Nana's Collection

 My mom has a lovely collection of pictures in the office. On the wall are her children and her parents. and underneath on a table are all her grandchildren. She was raised as an only child and her parents divorced when she was a teenager. As a young married she found out she couldn't have children. And look at the family she created. (My dad was an only child, too.) Today, October 11, is her 80th birthday.

Miss Long Beach State

 Visiting with Nana and her picture box is revealing. She kept everything about her experience riding with Miss Universe at the Rose Parade. She was Miss Long Beach State and riding with her was Miss California who went on to win it all.

Tami's Wedding

 When Tami was married to Roger Sonnenberg, her birth parents came. This is the only picture I know of that includes both sets of her parents. Tami took care of each of her birth parents when they were dying. Now, my parents are the only ones living in this photo.

Bruce, Kenneth Sessions, Tami, Roger, Claudia DeGange, Sally

Disneyland 2018

 We love to stay off-site at Disneyland and then get up and go in the morning. Walking to Disneyland is always more fun than walking back. The morning is always promising. 

While we were having a snack, a little commotion happened behind us. It's fun to see little children see Belle, but they are afraid of the Beast.

This is our schedule. Sometimes things don't work well if a ride is down, but we're well-acquainted enough with the park to adjust.

We hit Splash Mountain twice--once in the front and once in the back. I got plenty wet in the front. At the end of the day, we walked back to the hotel very slowly.

Trip to California

 We decided to drive down the coast and visit friends and family in a slow motion kind of way. Our first stop was in Medford, Oregon, which made for a long day of driving. The next morning we got up and drove past San Francisco and to San Simeon, south of Big Sur, to stay at a hotel. It was perfect weather.

I don't remember every being in this area of California. It is much more rural than San Diego beaches. Although Hearst Castle is nearby, we decided to skip it. We had people to see. Down the coast was Becky who has been living in Santa Maria. I was so excited to see her and her daughter. It has been far too long since we've lived near each other. 

After our short visit, we drove to the Los Angeles Temple. We had planned on the 6pm session. Luckily, there is a visitors' center in the back of the property where we could change into nicer clothes.

This is where we were married so it is a special place for us.

The visitors' center is new. This used to be patron housing for overnight stays. We stayed here when Tad was married.

I love the size of the Los Angeles Temple. Since it had been 30 years since we were inside, I wondered if I remembered some details correctly. Some I did, but I still was turned around in some rooms.

From here we found an In-n-Out Burger which had a hideous line, and bought dinner. We went across the city to Anaheim to find our hotel. I am always surprised by LA traffic. Just astonishing.

Jim's Birthday

 We enjoyed seeing Jim and Naomi on Camano since it was Jim's birthday. I love this age when dinosaurs make little boys giddy with excitement. Jack and Naomi also are having a fun time together.

A Prophet at Safeco Field

 We had a regional conference with President Nelson and President Eyring at Safeco Field on Sunday. Back when Paul and I were youth, prophets would travel and have conferences. I remember traveling to Los Angeles when I was a teenager to see Ezra Taft Benson. Paul remembers traveling to Houston to see Spencer W. Kimball with his family around 1977. 

I was able to meet with Dodi to drop off a quilt (saves shipping to Silverdale) and see Katie and Tyler. It's wonderful to see so many members in one location.

President Nelson's wife, Wendy, spoke about the prophetic process she witnesses daily. It was incredibly powerful.

The rain and the traffic made it very difficult to get out of downtown Seattle. We decided to get out of town. When we got to Marysville, we stopped at the Carl's Jr. for dinner. While we were eating, a couple walked by and asked if we had just been at Safeco. As we talked, they said they remember seeing President Kimball in Houston in the 1970s. What are the chances of that?