Mark's Lecture on Self Mastery Techniques

The techniques to gain self-mastery have been around for thousands of years. These have stood the test of time, there are great mysteries to discover in them! These techniques have spiritual foundations, each of us, and our society as a whole has a responsibility to gain this knowledge.  Those that desire to grow in self-mastery find that they have limited time to dedicate to the process.  Some of these steps can be simplified but this cannot be done with a "drive-thru" mentality.

Most of the beauties and joys of this earth go unnoticed.  To access deeper levels all we need to do is believe in them and the power can flow.  Self-mastery is stretching our imagination to what is possible.

PRAYER

Prayer might be instinctual, a cry for help for a higher energy.  The words that are spoken are only a portion of the process.  Open your mind, body and emotion as deeply as you can.  Prayer is so powerful, we don't even know how amazing it is. This is a process for changing your entire soul.  It is more about you than it is to the higher power you pray to.  To begin, awaken yourself to how you should feel about God (or whatever you call your higher energy).  Prayer should be a mediatation, not a redundant rambling of familiar phrases.

 Here is an acronym for prayer that may help you deepen the process for yourself;  "G.R.A.C.E"
G- Glorify, this is profound gratitude for creation and sustaining us.  Everything belongs to the God-force.  We are given so many gifts.  Kindness and love serve us all day, every day.  Feel this in your prayer.  Be in awe of the spirit.

R-Repent, acknowledge our weaknesses.  The purpose in this is to motivate us for change.  Feel what you're thinking.  The reason for weaknesses are to train us.  It helps us appreciate the divine all the more, we are not equal to God. 

A-Ask, but we shouldn't ask for everything we want.  We should ask for things altruistically, in a true desire to use those blessings and gifts to grow and serve others. We have a right to ask for the things that we need to complete our mission. 

C-Consecrate, give your entire self to the process.  Everything you do can benefit the whole world!  Your entire self should belong to the higher power.  Be more effective in life.  Even sleep can be a chance to heal you up so you can grow and serve the next day.  Fun activities are a way to heal up, rejuvinate, celebrate and deepen relationships. 

E-Endure, see how long you can keep the energy going.  It doesn't end after 'amen'.

LIFE

The art of living  is a technique toward deeper meaning.  Every second of every day is an infinite amount of potential.  See the magic of living your life.  Don't be numb!  Feel the flow of energy, beauty and intelligence everywhere.

MEDITATION

We should practice meditation regularly.  Close your eyes and create the ideal state of self. This may be one of the greatest lessons, and most useful as we manage life.   There are several types of meditation, different ways to comfort oneself.  We cannot love anyone anymore than your ability to be comfortable.  Dr. Kailing gives meditation as homework to each and every client.

Since time seems to be limited for most people's schedules, Dr. Kailing has simplified a meditation exercise to 5 minutes.  He has combined eastern and western philosophies.    If you were to do this once or twice a day, in a year you will be able to reach new depths of self-comfort, healing, and love.  There is no limit to what you can achieve. 

How:  The first 2 1/2 minutes are from the eastern philosophy emptying self; the mind and body of tension and stress.  You will be able to hear the spiritual messages from a higher power.  Deep breaths and imagining you are asleep.  Involve your senses, feel your muscles releasing tension.  Eastern philosophy helps us accept suffering.  Be willing to die and we suffer a lot less.  Our fears come from clinging to the things we need.  We don't really need anything from this world.  Visualize the toxic energy draining out of you, away from you, deep into the earth where it has no power over you.

The last 2 1/2 minutes are from the western philosophy filling self; bringing in spiritual, healing, positive energy to raise your energy level. Continue to take deep cleansing breaths.  You are everything in the universe.  With practice you can take in more of your senses and get your emotions involved.  We only take in about a tenth of the sensory comfort that we're capable of taking in; the breeze in the air, the cloud formations, the birds singing etc.  See a flower for the first time, admire it's beauty and scent, let it into you deeper.  People are limitied by our imagination.  We have to stretch our imagination as far as we can.  Imagine what is possible!

YOGA

Yoga is a form of self-parenting.  You, your logic are the parent.  Your body is the child.  By stretching you develop are relationship with your body of moderately comforting and moderately straining yourself.  We need to balance ourselves, command your body's respect of you.  Do this in ways that are loving and nuturing as well as ways to discipline.

MARTIAL ARTS/T'AI CHI

Energy follows your mind.  Pull energy into yourself and channel it out into a strike.  Own your space.  You should be a protector, willing to die.  In T'ai chi you flow with energy.  Express yourself, using the energy that flows through you.  Enjoy it.

CHANNELING ENERGY

Energy follows our mind.  Practice this.  You can manifest love, peace, and comfort.  First notice the energy, then magnify it, then channel through you to someone else.  Become a hollow reed, transferring good to others. 

 

Adjusting to Change

     In one year, Mark has gone from his regular look (thick brown hair and full beard and mustache), to his chemo look (zero hair) to his new Sean Connery/young Santa look (thin, soft white hair and full white beard and mustache).

     His hair is growing back because he stopped chemo treatments 8 weeks ago.  It feels like he's aged a few decades within 12 months.  He is a handsome man at any age!
    Some people don't like change, I guess in a lot of ways we don't either.  We have learned to adjust to a great deal of change whether we like it or not.  Someone told me, "I couldn't live like you, I have to be able to control things".  I don't get to control how things go, only my reaction to what happens.  The sooner we accepted that, the better we were at handling all of this. 

     Speaking for just myself, I'm at a place of total and complete vulnerability.  I feel like our family is in a car barreling toward a cliff.   I'm looking this in the eye, I'm processing and protecting all that I can.  And I'm surrending.  My heart has been broken for years now, it continues to contract and inflict pain to my core. I see my husband suffer and want to serve us longer. I see each of my children struggling. 

     This Wednesday is a CT scan.  I have mixed feelings about it.  We haven't had much contact with the Huntsman since we quit chemo on Jan 21st.  Who knows what we will find.  Mark is always in pain, has been for years, around 4 or 5 on the pain scale. There are moments here and there (throughout these 3 years) when pain goes up to 8 or 9.  This happened a few times these past two weeks. He doesn't let anyone see that side but me.  He will tell you he is fine.  He will go on as though we have time and energy to make plans.  It is becoming painful for me to plan much more than a week or two in advance.  I'm hoping Mark will be here to baptize Ava on May 4.  I'm hoping to celebrate his birthday with friends and family on May 25.  I don't have the luxury of knowing he will be here.   Every single day is both a struggle and a blessing in our home.  If I'm being completely honest,  I don't know how much more I can take.

Mark's Lecture on Great Relationships

Why is LOVE so important??

Love is energy.  It is one of the highest energies.  Spiritual masters say we need to seek it, it will make you healthy, wealthy, wise and happy.  One day when we are on our death bed what we will most care about is those that we love, and wonder if we have loved enough.  Love takes people to generate it.

If our personal energy is like a fire, then combining our love with others..like combining logs onto one fire, creates a big bonfire of shared energy!!  It's possible that we are only using a portion of the potential of the power of shared love.

How do we share energy/love?  We can do this by sharing talents and knowledge, sharing resources in a way that effects one another.  Our economy is build on this system, we trade resources (money for goods and services) and share our talents, if we didn't we would have to do everything on our own.  Our system is a loving system; I help you and you help me.

Love is the ultimate perspective on why we exist.  Our highest purpose is to generate love.  We can radiate and contribute energy everywhere we go. 

Relationships are important because they expose our insecurities.  They expose the fears and defenses that we use to protect ourselves.  Love is a risky, vulnerable thing but that is where the growth happens.  Many couples will divorce as a way to avoid the vulnerability that happens exposing thier defenses, but this pattern can be overcome and will create a deeper level of awareness and closeness. 
Couples should not divorce unless each member has faced thier insecurities on the issues.  If they have not, they aren't prepared to make the decision.  Insecurities that are exposed within relationships must be addressed, not avoided. There are really two paths in life; serve yourself or serve others.  In order to have a successful relationship you must be on a path of serving others.

In a way, Disney has done us a great disservice teaching our young that love is happily-ever-after.  That is only part of the picture.  The reality is that deep, loving relationships are a messy buisness.  It is hard work, yet it is worth it.    Time is a process that can refine love.  Time gradually takes away youth and beauty, the newness and excitement of young romance, yet a real love continues to grow.  It takes a lifetime to learn, grow and deepen love.

The Four Secrets to Great Intimacy

1.  Comfort    Comfortable people are predictible and stable, able to build deep trust.  If you are uncomfortable, you are not entirely stable and it is unreliable what you will do in any given situation.

2.  Be willing to be Vulnerable     It's against our nature to let down our defenses and let others in.  Visualize this process, being willing to be hurt, see how deeply you can be vulnerable with someone.  Love takes risks, be willing to go there.

3.  Growth     Letting new energy flow through you and the relationship.  You're both excited about the relationship.  These steps overlap one another; be comfortable in order to be vulnerable, which allows you to grow together.  Growth is powerful, if fuels the human soul!   It has been said that depression is no more than a lack of growth.  Growth is a flow of energy.  Tell your spouse, "Lets grow together", it doesn't really matter how, study something, take a class, read a book, learn a new hobby...dating one another is an opportunity for growth.  If this process is awkward and difficult for you, utilize a counselor or coach to guide you through it.

4. Visualize Energy   Energy follows your mind.  Pay attention to those you love, look at them fondly.  Adore them.  When you hug them imagine that you are surrounding them with energy.  Love-making is a perfect opportunity to practice visualizing adoration energy toward your spouse.  Energy flows through you.  Remember the bonfire that you are generating by combining your love/energy.  This takes practice but it is really powerful.

The Simple 3 Step Method to Conflict Solving

1.  Prioritize Comfort     If you can't get comfortable in the situation, wait to discuss it.  Sleep on it if needed (the phrase, 'don't go to bed angry' is not always a good suggestion, pushing through an arguement when you're both tired, overwhelmed and uncomfortable will likely make things worse).   Negotiate a time when it is good to talk, schedule it if you need to.

2.  Split the Blame (Own yours First)   We all have a lot of weaknesses, we're human!  We're all a little bit guilty for the good we could've done, so just assume that you contributed a part of the blame.  You don't need to split hairs just trust that you deserve a portion of the blame.  "I'm not perfect, I can see that I probably contributed in some way".   You do not accept more than a part of the blame, even if the other person cannot own thier portion!  (An even deeper perspective on this split-the-blame-idea, is that one third of the situation is noone's fault!  Factors contribute to the situation that are circumstantial.  So, in any argument you really only have to be willing to own a third of the blame- now it doesn't sound so scary does it???)   Arguements are usually because we are afraid someone is goint to state that they are superior to you, you suck...and so, we become defensive.  Steps 1 and 2 are really all about teaching the other person that we are not a jerk, that we are not superior to them. 

3.  Meet in the Middle     Here's where all your practice on compromising comes into play.  If you want both parties to feel validated, respected and valued (and you do) be willing to meet in the middle. If you accept more than your part of the blame, you're a doormat.  ("You're right, it's all my fault...")  If you accept less than half you're being difficult, ("I had nothing to do with that, it's not my problem").  Being moderately assertive yet moderately humble creates the best working situation for you and your spouse, (or anyone, or any group that you have a conflict with).

When couples go to see Dr. Kailing, he won't do marriage therapy with them unless both parties understand and agree to these three steps.  If they aren't willing to do this, they will not progress.  They are likely in a system where only one of the members of the marriage is getting thier needs met.  This imbalance (most likely) cannot be sustained without building up resentments. 

When we are in a conflict, in the heat of the moment our instincts are usually WRONG, it's our human nature to use our fears and defenses to get out of those situations. 

If life meets you half way, it's done you a great favor.   You've gotten some of what you want, and it's provided an opportunity for you to grow. 

The Power of Role Models

     Mark and I have been blessed with a deep, powerful new friendship through this cancer journey.  I was told about them by my friend Heather who lives near Rexburg, ID.  She had heard this man give his testimony and learned he had sarcoma, as Mark does.  She wrote down the blog address that his wife had been keeping and sent it to me.  I started at the beginning of Holly Rasmussen's blog.  I was immediately impressed by her openness with thier journey.  I was still very selective about who saw the sadder side of our story, our hardships, our weaknesses, but she shared them and the lessons and blessings along the way.  She helped me so much through her posts. Our stories are so similar.  Her husband was diagnosed a couple of months after my husband was.  Thier primary tumors were both located in thier hip.  They also have five children, as we do, thier oldest is the same age as our oldest and thier baby same age as ours (both were one at the time).
     Trent and Holly were living in Lincoln, Nebraska at the time of his diagnosis and had to relocate to Brigham City, Utah to take advantage of the healthcare at the Huntsman.  I also learned that prior to moving to Lincoln, they were living in Providence, which is where we live.  Small world!  I had been reading Holly's blog for awhile and decided to contact her and we chatted via facebook for a few months. One day, Mark and I were having lunch at the Bistro on the top floor of the Huntsman and Holly stepped out of the elevator.  She recognized me immediately and we hugged.  She was grabbing some food to take down to the infusion room and we followed her back so we could meet Trent and visit.

This is the day that we met.  Mark had just finished his radiation treatment and Trent was still hooked up to his chemo infusion.  We loved our visit so much that we decided to continue by going to the movies together afterward.   Our men were so weak, but they had huge smiles on thier faces.  We giggled and laughed through Pirates of the Caribbean in 3D.

     I remember that when we said goodbye that night, it felt like we had been friends for decades.  We have stayed close since this time.  We ask them about every medicine, treatment, and medical decision we make.   Holly understands me more than almost anyone else I know regarding my fears and hopes.  We thank them for lighting a path ahead of us as we take steps into the unknown.  They are amazing in every way!!!
     We lost Trent in August of last year.  While I thought the opportunity would come for us to now help Holly, as much as she has always helped us....that is not the case.  She is still helping us more than we ever help her!!  She is so smart about all of this, and can articulate her experience so well that she helps me contantly.   She will text me a thought, and it is exactly what I needed that day. 
     Today is Trent's 40th birthday.  I know milestones will always tug at Holly and her families heart.  Today we think of Trent and of Holly.  We love you guys!  We forever thank you guys!  You have been powerful role models to us these past three years.  ((hugs)) to Trent in heaven and to Holly and the kids on earth.

Mark's Lecture on The Gender War

There are many differences between feminine and masculine energy.  We even tease one another about the stereotypes.  In this class feminine does not mean all women, some men would be considered feminine.  This goes for masculinity as well.  

Universality of gender, everything has either a masculine or feminine energy pushing into eachother but in a harmonious way.  Why is gender so important?  It is at the core of our personal identity, and our roles in society.  We need to manage this balance, society is off balance right now.  The yin yang religious symbol of balance suggests that we should incorporate a touch of the other's energy into our own.

Divine Roles of Men

Men are heros.  Men are strong, unyeilding, willing to die for a good cause. Men are tenacious, hard-workers willing to strain thier bodies.  They have the ability to turn off thier feelings and get the hard work done.   Men need to be engaged in battle for a good cause, if not he is losing a part of this sacred role.  He could fall prey to self-centeredness.  When we are around a hero, he makes us want to be a better person.  Men, ask yourselves, "what are you fighting for?"

We should honor the tough, strong men and women who can get up early, work physically hard all day and abuse thier bodies in the process.  When they wake up with aching muscles they take a handful of ibuprofen and get going.  When they cut themselves, they slap on some duct tape on the wound and keep going.  Even the symbolism of the male body is bony, angular, squared.  Testosterone makes them aggressive and stressed with a need to conquer.  To this end men are addicted to sex.  They need to be in battle.  They should also stay away from temptations, porn is stronger than heroine, it is powerfully addicting.  Our modern generation has quick access to many comforts.  Men don't have to fight for or earn thier comfort.  Men are often too proud to admit they need help with things, or to work out feelings. Most arguements between men and women are because women are being too sensitive and men are being insensitive.

Divine Roles of Women.

Women are nurturing, sensitive and beautify the world.  Women make the world worth fighting for. She heals him from battle and prepares him for the next battle.  She inspires him.  A woman is the perfect symbol of comfort.  Women's culture is more mature.  She is always sorting feelings.  They are relational being and love to serve and it helps them to grow. 

The symbolism of the woman's body is feminine.  Her body is softer, rounder, her voice is sweeter.  She is emotional, sensitive and has natural empathy.  The secret of women is that they have the ability to feel what others are feeling, in a genuine way.  She can share spiritual energy with others down to the heart level.  Women should know that for men sex is a matter of psychic survival.  This actually gives women more power.  Men are usually interested in sex anytime, but for women, they like to test the men giving them an interview of sorts to see if she is respected by him and if she respects him.  If he is living his life as a hero, she will respect him.

Women have extra keen senses.  Women can't turn thier brains off.....EVER!  She worries all the time.  She can manage many things at once.  Women hold a lot of psychic energy.

Let's solve the tension between genders and resolve the mistrust,

In order to optimize our potential let's see both the good and the bad in masculine and feminine traits/roles.  Let's see the good and the bad in traditional and modern roles.  Traditional man was the respected head of the household, and a manager protecting everyone's rights which is a system that can work well.  Modern is that everyone has equal value and rights, who is the leader? Let's see the good and the bad in being extreme vs moderation.  Let's see the good and the bad in conformity and definance.  To conform is the peace-keeper, law abider, keeping everything running smoothly and the deviant keeps us open-minded.  We need to stop finger-pointing.  We need to find the beauty in all sides.  We can make fun of both genders equally, be moderate.  It would seem that over the years in times of war we respect masculinity more, and in times of peace we respect femininity more. 

Power and Beauty

One way to look at this energy working together is the view of the HERO and his HEALER.  Another way to see this are the roles are THE KEEPER OF THE SACRED and her PROTECTOR.

A word of caution;

How we've made a mess of things;  men abuse and women enable.  There is a saying that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.  Women should remind thier family that your service is a gift, not a right.  Women can toughen up.  Don't save the man and the children from every amount of suffering.  A moderate amount of suffering is fine.  If there is a high amount of suffering then we serve one another.  A low amount of suffering (ie the man tired on the couch asks the woman to fix him a sandwich, although she is still working on cleaning the kitchen) let him suffer, it's OK.  Tell him he has two hands and can make himself a sandwich. If the woman is the garbage can for all the pain and suffering in the home, she will not be valued or respected and she will hold all the negative energy. A man too arrogant to appologize is addicted to putting his stress and anxiety into someone else.  A man should feel pride in meeting her emotional needs. 

We Live for Love

     Thank you to the best friends in the entire world for making such great memories with us!!  We've been looking forward to this day for months now.  Four couples, a limo, an adventure in Wendover and a concert to remember!  I love you all!  Mark, thank you for using so much of your energy to love and adore me.  I am blessed.  Pat Benatar sings a song "We Live for Love", and as often as we date and celebrate life with our friends and family, that may just be our theme song!

Our album cover one day!

Cheers! Greg & Karen

Nikki and I brave the wind at the tree of Utah

This hot co-pilot is my guy!

Nikki and I at the casino entrance

Dinner at Pancho and Willie's

We got dropped off in front and I heard someone in the crowd say, "Do you think she is in there?"

Our gorgeous friends; Andy & Kristy Clawson, Nikki & Todd Oswald, Greg & Karen Gardner, me and Mark

Pat Benatar and no I didn't take this pic.  I found it online.  All the seats at the Peppermill Concert Hall are really good, it's a small venue.  It was an INCREDIBLE show, she played almost everything I wanted her to!

On our way home, couldn't be happier with this adventure!!!

Mark's Lecture on the Dark Side of Relationships

This lecture is fascinating to me.  Once you read the roles that are played out in the psychic warfare between people you come to realize that all of us has played EACH of these rolls at one time or another, whether we are aware of it or not. 

The power of relationships is so important.  We need eachother.  We have so much to learn from eachother.  We share knowledge.  We share energy (good and bad).  People don't achieve if we're afraid of eachother.  We all have a little bit of all of these roles, it's not a matter of passing blame.  

All of us are working together to overcome this collective core fear.  It limits all of us from reaching our true potential.  90% of our pain, fears, and suffering come from other human beings, we are doing this to eachother, man's inhumanity to man!

Five Theories to explain what people are doing to eachother;

Comfort Theory; as people, our main need is comfort.  We compete for it by gaining validation, space, love...the main source of comfort being a sense of pride.  We deeply want to be accepted and approved of by one another.  Our ego (self) defenses are ways that we defend a sense of who we are. 

Unconsious Defense;  We do the opposite of our fear to try and keep the fear away.

Equilibrium Theory;  We we are out of balance, forced naturally cause you to go back into balance.  The laws of physics that create balance also exist socially. 

Energy Channeling;  Humans naturally channel energy.  You can give someone else love or hate energy; positive or negative. Even if they are not near you.   We are responsible for our energy output.  We teach our children to be responsible for our choice of behavior, we teach our children that we are responsible for our choice of words, we should also teach our children and ourselves to be responsible for what our energy is doing!

Satanic Influence Theory;  Evil trying to negatively influence us with dark energy.  The mind is influenced by the energy around us.

The Roles we play in Psychic Warfare.  If not moderated they will limit the potential of the human race.

Scapegoating-   This happens within groups of friends, co-workers, family, and even entire groups of people.  We pick on the weakest person or group and put them down in order to feel bigger and badder.  We collectively channel our negative energy and avoid that person or group.  The scapegoat seeks validation and will act out or withdrawl.  In the movie "Master & Commander" there is a scene when there is no wind and the sailors are getting very anxious.  They begin to bump into, sneer and pick on one man.  Eventually the man holds a cannonball and jumps to his death off of the ship, sacrificing himself as the scapegoat for all the hate and anger on board.  We can break this pattern by accepting that we'll take a turn and not let it get to us...or discontinue that relationship. 

Seduction/Alliance-  We find ways to connect with others and subconciously make an agreement that we won't hurt eachother. We seek ways to seduce, or seek approval from them to get them to like us.  We stay in our comfort zone among those who validate us (think about high school cliques, sports teams, religious groups, where we live, political parties, etc.)  Feeling like we belong to a club, we agree with the groups opinions.  We are drawn to confident people and groups because we feel like noone will scapegoat them.

Labeling/Prejudice-  Judgements weaken people over time.  People begin to act out in the way that we expect them too based on the label. 

 
Project/Introject-  To put OUT energy, or to take IN energy.  Men typically project and women typically introject.   Men solve problems by thinking "Oh, that doesn' affect me, that sucks for you, man up, don't bother me with your problems."  They work out thier own feelings with aggression like games or sports.  Women want to talk it out and heal other's pain.  They take it in themselves.  They heal by talking with other women, reading books, watching movies about the issue, feel it and sort it out.  We must learn to negotiate the energy.  (Women, don't ever date a man who cannot own his weaknesses.  It is highly likely that he will blame you or your children for them.)

Polarize/ Ellipse-  If we do something extreme, the other will do the opposite thing.

We push eachother into playing out opposites.  If we're too needy we will turn the other person away from us.  If the person is insecure they could be taken advantage of.  We tend to do this as parents and we create a desire for our children to become the opposite of us!  In order to fix this we must moderate our thoughts, actions and energy.
Validation/Comfort- We can become addicted to this.  We cannot NEED other people.  We need to learn how to validate and comfort ourselves.  What if people didn't like you....so?  What if you were giving a speech in front of a large crowd and you were the only one wearing your underwear......so?  This is a difficult process but we can overcome our fear of not getting comfort from others.

Drama Triangle-  Like every old western, there are three main roles; HERO, VILLIAN and DAMSEL in destress.    We have each played the Good guy, the Bad guy or the Victim at different times.  Other people can project these roles onto us, we are not as free to be ourselves as we think.  What labels do we put on ourselves, and how do they affect the way we live?

Energy Vampires-We all love energy so we try to steal it from one another.  An energy vampire will take over every conversation, and seek validation at every opportunity.  They will suck the energy out of a room.  Is there a way to find a balance in this situation and negotiate the relationship, or is it time to end the relationship?

Rejuvination

     Mark is doing a little better these past two days.  It has been rough lately, lots of issues but he's still working, teaching, parenting, having fun, and even made a work trip to Nevada.  He's determined to do all he can, while he can.  He is impressive. 

     It's no secret that Mark is really good at handling this.  I struggle.  A lot.  I have been practicing only focusing on the next few hours of the day and not much more.  This is helpful, but when you don't check your schedule often, I forget stuff.  Appologies to the dentist office, my kids after school, parent/teacher conference, a couple of my clients, and several other moments that I've been late or completely forgot.  I'm that mom now.   C'est la vie. 

     Saturday was a super day.  Mark had returned safely from his Nevada trip at 2 that morning.  We met friends for a temple session and ran into my aunt and uncle again. Peace.  Hope.  Rejuvination.

     Afterwards I had a chance to have lunch with a friend from high school.  It was a lovely meeting and it made me think a lot about some things I take for granted.  It was a very insightful conversation, thanks Kimberly!  I forgot to take a picture although my camera was in my hand.  I'm soooooo airheaded lately!
     After lunch Mark and I correlated with our buisness partner to complete end-of-the-month reports and finished in time for the home health nurse to come draw Mark's blood. 

     Ah, the date night was here.  I look forward to this so much.  We met up with our buddies and watched the State Championship basketball game together.  It was intense!!  In the end SV beat MC and our friend Karen was all too happy!!  The couples all met at Downatta Hot Springs for our dinner and soak.  We played water volley ball "Guns" vs "Roses" Guns (the guys), won,  then Bobcats vs Mustangs and the Mustangs won.  We laughed a lot together, we always do!  We love you guys!!

 What?  This IS our normal!!!  Gary & Jennie Moore, Byson & Larissa Swazey, Andy & Kristy Clawson, Karen & Greg Gardner, Mark & LaDena Kailing, Tex & Carrie Keen, and Todd & Nikki Oswald.