Happy Presidents Day Plus..February 2026

So fun to spend my birthday watching my youngest grandchild, Phoebe Carlston, perform so well at her gymnastics meet

While my Taiwanese English guests Vicky and Nitta prepared a Taiwanese dinner for me I took a walk & shared the path with a buck!

Birthday lunch with friends Ramona and Kathleen

Nan Hunter invited us to a delicious dinner with her grandson Ben and his wife Zizi

I took Vicky and Nitta to a fabulous jazz concert at BYU (singers, brass and rhythm ensembles)

and to the wonderful BYU symphony ...great concerto soloists on Marimba, piano, trombone, and voice

The Taiwan teenagers receive certificates for their 3 weeks in the US

The assistant and principal (left 2) of Shinmin school in Taiwan visit with UCAS principal, Vicky, Nitta, Jennifer (organizer of this experience) and school assistant 

With the Shinmin principal who came for a few days

Saying goodbye on February 13. They brought so many gifts, I think they left with lighter suitcases??

BYU dancers perform a great rendition of Romeo and Juliet ballet

Lunch at BYU with friend Semiramis from Ecuador patiently working and studying English at BYU to regain her teaching certificate

The 2026 Winter Olympics in Corvina-Milan have been exciting

Valentine's family dinner

Luke and Kelly Amsden, Penny and Emily

Simon, Andrew, Bella, Nick (who is excited to have just been accepted into the advertising program at BYU) and Hannah

We played charades, pictionary, Bananagrams

          New Beginnings: 2026, Lunar New Year, Ramadan... 

The above Provo Temple was torn down and a new one (Rock Canyon, rendering below) is being built on the site, which, after the SLC Temple, will be the second largest in the world to accommodate the Mission Training center missionaries, BYU students and local members. It will take a total of 4-7 years with the best materials from around the world (i.e. flooring and stone from Italy). A great presentation by the called missionary couple showed drawings of decor and the present complicated construction.

After the death of our beloved President and Prophet Russell M. Nelson, Dallin H. Oaks (93), past BYU president, having served on Utah Supreme Court and in many Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints callings, Apostle since 1984, is our new and wonderful prophet. He gave his first touching and powerful address at BYU on Tuesday, February 9, 2026.

He shared four impressions that will draw us closer to our Savior, Jesus Christ: 

Strengthen our faith in Him

Increase our humility

Seek help from others

Be patient

For more info and for his address:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallin_H._Oaks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bn_PsLrWyxM

The great message of the Gospel is that Jesus always offers us a new beginning. We can always change, improve, grow, be more loving, kinder, helpful, patient and understanding of others and with ourselves.

We are all works in progress, no one is perfect yet! Don't give up!!

With Presidents' Day we remember two great American Presidents: George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. Both were flawed, but with our other Founders foresaw the challenges of the future, set great precedents for the democracy that is now up to us all to preserve as we follow the guidelines of our inspired Constitution, a model for all nations. Let us do what we can to continue to be friends to the world.

                                               The End of January 2026

Five years ago I closed the door on a long chapter of my life in Palo Alto, California and set off on a new one in Provo, Utah!

Recently my Carlston girls (Phoebe, Stephanie, Julie, and Elise) all gave a home concert as Elise (right) finished Suzuki level 3 and beautifully performed all its challenging pieces!

Joshua Henry, Broadway performer, currently starring in Ragtime at Lincoln Center, NYC, gave a wonderfully entertaining audience participation show at the BYU Music building.

I was relieved to finally finish a 1000 piece Monet puzzle! Do I still love Monet? Well....

Emily persuaded me to make my first (and hopefully last) appearance on BYU television where she has been doing a wonderful series on conflict resolution, her specialization. Afterwards we got a tour of the amazing BYU broadcasting studios.

*********

One of my very favorite BYU performing groups is the internationally traveled folk ensemble,with gorgeous costumes, choreography&dance

       a sampling of photos representing Utah.....

             Wales and the Ukraine...

Mexico and India

                                        Hungary and China

Turkey and American First Nation, and several others

          all contributing to the wonderful tree of the earth's people

                                                 ******

Vicky Hou and Nitta Xie, English teachers in Taiwan at the Shin Min vocational high school, have brought a large group of junior high and high school students to Utah to spend 2 1/2 weeks immersed in the American school culture and to explore sites in the area and experience a bit of life here. Included are Antelope Island/Great Salt Lake, Temple Square, BYU, Utah State Capitol, an NBA game. They are delightful!

Vicky took lots of photos during a gathering I hosted of former Palo Alto adults now living in Utah. Here are a few of them.

Stoltenbergs, Wilsons and Katie Steiger

Kelly Bonham and Sharon Hack

Miriam, Andrea and Todd Miner

Vicky Hou, Mark Bonham and Nitta Xie

Katie Taylor, Sara Gilman, Jim Welch and Vicky

Not only did Vicky take LOTS of photos but she and Nitta did most of the dishes!

                                                       ******

We have had almost no snow in Provo this winter so the sunny spots are bare. We had to go up to Sundance and South Fork in Provo Canyon for Vicky and Nitta to see their first snow and build a very tiny snowman. They were delighted!

                    Sundance resort, Mount Timpanogos

                                                    ********

Sunday evening Emily and Taylor family put on a fun early birthday dinner for me with a French theme, complete with berets for all. 

                         Fernanda, Peter as mime, and Marc

Miriam, Nick and Marc

                                 Julie Carlston and Lucie Taylor

Vicky, Nitta, Ming Lu de S. and friend Issie

Aaron Taylor, Luke Carlston, George Taylor

Delicious French dinner. (Younger grandkids at another table)

Charades &Peter impersonating family members for us to guess

              Kelly made delicious mousse au chocolat for dessert!

                                Ken Taylor, chef and host

Taffy Carlston and Miriam

A huge thank you to Emily, for organizing and hostessing, & the antics of Peter for entertaining all 30 of us! I am so blessed and grateful to be part of a wonderfully fun, spirited, kind and loving family. 

Today, February 2, is "Groundhog" Day. 

As they do every year, tens of thousands of people gathered in Punxsutawney, where temperatures were about 1 degree above zero, for the prognosticating marmot’s long-term forecast. Phil purportedly picked one of two scrolls confirming the extended winter prognostication. It works like this: If the sun is shining and Phil sees his shadow, he takes that as “an omen of six more weeks of bad weather and returns to his hole,” according to the Punxsutawny Groundhog Club. If it’s cloudy and Phil doesn’t see his shadow, he will stay above ground, signifying there will be an early spring.

Wishing you all a happy Valentine's Day, February 14, and Presidents' Day February 16. May we remember and honor our Founding Fathers and the tremendous efforts they made to establish a democratic nation where all have the same rights and privileges coupled with responsibility to ensure those of all who find themselves here. 

My love to all family, friends, people everywhere. It is my wish for greater peace, health and safety for all those who are suffering, mostly through no fault of their own, that they be blessed and comforted. I'm so grateful for the peacemakers of this divided and tumultuous world.