I HOPE THEY CALL US ON A MISSION!!!!!

...AND THEY DID!




Doug and I have been called to the Sacramento, California Mission!! We enter the MTC on March 1st. To be honest, we expected to go foreign, so we've had to readjust our think. We are not using the word disappointed - rather, surprised. We were so ready for a third world country. I asked Dougie if he was sorry that he wouldn't let me request a mission. He replied with faith: "So do you think if Heavenly Father needs us in Sacramento it would have made a difference?" He is amazing. My calling says: Mission Medical Advisor. Doug's says: Mission Medical Advisor Assistant. When he read his, he said, "It's finally out - who's the boss." Whatever- he can do anything, and will probably make a huge contribution to the mission while I am checking ear wax, fungal feet and diarrhea. We feel it's very important to do whatever Heavenly Father wants us to do, and I'm still processing the whole adventure. Doug says we'll have this conversation in 18 months, and then we will know exactly why we were sent to Sacramento.

Here are a few things I'm worried about:

• Brownie, our dog that is 100 dog years and deaf, will die while we're gone.
• We are going to miss Drew's and Hannah's graduations.
• We are going to miss Abby's baptism.
• I look like a nursing home patient in my mission clothes.
• I'm going to miss a ton of great movies while we're gone.
• I can't listen to Willie Nelson for 18 months.
• Doug says we can't break even one mission rule.
• Our Mission President is going to croak when he meets me.
• I'm really good at placing PICC lines, but ear wax? Not so much.
• What will my grandbabes do without us?
• ..and what will I do without my grandbabes?
• I have a bit of trouble with compliance.
• I will miss my Stake Relief Society calling -
• I know, you're thinking, "No Way!"
• What if they want me to proselyte?

Things I am excited about:

• It's 64 degrees there in the afternoons.
• There's a temple right in town.
• I have Sacto cousins that I haven't seen in 50 years
• Don and Rayleen live in the mission boundaries - they haven't joined the church YET.
• I have some Laotian dinners lined up (I am nervous about eating dog though.)
• We're going to do some good.
• Oldies have a bit more freedom. I think I can email my grandbabes when I need to.
• I love young adults - I'll be seeing a bunch of them, that's for sure.
• I'm the SENIOR COMPANION!! tee hee
• My neice lives in Marin County.
• We have the means to pull this off.

THE ADAMS FAMILY RODEO HISTORY

We have been going to the Paris, Idaho 4th of July celebrations for a lot of years. The parade is very old school - lots of tractors and trucks, but WE LOVE IT! After the parade, they have a youth rodeo, which is very fun for the kids. In 1995, Ryan won the PIG in the pig chase. We had a brand new van and I wasn't about to take it home. Some farmer sensed our ignorance and paid Ry $40.00 for a pig worth much more. The little cowboys were clearly annoyed that a city boy had outed them.

Not to be outdone by his little brother, in 1999 Cody decided to ride a steer. It was an exciting ride (for all of us) and lo and behold, he LANDED ON HIS FEET! That's when he was still a Californian too!

Wow, this rodeo thing is contagious. This is Drewby just after riding the sheep. He won a dollar!! The little guy was not quite 7, and a city boy to boot.

Okay, this is getting out of hand. This would be the CHICKEN that Audrey won in the chicken chase (in her lap.) We left this one at the cabin (1998,) but the next year SHE WON ONE AGAIN; her parents let her take it home.

So this year (2009) Shelby (white helmet) took her turn riding a steer! She did pretty well, but the stupid animal stepped all over her after it bucked her off. I think her rib was broken, but I'm only the nurse of the family.

This is Vincent with the ribbon he pulled off of the calf's tail. (Actually Sidney held the tail while he pulled the ribbon off, so she should have shared the Popsicles package he won. He was very upset that he got Popsicles - he thought he had won the calf.

This would be DENICE - the GOAT that Drew won this year!!! Oh my Gosh. He even beat Audrey in the race (Audrey, the track star!!) Tee Hee. So we talked his parents in to letting him keep her, but little did he know that he had to milk her at least two times a day!!! The whole fam damily participated in the milking - except me. Maggie was delighted to feed the goat milk to her two baby MICE. Doug offered to drive Denice home in his trailer, but Elizabeth was worried about the ramifications of her going 70 miles an hour down the freeway with a full bag of milk shaking. Drew rigged up a little party hat for her horns so they wouldn't tear the upholstery and they loaded her up IN HER VAN!! So she had three active kids, a hyperactive dog, two baby mice and A LACTATING GOAT IN HER VAN. What a sport! She vowed that she wasn't going to milk her, but as a former nursing mother, she empathetically milked her twice a day until Drew and Doug picked her up.

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE BEST KIND

So, I didn't want to work at American Fork Hospital that day for a plethora of reasons. While the practice is exactly the same, the territory is not. Because the main nurse at AF got all of my long bones when we were picking out bodies, I have to drag a stool around all day as I search for supplies that have been placed in nonsensical high places. There, I said it. It turned out to be a pretty good day though, working with my friend Kimmie. I had just bought a pair of really expensive shoes thinking that the price would match the comfort. It didn't. At the end of the day, MY FEET WERE KILLING ME. When I checked out, I promptly took the evil shoes off, poured myself a Pepsi and headed for my car. What do you know? In the front drive of the hospital, Julie Beck was in her car, waiting alone. I mouthed, "Are YOU who I think you are?" She smiled and mouthed, "Yes." I just couldn't help it. I had to amble over in my bare feet (with my deep purple toenails from my recent nervous breakdown pedicure) with Pepsi and shoes in hand an have a visit. I told her that she was my HERO. I also admitted that if she knew my background she would be surprised. She asked "Why?" I said, "I have been to all of the Gen Pres mtgs in the last two years, and I think you have changed the face of Relief Society." She asked "How?" I just said, "You are real." She just smiled shyly again. She asked what my calling was. I said that I was in the Stake RS Presidency, but was probably about to be released because I'm just not RS material. She looked at me kind of strangely. I told her it was a long story. She said, "You ARE Relief Society material. All you have to do is love and serve the sisters." I showed her my nurse badge thingo and said, "I do that- I'm a nurse." Now I was getting a bit nervous so I changed the subject. I told her what a sister had said about her in a lesson I was giving the month before. This sister served a mission in Brazil. Julie's father was the Mission President and Julie was just a child. The sister said,"Julie was just not like the other children- she was kinder, happier, and more spiritual." Sister Beck sort of blushed a bit and said -"I was just a regular kid, but I did live in the MISSION HOME. The sister missionaries were my role models. I loved them. I wanted to be just like them. I dressed like them. I took my scriptures with me everywhere." For the 3 millionth time I pictured my crazy life. Out of the blue I said, "There's the difference. My role model was Cher Bono." SO NOT ONLY IS MY MOUTH SPEAKING WITHOUT MY PERMISSION, BUT IT IS BEGINNING TO LIE!!!!! Cher Bono was NEVER my role model. In fact, when my wild little 7 year old girl raved about Cher's beautiful clothes, I went apoplectic. The bad thing is, Sister Beck doesn't know about my stupid independent mouth probably. Plus also, (I've been reading Junie B) I'll never get the chance to explain my pseudo Turrets to her. Anyhow, how many people get to have a little one on one with their hero? Me, Myself and I did!

This past week our beautiful grandaughter Shelby participated in her first ever HORSE SHOW!! I was sick, so I missed it, but her Daddy took lots of pix. She is living my dream. Some of you may remember that I grew up around horses, but was the baby girl, and never rode. I have taken a few lessons as an adult and enjoy it emmensely, but as most of my passions seem to do, it died a slow and painful death. Seeing her pix make me want to saddle up and head out of Dodge though. Isn't Shelby incredible? She has always been so graceful - and now even on a horse. It makes me glad that they moved to the boonies afterall, even though we don't get to see them very often.

So, check this beauty out - and I don't mean the horse!!

In case you have a burning desire to know the horse's name, it is POCO. They have two horses.

Isn't it funny how our grandchildren can make us smile? Mine do.

And at the end of the day - life is wonderful if we find joy in stuff like this - stinky horses, dirty faces, sticky furniture, scattered toys from "hell to breakfast" (as my mother would say!) and kids that love to come to Mimi and Pops' house. I think I'll stop feeling sorry for myself.

Here we are at the hotel. Aren't we cute? ...smiling after a long drive!

So this past week, Doug and I took Drew and Hannah to DISNEYLAND!!! We had three day park hopper passes and we didn't stop movin' the whole time. California Adventure was great fun as well. This was their 16th birthday celebrations with the old folks. And hey, we are pretty dang fun. We got some cool pictures, and I'll post them when I figure out how. On the drive, we made them listen to CDs of "The Great And Terrible" but they didn't even complain about that - in fact, Hannah wants to borrow our books! While at Disneyland, Doug and I introduced them to a few of our traditions, like eating at "The Blue Bayou" while waving and singing to the people going on PIRATES. Can't you hear it? "Ho Ho Ho Ho a PIRATES LIFE FOR ME!" DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES.................. It was so great, and I still intend to be cremated when I die and have 1/2 of my ashes spread over the Pirates. The last ride we took at C A was Tower of Terror, and then coincidentally when we got to our hotel in Las Vegas, our room was on the 16th floor. ( Drew and Hannah were such babies. ) I have to say that Dougie and I feel pretty blessed. Blessed to have the energy to hang out with these guys and even MORE, that they want to hang out with us. I asked Drew if it was weird to go to D L with his grandparents, and he said, "Heck no, most grandparents are OLD!" YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!! On that note, I shall check out the photos we took and see if I can share a few - but give me a few days. PS: Last night the Green kids came over to welcome us home, and I was literally "covered in gran'chill'ren" (Steel Magnolias) It made me smile.