Please come home for Christmas

Christmas, 2009... the end of another decade.  Seems like we just turned the century and here we are so close to 2010.  Lots of changes this year.  Roger and I made a big move coming to Utah after so many years in Georgia.  Mom having two surgeries within 3 months. I learned to can and preserve some fruit and vegies from the garden... ( I also learned that using insecticide doesn't just affect the grasshoppers...it can also make humans VERY sick ...ie.... nausea and vomiting for nearly 24 hours straight!!!)   The changes in the seasons here in Utah can be swift and sometimes uninvited, too!  Me getting a job... Roger still not getting a job :O(   Anyhow, for all the ups and downs, we ended the year on a good note.  Natalie and Amanda came up from Arizona to spend Christmas with the family.... together again after some 20 odd years... maybe longer if my calculations are correct.   So I thought I would post some of our Christmas to share with you... enjoy!

Natalie is attached to Pistol... as if you couldn't tellJohnny with his Grandma and Grandpa PackOne of Johnny's presents was this monkey... he was trying to feed it swedish fish.  He later saw the fish in the monkey's mouth and took it out and ate it himself!"Okay, Son, you need to be real careful when pulling that trigger there!"

JD is the baby, yet he seems to tower over all three of his big sisters! 

It isn't the biggest family gathering for sure, but at least most all of the family is here for a Christmas together ( that hasn't happened in over 20 years!)

Here is li'l John with some of his Christmas Loot.... a sled just his size, a cookie monster puppet, a sit-n-spin, and a monkey in the background.... who says when your little, you don't need much from Santa????Don't know how this photo got on my camera, but I had to post it !!!  Hi Natalie!  :O)

Hello Amanda.... earth to Amanda... are you in there? Uh oh... looks like we've lost her to the "Seventeen" magazine!   It was either that or the constant text messaging that kept her attention all weekend!  Of course, when you allow non-living things to keep your focus, you get pictures taken of you and they end up on your Auntie's blog!  Hahaha!

Katie, Jd, and the cutest little guy I know!

Here's to a hopeful New Year full of fun times, family and hopefully job prospects!  Yay new decade!

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas... even in Vegas!

Merry Christmas! 

We just got back from a long weekend down in Las Vegas to visit with Roger's brother and his family.  It was lots of fun...we went to the Bellagio to look at the Christmas scene in the Conservatory... amazing!  Thought I would share a few pics with ya!

These ornaments are easily 15 feet tall !

What a sweet polar bear.... he was made with white carnations!This is a huge postcard made from flowers and pinecones and evergreen branches... it was really cool !

Well, I need to hit the sack..gotta get up early to help Mom decorate some more!  Sweet dreams!

Kitty kitty Chickenshit AKA "Boone"

I would like to introduce you to the world's most timid and shy cat. He was a stray when my parents found him in California before they moved back home to Utah. He was very skinny and scraggly looking when they found him and took him under their wings... his hair was coing out in clumps and he did not look well at all.  After packing up the house and doing the final clean up before Mom and Dad moved to Utah, Dad was able to get Boone into a carrier and Dad transported him in his truck with Boone yeowling the entire way!  Here  is a picture of my parents' quirky cat, Boone.  I have not met a cat quite like him... ever!  He lives in the garage and doesn't go outside much unless Dad is out in the garden.  When he is out with Dad, he is much braver than usual. Strangely, this summer, he has kind of come out of his shell, so to speak, and at one point, actually came out onto the back deck when my dog, Tinker was out there as well.  As timid as Boone is, he walked right past Tink and laid down on the deck not 3 or 4 feet from where Tinker was laying... he was watching Tinker like a hawk, but as long as he didn't move, Boone was fairly comfortable to hang outside with us all !

Boone is quite good at giving dirty looks, too, as this picture shows!

He does love to get his treats and get a good head rub daily too!

Halloween deco

One thing I have really enjoyed since being back home in Utah is all the fun ways the folks here decorate for the holidays... not that people in Georgia don't do a fantastic job too, but I have seen some really cute ideas in yards and front porches here!
Simple, but very cute, find branches and put blackbirds on them!

I have seen "crashing witches" for years done all different ways, but they always seem to be the same for some reason. Today, I came across this witch in Mona (Mom's town), and just loved her cape!






This bear is quite the festive fellow... apparently, he dresses up for nearly every holiday ( so I've heard ). In July, he looks alot like Uncle Sam... :O)






Last, but not least, I found this idea at a house in Nephi... I am trying to convince Mom that she needs one of these bikes in her yard, too! I think these people did an amazing job with this yard decoration!

I have GOT to get into a house... I need to decorate for holidays too!

Just a quick little post to show what fall is looking like here in Utah. Mom, Roger and I took a ride on the Nebo Loop last weekend to see the leaves and we were very impressed with the show! I couldn't decide which picture I liked best, so I just posted a bunch... you decide what pic you like best!

You have to beware of the wild cows on the mountain... nah, not really.. but they aren't sure about having their picture taken!
Tinker is enjoying the sun... this is the best I could do with him... he usually gets up, walks over to me and lays down right next to me. What a baby!




Many of my friends that know me well also know I like to be the one behind the camera... I actually stepped in front this time and allowed Roger to take my picture for a change...

This is about the prettiest spot to take a family photo... it is really nice!




Hope you enjoyed these as much as we did finding them!

I'll try not to let so much time pass again before I blog! BYE!

So... I am staying with Mom taking care of her needs since her knee replacement surgery has incapacitated her for a bit. Dad is in Nebraska haulin' combine heads, so I am trying to keep up his HUGE garden. After a day of planting, watering, raking, weeding and "harvesting", Mom and I decided we had better do something with the strawberries before they went bad.
So.....



Here are the beautiful sweeties I picked so lovingly...




And here we have berries cleaned and prepped...






Now the fun part ! Squishing, mashing, mushy pulpy messy --however you describe it!








Add a little lemon juice, sugar and pectin... warm it up so the sugar dissolves well




Put it in cute little jam jars and let it cool before sticking it into the freezer....


And don't forget to keep a jar out to try on some toast in the morning!


What a great feeling knowing it was home grown and hand-made!

Whenever I feel blue....

The days are beginning to consistantly feel warm and the sun peeks out from fluffy white clouds on a daily basis now. I really think that Spring has made it! The lilacs are blooming now and their scent is probably one of my best memories of living on our farm in Idaho. Of course, they had to compete with the dairies around us and the smell of silage coming from up the road in the early morning hours, but those smells were ignored when those lilac bushes where in full bloom!


The other day, I took some pics of my little nephew Johnny. My camera always seems to fill up with images of him... I just don't understand why!
> wink, wink !< The day was perfect for it, and I think I got some good ones. The wonderful thing about digital cameras is I can just delete the ones that he would hold still for. He just loves it when I try to get on the ground and take candids of him... he always comes straight toward me, usually reaching out for the lens, and yes, he has caught it a couple of times!



He is 22 months now and has almost made it to 19 lbs. lol. I am always telling him that it is my goal to get him to 20 lbs. by his 2nd birthday.





He really does make my life brighter. Anytime I feel blue, I just pick him up and I feel sunny again. I don't guess anyone has ever felt that way when holding a young one ?


His genetics appointment is at the end of the month... please keep Johnny, Katie and JD in your hearts and prayers, every little bit helps!