Posts

23 November 2014

Hi everybody,      I think Joseph answered the question quickest last week, about what BVQ stood for. I used to say it stood for Be Very Quiet, while I was talking on the HAM radio. I was impressed that Joseph got it first, considering that he wasn't even there!       I think the day without power wasn't as bad as I thought it might be, even though it was -1 when the power went out about 8:15 am and didn't come back on until about 5:30 pm. By then it was getting pretty dark outside, and I think that was the hardest part.      Dad got home from his week of visits to Moscow, Twin Falls, and Boise, on Friday night. I think he's still recovering from all that time on the road. But luckily he didn't have bad roads very much of the time.      Last night he and I went to a fund raising dinner and auction at the Search and Rescue building, for Burt Bates. I think I told you about his 4-wheeler acc...

16 November 2014

Hi everybody!      We got Grandpa home from the care center on Friday. Dad and one of his deputies got him from the van into the house. The van driver was able to put the ramp right on the front porch, but the wheelchair is too wide for the front door, so they supported him as he made it into the recliner. The hospital bed is in the livingroom as well, and they're doing pretty well with getting him from one to the other. He can get from bed or recliner to the wheelchair, then Grandma wheels him to whichever one he's wanting to be in.      This Tuesday, there will be no power in Egin and Plano, from 8am until as late as 6pm. They're doing some maintenance, I guess.  It's supposed to be a little warmer than it's been the past few days...but still not ideal!  All the grandparents have propane heat, which will still put out heat, but the fans won't blow. Tomorrow night I'm going to put up "curtains" in the doorways to keep the heat...

9 November 2014

Hello all!     Another busy week at work; not as bad as last week though. I wasn't able to take a day off, but told my boss I'll hang onto that comp day and use it when Dixie's baby comes. She said that would be fine.      I found out that my boss is four months older than Aimee. She's really sharp, and doing a great job.  I think I know how Sam's crew feels now!      Grandpa fell yesterday afternoon. He was standing up from his recliner, and went over forward, hitting his nose and ear on the chimney. He has a cut on his ear, and another on his nose, and he has a lot of pain in his right hip and leg. He was taken to the ER by ambulance, where they did xrays and found nothing broken; but they kept him overnight for observation and pain control. This afternoon he was taken to the nursing home, and he was in pretty good spirits when we left. The plan is for him to stay just a few days, and hopefully get home ...

2 November 2014

Alida is here!  So happy she is here and doing well, and her Mama too!  We're sure looking forward to meeting her, the night after Thanksgiving. Now, we're just waiting on the little one in Elko to arrive. Something I forgot to tell you about the funeral I went to last Saturday. They had some of Mr.Trupp's grandchildren share memories about their grandfather. One of them was a young woman in her twenties. She had her little boy in her arms...probably about 2 years old. She was struggling to keep from crying as she told the story, and with trying to keep him away from the microphone. The little boy suddenly noticed that his mother was crying, and reached for her face, and right into the mic said, "Mama, you got a owie?" Well the whole place erupted with laughter, as well as tears.  Last night Dad and I helped at the school carnival (the night after Halloween). We manned the bake food sale table; we had a lot of fun, and met a lot of people. We also sold ever...

26 October 2014

Hi everyone,    Today our Ward had the Primary Sacrament program, and it was just wonderful. I love those kids so much. I had many of them in nursery, a few years ago, and several of the older girls in Achievement Day, just this past year, or so. I sat with Gran and Grandma, and they loved it too. There were lots of grandparents in the audience, and I was imagining that some of our grandkids were up there. They had a few whole families take part, and I wondered if some of you might have been involved in your Wards.      Dad just got home this evening, from his trip to Coeur d'Alene and Seattle. It's so good to have him back home again.      It's been perfect weather for the past week or so; now today it's turning cold and windy. Dad said he drove through snow near Dillon, on his way home today.      Housley's came and fixed the pump in our well on Friday.  Now we won't be getting our water from the well ...

19 October 2014

Hi everybody,       In the evening after watching the last conference session, on Oct 5th, Dad and I spent a couple of hours with Grandma and Grandpa, watching some old, home movies with them. They were some old reel to reel movies that had been put on VHS.  Some were from Grandpa's days in the army, then a bunch from when your Dad was a little boy...you think he's cute now; you've got to see him when he was about a year old!  Oh, my goodness!  Grandpa's and Grandma's grandparents were in some!  One of my favorites was when Grandpa Christensen grabbed Grandma Christensen and hugged her as she was walking by...it's the cutest thing. It was probably in about 1956. We're hoping to get the movies put on DVD very soon.      October 10th, Gran and I took Emma to Elko, so she could stay and help Dixie for a week, since potato harvest was extended because of all the rain. Anyhow, on the way home, we stopped in Twin Falls ...

28 September 2014

Image
To all you dear ones,       It was a pretty, and warm week, but has turned off cooler and rainy again.  The spud farmers were hitting it pretty hard to try to beat the rain, but most of them still have a long way to go.  Hanks' still have close to 150 acres left in the ground.       The night before the storm came, Dad and I worked in the yard to get things done we'd been meaning to. He winterized the camper, and several other things, and I pruned the grape vines, which have gotten terribly overgrown, and weren't producing as well as they used to.       Just across the hall from my office at work, is the pharmacy. After morning delivery, they stack the empty boxes in the hallway. I've been eying some of them, because I thought they might be just what I've been looking for, to make some storage containers. The IV fluid boxes were just the right size; the were D5 1/2 with 20 of KCL. I brought so...

14 September 2014

Image
A quick update of items in the last letter:  My friend Bobbe's Dad, passed away just a few days after going to the nursing home. Another dear friend from school, Lorna Harrop Barney, lost her mother-in-law, Sheila Barney last week. Our friend Burt Bates is still alive, but the insurance company is denying coverage because his blood alcohol level was very high when he wrecked on the four wheeler; so we don't know if he'll be able to get a trach and receive rehab therapy or not. Grandpa came home on Monday, mostly because his Medicare coverage at the nursing home had run out, and he really wanted to come home anyway. He seems about the same, gets up to the bathroom a few times a day, but mostly stays in the recliner. His double cousin, Eugene, passed away, and his funeral is on Tuesday. He wants to go very badly, but I'm not sure how it can happen. It was all Dad and Beth could do to get him into the house when he came home. We got to go to Denver for Bradl...

24 August 2014

Image
Recent current events Deaths of: James Garner, Robin Williams,James Shigeta, Lauren Bacall, Phyllis Diller Last weekend Dad and I watched Skyfall; he'd seen it before, but I hadn't.  I really liked it a lot, and read that some people think it's the best 007 of all. Monday evening I took Gran to see Marian Hamilton; she's in the ICU at EIRMC with heart problems. She is one of Mama's dearest friends. Tuesday, Dad put up a new TV antenna this evening. We've gotten rid of Direct TV, or was it DISH...either way, it's going to save us a lot of money. Mama's shoulders have been really bothering her, and she said she sure wished Heidi was around to give her a good massage. I said I was willing to try, and she let me!  She's never been inclined to have things like that...but you never know!  And evidently it really helped! Wednesday morning, early, a dear friend and former co-worker of Jocie's, David Ritchie, was killed in a traffic a...

17 August 2014

Hi everybody!    The weeks seem to fly by even faster now that I work M-F.  A busy week at work, good for the most part.     I took Gran to her injection appointment on the 13th...but so far I don't think it's helping.  I guess we'll just give it more time.     Saturday I started taking out the big green bush in front of the house, that has covered so much of our little side walk.  I hadn't gotten very far, when I realized that I needed help. Dad was teaching an all day NRA class, so I called the neighbor boy who sometimes helps with lawn mowing.  He was happy to have the work, and came right over. The work went much faster after he arrived. I didn't get a "before" picture...but I'm sure you all remember. I'm including a link to the "after" picture.    Friday night, Dad and I went to a wedding reception, south of Rexburg, for one of his deputies, Tyler Summers. They were married in the Idaho Falls Temple....

10 August 2014

Hi all! It’s been two or three weeks since I wrote my letter/journal to you.   But most of you were here for part of that time, so I don’t know how much I’m going to say about the camp out, and all.   It was a wonderful time, and so nice to have you all around. I appreciate your patience with our small spaces here at our house.   But if I have to be stuck somewhere with a lot of people…you’d be the ones I’d want to be stuck with! Yesterday, I did a lot of yard work, pulling weeds, transplanting roses, etc… and now the backs of my legs are super sore! It’s hard to bend over. But I’ve gotten a good start on some things I’ve been meaning to do; so I hope I can keep working on it in the evenings this coming week. Wish me luck! Dad has been really busy at the county fair this week.   He had an air rifle trailer set up for his 4H group, and it was open to anyone. They could shoot for free, but if they paid $2, they could compete for a prize, a box of 22 shel...