200th Post and losing

For my 200th post today, I will be paying tribute to the Staley Falcons, who lost their first football game this weekend....9 to 52...wow. But, it wasn't because of lack of school spirit, that's for sure.

Hunter went to the game with her friends Rachel and Devin. Rachel is a new member of the church, Devin is a non-member...new step daughter of my friend Kristen. As they were walking out the door, feeling pumped up by their face paint and beads, Devin says, "We're so spiritual!". Hunter says..."yeah, we're so spiritua.....what?, Did you say spiritual???, You mean SPIRITED??!". Ha! It was pretty cute, guess you had to be there. At least they cracked themselves up.

But I have to say...they were pretty spirited too.

Oak Park won their game...yippeee...it's hard keeping track of two teams and cheering for both.

Till Death Do I Part

Um...I'm sick. Go ahead and say it...I don't have a life.

Seriously, So Blessed

It's all good and for fun, so if you are easily offended by jokes poked at Mormon women, or if the shoe fits all too well, do not go there. But this anonymous gal is fairly blessed with the gift of language and is getting noticed and PAID for it. You go girl. Gone are the days when the stay at home mom sells Mary Kay to make extra income. These web gals are clever and witty and make bank while staying home playing on their computers. So go ahead, make fun of Utah culture and our unique Mormon verbage all you want, it's downright hilarious. Remember, TAMN is not a real person but you know her.
I know some of you will be addicted.

Tiffany Springs for fun

Young Mens/Young Women's combined activity last night...a swim party at Tiffany Springs. Not the warmest night but warm water and plenty of dare divers...


Even the leaders got in on the action....




They had a great turn out and everyone looked like they were having fun...


Apparently, I don't get to see enough of the youth every morning that I must need to see them at night too. At least I see them enjoying themselves...

Today could be that day...

One day, long, long ago.......There lived a woman who did not whine, nag or complain.

But this was a long time ago.......And it was just that one day.

The End

Good Morning...

It's 5:10 a.m. and it's been a long night. I know for sure of only 2 1/2 hours of sleep I got and I decided to get up and shut the alarm clock off at 4:30. I might as well do something productive with my "extra" time the Lord seems to have blessed me with this morning. I wasn't nervous or anxious about starting seminary today...more like resigned, but I was pretty tired since I didn't get much sleep the night before so I really intended on a better start to this week. I've had this plan all summer that I would not shower in the morning before seminary and my longer hair has really come in handy for this. So, prep time for seminary is now 15 minutes...pretty good.

Seminary teacher is now a stake calling and yesterday I was sustained and set apart. I think...I hope this will help me. I'm still not sure this is what I'm supposed to be doing and while I'm not digging my heels in against it (or kicking against the pricks) so to speak, I suppose it's safe to say, I'm not excited about. I'm here. I must be a loser for being so whiny about a calling. I know I get so much more then I give and it will be worth it I'm sure, it always is and has been for the last 3 years. I'm not even sure what I'd rather be doing but I know I wanted to be involved with my kids' lives, especially since Chloe is a senior. I guess I know what that means. One good thing about teaching seminary is that I spend a lot more time on my knees and maybe the Lord likes it better when I'm on my knees more often. Also, at least I'm sure to get in my personal scripture study each day. Who else can say "I don't have time" to study the scriptures, not a seminary teacher! That's what we do. I get to feel the Spirit at outrageous hours of the day, I get to bond with teenagers, I get to watch videos, listen to great music and wear make up for about 16 hours a day! Not too shabby, I'd say. And this year, I get to commiserate with my Mom who will be teaching seminary as well. So now I have a built in buddy.
159 early morning hours to go.

Heaping Humiliation

As if it wasn't bad enough that Lola got loose at the vet's office, we now have another embarrasment to deal with! When I took Lola to the vet this morning, her leash got tangled with another dog's so we unhooked their leashes to get them untangled, which sent them running after each other. Of course, the doors were open and Dr. Cupp's office is like a maze where all the rooms are interconnected. She and this other dog couldn't be caught as they ran all over through the entire office, including the room where he does surgery. It was actually pretty funny and they all got a good laugh at it. Luckily we were the first patients of the day so they were still patient themselves. Then, after he takes Lola's bandage off she goes right for the wound to start licking it....which is bad, I guess. So needless to say Lola has to wear an "Elizabethan Collar" (I know it's called this because it's says so on my receipt), for 3 days until the wound finishes closing. She is ticked off and so humiliated. She's lucky the darn thing is clear and made of plastic...oh the stories I could tell her of the old days and the collars dogs used to have to wear!! This ordeal just keeps getting better and better.

Post Script

I was able to find some information about Downham in the journal of Heber C. Kimball. Accompanied by Elder Fielding, he makes mention a couple of times of baptizing people in Downham and there is a fascinating story behind this village and the surrounding towns. It did not make mention in this particular history that the people left for America, or how many were ultimately baptized, although it did say this was a process of years of work there. He was warned before hand that this was a region of much wickedness and that missionaries had tried preaching there before with no success. He even said that they called the area "evil". He was determined to succeed there and decided to pray for strength and preach in the name of the Lord. On one occasion, he procured a large barn to preach in. He was successful on several different occasions with many baptisms and in the end he had very tender feelings for this town and it's surrounding villages, so much so that he felt he was on sacred ground. As he left, he felt the Spirit of the Lord rest upon him and compell him to leave a blessing on that whole region of country. As he was leaving throngs of people followed him weeping and saying goodbye and he wept for several miles after bidding them adieu as he could barely stand leaving them.
What a tender, sweet story. I don't know why today I was able to find information when I couldn't the last time I looked. Maybe somewhere there is more. I'm just so glad I looked. I'm so grateful I went there. Maybe that is why there is such a special feeling there, because the region was blessed by Heber C. Kimball. England is rich in missionary history...I'm so glad to have been a witness to that.

Gone but not forgotten..

So, maybe I saved the best for last then. While we were in the Preston temple some of the temple workers mentioned that a great place to visit was the village of Downham. It wasn't too far from the temple and they provided us with a little map on how to get there. The story is, when the first missionaries came to England this was one of the places they proselyted. Apparently, the entire village of possibly 1,000 + people was converted and later they all left it behind to make the journey to America and then on to Utah. One of the missionaries was supposedly Heber C Kimball. I have done some research since I've been home and have been unable to find any information regarding this story, however, I'm not the best researcher and there is probably a resource that has material about it somewhere. We ended up stopping by there on the evening of our first night at the Lake District on the way home and although there is no historical marker indicating anything happened there, we were not disappointed. Downham itself has been well preserved and is the most authentically old village we visited in England. Other then seeing vehicles and having electricity, it feels like you've stepped back in time and indeed it has a special feeling. The village has been voted several times as the most picturesque town in England. I can see why. It is the quintessential English village...small, quaint, quiet, peaceful and beautiful. Apparently, several movies have been filmed there. There are no stores or gas stations, only a small pub, which we ate a wonderful meal at. It's off and away from main highways and roads and so it is very primitive and not touristy at all. The roads are very narrow...only the width of one car in most places and lined with old rock walls.

This church was there when the missionaries came to town. I wonder if they preached the gospel and shared the Book of Mormon right there in front of it or across the street at the post office.

I'm so glad we took the opportunity to stop there and I hope someday to hear the true and accurate history that took place in such a wonderful place. Those must have been some pretty valiant saints to leave this behind for the deserts of Utah!

KANKKU

Which is Finnish for "Buttock". I looked it up. Why they named their company Buttock, I'll never know but it may have something to do with the bumpy ride in the Land Rover Defender. This is one of the coolest things to do in the Lake District, to rent the Defender and learn to properly drive a 4 wheel drive by a professional. We each took turns but I'm pretty sure it was Boyd who enjoyed it the most. We drove on some seriously messed up narrow roads and it was actually pretty difficult in some places. We opted for the 3 hour experience and I couldn't believe how fast the time went. It's also a super unique way to enjoy the scenery. We ended our trip with a ride across a lake on a ferry.

Driving the Defender made me miss my LR3 but then I was also reminded that these trucks are designed to be driven on mountain terrain, on the weekends, in mild climate...not on the freeway, everyday, in all weather. I beat my Land Rover up and it didn't like the city life.

What a way to end our trip to Europe. I can't wait to go back...I'm anxious to see Scotland which is supposed to look like the Lake District on steroids!

Diet Coke Addict in Training

Look who's trying to steal the Diet Coke! I'm not sure if he's really after the soda, as I'm pretty sure he doesn't actually get it sucked up, or if it's the straw he's crazy for, but he was going for it. I wish the pictures show how excited he gets as he's shaking and trying to grab and pull the straw in his mouth or how slobber just poors out of his mouth or how he grunts but it's still pretty darn cute. This guy is wanting his Diet Coke too! Gosh, he's stinkin' cute.
Can you see why it's so dangerous for me to be around him right now???

Last Day in England

The dream had to come to an end eventually I guess, and being in the Lake District again was the best way to go. We had already spent a day there and since there is so much to see and it's so beautiful, we decided to go back for our last day. The day began with a hike...one that I wasn't too enthusiastic about...one that had great views but wasn't easy. One of the benefits of this area is the amount of rain they get. No one needs to irrigate and grass just grows all over the place. Sheep free range graze all over the tops of the mountains and never have a shortage of food. There are little streams of clear water running all over so there is never a shortage of water either. It really is an ideal place for these animals. You would think by now with all the people that hike around, that the sheep would be a little more friendly but each time I tried to approach them, they ran off.

The first half of the hike kicked my butt, I'm not gonna lie. I kept climbing over these little peaks thinking we were at the top and then I'd look ahead and see another one in the distance. By the time I reached the top, I was pretty grouchy and nauseated but I got a good chuckle out of the sheep. The descent was much better. I enjoyed the views coming down much more than going up. Plus the other side of the mountain was covered in green ferns. The ground is spongy and clean and it feels like your walking on springs and it's not moldy or buggy at all.

You'd think with all the hiking and walking we did for 2 weeks that I would have lost weight while I was gone. The problem was that 3 times a day we stopped and had great meals...and I would eat and try everything I could. I can say I ate my way through England. Now I'm left with the aftermath of dealing with the consequences of that! I think Boyd enjoyed the hike but the highlight of that day later on for him was driving the Land Rover Defender...probably his favorite part of the entire trip.