Boxing Day, 2012

Snow, beautiful snow, we have been receiving.  It has been the wet and soggy type lately.  When the temperature drops it gets solid.  We do express appreciation to the Franklin County road crew and the same for the Idaho state crews for keeping our roads open.

            Doug Bruderer is home for a few days.  He works in the oil fields in North Dakota and his days here in Mink Creek with his wife Beverly and their family are just not often enough.  I’ll bet this feels like spring, compared to the winter in the Dakotas.

The Community Christmas Party  was this past week and turned out to be a great night.  Everyone met in the recreation hall, sitting at tables festooned with old fashioned lamps, ornaments, pine cones and curling ribbons, courtesy of the Relief Society women.  To start the evening off the Young Women sang a vocal selection “Sing a Glad Noel,” accompanied by Laural Janke.  The serving table was filled with Dutch-oven potatoes, ham, chicken, steamed vegetables, tossed salad, rolls with a variety of cookies and cakes for dessert.  Various families provided the meats and desserts and the Elders’ Quorum were put together the potatoes and vegetables.

  After all tummies were filled to overflowing a Cecelie Costley inspired program began.  Jody and Laural Janke played a trumpet duet to introduce a production that involved both Santa and the Nativity.  Garland Dixie Rasmussen were Santa and his wife, the LDS Bishopric (Kent Egley, Kurt Iverson, Wally Christensen) were costumed as his zany elves.  Music for the skit varied.  A vocal solo by Emily Longhurst.  A quartette: Terrie McKay, Candy Longhurst, Austin Jones and Eldon Wilcox.  The Mink Creek choir sang Joy to the World and Silent Night while the skit finished up with the traditional Nativity scene modeled by Kerry and Lacey Christensen and their new baby Cassidy. The night came to an end with a sing-a-long directed by Cecelie, accompanied by the trumpeters.

                    Jacob and Renette Free and son have been down for a visit with his folks, Richard and Vickie Free.  The temperature here is a bit warmer than where they live near Rexburg, ID.

Nate and Dana Olson have been enjoying  a visit of several days from some  former California friends. Darryl and Carol  are no longer in California and now live in Heber City, UT.  The foursome have managed to keep the close friendship since they both relocated.

Christmas Day in Mink Creek was beautiful.  Blue skies, sun,  crispy cold, a perfect day for sledding after the early morning traditions of the holiday had been observed.  There were families looking forward to a phone call from their missionaries, depending on areas of service, some were calling on Chrismas Eve.   This was a highlight of the holiday for those involved. We have two families that would be getting two calls, with two sons each on foreign missions.

Enjoy your New Year celebrations, keep it safe and happy.

Dec 19, 2012

Happy Christmas Cards, Merry Christmas, the season is here for 2012.  We had some staying snow so our countryside looks more appropriate.  Still hoping for more, no doubt those who enjoy the winter sports duplicate those feelings.  The depth is too shallow for much activity, even a little sleigh riding needs more.

 Mink Creek Relief Society held its December Social amidst holiday decorations in the church recreation hall. Three women decked the hall:  Laurel Wilde, Patti Christensen and Camille Knudson. There was a dinner of chicken-broccoli casserole, festive green and red molded salads, rolls, a lime sherbet punch, with a slice of coconut cake for dessert.   Those responsible for this banquet were Tammy Beardall, Lorraine Christensen, Mary Jean Rasmussen, Elaine Larsen and Liz Hawkes.

The program that night was as delicious as the food.  Mary Ann Jepsen  introduced a male vocalist, her son Joe Jepsen of Salt Lake City and wonderful songs began.  Joe was accompanied by Judy Wilde.  The audience was treated to “White Christmas,” then a duet with his father, Mike, singing “Were You There.”  This was followed by Joe singing “Listen to the Music of the Night” from Phantom of the Opera and closing with “O Holy Night.”  All went home feeling the spirit of the season.

Cody McKay, son of Paul and Terrie, entered the MTC in Provo on Dec 12.  Friends and family came to hear his  remarks at the LDS Ward prior to his departure.  Todd and Julie Kuna and children drove from Idaho Falls.  Bryan and Shannon Erickson and boys are from Woodland Hills, UT. Connie Erickson lives in Logan.  Cody will be serving in the Alabama, Birmingham, Mission.

Rebekah Christensen received a mission call  to serve in Uruguay, Montevideo West Mission.  She will leave this spring for the MTC in Argentina. Her parents are Wally and Kim Christensen. 

Mink Creek has had a week that will make a person sit up and take notice.  There has been a concussion due to a car accident, a broken ankle from a fall,  badly burned face and hands in a work related accident.  And that is not all, but it is all I feel I dare report. Casseroles and soups have been delivered in the usual fashion. Maybe more details can be carried over to the paper news for next week with names included, I like permission for that sort of thing.

I had reason to go to Montpelier this week, in the middle of a blizzard.  Strawberry Canyon and beyond was beautiful, the winter postcard variety.  On the other side of the mountain the wind was whipping the drifts across the road and I was glad my husband was behind the wheel.  On the way back things had settled down, clouds lifted somewhat, no snow falling.  The snowplows from both sides of the mountains had been up to their turning spots and made the complete route.  Still beautiful, but could see a little further.   We do live in a lovely spot.  If you live a far distance it is ok to feel a pang of homesickness.

A snowing Dec 12, 2012

We may not have reindeer around this month, but we certainly have deer.  Three of the antlered variety has been guilty of snacking on our fields recently, along with female companions.   Remember that these critters think they have the right of way when crossing Highway 36, and they usually don’t stop to look both ways.

Kevin and Nancy Alder were up from Utah to spend a few days in their Mink Creek home.  They enjoyed relatively balmy weather to help them through the fall tasks.

Mike and Mary Ann Jepsen spent the holiday in San Jose, CA, with their daughter Annie and Steve Earl and their four children.  All of Mike and Mary Ann’s children and their families were able to gather to celebrate Thanksgiving together.  A bonus blessing for the trip was attending the baptism of a granddaughter, Olivia Earl.

 Past residents, Nettie and Joe Linton are getting ready for a LDS mission call.  These preparations are tending  to the medical side of things with inoculations, etc.  At this point the Lintons have o idea of their destination.   They have promised to feed us more information as things progress. Stay tuned.

This past week our little community has had misty clouds hanging down into our valley, swirling around the homes.   Minus the singing and dancing of that well known musical, there was a Brigadoon type feeling as one moved about outdoors.  Generally we are above the fogs that grip Cache Valley.  For a day or two, moisture was at every touch, but it wasn’t raining.  I understand the residents of neighboring Treasureton had similar days.

            Kerry Christensen was on a trip back east taking care of meetings connected with his employment.   Lacey and their three little girls are delighted to have him home again.

            The Sheldon Longhurst family welcomed a group of friends from Riverdale, UT.  This bunch has made it a tradition to gather together to get their Christmas trees up this way.  These are neighbors of the Longhursts where they lived prior to the move to Mink Creek.

We have snow, lovely white fluffy stuff.  It put in its first appearance Monday(10^th) morning, upon arising.  Off and on throughout the day it continued falling.  By evening there was about 5 inches in the lower end of our village with another couple of inches coming later.  Now that it has settled the depth isn’t so much, but things are still covered.  The exception is where the county snowplows have cleared the dirt roads.  This storm brought fluff, not my favorite snowman building variety, but no complaints. 

December, 2012, already

The local turkeys seem to have enjoyed their holiday.  Large groups gather in harvested fields, gobbling up grain that spilled from combine and trucks.  They are so busy feasting that they appear more like a group of black rocks, until one raises a head, or the whole bunch starts to move to a more abundant feeding spot.

Jamison Daines came up from BYU/Provo to spend the holiday with his grandparents, Dennis and Judy Clark.  A recently returned missionary who served in the North Ogden Mission, he felt a sense of being back in his field of labor.  Dennis and Judy enjoyed a big group of family members at their home.

Glen and Betty Jo Jepsen hosted the feast for three of their children.  Kyle Jepsen flew from Dallas, TX.  Jana and Matt Musgrave and children drove from Ogden.  Kerry Jepsen’s family joined in the festivities but Kerry was absent, out of town for medical stuff.

Mark and Karen Arnout had a houseful.  Travis and Amber Arnout and their three, Brayden, Maci and KrissyLynn, from Heber City, UT;  Lance and Tosha Arnout with theirs, Remi, Ashtyn and Trey of Midway, UT, plus Tosha’s sister’s family, Aaron and Brook Lower of Draper, UT.  All these kept things lively for a few days.

The Haws home was busy for the holidays.  Ken and Loren Nash and children came up from Solvang, CA, to put a little Idaho time in their lives.

Morgan McKay, daughter of Paul and Terrie, has been chosen to represent our community on the Preston North Stake Youth Council.   Tawni Hall, daughter of Brett and Kristi Hall, has turned sixteen and will now be part of the Laurel class in Young Women organization.

            People have inquired about snow in our mountains.  As of this writing there is snow up on top of our highest peaks, but generally things are back to being brown.  I haven’t driven Strawberry Canyon, over to Bear Lake, so can’t comment for that direction.  We have been getting some rain, things are muddied up a bit, but so far only enough snow to blow away with the slightest wind.

Mink Creek’s matriarch, Naomi Wilde, has made the trip to her winter destination down south.  She will be missed and we hope she is following doctor’s guidelines while recovering from knee surgery.  This woman is hard to keep restricted!  The warmth of St. George will be good for her.

            Katherine and Leon Noorda, now serving a humanitarian mission in Thailand, have been involved in delivering wheelchairs to disabled persons.   Recently they were participating in a training session given to potential recipients and their caregivers.  Operating a chair may appear easy, but certain abilities are necessary.  The Noordas were also able to spend some time at Thailand’s Elephant Roundup in Surin.  They mentioned that some parts of this event reminded them of parades, etc. of our Preston Night Rodeo, just the activities, not the size of the participants.