2004
Pam's family helped us move to Mackay a few weeks before their son, Jason, returned from his mission to Brazil. We went to his mission report in August, and were so proud of him! On August 11th I was released after five years of working for the Idaho Falls Temple. It was a sad day, as I loved working there. I was called to be an Enrichment Leader in our new ward in Mackay. We were very happy in our little honeymoon cottage on the back end of the church lot, only a block from the Elementary school. It was quite appropriate for a retired school teacher to live on School Street. There were apricot and apple trees in the back yard, and only one close neighbor. Garry continued to work for the Post Register and was such a good sport about it.
We had a wonderful reunion in October, as Kim traveled from Norway to attend General Conference. Craig's son, Joseph, turned 12 that week and was ordained to the Aaronic Priesthood by Craig and Kim. Craig gave Joseph a beautiful ordination and blessing. In November we had a big Thanksgiving feast with our family in Mackay. We made arrangements to eat at the church next door, so we set up tables on the stage and had them all decorated with place cards for everyone. There were about 20 of us. It was so fun to be all together.
We had a wonderful reunion in October, as Kim traveled from Norway to attend General Conference. Craig's son, Joseph, turned 12 that week and was ordained to the Aaronic Priesthood by Craig and Kim. Craig gave Joseph a beautiful ordination and blessing. In November we had a big Thanksgiving feast with our family in Mackay. We made arrangements to eat at the church next door, so we set up tables on the stage and had them all decorated with place cards for everyone. There were about 20 of us. It was so fun to be all together.
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| (Thanksgiving 2004) |
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| (Nada and Garry Bowen: Thanksgiving 2004) |
2005
Cindy and Jed took a trip to visit Kim and Sandy in Norway and toured through Germany and Denmark with Jed's dad in April, while I stayed with Merinda, Aubree, and Zach. While I was in Utah, Craig took me to Jenessa's play "Slipper and the Rose" and she gave a wonderful performance. Pam and Dana came to Mackay for our Relief Society Mother/Daughter homemaking event in May.
Cindy and Jed took a trip to visit Kim and Sandy in Norway and toured through Germany and Denmark with Jed's dad in April, while I stayed with Merinda, Aubree, and Zach. While I was in Utah, Craig took me to Jenessa's play "Slipper and the Rose" and she gave a wonderful performance. Pam and Dana came to Mackay for our Relief Society Mother/Daughter homemaking event in May.
In June we traveled from Washington D.C. to London on our way to visit Kim and Sandy in Norway! It was exiting to tour around London where my Grandfather Hemsley served his mission. We arrived in Norway and Kim's family was there to greet us.
Oh my! Norway is so beautiful and green with so many fjords. They had a wonderful adventure planned for us, as we visited Denmark, Holland, Germany, Austria, and Sweden. Everything was such a picture!
We saw castles, rode on the trolley, took a ride on a horse and carriage through cobblestone streets, stayed at the Edelweiss Resort in Germany, experienced the "Sound of Music" tour, visited the temple in Denmark, and stopped at a small church in Sweden, where Garry's ancestor's came from. We traveled back to Norway and went to church, where the sister missionaries interpreted the language for us. Sandy mailed our beautiful Coo-coo Clocks back to Idaho for us, and we flew home to Utah at the end of our trip. It was such a wonderful experience. We feel so blessed and will always treasure the memories we made during our trip to Europe.
In November Garry went to the doctor and was diagnosed with prostate cancer. We traveled to California for a week to check out the Loma Linda University Hospital expecting to get proton treatment, but after a week of testing and interviews, we didn't feel quite right so we came home. Garry did more research on the internet and decided to undergo cryosurgery for treatment in December.
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| (Kim and Sandy Bowen Family 2005) |
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| (Garry and Nada in Norway with Kim and Sandy's Family 2005) |
In November Garry went to the doctor and was diagnosed with prostate cancer. We traveled to California for a week to check out the Loma Linda University Hospital expecting to get proton treatment, but after a week of testing and interviews, we didn't feel quite right so we came home. Garry did more research on the internet and decided to undergo cryosurgery for treatment in December.
2006
Scott completed his mission in February and returned to his family in Norway. Christina gave birth to her first child, Janalyn Kari Mitchem, on March 6th in Norway while her husband John was deployed in Iraq. My first Great-Grandchild!
I spent a week at Pam's working on Dana's temple quilt, as she got engaged to John Critchfield. Garry was in and out of the hospital with infections between April and May, so he quit his job working for the Post Register and we sold the trailer. Even though it wasn't an easy job, we were grateful for the income as it helped us eliminate all of our financial debt.
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| (Janalyn and Christina Mitchem) |
Dana graduated from the nursing program at Boise State University and went through the Boise Temple for her endowments. Jared graduated from high school in June, and we had a wonderful birthday open house party at Cindy's house the night before Dana and John's wedding on June 17th in the Salt Lake Temple.
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| (Dana Bartschi and John Critchfield Wedding 2006) |
In August we went to Pam's for Cameron's baptism and Jared's Eagle court of honor. We had a great crowd as Sandy and her kids were there and Dana and John flew from Arizona. Garry's Aunt Beula was moved to a rest home and her kids asked us if we wanted to rent her house in Rigby, so we packed up and moved to Rigby in September.
Garry had a sinus operation to remove some polyps in October, but when we returned for his follow-up appointment, the doctor told us they had found a spot of cancer. We were so surprised and devastated, not dreaming anything was wrong. When we went back to see the radiologist on the 30th, she suggested that Garry have radiation and chemo, but we didn't feel good about that decision, so we came home determined to follow strict diet and exercise. His doctor gave him some good stuff to clean out his immune system, so we gave it a try. We enjoyed decorating for Christmas in our Rigby home and had Cindy and Pam's families with us to celebrate Thanksgiving. In December we went to Merinda's first harp recital. We were so thrilled to hear her play 20 songs by heart. Christmas was quiet as it was the first time we spent it without family in the last eight years, but had a nice visit with Carma's family after the holiday.
Yes, Garry has had his health problems, but we have been blessed with more patience, understanding, and have relied more on the Lord than ever before. This home has been such a blessing, and we are grateful for our understanding of how faithful we must be to inherit the blessings of the gospel. We love the Lord and know he is watching over us and knows of our needs.
Garry had a sinus operation to remove some polyps in October, but when we returned for his follow-up appointment, the doctor told us they had found a spot of cancer. We were so surprised and devastated, not dreaming anything was wrong. When we went back to see the radiologist on the 30th, she suggested that Garry have radiation and chemo, but we didn't feel good about that decision, so we came home determined to follow strict diet and exercise. His doctor gave him some good stuff to clean out his immune system, so we gave it a try. We enjoyed decorating for Christmas in our Rigby home and had Cindy and Pam's families with us to celebrate Thanksgiving. In December we went to Merinda's first harp recital. We were so thrilled to hear her play 20 songs by heart. Christmas was quiet as it was the first time we spent it without family in the last eight years, but had a nice visit with Carma's family after the holiday.
Yes, Garry has had his health problems, but we have been blessed with more patience, understanding, and have relied more on the Lord than ever before. This home has been such a blessing, and we are grateful for our understanding of how faithful we must be to inherit the blessings of the gospel. We love the Lord and know he is watching over us and knows of our needs.
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