September 18, 1983 Billings, Montana

Dearest Roy, Bob, Claire, Michael & Laura, Rick, Jean, Ricky, Barbara Jean & Mary Ann and Ron, Ann, Susanna, Jessie & Russell.

Happy Birthday today Rick - we hope you have had a wonderful day! Thank you so much for sending those darling pictures Jeannie - we feel like we have had a little visit with you and the Woolleys (the pictures were of their trip to Lagoon and of Ricky and Barji's birthday party.) You all look really good and it made us so homesick for the children - they're growing up too fast. Susanna & Jessie in their dresses alike are so precious and that little growing up too fast. Susanna & Jessie in the little car (I'll bet they are pals) and we have decided Mary Ann looks like Mary Ann. We are looking forward to going to Lagoon with the children - that is such a special place. Daddy and I have talked about how "stylish" Ann and Jean look in the pictures - we love your skirt Jeannie and Annie your darling maternity pants tied at the ankles (you are surely small for being so far along.) Ron - you look so good and it looked like you were kind "in charge" of the stroller babies!!! Anyway, we appreciate them so much and have showed them all over the Mission Home.

Bob and Roy - we can just imagine how busy you are and also Claire with a new baby. I'll bet you spend most of your time at the hospitals and we hope it isn't too hard on you. Claire - we hope you have made some good "close" friends - I remember those days and you really need someone to talk to besides babies - I'm sure you have plenty of friends by now!!

Johnny has had a kinda' sad thing happen to him. They played Butte Friday night and we had given him permission to drive from there to Bozeman with a friend and his parents to spend Friday night and go to another game on Saturday and then come home that night. We had been gone all week and went to bed Friday night and about 11 p.m. He called from Butte and said he had been hurt in the game - I talked to him and tried to get him to come home instead of going to Bozeman but he kept saying, "Mom, it isn't that bad" so we finally gave in and told him he could go. About 11:30 p.m. he called back and said his trainer was making him come home and they were going to take him to the hospital for x-rays. Needless to say, we stayed up most of the night waiting for him to get here - finally, at 7:30 a.m. he called and said he was at his friend's house because he didn't have a key to get in to the Mission Home and they had decided to wait until Monday to take him to the Doctor. Well - I was a little mad at him and felt that he wasn't giving it to us straight so I said, "Johnny, I don't think you want to play football" and he just said, "Okay, Mom". We had to go to Glendive and be there by noon for their District Conference and it's a five hour drive so we left not knowing much about his injury. Well - we got home tonight and you should see his collarbone - he has a huge lump on it and he can hardly move - his friend has loaned him an arm sling and that helps. I feel so bad that I was cross with him and I'm a little upset with his trainer to not take him to the emergency room - they have an appointment for him at 8:30 in the morning. He has really played some good football - the coach invited us to come tot he school to watch the film of their game with Missoula and we couldn't believe all the plays he was in on - he has started every game and has really done a good job and is one of their best players. We don't want him to get hurt though and this may take him out for the rest of the season.

This has really been a hectic week. We worked in the house and yard all day Monday and Tuesday and I planned all the meals for a "company week" and did the shopping and then Tuesday night we went to watch John's football films. We left at 5:30 Wednesday morning to go to Great Falls for our last zone conference for this month - it was a good conference and the Relief Society there served us a lasagna dinner afterwards - that was a first for Great Falls. Thursday morning we met the two sisters who had come to our mission from the General Board - Sisters Harris and Neilson. Sister Neilson is the former Dorothy Hansen from Brigham City (her father is Willis Hansen) and she remembered my cousin Van Forrest - she is much younger than I am and a very pretty woman. Sister Harris is from Springville and is older and has worked with the Education System in Provo for a long time. Sister Dorothy Hansen Neilson is from Farmington and is going to try to call you Jeannie when she gets home. They were both delightful and we loved being with them. We drove from Great Falls to Malta and met with the Primary Leaders in that little branch along with others from Saco and Zortman - there are many problems and they really asked a lot of questions that the Sisters say will help them as they plan programs for smaller branches. They had prepared lunch and it was really delicious.

After we finished at Malta about 3:00 in the afternoon we drove to Wolfpoint which is Indian Reservation. I will never forget that night as long as I live. Daddy had written and asked them if they would like to prepare a little something to eat for us and they had said they would. Well - there are so few members there and most of them are Lamanite and our Missionary Couple there is new (they have only been out about three weeks). We talked into their little chapel and they had soft background music playing and they were Indian songs. They had two long tables set up with the most beautiful Indian display on them - quilts, bead work, head dresses and everything. In the middle of the floor they had set the table for us to eat on and they had bought bright colored paper table cloths with napkins to match and a beautiful floral centerpiece in the middle. They invited us to be seated because they wanted to serve us (all the other places they served buffet style). First of all they brought out what they called "Blueberry Pudding" and Indian fry bread with raisins in it - it was delicious but such large servings and we felt like it was a dessert first. Then they brought out some of the best enchiladas I have ever eaten and a green salad - all served on individual plates that one of them had brought from home because they don't have things like that in their churches there. Then they served huge pieces of the most delicious chocolate cake I have ever eaten - it was a three layer cake with white sour cream and coconut frosting and it was just heavenly. Then they brought out plates of Bavarian mints and other beautifully decorated mints. They just couldn't do enough for us - it really impressed the General Board Members and we had been worried sick about what they would serve us.

We spent the night in a motel in Wolfpoint and left early the next morning to drive to Glendive for another meeting with Primary leaders from the Montana East District. They are very well organized there and those meetings were outstanding - Glendive has a new chapel and even though the town is small the members come in from all over - some of them had driven 140 miles to get there by 10:00 so they had left early. We left there about 2 o'clock to drive to Billings and got here about 5:30. Brenda had done a beautiful job with dinner - she had made a ham loaf, potatoes in the half shell, broccoli with hollandaise sauce, hot rolls, green salad and a cherry cobbler. We all ate and then Daddy and I took them to a meeting at the Stake Center with the Primary Leaders in this area and it was really outstanding. I hurried home and did a little laundry so we could leave early again Saturday morning to drive back up to Glendive.

Tonight Daddy and I looked at each other and said we hope we don't ever have another two months that have been so hectic as August and September have been. There are so many lovely things that happen and people just don't see all the behind and scenes work that is involved. We had a letter from Bro. Dunn about these Primary Sisters visit and he told Daddy that he was responsible for them all day Thursday and Friday and then when we got them to Billings the Stakes would take over. Well - the Stake Primary Pres. In charge here is 75 years old (this is really unusual) and she called and was panic stricken that she would have to care for them in her home. So, to be nice, I offered the Mission Home as a place for them to stay. When this Primary Pres. Found out that we were leaving Saturday morning she really was upset - I had a phone call while we were in Wolfpoint that I was to return because it was an emergency. Come to find out she had told Daddy's Counselors wife that "Sister Mellor had invited those sisters here and she should take care of them and not go to Glendive for the District Conference". I still can't believe it - I just said that they would be taken care of in the Home and we would assign two missionaries to provide transportation for them. So it turned out to be our responsibility for all the time they were here in Billings. Brenda had them for dinner last night too. People just don't like to be put out but this is the last time I am going to be like that - Daddy can take care of things much better than I can.

The District Conference in Glendive today was so wonderful. They have an early morning Mother-Daughter meeting and they had asked me to speak - as I looked over the audience I thought of my own Mother and how we used to go to those meetings and then how I used to go them with our daughters and how our daughters take their daughters to meetings like that and I am really grateful for the things that have become so much a part of my life because of these special programs put out by the church - what a sentence!!!! I really love the gospel and even though I complain a lot I know this calling is really just what we needed in our lives.

I guess my 40th High School Reunion was held last week in Brigham City - I hope someone will write and tell me about it. We really love our family and hope so much you are all happy - PLEASE BE CAREFUL IN EVERYTHING YOU DO - let us know how we can help you. We have a new copying machine - hooray!!!!
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