My Bucket List Runneth Over: The Rome Temple

Our one full day in Rome was positively amazing!

After driving through the busy streets filled with people, bicycles and cars, we turned a corner and found ourselves at the Colosseum, built by thousands of Jewish slaves only 84 years after Christ’s crucifixion (a fact I did not know).  It is immense and grand with the additional fingerprints of others, who recognized the importance of this iconic structure and worked to make sure it survived. In its "glory days" the Colosseum had a seating capacity of 50-80,000 (average attendance was 65,000).  In 2018, the Colosseum was the most popular tourist attraction in the world - with more than 7.4 million visitors.  It was an incredible experience just to stand in front of it for a picture!!!

From there we visited the Basilica of St. Clement, another of the dozens of churches, cathedrals, and basilicas we have seen in our travels, but this one was unique.  Coming in off the street – up the hill and about 2 blocks from the Colosseum - we were in the chapel of the present basilica.  From there we descended to another level, where we found a 4^thcentury basilica … and at still another level down, we found ourselves in the remains of an earlier, 1^stcentury building.  In 1912-14, excavation discovered yet a 4^thlevel containing the remains of other buildings, apparently destroyed by the fire of Nero in 64 A.D. (“Nero fiddled while Rome burned”).   It was fascinating … and a whole lot cooler than downtown Rome on a late June day!

Our final destination – the one we had all been waiting for – was our visit to the Rome Temple.  Unlike most of the places we have visited in Italy, the grounds were immaculate and the atmosphere was wonderfully peaceful without all the noise and confusion everywhere else we've been in Italy.  The temple is majestic and like almost all the other 162+ temples in the world, is perched high on a hilltop and can be seen from quite a distance.  

The visitor center was remarkable, with a display of the 11 ancient apostles (the 12^th figure is Paul, the beloved disciple of Christ ... also an Apostle, but not one of the original twelve).  They were half-sized compared to those at the Vatican, but the Christus is said to be 7 times life-sized.  There is also a FABULOUS stained-glass diorama, entitled “Come Unto Me,”  featuring all of Christ’s parables which the missionaries say has brought many Bible scholars to the gospel. 

A little history behind the Church in Italy and the Rome Temple:

·       Missionaries first arrived in Italy in 1850.  In 1993, 50 church missionaries were invited to form a choir to sing on Vatican radio. A temple in Rome was announced by President Thomas S. Monson in October 2008 General Conference – to which there was an audible gasp by the congregation and which rippled through the entire Church.  The temple is sadly, underused in this part of the world, but I have no doubt President Monson saw a huge future for the Church – and the temple – in Italy.

·      In 2012, the LDS Church was granted “official status” and was named a “partner of the state”! Today there are 27,200+ members in 10 stakes , which is a really big deal because, in order to become a stake there must be a strong priesthood presence to administer the ordinances and manage the affairs of the local Church. The designation of 1 stake is a big deal … to have 10 stakes is amazing! And, there are two missions in Italy.

During our afternoon at the Rome Temple, we were proxy for 10 sealings of husbands and wives (all our family names), 10 sealings of girls to their parents, then also helped seal another 10 boys to their parents and 3 marriage sealings … and all of it was done in Italian.  Still, we are assured there were many happy people on the “other side” who can be together forever through these saving ordinances.

Side note:  The three priesthood holders who officiated spoke extremely limited English … and 3 of the names they were trying to pronounce were my German uncles and many of the names were clearly not Italian … such as Pheraby Godwin, Hattie Hedwig Peipus, Adeline, Aurelia, Missouri, and Ira Sankey.  In short, it was somewhat comical to hear an Italian officiator struggling to manage the names of my Werner family and who-knows-what-else names.

Another side note:  We came out of the temple and were met by some of the other 52 members who were with us, who said, “Utah Governor Gary Herbert is on the grounds!” Gary Herbert is a Rotarian (Provo Club) and was the Lt. Governor who oversaw Volunteer Centers in the state when I was still at the VC of Washington County.  In short, he was at one time my boss so I had no hesitation in walking up to him to say hi.  It was a serendipitous experience, and proves once again, it’s a very small world in the Church.

In all, this was probably the most memorable day of our visit in Italy.  Loved it!!!

PS:  On Saturday we took a train ride to Tivoli, a small town outside of Rome where we toured Villa d'Este, a 500-year-old estate which is on the United Nations World Heritage list.  Later, our lunch was interrupted by the roar of car engines and before long the plaza was filled with Ferraris, Maseratis, Rolls Royces, Porsches on a road tour between Rome and Budapest ... and lots of people!

My Bucket List Runneth Over: Civitavecchia and Beyond

The highlights of our first few days in Civitavecchia (aka Ancient Rome) included a visit to Vatican City and St. Peter’s Basilica, it’s amazing splendor the highpoint of the day.  Vatican City, is a free-standing nation with its own government, its own security force and 600 residents, all who have a waiting list of replacements hoping to live long enough to inherit a place among the most important people in the Catholic Church.  

We were warned ahead of time, our visit to the Sistine Chapel would be very crowded and very noisy, but I don’t think any of us could wrap our arms around just how crowded and how noisy.  We had an excellent tour guide, who loved her opportunity to share her wealth of knowledge about Michaelangelo, one of the world’s greatest, most revered and multi-talented artists. The magnificent ceiling of the Sistine Chapel – which he completed in an unbelievable 4 years without help and while lying on his back - defies all description but our experience was anything but enjoyable.  We were pushed and shoved into the hundreds, if not thousands of people ahead of us by the hundreds, if not thousands, of people behind us. The amount of time we spent in the Sistine Chapel amounted to less than 10 minutes!  In addition, it was a 90+ degree day with probably 90% humidity making people around us irritable, as well!  Still, to be in the same room with one of the world’s most important works of art, was a surreal experience.

Our time in St. Peter’s Basilica was much more pleasant.  The crowds had dissipated so the volume of noise had dropped dramatically as everyone around us was taking in the grandeur of this “mother church.”  We were absolutely overwhelmed with the magnificence of the building and its incredible art, created hundreds of years ago by some of the world’s most famous artisans.  (We saw at least 250 images of the Madonna and Child, and probably 100 images of Christ on the cross, but only a handful of images of the risen Christ).

Savona, Italy was the first stop of our cruise on Costa Cruise Lines, Europe’s largest cruise company about to introduce their 16^th– Costa Esmerelda, a monster ship capable of providing amazing vacation experiences for 6000 passengers at a time.  Ours – the Costa Diadema - was somewhat smaller with only 4500 passengers. I had pretty much decided I would skip Savona and just hunker down in our cabin, take a nap, work on my blog posts and relax for the day, but at the very last minute I decided to “jump ship” and explore with Ed and some of our new best friends.  So glad I did!

The information provided by our cruise line indicated Savona had 5 “must sees” … we saw 4 of them. The first was a stroll through the city centre (wish we had been able to spend more time), a visit to yet another cathedral.  This one was obviously being renovated and was not even close to some we have seen, but it had some beautiful religious objects and art work.  Next, we walked a block or two to find the Museo della Ceramica.  It was wonderful, and filled to overflowing with amazing ceramics – some more than 500 years old, as well as some modern designs.  Loved it and definitely worth the 3 euros we paid for admission (plus, the architect did an amazing job on the design work for the museum … not to mention, it had a nice, clean – and FREE – bathroom)!

We finished our Savona adventure with a tour of the 16th century Priamar fortress,  with a breathtaking view of the harbor and the city. Without question our time in Savona was one of my favorite days in Italy – and we ended up spending only 14 euros for the whole adventure.   

We got short-changed in our time in Marseille, France.  We boarded the “hop on, hop off” bus at the invitation of the driver, but then at the next stop we had to get off to buy tickets.  The bus left before we finished the transaction.  By the time we got our tickets and got back on, we’d missed about an hour of touring time and were expected back at the ship for Sacrament meeting at 3 p.m.  Oh, well, we probably only missed another cathedral, historic ruin and the chance to take another 50 pictures.

Barcelona is a clean, beautiful, and bustling city of about 3 million people.  In our few hours there, we met up with Rex and Mary Ann Franson who were there for a month.  They were so gracious to show us around their adopted city.  We met them at the base of the Christopher Columbus monument, then spent an hour or so trying to take in the amazing architecture of the world famous Sangria Familia Cathedral (another Google search), which has been under construction for more than 130 years (and, only recently got their building permit from the City of Barcelona) and is not yet finished. There really is no way to describe it … one must see it to believe it.  We only saw the exterior because there were no tickets available the day we were there … but we were told the interior is an architectural – and artistic - marvel!  

Palma de Mallorca is a beautiful city with spectacular scenery, including crystal clear water and beaches filled with lots and lots of young and not-so-young vacationers (think Europe’s version of Fort Lauderdale). We also found a delightful taxi driver who took us to the village of Valldemossa where we visited a monastery high above the sea and walked charming village streets … oh, and where we had our daily dose of gelato.

Cagliari (the “g” is silent … aka known as Sardinia, off the coast of France) is a lovely destination but it pales as the poor little stepsister to the rest of the ports we visited.  Originally established in 200 A. D. to watch for enemy ships making their way into their beautiful bay, it has long since seen its glory days.  Still there are some beautiful sites to see, but for the overall impression is that it looks 1800 years old. Of course, we only had a few hours to explore so probably missed some of the amazing wonders we could have visited with more time! 

Now back to Rome ... and the best part of our trip!

My Bucket List Runneth Over: Italy

ITALY … in a word … does not disappoint!  It is an ancient country with a modern feel, many beautiful, beautifully dressed and beautifully thin young men and women, interesting food, LOTS to see in every direction and millions of people who want to see it at the same exact time.  

Italy can best be described as an extremely busy European version of Disneyland on the day after Christmas or New Years’ Eve!!!  And, traffic … oh, my goodness … there were bicycles, taxis (almost all were BMW’s), busses, trollies; and, it seems, at least one car for every one of the 1.2 million people who live here on the road at the same moment.  Thankfully pedestrians have the right-of-way and most drivers – no matter their means of transportation - come to an abrupt stop (sometimes dangerously so) the instant someone steps off the curb.

Our itinerary – organized by our delightful traveling companions Bob and Katie Beecher – kicked off (after settling into our hotel in downtown Milan, across from the train station) with a trip on a ferry to Bellagio, along the shores of the world famous (and rightfully so) Lake Como in drenching rain, but, oh, what amazing scenery. I’ve always said if I ever ran away from home you could look for me in Skagway, Alaska, but since our time in Lake Como, I’ve changed my runaway place.  It was too cold to be comfortable and certainly too wet, but it was an amazingly memorable day.

Our one full day in Milan included a tour of the city on a “hop on, hop off” bus, but when all was said and done, we ended up walking more than 6 miles, passing the world famous La Scala Theater and took pictures at San Marco Church (where both Mozart and Verdi attended as teenagers), until we finally found our destination – Leonardo da Vinci’s famed painting of the “Last Supper” (the real deal).  It was an awe-inspiring moment to be face-to-face with one of the world’s most beloved art treasures!  We also saw the Duomo (translated as “hell”), a spectacular kind of “crystal palace” church with an adjacent mall, including store fronts for Prada, Versace, Louis Vuitton, Armani-Menzoni, and Tiffany and Co. – with polizia on patrol and armed with semi-automatics in case anyone tried to make off with the very expensive goods. In the plaza, workers were busy setting up a stage and making ready for a concert by the Milano Philharmonic.  And, did I say, “we walked, and walked and walked aaaaaannnnndddd walked” although unlike the pioneer children, we could not find it in our weary bodies to sing!

The next day, we traveled on two trains (Milan to Verona and Verona to Venice) and a ferry (which stopped 10-12 times before we got to our destination) to be among thousands touring San Marco Basilica, followed by a tour of the Doge Palace which, through the centuries, was considered Venezia d’Lucia’s seat of government.  It was amazingly elaborate and there were many, many fascinating stories about some of the more interesting Doges. Venezia is a real tourist attraction, so it is extremely crowded, but it was exciting to be there.

Next, we spent two days in La Spezia during which time we explored Cinque Terre, the smallest of Italy’s national parks, which includes five villages, with narrow lanes, old architecture, trails and picturesque scenic overlooks of the “Italian Riviera."  Officially known as Parco Nazionale delle Cinque Terre, it is also on the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites.   Each village (Lavorna, Monterosso, Vernazza, Manarola, Riomaggiore, and Corniglia) where we stopped along the railway is interesting and unique but all have one thing in common: lots and lots of tourists.  We had lunch in Riomaggiore.  The ristorante we selected had a stone wall and a wood ceiling, both believed to have been constructed before the year 1100!!!  

Next, we spent two days in an AirBnB in Florence, Italy and where we had the chance to travel around this amazing city on another “hop on, hope off” city tour bus (which is in every city in Europe and is BIG business).  While in Florence we hopped on a train to Tuscany where we visited in Sienne, San Gimignano, and Pisa, home of the famous leaning tower.   

Wait ... there's more to come!

My Bucket List Runneth Over: Germany

The first week of June 2019 found us in Hamburg, Germany attending the 110th Annual Rotary International Convention with about 20,000 other Rotarians from around the world.

The RI Convention was - yet again - amazing!  Our hotel was about half a mile from the Messe and Congress (convention center) so we got in about a million steps in the week we were in Hamburg, but much of our half mile walk was through the beautiful Planten un Blomen botanical garden! 

Hamburg is a city within a city, in that there was tremendous damage done by the Allied Forces 75-80 years ago, so the city is made up of pre-WWII and post WWII structures. Hamburg is thriving in many ways because it is one of the world's most important port cities. There are metal containers filled with goods and materials stacked all along the coast line and ready to be loaded onto ships for transport to many dozens of countries.

From Ego Shulman, my friend and fellow Rotarian:  "Hamburg has good - public transportation, walkable and safe streets, good food including excellent baked goods, lots of ice cream shops, airport food prices pretty close to street prices, many beautiful parks" and I'll add, almost everyone speaks some English because they are required to learn it as children in school, making it pretty comfortable and easy to ask questions and directions.

What's not so good - an ADA lawyer would have a field day here because there are a lot of places with many stairs up and down and no ramps or elevators. No idea how a person who has problems walking could manage 45 stairs from one landing to another or how someone in a wheelchair would get to the airport using the metro (it would be impossible). It's also quite dirty and there's some visible homelessness but not too bad for a city of 1.8 million. 

There were many familiar names in Hamburg: Subway, Burger King and McDonald's (although it is better known here as "McCafe" and the menu is quite different).  Speaking of names, we saw many villages and businesses with some form of Hafen, Hagen, Haven, Graf and Werner in their names.

I’ve never been to Germany before, but it represents about 20% of my DNA, and it is the part of my ethnicity I most relate to for some reason - probably because I look like my Grandma Henion and a lot like my dad.  It is a pretty country but you can't be here without being reminded it is where one of the most horrific events in human history took place.  Reminders of the halocaust (1939-45) are scattered around the landscape where millions of people were burned, gassed or otherwise had their livelihood, belongings and lives taken from them by a cruel and evil government headed by Satan's little brother Adolf Hitler. 

My German comes from my paternal grandmother Else Werner Henion whose mother Wilhelmina Breitlauch Werner was supposedly born in the little village of Düring, which is, according to the map, not-that-many-miles due east of Hamburg.  Michael, who is working hard on our family genealogy, made me promise while we were in Germany, we would make an attempt to find her records at one of two "kirchen" in Düring (which after a century and a half have relocated to another community).

So we boarded the U2 train at the Stephenplatz station a few hundred yards from our hotel, changed to the S1 train at Oldstedt, and after picking up our stick-shift rental car at the Hamburg Airport, set out for Düring in a driving rainstorm, in hopes of finding her 162-year-old birth / christening records.  

Our impressions of this more rural part of Germany:  the farmland was rich, black and fertile and the towns along the beautifully maintained autobahn were much cleaner than Hamburg. Speaking of the autobahn, its no joke, you can drive any speed you want to drive - it was crazy and terrifying!!!  

There were no obvious rest stops but we quickly determined what we should be looking for was a tiny sign every few miles along the highway which identified the existence of a WC (water closet).  

We also manuvered road construction - just like home - drove through the Elbe tunnel which is several miles long UNDER the Elbe River; and shared the highway with bumper-to-bumper semi-trucks!

Although no one could help us find it, Düring was a beautiful little village with neatly manicured yards and well-cared-for houses.  And, I felt a tingle being in the "hometown" of my great-grandmother, although there is still no evidence to support this claim.

Our plan for this little side trip was to be back in Hamburg to attend the afternoon breakout sessions at the 110^thAnnual Rotary International Convention.  What a laugh!  Those 40 miles - the distance we were told - turned out to be 120 … and we got lost at least a dozen times.  The GPS in our rental car only spoke German so we ordered international internet for $10 so we could use our Waze ap, and while it worked exceptionally well most of the time, even "she" got lost several times, which required a quick re-boot about 10 times.  We left our hotel at 8 a.m. to find Düring, but we didn’t get back to Hamburg until about 6 p.m. 

It was a great, fun week ... my regret is we didn't get to spend enough time exploring Hamburg, Deutchland (aka the "mother land") or find any information about my great-grandmother's family.  Now we're on to Italy ... auf wiedersehen.  

Kendi and Taylor Are Married

Our gorgeous Kendi Hansen, middle child of Stacy’s three daughters, married her Prince Charming Taylor Dunkley on Saturday, May 18, 2019. The bride and groom were surrounded by her myriad of friends and family who love her.  In town for this glorious and happy day were Kaytee, along with Adyn, Skylar and Thoryn who drove 11 hours from Anaconda, MT to be with the bride and her family; Kelly, Gary, Whitney and her boyfriend Alex who came from Ogden / Magna, UT; Michael and Boo, who traveled from Spanish Fork, UT; Kris, Tylre, Jaeson, Memo and baby Cruz, who also traveled 11 hours to get here from Sonoma, CA and Uncle Larry, who flew in from Seattle, WA for the fun.  (Of course, we missed family members who were unable to make this delightful event:  David, Jan'L, Kaler, Kole and Kyle; Ann Bright, Kristen, Joshua and Laura; Joshua Postma; and, Aunt Charlene).

The weather was terrible – the day before and the day after – but on her wedding day, Kendi got a gift from Mother Nature in the form of an absolutely PERFECT day with clear blue skies and a comfortable 75 degrees of sunshine.  

She was walked down the aisle on the arms of her Dad(s) … Rick Welch and Cody Hansen … and into the waiting arms of her new husband for the ceremony which took place in the fabulous backyard of family members Bryce and Neica Christensen (Neica's mom and Rick's mom are sisters).  And, see the big wooden backdrop for the ceremony?  Rick made it for her as a special gesture.

The bishop gave the happy couple some advice on keeping their marriage as happy in the future as on their wedding day reminding them to make time every week for a date night, to pray together, kiss each other (passionately) every day when they get home … and maintain a good sense-of-humor because “as much as you love each other today, there will be issues to overcome!”

During the evening, we talked with many friends and former family members, including Neal Maycock, Adam and Ty Christensen, and had a chance to visit briefly with Allysa, Josh and their three boys.  

Kendi’s dad Cody Hansen sought us out during the evening and expressed his appreciation for “all you have done for Kendi in her lifetime.” 

Kendi told some family members she was fearful one of us would tell the story of the time she almost got Grandpa arrested.  We were sorry she even worried about that on her wedding day because we love this girl and wish her and Taylor all the happiness in the world. 

Selwin Receives His Bachelors Degree

Selwin Lovell graduated magna cum laude from Dixie State University on Friday, May 3, a year ahead of schedule, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Communication Studies and a minor in Marketing. The first in his Guyanese family to earn a college degree, Selwin is one of 1828 students - ranging in age from 16 to 67 - in DSU's Class of 2019. The husband of Brianna Teddie Bair Lovell; identical twin brother to Simeon Lovell, and, a favorite son of Linda and Ed Sappington, has been on the Dean’s List almost every semester and was, last semester, named to the President’s List of students with a 4.0 gpa. 

Selwin was pleased to have his grandmother, Minetta Lovell and his uncle Sherlock Lovell travel from Guyana to be present at this momentous event, but the biggest surprise was having his father Anthony Lovell travel from New Jersey to spend time with his twin sons. 

Later, we partied “Utah style” (with burgers and chocolate cake in the back yard) into the night with neighbors and friends and got caught up with former missionaries with whom we served in Guyana, including Meg and Michael Treseder from Queen Creek, AZ. 

Selwin has worked very hard to reach this milestone in his life.  Now on to a full-time job and an MBA!  

FAMILY STORY: David's Baptism and the Lumberjacks

When Skylar was baptized, Grandpa Ed had the chance to tell the story of David’s baptism.  After the service, Kaytee mentioned she had never heard that story so I decided I would write down some of our most memorable family stories to post to my blog.

David Scott Sappington’s 8^thbirthday coincided with our week at Tracy Lodge, a perk his father got each year he worked for Tracy Collins Bank in Salt Lake City.  David was anxious to be baptized ON his birthday, so we consulted with our bishop at the time, and were granted permission to perform this sacred ordinance in the Snake River alongside the beautiful lodge located in Island Park, ID.  

On August 18, 1977 – David’s 8^thbirthday – we gathered on the riverbank as a family along with some of the lodgers.  As soon as Ed began to speak, the sound of nearby chain saws interrupted the quiet.  When the noise stopped, he tried again, only to be interrupted again with the grating sound. We stopped again.  This time, he decided to explore the source of the racket and at least ask them to stop long enough for him to baptize and confirm his son.

He quickly found who he was looking for – a father and his two sons – who agreed they were making lots of noise but, couldn’t accommodate the “cease and desist” request because they had lots to get done that day.

Ed returned to the gathering, performed the baptism - through the noise - then escorted David to a tree stump on the river bank while preparing to perform the ordinance of confirmation.  As the circle of friends and family surrounded our little boy, three lumberjacks stepped up to join the circle of Priesthood holders.  The father noted, “we talked about it, and decided if we were too busy to acknowledge the importance of a baptism, we were too darned busy!”

It was a beautiful and memorable day.

PS: No idea who took these pictures.  Can't help but believe it might have been 6-year-old Kris or 2-year-old Michael behind the camera, based on the quality.

Exploring More of Our Beautiful Washington County, UT

Just when we thought we’d seen every nook and cranny in our beautiful red rock desert, we had the opportunity to explore the Arizona Strip even further … with 92-year-old geologist Bob Steed as our guide.  On an absolutely spectacular spring Saturday – with crystal-clear blue skies and comfortably cool temperatures – we found petroglyphs, fossils and fabulous scenery we'd never seen before but fit for several mystery trips!!!  And, there wasn’t a subdivision of new homes anywhere to be seen.

Flour and Snow Everywhere in Denver

It's such a joy to feel welcome in the homes of our children. I have been in Denver this week for Rotary meetings and was able to spend a couple of nights with our oldest son David, his darling wife Jan'L and their three boys Kaler, Kole and Kyle. We laughed, played Phase Ten and made master mix and cookie dough, then laughed some more when Kaler turned on the mixer as high as it would go while the butter was still frozen. The result was a shower of flour from one end of the kitchen to the other, making for another family story! After they dropped me at the Denver airport, Jan'L texted me, "thanks for coming. We enjoyed your visit. We will love every bite of the cookies and waffles, as well. Safe travels!"  David followed up with a text of his own, "thanks for time spent (with us).  We love you!"

Skylar Postma is the Newest Member of the Church

Then came Thursday, February 21, the day we were scheduled to leave for Montana to be with our granddaughter Skylar Postma on her baptism day, on Friday, February 22, 2019.  As it turns out, our departure from St. George coincided with one of the 7 biggest snowstorms in the history of our Southwestern Utah community.  When we left the house, it was coming down pretty hard. When we reached the incline towards Cedar City, there was a line “as far as the eye could see” of truck drivers pulled over on the side of the road putting on their chains before attempting to make the climb.  

Kaytee had a well-thought out Plan B in the event we weren’t able to get to Anaconda (she’s always prepared for whatever life throws at her) but she – and Skylar – really wanted us there.

There was plenty of snow along the I-15 corridor, but for the most part, once we got past Cedar City, the roads were clear and mostly dry.  Because of the distance to Kaytee and Josh’s home (at least 11 hours of driving), we break this trip in half, staying overnight with our sweet Kelly and Gary in Ogden.  

The baptism was somewhat of a “comedy of errors” … no one was conducting; Kaytee said the opening prayer before the opening song; my name was on the program to speak but Ed wanted to do it instead. Things went a little haywire, but when Skylar and her friend Gracie stepped into the water, everything else went by the wayside. There was a wonderful turnout, the cupcakes were good and, all-in-all, it was a memorable time together.

On Saturday, we enjoyed a delicious lunch with a choice of 6-8 different homemade soups and the most amazing sourdough bread at the Soup Shed, owned by members of the Anaconda Ward and perched on top of a snowy mountainside about 30 minutes from Kaytee’s.

  

In the evening, we attended what the bishop referred to as "an irreverent variety show" featuring such famous names as Sonny and Cher, Johnny and June Cash, and some of the regulars from Laugh-in and Hee,Haw! Honestly, it was a hoot!

We left for home on Sunday afternoon.  It was snowing pretty heavily as we drove out of town, and by bedtime in Anaconda, there was nearly 3 feet of snow in Kaytee's front yard, the outside temperature was 3 degrees, and the schools had called a "snow day" for the first time in anyone's memory.  We’ve seen more snow this weekend than we’ve seen in many years.  It’s really pretty, but we’re sure glad we don’t have to live in it every day.  

Another milestone in our family history.  We love you Skylar … but we’re glad to be home safe and sound.