Jim & Jolene Paxman in Nauvoo

Sunday, July 28, 2019 Happy Birthday Brent! Yes...it is hard to believe that 34 years ago, Brent joined our family.  All of our boys were born on a Sunday (except for David - Tuesday) .  Very considerate of them to realize that their Dad had the best opportunity to welcome them into our family on a Sunday!!  In Brent's case, Jim was REALLY busy doing custom haying and was into the thick of second cut.  Funny story....Jim was gone so much (while Brent was teeny) that summer, that one day he walked into the house while the kids and I were eating a meal and boomed out a "hello" to us all and startled poor little Brent to death.  He didn't know his own father for several weeks until haying was complete!  I must say, though, that they have a great relationship in spite of that "rocky" beginning!!!   We love and appreciate each of our children and their spouses AND children ....they each add a dimension of joy and love to our family.  That's the fu...

Sunday, July 21, 2019 Talk about hot! It has been a REALLY hot week with temperatures around the 35-39 degree mark during the day and going down to 28 -30 degrees during the night.  Combine that with the high humidity and the actual heat index has been much higher.  We have had to spend very little time outdoors and be extra vigilant in keeping up with hydration.   Here's a walk through of our week:        Monday -  we said goodbye to Elder & Sister Christensen from Idaho Falls.  Sis. Christensen grew up in Magrath (maiden name- Thomson)  She is a cousin to Weldon Thomson (our ministering elder who has sent us regular email with updates on the home ward while we are here)  We love this couple.  They have gone the extra mile to help and support us....like taking Megan & Chris back to the airport (Cedar Rapids) when they came to visit. We had to do another flight home from a different airport (...

Sunday, July 14, 2019 And here goes Pageant! Yes....it is Pageant season !   The Nauvoo Pageant began Tuesday and runs Tues / Thurs. & Sat. while the British Pageant started Wednesday and plays every Wed. & Fri night.  They are each individual but my personal favorite is the British pageant, perhaps because we have been there in the Preston area or perhaps because our ancestors came from there.  I love the portrayal of the faith and sacrifice that was required by the early Saints to leave family, homeland and all that was dear to them for the sake of their conversion to the Gospel and their desire to obey the call of a prophet of God.   Yes, we do the same today but I feel that their sacrifice is particularly hard because they knew that they would never see their homeland or family again.  We, on the other hand, know that we will. Here is some of the happenings of this week:  One of our summer student workers (Katie Kyle...Tr...

Sunday, July 7, 2019 Happy Independance Day Of course, AFTER Canada Day comes Independance Day.  We enjoyed joining in with the festivities and celebrations here in Nauvoo (but feel that no one celebrates like Raymond !)  They started with a flag raising ceremony in front of the Visitor's Center where the Brass Band played and the YPMs sang the national anthem.  The Nauvoo 1st ward scouts were the color guard and raised the flag.  They, then,  recited the Pledge of Alliegence...which we respectfully listened to. Again, I was moved and appreciative of the freedoms which are throughout North America as a direct benefit of the sacrifice of many who preceded us.  I wish to be a strong link in passing on the torch to our children / grandchildren.  Many of the things that we take for granted were won because others ahead of us were willing to sacrifice to maintain those freedoms.  There was a short speaker and then they served doughnuts / chocolate...