Traces of Time . . . 

This week ~ July 27 to August 2, 2015 ~ in IDAHO and MINNESOTA.

July 27, 2015 - Monday
  About 1:30 Ruth Melling called David Gibbons to ask him to get Walt and come to give Don a blessing at the ER in Burley, where they had taken him from the Countryside Rehab in Rupert because he wasn't doing well.

Ruth told us she had called that morning but we didn't hear our phone ring.
At the ER the tests showed that Don was in kidney failure and they were going to take him by ambulance to the Twin Falls Hospital.

Ruth called her kids, and they wanted him to be taken to the UofU Hospital in Salt Lake City.   So at 4:00 the Life Flight helicopter crew had Don ready to fly to Utah.

(I didn't have my camera there, so just have a photo on my Samsung phone, which I don't know how to get the photo transferred to my computer.
Here's a photo of Don dressed in cowboy clothes like when he was ready for sorting and penning.
(I can't find that photo which I thought was in my files.  
Here's their wedding photo of August 5, 1960.

Happy 55th Wedding Anniversary 

on Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Empty Nesters' Family Home Evening at Fronk's tonight was nostalgic because it was the last time we will have the Gortons and Roskelleys because they enter the MTC on August 3.

Delicious Tri-Tip Roasts were served along with corn on the cob, side salads, rolls, and Texas chocolate sheet cake 'n ice cream.  

We always enjoy being together. We missed the Mellings being there.

Gathering for the lesson about missionary work.
Ken Fronk asked each one: "How has missionary work affected you life?"

We always enjoy being together.  George and Jacque have been preparing for several months to go on a mission.  They have been called to the Greece Athens Mission, and have been assigned to serve on the Island of Cyprus.    
Scott Bloxom served his mission in Argentina.

 Preparing to serve a mission, serving a mission or missions, and missionary work had affected each one there.

Front row: George and Jacque Gorton, MaryAnn and Darrell Roskelley - both of these couples enter the MTC on August 3.

The Roskelleys have been called to the Texas Ft. Work Mission and have been assigned to a CES (Church Education Mission).  They will be teaching Insitute in Killeen , Texas, 

among other assignments.

Second row is: Walt Petersen, Bonnie Hansen, Bonnie and Ken Fronk, Scott Bloxham, Dan Black, Marilyn and Dave Gibbons.

Same except Bonnie Fronk came to take the photo of me....far left on the back row.

Sad good-byes for those we will not see for 23 months, the Gortons, and 18 months the Roskelleys.

More goodbyes...

July 28, 2015 - Tuesday

I have a stress test at 1:00
Fast after 6:00 a.m., not take asthma meds...Singular
Be at X-ray, check in first.  It was a chemical stress test...
Walt thought Dr. Spackman said it would take 30 min.  Well, that was just his part.
The whole test took 3 hours.

Dale and Connie came and were with us for an hour. Connie goes to Parke View to see her 95-y-0 mother often.

At 8:35 we were all packed and left for Saratoga Springs.  Got there at 12:10 midnight.  Discovered it is 215 miles from Burley to John and Julie's home.

July 29, 2015 - Wednesday

Julie drove us to the airport.  Our flight was an hour late flying to Denver.  Good thing we had a 3-hour layover.  We were a little late leaving for Minneapolis. Instead of 2:50 we got off about 3:15 but we landed early.

Walt needs to be in a wheelchair on the long distances to go through airports.  So I get to push his walker, which helps me a lot.  As so many people were getting on and off planes Walt asked: "Where is everybody going?"

Jen,Ben, Josh, Lizzy, Adam, and Anna met us at the Minneapolis Airport and she drove us to Rochester.  It's always good to be with family.  

Sitting in planes and airports most of a day is tiring.  We're off to bed at 8:30 our 

July 30, 2015 - Thursday  
Jen had a radio interview from 10:00-11:00 on KROP "Broad Talk."  The main focus was "What age should teens be allowed to have their own cell phone?"
Here she is off to the interview, which after she taught an hour class on gardening at the YMCA.

We had lunch at La Carambas, which has some of the best Mexican food we've ever had.

Then we picked up Jerry's mom, Sue, at the Rochester Airport.

Joshie's last day to be 7.

They just got the dining area decorated for the birthday next morning, when their neighbors and good friends called to say their daughter had gotten cut.

 

So Jerry had them come over and determined the cut needed stitches, which he did.

July 31, 2015 - Friday

Joshua Steven Ray Brewer turned 8 today.  He is Jen & Jerry's 4th child, 3rd son.
Our family's traditional birthday breakfast is donuts and chocolate milk.

He is kind, smart--even precocious. 

Josh opened his fun birthday presents and thanked his Dad & Mom, and his brothers and sisters: Jerry, Jen, Seth, Sarah, Ben, Lizzy, Adam, Anna and Grandma Sue. (We gave him our present Saturday on his baptism day.)
Josh started  building his Ninja lego set, got it all finished, then Adam threw it and it was in little pieces again. 

 Undeterred, Josh started to build it again, but just told me he hasn't gotten it finished the second time.

 Birthday time is family fun time. 

B Jen then took us all swimming at the YMCA.  We had an hour before the YMCA camp kids got to use the pool at noon.
We didn't have our cameras there so no photos.

Everyone chose to just go home and make sandwiches for lunch because Josh had chosen McDonald's with the play land for his birthday dinner that evening.



Jerry's brother Stewart said they'd be here about 2:00 from Omaha.  Sure enough at 2:10, Stewart, Shannon, and Brooke pulled in.

How fun to see them!  Anna went right to her darling cousin, Brooke.

The kids had a great time outside on the trampoline...

...and in the playhouse.

Sue and I folded clothes and sorted them on the kitchen table.

Then it was time to meet Jerry at McDonald's at 6:00.

Even adults can enjoy Mickey D's.  Shannon and Lizzy.

Grandma Sue, Stewart, Adam, and Joshua.

Walt, Jerry, and Jen.

Walt and Eileen.

We got back to the house just in time to watch the premier of the new Disney movie made for TV "Descendants."  Actually we missed about the first 15 minutes of it, so I Googled the synopsis of it so I could figure out what was happening.



After the movie it was time for Joshua's Spiderman Ice cream birthday cake and extra ice cream.

I think Josh and the rest of us had a fun family day.

August 1, 2015 - Saturday

Joshua Steven Ray Brewer was baptized today. He is the middle child of Jen & Jerry's 7.  His 2-y-o brother, Adam, dashed over to be in the photo also.

For the musical quartet Jerry, Seth, and Sarah played violin, with Ben on the cello.  Shannon Brewer accompanied them. I only got a photo of Ben after we were out of the chapel. (We're not supposed to take photos in the chapel.)  It was a very touching rendition of "I Am A Child of God."

A couple who just moved here two months ago from China, were also baptized.  They met the missionaries the first day they moved to Rochester.  They have a darling daughter.

            

    Many came--family, friends, ward members.  Jen and Jerry served donut holes, cream puffs, cookies, fresh fruit, milk and water.
Below are just a few of the guests.

Here is their family surrounding Joshua. Seth, Sarah, Joshua, Lizzy, Jerry holding Adam, Jen holding Anna, and Ben.

Here is the extended family.  If we could put everyone's photos together, we would have ten different poses from Lizzy.  The missionaries took the photos.  I told them it was just like a zone conference.

In addition to the family names above are Jerry's Mom, Grandmother Sue from Vernal, Jerry's brother Stewart, wife Shannon, and daughter,, Brooke, Grama Eileen and Grampa Walt Petersen, Jen's parents.

After we got back home, the kids changed out of their Sunday clothes quickly and finished chores then got to play for a little while before we went to Joshua's baptism-day lunch.
It was a fun Italian Restaurante in downtown Rochester right across the street from the Mayo Clinic.

As we looked at the menus, Jen said: "Anything we have ever had here has been delicious!"  

And we now all agree! Stewart got an Italian dish with pork and Shannon got one with chicken.

Jen said she likes "Noe's Feature," which is a chicken dish with broccoli. (Can't figure out how to rotate this photo.)

Next Jerry and his Mom each chose something spicy...Sue's with shrimp and Jerry's with chicken.

Walt got Fettuchini and I got Lasagne, which was delicious, but the bread was even more delicious and I had almost filled up on it, so couldn't even eat half of this entree, so it's being saved in a box now in the Brewer's fridge.

Then Jerry ordered several desserts to pass around and have everyone share.  Lizzy and Josh chose the Crème brûlée as the favorite, but there were also votes for the very-chocolate chocolate cake, plus the caramel-topped cheese cake and bread pudding.

The "birthday boy" Josh got his very own Crème brûlée, gratis from the restaurant.

Jen and the kids have been so attentive in helping Grampa and me get around, in and out of the vans, etc.   Jen is usually carrying Anna on one side and helping Grampa with her other arm.

 Josh brought Grampa's walker up from downstairs later--in case he needed it. Josh is a very thoughtful and kind-hearted boy.

I had them all pause at the front door of the restaurant for a photo.

Most everyone went swimming at the YMCA after lunch, but some of older ones (like Grampa and me) stayed home and had a nap.

Here's the fun pool at Rochester's YMCA.


Then this evening we all watched part of "Fiddler on the Roof."  It opened on Broadway in 1964, played for ten  years, and broke all kind of attendance records.  The movie came out in 1971.  It's always fun to see it again--even just part of it as we did tonight.
   Stewart looked up that the "pogroms"* took place from 1880 to 1917 when they were evicting Jews from all parts of Russia.

*Pogroms

A pogrom is a violent riot aimed at massacre or persecution of an ethnic or religious group, particularly one aimed at Jews. The term originally entered the English language to describe 19th- and 20th-century attacks on Jews in the Russian Empire (mostly within the Pale of Settlement in present-day Ukraine and Belarus). Similar attacks against Jews at other times and places also became retrospectively known as pogroms. The word is now also sometimes used to describe publicly sanctioned purgative attacks against non-Jewish ethnic or religious groups.

August 2, 2015 - Sunday

Fast Sunday with The Brewers in Rochester, Minnesota.
We all went to church to their 9:00-12:00 Noon Block.
Nine testimonies were given sharing miracles in several of the lives of these ward members.  

One was a young girl who was going in for surgery Friday.  She has loved rainbows her whole life.  As they drove to the hospital, a rainbow appeared, which made her feel a lot better about having surgery.

Everything went well.  Her Dad, in his testimony, acknowledged the hand of the Lord in her healing.

Another testified of breast cancer returning, but after a Priesthood healing, the biopsy came back negative.

Several testified of the divinity of Jesus Christ, being the Son of God.

Sunday School -- The Acts of the Apostles, Chapters 6-9. It talked about unity always being needed in the Church. 


Before Stephen was killed he recounted the history of the Israelites, with a comparison between Moses and Jesus Christ.  He was the first Christian martyr.  He sealed his testimony with his blood.

In Relief Society the lesson discussed how to make partaking of the Sacrament more meaningful.   The teacher had us read the sacrament prayers in Doctrine and Covenants 20: 77 to see if anything new stood out for us.

I had never really focused on "witness unto thee..."

When we returned home we had a delicious Mormon Sunday Roast Beef dinner.

Grandma Sue and Sarah helped set the table.

Here is the teen and pre-teen table..

The adults with Adam and Anna.

The other side of the adults' table.
Didn't get a photo of the yummy brownies and ice cream for dessert.

Jerry and Stewart had a great time together talking and laughing about some of their antics together as brother growing up in Vernal, Utah.

All too soon it was time for Stewart, Shannon, and Brooke to head back to Omaha--a five-hour drive.

The kids ran through the back yards to wave to them 

from the road on the other side.

Then sisters-in-law say goodbye.

Lizzy got a flower in her hair.

The kids say goodbye to their 

Uncle Stewart and Aunt Shannon, and cousin Brooke.

Jerry put on the historical 2010 movie "Secretariat."

We thought we hadn't seen it, but as it started,

we remembered we had seen it when it first came out.

We enjoyed this great horse story about

the Triple Crown winner of 1973.

Here's a photo of the real Secretariat.

Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that, in 1973, became the first U.S. Triple Crown winner in 25 years. He set race records in all three events in the series – the Kentucky Derby (1:59²⁄₅), the Preakness Stakes (1:53), and the Belmont Stakes(2:24) – records that still stand today.^[2][3] He is considered to be one of the greatest Thoroughbreds of all time. In 1999, ESPN ranked Secretariat the 35th-best athlete of the 20th century, the highest-ranking racehorse on the list.

At the finish of The Belmont Stakes, Secretariat won by 31 lengths and ran the fastest 1¹⁄₂ miles on dirt in history, 2:24 flat. Secretariat's record still stands; no other horse has ever broken 2:24 for 1¹⁄₂ miles on dirt. 

Secretariat became the ninth Triple Crown winner in history, and the first in 25 years.

Two horses have taken the Triple Crown after Secretariat.

And now, another horse has won the Triple Crown in 2015, after the last Triple Crown winner 37 years ago.

·     Triple Crown Winners

o  Sir Barton - 1919

o  Gallant Fox - 1930

o  Omaha - 1935

o  War Admiral - 1937

o  Whirlaway - 1941

o  Count Fleet - 1943

o  Assault - 1946

o  Citation - 1948

o  Secretariat - 1973

o  Seattle Slew - 1977

o  Affirmed - 1978

Sunday, August 3, 2015

After winning the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes to become the 12th Triple Crown winner, and first in 37 years, American Pharoah's return was greatly anticipated. Fifty-seven days after the Belmont, the 3-year-old son of Pioneer of the Nile looked better than ever in his eighth consecutive victory.

After the movie, we tried a game of Mexican Train...

but it doesn't really work with 2 year olds,

and 5 year olds...except Lizzy didn't 

want anyone messing up her track!

Everyone had a snack, then it was time for scripture reading.

Tonight it was the first chapter of Job.

Jerry took each son and daughter in for a monthly chat with him.

Jen asked each child to ask the Grampa and two Gramas a

question about their lives.

Seth asked: "What is the most exotic place you've ever been?"

 Ben asked: "What is the hardest thing you've ever done?

Josh asked: "What

Sarah asked: "What is your favorite color?"

Then it was time for bed.

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

We testify that baptism is fulfilling a commandment of God.

It opens the gateway to the Celestial Kingdom.

It is performed by the authority of the Holy Priesthood of God.

Even, Jesus Christ, though perfect, was baptized

to be obedient and fulfill the commandment 

to be baptized by immersion.

We are proud of Joshua choosing to be baptized at

the true specified age of 8 set by Heavenly Father.

(Or any age after 8 if you haven't heard about

The Gospel of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

until later in your life.)

We testify that baptism is a true ordinance of the Lord.

Heavenly Father knows each of us personally and loves us.

Jesus Christ is His son and the Savior of the world.

Joseph Smith is the Prophet of the Great Restoration.

The Book of Mormon is the word of God,

as is the Bible, as far as it is translated correctly.

Thomas S. Monson is the Living Prophet today

for the whole world.

In the name of Jesus Christ.  Amen

Walt and Eileen Petersen - visiting this week in

Rochester, Minnesota.

We hope you have a good week coming up.