Hinton Family Reunion 2020- Monday

 

Monday, June 29th
Early morning stories upstairs and . . .

 Pillow fight downstairs!

Monday was cloudy and sprinkly/rainy.  It never poured.  But we didn't let it bother us.  We started the day, as we did every day, with breakfast, then a devotional.  Brielle, our oldest granddaughter, had prepared to accompany our theme song for the week, "My Own Sacred Grove,"  which we sang each day as part of our devotional.  But she was still getting ready that morning, so I filled in.  Honestly, it was one of the highlights of the week for me to play that song with my grandchildren gathered around singing with all of their hearts.  I'll post the video.  The "real" video of our theme song with Brielle playing is better.  I'll post it at the end of these reunion posts.  But I wanted to share this one, too.

Devotional shots:

Photo Bomber

Blake taught the Monday devotional, immersing us all in the Book of Mormon.

This captured tendered moment is one of my favorite pictures from the week.

This picture captures such a common sight- Brielle helping the adults figure stuff out on the computer.  

After devotional, we divided into teams/cars.  Shonna had prepared a fun ancestor scavenger hunt.  We had addresses with pictures and had to find and photgraph the houses from our history.  Most of the stops were homes my Grandfather, Lyman Conrad Gabrielsen, sr. had built.   If you see a beautiful, old home in Logan, Utah- he probably built it.  We also visited a church he helped build, the elementary school my dad attended and my Grandma Peterson's home, as well as the temple.

All buckled and ready for the fun!

The Peterson home where my mother grew up.  It is now divided into apartments and is in relatively good shape.

The Logan temple.  My Grandpa Gabrielsen helped when it was remodeled, I think in 1949.  Kristen had a cute team.

Some of the Homes Grandpa Gabrielsen built:

My dad attended the Whittier School.  It is still standing and now Lily and Hannah go to ballet lessons there.  

The Whittier School is a Utah Historic Sight.

This house was called the glass house.

Our final destination was the cemetery at my parents' grave.  (It was cold!)  I forgot to snap a picture, but when we arrived, there was a man and his wife and father-in-law there.  As we visited, we found they were from Texas.  He was there to visit Aunt Minnie's grave.  Aunt Minnie was his grandmother.  My parents often spoke of Aunt Minnie (Aunt Minnie was my grandpa Peterson's younger sister) and what a fine cook she was.  She married Parley P Pratt's son.  Anyway, it was fun to meet a distant cousin.

As we stood there, I told stories about each of my parents.  I told how Grandpa Gabe loved children and how he would love to have them there visiting.  I told how he played games with children and that he could get a child to do anything.  He didn't threaten or cajole, he just teased them into it.  He was so good with kids.  I read them the words to "O Ye Mountains High" and that it was his favorite hymn.  The words tell how he longed to come home to his mountain home- and that's where he is.
I told how my mom was a people magnet.  She was an army wife and learned to make friends wherever she lived.  In Caldwell, she had many friends that were not members of our faith- and they all loved her.  She was a great missionary.

Both Kristen and Shonna said their favorite part of the reunion was the ancestor scavenger hunt and hearing stories about Grandpa and Grandma at the cemetery.

We did the talent show a little different this year.  Mackrorys did theirs on Monday, Camerons on Wednesday, and Princes on Friday. Here are a few pictures from the Mackrorys that evening:

Sam wrote his name for his talent.  So very proud.

Nathan read an essay he wrote- what a fine writer.

Each of the Mackrorys performed a COVID spoof.  They were hilarious!  Kristen.

Jared

Brielle 

     The Camerons have the perfect yard for kids: trampoline, play set, sand box, and lots of grass on which to play.

Hot dogs for dinner

That evening, we roasted marshmallows for smores around the firepit.

That one may have got a little overdone.

Hinton Family Reunion 2020 Sunday

It was a difficult decision for us. Should we go? We had stayed at home and avoided people since March 11th.  I went to Keynotes (which we decided would be our last rehearsal until further notice.  All of the rest homes were closing down to any visitors and our tabernacle concert was canceled shortly thereafter) that day and then ran several errands and then we started our shelter at home.  I guess I went out on March 18th to my previously scheduled hair cut appointment (that was a difficult decision, too, but I figured it may be a LONG time before I could have it cut again, so I went.  I was right.  I haven't been back since.  I have what I call Covid hair.)  But other than that, I have not gone anywhere around people except my morning walks. I see people on the trail, but I try to stay far from them. We got our groceries from Walmart pick-up.  I hadn't ever worn a mask at all because I hadn't been around people.  Ken had been a little more out and about as he did Costco and Lowe's and the nursery, etc. as needs arose. He also walked with his brother three times a week, golfed once with his good friend, Don, and hiked with our good friend, Kurtis.  But for the most part, we sheltered at home.  His elder's quorum presidency meets online.
But our family reunion was scheduled for June 28th- July 4th.  How could we miss that? Our children have also been very careful, but Brian and Blake had to go out to work.  Blake is a dentist- one of the riskiest professions for the virus. But we really, really wanted to be with our family.  This reunion is the highlight of the year.  For the two weeks before the reunion, all three families were extra careful to not get around others.  That was a sacrifice and we are grateful for it. Blake and Shonna bent over backwards to make us feel comfortable.  They fogged every grocery that came into the house.  They sterilized everything.  Blake brought us dentist's masks- the really good kind.  He, of course, wore a mask as he did all of the shopping for the reunion.  Actually, he does all of the grocery shopping for their family and always wears a mask in public, and, of course at work.
So we decided to brave it.  After our at- home church we got in the car on Sunday, June 28th and headed to Logan. We stopped in Beaver on the way and had a very windy picnic in a park.

 Shonna and Blake were in charge this year and decided to host the reunion in their own home.  They slept in their trailer, and gave us their beautiful bedroom.  They planned and carried out a wonderful, perfect reunion.  I will do a separate post about each day because, after we shared pictures, there are over 1,000 of them!  This reunion is well documented!
It was absolute heaven to all be together and to see our family again.  We loved every minute of it.  It was just what we needed after long months of stay-at-home.

Sunday, June 28th
Caleb said the best part of the reunion was when we all got there.  He said he read his book in the front room window starting about 4:00 since the Princes were supposed to arrive at 4:30. He kept one eye out the window, and one on his book.  When they did arrive, he threw his book in the air and ran out to greet them.  We arrived about 6:00pm and the Mackrorys shortly thereafter. There was so much joy as everyone greeted one another.  We LOVE to be together.

Our youngest grandchild, Elisabeth. and Grandpa Ken.

Lily Kay and William

Hannah, Lily, and William

Grandpa is the tickle monster.

 Blake had pancakes, hashbrowns, and sausage ready for us.

"Too much cuteness at this table," as Michelle said.  Gabe, Sam, William, and Lissy.  They are our four youngest grandchildren.

It was Lily Kay's birthday that day.  She and her family had celebrated the day before, but she opened her gifts from the extended family.

Throughout the reunion, Ken and I read many stories to the kids, especially at bedtime and early in the morning.  Very often one of the kids would come up to us at the couch with a book and climb up by us.  It usually gathered a crowd.

When we get together, my daughters and I take turns massaging backs and feet.  All of them love to have their hair played with.  It goes on constantly throughout the week-long reunion.

So excited for a week together!!!!

Up next: What we did on Monday!

Catch Me If You Can

We had seen it before, but enjoyed rewathcing this movie with Leonardo DeCaprio playing an amazing con artist  and Tom Hanks, his pursuer.  Some of it was a bit far-fetched, but entertaining.  We rented it on Netflix DVD.

Movies and shows we have enjoyed.

Midnight Sun

A romance involving a girl with the rare disease- xp.  A good movie, especially interesting to us as we know a family that has three children with this disease.  We rented it on Netflix DVD.

Movies and show we have enjoyed.

Midway

This movie tells the story of the battle of Midway in WWII. I ordered the DVD for Ken, expecting to read a book while he watched.  I usually don't care for movies about war.  But I loved it.  It was so well done. It is a long movie, but it sure didn't seem like it. It left us with a humble appreciation for those who fought with all they had to preserve our freedom. 

We watched it on Netflix DVD.

To view other movies and shows we enjoyed, click here.

The Night Diary

The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This beautifully written historical fiction novel takes us to a time and a place that I knew nothing about. In 1947, India declared itself independent of British rule and split into two countries: India and Pakistan- The Muslims on one side, the Hindus on the other. Our fictional story is about a Hindu family that must flee to the other side, at great peril. Our narrator is their twelve-year-old daughter who writes in a diary each night addressed to her mother, who died giving birth to her and her twin brother. The book gave me greater appreciation for all that I have, especially freedom. The writing is exquisite and the story, heartbreaking. There was so much pain, upheaval, and killing, all in the name of religion. Unfortunately, these atrocities continue throughout the world today. God and education are our only hope for healing our troubled world. This book is a good start in the education. I think it should be required reading in school.



View all my reviews

A Fall of Marigolds

A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Two young women who lived a century apart lived similar experiences. One was a nurse working on Ellis Island with immigrants in 1911 and the other a single mother living in Manhattan after losing her husband in the attack on the twin towers. Both women lost their loved one and had to find a way to move on and find love again. A beautiful scarf ties the two women together in an interesting way.
I loved this book. I thought it taught a lot about grief, love, hope, and self-forgiveness. I look forward to discussing it with our family in our virtual online book club.




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The Dutch House

The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I hardly know where to begin in reviewing this enchanting book. Tom Hanks did the audio version. He is as amazing a narrator as actor. I believed he was telling his own story.
This is a story of siblings who cling together throughout their lives as they are all they have left after their mother deserts them and their father dies. It is a story of the importance of mother-love and how a person never entirely recovers from being abandoned by ones’ mother. It is also a story of a house and the people that lived there. One’s childhood home also becomes a big part of their story.
I highly recommend this well-written book, especially the audio version.




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Happy Birthday and Father's Day

My birthday and Father's Day are always close together.  We had a nice celebration of both.  We decided to order dinner from Magelby's.  As we looked at the menu, we realized that ordering a family meal was about the same cost as two meals.  We got a lot of food!  Half of it is still in the freezer for a later day.

I mentioned when we ordered that it was my birthday.  The cake came with a note.  Nothing better than Magelby's chocolate cake.

Chicken Marsala, rolls, salad, vegetables, mashed potatoes, and cake.

A delicious birthday meal

This is a picture of the order for the blanket our daughters and their families gave us for my birthday and Father's Day.   We LOVE it.

We love our beautiful, soft blanket with pictures of our grandchildren on it.

They also gave us a  puzzle of a picture of our family to put together as we shelter at home.

We love these masks: " Not today virus.  I have 14 grandkids to love."  There is a picture of each grandchild.

My friend, Shawna made us delicious shrimp gumbo

I love my Vera Bradley purse from my sister, Joan

And my sister frame and picture from my sister, Pam

The English Game

Looking for a good series to watch on Netflix?  Though only one season is available, we enjoyed this one.  It is the story of the most popular sport in the world now- football or soccer, as we know it. 

The Farewell

This movie was immersion into Chinese culture. A character-driven movie, it was a bit slow at times, but worth the watch.  The music was wonderful.  We watched it on Amazon Prime.

To see other movies and shows we have enjoyed, click here.

The Art of Racing in the Rain

This movie, narrated by a dog, was surprisingly really moving to me.  We watched it on Netflix DVD.

Wonder

This movie is a must-see.  If you don't cry in the last scene, you need to have a heart check-up. Again, the book is better, but the move is heart-warming and wonderful.  It's one the whole family can enjoy together.  We watched it on Netflix DVD.

To view other movies and shows we enjoyed, click here.

The Photo That Changed Me

This is my granddaughter, Hannah.  Hannah Rose, age 6.  She and her sister, Lily were playing ballet class.  Hannah leaped off of a kid-sized table (I'm sure it was a lovely leap), landed wrong and broke her elbow.  Because the break was on the growth plate, she was referred from her pediatrician in Logan to Primary Children's Hospital for further evaluation.  That meant Shonna had to find someone to tend her other children (not easy during a pandemic.  But her best friend, Robyn readily volunteered when she heard the situation. We love Robyn) and take her to the Layton clinic.
 Shonna sent this picture after she had it cast(luckily she didn't have to have surgery.)  It is taken in the elevator at Primary Children's. As I looked at the picture, I cried.  I realized that it represents the future.  Our world has changed. Little six- year- olds now wear masks.  Their siblings can't come with them when they visit the doctor.  This is the new normal.  Somehow seeing this picture changed me. Something inside me broke and I cried.  We will all get used to the new normal.  But for that moment I mourned what we have lost and I cried.  May God heal our world!


PS  After six weeks in a cast, Hannah got her cast off.  Everything healed nicely.  The first thing she wanted to do when she got home was practice the piano - with both hands!