September 12th - 14th

Monday, September 12th:  We had the Elders, Hanson & Brannon, and Tristen and his Aunt Debbie over for breakfast. We all enjoyed the food and fellowship. Afterward we gave Tristen and Debbie some towels and things, including some extra food that we won't have room for in the car. We went to the bank to close our account, and took the AT&T equipment (for internet) to the UPS store in McDonough. We packed and went over to have supper with the Knight's and it was a surprise party for us. Most of the ward was there. It was so sweet of the Knight's to do that for us.

Tuesday, September 13th: We packed and the missionaries helped Elder Sadler take some extra food we had over to the Watkins. Elder Sadler said that Sister Watkins really appreciated it. We packed and cleaned.  We went over and visited with Kim and the Wicklund's. I am really going to miss them and their sweet pets. Their pets have been my "pet therapy" especially Virtue & Maggie, the little chihuahuas.

Wednesday, September 14th: We loaded both cars, packed to the gills and headed to Conyers for our last zone meeting. President Foote had already asked us in advance to bear our testimonies and we did. I talked about how wonderful it was to work with the young missionaries, how much we loved them, and what a great experience it was to work with Ann, Brother Knight, and Tristen and see the progress that they have made. Elder Sadler talked about how powerful the young missionaries are and how great it was to work with them, how President Foote is inspired in his calling and how wonderful Sister Foote is. He also bore his testimony of the church and the Book of Mormon being true, of President Monson being a prophet, and the love the Father and Son have for us. The Foote's gave us an illustrated copy of the book by Tad R. Callister entitled The Infinite Atonement. After leaving Conyers we drove to Nathan's school and had lunch with him on Grandparent's Day, which was a lot of fun and we got pictures made. Then we drove to Melissa's and visited with her, Kaitlyn, and Hailey. We left there and drove home. Shirley was at the house waiting for us and we had a good visit. She helped us get some things out of the car but we had to leave to go to Troy to meet President Salmon to be released. After releasing us he told us we could take off our badges and I got emotional. It was an honor to wear them for a year. On the way home the GPS had us going a way we were not familiar with and the bridge was out.  So we went way, way out of our way and finally got back home. It was good to be home.

"The Savior empowers us with His grace, not because we've earned it, but because He loves us perfectly." Sheri Dew

September 5th - 11th

Monday, September 5th:  Since it is Labor Day we didn't have p-day today, but we did feed Elders Hanson & Brannon and Tristen breakfast, and we enjoyed being together. We are going to miss these guys! We had our last district meeting in Stockbridge. Afterward we took all the Elders to the Hibachi Grill. We found out that we can't invite the sisters with the Elders, so we have made a special effort to take them out at a different time. We had supper with the Knight's and the missionaries.

Tuesday, September 6th: So today is our p-day and Elder Sadler took Tristen & the Elders bowling. I took the blue honda in for service. Elder Sadler worked with Tristen more on family history and stayed up again past 1:00 a.m. getting names ready to take to the Temple tomorrow. Sister Foote called about getting us a book and again thanked us for our service.

Wednesday, September 7th:  We took Tristen to the Temple and had another wonderful day. I bought Tristen a cover for his quad. After leaving the Temple, Tristen's dad met us on the grounds. He seems very nice. On the way home we visited with Steve Dotson in the hospital in Covington and Elder Sadler gave him a blessing. Later he assisted Elder Brannon in giving Tristen's Aunt Debbie a blessing. I went the grocery store and got some boxes so I could start packing.

Thursday, September 8th: We got special permission to go to Barry & Toni's so we could go to Dylan's reception, which was well attended. We were so grateful to be able to go.

Friday, September 9th: We had some free time so we decided to go house hunting! We had fun looking at houses in McCalla and Million Dollar Lakes areas. We ate supper with the family, then went the football game and saw Danielle & Dallas in the band.

Saturday, September 10th: We drove to the chapel for Dylan to be set apart by President Johnson.  President Johnson gave Dylan a very spiritual blessing. Danielle, Dallas, and Bobby were very emotional. Elder Sadler drove Barry, Toni, and Dylan to the airport and later drove back to Jackson. There was a traffic jam in Atlanta.

Sunday, September 11th: We took Tristen to Stake Conference at the building on Lake Jodeco Road. It was a great meeting. Sister Tamara Jones was called to be the new stake Relief Society President! We came home, ate, rested, and planned the next few days.

"Though you may feel that no one can understand the depth of your despair, our Savior Jesus Christ, understands." Dieter F. Uchtdorf

August 29th - September 4th

Monday, August 29th:  We cleaned the apartment and took the Honda (2006) to get new tires and a front end alignment. Later Elder Sadler helped Tristen with his family history. We took him home and went to the Knight's to feed CatCat. I visited with our neighbor, Sarah, and gave her a pass along card.

Tuesday, August 30th: We had our District meeting in Jackson. Later Elder Sadler helped Tristen with his family history. Elder Sadler & the Elders help Brother Stansell move a dresser and they took it to Brother & Sister Jones. We fed CatCat. We got to talk to Griffin on his birthday! Elder Dickson took us out to eat at Denny's. We felt bad about him talking us out to eat but he insisted because he said we had done so much for him he wanted to do that for us. We enjoyed it and the food was really good. 

Wednesday, August 31st: Today is transfer day. We took Elder Dickson, as he is being transferred. On the way we took him by the Atlanta Motor Speedway and got some pictures.  We will really miss Elder Dickson.  We got to see Elder Preston Carroll! I got a picture of him & his new companion, Elder Eyre! I sent it to his Mom & she was so glad to see it & know that he is doing well. Our new missionary is Elder Brannon. Elder Brannon is the exact opposite of Elder Dickson! Elder Dickson is very shy and Elder Brannon talks a lot! When we got home Elder Sadler helped Tristen with family history. They have found several names that need their work done. When we took Tristen home we went by and fed CatCat. She is getting very weak. I am afraid that she might pass away before the Knight's get back.

Thursday, September 1st:  This morning we went walking with Tristen & the Elders. I went to check on CatCat three times today. She is really sick. The Knight's called and they are on their way home. Elder Sadler helped me water their plants while we were there. Elder Sadler did more family history with Tristen. Later we took Brian Huddleston a birthday candy bar. We gave them a certificate of appreciation for their contributions to our Book of Mormon class as they were not able to attend the class party where we gave them out. We also took Eddie Philips a birthday candy bar. His wife Amanda had just had surgery for a cyst on her back. She is doing ok. Elder Sadler stayed up until after 1:00 a.m. getting Tristen's cards ready to take to the Temple tomorrow.

Friday, September 2nd: We picked up Elders Hansen & Brannon, and Tristen and headed to the Temple. With three people in the back seat it was really crowded. It was Tristen's first time to go to the Temple. He did baptisms and confirmations for seven members of his family. I was baptized for five of his relatives. I think that was the first time I've done baptisms in the Temple because usually the kids would do them and then the grandkids would. It was a great experience. We had a few more that needed to be done but our computer didn't print them out correctly so we couldn't. Tristen wants to come back next week! He loved the Temple. I bought Tristen a quad and he was very proud of it. On the way home we ate at the Hibachi Grill in McDonough. We really like that place! We had a Book of Mormon class tonight. Ann Owens was having plumbing problems so she was not able to come. The Knights didn't get back from Kentucky until 5:00 this morning so they were too tired to come. CatCat is still alive but very sick. Thelma Kirkland came to the class and it went well. After class we took the Knights their mail and took Tristen home.

Saturday, September 3rd: We planned to walk with Tristen & the Elders this morning, but Tristen texted and said he couldn't come because his father was coming earlier than he had thought. After walking, we took Brian Carrin (the branch president) a birthday candy bar. They weren't home so we left it on his door and he later texted us to thank us. Took a birthday candy bar to Bev but they were getting ready for a wedding, so we didn't stay. Then we took Sammy Mulling a birthday candy bar. He wasn't home so we left it with his son. We went to the nursing home to visit with Dorothy Hosea, Geraldine Watson, and Mildred Cox. We always take each one a bag of Werther's candy. We enjoyed visiting with them, except Mildred was asleep and we didn't wake her up. She seems to keep getting weaker. I put her candy in her top drawer. We ate supper with the Wicklund's. They had a feast! The Elders came too but had to leave after supper. We stayed and played skipbo. Elder Sadler checked his phone a couple of times to keep up with the Bama SC game! Tonight we had our mission fast call. We love these calls! We start our fast as a mission by listening to Sister Foote read names of people that the missionaries text in to put on the roll for us to fast for. Then President Foote will pray on our behalf and those names. It is a wonderful way to start our fast.

Sunday, September 4th:  We had a small crowd at church again today. Elder Sadler & I both bore our testimonies. Elder Sadler asked for the members to do more to serve each other. Brother Knight & Tristen bore their testimonies too and both did a really good job. We had dinner with the Stansell's. We always enjoy visiting with them so much and she is a great cook! Later I called Rebecca and talked with her for a while. Then called Kay Middlebrows, but she was asleep. I asked her husband to tell her to call but she didn't. She told us later that she has trouble dialing now because of the MS. I always think of Becky on her birthday which is today and miss her so much.

"Amidst the confusion of the times, the conflicts of conscience and the turmoil of daily living, an abiding faith becomes an anchor to our lives." President Thomas S. Monson

August 22nd-28th

Monday, August 22nd:  We fed the missionaries this morning and then we took Sisters Larsen & Curtis to tour the Bishop's Storehouse. They wanted to do the tour too! They were impressed, especially Sister Larsen who had never visited a Bishop's Storehouse. After the tour we fed them at Applebee's. We all really enjoyed our meal. When we got  back to Jackson Elder Sadler & the Elders went bowling and then played one round of miniature golf. He bowled a high of 150 but he said that he really shined with golf as he shot a 4 over par for the round. They all had fun!

Tuesday, August 23rd: This morning we had our district meeting. Tristen was invited by our district leader, Elder Mende to bear his testimony and answer questions. He rode with us and the Elders. He did a great job and everyone was impressed. After the meeting we fed all the Elders and Tristen at the Hibachi Grill. When we got back to the apartment we gave Tristen the clothes that I had ordered for him. He was thrilled. Later we fed the Knight's cat, CatCat. After that we delivered co-op food from the Wicklund's to the missionaries and the Cockram's. Elder Sadler went to see Brother Stafford and gave him a blessing.  He has decided to quit smoking and wants the missionaries to help him. He wants to retake the 5 missionary lessons. I invited him to the Book Of Mormon class on Friday night and he said that he wants to come.

Wednesday, August 24th: Elder Sadler got Tristen so he could walk with us. He needs to lose weight to serve a mission. Elder Sadler sent Devin Erickson a copy of the pacing guide for our new Book of Mormon class so he could put it on the branch Facebook website. This afternoon we had Tristen over to be taught by the Elders. Then we went to see Ann Owens. It was 2 weeks ago that we challenged her to pray if she should quit smoking and join the church. She told us that she has prayed but has not gotten an answer. Tonight we had supper at the Sherwood's. The 10 year old girls cooked a meal for us under Sister Sherwood's direction and it was great.

Thursday, August 25th: this morning Elder Sadler got Tristen and we walked with him & the Elders. I had an appointment to get my hair cut and then we went to the Stansell's to check on and walk their pugs. We went by to visit the Harper's but she was taking a nap. We found John Watkins who is a new move in. They just arrived from Washington state and used up all their money in the move. I told them to get some resumes and we would try to help them finds jobs. He is a member, but she isn't. He told us that she had taken the discussions and was ready to be baptized. When we told Elder Hanson & Elder Dickson that she had taken the discussions and was ready to be baptized Elder Hanson asked if it was an April Fool's joke! We thought that was so funny! When they realized that we were serious they were excited! We took the Elders to Sister Guyton's for supper and afterward, while we were in Monticello the Elders visited a missionary referral who seemed to be interested in hearing more. She wanted a Bible but also accepted a Book of Mormon. We delivered a birthday candy bar to Letrel Farley. He said he would come to church Sunday if he had a ride. I told him that we would try to find him a ride. When we got back to Jackson Sister Wicklund called and wanted us to deliver food to the Cockram's and the Elders helped us with that.

Friday, August 26th:  Elder Sadler got Tristen and we walked with him & the Elders. After our walk Elder Sadler helped Tristen with some math problems to help him get ready for his GED test. Barry is sick and felt worse after taking Tristen home so he rested while I bought groceries and made some banana bread. We went to the Knight's and fed their cat. Then we went to the Book of Mormon class.

Saturday, August 27th: Elder Sadler felt a little better this morning. I made a casserole for Jim (Stansell) while Pam is out of town so we took it to him and some banana bread too. This afternoon Elder Sadler took the Elders to meet the Watkins. He gave them $20 for gas because they are having it so rough. They said they would be at church tomorrow. They also stopped by to see Fred Hardin but he was not at home. Later we went to the Knight's to feed the cat.  Elder Sadler worked on a list of member profiles to give to the Ralston's if they end up serving both Jackson & Stockbridge. Right now they are serving in Stockbridge.

Sunday, August 28th: We took Brother Price to church this morning. We had a small crowd--disappointing. The Watkin's came (minus the husband who felt bad). We fed the missionaries after church. Called and talked with Katie Hall for a while. The Elders taught Tristen the last new member lesson in our apartment. Later we fed CatCat at the Knight's.

"Acting on even a twig of faith allows God to grow it". President Henry B. Eyring

August 15th - 21st

Monday, August 15: We fed Elder Dickson & Elder Hansen breakfast and then took the Stockbridge Elders (Mende & Brede) to the Bishop's Storehouse because they wanted to see it too! We saw Elder Pope again and Elder Brede said that he knew him, that he was in his last area. He said that Elder Pope was a good teacher and would go with them on trade offs. They were glad to see each other. After the tour we took the Elders out to eat at Applebee's. After dropping them off Elder Sadler bought a book to help Tristen with his GED. Later we went by the Stansell's to check on their dogs. They had a young couple keeping them but they wanted us to go by and make sure that the dogs were ok, and they were fine. Later we were supposed to meet President Carrin at the Hawkin's home to give him a blessing, but he had to work late so the Elders came instead. They also gave his wife a blessing. We felt the Spirit and I think they did too. After that we picked up Tristen and went to our apartment so the Elders could teach him. It was a busy day!

Tuesday, August 16: This morning we read and studied. Tristen was supposed to come over for another lesson but was sick. Elder Sadler took the missionaries to visit an investigator and he said the lesson went really well. This evening we picked up Thelma and went to the Dotson's for supper. They had crab legs and it was delicious!

Wednesday, August 17: This morning we took Ann Knight a birthday candy bar and some other goodies for her birthday. Later we drove to the Lake Jodeco building for our district meeting. We met there because President Foote is interviewing the district (and others) today. In our interview President Foote said, "I hope that you can feel how pleased the Lord is with your service".  He thanked us for our service. It was a very spiritual interview. We took the Elders out to eat on the way home. Later we went to Ann Owens home to meet her friend, Nancy, who is a church member and has been teaching Ann about the church for a long time now.  Tonight we got a text that Larry Hall had passed away.

Thursday, August 18: this morning we picked up the Hawkins and took them to breakfast. Ann & Gary Knight met us there. We had invited others but they couldn't come. The Hawkins enjoyed visiting and getting to know the Knight's. It was a nice visit. This afternoon I made brownies while Elder Sadler took the missionaries to a couple of places. Tonight was our Book of Mormon party. Elder Sadler had made certificates for everyone that attended and he had a test for everyone to take. The class went around the room telling us what a difference we had made for them. It was touching.

Friday, August 19: Today is Dylan's birthday and we got to talk to him for a little while. He is excited about his mission! Brother Knight came over to talk about some concerns he had. Later Pam Stansell brought us and the missionaries supper from the Dairy Queen. It was really good! Then the Elders taught Tristen at our apartment.

Saturday, August 20: Today was a special day! We went to the Temple for Gary & Ann's sealing. We picked up Elder Waite and his companion, Elder Eyre. Melissa met us there. It was great to have her and many members from the branch came also. Afterward we took some pictures and took Melissa and the Elders out to eat at the Cheesecake Factory. The service was really slow, so we had to hurry back to the party Ann and Gary had. I made them a cookie cake. It was a wonderful day.

Sunday, August 21: Dylan is receiving the Melchizedek Priesthood today and I wish we could have been there. We had a pretty good crowd at church today. Ann Owens stayed for Sunday school, she is making progress! After church we fed the Elders.

August 8th - August 14th

Monday, August 8th: Pday! We had the Elders over for breakfast and then Elder Sadler took Tristen and the Elders to the Bishop's Storehouse. We wanted Tristen to see just how much the church does for our members and others.  He was definitely impressed! They saw Elder Curtis Pope there working hard and got a picture of him. Elder Sadler said he didn't think he remembered him, because he was very little when they moved from Piedmont. We had gotten a bunch of ricotta cheese from co-op so I made lasagna and we fed Tristen and the Elders when they got back. It was really good!

Tuesday, August 9th: Today we had our usual district meeting. The zone leaders came (Crane & Snedeker & trainee Lacy). Afterward we took Elder Dickson and Elder Hansen to the Hibachi Grill for lunch. When we got back Elder Sadler took the missionaries to give Brother Swafford a blessing. Then we went to pick up Kim Hard & give her a ride home from the hospital. She had fallen & hurt her back.

Wednesday, August 10th: we visited the sweet ladies in the nursing home. We visited Dorothy & Geraldene in the pavilion and visited Sister Cox in her room. We took them each a bag of Werthers.  Elder Sadler has had some bug bites that he seems to be allergic to so we went to the doctor today and she said it had turned into cellulitis.  She gave him some antibiotics to take and a prescription for some cream. We visited Ann Owens. She doesn't seem to have the motivation to quit smoking but she knows that she should. We asked her to pray and ask God if she should stop smoking and get baptized. She said she would. This evening Elder Sadler went with the missionaries to give Brother Swafford a blessing. On their way back they stopped to see Hal Weiner but he wasn't home.

Thursday, August 11th: We spent some time studying for the Book of Mormon class. We made some visits. We got the co-op food and delivered Angie's to her at the DG where she works and took the Cockrum's (Tristen's family) theirs. We had our last Book of Mormon class tonight. The missionaries, Ann Owens, Thelma Kirkland and Tristen were there. One cool thing that happened--Tristen was teaching Ann about baptism!

Friday, August 12th: We made several visits today. We visited Holly Elmer but she wasn't home so we left a note. We had a nice visit with Judy Deeter and the missionaries who were there when we got there. Visited with Richard Blair. We went to visit Bev but she didn't come to the door (she has been really sick). Visited Luke Rockers to wish him a happy birthday and give him a candy bar. I called Katie and called Kay but she was asleep.
Tonight Jennifer and family came to visit and bring the silver Honda back. We played games and had a lot of fun! The Elders stopped by to meet them. Elder Dickson's Dad served in the same mission in Canada that Chris served in.

Saturday, August 13th: Cooked breakfast and then Jenn & family had to leave. They are going to the Temple in Birmingham. Was so good to visit with them. Later we visited the ladies in the nursing home. Mildred asked for a blessing. Elder Sadler thinks her time is short here. Elder Sadler called Auther Price to see if he needed a ride to church.

Sunday, August 14th: we gave Brother Price a ride to church. After church we fed the missionaries. Later we visited Adam Baswell--1st time we've caught him home. He seemed to appreciate our visit. We visited Joyce and Levi but they are still not back. We visited Sister Knoll (Bro. Knoll is in summer training for the National Guard) and then visited Bro. Hawkins. He seemed very depressed. I asked him if he wanted a blessing and he said he did. Pres. Carrin couldn't come so they are going to give him one tomorrow at 6:00 pm.

August 1st-August 7th

Monday, August 1st: Today is pday. We had the Elder Dickson and Hanson over for breakfast. We went walking in the cemetery afterward. We cleaned the apartment (Elder Sadler vaccums) and later he took the missionaries bowling. They met the Stockbridge missionaries there and he said the sisters also came. They aren't supposed to have activities together but this was unplanned. Our missionaries are so good about following the rules. Then they played putt putt golf. They went by the shop to get the car but it wasn't ready yet. We had planned to go see Tristen but his Aunt Debbie didn't want us to come over, since she needed to rest, so we didn't go.

Tuesday, August 2nd: The Elders were supposed to go out with Brother Knight but he wasn't feeling well so they asked Elder Sadler if he could take them to make some visits. They first went to teach Tristen. He is doing so well. Then they visited Brother Saylors who always has interesting war stories! Visited Richard Blair and they tried to find new move ins. I studied the scriptures and some conference talks. After supper we took the missionaries back out again. We went by to visit Joyce and Levi but they weren't back from Louisiana. We visited with Hal Winer and had a good visit with him. The Elders had two investigators to visit. One told them to come back tomorrow and the other one didn't answer the door. We went to see Lisa Stage but we're told that she had gone to Ohio.

Wednesday, August 3rd: Elder Dickson made us some German pancakes. They were really good! I cooked sausage and bacon and we had some fruit.  Went to get peaches but they didn't have any. Elder Sadler worked on handouts for the Book of Mormon class and I studied. Elder Sadler took the Elders to make some visits. That evening he took them to church to meet with Tristen. He had an interview with Pres. Carrin about receiving the Aaronic Priesthood. Elder Sadler said he came out beaming and told them it was approved.

Thursday, August 4th: we got up really early, picked up the Elders and headed for the Temple. We arrived early for the 8:00 am session.  Then we had zone training until 3:45.  We ran into a lot of traffic on the way home. We took the Elders by the shop and they got the car back. We got home at 6--made sandwiches and ate on the way there. After the class we took Tristen to help us get the co-op food. We were very tired!

Friday, August 5th: Today is Jason's birthday and we got to talk to him for a little while. This afternoon we helped Katie Hall pack. On the way we stopped and got some peaches. They were delicious. Later we went to Lee Grayson's wedding.  They were married by President Brian Carrin. His bride is pretty and seemed very nice. After the wedding we went to a Mexican restaurant and Lee paid for everyone's meal. There was an extremely loud group there that I thought the managemeknt would say something to them but they didn't. It put a damper on our meal. It's really bad when people are so rude.

D

Saturday, August 6th: We fed Elders Dickson and Hansen lunch. Afterward they and Tristen helped Lee pack up his stuff. She is from Arizona so Lee is moving there. The big thing was a 1200 pound safe! It took all 5 of them to load it. I had planned on us making a couple of visits but Elder Sadler was exhausted so we made some calls to Sis. Menard, Bro. Price, Bro. Numa, Kay Middlebrooks, and Katie Hall.

Sunday, August 7th: we called Katie, Kay and Bro. Price but none of them could come to church. We had a small crowd at church--disappointing. Tristen got sustained in sacrament meeting and ordained in Priesthood meeting. After church we waited for him while he had his Temple recommend interview and for him to get his baptismal and ordination certificates. We went to the Wicklunds for supper and got to see Elder Compton, who Completed his mission in July, and met his two brothers and parents. They were very nice.

Elder Compton, Elder Hanson, and Elder Wicklund

Ann Wicklund, Elder Compton, and Bill Wicklund

 Kim Hard