I LOVE Nevada

I have lived in Nevada my whole life except for when I was in college and the first four years of my marriage. There are so many things I love about Nevada. Some of them are the very things other people do not like about Nevada. I love the wide open space. Some people like people around them in large numbers. I love the mountains. Some people prefer their own green ones or none at all. I love the dry heat and the desert. Now that is one that many people think I am crazy for. But I do. I find many kinds of beauty in this world. It isn't only the green hills and the green meadows that God made. He made it all and each has its own beauty. And if you have hair like mine a rainy climate would keep me in the most frumpish of all looks. My aunt once told me that one thing she appreciated about Nevada was the various shades of green that you can find. You see, grass green, isn't the only shade of green to be appreciated. And it is fitting that green is my favorite color. It isn't the basic green that I love the most. It is the other ones that take my fancy. I like the people in Nevada. They are hard working, fun loving, down-to-earth, faith filled, and the salt of the earth. That is the kind of people that this state has raised or attracted. So, I really do love Nevada. But today the reason that I love Nevada the most is because tomorrow I don't have to work because we are celebrating the day this fine place became a State. Nevada Day and Halloween share the same date, but in my book Nevada Day is the best of all. After all, who ever heard of getting out of a day of work for Halloween.

Happiness That Makes You Cry

It is my birthday today. Everyone has been so wonderful. It has been an awesome day. But the thing that has topped it all off has been two packages that arrived RIGHT ON THE DAY from my missionary in Steamboat Springs. What a thoughtful, great person he is. This is what he sent me:

A pair of warm slippers - (He knows that I wear slippers all winter and they came right at the right time because it is really cold today.)

A Steamboat Springs collectors spoon - (He knows I collect spoons.)

Some Rubbermaid bowls that keep vegetables crisp - ( He knows I have trouble with that.)

Then he gave me these:

In the birthday card this is what he said about them: "You are probably wondering what those ugly pieces of yarn are in the packages that I sent. Well they are supposed to be dish towels. I learned how to crochet from an investigator and as you can tell I am not very good at it. But I tried." Well that just made me cry. I cannot believe he actually crocheted them himself. He is so full of surprises. He is unbelievable.

Then he gave me this picture in this frame:

He knows how much I love pictures and this is so special. He put it in a frame and everything. I love the "Mommy's Little Angel" title. Because he is.

He sent a bunch of pictures from his mission. Here are two of them:

This is Ryan and his companion, Elder Englund, and I am not sure who the other two guys are. Either member of the ward or investigators.

This one is Ryan with an investigator by the name of Mosi.

The last and most touching gift of all is inside his card he wrote me a poem. The name of the poem is "The Perfect Mom". It is awesome. Really Really Awesome. I will cherish that for the rest of my life.

They Bloomed!!

My Mums finally bloomed before they could get frozen. They still have a little way to go, but I am afraid they may freeze tonight, so I got some pictures of them in all their glory before that could happen. I just love them.
These are the ones that have a lot more buds on them that haven't bloomed yet.

I love the color of these.

But these are my favorites. They are just gorgeous. I am going to separate the colors later when they are dormant. I planted them not knowing that the colors were not the same. The story of these mums is interesting, to me that is. When Shawn and Stina were married in May 2006 I thought it was the perfect season to have live plants all around at their reception. I bought several potted plants. Actually, more than several. After the event was over, I shared a lot of the plants and kept a few for myself. All the other plants died out, except for these mums. I had no idea they would get so huge though. So they gave me a pleasant surprise. I absolutely love them.

Three "Dalley" Stories

I decided to record some stories here in my blog for future. Kristi may have recorded them too, but I want to remember these "Dalley" stories forever. He is such a funny little guy. Besides there are enough stories that she can tell all the others and have plenty.

Story 1: Kristi was painting her kitchen. She got a phone call on her cell phone and doesn't get very good reception in the house, so she ran outside for just a minute because it was the doctor. When she came back in Dalley had the broom and was "painting" the walls. I think he just thought he was helping Mom out. Needless to say Kristi had to redo that wall and threw the broom away.

Story 2: Kristi had bought some soups to take to work for her lunches. She had them in a bag to take to work. While I was talking to her, she went to check on Dalley and found him in the kitchen. He had unloaded all the soups and had them lined up along in front of the refrigerator (I am sure he thought that the refrigerator is where they were going to be stored.) He had thrown the bag away in the garbage. Now isn't he just the best little helper and he isn't even two yet.

Story 3: (My favorite) Kristi has Dalley in a youth bed now. With Dustin gone, she put it up in her room at first so Dalley would get used to it. He was doing great so she moved it into his bedroom. He did just great. Until Dad came home for a weekend. So Sunday night after Dustin left, he was not wanting to sleep in his own room. Kristi put him in there and surprisingly he did pretty good until the middle of the night. Kristi heard him cry but was determined that he was going to stay in his own room. So she ignored it. It went on for about a half an hour, then it stopped. She slept well and woke up to get ready for work. Usually Dalley gets up around then too, but this morning she did not hear a peep. She decided that he got pretty tired crying himself to sleep. So she let him sleep. As time went on she really couldn't believe that he was still asleep. She decided to peek in on him. What a Shock! He was not there. He was not anywhere that she could see. She looked over the entire house. She was FRANTIC. What could have happened to him. She searched his room again and finally heard a little noise. Dalley was waking up. There is a twin bed in his room with drawers under it. He had climbed in one of the drawers and slept peacefully until that moment.

Well, That Is Creepy

I was a little disturbed by a phone call I got today. I did not answer the phone because it was not a number I recognized. I wasn't in the room where the answering machine is, but I heard someone leave a message. Well, I went in to see who the message was from. A man's voice came on and said "Your house is on fire" Then he laughed. Then he said "Jack is going to be mad at me." Then he just hung up. That doesn't sound like it was too bad, but I just thought it was kind of creepy. So I called the number and found out it was a company that I buy a product from. I really like the product, but they keep pestering me to buy more and I don't need more. They also want me to buy a warranty and I have told them I am not interested and they have had some salesmen that have been very rude. So when I found out that this was where the message was from, I asked for a manager. They put a manager on the line and she was appalled. She is going to try to find out who it was and someone may be losing their job. It is surely a crazy time when we can get so much creepiness from so many sources. We really need to be on our toes and making sure we don't let it in.

All About Skunks

Okay, if you know me very well you will know how terrified I am of skunks. They don't have to be anywhere near me to totally freak me out. I guess it may come from having a very sensitive nose and a fear of smelling like a skunk forever. Then there is the fact that my dog thinks they are cats and if you know him he loves to chase kitties, and my dog is a HOUSE dog.
Anyway, back to the skunk fear. Well, Rocky likes to take me and we will go out in the field on the four wheeler at night and spotlight the deer. I just like to look at them. He likes to see if there are any big bucks in there. Well, one night we were out there and we saw a skunk. He wanted to go shoot it. He figures that will be one less skunk getting into stuff and stinking up my world. I pled and begged for him not to shoot that skunk with me with him. (I just know that if he does I will pay for days with the smell all over me even though he claims that doesn't happen.) Well he didn't shoot the skunk. But now when he asks me to go out with him to look at deer I always ask if he is going to be shooting skunks. He always says that he will be and he needs me to hold the light. So, alas, I no longer get to see deer at night. Darn skunks anyway.
The other night he went out and got a couple of skunks, but he said that he had seen four but he didn't have anyone's help so he could only get two. The very next morning when I was coming back from lifting weights (it is still dark at that time) there is a skunk right at my door. When he sees me he heads off to the field. So that night I told Rocky about seeing that skunk right at our door. He reminded me that he probably wouldn't have been on our door if I had gone with him the night before and he would have been able to get that skunk. I don't think that I will be hunting skunks regardless. The fear is still there.

Elder Hatch - I love his stories.

I got a letter from Ryan today and he just tickles me. What a great personality he has. He is sweet, funny, loving, competitive, and industrious. He is all those and more.
Anyway, he was saying in his letter that being in a suit all the time, you get different reactions from people. He said: "Whenever I go in stores, people always ask me if I work for the FBI and stuff like that. And if I an not wearing my suit coat they think that I work at the store so while I am shopping people always ask me to help them find stuff, so I do. Whenever we go anywhere with our suits on everybody just stares at us. It's funny. I love it. Sometimes when we are walking down the sidewalk and people are walking towards us they will run across the road and about get hit by cars just cause they are scared of us. It's fun to watch."
I think the thing that tickled me the most that kind of shows what a great personality he has, is that when people in stores think he works there and asks for help, he doesn't just tell them that he doesn't work there, he just goes ahead and helps them. I love that. I love his sense of humor. I love his stories. I love him.

Dreams are Cruel, OR Maybe not.

Yesterday morning when I woke up I was really really trying not to do so. I wanted to live in my dream. I wanted to stay there because I was with Ira. I was playing with him and tending him and I was thoroughly happy. I wanted to enjoy it a little longer. He is such a cute little guy and I am missing out on him growing up. I ache to see him. But I don't want anyone to think that I am upset about this. Not at all. I understand. It is just one of those things in life that have to be accepted. And his Mom and Dad are so good to keep him knowing us and we will see him as often as we can. It is Okay. But I can't help but enjoy that dream if it will come back. It was so fun.

Tribute to a Friend

I grew up thinking that everyone has a very special friend in their life. One that lasts for life. Well, I have since found this not to be true for everyone. There are a few of us that are blessed to have this and we need to really cherish that friend.
When I was still a baby, my mother would sit by Freeda Schofield at Relief Society and other functions. Freeda had a baby girl just a couple of weeks younger than me. My mother said that when we saw each other we would both get so excited. We became friends almost instantly. I believe we were friends in heaven. As we grew up we spent a lot of time together. She lived in Hiko, I lived in Alamo. Sometimes I would ride the bus home with her and spend the night on a Friday. Sometimes she would stay in Alamo and spend the night at my house on a Friday.
There were a few years that we drifted apart a little. I made some friends in town that would come and go. She had other interests at times. But we always remained friends and during High School we were pretty much inseparable. I have some really great memories of times spent with her.
But my tribute to my friend is for more than that. It is for the type of friend that she is. When I am happy, she is so excited for me. When I am down she builds me up and brings me back. No matter how long it has been since I have seen her, we pick right up where we left off. But the thing that I love the most about her is that she makes me feel like a better person for knowing her. She loves my family and I love hers. She is the best listener I have ever met. She really listens and cares. AND she remembers what I have told her. I hope I am the same to her.
One story I want to tell about her. She had a son on a mission in Russia. He was stabbed and killed. She was stalwart through it all, a fine example to me. That was over 10 years ago, but I just sent my youngest son on a mission and I was suffering. I almost felt like I had lost him. One day when I had been over to Utah on a visit, I was on my way home and stopped at Maverick to get some fuel. I walked in to the bathroom there and ran into my dear friend. She was headed the other way back to Provo. She sensed that I was suffering, because she knows me better than anyone else I can think of. She stopped and took me to lunch and visited with me for a couple of hours. I was ashamed to tell her that I was suffering over a son going on a mission, after all she had one that never came home. But she assured me that my pain was important, too. By the time we finished visiting I felt like a new person. No one can do that for me like she can.
I am so blessed to have this friend. Rebecca (Becki to me) Schofield Mackintosh. I love you friend.

Okay, I Know I'm Not a Marriage Counselor

A very dear friend of mine just got word that her daughter's husband has decided that he is unhappy in the marriage and he wants to start a new life without her. This is very heartbreaking because there are 4 children involved. In fact it stinks. I know I am not a marriage counselor, but I have been married for 36 years and I am still happy and I am pretty sure that he is and I have had some very good examples of marriage with my grandparents, parents, and Rocky's parents. This much I do know. You can avoid this kind of thing. Just a few things that have been running around in my head. Here they are:
1. When you get married decide that it is forever and there is no getting "out" except in exteme unforseen cases. (However, choosing a mate should be done very very carefully. Make sure you know them well.)
2. When you feel that the marriage is lacking and heading the wrong way, CORRECT IT IMMEDIATELY. Do whatever it takes, counseling, prayer, time alone with your spouse, etc.
3. Speaking of prayer, do it often. It really works and it helps you know what to do about any given situation.
4. Don't always blame everything on your mate. Own up to what you need to do to improve., In fact I have discovered that if I only concentrate on my own faults and shortcomings and try to improve them, it miraculously changes every thing.
5. Make your mate the most important person in your life, even before your kids.
6. Spend time with your mate alone. You have to nourish your relationship. It won't do it on its own.
7. Communicate, communicate, communitcate.
8. Tell your spouse you love them daily.
9. Often sit and think of all the good qualities that your spouse has. Don't ever dwell on his or her shortcomings.
10. Live righteously so that you have the spirit to guide you.

Now I am not saying that my friends daughter was lacking in any way. She was totally willing to work on the marriage, get counseling, whatever it would take. My comments are directed at him since he claims he just wasn't happy. You can't blame your unhappiness on other people. You have to find it within yourself and if you don't your next relationship will be just as unhappy. But noone has to listen to me because I am NOT a marriage counselor.

I Like Columbus

There is all this talk about changing Columbus Day to Autumn Day. I guess there was some not so good things that happened when Columbus discovered America. They said this morning that he was supposed to be the first settler to America, but that it wasn't correct because there were already people (natives) here. Well, my take on the whole thing is that the original reason for honoring Columbus is still there. He did go out on a voyage and discovered this land. That is history. To dwell on what he brought to the natives such as smallpox and other things, is a different issue. It is an issue of human nature and the times they were living in and the hardness of life. Why is it that we have to trash our history every time we turn around because of some perceptions that can become skewed. Well, all I can say is that I am sure glad Columbus made that voyage, discovered this land, and made it possible for my ancestors many years later to come here. I am thankful that I live here in this land where I can have freedom. And I am going to use that freedom to call it Columbus Day even if they do change it to Autumn day. Because I LIKE Columbus.

It's A Beautiful Day

Do you ever get up in the morning and just feel GREAT. Well that was this morning for me. I wonder if it has anything to do with going to bed early. And I slept so good. Also I was able to get my 3 bathrooms all clean AND get to work on time. That makes a beautiful day also.

An interesting thing came in the mail the other day. A letter saying we had won a sweepstakes for $248,000 and a check for $4,960.00. It said that we got the check to cover the taxes on the $248,000. BUT of course we were supposed to send them some money to pay the taxes. $3,640 to be exact. Now that looks like a fair deal doesn't it? NOT. I wouldn't touch that with a ten foot pole. I talked to the Credit Union to see what they make of it. They assured me that it was a scam and that if I sent the money I would lose it and the check would not clear. They suggested that I call the number and see what I can find out. So I called. Well a man with an Indian accent answered and proceeded to tell me that he could only talk to Rocky and if he told me anything he would lose his job and have to come and live with me. I guess he is a funny guy, but not in my book. Oh I forgot to mention one of the tip offs to a scam showed up in the fact that the check was from Greensboro, NC, the bank was in Pittsburgh, the head office is in Toronto Ontario, Canada, and the tax agent who I was supposed to send the money to is from Shadwell, England. WELL. Another thing that set up warning flags to me was the misspellings. Oh, and also I never entered a sweepstakes. And another thing, all of this was sent to my old Alamo address which I haven't had for five years. Oh and by the way it says they received my entry slip from the Government Lottery Office. What government? US, Canada, England??? That is confusing. Do people really fall for this stuff? WOW!

To Bloom or not to Bloom.

I have the most beautiful chrysanthemum bushes. They grow big and are COVERED with buds ready to bloom. One of the bushes is just starting to show color. They will bloom any day now. But the other two are loaded and not looking ready to bloom as of yet. The problem with that is the weather. It is getting really cold at night. Any night now it will freeze. I REALLY want to see those flowers before they get frozen. I am just keeping my fingers crossed and hoping for the best. Wish me luck.

Withdrawal Pains

Yes, that is right. I am in withdrawal. Not from drugs, but from having Dalley around for a week and then having him up and leave me. I felt kind of lost when he left. He wasn't wanting to leave either. We were outside saying goodbye and he thought Rocky was going somewhere on the four-wheeler and he was NOT going to be left behind. So he got in his car seat a very-unhappy-camper. Both Rocky and I looked at each other and said well what do we do now that he isn't here to entertain us. We decided to just keep busy and that worked until this morning when I got up and there was no cute little guy around to make my day start out with a smile. What is more Rocky is still pretty sick and stayed home from work. (If he stays home, he is REALLY sick.) Oh well, it is back to the old schedule. We will be fine. We are lucky in that we still like being together. It is all good.

Random Thoughts

Today my thoughts are very random. Maybe even scattered and unorganized. The other day Rocky asked me what I was thinking (I am always pestering him and asking him that.) I told him I was just thinking random thoughts. Well, he is using that right back at me now. But here are some of my random thoughts.

When I ask Dalley for a kiss. He will put the top of his head or his neck next to my face so I can kiss it. Evidently a kiss to him is only received.

Rocky has been sick this week. He keeps telling me he feels fine but he just doesn't have a voice. However, he doesn't have any energy and he obviously doesn't feel well. But he is on the mend.

My friend, Cass, has been working on her Masters for a long time now. She just called to let me know she has passed her oral defense. All she has to do now is finish her thesis. We will be glad when it is all done.

It has cooled off here. The mornings are really nippy. I had to wear a coat for our walk this morning. The first time since last winter.

I am going to have ALL of my kids here for Thanksgiving, (except for Ryan of course). I think my brother is even going to stay and spend it with us. At least that is the plan.

Rocky brought a tarantula home the other day. He says it is for Cody. So that means we will be taking care of it until we can get it to Cody. I am assigned to call Cody and find out what to feed it. Rocky came in about an hour after he brought the creepy thing in and asked me if I had transferred it to another bottle, it seemed to be missing. Good thing I know my husband. I said that I knew it was still in the original bottle. And it was.

I LOVE conference. I am so thrilled because it is tomorrow and Sunday. I can hardly wait. It is going to be a fabulous weekend.

Well those are my random thoughts. Can't get more random than that.

My Philosophy

I have an opinion that I don't know if everyone agrees with. It is my philosophy. Yesterday something happened that got me thinking about this. Here is the story. I got an email from Ryan. He said that he had some bad news but that we would get a letter from him today and he would explain. Well, it kind of ruined the day for me. I was a little sick with worry. Had he been hurt? Had he had another accident? Was he being moved out of the area when it wasn't transfers and he loves this area? Had he had a problem with members or an investigator? I could think of a whole basket full of bad news. I stewed about this all the way home. Sure enough his letter was in the mail. I opened it right on the spot. I didn't wait until I got in the house. He wrote a three-page letter and saved the "bad news" for the very last. He got a speeding ticket. He was going 42 in a 30 mph zone. He was very repentant. He felt very bad. He said the really bad news was that he had to pay for the ticket and he hated to put that burden on us. He said he was going to scrimp on money to make up for it. Well, you cannot imagine how thrilled I was to hear that he got a ticket. In fact I was delighted. I wanted to dance a jig. It was so much better than the alternatives I had cooked up. So when Rocky got home I told him that Ryan had some bad news to tell us in his letter. He didn't have as long to stew over it, but it worked just the same. He was so relieved to hear the "bad news" just as I was. Now for my philosophy. If you have some news you want to tell and you don't want someone to frown at you for it, just prepare them ahead of time and give them time to think about it. Well, I guess that works if your news isn't really "bad" news. But I am starting to think this son of mine is one smart guy. You can't help but love him.