Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to family and friends. What a year it's been! Still trying to figure out where it went.

Hope you eat plenty of turkey and stuffing. Hope you get and give lots of hugs.

You are the reason that we are thankful!

The MTC.........

All I can say is............ugh. OK, that isn't a negative comment, it's just....why does it hurt so bad? I didn't think I would be sad or cry this time...I mean after all, he's been to Iraq. This should have been an easy piece of pie. Well, imagine yourself in a movie theater and you're watching the previews of movies and little commercials. It's kind like that. You are sitting there with your family...you know it's coming...the good bye thing...and they are showing these cute little "family" commercials. You know the ones..."isn't it about time. Those make me cry anyway. Then on the screen it pops up with statistics like...how many gallons of milk do they go through a day at the MTC. (300 in case you wanted to know) Why did that make me cry? Anyway, then they have to sing that song..Called to Serve. Well, the whole thing is just painful! And then, before you know it you are saying goodbye!

I know that it has all been worth it...seeing the smile on Cam. He was anxious and ready to get going.

I'll sure be glad when I can quit crying.

The Missionary Farewell

Wow, the call just came a few short months ago and here we are only 9 days from entering the MTC in Provo. Cam's farewell was yesterday and he did a great job. I think he was nervous....he's a man of few words, but he spoke from his heart.

We had lots of family here. Matt and Tara and family from Utah, Lyns flew in from Houston with Lexie. Nate and Sara with Krewzer. Mom and Dad came up...it was just nice to be with family and have support from the family.



Nate and Sara went home last night as did Matt and Tara. Howard flew back to Chicago this morning...he got home late Thursday night fromChicago only to return back there today.

We had a full house for the weekend and I must say, I have some pretty cute grandkids!





Cameron had to have a picture with Lyns...cause she wasn't looking too gorgeous. It made him laugh.

And Matt...you sure have a cute wife, you are one lucky guy!

Well, Cam, there's lots to do this week to get you on your way. We are proud of you, we love you and we'll miss you.
Will you miss us????????????

I'm SO weird!!!

Ya, I can hear it now...."and you are just now figuring this out?" Yes, it's true, I am weird. I have spent the last 3 days fighting a migraine..."Imitrex let me down" Anyway, I needed those last three days to get this house clean.

I WANT a clean house! It's important to me, it makes me happy, it makes me calm, it is a must. So I left work early today....I'm not in the mood for health care right now. Thanks Don for listening to me whine about how busy I am and coming in to work for me! I owe you.

So, back to my story, I didn't do all the things I wanted to do this last three days because of the migraine battle. So today I left work at noon with the intent of cleaning this house....before it got mistaken for a "crack house". So what do I do???? Do I clean the kitchen? No. Do I clean the bathroom? No. Do I clean the living room? No. I clean the stupid refrigerator. Why? Please 'xplain that to me Lucy? Why do I clean the fridge when the whole world is in chaos? The fridge door closes and no one knows that it's dirty. To me, if the refrigerator is clean...the planets have aligned. All is right with the world...which is huge today considering the elections are over.




Can you believe I just posted a picture of my dirty fridge? That's disgusting. But if you really want to be disgusted, click on the picture so you can get an up-close shot. Really disgusting! So another question I have besides why would I clean the fridge when it's low on the totem pole. I want to know why there is cat hair in the bottom below the crisper! How does that happen? Are they dancing in the fridge? Are they opening the fridge and making a "sammich" and getting a mug of milk? What's with the cat hair? Ya, I'm sure you're all gagging about now.(I can see Becca running to her fridge now to check under the crisper!)


I needed my Zen. I needed a clean refrigerator.

And there's another thing.....why do I hate cleaning my oven? It's a self cleaning oven. I've had it for over 10 years. It's really self cleaning. I have only cleaned it 3 times in 10 years! Ya, I know, pass the zofran! I don't care that I have a disgusting oven. It really doesn't bother me.

Why does a dirty fridge and house send me over the edge and a dirty oven doesn't faze me in the least? (The only reason I'm cleaning it today is that my mother is coming this weekend.) I hate using the self cleaning thingy because I know it's costing me a fortune. I wish I would have gotten a me-cleaning oven instead. Since I was cleaning out the fridge I decided I would use the self cleaning oven too. The first time I used the self cleaning thingy I set off the smoke alarms in the house. Frightening really. Besides the electric meter whirring at mach 50 G force it makes the house stink. It smells hot. I hate that smell. Cameron did come up and ask what was for dinner though.


Note the little thingy on the display that says "self cln" ?



OK, I still haven't cleaned anything else and I have a lot to do before this day is over. So I need to get off this blog. But I was just hoping for some answers. Oh, gotta hurry.....my therapy session starts soon.

PS Update: So I am now NEARLY done with the house. I am starting to feel peace. NOW I have another question: Is it bad that the vacuum cleaner has a burnt rubber smell and there is smoke coming from the belt? I probably should have bought the right size belt last week, but that's what happens when Howie is out of town.

There is only 27:00 minutes left on my self cleaning oven time...I'll have to take out a loan to pay the electric bill but oh well. So my house smells like burnt oven cleaning and burnt vacuum belt. Anyone wanna come over for dinner?

I know you all have perfectly clean houses and fridges and you are shocked at how I live...filth and all. I'm sure I've lost a few friends, but hey, I'm just keepin' it real!
IMPORTANT UPDATE!!!! It's nearly 10:00 p.m. and I had to take a picture of the finished result.

Oooohhhhh Shiny!



Mom can come for a visit now!

What are you thankful for????

I love Thanksgiving, it's such a mellow holiday. No gifts, no pressure, no stress. Well, except for the cooking, cleaning, cooking, and the cooking. But, other than that it's a great holiday.
Yesterday we had a great lesson in Relief Society about gratitude. The teacher was concerned that it was cliche because it was Thanksgiving and gratitude, but I loved the lesson. She helped me come to the conclusion that gratitude is a verb. You have gratitude by DOING. Great lesson Hillary!

Anyway, in an effort to think more about being grateful I wanted to list a few things that I'm grateful for.

#1 Howie...now I know that seems cliche, he has to be #1 and all that stuff, but seriously, how often are you able to have someone in your life that is everything to you and is patient, kind, understanding, patient, wants to make your day happy, patient and did I mention patient? And he does his own laundry (huge bonus). And I love his prematurely gray hair. Ya, he's #1!

#2 Family...parents, kids, grandkids. It's amazing to see how our family is evolving...a work in progress. Fun, interesting, frightening.

#3 Friends...they make me laugh, they listen and they tell me when I have a bad hair day.

#4 A temple blocks away...I still have to pinch myself.

#5 Work, jobs, food on the shelves, warm home, firewood to burn, clean clothes and a washer and dryer to keep them that way.

#6 Really good moisturizers for my face....fighting wrinkles is a full time job.

#7 Steel cut oats...I love that stuff, eat it every morning. (yes, I know I'm weird)

#8 This country, this town, this neighborhood...it's awesome to live here.

#9 Health...probably should be higher than the oatmeal, but I'm too lazy to change the numbers. In my profession I see health and the lack of health far too often. I'm grateful for my lungs, my hands, my heart, my mind, my eyes, my immune system, lymph system...yes my health and the health of those I love is pretty high up on my list.

#10 Seasons...even though I stuggle when the days get colder, darker and shorter...I love a change of seasons.

#11 Huckleberries...they make me happy. I love picking them, finding them (that means I'm in the mountains, the fresh air and in the silence) and I like eating them.

#12 My Yankee candle that's burning right now...Christmas Wreath...it has to be the best smell in the world. I always have several, even in the middle of the summer I'll go sniff...I LOVE that smell.

So, that's my list, boring or weird, it's me. What are you thankful for?

Solo Performance

Last night we attended the Bel Cantos Concert and really had a great time. When Candice graduates, I've decided that I'll be very sad. For many years we have gone to baseball games, orchestra concerts, track events and Bel Cantos concerts, kindergarten performances, graduations.....sheesh, it's been a lifetime of this! It's been 22 years of going to these events!!!

Now what are we going to do??? I'm not sure Howie and I are exciting enough to be entertaining without children.

Is this what is called an empty nest? I must ponder on this for awhile.

I'm not sure I'm going to accept this part of my life. I may boycott empty nesting or have an election to campaign against having a nest devoid of creatures that eat you out of house and home......but I digress.

Anyway, we went to the Bel Cantos Concert and listened to Candice sing a little solo in one of the songs they were doing. She did such a great job. Her voice is a beautiful clear soprano...where did she get her talent? She looked as cool and calm as a cucumber.



She said she was scared and shaking like crazy, but it didn't look like it.



There were two other kids from our ward that performed that night. Janeal is in a womens choir and Jake is in Bel Cantos too.

Can you see her amongst the other choir members?



Anyway, I'm not sure that I'm ready to give up this part of my life. I think I'm going to go eat a bowl of fried chocolate!

Is Fall really here????

Can it really be close to the end of October? Where did this year go? My garden should now be called "the garden of freezin" or the "garden of weedin'" The leaves are beautiful but I think I would rather see green. Fall is a beautiful time of year, but I think I need to slow down a little and enjoy it more. How about you?

Don't Feed the Bears!

Last year Howard, Matt and Nick cut down a tree in our yard that was a true hazard. I have no idea how tall it was, but when they cut the first part of the tree down it reached to the fence line in the backyard. It was a messy tree, dropped nasty seeds and just yucky, basically served no purpose except for the firewood we are burning now. (see post below to get a glance of the firewood stacked up)

I was glad to see it go, as were our neighbors....except for the part of some "minor" damage to their roof in the process of cutting. A great friend Mike came to the rescue when we realized that we weren't going to be able to safely remove the rest of the tree without taking out the neighbors house. Thanks Mike!!!! By the middle of December all we had left was a 10 foot "stump" that Howie said he would take care of in the Spring.

I argued with Howie to let me do something fun with the stump instead of him cutting it down....in all his spare time. I felt that his time would be utilized better repairing or building a bathroom....that's a story for another time. Suffice it to say that it's been a year on January 1st since we've had a second bathroom.

Anyway, back to the story...Howie is practical, I'm not. I wanted a bear carving, he did not. So the "stump" sat all summer. On a few occasions we would have people come over for a barbecue in the back yard and they would comment on how cute it would be to have a bear carving. Hmmm....I'm not the only one with cute ideas. After about the 4th person mentioned this he started thinking that maybe I should do something cute with the "stump".

So.....I didn't waste time. Searching and asking around I found a bear carver. Meet Barry Topham! He turned my "stump" into the cutest bear I've ever had in my backyard. I can step out the back door and here's this bear mischievously getting into a beehive. What a cute personality!



From different angles the bear has a different look...he's naughty and it makes me laugh.



Anyway, I think I'm going to have fun with the bear, but he needs a name. I need your help in naming him. He's about 10 feet tall and he's getting into the beehive. He looks totally innocent, but you can tell he's not. Matt is kind of a mischievous name, but it's already being used....

Help me name this little creature! I recommend putting your curser right on the picture so you can get a close-up view of how cute this bear is!