July 16, 2000 Farmington, Utah

HAPPY 21ST BIRTHDAY TO RICKY TODAY!!! I have thought about Ricky all week as he is preparing to leave his mission and come home and now it is his birthday and he isn't even home to celebrate!!! I'm sure coming home will be celebration enough and yet it will be very difficult for him to leave the people he has been with for two years - I can tell from his letters that he REALLY loves the people in El Salvador!!! I wonder if Ann and Jean remember the time we were all predicting the day he would be born - we had some kind of a contest and I predicted the 16th but I can't remember if we had a prize or anything. Ricky was prize enough!!!

MICHAEL - I have thought about you all week too and Wednesday is YOUR BIG DAY!!! I'm sure you have butterflies in your stomach as well as your parents. You will LOVE the MTC but it will be difficult to say goodbye to your parents for two years. I hope you know how much your whole family is going to enjoy your mission - I want to learn all about Italy through your letters to your folks. I don't expect you to write to me because you won't have time but I will write to you. I want to see you before you leave so I will call and see if you are home on Tuesday night and I will drop by for a minute.

All of Utah is in a holiday celebration mood for the month of July. Farmington had their "Festival Days" this weekend - I couldn't go to the parade because I was at the temple but Margaret went and she said it lasted about five minutes - Ha!!! I had a funny phone call at ZCMI from a lady who is working on a float for the 24th parade in Ogden and she is looking for that gold Christmas garland. I have some but I can't get to it. ZCMI doesn't have any holiday things like that anymore.

THANK YOU BOB - he and Claire came over last night to visit and he fixed my answering machine. My power went off on Thursday night and it kept blinking CL so I changed the battery but then I couldn't get it to work and I am lost without it - it is like a faithful friend. My instruction book for it is in John's files - maybe he will bring it to me. I think Bob is a miracle worker - he can fix ANYTHING!!! I LOVE it when my family comes over to visit!!!

JOHN - I believe you are coming home from Thailand tomorrow and I will be SO happy when you are home. I have appreciated having your "emergency" phone number and I'm glad I didn't have to use it. I hope Mokie and Tar have been okay while you have been gone - IT HAS BEEN REALLY HOT!!! I am anxious to hear about your trip. I have wished that I had given you Nurak's e-mail in Lopburi because he would have loved to show you around - did you get to go there and see the monkeys? Did you have good food and did your friends like it. I am also interested in our tailors - I sent Sam a message and if he made the blazer I ordered that is great but if he didn't that's okay too. Did you get a van to take you around and how much did it cost you? I have thought about you all week too and with a lot of envy!!!

PATRICE - Thank you for your message. We're happy you are going to come out in August and I hope your children are looking forward to riding in the car for that long - will you be able to hook up a television for them? I remember so well how we used to make millions of sandwiches and cookies and we had a rule that we couldn't start eating until we were out of town - Ha!!! YOU WILL HAVE A WONDERFUL TRIP AND I'M ALREADY FOR YOU!!!

ANNIE AND JEANNIE - what a busy and fun time in your lives and I wish I could help you but I don't know what to do. You will think back on this time in your lives for the rest of your lives - my only advice is to "lighten up" and have fun because that it the most important thing. It won't matter if things don't go exactly like you would want them to - no one will notice except you. I think back a million times to my reception and all the food that was prepared at my Mother's home to feed the family and especially Lynn's family who had come from Manti and then Mother forgot to serve it. I remember awakening the next morning and Lynn and I were starving so we went out for Chinese food about 10 o'clock in the morning in Ogden. I am available to help you if you'll just ask me.

Annie tells me that Susanna's dress is just about finished and it is "gorgeous". They have had some disappointments about Rons' family reunion - they have planned for many months to have it on the houseboat at Lake Powell and they have found out that both engines have gone out and they will not be repaired in time for his reunion. I believe they are going to just "campout" at Lake Powell and they will have a good time because they are all adaptable and good sports. Ron's ski boat is in good condition so they will be able to go all around and still spend a lot of time in the water but I can't imagine how they are going to prepare enough food without refrigeration.

Jeannie tells me that Barji and Boyd are in San Diego where Boyd's brother is playing in a golf tournament. The neat thing is that Barji went through the Bountiful temple to take out her own endowments last week so they will be able to go to the San Diego temple and I have heard it is the most beautiful of all the temples. They will return on Thursday at 8:44 p.m. and Ricky's plane is due at 8:45 p.m. Jeannie was going through some of their photos when I saw her last night trying to find some to put on display for their reception.. I asked Rick if he were ready to have Ricky come home and he said he had been ready for a long time.

I am proud of Bob and Claire - they have spent two weeks of precious time with the youth of their church. They went for a week to Youth Conference in Wyoming for the Mormon Trek activity and then last week they went to "Girls' Camp" which was held close to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. I had told them I would check on Michael and Brett while they were gone because Laura and Katie were with them AND THEN I FORGOT. I couldn't imagine why I hadn't heard from them all week because usually Claire will leave me a phone message or write to me on the internet. I AM GETTING VERY OLD.

I have visited Don in the hospital many times this week and he is not doing good. He had a four by-pass heart surgery and he has recovered nicely from that but they can't keep his lungs clear. He had breathing tubes for weeks and the doctors didn't think he would be able to breathe without them but their family decided against a tracheotomy (sp.?) They had planned to take the tubes out so Cheryl asked me to go see him and tell him goodbye last Tuesday night. WELL - he pulled them out himself during the night and was breathing on his own by the time the nurses found out what had happened. He is still breathing on his own with an oxygen mask but his lungs keep filling up. I was there this afternoon and I can't see any difference in the four weeks he has been in intensive care. I don't know what to expect but I feel really bad for Cheryl and their family. Their sons have been there a lot - Bart came from California for a week. Pam - their daughter who has the autistic son is on vacation to Jackson Hole and will be home soon. Cheryl is worried that it looks like resthome for him and he will HATE that - he is only 70 years old and that gets younger every day!!!

I went to the farewell meeting for one of Ellen Mae's grandsons today after my meeting - he is going to Brazil and will leave on Wednesday and go to the MTC in Brazil. He gave an excellent talk and then they invited me to his parent's home for lunch - it was very nice. This family has seven children and they all have children so there were many little ones there and it was fun. Ellen Mae and Mel are such good friends to me!!!

I must tell my Arkansas family about the "Dinosaur Museum" at Thanksgiving Point. There have been many news articles about it in the papers lately and I guess it is REALLY something. I hope we will have time to go there when you come out - it is geared mostly for children. They have also opened the flower gardens they have been working on for a long time. I haven't been there since I came home from Thailand and I would like to go.

I had a phone call this morning from the "Human Resource Manager" at ZCMI and she said, "Guess What??? Our store has now been phone automated as of when we came to work this morning and we don't hear any phones ringing". I was kinda' shocked but managed to say "Then I don't have a job" and she said "WE surely would like to have you work for us in another area". I told her that I would welcome some months off right now and I would think about whether or not I wanted to work again. She especially mentioned gift wrap and the China department but I don't believe I will go back. I have absolutely loved it and I will miss it but I don't want to have to stand on my feet all day and the associates in those areas have not been really happy with the new change. I have had the best job in the store and they have been so very good to me - I don't believe I would have ever asked to resign so I guess it's good they did it for me.

I am watching 'The Wheel of Fortune" for the first time in many months and it seems SO funny!!! I will be REALLY busy for the next few months but after that I will have to get busy volunteering or something. I will welcome the company I will have soon - Roy and Patrice and their family - Chris Jordin is coming out August 2nd and we will get together with Barbara Sondrup on August 8th. Chris is really just going to stay one night on her way to Idaho and Barb S. will be in Provo at the condo she has just bought.

Annie - thank you for the pictures - THEY ARE WONDERFUL!!! John - your co-worker is a beautiful young woman. I hope Ron, Jessie, Russell and Jimmy are not dying in the heat. I can't imagine what kind of food you are preparing for the reunion Sat., Sun., Mon., and Tues. I wish I could help you. I hope so much the engines get installed and everything is GREAT for you and Ron's family the rest of the weekend and first of next.

I CAN'T BELIEVE RICKY WILL BE HOME TOMORROW - I am SO excited for all of us who can be together to welcome him home at the airport. I will NEVER forget the welcome home I had from Thailand and I will be eternally grateful for all the support I had on my mission.