Tender Mercies

My life is full of “tender mercies,” but I have been especially blessed this last week. By the miracle of the internet, I was able to hear Brian sing "I'll be home for Christmas" (sigh- we'll miss him!) at his Ward Christmas party (Soirée Serenade) , read that his broken foot has healed and he is walking around, albeit somewhat crazily, on two good feet, and learn that our grandson, Braden, is wishing for his two front teeth this Christmas. By phone, I learned that Julie’s broken leg is healing. And, I had the opportunity, with David, to visit Tom, Amy, Jacob, Allison, and Gideon in California. (David attended a leadership training conference for the National Assessment of Educational Progress, in which we will be involved in January through the first of March. We went down early to spend some time with the Omer Family.)

Here are some highlights of our trip…

Hiking up to Griffith Observatory. These guys are world class hikers. Los Angeles was spectacular in the distance. On the other side of the mountain was Hollywood and its famous sign.

A fun time was had by all! Getting ready for church... Grandpa was in charge of Jacob's close shave...

while Grandma loved getting Allison "all dolled up!"

Visiting Jacob's pre-school...

Postgame Jenga after FHE...

A chance to read together...

And hang out at our hotel... loved the warm hot tub.

Jacob and Allison braved the chilly water and weather to show Grandma their swimming skills.

Ahh... a towel and a snuggle is a good thing.

On our way to Los Angeles, David and I spent a wonderful afternoon at the magnificent Getty Center- awesome gardens...

wonderful art...

and amazing architecture.

Then we headed down to Hollywood, where the last but a significant tender mercy occurred. We were one exit away from our destination, the Pantages Theater, when we hit heavy traffic. We slowed down, but the car in front of us apparently didn’t. He swerved and laid rubber and we put on the brakes. For a calm second or two, we thought we were fine, until the car behind us slammed into us. The best laid plans of walking around Hollywood before heading to the theater evaporated as we waited quite a while for the Highway Patrol to arrive. Once we were safely off the freeway, another officer arrived and the two of them worked quickly to get us on our way to the theater to see... “Wicked.”

We arrived just in time for the bell warning the audience to be seated. We really did enjoy the show, but the experience was dampened by our highway mishap and sore necks, as a result. However, we were so full of gratitude for tender mercies. We could have been going much faster and following much closer, with disastrous effects. The car behind us could have been going faster and following closer, with disastrous effects. Our rental car sustained scrapes and dents

but the other car had some major damage, including a bumper that was about to fall off on the side not seen in the picture.

We could have suffered significant injuries, but we were pretty much ok. We did find out that the insurance company of the people who hit us has agreed to cover everything, including medical care if we need it. Our insurance company will never hear about it.... We are truly blessed and we acknowledge all those tender mercies we experienced during our visit to California.

Hooray for Halloween!

Most years at Halloween, I find myself hanging out at the Salt Lake Clinic doing flu shots. Departments battle each other for the best decorations, the best pumpkin carvings, and everybody gets "Booed" with anonymous treats. It's fun. About half the clinic employees dress up for Halloween, some of whom really get into it and are hilarious, especially our head hauncho, Ross. So, there is some peer pressure to dress up more or less. I went looking for a costume at our local favorite costume shop, D.I., and found a cute Old Navy long sleeved tee with pumpkin. Then I set out to find something to go with it. Wednesday, I found exactly what I was

looking for- classic Charlie Brown- not only fun, but comfy, and I can wear them for PJ's.

So, here I am, on my way to work this morning, carrying our little Flu Shot Clinic

Great Pumpkin. (Thanks, Grandpa Tanner!)

After work, it was time to get ready for who knows how many kids. Each year it's a big guessing game. Looks like we'll come out about even this year.

David likes to hand out the candy and he really gets a kick out of wearing his costume-

imported from Scotland. He is really fun with the kids. Gotta enjoy them since we

don't have grandkids around.

Here's a shot of a huge gang of kids that showed up at our door. Many of them we

don't know because they come up from other areas in vans.

One last shot... this adorable little giraffe who was savoring every moment and treat!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Multiple Choice

For a long time, the only two choices for a B-B-Q meal around our house have been semi-burned or semi-raw... or spend a lot of time babysitting the food and turning often. Our old B-B-Q was purchased about the time we moved into our home, almost 30 years ago. After David helped Brad put together their new B-B-Q, he has been thinking about all those hot spots and cold spots and that B-B-Q's would be going on sale at the end of the summer season. We were in luck and a great one was found, already assembled(!), that would offer us two choices for fuel- propane or natural gas. While David did not have to assemble it, he did do the conversion from propane to natural gas and we're ready to grill! Now our B-B-Q options are multiple choice and the big question is... what shall we B-B-Q first?

Minnesota Memories

(Written on the plane to Boston- in August. I totally understand the terms "blogshaustion" and "blogbligation," coined by my blogging daughter and son.) As we fly off from Minnesota, we are loaded down with a ton of memories from our stay with our daughter and her family. Our Nauvoo trip was great and then we returned to MN and settled down to some serious fun, helping Brad out with Braden, Dallin, and Trevor while Emily orchestrated the fun for her Ward at Girls’ Camp.

When Emily returned, the fun continued. Here are some of the highlights of our time in Minnesota:

Hanging out with the gang, including White Dog, and lots of story time with Grandma and Grandpa (I still cry reading Stone Fox!)

Baking cookies with Grandpa (and Grandma) a couple of times

David learning virtual BMX racing from Braden and then the real thing- starring Braden and Dallin

Catching frogs and catching the free Wednesday morning kids movies
Fishing at a nearby lake and checking out the Sheriff’s squad car- the flashing lights were great!

Morning runs and playing in the park- Braden and Dallin riding their bikes & Trevor in the stroller
Lessons in pumping on the swings- David is an expert teacher/coach!

Applauding the cool jumps

Christening the newly assembled grill

Enjoying one of Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes on a Sunday evening Celebrating our 36th anniversary at the beach and visiting some great Minneapolis museums

Celebrating David’s 64th birthday at Chuck E Cheese’s- gotta love the frog game spitting out tons of tickets!
Watching the Olympics and getting in a couple of “chick flicks” with Emily
And the finale… telling the animals and the kids to “Say Cheese and Monkeys” at the zoo...followed by the Twin Cities River Rats putting on quite the waterskiing show on the Mississippi River, with Minneapolis in the background.
Our trip was great and we appreciate the "over-the-top" hospitality and non-stop fun. We loved being able to spend time with our cute grandsons and Brad and Emily. As David said several times, “It’s fun being a Grandpa!” I add my enthusiastic shout, "It's fun being a Grandma!" We really love the times we get to hang out and get close to our kids and grandkids who live so far away!

Marvelous Munchies

One of the best parts of traveling is the food we encounter along the way. Our trip to New England was full of memorable meals and munchies in addition to our other great experiences. No sooner than we reached Cape Cod, we were blown away by the first munchie- Homemade Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip frozen yogurt. If that ice cream stand had not been so far away and backtracking, we would have joined the throngs once again for that wonderful treat! Four mornings on our trip, we breakfasted at two different B & B’s, one on Cape Cod and one in Vermont. At both, the food was fabulous and the centerpiece of all the breakfasts was fresh picked blueberries- scones, pancakes (x 2), puffy pancakes, blueberries and peaches, blueberries and melons, and (gasp!) blueberry water buffalo yogurt! Everything was yummy and we even branched out and enjoyed maple water buffalo yogurt.

When in New England, you gotta go for the seafood! So, on Cape Cod, we splurged on an early bird special and dined on a mussel bouillabaisse (David) and baked scrod- a whitefish new to me. On Nantucket, we slurped up quahog chowder, a fancy name for clam chowder. We tried to repeat the yummy yogurt experience on Martha’s Vineyard, but it didn’t come close. But, we had fried clams (Brian), baked scallops (David), and baked salmon (me) at Buzzard’s Bay. In Newport, Rhode Island, David finally got the lobster for which he’d been salivating. He hand picked two 1 ½ lb. lobsters from a live lobster tank on the wharf. They were steamed right there on the spot and Brian and I were able to rustle up some plastic utensils and napkins. David talked a waitress at a fancy wharfside restaurant out of a couple pats of butter, so we were set. We took the lobsters to a park and cracked them by hand. David was in lobster heaven. Later in the day, we went a different food direction and ate calzones in an Italian “hole in the wall” on a tiny island in Rhode Island.

Brian introduced us to two of his favorite eateries in the Cambridge, NY area. One was a charming deli, where we had incredible sandwiches and a mouth-watering buffalo burger. Two times we visited The Ice Cream Man, of Bobby Flay’s “Throwdown” fame. Yummy! Lake George featured a memorable view from an over- the- lake deck and a decent French Dip, but later, in Saratoga Springs, NY, the three of us shared an incredible hazelnut torte that justified the world famous hype for Mrs. London’s Bakery.

In Vermont, we sampled the first of the regional apple crop- whoa, those first tart bites really got our attention! Our hostess at the Vermont B & B was a renowned baker and her cookies were sold at the village store down the road. We bought a giant oatmeal chocolate chip coconut pecan cookie which Charley, the owner, assured us was illegal in 34 states and necessitated us eating it before we left the state. Luckily, we didn’t get stopped in New Hampshire or Massachusetts, since we rationed the cookie for a treat at quaint and scenic sites where we needed a taste to match the view. Fall was in the air and called for bowls of steaming turkey chowder at Lake Squam, New Hampshire, on a chilly New England evening. We renewed fond food memories as we shopped for picnic fixings at one of our favorite grocery haunts of the East- Aldi’s- and then enjoyed picnicking at some wonderful spots in Vermont and New Hampshire- Robert Frost’s Stone Cottage, Canterbury Shaker Village, Dartmouth College, and the Joseph Smith Birthplace….

Our two weeks in New England were full of wonderful places and food to match the scenic, historic, and cultural ambience of this wonderful part of the country. Munching our way across five states was an adventure, gastronomically speaking, and we are fully satisfied with memories of eating tastily- Eet Smoklek! (or something like that!)

Nauvoo Revisited

Ok, ok. I know "life is not supposed to be a collection of travelogues." So, just think of this as another chapter in our journey through life. The last time we were in Nauvoo, we were missionaries, traveling to our mission in Palmyra, New York. We only spent a few hours at the historic sites, including Carthage, but we did have the opportunity to do an endowment session at the Nauvoo Temple, before heading east.

Fast forward almost 3 years and we found ourselves back in Nauvoo, this time with our daughter Emily, her husband Brad, and our cute grandsons Braden (7), Dallin (5), and Trevor (2). What fun to experience “The City of Joseph” through the eyes of a child!

We arrived Friday afternoon and visited the Family Living Center to learn how to make candles, card and spin wool, and make rope, before seeing the young performing missionaries in “High Hopes and Riverboats.”

Braden did a heck of a job turning the wheel to make rope.

Pretty smart to get the kids involved in a fun and corny variety show, “Sunset by the Mississippi,” where Braden and Dallin marched in the children’s parade.

Saturday, we were up early to ride a wagon through Nauvoo and take a spin around a small grove of trees in a covered wagon pulled by oxen.

We visited the blacksmith shop and wagon maker’s shop, the gunsmith’s shop and home, and Brigham Young’s home. A highlight for David was listening to Joseph Smith giving the famous King Follett Discourse in a shady grove where the Prophet probably gave many discourses. In the afternoon, Emily, Braden, David, and I enjoyed the kids’ show “Just Plain Anna-Amanda” and then visited the bakery for a gingerbread cookie. We followed Braden’s agenda, visiting the tin shop, post office, printing office, school, and the brickyard before the whole gang traveled to Carthage to visit the jail where Joseph and Hyrum Smith were martyred.

The Pageant pre-show was full of non-stop fun for families, as you can plainly see. Emily really got the hang of rolling the hoop.

Everybody got into the act with the hoop toss, except Grandma who's always taking the pictures. Actually, Braden did toss it to me a couple of times.

It's Emily and Dallin leading the team... against Braden, Trevor, and Brad.

One big surprise… when the batters in stickball got a hit, they headed to third base, which was really first base. Who knew!

There were too many games and not enough time before Pageant began at dusk. It was such a different experience than the Hill Cumorah Pageant, which is a huge and magnificent spectacle with over 600 cast members, lots of special effects, and room for 9,000 spectators. The Nauvoo Pageant was smaller and much more intimate, with a cast of maybe 100-150 and seating for probably less than 1,000. We really loved the Nauvoo Pageant and really felt that it gave the feeling of the Saints’ beloved city, the joy they had there for a season, their love of the Prophet Joseph and his brother, Hyrum, and the sorrow and sacrifice they experienced in being driven from their beautiful homes. The show was full of tender testimony, a great way to end our day.
This last scene shows the actual temple in the background. If the picture can be double-clicked, look between the heads to the middle right of the group. The guy in the white pants and tan waistcoat with a girl and boy and an Emma-looking lady next to the boy, is Ben Dickamore, who played Joseph. To the right of him, holding a child is Matt Dickamore, who played Hyrum.

Sunday morning, we left early to drive the 7 hours back to St. Michael. But first, we stopped to walk along the Trail of Hope (formerly called the Trail of Tears). I like the change because it emphasizes the hope that the pioneers had that they would find a place of peace and rest from persecution. At the end of the Trail is a sculpture of Joseph showing Brigham the place where the Saints were to settle in the West. Beyond them is the Mississippi, which the first group crossed on the ice, in great haste, in frigid February.

Along the Trail there excerpts from journals of the pioneers. One that I found most poignant was the granddaughter of Lucy Mack Smith, who stayed behind.

Our last stop was the Joseph Smith Cemetery before we headed west, crossing the Mississippi and leaving beautiful Nauvoo.

One last look at the temple from the Trail of Hope- the last look at their beautiful temple by the Saints as they headed west.