July 12, 1987 Orem, Utah

Dearest Johnny; Roy & Patrice; Bob, Claire, Michael, Laura & Brett; Rick, Jean, Ricky, Barbara Jean, Mary Ann & Sarah; and Ron, Ann, Susanna, Jessie, Russell, LeeAnna & Jimmy:

It's another beautiful Sunday afternoon - Daddy and I are constantly singing the praises of Utah weather!!!! We have been down in the den with the door open and it is almost too cool. We haven't had any need for our air conditioner yet and here it is the Middle of July - August will probably be unbearably hot!!!

Johnny - we loved your letter that was written on a bus going into Santiago. We're so proud that you are being the same enthusiastic missionary to the very end of your mission - having an "exposition" in downtown San Fernando and placing 30 Books of Mormon in two days - most of our missionaries didn't place that many in the 18 months of their missions!!!! I don't think you will receive this letter but I will mail it anyway. Daddy and I are doing the "Count Down" - twelve more days and you'll be home and we can hardly wait.

Bob & Claire - thank you so much for the help you have given Daddy this past week. (Bob got him some prescription suppositories to relieve some spasms he was having - I looked out the window early one morning and saw the Federal Express truck parked in front of our home and they were delivering them.) They have really helped him. We know that Daddy is receiving excellent treatments but it has been kinda' hard for us when Daddy has asked for some help to relieve the pain and the doctor has had to look in a book to get the names of some remedies - isn't that unusual??? They have been treating the entire pelvic area for the past treatments and on Thursday they took more x-rays so they could "zero in" right on the prostate for the last of them - it will either be better or worse for him and we'll just have to wait and see.

Patrice - we loved visiting with you and hearing a little about your home and yard. We're so happy you received your furniture before Roy left so you could have help in arranging it. Your yard sounds so nice - do you have enough water to keep it green? I remember that was a problem when we lived in phoenix. We have tried to call you Roy since we got your phone number from Patrice but you are never there - we called last night and kept getting the busy signal and then today you just don't answer. We'll just wait and talk to you when you get home - you won't get to talk to Johnny when he first gets home because you won't be finished until the 24th!!!!

Jeannie & Rick have had a fun (?) weekend!!!! Their renters moved out and left them with a dirty home and a "dead" yard. We just talked to them and they spend all day yesterday cleaning and Rick hopes to put in a sprinkling system before it is rented again so they won't have this same problem again. They are going to Sun Valley, Idaho this next week when Rick goes there on business - that is a fun thing for the children to stay in a motel and go swimming, etc, etc.

We just talked to Ann and they are doing fine - Susanna, Jessie and LeeAnna had a little intestinal bug this week but they are over it now. Jessie played a violin solo in Relief Society this morning - the lesson was on "Teaching our Children the Fine Arts" - and Susanna had a piano recital this afternoon so they keep busy. Their home is coming along good - the framing is all done and now comes the slow, slow part!!!! They don't expect to get in it until late Fall.

I went into Salt Lake on Thursday to go to a luncheon for Helena Jacobsen - she just turned 75 and she looks much younger than I do. She is Barbara Sondrup's mother. Do you all remember Frances James? She really "did" the luncheon and it was just delicious and very pretty - chicken salad, clusters of red grapes, cantaloupe slices, hot rolls and her famous chocolate mousse birthday cake. It was fun to visit with Barb, Frances and Helena again but I didn't stay very long - most of the ladies there were much older than I and I didn't know them. I also went to a shower for Patrice Perkes, Ramona's grand daughter on Friday night - they had it in the Crawford's backyard and the weather was just terrible - it blew and rained and so I left - I didn't know very many people there either.

Johnny - do you remember your friend, Grant Sumsion, in Billings? He is getting married on Tuesday to the Stoker girl from the 4th Ward. He had to come home from his mission because he had leukemia - he has been on chemotherapy and I guess they have been able to control it. We hope to go to the reception here in Springville on Tuesday night.

Our neighborhood is having a party tomorrow night. They are going to set up the tables right in front of our home and will have bar-be-cued chicken, etc. I have to take a dessert so I'm going to make that banana split cake - I haven't made it since we lived in Little Rock but I used to think it was special.

Daddy only has 8 more treatments to go - he'll have the last one on the morning before Johnny comes home so we'll have lots of things to celebrate about!!!!

That's all the news. We love each one of you so very much. PLEASE BE VERY, VERY CAREFUL IN EVERYTHING YOU DO!!!!! Let us know how we can help you.
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