April 11, 1999 Farmington, Utah

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JESSIE TODAY!!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JEANNIE ON FRIDAY!!! Jessie called me yesterday morning to see if she could stay with me last night and my first thought was "Oh good, I will be able to wish her a Happy Birthday on her very day" and then I forgot!!! She is now 19 years old and it doesn't seem possible. I have all our "OLD" family pictures on my walls and I guess I just think of all my grandchildren as still being the ages they are in those pictures. Jeannie will be "forty something" and she looks like she is thirty something.

I love having Jessie come stay with me - she had a date to go to the "Billy Joel" concert in Salt Lake last night so she stayed here after that rather than driving back to Logan so late. I didn't even hear her come in and we both left about the same time this morning - my church starts at 8:30 and she wanted to get back to Logan in time to go to her ward - SO we didn't see much of each other but it is comforting to me to have her here. I LOVE her hair - she has had bangs cut and the rest of her hair is shorter and it is darling.

I saw Barji for a few minutes yesterday and she looks so darling too - also Sarah. I decided to go have some house keys made so I could give Jessie one and when I came home I wanted to make sure they worked so I was practicing unlocking the door and dumb me, I locked myself out of my house. I went to Margaret's, (my next door neighbor), and used her phone to call Jeannie. She sent Barji and Sarah over with a key. Their key has saved my life many times - I finally have one hidden out in front now (it's in the elephant planter under the top cool whip jar). I think I could call Bob too but he is a little farther away.

PATRICE - you are REALLY on the ball. Thank you SO much for making your plane reservations and giving me all the dates for your Summer vacation to Utah. May I be the adult who picks up Emily from the airport on 5:45, June 26th? I'm sure she would prefer Katie but since I am an adult maybe Katie and I could go together. I'm hoping for a lot of time with Emily and Katie at my home before Lake Powell - I believe Katie will still be in school. I am SO happy to have your visit to look forward to - Emily won't have time to be homesick. I can certainly relate to that though and I will do everything I can to prevent it. Are you sure you want to rent a car when you come? You are welcome to use mine and it is a good one!!!

I haven't heard from Bob and Claire since their trip to Portland - I know they are busy. I am constantly having people come up to me and say "Are you Dr. Mellor's Mother?" This happened again this morning at church and it "made my day" because this woman said the nicest things. I AM VERY PROUD OF MY FAMILY.

I have talked to Jeannie several times and I believe they have "MOVED IN". Early in the week she said they hadn't moved their piano in yet but yesterday Barji said they had moved that in. I am anxious to see their home with furniture in it and the pictures hung. I have deliberately stayed away because I knew they would have lots of help.

This week is "INCOME TAX WEEK". So many of my friends have been worried about this. I talked to John one day this week and said "Is there anything I need to do" and he said,
"Mom, it is all taken care of but you do need to sign it". John - I appreciate you so very much and you have done it for the last two years now. I will come to Orem any time you say to sign it. John said they were making some headway with their remodeling - I will be SO happy for them when they get settled!!! I guess it is fun in a way but they really haven't been settled since they were married. I heard that Paul Theobald's home sold (his home was two doors West from John and Julianna's home). Kim Harris called to invite me to a baby shower for her daughter on Saturday and she told me - I didn't want to go because of the snow.

I had such a good time at the volunteer teacher reunion in Salt Lake last Monday night. I didn't expect it to be that elaborate - they had a delicious dinner and I had expected punch and cookies. There was one couple and one single sister who didn't come and the rest of the teachers were all there - they had come from all over. There were three Thai dignitaries there - they are visiting in Brigham City with a couple who worked in the mission office in Bangkok. They presented us with two church books from the First Presidency - "The Miracle of Forgiveness" and the history of "Martin Harris". They call us pioneers because the church has never sent a group as large as ours on a mission like we had. I personally don't see anything heroic about our efforts.

My friend, Vicky Burton, came to my condo on Monday afternoon and then we went to the reunion together and she spent Monday night with me rather than going to Star Valley, Wyoming so late. We had a good visit and she got me up to date about things that have gone on in Bangkok since I left - she just came home about two weeks ago. She went to her home Tuesday afternoon.

Tuesday evening I went to Virginia's apartment in Salt Lake for dinner. Linda Smithers lives in her ward now so she invited her and another friend, Rosie Breinholt and me. Virginia's apartment is on the fifth floor of the apartment building right next to where they are building that huge new church building where they will have conferences instead of the tabernacle (I have forgotten what it is called). She has a beautiful view of the Southern part of Salt Lake and also a view of the construction - they are going to make a garden on top of that building so it will be a pretty view when it is completed. It is fun to be with her because we surely had many experiences together.

Virginia is a very elegant woman and I told her that her table reminded me of my Little Rock days - china, crystal and sterling. She reminded me that times have changed now - it will always be hard for me to change though.

Last night our ward had a progressive dinner and it was SO nice!!! I went with two other widows in the condos and we started out with appetizers at some members' home, then to another home for salad and then to another home for dinner. The dessert was served at the church and we decided to not go there because we were so full and it was late - I heard today that they had all kinds of pies and ice cream so I am sad that we didn't go - Ha!!!

WE HAVE A LOT OF SNOW!!! I had to call the humanitarian center on Friday and tell them I couldn't come to teach. I talked to John earlier in the day and he said they just had a sprinkling but this part of Utah REALLY got dumped on. I knew the roads would be clear and okay but there is a fog that scares me to death. We didn't have the "lake affect" in Utah county that they have here and I will not drive in it if I can avoid it. It was a heavy wet snow and I guess we really need the moisture but it got SO cold that I have heard it froze all the fruit - that makes me sick!!!

Cheryl is the genealogy family history chairman in their ward and she has helped me a lot with my genealogy. She and Don are going to meet me in Salt Lake at the genealogy center in the morning and she says she is going to teach both of us how to do our "work". She says she can trace my Great Grandmother's line on my Father's side back to the early 1600's. BUT my Great Grandfather's line gets to Archibald Forrest and doesn't go any further. She gave me names I have never heard of before in my genealogy; Hunter, Brown, White, Madsen, Todd, Patterson, Dry dale, etc. Maybe we're related to Julianna's family!!!

Ricky - we had a homecoming today in our ward for a young man who has just returned from the Czech Republic Mission. His Father was Mission President in Russia a few years ago so he was kinda' familiar with what to expect. He bore his testimony in Russian and that was kinda' neat. He is very happy to be home. His nephew who is probably about 4 years old and very small played a violin duet with his cousin - it was SO cute!!! We all love and miss you!!!