Decorating and Hanging Photos

I have a lot of pictures in frames from our Firestone house. I don’t think that I will hang as many photos in our Monument house. I have created a few collages so far though. 

These are water colors that we have picked up around the world.

Bedroom console.

Ledge on the stairs. 

Front hall.

Living room shelves and fireplace.

New Neighbors

Our neighbors to the north of us, Mike and Karen Cleary, dropped by to introduce themselves on Sunday evening. They brought some homemade jam and included contact information. So thoughtful.

We have met three other neighbors and all seem like nice people. Makes us happy to have some great neighbors after moving away from great neighbors.

Kristen's Mission Emails - Week 56

Uh oh! Honesty!😭 

This week was bad... but then good! Yay!! I want to forego the "only the good stuff" kind of email that you often get because believe it or not, being a missionary isn't always puppies and rainbows! More often than not, it can be boring, exhausting, degrading, scary and a myriad of other uncomfortable adjectives.

Honestly, I had a pretty bad mindset at the beginning of the week and what they say is true—attitude is everything. I didn't want to do anything, just mope and lolly gag. And so I let myself just be and rest for a few hours. And then I didn't feel better. 

Many things had culminated to me feeling so blah, but what the "natural man" thought would solve it didn't do much for me. I knew that the last thing I wanted to do was probably what would make me feel better—go to work. And I'm a little embarrassed to admit my rationalizing and slacking off this week because no one wants to say they're a slacker or too sad or struggling, but I feel it's better that you know the truth, and what did eventually help me feel better. 

It was taking care of the basics (eating good, getting sunshine, getting enough sleep, staying off my phone) and nurturing my spirit—doing missionary work to the best of my ability, turning to scriptures and prayer, daily repentance. 

So, when I finally put what I needed to do over what I wanted to do, things started to turn up. It wasn't perfect and the last few days, though they were better, weren't very memorable, and that's okay! 

But if any of you reading this are in a slump, here's my advice:

1. Be kind to yourself. Recognize that you are human and you're not wrong for feeling the way you do. 
2. Do the basics. Make sure you're doing all the things your physical and spiritual balance needs to feel okay. 
3. Give yourself time to get where you want to be. It's not going to happen overnight. 

I've given you my spiritual thought before the highlights but here's the haps! 

• Hit 13 months on the mission! 
• My piano chords playing abilities have been put to use 4 days this week, don't tell anyone you can play the piano on your mission if you don't want to play at every event!! (I secretly love it) 
• We had new missionary training for Sister Pratt at the office and it was so good! I felt the Spirit so strongly as the greenies testified of overcoming the struggles of their first few weeks. 
• President treated us all to American style burgers after and I yapped with him for about an hour!! No transfer spoilers unfortunately 
• Lots of parking lot church invites. We get lots of no's, but some yes's! And they make it all worth it. 
• Had a sleepover with the sisters!! Socially fun, sleepily not. I was very tired the next day. 
• Music devotional Sunday night wahoo!! It's the best night of the transfer I swear! It was light themed and we ate and I'm gonna miss Sister Walters and her talents so much. 

We have transfers this week, so I'll let you know what happens next week! Anyways, I'm proud of all of you wherever you're at. I'm here for you if you need anything and remember, you're doing better than you think you are.

Love,

Sister Kline

Organizing the Garage and More

It was nice to finally have a Saturday in Monument for Chris to work on getting his garage organized. I helped. Misha helped. 

We hung pegboards, Misha and Chris hung a suspended shelf from the roof and put shovels and sleds on it. 

The shelf raises and lowers so that you can fill it with stuff and the raise it and have it out of the way. 

Chris and I also got the hot tub wiring pulled so that he could then clean it and fill it with water. Things are slowly coming together.

Misha's Birthday Card

Before Kristen left on her mission, she created birthday cards, Mother’s Day card, Father’s Day card and anniversary cards for her family. 

Misha got to open her card a few days late.

Amy: Concert in Phoenix

Amy purchased tickets to attend a Morgan Wallen concert in Phoenix. He is a county music artist. She had the tickets before she found out that she would be going to Minnesota for Sync Week with Glia. The travel department was happy to work with Amy’s schedule and instead of booking her travel back to Utah from Minnesota, they booked a flight to Phoenix for her. Amy met up with her friend, Ella, in Phoenix for the concert on Friday. They had a blast together and both flew home the next morning.

For some reason, Amy booked her flight back to Utah at noon. Ella had to be at the airport for an early morning flight. Amy got on the standby list for an earlier flight at 10 am. This was her first experience trying to fly standby. She made it. And went home and slept for 4 hours that afternoon.

Amy: Glia Sync Week

Much like Chris’ sales kick off weeks, Amy’s company Glia has Sync Week which offers training, talks about sales numbers, and new goals. 

This week they were also hyping a rebrand of new company colors and designs.

As a new employee, Amy was able to meet the two Account Executives that she works with—Amber and Kyle. Amy is a rockstar in her new position and has received a lot of recognition for being so successful. Funny because Amy often jokes that she doesn’t know what she is doing! 

Glia brings all employees to Sync Week. This meeting was held in Minnesota. Amy is pretty thrilled that the January Sync Week from January 13-16 will be at a resort in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. There is rumor going around that the next one after that will be held in Barcelona, Spain.

Misha's Diploma

Misha received her diploma in the mail. Pretty sure she is enjoying life without homework. 

Maybe there is just as much stress trying to find a job though!

Amy's Moving

With Amy’s new job, she will need more space to have an office for working at home. She let her landlord know that she would be moving out and he began advertising her room so that she could potentially move out sooner than the end of her contract date. 

Good news, the landlord now has a signed contract for Amy’s room. Amy has been looking for a new place over the past couple of weeks. 

She found a 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom townhouse with a garage. There is an area in an upstairs loft where she will be able to set up an office for the days that she gets to work at home.

New Bedroom Console

Chris and I ordered some new furniture for our bedroom during Amazon Prime Days. I hoped that I would love it as much in person as I did online. 

Chris and I put it together on Sunday afternoon while we chatted with Kristen on her P-Day. Good thing Amy and Misha were also on the call because we had to mute our sound every so often as we were using the drill. 

I love how it looks. We will have to move the tv over. Should have centered it with the bed instead of centering it on the wall.

Kristen's Mission Emails - Week 55

I love creampuffs🫶🙏 

Highlights from the week!! 

• Drove an hour to Cape Jervis to pick up some sisters. Scary, swervy, speedy roads but very pretty!! 
• Had the coldest, wettest day in Adelaide in over a year...luckily we got the car that day, bless up 
• Had homemade tortellini soup, lasagna, and cream puffs from our local Italian members 
• Had a meal appointment every single night (haven't had that since I was the only set of missionaries in a ward in California) 
• Teaching a Kenyan family! We started by helping their youngest son with reading months ago and now we're meeting with the whole family and teaching them the gospel! 

This week was very long and cold, but life's like that sometimes. As I'm writing this, I'm getting a pedicure and listening to good music, so all is right in the world! 

Here's a quote from this week's Relief Society lesson I liked: 

"There seems to be a full measure of anguish, sorrow, and often heartbreak for everyone, including those who earnestly seek to do right and be faithful. Yet this is part of the purging to become acquainted with God." (James E. Faust) 

Keep learning, keep trusting that God is in the details, even on the slow weeks and the sad days.

Sister Pratt and Parley P. Pratt

Just a little mission artwork by Kristen.

 Love y'all, prayers up from your fav Aussie missionary!! 

Sister Kline ❤️

Misha is 24!

Last Saturday after a morning of weeding and yard work, I asked Misha where she might like to go for a birthday lunch or dinner. Mentioning Georgia Boys BBQ (because it is our favorite and we will miss it) was a big YES from Amy. It may not have been Misha's choice, but it was still enjoyed by all.

We met up with Misha again this Saturday on our way back from Firestone. Yes, another trip. We needed to return a trailer that Brent Ashby loaned us for the move and needed.

We stopped at the house and did a little touch up weeding. The spraying that Chris did a couple of weeks ago really helped kill some of the weeds.

I went through the house and cleaned all of the toilets, flushed them, ran water, and tidied up. It will need a good dusting soon.

On our way back through Denver, we met up with Misha for a birthday lunch at Pita Central. Pretty yummy.

Health Issues and a New Doctor

I don’t know if it was the stress of moving and life, but during our move, I had a major eczema flair that was terribly uncomfortable. Debilitating at times. I went to Urgent Care and was given an antibiotic for a misdiagnosed condition. The antibiotic was mildly effective for a few days. I was able to get a doctor’s appointment with the doctor’s office associated with the Urgent Care. Happily, I now have a new doctor that I really like, but his diagnosis was eczema. Crazily enough, the medicine to help the eczema was sitting in my bathroom drawer all the time that I was suffering. It took a couple of days before the eczema flair started to get under control. I’m grateful to be feeling better and to have a new doctor that Chris and I both can visit.

Job Interview for Misha

Misha had a preliminary job interview with the recruiter. They screen the candidates for a job before recommending them for interviews with the company. Misha felt it went well and is hoping that she will get another interview soon.

Found a Doctor

When Chris and I were at the Urgent Care last week, I asked the nurse before we left if she could recommend a doctor. She mentioned a name and I scheduled an appointment for a follow up the next day. There wasn't an available opening for a new patient until a week and a half later. Becoming an established patient is a bit of a chore I am finding.

Chris suggested that I call the next day at 8 am and see if I could get that moved up a bit. Because I was coming in for an Urgent Care follow up, I was able to move my appointment to a week sooner. Yay.

And...I liked the doctor. So, we will keep him as a family doctor for now.

New Shower Glass

Our builder replaced the glass in our shower. Before, the glass ended 8" from the ceiling, however, it didn't have anything to anchor it and was easy to wobble. It seemed like a safety hazard.

The smell of the sealant was horrible, but it is nice to have that project done.

Kristen's Mission Emails - Week 54

I ♡ Patriotic MOTAB 

We are always so busy and yet this is all I'm going to report this week. Please enjoy! 

• I got to be district leader for a day (such a long story)!! Safe to say there has probably never been an all Sisters District Council in the AAM before until this last week for the first time (for the first 20 minutes because the elders missed their bus). Making AAM history!!! 
• 4th of July zone con!!! Jacob 5 goes so crazy and we are about to invite every single person in Australia to church so that's awesome! 
• We also listened to every patriotic MOTAB song ever!

Here's a quote I loved from an old Ensign article: "On a few occasions, I told the Lord that I had surely learned the lessons to be taught and that it wouldn’t be necessary for me to endure any more suffering. Such entreaties seemed to be of no avail, for it was made clear to me that this purifying process of testing was to be endured in the Lord’s time and in the Lord’s own way. 

It is one thing to teach, ‘Thy will be done’ (Matt. 26:42). It is another to live it." 

Are you learning what God needs you to from this trial you're going through? How can this experience make you better?

Kristen and Sister Pratt

A sister in Kristen's area makes a cross-stitch like this for all the missionaries in the area.

Love y'all lots, give yourself grace this week. You're doing better than you think! 

Sister Kline ♡

Snaking Drains

Two weeks in our new house and we never expected to have to call the plumbers for a fix. Misha and Amy had both noticed that their toilets would just gurgle and not drain.

Chris left messages with the plumber and the builder. It was when he saw the brown water in the furnace room (fortunately it hadn't pooled much) that he called the plumber's after hours number. They took some time getting here because they had to go to their shop first, but they arrived around 9:30 and were here until about 11 pm. They snaked the toilet and found that there was indeed a blockage. Not sure what but likely construction debris.

Whew! Glad we have a warranty and don't have to pay that bill!

Here's a nice photo of a rainbow instead of anything else related to the plumbers!

Weeding...Again

We returned to Firestone for more weeding...this time we brought extra reinforcements with Amy and Misha in tow. Hurray.

Chris had sprayed gallons of weed killer the week before and wasn't sure it would actually work. We were all happy that it did work and grateful that Chris didn't cry in despair.

You can safely assume, we hate weeding! So, our time at the house went down from 4 to 5 hours to an hour and a half. The girls helped with weeding, cleaning up at the beach, and mowing the back hill.

Since we had had a showing the week previous, I raked the carpet so it looked fresh again and cleaned and flushed all of the toilets in the house.

Our efforts weeding were rewarded with an early birthday lunch for Misha at Georgia Boys. There are some things about Firestone that we will truly miss: our massage therapist, hair stylist, friends, and Georgia Boys.

It's a Bear

We have numerous cameras around our house. The camera in the backyard picked up this visitor the other night.

Bears are the #1 reason why we don't have stairs to our deck.

4th of July in Monument

Apparently, the 4th of July parade in Monument is quite a big deal. As Chris and I drove over to Old Town Monument on Thursday evening, we were amazed to see tent canopies set up ALL along the parade route. There was hardly any extra space and even though signs requested that "seat saving" didn't start until 7 pm, those tents had been put up long before.

I wasn't feeling so great on Friday morning, so Chris, Amy, and Misha drove to the high school that is about five minutes from our house and hitched a ride on the shuttle bus to downtown Monument.

They found one spot that was empty, until a crotchety old lady came and shooed them away from her "private property"!

Free hot dogs and hamburgers were enjoyed!

They enjoyed the parade, a brief flyover, and being first back on the shuttle when they skies opened and began to pour.

The bus driver's young daughter started a conversation with Chris and asked all kinds of questions, even "How old are you?" When he pointed to his two daughters she replied, "You're older than I thought!"

The three amigos went to an afternoon showing of the new Jurassic movie. Six thumbs down on that one, so don't bother wasting your time.

Amy and Misha Home for the 4th

So happy to have Amy fly in for a few days. She arrived in Denver, took the train to Denver's Union Station where Misha picked her up, and drove to our new "home".

Sadly, Monument doesn't feel too much like home and Firestone may always have that claim. Chris had just finished installing the Ring doorbell and they were excited to see a small pic of the two of them  as a greeting.

Urgent Care

Up until November, I had never been to Urgent Care for myself before. Now I can count two times. Both times have involved a significant amount of itching, and by Thursday evening, I had finally reached my limit.

I don't appreciate how sensitive my body has become. The doctor gave me an Rx for an antibiotic ointment, confirmed that I can still take my itch pills (and even a little more often), and gave a few other tips.

Refinishing the Front Door

Our painter has worked really to hard find a color that I am happy with for our front door. It involved a custom mix on her part and multiple visits to the house.

This was the before color that was "supposedly" a match to the wood stain out front. (This is after the stripper had been applied).

This is the custom color that we like so much better.

1st Dinner on the Deck

Chris and I are trying to create new habits using our deck. Tonight was the first time for dinner on the deck.

The weather was perfect in the 70s and the view was outstanding.