My parents house.....

Most of you know that my parents are planning to move soon. They have been working very hard the past couple of months and tonight the house will be put on the market! This brings mixed emotions. I wish I could go back and get a last chance to say goodbye to it. It might very well take a while to sell so maybe I could still see it before it sells. But a part of me doesn't need to go and say goodbye since I have 28+years of memories. I've changed and been through so much but my parents house has always been the same except for the minor decorating changes. Besides, it's the people who live in the house that makes the home. I have an awesome family and they are always there for me. My parents may move but I always know that were they are, I am loved.

The other part of my mixed emotions is that my parents and my sister are moving closer to us! They will hopefully find a place here in Utah- although they keep their eyes and ears open for places in Albany, OR or Bend, OR. As my dad ages, he is needing a better job that isn't so physically draining for him. He thinks there are more of those positions here in Utah. We shall see what comes their way soon. By the way, Kristi is already taking the big leap and moving here at the end of the week. She will stay with Randy and Katie until she finds an apartment and a good job near Provo. All of my family will be getting together in Rexburg this Thursday to see Rob graduate from BYU-Idaho. Then we will be doing some family temple work in the new Rexburg Temple. From there, Kristi will travel back with Randy and Katie to Provo to live! Big changes are ahead for all of us as we become closer as a family. Wish us luck!

Update on Slurpee Day

Well, we tried to get a free slurpee on 7/11/08 but we didn't get there until 7 pm. At that time there was a sign on the door saying that the promotion was over for the day. Ryan said there was only a limited number of special cups that they used for the day. We weren't too upset though. Beggars can't be choosers! We've had our share of slurpees and my kids get plenty of popsicles. I did find out that the promotion started at noon that day. Maybe next year we will have to go right after lunch!

Free Slurpee day at 7-11 and Free meal at Chick-Fil-A

Today is the seventh month and the eleventh day of the year- so 7-11 celebrates it by giving away a free slurpee to anyone that goes in and says "Happy 7-11 Day". I found out about it on Facebook which is a cool place to reaquaint with old friends and even play games with them. The web site for today's happenings is at slurpee.com .Also, at Chick-Fil-A you can dress up like a cow and receive a meal of some-sort. You can check out their web site at chick-fil-a.com . Wow, eat like an American for free today! Have fun!

Ogden, Utah

Yesterday, I needed to go to Ogden to return some books to the Weber State University Child Care Resource and Referral Lending Library. They loan out books and teach classes for State Licenced Child Care Providers. I packed my kids in the van after the daycare kids had left and headed to Ogden. It was about 4 pm in the afternoon and the sky was gorgeous! We had lived for a short time in Ogden and so I know my way around it. Since it was so pretty outside and I had the presence of mind to bring the camera, I decided to get some shots of Ogden. The first one is of Ogden High School. I know it looks like a cross between a University and a Temple. It is one of the oldest buildings around here and has been in a couple of movies because of its beautiful architecture. When I got out of my van to take the picture, I noticed a guy getting out of his car with his camera and stopping to take a picture of the building as well! It really is a beautiful building and the picture doesn't do it justice.

Ogden is cradled by mountains on its east side. Some of the rock has a pinkish reddish hue to it.

One of the local hang outs is this Old Fashioned ice cream shop. It is located on 20 th street and the ice cream is made next door in a brick building. Inside, it is filled with memorabilia from years past. This ice cream is also sold in many of the big grocery store chains so it isn't a small operation.

The kids loved the ice cream but since Dallin is allergic to milk, he settled for a huge rice crispy treat.

The ice cream shop is located diagonally across the street from the Ogden Temple. In this picture, a group of young women from Clearfield, Utah are getting treated to ice cream after visiting the temple. As we sat and ate our ice cream, many different people dressed up in Sunday clothes came in to get a cold treat.

This is the view from the window looking south east to the Temple Spire.

We drove through the Temple parking lot to get a closer picture. It was interesting to hear Dallin say "Ohhhhhh" when he saw the temple. He doesn't say that about buildings usually. It must have really caught his eye- or heart!

New Link on Web Sites of Interest

My Mother Linda, has started a new business of recording the personal histories of anyone who is interested. She has loved doing this for our grandparents and great-grandparents. She has been inspired to do this for others. Her new business is called Seasons to Remember. She is listed as a Personal Historian in Oregon. My brother Rob and my SIL Kendra helped design and create Mom's web site. They have done a great job. The photos in the main banner across the web site are done by my sister Kristi. They are pictures of hands in the different stages of life. I hope you take a moment to check out this exciting new venture for my Mother. Enjoy!

Don't Look If You're Squeamish!

Snakes...... for most people they are something to avoid. In our family, they are something to study, learn about and observe. Recently, Ryan's brother Rich stayed with us and one of his desires was to go "road cruising " with us. Rich is always game for an outdoor adventure as he is a world class birder that leads professional bird tours around the world. You can check out his blog by clicking on the link on the side. Rich knows birds by their scientific name and is also becoming an expert on butterflies, plants and dragon flies. He also is a culinary wonder and when he comes, he helps teach me how to make a mouth-watering meal that I've never had before. He knows Ryan's specialty is snakes and that one of the best ways to find them in the summer is by driving down a road in the country at night. You drive back and forth along a road that is fairly clear of rocks and twigs or other debris. The snakes can be seen crossing the road and you can usually jump out of the car and get a quick picture or two before they slither off. This is what is known in the snake world as "road cruising". Sometimes, you can find several that have been run over by careless drivers and these are called DOR- or Dead On the Road. We used to go road cruising more often but is has been a couple of years since we've taken the time. Gas is so expensive and Ryan has been so busy- not to mention me having a baby. This particular night we went about an hour south into the Toole Valley along the side of the Stansbury Mountains. We saw a couple of gopher snakes and this young rattlesnake. Thank goodness for zoom lenses. Sydney and Dallin were sleeping in the car and Ryan, Rich, Tyler and I hopped out for a closer look.

Ryan had brought his snake hook with him just in case there were any problems and needed to move the snake away.

Well, that was the most exciting thing that happened that night. We had a great time visiting with Rich while we were driving. Hopefully I will remember to get a picture of him next time he visits- as well as the new-to-me delicious meal that we make each time he comes. BTW, we made marinated chicken fajitas on the grill with a rich dark mousse. I never knew how hard it was to make a mousse! I guess fajitas aren't new to me but I have never tasted or made one quite as well seasoned and mouth-watering as this was. Yummmmm, makes me hungry just thinking about it!

Summertime Fun

One of the kids I do child care for brought her slip-n-slide to our house to share. The kids had a great time! As you can see, even Sampson had a blast.

Dallin was content to watch the fun from a safe distance. Tyler pretended to be pendulum that swung the hopper ball back and forth across the slide. The girls loved dodging the ball! As you can see, I don't like to post pictures of the kids I babysit. Just note that there were other kids around as well as a neighbor friend.

Sampson is such a water dog. He has webbed feet like most of the retriever family. I hope to be able to take him to a lake to swim in it sometime this summer. He deserves a chance to swim.