Great Falls, Virginia

We had a 24th of July Ward picnic at Great Falls Virginia. I know most of our kids had been there with scout troops, church groups, whatever, but I had never been. I just happened to be the hottest day of the year. We started early in the morning but by the time it ended at 12:00 it was already about 103 and the heat index was suppose to be more. I was a great time really. I understand that the water was really low and the falls are actually much more impressive. We will have to go again in the spring when there is more water. Notice how green the water is.....umm. 

We found this little spot up from the falls that is called "River Bend State Park" that has canoes to rent. That is my kind of adventure. Maybe we will go and do that one day.

Huntzinger Family Reunion 2010

We left Reagan National July 14th for the Huntzinger Family Reunion in Fallon Nevada. We met Rachel in Chicago and we got to hold Naomi while she slept. After landing in Reno, and getting a rental car, our first stop was the Reno temple for a photo shoot. It was a bright clear day, as usual in Reno. Grandma Cecile hadn't been feeling very well, but she was a trooper as we all descended on their home. Many of us stayed in a local motel with a swimming pool which proved to be our greatest recreation since it was so hot. It's a great memory and we thank those who got to come for helping us make those memories.   Linda had been in Fallon for almost a month filming the folks and their life stories. We will make copies for our children. She has also finished a book about some of our ancestors,  Always to a New Frontier. Hope you have been able to read through it, it has some great stories in it and is written so well.

Rather a random picture taker. This is in Grandma's bedroom where I brought scout patches to have the boys sort out. I am so glad I did because they had them sorted out in minutes. That also led to stories of their childhood, which included some never heard before details of the fire in the George Washington National forest. As we were sitting there, Sam and Ollie came with the look of panic and Sam motioning to Tim said, "Dad, I really need your help!" It seemed that one of the chickens got out of great grandpa's chicken coop and the boys couldn't get it back and needed help. I was so impressed with this story; first, because of the look on Sam's face; second, that he was willing to come and get help when he needed it ( since we were just talking about a time when Tyler and Tim had made decisions that got them into more trouble than they even imagined); and third, that Tim and Tyler both jumped up to help their sons when they asked for it. I was glad to see that they are being such great dads to our precious grandchildren.

I tried several times to get a cute picture of Tucker and this antique truck being run through the rocks. After this one I said, "ok, one more",  and he said "no" and walked away.

Some of the group ready to hike the desert petroglyphs and on up the hills to the caves.

Ollie had some blue Gatoraide before we left to hydrate him for the walk.

Some of the carvings are more self explanatory than others. They were all over these rocks. I had no idea when we lived there that these were so interesting. Have I said what a hot day it was?

The first cave was "cool" on several levels.

This is the ceiling of the first cave. Wonderful patterns.

What is the walk in the desert without catching hold of the locals?

Lichen has always interested me. It has such bright colors. In a desert landscape of so much dull brown, dull green and gray these colors are unusual.

Why would I want to memorialize this look? Umm I wonder, but that is how it was. And it was extremely hot already. We were the last ones to come walking back to the cars.

How many "Huntzinger's" can one get in one place? About 47 it seems, that is about half of the family. We certainly missed those that were not able to come. Laytons had all of their children and grandchildren there, as did Brad. All the rest of us were missing some. We are grateful to those that made great efforts to be there. Natalie Petersen came on the train from Utah, 15 hours, stayed one day and left with Terry and her family.

The auction was well attended. There were many interesting objects. Cecile brought many things from her house and garage. The bidding was slow as many of us spent our money just getting there. There were some interesting purses that seemed to be full of personal stuff that got offered but the owners recognized them before the bidding stopped.

We are grateful of the Huntzinger family and we have a good time when we get together. Thanks to Brett and Rowena for many of the meals etc. Grandma has not been feeling well since we left. She has had a bad time with vomiting and fatigue. I asked if Ralph had also been sick and she said, "No, and that just makes me so MAD!" and then laughed a hearty laugh. Ha, great lady with a wonderful sense of humor and has left a great legacy.

Story of the Handkerchiefs

    I had joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1969 and a year later I was about to be married. I had gone to Brigham Young University where I met my husband to be, Ralph LaVar Huntzinger. We wanted to be married in the Manti Temple in San Pete County, Utah. My parents Ethelee Mae Knapp Hightower and my dad, Robert Fiske Hightower were not members of this church.
     I had struggled with the fact that my parents were not going to be able to come to the temple with us and that brought me great sadness. I really felt that was the way the Lord would have us be married. LaVar being very patient with me had always determined that he would be married in the temple. We had chosen the Manti temple together. Two weeks before we were to be married on June 19th, LaVar went home to California with his parents and I went none to Colorado with mine. One day my mom had been thinking and she said something like, "only Mormons can go through the temple, but they have to let non-Mormons in to see their children get married right?" I said, "No." "What?" She said emphatically. "No, they don't", I said more tenderly. There it was, I had been assuming that she knew and now I understood that she didn't. Oh, the profound regret that something else couldn't be worked out, but I couldn't figure out how to please my God without disappointing my precious mother, and vise-versa. She said something that showed her profound disappointment and went into her room and shut the door. She was in there what seemed to me a long time. I prayed for whatever the Lord would bless us with. I cried and cried, just so sad. Presently, she came out of her room very resolved and calm. She sat down with me and explained her plan. She laid out 2 identical handkerchiefs. They had come from her nightstand; they smelled like anything that came from that place that we were strictly forbidden to wander. Even as a child, that was somewhere I never did go adventuring. It was her private space and we always respected that. Her plan was that she would carry one handkerchief with her the day we were married and think of me and I would carry the other one on that day and think of her. She seemed very satisfied with this idea. I ventured an explanation to our choice and she stopped me and said very tenderly, that I had chosen what I thought was best and I should stick with it. She said it more eloquently but I have now forgotten just how. She also said that this was one of the most important days of my life and she wanted nothing to mar it in anyway.
  In the sealing room of the temple there was an empty chair, I looked at it many times and imagined her there. I didn't need the handkerchief to remind me of her of course but it did help to have something tangible. When Cecile Huntzinger, my mother-in-law brought the headpiece and veil, she had made for me, to the open house in Greeley, Colorado, my mother helped me put it on and began to cry. She quickly composed herself to go and have pictures taken.
   This story may have many lessons, but some that stood out to me at the time and does as I repeat it and means the most to me, is that the Lord will help us as we try and do the right thing. We can't always do the right thing and not hurt someone else. The love we feel for others can overcome our personal hurts. Because I was able to be married in the temple with my mother's blessing, the whole experience was sweet and tender, where as without her blessing I might have resented her, but because of her unselfish attitude I was free to wish she was there and feel great love for my wonderful, precious mother.

Oh, Yeah!

I forgot to post what the pathology report said about my thyroid. The sweet surgeon, did I tell how young that guy looks, yeah, really young, however he told us that he would be happy to give us the written report but that we "wouldn't understand even a third of what is said." I am happy to report that a man with a PHD in Economics and a simple mortal did in fact understand it. What it said was that the "cancerous nodule was .6 mm" down from the 1.3 mm that was measured in the ulta-sound, no lymph nodes were abnormal therefore none were taken out and the cancer is believed not to have spread. The endocrinologist did not suggest any further treatment, ie. the swallowing of radio active iodine, he also put me on a thyroid hormone that they get from pigs, and whatever dosage he started with is doing great! I believed as he said too, that it would probably take about 6 weeks to 3 months to get it right, but that it would work out eventually. Well, not sure how it is, but I can't think how I could feel any better than I do right now. He must have gotten it right the first try, Amazing!
Glad that is all behind us. We did have some learning experiences and attitude adjustments that were a challenge, glad to have those in the past also. Now we are again ready to live life with this new perspective. Thanks so much for your thoughts and prayers, we felt them.

40 Years Ago Today

June 19, 1970 was our wedding day. We were going to school at BYU. I had joined the church in February 1969. LaVar was in his last year of school there. We met when his apartment of boys was asked to be a "family home evening group" with our apartment of girls. He lived in Sparks and we lived in Tawzer. Our first date, some time in October, was to a Green and Gold Ball. 

We were married in the Manti temple. The gorgeous room was our sealing room. LaVar's parents and sister Linda and her husband came, as well as LaVar's aunt Lucille and a special couple that LaVar served in the Stake Sunday School presidency with, Pete Peterson. There was a empty chair where I had several special people sitting who were not able to be there.

We had an open house in my parents home in Greeley Colorado and another open house at LaVar's parents home in Hayward California.
 


   Thank-you sweetheart for 40 years of a wonderful life. We have lived in many great places, 15 to be exact but 25 moves and have had great experiences. Our children are our favorite experiences of all. We dearly love each and every one of you.  You each has added to our joy by adding your spouse and joy upon joy 15 ( and that is increasing) wonderful grand children. I have always wondered how Heavenly Father could love each of us so much, individually. I now understand in miniature. I love each of you individually and each of you are our favorite person.

This is really hard to read so to preserve it I will write it here.
"Miss Judy Hightower, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert F. Hightower of 2729 W. 14th St. became the bride of LaVar Huntzinger son of Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Huntzinger of Haywood [Hayward], California, in a double ring ceremony Friday morning, June 19, at eh Latter Day Saints Temple in Manti, Utah. The bride wore a floor-length white gown of reversed satin. Lave accented the empire bodice, cuffed sleeves and shirt. Her veil of illusion, made be the bridegroom's mother, was held in place by a band of the same lace, and she carried a bouquet of white daisies, yellow roses and baby breath.
Miss Nancy Hightower served as her sister's maid of honor. She wore a floor-length gown of yellow crepe with long full sleeves and a collar. She carried a bouquet of white daisies.
     Miss Terri Huntzinger, a sister of the bridegroom and Linda Anderson of Del Norte, [Colorado] served as bridesmaids and were dressed identically like the maid of honor. [ not true but I didn't write it]. Montil  Huntzinger [Montel Jenkins] served as his cousin's best man, and ushers were Rob Hightower, in bride's brother, Curtis Huntzinger, the bridegroom's brother and Ken Hunt of Grand Junction.
   A reception for the couple was held at the home of the bride's parents on Saturday, June 20, with 50 guests present. The bridegroom's family, Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Huntzinger and children were present, as was the bride's grandmother, Mrs. R.M. Hightower of Greeley.
   For a honeymoon to San Francisco, California the bride changed to a dusty rose dress and coat. Following their honeymoon, the couple will make a home in Provo, Utah.
   A graduate of Grand Junction [Colorado] High School, the bride attended Aims College of one year and Brigham Young University for one year. Huntzinger is a graduate of Farmington High School in Farmington  N.M. He labored as an LDS missionary in New Zealand for two years and is a recent graduate of BYU.

Take Out!

Thyroidectomy~Yup, there it is.
When they find thyroid cancer the treatment is to take it out. I will be put on a synthetic hormone replacement for the rest of my life and that is it. The recovery is suppose to be a few days and the adjusting the hormone takes awhile. The trouble is, I have no symptoms, I don't feel sluggish, nervous or in any kind of pain. It has been hard to really believe there is any problem. Couldn't I just go on living as I have and not do anything? Just a thought. Cancer travels, I like to travel, I can understand that, but it has no grandchildren to find joy in visiting does it?? No,  just growth where there shouldn't be growth, that stinks. This whole thing stinks, but hey, as they say, "if you had to have cancer, this would be the very best one to choose". Does anyone else think that is a perfectly ridiculous thing to say, let alone to even think?
So surgery is scheduled for Wednesday, May 26th

"One of the Blogs in my head"

Charlotte once mentioned all the blogs she has done in her head and thought that she had blogged about something only to find out that she hadn't. 

Many times as we go adventuring in DC or travel we take pictures, sometimes awkwardly. Thinking that I will blog about that only to think I did or wish I had and hadn't.

So here is one of those catch up blogs .

Whenever I think of the coast of Corpus Christi I think of this beautiful color. Beautiful color of the water, the beautiful color of the water. We went to see the DeHarts as well as my mom and Wayne in McAllen Texas. Mother's Day was such a special day for me. We spent the morning with Alyssa and her family and then drove down to spend the rest of the day with my mom. I can't even remember the last time I got to spend mother's day with my mom. Who knows but what that may be our last time.... 

 Aynsley wanted to ride horses on the beach. So for her birthday that is what she asked for. That was great fun and a dream come true, what a highlight! Thanks Aynsley for asking us to go too. Thanks for waiting, we just loved it!

One day we collected Evan, Aynsley and Jacob and went to look at land. It was just a bit warm and we got mosquito bites but it was a great time. We saw that many have built places of their own. Many had small ponds, horses, goats, we even saw some guinea hens that led to a whole discussion about how this birds are so helpful to gardeners. However they are so diligent in bug eating that they wait at the mouth of the hive to eat the bees as they come out of the hive, so bee keepers and guinea hens aren't consistent. We then went for a "fake" slurpy.

One last day on the beach was just great! 

Plenty of live shells, high winds and gulls that eat bread right out of our hands! Frightening! 

Great day......... hope that is in our future. 

         Who Knows??

Thanks DeHarts, thanks Corpus Christi, thanks mom

 Glad we went!!

"Who is next?? " Katie has enjoyed Rachel, Stephanie and us all in a short time, so who is next, or what is next??