Latest & Greatest

Here's the latest and greatest that we've been up to:

• SATURDAY COMMUNITY DAY OF SERVICE!

To commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Welfare program in the LDS church, our ward participated in a community day of service. We volunteered for an organization called 6 Stones that organized the 3 cities nearby to perform a day of service for residents that need help getting their homes looking good. We joined over 1,000 people gathered in a parking lot Saturday morning armed with all sorts of yard tools. We were split into 25 different groups and assigned a house to repair in the area.
We arrived to a home that was in great need of all sorts of fix-er-upper-projects. :)
We did a lot of yard cleanup, replaced rotted and worn boards, painted the wood surfaces, and replaced fence panels (and a gate).

Jeff and I were on the painting crew. Sponsors had provided all the supplies we needed, and all we had to do was work! Here's Jeff taking a lunch break...


I painted the shutters

Here is M P Collins & his daughter, the owner of the home we fixed up. What a great service project it was...it was wonderful to come together as a community and provide such service for our neighbors! .........And the free t-shirt, breakfast & lunch wasn't bad either. :)

Let's see...what else is going on?

• Anyone who knows me will be shocked to know my heart has turned soft for this little kitty. For the past month we've had a stray kitten perch on our porch. I don't know where it came from but I've started calling her Pickles. Where did that name come from?!? It just came out one day. :) I know, I know...I shouldn't get attached. I haven't fed it anything yet. But it is just cute to have a little kitty always on our porch. She loves this warm cushion and I snuck a picture of her yesterday before she realized I was there and bolted. Ah, it's nice having a pet that I don't have to do anything for! Ha. Oh, and don't worry, I filled that empty pot with a purple mum flower today. Whew! I can't handle an empty pot for long!
  

• I know you have all been wondering how our garden is doing...well I won't hold you in suspense much longer! :) our hot summer killed off most of it, but we still have broccoli, grapes, asparagus & peppers growing. I planted 3 more broccoli plants today, a cilantro plant, parsley plant & rosemary herb plant. I read in my Texas gardening book that these herbs grow well, so we'll see!
  

• And in other exciting news.....I've got a new job! I will now be working as an Administrative Assistant for a CPA firm. I am excited for this new opportunity! I finished working at the Artisan Theater a few weeks ago and have been applying to other jobs. I went through Express to find this one, and it's going to be a great fit. I might still teach classes or other theater stuff on the side, but we'll see. For now, I think this new job will keep me busy. It's great to be hired!