Walkin' in a winter wonderland! It really is up to my knee. It is just beautiful beyond belief. Many places measured 22 inches and it all came in just one day.
It's just a small, white envelope stuck among the branches of our Christmas tree. No name, no identification, no inscription. It peeked through the branches of our tree for the past ten years or so. It all began because my husband Mike, hated Christmas - oh, not the true meaning of Christmas, but the commercial aspects of it - overspending, the fanatic running around at the last minute to get gifts given in desperation because you can't think of anything else, etc. Knowing he felt this way, I decided one year to bypass the usual shirts, sweaters, and ties for Mike. I reached for something special just for him. The inspiration came in an unusual way. Our son, Kevin, who was twelve that year, was wrestling at the junior level at the school he attended. Shortly before Christmas, there was a non-league match against a team sponsored by an inner-city church. These youngsters on the opposing team, mostly minorities, were dressed in sneakers so ragged that shoestrings seemed to be the only thing holding them together. They presented a sharp contrast to our boys in their spiffy blue and gold uniforms and new wrestling shoes.
As the match began, I was alarmed to see that the boys on the other team were wrestling without headgear, a kind of light helmet designed to protect a wrestler's ears. It was a luxury the ragtag team obviously could not afford. Well, we ended up walloping them. We took every weight class. And as each of the other team's boys got up from the mat, he swaggered around in his tatters with false bravado, a kind of street pride that couldn't acknowledge defeat. Mike, seated next to me, shook his head sadly. "I wish just one of them could have won" he said. "They have a lot of potential, but losing like this could take the heart right out of them". Mike loved kids and he knew them from having coached little league teams. That's when the idea for his present came. That afternoon, I went to a local sporting goods store and bought an assortment of wrestling headgear and shoes and sent them anonymously to the inner-city church. On Christmas Eve, I placed the envelope on the tree with a note inside telling Mike what I had done, and that this was his gift from me. His smile was the brightest thing about Christmas that year--and in succeeding years. For each Christmas thereafter I followed the tradition. One year sending a group of mentally handicapped youngsters to a hockey game. Another year sending a check to a pair of elderly brothers whose home had burned to the ground the week before Christmas. And on and on, all anonymously. The envelope became the highlight of our Christmas. It was always the last thing opened on Christmas morning. Our children, ignoring their new toys, would stand with wide-eyed anticipation as their dad lifted the envelope from the tree to reveal its contents. As the children grew older, the toys gave way to more practical presents. But the envelope never lost its allure. The story doesn't end there. You see, we lost Mike several years ago to cancer. When Christmas rolled around that year, I was still so wrapped in grief that I barely got the tree up. But Christmas Eve found me placing an envelope on the tree. In the morning, it had been joined by three more. Each of our children, unbeknownst to the others, had placed an envelope on the tree for their dad. In each envelope was a note describing a gift made anonymously to someone less fortunate. That tradition has grown and someday will expand even further with our grandchildren standing around the tree with wide-eyed anticipation---watching as their fathers take down the envelope. Mike's spirit, like the Christmas spirit, will always be with us. May we all remember Jesus Christ, who is the reason for the season, and may we always have and share the true Christmas spirit.
During our move a piece of furniture we really enjoy the Robert Entertainment Center was too big to fit into the elevator. The movers tried 3 times, broke the lens over the light in the elevator and he just couldn't go. A guy we hired from the ward assured us that we could carry it up the 60 steps and he and his brother would help us. (Since then he got a horrible virus was hospitalized and his brother broke his foot in a car accident.) We put him back in the storage unit and said maybe someday. The more we unpacked we realized we needed him for storage not just for his beauty. So after LaVar did some calculations he figured out just how to get him into our condo and up the steps. He called "2 Marines and a Truck" and we hired 4 Marines and 2 trucks. I was so anxious for some reason. I told LaVar I wish it would just magically appear in his place. The day of the move it was raining just a little bit. We met the Marines at the storage unit, they wrapped Robert like he was going across the country, and to the condo we went all of about 4 blocks . The back door to the building was held open with a penny, never had seen that done before. They made all the turns, it was tight very very tight, but LaVar had analyzed it and said it would go....it did!!
I took the elevator to open the condo door and grab a camera, by the time I did that they were at the 3rd floor and panting, huffing and puffing. I snapped a picture......
After living all those years in Fredericksburg I had never gone to Mount Vernon, Pres. George Washington's home. So one rainyish day last week Stacy Neuberger and I went. We have known Stacy and her family for a long time. LaVar worked with her at CNA and then he worked with her husband in Albuquerque and she and I went and did things together. It seems that when we are together there isn't a moment that is not used for talking. She is very easy to talk to and she has most interesting stories.
George and his wife Martha with her children. She was a widow when they got married. This is a bronze statues in the visitors center
The beautiful front of the house that was built in 3 steps, first the center was already there, then when he got it George raised the roof, and then built on the sides sections.
After George died Martha lived there 2 years and then she died. The estate was granted for a "museum" but a bunch of women have paid for its upkeep and it is not a federally funded museum.
This is why I wanted to go. This is a gingerbread house made like Mt. Vernon by Roland Mesnier a former White House Chef. This is the Potomac River side of the house with the bank.
This is the front. As you can see it is fairly large and some detail. You can see that the one bedroom (upper floor right) is open and decorated to look like the master suite. We ate in the dining room there and had a good day. I am excited to go back at Christmas time. Looks like that would be fun. Thanks Stacy for a great day!
This is Mount Vernon Done in Gingerbread by the White House Chef.
OK ladies it is time to think about our gingerbread houses!
Tap dancing class~ Rose, their mother, enrolled the twins in a dance class. Vonn promptly put the shoes on his hands and started clapping. The teacher asked them to leave and they were happy to oblige.
Jan Jenkins, Vern's wife, did take pictures and they are so nice. Hope you can check that out.
We will miss him. He had such an infectious laugh, and he saw humor in just about everything. He died of brain cancer. He had been known, they said, as “the come back kid” because he had survived so many ailments over the years. I will tell you more about that at the end when I retell some of the stories that were told about him.
Vonn was the twin son of Bob and Rose Jenkins, Grandma Cecile Huntzinger’s older brother. Vonn has three older brothers, Kim (and Jeannie, they live in Las Vegas), Montel (and Jackie live in Renton Washington. LaVar and Monty were born the same day, same hospital in Farmington NM. They call themselves twin cousins. Kim and Montel were born 11 months apart. They were in the same grade at school and LaVar rounded out the threesome.) Nate (and Carol live in Reno). Vonn Jess has a twin cousin Vern Wes. They don’t look much alike and their personalities are different too. Vonn married Jani and Vern married Jan, funny tidbit, Vern lives in Washington I think. They have a son that lives in Alexandria so maybe we will get to see them again. Many stories have been told over the years about these brothers and the mischief they caused together. On the other hand even alone Vonn could cause the shaking of the head and a giggle. Added to this family there is Neena the long awaited girl who with her family lives in Branson Missouri, Brother Dean Dutton is her Bishop and Hardy ( who with his wife Renea live in Bountiful Ut.)
Vonn and Jani have three children, Jess E. that shows some humor there because a few of us always called him, Jessie and thought that was his name. Jess and his wife Sarah have 2 children. Jess just started medical school somewhere in the Caribbean. Elizabeth is in her last semester at BYU and Allie is a senior in High School.
You will notice that Mark (Kim and Jeannie’s son) played his Euphonium. I would never know about this instrument if it wasn’t for him. I dare to say that no one else could ever play it like he can. I have been moved to tears every time I have heard him play. The first time was in our home in Fredericksburg when he came to our home to stay during auditions for the Marine Corps band, which he made and still plays in. He then played “Be Still My Soul” for a fireside that we had, he came to our home for Thanksgiving that year and played again. “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” was the request Vonn asked him to play. It touched many people. Mark and his wife Agatha live in Fairfax, we are hoping to get together with them and Micah and Stephanie sometime soon
Grandma and Grandpa Huntzinger are looking good and are still very much enjoying Fallon. She is still collecting fabric and gives it away generously. She is still making quilts, several a month, and enjoying it. They still have chickens that Grandpa lets out into the back of the yard everyday. He says the chickens give him a reason to get up in the morning. 
We went to Reno to the house Brad and Kate own for their business and had a family get- together. That is where Jani and the kids are staying. They served very good and wonderful looking food. I couldn’t decide whether to eat or talk since they weren’t consistent to do both. So some of the food I didn’t get to try but the coconut macaroons were very good. Grandpa was ready to go before anyone else was so Brett wrapped him in bubble wrap to keep him warm while waiting. 
We all rode from Fallon to Reno together. Brad had asked Terry if she would help Jani with the casket spray of flowers. Because she wanted to we all stayed and hopefully helped. It was a beautiful arrangement of blue hydrangeas, roses, ivy, fern, protea, lilies and a wonderful mix of wild flowers. It was a gift of love from Jani to Vonn.
It didn’t seem appropriate at the time, but I would have loved to have pictures of these people greeting each other, the wonderful stories they told and the enjoyable experience it was even in the sadness of the time. It was great to see this wonderful out pouring of love from the family. All of Vonn’s brothers and sister were there, all of their spouses and many of their children, Vonn’s nieces and nephews. Hardy had all of his 8 children and grandchildren there from Utah. Many of them came long distances. In the Relief Society room before the service there were perhaps more than 50 people, many standing filling the room. All related in one way or another. The chapel was filled to the back with relatives, friends, law associates, and members of their wards.I want to remember the scene of Jani in her beautiful cream colored suit, hugging each distinguished looking brother after they lifted Vonn’s coffin. She seemed so small compared to them and yet it was her and her husband that were the peacemakers among the group.
All of Grandma’s children were there except Tammy because they were on their way to Tim and Tricia’s for the birth of their second son. Terry had heard that Vonn was failing but hadn’t heard that he had passed away until she called that Saturday afternoon and LaVar answered. He told her why we were there. Terry and Linda got on the road right away and were there before church let out on Sunday morning. Bryce (Cecile’s brother Dan’s son) came right after the wedding of their daughter on Friday in Arizona. Dick Wilson who is Lynn’s son is in the picture. Lynn is Cecile’s sister, Lynn passed away July 4 this year.
It was wonderful to be with so many family members. See the relationship and hear their memories. These are the things I wanted to share with you and remember. Since this is such a long blog I will write the stories others shared about Vonn tomorrow. That is what I wrote on the back page with Neena’s poem.
Tap dancing class
Dug a hole
Age 6 double barreled gun/ crayons
7 yrs. Tractor
Driving simulator
Vonn dating 2 girls
Bronco Mendenhall~ footballs
This is a small note that I found in my scriptures:
One day before we left Norfolk Helena Andelin invited me to come to her house for breakfast. This house belonged to a 103 year old lady that Helena left Salt Lake City to come and care for. Helena's sister and her husband Bob went on a mission for the church, and he needed someone to come and watch over his mother. Winnie died last October and Helena has remained in the house fixing it up and keeping care of it. Helena is originally from Finland.
The yard is fabulous. It has rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias and beautiful trees of all kinds, pine, dogwood, redwood and I can't remember what else. It backed onto a wonderful pond, a finger of the Elizabeth River. That morning there were water fowl, ducks and geese. Helena fix us an omelette and orange juice. The only thing was it was early in the morning in early October and I was dressed for the beach, of course, so I was a little chilly. Helena went inside to get me something to wear, she brought back this fabulous fur coat and we both got a good laugh at that! I was more comfortable of course.
Thanks you Helena for the beautiful breakfast and the wonderful memory!I thought "Liberating" would be spelled "Relief" but right now if feels more like "Loss".
Our Bishop/Real Estate agent and LaVar
View from the front windows. The fountain runs all the time making a peaceful sound. LaVar woke up one morning thinking it was really raining hard to realize he was hearing the fountain. A most pleasant place.
These are very small but HORIZONTAL spin ( my favorite!) washer and drier. The washer takes only 10 articles, or it will not spin. Huh, they are like toys, but do the job.
Just to get an idea of the size of the living room. Kitchen has granite counter tops also our favorite. All wood floors except for the bedrooms are carpeted, and bathrooms are tiled.
The papers are our attempt to get the movers to place furniture where we had planned. In the end we were just glad to get it in at all where ever. Without a plan though maybe that wouldn't have been possible.
This is what was worked out.
Our friend Sandy Dodd helped unpack the kitchen which looks horrible now but without that head start we wouldn't have found anything and would have not been able to move around, not an exaggeration really.
Pictures of our beautiful foyers, they have heavy potporri (that's close to the spelling). That can be good and bad, but I am saying they work at trying to keep it nice.
Our doorway with a call box something like Seinfeld's only you scroll to find the number it calls me and I push 9 on my cell phone to let them in. Actually I could be in some place else and still let someone into the building.
Grand front of the building I don't know if anyone uses this entrance. I think it is beautiful.
This is a school that is right out of the garage and we see it as we go out and think of our precious grandsons. Hey, Sam and Tucker this is for you!
