Of Good Report

The four year old who told me that he would be my little boy forever has grown by leaps and bounds. He is six feet tall, has a deep voice, and broad shoulders. He is just as kind, gentle, and strong as he has ever been. He is a motivated self-starter when he is interested in something. He is an accomplished photographer and a self-taught ATV and motorcycle mechanic. As I was listening to General Conference last month, when Elder Bednar was describing a Christlike characteristic I kept thinking that he was describing my son. He is meek. He is finishing up his junior year of high school and gets good grades when he likes the class and the teacher. If he doesn't, that is another story. He has taken all the photography classes the school offers and his teacher gave him high accolades by entering him into a few exhibitions. He has received "honorable mention" at one last year and received an award from the district this year. His niche is cars. He goes to the track with Spen...

When my cute Emma was 12 and 13 she would volunteer at a therapeutic horseback riding business just down the street from us. She would lead the horse around the area for an hour long session, clean out the stalls, and feed and water the horses. She love it and Tami, the manager loved her help. In 8th grade she took an FFA class and decided to raise a pig over the summer to be taken to the State Fair in the fall.  I must admit, I was not super duper happy about this venture. Pigs stink. And so do the people who must feed and water them twice daily for many weeks. In addition, I know nothing about pig raising and I wasn't sure what the expectations were. It wasn't quite as bad as I was expecting, she had friends who tag teamed feedings with her occasionally and Emma was a responsible pig owner.  I did have to spend three days at the State Fair so she could show and auction her pig. I had not been to the fair since I was a child and my kids had never been. As a side note...

A couple of years ago at a moment when my mom was expressing her love to her children and grandchildren, she mentioned that her Patriarchal Blessing stated she would live for as long as "life was sweet for her." She told us that while she missed her sweetheart dearly, life was indeed sweet. I thought that was a blessing for her and for us. This past year has been quite difficult for her. Last November she began having pain in her upper back, arms, and shoulders. She visited a pain clinic and received a series of injections providing her with some relief. By Spring her hands and feet were swollen and misshapen and she had difficulty getting her body moving each morning. If she had a morning appointment she would wake up at 4:00 a.m. in order to get her hands moving so she could use them. In the spring her primary care physician suggested she see a rheumatologist.  In the past she has had bad experiences either with rheumatology medications or doctors and I began going to ...