Comings and Goings

Well, another long period of time has passed and many things have happened. Let's see, since Christmas I have had elbow surgery to correct tennis elbow, helped with yet again another funeral, moved Thomas to another placement, started HCG diet again, listened to an Apostle of the Lord at Stake Conference, and made it another month. Now I know these don't seem like much, but when you don't have much use of an arm you would be amazed at how hard some of these things can be.
I am finally doing well after my surgery. The doctors were able to get the tendon attached to a spot that is making it less painful to move my arm or pick up anything. They cleaned out a bunch of chronically inflamed tissue, which I think made the biggest difference. The biggest hurdle right now is just getting my strength back. It is amazing how little you can pick up when you have weight restriction of under 5 pounds! But, each day brings a little bit more that I can do.
We have had 8 funerals in our ward during the last year. CRAZY!! This last one I was told that I didn't need to come help, which I just laughed at inside. Right before the funeral was supposed to start I got a phone call. The helper, just one mind you, couldn't find the things they needed to get the food ready. So, I went over to the church and the closet we needed to get into was locked. It just went on from there. None of the other Presidency had helped with a funeral yet and they just didn't know what we needed. It all worked out in the end, but it was CRAZY. It is sometimes just easier to do things yourself.
The group home that Thomas was in closed down because they didn't have enough boys to keep it open. This made a really bad situation for us. There wasn't another group home close enough to move Thomas to. So, the decision was made to move Thomas to a foster home. We went and met the foster family and then prayed about the decision. We felt that it wouldn't be too bad and agreed to move him there. He has been there for about 3 weeks now and the honeymoon is over. He is doing ok, but still needs lots of improvement before he can come home.
Nicole, Brian, and I have started the HCG diet this last month. So far it hasn't been as hard as last time. Today is day 7 and I am doing ok. I am down 7 pounds already. We only have two weeks left so I know I can do it. The hardest part for me is the maintenance part at the end. I am truely a carboholic in the worst sense of the word. I will do my very best and leave it at that.
This last weekend Elder Neil Anderson came to our Stake Conference. The theme of the conference was becoming a desciple of Christ. The messages were beautiful and the Spirit was strong. The Sunday session was in the Tabernacle and it was packed. We sat up in the balcony. There were so many people that it got way hot up there. It was definately a once in a lifetime experience to have an Apostle at our Stake Conference.
It seems like January just flew by, for the most part. I really missed having Nicole here for most of the month. She is becoming my best friend in the world. I sure love her. I love that we are so close. I think it is important for sisters and sister-in-laws get along well. I just love having her here. She is such a great person. Love you sis!
Well, this is my next novel of the last little bit of life. I have enjoyed getting it down on "paper". It makes you think about what you have been through and where you are going. Can't wait for the next step in my journey.