We Like to Tear Stuff Up and Make Messes

We started on our master bathroom renovation this week by doing some demolition. :)

Here are the "before" pictures:

We are only 4 days in, but here is what Scott has accomplished so far. 

Day 1: Scott lifted back the carpet and padding underneath to assess any potential damage that may have occurred over the years of having carpet in a bathroom! It wasn't too bad, actually. He located an ideal spot for this post - which will be the support (eventually) for a 2/3 wall as part of the walk-in shower. *He only placed it there temporarily.*

Day 2: I moved everything that we own out of our bathroom and on to temporary pastures - namely the bathroom down the hall, among other locations. Then, once Scott got the fixtures dislodged from the floor/wall/etc., they were hauled off to Habitat for Humanity here in Idaho Falls.

Then he started figuring out how to remove the shower "walls" that were glued on. He also closed off the plumbing within the wall.

As we pulled our potty down the hall using a leash and a dolly, on its way outside to go into the truck bed, I called the girls over to show them our new "pet". Gwen wanted to coax our pet potty over to the front door, too. :) "Here, potty, potty, potty!"

Making progress!!

Day 3: See if you can notice any  major differences between these next two photos.

Here's what happened in between . . .

Hooray! We got that heavy beast in the truck! We sure make a great team. :)

Day 4: The main mess got all cleaned up and the post is securely in place now. 

And that is where things will patiently sit until Monday evening. Scott goes back to teaching at the high school this week, so he will only be home in the evenings and on the weekends. He's excited to start putting in the tile floor next. 

Next steps:

Take down the medicine cabinet

Install tile on the floor

Me - paint the walls

Put up wainscoting

Then tile and finish the walk-in shower

Sounds easy, right? :)

As for the rest of the week . . .

Monday: Gwen was my egg-smashing assistant. I made a large batch of boiled eggs for some egg salad to hopefully last us a couple of days. I would first peel the egg shells and then she would mash the egg with the "masher". She did a great job!

Tuesday: Happy Birthday to Jonny! He would have been 4 years old on November 10th. Instead, he is doing great and important things in heaven - much of which is in our behalf, I am confident. :)

Amber shared some sweet thoughts on social media about her memories and feelings.

This November 10th was a special opportunity for Amber and Weston to be here in the area to recognize and celebrate his birthday in person, instead of being several states away and relying on those of us living up here to try to do something as meaningful as possible in their behalf. 

Last Sunday, Amber and Weston went to the cemetery with Weston's parents. It was very cold, so they didn't stay very long, but it was wonderful for them to all be there together. 

On Tuesday, I took Amber, Abby and Gwen up to Rexburg once again, so that we could be there ON Jonny's birthday. Plus I wanted an opportunity to visit his grave, too. :)

Again, it was brutally cold, so we didn't stay very long. We almost slid into the ditch bank as we turned onto the road leading to the cemetery, too! The roads were very icy and snow-covered in the Rexburg area, but we made it safely there and back home again. It just took a lot longer than usual.

Once we got to the cemetery, Abby and Gwen headed straight over to the headstone. They knew right where to go.

We brought cupcakes with candles in them. But it was too cold and breezy to light the candles, so we decided to head back to the car and just eat them in the warmth of the heated interior instead. But first, we sang happy birthday to Jonny! 

I felt a special feeling in my heart as I looked out the car window towards where his tiny little body is buried. I wanted to jump out and brave the cold again, just to stand near his headstone for as long as I could. But I acknowledged in my heart that I didn't need to stand next to the headstone to feel the spirit of God, the spirit of Jonny, and the spirit of heaven that I was feeling. I quietly looked out the window, with tears rolling down my cheeks, and just felt the calm, quiet peace of both Jonny and his love for us, and God, with his eternal love for each of us. It was a beautiful moment. One that I will cherish for a long time.

I also baked pumpkin chocolate chip cookies on Tuesday morning, in anticipation of our young women's activity that evening. 

Gwen wanted to be my humble assistant once again. :)

She even volunteered to help wash the dishes afterward. Really she just wanted to steal all the bubbles, ha ha! But it's okay. I enjoyed her company.

Later that evening, after the young women wrote uplifting notes on a variety of pumpkin or leaf-shaped cutouts, we drove around and taped them to the front doors of our bishopric. We have a new bishop and his two counselors, so we thought it would be nice to share a little love with them. We also gave them a plate of pumpkin cookies. 

This is our Bishop's wife, Alicia McCracken. The bishop wasn't quite home yet, but she said she'd make sure he saw the surprise when he got home.

Next, we went to the home of our young women's president and her husband, Neal. It was ReNae's birthday, but her husband, Neal, is also one of the new counselors in the bishopric. So we wrote extra notes so they could each have several messages from our class.

Lastly, we went to brother Nolan Anderson's house. He is the member of the bishopric that will be directly assisting our young women's class. He is a quiet, but fun personality and I look forward to serving with him in the coming months.

Wednesday: Happy Veteran's Day! I have so many veterans in my family to be grateful for. :) My dad, for his service in the Navy; my father-in-law, for his service in both the Army and the Navy; my brother, Ryan, for his service as a police officer and sergeant; my brother, Michael, for his service in the National Guard; my son, Benson, for his service in the Air Force; and most of all, my husband, Scott, for his many years of service in the Idaho National Guard. (33 years and counting) 

I am also grateful for the countless ancestors in both my family tree and Scott's family tree, who have served in perilous conflicts over the years, and who have fought to maintain our freedoms and secure our family dreams and goals. THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart! :)

After all the work on the bathroom that day, Scott and I went out to a nice dinner at Garcia's Mexican Restaurant, about a mile from our house. 

I really didn't eat very many of the chips with salsa, but by the time my soup and taco salad arrived, I was already pretty full! I ate my little bowl of soup and then I was DUN. I took the entire taco salad home for the next day's lunch. 

Thursday: Not much happened. Well, I guess some stuff happened but I just didn't take any pictures. I've been working on a secret Christmas project most days lately. I will share pictures at some point, when it's all done. I'm not sure if the recipient reads my blog regularly, so I don't want to share too much, ha ha. 

But here are the colors.

Friday: More of the same. I worked on my secret Christmas project and Scott worked on the bathroom. Weston arrived safely from Ogden, Utah for the weekend. He had a hefty storm to drive through, especially going up and over Malad Pass. He said there were about 4 inches of snow on the freeway and only one lane was being used for quite a while, but he made it! Thank goodness.

Saturday: After another day of working on the bathroom and my special Christmas project, it was nice at the end of the day to relax and watch some TV by the warm fire. Scott builds us a nice fire every morning, and we all help to keep it going throughout the day. 

Here, Abby and Gwen came in to join me for a little bit while I watched an episode of House Hunters - where the potential buyers were in Maui. We watched the house hunting family visit sea turtles, sharks, and rays, which really captured the attention of the girls. (this picture was taken during a commercial though)

A great way to end the week, I'd say.

One last thought.

We had stake conference this weekend and Elder Kevin J. Hathaway came as our visiting authority. He was unexpectedly young, and extremely gifted in teaching us basic gospel principles in a profound and captivating way.

Near the end of his talk this morning, he gave everyone permission to open up Google on our phones to search for a painting. He asked us to search for Carl Bloch's painting, entitled "Sermon on the Mount". 

He pointed out a few people in the painting, and likened them to us. The little girl, for instance, down on the left. She was probably listening at one point to the Savior, but then got distracted by a beautiful butterfly that landed on the lady next to her. We, too, get distracted easily by the things of this world and forget that Jesus is right in front of us, teaching us, showing us the way, and lovingly beckoning for us to come unto Him.

Next, he drew our attention to the man seated next to the Savior's left knee. The man is scowling a little bit, probably judging the girl across from him who isn't paying full attention to the Savior. But he isn't turning his own attention to the Savior that is right next to him either. He is focused on judging someone else's blunders.

Next, he pointed out the lady with the butterfly that landed on her head. She is looking downward, seemingly sad and discouraged. All she has to do is look up! The Savior of all mankind is right in front of her! She does not need to feel burdened with all the sad and discouraging things of this world (as many are feeling right now), because Christ already took upon Himself all the pains and infirmities, the sorrows and tribulations of the world. He already experienced EVERYTHING, and is therefore ready to help us and comfort us in ways that nobody else can. We just need to turn our burdens over to Him and He will be there to lift us up.

Lastly, he told us to note the man in the background, near the Savior's right knee. He is also looking down. Probably at his cellphone. Again, distractions are all around us, fighting for our time, our energy, our devotion, and our motivation. But if we turn to Christ, we will become more like Him. As we become more like Him, we will carry His light with us. We will become the Light of the World, bringing His comfort and love to all the corners of the earth. We just need to focus on Him. And try not to lose that focus. Just keep trying. Again. and Again.