Even More Miracles

Yesterday morning, Mark got a call from Lori (a former colleague and good friend), and she told him that she made a proposal to the owners of the Ammon building (Mark used to work there), that she would work for them as an office manager and marketer and Mark would be the Executive Director.  Crazy again, because we haven't heard from Bonaventure, but we found out that Lori wouldn't really be staying with them.  It was so strange not to hear back from them...and then, out of left field, comes this great opportunity.

We would live on-site (yay!) and the management would be left in Mark and Lori's hands.  Just what Mark would prefer!  A hands-off approach.

The bldg. is much bigger than it used to be, since it was added onto.  Many beds.  It's an exciting opportunity, and something we used to joke about.  So Mark explained about the phone call, to his boss and some others yesterday, and told them that this seems like the right time to step out of the picture.  Basically, it was his 2-week notice.  That means that today is my last in Vegas.  I'll just stay up in IF this time, to give Mark lots more room in the car for our things, when he goes up.

I'll miss Las Vegas.  I love the desert, and the people here have a great spirit about them.  There's so much to do, and it's always sunny.  On the other hand, it's not a place you could grow food or live at without air conditioning, so not somewhere I'd want to stay at in an emergency.   And Idaho feels so familiar and comforting.  Plus, my dr. is up there!

Dee Dee and Julie are on vacation in Mexico right now, so I'll have to just leave them thank you cards.  Also, I'll probably have to leave one for Melissa.  I'll pull out anything I don't want to keep today, so Mark won't have to haul it.

Mark will need to get our things packed up in Pocatello and rent a storage unit for most of it in IF.  At the Ammon place, you bring your own furniture, so we'll have to select what we want in our little apt.  We're hoping Mark can use the kitchen there when it's vacant in the evenings, just so he can make some of his specialty foods once in awhile.  That would be good for him, although we'll have to portion the food out over time if we want to lose weight (we're actually focusing on being healthy, rather than losing weight).

After we get the household things in storage and in our apt., we want to clean up the house and get a rental agent for it.  Seth will, I hope, be willing to find a foster home for Leto, so that he can come on up to Idaho Falls.  Maybe later he could visit Sandy and Jessie's or something, but it would be great if he could be around the family and attend our ward, etc.

I want to still focus on preparedness, etc.  Maybe we could make an extended-family emergency plan and work together to get things well in hand ahead of time.  It would be great if you all thought about this and then we could discuss it sometime.  Where would we meet, if need be?  How would we communicate?  We could prepare for some likely contingencies, so that we aren't just floundering to make sure we are all okay, if everything unravels, or there is a natural disaster or terrorist attack, deadly epidemic, or financial or govt. collapse.
I know that sounds dismal, but it's something I've thought about a lot, especially since Megan and Brooks are out in West Virginia now.  I'd like to have a plan for how we would react in terms of checking on each other and doing what is needful.  We should put atlases in our emergency supplies, I think.  Just in case we need to travel or chart what is happening.

I'm so happy that we'll be back closer to family and friends!  Melinda, that means I get a pick in Book Club! 

So, call me if you have any questions, okay?  We love you!
xoxoxo

Phillip's Vehicle Hit By an IED in Afghanistan

If you haven't heard, Phillip called Mark yesterday and told him that their truck was hit by (or hit upon) an IED, or Improvised Explosive Device, the killer weapon that his Army group finds and calls in others to destroy.  He said it took out their engine block, but they are all okay.  Can you believe that?  What a miracle, and waaay too close for comfort.
Please say some prayers of thanks for them, okay?  We never know what we are being protected from at any moment, and this really brings home the idea that we could get a phone call out of the blue and Phillip or his buddies could be terribly hurt, or worse. 
It's something I don't think about normally, but this makes it very real.

 We also learned yesterday that the owner of Mark's Memory Care building is selling that side of the business.  He just decided that a.m.  Crazy, huh?  This is great for us, because it will make perfect sense, then, that Mark will want to move on to a more secure, career-oriented position somewhere else.  . 
Mark will still have his same job in the meantime, but with different owners who plan on phasing out the Memory Care and Mark's job, eventually. 
We had no idea, and Mark was figuring on telling his boss about needing to move on, at the exact same time that his boss decided to sell and let Mark know about it.  They were going to meet up, and we felt it was best for Mark to go ahead and discuss it with him, but his boss made his announcement first.  Then Mark didn't need to say anything!  What a blessing!  Unbelievable.

On Monday evening, Mark and I went to a buffet for Father's Day and my birthday.  We went to one called Studio B.  It was clean and fresh, and there were a ton of choices, alot of them Asian.  And seafood, too.  I'll tell you more about it later, but I'm glad we got to have that experience.
It's one you have to have, just to say you did it. : )
The food wasn't crazy-good, but it was good.  I'd like to go back for their mac and cheese and their creamed spinach.  They were yummy, but I tasted so many things that I only got of bite full of them.  It was a tasty experience!

With that, I'll say Adios, and don't forget that I love you!
xoxoxo 

 

It's My Birthday!!

It's my birthday!  It's my birthday!  Wahoo!
This a.m., Mark greeted me with a big, round bowl of jello with  mandarin oranges in it - and he left it on the toilet seat for me to find, at which point he ran around in the baggage carrier, going, "Brrrm, brrrm!"

Then we sobered up and went to church, where my visiting teacher gave me a birthday bag with presents in it. : )
There was a honeysuckle/bitter orange candle, a little plaque that sits on a stand, and a beautiful little wooden box.  How thoughtful of her!

Later on, after church, Mark brought me watermelon from downstairs, and even later on, he brought up some lovely chocolate cake with ice cream!  (I already got my birthday present, which was a membership in "Glitch," an online game that is just in the testing stages now.  My Faunasphere friends went there, so it's wonderful to associate with them again.  It's a gentle game like FS was, and we water trees and garden and mine and have houses with chickens, pigs, and butterflies.  We build on our world with each other.  Anyway, it's something I want to explore, so I am delighted to be able to stay on and play!)


Someday this week, we'll go to a buffet here for my birthday and Father's Day.  We want to do a few things like that while we're here, just because they are musts when in Vegas.  We're looking at online reviews, to find the best buffet.  I'm excited!

Now Mark is asleep and I'm telling you about my birthday.  It's always so nice outside here.  I'll bet it's pretty where most of you are right now.  Blessings to all of you!
xoxoxo