Family Fun in Logan

Rae's corner book marks

We drove up to Logan on Friday and stayed overnight with the gang there.
We all went out to dinner at one of those Japanese restaurants where they cook right in front of you.
The best thing was when the chef took his ketchup bottle and squeezed it at me.  I jumped a foot!
The ketchup was a fat red string...it was funny!

Rae and I had fun with crocheting.  She has been doing some cool hats and I helped her learn how to read a crochet pattern.

Sunny is taking an AP Calculus class.  She says that it's not hard compared to her Physics class.  She helped me a little with my Facebook page. I am learning how to get around.

Golden is about 5' 9" - getting very tall.  We had fun playing killer UNO and Shanghai with everyone. We laughed a lot.We also got into some great Art Beaver activities, making paste paper, cards, tags, bookmarks. Golden was thinking about using some of his paste paper to decorate a school project.

Life is good in Logan.  Bright and Sunny are flying to Seattle on Friday to baby sit for their Aunt. Then Mark and Darci and Golden will drive up for Thanksgiving and then they will all drive back together.
Bright is planning to come to Provo with us.

Darci will be done with her Master's degree by the end of the school year.  She is very excited

Here are a few photos.

Golden and Rae working on a school project

Rae with "Beaver" bookmark!

Sunny with Nola and Pudge...just chillin'

My sister Gwen

My sister is 6 years older than me.  When I was growing up, I couldn't imagine a more beautiful, glamorous, popular, charming girl than my sister.  I would try on her prom dresses, when she wasn't around, and imagine myself being able to "fit" in one of them.

When I was 12 and graduating from elementary school, I was set up on a blind date for all the graduation activities.  My sister, fixed my hair!

She was the one that would make our Christmas tree look beautiful.  She was always a breath of fresh air coming and going with her friends and activities.

I was a bridesmaid at her wedding.

We have always lived far apart geographically. These last few years, we were growing closer and more involved with each other and our families.  Families have special ties.  We learn great things in our families and especially feel one another's support and encouragement.

I am missing her very much.  She died in a sudden and unexpected way.  I cherish the love that we have shared over the years. It is something you can always feel.  Here are a few pictures, I think you will enjoy.

Family Christmas Dinner around 1951
Jim, John, Ruth, Harry, Nancy, Gwen, turkey and ham

Gwen and Nancy
A snowy day in Ottawa around 1952 or 3

Gwen the Nurse
Montreal

More photos to come and stories to come.

Mary's Audition Tape

When we were in California, I had a chance to talk to Mary a bit about her hopes and dreams.  She is taking 3 AP classes this year and is also working very hard on her violin.  She has prepared an audition for the National Youth Orchestra.  This is not an easy thing to do.  She has to have an accomplished accompanist and a place to record where they will get a good sound and have all the schedules meet up, etc.

Mary playing for her audition

This is a summer program and if she is accepted into the program. She will spent several weeks rehearsing back East (New York) with other youth from around the country and then they will perform in many places in the United States.

This would be a great boost to her hopes and dreams to be a music performance major at BYU.

While I was watching Mary play, I thought back to Elder Christofferson's talk from General Conference.  He talked about the moral force of women.  I felt that moral force in Mary.  She looked so beautiful and modest and has developed her talents so splendidly that she is a force for good.  She has incorporated "discipline and high moral standards" into her life.  I hope the link below works for you.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2DF9922gUjGNjlkajJ0LVM3elk/edit?usp=drive_web

Mary is also a youth Family History consultant in her ward.  She plays the organ and piano for stake events.

While we in California, Grandpa and I ran into a very famous "person".  We also celebrated Thanks-o-
Ween.  We had Thanksgiving on Halloween and then the kids went to parties and trick or treating.

Italia Sodas in honor of Adam for Thanks-o-Ween
Ruth, Julia and Mary

Happy Halloween from Donald!

Hopes and Dreams

I am speaking to a group of young single adults this weekend.  Ever since we were asked to speak (last Spring), I have been thinking of what my hopes and dreams were at your age and at their age.  I have even asked some of you what your hopes were.

We hope for good grades, a fun date, a loyal friend. We hope we can make the team or be chosen to participate.  We hope for a fun Christmas present or the chance to sleep late.

One of the things I hoped for as a little girl was a really cool pair of roller skates.  The "cool" roller skates had a key that went with them.  You would slip the skates on over your shoes and then using the key you would tighten the skates to hold on to your shoes and buckle the strap around your ankle. Then you would hang the key around your neck.

Roller skates from the 50's

You can see where the bottom of the skate adjusted to fit your shoe as well.  This is what I hoped for but it's not what I had.  The ones I had didn't have a key and fell off your foot easily.  The sad thing is that I don't remember asking my folks for the cool kind of skates, I just hoped it would happen.

If you hope for something, it dictates your actions and actions will lead to a fulfillment of your hopes. When a hope is realized, your confidence grows.  Hope is a noun and a verb!  To be continued...

Building Stamina - physical and spiritual

Elder Maynes talked in conference about building stamina....and how important physical and spiritual stamina are to our well-being.  Here are two examples for you:

James ordained a teacher by Kenny in the photo from L to R are Uncle Allen, Uncle Robb, Grandpa Jacobsen, Lou, James, Kenny, Melanie, Grandma Jacobsen and Aunt Amy Lou Bennett

New backyard bar for Julia prepping for the pole vault season. 

How many can she do?  What is her goal?

Beavers that have come my way....

            Caught in the headlights?

I have a little collection of beaver images.
The first one was used at the family reunion for light switches.
The beaver with a scar, did not have one when he arrived at my house.  He was on my magnetic board for a while and suffered a scratch.  Are there more beaver images out there that anyone would like to share?

A Beaver Bag

Three Cuties!

Rae's Art Beaver

Tennis Anyone?

Some action scenes of our teens that play tennis.  Sunny and Daisy played on their school teams this year.  Peter has been taking classes. James D....Are you playing too?

Sunny

Daisy

Peter