Jim & Jolene Paxman in Nauvoo

Sunday, Mar. 31, 2019 It's the last day of March....yahoo!!  April means that spring really is here !!  Talking about that...it seems that overnight, the grass has decided to be green and the flowers are beginning to show.  It helps that we had 3 days of rain this week !  Here's proof: Daffodills outside of the Visitors Center The tulips outside of the Visitors Center have poked through the ground. I'll try to show you how they develop.  They were spectacular last April / May             On Monday evening, Mar. 25, Nauvoo Facilities Management sponsered a "Prairie Grass Burn"  All summer, they leave about a 2 acre plot of ground in the middle of the historic section and let the grass grow.  It actually got to be about 8 feet tall.  At the end of winter, they burn it to demonstrate a prairie grass fire.  Then, they let it grow again all summer and repeat the event next spring.   T...

Mon. Mar. 25, 2019 Spring has sprung!  We have enjoyed some great spring weather this past week.  Yesterday, we had a true spring rain...complete with thunder !   It has been a happy week :-) and has slipped away so quickly.    On Wednesday, we had a wonderful mission training meeting.  Pres. Lusvardi shared some of the experiences he had in Rome at the temple dedication.  It is an amazing thing that ALL of the twelve apostles and the first presidency were there....the first time that has happened outside of the continental USA in 177 years.  They were only ALL together for a couple of hours and they took some great photos of that !  Hope you all checked out the videos and pictures of that on the Church's website under the newsroom .    The following is a picture of another service elder : Elder Dallon from Washington state.  He is always happy to help.  The first words out of his mouth are usually:...

Sunday, Mar. 17, 2019 Happy St. Patrick's Day !   Again...it has been a great week !  Lots of things to show you (if I can get the pictures to load ) On Tuesday, I had to go and get a house (Engel home) that was right along the river ready for an incoming couple.  This home was actually donated to the church when the owners got tired of it and could not sell it.  It has been an ongoing project for nearly a year , and has required ALOT of work...such as a new foundation and basement walls.  They don't have the basement finished inside...that will be another apartment eventually.  The church usually puts more that one couple into a home (one in the upper floor and another in the lower)  As I drove out, the ice was piled up along the bank so I stopped and took a picture of it.  After work, I took Jim out to see it and to see the house.  It started to rain that night and by the next day, the ice had virtually disappeared!...

Sunday, Mar. 10, 2019 Happy Daylight Savings !!  I always find the "spring" forward alittle more difficult than the "fall" back but that could just be my imagination!!  I suppose the thought of losing an hours sleep (never to be caught up on) could be part of that!! We have been thinking about Casen today and wishing that we could "thought-travel" and hear him report his mission.  We will have to depend on reports back from family.  We have also thought about the zone basketball play-offs and wondering how Taylor and the Cardston Cougars as well as the Raymond Comets fared. Those games are always worth watching!  I would imagine that Grandpa Pitcher watched as many as he could! It has been a great week of work - work - and more work!  Tuesday evening we were invited over to the Williams house to watch him make his awesome homemade ice cream and visit.  He is very particular and it is THE best homemade ice cream I have ever tasted....

Sunday, Mar. 3, 2019 Changes..part of life Another week has flown by and there are more changes ... to the mission and to our assignments.  First, we have been called as zone leaders....alittle daunting but I am sure that the Lord will help us out. "Whom the Lord calls...the Lord qualifies", right?  We are depending on that !!  We are not the only ones...they have made 4 zones instead of 3 and are anticipating a BUSY summer season !!  Last year, they had 6500 guests here in Nauvoo and at this point, they have had notification from several groups and are anticipating over 10,000 guests so everyone has to be ready and prepared to assist in the smooth operation of all the sites / attractions.  Our neighbors (upstairs)  Elder & Sister Schmitt have reached the end of their service and have left to go home.  It was bittersweet for them....happy to see family and sad to leave.   As each set of missionaries go home , that leaves...