Toasting "TOGETHER" -Happy 50th Anniversary Mom and Dad Rigby

Together…. 

Together is such a nice word.  Together for 50 years that is now deemed unique and almost impossible, but these two pulled it off.  Funny how life changes, but for these two they grew and changed and remained the same with the passing of the seasons holding onto their belief in God and in each other.

Their love brought me my best friend, husband, and father of our five children.  I toast their “TOGETHER” tonight.  I think of them fifty years ago- young and in love and without many pennies to their name.

  They have experienced ups, downs, and everything in between.  I am grateful they didn’t give up… they didn’t quit.  That example has taught me so much- and to think it all started with a box of cherry chocolates.

Happy 50^th Anniversary to the two people I genuinely and with great love call mom and dad- what a blessing of strength, security, and steadfastness you have been to me.  I am overwhelmed and ever grateful to be your daughter.

 Happy 50^th Anniversary. 

Love Always,

Amyanne

*We celebrated mom and dad's 50th wedding anniversary on Thanksgiving weekend.  It was wonderful to all remember what TOGETHER  feels like.

At the family gathering at Thanksgiving, Dad Shared with us momentos, memories, and the history of his parents.  The chain saw belonged to his father, Eldro

Grandpa Eldro's shovel-- many lessons can be taught by this shovel

mom Rigby snuggles with Aurora and Archer

Alyssa and Landon

Steve and Candace

Travis shares more stories and momentos of Eldro

more snugglers

Eldro's tool box

Love you, Danny!

Eldro's original deer camp

Archer, Emily, and Maleck

Christian, Mckenna and Paige

Carlos, Rochelle, Chelsea, Braydon, and Alyssa

cute Aurora

The "littlest" Liam

We wandered over to SUU where Dad took us on a tour of the old College Farm that Grandpa Eldro Ran

Chelle and Paige

Dietrich and Christian

Jeremy

Travis

Love you Mom and Dad

For our mid day activity we went to our family's favorite and most sacred places, Deer Mountain

Look at Maleck in the distance with a view of Grandpa's rock

Emily and Paige

My Maleck

Stockton, Emily, Dietrich, Paige, Christian, Madsen, Maleck, and grandpa climbed atop of "Grandpa's rock"

For the Beauty of the Earth

These are treasures of Eldro's

Floyd J Rigby and Madsen Floyd Rigby

Travis treated everyone to dutch oven dinner

love you Spencer!

Yummy

Paige, Braydon, and Rochelle

Paige, me, Rochelle

Dad and Trav- love these two

Ann and Chad

Maleck

Oh I love my Rigby

Alyssa and Landon

Grandpa with Aurora

Love this crew-- miss you Elder Rigby

Thank you mom and dad for EVERYTHING!

Guernsey Group- Language of Flowers.

Last month, Guernsey Book Group met at Dawn's home and Kim presented Vanessa Diffenbaugh's book, The Language of Flowers.
Set in present day San Francisco, Victoria Jones communicates her emotions through  flowers.  Jones is a product of the Foster Care System and has spent much of her life in solitude.  

At the age of 18, Victoria is liberated from the system and must find somewhere to be.  It is in a local park she finds her first home she plants her own garden and is discovered by a local florist.  

Victoria's gift of sharing her "Language of Flowers" blesses many lives including her own as she is able to grapple with her own path while forging her future.  She is a "bartender" of floral shops so to speak.

Language of Flowers is a story of becoming somebody... for Victoria it is a story of becoming somebody far more than she was taught she could be.

Guernsey Group meets again tomorrow night for its first annual "White Elephant" book Swap.  Guernsey Group is thrilled that Elaine Vickers will be joining us sharing insights from her book, Like Magic.

Suggested December reads
Boys on the Boat
My Grandmother asked me to tell you She's Sorry
A Man Called Ove

Saying Good Bye to President Anderson

Elders and Sisters From the Denmark Copenhagen Mission- 1992-1995- Then Elder Rigby both shared and documented his mission extremely well.  So much so, that I feel right at home with this crew.  They are amazing people!

 Rigby's voice had a catch in it last week when he called from work to share with me that his mission President, President Anderson had passed away.  I knew how much he loved him.  I knew President Anderson truly shaped him as a man, husband, father, and disciple of Jesus Christ.  I loved him too.  He and his wife Jeanie loved everyone.  

President and Sister Anderson
Al and Jeanie

You see, I was the "girl back home."  You know the one everyone told it would never work out.  When then Elder Rigby asked on his last Christmas in Denmark if he could call his girlfriend on Christmas day, President Anderson responded, "Eldeste, I didn't know you had a girlfriend."  Rigby and I did it right.  I loved his mission almost as much as he did.

The Danish Sisters

We hugged Sister Anderson tightly as we passed through the viewing line last night.  Hoping if by osmosis she could feel what she and her husband mean to us.  They came to our wedding, our oldest son's baby blessing, we took our  five children to their home, and they were treated as grandchildren.  Rigby and Sister Anderson even share the same birthday!- they are so very dear to us!

The Elders

The Andersons loved the little land of Denmark.  They shared that love with their missionaries.  A good handful of those missionaries gathered today to say good bye to a man that they loved dearly.  At the conclusion of the funeral as the casket was taken from the room, this handful of missionaries paid tribute to a man who taught them about Christ because he served as Christ would.  They sang in Danish, "God Be With You Until We Meet Again."

These two- love them!
Elders Rigby and Harmon
Travis and Stewart served as assistants together.  They even made a trip to Iceland during their service.

Thanks so much to the entire Anderson family for sharing their father, grandfather, and great grandfather with the Rigby family, and the band of missionaries who grew through your sacrifice of those 3 years away from "Al and Jeanie."  

Rigby and I have our first missionary out now- yep, we are that old.  With his service, I feel an even greater love for missionary work, the entire Anderson family, President and Sister Anderson. and our son's mission President and his wife, President and Sister Lewis.

We love you Sister Anderson.  We will be seeing you soon -come birthday time!