The "Old-Timers" meet again!

Last Friday we had a real treat when a group of our past senior missionaries joined us in our home for dinner. We had saramale, mamaliga and lots of other good food. Of course, we reminisced about the mission and the people we love in Romania. It was a real treat and again, we were so thankful for the opportunity we had to serve in that country with all of these dedicated and hard working people.

The Lofgreen's and below, the Cannon's.
Attending were the Wrights, Bryson's, Watson's, Jacob's, Lofgreen's, Bowman's, Hanson's, Sister Wallin, Dr. Moody and his wife, Evelyn, the Creamer's, the Cannon's, the Facer's, the Boyle's and of course us, the Ashby's!
"Old Timers"? Well, yes, I called this posting that because, after everyone walked into our home and were sitting around visiting, one of my kids came up to me later and said, "Mom, I've never seen so many old people in our house at the same time before!" I just had to laugh! Boy, is our perspective different than our kids! These people all worked their tails off with us in Romania. I never thought of a single one of them being "old"! Now, when I was young, I thought anyone 50 years old was up to his knees in the grave, but, since passing that milestone myself, I now realize what a young age 50 actually is! At any rate, it's really true that you are only as old as you feel! The spirit is young no matter how old the body gets and we saw that demonstrated so many times while working with these wonderful couples during our missions.

The Travel Bug Hit!

The last few weeks we have been on the road again. After traveling 3 weeks out of every 6 while serving in Romania, it has taken us a year to have the desire to hit the road again! This past year has been spent moving into our new home, spending a lot of time with family and spending time at our cabin. However, this summer it was time for us to go to Seattle and visit our son, Curtis and his family, in Everett, Washington. We decided to drive up there and enjoy the scenery along the way! We ended up spending 8 days with them (which included the 4th of July and some crazy fireworks with their neighbors) and then going up into the San Juan Islands. In the San Juan Islands we stayed in a beautiful home on Lopez Island for four days where we relaxed, collected shells, and went whale watching! It was awesome! After that we went to Victoria, BC for a few days and among other things visited the famous Butchart Gardens. Sadly, we got a call at this time telling us one of our senior missionaries had passed away and John flew home to speak at Kris Johnston's funeral. I was sad I couldn't go with him but we had our car and some friends with us and I had to stay with the vehicle! After the funeral John flew back to Portland, Oregon and met us there. We continued from there down the coast, exploring and staying wherever we felt like it. It was very beautiful and again, we explored the beaches and watched a lot of Sea Lions lumber and play around. From there we spent a few days in the California Giant Coastal Redwood forests. Wow! It was like being in a fairy land or maybe "middle-earth". We hiked and had a lot of fun exploring that area. On our trip we bet each other who could be the first to find the most wildlife.....we saw a cute little green frog, deer (that came up to us and ate our of our hands), killer whales (who didn't eat out of our hands!), elk, a fox, bunnies, Sea Lions, Seals and fish! Maybe more....I can't remember! We topped our trip off with stopping in Nevada City on our way back to SLC and participated in the baptism of three of our grandchildren.....Alex, Raistlin and Aurora Ashby. That was a real treat and we were so happy to be able to again be at a special event like this with our family.
The trip was great, but as they say "There's no place like home!" and it is good to be home again. Below are a few photos highlighting the trip! Curtis, Giovana, Marcus and Juliana.....our family in Washington!

Our good friends, John and Bonnie VanderVeur joined us for the last two weeks of our trip.
Bonnie and I go off on the "Sea Lion" to see if we can spot any whales!





















Brandon Ashby and his kids . . . Alex, Raistlin and Aurora

Bringin' Home the meat!

Well, yes, John did make up for five years of NO Hunting! Besides getting his elk this past fall, he got a buffalo in January and couldn't resist stuffing the head. We recently got the big guy back and John was happy to tell us that this scruffy looking animal was the leader of the pack. He had been in many fights in order to dominate his herd and thus his horns were chipped and scarred and the hair around his face was not the pretty look of a proud, young bull. John loved getting a fighter! By the way, this bull and several others were marked to taken this year because of their age and the plan that had been put in place for herd management. If John hadn't gotten him someone else would eventually have done so. That made it easier for him to shoot such a majestic animal!

It was a monster but boy did it give us a ton of meat! We ended up having to buy another freezer. However, our kids now think our garage is the local FREE butcher shop and they don't hesitate to drop by to fill their shopping carts!
Now, what to do with that monster head! We ended up putting it in our cabin in Fairview, Utah. It was too big for any wall but one bedroom. He's quite a site to be laying in bed and looking up at!
It took our son, Brandon, and John a good hour to struggle it up the wall but they finally made it and now anyone who walks in that room in the dark better beware! Mostly because it might scare the pants off you if you don't know its there! :)

We're Finally Moved In!

Today we finally moved our last item out of storage! After 8 months we have finally and completely moved into our new home! John cheered when he looked in the storage garage and realized he didn't have to move one more thing! Everything is on our property now....albiet, not all organized, but here! John's '53 Buick pulled in the drive way and settled in its new home....the garage. We breathed a sign of relief. Now to finish putting everything away or give it away.....that's the goal!

By the way, our mission president from our first mission to Romania, President and Sister Hansen, came to visit us yesterday. We had a great visit with them and spent several hours hashing over our missions. I hate to say it but, it made us a little homesick!

This week . . .

Three of our grandkids, Hannah, Charly and Nicolas, got to have their picture taken with Elder Christofferson this past Sunday. I told Hannah she may not get this opportunity again and she was very shy about it. She recently got her recommend to do baptisms in the temple and is excited for her first time to go.

I wish Spring would really get here! These darn deer won't leave the field next to our house and I know the minute my roses bloom they will eat them! We have a small herd of about a dozen that can't get it into their little heads that deer belong on the mountain....not the city limits of Draper! Well, I have to admit that the two little fawns are sure cute! In this picture they were just daring me to come closer. About a week ago we were at the cabin and their must have been hundreds of deer in this big open meadow. As we drove down a dirt road I saw a group of about twenty next to the fence. We stopped the car to look at them and they started to lope away. I rolled down my window and yelled, "You teenage deer, stop this instant, turn around and listen to me!" I was shocked when the whole herd immediately stopped, turned around, stood there and stared at me! They left me speechless. I finally said, "well, you can go now. I just wanted to tell you to mind your manners and not eat the flowers in people's yards. Be good deer and stay out of trouble." I'll be darned if those deer didn't turn around and run away as soon as I was through talking! It was the weirdest thing. I swear they listened to what I was saying to them!This last week, our Granddaughter, Zoey Sutherland performed in her class play, "A Comedy of Errors" by Shakespear. She got to play the role of the old father, who the King and everyone else, was trying to chase out of the town and kill. She did a great job and had to memorize a lot of lines!
Zoey is the "guy" with the white shirt, tan vest and white beard! "His" hands are also tied together with a rope! I didn't recognise her at first! Way to go Zoey!

Tatiana comes to visit Utah

As most of you know about Tatiana, I won't go into much detail except to say that she is the young woman we met the spring of 2004 in Romania. Tatiana was a beautiful girl who had the most severe case of Scoliosis we had ever heard about. She desperately needed surgery as the twisting of her spine was slowly cutting off the air to her lungs and would eventually (within a few years) take her life. Our mission President, President Hanson, talked to us and asked us if we wanted to try and find a way to get her some help. He couldn't do it with the other responsibilities he had going on and so we started this project. It turned out to be very discouraging. Many people in the United States tried to give money and get doctors to operate on her. Steve and Barbara Coombs worked very hard on this end talking to medical people but every one of them refused saying they had never seen a case as bad as hers and that she would probably die on the operating table and they didn't want to be responsible for that! Luis Espinosa, from Utah also spent a lot of time talking to doctors out of Utah. It was discouraging but finally, after four years, a miracle happened and the best Scoliosis doctors in the country and a hospital in Florida agreed to take on her project. Tatiana was operated on twice in January and after two months of recovery is now walking around, has a straight spine and is about three inches taller! She is still very fragile and has to wear a brace for another two months but is recovering rapidly. All the doctors and everyone who has worked with her has been amazed at her progress. A lot of people and organizations gave their time and tons of money to have this happen but, in so doing have saved the life of a wonderful girl. The Lord has answered so many prayers. It took a long time but the miracle happened, and God rewarded her faith and patience.
Last Tuesday Tatiana came to visit us for two days. She came to Utah to spend two weeks here so she could see friends, past missionaries, the Temple and go through the Temple for her own endowments. She also wanted to visit BYU and see what the school is all about. While with us we invited several past missionary couples over and had a little get-together for her with people who have all been concerned and have helped her in different ways. It was a touching time and Tatiana was very sweet and very grateful to everyone. The Boyle's, Lofgreen's, Reed's and Thomas' all came over to visit with Tatiana. There were many other couples who helped her but these few were able to give her a big hug and congratulate her on this wonderful new turn her life has taken.


Tatiana is pointing out Brad Armstrong's square in our missionary quilt. Brad flew to Florida and sat with her day and night after her surgery to give her support and be a translator for all the many people who cared for her and helped her recover. He is another person she will always be grateful to for the service he rendered in her behalf.

Easter - April 12, 2009

Our youngest son, Danny, along with Chelsea and Blake, went to church with us Easter Sunday.It was very different celebrating Easter back in America again! There were no big plates of red eggs and only a few people sent me a text saying "Hiristos a inviat!" but we were blessed to be with our family again and that made it extra special. We started the Easter week with General Conference the weekend before. This was very wonderful for us as Elder Christofferson had sent us four tickets to every session in the conference center. We attended all sessions and were able to take some great people with us. One was an investigator, another an inactive member, another had been excommunicated years before and is slowly coming back to the church and last of all, a couple who are struggling as they are losing their business in this bad economic condition the country is in. I tell you this because it meant a lot to all of them to attend and feel the spirit that exists in the conference center. Elder Holland gave a beautiful talk on the Savior on Sunday morning and that was the perfect start of our Easter week. On Monday, John and I held Family Home Evening with all our grandkids and showed them the video on the Saviors last week of life and his crucifixon. At the part where Jesus was hung on the cross, one of our little 6 year old grandsons cried out and said, "stop this grandma, it's too horrible and I can't bear to watch it!" I was really touched that it affected him that way and felt like we had really helped the kids understand a little better the gifts that Christ had given each of us. On Easter weekend we held an Easter Egg hunt in our yard for our grandkids. We hid over 300 eggs and they had a blast trying to find them. We had a wonderful time.






On Sunday morning we were privileged to enjoy a beautiful Easter sacrament meeting and partake of the sacrament. In the afternoon, our family all came for Easter dinner and it was great to be all together at the end of this most special of all celebrations.
"Hooray for Easter!" Charly yelled out as Brandon reached her up to the sky!
My brother Sam, brought us his latest carved bear he had made. Each one gets bigger and bigger! They are all very cute!

Romania Bucharest Mission Reunion

Last Friday night,during the beginning of conference weekend, we held our mission reunion at the Wilkinson Center on BYU Campus. What a great night! I'm not sure how many actually came but it was somewhere between 150 to 200 people. Most of the missionaries were from our group but we had a nice showing from President Hanson's mission too. Everyone brought good food and we all ate and talked like crazy! The noise level in the room was pretty dang high! We also finished the missionary quilt and had it on display. There was a lot of surprise as people found their own little square and were able to see at a glance how many people made up our mission over the three years we served as mission president. Half way through the night we held a small program. Three missionaries talked about funny experiences they'd had and then President Ashby auctioned off four of his treasures from the mission to help the temple/education fund. They were (1) a CD slide show of Romania, (2) a gypsy twig broom (3) a new Romanian hymn book and (4) a license plate from Bucharest! (This was a big hit and ended up with a donation of $121.00!) Afterwards Sora and President Ashby said a few words and brought everyone up to date on the status of the mission. President Ashby had letters from President Hanson, President Lundberg, and President Geambascu from Oreada. The evening turned out very well and lots of hugs and stories were passed around. Yes, we have the best mission in the church! :)