We started out the month with some snow and then had a skiff of snow and that's was it for this month! It's been a pretty dry winter season. Somehow the ski resorts have been open, but the snow isn't the greatest and some resorts are making snow almost nightly. We sure need the moisture! This was what our backyard looked like the first part of the month.
Following the death of Pres. Jeffery R. Holland, Pres. Dieter F. Uchtdorf was sustained as the President of the Quorum of The Twelve Apostles, and the Church's third- most senior apostle, after President Dallin H. Oaks, as our Prophet, and President Henry B. Eyring, first counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
With USU Men's basketball in full swing, we've been going to some games. We were able to watch our team win against San Jose and Nevada. We lost to UNLV, which was ugly. Then they came back and won against Wyoming pretty soundly, and beat San Diego. The Aggies are currently tied in a 3-way tie. Boy, has it been an up and down season, but we enjoy watching our local boy, Mason Falsev play win or lose.
Dale and I both had the opportunity to help clean the Logan, UT Temple. I cleaned on the second floor in the endowment rooms and on the 1st floor in the Men's and Women's locker rooms and the Brides room. My group got to go and sit in the Celestial room before we moved down to the first floor, which was pretty neat. Dale helped clean in the restrooms. Our ward had a good turn out to help with this.
I was able to serve in the Youth Center and watch 3 sisters ages 11, 10 and 8 yrs. who were being adopted into a family of 13 children. Their was also a 17 & 8 yr. old in the room that were going to observe. They sure had a lot of love given to them.
I was also got to do an endowment session while Dale was serving in the temple then we both got to do initatory another time. We love serving in the temple.
I ushered at the Eccles Theater for the tribute band "TOAST" that highlighted songs from the group "Bread", which is a group I loved to listen to while I was in Jr. High and High School. I sang along with them on the songs I knew and thoroughly loved listening to them preform.
Our area was blessed to have Elder Dale G. Renlund , and apostle for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and his wife, come to Smithfield, UT where we got to hear them both speak to the sisters from the Smithfield, and Hyde Park Stakes. They did an amazing job and it was so fun seeing them interact with each other and the sisters. An event well worth attending.
Because of my stake calling, our Stake RS Presidency, with the help of a great committee, pulled off another Women's Conference. The theme was "Do Something Extraordinary". I was one of the kick-off speakers, with Pres. Westwood. We both talked on the power of women and service. I was over the decorations, tying fleece blankets and scarves for the Little Lambs Foundation, and sorting clothes for Foster Care of Utah. We also had sisters help make literacy kits for kids in Uganda, and make "Thank You" cards for "Lifting Hands International". Their were donation boxes set out for sisters that could bring containers of baby wipes for the Little Lambs Foundation and single packaged toothbrushes for The Cache Valley Humanitarian Center.
We had around 150 sisters attend and all of our projects got done. We felt like the event was a success and many in our community and abroad were blessed by the work we did.
Our daughter, Danica, made the long banners with the words, Inspire, Serve, and Connect, myself and a committee member made the paper flowers and theme banner.
Cami having fun, our Stake RS Presidency: consisting of LaNae McKenna (2nd couns.), Cami King (Pres.), myself (1st couns.) and Becky Potts (Sec.)
Danica pulled us together and we went to the Cache County Fairgrounds to watch a Skijoring Event that was supposed to happen. We got there after a few runs had happened and they had cancelled the event due to the conditions of the snow that they had brought in to use. We were still able to see and talk to some of the riders and the horses, just not see them doing the event.
The info. and pictures below are from a newspaper article to give you an idea of what Skijoring is and what it would of looked like:
Cache Valley SkiJoring is an action packed competition where a horse and rider pull a skier at a fast pace through a course that includes gates, jumps, and rings. Ski Joring combines Utah's signature SKI heritage with its COWBOY roots creating a wild, fast paced and spectacular event. Competitors race for cash and prizes based on the fastest times.
We went to The Cache Valley Fun Park instead and played some arcade games and visited with the Hassell's for a early birthday celebration for Jason and to entertain the kids for a bit.
Nate and Diana spent some time in Maui at the first of the year for a change in scenery..
They also did some trail running when they got back, bringing the warmer weather with them. It got pretty nice for a bit. Lili joined them on a 7 mile run, she's 13 1/2 yrs. (about 75 human yrs.). She loves to be outdoors as much as Nate and Diana do.
Nate also got away and came to Utah to ski some of our famous powder early in the month after we got some good snow and skied at Snowbird and Alta with his buddies, Brody & Riley.
That was probably the best ski day he had all month!
Amie's again taken over the roll as the Cherry Peak Resorts Ski school coordinator. She also teaches ski lessons when she can. They've not had a lot of snow since our decent one the first of the month, so they've been making snow, which has helped them stay open, but they had a late opening as did a lot of the ski resorts in UT. It's been a weird winter. We need snow at least in our mountains.
Kennlyn, Matt & Amie's only daughter, got asked to her school's Jr. Prom. It's hard to believe she's old enough to do that, but I can see why she got asked. She's a beautiful young woman.
Elder Mallory started off 2026 with a bang. Here's some tidbits from his letters: Happy new year everyone! 2026 let's go! How's everyone starting the year off? I'm starting it off with everything I got. This week was pretty good. There were 2 days this week where there was like nobody in the streets which was wild. Nobody works here on the 1st. It was like a ghost town. On New Years we had a district council and then after we grilled some meat and played a little chair soccer. That was pretty fun but we started a little late so I only got to eat a little. And then in the night me and my comp tried to play some games but it's hard with only two people haha. I'd give it a 6/10. Christmas was better. I missed playing games with the family until 4am.
We found a lady and her daughter from France. They came to English class and asked us what the difference is between our Church and the Catholic Church. We discussed it with them for a bit.
We also invited a random lady on the street if she'd want to go to church and she came! Another guy, David, is thinking about getting baptized this Sunday.
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We are back to another pday. Pretty chill week. Had a super surprise from Graciela. She went on vacation and told us she wasn't getting back until this Tuesday. The hour of church changed from 1 to 8:30 for the new year and nobody comes right now. It's kind of sad. We had 2 friends come to church. But at 1:00 we received a message from Graciela asking us where we were. We told her about the hour change but she forgot and came back from her trip early. We went to her house and put a firm baptismal date with her. She is literally the goat.
She's loving their new move, and the kids are adjusting to their new schools. Nora's starting to work up to a full day in her classes as well.
Luke's been playing basketball with Garrett acting as the teams coach, and Zandra's also teaching beginning ski lessons at Snow Basin.. Garrett took advantage of a blue sky day and made some runs while there's still some snow to ski on.
The Hassell's put a smile on their little guys face, by taking the kids to Monster Mash event at the Delta Center. I think they all had fun.
A 4.7-magnitude earthquake struck near Evanston, Wyoming at 7:49 a.m. Thursday. Jan. 22,2026
We ended the month looking lout at our backyard like this.......most of the snow was gone from the lawn and blue sky. We need snow, but I do have to say, it's been kind of nice not having to deal with bad roads and keeping the driveway and sidewalks cleared. We've even worn jackets a few times. Time will tell what lies ahead, we'll take it when it comes, just no more earthquakes closer to home please.
We had transfers again. And me and my comp are staying. But I am training as well. Gonna be a lot of fun and more work. It's kind of weird because they are taking us out of our ward because the bishop doesn't help or anything and is just hurting the ward. So we are only helping our friends to get baptized and then we are going to work in a different area. I'm excited. We will see what happens.
Lindsay celebrated her birthday in sunny St. George. Happy Birthday Lindsay!! We love you!
While Andrew was working in Arkansas he got caught in a bad weather pattern for him to be able to work in. He hung around for a week and finally got to the airport after the ice storm aftermath where he ended up coming home 3 days early. He did come home with a new mustache and haircut though. Looks pretty nice, huh?
The family was glad to have him home, and he was glad too, it was a lot warmer in Utah than Arkansas had been.
Garrett & Zandra have a aspiring gymnast in their home. Jorie's at a level where she can compete and has been doing quite well for her 1st yr. Dale and I were able to meet up with them in Farmington, and watch one of her competitions. Boy, she can do it all and has been improving at each competition. She got two medals for her hard work. Way to go Jorie! You're sure fun to watch.
It was an early birthday gift for Brooks who turned 2yrs. and celebrated with a monster truck theme. This kid loves his trucks! Like father, like son.
For news close to home, I was lying in bed and felt a little tremor. I thought maybe a lg. truck went by, but didn't hear one. Then I thought could it be a earthquake? After I got showered and dressed I had the radio on and it said that there had been an 4.7 magnitude earthquake along the UT-WY boarder earlier this morning. That's what I felt!!
A 4.7-magnitude earthquake struck near Evanston, Wyoming at 7:49 a.m. Thursday. Jan. 22,2026
- Residents from Logan to Provo reported shaking furniture and startled pets during the quake.
- The USGS predicts a 57% chance of a magnitude 3.0 or higher aftershock.
- SALT LAKE CITY — People across the state, from Logan to Provo, likely felt the effects of an earthquake during the Thursday morning commute. The epicenter of the 4.7-magnitude earthquake was about 25 miles south of Evanston, Wyoming, at 7:49 a.m., according to the United States Geological Survey. People reported household items and furniture shaking, dogs barking and cats cowering. "I was just sitting at my desk in my living room when all of a sudden I felt my house shaking and sat for a second, confused," said Madison Olsen, in West Bountiful. "Then I could see my computers and lamp start shaking. I literally stood up, getting ready to run to my kid if I had to, but thankfully it wasn't too long. "Ogden resident Sandra Droguett-Collio said she "felt the floor moving." "I was so light," Droguett-Collio said.Farmington resident Troy Schauerhamer said Thursday's earthquake is only the second he's experienced in Utah. "Definitely a unique experience. Also a little unsettling, because there could be an aftershock or it could get worse," Schauerhamer said. "You are wondering to yourself if this is really an earthquake, or did something really big just fall off a shelf and shake the house?"
