Meet Data

One of our Christmas surprises for the kids was our new puppy, Data. For those who don't know me or my children well, he's named in honor of one our favorite Star Trek characters, Lieutenant Commander Data. The character was killed off in the last Star Trek: Nemesis movie as he saved the lives of his captain and fellow shipmates. (Our friends, Jim and Melanie, will remember me sobbing as his 'life' ended on screen). Anyway, Data is a wonderful puppy. Very quiet and snuggly and is potty training well - thank goodness. It's like having a new baby in the house sans the diapers and bottles!!

One of my favorite gifts was receiving a phone call at 6PM Christmas Night from Dalon in Hong Kong. He sounded wonderful! He's being very positive and appreciates any progress he makes as far as the language is concerned. His trainer has been transferred and his new comp is coming from an area of Hong Kong that has a large english speaking population, so the new comp is a little rusty in his own Cantonese. This is really a blessing for Dalon, because it means he has to speak more on his own and rely less on his comp. His trainer was great, but it's the right time for Dalon to strengthen his own skills.

As we made our family phone calls, I just realized how blessed we are to have technology to communicate and stay close. I love to email Dalon and receive his in return, but to hear his voice and to hear the sincerity as he expressed what a wonderful experience he's having was precious. To hear my brother's and sister's and our parents voices was wonderful and we were so far away!! What a miracle this technology is in our day.

One more thing that is miraculous! The completion of our garage. Arlen is a miracle worker with a hammer and nails. We are excited that it's done and now on to the next project - building a sewing room/guest bedroom! Yea! We're excited to have Arlen's brother, Paul with us to start that project off on the right foot!

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way Home from Waco

We received a wonderful invite to attend an Eagle Court of Honor for one of Arlen's former scouts in Waco. The timing was right due to Thanksgiving holidays so we thought we'd make a quick trip to Waco/Robinson area on Saturday, attend church and return on Sunday evening in time to prepare for school and seminary the next day. We had such a terrific time visiting with our friends there. The time was too short, but it was just the drink of water we needed after being away for a year and a half. (I love the blogs, but nothing can beat a one on one conversation!) Anyway, we attended church on Sunday and started on our way home. The weather was a bit dreary. It rained consistently from the time we left Waco until we reached Wichita Falls. The cooler weather required us to use our defroster to keep the windshield clear. A little info here - our air conditioning compressor had gone bad during the summer and we'd been told it needed to be replaced. We decided we would wait to replace it in the spring. Guess what? The defroster requires the compressor as well. HMMM....

Well, as we were driving through WF I asked Arlen were we going to stop? I was calculating hours we'd been in the car and the bladder size of each of my children as well as my own needs. Arlen was in the "Let's go as far as we can and not stop until there is a dire 'Daddy, I have to go now!' moment" mode. I understood that thought process as I've had those thoughts myself when traveling alone with the kids. For some reason, though, I felt that we should stop sooner rather than later and so requested that we do so in Iowa Park just outside WF so I could use the restroom. As we pulled off the highway into the gas station we could hear the engine making a terrible racket. The sound had been previously masked by the highway noise and the rain coming down. The rain had now turned to snow and we knew the engine was not in good shape. A quick phone call to Arlen's dad, who is a car engine whiz, and he confirmed that the engine was not in good shape and that it sounded like a bearing was about to fail. Arlen decided that rather than risk the car completely breaking down in the snow, in the Panhandle wilderness, at night, with his family, we would get a hotel and find a place the next day to fix the van. This discovery prior to a major breakdown in the middle of nowhere is blessing #1.

Blessing #2 - The Holiday Inn in WF sent a van to come get us and take us back to the hotel. I'm going to overlook the fact that the ride back to the hotel was the scariest part of the trip, because the defroster was not working, the windshield was fogged over, the roads were now snowy and icy and the van was swaying like it was top heavy. And the driver looked a little worse for the wear.

Blessing #3 - The hotel gave us a discount for our stay.

Blessing #4 - We called the Bishop in Wichita Falls to ask if there might be someone who could take Arlen back out to the car the next day and if he might recommend a mechanic in the area. The Bishop turned out to be a mechanic who specialized in car airconditioning/heating. Hmmm....

Blessing #5 - The next day the hotel took Arlen back to our car in Iowa Park so we did not have to worry about finding a ride. Just for reference this is about 15 miles one way from the hotel.

Blessing #6 - A mechanic in Iowa Park confirmed that the air conditioning clutch was frozen and that the bearing was burning out. Arlen drove the van to Bishop Scoggins garage. They had all the parts needed to replace our compressor and expansion valve - a newly discovered problem.

Blessing #7 - The final cost was much less than we'd been quoted previously for just the compressor.

We are so amazed at how our Heavenly Father watches over us. My dad reminded me of the blessings that come from having a son on a mission as well. Whatever the reason, we were blessed and protected and know that we are loved.