Sugar City, Idaho

Sugar City, Idaho, was our shortest pitstop--just nine months. It had all the makings for a good experience--nice big house, a steady paycheck, a temple thirty minutes away, a stay-at-home mom, a walkable distance to school, and grandparents just a few hours away. I was very excited about all of these prospects, yes indeed! We knew that Chris was just covering for someone who was on sabbatical, but still. Anything could happen, right? And the move was effortless. A big truck arrived in Austin, nimble-footed men hopped out and packed everything up, and then it was born away to Idaho. A piece of cake.

I hunkered down with my spreadsheet and worked out the finances. Budgeting on a regular income was a new experience, but I figured I was up to it. After all--a paycheck!!!!!! Could you spell that please? We had some residual bills from Texas which I budgeted to take care of gradually. Consequently, the check proved insufficient some months. I remember then telling the kids we were going to play "Little House on the Prairie" which meant that we ate biscuits and oatmeal just like Laura, Mary and Carrie did! They bought it and played the game with aplomb!!

I volunteered in Taggart's class once a week. Thomas and I arrived fresh and just ready to listen to first graders stumble over words like: baby, tiny, make, kitten. The first grade was taught by two identical twin sisters. Interesting. Taggart actually made his acting debut under those two sisters. They cast him as "Baby Bear" in a Goldilocks production. I sewed him a fuzzy bear suit. He was very cute. Something about the Idaho air turned Taggart into a master speller too! Go figure!. He won a couple of bees with his mad skills!

Shelly began in second grade right where she'd left off in first grade--always the driven student. She LOVED having girls to play with so close AND her own room!!! My parents helped furnish the home with a couch, some extra beds, and even a kitchen table. Shelly had a bed for the first time in her almost eight years! She got baptized in Sugar City. It was a new experience to have family and friends from out of town arrive to help us celebrate! I spent some time that year knitting sweaters for Shelly and sewing her some dresses and clothes for school. My mom helped with that so generously. I also expanded my knitting skills with extra time at home. I tore my knee up playing volleyball on the carpeted gym floor at the church, so I was laid up part of the winter. Lots of time to knit.

Thomas and I spent the year hanging out together. It was just delightful. I loved every minute of it. Some of my mom guilt from Texas daycare began to dissipate. He was such congenial darling company. We were still trekking to the laundromat, but we always turned it into an outing. We found places to visit while the clothes were washing. I made matching Superman capes for Thomas and his friend, Kyle Brown. Their flying skills were killer. We became friends with Kyle's parents and enjoyed some activities together. I think it was the Browns who gave us our cat, Boop. Thomas and Boop bonded with each other. Thomas had a little birthday party with friends that year.

Chris took to his new professor role quite easily. He was popular with his students, and we enjoyed having them come over for a couple of parties. I especially enjoyed the cooking preparations. Chris also had the opportunity to accompany some other musicians and give a faculty recital on the Ricks College Campus. He made friends on the campus with other instructors. One of the most obvious differences in Austin and Sugar City was the presence of Chris at home more--something I had fervently prayed for for several years. He got a fishing license, and we began to enjoy the great outdoors. I remember one Sunday we opted to stay home from church to watch a special Arthur Rubenstein performance on T.V. We also bought a sophisticated stereo system. I exhibited my unabashed shallow self when I raised the possibility of buying a washer instead of a stereo system. A washing machine WAS in my future--but not yet. My laundromat visits DID receive a facelift in Sugar City, though. One night I heard someone there whistling "The Spirit of God Like a Fire is Burning." I remember also an acquired addiction to "Dallas" after the kids went to bed--perhaps we were missing Texas.

We drove to California for Christmas and immersed ourselves in the Giles cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents. We enjoyed escaping the snow! We had been able to budget for Christmas with that paycheck. It all seemed like we were so normal! The cousins ran in one big happy pack. I enjoyed spending time with my sisters-in-law, Debbie and Paula, whom I rarely got to see. Everyone had so much fun and got along so well. I think that may have been the year Chris' Santa role got busted when Shelly interrupted the preparations under the Christmas tree. She had had a pretty good seven year run.

Dr. Nibley introduced us to Sunrider while we lived in Sugar City. Sunrider included health products developed by a Chinese doctor, Doctor Chen. We became enthisiastic about them, and we enjoyed having Dr. Nibley and his Down Syndrome daughter Virginia come and stay with us to attend Sunrider meetings.

Something else that stands out for me personally was being asked to give an address to about 300 mothers and students as part of Ricks College Women's Week on "How a Mission Affected My Life." I spent a lot of time preparing that and enjoyed giving it.

But then things began to break down. In retrospect, I think Chris was petrified that all of his paths had led him to....Idaho? In light of the status and name change of Ricks College in 2000, perhaps he should have been more visionary. You can't rewrite history, but it does make one think how things could have been different. He went into a pretty heavy funk. As it turned out Dr. Parkinson decided not to return to the college--I believe he was interested in staying in Boise for some reason. Ricks College offered to fund the completion of Chris' doctorate if he would stay at there. It sounded like a windfall blessing to me, but whatever mental blocks he had there took over, and we packed up a U-Haul and moved to Logan, Utah. The years have fogged my memory on so many of the details. I was a participant in all of it, but it was not MY career or my future that was driving these decisions. Perhaps I was still under the influence of all of the times I had listened to people praise Chris and encourage him to reach for the top. In dreams that I have about these particular days of my life I am more forceful. As I have re-enacted so many things in my subconscious dreams, I state opinions more strongly, and I don't give in over and over to the piano. In one dream, the piano even spoke! Now, Freud would have a heyday with that one.

When we had the car all packed to go and were saying good-bye to the neighbors, their cat crawled in the back seat and peed all over a suitcase. I remember it smelled so bad all the way to our destination. Isn't it interesting how small insignificant details stick in our brains, and we CAN'T remember the BIG Facts like why we chose Logan?? I assume it was because I needed to finish the masters degree that I had begun before Texas. It was, after all, going to expire. I think Logan was just a default choice--no other real place to go. I hopped into summer school, and the kids stayed in Montpelier. Do I owe my parents a part of eternity just glorifying them? I don't remember where Chris went--perhaps St. George. That was the summer of the delightful roommate Janet. A more flamboyant awesome person than she I have yet to meet. What of the dangling doctorate at the University of Texas? Keep reading? Give the story a couple more chapters.