October - "Autumn

Autumn - the season between summer and winter. This is one of my most favorite times of the year. It's not to hot and it's not to cold, as little Goldie Locks would say, "It's just right!" And there are pumpkins! Pumpkin cookies, pumpkin rolls, pumpkin bagels, pumpkin pie, pumpkin on my porch. I love pumpkin. Along with all the things I love about fall we have 3 October birthdays.
Guess who turned 12 this month and had one heck of a marathon birthday. Yep, Keagan. This picture is one of Nana and Papa's favorite pictures of Keagan. She was the happiest baby, and this picture makes us happy just to look at it. Keagan started off the week before her birthday by having a Karaoke/Wii party at Nana and Papa's house with some of her friends from School.
As you can see by the SMILES they didn't even need microphones to have a good time although there were four mics for them to sing with at a time. We took pictures of them singing and then they made cute frames to put their photos in. A fun time was had by all. Then on the 16th which is her true birthday she had a party with Grandma and Grandpa Robb and that side of the family. Nana and Papa couldn't be there because Papa had a bishopric meeting and Nana had a dress rehearsal for the Golden Girl's performance at Tuacahn. The weekend after her birthday we picked Keagan up after work and took her to dinner at a Chinese Restaurant then we went shopping for her gift. Keagan is wearing her new sweater she got for her birthday. She also wonders if you can see something else she got for her birthday. She especially wants to know if Brynlee can tell? Here's a little closer look can you tell? Happy Birthday Keagan! I can't believe next year you will be a "bona fide" teenager. It seems like only yesterday that I was holding you in my arms and dancing with you and singing you lullaby's to get you to sleep. Our little wide eyed baby girl who very rarely slept, there were so many things you wanted to learn, and to do, and see.Rod and Raquel celebrated their birthdays this month also. I couldn't find a recent photo of them believe it or not. This was their engagement photo. Raquel's birthday was on the 11th and Rods birthday is on the 30th. Rod was my little spook baby. Happy Birthday Rod and Raquel!

I Love To See The Temple

On the last Sunday session of conference Les and I decided that we would drive up to Salt Lake and walk around Temple Square and take some photos of the flowers. Every year we plan to drive around and photograph some of the beautiful flower that we see thinking maybe we could plant some in our yard next year but then we always forget about it until its to late. We got there a good hour and a half after conference had let out but there were still a lot of people milling around the beautiful Temple grounds who should we encounter first but the ole Devil himself. Isn't it funny how people just can't seem to leave the Mormon Church alone. Would we do that to other religions? I don't think so...He just wanted attention and he was certainly getting plenty of it.
The temple grounds were beautiful, there were flowers of every kind, many that I had no idea what the names of the flowers were only that they were all so beautiful. We are wondering if they would grow at our house if we planted them? Look at the parsley they used as a filler, doesn't it look so beautiful and bring out the color of the different flowers.
I took many different shots of the Temple because it is such a beautiful edifice.
Isn't this an unusual looking flower!This is the beautiful old historical Lions House Restaurant, maybe you can click on the photo and make it larger so you can see the row of hollyhock all across the front giving it the feel of Brigham Young's era.

Papa and I look more like non members in our Jeans then we do members. Our next trip up will have to be to have lunch or dinner at the Lion House. Can you believe neither one of us have ever been there.
All and all we had a wonderful spiritual day with conference and our visit to temple square.

Angels Unaware

A week ago last was general conference for the LDS Church as I had mentioned on a previous blog. I loved every talk and there were several that really stood out to me as things I needed to do differently or better in my life. One of the talks that really had an effect on me was one by Elder Jeffery R Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles entitled "The Ministry of Angels." He talked about how hard it was for Adam and Eve to willingly step into mortality because they would no longer be in the Presence of their Father in Heaven. But Father knew the challenges they would face and He sent Angels to reassure them that heaven was very close and that He was always near. Think of all the times there have been angels on the earth for one reason or another...to Mary to let her know she would be the mother of the Son of God, a host of angels sang at the birth of the Savior, an angel told Joseph to flee Egypt after the Savior was born because he was in great danger, and again when it was safe to return. From the beginning of time down to present the Lord has used angels. As I thought about this I could think of many times in my life where Angels were with me leading me, comforting me, bringing me as well as my children through difficult times, guiding our foot steps through impressions etc. There have been spiritual angels as well as human angels here on earth that did not ignore the promptings from our Father in Heaven to come to my aide. This caused me to wonder have I ever been someones human angel because I listened to the spirit and was there for someone who needed me?

A few weeks ago I had lunch with two of my old friends from my grade school and junior high days, Linda Hutchings and Janice Shumway. It was so fun to see them again and reminisce old times as well as catch up on the present. A few weeks after our get together I received in the mail a flash from our past that Linda had written. She attended a class in church that helped her to write down stories from her life and she shared an experience that the three of us were apart of and sent it to both Janice and I. "My Modern Day Little Match Girl". When we were about 12 or 13 years old Janice, Linda and I all lived on the same block. Janice and Linda lived just a few houses a part and I lived around the corner and in the middle of the next street. We traveled back and forth from each others houses a dozen times a day. A new family moved into the apartments on the same street as Linda and Janice. Sharlene, a little 3 or 4 year old girl and her little brother we're apart of that new family. Sharlene had big puppy dog eyes and dark blond matted dandelion hair. She and her brother roamed the neighborhood exploring their surroundings barefooted, simply clad, many times the only thing Sharlene had on was training paints and her little brother a diaper even in cold weather. Linda over heard her parents one day discussing Sharlene's parents, they said they were simple minded. It was obvious they were unable to keep on top of their two small children. In our travels we often encountered this little urchin playing by herself or with her little brother. We often tried to talk to her but she would never respond not even with a smile. We thought maybe she was unable to speak. It tugged on our heart strings to see these sweet little children unkempt and it seemed uncared for. Today the state would have stepped in I'm sure. We got an idea to do something special for Sharlene. I got one of my little sister Bonnie's dresses she had out grown and a pair of shoes and we asked Sharlene to come inside and play with us and showed her the "new to her dress." She was apprehensive at first but looked cautiously interested. We took her in and washed her dirty little face, arms, legs. We washed and combed her matted hair and styled it with ribbons. When she was all clean we placed the new dress and shoes upon her little body. We could see the corners of her mouth turn up, just a little bit in a slight smile. As Linda exclaimed in her writings,"it was like having a live doll to dress and play with." We asked her questions as we dressed her and combed her hair. Did she like her new dress? Would she like us to put ribbons in her hair? Did the new shoes and stockings feel good upon her bare little feet? Her big eyes were glued to us but she never let on in words or body language what she thought of it all. Later that evening Linda was taking out the trash to the incinerator in the back of the property when she saw Sharlene's parents drive into the drive way in the back of the house. All the sudden Sharlene burst through their back door. She excitedly called to her parents as she primped up and down with real words,(she really could speak) "look mommy and daddy some nice girls gave me a new dress and shoes and they fixed my hair with ribbons," she was bursting at the seams with excitement. Her parents told her how pretty she looked. Linda said, "I was so glad to have been a silent, unseen, witness to this little scene." It was great to know we had touched this sweet child's life in a way that made her so happy! A few months later we were back involved in our lives at school and didn't see Sharlene that much. One day we received the sad news that little Sharlene had found some matches and had started her clothes on fire. Her injuries had taken her life. We trio of friends got excused from school to attend Sharlene's small funeral. In today's medical world I'm sure Sharlene would not have lost her life. She looked so perfect in her little casket, her face, arms and legs appeared to be untouched. Her parents told us how happy we had made Sharlene that day with the new dress. This beautiful little child had died before the age of accountability and was an inheritor of the Celestial Kingdom. As I reflect on Elder Hollands talk I think of how blessed we were to have been administering angels to this sweet little child who's life was so short lived. But who administered to whom? She brought us as much joy watching and befriending her as we brought to her maybe even more so. I hope I will have the opportunity to meet Sharlene again some day. And hopefully I will remember to look for other Sharlene's who may come into my life today ..."I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left,...my Spirit shall be shall be in your [heart], and mine angels round about you, to bear you up." D&C 84:88.

September Birthdays

We had "5" birthdays to celebrate in the month of September! Dad's birthday was on the September 1st, Labor Day. Dad would have been 92. I love this photo because it shows Dad with the grand kids. They sure did love their grandpa. Gosh look how young all these kids were. Jeramy and AshLyn are on the top row. Nicholas and Harmony, my sister Bonnie's kids are to the side of AshLyn and Jeramy. Mandy and Megan my sister Deb's kids are on each side of Dad and Jordan, Debs son, and Laura Bonnie's youngest are sitting on Dad's lap. It seems like yesterday and now Dad's gone and their all grown up most of them have babies of their own. How we miss our daddy and grandpa.
Speaking of young, look at this picture. 14 years ago on September the 8th we got two bundles of Joy when Raquel our daughter in law, Rod's wife gave birth to two energetic boys. Christopher and Benjamin.
Here are the twins with their older brother Sam. We try to take the grand kids that live around us out for lunch and do something fun for their birthday. Wish we could do that with all the grand kids but when their parents decide to take them and move away that makes it a little hard. We took the boys to see the movie Fly Boys. There was a part in the movie where there were two brothers and one of the brothers get killed, Les and I looked over at Ben and Chris and they were both crying. I think they were crying because they knew how they would feel if anything happened to one of them or their brother Sam. They are very close to each other. They says that twins have a language all of their own and when they were little they really did. The twins are all boy! They love sports, school, Chris is in band and Ben is in the male choir. They are loving, sympathic and just all around great kids. Aren't they handsome young men?!?
September 18th my little brother Burt celebrated his birthday. I love this picture of my Dad, my brother Burt, and my son Doug the little platinum blonde. There is about about a year and five months difference in their ages. What cute little boys.
And our Brynlee celebrated her "9th" birthday on the 21st of September. This was and is one proud Daddy. When she was born Jeramy just kept saying I can't believe she's mine. Rebecca said Jeramy would come home from work or school and go right to Bryn. She said he would change her diapers, take her with him to the library the only time he needed Rebecca was when Bryn needed to eat and if he could have nursed her would have. I love it when you watch your children find out what you already know, and that is that you never thought you could love anything like you love your children, well that is until your grand children come along:-)
Is this not the most tender picture of Papa!?!? Let me tell you these precious grand babies have brought out the most beautiful tender side of Les and I love it. Papa fell asleep holding Bryn while she slept. Here she is our beautiful, sassy, fun loving, tender, talented "9" year old soon to be "13" Brynlee. Happy birthday to all our September Birthdays we love you!!!

144th Ward Directory

Thought I'd share the cover of our Ward Directory with you. Pretty cleaver don't you think? I'll tell ya, these kids are more media and computer savvy then I could even imagine. When it comes to power point, photo imaging, anything to do with computers it is second nature to them. I am so envious! Monday as many of 40 of them will be here for family home evening. Our house will be bulging at the seams with energy, wish us luck!