Home for a Week-August 8 to August 22

My beloved father died and I went home for a week for his funeral. I couldn't be anything but overjoyed for my father to be able to leave the body that had not worked for him for so long and for him to be able to join my mother and see his beloved parents once again. I am sure it was a joyful reunion. It was also a joyful reunion for all of us to join together once again to pay tribute to a wonderful father. Funerals are wonderful family reunions when they come at the end of a long, well-lived life. All of my brothers and sisters were there with many of their children and all of my children except one were there. My daughter Jenny had just left Arizona after spending a month there with her children. We missed her and I'm sure she missed being with us. It was wonderful to see my children and grandchildren after being gone for almost 6 months on our mission to Guatemala. A special treat was getting to see my two newest grandbabies I had never seen, Amelia Rose Garner and Oliver Grant Widdison, and to get to know Ivy Jones who was too young to remember me when I left. She accepted me immediately as another person to love and be loved by. It was pure joy for me. My mothers 3 beloved brothers Wayne, Owen, and Ralph Pearson and sister Virginia Richards came from Utah with some of their children. Dad's two sisters, Maxine Steiner and Myrle Hatch and two remaining brothers, Oakley and Gerald were also there. I am so grateful I decided to come home and be a part of all the love that was felt in that gathering of family.


Oliver Grant Widdison and Amelia Rose Garner



Annie Lark and Betsy Belle Jones

All my kids except Jim who was surfing in California and Jenny. Jim was back in time for the funeral and a nice visit.

I went on a shopping trip with my two cute daughters who had to find a dressing room to nurse their new babies.
My favorite picture of the trip.
Brian filling up on Lucky Charms because I did not cook while I was home.
Cute Eliza Garner with her friend.
Sister Marjean and her son and My daughter Emily with my mother's beloved sister, Virginia, Aunt Velda and Mom's baby brother Wayne.I will post more pictures of my trip home as I receive them from my kids but now back to real life.

I left Paul working with dental students in the clinic.
The Clinic with one of our favorite volunteers, John Hamblin and his son. Our friends the Tomkinson's met with the LDS Dental Academy last week-end and did a great job of soliciting funds and encouraging dentists to come and volunteer at the Clinic. We are eagarly awaiting the response. The Area Presidency has arranged a spanish class for the senior missionaries at the Church Office Building on Tuesday and Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. I went to my first ones this week.

When I arrived back in Guatemala, Paul had made a few welcome changes. Life is once again becoming sane. Two afternoons a week we leave the clinic early while Dr. Tobler oversees the dental students and Two afternoons a week, we stay and they leave early. Paul is able to get some of the many things done that he usually had to do on week-ends. It is so great not to get home late every night.
We are getting a new computer in the clinic and internet so that he can take care of some of the correspondence in spanish that he usually does at night. He set up an e-mail system for the future missionaries to make appointments on so that he doesn't have to try to understand their spanish and make appointments on the phone in traffic, while he is working, or wherever he happens to be when the phone rings. We get all their information, make an appointment and get a confirmation and a record. It has been so much less stressful.

We don't mind working on Fridays and Saturdays to get Future Missionaries taken care of because we have time off to get other things taken care of or just relax. Hey, we even went to dinner with Dic and Jennifer Johnson on Friday night, and to a movie Saturday afternoon. We haven't done that since the Suzanne and Wayne Tomkinson left.
And we also. . . get ready for this Book Club:
Had Sunday dinner with Carol and Clate Mask. What fun a fun way to end a great week and begin a new one! You should come and visit us.