Quotes of the Week

"The expectations of life depend upon diligence; the mechanic that would perfect his work must first sharpen his tools." 
-- Confucius

"Confidence, like art, never comes from having all the answers; it comes from being open to all the questions." 
-- Earl Gray Stevens 

"The fragrance of flowers spreads only in the direction of the wind. But the goodness of a person spreads in all directions." 
-- Chanakya

"It's a little embarrassing that after 45 years of research and study, the best advice I can give people is to be a little kinder to each other." 
-- Aldous Huxley

Quotes of the Week

"Clarity is the most important thing. I can compare clarity to pruning in gardening. You know, you need to be clear. If you are not clear, nothing is going to happen. You have to be clear. Then you have to be confident about your vision. And after that, you just have to put a lot of work in." 
-- Diane von Furstenberg 

"Being happy doesn't mean everything is perfect. It means you've decided to look beyond the imperfections." 
-- Author Unknown 

"Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you." 
-- Nathaniel Hawthorne

"Love yourself enough to never lower your standards for anyone." 
-- Author Unknown 

January Family Birthday Dinner

It is always the highlight of the family dinner party when the candles appear on the desserts and it is time for the lighting and the singing. Well, the lighting is a highlight. The singing may leave a little to be desired.

First up was birthday boy Wes. It's hard to believe he is now a teenager.

Next birthday boy was Lincoln turning one this year.

It appears he needed a little help to blow out his candle.

Sarah was there representing the triplets--her, Emma and Logan--all sharing the same birthday. Austin also has a January birthday.
 

Too bad Rebecca's family wasn't able to attend to celebrate Dallas's January birthday. With her new stake primary president calling, she has been attending a couple Eight Is Great meetings every Sunday it seems like. Rebecca did comment on this photo--wondering if Glen is at the same party as the rest of us.

I love this headband that makes the rounds on the heads of all the little girls. This week it was Samantha's turn to wear it.

This might possibly be the cutest picture of Carson that was ever taken! It is pretty cute of Rachel and Maggie as well.

The big family news of the evening was Seth and Kenna are expecting a baby!! In August!! Congratulations to them!!!!

The Feet Unveiling--Look If You Dare

I have made several trips back to the foot doctor since my surgery. First time was the removal of the bloody bandages.

It felt so good to get all the bandaging removed from between my toes!!!!

This gives a good view of the work done on my feet. Bunions repaired on the big toes with pins inserted in the toes and the bony growth shaved off. Bunionettes were shaved off the outside of both feet. Four neuromas were removed from between the toes on both feet.

Feet were looking good so I got them wrapped up again--this time in bright green.

I spent many long hours lying on the couch or sitting in the recliner as I was recovering. It certainly gave me plenty of time to study Spanish.  

For some reason the church keeps sending us boxes of stuff they think will be helpful for our mission. Keep in mind we got a big box of stuff right after we got called that we have been studying, along with our on-line assignments we have been given.

That, in and of itself was plenty for us to do. Then, as if I wasn't feeling totally overwhelmed already, we got this pile of books and pamphlets.

Not too many days later, a box with these books showed up on our porch.

It appears I will have plenty of Spanish stuff to study! SHEESH!! It made me totally consider purchasing this program to see if it could possibly work.

I had a lot of time to look at and enjoy the Christmas decorations around me--thinking about how it will be 3 years before I will see them on display again.

My favorite thing was when we got ready to sleep for the night and kept these Christmas lights on all night for our nightlight. I never got tired of looking at them. In fact, we kept our Christmas decorations up well into January--which we never have done before. I didn't get tired of them at all this year.

My boots helped me get around, but my feet felt much better when they were elevated.

My next trip to the foot doctor was for the removal of the stitches.

Here is a comparison photo of the first unveiling and then with the stitches removed. The bruising was sure a lot better. And my feet are not growing fur in the second photo. The bandaging was a lot fluffier and some of it stuck to my feet.

This time he wrapped my feet more compactly and that made it a little easier to walk.

A few days later when I got up enough courage to take the bandages off and take my first shower in weeks, I was distressed when I saw my poor cracked and peeling skin.

I have been putting ointment on them every night since then and they are slowly getting softer and my skin has quit peeling off. The sores have been healing up as well.

Now if only I could get rid of the swelling. I went back to the doctor today and he was a little concerned about the swelling. (I should have taken a picture of my puffy toes.) Also, when he asked me to move my toes and I could barely get the tiniest movement out of them, he referred me to physical therapy. Oh joy! Whoever has heard of physical therapy for toes?

During the point where I had transitioned from the heavy-duty gray post-op boots to the lighter, smaller, sandal-type post-op shoes, we had our first group study session. We had to get all dressed up to go to the Church Office Building to meet with our group of 9 mission presidents and wives. This is my attempt to camouflage my duck feet, as Abe called them.

It is with great pleasure I announce that I am now wearing normal shoes once again. Granted, they are the biggest shoes I own, but I no longer have to strap on the footwear of an invalid.

Being an invalid does have its perks. Not only did my husband wait on me hand and foot (literally), but both girls took a turn fixing dinner. YUMMY!!!!

Too bad Ben and Haley missed out on all the good meals. They packed up some of their stuff and headed off to California for 7 weeks of training. Haley is spending lots of time alone in the hotel room sewing while Ben works for Amazon. The end of February they will be back to pack up everything for their move to Washington.

My feet might not work very well right now, but I still have the capacity to read stories to my grandchildren.

And look who is the latest invalid in the Thomas family. Glen was playing basketball one Saturday morning and got a little too rambunctious and popped a muscle in his calf. It has been pretty sore. In fact, right after he did it, I was able to walk faster than him for a day or two. That is proof it really slowed him down for a few days.

Thankfully, we are both making improvements and one of these days we will be walking like normal human beings once again.