Ten Things of Thankful: Mini Road Trip Edition

An empty road passes between two rocky hills

Tuesday through Thursday this past week, John and I took youngest daughter on a short getaway. She hadn't been on a vacation for a while, and it was nice to spend some time together. We drove down to southern Utah and spend a few days exploring the area. We visited Cove Fort and Silver Reef, hiked a short trail at Pioneer Park, and viewed petroglyphs in Parowan. We watched a movie (Wicked), enjoyed the hot tub at the VRBO house, and played board games. It was a relaxing, enjoyable time.

Friday, Drexel had his yearly appointment with the vet. Drexel's heavy Labrador retriever tail thump-thump-thumped the whole time. He loves going everywhere!

Yesterday it snowed off and on (mostly on) all day long. I was able to give a ride to the grocery store to a friend whose car wasn't up to the snowy roads.

Yesterday evening and this morning, John and I attended stake conference. (Stakes are comprised of several wards. Wards are local church congregations.) The messages were based around the scripture: "And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." (2 Nephi 25:26 from the Book of Mormon) Speakers and musical numbers contributed to the theme. One young woman shared a trying experience she had, and added, "If you have time to worry, you have time to pray."

This week, I'm thankful:

1. For time spent with youngest daughter.

2. For an excellent docent at the Silver Reef Museum. He brought the ghost town to life.

A square stone building (which is the Silver Reef Museum) stands in the desert ghost town of Silver Reef

3. For evidence of those who came before.

Petroglyphs on the exposed stones at Parowan Gap

4. For Drexel. After a week of taking a joint supplement (and not accompanying me on my walks), he is acting chipper again. The vet said Drexel's hips seem fine, although his knees are a little stiff, but not unexpectedly so, given his age.

5. For a car that can drive in the snow.

6. For reaching out to a friend. Have you ever had a thought to reach out to someone who you haven't talked to in a while, or to do something that doesn't really make sense, but when you do it, you find out it was important? That was my experience this week, and it made me feel good that I acted upon that thought.

7. For amaryllis bulbs. In the fall of 2022, I bought some wax-covered amaryllis bulbs from Costco. After they finished blooming, I took the wax off and planted the bulbs in a container. Since then, every fall I put the container in the dark cold basement and then bring them upstairs again in the winter. Every year, they have rebloomed. It appears that they are preparing to bloom again this year.

Green leaves are growing up from three amaryllis bulbs

8. For hymns. While singing in church today, I was surrounded by people singing various parts. It was nice to hear the different voices all adding to the complete sound.

9. For messages of peace and hope. Jesus really is the answer.

10. For John. I think I'm enjoying his retirement as much as he is.

What are you thankful for this week? Be sure to check out the other blog posts, and feel free to write your own and join us at the Ten Things of Thankful blog hop!