Finally a Calf!

Elk at the Ranch

There were so many lessons to plan and teach this week.  We’re teaching two couples the Temple Preparation lessons, the Smith children, a lesson about the priesthood, a message for a non-member couple, and I taught Seminary (sub) on Thursday.  So Monday was major work on lessons and preparing for the week.  We did work at the Senior Center for lunch.

It was also a very big service week for us and the young Elders.  On Tuesday, we finally were able to visit and help the Harshbergers.  They have a neighboring ranch to the Bishop.  We had met them a couple of months ago, at the Bishop’s house for dinner.  We’ve been trying to visit them and do something helpful at their ranch.  He is 90 and she is 80 something.  With the winter weather, and then melting snow, it’s been taking awhile.  We took the Elders out there, with the plan of Walt and I talking to the Harshbergers while the Elders worked.  It didn’t end up that way.  We were ALL given the job of cleaning out a field so it could be mowed safely.  It only took us a couple of hours, even though (to me) it felt like eternity.  I am not a big fan of yard work. We finished nearly all of it by lunch time.  Our signal for lunch was her ringing the bell.  I am thrilled by the silliest things. 

Elder Kerr, Elder Glover, Jean and Bob Harshberger

Cleaning up at the Harshbergers

Elder Glover holding the very long Bull snack that Walt discovered while raking

She fed us quite the lunch.  Delicious hamburgers, green beans, tater tots (of course) and two desserts.  People eat real meals here.  Afterwards, we shared a message about our basic beliefs.  I told them we had entertainment.  Bob (the husband) basically said, he likes the things we believe in, but he’s 90 and church is very far away.  It really is - over an hour.  It’s totally fine.  We just offer the message and people decide.  We finished up the first project and then she said if we had time - to work on the front area near the door.  We were able to do half before we needed to go.  What was crazy was how hot it was that day.  One of the Elders got a sunburn.

Before we left, the Elders gave Jean (the wife) a Book of Mormon.  She said she really thought she had one, and had been looking for it just the other day, and couldn’t find it.  Guess she needed a new one!  We will go back and finish our project another day.

Wednesday was a huge service project.  A widow in our ward has been having trouble with water in her basement.  Her neighborhood was built on a swamp.  The men in the ward have been trying to take care of the problem, but it always turned out to be a temporary fix.  The Bishop decided she needed a French drain put in.  Evidently that is a major project!  It requires around 12 men, a back hoe, a bob cat, and lots of shovels.  It turned into quite the muddy project.  The guys in the “trenches” were usually in 6 inches of clay mud.  They worked from 6 am to 9 pm.  Crazy.  The last phase of the project will be this coming up Wednesday evening.  Bless their hearts!

The French Drain project

Walt's job

Elder Glover and Elder Kerr full of mud!

I helped with lunch, visited a sister, and did a major cleaning job on our house.  I have been only doing basics, pretty much all I have had time to do.  Kate and Drake came to visit on Friday and are staying 5 nights.  I wanted to get this place looking nice.  I was still having cleaning issues with that blasted tub.  I gave it one more try with Ajax with bleach.  After scrubbing for quite a bit, it actually came clean.  Super excited!!  So I got my exercise that day.  Not as much as Walt of course!

This week, I learned about how men eat around here.  I have been told that men here want Meat!!  This is from Sis Checketts (Bishop’s wife).  We prepared pork chops, pasta salad, watermelon, scalloped potatoes and cookies for lunch for the service project.  The sister who was getting the work done, had made soup for the men for lunch.  Sis Checketts wasn’t sure what to do.  She says to me, “Those men want meat.”  I smoothed it over with the widowed sister.  It got to be 5 pm and they weren’t nearly done.  I was thinking those men were probably getting pretty hungry.  So I called Sis Checketts with my idea of bringing them pizza.  She thought it was a great idea.  I told her maybe 3 pizzas, 1 pepperoni and 2 cheese.  This would work great with my usual crowd.  She tells me, “those men want meat.”  Ok.  I’m getting it.  I got 2 meat lovers, and 1 cheese.  Everyone chose meat pizza with the cheese one the last to go.  If doing it again, I would just get 3 meat lovers.   Then we had a “Linger Longer”, like a pot luck after church today.  We had visitors from the Stake for Ward Conference.  The Relief Society decided to have people bring, sandwiches, salads, and desserts.  I decided to bring sandwiches with lots of meat and cheese!  Since the fridge at church would be pretty full, I left my sandwiches at home until after church.  I knew there would be plenty of time to get them, and we only live 4 minutes away.  They did start before our sandwiches got there.  Most were egg salad, chicken salad, reuben, etc.  Kate put our meaty sandwiches on the table and got in line.  By the time she got to them, there were only 3 left.  “These men want meat!”  Lesson learned well.

Thursday was a crazy busy day!  We left at 9 am and got back at 9 pm.  It was non-stop.  District Council, a stop at Walmart and the hardware store, our free pizza from Little Cesear’s, visit with Gary, teach the Smith and their children (2 hours appt), quick stop at Wayback burger for dinner, Bingo at the Manor, and our ward Missionary Correlation meeting.  We were exhausted by the end of our day.

Friday was the day Kate and Drake came!!  Their original plan was to leave Provo in the morning and get here by 6 pm for dinner with the Paynes.  Thursday night, she texted that they were behind on packing and cleaning (moving out of their apartments) and weren’t sure they would make it to dinner.  A little disappointing.  Then I wake up Friday morning to a text saying, they had finished all the cleaning and such at 3 am and decided to just start driving here, thanks to energy drinks.  So they were here by 1 pm - exhausted but safely here.  We took them to Wayback for a “buy one get one free” Cheesy.  It’s like a grilled cheese on steroids, with hamburger patties.  Super good, but a bit greasy.  They loved it!  Once back, they were ready to crash.  

We all have electric toothbrushes!  A teeth brushing party

We taught a teenage girl who has been coming with her friend to church and asked to be baptized.  I think I wrote about her before.  We had our first lesson with her and the Elders.  There are a lot of basic stuff (similar to the Smith children) that we will need to teach.  It was a good lesson, and we’re excited to be helping with that.  The Elders let us help teach; which is nice.  Other wise, we wouldn’t really get opportunities to teach lessons like they do.  It’s nice to have a good knowledge and testimony of the Gospel to teach, but it is the Spirit that really does the teaching.

We had dinner with the Payne’s.  They are our Elk friends.  He hunts and they eat mostly elk.  I really love it!.  It’s a lot leaner than beef, but not as tough as deer.  We had elk tacos - really yummy.  It’s always a fun time with them - lots of laughter.  

Posing with Elk heads at the Payne's

Saturday turned out to be even better than I had planned.  We had a Spring cleaning project at church in the morning.  There was a pretty good turnout and we got everything done.  Kate and Drake vacuumed the whole church!.  I was in charge of washing all the chalk boards (there’s a lot) and Walt worked outside.  They even provided pizza for lunch (half were meat).  

Then it was off to the Bishop’s ranch.  We were having dinner with them and showing Kate and Drake the ranch.  The BIshop’s family would be out later, after taking care of some projects in town.  They always tell us to make ourselves at home, use the 4-wheelers, whatever.  The door is always unlocked.  We got out the 4-wheelers and headed out.  Walt and I actually drove a side-by-side, (kind of like a 4-wheel drive golf cart), and Kate and Drake drove the 4-wheelers.  Drake was grinning from ear to ear!  He was in heaven.  It was Kate’s first time to drive one, and did great.  

Drake and Kate on the 4-wheelers

We first went to check for new calves.  There was one that must have been only an hour old.  It was still wet.  So close, but still cool to see.  Then off to see the original homestead and another group of cows that are usually close to road and have lots of babies.  Kate and Drake had fun and enjoyed the tour.  When we found the group of cows, the moms starting getting all upset and calling to their calves.  Now I totally understand the phrase , “having a cow about something.”  They got really upset and very loud.  When the Checketts got there, we all started getting dinner ready.  We saw Walt and the Bishop driving off on 4 -wheelers.  They came back saying there was a heifer ready to deliver.  OOOOH!  The mom was a bit skittish and the baby had only one hoof hanging out - not a good thing. So they brought her in and put her in the pen to help her with the delivery.  I couldn’t believe we were finally getting to see it all in action!  The heifer wasn’t doing well with the contractions, so it took a lot of pulling.  They put a hoop and chain on both of the calf’s feet and pull.  At first it was the Bishop and one of his daughters (don’t under estimate ranch females.). But it did prove to be a hard delivery and Walt needed to help with the pulling.  How exciting for him!  Drake took a video and I just watched with amazement.  Once the calf was out, the Bishop put it in the big pen and unhooked the mom, so she could smell her calf and start giving it a “bath”.  Evidently it’s super important for the mom to smell her new calf right away.  That’s how she will identify that it’s her calf for the next year or so.  Nature is amazing!  It was just so cool to be able to see that.  

Walt, Tal and the Bishop helping the calf breath once delivered

Walt and the Bishop pulling out the calf

We got back pretty late, but still had to make sandwiches for today.  With the all the help, it went pretty fast.  Love having helpers.

Ward Conference was really good and the attendance was high.  We had the Willadsons, the Smiths, Kay (teenage girl), Gary, most of the Qualheims, and Keith and April there.  It was so neat to see all those people at church; especially all at one time.  We are just amazed at all the changes (positive ones) in people’s lives.  They seem happier and that is awesome!!  We have become so close with all of these families and will continue to add others.  Such a fulfilling thing to do!

Walt, Me and Gary at church.  He's all dressed up!

Tonight we’ll have dinner with the Knights and then a P-day tomorrow to Mount Rushmore.  It will be our first time to see it.  We even have left over sandwiches and cookies from the Linger Longer today.

We love you all so much!!  It seems like it’s been forever since we’ve seen you all.  Can’t imagine what it will feel like when we’ve been here for 18 months.  I think it will be hard to leave, but that’s a long way from now.  We’ll just keep working with people and share the message of Jesus Christ with them.