Christmas 1991

The big news in the Lillywhite family this year was our move from California to Utah. The company I work for decided to open an office in Utah and I was one of the people “selected” to transfer. Actually, I was a little bit better than ambivalent about the move because I could see the obvious benefits for my family (and me). We were able to buy at least twice the house we could have afforded in the LA area. My commute now is a mere 15 minutes each way rather than an average of 45 to 50 minutes. The fact that the average speed at which the commute is conducted is at least 30 MPH faster than before, adds to my relief. (Fifteen minutes of 65 MPH driving is at least 15,000% better than 45 minutes of second—gear—always—got—to—have—your—foot—near—the—brake—pedal-I-can—listen-to-one-whole-cassette-tape-3 0-MPH driving.) Steve Martin’s depiction of LA driving in LA Story is funny because it is not that far from the truth.

Anyway, we did the move—yourself thing again for various reasons. Not the least of which was the fact that, after living like gypsies for two years, we had possessions in three different locations. This 800 mile trip took nearly as long as our 3000 mile trip two years ago. On the way from LA to Salt Lake we had to stop in (count them) Barstow, Baker, California State Line, Las Vegas, Virgin River Gorge, St. George, and Beaver. Including our final destination that’s an average of only 100 miles in between stops. It’s probably a new world record and enough to bring tears to the eyes of any long—distance trucker. A real family would have brought along extra fuel and driven it straight through. I’m sure it was amusing to the other travelers to see us belted four across (two baby seats) in our 18 foot Isuzu moving van.

Ailsa has grown amazingly. She went right past several birthdays this year and she is now fourteen. Fortunately, we recognize that her independence and strong will (read stubbornness) are traits that will help her immensely when she is more mature. The problem is that I’m afraid one of these days she is going to have us duped into thinking she really is in charge and she doesn’t have to do everything we say.

Jensen has developed into quite the conversationalist. I only wish we understood her more. She jabbers much more than Ailsa did. (I think Ailsa realized early on that we didn’t understand her “language” and she had better sit tight until she picked up ours.) Jensen’s approach however, seems to be “if you’re going to live in my house, you’d better jolly well learn the language.” I hope this doesn’t mean that she is more stubb...., er, strong willed than her big sister.

Truthfully, they are both very often the sweetest, most adorable little girls in the world and we love them very much.

We hope that in your reflecting during this time of year you realize just how blessed we all are and you find room to share with others. As our daily tasks increase in number and difficulty we gain a growing appreciation for the Savior’s ability to live a perfect life. We are most grateful for his example and his sacrifice. May you know that you are often in our thoughts and in our prayers. We look forward to the time when circumstances will bring us together again.

Season’s greetings to all.