Looks Like We Made It!

Today is our 46th wedding anniversary.  Five years ago today on our anniversary our lives were changed when we received the news that Ken had cancer.  It's funny how vivid memories are when they are associated with strong feeling or emotion.  It's like they imprint.  Cancer certainly wasn't ever in my life plan for myself or Ken.  I guess it isn't ever in anyones life plan--and that's why it catches us so unaware and in surprising ways and times.  Five years ago today I wasn't sure how long we would have together in this life.  It's funny how when something derails us from our plans, it's like getting off the wrong exit and having to wind your way without the help of google maps.  Looking back I wonder how I've changed, or if I have changed.  I know the scenery on the new route was not what I had planned.  How would I be different if cancer hadn't changed our course?  I guess I'll never know that for sure.  I know things I didn...

I have not ONE single photo to post today.  So this blog post will be short.  It's been a week of highs and lows.  Luckily today was a "high" day.  Myra, who was baptized two weeks ago had a crazy spiral over the missionary transfers.  She didn't realize how attached she became to the Elder who taught her and he was transferred 4 days after her baptism.  I've spent the last two weeks trying to help her through it.  Myra has  BPD and has struggles in relationships. (Matt, thanks for the little tutoring you have given me in the past on this--maybe it wasn't an accident that I was here right now.)   She knows she struggles with relationships.  She has a hard time keeping friends.  So when it happens that a "friend" appears to abandon her it sends her into a deep hole.  It's been exhausting, frustrating and a lot of work.  I've spent hours messaging with her, taking her to dinner, and trying to help her through it all....

February has been full of fabulousness.  We had zone conference.   We had a district P-day.  We celebrated Valentines.  We celebrated a LOT of birthdays.  And we had a baptism!  Where should I begin?😁 Let’s start with the baptism that we had yesterday.  It was such a special experience for Elder Swenson and I as we have had a lot of time to get to know Myra and see her growth and change as she has learned about the gospel of Jesus Christ.  She has faced so many challenges in her life and the changes and miracles that she has seen are a wonder to behold.  We love Myra and are so happy for her.  We held her baptism on Sunday so that she could be confirmed the same day.  She has a hard time getting off work on the weekends, but the Lord has opened up a way for her to have two Sunday’s a month off.  We hosted lunch after the baptism so the day was a great celebration. We didn’t take any photos of the lunch but ...

February 5th was our first big anniversary date. 6 months out! One year to go. The time goes pretty fast so the next year should be a blur. Especially when spring comes and the green grass and “P” day golf come back. Sister Swenson stays much busier than I do just by verture of her mom skills counciling some of the members of our branch. It’s amazing that I thought that I had more troubles than anyone on earth and it’s not true! Young people have so many issues both good and bad. Helping them make good life choices is such a blessing. (I haven’t talked anyone into the scrap metal business yet?). Because I have a little extra time I decided to write a short story of my life. It’s really fun to stop and think about the past and the memories associated with it. I asked Debbie if she wanted to get on the pre-order list and she said no! Go figure! I just finished two more Church topic books and am in the middle of another Charles Dickens. President Nelson’s book Accomplishing the impossib...

I can’t believe that it’s been two weeks since we posted.  Time is really flying by! We’ve had transfers again!  We are staying busy and I guess that’s good. This past two weeks we’ve been to the far corners of Vermont doing Apartment Inspections.  We love these visits.  It gives us an opportunity to take these missionaries out to lunch and get to know them a bit.  Some of the missionaries we had to say goodbye to because transfers were coming up.  Transfers are the hardest thing in missions.  I get pretty attached to the missionaries we serve with.  At the Sister’s apartment in Lamoille we looked at the dresser and saw this sitting on it.  They are so sweet! L to R: Sister Harrison (who is NO LONGER with us😢) and Sister Campbell Last Sunday Ken spoke in Sacrament meeting AND gave the Come Follow Me lesson in SS.  He did a FABULOUS job.  What a super star he is. We had a cleaning assignment at the Montpelier building on a...

We now know what a Vermont snow squall is.  I guess it’s in all of New England but we thought it was weird when we would get this weather warning on our phone and it would tell us about a “snow squall” that was coming through.  We were glad we got home before it hit.  A snow squall is a fast moving snow storm with winds that moves through really suddenly and fast.  Here’s what it looks like:  (I wish the motion on these photos would post but alas it doesn’t) On New Years Eve Ken got an opportunity to golf.  I’ll let him post about that: For a new Years party me and two of the YSA's went golfing! There is a golf simulator here called GONZO's and it's really fun. We were able to pick from 100 courses and we picked Pebble Beach...the owner told us that most people make the same choice. You take your own clubs and the shots for me were just as hard and real as live golf. Jordan goes to BYH (Hawaii) and was heading back...