Sheep in the Backyard

Monday morning, we got the best surprise--a herd of sheep came

to graze in the meadow behind our house.

There are 17 white sheep, 7 black, and 18 chocolate- colored.

One of the sheep hung out at our back fence.

I called her "Libby" and as this picture was being taken, she licked my cheek!

Alex is the Sheep Whisperer

Emma and Josiah with Libby

As I am recording the following video of the kids feeding Libby some leaves, Josiah points out a ram who he spontaneously calls, "Big Boy." It isn't until I get a closer focus that I realize how appropriate the name actually is...

Push Play

Annette's Adventure

Tuesday morning Annette slept in through family scripture study. That was the first clue that something was wrong. She is always so keen to join us and she is normally one of the first ones up before the crack of dawn. Dad mentioned that she was up during the night with pains and chills.

She needed help down the stairs that morning because she had a pain in her right side. As the day progressed, her condition got worse. She was tired and very uncomfortable. I went to a meeting at the school and when I phoned Dad, he said that she was very sick and that we needed to take her to the hospital. He said she couldn't walk and that she had collapsed. He was afraid she had had a stroke. She was vommiting and, because she could not walk, he dragged her across the floor on a rug to the bathroom. When I arrived home, she was in the bathroom, white as a ghost and unable to speak. I was so afraid. I feared the worst on the way home and seeing her so weak and helpless only supported my anxiety.

Ever so strong and unwilling to be fussed over, Mom didn't want to go to the hospital because she said it was too expensive. I ran next door to Kirstie to ask her the name of a doctor. She called her doctor and was able to secure an appointment in the next 10 minutes. We three: Dad, Kirstie, and I, helped Mom into the car and drove to the next village, Bonstetten.

Dr. Kern was very attentive and thorough. He examined Annette and even drew blood for tests himself. She had a very high fever and the blood showed a strong infection. The doctor told us we needed to go to the hospital for xrays and an ultrasound. He called the local hospital and spoke to the doctor there explaining Mom's state for nearly 5 minutes. Blain was very impressed with the level of communication and attention Annette was receiving.

We drove to the Affoltern hospital which is called "Bezirksspital." (Dad said, "Isn't 'bezirk' the word used when people go crazy?" From then on we referred to the hospital as the looney bin. Although, "bezirk" means district in German.)

The doctors in the emergency room treated Mom for over 2 hours with compassionate and hands on care. They determined that she had pneumonia and needed to stay in the hospital. Mom didn't want to stay at first, but they soon put her mind at ease. In fact, by the time we left her, she was looking much better and even smiling.

All this time, Joel was in Sweden. I couldn't reach him until late that night. He cancelled his meetings for the next day and flew home Wednesday morning.

Wednesday morning Annette had rosey cheeks and a new friend. Bertie was English-speaking from South Africa. She and Mom made quick friends. Annette looked 100% better. In fact, she looked better than she had since she arrived in Switzerland.

She was cheerful and very impressed with the care she was receiving. In fact, we started to joke that Mom would want to get sick every time she visited us from now on. Switzerland is known for its health spas, buy who knew the hospitals were also so wonderful! Annette managed a nice vacation with her health insurance covering the bill!

Back in America, Ann was hysterical and even David was deeply concerned. Ann threatened that she would never let Mom come over here again. I can understand their distress, because I felt it myself in the first hours of the ordeal. But, as Blain would say, it has been a great blessing. Annette received top notch, personal care. She was able to experience a bit of "culture" in the hospital, as well as make new friends.

We are so grateful for the tender care the doctors, nurses and staff at the "Looney Bin" showed Annette. We are also thankful for dear friends and neighbors who supported all of us during Annette's adventure.

Bertie, Annette's friend

a sweet nurse

the Head Nurse

Leaving the "Bezirk" Hospital

Josiah's Baptism

Josiah Alexandar Huntington was baptised this Sunday, September 21, 2008.

It was such a wonderful ceremony with many of our dear friends attending. We feel so blessed to have so many loved ones here in Switzerland who support us and genuinely care about our family.

The Baptism was held in the Schwammendingen Chapel in north Zurich. It was held in English, although Meike Schulze was kind enough to translate the talks for our Swiss friends. (It gave them a chance to wear the earphones.) Joel conducted the meeting and Melanie Coombs played the piano with Jessica Rama leading the music. I forgot to print off the songs in English, so I wrote the lyrics on two gigantic chalk boards at the Church.

We sang "I am a Child of God" as an opening hymn. Alex gave a very sweet opening prayer. Then, Annette (Joel's mom) gave a wonderful talk on Baptism. She spoke personally to Josiah about the words, "Ordinance" and "Covenant". She also reminded him of the time when he was 3 years old and we were in an old church in England. There was only our little family in the chapel and in the background you could hear some quiet monk-chanting music. Out of the blue, we hear Josiah's little voice sing out, "I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ...."

Joel baptised Josiah with Blain and Dustin Aeschbacher acting as witnesses. While Joel and JoJo were getting changed, we played a video that I had prepared showing a journey of JoJo's life to this point with sweet primary songs as a background. It was fun to hear the children giggle at the pictures of Josiah growing up. Even JoJo bounded out of the changing room very quickly because he wanted to see the video and also see why everyone was laughing.

Blain, Joel's father, gave a talk on the Holy Ghost and bore his testimony of the real joy that is found in the Gospel. Josiah was then confirmed a member of the Church by Joel and Blain and Bishop Huwiler. Josiah was so reverent during the service and I truly feel he felt a change of heart.

We closed the meeting by singing "Teach Me to Walk in the Light" from the chalkboard, and Samuel gave a nice closing prayer. Josiah then darted out of the room into the gym to get first dibs in the refreshments!

Our neighbor Kirstie LeBow came with her 5 children, Nicholas, Phillip, Jennifer, Steven and Benjamin. The Goldschmidts, our dear Israeli friends, also came: Daniel, Emma, Ayellet, Eviatar, Naomi and Avashai. As a bonus, they brought one of Emma's (Huntington) school friends Constance along. Both families said they felt a warm, tender feeling and that they really enjoyed the service.

The only thing that could have made the baptism better would be if my parents, family members and close friends in America could have been here. We know that they were here in spirit, and it is their love and support that carries us through the distance.

I am filled with such peace and joy at this moment. I know it sounds kitchig. But, I have felt the Spirit confirm to me that God does have a Plan and that we are following that plan. I am so thankful for a faithful and good husband who leads our family in righteousness. I am thankful for outstanding children who believe in Christ and who love the Gospel. I am thankful for goodly parents and parents through marriage. I love living in this beautiful country of Switzerland. I marvel that God could make such a beautiful earth. I am thankful for dear friends and loving family members. Behold, my joy is full!

...with Missionary Work!

We visited Elder and Sister Reber on their mission in the Salzburg Ward. We went to Church with them and were treated to one of Sister Reber's world famous meals! Yummy! Another sister from our mission was visiting at the same time--Sister Segar.

Later, we relaxed on a bench overlooking the lake and mansion used in the Sound of Music film. The children enjoyed feeding the ducks (and ducklings) and we enjoyed talking with the Rebers.

Elder and Sister Reber are such great missionaries. They are primarily working with the Single Adults in the Salzburg region. They also do quite a bit of travelling to support smaller branches in Austria. We went to Elder Reber's sunday school lesson.

The Rebers have had such a great influence on our little family. We are thankful for their leadership and example during our missions and throughout our life. We hope to visit them again before their mission in Salzburg is over.

...with the Sound of Music in Salzburg!

Twilight in Salzburg

I took this picture from the fortress Hohensalzburg

We visited the "Silent Night" Museum

and saw the original guitar that

Franz Gruber

used to compose the world famous hymn.

Mozart's birthplace

We visited the salt mine

that made Salzburg so rich in the middle ages.

Here we are standing on the border of Austria and Germany

60 meters below the earth.

Do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-do

We ate some unbelievably wonderful tasting

Italian Eis

We tried many flavors:

pistachio, bubble gum,

straciatella, chocolate, vanilla,

and strawberry.