Can't believe it is already the 15th!

Dearest Family!!!

Can't believe it is already the 15th!   My time does fly!  It has been a busy one with  4 different Zoom trainings! So thankful for technology when it works!  Mainly we are working with High Councilors over Temple & Family History & a new Stake lead couple. We have also helped several who came to our home & over the phone.

It was great to go back to the Living Center!  They were quarantined for quite some tinme this winter, not fun for them.  Then one of the people we help has been having lots of eye problems - had catarat surgery & now is better than ever!  We have two brethen there who really enjoy doing it!  One is just getting used to the new program.  Both do an amazing job & feel they can fill their time with something productive & it is helping others - it is great for them.

It was so great to go to Worland last Wednesday - Ira received the Aaronic Priesthood & was ordained a Deacon.  Blessed to be a part of it!  Enjoyed several hours with some of the kids, a great birthday dinner, also!  And everyone is finally over the flu bug which they had.

Dad & Rob witnessed the mother owl swoop off of the nest into the field to the south.  She chased down a snake & brought it back to the nest for her little ones. (we don't know how many there are)  Dad has also watched her leave the next several mornings  for just a few minutes.She will fly up to the pole where the yard light is, & stretch & exercise her wings then return back to the nest.

Ira went to the temple for the first time on Saturday with his Mom and Dad while the other kids stayed with Darece. They had a wonderful spiritual experience together with deceased family members! Today was the first track meet this spring not canceled by bad weather. It was held in Cowley so we went and joined Darece and family to watch Talon and Mattis do their events! It was 30 when we got there with a slight wind CHILLY then the sun warmed it up some. Mom, Darece and the Croft kids spent time in the car to keep warm. The rest were out moving around watching. We came home about 11am to warm up and do other things to get ready for Sunday. Dad sprayed weeds in driveway and the corral. The Tansy Mustard and Cheetgrass is already 3 to 4 inches tall. Then this evening we had supper for Al and Ambers bunch on their way home.

Today we left early for Red Lodge, weather was good but windy!  We enjoyed the Saints there!  But today was a day with technology problems, sure adds stress to the situation!  Their chapel has very little internet & even with lots of people using their phone plans we still had problems. Even one of our videos had no volume,  & others worked just fine. We have discovered this morning that that video has a problem & doesn't have any volume at home either!   Not an internet problem ! 

 A nice drive home! We stopped at the site of the Bear Creek coal mines near Bear Creek MT to read the historical sign and share memories of when Dad's family went there to get coal each fall for the winter. This coal burned hotter than any in the area so the families really liked to get it. There were also coal mines just north of Garland Wyo (coal mine hill mines) that they got coal from too but it was of poor quality.  

We love you all!   Have a great week!    Mom  &  Dad

A week of many Birthdays

Dearest Family!

A week of many Birthdays -  Ira's 12th was today!   and he was to be ordained a Deacon!  Surprises happen! A stomach flu bug has been ragging at their home, started Wednesday with Neil, Camille, Ira, then on Saturday, Melvin, & Sunday, Amber &  Allen,   No church today, we talked to Ira this afternoon & decided that he was the nurse today, on his birthday!

Happy Birthday, Kirena on Monday!    Happy Birthday, Rosie on Saturday, & Happy 21 Birthday to Chalin on Sunday, April 15!  Hope your days are each special!

Congrats to Ethan & Bekah - they are having a baby GIRL!!!!!

It has been quite a week for spring storms!   Monday arrived with snow falling, then about 10:30 it turned into a raging blizzard!   Multiple car accidents in several places!  It was a day to stay home & enjoy a good book, sewing or what ever. Tuesday Darece & I were to go to Billings & it was super icey that morning & snowing in Billings!  I hibernated in the sewing room & Dad moved a little snow & built a new birdhouse for the yard!

The Wyo Hwy Dept made some changes in the highway by our canal to prevent us from getting flooded out like last year. They removed an unused oiled drive way across the road that acted liked a dike to send the water over the highway thru our place instead of letting the water run north down the west borrow pit  and drain away down hill to the north.  We appreciate this safety change! !

Tues, Wed, & Thursday were busy days with ZOOM trainings, It was a good week to be inside, so there were several others who we helped on the phone!  Not much snow or rain for several days then again on Friday we got 5 more inches of wet stuff!   It is melting with warm tempatures!  

It has been a great Saturday & Sunday with our Stake Conference!  Enjoyed it so very much with some things to ponder & improve on for us!

Love Mom and Dad

No this isn't an April Fools Joke!

Dearest Family!

No this isn't an April Fools Joke!   i really am writing a letter!  The month has gone by so very quickly- I find it hard to believe!   But it has been a very busy one with all kinds of activities!

We have missed a few birthdays & an anniversary!   Happy Birthday to Connor Hellberg on March 1!  Dak & Tchae on March 20, Leanne on March 23, Aunt Kathy on March 24!   Happy 14th Anniversary to Allen & Amber on March 30!

Happy 1st Birthday to Lexi Grant on April 7th & Happy 12th Birthday to Ira on April 8!

More new babies!!!   Ethan & Bekah    Tchae & Cheyenne 

Oh - by the way, we are expecting also!  The first of March we realized that a pair of Great Horned owls are nesting in the big Blue Spruce tree at the top of our drive way. We can see her from our front door. I saw the mate bring in a meadow vole to feed her, told Dad and we quickly watched together the feeding routine. This week the chicks should hatch. We are excited to watch them over the next many weeks. They will need lots of groceries and our pigeons and cottontail rabbits may be get on the menu! Dad will mount our wireless webcam on the house so we can see better! 

We had a wonderful time in Worland with Leanne at her baptism! So glad we could share her special day!

It was also great to have the Fikes visit during their Spring Break!  Family here in Lovell got together one evening for dinner! They also spent time in Laurel looking for a home there.  We are so excited that they will be there.

A report on Michelle - on March 21, she had hip surgery & is doing great!  She was out & about at our Family Dinner yesterday!  

This past month has been so great!   We have been working with three couples who have been called as Stake TFHConsultant-Lead They will work in their stakes teaching the leaders, Ward TFHConsultants & exciting the people around them.  All are so excited & great at working with the people! It is so amazing how the Lord works! 

It was fun one Saturday to teach in the Cody Family History Fair - we were able to fill in for a couple who were called out of town due to a death in the family!  A blessing to be able to help!  We enjoyed teaching, of course, about the Apps.  Dad did the Memories app & I did the Family Tree App!   Then on Sunday we spoke in three wards in Billings & did a 2 hr training in the evening!  That was just about enough for one day, but the Lord blessed us with the needed energy!  Another weekend we stayed with a Lead couple, did their One-on-One experience & spoke in the 2 Laurel wards!  They helped us with our 2hr training for leaders in the late afternoon! 

Then last weekend we went to Absaroka, it is a very small branch in Montana!  While I was speaking, Dad was inspired to change our planned presentation to a Family History Experience (just a very basic class about all we can do in FH) We did this with all of the branch, youth & adults! It was one of those really amazing days when the spirit is there to testify to greatness of this work.  An eleven yr old young man summed it all up as he shared how the blessings of doing FH will help him!  All of his great-greats help him & his own stories & experiences will help his grand-children & great-grandchildren!  "Out of the mouths of Babes!"   we were taught! Our Stake Leads were there with us & all of us had special experiences during the practice time!

On one Sunday after I left the stand, the Bishop said to Dad, "I need to apologize to Sister Croft, he went on to say, "She mentioned the name of the App, I down loaded it, & there are two names, in my office on the printer, which I found & printed while she was speaking!" Dad accepted the apology and told him he had got the  message!      This Bishop will certainly fire up his ward in the coming weeks!

Last Wednesday we had fun helping with an Activity Day group of girls, so fun & they get so very excited!

What an amazing weekend this has been!  General Conference was wonderful with many new things announced! We have enjoyed so very much watching it, having Allen, Amber & family here & dinner at the Grants. Just the basic changes: no more HP groups all will be in an Elders Quorum. Home teachers and visiting teachers will be ministers now. No monthly message from the Ensign, just pray to meet the needs of your assigned families. It can be a text, email, phone call,athletic event, just drop by, service project, whatever the family needs. No monthly report just quarterly interview with your leader. YW Miamaid and Laurels will go with older sisters to visit their assigned sisters. Its all about loving and serving the one as Jesus would! By 4 pm on Sunday all the new changes were on the LDS.org website and we had received an email about it too as Elder Holland had said.

And what a great way to end General Conference, to have our Prophet bless us all - 

He challenged us to study the talks and then -    He invited all God's children on both sides of the veil to come unto their Savior, receive the blessings of the holy temple, have enduring joy & qualify for eternal live. Eventual exaltation requires our complete fidelity now to covenants we make & ordinances we receive in the house of the Lord.   He then announced 7 new temple & said, "These particular temples probably wouldn't affect our lives but your time in the temple surely will.  In that spirit I bless you to identify those things you can set aside so that you can spend more time in the temple.  I bless you with greater harmony & love in your homes & a deeper desire to care for your eternal family relationships. I bless you with increased faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ & a greater ability to follow Him as His true disciples. I bless you to raise your voice in testimony as I do now.  That we are engaged in the work of almighty God. Jesus is the Christ. This is His church which He directs thru His annointed servants. I so testify with my expression of love for each of you in the sacred name of Jesus Christ

We feel so blessed to know there is a prophet on the earth!

Our love to all of you  & CTR          Mom & Dad