This week in Burley, I D A H O

Week of February 16 to 22...

February 16 - Monday
Presidents' Day...  Still have the Valentine month centerpiece...

Walt riding the exercise bicycle...

A balmy 50 degrees in the middle of February...

 ...The flag flying in the wind on Presidents' Day...

February 17 - Tuesday
Julie sent me flowers with a card that said:
"Thanks for giving birth to me!"
How sweet is that!

February 18 - Wednesday  
.Early this morning LaRae Crane called to say she came down with a bad cold last night and would not be able to go visiting teaching.
I told her I could still do it since we had the appointments all lined up for our sisters.
I made some more valentine cookies to take.
The message was the second in the series of the theme for the year: "The Attributes of Christ."  "Jesus Christ is pure in heart."  We strive to also be pure in heart.  Cindy Young, Bonnie Jean Rose, and Debra Harrell are sweet sisters to visit.
    
February 19, 2015 - Thursday
Tonight...For our Serendipity Book Club I was assigned to give a presentation on our Calling in El Salvador which was from July 20, 2011 to October 31, 2014 as Temple President and Matron of the new San Salvador El Salvador Temple.
Just finished the presentation about our calling in El Salvador.

Karma Lambert, our "hostess with the mostess" is serving refreshments at 9:09 p.m..

Our wonderful Serendipity Book Club President--Linda Petersen.

As we were winding up, Gladis, Terry, Ilene, and Karma offered to help me carry my computer, power point projector, the screen, and my El Salvador souvenirs out to the car.

Then as I was carrying the last item out--the screen--one of the gals came in and said: "Your husband just came, tripped on the curb and has fallen on the driveway."
I went out, and as I leaned over to ask him if he was okay, he said:
"I think I've broken my hip."
   And he was right.
He had driven over in the pickup to load the screen into because he knew it would not fit in the car. He had driven it over earlier in the pickup.   
    Then he and Don Melling had gone to the Burley-Jerome basketball tournament game at the Burley gym.
Now he was just back from the game and had come over to help me get the things back home.
  He would not let Karma call an ambulance.  So four of us gals helped get him to his feet and the four steps over to the passenger side of the pickup.  He could not put any weight onto his right leg.  We slowly got him over and up into the seat.
Then Ilene Mai drove my car to our home (only about 3/4 of a block away.  Gladis Harrison followed and drove Ilene back to Karma's to get her car.
   I dashed into the house to call the E.R. so they would be ready to help get Walt out of the pickup and into the E.R.
Ilene came to the Emergency Room, too. She parked her car, then
came and parked our pick up so I could follow Walt in as they got him on a gurney and carried him in.
The x-ray did show that his right hip was broken.
He had me ask Don Melling and David Gibbons to come and give him a Priesthood blessing.
    We appreciate all who helped us with this emergency.

After Dr. David Otiveros (?sp), the E.R. physician did the initial workup and diagnosis, we asked for Dr. Gilbert Crane to come to admit Walt to the hospital and arrange for surgery the next day.

Walt was admitted to the patient floor at 1:54 a.m.--Room 132.

And settled in...

At 2:30 the nurse said the rest of the paper work could be finished later.  They brought me a recliner so I could be by him that first night.
He was very upset with himself for falling.
Accidents happen so fast!
I asked him how much it was hurting.
"If I keep perfectly still, there is no pain," he replied.

February 20 - Friday
Dr. Crane had our internist, Dr. James Spackman, come to check him in the morning to see if he was okay to have the surgery.

Everything was a go, so at 1:30 they wheeled him out of the room to go to the Operating Room.

Janie, our oldest daughter, arrived from Rexburg just in time to give her Dad a kiss before the surgery.  She also said to him: "Now you be a good boy!"  That gave the O.R. nurses a chuckle.
When they wheeled him back at 5:00, Dr. Crane showed her the x-rays of the total hip replacement.

February 21 - Saturday
Today...  ...this will be finished later.

February 22 - Sunday
Today......


We pray you have had a restful and peaceful Sabbath Day.
The Lord does not prevent accidents, but He does bless us with the miracles of medical advances and highly trained physicians and other that help repair us when we are injured.

We are thankful for the healing power of priesthood blessings and expert medical care when bones are broken.

On examining Walt and his bones, Dr. Crane told Walt that he is a "young 80-year-old."

We are thankful for our family and many, many friends from the United States, El Salvador, Guatemala, Argentina, and Mexico who have sent messages of love and support from the face book posts with photos that Janie has done for us throughout these past three days.

The Lord is in charge and we are thankful for His tender mercies for us.
     We testify of the Goodness of our Heavenly Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost to us in this earthy life.
      In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.  
               Walt and Eileen Petersen - I D A H O 

February 9 to 14 in Burley, Idaho and Provo, Utah

This week...February 9-14 in Idaho and Utah
      I have finished putting the photos in the Jan. 19-31 post, and the Feb. 1-8 post.

February 9 - Monday
We started the day by having breakfast at "Charlie's"--the best kept secret of "Mom & Pop's" Café's in Burley.  We always go there when Julie or Julie & John and their family are in Burley.

Before we left, here's Max guarding Grampa and Rigdon.

Here's who Max is guarding...

Then we let Grampa and Max off at home while Julie got her van lubed at Wal*Mart.  I didn't know that there was a lube place at the northeast side of Wal*Mart.  I asked them how long they'd been there. 
"Fifteen years," the head man said.  
I then asked how long Wal*Mart had been there. 

"Twenty-three of twenty-four years," he replied.
We shopped for some things for the bedrooms, like a bed-side lamp and wastebaskets.  Then we went home for an afternoon rest.
But that little pill, Rigdon, only sleeps about 20 minutes at a time, so Julie didn't get a nap.  She actually has had little sleep during these past five months since Rigdon joined their family on September 4, 2014.

Later that day we bought a few more things for the house, then worked on unpacking the last of the boxes that were shipped home for us from El Salvador.
 Julie answered two of our prayers:
1. My Book of Mormon that I've had for years had not shown up in any of the boxes.  We were down to the last few of the 65 boxes.
2. All the copies of Walt's talks he gave at Stake Conferences and other meetings had not shown up, either.
JULIE FOUND THEM!  

We are so relieved and extremely happy!

Then Julie took down the blue Christmas lights from the front of the house.

Walt helped but couldn't climb up on the step ladder, and with both shoulders being injured he can't reach them above his head.

We so appreciate Julie staying this extra day to help us.
John, Jacee, and Jackson...thanks for sharing her.

And that was our family home evening activity.
   Out of time again tonight. Have to finish this post later.
    I will be working on my power presentation for the program at our Serendipity Study Club for Thursday, Feb. 19.

We hope you have had a nice Valentine's Day, and today have had a peaceful and restful Sabbath Day.

In Gospel Doctrine class today, Sunday, February 15, we were taught about the miracles of Christ.

Our wonderful teacher, Bonnie Fronk, said we each have many miracles each day.  

We acknowledge the many miracles and tender mercies we have had from the Lord each day and are so thankful for each one!

We testify that Jesus is our Savior and Redeemer and because of His Infinite Atonement for each one of us, we look forward to the greatest miracle of all: The surety of the resurrection and being able to be with our families for Eternity.  
    Our resurrection has been paid for by the Savior. We will each receive that miracle.
    Our exaltation depends on how we live our life.
    We repent daily of our wrong doings and pray we will live to be able to be together forever.

Of this we testify, in the Name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Walt and Eileen Petersen
     May you have a great week coming.

February 1 to 8, 2 0 1 5 - Burley, I D A H O

February 1-8, 2015 - Saratoga Spring, Utah and Burley, I D A H O
February 1, 2015 - Sunday - Saratoga Springs, Utah
We were in Saratoga Springs, Utah 
We went to Julie & John's Saratoga Springs ward.
Here we are with Jacee, Jackson, and Maddie.

Here is Julie with her kids. John had taken Rigdon home a little early.  She taught a great Sunday School Gospel Doctrine lesson on
"Being Born Again" and having the countenance of Christ in our faces.

When we got home, Julie helped John finish getting a delicious Sunday Roast Beef Dinner ready.

I love how the sunlight comes into their 

kitchen window in the afternoon.

We love hanging out with our kids and grandkids.    

                    

The kids had some quiet time while the adults had quiet nap time.

Maddie, 7, shaped play dough.

Jackson had some "live dough" to shape.

After Sunday naps, Julie and John helped their kids with Young Women Progress, Cub Scouts, and some school home work.

Then Gary, Abbey, Jacob, and Isaac came over.

It's always great to be with family!

Jacee made some brownies to go with ice cream.

Everyone loves little 5-month old Rigdon.

Here he is with his Dad, John.

February 2 - Monday morning after Jacee, Jackson, and Maddie left for school, we were on our way to Idaho.  Jacee and Maddie wore their "Beauty and the Beast" shirts.

Rigdon got to ride to Eagle Mountain with John while he checked out a home he is building.  Julie was having her semi-annual dental check up. (Some people have all the fun!?)

We stopped on the way to see my sister, Janice, and Jeff.

She had scared us all on Friday, Jan. 30, which was to be her last day of work before retiring.  She had a mini-stroke in the early morning when she was getting ready to leave for downtown SLC to the D.A. Davidson where she has worked for 12 years 1 month.

She has had many different jobs during and since high school, and has worked most of her life.

Checking to see which photo is the best. The above has the best light, but Jeff is smiling in the one below.

Then we took a photo of them in front of their home in Midvale.

We are so thankful my sister came through this third mini-stroke, plus a full stroke back in September 2013 (Sept 14)

and that same month (Sept16) a mini-stroke.

Janice said to Jeff before we got there: "You better change your shirt.  You know Eileen is going to take some photos."

We pulled out at noon straight up.

Without any stops along the way, 

we got home at 3:30 that afternoon.

We finished listening to the audio book White Fang by Jack London which was in the set of London's The Call of the Wild. The latter was the January book for our family "Siblings Book Club." 

Walt had driven all the way from Burley to SLC on Thursday, 

and I drove all the way from Midvale to Burley on Monday.

More coming....later.

I did put more photos onto last week's blog.

And today, 

February 8, 2015 - Sunday

After our 3-hour block 12:30 noon to 3:30, Walt left for the Twin Falls Temple with Paul Young where they had

a training meeting for sealers.

We had a serendipity surprise:

Julie drove up with Rigdon and Max.

They had a spur of the moment Blueberry girls gathering because

Cindy Chesley Shaw's son, Dominic, 

reported his mission to Korea today,

and Stacie Lloyd Duce was driving through on her way from

Montana to Utah for a book she has written.

Julie is staying overnight, and helping us get all our Christmas decorations put away tomorrow. 

She thinks we should have Valentine decorations out....not

our snowmen on the front porch.

And a wreath that says: "Ho - Ho - Ho."

We pray you have had a peaceful and restful Sabbath Day.

We learned in Sunday School Gospel Doctrine Class today about how the Savior called his original Twelve Apostles,

and about today's current Twelve Apostles.

We testify that we do have Prophets and Apostles on the earth today. Their names are

Thomas S. Monson, Henry B. Eyring, Dieter F. Uchtdorf,

who constitute The First Presidency of

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Quorum of the Twleve Apostles today are

Boyd K. Packer, L. Tom Perry, Russell M. Nelson, Dallin H. Oaks, M. Russell Ballard, Richard G. Scott, Robert D. Hales, Jeffrey R. Holland, David A. Bednar, Quentin L. Cook, D. Todd Christofferson, and Neil L. Andersen.

We testify that each of these 15 men is a 

Prophet, Seer, and Revelator.

In the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Walter R. & Eileen A. Petersen

February 6, 2015 = 33 years since my father died.

Here's a excerpt from Mom's life story Jan. 1982 about Daddy's last month of life.

It so happened that this was one of those bad winters with lots of snow and wind and bad roads.  Arnold said he didn’t want me driving to Burley because of the roads.  I called him at the Burley Hospital on the telephone almost every day.

            On my last birthday card from Arnold--January 14, 1982, he was so weak he could hardly write.  He had “To Ma” on the front and just signed “Al” on the inside.  The card

had this printed message: “To My Wonderful Wife

                        “A wife—

                          her companionship is your delight…

                          her laughter is your joy…

                          her dreams are your goals…

                          her faith is your strength.

                                    Your love turns everyday living into something warm

                                    And beautiful…

                                    And simple pleasures into something special.

                                    I’m so happy to be sharing life with you!

                                                Happy Birthday With All My Love”

Eileen brought Arnold home on January 7th from the Burley hospital.  The roads were snowy and slick.  I was taking care of Arnold, changing his bandages from his third surgery since August and I was also driving back and forth to Wendell to help take care of Dad and Mother.  Arnold couldn’t keep food down so wasn’t eating much. 

He was home less than a week—for the last time.  I took him back to the Burley hospital on January 12^th and he was transferred to the Salt Lake L.D.S. Hospital on January 15^th by ambulance.  Eileen and I followed in my car. 

            Eileen drove back to Burley and I stayed with Don and Marcele.  I took the bus back and forth from their home to the LDS Hospital.

            Arnold had a really good doctor there.  His name was Dr. Edwards, a cancer specialist.  

Surgery Number 4

They did a CT Scan on the 16^th then operated on Arnold January 20^th.  They tried to do an illioscopy (?sp) but the cancer had spread and metastasized and there was nothing they could do.  Dr. Edwards said the tumors were growing faster than they could cut them out and there was no hope.  He said that Arnold had just a few weeks to live.  He only lived 17 more days.

            While I was there they had me to go to a session where they informed family members how to cope, etc.  Our teacher said she had Lupus so she could empathize with us.

            Arnold was dismissed from the LDS Hospital on January 30^th, a Saturday.  Eileen had driven back to Salt Lake in their van so Arnold could lie across the back seat going back to Burley.  

February 6, 2015 ...

   Thirty-three years ago today--February 6, 1982--my father died in the Cassia Memorial Hospital at age 69 in Burley, Idaho, after a hard-fought six-month battle with colon cancer.

My mom, Verna Albertson, my sister, Janice, and I were at his hospital bedside. Janice and Don had driven up that Saturday morning from Orem, Utah.  

I had just returned from Sun Valley, Idaho, where Walt was in charge of the Idaho Academy of Family Physicians' annual meeting because he was the president that year.  When I got word that my Dad had taken a turn for the worse, I had driven back early that morning.

Walt had found a ride back to Burley with another physician from Burley.  The 4-day meeting was scheduled to end that afternoon.

After my Dad was diagnosed with colon cancer in mid-August of 1981, he had four surgeries to cut the tumors out.  In late January at the LDS Hospital in Salt Lake, after Dr. Edwards did the fourth surgery (the first three were done by Dr. Ellingham in the Burley Hospital), he said: "The cancer is multiplying faster than we can cut it out.  

Here is a poem from page 217 of my Mom's Life Story that she found for Arnold on Father's Day 1980:       

For Father’s Day I found the perfect card for Arnold that described him to a “T.”  “My Husband…

Wherever he is, there are strong arms,

                    Firm steps, a freshly mowed lawn, work done . . .

                           There is whistling,

                                           Teasing,

                                                Laughter at the dinner table,

                                                       Quiet fun,

                                             Wherever he is,

                                                    There is a favorite easy chair,

                                                        The spicy scent of after shave

                                                             And charcoaled steaks prepared just so …

                                              There is strength and comfort,

                                                     Tenderness and peace,

                                                             And all the warmth and love

                                                     A woman could know.”

                                                                   
My mother has now been reunited with my Daddy in heaven for one year and seven months after she passed away at age 93. She had been a widow for 31 years.

Below is their photo taken in one of those instant photo booths at the Jerome County Fair in September 1937, a few days before they eloped and were married in Hailey, Idaho.

                                    
Below is a photo from 1943 when Daddy was working in the shipyards in Long Beach, California.  The army wouldn't take him because he had flat feet, so he moved to California where he could help build ships for World War II.

Below is a photo in 1962 with Dad and Mom, my sister Janice, and me.  Daddy would have been 50 years old, Mom 42, Janice 13, and me 23.  Walt and I had been married one year and drove home from St. Louis between his 3rd and 4th years in medical school for a couple of weeks.

Daddy, we will love you forever!