28 Days and counting.........

I try not to count but it just doesn't work!!!!! I have sent home 16 boxes of "stuff: I can't bear to leave behind or give away......don't ask me where it's going to go when I open the boxes in March! Dad thinks I'm going about this task way too soon but I don't think he looks at the calendar and sees how many days are taken up with volunteering, driving a lady to muliple doctor appointments 30 miles away, arport runs,workshops and the last week will be training the new couple...who right now are shivering in their boots with fear as tomorrow they go into the MTC!!! I prefer being on this end! AND, dad is not the one that is doing all the packing. He will be going thru his drawers the day before we leave!!! I can't do that!

Had a fun experience this weekend. We'd been invited to the North Adams branch to speak in sacrament meeting and to present the 5th Sunday lesson. North Adams is a very fun little town...it was a textile town in the early days and as one lady said. "it's now in transition". She acknowledged that transition has been taking place for 20 years. It's almost to the New York border on the west and Vermont on the north. The branch president lives in Vermont! They are high up in the Berkshires (a mountain range)and its nestled in the valley. Very picturesque and old. It's a small branch--they're trying to get attendance to be consistently in the 50's so they can build a chapel. For the last 6 years they've been meeting downstairs in the Holiday Inn!!! There's a outside entrance, a large vestibule, a meeting room, a Primary room, a couple of offices and small classrooms!

As with every meeting we go to around New England, we found ties to people we know. We met the nephew of the bishop of the Boston ward when we were here in the 60's and when dad was baptized. We figured anyone with the last name of VanUitert--well, they HAD to be related. Then one brother was reciting the names of all the senior couples that had served in their branch and they mentioned Pabst. We asked if it happened to be Ken and Robin and voila!!!! It was! The Pabst were in our Westshire neighborhood and dad was the ward mission leader then (we think)and gave the Pabst some of the missionary lessons and they were baptized!! Great people. And the people of the North Adams branch thougt they were the absolute best!!!

One of the missionaries was from Redmond, WA and graduated from the U of Washington as did our son-in-law.

It was sooooo frigid there in the Berkshires, but the tradeoff is all the mountains with snow, beautiful covered mountains that are spectacular in the fall, mild spring and beautiful summers!!! Coming home I took these pictures. The water coming down the rocks just continues to freeze and creates these beautiful icicle falls!!!






This last picture I had to take for my sister that lives in Orlando. This sign is from a REALLY little town right before North Adams.

And of course, the birthdays never end!!!!! In January my mother turned 87.

Jolynn turned......well, let's see..she's already had her 40th!!! And I can't get to a good picture of Jo!!!

Here's my sister, Patti, who is now a grama so she can be in her 50's with pride!!


Cutie Kyden in Arizona will be 6 and a star in school!!


And Sheldon, our only son-in-law is still in his 30's



Innocent looking Tom will be three in a few days and surviving having 4 sisters.


McKendra is turned 14 in January. Gosh, I was there when she was born...where did those years go???


Miss Volleyball, Shelby is 17!!! I was there when she was born too!!!


Here's Katelynn, a marathon runner who will be 15 in March!


My sister, Karla, has the pass along birthday hat. She still has a couple more years in her 50"s but time is marching on.......

Jordan will be 5 in March but he flexes his muscles for anyone that will look!!
So I think I got everyone and we should be home by some of those March birthdays!!!