It has begun!

This morning I attended the Ground Breaking Ceremony for the Brigham City Temple.  It is the first one I've ever been too and was quite excited to attend.  It was being broadcast in all the Stake Centers and the Tabernacle but I wanted to be there to see it in person. 

Each ward received 20 or fewer tickets for the seating on the Temple site.  I was not lucky enough to get one but my friend Connie and her husband got one.  We even waved at each other across the street (she's such a brat).  I was happy were I was sitting, right on the park strip in front of the Tabernacle.  I could see the stage and they had the sound so it went across the street.  So other than seeing every one's backs it was okay.

This is what it looked like at about 7:30 this morning.  Everyone just starting to get there and still setting some things up.

Here is President Boyd K Packer and his wife arriving.

Everyone standing while he was being seated.

Just a picture of the Temple site with all the people waiting for it to start.

We sang "High On the Mountain Tops" for the opening song.  So cool to be singing it with the mountains behind us.

This is Elder William R. Walker, the Executive Director, Temple Department.  He conducted and spoke.

This is Elder Steven E. Snow, Presidency of the Seventy.

This is Elder Allan F. Packer, of the Seventy.

This is the choir that provided the music.  They were from Malad, Fielding, Garland, Tremonton, and Tremonton South Stakes.  They sang "Let the Mountains Shout for Joy" and of course "The Spirit of God".

This is Sister Donna Packer, Pres. Packer's wife.

This is President Boyd K. Packer, President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

He and his wife are from Brigham City.  He spoke and then gave the Dedicatory Prayer.

Shovels ready..........Pres. Packer is the 3rd one from the left.

Posing for the photographers.

The man on the end is my friend Mayor Dennis Fife.  He also used to be our Bishop.

This is all the Stake Presidents of the area in the Temple District.

They also had all those who had been Stake Presidents come up, then all the Bishops, then all the city officials to participate in the ground breaking.  After that they had children come up and shovel some dirt.  Then anyone could stay and shovel some dirt too and take pictures. 

When I first arrived another lady came and put her chair by mine, her husband was working the event.  She had brought an umbrella and shared it with me through the whole thing.  We had nice conversation, she was very friendly, but I never got her name. 

The weather stayed in the 70's with the sun going behind the clouds periodically to give us a reprieve from the heat and there was a nice breeze to make it perfect.

I enjoyed the talks and the spirit and was very glad I went to be a witness to history in the making.

Vacation....Day 6.......

Saturday started out with Debbie making us scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast.  Then we headed to the Farmer's Market at Pioneer park.  I didn't know such a thing existed.  It completely surrounds the park, one side farm produce the other side crafts and things and a huge section of food vendors.

Can I just tell you the people watching was at it's best.  Everyone from bikers to yuppies and dogs were there. It was just fun walking and looking.  I forgot my camera and was so mad at myself because you would have loved the pictures I would've shared. 

There were assorted musicians all around with their instrument cases or hats out in front of them for tips. There were several violinists, several guitarists, a few folk singers. But the two most interesting to me were the harpist (with at full sized harp) and this guy.....

They say the piano is not a portable instrument but this guy proves that fact wrong.  He had made a makeshift cart on which the piano sat and pulled it with his bicycle.  You can see it in the picture.  I took this with my phone so it could have been better but I could NOT pass this up without recording it on film.

He was actually quite good and he had another guy that was with him and they took turns playing.  You can see the big tin on a pedestal for his tips, it was pretty full.  Hmmmm wonder if I should give this a try....... I'm sure there were even more musicians to see but we only walked through the produce part of the market.

The fresh produce was wonderful and the selections were plentiful.  I picked up 3 zucchini, 3 yellow squash, 2 Mexican zucchini, a bundle of garlic and a pound in a half of baby red potatoes for under $10. Charles and Debbie got some sweet corn and shared it with me.

If I lived closer I would go to this every Saturday morning.  Debbie says they do and now the market is going to be open on Tuesday evenings too starting this week.  It is the ONLY way to buy fresh produce and a lot of it is organic. 

When we got home Charles and Debbie had to take Puddy to Angel's condo so that he would be there when she got home later that afternoon.  They also had to go to the grocery store to pick up some things for the dinner they were planning.  I stayed home while they did this and just relaxed and read my book.

When they got back we just hung around and talked and watched TV.  For dinner they made a great salad, grilled the corn we got from the market, and grilled black bean burgers and mushrooms.  The black bean burgers were really good.

Earlier Deb and I had gone to the red box and picked out a couple of movies to watch.  So we watched "The Blindside"...Awesome movie!  We also watched "Sherlock Holmes", I loved this one too.  I have always been a fan of Robert Downy Jr.

This morning they brought me home and now I get to spend the last day of my 'stay-cation' relaxing and probably not doing much of anything (unlike the rest of my week?)

Here is my 'little' brother and his cute wife Debbie.  Thanks again guys for the invite and the company! 

Well it's back to work tomorrow..a little mixed about this.  Ready to get back to work and out of this house, but also Jamie and Leslie are back so now I have them to see and at work there will be a lot for me to have to catch up on.  Oh well, life goes on!

Vacation......Day 5.....

So.....I started out my day with a doctor's appointment.  It went well, he is cutting back my high blood pressure meds.  YAY!!!!!!  He was very happy with the lifestyle changes I've been making.

Then I ran to Kent's to pick up a couple of things.  I have always made it a policy of mine that when I'm taking time off from work I do not go into the store at all.  That means even if I need something I go somewhere else.  Plus Kent's is 3 blocks down from my house verses W'mart that is across town.

 I watched some more of "Jack of All Trades" while I did my laundry.

Then I packed up a bag and headed to the bus stop.  Caught the bus to the Ogden Front Runner station. On the way we got to witness a car wreck on Wall Ave.  So the bus driver had to pull over and wait for the police to come.  I have yet to have an uneventful bus ride to Ogden.

Even with the delay I did get to the Front Runner station on time for the 4:15 train.  The train was pretty full with it being the 24th of July (a Utah holiday) weekend.  Debbie picked me up at the Woods Cross station.

I was greeted by Charles and Angel's dog Puddy, who've they have been watching while Angel has been on vacation.  We mostly just sat around and talked, Puddy fell asleep on my leg.

Debbie made us a great dinner of BBQ chicken breasts, roasted red potatoes and a yummy green salad.  After dinner we watched "Harry Potter, The Half Blood Prince".  Charles ended up going to bed before it was over and I think Deb fell asleep a couple times too.

Everyone went to bed and I fell asleep reading my book.

Vacation.....Day 4......

Yesterday I went and had my hair trimmed and colored.  I usually go towards the darker colors but this time I've gone blonder.   After much discussion with Jen and her boss we decided that because of my ongoing battle with my gray that if I went lighter it would blend better. So Wa-La, I'm blonde.  Not totally blonde, but it is a shock every time I look in the mirror. They do say, "blonde's have more fun".  I guess I'll find out.

It was great talking to Jen. I just love her.  She told me all about their recent honeymoon to Mexico and what they were doing now.  After her first disaster of a marriage it is so good to see her so happy.

After I was through at the salon I took my 2 bulging bags to the D.I. Then I decided to go inside and see if they had any books I'd be interested in.  Shopping at the D.I. is always an adventure.  You never know what you will find.  Today's visit was a bust though, so I came out empty handed.

While I was perusing the paperbacks for the third time (just to see if I missed anything that screamed "READ ME") a lady carrying a metal shelf (something you would probably see in a kitchen) under her arm so that it stuck out in front and behind her,came around the display case behind me.  As she did she hit the glass display case with the shelves making quite a clatter.

She was heading right for me (there was not a lot of room between the book section and the display cases). I looked at her with surprise and she simply said "Oops" and kept coming towards me.  I had to jump back out of her way.  I moved down further and was going to go back to reading book titles when she swung those shelves around almost hitting me and managing to hit the display case AGAIN!

So I moved a little further down and then she swung around and hit the display case a third time and then she hit the book shelves. Every time she hit something I'd hear her say "oops".  Picture those comedy sketches where they are carrying the ladder and everyone is dodging it.  That's what this was like....I just stood there watching her wondering just how stupid she was or if she was drunk.

After my comical visit to the D.I. I returned home.  I was going to go to the matinee but I was feeling light headed and decided to just relax on the couch and I watched more of the "Jack of All Trades" series.

I've been making some huge changes (good ones) in my life and I think some of that is catching up to me.  I've been light headed a lot this week. So I made a doctor's appointment for today.  I think some of my medicines might need tweaking.

I went visiting teaching with Sharon in the evening.  We had a nice visit with Kelly (the only one we could get a hold of this week).  After I got home I called Charles and Debbie to talk about when I will be there (I am spending the weekend at their house).  Then Leslie called a little later and I got to talk to Gunner.  They were at Sea World again catching some of the things they missed yesterday. 

Wow!  Can you stand it?!  My week has been so exciting.....I can't wait to go back to work Monday.

Vacation....Day 3.....

Well it was another fun filled day in the neighborhood.

As you can see I've revamped my blog page.

I watched the last movie from Conly, "Sundown".  FYI it's about vampires.  It was entertaining and made me laugh.  Very low budget and cheesy.

Then I watched the first disc of the series "Jack of All Trades".  It is funny, full of one liners and a lot of sexual innuendos.  I can see why it only lasted one and a half seasons.

I talked to my cousin Audrey on the phone.  She is in Salt Lake right now visiting her son and his family.  We were trying to see if we could find a time to get together but that was a bust.  But I had fun talking to her.

I went through some things in my craft/scrapbook/office room and now have 2 bags of things to take to the D.I.

Last night my friend Juli came over and we talked til 1am.  This seems to be the norm for us.  We don't even realize how long we talk for.  I started the book "The Swan Thieves" that I picked up from the library. 

I received a call from Cambria, they were at Sea World waiting for the Shamu show to start.  She told me all about what they have been doing so far.  Then I talked to Leslie for a while.  It was good to hear from them.  I miss them.

Vacation....day 2........

So here I am again to report on the second day of my "stay-cation" as my sister puts it...good name for it.  Thanks Di!

Yesterday was probably not as exciting as Monday but here is my report.

I watched 3 more of the movies Conly loaned me..."Evil Dead", "Evil Dead II" and "Army of Darkness".

By the time I finished watching "Evil Dead" I didn't think I was going to watch the others.  It was to put it plainly, GROSS!  Not gorey like most horror movies are because it was so low budget. When I got done I text'd Conly with what I thought and he ended up calling me and talking me into watching the other 2 in the trilogy.

"Evil Dead II" was not quite as gross as the first.  Conly had told me that I HAD to watch this one so that I would get some of the things in "Army of Darkness".  I think he said that just so he could torture me more since I wasn't at work where he torments me all day long.

"Army of Darkness" was by all means the best of the three. The gross level went down considerably and the one liners from the character Bruce Campbell played were abundant.  As Conly puts it, Bruce Campbell is king of the "B" movies.

I called Jen and have a hair appointment for Thursday morning.  Yay for a much needed color and trim!  Plus I'll get to hear all about her recent wedding and honeymoon. 

On a not so exciting note (like what I've already told you was exciting?), I cleaned up my family room.
Later in the evening after it cooled down I went for my walk.

So ended day 2.......

Vacation...day 1.........

So here is the report of the first day of my week off.....

I called my friend Maron to see what she was doing.  Well she was laying flat on her back in bed, in a lot of pain.  Saturday she'd had a 4-wheeler accident and was thrown from her wheeler.  They took her to emergency where after many tests and x-rays found out that she had 7 hairline fractures along the bones in her spinal column.  There is not a lot they can do for this other than give her pain meds and have her stay in bed for 4-6 weeks.  OUCH!!!!!!!!

So I spent the afternoon at her house keeping her company and giving Gary (her husband) a break.  She really is doing pretty good all things considering.  We had fun just talking about everything under the sun.  Around 4pm she was starting to look tired so I left her to get some much needed rest.

I watched 2 of the movies Conly loaned me...."Man with the Screaming Brain" and "Alien Apocalypse". They were very entertaining.....okay some of it was just plan retarded and very low budget.  But I was entertained for a couple of hours.  One of my favorite lines from "Alien Apocalypse" was..."Stupidity is terminal...and you've just been cured..." after he shot a bounty hunter.  You know we all have a few stupid people we have to deal with that we would all like to cure....

I also finished reading "Zen the Art of Vampires".  It was good and made me laugh so I will have to see if I can find more of her books.

Later around 9 in the evening, after it had cooled off and a nice breeze was blowing, I went on a walk.  It was very nice and even saw a few of my neighbors out doing the same.

So that is the first day of my vacation......you all probably have to go lay down and rest now from all the excitement.

Vacation.....................

Okay so it's been YEARS since I took a week of vacation from work.  The last time I was off work for a week, I was in the hospital for 8 days.  I don't go anywhere and don't have a lot of money to do anything, especially since they have cut our hours for the month of July!  Plus I'm a little bit of a work-a-holic.  I have a tough time just staying home for the weekend.  I go crazy in the house all by myself. 

So the girls planned this vacation to San Diego.  I was planning on going but because of the doctor's advice I decided to stay home this time.  It made me sad but I am making some important life changes right now and so I am good with my decision not to go.

The only problem is....I have this week off.  I tried to see if they would let me work but because I hardly ever use my vacation (I usually lose most of it every year) they wouldn't let me.  So here I sit with a week off from work...the girls and the grand kids are gone, my friends are working......I just might go crazy!

So I was talking about this to Conly last week, so on Friday he brings me this bag.  He's all grins as I was opening it to see what he had brought me.  Well Conly is a huge fan of Bruce Campbell.  In this bag was the following Bruce Campbell movies:
The Evil Dead
The Evil Dead II
Army of Darkness
Man with the Screaming Brain
Alien Apocalypse
Sundown

Then also in the bag was the complete series of Bruce Campbell's TV show "Jack of All Trades" and Seasons 1, 2, and 3 of "Burn Notice".   I've already borrowed Season 1 and 2 of  "Burn Notice" from Conly before and was needing to watch season 3.  I do really like "Burn Notice". 

I've also been trusted with "the Bag" pictured above.  It is Conly's only souvenir from his mission to Bulgaria.  He was more worried about the bag than he was all the DVDs he loaned me.  He is a sweetheart and such a fun friend. 

I went to the library Saturday because I was all caught up on the books I had either bought or borrowed.  I picked up "The Swan Thieves" by Elizabeth Kostova.  She is the author of "The Historian" and I really liked that book.  I also got "Zen and the Art of Vampires" by Katie Mac Alister.  I'm and currently reading this one.  So far I love it.  It is very funny, I might have to see if I can find more of her books.  I tried to find some books by a couple of authors that Audrey recommended but I couldn't find any.  I'll have to keep checking for them.

I'm done with the Christmas music from Dale J. and right now he doesn't have anything to send me :(. 

I may have to go to the music store and find something new to play.

So I'm going to try to blog once a day this week and report on my vacation.  Hopefully this will keep me looking for things to do so that you won't be too bored reading it.

I know it's a little late........

So last Sunday (the 11th) was Gunner's 3rd birthday!  Our little man is 3 and he does not want to be known as a baby anymore.  He is a Bid Boy!

Leslie had a combined cake and ice cream party for both Gunner and Braxton.  Braxton's birthday is actually today (the 17th) but because they are leaving on vacation tomorrow she had just one BD party for the fam.

Here is my Bid Boy.....

Isn't he just the cutest!

Today my Braxton turns 7!  I called him this morning and he is very excited for his birthday party with his friends at McDonald's this afternoon.

Here is Braxton with his new Transformer....

I just love his face...cuteness with just a tinge of evil!

The family party was fun.  It mostly consists of Paul's side who all live in Tremonton.  Angel came and Leslie's friend and "my other daughter Jamie" Jamie H. and her boys came.  Needless to say there were a zillion kids all running around.  I can't tell you how noisy it was...but I'm sure you can imagine.

Leslie is having a hard time watching her baby Gun grow up. Angel always gives all the kids new backpacks for their birthdays so they have a new one for school. Well she got Gunner his first backpack, not because he will be going to school, but because she thought it would be good for their trip they are taking. Well Gunner was so excited to get a backpack that he immediately put it on and came over to where Leslie and Angel and I were sitting and said, "Wook Mom, Now I can go to scwool!!!!!!" I thought Leslie was going to burst into tears.

I mean look at that face.....he didn't take that backpack off the rest of the time I was there.  He came up to us a little later and this is the conversation...

Gun- "mom I got evewything in my backpack, I yust need a yunchabwo (lunchable)"

Leslie- "You need a lunchable?"

Gun- "yea"

Me- "Gunner what do you need a lunchable for?"

Gun- "So I can go to scwool!!!"

Poor Leslie, she just wants her baby back.  Later on my way home I thought I should have asked to see what Gunner thought he needed to put in his backpack for school.  I'm sure that would have been very interesting.  I'm sorry I didn't think of it sooner.

There are more pictures on my Facebook page if you want to see them.

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom's 74th birthday. 

Some things I remember about my mom......

My mom is very smart.  Still to this day I have people that know her come up to me and tell me "Your mother is so smart" (I'm not kidding).

I remember her as my LDS Seminary teacher for 2 years while we lived in Alaska.  We met in our living room at 7:00am everyday before school.  I would come running down the stairs with various parts of clothing and finish getting ready as I sat down so that I wouldn't be late for class.  She would just give me "the look" and start the lesson.  It has always amazed me of the things she knows and what we learned from her those 2 years.  I even managed to pull A's from her AND I was never tardy for class! :)

She loves to read, I always remember that she was in the process of reading some book when ever she got the chance.  She genuinely thirsts for knowledge.

She loves music.  She insisted that dad get a piano and we ALL had to take piano lessons.  For this I will be eternally grateful to her for, because without the piano I would be lost.  Even when I was in high school, my mom used to tell me that she could always tell what kind of day I had by what I sat down to the piano and played.

I remember my mom singing.  She sang lullabies to us, she sang in choirs, she sang just because.  I remember one Christmas she sang "O Holy Night" solo for church that Sunday.  It has been my favorite Christmas song since and every time I hear it or play it I think of her singing it in her clear soprano.  I have sang some of the same lullabies to my children and grandchildren.

She loves art.  As far back as I can remember she has always been active in artistic ventures.  She loves to go to art shows. She has belonged to various art guilds and associations.  She loves to teach art and has at various times taught art classes in the schools and privately.  She has taken many art classes herself.  She has done probably every form of art I can think of...watercolor, oils, sculpture, collage, pastels, and the list goes on.  I have 7 of her paintings hanging here in my home.  For the past several years she has been designing and making her own jewelry to sell.  I have several pair of earrings that she has made.  She has always been good at anything she has tried.

I remember her making all our clothes.  The sewing machine was always busy and she taught us how to sew.  My senior year I made most of my clothes myself.  When Jamie was little I made a lot of her clothes.  She would also knit and crochet.  I remember her putting up fruits and vegetables every summer. 

When my dad was in Vietnam and we lived with my grandparents, I remember that Christmas.....We had one of those silver trees with the color wheel.  Well every morning when my sisters and I woke up that silver tree would be decorated with a different color of balls.  Every night after we went to sleep my mom and grandma would redecorate that tree to surprise us every day.

I remember that same year when my mom was hit by a drunk driver and totaled the car.  She was very lucky and ended up with bruises and stitches in her head.  I remember being so scared when grandpa told us what had happened and had gone running off to the hospital to see her.

She was always having us try new foods.  Being in the military we always knew people from different backgrounds.  I remember once she was friends with a Japanese lady and she had her make us an authentic Japanese dinner.  I'm sure this is why all of us love so many different types of foods and we have never been afraid to try something new.

My mom has always been supportive in what ever we have chosen to try.  I remember when I was 16 and told her I wanted to quit piano lessons (we had just moved to Brigham and I hated the teacher she had found for me) and that I wanted to concentrate on dance.  I know she wanted me to continue lessons, but she let me do what my heart desired. 

When I made Dance Club my senior year, she (without complaints) helped me sew my costumes and run me to practices and sat in the audience cheering me on.

When I got married my mom made my wedding dress. 

She has helped me with the girls, watching them while I worked. 

I remember her when Kelly became sick.  She was by my side through it all.  Going to the hospital with me, giving me advice and listening when I needed to talk.  She never let me wallow in self pity too long before she would pull me up and push me forward to deal with the things I had to deal with. 

The day Kelly died my mom was right there the whole day, even though she was suffering from gout at the time.  When it was time for him to leave this life she was right there to guide me when I was at a loss for words to say to Kelly in his final moments.  I was truly amazed how she listened to the spirit and knew just exactly what I needed to say and do for him to go peacefully.

I have watched my mom in her dealings with my brothers and sisters.  I have even questioned her later as to why she said and did the things she did.  In dealing with my own daughters those examples and words have come back to me thousands of times and helped me decide how to handle the situations that have come up with them.

She loves to do Genealogy.  I remember going on vacations and in certain areas getting out to see old cemeteries while she looked for names.  She worked in the Church's Name Extraction office here in Brigham for many years.  I recently found out just how instrumental she was in making the necessary program changes that the Church had directed them to make and in learning and teaching the other workers there what they needed to know.

My mom's faith in the Gospel is unwavering.  She has a strong testimony and has brought us up in the church.  But in the end she has let us all make our own choices and loves us regardless.

I could keep going....in the end my mom is a loving wife and mother.  She has set wonderful examples for us and she loves us no matter what we do. 

Mom, I love you and am grateful to you for all you have taught me and helped me with.  I don't think words will ever be enough to get across my feelings for you.  I hope you have a very happy birthday.

The year is half way over already.........

So here we are in the first weekend of July.  Wow how this year is flying by. 

Last Tuesday I went out to Leslie's to watch the kiddos so they (Paul and Leslie) could go out for dinner since it was their anniversary.  9 years....just seems like yesterday that my youngest daughter graduated from high school.  Now she has been married nine years and has 3 beautiful children and a husband that adores her and she him.  I couldn't be happier for her. 

Cambria, Braxton and Gunner couldn't agree on what to have for dinner.  The choice was of course Mac and cheese or ramen noodles.  There are other food choices but when I'm there it seems that mac and cheese or ramen noodles is what a grandma is suppose to make.  So they (Cambria and Braxton) decided to play rock, paper, scissors for it.  Well Gunner feeling left out turned to me and ask me if I would play "wock, papew, scissows" with him.  So I of course obliged him.  He always waited to see what I put out and then he would copy me,  that way we were both winners?

While I was playing with Gunner, Cambria and Braxton were fighting over who was winning in their R.P.S. battle so I had to stop them and then watch them to witness who was actually the winner.  Well mac and cheese won.  Cambria helped me prepare it.  She is growing up so fast.

While we were waiting for the water to boil, I was sitting on the top stair watching the TV in the family room when Gunner came up to me and as serious as can be said......"Dwamma, Bwaxton can go to youw howse to yive I don't yike him anymowe".  I asked him if he wouldn't miss Braxton if he lived with me and he said "Yes but I don't yike him anymowe".  Well I'm not sure what Braxton had done to Gunner to earn his dislike, but Cambria who overheard the conversation agreed with Gunner that Braxton could live with me. 

Poor Braxton, he is just the typical little/big brother.  He teases, argues with, and annoys his big sister and fights with (literally) and annoys his little brother.  I don't know what's not to like?!

While they were eating, Braxton went over and sat on the floor at the top of the stairs so he could continue to watch the movie we were watching.  Well Gunner didn't seem too pleased with this and kept patting me on the arm and saying "Dwamma, Dwamma look at Bwaxton!"   I would quickly glance over, look at Braxton and tell Gun that he was alright.  And he was, he is not suppose to eat in the family room and he wasn't and technically he was still in the kitchen/dinning room so I was good with it.  But Gun (having it in for Braxton) seemed to think unless he was sitting at the counter or table it wasn't right.

Maybe if Leslie would have been there she would have made Braxton sit at the counter or table, but I'm Grandma and unless they are hurting each other or doing something that will hurt them or make a big mess, or am under instructions from Leslie or Jamie, I'm okay with it.

Thursday at work everyone had to help in grocery for a couple hours, so I was assigned aisle 7 to stock, zone and customer service.  It was a change and the time went by quickly, so it wasn't too bad.  My quarterly audit is coming up this Thursday so I am busy making sure I am ready for it. 

What I am reading now....."Dracula, The Un-Dead" by Dacre Stoker and Ian Holt.  Dacre is the great-grandnephew of Bram Stoker.

I just sent my feedback to Dale J. on "Infant Holy, Infant Lowly" so I am waiting to see what he sends me next.