The Spectacular Month Of June - Missionary Moments, 50th Wedding Celebration & Family Fun~

On June 6th, one of the sisters we serve with, Sister Hinchcliff was transferred.  Sister Casinas new companion will be a Sister Denison. Here is our farewell photo. Sister Casinas, Sister Williams (LeAnn) and Sister Hinchcliff.  All the sister companionships that we have served with since September of last year have been outstanding missionaries. 

Baby Katalina, our Grandson Jacob, Dana, Sagan and Katalina - Our son Sean, Mary and Katalina - 

Roger, LeAnn and baby Katalina

We were able to attend the blessing of our 4th Great Granddaughter. She was named Katalina. She is our 5th Great Granddaughter. Our only Great Grandson, Sagan also received a name and a blessing in his home. We enjoyed our family time with them. 

Photos of Michael's Eagle Court of Honor~

I loved being able to fly to  Spokane, Washington to attend the Eagle Court of Honor for my Grandson, Michael. It was a tender moment. I am so proud of him. I felt sad that my dear husband couldn't attend. 
Michael also graduated from High School on that Sunday. I felt sad I couldn't stay for that special moment. He had a big party to celebrate both his Eagle and his graduation which I was able to attend.  
Here is the reason my dearest husband couldn't fly to Washington with me. We learned that the Vitreous is fluid material that as you age will pull away from the Retina of the eye. There is some pulling away on the right eye but more so on the left. With Roger it is pulling a way and causing a small hemorrhage in the left eye. The danger is that it can cause a retinal tear or detachment which would require surgery. It will continue to pull away no matter what. He will need to go in immediately if he has certain symptoms. Meanwhile, he needs to be near medical care. He has a return appointment to check it on July 10th. 

We had the unique opportunity to attend a 3 hour missionary devotional with Elder David A. and Sister Susan Bednar. We received some powerful teachings on how the Spirit of the Holy Ghost works within us and how as missionaries we can bring the Spirit to our meetings. We learned that we can teach with the spirit but those we teach must bring that spirit into their own hearts in order to believe. He and His sweet wife bore powerful testimonies of our Savior Jesus Christ. The missionaries were told that they were reserved to come to earth at this time and that they are valiant servants of the Lord. Our dear President Lansing and his wife also bore wonderful testimonies of the Savior and missionary work. We were truly spiritually fed. 

We celebrated our 50th Wedding Anniversary on June 13th. We took some ancestral names to the Salt Lake Temple to do temple sealings. We had a wonderful time doing the sealings. We spent some time in the Celestial room pondering upon the day we were married 50 years ago. It was a beautiful experience. We then went to lunch at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. We had such a marvelous day and evening together. 

Our reunion with our daughter and granddaughter.

Our Anniversary week has been extra special. Our middle daughter Jenni and her family came on Monday the 12th to spend the week with us. They were kind and took care of our dog, Sammy while we went overnight for our anniversary. 

On Friday, June 17th, the rest of our children started to come for a family celebration. Only our oldest daughter Christina wasn't able to come. We all met at the Market Street Grill for dinner. We had just started to order when our daughter Christina and granddaughter, Sariah showed up from Australia. We were so overcome with joy and surprise that she did come after all. We a great time with them all.  

Here are all of our children except for some of Christina's family. This was joy filled moment. 

Left side; Sariah, Jenni, Michael, Travis, Amanda, James, Amber -

 Right side; Christina, Roger, LeAnn, Mary, Sean, David, and Tiffani~

On Saturday, June 18th, our children planned a 50th Wedding Anniversary party with our family, extended family and other loved ones.  

Here are misc. photos of our fantastic evening with family, extended family and beloved friends~

We had such a good time talking with everyone that came. We felt so loved by so many. It was a spectacular evening. 

The evening was magical. We cut our beautiful cake and even danced to our song; Blue Velvet by Bobbi Darin. It brought back memories and was very romantic. 

A really sweet surprise came when my two Sister in laws came with some of my nieces and nephews. I started to cry because they came from Las Vegas, Nevada and St. George, Utah.

Gloria, my sister in law and LeAnn -

 LeAnn with my sister in laws, Amparo and Gloria -

 Gloria, LeAnn and my nephew, Gabe~

Our dear family from Las Vegas, St. George and Utah - Love all of them so much! 

Here are photos of our precious Grandchildren and Great Grandchildren~

 1st photo; Sarah, Taylor Jo & Grandma - 2nd photo; back, Emma; front, William, Benjamin and Jeffery -

 3rd photo; Alyssa and Kaitlyn~

 Averi, Alyssa, Kaitlyn, Karli, Taylor Jo, Sarah and Sariah~

 Great Granddaughter, Jadyn, Grandson, Jonathan, Great Granddaughters, Lilly and Myah, Granddaughter in law, Jessica, Grandson, Jed, Granddaughter, Gillian, Grandsons, Jacob, Jackson, Granddaughter in law, Dana with Great Granddaughter, Katalina~

Grandson's, Ethan, Christian, Michael, Son, Travis, Grandson's Austin and Joseph~

Here photos of family and long time friends~

Top Left photo - Roger and LeAnn with Roger's sister Gloria and husband, John
Top Right photo - Best friends since 8th grade; Danelle, Roger and LeAnn and Paul. 
Lower Left photo - Roger and LeAnn with beloved friends; Toni and Steve
Lower Right photo - Cousins Chad and Lisa with Roger and LeAnn

This is a photo of our dear friend; Jean and Carol. My husband helped Jean to get baptized while on his mission in Northern California 52 years ago. Her daughter Carol was taught and confirmed a member of the church by my husband at that time. They came and it was a very special moment for us. 

Jean, LeAnn and Carol ~

On Friday and Saturday night we had 18 of our Grandchildren sleeping at our home along with two couples. It was an amazing two day.  Too say that it was a busy household doesn't describe it at all. We had such a good time with them. Then on Sunday they all attended church with us and we celebrated Father's Day and our granddaughter, Sarah's birthday. We were assigned talks in the Sacrament meeting we attended and it was fun to have them there. Luckily, we had our talks prepared before all of the weeks events. 

 We celebrated the 16th birthday of our adorable Granddaughter, Sarah. It was fun to have the entire family her to celebrate her special day. 

                        The photos below are of our families on Father's Day~ 

Here is our oldest son Sean's family -

 Jonathan, Jackson,Mary, Joseph and Joshua, Sean and Jeffery  

Next Photo; our grandson, Jacob with Sagan; Dana with Katalina ~

Here is our 2nd son Travis and His family - 

Top row; Austin, Justice and Ethan - 2nd row; Karli and Travis

Bottom row: Amanda, Haven, Kason, Ryley and Layton ~ 

Our third son, James and his family.

Taylor Jo, Amber and Averi, James and Christian~

Sariah, our Granddaughter, Christina, our daughter, Jerry and Sheena, plus our Sammy~

Here is our Oldest daughter, Christina. She stayed until Thursday and then returned to Australia. While she was here, my husband's brother Jerry and his daughter Sheena came over for a visit. It was so fun to have a night with them. 

Our daughter Jenni's family - They traveled her from Arizona 
Michael, Jenni
Alyssa, Emma and Benjamin
 

Our youngest daughter, Tiffani's family. They came her from Washington. 

Sarah, Kaitlyn, Tiffani, David and William, Michael~

The first photo below is of our new Sister Denison and Sister Casinas. We had a great service opportunity with them. We helped a sister that we are presently teaching the family, prepare a birthday party for her son. Her husband will be baptized in July. She was making Tamales so we offered to help her. It was really fun. 

Here are some photos of our Grandson, Austin receiving his Eagle. We weren't able to attend the Eagle court but I did want to share this special time. He's an awesome young man and we are so proud of him. 

The month of June has been filled with wonderful moments of celebration. Our 50th Wedding Anniversary was so lovely. It was like being in a magical dream that we didn't want to end.  We have enjoyed beyond measure our times with our family and other loved ones.  We are forever grateful for all that each of our children did to provide such a treasured event for us. We testify that Heavenly Father loves families and we are thankful for our Eternal family.
We had some marvelous missionary experiences this month. We love all the individuals and families that we have the opportunity to teach and serve. We feel deeply blessed by our loving Heavenly Father. We are enjoying our mission very much!
We have had many treasured memories that I have tried to capture on this blog post which will be a journal entry for this precious month. 
Wishing everyone out there a extra special month of July. I'm looking forward to great things to come!😊💖

Forever Together ~ Our 50th Wedding Anniversary!

Once upon a time there was a little girl named LeAnn. She loved to play dress-up and enjoyed pretending like she was a bride. She dreamed of the day that she would meet her very own Prince Charming and be swept away to be married in a beautiful Castle.  
As she grew older she learned about being Married and Sealed to an Eternal Companion forever in a Temple of our Lord. She then set a goal to do just that. Eventually she met that Prince Charming and his name was Roger.

 He did indeed sweep her off her feet. They dated and then she waited for him as he served a  2 year mission for The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. While he was away, she finished her Nursing degree. 

They became engaged and married in the Salt Lake Temple for Time and All Eternity on June 13th 1967. 

They had a lovely Wedding in the Temple and a beautiful reception for family and friends.

  They then left for a wonderful 10 day honeymoon to Northern California. They had a marvelous time. 

 Here are a few photos of them through the years. 

They have had a wondrous 50 years together!

The years multiplied quickly and their family did too. Six children became Twelve as spouses were added.  Then grandchildren came one by one until there were Thirty two. Then Five Great Grandchildren have now blessed their lives. They have a posterity of forty nine.

Here are a few of the photos of their family through the years~

We have had many wonderful learning and growing times together over these past 50 years. There have been earth life struggles and disappointments and also countless precious moments of joy.We both have strong testimonies of our Heavenly Father and  our Savior. Jesus Christ. Our faith has helped us through many of our life concerns.   

We have had the rich opportunity to live in four different states; Utah, California, Nevada and Washington. The following cities where we have lived offered a variety of experiences; Salt Lake City, San Jose, Paradise, Midvale, Richmond, Las Vegas and Spokane. In each place we have made new friends, and had great job experiences.  Most of all we have enjoyed serving our Heavenly Father in various callings and service assignments throughout the years.
We love each and every one of our children, their spouses, Grandchildren, and Great Grandchildren. They have taught us many lessons and enriched our lives in many ways. We are so grateful for them all. 
We have loved our life together. It has been a beautiful journey of friendship, love, and deep devotion. We have enjoyed every precious moment and look forward to many more years and an eternity together. 

Roger and LeAnn

1967 -2017

Our Merry Month of May & A Moment In June~

Of course, Mother's Day started the Month off with a sweet day of remembrance of mothers. 

This month has been s busy one for us. We have enjoyed our  Missionary District and Zone meetings, teaching moments, finding visits and etc. We received permission from our Mission Presidency to attend three of our grandson's graduations from High School.

 We attended the Baby Blessing of our 4th Great Granddaughter and 5th Great Grandchild.  Here are some photos of our activities. 

Our Grandson, Joseph graduated from Wasatch High School on May 24th. It is always fun to have your last name start with a W. This means you are one of the last to walk up to receive your diploma. Joseph was the 4th from the last. We enjoyed the graduation program. It was fairly short and inspiring. Joseph is the son of our oldest son, Sean and Mary. Top Right photo is Sean and Mary and some of their children; Jeffery, Joshua, Joseph,Jonathan and Gillian.

On Memorial Day we traveled up to Idaho Falls to be with two of our sons and their families. On Tuesday, we went with our daughter in law, Amber for a drive up to a Cemetery where my  husband's Great Great Grandparents and Great Grandparents were buried. We didn't even know where this Cemetery was; it was a sweet moment to visit their graves. We do have histories of all of these ancestors and have enjoyed reading their life experiences. 

In the evening we went to a barbecue party for our daughter in law's Father's birthday. They are our dear friends; it was fun to be with them all. The food was scrumptious. Her father made some delicious Barbecued Ribs. I loved being with my Grandchildren. Taylor Jo and I went out to visit the horses; which was a marvelous moment. Taylor Jo loves riding horses. She takes after me because I always wanted to be a Cowgirl and I loved riding horses. Of course, I love hugging my Grandson, Christian. He is one of the ones graduating tomorrow. The middle photo is my husband Roger with my son, James. 

On Tuesday night we drove to our son, Travis's home and had dinner with them and spent the evening visiting. We loved being with their family. There are three granddaughters and 5 grandsons. They have two of our youngest grandchildren so we always have fun playing with them. 

Here are 5 photos out of our 8 Grandchildren here~ 

Haven, Layton, Kason, Ryley and Karli -

On Wednesday both our Grandson's graduation ceremonies were at the very same time. We decided to split and each of us would go to one of them. Last minute my husband had an eye condition worsen so we decided he would stay home. We luckily did get some photos with our graduating Grandsons. 
Austin graduated from Sugar Salem High School. The photos above  are of our 2nd son Travis and Amanda's family. Amanda's parents traveled from Virginia for the graduation and we had a great visit with them. Top right photo is Travis and Amanda with their children; Austin, Justice,Ethan, little Haven, Layton, Kason and Ryley. 

Christian graduated from Bonneville High School. His program was short and sweet too. We again were able to be with James's family and Amber's parents. James is our 3rd son. Top right photo is us with Austin - 2nd right photo is Barbara and Bob with Austin - 3rd right photo; Barbara, James, Christian, Amber and Averi, Taylor Jo and Bob - Bottom Right is us with our family. They had a pizza party afterwards for Christian. We felt blessed to be able to spend these precious moments with our two families. 

On Sunday June 4th, we attended the baby blessing for our 4th Great Granddaughter; 5th Great Grandchild. Her name is Katalina Willow Rose. I love her name. As you can see she is adorable. The top right photo is our Grandson Jacob, Granddaughter in law, Dana and Sagan our Great Grandson. The 2nd right photo is our son Sean and daughter in law, Mary. The bottom 2nd left photo is my granddaughter, Gillian. This was a really sweet day and we enjoyed being with their family and friends.
 Blessing a baby is a special ordnance where they receive their name and a blessing which is then recorded on the records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Our little Grandson, Sagan was blessed at their home and given his name and a blessing by his Grandfather, Sean. His name will now be recorded on the records of the church.  
This was a delightful Sabbath day for us and we enjoy each lovely moment.