Sisters in September

We are family...I’ve got all my sisters with me!

I have 3 sisters, Julie, Darlene and Sherry.

The first 2 live in Arizona and they decided

to come to Utah for a visit with their husbands.

Together with my sister that lives in Utah,

we planned a mini vacation in Park City &

stayed in the 2 bedroom condos with kitchens

at the Mountainside Marriott in September.

We had a great time visiting, eating & shop-

ping together. The highlights included dining

at Ghidotti’s, riding the chair lift & enjoying the

fall foliage, eating a picnic & hiking after a

rainstorm at Mirror Lake, barbecuing chicken

& corn on the cob for dinner followed by a won-

derful conversation that drew us all closer.

We laughed & cried together as we talked about

our children, grandchildren & made a pinkie

promise to call each other every month so we

stay in touch.

Thanks for the memories - I love you!

Bear Lake 2009

Our love of Bear Lake began long ago when

our daughter Lindsay was just a toddler. We

stayed with Bob’s parents, brothers and their

wives and children at “Sweetwater” in Garden

City, Utah.

One year Charlie rented a boat for the afternoon

and we had a marvelous time. We also enjoyed the

pool, playground and beach with the raft that Rob

received for his birthday.

The adults usually went to Pickleville Playhouse

on Saturday night to enjoy the Melodrama and

Sing-a-long. We even visited Minetonka Cave

during one summer.

Since then, we have rented condos and cabins

based on our family size. We invited fiancé

Iosh in 2000 and Dez the next year to stay with

us so we could get to know them better. Brad

proposed on the beach to Heather while we rented

a cabin over Memorial Day weekend two years ago.

So many pleasant experiences and wonderful

memories have been made there. We have had

all kinds of weather: sunny, overcast, rain and

snow but always manage to have a good time

in spite of the unpredictable climate.

We attend church and have family home evening

together on Sunday. l always make homemade

ice cream for the treat that night.

We take ATVs, motorcycles and buggies to ride

on the beach and around the cabins. And to have

fun on the water, we bring our boat, water wienie,

tube and raft. One year we rented a jet ski.

We play board games, card games and video

games such as guitar hero and Wii tennis. We

also play ping pong, pool, hockey, tetherball

and volleyball.

We have launched rockets and flown kites, radio

controlled airplanes and helicopters.

We have different craft activities for the children

by day and sit under the stars around a campfire

by night. This year we used Coleton’s telescope

to view the Moon and Venus.

We always manage to have terrific food and loads

of fun. Thank you family for another great year!

This year’s vacation was spent without Iosh, who

has joined the Army and is in Fort Benning, Georgia.

We all missed you!

40th Wedding Anniversary

It is hard to believe that Bob & I

have been married for 40 years. How

time flies while we are busy living life.

Our children planned a fun party

for us to celebrate the big event.

We had a wonderful roasted pork

dinner with lots of great sides &

Shannon made a four-tiered cake

for dessert!

Lindsay’s home was beautifully

decorated with balloons & a huge

bouquet of roses for the centerpiece.

The favors were chocolate covered

raisins wrapped with ribbons.

Christy made a multiple choice

guessing game about our courtship

with a candy prize for the winner,

Dave.

I wore Christy’s veil & Bob wore a top

hat for the cake cutting ceremony.

Then the grandsons fed Grandma cake,

& the granddaughters fed Papa. It got

messy, but we sure had fun!

I tossed a bouquet to the girls, which

Elise & Averie caught, then Bob flipped

a garter (baby headband) to the boys

with Grayson as the clear winner.

Thanks to my dear family for all the

laughter & memorable moments and

especially to Bob for his love & support

through the years. Love you always!

CAMPING

Ten Things I Learned at the Ward Camp Out:

#1 There are kind people everywhere who are

willing to help when you feel overwhelmed.

#2 You can fit a queen size air mattress in a

two man dome tent. It is so worth the effort.

#3 It is still fun to sing around a campfire.

#4 The stars in the sky can help you find your

way back when you are lost.

#5 Don’t listen to bear stories before you go

to bed.

#6 Men like marshmallow blow guns as much

as kids do.

#7 Wet marshmallows make a mess.

#8 When you are on a bumpy road, make sure

you look up and see the grandeur around you.

#9 From the top of a mountain, the earth is

a beautiful place to be.

#10 If you have faith, everything will work out.

SERENDIPITY!

This week my son needed our truck to haul

something home, so we traded cars overnight.

Bob and I took advantage of the opportunity

to drive his Jeep up Little Cottonwood Canyon.

Friendly wildflowers including red indian paint-

brush, purple asters and yellow sunflowers

along the roadside nodded as we passed by.

The majesty of the granite cliffs, blue spruce

and quaking aspen surrounded us. The cool

breeze on my face, the scent of the forrest and

occasional smoke of a campfire flooded my

mind with rich memories.

Fun times of long ago: camping trips with my

parents at Tanner’s Flats and learning how to

ski as a teen on the beginner slopes with my red

wooden skis and leather boots.

I relived hiking with our own children on the

trailheads we drove past, enjoying an autumn

weekend with our kids at a Snowbird lodge

and camping with my sister’s family in

beautiful Albion Basin.

Our scenic ride that evening filled up my

senses and my heart with gratitude for the

grandeur of this earth and all the bounties

of life that my family and I have been blessed

with. Now that is a serendipity!

P U P P Y - P A N I C !

My daughter Christy & her family were going on a planned vacation June 17 thru 21, but they had recently adopted a 10 week old puppy, Aleia. She is an adorable puppy & just too young to leave in at a dog kennel during their trip.

So my husband & I volunteered to take care of her, in addition to the family’s 2 cockatiels, Romeo & Bella. The puppy is “her baby” & Christy really struggled leaving her in a dog shelter for that long.

The first few days went very well. Aleia is so cute, she stole my heart & the birds were a joy to have around. I already have 2 birds of my own, so we had quite a zoo in our family room with 2 large bird cages & the dog playpen too.

On Friday night, a sequence of events put me in a panic. The birds were out of their cages - 2 of them on my shoulders. Aleia was out of her play yard while Bob & I had been tossing a ball to her.

Suddenly the birds were startled & flew down to the floor. Within seconds, the dog’s jaws were wrapped around Romeo. “NO!,” I screamed, “NOT ON MY WATCH!” I fell to my knees & pried open the mouth of razor sharp teeth to save the bird. I carefully checked him out & lifted him to safe haven in his cage.

As I turned to put the dog away, I found Bella had be snatched by the same quick jaws. “NO! NO!” I screamed, “LET GO!” I barely got to Bella in time. Both were saved from the jaws of death!

There was no way I could tell my daughter & her family that Aleia killed their birds, Not on my watch! All turned out well. What a relief!

Memorial Day Weekend

Ahhh.....a 3 day weekend.

What could be better?

Friday: date night. Bob and I went to dinner at IHOP. I had a great omelet and then we watched a good movie at home. Our birds sat on Bob’s shoulders during most of the movie. I think they were frightened by the noise and intensity.

Saturday: I slept in...a very rare occurrence.

I warmed up my leftover omelet from IHOP and had some juice.Then I weeded, transplanted a fern & planted 6 shade plants I received for Mother’s Day. Bob did some clean up and trimming. We filled up the truck with limbs, 6 bags of weeds/grass trimmings & dumped the load in our work dumpster.We visited his grandmother, grandfather and uncle’s graves at Salt Lake Cemetery.Then did the grocery shopping & laundry.

Sunday: I wanted to sleep in, but remembered ward council meeting at 8:45, ward choir at 10:30 then church. I threw some pork in the crock pot, prepared some seasoned potatoes, then I drove to Christy’s Relief Society to hear her lesson

on The Seasons of a Woman’s Life. She did a great job! Then I raced home to go to the Holladay Cemetery where my parents are buried and Wasatch Lawn Cemetery where Bob’s parents and grandparents are buried. Then served dinner for 20. I got to cuddle Lindsay’s new baby, Kimber and Christy’s new puppy, Alea. We always enjoy our family joining us for dinner on Sundays.

Monday: I got to sleep in again! Then went shopping with Heather, Lindsay & her 3 kids. Then went boating with Rob, Shannon, Coleton, Elise & Faith. We had a great time. What a weekend!

Special Events with Grandchildren

So it is officially Springtime...the tulips are trying to hang on

for one more day, The skies are sunny now and the trees are

in bloom. The cherry tree in the backyard is dressed in white

and the plum tree in pink. I especially love my royalty

crab apple twins along the driveway with their ruby red flowers.

The fragrance is enchanting.

On April 21st, Linz and Josh gave us a beautiful granddaughter.

Her name is Kimber Morgan. I had the blessing of witnessing

her birth and sharing that special time when Noah and Carly

met her for the first time. Thank you for the opportunity! Both

my daughters have allowed me the privilege to attend the births

of each of their sweet babies. They are treasured memories

to me.

I have attended some special events with several of my other

grandchildren as well.

Kailey and I went window shopping at The Gateway recently

when she came to work with her dad, Greg.

Abby was in a Spelling Bee at school. She competed with 4th,

5th and 6th graders. They started with about 35 children and she

made it through 7 rounds, ending up in the top 15! Some of her

words included skeptical, envoy, micro burst, freestyle and

specific. Great job, Abby!

Coleton was in a school Talent Show. His dad, Rob created a

video which demonstrated some of his motocross racing skills. He

wore his riding gear and brought his new dirt bike for display.

Shaylor was nominated & chosen by the teachers at his middle

school as Bobcat of the quarter. It was fun to hide in the auditorium

with his parents as the students filed into the assembly. After the

the certificates were presented to all the nominees, a short bio was

read for the students to guess who it was. He received a nice trophy

and then the school choir sang and band played. At the conclusion

of the assembly, we were invited to a little reception in the office for

family members. He’s a great kid!

Grandparenting is Great! Here are a few stories:

Grandparents:

1. She was in the bathroom, putting on her makeup, under the watchful eyes of her young granddaughter, as she'd done many times before. After she applied her lipstick and started to leave, the little one said, "But Gramma,you forgot to kiss the toilet paper good-bye!" I will probably never put lipstick on again without thinking about kissing the toilet paper good-bye...

2.My young grandson called the other day to wish me Happy Birthday. He asked me how old I was, and I told him, 62. My grandson was quiet for a moment, and then he asked, "Did you start at 1?"

3. After putting her grandchildren to bed, a grandmother changed into old slacks and a droopy blouse and proceeded to wash her hair. As she heard the children getting more and more rambunctious, her patience grew thin.Finally, she threw a towel a round her head and stormed into their room, putting them back to bed with stern warnings. As she left the room, she heard the three-year-old say with a trembling voice, "Who was THAT?"

4.A grandmother was telling her little granddaughter what her own childhood was like: "We used to skate outside on a pond I had a swing made from a tire; it hung from a tree in our front yard. We rode our pony. We picked wild raspberries in the woods." The little girl was wide-eyed, taking this all in. At last she said, "I sure wish I'd gotten to know you sooner!"

5. My grandson was visiting one day when he asked, "Grandma, do you know how you and God are alike?" I mentally polished my halo and I said, "No, how are we alike?'' "You're both old," he replied.

6. A little girl was diligently pounding away on her grandfather's word processor. She told him she was writing a story. "What's it about?" he asked. "I don't know," she replied. "I can't read."

7.I didn't know if my granddaughter had learned her colors yet, so I decided to test her. I would point out something and ask what color it was. She would tell me and was always correct. It was fun for me, so I continued. At last, she headed for the door, saying, "Grandma, I think you should try to figure out some of these, yourself!"

8. When my grandson Billy and I entered our vacation cabin, we kept the light soft until we were inside to keep from attracting pesky insects. Still, a few fireflies followed us in. Noticing them before I did, Billy whispered, "It's no use Grandpa. Now the mosquitoes are coming after us with flashlights."

9. When my grandson asked me how old I was, I teasingly replied, "I'm not sure." "Look inyour underwear, Grandpa," he advised, "mine says I'm 4 to 6."

10.A second grader came home from school and said to her grandmother,"Grandma, guess what? We learned how to make babies today." The grandmother, more than a little surprised, tried to keep her cool."That's interesting," she said, "how do you make babies?" "It's simple," replied the girl. "You just change 'y' to 'i' and add 'es'."

11.Children's Logic: "Give me a sentence about a public servant," said a teacher. The small boy wrote: "The fireman came down the ladder pregnant." The teacher took the lad aside to correct him. "Don't you know what pregnant means?" she asked. "Sure," said the young boy confidently. 'It means carrying a child."

12. A grandfather was delivering his grandchildren to their home one day when a fire truck zoomed past. Sitting in the front seat of the fire truck was a Dalmatian dog. The children started discussing the dog's duties. "They use him to keep crowds back," said one child. "No," said another. "He's just for good luck.";A third child brought the argument to a close."They use the dogs," she said firmly, "to find the fire hydrants."

13.A 6-year-old was asked where his grandma lived.. "Oh," he said, "she lives at the airport, and when we want her, we just go get her. Then,when we're done having her visit, we take her back to the airport."

14. Grandpa is the smartest man on earth! He teaches me good things, but I don't get to see him enough to get as smart as him!

15. My Grandparents are funny, when they bend over; you hear gas leaks, and they blame their dog.

Top o' the morn'n to ye!

I love the month of March and Saint Patrick's Day ! 

Just knowing that Spring is around the corner always brings me hope. Our globe willow is showing a green haze on its branches and our crocus are in full bloom.

We enjoy the family tradition of an Irish dinner on the Sunday closest to Saint Patrick's Day. Corned Beef • Cabbage • Carrots • Potatoes • Green Jello are all a must! It is one of our family favorites except for Bob. If he had his way, we would have meatloaf every week!

Today I am looking forward to spending the afternoon with my daughters, what could be better than a day out shopping and going out for a fun meal?

Grand Opening of Grandma's Blog!

Well, here I am world! I am finally set up on my blogspot thanks to the help of a patient daughter who walked me through it in spite of Rob's jeers in the background! I kept saying that I am way too old for this. I changed my password at least 3 times, because I could not type in correctly more than once - I need to SEE what I am typing. I know - I am sooo pathetic! Thank you Linz for your talents setting up the header for me and enduring my computer illiteracy!

I want to wish my husband and all my children and grandchildren a very HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!