WE DID IT !!!!

I don't have any photos, yet, they are still in Anchorage with Alicia and Justin -- so you'll just have to take my word for it, but we actually did manage to have a wedding today. It was a perfect summer day for our drive up to Anchorage. Alicia was just glowing and she and I had a special time together getting ready in the bride's room at the temple. When our temple was first built, it didn't have a bride's room, and ever since we went thru during the open house, we have been dreaming about getting ready for her wedding in that beautiful room. On the wall, is a beautiful painting of Queen Esther from the Bible. As we were getting ready, I reminded her of the story of Queen Esther and what her uncle had said to her, That it was possible that she had been born at this time for this purpose and how Alicia had been born at this time for her life's purpose.

Without knowing we had that conversation, President Briggs mentioned something to that effect when he started the wedding. We were glad to have Pres. Briggs do the sealing - he had originally said he would love to do the wedding whenever we could get the clearance, but then we had to arrange it so quickly and he had already scheduled a patriarchal blessing for a girl who was flying in from Dutch Harbor ( hundreds and hundreds of miles away - out on the Aleutian chain) that obviously, he couldn't reschedule. On Thursdays, Pres. Briggs does a session as the sealer and one of his ordinance workers is a distant cousin of Brian's that we had never met before. He came today, and I suspect he had a hand in helping Pres. Briggs to rearrange his schedule by a few minutes, so he was able to do the wedding. President Briggs was our stake president for many years, before we were active, then he was the education person for our stake, so he had come to our house, to set us up for home seminary when we first moved back from Tok...then for 6 years he was the temple president. He was so excited the first time he saw us in the temple - he remembered how inactive we had been and how hostile some of us were to the church.

Anyway, back to the wedding, it was very small - our dear Bishop and Maxine came, and Jess and Jennifer Clutts came and Bob Duncan. Jess and the Hillmans were three of the folks that came when Brian and I were sealed, and Jess was the only one that came when Alicia was sealed to us. We have missed them while they were off in the Army and have missed grandparenting their babies. and are glad they are home.

We felt many angels and loved ones there with us in the sealing room - it was an unusual wedding talk, but it was very special and we were all touched by his pronouncements of Alicia being a choice and special pearl of great worth.

The kids are spending a couple days in Anchorage for a mini-honeymoon and Brian and I are rattling around our big empty house. I guess we will need to learn to talk to each other. We've had "kids" around for 35 years and are entering that new ground that we hope will be a great new time in our relationship.

We will post pictures as soon as the kids get back and settled. It was hard to get a good picture of the kids and the temple - when it is sunny like this, Moroni is SOOOOOO bright, you can't photograph him - the temple is so small, he is so close. LOVE YOU ALL and thank you for your love and support. Charlotte

WEDDING Confirmed

We, Brian and Charlotte Carper, are pleased to announce the wedding of our daughter, Alicia Marie, to Justin Clark. The wedding will take place in the Anchorage Alaska Temple on Friday, June 29, at 12 noon. Please be at the temple by 11:30 am, if you would like to attend.

That's what you call ironic

So after 5 years of waiting and praying and hoping and begging, we got DSL........ My computer doesn't have a port for DSL. SIGH

Interesting letter in mail today

Alicia stopped to get their mail today and had a very quiet, dignified envelope from room 408, south temple street, Salt Lake City, Utah. She immediately called Justin and as soon as Alicia got home, the stake president called and said he got a letter from the same place today.

So, There are 3 tiny steps that have to happen now. interview with the bishop, interview with the stake president, schedule the temple. They are hoping for this Saturday, so Alicia can be a June bride (watch the movie, 7 Brides for 7 Brothers). We'll post when we find out if the temple can do the wedding this weekend or not. Thanks for all your prayers. Love, Charlotte

Solstice, Part 2

I forgot one of the main reasons I blogged yesterday.

After five years of calling and begging and emailing the phone company, we are so excited to announce that we will have DSL, starting this week. We have, literally, been on the waiting list for five years. What this means for all of you, is that if you call us now, and we are online, we will be able to answer the phone....so you don't have to keep calling and calling while we tie up the phone line playing Bookworm or doing family history. the modem is supposed to be here today or tomorrow.

the other thing I forgot to tell you about was the wildfires. After 4 excessively wet years, we are having a somewhat dry month. People are so used to it being soking wet that they are not using proper precautions with burn piles and such and we have had three wildfires this week. One was on the next street over from us. It was the first one and they had little bombers and big bombers and the helicopter with the water bag. That was all exciting as they flew over our house. At one point, when the fire was first starting, the helicopter was looking for a place to fill the water bag, and he spent some time hovering over our pond trying to decide if it was deep enough to use (it is only 1 foot deep and full of grasses now, so it wasn't enough). then at bedtime another plane flew over low and we went out to see what it was and we looked up and here was something floating out of the plane - they dropped 8 smoke jumpers and then their gear. It was not that serious a fire - it never broke 3 acres- and Alicia could hear the jumpers late at night laughing and talking amongst themselves. It was basically just a practice.

so we started with a 3 acre fire, then one broke out half-way between here and Homer, and it burned about 40 acres, I think. then last night one broke east of ninilchik, where Brian used to log and it went to 100 acres in less than 1/2 hour and just kept growing all night. We haven't heard how big it is yet today, but it was over 600 acres before we went to bed. It is so weird to hear helicopters and air planes flying back and forth. They had 3 blackhawk helicopters running around yesterday.

We are pretty protected here - we cleared out our dead trees years ago and keep a green barrier around the house. All these dumb people who have left the beetle killed trees just standing all over their property are the ones having the fires. (don't have to worry about lightning caused fires here - we don't have lightning, one of the few places on earth that doesn't).
Okay, that is all I think I forgot to tell you. Love, Charlotte

Summer Solstice

Summer Solstice is upon us and we still don't have a wedding or a wedding date. The First Presidency sent for more information last week so we sort of feel like we are back to square one. It is very frustrating for the kids. Our dear bishop is going to work really hard this week to see if he can find out what is going on.

In the meantime - we got thru king salmon season. Brian caught our limits in the Anchor river...he didn't feel the need to stand around down at the lagoon in Homer to add to those numbers. Then Saturday was the best clamming tide of the year, so Brian and Alicia and Justin went down and got some clams. Alicia fried them up a new way and they were spectacular. It was definitely a labor of love because she is allergic to them now and her hand felt like it was on fire the whole time she was cooking them for us and then she had to eat a chicken patty. She's a sweety.

We got a garden planted this year - we have radishes and spinach and peas up. We planted a lot of broccoli, but it has been cold and they don't look too happy. This is the first couple days of summer weather we have had in 2 years. It is so nice to have sunshine and warmth. YAY!!!

Alicia and Autumn have restarted their catering company and are in the loop to cater a golf tournament at the grand opening of the Anchor Point Golf course. It is a great opportunity for them, they have to come up with final pricing and menu, but it looks like they will have lots of contacts from this - (thank goodness for small towns) - alicia was standing in line at the post office when the manager of the golf course was asking the postal person if she knew any caterers.

Justin is working about 70 hours a week; Brian welds on boats and such - a couple days a week; Alicia works with me and teaches at the scrap book store and is developing her catering with Autumn and she has her work with the Young women; I just lay around.... I have been lupus flaring since early May and can't seem to shake it, but everyone has been really kind and taking care of me, which I appreciate ; the cat is sleep deprived because it is summer all day and night and there are BIRDS out THERE - just when he gets in and calmed down and ready to sleep, he will hear a bird call or the door open and he's off again for 3 or 4 hours. He's really, really tired.

So tomorrow is our longest day. Happy birthday to Alli and Joanna. And Happy Father's Day to all the fathers. We love you all. Charlotte