G Mountain Photographer

2010-12-22T11:40:00.000-08:00

Recently, I've been thinking of what I want for Christmas. Not that it matters a whole bunch, I can honestly say that having our family close by of visiting is the best gift ever. So, yeah! we had them here for the reunion, that was memories for a life time.
So, here at Christmas time, I am sharing some recap of our family visiting during the reunion and some of our visits this year.

In a month, our oldest grandchild, Christian will be 12 years old. That is awesome. Hopefully we can travel to help celebrate his birthday and when he receives the priesthood. Imagine, he'll be a deacon. That is awesome. He's a great example for his siblings and cousins to follow.

Our daughters posed for this photo during the reunion. Jo and I are so proud of them and their families. They are awesome daughters, spouses, moms, and sisters.

Part of the fun of taking pictures is making faces. This is a good example of that, making faces.
Perhaps it was the trip to the Bean Museum to see the wild animals collection. We got to add to the collection here.

An outdoor activity was just tempting enough for the kids to pile on dad. So, Mark got the rough end of the pile on.

Our #20 grandchild Evelyn shows her bright face here.

Visiting Dan & Nikki just after little Ruth was born was a fun time, especially with her siblings. They made up for making our time worthwhile.

Here's baby "R" giving us her undivided attention. She's a doll.

Ipo holds on to her toy as a sign that "don't mess with my stuff" kind of look. Since all the kids are gone, there's no one to play with, so this is keeping herself occupied.

This is our annual Christmas photo to you all. Thanks to Erin for making it possible. Enjoy all.
Merry Christmas everyone!

Time To Catch Up, It's Almost Christmas!

2010-12-14T21:20:00.000-08:00

Whoa!! It's almost Christmas and I haven't posted anything in a long time. I guess, time flies when you're having fun. Well the word fun is debatable. Anyway, we've had some significant things to share in this blog about the past several months. For one thing, I'm happy we were able to have our family reunion of most of our children and their families here in August. It was awesome, but the best part was seeing the siblings and children interact with each other. What a wonderful memory it was to see them play together, talk together, help each other out, and have fun together. That reunion, made our year. I am grateful to each of our children who were able to attend and their spouses for making the reunion possible. Each of our grandchildren at the time, showed me why they are special. They possess the traits and talents of precious spirits, come from the presence of God, to make our lives a blessing. They represent the genetic, spiritual, social, and intellectual makeup of the generations before them. They are the rising generation and they are awesome. Without going into detail of how each one, (Twenty at the time of the reunion), these grandchildren are awesome and wonderful.

Now that we are back in our home ward, the pace of things are pretty slow. It's different now being involved with the planning, preparations and other things involved with the various activities held in the ward. On Sundays, we usually sit with Mark and Erin and their family. I've been wanting to move to retirement row (area in the overflow area of the chapel) but Jo prefers to sit with Erin up close to the middle front. I've even suggested we sit further in the rear to give us a different perspective of the meeting, but Jo can't see or hear as well back there. Not that I'm wanting to disassociate ourselves with the wonderful 3rd Warders, but sitting in different places of the chapel and cultural hall can be a new enlightening experience. I have a home teaching assignment in the ward, Jo is serving in Family History, or "searching for dead people" in the ward besides visiting teaching. I guess with time like this on my hands, I should choose to be more productive. I'm waiting for the revelations.

Our second daughter had her second daughter almost a month ago. Jo and Ipo travelled to CA to help out with the family, the week before Thanksgiving

Week. I survived with my own cooking and a few meals up the street at Erin's diner. Then on the Sunday before Thanksgiving, I flew to CA to join Jo there. What a blast, with the grandkids. Had a great time getting to know them closer. My two little buddies, the twins were very cautious with Papa at first. I found their weakness, fresh sweet grapes. So, I washed them, cut them in half and piled them on their highchair trays. Love them little guys. I learned to play the card game fish with the older ones. They are aggressive in that game. Had a great time viewing the drawings of Gabby. She is creative and great with her drawings. She's an artist in the making. I got to see how talented they are on the computer games, the learning ones. They each showed their savy and knowledge of the game and great comprehension. They only one I didn't spend much time with was new baby "r". She was well being tended to by her mom.

Jo and I checked out the local shop

ping areas and remembered why we loved the central coast area. It was hard to leave the family but we had to get back to Happy Valley. The one thing we did enjoy was missing the hugh snow storm of Thanksgiving week and the cold. So on our way back, we had to take a slower pace to get home safely. That did requi

re a stopover for the night in Las Vegas. It's amazing how cheap or inexpensive it was to stay there. We got home with now accidents or major problems. We had run out of space in the trunk of our car with our luggage and stuff that we bought to bring back, like CA oranges fresh from the grove, artichokes, grapes, and other stuff. We never fail to frequent the commisaries, or BX. Anyway, having to catchup with work, end of semester at the Y, and now finals week at the Y, there is still lots to do.

Why I Love A Good Family Reunion !!!

2010-08-17T13:49:00.000-07:00

We held our family reunion last week and are in recuperating mode right now. Was it worth it? "Heck Yeah!!" Did I enjoy it? "You better believe it!" Would you do it again? "Darn Right, am open for suggestions when to do it again, and where to hold it?"

What did you enjoy most? Was there any special moments? "Hey! Just watch the clip of the Tahitian dancing by the young wahine cousins!" The young cousins really got things going during the family luau. With just a short amount of training from our island connection, Rachel, those young wahines really could shake'um.

The five cousins plus one auntie put on a show for the crowd. We even had a dance off or shake'um competition with the kane of boy cousins participating. "It was all good."

At the reunion, we had four of our five children and their families attend. Luckily, we had enough housing locally to put up all the out of towners. Having Sunday dinner together was a bit of an experience with everyone at our home. No one complained, the dog did her bit to help out, and there was lots of hands to help with the cleanup.

Was there any special things to remember aside from the "Tahitian dancing?" Like what? "The older boy cousins hung out alot, the girl cousins got along really well, they all liked being together because they're cousins. The uncle and aunties treated all the kids well, their own included. Later, the uncle and aunties played games, went to the movies after the kids were asleep, grandpa watched them, and had a fun time. When you have 18 grandchildren, first rule established by Grandma, the mommies and daddies were responsible to clean up their little ones, including nasty diapers. Hey, we had our turn doing that! The activities were cheap or free, like going to the swimming pool to cool off, or to Thanksgiving point for $2 Tuesdays, a museum trip at BYU campus, and a day trip up the canyon. One thing we didn't do well was take a group family photo. Nothing wrong with the camera stuff but the timing was just before dinner, the afternoon sun, and being hungry like Hungry Hungry Hippos! Again, it was all good!"

There were some other highlights like bringing each family to BYU to see Grandmas co-workers and brag about the grandchildren. There was even making a church statement, that we can occupy more than one row of church pews during Sacrament Meeting.

While looking through some older family photos, I notice that Ruby looks alot like Erin at a similar age, so does Gabby looking a lot like Nikki at a similar age. The same goes for Wyatt looking like Rachel and Anna looking like Leslie but without curly hair. Of course, my granddaughter Klai look darker than Grandpa because she's been in the sun more.

We were joined in our reunion by Uncle Dick and Aunt Joan and cousin Jarom and our dear friends the Funns. We had a blast, making lasting memories. Special thanks to our sons-inlaws, Troy, Dan, Mark, and Jase for bringing their families to happy valley this past week and a half. Also special thanks to Leslie, our program director/planner, Erin for the chicken long rice and taking the family portrait photos and scheduling the swimming activity. Special thanks to Rachel for the Halau O hula shakem up style training and #20 moopuna, and to Nikki for #'s 18 and 19 and soon #21. We love the little ones. We did miss Jesse and Amy and the boy, out on the east coast. We were all thinking of you all. Mahalo, to all.

What "dog days of summer" ???

2010-08-16T09:23:00.000-07:00

A good recipe for "dog heaven" is bring in 18 grandchildren to a family reunion and giving the family dog "carte blanche" near and around the dinner table and kitchen. It must have been an easy way to clean up the food messes but not always is a good thing, a control thing. Her best buddies are Squadge and Taters. Of course, Wyatt and Ruby she likes. Then there was Emily and Anna always giving her a doggie bone, and who can forget those wonderful little people for leaving the front door open to let her scamper out the the neighbors and have to be bribed with a treat to get back in the house. Wow, she says, this is too easy.

After nearly a week of unsuspecting grandchildren seeing their food and snacks disappear before their noses, the family dog was again found pilfering the food right out of the hands of the wee little ones. As seen last evening at an outdoor cookout at Erin's back yard, the family dog was going from kid to kid and making easy pickings off Ruby, Shae, Wyatt, Teddy, etc.

Starting tomorrow, the family dog is being returned to her normal diet, no people food, and probably have to attend therapy, missing the kids. Things will return to normal in the household, they'll be just the three of us, but an occassional grandchild or two or three to watch the Disney channel, etc.

"Recalculating!"

2010-07-30T13:05:00.000-07:00

Some time ago when all our young-uns were still at home, I'd make a statement, expecting to be believed as "the word", there would be an echo, something like "not???" with the inflextion of a negatory question. Even before that time, our kids would always question us on numerous matters, even so that on one summer trip, my wife and I appointed our eldest daughter to be the "answer lady" for all questions. She had a gift, and probably still has it to this day for coming to the rescue and providing authoritative answers to questions posed by family members. I'd dare say she could give wikipedia a good run for their money and be just as believeable.

Anyway, the point taken here is that now with all the young-uns on their own with their own families, my wife and I have had great difficulty finding a good destination for a summer trip, or road trip, lest making preparations, getting ready for the road, housing the family pet, etc. Our previous commitment to stay in town, aka ecclesiastical callings/assignment, now completed, it made for good reason to hit the road. So in preparation, we have the checklist which includes all things necessary, such as, getting the car checked out, tire rotation, gas fill up, oil change, packing and loading the car. Then there are the more important things, like road trip survival gear that includes, audio books, camera gear, laptop, GPS (my lady), cell phone chargers, nutritional supplements (ice chest, paper products including TP, water, caffenated drinks aka Pepsi & Mt. Dew, Keebler Dark Chocalate and Almond cookies, Teriyaki Beef Jerky, chips, nuts, cheese sticks, etc.) So, after all the essentials are packed, we drop the pet off at Erin's boardomg kennel with detailed instructions how to take care of the pet. We make one last pit stop before hitting the road, house is secured, alarm set, thermostadt set, lights turned off, and then we remember to stop the mail and newspaper. So a quick after hours call to the local USPS, and we arrange for the newpaper to be picked up, we are off.

Since we are making a late departure, we'll wing it on the trip. We have a tentative idea how far we will travel and stop for the night. Lucky we got a GPS, who guideth our every move. I'm begining to get annoyed when it says "recalculating" in a very annoying english voice. All through the trip, you make a slight detour here or there and the response is "recalculating." There's only one thing to do here, "MUTE" the GPS voice!

So, our reason to get on the road was the State holiday, recognizing early pioneer journey to the mountain west, or Pioneer Day. It's a recognized State holiday, celebrated with all kinds of festivities including local parades, rodeo, fireworks, lots of camping out, and other celebrations. If you live in the state and you want to go camping to a nearby spot, you'd have better made them reservations back in Christmas, that's how serious we take this celebration.

The pioneers journey started on the banks of the Mississippi River and culminated in what is today, Salt Lake City with the prophetic statement made by Brigham Young, "This Is The Place!" I guess they had a better equivalent to the modern GPS that didn't say "Recalculating!"

So, like a modern pioneer, we hit the interstate, headed west, stopped in Elko, NV and went to Carson City, NV. From there we journeyed down to Yosemite National Park, CA and back to Lake Tahoe and on the Yerington to see family. On the way out, can't resist stopping at a military installation, Fallon Naval Air Station, NV. After the kind and simpathetic Marine allowed us on base, we got gas and snacks, and hit the road heading back to "this is the place" again with the annoying GPS lady repeating "Recalculating!" over and over again.

Once safely home, you check out the homestead and find that your garden is overwhelmed with humongous (sp) zucchinis. Should have told Erin to pick them while we were away.

Anyway, we're glad we went on the road trip. We visited the scenic Humbolt National Forest and Lamoille Glacier (outside Elko, NV). We visited Yosemite National Park and entered from the East side (Lee Vining entrance area), and of course, Yosemite is one of our favorites. We got to see Mono Lake at Sunset, and found the two Wal Marts and one Costco in Carson City NV. We also found that Yerington, though it is in the dessert, is fairly green with farming fields and livestock. As for Fallon NAS, those sailors and marines are always addressing you as "Sir." Oh by the way, I wouldn't recommend that Quality Inn motel on North Carson Ave. Their housekeeping needs more OJT.

Well, glad we're back, now it's time to get ready for our family reunion.

Whats Not To Celebrate? It's The 4th of July! Soooo???

2010-07-07T22:45:00.000-07:00

I love fireworks, starburst and bombs bursting in air. I'm patriotic, I'm proud to be an American, and I love our country. Also, I do enjoy a good reason to BBQ and then some. Here in Happy Valley, its a big deal, to celebrate the 4th of July. I love parades, patriotic ones, how about a good hot air balloon liftoff, or even the fireworks. Thats part of the celebration.

Our little town of PG had its own fireworks display and it was great. Only had to go down the street from our home, bring a lawn chair, park it in front of a neighbor's driveway and instant great seating. Great neighbors share their front driveway for the fireworks display. I setup my camera for some time exposure shots, got a great view, and just had to put up with onlookers or those arriving late driving up and down the street, with lights on of course. Hey, next year, we're blocking the road so no through traffic.

Love them fireworks. Can't wait for more. Enjoyed a great show, and so did many others.

I'm grateful for being an American, our way of life, our freedom to be Americans, and so on. Sunday meetings were up lifting, very spiritual. Others felt and expressed their testimonies with such wonderful spirit and deep feelings for our country.

Got up early to catch the balloon lift off in Provo. It was a fun event and I always enjoy the balloons. One day, I hope to catch a ride on one and take my camera to record the view.

Started to get warm for the parade, so I came home and caught up with putting my flag out for display. I love doing stuff like that.

While we enjoyed the holiday, there was a lot to catchup with and little time to do them. I was adjusting a couple of sprinkler heads in the yard and accidently broke one off. Got met with a sudden burst of water shooting straight up in the air and on me. It took me a while to shut off the water first and then try to fix the sprinkler head. In the end, I have that zone shut off and will replace the head completely.

On the bright side, most of the garden is planted and just one or two more projects to finish up. I'm going to add another Square Foot Garden grow box on the terrace for more stuff to plant and finish off planting two more rows in the garden. If all goes well, we should be buried in vegies by the end of August.

Speaking of celebrating the Independence Day, yesterday, our neighbor, Doug, was sworn in and got his American citizenship. Congrats. It's a big deal and I'm glad he realizes it. Most people take it for granted and don't appreciate the significance of their citizenship. If you've lived out of the US for a period of time, you get the message real quick.

Well, we're gearing up for our ohana reunion or get together in a month. Yes, we are a month away from kick off. Jo and I are looking forward to seeing as many of our grandchildren together in one spot. If all goes well, we will have 18 out of the 20 here in PG. That ought to be a sight. Looking forward to all the fun to be enjoyed. We are going to take some family photos and will have to Photoshop those who are missing into the picture.

Sometimes Even Your Parents Read FB!

2010-06-25T10:38:00.000-07:00

It's amazing how technology is always upgrading and improving. Electronics are getting tiny tiny by the minute. Well, I don't think that we are so far behind the technology curve as some people might think.

If it has a keyboard, we liken it to a manual typewriter. If the keyboard is comfortable and slanted like a typewriter, we like it. If its flat or less than a full size, we have challenges. Heaven forbid, trying to type or text with those little tiny tiny keyboards that seem to slide out on a cell phone. It least that has more promise than tying to text using a numeric keypad of older cell phones.

Well, I frequent FB just about daily to keep up with people we know and whats happening in their lives. Its more interesting when it's from one of our children or their spouses.

On Monday, I answered an email from our youngest about what the current gas prices were. Not thinking and just answering her questions, I gave quotes from the local pumps here in Happy Valley. Seemed normal, since they are planning to travel to the mainland at the end of next month for family visits. Little preparation never is a waste on such matter as car rentals and gas prices.

Then the next day, my wife spied a comment on FB about if our youngest was going to attend her HS Reunion. Earlier comments were the great expense of airfares but as she read more comments, it was highly likely that our youngest was going to travel to the Mountain West to attend such HS Reunion.

The neat thing about FB is that you can get related comments or post from others say such as our son in-law. Yeah, his was more of a confirmation that they were indeed flying over. By then, other friends of our youngest innocently confirmed their meeting at the HS Reunion. Ah Hah!

So, we do the domestically proper thing, we call on the telephone, but no answers and try again and again. Same result. Then my wife decides to make an official inquiry by emailing our youngest. In polite surprise that we deducted the coniving plan of surprise, she admits to their travel plans. See, your secret is out on FB.

We are pleasantly happy for their travels, we get to see our #20 grandchild, and wow, how blessed we are. Oh yeah, the photo is compliments of our son inlaw using his new Apple iPhone 4 that he got in line at 2 or 3 AM in the morning in Las Vegas to get it. Neat or cool phone. He demonstrated some cool things that it does.

So in conclusion, if you don't want your parents to find out you plans or secrets, don't discuss it on FB even if it is a way of sharing the news.

We Have Been Assimilated, "Resistance Is Futile"

2010-06-20T21:11:00.000-07:00

Today was the first official day back in our home ward after over 5 and 2/3 years serving in the 8th Stake. Wow, lots of older people, large, large Primary, lots of teens, and we know less than half of them.

We've had lots of great memories and experience, just awesome young families there. We had a great blessing of working with other awesome couples from "feeder" Stakes in the area. They too will be missed.

Well, today was "Fathers Day" and we celebrated it with our ohana here in PG. Erin and Mark did a super BBQ, Jarom provided some ukulele lessons and entertainment, the grand children were delightful, and Bubba got a hose bath out in the yard. I think he above all enjoyed the cool water bath.

Of course, this is PG in June, warm weather has finally arrived. The dessert of root beer floats or sundaes were awesome. Hit the spot.

Got some of my garden put in yesterday. The weather this spring has been mostly cold and rainy. Hope the garden will catch up before the fall sets in.

We are planning our PG Family Reunion on August 9, 10, 11. We hope to have as many of our children and their families be here for that event. We will make the most of it during that time. It will be great to have as many of the grandchildren here. Can't wait.

For a catch up on the past couple of months since the last post, Jo recently had a hand operation and is still wearing a cast/splint. Trying to do things with only one hand is a challenge. We've been busy at work and church. That changed last week when I was released. All good things do come to an end, at least for now.

I will try to be more diligent in updating the blog frequently. You all have a great day. Bye for now.

Spring Starts Tomorrow, Goodbye Winter

2010-03-19T20:57:00.000-07:00

This is Ipo, our doggy. She has the run of the house and yard, and if she happens to slip out the front door, or garage, or yard, then the neighborhood is her domain. We resort to a reliable and proven method to get her back to the house, bribery. She know how to play the game, and she's very good at it. Above all, we know who rules in our home.

Now for more less important things in life, and Ipo could care less, let me proceed.

You ever notice how time moves so slowly until you don't want it to move at all? You all probably suffered as much as we do with daylight savings time. Yeah! We never seem to adjust to it for a couple of weeks.

Since the beginning of the year, winter has taken it's toll on us. You're cold all the time, you boost the thermostat a few degrees in the home, you boost it in the car while driving, you even turn on the bum warmer in the car seats if you have them, just so you can feel the warmth.

So when spring comes, you start to appreciate the longer daylight, warmer temperatures until July and August, and you realize the grass is turning from brown to green and starting to look shaggy. Whatever your plans were, now you have to start to plan to cut the lawn, water, fertilize, and if you're realistic, pick up the winter dog poop, prune the fruit trees and start the gardening.

With spring, comes the dreaded allergies. For the most part, I don't suffer from the pollen, dust, house mites, etc. Just from the yard and garden work. Our doggy is affected by the grass. Strange but true, it affects

her paws. Maybe the solution is to put some shoes or boots on her.

There's just no end to spring time work.

I "STOP" for local food!

2010-02-17T10:40:00.000-08:00

So this month, we're taking the much relaxed approach. Valentines has come and gone, not a bad celebration, just kept it low keyed. We've got a few family birthdays to celebrate and also and anniversary, ok two of them, our youngest daughter's and or own (37th wedding).

Anyway, the point of this post is to say that anytime I come across some information about a new eatery of local (Hawaiian foods), I stop, and take note. I was reading the newspaper the other day and came across an article about a "poke" contest held recently. It was there that I found two local kine food eateries because they happen to be the judges of the contest. It renewd my interest in local food places. Add that to the less than handful I know about along the Wasatch front, I feel like I'm almost in luau land.

Hawaiian poke (seasoned raw fish)
1 pound Ahi tuna
1 teaspoon Hawaiian salt or sea salt
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, roasted
1 tablespoon small dried shrimp
1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 small onion, sliced into slivers
Cut tuna into 3/4-inch cubes and place in a bowl. Sprinkle with salt, sesame seeds, dried shrimp and red pepper flakes. Using your hand, toss gently.
In another bowl, mix soy sauce, sesame oil and oyster sauce. Add soy sauce mixture and onions to the tuna and toss gently.
Servings » 8

Now, let me count the ways, first there was "Bamboo Hut" which changed management from local Hawaii outcast to totally non-hawaii ownership. Signature trademark still is the BBQ ribs, still ono!.

There's "Sweets" in Provo still serving some local favorite plate lunches, still in business, BBQ or Teriyaki Chicken still ono.

Of course, keeping the hawaii connection is L & L, a young favorite in the islands and now here locally. They have an assortment but my favorite is the laulau plate and kalua pig. The laulau is real, wrapped with ti-leaf and cooked like at home, probably in a pressure cooker. The other stuff on the menu is alright but for real locals, gotta go for the laulau.

Another local is Matiki's which seemed alright but they have only opened irratically. Must be the economy. They're alright, friendly, work hard, and cook your food while you wait.

Up in Salt Lake county, there are probably more but the two that caught my stomach are "Mo Bettah Steaks" and Pounders Grill. Mo Bettah Steaks is a plate lunch stop, serving pulehu steaks or teriyaki style, plus some other offerings like kalua pig, chicken, etc. Trendy, not bad menu, great bust u mouth food. Friendly atmosphere, great vido of the islands, the ocean, the surf. Eat it there or on the go. As for Pounders, I haven't stopped there but will soon. Gotta keep local food in my opu.

So, the question, why is the local (Hawaiian) food stops more attractive or onoliscious than say the mainland foods? I donno but taste bettah to me!

What To Do For A Weekend Getaway?

2010-01-19T20:47:00.000-08:00

I've always seen those travel commercials where they bait you into taking a weekend getaway and have all

these exciting things to do to have fun. Just like cramming for a final but more fun.

But us, we're more practical people who don't usually pick the fun things. I say it's a matter of perspective.

Tops on our list was to take a trip to California and first get out of the inversion filled air we were blanketed with. that alone is a good reason to go to the west coast.

Another winner was to attend the baptism of our grandson, third one to be baptized. There were conditions first, before we headed off to California. The weather had better not have a forecast of big winter storm in the picture on the traveling days, going and returning. Second, was that we had to rearrange our appointment schedule with work and church, got to make sure we have coverage. Third is that Ipo needed boarding, sort of a sleep over at Bubba's house, she doesn't travel well in the car. And fourth, we needed to make lodging arrangements at Nellis AFB on the trip down and on the way back.

Well the checklist went off perfectly, car loaded with travel stuff, emergency storage supplies (200 lbs. hard white wheat, and numerous vacuum packages of yeast), camera gear, church clothing, and of course, ice chest of snacks.

The exciting eventful thing going down was furiously eating clementines and oranges before we get to the California Agriculture inspection station. The guard inspected our ice chest and discovered the apples in there and asked where we got them, from Macey's of course. And he let them pass. They were only interested in the home grown stuff. Good to know for future reference. We were ready to give them up at the check point.

Another thing learned is that if your GPS plans out the trip for shortest distance and travel time, it's probably better not to deviate. As I took what I thought to be the shortest known route, it only added more travel time. Lesson learned going to California. (We decided to follow the Garmin lady's direction for the return trip, wrong! It took many, many hours longer due to the first of three storms hitting the California coast.) Next time, buy yourself a map and plan it your own way.

The best part of the trip was spending time visiting Nikki, Dan, and the kids. We had an awesome baptism service for Pookie, great time visiting and getting to know our twin grandsons, Squdge and Q-mouse. They are the cutest things. They laugh, giggle, smile, burp, spit up, and other normal things for their age. The best part is that, the whole family pitches in to take care of the little guys. Gabby, Bun, and Ethan help feed the twins along with Mom and Dad, and Hammy makes sure that they are amused with their little mobile toys.

I should mention that Pookie had both sets of Grandparents in attendance and his Uncle Ben for his baptism.

The pictures in this post are from the trip.

Remembering the Warmth

2009-12-10T12:01:00.000-08:00

While driving to work this morning, our car recorded the outside temperature as 5 degrees. The news on the radio were saying in some places it was in the negative readings. It is cold, cold, cold. The only advantage this morning was that it didn't snow, that would mean slick road conditions, slow driving, farther distances between cars, slipping and sliding all the way, Ho, Ho, Ho!

I looked at one of our daughter's blog this morning and she shared pictures of our family trip to Hawaii. So, as we remember the warm days and evenings there, I thought I would share some warm thoughts of family and friends.

We made a point to attend church at the branch where my parents attended for many many years. There are still family and friends that remain. They in life, maintain that special spirit of Aloha! So with our families joining together, we visited the Honomu Branch. There we enjoyed the Sabbath, with an "aloha style." We visited with the matriarch, "Auntie Abbie" who is such a remarkable lady. Even at the advance age of 94 years young, she leads the music in Sacrament Meeting. Such a good family friend for all these years, she brings joy to us all and especially Mom, who is 87 years. We visited with Gail, her daughter, who is a longtime friend and even was our daughter Leslie's Young Women leader back in the early 90's.

I noticed our grandchildren just having fun with Auntie Abbie's great grandchildren. So, another generation of long lasting friendship begins. We also were blessed to visit with my brother Dean and his family. It was such a great visit, family and friends.

So, on cold, cold days such as this, I look at pictures of our trip to Hawaii and remember the warmth there. Oh yea, we got to see where the volcanic lava flow entered the ocean to create more land. Wow, what a trip.

Got Beach?

2009-11-19T09:58:00.000-08:00

When you go to Hawaii, you've got to schedule some beach time. We did just that and had a blast. Our favorite hangout is Bellows Beach in Waimanalo on Oahu. Of course, you've got to get past the "rent a cops" at the gate entrance, and then the beach is all yours. There is a small Air Force Station there at Bellows, but the beach is awesome.

Our family got to swim, boogey board, bodysurf, and make sand castles on the beach. Lucky, the weather was fine and the water had no jelly fish which sometimes are found. But no worries, we spent the time well.

Our grandchildren had great fun there and we even had a picnic. When our children were younger, as a family we would spend up to a week of our summer there at Bellows. Talk about some tanning time, wow. Anyway, it's a great place to spend some of the vacation time.

Return from Paradise

2009-11-15T21:48:00.000-08:00

I guess everyone has their own idea or interpretation of what "paradise" may mean to them. Years ago, we chose to leave paradise for a more manageable life on the mainland. Looking back, we feel we made the right decision for our family. We visit the islands whenever we can get their for a reasonable price or when we may have too, say for family reasons.

Two weeks ago, we took the opportunity to travel back to the islands again for a family vacation and to see my mom who is not getting any younger. We got to see the sights, eat the food, enjoy the weather including the higher humidity, shop at the swap meet and the courtesy of the local drivers, " eh! go ahead, I give you chance." Wow, it was great.

We were also accompanied by two of our daughters and their families. We all met up in Laie to stay with our youngest daughter and her family.

Instant mayhem, or just lots of family in one home. It was great to see the young cousins play together. Maybe to others, it was instant insanity, but we all managed, and had fun. Got to see our extended family, you know, cousins, and other friends. Such a choice opportunity.

We took a trip to the Big Island or homeland, and visited my mom, sister and her family and other family members like my brother and his family, aunts, cousins, and dear family friends. Such a memorable time there. We celebrated my mom's 87th birthday early and had a great time.

Our time at the swap meet seemed too short, or at the beach, or being with family. In all, the trip was worth it and makes us long to return again very soon.

Fall Pilgrimage to Mt. Timpanogos

2009-10-12T10:40:00.000-07:00

For a couple years now, we make an annual pilgrimage to the Alpine Loop, a road that takes one to the east side of Mt. Timpanogos. We look forward to the changing colors of the trees on the mountainside. It make for such a spectacular spray of colors.
The colors don't last very long especially with the colder weather fast approaching. We took the road up AF Canyon and so did hundreds of others. On this particular day, we enjoyed sunshine, clear skys and such awesome colors.
We took the fork to Cascade Springs to capture a different view of the colors. The trees were in bright colors of reds, yellows and oranges. It was a sight not to be forgotten. We hope you enjoy the Fall Season.

This Blog Is Still Alive, Just On Life Support!

2009-10-01T15:23:00.000-07:00

I am sorry for not posting to the blog in almost two months. So if you are out there, stay tuned and I promise this blog will be updated. A lot has happened in almost two months. We are well and trying to keep up with everything. So much has happened in our family's lives that we need to fill you in on. Other milestones have been passed, and we're still here in PG.
I'll add photos soon and bring you all up to date. Stay tuned!

Ohana Get Together, Where's The Beach??

2009-08-08T22:37:00.000-07:00

We don't often have family get togethers where it's better we find a park or picnic ground to hold our gathering. Well, since there is few times we have one, any good reason is reason enough.
My nephew and family were in town for a family reunion for his wife's family. Well, since they travelled far, we asked if we could meet our side of the family. Their schedule was flexible and we made it an opportune moment to gather everyone possible together.
Now this is big time for us, with my nephew Aley and Sarah and their family visiting the area, we had our daughter Leslie and her children visiting us already, my nephew Jarom, who is attending BYU in the area, daughter Erin and her family and my nephews Aunt Alisie and her children, and us. We were fortunate to reserve our home Stake Picnic grounds, because all the local parks were taken. July is big on family reunions here in Utah. What a fun time we had on a warm day.
Above, picture of Erin and Ruby, trying to bear the heat of the day.

Here, our eldest grandson Christian tries out this new skate board or whatever board along with cousin Henry.

Here, Aley with daughter Audrey.

Close-up of Audrey.

The runner, Aley IV, just kept running around the picnic area and having fun at it.

Serious cousin discussion, Aley IV and Theodore check out the sand pit.

Family group shot at the picnic grounds.

Cooling off at home in the family room.

No better time than the present to hitch a horsey ride on Uncle Jarom.

Aley IV was having fun with Ipo.

Celebrating Independance Day

2009-07-06T10:01:00.000-07:00

We like to display our flag as often as others in our neighborhood. In addition, the scout troop in our ward also displays a flag in your yard during national holidays for those who want to and for a small fee. The funds are used to support the scouting program in the local unit.
They do a great job, and it is a great service. We like both, our own flag and the one the scouts put up.

On Friday at a BBQ with Mark, Erin, and family, Ruby wasn't feeling well so Erin showed her some sympathy by crying along with her.

Trying to get up close to the balloons throught the crowds, Erin goes for the photo shot.

Once the balloons lift off, they are a sight to behold. What a picture perfect morning for the balloon lift off at Provo.

Jarom with George, Henry, and Teddy watching the balloons.

The start of the PG 4th of July fireworks display. I'm proud of our little town that carries on a tradition of holding its fireworks display for the public. Even better, ever since the PG High School converted their football field to syntethic turf, the city move the fireworks down the the Jr. High which is only a half a block from our home. So, now, we walk down the the neighbors with our lawn chairs and sit and watch it with relative ease and enjoyment. We didn't have to fight the traffic, just sit back and relax.

In all the places our family has lived, I can only remember a few places where we would go and watch the fireworks display. There was Schofield Barracks, Hawaii and RAF Chicksands fete. Of course there would be other displays but you would have to drive a considerable distance to view them. Here in Utah Valley, there's the huge Stadium of Fire and of course our PG City display.

More rockets and starbursting in the air.

Erin, Teddy, and Mark watch the festivities.

Mighty starshells burting in the air was the order for the evening. We all enjoyed the show. Hope you had a great celebration.

Catching up on Trip Pics

2009-06-30T14:09:00.000-07:00

Our trip plan during June was to go and see family, sights, and take pictures of great places to visit. When you plan such a trip, often as always with me, I plan too much to do and the allotted amount of time. So it began with our usual pilgramage to a military installation nearby or along the route and check things out, especially the shopping. (Somehow, Jo and I can't get it out of our systems.) Anyway, from one thing to another, our trip began to get delayed at each stop. We loved the family visits, and then when we got to some breath-taking view along the way, we would stop, take pictures, more pictures, and then get back on the road. Those short stops really adds up the time. Anyway, no regrets here from both of us, we really had a great time. When the weather wasn't cooperating and just clouding over, we would stop, have a prayer for sunshine and better picture taking weather, and put our trust in God, the sun would come out and we again would stop and take pictures.
So, here are pictures of family that we had an awesome time visiting. It was great catching up with, playing with the grandchildren, and spending some fun times together. We're figuring out this grandparent thing pretty good. We have some super grandchildren.
Here are our family pictures of the trip:

Dick and Joan at their 50th Wedding Anniversary Celebration

Brenda, Joan, Jo, Dick, and Me

Brad and Holly and Family

The Costantino Family (Niece Brenda)

Daniel and Family

Jo at Vandenberg AFB Beach

Hammy and Gabby

Hammy, big brother Pookie, and Bun

Troy, Leslie and Kids and Us

Miss Anna

Emily, Grandma and friendly puppy

Erin and Jarom directing the kids to pick up the parade candy

Mark and Ruby Jo (Strawberry Days beautiful baby contestant)

Ruby Jo and the "Bruddahs"

Tribute to Sister-inlaw

2009-06-30T13:10:00.000-07:00

My sister-inlaw, Freda Ford passed away recently and we travelled to her home for a family gathering in memory of her life and support of her family. Three of her four children were there with their families. She was also survived by three siblings, brother Richard and two sisters, Dorothea and Jo. Several friends of the family also attended. It was a meaningful opportunity to meet family and friends and a time to keep in contact.

When Jo and I got married, we were away from both our familys. So, at our first opportunity to meet the family during our travel, I was introduced to Freda and the family. She made us feel welcomed and insisted that we took her master bedroom of her small but modest home. I got to meet her sons, Fred and John and daughter Kelly. They were so young then, and now as you look at the pictures, they've all grown up.

While there, I got to look through the old family picture albums. There was a picture of our kids and Amy working on churning an ice cream bucket on a warm summer day. Those were fun times.

I think as our family grew, we probably had more opportunity to visit Freda and the family over the years. Any time we were passing through Southern California for any reason, we stopped in and saw her. On our visits to Disneyland, her home was always a stop along the way. Even as late as a year ago, we stopped in to visit the family and then on to Disneyland.

She was always accomodating and open to our family.

My wife looked up to her as her older sister, perhaps among her favorite of siblings. It was cute. She could ask questions, talk about sewing, ebay, health issues, vent, and about anything, Freda was there.

I remember once while we out camping in Yellowstone, we met up with Freda and Hank. While we were towing a travel trailer and had to park it and set up for camping, they drove around in a motorhome and were all ready to go any place they desired. That sure was a fun trip.

Once she told Jo that she had come across some spools of sewing thread. So we came down to see her and then went to get all the spools of thread we could get. Wow, it was a bunch and more. She had a knack for getting these great bargain deals, even like the roll of denim. Anyway, we'll miss her. To her children and their families, what an awesome Mom she was.

Kelly and her daughter April

Amy, Tim and their daughters

Kelly with son Richard and daughter April

Dorothea and Jo

Jo, Dick, and "Baby Dot"

Ashley, John, Barbara, and "little" John

Tim and Amy and Daughters

Trip Pics

2009-06-19T12:25:00.000-07:00

The central coast of California.
No guard rails to stop you form going over the edge.

Peaceful coastline

Julia Pieffer State park beach

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Life in the kelp forrest

Sharks are also part of life in the kelp forrest

Feeding time for the fish

Jelly fish as big as basketballs

View of Half Dome rock at Yosemite NP

Yosemite Falls

Scenic background of Yosemite NP

Sitting on a redwood

Tree bigger around than your car
Driving through a redwood

Just some of the sights on the trip. We really got to appreciate the awesome sights and beauty of our country, created by God. We thought we'd share them with you.

Blitzing the West Coast

2009-06-18T15:33:00.000-07:00

This posting is to let all our family and friends know that we made it home safely, but tired. Vacations are meant to have fun, relax, and chill out. This one kind of got out of hand. Our agenda was to coincide our visit with several happenings. Jo's brother and wife celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. Way to go! We got to see their family who are all grown up. We had hoped to see Jo's sister whose health had been declining. Sadly to say, we never got to see her and she passed away yesterday. So, we will be making a return trip to Southern California soon.
By the way, we enjoyed getting to see Nikki + (2), Dan, Pookie, Gabby, Bun, and Hammy at Vandenberg AFB plus Leslie, Troy, Christian, Anna and Emily at Ephrata, and of course our extended family at Apple Valley. All totaled, we drove some 3700 miles according to the odometer.
During the travels, we enjoyed listening to a couple books on CD, stopping by the roadside to take photos of the scenery, touring Yosemite NP, the Redwoods, Monterey Bay Aquarium (only me because it was $30 a person), California central coast from the vantage point of driving CA Hwy 1, the southern Oregon coast, the Columbia River, Wenatchee, Cashmere, and Levanworth WA, and of course the drive home through NE Oregon, Idaho, and Utah. Wow, we are plum tuckered out.
When we rescued our Po doggie from Erin's boarding kennel, she was soooo excited to see us and to know that we're home. The biggest shock was that while we were on our trip, the weather in Utah has been wet with frequent rain. To top that off, I set the sprinkler system to take care of the usually dry weather and surprise, our lawn is at least a foot plus in height. Anyone got a few sheep to loan us?
We'll upload some pictures of the trip soon. Have a great day! Aloha!
(ps. I wasn't sick at all or felt ill during the whole time on the trip. That priesthood blessing from our home teacher (Aussie Bro. Anthony) sure strengthened me the whole time. Went to the hospital for two test yesterday and will see the doctor next week for what's next?)

Mother's Day Is Passed, Time For Gardening

2009-05-19T13:20:00.000-07:00

I've learned over the years of being in a high dessert environment, that it's only safe to plant your garden after Mother's Day. It has nothing to do with that day other than the fact that the chance of a freezing frost is really remote. This winter had really lingered around for a long spell.

Well now that winter's gone, getting our garden in is paramont, along with finishing the pruning of the fruit trees, plowing the garden ground, getting the sprinkler in shape for the warmer weather, and of course such other things as mowing the lawn, killing the weeds, and filling in the bare spots of lawn space.

With the help of Jo and Ipo, there was alot to do, and still much to do remains. Seems like we've been devoting much of our spare time to the garden and lawn. And with that, so has the neighborhood around us.

The weather in the spring time is kind of fickle. It gets warm, everything starts growing and blooming, then it gets wet and cold, even with snow, and then it drys out. Well, during the wet part, that was our chance to do open burning (EPA allowed)of cut greenery, such as tree pruning stuff, etc. Burning in wet conditions doesn't go real well, and then there's Sunday, the only opportunity available to catch-up in the season. Well, unless you want your temple recommend revoked, a sudden visit from your church file leader, and the social outcasting of your ward, i.e., neighborhood, you end up forced not to burn on the Sunday, you pile the stuff for later hauling to the green waste processing plant, and you remain in the good graces of the elect of the neighborhood. How funny life is when you keep to the rules of the land. The only rewarding part of this experience was that I got my garden ground tilled early which gave me a chance to see the surviving weeds, such as morning glory, make an early start on the garden. Ah Huh! I've got "RoundUp" and it can kill just about any weed. Well, enough about the frustration with the garden.

The success or feel good part was that my strawberry patch is doing well. Ipo will enjoy this year's crop unless I get to it first. I also recharged my square foot garden and started planting and transplanting. It's looking well this year.

In the main garden plot, I laid out the drip lines, reworked the sprinkler connection from our secondary irrigation water feed. I had to replace two sections of pvc pipe because the cracked from the winter freeze. Must have had water still in the line. Anyway, everything is hooked up and set to the timer. I've planted about half of the available space and will find other things to plant to fill out the rest. Let's see, potatoes, zucchini squash, yellow squash, red onions, tomatoes, corn, and watermellon so far.

In the square foot garden, I've got Walla Walla onions, bell peppers, herbs such as sage, basil, chives and other weed looking stuff. Anyway, I hope to put if a few more items for this year's garden.

Well, now that most of the garden is in and planted, all i've got to do is keep the weeds out. That should be a fun thing to do.

Stay tuned to "As the Garden Grows" for more exciting news from the world of the not so green thumb.

Auwe! Did I Forget To Update Da Blog?

2009-05-12T09:35:00.000-07:00

You're probably wondering why this blog page hasn't been updated since the start of March. Well, let's see, in March it snowed on and off pretty regularly, and we just put up with the seasonal affects disorder.
As for family stuff, we had a couple of bithdays, one baptism (second eldest grandson) and we sort of schemed as to what we're going to do when the weather gets warmer.
The following month, I took a bus trip to rescue the frozen Minotians and drive them back to the "Promised Land" and a chance to visit with our second daughter and her family. It was an exciting bus trip, and I can truthfuly say that after riding for long stretchs of road across Montana dn North Dakota, I couldn't feel my butt. On the retrun trip, it was a lot better as I drove the family and the weather conditions were much improved.
We had a great visit with our daughter and family. Wow, they sure grow up fast. One of the exciting things was to see their youngest son, Hammy could actually read words. They were all so much fun to be with.
After their departure to California, things got back real quiet. So here we are, preparing for our summer trip soon.
Well, I'll update the blog more often and put some pics in for your enjoyment. On a brighter note, I've enjoyed keeping up with the blogs of our daughters. Their lives and activities are awesome, and we love every bit about our grandchildren.
Well bye for now.

Adventures in Babysitting

2009-03-02T12:27:00.000-08:00

On occassion, we're invited to babysit some of our grandchildren. For us, its a treasured experience. Generally they are well behaved, affectionate by giving us big hugs, always ask permission to do something, and mind our every word. For that, they enjoy the relative confines of a warm home, lots of toys to play with, books to read, and if their parents allow, can watch only approved TV programs. For the more advanced, if their parents allow and with our permission, they can play the eye/hand coordinated game console, PS2.

Our grand children range in ages that keeps us on our toes. Most of the time, we prefer the self maintained ones, already potty trained, pretty much the ones that require low maintenance. Of course we don't neglect them one bit and will see to their needs. Sometimes a treat comes in real handy as a motivator, but we too are concerned about the nutritional impact on these little folks.

We require advance reservation, as much as possible, to insure that the time slot is available for such matters. Perspective grandchildren should be accompanied with the required foods (specially formulated or breast pumped milk, of which is not available at our home), sufficient diapers or pull-ups, change of clothing, etc.

This whole experience is not lost for either the grandchildren or the grandparents. We treasure the little things, noticing how well their creativity has increased, perhaps their recognition of things or words or pictures. We enjoy their bright responses, playful maners, and cooperative spirit when it comes time to put the toys away. We certainly are blessed to have seventeen grandchildren with a new set of twins on the way. It makes us proud to be grandparents.

On Friday, we were invited to babysit our four grandchildren who live less than a block away. Their parents had the opportunity to attend a concert featuring 80's hip hop rap stars (The news reported this event as a big success. It tells you how UT County is far behind the times.) So we got to enjoy the two younger ones who needed our attention while the older two had other interest, like saving the galaxy or something on the PS2. We found that we didn't loose our touch with bottle feeding Ruby or even burpping her. We kept real busy with Teddy until he started to ware down, just in time for bed. So, another successful evening, we survived the grandchildren, and yeah, we still got it!

Catching Up - February 2009

2009-02-27T21:12:00.000-08:00

A week ago, we celebrated our 36th wedding anniversary with a trip to the Grand Canyon in Arizona. The timing was great as we were already tired of the winter here in Utah. (That translates to "too long", "too cold", dull dreary weather, and about every complaint one can have when you aren't enjoying the moment.

So we decided to make a break for what we hoped for as warmer weather with pretty blue sky. Our trip was exciting from the beginning. We got to our hotel in Las Vegas where we saw what seemed to be a row of tents along the street. One would think that maybe this was for a tent sale by some store or perhaps people camping out to get first dibs on ticket sales for some event or concert. As we drove further, we found that this wasn't what it appeared. Down a side street was more tents and people and lots of trash strewn across the street. With windows up and doors locked, we quickly exited the area and found our hotel. When I went to check in, I asked the clerk what were all the tents about? He replied that these were "homeless" people. How sad?

Our stay was safe but it kept us wondering about the safety of that area. Next time, we'll look for a more upscale area. We drove on down towards Boulder and Henderson. We found a new construction of a bridge across the gorge where the Hoover Dam is. The construction was very scary because of the height and cables strewn across the gorge. I'm sure in a couple of years when it is finished, it will be a marvel to behold.

We based our visiting the Grand Canyon from Williams AZ. It is right on US Highway Route 66. The town of Williams had some feature found the the Disney Movie "Cars" complete with gas station, diner, and small town USA features.

The Grand Canyon surely is one of the 7 wonders of the world or country. Jo kept saying it is one be hole in the ground. But to the artist, it has all the makings of beautiful colors and just magnificent.

Since our visit was in the off season, it wasn't crowded at all and we could get up close with great parking access and spend as much time as we wanted at each viewing area. Anyway, here are some pictures of the trip.

Our trip home went through the Navajo Reservation and the town of Cameron AZ on to Page AZ and up into Kanab Utah. Then it was through Zion's National Park and then home to PG. A very long, exhausting, peaceful trip. Hope we get more blue sky on our next trip (California in May).

I'm Loosing Count???

2009-02-04T11:19:00.000-08:00

We usually take time to do inventory work during this month of February. It's our way of taking stock of what we have on hand that hasn't sold or been used. It can get quite detailed, sometimes very tedious. All of this has to do with work but it is not the intention of this posting.

Often friends or acquaintences would ask us how many grandchildren we have. I would do a self check by repeating in my mind the following: Our son has two boys, our eldest daughter has one son and two daughters, our second daughter has four children, three sons and one daughter and is expecting, our third daughter has three sons and one daughter, and youngest daughter has two daughters and two sons. Well according to my calculations, that makes seventeen grandchildren or eleven grandsons and six granddaughters.

For a short time I would respond to any inquiry that we have seventeen grandchildren with number 18 on the way. That's all changed so the correct response should be seventeen grandchildren and three on the way or triplets on the way. Hurray! We'll just have to update the gender category as soon as we find out. How exciting. Their Tutu or Great Grandmother is totally excited, often repeating the need to stock up on daipers. You'd have to meet her and you'll see why she often repeats some profound advice.

I just got through reading my daughter's blog on coming to a realization of having triplets and that is so awesome. Of course, it's an emotional time for her and the family. My wonderful son-inlaw is taking this all in stride. At least he's not flipped out. From an observation standpoint, the biggest decision they have to look forward to is the perspective naming of the triplets and which vehicle to buy that will safely carry the whole family. Now, that's exciting.

Of course something to look forward to is finding a triple stroller, or cute outfits for picture taking, or even the mountains of diapers to stock up on. That's only the minor inconvenience. I am sure this is going to be an exciting time not only for Nikki and Dan but for the three older brothers and older sister, Pookie, Bun, Ham, and Gabby.

Who said life was going to be dull? Know ye not that these are all special spirits chosen to come down to the earth in these the last days? (Had to throw that one in.)

On Sunday, our seventeenth grandchild, Ruby Jo Kaleilanionamoku, was blessed at church. I was privileged to be in attendance as well as her other grandfather. It was a choice moment for our whole family. After the services, we enjoyed a family gathering at Erin's for lunch. Following the lunch, I left to return to my married student ward family, who were still in the Sunday block meetings. They missed me.

I should take time here to recognize our eldest grandson, Christian, turned ten in January. He also won the Pinewood Derby racing with a car he carved out and made by himself. That is awesome. Our third eldest grandson, Pookie, turned seven also in January. He's doing great in school.

We are so proud of all our children and grandchildren. You just have to check out their blogs to keep track on what's happening in their lives. It's always changing and exciting. What we like to do is talk to our family via the telephone or on the video camera link. Everytime I talk to Klailea or Rykell, they have so much to tell me besides seeing their lovely smiles. Our granddaughters Anna and Emily always have lots to tell us on the phone. We're in luck to have George, Henry, Teddy, Ruby and Bubba nearby. We usually get great big hugs from them, and tail whipping from Bubba. I guess that's what grandpa and grandma are here for? We love all our grandchildren, the nearby ones and the ones far away.

So, is it great to have grandchildren? You bet! They are all very special to us.

Fog, Smog and the Yuck!

2009-01-22T21:44:00.000-08:00

It's that lovely time of the year when the dreaded inversion socks it to you. For the past two weeks, we've been living in the fog, smog and it's yucky!. So bad that you can't take a deep breath of fresh air in your lungs. You can smell the exhaust from the vehicles in front of you as though you were personally sucking it direct from the tail pipe. We have to wait for a storm to stir up the air and blow the bad stuff out of the valley. If you go up to the mountains, it is cleaner, clear, and even warmer. But for now, we suffer. I heard a news bit that said that breathing in clean air will lengthen your life span.

Since we are spending more time indoors, we have to keep ourselves amused. So, I took a few video shots to share here. It's from work, at home, and with our pet, Ipo. Hope you enjoy the short bits. I am getting used to my new camera, Nikon D90 of which I acquired from Erin in a trade/sell deal. anyway, it has some neat functions such as video capability besides all the digital photo taking. I have much to learn about the new camera, believe me. Since the air is too yucky to go out and take some pictures, here I'll play with the camera.

With times like this when the weather is awful, we look forward to nicer weather so we can get out to take some pictures. We sure miss the warmth of Hawaii, even with the rain. We miss the clear blue sky of summer, family travel trips, and all the good fun stuff. I guess that's why we put up with the no so spectacular days so we can make the better ones a time to enjoy.

In closing, here is a message meant for our children. She wants to paint more but has no pictures to paint.

Why Does Christmas Have To End So Soon?

2008-12-31T21:48:00.000-08:00

Even though Christmas has past, with snow still on the ground, icicles hanging from the roof, and the outside temperature is 18 degrees, it still feels like Christmas. Well, at least the gift giving or in this case, the celebration of a significant milestone for Erin (30 yrs. old), the season is joyous.

This evening, New Year's Eve, we went to the cultural hall at the chapel, and enjoyed a birthday celebration for Erin and also welcome in the New Year. Well, we left at 10:00PM, our curfew for older, wiser folk. It was a fun event with friends and their families, music by Diamond DJ, food, and fun time visiting with others. I think they're still at it. We brought our grandson Teddy home to put him to bed. He was enjoying the evening and started to tire out.

While we have received Christmas cards for dear friends and family, the news is happy and we are pleased to see others are well and feel blessed. We've heard from friends a long distance away as well as close by. With news posted on blogs, we are able to keep up with the goings on with our loved ones and friends.

So, the purpose of me updating this blog, as the very last moment of the present year 2008, is to let you know that we appreciate and love you for your thoughts and well wishes in our behalf. We miss you, our children, their families, including our 17 grand children, our dear relatives, and friends.

Even though the year has been a down one for many, we feel blessed because of

our family. During the year, we were able to visit with the families of four out of five of our children. And the fifth that we missed, we've been able to keep in touch with them over the phone. So, we're never really far away. Earlier in the year, our eldest daughter Leslie and her family came for a visit at April Conference time. Following her, our youngest daughter Rachel and her family came for a visit. Since our daughter Erin is the only one closest to us, just around the block, each time was a great family visit with the siblings and grand children. During the summer, we travelled to visit our daughter Nicole and her family. Along the way, we met up with our daughter Leslie and her family and enjoyed part of the trip together and again met up at Nikki's home. Wow, all those grand children having fun with their family. That was the big visit until Thanksgiving when Leslie and her family came for a surprise visit. So nice to get together and visit the family.

For Christmas we spent with Erin and her family and enjoyed the time together.

Our joy is with the fact that each of our children have special spouses who are the best eternal companions. They are wonderful in every way, they are the best match for our children, and they make the family special.

So, you see, we are blessed beyond measure. To them, to you all, we wish you the best in the New Year, may joy, peace and love fill your hearts, may you always know of our love for you, and may Heavenly Father bless your lives beyond measure. Hauoli Makahiki hou!

Hustle and Bustle of the Season

2008-12-16T13:18:00.001-08:00

With Christmas just over a week away, winter has manifested itself in such a profound way. At our home we have probably 3 - 4 inches of fresh snow. The high today is about 28 degrees, so that means the snow won't melt as expected.

For me personally, it's a white knuckle type of driving. This morning was no exception. Most people are being cautious, others in big 4 wheeled drive are intimidating and show-offs, and the rest of us just putter our way to work. Well, I was nearly rear-ended several times, just about slid off the road twice, and slid to a sidewalk trying to avoid an idiot who decided to observe an imagineable stop sign. I did avoid that car and made it to work safely.

Today is another busy day at work here on campus. Besides finals being conducted, there are lots of people in need of our assistance. We always try to accomodate them and be polite as possible. Most customers are patient and know that the only person they should blame is themselves for their own procrastination. I venture to say when they leave here, they have a sense of peace and joy, one more thing to check off their list.

On a more profound note, my ward family is going through the stresses of finals, tougher economic times, and trying to make the best of things during the Christmas Season. Sunday was a majorly busy one for me, conducting tithing settlement interviews. The line was long, the time spent was well worth it, and the testimonies of these young families was something to behold.

After a stressful and busy day yesterday, I was expecting a quite evening, for me to catch up on a long list of things. One of my young ward family members came over to drop off a plate of cookies, a gesture of their appreciation and most of all, a way to spread the spirit of Christmas. I had not expected that, even on a cold snowy night. They drove all the way from Provo, found our home here in PG, and they didn't get lost. (Maybe they had a GPS unit or something.) That was truely a blessing in action.

We are blessed to have wonderful children, who are bless with wonderful families. Their lives are simple proof that Heavenly Father loves each one of them. They and we are blessed beyond measure. The joy our grandchildren bring to us can only be measured in the smiles, giggles, and energy they all have. This year has been great to us, we were blessed with two new grandchildren, Wyatt and Ruby Jo. They are number 16 and 17 respectively.

To all our friends, Mele kalikimaka.

Thanksgiving, Family, and Christmas Beginnings

2008-12-01T16:02:00.000-08:00

As the Thanksgiving Holiday approached, we plannned to celebrate the day with our family who live just around the corner and up a block from us. Dinner plans were made a week in advance, who would make what and when. It's also the time we put up our Christmas Tree, and have a family activity.

Then on the Monday, we called our eldest daughter to wish her a happy birthday. She had received her birthday gift (see her blog) and we had a nice visit on the phone. An hour or two later, I get a call from Jo that Leslie, Troy and the kids are travelling down to join us for Thanksgiving, surprise! Wow, it really got things moving, because in our family, when we have more family members to celebrate the holiday, the better the visit. Anyway, it made our holiday week visit, and the grandkids had loads of fun with cousins.

Of course, the Thanksgiving meal was wonderful, and we had fun making sure we had enough dessert. Then of there is planning for Black Friday, which personally didn't excite me at all, so I slept in. But our visit with the family was righteous. Our other daughter Erin setup her photo studio and took our picture, (we'll put it up on the blog in our next post) then used Photoshop to remove the extra bulge and 10+ pounds just for good measure. We had a great time with that.

On the Saturday, we planned to visit Temple Square to see the lights, so did some 50K people at the same time. It was crowded but the lights were really done well.

Well, now that family have left for home, the left overs are almost done, it's clean up, clean-up, you know the song or rhyme. Anyway, here are the picture for your enjoyment.

More New Baby Pics!

2008-11-03T20:43:00.000-08:00

We just returned from visiting our daughter and new granddaughter at the hospital. Both mother and daughter are doing well. Babies always look better after the day they are born. Erin said that the baby was feeding well. Our visit was short but anyway, there will be more time for longer visits when they return home from the hospital. So enjoy the pictures.

A New Granddaughter Arrived!

2008-11-02T20:50:00.000-08:00

The things that matter most in life is family. Family members are generally born in to a family, adopted in, and by choice, choose to marry in to a family. Well, today, we add another family member to our extended family, that of a new baby daughter to Erin and Mark's family. She has the facial features of their youngest son, Teddy, and resembles her older brothers also. We are all excited and mother, daughter and dad are doing fine. Even Grandma and Grandpa survived watching the grandsons and Bubba, the dog. So her are a few pictures hot off the camera within the last hour.

Halloween Fun!

2008-11-01T22:36:00.000-07:00

Halloween is kind of a oxymoron when it comes to living in the middle of Happy Valley. Since we work at the "Y" we have standards to maintain or in keeping with the "honor code." Nevertheless, we aren't the stuffy shirt type, and like to have fun. In my office, I encouraged our workers to dress up for the 31st, and they mostly did their part. Not everyone likes to dress-up in costume because if you have to move about campus, it can be a tedious task, depending on the costume you wear. For the most part, the best is going through the "Wilk" and the bookstore. Their, they even have employees dress up and have a contest. Well, this year was no different, except Jo got the competitive spirit in her and she prepared well, choosing her character, and all the needed costume to portray the character. There were some spooky ones and some well done costumes, all adding to the fun of the day. What do you think of Jo's costume? This year, she won the employee's best costume category, so on Monday, she gets to collect her prize.

With her winning like this, we'll be preparing far in advance for next year's costume contest.

In the evening, we attended our home ward chili dinner and trunk o treat. We had a nice time there and it was fun.

Some members even decorated the trunks of their vehicles for the evening. Last weekend, my married student ward had it's chili cook off with halloween costume dress up. The costumes were great, the chili wasn't. Our members there haven't learned the art of making good chili. Oh well, give them time.

My comment about the oxymoron is because here in the middle of Utah, where the predominant religion is so prevalent, people really like to get into the Halloween dress up. There are seasonal things such as corn maize, haunted houses, and all forms of costume dress up. I saw a couple of people whose costume looked a bit like a cross dresser. I guess, they didn't get the memo or hear the talk relating to the appropriate nature of dressing in your own gender. Now, this is the second time in a row where we've observed this in our home ward. Last year's

contest winner for best costume was a teen dressed up as the opposite gender. I am sure it was all in fun but if you let things become a norm, then you've got bigger challenges.

I enjoyed reading the experiences of our family member's eventful halloween fun.

So, now, it's starting all over again and finding a costume for next year's contest. Enjoy the pictures of Jo's dress up.

2008-10-18T07:53:00.000-07:00

Auwe!

It's been a long time since I last updated this blog. Sorry for the slacker attitude, or forgetfulness. I'll try to keep up more often.

We've been trying to keep up with our family's growth and progress by living vicariously through their blogs and phone calls since most of the family live far away. Their blogs are great. I must say that we are proud of our family members accomplishments. The grandchildren are really awesome and talented. They are living a full life, with the help and guidance of their parents.

Our children are such a blessing and joy to us. Their lives seem so full and productive, just makes us proud and feel good, only one thing, wished they lived closer. Let me share just a couple of tidbits:

Our children, five of them, are trying to be the best parents they can be. They and their spouses take seriously the business of being parents. We are so thankful for their dedication.
In their own way, we see each family making a positive contribution to society by their participation in the community, by example, support, and just being good citizens. We applaud their efforts.
Our children have given us such great grandchildren. Each grandchild is such a special little spirit with gifts and talents that make them so precious in their family. They are so intelligent and are being nurtured by their parents so well. We praise the patience and gentleness of their parents.
In their own lives, our children have excelled knowing that there is so much more to life to learn, enjoy, and live. They have not even come close to meeting their full potential and that makes their lives so exciting. With support and encouragement of their wonderful spouses, our children are actively participating in such things as neighborhood co-ops, developing a small production business of such things as beaded socks for little girls, leading a special interest group in archiving or scrapbook making, promoting healthier living though leading a weekly aerobics class, starting ones own photography business specializing in portraits and weddings, home schooling, and food storage through home canning and much more. We marvel at their capacity to help their spouses meet the needs of the family, and making the family the top priority.
Their spouses are so patient, supportive, kind, talented, and above all awesome.
They have made Heavenly Father a vital part of their lives through following his commandments and teaching their children to walk uprightly before God. They and their spouses fulfill callings in their home wards and are active in their attendance. Our grandchildren are learning from the examples of their parents. We are grateful for all their examples.

You and they are wondering who I've been writing about to are doing all these good and great things. Well, they don't have to be shy or embarrassed. Just keep on being the wonderful people they each are. We are so happy to be part of yours and our family.

I have so much to catch up on and pictures to post. Later . . . .

Road Trip Highlights and Lowlights !

2008-07-30T20:23:00.000-07:00

When you take a road trip, plan to have a purpose, like seeing some sights, taking pictures, visiting friends or family or both, enjoying the ambiance, food, and finding all the rest stops that have clean bathrooms. No matter how you plan, small family, large family, here is always the unexpected rest stops. So, our trip was filled with excitement and purpose.

This time around, we were especially conscious of the price of gas at each stop. After filling up, getting a large fountain drink, something to nibble on while driving, and listening to the GPS say "Recalculating, recalculating, repeatedly," we were ready to roll. If we happen to come across a sizeable community, we looked for a Wal Mart or a JoAnns. Those are landmarks you just don't pass up.

Our nation is so large and the landscape is different in each area we travelled. That is what so neat, that you can drive for miles and see different things. If it gets boring, say such as from Evanston to Rawlins, WY, we were prepared for the silent times, so we listened to a good book on CD. It captured our imagination and was interesting. We've come to appreciate that no matter how different our interest or talents, listening to a good book on CD during a road trip helps to make the trip enjoyable. While I drove, Mom crochetted (sp).

So, here are some pics we took along the way. Hope you enjoy them.

From top to bottom, they are:

Giant tire rim turtle

Canola oil field

Storm approaching

Thunderstorm brewing

Huddling cattle

Devils Tower

Independence Rock

Devils Gate (near Martins Cove)

Road Trip Pics

2008-07-29T18:46:00.001-07:00

On our trip, we were joined by Troy, Leslie, and the children, little buddy, Anna, and Emm. Then we arrived at frozen north to stay with the W family. Again, thanks to the hospitality of Dan, Nikki, Pookie, Gabby, Bun, and Ham, we had an enjoyable time. Seeing all those grandchildren in one place or at the same time was awesome. They played, enjoyed each other's company, made friends, and gave Grandma and I all big, big hugs. Seeing them grow up is awesome.

The best question asked to Grandma, by Pookie, "Do you have any children?" They were being introduced to the fact that they were related, and how that came about.

Here are the cousins giving us their best smiles.

Shopping at the co-op in Canada was fun, especially for the young folks because they had shopping carts just their size. Here, we were looking for all dressed chips, smarties, and anything unique. We had a blast.

ROAD TRIP !

2008-07-28T15:16:00.000-07:00

I don't exactly know when I asked our daughter Leslie to plan a family reunion for all the siblings that live on the mainland. Well, as time marched on, we had an inkling of an idea to hold some sort of family get together. Trying to coordinate everyones schedule was the hardest challenge. In the end, we had to make some alterations and call it a vacation trip or road trip instead of a reunion.

Rachel and her family could only come in June and they did so. Any later than that, then she wouldn't be allowed to travel, our grandson Wyatt is soon to arrive. Also our daughter Erin is expecting, making long road trips a bit of a challenge, plus Mark's new job is a priority. So, in the end, we asked Erin to watch the Ipo doggie while we left for North Dakota. Praise to Erin for watching the Ipo doggie because Mom was really concerned the whole trip. The only thing Erin needs to work on is learning how to spot the vegetables among the growing weeds in the garden. I checked it yesterday, and came away with several large zucchinis and tomatoes.

Prior to leaving, we coordinated our trip with Leslie, Troy, and the family. We planned to meet up in Buffalo, WY. They had their agenda and made it to Wyoming alright. We did alright, making it to the hotel earlier in the day. We had a fun time visiting and had dinner together. The next morning, we switched navigators, little buddy was my first officer and worked the navigation using the Garmin GPS, or as Mom called it, "your lady." It has a ladies voice giving directions.

Little buddy and I drove to Devils Tower National Monument and waited for the rest of the family to finish their fabric shopping to join us. We had a great time. I was very impressed with little buddy's rightfulness or honesty. We had the opportunity to park in a more convenient spot using Mom's handicapped parking placard, but little buddy thought that wouldn't be honest, so we didn't use the parking card. He did a great job navigating.

After visiting the monument, the rest of the family caught up and then we split up again, this time, Mom and I drove to North Dakota to Minot, while the rest of the family went further into the Black Hills of South Dakota. Later they came up to Minot and we again had a grand time with all the children playing together. We had a fun visit with our Minotian family.

We celebrated Bun's birthday early so the family could participate, visited Canada, looked for missile silos (interesting stuff), visited the North Dakota State Fair, and visited, shopped, and played together. We thank Nikki and Dan and their family to sharing their home with us. We certainly enjoyed our visit and sad to have to part again. We miss them all. Those evenings playing "Catch Phrase" was a lot of fun.

On our trip home, we did a photography shoot of the countryside, and visited Yellowstone NP. It was a beautiful place to visit. We finally made it home and are glad we did.

Gas prices were high but not as high as I thought they would be, lowest was $3.88 in Wyoming, highest in South Dakota at $4.25 and the average was at $4.099. We did our best to find the cheapest places off the main roads. We're glad to make it home, everything was alright, and we need some rest now.

I'll post more pictures of the trip later.

"the grass is always greener"

2008-07-11T13:21:00.000-07:00

We recently celebrated the "4th of July" Independence Day. The warm weather made it more of a necessity to stay in doors or go to a beach. Here in PG, we don't have a beach.Our daughter Erin and her family headed to camp up in the mountains. We used to love camping, when the family was younger and for economic reasons. Now that the children are grown, have their own families, and moved away, we don't camp much. If we do, it's at places like La Quinta, Ramada, Days Inn, etc.

Now there are some upsides to camping out doors, such as fresh air, building an out door fire, roasting hot dogs, marshmellows, making smores, etc. There's also the fun of setting up tents, packing everything but the kitchen sink, sleeping bags, bug repellant, food, ice chests, etc. Then there is the camp itself with bugs, bears, both in the tent and outside, finding a suitable potty, and the lack of all the conveniences of home.

Bottom line, if you like to camp out doors, have fun and have at it. Enjoy nature, the great out doors, and all the blessings of a fun camp. For those who don't anymore, be at peace indoors, with the cable TV, nearby refrigerator, a comfy bed, and a convenient potty.

Now moving on, ever since we decided to install our own automatic sprinkler system, I've been consumed with getting it put it. First there was the city charging us automatically for "secondary water" usage, even if we didn't yet use it, having to design the layout, getting all the parts, and more parts, the trenching, laying the polypiping, clamps, valves, funny pipe, connection tees, etc., etc.

Once you lay it out, install it, you've got to test it, hook up the wiring, and then its burying the trenches so the dog doesn't fall in it. It's on and on. With an automatic sprinkler system, the intent is that the water will come on when you want it to and you don't have to drag the water hose around.

So, what I've learned is that doing it yourself does save you money. Because we're doing it ourselves, we also get obsessed with making it do everything we want it to do, such as having 7 watering stations with the possibility of adding in another one in the future. All of the stations are wired in to the timer controls conveniently installed in the office. If I had purchased a different timer box, I could have had it controlled through our PC. Isn't that the height of laziness or is it a sign of technology in action?

Since we're on the last stages of completing the job, here are a few things I experienced:

If your clamps aren't secure, the hose will come off the connections and water will explode everywhere.

Polypipe is a hose but it's tough to insert connection tees or elbows. PVC is straight forward and cost less.

Water pressure varies at different times of the day due to others accessing the same water source, so adjusting your sprinkler spray can be tricky.

Trying to take advantage of this cheap water source can make one obsessed to dream up, design, and attempt to install water feeds to various portions of the garden or yard.

Burying the trenches as soon as you can will allow for your lawn to recover soonest.

What do you do with all those rocks that the trencher brought up?

You probably still have to get some topsoil to fill in some portions of the trench and grow some grass from seed. Last resort is to buy sod and trip and fill places.

So now that you've heard my rantings and ravings, I need to thank a few people who have helped make our yard what it will become shortly and not a yard of "death".

Mark, for helping with the bulk of the work, like helping with the trenching and wiring.
Erin, for telling make to come and help.
Jo, for trying to help with the filling in the trenches, even with her being tired and aching and for insisting to install the sprinkler system.
Jase, for spending some of his vacation helping to fill in the trenches and install a couple of sprinkler heads.
Grandkids Klailea, Rykell, George, Henry, and Teddy, for picking up rocks from the yard.
Bubba and Ipo for laying down a few mines in the yard.

One day soon, we hope that the great lawn will be revived enough to resemble a yard again without weeds and be green with lush Kentucky Bluegrass. We hope the well worn foot path that Ipo has made along the back of the house will be filled in with lush grass. And lastly that our yard will look like a realy yard for the grandkids to enjoy.

The 4th, sprinkler heads, recovery, dog sitting, and fireworks

2008-07-04T18:00:00.000-07:00

Today is the 4th of July and like many, we are taking it easy on this holiday. We turned down an opportunity to join Erin & Mark and the boys camping up at Granite Flats in AF Canyon. I bet the temperature is at least 5 - 10 degrees cooler than here in PG.

Since we didn't go camping, we get to dog sit the "huli-huli" black dog, Bubba. He is high energy, puppy type and tries to rule everything in the house, even the likes of Ipo.

Today, I didn't make it to the annual hot air balloon lift off in Provo, or even the big Freedom Festival Parade. We aren't even going to the big Stadium of Fire show at Cougar Stadium with Miley Cyrus. Tickets for that were long gone on the day they first came out with them.

So, instead, tonight we will be walking down to the Junior High to watch the city fireworks show. I am going to try some night photography of the fireworks. Hope they come out well.

Since Rachel and Jase and family left, our home has been quiet and with hardly any activity but working on the sprinkler system after work every day. The major part is done and I still need to finish the great lawn area, a drip system for the terrace area, and a feeder line out to the garden area. Mark and Jase helped alot, so when it is done, I won't have to get up at all hours to do irrigation.

I've included some pictures of Rachel's family visit here to Utah. It was great to see them and enjoy the kids. They are so smart and fun. We had fun at the PG Strawberry Days carnival. The kids had a blast. We also got to celebrate Klailea's birthday a little early since they were here with family. The kids really enjoyed the games and treats that Rachel set up.

It was sad to see them leave for Hawaii. We don't get to see them much but this time, it was just great getting to know our granddaughters and grandson. And how fast they grow up.

We hope you all have a great 4th of July celebration and a safe one.

Spring fixup or trenching for rocks?

2008-06-16T10:01:00.000-07:00

Usually by this time of the year, it's time to kick back, enjoy the warm weather on the golf course, and maybe grill some Tri-tip or stuff like that. This year was no exception but for one thing. I opened a piece of mail from the city, usually containing my monthly water and sewer billing. I noticed that as of the beginning of the month, I am being charged for pressurized irrigation, "no matter if I use it or not." Our community has gone through great lengths to dig up the streets and lay pipe for this irrigation water. Now, they've got most of the city and our neighborhood has access to that water.

Well, the push is for residents to use the pressurized irrigation water instead of culinary water for outdoor use, such as your lawns and gardens. Our old antiquated system included the manual mode of turning on the sprinkler (of which only three heads put out any water). The back up system consisted of dragging the water hose from spot to spot to water the lawn.

So, why hold back on progress? The city installed a connection box on our property. I just have to hook up the yet to be installed water sprinkler system. This is a project for guys, to design the sytem, acquire all the parts, go back for more parts, dig up the yard, lay pipe or poly hose, go back for more parts, etc., etc. Generally, this is not a male bonding type activity, the only fun part of the experience is seeing your system work, or playing in the water and mud.

After doing some of the main planning and scheduling, the time came to trench the yard. I rented a trencher, unloaded it in the driveway, and tried to remember all the instructions the company gave me. I started to trench the front yard. I had hopes of completing the work in 4 hours or less.

I spent nearly the entire 4 hours in the front yard alone. Our yard was meant to withstand the test of time. I can say now that as the scriptures tell of the man who built his house on the sand and compared to the man who built his house on the rock, there is blessings and lessons to learn about that concept. Our house was built upon the "rocks and lots of tree roots." I started to trench and kicked up or back, numerous rock and had to cut through lots of roots.

The trencher is a big machine and it is very hard to maneuver. With Mark's help, we finally got all the yard trenched. It was such a mess, that even Ipo stumbled into a trench or two.

I though that once the trenching was done, the hard part was over. Not the case, I had to somehow get a line under our sidewalk in two places. I found that you can't use one of those whimpy tools that uses a water hose to blast through under the side walk. Lots of rocks were used as a foundation for the brick sidewalk. A more appropriate machine would be to use an air hammer with a two foot bit powered by a commerical compressor. At over $200 a day plus the rental of the compressor, the price was too high and restrictive. So, to plan C or D, I got a breaker bar with a pointed tip to hammer through the 4 foot and 3 foot sections. It took Mark and I most of an evening to get through the rocks. Then the bar was stuck, so we had to borrow a chain to use to tie to the bar and the back of the pickup truck to pull out. We did this several times before we were done.

Still to this moment, we have only gotten to half of the front yard. Of course it would have been inappropriate to be pounding away with a sledge hammer on Sunday, so we rested with a great Father's Day celebration. Great family visit from the Bennetts of Laie and the Summerill's of 900 N in PG and Bubba, their dog. Roast beef dinner, grand kids galore, and both lemon marainge pie and strawberry pie to top of the day. Wow, great day at our home. I also received calls and well wishes from our two daughter who live out of state and their family. A great news is that our daughter Erin, who has 3 boys, will be having a girl later this year. Wow, what a blessing.

So, here are a few pictures of the mess and work yet to be completed, also some of the grand kids. Oh, since my last posting, we've finally put in central air conditioning. Now the downstairs is an ice box. This week, we are removing the swamp cooler and package air conditioning unit from the roof and repairing the roof to prevent more roof leaks in our ceiling. Later we are finally moving ahead with putting a roof on the block house for storage items, and if the cost is down, converting our present wood and wire fences along the side of our home with a chain link fence. Of course, we have to finish on the water sprinkler system first. Maybe, if the price of fuel drops, we will venture out this summer on a trip with our family, to "Why Not, Minot?"

special note ** I try to keep up with the family blogs of our family. I want to commend them for their diligence and also for the good news of what's happening in their families. They are never forgotten and I do enjoy their news and content. We miss them all and am thankful that they have wonderful spouses and children. This is the price you pay for eternal happiness.

California Dreaming

2008-05-19T22:24:00.000-07:00

We've been having a busy month and before I get so far behind, I thought I would update the blog page. Generally with the end of the Winter Semester at school, we sort of wind things down to a low boring work day, week, month, etc. However, ever since the end of the semester, things at home, church, and work have picked up. Boy, we couldn't wait to get out of town during the first weekend of May, since it was the same time as Women's Conference. So, when the opportunity came, we took it.

Our trip out of town took us to Southern California via Sin city for a rest stop. I think the m

ost pressing thing was not the destination or the drive, or where to stop

and eat, etc., but how much the price of gas was going to hurt us. Since we were splitting the cost of gas on this trip, we looked hard to find good reasonable prices as well as strategic stop areas. I think it was one of our relaxing trip since we were sharing the driving and could keep ourselves entertained during the drive down. Boy, a car dvd player is a sure must for any long trip. It keeps the young passengers entertained, as well as the adults who are riding in the middle of the car. Those driving or in the front seat had the responsibility to keep awake and be a navigator, sort of. With today's technology, we were helped by a Garmin GPS which led us all the way to our destination. Except for one software glitch, we were led exactly to where we wanted to go. Those GPS units are so convenient, portable, and have cool map features and can talk to you.

Our main purpose for the trip was to have a family gathering at Aunt Fredda's and her family. We had a lovely time and did our best to make good use of our time by shopping at mall outlets, and swap meets. We visited with the family and had an enjoyable time.

Then, our secondary purpose of the trip was to go to the Magic Kingdom. We made every preparation to make the most of our one day trip to Disneyland, and planned accordingly. The preparation was just as fun as all the rides and walking around in Disneyland. I don't think you could go wrong when you take your family to a place like Disneyland.

To take advantage of timing and standing in long lines, we got a motorized wheel chair for Jo so she didn't have to walk, and I didn't have to push her around the park. She just drove where ever she wanted to go. At every major ride attraction, we went to the exit line and got on the ride as a handicap with her entourage. Except for the wait at Pirates of the Carribean, the wait for a ride were reasonable. We also took advantage of flex passes, which are cool.

What a fun and tiring day we had but we all made it.

Then it was the trip home and that was only bearable with watching a movie or two or three.

So here are some photos of our gang in Southern California.

Who Knew This Would Happen One Day?

2008-05-15T10:14:00.000-07:00

Who one is and what he or she stands for is perhaps taken for granted or assummed. That could make a person a "red" state or "blue" state citizen, say in an election year. Perhaps it could indicate one's religion that is differentiated from another, say in the case of the furror over polygamy. It could single you out as a meat eater or vegetarian, or tree hugger and environmentalist versus a a less conservative consumer of traditional values. Are you confused or bored yet? Let me continue here.

During the past week or two, we took our family trip to California and enjoyed the sights, visited family, and had a great time. When we got home, I downloaded our treasured pictures to my computer and all was well, at least I felt it was. The PC hadn't let me down and I was anxious to get some post to the blog to share the trip with you all. Then as the weekend was beginning, I fired up the PC and started to get some weird happenings that just got worse as I tried to figure out what was happening. I was getting nowhere and consulted Dan to help me figure it out. After several desperate but failed attempts, I even requested the help of the extreme fixer of computer problems, Bun, the hard drive format wizard extraordinaire. Even trying desparate measures myself such as system restore or system save, etc., no such luck. I felt that all was lost, so I took the cpu to a repair business just up the street, Computer Confidence, to help salvage by important stuff first, and fix my cpu next. After waiting the weekend, David was able to retrieve my important files, but when trying to reload Windows on my cpu, it became evident that all was lost, a motherboard system failure. Tragic and heartbreaking, repairs really could not warrant rebuilding the old cpu. Time to move on and let the past go.

Living with the loss was harder because searching for a suitable replacement brought many challenges. Yeah, just replace the cpu unit, well that's possible, maybe move on to a laptop to replace the desktop, likely if the price was within reason, or just getting a new desktop, probably the most logical. Afterall, I still have my software, so I wouldn't have to purchase them again. Except for the Windows XP, that was preloaded on to the hard drive, I had only the liscence but not the disks.

Well, the search was on, newspaper ads, online ads, local businesses, just about everywhere within reason.

My vision of a replacement desktop is perhaps a laptop or even desktop with a larger hard drive size plus an LCD screen, sufficient USB ports, etc., etc. I have all the PC software I use and it would be easy to load them again.

After much searching and discouragement, I happen to checkout the BYU Bookstore computer section and even lamented on the selections available. A couple of the laptops looked pretty descent but weren't appealing enough for a second indepth look. While talking to one of the workers, I was lamenting that the Dell special for BYU discount was still very pricey. Anyway, while there, he pointed me to the Apple computers, and at first, I didn't think this was going anywhere. I was a confirmed PC user and didn't feel that moving to Apple was a possibility. But while there, he pointed out that because the Apple's were using Intel chips to power their computers, it was now able to run PC software as well as Apple. REVALATION !!.

Seeing the display was awesome, then being told that the LCD display unit also housed the cpu, and everything in it except for the keyboard, I was awestruck. It was like the click and the lights were on, or should I say that the monitor made its case. It had all the jazzed computer get up and go, a decent sized hard drive, and all the connectivity I would need, plus the built it webcam, microphone, and sound speakers. It replaced my tower cpu unit, large flat screen monitor, and keyboard, I now have room available to spare and the best part is that I don't need any of the cords and cable connections. The iMAC rocks!

I am impressed with the visual clarity and presentation. I am getting used to the simplicity, ease of use, and plug and play capability. As for my PC software, well, I started loading them on and they work just fine. WOW, who knew that one day I would change my allegiance from PC to Apple. That thought is scary, almost tempting for a "red" state diehard to go "blue" state in this year's elections, or even giving up the sacred "rice" for vegetarian (mashed potatoes), etc., etc. Well, as Forrest Gump would say, "Well that's all I've got to say about that!"

Mother Remembered, a Tribute

2008-05-13T09:11:00.000-07:00

This post will most likely be a lengthy one, so if you get bored or tired of reading the whole thing, you have my permission to bale on me. There have been Mom's that have made an impact in my life and certainly deserve their due recognition.

I would like to start with my own Mom, Florence. Born in the early 1920's, in a rural sugar plantation town or Ookala, to a Chinese immigrant worker and a Hawaiian mother, she was the third or fourth child in a family of nine children. Grandfather affectionately called her his little "LiChin". As the family grew in number, She was "hanai" to her aging Grand Aunt to help and assist and to live with her. This was a tremendous strain on Florence who took on the duties of most major household duties. She learned to love her Grand Aunt and developed a greater understanding of the gospel under her care. On occassion, she would travel by train to her family for weekend visits. Envied by some of her siblings, she kept to the family commitment to serve as the "hanai" for her Grand Aunt. Later as a young adult, she worked in a sandwich shop in Honolulu prior to the war. She was there when Pearl Harbor was attacked and had to live under curfew and marshall law many months after the attack. When it was safe, she secured passage back to the Big island to return to her family. Towards the end of the war, she contracted Tuburculosis and was confined to the old Pumaile Hospital. Though she was treated until no longer contagious, she never regained her full strength and vigor.

Several years later while attending a church dance, she met my dad. It was more like they were matched together by a missionary couple who grew to become among their dearest friends. It was remembered years later that Mom was somewhat less refined in the social graces of dating, while Dad was older, old fashion and shy. Mom and Dad married locally and a year later were sealed in the Laie Temple and I was sealed to them.

I think her life was a challenging one to begin with and even in the early years of marriage, she worked hard to help raise us children. Life on the plantation was a new experience. One of her redeeming qualities was that she had a great desire to learn to be a better homemaker. The luna's wife would hold homemaking get together for the neighborhood ladies, and mom would find new recipies. She would attend local university extension homemaking classes, all with us children in tow. When she learned how to bake, juice, preserve, etc., it became an instant family activity. The whole family engaged in picking the fruits and she would prepare them for juice, canning and freezing. After all, we lived in a home that was surrounded with most tropical fruit trees available that included mangos, bananas, macadamia nut tree, guavas, passion fruit, mountain apple, etc., etc. If we didn't have enough guava, she led the whole family out to the costal road to pick fruits along the highway. She directed and we picked.

Of her many accomplishments, she always delighted the family and extended family with her baking and fruit juices. As a way to supplement the family needs, we engaged in raising chickens, some 60 plus. It also became a total family project to feed and water them, collect eggs, butcher them for eating, and many memorable needs. Once nearing Thanksgiving, a close family friend were in need of a thanksgiving bird, so Mom had Dad butcher the largest bird we had, and it was close to the size of a normal Turkey. Needless to say, the bird did the job. Mom never successfully learned how to drive. She tried once but Dads blood pressure rose too high to continue the lessons and it made her too nervous. She looked out for the needs of the family. When we needed a new shirt, she shopped for material and took us and it to a dress maker friend who sewed the shirt. I have to say that a corn cobbed print aloha shirt is alright for Iowa or Nebraska but unreal for the islands. We were given chores to help around the house. There was the dishes, dinner table, cleaning the house, mopping, making our beds, yard work, etc. In her wisdom, she wanted us to learn some of the basic skills to be able to take care of ourselves when we grew up.

We grew up being very close to our relative, I mean, we visited, spent time and did activities together. It was always a time of sharing when you visited. Either we brought something to share or brought home something that was given to us. All of this was more in the way of food stuff, such as say bananas, mangos, guavas, vegetables, fish, etc. Eh! you like some? I can remember visiting Grandma Ah Ching when a major sugar strike was making people unemployed, as we were leaving, my Uncle James help haul a 100# bag of rice to put in the car as we were leaving. In many ways, we shared and help to take care of each other.

In the camps, families organized themselves to participate in feeding the community. When it was our camp's turn, she went with the other wives to cook and prepare meals for the community, sort of like a soup kitchen but the food was far better than a soup kitchen. Efforts like these brought families and the whole community together.

Later as a teen, we often thought that Mom lacked many of the social graces at times. It sometimes was evident that this was happening when she would show us her false teeth, more as a way to make us laugh or share a light moment. Her heart is always large for the ones she loved, he family.

Though she had a hard childhood, she still loved her family. When Uncle James passed away, all alone, Mom invited Grandma Ah Ching to come live with us. As I remember it, it was a relief to Mom's other siblings. i don't know if there was any other reasons, perhaps to recapture the life with her mom that she had very little of, but looking back on that time, it was the best decision for the entire family. I certainly remember that we children were given strict instructions to never ask Grandma for money, or to ask favors to buy something special for any of us. If she did, it was her decision and without any coercing. That was a great time for us. I know Grandma loved living with us. Wherever we went, she went. So things such as church attendance and activities, family activities, shopping, or holoholo, she loved it. We loved Grandma Ah Ching who was always gracious, loving, and helpful. Grandma would make visits to her other children but was always in a hurry to get home. Now, it wasn't because they treated her bad or anything, just that she preferred being at home.

As for family activities, we often went to the beach, if you can call Pine Tree a beach. It is more like a rocky coast where we would fish, a sport she dearly loved. In joint family activities with our relatives, we enjoyed fishing as a sport, and fun times for both the adults and the children. Sometimes we would pick kupipi's or sea shells from the large lava rocks. Later when we got home, Mom would prepare them and we would sit around the table eating them, along with whatever fish we caught. Her love for shore fishing was so evident when on several occassions, we would see the waves building and come crashing against the rocks she was standing on, swamping her at times but never dulling her spirit for the sport.

I don't think Mom received any special recognition for any accomplishments other than the most important, that of her own family. She's endeared herself to several close family friends, many distant relative, and many missionaries. I remember she doing laundry for missionaries who were assigned to our area. i don't know if she received any monetary compensation but we certainly grew up learning to befriend the missionaries and sharing our home and table with them. Still to this day, many past missionaries recall her generosity and aloha.

She was there for our sealing iin the Temple at Laie when no other family members could be in attendance. With the marriages of her children, she's visited and travelled many places to even go beyond the island shores, even to foreign countries. Most times, it was when a new grandchild was born, where she felt she could help around the home. Her visits have been memorable and a special opportunity for her grandchildren to get to know her. Since we lived in various places, she's come to visit us in Mississippi, England, and California, not counting Oahu.

With Dad's passing 10 years ago, her life has changed. She is lonely now because he was her love, support, and constant companion. Her health has deteriorated, her memory somewhat faded, but her presence is still strong. Her memories are now being filled with that of her Grandchildren and Great Grandchildren. Boasting of the number of moopunas she now has is a favorite of hers. She inquires on the health and status of each grandchildren and greatgrandchildren. As the numbers keep increasing, she is ever so proud of her family.

Thank you Mom, for all that you are, and have been to me and our family. We love you.

April, Springtime and Birthdays

2008-04-08T11:16:00.000-07:00

Here are six of our fifteen grandchildren, during a recent visit to Pleasant Grove.

I find it hard to believe that it is springtime already because we haven't had any spring like weather to cheer about. Yesterday, it snowed about an inch in the afternoon. We have fruit trees to prune and a garden to prepare yet. That's not to mention all the repair work that needs to be done at home. So, spring is just a figment of ones wishful thinking.

What is true is that our daughter Leslie and children came for a week visit from Washington State. It was great to see them and the children sure enjoyed visiting with Erin's boys and dog. They came to attend General Conference and visit the family and friends in the area.

While here, they visited, shopped, sewed, toured, baked, ate, and cooked. It was a fun visit but ended all too soon. We wished all our visiting children lived relatively closer.

They got in some good sightseeing and made good use of their time. While here, we celebrated Jo's birthday with a party. Local family and some friends attended. Jo had her choice of having as many friends attend as her age. We tried to get to use the cultural hall at the meetinghouse but felt that it wasn't necessary.

We dare not put any candles on the cake for fear it would ruin the appearence.

Anyway, we had a nice visit with those who attended, ate dinner, dessert, played games, and let the kids watch a video.

Now that everyone's left, things are so quiet here. Even Ipo is saddened by the departure of the family.

From observing the visit and interaction of the cousins, I'd say that they all had a good time together. Our home was noisey, messy with toys scattered all over the place, and we even retreated to using paper plates so we wouldn't have to spend much time doing dishes.

We certainly enjoyed the visit and the opportunity to visit with each one. Emily is very loving and energetic when she's had enough rest or nap. Anna is very bright and loves to be considerate and playing games on the computer. Christian is very intelligent and helpful. He is looked up to by his younger cousins. George is very social and loves to be with his brother Henry and cousin Christian. They all play the PS2 very well. Henry seems to fit in just fine with any group and is bright. As for Teddy, he has now accepted me and can give me the reaffirmation or "high five" and loves to show me he can. We are so blessed to have these grandchildren and those who were not able to be here.

"Nikki Tikki Tavi"

2008-03-27T11:43:00.000-07:00

Have you heard the story of Rikki tikki tavi? Its about a mongoose who lives in the wild. Well, when our family was younger, the name rhymed with one of our daughters whose birthday we celebrate today. So, in honor of her birthday, this blog is for YOU, Nikki!

Happy Birthday, your 31st. Our first three children were born in the deep south, Mississippi, on the Gulf Coast. It was a nice place to live if you could stand the high humidity or the threat of hurricanes. Other than that, it was a fun place to be.

About the time you were born, your Grandparents from Hawaii came for a visit. It was a timely visit since we were beginning to make preparations to move to England. It became a cozy visit with all of us living in a two bedroom duplex.

When we moved to England, you and your siblings were adored by our neighbors and ward member friends. We did a bit of traveling to see the sights as part of our stay in England. You gained another sibling, Erin, and did much to help with her upbringing.

We then moved to Hawaii. The trip back was very eventful with your Mom holding on to four children in that long move. She didn't rest until you got to California to meet the family there. She dressed you girls all in identical outfits so as not to loose any of you. You enjoyed the high dessert country of Apple Valley and got to go to Disneyland and other attractions. When I arrived, we continued our trip to Hawaii where we met up with your Hawaii relatives. We lived on "fruitloop" circle and once again, you gained another sibling, sister Rachel. It was apparent that as your baby sister grew, your parents had a hard time telling your baby pictures apart and would often refer to you both as the twins. You loved the beach, playing T-ball, and soccer. You got really tanned there and had very special time mingling in with your native cousins and family.

We then moved back to England and there you met up with previous friends. You and your older sister started taking up piano lessons and you progressed very well. You had a couple of recitals and loved to play the piano. Of course, we had several pianos during that period of time until we decided on one. You loved the area, culture, and many friends there.

We then moved to California where living in the neighborhood you became industrious. You dilivered newspapers, earned passes to Magic Mountain for upping subscriptions of newspaper, continued piano lessons, made new friends, help keep your baby sister amused with productions of "The Little Mermaid" by inviting the neighbor children to view the production in our driveway, and above all, made a profit by selling refreshments such as otter pops, candy, cookies, etc. I don't think you had a business liscense but were very successful. Just as you were becoming comfortable with the friends and life in California, your parents moved the family to Hawaii,

The transition was probably the hardest because of the adjustments. Remember living in the tiny two bedroom duplex? Remember the exciting time crushing empty aluminum cans, eating peanuts, and drinking sprite soda with your relatives? Remember spending the summer sleeping in a tent in the yard when Sally came to visit from England? I know those were only some of the fun times but you can't forget the scene when in middle school, you were told that you couldn't use a particular "Ladies Restroom" because "only Filipinos" could use that one and if you or your sister Erin did, you would get beat up? Then I told you that you should tell them that you are part Filipino. How can you forget those memories? Of course it was fun to be with family and we had a lot of good times there.

Then our family had a family council and decided that they wanted to move "again" this time back to the mainland. Your Mom and Dad went to scope out the possibilities in Utah and took a trip there. When they returned, they had bought a home and the family was once again on the move. Of course, as time would tell, it was for the last time up to this point in time.

You represented the family well in the Miss PG Pagent a couple of times, and was well supported by your family and friends. You also got to use your talents in local theater productions, you even worked at the Alhambra Theater, got the family cheap tickets and refreshments, and learned you were allergic to lilies. But the best part of all, you prepared and sent in your papers to go on a mission. That evening you went on a date with a certain retrun missionary who lived just a block away. You knew he was the one, told the Stake president you had second thoughts, and retracted your application. The rest, well, he made a fine addition to the family, especially offering in exchange or bargaining 39 cows for your hand.

There's more to the story but I won't go into that all at this time but perhaps another time. Besides Dan, there was Pookie, then G, and then Bun, and of course Ham. Who said your or us weren't blessed. Your whole life as well as your siblings has been a blessing. Happy Birthday!

Capturing A Picture On Canvas

2008-03-25T11:31:00.000-07:00

This blog post is a tribute to JoMama. She has been the gem of our family and marriage. Even from the first time we met, she has always been an inspiritation, fun to be with, strives for perfection, enjoys life, family, Ipo doggie, and friends. Anyone who has ever gotten to know her will tell you of how talented she is, yet in her modest being, she'll tell you the opposite.

Who do you call when your without the right ingredients for a special dish you're making? JoMama, that's who!
Who do you call or go to when you need something special sewn? JoMama, that's who!!
Who do you call when you need to repair a treasured yellow, quilted, blanket? JoMama, that's who!
Who do you call when you need your trousers hemmed or button moved on the collar? JoMama, that's who!
Who do you know that once wore combat boots and bopped dits? JoMama, that's who!
Who do you know that wrote and compiled and published her own recipe book? JoMama, that's who!
Who do you know that has more fabric for quilting, humanitarian projects and other clothing? JoMama, that's who!
Who made the quilt that graces the top of you bed? JoMama, that's who!
Who do you know that reupholstered several pieces of furniture in our home? JoMama, that's who!
Who do you go to and have your papers or resume reviewed for correct english? JoMama, that's who!
Who do you know that made your picture/memory quilts? JoMama, that's who!
Who do you know in the family that has a birthday that's comming up on April 8th? Guess carefully!
and now, who do you know is having a rebirth in painting? READ the rest, you make the call!

We have a couple of talented grandchildren who like to color and draw on paper. Give them a piece of paper and a crayon, and they start to express themselves. On a couple of occasions, I've stopped by the big huge print presses that we have in the department and pickup some large sheets of paper that are used to calibrate the print colors on a job. The guys there usually have a fair amount of blank sheets that they let me have. Then when the grandchildren are visiting, they get lots of joy from coloring on the large sheets. Thus is born a future artist. If guided and nurtured, they will learn to express their imagination and won't worry about coloring and staying inbetween the lines.

Let me share with you some of Jo's recent paintings. Before we got married, she did some painting and learned to express her imagination. What she accomplished was capturing on canvas, some of the beautiful sights we've seen in our travels. Even more fun is to stop and look out and see a beautiful scene and want to record that with a camera and then later put that same picture to canvas with oils. So, enjoy and be proud of what Jomama has done. Maybe some of these will one day hang in your living room or maybe in an art gallery.

Catching Up!

2008-03-24T15:32:00.000-07:00

These aren't real eggs but actually rocks that have been polished into eggs. They were on display at the Rock and Mineral show at the Spanish Fork Fairgrounds. But look how pretty they are.

I realize Easter has come and gone and all that's left are the regrets from eating too much candy or Easter dinner. It's not the same if you don't have a bunch of grandkids to help with coloring Easter eggs or making baskets or hiding them for the egg hunt. With the early Easter celebration this season, we just overlooked a bunch of the fun of Easter. There are two of our grandsons who celebrated their birthday together on Friday afternoon.

I really have to compliment our daughters who are so creative. I try to keep up on their blogs and it's so fun. They do all types of fun things for their children's special dates, and learning experience. If it's not one daughter doing a neighhood Easter play day and egg hunt under a parachute, it's another making her living room an adventure playground for a birthday, or another daughter turning their yard into an obstacle course with multiple activities, such as on "American Gladiator". They are all so creative, and as parents, we are just happy they are the ones doing the fun activities, because we've about run out of steam. So, let me share some pictures of George & Henry's birthday celebration (more kids than I could keep an eye on at one time.)

George at the obstacle course that Erin designed.

They had a zip line that was cool, courtesy of Joanne and Toby.

Henry preparing his team for the Tug O War.

Blowing out the candles.

Birthday Party Suggestions?

2008-03-20T14:31:00.000-07:00

I know my posts are less frequent, sort of irregular, but I do try to keep up with those of you that mean more to us. I wanted to tell you that your blog post really makes my day. I enjoy reading about your lives and what's happening in your family. It's especially nice to see that you've included pictures of the children or family activities. In many ways, that seems to be the best way for me to keep up with what your doing. Unlike your mom who often gets calls or call you, I'm pretty oblivious to what's happening. Believe me, that's not all bad because I know your spouse is taking good care of you.
Of course, your lives are filled with the daily activities of the children, family needs, church callings, friends, personal hobbies and projects, and other assorted things.
Up to this point in the calendar year, there've been several birthdays of children, spouses, and grandchildren. I am glad to see that those special days are being celebrated with family filled excitement. There's more to come within the next few weeks and the rest of the year. Of which will come one significant on in our family. One may call it a milestone and I want to remind all of you significant family members that your Mom's significant birthday (she prefers to call it a recelebration of her 35th birthday) is coming up soon, that is April 8th., Hence, I've decided and with her concurrence, to celebrate this birthday sometime in the very near future. I've thought about having a birthday party for your Mom perhaps when Leslie and the family will be down here around General Conference time. I briefly talked to Erin about this and am looking for more input from the rest of you. I know you most likely will not be heading this way but I thought it would be nice for you to particiapate somehow. I am looking for ideas and thoughts on this matter.
So to keep this discussion off the public blog page, please email me at my work email address. Perhaps your spouses and children can give some significant thought to this such as what could we do for the birthday party. Maybe the grandchildren can suggest games to play or what kind of treats to have. Anyway, let me know.
Remember when you were a certain age and you got to invite that many friends to your birthday party? I wonder if we do something like that?

Picture Taking Safari to Moab

2008-02-25T15:31:00.000-08:00

This winter season has be mostly filled with cold cold days with snowy nights. I know that in church and our prayers, we often ask for "moisture" because we live in a desert region. "Moisture" is another polite word for rain, or snow. Water is the staff of life in these parts.

So why am I complaining? Well, one day all that snow is going to melt, and bring good water or blessings to the land. It also will bring new discoveries, such as piles and piles of dog poop burried for the winter. We figure, well, its our dogs happiness but I abhor the contributions of our neighbors dogs who are let out to fertilize the neighborhood. The law says that they are supposed to pick up after their pets, but do they ever?

Well, this blog posting is not really about picking up dog poop but having a good reason to leave the cold and get out of town for a break. We decided to celebrate our 35th Wedding Anniversary by taking a picture safari. The real purpose is to get some good pictures for Jo to paint from. Since her works are getting quite good, she needs new material.

We planned the trip and set it up, but the weather didn't cooperate. On our drive down to Moab, it rained, sleeted, snowed, and fogged the whole time. We listed to a book on CD and enjoyed the trip. I drove, and Jo and Ipo dozed off. None the less, it was a pleasant trip.

We purchased an annual pass for the National Parks, and you can't get a better deal if you plan to see more than a couple of National Parks within a years time. Fortunately for us in Utah, there are several National Parks, I think four of them and several National Monuments (National Park wannabees). So, we figure on seeing as much as we can, not to mention when we travel in the summer.

After a short drop in to Arches National Park, we drove up the road to Canyonlands National Park. Just before Canyonland, we went to the Dead Horse State Park ($10 daily fee), but it was worth it and except for the cloudy overcast, we got to see some great sights.

Then it was on to Canyonland and the clouds were still there but we tried to get in as much of the sightseeing as we could before sundown. There are some really awesome views to see but the wind and cold air blowing made stops short. Even Ipo was weary about the cold temperature. At least she put up with the whole trip. When she got interested, we would put the window down for her to stick her head out and sniff the area. It wouldn't be long before she pull her head back in and start to lay down.

In Moab, there are several hotels that allow you to bring your pets, and the LaQuinta is no exception. We were pleased with the accomodations and didn't have to pay extra for Ipo.

On Saturday we visited Arches NP and took as many pictures as the sun would allow (with out clouds). The only problem with a car riding dog is that she wanted to get out at every stop. So where we could, we would get her out for a walk and sniff out the area. Pets aren't allowed on the trails. We still had a good time. One thing about visiting the park in the winter time is that there aren't as many tourist clogging up the park.

On our way home, we stopped in at Goblin Valley State Park ($7 fee). It was a unique park with the rock formations like little goblins (Galaxy Quest). We almost had the whole park to ourselves. If you get a chance, you should see it.

On our way home, we took I-70 to Salina. There are several view areas and great places to take pictures. At the Outlaw View point, Ipo got loose from Jo as she was getting out of the car. The view is has no fence to protect one from falling off the cliff so Jo screamed, scared Ipo and Me so finally Ipo slowed down where I picked up the lease and took her back to the car. The rest of the trip was sunny, windy, snowy, rainy and foggy. Ipo, Jo and I were glad to get home safe and tired.

So that's how we spent our 35th Wedding Anniversary.

Big Month of Feburary

2008-02-12T15:00:00.000-08:00

On a university campus, perhaps just the same on many other parts of the country, getting the right Valentines gift is just as important as remembering your wedding anniversary or some significant date such as that. Being too busy to remember is identified as one of the top ten reasons that won't cut it in such a significant time of the year. So, from a clipping I found recently, a list of "What NOT to Give Her For Valentines Day" just read it for wisdom and perhaps a warning:

1. A box of chocolates, clumsily rearranged in an attempt to hide the fact you ate all the caramel ones.

2. Any food item with the words "diet," "light," or "high fiber" on the label.

3. Any video starring Sylvester Stallone or Jim Carrey.

4. Flowers from a hospital's gift shopp- - or worse, a mortuary's.

5. Any household appliance, power tool or other item from the harder side of Sears.

6. A gift certificate.

7. Cash.

8. Anything you could have bought at the gas station mini-mart on the way over, even if you didn't.

9. An apologetic look and the words "That was today?"

In almost 35 years of marriage, I certainly can remember or identify with the just shared list of blunders. Now, sometimes I find it hard to justify expensive roses, price driven up by the demand of the occassion, or perhaps jewelry, which I find has little or no utility, or some other stupid reason, however, it is better to bend to the will of the occassion and make some or alot of meaningful gesture in recognizing the occassion. In this case, for some, peace and well-being is a higher priority.

Now I have to commend the younger generation, such as those of our children's spouses and family. Last night, our grandsons who live nearby brought Valentine cards and a heart shaped sucker. That was really thoughtful.

On Saturday evening, we attended our Married Student Stake Valentines Dance. The band was great, music too loud, refreshments appropriate, and activity outstanding, if you're an under 30 or 20 something. Anyway, it was good to support them and we at least celebrated early.

Later, we get to celebrate our significant 35th Wedding Anniversary. How cool is that?

This is also a month of a couple of birthdays, Jason, Jesse, and Troy. Happy Birthday Sons.

Glad January is over with, Hello February

2008-02-01T09:25:00.000-08:00

The month of January has been more than we cared to think about. Lately, our wether pattern has been snow day, day to dig out from snow, then watch more snow fall, and the cycle continued. Early in the month, we had cold temperatures, below 20's and near zero amost for two weeks. I find that to be somewhat a hopeful blessing as the cold freeze would hopefully kill off some of the pesky bugs that come out in the spring and summer. It wouldn't hurt to kill off a few dandelions also at the same time.

We recognize that the low temperatures here may seem a bit balmy for those of you say in "Why not, Minot" but in your case, you have no choice. Uncle Sam wills you the frigid temperatures as a test of your endurance and perserverance. Being cooped up indoors all day would tend to drive some people to behave strangely. Anyway, our sympathies to you all.

In gratitude to our son-in-law for taking our beater of a snow blower to the shop for a badly needed tune up. Now, it works and has been a back saver for clearing the driveway and sidewalks. Before it got fixed, Mark and the boys would come over and shovel the walks and driveway. Then George, Henry and Bubba would play in the snow.

Watching the news, I saw an article that snow should be removed from sidewalks within 24 hours after the fall. Thank goodness we have compassionate community officials who have not enforced this law. Bunch of slackers but they believe in the spirit of the law, rather than the letter of the law.

So, our routine here has been pretty much the same, watch snow fall, shovel or snow blow, revel in clean sidewalks, watch more snow fall. In the meantime, I've found our daily newspaper burried in the snow several times. I purposely cleared off the sidewalks for the delivery guy or gal, to place our newspaper at our front door on on the porch. What really happens is a driveby hit by the newspaper person and quick getaway. They probably don't want to get their Air Jordans full of snow or on the floor of the car, so the next obvious thing is to lower the window, and bombs away! This is more customer relations stuff.

On a more solemn note, with the passing of President Hinckley, many thoughts and expressions of grattitude and love have been shared by our children and friends. We wish to express our love to our Heavenly Father for placing such a special person to lead the Church during the past 12 plus years. Not only was he the living propher of God but a most kind and loving spirit to us all. "Peace be still, peace be still."

I cannot forget one instance when I took Jo to Salt Lake City for an early medical appointment. We arrive prior to the appointment and then I decided to wait in the car while she talked to the specialist. It also happened to be April 15th, and I was hurrying to complete our tax filing. While seated in the car and checking my figures, I noticed in my drivers side mirror President Hinckley exiting the hospital entrance and walking towards our car. I recognized him instantly and attempted to open my window but thought differently seeing the large stature of a man accompanying him. (Most likely his driver, and surely a descendant of the Nephite Warrior.) They were parked right next to me. So as President Hinckley got in his car, I waved to him and he acknowledged me with a friendly smile and a wave. He was so kind.

I've watched the news coverage of his life and comments from those who went to the viewing, and I cannot express to you, the great spirit of peace and love that is overwhelming. You can't help but feel the emotions and the great respect and love that he commanded as the most recent Prophet and leader of the Church. He will be missed.

I've taken the opportunity to review many of his addresses such as General Conference talks, BYU Devotional talks and other addresses he's made to the general public. They are all so clear and a voice of warning as he speaks in behalf of God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. I loved his counsel and also chastizement (to the brethren of the Priesthood.) What a great leader he has been in a time of so much confusion, dispare, greed, and hateThe funeral will be held tomorrow with other extended coverage on his life and ministry. I hope you all will have the opportunity to share in this broadcasts.

On another significant item, Feburary is the month of our wedding anniversary, our 35th. Wowzer. Five children four sons-in-law, one daughter in-law and fifteen grandchildren later we look upon you all with such joy and gladness. Your lives are a living testament of how much Heavenly Father has bless you all.

Our home has begun to change a little. Since there is no children living with us, only the Po doggie, Jo has retaken up her love for painting. It's been great to see her paintings. So instead of a quilt shop, we have a paint gallery. Maybe at a later time in the future, she will put on a display for the public. We also look forward to maybe doing more things together or sharing in each others interest. You laugh! But my take on this is that we would begin to take some trips to take pictures of the country and then she can express them in her paintings. That is our plan. Nearby, daughter Erin Noel Pualani has taken up doing portrait photography and doing really good work (of course with some of my camera equipment.)

So, as you contemplate a trip back to Utah in the near future, you must make time for a view of the art gallery, family photo shoots, and spending time with 35th anniversary newly weds.

Christmas at G Mountain

2007-12-27T14:06:00.000-08:00

Christmas time below G Mountain is a specal time for us. We prepare long in advance to make this a wonderful Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. This year was no exception. The only thing that could have made things better was to have all our children and their families here to celebrate it together.
We have been blessed to have at least some of our family here in the past and this year, our daughter Erin and her family relocated back to PG. So now we have family close by, just down the street and up a block. For them, it was a welcome relief to have their home remodeling just about completed. They did a mavelous job on it.

So, in keeping with our family tradition, we celebrated Christmas Eve together, this time at Erin and Mark's home. As in the past, we had close family friends join us. For them, it most likely be their last time here in Utah Valley since they are selling their resturant and relocating to the deep south, Mississippi. It will be sad to see them go. We had a nice dinner and time spent together. After the dinner with program and singing, we came home to prepare for Christmas. The boys, George, Henry, and Teddy, were wound up. so after getting them down to bed and we started rearranging our living room for our Christmas gift opening. Jo relaxed by playing the piano as seen here while there was some last minute wrapping going on.

And so all the presents were laid out while the children rested in their bed with dreams of presents to be opened when they woke up.

We had fun putting presents under the tree by the light of christmas tree bulbs.

Here is a picture of Mark and Erin with their boys. Just enough to get them all together since the boys were very excited it being Christmas Eve.

Here is grandson Theodore wading through the presents on the floor. He finally got into the mood and was excited to explore the presents.

Ipo was very tolerent with Bubba, Erin and Mark's dog. He's fairly behaved and endearing. They got along well enough not to give us any concern except to let them out frequently to go potty.

As for Bubba, he's taken to Erin's family very well. That afternoon, George came down to our home to play games (PS2) and along came Bubba with him trapesing through the snow.

We want to wish all our family and friends a Merry Christmas season and Happy New Years. Thank you for those cards and letters at this time of the year. We are grateful to here from you and how you have been. We wish you all the best in the new year, joy and peace. Mahalo nui loa,

Sterling and Jo

2007-11-29T16:33:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving Celebration!

Now that the last of the turkey has been purged from our refrigerator, I have to say that we did enjoy again, another joyous feast. The most important part of the celebration was having some of our children and their family here for the visit. In all, it would have been better only if all of them had come, but where would we have put them.

If your used to these types of family gatherings, if everyone of our children and their family came, we would have asked to use perhaps the cultural hall at one of our meetinghouses (2, within 1 block of our home). Maybe there, we would have enough room for everyone.

Anyway, we had fun with the grandchildren and it was great to see cousins play together. The weather was unusally warm at this time of the year, and that made things more enjoyable. I can see that the little ones are begining to show their growth and how much more older they act.

Here is Christian, George, Anna, and Henry being called for dessert. They were having more of an enjoyable time on the Playstation 2 games.

Also on this weekend celebration was to celebrate our eldest daughter, Leslie's birthday. Again another milestone in our lives.

Here is Grandma, Leslie, and Anna holding up a wall hanging.

With candy in their mouths here is Anna, Christian, and George.

Another special moment, Grandma and Teddy.

Daughters Leslie, Erin, and Teddy.

Granddaughter Emily, Anna, and daughter Leslie. They are helping their mom open her birthday presents.

So, in all, it was a very nice time at Thanksgiving, celebrating Leslie's birthday, and spending time with family.

2007-11-01T12:09:00.000-07:00

Who did it?

Which of these suspects do you think did the crime?

Or perhaps it was one of these suspects?

After questioning each suspect, it was ......................................... ?

Yes, you guessed it, Mrs. Peacock, in the library, with the KNIFE!

Case solved.

2007-10-31T20:12:00.000-07:00

Halloween Happenings!

I am amazed at how much of a big thing celebrating Halloween can be, living in the center of Mormondom. With all the activity, let me clarify here, Church Activity, abounding in this area, we can't resist having a good time, just about for any reason. Let me elaborate, we celebrate all the major holidays observed by our nation plus an extra one, that being Pioneer Day. Of course, paying respect to the pioneers for coming to this valley in 1847. We celebrate patriotic holidays and religious ones to, that including Thanksgiving and Christmas. We profess to observe the "WOW" or word of wisdom, abstaining from tobacco, alcholol, and harmful drugs, while supposedly eating in moderating or if the price is right, eat out at places like Golden Corale and Chuck A Rama, plus a host of other places that really put out the spread.

Now back to halloween, most channels on the TV feature those haunted, gore, multiple psycho killing dramas, and people can never get enough of it. So, to make a positive statement, our local churches, or Wards and Stakes, usually have activities such as "Chilli Cookoff, or Ward Chilli Dinner plus dress up, keeping in mind to stay away from cross dressing, masked dress, and indecent attire that would be considered shameful. So, staying within the lines, we subject ourselves to such activities and sample some chilli that can be from one extreme to the other, or championship caliber chilli to rottgut chilli, in other words, you better bless it before consuming it chilli. At the dinner, since people dressed up, there must be a contest or judging of the best, most original, etc. All this culminates with the safe and proven easy way to go "trick o treating", in other words, "Trunk o Treat" in the parking lot of the meetinghouse.

Tonight was no exception and me personally, this is the second one of these within a week. I don't know if my stomach can take any more chilli, let alone the gradual buildup of gas. Let me regress a bit. On Friday, we went to my Married Student Ward for our Chilli Cookoff with dress-up and games. Seems like everyone brought chilli and we had more that enough. Jo and I were the judges, so dutifully, we tasted each chilli. Not good, I mean some of the chilli, but we bravely selected what we taught to be the best. Then we also judged the best costume and that was fun. Those young families, some are so creative. We had fun that evening.

Today at work, the building custodians took myself and some of my workers on a tour of the "Haunted House" located in "The Belly of the Beast" as they described it of the JFSB. Now this is a relatively new building and I hadn't heard of it being haunted or anything strange in it. Anyway, walking down the hallway of the basement where classrooms are located, there was one door that they opened that was not a classroom. Walking in it, we descended several steps to a dark hallway and into another room that my senses felt to be large and spacious. It was a very very large dark room with the sounds of mechanical equipment operating. We walked following out guide to the far reaches of this room and with the sudden blast of air pressure, the mist and spray of what felt like water, and the clanking of chains, this truely felt like a haunted room. Then we exprienced more creepy effects to our senses and of course the howling of so called creatures, and so it was, a very fun haunted house experience, down in the belly of the beast of the JFSB.

This evening, we went to our home ward for the annual Ward Chilli Dinner and were again subjected to Chilli. This time, most of the chilli was of a higher caliber. All I can say is that our home Ward Members have had more practice making chilli over the years and they proved it again tonight. There was the costume parade followed by the trunk o treat. All fun and now the tummy aches for the little kids from eating all the candy. Oh well.

I've sermized that living here amongst the Saints and observing their ways is a lesson in making the best of an otherwise no fun celebration. The people like to eat, so chilli is an inexpensive way to feed alot of people, especially if you have a large family. Candy is always a favorite and more fun to eat when they come in fun sizes, like for kids, even though the parents are the major eaters of the candy. So, keying off the halloween celebration, more candy is available during this time of the year for consumption. Since we observe the WOW, then coming to a ward chilli dinner function is our way of being in with the times, and reason for dressup. Of course, we get to carve pumpkins, decorate the house, and make your front yard look like a cemetary.

So, if you can convert them, join them.

2007-10-29T09:36:00.000-07:00

Sound Off!

I guess at times we are naive to think that blogs are harmless rants and raves of twisted minds or the ill conceived posts of people just letting off personal thoughts and expressions. Perhaps its an opportunity to just let off some internet gas, politely and not have to look around and apologize in public. Harmless, innocent, just fun, but over the past year, it seems the fun family/friend blogs are falling victim to a few who deem to take its credibility and use it for abusive desires. Shame on those who use the innocent content of others to cause harm in any form, shame on you.

If you are one of these people of whom I'm referring to, how about giving it a rest? Whatever your intention is, just know that family/friend blogs don't need your contribution or abuse. Leave us alone, just go get a life.

Now for all those whom we communicate and confide with, I think the world of your blog contributions and entries. It helps to keep in touch and to enjoy your happy lives.

Some time ago, one of our family members felt the need to privatize access to their blog, and for good reason. I thought it was extreme, but over time felt better because it gave their content a select audience, of family and friends. Later, another family member decided to change the information/names of actual people in the household to protect identity and keep things on a more not to personal level. I certainly agree on this need to shield our loved ones from potential harm. Another family member expressed their decision to limit the access to their blog page due to miss representation and missinformation.

I know, we all don't live our lives only through and on blog pages. I barely have time to read them or check them once a day. However, when I get the chance, they are important to me and that perhaps is how I keep up with the goings on of people who mean alot to me personally. Keep the faith, let's "keep moving forward", from the video "Meet the Robinsons". Have a nice day.

2007-10-15T18:43:00.000-07:00

Pics of Paradise

An old rock wall made of lava rock was decorated with some plants seen growing on its top.

Modern super roadways climb up the east side of the Koolau Mtn. range on Oahu.

Gigantic breadfruit tree with fruit in abundance growing on the side of the road on the Hamakua Coast.

Rain clouds approach Coconut Island in Hilo Bay.

Scene of Onomea Bay, once an arch on the Hamakua coast. The arch fell sometime in the late 50's but still a popular scenic spot.

Two old fishing boats layup on drydock perhaps to one day put out to sea again.

A couple pass the time away fishing from Laie Point as the waves come crashing against the rocks.

Trees grow over an old road, once the major roadway along the Hamakua coast.

Picture of a colorful plant that graced the front yard of a home near the roadway.

At a popular local fast food resturant, the menu is to die for if you like local food or grinds. Courtesy of Cafe 100, a landmark in Hilo dining.

A bamboo grove on the side of the old highway of the Hamakua coast.

Still popular to locals, this Queen Liliuokalani Park is a combination of several Oriental cultures captured in one spot.

Hope you liked the pictures. Enjoy.

2007-10-13T08:29:00.000-07:00

Home To The Islands

It's taken me a couple of days to get over the jet lag and get back to the time difference from a visit to Hawaii. The trip was short but I got to spend time with our family and that was the most important matter. On Oahu, I loved visiting with Rachel and Jase and the children. They filled my time there with so much fun and enjoyment. The children have grown a bit and are a joy to be with.

They took me all over the island and it was great fun to see the different tourist spots. Both Klailea and Rykell are such sweethearts and they are so bright and funny.

This island hasn't lost its beauty or appeal, just lovely. Wow, how I miss the green lush color of the countryside. They only challenge was to get accustomed to the humidity and rain.

We got to see the Aloha Swap meet and shopped for all the goodies that are offered there.

We travelled throught the impressive H-3 Freeway and through the mountain several times. It's fun to look out the window of a fast moving van and take pictures of the mountains. Click, click, click, click. . . . . . Hope I don't get one of those light poles in the pictures.

Sometimes I wonder why we every left the islands. You only have to look at how crowded, how busy the traffic is, and then look at the price for just living there, then you get a sense of reality.

It is a blessing to have Rachel and Jase and the family there. Almost like a strategic Bed and Breakfast, or perhaps, a Bed and Luau, or a Bed and Tour Guide, or just family. How nice.

The beach at Sunset is always a popular place to stop at.

Then, you always have to get a dozen or so malasadas. This is a tradition and fixture.

At a park on the North Shore, the kids played hide and seek from Grandpa.

The picture tells it all. Klailea, Grandpa, Shae, and Rykell.

2007-10-04T09:52:00.000-07:00

Happy 11th Anniversay to Troy and Leslie!!

Today is our duaghter Leslie's 11th wedding anniversay to Troy. Since I am away on an expidetion and to access to some photos that would bring back memories, I thought I would share some of the highlights of this blessed union: (I'm trying to be like our daughter Nikki, who can come up with all this numbering stuff!)

1. Troy loves our daughter Leslie so much so that he gave up his beautiful Mazda RX7 (red) car so he could drive around in a more modest older Nissan (I think). After all, the Mazda wouldn't hold as many grocery bags as the Nissan. I really thoughjt the red car was cool!
2. They received such wonderful wedding gifts at their reception in Lyndon, WA, and we got to haul the presents back in our travel trailer for them while they went on their honeymoon. There were some beautiful matching bath towels, etc., to start their new life. At one of their first apartments (basement dwelling), there was a backup of the sewer or drain, and in an emergency, they used the beautiful towels to help stem the rising tide, but in reality, ruined the beautiful new towels. Oh well, if that emergency didn't happen, the poopy diapers or something like it would have won out.
3. To get to know his new father-inlaw better, Troy takes him fly fishing on the Provo in November weather. While fishing, his father-inlaw falls in the river, and had to swim for it. Later when he caught up with the father-inlaw, he had the presense of mind to call leslie and make sure there was clean dry towels at there apartment for Dad, also, not to laugh, but especially, not to tell Mom. (Good guy, don't make to old man look bad.)
4. Since Leslie was the first of the family to get married, and set a tradition in place, Leslie and Troy were set in front of the entire family and questioned about their intentions to get married, what kind of person Troy was, etc. This would make the Spanish Inquisition seem pale in comparison. Troy, good natured and a good sport calmly accepted the intense questioning by his future sister-inlaws.
5. Troy asked for Leslie's hand in a most sincere and dignified way. Buddy, from that point on, you set the standard for the rest of the future son-inlaws in this family.
6. Always creative, talented and with an eye for solving problems, Troy got some old wood, spare lumber pieces, and built shelving in their apartment for things like storage, etc. Later, he gave one of the shelves to us, which we still use to this day.
7. At the wedding in the Seattle LDS Temple, the only tears of joy shed in the sealing room were from Troy and I. I love you son! It was also there that Leslie lost her bridal veil somewhere at the temple.
8. When son Christian was born, after Leslie's long labor, there was hubby Troy, mother, dad, and sisters present plus a person that was a Doula or abdoula or something like that. Something about a birth coach?
9. Though Troy and Leslie relocated to WA, we are blessed with their happiness there and it's a good place to raise a family.
10. Even though they are far away, we keep in pretty close regular contact, by blogspotting, phone calls, occassional visits, etc.
11. They have a beautiful family and the wonderful children, Christian, Anna, and Emily, compliment each other. They in turn make our entire family a piece of heaven on earth.

Happy 11th anniversary. Love to you all.

Hear ye! Hear ye!

2007-09-28T14:19:00.000-07:00

I just signed up to win a Pink Dyson Vacuum through 5 minutes for Mom. Dyson and Target have teamed together for a limited time to offer Pink Dyson vacuums to raise money for the Breast Cancer Research Fund.

Being a recent convert to the amazing workings of the Dyson vacuum, I am ready to win. You can go sign up. I prefer you dont; then I have a better chance of winning (a better chance than winning the lottery actually). The choice is yours. I'd be willing to vacuum every day with one of these. Po, your dog-hair collection doesn't stand a chance!

2007-09-18T14:22:00.000-07:00

More September Stuff

Just a few pictures to share showing the changes to our front garden.

Since our daughter Erin and her family moved back to PG, they decided they wanted to do a make over of our front garden, so, with shovel in hand, and other assorted tools, plus bags of mulch and other stuff, they dug it up. In retrospect, this was the first major overhaul of the front floor garden since we move in during the summer of 92. Now, the garden has taken on a new look with some other plants and stuff. We appreciate the creative undertakings. So, the next time your in the area, give Erin your praise or critique. They all did a lot of work there.

Here, they dug a little garden area near the curb and transplanted one of the rose bushes there and some other plants. We are having some concern about the rose, if its going into shock. I think its given the yard a new look. The beautifying of that area is timely since I was having to pull weeds by hand. Lots of puncture weed started to sprout up in the area.

Our married student Stake had its annual welcome social with a luau. Since I am the only resident islander, I was persuaded to participate in the festivities. The food was so-so. Sort of like a L&L taste to it but lacked the real island stuff. Oh well, I guess I was the most prominent critic.

The entertainment was from a group called South Sea Island Production, that included two entertainers and three dancers. They really must be new at this stuff or were not up to their best. Of course, they weren't from the PCC but it was an enjoyable evening.

Of course, the fire knife dance was the highlight of the show. In all, it was an enjoyable evening.

2007-09-14T13:40:00.000-07:00

September "Simmerings"

I don't know if the title is in the right grammatical form but I'm trying to catch up. We're almost to the month's halfway point and I hadn't updated the blog in a while. Since the latter part of last month, work has been a bear, trying to keep up with the demands from our campus departments. Life's been pretty fast pace and once school started, the traffic has been horrendous.
I've taken to driving a different route to and from work just to avoid the ever growing list of traffic lights. We used to have about twelve traffic lights to pass through to get to campus, now that list has just grown to twenty-two traffic lights. Well, you have to deal with the lights, deal with the "happy valley driving mentality," and the every popular wild life (aka, pedestrians0, it makes my travel time so exciting.
That last item is sometimes the worst of all, especially on campus. Of course the law says that if a pedestrian is in the cross walk, they are protected by the celestial law, the Utah Traffic Code. However, some will push the letter and limits of the law to mean that they can access the sacred "cross-walk" at any time no matter if traffic is flowing through it, and no matter what color the traffic lights are, as though they have a protective force field shielding them from the onslaught of a typical Detroit made vehicle, equipped with chrome plated bumpers, or plastic painted to look like metal bumpers, etc.
Even after many have answered the soul searching questions to their minister, preacher, Bishop, or Rabbi, "do you obey and keep the commandments, and are you honest in you dealings with your fellow man?, They repeatedly ignore the implications of of their conduct and carry on as though there would be divine intervention to protect them from the possibility of physical demolition when they come in contact with the bumper-fender combination. I don't believe that this would be a valid qualification for the category of "road kill" but it sure comes close.
I know that at this institution, as part of the cirriculum taught here, religious studies does address topics such as "this earthly life" or such things as "life after death" and even deeper topics as "the three degrees of glory" etc.
If your familiar with campus, I drive past the new Alumni building, then past the TNRB on the the gate guard before I enter the JFSB underground parking. It's at the crosswalk in front of the TNRB that I have issues with the public. For one thing, they have a traffic light there, to allow safe passage across the road. Generally a majority of the people using the crosswalk believe in observing the traffic laws, lights, and essentially most laws of the land. There is a growing trend to push the limits by justifying entering the cross walk even though the pedestrian crossing signal (big orange hand flashing) do not enter, or because there are pedestrians already in the crosswalk. By the way, many of these crosswalk abusers are "Graduate Students" going to and from class. Perhaps they feel they have earned the right to push the limits of their own safety while crossing the road.
We have those who also like to show off their new, or nearly new, or souped up mountain bikes, those who weave in and out of traffic. How foolish these so called educated people are. Don't they understand that the bigger the vehicle, the more right of way one has and the great chances of survival in case of a physical encounter of the first/second kind.
I also love the people who push the limits of understanding posted signs such as "Gate Card Access Required" and they pull up to the gate barrier and magically hope that it would open for them when they know that they don't have one of those new fangled electronic gate cards to trigger the gate barrier to open. What, do they think that they can will the barrier to open, or perhaps they have magical Harry Potter powers. Wow, we have people who are so called intellectuals or in higher education but have no clue.
I am sure that there is a big misconception that just because they've been accepted to attend school here, that they are holier than others. Wrong! Not everyone is like this but there are a few whose desired spiritual potential has exceeded their physical body in this life.
Now, getting back to reality, this campus is a great environment of spiritual growth, It just means paying attention to those things that really matter. While the educational offerings aspire to prepare one to "go forth and serve" and "the world is our campus" what a great atmosphere for learning. They're other great simmerings on this campus. Just to name a few; there is no graffitti anywhere on campus, there's no smoking, so their's no cigarette butts on the ground, there's no alcohol, so there's no DUI, the honor code dress and attire standards are observed so there's no lewd, or provocative dress and appearence, the only body piercing are worn by women who wear pierced earrings, long hair is worn mostly by women, while a few men are beginning to push the limit, and the only people who are high on something are those who will tell you that they are high on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. How is that for making a statement?
Anyway, if its only these items that I have to complain about, then I am sure that life is sweet.
On a more pleasing note, we have living with us our third daughter and her family. We have the pleasure of having little ones in our home again, not just for the visit type but real live in type. The eldest grandson goes to school and in the first grade. He attends the same elementary school that our youngest daughter did when we first moved here. what's neat is that he walks to school with a couple of neighbor kids who attend the same school. Then there's another classmate he has who is our same home ward. They all attend Primary together. Wow, how neat.
He and his brother play with the neighbor kids from across the street and also some kids who live down the street. It won't be long till they will be playing the famous Utah "night games" just as his mother and father do occassionally with their friends from the area. On this last remark, I was just shocked that even these not so young adults, though married, still play "night games".
To make our home more appealing to the public, our daughter and son-inlaw did some landscaping and made some timely improvements. It's looking better than it was.
Though we are making adjustments to having other family members in our home, we are thrilled to have them here. The little people are really fun to have in our home.
Last item: This weekend, I've been batching it with my son-inlaw and grandson. The women folk made a quick trip to WA to see our eldest daughter and her family. So, let's see, last night it was saimin noodles for dinner, tonight is every man for himself, and tomorrow night is my Student Stake Luau, and Sunday is Roast Beef. That should be good until the women folk get back next week. Bye.

2007-08-22T14:03:00.000-07:00

Catching UP!

Sorry I haven't updated this blog page. It's August and that means:

Surviving the summer heat is a top priority. My office is located in the basement of the Joseph F. Smith Building on campus. I'm fortunate to park in an underground parking lot right where I work. If I'm delayed or come in an hour or two later, than chances are that I won't find any available parking stalls and so I have to hunt for one somewhere else. But, the benefit of parking underground is that my car won't get toasted out in the hot sunny weather when I leave for home. Also, working in the basement, you don't get to experience the weather, it's perfect here, a pleasant 72 degrees, no matter if it's summer or winter. If we peak our heads out like ground squirrls or gophers, then we get to see what the weather is like. The temperature has backed down to the high 90s and it still toast the lawn.

Last week was the last of school for the summer so it was graduation week and the campus was abuzz with all kinds of visitors. Seemed like a great time to come to campus. We also met one of our long time British friends who are on holiday here, the Redpaths. Wow, how time as past. We also attended the wedding reception of another friend and acquaintance that we knew at Chicksands, the Kirkhams. While at the reception, we ran into another family that we knew while at Vandenberg, the Daniels Family. My oh my, how time has passed.

We had a little gathering at our home with the Redpaths, Kirkhams, and Lawsons (Tom tomato!). It was a fun visit catching up and remembering our British friends.

On Monday, our daughter Erin (Miss Aloha Spirit), Mark, and boys arrived from paradise to live with us until they get things going on their own. It's always great to have any of our children and their families come to be with us.

On Tuesday evening after my meetings and appointments at church, I came home and took the grocery list to go shopping. To my horror, many families with school kids were also shopping to get the school supplies for their children. Anyway, I picked up the few items on the list and stood in the long line. The checker put the items in the sack and I went straight home. In once sack was a bag of animal cookies for my grandson George to take to school as part of his school supplies. He also needed a box of tissues which I put on the same sack. From the looks of things, the sack had only those two items. Later the next day, I get a call from Jo asking me where was the bottle of Tylenol that I had picked up for her. We couldn't locate them so we assumed that the checker at Wal-Mart forgot to give them to me. Well when Erin went to pick up George from school, his teacher asked her if she was to give George a tylenol pill at school? We were relieved that the teacher did inquire with Erin, and found out that it was a mistake. It could have been real serious, so lesson learned, check your grocery sacks.

While school has begun for the kids in happy valley, so has Campus Education Week been going on here on campus. It's a madhouse, busy campus, long lines at the cougareat, and the bookstore, parking is nonexistent, and just a busy time here. We're glad its only one week out of the year. Even the first week of school isn't as crazy.

My squarefoot garden is producing very well and keeping me busy. I'm working on ressurecting the great lawn area, and have to follow the city's strict watering policy, no watering on Sunday and Wednesdays. They are intent on issuing citations, that's how serious the drought has affected the area.

So this is the hot hot August month. As for our time to reflect, we've been getting used to having our children and grandchildren in our home again. This summer has been great with the visits of each of our daughters and their families. Well, we hope you all are having fun.

2007-07-31T08:51:00.000-07:00

Summer Treasure

(left to right: Christian, Anna, Emily, Gabby, Elijah, and Ethan)

Some people look at wealth and gauge it by the looks of your home, mansion, or castle. Here in Happy Valley, there are alot of examples of such wealth. But in the true sense of the word, wealth is in the eye of the beholder.

We've been having a great summer with the visits of our children and their families. The best part is watching them and seeing their interaction, growth, their personalities, and how much they have similar works.

(Klailea, Rykell, and Shae)

So, as a tribute to our entire family, I would like to share some of our greatest blessings.

(George, Grandpa, and Henry)

(top row: Nicole, Abraham, Grandpa, Erin, Theodore)
(bottom row: Ethan, Gabby, Elijah, Henry, George)

(Theodore, "I stand at the door" and knock)

2007-07-28T15:29:00.000-07:00

Elijah's 2nd Birthday & Yard Sailing Treasure

Today was our grandson Elijah's second birthday. This is the fun one with his cousins and family, except for dad who is still in Minot, ND. Next week will be the official one with the rest of his family and relatives. More affectionately called Bun Bun, this little guy is full of energy, sweet and sensitive, and a handsome little guy. With the rest of his family and cousins, they are all great wonderful additions to the family.

Since its his special day, his mommy got him a neat little airplane with little people for opening today.

The other day while taking our irrigation, the kids started to play in the water and had to be hosed off before we would let them back in the house.

Our granddaughter Anna was showing me she could fly also. She would leap from the dinning room to the family room.

From today's yard sailing, this is a picture of some of the treasures. Jo and all of our daughters really love fabric and today's haul was a real treasure. Here they are sorting through the fabric.

Now, if you start them young to appreciate fabric, such as in this picture, then they'll grow up like their mommy and sew and quilt. Here is Emily appreciating the colors and fabric material, all sorted out in one of Grandma's closets.

This must be a sign of a fabric-aholic. Help, is there any therapy or support group for this?

2007-07-27T14:22:00.000-07:00

More Summer Magic ??

Our summer has been hot (temperature wise) and the best part has been the visit of our children and their families. It all started in mid May with our dauther Rachel and her family. We kind of got used to having young ones running about in our home again. I think Ipo, got used to it really fast and was very patient with the grand kids.

They help get my gardening started and we had a blast planting all kinds of veggies and herbs.

Planting Time

Then in mid June, we had our daughter Nikki and her children from Minot, ND surprise us followed by our daughter Erin and her boys from Hawaii. It was exciting to see the cousins play together and enjoy each other.

Maintaining the garden

Fun time running in the sprinkler

A week and a half ago, our eldest daughter Leslie and her children came for a visit and we continued to enjoy our posterity in the present. We've been so blessed by all our children and their own families. They all bring us great joy and we are happy to be blessed by their happiness and lives.

Harvesting some produce

Irrigation Fun Time to Cool Off!

2007-07-22T13:38:00.000-07:00

Hot Month of July

This month of July has been the hottest we've experienced since moving to Utah. Our airconditioner and evaporator cooler is on almost all the time except for late in the evenings. It's times like this that you wish the beach was nearby. Even though there is Utah Lake here, we're not that desperate to take a plunge.

So, we've been keeping cool by splashing in the irrigation water once a week, running through the sprinkler on days that we're watering the lawn, downing a few popsicles and chomping down on a few ice cream drumsticks, our favorite. It's so tempting to wade through the AF Canyon stream.

Through all of this, our grandchildren who've been visiting haven't complained a bit. The days start out warm in the morning and get toasty hot be late afternoon. We compensate for the hot weather by taking a leasurly stroll throught the supermarkets such as Maceys or Wal Mart to soak up the air conditioning.

Speaking of grandchildren here, we have seven on them visiting, Christian, Anna, Emily from Ephrata, WA. and Ethan, Gabby, Elijah, and baby "Ham" or Abraham, from Minot, ND. For the Minotians, this is very hot hot and uncomnfortable weather. But the great resiliant thing about grandchildren is that they are having fun with their cousins.

To keep busy and the children entertained, they have taken field trips to such places as that "big and spacious building" near Traverse Point (Lehi) aka Cabelas. There they enjoyed seeing the big fish in the tank swimming. If you've never been there, you got to visit one of Cabelas stores. They bring the outdoors indoor.

Yesterday, we took the whole gang to our annual Ward Dell Day up AF Canyon. It was nice to get up in the mountains and enjoy the area there. It's really close by and you get out of the low lands to enjoy the mountains.

We were hung over from lack of sleep because we joined the masses and attended BYU Bookstore's "Harry Potter Night" book release event. On our way to BYU, we passed by Barnes and Noble Bookstore and there were lots of people cued up outside, so you know all these places were doing their best to attract the crowds.

We did have a good time at BYU Bookstore. When it was time to pick up your preordered book, the line snaked around through the bookstore main floor, out the Twilight Zone, past the Lee Library, and on the the JFSB. There was alot of people dressed up in Harry Potter character parts. Our little grandson was dressed up by his mom as Dawby the house elf. Baby "Ham" won 4th place for his category. It was all fun and amusement there.

So this has been a fun hot visit by our grandchildren and their parents.