It's been a while since I have written a post. What an understatement! So much has happened since the last time I wrote. 

I guess the BIGGEST thing is that my dad, Eugene Robert Jarman, passed away on 20 June 2012 just 1 day shy of the 4th anniversary of my Mom's death. It was so hard to let him go. I became very good friends with him in the last 4 years of his life. What a special man he was. I miss both of my parents so much. Not a day goes by that I don't think of them.

I turned 60 somewhere in there and even 61. I can't be that old, can I? I still feel like I am 20 something in my mind. Oh, but the mind is deceitful! 

In April of 2011 I had my right knee replaced. Then in June of 2011 I had my left knee replaced. Oh, what a difference those surgeries have made.

I am still working with children in small groups. I was hoping to retire after this year (I have 20 years in), but it looks like that isn't going to happen. We just can't afford it. Roger is still working at Shamrock. He's been there for almost 33 years. He can't retire yet because we need the insurance. 

Last summer Michael, our youngest, got married. His brides name is Heather. They make a nice looking couple. July 20th will be their first anniversary.

On October 22, 2013, our newest granddaughter, Everleigh Kate Van Sciver was born. She is a beautiful baby. She makes our 16th grandchild. 8 and 8.

On December 29, 2013 Roger and I celebrated our 42nd wedding anniversary. It's hard to believe we've been married so long. Eight more years and we'll be having our golden one!

2 YEARS!

Yesterday was the 2 year anniversary of my mother's death. It was a solemn day for me. Tanya came by and took me to the cemetery. I wish that I had had some flowers with me. I miss her so much. Some days are harder than others. The pain is gone, but not the missing. I love her so much and am so thankful that she was my mother.

I had the weirdest thing happen to me a short time after 7 a.m. I had just laid down (I had been up since 2 a.m.) and dozed off. Suddenly I heard a female voice say "Robie!". It sounded like she was just outside my bedroom door. I jerked awake and answered, "What?". There was no response. I went back to sleep and had no more voices or dreams wake me up. After I got up I started thinking about it and I now wonder if it was maybe my Mom calling me. She died around 7:20 a.m. and this was around 7:15-7:20. Hmmmmm?

We went up to the cabin last Thursday evening. Tanya took us in her car. It was a really different experience. I went to bring home some of my mother's "things" that are there. The cabin was a total mess! We hadn't been there in 3 years and it appears no one else had either. Linda just uses it as a storage shed, so there were boxes everywhere. We had to do some cleaning and shuffling of boxes just to go to bed.

We didn't get to visit really with Linda and Fred. They were too out of it most of the time. They take a ton of prescription medications and I think that they are addicted to them. It's really sad. Linda kept passing out on Friday and Fred was in a fender bender on Friday. By the time he got home, he was very confused and out of it. Robert and his family are leaving Seattle tomorrow to move to the cabin and take care of Linda and Fred. I hope that he can help and not get too discouraged with them. His wife might go crazy with the way they are. I know I would.

Sunday was Father's Day and we surprised my Dad and showed up at his church. It was a very good surprise. I don't know how many more Father's Days we will have with him. He is so ready to join Mom!

Roger's job is changing again. He goes back into the warehouse next Monday and will be operating a forklift again. I hope he does better this time. It will probably be a VERY long 8 years until he retires!!! Maybe he should rethink it and retire when he should instead of waiting until I retire?

We have been growing some plants. So far, we have been very successful with the tomatoes. We have harvested a ton of them. We now have a couple of zucchini growing. My radishes have been a bust. We have some onions growing but I don't know if they will produce. We have grape vines to plant. I hope they survive until we get them into the ground. the strawberries are surely a bust! At least we are trying?

Michael is now attending a young singles ward. He seems to be much happier going there. Some of his friends have come home from their missions and are attending there. In just a few short months more of his friends will be home and going there. I still wish he would decide to go on a mission himself, but for now, it's not going to happen. So sad!

I am enjoying my time off from school. I have done some scrapbooking with my girls. We have fun when we are all together. I love them a lot.

Well, I guess that I have blabbed enough for now. Until later...

School's Out!!!

Where has this year gone? Today is my first Monday off. Last Thursday was my last day. It was also the day that I was able to sign my letter of "intent" form. You know, the one that says I HAVE a JOB next year!!! I was so afraid that I wasn't going to know until sometime during the summer. Like maybe not til August, just before school starts! WHEW!!! What a relief and burden lifted!

I really enjoy the job that I do. It is very satisfying to work with these children that are struggling so much with their reading skills and to feel like I have had something to do with their successes. Of course, not every child has a success story. That breaks my heart. We do our best, but sometimes that just isn't enough. This year our scores for our testing were soooo much higher than last year, except for our 1st graders. It almost feels like a personal failure. I know that I did the best that I could for them, but it still doesn't make it any better.

Our "theme" for next year is "wild". I am going to start looking now for jungle type things to decorate my area at work. It is fun to have something like that to work on. This year, our theme was the "sea". There were a lot of fish at school this year.

We have planted a bit of a garden here at home. Not much. And mostly in containers. I have a ton of tomato plants and have already harvested 3 Roma tomatoes and two very tiny round ones (not sure of their names). Yummy! We have basil, green onions, red onions, cilantro, strawberries, cucumber, zucchini squash, and grapes. I am so looking forward to the harvest of more. We also planted 5 rose bushes. So far, so good.

I have lots of plans for this summer. I wish they were all fun plans. We probably won't be going on a vacation. We have plenty to do here. I have a few projects (cleaning certain areas) that I really want to get done. I started last summer, but when you figure that I have 30+ years of "stuff" to go through, it might take me another 30 years to get it done!!!

I have been doing a lot of the indexing for the church. I really enjoy doing it. It is relaxing to me. Last year, I was in the top 6 in our stake for indexing. Maybe this year I'll be #1? I try to do 2 or 3 a day. It is so interesting to index these people that lived so long ago. I prefer to do census' and am currently on 1910. I think that Ohio had the best penmanship so far. I am working on Vermont now.

Well, my projects beckon to me. Til later...

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Today was Mother's Day. It has been a very special day with lots of feelings and emotions. I got up about 7 this morning. Of course, I was the only one up. That's OK because I like peace and quiet. About an hour later, Roger got up and said I needed to go back to bed. So, being the obedient (ha! ha!) wife that I am, I went in and read a little. I knew this was his way of getting me out of the way so that he could set up my Mother's Day gift. Anyway, a few minutes later he said I could come back down the hall. So, again, being the obedient (ahem) wife, I went back down the hall. There in the living room, he and Michael had set up my Mother's Day gifts. Roger gave me a really nice hibiscus plant in a big pot. Michael gave me a big Thompson grape plant. I am very excited about both of them. We have gotten a few green thumbs around here in the last few months, and this will add to our little garden.

We went to Church. This being the 2nd Sunday of the month, it was supposed to be my lesson in Relief Society. But, the Bishop took charge of RS so that all the women of the ward could attend. The men taught Primary and SS. The YW took care of the YW. After the Bishops lesson, the High Priests served us a buffet brunch. It was very nummy!

After Church, Roger and I went to the cemetery to "see" my mom. I got somewhat emotional. I really miss her. There are so many times that I think I should tell her something, and then think, oh she isn't here. But I know that she really is. She was the best mother a girl could have. She was so much fun. All my friends loved her too. She taught me so much, but I wish she was here to teach me more. I love her.

We went over to Sarah's and Josiah's for dinner. We had a "Mexican" pot luck dinner. It was sooo good. There was way too much food! All of my children and grandchildren were there and it was wonderful to be together. We have such a good posterity. Beautiful and faithful. They all love the Lord. They are all active in the church. They all love each other. What more could a mother ask for? Nothing, I say.

Well, enough rambling for now. I hope that any and all who might read this had as great a Mother's Day as I did.

Until later...

Baby Eli and Other Misc. Things

Elijah Richard Smith

Well, our 15th grandchild made his appearance on Friday, March 19, 2010. This is Jeremy and Leslie's 6th child (5th boy). He made his entrance at 10:10 p.m., weighing 7lbs 9oz and was 20 3/4 inches long. He is such a cute addition to their (and our) family. I am very anxious to get to know his personality.

We had spring break last week. We planted some rose bushes and some vegetables. Then it rained this week and our poor seeds went swimming! My radishes had already sprouted so they are ok. It felt good to plant something.

Earlier in the week we had a big dumpster put in front of our house. There were 4 on our street. We were able to get rid of a lot of junk that had been around here since the dinosaurs were here, I think! Again, it felt good to get something done!

There are only 2 more months of school left. We are really gearing the kids up for their "DIBLES" testing. This year has really flown by.

I don't do very good at blogging as I don't have much to say. I live a very boring life and since most of my children are gone from home, I don't have much involvement in their lives anymore.

So, until I can think of something else to write...

COLD!!!!!

Cold. That's what I am. COLD! I am soooo tired of being cold. It gets into my joints and just makes me crazy! I can't get warm. I go around with my jacket on and my shoes on and here I sit, COLD. Oh, by the way, did I mention that I am cold? Maybe I should just go stand under a HOT shower?

My fingers are too cold to type anymore. Until I thaw...

FEBRUARY 2010

Here it is, half way through February already! Oh, my, does time fly!

I have been working hard with my reading groups. We are gearing up for the next round of testing that will take place the week of the 23rd. I am hoping to have a good success rate.

I have started doing a treasure box in my groups at work. The kids are loving it! I bought a record book and a star stamp at Teaching Tools. I use small stickers. It's kind of hard to find them small enough. They have to get 20 stickers and stamps (they get one of each every day) if they have good behavior and stay on task in our group. After 20, they get to pick 1 item out of my treasure box. I have an assortment of items for girls and boys. Although girl items are easier to come by, I have managed to find some things that the boys like. I have bought some of the things at the store (never more than $1) and some I have found at yard sales. In fact, that's where I got my treasure box. It is a pretty good size and I only paid $1 for it. Love yard sales! Anyway, most of my kids have already picked out something. I have a small handful who may never get to. Between behavior and absences, they haven't gotten many stickers.

Thursday was my Dad's 85th birthday. We went over to Bob and Shelby's house and had cake and ice cream. Doug and Marsha brought the cake and we brought the ice cream. Dad has had 3 teeth pulled recently and his mouth is still very sore, so the ice cream was a treat for him! He sure misses Mom! Everyday he prays to go. It is really hard to see him this way. I never would have guessed in a million years that he would be like this. His body and mind are both too healthy!

Yesterday was Jeremy's 35th birthday. It is very hard to believe that it's been that long since I had my first born! Where has time gone? I remember it vividly!!! That was back in the "olden days" when the only pain medication we got was a shot of Demerol (which didn't do anything for me). He has always been such a blessing to us. We love him so much! What a great man and wonderful father he has become!

Last night our ward had a Valentines dinner and dance. The dinner was okay (my piece of pork was tough and dry). The salads were super! We danced for about 30 minutes. Boy, we sure aren't as young as we used to be! Nor are we in good shape! Whew! It's hard to believe we used to dance for 2 or more hours!!! I still enjoyed dancing with my Sweetheart. Even after all these years.

Tomorrow is my Relief Society lesson. It is on Jesus Christ, Our Chosen Leader and Savior. I love the lessons this year. They are so simple! Tomorrow is also our Ward Conference, and the Stake RS Presidency wants to take about 10-15 minutes. That's fine with me. Makes my time shorter! I'm sure I can cut it back and not go over. I enjoy teaching the sisters. Sometimes I have a more difficult time preparing my lessons than others. Sometimes my lessons that I have prepared change as I present them. It's amazing what the Spirit does!

Well, I better get movin'. I still have to do my Saturday night grocery shopping. Until next time...

January 2010

Been a while...No excuses! Just a few thoughts. Love the rain we've been having. Just not the lack of power in my kitchen because of too much water. Hey, this is Arizona. How can that be? Anyway, something got wet and flipped a breaker and it took a week to dry out enough to stay flipped back! AARGHH! Love doing everything in the flashlight! Now more rain is forecast. I still love it!

I decided that I needed to do more with my husband. So, since I enjoy reading so much, I thought it would be fun to read a book together. So, I bough 2 copies of "The Tristan Betrayal" by Robert Ludlum for us to read. We are already on chapter 6. This is a little bit different kind of book than I usually read, but I know he enjoyed the Bourne Identity, so I thought we could try it. It is good so far. Maybe a fun adventure.

Until later...

GRANDBABY #14

Well, this morning it happened! Our 14th grandchild was born. SHE arrived at 7:43 a.m. via C-section. SHE was 7lbs 5oz and 21" long. HER name is LILY GNEHM SMITH! GNEHM? GNEHM? What is that all about, you say? I guess it was one of Jill's great grandmother's maiden name. What ever. I haven't seen her yet, but I did get to see a picture of her. She looks like a keeper. I probably won't be able to go see her until tomorrow sometime. No car. Story of my life!

Speaking of cars, Roger's has been down for basically 5 weeks. It's been real fun! LOL!!! I am so tired of cars that don't work when they should. It always seems to be when you need them the most, too. Oh, well.

Work has finally improved. We started doing our small groups yesterday. So far, so good. Right now we are only doing 2nd and 3rd grade. Next week we add 1st grade. We won't do kindergarten until they get another teacher. So, it's been kind of nice working our way into it.

Well, that's all for now. Until later...

New School Year

Thought I should post about the first 4 days of school. Last week was busy. We helped in different classes. I was in a 2nd grade class. The teacher really didn't need me (she is super organized and has great control). So, I helped in our Basic Skills office and in the front office. We helped the kindergarteners and 1st graders in the cafeteria. Then at the end of the day, we helped the kids get on the buses.

Today, we started our testing. We did two classes and we were through by 10:00 a.m. So then, we went back to helping in the same classes. Well, my good friend that I work with, Ranae lost her 34 year old son last Thursday. She came to work Friday and this morning but she left at noon. She isn't doing very well right now. DUH! Anyway, she works in a kindergarten class so I went in her class to help the teacher. Needless to say, I was totally exhausted when I got home. I don't know how Ranae does it.

I got a new look for this year. I got my hair cut and highlighted (no pics yet). I really like it. I also bought some blouses that are very different from what I usually wear (colors). I've gotten lots of compliments. I guess it was a goo change?

Michael is registered at MCC. He is taking 2 computer type classes and 2 welding type classed. He still hasn't gotten his books yet. He starts next Monday and better get with it!

Well, that's about it for now. Until later...

My Boring LIFE!

Well, it's been a while since I updated my blog, so, I decided that it was time. I have had several peopl mention that they were tired of seeing the same thing every time they looked at it. A lot has happened in the last 4 months.

To begin with, here are some pics of my hand with a cast and after the cast was taken off.

This is the only pic I got of my cast. I went green!

These are the scars from where they took the tendon.


This is my thumb scar from where they put the tendon.

This is the scar from where they released the trigger finger nerve.

This pic shows (barely) the carpel tunnel scar. It is almost invisible!

Overall, I am very pleased with my results from the surgery. I still have some stiffness in a couple of fingers and don't have the flexibility of my wrist and thumb back, but the doctor says that will take up to a year to get back to normal. The best part is I have NONE of the pain that I did. I went through 4 weeks of therapy after 6 weeks of a sling and cast. I am considering doing my left hand next year. We'll see.

5 days after I got my cast off, Michael broke his hand. He was playing dodgeball and had a sudden male, anger, testosterone moment with a wall. So, he spent the next 6 weeks in an orange cast. The only picture I have of that is from camping.

So, this is Michael with his cast.

Here are a few camping pictures:

Roger and our friend Jim setting up the tent trailer.

Friends relaxing.


Friends and family playing some game.

Not too many days after Michael got his cast off, he totaled my car. He was driving southbound on the 202 freeway just before Guadalupe, when a back tire lost all the tread and he lost control. He spun around and took out about 7 posts that are in the median of the freeway. I don't have pictures of that because they are on a phone. I haven't taken my camera with me when we visited it. The good news, Michael wasn't hurt.

We have been on vacation the last 2 weeks. Well, Roger has had time of for 2 weeks. We haven't been able to go anywhere. We did go see "My Sister's Keeper". It was a good but sad movie. This week, on Tuesday, we went bowling. Roger has been suggesting it for a long time and I have kept vetoing it. Well, I decided to go ahead and go.

Our electronic score card.

That's me. Perfect form, right?

About to release the ball. I'm sure it was a STRIKE! HA! HA!

Well, that was about my only fun! Not too long after this picture was taken, Robie the clutz fell. Yes. In all my glory. I showed everyone there how talented I am! I knew bowling was a bad idea!

Last night, I went to see WICKED! with Tanya and Sarah. Tanya bought the tickets a year ago. It was sooooo good! I don't have any pics of that, though.

Anyway, that pretty much brings us up to date. I go back to work in just 2 1/2 weeks. Not looking forward to that. I really enjoy staying at home. But, I also really enjoy those paychecks! Too bad they won't pay me to stay home!

Well, til next time...

Pictures After Stitches

Here are a couple of pictures that Tanya took after they took out my stitches. It looks more like I was trying my hand (literally) at redneck fishing! By the way, the blue/purple marks are where the doctor marked on me in ink BEFORE surgery so he could get it right. Now I have a bright green fiberglass cast on for the next 4 weeks. Sound like fun? I only hope that it is worth it when it's all over. Tanya and I both thought my hand looked my mother's after they took off the dressing. Kind of made me sad.

Work was a little difficult this week. My hand swells a lot from all my movement. I have t take it easy at home, elevate it. I get bored easily because there isn't alot I can do without both hands.

Well, I am tired of my lame typing so, til later...

Post Surgery

So, it's been 6 days since surgery. 6 LONG days! I am sitting here trying to type with my left hand. I'm SO glad I took typing in high school. At least my hunt and peck isn't so much hunt.

Back to my subject. Surgery went well, at least that's what the Dr. says. The first couple of days are in so many ways a blur. I thought I was doing pretty good, but others tell a different story. I was very unsteady and groggy. I did a lot of sleeping.

Sarah and her family came over on Thursday evening and fixed us a fantastic dinner. She fixed chicken fettuccine and the trimmings. We sat down to eat and I took 1 bite and jumped up and ran to throw up. I felt bad at my timing. It was totally the anesthesia. The food was great after that. We had lots of left overs, too! YUMMY!

On Friday evening, my sweet dil Leslie made us homemade chicken noodle soup. Let me just say MMMMmmmm GOOD! It hit the right spot. She makes a mean cns! Watch out Campbells! Fortunately, I didn't lose any of it. We had lots of left overs and it was just as good a second , third and fourth time.

Fortuntely, Roger was able to take Thursday off and he has Fridays off, so he had 4 days to help me. I can only do so much with my left hand. Too bad I didn't spend more time practicing as a kid!

So, let's see what they did. I have at least 5 inscisions on my hand and arm. One at the base of my hand for the carpel tunnel. 1 between (I think) my index and middle finger to fix the "trigger" finger. One at the base of my thumb where they removed the joint and 2 on my arm are from where they took a tendon to rebuild the joint in my thumb. I have a plaster cast that goes around my thumb and almost to my elbow. It only goes halfway around my arm. I can wiggle my fingers but not my thumb. I guess that was the plan. My fingers are very stiff. I have learned that I do much better if I wear the sling they put me in. When I don't wear it, I get a terrible charliehorse in my arm.

The pain is subsiding for the most part. I am down to only taking pills at night. I did way too much on Monday and paid for it that night. I pretty much stayed in bed yesterday. I feel so much better today. I only hope that in the end, it is all worth it.

I am glad I have this week off for spring break, though. I am concerened about next week. I get my stitches out next Wednesday and then I get a synthetic cast for four more weeks. Hopefully, by then, I can get it wet.

Well, my fingers are really tired. So, til later...

SURGERY!

Well, I decided that I needed to post something again while I can. After tomorrow, I won't be able to type very well or fast. You see, I will be having to do it left handed. I am having surgery tomorrow morning on my right hand. They are going to fix the carpel tunnel, the trigger finger and replace the joint at the base of my thumb. Fun, huh? The best part is that I will have a cast on for six (yes, that's 6) weeks! I am SOOOOOOO excited! Can you just feel the SARCASM dripping from my words? I will be glad to get this taken care of though. The pain is very bad. Most of the time on a scale of 0-10, it is an 8 or 9. I am taking tomorrow and Friday off from work and the next week is spring break. I'm sure I'll be having loads of fun!

Not much exciting has been going on here. I have been trying to do some scrapbooking. I've been working on pages from the Boy Scout Jamboree that Michael went to in 2005. There are so many pictures to choose from!

I have been working on my Relief Society lesson also. It will be from a talk by President Uchdorf at the October 2008 conference. Basically, it is about hope. I am trying to do the paper mache letters "HOPE" to have on display. I just need to figure out the embellishments for the letters. I was "hoping" to have it done before tomorrow, but if you know me, you know that my middle name is "procrastination".

Anyway, that's about it for now. I'll check back in a few days and give you all an update. Til then....

CREEPIN' CRUD!

It's official. I have the creepin' crud. It started with a slight cough last Thursday. It has escalated since. I left work early on Friday. Didn't go to church yesterday. And didn't go to work today. I feel like my head is going to explode! I feel weak, absolutely no energy. My nose is so stuffy and runny at the same time. How can that be? I probably should have gone to the doctor today, but I feel too sick! Does that make any sense? Who know what tomorrow will bring?

So, until I can feel better, bring me the tissues, the headache pills, the nose spray, and anything else you can think of.

Til then...

BIRTHDAYS!

Well, time has gone and done it again! Another year has gone by and my oldest son, Jeremy, is a year older. He is now 34. It's so hard to believe that so much time has passed since he was just a little tyke! As our firstborn, we got all (or most of) our OJT (on the job training) with him. I'm sure we made some mistakes, but overall, I think he turned out pretty good! If I could go back and do anything over, it would be to spend more quality time with him. He didn't have much time with just us. Only 19 months. He was a terrific big brother, though! And now, he is a good husband and father. I am so very proud of the things he accomplishes. He never gives up. Even when he is wasted from trying and can't see clearly, he keeps going. I guess that's the perfectionist in him. He has a bright mind and fun personality. So, Jeremy, I hope this day is a good one for you. I hope that this next year will bring you more of what you want and need. I love you. Mom.

P.S. I have a little something for you.

New Calling

A week ago this past Saturday, Bro. Martinsen (of our Bishopric) called me. We were in Cave Creek and when I got his message, I didn't think he would want me to call him back at 11:00 p.m. I thought I would just talk to him at church the next morning. He was sick and not there. So, I thought I would call him during the week or he would call me back. Neither happened. So, I thought I would speak to him yesterday. They were in Show Low for a baby blessing. I had already figured out that he was over YW and RS. YW scares the you know what out of me. RS is not a whole lot better. Anyway, so I am sitting in RS just minding my own business when the OTHER counselor calls me out. He presented me with the calling. I have been called to be a RS teacher (again). I don't know which lesson I will be giving yet. Last time I did the 4th Sunday lessons. While it takes me completely out of my "comfort zone", I really enjoy teaching RS. I learn so much because I have to do so much preparation. Hopefully I won't be teaching the 2nd Sunday lessons because I want more time to prepare. This Sunday is the 2nd Sunday!

Today was pretty stressful at work. We are doing the progress monitoring of the strategic kids. Ours rules changed with every class. If we had been able to do them the way we wanted, we could have had all of it done today. Unfortunately, we don't make the big bucks and therefore we don't get to make the decisions. Oh, well. Hopefully we will be done tomorrow.

Well, that's it for now. Until later....

Oh The Nerve?

Well, today I went to see the neurologist. He ran a bunch of test on both my hands and arms. He took great delight in torturing me. A friend of mine at work had surgery for carpel tunnel a few months ago. She told me a little of what to expect. She told me about the shocks I would get. She didn't tell me about the accupuncture like needle that was used. Maybe she didn't get it. The zaps from the little electrical thingy weren't too bad. I just felt rather spastic. But then, what's new? The needle was something else. Most of the time when he jabbed it into me, it didn't hurt. It was kind of fun watching the nerve waves on his computer. He bruised my arms and left me bleeding. He also said he was enjoying his job more today than he had in a long time. He said I was a mess. Not only do I have the nerve stuff in my hands causing me pain, I have major nerve problems in my neck, causing pain down my right arm. Electricity jolts are interesting things!

In other news, oh, there really isn't any. Till next time...

Birthday Greetings and Other Stuff

First of all, I have to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my baby boy. Michael is 19 years old today. It's so hard to believe. Hopefully, he will be choosing to go on a mission and be able to soon. We were going to take him out to dinner at Texas Roadhouse (his favorite place), but he was involved in some thing on his WOW game. So, we will take him tomorrow night and then go get his B-day present.

I went to a hand specialist today. It turns out that I have carpel tunnel in both hands. The arthritis in my thumbs is so bad that there is no cartilage left to separate the joints. And, I have a trigger finger on my right hand. Because of all of this, I am in constant pain and my hands go numb and my middle finger gets locked down. So, I am opting to have surgery on my right hand. He said there is too much nerve, muscle and tissue damage to just do cortizone shots. My left hand isn't as bad, so we will do something with it later. I am thinking that I will have surgery the Thursday before spring break. That way I will have a full week to recover. The down side is this: I will have to wear a splint for 2 weeks after surgery and then a cast for 4 weeks after that. YUK!

I am so glad that I finally bit the bullet and saw a hand doctor. At least now I can get something done. My regular doctor just said it was arthritis and to take Aleve. Didn't work. The rheumatologist didn't do anything for me either.

Work will be a challenge since I am right handed. I will figure something out.

We had a wonderful "special" stake conference on Sunday. Elder David A. Bednar spoke to us. He is such a down to earth person. I thoroughly enjoyed the meeting. I think the topic for the whole meeting was the Atonement and repentance. Wilford Anderson, an Area Seventy accompanied him. Great speakers, both of them!

They had the Presidential Inauguation on at work today. I avoided it as much as possible. I am tired of hearing about the history being made by having an African American become president. Why can't we all just be "AMERICANS"? I hope that he can do what he claims he can. I'm afraid he'll find out that he doesn't make the rules as much as he would like.

Well, I've bent your eyes long enough for one night. Until later...

Number 14

Well, it has finally been publicly announced that grandbaby number 14 is on it's way. I found out (unofficially) last Saturday (Jan. 3). Now that they have gone public, I can tell everyone. Christopher and Jill are the parents to be. This will make their 5th child. They already have 3 girls, so we are hoping for a boy. Number wise, I would rather it be a girl. Then our count would be even and you know how I am about even numbers. But, for Sam's sake, I hope it's a boy.

We have a special stake conference next Sunday. They announced at Church today that Elder Bednar will be the speaker. They also told us to get there early if we want a good seat! I hope we can get there early enough!

This past week was a long difficult one for me. I went back to work which in and of itself was terrible! But, the father of the person I carpool with passed away and she didn't go to work all week (mostly because she was also very sick!). So, I had to arrange other transportation. With Roger, Tanya and Michael all working, it wasn't easy. Tanya took me most mornings even after she had worked a 12 hour shift. I was only late one morning since Michael had a root canal on Wednesday and his mouth hurt too much for him to go to work on Thursday. Roger has Fridays off now so that wasn't a problem. Michael picked me up most days.

I will be glad to be back to normal this week. Although, normal isn't the correct term since it is parent teacher conferences this week, so I will be getting off early all week. Maybe I can get some things done here at home?

Well, I better go. 3:30 comes early for me. Till later...