Just wanted to show you one of the bug casings that are attached to the walls outside here and there.  We have found several and I love looking at them.  They are so detailed.  The actual skin that split down the back and let the newly grown bug escape and start over.  I looked up cicadas since we can hear them outside now and surely enough, it's their casing.  They leave this behind and emerge with wings just like a butterfly!  How fun for them.

And here is a picture of the beginnings of the deck substratum.  The man is making sure the boards don't touch the soil so that they hopefully won't rot out very soon.  He's placing bricks to hold the base boards above the ground and will lay the actual deck boards on top of those.  The planter looks better now too, doesn't it?  It has had time to cure.  

We are looking forward to seeing Heather this week on Thursday!  She will be coming for a week and we will take some time to visit San Antonio and Galveston and play around.  It will be fun to have another person in the house.  We two get pretty staid and don't do much.  

When we got back home from our trip we noticed the toilet had been running the whole time and surely had wasted a lot of water.  We didn't know how much till Jer got a call from the water company telling him our water bill for the month would be $700.00!!!  But they said if we could show them a bill from a repair they would halve it.  So now he has bought new innards for the toilet and will install them and show them the bill.  We will only have a $350.00 water bill.  :o)  You can be sure we will double check for that hereafter.

I was going through some of my old notebooks the other day and I found a paper whereon I had written many times, "We will find the right place for us."  And surely we have done just that.  I feel so at home here--so settled and happy.  

Now that the condo is sold and the furniture moved in the man is concentrating on the backyard.  He has trimmed the tree that is destined to support the tree house and he has created a brick planter for a bouganvilla to grow against the house.  We are told that the bouganvillas around here don't do very well, growing small and straggley, but we will do our best to recreate what we had in California.  If it doesn't work, we will do something else.  But we have to try. It was a real job to do that planter, so we will definitely use it.  The man worked very hard at it.  The mortar would dry as fast as he spread it so he had to be creative at making it work. 

Now it's done finally and he has trimmed the tree the final time to prepare for the tree house.  He will put in the deck around the planter first before the tree house; he wants to wait till Christmas to finish the house when the little boys will be here to help him.  Atticus and Robert and James will be here then and will be able to hammer in nails to build a ladder and make it all secure. 

And somewhere in there he will build a frame for the swing that we bought a long time ago at the San Diego County Fair, remember?  I had just about despaired of ever seeing it set up, but we plan to put it on the patio when everything is all finished. 

The English class is going pretty well.  There was some conflict about one of our students being too controlling of the class, but since Dad's there he handles him and I get on with the lessons.  We got three new students and so now we will have 6 regulars and some that come sometimes.  I'm still working on getting the lessons more organized.  I'm too scattered in my delivery still.  I need to write out a plan and follow it instead of shooting from the hip.  I have lots of material, but no organized presentation plan. 

We have discovered a new series of tv program that we enjoy.  It's called Foyle's War on NetFlix.  There are 25 episodes and we are about half way through.  It's Britain during the second world war.  Really interesting showing the way of life at that time there. 

Wednesday Dad got his official call and was set apart by the bishop to serve in the peanut butter factory.  He will go for his first day next week, I think.  We are still waiting to hear from the temple.  Apparently the bishop didn't fill in one of the blanks on our application so now maybe it will be in the works and we will hear soon. 

I want to show you the house now that we have everything in place.  This is the living room now.

Our new desk in place in the dining room.  We liked it because it's long enough to accommodate the printer and everything and it also has a skirt that hides most of the wires.  We were really looking forward to getting it until we saw it come off the truck in a skinny little box meaning that it needed to be assembled.  But the man came through like a trooper and got it all together and pretty.

The first guest room

And the second guest room.  It's also my sewing room.  We may move the pictures so they are over the desk.  Don't know if all those ancestors might keep someone awake in the night.  

We love being here!  We love this little house and all its comforts and conveniences and we are so happily looking forward to getting to see some of you all soon!

Several wonderful things have happened lately!  Stephanie got married, our condo closed, and we went on an adventure with the Collinses. 


Stephanie's Wedding

 It was all beautiful and it was wonderful to see her so happy.  Vince's family and all of us agree that the match is perfect.  It will be fun to see their relationship develop and flower. 

 They chose the Logan temple because that's where Vince's parents were married.  And his grandmother lives there.

                                                    Beautiful women that attended. 

                                                    Handsome men that attended. 

                                       It was so good to see so many of the family there. 

                            Family photo.  Jared isn't there but Brian and his wife Kinsie are there.

                                                             Stephanie's best friends

                                                          More beautiful women

The best men:  left to right, Vince's brother, Vince's best friend, Vince in his custom made Dr Who #10 suit in his chosen color, Brian and Scott

Vince's family held a dinner the previous evening at Golden Corral there in Logan and it was great to get to meet Vince's family.  They are very nice people from Hemet, California.  His father is an elementary school PE teacher.  His two grandmas came and most of his siblings.  He has 4 sisters and two brothers, one on a mission right now.  Two of his sisters are married and there are some nieces and nephews.  Very nice people. 

After the wedding and all the pictures Sean treated us all to a lunch at a restaurant there in the area.  We told him we didn't mean for him to pay, but he did anyway. 

We missed the reception but Kristin said it was so very satisfying to have most all her siblings there and having a good time.  She had a life-size cutout of Jared that was in some of her pictures so he could be there in spirit.  And the cake was a tardis cake with a huge tardis on top and Gallifreyan writing along the sides of the layers.  They served cupcakes and a taco bar at the reception. 

They have a nice little apartment in Logan where they will be going to school and they are furnishing it with their wedding gifts.  They have another reception later in California and they will be going on a wedding trip later. 

Trip to LaPaz

We had to leave Utah before the reception so that we could fly home and turn around and fly out to Cabo San Lucas the next morning.  We had already bought tickets before Stephanie decided on August for her wedding. 

We arrived in Cabo and got a room in a hotel near the airport so we could meet Collinses and their friends when they came in the next day.  But their flight was cancelled because the plane needed care so they stayed in San Diego for the evening and met up with Jerry Pennock.  They went to a Padres game and their airline paid for their stay and their food.    We stayed another night at the hotel in Cabo and watched movies and read.  There is nothing around the airport for 40 miles and we didn't really want to do anything else anyway.  We got better acquainted with the people in the hotel.   

The next day the Collinses arrived and we all rode in a rented van 2 1/2 hours to LaPaz.   The friends with Collinses were the Hendricks who had two daughters and three sons along.  we got to the boat in the afternoon and settled in and met the crew.  The captain was a talented man who could do everything and anything that needed to be done on that boat. It is a beautiful and comfortable boat. 

The captain in the main place they drive the boat.  There are 2 other stations where he can conduct it.

The chef was Emelio who is Italian but lives in La Paz.    He can do anything with food.  He made a huge guacamole and chips snack for us when we arrived and then made dinner after that.  He cooked mostly all day, preparing one thing or another.  He didn't know when we arrived that I didn't want to eat meat, but he managed to make me something delicious every meal.  He cooked the fish that were caught and made them special. 

                                 This is a plate of fried potatoes and bacon with eggs on top. 

 The dining room at the back of the boat where everyone can watch the fishing poles. 

There was also a great housekeeper/masseuse that kept everything clean and orderly and served the meals and gave wonderful massages on deck in the dark for whoever wanted one.  I don't know why I didn't get her picture.  She was a great sport and a lot of fun.  Her name is Paulina.  She is one of the reasons Kristin loves to go on the boat.  Every time we came back from anywhere the rooms were tidy and clean and snacks were out on the living room table and she was ready to serve the meals.  Not to mention the massages.

We rode out to an island that the captain really likes and we played there for a few days.  It was fun to ride around it in the dinghy and see the formations of the rocks, changed by the wind and water.  This is the island as we approached it. The rocks looked sort of like Anasazi dwellings because there were holes all in the face of the rock, and there were mushroom shapes along the shoreline where the water had eroded the rock nearest the water and left the top round and smooth. 

I didn't take any pictures of the fun things that we did, but Sean took us out in the dinghy around the island and the kids swam and fished and played in the kayaks and on the surf boards that they stood up on and rowed around.  The water was very clear and turquoise.  Jer and I tried out a kayak since we are thinking about getting one or two to play in around here in the lakes.  It was fun and easy to steer and paddle.  We liked their kayaks because they were all enclosed so they won't swamp and you sit on top inside the hollow.  This is just a stock photo but theirs was similar. 

 

As we rode out to the island and back to La Paz there were always fishing poles out trolling behind the boat and there was a list kept of who got to catch a fish next.  When a fish would strike on one of the poles someone would yell, "Fish on!!" and everyone would run to the back to see what was going to come up.  The next person on the list would take the pole and reel in the fish that had struck.  Mostly we got dorado, sometimes called mahi mahi.  The captain efficiently killed it and filleted it in about 3 minutes.  And then Emelio took it and made it delicious for everyone. 

                                                           Jer reeling in his fish.

This is a female dorado because the head is sloping.  The males or bulls have a square head.

On the way back to La Paz almost at the end of the trip Jer yelled, "Fish on!!" and the next person up was the oldest son of the Hendricks.  He took the pole and started reeling and the fish jumped and it was big and it sparkled!  It was a blue marlin.  He worked at getting it in till he got tired and then everyone took a turn trying to get it up to the boat.  Finally it was up to the boat and the captain killed it and they dragged it up onto the deck.  When they got it hung up and measured it turned out to be 9 feet long and 38 inches in girth just below the fin.  The captain said it was a prize catch.  If he had caught that marlin in the fishing derby he would have won $100,000.  I wish he had.  The Collinses and the Hendricks have the cabin together in Daniel's Summit and they are going to have a replica made of this marlin and hang it on the wall between the kitchen and the living room.  Apparently they don't need the actual fish anymore to make a trophy.  As soon as they had the pictures they wanted the captain cut it all up and was there a lot of meat on that fish!  Their scales are really different.  They are like little curved needles that will stick you if you approach them wrong. 

                                                         Watching for dolphins
On the way out we saw some dolphins but they didn't come very close to the boat but as we were going into La Paz we met another pod of dolphins and they were really playful.  They followed the boat and jumped for a long time.

  There were hundreds of them; they fairly boiled the water.  And many came up close to the boat so we could hear them breathe and we would get sprayed as they breathed. 

It was a rare sight for us.  Kristin said sometimes at other times of the year they can get close to whales and pet them. 

We went into La Paz so that Jer and I could catch our plane.  We had arranged for a flight a day earlier than the Collinses and Hendricks.  There was a lot of discussion about how we were going to get back to Cabo for the flight, but in the end Sean asked the captain to drive us that long way.  The rest of the people were going to SCUBA dive with the seals while we were gone.  So the captain brought his wife so that he would have company on the way back and drove us all the way back to Cabo.  We were so grateful because if we had rented a car and tried to drive we surely would have gotten lost and would be there yet.  There weren't many signs along the way to guide us back, but he knew the way just fine.

                                    The captain and his wife after getting us back to Cabo. 

We finally got our tickets and our flight was delayed several hours, but we were okay with that.  It's nice to be all ready to go when it's time.  I bought a book, The Maze Runner, to read in the interim.  It was an intense book that kept me involved the whole time.  When we landed we still had several hours of waiting in line to get through customs and immigration and then checking us again after we got our bags.  It was so GOOD to finally walk out into the air and get on the parking lot bus.  We were finally home after an unforgettable trip!!

Condo closing

Yesterday we went to the title company and signed the papers.  The buyers weren't in town so they should sign today and then the money will be wired into our account by tomorrow.  That's the way it's supposed to go.  Our realtor says they went to the condo last week while we were gone and looked it over again and still want it.  So we went early in the morning and emptied the condo of all our furniture and cleaned it well.  Now we just wait till they complete their business. 

And today we are getting all the furniture settled into it's new home.  The living room is now furnished with sofas and fake greenery and the guest room is now furnished with a comfy bed for company.  Heather will be the first to try it out.  :o)  We will move the office stuff into the dining room for now so that we can have the twin beds in place and get that room finished too.  We plan to buy a pretty desk for the dining room eventually. 

So there we are all caught up with our doings for the past few weeks.  It was great to get to spend time with family.  That's where all the joy is.

Well it's looking like the condo is really sold!!  They did indeed have the money in the bank.  Our realtor called today and said they want to close on the 17th instead of the 31st and they want to keep the washer and dryer and refrigerator and don't want any repairs--a dream come true for us.  We didn't want to have to move those things and Dad was worried that they would want the glass door replaced since it won't actually lock.  (The bar across it makes it totally safe, however.)  They are still deciding about the table and chairs.  We would like them to take them too.

We will just be getting back from our trip on the 17th so we are asking that they wait till the 18th so we can get our furniture out.  We still have 3 bedrooms and a living room furnished there if they keep everything else.  Wow!!  We have had that hanging over us for so long, it seems.  Like what?  Maybe 3 months?  Seems lots longer.  We are so very grateful for this blessing.  It's everything we wanted. 

The man will be repairing our driveway today.  Most all the driveways along our street are broken where they meet the street.  Some are repaired, some not.  He wants to get ours done nicely just before we leave on this 10 day trip so it will have that long to cure.  We can park in the street for the couple days we will be transitioning. 

We have yet another contract on the condo.  Hard to get excited about it since we have had a couple already fall through and so many loving it and not getting around to offering.  BUT these people supposedly have $70,000 in the bank in several accounts and are willing to pay full price in cash.  They have asked for 30 days to get it all together and so we will close hopefully August 31.  I'm not holding my breath.

I took back my dress for the wedding because I made another one yesterday that will probably be just fine and it's longer.  The other one was pretty, but too short.  I just can't be comfortable with a skirt just at my knees.  The sprayed gray shoes will be fine with it too.

The man is finished with the wall over the wet bar and is working on the fan cord now.  It looks really good.

I teach a lesson to the YW tomorrow and I am going to be really happy when it's over.

If the deal goes through with the condo we will be able to finally move the furniture from there into our living room and guest rooms.  I will be so happy for that.  We want to have a bed for Heather to sleep in in September and a comfortable place for company to come and visit and spread out.

Sunday
Taught the lesson and it went well, I think.  It was about strengthening the family through keeping true to the teachings of the church.  Kindness, love, respect, forgiveness.  Testimony.  I was still glad when it was done.  I wanted to show a video and was worried that it wouldn't work when I needed it but it did!!  I'm still way behind the young in technology, but I can make some things work at least.

We leave for Utah in just a few days!  We're really looking forward to seeing everyone again!