What a year! Here’s a quick recap of the 2026 whirlwind: Last post St. Patrick’s Day.
Easter
General Conference for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was held on Easter this year. We celebrated the sacrifice, atonement and love of our Savior Jesus Christ, listened to living prophets and enjoyed Easter dinner with family and friends.
And we waited for a special letter from President Oaks.
Nothing says Spring like a beautiful bunch of sunny yellow tulips!
We’ve been working on our cookbook for men. This Vegetarian Chili is amazing – and wait until you try our Sour Cream Cornbread.
Before we knew it, Mother’s Day arrived! We savored a trip to Outback for a special dinner the night before. In the morning there were my favorite special treats from Tim and Hannah. How did I get so lucky?
THE BIG EVENT in the United States this year is our 250th birthday! What a blessing it is to live in the United States in the 21st Century! Here at McMurtry Manor, we celebrated our nation’s special milestone all summer long. This is the backdrop for some of our festivities:
God bless the U.S.A.! We are so grateful for the sacrifice of men and women who built and defended this great country.
Americana is the theme all through the house. Our son Karl correctly surmised that the painting on the fireplace, called “American Kitchen” was inspired by Cezanne.
For Gene’s birthday, our friend Linda’s adventure gave us the idea to drive 3 1/2 hours to Nauvoo, Illinois to revisit the history of early LDS family members and enjoy the Nauvoo and British pageants. Great message, enjoyably presented by talented acting and singing volunteers.
Chauncey Gilbert Webb, with his brothers who were blacksmiths, built many of the wagons that would take the exiled LDS pioneers across the plains to the safety of the Mountain West. He is my 3rd great grandfather.
Back at home, a week later, we finally received the letter we had been waiting for. Our call to serve as senior missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints!
When Newell and I were married in the Los Angeles LDS temple in 1993, President Von Packard, who performed the wedding, counseled me to learn German.
Today, following his advice paid off. We received a call to serve in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Frankfurt Germany Mission in military support – this is Newell’s dream! We report in December, just before Christmas 
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Thank you President Von 
We will be serving as Military Relations missionaries assisting American soldiers and families and spreading the good word of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the fine people of Southern Germany.
We are now focused on finishing our cookbook and preparing to live in Germany; getting necessary shots, visas, official documents, clothes, vitamins and other essentials fill our days as the clock ticks closer to our departure. Alles gute.
Next, an Autumn and a U.S.- style Halloween, a Lord of the Rings-themed evening with our writer’s group, getting the house ready for company and packing several very large suitcases then we depart.
If you want to know more about Christ’s restored church and get a free copy of the Book of Mormon to help you navigate these challenging times, drop me a message in the comments and we’ll help you out.