Happy Birthday Brandon

Today is my favorite Son-in-law's birthday. I can say he is my favorite, because he is my only one. :-) Here's what he looks like in case you've never met him. (He is the bigger of the two handsome men in this picture.)

I'm posting in blue because he is a tried and true BYU fan! Even when he says he doesn't like them because they aren't doing well, I suspect that deep down he still really likes them. Cougar loyalty runs deep.

Brandon has many admirable characteristics - hard worker, faithful Priesthood holder, good daddy, yummy omelet maker, doesn't mind that Ashley comes to visit often...the list goes on.

But the number one reason I like him so much is that he loves our daughter. This is evident in so many ways. As already mentioned, he works hard to provide for his family, and is willing to give up things, mainly his time, to perform well at whatever job he has. He pitches in at home giving her a break from the mundane tasks that are a part of running a home. Along with being a faithful Priesthood holder, Brandon knows the importance of a strong family. As he and Ashley raise Talmage, they make sure Scripture Study, Family Home Evening and Family Prayer are a part of their family life. As a parent, one couldn't wish for more in a Son-in-law.

Three cheers for Brandon! We love him!

Happy 26th Birthday!!!

A Good Week on the Hardwood

Who cares if the Super Bowl was today? We have bigger and better sports news. The athlete's are steroid-free, have squeaky-clean records, and are (for the most part) good sports. Not to mention, pretty darn cute!
Trevor's team has struggled all season to win a game. A week ago yesterday, his team tied their opponents. We were happy campers.

Yesterday, as the game unfolded, the fans began to feel a victory in sight. As the 4th quarter began, it became more exciting, and as you can see by the scoreboard, with 11 seconds to go, the home team was assured a victory!!!

Kristin's team is still looking for that elusive win. With only 3 teams in her age bracket, you get to know your competition pretty good, maybe a little better than you hope to. One team they face every other game is from a small community just east of here, and they are tough, intimidating and pretty physical. Combine that with their size (most of them bigger than our team) and it makes for some pretty discouraging outcomes.

The other team is a little more evenly matched, but has managed to be victorious in each game. But...the time before last, they only won by 2 points. Then, Thursday's game, although not a victory on the scoreboard, was very exciting to watch. Kristin's team held them scoreless in the 4th quarter. Her team had 6 points at the beginning of that quarter, and as you can see by the scoreboard in the picture, they made quite a comeback. The fans all thought a win was likely, but their shooting went cold and the final score was 17-25. Still...it was a good night!

She'll be in Primary no more

Happy Birthday Kristin




Yesterday was Kristin's 12th birthday, which means she has moved on from Primary and entered the world of Young Women. Hard to believe she's old enough to be in 6th Grade, let alone be out of Primary.

Her dinner choice garnered hurrah's by the whole family. Bulgogi, twice backed potatoes, jello, corn (with butter), crescent rolls from the can, and rhubarb/raspberry cobbler with ice cream for dessert!

She tried to gain a little advantage on blowing out her candles, but in the end, it was all good.

Lasagna Night

There's nothing like a man in the kitchen, and I had a cute one helping me today. Trevor tried his hand at putting together a lasagna and declared it easy. He also ate his larger than asked for helping in no time flat, supporting the theory that things you make yourself taste better than usual.


Here's Trevor's recipe for "Lazy Lasagna".

Brown 1 lb mild Italian sausage. Drain and mix with one large can spaghetti sauce and 1/3 cup water.

Mix together in large bowl - 12 oz of cottage cheese, 2 beaten eggs, basil, parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper.

In the bottom of a 9x13 pan, sprayed with Pam, spread a large spoonful of the spaghetti sauce mixture. Top with 3 lasagna noodles, 1/3 of sauce, 1/2 cottage cheese mixture and 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese. Repeat layering. Spread remaining sauce on top of noodles and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil and bake at 350 deg. until noodles are tender and most of sauce is absorbed. Can remove foil towards the end and let it brown on top if desired. Cooking usually takes about 45 mins or so.

The Emerald City

Way back in November, we took a trip to visit our favorite married daughter and her family. We had a great weekend taking in the sights and sounds of downtown Seattle. Ashley and Brandon live right in the heart of the Queen Anne neighborhood and for these country mice (for lack of a better description), we were enlightened about big city living. Allison reminded me that this trip took place a long time ago, so details will be brief if here at all.

We walked, and walked, and walked (Not like the pioneer children, but still a lot of walking). We saw fish flying across the room, street entertainers, and big barges and shipping containers among other things. We also were able to attend a session at the Seattle Temple. But our favorite sight of all was a cute little boy who has us wrapped around his little finger and who is tied to our hearts. Seattle was fun, but we still caught the best show in town right inside a little apartment in Queen Anne.

The Talmanater


The famous Space Needle

The kids next to some fun statues



Downtown by Pike Place Market

Grandpa on dinner duty.

Kristin couldn't wait to get the take out boxes from the Thai restaurant we went to.

Our friendly fish monger! I'm pretty sure he's had his picture taken before!

The monorail couldn't get there fast enough!

Ashley wanted a shot or two with her babe.

When life hands you lemonade...

Many of you who know me, know that our city library is a pathetic excuse for a library! Housed in a former hardware store, it is built out of cinder blocks and not nearly large enough for a town our size. The building it is attached to is of all things, a bar! I felt cheated when the town across the river built a large, beautiful new library a few years ago. Cheated because that town is about a third of the size of our city. Cheated because the voters over there were willing to pay a little more in their taxes to fund such a project! What is wrong with my fellow town members?

Well none of that really matters, because the simple facts are the following:

- we live in a state that requires a super-majority to pass a measure such as a new library
- we live in a town that is more blue collar than any other color - a library isn't really a priority for the super-majority around here
- I will probably die before we get a new library (okay, that's not a fact, just a speculation!)


All that having been said, those supporters of a new library are nothing if not "Make the best of a rotten situation" sort of folk, and they have made some pretty sweet lemonade out of the lemons handed to them.

Last summer, a group of kids, not sure of the age range, took to livening up the back side of the library! Here is the result! Such a bright spot! And you will notice that even the dumpster is looking pretty fine!

Kudos to the adult artist who spear-headed this project, and kudos to the kids who painted the mural that makes me smile each time I see it!

Here's to lemonade!

PS - Even though the library leaves much to be desired, the staff can't be beat! (I felt like I was including them in my disappointment. I am sure none of them would even see this, but I just wanted to give them a fair shake!)

Back in the Saddle Again

It's been a long time! My kids keep bugging me! It is nagging at me to do! I just haven't done it for so long! It's time!!!

Time to get the blog up and running again! So...

I changed the layout! Cherries are always an encouraging thing!

I changed the picture in the corner! As I said, my favorite people!

I thought about updating my profile, it sounded stupid, so I just deleted it!

I'm ready to post again! Wish me luck!!!