R clan Robertson. . .

link to a great quilt blog.....

2012-01-26T10:45:00.001-07:00

www.seasonsofhome.blogspot.com

I found a great quilt blog. If you like quilting you should pop over and take a look. She is having a give away right now too. I love give aways. I have seldom won them, but it sure is fun if you do.

Just wondering.......

2012-01-19T13:25:00.000-07:00

This year at our Church (I am a mormon, and the "congregation I attend is called a ward) there will be 7 boys out serving missions at the same time. That is some kind of record for our ward. There have been 2 full time missionaries serve from our was previously, and one of them was my daughter, she went to Argentina (actually, so did the other missionary). Anyway, 1 of the boys is currently in NC, one of the boys is now in NYC, and now the 3rd boy has received his call. He will be going to Romania.
We have been working on Taylor's paper work, getting the physical done, getting the dental done, filling out forms etc, and all of this has gotten me to pondering. I keep thinking about my son, hoping he will be the kind of missionary who serves with all his heart. (I know he is going because he wants to. We have always encouraged our kids to go, but the decision has always been theirs to make) I hope he is the kind of missionary who grows his own testimony in such a way that the mission is a great experience and launches him on a good path for his life course.

Anyway, I also wonder where he will go. I would love to hear from you. Where do you think he will go? Foreign (if so where) or Stateside (if so where). I would also like to know when you think he will leave for the missionary training center. To make this a bit more interesting I will be offering a prize for the person, or persons, who get it right. In the event that no one gets it right, it will be those who come the closest.

Oh yea, fyi he will not turn in papers until the first of March.

The prize will be 1 dozen hand made cards (with envelopes).

Just a short update.......

2012-01-17T10:34:00.000-07:00

Man its hard to keep up with all the things I would like to keep up with. Working is a challenge. Don't get me wrong, I love my job, I just don't have time to do some of the things I would like to do.

So here I am again trying to updated you as to the family goings on.

First off, we had ANOTHER wedding this year. YES ANOTHER!! That makes 3. Yes, I said 3. This time it was Jake and Rachael who got married. I am sorry, but I don't have pictures yet, so I have none to post. They just barely put some on FB, so you can look there if you are interested and want to look before I have some to put on here.

The kids had wonderful choir concerts for Christmas, and Christmas was wonderful too. I had a whole week off, and enjoyed every minute of it.

The pictures you see above are the start of our adventures for the year. Kerry took the boys and their friends to the hotsprings for a quick overnight trip. They sure had a wonderful time. It was cold weather, but they kept warm with a fire outside and a stove in the tent. And of course when you are in the water, you are warm.

So there you go. Sorry it has taken so long, but at least I am updating RIGHT ???

I have a wonderful son!

2011-12-04T09:18:00.002-07:00

My oldest son currently at home likes to put up Christmas light. This is the first year that I ever remember him telling me that.

So I let him go for it! He spent the better part of 2 days putting them up, but I think his results speak for themselves.

His dad used to put up the lights. But over the course of the last few years he has stopped wanting to do it. So the boys have been doing it. Lucky for me I have children who are willing to learn. This year the results are very nice.

I love turning the corner at night and seeing all the pretty colors. Makes my heart smile.

THANKS Son!! You're the best!

2011-10-30T03:00:00.007-06:00

Leaving Utah for the summer to go to Montana with her best friend Forest, aka Fo, and work on a ranch, Charley only has thoughts of escaping her all to controlling parents rather than spend another summer without a say in her own life. Little does she realize how this summer will affect, not only her life, but those around her. She meets Chase, oldest brother and future ranch owner. She meets Tyree, a ranch hand who gives her the creeps. She meets and dates a Dr. and a store clerk, but she only has eyes for handsome Luke Langston. Unfortunately for her Luke is engaged to be married. Charley is attacked, is stalked, has a confrontation with her parents, deals with a car that constantly strands her, struggles with feelings of losing her best friend as he finds love, struggles with her growing attraction to Luke, and learns to love an unruly bunch of kids! And all in one summer!!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I thought it was well written and showed a depth and complexity to the characters,that is not always present in this kind of book. Once I started reading I didn't want to put it down. I had to of course because I had to sleep sometime, but I had it read in 2 days! I would recommend it to anyone looking for a clean romance with a healthy dose of adventure!

http://www.amazon.com/Outer-Edge-Heaven-Jaclyn-Hawkes/dp/0615517773/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1316547646&sr=1-1

You can use this link to purchase your own copy on Amazon. Its really worth the read!

I want some ideas.....

2011-10-29T07:22:00.000-06:00

I would like to know what are your best wedding lunch ideas. What feeds alot of people (100-150)? What is inexpensive? What required the least amount of clean up? I would like all of your best ideas. I have a few ideas of my own but I am in the final stages of planning the wedding luncheon for my son and his bride. So you get the idea, I am looking for ideas!

A midnight phone call

2011-10-20T18:05:00.000-06:00

The other night, when we were sound asleep, we got a phone call. It was Kerry's dad. He had just received a call himself, from the transplant team.

Kerry's dad was suffering from complete renal failure and had been on dialysis for several years. I am not really sure how long, just a number of years. Anyway, they found him a kidney! He went into surgery the following day and now I am happy to report that his surgery was a success. He won't know for approx. 2 weeks, wether or not the kidney is functioning correctly, but it seems to be. We are so happy to be able to have more time on this earth with him, but we are sad for the family who lost their loved one.

You know, 2 of Kerry's immediate family members have been the recipients of transplants. His sister received new lungs and now his dad received a kidney. I never used to give organ transplantation a second thought, ok other than "no, I don't want to do that". Well I have changed my mind. I would really like to be an organ donor when I pass away. Its really one last thing I could do to serve my fellow men, plus I know what it has meant to me personally and to my family.

Anyway, I just wanted to share our wonderful news, and the joy we are feeling at being able to have Kerry's dad with us on this earth for more years!

The ABC'S of real friends

2011-10-14T11:25:00.001-06:00

I am dedicating this to all my wonderful friends, especially my siblings, who have turned out to be my bestest friends ever!! (who would have thought?)

(A)ccepts you as you are
(B)elieves in you
(C)alls you just to say "HI"
(D)oesn't give up on you
(E)nvisions the whole of you, even the unfinished parts
(F)orgives your mistakes
(G)ives unconditionally
(H)elps you
(I)nvites you over
(J)udges not
(K)eeps your confidences
(L)oves you for who you are
(M)akes a difference in your life
(N)otices the good, ignores the bad
(O)offers support
(P)icks you up
(Q)uiets your fears
(R)aises your spirits
(S)ays nice things about you
(T)ells you the truth when you need to hear it
(U)nderstands you
(V)alues you
(W)alks beside you
(X)-plains things you don't understand
(Y)ells when you won't listen
(Z)aps you back to reality

Is there such a thing as a re-engagement? Well DUHHHH!!

2011-10-14T10:50:00.001-06:00

last year Jake was engaged to Rachael.

They broke it off. I won't say why, because those are their own personal reasons.

However, they are back togather now and "re-engaged",

and they asked me to take their engagement pictures.

or is that re-engagement pictures?

We borrowed my brothers camera, as mine is in the shop, and headed out to a couple of "exotic" locations in the nearby valley. I wanted to share some of our results. Some of these pictures are goofy, but most are the ones that I liked the best.

Since both Jake and Rachael work the only time we could get together was sunday afternoon.

You have to take pictures at the right time or you end up with all kinds of lighting issues.

We had some of those, but most pictures were great. We just used the shadows to our advantage and didn't take most pictures in the direct sunlight.

Jake was having a really good laugh in this picture because I was trying to explain how I wanted him to move his head. Finally I gave up and went over and placed my hands on his cheeks and "showed" him where I wanted him to move.

But I think the final picture speaks for itself! Its terriffic!!

Jake kept blowing "raspberries" all day. I finally got the brilliant idea to go with it, and I really think its cute! Shows lots of personality!

We had a great day, and all in all the pictures turned out wonderful. I can't wait to see what they pick out for the announcements!

State honor choir

2011-10-10T07:52:00.000-06:00

Unfortunately I have no pictures for this post. My camera is in the shop for repairs. This past weekend Taylor had the opportunity to participate in the state high school honor choir. Schools send their best choir participants to take part in this choir. Taylor sang 1st tenor. The choir this year was conducted by Mack Wilberg (the mormon tabernacle choir director). And boy did Taylor enjoy himself. He was practicing for weeks, as I am sure the other kids were, and it sure payed off. It was an amazing concert. The only part I didn't enjoy was being squished, like sardines, into the tabernacle. I am so glad to live in a place where my kids have opportunities, like this one, that enrich their lives!

Fake friends or real friends?

2011-09-29T07:30:00.000-06:00

I saw this on FB and just had to share it!

FAKE FRIENDS - NEVER ASK FOR FOOD.

REAL FRIENDS - ARE THE REASONS YOU HAVE NO FOOD.

FAKE FRIENDS - NEVER SEEN YOU CRY.

REAL FRIENDS - CRY WITH YOU.

FAKE FRIENDS - KNOW A FEW THINGS ABOUT YOU.

REAL FRIENDS - COULD WRITE A BOOK ABOUT YOU.

FAKE FRIENDS - WOULD KNOCK ON YOUR FRONT DOOR.

REAL FRIENDS - WALK RIGHT IN AND SAY "I'M HOME!"

FAKE FRIENDS - WILL HELP YOU UP WHEN YOU FALL OVER.

REAL FRIENDS - WILL JUMP ON TOP OF YOU AND SHOUT "SANDWICH!"

FAKE FRIENDS - ARE FOR A WHILE. - REAL FRIENDS - ARE FOR LIFE.

The Winner Is...........................wait for it...................wait for it.................

2011-09-26T10:20:00.000-06:00

The winner of the blog hop contest is-Runaway bridal planner!! Congrats. I am like most others in the contest and I want to say thanks for all the kind comments. I wish I had something to give all of you. But I have decided that I am going to have more give away contests from time to time. Who knows, maybe next time it may be one of my quilts!

Canning season is upon us!

2011-09-25T12:05:00.002-06:00

Have you ever stopped what you were doing long enough to wonder why you do some of the things you do? Are you one of those people who cuts the ends off a roast just because its the way you mother did it, never pausing long enough to wonder why? I think canning can be a little bit that way. Some of us do it simply because our mother always did it. I took the time to think about canning a few years ago. I came to the conclusion that although I may have started doing it because its what I grew up with, its not the reason I still do it. I can and bottle things for several reasons;

1. its healthier for my family

2. most homemade food tastes better than what you get at the grocery store. (applesauce for instance)

3. (aside from the initial investment) Preserving my own food is much cheaper. For instance, if a bu. of apples costs me $20, then a quart of applesauce costs $1. (ok $1.50 with sugar and spice) If the apples cost $30 then the applesauce is $1.50 ($2.00 with sugar/spice)

4. It makes me feel good to be able to be productive. I read in the Hobbit once, where bilbo was talking about having full larders and how he felt satisfied. That is how I feel at the end of the work.

But the WORK is the biggest drawback! I do everything as easily as possible. For instance; I don't peel my tomatoes. I wash them, but out the core and cut them into the size I want. Then they go into the jars. For salsa, its the same. I don't peel them, just wash, core and cut! I like the extra texture that adds and it doesn't change the flavor at all. For applesause I use a victorio strainer, then wash, cut in quarters and put in a pan with water and cook until soft. Soooo much easier than the old method of putting them thru a strainer after coring and peeling. Why bother when there are machines that can do it for us?

Last year I was extremely busy with school, and the canning was neglected. Not totally overlooked, but definately neglected. This year I was busy with an extership and the garden suffered by not getting planted until mid July. The result of this is very little of my own produce to bottle. The other result is that I ran out of a couple things in the basement that would normally be there. My son came upstairs the other day, totally aghast, telling me that we were out of salsa. That is a thing that has never happened at my house before (gasp).

As for the garden, We have had all the cherry tomatoes that we wanted to eat (and Kerry has kept up with that), lettuce and spinach (although, not enough for all we eat), squash, beans and grapes. This year, my own grapevines gave me lots of grapes. I just sent 3 1/2 bushels of green grapes to the local fruit stand. I kept the purple ones for myself. I got about 3/4 bu. of the concords! I was tickled with that. I didn't know it when I planted them, but concords grow much slower than other grapes. I would like to plant another vine, but don't know where I would put it.

The next thing I am going to do is applesauce. I may even mess around with applecider, if I can figure out how to do it as I don't have a press. So far this year I have bottled green beans, squash, salsa, raspberry jam and today, grapejuice. I still need to do tomatoes and more salsa.

Follow this blog-win a prize!

2011-09-22T04:00:00.004-06:00

Welcome to the September Blog Hop! Celebrate the beginning of fall with me and my blogger friends by hopping around, visiting our sites, and entering our contests! There are no limits - you can enter the contest on every blog. With over 40 blogs participating, that's over 40 prizes you could win. Just click on the links below to move on to the next blog.

On my blog, you can win …

These 2 hand painted Christmas ornaments! Gasp, did I say Christmas when its only September? Yep, sure did! I am one of those strange people who feel like if I don't prepare early, it won't happen. You know how the last 3 months of the year are-BUSY, BUSY, BUSY!! So if I want to do anything cutsie or decorative for Christmas, I have to do it ahead of time.

This is the other one. It will have the word "Believe" across the antlers when it gets mailed to you. These pictures don't do them much justice. They are really, really cute!

Would you like to win this prize? You just need to do two things.

1. Become a follower of this blog.

2. Leave me a comment in the trail and tell me why you'd like to win this prize.

That's it! You are now entered. The contest ends on Saturday night, September 24th, at midnight MST, and the winner will be contacted shortly thereafter. Please either leave your e-mail address in the comment trail or make sure it's visible through your profile so I can contact you to tell you that you're the lucky winner.

Now go visit my other friends ...

September Blog Hop Participants

1. Tristi Pinkston, LDS Author
2. Joyce DiPastena
3. I Am A Reader, Not A Writer
4. Mandi Slack
5. Michael D. Young
6. Six Mixed Reviews
7. Pam Williams
8. Laurie Lewis
9. Kristy Tate
10. Marilyn Yarbrough
11. Stacy Coles
12. Kristie Ballard
13. Lynn Parsons
14. Pushing Past the Pounds
15. Sheila Staley
16. cindy Hogan

17. Jamie Thompson
18. Jaclyn Weist
19. Cathy Witbeck
20. Secret Sisters Mysteries
21. Tamera Westhoff
22. Tina Scott
23. Lynnea Mortensen
24. Danyelle Ferguson aka Queen of the Clan
25. Jeanette A. Fratto
26. Bonnie Harris
27. Melissa Lemon
28. Mary Ann Dennis
29. Stephanie Black
30. Jane Still
31. Janice
32. Laura Bastian

33. Tamara Bordon
34. Betsy Love
35. Maria Hoagland
36. Amber Robertson
37. Debbie Davis
38.
39. Christy Monson
40. Carolyn Frank
41. Rebecca Birkin
42. Melissa Cunningham
43. Emily L. Moir
44. Ronda Hinrichsen
45. Lisa Asanuma
46. Joan Sowards
47. Jordan McCollum
48. Diane Stringam Tolley

Learn more about September Blog Hop here.
Get The Code

Annual Hike up Timpanogos

2011-09-06T09:05:00.001-06:00

This year we thought there may be a big group of people hiking with Kerry. Keri thought a bunch of her friends were going. But as you can see from the picture, the "large group" consisted of the tried and true, the die hards, the original hikers!

Kerry took my camera this year. He took over 400 pictures. I am posting the ones that I like best. It will give you an idea of what a wonderful time they had while Megan, holly and I stayed at home having a girls night.

This picture makes it easy to see how much weight Kerry has lost. Notice the baggy shorts?

Kerry was surprised by how much snow is still up on the mountain. It surprises me too. From the front, you can't see any snow. But apparently there was still so much snow that it is still on the trail in alot of places.

Keri is standing on "snow/ice"

You can see for yourself that there really is quite a bit of snow left. Kerry told me that usually that is where the trail is.

There were lots and lots of flowers in the meadow this year, and along the trail.

While it was nice and cool in the valley, it was fairly cold on the mountain that night. Kerry left his shoes outside of his sleeping bag and they were covered with frost in the morning, as well as the sleeping bags where they were not covered by the tarp. Here you can see Keri and Parker sippin cocoa.

What I like about this picture is the fact that you can see sparks flyin! Yes, I know, the picture is blurry.

Kerry got up at 3:30 a.m. to hike to the summit and watch the sunrise.

The first picture is Utah Valley as seen from the sumit. The 2nd and 3rd pictures are what happens when you take night time pictures with out a tripod and you are shivering!!

This is what I call a "hobbits view" because it reminds me of the view where Frodo and Sam are looking into Mordor.

These pics are the progression of the sunrise.

When Kerry made it to the summit, he was the first one there. It didn't last very long, only about 5 minutes. Then all the other dedicated hikers showed up.

Some of these guys brought ski's and snow boards. Because there was so much snow, there was plenty of places you could use them. Like this glacier for instance! I would be waaayyyy to chicken to go down that. Its way to steep!!

Kerry took alot of pictures of flowers. Probably just for me, but I will share.

I don't know what all of these are called, but I did know some of them.

Thistle

Some type of grass. (I love this picture, such cool photography)

Kerry said he could stand here and get a different view, with different flowers in the picture, just by turning.

How many ants can you see in this picture? Kerry didn't even notice them until he got home.

Anyone know what these tall, white flowers are called?

daisey's

Kerry got back to camp around 10 a.m. (or so) and Kj and Parker were just leaving. Because he left so early, and with out them. They didn't know where he went. They didn't know if he fell off a cliff somewhere, or if he was out fishin, or what. So they decided to go to emerald lake. Its a small lake, formed by a glacier, that is at the base of the summit.

As you can see from the picture, Kerry had other plans. He was pooped!

Didn't last too long as Parker and Kj had other plans. So they went to the lake together!

This picture is of a little "hikers cabin" by the lake. Kerry said it is a place where hikers can get out of the weather if they become stranged. However, it has been vandalized, so it would really serve its original purpose.

Emerald lake gets it name because normally it is a deep emerald color. This year it is not that green.

This is due to the fact that there is still so much snow that the glacier still comes out onto the lake.

It was also cold enough that there is ice on the lake.

They found an "ice cave" during the hike and took some really neat pictures from the inside.

All in all, it was a great hike. In the words of Kerijean, the only thing that is not enjoyed about the hike are the after affects! (in other words-the sore muscles!)

GOOD NEWS!

2011-08-31T08:29:00.000-06:00

Because Kerry has lost so much weight with our dietary changes, and because of the lightheadcdness he has been having, I have been pestering him to go and see his Dr. again. I figured he would need a medication change. Well I was right. Kerry gets to discontinue 2 of his medications!! Yeaaaaa!!!!!

We have learned that that doesn't mean he will be off them forever. Diabetes is a disease that affects his pancrease and liver. As those deteriorate, over time, or if he gains weight, or if he doesn't control his blood sugar, or his high blood pressure, he could have to go back on the medications. But for now this is a small victory for him. GOOD JOB MY HONEY!

Jake is getting old

2011-08-29T09:35:00.000-06:00

I have no idea what we were laughing about, but it must have been hilarious! There usually is alot of laughing when Jake is around! These pictures are from his birthday celebration. It was not big, but we sure enjoyed ourselves. Jake wanted apple pie for his birthday and not cake. The only problem with pie is you never get enough. But I guess thats a good thing or we would all be much rounder.

Megan-The garden fairy!

2011-08-29T09:24:00.001-06:00

This year the garden has been an interesting experiment. It didn't even get planted before mid July. You must be wondering why?! Well partly because we were going to re-vamp it. We were going to change the garden bed itself, from one long 24x4 foot bed to 4 or 5, 4x4 beds. Well that didn't happen. But the first part of it did. That was taking off 12" of the top soil and the first layer of boards. (the garden was 2 feet deep) The next thing that happened was that 1 of the 4x4 beds got made and placed by the bsmt window next to the house, where it recieves shade for a goodly portion of the day.

The said garden bed now has lettuce and spinach in it. They have done quite well in the shade and it has been nice to be able to harvest my own. No, it has not enough for our needs. We eat alot more lettuce and spinach that it is producing, but next year, it will be better and I may even add 1 more bed on the other side of the window. The other reason the garden is an experiment this year is because

1. I had a school externship until the end of June, and

2. girls camp in the first part of July and

3. I didn't get it planted until mid July. So I don't know what to expect.

You can see from these pictures that the plants I did get in the ground are doing well, and my grapes are going like gang busters this year. Unfortunately so are the weeds. This is where Megan comes in. Megan has always been my kid who liked to work in the garden. I don't know if she is thrilled with it this year or not. But I am soooo glad she is willing to help me out.

I have to say the garden is not a total flop. I have started getting beans and squash galore. I am putting up some of the beans today.It probably won't be too long before the grapes are ready either. The only thing that hasn't done well this year are the strawberries. I forgot to thin them last year, so this year I only had about a handful. Not even enough for a batch of jam. Darn!! I am also looking to see if I can bottle squash or not. I have never done it before. But I want to bottle it because I love having it in casseroles and such.

Baked beans contest

2011-08-29T07:35:00.001-06:00

Our ward had a bbq and auction to raise funds for our scouts and young women (for camp). As part of that they also had a "carnival" to try and raise some funds. They had a car smash. People could pay to beat on an old car, face painting, a tug o war where the losers got sprayed by water from a fire truck and a magic show and other stuff. The dinner after the carnival, was free, but the desserts cost money. We also had a baked beans contest. I signed up for that. I won 2nd place. That is fine with me as I have always felt like my beans were pretty good, but not as good as some of the "southern cookin" I have had. Any one who has a wonderful bean recipie and would like to forward it can send it to kerryandam08@hotmail.com. Oh yea, I should mention that I went with a full crock of beans and came home wiht about 1 1/2 cups left, so you know they were good. My cake (which was an equally delicious carrot cake (with real carrots) only had 1 piece sold and it came out of the middle)

NOW WHERE DID I PUT THAT??

2011-08-26T09:55:00.004-06:00

25 lbs is alot! Its these dumbbells, its a sack of sugar. Sometimes a bag of flour (except that I think they are 20lbs) and its a large bag of potatoes. You could also say, its 25 packages of copy paper, maybe a kids backpack (although they are not supposed to be that heavy). I have a few college text books that could account for alot of that 25 lbs.

Then there are the bushels of veggies or fruits we put up every year, that probably weigh that much. So what is the point you ask? Well my husband has lost 25 lbs, and I don't know where it went. Actually, I am glad that he has. He is glad too! His goal weight is 10 lbs away.

How is he doing it you ask? Well we have changed our eating habits. We are focusing on fruits and veggies, less grains, alot less fats, and not excessive amounts of meats. Kerry is also exercising and he is on medication, which I am sure is helping (and not just with the diabetes).

When I first found out about his diabetes, I really felt overwhelmed! I wasn't sure what to do. So I hit the books. I studies and read like crazy. Here is a link to what I finally decided to concentrate on. I have a book entitled Original Fast Foods.
http://www.danielschallenge.com/
This is a link to their site. I totally recommend it to everyone intested in what I am doing.

One of the things I realized is that we eat more fat in our diet that I thought we did. One of the things that helped me realize this is that when our exchange students that came and stayed for any length of time, gained weight. Then in reading this book, I started to realize we were eating "hidden fats". For instance-cream (of whatever) soups. I used them in a ton of things, and they are full of fat. Cheese. I used cheese alot! Baked items, like cookies. Then, even though I knew veggies were good for us. We just were not getting enough of them. So anyway, we have changed our diet. I have changed it more for kerry, than the rest of the fam. For instance, Kerry would have smaller portions, and maybe one slice (or none) of bread with dinner. Where the rest of the family can eat as much carbs as they want (of course that depends on what I have cooked because I use less noodles now to)

In concentrating on fruits and veggies more, we have more food like this

green smoothies
salad (that includes the chicken salad recipie that was already posted)
veggie/chicken enchiladas
veggie lasagna
veggie casserole
oatmeal covered with fruit
veggie omlets
whole grain pancakes with fruit topping (or jam, or yogurt)(or plain)
tacos-heavy on the veggies
baked potatoes with veggies and miniscuel amounts of butter
spaghetti

hamburgers-heavy on the veggie toppings
grilled chicken (as a side to the veggies)
bbq chicken (as a side to the veggies)
sweet and sour-heavy on the veggies, over brown rice
chicken noodles (heavy on veggies, using 1/2 as much cream soup and yogurt instead of sourcream)

Anyway, that is just an idea. I have also gotten so I buy whole wheat hamburger buns, tortillas, and rolls. I also make my bread with whole grains and no refined flour, whereas, it used to be 1/2 and 1/2. I also serve salad with everything and extra veggies with most things regardless of what the main course is.

I have noticed a difference for myself too. I have lost 8 lbs, which is not alot, but its a start. And I have more energy, and energy during the hours of the day I am normally tired.

Pretty much when I go to the grocery store now, most of what is in my cart is fruits and vegetables.

Neal has gone

2011-08-22T14:20:00.000-06:00

No, the title does not mean he left Megan. Ok, temporarily he has gone. Neal decided to join the armed forces and left today for basic training. I feel sorry for him as far as timing goes. He is training in Tx. and we all know how hot it is there at the moment. Keep Megan and Neal in your prayers, they will need all the support and help they can get! But, WOW, what a big adventure their lives are going to be.

The latest quilting project

2011-08-22T09:38:00.002-06:00

So this is the latest project. The center (to the yellow border) is all finished. The red is what goes next. Then I will put 2 more borders on and it will be king size. For the moment it is on hold because my machine is not working correctly. I have to take it in this morning and find out if it is fixable. The guy at the repair shop said he will have to look at it. Apparently this problem is common with my machine (it quite pulling fabric thru)(and yes I checked the feed dogs) and sometimes its not fixable. Thats frustrating when you are right in the middle of a project. Its even more frustrating when you consider I had my first $110 machine for almost 17 years until it was destroyed during our move, and I have had this one for 6. Hopefully its fixable, but if not then hopefully I find a good basic one that doesn't cost me and arm and a leg!

The first day of school. Its always bittersweet!

2011-08-22T09:31:00.001-06:00

So this morning is the first day of school for the new year. I can't believe how fast time is passing! For one thing, the summer just flew by. All of June was taken up doing my extern. Part of July was taken by girls camp, and then we were just plain busy. I must say that sleeping in and relaxing was wonderful and I will miss it! But now its time to start another school year. This year Taylor is a senior (gasp!!) and Parker is in 10th grade and Holly is in 8th. Ok, so what is the big deal you say? Well that means Taylor has less than a year and he will be on a mission. Then I will be down to 2 kids at home. People used to say that once they started leaving home, it went fast. I have to say, that its true! I know that I am not old (guess that depends on your view point) but it kinda makes me feel old, not ancient, just old. Wow, where does time go? Kerry and I were talking the other day and by the time 5 more years passes, we could be empty nesters. That is really weird! What is weirder? We could be grandparents by then!

Some other pictures to share

2011-08-17T07:20:00.000-06:00

I realize what these pictures look like, but no-they are not engagement pictures. If that were the case I would be telling you! Jake and Megan were just down one day this summer and were goofing around. We ended up having a double date, with me taking pictures and then we went out for icecream. It was great fun and we all enjoyed ourselves!

4th of July weekend

2011-08-17T06:35:00.001-06:00

Yes, I know, its wwwwaaayyyy past 4th of July. But, these pictures were on my camera, and I didn't know it until I downloaded.

When Taz had puppies this year Jake decided that he wanted one. This is a picture of his puppy. He and Megan came over for a family picnic and had fun playing with his puppy.

This is Megan (Jake's girlfriend). We really like her! And yes, as cute as the puppy is-she is cuter!

Here's to 25 years and counting!

2011-08-16T15:22:00.001-06:00

This year for our anniversary Kerry and I went up to a place in SLC called Anniversary Inn. We had never been there before and had learned about it from our recently married girls. It was located in a historic house on South Temple, by the avenues. It was a really neat thing to go and do.

We stayed in a room called Enchanted Forest. We slept in a tree (not really). But it was all set up to look like you were sleeping in a tree. It was really neat. The ceiling was painted with leaves and sky, and the walls were painted with animals, tree trunks and meadows.

I didn't realize when I booked the room that you had to climb up some branches to get on the bed. I guess its a good thing its just our 25th anniversary and not our 50th or some such thing, or it may have been difficult to get up there.

Since the inn was a bed and breakfast, you got to order your breakfast. We ordered ours for 8:00 am because we knew we would be up anyway. It was very yummy and bigger than I thought it would be.

From this view you can just see the window (top left in the roofline) that was behind the bed. We were on the 3rd floor.

After we checked out, we took some time to go see some things in dowtown Salt lake that we have never done together. We got a tour of the rooftop of the conference center, then we went and walked in the reflection gardens by the temple, and walked around temple square and thru some of the buildings. Then we went to the church history museum. It was way cool.

This is Kerry behind "the podium"! Of course its somewhere he never wants to be, but he was good natured about it and let me take a picture of him.

It was really a nice get away and I think we won't wait another year to go and spend some more quality time together. Its really interesting to reflect on what 25 years together has brought us, both the good and the bad. I would not change it or trade it. Kerry and I are both glad for the time we have been able to have with each other and are looking forward to the next 25 years!

Some recipies

2011-07-31T08:13:00.001-06:00

I have been learning lots about eating better lately. I wanted to share some recipies I have come up with. Partly to share, and partly so they are written and then I won't forget them. First is for a salad I made and then had to make again the following day because it was soooo yummmmmyyyy! Keep in mind that this recipie doesn't have amounts because its totally personal preference and according to how much you want to make for your family.

in a frying pan, combine and saute-
cut up chicken (I cut it into 1/2" squares) until its almost done. Season it with garlic salt, onion salt, and your favorite saltless seasoning. I used lowry's 17 seasonings. Then add chopped mushrooms, celery, red (and yellow and green and orange for variety) peppers. Cook until the veggies are as soft or as crunchy as you like them and set aside. Squeeze 1/4 lime over the top. Get as much juice on it as you can.

While you are cooking that prepare the following salad in a bow-.lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, carrots and green grapes. (I also added a bit of arugela, and some other salad greens)

Once the cooked chicken mixture has cooled some, add it on top of the salad and stir well.

I found this dish to have so much flavor that is didn't need any dressing, or very little. It was delicious and nutritious and my family LOVED it, which is a good thing as some of the kids are having an adjustment to the "lower carb" way of life.

The other thing I made recently that I liked was chicken enchiladas. I was trying to figure out how to make some that would be delicious, use more veggies and be something Kerry could eat. Here is what I came up with.

Filling:
saute mushrooms, multiple peppers (red, yellow, orange, and green) green chilies, blackbeans, celery, and some garlic. Then add canned chicken (broken apart and shredded) and garlic salt, onion salt and pepper, 1 c. cheese (lowfat is better) and some chopped up spinach and set aside.

Sauce:
in a glass measuring cup mix 1 can cream soup (low fat/no fat is better) and 1 cup sour cream (lowfat/no fat is better) and 1/2 c. milk (yogurt would work in place of the sourcream) and stir well.

In the bottom of 2 (8x12) cake pans spread a little of this mixture. Put about 1/2 of this sauce in the filling and stir it well. Then in whole grain tortilla's, spoon some of the filling down the middle and roll the tortilla. Place in the pan. Repeat this until your filling is gone. I made enought for 16 enchiladas (8 in each pan). Over the top of the enchiladas, spread the remaining sauce and sprinkle lightly with cheeze. Bake for about 15-20 minutes. You don't want to overcook this, just heat thru.

Serve with salad and fresh fruit. It is delicious!!

Another change for the Robertsons. . .

2011-07-20T16:40:00.001-06:00

This is not a great pic, but it will have to do. I think they took it before a hike or something. Anyway, the change in the household; Kerry has diabetes. I know that may not seem like a big deal to some of you, and I realize its not something that is going to kill him tomorrow, but it is a big deal to me. I have been feeling overwhelmed by it for a few weeks, at least when I stop to think about it, I suppose mostly because of his dad's health and family history. In her blog, my sister in law, Liahona talked about being crunchy, well we are going to join in that with adjustments for our circumstances. I have been re-reading all my books on eating naturally and eating healthy, and eating for diabetics. I would say that the biggest thing is that we are going to mostly fruits and veggies. Carbs are limited (and I have discovered that was the biggest part of what we used to eat, making this change rather challenging) protein from animals is still a small part of the diet and fats, sugars and refined foods are almost non existent. Its a big adjustment, but so far so good! Kerry is loving it as he loves to eat that way, I am still somewhat stressed as I am not used to fixing so many fresh foods and am learning it requires some planning. So that is life around here. However, all that being said I realize its not a death sentence, just a major change. I sure have had my share of those over the past few years. Ah, life!

Working on a new quilt. . . . . .

2011-07-20T16:21:00.001-06:00

I am working on a new quilt. I wanted to do something sort of scrappy, but with specific colors in mind and not so scrappy that the design would get lost in the scraps. So this is the start. After taking this picture however, I took off some of the stars and made it 3x3. Then I added an orange border, a white border and some squares then another white and another orange border. Its now big enought that it covers the top of the bed and I will be working on finishing it. That has to wait however as I decided to re-arrange my craft room and see if I can figure out something new that works for me. Sometimes I just get anxious for a change in my space.

What I have been up to lately. . .

2011-07-14T11:35:00.001-06:00

So I am sorry but pictures seems to be something I don't do alot of lately. Life is busy and I always seem to forget to take my camera. However, that being said, this is what I have been up to lately.
For all of June I was extremely busy with an extership. For those of you who are saying "what is an externship?", let me explain. An externship is the same thing as an intership with the difference that I am still a student. So for June I was working 8am to 5 or 6pm and sometimes later. I was required to have 180 hours and I wanted to get it done. So I worked diligently and was done by the end of June. That didn't leave time for anything else and I finished the last Thursday pf the month.

Then on Friday we took our kids (and 1 friend each) to Lagoon (a local amusement park). We had never been there as a family and we have not had a "family vacation" in a long time, so we went. Then Saturday and Monday were spent getting ready for scout camp and girls camp. Our ward was doing it as a joint camp. Tuesday we left for camp, Saturday we got back from camp.

Camp was great! There was very little drama, the kids had a great time, and everyone was safe! Between the scouts and the girls activities the kids got to go river rafting, hiking, cliff diving, to the dinoursaur museum, a bbq, a dam tour, bike riding, and of course testimony meeting. It was great.

For the girls we did all our certification at camp, with the exception of first aid. We got rain all week, which meant there were no sunburns. And we had very few injuries. The older boys got themselves in a little pickle when they took a wrong turn on a bike ride, but they took it in good spirits and learned from it. The 2nd time down the river (I only went once) everyone got hailed on and enjoyed rougher white waters.

I must say how glad I am that my hubby got to go with us and had the girls camp all set up with a canopy and sidewalls that were made into a ceiling so we had more room and a place to gather out of the rain. We did have intermittent sun, so we were not in a constant state of wet, and it was not freezing, but it was nice to have a place we could be out of the weather. The amazing thing is there was no complaining.

I think a great time was had by all. I know I had a nice time. The only "injuries" were; Holly has a small amount of heat stroke and spent a few hours sleeping after the hike. One of the boys cut himself pretty good but we bandaged him up, and a few blisters. Its nice to go prepared and not have to use much, by way of first aid.

Then after we got back I went to Clinton and helped my mom with a trunck show she was asked to give. She did a great job and I was pleased that she recieved so many ooohhhsss and awwwhhhhssss.

So that has been my life lately. I used to think life slowed down as you got older. I have come to realize (at least for me) that slowing down is not the case. My life keeps getting busier and busier and I have to constantly balance and re-prioritize so that I don't neglect what is the most important in my life and so that I keep heading in a direction that I want to go.

Oh yea, and just a funny tidbit. When Kerry bought his latest motorcycle (sold his other one, got one short enough for me to ride) there was a contest to win Lagoon tickets. I figured what the heck, why not. Well we won! So this fall after the cooler temps come back, we will take the fam back and have a great time! You all are welcome to join us if you want to, but you have to pay for yourselves. :D

The Nicest Things have been happening

2011-06-04T09:39:00.001-06:00

So this will be a blog with no pictures, but that's ok. A couple of weeks ago I entered a contest for a chance to win a book. I love reading, so I figured "why not", and I entered. I was thinking I had a better chance to win something like that, then some other contests like-say a million bucks, from Publishers Clearing House, or something. Well I was right and I won a book! I was pleasantly surprised, to be sure! I never win anything, but now I have! How cool is that? (oh, and just for your info the book is called Bumpy Landings)

The other neat thing is-someone, who shall remain annonymous, bought us a dishwasher! I was really shocked. This person asked us to meet them at the mall, so we did. Then informed us that they wanted to tell us thank you and so they had decided to purchase us a dishwasher! I was shocked. I guess I still am! I tried to tell them I thought it was too much, but they insisted. Other than thank you, I didn't know what to say. However, I really am thrilled!

Our dishwasher has been pitiful for quite some time. about a year after we moved in, it quit working. It quit for about a year. At that point we didn't have the money to replace it so it sat there unused and waiting. Well at some point of time (can't believe I am admitting to this) we found out that something had tripped a safety switch and the dishwasher was hooked to that plug. When we pushed that little red button back in -WALA- the dishwasher worked again! I had to clean it up, run bleach thru it and all that, but it worked. The problem is, the damage was done. The racks were corroded with rust. But we decided it was still usable. (couldn't afford the parts either) So I have been using it that way ever since.

This person knowing of our need for a new one, very generously, decided that they were going to get us a new one. We wandered out way back to the dishwasher section in Sears and let us pick the one we wanted, within a certain price range.

Well now I am anxiously awaiting the installation on Monday. After it is in, I will post a picture of it. I opted for stainless steel, because I have always wanted some stainless steel appliances. It won't match anything else in the kichen, but oh well. I am thrilled that its coming!

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!!!!

A trip to AZ

2011-05-31T07:29:00.001-06:00

Taylor's cousin, Denzel spent part of the school year living with grama and grampa this year. It was a great opportunity for the boys to reconnect as they have not been together since they were alot younger. Boy did they hit it off! (This particular picture is the boys in their Troubadore masks. I guess they showed up at a swimming party all dressed up and rarin to go! I bet it was a hoot!)

It was so wonderful to see that they were still friends and that they enjoyed each other's company.Well that brings me to the point of this post-Denzel, Taylor, and (cousin) Austin were able to go on a road trip with their grandparents to the Grand Canyon in Arizona. Then they got to spend the remainder of the time visiting Uncle Andy,Aunt Mindy and their bunch.

One of the things that happened while they were there was that Aunt Mindy set them all up on blind dates as part of a YM/YW thing that was going on. There was no lack of confidence (as you can see from the body language). The boys picked wildflowers on the way to the girls homes. I think they were well recieved. I am so thankful that they were able to go and spend this time together and that they take so much pleasure in wholesome activities! What great boys!

Learning some interesting things. . .

2011-05-21T14:08:00.001-06:00

I don't want this post to be misunderstood, but those of you who are married know that its alot of work, mixed in with everything else. Kerry and I have been discussing some relationship stuff recently, and at the same time, a friend sent a link to "the 5 languages of love" website. It really came at a most opportune time because of these discussions. So we both went on the site and took the quiz. Its kind of an eye opening thing really because aside from the differences we have just by being male and female, we have differences in how we need to be loved and how we express love. I have since ordered the book and the cd's (book for me, cd's for Kerry) But it has also left me wondering how many of you guys have read the book and what kinds of things you have done to improve your relationships and what has worked for you. This is one post I would really love to have some feedback on, especially from those of you, who like me, are dedicated to the institution of marriage!

Here is the link for those who may be interested in taking the quiz too.

http://www.5lovelanguages.com/

Something to think about. . .

2011-05-17T11:20:00.001-06:00

A friend of mine asked if I would be willing to post this blurb. I don't see any reason not to. Some of you may be interested in this, some of you may not. But I felt it was certainly worth thinking about.

http://retirementquest.com/Home.aspx?

The state of today’s economy is insecure, causing concern in many people and fear in many others. It used to be that we relied on our retirement income to see us through our golden years, but we now have to face the reality that we must take action to ensure our well-being in the future. How do we go about this? What steps do we take, where do we go, how do we know we’re doing it right?

Financial advisor John Hauserman, CFP®, has created a no-cost website as a tool for you to use on your financial journey. This site features the amazing Planning Map, designed to help you think like a financial planner. You can begin by setting up an account at no charge, complete with your zip code, which will enable you to save your progress, but your information will never be sold or given away to any outside party. Or, if you prefer, simply skip registration with a single click. As you chart out your financial situation, you will never be asked for account numbers or personal information.

As you go through and create your personal profile, you’ll feel in control of your future—a sense of freedom and independence that perhaps has been missing since the economy went down hill. You will get the tools you need to help:

1.       View the financial planning process from the eyes of a CFP®   professional in a user-friendly format that most find easy to understand
2.       Get the whole story on various investment products, not just “the good stuff” that financial (snake oil?) sales folks talk about
3.       Find useful links to government and other helpful websites
4.       Identify if a financial advisor has been thorough in their duties
5.       Identify and avoid fraudulent advisors
6.       Make better financial decisions

You’re invited to stop by the RetirementQuest® website and see for yourself if this is a tool you can use. Again, it’s no cost, and all you have to lose is your financial stress. Those who take action now will find themselves in a much better place later—why delay your future security? Plan ahead and be prepared.

Securities and advisory services are offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, member FINRA/SIPC.A Registered Investment Advisor.

It's that Prom time of year

2011-05-11T13:10:00.000-06:00

Last year Taylor decided not to go to the Prom. I don't blame him. It can be really expensive.

This year however, he is more into dating AND he has a girl he likes (Brittny), so he decided to go.

I feel really blessed to have a son who likes his mom, because he included me in his plans. (????-some of you may be wondering) He asked if I would be willing to fix the dinner. (UH Yea!! of course) We let him borrow the excursion, so he could transport all of his friends (since it fits 8)

and then in the back yard Taylor and his friend Brayden set up the canvas tent (complete with white lights inside, table with a nice tablecloth (double layered, white and green) candles in the middle of the table, and chairs) then they played music out side. Jake was their waiter. He was all dressed up too and played the part to a "T", and thouroghly enjoyed himself. I fixed steak(grilled, then finished in the pan), baked potatoes (oiled, dusted with garlic and wrapped in foil to bake) french bread, a fancy salad (topped with toasted almonds and garlic and craisins). For drinks they had a choice between sparkling applecider, grapejuice, or sparkling grapejuice or water. Dessert was homemade ice cream over brownies topped with sauce and toppings. We also had left over portion cups from the weddings that we filled (just like at a restaurant) with butter, sourcream, and dressing.

The kids all seemed to really enjoy themselves. It was alot of fun for me to. And yes it was some work, but it was more fun.

New Wonders Out My Window!

2011-05-10T15:21:00.002-06:00

So most years I feed the birds. Most years I also stop feeding them when things get warm and they can fend for themselves. My mom also feeds the birds and I enjoy seeing them when I go over. Since I enjoy that so much I decided that I should continue feeding them and that it would be interesting to see what kind of birds show up at the feeder.

Yesterday afternoon after the kids got home, Taylor (my oldest boy still at home) got really excited. "Mom, look!! You have to see these birds!". And with that he grabbed the camera and started snapping pictures. I hustled over to the window and was amazed to see some birds I have never seen before! We later took some time to identify some of them. I am still searching for the rest.

These ones are evening grosbeaks

This next one is a Bullocks Oriole

This next couple are a blue bird of some kind. I am not sure what kind. If you know, I would sure like to be informed

These are also unidentified

the "red" one is a house finch (pretty sure) which at this time of year is red.

Before I was a mom. . .

2011-05-09T16:24:00.001-06:00

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much. I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body..
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom

I was emailed this from my Mother in Law. I loved it and wanted to share it, especially the precious pictures.

What I have been up to

2011-04-22T11:54:00.002-06:00

I don't know how many of you know that I have been in school for the past 4 years. 3 of those years were spent pursuing an art degree at UVU. However, as I was pondering one day I realized that I didn't know what I would do with it. I didn't want to teach, I didn't want to go into the computer side of things, and I knew that its really hard to earn a living as an artist. So that helped me to decide that it was time to take things in a different direction. After some prayer and pondering, I decided that medical was the direction for me to go. So this past fall I started at MATC in the medical assisting program. It is a one year program. After I am done with the classroom part of things (instruction, studying and hands on skills) I will have and externship for 180 hours. Well we are almost done. We have 5 weeks left. We are currently working in the lab on shots and blood draws.
Its really not that bad. I know, I know, some of you think I am gross and totally out of my mind to feel that way, but I do. I have gotten pretty good at giving shots, and am still learning how to be good at drawing blood. I expect some of those skills come with time. I must say however, that I am really tired of school at this point (I am sure that spring has something to do with it) and am looking forward to school being over. Just a word of advise (or 2) ; for those of you who are young- go to school now. Its much easier to do when you have no other obligations and you have the energy to do everything. For those of you who are older and considering going back- GO FOR IT! You are never too old to learn, or re-learn stuff.

Oh yea, one more word to my brother in law-WAY TO GO TRAV! I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT!! (he just graduated from college)

A book review for Depth of Deceit, by Betty Briggs

2011-04-01T11:42:00.002-06:00

This book, Depth of Deceit, by Betty Briggs is the 2010 Winner of the Silver Quill for second place in the Fiction category for the League of Utah Writers Publication Awards.

This book is about a young attorney (Stephanie Saunders) working for a firm in Salt Lake, who finds herself in the middle of a whole lot of trouble. She has a boyfriend, who she is initially unsure she likes, then she finds herself pregnant and unwed and the story continues from there. While she is going thru all of the conflict of finding out your pregnant, being unsure whether or not you want the baby, and the emotional ups and down that would accompany that situation, she must still function at work. She also finds her life spiraling further out of control in other ways after an unfortunate death (sorry, I am not saying who. You have to read the book) She has a client she must represent, and finds there is an attraction there, as well as uncertainty of guilt or innocence. She also has a boss she must work with who she is not sure she likes very well either. The biggest area of sanity in her life comes from working with horses.

When I initally started reading this book, I felt like it was one big soap opera. I felt like the main character was inconsistent, and that drove me crazy. That being said however, as the story went on, she grew on me. I found myself rooting for her and hoping for a great outcome. I also found myself more involved and trying to figure out who did what, who she could trust and wondering if she would end up with a love in her life or not. All in all, its an enjoyable read and I would reccommend it to anyone who just wants to escape and not have to think too hard about anything but the book.

Here are the links for the authors website and also the site where you will be able to purchase the book

Here is the purchase link for the book: http://www.amazon.com/Depth-Deceit-Betty-Briggs/dp/0965630757/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1301331128&sr=1-1

Here is the author's site: http://www.bettybriggs.com/

Dinner update

2011-03-24T14:26:00.000-06:00

Yep, I am still sticking to my goal. We have had leftovers twice. Once from our fridge, and once from some stuff a friend gave us. I won't bore you with the details, but I am sticking to it.

Things a mom hears, or doesn't as the case may be

2011-03-24T14:12:00.001-06:00

At 3 years ''mommy I love you''.

At 10 years ''mom whatever''.

At 16 years ''my mom is so annoying''.

At 18 years ''I'm leaving this house''.

At 25 years "mom you were right''.

At 30 years '' wanna go to moms house''.

At 50 years '' dont wanna lose my ...mom''.

At 70 years "i would give up everything to have my mom here with me''.

You only have one mom, if yours is still around it might be a good day to tell her you love her, or some such thing.

Baby mice in the straw, Who's that knocking at my door, and Queen for the day!

2011-03-18T11:50:00.002-06:00

Last growing season we tried growing potatoes in the straw. Never really found any, but it was fun to try. Well at the end of the growing season Kerry was busy and so we didn't get the straw cleaned up and taken care of. I came home from class today and Kerry was outside cleaning up what we didn't get to in the fall.

While he was digging around and getting the straw cleaned up he found a nest of mice. I thought it was interesting that there were furry ones and bald ones. I don't like mice, in fact I have been know to trap them when we have problems with them. They are dirty and spread disease and germs. I am definately not a fan. but babies are cute and its interesting to get the chance to see Heavenly Fathers creations up close. That being said however, they are not going to get the chance to grow up and become my enemy.

The other critter that showed up this week, that was kinda fun to see was a woodpecker. You can see him sitting on the branch, but you have to look. I have not seen one of these since we left Ky. I love watching birds, so it was a treat. He didn't stick around long, so I am happy to have gotten a picture!

This past weekend it was nice and warm and I decided to let Katie go out and play with Max and Taz. Guess who the boss of the dogs is? Yep you guessed it-Katie! It was soooo funny to see her sitting on top of Taz. She does the same thing to Kerry when he is home. Funny doggy!!!!

more on dinner

2011-03-17T12:09:00.002-06:00

Well I don't know if anyone is really interested in what we are having for dinner or not, but blogging about it helps me to keep the goal of not repeating meals (with the exception of leftovers of course). So that being said last night we had grilled cheeze sandwiches. Nope, didn't serve veggies with that (shame on me) but it was mutual night for the kids and that was easy and fast to fix. Tonight we will be having hamburgers, pork&beans, fruit salad, and maybe chips. I would be interested to know what all of your favorite meals are!

Tonights dinner menu

2011-03-15T12:09:00.001-06:00

Tonight we will be having something we have not had in quite awhile. Haystacks, or as we like to call them stackyuppies!! Yummmmmm, now I am hungry again.

On the menu

2011-03-14T11:44:00.003-06:00

So on today's menu-Chicken salad sandwiches, and salad. The kind of salad that has almonds and craisins. Yummmm, I am making myself hungry! What are you having?

Been thinkin (always a dangerous thing)

2011-03-13T17:19:00.000-06:00

So I've been thinking lately. I don't know how many of you have ever watched the show Julie and Julia. Its a show about a lady who cooks every single recipie in a recipie book by Julia Childs. The basic premise is interesting and I liked it. I didn't like all the "stuff" thrown in the story though. However, I've been thinking and wondering if I could go for a whole month without cooking the same thing over again. With the exception that I will make allowances for leftovers night because I don't want to waste the food. So I am setting that as a challenge for myself. Since tonight is Sunday I am starting on a leftovers night and will go from there. If anyone wants to take this challenge with me I would love to hear what you are making and maybe we can swap recipies.

Sold in a day

2011-03-13T17:07:00.000-06:00

I listed the Lumina on KSL in the classifieds on Saturday morning. We sold the Escort (and now the Lumina) because we want to purchase Kerry's folks minivan. They bought a different car and offered it to us. It would make it easier to go places with more than the kids left at home, without using the Excursion (the gas hog) So I listed the Lumina. Well it sold this afternoon to a very nice couple from Wyo. What a blessing. I am very very surprised at how quickly it sold. What a blessing!!

I also sold this quilt this week. I originally did it because I loved the one I did for Mindy and Andy (sister and her husband) and wanted one on my bed. However, Marvin (my exchange student from Germany) wanted to know if I could make one for his mom. I told him that I didn't have time to do that (as I am in school and it takes lots of work, and generally lots of time, to make a quilt) but then I got this one back from the quilter. So I figured if his mom was willing to pay enough to make it worth my while (especially as I would have to pay the quilter more for her efforts then what was already paid for the job), I would sell it to her. Well, she loved it and so this quilt will, shortly, be shipped out to its new home in Germany. Amazing, simply amazing!!

I Can Only Imagine (with lyrics) - MercyMe

2011-03-13T15:59:00.000-06:00

If there is anything virtuous, lovely, of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after those things. To me this song is one of those things. No matter how much I hear it, I can't even sing with it because it touches my heart so much. I cry everytime I hear it!

Abbott and Costello "Who's On First"

2011-03-10T11:02:00.001-07:00

I just love good humor, and this is definately one of the best!!

The nice thing about March

2011-03-08T11:19:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I live in Utah. In Utah, in March, you are going to have snow. This morning I woke up to about 4-6 inches at my house. This started me thinking and I decided that there are a few things about March that make it so that the snow does not bother me

1. Even though it is going to snow, the snow won't last long because it is warmer

2. Most days there are blue skies

3. Its warmer than winter and cooler than summer

4. I start to feel better because its lighter for longer, which gives me energy to get stuff done!

5. The trees are starting to bud

6. The birds are returning and are sure fun to watch

Yea, I know-its a little cheezy, but who cares. I want to look on the bright side of things. I really think our attitudes help us, or make things much harder (in life) than they have to be. So I am choosing a good attitude! Hope you guys are all enjoying your spring too!

Little Shop of Horrors

2011-03-06T08:05:00.000-07:00

This year the high school put on the play Little Shop of Horrors. Taylor was able to participate because and injuyry kept him from being able to finish out the wrestling season. But he started the play late so he was cast as an extra. As usual he played his part with relish, which you can probably see from the look of his costume and the look on his face. It was nice to go and watch him perform. He really has a flair for acting. The last play he was in was full of inuendo and sexual comment. I was appalled and wrote a letter to the person in charge. So this time I was also really glad that the play was "tweeked" and done without all the crudeness of the original. That made it enjoyable.

Feeding the Birds

2011-03-04T11:37:00.001-07:00

We have a bird feeder in the back yard. It is really fun to watch and see what kind of birds show up each year. Most of the time there is not alot of variety, but this year we have had a few birds that I have not seen often or that I have not seen before.

I have seen some gold finches, some regular house finches, some sparrows, something that looks like a chikadee, something that has the coloring of a dove but is very small, and some doves. The doves feed from the ground and not from the bird feeder, but they still come and are sure fun to watch.

Well,yesterday we were watching (but only sort of) the birds at the feeder and I saw this larger bird come in. For a second I assumed it was a dove. Then it promptly turned around and chased the birds that were rapidly flying away. Thats when I noticed it was a hawk! Wow was I surprised. Now mind you, I only bought seed for the "non-meateaters", I didn't realize that the feeder could attract a preditory bird. I hope they don't get eaten or anything, but it sure adds variety. Taylor stepped outside and took this picture. When he came back in he informed me that there were a couple hawks out there. Be interesting to see if they come back to "feed".

Valentines, birthdays and state honor choir

2011-03-04T11:22:00.002-07:00

My honey gave me roses for Valentines this year. I sure did enjoy them. They were soooo beautiful and they lasted for alot longer than I expected. I got really spoiled this year because he left me notes all over the place for a whole week ahead of time. It made me feel very special. I am so blessed to have him in my life!

In February Keri turned 23. I can hardly believe I am old enough to have a daughter that age (let alone that she is married) I still remember clearly the day she was born. She has been a joy to us ever since.

Love the new "hat" Keri!

This is a picture of Keri wondering how her husband (chade) was able to purchase Stitch and Bolt without her knowing it while they were at Disneyland. He was trickier than that and went to the Disney store when they got home.

Love the look of innocence! Chade pulls some great faces!

Chades dad and mom

Ever since she was little Keri has liked having a purple people eater for her birthday cake. I am not really sure why, but it caught her fancy and has never let go.

I don't know what we were laughing at, but it was an enjoyable party.

Parker had the opportunity to participate this year in the State Junior High Honor Choir. Parker sings baritone. There were about 350 kids squished onto the stage, and it took us awhile to find him. All we could see of him was his nose, so we didn't get a picture of him untl after the concert was over. Congrats dude, you did a great job!!

update

2011-02-25T12:10:00.002-07:00

So, I am going to update ya'all without pictures because I am not getting around to loading them off the camera. I am amazed at how busy I have been.

I have been busy trying to catch up on school work and make sure its all in. I have been worrying about my grades (which now I am not worried about because at midterm (last week) I am at 96%, which is a solid A) I have been doing taxes (my own, Keri's, Megan's, Taylor's, and Jake's) because I guess everyone thinks mom can do it all (little do they know there are great programs on the internet) and so they asked me for help. Last year I asked my dad to help and this year, I decided to do it myself.

I have been making sure the kids had what they needed (by way of funding) for their field trips. I have been catching up on sleep and getting some projects done that I didn't have time for when I was working on weddings, and I have been reading.

We also had 2 concerts, one for Parker and Holly and one for Taylor. They were both great and the kids did wonderful.

As far as the "married" kids go- they are doing great! We have seen quite a bit of Megan and Neal. They come down to do laundry every week, and then sometimes we see them on Sunday too. We haven't seen as much of Keri and Chade, but they have been down a couple times. Sunday will be the day we see most of them because they don't have work and everything else that goes with starting a life together. We see Jake the most on Sunday as well as he comes down to go to church with us. Unfortunately most of the time he doesn't hang around for long.

I have decided that it is surprising that life doesn't slow down as you get older. There seems to be more and more to do and more people to give love and attention to. The nice thing is; life keeps moving and some things pass (both the good and the bad) and new opportunities present themselves. The trick is just to enjoy where you are at the moment and learn from the journey.

Victor Borge Dean Martin Musical Phonetic Punctuation

2011-02-20T08:50:00.001-07:00

Taylor shared these 2 video's with me the other day. (aside from the smoking) I found the really funny. I don't know why most comics these days thing they have to be crude to be listened to, or funny. Because really its not. But this is and I thought it was worth sharing.

Victor Borge - Inflationary Language

2011-02-20T08:48:00.000-07:00

1 weekend, 2 weddings, 3 siblings left at home, 4 parents. . .(part 1)

2011-01-24T12:57:00.001-07:00

On Friday Keri was sealed to Chade in the Mt. Timpanogos temple. It was so beautiful, and I am not just talking about the weather, although that was nice too. I loved the whole day! I am sure she loved it more. The joy involved is hard to describe, so I will just let you enjoy the pictures as you share in our experience.

1 weekend, 2 weddings, 3 siblings left at home, 4 parents. . .(part 2)

2011-01-24T11:53:00.001-07:00

This weekend was Megan and Neal's wedding. It was an absolutely beautiful day. No I don't mean the weather, that was COLD!! However, it didn't snow, so thats a good thing. I just thought I would share some of the millions of pictures that were taken and let them speak for themselves.

another day, another quilt

2011-01-14T12:38:00.002-07:00

I love quilts. I did one earlier that was similar to this one and gave it away. (I have a tendancy to give things away then never have anything to show for all the work I do) However, I always wanted one for myself. So I started on this new one as I figure I deserve to have some beautiful things too.

Well, I guess, it's just not in the cards for me at this time. Since Megan has also decided to get married I need to have a quilt for her and Neal. So alas (not with any regret, mind you) I shall not be the possesor of this beautiful quilt. I am giving this one away too. Thanks to my wonderful longarm quilt lady (my mom) for quilting all these beautiful quilts over the past 3 years. She told me that she has done over 120 quilts in the past 3 years!!!

It's that Christmas time again

2010-12-27T11:00:00.000-07:00

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so here are many thousand words.

Taylor

Marvin

Holly

Jake

The soon to be "newlyweds"

Grama Judy

Aunt Lisa gave Holly a beautiful watch! Thanks Aunt Lisa!!

cooperation is a good way to start a life together, don't you think?

Ok, I may not like it, but everyone wants me to put a picture of me in here.

can't forget Katie

Parker with the ever popular video games

no, we didn't forget one for you Taylor

Jake seems to be enjoying his candy

Dad always tries to save his presents until the last

This one is a little out of order, but the whole morning was kinda unruly and noisy. Guess its my own fault as I am the one who chose to have 6 kids. No seriously, it was the good kind of noise!

Holly's expression kinda sums it up.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

2010-12-24T10:51:00.000-07:00

on the dog house

on the bbq

on the flower pots

This past week we had several snow storms that felt like one continuous snow storm. When it was all said and done we ended up with between 20-24" of the white stuff. It's great! We get a white Christmas this year!!!! Yeah!!!!!!!!

Two weddings in January. . .

2010-12-04T17:54:00.000-07:00

Yes, you heard right!

The Robertson household will have 2 weddings in January.

Keri will marry Chade Miller on January 21st in the Mt. Timpanogos Utah Temple

Megan will Marry Neal Hunt on January 22nd in the Provo Utah Temple. As crazy as it sounds, we don't mind the fact that there are 2 weddings at the same time (basically). The way I figure it, there is not alot more work to do 2 than to do one. I may find that I am wrong about that idea, time will tell. However, really we are just happy that both girls have found worthy priesthood holders who can take them to the temple. What a blessing!

This blog is driving me crazy!!

2010-12-04T12:49:00.002-07:00

I have spent a few hours over the last couple of days trying to get this blog to look nice, just the way I want it to. What ought to be a simple operation (you know just the click of a few buttons) has turned into a major chore. I don't know what the problem has been. Maybe me. Maybe that I am too distracted (wonder why) sarcasm) or may be that my brain is just fried. Well whatever the problem was, or is (because I don't think its gone anywhere and it will just resurface the next time I decide to "re-arrange" things on this blog) I finally have this page up and running again. I am waiting on a few pics from Keri and Chade and then I will have a wonderful new post for all of you guys to see.

All about Megan. . .

2010-11-11T11:50:00.002-07:00

As alot of you know Megan got out of a bad relationship recently. We were really proud of her for making that decision. However since we don't want to dwell on the past I will bring you forward to the here and now. When Megan started going to school in August, one of the classes she took was choir. In choir she met a very nice man named Neal and started sharing her book with him. They quickly became friends.

Anyway, to make a long story short, after Megan ended her last relationship, Neal asked her out. Which was something he had been wanting to do since August. So we are happy to let you all know that Megan has a new boyfriend. We are even happier to tell you that we really like him too. Neal is 23, is from Price Utah and is a return missionary. He served in Brazil, so he speaks portugese. Neal is also a CNA. Oh yea (something interesting) Neal is about 6"2" and Megan is about a foot shorter.

Sadie Hawkins. . .

2010-10-30T09:31:00.001-06:00

One afternoon there was a knock at the door. Taylor had been summoned

There was a couple of girls there with a very large squash. It took him a few minutes to figure out who it was from. A girl in his seminary class named Katherine was asking him out to the Sadie Hawkins dance.

She made him a tie to wear. They kinda remind me of a couple named "Barney and Betty" (thats off the Fllintstones for those who are wondering what in the heck I am talking about)

Taylor says they had a really good time!

This year's costume

2010-10-30T09:10:00.000-06:00

This is Kerry's costume for this year. The poncho is from Argentina. Keri brought it with her when she came home from her mission. The "facial hair" is from last year's costume.

The funny thing to me is that he has alot of people tell him that they didn't recognize him. I don't get that one. I think he is still very recognizeable. Very handsome too! Holly dressed up this year as a princess. We went to DI to look for a dress because I didn't want to make her one. I also figured it may be cheaper to do it that way. Well, it was easier, but not cheaper. We found the perfect dress too. She looked really good. Parker and Taylor dressed up in army outfits. They dress up like that often too because they wear them everytime they go airsofting. I did't do anything this year. I made a soup for the ward activity and then stayed home and relaxed!! Yea for me!!!

Happy Birthday To You

2010-10-30T08:57:00.001-06:00

This month has been a busy one (as always) it was holly's birthday. She got to spend the night at her grama Judy's house and then they all came back for birthday cake and presents. Of course she had to have a way to get home again so. . . .

Parker always wants to give her her present with a "bonk" on the head. I don't like that so we always have to remind him to be nice.

since it was her 14th birthday, and she is growing up, she got more grown up presents this year.

her presents included a lava lamp (from grama and grampa) and a table to set it on, a new hairbrush, some makeup, some hair accesories, a couple shirts and a blowdryer all for herself (no more borrowing mom's)

Here are the eyeshadows. Yes, she occasionally wears makeup. Not to often, thank goodness, but as much as we would like to sometimes we can't stop time and our children do grow up. Happy birthday Holly!

Summer Activities. ..

2010-10-25T07:46:00.000-06:00

This summer we had an "impromptu" family reunion. Well really we had a family camping trip to celebrate Kerijean coming home from her mission. It kinda ended up being a "reunion" because almost all of us were there!

Of course when we get together reading is one of the favorite activities!

Mindy and her boys even made the trip up from AZ, how fun is that?!

We camped up Santaquin canyon. We chose a spot that was just off the main road, almost all the way to the end of the pavement. We chose this spot because it was shady, but also because it was close to this reall;y cool rock formation where we could spend some time rappeling. I think everyone enjoyed it, even the kids!

Logan got to go down piggybacked on his dad. He was brave enough to do that!

Its sure a long way up there

Travis took Eli down. Taylor told me Eli was only brave enought to look this one time. It is kinda scarry because its a long way down ya know!

Whoooo hooooo

Austin is the man!!!! Go Austin

Hey, is that Zach I see? It is, it is!!

A view from the bottom looking up. Not sure how they managed this shot, but I thought it was a nice one!

Taylor always was a little crazy, now I have the proof!!!!

Funny how you get to the bottom and everything looks better huh?

I think the only ones who weren't participating (aside from the readers) were Josh and Jamie. They went 4 wheeling

Logan, dude!

You go girl!! (shine)

Sure was fun to watch all those little boys enjoying each others company. How fun to have sooo many cousins to hang out with! Thanks to all of you guys for coming, the camping trip was a great success and I sure enjoyed it!!!

No, I am not dead yet. . .

2010-10-02T17:08:00.000-06:00

Sorry, but this post will have no pictures. I have to apologize to anyone who cares that I have not been updating on a regular basis. I have been totally swamped this summer and now that school is back in session, and my daughter is home from her mission (1 month now), I have very little time for anything other than homework. Its not easy to go back to school as an adult, and although I have been doing it for 3 years, and this is the start of my 4th year, I am even more swamped now that I have changed my direction. I am going into medical assisting, and it is a full time course (equivalent of 12 credit hours) Previous to this I have been taking 9 credits as 12 was too much to have a balance in my life. With this course I have no choice but to go full time. Well it has me totally swamped. I still try and balance my time so that I have time to be a mom, as that has always been my first priority, and to serve in my church callings. But I still have to make sure I am taking the time to learn the material and get the homework done. Somedays that takes more time than others. However, that being said, I also have very little time for updating this blog. So I just wanted to take a quick minute and let everyone know that NO I am not dead, I am still here. I am just very busy.

Its that homecoming time of the year!

2010-09-13T13:31:00.000-06:00

Taylor asked a girl (Miranda) to homecoming this year. She responded with a note in a watermelon.

She said Yes, thanks a melon for asking! I thought that was very creative. As you can see they both looked really nice. Such cuties!

I think they both had a good time. The only thing that Taylor didn't like is that the dance only lasted until 10 pm. I think that is very strange, our dances always went until about 11:30, leaving time to get home before midnight. Ah well, such is the life of a teen!

Keri's homecoming

2010-09-13T13:21:00.000-06:00

a picture is worth a thousand words right?!

I realize you guys have been waiting on these pictures for awhile and I am sorry. That is what happens when you start school, you are to busy to have a life! But anyway, here they are. I just have to say that is is sooooo nice to have her home!

A very good video to ponder

2010-08-18T10:01:00.003-06:00

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=139007432797147

Spiders

2010-08-03T16:44:00.001-06:00

At this time of the year its natural for spiders to come inside, I assume they are seeking relief from the heat, and I hate having them in the house. However, each time we find a spider, Megan decides to swoop in and capture it in a cup, examine it, let us know what it is, (male this or female that) and then she (mercifully) flushes it down the toilet for me. Yesterday I spotted one by a picture by the front door. I hollered for her and she came with a cup and a piece of paper. Then once she captured it she informed me "uhhh mom, THAT IS A MALE BLACK WIDOW SPIDER. I thought naw. . .but said "oh it is huh, ok" and added "well, don't freak out about it" to which she said "Oh, I'm not freaking out, but it is a black widow".

Then decided that I would look it up on the internet. So today I got the time to look, and sure enough she was right! I didn't realize that she really knew her spiders. I just assumed she was trying to sound like she did. Now I realize that she really does know her spiders. Wow, she will be good at what she decides to do with her science career. Sorry I ever doubted you Megs!

As glad as I am that she knows her spiders, but it doesn't change that fact that I HATE spiders!!!

Camping up the canyon

2010-07-30T10:38:00.000-06:00

This past weekend we went up the canyon to escape from the heat. It was quiet and beautiful and (thankfully) nice and cool!

The first whole day Kerry spent helping his dad fix his radiator because he had an unfortunate accident with a cow.

As you can see from the pictures the rest of us were very relaxed.

I spent some time reading and some time sleeping because when you get "away" from it all you find you are tired.

Holly spent some time taking pictures with my camera (that is where these pictures came from) and with Teresa's camera.

The sleeping arrangements were interesting. Kerry's folks slept in the trailer, Teresa slept in their small tent, Taylor slept in his hammock, and Parker slept on a tarp under the stars. I don't know why, but he didn't want to sleep in a tent. Holly slept in the canvas tent with Kerry and I. Max and Taz slept in their kennel. One night Teresa got woken up by a sniffing noise at her head. She assumed it was the dogs, but the next morning she discovered that they were in the kennel, so we don't know what it was. It could have been cows because they were great entertainment for the dogs. Any time (which was often) that they came too close to camp the dogs would take off after them. One time a big cow decided that he was not going to stand for them chasing the smaller cows. It was funny to watch as they came running back to camp. Taz headed straight for her kennel and jumped in. Max went and hid in the kitchen area surrounded by table and chairs. We all had a good laugh out of that!! One day everyone but me went to Payson lake and spent the afternoon getting sunburned. Poor Kerry is still paying for that! All in all we had a great time and are looking forward to the next camping trip (labor day) with the family.

Nothing like cool summer nights!

2010-07-15T09:44:00.001-06:00

Kerry has been wanting a ceiling fan for a long time (several years really) and yesterday, we finally purchased one! To tell you how much he wanted it, he came home from work and after his shower, he went right to work putting it up. It was all done by dinner. I told the kids to go and look, which they did. Then Taylor came back and said "its sure your style". I don't know if thats a good thing or a bad thing. Got me thinking, what is my style? I do have a certain draw toward the traditional, but I discovered in my interior design class that I like other things as well. I just don't have the right type of home to use any other "style" in my home. It would look strange. But I really like many different things. Sometimes its hard for me to narrow it down. So for good or bad, here if the ceiling fan that we bought.

Girls camp for the first time in . . . (I don't know how many years)

2010-07-13T12:15:00.000-06:00

I was called last year to be the ward girls camp director. I was shocked because I have not been in young womans for a very long time, and then only once. However, I prayed about what to do and how to do it and really felt the help of my Father in Heaven. I think girls camp was a success. The girls had a blast. We handled all the "emergencies" (bats, bears, sick girls and rain) that came up, everyone stayed dry and fed. So I thought I would just share a couple of pictures then you can reminise about your girls camp days.

Another week, another surgery

2010-07-13T12:08:00.000-06:00

This week (monday) Parker had another surgery. This one was on his arm. They switched a muscle from one place to another so that it would straighten out his wrist and give him more use of his hand. Before the surgery Kerry gave him a blessing. Parker was considerably more relaxed and not as nervous this time as last time. Here you can see just how relaxed Parker was because he is relaxing with his dad. What you don't see is the video games that they were playing while relaxing. The surgery went well and now he is home recooperating!

pictures from Keri's mission

2010-07-13T12:04:00.000-06:00

Keri sent these pictures this week. I thought I would share them with you. From the look of the shoes I would say that she has been working hard!

2010-07-01T08:02:00.001-06:00

Yesterday we went to Shriners. Parker needed to have surgery on his leg again. Parkers cerebral palsy causes his muscles to be really tight (spastic) and as he grows his muscles are tight and not loose and pliable. This eventually causes him to walk on his toes. If we weren't able to do anything about it, he would even have the probability of walking on the top of his foot.

Kerry was tired and decided that he wanted to take a nap while we waited for the staff to take Parker back to surgery.

How glad I am that we live in a time when there are options and ways to help these kids. Yesterday's surgery, basically they cut the sheath that covers the back of the calf muscle in a few places and rip it so that it lenghens. Then they put him in a cast for a few weeks and the muscle heals at the longer length, then he walks with a flat foot again.

We went in at 10am, which means we left the house at 8am, then by the time we got home there was a very nice sunset happening. I am glad that he is done with this surgery and that all went well, but we have to go back on the 12th for surgery on his arm.

The Trunky Papers Have Arrived. . .

2010-06-23T15:59:00.001-06:00

Keri has been serving in the Argentina Neuquen mission. She left to serve in March of 2009. She informed us, this week, that her release date is August 24th of this year. That surprised us because we thought she had decided to stay until October. Then we found out that she already told Jake and asked him to keep it a secret. Those two are such peas in a pod! I guess it should not surprise me, because they have always been very close that way. However she couldn't stand to keep that surprise past this week, so she let us know. Currently she is serving in Caletta Olivia. It is in the south of Argentina where its getting rather cold. We are so proud of her and happy she has chosen to serve the Lord as a missionary. However, we are happy that her time in the mission is drawing to a close and we will be happy to have her home again.

Sometimes its hard to see them go home. . .

2010-06-23T15:51:00.000-06:00

These pictures are from Anni's last week with us. Anni came into our lives as an exchange student from Germany. She fit in with our family so wonderfully and helped to make our life more complete. We will truly miss her. I am really glad however, that we live in an age and a time that we will be able to keep in contact with her and I am sure we will see her again. For those of you who are curious, we managed not to shed tears at the airport, although it was difficult not to.

Grateful for the blessings of the Temple

2010-06-18T13:40:00.001-06:00

I dropped the kids off this afternoon at the church because they are going on a youth temple trip, to do baptisms. I was able to send along 9 female and 9 male names from my own family for Parker and Holly to do. It caused me to reflect on how very blessed I am, blessed to live in such a time when temples dot the earth, blessed to have the fullness of the gospel, blessed to have been born in the covenant, blessed to have been born in this land and at this time, and blessed to have been taugh by parents who helped me realize the importance of keeping the commandments. I realized that the gospel is a part of who I am, part of me inside. It is my foundation (ok, well Christ is, but the gospel is his) It has shaped and molded the person that I am. I sure I would not be the same person if I didn't have the knowledge that it brings. The gospel helps me want to be better, to do better. I don't think I would be the same person had I been born in any other dispensation, or any other land, or not having been privelaged to have the gospel, and I am grateful. You know, its kind of interesting actually to think things thru. Our trials have a way of shaping us, but the gospel gives us the perspective to be able to "grow" correctly. It gives us direction and purpose. So, I am especially thankful to be able to have that guidance so that I can weather the storms of life. I am even more glad to be able to share it with my children and to watch them grow and develop and gain testimonies of their own. I know that this is kind of rambling, and may not be of interest to you, but it was the way I was feeling today and I wanted to share it.

Hike to the Grotto

2010-06-17T12:07:00.002-06:00

This week Anni's parents were visiting with us. We decided that it woud be a nice idea to take them up the canyon and hike to the grotto. We all piled in their car and off we went.
This is a picture of the grotto. It is very beautiful, and the hike itself is not too hard.

Here Megan is standing on top of some of the rocks surrounding the waterfall. We were actually very blessed because it was supposed to be raining and stormy. We didn't have that.

Holly is all smiles, of course!

There are a few places, by the falls, that are only 1 person at a time. But most of the places are wider. The trail was muddy on this particular day, but the weather was cool and we all enjoyed the hike.

Ohhh ssoooo close!!!!

2010-06-09T06:47:00.008-06:00

This year at school there was a contest in each classroom to see who could read the most pages. I knew that Holly had read alot this year, as she is a prolific reader. She is constantly reading! I can't even tell you how often I peek in to check on her at night and find her reading and I don't even remember how many hours she read each month because it was so much. So anyway this year we were excited to see if she would win the contest. Holly read over 9000 pages during the school year. Well, she came in 2nd. She was 46 pages away from winning. Well she was disappointed because there was a $20 prize, but any kid who can read 1000+ pages a month, is a winner in my book! Way to go Holly!!!!! If you are interested here are the books that she read, that she can remember; Percy Jackson & the Olympians bks 1-5

Rangers Apprentice bks 1-7

Farworld 1,2

The City of Ember 1,2

The Frog Princess bks 1-5

Among the Hidden 1,2

Cryptid Hunters

The Moon Bridge

Alice in Wonderland

Flush

The 39 Clues

Pillage

Wings (twice)

The Candy Shop Wars

The Secret of The Old Clock

Ella Enchanted (twice)

Lady Margarets Ghost

The Book of Mormon Sleuth

The Gift of the Magi

Kentucky

The First 1000 Word in German

A month full of events

2010-06-03T14:28:00.003-06:00

Life never seems to slow down and this month was no exception. On the 26th of May in the year two-thousand ten, Megan graduated!!! Do I hear- whoo hoo, cheers, clapping, crying, and shouting?? Well, I can assure you there were alot of that. Megan's graduating class was over 350. She tells me that was small, but my graduating class (no not telling how long ago) was only about 120.

Now our little graduate is on to bigger and better things. Megan plans to attend UVU in the fall. She will go into biology at the moment, with plans to be a vetrinary technologist (at least for the time being). It will be interesting to see just where her life takes her. We all know how life goes and sometimes our best laid plans are not what happens.
This is a picture of Megan with her friend (and Taylor's and Anni's) Brayden

If Anni was home in Germany it would have been her graduating year as well, so we let her try on the gown just for fun, as exchange students do not get to graduate.

A couple of days before graduation we went with Anni to the airport to pick up her parents. Horst and Sabine are really great people. This is the first time in all the years of hosting students that we have had the privelage of meeting any parents. I am really glad that we did because over the year we found we really have alot in common with them and have developed a friendship, not only with Anni, but with them as well. We will miss Anni when she is gone.

Parker's last concert for the school year

2010-05-24T10:37:00.004-06:00

Parker had his last concert on thursday the 13th (right before he had his wisdom teeth out on friday)
And it was a good one!
One of the songs they sang was from Willy Wonka and Parker had a solo (2 actually)

and boy did he go good!!! I was so proud of him! I wanted to post it so you could see him, but its about a 10 minute video and it takes forever to load, so you just have to take my word for it.

Alvin, Simon & Theodore

2010-05-24T09:29:00.003-06:00

Last week Taylor, Parker and Holly all had their wisdom teeth removed.
You can see from the pictures I took a couple of days later, that Taylor was not happy about having me take a picture of his swollen face. Parker was a good sport about it,

and Holly-well, a picture is worth a thousand words!! Actually, they did reasonably well and only missed a few days of school.

The hot springs

2010-05-14T08:10:00.004-06:00

Some of you might wonder about the hot springs that we will be camping at, so here you go.

Finally a quilt on my bed!!

2010-05-10T08:07:00.007-06:00

2 years ago I went with mom to a large quilt show in Salt Lake. I didn't think at the time that I was that interested in quilting, as the matter of fact, I was not interested in it at all, at that point. I went just to humor mom and well that was "all she wrote" as far as it goes because I was sold on quilts from that point forward. That first summer I made quite a few. I made a couple of quilts for my own bed because my blankets were old, threadbare and falling apart. Well one of those quilts went to an aunt and uncle, and another didn't look so good in my room (it was beautiful, but just didn't look as good in my room as it did in Mom and Dads) and so I decided to give it as a Christmas present. The next thing I made was a back to a quilt and then I decided that I loved it so much that I wanted it for a front to a quilt and not the back. Well its been 2 years, and many quilts, and now and I finally have a quilt for my own bed! This is the one that was originally going to be the back to a different quilt. I love it! My kids love it! And I am very glad to finally have a quilt for my own bed. To tell you how glad I am to have it, day mom gave this one back to me, I threw the old ratty one out into the trash, right where it belongs!

Where have all the bloggers gone?

2010-05-10T07:47:00.004-06:00

So I have noticed a dramatic drop off of the bloggers that I used to follow, and am wondering where they have all gone. Its kinda sad really because its a wonderful way to keep up with family and friends and the things that are going on in their lives. In our live this is the latest; we had a great mothers day chat with Keri (the missionary daughter), she was surprised that her brother had set a date for his wedding, and she is hoping to know this week weather or not she will be able to be there for the big event. We are hoping she will be, but either way, she doesn't have very long left on her mission, just 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 months! The other thing that has happened is that we left the windows down on the car yesterday because it was nice, and I woke up in the middle of the night and discovered that is was raining and had to run out and wipe up the water out of the car and roll up the windows. Guess its better than snow!

2010-05-06T16:44:00.001-06:00

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We Have a Date!!

2010-05-04T16:12:00.000-06:00

September 24th! Need I say more?

Additions to the Family. . .

2010-04-27T21:06:00.005-06:00

No, additions does not mean that I am pregnant. I am long past wanting to be a mommy again. But there will be an addition to our family this year. Jake proposed to his girlfriend Racheal! I am not sure when they will be getting married yet, but I will keep you informed. How strange it feels, and also exciting! A wedding!! I guess that means that I really am getting older. Wow, when I was that age and all excited about getting married myself, I never imagined this far into the future. Yet time has a way of creeping by and before I realized it, its gone and the future becomes the here and now and I wonder how my children grew up so fast. Well, anyway, enough of my rambling. I just wanted to share the news with anyone who choses to read this blog. Any of you guys who don't live close by, please send your addresses so we can get an announcement to you.

Julie and Julia

2010-04-24T09:30:00.004-06:00

So last night Kerry and I watched a movie. It was called Julie and Julia. It was pretty good, but of course Hollywood thought they had to stick some suggestions in there. Had it not been for that, it would have been excellent. I still enjoyed it. The thing is, it got kerry and me to talking. For one thing he made a comment "yea, but you don't cook like that", and he is right, I don't. Maybe I live a sheltered life, maybe I am just living in my own little world, but I don't know anyone (short of Martha Stewart) who cooks like that (and maybe she doesn't cook like that when she is at home either). The only person that I knew who came close to cooking like that was my sister Heidi. She was so creative with food and it amazed me all the time. In my family when we have get togethers the "food" is the main thing we plan. I am sure partly because there are so many of us and that means lots of mouths to feed, but the other thing, I am sure, is because we didn't have much money to go and "do" things, but we had to eat, so we would "plan" what we were going to eat. Now when we get together we still "plan" what we are going to eat. Its a big part of our social times. But honestly who has the time to cook like a french chef? I don't. The closest I come is holiday cooking. So I am curious, how many of you are "secret foodies"? What are your favorite things to experiment with? What are your favorite recipies to make? Or are you like me and you just try to make everything you cook as simple as possible, yet still yummy?

The Great Easter Charade. . .

2010-04-05T12:15:00.007-06:00

This weekend was Easter. We (Josh/Jamie and Mindy/Andy (spent the previous night) and Kerry/I) woke up to 6 inches of snow. Well that makes it a little hard to have an egg hunt outside, ya know? So after a little discussion, we decided to have it inside.
Not sure dad appreciated having to be one of the places we hid eggs, but the kids sure had fun with it. First everyone had to find their baskets. . .
Once that was done, they got to look for eggs. Boy was that exciting! I didn't get as many pictures a I would have liked to have because the kids were zipping around so fast that I didn't have time to snap the picture.
I did manage to get a couple of my kids to pose with their great grandparents. With that many people around (30) you have to have food!

This is Jake and his girlfriend Rachel. Rachel is a real sweetheart and we like her alot.

Parker was really enthusiastic about his picture

looks like Taylor has the same nose as Grama

Josh and Jamie

Even Katie wanted in on the action

Tryston came down but his parents didn't make it. They had company from out of state. But boy did he have a good time. I don't think I saw him much because he was off playing with all of his cousins. He even told me that he "became a man" this weekend. I asked him how did you do that and he told me that he took an airsoft bb right in the lip and he was tough about it.

Josh and Taylor has the same idea at the same timeMy uncle Tom was here from Chicago. It was really nice to see him as its been a few years

After the "scramble" for eggs, the kids sat and went thru the "spoils"

Mom really enjoyed the family time

We had quite a crew to feed at breakfast and decided that cereal was the easiest thing to do

After breakfast was the egg hunting, then conference and then we had a potluck. I am really glad that we were able to see all my wonderful siblings (at least the ones who could make it) we had a great time. I am also grateful that all the cousins like each other so much and that the older cousins are patient with the younger kids. You guys are such a blessing in my life!!

Joanna's baby shower

2010-04-05T11:59:00.002-06:00

This weekend Sunshine hosted a baby shower for my youngest sister Joanna. It is strange to think that my baby sister is going to have a baby. It is even stranger to think that she is the same age as my daughter Keri. That means that it probably won't be much longer (in the grand scheme of things) until I am a grandma. Whheewwww... that is weird!! The thing that is weirder?. . .I have decided that I don't mind that idea. Anyway, I made a quilt for Jo and thought I would share it with you. I think it turned out wonderful. It's amazing to me how there are 2 part of a quilt that must come together for a quilt to be a success. First~the piecing. Second~the machine quilting. Between Mom and me, we make pretty good quilts!~ THANKS MOM!

You're Not Over The Hill Until . . . .

2010-03-31T12:20:00.002-06:00

So this week is Kerry's birthday. It is also mine. My daughter (the one in Argentina on her mission) wrote in her email this week "happy birthday, and don't worry you're not old until you turn 50 (ha-ha)". So I guess I am not "old" yet, and neither is Kerry. I prefer to answer the age old question "how old are you" with "I am 20". That answer bugs the kids I babysit to no end, because they want to know how old I am, and are sure that I have to be older than 20. Why do I have to be older? I don't feel older. I know that my body shows that I am older (you know wrinkles, relief society arms, the bodily changes that come from having kids). But inside of my head, and in my spirit, I don't feel older. I figured something out one day that explains this (at least to my way of thinking). I figure that the reason we don't neccesarily feel older with each passing birthday is because our spirits are eternal. Since eternity is a long time, our bodies might feel older, but we don't have to feel that way inside. Therefore the old adage "you're only as old as you feel" applies to me. For all of you guys who have had a birthday this year, or who are going to (that means all of you) you now have permission to only be as old as you "feel".

wrestling mat

2010-03-15T08:22:00.003-06:00

Kerry and I decided that we wanted to support Taylor more with his wrestling. As you know he made it to state this year (not bad for a sophomore) were he got beat out. He would like to get better and have the possibility of becoming a state champ. One of the ways he is going to put forth effort is to stay after school and work out before coming home. The other thing is that we decided we would buy a wrestling mat so that Kerry could work out with him. We figured his dad could help him work on technique and learn to be a better wrestler. So with all this in mind, we started looking for a mat. I found places we could buy a new one, but they are around $500 (starting) and on up. I looked for used ones on KSL, craigslist, and ebay. I could find some on ebay, but none that were affordable and none that were local. So I finally decided to place a "wanted" ad on KSL. I had 3 responses. We ended up purchasing 2 mats. They were supposedly, 7 1/2 ft x 15 ft. So they would have been a 15 ft square, perfect for our use. We went and picked them up and brought them home. Imagine our suprise when 15 ft turned into 41 ft! We decided that since that was the case, we didn't need both mats. So we are going to sell one. We are asking the price that we paid for both of them, so essentially we got a mat for free! How cool is that? I feel really blessed.

Always bringing something home

2010-03-08T07:32:00.004-07:00

On Saturday, Kerry and the boy caught a pheasant.
Don't ask me how they did it. I don't know. I do know that if the bird was in good health, they would never have caught it!

We called around to a few people, but didn't find anywhere to take it. We didn't find anyone who raises them, or any bird sanctuaries, and we don't eat them, and since its illegal to keep pheasants, we let him go. Kerry took him down to the orchard the next morning. It was kind of neat to be able to see this bird up close. They really are very beautiful as you can see from the pictures. Kerry has alway, thru our married life, been found bringing home critters to share with his kids. I have never been too fond of that, but I am glad he has done that, because it gives the kids a chance to enjoy that part of life and a much different way to learn to appreciate the world around them, not to mention the memories they have as a result.

quick updates

2010-03-08T07:19:00.004-07:00

Jake came over this week because he wanted me to take his picture. I guess Subway needed his picture because he is a manager and they want a picture of all their managers at the coorporate office. So we took several and printed the one we liked the best, and he mailed it off. He came over later in the week to get a haircut.