June opened up with the Utah governor allowing most of Utah to move to a less restrictive yellow phase of the COVID 19 shut down. That meant that all businesses could open with restrictions as to numbers inside a store and recommendations for wearing of masks by employees and patrons. It was wonderful to see parking lots with cars in them which meant people were back to work and patronizing businesses. The unemployment claims dropped and the employment rate rose again. The deaths from corona virus lessened as did the new cases reported....for a while anyway.
The year 2020 has been one of a kind. Just as the pandemic shut downs were easing, protests and riots, in most major cities, started occurring due to a black criminal who was killed by a white policemen in Minneapolis. The bad element of our society took the peaceful protests to a new level by turning them into rioting and looting. Surely the death of the black man was uncalled for but that doesn't represent the 99% of policemen. By the end of the month, this movement had escalated to the call to defund or eliminate police forces, as well as the destruction of many historical statues. Any statue of a person who once owned slaves was being torn down. There's no accounting for the times in history when slavery was the way of life all over the world. I read an account of whites being sold into slavery, also. The mobs are trying to eliminate history instead of learning from it. It has been a sad and troubling few months. We are almost afraid of what might happen next month. Could this all be orchestrated because it is an election year and the opposition is afraid Trump will expose their deep state corruption? Just thinking......
With the easing of restrictions, we were more relaxed this month about the virus but still wore masks whenever we were in a store and wiped down tables before eating at them in restaurants. Andrea and Casey's business started to pick up as Oregon allowed groups of 100 to gather. This opened the way for weddings and family graduation parties to be held. They have come to the conclusion that this decrease in business wasn't such a bad thing. They have realized they don't need to book so many events or make so much money as they once thought. This down time has helped them realize how hard they have pushed themselves these past years. They have vowed to slow things down a bit. We have all learned valuable lessons during this pandemic....if nothing else, patience.
By the end of the month, COVID 19 cases were skyrocketing in some states that have opened up, including Utah. We're concerned that people have decided to not worry about getting or giving the virus. Less people are wearing masks and the public places such as the lakes are jammed with people. We hope we don't have to shut down again. We have come to rely on our Savior more and more throughout theses hard times.
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| A trip to Dairy Keen is always a must - even if masks had to be worn. |
June brought visitors. Ryan and Katie and their family came to see us at the first of the month. This was the first time they have been out of quarantine for three months. They stayed with us for two days before taking off in a rented RV to explore the Oregon/Mormon trail and to visit the National parks in South Dakota, including Mt. Rushmore. They, then, returned to our home to stay another 3 days. They were still very cautious about being around people so we did not get to have the whole family together but it was fun to be with Ryan's family.
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| Ready for their adventure |
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| Celebrating Aubrey's Golden birthday - 17 on the 17th of June |
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| Looking at all the treasured items found in an old suitcase of my Dad's. Pictures, letters, yearbooks, etc. |
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| Julia making her signature cookies from her Quarantine Cookie business. Grace consented to help her. They were delicious. |
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| Playing games was a big part of the Millar family's vacation activities. Here the girls are playing Jenga |
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| Enjoying our backyard, playing a pioneer game named 'Gracie.' |
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| A funny story about ice in Pa's glass. Every night he would comment about the lack of ice in his glass of water. It had usually mostly melted by the time dinner was served. On the last night, the kids filled his glass with ice to the point of over flowing. We all got a kick our of this. |
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| The principal presenting the graduates to the Board of Education |
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| The picture of Braydon that appeared on the screen when his name was announced as a graduate of Bingham High School, Class of 2020 |
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| This picture was taken from a Facebook post showing Braydon's acceptance to Dixie State College. So proud of him, he being the first grandson to attend college. |
Maggie's graduation was a family affair. She opted not to do the walk across the stage at her school with only her family sitting in the audience. Instead, the first Sunday of the month, the Westovers and Boreens put on a graduation for her and a friend, Caleb. The two graduates were seated in their borrowed cap and gowns while Jared Boreen gave a speech. Maggie was then presented with a valedictorian speech to read. It had been written by her aunt, Charlotte, and was hilarious. After a family song, certificates were presented and caps thrown in the air. A fun way to celebrate a great accomplishment. Andrea emailed us the video of the occasion so we could watch it the following day. So grateful for technology that allows this to happen.
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| Maggie reading the valedictorian speech - so funny |
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| A special ice cream cake for the two graduates. Each family member also donned a t-shirt, especially made in Maggie's honor. |
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| Maggie's own drawing of herself as a graduate - since there were no actual graduation photos taken. |
On June 17th, Deon and Gary officially moved to Heber City, Utah. We welcomed them into our home to stay until they could find a home either to buy or rent. They moved into our basement and put all their furniture and goods into a storage unit in Heber.
We looked at a few homes with them a couple of days after they arrived but nothing seemed to excite them. On Saturday, they got a call from their realtor, Candy, to tell them of a home coming on the market that fit their specifications, ie: a rancher with a main floor master bedroom. She had found out about it from the realtor who had listed the home that Deon and Gary have put an offer on earlier. Because it was a back up offer, in case the original offer fell through, Candy had been in contact with that realtor. He told her the first offer looked like it was going to go through but that he had just got a commitment to list a home that Deon and Gary might be interested in. He told them it was smaller but in the same development and was a beautiful home. Deon and Gary went through the home that very day and fell in love with it. By Monday they had put in an offer and it was accepted. It should close by mid July. The home is, indeed, beautiful. They are on a little over an acre of property which is pretty much all landscaped quite nicely. The upkeep should be easy as it has a robotic lawn mower. The home is 4000 square feet, very open and inviting and is like new, being only 4 1/2 years old. It has been such a miracle that, within 5 days of arriving here, they have a home to move into in less than a month.
We are so excited for them. This miracle has helped confirm to them that their decision to move here was right and good. Everything has seemed to just fall into place for them, with the help of lots of prayers offered by many on their behalf. The only downer has been that Gary has had a little problem with the altitude. He has a tendency to have motion sickness and that has added to his problem here. The doctor said it should clear in 4 to 6 week as his body adjusts.
We celebrated Paul's birthday on Friday, the 19th, by going out to dinner at PF Chang's with Deon and Gary. It was so wonderful to be in a restaurant again. This was the first sit down meal, with a waiter taking our order, we've had since the pandemic began. Afterwards, we went out to Jon's to show Deon and Gary the progress of their home and then to see Sam and Kathy's new home in Alpine. They will be moving here sometime in July.Sunday, following Paul's birthday, was Father's day. We invited Todd and Jon's families up for dinner. Four of Jon's boys came and it was so good to see them. After dinner everyone played outside and then we had Dairy Queen ice cream cake for dessert. It was wonderful to be with family and to honor Paul.
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| At dinner |
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| Playing baseball in the backyard is a tradition when Jon's boys come to visit |
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| At one point, Aria even joined in on the play |
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| The traditional Dairy Queen cake for Father's Day |
We have been thrilled that once again Todd and Kailee and their darling girls could come up to dinner on Sunday. We so look forward to being with them once a week. On one of the Sundays, we went to the mini farm of a member of our ward, The Jeppson's, to see a newly born baby horse. The baby was sleeping so we could not see her very well but a horse, just a few weeks old, was willing to let us pet her. Kailee loved this being the farm girl she is at heart.
Of course, each Sunday the girls and Todd have to make a candy bag to take home with them. We keep candy on hand just so they can do that each week.
One thing I did this month, was to read my Dad's missionary journal. Finding it was a miracle. Sam and Kathy were cleaning out Mom's home and asked if anyone wanted Dad's desk. Deon thought about it but decided they could get along without it. The next day, though, Deon and Gary were driving somewhere when Deon, out of the blue, said, 'I want that desk.' She doesn't know where those words came from but the next day they went to Bakersfield to pick up the desk. As they were taking out the drawers to make the desk lighter to move, one of the drawers became stuck. Upon examining the cause, they discovered Dad's missionary journal wedged between the drawer and the side of the desk. It was like Dad was sending a message to Deon that the desk needed to be saved. His journal would have been lost had the desk just been sold. It has been a choice read. I have learned so much about missions back in the late 30's and my Dad. The missionaries hitch hiked (they called it highwaying) to get to the different towns in their district. They also would split up while tracking, contacting and teaching people as a single missionary. That would never fly in this day and age. The mission rules were much relaxed back then as Dad and his companions often went to the movies or listened to ballgames on the radio. Most enlightening.
Paul and I changed the screen wallpaper on our phones. The previous wallpaper was a picture of Aria and Avery that had been taken at least a year earlier. We decided to update their pictures. Kailee sent us the perfect picture of the two of them and we put it as our wallpaper. We smile every time we open our phones.
To end the month, we had two sets of visitors come visit us. Don and Dana came to spend the night at our home before moving back to Washington. They have been living in St. George, Utah for the past several months in their new home. Don has been able to work from home so they spent the time in Utah. With the heat coming to St. George, it was now time to move back to their home in Washington, with a stop in Heber on the way. Brandon came with them and brought his girlfriend, Jenny, to meet us. She is a real sweetheart. We're glad he has finally found someone. They will probably be married next year sometime. We enjoyed visiting and having a 'Snookie' for dessert. Don and Dana stayed until mid afternoon and were able to see the outside of Gary and Deon's new home and have a shake at Dairy Keen.
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| Don and Dana brought us several peaches and this lily from Dad's funeral. |
The other guests were Kathy and Curt Morgan. They came up to Midway on a little get away and wanted to come by and see us. They came by Tuesday afternoon for lunch. We fixed Zuppa's sandwiches and had a great visit. With Sam and Kathy moving to Utah next month, we decided it would be good to get together as 4 sibling couples every few months. It'll be great to have lots of family within in an hours distance from us.
..... and that end's our eventful month. Here's hoping that next month will bring some welcome relief from the craziness of the past few months. Praying every night for our country and the people.
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