LoSee

The Christmas Elves....

2011-12-16T03:35:00.000-08:00

What can be more fun than spending a day with a bunch of cute little elves....

A Christmas Tractor....

2011-11-29T05:26:00.000-08:00

The holidays are here and our days are full of preparation and celebration. We have a great Thanksgiving and look forward to a wonderful Christmas time. Meanwhile -- here are some pictures from the last few weeks. Emily and Bree had a wonderful time showing off their dance skills with Miss Shelia....

...and Dean shows off his majestic pictures from his hike down the Grand Canyon. He was especially proud of the buck he shot....only with a camera of course....

...and then there is the grandma's school fun...leaves and dinosaurs and abc's ...

With our beautiful weather we are wondering when winter will really come but meanwhile...we will enjoy each day as much as we can!

Halloween Fun.2011

2011-11-01T20:09:00.001-07:00

October was full of lots of fun activities and especially Halloween We all had a great time at the witches party and enjoyed the great food and being with family members. Preschool also added a few more parties and the guys partied in the mountains for the Deer Hunt...lucky Ryan and Bryn both got their deer. So have fun viewing the fun....

Happy Birthday Max

2011-11-01T19:45:00.000-07:00

SWISS DAYS 5K

2011-09-26T11:28:00.000-07:00

The annual Swiss Day's 5K arrived bright and early but this year we recruited some fellow runner's /walkers to join us.

The Carr's were in town and so Lige ran with his Dad and Shelli ran with Sherri. Yes I said ran...while the rest of us jogged along in spots and walked the rest of the time. In spite of our pledge last year to be ready to run the race...we are still happy walkers. Maybe next year?

Running in the dark are Shelli and Sherri...easily identified by the shining hat rim.

Lige and his Dad Mike....The real runners....good luck in the Marathon!

Lige & Shelli, Shana, Wyone and Sherri

Wyone, Karen, Sherri, Lige, Shelli, Sharla, and Shana ready for the fun.

2011-08-03T10:45:00.000-07:00

This has been a summer of fun things... family activities, trip to Fish Lake, 4-H with the girls, reunions at the DirtFarm....how quickly the time flies by and it is almost time for school...so enjoy the random events...The girls love to cook and are pretty good at it. It's the cleaning up that is the trial! The Reunions at the Dirt Farm helped us reconnect with lots of family members on the Barton and Losee sides. There was even a repeat of the mud bath...just new participants...Dad and his snowy white beard was quite a hit and drew lots of comments..
We loved Fish Lake and did a bit of fishing and hiking and hanging out with great friends. Last of all...Grandpa Losee loved seeing his old tractor looking like new.

Our Ironman Morning

2011-05-11T10:06:00.000-07:00

The St. George Ironman is a big thing and since Colby and Jeff are giving their all in the organization of it we volunteered for a shift and were assigned the "bike course section four". We turned up early Saturday morning and got our bright yellow shirts and then found our spot on the bike trail right at a big turn. We spread out and did our thing! Such commands as: "Hazard" "big turn" "slow down ahead" were yelled all morning until some of us were hoarse. The sun came out and beat down but we carried on and cheered the bikers on. Thanks Sherri, Hayden, Garrett, Bryn, Carter, McKay and Kimber. You were great! And thanks Rusty and Connie and Addie for some welcomed relief and refreshments.

McKay pointing the way! They had a couple of crashes at their site and got pretty warm in the sun.
The umbrella was welcomed relief...too bad it came at the end of our shift.

McKay

Kimber and Carter doing their cheering

Bryn found a bit of shade behind the power box

Sherri and Hayden and Garrett shared the big turn.

Watching for the return of the bikers

the bikers loved Kimbers sign and she was so good to cheer them on with encouraging words. We were pretty close to them as passed this spot...but noticed the shade...It felt great.
The real hero's of the day were those crazy people who gave their all to swim and bike and run for all day long. They were inspiring!

April 2011

2011-04-21T11:34:00.000-07:00

Catch Up Time...It has already been an eventful spring time! Dean is working at recovering from Prostate Cancer surgery and is doing great...and tries to take it easy and be patient about not getting out to his garden and yard too soon. It has been fun watching the spring crowd gather in the nice evenings and play basketball and ride the segways and just sit and visit.

Zach, Tanner and Emily miss BREE

Preschool has also been fun as we explore the outdoors and Easter and kites and fairytales
McKay made the finish to our Tortoise and Hare fairytale day perfect when he showed up with the "tortoise and the Hare" Thank you McKay and Addie

Happy Birthday

2011-03-21T19:12:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to all the March birthday kids....especially the biggest kid...or is that leprechaun!

Also Isla, Allie and Tanner. Hope you all have a great day!
Love you all.

The Nativity FHE Style....

2010-12-21T13:20:00.000-08:00

What more fun could there be than having a Family Home Evening with your family and doing the Nativity....the big kids were great sports and dressed up and did a good job. The little kids just had a ball...the little girls (Bree and Emily) put on princess dresses out of Bree's closet to wear with there stars....the little stars wouldn't keep their twinkles on their heads and Zach wouldn't even put on a costume. Even Lucky was invited in and played the donkey part....wet dog smell and all

The music was nicely done by the Condie family with everyone joining in with some of the songs.

The angels were flying all over the place but did find a good landing place. All in all it was a fun time together and hopefully a little bit of the Christmas Spirit rubbed off on all of us.

The next morning we watched as the Santa Clara Creek flooded again. After a week of constant rain in St. George this was sure to happen but it is scary to think of what nature can do. There should even be more water running as the day continues on.

2010-12-19T21:25:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

The Witches Are Out!

2010-10-29T06:35:00.000-07:00

Thanks Karma for a great night...

Gaylynne and Avery....

Ryan and Danna's pumpkins..
I just had to show them off

Izzy

Halloween fun is all around us and
the annual Witches Party let us begin

the celebrations...Kimber and Emily...

Danna and Scarlet

Sharla...don't you all just love this shirt!

The little girls...Bree and Emily

Wyone looking lovely...

These three just know how to have fun...
Kimber, Allie and Addie

Whitney, Clair and Grandma

The Gardner Girls and little Ryder

Whitney and Heidi with the Great food...

Good company...

Wanda, Matilda and Wanita...

Little witches among the ghosts...

The whole witchy crew....minus me taking the pic

Little witches...

Showing off our fantastic hosery....

The witchy Losee Ladies...

Look at the older crew do those high kicks!
Wyone, Karma, Karen and Grandma
Happy Halloween everyone!

Little People Fun and Senior Power

2010-09-22T13:32:00.000-07:00

Grandma's Preschool Fun has begun....and we
do have a good time together.

Visiting the Rodeo grounds all decked out for the
the event.

Even the cowboy saddle seats at McDonalds added to the fun

Though nothing was happening out on the
rodeo grounds we had a good time checking it out

My cowboys and cowgirls....

Addie was all cowgirl! We had a lot of fun
visiting the cows and horses and pretending for
just a bit that the old west was back again.

SENIOR POWER....

Lake Powell has got to be the best place ever
to relax and have fun. Who wouldn't enjoy it with
a place to hang out like this!

Captain Losee...notice the whiskers...he did a great job
making sure everyone had fun on the water.

The Missionary crew...minus me taking the picture
and
One last view of the majestic scenery.

NUMBER 20

It was back to the DC area to spend some time
with the families and welcome
a new blessing in the family...Eisley Ann Carr
Born September 1, 2010....it was so much fun being
there and spending time with the Well's and Carr's
families.

Welcome little Eisley Ann

Finishing up the Summer Fun FHE 8.9.10

2010-08-14T08:35:00.000-07:00

Yes...it does rain in Dixie...once in a while and we have to take advantage of it. Addie and Kimber had a great time playing in the summer rain.

We had a great family home evening with all of the St. George Losee's at the Johnson home. With swimming and eating and ice cream...all had a great time and it was so much fun to hang out with each other for a while.

Scarlet enjoying her ice cream

Kevin and Annette

The Palmers

The Losee's

John making the big jump...

The Peterson's

Zach and his ice cream

And all of little people.

Having fun in the pool

2010-07-16T16:56:00.000-07:00

"St. George Live"
June 10, 2010
It was a summer field trip to see our own home town with a bit of the old time flavor.
We met at the Art Center and Jacob Hamblin and then visited special places all around

At our first stop met Orson Pratt and heard his story in St. George
Hayden even helped him with a little drama about the gunshot that left a hole in the ceiling

We then loaded on the bus and headed downtown.

At the Tabernacle we met Erastus Snow.

Our next stop was the old court house where Judge Macfarlane put Hayden up front again and on trial!!!

All stand for the Judge!

After the trial we headed to the Brigham Young home and met the Prophet himself....a bit thinner that I thought.

After the tour we walked down to Grandma and Grandpa Barton's home and she shared parts of her life story with us and let the kids ask question. It was fun to hear about her life and some of Grandpa's. We ate homemade bread and butter while she talked and then she shared popcycles with us.

We also walked around the corner and took a look at G-Great Grandpa and Grandma Barton's home....a totally different looking home that when they lived there but the owner invited us in to see the changes.

Next door to their home is the first home that Karen lived in...also remodeled...but I don't remember it anyway!

Thanks Everyone for a great day!

A Summer Day at Silver Reef
July 15, 2010
Part of our family summer fun is learning about the places around our own home. We all traveled out to old Silver Reef and explore the old buildings and history. The Wells Fargo Express office is now a visitors center/gift shop and full of fun relics from the past.

The docents loved tellings us about the old days and showing us the fun features. They were also very watchful of our many little folks...I would have loved to have had a picture of Tanner, when he very slyly climbed onto the old saddle stool...but the good lady had him off before I could take one.

While we waited for the Condie Family to catch up with us Allie and Addie checked on the old mining cars outside. McKay is standing in front of the memorial that honored the Catholic Church and their church that once stood on that site. Meanwhile the other kids checked out the City diorama and gift shop. We left with a handful of rocks (25cents a piece) and some fun puppets.

A great group of adventurers.

Our next stop was at the Santa Clara City Hall where there is a statue of Sarah Leavitt who was one of the family ancestors. Do we look a little bit worn out??? The temperatures were only around 110!

Bryn, Grandma Losee, Dallin and Garret in front of the Sarah Leavitt Statue.
To beat the heat we finished up back home with root beer floats!

Grandma's Preschool Fun

2010-05-20T12:12:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned how much fun it has been doing a preschool with four of the grandchildren...Tanner, Zach, Emily and Bree. They are different ages 4 years to two years but are good with each other. Our main challenge has been learning how to sit still for longer than 60 seconds and we will probably have to work on it for a bit longer!!!! We have learned our colors (they each have a favorite) talked about nature, animals, bugs, butterflies and birds...we have
made fun projects for Valentines, Christmas and Easter and other special days...we love to eat and lunch is probably their favorite things except for maybe the snacks before lunch. We love the books and puzzles and crafts. They love to play outside and swing in the swings...we have learned to take turns and help each other out. So much fun...what more can I say!

Emily dancing with the ribbon wands

Tanner making his moves

Bree checking out the St. Patrick's Day treasure after they found the pot of gold at the end of the Rainbow

Zach on Safari Day...

Aren't the cookies the cutest ever...made by Karma after her trip to South Africa on a real safari..

Coloring at the little table...

Enjoying a good strawberry

Having a picnic at the Johnson Road Run where we learned about safety with our vehicles...notice the fun variety of transportation...

Practicing on the play mat with stop and go signs

Getting ready to hit the road

Tanner...Leading the way...all decked out with bike, helmet and super-cape

It has been a great time and special experience spending time with some of my Grandies.

2010-04-29T10:56:00.000-07:00

SURPRISE...!
I joined Wyone, Camille, Carrie and CJ and headed to Montana to surprise Carol Ann for her 60th Birthday. It was great to see the look on her face as we came off the plane. (She knew Carrie was coming but not the rest of us) Kellie and Addy surprised her as well but Kim had everything under control. What a fun weekend we had visiting, eating, checking out Billings, and doing missionary work with CA.

The Girls and CJ...and CA on the phone....she had missionaries calling her all day long.

They also surprised her later the evening with cake and ice cream
They love their ice cream....there were two more cartons in the freezer!!!!

We visited the Billings Temple and they went to two different baptisms.

Hiking the Rimrock....

President Larry in his office

Outside the mission home with Larry and Carol Ann. It was a wonderful week end...Thanks Gardners!

Preschool time...dancing to the music. Except Zach.

Easter Time 2010

2010-04-05T18:55:00.000-07:00

EASTER TIME....We had a lot of fun getting ready for Easter especially on Tuesday...we planted some grass and then watched it grow through the weeks and finally were able to hide a few jelly beans and marshmallow bunnies

Tanner

Bree

Zach

Emily
Meanwhile Sharla was preparing for her Easter Egg hunt on Friday evening. With help from the boys and Bryn and others...she had over 2000 eggs ready to hide

They spread them all over the grounds and in the rocks and in the trees and anywhere else they could find to place them

By evening the families and friends began to arrive and they kept coming and coming...

The brought treats and Easter baskets and lots of little people...as soon as it was dark they headed out with their flashlights and filled their baskets.

It was a very successful evening!

Saturday we met again between Conference meetings with the Barton family and had a great
picnic at the Johnson Home with delicious food and great visiting. It was fun to have all of the Russ Barton family there as we haven't seen them all together for quite a while. We really missed most of the Gardner's and were glad to have Carrie and Colby and family to represent them.

Joe, Grandpa & Dad

Connie and cute Avery

The boats were popular entertainment and good exercise for those peddling.
Sherri, Zach, Bryn, Tanner, Emily, Connell (Brian's son)

Shana and Crystal

Three cute little feet....can you guess who's is who's!..Clair Thorley's
Avery Losee's, Scarlet Losee's????

Sherri & Connie

Grandpa Barton

Dean and Russ

Egg hunting time

Bryn and Emily

Bree and Emily

Hunting....

Sunday we were treated to a great breakfast at Rusty and Connie's...and then we finished the day all together for dinner

Eating Sunday Dinner...
Scarlet enjoying Spring time flowers...

Celebrating through October...

2009-11-04T18:35:00.000-08:00

October has been a great month...and very very busy for everyone.
First of all....welcome Baby Avery Elle Losee
October 5, 2009 - 7 pounds 3 ounces

Bree's Candy Land Birthday Party on October 10th

October 31st

Addison's Baptism

Four Generations....Addie and Avery, Mom Connie,
Grandma Losee and Great Grandma Barton

Rusty, Connie, Karen, Dean
Avery and Addison

Halloween night brought
out the wild bunch ... and Ryan had to be the
wildest of all!!!!
.
Garrett and Hayden

Carter & Tanner

McKay

We also parties earlier in the week with the Barton cousins at Karma's Witch's Party...and we represented the Losee branch quite well.

We loved the black cauldron soup bowls and the little witches....

We also celebrated October birthdays for
Sherri, Shana, Andy & Connie plus Max and Hayden
on the First of November. Happy Birthday everyone.

Addie turning 8 years old

Scarlet's blessing on
October 18th

In between all of this we are have a great time with a little preschool time at Grandma's with some very busy little ones.

Isn't Family great!

2009-10-16T06:54:00.000-07:00

Bob and Shayla are on the move and left St. George headed to Virgina and their new home and new job. We will miss them and Lige and Shelli and family will be happy to have them near by. We wish them all the best.

The Family is growning...September and October has been fruitful as two beautiful new little girls have joined our family. Mothers and daughters are doing fine and grandma's and grandpa's are very pleased and proud.
First--Scarlet Adel Losee , September 13, 2009 - 8 pounds 5 ounces and a beautiful head of black hair - parents, Ryan and Danna.

Second--Avery Elle Losee, October 5, 2009 - 7 pounds 3 ounces and again absolutly adorable with her own beautiful dark hair - parents Rusty and Connie Losee.

Don't these three ladies look lovely! They have just finished the Swiss days 5K...at their regular waking speed....lots of fun.

2009-09-24T17:01:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since we have caught up on all of the fun activities that we have had this last few months. Notice the word FUN. From 4-wheeler trips at Fish Lake to Lake Powell to family reunions...it has been a great summer.

Hanging out with the Wayne County crew and the Christensen's at Fish Lake

Nancy and Galen Rees......Dean and Karen

Karen, Gloria Harward, Kassie Christensen, Marsha Taylor

On Top of Boulder Mountaiin

At Christensen's Fish Lake Cabin

The Trip to Powell with the Lane Losee family was an adventure! From hot pepper eating contests...

Adam and his Hot Pepper and $100

.... the big dust storm, to fun in the sun and on the water...we didn't lack for food, fun or good company.

Sharla and Bree...Dean after a unexpected dip in the lake

Gentry Counting up the shells

An evening of games...don't you love those faces!

Sisters Sharla and Sherri

Rusty tackling the rubic cube.

Andy serving up the snowcones....you did good Andy
Hayden, Garrett and Trae enjoying the cool treat...

Max dressed for the water...Shelli and Remy

More games...

Mom and Dad Losee in their best attire????

Danna and Ryan trying their luck with the fishing pole

The "Villa" was like a beehive or anyhole....with all the workers trying to get it done.

Furniture in the "Villa"
The Johnson pond

Working on the Johnson yard...

Allie and Bree's playhouse
It's coming together and looks great!

The Losee reunion gave us all a chance to enjoy the Losee cousins, aunts and uncles and Grandpa Losee

Shayla and Isla at the Hard Pan

At the Delta park

The Hard pan group

The 15th of August was the Abbott reunion and we had such a good time with the Abbott relatives. We loved hearing their stories and visiting Hinckley and having them share their memories of the old hometown.

The Abbott Reunion

September 13, 2009....Scarlet Adel Losee....8 pounds 5 ounces and a doll....proud parents....Ryan and Danna Losee

We have been looking forward to a Lake Powell trip since we left the Mission field and had a great time with the Christensen's, Thomas's, Harward's, Taylor's, Caviness's, Rees's, Rich's, and Giles'

Kirtland Missionary Group at Lake Powell
Dean & Karen

Catching up on the game's,touring on the boat's and viewing the beautiful scenery.

Summer Fun

2009-07-08T13:59:00.000-07:00

There is nothing like some good camping trips to make the Summer fun

Zach--Max, Tanner & Rusty....Allie, Kimber & Addie

It has been a fun time hanging out with the family at the Dirt Farm....
The Wells, Dean & Karen , Shana, Rusty Losee and Kevin Condie Families at their camping best

The Johnsons --- Danna showing off her horseshoe throwing skills
This was our last opportunity to spend time with Larry and Carol Ann before they left for Montana to preside over the Billing, Montana Mission for three years. We will miss them but they will have some wonderful experiences.

Mom Dad and the kids...June 2009

Lined up for some crazy activities

Uncle Vaughn, Aunt Lenore with Mom & Dad

Just wait until next year and they have a toddler running around!!!!

The boys working on the Grand Hotel, or Old Folks Home

Preparing dinner!

Traditional game time

And then on to more fun with former missionary friends. Dean & Karen at the Kirtland Mission Reunion in Sheep Valley above Fish Lake....with the great Kirtland Missionaries

2009-05-07T09:38:00.000-07:00

People keep asking us how we enjoy being home and I have to admit that even though we miss all the mission experiences we sure do enjoying being home and spending time with the family.

Dean is back in the air and really enjoying it. He even got his picture in the paper when he helped at one of the schools showing off the helicopters.

The little folks enjoying a BBQ--
Tanner, Emily, Bree & Zach
McKay, Carter, Friend, Bryn
Hayden and Garrett
Max at the mall
Emily walking the red carpet at Kimber's Knights of the Math Table awards.

Allie is in softball and of course this shows how interesting it is. She can hit the ball and run around the bases also.
Kimber's violin recital was quite impressive. I look forward to much more in the future.
Three fun girls-Addie, Allie and Kimber

Zach with his mouth full of Easter treats and Dallin quite happy that his basket if full.
Addie showing off her Easter decor

Bree enjoying the good food at Easter time
Tanner and his unique outfit...he loves to come to Grandma's and just hang out with us.
Sweet Isla on the day of her blessing.

Soooo....life continues to be busy!

Home Sweet Home

2009-04-18T10:40:00.000-07:00

OK....it is now April and the Losee's are home in St. George again. We love being with our family and friends but also miss the good people in Kirtland. It was a wonderful experience and we are so grateful for it. Ryan and Danna joined us for the trip home and their own tour of Kirtland. Shelli and Lige also joined in the fun and added their own adventures in Utah as well. Enjoy ...

Farewell Party in Kirtland

Enjoying Kirtland one last time with Ryan and Danna

Harpers Ferry with the Carr's

Washington DC and Philadelpha

Niagara Falls and Palmyra and heading home

Welcome Home

Ryan's, Allie's, Tanner's and Isla's Birthday Time

Hiking in the Grand Canyon

Well that pretty much takes care of this last month. We are back to being busy at home, enjoying all the grandchildren and children and friends. Life is wonderful!

February Fun

2009-02-22T18:23:00.000-08:00

Valentines dinner was a fun event and look who was in charge. Elder Taylor, Elder Butterfield and Elder Losee greeted the guests and escorted them to their seats. Meanwhile the Ladies were preparing the great dinner. A wonderful evening.
It was also fun to have Burke and Darlene Belnap here to spend a few days and enjoy some of the special events as well.
We hope they had a good time here in Kirtland. It sure was fun for us to have them here.
Meanwhile we are cleaning and packing and getting ready to leave Kirtland and head back to Utah. What a wonderful experience it has been to be missionaries and share the Gospel with the people that come to Historic Kirtland.

Winter Moments

2009-02-05T10:31:00.000-08:00

Winter has it's moments! With all the snow we often find ourselves spending long days at the site...therefore we find ways to entertain ourselves and have fun. A little exercise never hurts either.

We are on a countdown and have only one month left before we return to sunny St. George.
Needless to say...we are happy and sad about leaving. We love Kirtland and we will miss it a lot.
On the other hand we are excited to see our friends and family back home.

New Projects in Kirtland

2009-01-15T19:25:00.000-08:00

NEW PROJECTS IN KIRTLAND!
We are having new adventures as a new Exhibit on Jesus Christ comes to the site. Some of you may have already seen the exhibit when it was in St. George at the Temple visitor's center.

It is also very cold here, but we still have had some good walks and fun times in the woods.

Happy New Year 2009

2009-01-05T13:28:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everyone. It was a great Christmas time and we are now ready to get back into the routine and enjoy the next few months that we will be in Kirtland. It is hard to believe it has gone by so quickly. Dean looks pretty good in his "Andy Cap"...he hasn't had one of those since he was a missionary in England. He found out that it does keep his head warmer out in that cold winter air. We loved having the Carr's spend Christmas with us and we had so much fun with Remy and Liam! It sure was quiet after they headed home.
We have also had some great experiences with the missionary
work as one special young man was baptized right after Christmas. We have had the blessing of having some of the teaching at our home and Elder Losee was able to do the confirmation. We also enjoyed celebrating the holidays with the missionaries. At the big New Years Party...Dean won the grand prize for have the lowest score at the Phase 10 contest!!!! Not to be out done...I won for having the most "0's" !!! Just so you know...we also do get missionary work done as we have over 6000 visitors for our Nativity display and Kirtland tours since Thanksgiving. It has been a great month!

Kirtland Christmas 2008

2008-12-14T17:25:00.000-08:00

We're looking outside and watching it snow
The Christmas tree is decorated and shines with a glow
Our hearts are tender because we know
That we won't be home for Christmas

We imagine the lights of your homes shining bright
And smile when we think of the children's delight
We hope that your shopping is going just right
So that you'll all be ready for Christmas!

Our little red house is cozy and calm
There's a peaceful feeling with each Christmas song
We'll cherish each day for we know there's not long
To enjoy a Kirtland Christmas.

No matter the place--be it far or near
It's time to ponder things that are dear
Be it family or friends--whether home or here
We're grateful for all this Christmas.

We enjoy greeting people as they come to the site
To share the Saints history from morning 'til night

To testify of the Saviors pure light...
That's the way we are spending this Christmas.

So even though you're not here by our side
To enjoy the messages we give as your guides
We testify to all of you far and wide
That Christ is the reason for Christmas

Please make him the center of your celebration
Remember with joy the shepherds elation
Read of his mission, his life, his creations
Make Him the best part of Christmas

This holiday time will soon come and go
And we'll all be back in the worldly flow
But let's always be grateful for what we know
About why we celebrate Christmas.

Let us greet each new day with a prayer as we start
And be ready to serve others and do our part
So that the spirit of love will be in our hearts
And all year long we'll have Christmas

Merry Christmas
from Elder Dean & Sister Karen Losee
Kirtland Historic Sites
December 2008

Winter has come to Kirtland

2008-11-13T13:40:00.000-08:00

November 9, 2008--Winter has come to Kirtland and we were covered with our first snow. It is quite a beautiful site as we viewed it from our front porch and out of the Visitor's Center window.

November Adventures

2008-11-07T18:00:00.000-08:00

OK...It is time to catch up on our Kirtland Kapers...sometimes I think that we have too much fun being missionaries. As much as we love teaching the Gospel, we also enjoy the times that we have visitors and the little day trips that we get to take when we aren't working. So enjoy!
Having the Gardners spend a few days was great. We loved showing them our Kirtland favorites and Larry even treated us with his homemade apple crisp. The fall colors have been beautiful to see. Winter will be here quickly so we are soaking up all we can. On our last P-Day we headed west to Marblehead and then to Kelleys Island. We spent our time walking on the beach and enjoying the Glacier Grooves. We have also been out to an Amish school where we visited with the children and they sang to us. They don't like pictures of them so all we have is the picture of their school. Two rooms with children from 1st grade to 8th grade. After that they are generally through with school. The teachers aren't much older than the children. They are kind and happy children and we enjoy the opportunities we have to get to know them. We also had a fun Halloween party with the missionaries...just the young ones dressed up! Hope you can make sense of these modpodge pictures. It is fun to share and fun to see what is going on with others.

Rusty & Crew in Kirtland

2008-10-13T13:58:00.001-07:00

What a fun time we had with Rusty and Connie and family...now if I can get the pictures posted to show you I will have accomplished much!!!! So here goes. OK...maybe the pictures will have to come later. Anyway...we explored the Ohio countryside the first day with toothpicks holding Rusty's eyes open after an all night flight. It was sure great to see them come off the plane even if they were in their pajama's. It took a few minutes for Tanner to warm up to his grandparents but when he did we enjoyed all of his antics and cute faces. We headed right for the Johnson Farm and explored the Amish country as well. By the time we arrived in Kirtland they were all anxious to see the little red house and made it rock for the next few days. Saturday was a day to visit the sites and the Temple where they were invited to return the next morning and ring the bell. Sunday they got to go up to the Temple and take turns ringing the bell. It is rung 50 times each Sunday morning and they did a great job. Since it was conference we listened to the meetings on the computer and some went to the visitors center to watch the broadcast. Monday they headed to Palmyra and Niagra Falls and returned to Kirtland on Tuesday. Wednesday we took them back to the airport and waved good-by---What a great visit. We loved it all!

Rusty & Crew in Kirtland

2008-10-13T12:51:00.000-07:00

Dad's Goosey Gander

2008-09-22T18:22:00.000-07:00

Nothing like having good company on a pleasant evening walk...Dad's new found friend followed him all over the site as he locked up. He just waddled along behind at his own pace but made it all the way to our house and onto the porch.

September Adventures

2008-09-11T09:19:00.000-07:00

September is moving along quite quickly and the weather seems to be feeling like fall...leaves are falling and the pumpkin in Elizabeth Whitney's garden is growing. We have had some nice walks in the parks here with the geese and deer joining us. We have been seeing the deer almost every walk this last little while. Our party time and P-day time have also been entertaining. I hope you like our great hats from our "Hats Off to Labor Day" party....Dad's doesn't look to unusual......but don't you just love this old hat...especially the netting....I'm saving it for future use...
....These are the winners...Sister Taylor bought her hat and mine at an antique shop. Elder Giles made his out of a place mat and even made his wife's...How about Sister Pyrah's lampshade!!!!

Dean and Elder Taylor were so fascinated with when we explored some of the area's south of here. This is a big rock quarry...We really had a good time exploring the Amish country in Holmes County. We visited an Amish Farm and rode in the carriages and toured the old home. There is a real horse in front of the reins...but the Amish driver doesnt' like to have his picture taken. How about the different outfits that were on display...We finished the day by visiting the Football Hall of Fame.
So much for some fun adventures...but there are still P-Days to come!

August Adventures

2008-08-20T17:50:00.001-07:00

Hello from Kirtland!
It is August and it feels like fall already. Some of the leaves are starting to change colors and the weather has that fall feeling to it. We still have visitors and love to share Kirtland--but our off time can be interesting as well. We had an interesting Saturday when the sisters (dripping from the rain)knocked on our door and brought in two soaked motherless kittens. They didn't even have their eyes opened but they wanted to see if they could help them. They can't have them at their house so they left them at ours and we even had to so midnight feedings! Sadly they were sick and we had to get rid of them. The sisters were pretty sad about that. Last Monday we went to Middlefield for an Amish dinner and saw some of the Amish farmers busy working their fields. It is always interesting to see the old methods still being used.
We also toured the countryside on our P-Day...just a casual stop where we want to...kind of day. A few antique shops and lunch at Punderson Park. What a beautiful view across the lake as we watched a storm come in and quickly moved inside! We love our exploring days!

Celebrating the 24th and beyond!

2008-07-31T10:03:00.000-07:00

Even in Ohio we found a way to celebrate the 24th...since the gathering all started here it was right to remember it. We had a picnic at Morley Farm and a great game of wiffle ball!
We were happily surprised when Valorie Snow visited the site with Lacy and Brian.

We also enjoyed having the Orchard families and Susan and Ron Garner spend a couple of days in Kirtland. It is always so much fun to see familiar faces.
We joined some of our fellow missionaries at a Captains baseball game. It is the local "A" league team and we had a wonderful time with the entertainment between innings.

You may think that we party all the time after all of these pictures...but here we are having some more fun at horseshoes and croquet when we met with the Community of Christ workers.

Summertime fun!

2008-07-17T13:01:00.000-07:00

OK...this is the third time I have tried to get my blog on and each time I have had to leave for something else. So...We are having a great summer here in Kirtland. It is finally hot and sticky and tons of people are here every day. The buses have been rolling through and we have decided that we enjoy the individual families much better. Anyway...some of the high points of the last few weeks.

We spent some time with President Uchtdorf one morning when he brought his wife and grandson's to visit Kirtland. Later they came out to the Morley farm and we got to have a quick visit again.

We also enjoyed having Marci and her friend Joanna stay with one night.

This picture is for Jeremy...I know how much he likes old buses and thought
he would enjoy seeing this one from Geneva on the Lake, Ohio!

We also spent some time on the beach which is the nicest we have seen.
And then there are the big toys!

The Train...The Submarine

And the big ship!
We spent one night at the Cleveland Indians ballgame and had a great time.

Wednesday night a water main broke up the hill and flooded the sawmill and ashery area. It is kind of a mess right now and off limits.

Well...it may seem that all we do is play...but P-Day is the only time we take all of these pictures. The rest of the days are good missionary days so...that is pretty much our life for now!

Kokomos!!!

2008-06-26T10:25:00.000-07:00

One of the fun things about summer in Kirtland is the trip up the hill to Kokomos! They make great ice cream cones and so we try to make the trip a couple of times a week. It is usually very busy with the baseball players after a game. This week we ended up with a real party ourselves.We kept collecting couples and after getting our ice cream we walked across the street to the Temple grounds and just sat and talked and even had a photo session. That is pretty good execise time don't you think?

Strawberry Festival!

2008-06-17T08:06:00.001-07:00

This last week was spent at the Strawberry Festival and we certainly learned how to produce strawberry treats at a fast pace. It was also fun to rub shoulders with our friends from Kirtland and fellow missionary companions. We also enjoyed watching others enjoy it all!Saturday was Flag day and we celebrated that as well. A very nice way to start the day.

Grandpa, Grandma & Wittwer's Visit Kirtland

2008-06-05T17:59:00.000-07:00

What a treat it was to have the Sheldon and Karma bring Mom and Dad to Kirtland. We were so excited to see them Saturday night along with Whitney and Jordan. Sunday they joined us at church and then came over later to take a tour of Historic Kirtland. It was fun to show off the many places that we had just shared in letters. I think that most of all we were looking forward to showing off the areas that Great Grandpa Johnson was a part of. First the School of the Prophets where the Word of Wisdom was shared and then the sawmill and ashery

and the Johnson home.

It is kind of special to know that we had ancestors that walked these
grounds and were a part of the early history of the church.

On Monday we started with a sourdough pancake breakfast (I'm getting better at them each time) and then headed down the highway and stopped at the Quarry, Chagrin Falls, Johnson Farm and then the End of the Commons. We topped it off with dinner at Mary Yoders.

Tuesday they all came out to the Morley Farm where we shared the special stories of that peaceful place. Thanks Karma and Sheldon for coming to Kirtland and for bringing Mom and Dad and for making it such a special time.

Condie's In Kirtland

2008-05-29T10:43:00.000-07:00

The Condie's landed in Ohio late, late Saturday night and we have had a great time with them the last few days. They had to hang out on the site for a while when we were working but then we took them on the tour.

Some of the other places they enjoyed were the Farmpark and the shore of Lake Erie, the Temple, Morley Farm and Johnson Farm. Of course we had to visit the End of the Commons and then had dinner at Mary Yoders.

The visit to the Farmpark gave them all the opportunity to milk the cow.

We also watched them shear a sheep.

Fun at Lake Erie

The Family at the Johnson Farm and Dallin at the Morley Farm
and the Condie girls having enjoying things at the Commons

Spring in Kirtland???

2008-05-22T11:27:00.000-07:00

As beautiful as the flowers have been--it has been cold here in Kirtland. In spite of that we have had some great times the last few months--especially as we have had visitors. First Bob and Shayla and Max, then Shelli and Sharla with Bree, Allie and Liam and Barb , then John and Connie Whatcott and just last weekend Val and Karleen Stauffer. Now we are getting ready for Kevin and Sherri and their crew. This is great!

Liam on the shores of Lake Erie

Some good looking ladies!

Cute Bree--just before she face planted in the sand!

This one is for you Shay--kind of cute isn't it.

Spring has come to Kirtland

2008-04-24T11:38:00.000-07:00

Max loved playing on the shore of Lake Erie
Allie milking the cow was fun also.

Spring has come to Kirtland and we love it.

We enjoyed playing on the shore of Lake Erie

with Max and then a few weeks later we have

Allie and Liam and Bree--and their mom's---
to play with as well.

Allie is loving the Farmpark-- watching the sheepdog heard the sheep.

Liam also enjoyed the farm and the animals. Bree just smiled! Grandchildren are the best!!!

2008-04-11T10:53:00.001-07:00

It was such a great nice day and Max made sure he made friends with every animal he could. He was even willing to help clean up after them!
Of course...Grandpa found his favorite spot!

Checking things out with MAX

2008-04-11T10:36:00.000-07:00

We took a trip to the Farmpark and had the most fun watching Max enjoy himself. He loved the animals!

Finally!

2008-04-08T15:00:00.000-07:00

Yahoo!!! I finally have a blog up to share our life in Kirtland...thanks to Bob...who kindly guided me through the process.

We will try to share some of the fun and interesting experience via pictures and words. Life here had been a wonderful experience...so we hope that you will catch the spirit of Kirtland as well!