Meeting #11

Kris brought her “lover and best friend” for a first-time visit to St. George this weekend.  Our third daughter came home with tall, handsome Mike Muhlethaler, who is a partner in both a sales/marketing and a mortgage firm in northern California.   The couple traveled to Las Vegas for a Tim McGraw / Faith Hill concert and a quick trip to southern Utah to negotiate the "number of cows" Ed would accept for her hand in marriage.

He and Ed got along famously on the golf course, Kris is happier than we have seen her in a long time . . . and cow negotiations went well!

Together Kris and Mike have just bought a new home in Petaluma, CA (a small town of approximately 15,000 people about a “stone’s throw” from San Francisco). 

While they were here, Stacy, Rick and their family - including Taisley, Kendi and Danielle, Allysa, Josh and Daxton - came for dinner . . . and just as the food was being put on the table, Bruce and Jan Christensen and her daughter Jenny stopped by for "hugs and kisses" with Kris, who they consider their “foster daughter” and “step sister!”  We also celebrated Allysa’s 24^th birthday (December 6) with cake, ice cream and a boisterous rendition of “Happy Birthday” 

We were pleased to see these far-flung members of our family and look forward to an invitation to the wedding some day soon! 

Thanksgiving in Denver

We had a wonderful time on our recent long Thanksgiving weekend in Denver.  In addition to an amazing feast of turkey and stuffing, potatoes and gravy, candied yams, Jan’L’s delicious creamed (Enterprise) corn, and the usual pumpkin and mincemeat pies, we also enjoyed Pictionary, putting together a fun new 750-piece puzzle – since Grandma Linda declared it an old-fashioned, eye-to-eye  “electronics free” day -  and Black Friday shopping. 

Some thoughts on the Sappington boys:  Kyle (age 6) is one of the brightest children I have ever been around.  He has at least a 6^th grade vocabulary and reads at a 3^rd grade level – though he is only in 1^st grade.  This observation really isn’t a case of a prejudiced grandmother . . . this child truly is brilliant.  Kole is a happy, high energy, loving and precocious 11-year-old.  He is a competitive player who “takes no prisoners” in Pictionary and knows his way around his iPad.  In a word or two, Kole is “fun” and adorable!!!  His serious allergies and bothersome eczema haven’t slowed him down socially or in any other way!  Kaler has made huge strides in terms of his autism.  He continues to maintain a near perfect GPA and is a pretty typical 14-year-old (except he is still a little smaller than other boys his same age - but no doubt is going to catch up).  He loves history and is happy to share his knowledge of facts and figures as he plans to travel to Washington DC in the next few months with his classmates.  

The boys cried when it was time for us to head home . . . and Kyle said he was going to hide in my luggage!  We love these boys . . . and their Mom and (especially their) Dad!  They are all so much fun.

MOMMILIES: 1-2-3 for Dental Health

I had an appointment the other day with Allen Hilton - my dentist for more years than I care to remember.  This was my first visit to his office since before we left for our mission at the end of 2010.  Happily, I got a clean bill of dental health.  I have not had a cavity in many years and I have no indication of gum disease!  Yahoo!!!  As my family knows, I am vigilant in taking care of my teeth and told Dr. Hilton in the beginning of our relationship, I want to take these choppers with me into eternity.

My regimen is as simple as 1, 2, and 3!  I floss at least once a day . . . brush at least twice a day and see my dentist 3 times a year (although I may have to cut back to two annual visits since we no longer have dental insurance)!  There are certainly many things which would be worse than having dentures, but having all my teeth pulled ranks right up there on my list of The Top 10 Things I Don’t Want to Experience.

 

Thanks, Allen for your friendship and service in Rotary and for your skill and expertise in the office helping me keep my happy smile!!!

Another Small World Story

The other day, we attended the funeral of Lois Baker, one of our ward members. Lois is the mother of my visiting teacher Jill Jones and a son - Greg Anderson - who lives in Pennsylvania, both who were in attendance at the funeral of their mother along with their spouses. At the viewing, Jill and Royce introduced Ed and Linda Sappington to her brother and his wife.  Greg's wife was obviously startled then responded, "Are you kidding me? My full name is Joyce Sappington Anderson." What followed was a fun exchange of information as we became acquainted with a cousin from another part of the world . . . although this experience shows - once again - that it really is a very small world!!!

To Anaconda and Beyond

The destination of our most recent road trip (October 4 – 11) was Anaconda, Montana to visit Kaytee,  Josh and two of our precious grandchildren, but along the way we also visited SLC’s new City Creek Shopping Mall and Temple Square – looking for Sister Alicia Phagwah (from Guyana) – and a side trip to Brigham City to see the Church’s newest – and 137^th temple.  We enjoyed an overnight stay in Logan with Stan and Diane Blackett where we watched conference and got caught up with their life and family.  We also had a great two nights with Kelly, Gary and Whitney in their beautiful new home in Clinton. We enjoyed lively conversation and had fun getting caught up and when it was time to go, our #1 daughter questioned why we had to leave “so soon.  Thirty-six hours is just not enough!!!”  How happy it makes us to know we are welcome in the homes of our children.

Our three days in Anaconda included a pork chop sandwich, reading to the kids, a quick tour of the historic Washoe Theater (one of the most beautiful theaters in the nation – built in the 1930’s by the same architect who built NYC’s Radio City Music Hall), a trip to Phillipsburg (about 25 miles from Anaconda) where we found lots of things to photograph, including a wonderful old-fashioned (but pretty expensive) candy store.  We also had a tour of the lovely little home Kaytee and Josh hope to own before the end of the year (so we’ll be making the 11-hour trip again in the coldest part of Montana’s winter . . . with our paint brushes and other DIY tools).  My baby and her babies got teary-eyed when we said goodbye (Josh just smiled, probably glad to see us heading home after 3 days, although he was in good spirits during our visit) but we promised to come back when they are ready to move. 

We ended our week back in Salt Lake, where we stayed overnight with the Harris’ . . . our friends with whom we had served in Guyana.  We shared memories, dinner and laughed all the way through “Maiden Heist” in their HUGE downstairs theater room (if you haven't seen this movie, I highly recommend it for lots of laughs).  On our way through Provo, we caught up with Michael for a quick dinner together before getting on the highway for the last 5 hours of travel.  Fun trip and nice to discuss numerous topics, including the upcoming elections, without anyone getting hysterical!!!

WIM Reunion

We attended our very first WIM reunion since coming home from Guyana in June.  It was a combination of President and Sister Robison’s missionaries and those of us who served under President and Sister Gamiette, held in Provo in the afternoon of Friday, October 5.  It was delightful to see many of the couples with whom we served in both Trinidad (Jim and Joey Luster, Jim and Jan Wheeler, Ralph and Paulette Childs) and Guyana (Larry and Karen Harris) and others who served in other parts of the WIM (Clive and Arlene Henderson,  Bob and Raylene Bush and Doug and Valerie Salmon).  We also met some of the couples who served before us (Robison, Faux, Bulloch, Hymas and others).  After an hour of catching up with the seniors, the young missionaries began arriving.  It was so much fun to see Wally So’Oto, Hayden Van Meeteren, Abe Austin, Tyler White, Kyle Dyson, Rusden Scott, Brock Beeson, Nikita Vi, Kolton Arnold and Tobin Prince.  It was pretty funny how often we were asked “can I call you Linda?  Can I call you Ed?” but we asked the same question of others.  A mission is a wonderful experience – one for which I will always be grateful and seeing the faces of those we loved and with whom we served -if just for a couple of hours - was a delight!!!

I Am EJ!

Oh, my gosh!  I have become my grandfather, Elgie James (“EJ”) Bradford.
 

Larry will remember this, but when we lived next door to our grandparents on Palm Place, Grandpa Brad would come home from work then spend his evenings on the front lawn with his pocket knife picking out every single weed . . no matter how small!!!  Because we were kids, we snickered a little at his passion for making sure there wasn’t a weed to be found anywhere . . . and now I am him! 

When we got home from our mission in Guyana we were pleased to find Stacy and her family had done an amazing job of keeping the lawn mowed and generally cleaned up, but then I took over the project, including pulling weeds and washing rocks.

No kidding!  I took up all the rocks in the back yard, put down new ground cloth and washed all the rocks clean before putting them back down.  My husband thought I had totally lost my mind, so Kole helped me for a couple of days while David and Jan’L were here on vacation and while Ed refused to play along.  Now I spend my early mornings walking my fence lines looking for weeds to dig out with my big old kitchen knife, spraying with Roundup, collecting and discarding dead snails and tending my winter garden (peas, brussel sprouts, broccoli, spinach, lettuce, radishes, sugar peas and carrots). 

I could only find one picture of my grandfather, because he didn't like to have his picture taken.  Oops, that's two!  I just hope I don’t pick up any of my grandfather’s other traits!!!

Yet Another Sappington Family Reunion

David, Jan’L and their three boys came for a week of R&R.  Although David questions their sanity in deciding to come to St. George during the “dog days of summer” he admits it has been fun and relaxing to have nothing to do and nowhere to go.  For their family – and for Taisley who tagged along – the week was filled with swimming, lots of waffles, a “mystery trip” with Grandma and Grandpa along the Water Walk (beginning at Brooks Pond and ending at the extremely popular Splash Pad in downtown St. George), and an overnight camping trip to Pine Valley Mountain with Grandpa Ed.  We dined at Jan’L’s favorite places – Pizza Factory and Marv’s – and finally got to see the end of "Aladdin" at Tuacahn (we were rained out a couple of weeks ago) and made ice cream at Stacy's.  Fun, fun, fun with family - and we miss them when they go home.   

Cuz'N Camp 2012

We held a Cuz'N Camp this week (such as it was), but it was not what I had originally planned.  While still in Guyana, I planned a Cuz'N Camp Road Trip which would involve Taisley and EJ in the back seat and 2-3 day stops in SLC, Butte and Denver. Then I had eye surgery and am grounded until the first of September . . . and Kris decided air fare for EJ was too expensive.  So, Cuz'N Camp was not a camp and there were no Cuz'N's although Taisley and Rilee came to our house and spent 4 days.  We put puzzles together (mostly because I was in "clearing the clutter" mode and needed to determine if the puzzles stayed in the Grandma Closet or got tossed because pieces were missing).  We tried some new recipes - but both of them still preferred waffles (what else?).  We played at the water park, watched the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics - eagerly anticipating the entrance of the Guyana team (only 6 athletes, but fun to see them) - went to see "Ice Age:  Continental Divide" and Disney's "Aladdin" at Tuacahn.  We got rained out toward the end of the show, but it was really fun, very well done and entertaining!  It certainly lacked what Cuz'N Camp is supposed to be.  We missed having the Cuz'N's together, but Taisley and Rilee seemed to have fun and it was wonderful to be able to spend time with these two precious little girls.

Twice Removed from Barack!!!

The principle of “six degrees of separation” refers to the idea that everyone is approximately six steps away, by way of introduction, from any other person on Earth.  If that is the case, I am now just TWO steps away from Barack Obama!!!

When the plight of the desert tortoise was a huge issue in Washington County a number of years ago, I was hired to serve as the administrative assistant to Steve Snow, then-chairman of the much-maligned Washington County Habitat Conservation Planning Committee before he was called to the Church's First Quorum of Seventy.  In April 2012 General Conference, he was given additional responsibility when he was sustained as the Church Historian.

When we were in Guyana, I found a wonderful handwritten (by several missionary couples) history of the Church in "the land of many waters" (time period of 1988 to 1993) in a dresser drawer.  Knowing Steve is now the Church Historian, I brought this historical treasure home with me, intent on delivering it to him at his office in Salt Lake City, but I can’t travel out of the county until early September because of my eye.  As luck would have it, I ran into Elder Snow at Target here in St. George (he’s one of our homeboys) where I told him about my find.  He was excited and offered to stop by the house and pick it up before he and his wife returned to Salt Lake City.  In our family room, we visited briefly about his new assignment and how they were enjoying life in the big city.  That was last week!

Today there was a story on the KSL-TV website indicating "Elder Steven Snow of the First Quorum of the Seventy was appointed to be a member of the President's Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.  According to the White House, the advisory council "brings together leaders and experts in fields related to the work of faith-based and neighborhood organizations in order to make recommendations to government on how to improve partnerships."

So, if the theory of 6 degrees of separation is valid, Barack and I now have a friend-in-common.  Dang, it really is a small world!!!