Family Pics

Aunt Jeremi brought us the Cd of our family pics she took before Josh left and these are the ones we chose.
It seems we often are wanting to thank Aunt Jeremi for her kindnesses...we LOVE her...and are so grateful for Preston's good taste in women. And the sweet potatoe casserole...JUST LIKE MOM made it...you did great!!! Thanks:)
PS THese are not the cropped ones....

Thanksgiving

Josh...I am so sorry that most are out of focus...I need a new camera. I'll get on that right away. I thought you'd want to see everybody anyway--as best as could be seen...
LOVE YOU BUDDY!!!!!! Can't wait to hear WHO your new companion is and all the latest on your new place!

The Day After

I think everyone had a pretty good day...the boys just did whatever they wanted (ok, they did vacuum and clean the kitchen floor) and I cooked and cleaned and loved it.
We were suppose to eat at 6 and usually everyone is here HOURS ahead...well, at 5:50 we get a call from Kori saying that they were going to be late, at least 6:30 and it was Jeremy's fault and he could tell me why when he got here. Well... My DOCTOR brother was giving himself a vasectomy with the help of my non-doctor brother who really just layed on the couch trying to breathe. Jeremy said..."Why pay someone else $300 bucks when I do this all the time?" And then here he is in this picture not an hour after finishing. There IS something wrong in our genetic make up. This is just more proof. I can't even think about it. I still feel sick and it's the next day. Astonishing. Really.
Dad came with Chris (dating 4 years), and Kori's folks came---Sandy brought hand dipped strawberries and 3 pies...oh my...I was suppose to start being GOOD today...but it may have to wait until AFTER the strawberries are gone. Kori brought Magelby's chocolate cake...decadent to say the least. i ate so many shrimp and other appetizers I was barely hungry by dinner...but I managed my way through it :).
Josh, I thought about you ALL day...XXXOOOXXX...and are wondering how in the heck KENYA is? WHere are you? In the city? In the bush? Tell us about feeding yourself. Do you want your sweater?

HAPPY THANKSGIVING 2008!!!!

I'd like to top my gratitude list with a big I LOVE YOU to Carol Doughty who through her love and genius has started getting our High School Class together on Facebook. I has been like Christmas today seeing everyone's pages and catching up. I am wondering if I am OLD and sentimental, but I am telling you, my class mates look BEAUTIFUL...yes older, but so....GOOD!!!!!

All that I am, all that I belong to and belong to me, and all that I have, are ALL on the list. That means YOU!!!!

I have RELISHED eating spinach dip, carmel corn with pecans, green onion cheese ball, cinnamon coffee cake...ah geez, I could be here all day.

Heaven visited

OK... ONE DAY I'll figure out HOW to do the pictures in the right order and how to write inbetween them.But today is NOT that day... and I have had such a GLORIOUS time that--- I want to start out helping you smile, maybe laugh... so here goes:

A blonde calls her boyfriend and says, "Please come over here
and help me. I have a killer jigsaw puzzle, and I can't figure out how
to get started."

Her boyfriend asks, "What is it supposed to be when it's
finished?"

The blonde says, "According to the picture on the box, it's a
rooster."

Her boyfriend decides to go over and help with the puzzle.

She lets him in and shows him where she has the puzzle spread
all over the table.

He studies the pieces for a moment, then looks at the box, then
turns to her and says,

"First of all, no matter what we do, we're not going to be able
to assemble these pieces into anything resembling a rooster."

He takes her hand and says, "Second, I want you to relax. Let's
have a nice cup of tea, and then..." He said with a deep sigh . . .
.
.
.
.
.
.
"Let's put all the Corn Flakes back in the box."
Jamie and I talked and talked and laughed and laughed and ate and sewed while we watched movies and talked some more. I am reborn. For a little while anyway. We each had our own room with this living room in between us that we set up the sewing machines in. The living room had a HUGE flat screen TV. We had both irons going. I finished TWO, yes TWO quilt tops...I am SO excited!!! (we BOTH made the same pumpkin quilt)Sunday night we stayed up way too late. It was so indulgent!!! And so perfect to know that we could SLEEP IN as long as we wanted to!!!! When I went in to that snuggly bed with my OWN TV flipper and a view of the stars...I just exhaled all the ugly stuff that had been gathering in the corners of my soul. I was slightlly tempted by ALL of the cable channel MOVIE stations. Quickly I thought through my greater desire to quilt more hours the next day and put it on c-SPAN and was asleep in seconds. I slept until 6:55 and was shocked!!! I was SO happy to sleep so long. I went to work out knowing that Jamie would still be sleeping. Only a few people in there. I showered. We went to it!!!! We didn't stop until we left for dinner at Ruby Tuesday's...(Chocolate Shake,Bacon Cheeseburger and kill yourself happily in one sitting cheese and bacon sourcream and ranch FRIES). We came home, watched this horrible but intriguing BBC British film by Anne Bronte and were just dang happy...we STILL had another day.



Again, yes, two times, I got to climb into that yummy bed. I was going to stay up and enjoy that personal flipper...I'm not sure WHAT happend, but the next thing i knew I was waking up EARLY as normal and just layed there snugging in the covers LOVING that I DID NOT HAVE TO get up if I didn't want to. For fifteen minutes at least I revelled in just being able to stay there. So warm. THe sheets smelled great. THe pillows were perfect. I guess that was all I needed. Next my mind raced to working out on their super high tech treadmills with personal TV's. I hurried. I sweated. So much so that this young Asian man got on the one next to me even though we were the only ones in there. He messes with his machine then smells his pits, looks directly at me and then gets off and goes to lift. I KNEW people were LYING when they said they couldn't smell me. I laughed when I told Jamie. But, I really hate it that a woman could even be ABLE to smell that badly, much less that THAT woman is ME. I was back and showered by 7:10. Jamie was still sleeping so I pulled my machine into my bedroom and worked on quilt top number two until 10 when she woke up. Heaven heaven heaven heaven heaven...and it really happend to ME!!!! THANK YOU JAMIE!!!! Thank you Heavenly Father. No work-- not even calls. NO makeup or hair dryers or rollers. Same jeans, t-shirt and socks:) Happy children at home with Dad. GrandDad in Canada. Kelly's baby here safely. A good book in my purse. A gorgeous drive down Parley's Summit at dusk. A last stop at Quilt's Etc.... HOME.

joke of the day....

A dating couple were out on a date when they heard a radio report that a Brazillian had been killed in a skydiving accident. Immediately the girl began to cry and the date perplexed asked what the matter was. She said"Didn't you just hear that? ...DYING in a sky diving accident?" Her date replied," well, yes, but that is an inherent danger of skydiving..." to which his date replied...
"Well HOW MANY is a Brazillion?"
(Andrew gets extra treats for telling us that last night.)

I'm home from church and packing for the get away with Jamie. I won't have my computer for 3 days so it will be super fun to come back and catch up....hope to hear from you all. I got a phone message from Kelly last night that said she and baby are well, the baby is still in special care to help with his lungs. She gave me a cell number but it keeps saying the number has been reassigned so I must have written it down wrong.

Happy Grateful week ...SOOOOooooomuch to be grateful for....YOU!!!!!!!!! So glad you are in my world.

WHAT A wiERd DAY!!!!!

My run was great, but Linda Matheson joined us and that was weird but fun. I was half way into finishing piecing my quilt when I could NOT find the rest of the lattice material ANYWHERE...now that IS weird. Spencer just raked the leaves WITHOUT complaining? WEIRD!!!!When I went to feed the chickens on THursday there were 10 instead of 9...that IS weird!!! WHen I went out to feed them scraps today, one of my Rhode Island Red's bum looked like it had fallen out with an egg trapped in it. She was egg bound. This picture is blurry on purpose. MEgan I think took actual video of my trying to help the poor girl. Sometimes it just sucks to be a girl. In all my years of chicken's I'd never seen anything like it. My neighbor had and told me how to help...I'll save you the details, but it didn't help and then she quick as whip said "there's only one thing to do" and then she did that thing that second and that was WEIRD. Last week Sam asked if he could have about 10 friends over for the BYU vs. UTAH football game, I said yes. Michael came home this morning and told Don he had about 10=15 friends coming and he called the basement with the big screen. Sam got overruled by Dad and Michael and still hates being the "baby"...and I agree with Sam on this one...it's a bit WEIRD that he had it planned for a week and still got stiffed. He went to Brady's house instead and SPENCER had 10-15 friends over to match Michael's and Megan had 3. I made over 100 empanadas and various and assorted other treats and it was great except sad and WEIRD to lose to UTAH. WHile everyone was here, one of Michael's friends brought his laundry to do durning the game. Michael had to take the clothes out of the dryer and found that I had washed my "flashlite" from my run in my running pants and tried to turn it on....when he did he found out it was my MACE and immediately he and his friend were in coughing tizzies and then within 5 minutes our whole top floor of people were choking and eye rubbing....at least everyone was TRYING to laugh. But that was WIERD. Oh yeah....and mid day...GrandDad called and said he is going to actually LEAVE Minnie---his cat IN CANADA while he is here for the winter...after all the talks...That is wierd. Mom must be working her magic from the other side. THAT weird I like and am grateful for.

Letter from Josh 11-22-08

I can read the blog while i am here, i dont know about next week since i will be in kenya then and a new mission pres, so keep sending the emails to me, but i would guess that i would be able to read the blog there too. tell greg he should learn to read and that it probably just looks wrong cause its wierd african stuff, which is even more of a foreign language then southern. Tell the Otterstroms i love them and that i miss them. I do miss you most mom. i fly out wednesday morning early, so thanksgiving will be my first real day out in the field with whoever my new comp will be. my plans are to work hard and to try not to be overwhelmed by everything that i still dont know. there are five of us going to kenya from our group here at the mtc, elder thornton and i are the only americans out of us five. i dont know how to feel about the extra weight in my luggage, i mostly just feel bad about it, i dont know what i am going to do yet. Send packages and letters to the mission office in kenya for now, they will get them to me no matter where i am serving first, and they will send any letters that come here late on to kenya as well so dont worry about me not getting the letters, it is really just a matter of time.
i am about to leave to go out tracting with the missionarrys in soweto, a suburb of jo-burg. i'm kinda excited but it takes up our whole p-day time besides the time for emailing, and they only give us a few hours for p-day here instead of from after study time to six like normal so that doesn't make me too happy. we taught more families from the church last night, we didn't get any of the investigators last night though. it was both good and bad. things are just easier with investigators cause you dont feel like you are just rambling on about stuff that they already know. but on the other hand if they are investigators and you cant answer their questions then i guess that would be worse. Tell jake england is going to be awesome, and get me his adress so that i can write him. also tell him that if he wants to, that he can go tell bro otterstrom about his call cause i'm pretty sure thats where bro otterstrom served, if not manchester then somewhere in england. This week has been crazy busy, and its not going to slow down until we leave the mtc, and even then it will probably only slow down for the plain ride. i love you guys, i have to go tracting now, i miss you, tell spencer and sam and mike to write me too, and thanks for all of your emails. talk to you next saturday! (if thats still my p-day, i dont know when it will be once i get there).
Love,
Josh

Letter to Josh

I knew Saturday would become my new favorite day....I"ll get a letter in the MORNING!!!!! Yee HAw! Can you read the Blog? When do you fly out and where to? WHere can/should I send a package to? Greg sent me a letter today that I will forward to you since he couldn't read your writing for the address. All the Otterstroms --even extended family sends their love. What are your plans for Thanksgiving. Yes, I realize Africans do not celebrate it, but I was thinking maybe you missionaries might like to have a special meal somewhere. Do you feel okay about the extra weight in your luggage for your flight into Kenya? How are you feeling? Do you miss me the MOST yet? We love you We love you We love you We LOVE you...and pray for you every prayer. Make sure to check the OLDER posts on the BLog if you missed my letter last week...it is on there. I couldn't tell from the Star counter if you had visited or not....I sure hope so.

Nothing much new here. Michael is buying a Hyndai Sonata this weekend. Sam is back into PING PONG like crazy. Spencer is still job hunting. The weather has been oddly warmish this week (50's and sunshiney) so he's been to the golf course most days. Megan is still coupon wheeling and dealing. We're going to celebrate Thanksgiving on Friday so Preston and girlies can be here. jamie is taking me to Park City for a girls only (just me and her) break. We're going to stay at the Mountainside Resort and quilt SUnday night through Wednesday...I'm VERY excited.
Dad is job hunting. I'm pretty slow in Real Estate right now and it's WIERD to not be so busy busy busy. I am loving swimming at the Rec a few times a week. All the old men and women are there with me. My favorite is to get in the hot tub at the end.

I think of you through out the day and wonder if you're still struggling to stay awake sometimes or if the food was good or if you need a break....or or or or...ANYWAY...We have loved our e-mails so far and are thrilled to hear more.
LIKE A DRAGON Buddy!!!!
XXXXOOOOOXXXXX
MOM

Jake's call to Manchester, England

I"ll add the picture later, but Josh, I wanted to make sure you knew THIS P-day....isn't that GREat? He is WAY Stoked about it. He doesn't leave until March 20th though and that is a bummer. Now David says that he has to go to Australia so you guys can hit every continent:) Megan will load a video of them e-mailing you in CODE... Remember the guys who slept out on our tramp? Yep....that was Jake and David....This is them...Jake is on the far left. They are both such FUN goof balls.

Twilight

The movies are never as good to me as the book...but it was fun to be reminded how much I loved the book and story line. NONE of the characters LOOKED or portrayed the personality I had given them. Good thing. Everyone KNOWS Edvard is TOO good to be true, just fun to wish he could be and then belonged to each of us. On a scale of 1-10, I'd give it a 6+.

ELLE is 3 years old!!!

THank you Elle for inviting us to your CHUCK E CHEESE Party!!! Sam and I had a BLAST!! We haven't been to Chuck E Cheese in about 10 years....still the GREAT time it always was. Her whole party was Disney Princess. She is OUR Princess! WE LOVE YOU ELLE!!!

A new NEPHEW...Ashton

I got a call from a Linda somebody in NC telling me that Kelly was in recovery at 2:15 today. That Ashton and Kelly are both doing well....he weighed 5 pounds 15 ounces and she is suppose to be calling to give us details when she gets more on her feet. It is 9:15 pm Utah time and I just got the message. She did not say which hospital.

pretty Dinner

Dinner was so PRETTY the other night I decided to take a picture of it.Spencer was distressed at the lack of MEAT and WHITE starch...but everyone else loved it. YUMmmm...baked sweet potatoes, spinach salad, steamed broccoli, zuchinni onion stir fry with parmesan cheese, oatbran muffins with apple chunks, raisins and walnuts.....

It's Wednesday...Got my crown (hate the dentist), so glad that's over. Had Presidency meeting at the church and got all the manuals ready for the kids classes next year. Met with the HS counselor to pick VIKING of the month for December---we have some amazing kids in our area...makes me glad I'm on the PTA. Met a client in Taylorsville and tried to be the angel negotiator in a tough unresolved house issue. Delivered late wedding presents. Laundry. Ran. ATE alot...probably going to eat some more. Visited Annette for a few minutes to let her know I still really am her friend. Thinking LOTS about Josh. One of his best friends was suppose to get his mission call today (JAKE), still waiting for the news. Sam and Spencer off buying Basketball shoes for their new leagues. Michael and Don out trying to find the deal of the century on a car for Michael. Megan buried in her coupon frenzy---new adds start today:)....funny girl....check out her blog for her latest grocery steals. Should go swim, but just don't wanna. Wanna...massage? Hot tub? Amazing video? Caramel corn? Yep....I wanna all of that.....

Thinking about my boy...

I was trying to find a picture of the Missionary Training Center where Josh is now, but couldn't find one...but I thought these were interesting. Johannesburg is HUGE...and the temple looks just like the Boise, Idaho Temple that Don helped to build. You can't even see Kenya or Tansania on this map...he should be flying out sometime the end of this week.....

Email from JOSH (Elder Harris)

Hey, i'm still alive, im doing well, things are good here, we are at an internet cafe right now cause the net is down at the mtc, so i am going to have to be fairly quick again so that this doent cost a ton of money. but elder Maseko is from jo-burg, he converted at 14 and his full name is leslotholo simon Maseko. there are nine missionarys from the states and 12 from africa, only one white african, and two sisters. i sleep fine, not enough, but fine, we get an hour of excersize time everyday, normally we play soccer. i dont need anything and i dont know about weight restrictions but it doesnt really matter cause like we said earilier, i'll just pay the fee if it comes to that. My teachers are brother Hlongwane sister Ntshingwa and brother Gasa, i like them all, sister ntshinga is ruthless with her feedback, i like it that way but some of the other missionarys have a hard time with it.we taught our first lesson last night though, they had some of the member families from around here come to the mtc just so we could practice teaching, and they each brought an investigator with them. our lesson was ok i guesss, Elder Maseko gets too nervous and then can't remember anything, so the beggining was rough, but towards the end the spirit was there and things started to go good. we asked him to read third nephi 11 and to pray about the book of mormon, he was very hesitant at first, but then the girl that was with him bore her testimony of when she was asked to read the book of mormon, and how she had this room mate that told her that it was evil, so she threw it away, but that after that room mate moved out, the missionarys came back to her and while it was hard for her, she read and prayed, and that ever since that time she has never doubted that it was true. i then bore my testimony that the book of mormon is true, but that i didn't want him (his name was fortune) to take it just on my word, or on the word of the girl next to him, but that if he prayed that God would tell him, so that he could know for himself. and after that we asked him again, and he took the book of mormon and said that he would read and that he would pray. and just the way he said it made me think that he would actually do it.the only down side to this lesson is that i will never know if he does read or pray or gets in contact with the missionarys because he will have the missionarys in his area and not me. but it was good to actually teach, to see that when people understand that will at least accept the challenge to read and pray. i cant wait to get to kenya, i cant wait to not have a room mate that thinks he is good at singing (i also room with elder norman and kasake, Kasake is the one that thinks he can sing, and hes not that bad, but he likes to do falseto, which drives me crazy). i love you guys, hopefully next week the internet will work at the mtc. i miss you all so much!love you,Josh, Elder Harris
ps. talk to sister otterstrom and get my emails to greg and gregs emails to me, also, post my emails on the blog, there should be a few people checking it for my emails

GAS is $1.91 today!!!!!

Talk about GRATEFUL...I am SOOOOooooo GRATEFUL!!!!! So wierd that it could have gotten all the way up to $4.45+ and then it REALLY came down. Again...SO GRATEFUL.

Ok, I lied...

I do have SOMETHING to say...

THANK YOU Anne Curry for climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro...that is in Josh's mission and I'd kind of like to climb it if we go there...but I sure like watching her do it first. :)

AND...thank you Liz W for being my new swim coach---for helping me to breathe while swimming and with my form so I don't look like a thrashing whale.

AND...Megan for cleaning and organizing the pantry that I have ignored for months.

AND Lindon City for repaving all my running route roads...AND Trisha Williamson for getting Meg and I in on the Midnight showing of TWLIGHT....AND for my carpets getting cleaned tomorrow...AND for my Park City get away that is coming this Sunday with Jamie...

I got nothing but a head full of stuff

Dad...

Dad came home, read my letter to you, and just told me that he put that VERY article by Elder Holland in your pocket as you left to get on the plane..and I had NO IDEA until just now. I also believe/know that when you get that kind of a double whammy of a message, it means something. I am still so surprised Dad never told me. How loved you are.
(I LOVE YOU THE BIGGEST)
XXXOOOXXXOOOXXXOOOXXX
Normally I won't send my letters to you via the blog...I just kept getting these bouncing back and did NOT want to chance you not getting a letter from me. If you want I can delete this after you write us back. IF Dad's letter doesn't get to you let us know. Ohhhhh....you will be getting up soon and when I wake up there will probably be a letter!!!!!!!!!!It's gonna be a GREAT Saturday!!!

JOSH XXOOXX It's P-DAY!!!!!

Hi Lovey!!!
I just read Dad's e-mail and he's already asked all the questions. I've heard that this ldsmail.net will just shut down after you have been on for a half and hour. Nate Hainesworth has lost 2 letters home by running out of time and then it deletes his whole message...so be careful and if you have to---send it in chunks.

I wanted tell you about the day before you left. I couldn't tell you before you left because I was just trying to get through it without a major break down. First I want to tell you that I just finished reading a near-death experience book (one where the person dies, leaves his body, visits the afterlife and then comes back and can remember what happend there). In every near death book I have ever read they tell how they see Angels EVERYWHERE around most people they see on earth. I believe this with all my heart.

Then, Elder Holland in this last Conference spoke on THE MINISTRY OF ANGELS where he focused his remarks on "God never leaves us alone, never leaves us unaided in the challenges that we face"..."In times of special need,(GOD) sends Angels, divine messengers, to bless His children, to reassure them that Heaven is always very close and that His help is always very near....From the beginning down through the dispensations, God has used angels as His emissaries in conveying love adn concern for His children. Usually such beings are not seen. Sometimes they are. But seen or unseen they are always near......Not all angels are from the other side of the veil. Some of them we walk and talk with--here, now everyday. Some of them reside in our own neighborhoods."

With all that said. I was having a super struggle wondering if letting you go was really the right thing. I was obsessed with it my whole run. Finally I just prayed and left it in Heavenly Father's hands saying " I need help. I need to know that this is right for him. I need help LETTING him go."
I came home and showered. While in the showered I remembered thinking the morning you were born that this would be expected of you and HOW ON EARTH was I going to let that happen. And then I had an overwhelming peace come over me and I prayed a prayer of thanks that I had 19 years to prepare. All of that was brought to my memory. After I showered I dressed and headed to WalMart to get the last of the stuff we needed for you. Barb Muirhead called me while I was shopping to see how I was and to tell me what an amazing missionary she knew you would be and that MY sacrifice would be counted as well as yours.

In WalMart I see Donny Osmond and his wife which is a private joke between GOd and me from my early teens...He was the only famous Mormon boy I knew and I thought he (GOD) should at least let me have the chance to meet him...well, those very memories came rushing to my mind as he walked in, and then again as he walked out. So, there was my chance to meet him if I wanted to...only to laugh that I didn't even care now---BECAUSE of perspective...and what I really needed in order to have the prayer of this day anwsered was PERSPECTIVE. Yes, it was a sign to me.

Then, while in Wal-mart, I see Kay Palmer who is BEAMING with excitement for you and telling me how wonderful this is going to be for all of us. As I'm leaving, Sydney Germane and Heather Clarke, two of my favorite and among my most respected LDS mother's ---women who I trust and are thinkers and not just followers for followings sake---are standing there talking as if they are waiting for me and as they hear the news about your call and leaving, are so REAL with their sympathy and SUPPORT and encouragement, testifying of how RIGHT it feels.

Michelle Lewis calls and leaves a message on my phone while I am loading the stuff into the car. Ron texts me. At this point I laugh out loud and let Heavenly Father know that I am not going to try to keep you home, and I have had wittnesses enough that HE truly knew my heart and was trying to comfort me---for which I was grateful.

Then, you leave and I feel bad and worried all over again and I read the near death book and then just happen to choose Elder Holland's talk for the lesson when I went Visitng Teaching, and it all comes together in the most beautiful way in my mind and heart and I KNOW that you are NOT alone, that you are in the company of ANGELS...and I'm pretty sure GMom Broadhurst and Steadwell are among them. I also had the impression that Jane Ann Olsen would be checking in as well.

I realize that YOU didn't need this experience, but I sure did. And it was so impressive to me that I wanted you to know. It has been such a comfort. I was having a good cry session on Tuesday and Ron texted me out of the blue NOT for business, but says HEY...let's talk about JOSH...how are you doing? And I knew immediately that I was just being selfish and that All was well and I just needed to get happy.

I love you Buddy. You can't imagine the comfort I feel knowing you are not alone.The Blog has all the STUFF on it....are you allowed to check it?WHERE should I send the package? Should I send it to the Kenya Mission Home or wait for you to have an address there? How did it go with the extra suitcase for the MTC?I've started swimming and wish I had started before you left. My form must be pretty rotten because strangers are giving me unsolicited pointers. I love it though. Man it makes me hungry as a horse. So wierd that I don't feel that way after a run. And I swear I tinkle a lot more! I knew you wanted to know that.I have a site on my computer that I keep going that lets me know what time it is there. I love it when you are sleeping because I feel like you are safer for some reason. I have felt several times in the day to pray for you in those small rooms. Wish I could have seen the SNOWMAN SONG performed. I'll have to teach you the ONCE THERE WAS A SUMO song that Sister Clarke taught the kids :)Well, I LOVE YOU...I'm praying for you...all the time, all throughout the day. I just forwarded your e-mails to Greg and Dave Chester. Jake might get his call as early as next Wednesday...we'll let you know the second we know. SMILE, LOVE and LOVE some more....MOM XXXXXXXXXOOOOOOOOOOOXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

OK world THANK Julie Sanders!!!

Julie gave me this mini meatloaf recipe and it will be a new staple...SO FAST, SO QUICK,SO CHEAP and everyone LOVED it!!!!
1 pound hambuger
1 cheap box stuffing mix
1 cup water
Mis together, fill muffin tins to 3/4 squirt a shot of A-1, BBQ sauce, or Catsup on the top. Bake at 375 for 25-30 minutes...take out, sprinkle with cheese if you like....serve.
I actually used 2 pounds of Hamburger and only had one box of stuffing and it was YUMMY. I LOVE that you can keep the leftovers so easily in a baggie for lunches. I served it with mashed potatoes and broccoli and biscuits. My family has never been a meatloaf lovin' family...but they adored these!!
THANKS again Julie!!! And yes, my muffin tins always look that grungy...I'm a cook and I USE them. (and mostly I'm not in to sitting and scrubbing my fingernails off to get them sparkling)

Sometimes....

Now Don would say..."WHY do you think that's funny?" Well...I just do. Thought a few of you might have run into a few of these humans yourselves. When I ran across this on the goole images I just knew that there must be SOMEONE out there who would appreciate it as well. Just a TGIF!!!

A runner...a biker...a SWIMMER?

Yep. You betcha. I swam laps at the Orem Rec for the first time in years this morning. It is confirmed. I DO LOVE A POOL. (okay, I do KNOW that that wasn't in question). I felt this new zing of excitement and challenge. It about killed me. I can't get enough air. After 4 laps I had to just stop and BREATHE. I was panting like a puppy. It takes 16 laps to go a mile. I called it quits at 10. I want to leave room for improvement for the next time. This 20 something guy gets brave and tries to tell me he doesn't mean to offend, but that if I could change my form I would go alot faster alot easier. I think he was tired of lapping me. I laughed and informed him I was on the 45 year old do it the hard way burn more calories plan. Then I fessed up, watched his demo and spent the next 6 laps trying to replicate it... not so successful. BUT...I feel SO GOOD...I feel so HUNGRY...I feel like I just worked to core of my soul. I LOVE having the water slide over my skin, the smell of chlorine---so clean, old people doing water aerobics, no talking, just quiet gliding between air gulps/gasps. I can tell I might need some more scenery though or my music after the novelty has worn off....we'll see. Because of Kristen's blog I now know they have under water IPODS....heavenly...I'll have to prove to myself that I'm really going to be consistent before that purchase. And like, maybe sell a house or two in the near future. Anyway. I declare today as the I AM A SWIMMER now day.

Harris Dinnertime Jokes

From Sam: What did the fish say when he hit the wall? Dam
What did the wall say to the fish? Dumb bass.

From Spencer: McCain and Obama both jump off a cliff---who survives? The Nation.

From Don: Now we are in for an OBAMANATION, we are just BIDEN our time.
I'm such a sucker for jokes. I can't help but laugh. I like most seeing which ones are brought home by whom. Sam wins today....I'm still smiling. If Josh were here we'd still be LAUGHING.

Hey--just a commercial for an OBGYN. Had my appointment today with a new Dr. Bean and I REAllY liked him...he was REAL and NICE and told me I could wait 3 years before the next pap smear. This is my least favorite Dr.'s visit and it was actually ok. That alone should give this guy a thumbs up. He' s been with the Air Force for forever and just started his privavte practice in with Melendez and Lamereuax. If you need one, I'd give him a try.

DYING

I am addicted to near death experience books: Embraced by the Light, Life After Life.... Barb just loaned me a new one entitled MY WALK THRU HEAVEN by Kim Rives. I read it yesterday.

I am so drawn to them because I feel MY true religion in them. Not necessarily Mormonism, but the deepest feelings in my heart. They fill me with HOPE. They burn the reality of a living Christ further and further into my testimony. The Jesus they tell about FEELS like the Jesus I know. He is love. He is acceptance. He is encouragement. He is constant. He is perfection. He is Happiness. He is NOT JUDGEMENT. If you're feeling down for any reason I highly suggest this book or any of the kind. I often feel a twinge of envy for these people to experience it first hand, but they each pay such a high price in pain that I quickly snuff out the envy and replace it with gratitude that they have been willing to share such sacred things that I can learn through them. Afterall, I am still a wuss and can't imagine EVER signing up for bodily pain. Everytime I come away with a new love for my health , and a committment to take care of my body better and love it like it deserves. The lessons for me were numerous in this account. I can never get enough of the LOVE feelings that permeate these accounts. I just need to daily read excerpts to keep my mind in remembrance. How accepted they are for wherever they are in their lives....and then how encouraged they become to come back and acquire virtues that will bless themselves and others. Not to acquire money or fame or security....but LOVE...and every virtue is wrapped up in love in it's truest form. I want to be LOVE. I want to be LOVED. Here a fw favorite excerps from the book....of course they don't do it justice without all the background....but hopefully it will give you some of the feelings I felt.

Upon passing and leaaving her body, she was in a different realm and "I noticed the AIR around me was filled with love, peace, and tranquility. It seemed more refined, a spiritual air" and later..."I won't go back (does that sound like me or what?). I like it here. When I breathe, the air fills (notice not FEELS, but FILLS) like love. The people are nice. I have all my body parts back. I am pain free. I am self sufficent. I'm going to stay." And then later with the Savior "With great compassion he took both of my hands in front of Him and gazed into my eyes for what seemed and eternity. While I stood there looking into those peaceful, consoling eyes, an amazing thing happend. He did not judge or condemn me. Not once did he bring up the situation with my boyfriend or any of my faults, sins or shortcomings for which I felt such shame and embarressment. Not once or with any hint of condemnation did He rebuke, criticize or blame me for things that had happend to me for which I felt remorse. I knew all the things that he could have pointed out, but He didn't. Rather, he just offered pure, guileless approval and accepted me for who I was. He extended to me his unconditional love, a love like I had never felt before. So encompassing was His love for me that I longed to stay with HIM and be with Him forever. Smiling, He queried, "What would you ask of me?" "

I keep thinking about that. What would I ask of HIM?

Later she writes,".....in heaven everyone is beautiful and youthful, full of vitality and pleasant to look upon. CHARACTER is the defining difference. While on earth, it would serve a person best not to work on attaining wealth, possessions and physical beauty, but rather in developing such qualities as hope, faith, good works, love, patience, forgiveness and charity. This is the light that emanates froma spirit being and truly shows what a person worked for and attained whie in mortality." And then the all the bits about loving and serving each other.... I personally KNOW people who are already like that...so filled with goodness and integrity and kindness. Everybody wants to be with them, work with them, be considered their friend.

For those of you still reading...I LOVE YOU. What would I ask of HIM? What I really want is to be LIKE HIM...but I would be terrified to ask...I know the pain and struggle that would inevitably accompany that request....I know how far away I am from it and even my great imagination probably can't dream up what I'd have to go through to learn those lessons. UGH. Mortality. Even as I wrote that I know it was a lie. Not UGH. But REJOICE! CELEBRATE! FEEL THE GOODNESS and LOVE!!! Please be patient with me as I learn to live and love better.

A WORD from JOSH!! XXOOXX

hopefully you get this before a real letter, they say it takes ten days, but i'm sending one off today so if nothing else you will get this then. I love it here though. very different from the provo MTC. i knew it would be much smaller but there are only 21 missionarys here and the maximum capacity is 35. My classes have been good so far, it's hard to stay awake toward the end of the day, especially when they put on a movie clip or something like that and we are just suppose to sit and watch. my companion is elder Maseko, thats pronounced Maw-say-co. i like him a lot. he is a little bit quiet but i guess thats the culture here is to be quiet unless you are asked a question directly. but no worries, i'm bustin him out of his shell in any way i can think of. today i made him sing i'm a little snowman for everyone, with actions and everything. i had to teach it to him first, it makes sense that they dont know it here but it was still a little wierd to me. Pres. Cannon and his wife are with us all day long, they live in an apartment attached to the mtc so if nothing else we see them at every meal. they remind me of mom and dad a bit. not their personalities at all, but their relationship. he will say something and then she will say "well just so you know, i think ... in stead of whatever pres. said. i dont have much time to write so this is all for today, but i love you guys and i miss you and hopefully i'll get a message from you next week.
love,
josh

p day is saturday and i will be able to check my email then and write more then, but i am here and i am safe, i love it here, i love my companion, i love the the struggle to learn everything and then to apply it. mom, the food is good. today we had french toast and then mashed potatoes and meatballs for lunch, and chicken and rice for dinner with some sort of peanut butter and chocolate pie for dessert. the pie was delicious by the way. i sent a letter home, but they said it takes ten days to get there, and since i sent it saturday on our first p-day, it will get home ten days from then. i'll keep writing letters and e-mails, to this adress and to whatever ones you send back to me. i love you all, i'll talk to you more saturday, i miss you all, be good!Josh

SUNDAY

It's weird without you Josh. The Home teachers came this afternoon and Bro. Oates brought over video footage of his parents in Niarobi 45 years ago. It was sweet of him to try to brighten things up. We made pizza for dinner and I figured out the Brick Oven Ranch Garlic Bacon Chicken YUM pizza. We used Costa Vida Ranch Dressing for the sauce. I've wondered ALOT about what the heck you are eating!!! We can't wait for a letter. The post office said it would take 10 days. Please note when the post date of our letter is and tell us how many days it really took. LOVE YOU BUDDY!!!!!

I'm putting the picture in of the TURKEY PUMPKIN because I love it so much.
The primary Program was today and the children did so great. I sat in the middle of the 4 year olds and they were all over the place. Diamond decided about half way through that he was just DONE. Drew kept waving to his parents the whole time. I just tried not to giggle too loud.

Sam is loving his new room and having Josh's phone has put him offically in heaven. We got the new Buick yesterday and life will be much easier tomorrow...you can see it inbetween Bro. Oates and Gilles. Megan has acquired a new passion for grocery shopping with coupons and instore sales and is bringing home amazing deals....and a little coupon crazed....wants to know from the local paper boy if he has any extra Sunday coupons. GrandDad is picking days for us to get him flights. Life is moving.

Back to Germany

We had a lay over in Paris...my only time there and it had to be in the airport and obviously could barely keep my eyes open. I felt especially bad for the boys with their long legs.


Our neighbors the Atkinson's are serving a mission in Frankfurt and we met them at the church office building for a few minutes one afternoon when Michael was showing us one of his areas. They are going great and loving Germany.


Michael took us on a hike through the black forest and it was breath taking. I kept feeling awe struck to know that I was in a place so far from home. I kept thinking about Robin McKinley's book Outlaw's of Sherwood ---all about Robin Hood. I felt like Little John was going to pop out any minute.

We went to the temple with both boys in Friedrichsdorf. Interesting to be the one with the transulation headphones instead of the other way around.