~APRIL~AMERICA

                     Oh beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain; for purple mountains majesty, above the fruited plain.

                                                                America, America, God shed His grace on thee,

And crown thy good with brotherhood

From sea to shining sea.

Yes, I'm proud to be an American...no matter how mixed up our government gets or how greedy our citizens become.  It's still the land of promise, the land of freedom, and I love it.

If you are interested in the pictures, spacious skies are from Monument Valley on the way to Daniel and Connie's house, and Isabel looking at the vast night sky.  Amber waves of grain is farmland I saw when we were visiting Esther and Shad and went to Amish country in Pennsylvania. Purple mountains majesty is the Gilas above someone's cotton field in Thatcher. God shed His grace on thee are Americans waving their flags at the olympics, Crew at a Patriotic program in school, Camille, Kirtlyn, Brynlie, Maya and Ellie showing off their patriotic clothes, and Lillian and Polly also being patriotic.  Crown thy good with brotherhood shows Esther and Shad's family standing with the statue of the father of our country, George Washington, and Phil and me on a trip to NYC and the Statue of Liberty and Philadelphia and the Liberty Bell.  From sea to shining sea shows the Pacific Ocean in Hawaii and the Atlantic Ocean from DC.

April has been uncommonly gorgeous!  We've had balmy weather, with roses popping out all over the place. Jenn's roses...(she has one lovely yellow rose on a pink rose bush!) Mary's roses and our roses.  Dad says he's too busy to do any gardening this year, but the spring weather just calls his name and he can't help himself.

Dad has been keeping my pool crystal clear all winter so it's ready for swimming season.

Even with the beautiful spring weather, we still got to enjoy a couple of days of a dramatic storm.

Rachel's pictures of Desert Storm.

Our April birthdays are pretty dramatic too!

Dallin's birthday was the 8th. Erika's was the 11th.

Scott's was the 12th. Kirtlyn turned 12 on the 13th.

Tayte turned 16 on the 19th. And Sara's birthday was the 21st.

~OUR APRIL~

We love opening the month of April with General Conference. We had company for conference, including our Ward's missionaries...an Elder from North Carolina and an Elder from Korea.  We all had a lot to talk about, as you can imagine.  In fact, Tyson had a lot to say to the Korean Elder, none of which any of the rest of us could understand.  

But how wonderful Conference was.  It seemed as if every talk was directed specifically to me!  I thought I heard almost every speaker talk about temples :-)

The next week was the play Suessical, which Kirtlyn, Thomas, Hyrum, Brianna and Lindsay were in. Of course, smart Penny Whetten, put them in different casts, so we had to go twice.  Actually, we were working when the Biggs kids' play was, so I went to the dress rehearsal instead. They were both very good.  Kirtlyn and Brianna were bird girls, Thomas and Hyrum were Wickershams (some kind of monkey) and Lindsay was Jo Jo, the boy who talks to Horton from deep within the clover in Whoville. It was a major role in this play. She had a lot of lines to learn and did so great!

The next Monday, Tyson brought his family over to mow our lawns and pull our weeds for FHE!.  We thought that was a great FHE activity.  They did a super job, and Mary even mowed the front lawn again the next week when she came by while we were at the temple.

The picture on the bottom is one Sunday, early in the month when it was nice and cold and stormy and we had a cozy fire. Mary just took this picture because she thought it was funny to see her old parents on their devices.

The Temple has kept us busy this month...as usual, of course...and some nice things have happened there.  Dad was asked to seal Kari O'Neal and her husband, (in fact, he has sealed several people this month who have asked for him especially, but I didn't have any photo opportunities with them.  Kirtlyn came for baptisms on her 12th birthday; what a special blessing that was for us.  They came while we were working, so we got to go in and watch them.  Thomas baptized her and Jenn, who did a family name.  Then one Monday, when the temple was closed, each member of the presidency took family names from baptism through sealing and we performed the ordinances for each other.  That was an amazing experience as well.

After the stormy days, when it was warm again, some of the kids came over to swim and play on Grandpa's playground.

We went out for a date night on the 15th, and were able to participate in El Charro's "tip-a-cop" night.  The police officers from Safford, Thatcher, Pima, the reservation and all around, gave up their nights off and came to  EC to work as servers and bussers, donating all their tips to Special Olympics!  Tracy Montierth seated us and Sherri O'Neal was our server.  It was a packed night and so much fun!

The next day was Brianna's bake sale.  She and her friend are trying to earn money so that they can take a trip to DC(?) when they are in 8th grade, with the Thatcher school's gifted program.  Her family was very supportive, buying lots of goodies that the girls baked themselves, supplemented with Krispy Kreams :-)

After the bake sale, we went to the storage building in Thatcher where our belongings have been sitting, gathering dust, since our house flooded in January 2008, while we were still on our mission.  We found some treasures and a lot of trash, and there is still so much there, some things from St. Johns that we have never unpacked!

On Sunday, the 17th, we had the Alder family to dinner.  Tony was sick and Luke stayed home with him, but we enjoyed the girls who came.

On Monday, we went to Mesa to take the car to the shop and to visit kids during a break from the Temple.  Esther arranged an FHE for Monday night, featuring chef Harrison's delicious, decadent desserts.  I couldn't help myself, I had to sample some of it.  I had a piece of to-die-for key lime pie.  We also quizzed each other on the Articles of Faith and looked at some of the junk from the storage building that belonged to Esther, Joel and Jeremy. 

The next day we attended Soren's little league baseball game.

And that night we ate beans and tacos and Joel at Stephanie's house.

After we got home the next day, Mary called and invited us to have BLT's.  It has been so nice to have children who want to spend time with us...whether they feed us or not. I know some people whose children don't make time for them and we feel very blessed.  Alex got into a game of turning on and off the light, clapping for himself every time he did it.  I kid you not, he played it with me for a full half hour, never tiring of it and never varying it in any degree.  I finally had to slip around the corner where he couldn't see me.  Jared was darling, of course, as were all the kids, and they let Grandpa choose the video to watch while the bacon was cooking...he chose Mulan.

I'm putting this here instead of in Rebecca's section, because even though I was not with them, I feel almost as if I were.  Rebecca and Scott and Dallin and Sara...and Parley Rudge...visited Mt. Airy and face timed me so I could speak to my Uncle Paul (Peep).  They saw most of the family who lived in the neighborhood.  I was so thrilled to be able to show off my daughter and her family.  And I thank her so much for taking such wonderful pictures.

First collage: Uncle Paul, Grandpa's younger brother; Rebecca at the cemetery across the street from Grandpa and Grandma Hiatt's house; Rebecca and Scott in downtown Mt. Airy; with Aunt Ep (Ethel Puckett) Grandpa's younger sister; and then in front of the Hiatt house.  That's the house I remember visiting as a child...a wonderful place to run up and down stairs, find treasures and hidden places to explore. You can barely see the barn behind it.  That's where Grandpa kept his milk cow and goats and horse.

Dallin, Sara and Parley with Peep; Rebecca and Scott with Uncle Ephie's (Ephraim) wife, Amy.  Ephie is Grandpa's youngest sibling; Rebecca and Scott with Peep, and then with Ep and on the right, with Uncle Wilbur and Aunt Ara Jean. Wilbur (Wib) is another younger brother. Ara Jean, Wib's wife, is from Snowflake and knows some of Grandma Sherry's family...probably even related to her in some way :-)

We went to Mesa to get a part installed in Dad's car, so we went on Sunday to watch Esther and Marlie sing in Church.  They sang Come Thou Fount.  So beautiful.  It reminded me of the close harmony the Everly Brothers used to sing when I was a kid. Harrison did a fabulous job of accompanying them.  After church, they treated us to a delicious homemade Mexican food meal.  Then, on Monday, while the car was being fixed, Dad went to Shad's office to draw up our will.  Shad is so smart.  He fixed the will we had before so that it is much simpler and easier to understand.  Dad came home to get me so I could sign it and by the time we got back to the office, Shad had left.  We wanted to take him to lunch to show our appreciation.  We will try to take them to dinner or something the next time we go.  So, instead, Jeremy, Joel, Crew, Stetson and Stephanie went with us. 

NEWS FROM AROUND THE FAMILY

~NATHAN AND SHAUNA~

Palmer and his dad and brother have built this fabulous 21st Century Dental office.

Nathan had the opportunity to visit Stockholm, Sweden this month and sent these pictures from his early morning walk.  You can see how the rising sun is beginning to uncover the buildings. What an adventure! 

Josh the Preservationist...2 of my favorite Victorian homes.

~JOEL AND STEPHANIE~

They are doing container gardening this year.  It looks as if they have some really good veggies coming along nicely.

These blurry photos are screen shots from a video of Docker's guitar recital.  I am constantly amazed at how good he is.

Docker and Crew participated in the Triathlon that was held in Safford. Crew is on the right and Docker is 4th from the right.

~DANIEL AND CONNIE~

Devynne and Brock went to Harvey's blessing on the 10th.  It was so special for Allison and Taylor to have family there.  Of course, Rebecca and Scott were there too, but they appreciated the effort Devynne and Brock made to be with them.

Brock sent these beautiful flowers to Devynne, just because...I think.  Anyway what a thoughtful husband.  So from romantic to game hunter!  Here he is with the wild turkey he shot.  Also, they visited the St. Louis Zoo when they went there to check out the graduate school he will be attending.  He has been accepted into their prestigious immunology PHD program.  They will be moving there in July...about the same time that Bethany and Palmer move to Glendale for dental school and Dallin and Sara move to Syracuse for Architecture school and Stetson and Lindsay move to ? for law school.

Alta's baby shower.  Pretty things for a little girl.  Our first great granddaughter!  We couldn't be there, but I made her a blessing dress.  That's what they chose.  I asked if they would like a blanket or a dress and they chose a blessing dress.  I hope I can keep this up for all my great grandchildren.  Oh well, I'll do it as long as I have a brain and fingers that work.

Daniel and Connie celebrated 24 years together in April.  Emma is at their WP playing with the dogs and then she and Analynn are playing basketball at their house.  This was a screen shot from a video in which Emma made every single basket.  She's standing on the wall at the left.

Connie had to have some major, emergency surgery at the end of April, due to a ruptured appendix that spread toxic infection all over inside her.  They gave her one of the elegant, luxury  suites, maybe because she is married to one of the hospital's head honchos!  She had a pretty rough go of it, but is slowly but surely getting better, a little at a time.  We are all praying for Connie.

~REBECCA AND SCOTT~

Rebecca and Scott had some major events this month, so their section is full!

Polly and Rylie with their tennis team that went to state; Polly with her trophy from the Thatcher tournament; bottom right: the medal she got for helping at Special Olympics (which she said means more than any trophy); and then with Mitchell McHugh for the Mormon Prom.  Polly has been called to serve as the president of the Safford Seminary for the next school year.

Devynne holding Harvey; and proud grandparents with Harvey.

Beautiful family on a beautiful blessing day.

Taylor went to Honduras to check out workers for their company; bottom: he is way overpaying for some trinkets; top right: he and Allison at some falls in WA.

DeWitt was the speaker at an EAC devotional.

Dallin had his Senior Art Show while Rebecca and Scott were there.

Here they are in Mt. Airy, at the Snappy Lunch, giving Parley Rudge his first taste of family history.

Beautiful family on a Beautiful blessing day.

I love it that my great grandsons are clothed in love from Grandma Susan.

~JEREMY AND ERIKA~

Pizza with a friend; clowning around at the mall with friends.

Moving from the old house to the new house...Erika's in charge!

Moving the trampoline proved to be a tiring job...so what do teenage boys do when they're too tired to go any further?  Put it down in the street and jump!  Then they put it in the Bishop's driveway and jumped some more before they felt energetic enough to carry it the rest of the way :-)

~RACHEL AND TONY~

Brynlie and Camille riding a donkey.

Isabel and her follower; Tony with the 2nd snake of the night!; and Isabel with her sprinkler that was one of only two in the whole class that worked!

 Camille with a huge python (?) at school; Rylie with Polly and the rest of the varsity tennis team on their way to state.

Rachel was in charge of decorating for the Safford stake Women's Conference.  It was so beautiful!

I was working that day so was not able to go, but I love the pictures.  And I put this one of the sisters in Rachel's because there are two from her family in it.  I hope Rebecca and Jenn don't feel bad.  They were there too.

~ESTHER AND SHAD~
Before and after...Braces off!  Gorgeous!!!

Marlie and her friends went to see Carrie Underwood...front row seats!

At the FHE when we were in Mesa.  Esther and Marlie and Harrison practicing for their song in church; Harrison with his rich, decadent peanut butter chocolate cake and key lime pie.

Sneaking a picture in church :-}   Sunday dinner at their house; and a friend campout.

Harrison's last recital with his teacher.  She feels that he has gone beyond her ability to teach him.

~THOMAS AND JENN~

El Charro and Kainoa's played an April Fool switch on their customers.  They wore each other's 

t-shirts and actually served each other's food! They also gave money-off coupons to each other's restaurants.

At the Best of Safford banquet, El Charro carried away the top recognitions including Best of Safford!

Kirtlyn, Thomas and Hyrum participated in Seussical, the youth community theater play.

On her 12th birthday, April 13th, she got her ears pierced, lovingly supported by Brianna.

And then spent some quality time doing baptisms for the dead.  We were so glad we were able to be with her for that occasion.

On the 15th, El Charro and the police departments from all around the Gila Valley cooperated in working for Special Olympics.  Off duty cops worked for tips, all of which they donated.

Getting Kirtlyn's room ready to decorate for her birthday present.

After the preparatory work was done, Rachel and Mary added their talented decorating skills to make it a room any princess would love.

A Lego activity at the library; animal rescue center; Kirtlyn built a rope swing for her siblings; the family taking advantage of Dad offering his garden to them.

~MARY AND TYSON~

Brianna was a bird girl and Lindsay was JoJo in the community youth theater play Seussical; Pictures of Brianna's bake sale.

Alex has figured out how to get up on the table! Oh no!

Watching conference on their new TV; Alex loves to play with Grandpa's tractors; Lego day at the library.

Strawberry jam made from berries picked from Dad's garden; Baby boy? girl? due in October.  A good month for beautiful babies; Lindsay won the academy award for Best Actress for her roll of JoJo in Seussical!  Brianna was so proud of her sister.

When Mary was born, Dad stood in the delivery room and cheered!  "Yea! I won't have to do a pinewood derby for her."  How depressed he would have been if he had seen into the future to a time where there was a pinewood derby for girls!

~MISSIONARIES~

From Lillian in the Philippines.  She says they've been having a heat wave...125 degrees!

From Daynen in Brazil. Notice the sign to Sister Nevin.  She converted this lady but had already transferred.  She is Connie's niece. They sit around fans to cool off.

From Hannah in Hawaii. They climbed an impossibly high switch-back ridge.

From Shadrach at the MTC.  He has one month to go!

~SOMETHING TO MAKE YOU SMILE~

Nothing inspires a smile like a happy baby...unless it's two happy babies.

Mary was freaked out to see a tiny snake (find it in the 2nd picture) in her garage.  In the meantime, Camille is petting a gigantic python in school! Now that's a snake! How would you like to find that in your garage, Mary?

Silly girls!  Analynn and Emma; Henry is learning to dress himself! Inside out shirt, inside out/backwards pants, inside out/upside down jacket.  Good job, Henry.

Letters to God from 7-year-olds.

Alex hid under the table, then couldn't figure out how to get out.

~LAST WORDS~

April always inspires me with its beautiful "waking up the world" weather and General Conference.  I can't even begin to say how much Conference meant to me this time.  So many talked about the Temple, which touched my heart, of course, but also they talked about the Atonement, which fills me with joy and hope.  I find myself still making stupid choices and mistakes that I always thought I would no longer make when I was as old as 70!  I desperately need the Atonement, not only for forgiveness, but for strength to improve and progress.   

I am especially thankful for the joy that our family brings to us.  Our new babies, Parley and Harvey, being blessed this month by their righteous fathers, holding Holy Priesthood power is a blessing beyond anything the world has to offer.  We need to never lose sight of what's eternally important and direct our efforts and our talents and our resources toward the goal of an eternal family.  We are so thankful for our eternal family and thank all of you for agreeing to be a part of it.  We love each and every one of you. 

I got this picture from C.B. Fletcher.   Doesn't it make you think that Moroni is calling all the Gila Valley to the Temple?