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CONTINUED: ALMOST PERFECT FAMILY REUNION - Aug. 19, 2019 Grandpa entered a new phase of the disease.  He saw his military toy up on top of the TV cabinet.  Pointing to it said,"???"  I asked, do you want your Air Force toy?  Wendell: "Yes."  (real word)  At first he just talked to it like a 3 year old would do.  It was so sweet.  He went on playing with it and talking to it .... ...then he found the wash cloth I had used as my napkin for lunch and put it on his head.  He wore it for a long time.   He had lots of things to tell me as we shared some time together.  Some of it I could understand a word or two.  He saw air planes flying, People he recognized, a ball game,  He still had it on his head when the nurses came in to help him back to bed.  That is always very hard for him, but he cooperated under some protest.  However he had no hard feelings towards them and proved it by giving them an ai...

August 12, 2019 - Almost perfect Family Reunion Week!  Peggy is holding the Authentic Family Picture from our reunion.  You will be familiar with the format from last year, but turning it into a great picture poster for this year was ingenious!                                                            The daughters and the Husbands posed for a reunion snapshot. Cindy, Wendy, Debby, Mike, Mark R. Peggy & Julie After Church Brother Dean came in and played his Accordion for Wendell.  He plays "by ear" and did a beautiful job for several church songs and then took requests.  Wendell loved it.  He even smiled and mouthed some of the words. A little later Brett and Whitney's family joined us.  Everyone gave their love to Grandpa and Alea sang beautifully for him. Left to right: Breaden, Aleah...

HOW TO WIN FRIENDS & INFLUENCE PEOPLE -July 21, 2019 Dear Family, This is something I learned quite by accident.  Last year when I came out into the parking lot at the Brigham City Temple after a Session I went directly to my car.  There, under the windshield wiper was a note.  I immediately pulled it out and read the sad news that this lady had bumped my car and she wanted me to call her to give her my name so she could pay for the damage. I thought, "My goodness what an honest trustworthy person this person is."  So I did call her and she gave me the name & number of her insurance company.  I called them for an appointment and sure enough, within a few days the scrape was all gone and I was delighted.  I Called her to let her know the good news and also the adventure that I had to pick it up.  She was amazed. You are wondering, "What was the adventure?"  When I went to pick up my car the man who had it for me said he would take me t...

PARAPROSDOKIANS - July 19, 2019 Dear Family,  Today we are sending you some of the above to tickle your funny bone. PARAPROSDOKIANS = FIGURES OF SPEECH WHICH THE LATTER PART OF A SENTENCE OR PHRASE IS SURPRISING OR UNEXPECTED. 1. Since light travels faster than sound,      some people appear bright until you hear them speak. 2. The last thing I want do is hurt you,      but it's still on my list. 3. Where there's a will,      I want to be in it. 4. If I agreed with you,     we'd both be wrong.  5. A  clear conscience,     is the sign of a fuzzy memory. 6. I used to be indecisive.     Now I'm not sure. 7. You're never too old,      to learn something stupid. 8. I'm supposed to respect my elders,     But now it's getting harder and harder for me to find one. 9. Opportunity - you'll always miss 100%,     of the shots you don't take. 1...

Every cloud has a silver lining - July 8, 2019 Dear Family,  As I studied Acts 2-5 and then followed the instructions, "The Holy Ghost can inspire you to find truths that are relevant for your life."  As I read about how each of those men who became followers of Jesus Christ and then disciples and then apostles ready to die to make sure His work would continue, it brought a new understanding to me of how Heavenly Father blesses those who dedicate their whole self to his work and how the blessings far outweigh the suffering. I wrote in "Record your own impressions: "I have learned from my own experiences that whenever the Lord has called me to a position or have a challenge that seems beyond my physical or emotional strength He has always been there to help and guide me.  Examples:  Directing the Youth Choir from Northern Utah to participate in General Conference along with other groups.  The songs to learn were sent to us from the General Music committee....

Joseph Smith and "Music Man" have much in common.  June, 30, 2019 Dear Family, Some friends and I went to see "Music Man" a few weeks ago at Heritage Theater in Perry.  It was an unbelievable production that everyone got fully involved in the story and the actors super energetic performance.  I did too, but the most interesting thing that I came away with was the director's note about the play: " Meredith Wilson may not be a household name like Rogers and Hammerstein or Andrew Lloyd Webber, but his classic musical "The Music Man" has become one of the most legendary pieces in the history of the Broadway Stage.   Long before the lyrics of "Hamilton" Hill was doing the same thing for the mothers of River City with the immortal "patter" song "Trouble." Based on his childhood experiences in Mason City, Iowa, "The Music Man" holds distinctions of winning the first Grammy Award presented for Best Musical Theat...

CLIPS FROM OUR HOME FRONT - June 21, 2019 The pictures tell the story. We are having the house shingled.  You can see one man on the roof working.  They finished it  late Wednesday.  They still have the trim all around the house and the under part of the porch to do.   They will start in about 2 days. This is looking up through the garage ceiling where they have removed the roof. By the end of the day the whole ceiling was like this. Wendell likes to sleep a lot these days.  He tries hard to feed himself, but still needs help.  He has to be lifted into bed from his wheelchair and out of bed into his wheelchair.  He doesn't walk at all.  He knows me sometimes and Peggy too now that she has visited him several times in a row.  Wendy has ordered a recliner chair that tilts to lift him up.  That will be here in a couple or three weeks.  Everyone at The Gables is cheering! The last of our Spring flowers: ...