Still gullible after all these years....

I was sitting comfortably crocheting Morgan's afghan last night while enjoying an episode of "Law and Order." Tom was on the computer doing some work. The room phone rang; he answered it and what I heard was interesting: "both mattresses? Now? Outside the door? Okay." He left the receiver sitting on the desk, apparently having been instructed to do so until he had done what he had been asked to do. Then he told me that the man in the office said both of our mattresses had tested positive for bed bugs and we needed to strip them of their bedding and put them outside the door. They were going to be replaced with new mattresses. I commented that this made our hotel stay more of an adventure, and I helped him strip the beds. As we took the first mattress out the door I said we should see if anyone was out there with a video camera. Tom said that things just didn't seem right. I told him that before he did anything else he should go down to the office to make certain we were really supposed to be doing this. First he went back to the phone and told the waiting man that he had the first mattress out the door. The man asked him to take it down the stairs himself because the maintenance man had hurt his back. I again told Tom to go downstairs and confirm this before he did another thing. He came back up and said, "Someone must be having a good laugh right now." Yep, it was a prank. A pretty funny one, don't you think? We put the beds back together again and I sat there crocheting again, watching "Law and Order" and "The Closer" and wondering if when I left the hotel room in the morning there would be some young man watching me and grinning. "That lady and her husband are sure gullible!" I've got to be more on my toes!

New Adventure; Good-bye, Grantsville, Hello, Elko!

Well, today we are embarking on our new adventure. Elko calls. Michael and Laura came over with the boys last night and helped us with the last of the cleaning. This morning the guys need to load the bed, freezer, and refrigerator--oh, yes, and the desk and computer, too--while I take care of some other matters such as banking, running things over to Lisa's house, etc. Then our caravan will take off: Edna in the red Ford, Laura in the ...(whatever they drive), Michael in Tom's pick-up, and Tom in the twenty-six-foot U-Haul. Brother Matthews will pull the red trailer with the remaining boxes over when we are actually moving into our house. This weekend we will just hang out over there. We've already said our good-byes to family and friends and not wanting to prolong the agony we're going to go ahead even though neither house has closed yet. Perhaps it's risky, perhaps it's dumb, but we're doing it anyway. The houses ARE going to close. It was just a matter of how long we want to have our things sitting on a U-Haul and how much we want in hotel bills. Michael had taken Friday and Monday off so we decided to take advantage of his thoughtfulness and spend the weekend with them. For my birthday, which was yesterday, Laura is taking me to a Kenny Chesney concert tomorrow night in Wendover, which is halfway between where we are now and where we'll be by this afternoon.



So today we officially say good-bye to Grantsville. It's been a nice place to call home for three-and-a-half years. We'll keep our friends and hope to see them occasionally when we come to visit Brandon and Lisa and family. We have had some wonderful experiences here which we will cherish forever. Thanks, Grantsville, for what you have contributed to our growth!

CinderAmy

While we were at Lisa's yesterday she was talking about her kids' attitudes. I reflected on my years as a young mother and couldn't remember an attitude problem with my kids, although I'm certain they existed because kids do have attitudes. I think it is important for moms to remember the words from the scriptures "and it came to pass." It doesn't say "and it came to stay." These problems go away and then you learn how to deal with new problems. Don't despair because it seems that all you do is manage whining, messy, cranky, disobedient little souls so often. Hold on to the special moments when they say something that gets your heart. You'll have a lot of those. They are the tender mercies that help to keep you sane and remind you that these spirits do have a divine nature.

Now, having said that, I move on to talk about Amy. I told Lisa yesterday that the only "attitude" I could think of regarding my young children was Amy's. When I asked her to do something she would protest or complain nearly every time. It was frustrating to me but I was set on conquering that by focusing on the positive. One day I asked her to take the laundry basket outside and take the towels off the clothesline. She straightaway did it. No complaints at all. I was so pleased and commented on it when she had completed the task. Her response has always stayed with me: "I just pretended I was Cinderella." Of course, that meant that I was the wicked stepmother.

But now it doesn't matter to me what it was that drove Amy to do the things I asked her to do. Look at where she is now. She loves to clean, and I love to visit her home because it is so comfortably clean ALL the time! She is going to be my model in my new home. I have let go of so much stuff and I hope that I can keep my home clutter-free and clean. But she may have to come and visit occasionally and let me play the role of wicked stepmother again. CinderAmy can make my home spotless for me.

Oh, by the way, have you ever read the book called "CinderEdna?"

I'm returning to the blog and reporting to my fans...

I probably have nothing to say today that you haven't heard already. We're moving. And you know all the stuff that goes with moving. Selling your house. Buying a new one. Throwing away, giving away, packing away, cleaning, cleaning, cleaning. And waiting. We need to close on this house before we can close on the Nevada one. We aren't betting on which house will be ready for closing first, just hoping the Utah one is ready soon so we'll have our money to close on the Nevada home.

I am looking forward to making the Nevada home mine. I love it! I've lived in so many homes I don't know if I could count them. And this one will be the "best saved for last." I am anxious to become one with it. And I realized last night that the reason I am feeling so anxious about the closings is that everything about this move seems too good to be true. The more time passes without the finality of the home sale and purchase the better chance there is that this dream I'm having will end before I get to see the end of it. And I feel awkward asking God to grant the desires of my heart when so many people in the world would give anything for a roof over their head, for food on their table, to have a job, to be disease-free, to not have to worry about plundering, raping, bombs, etc.

I realized I am so very blessed. But the things that have been happening--Tom getting a job so quickly after being laid off (a job he absolutely loves!), selling our house to our neighbors without having to advertise it (again--just like West Jordan!), qualifying for a new home loan (we thought we'd be renting or living in an RV for awhile), etc.--all these things don't say that we are more righteous or more deserving than anyone else. Many righteous people lose jobs and can't find new ones, they lose their homes, etc. It doesn't mean God doesn't love them. What is happening to Tom and me right now is evidence to me that Heavenly Father wants us in Nevada now. So we're going. And He is making it easier for us to make this move by making some sweet and pleasant things happen. I do love the way Heavenly Father takes care of me, and I pledge my heart and soul to doing whatever it is He wants me to do in my new community. And I dedicate my home to doing His work.

I hope that our friends and family will decide to make that pleasant drive over to the Ruby Mountains in Nevada and stop and visit awhile. Please!