A PERFECT FAMILY DAY..."It's almost Christmas, Charlie!"

Lots of laughter and running and messes and food all returned to the Austin home today!  So blessed to fill the day with little people and to have modern technology which lets us SKYPE with the family in Twin Falls!

Jill and Peter came to Vegas to celebrate Christmas early and to take care of some business.  Becky's daughter, Audrey, turns 5 tomorrow and all she wanted to do was go bowling! (and eat jigglers and pizza).  So off we went, leaving very sick Daddy Charles home at Grandma's with very sick baby Aria!  Victor joined us for 1/2 an hour and then went off to perform a wedding.

Sam's Town Bowling Alley, here we come the cousins!

Audrey, Aly & Ethan, standing behind their 8 balls!

Ethan enjoyed this exactly 4 times, then let Audrey bowl all the rest of his rounds!

Aly got real tired waiting for that ball to get to the end of the lane!!

Is this how you get a split, Daddy???

Becky is far and away our best bowler (she attributes it to wearing Charles' power shoes!)

But Audrey outscored her mom for the win!!  Busted by ONE point!

Birthday girls should get to win!

Off for a quick tour around the Sam's town atrium Christmas displays, before heading home to Grandma's.

Lunch of jello squigglers, baby corn dogs topped off with Audrey's rice crispy "cake."  (Unfortunately, unlike her Uncle Nathan, she doesn't even like rice crispy treats)

(Aria wants to help!!)

Who do you suppose will lose their eyesight first (for sitting too close to the TV) - Aly or Santa??

(She's been inseparable all week from her winter friends!)

Becky and Jill planned a surprise for us.  They contacted Nathan and Colleen in Twin Falls and planned a "Skype" Christmas home evening (afternoon) since we can't all be together this year.  (Peter has to work Christmas Day,   Nathan & Colleen are coming down here for Colleen's brother's wedding in California, so we will get to have them with us for a few days). 

Charles wins the award for Tecno-geek to get us set up on two screens, complete with speakers to hear each other.  Twin Falls Austins sang and played the violin and Amaya & Noelle did keyboard performances. 

Jill sang at our end, Peter and Becky read stories.   New babies Gideon and Aria got to "meet" each other again.  Nice moments. 

Topped off our evening with kids eating pizza while Grandma told them about Santa Lucia, & their Swedish heritage.  

Tired little Ethan consented to be the "star boy" long enough to have photos taken.  (All the Graf household has had a lot of illness for the past week).   I couldn't find both Lucia costumes so Aly and Audrey took turns wearing the crown and carrying the tray of hot chocolate and Santa Lucia buns.

Aly & Ethan

Audrey & Ethan

St.Lucia Saffron Buns & Hot Chocolate

Sta. Lucia Day is still celebrated on Dec. 13th in Sweden and in Swedish settlements in America.

Aria stayed a little ray of sunshine between intermittent naps and bouts of coughing and wheezing.

More Christmas season photos to come.  Happy Holidays everyone!!  

MONTANA/IDAHO ADVENTURE - Sept. 2012

Oh my!   I am Sooooooo behind on this blogging!   Will be back to "journal" this trip soon!  Enjoyed a breathtaking trip to Glacier National Park and to Pend O' Reille, Idaho.  Even through days and days of forest fire smoke it was beautiful.

ARIA'S BLESSING & FIRST TRIP TO THE CABIN

August 5th Victor and Peter joined the Graf brothers and brothers-in-law to circle around Charles and little Aria Olivia Graf to give this newest daughter a name and a blessing.   Charles is a good father. 

After the official ordinance at the Church we met at Josh and Cassidy Stanley's home (Charles' sister) for scones and breakfast and catch-up family time.  (Charles' other sister Lauralyn Lamb and his brother Tony and his brother Paul have all migrated to the Pioche/Panaca area).

I am swiping from Becky's blog the following photos:  

My amazing daughter fashioned Aria's blessing dress out of a "onesie" and some nice lace.  I thought it turned out so cute.

     Two weeks later Aria decided she was ready to get out of the Las Vegas heat, so Victor and I took Becky and all the kids up to the cabin for the week.   We were rewarded  with lots of cloud bursts up there but enough sunshine to take an ATV ride or two to the stream.   It was nice to just "hang out."   

This little girl loves verbalizing already with us and has amazing eye contact.  She did pretty well at the cabin though altitude may have been the cause of one day of not-such-good napping.

Ethan is more "boy" all the time!  Don't let that pink pony fool you.  He runs pretty fast in his superman cape and is pretty good at wrestling his big sister.

Sometimes Audrey just wanted some quiet time.  Pretty good little comfort space she built for herself.

"Yes.  I am a mother of three now...and I WILL survive!"  (Even if her back doesn't.)

(No, that is not a jewel in the middle of Audrey's forehead.  It is the wobbler on the bottom of the hummingbird chime that hangs from the lamp above the table).

"Gramma, Can we hang the bird feeder we made for you for Mother's Day??"

"My do it!"



Headed home a day earlier than we planned so we could help Peter and Jill a little bit.  Even with almost a month of wonderful rain showers, we were sad to see that the dry Winter and very dry Spring had taken its toll on Navajo Lake.   I have NEVER seen land visible like you can see at the bottom of the photo.  And just a year ago the water was so high you could barely tell where the dike was let alone see any ground to the left in the photo.

But, on a happier note the construction crews have made great progress creating a new road through the massive land slide which closed Highway 14 for nearly year, diverting traffic up to Mammoth Creek around through Brianhead.  You can now travel it with a few delays, but they are reinforcing some other problem areas as part of the project.    It is an amazing site to see just how much earth slid down.

This photo shows the upper part of the slide after all the debris was removed.  The smattering of flat part is the area where the new road is going thru.   There is that much earth or more to the left side of the road and down into the gully below.

The cabin is still our joy and our respite.  A good financial move would be to sell it and stop maintaining two homes.   But I am not sure my soul is ready for that yet!

THEY'RE OFF! Peter and Jill's Most Excellent Adventure

At 9 a.m. our youngest son Peter, wife Jill and daughter Alyssa set off with most of their earthly belongings  (and one or two of ours) to fulfill their dream of leaving scorching Las Vegas behind!!

Yup! - That's my baby in the cab of the monster truck which U-Haul gave them for the same price as the smaller one they ordered.  We hope it doesn't shave off the overhangs of any of the gas stations where they will stop to fill its 60 gallon tank!!

Aly blowing kisses goodbye to Gpa. and Gma. Austin.  She's going where?   "To Utah!!!"  And she gets to go be in the house with her Gpa. & Gma. Jensen who also loaded their truck and took off on Saturday for their new jobs & their new home in the Lehi-Saratoga Springs area.

     Talk about a whirlwind of decisions and packing activity!   Mike Jensen, Jill's Dad, has been without work and hunting for a few months when an opportunity in his computer field came available in Utah.  When Mike and Becky went up to interview and look for a home, Peter went with them and also had interviews at two different places.  He was offered the chance to start work the next day!  He will be working a night shift at a group home for mentally challenged youth in Orem.   He is also interviewing to use his considerable skills at both survival and youth counseling to work with a group who run one of the survival camps in the Provo area.    That would be right down his alley.... and since it would be an 8 days gone, 6 days home sort of job it will be nice for Jill and Alyssa to be there with her parents for company.  

     So, basically, amazing Jill has been packing for two weeks:   First her parent's home while they were up interviewing and house hunting, and then after the lightening decision that the Peter Austins would go too, she came back to our place and began on their own belongings.   Victor, Becky and I were at the cabin when this decision was announced, so we weren't any help, but some wonderful friends came through with moral support and energy and among us all (after we got back into town),  it got all wrapped up pretty much Saturday night.   

     Since Peter had already decided he did not want to continue his Master's Program at UNLV and since neither of them wanted to stay in Las Vegas we are hoping that this will be the beginning step for their future lives.   They are in "Austin Territory" since Peter's great great grandfather helped settle Lehi.   They are closer to Jill's brother in Denver and they are certainly in a beautiful part of the world where the mountains and valleys can offer them good opportunities.   Jensen's report that the ward is exctied for them to be there and have already welcomed them warmly (with the Bishop's eyes aglow when he saw Jill's mom's boxes of cub scouting and primary materials!!)   

MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU!     (And all our love and Heavenly Father's blessings)     

Who will carry my groceries upstairs?

And water our plants when we're gone?

And give me shoulder rubs?

And provide a subtle background noise of an outburst of laughter and little sounds of life from downstairs?

I guess this makes us empty-nesters really and truly this time!

REUNION THREE - OVER!!! -- Breathing again!

     A big year for reunions:  1st lots of cousins and family - mostly on Victor's side in Oregon & Washington (in March-April).  Next my Borah High School class reunion in Boise in June.  Next my roommates reunion in Brigham (Aug)....followed by  the biggy!  The John Olaf Forsgren Descendants bi-annual family reunion in Brigham City.    

     Since January a part of my subconscious has been wrapped around the needs of pulling off another family reunion.  There is lots of updating, detail planning and investigation that goes on to prepare for one of those.  So the relief that is has come is immense. 

      August 11th found us in Brigham City once again with what turned out to be a successful event with a wonderful feeling of family and ancestry and honor.   Thank you SOOO much to all who contributed in even the smallest of ways:  Morris & Dellalee Forsgren with the homemade root beer and the Ogden Cookies; Lester and Dorothy Knight for rousting out all the Lees and helping update lists & conducting and helping set up, my sister Elaine and nephew Alex who arrived on the scene at just the right time to help spread out the Forsgren scrolls and get them taped and tacked into place & who took pictures for me, and most of all, Jill and Mark Forsgren and their extended family Apryl and Micah who set-up & figured out the computer problems, and were just generally a calm in all the detailed storm.
     In addition we had surprises that made my heart sing. 
     1 - The oldest living Peter Adolph Forsgren descendant (soon to be 100 years old) was feeling well enough to attend!  Thanks to her daughter Andrea who brought her from Ogden.   Erma Walsh is such a delight and still sharp and smiley and loving.   She and I have had such wonderful visits over the last year and a half learning about a whole side of the family I knew almost nothing about.  She is very dear to me and has a wonderful collection of photos and memorabilia from her side of the family.

Is that a face of serenity or what???

Erma is Peter A Forsgren's first great, grandchild, born of his first child, Sarah Christina Forsgren Klem's daughter, Lorinda Funk.  (Lorinda's husband Andrew George Funk was responsible for some of the architectural wonders of Brigham City)

     2- Artifacts and displays. 

              Joyce Peterson Lowe brought needlework and artifacts of her grandmother & great grandmother along with some amazing scrapbooks she has created of Forsgren family people, events & places.  Sadly, I did not get a good photo of the display -too many thoughts and people vying for my attention, I guess.   I always come away regretting that some people and some business didn't get enough of my attention!

              Joyce has a gift for this preservation hobby which has benefitted us all...and has been a help in her own health struggles.  

              Leanna Steinekert brought a wooden box - probably handmade by Peter Forsgren that contained many personal papers belonging to him:  a notebook he carried on his mission, his call as Patriarch, personal letters in both Swedish and Danish, etc.   I wished I could have sat alone in a corner and fished them out one by one to savor the moment...   Sigh!   Another goal for another time when I get up to Leanna's house and have a closer look.   Meanwhile - an assignment to her to get them translated, scanned and put into archival-safe file folders.

     3-At last!  Some descendants of Christina Erika Forsgren came.  So glad about that since we have hardly had any in the past.  I think they think of themselves as Davises (since Erika married William Davis and of course her children carry that surname)...but that doesn't make them any less Forsgren!

   The Forsgren descendancy scrolls were rolled out again this year.  Unfortunately they have not been updated since 2010.   I could potentially have added another 15 feet or more.    Just couldn't find enough time to do that and work on the blogs and update the computer files of data, photos and cemetery records too.  If I had all the information for all the descendants I am afraid we couldn't even be in the same room with them they would be long!

     The good news is that a new Presidency DID emerge from the business part of our meeting and I have resigned my duties as Secretary after about 25 years.   I will happily continue as archivist/researcher, but I need to let go of any other function in order to get all the data into an electronic format so it can be put out there for the new generation of genealogists.   Still lots of cemeteries to tramp and lots of websites to investigate and data to gather!   In my opinion I've kept the fun part.   Someone else can create better, larger and [more fun for families] reunions in the future.

      Returned to the cabin about midnight - bone weary buy thoughts alive and popping - thankfully - to keep me awake!    So grateful that it went as well as it did and that people were enjoying what they were seeing and hearing.   That is all that is important.

                        See you all in 2014 !!

MORE REUNIONS (This one with roommates)

     The still-fearsome, foursome reunited once again for a couple of days of girl talk.  Held at Brenda's home in Brigham City - her husband Tom banned to the basement for the duration!!  ;-)
     We ate well,  exchanged gifts, laughed a lot, cried together, & let our spirits soar in the complete comfort of secure friendship.   Ardith Gledhill Lindgren Rymer was first a missionary with me in Guatemala.  Cherie Lundwall was first my sister, Julene's, dear friend...and by extension mine.  Brenda Meikle Thorpe was my smiley, stable little pixy roommate....   All of us at one time or another lived together at what we called the "United Nations" house (because of the many people of different ethnic groups that seemed to come visit) at 440 E. 700 N. in Provo while we attended BYU.   This is our third get-together in as many years.  Strong, capable, lovely, faithful women.

     "Best friends know that they can grow separately without growing apart"

This is us at Promontory Point where the Golden Spike joined the two railroads, an event which changed the United States!   When that was done the "pioneer" era was ended.  No need for suffering, handcarts, wagon trains, etc.  Our immigrant ancestors could come by rail after May 1869. 

[For those of you who have never visited the site, it is well worth it, by the way]

A replica of the golden spike.  The original is in the Stanford Museum in California.

Engraved on the spike:  "May God continue the unity of our Country as this Railroad unites the two great Oceans of the world."

These are just the coolest locomotives! 

Replica of the wood-burning engine that came from California - Central Pacific's "Jupiter"

That's Cherie Lundwall, by the way, thrilled to be taking pictures to send to her brother Neal in California who collects trains and has his own rideable track in his back yard.

Union Pacific's " #119" came from Council Bluffs, Iowa

     During our couple of days together we did a mini historical tour of Brigham.  We visited the Indian School where Ardith had taught for a few months. The land and what bldgs that are left have been purchased by Utah State University for a satellite campus.   We also saw the old mills and historic pioneeer bldgs. that are still standing (tithing office, Rel.Soc. grainery, etc.).....and, of course, the new Brigham City Temple which will begin its Open House this coming weekend!

Great couple of days together preceding my Forsgren Family reunion.

AMERICAN FORK & ONWARD TO COLORADO

     In an effort to conserve gas we combined one more adventure with my High School Reunion/Baby Blessing trip.   We had promised our friends the Bryants that we would come see them in Colorado since they have been the ones who usually come see us on their many trips to one of their former homes, Las Vegas.     Our last visit there was when the kids were in their pre-teen years.  We enjoyed it immensely and looked forward to the green, the Rockies and some cooler temperatures.

     Spent the pre-Colorado travel night with Steve and Laurie Sowby, some Chilean Sr. missionaries who have recently returned from yet another CES type mission to Washington D.C.   Hadn't seen them for a long time so it was wonderful catching up - even for a brief visit.  We got to see their new house that is being built - a true Grandchild's dream!  The upper floor is an open play room/dance studio/ theater (complete with a movable mini-stage).  Two alcoves that use the space of the dormer windows are designated for 1) art & art appreciation  and 2) sewing/quilting.    They showed us "our" room in the basement.  (We stay with them a lot on our Wasatch Front journeys)!  Laurie is a journalist and is now doing a book-review column for the Nauvoo Times.  In fact she just reviewed a book written by another of our Chilean Missionaries, Randy Ayre.  The book is about surviving the death of a spouse and moving forward.  He has both an LDS version and a non-LDS version.  I want to get one of them.  Sounds like some information that can help a lot of people.
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At the top of a 12,000 foot summit as a downpour finished we rounded a bend and this was our view.  Colorado never disappoints.  This trip was already living up to its promises.

Bryants are the perfect hosts.  They had all kinds of activities planned, gave us the whole bottom floor to call home and gave us down time, good food, and lots of game-playing opportunities.

On the 4th of July we had breakfast on their terrace and watched as the annual gathering of neighborhood families progressed at the park across the street.  Just like when I was a child they decorated bikes, tricycles, wagons, etc. with crepe paper.  The kids all had on their patriotic color and clothes.  Normally these children are led by the local fire truck, but all fire equipment was pressed into service battling the many fires that were plaguing Denver area fires.   (So sad to see).

We spent a day in Canon City, South of Denver,  where Mike and Victor rafted the Arkansas River through Royal Gorge and Yolanda and I took a lunch train ride through the same spot. We saw them both as we were going thru and then when the train was returning. The water level was not as high as normal so the promised 4 & 5 rapids disappointed a bit. Our train and lunch were no doubt overpriced, but it was fun anyway and one of those things you are glad you did!

Mike and Victor getting ready for their rafting adventure.

Yolanda and Adele set to board the train through the Gorge

Our waiter takes orders.  This table of ladies had fun by ordering one of every kind of wine offered on the menu (made at the local abbey winery)

The highlight of our dinners was the salad and an amazing three-chocolate mousse dessert.

Here we go!

At this point the gorge is so narrow that the railroad is suspended on a bridge so that there is ample room for the river to flow through.  Looking upward there is this other bridge which doesn't lead anywhere actually!  It is there just to span the gorge and is now a tourist destination complete with gondola and zip lines, etc.  (all new since our initial visit to the bridge many years ago).

Look!  There they are!  (On one of the trip stops for people to swim and jump off rocks).  Victor is in the orange swimming trucks lying in sunbathing/nap mode in the front raft and Mike is the one to the right, waving at us.

We passed several groups of rafters.  The water was so low that in the spot where the train stops before reversing course to coast back to Canon City many of the rafts were caught on sand bars!

In this photo you can see the remnants of the large aquaduct which lined the gorge.  A wooden tube flowed the entire length to bring the water.

Yolanda and I finished first so we inspected the town and the Abbey and bought flavored popcorn before we returned to the spot to pick up our river rafters again.

Holy Cross Abbey and Winery

After we left our adventures in Canon City, Bryants took us to their favorite time-share spot at Breckenridge ski resort.  It was gloriously beautiful!  Green, fresh from rain, cool and nicely appointed.  We all wished we could have stayed longer.  It was a bonus that there was an art fair going on in town at the same time so we enjoyed some amazing creativity.

The view from our balcony.  I can never get enough trees!   Love it, love it!

Yolanda and Mike at the Art Fair

Hmmm.   I'll take two please.  Just stick 'em in the back of the car.

This basket is carved wood with a rim of pine needles and sliced walnut shells.  How do they DO these kinds of things??

More use of natural fibers.  Colorado's artists are big into "green" artistry.

No wonder this is becoming the favorite skiier's haven in Colorado!

A flower you've never seen the likes of before deserves to have its picture taken!!

We could have stayed in Breckinridge forever and enjoyed their fun shops, beautiful sculptures and gardens - and GIANT cookies....but alas....we needed to head for home to get ready for Sunday.

     Sunday was "family day" for us (and a day to let our hosts have a break from hosting!)

My nephew Nathan Hunt and his family live in Ft. Collins, just north of Denver, so we accepted the invitation to go to Church with them and have their traditional after-church pancakes.  We are so happy for this family that Nathan's podiatry schooling and residencies are finished and that they are settled in their new home.  

     The recently-annnounced Ft. Collins temple will be built on the lot that joins their ward house.  They are also closer at last to Beth's parents in Wyoming so that makes them happy too.  Nathan specializes in foot problems of diabetics.  I think that is a contribution that is greatly needed.

Nathan Andrew Hunt is the oldest child of my step-brother, Steve. 

Our son, Nathan Andrew Austin, shares his name.

I have always admired Beth.  She is amazing with numbers (a former math teacher), a great mom, homemaker, and a hilarious blogger. (And she makes a mean pancake!)   Their children seemed to adopt us right into their home and we loved the short time we got to visit with them.  It warms your heart when a child is willing to climb into your lap and show you their world.

Nathan and Beth with their "alphabet" kids:  Andrew, Bryn, Caitlin, Diana, Edwin

Thank you, guys, for a heart-warming day!

     Upon our return to Centennial we had long enough to freshen up a bit and then were off to meet and visit with a distant Forsgren/Davis cousin.  It was providence, I think, that led me to be reviewing a line of the Christina Erika Davis genealogy and to realize that Randy Alder lives in Centennial and that we would be in the same city during this visit.  Not only the same city, but Randy lives in the adjoining Stake, less than 2 miles from the Bryant's home.   Randy was able to supply me with some much-coveted photos and discussed with me the difficult life of his grandmother who had been in a post-manifesto polygamous marriage.   NOT a happy time for her large family.  To her goes great credit for keeping her family together when she eventually divorced Ruel Alder.  Randy had a photo of him that I had hoped we could find somewhere in the family.      Great end for me to a nice day!

     Time to draw our 3 week adventures to a close and get back to Vegas so Bishop Austin could appear again before his little flock!   We had one last day for sight-seeing.  Victor was disappointed to learn the art museum he wanted to visit is closed on Mondays, so at Yolanda's suggestion we traveled out to Boulder, Colorado (amid a horrendous downpour) to the Celestial Seasonings (Tea) Factory.  

     The tour is by small groups so were given a "Teekit" (a single serve sealed package of peppermint Herb Tea) to hold our place in the next group.  While we waited we tasted samples of their over 100 different flavors of teas - 3/4 of which are herbal.  They also have a little art gallery produced by various people depicting their various flavors.   That was great fun.

Cherry/raspberry tea

Gingerbread Spice Tea

 Course I can't remember the name of this painting or which tea it represented

This was one of my favorites.  Where most of the others were painted, this one was all bead work - depicting a citrus blend tea.

The dress, shoes and evening bag are made entirely of Celestial Seasonings Tea Packet bags!

Our tour began. Victor made a great fashion statement with the hair nets required as you walk thru the plant.

     Very memorable were the two "closed" rooms.  The first is where they store the black and green tea leaves  - the caffeinated ones.  They have to be kept apart so that they don't absorb the aromas of all the other leaves.   Second was the Mint Room.  Goodness!  The strength of the odor in there made our eyes water and throats constrict.  Mint contains menthol...and the odor is so strong it will affect the flavor of all the other things around it.  

     It was a nice afternoon.  After leaving the plant we drove on into Boulder because I wanted to see the University of Colorado.  While I worked in the Interlibrary Loan office at BYU I borrowe a LOT of books from this university for scholars who were working on research papers and master's theses.  it is a beautiful school.  But I understand it is also quite a liberal school and I felt that as I looked at the students in town.   Medical Marijuana is legal there, but we happened to park out in front of a place that had a sign informing people that it was available there.  Several of the people we saw going into the shop didn't seem very "sick."   

     We had a nice pasta lunch at an open-air eatery (Pizza Joeys I think it was called) and it was nice to just people watch and have the quiet time before heading back to Denver.

Farewell, Colorado!   You delighted us with the awesome sights along Hiway 70, your fresh air and wonderful rain storms.   So sorry the rains couldn't have come a little sooner to help out with the devastating fires near Colorado Springs.  The blackened earth we saw on our way to Canon City renewed our feelings of compassion to all those who lost homes there.   

Just yesterday we heard of yet another disaster to this beautiful state - the massacre in Aurora by the gunman who opened fire on innocent movie goers!     Our hearts are heavy for this craziness.