Aunt Susie

Last Thursday we received the sad news that my dad's youngest sister, cute Aunt Susie, had passed away. She was such a sweet person, and unfortunately she had battled health problems her entire life. She was very courageous clear to the end. I feel so bad for her cute kids and her husband, but we can at least take comfort in the fact that she doesn't have to suffer anymore; and of course the plan of happiness brings great comfort as well. Mom said that her funeral yesterday was very nice, and I am grateful that we will all be able to see her again one day. But she will be missed!

On a happier note, Mom, Dad, and Rich had a fun visit to St. George/northern Arizona with the Barretts this last weekend! Mom sent me some fun pictures on the phone. Here are the girls at our ancestor Anson Perry Winsor's grave in St. George.

And here are Rich, Dad, and Mom with the girls. Anson Perry Winsor built a fort in northern Arizona that is today the main landmark at Pipe Spring National Monument. Part of the family trip this last weekend included a visit to Pipe Spring.

And here are the girls with Grandpa at the St. George Temple. It is such a pretty place and I'm glad that everyone had a fun trip! I wish we could have been there too! :)

Around here things have just been pretty usual lately. We had a fun outing to a Springfield Sliders game last Thursday with our friend Rose. We are so excited that Rose and her husband Chris have just moved back to Springfield from St. Louis! We've had so many friends move away, so it's fun that some of them could come back :)

Here is that cool "Mormon War" cannonball that we discovered at work the other day. It is about five inches in diameter, but it is REALLY heavy! I wish that we had more information about where/when exactly it came from because the "Mormon War" is a term broadly applied to the last couple of years when the Mormons lived in Nauvoo and were being harassed by their neighbors in surrounding towns. But I'm guessing it came from sometime around 1846 when things got really heated and the Mormons were forced to leave the city. My boss says that if I can find some things to go along with the cannonball I can do a little mini exhibit about the Mormons, so I'll get right on that!

And here is a picture of our newest kitchen decoration: an "Enjoy Bacon" sign made to look like the Coca Cola logo. Mom and I saw it at a store when Mom, Dad, and Rich were here for a visit, and we thought that it would be the perfect sign for Greg and me--since Greg loves Bacon and I love retro Coca Cola stuff :)