Thanksgiving in Central Point

This blog post will be mainly pictures. We had a great Thanksgiving with three of our five children. We missed the other two, but we were glad they were able to celebrate with in-laws. The first picture is most of us at the top of Table Rock.

Boy cousins playing a game.
Here they're involved in a computer game.

Sheryl, Brenda, Mike, Jessica and Jason playing Settlers.

Neil, Sydney, Brenda, Mike, Maia and Grandma playing Boggle.

The Andrus family at the park.
Grandma and Sheryl at the park.
Erik with mistletoe.
Trevor brought some foam covered weapons.
Many of the group ran in the turkey trot and won a lot of prizes.

Pam and her girls cooked up a storm.
Neil and Emily taught a merit badge clinic on first aid and rescue. While Emily and Jason took the older boys to the pool to work on the merit badge, Brenda tutored Esther on the SAT and they watched the younger kids. The rest of the adults went to the temple to do sealings on the Jex line. That was a wonderful experience.
Sisters.

Jonathan and Jessica studying.
We couldn't get along without laptops!


Emily made a cheese ball. Grandma did roasted sweet potatoes. Jonathan made a pumpkin pie from scratch! Brenda made 3 yummy salads. Jason Campbell made yummy cranberry sauce from scratch.


















Maia liked Katie.



Grandpa was in charge of crafts.

What are you thankful for?

I just looked at Ruth's blog post. That clip is amazing! Loved the interviews with people on the street about what they're thankful for interspersed with counsel from Elder Oaks. I hope you all look at it. You can get to it through my blog--g&r. Turn off my music first so you can hear it.

I'm thankful to live in this beautiful world. I see God's love in the colored leaves, the cloud formations, the geese flying overhead.

I'm thankful for the conference issue of the Ensign. I see God's love in those well crafted, inspired messages.

I'm thankful for a great FHE group where we can share feelings and testimony and jokes.

I'm thankful for Ken who has gained confidence through righteous living and who does all that is humanly possible to help his family.

I'm thankful for Neil who has truly become somebody (and for hosting us for Thanksgiving dinner!)

I'm thankful for Sheryl who stays positive through her hardships and who loves her kids beyond measure.

I'm thankful for Brenda who shares her creativity and talents to benefit others.

I'm thankful for Carl who loves his daughters and is willing to help me with computer problems.

I'm thankful for my dear Eldon who patiently rides out my lows and tempers my highs and loves me no matter what!

Most of all I'm thankful for Heavenly Father who loves me just because I'm His child.

Pre-Thanksgiving

We had a visit from our GREAT grandkids at a sort of pre-Thanksgiving dinner. Grandpa bought a turkey on sale and we wanted help eating it!

They were babysitting that day. Ken managed at church with Robin, AnnMarie, Ariana and David! Amazing.

It was fun to get better acquainted with David. Or D.C., as Emily calls him. He still has blue eyes! Ariana is talking alot now. It's plain to see Ken enjoys them.

We have so very much to be thankful for. Good kids, fine grandchildren, and very cute great grandchildren!

Ken had a good chat on the phone with Jonathan about how to be a ward mission leader--Jonathan's new calling. Ken really misses that job. Jonathan will also be good at it. He's very missionary minded.

AnnMarie made a house for the crazy stuffed turkey that Carol gave us.

Quiet time

In the October conference Vicki Matsumori said, "Because the Spirit is often described as a still, small voice, it is important to have a time of quiet in our lives." I've been thinking about that. It seems we keep ourselves surrounded with noise--the TV is blaring, or the stereo. Even in the car we keep the radio on as if we're uncomfortable with stillness.

There have been a couple of major times in my life when the Spirit has given me a definite direction. Both times were when we were on a hike or walk when everything about us was still.

The first story I've told many times. It was when Eldon was the Bishop in Bozeman and he wanted to go to Corvallis to get his doctorate because without it he couldn't get promoted. I felt that he shouldn't go until he was done being Bishop, but he wanted to go the next fall. We couldn't agree. I fussed about it for quite some time. Then one day we were hiking and I was puzzling about it again. A voice came into my mind, not exactly audible and yet I could hear a disgusted tone to it. "Janeil, he's NOT indispensible!" So then I was fine about leaving Bozeman.

Some background for the second experience: In the church women are advised to listen to the counsel of their husbands. At first this seems unfair because the husbands aren't told to listen to the counsel of their wives! But I think that in a family there needs to be a head and that head is the husband. He has the responsibility to lead. Even when there are only two people in the family there needs to be a head! (I also think a good husband listens to his wife and takes her feelings into account when he makes his pater familie decisions.) So, I know all this is true, but lately I haven't been obeying this truth and it has caused friction and feelings of unease and stress because of the disparity of my beliefs and my actions.

The other day we went for a walk at the Jackson Frazier Wetlands and during this walk I had an "aha" moment that helped me put things back in perspective. For some time now I've been wanting to move to Central Point to a condo so we'd be closer to a temple and not have a yard to worry about. I've been fretting and worrying about this considerably and was not able to decide if it's a good idea or not. Eldon has not liked the idea. Too much work to move! The "aha" moment was realizing that whether to do this or not and if so, when to do it, must be Eldon's decision. When I expressed this realization to him, it was like a great weight was lifted off my shoulders. And I think he was relieved too.

The largest Veterans Day parade west of the Mississippi

We went to Albany to watch the Veterans Day Parade. The day was cold and a bit damp. The parade was loooong. The motorcycles and horses and bands were fun to watch.

The best part was the CAR (Children of the American Revolution) entry. It won 1st place in the children's division and it was shown on the evening news!



Erik is ringing a bell. Zachary is a Daniel Boone type character. Grandma Lake and Gideon are driving the car. Pam is being interviewed by a reporter in a tan trench coat.