Thoughts for the week: Especially for Mother's Day:
"Sometimes when I open my mouth my mother comes out."
"A mother is a person who can take the place of all others but whose place no one else can take."
"Being a mother means that your heart is no longer yours; it wanders wherever your children do."
"I believe in love at first sight, because I loved my mom since I opened my eyes."
"Love is blind because your mother started loving you before seeing your face."
"The best place to cry is on a mothers shoulder."
"The more I grow the more I realize that my mom is the best friend that I ever had."
I apologize for the many quotes, but I love to save them and I only choose the best for Mother's Day. Just remember that this is my journal and I'm crazy about quotes and flowers.
Once again we've had a busy but fun filled week. We began the week with our P-day activity by going to Pella, Iowa. Every year they have a Tulip Festival. Pella is a Dutch community where they hold onto their Dutch heritage fiercely. There are windmills, tons of beautiful tulips, village displays, parades, a queen and her court of native born descendants, fun shops to go through, and just a charming old world atmosphere. We left Nauvoo at 7:00 a.m. and got home that night around 8:00 p.m. It takes about 2 and half hours to drive there and we spent a lot of time looking at everything. We had lunch there and ate way too many pastries at the cute bakeries. They have whats called Dutch Letters that are like a turnover shaped in the shape of an S and filled with an almond paste. Oh my! So good and I would imagine so fattening. Love those Dutch bakers.
So glad we went there and spent the day. On the way home we had to stop in Cantrell at the Dutchman store. Rudi loves their homemade pies and pickled mushrooms. Its a really old store run by the Mennonites but so clever and full of different things to buy.
Our week in the temple on Tuesday was much busier than usual. Slowly the tour buses are arriving. There were a lot of young students traveling through Nauvoo on senior trips and spring break tours. As usual the baptistry was loaded. Since I've been working in the temple office I've booked a lot of baptisms in July. So I decided I best reserve some time for my grandkids when they come in June and July. So glad I did. July is completely full, but with my pull I got some slots reserved for the grandkids. I also reserved times for endowment sessions. I had no idea how busy the temple gets during the summer months! I'm so excited to see so much temple work being done here in Nauvoo. After a long and slow winter it is great to be working at capacity level in the summer.
I love working in the office, but there is tons to learn and not mess up. Thanks to working at Provo High I have a few skills. I'm getting better at endowment coordinator also. I work straight through my shift without even a break for fear something will go wrong. I just have to make sure that I never open up a door where the room is still full of people and interrupt the session. Always look through the peep hole first is my motto. My favorite place is in clothing. I know it the best and I'm most comfortable there. All the temple workers are so kind and helpful that I really don't need to panic anywhere thanks to them.
I love it when Rudi pops up out of nowhere in the temple and surprises me. He reminds me of the Hunchback of Notradom,(however you spell it) he knows all the secret passage ways and ins-and-outs of the temple. This week he actually took me to the sub basement where all the pipes and controls are located. Wow, there's more under that temple than I knew. At the end of all the maze of pipes and chillers and who knows what I got some ice cream from the stash the engineers have for themselves. Lucky me!
On Friday I had an appointment in Springfield to check on my stent. The surgeon gave me a clean bill of health and said to come back in a year for another CT scan. I quickly informed him I wouldn't be here in a year, so I need to check with a Dr. when I get home. The surgeon said I need to check to make sure no scare tissue forms around the stent. My blood pressure was 140/80 which is very good for me. A far cry from 230/120. I've come a long way and feeling a lot better.
While we were in Springfield we decided to visit some more of the Lincoln sights. We went to his home where he and Mary Todd lived and raised their family before he became Pres. It is a lovely large home on a beautiful street with restored homes on the street. It's free to go inside his home and visit the sights. The state of Illinois acquired the home with one stipulation, that they would never charge to visit the home. They say it now belongs to the people. What a neat idea! Wish more places were free to visit. From there we went to his tomb. A very inspiring place to visit. The actual monument is huge and very beautiful. Inside there are a lot of bronze statues of Lincoln during different stages of his life. There is also his tomb and his wife and three of his four children's tombs. It's so quiet and calm inside it makes you stop and think of all he did and gave for our country.
We rushed home to make it to a special event called the Moving Day. This is when the Saints moved from Quincey to Commerce which is now know as Nauvoo. It was held at Camp Eastman between Hamilton and Nauvoo. They served a dinner and then there was a program where George Durrant spoke and a band played mountain music. That night I was beat from a long day of super activities.
Saturday morning we were back at the temple at 6:00 a.m. for the way early shift. Yes, we do work at the temple! We love serving there and look forward to the coming months of lots of patrons coming to do work in the famous and historic Nauvoo Temple.
Today we spent a wonderful day in Canton. The branch there is so kind and welcoming to us. Their meetings are well organized with inspiring speakers. The lessons are very well prepared and the discussions are up lifting. I told the sister who taught R.S. that the eight sisters in her class were all involved and it was very easy to make comments. These members here are very knowledgeable in the gospel. I'm very impressed. One sister invited us to dinner next week after the block of meetings. Of course we quickly accepted and look forward to getting to know her better. She serves twice a moth in the temple on Saturdays. She drives by herself to Nauvoo to serve in the temple. This is the kind of commitment these people here have.
Life is always exciting whether we're in the temple or out. We are so excited to see family and friends this summer. We promise to slow our pace down a little when we come home, but until then, we only get one chance to serve in Nauvoo so we're making the most of this wonderful experience.
May you all continue to grow in the gospel and love one another.
We miss you but are so involved with serving and exploring this wonderful area. Can't wait to show any of you around.
With love always,
Rudi and Kathy
Mom and Dad
GRANDPA AND GRANDMA
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TROY AND KRISTIN! May 12th marks 19 years of marital bliss for this fun couple.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRACI! This is the big 40 for her. Hope your birthday is special. Do something fun in Chicago for your birthday. May 17th she shares her birthday with Jensen, our youngest grandson.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JENSEN! Hope your 4th birthday is full of fun and adventure. No more
getting any older until we get home!
This is what I see out my kitchen window. Beautiful dark purple lilacs against a flowering white tree. Love Nauvoo in the spring!
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL THE SPECIAL MOMS! Flowers delivered from Tiffini and her family.
Love this picture Tami framed and sent for Mothers Day. I'm so lucky to have had such a wonderful mom.
More flowers delivered from Traci and her family. How did they know I loved flowers so much? Thanks to all my kids for making my day so special. Troy emailed and said his gift is in the mail. Love his family so much and all his kind words.
Our trip to Pella, Iowa on Monday was so exciting and beautiful. Rudi got carried away with the windmills. He just had to climb up and try to put the sail on the windmill.
Some of the sisters that went with us to Pella. Sister Tanner, Bassett, Gorrell and yours truly!
Pella is a Dutch community in Iowa. Rudi enjoyed the old sleds they used in that town years ago.
Kathy trying on the wooden shoes. Just a bit too big!
The tulips were beyond beautiful! They have a tulip festival every year the first week of May. We'd heard so much about it that we went there on our P-day.
More beautiful tulips.
Inside one of the wooded shoe shops. There was a village of old shops showing what the village looked like when it was first established in the 1800 hundreds.
So many colors of tulips I was going crazy taking pictures.
Way to close of a close up of beautiful flowering trees.
The same tree at a distance.
Outside of the village entrance. What a fun day and beautiful sunny day.
More windmills in the village.
Rudi's favorite stop! Their pastries were fabulous! The turnovers were the best, no frosting on the top, just the way Rudi likes them.
The five couples who went with us on the trip. Tanner's, Bassett's, Diederich's, Princes's, and Gorrell's
More colorful tulips. Can't get enough!
I sort of clash with the orange and yellow tulips.
I know, I'm tulip crazy!!! But the colors were gorgeous.
Still more! At least I'm color coordinated with them.
On Friday we had to go back to Springfield for a CT scan so we decided to see more of Lincoln's attractions. This is his home where he lived before he became Pres. of the U.S. Yes I'm in pants for a reason. They told me to dress in loose fitting pants for the scan.
Next we saw the Lincoln Tomb. So awe inspiring and huge.
Inside and under the monument is where he is buried.
Thought my grandkids would love to see this three seater outhouse behind Lincoln's home. Pretty fancy for those times. I just don't know who wants two others accompanying them to the "John"!
Rudi being jealous of Abraham Lincoln's nose!
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