Ron and I just finished this book. It is an easy read, but it took us a little longer to read because it was our "dessert" book. After we read scriptures each night (our "meat and potatoes"), we get a little dessert book. I already knew the story of Stephanie Nielson, but it was, at times, very emotional to read it out loud. Would I recommend this book? Yep!

Lake Chelan

This week we've been at Lake Chelan. The drive over here was beautiful. Here's my handsome hubby with the dam behind him. Someone turned this warning into a silly sign: And this one too: There's still lot's of snow in the mountain passes. I love traveling with Ron. I call out "We've GOT to have a picture of that!", and he stops or turns around and we go back. This is one of those places. How many times are you going to drive thru Concrete?? Exactly! So we stopped at Concrete Washington to take this picture. It's a pretty solid town >harhar< .....Last night we had dinner with Ron's co-workers at a winery...there's lot's of wineries around here. (Ron and I had sparkling lemonade) It was Italian food and it was DELISH! And we had a buena vista of the lake below and the vineyards on the mountainside. It was magnificent! ...Today we had a private picnic at the park (how's that for alliteration?) by the lake...very relaxing. Why is it, when you try to take a picture of yourself, it ends up looking like when you get really close to a Christmas tree ornament?? I love my guy!

Happy Father's Day

My mom married my step-dad when I was eleven, and to me he was my dad. He passed away in 2008. I miss him. I'm surprised at how much I miss him. He was the dad who took us on family vacations. We would drive cross country to visit my grandparents. That's what family vacations were, visiting relatives for up to two weeks at a time, then driving back home. Dad also taught us to work by "finding" jobs for us to earn money. Several years in a row we had to deliver phone books to earn Christmas money. In the crisp October air we'd run door to door dropping of each book then run back to our station wagon to grab another armful. My parents (especially Dad) really ingrained in us the importance of giving service too. We had Stake farms that grew apples, and peaches and cherries. And at picking time my sister and brothers and I would be climbing up the tree to see who could get the furthest piece of fruit. I think we probably ate half as much as we picked. It's funny how we hated doing it at the time, but now I look back on it with fond memories. My mom passed away when I was 21. My dad lived alone, without her for the next 27 years. He was a good man and a good example of staying true to his word. Occasionally he was taken advantage of, because he was a man of his word. He also obeyed all of Heavenly Father's commandments. Yeah, I miss him. Happy Father's Day Dad.

Um, God could have left spiders off his "to-make" list

I'm in Time-Out. Not the fun, uplifting, sponsored by Deseret Book, kind. The "I'm-so-mad-I-could-spit-nails-so-I'd-better-remove-myself-from-the-public" kind. Earlier this evening my husband and I were out running errands. All was right with the world. We got home, I hopped out of the car and went around back to wait for the trunk to pop so I could get our groceries out. From my peripheral vision I could see something LARGE moving across the brick on my house. It was the giganticest >yes I said GIGANTICEST< spider I have seen since moving to the Pacific Northwest! I calmly waited for Ron to get out of the car, and as calmly as I could say...trying not to freak out in front of the entire neighborhood...I told him to get some spider spray or poison or something that would kill the heck out of that thing. He (my husband) mosies on up the steps and comes sauntering on back with...(have I given you an idea how slow he's going)...a SHOE! I still have my eye on the spider 'cause I don't want him escaping so we can't kill it, and Ron brings a flippin' SHOE??? Then he tries to smash him and it's like a game of whack-a-mole. So I go and grab the first poisonous looking spray I can see which happens to be wasp spray, and I spray every inch of house, brick, siding, flower bed, neighbors dog (ok not the neighbors dog) I'm sure the spider is just laughing as he makes a clean getaway! By now I AM freaking the heck out! And I am fit to be tied! I HATE spiders. HATE. Did I make myself clear on that? They FREAK me OUT like nobodys business!! And the fact that this one got away. Grrr!

So many talents, so little time

My grandchildren make me laugh! This is Logan, age 5, he learned a new trick...from his MOMMY! Which I find hysterical!!

A good mommy lets you "DO" her hair

A GREAT mommy let's you "do" her hair with LEGOS!

It's not what you look at, it's what you see...

My Visiting Teachers came this morning. I answered the door in my robe and p.j.'s. Yeah, there, I said it. I answered the door and invited them in, and I hadn't even brushed my teeth yet. And let's call it like it is, I'm no Natural Beauty. I know. You're shocked, right? I'm sure they were thinking: "That Ron is a luck-ee man." {Insert sarcasm here}. But they were super sweet and acted like they didn't notice the gigantor cyclopse zit in the middle of my forhead, or my matted hair. But what my dear friend did notice was these little pansies growing in the seams of my driveway. They must have been blown there from last year's flower pots that were placed by the openings of the garage doors. A true friend looks past the fact that it's after noon and you're still wearing your robe that has dried egg stuck on it, you have matted hair and unbrushed teeth, and tells you you have beautiful tiny pansies growing on your driveway. I am the luckiest girl in the world!