On Sunday 14 December we were up early and attended the Ironwood Crossing 2nd Ward from 9 am - 12 pm.
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| Ironwood Crossing meetinghouse |
Opening hymn was #211, "While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks," by Nahum Tate. The music was from a Yorkshire carol ca. 1800. Tate was an Irish poet, hymns, and lyricist, who became England's poet laureate in 1692.
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| Nahum Tate (1652-1715) |
Sacrament hymn was #177, "'Tis Sweet to Sing the Matchless Love," by George A. Manwaring. Born in Cheshire, England, he emigrated with his family in 1871 after they joined the LDS Church. He was a bass in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. He was imprisoned by the U.S. government due to his plural marriages and died of pneumonia less than a month after his release from the penitentiary.
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| George A. Manwaring (1854-1889) |
The first speaker was Sister Chevaun Craven, stake Relief Society president. Shared an experience when she was on the way to the temple. "Returning and reporting" is as essential as the actual act. She then spoke on hope. Sure, unwavering, and active. We trust God's promises. Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. "The Reason for Our Hope" the talk of President Boyd K. Packer in October. We appreciate the Atonement of Jesus Christ and it is an event of monumental importance. She quoted Elder Holland about the moment on the cross when God withdrew His Spirit from the Savior. The Atonement is real and personal. 3rd Article of Faith. She quoted 2 Nephi 31:20.
Musical number "Oh, Come All Ye Faithful" with young Ryan Watson on the violin accompanied by his mom Kim Watson.
The concluding speaker was Brother Scott Jensen of the stake high council. He also spoke about the reason for our hope (see 1 Peter). He spoke of things that his mission president, President Tingey, taught him about the Savior. Pennsylvania Pittsburgh Mission. He always taught inspiring aspects about the Savior. Visited President Tingey as he was dying of pancreatic cancer. He said that he would remember the young men forever. We hope that we can return to a loving Heavenly Father. The way is prepared for all men from the foundation of the world. He quoted from President Packer's talk about sharing in the Topical Guide about the Savior with the chaplain at Christ's College of Oxford University. Christ remembers each of us, from the past, present, and future. 1 Corinthians 9:8-10. The speaker didn't really understand this scripture until he prepared his talk. We should partake of the hope of the Atonement. The Atonement is accessible to us all. D&C 35:1-2. We need to share our testimony that Jesus lives. Don't muzzle ourselves but partake of the Atonement.
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| President Boyd K. Packer |
Closing hymn was #206, "Away in a Manger," by anonymous ca. 1883.
We saved our seats in the Relief Society room and went to the Primary room to hear Tanner give a talk with Colleen's assistance.
Gospel Doctrine was lesson #46, “A Kingdom, Which Shall Never Be Destroyed” using Daniel 2.
The purpose of the lesson is to strengthen class members’ testimonies of the restored Church of Jesus Christ and encourage them to help build the kingdom of God on earth.
1. Daniel receives a revelation in which he is shown King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and given its interpretation.
2. Daniel describes and interprets Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.
The following interpretation is from President Spencer W. Kimball:
a. The head of gold represented Nebuchadnezzar and his kingdom of Babylon.
b. The breast and arms of silver represented Cyrus and his kingdom of Media and Persia.
c. The belly and thighs of brass represented Philip and Alexander and the Greek or Macedonian kingdom.
d. The legs of iron represented the Roman Empire.
e. The feet of iron and clay represented a group of European nations. (In General Conference, Apr. 1976).
President Spencer W. Kimball taught: “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was restored in 1830. … This is the kingdom, set up by the God of heaven, that would never be destroyed nor superseded, and the stone cut out of the mountain without hands that would become a great mountain and would fill the whole earth”. (In General Conference, Apr. 1976).
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| President Spencer W. Kimball (1895-1985) |
How is the restored Church of Jesus Christ like a stone cut out without hands?
Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin said: “Our Lord and Savior stands at the head of this church and directs it through his servants. This is the Lord’s church; it is not a church of men” (in General Conference, Oct. 1993).
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| Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin (1917-2008) |
How is Daniel’s prophecy that the Church will “fill the whole earth” and “never be destroyed” being fulfilled today?
President Gordon B. Hinckley testified: “This Church is true. It will weather every storm that beats against it. It will outlast every critic who rises to mock it. It was established by God our Eternal Father for the blessing of His sons and daughters of all generations. It carries the name of Him who stands as its head, even the Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. It is governed and moves by the power of the priesthood. It sends forth to the world another witness of the divinity of the Lord. Be faithful, my friends. Be true. Be loyal to the great things of God which have been revealed in this dispensation” (“Keep the Faith,” Ensign, Sept. 1985).
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| President Gordon B. Hinckley (1910-2008) |
The opening hymn in priesthood was #201, "Joy to the World," text by Isaac Watts and music by George F. Handel. It was included in the first LDS hymnbook in 1835.
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| Isaac Watts (1674-1748) |
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| George F. Handel (1685-1759) |
The lesson was number 22 from "Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: Joseph Fielding Smith" entitled "Prayer—a Commandment and a Blessing."
“Few things in life are as important as communing with Deity in prayer.”
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| President Joseph Fielding Smith (1876-1972) |
President Joseph Fielding Smith taught that we should make the spirit of prayer “part of our very being.” He set an example of this principle by the way he lived and by the way he prayed—alone, with family members, and in public.
In his first general conference as President of the Church, he petitioned, “I pray that God our Heavenly Father will open the windows of heaven and pour out upon his children in all the earth those great and eternal blessings which will better their lot temporally and spiritually.”
President Boyd K. Packer, who was called to serve in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles when Joseph Fielding Smith was President of the Church, said: “It was an experience to hear President Joseph Fielding Smith pray. Even when he was past ninety he would pray that he would ‘keep his covenants and obligations and endure to the end.’”
I pray that the Latter-day Saints and all who will join with them in keeping the commandments of the Father of us all may so live as to gain peace in this life and eternal life in the world to come—all of which I ask in humility and in thanksgiving, and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Eileen said that the Relief Society had lesson 21 from "Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: Joseph Fielding Smith" entitled "Proclaiming the Gospel to the World." We had covered that at home on 9 November and lesson 22 on 16 November. It is not unusual for two church units in different parts of the country to be on different lessons, but to be five Sundays and four Sundays off, respectively, is very unusual.
What is more common is for priesthood and Relief Society to be out of sync, even though they are supposed to be in sync so that brothers and sisters can discuss the lesson afterwards. I wonder which lesson the elders quorum had! Lesson 21 was in last week's and this week's bulletin as the bulletin is prepared by one of the sisters.
After church we visited William, Erin, and Weston at the Woodman's. Eileen enjoyed holding Weston for hours! William made some yummy little potstickers for all of us. We watched the Seattle Seahawks defeat the San Francisco 49ers, 17-7.
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| Ben and Weston |
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| Ben and Weston |
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| Erin and Weston |
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| Weston |
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| Weston |
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| Weston |
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| Debbie and Weston |
We enjoyed dinner back at Colleen's. Later I began work on my 30 November blog. I printed 26 copies of my Christmas letter to begin doing our Christmas cards.
At bedtime I finished reading "The Preparatory Priesthood" by President Henry B. Eyring, First Counselor in the First Presidency, to Eileen.
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| President Henry B. Eyring |
On Monday 15 December while Colleen took Ashton and Tanner to their horseback riding lesson, we went shopping at Walmart, Queen Creek Olive Mill, and Fry's. Eileen had wanted some olive tapenade.
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| Inside Queen Creek Olive Mill |
I worked on Christmas cards on the dining room and Eileen was wrapping Christmas presents in our bedroom. Later Colleen and the boys began working with the Christmas decorations.
I finished "Tess of the d'Urbervilles" by Thomas Hardy which I had begun on 21 January of this year. I had previously read "The Return of the Native" by Hardy.
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| Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) |
Eileen spent an hour and 25 minutes and I spent 45 minutes working on the parishes of Essex County in England.
I walked to the consolidated mailboxes a block from Colleen's home and mailed the Christmas cards I had done so far, also enjoying the neighborhood Christmas lights.
Prior to bedtime I read "Guided Safely Home" by President Thomas S. Monson to Eileen. That wraps up the general conference talks from Saturday October 4th that we did not watch. Now I can begin reading the December Ensign to Eileen.
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| President Thomas S. Monson |
I finished reading the 6 July issue of the Church News. I continued to enjoy the 2014 Seminar for New Mission Presidents and their wives. There was a good article about Elder Glen L. Rudd and the conversion of the security guard at the building housing the Manhattan New York Temple. New stakes were created in the Ivory Coast, Ecuador, Nigeria, and two in Cambodia.
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| Elder Glen L. Rudd at Welfare Square |
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| Elder Glen L. Rudd and President Thomas S. Monson |
On Tuesday 16 December we attended the ASU graduation ceremony for the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at the Wells Fargo Arena at ASU. Doors opened at 1:30 and we got there just a bit before that. We saved a whole row of seats and those who were there were Eileen and I, Colleen, Erin and Weston Bailey, Jeff and Debbi Woodman, Ryan Woodman, and Tom and Katie Brown. We spotted William in the seats on the floor of the arena and soon he saw where we were.
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| Wells Fargo Arena |
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| Inside Wells Fargo Arena |
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| Erin, Weston, and Debbi arrive |
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| Weston with his Sun Devil cap |
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| Katie and Tom Brown |
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| Colleen, Weston, and Katie |
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| Debbi holding Weston |
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| William among the graduates |
Ira A. Fulton himself, who is LDS, had some words for the graduates. The Fulton home development is where Colleen lives.
About 4 o'clock William went across the stage! We're sure proud of him!! Eileen held Weston the entire time until about 4:15 when he got passed back to Erin for some sustenance.
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| William in line approaching the stage |
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| William descending the stairs |
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| The balloons descend! |
We met outside the arena to mingle and take pictures.
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| Weston, Erin, and William |
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| Erin, William, and Weston |
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| William and Weston |
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| William and Weston |
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| Colleen and William |
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| William and Tom |
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| Katie, William, and Tom |
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| Tom, Katie, Jeff, Debbie, William, Weston, Erin and Ryan |
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| Jeff, William, and Debbi |
Then we all drove to Buca di Beppo on Val Vista Drive for William's graduation dinner. We met Sean there and he had gotten a sitter for the boys. Tom and Katie's sitter fell through, so they had to go get their daughter. We thoroughly enjoyed the dinner.
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| Buca di Beppo |
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| William, Ryan, Erin, Sean, Jeff, Debbi, and Eileen |
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| Ambience of Buca di Beppo |
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| Colleen, Sean, Jeff, and Debbi |
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| Buca di Beppo menu |
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| Eileen and Weston |
Our odometer reached 90709.
When we got home I printed 25 more copies of my Christmas letter and downloaded the pictures from both of our cameras.
On Wednesday 17 December we left Colleen's at 7:30 and drove to the Phoenix Temple, filling up along the way at $2.169! We got there about 9 am. The temple is beautiful and different than others. We enjoyed the endowment session. It was nearly full. There appear to be 33 seats on each side of the telestial room. There were 16 brothers and 43 sisters, so the latter flowed over to our side. We had a brother take a picture of Eileen and myself holding the Times-Courier with the temple behind us.
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| The recommend desk in the foyer |
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| Detail on columns in terrestrial room |
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| Magnificent celestial room |
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| Temple sign |
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| Eileen in front of the temple |
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| Ben and Eileen in front of the temple |
Our odometer now reached 90809.
On the way home (which seemed a lot quicker than the drive to there) we stopped at Embellish Nails for a gift certificate for a pedicure for Erin for Christmas. We picked up an amaryllis at Walmart for $5 that Eileen had wanted for Colleen. At Fry's they are in a nice glass vase for $11.99! We were back home at 3:30.
We were pleased that our order of tart cherry finally arrived!
Spencer had some friends over for his 11th birthday, which is on Sunday. Colleen made a cake, they enjoyed Papa John's pizza, and they watched "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe."
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| Spencer's birthday cake |
I worked on my next batch of Christmas cards and my 30 November blog entry.
On Thursday 18 December we watched the boys while Sean and Colleen had an overnight together at a time-share in Phoenix.
I drove off to perform several errands while Eileen and the boys went to the nearby park in the housing development.
First I went north to Apache Junction to Harbor Freight where I got a new drill with charger and battery for Sean. They did not have replacement batteries and the new complete set was on sale for only $19.99!
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| Entering Apache Junction |
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| Harbor Freight Tools |
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| Saguaro cactus |
I took pictures going up Ironwood Drive and of the mountains north and east of US Route 60.
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| At U.S. 60 Overpass |
Then I went to the Apache Junction post office to mail my second batch of Christmas cards and buy more Christmas stamps (Rudolph and friends this time). I had a nice chat in line with an 88-year-old male snowbird going on 78 from Minnesota.
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| Apache Junction post office |
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| Inside Apache Junction post office |
Back at home Eileen and the boys were back from the park, had lunch, and were watching the movie "Stuart Little."
Next I got two oregano oil, the second one for half price and a living healthy rewards card with $10 credit for Colleen at Hi-Health.
I shopped at a Walmart Neighborhood Market for a few items. My odometer reached 90909 and I texted Eileen who replied, "Yay!!! Repeating and a palindrome."
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| Huge cotton bale seen all along the cotton fields |
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| More cotton bales along the fields |
Then I drove home where all was well. Colleen checked on how things were going via text messages periodically. Sean ordered Papa John's pizza which was half-price because the Phoenix Suns won.
I left to pick it up for supper, stopping at Walmart first for a few items more. We enjoyed it very much!
After supper the boys got ready for bed and Eileen read to them. I finished and published the 30 November entry in my blog. Then I wrote up today's activities in this blog.
Eileen and I spent 30 minutes working on the parishes of Essex County in England.
On Friday 19 December we were up early and I went to the park with the boys. Sean and Colleen got home about 12:45.
I did 10 more Christmas cards as I had 10 more Christmas letters that I had printed. And I put together a list of friends to e-mail Christmas greetings with our letter attached.
Eileen went shopping with Colleen and Colleen got her ears pierced once again. I sent off many e-mails to numerous friends with our Christmas letter attached and have already received several replies.
Later after supper while Eileen, Colleen, and the boys watched some Christmas movies, I sent off many more e-mails to numerous friends with our Christmas letter attached and received some replies.
I finished reading "Whose Body (A Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery)" by Dorothy L. Sayers that I began yesterday. It was excellent and I did not want to put it down. Many years ago we had watched Lord Peter Wimsey on PBS and enjoyed the mysteries very much.
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| Observe poor spelling on Amazon |
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| Dorothy L. Sayers (1893-1957) |
On Saturday 20 December we slept in big time!! So nice! We went to the Queen Creek Olive Mill and Fry's. We got six kinds of olive tapenade and two dipping oils.
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| Outside Queen Creek Olive Mill |
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| Eileen inside Queen Creek Olive Mill |
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| Inside Queen Creek Olive Mill |
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| Queen Creek Olive Mill over the road as one enters |
At Colleen's preparations were underway for Spencer's family birthday party.
I finished "The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb A Short Story" by Agatha Christie which I had begun two days ago. It was another Hercule Poirot story. I'm going through the series of short stories in "Poirot Investigates" published in 1924.
William, Erin, and Weston arrived and Spencer's birthday party began. We sang "happy birthday" to him and enjoyed the yummy carrot cake Colleen made. We had lots of different crackers with the six tapenades and two types of cheese as well as the cream cheese and its topping. We also had artisan bread from Fry's with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
We visited with Bud and Jan Farr in Mesa. We went out for supper at Rosa's Mexican Restaurant where we had gone with them in April. We had a nice visit in their home before and after supper. We got a lot of family file cards back from them, so now we have 10 sealings of children to their parents to do. We in turn gave them 24 male and six female cards for them to work on.
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| Mesa Temple at night |
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| Temple grounds at night |
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| Temple grounds at night |
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| Temple grounds at night |
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| Temple grounds at night |
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| Mesa Temple at night |
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| Temple grounds at night |
We got back to Colleen's about 9 pm.
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