Apologies for not blogging last week...Steve and I were visiting my sister in Payson all weekend. We went up on Saturday morning and I got it into my head to try a radically different route - one that would take us due east and then south on Ft. McDowell road to meet up with the beeline highway right at the casino. It started out fine. We drove through beautiful north Scottsdale "boondocks" consisting mostly of high-end homes in gated communities or high-end homes on acres of desert - winding around low desert mountains with high mountains in the distance. It was a lovely route. Towards the end, we came to a fork in the road - the left one road dirt and the right one blacktop so we figured to go right. Wrong. It did ultimately get us to Fountain Hills and Shay boulevard and the beeline - the usual route we take - but it was a bit longer. Evidently, Ft. McDowell road is dirt for part of the way through the reservation. So, now we know. The rest of the drive continued to be lovely. There has been enough monsoon rain that the roadside was decorated with blooming poppies at the lower elevations and lots of green grass growing on the hills at higher elevations.
In the afternoon, I had hoped to go wade in the Verde River near Payson but big rain clouds and cracks of thunder changed our minds. (recently, a family died while playing in a Verde River tributary due to a flash flood from a monsoon thunderstorm) So, we just relaxed and visited at Juli's house. Jesse came over for dinner that night. Kat was not feeling well so she didn't come. On Sunday, I played my cello with the Carlysle family singing just like we did back in June down here in Anthem. The Carlysle's grandparents live in Juli's ward which is how we got this "gig". Grandma Darla Carlysle also owns a little shave ice stand that she takes to the Saturday farmer's market so we were sure to make a visit as soon as we arrived.
The week leading up to Payson was a zone conference week with vehicle inspections. For the first time since being here on our mission, I helped Steve with these inspections and I can't believe he endured them for a full year without me. They are quite physically demanding - particularly the summer ones with the heat. I am so glad I could help him and I will from now on, for sure. Tuesday was up in Flagstaff with delightful temperatures which made it a good place to start and for me to learn the routine. I inspected the interiors while Steve checked the exteriors. All week we arrived at 8:00, usually with missionaries already there and waiting for us to unload the bins of rags and shop towels, cleaning solutions, and oil and other fluids. They work their magic on their vehicles and are finished by about 9:40 when they head in to the church for the 10:00 conference. That is when Steve and I start our inspecting. He begins on one end, I on the other and, once we are completely finished, we compare notes and make the awards. First place gets to have a license cover that says "Golden Plates - cleanest car in the zone". And, because Steve, the cookie king, is in charge, first place also receives a golden paper plate of cookies (cookies of their choice).
So, we did this Tuesday through Friday. We enjoyed another beautiful drive to Flagstaff through the green mountain landscapes. What a contrast to Memorial Day weekend when we went to Petrified Forest and ALL the forest land was closed due to extreme fire danger. This monsoon season has been particularly wet, thanks to many prayers all over the state. Wednesday through Friday were down in the Phoenix valley and it was HOT. AND, humid due to the monsoons. By the end of the week, we were just completely worn out.
The first photo is us up in Flagstaff - the second one in Phoenix. We used a mission truck all week as we had a bunch of stuff to haul. It was a Nissan Frontier and it made me miss our truck, Davy.
After an intense week of zone conferences, last week was quite a bit calmer from a mission office standpoint. We even enjoyed a birthday carry-in on Friday for Jenene Poulson. And, on Saturday, we stayed home and entertained guests for both lunch and dinner. Stephen Hogenson was a missionary who finished his mission July 31st and we agreed to store his bike and his two violins and a bunch of books at our place in Anthem because he and his parents were coming right back to Arizona for a tour before fall classes started. So, they came for lunch and left with all his belongings. And, we had Jenene and Gerald Poulson over for pizza dinner.
Steve and I did baptisms at the temple Friday night and I got to dabble in water coloring Saturday afternoon. I painted a desert quail. I am enjoying learning the medium of water color because it goes so quickly. I can start and finish a painting in one sitting, unlike oils that take weeks to do.
The BIG news happened last Thursday morning. After a visit to our primary care provider up here in Anthem a few weeks ago where Steve mentioned his back and hip pain and how it keeps him up at night, an x-ray and an MRI were ordered. The MRI showed enough anomalies in his back that Steve was referred to an orthopedic neurologist which is where we found ourselves Thursday morning. And, the diagnosis is a narrowing of the spinal cavity in a particular spot so Steve is scheduled for surgery on September 11th. We are to plan on at least two days in the hospital and two weeks of recovery. He will work from home as much as possible. Oh, and the week before, he is scheduled for a colonoscopy. Another day out of the office. Wow.
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