Two week letter

This was taken in the hospital of baby Harvey, Elise and Andy

Greta

 For Mother's Day, Matt had Caitlyn come up and take Crista out for the day.  They went to lunch (with the girls), on a bike ride, then Caitlyn took care of the kids while Matt and Crista went to dinner.  I think it was the Vance's first concession with social distancing. 

Bridget

Crista and Caitlyn

Cait, Bridget, Ruby and Greta

Roy and I were able to escape last weekend to Flaming Gorge.  We took our trailer up, and we will leave it there for the summer.  Nate and Cait (or Natelyn, as they've been called lately), went up with us.  It was so nice to have things feel sort of normal for a change.  It was still a little chilly, maybe 10 degrees cooler than in Centerville, but it was sunny and great for walking and hanging outside.  The campground is private, so though they aren't planning on making any concessions for social distancing this summer, this particular weekend was very light on campers. 

Roy and Catharine

Outside of the trailer.  Don't worry--Nate slept in
a tent and Caitlyn slept in the trailer--the hammocks
were for daytime relaxation.

At the viewpoint of our traditional hike--
Nate and Cait

This was previous to our little vacation.  Nate's a big 
biker, so Caitlyn's working on it.

We saw a small group of 5 or 6 of these big horn sheep

Perfect reading opportunity

We celebrated Mother's Day and Roy's birthday at the Gorge.  It made it hard for our kids to visit, but they still remembered us.  Below is a beautiful pillow hand embroidered for me by Jieun:

While things were going well for us at the Gorge, things weren't going so great for the Howells.  Jordan was in a car accident.  Thankfully, Jordan was all right, but the car didn't fare so well.  This has been a hard year for Jordan and Jennie as both of their incomes were reduced for a month or so with the Stay Home Stay Safe orders.  They're both back to work now, but the car was a set back they didn't need.  It was a bummer to have it happen just a couple of days before Jennie's 25th birthday.

Also for Roy's birthday, we used his"buy one get one free" meal at Tuchanos.  It's so sad to see these restaurants that are usually overflowing with people, just trying to get a few customers to get back in business.  When we arrived there was a couple just finishing up with their dinner, and one other couple arrived before we left.  The service was completely different, too.  They served family style instead of the usual salad buffet and bringing meats directly to the table.

Note the empty restaurant

With no school, some of my grand kids have been taking advantage and camping outside.  Dan's kids have been sleeping on their deck.  Yuna had a few bug bites as a consequence.

In the following picture it looks like the camping has been moved indoors.

Doyeon finished her schoolwork early one day.  Time for
rejoicing!

I believe this was home church last week.

Caitlyn took this picture.  We had Nate to dinner last Sunday.

 With Sara being pregnant, she's not willing to break down on social distancing just yet.  so we haven't seen much of them lately.  We're ready for things to get back to normal, but we're wondering what the new normal will be like.  Things are probably never going to be exactly like they have been in the past.  We did get a couple of pictures from Nick showing a new game on the trampoline.  Nick says the girls will only play outside if he goes outside and plays with them.  This makes it very hard to get all his work done.

Nick's girls got new bikes.  They couldn't leave Avie out--even
though she has no clue how to pedal hers.

Caitlyn had the joy of having a Covid.19 test this past week (Sara and Jordan have previously had the experience--Sara's was chosen at random to be tested, and Jordan had to be tested for work) in preparation for her tonsillectomy that happened on the 15th.  Though much easier than her double jaw surgery, she still had a hard day due to nausea from the anesthesia.  She also gets super emotional from the drugs.  She's much better today (the 16th).

An update on Henry, Mark and Katherine's son:  He has had several blood transfusions and chemotherapy.  Unfortunately, both he and Mark were exposed to the Covid.19 virus from one of their roommates.  This is from Nan's letter:
"Henry is doing well with his treatments for leukemia. He was moved to Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and he likes it much better. He had his own room for a little while but a roommate was added and the poor little boy whimpered and cried all the time. Mark had to squeeze close to Henry to make room for the dozens of people who were attending to the little boy. In the morning, Mark asked to be moved because they were unable to get any sleep. They were moved to another room with an older boy. It was much more pleasant but they were soon moved again to a private, sealed, and quarantined room because the mother of the very sick little boy tested positive for Covid. It was really sad because she wasn’t allowed to be with her son and she requested another test. Last evening, we received some good news. Both Henry and Mark tested negative for Covid. It may be too early to tell but Henry will finish his steroids on Friday and he will have another chemotherapy treatment on Saturday and then if all goes as planned, he will go home for about a week. Sadly, he is beginning to lose his hair."

Enjoying the Jackson kids

Elise arrived home from the hospital last Sunday.  Monday morning Andy took Harvey to the doctor to get a bilirubin test, as his levels were medium when he left the hospital.  Unfortunately, his count had risen, and he had to be readmitted to the hospital (a different hospital this time) for another 24 hours.  This was discouraging for Elise, but she packed up and left again. This time Andy wasn't allowed inside.  This was probably hardest on Beverly, who, though showing lots of love to little Harvey, was acting like she was a little unsure about all the changes.

Harvey, on a bilirubin blanket on the 27th of March

We enjoyed the rest of the week (until Friday) with the kids.  Due to the lack of travelers, our plane from Georgia to Salt Lake City was cancelled and we were put on a later flight.  This created a five hour layover for us.

Roy and I extended our walk after walking with Andy and
the kids.  Max wanted to go with us.  Andy told him not
to complain.  We started walking and Max said, "I don't know what
complain means."  He didn't complain.  He's always a
pretty good sport.  

Mav

Bevy and Harvey

Bevy, Mav, Harvey and Max

Max, playing in their kiddie pool

Max giving piggy back rides to Bevy

We got home late Friday evening which gave us Saturday to catch up on yard work.  The house was nice and clean thanks to Caitlyn. 

I was struggling to know what to write about today.  This morning I had a conversation with Nan about what her family is going through at this time. (I've already let everyone know that Henry Oblad, Mark's son, was diagnosed with "All B-type Leukemia").  She mentioned that if the Lord answered all of our prayers immediately, everyone would pray.  There wouldn't be a test of our faith.  Of course, she'd like to have little Henry immediately healed, but we have to go through these things to learn and to build our faith, but mostly we are given these types of trials simply because we are on earth and they are part of the human condition.  It started me thinking about prayer.  Each month I call in to our Cook Family Organization meeting and hear about the genealogy in our family and the things that we, as a board, are trying to accomplish.  Janet Porter, a distant relative, has been working on a new version of the Phineas Wolcott Cook journal.  She has edited the journal by changing spelling and punctuation and making the journal readable.  There are many pictures and footnotes and she had just begun the process of formatting everything.  At our meeting she was telling us that she hadn't known where to put the footnotes.  Should she put them as footnotes, at the end of each page, or just do end notes.  She and her sister began the formatting process, but it didn't feel right to her, so she began praying about it.  She said she prayed for 5 days when she received a call from Marcia Marshall (another distant relative who is on the board).  Marcia had been reading a book about the Savior in the New Testament, and the notes in this book were placed in boxes, embedded in the text.  She showed pictures to Janet and Janet knew that the Lord had answered her prayers. She said, "I had to eat chocolate for a few days because I knew I had to start all over."
 Another example of prayer that she has shared in the past, is when she found Phineas' "Goshen Journal."  Apparently, Phineas wrote many journals, but most were burned in a fire (probably on purpose by some of his posterity that remained in polygamy).  The journal we have was pulled from the fire.  When she was reading a paper by another genealogist, she came across a quote.  The quote didn't have an author, but she recognized the writing style and she knew it was Phineas.  She asked the author of the article where he got the quotation.  He told her that it was in a file that the church had of the bishop's notes from Goshen, Utah. (Phineas was the bishop there for many years).  Because these notes were in a "Bishop's file," the church wouldn't allow her to take the papers.  She began  praying.  It took her 18 months to gain access to the file and another year or so to get permission to copy it.  I helped her transcribe it.  There were many pages that I would have given up on because they were written on in the normal way, then turned sideways and written over.  She transcribed every word.  She finally got permission to publish this journal for the family and as she said, "his testimony flows from every page."  She felt that  Phineas led her to this journal, because he wanted the family to have his words. This journal will be included with the current journal along with some letters he wrote that have not previously been  published. 
Janet is this amazing woman who does a lot of genealogy for the family.  She documents everything and has had many experiences of finding some of our relatives through prayer. She's a great example to me and I was touched by her story.  I know that the Lord answers prayers.  He has answered many for me over the years, but most of the time, I realize in hindsight that my prayers have been answered.  I know I can improve the quality of my prayers and I know I need to be more willing to "wrestle" for the answers I want.  We can add our prayers to the prayers of Nan and her family for Henry--for the battle he has facing him for the next two years, for Katherine and Mark, and for his eventual recovery. 

I know this has been a difficult time for many people--to be told to "Stay home, Stay safe."  I think it's especially difficult for parents of young children. I may have been tempted to throw in the towel if this had happened 20 years ago.  Here are a few "quarantine pictures."

Effie and Avie spilled the blueberries.  After this
Nick sent them outside. (see below)

The girls had already been showered and it was
just about bedtime when he found them like this.

Matt has more time since he's working from home--so
he began a do-it-yourself remodeling project.  

Yuna is having a peaceful moment

Harvey Andrew Jackson--9 lbs 11 oz--23.5 inches

We are excited to announce the birth of baby Harvey this week.  Roy and I had decided not to go to Georgia, due to the Covid19 virus and the suggestion of "no unnecessary travel," but after cancelling our tickets, we spoke with Elise.  She said because of the virus, Andy could not leave the hospital and return.  If he was to be with her, he had to stay the entire time.  They would feed him, etc. but if he left he could not come back.  We decided that this was now "necessary travel," because the neighbor who would have to take on the kids already has 5 of her own.  Also, Elise's babies always have jaundice and end up having to stay longer than normal in the hospital.  We again purchased flight tickets (this time they were still a good price, but we ended up paying a little more). 
It was definitely a first: Get to the airport--No Lines.  Security--No Lines.  Passageways--very light traffic. Airplane--practically empty!  We felt safe because we were able to maintain social distancing very well.

Airport

airplane view

Also, it was good we ate a light breakfast at 6:30 am, because there wasn't much open.  Even at the Atlanta airport many food venues were closed.  

On our short commuter flight to Augusta, we were a little closer together because the plane was so small.  It still wasn't too bad, though.

The boys and Bevy were so happy to see us,  though Mav was a little worried about how Caitlyn would fare without me home to fix her meals :) He asked me what Caitlyn would eat.  I said that she was capable of fixing anything she wants because she's 20.  

Elise was scheduled to go in for delivery April 23 at 5:30 am.  Of course, she was delayed because so many women had arrived in the night in natural labor.  She ended up heading to the hospital at about 5 in the afternoon and Harvey was born the next morning.

Harvey Andrew Jackson--9 lbs 11 oz--23.5 inches

We had fun entertaining the boys, and true to form, Harvey was jaundiced and they spent a total of 3 nights in the hospital.  It was good we were here because Beverly wasn't very comfortable with her mom being gone.  She woke up several times in the night the first 2 nights.  Finally, on the 3rd night she spent the whole night in her own bed.  Roy and I are not used to having our sleep interrupted by anyone but ourselves.

We went on a nature walk

And played with legos

They love dress-ups, and they have a lot more than even grandma has.

 When I made eye masks for all the kids at Christmas, I didn't make any for Elise's kids because they weren't there.  I never sent them any because I knew most of the kids didn't really use them, but Elise wanted them to have the masks, so I made them each one.

Introducing the new baby to his siblings:

Max, Mav and Harvey

Bevy with Harvey

Other pictures from the week:

I've been too busy to answer the phone most of the
time.  Caitlyn feels neglected.

Jennie and Jordan eating B-bim-bop at Jieun's and Dan's

Caitlyn eating B-bim-bop

Yuna playing outside with their bunnies

Dojin loves the bunnies.
 

My great grandfather, Hyrum Smith Clyde

I may have mentioned in a previous post about my great grandfather passing away in 1920 from the Spanish Flu.  This has been in my mind because of the current pandemic we are living through.  I knew I had a written memory about this incident from my great Aunt Clara, my grandfather Clyde's sister.  I looked all over for it and finally found it and I wanted to share  it with all of you.
Clara Clyde Christensen entitled this, Hyrum's Death (Hyrum Smith Clyde 1861-1920)

Sunday, in Sacrament meeting, a fellow sang a solo from the hymn "I Need Thee Every Hour."  And I was lost in my memories for the rest of the entire meeting...It took me back to my Mapleton-Springville home in early February, 1920.  To my father's funeral service.  Only once in my life did I ever see my father in church--the time they had a farewell party when Grover was ready to leave for his mission in the Southern States.  But somehow we always knew that my father did have a favorite song, one to be found in the church song book called, "I Need Thee Every Hour."  And at the funeral it was sung from the porch of the house, while the singer stood there beside the casket, during the Spanish Influenza Epidemic following WWI.  Wilford, who'd brought the body home the night before, was unable to get out of bed to attend the services; he was in our parents bedroom and could hear the services.  Mother, Etta, Cornell, Blaine and Bill and Grover were all down with the Flu in Storrs, Utah, as well as Ed and Hannah who lived there at the time.  Two of Etta's brothers, the wife and several children of another brother had died or were dying.  Dewey, Ora, and Harry had come from Logan for the service. (I did not get the flu). Friends, relatives, and townspeople who were able to be there, stood in the snow on the front lawn, facing the casket and the porch.  No chairs to sit on; it was too cold to sit, anyhow.  All wore flu masks of layers of folded white gauze, tied around the back of the head with white cotton twill tape.  I do not remember a single word or thought that was spoken there.  But I do remember that song! And I never see the title or hear the song without thinking of that day and of my father, and wondering what there is in that song that touched him.
And I remember the Carnesseca family, who had come from Corsica, off the Italian Coast, and who depended on Hyrum to teach them how to farm and to live in America, and on Elenora to help them when they were ill, or when mamma was pregnant, or when they needed help with sewing as well as show them that a wife's place in America was in the nursery and the home, and not in the fields.  These two immigrant parents stood off to the side of the lawn by the grapes-and sand-burr-patch, crying bitterly and openly.  Mrs. Carnesseca told my mother later that Joe had warned her "Now don't go over there and 'carry-on.' Don't you dare to cry!" "But," she added, "when he started crying I knew he couldn't get mad at me for doing it." (Those Carnessecas taught me to sing, "O Sole Mio".  Not on funeral day, however.  My word!  It's been a thousand years since I heard that song).

Clara adds: One thing I’m very sure of:  when he died at age fifty-eight he had a full head of black hair (No white in it.)  No bald head was his.  My father was said to have shaved his mustache off when I was born because I was a girl.  I never saw him wearing a mustache.

People in the memory above: Mother--Eleanora Jane Johnson; Etta--Etta Palreyman Clyde, my mother's mother (she passed away just two years later from breast cancer).  Cornell, Blaine and Bill--Etta and Wilford Woodruff Clyde's sons.  Grover, Dewy and Harry were my grandfather's (Wilford Woodruff Clyde) brothers.

Etta's father, Richard Palfreyman also died in 1920.  I wondered if it was also from the flu, but family search said:

• ·         

  ·        Cause of Death

  Endo Carditis (Chronic) Died at age 69 years 11 months, 26 days

  ·       
  

  
  

  
  

The end of WWI came about largely because of the Spanish Flu.  Every country involved in the war were losing soldiers to the pandemic.  The first country to admit they were having problems was Spain.  None of the countries wanted to admit that they were losing their fighting power.  I think that the Spanish flu fizzled out after it killed everyone who was susceptible to it.

This is our fifth Sunday of home church (not counting conference).  When this all started I had  no idea it would go on this long.  I know we are not out of the woods, yet.  It will be interesting to see how things will return to "normal" or if they will ever return to normal as we knew it before.

This week, in the Come Follow Me, we talked about King Benjamin's speech.  He was a king who served his people, unlike most worldly kings that we know of.  He taught us that when we are in the service of our fellow men, we are only in the service of our God.  We were encouraged in the lesson to find someone to serve this week, so I determined to do this.  I got out of bed one morning and got on line to try and find out about making face masks.  (I had to wait until Friday to do this). There were so many  people interested in helping that their site was down every time I tried to get on.  Now,  every DI that has masks to sew has filled all of their quotas, so there are no more masks for me to make (they need to be made by their standards and with their fabric to be appropriate for medical use).  The same morning I decided that indexing was a good service, so I attempted indexing.  I kept doing dumb things like loading a Japanese language batch.  I finally got a good batch and started working on it.  After 2 entries, I saw that I was on entry 1 of 20.  I couldn't figure out what had happened to my other entry, so I pressed the garbage can to start over.  Then it said I was on entry 1 of 19.  I didn't want to completely delete people, so I went out of it and tried again.  This time the batch looked a lot harder to index, so I gave up.  I finally settled for making embroidered towels for my ministering sisters, and putting a gift card with them.  I still have two to deliver (I also made one for my companion).  The ensign this month mentioned that sometimes the best service happens in our own homes.  I do know that for our sanity and spiritual well being, we should be thinking of ways to serve.
Thankfully we had a couple of sunny days this week to get outside for a breath of fresh air.

Max and Mav received at home haircuts this week from mom.  Goodbye to Mav's beautiful curls for a time.

They also found a huge spider.  Max looks a little worried.

Nick, Ori, and Effie in their new sweatshirts

It's official, no Aspen Grove trip this year.  We have to go back into the lottery for next year, so we don't know yet if we'll be going.  I got everyone's sweatshirts done.  They say 2020, but we'll have to use them for a future activity.

I've been sewing like crazy because it keeps me busy.  Ruby wanted new shoes for her birthday, so I'm sending the money up for her to be able to pick them out.  I also sent her a unicorn shirt:

I think she liked it!

Congratulations to Matt for getting voted one of the HR professionals of the year in Utah!

 2020 has been hard for some, but for Caitlyn it's been pretty great so far.  She has school and work to keep her busy, and now her missionary "friend" is home (2 1/2 months early).  They've been having fun together ever since, even though he was supposed to quarantine for 2 weeks.  They went up to the Salt Flats yesterday.  Caitlyn said someone was getting married there, and someone else was proposed to.  It looked like the marriage was for an LDS couple.  It must be so disappointing for so many to have the temples all closed.

Roy and I also went hiking yesterday.  We drove down to Stansbury Island, to an area where petroglyphs have been found.  We left the cameras (phones) in the car, but this is what we saw (from the internet). There were a lot of drawings on the rocks, but most weren't as clear as these.  It was a pretty short hike, maybe 3 miles round trip.  The biting gnats have begun to come out and we got a few bites, well, Roy got more than a few, but it was worth it.  Next time we'll take bug spray.

We got a new swing for our backyard.  You are all welcome to come over and try it out.  Just let us know if you want to come over.  

There is a lot to be grateful for.  2020 will be a great year.  It's already an interesting year.  We will add 3 grandchildren to our family in 2020.  One of them will be born next week to Elise and Andy. We think they are naming him Harvey (since they went through Hurricane Harvey last year in Texas).  At least they won't name him Covid or Corona (since they are going through that this year in Georgia).  All in all things are wonderful and we are still living "after the manner of happiness."