A new home for Lauren and Dan!

 When Carl and I got back from Utah (August 2014), we were greeted by a strangely silent home. While we were away,

Lauren and Dan and their 6 children moved into their new home. They lived in our home during the 23 months we served a mission in New York. They stayed with us for 7 more months while continuing their house hunting. They were so happy to finally find a good home, after having outgrown the first home they owned.

 Grandpa and I cherish all those moments with the kids while they lived with us. 

Lorelei was just a few months old when she came to live in our home after her mom and dad sold their first home in Pearland.

For baby Ben, our home is the first home he had ever lived in .

  

There were fun times in the kitchen with the older girls. Avery is helping her Mom make homemade donuts.

Lorelei never ceased to amaze me with her constant costume changes.

Lorelei wasn't the only one who enjoyed putting on "fashion shows".

It was fun to see the ways the kids enjoyed their time at home. When not playing the piano, Kyla loves to use her imagination.

It was fun to see the kids play so nicely with baby brother.

Grandpa appreciated having another man around to help him with special projects, like catching a varmint up in the attic. (I also enjoyed having another woman around, Lauren, to have a large share in the cooking, making many wonderful meals. The girls were such a huge help too, taking care of all the dishes, loading and unloading the dishwashing machine, etc.

Elayna, the oldest, is truly a "super" girl. She was such a huge help around the house, and a very hard worker.

I surely do miss those fun everyday moments with these kids.

Our final two days in Utah (Aug. 2014)

Education Week ended Friday evening. Saturday morning, we took a little mountain hike.

We worked up an appetite, and had lunch at a cute little bakery/restaurant. Of course, this little fellow was the cutest thing in the place.

Then it was on to the Sanpete County rodeo, where we joined KayLynn's family for the parade, rodeo, and the best smoked turkey legs we'd ever tasted.  

KayLynn's sister Allyson was in the parade.  She is Miss Mount Pleasant for the Miss Utah beauty pageant, and 2nd attendant for MissSanpete County

 

We were surprised to see the view from the rodeo grounds -- the Manti Temple!

There are lots of cowboys in Sanpete County.  I liked this small open air rodeo better than the big indoor Houston Rodeo.

The next day, Sunday, we went to church.

 After dinner, we took a walk around the neighborhood, and enjoyed our last few hours with Emmett, before flying back to Texas the next morning.

 

On Monday morning, it sure was hard to say "good-bye" to this cute little grandson, who is always smiling, just like his daddy when he was a baby. We love you baby Emmett!

(As I am writing this post, Emmett has just turned a year old, and is such a big boy, walking around all over the place and trying to talk.)

Week #2 in Utah

It was our first time to attend Education Week on the BYU campus in Provo. During the day, there were so many wonderful presentations. It was hard to make a choice. 

Brad Wilcox was one our favorites.

Another favorite was Susan Easton Black.

We also loved Daniel Peterson's lectures.

One of the highlights of a the week was a devotional with Elder Bednar. 

One evening we attended a fantastic concert by award winning pianist William Joseph.

It was nice meeting William Joseph in person after the concert.

At the end of each long day, we were so excited to see this sweet face again.

Week #1 in Utah

(Still trying to catch up with events on the blog!)

 In August, Carl and I spent two weeks in Utah visiting Andy, KayLynn, and Emmett, and attending BYU Education Week.

When KayLynn picked us up at the airport, we were  greeted with a smile from 7 month old Emmett. We were amazed because he had just woken up from a nap, and he hadn't seen us since April. 

Indi was happy to see her "grandpa" too.

We picked Andy up at Dowdle Folkart, where he works as an artist.

Andy and KayLynn showed us the home they are buying.

Philip, who is living and going to school in Utah, showed us where he worked (he now works elsewhere), and his bachelor pad.

Indi likes Philip too!

We were amazed at the progress made on the new Provo Temple.

We spent an afternoon at the L. Bean Museum on the BYU campus.

Grandpa didn't mind carrying Emmett around.

On Saturday, we went for a hike in the mountains.

Emmett was a happy hiker in his backpack.

Carl and I were happy that our knees are still good and we can keep up with the young folks!

We finished up week #1, with a Sunday dinner at the home of our dear New York Rochester Mission friends, who served with us in President Christianson's office staff (our office was in our car)-- Richard and Maxine Jensen. Anne Allred, who was the mission secretary, was also 

there.