Here is our Christmas morning. The first picture is all of us after we opened our gifts from Braden. He got us all shirts or jerseys. D's and A's are from the countries where they served their missions. C with his DS (no games included. He's anxious to earn all the money he can to buy games) K with her i-pod (we'll see how long that lasts) She also got a flat iron of her own and is practicing with it. L got her printer so she can print her assignments at home and not have to come here in the middle of the night to use the printer and R&A got a "shirt quilt". The shirt quilts will be on posts in the next few days. D and I got a wheat grinder and bread maker. D is having a blast making bread and we plan to experiment with different grains and seeds.

Our visit with our missionary was great! He sounds so happy and confident. I'm excited to have everyone home for the holidays next year. I never did get Christmas cards out so this may be the extent of it. I love my friends and family and I love Christmas time and the music that helps me reflect on Christ and his life and my love for him. I hope yours was great!

Christmas Spirit

YAY! We are ready for Christmas!

Tuesday we had our salon party here. Since I've been working a lot Daren did the final cleaning. For all of you that come to my house you realize that a cleared off China hutch means there's a party! The amazing thing is that it has stayed clear all week! Our tree is OK not my favorite but I had a hard time getting to it this year. The wooden ornament is my souvenir from the Redwoods. I did a whole angel tree last year. I have LOTS of different angel ornaments. I should count them. I have baked Pumpkin cake roll, Special K Bars and today Pumpkin cookies with cream cheese icing. It's an easier version of cake roll without rolling it.

Today was our Christmas program in Sacrament Meeting. I LOVE it. I love to sing and our music selections were wonderful. I was sad when it was over. I realized I had no Messiah on my i-pod and I have the CD so I did that today along with some Mannheim Steamroller.

I think all the shopping is done. We have one major gift that ended up being a last minute decision. I has been shipped and should arrive on Dec. 24. How's that for cutting it close. I'm not to concerned even if it doesn't get here. I'd just as soon give the kid a lump of coal but of course when we decided to do that last gift I had to get something else for the other kid to even things up. Grrr.

I had a great plan for Primary music today and was left with less than 10 minutes so after wrapping a box 6 times with song titles on a card on every layer I brought the box home. Maybe a family home evening lesson. Hmm

I've tried not to get bogged down with the stuff. In fact for the first time I didn't get Christmas cards out. Christ was still born and lived and atoned for us with or without cards. In one of the talks given today the speaker asked instead of being ready for Christmas, are we ready for Christ. I like that. Whatever the case may be-I love Christmas and I'm ready!

Merry Christmas to all of you!

Week of Christmas

We had quite a fun weekend. Thursday we went to an Enrichment night dinner for all adults so Daren and I got to go alone and have a really nice dinner. I worked till 7 so we got there late but were in time for the food! Friday night we went to see Jon Schmidt! He is so entertaining. It was at Kingbury hall in Salt Lake. His 7-yr-old daughter sang Where are You Christmas. It was so sweet. He is really funny too. I tried to down-load a video and couldn't even get close to figuring out how so if you don't know who he is find him on Youtube. Little K went to respite so D and CJ had the day alone while I worked. Saturday we had an old Jerusalem Christmas party. The gym was decorated like an old market place with tents connected. Each tent had a different part of the meal and the water came from "well". The meal was pita sandwiches and fruit. It was good. Lots of work for that poor committee. That's why the ones I did were usually pretty easy. Sunday night we went to visit D's parents in Logan. We took them their Christmas goodies so they will have something to unwrap. Tuesday is my work party HERE. I actually suggested that. Now it seems dumb. Tomorrow will be spent cleaning and preparing. I have a lot to do. I love this part of Christmas I just don't want to work through it and I don't even have a day off this week. Eeeek! Wish me luck!

Wednesdays word

I haven't done this for a while but I ran accross the word "Adroit". Not unknown but not common so here it is:
adroit - quick or skillful or adept in action or thought; "an exceptionally adroit pianist"; "an adroit technician"; "his adroit replies to hecklers won him many followers"; "an adroit negotiator"
Some of it's synonyms are: masterful, nimble, adept, proficient and clever.
A cool word but doesn't ever pop into my head.

Our Missionary

This is all for now. More later!

Response to Joni's Awesome tributes!

Here is a little response to all the wonderful tributes Joni did on her blog. Thanks Joni, we love you!

Weston says:
Joni-
what I admire: Joni has a wonderful way with words. I love to read her blog and her short stories. She's also very talented musically and I love to hear her sing. I love her enthusiasm and fun attitude.

favorite memories: when Joni was a baby I loved to hold her and let her sleep in my arms. As a toddler, she was a great subject for my photography because she was so darn cute! On Margie's wedding day I went to Cedar City after being away for a few weeks. Joni came running to great me and she had big curls in her hair and a beautiful new dress. She looked so mature for a 4-year old that I almost didn't recognize her. She was also very beautiful on my wedding day and was very excited about helping wherever she could.
Joni, I am amazed at your insight into the personalities of your loved ones and your writing skills. The tributes are well done and appropriate. Thanks for using your talents in an uplifting way. - Shirley-
Joni is always straight forward in her expressions which,I think, is part of the reason she's so good at putting these profiles into words. She is a loving family member and friend and will not let differences of opinion stand in the way of maintaining a good relationship with ANYONE. She is a very loving mother and always responds to her children in a loving way. She uses good judgment in the discipline of her children and they always know that she loves them. She also shows her love for Daren freely and there's no way that he couldn't know that he means the world to her. And since Daren was not on her list of profiles, I think it's fitting to put in a tribute to him as well. Joni has always said that he's the perfect man for her and I agree. There's no one else that I can even imagine who would be as selfless and helpful as he is in Joni's times of need. He's a very patient and loving father as well - not to mention a very able and devoted member of the work force - whatever the job might be. He is devoted to his religious convictions and never says no to an assignment or responsibility. I, frankly, am amazed at his ability to keep it all going and be a pleasant person to associate with besides. He and Joni are a great team and I am thankful for, and proud of them both. Love Mom
Margie says:
Wow, we all know how thoughtful Joni is by concentrating on others to keep herself occupied at what she knew would be a trying time. She serves willingly and loves unconditionally. I loved carrying her around when she was little. I was amazed by her talents in singing and dancing and loved attending her shows once we moved back to Utah and have loved spending time with her as sisters now that we are adults. She has a very creative knack and does fabulous scrapbook pages. Her imitations of kids and situations always makes me laugh. She’s just fun to be with. Thanks Joni!

Sandra Says:
Joni is awesome. Her sense of humor is so compatible with mine (and everyone else, I assume). She cracks me up whenever we're together and we can just laugh and laugh. She's also very good to talk to when you need a listening ear. She truly listens with her heart and you can feel that she cares. She has a very good sense of people's essence and can pinpoint exact feelings in herself and others. That is something I've always been amazed by because often I don't know how to identify my own feelings. Besides all that, she is a talented singer, writer, crafter, and a good mom. I'm happy to call her my sister.
Ronda says:

I can't believe this talented woman is my full sister who I helped name. I remember shedding tears of joy whenever I have had the rare opportunity to see her perform. I am surprised that she would be surprised that I would travel to see her performances. I have been so excited every day to seewhat she wrote on her blog. I am so amazed at how she can be so spot-on with her evaluations of her family members. I didn't realize she really knew me as well as she does which is especially impressive because we have never been able to spend much time together. And she has such a cute family. What a successful woman!

Hey y'all, it's not too late. I'll add yours in when I get it.

Benefit Walk

We have a new Thanksgiving tradition. We've done it for four or five years now. My friend, Donna and I go up to the Ogden Regional Hospital where the Nuns that have been there since it was St. Benedicts sponsor a food drive run. Donna and I usually walk in the mornings anyway so we get our dinners under-way and go up to do our little walk. It's only a couple of miles but the runners do about 9. We talk about doing that some year but we would end up walking most of that too and who has the time especially if you are having the whole dinner at your house? It's nice to start the day when you plan to eat more than any other day with a brisk walk and good company. Add to that the fact that your donation is going to a good cause. It was around 40 degrees this year so it was very comfortable. There were a lot of people out to enjoy it. It's a great tradition!

My Oldest Daughter

I've been wanting to do these blogs for a long time but want to do them right so it may take revisions to get some old pictures on. I want to journal/blog about my kids.

Risa was born shortly before my 21st birthday so I was a young mother. I wasn't nervous about being a Mom. I had watched my Mom do it for 20 years. I loved being a Mom. Risa was such a sweet baby and it was so fun to watch her. She was so smart and did the cutest things. When I was pregnant with Braden and she was 3 1/2 she would pretend to take her vitamins and run to the bathroom and spit and cough in the toilet. I asked her what she was doing and she answered she was playing "pregment". When Braden was born she wanted to take over. She helped so much and loved him so much. She always did well in school and was very strong willed. She was 5 when Laynie was born and really started asserting her will. I asked her teachers if they were having problem and they reported that she was obedient and charming. She was pushing my buttons.

Risa always liked cooking and crafts. At 11 years she was learning to fix dinner. She liked learning to make new things. When she started playing the clarinet she did so well and it began our fun life of band concerts, practices and band friends. We moved twice while she was in Junior High. She did so well making new friends and got a great group of friends when we moved into our house here. Her high school years were full of friends, concerts, plays and emotions.

I cried at her graduation because I wasn't ready for this time of our lives to end. She had a good time in college and I was so proud of her for her strong desire to get a degree. When it got stressful and I suggested she drop a class and push her graduation out one semester she informed me in tears "That is not an option". I cried at her college graduation because I was so proud of her for sticking with it. I have been proud of her desire to do what is right and that even when no one was there to tell her what to do she did it on her own.

Risa, I love you!

Quilts

For those three of you that check my blog I had quite a while with nothing for various reasons but here is an update to the quilt squares. I have the borders on although it has taken several trips to the fabric store for more fabric but here they are:

I really like they way they turned out. Now I have to find the matching green that I want on the back of the froggies but the pink is ready to go. I have cute matching stripes for the back of that one. When they are done (after Christmas) I will get some close up shots so you can see how well the rail squares match the little print colors in the focus fabric. I even bought a walking foot for machine quilting.

What I really want to learn now is applique. I just love that.

Mothers

If there is anything everyone can be grateful for it's Mothers. I'm grateful for my Mom and my husbands Mom. I'm grateful to be a mom and for all the moms that I comiserate with every day and the ones that helped me grow up.

My Mom turned 70 this year and does so much. She works at the temple, takes care of and interest in her family, cooks, cleans and helps her neighbors and works hard all summer in her garden and then preserves it all. She has always been willing to serve in church callings and serve the people in her ward. She and my Dad got home from a great mission in Palmyra, New York this year where they met many new friends that they are so close to now. They learned a lot while there even though we missed them being nearby.

I am the third child of seven and learned to work and be frugal and to love music and singing. My Mom has a beautiful voice and I loved hearing her sing while she cleaned and cooked. She taught us how to sew and quilt. I guess I never was much of a late night person cause I would go to bed frustrated with a project and wake up and Mom had stayed up late correcting my mistakes. We have had hours of fun with word games and visiting. I'm so glad to live close to my Mom. Thanks Mom!

This is my Mother-in-law. She just turned 80. She is full of life and vigor. She reared 10 children and Daren was the 6th. She made a teachers salary stretch and taught her children to work and be grateful for what they have. She and her husband have served 5 missions since retirement and both went when they were young. She keeps everything immaculately clean and very organized. She has served in about every calling possible. I had one friend in Cedar City and she said she just wanted to be a primary teacher like Sister Felix. She was the example of what a teacher should be. For her 80th birthday my sister-in-law contacted a friend in Cedar and asked her to have friends of Alenes get letters together to give her on her birthday. She got an influx of cards in the mail and a gift bag of letters from old friends expressing love, appreciation and years of friendship. She taught my husband to be the hard working, caring, giving man that he is and he is a great cleaner! BONUS!

To Moms everywhere, I'm grateful for what you do for us, eachother and the rising generation. We will depend on them. :)

Showing Kindness

I have great visiting teachers. They are so diligent and almost never miss a month. If I'm having a very busy week and they want to come I tell them it might cause more stress to try to be somewhere at a certain time and we just visit on the phone or at church. We talk a while and I feel cared for. They usually stop off a thoughtful gift or greeting anyway. This week has been busy and stressful with Risa in the hospital and still trying to do the other things I do. I got home from the gym this morning and there was a bag on my front porch. This was inside.

The bread was cinnamon apple bread and the note said "Let us know if you "knead" anything". So cute and so thoughtful. Both of these ladies have inactive husbands and they do more and serve willingly in any capacity. I love them so much!

Ungrateful

I'm feeling very ungrateful for not blogging about all I am grateful for. I have so much. Since I have already talked about my husband I'm going to go down the list with my children. Last week we celebrated my Mother-in-laws 80th birthday so I want to talk about mothers too. (Hey, I'm a mother! I can talk about ME! haha) I think I've been more tired than busy but I've added in a few unexpected happenings so my time is short. Yesterday I got home and hardly left my bed at all after dinner. I just watched TV and played on the computer and went to bed early. So when I have time to sit. I'm going to do this right with pictures and that takes time. I am very grateful for everything today.

Teaching an Old Dog new tricks

So maybe you can teach an old dog new tricks. Our ward is doing several different groups and one of them is a quilting class. Yeah, I've quilted but this is different. It's patchwork art. It's meticulous and that is something I'm not good at. The plan was for a throw. That's a lot of work and a lot of money for a throw. I didn't want to spend that much money for something I didn't need to clutter my house soooo I opted to do a baby quilt. Since I have no baby (grand) in the foreseeable future I decided I needed to do two types so I had Risa come help me pick out the fabric since it seems she will most likely be first to utilize these creations. The pattern we are working on is the rail fence. It's pretty easy it's just hard not skimping on the steps but these are what I've got so far:

I really liked the pink and brown and the fabric was all meant to be matching so that was the easiest and it's coming together so cute.

BUT, this square goes with cute little froggies with a black background. It was harder to find the fabrics that went with the focus print but I'm loving working with these bright colors. They are so happy!

There are five rail squares and there will be 4 focus print squares. The rails are done now to cut out the focus print squares. Maybe I should get my housework done first. Hmmmm

So the moral of the story is- I'm learning to be patient and take the time necessary to make this turn out right and I seem to have plenty of time. haha

My Man

Since I want to write about things I'm thankful for here is the top of my list!This is my man!

We started dating in High School and he was just so funny and so nice. I compared every other guy I dated to him. He spoils me terribly. For years I never had to put gas in my car cause he did it. (Now he rarely drives my car but still puts gas in it occaisionally) Quite often I come home from work and he's cleaned the kitchen or done the laundry. One Saturday I got home and he had mowed the lawn but there were peaches falling off the tree so he picked up the fallen peaches and bottled them quickly. By the time I got home they were sitting on the counter in bottles. He has an amazing nack for fixing anything. One of Cory's first sentences was "Dad will Fick ix" He can build anything and loves to take on new projects.

This year he took our little laundry room and tiny bathroom and reconstructed the whole thing.

And made this:

He had to move the electrical wiring, water lines, drains, gas lines and dryer vent and even built the cupboards above the washer and built the counter with cupboards and drawers.

He didn't like the gates the guys with the vinyl had so he decided to build/weld one:

He has such tenacity, he will stay at a project till it's done if it kills him. I thought of going around the house and taking pictures of all the things he has built but it would take to long and I would have to clean all my stuff off of it but he has made our headboard, nightstands, entertainment center, shoe "condo", purse "condo", quilt stand, bathroom vanity, kitchenette, and a whole craft room full of cupboards and counters. and lots more. He has made a student desk for Risa in college and recently a really nice TV stand:

Thanks for 27 great years Honey, I love you!

Change

We were reading scriptures together last night and Daren started. He was reading the header for the first chapter of Mormon in the Book of Mormon. At the end he read: The Three Nephites were taken away - Wickedness, unbelief, sorceries, and witchcraft prevail and Obama was elected President.

Guess what? I like change. I have heard a lot of fear and frustration in this election. I believe the scripture that says "when ye are prepared, ye shall not fear". We have not elected a sadistic dictator and we have people around him that will do the right thing some of the time if for no other reason than to further their own career. I feel amazingly content. I do see this as one more step to the end but we who believe the prophecy that says the constitution of this country will hang by a thread can see the steps we are taking to get there. BRING IT ON.

My feelings today are of gratitude. It's November. I don't especially love fall and I dislike being cold but I refuse to be gloomy when I have so much. I got in a warm shower this morning and all I had to do was turn a knob. (and pay my bill) I got in a comfortable car that took me safely to the gym and pulled back into a garage out of the rain and snow. I slept well in my comfortable bed. I have a pantry full of food and enough dried, frozen and canned food to last us for months. Our bills are payed and we are healthy. We have everything! How dare we complain?

I see young couples that built their second large home and now can't sell their first one and complain that it's the banks fault. For what, their greed? I hear complaints all day, not by the people I see with really crappy lives but by the people who have it all. We live in a free country. If the majority elects someone you don't think is suitable we get to make a choice again in four years or two years for our local people. Can we all be a positive influence rather than negative.

The theme for the day is "Don't worry be happy" I may even take my i-pod to work and play that all day. haha It's a great day, help those around you and smile!!!!

Voting Values

Do I have opinions? Oh Yeah! If you don't want to hear them move on, change sites or turn off your freakin' computer!

My first opinion is that as far as presidential nominees we don't have any great choices. BUT, When it comes to voting we must vote the lesser of the two evils, you might say. You vote according to your own values. I am a member of the church of Jesus Christ. We have a living Prophet to guide us. I have followed the prophets "religiously" although not perfectly. I believe the family is the basic social unit and needs to be preserved as far as we have the power. I believe that abortion is wrong and the founding fathers of our nation expected us to work for what we earn and use our faith and prayers to get the guidance or inspiration to guide us in our decisions. I'm amazed by the young, up and coming professionals that are flaunting signs for someone who wants to instigate socialism. We are a few short steps from communism people! I am certainly not an expert on history or government but it seems that many are thinking socialism is a good idea. Now that I'm middle aged I see that as a major down-fall to my future. For those of us that plan ahead now there are some that want to take the decision making away from us. From what I've seen the government has never been the best at making decisions for us. Which leads me to a great e-mail I got the other day written by Orson Scott Card calling journalists onto the carpet for lying about the whole Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac debacle which allowed people that couldn't afford homes to take risks they couldn't afford to take and putting them in worse financial situations than they were in. Now Bush gets the blame cause he's the one that was around to clean it up. It was started under the Clinton administration and has cycled through feeding on our greed for more till it has almost undone us. We are definitely seeing the "Pride Cycle" in these days.
I have a client that goes to the state Legislature and he says that most of the Representatives are in it for their own causes. I'm also disappointed in our Governor so blast 'em all and start over! However I looked at the Judges up for re-seating and one is a Judge whose courtroom I have sat in on and she is a great Juvenile judge so she stays.
The prophecy about the constitution hanging by a thread looms over us and is closer than ever. I'm just amazed how Satan has gotten hold of the "very elect" in the choices made across the country. God bless us all. One question. How will they redistribute my food storage?

Word

SLUMP! That's the word. Isn't it great. It sounds like what it means so I guess it's an onomatopoeia. We all get in slumps so we all relate with this word. It can be emotional, physical, creative, etc. I think I'm experiencing all of these. Have an unslumpful Day!

Ranting and Raving

Today was our primary program. It's a big deal for me cause I'm one of 2 choristers. This is our big day. It went well and the kids were darling. BUT! I can't get over the irreverence in church. I certainly do not wish for the loud kids to stay at home but whose responsibility is it to keep/teach kids quiet in church. The popular vote is NO ONE! Let these cute little spirits fly free. From umpteen hundred drinks and bathroom breaks during sacrament meeting to ballerina twirls in the isle or competitive eating during the sacrament.(47 packs of fruit snacks inbetween the passing of the bread and water holds the record) ARE THERE ANY PARENTS PAYING ATTENTION? I am an old fuddy-duddy. I believe that reverence is possible and should be expected. When I had young children I sat by a friend (single mother) with older children who required complete reverence until the sacrament was over. I learned a lot from her. Have a drink and a snack before if necessary and wait as long as possible to break out the necessary snacks. A "Felix the Cat" bag of tricks is not required to keep young ones quiet. After the sacrament and only then do I bring out the paper or mini coloring books. It's OK to say NO! It's also OK if it makes your little darling cry, mine certainly have. My kids are far from perfect and they have issues. We have even taught a girl with ADHD and attachment disorder to behave reverently. Our boys were also a real challenge. Lots of paper airplanes have been built. Some during church but usually as a reward for good behavior once we got home. We are in serious need of discipline but is isn't the popular thing anymore. OK, my soap box is beginning to crumble beneath me so I must go. I'm tempted to start a ward of non-families. Our single kids can't stand to come back after attending single wards and I understand it. So to my kids. Did I damage you in any way requiring good behavior? I love my kids and their good behavior. I can still snap my fingers and their heads snap in my direction. Oh what a cruel dictator!

Happy Halloween

Well with Halloween coming I decided since Daren and I don't get into Halloween much we would show our spirit by dressing up our picture. Here's me:
And here is my husband dressed up photo and all. haha

Yes, I just learned how to use my camera on my computer that I've had since April. Priorities!

Now check my facebook picture. It's even more festive!

Wednesdays Word

Well, I got together with my sister and daughter this weekend and we came up with something. I have to preface this with an old story. Back in the 80's (ahh, the 80's) there was a funny little book called "Sniglets" which are words that should be words that are not in the dictionary. Words like Barbicide meaning when the meat throws itself into the flames on a barbeque or excessive bunnerage - meaning having more buns than burgers or hot dogs. Another is aquadextrous-meaning, one who can turn the water on or off in the bathtub with either foot.
Now that that is over I have two words. The one we came up with this weekend which is COMPICTURE-meaning, a picture you have on your computer. The one Daren and I came up with years ago is SPLINK-which is the little scribble you do with your pen to see if it writes. You know you've seen these all over the paper in your junk drawer in the kitchen or your note pad with your to-do list or shopping list. Are there any you have come up with. I love these. Please leave a comment with your sniglets.

Albino Carrot

The last thing remaining in my garden was carrots so Friday I dug all the carrots out. I grated a bunch of them but found something odd.

This is a carrot I dug out of my garden.

It was the only one but it is a strange albino carrot. I peeled it and grated it and put it in my carrot cake.

Now our garden is tilled and ready for winter.

My Parents

These are my parents and have been for some 46 plus years. They have reared 7 children who have been successful at a number of things. Most importantly being responsible citizens that contribute to society. They have 24 grandchildren soon to be 25 and final count.

They were both born in the 30's and both lost their mothers at a young age and were raised by family members. They grew up with very little and taught us to be frugal. We grew up with home-made bread and garden produce. Due to the fact that Dad spent many years on a dairy we even had fresh milk from the big tank on the farm and beef from the cows on the farm.

We took camping trips and some fun vacation. We've lived most of our lives in the west but in various states so we've gotten to see a lot of the areas around us. We love to get together as a family and grew up playing board games and singing. We were raised at members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and all have remained faithful to that along with our spouses.

Today is my Dad's birthday so this is a day to honor my parents. Thanks Mom and Dad

Wednesdays Word

Well, I'm sure I wont be diligent about this but I want to do a word for Wednesdays. Todays word is CANTANKEROUS. Isn't it great!? It has such great meaning and so many letters. It means ill-tempered and quarrelsome or disagreeable. We have found that one certain member of our family tends to make the rest of us more "cantankerous". We want to fight back but there just isn't any intelligence to argue with. It's a case of wrestling with a pig. You both get dirty but the pig enjoys it. The guys I live with are less able to ignore the situation which makes it worse. Never-the-less. It's a great word!

Remedy

I learned something new and it was very timely. For the last year or so I quite often wake up with pain in my hips. Daren spent Friday with his parents and his mother told him that her physical therapist told her that because women have wider hips (there's a news flash for ya) when we sleep on our sides especially it puts more stress on our hips so he suggested sleeping with a pillow between our knees. I decided to try that so I grabbed the throw pillow off my bed. It's a little big and bulky and kind of got in the way but lo and behold I woke up painless for three mornings in a row. I decided the pillow had to change though. I found an old pillow form that had gone through the washer and was lumpy and unfit to be called a pillow. It should have been thrown away years ago. It was a little too big still so I cut it open, removed one third of the matted, twisted stuffing and folded the spare fabric over to tighten what was still in there and stitched it back up. Now it's just right for putting under my knees to relieve back stress or between my legs when I'm on my side. It takes a little getting used to but for a night of no tossing and turning and waking up pain free it is great! Now I just have to make a nice cover for it so it can go on top of my bed during the day. Live and Learn!

Fabulous Friday

So Friday is MY day. It's 9:00 AM and I'm not even showered yet cause I DON'T HAVE TO! I do have a lot to do but most of it I can do in whatever condition I'm in. Daren works every-other Friday. Today would be his day to work but an aunt he doesn't even remember died and he had to take his parents to the funeral. (His Mom is from a very large family and it's an uncles wife that he hasn't seen in years) Later we have to do the neuro-feedback therapy that doesn't seem to be making any difference in our lives.
Anyway I have so much to do but sit here on the computer in my filth nevertheless. I really didn't excercise very vigorously so maybe I'll do more cause I can. But to the week. The only important thing I did this week was got to Parent Teacher conference for my 9th grader. He never has gotten school or why some kids stress about getting stupid assignments done. He would rather burn them in large stacks in his window well. (Now that's fire safety for a 10-year-old) Now it's high school and he still doesn't get it. He still is seeing what he can get away with not doing. Of course I stress but he has no idea how this will affect his future. He is failing his remedial math class!!! He just wont take notes and that's about a third of his grade. To redo this term he will have to stay till 6:00 pm and we will have to pick him up. 10 miles away. That's 30 minutes out of our lives every day, plus gas. Uugghh! The frustration of it all. I have discussed many times how all our children are opposites and it doesn't seem to matter how many you have, they are still opposite. My older three were all on the Honor Roll. If there were a Dishonor Roll Cory would be at the top of the list. He is however doing very well in gym, guitar and ceramics. When I sat down and told the teachers I was Cory's Mom they all said: "Im glad you came" At least they know I'm doing my part.

Cinnamon Roll Sunday

Yes, we accomplished another Cinnamon Roll Sunday.

This is a tradition that my family looks forward to every six months. I even manage to get my adult children home for the occaision.

Every General Conference Sunday for the last 10 or more years I have made cinnamon rolls. One year Daren and I had an opportunity to go to conference at the conference center and Risa was home from college and she made them for the younger three. What a darling domestic goddess she learned to be.

This year we tried to do our lunch cooking at the same time and there was just too much going on so they got slightly overcooked but deffinately not ruined. Most of us just like them slightly on the gooey side. Braden loves this tradition. I can't wait till he is home enjoying cinnamon rolls with us again. Just eight months away!

Time Together

Every other Friday Daren is off work and we usually do something together. That is our temple time and shopping time. This week we have been feverishly canning to keep up with our garden and trees but I'm missing fall so we took a quick little drive around Trappers Loop and down Ogden Canyon. The colors aren't very brilliant because of our hot dry summer. (what other kind is there? We live in Utah) Never-the-less we had a great time driving around and had lunch at The Oaks in the canyon. Our table was outside and in the back right next to the river.

This was taken sitting in our seats at the restaurant.

What a view!

The rest of the day was busy with "have tos".

This weekend I watched PS I Love You and just cried and cried. I had two hours alone. It was great but it made me think of what I would do without Daren. He does everything!

Saturday we got up early and made salsa. Daren did most of that too. It turned out great.

Enough Peaches!!!

OK, anyone reading this is tired of hearing about peaches and I'm certainly tired of peeling. For the record we got 84 Quarts bottled 24 Quarts frozen, the dehydrator full twice and 32 pints of jam. Anyone want to come over for peach dessert? I even pureed some and put it in the freezer. While we were peeling last night we made peach shakes and smoothies on Saturday. I have a dozen or so left and I'm debating throwing them out but they do so well in the dehydrator I could finish them off tonight.

Now about dehydrators:
A couple of years ago we got a cheap dehydrator that heated more in some spots which left us with very spotty and usually burned chunks of browned fruits and vegetables. Last year we had a plethora of tomatoes and peppers so we borrowed a friends dehydrator and filled them both. The tomatoes done in her machine were so much better we decided ours was just too cheap so this year we got a new one. It cost 4 times as much as the old one and has a knob to adjust heat. We have done carrots, chillies and peaches. All have turned out wonderfully! It is definately worth the investment to get good equipment. Daren and I seem to be very middle of the road. There are nicer tools than what we have but much more is a waste. We have found that it usually doesn't pay to get the cheapest.

So tomorrow begins the Salsa....

Girls Day!

Friday I went to my sister, Joni's house and we just hung out and bought maternity clothes for her then her husband came home early and we met Risa at Jordan Landing and did some shopping. These pictures of us are at dinner at Chili's. It's so fun to hang out with the girls. I don't remember who said it but it's been said that every man needs a woman and every woman needs a man and a woman she can talk to. I have been blessed with four sisters and two or three daughters. Hmmmm, oh well. We are planning a scrapbook day in October. It's fun just to get together.

Saturday Risa came and we bottled 48 quarts of peaches and about 15 frozen quarts plus the dehydrator full. There are still a few remaining on the tree. We will probably do another batch of jam and we haven't even gotten to salsa yet. My body needs the peaches to be put away. I'm gaining weight like crazy.

Peach Jam

These beauties didn't even wait to get picked. They jumped off the tree. Probably afraid of our morning canyon winds. Some were a little bruised so we made peach jam. It is yummy and all those behind the bottles of jam are yet to be preserved plus half a tree more. They are not as sweet as they have been in the past. The winter was harsh. The spring cold and wet and the summer hot and dry. There are plenty of people that want them anyway so we shouldn't have to bottle all of them.

My Husband is Falling Apart

Our second daughter has decided to try life on her own as an apartment dwelling college student. She met a couple of girls online that were not prissy types (she couldn't take that) and they have been looking for a couple of months for just the right place considering location, price, safety and the privilege of keeping animals with them. They found a nice place and she cleaned tanks and fed her menagerie. (tarantula, snake and lizard. The cat stays with me and all her birds have now died) She is not taking much and we only had to move her bed, a microwave cart to put her animals on and an old second hand round bamboo chair.(they have a name but I forget) We got her moved and left her to settle. Easy job.
The next morning, EARLY, D woke up in extreme pain. His shoulder hurt and he couldn't get comfortable. It hurt in any position. 4 ibuprofen didn't help so he tried 2 Lortab. It took the edge off some but we made it up to Instacare as soon as they opened. It turns out he has an aggravated bursae. It doesn't take much just some awkward movements. According to Wikipedia: shoulder bursitis is more commonly caused by overuse of the shoulder joint and related muscles. After the spring event of back spasms that had him gasping with every breath I'm concerned that my hard working, in shape, raquetball playing husband is advancing in years. He's not even 50 yet. He still gets over these things quickly though and after resting one day was back to doing maintenance at the salon and we together bottled 16 pints of peach jam. Ahh, that brings me to my next post.

My Favorite Place

This is the actual view from my favorite chair looking out my front window. I love to watch the seasons change on the mountain. I especially love watching winter turn into spring and then into summer. There is a retention pond accross the street so we don't have a house close to hinder our view. Today the clouds are sitting right on top of the mountain and there are some beautiful red leaves adding new color to my mountain.
I don't get as much time as I like to sit here and it's probably a good thing. I've sat with the computer on my lap almost all morning and I can feel the permanent change in the shape of my behind. I have more work to do and then I'll do my running around. I'm just happy I get to see this every day.


This is the view without the blinds. This is the benefit of living in the mountains. Come winter I'll be cussing all about the problems that come with it. I'm just glad I have a 4 wheel drive. :)

Harvest Time

I spent the day picking, peeling, slicing, chopping, cooking, bottling and steaming apples. Guess what I have? 26 pints of applesauce. First of all Daren and I went to the store and got a peeler/slicer so that part went tons faster. I did it all by hand last year and it wore me out.
We also got some carrots dehydrated and peppers chopped and frozen. It's amazing how full the deydrator racks are and when you come back to them you have a few little carrot chips. I'm wondering since the dehyrator was on my deck and so were the cats if they took a liking to carrots and found a way to get in and eat half of them. It's just amazing. Where did they go? Who knew there was that much water in carrots?
Pictures coming when I figure out how. haha