Art and Ice Cream with the Little Guys

Jonny loves art.  He is also committed to helping his boys love art, too.  On November 24, 2021, after attending Meg and Grant's party, Mike, Jonny, Jonny's boys, and I visited the BYU Art Museum.  I admit that I laughed, more than I helped, as Jonny herded his three little guys through the art museum.

Jonny finally corralled Thomas in the stroller, after he ran off one too many times.  And then Henry disappeared....
 

Thomas, like Houdini, tried to set himself free.

As we went from room to room Henry and Sam each picked out the largest picture, the smallest picture, and their favorite picture.  Jonny then talked with Sam and Henry about their favorite pictures.  “That’s an impressionist painting,” I mentioned to Sam.  “Yes, I know ‘impressionist,’” Sam said.  Jonny's family lives just 2 1/2 hours from Chicago, and they often visit the Art Institute there, with its many masterpieces.  Bit by bit, Jonny is creating art connoisseurs.

Good taste, Henry.  That's the Mona Lisa.

Kirsten met us at the Art Museum.  We all had ice cream cones at The Creamery, the ice cream shop at BYU.  Kirsten described working there to help pay for her college tuition, as well as working as a janitor, serving food at the Wilkinson Center, and ushering at football games.  She is glad to finally be done with those low-paying jobs, and to now be getting paid for her work in the lab!  What a girl--Kirsten will graduate with no student debt!

Meg and Grant: First Anniversary

Grant and Meg reserved a spot in the Riverwood Center in Provo last November for their wedding reception.  Covid surged and they had to cancel that reservation.  The Center kept their deposit, but allowed them to have a first wedding anniversary party on November 24, 2021, to celebrate their first year of happy married life.  
 

It was a brunch, from 11 a.m. till 12:30, and was a very fun, casual party.  Meg’s family made crepes, served with heaps of berries, as well as cheese and meat.

Lisa came earlier for Jono and Sarah's wedding, and Kyle joined her for Grant and Meg's party.

Kirsten is studying microbiology at BYU, and she was glad to see her younger brother, Bryce, and younger sister, Alyssa, from Seattle.

Camille and Steve are still visiting from Boston, although Jono and Sarah have left on their honeymoon.

Emilie will spend the Thanksgiving weekend in SLC before returning to Dallas.

I take delight in my children and grandchildren loving each other and attending each other's celebrations, as Mia and Ezra have done.

Jonny brought Henry, Sam, and Thomas, while Jenny stayed at her parents' house with little Jonathan.

Meg met Grant through her brother, who was Grant's BYU roommate.  Meg's brother is already attending medical school in Dallas, and Grant and Meg will most likely join him in Dallas for medical school next fall.  

Meg's grandparents are first generation immigrants from Wales.  I assured them Grant has some good Welsh blood running through his veins, as does Meg!

Grant's friends from Issaquah, Washington, have attended BYU, as well as Grant, and I have enjoyed hosting them for Sunday dinners.

Grant's Flindt relatives also attended the party, including his Aunt Laura and her family.

That's Thomas on the far right, throwing a bean bag, and Sam against the far right wall, playing tic-tac-toe.  The small fry and teenagers enjoyed the games area, at the party.

After we finished eating, there was a short program.  Meg's cousins played some selections with their rock band.

Meg and Grant played the "shoe game".  They answered questions such as "Which of you decided to get married first?" and "Who is the messiest?" by lifting their own or their spouse's shoe.  They couldn't see how their spouse answered.  Meg and Grant competed against Meg's aunt and uncle, who had been married for many years, to see which couple knew each other better.

Meg's dad was the moderator.

We laughed and laughed.

Sugar Overdose

 For many years, I have made big pots of caramel to give as Christmas gifts to family, fellow workers, and neighbors.  It is a big job, and I wait until I am in the mood.  I told Camille, at dinner on Sunday, that I was in the mood to make caramels on Monday evening, November 22, 2021.  I was delighted, as I checked the front porch for Christmas packages on Monday evening, to see Camille and her three daughters—Emilie, Sophia, and Mia—getting out of their car and heading towards our door. “We’ve come to help make your caramels,” they said.  Camille and her girls stayed for three hours and helped me measure, cook, and stir.  Our assembly line was much faster than me alone.  Eventually, Camille took the girls home, because Emilie has to work tomorrow.  I finished the batches, and counted 12 pans of caramels, including regular, cherry, licorice, chocolate, maple nut, rum nut, and orange.  I later had a "work party" with some of my Flindt grandchildren to wrap the caramels.

Remembering Rose

November 21, 2021 was Mother's 109th birthday.  I gave her a special present as I spoke, on her birthday, at the Emigration Stake Conference.  My theme was "How to Use Past Spiritual Experiences to Gain More Faith".  I told about both Mother and Father in my talk, and about my faith-inspiring experiences with them.  

“I will remember this experience all my life,” I told David as I walked into the Assembly Hall on Temple Square, where our stake conferences are held.   It was a thrill to speak from the same podium used by high Church leaders for generations.  As I recall, the funeral for my Aunt Camilla, Uncle Spencer’s wife, was held here.

I had carefully written and repeatedly practiced and timed my talk, and I didn’t feel scared at all as I spoke to the huge crowd before me.  I later described the thrill of that experience, as I “performed” the emotional speech in the huge, fully-packed hall, as like Martin Luther King must have felt in giving his “I Have a Dream” speech.  I could feel the audience intently listening, and I half expected them to chant back to me, “Amen, Sister!”  When I finished, my brother, Scott, who was sitting on the front row, gave me a thumbs up sign.

I also appreciated the support of Dave, Mike, and Lisa, who were sitting right up front.  I saw Jonny walk into the balcony with Sam and Henry, as Stake Conference began, and I saw them slip out after I finished speaking.  I applauded Jonny's efforts in keeping his wiggly boys on the wood benches for long enough to hear me!  I also completely supported Camille in attending her own ward, after she had been out of town in Boston for so long. President Pickett and President Brown, of our stake presidency, said that my description of my father's very practical faith reminded them of themselves.  Both of them are University of Utah professors, as my father was.  Over the next couple of days, I received a number of requests for copies of the talk, even from people I didn’t know.

I hosted a birthday party for Mother this afternoon.  Camille’s family came, as did Jonny and his family, Mike and his family, Grant and Meg, Michael K, Lisa, Kyle, Alyssa, Bryce, Kirsten, and Kirsten’s friend, Diana.  “This is Grandma Rose’s ham dinner,” I said.  We had corn soup, triscuit crackers with melted cheese, ham, consommé rice, sweet potatoes with apples, and, of course, green jello salad.

 Scott and Jean and Scott Jr.’s family joined us for dessert and the slide show.  With Michael’s help, I put together pictures of my mother’s and father’s lives together, from their engagement through Mom’s retirement from BYU, when she was 62. Scott and I told family stories as the photos rolled.  “I learned lots of things I didn’t know,” Emilie said when the program ended.

Sarah and Jono: Wedding Day

 Jono and Sarah were married in the Draper, Utah, Church of Jesus Christ temple on November 19, 2021.  The temple sealer gave a particularly beautiful talk, along with the ceremony, and then Jono and Sarah met a large group of friends and relatives outside the temple for congratulations and pictures.