Sunday - November 26, 1978

Dearest Ron, Ann & Susanna, Rick & Jean, Bob & Claire and Roy,

It is a rainy Sunday and after a rather hectic Thanksgiving weekend I would like to stay home and be all to myself but ---- it's Ward Conference and I have promised to bring Jim and Carol Brown's children home after Sunday School because they are involved in meetings. Jim has just been called as Elder's Quorum President and Carol is the new Primary President - they are really wonderful people and I must write to Ron's parents and tell them what a good job they did in making them strong in the Gospel at first!!!

Roy - we were absolutely sick to miss your call - I didn't know if we would be able to get Ty's phone number or not and call you back but we decided against it because Becky was here and we were afraid she might misunderstand - she was so disappointed that you weren't home for Thanksgiving. We're so anxious to hear about your trip and we hope you had a wonderful and safe time and that you will write to Ty's folks and thank them for having you. Robert came over and we appreciated that so much - he is a doll!!!! He came just at the time we were sitting down to dinner and we couldn't talk him into eating with us so he didn't stay very long - said he had eaten a lot of lasagna earlier and he was trying to get up an appetite for his Mother's Thanksgiving dinner - doesn't that sound just like him???? Aunt Marvel was here and he was so cute to her. We didn't go to the Hall-Central game because of the Missionaries coming from Vancouver but we heard it was a good game - Hall lost, jut barely, and we were disappointed about that - they have the worst luck!!!! We hope these next three weeks will go fast and your tests and everything will be good - we can hardly wait to have you home for the holidays.

Rick, Jean, Bob and Claire - we appreciated so much your Thanksgiving call - you all sounded so good and I felt so much better after talking to you. Jeannie - how did your Southern Dressing turn out? Everyone here who makes it makes it differently but they all use the same ingredients - corn bread, celery, onions, chicken or turkey stock, eggs and poultry seasonings. I can hardly wait to see your drapes - I'll bet they're beautiful and I'm so-o-o-o proud of you for making them - what color are they? Claire - I know your rolls and pie were good - I'll bet you'll be happy when your next three weeks are over - it's great though that you have finals before the holidays - we'll be pulling for you that they all go well. Rick and Bob - what a treat to have such good cooks prepare your Thanksgiving dinner. Bob, have you decided to go any place for interviews?

Ron and Ann - we just talked to you and it was so good to hear about your trip to Idaho for Thanksgiving - it sounded just wonderful. We hope little Susanna gets over her sniffles without having to go to the doctor. We absolutely just love those beautiful pictures you sent to us - they're not only good of Susanna but also of both of you. We could tell that you had "color coordinated" everything - pinks and reds and stripes (even Susanna) and they are just precious. We'll surely be thinking of you next Sunday when she is blessed and we hope you'll write and tell us all about it - it would be wonderful if Grandmother and grandpa Forrest could be with you - they really loved having you stop on your way to Idaho. We seem to miss out on some of the most special times - some day!!!!!

Thanksgiving morning Daddy had a phone call from the Mission President in Vancouver, B.C. He said he was selling Becky home from her Mission and we were to meet the plane at 8:00 p.m. and she would be accompanied by Pres. and Sister Hansen who would need to have a place to stay. Needless to say - I was somewhat in a frenzy. They have given her a "Medical Release" and she isn't very happy about it and refuses to accept the fact that she is released - she wants to go back and finish it. I was expecting problems but as it turned out Bro. And Sister Hansen were just lovely people - they're from Tooele, Utah and they have been in the Canadian Mission for 14 months - they went back the next day - and Becky was just fine but a little disappointed. Her parents, Viola and Clarence Wilson, were in Missouri for the holidays and didn't get back until this morning so Daddy took Becky over there then - I know her Mother will be hard on her for a little while and I have worried about her all day.

We brought Aunt Marvel over about 11 Thanksgiving morning and then took her back about 3 in the afternoon - she was better than she has ever been and so-o-o-o hungry - she had three large plates filled with food and then a big piece of banana cream pie. We called the Cleggs and Mabel in Lehi and the folks in Brigham City so she was able to visit with them and we were happy your call came while she was here - she really felt better when she went back to the Resthome and I know it gave her a big left. We had invited David but he said he was going to Anna's home - he had taken that invitation for granted and it didn't ever materialize so the Woods found out that he was home alone and invited him to eat with them. We had him come over the next night for leftovers - he had taken John and Carol for a bike up Pinnacle that day so it worked out great.

I started this letter before Sunday School and now I'm finishing it after Sacrament meeting - we had our Ward Conference jointly with the Second Ward - it was a good meeting. The little Brown girls came over and had lunch with us - they're really cute and they all love to come here because they like to play with John and he is so good to them - he said tonight though, "That baby isn't nearly as cute as Anna"...... he's prejudiced.

Dave and Laura Gonce have decided to stay here and go in business with Nelson Rivers and we're all so thrilled. Laura's two sisters have been here with them for Thanksgiving and the one that I met looks exactly like Laura only with dark hair (Laura's is grayish).

Nelson and Sherry and Paul are going to go to Salt Lake on Dec. 5th and have their temple work done - Daddy has been their home teacher for a long time and he feels this is an answer to his prayers. Sherry is a very brilliant and capable woman and she has said for a long time - "Don't push me - I'll go when I'm ready". One day last week I answered the door and a young man was standing there and said "I have a Christmas Present for you from Nelson Rivers" and pointed to a pickup truck filled with firewood. I couldn't believe it and tried to talk him out of it but he insisted it was for us so I let him put it in the backyard - we're so thrilled because we had that on our list to do but hadn't done it yet.

Daddy and Johnny have really had a wonderful time duck hunting - John missed school on Wednesday and they went out that morning and it was cold and raining - they shot four really nice ones and would have stayed out longer but John fell in the water - he was soaking wet when they got home about noon. They went out again Saturday and it was a beautiful day - Daddy said that some of those rare "perfect duck hunting days" - they stayed until almost three in the afternoon and they had left at three in the morning - they shot six - so we have quite a few in our freezer. Daddy says that John is really a good hunter and he loves it.

I decided to re-convert our laundry room into my sewing and typing room and I love it. I don't know if you remember our old "Ironrite" - it had been in here for fourteen years and took up so much room - Daddy and I decided that since I hadn't used it for at least six or seven years it was time to go. We called the Goodwill Industries and they came to get it yesterday - I almost cried as they it away. I have ironed so many things on that - I did all the baptism clothes on it for all the time Daddy was Branch President besides all your clothes while we were in Phoenix - that was before the days of wash and wear material and they don't even iron the baptism clothing anymore. I worried after they took it away that I should have saved it for you kids in your homes but answered me that you were all much too smart and too modern to worry with something like that.

They have asked me to be in charge of the food for the Stake Christmas dinner on Dec. 9th again this year- just the turkey and dressing - the rest of it is all assigned out. I had the Golden Host do it last year and it was such a job loading it all in the car and then taking it to the Stake Center and unloading it and keeping it were. I'm trying to come up with an easier way to do it - any suggestions????? We will serve between 425-450.

The North Little Rock Ward is sponsoring a Dinner Theatre next Saturday, Dec. 2nd. There is a very talented woman in that ward who has written an original play and they're going to have a dinner along with it - WE'RE COMING UP IN THE WORLD.

Linda Couch ---- was at church today - her baby is due any minute. Karen Couch's friend boy is getting baptized tonight.

As you can tell I'm out of news. We surely do love each one of you and we miss you so much - especially at holiday time - please be careful in everything you do and let us know if you need anything.
Return to Home Page