What's That Noise?

I am hearing strange things in the night. Not Emersyn crying though. I was sitting watching TV the other night, and it was fairly late. All of a sudden I hear a loud metallic pop. I thought, wow, that's what a jar sounds like when it is sealing, but a lot louder. I go in to look at the jars of pinto beans I had canned earlier that day, and all was well. They had "pinged” long ago. I glanced over at the jars on the counter that had been done the day before and there it was. I have never heard a jar “un-ping”! The lid was no longer sealed and so the jar of beans was discarded. (Not the jar of course, just the beans). A first for me, so I guess I will be even more careful when washing off the jars after canning. Sometimes the bands are hard to unscrew, so I will be using tap water to soften the bands from now on when doing beans. I don't like noises in the night, especially ones that mess with my food canning. Jade made chili the other night using things we have canned. She used pinto beans, a pint of hamburger, a quart of tomato mix, a fresh onion and some cheese from the fridge. It was really good chili, and nice to eat from the pantry. I hope Tracy will put her delicious white chili on Nana's blog - it too is made from the pantry and is so good. Okay, the last of Tawna's 2 dozen jars of beans are out of the canner. Good night!

How Does Our Garden Grow?

Well, I hope. Grumpy and Papa worked most of the day Saturday on getting a garden tilled and planted. We were definitely blessed by Papa's efforts in years past as the garden area has been cultivated well. The soil was very cooperative and seemed to work up well. At least for me as I slept through most of this part. I am so anxious to see the plants come up and of course, figure out what I can get into jars. LOL. After the tilling was done, Papa and I went to the nursery to buy some seeds. We selected 3 kinds of squash, (yellow crookneck, summer squash and zucchini), beets, carrots, cucumbers, radishes, cilantro, radishes, Italian basil and 12 roma tomato plants. I hope everything comes up and does well. I'd like to add a few pepper plants in a couple of weeks and maybe some green onions. I appreciate the time and effort it took to get everything ready and then planted. I must admit I was no help with that. I can help tend it and I can sure help with the harvesting and cooking/preparing the bounty. What a pleasant thought. Yummmm. More stuff to learn. I want to pickle the beets, and that will be totally new territory for me.


Papa lending valuable direction to the process. We have much to learn.


Rows for carrots, beets and radishes above. Squash hills below.


Placing the tomatoes.


Tomatoes in the ground. Can't wait to get the little cages for them when they get big enough to need them. I love tomatoes.



Papa spraying down the finished planting. We will need to hook up some sprinklers to do the job for us more efficiently and more easily and again we reap the blessing of gardens here in the past. The water lines are already in and just need new piping to be functional. Yay.



It feels good to have a garden in, and I hope we will learn better how to be successful. I love the thought of squash this summer and am looking forward to preparing stuff we grew. We will be sharing lots of squash I hope. I think I'll be buying corn and onions and grapes from the farmers though - among many other things. I do salute the farming industry for their hard work in growing food for so many. It is hard work. We don't appreciate them enough.

Lunching at the Park

Striking a pose? Cheeseballs. LOL Taya is exiting, stage right?
Friday was such a beautiful day. I'm so glad we ended up at a little park to eat lunch and let the kids play. They did more playing than eating, we did more talking than eating, but it was a great lunch anyway. Just a few pics to remember the day we took some time out to enjoy being outside with each other. I so often wish I had made having a camera a priority when my kids were small. I don't have nearly enough pictures of times like these. I treasure the memories in my mind (the ones I can remember) but regret not being better at recording the everyday things that make life so precious. We talked about many things, and even got to vent a little. We solved the world's problems and left the park feeling better about so many things. The kids had so much fun playing together and it was nice to see them enjoy the park and the sunshine. We get so little time to enjoy the sun without major heat and summer is coming soon. I especially love this time of year that being outside is pleasant and even comforting. I love sitting outside and just being still. So I'm saying to you, my young mothers…take the pictures, or at least post the times however seemingly trivial. You will love reading these things later. And so will your kids.




Emersyn was too tired to join in the fun.

February Babies…

We celebrate a mother and son this month, the happiest of birthday wishes to you! Stacie's big day is coming up fast, so thought I better get her pic and post up here. Stacie has been part of our family for 11 years, give or take a few months and we love her so much. She is our resident pie maker, dessert queen, and a dune mama. She rides a quad like she knows what she's doing, and is always willing to share her trailer with family and friends. She is a wonderful mother and loves her kids more than life. Family traditions are important to her, and tries to keep it balanced between all of us. That is no small feat when you consider the many functions and family members to please. This year I have enjoyed canning with her, going to movies, to the dunes, eating many a meal, moving (both of us) and just hanging out. I learn many things from Stacie that help me improve my personality and my outlook on things. I hope your day is fun and memorable, after all being thirtysomething has it's merits.



Carson, Carson. He can be sunshine embodied. He has a quirky, funny and pragmatic personality. I love his happy smile and the look on his face that tells me he is genuinely happy to see us when we visit. He so loves to play at the dunes, ride his quad (still learning, so we watch pretty close), and help with whatever you are doing. He really loves to be in the kitchen. He is all about helping create and then eating the creations. I love that he is such a big boy about getting on his little bus to go to “school”. I miss living next door and visiting back and forth so much. He is a precious boy. I love you buddy. Have a good birthday.

Sweet Memories

We had a great weekend full of activities and many, many thoughts. I put some flowers together so Papa could take a valentine to Nana and Curt. Saturday was such a beautiful day. The skies were perfect, the air was crisp and cool and it was nice to drive out to the cemetery to visit. It makes him so happy to have flowers there. Nana loved flowers so much, but always said not to give them to her because they were expensive. I love shopping for blossoms I think she would like. After our visit there, we were off to Costco. That was just plain stupid on a Saturday. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but that's not saying much. We got the items we needed and headed home to put it all away. We had a dinner date with Summer, Jamie and the crew for a sweetheart dinner. They went all out and made a nice dinner to share. Check out her blog for the details of a nice evening for all. Papa said several times today how much he enjoyed the party, and spending some time in their home for the first time. Summer and Jamie are gracious hosts and we appreciate the time and effort they spent making an evening to remember. The kids seemed to enjoy it all as well and it was nice to see them all. I love getting to know J.T. and Jacob better and touching base with Taylor, Jordyn and Rylee.

Church today was especially meaningful for some reason. I have had a heavy heart lately, and can't seem to define the problem. It's many things I am sure, but the only thing that can really change is my attitude. That's the only thing I have any control over. Sitting in Sunday School we were discussing principles of the gospel and of course among them is repentance. I decided that I need to repent of my bad attitude, forgive those individuals that I need to forgive, ask the Lord for his forgiveness for being so slow about it and just move on. I know to forgive others is really to ease your own soul as well as allow the Lord to forgive you for all things you do wrong. And I do plenty wrong. If I want the Lord to be gentle with me, then I better expect the same from myself. Those who hurt us don't spend any time worrying about it. I won't either any more. I'm done. I hope with this conviction I can now heal the wounds and get over things I can't do anything about anyway. I am sure I have enough to answer for on my own without worrying about what other's have done. I know time will heal all, and I do feel a lessening of my burdens and hope that will continue. I'm glad I didn't let my headache win today, and I was in church to hear what I needed to hear today. I didn't spend the weekend in my nightgown, so maybe it was two steps forward.

I'm glad the weather was so lovely and that I was imagining all the fun Tawna, Nathan, Jade, Jeff, Tracy, Kevin, Chelsey, Daniel, Colby, Malea, the Washburns and all the kids were having at the dunes. I'm really excited for the next trip and hope as many as can will be able to come with us. I love you all and life is good.

Sweetheart State

That would be Arizona. The last state in the continental United States to be voted into Statehood. Grumpy and I have lived in a few states and even another country. We live in Arizona because we love it here. When I went away to college long ago and far away, I would drive several hours to get to school. On those long drives through Arizona and up to Utah, I got my first clue about how much I really love this state.


I never would have thought about it in those tender years, but because I was away I think I gained an appreciation for the things I love here. Of course my family was here. My mom's for a couple of generations back. Many of her ancestors came from Utah to settle in the Gila Valley. From there to the Valley of the Sun. Her mother attended, but did not graduate from good old Mesa High. My mother did graduate from that old high school, as did I and my siblings, and my kids. Those roots run pretty deep. So family was a big reason to love it here. Mom and Dad met at Williams AFB (now Gateway) and ultimately Dad was stationed at Luke AFB where he and some other fly boys started the Thunderbirds. They now call Nellis AFB in Nevada their home, but they began here.



After his tour with them, he left the service to farm in Queen Creek. I remember many, many lunches in the barn with Dad. I worked in the potato sheds as a teenager and drove back and forth across the many farms that now grow houses instead of crops. I can't think of Arizona without thinking of cotton fields, lettuce fields, corn, alfalfa, potatoes, and so forth. Fourth of July celebrations in Queen Creek with cousins enjoying corn on the cob and watermelon. Memories I love.



Later in life after we had been a few places and worked our way back here, I began to appreciate some of the other wonderful things we have here. When working for a local printer I did a lot of designwork for golf courses. Arizona is the perfect place to golf in the winter. People come here from all over to enjoy our beautiful balmy winters. We eventually got our own major league baseball team and Grumpy again, got to experience one of his dreams. To buy season tickets for an Arizona Baseball team. We enjoyed them until they priced them out of our range, but still keep tabs on the Diamondbacks. He played baseball in high school and is still an avid fan. The stadium is amazing and it was fun to go watch them make a little history.



I am better acquainted with our lakes than our golf courses on a personal level. Grumpy and I bought our first boat several years ago and began to enjoy the refreshing, beautiful lakes around us. We soon sort of claimed Canyon as our lake of choice here. I love to be on the water and relax to the wake of the boat, the scenery around us and being rocked by the water when are stopped. Then there is the mother of all lakes, Lake Powell. Even though just the tip of it is in Arizona, it is the most majestic end to see. It is the experience of a lifetime, and we enjoyed it as often as we could. I love it there. Eventually, we sold our boat, (the second one) and I miss going to spend time on the water with my honey and our kids.





One year Grumpy called and said he bought me a surprise for my birthday. He was calling from a shop in Safford. A quad shop to be more specific. He was so excited about his idea to learn to ride, I couldn't put a damper on it. I learned to ride a quad. Not a pro by any stretch, but to my surprise, I really like to ride. We spend a lot of time with our kids at the dunes now. Although it isn't in Arizona, it is close enough that I think of it as Arizona. I have to constantly remind myself we are actually in California when we are there. As we travel through the state going here and there I love driving through the dessert. In just a few weeks the desset will be blooming if it isn't already. It is so pretty, it has a unique beauty all it's own.




In all the years of going back and forth and in and out of this state, the one single thing that brings me the most comfort are the skies. I know the smog level is worse than it used to be, but all in all the gorgeous blue expanse of sky is pretty amazing. Even if you have to drive a few miles out of the cities sometimes, you will find skies so blue it almost hurts your eyes to take them in. It's like a balm, or a really deep cleansing breath to just relax for a few seconds and look up to find such perfection. I would lay on our trampoline when I was young and just watch the skies. I love it with clouds, or without, with thunder and lightning and yes, I even like the dust storms. I am leaving out the forests and our snow country, but love them as well. For the many different things Arizona is known for, I love that I was born here and learned to appreciate it's beauty. The summers from hell are a small price to pay, because we all know you can't have everything, right?

Valentine's Day

Yes, the impending holiday that at least one of my sons abhors. I think he said once it is just a conspiracy to make people spend money on goofy “I Love You” stuff that doesn't matter. He's kind of right in one way. We should try to make the things we do for our true sweethearts meaningful as well as sentimental - and it shouldn't be about how much we spend. It's nice that on this day every year we make a special effort to do something for those we love. Or not. Grumpy has always been better at things like this than I have. He has sent flowers to school for our girls when they were young, gotten cards and or chocolate for all the kids, bought jewelry for me a time or two, (as well as chocolate) and planned many a special evening. I used to make sugar cookies for the kids, and their classes at school, I've helped my girls with valentines for their kids school classes, and I've even sewn dresses for my little girls when they were small for this special day. But of all things, I have to say that most of all, I appreciate that my husband makes all the days special by the way he loves me. He doesn't complain when I am not a great wife, when I make poor decisions, when I'm less than nice, and I could go on and on. He treats me like a queen pretty much all the time. We have our moments, to be sure, but all in all he is the best. There are so many things I appreciate about him, but I am truly thankful for his integrity. That is the one character trait that makes all the others ones work.



This picture of Grumpy is of him doing one of the many things he does every day that help me. I never have to ask him to take out the garbage, he cleans up after himself (most of the time), he is always willing to help with anything. He even knows a little chocolate goes a long way sometimes. We are growing old together, and he is more handsome to me than ever. Our bodies are not young any more, but I love the character that our wrinkles and lines bring to us. No one stays young forever, and I wouldn't trade our experiences in life for anything. There are only a couple I would even consider a re-do on if it were possible. We have had our bad times. We have disagreed, fought over things, been through 6 teenagers and 8 weddings. (The ninth one is coming up). In all of that, plus much, much more, I have trusted him unconditionally with my heart. We live, we learn and I'm so glad we are doing that together after 35 years to work on it. Letting him catch me was the best decision I ever made. Happy Valentine's Day sweetheart. Thank you for all you do.

Out at the Movies

Middle of the week movies. Most of the time with one or more of the girls. I'm getting to really enjoy this mid-week spot of fun. Sometimes Tawna will call and say let's go, it starts in an hour; sometimes Jade (okay, Jade is pretty much willing and able to go most of the time) is the instigator; tonight it was Stacie calling with a 20 minute window to go see “He's Just Not That Into You”. In addition to tonight's fare on our weeks of recent past we have seen “Last Chance Harvey”, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”, Grumpy and I went to “Taken”, and next week is “Bride Wars”. So far I have enjoyed them all, some of them I don't feel the need to add to my library when they come out. I think I have seen “Twilight” no less than 4 times and enjoyed it all 4 times. That one will be in the library for sure. I have re-read the series and I don't often do that. Maybe Ali's Jeremy should check it out. He might even enjoy it. Whether reading or watching a story unfold, I love to get lost in a good tale. I loved to read as a child and can remember my Dad asking me if I was going to read through all of Europe when we were there. I was nine when we were stationed there and as we travelled I would sit in the car and read Nancy Drew mysteries non stop. I wish I had kept those books. When I had read them all I started on the Hardy Boys. I love books. I love movies. Fairy tales are the best. That's probably why I enjoyed Twilight so much - a romantic, crazy kind of fairy tale adventure. I have managed to collect many books and so enjoy being able to lend good books to grandkids, and all of our family. It's even fun to talk about books and movies and see what it is that people enjoyed about them. Grumpy and I have a long history of movie watching together, what could be better than cuddling and watching a good story? Okay, there are a few things better than that, but it is definitely in the top 5. There are some good movies coming out, so more good times ahead. Thanks for the invitation girls - loving the time with you. More of you need to come and go with us. We'll try and plan ahead a little better.

Merry Christmas Dinner

I have been waiting for Tawna to post about her sweet gift this year to our family. I know she is a busy chick and hasn't had two minutes to post about it, but I hope she will as her experience and pictures are different than mine. Instead of a gift under the tree, she and Nathan gave us all an invitation to dinner on a date in January. She elected to have it here at Pop's because there was room for all 14 of us. The party was for all the brother's and sister's, Grumpy and me.

What an incredible evening. She and Nathan went all out. The menu was really fabulous and included three appetizers, a soup course, the entree of meat fondue complete with several dipping sauces with a side of vegetables a la tempura and twice baked potatoes. She prepared everything most carefully, and only let Jade and I help when we insisted. After cuisine excellente, we retired to the living room and played Mafia. For a family full of people who don't like the rules, we did okay in the long run. It took a few rounds for some us to finally get the hang of it, and we were a rowdy group. The very best, she saved for last. She had baked Creme Brulee and had Nathan get out his torch to crisp the sugared tops to a golden brown. I have referred to her as a domestic goddess, with good reason. Many of the dishes she prepared for us were a first time experience for her. She is not afraid to try new things, we are happy to be her test group.

The best thing of all is the memory we all have now of a great time together, enjoying food, fun and happy times. She says she is going to make this her traditional gift to us at Christmas, and Grumpy and I are very much looking forward to that every year. I can't think of anything better than a gift that makes everyone look forward to getting it each year. I wish I had thought of it.



Dinner prep after Jade and I made ourselves fixtures in the kitchen. We had a great time talking and laughing while we made stuff. The kitchen is the best room in the house.



Three of the dipping sauces: Sweet and sour sauce, hot mustard, and creamy cucumber dill dip. We also added some A-1 sauce and of course Nana's BBQ sauce. Truly five star dining.



Cooking and dining. Fondue is a great choice if you want people to take time to converse. Everyone had a great time talking while our bits of meat and vegetables were cooking.






It's not often we see Summer laugh like this. We had so much fun killing each other and playing detective. Crazy group.



I wish I had gotten pictures of Nathan with his torch preparing dessert. Thanks Tawna and Nathan for such an Enchanted Evening. We will cherish this memory always.

Weekend in the Pines

What a beautiful setting for a quiet weekend. We were graciously invited to spend the weekend with friends in their cabin. As if that weren't enough, the cabin just happens to be in an airpark. Who could turn that down? I love the cabin part, Grumpy loves the airplane part. Fair enough. The cabin was absolutely wonderful. All the comforts of home with none of the busy-ness. We kicked back, read books, watched movies, crocheted (me anyway), went on walks, drove around looking at the sites, and of course found the local cuisine. Great mexican food place and an awesome breakfast out for the two places we ate in. In the picture below you can just barely see their cabin on the right side taken from the tie-down space we were in.





We did BBQ on Saturday night and enjoyed the meal in their cute kitchen on oh-so-cute plates with moose on them. I love cute plates. The food was great and we got to know our friends better in the conversation. No phones ringing, no rush to be anywhere. They were such amenable hosts - I hope they know how much we enjoyed being there. In the pics above you can see how nice the cabin is. They did the work themselves and have done some unique detail work.



On our walk about we met one of their neighbors who built his own plane. It is just visible in his hanger and Grumpy really enjoyed talking to him about it. It was quite different to walk around and see all the hangers with cabins on top of them, the cabins with hangers where garages would be, and all the other combinations possible. It goes without saying that being in the air is a passion for all the people in this neighborhood. We went to an open house, but got there too late to see the cabin. Darn. I love to look at homes and see how people have done them. As we were walking up to the front door to see if anyone was still there, an electronic voice informed us that we were trespassing and please get off from the property. Hummmm. If I were a legit trespasser that would just tick me off! Oh well. It was pretty funny at the time.




Pretty country. It was nice to be cold for a change. It got down to 17º at night, and was very cool during the day. There was snow on the ground still in patches here and there, even though it hadn't snowed for a couple of weeks.



Here is Grumpy parking the plane after our flight home. Back to reality and watching the Cardinals lose. It was a good game, but I am reminded every time I watch a sporting event (which is not often) why I don't watch sporting events. I am way too involved. We watched the first half at R.B. and Stacie's and aside from yelling and a stray cuss word or two I did pretty well. I chose to sit in the kitchen and watch it in there so I wouldn't make enemies of the rest of the group because I know I can be obnoxious. I went home at the half to finish watching the game with Pop and there was some short-lived rejoicing followed by more yelling and I watched the words a little better this time. Too bad we couldn't pull it off, but it was great that we even got to be there. Stacie and R.B. grilled some burgers and hot dogs, had lots of munchies and some crazy person took off with several delicious lemon bars. The nerve.