Vacation to Omaha and Kansas City

I was hoping it was not a bad omen when I ran over my sunglasses case right before we left on our vacation. 

Apparently, I set my case on my lap the day before when I was in the car and hadn't noticed them falling to the garage floor when I got out of the car.

When I ran an errand right before we were scheduled to leave on our trip, I could not find my sunglasses. When I arrived back home and drove into the garage, I got a sickening feeling as I felt the car run over something. 

NOOOOOO!!!! My worst fears were confirmed when I got out of the car to investigate.

Not only was it an expensive accident (bifocal prescription sunglasses are no cheap thing!), but it was annoying to know I would have no sun relief for my eyes the whole week of our car trip. 

Actually, it will be a couple of months before I get relief until I go to my eye doctor appointment in October. UGH!!!

Despite my little setback, we were able to get on the road an hour or so earlier than we had planned. HURRAH!! 

I had gotten some books from the library to read aloud to Glen while we made our drive to the midwest. Reading to Glen helps keep me awake on long car rides and helps the time go more quickly. Also, having my eyes looking down at a book helped it not be quite so bad that I didn't have my sunglasses.

Every time we come to the Great Platte River Road Archway Monument in Kearney, Nebraska, I can't help thinking about Abe. He served his mission in the Nebraska Omaha Mission and we went back to his mission with him and toured the sites there--this being one of them.

At one of the rest stops, I noticed these derbies hanging upside down on the ceiling in the women's restroom. I thought it a bit odd as I didn't see anything feminine about them. Perhaps the children who frequent that restroom might think it a cool way to decorate a ceiling????

We stopped in Sidney, Nebraska to spend the night and made the rest of the drive to Omaha the next day. It was the first time we had been to Jacob and Laurie's current home in Omaha. 

They moved back to Omaha from Houston at the beginning of our mission. So, for those three years we were unable to visit them. We would have gone to see them some time during all the months during the Covid lockdown, but that was impossible to do.

Then when we finally had a trip planned to visit them, I got called to jury duty and we had to cancel. So, FINALLY, we were able to see where they live. They have a very beautiful home and yard. We were very impressed with how big and roomy it is inside.

The back deck and also the backyard patio grill area are very nice as well. It was a very sad sight to see the big circle of dirt in the middle of the grass where their trampoline used to be. They lost it recently in a windstorm. 

They lost another trampoline in a big windstorm when they lived at their other home in Omaha. How unlucky is that??!!??

The playroom was impressive with all the Lego creations. I got a kick out of hearing the story of Claire moving into the playroom so she could have her own bedroom. Half of the playroom is her designated space and it is so cute. She will be moving into Natalie's bedroom now that Natalie has gone off to cosmetology school in Utah.

Jacob and Laurie designed this beautiful television/shelving/cabinet in their basement with the basement designed with BYU photos and paraphernalia. It is just so Jacob!!!! Actually, their whole family likes BYU, so it is an enjoyable space for everyone.

We got the basement to ourselves. They had a guest bedroom built in the basement and it was a very private and lovely place for us to stay.

It was just so nice to be with that group of grandchildren for a short time. 

We went to dinner at Olive Garden.

Logan and Claire rode in our car on the way to restaurant (I neglected to take a photo of them) and then Emma, Luke and Natalie rode with us on the way home.

We got involved in playing Codenames--one of my favorites--and we teamed up to see which team could give the best clues and make the best guesses.

Logan is a little mini me of Jacob and I loved that they were paired together at one point, sitting in the blue chairs, giving clues.

The next morning Claire had requested pancakes for breakfast. She had Laurie load her up with some pancake batter in her squirt bottle and then she got to work making some artistic pancake creations for us.

We packed up our belongings and loaded some of Natalie's college stuff into our car and were off on our way. Natalie and Laurie were headed out soon to fly to Utah and couldn't take too much stuff with them. 

There was already a bunch of Natalie's clothes and things in our garage. A friend had brought them to Utah in their car last month, and we were taking the last of her things with us.

Next stop on our vacation was Kansas City--a place familiar to us as we had lived in Blue Springs, Missouri for 3 1/2 years when Jacob, Rebecca and Abe were young. Sarah was born when we lived there. We moved to Albuquerque when Sarah was 18-months-old.

We took a drive into the part of town where Glen used to work at G&K Services as a service manager. It was a very demanding job as things were not going all that well at that location. 

Glen insisted we go eat at Gates BBQ. He ate at that restaurant many times while working at G&K. I ate there a few times. My memory of that restaurant is being greeted at soon as you walk in the door with an enthusiastic, "HI! May I help you??!!!??? 

Glen ordered ham and turkey double meat plate and I ordered brisket.

Before long, Glen's whole head was dripping sweat as he had been generously pouring the extra spicy BBQ sauce onto his sandwich.

The thunderstorms began while we were ordering our meal. I was happy Glen was willing to run out into the rain and bring the car to me. It was a gully-washer which continued on into the night. 

We thought the storm had stopped when we were going to bed, but later we found out it rained through much of the night causing flooding in various areas.

Our travels had taken us to Kansas City to attend a wedding. Turns out the bride's family's basement flooded during that storm and on the wedding day morning they were dealing with getting somebody to come and bail out their basement. 

Not a great way to start the day...but the wedding must go on!!!!

Quotes of the Week

 Our knowledge of and relationship to the members of the Godhead is at the heart of our quest for eternal life. Your happiness, your safety, your peace of mind, and ultimately your salvation is at the heart of everything these Godly beings do.

--Jeffrey R. Holland

When you wonder how much pain you can endure well, remember Him. He suffered what you suffer so that He would know how to lift you up. He may not remove the burden, but He will give you strength, comfort, and hope. He knows the way. He drank the bitter cup.

--Henry B. Eyring

As you study your scriptures, I encourage you to make a list of all that the Lord has promised He will do for covenant Israel. I think you will be astounded! Ponder these promises. Talk about them with your family and friends. Then live and watch for these promises to be fulfilled in your own life.

--Russell M. Nelson

When your greatest desire is to let God prevail, to be part of Israel, so many decisions become easier. So many issues become nonissues!

--Russell M. Nelson

Golfer Nani, Funks' New Home, Speaking in Promontory Branch; School Starts for the Excells

Nani came the other day to pick up a set of golf clubs Glen no longer uses. Now that she is retired, she is going to take golfing lessons and needed some clubs. 

While she was here, we ate a Texas Roadhouse take-out lunch. YUM!! I am so glad she came on a Friday when that restaurant is open earlier in the day.

Our missionary Laurie Masangkay Funk and her husband Kyle invited us over to take a tour of their new townhome in Bluffdale (same exit as the prison, which is becoming more and more familiar to us) and to meet their baby Adeline. 

Their home is beautiful. We were marveling over their large kitchen space. 

After the tour, we went to eat at Cubby's. Their baby kept looking at Glen the whole time we were together...until this precise moment when she couldn't take her eyes off me to look at the camera.

We have now been to the prison a fourth time. This week we spoke in the Promontory Branch. One of the new couples working in that branch, the Woods, are the aunt and uncle of one of our missionaries--Cassie Davis Peel. 

Cassie gifted us with one of her drawings that we have hanging in the basement on our mission wall. It is Glen's comment he would say every day to anybody he greeted, "It's another great day in paradise!" 

The first few weeks Cassie was home, she would send Glen a weekly text update and would include her take on his favorite saying like, "It's another 'grape' day in paradise!" They were always clever and made us laugh.

Glen sent her the photo of us with her aunt and uncle and included this greeting, "It's another great day in 'prison'adise." She said it made her day!

It really was a great day in prison. The Promontory Branch just got a new branch president. President Biddulph and his wife (on the right) were called the same time we were to be on the district council and now, just these few weeks later, he has been sustained as the new branch president.

This branch of the prison is for the inmates who are nearing the end of serving time and will be out soon. Not quite sure how soon "soon" is, but they are the ones who have hope of getting out a lot sooner than others. 

When I looked over the group of men seated in the congregation, the word that came to my mind was "potential." There is so much potential for those men to succeed, if only they will work hard and not go back to whatever habits or impulses or choices got them there in the first place.

One of the men told us his release date is in two days. That has to be a glorious feeling! We all just pray for success once they get on the outside. It is hard for them to make the transition to the outside world and to be able to be successful in not going back to prison.

The stand-out quote for me from the week before, spoken from one of the inmates in our branch was "Satan does my heart no good." That's quite profound and applies to all of us!!

Now on to some great news!! Great news for Sarah!! And for her boys!! 

School is now in session in Las Vegas. Hurrah!! Sarah was about losing her mind thinking she would have to homeschool again this year. 

The boys do have to wear masks, but they are able to attend a full day of school--unlike at the end of last year when schools opened up after the Covid closure and they were only going a couple of hours each day. 

While Eli (6th grade), Carson (4th grade) and Lincoln (1st grade) attend school all day, Jonah will go to preschool 2 1/2 hours each morning.

Sarah is looking forward to her quiet time during the day and I am sure the boys are looking forward to their time away socializing and learning and having a change of scenery after all those months cooped up in the house last school year.

Quotes of the Week

 Patience means to abide in faith, knowing that sometimes it is in waiting rather than in the received that we grow the most.

--Dieter F. Uchtdorf

We come to know the Lord as we seek through the power of His Atonement to become like Him. We come to know the Lord as we serve Him and labor in His kingdom. We more fully come to know the Lord as we not only believe in Him but also believe Him and His assurances.

--David A. Bednar

During any time of difficulty you experience--I hope you will regularly take time to sit for a few quiet moments with your Heavenly Father and let His Spirit warm you and reassure you of your value and the significance of your life.

--D. Todd Christofferson