Proud Grandparents

We were not quite sure what we were going to write for this week's blog. We didn't take any new pictures, and nothing very exciting had happened to us for a while and then we got some VERY EXCITING NEWS from Jeremy and Erin.

Her name is Tay Jane Charchenko. She was born at 10:56 PM February 27th. She has a full head of dark curly hear. She weighed 7 pounds 14 ounces as was 20 1/2 inches tall. She is super cute (as you can see). Mom and baby (and dad) are all doing great.

For those who may not have kept up with our kids (and grandkids) Tay has 2 older brothers and 2 older sisters making her number five. We are delighted that she wasn't born on February 29th.

Hope you are all doing great and enjoying life.

We are totally enjoying our mission. We work with wonderful people in a very special place. The last two days we have been painting the church in Rutland, about an hour away. We should finish the job tomorrow. We send our love to everyone!

Keeping Busy

We have really been busy this month. I told you about the huge packing box that Elder Charchenko and Elder Starley built. Here is a picture of it. Are you surprised how BIG it is?

As soon as they got the box finished they began taking down Christmas lights. They built a metal cage that looks like the basket on the lift. They made it so the forklift on the tractor can slide under it, attach to it, and lift it up. They spent several weeks using their home-made lift to take down all of the lights they could reach. The very hour that they had taken down the last set of lights they could reach, the lift arrived and they began using it. They set a very lofty goal to get the lights down in one week. On previous years the lift has been rented for one month. By getting the lights down so quickly they saved nearly $2,000. It was pretty amazing. They worked until dark on Tuesday and until 5:15 on Wednesday (last night) and got it all done. On the last couple of days Sister Patsy Starley and I went down and picked up lights and piled them into totes for them.

In this picture we are in the shop checking lights. Since this picture was taken we have added about 40 more containers of lights. They are stacked almost to the ceiling behind the tractor and 4 totes high in front of the tractor. The light strings have to be untangled, checked, repaired as needed, burned bulbs replaced, and then we wrap them up and pack them in totes ready for next year. We have finished about 20 totes full of lights, but that is only about a third or fourth of them. (The stuff on the right is paper goods and supplies for chapels in Vermont and New Hampshire. Everything is delivered to our shop and then it goes out from here to the various church buildings.

In one of our earlier blogs we talked about this amazing stuff that Mike called a "fungus" but it looks a lot like the formations in a cave. I wish we could have gotten pictures earlier in the year, before we had rain, but we are very grateful for Sister Starley for taking these. We have a lot of springs around here. There are places where the water just runs out of the rocks. It freezes in bubbles and mounds and sometimes even looks fuzzy. Then as we have warmer days and cold nights, large icicles form. It is a very beautiful sight.

We are late getting our blog out this week. I am teaching Primary now, and lessons take time to prepare. Saturday I needed to practice because I sang in a trio for church, and then I was asked to play the piano for Zone Conference (4 songs). I am not a confident piano player, so I spent every free minute practicing. It was a wonderful experience to play "How Great Thou Art" and have about 200 young men and women (missionaries) singing. It sounded absolutely beautiful!

Hope you are all keeping busy with good things, and having fun as you go.

MAKE IT A GREAT DAY! WE LOVE YOU!

Happy Valentines Day

February is a delightful month. Mike and I became engaged on Valentines Day and we like to celebrate it just like an anniversary.
I have always liked Valentines Day. When I was young we used to drive around Pomerene, leaving valentines on peoples doorsteps. We would ring the bell and run, hop in the car and drive away. It was a fun tradition. Our doorbell would ring just like on Halloween, but we would open the door to find valentines instead of trick-or-treaters. Times have changed a lot, and people don't run around delivering valentines any more. When our children were little we used to make sugar cookies cut in the shape of hearts. We would frost them, put them on plates and leave them on neighbor's doorsteps. The children would take turns. They would set them down carefully, ring the bell, and run really fast so no one would know who left them. I think some of our children have carried on this tradition.
Tonight I spent a couple of hours sending e-mail valentines to all of the grandchildren. It was a lot of fun.

Do all of you know who this cute little guy is?
He is our youngest grandson Eli.
For our friends who might not know, our son James had 7 girls and then a boy. Do you have any doubts that this cute little guy is well taken care of? When I was looking through our pictures, I saw this one and it was so cute that I just had to use it.
Jeremy and Erin are expecting a little girl at the end of February. In fact it is due February 29th. We are hoping for February 28th (not excited about this being leap year). Anyway, we just pray that she will get here safe and sound.
I recently got a letter from Joyce Welker telling about a special R.S. lesson at church where everyone was asked: What would you say (in 25 words or less) to loved ones if you might not see them again? What would you say?
JUST A REMINDER TO APPRECIATE WHAT YOU HAVE, AND DO YOUR BEST TO HELP EVERYONE AROUND YOU FEEL LOVED. We love you all! Have a great February.