Passports

Back in 1997, I had the feeling that I needed to go back to school.  I didn’t know why, but I just knew that I had to get my degree.  I did, and I was blessed because of it.  Not right away, but I was blessed.

Well, for the last 1 1/2 years, I have had a feeling that I needed to get passports for my family.  I don’t know why, but I have had an intense feeling that I needed to get them. 

So when our trip to California came up, I used that as an excuse to get them.  I could roll it into the cost of the vacation, so I bit the bullet and got them.  I cannot believe how much money it cost, and the paperwork and time.  And the pictures.  Seriously! 

If we don’t use them, I’m okay with that.  But now, if something were to happen, we have them.  They are paid for and we wouldn’t have to wait.  And it’s much easier to renew them.  Plus, The Teenager’s passport is good for 10 years, so if he goes foreign on his mission, that is one less thing we will have to worry about. 

Sometimes you don’t question why you are prompted to do things.  You just do them and wait to understand why.  So I wait.

Sunday Quote

Life is a journey, not a destination. Enjoy the trip!

The “After” Pictures

So, I had a request to show the after pictures of our first house.  First, I have to show you the in-between, after all the weeds were mowed down.  We were on 1/2 acre, so the back yard was enormous!

Yes, that’s a boat in the yard.  It came with the house.  We thought it would make a really cool sandbox.  Except when we tried to move it, it completely fell apart.  It was rotted all the way through.  So we had to just junk it.  Along the back there used to be a cinderblock fence.  It was crumbling and falling apart.  We stacked them up, and eventually gave them away.  All the neighbors had built privacy fences anyway!

We hired some men to scrape down the yard and level it.  Finally, it was time for the sod.

We laid sod twice…once in the spring and once in the fall.  We had to spread out the cost.  So these 3 pallets of sod only covered 1/2 of the backyard.  After it was delivered, I remember standing and looking at it and wondering what we had gotten ourselves into.  The Doctor and I laid it all by ourselves (with limited help from the kids). It was heavy and back-breaking work. 

 

But I loved having an instant backyard.  It looked so much better than the weeds and dirt! 

Here it is after the second round of sod.  I was so happy.  And I know the neighbors appreciated it too! 

However, the worst part of laying all that sod?  We didn’t have the money to do a sprinkler system, so we hand watered it the entire time we lived there.  If I could go back, I would just bit the bullet and put it in and charge it on the credit card.  It was so time consuming to water it all! 

Illegal Border Crossings

If you cross the North Korean border illegally you get 12 years hard labor.




If you cross the Iranian border illegally you are detained indefinitely.



If you cross the Afghan border illegally, you get shot.



If you cross the Saudi Arabian border illegally you will be jailed.



If you cross the Chinese border illegally you may never be heard from again.



If you cross the Venezuelan border illegally you will be branded a spy and your fate will be sealed.



If you cross the Cuban border illegally you will be thrown into political prison to rot.



If you cross the U.S. border illegally you get

1 - A job,

2 - A drivers license,

3 - Social security card,

4 - Welfare,

5 - Food stamps,

6 - Credit cards,

7 - Subsidized rent or a loan to buy a house,

8 - Free education,

9 - Free health care,

10 - A lobbyist in Washington

11 - Billions of dollars worth of public documents printed in your language

12 - And the right to carry your country's flag while you protest that you don't get enough respect!
 
 
I am not against people coming to our country.  I just think they should have to do it legally.  I would expect nothing less if I went to their country!

Where I fell in Love

Rexburg Idaho

Princeton Court.  This is the manager’s house, where I lived.  My best friend’s parents owned the apartments, so I got to live with them for cheap!  The top window on the left was my bedroom window.

 

Princeton Court.  This was The Doctor’s apartment, way back before he even dreamed of getting his Ph.D.  The window on the top left was his apartment.  The balcony in the middle is where we spent many an evening kissing!  See the building on the far right that is mostly cut off?  That is where I lived! 

See the mailboxes?  That is where it all began.  We would “meet” here when we got our mail and talk for hours.  I thought I was being crafty by watching for him to go get his mail, and he thought the same.  That is where our friendship grew. 

I have such fond memories of these 3 places, and I hadn’t realized that I didn’t have any pictures until The Doctor sent me these on a recent trip to Rexburg.  I totally cried when I opened my email and saw them!