Matthew's Baptism‏

I had hoped to prepare formal invitations/announcements for Matthew's baptism, but have not been able to do so.  Matthew has decided to be baptized and it was scheduled by the stake for March 28 at 10:00 am at our stake center on the corner of 700 North and 600 East.  We know that most of you cannot attend because of either location, vacation, or vocation, but please understand that our thoughts will be with you that day and we know that you support us in this event.

We will have a lunch afterward at our house.  The girls and I will have to zip back to Spanish Fork because they have a dance competition that day, and we have the YW broadcast that Alyssa and I have tickets for (and hope to be able to leave for at 4:30).  So you will not need to plan a lot of time for the event.

Matthew cut his hair in math class yesterday for the event, and we are hopeful that it will be recovered by his baptism.  He woke up this morning and told me it had grown overnight so it was going to be OK.  But last night, after I picked him up from the babysitter's, he finally got to see it.  He laid on the floor and cried that he looked like a "dork" and kept begging me, "Can't you just homeschool me?"  He is a funny, funny boy.  And to think that the worst thing I did in math class was talk too much.  Who knew that it was a good time to do a little (or a lot) of personal grooming?  I asked him what he did with the hair and he said that he just lightly scooted it onto the floor.  I guess that was some pretty hairy math.  I asked him what his classmates did and he said they just looked at him.  (I'm sure they were a little stunned, or it was the freak-show effect where they couldn't believe it but they couldn't look away either.)  I don't even know what the teacher was doing or how she explained to the janitor large chunks of blonde hair on the floor, particularly since she is has auburn hair.

Love,
AnnMarie
AnnMarie T. Howard
Chief Deputy Juab County Attorney

OK, so now all of you know that I cheat when I send family emails.  I usually just "reply to all" from one of Mom's but change the subject and erase the original email so I don't have to look up all the addresses.  This is how the email is supposed to look.


Melanie wrote: Being the mother of a self-proclaimed beautician, school can be such an enlightening place. I love the part about homeschooling. I think there were a few times where Siovhan would have liked that option, after giving herself a makeover.

We love you AnnMarie. What a good sense of humor you have!

Mel

Wow! I Can Walk Pain-Free!

I went to Dr. Gordon McClean in Provo today. He is a chiropractor. What great help he was to me. I have lived with pain for years and years and years. He made it go away in just a few minutes. I should have gone years and years and years ago. I have had two epidural steroid injections in the lumbar area to help with the low back pain and they only helped for a short time. Dr. McClean not only helped the back but took away the pain from my coccyx, my left hip but also between my shoulders.  He straightened my crooked shoulders also. Dad went with me and he also could not believe the good fortune. I go back on Friday a.m. before we go to the temple. I am so happy. So is Dad. This is the same Dr. who helped Jim with his back. The best news is that he took an x-ray (he can do that at his center) and found that I have no arthritis, I thought that I might because of the old injury. In addition, he can help correct the scoliosis that I have. All of the vertebrae have healed and so have the disks. My bones look good. So if I am rid of the pain forever, it will be the best day of my life. Even if I am not, it is better to go to him from time to time than to go get an epidural.  Love, M

Dear M,

That is wonderful news!  No more pain!  I am so very happy for you!  I remember how you suffered from pain since you had broken your coccyx.  What a relief for you to know you do not have to suffer arthritis! Wish Dr. McClean had an identical twin with identical education and skills who is a chiropracter in Phoenix Valley! You deserve to have no more pain!!! 

Love you,

Ann

Great Good News!

I went to Dr. Gordon McClean in Provo today. He is a chiropractor. What
great help he was to me. I have lived with pain for years and years and
years. He made it go away in just a few minutes. I should have gone years
and years and years ago. I have had two epidural steroid injections in the
lumbar area to help with the low back pain and they only helped for a short
time. Dr. McClean not only helped the back but took away the pain from my
coccyx, my left hip but also between my shoulders. He straightened my
crooked shoulders also. Dad went with me and he also could not believe the
good fortune. I go back on Friday a.m. before we go to the temple. I am so
happy. So is Dad. This is the same Dr. who helped Jim with his back. The
best news is that he took an x-ray (he can do that at his center) and found
that I have no arthritis, I thought that I might because of the old injury.
In addition, he can help correct the scoliosis that I have. All of the
vertebrae have healed and so have the disks. My bones look good. So if I am
rid of the pain forever, it will be the best day of my life. Even if I am
not, it is better to go to him from time to time than to go get an epidural.

Love, M

From Amy G: Great news Myrna! Now.... who's up for bungee jumping?

Stena (Said Sty-na)

Lars Ericksen was a flour miller in Denmark. Soon after his first marriage, he and his first wife, Bertha Marie, were baptized as members of the LDS Church. Lars then served as a missionary among his fellow-Danes. The family moved quite a bit as a result of this work. Stena Hansen, her brothers and mother, were all converted. Stena was told that she could travel to Salt Lake with Lars and his wife as their hired girl. She was also a friend. 

Stena, Lars and Bertha walked almost all the way to Salt Lake Valley. The old couple traveling with them rode in a wagon and the little girls also rode. There were eight with the one wagon, Lars, Bertha, Stena, the little girls, Emma and Camilla, Rasmus Rasmussen and the old couple. The old couple had purchased a cow, they were somewhat wealthy, and the cow gave them good milk, butter and buttermilk, until near the end of the journey. At that point, one of the oxen died and the cow was needed for pulling which meant she did not give much milk.

The women would hang the cream in a bucket under the wagon. On the bucket was a tight lid. The constant swinging of the bucket churned the butter. The buttermilk, left after the cream turned to butter, was used to make pancakes. May of the pioneers traveling with them would come to them for the buttermilk. They arrived in Salt Lake City in October of 1861.

One day, on their way to the valley, the women found a big, black iron kettle, which had been abandoned by a previous party. They decided it might come in handy when the got to their final home. So between them they carried it the remainder of the journey. There was no place for it in the wagon. That big black kettle was used over and over again in Mt. Pleasant. Soap was made in it and water boiled in it for hog killing days. It was passed from family to family for various uses.

Stena was very pretty and was also a good worker and quite smart. Many men wanted her to marry them. One sent a church leader to ask her to become a polygamist wife. She and Bertha were both upset by this. They decided they would ask Lars if he would marry her instead. Stena said she would rather have him for a husband than any of the others. That way, all of them could still be together. He agreed. Bertha, Lars and Stena all received their endowments at the endowment house in Salt Lake City. Bertha and Lars were sealed and then Stena was sealed to Lars, as well. 

They traveled to Mt. Pleasant in the spring of 1861 where they purchased a lot from Harvey Tidwell and immediately began to build a cellar for the family. The cellar was about 25-feet long and about 16-feet wide. To the east was a window with of four lights, which opened up and down, and to the north and south was one window of two lights which was set in the logs. There were no curtains because of the dim light and no blinds. It was two-roomed and was about six-feet deep in the earth. There were four logs above. The dirt floor was washed and water left standing to make it hard. Then it was sprinkled with clean white sand. There were partitions of adobe brick and a chimney of adobe with a fireplace and mantle. In front of the fireplace stood a step-stove.


Stena was the mother of Ferdinand, Amasa, Christena, Annie Marie, Mina and Lena (whose twin sister died shortly after birth). Another son, Alma, died during infancy. 


Bertha and Stena were always good friends. Up until their deaths, they loved each other dearly. They divided the chores of the household and the garden and farm and the children all loved them both. One was Mommy and the other Mama. 


The family had a wonderful vegetable garden with potatoes, carrots, onions, parsley, cabbage, peas and currant and gooseberries. They also had apple and plum trees.

Stop By

Hey everyone,

Just letting you know that I posted some new things on my family blog.  Check it out if you would like and go ahead, leave a comment too!  Feel free to put me on your "blogging" list if you would like, or just stop by whenever you are wondering what we're up to.  :)  Here's the address--

http://amyandtoddtrauntvein.blogspot.com

Love you all!

Amy

CA Trip

We made it last night and went swimming.

Went to Church and Newport Beach today. It was so very, very, very windy
and cold.

Kids are chilling to their cartoons (one of the benefits of no cable at
home and no cartoons on demand) and eating mac-n-cheese.

Shawn's conference started at 3pm. We head to Legoland tomorrow.

Sorina was done by Cedar City. Full on tear crying saying, "I
really want to go to Disneyland, but it's taking sooooo long!" We
thought she'd fall asleep sometime, but she didn't until we were 1/2 hour
out. Lots of movies and ipod and singing and a lot of "are we there yet."

About Bree

Myrna wrote: Bree is going to be fine. The doctors said that the area that closes, between the chambers of the heart, right after you are born has a little flap that usually goes away. Hers calcified. She will have to have some periodic checks to see what is happening but all is well for now.


Kirsten wrote: What happened that alerted her to this?

Kirsten

Myrna wrote: She had pneumonia. The doctor's wanted chest x-rays and found the spot on her heart. Then it was worry time for all.

About Cookbook

Myrna wrote:

Thanks to you, Melanie. This looks great.

Eric collects old ward and church cookbooks, not just from the wards he has lived in. He loves them. If you ever see one at a garage sale, buy it for him. (Or me!) I am like Mel, I have cookbooks from every ward I have ever lived in. I still love my old cookbook from Price, as you all know. (I even have one from Mona and I didn't ever live there but it has some good things in it.) However, it is falling apart.

Have you looked inside this one? Does it have green jell-o recipes?

Wonderful 2-minute video on the Draper Temple.‏

Myrna wrote: Wonderful 2-minute video on the Draper Temple. http://www.deseretnews.com/video/1,5563,715,00.html Al Pitts wrote: M, Thank you so much for keeping me on your distribution list these insights are uplifting. al

About Hurricane Ike from Helen Trauntvein

Helen wrote: This is from a friend- who is the Social Worker who introduced me to my Nanci. Enjoyed speaking with both of you this evening. Love Helen

I thought this would interest you. Letter sent by a ward member in October of 2008

Below is a letter from a real person that  I know.  Please take time to read it!!

Just want to share this message that I received from a friend. It's a letter sent to her friend from people in Texas who just experienced "Hurricane Ike". What a testimony for preparedness.

Dear Friends:

We have a 6'x6' hole in our roof, no electricity or running water, Trees down everywhere. However, because we listened to the counsel of our Prophet we are prepared. In fact it seems to me that it's only the members of the church who seem to be calm, prepared, and helping one another with trees in roofs, flooding, etc.

There is a POD or Point of Distribution in Tomball where we live. There you get water and ice IF you have enough fuel to wait in the 3-hour lines. We don't have to do that because we have 3 full water barrels, 75 juice bottles filled with water, and our pool, which is dirty, but we use it to flush.

It is very difficult to get gas. Police guard the stations when fuel is delivered and you might wait half a day to get up to the pump just to have them say, "Too bad, we are out". I am grateful that we have a generator. We run it 4 hours a day to keep our fridge and light. I am grateful that we have had fuel for it. You can't even by gas containers as they are rationed. We can only by bread once a week and limited to 2 loaves at a time. Water is rationed by the case at the grocery store - 3 cases per family.

The ATM machines do not have power. For the past 6 months I have stashed small bills away because I have had such a feeling of foreboding. We have cash because of that. LISTEN TO THE SPIRIT. Get cash in small bills because the stores can't make change and credit and debit cards often don't work. I had to pay 5 dollars more for an item because they couldn't make change for me. And . . . PHONES ONLY WORK OCCASIONALY.

Believe it or not...I have not had a bath in 4 days, Today was the first day I got to wash my hair with pool water. I haven't fixed my hair in a week!!! It just doesn't matter anymore. We cannot do laundry because we don't have water. So, we wear our clothes until they are literally disgusting. When we do finally get water we will have to boil it since it is contaminated.

I am grateful for my parents. When we got low on generator fuel they drove 45 minutes to help us. They filled up their cans and brought us 10 gallons of fuel, which kept us going until this morning at 6o, am when we finally found some gas.

A prepared Family and a loving extended family is the key to survival and making it through right now. I know that my parents would        drive to the end of the earth to help me and it's nice knowing they are there. I know that I would do the same for my children.

I want all of you to know that I have such a testimony of following the counsel of our living prophet. There really is safety and peace in your heart if you are prepared. Please get your generators, 5 gas cans full of gas, canned goods, baby items, baby wipes to bathe, and all the water you can store...even if you have to trip on it in your home. Have your lanterns, crank flashlights, tarps, rope, etc. ready to go because you never know when it will be your turn to endure the test. It's overwhelming, but it's going to be ok eventually. I have a home, I have food, and I have water, because I listened to the counsel of the prophet. Please make sure you do the same. It's time to have your life in order. Tomorrow may be too late.