Wednesday, August 2, 2023

July 2023

 

July 2 - Our 2nd day on the way to Cindy and Ken's.  We saw fog in Iowa, rain in Illinois and Michigan.

We made it!  Met the new cat babies Echo and Shady! I am so sad that I didn't even get a picture of Cindy on her 40th birthday!

July 3 - Blake taking his morning nap in Ken's new recliner. Echo sitting at the table with me. Taking the cans and bottles in for recycling. We got enough cash to pay for the groceries we needed.

We went to pick blueberries at Becky's patch. Our hands got real dirty. Then we saw a blueberry picking machine.

Just chilling with all the animals.  Shady was the most friendly.

July 4 - We made the trip to Shipshewanna, Indiana to Dutch Creek Farms.  It's so fun to see these animals come up to the wagon for food.  We were sitting behind Cindy and Ken, so getting pictures was tricky.

The wagon ride is so fun! And the petting zoo is fun, too. Blake took a little snooze on the the way home.

Going for a fun nightly walk around the neighborhood.

July 5 - We did a really fun thing! We caught a charter fishing boat on Lake Michigan at 5:30am! It was through Fish Stalker Charters with Captain Kevin Roberts.  The sunrise was incredible on the way out on the lake.

I just couldn't get enough of the gorgeous sunrise!

Here we are on the boat waiting to get where the fish are. It was a fun ride. Captain Kevin got 12 poles all into the water, we just had to watch them to see if they had fish on them.

The first fish on the line! Ken reeled it in! it was hard! The fish was huge!

The 2nd one on the line! Blake reeled it in! It was really hard! It was big, but not as big as Ken's.

Now for the 3rd one! Cindy's turn! it was so, so hard, but she stuck with it! It was the biggest!

These are some huge fish!

Now for the 4th! I tried reeling it in, but must be really weak, and let Ken finish getting it in! It looks big in the net, but it's quite a bit smaller than Cindy's.  


We ended up catching 4 more nice fish. We were so glad that it was one at a time, it would have been really interesting if we would have had two coming in at the same time.  It was so much fun!

Captain Kevin had a nice place to hang the fish so we could get a good picture of all of them.  He cleaned and filleted them.  Look at all that meat! There was some Salmon and some Trout. We cooked some up and it was pretty good, except Ken didn't like it much.

July 6 - On our way back home - we found a Red Lobster in Kearney, Nebraska!

July 7 - We went to the Fort Collins, Colorado Temple.  It was such a nice little temple.  We really enjoyed it.

July 9 -  We brought some fish home and cooked it up.  Everyone liked it! Even the kids!

Ryder hanging out with Penny. Penny just doing her sit-ups. Maden, Hallie, Molly and Annie playing a game on the bed. It's easier to cut Penny's nails when she's sleeping.

July 10 - I love the beautiful summer sunsets!

July 13 - A bunch of us went to watch Molly, Hallie, Michael, James and Kenzley at swimming lessons.  It was a perfect morning.

July 14 - Lynne, Rob, Kaylene, Michelle and I put in a long afternoon clearing things out of my parents house and started setting up for a big garage/estate sale.  It was a lot of work!

July 15 - Ryder got baptized! We are so proud of you and love you so much! He had a lot of people come and support him. 

It was a beautiful service! I felt very honored to be asked to give the talk on Baptism. I think Ryder liked his Baptism Bear. I was so glad that Grandma Beth got to watch on FaceTime!

Mark and Helen Purcell reunion! Penny was the star of the show.  She tried to get Brent's beard and made a new friend in Olivea.

Molly and Hallie had a grand time with a lot of cousins on the blow up water slide.

July 16 - Just playing a game with Jared, Hallie, Nikelle, Molly and Penny.

July 19 - Starting the day off right with this beautiful sunrise!

July 21 - Another wonderful sunrise.

July 22 - All ready for the garage/estate sale!

I couldn't have done this without these two! Michelle and Shauna were incredible help!

Everything was gone by 2:45, except the bedroom set! Not all sold, but hauled out. We had an angel named Joane Clovis show up just as we were ending and volunteered to take two loads to the DI in her pickup! It was such an amazing act of service that we won't soon forget.  Jared took a big load to the dump in his dump trailer.  

Penny thinks she is so funny to have this bottle!

July 23 - Grandpa giving Penny some carbonated water! She thought it was amazing! Hallie loves helping me play a game on the iPad.  

July 25 - Annie gets to take some horse riding lessons as a reward for getting good grades.  I got to take her to her first lesson, she learned how to put the bridle on November, then lead her around, then brush her and clean her hooves. She thought it was great fun. 

July 26 - Another unique sunset.

July 27 - I woke up to thunder! I tried to get a picture of the lightning, but was never quite quick enough.

The bedroom set from my parents house is being hauled off on this flatbed trailer.

July 28 - Two for one! The starting of a beautiful sunrise, but at the same time lighting up the clouds in the west.  I love these beautiful coral roses.

July 29 - Another breathtaking sunrise!

July 30 - Penny and Hallie visiting with Grandma Beth and Grandpa Paul!

The phases of a sunset within 15 minutes.  Just beautiful.

July 31 - Annie got to come spend the night.  She loved riding the scooter, doing handstands in the grass and on the trampoline, then playing games on the tramp with the Williams kids.

Another two for one, Sunset in the west, and beautifully lit up clouds in the east. 





































Tuesday, July 11, 2023

June 2023

 

June 3 - First time out with the boat this year! There was enough water to go to Jensen's Grove.  It was a cool early morning, but the skiing or whatever they were doing was great! I love Molly's windblown hair!


We had a little picnic and Michelle's house, the kids had fun playing this game, I don't know the name of it, but it looks like an upside down 4 square game to me.

We went to Molly and Hallie's dance recital. They did really well and looked so cute.

June 4 - It was my nephew Dallin and Kaylene's baby blessing, which I didn't get any pictures of them or baby Danielle.  They had a luncheon at Matsuura's clubhouse and these kids who have been taking tennis lessons couldn't resist trying to play some tennis.

June 5 - This Penny girl is just growing up too fast! She's such a smiley little thing.

June 6 & 7 - I had a run in with a can of mandarin oranges that decided to fall off the pantry shelf and onto my toe! It hurt so, so bad.  Randy came running to my rescue as I stood in a pool of blood.  He got me all cleaned up.  I had Blake come over to look at it at Promontory Point.  He suggested that I have Brian look at it also. Brian and Aubrey thought I should go see Dr. James. I got into him the next day.  He said it wasn't broken, and that he couldn't stitch it up because the nail was in the way. It has been so sore and tender, but I'm glad it was my left foot, so I can still drive and that it's summer so I can wear sandals.

June 8 - Flowers! I love seeing the little buds starting to appear!

June 10 - Another early morning trip to Jensen's Grove.

More flowers blooming!

We celebrated Clark's upcoming 8th birthday with some pizza!

I love it when the weather is warm enough for the kids to eat on the patio.

The kids had fun with a little water party.  I bought some reusable water balloons, and Nikelle made some sponge balls.  They had a great time.

Aubrey went to talk to Hank, the neighbors dog, the adults and Penny just chilled while the kids played.

Brian and Aubrey got a shark piñata, the kids all got one turn before Maden knocked it down and it broke.  There was a pile of kids getting at the candy!

Cake and presents time! The cake got cut before we sang, but Clark didn't care.  He loved having day to just celebrate him. 

June 11 - Grandpa is "tending" Penny and Hallie.

June 12 - We decided to get some solar panels, hopefully it's nice and sunny for awhile!

June 14 - Blake and I went to Salt Lake to pick up my sister and niece Suzanne and Stefi from the airport, but first we went to the  Oquirrh Mountain Temple.  It was very nice.  When we came out, there was this beautiful duck just sitting in the grass.

A beautiful sunset!

June 16 - We made a quick trip to Island Park to help Jared shuttle trailers and do some electrical work.  Nikelle and the girls and I waited at a cabin while the men were working.  On the way home from Island Park, we stopped in at Merralee's house and saw this cute little kitten.

June 17 - I got to take Clark to lunch at Chick Fil A.  We got a 30 piece nugget to share.  The gift he wanted to buy turned out to be a little over budget, but he was pretty stoked to find this game for the switch.

I found Blake, Brian, Maden and Annie at the Sunnyside Tennis Courts.  Annie was playing for the very first time ever.  Everyone else was practicing a little bit of patience. 

The therapists at Promontory Point wanted to try one last time to help mom get into a car.  My car ended up being the best height for her.  So we went for a little spin.  We drove past Brian's new house, and up to the cemetery, then we went through the drive through at Wendy's and got a Frosty.  I think Mom enjoyed it.

June 18 - Clark is 8!

June 19 - Look at the "treasures" Molly and Hallie found when they helped Grandpa pick up pine cones.

June 22 - A major life change for my parents. Mom had come to the end of her time at Promontory Point, so she moved into an Assisted Living Center called Parkwood Meadows in Idaho Falls.  My Dad was able to move in with her!  My sisters Shauna, Suzanne, Lynne and I were able to go in the day before and hang some pictures and decorate so it felt like home.  My brothers in law Troy Terry and Rob and nephew Samuel helped moved the furniture in.  Mom and Dad have settled in nicely and seem to be enjoying the little community there.  

June 23 - Blake and I crashed a party, kind of....Lynne, Rob, Samuel, Suzanne, Troy, Branson, Avery and Stefi, planned to to do baptisms at the Pocatello Temple. We decided to go to dinner at Homestead with them. There was time before the temple appointment to come back and play some games.  It was very nice to witness the baptisms and participate in the confirmations.  Then we came back and played some more games.  It was a fun night.

June 24 - Blake's 50th Class Reunion! We met Bruce Beardsley there.  It was really a nice day.  They took pictures ins groups, so this is the portion that Blake was in.

June 25 - We met Jared's family at the cemetery to commemorate what would have been Brody's 6th birthday on the 23rd.  Penny thought she was funny to sit in the dump truck.  The girls had fun chasing bubbles.

Penny is 6 months old!

June 26 - Suzanne and some of her family stayed with us for almost 2 weeks, and I did not take many pictures! Here they are playing games with Mom, then taking Mom for a "walk". It was so fun having them come!

June 28 - Penny thinks it's funny to get her toenails cut.  We took a chair from mom and dad's basement for Mom to sit in and get a break from her wheelchair.  I think she likes it!

June 30 - Blake, Randy and Ryder went fishing at the pond in Shelley.  They didn't catch any fish, but had fun trying.