120,000 water balloons - love it!

This should put a smile on your face. Oh yeah! Filmed in Provo.

Using c-o-l-o-r

What colors do you choose to decorate with when you can have all the colors of the rainbow and then some to choose from??? This is the part of the project that is the most daunting to me. The use of COLOR! I'm a big fan of using color. I've used lots of different colors over the years and I've also enjoyed having an almost completely white home. I know that my tastes run more traditional, but I did have a lime green kitchen which I loved (so what does that say about me?) I've received input from several trusted advisers. I wish my three daughters and my sisters lived closer so that I could get their input, but alas, that is not going to happen. Tomorrow the color starts to go on the walls. I look at it this way...it's only paint, right? I can change it if I want to later, but for now, I hope we've chosen something that we will all enjoy for many years. That's the plan anyway. I hope we do love it, because it's expensive and labor intensive to change it too often.
These were my goals:
~have the colors be inviting and warm with a classy feel to them
~have a color scheme that flowed from room to room
~try something kinda new, but not too crazy
~use colors that I love
~get input from the "boys" and use some of their ideas. (They were few, but I did ask.)
I'm scared and excited. Now the fun part begins!

A wonderful cake

I made two of these cakes on Sunday amid the mess in the kitchen. One was to welcome some new neighbors and the other was for a friend who had just received some very sad news. It's a recipe of my mom's that I've made for many, many years. I usually have all the ingredients on hand, so it is very easy to make.
I give you Mary's Lazy Daisy Cake~
4 eggs
2 c. sugar
2 t. vanilla
2 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 c. milk
1/4 c. butter
Mix eggs, add sugar and vanilla and beat about 4 minutes. Add the dry ingredients and beat. In a saucepan heat milk and butter to a boil. Add to batter mixture. Mix. Batter will be thin. Pour in a greased 13" by 9" pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.
Frosting:
mix 1 1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 butter
3/4 half and half (can use milk if needed)
2 cups coconut
1 cup chopped walnuts
Heat in a sauce pan until butter is melted. Pour on warm cake. Put under the broiler in the oven and broil until coconut browns, about 2 minutes. Watch closely.
Enjoy!

The biggest mess you’ve ever seen

   

 

Go Joe Go!

My friend Eileen has many talents. She is a great mother & grandmother and she is a wonderful photographer. We served in the stake YW presidency together many years ago. I wish she were my next door neighbor now, but sadly she moved to Cache Valley several years ago. Check out her blog here for a peak at her photography and also check out the web site of her son Joseph who is into refinishing furniture. His blog is here with pictures of what he is doing. I think you'll be amazed to see what he can do with older pieces of furniture. Be sure to click on "older posts" at the bottom of the first page to see more of his creations. He's amazing! Since some of you readers live in the valley of the cache, you may want to cash in on Joe's ideas and maybe even purchase one of his creations. He lives nearby. Good luck!

That's my girl!

My daughter Claire wrote this summary a few days ago on Cougar Board. She got the forth top post of the day on the day she wrote this (last Friday.)I think she should go into sports writing. Her analytical mind and writing skills would get the job done for any sports team. Way to go wowclaire! You haven't read all those copies of Sports Illustrated magazine for 20 of your 28 years for nothing!

Here's what she said:

Based on articles in the DesNews, SLTrib, and espn.com, as well as interviews and press conferences from Benson, Thompson, and Holmoe.
BYU was serious about and days away from going independent in football and joining the WAC for all other sports.
Fresno and Nevada pulled a fast one on BYU, the WAC, and Utah State when they reneged on their commitment to stay with the WAC.
BYU has, at least partially, scrapped that plan and is looking at other options.
The WAC still wants BYU, but BYU has given no sign either way.
The WCC wants BYU, but they have not heard back from BYU yet.
The MWC and C-USA have had discussions.
The MWC is willing to make some concessions to BYU, at least TV wise.
Harline is still open.

Postulations based on the above:
Thompson pulling Fresno and Nevada into the MWC has nothing to do with the TV contract and everything to do with ruining plans for BYU's potential independence. If BYU stays, it also makes the MWC that much worse.
Everyone (but Utah State, it seems) is looking out for their own interests - BYU, Thompson and the MWC, Comcast and the mtn, Fresno and Nevada, TCU and Boise, et al, and these interests frequently interfere with one another.
BYU is not too serious about joining the WCC in other sports as they have yet to return their calls. The WCC is a good fit basketball and location wise, as they cover a lot of area where Mormons and BYU fans live, but does not even have track and softball, among other mostly insignificant but still vital-to-BYU sports. Where do those sports go if BYU teams up with the WCC?
Holmoe and Samuelson better be as smart and savvy as we all think and hope they are.

The MWC was smart. BYU is vital to their continued future and Thompson foiled BYU's plans. While it seems that much momentum still exists for BYU to go football independent, the facts that their other sports programs have no where to land that fit as well as the now-depleted WAC would have, and that they may get some concessions in the TV department, hopefully with ESPN to broadcast at least home games, must ensure that BYU will stay in the MWC, at least for the foreseeable future. It's not the perfect solution, and it would be horrible if it meant BYU lost some leverage with ESPN in the future, but at this point it makes the most sense.

A mini family reunion

I would love to attend a family reunion every year if I could. I enjoy seeing my extended family and having a good chat to catch up on their lives. This year I was lucky enough to be able to attend a small gathering of my dad's family which included about 30 people last weekend. He's been gone for 27 years now, but his brother and four sisters live on. Two of his sisters live in California and every August they come in for a visit. They are all getting up there in age, so it is a wonderful opportunity to see them and visit.
We all met at Sizzler for lunch. I thought that was a great idea - easy for everyone! People just got what they wanted to eat and paid for their own. Then we gathered in one of their banquet rooms and sat down to eat and visit. I got to sit by cousin-once-removed Helen. We had a great visit. She is an amazing woman who has done some good in the world. I'm very impressed with her. I also got to visit with cousins Rebecca and Steven, which is always delightful.
After lunch, we went over to my brother Gary's house for more visiting and to enjoy the family four food groups for dessert...pie (homemade huckleberry and raisin of course) , homemade ice cream (vanilla and Heggie carmel), cookies and cake. I got to visit with my Aunts Annie, June, Edna, Lorna and Marilyn and Uncles Val, Clair, Rex and Leno. They are such wonderful people. I wish we would have had more time to visit, since it is hard to spend as much time as I'd like talking to people. I also have a couple of cousins who are my age and who are cousins I really enjoyed playing with, writing letters to and just being with when we were growing up. Cousins Susan and Rebecca are two of my favorites and I really admire and enjoy these wonderful women. Once again, they are very interesting to talk to, they are accomplished women who have raised some wonderful children and who are doing some good in the world.
We decided to meet again next year and involve more people. A committee was formed and put to work to organized for next year. I can't wait!

Some things I've noticed

I think it would be really hard to make a living working in the construction business. Their work right now seems to run hot or cold. They seem to have more work than they can handle, or they don't have any work at all. Most of these men have told me that since there isn't a lot of new construction, they have been doing remodels like ours. They get their work (hence their paycheck) any way they can find it. Their rates are down from what they were only a couple of years ago. It's been really interesting to watch these guys do what they do. They are very skilled with their hands and can do all sorts of amazing things. They're nice guys who have done good work for us. So far, so good.
Case in point - Electricians. They can run wires and hook up lights in places you never thought possible. Our "old" living room had terrible lighting. It was dark and dreary, but that will be a thing of the past now that we have 27 cans of recessed lighting in the living, new dining room and kitchen. That's right - 27 cans. Let there be light! PLUS, he hid the cable wire that has been sticking out of the wall for the TV and bugging the crap out of me for a number of years. The computer cable is now inside the wall where it belongs, out of site. Long live electricians! Plus he changed all our outlets and light switches to new and improved white ones. Yeah! Oh, and he also hooked up a programmable heat control thermostat. Cool!
Dry wall guys must love what they do. I've decided that they are just big boys at play. They get to walk around on stilts like these

when they are texturing the ceiling and they get to play in mud and make all sorts of interesting patterns on the wall. They get to create amazing textures. Our guy Scott is a neighbor and friend and he and his crew have been doing a really good job. Would you like some holey smooth texture after your walls have been skim coated? He's your go to guy. He did four samples on our walls so that we could see what they were like, and then once we chose, he sanded them all down and redid the walls the texture we wanted. I think doing dry wall would be hard, but kinda fun.
Wall paper removal guy (kind of a jack-of-all-trades worker because he also sheet rocked and did some other things.) Poor, poor guy. He took down the wallpaper in our huge family room. Luckily he had a steamer, but still. I don't think I'll ever wall paper again (even though I loved it for many years.) It is just too hard to remove. Shortly after removing the wall paper in the family room, he left to tour with a rock band for four months. I'd leave to tour with a rock band too if I had to take off that much wall paper. Only thing is, now Rick, Andy and I have to take off the wall paper in Andy's bedroom and our bedroom...oh well, it will be worth it, right? While we've got these dry wall guys around, we'd better take advantage of the situation.
Painter. We hired the guy that painted the outside of our house in the spring. He is another friend and neighbor. He is retired and came out of retirement to do the inside of our house. He does such excellent work. He's been working on stripping and re-staining the stair rail and also glazing (kind of antiquing) the kitchen cabinets. Once the dry wall guys get done, he'll start spraying the paint. One coat of primer since we have new texture over our old orange peel (bye, bye orange peel) and then two coats of new paint over practically the entire house. It's going to look so different.

Coming up - the hard wood floor guy, the finish carpenter and the tile guy. We'll see if they can compete with the skills of these other laborers. Hopefully they'll be mostly done in another two to three weeks. Here's to the skilled carpenter! Hip, hip, hooray!

Oh, and another thing I've noticed...once you start a remodel, it's VERY HARD to stop...

It's a process

We're into this remodel two weeks now. The workers are making steady progress. I think it will be lovely when it's done, but it sure is hard to live in a house that is completely torn apart! I keep busy deciding what colors and such to use and what to have done next. It's kind of fun to be a general contractor. Stressful, but very interesting. Rick is being a trooper and he gives me free reign to decorate since he isn't in to that sort of thing. How lucky am I?

Orange everywhere

I just drove to and from Logan over the weekend. There were orange barrels everywhere. 9,000 to be exact. In case you didn't know, UDOT is doing a HUGE freeway expansion of I-15. It will be 24 miles beginning from the point of the mountain to Payson. It's going to take TWO years to finish it, working year round. All the interchanges through our town are affected.
Don't you feel sorry for us? The expansion is way overdue and it will be really nice when it's done, but honestly, it's a complete pain while the work is being done. Here is the link to the site with live web cams showing the traffic congestion. (I think Claire will particularly like this link.) If you travel this way, plan accordingly and bring a big dose of patience along with you.

Eat, Pray, Love (or not)

It isn't often that I really dislike a book. But I really did not like the book - Eat, Pray, Love. I didn't like the story, I didn't like the writing (and the offensive language) and I didn't like the self absorbed woman who took us on her own personal discovery journey. Who cares? I put it down before I even got to the end. That doesn't happen very often either.
So, the movie is coming out this weekend. It got average reviews. I'm going to pass on this one. Am I missing something?

Change is good…right?

"where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint"

Gay marriage decision is judicial vigilantism - see this article in the Salt Lake Tribune ( I know, quite a surprise coming from the SLTribune.)

Rick and I were talking about this topic just last night. The writer, Cal Thomas, but into words exactly what we were thinking. It's a short read, but well worth the time to read it. I totally and completely concur with his thoughts on the decay of our society and the causes for that decay. We came to the chilling realization that this huge downfall has happened entirely during the course of our lives - in the last 40 years. We've watched it happen. 40 years isn't really a very long time for our nation and the people who live in it to change their opinions, behavior and actions from one end of the spectrum to the other. We're in big trouble.

Just live your life, be nice, and relax a little

For Mother's and Father's day, Jord and Jake gave us this book. It has been so interesting to read and ponder. (Thanks for sharing it with us J&J.)
Today an article came out in the paper referencing the book. The comments posted by readers are interesting and some quite thought provoking. The article makes some very good points. The main point is this - that LDS people need to work to change perceptions of our religion. We aren't doing a very good job of it. I'll share three example here of what we could be doing better according to the book. It's a tough topic and there aren't any easy answers. At least it's a good place to start the discussion.

1. We need to learn to speak in the language that people understand and not in Mormon speak. We need to cut the jargon.

So, instead of saying “The gospel has been restored,” consider expressing the same idea in three sentences that anyone, regardless of religious background, can grasp:

• Christ organized a church.
• Men changed it.
• It has been brought back.

Or condense it to one simple claim:

We claim to be the re-established original
Christian church.

2. We need to politely disturb the status quo.

As long as we emphasize the commonality approach, we always will remain ineffective and wishy-washy. We can state our contrasting claims without apology and without arrogance, but state them we must. After Captain Moroni wrote his title of liberty and invited all to join him, he did not run around the neighborhood seeking points of commonality with those who disagreed with his position. He didn’t want soldiers who would wither in the heat of battle. He planted his banner – in contrast to the wisdom of his world – and there he stood.

So it must be with us. We must politely disturb the status quo. The Lord’s people have always been a people apart, by definition different. So why should we try to be the same as others? We are different and to pretend otherwise is to be untrue to the re-established doctrines the Savior has revealed. Find the truths that other religions cannot or will not say, and put them into the conversation.

Differences pique interest. People investigate things that are different, not things that are the same.

3. A mentor skillfully suggests. For example -

Rather than asking, “Will you read this chapter?”, a mentor will say, “Here’s another chapter you might find interesting.”

Rather than asking, “Will you come to Church?”, a mentor will say, “Any time you’d like to visit our worship services, you’re surely welcome.”

Rather than saying, “Will you quit smoking?”, a mentor will ask, “What can I do to help you give up cigarettes?”

By the same token, a well-mentored friend is more likely to act, not promise to act. If membership is to be, he will make all the necessary commitments on his timetable, not ours.

Food for thought.

Adios to another child

Dave and Courtney pulled up stakes and headed out to graduate school this week. Boo hoo hoo is all I can say. It's another one of those happy/sad situations. I'm know I'm being totally selfish, but we've loved having them close by for the last several years and we enjoyed their visits and our joint activities probably more than they will know. We'll really miss that. They've been great friends and I must way that I absolutely love relating to my children and their spouses as adults. Good times, good conversation and a lot of fun.
But, life goes on, and so does theirs - just to another state and another experience. They'll do well. I have no question about that. They'll switch roles with Courtney earning the pay check and Dave putting in the study hours. Hopefully, some day they'll come back. I can dream, can't I? They'll have some family in the area where they are going and it will be fun for them to spend more time together. Our loss is their gain.
Rick helped Dave drive the truck down a few days ago. They will be setting up their first apartment and actually using their wedding gifts. Since they've been tending the home of Courtney's parents these last two years, they'll have a much smaller place to manage and no yard work to worry about. Hooray!
We had a fun "Adios" party and barbecue with some of Dave's good friends that he grew up with along with his good college buddies last weekend. I really like Dave's friends. They're great young men doing good things with their lives. Most of them are married and it was fun to eat and then have a rousing game of volleyball with the huge plastic beach ball out in the park.
Best of luck Dave and Courtney. We love you very much.

the secret's in the sauce

I'm kind of picky about potato salad. I'm not a fan of pickles in a potato salad. I'm also not sure that mustard has any place in a potato salad. But today my friends, I'm going to share a family recipe. The BEST potato salad ever. My mother-in-law makes a killer potato salad and she made up the recipe by accident. She didn't have enough mayonnaise, so she used.........................................................................................................................................................
RANCH DRESSING instead. Who would have thought? The secret is in the dressing.

Pat's potato salad
~take six large potatoes (or more if you're making a large salad) boiled with the skins on until cooked, cooled, peeled and cubed in a large bowl
~cook six hard boiled eggs while the potatoes are cooking. Cool.
~cut up and add one entire bunch of green onion, tops included
~add 1 1/2 to 2 cups Ranch Dressing (I buy the big bottle of Gregg's in the refrigerated section at Costco)
~add 1 T. Lawry's seasoning
~Grate the eggs and add to the salad.
~pepper to taste

Mix the potatoes, eggs, onions, Ranch Dressing and Lawry's. Let it sit for at least a couple of hours to absorb the dressing and for the flavors to mix. Add more Ranch Dressing if needed. Make sure the salad is moist enough (there's nothing worse than a dry potato salad.) It's best if the salad is made the day before and allowed to chill and blend flavors during the night.

That's it. Five ingredients. No pickles. No mustard.
Enjoy!

A worthwhile blog

I've been following this blog for several years now (thanks to a recommendation from Claire.) It inspires me. It sometimes shames me that I don't do more for others, and it always amazes me. It reminds me once again that we are spoiled beyond measure being wealthy Americans. Why do we have so much when so many in the world have so little? Shouldn't we be doing more to help?
The wonderful woman who writes it knows what is really important in life. She puts things into perspective. She looks for the good in bad situations. And she does simple but important things to make a difference. I admire that. I really, really admire that.

We're about to begin a home remodel. Do I really "need it" or do I just "want it?" How do you justify your wants from your needs? We really don't "need" anything but food, shelter, clothes and warmth. What's a person to do when they have so much and there are so many challenges in the world? I'm having a hard time justifying what we're about to begin.

Looking for Good in Lagos. Check it out by clicking here.

Rupert connections

Second row from the bottom - me, some drawing, Brian

Rupert 5th ward girls - bottom row - Lorene, Sue, me, Roxanne, Brenda
Top row - Celia, Carla, Kathy, Rita, Lynn


my 6th birthday party with Joan, me, brother Paul, June, John, Celia, Rulon and Mac Bruce. Four boys and three girls - wow I was progressive!
Freshmen in college at home for Christmas - front - me, Jill, Celia, Shelley
back - Carla, Sheri, Karla, Colleen and Nola.

Good ole Facebook!
Thanks to Facebook, I had the delightful experience yesterday of reconnecting with some of my childhood friends from Rupert. I can't tell you how happy this made me to see these wonderful people again! I even got tears in my eyes.
Here's how the story unfolded. I was just minding my own business when one day I saw that Joan S. was on Facebook. I sent her a friend request and she accepted. We wrote a message or two back and forth and reconnected. We were friends in KINDERGARTEN and her mother was my kindergarten teacher. She was always the most kind and sweet person and I've always though a lot of her. Then I became Facebook friends with her husband Brian Mac. who use to live in the Rupert 5th ward back in the day. His younger sister Sheri Mac. became my friend and through the years back then and I always enjoyed talking to her (plus she and my younger brother Paul had a thing for each other.) Time marched on and we all married other people (except for Brian and Joan who married one another!) and got on with our lives. We lost contact. I did see Brian at our 30 year high school reunion and had a wonderful time talking several years ago. He and Joan live in Missouri and they come to Utah once a year to visit their dad and step mom who live in my town. I do run into Brian's older sister Julie who lives about four blocks away. Crazy. Anyway...back to the story.
Through Joan I become Facebook friends with both Brian and Sheri and last week Sheri wrote that she was in town visiting her dad. Once she got here, she mentioned that she was shopping in a large box department store not far from my house. I told her that I would love to see her if she had time, and low and behold, next thing I knew, we had set a time to get together! I went over to her dad's home and visited with Joan, Brian and Sheri for two solid hours. It was so wonderful!
I was completely and totally struck by one thought...that they haven't changed much in all those years. It's been over 30 years since I've seen Sheri. She was beautiful, kind, sweet, funny, talented and a delight to talk to when we were in our 20s, and guess what? She is exactly the same. Joan too. Brian as well. They are wonderful people, doing wonderful things. They help others, they serve, they do good in their communities and in their families. They've raised some amazing children (Sheri and her husband Bruce have four daughters and two sons, Brian and Joan have five daughters) and it was so fun to show pictures of our families and know that they completely cared about knowing more about me, my family, my mother and my brothers and sisters. They were so interested in catching up and I was interested in their families and their stories. Their dad is in his 80s and he is still the same. It was so wonderful to see him as well. He was my LDS Bishop back when I served my mission. He is a gem of a man and I remember him so kindly.
Relationships are what matter in life. I'm so blessed to have good friends, even those from my past so many years ago. Sheri invited us to visit her in Orlando and Brian and Joan invited us to visit them in St. Louis. We just might!