Christmas 2009

Today was a great day! We got to talk to most of the kids. It was especially fun to talk to Dave, away up in Washington. It sounds like he is doing well on his mission. He gets fed by the ward members every day. He did say that for Christmas he has received so many sweets that it is boggling his mind and he is not quite sure what to do with it all. I suggested he give some away to the less-active families that he is teaching. Currently he is in Lake Stevens. Transfers are next week and he is hoping that he will transfer, but most likely he won't.

Hiking the Wellsvilles

Rolayne and I hiked the Wellsvilles in September. We had done this last year, but I didn't quite make it to the top. That time we went both up Deep Canyon in Mendon and down Stewart's Pass. This year we decided to park in Sardine Canyon and head up that way and then back down Deep Canyon. This way we got different views and climbed to the top of Box Elder Peak, the highest point in the Wellsvilles.

Jardine Juniper Hike

Rolayne and her friend Debbie and I started off at 7 in the morning today, May 17, and headed up Logan Canyon to hike up to the Jardine Juniper. The hike is 5 miles one way. The day was absolutely gorgeous, although that early in the morning it was a little chilly, but soon warmed up. We didn't even have to make too many stops to rest (mostly for me) but I wasn't panting like I usually do, so I think I did pretty good for a change! We crossed a raging river on some wet logs. Rolayne and Debbie carefully walked across and I crawled like a "brave" person. By the time we came back down, the logs had dried, so we were all able to get across without difficulty, with me even walking. After a few miles of steady climbing, there were still a few largish patches of snow that we had to cross, but overall, it was a lovely hike.


Here is a picture of a view we saw while on the hike. We passed fields of sagebrush, and little yellow flowers Debbie told us were cowslips. There are some other tiny little blue flowers as well, may have been bluebells.




Here is a picture of the tree.



This Juniper is famous because it is the oldest juniper in North America. The hike book said it was about 1500 years old, although a sign up at the tree said it was over 3000 years old. The only thing obviously living on the tree is a little topknot of green at the very top. Logan canyon is down below. You can get a glimpse of the highway in a few of the photos on the far left about halfway down.

Here are some pictures of us at the tree.



If you look closely at some of the branches, you can see how gnarly and twisted they are. It was quite a sight to see.


















This was just a pretty picture I took of a different vista as we were leaving the juniper tree.




So that was our adventure for the day!

Dave & Senior Pics

I went out with David and took a bunch of photos for his senior announcements. I don't know if any of them are worthy of sending out. Let me know if any look good to you. Getting him to smile was next to impossible. He keeps saying he doesn't have a nice smile. And then taking more than one photo was also an effort.

Vote for which photo you like (if any) and send me an email with your selection(s). Or tell me if I should do more.

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And then I thought maybe this one would show the "real" Dave! I vote for this one!

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Halloween 2007

Last night was our ward's Halloween Party, although technically it was called a Fall Carnival. There were carnival type games (I got to run the putting range), a chili cook-off, family photos, dinner of soups and chili, pumpkin carving contest, costume contest, and trunk-or-treat. In the morning I decided to get into the spirit of things and thought we ought to be in costume for the event. David decided he didn't want to get costumed, but Tom and I thought it would be fun, or rather, I thought it would be fun and Tom went along.




Since we already had a clown costume, I bought a new wig since our old one was losing its loveliness. Then I topped it off with my Reebok hat. I also decided to do a blast from my past and looked up good ol' J.P. Patches on the internet, since he's my most favorite clown. So I basically copied his clown face and I don't think I did too bad (by the way, for any of you Patches Pals, I found a wonderful web site that has all kinds of Patches info and even some clips from his show!).

My costume was so masterful nobody at the carnival guessed who I was unless I told them. I should have won a prize for most unrecognizable! My nose also honked when I squeezed it, so sometimes I wouldn't talk and would just honk the nose.




So then, what to do for Tom? I looked online for some easy costumes and found one that earned him a prize! I headed out to DI and a dollar store and bought a disposable aluminum turkey roasting pan that we clipped on the sides and curled down the edges to make a silver platter. Plastic tablecloths were taped together and glued to the top of a box. We glued on the "silver platter", and cut holes through everything. A plastic goblet and old silverware, plus a candle stick, were all glued down onto the tablecloth to finish the place setting.

So here is Tom's head presented on a silver platter. His prize won Most Creative.