Traces of Time . . . November 16 to 22, 2015

Traces of Time . . .

This week 

~ November 16, 2015 
to 
November 22, 2015  

in IDAHO ~

November 16, 2015 - Monday ~ ~ 


I took  We worked all day at getting the house ready for the monthly Neighborhood Empty Nesters' Family Home Evening   that we are hosting tonight.  

Walt always helps so much...like vacuuming while I'm dusting.

Why is it that I can go days and days, then when we're having company, I feel like I have to dust and wash every nook and cranny.  All the knick knacks on the shelves get taken down, rinsed off, dried, then after the shelf is shined, everything is put back.
I guess it's good we have company so all these little things can get done once in a while.

Then Walt went out to the second fridge and brought in the 24 center-cut, boneless pork chops that we got at Stokes on Saturday to create the "Saucy Pork Chops" from.  

I seared them all in hot oil so both sides were nice and brown. Walt cut four onions into rings, which I then also seared in the....hmm, the Pioneer Woman on her blog has a fancy name for it...when the oil is nice and brown from searing meat....can't remember.  But I put all the onion rings in my great roaster that also has a special name.  (I'll go look at the bottom of it to get the name.)

Then the eleven guests came, each bringing a part of the dinner. We do enjoy being together at our FHE's.

Dan brought the mashed potatoes and rice; Gary and Colleen McCall brought the hot vegetable--squash with other interesting things; Ken and Bonnie Fronk, a green salad with homemade dressing; Ken and Bonnie Hansen, a fresh fruit plate; David and Marilyn Gibbons, an apple cake with homemade sauce to put over it for dessert.  I told Scott Bloxham and his fiancé, G'lenn Hamilton, that they were exempt this time since they are being married in 5 days (Nov. 21) and have enough to do right now.

Everything was delicious! Thank you to all who helped make our dinner complete.

Mid-afternoon I mixed up some rolls, which were rolled out and shaped and raised to put in the oven just in time to have them ready to serve hot as everyone had filled their plates and were at the tables ready to eat.

I didn't get a photo of the two 9x13 pans of six saucy pork chops each.  This pan from the separate roaster holds the 12 more.  I didn't realize that each pork chop was big enough that "seconds" were not needed.  So Walt and I have 6 packages of two chops each, ready to zap in the microwave to have fur six future meals.   [Later, make that five meals left...we had two of them when we got back from the temple on Wednesday.]

After dinner, Walt gave a power point lesson on "Strokes--What they are and how to help prevent them."  


Left to right: Front--Dan Black, Colleen McCall, Bonnie Hansen, Marilyn Gibbons.  Standing: G'lenn Hamilton, Scott Bloxhas, Gary McCall, Ken Fronk, Ken Hansen, David Gibbons, Bonnie Fronk, Walt Petersen.

Bonnie took this photo for me to be in it.

Bonnie Fronk made our day when she said: "I always love coming to your home."

It's always fun to decorate for the month of Thanksgiving.

Bonnie and Ken Fronk...

Dave and Marilyn Gibbons...

Dan Black...

And the soon-to-be-newlweds, Scott Bloxham and G'lenn Hamilton...

I didn't think about taking the "couple and individual" photos until Ken and Bonnie Hansen, Gary and Colleen McCall had gone home.

 Another view 0f those sitting at the dining room table.

Those sitting at the table in the living room...Walt had just gone to pass around more rolls at the other table.

November 17, 2015 - Tuesday

Walt took a random photo of me...

Walt...

Tuesday evening......
I taught a mini-class on the General Women's Session talk: "Worthy of Our Promised Blessings" given by Linda S. Reeves, Second Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency.

Gals making the craft of "Gratitude" blocks...

Another table of gals making the craft...

And the third table to gals working on their gratitude blocks...

And the refreshment table full of all kinds of pumpkin dessert...

Bonnie Fronk is in charge of these evening Relief Society gatherings...

Bonnie's beautiful decorations added to the festivities of the autumn holidays...

We thank all the sisters who came out on this chilly, rainy, blustery night.

November 18, 2015 - Wednesday

We did the 3:00 session at the Twin Falls Temple.  Dale and Connie were in Utah at a family event.

There was no one to take our picture together, so we took each other's photo.

Walt got one a little closer...

Then, instead of going to a restaurant for dinner, we drove home while it was still light and had some of those "left-over" saucy pork chops.

Here's is my Mom's favorite recipe:
Saucy  Pork Chops

(to add)


November 19, 2015 - Thursday

Someone came to show us Kinar finish siding.  However, we've opted to just paint the wooden siding.

We went to Festival of Trees.  It seems so strange having it the week before Thanksgiving.
We listened to the White Pine 5th and 6th graders sing a variety of songs.  Their director is Bonnie Peterson Bair.  She is the daughter of my Mom's Wendell friend, James Monroe Peterson.

It was great to see Gary and Glena Turner who are back from their Palmyra Temple Mission.

Then we saw June Tilley and Judy Ward, whom we sat by to have lunch.  It was so fun to talk with them.

June took a photo of Walt and me.

The trees are nice, but not as beautifully decorated as they have been in years past.  And I don't care who likes this, Walt and I think an upside-down-Christmas-tree is strange.

Even if they did have a lot of fun wooden toys to go with it...

We got the car serviced today, which ended up costing a lot more than we planned on.  We like our 2007 Buick Lucern okay, but Walt says it rides like a truck.  We're having them look for a different car for us...hopefully they can find an older Cadillac DeVille like we used to have. (We understand they are not making DeVilles anymore.)

Tonight was our Serendipity Book Club at the lovely country  home of Kathy Barrus.

Karma Lambert gave the "Whet Your Appetite" on 5 books that would be good for Christmas gifts. She made us want to read all five of them. 
1. River of Doubt - Candice Millward
2. Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania- Erik Larson - (on kindle)
3. In the Kingdom of Ice - Hampton Sides (kindle)
4. Coming Home: A Mormon's Return to Faith - Susan Nielson Swann
5. Death Comes to Pemberly - M.C. Beaton

Karma said as a history major she loves non-fiction history.  Any one of these books would be a good gift to give someone for Christmas.

Susan Young gave an excellent book review on Killing Reagan by Bill O'Reilley.  President Ronald Reagan was one of our most outstanding U.S. Presidents -- 1980 to 1988.

I shared a "rest of the story" about the Priesthood connection of President Reagan being able to say: "Mr. Gorbashev, take down the wall!"  

Susan is always so interesting to listen to.  Her dynamic personality comes through and her enthusiasm for life is evident.

Jule Tilley served delicious refreshments of chocolate cake with Christmas frosting, ice cream, and melt-in-your-mouth fudge.
Below: Kathy, Karen, Marilyn...

And Gladys, Jenny...

And Bonnie, June, Karma...

Karen Robins had to leave before I got the photo taken of the group together..
Left to right: Karma Lambert, Marilyn Gibbons, Gladys Harrison, Jenny Egbert, Bonnie Fronk, June Tilley, Susan Young, Kathy Barrus.

Same gals, except Bonnie took photo so Eileen could be in it.  Carol Cheney was out of town.  We don't know why the others couldn't make it tonight.  We missed them.  We always enjoy being together with our good friends.

We will be meeting the first Saturday in December - which is December 5.  Linda Petersen is hosting us at their Marriott Fairfield Inn at ____ (I have to find out the time.)  It will be a potluck of Christmas treats.

November 20, 2015 - Friday

Here is what we do on Friday mornings--working on genealogy with Kathleen Hedberg, our ward family history specialist.  She is currently working with Walt in the Swedish records on Nellie Katie Olson Petersen's Swedish ancestors.  Nellie Katie is Walt's grandmother--Ray's mother.

This afternoon Ken Fronk is coming to do our semi-annual update on our insurances--home, car, etc. The value of our home for replacement is much more than the appraisal for it. But that does include the contents which the appraisal does not include. 

Walt got his carpenter apron and went out to work some more on the fence.  I went out a couple of hours later, at 5:30 and told Walt it was getting dark so he better come in.  He still worked for almost an hour more.  I turned the backyard flood light on so he wouldn't stumble and fall as he made his way back across the lawn.
"I got a lot done," he said as he came in from the freezy cold weather.

Tonight we're getting everything ready to be ready to leave at 7:00 in the morning when Dale and Connie come to pick us up to ride with them to Provo.  We plan to come back Saturday evening.

November 21, 2015 - Saturday

Today we plan to leave at 7:00 a.m for Provo to visit with the family at 12:30 noon before the Memorial Service at 2:00 for Mary White Jensen - wife of Walt's cousin, DeLamar Jensen.  She passed away last Sunday, November 15.  We just found out on Wednesday morning.

Mary was one of the most outstanding women we knew.  She was very Christ like and had the quality of making everyone in her presence feel loved and important. 

Dale and Connie picked us up at 7:20 Saturday morning and Connie drove..  We could not believe that we pulled in to Provo at 10:30 a.m.  Exactly 3 hours!  We could not believe it!!
The traffic was light and we did not stop. We have never driven straight through like this since the new 80 mph speed limit.  

We decided to fill up with gas to save time getting home after the service.  

Then we went to have lunch at Olive Garden.  Connie said they have a great bargain for lunch of soup, salad, and bread sticks for $6.  

However, when our bills showed up on the personal automatic credit card gadget on our table, it was $9.00 each.  I just said: "Nothing stays the same."
The soups were good, as were the breadsticks and salad.
Walt and I had potato soup, Dale had ministrone, and Connie had chicken nokee (?sp).

As we left the restaurant at noon,I took a photo of my three traveling companions.  We didn't know how soon the traffic would get busy for the 1:00 BYU vs Fresno last home football game for the Cougars, but we got past the Lavell Edward Stadium without too much delay and got to the Oak Hills Seven Ward a few minutes before the 12:30 time to visit with the family.

Dee was excited for his two Petersen cousins to be their with their wives.  Dale had lived in Dee and Mary's home when they were in Europe on a year's Sabbatical Leave from BYU.  Dee told us how happy they were with how well Dale and his roommates took care of their home in their absence.  Another cousin, Glen Petersen--Stan and Vida's son-- was one of those roommates.

Also on Saturday, November 21, 2015
Today, Scott Bloxham and G'lenn Hamilton were married.  The only thing that kept us from being there is our family ties to DeLamar and Mary Jensen.

Scott is surprising G'lenn where they are going on their honeymoon.  He just told her to have her passport up to date, and it would be where there is jungle and a zip line. [Walt and I are pretty sure where that is....but we're not saying so it will continue to be a surprise for G'lenn.]



November 22, 2015 - Sunday