January Confusion

A couple of the young members from the Baltic mission are here in Salt Lake City going to the LDS Business school. We had the privilege of spending time with them on the 28th of January during our temple break. Helvis and Svetlana, the two Lativans we speak of, are both returned missionaries and full of the spirit. We wish them well in their schooling. Sveta is getting married on the 25th of March. Yea for her.

No doubt about it, January in Star Valley is known for being cold and snowy. So, taking advantage of a 4 week break when the Idaho Falls Temple closed, we headed for St. George. Basking in the warmth and sunshine was to be our lot, or so we thought. Yes there were some sunny days, and it did get above freezing in the daytime, but the rain, and scrapping ice off the car windows in the mornings was not what we had expected. On the positive side, John did get 2 rounds of golf in, we visited with a few friends, and our stay with Spencer and Carey was enjoyable. One of the main reasons for our going south was so I could have a minor operation on my foot. That kept me somewhat homebound, but not much.

After 3 weeks in St. George, we were heading up to Provo and Salt Lake for some family activities: a baby shower for Carey with friends and relatives who live in the Provo/SL area, and John's Mom's 100th Birthday celebration The day before we were to leave, our daughter from Alaska came walking into the house on a surprise visit known only to her and Spencer, (her co-conspirator ) She wanted to surprise all of her family and be with her Grandmother when she turned 100 years old. We were all blown away by her visit, and we were so very happy that she could be with us for these important events.

I have a hard time putting pictures in the right order on this blog, so in reverse order: Kari with her Grandmother, a total surprise; Grandmother, Lilly Venema Andersen; John and Peggy and John's Mom; Our family who were present at the 100 year open house for Lilly Andersen.

The thing that makes this the most special for me is that all but 4 of our family were present and we were able to get a picture of all of the family from John, the oldest, to Easton, the youngest. Missing is Brinton, our son, who is in school in California, and Kari's 3 children, in school, in Alaska.

When we returned to Star Valley, the 1st of February, we found only 18 inches of new snow in our driveway - we had expected over 2 feet. John spent 3 hours digging us out so we could get the car into the garage. First he had to remove a 5 1/2 foot berm the snow plows left when they plowed the road. Then he had to remove a 2 foot berm that had fallen off the roof onto the driveway in front of the garage, the rest was easy. Next time we do this we will pre-arrange for the driveway to be plowed.

Life is good here in Star Valley, quiet, beautiful, but don't get me wrong, we loved our time in Utah and look forward to the time when we can spend the winter in St. George.