A Dead Phone a Boutique and an Amazing Missionary Farewell.

 So, it was a crazy week again ... with just a last few days to get ready for the Reclaimologist Boutique, which was Friday and Saturday.

This is the stuff I worked on, on Monday.  I distressed the chairs, made the wreath, painted the orange stuff, and refinished the dresser.  Dad did some serious wrestling to repair the stuck bottom drawer.

The picture was taken to be put on the site as a preview for the sale.

Tuesday was more of the same, but in black and white.  I had done some of the base black painting the day before, but finished off the drawer fronts on the desk, the label on the black chest, and the stamping for the subway art on the night stand ... which I loved doing.

 

I took a break to make dinner and pick up the missionaries.  Because Dad is away at the temple on Tuesdays, I had to provide a chaperone, and invited Jane Johnson, the wonderful 80 year old former Southern Baptist who lives in our ward, and is really the bright spot here for me.

 

I took pictures, but unfortunately, they are in the dead phone you will hear about later.

 

After dinner I ran dinner over to my visiting teaching partner, who has been sick, and then did one visiting teaching visit on my own.

 

I worked a normal Wednesday, with Nell coming in to help me choose goodies to take to the show, from my booths at the mall.  Cheryl's ex-husband, Craig, happened to be in the store as well, and I introduced them.  Craig was amazed to learn that Trevor is married with three kids and a beautiful wife ... yep, another picture that was lost to human knowledge in the dead phone.

 

On Thursday, the missing pictures is of an amazing lady who came in and told me an awesome story (She also sold me some goodies from her mother's estate.)  Her name is Susan Hughs and she lives in Salem.  She and her husband are into family history, and have started finding old family head stones, and photographing them (as well as others) to add to a website that collects them and makes them available to people who are searching for the info they contain. 

 

I think Trevor and Nell saw such a photo of Philo Dibble's grave before seeking it out on Memorial Day a couple of years ago, and I ran across some when I was doing the little  bio book of my Great Grandmother Ida Alice Dorris.

 

Anyway, the Hughs were back in Iowa, searching for the head stone of a great grandmother, in a small town ... they had an old land plot number, which is no longer in use there, and started with a lady having a yard sale ... she got in their car and took them to a farmer's place that she knew had a small family grave yard.  He took them to the correct plot number at another farm.  Eventually they picked up an Amish man, who went along, even riding in their car, to help them find, in the end, the stone in the barn of still another farm.

 

The stones had been turned upside down, at one time, by some intermediate owner, and had been used for stepping stones, but the current farmer, who always has a sense that a small rise on his property had been a grave yard, and never used the land for crops, had grown up walking on the stones, one day turned them, and found them to be grave markers, preserved from weather by being face down, had cleaned them and put them in a barn, for safer keeping.  (The stones were of the sought after great grandmother, and the stone for a set of twins in the family)

 

When Susan saw the stones she just bawled.  The farmer agreed to have them reset, and told her a man in town could restore them.  The next day, in visiting with a woman she had met at the records place on coming into town the day before, she found that this man (the stone restorer) was her husband.  He told them of a society that would fence in the small grave yard, and another man, maybe the Amish man, used a stick like a water witching stick, and 'witched out' the graves.

 

So now the stones are restored, the Amish man offered materials to make the fenced area offered by the 'grave yard society' larger,  ... and no one, will accept any payment.  Susan said the experience restores her faith in human kind ... all of these people came on board and we concerned about her search, and supported her.

 

Of course she has sent contributions to the society that restored the site, but the warmth that she feels whenever she shares the story is the biggest payoff of all.  I loved the story, and the people in it.

 

BTW she later came into the ROCC show, and I got her picture with her daughter.  She is the one on the left.

 After being delayed a tad, by Susan's story, I managed to get to the show site, right on time about 2:30, and was mostly set up by 6:00, when Dad came and got me to go to Elden Brough's wedding reception in Salt Lake.

Here are some good friends, old and new, from shows I have done ... Angie Farmer, (of the pink trailer fame) Jenn Reed, who had the idea to name flea.o.logy, the girl from the Vintage Cupcake company who has been on cup cake wars and knew of Eric, and Jennine, a long time flea.o.logy dealer, all smile during a break from set up.

Unfortunately during set up, my phone died ... I have had it, a gift from all you kiddos almost two years ago for Christmas ... though my 15 years worth of contacts were lost, my biggest regret was the few pics from this week that I also lost.

 

So on Friday morning, my 'Super Daughter' appeared magically with her family to get my phone replaced for me.  She went to the Sprint place in town, (I am on their plan with them) and spent hours, while they tried to recover my data ... then she came back, like an angel of light, with the new phone!!  Bless her cotton socks ... she even enlisted Brittany as an assistant angel (via Dad) in finding me a polka dotted phone case, because they ones they had at the store were 'boring' and she knew I wouldn't like them!!  What great kiddos and spouse I have.  Love you guys and thank you a million times.

 

Nell came by and brought her items for sale, and helped with set up.  Sales were super slow the rest of the day, but I got to know my neighbors, and visited with my friends who came by, like Wendy, and Susan, and other folks I had shared the info with while at work the last couple of week.

 Saturday was a lot more fun, as Brittany and Spencer came and spent the day to man their 'Hatchet Eyewear' table, which gave me the freedom to roam the show and to get acquainted with the other Reclaimologists, I had there to fore, only known by a thumbprint on our ROCC blog.

Of course Spencer is always entertaining, just by being himself, so that was fun too!

Dad showed up in time to help me take down at the end of the show ... and by working fast, and stuffing, and stuffing in all the goodies that didn't sale, back into the van ... along with a darling desk that Brittney and Spencer bought ... we were able to make it to the dollar movies next door to see almost all of Austenland for our fourth time.  :-)

 On Sunday I made cookies, while Dad went to meetings, then we headed to Highland, with Spencer and Brittney, for Ryan and Jake's combined farewell talks.  It was an amazing meeting, both young men feel like nephews to me, and I was pretty teary to see them go.  They are both amazing, and will be a great addition to the Lord's Army. 

Above you see most of our kids and grands who joined us at the church, then Davin and Bri at the Moes house where we were all treated to a frozen yogurt and cookie bar ... Don't you love that Adilyn is looking for all the world, just like her dad?  So like she's all mom on the outside, and all dad on the inside?

 

Of course I had to take the opportunity to get a picture of Spencer with Daniel and Eric, the Moe and Heuer compatriots that he grew up with like cousins .... I think I remember a similar grouping from our Bear Lake camping days ....   twenty years ago.

On the way home we stopped and visited with grandpa.  It was fun to read the book about other visits he had received this week.  I do know, however, that Darby is not signing the book, because I know she took him to Café Rio for lunch ... so Darby, The book is on the shelf in his closet, be sure to let us know about your visits too.

So that was our week ... thanks to everyone who helped with my projects this week ... I journal every day about my contacts with my children, and I am amazed at how often you drop by, or text me, or call ... and this week I even had a couple of face time episodes with grandchildren ... which I am really loving.

Love you all and sorry about my penchant for run on sentences.  xoxox