Dearest Family,
HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MICHAEL ON
SATURDAY!!!! Michael will be 23 years old and he has a WONDERFUL future
ahead of him It's funny, the things we remember - everytime I shop at
Smiths I pay special attention to the young men who bag my groceries and
I think about Michael. He was very good at that and he has always
worked - AND that impresses Grandma B -Ha!!! I also remember the night
he brought me a loaf of VERY special bread he had made at "Great
Harvest". I hope you have a WONDERFUL birthday Michael - I'm proud of
you!!!
HAPPY, HAPPY FATHER'S DAY TO THE FABULOUS
FATHERS IN MY FAMILY!!! I'm SO proud of each one of you and the GREAT
job you are doing in rearing your children - I see the results of your
excellent parenting skills as I spend time with my grandchildren and I
couldn't ask for more. I had a GREAT Father and you all had GREAT
Fathers so we have a real responsibility in following their examples.
I was SO happy to have a message on my phone
answering machine from Roy last night. I was sorry I missed his call.
I'm thinking about Emily as she prepares to go to Costa Rica for the
rest of the Summer and the rest of the family as they prepare to come
for Lake Powell - I hope they will have time to spend a night or more
with me. I have spent time on my picture project this past week and I
accessed pictures of the Weinert family when they had a young woman as
an exchange student from Japan and the Woolley family when they had a
young woman as an exchange student from Spain. I hope the family Emily
stays with will be as good a family as the Weinerts & Woolleys. They
"screen" those families really well and I know it will be a GREAT
experience for Emily and for them too - she is a joy to have as part of
a family!!!
Bob - thank you SO very much for your
excellent "Journal" from your trip to Guatemala. I read it and re-read
it - it was so much fun to read about Jimmy & Brett and I couldn't be
more proud of them for their help to Bob but also for their desire to
"really delve" into the culture of the Guatemalan culture. Bob brought
over a video last Sunday that was just WONDERFUL and it showed Brett &
Jimmy with their "whole" corn (it looked like hominy) as they were
planning to grind it to make tortillas. I am also very proud that they
would try the foods there - THAT TAKES ALOT OF COURAGE AND SHOWS ALOT OF
RESPECT. I guess my experience in Thailand has had alot to do with how
I feel about that. My Thai friends REALLY have their feelings hurt when
people don't like their foods - Ha!!!! I hope when all of you go in
November that you won't travel on those dangerous roads- THAT'S A
WORRY!!!
Claire - thank you SO very much for keeping
me up-to-date on Brett & Katie and their activities last week. Brett
has moved into the dorms at BYU and from the picture Claire sent it is
going to be an experience very different from what he has been used to.
She said in her letter last night that Brett had called them and he was
doing fine and "loving it". Katie has been to EFY at the University of
Utah and when she got home dead tired she turned around and when to a
full day of "cheering". I love the pictures Claire sends - she and
Skylar Merrifield are good friends and have had fun getting their sons
settled at BYU. The picture of Claire & Skylar show they haven't
changed since their friendship in Little Rock. One of Claire's friends
whose name was Debbie died this past week. She was severly injured in a
car accident five years ago and Claire has been such a dear friend to
help her all these years - I'm sorry she has died but she is much better
where she is now even though I know you and her family will really miss
her.
Annie - thank you SO very much for your
letter. She said how much she had enjoyed having Brett & Jon spend the
night in their home and having "Mickey Mouse Waffles" for breakfast.
She said they were SO appreciative and fun to have and I know it was a
special time for them. BYU summer school starts on Monday and they will
get busy real soon. Thank you for offering to represent the family at
the 90th brithday party for Ramona on Tuesday. I thought about that for
a long, long time and I kept coming to the same conclusion - I need to
go to it too. I had planned to go to Star Valley with Margaret and our
friends tomorrow but when I got the invitation to Ramona's party I
decided that had to come first. The invitation is from Ramona's
granddaughter, Pam Farnworth and it will be a barbque at her home and it
was for "Barbara Mellor & her girls" which indicates to me they are
limiting the number of invitations. Ramona is a very dear sister-in-law
and not everyone gets to celebrate their 90th brithday!!!
Jeannie - thank you SO much for your message
this morning. I really appreciate your invitation for dinner and
visiting today - today is Rick's day with his family and I know they
will all be there to wish him a VERY HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!! I am happy
that your computer is working. I have wanted to send you an e-mail all
week about Ramona's party but I didn't think you would get it. I told
Annie that Tuesday is the night for your Young Women's meeting and I was
sure you wouldn't miss that - BUT if you decide you want to go I would
love to have you go with me. It starts at 6:30 p.m. and I will leave
here about 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, the 22nd!!!
John - thank you for your phone calls. I'm
always "bothering" him with my picture project and genealogy problems
and he is SO sweet to take time to help me. I guess it is my privilege
to be a "bother" - Ha!!!! He is SO busy and that's good.
Chris and Wayne Smith are scheduled to be in
Missoula, Montana today. They are going to help their grandson Scott
build a home there. He doesn't have any "ties" to Montana but he loves
the outdoors and has chosen to live there - I don't know what he plans
to do to make a living but he would be good at taking sportsmen on
tours, etc. They wrote and said they didn't know if they would come to
see me before they go to Washington State to visit Wayne's sister or on
their way back - that makes it kinda' hard for me to make my plans but
they're easy to have and I would feel bad if I missed them.
Ellen Mae called me last night and we are
going to have a little High School friend luncheon tomorrow - very
impromptu. One of our classmates is visiting from California and wants
us to get together. I went to a movie on Friday night with my condo
friends and then again last night I went with them to the "Amphitheatre
Concert" in Layton. The concert was put on by the "BYU Synthesis" jazz
band (I think that's what they are called) and I enjoyed it very, very
much. I thought about Brett all night as they featured the drummer and
he was very good. They are going to Nauvoo for the next two weeks to
perform. They played music from the 40's and 50's and also music from
the Glenn Miller band days. The movie we went to was "The Terminal" and
it was funny & good.
Do you all remember Margaret's dog -
ReRun??? She called me last Sunday night and said he had had a seizure
and she had taken him to the Veterinarian. She called later and said
she was SO relieved because the doctor told her he had epilepsy and they
could control it. THEN she called early on Monday morning to tell me he
had suffered a massive heart attack and had died. She has REALLY had a
difficult time this week - I see it in everything she does. Patt came
over and we all went shopping and then to lunch and then we have kept
her busy all week with the concert and movie. She truly loved that dog
but it is such a blessing that he has died - she is always on the go and
it has been difficult. He was a very sweet and intelligent dog and I
will miss him. I have thrown all my "ReRun Signs" away - I had them in
every room of my condo because I cared for him so often. Please keep
your fingers crossed with me that she won't get another dog.
Tuesday is our primary election day. I have
had one million political phone calls - the main race is between
Huntsman and Karras for Governor and the big issue is who could win over
Matheson?????? I will probably vote for Huntsman. I had a political
call from Rob Bishop last night encouraging me to vote for Karras and I
know the Summerhays family is for him but I think Huntsman would bring
more businesses into Utah because of his connections - BUT WHAT DO I
KNOW!!!!
Susanna - your Mom says that Jackson is
happy to be home with his toys and that he is easier to take care of in
their small home because there aren't that many places to go - Ha!!! I
think of you all the time and I know you are doing good - I hope you and
Steve will keep me posted on Caroline Ann & Jacksons' growths via
pictures - YOU ARE GOOD AT THAT!!!
That's all the news - I think!!!! I LOVE
EACH ONE OF YOU SO VERY, VERY MUCH. PLEASE BE SO VERY, VERY CAREFUL IN
EVERYTHING YOU DO. Grandma B XXXXXOOOOO