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Betsy's Journal
January 23, 2012 - Time
Keeps FLYING!!!! I don't know what happened to 2011 - it seemed to just disappear. And 2012 is off
to a quick start too! We welcomed in the new year at Smith Lake. We rented a nice house with plenty of room so all of us could
be togther for a few days. The grandchildren loved playing with each other. Banx was hugging Harrison and his mother told
him to let go. He said, "But I LOVE him!" Harrison was running around the island in the kitchen and his mother told
him to stop. He said, "But I'm really SUPER fast!" Andie brought her tricycle and was very nice to share it with
her cousins. As she would take off down the driveway with either Banx or Harrison riding on the back she'd say, "I'm
going to college like Emily!" I told Abbie that I was so happy to have everyone together but hated that we weren't in
Nauvoo (where we've gathered for the past two years). She said, "Let's pretend like we're there!" Atticus and Scarlett
and Thad don't say much but they give lots of sweet kisses. I enjoyed every minute of their company.     My children and their spouses had a good time together too. They flew
kites and watched ballgames and played charades and set off fireworks and made gingerbread houses and ATE. My father came
and visited with us for awhile on Sunday and brought lots of University of Alabama memorobila. It was wonderful - but like
Harrison - it went by SUPER fast. Laura and Harrison and Emily and I went down to see my grandmother at Extendicare one day
while they were here. Then they went home and Tommy went back to BYU and school started here. I'm sorry it's over but so thankful
we had the chance to be together for a little while. I am related to some really great folks!!!
December 19, 2011 - Miracle!!! Last week Jamie and Paris took the boys and went out to
eat. Banx is doing great with potty-training so while they were there Jamie had to take him to the bathroom. On the way back
to their table from the bathroom Banx fell, hit a corner of the wall, and split his forehead open. They picked him up and
ran out intending to go to the hospital. But then Jamie saw what we call a Doc-in-the-Box facility right across the street
from the restaurant. He'd been there years before when he cut his hand working construction - so he knew they did stitches.
And he knew that the co-pay for a visit there would be $40 instead of the $300 they were going to have to pay at the emergency
room. And it would probably take much less time. So they decided to try it. They were afraid it might be closed, but were
thrilled to see a lot of cars parked around it. Jamie dropped Paris and Banx off at the front door and went to park. The front
door was locked - but Paris could see people in the far back. She knocked and got no response. So she rattled the door until
someone came. They were closed and having their Christmas party (hence all the cars). But instead of sending them down to
the hospital (which no one could have blamed them if they had) they let them in. Then some of the nurses played with Thad
while Jamie and Paris supported Banx through the process of having 3 staples put in his forhead. Everyone was so nice to them
and after the cut was treated - offered them cake and ice cream from their party! Now that's what I call Christmas spirit!!! December 10, 2011 - Human Nature versus Miracles
I like to get a good deal as well as the next person.Coupons and discounts and bargains are
fun. But I think we have to be careful because sometimes a 'deal' for us comes at a price for someone else. I'll use two
personal experiences as examples.
A couple of years ago - right
at Christmas time - Grace and Aaron were living in an apartment and they had to pay their rent with a money order. Aaron
went to Walmart and paid cash for a money order. He was in a hurry to get to the rent office before they closed so he didn't
take the time to write the name of the apartment complex on the money order while still in Walmart. And he put the receipt
in the envelope with the money order. It was cold and raining, so he rushed out to his car and drove home. He stopped at
the office to pay the rent and when he got out of the car he had the envelope in his pants pocket. But somewhere between
his car and the office, it fell out. By the time he got into the office - realized he didn't have the envelope and went back
out to look for it - the envelope and the money order were gone. He said another guy was getting out of his car at the same
time and he figures the guy saw him drop the envelope and picked it up. Then instead of giving it to Aaron - he kept it.
And since the receipt was in the envelope - there was no way to cancel it. Of course we were all sick about it. They had
to pay a late fee since they didn't get the rent there on time. Aaron's mother loaned him the money to pay the rent and
then they paid her back with Grace's Christmas bonus. Grace said for weeks after that when driving through the apartment
complex she would look at each door and wonder if the person who stole the money lived there. Even though it was a bad experience,
it's in the past. It was just money and we have all moved on. But I wonder sometimes what the guy who took their money did
with it. And I wonder how different things would have been if he would have given the money order back to Aaron. If he could
have been a part of a Christmas miracle instead of a little Christmas tragedy.
Another story. Emily is leaving Rexburg after the Fall term and she won't be going back until the Spring term. Almost two
years ago she bought a 1988 Honda Accord with a lot of miles on it. The car is nothing to look at and it's a stick shift
- but overall it has been a good dependable car for her. Since Andy has a newer, somewhat nicer car that she will inherit
while he's on his mission, she decided to sell her car. She's been living on about $50 a week since September so the prospect
of having a lot of money all at once was wonderful. She has been dreaming of all the things she would do with the money
- rent a storage room to store her stuff until Spring, buy a few new clothes including a heavy coat, and buy lots of Christmas
presents. She was asking $650 - which was below the blue book value - and hoping for a quick sale. Yesterday a man came
to see it. He test drove it and then proceeded to tell her what an awful car it was. Finally he said he would not pay one
penny more than $500 for it. She needed the money and so she took the $500. Maybe the car wasn't worth any more than that
or maybe the man couldn't afford more than that. If he couldn't afford more, I wish he had said that so she could have gone
away from the experience feeling like she helped someone. If the car wasn't worth more, I wish he had just said that - in
a nice way. But I'm afraid that he saw an opportunity to take advantage and probably drove away proud of himself for getting
such a good deal. Emily still has enough money to accomplish most of the things on her dream list, but it could have been
such a different experience for her if the 'buyer' had used a different approach. Emily could have concentrated on the miracle
of having $500 instead of feeling like she'd been cheated. Praying that
miracles will overcome human nature in your life this Christmas season!!!! November 24, 2011 - No promises!!! My new goal is to post
every week. But I know myself (and my life) well enough not to promise! The year is almost
gone and I have no idea where it went! Since it's been a year since I posted - I'm going to run through the highlights. In
February we were able to have the whole family together for a few days in Nauvoo, Illinois.  We were able to participate in the commemorative walk to the River representing our pioneer ancestors
and it was fun to be together - although it almost got cancelled before it even started because of weather. Most people would
be nervous about trying gather 20 people from Idaho, Utah, Alabama and Mississippi in Nauvoo in February because of possible
weather problems. But I am an optimist (and we had done it for the past 2 years without any problems). So we invested a small
fortune in plane tickets and rented the Hyrum Smith Farmhouse and rented vans and bought groceries and then - the worst blizzard
in a long time (maybe FOREVER) hit. It was predicted to really hit the St. Louis area - which was where we were flying our
college kids in, thinking we could save them a lot of travel time by picking them up on our way through. So we changed their
plane tickets to Birmingham which meant they missed an extra day of school, had to fly all the way here from Salt Lake, and
then drive all the way to Nauvoo. Laura and Josh were leaving from Idaho and they were behind the storm. Our hope was that
they could stay that way and follow it into Nauvoo. So after some soul searching and discussion and tears and praying - we
decided to delay one day (not really a choice since the interstates were closed) and then head out and hope we made it. My
prayer was that the St. Louis area might be spared so that we could travel through. I knew that 20 people and their vacation
plans were not the most important consideration for the Lord. People died in the blizzard. But it was very important to us
and for our family. Vacation days had been taken, school excuses given, money spent - if we didn't go now, we couldn't go.
As we were packing to leave we saw a weather report from St. Louis. The reporter was standing in about a foot of snow, the
night was clear and calm behind her. And she said that while St. Louis had been predicted to bear the major brunt of the storm,
it had been amazingly spared and most major roads were open. I'm sure many people prayed during that storm, but when she said
those words I knew the Lord had heard and answered my prayer. My husband looked at me and said, "You got your miracle."
So we all headed out and all had our share of scares and adventures - but finally we all made it to Nauvoo. Because of the
snow we had to make some alterations to our schedule. The kids got to walk out on the frozen river and they got to go sledding
(Alabama-style with tubes). The snow and the cold and even the adversity we faced just getting there made the walk to the
river, thinking of our ancestors and all the other pioneers who made the original trip, extra special. In March we were able to rent a house on Smith Lake during spring break and all our 'local' children and grandchildren
were able to spend at least part of the week with us there. With every spare minute I had to be working on the re-write of
Proceed with Caution - a semi-sequel to the Duty Series. I should have enjoyed the vacation more and written the book less
because when I submitted it - the readers weren't thrilled with it (for the second time) and I was told they were going to
shelve it and for me to start working on something else. I had an idea for the 3rd Kennedy Murder book - but it is very hard
for me to shift gears like that. And my confidence was shaken - I'll admit. I wondered if I had finally reached the end of
what had been a wonderful and wild book-writing ride. In May Andy
graduated from McAdory High School and had been accepted to BYU-Idaho, so he was working 2 jobs and preparing for that. As soon as school ended for the summer Cathy and her family moved
to Mississippi. I had been promising my grandmother for weeks that I would come to Headland and bring Grace and Scarlett with
me. So in the middle of June we went down and visited for a few days. Then on June 28th Thad was born.  Two weeks later I was at Jamie and Paris's house babysitting when
I got the call from my father saying that my grandmother - who was 91 years old at the time - had been taken to the hospital
for emergency gall bladder surgery. She spent the next two months in either the hospital or an extended-care facility. There
were times when I thought she was not going to survive the ordeal and there were times when I thought she might never see
her home again. But she fought a difficult battle and is now home and doing almost everything she was able to do before the
surgery. She turned 92 in September and is unquestionably one of the greatest blessings in my life. The only good thing about
her ordeal is that it gave me a lot of opportunities to be in her company and I treasure every moment. I'm sure that I am forgetting some important things that
have happened. My job changed at school - I am now the Library Aide and loving that. In October Andy submitted his mission papers and got a call to the North Carolina Raleigh Mission. We are all
so excited for him and the people he will meet and serve! He reports to the MTC on February 15th.
And somewhere in the middle of my duties and opportunities as wife, mother, and granddaughter - I have been trying
to write a book. It seemed that the harder I worked the farther I got from being finished. I just couldn't settle on some
of the major aspects of the plot. But finally - at long last - I completed the manuscript I am calling Murder by Association.
I submitted it to my editor at Covenant this past Tuesday (and I will give more updates on how it is received by the 'test
readers' and whether or not it will be coming out in the spring/summer!) Then I had a root-canal on Weds...and I'm fixing
Thanksgiving dinner today (in between website posts...) Tomorrow I'll be babysitting for my children who plan to be out all
night tonight getting Black Friday deals... But on Sat I plan to start working on Proceed with Caution again and hopefully
can get it reworked so that it can come out next fall. We'll see. Thanks
to all of you who read my books and care about me and my life! Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!!!
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