RED WAVE NOVEMBER - A BLESSING FROM GOD FOR OUR COUNTRY

 On November 4, 2024, the federal election was held to elect the president of the United States. Our hearts were so relieved, on election night, when it was obvious that Donald Trump won in what was called a landslide. He won the electoral college vote, the popular vote, and won every swing state. We, the people, made an enormous statement that we did not appreciate the mess that the current administration put our country in.....open borders, DEI hiring, unlawful prosecution of political opponents, inflation, weakness internationally, lying, corruption, and so much more. We can't wait for January 20th when President elect Trump is sworn into office. Hopefully our country can survive the threat of wars around the world and all the things the Biden administration will do to keep Trump from being able to carry out his plans to put our country back on the right track. 

The Red Wave

We celebrated Lincoln's birthday this month. He is really into Paw Patrol so I made him a Paw Patrol cake complete with some Paw Patrol figures on top. He love it and the Paw Patrol presents he got - Chase, Ryder, and Marshal.

Every Sunday since his birthday, he insisted
the Westover girls play Paw Patrol with him.
They were such good sports.

Other happenings in the month included a Tea Ring class that I taught for the Relief Society sisters and then the following week hosted the Relief Society lunch bunch at our home. The tea ring class took some prep as I wanted each sister to make her own ring to take home and bake. We had 14 sisters rolling out dough in our kitchen and having a great time visiting. I was glad I could be of service to the Relief Society sisters this month.

Making tea rings

Two tables set for lunch bunch

We had 12 sisters in attendance

Jon made an unexpected visit one weekend this month. He came in on Sunday, had dinner with us, spent the night, and the went to his appointments on Monday. It was a short visit but it's always fun to have family staying with us. We look forward to having his family here with us for Christmas.

Jon loved little Ledger.

We were grateful to have all the Westovers here for Thanksgiving. Andrea, Casey, and Lydia flew in a couple of day before Thanksgiving so all their college girls came up to stay here through the weekend. We had a houseful but we loved every minute of them being here. Our home is filled with so much laughter when they all get together. The girls made their traditional chocolate pie to go along with my pumpkin, apple, and lemon pies. Needless to day we were eating pies all weekend.

 
Andrea stayed for another four days so she could pack up Jillian and drive her home. Jillian finished her student teaching and was excited to go home to Oregon for the month. It looks like she might get a job teaching in Idaho Falls. That would be such a blessing if it happens as that is where she wants to eventually teach. 

We attended our last BYU football game for the season and probably for the rest of our lives. This season was fun because the team went undefeated for 10 games. The problem is that most of the games were late at night when it's below freezing. At the next to the last game, the people in front of us kept standing up so I hardly saw the game at all. Being cold and crowded isn't as exciting as it was when we were younger. Our warm and comfortable theater seems like a much better place to watch BYU sports, especially football.

Brrrr.....too cold

Todd and Kailee bring their family to our home most Sundays for dinner. We love that they love to come here. We enjoy seeing the children play together.  It's such a blessing to have them living relatively close to us to we can watch their children grow up. We missed that with all our other grandchildren.

Wrestling on the floor

Avery trying to be me with my glasses and Kindle

Todd and Aria working word puzzles
on Todd's phone.

Only this one meme for this month:

We truly believe his life was preserved
so he could right the wrongs our
country has experienced these past 4 years.

THE GOOD AND THE BAD ALL IN ONE MONTH

 October has been an interesting month to say the very least. Both good and bad things have happened but all in all the good out weigh the bad. The best news of the month was the birth of our 21st grandchild. Todd and Kailee had a baby boy and named him Ledger Jax. He's so darling. We went to the hospital the afternoon of his birth and got to snuggle on him. What a precious time for Todd and Kailee and their family. Aria and Avery absolutely love him. Lincoln isn't quite sure. In fact, since his birth, Lincoln has reverted back to a bottle at night and says he can't do anything by himself. A little jealousy we think. Lincoln does say he's a big boy but is not acting like it.

Now for the not go good. Paul was released from the hospital on Wednesday, October 2nd which was a good thing but he ended back in the hospital two other times within 10 days....not so good. Friday, after being released, Paul was not feeling very well. By that night, he was vomiting and continued vomiting all night and into the early morning. I was so worried about him that I called the surgeon and it was decided that I should take him back to the hospital.  I called Todd and ask him to meet me there as I was a basket case and didn't want to handle this on my own. Paul was so weak that I also needed help getting him into the emergency room.  After consulting with the assistant surgeon, it was decided to readmit Paul so they could rehydrate him and observe him.  The next day was General Conference Sunday so I went to the hospital early so we could watch conference together. Paul slept through most of the talks and I had a hard time concentrating with all the continual visits of the nursing staff checking Paul's vitals. By late in the afternoon, Paul was feeling better so he was released to come home. That was a good thing but.......a week later he was back in the hospital. We had decided he was feeling good enough to go the the BYU football game on Friday night. We drove the Fullers and picked up the Bulkeleys in Provo. We drove onto the parking lot but by the time we got out of the car, Paul was really hurting. The pain kept getting worse no matter what he did. Ryan had brought his family to the game, so I called Ryan and asked him to meet me to help me decide what we needed to do with Dad. By this time, Paul was out laying on the lawn in more pain than I have ever seen him in. When even Paul suggested we go the the emergency room, we knew he was in trouble. Ryan went and got his car and drove us to the Provo emergency room. There they did a CT scan thinking this pain was due to a bowel blockage but that proved to not be the case. Because he was in so much pain, it was decided to admit him once again to the hospital and observe him. By the next morning, when I got there, he was feeling great. About 2 in the morning, the pain went away when he started passing gas. We were so grateful it was only gas....an expensive fart!!!! We was able to come home that morning. 

Paul's last day in the hospital following his surgery

Home at last...for the first time!

Watching conference in Paul's hospital room

We have seen many miracles throughout this whole experience and have felt the hand of the Lord helping us.

    1. That I was prompted to call the surgeon when Paul was vomiting and was told to go to the emergency room

    2. That the assistant surgeon was at the hospital on our first visit to the emergency room and knew our case history. We felt that was a blessing.

    3. That we were in Provo when the pain became so intense and not in Heber. Had we been in Heber, I would have taken him to the Heber emergency room and then he probably would have been taken in an ambulance to the Provo hospital.

    4.  That Ryan was at that particular football game and available to take us to the emergency room. We had driven so the Fullers and Bulkeleys were counting on us to get them home. As it was, when Ryan returned to the game, he took our car keys to the Fullers so they could drive home in our car. Ryan, then, picked me up from the hospital after the game. He and his family were staying at our home so that worked out perfectly.

    5. That the pain was only gas. Had it been a bowel blockage, it may have required emergency surgery, which would have set Paul's recovery back several weeks.

    6. When we went to the oncologist after the surgery, we were told that the remaining carcinoid tumors in Paul's abdomen were of little concern. He wants Paul to have another Pet scan in January to establish a base to watch their growth. These tumors are grade 1 tumors and grow very slowly.

    7. When the surgeon told me that this was a life threatening surgery, we knew the Lord was with Paul and the surgeons.

Before Paul's surgery, we had to get the garden totally harvested which we did except for the squash. We wanted to let the squash stay on the vine for as long as possible. It wasn't until after Paul's surgery that we felt it was time to harvest them. Because Paul was not allowed to lift anything for 6 weeks, we didn't feel he could pull the squash vines nor haul in the 24 pumpkin squash. We called Joey Hyer, who is always willing to give service. He came over immediately with his 4 wheeler and helped us pull the squash vines. He then loaded the squash into his 4 wheeler, drove it up to the garage and helped carry them into the garage. Such a great service to us.  We had so many squash that we took some to the Food Pantry and then sent out a message to our neighbors in the Crossings that we had squash available for the taking. We gave away several and still have enough to last us through the winter. A great harvest.

When Paul could finally eat more types of food, we started having the college age grandchildren up for Sunday dinner. It had been a few weeks since the surgery that we felt we could do this. On one of those Sundays, Olivia and Braydon came. After dinner, Lincoln latched onto Braydon and together they played CARS for most of the evening before dessert. It we so sweet of Braydon to play with him. We love that our grandchildren still love to come to Grandpa and Grandma's home. Of course, good food is a great enticement.

On one of those Sundays we celebrated 2 birthdays. Charlotte's birthday was in September and Maggie's in October. I had made a cake for Charlotte for the Sunday after her birthday but we ended up having to cancel dinner in Heber. With Paul's surgery, we couldn't celebrate her birthday until into October so I made a matching cake for Maggie and we celebrated their birthdays together.

We went to a BYU luncheon where Coach Kevin Young spoke. He is the new basketball coach and had been able to recruit some really sought after players. We were excited to hear from him as we anticipated the starting of the basketball season. He was very up beat about the team and their potential. We went to the first basketball game this month and were very impressed with the talent shown. Of course, that was all preseason play so the real test will come when the Big 12 season actually starts in January. 

October always brings Halloween and the ward trunk or treat party. Because of Paul's surgery, we suggested the Bishop find someone else to plan and carry out the Halloween party. He asked the Primary to do it and they decided that, instead of the usual potluck soup dinner, they would do the trunk or treat at the pond with cider and donuts. It turned out great and the children had a wonderful time. A headless horseman even made an appearance.

 

The next week was Halloween and, as we have done for the past several Halloweens, we went to Todd and Kailee's home to hand out candy so they could take their children trick or treating. This year we got the babysit little Ledger, too. We love sharing this holiday with them and seeing the kids excitement about costumes and candy. 

The new addition to the Millar's Halloween 
yard display

Their yard at night

Two other things to make note of this month:

1. We were released from our calling as activity chairmen. It had been such a relief to not have to think about planning a Christmas party with Paul recovering from surgery. It's been harder then expected and to have the stress of a party to plan would have done us in. The bishop was inspired to release us. The new chairs are the Judy and Dick Gardener. They will be great. We met with them shortly after they were called and gave them all the supplies we had in our basement. We will now serve the Lord by going to the temple often, once Paul is fully recovered. We may even get more involved in Family History.

2. We attended the funeral of one of Paul's high school classmates. Dale Warburton was a good friend of Paul's so we wanted to attend. His wife was also a classmate of Paul's and was touched that we would come to honor her husband. A few of Paul's other classmates were at the funeral so he got to talk with them - including his high school girlfriend! 

3. I have to record a statement from Lincoln. On one of the Sundays, when Todd and his family were getting ready to return home, I was holding Ledger. Lincoln came up to me and said, "Give him back. He's ours." So sweet.

Of course, I have to include some memes.......

This appeared on Facebook after Donald Trump
worked at McDonalds as a slam on Harris.

Now on a more spiritual note......

Florida was hit by two destructive hurricanes 
this month.

A beautiful message in this most contentious election season.

ST. GEORGE AND SURGERY DEFINE THIS MONTH OF SEPTEMBER

 I'll begin with the fun of St. George and end with the not so fun surgery. Those two events were what this month of September was all about. 

Our family's annual trip to St. George for the performances at the Tuachan theater didn't disappoint. The highlight was that we were able to bring Sonnie to St. George to join us this year which meant we had all 7 Richards siblings plus Sam, our Bulkeley brother. 

On Saturday, the 14th, the Fullers and ourselves drove to the airport to pick up Sonnie. I was able to get a pass to meet her at the gate. We were concerned that she would not know where to go after she got off the plane as she is struggling with the onset of Alzheimer's disease. She came off the plane wondering where to go so I was glad I was there for her. She was so happy that both the Millars and the Fullers had come to the airport to meet her.

Sonnie coming off the plane and seeing me
waiting there for her.

The three sisters together.  This hasn't happened
in many years.

 We dropped the Fullers and Sonnie off at their home and then everyone came to our home for a spaghetti dinner. After dinner we all went to the Fuller's home to watch the first half of the BYU/Wyoming football game.

The next day was Sunday so we all met at our ward to go to church. It was special to see that Sonnie really felt the spirit. She had tears in her eyes. I don't think she realized why she was crying because she hadn't been inside an LDS church for many, many years. After our early sacrament meeting we packed up our two cars and drove to St. George. The Fullers took Sonnie straight to Don and Dana's home while Paul and I checked us in at the Estancia Worldmark resort. At Don and Dana's, Deon and I fixed a Sunday dinner of baked chicken, rice pilaf, stir fry vegetables, salad, and rolls. It tasted great. Because it was Sonnie's birthday, we had a Dairy Queen ice cream cake, thanks to Dana who ordered it and picked it up on Saturday. Sonnie was thrilled that we would remember her that way.

Sonnie ready for church

At the dinner table. Ed and Debbie arrived 
as we were eating.

Sonnie and Darrell seemed to have a lot to talk about

Sonnie and her birthday cake

The next day, we all met at Tiffany's for our annual crepe breakfast. Sonnie really enjoy the sweet crepe with lots of berries and cream. Afterwards. Paul and I took Sonnie to see Ryan and Katie where we had a wonderful visit. I wanted them to meet my sister as they hadn't seen her for years. After relaxing at the condo for a while, we went to hang out at Don and Dana's. Sam and Kathy fixed build your own burritos for dinner. It was then time to head to the Tuachan theater for the production of Frozen. The show was beautifully done and Sonnie was enthralled with it all.

Tuesday, we took Sonnie to Don and Dana's to spend the late morning and early afternoon with her brothers. The Fullers and ourselves had an appointment to do a endowment session in the new Red Cliffs temple. It is a beautiful temple in the same design as the Saratoga Springs temple. We were glad we could go and enjoy the spirit of the temple. We had lunch at Jersey Mikes, picked up Sonnie and went to the condo to relax before dinner and another show, Jersey Boys.

Everyone loved this show but me

Wednesday, we all traveled to Ryan and Katie's cabin to have lunch. We fixed hoagie sandwiches with ham and chicken and cheese with all the trimmings. After lunch we sat around and visited till it was time to return to St. George for dinner and our last show, Anastasia. Dinner was great as was the show. Paul and I especially loved the show as it was set in Russia at the time of the take over of the ruling Tsars. 

At the cabin

Ryan and Katie were such gracious hosts

Back at the condo. Deon is helping Sonnie
to be able to remember all of us after we leave.

Thursday, we loaded Sonnie into our car and drove her to the airport to fly back to Denver. I had a hard time getting a pass to take her to the gate but the attendants finally granted me one. As I was taking Sonnie through security and to her gate she kept asking me how I knew what to do. She used to travel all over the world for her Montessori assignments but has forgot how to maneuver the airports. I talked to the attendant at the gate and requested someone take Sonnie right to her seat as she was confused as to how to do that. I was so relieved to have her on the plane and then to receive a message from her daughter, Jeanie, in Denver that Sonnie has arrived safely. We were so glad we could bring her out to be with the family. She felt so much love from all of us. Because of her mental condition, we're sure this will be the last time we will all be together.

Now for the not so fun surgery. As has been mentioned in previous posts, Paul was scheduled for surgery to remove a carcinoid tumor on the 26th of this month. We went to Utah Valley Hospital that morning and the surgery was performed in the afternoon. It seemed like such a long wait till the surgery was over as I was a nervous wreck. I was so grateful that Andrea had flown in to be with me during surgery. Charlotte and Allison and Todd were also in the waiting room with me.

I was able to go back with Paul for all the preop procedures. I was grateful when the surgical nurse said that our surgeon, Dr. Cook, was one of the best. When the surgery was over, he came out to tell me what had been done.  It was more extensive than they thought it would be. They had to take out 4 feet of small intestines, 4 inches of colon, and the appendix. They were all impacted with the tumor. They also found that there were many tiny carcinoids in his abdomen which means Paul will have to be on a medication to slow their growth. All in all the surgery was a success.

All ready for surgery

Feeling a lot better on the day after surgery

Andrea stayed till Saturday morning, so on Friday she treated me and her daughters and son in law to lunch at Olive Garden. It was Charlotte's birthday. It was good to leave the hospital for a couple of hours. 

On Saturday, Paul was given his first meal of clear liquids. Not too exciting but necessary to get his bowels working again. His first bowel movement was the next day. By Monday he was on a full liquid diet with was a little better because ice cream was allowed. He wasn't allowed real solid food until Tuesday evening and that was a low fiber meals which he will be on for the next 6 weeks. It felt real good for him to get solid food into his system. We did a lot of walking around the 8th floor and eventually were allowed to take the elevator down to the main floor and walk to the duck pond. That was a real treat to be out in the sunshine.

Eating his liquid meal

Sticker given to Paul after he had his first 
bowel movement

His first solid meal

Todd and Kailee brought their family to visit Paul.
The girls made these pictures for him.

At the duck pond on his last full day in the hospital

It was great day when Paul was finally released from the hospital. He loved being back at home and sleeping in his own bed. Of course one of the first things he did was check out things on the computer in his office.

Miracles surrounding this surgery: 

 1. In July, I wrote about going to the emergency room because Paul's continuous abdominal pain. It was there the found the tumor. It was such a blessing that we were prompted to go that day as this tumor was so compacted into his bowels that he could have easily developed a bowel blockage which would have meant emergency surgery.  The fact that he is on a blood thinner, surgery with that in his system wouldn't have been good. When the surgeon told me that this was a life threatening surgery, I understood the severity of this operation.

2. While in St. George, several of my family got sick with COVID. Kathy, Don and Dana had a terrible time getting over it. Paul started with a sore throat on Thursday and had a slight fever on Friday. By Saturday, he was out doing yardwork because his bout with possibly COVID only lasted 2 days. (I was sicker than that having a higher fever and being much more congested.) Had Paul's sickness gone on any longer we would have had to postpone his surgery. That would not have been a good thing.

3. The biggest miracle, according to Paul, is that the surgery was scheduled at a time when the BYU football team played an away game and then had a bye the following week. This meant that he would not miss any games. (All too important to Paul) We did watch the BYU/Baylor game on TV at the hospital.

We are grateful that Heavenly Father watched over us and provide the tender mercies that we needed.

While Paul was in the hospital, I stayed at Todd and Kailee's home.  I didn't want to drive the canyon each night nor stay in this big house by myself. I so appreciated the meals saved for me when I got to their home from the hospital. It was also fun to be around the children. Avery was especially attentive to me each time I would come home. It was as if she knew I was stressed and tired. So sweet. She also said a prayer each night asking Heavenly Father to bless both Paul and me.

On a couple of the mornings, the whole family rode 
their bikes to school. Lincoln was upset that he
couldn't ride his own bike but that would have
taken them too long and the girls would have 
been late for school.

Typically September, means peaches and harvesting the garden. Both those happened at the first of the month. Paul was determined to get the garden done before his surgery so he harvested the of the corn and pulled the corn stalks,. He dug up the potatoes and all the vines. The only thing he left in the garden was the squash which is best if we leave it on the vines till into October. Of course, that all meant a couple of trips to the dump.

We put on our end of summer party at the Crossings park this month. It was held on a Wednesday night and was really successful. There were lots of people who showed up. For the food, we ordered chicken from Lee's. I made baked beans and everyone else brought salads and desserts. After we had all eaten, we invited everyone over to some tables to write notes to the hospice patient in the care centers on the other side of the mountain. The children decorated their hand prints and some cut out hearts for these patients too. It was a great service activity.

All set up and ready for the party to start

The big hit was this train for the kids.
Joey Hyer drove it all around the park filled
with young children who were so excited for the ride.

The highlight of the month for Paul was receiving his long awaited custom black license plate. Of course, he had them put on his favorite saying, HEEREE. He loves this new look on our car.

We were excited to welcome our college age students back to our home for Sunday dinner. Jillian is among them now as she is doing a student teaching experience at Bingham high school. They love to come up, not only for a good meal, but to jump on the trampoline which they do whenever the weather cooperates.

A few memes: