Signs of the Loveland Family Times

January 30, 2012 Letter from Elder Keddington

2012-01-30T15:05:00.000-06:00

Hello Friends and Family,

I can't even begin to tell you how much I love my mission. Like seriously. It is the BEST EVER!! The Work is going SO GREAT! It just seems like every time I turn around there is a huge miracle that happens. Some random person shows up to church. Someone I haven't talked to in a long LONG time calls or texts. We have an incredible lesson and someone out of nowhere starts asking questions and ends up being an amazing person who is so ready for the Gospel. I Love this work. Miracles happen every day.

My companion and I are really getting along a lot better. We had a very small.... conversation about how we can do better as individuals. Long story short. I did a little yelling and he isn't so cocky anymore. :) Haha. But its been great ever since. I've noticed all the missionaries around me are starting to look to me to take the lead on projects and take a lot of resposiblities for the ward. Its been pretty surprising to me. But then it hit me that I've been here in this ward almost the Longest. Haha. There is 1 other mission who has been in the ward longer. And not by much. Its pretty surprising to me.

Last night I got a phone call from a Brother Steve Oistad who lives out here in Arkansas. Well He visited Utah for about a week and decided to pay a little visit to my family. Yes. It might have been apostate but he called and left a voicemail. Yes. The whole family said Hi and that they loved me. :) It was very VERY Inspiring. :) It was exciting to hear from them. Just don't tell anyone. :) Hahaha.

I would've answered that phonecall but I was in one of the best lesson's I've ever taught. To a member's Son. His name is Chris. He has been going through a really hard time and isn't sure what to do. He isn't sure how to get an answer to a prayer. So we taught him a little story about a 14 year old boy who prayed. :) The Spirit was SO strong. He wanats to be baptized. But We didn't want to step on the Member's toes so we're going to set a date with him for next week. Which would make 7 baptisms In February if everything goes as planned. :)

Its just been a great blessing to see the Lord work in my life. Thanks for all the prayers and for all the help you all do for me. I can see it.

I Love You all! I miss you and I'll see you soon! Send me some letters! Just for fun! Haha!

Love

Elder Keddington

Adele's Baptism!

2012-01-30T15:01:00.002-06:00

Adele Foutz (Kimber & Scott's daughter) was recently baptized. They are currently living in MD where Scott is in the Secret Service. She had many of her family around her on her special day including her grandparents, Dave & Aleta who flew out from Utah especially for the occasion!

Congratulations Adele! We're so proud of you!

Zach's Mission Call!

2012-01-21T17:41:00.000-06:00

A drum roll please....its a little long but the most important part is at the beginning. The voices you hear coming out of the computer are Grandma & Grandpa Loveland and Katherine joining us via Skype over at Jared's house for the big moment. Andrew & Megan were on the phone as well.

Mississippi Jackson Mission
Entering the MTC March 14, 2012

Woohoo! Interesting to note,all the Mossman brothers have or will serve in Southern states: Jared--Virginia, Andrew--Tennessee, and now Zach--Mississippi. Another interesting little factoid is that we have 2 other family members serving in Southern states: Davey Keddington--Arkansas and Kolby Sawyer--Florida. Got any theories on that? Let's hear them! In the mean time, we'll be out shopping for missionary attire and readying Zach for March 14! I'm so proud of you Zach! We're going to miss you but know you'll be a great missionary! Get ready Mississippi!

January 17, 2012 Letter from Elder Keddington

2012-01-17T13:41:00.001-06:00

Hello Friends and Family!!

Whew!! This week has been a LONG LONG Week! Very little teaching done. No Car. Tension in the companionship. Drama in the District. Inefficient Companionship Study. Its been a long humbling week. But. Don't feel sorry for me because I have had a Myriad of experience in the last 2 days that were worth all the hardships of my entire mission combine. Starting with Stake Conference.

Our Stake President shared a story about a team of SEALS that invaded Iraq and 3 of the 4 were killed fighting off 150 terrorists. The survivor wrote a book called "The Lone Survivor." (If anyone wants to buy me a present for when I get back, one book I would love to read.) He related the story to us and how we need to be SEALS in the Lord's army. We are at war against the adversary and the Lord doesn't need sissy girls that run and surrender in times of trial and hardship. But He needs SEALS. The Talk was amazing. I don't do it justice. Made me want to be a SEAL in the Lord's army.

Yesterday(P Day) We went to dinner at a Member's house and long story short. He broke down and begin telling us how his testimony is dwindling and how he is depressed and is thinking of suicide. Within minutes of him telling us this we had our scriptures open baring our testimonies of the Atonement and sharing our love for him and how important he is to our Heavenly Father. I have never been more impressed to share my testimony of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and to let him know that our Savior lives and Loves us more than we can imagine. I have very few times in my life where I have felt the Spirit that strong.

Right after the Dinner we went to our appointment and she completely turned us down. Gave us back the Book of Mormon and told us not to come back. Haha. We were still walking on air began walking, said a short prayer and we were both prompted, "go right." We began walking and the very first door we saw we knocked it. We met Brian. Divorced and needed someone to talk to him. We shared with him the Restoration and gave him the Book of Mormon we had just recieved from our canceled appointment. We'll be teaching him later on this week.

The Lord answers prayers. He loves us. He Lives. I wouldn't trade this mission for anything in the entire world. I Love all of you and I am excited to get back to work. We have a baptism coming up the 28th. :) I miss you all and think of you often! Thanks for all that you do.

Love

Elder Keddington

January 9, 2012 Letter from Elder Keddington

2012-01-10T17:20:00.005-06:00

Hello Friends and Family!

Sorry I haven't written in a while! Its been pretty crazy around here. Every P day I'm pressed with something to do or the Library is closed or something. So Here I am updating you on the work. That is definately what it is. Work. I go to sleep tired. I even wake up tired. But its a good experience for me! I'm loving every second of it. Sometimes I feel like a break would be good. Other times I know that would be a terrible Idea. I love it here.

I was able to speak in Sacrement meeting this past Sunday. I spoke on "A time to Prepare" by Elder Ian S. Aurdurn of last General Conference. I just have to tell you that I've been blessed with 2 things. Dad's ability to speak and teach, and being able to listen to the Spirit. I prepared a good amount and I don't even remember most of what I talked about. I do remember talking specifically to the Young Men about how important it is to achieve the Goal of serving a mission and all the joys in my life could never amount to the Joy of entering into the waters of Baptism. Seeing someone change their lives and come to know the truth of this Gospel. There is nothing better. I also remember talking about the 10 Virgins about how all 10 of them had a Goal to be with the Bridegroom but only half with prepared. I talked about the importance of preparing to achieve the goal we've set. I lost track of how many people said they loved my talk. I felt pretty good afterwords. But Honestly its because the Lord blessed me with the Spirit and I've never prayed more earnestly to be able to touch just one person. I always love speaking. :)

The ward is great. I'm eating probably too well for my own good. And I don't think I'll ever want to leave. I Love my mission!

The Work is going great! We're teaching the sweetest lady. Her name is Stella. Her daughter just had a stroke and she has no insurance. At all. So she is paying the Hospital bills. By herself. She's applied for Disability and such. We're praying that everything will work out. Its INCREDIBLE how much faith this woman has. I have no doubt that everything will work out. Satan is just working his magic against her because he sees that she can become a huge ally for the Kingdom.

I'm doing great. My area is still wonderful. My companion is..... getting to be better. He's a good kid. Just needs to be humbled. :) Haha. I Love You all and I'll see you all very very soon!!

Love

Elder Keddington

We found these cool Lions. I just couldn't resist!

This is the bed where all the General Authorites sleep when they come to the mission. :)

Not sure if I sent this already but... Our latest Convert. Linda. :) Chirstmas Eve Baptism. :) :)

Andrew & Megan's Wedding

2011-12-27T14:43:00.001-06:00

Introducing Mr. & Mrs. Andrew Mossman! The wedding was beautiful and the couple very happy! It was a beautiful day in Oakland--often covered in fog and haze but the sun was shining and the sky was beautiful blue. Jeff, Zach and I spent a couple of days in San Francisco prior to the big event. Andrew and Grandpa joined us the day before. After the temple ceremony, we traveled to Turlock for a beautiful reception. Megan's mom and brothers worked their tails off and transformed the cultural hall of the local chapel into a lovely setting including twinkle lights and a dance floow. We met so many of Megan's friends and family who came to meet Andrew and wish them both well. Having lived there all her life there were A LOT of people there who expressed what a wonderful young woman Megan is and how much they love her. I think Andrew has chosen very well. After a REALLY short honeymoon, they joined us in Texas to celebrate Christmas with us. They'll be going back to Rexburg, ID to finish school. We are so happy for Andrew and couldn't be happier that he and Megan found each other! We love you both!

These are photos taken with just my iphone. Hoping to get the professional ones in a few days. Stay tuned!

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-12-27T13:02:00.001-06:00

Well we lucked out again and got to have the Grandparents here again for Thanksgiving. We also had Juliet's parents, Linda and Steve, and her sister McKenna for dinner. We had a great time, expressed all that we were thankful for and ate...A LOT!

Miss Payton. Blurry but those blue eyes are unmistakable!

Lunch after shopping with the Super G's and Nani at Central Market

Pooped!

Pumpkin cake rolls. I'm never making this many again!

Ninja Breakfast

Behold the Ninjas!

Post Thanksgiving 7-11 run with Paca & Nani

And the one decent photo I have with the Blubs :-)

Catch up time!

2011-12-27T12:25:00.000-06:00

Okay folks, its been a busy few weeks! I'm going to try to catch up here by posting a few new photos of Dani's wedding. Love them! Hope to get more soon. Watch for new posts of Thanksgiving, Andrew & Megan's wedding in CA and of course Christmas. I hope you are all enjoying your holidays!

December 19, 2011 Letter from Elder Keddington

2011-12-27T12:15:00.000-06:00

The last letter from Elder Keddington wsa just a few pictures. Some we've already seen so I'm posting the one we haven't seen. I'm sure he enjoyed talking with his family on Christmas Day. So much more fun than an email but difficult to post here! Maybe I can get his Mom to give us a summary.

A lunch bag that Katie made for me. Katie is the Spitting Image of Lilly when she was little. She is almost as adorable. But she is so CUTE!

December 12, 2011 Letter from Elder Keddington

2011-12-12T13:29:00.003-06:00

Hello Family and Friends!!

Sorry about the slacking! Things have been crazy as of late! I am in a tripanionship. Yes. 2 companions. Kinda like Bobby. But I found out something. My companion is getting transfered and I am training. Yes. Training. A NEW MISSIONARY. Needless to say. I'm humbled. Its been sad and crazy. Seeing Elder Hannemann say goodbye to all these Investigators makes me think about how difficult it will be to leave Otter Creek. I made a small investment for P day activities and needless to say it has ruined our companionship forever. I bought Risk. The Board game. And we are at each others throats when that game is being played. Haha. Its pretty fun to see how competitive some people can get. I Love my companions. Seriously so awesome.

This week has been a week of Miracles. Its been legit. The Lord has been in my life every minute of this week. Of the MANY Miracles that I saw this week. I will share this one.

Christina. I mentioned her a while back where I was prompted to go talk to her while she was playing with her kids. Gave her a Book of Mormon, She read it in a week. We taught her lesson 1 and she disappeared. We found out she had a boyfriend who wasn't really happy about the Church. He seemed... like he was ready to kill us everytime we walked by. Well. We finally met him. Normally he lives in Memphis but Christina was breaking the Law of Chastity and they were living together. (Haha.) And we talked with them. We had an awesome lesson with both of them and it turns out, the Sister Missionaries in Memphis have been teaching him. And Christina. And They love it. A lot. Finally my prayers are being answered! But Miracles have been happening and things will soon pick of with her.

Baptisms planned for Christmas eve or New Years eve. Expect some more pictures too. I Love You all and I miss you! Merry Christmas!! I expect lots of Candy and lots of presents! And Letters. Just. I want mail from all of you. :)

Love

Elder Keddington

November 28, 2011 Letter from Elder Keddington

2011-11-28T16:39:00.001-06:00

Hello Friends and Family!

All is well! Or should I say All is WET!! Its been raining here for the past week! Its been the Wettest Novemeber on Record in Arkansas! Luckily I have a Car and a companion who doens't like walking. So. We stay dry pretty often. Which I'm not a huge fan of. You're supposed to get down and dirty on your mission! Oh well. I'm sure it makes my Mom happy.

This week has been bittersweet. Thanksgiving was great! I had SO much food! I still feel fat and our fridge is STILL chuck full of food! The Members love us down here! And They certainly know how to cook. Not quite Mom's cooking. But its still pretty dang good. But then I again I missed the family and friends. We had a Turkey Bowl and it was a blast! My Companion is a huge Football Buff and is actually going to play for BYU when he gets back. And then go on to play Pro Baseball. But Anywho. I liked being on his team. :)

I had a cool experience on Saturday. I met this investigator Robin. And She likes having us come over and visit for 5 minutes or so but whenever we try and teach her she is ALWAYS giving us an excuse! My Aunt is in the Hospital. My Grandma is in the Hospital. My Daughter is in the Hospital. My Uncle Died. Just excuse after excuse. Needless to say. I stopped going over there so often. I actually vowed I wouldn't go back there because she is just wasting our time. But As week we a good 5 minutes drive away from Robin's house and we were going to an Appointment I had a feeling we should go see Robin. I thought it was interesting. So we drove by and knocked on the Door. She answered and gave her usual excuse. My Husband had a stroke! I thought, "oh thats a new one." But after standing at the door her Husband comes to the door and is speaking jibberish and isn't walking right. Within minutes she is broken down crying begging us to fix him. Of course we did the only thing we knew we could do. We gave him a blessing. It was amazing the Spirit that was in that home and to see the hope and joy light up her eyes after the blessing was over. I was just grateful that I was able to be a tool in the Lord's hands. The Spirit is real and we can all be tools if we allow ourselves to follow His will. It was a wonderful Experience!

Anywho. The Church is true! I Love You all and I can't wait to see you! Christmas is coming soon! I can't wait! I'll see you all soon!

Love

Elder Keddington

Its hard to see... But these signs are TINY!

One of my favorite Dinners. :)

Sarra this one is for you. In memory of our 2 o clock runs to the store. :) They are only $1.50 here!!

November 14, 2011 Letter from Elder Keddington

2011-11-15T20:14:00.001-06:00

Dear Family and Friends!!

Another week has FLOWN by! I really just can't believe it!The work has been going SO well! My new companion and I seemed to be.. off..for the first week. We had different teaching styles and we disagreed on a lotof things. But. Thanks to the Spirit and thanks to a lot of prayer we'regetting along great and we're really moving the work forward here in OtterCreek. Its been a fast moving week.

Funny Story. We had an investigator, Don, who is working onrebuilding his house. We offered to help him and invited him to Dinner at amember's home. We can't drive investigators. So he told us he would drive. Wepunched in the address on his GPS and we left. This was about 1 o clock in theafternoon and Dinner was at 5. We get to the dinner appointment at 5 and Donisn't there yet. 5:15. Still no Don. 5:30. Still no Don. We get a phone callfrom Don at about 5:40 and he is panicked and angry at us because his GPS leadhim to Bryant(A 30 minute drive from his house.) Hahaha. It was so funnybecause he was SO angry at US because he couldn't use his GPS. Needless tosay... We're bringing him Chili on Tuesday to apologize. Haha.

These past 6 weeks I've been teaching a sweet older lady,Brenda. She is awesome! Loves Music and singing! She has been involved with herchurch for over 18 years! Plus, she has some SERIOUS responsiblities in herchurch. Like if her and another person isn't there. Their church service mostlikely won't take place. Needless to say she is very important. But we've beenteaching her quite a bit about our church. :) She knows the Book of Mormon istrue and the importance of it. We had one of the most spiritual lessons I'vehad so far on my mission teaching the Plan of Salvation. We found out herHusband had passed away a few years back and she has always wondered what hadhappened to him. She admitted to us that she believes everything we've taughther and we invited her to be baptized. She Accepted. :) Then I bore testimonyof the Plan of Salvation and the joys baptism will bring to her and her family.The last time I felt the Spirit THAT strong was in the MTC surrounded byHundreds of missionaries singing Come Come Ye Saints. :) The Spirit was sostrong there I could FEEL a difference when we stepped out of that room. Suchan amazing experience. She is committing to come to church with us and we'll betalking about her leaving her church shortly. Only the Lord will be able tohave that happen.

I am glad to know that all of you are doing so well! I missyou all! And I'll see you all very soon!

Love

Elder Keddington

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November 7 2011 Letter from Elder Keddington

2011-11-08T12:23:00.003-06:00

What a great letter! Happy Birthday to his proud and awesome Mom!

Hello Family and Friends!!

All is well! This week has been awesome!! I'm still in Otter Creek and I've sent off my first companion. It was tough seeing him go. I go REALLY close to him. But I'll see him again soon and I hear rumors he is already dating a girl pretty seriously. :) Haha. But my new companion is awesome! He's from Hawaii and then moved to Alpine, Utah. He is a HUGE Athlete. He turned down being drafted by the Kansas City Royals to come out here on his mission. He has a chance to play PRO Baseball and turned it down. He had a $250,000 signing bonus!! He turned it down. That just goes to show you how AWESOME my companion is. I Love Him!!

We've been teaching a man named Geoff, He is an atheist and he likes speaking theology and discussing the proof of God. It has been wonderful teaching him because he asks a lot of soul searching questions. At times he likes to prove that there isn't a God and he made an interesting point that I couldn't argue without bringing up faith. (We had brought up faith before and he isn't a huge fan of faith. He calls it the F word. Haha.) But I just opened my mouth and things just started flowing out and I had no idea what point I was trying to make but the Spirit began to work and made a huge point on how God doesn't reveal everything to us at once that is line upon line and precept upon precept. It opened his eyes a little bit and I believe we're making real progress with him. I felt the Spirit was there when we left. But then back at the apartment, D&C 100:5-8 popped into my head and I just FREAKED out! I wasn't "confounded before men" and he gave me what I needed to say in "The very moment" I needed it! I was a HUGE Testimony builder to me! This work is real! This work is TRUE!

We've also been teaching Rebecca and Michael. Rebecca has cancer and Michael is quite possibly the most AMAZING Guitar player ever. He reminds me a lot of Dad. :) But I LOVE Both these people SO much and they're SO friendly! We finally got a chance to talk about religion and they're SO interested in what we have to share. I'm excited to be able to meet with them soon.

This Family of 14 will probably be taught this week. I'm working very closely with the Bishop. I talked to him and he said, "They're dry. But they're ready." The Lord blesses us for our hard work and I am seeing it pay off with me and my new companion, Elder Hannemann. But I am grateful for all of you! For your friendship and love! I miss you all and I'll see you all very soon!!

Love

Elder Keddington

sorry...no pictures today

The Dans Wild Wedding!

2011-11-01T13:03:00.002-05:00

I'm sure most of you know by now that our sweet little Dani is now married to a Wild named Daniel. The Wedding day could not have been more perfect--coolish temperatures, blue skies, fall colors still on the trees and a glowing, beautiful bride and handsome groom. All who were present recognized what a glorious occasion this was and what a miracle it truly was that these two people, so perfect for each other had found one another. Dani has married into a wonderful family and I know they and Dan will be taking very good care of her while she is so far away from us.

Dan and Dani, we are so happy for both of you and know you are going to have an amazing life together! We love you!

Enjoy the photos. I'll post the really good ones when they are made available.

Elder Keddington Oct. 24, 2011 Letter

2011-10-26T00:59:00.003-05:00

October 24, 2011 Letter from Elder Keddington

Hello Family and Friends!

1) Trunky(Trun-kee): Defined as a missionary who is sick of his mission and ready to come home, derived from "living out of his trunk." ex. "Elder Whiting, Dude you are so trunky!"

Don't worry! I am NOT trunky! I try very hard not to be. But that is a new word that I've learned out on the mish. and was able to witness this week as I "killed off" (sent home) my first missionary. So in a way I was "born"(my first area) in Maple Street. And boy was it rough being around an Elder who was Trunky. All he would talk about was girls, cars, hunting and home. He didn't care what he did and it didn't matter what he was thinking. And it begins to rub off on a missionary who is fresh and missing home. But I moved forward and he is gone. I am here and ready to work hard.

TRANSFERS!! I found out this morning I'm getting transfered!!! ...... But they told me not to pack my bags... yet. So I'm staying put for the time being. My Companion was promoted from District Leader to Zone leader and they usually pair the Zone leaders up so I will most likely be getting a new companion. Either way its a huge mess and I have no idea what is going and I just want to work and avoid all the drama. I'm shocked at how much DRAMA is involved with missionary work. Who is going where? They're going who? When is the who? Its all just a big mess! Anywho. I'll let you know as soon as I can if my address changes but you can always mail me at....

Elder Keddington

905 Kierre Drive

N. Little Rock, AR 72116

It will always find me. :)

I will start attending a REAL ward this week in a REAL church building which is a relief and I look forward to it. But it was sad to see the members of my unit(which is smaller than a branch that is still attached to the ward. They just meet at a different time in a different building..) get released and see all the hard ward go down the drain. But It'll be good to have members that are ready and waiting to be supportive! I hope you're all doing well! I am loving this work more than I thought possible and I keep you in my prayers constantly. :) I Love You all. I'll see you all very soon!

All is Well!!

Elder Keddington

May Awesome District

Me and the VERY TRUNKY Elder Whiting

My 2nd favoarite tie. Thank You Elder Boice.

Engagement Photos!

2011-10-20T17:23:00.004-05:00

Engagement photos are in. What a beautiful, happy couple! I think I can speak for our entire family when I say we are so happy that Andrew has found such a sweet, intelligent and beautiful young woman. She is everything we'd hoped for him and we're all so excited for both of of them! Looking forward to seeing you both at the wedding in less than 2 months!

October 17, 2011 Letter from Elder Keddington

2011-10-18T10:36:00.001-05:00

Hello Family and Friends!!

All is well in the Mission Field! Work is becoming much easier with the weather FINALLY cooling down! It still gets to about 80 degrees but its becoming easier. Yay!

My companionship has become a temparary 3-some. Elder Schroeder is leaving us to go to a new area on Thursday. He was out on his mission for 4 months and then needed knee surgery. He has just come back. Good kid. He could use to teaching lessons though.. Haha.

Miracle of the week! Easily one of the sweetest ladies I know. Rebecca Morris. Rebecca is a survivor of breast cancer and has cancer in her bones as well. She is currently going through a heavy treatment of radiation. 5 days a week. Her Husband, Michael, and her 5 Yorkies keep her strong. But Elder Peay and I had a wonderful chance to teach her the Plan of Salvation and they LOVED it! They told us it all makes sense and that they never really knew what happened to the other people that never knew Christ. Later on the week before Rebecca began radiation we asked her if she would like to recieve a blessing. She accepted!! Such an AMAZING Teaching Oppurtunity! We taught her about the priesthood and the priesthood blessing. (James 5:14) and began to give her the blessing. Elder Peay Anointed. I sealed it. In the blessing I felt a the impression to tell her that what she will be going through will be a small moment and that she will be made whole through her faith! I was so sure the blessing would work!!

Yesterday Rebecca was at church. She came to ALL 3 hours. And loved it. She has so many questions and has been reading the Book of Mormon steadily. She has CANCER and she came to church. This work truly is of the Lord. There is no doubt in my mind about that.

I Love You all! I hope that all is well with you and everyone! I would love to hear from all of you! I Miss you all and I'll see you all very soon!

Love

Elder Keddington

October 10, 2011 Letter From Elder Keddington

2011-10-11T16:24:00.002-05:00

Hello Family and Friends!!

I'm REALLY short on time so this will have to be a quick one. All is well and I have an awesome story to share with you about Christina. :)

Christina is a single Mom with 2 kids that we taught an awesome lesson with some members on wednesday night. I was really nervous about it but I feel it went successful. We stopped by on Thursday to see how she was doing. No answer. Friday. No Answer. Saturday. No Answer. Sunday. She wasn't at church like she promised. We hadn't seen her in 4 days and I was beginning to think we had scared her away.. We walked past Christina's and she was outside with her 2 kids playing. I began to get excited when I saw her reading a book. We get a little closer and she isn't reading just any book, but the Book of Mormon and she was already in Alma 17!! She loves the Book of Mormon!! In 4 days she read half the Book of Mormon! Talk about an amazing miracle!

I love this work because I get to see miracles like that every day! Its pretty amazing how the Lord blesses us each day. I miss you all! And I'll see you all very soon!

Love

Elder Keddington

Hidden Mickey!

Elder Peay trying to get into the dryer...

He did it!!!

October 3, 2011 Letter from Elder Keddington

2011-10-03T14:55:00.002-05:00

Friends and Family,

Hello! All is well!! This week has been rather uneventful.Except conference! Which was amazing! For those that might be curious, myfavorite talks were by Elder Holland, President Eyring, and President Monson.All of them in the priesthood session. So. Mom and Sisters. You're going tohave to read them when they come to the Ensign. Haha. It was cool though. Wedidn't go to a member's home but we had all 5 sessions in the church building.All the members dressed up like they were going to church and watchedconference as a ward! It was awesome! They had Pot luck between both sessionsand a set of missionaries decided to treat everyone to deep fried twinkies.They were a huge hit. I remember thinking Sunday morning session about howamazing this Gospel is and how true it is. There were quite a few investigatorsthere and most of the talks were about how our church is different from othersand how our church is true! It was quite an amazing experience!

I had a funny experience out tracking a few days ago. We raninto these 2 men who were talking and we contacted them. They asked,

"What Church are you from?"

We replied, "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter DaySaints."

He laughed and said," Thats a mouth full. How old doyou think I am?"

We laughed and guessed mid 30's when he is CLEARLY in his60's.

He replied, "I'm 62! What can you POSSIBLY teach meabout Jesus Christ that I don't already know?"

Elder Peay then replied, "Did you know Jesus Christcame to the American Continent?"

Silence... "How old are you??"

Haha. He wasn't interested in listening to us but it wasstill a funny experience. Anywho. I Love and miss you all! I forgot my cameraso no pics this week. But The Church is true and I'll see you all very soon!

Love

Elder Keddington

My New Ride

2011-10-02T19:47:00.000-05:00

Well, my little Maxima was getting tired. After having it looked at and getting the bad news that we'd need over $2000 worth of repairs done, we decided that now was the time to move on. Besides, a real estate agent needs leather right? So....good bye to my pretty little white Maxima...

Good bye little Maxima...you've been an awesome car!

Hello to my new little black Altima!

Hellooooo shiny black car with blonde leather!!

Oh yeah!

We put the first 300 miles on this little beauty driving to San Antonio to celebrate our 7th wedding anniversary. Wouldn't you know it, it actually RAINED while we were in San Antonio. Of course they didn't get a drop in Round Rock while we were gone.

When we arrived home after a couple of days of R&R we took the the new wheels over to get the grand kids' approval.

I don't think there was a single button that wasn't pushed. After a thorough going over, I think we got the big thumbs up!

Elder Keddington Sept. 26, 2011 Letter

2011-09-26T17:03:00.003-05:00

Hello Friends and Family!!

All is well! I've been TRANSFERED!! Yes its true. I'veopened a new area called Otter Creek. Its a richer area which means I'll beworking very closely with members and I'll be doing a lot of tracting. Haha.But its good for me! I love it! My new companion, Elder Peay(Pay), Works so sohard! Mostly because, well, he used to be an AP. But was released because hislast transfer is this transfer. And if you remember from my last email howtrunky the last Elder was, Elder Peay is the exact opposite! He is more focusedon missionary work now than ever. We've witnessed so many miracles this week.

Our motto has kind of been "90% of results occur withinthe last 10% of our efforts." I promise that this motto is true. Nightafter night, when I'm ready to turn in, Elder Peay says, "Lets keepgoing." And Night after night we find someone to teach. A new investigatorand so many other things. Like last night we walked maybe 3 miles to ourapartment. I wanted to drive. But I knew that walking would give us the chanceto meet more people and we wouldn't arrive too early. So we walked. As wewalked we met some nice people. No one really interested but nice people! Butthen as we approached our appointment we saw 3 people outside. We startedtalking to them and turns out they were related to the people we were about togo teach! We invited them in and had an amazing lesson. 2 of them committed tobe baptized! If we had driven, we never would've met them.

Another example, We had maybe 10 minutes left. I wanted tostart heading back to the car. We were 5-6 miles away from our apartment. Insteadwe decided to knock the next few houses. We met Marshal and Wilfred. They weredrinking and smoking, but I wanted to contact them anyway. Turns out, Marshallis really interested and lives literally down the street from where we live! Ifwe hadn't put for the effort of our last 10% we never would've met Marshall orset 2 baptismal dates. I'll never turn in early again.

One more story before I finish up. On Sunday we had thechance to witness a baptism for a little 8 year old girl, Kimberly. :) I didn'tknow her but she was so cute and reminded me of Adelle. A lot. I couldn't helpbut sit and think about how badly I wish I could be there for her baptism. Andhow much I would've loved to have been there when she makes that special promisewith her Heavenly Father. But then I think about how many people I have grownto love get to enter the Waters of Baptism. Everytime I get to see a baptism Ithink of Adelle and how awesome she is and how excited I am for her. I can'twait until I get pictures, Kimbur. :) Haha.

I Love you all! I'll get you my new address as soon as I canbut for now my address is the Mission office.

Elder David Keddington

905 Kierre Drive

North Little Rock, AR 72116

I Love You all and I'll see you soon!!

Elder Keddington

Me & Latoya, My first baptism!

Me & my new companion Elder Peay!! (Such a stud!)

Me & Brother Phillips, A member in the Maple St. unit

Engaged!

2011-09-22T12:08:00.002-05:00

Well its official folks! Andrew is engaged to Megan Harrison of Turlock, CA The wedding is scheduled for December 17, 2011 in the Oakland, CA temple. We are so excited for Andrew. Megan is perfect for him and we love her! So glad you waited for the right one Andrew!!!

September 19, 2011 Letter

2011-09-22T12:02:00.002-05:00

Hello Family and Friends!

1) Trunky(Trun-kee): Defined as a missionary who is sick of his mission and ready to come home, derived from "living out of his trunk." ex. "Elder Whiting, Dude you are so trunky!"

Elder Keddington

905 Kierre Drive

N. Little Rock, AR 72116

It will always find me. :)

All is Well!!

Elder Keddington

My awesome district!

Me and the VERY TRUNKY Elder Whiting

My 2nd favorite tie. Thank you Elder Bruce.

Sept. 12, 2011 Elder Keddington Letter

2011-09-12T14:46:00.002-05:00

Hello Family and Friends!!

All is Well!! This week has been another great week in the great state of Arkansas! Betchya didn't know a person from Arkansas is called an Arkansian! Pronounced Ar-Kans-In. True Statement. Did you know! That the Tooth Brush was invented in Arkansas? Because if it was invented anywhere else it would be called the TeethBrush! HA! Some good jokes I've heard around the Mission.

I had my 2nd Baptism this past Friday and a bit of a special experience. His name Is Kalvion. He is 9 and really loving the Gospel but scared of Water. And when he got into the water for Baptism he was nervous. Very Nervous but I assured him everything would be okay. After I said the prayer and dunked him as I pulled him up I noticed his arm came out of the water out of panic and he didn't go completely under. And It hit me. I'm going to have to do it again with this terrified kid in the font. He nearly bolts it out of the font thinking he had been baptized and I explain to him that is didn't work and we needed to do it again. His eyes filled with tears and repeatedly said "No. I can't." Suddenly everyone who was watching were on their feet encouraging him. Supporting him and telling him he can do it, as I pray for help from my Heavenly Father. Even Kalvion's Mom, who isn't a member, was cheering him on wanting him to go through with it. He still was hesitant. I grabbed Kalvion's Wrist told him "I'm right here. I'm not going to let you go. Hold on Tight and I promise everything will be okay." He looks at me, Says "Okay." Grabs onto my arm with all his strength, shaking and still nervous and I baptize him. Making sure he went all the way down this time. He came out of the water and looked up at me with the Biggest Smile on his face and I could see that the terror and fear was gone. And He was happy. :) I talked to him a little later and he told me that he felt really good and he was glad he went through with it and didn't chicken out. :)

It was such a testimony to me that Satan has his power over people. Fear is one of them. And through Prayer all things are possible. Faith is the the Oppisite of Fear. Fear takes away your ability to work. And "Faith without works is Dead." But a little prayer and Satan can no longer take hold. I Love this Gospel and I love this work. I might be getting transfered here shortly as my first transfer comes to a close. I'll let you all know what happens and thanks for all your prayers. I know that without them I wouldn't be having the success I am having without them. Thank you. I Love You all and I'll see you so soon!

Elder Keddington

Kalvion's baptism

The Maple House. The "Skreet."

Hidden Mickey with the whipped cream. :-)

Music and the Spoken Word: September 11, 2011--the 10th Anniversary

2011-09-11T22:43:00.000-05:00

It has been a somber and reflective day for me. I hope you enjoy this program as much as I did. It was beautifully done. My favorite number was Amazing Grace. This rendition of this hymn was the most moving and inspirational that I've ever heard and together with the images of true grace demonstrated by those courageous souls on that fateful day, who put their own lives on the line for the sake of others, I was moved to tears and yet full of gratitude, pride of country and hope for the future. May we never forget.

Letter from Elder Keddington

2011-09-07T18:21:00.000-05:00

Hello Friends and Family!!

This week has been an AMAZING week! Mostly because it was my Birthday! WAHOO! The big 22!! I had Oatmeal(one of my FAVORITES) for breakfast, Lasagna for Lunch and Dinner! I couldn't have been more happy! Plus my Zone Leaders made me a cake and got me a present! Check out the pictures! They're aweseom! I'm still getting Birthday stuff and I had so many people wish my a Happy Birthday. It was one of the best birthdays I've had. Except the whole missing the family. :( But it was still good.

The Weather here has virtually gone from blistering hot to nice and cool overnight. And Tracking in the mornings is a little chilly. But I prefer it to the heat. :) My area is wonderful like always but there is a lot going on and I'm sad to hear there is a good chance I'll be transfered on the 21st. :( But thats okay! I'll go where you want me to go Dear Lord. :)

I've been teaching a lot of lessons with my companion and I'm reminded every day how the Lord has prepared people to accept this message and Its amazing how much they know and are willing to accept.

Sorry that I'm emailing you on Wednesday rather than the usual Monday but Monday was Labor Day and the Library was closed. We spent most of Labor Day with a Member family and I ate pancakes, played pool, monopoly and built a Hotel out of Linkin' Logs with a boy named Preston. He's such a stud. :) Then went to President Peterson's house for Dinner and there they wished me a Happy Birthday and I got to play the Piano for a good 20 minutes. :) I was quite the happy boy. :) I still am. I see the Lord protect me and guide me everyday and its amazing what a little prayer and fasting will do for people in need.

I Love You all so much and thanks for all the Birthday Wishes! I Miss you all and I'll see you all very very soon!

Love Elder David Keddington

Central High School. Its in my area!!!

My Zone Leaders and the purple fleece pants they gave me. I love them! :)

Me and my Birthday Cake!!

Preston Stack, a member of the Spanish Ward. We made a Hotel out of Linkin' Logs! He's pretty much legit!

From Davey to Elder Keddington

2011-08-10T11:05:00.004-05:00

One thing I failed to mention in the Reunion Recap was that the Sunday following the reunion was Davey's mission farewell in his ward. Most of us were able to attend. Davey has since gone into the MTC and I just got a picture from Aleta letting me know he's made it safely to Arkansas!

So...we've gone from this....

....to THIS!!!

Yay!!! Good luck Davey! And by the way everyone...Elders LIVE for letters! I'll post his address on the blog later.

Reunion Recap

2011-08-09T23:43:00.008-05:00

Once again the reunion has come and gone. The highlight of our weekend was our afternoon on Pine View waterskiing/tubing and enjoying the water and sunshine and then our BBQ at JoAnn's beautiful home just up the road. I think most of us took a turn out on Bruce's boat--some road a little harder than others depending on their will to live. I hope all had an opportunity for at least one turn around the lake for a little jaunt. It was such a lovely day to be on the water.

I want to thank all who took the time to come and enjoy the day and seeing one another again. There were several of you who were regrettably not able to make it. You were missed! I've posted a few pic below--some are better than others. We need to do better in that area next time around.

This is a good looking group!

Kiley and Emily struck a great friendship and had a good time playing in the water and on the tube.

And then there's Boston...the future All American....

Awwww....little Boston

Grandpa Jeff was missing his own grandchildren and so was happy to fill in for Bostons' Papa!

Fun in the sun!!!

Here are some REALLY good photos: (thanks Matt!)

The next morning about 14 of us participated in a service project at the church cheese processing facility. We would have had more had it not been the midnight showing of the new Harry Potter movie. We were able to pry Davey and Sara from their little beds in order to attend even though we know they'd been up all night. And we were happy and grateful they were there! We split up into 2 groups and spent the next 3 hours or so packaging orange drink and cutting and sealing big blocks of cheese. We were all rewarded with a small packet of cheese to take home with us. I think we all had a good time and really enjoyed sporting those attractive hairnets. ;-)

Loving that Hair net Dani!

a Motley Crew

Thrilled to be here!

These girls are ready for business

Do you think she wants some cheese?

Better watch him, he's having way too much fun with that cheese.

Inspector 12

Brother Packer

Do you really think you can put that back together?

When in doubt, think show tunes and then sing your guts out.

Does it smell bad?

Finished! Everyone say...CHEEEEEEEEEEEEESE!!! I know...terrible picture!

We also enjoyed meeting at the Olive Garden for dinner the following night. It was a very large gathering but the Olive Garden staff handled it extremely well I thought.

(Just a side note: these are terrible photos. It was too dark in there so there are a lot of alien eyes out there. Sorry :-D)

Unfortunately the Lagoon trip turned out to be a bust. We had a sick kid and I know others had other conflicts. Jessica and Gary were the first to arrive at Lagoon but soon left due to the lack of the poor turnout. Karen and James and their kids did make it later and I hope they had a good time with their little ones. (Jessica/Karen did you get any photos?)

Thanks again to all who came--especially Karen and Jessica who came a great distance and at great expense to be with us. Jessica we loved meeting Gary and he gets a big thumbs up from everyone! Karen it was great to see you and James and your little family--some of us for the first time!

I hope you will all watch for news of the next reunion--most likely in 2013. Until then, I hope you all stay well and happy.

Please keep us all up to date by posting on the
Loveland Family Tree Facebook page!

Love,
Jenny

P.S. If you have any suggestions for locations and/or events for the next reunion, please post them in comments!!!

How to Make The Loveland Family Famous Stroganoff--This is for you Katherine!

2011-08-09T10:53:00.005-05:00

This recipe is a Loveland Family Favorite with a few minor improvements--in my opinion. The recipe originally called for bottled mushrooms but those to me are too rubbery so I started using fresh mushrooms a few years ago and my family seems to like the change quite a bit. So below is the actually recipe that I've changed up a bit complete with video of each step in the process. The video may look a little different from the written recipe but I've made it so many times now that I've tweaked it even a little further.

I realized now as I'm posting this that in my haste to get the video done and the food on the table (it was Fast Sunday) I forgot to boil water for the noodles... and and thaw out the bread ... and pre-heat the oven to bake the bread! So dinner was delayed by at least 30 minutes. By the time it was time to get it all on the table I didn't take pictures of the finished product. *Sorry* It was really good though. :-)

Loveland Family Famous Stroganoff

Olive oil and/or butter

1 - 2 lbs. round steak cut into 1/2" strips (or chunks)

1 onion diced

2 cloves garlic minced

1 sm. container fresh button mushrooms cleaned and sliced

2 cans tomato soup

2 Tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce

1 pint sour cream

salt &amp; pepper to taste

wide egg noodles

Heat the olive oil or butter (just enough to cover the bottom of skillet) over medium heat in a large skillet. Saute mushrooms in the hot oil until golden. With a slotted spoon transfer mushrooms to a bowl and set aside. Add the garlic to onions. Add onions to skillet (add a little more olive oil if needed) and saute until transparent, then add garlic and saute for a few minutes more. Remove from skillet and set aside with the mushrooms. Add a little more olive oil to skillet and brown meat. Salt &amp; pepper. When meat is browned, return the onions and mushrooms to the browned meat and mix together. Add tomato soup and Worcestershire and stir well. Bring to boil. Reduce heat. Simmer uncovered on low for about 30 min to an hour. Keep an eye on it that it doesn't boil again and burns. Just before serving stir in the sour cream. Serve over warm noodles.

If you want to make it a little easier, skip the browning of the fresh mushrooms and just use the bottled kind drained.

Step 1--Saute mushrooms

Step 2 -- strips or cubes?

Step 3 -- Brown meat

Step 4 -- finish browning meat

Step 5 -- saute mushrooms

Step 6 -- add tomato soup

Step 7 -- bring to boil

And we're done!

Seminary Graduate!

2011-07-25T00:25:00.002-05:00

I'm very proud of Zach. He went to 4 years of seminary--3 of them at 6:00 a.m. and he never complained or dragged his feet getting out the door. I may have had to be his back up alarm a few times but he always jumped right out of bed and out the door. He had practically perfect attendance too. Rarely missed a day. Nice work Zach. Its good practice for your mission!

Katherine and James -- Albuquerque Turkeys!

2011-07-25T00:02:00.002-05:00

Well its been just a couple of months now and Katherine and James are full fledged New Mexicans. On the first of April they stayed up all night packing their moving truck. They had a lot more stuff that they'd James moved there into a small--I mean SMALL apartment the first of April while he shopped for a house. Katherine came back and stayed with us while she finished her semester at school. She went out once on a house shopping trip. The bid on the house they wanted was won by someone else so they kept looking via the internet and Skype. But it turned out the house they really wanted was meant to be theirs. The day before closing, the financing did not go through for the poor guy who originally won the bid, so Katherine and James were next in line. They were so excited.

I drove her out on May 14 with her car crammed full of her stuff and a big dog named Buckley. I stayed for a few days to see the house and their new surroundings. We had a great time.

Now they are busy decorating and getting settled in. James is doing really well in his new job and Katherine is doing some odd organizing and babysitting jobs while she applies to substitute teach for the local school district and prepares to start school again. They've already had one guest come and stay with them since they moved in and many more trips are being planned. We're hoping to get out there sometime this fall.

So if anyone is planning a trip from Salt Lake to Austin or visa versa, Albuquerque is the perfect midway stopping point. They've got a spare bed and plenty of room but beware of Piglet. She loves to get in your face.

Zach's Graduation!!!

2011-07-24T15:26:00.002-05:00

I know I'm way behind in my blogging so here's my first attempt to catch up.

To some of you this is old news but on May 28, 2011 Zach graduated from high school. His plans now are to work work work to earn money for his mission and to get his papers in and leave on his mission after the holidays, sometime in January 2012. Hard to believe my youngest is this old. Where did the time go?

Its Mother's Day

2011-05-08T21:47:00.002-05:00

Happy Mother's Day! Here are a few photos of my most favorite women. Whether you're a mother yet or not, you are all of great worth to everyone whose lives you touch every day--including mine!

Love,

Jenny

Funny Videos

2011-04-03T09:08:00.000-05:00

Katherine is practicing her Mary Poppins skills on Payton. She seems less entertained than the rest of us.

Then we also catch a brief moment of Jared's impressive dancing skills.

56 Years. Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad

2011-03-13T22:52:00.000-05:00

56 years later...what a great picture!

Anniversary Tulips

Things look really different 56 years later.

Catch up attempt...San Francisco Trip October 2010

2011-01-27T23:57:00.001-06:00

So okay I've really slacked off but now that I think of it, no one really reads this but a handful of people but I will persist. I at least feel better that I am doing some kind of journaling in my life. Maybe someone will appreciate looking back at all this stuff. I really am thinking about starting a new blog for the Sawyers/Mossman clan and leave this one for just the reunion stuff. Maybe some day when I've retired...in about a hundred years or so.

Anyway, well Jeff and I made a quick little trip to San Francisco last October. Jeff's son Chris works for Charles Schuab and their headquarters of course is there. He suggested to Jeff that he come out towards the end of his week long trip and spend the weekend with him seeing the sights. So Jeff is always ready to take a little trip and agreed. And since our wedding anniversary is Oct. 1 and we always take some little trip out of town--usually just to San Antonio, so we decided that I'd fly to SF on the Monday Chris returned to Austin and Jeff and I would spend a few days in the city we spent our honeymoon in. We burned the candle at both ends every night trying to fit everything we could in including eating the most exquisite...yes I said EXQUISITE food every day for practically every meal and even one night had 2 desserts because we just couldn't resist the creme brulee even though our plans were to wait until we got to Ghiradelli Square for a hot fudge Sunday. Life is short--have dessert twice!

Floors are all DONE!!!

2011-01-25T23:42:00.000-06:00

Well, I feel like its been months since we started this project and just have a vague memory of living in my own room, having a larger bath with a separate shower and all my clothes in one place. But soon we'll have it all back together. The floors are done and they look gorgeous! I'm very pleased. I'm sure I'm going to be pretty anal about everyone keeping their shoes off (you can bring a rock in on your shoe and mess it up) and taking the swiffer mop to it every 5 minutes. And every time someone drops something I'll hold my breath. Heavy items can gouge the floor. But they say I'll calm down after a few weeks. The only problem with these beautiful new floors is that a whole new can of worms has been opened. I want to paint and redecorate! It better be a good year for real estate that's all I can say. Then Jeff will stop having palpitations!

Wood Floors--Almost Done!

2011-01-22T23:24:00.002-06:00

We've still got a way to go but things are starting to take shape. What is becoming clearer the more I look at it is that we are going to have to repaint the dining room. The floor makes the walls look purple. Yuck!

Reunion 2011 Alert!

2011-01-22T23:20:00.003-06:00

Reunion 2011 and 80th Birthday Bash is set! Mark your calendars for July 14 through the 17th. Festivities will begin at Pine View Reservoir complete with boating, water skiing and swimming with a big family picnic at JoAnn's in Huntsville not far away. We'll be sending more info out as plans are confirmed. Anyone up to a Lagoon day? Just email me!

Stay tuned...

Poor Rusty

2011-01-19T17:09:00.001-06:00

I think all the demolition and noise has taken about 10 dog years off Rusty's life.

Phase II -- Wood Floors

2011-01-19T12:04:00.002-06:00

Last night about 10:00 I painted the moldings for the baseboards. There were 12 -12 ft. boards and it took about an hour. Not bad but it was pretty easy.

How do you like my shoes and socks?

Today we start tearing up the tile. It is even noisier than last week. He uses a jackhammer-like tool with a flat edge that can get right underneath the tile to pry it up so it moves pretty fast. He's finished all the tile except right in the kitchen in less than 2 hours. So we're moving right along.

Here's what the jackhammering looked like:

Here's what that looked like about an hour later:

Leveling is done!

2011-01-19T11:44:00.000-06:00

This is one of several hydrolic jacks that were used to level the house. Once the house is leveled they insert the cylinders in place of the jacks. Let me tell you, it was a strange feeling to be in the house when the actual leveling takes place--all the popping and creaking. It was a little unsettling.

Now the holes have been filled and under the circumstances the it looks pretty good. Now all the tile comes up and the wood floors go down. This will be a lot more satisfying.

Just waiting...

2011-01-13T21:58:00.000-06:00

Holes are dug and filled with cement. Now we wait for the cement to cure and since it has been so cold lately, we have to wait longer. Looks like they'll be back on Monday to do the leveling. Should be interesting. Here are the holes that hadn't been dug when I posted yesterday.

Kitchen

Master Bedroom Closet

Laundry Room

The Saga Continues--

2011-01-12T19:09:00.001-06:00

Well here's what it all looks like today. I really do think I'm handling the whole situation a lot better than I anticipated. As they were jack hammering through the floors in the house in 3 places today it was pretty loud but I just shut myself up in the office with the door closed and as long as I didn't try to have a phone conversation, it was manageable. But I think the dogs would not agree. After having just about everything stacked up, boxed up, shoved around or completely moved out, their daily routine has been turned upside down. They're not used to us living upstairs and they haven't been in the back yard for 3 days and run to the back door every we come down. Wouldn't they just LOVE to dig into those big, fresh piles of dirt back there? But forget it guys. Its not gonna happen.

One alarming thing I saw today--well next to them JACK HAMMERING THROUGH MY KITCHEN AND CLOSET FLOORS was when I saw one guy rolling a big wheelbarrow of cement into my garage! I asked him with some noticeable fear in my voice, "Is that going in my house?" He just sort of chuckled and said "yes!" Oy...I guess they know what they're doing. I told him not to spill it.

Tomorrow is Thursday and although the work seems slow, if you consider how deep those holes are, and the number of them (13 total) that's pretty darn fast. I don't know how they do this. If you've ever tried to plant a tree in this soil here you'll know how hard it is to dig a foot let alone 4 or 5. And when they left today, there was really no trace of them except for a thick piece of plywood covering the hole in the floor. Could be worse right?

Not sure when the actual "leveling" will take place but will keep you posted.

Demolition Derby or Our Foundation Repair Saga

2011-01-12T12:00:00.002-06:00

Here is my first video of the foundation repair process. This is in our kitchen believe it or not. They have to jack hammer through the tile and the slab and then dig down several feet to put in concrete piers which then will then will be pressed further down into the ground several feet more until they hit rock. At least thats how I understand it so far. They have already dug 11 holes around the outside of the house. Within the first hour of digging on Monday they managed to cut the line to our phones, internet and TV. Not a good thing if you're trying to work from home. Thank heavens for my iPhone! And by the way, it was 28 degrees outside this morning and the heat is off downstairs so that the dust doesn't circulate through the vents throughout the house, which is why the workers are bundled up. I'll post pictures of the outside later. Feel free to ask questions and leave comments below this post.

Testing

2011-01-03T16:40:00.002-06:00

I posted this from my iPhone. Pretty cool! Maybe I'll post more now!

Not a serious bone in the bunch. There are more of the same. I think we got one "normal" one. Poor Jeff. How does he put up with us?

Catching Up

2011-01-02T09:33:00.002-06:00

Well I hate to say it but I've let the last few months get away from me with out any posts. Its been a very busy time as I'm sure you can all attest to but I really don't have a very good excuse. I have lots of pictures and events to post so stay tuned for the big "catch up." Here are just a few pictures as preview:

The Supers at Fuddruckers during their Thanksgiving visit

Emerson using Grandpa's new leaf blower as a powerful and deadly Iron Man weapon

Miss Payton and her Dad. The girl just likes being outside thank you very much!

Emerson looking good during a trip to Juju's Hair Salon

Juju's turn

Zach turns 18!!! What the heck? How did this happen?

Getting help with the candle

Katherine has taught James a very bad habit of pulling faces for pictures!

Jeff and Jenny in San Francisco preparing to ride across the Golden Gate Bridge

Bubba and Grandma

Miss Payton and Grandpa

Kissing her new baby doll. Awwwww!

Bubba and Uncle Andrew.

A fun way to start the Christmas season.

2010-11-30T07:59:00.003-06:00

I wish someone would do this at our mall!

This is what's so great about America!!!

Have fun Christmas shopping!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-30T07:57:00.000-06:00

Well its hard to believe Thanksgiving has come and gone already. It was great having Mom and Dad here again for the big Turkey day.

A great message to start the week of Thanksgiving

2010-11-19T08:54:00.000-06:00

Does anybody care that I do this?

2010-11-12T22:01:00.002-06:00

Just wondering...

Happy Veteran's Day Dad

2010-11-11T10:06:00.002-06:00

Just want to thank all the men and women who serve this country, some putting themselves in harms way every day. I am grateful for their courage and patriotism.

I also want to wish Dad a Happy Veteran's Day. I loved going on base with him as a kid and watching all those other guys saluting him! I was so proud. I still am. I know his service to our country, his sense of patriotism and love for our country have much to do with the man he is today--the man we all love, honor and respect.

Thanks for your service Dad!

Love,
Jenny

For Grandma

2010-11-08T21:15:00.000-06:00

The last time Grandma was visiting she laughed and laughed about all of us standing around looking at these small square devices. Mom you should enjoy this:

Miscellaneous pictures and video

2010-11-07T20:26:00.004-06:00

I have been very lax lately posting fun pictures and stuff so I'm going to lump a whole bunch here together for your enjoyment.

Payton, Jared & Emerson

Miss Payton

Emerson at the duck park

Bubba's first jet ski ride

Zach and Emerson in their matching swimming trunks

Iron Man "fishing" at the Fall Festival

Miss Payton the Lady Bug

Out with Grandma on a beautiful fall morning and stopping for a Round Rock donut. Mmmmm!

Happy Birthday Aleta! The big 5 0 !!!

2010-11-07T14:42:00.005-06:00

Lots of birthday wishes going out to Aleta on her 50th birthday. She spent the day with JoAnn in Huntsville yesterday--sort of a "spa" doing hair and make up and then a photo session--you know...girls stuff. Here are some of the photos JoAnn took. Like I've already said, 50 looks beautiful on you Aleta!

Nice work Jo!

Oh yes and heres' a little birthday wish that Mom will especially enjoy. Thanks for finding this Katherine!

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T15:02:00.001-05:00

Alas Halloween falls on Sunday this year. I hope you all have had your local Halloween fun on Saturday so you won't miss the fun. We'll be answering the door with treats here tonight--don't want our house egged. Here's a fun and scary Halloween card for you all!

Click here: Happy Halloween!

Danielle's Debut with the West Jordan Symphony Orchestra

2010-10-10T20:29:00.003-05:00

Don't have a whole lot of details but it sounds like the concert was quite the success. Chris even said it was pretty good. Get ready for the Christmas Concert coming up. Dani will keep us informed!

Congratulations Dani! We're proud of you!

Or as Chris would put it, "Nerdfest Concert!"

Dani's right in the middle next the the cello players doing nuthin'

Are these performers with Dani or just some of the "nerds" that showed up in costume?

According to his dad, Nathan spent most of the time slapping Grandpa Bruce around.

Looks like they're having a good time to me!

Proud Grandma & Grandpa

Miss Payton's Birthday Bash!

2010-10-04T21:59:00.002-05:00

Well the big ta-doo was last Saturday and it was quite the event. Miss Payton was all dressed up in her new Birthday Party dress and was quite the sensation! The theme for the party was Alice in Wonderland complete with a Cheshire Cat cake, cupcakes displaying the message "Eat Me" on top and plenty of little kids running around to keep Payton amused for the duration.

Although our guest of honor was fresh from her morning nap we had to consider that she is still only a year old and would soon start showing signs of sensory overload so after mingling with her many guests, we went straight to the birthday cake and the Happy Birthday Song.

Emerson was quick to take care of blowing out the candle for her without batting an eye so the candle was re-lit for Payton to give it her best shot.

Unfortunately, she surprised us all by quickly reaching for the candle and putting the flame out with her 2 little pincers! Ouch! Nobody saw that coming but she was soon busily opening her many gifts.

Happy Birthday Sweetie Pie!

Soon after completing the task and having a snack and some delicious cake, it was clear the Birthday Girl was ready for another nap! Though a relatively short party, we all had a great time celebrating this little sweetheart who came into our lives just a year ago and stole all our hearts away! Happy Birthday Payton!

Grandma's New iPhone

2010-09-26T15:14:00.011-05:00

Any of you who are "friends" with me on Facebook know of the saga of procuring my iPhone. When it finally did come we had a lot of fun with it.

Everyone loves to take pictures of themselves and their friends with their digital cameras and smart phones which require you to turn the device around and hope you've got yourself focused and centered in the view finder before snapping. With the iPhone there is a feature that allows you flip the view so that you can look into the display and see yourself in the view finder and take a decent picture or video. That should explain the interest everyone had in it and why everyone--especially Payton, Emerson and Katherine look so enchanted by their own images. Pretty darn cool!

At last it arrives. Let the fun begin!

Even Miss Payton is diggin' it!

A couple of hams...

Showing off the new "tatoo"

Dad looks confused...

Look! He's nearly smiling! I however look like a horse.

I wish I could count how many pictures I had exactly like this one.

This is what happens when you accidentally snap a picture while spinning the phone.

Self portrait by Emerson


As you can see, Katherine played with my phone the most.

Miss Payton turns 1 year old!!!

2010-09-26T14:13:00.001-05:00

Today is Miss Payton's first birthday. Its hard to believe a year has already passed. How did this happen? Her big birthday bash will be held next Saturday October 3. Stay tuned for photos and video. It promises to be a fun event!

Zach's Eagle Court of Honor

2010-09-26T13:48:00.003-05:00

I know its been more than 2 months now since Zach was awarded his Eagle but I can't let the occasion pass without a major post to the blog. Grandma and Grandpa made another trip down to attend. We were all so glad to have them there. The Court of Honor was a great success but not without its obstacles...one of them being that we almost had to have it WITHOUT an American flag! That borders on sacrilege. Fortunately Jeff has the connections and we were able to round one up. We had one of Zach's former scout leaders, Mike Ashmore who came up from San Antonio speak, and a letter was read from Sam Roundy, another former leader. (Incidentally, Sam was also my former piano teacher.) Then Jared, our first Eagle Scout in the family, did the Eagle Charge having Zach and all the Eagle scouts present stand and recite, and then presented Zach with his award. He did a great job.

We then served cake (sooooo delicious thanks to Tricia Campbell www.icravecake.blogspot.com) mingled with friends and family, took a lot of pictures and then...it was time to go home. It was a great evening--hopefully one Zach will always remember. Many thanks to all who contributed to Zach's scouting success. I think he would agree that he couldn't have done it alone. There are more people than I can count that deserve thanks.

Pictures of the evening are below as well as the slide show I put together that was presented as part of the program. Please refer to the post from last year with pictures of Zach's Eagle Project:

http://signsofthelovelandfamilytimes.blogspot.com/2009/11/zachs-eagle-project.html

Voice of the Spirit

2010-09-12T16:15:00.003-05:00

From The Mormon Channel

"Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?"

Mormon Channel Radio!!!

2010-08-04T12:07:00.001-05:00

I just downloaded this app to my new awesome (most of the time) iPhone and I love this!
This radio station streams devotionals, Tabernacle Choir Music, Music and the Spoken Word, the Monthly Visiting Teaching message, News of the Church and more and its streamed 24/7! I just finished a walk listening to Elder Christofferson's last conference address, "I Feel My Savior's Love" by the Tabernacle Choir. It was amazing and so easy!

You can also access General Conference addresses, church magazines and the scriptures. If you've got an iPhone or iTouch, you've got to get this! I'm also putting the widget on this blog. Just click!

Slacking Off...

2010-07-18T23:19:00.002-05:00

Well I confess I've been a slacker lately and have not done much blogging. I've been working on my professional blog these past couple of weeks and it has pretty much consumed my life.

Not much has been going on here lately. I will have quite a bit to report in the next week or so with the grandparents coming down again to Texas--this time for Zach's Eagle Court of Honor so stay tuned for reports of that exciting event and of their 2nd trip to Texas this summer!

Katherine had a birthday this past week and turned 24! I was putting candles on her cake and used the whole box. I had to stop and think...is she 23 or 24? How did she get to be 24 already?

Well, sorry this is short. Stay tuned for more exciting news from Texas.

Miss Payton

2010-07-04T23:17:00.001-05:00

What a sweetie. She is the most pleasant happy child I've ever seen.

Happy 4th of July!

2010-07-04T19:33:00.000-05:00

We live in the greatest nation on earth. Let us never take it for granted!

These are "Oh my Gosh! Juliet Should Open a Cupcake Shop!" good.

2010-06-27T22:43:00.000-05:00

Soooo delicious!!!

And so pretty!

How Was Your Father's Day?

2010-06-23T17:22:00.009-05:00

It was a lot of fun at the Sawyer house hold on Father's Day. Katherine and I got up early to make breakfast for Jeff. Ebilskievers (small round pancakes) were on the menu and they were delicious!

Jared and Emerson also had their share--Emerson ate 7 of them! Ebilskievers may become a new family favorite.

We had a houseful for dinner which included an awesome layered cake--made with a lot of TLC by Juliet, and of course presents. I'm sure little Emerson was wondering where the candles were and how come Dad and Grandpa were having another birthday. Hope you all had a great Father's Day! Tell us all how the day was for you by leaving your comments below please.

Holy Crepe Myrtle!!!

2010-06-23T15:25:00.007-05:00

Crepe Myrtles are one of my most favorite flowering trees of Texas.   Well, they're not native to Texas but they thrive here.  They bloom from  June through July.  They love the heat and sun and are drought  proof but after 2 years of drought and a lot of rain this spring the  Crepe Myrtles in Round Rock are thriving--exploding!  Its as though they've been saving all their blooms for a rainy-er  day.

I've never seen such thick blooms--the branches are just heavy with them!  I've been here almost 23 years and I don't remember  these flowering trees looking so spectacular. 
My neighborhood
 You see them in big puffy clouds of pink,  deep fuchsia, red, lavender and white and they are everywhere!  You see them in the  grocery store parking lot, McDonald's, next to buildings under  construction, along streets, parks and in very lucky home owners'  yards.

They are beautiful and I just can't get enough of them. I think my  family is getting sick of hearing me say "Oh look at that  gorgeous  Crepe Myrtle!  Oh look at that one!"

So look at these!  I hope  you  enjoy them as much as I do!

See! I told you! At McDonalds!

At Sprouts
 In my neighborhood

Happy Father's Day!

2010-06-19T21:41:00.000-05:00

Here's to all the fathers out there!  Thanks for all you to support your wives, children, grandchildren, dogs and cats.  We love you and appreciate all you do!

"Stories From an In-Flight Slave" by Allyson Johnston

2010-06-18T23:20:00.002-05:00

Blogger alert! Check out the new blog--funny stories by our family flight attendant Allyson. If you've ever heard any of her stories while working at 37,000 feet or even on the ground with the crew, you'll enjoy reading more here. She's just getting started so hang in there. This should be good!

http://storiesfromanin-flightslave.blogspot.com/

Texas Memorial Day

2010-06-14T19:19:00.001-05:00

Still waiting on photos from Jared's I phone since I forgot my dang a camera. We dragged the jet ski out (no Emerson this time--maybe on the 4th of July) and we've all decided we really need 2 jet skis to make it the most fun so Jared has been perusing Craigslist for a pair. Miss Payton was the most pleasant participant that day. She was just happy to be there with everyone and to be outside. I swear, the child rarely cries.

Stay tuned for pictures...just waiting on Jared...

Okay, here we go....

At the Pool

2010-06-14T19:16:00.001-05:00

Emerson, Jared, Zach and I had a little fun at our neighborhood pool yesterday. Emerson wasn't too keen on the idea of getting into the water at first. I thought we were about to go home until two little boys and their mother arrived and he watched them swim around, dunking their heads completely under and having a great time. One of them was probably a little older than Emerson and the other one younger. I think he has some of the "competitive nature" of a few of our family members (what an understatement) and wasn't to be outdone by these kids, so it didn't take long until he got in and had a blast. Now if we could just get him to keep his mouth closed underwater he might learn to swim one of these days.

Where's My Blog Title?

2010-06-13T20:23:00.000-05:00

Not sure what happened to "Signs of the Loveland Family Times." I tried a new template (I'm not sure I like this one) and when I did the title went away and now I can't get it back. I've emailed Blogger for help but until I hear from someone, this is as good as it gets. Kimbur...got a solution for me?

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

2010-06-13T09:07:00.001-05:00

Wish we could all be there to celebrate. Just wait until next year! It will be a BLOW OUT!!!

Super G-ma and G-pa Trip 2010

2010-06-13T08:45:00.009-05:00

The Spring "Super G" trip has become an annual thing. There was some fear that they weren't going to make the flight but they got on after all--even First Class. We had the bonus of having Andrew visiting on the same trip--on break from school and work for a week and he was on the same flight--although not in first class--sorry Andrew. It was really nice only having to make one trip to the airport!

Our goal was to keep Grandma and Grandpa busy without wearing them out and allow them to have a little down time to relax. I hope we accomplished that. The first thing on the agenda the night they arrived was celebrating Grandma's birthday. With a little help from Emerson she extinguished the question mark candle and finally put that thing to its final rest. (You will see it in at least 2 other birthday posts.) We did dispense with the trip to San Antonio (boo) but we ate a lot of good food, celebrated Mothers day, (I was in Utah on the real Mother's Day), did a little window shopping at the "Domain," took in a Round Rock Express baseball game and had a lot of family time including a great Family Home Evening. And of course, we drove down to Oak Hill to see the old "homestead" and did a little reminiscing. Now if only we could get Zach and Grandpa to smile for pictures. Actually, we got close, if you look very closely you will see it.

Happy Birthday Grandma!

One week went by very fast. We always wish they would stay a little longer. We'd love to have them visit even more often but I think Grandma likes her bed better.

And let me take this opportunity to make a standing invitation to anyone who would like to visit us in the great state of Texas. We do our best to show you a good time!

The Dennings Go to Moab

2010-06-12T23:59:00.000-05:00

This past Memorial Day weekend Bruce and a fairly large gang made the trek to Moab Utah for a few days of camping, jeeping, biking and apparently climbing and rolling down hills of sand.  Bruce gave me a pretty detailed travelogue of their adventure and although it sounded way fun...it also sounded just a little bit crazy.  But what else would we expect?  I lifted these photos from Danielle's Facebook page.  There are some pretty spectacular photos here of the red rocks and shots of the front of the jeep driving into the wild blue yonder.  Like I said...just a little bit crazy!  We would love to hear the comments from all who attended as well as those of us who did not but wish we had.  Enjoy!

Jumping Back In

2010-06-12T22:23:00.011-05:00

Its been a while since I've even wanted to post anything here. Losing Lynette really knocked the wind out of me. My last posts were done in sort of a fog--in an effort to get "back to normal" but eventually I had to put it, and just about everything else aside for a while. I wondered if I'd ever feel normal again. But just in the last day or so I'm feeling the beginnings of a "new normal." Not exactly the same but I'm at least able to get through my day a little easier--feeling less of the grief weighing down on me. They say that "time heals all wounds." I wasn't sure I believed that a month ago but I'm beginning to see just a glimmer of it now and I am grateful for it. How could we survive if we felt that much pain forever?

I hope all of you, my dear family and friends are feeling some measure of the comfort and peace I have just begun to feel. I pray every day for all of you and that you will. You are what is MOST important in my life. I know that's the way Lynette would want it to be for all our family. I know you all have similar feelings. Your thoughts and comments are welcomed. Just click on Comments below.

Love,

Jenny

Bubba Turns 3!!!

2010-05-15T16:39:00.018-05:00

Well today was the big day. Due to the threat of rain, the big birthday bash was moved to Jared & Juliet's house. It was sensory overload for 6 children under the age of 5. All took a whack at the dragon pinata and pinned the tail on the dragon. We had an awesome and delicious dinosaur cake and of course plenty of presents. Looks like everyone got the word that Emerson is way into Iron Man (just see Jared's Facebook page). I'm sure everyone including the adults were ready for a nap when the festivities were over.

Happy Birthday Emerson!

Mothers Day Weekend

2010-05-14T22:51:00.001-05:00

It was a bittersweet week in Utah. I felt so blessed for the gorgeous weather that weekend allowing us to enjoy the beautiful grounds on Temple Square and to spend Mothers Day with my mother--which hasn't happened in a very long time. Please note the pictures of Dad giving Mom flowers--he's almost smiling!

Web Albums

2010-05-14T12:42:00.000-05:00

I've finally figured out how to post a web album slide show here...in case you haven't already noticed. Katherine & James' wedding photos would have been posted long ago had I known how to do it then so here they are now. Enjoy!

What Matters Most

2010-05-12T11:36:00.003-05:00

Dedicated to Lynette. In honor of her, let us never forget what matters most.

GO SPURS GO!!!

2010-04-30T12:59:00.003-05:00

Take that you mean old nasty Mavs! That's what you get for breaking Super G's nose. Best part of this first series was that Jeff and I were at game 3 in San Antonio! My pictures were taken from my phone (left the dang camera in the car!) But it was so fun and SO loud. Jeff and I came out of there half deaf and feeling like we'd been to a WHO concert!

Next up...the Phoenix Suns. Bring it on Steve Nash and Amare Staudemire! Too bad Big Shot Rob still isn't around to put Nash under the table again! ...just kidding!

These were awesome seats! Sure beats the nose bleed section. Not sure I'll ever be able to sit up there again after this!

Cutie Pies!

2010-04-29T22:27:00.003-05:00

These are some random pictures I've been taking using an awesome camera on loan from a friend. First we see Miss Payton showing us all how much she loves sweet potatoes. Then we see Emerson giving his dad a hand with some yard work and don't miss the two shots of my first rose of the season. And again Miss Payton, only this time we see her getting very excited about Elmo doing the Hokey Pokey and then there is Emerson loving on his little sister maybe just a little too much! Oops...looks like the turtle pictures got in there too!

Little Lost Turtle

2010-04-29T22:18:00.005-05:00

Now here's something you don't see every day. I looked out the window yesterday and this is what I saw strolling down our street right out in front of our house. I couldn't get close enough to get a decent shot without him pulling his head and legs inside his shell. I followed him to make sure he didn't get run over by a car. Good thing we live in a culdesac. I hope he found his way home!

Bubba Goes Camping!

2010-04-28T10:21:00.004-05:00

Super G-ma and G-pa Trip 2009

2010-04-13T21:34:00.000-05:00

Easter Egg Hunt

2010-04-13T16:44:00.001-05:00

Our Easter Egg hunt was put off a week because of Emerson developing a case of "pink eye." Fortunately we have connections and arranged for the Easter Bunny to make a special trip for the following week. And as Emerson was fully recovered this last Sunday the Easter Egg hunt was on! He was very excited about his dinosaur eggs and showed his enthusiasm for the event throughout. Payton on the other hand was just happy to be there, as always and was happy to receive her Easter Duck to put her newly erupted teeth into when delivered by her brother. They both seemed happy with all that the Easter Bunny delivered and Emerson even called from Dad's cell phone on his way home to say "thank you."

Madison's Baptism -- March 11, 2010

2010-03-26T22:21:00.004-05:00

Miss Madison Wenzel (our new grand daughter) was baptized a member of the church on March 11 by her most awesome stepdad Jared. It was a great event! It was held on Wednesday night which is our regular Mutual night for the youth, so all the young men and young women were there to support her. Her dad was able to come as well so there was quite a turn out. Jeff spoke on Baptism and Zach spoke on the Holy Ghost. Katherine sang "When I Am Baptized" and the youth sang the song "Be Strong"--a request by Madison.

While Madison and Jared changed, we had a little mini-tesimony meeting. Even Madison's dad stood up and thanked everyone for showing their love and support for Madison and that he was very glad that Madison had chosen to be a member of this church.

We are all excited for Madison and hope this will be just the beginning of great new things in her life. We love her and congratulate her on this great day! I hope all of you will send her your congratulations as well.

Clinton's (IL) Number One Fan

2010-03-17T14:45:00.008-05:00

The Clinton Journal
BY: Tim Moran
Posted: Monday, Mar 1st, 2010

"As true as they come, Paul Huffman is, and always will be a Clinton Legend."

Sadly, Clinton athletics’ biggest supporter over the last 60-70 years passed away Saturday in Decatur at age 86.
For years, if one were to attend a Clinton High School sporting event, there’s a good chance Paul Huffman was there.
Paul never had a child or grandchild on the team. Many nights were cold and rainy and Paul often had no mode of transportation. But there he was, every night in row one, cheering on his beloved Maroons.
And in basketball season, after Paul would cheer on the Maroons win or lose, he would sweep the floors.
He spent years as a custodian for the school. He called that job “a highlight” of his life.
Before the game, Paul would be seen standing at attention, proudly singing the Star Spangled Banner.
He was indeed Clinton’s number one fan. No one was prouder of the town he loved, and no one was loved more than Paul.
“You just can’t say anything bad about Paul,” neighbor Vera Bright said in a 2009 interview with the Clinton Journal.
“He made sure that if you were his friend, you were his true friend. You can’t find anyone who would say anything bad about Paul.”
If someone was meeting Paul for the very first time, they would feel like they were talking to a longtime friend.
Who were Paul's friends in town? Everyone.
"Paul is never a stranger," friend Joel Hendricks said. "He can make conversation with everybody and will always remember you."
Not only did Paul attend every sporting event for years, he would be seen at all community events and parades. Whenever someone was being honored, Paul would make a point to be there.
"Paul is the ultimate Clintonian," longtime friend Cyndie Andrews said. "He has given this community his humble all."
"I would see him at games and wonder how he got there. And then afterward he disappeared seamingly like magic to show up at the next sporting event, parade, funeral, visitation or whatever the Clinton agenda was for that day or evening."
He was as good of a man as Clinton ever had.
Paul would often be seen with some of his closest friends at Darvin's Barber Shop in his later years.
"Everyone looked out for Paul and he would help anybody," friend Darvin Volker said. "Everybody did Paul right and he never had trouble getting a ride anywhere."
As true as they come, Paul Huffman is, and always will be a Clinton Legend.