Love from Mom

Hi, everybody, this is the Mom, (Lynnae) and the grandmother, and I decided that it was time I write again, but I wish each of you would write something back, a comment about the blog, what you are doing in your life right now, what's new in your families, etc. I hope you were all able to watch both Sat. and Sun. of General Conference. We were, and we had Joseph and Tiffany's family, and Anna Marie and Mese's family come for Sunday, we ate the traditional favorite breakfast that dad always make of Grits, ham and fried eggs! Then just barbeque beef sandwiches and salad for lunch with Anna's wonderful recipe she has found for the Chocolate Lava Cake that we all had on the Cruise last year and she and Colette made it for us for dessert!
The talks for conference were so wonderful and inspiring. If you didn't get to hear them, hopefully you recorded them to watch later, or you will read them when the Ensign comes. It's a reminder to me of the loving, kind, and patient men the Lord chooses to lead and teach all of us about our Savior and how to treat one another. Did you notice how many talks were about attending the temple? It has made me rededicate myself to going more often, especially since I have one just 1 1/2 miles from my home! I truly know that if we go more often, we will feel a more loving spirit in our home. Which brings me to give you all an update on how dad and I are doing. Things are going well with us, and we are both trying to bring a better spirit in the home. We have had a few times that we lost our temper, and the kids, Miles, Carol Joy, and Colette have quickly reminded us not to let our voices get loud. It helps and then we apologize, and it shows that even though a person gets in a habit for a long time, it is possible to change. Dad is always good to apologize, and even now, he does it with such sincerity because he knows how hard he has been working on being more loving and patient, and so have I. I too need reminders to keep a calm voice and be more patient. I just want you all to know that Dad and I love each other very much, and we want more than anything to be together in the Celestial Kingdom with all of you, and this is an important goal we have. We plan to go on missons together when the time is right, and spread the gospel as we try to be an example to others out in the mission field about how to live the gospel. We love all of you, and are grateful for your goodness, and your testimonies as you live your lives and are good examples to each other. Please keep it up. Strengthen each other and express your love to each other often, too.
Take a look at Julia's blog also, at www.theatlas-jmkblogspot.com to see all of her pictures of her trip she's on, being a Nanny for some musicians called Mates of State. Next week she'll be in Canada. I'll say good bye for now, and hope to hear from each one of you soon. Even the grandkids. Love, Mom and Grandma

Emmalee and Sikoti

Well, I was just sitting around like I do most of the time up here (that is a good thing) and decided it would be a good idea to post a little something about our lives. We really like it up here. Well, everythng but the cold. It totally snowed last night and we woke up to White. It has been so fun getting to spend time with Hyrum and Jenn and their kids. We have gone to church every sunday and look forward to hearing our prophet speak this coming weekend. We were able to go to our home ward for the first time yesterday and we both really loved it. The bishop reminds me of Joel Osteen. Lol. He has a great spirit about him. There are about fifteen ward service missionary couples in the ward. We actually live in the highest baptizing stake in the whole world. Scotty and I have both been thinking and talking about getting to the temple. I am told that I am about 17 weeks pregnant and have my first doctors appointment this wednesday with a doctor that Michelle Rich refered me to. We are really excited about that. Like dad mentioned we all went to his first game last monday night and even though we did not win, it was still really fun. Lots of family came to support but we are alway glad to have more support and encourage you all to make it up here for at least one game if you can. Scotty is also still in school doing online classed. I am so proud of him for his desire to continue his education. He is going for his masters in Business management. We are still looking for more work but are blessed when we are able to help Sam out with catering to make a little extra. I have also been helping Buffy with her little boy Phillip. We love our little humble appartment and everyday add something to make it more of a home. Well, I guess i should go now but just want you all to know that we love and miss you. We also look forward to hearing about the rest of you all.

Love From Mom, Dad, Sikoti, and Emmalee

We are here at Hyrum and Jen's and they are all gone to the Draper Temple Dedication which is being broadcast to the Stake Centers.  We had a nice Sunday dinner all together and now we are all feeling the effects of a late night.  We came in at 3 am. and Sikoti was playing security guard for Sam until 2:30 am.  Impressive that we were all up for church in spite of no sleep.  Now we are getting groggy, so this will be a short blog.  

     C.J. had a surgery last Friday to do the tuck on her eye and put some platinum in the lid so that it will close all the way.  Her wit came to the fore when she said, "will you go beat up the guy who punched me in the eye."  Seriously she has been suffering pretty much.  It's swollen pretty much and bruising.  Her left wrist is also pretty tender.  They took some tendon out to do the tuck.  She gets a little weepy and complaining sometime, but they gave her some Tylenol with Codine.  Now that stuff does the job.  

Just two days after the surgery she is doing so much better.  She has some more to endure with more nerve transplants to give her movement in her cheek and eyebrow.  The Dr. is determined to make her a raving beauty.  Outside to match the inside.

     The Lord is blessing us.  Our mortgage is back in negotiation for a better modification.  In the mean time we don't have to pay the payment.  We got a good tax return back to get caught up on some bills and we got a fraud rebate from Morgan/Chase for the jerk that ripped us off recently.  We can pay ProPay what we owe them.  We continue to work on the pozzolan thing and have some good prospects.  We just keep on keepin on.  We even have a couple of good prospects for halls when we get back and two appts. to take deposits.  Business.  What do you know.  But what can you expect.  Paid tithing last week and will pay more when we get back.  

     Mom and I have kept up the better relationship although we had a little set back surrounding the move out of Kohls.  Just a lot of stress and potential for doubt and fear to set in and when it does watch out.  But we're having a great trip up here in Utah and enjoying Hyrum and Jen and Emmalee and Sikoti.  Looking forward to Sikoti's first game Monday night.  I'm told they need a quarterback though.  I guess he's not that accurate.  Hope you all can come up to a game or two during the season.  We'll join you.  Well that's all for now.  I'm not hearing much from any of you.  Get on it.  Love the Dad.        

It's about time I got around to posting something about our trip.  I guess other people can read this, but it is written principally to my kids, so if you don't like anything you read, sorry.  We are what we are.  

By way of introduction to my comments for today, I share the following from Pres. Faust from April, 2007 Priesthood Meeting. "I would like to say a word about the ministering of angels.  In ancient and modern times angels have appeared and given instruction, warnings, and direction, which benefited the people they visited.  We do not consciously realize the extent to which ministering angels affect our lives.  President Joseph F. Smith said, 'In like manner our fathers and mothers, brothers, sisters and friends who have passed away from this earth, having been faithful, and worthy to enjoy these rights and privileges, may have a mission given them to visit their relatives and friends upon the earth again, bringing from the divine Presence messages of love, of warning, or reproof and instruction, to those whom they had learned to love in the flesh.'  Many of us feel that we have had this experience.  Their ministry has been and is an important part of the gospel.  Angels ministered to Joseph Smith as he reestablished the gospel in its fulness."

Interesting that he says, "many of us feel that we have had this experience."  So stated I don't think I'd be stretching things to assume that he has had the experience himself.  

While with the Croshaws on Maui, Dave shared what to him was a near fatal auto accident he was involved in and he felt he was miraculously saved.  He was coming back from their property in Cascade near Boise.  Driving later at night, alone near the Simplots plant west of Pocatello he was nearing an overpass with sloping concrete sides and several concrete pillars holding it up.  They were protected by a guard rail.  He fell asleep and awoke when he hit the end of the rail dead in the middle of his front bumper.  The truck was thrown upwards, heading straight for the first column.  He said he was completely calm and unfazed, figuring that this was it.  From there he doesn't remember a thing until the truck came to a stop beyond all the poles on the other side of the overpass.  He had hit nothing but the guardrail and although the air bag deployed the cab of the truck was intact and he was injured only by the abrasions left on his arms by the airbags.  The under carraige of the truck was very damaged, but he walked away.  Two witnesses stopped to see how he was and couldn't believe that he didn't hit the pole. Somehow he was pushed up on to the sloping concrete side and carried beyond the rest of the poles.  He made the comment that he was sure someone was watching out for him.  He even mentioned sensing that his dad was somehow responsible.

Later on we had gotten up and fixed breakfast and were sitting around the table dressed in swim wear ready to go out snorkeling and swimming.  We finished eating and started a game of around the horn.  We began talking and soon landed on the topic of the temple.  They are ordinance workers in I.F.  The conversation became very spiritual and Dave and Debbie asked Lynnae a couple of very innocent questions regarding her visits from those from beyond. Somewhat in jest, but also seriously Dave asked Lynnae if she ever saw Hazel would she ask if she is singing in a choir with his Mom.  

Maybe some of you may not know that Dave's mom used to come and pick Hazel and Aunt Inez up to go sing in her ward choir and when grandma started having us kids, she wanted to get involved in a church and knowing some ward members she went back to the old 4th ward instead of looking into a different church that grandpa would feel more comfortable with.  He had been Presbyterian.  

As we sat there, I was telling something about an observation I had had in the temple and Mom reached over and took Debbie's hand and they both began tearing up, just nodding to each other.  Mom said, "They are here."  She was talking about Dave's parents.  They had come to reassure Dave that he indeed had paid his mom enough attention just before she died and that they loved him and were so proud of him.  They acknowledged his service as a bishop and now on the high council and especially in the temple.  They had been temple workers for many years.  In fact the day I was endowed, I went back to the temple with them that night and did a couple of more sessions.  Dave's dad played the part of Satan.  He was a good one.  

Dave asked if his mom was singing in a choir with Hazel.  She said no.  She sees them, Miles and Hazel often, but they don't sing together.  He also asked if they were there during his accident.  "Of course," was the reply.  No other explanation.

Then they got around to what I think was the principle reason for their visit.  Dave's oldest sister, Verna Lee, is married to a non-member.  She has not been active for many years.  Her first husband and she were sealed in the temple, but he was unfaithful and they divorced.  She moved to SLC and dropped out of church.  Lately she has been asking Dave a lot of questions and they expressed their concern about her.  She is a wonderful aunt and always insists that the family get together for funerals, etc.  They want Dave to let her know how much they appreciate this and how important it is for the family to get together often.  In fact they want him to let her know that they want the family together for eternity.  They also wanted to have him let her know that they very much appreciated her efforts as well as his in getting the body of their last little child, Mark Thomas,(stillborn)  exhumed from an I.F. cemetery and reburied in the family plot in Oxford, Id. This meant a lot the them.  

We talked for a long time and mom could still feel them, but they had delivered their messages and were just there for whatever reason.  The next thing you know we looked at the clock and it was 4 pm.  We never got a toe in the water that day, but no one even cared.  That's the kind of trip it was.  No one compulsive, no one on their own page, just enjoying being together and watching whales and growing closer.  

We did share with them our recent meeting with our bishop and what an amazing experience this has been.  They both said they had noticed a marked change in our relationship.  What a blessed time in our lives.  We met with the Bishop Sunday and it was neat.  He was sitting near us in front of his desk and he was right in front of a picture of the Savior.  There in front of us were the two men who had made this wonderful rebirth possible.  We spent two hours with him just talking about our plans and how we met and how he met Amy Allred.  It was all good and then to go to the temple last night was the crowning blessing.  Mom had to go do Kohls, but Joseph and Sarah and Haini were on the 6 pm session and I met them in the Celestial Room with Haini's parents.  So disappointing for mom not to be there and share in that moment. We'll all go again soon.  

Well sorry this has been so long.  I'll get a little more regular with this and not take so long to catch up.  We love you all.  Keep doing the good things.  Dad

Love from Mom and Dad

Hi everyone, all Knappkins, we are here at the Ugapos, we being Grandma and Grandpa, Julia, Joseph, Miles, Carol Joy, Eve, Heinrich, and Bella. We came to see the new baby girl, Gwenyth Lynnae Ugapo, born March 3, 2009, at 7:35 am, she weighed 7 lbs. 5 oz. and 20 in. long. She looks alot like Marlowe with lots of dark hair, but she has features of all 4 of them. We came to bring lunch after church and we met Julia here who came for the first time to see the baby.
How are you all doing? We hope all is well with each of you in your individual life experiences. How happy we are that Emmalee was able to join Sikoti in Orem at Hyrum's, as he's been there for 2 weeks without her, and he's been practicing on his Arena Football team, the Thunders. They were able to get a 2 bdrm apartment in Provo, and they'll be able to move in on Mar. 19. We are also excited that Joseph and Tiffany are renting a house in Banning, again, and Tiffany will be coming back from Connecticut with the boys on Mar. 21. We are so excited to see them again and have them back here with us, even though they have had a great time with the other grandparents! Colette has been in Connecticut visiting the family she was a Nanny for. She's coming home on Sun. nite, and guess who's coming back from his mission on Thurs. Mar. 12? Yep, it's Elder Totai and we hope to go to the airport to welcome him home.
Do you all know that Kaitlynn turned 12 on Mar. 4, and Mese will turn 32 on the 11th, and Joseph will turn 30 on the 17th (St. Patricks Day), and Kamryn will turn 9 on the 21st. and Mason's will turn 2 on the 23rd. Wow!! Alot of birthdays. Happy Birthday to all you!!!! We love you all. Please write soon so we can all hear from you. Love, Grandma

About the Blog

The name is obvious. The scripture was my father's favorite. It really speaks to me now. We are looking for some kind of background that is some kind of a napkin. Suggesting that we are seated at some restaurant scribbling notes to each other on a napkin. If you can find such an image and can paste it to our blog as a background or border, just do it. Hyrum. You are the man.

Some Explanations

We would like to hear from every family each week. What you post on this blog can be whatever you want. Experiences, Talks, Advice, Humor oh especially humor, Accomplishments, Notices, Invitations, etc. Just be sure to put something every week. Maybe just a little week in review for your family. Once this gets going regularly we can add features and adjustments as necessary. If we two old codgers can get this techno savvy we expect you guys to easily jump on board.