Yuma to London: End Of The Year, 29

Monday was filled with sunshine the whole day. What a wonderful treat it was! There was a layer of frost on the grounds and I went outside to take a picture of a plant I had seen on another frosty day that intrigued me. The leaves are green with a white border. The frost makes them look magical.

I just love how they look! Got a shot of our car. Dad gets to scrape it off when we go out in the mornings.

Dad went on the van trip to the Bluewater shopping centre, located in Kent County. The mall has 330 stores, 40 cafes and restaurants, and a 13-screen cinema. It is built in two levels and is the fourth largest shopping centre in the UK. He said you can find anything you want - except a stir crazy, a nativity tie, or after Christmas decoration sales. He definitely was excited to have lunch at "Five Guys."

A view of the map and down the mall. Bungie Trampoline - how about that for mall entertainment!

I was not interested in a shopping trip. I stayed home and did laundry, put on a pot of beef stew, did blogging, and read the book, "Relative Evil," by Debra Erfert. Debra is our bishop's wife in Yuma Mesa Ward. It held my attention as I wanted to read on to see what was next.

Dad and I worked together in the temple, Tuesday and Wednesday. Both days held their own with patron attendance and we even had several new patrons. We were off early on Wednesday, but stayed to help with a large session. After that we went grocery shopping and joined others in celebrating the end of the year with games, food, and visiting.

We have had some sunshine that has quickly disappeared and given way to clouds, wind, rain, and frosty mornings. I did some mending and Dad has done some reading. It has been a good end to a good year. It has been a year of many changes; some coming easier than others and us seeming to remain on top.

We enjoyed Christmas cards, letters, and greetings from family, friends, and missionaries:

Dallin & Heather's children in top photo: New baby, Kia, Talmage, Andan, & Porter.

Hilary's Family.

Hal, Hanna, Jeremiah, Halie, Jason, Jeanna, Jay, & Jack.

Nick, Nate, Bridger, Eme, Sam, McKenna, Kendal, & Carter.

Cards also came from the Rogers, Keys, Sister Pemberton, Sister Bustamante, Sister George, Sister Adler, Parkinsons, and Jeff & Brenda Sherwin in Canada.

Some greetings came by email:
Merry Christmas, It was very good to hear from you. We leave on Wednesday to go to Rexburg for William's graduation. In November, Sara and Clinton adopted two beautiful girls. On my birthday, Elizabeth and children welcomed Eli James, quite a birthday present. Much love to you, Jerry & Kathleen

Glad to see you are on Facebook! Merry Christmas to you and Bob! It looks beautiful there. Gloria Latta

Merry Christmas, Dear Browns! Erferts

Jason & Halie

Dear Bob & Barbara,

Thank you for the christmas card. I hope your mission is all that you had hoped and that the spirit of the mission makes up for the missing of your family. You two I am sure are a great asset to the mission. Merry Christmas and have a great New Year. Debbie Brown

And a Merry Christmas the two of you. Keep warm, and we think of you often. Rained here yesterday, and it has cooled off a lot. Will only reach the mid 50's today. Have had 75-80 degree weather for the most part in Oct and Nov. Dec has been up and down. I'm so used to warmer weather, I'd never be able to take the cold again. We will probably have dinner at Christmas with my mother over at the assisted living home. She is slowing down as the days pass. Memory is slipping a lot, she can't see much, and her talking has become slower and harder to understand. But for 96, she still manages to keep herself going. We are doing as well as can be expected for our advancing ages. We will be 75 and 70 in a couple of weeks. We also celebrate 45 years together this time. Kids/grandkids are coming in March to help us celebrate that event. We have a time share (through Jason) to use up at a resort in Oro Valley. Will spend a week there together. Grandkids will be on Spring break at that time. Best wishes to you both. Bill/Joyce

Bob, Becky, Bobby, Mariah, & Charly having a fun time at the Fun Factory.

Hi Bob and Barbara,

I’m doing fine. Thanks for the Christmas wishes. I was out flying but got home on the 25th. Yes I did get married to Angela on the 17th of June and we are enjoying life together. We have moved to a different apartment in Slidell Louisiana about 20 miles away from the old place. I also started the new job in June flying another country’s royals around the world in a very exclusive private 767. It’s an interesting job but can be quite demanding due to the constantly changing schedule.

As for Kylie, I couldn’t ask for a better daughter. She does a great job in school (All A’s) and is a fantastic dancer as well. Her dance team won the state championship for the second year in a row. I am so proud that she is growing up to be a wonderful young woman.

Anyway hope you all had a nice Christmas over in the UK and are enjoying your time there. Take care and keep in touch.

Love, Jeff