June 9, 
2013

Dear Mama,

Hi! How are you doing? I am doing A-OK. This week has been a 
little more like my usual weeks. I spent Monday doing my normal stuff. 
Dishes, grocery shopping (although I did this in Clovis because I needed 
a few things that I couldn't find here in Portales). By the time I got 
back, unloaded and put away all of the groceries, it was past time for 
lunch. We had those skillet pizzas that you liked so much when you were 
visiting us. Anyway, after lunch, we went to the library where I signed 
the boys up for a Teen Summer Reading Program. It started the next 
day. However, that is when I discovered that I have misplaced my 
library card. I have looked everywhere and still have yet to find it. 
Anyway, we got home and I started cooking dinner. The kids busied 
themselves by reading the books they had checked out of the Library. 
Went and picked up Jason from work and had dinner and then watched a 
movie and went to bed.

Tuesday, I unpacked some more boxes, organized some more things, 
and filled out some paperwork for the boys to go to Floyd High School. 
I took Sam and Cale to their orthodontist appointment. I made Josh come 
with us so he could get some more driving time in. After the ortho, we 
went to the bread thrift store and stocked up on some bread. Then we 
went to the Grease Monkey and got an oil change that was way overdue by 
about 10,000 miles. Once home, we had lunch and then it was time for 
the boys to go to their first Library Summer Program event. They made 
catapults and then had marshmallow wars with each other. My boys, of 
course, were the loudest. You could hear them throughout the Library. 
There is only one other boy in the group, the rest are girls. Shayna 
and I stayed and read books while we waited. Brenna stayed home because 
the guy finally came to fix my window and somebody had to be there. It 
was a good day for everyone.

Wednesday, before going to the Library with the boys, I went to C&S 
to open an account to get our propane tank filled. They not only wanted 
local references, but local creditors. Tucumcari is as local as they 
were gonna get. But Jason had to sign the paperwork, too, so I brought 
it home with me. The guys did some kind of spy stuff at the Library. 
They seemed to have a lot of fun and came home with a bunch of black 
balloons. I never did ask what that was all about. As soon as we got 
home we started in on supper because Wednesday is their Mutual Night at 
Church. Shayna went along because she volunteered to go to Girl's Camp 
this year. Lela Jones, the Girl's Camp Director, couldn't go because of 
her C-section and they needed an extra person. She will be the 
assistant director. Jason and I went to go to another 72 hour kit 
meeting. No one else showed up (if I would have listened to my phone 
messages, I would have learned that the meeting had been cancelled). 
So, Jason and I went to Burger King for a 50cent ice cream cone. By the 
time we had finished our cones, I noticed it was black outside. The 
wind was blowing with ferocity. And then it started raining. So even 
though it was a whole half of an hour earlier than when the boys were 
gonna be let out of their meetings, we raced to the van. The rain came 
down in buckets. It was so bad that the windshield wipers were on as 
fast as they could go and we could not see through the windshield. By 
the time we got to the church, the streets were flooded and it was 
hailing. We waited in the van for the hail to stop and then ran inside, 
getting soaked through. Everyone was cutting meetings short and leaving 
early, so we did too. I am grateful that we didn't get the message 
about the cancelled meeting because otherwise we would not have been in 
the van which rides a little higher. Shayna would have been driving the 
boys in Jack which rides lower, and they would have been swept away in 
the flooding. If you remember, flooding was one of the reasons I did 
not like Portales. We got home and dried off, read scriptures and said 
prayer and then went to bed.

Thursday was my usual laundry day. I also dropped off my paperwork 
to C&S and took the boys to the Library. They watched a movie and had 
popcorn. I read. Later that night, Shayna and I went to church for a 
Relief Society Meeting and worked as a team doing Indexing. Shayna took 
charge of the technology part. and I read the names. Apparently she 
struggles with the reading part. We made a pretty good team.

Friday, was a usual Friday for everyone but me. I had a "growing 
experience". Jason asked me earlier when we woke up if I wanted eggs, 
because traditionally on Friday mornings, he cooks me eggs. I said 
"sure" and then went and took my shower. Somewhere we lost track of the 
time, and when he realized he was going to get to work late and miss a 
phone call with his adviser from Western Governor's University, he 
started yelling at me that he didn't have time to cook me eggs. That 
was fine with me, no biggy, but I pulled out some pre-cooked sausages 
and he started yelling at me that I didn't understand, he didn't have 
time to cook that. I told him I would do it and even made him some 
toast in the process. He sat down and ate a nice breakfast and we 
called the kids together for scripture and prayer. After that was over, 
I figured he would jump in the car and take off, but he didn't. He took 
his time gathering his things and then he left. I was so angry at him 
for yelling at me, and not apologizing that I took a long time out in my 
room. I read my scriptures, but I was still miffed. I happened to read 
a Reader's Digest article next. It was on how bad attitudes can 
literally affect our health. I didn't want to get sick, so I decided 
that I was gonna change my attitude. By that time, it was lunchtime and 
I came out of my room and made lunch. Jason called during his lunchtime 
and he apologized. That was all great, but I was still angry, and I 
realized I wasn't angry about what had gone on that morning. I was 
angry at my situation. I wanted to be back in Tucumcari in my own 
house. Jason goes off to some nice office and I sit in what the kids 
have called "The Rat Squaller". Which by the way is funny because the 
other day we found a mouse in the closet where the evaporative cooler 
controls are located. It was sickly or had got into a fight. Anyway. 
Shayna got it and threw it into the trash receptacle outside. Anyway, I 
went and got the mail and it had the Ensign in it and I opened it up and 
read an article by Elder Spencer W. Kimball --my personal favorite-- and 
it was all about giving up the idols that we worship or we will be 
trading in "all that the Father has" for a mere pittance. I realized 
that I was idolizing my house in Tucumcari. You know me, a blessing 
seeker. I would prefer "all that the Father has" , and it was amazing 
how immediately my attitude changed and the peace that entered my heart.

Saturday, Jason got up super early to go to Lubbock to test for the 
Foreign Service. I slept in the latest I have slept in a long time. I 
woke up at 8:15. Got up and made toast bread and cocoa. We did some 
cleaning and I urged the twins to get their laundry done because they 
had a general priesthood meeting to go to later that day. Meanwhile, I 
made Minestrone for lunch and just as I was putting it on the table, 
Jason walked in. The guys ate and then quickly dressed for their 
meeting and then took off to Roswell for the stake meeting. After they 
left, the girls and I went to WalMart and picked up some dresser drawers 
we had ordered for the boys. When we got home with them, I started in on 
organizing the boy's room, trying to leave it as much as possible they 
way they had put it, but just getting rid of all the boxes that were 
still unpacked. Man, the twins are clothes horses. But I worked on 
their room and their laundry all day. I discovered those tiny black 
sugar ants were in Josh's bed, so I stripped his bed and washed his 
bedding stuff and febreezed his mattress to death. By the time the boys 
got home, you could actually walk into the room. It looked great! Not 
that it will stay that way, but at least it was done at least once.
Today, Sunday, I got a calling, but as I have not been sustained or 
set apart yet, I will wait to let you know what it is because the rest 
of the family reads this, too. Shayna got embarrassed by me in Relief 
Society this morning. I am sorry I embarrass her so much. But I will 
not change who I am. Meanwhile, we learned that Lela Jones, who had the 
C-section, is still in the Hospital. Her baby has been released but she 
was having trouble breathing and they figured it was either a blood clot 
or pneumonia. Come to find out, it is her heart. It is enlarged and 
weakened and not in good condition. She asked for a blessing and 
everyone is praying for her.

Anyway, awhile back I got an e-mail from Gramma "K" about going to 
China to teach little kids English. I showed it to Brenna because she 
is not doing anything at the moment. She is actually interested in it 
and is looking into it. Before you get all worried, it is (sort of) a 
program of BYU's and yes, she will pay for her first trip, and if she 
chooses to go back a second time, they will pay for her trip. She does 
get a small living allowance, and they pay for her housing and food, 
and, no, she does not need to know how to speak Chinese. The 
interesting thing about all of this is after she received her 
patriarchal blessing, the patriarch said that he could see a bunch of 
little kids surrounding her and calling her "teacher" and you could tell 
they really loved her. Brenna could never picture that happening in her 
life, but she is thinking that maybe this is what he was talking about. 
I blame all of this wanderlust on Jason. I have enjoyed all of my 
little ruts I have carved out for myself. Then I read something the 
other day that said, "We blind ourselves to opportunities for 
improvement by never climbing out of the ruts of the past. If we are 
not careful, our ruts can become our graves." It seems that Heavenly 
Father has been gently hitting me over the head with the proverbial 
frying pan this week, and undoubtedly, I have needed it. I just wish 
that I could find my journal (still packed in some box) and record all 
of this down in it.

Jason doesn't know how well he did on that test and won't know for 
some weeks to come how he did. Meanwhile, he passed his second class 
for WGU and is working on his third. Two down, nine to go. His boss' 
boss has been singing his praises at work and has been giving him 
assignments to do that he is sure his immediate boss knows nothing 
about. He is not sure if it is because it is just a dysfunctional work 
place or what, but he is trying to finish all assignments given him 
regardless of who gives the marching orders. So, he is keeping very busy.
Well, it is game time with the family, I should get going. Hope 
all is well with you. All my love to ya, your 4th, Lisa