Traditions to Uphold

Jessica loves her hat and scarf.  It was well worth the work to see her smile.

Elder Matthew Helm arrived in Pocatello to serve his mission on 17 November 2009.  Here he is with his Mission Presicent and his wife. 

This is a map of his mission.  The area is the yellow portion.  Elder Helm is serving in Shelley Idaho.  A small town with a population of about 3800.  There are 2 stakes in Shelley which is totally wild to most of those who live here in St Joseph Missouri, where we have about 60,000 people living here and only 2 wards.  (if you click on the map it should get bigger on your screen)

While Elder Helm is serving his first 6 weeks he is known as a "Greenie" so to help him along, we sent him the "Greenie Survival Kit."

This is the poem that we wrote in the card.

Packed inside were all things green.  Green duct tape, Green M&M's and Jelly Belly's, and many othere assorted eatables all in green packaging.

We don't know too much else about what he is doing as the pictures he sends is of his companions and he doesn't really write too much.  NOTE TO FUTURE MISSIONARIES:  WRITE MORE DETAILS IN YOUR LETTERS TO YOUR MOTHERS!!!

Have you ever noticed that at the end of the year, the teachers seem to wake up and say "oh my we are almost 1/2 way through the year and only 1/3 the way through the books.  We must send home more homework!!  Jessica, Joshua and Daniel have had tons of homework daily--Many, many school projects.  One teacher even asigned 2 very large projects due on the same day.  It has been very tense here as they scramble to get the work done.  Mandy too has to scramble to keep ahead of her Sunbeams, above is where she left off in her preparations to go to work. 

Now on to traditions!

We have many traditions in our family throughout the year.  However during the month of December we have more, and they don't even really begin in December.  They begin on Thanksgiving.  Do you ever wonder how a tradition comes about? About how it then goes on to become a really great memory that is about sharing and family?  Well one of our traditions is that after we clean up from the traditional Thanksgiving Dinner--which we usually do as a family--we set up the Christmas tree.  It all started when Bill first began to work for Kmart, when Rachel was just a baby.  Thanksgiving Day was the last day of the season that we could guarentee that Bill would be off work.  That being the case, we decided that we would set up the tree as a family on that evening.  Over the years we have had many transistions.  First Bill would set up the tree, then I would fluff the branches.  Bill would then put on the lights--most of the time joyfully--some years there would be colorful metaphores muttered under his breath.  After that each child would be given their personal decorations to hang on the tree one at a time.  This process when the children were young could take as much as 4 hours to complete.  As the children grew, Rachel and Mandy would put on the lights.  Rachel standing with the lights wrapped around her while Mandy put them on the tree exactly right.  After they grew up we got a pre-lighted tree and now nobody has to mutter at the lights.  Now they are all older.  Bill still puts up the tree and connects the lights--some muttering this year--and then all the children fluff the tree.  I have to say though that the girls are much more gentle and precise in the placement of each branch.  The boys abrupt movements seem as if they are wrenching nature into place.

The best part of traditions are the memories.  Stories that go with each ornament, stories of the children through the years.  One of our favorites is when Rachel was just 2 years old she, having just had her second birthday thought the lights on the tree was a candle like on her birthday cake and so blew on the light.  That year we had the blinking lights and when it went out she clapped.  Then it came back on and she thought she had to keep blowing out the candle.  Every year when the lights first go on, I remember that moment. 
Memories are important.  They are what bind a family together in traditions.  When we remember them we feel closer together. 

Most of all our memories remind of of all that we have built together as a family.  I have the most amazing husband.  He works hard and loves us much.  He is crazy about his children and is joyful for each and every accomplishment.  He is saddened by each difficulty that comes our way and often  I see him praying for each of us.  We have been blessed to be together for 26 years this past 11 November 2009.  We didn't do anything special this year as we were both too ill, but that was ok.  We were together.  Many at our wedding had cash bets that we wouldn't last a year.  We were put together to last for the long haul.  What a blessing our life has been!!  We have had many challenges, many sorrows and many triumphs.  Through it all we have put our faith completely and fully in the Lord.  I hope we have at least 26 years more in this life and then on into eternity.  We are truly forever.