Quote for the week

"Our society is afflicted by a spirit of thoughtless arrogance unbecoming those who have been so magnificently blessed. How grateful we should be for the bounties we enjoy. Absence of gratitude is the mark of the narrow, uneducated mind. It bespeaks a lack of knowledge and the ignorance of self-sufficiency. It expresses itself in ugly egotism and frequently in wanton mischief....

"Where there is appreciation, there is courtesy, there is concern for the rights and property of others. Without appreciation, there is arrogance and evil.

"Where there is gratitude, there is humility, as opposed to pride" (Gordon B. Hinckley,""With All Thy Getting Get Understanding'," Ensign, Aug 1988, 2–5).

Federer Homestead Book - Entry #11

I am still compiling stories and scanning pictures for the Federer Homestead tribute book. I haven't had too much extra time lately so I am grateful for a few hours to get back at it. Uncle Dale is next ... yes another boy ~ # 5!

Merlin Dale Federer
Uncle Dale was born April 26, 1929

Dale, Bernice, Carl, Theodore, Edna and Dad

They must be going to church, all dressed in their Sunday best. And you can see the Wyoming wind is blowing, just look at Grandma's dress!

Uncle Dale was so handsome and as it turns out he still is. He looks like a movie star!

I think he looks like Clark Gable!

Uncle Dale and Dad, both looking very handsome in their military uniforms. I love the old car they're are standing next to.

Uncle Dale during the time he served in Korea.

Our "college man" as Aunt Bernice calls him. A proud day for Grandma and Grandpa, his graduation from the University of Wyoming.

Uncle Dale was very athletic and was a champion wrestler.

Last but not least is a picture of when he met President Obama!

I have heard that Uncle Dale had a strong will and was very determined. I'm sure that determination is what molded him into the great man he is. He was teased a lot growing up by guess who? ~ his older brothers! He was always serious and very intent on doing what was right.

He is charming and so kind. He loves to tell stories and has an amazing memory. He also has a cute sense of humor.

Uncle Dale taught agriculture and wrestling at the high school in Saratoga, Wyoming. He was very respected there and is still honored when he comes to town.

He was also a professor at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo for many years.

He still lives in California and has chickens that are treated like royalty. He has lost a lot of weight. He told me that he is on the "chicken diet." He always saves some of his meal when he eats out and brings the left-overs to the chickens! Portion control!!

It was so good to see him in September. I have always admired him and enjoy our visits. He celebrated his 80th birthday last spring.

Birthday + Anniversary

Tim had a business meeting in St. George and we also celebrated my birthday and our anniversary, which both happen to be in November.

We made a quick stop in St. George. The temple their is so beautiful at night. I love our pioneer temples.

While Tim was at his meeting, I enjoyed shopping at the outlet stores. I got a little head start on the Christmas shopping. It was a beautiful day, 70 perfect degrees.

Then Tim drug me off to Sin City! It is a place you love to hate!

Is there any place like Vegas?!

... And what happens in Vegas stays Vegas! Really if it wasn't for the great shows they have there, we would never set foot in the place. Don't worry, I came home a winner!

We stayed at the Mirage, very nice!

This is the lobby of the Venetian where The Phantom of the Opera in playing, it is very impressive.

Another view of the lobby ~ so beautiful!

There is entertainment wherever you go.

Even if you think you've seen The Phantom of the Opera before, believe me, you've never seen it like this. I have seen it in Los Angeles and here in Utah but this production of Phantom surpasses them all.

We arrived at the theatre about a half an hour before the show was to begin and found it was very quiet and no one waiting in line. So we inquired to what was going on and found out Nevada does not use daylight savings time. Oh well, it gave us a little more time to work the slot machines!

The theatre design resembles the Opera Garnier in Paris. This is the first time Phantom has been performed in Las Vegas. David Rockwell, one of the most renowned designers of today, designed the $40 million custom-built theatre.

... Complete with red plush seats and curtains, gold statues and carvings, a hand painted ceiling topped with an 80-feet wide dome … and opera boxes lining the sides. The opera boxes have 70 colorful mannequins, which happen to built in Belgium. None of them are alike and each was has on a authentic period costume.

The centerpiece of the theatre is the chandelier. From our seats, Tim and I could almost reach out and touch it! It weighs 2,100 pounds and cost 4.5 million dollars to create. The shimmering chandelier is comprised of 29,444 individual crystals that were hand strung. It was breathtaking. In this version of Phantom, the chandelier hangs in four pieces during the beginning of the show. The spokes of the ceiling's dome support 32 cables that guide the chandelier into place and it takes 40 individual computers, complete with navigational software, to run the chandelier. During the show's climactic scene, the chandelier falls 45 feet in three seconds and stops only 10 feet above those seated beneath it – we could feel the wind rush as it fell.

The entire theatre is filled with surround sound speakers – the music is provided by a live 19-piece orchestra. So amazing!

Using Christopher's rating system it was a ten out of ten or an A++!

Phantom is billed as The Las Vegas Spectacular and I am telling you, it definitely lives up to its name. It is timeless and we left the theatre wishing the music of the night would never end!

Then say you'll share with me
one love, one lifetime
let me lead you from your solitude
Say you need me with you here, beside you
anywhere you go, let me go too ...

Thanks to my sweet husband for a chance to stop and smell the roses!

Quote for the week

I'm so busy ....
I don't know if I found a rope or lost my horse!

Lately my plate on the smorgasbord of life has been very full!

EMT's ~ My incredible presidency

Ann Adamson, Shauna Valentine (filling in for Valerie Blain) and Val Peterson

I have given a lot of my time preparing for Stake Leadership Training. All the effort paid off and we had a very successful night. We dressed like EMT's and used the theme Edify, Minister and Teach. The invitations we sent looked like a doctor's prescription.

We also had pill bottles that we filled with candy for all our ward Relief Society presidencies. They looked very much like a real prescription.

This post is really for Tim. He has been so patient and supportive for the last 2 months or more! He has helped with all my extra tasks and done so lovingly. He has not complained once. Thanks so much my dear!

I use a planner to write all the things I need to do. I say all the time, "If I don't write it down, I'll forget." Sometimes I feel like I spend as much time recording my life events as I do participating in them!

"Too busy" is a phrase we say and hear as often as "good morning."

The danger in being too busy lies in not allowing enough time for what is most important. So we need to re-evaluate our schedules and it may mean that we have to eliminate some things. That can be a challenge! In our busy 24/7 world, busyness creeps up on us and I personally have a difficult time saying NO!

Buddha talked about what it takes to be a good ox-driver. The driver knows how heavy a load his ox can carry. He does not overload the ox. You know your way and your state of mind. Do not carry too much.

Good advice!

Another good quote: "A man of knowledge gains something each day. A man of wisdom gives up something each day."

When my days are especially busy, that old saying "Stop and Smell the Roses" holds even more meaning.

So Tim and I are going to Las Vegas for a few days to do just that. I hope they have roses there!

Federer Homestead Book - Entry #10

Next spotlight for the Federer Homestead Book is on my Dad!

Ivan Lester Federer

Dad was born June 9, 1927 the fourth son of Edna and Theodore Federer.

By this time I am sure Grandma may have been a little disappointed she didn't have a daughter. But how she loved my Dad. He also loved and honored her. Dad was the only one who had curly hair. Grandma kept him in ringlets until Grandpa insisted he have a boy haircut!

Dad was named Ivan for his Grandma Ivor Parker and Lester for a dear family friend, Lester Garton. Mr. Garton loved Dad and would carrying him around downtown Cheyenne grinning for ear to ear, especially when all the ladies commented on his curls!

Uncle Dale and Dad ~ so cute!

Dad learned the value of hard worked and always helped with the chores. You can see a lot of the homestead in this picture.

I talked to Uncle Dale a few days ago and he always tells me how much everyone loved Dad. Aunt Bernice says he was born with a disposition identical to Grandma's ~ warm, sensitive, a cute sense of humor and kind.

I will never forget the day a tornado leveled Dad's house.

You can see Grandma in the pink outfit surveying the damage. It was just so unbelievable.

We were so thankful he was at work when the tornado passed through Cheyenne.

We walked in the path of the tornado to see if we could find any of his possession. He did find his scriptures. They were wet and the pages were wrinkled but that made him love them even more.

Wyoming winters ~ Dad had to dig the cows out from the barn more than once.

I have mentioned before that Dad was a master craftsman. He went to Oklahoma to lay this beautiful stone on Aunt Bernice and Uncle Dave's home.

I wish he were here so we could share a can of peanuts!

Xie Xie - Shieh Shieh - Thank you

Yes, Chris is home safe from China!

I can now rest easy.

Guangzhou, China ~ Population 9 million

I still breathe a huge sigh of relief when I know that one of my sons (or my daughter-in-law) has made it home safely and are in for the night ... even if they no longer live with us!

I know he's a smart, capable and an experienced traveler but I am a mom and I worry. I was happy to see him at the Salt Lake airport looking well and happy.

Highland, Utah ~ Population 11,000

Once a parent always a parent. I don't think a parent EVER stops caring or wanting their children to be safe and happy even if they know that their children are grown and competent people.

Happy to have you home Christopher!!

Quote for the week

''Be Yourself. Everyone Else Is Taken!"
~ Oscar Wilde

Lian Zhong Yi a.k.a. Christopher

Ya, so two thumbs up and another big sigh because Chris is well again. No fever and is back to enjoying his trip to China. He will be home Tuesday!!

is very grateful!!