030 Tuesday to Tuesday (Nov. 12-19, 2014)

Wednesday started the day picking up Denise and taking her to her monthly Meta House meeting with her team of social workers. It takes some time to find all those who should be there, and Denise spends a lot of time telling them what-for. She raises her voice and talks as if she is trying to overcome their objections for every little thing. They are very good about reminding her that they are on her side. If all goes well, on the 24^th, her baby will be returned to her in a reunification move. She has 90 days where they will continue to watch her and help her adjust to having Timmy completely on her own.  We hope all goes well.

Afterwards, Elder Lenhard had to get his hair cut. Why is it that if you want to be bald, your hair insists on growing. Here I am trying so hard to make my hair grow and cover my bald spots, and NOOOOOOOOO, I have to constantly look in the mirror to make sure I have some cover on most of the head. Elder Lenhard’s hair will continue to stick out as it persists in growing when it would be really nice if it stayed out of sight.

We had a PAF meeting (genealogy meeting) that night and didn’t get in until late. This time the meeting was on using newspapers effectively and restoring old photos. They do some really good presentations.

Thursday, we had several things to do. We woke up knowing that on that day, another one of our sons, Dan, was a year older than on Wednesday.  Yes, yes, I know it is hard to believe, but it is reported that his beard is showing a few white hairs that weren’t there on Wednesday. It can’t be helped, and we sent our condolences, but it is the way with age. It creeps up on us slowly until one day we actually pay attention when we look in the mirror and wonder who is that stranger staring back. It’s a good thing that he works with middle schoolers. They don’t care about his saggy jowls and white beard.  In fact, it has been my experience that students at that age will underestimate his prowess, and when they need discipline of the strictest kind, they will be surprised that he can actually catch them and administer it appropriately. We have heard rumors (we haven’t been able to confirm it yet) that he is running 100 ft. marathons and managing to stay out of last place. It is a great thing that at his advanced age he is still able to go to work and keep himself active.

I got a manicure/pedicure that day. Can I say that I love to have my feet messaged. It is wonderful how well Rose takes care of me. She is very good. I would love to do it every other day, but it can get really expensive.

We had Pathway later that evening.  During the meeting, one couple that had not shown up emailed us to tell us the wife had dropped the course. Man, there are only 4 classes left. We felt really bad for her and wanted to encourage her to reenroll if they would let her. We had to wait until we could talk to her later.

On Friday, we started off the day taking someone to the grocery store for groceries.  It was really cold that day, but not as cold as I’m sure it is going to get this winter. We did have some snow on the ground, but it was only about a couple of inches - our first snow. It looked like it was going to stay. 

That night we had a Brother from the BYU-Idaho Pathway program come in to give us some support and to answer any questions we may have about the program. We met the new Senior Missionaries who would be taking over the younger group. The Missionaries they are replacing had to be released because the brother went into a Bishopric. We will miss working with them. The new Missionaries just got off a calling in the Nauvoo Temple Presidency. They are going to be great to work with at this time.  We talked with the Brother from Idaho about the Sister who had dropped and asked if there was a way she could reenter the program. Since she only had four more classes to go, we felt she could be talked into returning. Actually, the Sister who was being released from the program was a friend of the Sister who had dropped the class. She felt she could talk the Sister into coming back.

On Saturday, I started the day by emailing BYU-Idaho to see if the Sister could be readmitted. I talked with the Sister later in the day and found out she did not want to come back. Her husband has lots of health problems, she has a daughter who may have breast cancer and just found out, as well as there was the possibility that she also might have breast cancer.  I just waited to see if Idaho responded and then let them know what was going on.

Even though it was cold, we decided to take a little time out and go visit the North Point Lighthouse. WOW, it is really nice. We got there at 4:50, and it was closing at 5:00. When we got there, they were turning the signs to closed. We asked if they could wait, and they gave us 10 minutes to climb to the top.  We had bought a Groupon for this place, and so we had to fill out the papers to get the cards to be able to go as much as we want to go. Then we went running up the stairs. They went round and round, and they were steep. Up four flights we flew, and at the end, we had to climb a ladder to get into the top where we could see all around the area.  What a neat experience. We only had a couple of minutes and back down we went, but we can go back.

Entrance to Lighthouse

North Point Light Station

Information about light house

Spiral staircase inside light house

Craig in tower

Linda in tower - see Lake Michigan in background

We went outside and walked back behind the building. We could easily see the Lake and wondered what it was like when the lighthouse was in full use. There was a road that went behind the building in a semicircle around the building and  up on the other side back to the road. It was an unpaved road for much of the way, but down toward the back, there are two bridges - one on the left and one on the right of the lighthouse.  The bridges expand over two small gorges, and the walk is really nice. The night before we got there, an 18-wheeler turned onto the road and came down the back. The driver got over the first bridge, and I mean he couldn’t have had more than a couple of inches free on both sides of the truck. Then he crossed the area between the two bridges and went for the second one, thinking (I guess) that if he just kept going he could surely get back to the main road. However, he hit the bridge, then tried to back up and got stuck in a tree. When the police arrived, the driver was nowhere to be seen. His excuse when asked what he thought he was doing, “The GPS told me to go that way.”  I can understand!  Hahahaha

The road the driver went down - see the bridge ahead.

One of the lions that guard the bridges.

That night, we got a call about going and picking up a missionary on Monday evening. The missionary was in Sheboygen, WI. We were to bring him back to Milwaukee and , the next morning, we were to take him to Napierville, IL, so he could sign some papers about immigration. 

On Sunday, we got up and were worried about the weather. We had to go to Park Mills to discuss with them a plan for their Family History program. It was about 40-50 miles away, and as usual, the scenery was pretty. We enjoy going to new places and this was no different. We got there for Relief Society and Priesthood meetings. These are good country people. The town is small, and we had to drive through several neighborhoods to find the Chapel. They are located on a hill and have a nice view of the surrounding area.  We met with the leaders, after waiting for the Bishop to get through with some meetings. We were half-way through the presentation when he announced he had to leave. We got the feeling that he was not really interested in what we were doing. I thought he spent way too much time on his phone during our meeting.

It was 4:00 and dark by the time we got started home. With the snow still on the ground, we felt it was important that we take a slower ride to get home. The weather cooperated, but by the time we got home, it was late, and we were tired.

Monday found us heading for Sheboygen, WI, to pick up a missionary that we would bring to Milwaukee for the night. We first had to pick up the keys to a Mission car from the Mission Office, and then head over to the Stake Center to get the car. It was a quick trip, but we managed to get a few pictures of Lake Michigan from there.  The missionary was Spanish and such a nice guy. When we started out, we were a little worried about the snow. Here in Milwaukee, it was foggy and snowy. The wind was blowing and the clouds looked like they were going to land on us. As we left the city behind, the sun came out and led us to Sheboygen. It was a beautiful drive. On the way back, it was just as beautiful. As we approached the city, the clouds were still down, and the clouds were chasing across the sky. We had to deliver him to the Spanish Missionaries who would then transfer him to another set of missionaries from whom we picked him up on Tuesday.

Lake Michigan from Sheboygan

Snow clouds over the Lake

That evening we were able to go for pizza with the Armstrongs and the two sister missionaries who have been teaching them. Sister Reece is leaving the mission on Thursday, and Sister Cook will have a new companion. That is so wonderful.

Sister Cook on side with us

Brother and Sister Armstrong and Sister Reece

The next morning we were up by 5:30 to go pick up the Elder and head to Napierville, IL, so the young man could sign a paper for his work permit or something to do with immigration (I think). His family actually lives in Illinois, and we weren’t very far from where the family lived. It was a good thing he knew where to go because even with the GPS, we would probably still be wandering around Chicago if he hadn’t told us to not listen to it. He got us there quicky, went in and had the paperwork done in 10 minutes, and then we were heading back home. We stopped to get a Subway sandwich, and we headed to Racine to drop him off.  We found the apartment where he was going, and we found the other Senior Missionaries, the Linsleys, living in the same building. We have worked with the Linsleys before. It was fun to see them. Their apartment is as small as ours, but it is much brighter. They have big windows and are off the highway. It was great.  We left there and got back to Milwaukee by 3:00. The day was over as far as we were concerned. 

I got in and fixed some dinner. We settled down for the evening other than answering the phone and doing so family history ourselves. 

It has been a great week. Lots of fun things happening. Love this time of year. 

I believe President Eyring said “If you are on the right path, it is all uphill.”  (If you know better who said this, let me know.) So, if you are feeling the weight of the hill, know that it is OK and necessary to reach your destination to be with our Father once more.

Love to you all,

Elder and Sister Lenhard