Donna's Journey

I cannot believe it. Two day till Julia is home!

I did not sleep well last night. I was all over the place. When I woke in the morning all the sheets were pulled to the center of the bed. I usually hardly move. A bit restless!

This morning the seminar began early. I did have a few moments before it began to do some layout orgnization for my project summary. Again, I have found a seminar transformational. Let us hope that the worth while things we learn do transform us. I looked forward to the fall with great anticipation. I will use my summer with the end in mind. Working through things and building a cresting, leading into fall.

I picked up Jennifer and Ariel at YFA and also brought Tina home. These three girls were so excited and sharing their week that transformed them. They chatted for three hours and boy did the time fly! I stopped at Sam’s on the way home to pick up fresh veggies and the necessities for a fast dinner. Roger and the boys had scouts and Jennifer Young Women’s, just shortly after arriving home. I had hungry workers. I walked into Jeremy steam cleaning the kitchen floor. I started a load of my laundry. Dinner took 15 minutes to prepare. Adam was finishing laying bricks under the front stairs as I arrived home. They had placed an area of brick to place our wood pile on, while I was gone. They started building the stairs to the garden where the retaining wall is built. Roger even rototilled the garden. Boy have they been busy!!! While Roger and the youth were at their activities, Mary and I took a walk and visited a neighbor.

It is great to be home.

Roger and I took a walk and then had devotional with the kids.

Wow, we moved to Utah 13 years ago this weekend.

I went to the How to Mentor Seminar today. I learned a lot from Tiffany Earl and Oliver DeMille. Before the seminar began and during the back half of lunch break, I continued to type my summary. I went to lunch with Rori and Debi. Then back to GWC. During dinner break, I visited Kim in Enoch. then back to the seminar to learn more. By the time I got back to the hotel it was 10:00, I had not had dinner so we went to Denny’s and our waiter was new, by the time we were served it was near 11:00. It was nearing midnight when I retired.

Brrrr its 46 degrees out there this morning.

Time to load up the car and head to Cedar City. I will be back on Wednesday. The hotel I am staying at has no internet. If I do get to post it will be unexpected.

Aloha!!!

Hi again!

I made it safely to Enoch and dropped the girls off at Youth For America camp.  I then headed to my friend’s home in Enoch.  Missed her.  So I checked in at Motel 6 and brought in my gear.  I sat down at the desk and set up my computer and startd to type.  I completed a healthy portion of my  project summary.

Rori arrived and we went to dinner at Sizzler’s.  We tried to find Debi.  No luck.

I slept in this morning…OK I cannot let this become a habit.

I studied Alma 27 this morning. I also helped Mary write her talk for today. She only received the call, to give a talk in Primary today, on Thursday.

Sacrament meeting was powerful, the Bishopric spoke today. The read the letter from the First Presidency on the senate vote coming up on the prosed marriage ammendment. We were encouraged to make our voices heard. We were encouraged to become physically and spiritually prepared. Work is a necessity spiritually, even when it is not a physical necessity, as when someone is financially where work is no longer required in order to survive. We were also warned not to become spiritual seagulls. Apparently seagulls in an area in Florida began to starve because they had become dependent on the shrimp boats, when the industry moved else where they no longer were given free fish, had forgotten how to care for themselves and began to starve. I believe too many of us depend on others for spiritually and temporally for feeding.

Mary gave her first talk without family standing next to her. My baby is finding her courage.

After church, Jennifer was set apart as 2nd Councilor in the Laurels Presidency.

While getting dinner ready, Roger shared his deep feeling about Les Miserables; it changed him too.

Panna joined us for dinner.

Our home teachers came to home teach. Since our home teacher is the Stake president, he made tentative plends for Friday night, for Julia’s missionary release.

I typed an email to my missionary.

We had devotional and now its time to be prudent and exercise so foresight and head to bed.

Yes, Sister Goff will be home in 6 Days! She will find many changes. Her home has changed. The yard has changed. Her brothers and sisters have grown. Our life has changed. Let us hope that in 18 months we have progressed.
I slept well.

The morning is cool and fresh. I can hear the baby birds though they are no longer in their nest. I look at the window and see the clean lines that the garden retaining wall has taken and am glad that by retaining the crumbling hill, it has bought us more tillable land. I know that in future days, we will be grateful that we did this.

I studied Alma 25-26 this morning. The result of some of the greatest acts of public virtue.

We will drive down to pick up Jeremy, Jared, Alex, and Ariel this morning. I hope to finish Les Miserables today! Then I will be but a paper and a project summary away from my oral boards. Oh, I can almost taste it. What a joy this is! The sprint is on.

As we drove home I read the last 50 pages of Les Miserables, sometimes crying and blubbering.  Then I would look up and see the tears running freely down my husband’s cheeks.  I did it.  I finished my last book for 5 Pillar level II and I wrote the rough draft of the paper.

More later…

I woke up around 9. I slept pretty soundly last night.  One week more and I will stand at the airport and embrace my daughter and welcome her home into our circle once more.  In reality because she has been in our daily prayers, she has always been apart of this circle.
I went down stairs and tried to find my Disc with the scriptures on it so I could load it on my laptop. I could not find it so I opened a drawer and found some pink cards with names to type in on my family history. These were children of my great Uncles. I just casually typed these men’s names into ancestry.com and pulled up the 1920 census, about two year before my uncles died in a typhus epidemic in Clay County, Mississippi. I was found 5 children for 1 brother and 1 child for the other, that I had never heard of. Perhaps they died in the epidemic too, because I could not find them in the 1930 census.

I called a lady that lives in Provo who has been looking for a friend for her 6 year old daughter.

My son arrived with his wife and son. All morning James read from his Narnia series. I plunged into Les Miserables while my husband and oldest son worked in the garden. My that retaining wall is beautiful! I stopped reading to take my daughter-in-law to Old Navy. I stopped to play with Valor. I continued to read.

I went to the store becasue I had run out of lettuce, Tortillas and beef. Because of the rains in Cailfornia, lettuce as 2.49 a head, which was more expensive than the beef!

We made a Taco supper. We had devotional and sent the kids to bed. I read on. I am calling it a night. I have about 120 pages left to finish Les Miserables.

Good night!

Off to Paris, or, uh…Cedar City, as I read Les Miserables to my husband as he drives 4 youth to Cedar City for the Youth for America Literature Camp.

I studied Alma 24 this morning. Now its off to blow my hair dry…and grab a bite.

We drove to Cedar to take Jeremy to YFA Literature camp. I read Les Miserbales alod, all the way there and back. The place where the camp is held this year was beautiful. After taking the grand tour, making introductions, and passing off hugs, We left Jeremy for his adventure. Roger and I had lunch with Sandi and discussed business ideas and reported to her on my progress. I stopped by GWC to pick up a book for a friend.

While we were on the road the bricks were delivered to our home. We now have the retaining wall blocks to complete the retaining wall, brick in under the front and back porch, under the wood pile and the secret garden! It is becoming a reality.

On the way home we stopped at the Beaver and Nephi Nurseries, looking for more Dianthas. I read more Les Miserables when we got home. I am soooooo close! I went into our bedroom and read to Roger as we both were on the bed, oh such a bedtime story.

We had devotional with the kids. Off for a walk and then off to bed. I need all the beauty sleep I can get.

As having an inquisitive mind would have it, I could not sleep last night as someone had asked a question about Thomas Jefferson’s early education. I read from The Real Thomas Jefferson and then searched the web. I found it facinating. I did not retire until 3 am. I am awake now and have been reflecting on what I had learned. I want to know more. He is such a facinating individual.

Off for a walk to be followed by reading the rest of the chapter of Where the Red Fern Grows, or visa versa. Well, just as we left, my son and his family arrived so we all walked together. We played at the neighborhood park. I came home and took my older children to seminary.

All three robins have left their nest. The kids hope they stay close.

I came home to prepare for my afternoon class on the Declaration of Independence. Then my eye caught an email that I had sent a earnest mother searching vainly through the MOO archives, and needed to solve. I turned my attention to the matter. All of the sudden my son called, time was up and I needed to pick them up. When I arrived home my students were here. Wow, what a class. There assignment had been to look up every word they did not understand. We had a very good colloquium. Today was the last class of the school year.

After class I finished a chapter in Where the Red Fern Grows.

My husband and son continued working on the garden. They had me come out and tell them where the patio will be and they measured for bricks! The roses are exploding into bloom!!!!

Now I am off to finish making a variation of Autumn Chicken, brown rice, and salad for dinner. I ate with Valor, Adam, and Ki, everyone else was at scouts, YM, YW, or playing. Summer is coming toooooo quickly.

While everyone was gone, I put on a CD to listen to Oliver DeMille’s talk at the Forum this year. While I listened I worked. I emptied and reloaded the dishwasher and folded laundry and generally did the evening maintainence, so when everyone gets home we can enjoy time together. Tomorrow will be a long day. A round trip to Cedar CIty and back.

“A dillar, a dollar, A ten o’clock scholar,
What makes you come so soon?
You used to come at ten o’clock,
But now you come at noon!”

Its 10:30 and my sleepy heads are finally pulling themselves out of bed. By the time their eyes are fully opened and they are fed and ready, it will be noon. I have been up for hours.

I studied Alma 23 this morning.

I have sorted and started the weekly laundry and already finished the first load. My daughter got up about an hour ago, and she just switched the load to the dryer and I popped in load two. I have puttering and sorting. My daughter asked if the pile of money on the shelf above the washer was money that went through the wash. I told her I ought to get a nice container and label it “laundered money:)”

My husband is at the temple, when he returns, I will read some Les Miserables to him.

My kids are up now, and I must be off…. I read about 25 pages of Where the Red Fern Grows to the children.
I dropped my son off at seminary, since he missed it yesterday for the church filming. When he got home he mowed the lawn, something his younger brother usually does, because he is learning how. Jeremy did a beautiful job and even got the edges trimmed nicely. Anyway, his younger brother was not home and he knew I wanted it mowed, so he did it. While he was at seminary I went shopping with Jennifer, Jeremy, and James. Jennifer was looking for some baskets for her room. We looked and found nothing suitable. I did find grapefruit spoons at Tuesday morning for my husband’s Father’s Day present. He loves grapefruit and likes grapefruit spoons. We have a whole family that eats them and two spoons. So we wait in line to use them…no more!
Jennifer helped get the kitchen under control. James and Mary took care of the trash and relining the cans. James cleaned the downstairs bathroom and Jeremy the upstairs bathroom.

Roger and I drove to Sam’s Club and bought basics for the weekend. I read Les Miserables aloud as we drove to and fro.

When we got home I was greeted by so very excited children. The first bird had braved his first flight. My 17 year old had named him Liber, because he was learning so hard and showing his siblings how. Mother bird sat on the fence chirping her coachings. He flew from the ground to the wheelbarrow, to the bicycle seat, and then to the fence. It was a lot of work and mama bird brought him dinner. We hope he made it into the nest. There are so many cats around.

We ate roast chicken, salad, and french bread for dinner. I had mine as a chicken salad.

The adult scholar class went well. I showed a new TJEd DVD. We discussed mom schools, being wise with our time, and Self Leadership. We also talked about using our summer better. To keep rhythms, even if they are alittle relaxed and that it is better to do a few things well than to over extend your time. While the adults met in the living room, my husband and son changed a faucet in the bathroom.

Roger and I had devotional with the children and then Roger and I took a relaxing but rejuvinating walk.

My daughter turned 17 today! I called my daughter and sang happy birthday. I then gave her a message to type to my daughter who is on a mission. So she typed as we spoke.
We had a good night’s rest at Jody’s. We were invited to scripture study with her family. Then we went to breakfast at Russell’s Bakery in Minden, yum! A truely Georgic family. The parent s homeschool their children and the children work along their parents in the family bakery and catering service.

Then back on the road and I began to read Les Miserables to my husband. Funny how time flies when you are in Paris! What a book!!!!
We arrived home safely!  We went to Arby’s for sandwich’s and DQ for dessert, because it was getting late.  I read the rest of Marius, from Les Miserables,  to my husband and the children.  We had devtional and retired.