Wordless Wednesday

Popcorn Rock Crystals

Our science project with the popcorn rock crystals is finished. Here are the before and after pictures. They are extremely fragile....wonder what I was expecting? They are like powdered salt. The grandies will surely get to see them, but that will also be the end of them.

I think I was hoping for something more like this. Probably takes a little longer than 3 weeks to harden.

I'm thinking I probably bought the cheap package of grow your own crystals.

This would probably have to come from a "FINE" Jewelry store. (Inside family joke ~ I'll post about in the years to come.)

Last Friday we had Little C's Tree Service come to our yard. 3 guys and a huge truck pull up. They ask me which trees they are to trim.

Here they are....they proceed.

Several years ago, we had tree trimming done and when I came home I cried, screamed, and basically acted crazy because our trees were no longer trees and the neighbors laughed! So I explained to the guys I would like my trees to still look like trees. They proceed............I leave!

Before I leave I take a few pictures to remind me what my trees looked like. Here is the one of the kind guys climbing and cutting!

I come home.....trees look like this. I think it is wonderful. I still have actual trees.

I'm thinking DH is not going to be happy about this. He wants trees that don't look like trees......I'm positive. So I tell the guys, maybe you better take about 3 feet more off. They do!

Still the trees are looking pretty good!

Sure enough DH comes home and I can't begin to tell you....."WHAT DID THEY DO" "THEY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!"

Capital letters so you get the full sound effects.

Now the neighbor down the street had his (I say his because I'm sure Diana doesn't want the tree to look like this) trees trimmed??? same day, same company and this is what his trees now look like.

DH takes me down to their home.....THIS IS WHAT OUR TREES ARE SUPPOSE TO LOOK LIKE. Of course, I knew that is what he would say... So I say.......

If you go down to Temple Square in SLC, you will not find 1 tree that looks like the above tree.

I have a friend take a picture of a tree on temple square just so my point is proven.

I know I didn't get a horticulture degree, so I'm really a fake horticulturist, but I kinda like trees to look like trees. If I wanted stumps ....I could just put a few stools in my front yard.

Help me out here! My argument is: Trees add to the beauty of our surrounds (not if they're stumps), they give us shade (not if they're stumps), and help make our air clean (without branches????).

Am I totally in left field on this. Well there aren't any trees in left field...so maybe I'm just up a tree!

Movie Day "Emma Smith, My Story"

It is always such a pleasure to get together with friends. Since I was small...(Young - and I really was small)...I have realized the importance of friendships. Being an only child was great for me, but having close friends made my life a joy. Now that I'm old...(and big) friends are still the key to many hours of happiness. This is the beautiful downtown of Spanish Fork...probably about 1957??? That is where I grew up with my friend Lynette.

Times have changed since the 1960 days of going to the Arch theatre...look how we buy our tickets now. We even get to choose the seat we would like the best.

Today we went to see the movie "Emma Smith: My Story" it is the tale of Emma Hale Smith, wife of first Latter-day Saint prophet, Joseph Smith Jr. The story is told from Emma's viewpoint. It details the historical accounts of Emma's life, that have been taken from Smith family journals, letters, and other historical documents and sources.

It was a delightful experience to watch this movie. The scenery and music are absolutely beautiful. We questioned the fineness of the clothing...not sure they were blessed with finery like that ...but maybe so?

After the movie we went for lunch at The Peddler on 25th street. Nina had taken me there several weeks ago and I loved the place. Today ~ how can I say it nicely ~ we'll be going to SLC next month! Someone else will be choosing the food establishment.

My friends are really nice people to let me take their pictures every where we go. They are not only good about that but they have always been supportive of my decisions..."like Peddlers". They have always told me when I am being foolish or overreacting. They laugh with me and laugh some more at me...and for that I am deeply appreciative of their gentle kindness.
I am so glad to have friends that I'm not afraid to tell my secret wishes to or what is really on my mind. Nancy we so missed you. Hope you are better today.

All of us today said we could have so easily have found a reason for not getting together.. Nancy was sick (she really tried to get out of her bed), Gary is here this weekend to see Lynette, Nina was busy with gardening, and grandchildren, and I was trying to get my home back together so I can go back to work. It is always ...... go, go, go,....but as soon as we are together we start laughing, smiling, and having a dang good time. Can't wait for next month ~ REALLY!

How Fast Can You Type~ Geeze I thought I Was Faster Than This!

92 words

Speedtest

Featuring Friend Friday

This is an article my DH wrote for AOPA Pilot Magazine. He doesn't know I'm publishing it here to the blog world......surprise!

Never Again

Almost Questioned to Death

I remember always wanting to fly. When I was a small child living in Roy, Utah, I remember lying on my back in the tall grass of our backyard watching the planes fly over head. Our home was only a few blocks from the OGD Ogden Airport. I would line my body with the heading of the planes so I could see them approach and as they flew over tip my head back and watch them turn left. I learned later that this was the downwind to base pattern of runway 34. Countless times I rode my bike to the airport and watched the planes fly over me and the fence to land. This was for me! I wanted to fly. I was 8 years old and I pictured me in the cockpit with a big smile on my face.

In 1990 at age 40 and seven children later, I finally decided I had to somehow afford to fly. I tried taking lessons a couple of times earlier, but the cost always stopped me. This time was different. I just went out and bought a Cherokee 140 and signed up for lessons. Decision done. Dreams are not only for those who sleep. I knew a guy would have finished his ticket when he owned a plane, or surely his friends would laugh at him. I was on my way.

One of the of the greatest days of my life was when the FAA examiner signed me off. I had a plane and a ticket. Wow! Finally! I will never forget old Zaugmeister when he signed my ticket. He looked me in the eyes and said, “Here you go; now you can REALLY learn to fly.” I had no idea how right he was.

I remember all the emphasis my instructors and examiners stressed about checklists and flight planning. And of course, fuel management. I believed all I was taught and understood why. But, I was to learn; distractions are unplanned and can change your routines. Routines MUST be followed regardless of distractions or grave consequences can occur. I sure didn’t want to live my dream just to take the lives of my friends and family.

With just 120 hours of experience and too much confidence, I flew my wife and another couple to ENV Wendover, Nevada for dinner and a show. We would be flying back at night and I told them how great it would be to see the Great Salt Lake and the city lights along the Wasatch front at night. We had a marvelous flight to Wendover and a great time. On the way home the beauty was stunning. You could see a sky full of stars above and another sky below, a full reflection of stars on a smooth Great Salt Lake.

Then all the cabin talk picked up as we approached the airport. We laughed and talked of the fun we had and were enjoying. Many questions one after the other bantered around. How do you turn the lights on the runway? How did you dim the lights? How does that other plane know what you are doing? Why is Hill AFB rotating beacon blinking white-white-green and Ogden is just white-green? How did you pick the runway? Why are some runway lights white and others blue? What do you mean by VASI’s? On and on! I answered all the questions with ease and felt proud of myself. I greased the landing and everyone thought I was great. I felt great…….until I shut the plane down. Oh my! What did I just do?? As I turned the fuel selector to off, I realized I was on the low, or, more like it, empty tank. I had failed to complete my landing checklist. I was in shock and felt sick! I never switched tanks! I dared not tell my wife or my friends what I failed to do even to this day, now 18 years later. I did want them to go again didn’t I? I realized the next day when I filled the plane up just how close a call we had. We had NO fuel left. This was not the dream I had so long ago.

I shudder to think if the flight would have been two minutes longer, would we have made it? Running out of fuel on approach would have put me into apartment buildings, ones I even owned. Would I have switched tanks quick enough, or even known what had gone wrong? Would there have been enough time? Boy was old Zaugmeister right!! I was learning to fly, but at what risk?

I humbled myself that day and have become a very meticulous pilot. Flying is for fun. Never make it scary. New rules applied, quiet time in the cabin on take off and landings, always! Written checklists are always and completely followed. No exceptions! No exceptions! Later, I even purchased a new intercom for my 260 Comanche that can isolate me from the cabin chatter just in case someone breaks my rules. My job is to fly the plane, to fly it safely. This is the only way my dream can live. My passengers trust me and I can’t let them down. Never again will I jeopardize so much because of distractions or for the lack of following a simple checklist.

Doesn't This Make You Happy?

The latest news reports reveal that we're spending less time than ever outdoors. We have know for years that communing with nature for even just a few minutes ---like sitting in your backyard, walking in a park, or simply leaning up against a tree is enough to squash stress and boost your mood! So my challenge for today (even though it is raining) is to use any excuse I can find to get some fresh air ~ I think I'll at least walk from my car into the Mall, I might take Romeo for a quick walk to the end of the block, and when the weather gets really nice ~ I'm taking the kids to Salem Pond for a Picnic. My grandma loved to go to Salem Pond. She didn't have to have an excuse to be outside, most every day you could find her sitting in her front yard under a shade tree or on her front porch.

J took this picture of a flowering plum ~ his pictures always make me happy. Thanks again J.

Wordless Wednesday

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Our 25th Anniversary

Al and I have been married 25 years today. It has been a pretty easy

25 years....mostly thanks to him. Al is a very easy going guy...MELLOW is his word for it! We joke about it a lot, ~I'll never forget the trip to Elko, Nevada when he told the waitress he was mellow...everyone at the table laughed! Al is a dang hard worker and has managed to make our lives very comfortable. He is extremely generous and has given me just about anything I have ever ask him for...hmmm the new house didn't happen, but when we were able to buy the home next door for our daughter a new home just wasn't all that important anymore. He has done a great deal of remodeling to our home, a beautiful bookcase in the basement, a great patio on the back of our home, and now a storage room any woman would fall in love with! I'll share pictures of it soon!

Thanks Al for all you have done, you are awesome, and pretty dang good lookin'. I guess our success to reaching 25 years is, we have learned to forgive and forget, laugh at each other and with each other.

It's quite an achievement to be married this long, no matter how many bumps in the road along the way. Trials and tribulations conquered together I think have served to make our marriage stronger.

WOW ~ Look at us!

I found this joke about a 25 year marriage........

A man married 25 years took a look at his wife one day and said, “Honey, 25 years ago, we had a cheap home, a hand-me-down car, slept on a sofa bed and watched a 19-inch TV, but I got to sleep every night with a hot 33-year-old blonde.

Now, we have a nice house, a nice car, a big bed and a big-screen TV, but I’m sleeping with a 58-year-old woman. It seems to me that you’re not holding up your side of things.”

But his wife was a very reasonable woman.

She told him to go out and find a hot 25-year-old blonde, and she’d make sure that he would once again be living in a cheap apartment, driving a hand-me-down car and sleeping on a sofa bed.

Park City

Time for a get-a-way! After having the grand kids all week, we planned to go to Park City for an overnight stay. The car is loaded, seat belts are on and the DVD player is hooked up. OFF WE GO.... This started out being a girls weekend, but we quickly added the boys in our family because really needed baby sitters while we went shopping. Of course, Ali always wants to have her picture taken. Robyn and Ali pool side. They have been friends since they were about 2 years old. They are also tell it like it is girls. We love them dearly.

This is our Halie, also a fish! She has so much fun doing whatever it is she is doing. Look at her beautiful smile. She loves the water, that was the first thing she wanted to do when we got to the condo. Grandma......when are we going swimming?

Robyn

Dillon

Halie

The pool area has a hot tub that joins the pool. Here are all the kids on the pool side: Brevin, Halie, Laney, Robyn and Dillon, Ali and Carmen.

Jeff and Jason enjoyed the pool from the sidelines. Julie, Lynette, and I both did the same. I love the hot tub, but the pool must be as warm as the hot tub for me to get in.

Julie did dinner for us Saturday night. It was wonderful. We had lasagna, cheese bread sticks, and strawberry spinach salad. The kids had their own table with pizza and strawberries.

They all wanted to go back to the swimming pool after dinner, but the girls really wanted to go to the Shopping Mall.....we won. Julie, Jason and Jeff stayed home to tend kids. I think Julie actually tended. Jason and Jeff watched ballgames.

Lynette and I have been friends since the 3rd grade.

Friends come and go throughout our lives. But if you are lucky like I have been, you can sift through the layers, and find some lifelong friends who will always be there for you. Lynette has been that friend for me. We have so many memories. Our children are very close in age and now our grandchildren. We were also lucky enough to teach school together for several years ~ even at the same school! Our friendship has always been nothing but good times. Park City was another good time!

Book Club - Playing for Pizza

Rick Dockery was the third-string quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. In the AFC Championship game against Denver, to the surprise and dismay of virtually everyone, Rick actually got into the game. With a 17-point lead and just minutes to go, Rick provided what was arguably the worst single performance in the history of the NFL. Overnight, he became a national laughingstock and, of course, was immediately cut by the Browns and shunned by all other teams.

But all Rick knows is football, and he insists that his agent, Arnie, find a team that needs him. Against enormous odds Arnie finally locates just such a team and informs Rick that, miraculously, he can in fact now be a starting quarterback. Great, says Rick—for which team?

The mighty Panthers of Parma, Italy.

This is the beautiful city of Parma. Wouldn't we all love to be enjoying a vacation in Italy?

Yes, Italians do play American football, to one degree or another, and the Parma Panthers desperately want a former NFL player - any former NFL -layer - at their helm. Rick reluctantly agrees to play for the Panthers and heads off to Italy..

Book club was so much fun talking about how wonderful it would be to vacation in Italy. Dreams do come true for some of us. Nina will be vacationing there in June this year. I'm so jealous...."Nina, could you just not be so smilie and happy about it?" I hope you get to see every cathedral you want to....2 a day will be nothing for your agenda. You promised that you would put Parma on your itinerary and take pictures of the stadium...James will be so happy. Maybe you can catch a soccer game! Well maybe not!

Of course, we enjoyed Pizza for dinner.

Jill can't wait to visit Italy when little Zack is all grown up. Nancy, Nina and I tried to schedule a tour ---remember when I got my passport. Go-Ahead tours cancelled our trip because not enough people wanted to go ~ I don't believe that for even one second. WHO DOESN'T WANT TO GO TO ITALY?

Vickie was our host and did a fabulous job as always. She wasn't sure she liked the book because of all the football jargon. I loved it, but there aren't to many books I don't love.



Vickie and Nina fixing our cheesecake dessert.

There were only 6 of us attending Friday night. Nancy was in Phoenix to a Nuevo Riche conference. Lisa was home with a sore throat. We missed both of us. Steven took our picture, he was so cute....he had to take several......we are difficult when it comes to following directions.

I have been looking for a couple of lamp bases for almost a month. My dad made these great stained glass table lamps. I thought they would look perfect in my new office. Finding just the right base was not all that easy. I shopped every place around to find them. DI, Salvation Army, Duncan Lighting, JC Penney, Sears, Target, Walmart.... finally I went to Kelly's Glass in Ogden....they are perfect.

Here are the two of them glowing in the office. See how nicely the one fits under my window. There are several lamps throughout my home that my father has made. DH would really like to take up the hobby. I don't know where he will find the time, but I think I'll surprise him with a beginners class that starts in May.

Wonder how that will go over???

Tasty Thursday

Lunch was a quick and easy fix today. We had Spring Vegetable Ramen Pleasure. It took minutes to put together and I loved it...the grandkids...well vegetables are questionable for Halie, Brevin asked for seconds. We had garden salad on the side. After Brevin had Chocolate Mint Pudding and Halie asked for Strawberry Ice Cream. Here is the recipe for our Spring Vegetable Ramen Pleasure:

You will need: 2 3 oz packages ramen noodles (any flavor)
1 cup julienned carrots
12 ounces fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut
into 1 inch pieces (about 2 cups)
1 tablespoon cooking oil
Teriyaki sauce

Cook noodles according to package directions (discard seasoning packets). Drain and keep warm.

In a large skillet, cook carrot and asparagus in hot oil over medium-high heat for 3 to 5 minutes or until asparagus is crisp-tender. I actually precooked the asparagus in boiling water for 5 minutes then tossed it into the skillet. Stir in the cooked noodles. Add teriyaki sauce; toss to coat. Makes 4 servings

As Close As I Get to Being A Bird Farmer!

Look what arrived this morning. There were actually 4 Yellow Finches in our backyard. The kids were in the hot tub when they excitedly called "GRANDMA... Yellow Birds"... With watersquirts in hand they were over joyed.

The backyard is not very attractive at this time of year. Soon these bushes will be covered with lilac and the ground will have wild geraniums galore. The birds don't seem to mind the drabness of the branches.

And why is it the male bird is always so beautiful? Good thing that in the human world, females get all the credit for being beautiful.

These little gregarious birds are so fun to watch. There are usually 2 of them together. Today we were lucky and had 4 over for lunch.

John was AMAZING - 1 hit 0 runs 6 innings ~ 40 Degrees