March 14, 2015 - Saturday

Mom and I were up early this morning for our prayers together and scripture study.  It was 48 degrees outside this morning when we left for our morning walk at 6:30am.  The air was so clean and clear this morning!  Our walk took us through the Women's Garden's just south of the Nauvoo Visitor's Center and I captured some pictures that reminded Sister Lasher and me of our daughters and granddaughters.  See if you agree;

Mackenzie's first steps!

I think we have been wonderfully blessed to see the first steps of each of our grandchildren!  We loved the statue where some happy parents are witnessing those first steps!

Ring around the rosy!

I pictured Zac and Mia and Emma playing with mom in the back yard!  Jack was tied up as a secret agent and Hayley was on her own adventure getting ready for her 9th birthday party, and missed the first part of the game!  And then Callie and Courtney dancing with Isaac as Cambry was getting ready for Junior High School! 

Precious one-on-one time with mom

In this statue we pictured special moments with Mom and Hayley, Mom and Mia, and Mom and Emma and Mom and Anna, Mom and Cambry, and Mom and Callie, and Mom and Courtney, and Mom and Maddie and Mom and Kenzie.  Those times we remembered went by so quickly and are treasured and precious memories!

For all the big sisters!

Here we see our older granddaughters helping mom; Josie and Mary have daughters ready and willing to help when that new precious bundle arrives this summer!  There's Johnny peeking down to Anna for one more time before he is no longer the youngest Lasher!

Mom and her precious son

All of our grandsons have the loving example of their mothers.  I will never forget my mom and the way she helped me prepare for manhood and those responsibilities.  

Grandsons, Zac, Jack, Bobby, Jacob, Johnny, Isaac, Cody, and Landon here are two stories for you to remember that personally happened to Grandpa;  and to my granddaughters, Cambry, Hayley, Callie and Courtney, and Mia and Emma and Maddie and Kenzie, and Anna, I know you each deserve and are preparing for a worthy future husband and future father to your children to treat you and your children this way!

Story #1 - Grandpa's dad died when he was 2 years and 8 months old (April 1953).  I only had stories about how kind my dad was to his mother and to my mother.  My favorite story that affected my mother was the time he came home early from work and saw my mom, his wife, scrubbing the kitchen floor.  He gently helped her up from off her knees and told her he wanted to take her out to dinner and would finish the cleaning as she got ready for the date.  I have always tried to treat my mom and my wife with that same love and kindness... so that leads to;

Story #2 - I was working at Longs Drugs store in Pleasanton, California, and knew that my moms 70 birthday party was coming up in one week.  My mom lived about three hours away from Granny and Grandpa, but I felt I needed to go see her and take her out to dinner.  I called her up a few days before and set up the date.  I bought 70 red roses and put them in a big vase and took them with me on that special day.  She was so excited and we went out for dinner with my sister Jackie.  My brother Doug was not able to attend.  

This was June 9, 1995.  On August 8, 1995, my mom felt bad and went to the emergency room with my sister.  I was called and immediately left work and took my son Bob and daughter's Josie and Amy with me for the three hour drive to Fresno.  She died 20 minutes after we arrived.  I will never forget or regret being too kind to my mom!!! When I got to her home after the time at the hospital that day, there were still 70 very dry roses in that vase on her mantle.  My precious grandchildren - no regrets!

Here's Granny making baby blankets for her grandchildren!

 Both mom and I had a busy day at our site assignments.  I was at the Brickyard again today and mom was at the Lucy Mack Smith Home.  Here is mom going to work this morning; she worked right across the street from the Brick Yard!

Hi!

Here is a question that we might all consider;  what if you had your 14 year old son come to you and tell you that he had seen a vision of God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ, after praying to know which Church to join?  You know your son and you know about the religious zeal that was going on in and around your town.  As a family you might want to discuss what may have gone on in Mother Smith's mind on that sacred and special day.  Granny got to work in her home today and teach the visitors what it was like to be the Prophets mother...

The Brick-maker

Today we had over 100 come by the Brick shop.  It was as big a crowd as we had yesterday and I was happy to share the stories of the 7 brink yards in Nauvoo in the early 1840's.  Over 4 million bricks could be produced in one season and the brink makers worked very hard to each produced 3,000 to 5,000 bricks per day.  

The season of brick making started in the late spring, after the rainy season, and went well into the fall.  Between fall and spring, the brick maker would begin preparing his clay for the next season.  He would gather the clay from the banks in and around the Mississippi River and put it into "pits".  During the winter he would turn the clay as it was "seasoned" from the winds, rains, snows, freezing weather and then the thawing in the early spring.  He would use his oxen to churn the clay hundreds of times during the winter.

Each brick home in Nauvoo used an average of 40,000 bricks.  The bricks cost 2 cents each and the average brick home cost about $800.  A lot of money when you only made $1 per day on the average!  Here is another interesting note; there were about 350 brick homes in Nauvoo in 1846, and about 2,000 wood and log homes.  When the restoration of Nauvoo began in 1963, there were 49 brick homes standing and 7 wood and log homes standing.... and I have no doubt that people took down some of the brick homes and reused the brick somewhere else in the community!  

Bricks made a sure foundation for the long term home, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ makes for the sure foundation for our eternal lives! 

Have a great night and thank you for checking in!