Emmi and Mallory's Awards

 Emmi finished all the paper work, study, testing and interviews to get her Enlisted Information Warfare Specialist Pin.  This was her comment when she sent the news of her achievement.  And I quote:

"It's possible to do this several months long project in six weeks.  I have learned that I can work harder than people expect me to.  thank you for the prayers and support as I knocked this beast out."

Congratulations Emmi Girl!  You are a rock star for sure and we are so proud of you!

Mallory also received a notice from BYU telling her that she received an academic achievement from PHI ETA SIGMA National Honor Society.  3,5 and above grade point.  Way to go Mallory!!!

Valentine's Day

 Valentine's Day.  One of my very favorite holidays.  Well, I guess we are stretching it to say it is actually a holiday but it is a fun day recognized by most people.  I've already told how my mother always made it such a special day when I was growing up and I guess those memories have always stayed me.  I loved my childhood and that love mostly because of a mother who, as poor as we were, did everything she could to make any special day memorable.  I shall always love her for that.

This year, Lynda Ann, Mallory, Hayley and I met Susan at Joe Vera's for our Valentine lunch and gathering.  It is always a fun time to be with Susan and fun to have something a little extra to celebrate.  I think we are all still feeling a bit saddened that Lila Mae isn't with us anymore.  It is still a bit of a shock to meet for lunch and not have her there.  But each time we get together,  the sting of her absence becomes a little less.  Doesn't mean that we don't think about her just as much and miss her intensely, but time does allows us to smile and remember the good times without the sadness that has accompanied those memories in the past months.  

When I got home from this fun day there was a gift delivered to our front door from the California Maxfields.  Always a welcome surprise!  Chocolate Dunford Donuts, Godiva Chocolates and a beautiful Valentine flower arrangement.  What a delightful surprise and gift.  

Again, this year Neal and I sent out our Valentine's to the grandchildren with the traditional $2.00 bill enclosed.  Two people sent me pictures when they received their Valentine.  Of course cute Brinkley displaying the card and the bill.  

I'm assuming everyone received their Valentine's except Justin Hintze.  Sadly his came back.  I've text him asking for his new address but haven't heard from him yet.  

Neal and I made our annual Valentine dinner date at Market Street.  We had a delicious dinner and loved spending the evening together reminiscing about past years together.  Glad that we always do something to make it a special day for us.  

Happy 2023 Valentine's Day everyone!  We love you all.

Temple Work

Last week I had the opportunity to do some sealings at the Jordan River Temple.  A group of us were sealing couples together and sealing children to parents.  As I knelt at the alter in proxy for a girl being sealed to her parents, I felt an overwhelming joy come over me.  I thought about the time, when I was a little girl, and we traveled to the Manti Temple to have Annette and I sealed to our parents.  

The temples provide an opportunity to do ordinance work for our kindred dead and for others.  It is an opportunity for us to serve those who have past on.  I believe that doing temple work helps us develop a kindship with our Heavenly Father and that brings us peace and happiness.  In the temple there is an influence and spirit that touches our minds, hearts and souls of those present.  

It is truly the House of the Lord.

 

Stitching Progress and Bridge with the Ladies

 I had to show an update on my stitching project, Repeat the Sounding Joy.  This is definitely going to go down as one of my favorites when it is completed.  I still have a long ways to go before it is finished and ready to be framed.  I already love it.

I also wanted to mention that I hosted a bridge afternoon with Judy and a couple other ladies.  I loved my table setting.  Notice the table cloth and the little Valentine favors.  

Moving Day

 It was moving day for Lyndsy.  She has been living in Tremonton for the past couple years and is now moving back to Salt Lake.  Maren, Greg and Neal left Friday morning about 10:30 and spent the day packing all of Lyndsy's belongings.  Maren brought two large plastic containers and Neal brought 4 large containers.  All the containers were filled and everything packed in the back of Maren's truck.  The project took them all day.  Maren dropped off Neal about 6:30.  

Maren loved her dad's expertise on knots and had to take a picture.  

Truck loaded and ready to leave Tremonton.

Nice of the three of them to give up their whole day to help Lyndsy move.  Maren's new truck certainly came in handy!  

Valentine Saturday

 Lynda Ann and Hayley and I drove to Provo on Saturday to meet Susan and Mallory at Joe Vera's for our Valentine gathering.  We all love the Mexican Food at Joe's.  It is on the Center Street of Provo.  It is fun for me to drive down Center Street and remember my growing up years and the hundreds or thousand times I walked that area going to and from high school and then BYU.  We had a great time visiting and filling our tummies with good food.  It is always fun to get together with Susan and continue the tradition.  It is always a bit sad not to have Lila Mae there.  She was our anchor.  So now I guess it falls on Annie, Susan and myself to make sure that we continue the tradition of getting together for all the holidays and all the in between holidays that we can.  

After lunch we headed to University Mall to look around and pick up a couple items.  Then we dropped Mallory off at her apartment and headed home.  It was such a fun day and I love getting together.  

Three Backyard Friends

 Sunday morning as Neal and I were leaving for Stake Conference I happened to glance out the North windows and saw not one, not two, but three squirrels scampering around in the trees.  Neal and I stood there and watched them for a good 5 minutes or so.  They were so much fun to watch as they chased each other around the trees, jumping from limb to limb and tree to tree.  I'm pretty sure that the two really active ones that were on a fast chase were two males trying to claim their territory and the attention of the female.  It was so much fun to watch them.  This is a picture I caught of one of the scampering along the fence.

Neal and I also went to the Backyard Bird place and bought another feeder that will hold seeds and small nuts.  I'll have to take a picture of it.  We have noticed that the squirrels haven't discovered the other feeder yet.  The birds have but the squirrels seem more than happy with the peanut feeder for now.  They are now known as Chip and Dale and Nancy!

Fun Lunch

 Mallory and I had some stuff that needed to be framed so she drove up from Provo and we jumped in my car and headed over to the Framing Establishment.  Patty is the one we like to work with and I had called that morning to find out her schedule and she said she would only be there until one.  Mallory worked that morning and Neal and I had a funeral but we were back at 12:30 from the funeral and Mallory had just pulled in the driveway.  We made it to the frame shop in time to have Patty's help in choosing colors of frames and mats.  Quite a process.  From there, we settled on Cheesecake Factory for lunch.  We got there at 1:30 and realized we were just after the lunch crowd and just before the early afternoon and dinner crowd.  We had a delicious lunch along with a fun visit, catching up on her new job on campus, her classes for this semester and her new found entertainment of attending the basketball games.  She doesn't see any sense in football but loves basketball.  Of course I had her snap a picture of the two of us enjoying our time together.

Mallory headed home about 3:30 so she could be on the freeway and ahead of the evening commute.  What a fun afternoon!  Thanks Mallory for hanging out with your Gam.

Angels Among Us

 A couple weeks ago when I was with Mallory in Orem. we met Susan for lunch and then did some shopping.  She told me a story about a basketball player at BYU named Trey Stewart.  Trey deals with depression and is very aware of mental health issues.  Mallory said that Trey is a big fan of motivational words and quotes.  He started a company called Default Happiness.  He does clothing with positive words of them.  Mallory mentioned that she discovered him and his story at a time when she was feeling down.  She ordered a sweatshirt from his company and also posted a "thank you" for helping her feel better about herself.  There was some correspondence back and forth.  After Mallory related the story to me I wanted in on the sweatshirt so she ordered one for me.  It hasn't come yet but when it does, I will for sure model it and blog the picture.  I'm so impressed with people who move from down to up.  Who recognize, acknowledge and embrace the fact that they do have mental health issues and find ways to turn it around to a positive.  I certainly wish this young man the very best in his basketball career and his new business!

Along with this story is another that I heard and wanted to post.  I will quote the incident as told by one who experienced it.

"We were seven missionaries at JFK going to Portugal.  We had faced the disappointment of a cancelled flight and had spent the night at JFK.  The mission home people in New York heard of our plight but couldn't come to rescue us at the airport until the next morning.  As we were gathering up all of our stuff the mission president noticed that we were all carrying pillows.  He asked us where we got the pillows.  We responded, "from an angel, a real angel."  We told the mission president that as we laid on the benches at the airport last night, we fell asleep.  And when we awoke this morning, we all had these pillows under our heads.  No one saw anyone or heard anything giving us the pillows.  Some of us were also covered up with a blanket.  We all had tears in our eyes as we related the experience."

So I will add here that I believe angels are everywhere watching and caring for all of us including God's missionaries, even at JFK on a bench !

 

Emmi's Award

 Emmi got a much deserved award from the Navy.  A Navy Achievement Medal.  So proud of you Emmi and what you are accomplishing and continue to accomplish with your career in the Navy.  

Proud to have you representing the family, church and armed forces in such a grand manner.  You are an amazing example of someone who has stayed true to your beliefs no matter where you are assigned.  You have much to be proud of!  We love you!!

Emmi's next adventures will take her to Texas the beginning of March where she will be stationed until the first of July and then transferred to Hawaii for the next 5 years.  Yes, there will be on going trips to Hawaii!

Number 8!

 Maren and Brock and some friends drove to Indio, California for a Lacrosse Tournament.  Maren said they stayed at Buffalo Bills the first evening and she thought about the family trip to California.  So long ago.  We do need to plan more family adventures before Neal and I get too old to go on them.  This is the picture she sent of the back of Brock.

Frustrations with the computer.  For some reason it won't let me download the picture of Brock from my phone to the computer.  So, sadly, you will just have to trust that there is a picture with his wearing his number 8 jersey.  I know nothing about Lacrosse but with a grandson playing - I'd best learn quickly.

Sorry there is no picture to post.  

Totally taken care of!

 

These are the people who installed our new furnace and air conditioner.  Part of the sales pitch that goes for all new furnaces and conditioners is that UP&L will give you a $2400+ rebate for installing an energy saving furnace and air conditioning units.  When everything was done, they went over how easy it would be for me to go on line and sign up for the rebate for the furnace, air conditioner and the new thermostat.  It all sounded simple and easy.  Neal asked me if I would be in charge of registering everything for the rebates and I agreed.

I got on line and started out doing exactly what they had told me.  As I pushed 'enter' for the website a notice came up that the website was no longer available.  I tried a number of ways to get to the rebate site but to no avail, so I called Thompson's for assistance.  The secretary told me that UP&L had changed their website and what the new site was.  I went back and typed in the new address and sure enough UP&L came up but, where to go from there?  Nothing was clear.  I struggled with it for a few hours and finally gave up.  The next week I called my neighbor and friend, Mindy L., and asked her if she could come over and help walk me through the computer rebate maze.  They had purchased the very same units we had just 6 months prior and she said it was easy to do.  She came over last Friday and we sat at my computer for over an hour and nothing worked.  She couldn't believe how easy it had been for her and now this new system was almost impossible to navigate through - and I will add here that she is very computer savvy!  We finally gave up and I called Thompson's back again and talked with the secretary about the trouble we were having.  I put her on speaker and she tried to walk us through it but it just didn't work so she finally said that if I came down to the office on Tuesday the 17th she would be happy to help me with it.  Sounded like a perfect and grand idea.

Tuesday morning I drove down to Thompson's, which is only 3 miles from our home.  I walked in and a young man came out and asked how he could help.  I said that I couldn't figure out the rebate maze and he said he would be glad to help me.  I really thought they were going to sit me down at a computer and walk me through it but he didn't!  He had me sit by him and he did the whole process for me!  All the time he was working on it he was saying how UP&L had changed their system and how incredibly confusing the process was now compared to how it used to be.  This young man not only made me feel "not stupid" but how frustrated so many of their customers had been with the new system.  He not only completed the whole process for me but he also did the thermostat paper work that has to be sent in.  He put that paper work in an envelope, sealed and put a stamp on it!  All I had to do was drop it in the mail box.   The whole process took about 30 minutes and I walked out of there with everything done.  

I was so relieved and happy and I felt like they deserved a reward for their kindness and time spent on me.  I drove right to Sees and got them a box of chocolates and took it back to them with a HUGE THANK YOU!  Even gave the young man a hug.  It was a BLUE letter day (don't want to say red).  I'll add here that the young man had a BYU logo on his desk!!!  PLUS, PLUS!!!

Sometimes there are advantages to being a nice, cute little senior and not being afraid to ask for help.  Ahhh yes, life is good!

Close up of Chip and/or Dale

 How dang cute is this little guy.  I noticed him or her feeding and went outside right by the fence and he just kept eating while I was take a snap shot of him.  He didn't seem concerned at all.  I am now in love with squirrels!  I'm hoping they are nesting and will have some babies!  

Chip and Dale

 My new year began with finding out that we had two bushy tailed squirrels living in our backyard trees.  What a fun surprise.  Every morning and evening Neal and I watch those cute little critters jump from limb to limb and tree to tree.  They are extremely agile and very, very fast.  I had to name them so I chose Chip and Dale.  I know, not very original but those were the names that came to me so it had to be.  However I think one of them is probably a female so it could be Chip and Dalia or Chipalene and Dale!  I ran a bunch of errands yesterday and stopped at The Bird House in Sugarhouse and asked what they had for squirrels.  I ended up buying a feeder and a big bag of peanuts.  When I got home, Neal and I drove around to the back of the lot with boots, ladder and gloves.  Climbed the wall and up to the tree where we hung the feeder full of peanuts.  It has been such fun watching Chip and Dale figure out how to get the peanuts out of the feeder and then watch them shell and eat their treat.  

This is a picture of their entrance into their nest.  There are 5 different holes in this tree.  From what I've read, squirrels usually gain entrance to an old tree from what a woodpecker may have left behind.  I've seen Chip and Dale go in and out so I know they are nesting in there.

This was a picture I took at The Bird House place.  I had just closed the door in my car and happened to notice this happy little guy scrounging around for food.  I notice that the owners had hung a little nesting house for the squirrels up in a tree close by.  I'm sure they leave food for them every day.

They were very helpful to me when I went in the store and told them what I wanted to do.  Now I know where to go for more food and anything else I might need for my new friends.

So this is the feeder and the big bag of peanuts.  

Neal hanging the feeder just below their nesting area, but high enough so that we can easily see it from our windows.

It didn't take long for them to discover it and have already taken some peanuts out.  It is so fun to watch them figure out how to get the nuts out and then watch them as they sit on the branch and shell them and eat.  I'm sure when Spring comes and the leaves pop out, we won't have a clear visual of them but we will certainly enjoy them for as long as we can and will continue to feed them.

Happy New Year 2023

 I've never been much of a Happy New Year celebrator but I'll say it just because it is tradition to wish people a happy new year.  I always had dates for New Years and always loved the dancing and having fun, but the actual blowing horns, wearing hats and throwing confetti always seemed stupid to me.  I'm sure I'm in the minority about New Years celebrations.  It kind of goes hand in hand with Halloween.  Don't get either one of them.

Neal and I ended 2022 with COVID.  Yup.  We finally got hit with it.  We think it may have come from Ron and Judy.  They had been at our house just before Christmas and then found out a couple days later that they had COVID.  Christmas Eve was when it hit me with a vengeance.  I had a fever, ached all over and couldn't get warm. I had the heating pad on me most of the night.  Christmas morning I felt a little better.  Neal and I were singing in a double quartet so we both needed to be at church Sunday morning.  I literally prayed that my voice would hold out and that I could get through the meeting.  Prayers are answered and we both made it through the meeting and were able to sing.  

We did go out to Maren's that afternoon for a couple of hours and then back home for the rest of the day.  Monday, we went out to Annie's for dinner and games and to say goodbye to Abby and Emmi.  I've already written about the journey for Emmi and Abby to get home.  While Annie, Abby and I were driving to California, Neal called me and said he was really sick and running a fever.  I just figured he had my cold.  Toward the end of the week I finally dug out our COVID tests and both Neal and I were positive for COVID.  The sad thing is that we had been around Annie's family and Maren's family.  So far the only person that we know of who now has COVID is Mallory.  She tested positive yesterday.  I feel terrible that she got it and more than likely from me.  I am grateful that we had the shots.  I think that is what kept both Neal and I from getting lung issues or being hospitalized.  So that is how we said goodbye to 2022 and welcomed 2023.  

We also welcomed in a massive bunch of snow storms to start the new year.

It is January 6th and we are still having storms rolling through.  We have been in a scary water shortage for the last few years so all of this moisture is welcome.  We need the storms to keep coming through and dumping snow in the mountains.  

Emmi is on her way - Abby's flight gets cancelled

 Abby's flight to LA on Southwest got cancelled and there would be no more flights with SW until the 31st!!  Annie searched the other airlines trying to find a flight for Abby and nothing was available.  There were just no options to get Abby back to California.  So I got a call from Lynda Ann after midnight telling me the situation and asking me if I would be willing to drive with her and Abby to California that next morning!  I told her I could do that.  Annie was able to rent a car for $125.00 and preparations went into motion to leave the next morning to get Abby back to Calif.  They picked me up at 9:30 and we headed out.  It just happened that there wasn't any major snow storms going on.  We did have a lot of rain and some slush through most of Utah until we got past Cedar City and then it got better.  Annie drove all the way on about 3 hours of sleep the night before.  Abby talked all about her mission and her testimony of the gospel and Jesus Christ.  It was an amazing trip and the time went by incredibly fast.  We arrive in LA about 9:30 and fell into bed.  The next day was spent driving all around Abby's mission area and viewing the parks and places she had told us about.  We met up with one of her friends for lunch and then met up with Antonio for dinner.  It was a perfect day and almost perfect temperature.  

The next morning, Annie and I got up at 3:30 and left LA at 4:15.  Again she drove all the way home.  We were blessed again with a window of good weather and dry roads.  We arrived in Salt Lake at 1:30 taking us 9 hours and 15 minutes to get home.  It was a fast turn around trip but it worked out beautifully and we all felt blessed and well taken care of.

This isn't my story but I will add these pictures of Abby and Antonio.  

There was one crazy incident that happened that I will do my best to try and explain.  We were within 5 minutes of Abby place and we were talking and laughing and Annie missed the exit.  It was determined that because we had missed the exit it was going to now take us 30 more minutes because there was an accident ahead on the freeway.  As we slowed down for all the traffic and came to a stop, we noticed that the ON RAMP was to the right side of us and it was blocked off and cars were turning around and headed back up the on ramp.  So Abby and I totally talked Annie into driving over the area between the freeway and the on ramp and following the other cars back up the on ramp.  When we did it, we noticed the cars behind us doing following our lead!  We were laughing so dang hard.  This picture is looking back down the on ramp freeway entrance and the cars following us back the wrong way.  

We made it safely to Abby's!!

Time with Emmi and Abby

 Both the girls were only here for a short visit and then would be heading home.  Emmi, the day after Christmas and Abby the day after that.  Emmi had a hair appointment with Dave the week in between our party and Christmas.  I met her and Annie at the Original Pancake House for breakfast. 

Emmi had flight reservations for 6:00 a.m. on the 26th.  But found out her flight had been cancelled which gave her one more day with us.  Now, it looked like Emmi would be flying to Georgia the morning of the 27th and Abby back to LA the afternoon of the 27th.  The kids wanted Neal and I to come out on the 26th for dinner and games.  So Monday afternoon we went out to Stansbury where we played games until 9:30 and had Papa Murphy's pizza for dinner.  Such a fun, fun evening.  

Of course we had to take some pictures before leaving.  Always sad saying 'goodbye'.  

Again, I thought this would be the last time I would see Emmi and Abby for a while.  But . . . .