Ralph and Betty Ann

Kimball received the priesthood in October

2011-12-24T16:23:00.000-07:00

Brigham received the most valuable player that day in flag football.

Ralph, Jeff and Kimball

Kimball, Josh, Brigham, Sam, Spencer and Abby

Abby

Sam

Kimball

Spencer

Josh

Brigham

Phoenix in November

2011-12-24T16:14:00.000-07:00

Jeff's family, Sherry Ann's family & I went for a hike.

Andrew turned 5 years old.

Thanksgiving at Jeff's home. The two little girls were napping.

Abby

Climbing on rocks at the park. Tanner & Mattina Ann

Geremy

Spencer

Andrew's "tie" from primary for his birthday.

We went on a hike with the Guymon's to learn about all the different types of cactus.

McKenna and Deeann

I'll catch you.

I got you.

Happy Birthday Andrew

Lily's Birthday

2011-12-24T15:51:00.000-07:00

LilyAnna turned one year old December 23, 2011. At her birthday party you could get your face painted, and her Grandpa Brewer made balloon animals. There were party horns and balloons.

Lily was nervous about the whole thing. She has a princess crown for her face.

She loved to open her presents.

She's a daddy's girl.

Her personal one year old cake.

The dogs loved the cake too.

My big brother Kris.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

2011-10-31T18:53:00.000-06:00

Traditionally at the Baer's we carve pumpkins and eat donuts. That's what we did this year too.

October Fun

2011-10-25T21:12:00.000-06:00

In October the Guymon's came to visit for a week and we celebrated Halloween.

We had Breakfast with the witches at Gardner Village.

Jacob, Andrew and McKenna

We looked for 10 witches one day at Gardner Village and then got a cookie.

LilyAnna and Kristofer visited us one day.

Kristofer helped us play video games.

McKenna in silly glasses and all the kids in new shirts from Grandma.

We went to Cornbelly's at Thanksgiving Point and had a great evening.

We went to a University of Utah Volleyball game.

We had a great week with the Guymon's. The house was so quiet when they left.

While we were in Phoenix we got to see the boys play their T-Ball games.

The next weekend we went to Phoenix for Jeff's son to receive the Priesthood and be ordained a Deacon.

While we were there we got to see Brigham play flag football and he was the player of the game. He made lots of flag pulls and kept the other team from scoring so much.

Ralph, Jeff and Kimball

Jeff and Julianne are raising 6 great children.

Kimball, Joshua, Brigham, Spencer, Sam and Abigail

Happy Birthday

2011-09-18T19:49:00.001-06:00

I had a great birthday today. We started our celebration going to St. George on Friday night. We visited with Juanita and Jerry Saturday morning, then Sherry Ann and family in the afternoon. We went looking for treasures by playing a game called geocaching. We got to hike on some red rock mountain and through the desert, climb over a barbwire fence and search in 96 degree heat. It was hot, but fun. Mattina Ann marched with her school band in the parade. We saw her go by then drove on home.

Today we went to church and all the children have called. The primary sang to me. That surprised me since I am in the nursery. Ralph made dinner for us.

I am getting my computer repaired for my birthday present and of course some candy.

I can't believe I'm 59. That's getting up there in age. Tomorrow I'll do my 3 mile run to make sure I can still do it.

Chocolate Fun

2011-09-05T12:17:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I watched a movie, "Chocolate Never Faileth". It's from the book by Annette Lyons.

These are chocolate cups for mousse or ice cream or whatever you like. They are made from semi-sweet chocolate chips. You blow up water balloons and dip them in the chocolate. If you stripe some white chocolate on top of the bowl of chocolate you get marbled a effect. Make sure the chocolate is not too hot or the balloons melt to the chocolate. I learned that if the chocolate is too thick to spray some cooking spray in the melted chocolate and it thins it so it's better to use.

These are called bark. It's a layer of chocolate spread out, a layer of a different color of chocolate, some white chocolate swirled on top and some candy bits and nuts bits sprinkled on top. You refrigerate it then break it into pieces. I made a few chocolates just because.
Yesterday I watched a movie entitled, "Chocolate Never Faileth".

I hope you're having a nice holiday weekend.

Hailstorm and patio flood

2011-08-20T18:56:00.002-06:00

The corn is totally shredded.

Happy Birthday Ralph

2011-08-19T10:24:00.000-06:00

60 Years Old

A new belt.

A new book, the Cleansing of America by Cleon Skousen

Cashews, chocolate covered raisins, vanilla oreos

3 new short sleeve shirts
Ralph wasn't feeling too well. He still hasn't passed his kidney stone. He did go to work, but he doesn't feel as good as his smile looks.
We watched a movie and he received phone calls from all of his children.

Illinois 2011

2011-08-19T10:14:00.000-06:00

We got to go to Gary's for a few days. We had a pretty different type of trip.

Friday night we went to a ball game for a while. It was delayed for rain, but the rain never came until the game started, so the whole game was played in the rain. We left after the 5th inning.

Friday night at midnight Ralph was in pain and throwing up uncontrolably. Ralph ended up in the hospital with a kidney stone. He stayed there from Saturday morning very early about 2:00 a.m. until Sunday morning about 9 a.m. When he was putting his contacts in he dropped one. He thought it was on the bed, but after hearing the smash under his foot he found it in pieces on the floor. With all the sleep we lost it was hard to plan fun stuff to do. Carter & I helped Gary trim his shrubs. Jennie went to St. Louis Friday night and came back Saturday evening, so she missed out on all the Kidney stone excitement.

Sunday we played some games and enjoyed the family. That night Ralph thought he passed his stone.

Monday we went water skiing, played miniature golf, went out to dinner and had a small celebration for Ralph's 60th birthday.

Tuesday Ralph ended up in awful pain again, but we had to go home. I drove to St. Louis and we went to see the Temple. He had to lay in the back seat the whole time. The plane ride took us to Dallas and Ralph thought he was going to die from pain. It subsided for our ride to SL.

Wednesday morning we ended back in the hospital. His stone is still present and he's certainly having a hard time. They sent us home with pain pills. He stayed home that day from work.

Classic Fun Center

2011-07-22T18:43:00.000-06:00

We went to Classic Fun Center today. There is a bounce house area, jungle, roller skating, water slides and loads of fun. We'll probably go back next week.

Jacob tried roller skating for the first time.

When Andrew got down the water slide his comment was, "I made it."

Library & floats

2011-07-20T21:52:00.000-06:00

We got bubbles, otter pops and Jacob painted a sidewalk chalk picture at the library.

We went next door to the school play ground and played on the toys for awhile.

This evening we went to the Days of 47 floats on display at the Southtowne center with Grandma Guymon and Staci and family. Afterward we went for ice cream cones at Artic Circle.

Fun in the yard

2011-07-19T22:32:00.000-06:00

McKenna was terrified of the horse, but after she was helped out she had some fun.

Jacob was cold from the pool so he layed out.

Ralph slept thru the whole event.

Andrew loves the water.

I got the children some shirts and Deeann decorated them. The kids are so excited to wear them.

In the morning we went to the Gallivan Center for a huge party with lots of games and prizes for the children. We took our lunch and ate while we were there. We drove to SL, then rode TRAX to the fun. The boys commented on the fun morning they had. Too bad, I forgot to take the camera.

Friday

2011-07-15T22:49:00.000-06:00

We made crafts today

For our service project we stuffed footballs with stuffing

We rolled yarn balls

Aren't you glad Geremy had a paint shirt on?

Geremy and Tanner went to the park

We watched a puppet program

Mattina and AJ went to Harry Potter 7 part 2

We went to a concert in the park

Finished products, Geremy - airplane, Tanner - race car, Mattina - plaque, AJ - snake

We received your post card today. The children have been very good and I think they had a great time.

Relaxing day

2011-07-14T22:04:00.000-06:00

Casting spells with our wands.

Playing quidditch

Playing games

More quidditch

Sweet!

The story will come tomorrow.

Awesome fun for all!

2011-07-13T22:10:00.071-06:00

This trip has been a blast! Today we went to the library to make Harry Potter buttons... and bookmarks! They had this interesting button maker thing where you put a piece of paper, a metal base and pin, and a plastic piece. You press down the lever thingy until it clicks. Then you switch another lever and press down again. Then voila! You have a button.
With the bookmarks, all you do is decide which pictures you want on your bookmark. Then you simply glue the pictures onto the base paper and laminate them. Now I can fully appreciate dad having us cut out the papers at the school way back when. :)
A.J. won a drawing as well! At the library they had a drawing for either a T-shirt, a poster, a hat, or a fridge magnet. A.J. chose the poster.
After the library, we went to the park for free lunch. Today they had burritos, chips, milk, carrots, and a plum. Delish, as A.J. says.
Once lunch was over, we went to the church museum. The boys really enjoyed the Book of Mormon display. They could interact with Nephi's ship and everything. A.J.'s favorite thing was the Brother of Jared maze on the computer. Typical. I just enjoyed watching them have fun.
After the museum, we went to the temple and walked around it. Then we took a tour of the conference center. The view on the roof was amazing! The tour guide told us about where President Monsen usually sits in the auditorium. It was in the very front row. A.J. sat in all of them, just to make sure he had sat where the president of our church sat.
Next we came home... but not for long. We quickly put on our swimming suits and went to Seven Peaks. (The water park previously known as Raging Waters.) We rented some tubes and parted ways. A.J. and I went together and Tanner and Geremy went with Grandma and Grandpa. A.J. and I went to the tidal wave first. We were there for two rounds of waves. Next we went to the teal colored slide. Then the lavender one. Then the orange slide. Then I went back to where our stuff was and noticed my camera was missing. We went to the lazy river with hopes that Grandma was there and had it. After we went around twice, we left and decided to just walk around for a while, hoping to see them. Finally, we did. Grandma said that it had been in the locker the whole time. At least it was safe. Then we went on the three slides that were next to each other. The yellow, blue and green slides. They were fun. Next we went to the tidal wave again... we spent a lot of time there. Then it was time for dinner.
After dinner A.J. and I took Tanner to the teal slide. He fell of his tube the first time. When we went back up for a second round, we checked his height. He was just over the right size. About 49 inches tall. So we decided to take him on the teal one a second time. He did perfectly. Next we took him to the yellow slide, which he hadn't been on yet either. (It didn't permit you to take passengers on it. He had gone down with either Grandma or Grandpa on all the other slides.) He did a fabulous job with it. Since this slide was a smaller version of the lavender one, we thought he would be just fine on it.
He did. It was fun to see how proud of himself he was.
That was the last thing we did there. It was time to go. So here I am now, enjoying typing this entry. I hope you have enjoyed seeing my blog entry concerning day three of our trip in Salt Lake.

We made Harry Potter buttons and bookmarks at the library

Eating lunch at the park

Games in the children's museum

On top of the conference center.

21,000 chairs in the conference center.

In the conference center.

That's Geremy.
More to come tomorrow, the computer shut down for updating and it was bedtime.

Day 1, July 7, 2011

2011-07-12T20:37:00.000-06:00

Greetings! We made it to Salt Lake! We only had slight construction on the way, and it barely rained. We all got settled into our rooms as soon as we got here. A.J. is enjoying his own room very much. After we all had stretched, we enjoyed a steaming hot bowl of Mac and Cheese. (It was good, but I'm still glad I missed the usual last Friday.:))
Yesterday was a really fun experience. The boys woke up at who knows what times. I woke up around nine-thirty. We got ready for the day and were off. First we went to Smith's for some snacks. Next we went to the gas station, Seven-Eleven, where we got some free slurpees.The reason they only had them yesterday was because of the date. July 11, 2011. Or 7/11. We all enjoyed a refreshing Pina Colada slurpee:)
After Seven-Eleven, we took a nice LONG car ride to Antelope Island. I still can't believe how peaceful the water looked. Antelope Island is the largest of the ten islands in the Great Salt Lake. We walked through the Visitors Center for a while. A.J., Grandma, and I tried to explain to Tanner and Geremy how the Salt Lake came to be.
Once we had lunch, (Tanner had a peanut butter and raisin sandwich, Geremy had a PB and J sandwich, A.J. had a deli sandwich, and I had a tuna fish sandwich.) we waded into the water. It was actually quite warm. We were supposed to stay dry, but Geremy got drenched to the skin. ;)
After getting in the water, we went to the air force plane museum. They closed promptly at 4:30, so we only had a little time to look around. Let me just tell you this: those planes were huge! And to think that you two were on a plane that big... or bigger! Everyone enjoyed the museum and Tanner even got a souvenir there!
Finally we got home. For dinner we had pizza. Hawaiian pizza. :)
At last we went to sleep.
Today has been just as fun as yesterday. As I was writing my rough draft we were on our way home from the Kennecot Copper Mine. It was hug! 3/4 mile deep and 2 1/2 miles wide. We walked around the visitors center for a whild and watched the 18 minute video about the mine they had. Awesome fun.
For lunch today we went to the park and ate the free lunch they were serving. This morning we did two service projects. Grandma had sewn some clothe balls together and we got to stuff them with cotten. (Geremy loved pulling the cotton apart.) Our next project was making balls of yarn. We already had the yarn, we just had to form it into balls. It was fun to do. Tomorrow we are going to the humanitarian center to deliver everything.
We all miss you and hope to see you again soon.

P.S. This is Mattina writing.

Father's Day 2011

2011-06-19T17:33:00.000-06:00

Deeann called this morning and congratulated Ralph with having 41 Father's Days. Wow, that is a lot!
He got his favorite candy's, nuts, and a new shirt and socks. I told him to guess what present I bought for him and he guessed a Wii game. Well, he got one of those too, Just Dance 2. Gary called while we were at church. I suppose the rest will call sometime.

He opened gifts and then he got to be the High Council speaker in another ward. He gave a great talk about the choices we make and the right we have to make choices.

This cake is my way of making a marzipan fan cake. It tastes really good, I just need to improve the looks.

Yesterday we helped clean up 2700 West with others in the area, played frisbee golf, went to the sidewalk chalk festival and an indoor football game. It was a fun day. The chalk pictures are all gone because it's been raining all day. They are really neat to look at.

Memorial Weekend

2011-06-06T13:08:00.000-06:00

We spent 3 days in Phoenix for the Memorial weekend. It was fun to see the two families again. McKenna took a few minutes to remember who we are even in just 6 weeks. We went to a park with a water playground and had a barbeque picnic.

We went swimming in Guymon's pool while Tyler and Deeann went to the body exhibit. Tyler and Deeann spoke in church so we sat with the children. The boys did great. McKenna was great until she saw mom and dad on the stand.

We went to a Mexican food restaurant and I ordered water to drink. I thought it tasted horrible, but thought it was just me. I mentioned it to Deeann and she tasted it and I thought she was going to die. I got new water that was much better.

We went to Jeff's on Sunday evening and to Sam's baseball game on Monday morning. Guymon's came over and all of us (except Julianne and Abby) went on a hike on one of those poke up hills that dot the Phoenix area. It was a nice hike among the cactus. At the top we couldn't even see the whole Phoenix area because it is so big. We had swimming and a barbeque at Jeff's.

I took several games and played with the children at both homes. It was fun to be with them.

Our airplane left SL late and left Phoenix late. That was unfortunate.

New Hampshire trip

2011-05-22T12:14:00.009-06:00

Doctor Tyler T. Guymon was hooded on May 13, 2011 in Rindge, New Hampshire at the Franklin Pierce College. He received the highest award presented in his graduating physical therapy class.

We waited patiently for the ceremony to begin.

Ralph, Betty Ann, Deeann, Tyler, Alease ( Tyler's mom)

He will be a great doctor.

We went to the Boston Temple and enjoyed an endowment session.

Afterwards we went to a Creole restaurant for real Haitian food.

We spent an afternoon at a lighthouse in Maine. It was cold there. We had some lobster at a fun restaurant. We were there the day before the season opened for the summer tourists.

We love the New England area. We're glad we could go there a few times the past couple of years.

Phoenix trip April 2011

2011-04-21T18:51:00.010-06:00

April 14th we helped Tyler and Deeann and family move to Goodyear, AZ, (Phoenix area). We drove to Page, AZ and stayed until Friday when to drove the rest of the way. We were in a big moving truck and their family van. We helped them get the truck unloaded and the beds up then left for Jeff's house. We hadn't been there before, so it was fun to visit them.

On Saturday Sam was baptized and confirmed by his father, Jeff Baer, on April 16th. This is Jeff's 3rd son to be baptized. It was nice to have both sets of grandparents there and two of Julianne's sister's and Deeann's families were all in attendance.

Jeff got a plastic container and put it in the water so there was air under the container and several of the kids put their face up in the air pocket and could breathe.

Spencer and a couple of cousins are jumping. I love that boy.

Abigail is very shy and didn't know me, but I took lots of pictures. She's very quiet and just a doll. She rarely cries or wiggles or makes a sound.

This is McKenna and Abby. I think they'll have lots of fun playing with each other as they grow up.

We took a family photo of the two families just before we left for the airport. It was a beautiful night for our families to be together.

Ralph and I went for a bike ride and rode some electric scooters to entertain ourselves.

I hope we get to visit these two families often since they both live in the Phoenix area. Deeann lives in Goodyear and Jeff lives in Chandler. They're about 50 miles apart. We sure miss these families.

Family Reunion

2011-04-03T19:37:00.004-06:00

These two sisters and their family's haven't been together for 2 years and 8 months. It was fun for us to have a busy weekend and enjoy our children and grandchildren. It snowed so Reep's were ready to get back to St. George and Guymon's are ready to move to the Phoenix area in 12 days.

Conference Priesthood Session 2011

2011-04-02T22:24:00.008-06:00

This year Sherry Ann and Deeann were in town for "Girls Night Out" otherwise known as the Priesthood Session of Conference. Sherry Ann gave Deeann a massage. We made Spring wreaths for our fun night. Mattina and Sherry Ann worked together and helped me buy the supplies. Deeann brought the idea and the ribbons. The 5 boys played video games downstairs so we had a great time. McKenna just played and enjoyed the night.

Sunday March 20, 2011

2011-03-24T20:08:00.006-06:00

On Sunday, March 20th we attended a dedication ceremony for LilyAnna. She was born Dec. 23, 2010.

Her little dress is gorgeous. She liked me to hold her so she could see my face, then she would smile and talk.

Family photo. Susan, Kristofer, Chris and LilyAnna

When two of my children are together with us we call it a family reunion. Deeann's cute family took us with them. During the church service they had a class for the children. The Guymon's enjoyed listening to the pastor without all the wiggles. We need Primary DURING Sacrament meeting.

Saturday, March 19

2011-03-24T19:12:00.010-06:00

Saturday we drove to St. George and saw the Reep's for a few minutes.

We took the family out to lunch, Sherry Ann and Ralph & I went to the matinee, then we ate dinner at my sister Juanita's home instead of the park because it was cold in St. George. Then we drove back home.

Aaron was John Dickinson in the musical "1776". It was fun to see him performing. He had a solo part and sang wonderfully.

Mattina Ann - 13

AJ - 11

Tanner - 6

Geremy 4 - turning 5 on May 1.

Good job Aaron.

March 8, 2011

2011-03-08T20:25:00.005-07:00

Winter is beautiful this morning. Spring is only 12 days away. Do you think that will make a difference? I love the snow. It's best when the roads aren't bad and the sun shines afterward.

For two weeks in February Ralph and I helped Deeann with the children while she worked. Tyler went to New Hampshire for two weeks to finish his schooling. I got to play, Children's Sequence, Book of Mormon Who, and other games for hours. It was fun to play with the children. They all slept over on the nights Deeann worked. It was a great time.

The last night we watched the children we took them to Chuck E Cheese. McKenna loved it and she didn't need any tokens.

Happy Birthday Jacob

2011-02-02T21:07:00.008-07:00

Thanks Grandma Guymon!

Jacob is 6 years old today. We went to a party at his home and he opened his presents from his grandparents. We both gave him some games. We played the games together and had a fun

evening.

Grandpa Baer played a game of checkers with Jacob. Somehow Jacob won the first game he ever played. Congrats.

McKenna wanted to know what is happening.

Andrew was helping Jacob.

Andrew did a somersault.

It's been cold so I've been staying in the house. The air is nice and clear so maybe I'll just bundle up and brave the cold tomorrow and go for a walk. I like it outside.

I think the groundhog saw his shadow in Salt Lake. Six more weeks of winter. Punxsutawney Phil in Pennsylvania didn't see his shadow so an early spring is on its way. Which one do I go by?

Lilyanna or LilyAnna - still to be decided

2011-01-10T22:06:00.005-07:00

Grandpa and Grandma Baer visited Lily on January 9 and we were able to hold her.

The happy Brewer family.

The happy grandpa.

The happy grandma.

We had a fun visit with the Brewer's on Sunday morning. Susan and Lily are doing very well. There are the usual baby doesn't sleep at night and what do I do if this happens problems, but everyone is happy.

Ralph and I have had a busy new year. We've been to a gymnastics meet, and a men's U of U basketball game. We have tickets to gymnastics or basketball every week until March.

We play games or watch movies at our house or Guymon's on our free nights. They'll only be in Utah 3 more months so we have to play all we can right now.

December 23, 2010

2010-12-29T10:25:00.004-07:00

Chris and Susan Brewer are proud parents.

LilyAnna Elizabeth Brewer was born on Dec. 23, 2010. She weighed 6 lbs. 4 oz. and 18 1/2 inches long. She had some problems, but is doing great. She went home from the hospital on December 27, 2010.

The nurse brought her into Susan's room so Ralph and Gary could give her a priesthood blessing and Christmas day.

Christmas 2010

2010-12-29T09:57:00.012-07:00

Ralph loves his nutcrackers and village. He is always looking for the next nutcracker that he'll buy. He knows where he put every village person and if they are rearranged by little hands.

Merry Christmas to all.

We made our traditional gingerbread houses. Gary, Carter and Jennie were so creative.

Jennie loved taking pictures at Temple Square. We went to the Christmas sing-a-long at the ESA and loved the temple grounds.

This is the first "real" snowman that Carter has made. The snow in Illinois doesn't pack and roll into a ball. They make their snowmen laying down on the ground.

The Baer's and Guymon's went sledding up Parley's canyon at the golf course. Jacob and Carter loved it and got so tired we couldn't get them to walk back up the mountain.

We had a Christmas Eve party here with the Baer's and Guymon's. Eating and presents were a

hit.

Jacob and Andrew performed a primary song for the talent show. Ralph played his accordion.

McKenna turned 1 on the 21st and loved all the fun.

Here's all of us on Christmas Eve.

Tyler, Deeann, McKenna, Jacob and Andrew had a great Christmas at their home.

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-30T20:52:00.006-07:00

The weather was cold - about 12 degrees. The race started at 9:00 up at the capital. Tyler, Deeann and I ran our third turkey trot race and Ralph watched the children, this time at their home instead of freezing at the finish line like he did in the past.

In 2006, 2007 and this year I ran the 6K race in 46 minutes and some seconds. I guess I'm consistent. This year my goal was to run the entire race and that's what I did.

Jacob and Andrew are waiting for Turkey dinner.

Deeann got the fruit turkey idea and let Tyler make it. It is cute, fun and was tasty. Thanks!

Thanksgiving night at 10 p.m. Toys'R Us opened for their big toy sale. Tyler started standing in line at 8 p.m. and Deeann and I joined him at 9:30 p.m. with a blanket and some hot chocolate. He was frozen. We were about the 50th people in line so we got in and Guymon's got all the items they went for. When they checked out at 10:50 p.m. there were still people standing in line to enter the store. Too many people were there to all be let in at the same time.

Ralph got up at 3:30 a.m. to stand in line and acquire a new TV. He didn't get one. Later in the day someone that did buy one was selling it for a profit and Ralph couldn't resist so he bought it from them. See how happy he is!!

Friday night we bundled everyone up and went to see the Christmas lights.

Also, Ralph and I went to see the Rockettes. It was a great performance.

2010-11-21T10:42:00.001-07:00

November 21, 2010

2010-11-21T10:25:00.003-07:00

LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW!!!

The wind blew yesterday, then the slushy snow came and this morning on the driveway I measured 11 inches. It was so heavy that the snow thrower couldn't make it so we had to SHOVEL! Ugh!

We finished getting all of our Christmas lights up yesterday, but the cords to make them turn on weren't laid out. Ralph had to go find all the plugs under the snow before it freezes so he can put the cords out this week.

We've been out buying Christmas presents for each other, while each is present, so we get the right thing. By Christmas it will be a pleasant surprise which box holds what.

I just got over a sinus infection. I'm glad to not be coughing and having a sore throat and sore ears.

I get a week off from school work for the Thanksgiving vacation. Yippee until payday.

We had season tickets to the Lady Utes Volleyball games. The last game was yesterday. It was fun to attend and we'll miss the graduating seniors. Next up - Utah Gymnastics!

I witnessed a car accident last week and new I had been blessed. If I had the green arrow left turn light, it would have been me getting hit by the person that ran the red light.

Guymon's had us over for dinner and a game last night. Thanks a lot. It was fun. After volleyball and shopping I was glad for a dinner out.

2010-11-06T17:17:00.001-06:00

Susan's Baby Shower

2010-11-06T17:12:00.003-06:00

Hi,
Today Deeann and I gave Susan a baby shower. We invited a few friends from the ward that inspired Susan as she was growing up. I'd like to thank Deeann for giving her a shower with me. Thanks to all the long time friends that showed some love to Susan.

Cornbellys

2010-10-03T21:08:00.007-06:00

October 1st we started the Halloween season by visiting Cornbellys at Thanksgiving Point. We had a picnic then played on all the games and toys.

We saw some pig races and this was McKenna's reaction after clapping her hands.

The boys loved the jumping pillows. I thought they might stay there the whole evening. They rode on a "cow-train", rode tricycles, played on some slides and played with the ducks on a rigata course.

The boys found this poor fellow and held his hands. They were brave enough to go through the spook alley.

This lovely witch was passing out delicious pumpkin cupcakes.

The boys had some cotton candy. We were happy to take the Guymon's to Cornbellys for an evening of fun.

Primary Program

2010-09-27T21:28:00.008-06:00

This past Sunday was the Primary program for Jacob and Andrew.
It was the first time we've been able to attend a Primary program where our grandchildren had speaking parts. Andrew and Jacob were so excited they couldn't sit still.

The boys are wearing their new ties. Each tie has CTR on it.
McKenna has a scraped nose from falling on the cement steps.

Andrew said, "I will invite a friend to primary." The mic didn't catch his voice, but he said it so loud that you could still hear it.

Jacob said, "The Holy Ghost can give me a warm peaceful feeling."

He also sang with a group of boys, "I hope they call me on a Mission." The boys stood by and on the stairs so when they sang, "I have grown a foot or two", they moved up a stair.

Guymon's are in a really fun ward. We saw a lot of humor and happiness in their ward.

Deeann made a great lunch for all of us to enjoy. Tyler's parents came too.

The church house they meet in is the same one Tyler's grandparents attend church in and the same one that his mom went to while growing up.

Today I picked a bunch of tomatoes and bottled 7 pints of tomato sauce and 3 quarts of tomato juice. I've really had a lot of tomatoes this year.

2010-09-20T16:58:00.001-06:00

Birthday

2010-09-20T11:29:00.010-06:00

Saturday I celebrated my 58th birthday. I went on a 3.17 mile run around the canal road just to prove that I can still do it. I got cleaned up and went on a hike with the Guymon's. We went up to Brighton and started for Lake Mary, but ended up at Dog Lake which was how far the boys could walk. Pictures from the hike are on the slideshow.

After the hike, Deeann took me out for lunch. We had a great salad and sandwich. It was really nice to spend a bit of time with each other and just talk. No interruptions!

Later I opened my presents and got some new shoes, hot pads, toothbrush, and a variety of candy and nuts.

That evening, Deeann and family brought dinner to our house. We had fun eating and playing games. It great having family around to celebrate.

Sunday night we went to a family reunion for the cousins of my children on the Golding side. It was fun to hear some of the memories about my parents and cousins of each other. I never really thought about any of them having a relationship, my children didn't have cousins that they had a friendship with.

On the way to Orem we saw the beginnings of "The Fire". The smoke was everywhere and thick down by Camp Williams. On the way home we saw the flames and that it had moved north to the valley. It has been hard to watch people lose their homes and be displaced. We all need to make a real list of what to take in an emergency. I asked Ralph what he would take and his first items to take were a lot different to my first necessary items.

Labor Day

2010-09-06T17:53:00.008-06:00

Hi,

Today Susan and Chris met us and Guymon's at Sugarhouse Park and we had a barbeque and played with the boys. It was a beautiful day for being outside. It was great to spend a holiday with two of our children.

Gary called this morning, so that was nice. He's been painting his gazebo and getting in a few last water ski outings. They've been finding creative ways to teach Carter and help him with his kindergarten homework. Jennie has a friend that wants to help her build her business and be her business manager. That will be nice when her photography business takes off.

It's been crazy around here since Deeann and family moved back to Utah. We've helped unload boxes, hang curtains, wash lots of clothes at my house, play, and be a lot more busy than usual.

On August 23, Deeann celebrated her birthday. This is the 3rd year in a row that she has been involved in moving by her birthday.

Tyler tried to start the candles on fire with some paper that he started burning from the stove, but that didn't work. Tyler finally found a match. You have to realize that there were boxes all over the rest of the house.

I've been working for the past two weeks. I'm back to the good life.

Ralph & I have season tickets to the Lady Ute volleyball team. Their preseason games were last weekend, so we went to three matches, got in our last Bee's baseball game and went to the races this past week.

Our garden has been producing nicely and we've had zucchini everything. It's even great raw. We pulled all of our corn plants out, that was sad. We had huge broccoli plants but no broccoli yet. Maybe as it cools off, I hope.

Back in August I went on a hike up in Big Cottonwood Canyon with a few ladies.

Some of the ladies fed the critters. They came right up to us, nibbled on our shoes and ate their goodies right in front of us.

Happy Birthday Ralph

2010-08-19T12:36:00.004-06:00

Ralph celebrated his 59th birthday on Wednesday the 18th. He looks great.

Wednesday I had my first day back to work and Ralph went to work after staying home sick on Tuesday. He came home sick on Monday after he had worked the day. We think he got sick from swimming on Saturday at the gym. He had those pool symptoms and the pools been closed since then.

This is Ralph's birthday "cake". I raced home from work and made raised donuts. I usually only make them about once a year. I also made two batches of toffee because the first batch was a huge failure.

After dinner we were supposed to go swimming and to a movie. Well the weather wasn't swim weather and the movie selection was marginal so we went to plan B.
We went to a Fast Track and drove cars around for 15 min. The fastest time for a lap for the day was 45:25 and my fastest time was 50:36. Ralph's fastest time was 51:32. I guess we need some practice. It was fun sliding around corners and seeing how fast I could go. I decided to lap Ralph, so I really had to push on the pedal. After I lapped him, I had a hard time losing him.
When we got in the car to go home I realized I had dizzy sickness or car sickness. It went away after awhile. I guess I'm not going to be the next Danica Patrick!

Tuesday I bottled 5 quarts of tomato juice and made 21 bags of corn. It's nice when the garden produces so we can save some for the future. All we have for dinner is corn on the cob, tomatoes, cucumbers, and some type of meat. That's easy to fix.

Johanna Flynn | A Change of Mind, A Fresh View, A Turning of the Heart | May 03, 2006 | BYU Broadcasting

2010-08-12T15:18:00.000-06:00

Johanna Flynn A Change of Mind, A Fresh View, A Turning of the Heart May 03, 2006 BYU Broadcasting

This is a fun talk. I hope you enjoy it.

St. George

2010-08-07T17:16:00.012-06:00

Hi,
I drove to Sand Hollow Reservoir on Thursday and met the Reep's there. I took the blow up boat that has been in our family since our children were young. The four kids got in the boat and had to learn how to paddle and get the boat to go where they wanted. They made several trips out to the buoy, (a favorite of my children), and taking turns paddling and pulling it places.
One time Sherry Ann and I got in it for a trip to the buoy. We laughed a lot and enjoyed our adventure. Mattina Ann got in with us and the boat about swamped. I wonder why the sign says only two adults at a time in the boat? We still laughed and rode the waves.

Right after we got to the reservoir, got the life jackets on and the kids playing it was time for lunch. Sherry Ann was getting it ready and a great wind came up. Everything was blowing all over the place, (spinach on the wraps included). We called the kids in to eat and the great rain came. It was a downpour. With the wind blowing and the rain, the kids were screaming and afraid. I went under the table and used the family and table for cover from the rain. Everything was wet after a 20 minute downpour. The rain left and the waves on the lake were great. We played for several hours and really enjoyed our time there.

Mattina loved the watermelon. She's wearing Deeann's old life jacket. Mattina Ann is becoming quite a nice young lady. She reminds me of most Beehive's. She's constantly working on her YW Values and accomplishing goals. She's been reading all of the Work and Glory Books.

Geremy loved to sit in the water and play with the wet sand. I think he sat there for an hour just letting the sand slip between his fingers.

Tanner loved to swim all over the lake and play with the boat and raft. He read a story to me and I asked him who taught him to read. He said his family. They all help each other out.

AJ is definitely all boy. He's doing great in scouts and loved to play in the water. He plays the piano everytime he walks past it and loves to read.

Aaron and Sherry Ann are preparing for their trip to Italy and deep sea diving in the Mediterranean Sea. They have snorkel gear and saw some fish while they were swimming.

My swimming suit and hair are really dorky, but I had lots of fun with the Reep's.

They made a great dinner that night with Mahi mahi for us for dinner.

After an absolutely terrible nights sleep for me, we got up on Friday and I made muffins for breakfast. Sherry Ann and I experimented on making a loaf of bread, three different ways. I used the bread maker, an electric mixer, and by hand. We put it in the loaf pans and went to the park.

There is a nice water park out in Ivins. The kids had so much fun that the time flew. When we got back to the bread it was past ready to bake. After it baked, we ate one of the loaves and the kids really loved it. We didn't try all three to see which one was best. They get to do that later. Good luck to Sherry Ann on her future bread making experiences.

Ralph went to a Bees game while I was gone and cleaned the house. Thanks for letting me go and cleaning.

The past few weeks I've been taking the paint off the front door and then I stained it and put the finishing on. It saved us a couple of hundred bucks. It looks really nice.

Last week I had a flat tire on my bike. I took it off and patched it. I rode it to the gym. The next morning it was flat again. I took it off and patched it. This is all on the same hole. It was flat when I got out of the gym. I walked the bike home. I bought a new tube and installed it. This morning we went on a bike ride and I got a sticker in my tire. A hole in my new tube. We had to buy some more patches so Monday I guess I'll fix it again. Fun.

We're Home

2010-07-27T19:30:00.003-06:00

Hi,

We had a great time in Illinois and now we're home. Our lawn and garden made it through the week without water. We really watered it good before we left and I guess it worked.

Family portraits don't always turn out the way you hoped they would. Oh well, it's still cute.

Carter is adorable. Yesterday we were coming home from the lake. Gary was in a different truck pulling the boat and we were driving behind him. He got a bit ahead so I asked Carter to tell us the way home. We were practically there. He said he had a headache and couldn't tell us. I asked how we would get home. He asked grandpa if he remembered how we went the day before and to just go that way. That was a very thoughtful answer.

Castle Park

2010-07-26T21:42:00.004-06:00

Today we went to a park that has a castle, dragon and gargoyle figures to play with and enjoy. The park is a memorial for a little boy that died and these are the things he loved.

Ralph is trying to tip this one over.

Cute boys! At church everyone knew that Ralph is related to Gary. They would just say, "you must be related to the Baer's".

After the park we went to McDonald's, then got the boat and spent some time on the lake skiing and kneeboarding.

Gary had a ball game scheduled for tonight so we went to it. He wasn't contacted that the game was canceled. We then went to an arcade and it is closed on Monday nights. Darts became the entertainment for tonight.

More fun

2010-07-25T16:13:00.004-06:00

Hi,
Yesterday we went water skiing and had a great time. The water is warm, and just right for playing and skiing. Carter loves to ski with Gary. Ralph & I both skied and Gary and I used the knee board. Ralph and I have lots of sore muscles today.

Carter has a basketball hoop in his front room, so we played basketball. He loves to play.

In the evening we went to the Miners baseball game. They have a playground with about 6 blowup toys for the kids to play on. You have to pay to play though, so we took some turns to watch Carter while he played.

I should have had someone take our picture so I could be in it. The game went into extra innings, so I took Jennie and Carter home and came back and picked up the boys. The Miners won.

Sunday has just been church and not much else. It's hot here but Ralph and I went for a walk. The neighborhood hasn't changed much in the past year.

We're going to make cookies now.

2010-07-24T15:38:00.000-06:00

Long Day

2010-07-23T13:53:00.002-06:00

Thursday, July 22, we left for the airport at 1:15 to catch a 2:35 p.m. flight. When we got there we found out it is delayed until 4:00 p.m. I called Gary to tell him to come later to the airport. He had already left and was 75 miles away from home.

When 4:00 rolled rolled around, a plane came in and we boarded it, got up in the air, headed East and then turned around and landed back in Salt Lake. The air pressure wasn't working and it was hot in the plane. We got off the plane and they gave us a $6 voucher for food. By now it's after 5:30 p.m. We got on a different plane at 7:00 and finally made it to St. Louis at 10:35 p.m.

We were supposed to land at 6:30 p.m., so we were only 4 hours late.

Gary started to drive home, missed one of the signs and ended up on the wrong freeway. We found our way back, got on the correct freeway and finally made it here at 1:40 a.m.

Carter was excited to see us and thinks my suitcase should have endless surprises in it.

Phrases to Avoid if you Want Great Relationships

2010-07-20T12:10:00.000-06:00

Phrases to Avoid if you Want Great Relationships

Hill Air Force Museum

2010-07-17T15:25:00.008-06:00

Today we met the Brewers at Hill Air Force base and toured the museum and planes that are outside. We've never been there. It is a very nice museum. It's amazing how different the planes are and what they looked like back from World War II and the Korean War.

Kristofer sitting in a cockpit chair.

This plane has Senator Jake Garn's name on it. Evidently if you are a senator and buy your way to getting your name on a plane, the air force will do it for you. It also has made quite a few air force people unhappy. They don't think the senator's name should be on it.

I brought some food and we ate lunch on the picnic table in the background.

2010-07-16T12:32:00.001-06:00

Hike to Lake Blanche

2010-07-03T17:11:00.002-06:00

This morning we hiked to Lake Blanche. It took us just over two hours of straight up hiking to get there. We ate lunch there and then back down. I was soaked with sweat so with the breeze and cooler temperature at that elevation I was freezing. I didn't think we would ever make it up there again, but we did.

2010-07-03T17:10:00.001-06:00

Reeps Visit

2010-07-03T16:15:00.006-06:00

Aaron was involved in a project at the capitol with other teachers and they worked on making part of the science program for the school curriculum for the next year.

The rest of the family came for a few days so we got to play and enjoy them. Aaron and Tanner had some creative ideas of how to play with the darts.

On Tuesday Sherry Ann & Mattina Ann and I went to Good Things Utah. On Wednesday Aaron, Sherry Ann, AJ & I went to the show.

Monday and Tuesday we went to the free lunch program at the park. That was fun to participate in and see how our government spends our money.

Monday night we went to Murray Park and went swimming for a couple of hours. I kept my hands out of the water because of my stitches and tape on them. I was still able to go down the slide a couple of times.

Tuesday afternoon we went for a tour of Sweet's Candy Company. Their candy is really good.

Wednesday I thought I'd make a nice and easy lunch for them and hoped their family would like it. I called Deeann so I would know how to make it. She told me the Reep's are the ones that taught her how to make it. Their family loves Penne noodles with spaghetti sauce and Alfredo sauce on it.

I was pretty grumpy, I didn't realize how much my hands were bothering me. On July 1 I got my stitches out and it was like I felt all better.

CARPAL TUNNEL SURGERY

2010-06-23T11:05:00.006-06:00

This morning I had endoscopic surgery on both of my wrists. Ralph took the day off work to be with me. I have to wear these wraps for 3 days, then whatever the pain allows. I am looking forward to having use of my hands without numbness or pain.

I worked all day in the yard yesterday to prepare for a feww weeks off. I fixed an old scooter last night so the kids can ride it. I took it for a spin and found out that I have to change my pushing leg often. I can do it without stopping.

Happy Father's Day

2010-06-20T16:28:00.011-06:00

Ralph enjoyed his presents this morning or candy and nuts. He also got some new Sunday shoes and a new weedwacker.

We spent Thursday afternoon until Saturday evening with this cutie. Spencer got our personal attention while his parents ran the Ragnar race this past weekend. I was amazed at how well he handled being with us without any of his sibblings. I was with them in January, so I wasn't a complete stranger. I think he remembered me.

We played soccer and hit balls. (He knew how to pose for pictures.)

Ralph's work party was at the zoo on Saturday so Spencer went with us to the zoo. He loved it.

Saturday night we took Spencer to Powley's in Provo and met up with Jeff and Julianne after the race.

Abigail got to go on the race too.

Her hair has been braided and put in ponytails by her cousins. She loves it.

Congratulations to the "Racing Hearts" team. The Ragnar race takes 12 people to run a total of 188 miles. Each racer runs at 3 different times from early Friday morning in Logan to the finish in Park City. They run through the night and catch a nap or two. I think Jeff and Julianne love this race and would do it again, but the rest of the Powley family wasn't as excited to commit for next year.

Before - inbetween - Finished

2010-06-10T22:18:00.003-06:00

We got to eat dinner under our new patio cover. It was great.

Staying at home

2010-06-09T15:04:00.005-06:00

Hi,

Now that school is out I've been at home. Right. Yesterday I had an appointment for my carpal tunnel surgery which took 1 1/2 hours, dusted a ladies house for 1 1/2 hours, prepared dinner for the neighbor for about 3 hours, took a lady to the store, post office and bank for 3 hours and then had to eat cereal for dinner since I was too tired to make anything else.

Today I trimmed some bushes so they're smaller and swept the gutter. While I was sweeping I saw a very beautiful butterfly. At first I thought it was dead. I almost touched it before it flew around and came back.

I went grocery shopping. Food sure does cost more these days. I guess we'll have to eat less. I've been reading a book about food and I think it made me think more about where the food came from and tried to buy more locally grown food. I didn't buy a watermelon, but I did buy bananas.

Reep's were here on Sunday. They stayed Saturday night and left Monday morning, so we got to enjoy tham on Sunday. They're off to Minnesota to visit Aaron's grandparents.

Boston Trip with Tyler

2010-06-05T15:04:00.003-06:00

Tyler is having a great time at the game.
We saw a couple of home runs. One of the homers
went over the green monster. Kansas City
won the game.

40th Anniversary

2010-05-30T09:21:00.005-06:00

Ralph and I celebrated our 40th Anniversary on May 25th.

Deeann made us these decorative letters with a lot of picture memories on it.

The boys & Deeann made us a cake and Deeann made us dinner.
On Monday we went to the IMAX and watched a movie about fish and their habitats and eating habits.

Deeann and the children flew in from New Hampshire last Saturday. Ralph flew out on Friday to meet Tyler for a Boston RedSox game. Saturday Ralph & Tyler left for SL. They got a flat tire in Ohio and had to wait for 5 1/2 hours for help. They will arrive in SL sometime on Monday.

Jeff and his family made it to Phoenix on Friday night to start their new adventure in Phoenix. They're really glad to be in their new home and have plans to stay there for a very long time.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

2010-05-09T15:08:00.009-06:00

I took a survey while speaking with my children - "What did you get at church for Mother's Day"?
And the survey said, Dee - a See's candy bar, Julianne - a rose, Sherry Ann - a chocolate covered strawberry, Jennie was sick- but the women were given a truffle and Gary didn't bring her one, BA - the gospel art book. Everyone was happy to get something.

Today Ralph treated me with some gifts. And now looking at the pictures it looks like there are a couple of pillows on the couch! In actuality they are the wrapped dresses.

He got me some Werther's, new gardening gloves, lotion with sunscreen for my face and a nose plug. (I don't know if the nose plug will fly off when I'm water skiing or stay on. It will be interesting to get used to.)

I got these two new dresses. Which one do you think I chose to wear today?

Did you guess the Yellow dress? Our tulips by our garden are beautiful and our new tree is growing nicely.
I appreciate all Ralph does for me and the Mother's Day calls I received today. I have a great family.

Yesterday we played frisbee golf. It takes me two throws to get my disc as far as Ralph gets his in one throw. Last night we played DDR and even after I practice by myself Ralph can do better than me. But, the other day when we played darts, I got a bull's eye when I threw with my left hand. It's good I like to have fun no matter what the score is. We went biking on Friday night. We're really enjoying the sunny weather.

2010-04-18T16:11:00.001-06:00

ZION'S NATIONAL PARK

2010-04-18T14:47:00.014-06:00

The national parks are currently having a free week of entrance fees. So last Friday we drove down to St. George, stayed with Juanita, then Saturday morning went to Zion's National Park. Ralph and I took Mattina Ann with us, then we met Sherry Ann & Tanner & Geremy at 1:00 p.m. Aaron and AJ couldn't come because of other committments.

Our first hike of the day was on a trail called Watchman trail. It started off at the Zion's Visitors Center. It wasn't too long or hard. None of the one's we went on were too steep. We do want to go back and take in an all day hike.

Then we went up to Weeping Rock. This picture is actually taken from another trail to Hidden Canyon. We weren't able to finish this hike because we had to meet Sherry Ann at Zion's Lodge. We were to meet her at 12:30, be we decided it would take her longer to get there than we planned, so we went there for 1:00. We got off the shuttle and looked for her, then the next shuttle drove up and she was on it. Perfect timing for all of us.

After lunch we went up the Emerald Pools trails and this pool and waterfall are at the third pool. This picture is actually at the end of the paved canyon. The shuttle driver said all the falls we took pictures of will be gone in about a month. This was a great time to go, not too hot or cold.

I was excited to see the beauties of the world. I've been wanting to go to Arches National Park, but we decided to go see Zion's this past weekend. We've never really hiked around there before.

On our way up to the pools, Ralph had to hold a rock for us. The man behind him took his turn holding the rock after Ralph.

This is the most north we could go. It's where the Narrow's trail starts. It is closed because of the water flow. This was our last spot to go. Now to just get back a mile to the shuttle.

When we were on the Shuttle we saw climbers in mid climb of the straight up rocks.

When we rode the shuttle down to the visitors center we spoke with a man that took some of his gear up to a starting point and set it up so he can spend the next 3 days on the side of the mountain. He showed us a picture of the unit he sleeps on when he's on the side of the mountain. It's just a flat surface that is attached into the mountain. He was climbing alone, so it will take a couple of days to climb up and back.

Ralph noted that he was the only cool hiker with his plaid shorts on. Everyone else had boring plain shorts. He's my stylin' hubby.

HAPPY EASTER

2010-04-04T09:39:00.005-06:00

Our first tulip...

Did the ducks come back too soon? I saw a robin too.

It was so beautiful we had to go for a walk.

On this Easter Sunday it seems appropriate to bear testimony of the Savior. I have a testimony of the life of Jesus Christ and of his ressurection. I know I can repent of my sins and become better each day so I can live with our Heavenly Father again. I know the teachings of the church help me and teach me what I must do. I have a testimony that Thomas S. Monson is the prophet that we should follow. I'm thankful for my testimony.

SKI UTAH

2010-04-02T20:46:00.006-06:00

I finally got to go skiing today. It has been snowing the last couple of days and more is in the forecast. Today was the best day, so off to Brighton I went. I usually would go for 9 a.m. and not miss a minute of skiing, but I thought I'd let the clouds move out a bit so I got there at 9:30 a.m.

And wouldn't you know it, a POWER OUTAGE. None of the lifts were working. I should have expected something when the power was out in the rest room and I had to feel my way to a stall.

Lots of people were here and no power. Then at 10:30, they opened the lifts with generator power. We could ride on every other chair. This made the lines long, but better than nothing.

Then at about 1:30 p.m. the power came on so the lifts worked regularly.

It was a great day for skiing. The snow was incredible. You wouldn't believe it was April. There was powder all over the groomed lifts. I've never experienced powder like this, so I had to learn quickly.

My nose and cheeks got a bit red, even with some sunscreen. Maybe because it was snowing. Part of the morning you couldn't see down to Heber, we were in the clouds.

I'm so glad I got to go skiing today and it all worked out ok.

A New Job

2010-03-18T16:40:00.004-06:00

I am now an employee of Canyon's School District at Canyon View Elementary School.

I work Tuesday thru Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the lunch room preparing the lunch for the children. I eat lunch there but since the lunch menu isn't that great, I will be eating a lot of lettuce salads.

I had been a lunch room substitue beginning last October. That meant I had to look every day to see if I would be working or not and I would always be at a different school.

I actually was offered two jobs on the same day at two different schools and had to choose.

It's really kind of weird to know I have to go to work every day. I will have the summer off and I will still have lots of ability to have days off if I want to go somewhere during the school year.

John Lund | The Art of Parenting Teens and Other Miracles | April 03, 2000 | BYU Broadcasting

2010-03-17T15:43:00.000-06:00

John Lund The Art of Parenting Teens and Other Miracles April 03, 2000 BYU Broadcasting

I listened to this talk and it gave some good ideas about how to communicate with children.

Guymon Family Visit

2010-03-09T18:39:00.005-07:00

McKenna Marie Guymon was blessed by her father, Tyler Trent Guymon, February 28, 2010. Susan made the beautiful blanket that she is laying on. All of the Guymon family was there. It was a special day for all of us.

Jacob at the Discovery Gateway Museum. Jacob remembered going there when he was younger. It was interesting to see what things he remembered since he just turned 5 and he hasn't been here for a year. We went to the Clark Planetarium and saw a planets show. The kids toured the planets in a cardboard box. That evening Jacob made a cardboard box rocket. He really liked learning about the planets.

This is the real Guymon family at the zoo.

Andrew thought it would be fun to go to sleep like this. It was fun to watch him play and tease. He loves to laugh. Everything we did was new to him, even though he had done it a year ago. He loves every minute of life.

We had a great 13 days with the Guymon's. We went to the Zoo, a tour of Sweet's Candy Factory, (highly recommended to others), Kangaroo Zoo, (a place where blow up toys are in abundance and the kids love it), Jungle Jim's, Discovery Gateway, Cheesecake Factory, Safe Children's fair, played frisbee golf, Ty and Dee went snowmobiling, shopping, and really enjoyed each other's company.
Tyler is now starting his last session of classes in New Hampshire. The end of May they will be moving to Phoenix area. Deeann and the children will come here for a week before Tyler comes. Ralph will fly out and drive here with Tyler. They will be in Phoenix until the middle of November, then to Salt Lake for 3 months.
Jeff will move to Phoenix at the same time, so this summer we know where we'll be visiting.

Family dinners work some kind of magic

2010-02-17T14:51:00.004-07:00

Family dinners work some kind of magic

Click on the link above, Family dinners work some kind of magic to read the article.

I really believe everything that is said in this article. I think that a lot of the problems we are having these days with children come from not eating dinner as a family. I'm glad to see someone else thinks so too.

Happy Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T13:29:00.007-07:00

Ralph and I enjoyed Valentine's Day by giving each other some candy. We also attended Stake Conference. I made a heart shaped chocolate-pineapple rum cake that is sooooo good.

Yesterday we got up at 4:30 a.m. and drove to St. George. Mattina Ann had a 9:00 a.m. basketball game that I wanted to attend. I was very loud while encouraging the team. I told Ralph I had to get in all my cheers at one game. Mattina Ann played very well. She got a couple of baskets, rebounds, played great defense and with great team play, they were able to win the game. Sherry Ann has really taught these girls well and it showed yesterday.

Mattina Ann was warming up doing rebounds.

Go team!

Mattina Ann is showing us the basketball players resting position.

In the game there are 8 (4 minute) quarters, (if you can have 8 quarters in a game). Each girl gets to sit out one of the quarters.

Cute team!

Also yesterday we attended the funeral of Aaron's father, Richard Ellison Reep II. It was a very nice service. We extend our deepest sympathy to the Reep family. Brenda certainly will need many prayers and help with her family.

We stopped by Juanita's but she wasn't home. Jerry is in a rehab center and we checked a couple of them, but he wasn't in them. We decided it best to just come home.

When I was in Milwaukee, the last week I had a bad allergy or cold or something. When I came home I decided it was a sinus infection. I tried some home remedies for a week, then last Monday I went to the doctor and got some medication. After 3 weeks I am feeling a lot better.

Happy Birthday Brigham, 5 years old.

Milwaukee

2010-02-01T09:46:00.014-07:00

Jan 19 - 30 I spent in Milwaukee. Jeff & Julianne and Abigail went to Arizona so Jeff could get his contract settled for his work beginning in June and they could start the housing search.

I cared for the 5 boys. I helped them make beds, brush teeth, got breakfast for them, took them to school, helped with homework, took them to Karate and just let them play.

I washed clothes, at least one or two loads a day, prepared meals, cleaned up toys, cleaned up coats, cleaned up back packs and cleaned up clothes and enjoyed some quiet times. I typed a bunch of recipes onto the computer for Julianne and even did some geneology Indexing.

The Coons let me borrow their GPS. That was such a lifesaver. I am so turned around in Milwaukee and all the streets go crooked. It really helped me go a couple of places besides to the school and back.

On Saturday I gave each boy a kit to paint and assemble. I think they all had a great time. It took some time and mess, but they got it done. Spencer was so happy to show his mom and dad and say that he painted it. Of course I held part of the brush for him.

After we painted the cars and planes and got them glued together, we went to Culver's while they dried. They ate their meal and were very good. A stranger came up to us and complimented them on having such good behavior.

They were happy with their finished project. Sometimes it would break and we could just glue it back together. They all got a new car and I bought some fun balloons for them to play with.

I didn't watch Abigail. She is getting big and reaching for toys and being entertained with them.

Kimball loves history. He was a great help to me and answered my questions about how to do some things.

Joshua comes home from school and does his homework immediately. He loves to learn.

Sam is really happy. He read to me every day for his school work.

Brigham goes to K-4. It starts with the other boys, but gets out at 11:00. I think Brigham is a great thinker and figures out why and how things happen. He was so surprised when he asked to go to the store the first day and I took him.

Spencer is 2. His laugh and smile just melt your heart. He didn't care if it was 9 degrees, he didn't like to wear a coat or shoes to take the boys to school.

I tried to get them to look at me when I left, but the movie was on. I love them and miss them. It was great for me to help them out.

New Hampshire trip

2010-01-17T17:02:00.020-07:00

We are a happy family.

Jan 4 - 13, I enjoyed 10 days with the Guymon's. I got to snuggle with McKenna and lots of hugs from the boys and Deeann. Tyler was happy not to be doing housework and laundry.

This is Jacob's favorite spot to sit on the sofa. The two boys love to play MarioKart. Sometimes I helped Andrew and I was really glad that he didn't care if we got last place. I'm not that good at the Wii games.

One night we took pictures of McKenna while she was asleep. You can see, she is a very happy baby.

I found some car kits at Michael's for a dollar and we had fun painting the wood and assembling the cars. They did a good job and learned that they could do it. I learned that the paint didn't come out of their clothes and felt really bad.

After we were finished with the cars the boys and I walked to the library which is 1.13 miles aways. It was good to get out of the house and go for a walk. Deeann met us there and gave us a ride back home.

We went to two different museums. The boys enjoy experimenting and learning. It's great that they can have these experiences. I love to watch them play and use their imaginations.

This room with the brain waves lets you have a contest to show whom has the least brain waves. I won that contest. I wonder if that means something?

This was one of our Sunday activities. The boys had fun painting. Jacob is very particular, Andrew likes to use all the pens at once.

Tyler, Jacob, Andrew and I went sledding while Deeann & McKenna went to the store. The hill was the perfect length for the ride and the walk back up. I only felt every bump that I hit for two days. There is a lake by the hill where people were ice skating. I went over to see if I could slide on my sled or walk on the ice. NOPE! My feet flew out from under me so fast. I had a hard time getting back off the lake. It's good I hadn't used the sled to slide out a long way.

The boys like to be sung to at bed time. I was elected each night to do the singing. I'm glad they don't mind the sound, and just enjoyed the intent. I taught them a new song, "Kindness begins with Me" and "The Chapel Doors".

I got to learn how to drive around in Concord by going this way or that way, not by going North or East. My directions there are messed up. After the first two days of a few U-turns to get to the right place, I did ok.

Each morning I took Jacob to school. One day I took McKenna with me so Deeann could sleep. I also took some recycling to another location to recycle. I left the car running so McKenna wouldn't get cold, but when I got out of the car my elboy touched the lock, the door closed and there we were, McKenna locked in and me locked out. I immediately prayed for a miracle that the door would open. It didn't happen, but McKenna stayed asleep for the 50 minutes until we were rescued, so my prayer for a miracle was answered, just not my solution. Deeann ended up borrowing the neighbors car, getting Tyler's key and coming to open the door.

Of course a trip to Concord isn't complete without a game of candlestick bowling. Deeann & I went and enjoyed a little mom-daughter time. I had to use my left hand a couple of times to get any pins down.

It was really hard to say goodbye.

New Years Day

2010-01-03T16:51:00.008-07:00

January 1st we had a family party with Jeff's, Susan's & Sherry Ann's families. We had lunch with 19 people here. We had the children all sit in the kitchen and the adults in the front room. I sat with the kids and Kristofer sat with the adults.
I asked the children to name all the people sitting at the table. Children can play with each other and not even know each others name. We practiced naming everyone.

After dinner had settled, we played a picture game and tried to get everyone to say everyone's name, both those here and the 8 people that weren't here. With everyone living so far away and not seeing each other, the cousins don't know each other.

After awhile, we had a root beer tasting contest. Ralph found 9 different root beers for us to taste. We didn't tell anyone which was which and each adult got to taste the 9 different drinks and find the best and worst and try to name the common flavors found in the big bottles. It wasn't too surprising to find that A & W came in 1st.

This is all the children except Abigail who wanted to eat and missed the picture.

Jeff's family.

Sherry Ann's family.

Susan's family.

All of us. Look how tall Kristofer is.

We had a really great time eating, playing, and talking to each other. I hope the cousins got to know each other better.

I had purchased a PS2 and another TV game system that is for younger children. It gave all these rambunctious children plenty to do.

We really missed Gary's and Deeann's families. Maybe one day we'll all be together again.

AJ's Birthday

2009-12-31T19:42:00.005-07:00

AJ turned 10 years old on December 30, 2009. I made him this cake.

Four silly children. We celebrated AJ's birthday and Christmas so it was lots of fun.

I made matching pajamas for the family for Christmas.

Christmas 2009

2009-12-27T21:15:00.010-07:00

One of the first things I did to start Christmas was make the Gingerbread boys for the tree, then I just had to make a Gingerbread house that is a tradition at our house.

Christmas Eve came and Ralph's sister, Heidi, and her daughter, Michelle, came over for dinner and we played Guesstures.

Santa arrived at our house and after reading from Luke, we opened presents. Neither one of us put names on the presents and we used the same wrapping paper, so it was interesting to see if we could figure out who's present was who's.

We both got houseshoe's for Christmas.

We got a Belgian Waffle grill.

And an oven with a rotissereri that we cooked our pork roast for dinner.

We had a great Christmas. We missed our children terribly. We called and talked to each of them.

We're happy that we could celebrate the birth of Christ and give gifts to others.

McKenna

2009-12-23T21:09:00.002-07:00

Our 15th grandchild and 3rd granddaughter was born December 21st.
Her name is McKenna Marie Guymon.
She weighed in at 9 pounds 1 ounce and measures 20 1/2 inches long.
We're really excited to have her in our family. I can't wait to go and see her and give her a hug.
I can't wait to hug the rest of the family either.

How Old?

2009-12-20T15:39:00.002-07:00

Last week in Relief Society we discussed Joseph Smith's last days before his martyrdom. He knew he was going to die, he had been preparing to die for quite some time, he knew he would be preserved until he had accomplished his mission in this life.
It made me think of making sure I accomplish my goals for eternal life before the Lord decides my mission in this life is over.
Strange but true, I decided to see what the average age of people are in the obituaries to give me an idea of a possible time frame.
Monday the average age was 77.8 years old.
Tuesday the average age was 75.86 years old.
Wednesday the average age was 77.21 years old.
Thursday the average age was 80.27 years old.
Friday the average age was 81 years old.

We just averaged the age of anyone that was in the paper and didn't consider if they were in more than one day. Most are only in for one day.

Going with the averages I have 20 years to fulfill my goals for this life. Kind of a morbid thought.

Festival of Trees Success

2009-12-08T19:51:00.006-07:00

This tree was sold for over $10,500.
Congratulations Val.

My name is Mr. Hershey.

The Baer Boys

2009-12-07T21:50:00.007-07:00

Ralph & I enjoyed Thanksgiving with Jeff's family and Gary's family.

Jennie took a great picture of all the Baer's that will carry the name forward.

I like goofy too.

We should have taken a picture with the girls too.

For some reason this is the only girl that got her picture taken.

Festival of Trees

2009-12-02T17:19:00.017-07:00

One of these beautiful trees is mine.
One of these beautiful trees is Val's at the Festival of Trees.
The other trees are quick pictures I took because pictures say a 1000 words. Some of these trees needed more than a 1000 words to describe.
Some of these I liked. Which one's do you like?

Sewing machines?

I like snowmen.

What?!

Temples all over.

This tree is made out of paintbrushes and the other one in the back is made out of colored pencils.

Sunday Fun

2009-11-29T19:05:00.004-07:00

This is what I did today for my Sunday fun. The gingerbread boys will go on the tree.

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-11-29T15:02:00.012-07:00

Joshua Hinckley Baer was baptized by his father, Jeff Baer, and Abigail Elizabeth Baer was blessed by her father on November 22, 2009.

We were so happy to be present for their special occasions.

Spencer is so cute. Notice the size of this blanket. A child doesn't need to pull around a full size blanket, a square foot will do. He loves to cover his face with it when he goes to sleep.

These are the boys that will carry on the BAER name.

Gary and Carter, Jeff and Kimball, Joshua, Sam, Brigham, Spencer along with Grandpa.

Keep those clothes clean while you give your Karate chops.

We love our family.

I bought this baby dress 7 grandson's ago. Abigail looks great in it.

Gary, Jennie and Carter came up for Thanksgiving. It was great to be with our two son's for Thanksgiving.

November 20, 2009

2009-11-20T10:04:00.005-07:00

Wednesday night we went to Brigham City and listened to Kristofer play the viola with the Orchestra. He has come a long way since he started and play "Hot Cross Buns" at his first performance. He just got a haircut and is so good looking.

His parents just don't pose for pictures.

November 15, 2009

2009-11-15T19:07:00.003-07:00

Sunrise this morning was so beautiful. I love it when the snow is on the fence and every tree branch and bush. It was so wonderful.

In part of October and November, I've been busy being a substitute in the lunch room at three different schools. It's a job I can do a day or two a week and enjoy the other days. This will help pay for my extravigant Christmas shopping experiences. I just want to buy everything and give it to my children.

I started some sewing projects. It has been so long since I've sewn an outfit. I usually just mend things these days. It's a fun project and I hope it turns out good.

We went to a dejunking class last week. I learned that my children don't want anything that I've saved for them, so I might as well not save it. I came home and threw away 7 belts that I had in my drawer and hadn't worn for years. I'll have to look around for some more "treasures" that I don't need. I know I have some hot rollers someplace. Does anyone want them?

Go UTES! Ralph & I went to all the Ladies Utah Volleyball games this year. That was really fun. We hope to find two for one tickets to the Basketball games.

I've been trying to help Chris get his taxidermy business going. I've been creating a website and just need a few pictures to get it on the web. It's been fun. I thought it would be harder and more expensive.

October 31, 2009

2009-10-31T08:37:00.003-06:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

The GOOD, the BAD, and the SPOOKY!

October 29, 2009

2009-10-29T14:53:00.005-06:00

I went to work like this today and celebrated Halloween. This is the fun of working at an Elementary school.

October 27, 2009

2009-10-27T17:18:00.005-06:00

This morning was our first snow this season. It's ok to snow on the lawn if it stays off of the street and sidewalk.

October 24, 2009

2009-10-24T16:26:00.002-06:00

We just got back from a 10.37 mile bike ride. We went from our house to the West Valley Library, then to the Kearns Library, (got rained and hailed on by Kearns Jr. High so we took shelter), then after Kearns Library we came home. It only took us a little over an hour and we didn't hurry. We didn't even collapse when we got home.

October 21, 2009

2009-10-21T14:24:00.007-06:00

Today I donated Blood and found out that I have donated more than 5 gallons of blood to the American Red Cross.

We are a Happy Family!

I should have had my picture taken climbing the walls.

Monday we went to the Children's Museum. Then off to Fillmore for the car swap. Everyone had a great time.

I lost 3 pounds playing with those kids. How long do you think I can keep it off?

October 17, 2009

2009-10-17T21:39:00.012-06:00

Thursday night Ralph & I traveled to Filmore and met the Reep's there. We exchanged cars and brought the grandchildren back with us.

Friday we went to a movie, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.

In the evening we went to Cornbelly's. The kids had so much fun. They wanted to come back next year and I explained it's only open in October.

I forgot my camera, so just pretend you can see the Reep's jumping and having fun.

Saturday we frosted cookies,

Went to the park,

Roasted marshmallows and had s'mores.

And of course a little baseball.

We're reading the book, "Charlie's Monument" for our reading time together. I think we're all having a great time.

October 11, 2009

2009-10-11T20:29:00.007-06:00

Today I attended the baptism of my two friends, Martin and Grace Oladele. It is very special to see two people come to America and find what they have been looking for in the gospel of Jesus Christ. I took Grace to the Oquirrh Temple open house and while we were in the car I talked to her about the church and told her that we don't drink coffee. She and Martin quit drinking coffee that day. She loves to give her time at Welfare Square. I was able to help her get a job at the Utah State Fair for 12 days. I'm still trying to get her a permanent job. One of the reasons that they were baptized is because the LDS people put their arms around them and loved them into the gospel. They are happy we don't discriminate against them. The other lady in the picture is a friend from their ward.

May camera doesn't take very good pictures of black people. They are very happy to be members of the true church.

Last week I worked for two days in a lunch room at a junior high. I was hoping it was going to be a good job for me because I like all the days off that I would get working in the school. I'm going to quit tomorrow because it is too hard on my back.

September 20, 2009

2009-09-20T13:57:00.005-06:00

September 18th was my birthday! I woke up in the morning and went running for 3.11 mile run just to show that I still can make it around the block.

I had a great day, went for a job interview, cleaned the house, and even dusted. Ralph usually dusts. Ralph gave me some presents, my children all called me and it was good. Thank you children for remembering me.

Heidi and Michelle came over and we played "Ticket to Ride". It was a fun evening and maybe we can play some games with them again.

I got some golf disc frisbee's, two, so I can share. We used them on Saturday and had a fun time playing frisbee golf up at the U.

We went to the Governor's Day celebration up at the U. All of the National Guard troops marched in and stood for a long time. We were at the Football field and it was filled with service men and women. It was some site. It was hot too and I think there were 10 - 15 people that were carried off the field from fainting in the heat. It was sad to see that part. They had a bunch of displays and games to enjoy for the kids. I wanted to ride the "Bull", but can you imagine what all the people would say to see an old lady riding that ride.

Our new entertainment is watching the Lady Utes volleyball team. Their schedule has buy one admission and get one free on it, so we picked up enough schedules for the whole season. At least they won yesterday, when Utah & BYU football lost and RSL soccer lost. We like to route for winners.

September 11, 2009

2009-09-11T17:10:00.005-06:00

Sunday we went to church, then after a scrumptious dinner I made some great fudge and some zucchini bread. We played the games "Sequence" and "Last Word".

Monday Gary, Carter, Ralph & Betty Ann went water skiing. I can't believe how well Carter does at boogie boarding. We all got sunburned. The water was so amazing and smooth that we couldn't leave and just kept taking turns skiing or boarding.

Monday afternoon we went to a place similar to Chuck E Cheese and played games. Carter loved this train. It's pretty cute.

Tuesday morning, September 8th, Carter went to school and we came back home. Gary drove us to the airport.

I'm thankful for the freedoms we have in this country and for the soldiers that fight for other peoples freedoms.

September 6, 2009

2009-09-06T14:31:00.014-06:00

Friday night we went to the ballgame. This is how Carter watches baseball games.

The ball is up in the air from air coming out of the cone and the ball sits on the air.

Saturday we went to the State Fair. I guess in Illinois they have the state fair in 3 different places. We drove 45 minutes to get there.

This is Carter's first time on a horse. I think he liked it.

Carter has a practice fishing pole at home, so when he was casting with a real pole and a practice weight he did very well and got it near the hoop. Gary did good too.

The crash up derby was supposed to start at 6:00 p.m. so we got our seats at about 5:50. After awhile a forklift brought the announcers stand, then the stairs, then then watered the dirt, then the cars. It started at 6:45 p.m. I guess that's small town fun.

We saw a car catch on fire and a car just totally blow it's radiator and lose all it's water. One car had it's front wheels pointing toward each other, like it was pidgeon toed. /\ It could still go somehow. They slid all over and liked to bash in backwards.

These two cars got stuck together right in front of us. They made tons of noise trying to get apart, but it didn't work.

Jennie said Carter liked it, but from this picture, I'm not sure.

I was so nervous for the drivers it made me tense.

This is a huge sand castle. I hope they covered it up because we got quite a bit of rain last night.

So far we've watched two movies, "Bride's War" and "The Soloist". Don't bother renting either of those.

September 4, 2009

2009-09-04T08:08:00.014-06:00

Hi from Illinois at Gary's house.

We went to the Garden of the God's yesterday. There are some big rock formations out in the middle of forest.

Then off to the lake for some water skiing and play.

Gary & Carter on boogie boards.

Gary and Carter on ski's.

August 18, 2009

2009-08-18T12:19:00.005-06:00

Happy Birthday Ralph!

This morning I made his birthday cake, chocolate pineapple rum cake.

I hope he has a great day.

A couple of ladies took me to get a pedicure this morning. My first pedicure. It really made my

feet feel really good.

They're kind of a funky grean color.

August 10, 2009

2009-08-10T11:46:00.004-06:00

We went to St. George this past weekend. We left Thursday night, stayed at my sister's, got up Friday morning and went to Las Vegas. We went to the Titanic display. It gave us some understanding and lots of sadness to learn more about this tragedy.

We came back and played in the park with the Reep family. Then on Saturday morning we went for a swim. Ralph and Aaron didn't get in because the water was a bit nippy. Sherry Ann, Mattina Ann, Juanita, Jerry, Ralph and I went to the play "Annie get your Gun" and watched Aaron and AJ perform. It was a cute musical and the actors and musical numbers were great.

We had dinner in the park and the boys played. Sunday morning we went to Sacrament meeting, then home we came.

It was a nice little trip. We discovered that I have been to Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Wyoming, South Dakota, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Arizona, Nevada, seconds from Idaho and of course Utah this summer. It's been great to see and do so much this summer.

July 31, 2009

2009-07-31T13:20:00.004-06:00

We had a great time in New Hampshire, Vermont and Boston. All of us where so tired that we slept all day Sunday, (after church). We were always going somewhere and valued every precious minute we had together. We loved the trees and everything so much that we looked up the price of homes there. Right now we're staying put.

Ralph and I walked on the Freedom Trail in Boston. It's too bad I can't remember all those things I learned in school. There are some amazing events that happened in Boston. I didn't know we lost the Bunker Hill battle or that the constitution was first read there or that's where Paul Revere was from.

We loved learning about Joseph Smith's birthplace. What a beautiful area. Camping in little cabins is the way to go.

Candlestick bowling is very different from regular bowling. The pins, and balls are different and you get to throw 3 balls. The pins are straightened up after each ball, so you can use the fallen pins to your advantage, or sometimes they get in the way. It's lots of fun.

Of course in Vermont we went to a Maple syrup farm. It takes lots of trees to make a bottle of syrup. It's really good too. Ben & Jerry's Ice cream is good. I got a recipe book for my souvenir.

One more year and Guymon's come back to Utah. I get to go visit in January, so that will be fun.

July 21, 2009

2009-07-29T10:23:00.011-06:00

Mattina Ann stayed with us for 13 days, from July 9th to 21st. I picked her up at the Idaho border and we went to Golden Spike Historical site. We stopped by where the rockets are made for the space shuttles and on to Golden Spike. We got to see the trains move and learned what each horn toot means.

Friday we went to the Heritage Park because it was free. We got lots of popscicles and walked through lots of homes and learned about the pioneers. Brigham Young married so many women because at that time women could not own anything and they would lose their home and children. Their marriage made it possible for them to keep going and care for themselves. He only had a few wives that he had children with. Mattina Ann's cousin, Ally, went with us.

We went to a horse parade, raging waters, and the library where we learned about some large birds of prey and where Mattina Ann made a duct tape wallet. We went to Thanksgiving Point and saw animals there and enjoyed some games. Also, concert in the parks and Jazz concerts were part of our entertainment.

She really likes looking at things, so we went to the church museum, art museum in the conference center, the top of the church office building and the state capitol.

Mattina Ann painted some shirts with fun designs for each of her brothers and herself. She also painted the letter "M" for her room.

We made cake doughnuts, pasta salad, smoothies, french toast, did the laundry and learned some skills to take care of herself.

We had a great time doing things together and being tourists in Salt Lake City.

July 6, 2009

2009-07-06T14:46:00.006-06:00

Thursday, July 2 Ralph and I took off on a mini vacation. It rained from before we left home to July 3 sometime. I was bored so I took some very boring pictures of Wyoming.

On the 3rd we went to Custer, SD and that where you see us by a buffalo. There are painted buffalo on all the corners in downtown Custer. We went to a woodcarving museum and the Jewel Cave. You know cave pictures just don't look like the real thing, but I had to take some. Then it was off to Mt. Rushmore on the busiest day of the year. People had lined their cars up at 5 a.m. to enter the park at 7 a.m. The big 4th of July celebration was held on the 3rd. ? There was a program all day long and the area was people to people. We went at 4 p.m. and parked 2 1/2 miles away from the entrance and walked in. We took an audio tour of the monument and learned who, what, where, when etc. We then waited for the fireworks that were scheduled for 9:20 p.m. At about 8 p.m. a big dark cloud came over and we thought it was going to pour. We took cover. It didn't rain though, it just created a big fog so we couldn't see the faces on the mountain. We that's where the fireworks were, so when they went off, no one saw them. We had to wait until they were through to walk back to our car. It all makes a great memory.

We left Custer and drove through Custer State park and saw all the animals. They were right up by the car. The ranger volunteer said the park has more than 1000 buffalo right now.

Then it was back to Casper, WY and what to do now. We saw the bottom of the 9th inning with the Casper Ghosts and the Ogden Raptors. We saw a 3 run home-run by the Ghosts. Ogden won. Then fireworks Casper style.

Sunday we went to Martin's Cove for Sacrament meeting and wondered a bit there and learned a few things. It was nice to see and hear some of this part of church history.