From Mom (Sep2009)

September 17, 2009

We've bottled 28 quarts of peaches and tomatoes, but didn't have as big a peach crop this year. We usually do 70+ quarts.

Ensign Club went well Wed. of last week. The speaker spoke on Abraham Lincoln. We displayed Derek's pencil drawing of Abe Lincoln that Chris had come across in Derek's old room. Lorrie did a good job on table decorations, as always.

Emily and Nikki came to visit the grandparents with their babies.

After our Thursday conference call, we went downtown that Thursday, went to the noon devotional, then to our neighborhood party that night. It was very nice.

Friday we enjoyed the "Family History Jeopardy Night" at Hunter Stake. The cultural hall was full and it was very cleverly done with funny commercials, and the primary kids sang well-known primary songs with the words changed to reflect family history. The audience learned a lot about new FamilySearch from the Jeopardy questions asked and answered.

We left by 7 a.m. Sat. morning to speak at the Magna Fair. We arrived home about 4 p.m., after 2 store stops. We rested a bit and then went to Humphreys for dinner. We feel so bad for our friend Ray, whose health is deteriorating so fast.

Sun. LaMar went HT and my VT came. We went to visit the grandparents in the evening.

Monday was Doc Barton's funeral, but I was too tired to go after 5 busy days in a row. I really needed some "down time." LaMar dropped off the cake for the luncheon and then headed downtown. Chris arrived a bit after that.

There's been soooo much family history email, getting stakes ready for the new FamilySearch. I spend many hours a day handling it.

Yesterday Nelva and Arnold came in and we went out to lunch with the grandparents.

After our conference call this morning, we headed downtown and met Derek for lunch. It was good to visit with him. I missed a baby shower tonight and watched a movie with Chris.

Chris has a bad cold yesterday and today. He and Corin are doing a mountain race on Sat., so he hopes he gets feeling better. Corin twisted his ankle at mutual, but it is doing okay now for the race.

Sandy is coming to SL tomorrow to bring Corin.

After LaMar's phone shift tomorrow, we are heading to Wyoming overnight to attend a Family History conference in Evanston on Sat. We will have to miss the Oquirrh stake's family history fair at the same time. Jan Lee will do the pool opening and closing for LaMar while we are gone. The pool will close on Oct. 6 and I will surely miss having my hour of water exercise 6 days a week! Hope I will be able to exercise enough to keep in shape.

Aunt Sharon's birthday was yesterday. Emily's coming up on the 23rd. Baby Jenna will be a year old on Oct. 2 and Arnold's b-day on the 8th. Then Janelle and Kellen in mid-October.

Well, that's what we've been doing.

Have a good weekend.

love, Mom/Margie

September 26, 2009

Hi Kids,

Nice day today. I got my morning swim in. We can drive back into our street for now, which is nice. It is just dirt, but that is okay. Dad went grocery shopping late yesterday afternoon and had to carry the groceries home after parking over closer to the pool. We don't know when they will do the resurfacing.

Chris headed home this morning. He and Sandy and Sandy's family ate at Johnnie Carinos restaurant out by Jeni's last night and he liked it. We'll have to try it. He looked online first and said they had a gluten-free menu.

Wendy and Scott: Dad tried two Progresso gluten-free soups this week, that we got on sale. We found 3 of them without gluten. Chicken and wild rice, Cream of mushroom (I even liked that--and I don't like that kind plain), and clam chowder, which he hasn't tried yet. But the first two were good. Wendy, Sandy found some gluten-free buns (more heavy like bagels, but can be used for hamburgers or sandwiches). I think the brand name was Clemintines--from Good Earth in Provo. The Good Earth here didn't have any--though they are made in SL. Rather expensive--over $5 for 5 buns---but LaMar liked them, both with cream cheese, like a bagel, and as a sandwich.

Our DVD player isn't working. It just stays on the first screen and won't move on. Darn---and I have all of these good DVDs to watch! We'll have to go buy a new one. The one we have been using is one of Jeni's old ones, but it has worked for years just fine. We are just not talented enough to hook a new one up and will have to have one of you kids do it!

Chris said he just bought (or ordered?) a mini Mac computer. Interesting.

We had a nice little trip to Evanston last weekend.

We went to grandparents last night and played games. I gave Grandpa a haircut.

We have ripe Italian prunes on our tree if anyone wants some before they are gone or too ripe.

Before the Women's Conference today, our stake is having a humanitarian project at 4 p.m., then refreshments, than watch the conference at 6 p.m. So I will be going to that if any of you girls wanted to join me.

Grayson is riding a 100 mile bike ride today. We're proud of our Amy finishing a marathon last Saturday! We're glad the weather was nice for Shane's overnight scout camp last night.

Have a good Sabbath.

September 30, 2009

We're going downtown today about 10:45 and will stay for a temple devotional at 5:30 with Elder Russell Nelson. So we won't be home until about 7:30. We will meet Derek for lunch at 11:30.

It has been pouring rain all night and all morning. The road is full of big muddy puddles. Our yard can use the water. The road construction company asked everyone not to water while the construction project was going on. Well, Mother Nature took care of that.............this much water will put a crimp in their work, that's for sure!

We bought a new VCR last night and Chris hooked it up this morning, so it is good to be back in business. Jeni beat us in replacing hers!

Chris has had some bad days lately with not sleeping well, bad pain in his side again, and maybe a stress fracture in his foot, which has been painful and kept him from his mountain exercise. Continue to pray for him.

Nelva and Arnold are coming in today to help Grandma and Grandpa.

I need to get my monthly newsletter out tomorrow--help! I haven't had time to work on it much with all the other family history email Ive had to deal with lately. 

As soon as we receive your stake's (Scott and Derek) "readiness report" from your high councilor as per the instructions in the "Prepare" and "Report" sections of the Utah and Idaho new FamilySearch release website (link), we can get your stake in the first group of stakes to receive new FamilySearch when it is rolled out to your temple district. Jeni's stake has already reported to us and we have put them in the first group of stakes to receive new FamilySearch when it is Oquirrh temple district's turn in the rollout. Shane's stake has just started rolling out.

Scott, your stake has every ward covered (consultant-wise), so they should be able to report soon. We have finally heard from your high councilor.

The reporting system is a good thing because it connects the HPGLs and the consultants and the HPGLs have to understand a little of what their part is in the grand scheme of things in order to accept the report from the consultants and pass it on to the high councilor. :-) It may make reporting a little more complicated now but will pay off in the future.

Idaho is completely rolled out now. And Provo finished their rollout Monday, Sept. 28. Ogden's 2nd group of stakes and Mt. Timpanogos 1st group of stakes received their 1-week go-live notice on Monday, Sept. 28. So Monday seems to be the day--though sometimes the temple districts in the "news and updates" portion of the new release website don't get updated until Tuesdays. Just click on each temple district to follow the rollout.

It is up to the stake presidency to announce going live to their wards, however they choose, when they receive their one-week notice. It is a good opportunity to take advantage of this exciting rollout of the new program that we have been waiting many years for, to increase temple and family history work with in your stake.

That just leaves Bountiful and our 4 temple districts to start sometime. They plan on having all of the Utah temple districts on before the end of the year. We don't know when each temple district is scheduled. They usually tell us one ahead. Even if we did know, they wouldn't let us say anything until it is officially announced in the "news and updates" :-) .

Derek received a new calling--executive secretary. That will be a good job for him.

Shane, did you want to come to lunch tomorrow or Friday?

Have a great day everyone! :-)

love, Mom