Our winter walks. Taking time to enjoy the season of winter.

This winter we went on several winter walks.  Our first winter walk was in November when we went to the Thanksgiving Point Luminaria lights display.  I was wise this year and wore wool socks and warm boots.  Last year we did not stay long because my feet got cold really fast.

Luminaria is not just a lights show, there is also music and

certain areas have holiday scents. This area smelled like peppermint.

Now that's a big reindeer.

I love how they decorated the carousel.

This reminds me of the "Christmas with the Kranks" movie.

The snow man is a little sinister looking if you ask me.

I still think that this area would make a great sledding hill.

We also spent many afternoons walking around Utah lake.

We have enjoyed seeing the changes that happen at the lake during the different

seasons.

We have also gone to The Great Salt Lake a few times.

I'm hoping to go to different areas around the lake this spring and summer and see

the different birds.

We have been enjoying our winter walks and 

learning more about Utah and just finding time to be away from

the crazy rat race the world seems to want everyone to run in.

What things have you done to enjoy winter?

G.G.

Mom of a Missionary. Emails from Mexico, March 4, 2018. Only 3 more Missionary Mondays left.

Will you (please) get married?

Hello, Family and Friends! Elder Bowlby here... With those promised Birthday Photos!

Happy Birthday! Me and the district. We're at a members house. We ate Pozole and then this very cool cake!

There's a tradition where you smash the Birthday-Man's face into the cake, but I managed to get away with not toooo much frosting on my face. 

Then we went to a Brazilian-style buffet. My companion on the far right is from Brazil! He's named Elder Ferraz and he's really cool. He said the food was pretty close to brazilian style.

This week we've been working hard with a few families we're teaching and asking them to... get married! We want the people to enjoy eternal families and be baptized, but they can't get baptized if they're not married first! It's hard for a 21 year old unmarried guy to talk about marriage, but we are doing what we can to help our families progress towards God's blessings.

Even though my time is short, I'm still learning. I'm chugging along and doing my best to stay focused. It's hard because everybody treats me like I'm going home tomorrow. I don't need to be hearing that!!

Here's a scripture that I liked from my studies recently. You can find it in 3 Nephi 12:13... (and this is Jesus speaking).

Verily, verily, I say unto you, I give unto you to be the salt of the earth; but if the salt shall lose its savor wherewith shall the earth be salted? The salt shall be thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out and to be trodden under foot of men.  

We as members of the church are counted to be as the salt of the earth. Something... different! Something that's unique and hard to describe, but very savory and good tasting. If salt doesn't taste... salty... then what good is it? It's nothing more than a rock. We need to stick out and do our best to shine our light before all people. Show them the flavor and blessing of living the Gospel.

I love you all! I miss you. We'll be seeing each other soon.

-Elder Bowlby

Mom of a Missionary...The Final Count Downs. The last " Fast Sunday" before our son comes home.

The final count downs are starting with my sons mission.  Yesterday was the last "Fast Sunday" before my son comes home.  If you are not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints you may not know what a fast Sunday is so let me explain.  Usually the first Sunday of every month the members of the church will fast for twenty four hours.   While fasting you focus on a prayer for yourself or other individual and the money that you would have spent on the meals you fast through you donate as a fast offering to help the needy members of the church.  During the first hour of church members share their testimonies of the Savior.    When a missionary goes out on a mission some people count down the number of fast Sundays until they return.  I think number wise it makes it feel like they are not going to be gone that long because you are only counting 24 Sundays.

I am working hard to have a lot of  fun surpises for my son when he comes home.  This is the nest that is now in his room to welcome him back to the nest.

I am slowly filling it with items for him.  Some new towels.  He will be able to take these to college if he decides to live up on campus.  This was a favorite basket that our little cat liked to sleep in from time to time, so even though she has crossed the rainbow bridge she has still left her hair behind everywhere.  Which is impossible to totally cleanse the house of so while she may not be here to greet him, I'm sure there are a few kitty hairs around to remind him that she is around in spirit.

All new bath supplies.

I also got some purple peeps, as his favorite color is purple and we are welcoming our chick back to the nest.  As the next few weeks go by more things will be added to this nest and I will share with you as they are added.  Can you tell I'm just getting so excited to have this boy home!

I'm up to December 2018 in putting his memory book together.  What a project I have created for myself.  I still have to go back and stick the photos in place.  I also want to print out maps of the different areas that he served in, and print out larger photos of each of his companions.  The project becomes larger by day and each day I have less time to get it finished.
Well until next Monday.
G.G.

Mom of a Missionary. Perparing for my Missionary to come home.

There are 31 days left until my son comes home from his mission in Tampico Mexico.  I am now in the process of getting things ready for his return.  While I do this I try hard not to email him about all the things we want to do with him when he comes home.  He is trying hard to stay focused on working hard in the mission field still and I don't want to be the one to get his mind turned towards home.  It is hard though.

My first job was to clean his room up and make it ready for him.  I have used his room for the last two years as extra storage space.  I've had the vacuum cleaner in there, the extra towels and blankets.  Whenever someone is looking for something my reply has been check Jacobs room.

 His bed is all made up with a special quilt that my mom made for him.  I love that it has a Mexican feel to it.

 I have to still clean his desk up a bit, but we got some Lego character boxes and have gone
and put a bunch of his Lego figures in it.  This was a Christmas/ Birthday gift.

There are Christmas and Birthday gifts waiting for him to open when he returns.

Shipping things to Mexico can be a bit hard so we decided to just save everything up for his return.

We have his Mission letter and photo framed.  I also framed some photos he 

has emailed from his mission and put them around his room.

The very big project I have been working on is putting together a 

memory journal for him with all his weekly emails and photos.

He had some incedent happen and had to throw all his journals away. 

I wanted him to come back and have some memories available with space to 

add his reflections.

 I can't tell you how many photos there are that I have printed out over the last few days.
But I can tell you there are a lot of them.  My husband was pretty amazed.  There were points during this project when I was very happy for an email with no photos.

The Memory Journal starts with his farewell speech.  Which 

I found sitting next to my couch the other day.  I was glad it was 

so easily found because I think searching for it would have been frustrating as

who remembers exactly where they put something two years ago.

So far the book has 228 pages.  We have a few more weeks of emails left.

 Through out his mission in his emails my son has used different names in the beginning of his emails.  As I have been putting together his journal I have written all the names down and I'm going to put them on his bedroom door with a big welcome home sign.  These are just the beginning photos of that project.

This cat photo is something that he sends in his emails when he has reached certain

milestones in his mission.  So now it is his welcome home sign on his bedroom door.

There are many websites that tell you things to do to prepare for your missionary to return home.

In the next few weeks I'll be reading them and I will be more prepared to have my son come home than I was to have him leave.  Some of our next projects are getting the airport welcome home signs made.  I'm thankful I do have a friend who will be meeting us at the airport to be our photographer.

I can't believe we are down to the last month!!

G.G.

What did you do to welcome your missionary home??

Or if you are a returned missionary what was the thing that your parents did for you that you liked the best?  

Please help me figure this out.

My Cat and Cancer. Mourning the Loss of My Cat.

Don't be afraid to cry.  It will free your mind of sorrowful thoughts.  - Hopi.
This is our little cat memorial.  Her favorite chair (which I call "The Spirit Chair") is covered with her favorite blanket and sitting on the blanket is her box with her ashes in it. I haven't found the favorite photo for her memorial plaque yet.   There is a little feather by the box, I found it by my car a few days after she passed.  Perhaps a sign that she is still there just on the other side now.

They are not dead who live in the hearts they leave behind.  -Tuscarora

I think someday I may get another cat, until that point all my daughters stuffed cats now sit on her cat tree.  We always called it "Cat Command".  I have moved it down to my office.  My daughters stuffed cat colletion is pretty big, when I'm feeling a bit sad I have many different cat choices to choose from to hug.

There is no death, only a change of worlds.  - Duwamish
I'm having a hard time with this change of world things.  Desprerately wanting to have my cat back here and not there.  Greif is one of those things where one day you feel I'm doing ok and the next you are crying and aching.  It can at some moments be all consuming. 

I bought this little black pin with paw prints on it and I wear it.  It is just a way to show that I am mourning the loss of my pet.  I don't think our society allows us the time to be sad and to work through loss like people did in ages past.  As I have talked with friends many have expressed their own sorrows and loss and how they haven't felt they had been given the time to really heal from it.
So as the months progress I have given myself permission to cry, and to feel and work through the loss of my sweet friend.  She was my constant companion at home and I think of her often.  I still talk to her despite the fact I can not see her.  Her cat hair is still everywhere, and no matter how much I clean I am still finding little cat hairs everywhere and when I do I think of her.  I try to stay with happy thoughts, more than I really miss you thoughts.

Here are three books that I have read to help me cope with the loss of my pet.  I think they have each helped give me hope that my cat will be waiting for me on the other side.  They have helped me understand the grieving process and helped me deal with the hard choices we had to make at the end of my cats life.  The last few months have been hard.  The words in these books have brought comfort.  There have been moments when I have felt wrapped in a comfort that I know can only come from my Loving Heavenly Father.

I will love my sweet little fur baby forever.
Thanks for all the love and support you have all given me these past few months.
G.G.

Empty Nesters. February 26 2019, The Very Empty Nest.

When we took our daughter to college this fall and both our children were now moved out of the house I remember talking on the phone with my mom saying that I would be OK because I had my fur baby still with me.  My mother then replied  "your cat is very old, do you think she will be around much longer?"   I just wanted to say Shhhh... Don't say that.   Those words they haunt me a little now.  My sweet little cat passed away and now my nest truly feels very empty.   It was like her little spirit was what made the house so very special and now I find myself constantly looking for her and thinking about her.  My husband and I have had a few nice winter day dates.  We have gone to the Great Salt Lake and wandered about.  We have also gone on a few walks at the Lindon Marina at Utah Lake.

I really like this photo of Canadian Geese flying at the great salt lake.  I have enjoyed finding new things to photograph other than flowers.

This winter I went with a friend to one of the free concerts at the  South Town Mall.  I got

to see my favorite Utah vocal group for free.  The Gentri.  They have

some very beautiful music.

We went to The Luminaria at Thanksgiving Point this past Christmas. 

 It was beautiful.

We also checked out the Museum of Natural History. 

We enjoyed seeing all the dinosaur exhibits, it made me think of my son and his love

of dinosaurs.

The Butterfly biosphere opened in January 

and I have been having fun going and photographing butterflies. 

Our daughter is back at school she is enjoying her second semester and working hard.

I think she is taking a lot of math classes.  She likes math, midterms are happening right now and she is very busy studying and working on projects.

Our son has 5 weeks left to his mission.  He is doing well and we are all getting excited for his return.

I hope you are all enjoying winter and have a healthy and happy new year.

G.G.