December 9, 2008

Dear Children,

I have so much about which to write that it is overwhelming to begin. I believe I will begin from the end and go backwards since so much has happened in the last couple of weeks.

Last night was our family home evening when we planned to deliver our neighbor and friend gifts. This year, in my efforts to make a more homemade, back to basics Christmas, I experimented with a recipe for bean soup for which I could make a dry mix to give to our friends. I knew I wanted to do something with my canning jars when I cleaned out my storage room and opted to give many of them away this fall to some of the young mothers in the ward. The gifts turned out really cute and the soup is VERY delicious also. I added one little treat, red (raspberry) and green (mint) fudge on the side. Grandma came over in the afternoon and helped me put everything together; it was fun to have someone helping again. It made making 23 gifts much more enjoyable rather than just a task to finish. I wanted to have it finished before Dad got home so he and I could spend his time delivering. We got a late start so we will finish tomorrow night when we deliver treats and invitations to the singles ward “ugly Christmas sweater” Christmas party.

Last night we could only go to the homes where they didn’t have small children since we were late but we did first stop by the Jorgensen’s to let them know we were thinking about them. I haven’t told all of you but they have had so much with which to face in the last year. First, Jaime’s dad was diagnosed with cancer and was in treatment. He is doing well. He was actually getting a cancer treatment two floors up from Jaime when she was in the hospital in August having their third son, Carter. In September, her mother, Kathleen, was diagnosed with a rapidly growing cancer and she had surgery immediately and is doing well also. But sadly, Jaime’s four year old, Tate, has had several diagnosis with the loss of sight in one eye. They were relieved when it was something other than cancer until last week, when the doctor changed the diagnosis since the damage was spreading. He was scheduled for a MRI today to learn if the cancer has spread to his brain and he is scheduled for surgery this Thursday to remove his eye. I know you all care for Jaime and her family. She could use your prayers.

Dad is still leaving in the dark and returning in the dark with the goal of finishing this last large job before any of you start arriving for the holidays. We feel extremely blessed to have the work and that the weather has held out this long on the most critical days. He is determined that the forecast for a winter chill this weekend and into next week will not thwart his plans. He did distract himself last night wondering if the tractor tires needed to be replaced so that he would be prepared to build a snow mountain in the cul-de-sac if the opportunity arose! The two neighbor girls across the street stuck right with him the evening that he was working to repair our Rudolph and sleigh light display, reminding him that Rudolph’s nose needed new lights, so there are more children in the neighborhood that would benefit from a snow mountain here. Dad misses not having Nate here to lift the display onto the roof but it actually shows up quite nicely on the front corner of the house. I like it there also, fewer chances to fall!

Dad and I enjoyed watching the First Presidency Broadcast on TV on Sunday evening. All the messages were so great and the music, as expected, was wonderful. Some year I would like to go to that in Salt Lake. I loved the emphasis in the messages of extending a willing hand and a loving heart to those in need. I enjoyed President Monson’s challenge of making a conscious, committed effort to bring Christ into our lives and home. He told us that down through the ages the message has always been the same, “Follow me.”

I keep forgetting to ask the boys if they threw streamers at the Missouri/Oklahoma game this last Saturday. Morty, Aaron and Nate were all in Kansas City to be a part of that play off. Dad caught a bit of the game on TV and remarked that he saw yellow streamers fly through the air after a touchdown; definitely a tradition of the boys!

Shawn caught me off guard when he called on Saturday afternoon with a band blaring in the background on his cell phone. He thought I might like to hear the Hayward High marching band. They were at a Christmas parade in Oakland (Their family does so many fun things). To tell you the truth, it never dawned on me that Hayward High’s band ever marched formally. Except for the time they marched behind us at the Downtown Rally (annual pep rally; not a protest rally!); I didn’t even guess that they performed anywhere except to play at games so we could perform our routines. I believe that I have admitted that I selfishly thought my dancing was the reason for a band! I have paid dearly for that selfish notion in the years I volunteered for our high school band. Speaking of which, both the Southridge band and football team took state championships this fall!

Kyre had fun on her birthday. Alina was the first one to phone her in the morning. Alina is so good to remember her mother’s important days! She also got to go to lunch with Meeja, Sunhee and Wendi. Her sister, Angie, brought them into Albany that afternoon.

This week was the week that Katie heard that she got her dream internship that goes from January to June. It sounds like a perfect opportunity. She will definitely be a poor, destitute student now as that is six months without earning an income but she is making a tremendous investment in her education and career training. Luckily, she gets to work three of the five days a week on sports broadcasting in the main St. Louis TV station, KSDK (two blocks from the Cardinal’s stadium). She will be in sports heaven; I wonder if she will take all her Cardinal memorabilia for her desk . . . well, I guess it wouldn’t fit on a desk really!!! She has already made a connection with someone in the singles ward there since she has to quickly work on a place to live. Carol has a relative in St. Louis but she hasn’t heard from them yet. When she asked if I would help her drive there I thought that sounded like lots of fun until it set in that I would be driving through the Rockies and icy plains of the Midwest in the dead of winter. I am trying to convince Katie that we need to take more than two days to drive it!

How will Katie want to leave St. Louis right in the middle of baseball season? Well, she may be very anxious to get back in time for Bill and Heidi’s baby to be born. Yes, I have been dying to announce their news but they hadn’t been able to correspond with everyone until now. They are expecting a baby in June, and Shawn and Aubrey in March so that will be nice that the two cousins will be close in age.

Dad and I ended our Thanksgiving week at a memorial for Mrs. Gueck on Saturday evening. Sharon outdid herself to create another nice gathering. This one was supposed to be the more public gathering but the family service, when she was buried just spontaneously grew. Sharon made even more displays of Mrs. Gueck life in pictures. It was held in a hotel in Wilsonville. Most of the people who spoke were former Gueck girls who felt that the opportunity that Mrs. Gueck had provided to them had changed their lives.

The Friday after Thanksgiving was a big day for me. That evening I drug Dad to do a little more shopping with me and to use my free hamburger certificate at Red Robin that Shawn and Aubrey sent for my birthday. In the afternoon, right before it started to get dark, we cut down our Christmas tree. Shawn sent Dad and I a picture message of himself looking for a Christmas tree in his shorts, sunglasses and T-shirt. I told him that I wouldn’t trade even though it looked pretty comfortable. I did my usual early morning run to get after-Thanksgiving Day specials and came home in time for a birthday party. Uncle Scott and Aunt Carla were leaving that afternoon and Dad had to work that morning so we planned a lunch get together; nothing sounded as good as leftover turkey sandwiches! So, Carla made a cream cheese-chocolate dessert that I love and we celebrated at home. There was so much we still wanted to do with Scott and Carla but we had a very enjoyable visit while they were here.

Thanksgiving was quiet but nice. It was very relaxing with three cooks sharing the work. Grandma made her jello, Aunt Carla did the pies the night before and we bought these great cranberry ciabatta rolls so Thanksgiving morning was a breeze. We even went on a bike ride to Grandma’s place after I stuffed the turkey. We figured that would allow us a piece of pie! Klaire and Kyre called to wish us Happy Thanksgiving. Klaire would say “giving” over and over again. And then when she called for my birthday, she would say, “Happy to you.” The Brady family sang to me on my birthday. I thought it was almost a solo from Rebekah, which sounded very excellent, but then I later learned that Rebekah was holding the phone for the rest of the family!

All the single siblings were in Las Vegas for Thanksgiving. It sounded like they had a great time. They were all invited to the family dinner at Aaron’s N9ne Steakhouse. Morty described all the foods they had: turkey, prime rib and shrimp. Katie said she had the best pumpkin cheesecake that she ever has tasted. That would be a fun destination next Thanksgiving! Nate and Katie had to get back to Provo early so they left on Friday but Adrianne stayed until Sunday afternoon allowing her to go with Morty to do their own early morning after-Thanksgiving Day sales shopping. It sounded like they had lots of success. The rest of the weekend Adrianne spent time cooking for her brothers: egg puff, chicken enchilada casserole, etc. Morty said she was “cooking up a storm.”

Monday through Wednesday we went to Long Beach with Aunt Carla, Uncle Scott and Grandma. We had never stayed there before. It was wonderful. We hit some pockets of great weather so it was perfect for exploring the area. Long Beach is a much more outdoorsy beach town although they have some very nice shops and an incredible bakery! They have a great bike path. Dad and Scott went on several rides. There was a long boardwalk right behind our place; Carla and I walked down to the end and then on the beach. It was very mild. They even have a whale skeleton right on the beach. The last day that we were there we took a hike to one of the lighthouses. I personally thought we were lost part of the time. I would love to go back and do more exploring around the town. We had a great time relaxing and playing lots of games. We didn’t convince Carla and Scott to go out to the pool in the rain (really sprinkles) though.

That part of Washington is called the Cranberry Coast. We even visited a cranberry museum and cranberry bogs! Dad was in seventh heaven; even gleaned some leftover cranberries right out of the bog and tried to convince us that they were sweet! It was a fun trek to the bogs and even educational. We tried to find Osterville where they bring in the oysters from the oyster beds but decided to turn around and go back to our place.

We really saw enough huge piles of oyster shells along the way. It is a very quaint area; I am anxious to go back. I booked it as soon as I heard that Carla and Scott were coming up. We stayed in their marketing room and made Scott and Carla attend the dreaded 90 minute presentation!

While we were in Long Beach, Shawn called us to give us the good news. He has a new job already! His goal was to get a new job within 30 days and he made it. He is working for an insurance company called Unum that writes disability insurance for large companies. It is right by their home so he doesn’t even have to get on the freeway. He said that he put a lot of applications in for work in San Francisco and is very glad he found this one so close. He likes the people that are working with him and says he is learning a lot. He worked very hard to get this new position.

Dad and I are getting very excited for the family to gather. It will be great fun to be together. For our family picture on Wednesday morning, do you all have jeans or a pair of khakis that you can bring? Maybe, if everyone also has a blue or white top, we could coordinate that much. Let me know if that won’t work for you as soon as possible please. Remember, if the weather is dry at that moment (Wednesday morning at 10:00 am), we will be taking the picture outside by the manmade lake at Grandma’s condo so bring warm white or blue tops. Thanks!

Dad and I had a nice visit with Scott. He told us about his first Thanksgiving at OSP. Olives are not usually served (last time was New Year’s day), but served that day. He convinced several other men to give him their olives. He took them back to his cell so he could put an olive on each finger and then eat them one by one in true holiday fashion! This will be especially hard for him to go through the holidays; last year was such shock and turmoil for him through the holidays since it was in the middle of his transfers from Washington County to Coffee Creek and then to Salem. I am sure he would love you all to send your Christmas cards and holiday news to him. He looks forward to seeing as any of you as possible.

His choir is performing several times there for the inmates and also The Singing Christmas Tree is going into sing to them. Plus, I believe that he said a choir form Keizer Stake was coming as my mind went forward several years to the off-chance that Alina could be in that choir and go in and sing (not that anyone would ever let that happen but it was my dream).

Thank you for sending Baby Ruth bars for Kyre’s birthday. She called after receiving ours and was so happy. She left a phone message saying, “How did you know that was my favorite candy bar? (then paused and said) Of course, Scott, he told you!” She can use any positive memory of the past.

Thank you for the small and simple kindly things you do for your family members. You are following the prophet’s counsel to lift others in need. Everyone has a need to be lifted.

I love you, Mom

Heidi-Scott’s cell mate is from Brownsville and I remember that one of your first Ricks College roommates was from there but I couldn’t remember her name to tell Scott.