What I've been up to lately.........

Bring on spring! I feel so unworthy, like we haven't suffered enough. But wow, it's April and I  want to plant a garden soon so I must not be gonna die this summer, but must carry on so I can live to harvest the tomatoes in the fall!!

I love watching the tulips make their gradual appearance after weeks of taunting us with their greenery; HOWEVER, once again this year, the deer have discovered my lovelies. I was ticked at the deer. I could hear them snickering at me from the back fields in my sleep. Then great-grandpa Hiatt told me he's been "ticked at deer" for years and it made me feel better somehow. So I pulled out my water colors and painted the tulip pictured at the top and said "you can't touch this one DEER!" and stuck it on my fridge with a magnet.

I am also working a little bit at a time on the back yard getting ready for the Easter egg hunt this weekend! I can't WAIT to take photos of the kids, without the fields of Afghanistan in the background. Hooray for plastic fences!!! I was in contact with the krazy owner/not really owner of the property directly behind us regarding the perplexing placement of piles of pony poop directly behind our fence (I believe the property is owned by many attorneys representing people who have taken him to court) and bless his heart actually he was trying to problem-solve with me, even offered to let me "lease" 50 feet directly behind me for $100/month and plant a garden and hey, he said it was already well-fertilized! He also said they would drop the hay further to the south instead of right behind our house which should help some. I was actually grateful and surprised that he took the time to think about it!

We took our annual trek to St. George this year again. So much fun. We stayed in a rental home that was brand new, as in taking plastic off the bedding new, first people to set foot inside new. This was because there was a snafu in the place we thought we had booked through "booking.com" but fortunately, Joe Hancock was able to get through to somebody the night before we arrived, and we had a place to hang our hats. We drew straws on bedroom arrangements, and Dennis and I got the kid's room (again).  I slept in the top bunk and was seriously concerned about load limit as I lay there the first night with my nose three inches from the ceiling and Dennis all innocent below me. He told me there were eight slats, not to worry, but I was doing the math and..... Saturday morning the guys went golfing and left the ladies at home, and as I lay there alone on that top bunk, with about 7 steps of ladder against the wall and a biiiiig swing of the old hips to get started, I wondered if I might get stuck trying to clamor down from the top bunk without Dennis to help me, and have to yell "NANCY< LINDA < HELP!!" But I managed. Whew

We always go to a concert on Friday night. This year the warm-up act was a Rod Stewart impersonator at the Tuacahn concert. Wow he was great! And the lovely ladies he's singing to right in front of us were a hoot and lured him right on over. He sat on laps, snapped selfies, you know, fun.

And I snapped selfies too!

The main act was "Abba-mania" from Toronto and let me tell you they were awesome. So much fun. This was my second-favorite concert over the years. My all-time favorite I can't remember who they were (America?) but they were so darn good I teared up with joy, engulfed in the music and thought to myself "THANK YOU FOR MAKING ME HAPPY!! (I also think I was Stake RS Pres at the time and overwhelmed with responsibility so letting go felt even better than right now).

I love this photo of the st. George temple.It's soooooo old-feeling and gorgeous. I feel so reverent when we're visiting the grounds. Above is a photo of Joe working on his computer, and Nancy and Linda and I playing Mormon Bridge and Up and Down the River. Dennis was in the room out of the range of this photo,  watching the Jazz game and Gary had gone to bed by now. We had all watched the U of U win their game earlier in the evening and that was fun. Gary even sang a bit of the fight song at the end!

And then last week we had a special visit as Julie came during her spring break and stayed with grandma and grandpa Hiatt and "lived after the manner of happiness" with them. The wishes of the dreamparents were her command. It was marvelous to have her here. Denny and Julie and I took Thursday morning as some "sisters" time and went downtown. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. It started early in the morning with shared cheerios and wheat toast and OJ at mom and dad's house (Flat Stanley included. Wyatt's school project :-).

Then we headed downtown and spent a couple of hours shopping at City Creek. I think we spent a half an hour at the Clark's shoe store. We drooled over $100 shoes, and bought $7 socks. We also went to Anthropologie and I was unDONE the minute I walked through the doors. It's the color pallet that must send me swooning. That and the $100 EVERYTHINGs that when I touch it feels "just right." Julie also introduced us to a store "Swarovski" crystals which glitters with glittery crystal statues. Oh WOW!

But the highlight of the day was the Temple grounds. We were there at the exact perfect hour for the blossoms. We watched a bride having her photos taken completely encircled in the blossoms. My mind goes ahead 45 years as she's showing those photos to her grandchildren. It was spectacular.

 I didn't know if we could ask the sister missionaries to take our photos (but they can, of COURSE they can. Can you imagine some tourist shyly asking the missionaries to take their photo and the missionaries saying, "No we're not allowed?"

We ate lunch at the Lion House and had celestial rolls and oodles of food. Denny recognized a woman who had served in her Liberty Park Stake years ago and they started talking and the woman looked at the three of us and asked, "Sisters?" And you know the rest.........pretty soon all four of us (including Denny's friend) starting singing "Sisters, sisters, there were never such devoted sisters..." and we sang it with medium gusto (because we had no husbands with us to mortify). It sounded superb! Another diner enthusiastically poked her head around the doorway during our singing and announced, "I HAVE SEVEN SISTERS!"

And then, as if our day was being orchestrated from on high (which it was) we stumbled into the tabernacle RIGHT as tabernacle organist Richard Elliott began his Thursday free concert! It was unforgettable. We got there as he finished his demonstration of being able to "hear a pin drop." During my favorite number of the concert, "'Tis a Gift to be Simple" it was so quiet as everyone listened together that you literally could have heard a pin drop. Julie has performed a couple of the numbers on the organ that he performed. It was the best experience for the three of us to share together.

Flat Stanley loved it too. I love this picture.

 The gardens were pulsing with color!

To end the day with more food than we could possibly devour (therefore making fabulous leftovers for the next day), mom and dad took all of us out to the Cheesecake Factory. We picked the restaurant, and dad decided to google the directions that morning while we were gone. Only he remembered "Cheese" but not "Cake" or "Factory so he googled to the best of his memory and found "Chuck E. Cheese!" Before we left that evening, he said "Now, what do you know about this place we're going, Chuck E. Cheese?" The BEST part was the cheesecake. Isn't this an adorable photo of these two kids? Key lime cheesecake, piles of whipped cream.  There's always room for desert in that extra desert stomach!

And if Thursday wasn't enough, two days later I had the privilege of attending the General Women's Meeting with Cindy and Lauren, Reagan and Jane. We parked in the West High parking lot and high-tailed it to the conference center. So many fresh females together. Awesome. And four of them were mine!. And scattered all across the nation were my others: Shout Out Hello to Angie, Amy, Andrea, Elise and Whitney! I hope you loved it too! The things I loved about the messages were how we're ALL homemakers, men, women, children, teens, we're making homes. Duh! I will always remember that. I asked the girls to write down what they remembered most and they wrote about the very same thing: "Focus on being "homemakers"; "Being a mother is every job" and "we are sisters and heavenly daughters of our Heavenly Father." What a joy to be together and hear those messages and music.

Sister Carole Stephens (1st Counselor in General RS) happens to live in our Stake (her husband is our new Stake President) and he said she spent more than 100 hours on her 15-minute talk. I believe it though. There are so many voices in the world now, with the internet, and so millions of people just are out there for us to stumble upon, that my gosh, it's so valuable to know that the messages I hear at General Women's Conference are the ones I want to cherish and hold fast to. I add my prayers to millions of others for those who will speak this weekend in General Conference. It's something I look forward to so much!

I so love this photo. I decided to crouch down a tad so I wouldn't be lurching over these perfectly aligned 5 foot two people. But in hindsight I'll stand up straight from now on. I'm not a very convincing croucher :-) Oh well. And my HAIR, I put it behind my ears as a "new" look and all night was wishing I could start from scratch.....

I wish we could have had time stand still and snapped photos all night. I'm sure the girls felt like that's exactly what we DID do! But how can you NOT?

This.

We ate at the Blue Lemon afterwards. It was delish. So delish that I took pictures of our pretty short ribs and black bean ravioli and BBQ sandwiches!!

And finally, Eli the yo-yo master's 10th birthday. He said "I'm a decade old!" Wow, 10 is a biggie. Two digits!!He's a delight.

Love the studious looks look on Calvin's face as they figure out the Legos.

 ....I told you Jane was a goofball. I have 20 of these on my phone from who knows when?

And finally - HAPPY EASTER/CONFERENCE WEEKEND! I am making these little tiny paper houses for little tiny Easter chicks for the Easter egg hunt. and, you know how I love little tiny......Yeah, I'm so having fun!!!

XOXO
Mom