30 Oct 2016 Catch up Blog--Mike and Andrea

Hi All,

March 2016

Mike and Andrea and the girls came up to hear our sacrament meeting talks.  We took them to the zoo, which was very enjoyable. 

 Nicole was so funny.  She closes all the doors and if the toilet paper roll hangs down several squares she will adjust the roll so it is level.  She takes after her Mother’s neat freakiness.

24 April 2016

We were SKYPING with Andrea.  Nicole went outside and came back in.  She wanted her Mother to play with her so she came in to where we were SKYPING and said, “Be Done, Mom”. 

May 1, 2016

We had a wonderful time at Mike and Andrea’s though it was cut short by sickness.  We went to the new house, the park and then to Culvers.  On the swings, Tara would lie back and let the sun shine on her face.  In the morning we went on a walk and blew dandelion seeds.  Afterwards I played in the backyard where I chased Nicole with the “Kitty ball”.  It was great fun.  Unfortunately, Tara and Andrea got sick so we had to go home early.

June 13, 2016

We had a good time at Mike and Andrea’s.  We got to their house on Friday and helped Andrea with house things.  Their house is going to be very beautiful.  We ate at Café Rio and afterwards watched a movie. 

Sandy and I went to a great park and played with the kids Saturday morning.  Sandy probably had as much if not more fun than the kids. We watched Nicole and Tara while Mike and Andrea went out for their anniversary.  That evening we played Pinochle while waiting for a delicious Beef Brisquet that was finally ready around 11 pm, so we ate it on Sunday.   We also played Taboo which was a lot of fun. 

Sunday they didn’t have enough nursery leaders so Sandy and I helped out and had a good time.

9 July 2016

Mike and Andrea visited again this week.  Andrea wanted to take Nichole and Tara to see the Centerville parade.  While they were here, Mike and I played tennis, we went on the Lagoon trail and had a dinner with Kaelynn and Matt, besides going to the parade.  On Monday we went to the parade and afterwards to some of the booths at Founders Park.  We saw Melissa and Clint and their families at the park afterwards. 

The girls were very cute.  Nichole had her three year olds moments but she had some memorable quotes. 

          She asked where Mike was.

I told her Mike was downstairs.  Nichole said she needed to go downstairs to check on him. 

Nichole said we needed to be careful because we could fall down and die. 

She also told us that one of her legs go faster than the other.

24 July 2016

We helped Andrea and Mike move on Friday.  The move went well and it was enjoyable to be with Mike, Andrea and the girls as well as Bob and Lonnie.  Their new home is gorgeous.  I was very tired, but the ankle held up. 

Brian and Mindi Catch Up blog October 2016

Hi All,

I am catching up on Brian and Mindi's family from Mission home to Aug 2016

24 April 2016

We went to the zoo with Jaimee, Brandon, Sarah and Will.  We stopped in at McDonalds beforehand and then went to the zoo.  All through the day, funny comments were made.

 

Sarah asked me, “What do Polar Bears play with? 

Brandon was upset with the noise in the car and said, “Quiet everyone I’m trying to focus”.

He also said, “Being a member of the church can be your full-time job.  Think of the Prophet.”

I was particularly impressed with how kind and considerate Jaimee and Sarah were.  When Brandon was acting obstinate, they would try to accommodate him.  Sarah said that she “loves me so much”.  Jaimee kept thanking me for taking them to the zoo and kept saying how much she loved it. 

I ate lunch with Brandon and Jaimee.  I had good talks with both of them.  After Brandon showed me his classroom and desk he gave me a hug and said, “We’ll have to do this again”. 

1 May 2016

We went to a lovely birthday party for Wil and Sarah.  Sarah was so cute.  She would grab each present and say it was just what she wanted. 

The party was in Brian and Mindi’s backyard.  They have really made the backyard look great.  

31 July 2016

Brian and Mindi’s Hyrum was born on Friday!  It was a hard delivery but everything went well and everyone’s happy. 

9 August 2016

We watched Jaimee, Brandon, Sarah and Will for two days this week.  They are beautiful, bright and wonderful children.  We painted, played games, went to Farmington Pond, went to McDonalds and saw “The Secret Life of Pets”. 

A few memorable quotes:

Brandon: after Sandy got an art book to help with painting, Brandon said, “In Arts and Humanities I didn’t do well but with this book I can do good”. 

Sarah: “These Sun Chips are made from the sun”. Also, “Heavenly Father wanted me to be smart so he made me smart”.  Finally, “What happens if you eat too much healthy foods?”

Jaimee.  Brandon and Sarah were fighting about singing.  Brandon did not want her to sing.  Jaimee said to Brandon to let her sing because:  “One, she is only four; and two, she was singing first”. 

By the way, Brandon is eating a micro waved creamy and enjoying it

Nate and Beth Posts April to Aug 2016

Hi All

I'm catching up on blogs.  Last week I posted the Chris and Lisa updates.  This week it's Nate and Beth family.

3 April 2016

I played tennis with Nate and Spence, Preston, Lauryn.  We practiced hitting against the wall.  Lauryn out of the blue told me, “My Dad is not fat, he is large”.

 June 13, 2016

  

Camden had his third birthday party which was pretty amazing.  He had a dinosaur cake and a lot of great presents.

 

I went to Spencer’s swim meet at Cottonwood High School.  He did great, placing first and third in two heats.  He has improved his swimming a great deal.  When we were at the Rec Center I raced with him and he killed me. 

 9 July 2016

I took Spencer and Preston golfing at Swan Lake this week.  It was fun to see them hit the ball.  They got better throughout the time we were there. 

Sandy and I took Lauryn and Camden to the zoo.  They were excited and enjoyed being there.  We saw the Elephant show, the Bird show and the Nature show.  

Lauryn asked us if we were “sad when my Dad moved out to marry my mom?”  She also told us that Hawaii is “famous for potatoes”.

We Lauryn had a wonderful birthday party. 

9 Aug 2016

Last week we watched Spencer, Preston, Lauryn and Camden while Beth took care of her Mother after surgery.  We had a very enjoyable time with them.  Friday morning we went to the Hill Air Force Base Museum and afterwards I took Spencer and Preston swimming while Lauryn did art with Sandy and Preston took a nap.  That evening we had dinner with Nate and the kids and with Brian and his kids.  Nate and the kids slept overnight.  Saturday morning Spencer and Preston “played” tennis with me while Sandy watched Camden and Lauryn at the playground.  That evening we had a wonderful cookout in Mueller Park with Nate and kids, Brian and kids and Kaelynn/Matt kids.  All the kids could not stop laughing when Kaelynn told the story of “I got you where I want you now I’m going to eat you”. 

Nate and I took Spencer and Preston on a great backpacking trip to Wall Lake in the Uintas.  We caught two nice brook trout, played “camoulflauge” , talked about foofing, pooping and other scout-like stuff.  On the way back we stopped for hamburgers and milkshakes. They were a lot of fun to be with and hope they have good memories.  Unfortunately, Brian and his kids nor Chris and his kids could come.

 4 September 2016

We had another picnic with the Nate and kids, Brian and kids and Kaelynn and kids at Woodland Park.  We had some delicious sloppy joes and other.  We had some contests: three-legged race, crab walk and hopping races.  Camden walked around picking up sticks for the fire; Sarah hugged me and said that she missed me; Jaimee thanked us and helped bring stuff to the car.  It was a lovely evening. 

5 Sep 2016

Hello All,

Because I have not posted a blog in a while, I am going to make several posts each one with a different set of children and grandchildren.  First one is Chris and Lisa:

3 April 2016

Chris and Lisa spent several days with us.  We went to the zoo, we went on walks, listened to Matthew play the Cello and Alyssa play the violin.  It was very enjoyable to be with them. 

I also went to Matthew’s concert at Libby Gardner Hall.  His orchestra won region and came up to the UofU to perform.  I enjoyed their performance very much.  

June 13, 2016

Chris and Lisa came up for a couple of days and we had a great time with them.   Emma came up with a beauty: I have said on multiple occasions that I get paid (retirement check) for “sucking air”.  She asked me whether I actually get paid for breathing.  We were quite proud of her because she fasted on Fast Sunday that her aunt would feel better.  We went to the Great Salt Lake bird refuge and saw Blue Herons and other birds as well as a garter snake.

26 June 2016

Chris and Lisa came up Thursday night for the baby blessing.  Chris got a telescope for his birthday and we looked at Mars, Saturn and Jupiter.  The next day we went to the zoo and got back in time to welcome Mike and Andrea and the kids.  We had a lovely London Broil dinner.  Afterwards we played “Werewolf” which everyone enjoyed.  Saturday Mike, Chris and I and our neighbor Larry played tennis in the morning.  We all had a lot of fun.  Afterwards, Chris, Lisa, Mike, Andrea went to the Temple to do sealings while Matthew and I did baptisms for the dead.  I was proud of Matthew—he enjoyed doing the baptisms and afterwards we signed him up at familysearch.org.  Later that day we went swimming at the bubble and then had pizza in Brian and Mindi’s backyard.  Sunday we had the baby blessing.  Emma gave heartfelt, sincere prayers. Emma and Alyssa were very kind in playing with their young cousins, Nicole and Tara.

 16 July 2016

We spent this week watching Chris and Lisa’s children while they went to Woodbadge Scout training.  We enjoyed being with the kids very much, though it was a bit tiring.   We went on a bike ride, we went swimming at the Aquatics Center, we went snorkeling at the pond behind the Acquatics Center and we went to Del Taco for a dinner.  We enjoyed being with them for scriptures at night.  Connor and Emma asked about what happens when we die and we had a good discussion about what happens when we die. 

(Allyssa and Emma in gymnastics)

 (A sunset picture on the way home from Cedar City)

25 August 2016

I went down to Cedar City to see Alyssa, Emma and Connor in the Children's production of "Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat".  It was a wonderful evening.  The actors were full of energy.  Our three actors were particularly excellent!  Great job!  We went out for Ice Cream afterwards at Dairy Queen. 

20 March 2016

Hi all, 

Kaelynn and Matts’ twins were born! The delivery went well.  After four days they went home and keep growing strong and healthy. 

Last Mission Post 26 Feb 2016

Hi All, 

Yesterday was a heart-rending day as we said goodbye to our friends in Portland.  Sacrament Meeting was a musical meeting where people came up to the pulpit, said their favorite hymn and then we sang it.  The Bishop got up to close the meeting by dedicating a song to us, “God Be With You Till We Meet Again”.  I lost it.  Afterwards they had a linger longer where we got to say goodbye to many. 

Following the meeting we went to Andrew Bassford’s house to help him set up a blog as he looks for other work as well as eating a wonderful dinner.  He is a professional chef and what a meal!  He also showed me a history of his father who was an infantryman in World War II which was very moving. 

After that we went to the Earnshaws for another wonderful dinner with them and the Sister Missionaries.  The Earnshaws are like the poster child for what Latter Day Saint couples should be like and the Sisters are almost like our daughters.  We felt love a great deal of love for them. 

We then went to Beatrice’s apartment and then Jan’s apartment.  Beatrice and Jan are like Sisters to Sandy.  Both Beatrice and Jan cried.  It was particularly moving when Sandy prayed with Jan.  We felt the Holy Ghost strongly and afterwards Sandy said that she felt the words said in the prayer were inspired.

On Friday night Ann came over to our house to be taught by the Elders.  She has a very simple, sweet faith and believed everything being taught.  Sandy said that she was inspired to tell her that she had a beautiful smile.

This week I went with Joseph to visit the hiring person at Advantage Health Care.  Joseph wants a second job and this was recommended.  The person at Advantage Health was very impressed with Joseph. 

We also went with Azziza to move her application for subsidized housing along at AVESTA. 

Joren is in her apartment now.  The ward people have been so good to her.  Sis Earnshaw got her beds, food and so many other things.  “Furniture Friendly” a non-profit delivered table and chairs.  I told Joren that God has blessed her greatly and she needs to write a letter to Sister Earnshaw. 

We are also going to miss the Elders and Sisters in this District very much.  They are wonderful, hard-working and fun to be with.  We’ve cherished our time with them.  We’ve been very impressed when teaching with them at their wisdom, sincerity and kindness.  We told them at our last district lunch that we want invitations to their weddings and we give expensive wedding gifts

so it would be worth their while.

  

15 Feb 2016

Hi All,

We had miracles this week in finding an apartment for Joren: 

On Wednesday Joren called us and said that she could no longer stay with Lucy and Boniface because their Grandmother was coming to live with them.  Joren told us she went to the shelter and they told her there was no room at the shelter for them.  I had probably called about 40 landlords and they all told me there were no vacancies though a few said they would accept General Assistance people but they had potential vacancies in March, April.  This was indeed a precarious situation.  I emailed the Bishop and he asked that we start searching for a motel. 

However, both Sandy and I had the feeling to call the shelter again.  I talked with a person at the shelter with whom I have a good relationship, having talked to him multiple times.  He told me the shelter was completely booked and unlike last year, they have limited budget and can only put 3 families in a motel and 3 families are already in the motel.  He was interrupted and said he’d call me back.  When he called back I asked for his advice on where I ought to look and what I ought to do.  He hesitated and then said he has a room at the shelter Joren could have if she got there right away.  Needless to say, we got her there. 

When I told the Elders in our district, they said they had been fasting that morning for Joren to find something. 

The shelter is not a good place to stay but at least she has a roof over her head.  There are four families in Joren’s apartment who share stove, refrigerator and bathroom. 

The second miracle occurred on Friday.  We went to one of our member’s apartment—Beatrice—to have an English discussion.  As we were leaving Beatrice said that there was a vacant apartment next door.  I looked in and it was vacant but I had already called the particular landlord.  In fact, I’d called him twice.  Also, the apartment looked like it was being gutted and would take some time to be ready.  The first time I called him he was one of the very few landlords that was hopeful, who said he rents to General Assistance people.  He took my number and told me he would call me when he got a vacancy.  Last week, I called back just to have him keep my name in his mind and left a message.  Anyway, like I said, the vacant apartment looked like it was not ready yet.

However, I had the feeling to call him.  His wife answered and said that the vacant apartment wouldn’t be available until April but there was another apartment available.  I called him and he said there was an apartment available in another complex.  We made an appointment to see him on Monday. 

We went there today and the apartment looks great.  He said we could have it, it’s now a waiting game for all the paperwork to get done.   

Below is a group of our African friends at Church

Below are some pictures from the Family night we had two weeks ago that somehow didn't get included

Joren and the boys with Sandy visiting beaches

8 Feb 2015

We really enjoyed going to the Boston Temple to do an Endowment Session.  We took some members of the Ward and one of our Temple Class people, Brian Curry, went to get his own endowments.  We are very impressed with Brian.  He is very strong in his commitments.  He is leaving to go on a mission in France next month.  

While driving, I had a good talk with the Bishop of the Portland Ward.  He pointed out how the Ward at one time was very strong with a lot of young people.  Now, all the young people are gone and the Ward is almost like a student Ward.  His comments tracked what I have been thinking and spurred me to think about how I would suggest that the couple that replaces us focuses on getting a family or two to church from the inactive lists.

 

We’ve been helping Maisha and Azziza search for new housing.  We’ve been helping them fill-out applications.  We got a notice from one of the housing agencies of a vacancy.  Hopefully they will get it.

I’ve been calling from a list of about 100 landlords and management companies for an apartment for Joren.   It is difficult for her to speak English, so I am searching for her.

We had a lovely dinner at the Bassford’s home.  He told me he needs to get a new job so we are walking him through “Me in 30 Seconds”, “Networking” and other job finding tools.  Andrew is very competent and sharp and we’re hoping he can get something really good.

John M. sent us a text saying he has had about 100 lessons and believes the Church is true and should therefore be baptized.  We texted him back saying we are impressed with his knowledge but there are also commitments needed in order to be baptized.  We have not heard back yet.

We have greatly enjoyed being with the District.  We hope to be invited to weddings and keep in contact with the missionaries. 

Below are pictures of the drawbridge up because a ship is passing underneath and our district at a District lunch.  We also got a picture of “My Commission” by Bruce McConkie, as well as a picture of a river in Gardner, Maine.