product manager and likes the new change and responsibilities. They enjoyed Father's Day weekend camping and fishing. They fish on Lake Allatoona and have been able to catch a wide variety of fish and have a great time. 

The Doran Rice Family

Doran helped his bishop do some car repairs this week. He also worked on planning a class he will teach on the young men's outing. He brought back the trailer on Friday and visited for a bit while Kooper took a swim. Busy work week for Amber. 

Morgan

No news from Morgan this week. 

Kayty

Kayty had a good work week. It was a tough diabetes week with 3 major lows.

The Nathan Rice Family

The girls spoke with me after talking to Papa. They went to a summer festival on Saturday and had such a wonderful time. There were inflatable slides that they had a blast on. There were fireworks after they returned home and went to bed. Annie was the first one to hear the noise and they all enjoyed it. They have great plans this week for play dates and park trips. They are so enjoying their new community and have made many friends. 

Dad's Garden

Citrus is nearly gone. Kooper picks a few every time he comes over. He and Doran like the red grapefruit. Basil is still growing well. 

 

Other highlights

Father's Day was great for Dad. He spoke with Doran and Grandma on the Phone. Allison Marco Poloed and he also got sweet messages from the kids. Anna, Ellie, Emma, and Eve Facetimed with him, and later so did Ethan, Cameo, Kaylee, and Wade. Kayty gave him some rocks from a new rock shop she located. I spoiled him as usual and made him venison green chili burros for his meal. 

Uncle Loyd died on Friday night. He picked up a bug in the care center and it just seemed to be a turning point. Within a few days he was not eating and he passed quickly. Grandma is doing well though her daily life is going to be drastically changed. 

Week of June 11 - June 17, 2023

Spiritual

We had a very special Sunday at church. Twin brothers gave their mission farewell talks. Their talks were very good and inspiring and then these two young men, a friend, and another young man going on his mission next month sang a lovely quartet. Very spiritual meeting. Primary went well. Sunday was the usual quiet at home. 

Dad was able to attend the temple this week on Thursday evening. 

My daily morning foundation of General Conference talk(s), prayer, scripture study and Come Follow Me study continues each day. 

I have indexed 9899 records and reviewed 14,628 records so far this year.

Family

The Wilkins Family

No news from the Wilkins Family this week. 

The Ethan Rice Family

Ethan, Cameo, Kaylee and Wade are doing well. They surprised Daddy with an early Father's Day breakfast. Kaylee baked the biscuits from scratch and made yummy sausage gravy. They had a fun last weekend fishing and added to the fish count wall. 

The Doran Rice Family

This family had a good week. Doran traveled as usual, and as far as Yuma for work. They are doing well. 

Morgan

No news from Morgan this week. 

Kayty

Kayty had a pretty good week at work and found a new rock shop to get beads to create jewelry. 

The Nathan Rice Family

No news from this family this week. 

Dad's Garden

I picked a ton of basil on Thursday and made six batches of pesto, which equals 12 meals using pesto. 

Lots of yard work continues as we trim and bag and haul to the bulk trash pile.

 

Week of June 4 - June 10, 2023

Spiritual

It was a challenging Sunday. We arrived early as usual. I was sitting in my seat and then received a text from the sister who co-teaches with me. She was unable to come. So I quickly ran home, grabbed my lesson bag, printed the lesson, got my iPad, got a few things for the class, and got to church as it started. I prepared as well as I could and hoped for the best. Our singing time for primary ended up moving to the empty chapel to let the kids practice for Fathers Day. Well, that kind of got my three to five-year-olds riled up. We got to class and started. I completed the object lesson and went to play the video on my iPad and the internet at the church was down. We tried to get it to play through my phone but to no avail. Then all the girls in the class had to go to the bathroom so Dad and Christophers dad kept the boys busy till we returned. I finally sat on the floor with a picture of the Last Supper and tried to explain the Sacrament to the kids. Then it was time to go. I was exhausted!

We were able to attend the temple this week. I attended on Tuesday. morning and Dad attended on Wednesday evening. 

My daily morning foundation of General Conference talk(s), prayer, scripture study and Come Follow Me study continues each day. 

I have indexed 9470 records and reviewed 14,012 records so far this year.

Family

The Wilkins Family

Happy Birthday, Adam on Friday! The Wilkins are enjoying a great family summer. Games, pickleball, and lots of fun!

Here are some pics from Grace and Josh's trek

The Ethan Rice Family

Work and summer fun fill the days of this family. Ethan and Wade did some fishing last weekend. Ethan began working in his new position at work. 

The Doran Rice Family

Amber traveled to Los Angeles this week on a trip for her job. 

Doran had a busy work week. The kids are enjoying their break from school. They came by on Saturday to help celebrate Grandma's birthday. 

Morgan

Morgan called on Saturday. He is very busy at work. They are no longer reimbursing for gas, which is a problem right now, but he seems to enjoy the work and is now getting weekends off. 

Kayty

Kayty had a good week at work. One major save this week. 

The Nathan Rice Family

Happy Birthday to Emma on Tuesday. I got to talk to the newest four-year-old in the family via FaceTime but she had a tummy ache so it wasn't the best day. She showed me one of her birthday gifts. Daddy is out of town in California on a business trip. Annie was sure he was on a beach but I said business trips rarely have any time for fun. The girls have been allotted one wall in the office and they are creating a lovely art museum full of drawings and coloring pages. Annie had a great time at her friend's birthday party last week and had fun doing gymnastics. Ellie showed me the neat finds she got at a yard sale. She is quite the shopper. She also showed Papa and I her cartwheel skills she has been practicing. She is getting better and better. She is trying out some new curl cream for her hair and really likes it. Oh, and the pillowcases shared last week: sewed by the girls!!! well, except for Eve's.

Dad's Garden

Picked more basil this week. Dad has been finishing up eating the oranges on the trees. While Doran and Dad were picking some grapefruit, Doran found two rather large tomatoes on a vine under the lemon tree. Our tomato harvest for 2023!

 

Other highlights

Mom was put on hospice this week. She is already getting better care and the people working with her have been so communicative. We went down to get more things out of her room so there would be room for a hospital bed when it is ordered. Mom seemed very happy. Sharynn came down for a few days to visit with her too. 

Quarterly pickup trimming and hauling has begun. Dad trimmed the mesquite in the lower courtyard. We are probably going to cut it down since it was nearly blown over last year and it seems to be stealing water from our citrus trees. I trimmed a couple trees out in front and we got the cut-up couch of dads out. We still have a week to get more trimming done. It is harder for the two of us to get stuff trimmed but hiring folks is far too costly. 

Week of May 28 - June 3, 2023

Spiritual

We had a very nice Sacrament meeting even though many people were out of town. Our elders quorum president conducted the meeting. Our entire primary presidency was out of town, but the chorister and her husband ran primary. I only had one of my six kids. Christopher sure enjoyed being the only one in class and I could really gear it to him. The rest of our Sunday was very good and quiet.

Dad was able to attend the temple this week on Wednesday evening. My session on Tuesday was already full before I could make my reservation. 

My daily morning foundation of General Conference talk(s), prayer, scripture study and Come Follow Me study continues each day. I completed my   time through General Conference and began my 

I have indexed 9189 records and reviewed 13,605 records so far this year.

Family

The Wilkins Family

Happy Birthday to Mike on Wednesday. The Wilkins had a great week last week and are enjoying their first week of Summer vacation. 

Josh and Grace went on Trek this week. More details to come I am sure. 

The Ethan Rice Family

Last weekend was fun for the family as they went camping and fishing and had a wonderful time. Ethan and Wade caught many fish. 

The Doran Rice Family

Busy work week for Doran and Amber. Doran traveled a lot last week and showed me a picture of quite a complicated installation. They are doing well and we enjoyed a visit with them on Saturday. 

Morgan

Morgan is busy working six days a week in Munds Park. 

Kayty

Kayty had one of her best weeks at work in a long time. She decided it was time to sell her wedding reception Disney decor and has it up for sale. 

The Nathan Rice Family

The girls surprised me with a late call Monday. They had a wonderful day with Nathan and Jessica! They went out for breakfast burritos and then went fishing. Annie caught a fish and Ellie almost got one. They then went to the splash pad in their town and had such a fun time. Lunch was corn dogs and they had a quiet afternoon and made homemade lemonade and onion rings for dinner. It was going to be a picnic but the weather was too hot. The girls had taken their showers and were ready for the end of a wonderful holiday.

Dad's Garden

Basil is thriving and Dad and Doran are still getting citrus.