MaeLyn's Musings

 I like to make things. I'm not really content unless I have some project or another to be working on. Here are a couple projects I just completed. When JoAnn closed last year, I took advantage of the discounts at the very end to snag some yarn that is usually more expensive than I care to buy. This blanket was made of Bernat Baby Blanket yarn, which is usually over $10/skein, and I got 4 skeins for about $12. This yarn is very soft, but also thick, and so while I started the blanket in May or June of last year, I put it away for the summer because it was too warm to have on my lap as I worked! I picked it up again recently and finished it yesterday afternoon.  I really like the crosshatch pattern, although if I had been smart, I would have used stitch markers from the very beginning to help me keep track of the pattern. The finished blanket is about 4'x5' and will be great for snuggling under next winter.  The second project I finished yesterday is one that I started mor...

On Sunday I checked my email and was reading through the headlines of the local newspaper when I came across the photo of someone very familiar!  Customers Alfredo Torres, left, and Steven Hiatt fill up with gas at the Valero gas station at West 88th Avenue and North Pecos Street on Friday, March 27, 2026, in Thornton. (Timothy Hurst, The Denver Post) Rising gas prices put Colorado Republican congressmen on the defensive as midterm elections approach Four years ago, stickers of then-President Joe Biden began proliferating at gas stations nationwide as the cost of gasoline soared. Featuring an image of the 46th president pointing at the price displayed on the pump,  they were captioned with the words, “I did that!” Gas prices  are once again on the rise  a month after the United States and Israel began bombing Iran, resulting in a severe crimp in the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz. And fingers are once again pointing at the party occupying the White House, n...

 When a member of the bishopric sent a message to my husband several weeks ago asking if we both could meet with him, I was mystified. Usually that kind of invite suggests a major calling, but we both currently have stake callings, so that wasn't likely. The call ended up being an invitation to plan the ward Easter party, and they wanted something more Christ focused than bunnies and egg hunts. A week later, we found out that it would be a combined activity with another ward, and that a representative from their ward would assist us.  I'm not usually a party planner - one of my kids got one birthday party growing up. Thank goodness that Steven loves to plan and organize. He was the one who came up with our overarching theme. In the end, I think the activity turned out really well. Here are some of the features: The Garden of Eden This area was a reminder of how the Savior created the world, with an opportunity to create a simple banner that people could bring home and use to...

(Here is the talk that I gave today in church.) Image by ChatGPT, a person using instructions to build a model airplane. I love to make things. I like to sew, knit, crochet, bake bread, put together puzzles and LEGO sets. Some of you may like to do similar things. Maybe you like to do carpentry or make fly fishing lures, or build models or whatever. Something that I have learned over the years is that when I make something new and complicated for the very first time, it is a good idea to follow the instructions. Some instructions, patterns, recipes, blueprints, and tutorials are better and easier to follow than others.… but the best instructions are made by an expert: someone who has experience. They’ve done it before, they’ve done the measuring, they know what materials and tools are needed, they’ve experimented with different ingredients to get the best flavors and textures. They’ve figured out the best way to get the best result. And then these experts kindly made the instructions t...

 How long is the ideal length of time between when you are asked to give a talk in church, and the day that you give the talk?  3 days? 5 days? A week? Two weeks? A month? On Tuesday evening I received a text from a member of the bishopric asking if I would be willing to give a talk in church this Sunday. I said yes. I don't mind giving talks, and our ward has so few active members that those of us who are willing get asked about once a year. What I do mind, however, is the short notice. For me, the ideal amount of time is closer to two weeks than the 5 days or less that I've been given the last few times I've been asked to speak.  Imagine a world famous chef is asked to cater a dinner party. Imagine the exquisite meal he could prepare - the freshest vegetables, the tenderest meats, everything perfectly seasoned, and each dish complimenting the others in a feast for the eyes as well as the palette.  Now imagine that same chef is asked to cater a dinner party - that e...

When 2025 began, we had the use of three cars.  I had my blue van, a 2007 Toyota Sienna that we had owned since March of 2017. This is the car that Peter was driving when he had an  accident last February. It had 108,000 miles on it when we bought it and only had about 180,000 at the time of its final accident. As mentioned in the blog about the accident, we bought Uncle Carl, a 2014 Toyota Corolla with 271,000 miles on it to replace the van. Uncle Carl We had Scotty, Steven's white 2007 Toyota Highlander which we bought in September of 2018 after he was rear-ended in an accident. It had 254,000 miles on it when we bought it, and has about 315,000 on it now. Scotty We also had the use of Hannah's car while she was in Portugal.  A note about Hannah's car: When she came home from her mission in 2020, her grandma Kathy gave her a silver Honda Fit as a gift, which Hannah named Jimmy Carter. (Think Gym-y CARter. You go to the gym to get FIT and it's a car; the name of the...