This week has been pretty eventful.  First of all, Brian and Holli had their baby on May 10th. 

They are going to name him Nash Braegger Forsberg. 

What a sweet tender mercy to have the day mother left this earth be the day a new life arrives. And how fitting to honor Brians heritage by carrying on the Braegger name in our family ( That is the only one!)

So very happy for them!

Friday was  Kelley's birthday.  Have I mentioned lately how happy I am to spend my life and my forever with him?  He's a very special man with many great qualities.  He is real and honest and with him...what you see is what you get.  People are drawn to him ( seems like where ever we go, he will end up making a new friend...people just come up and start talking to him?) and he has a personality that makes him easy to love.  He makes me laugh every day and treats me like a queen. He's about the hardest working guy I've ever seen...only one I can think of that could keep going that long would be my dad.

ummmm fishing stuff...and nicely wrapped!  Good job  KC!    nice bow!

We got him a red velvet cheese cake from  cheese cake factory...yummmmmmm

Candice got him two really cool looking koi fish.  We put them in the pond and they started chasing the other fish around...that are twice their size!  I hope they will all get along!  Kelley's been wanting some pretty koi since the crane came and at all of ours a couple of years ago.   Yup that happened!  ( Kelley got a big plastic crane to put by the pond that's supposed to keep others away...solitary feeders...hope it works!)

Friday was also our concert "We Also Sing!"

I rode up to the tabernacle with Collen and Nancy early, then Kelley, Candice and KC came later. 

It was so exciting!  We met downstairs about an hour before ( that place is so cool!  You wouldn't know all those big rooms and hallways and stairways were under that main floor...it was pretty cool to see.  We warmed up and  Merrilee went over a few things, then it was time to go up to our seats! 

Once we got situated, I looked out in the audience and found my family ( Candice and KC were waving...sooo glad they would come and support me!  That sure made me happy!)  Teina and Lynn were there too! That meant so much to me!

They started the program with prayer and an introduction...then from the back of the tabernacle, here comes Merrilee belting out this Hawaiian chant.  She was awesome!!!!!

Then we all joined in with the rest of the chant we had learned.  It sounds pretty amazing in the tabernacle...that place was truly constructed  by divine guidance.

The rest of the program went off without a hitch. 

The organ sounded AMAZING!!! and the pianists did a perfect job.  The girls that did the solo on Prayer of a walking child did such a good job.  They are only 12 and 14, but they have incredible voices!  They sang another number called "Flight"  that  just had everyone spell bound.  The other soloists did a great job too.  There was a girl from Merrilee's group she teaches at Dixie that was from Russia that she asked to come do one of the solos.  She was just darling and had such a beautiful strong voice...(perfect for '"It takes a Village")   I was hoping KC would be able to talk to her after the program, but she was surrounded by people. 

Anyway, the whole thing was just a wonderful experience for me.   There was a great spirit there and I don't think I will ever forget how special it felt to be singing in the tabernacle! 

Ooooo OOO  OOOOOoooooo and we got our CD's!  I'll try to put some songs on here...

ummmmm nope.  I'll try again when someone a little brighter than me on the computer is here!

Saturday we headed up to Logan to try to finish up with the few things left in the house.  Boyd had let Brenda know earlier that week that the loan should close on Friday...I'm still not holding my breath on that one. Anyway, we went all around the yard and in all the buildings and got out any metal we could find to put in the old milk van there to turn in for recycling money.  There were really a lot of metal pipes and stakes and things all over the yard.  While we were loading things in the van, Boyd came over and was watching us.  Then he asked Brenda if we would consider just selling him the van.  He said he wanted to use it for storage.  So we told him we'd check to see how much we would have got for it through the recycling place and possibly do that. 

We had a few things left that we didn't know what to do with, so we called over to a different antique store to see if they had someone who could look at the stuff and see if they want to buy it.  An older man came over later and looked at what we had and bought a few things.  

Then we loaded up the rest of the things we wanted to get rid of  in the back of my car and headed over to town.  We went to the cemetery first to put some flowers on mums grave.    

We walked around the cemetery a little bit, reminiscing and thinking of friends of mum and daddy's and relatives that have passed on.

We went and had some lunch, then over to a different antique store the fellow that had come over to the house had told us about.  He said he might be more interested in some of the things we had.  It was really a fun little store.  Jam packed with cool antiques.  We looked around for a while, then talked to the owner there and told him we had a few things to sell.  He came out to the car to look at them.  He was quite a character...reminded me of the guy from pawn stars.  He was fun to talk to though and we worked out a deal with him for several of the items.

We came back home and had a little birthday celebration for Leslie.  What a wonderful sister she is to me!  So lucky to have three sisters to share my life with. 

Jaydene was telling me about cleaning out her mother's house after she passed away.  She said she has a sister that is not physically able to do anything and one brother who was no help with the job so it all came down on her.  I can't even begin to imagine doing all of this on my own.

 The day flies by so quick, it was getting late and I had promised my family I would be home early enough to go out to dinner for Kelley's birthday, so we tried to organize what was left and put things out of the way in the corner of the living room.  Boyd had said he was going to start working on the house soon, so we'll need to finish up with those last things right away.

I had a wonderful Mother's Day Sunday. 

Made it extra special to have KC and Candice in Sacrament meeting with us.  The men all sang "Mother dear, I love you so" It was really sweet!

They gave out tomato plants to all the moms....(lovingly wrapped by Kelley and I!)  This was kind of funny.  Kelley was in charge of getting the tomato plants so we went into Lambert Floral about a week ago and talked to them about getting some.  He put in his order and Kc and I went to pick them up last Thursday.  We told them Kelley's name and they said oh OK, you need 65.  I was like, Yup, 65 was what we ordered.  So the lady brings out three trays of tomato plants and we paid her and were going to leave, then we got to thinking we had paid for 65, but she said, you will have 66 cause they are in a two pack.  So KC says, can we cut one in half or pay you for another plant.  They were so crazy busy in there, the girl he asked said "the tomatoes are 1.50"   Oh well, so we waited to talk to the lady we had paid them for.  She said, "Oh, it's no big deal, just go ahead with the extra plant"  So we felt better about it and left.  When we were driving, Kelley calls me ( I had text him earlier and said "you only need 65??? for all the ladies?") and says "I need 65 TWO-PACKS...130 plants!"  Ahhhhhhhhhhh.  So we went back to Lambert and explained.  She looked at her order and there it was 65 two packs.  So they loaded us up with that many more and we were on our way.

So then we needed to fix them up and make them look cute for Mother's day.  Kelley was thinking tin foil around them would be fine.  uh, no.  I told him I would go find some pretty foil to put around them.  So I went to JoAnns.  They didn't have anything.  so I went over to the dollar store.  I found some pretty yellow foil ( well kind of) there and some yellow ribbon. 

I went home and cut all the two packs apart and was thinking I would just put the foil up around them and tie it with a ribbon.  ( The foil wasn't really foil come to find out...it was just shiny plastic-eee paper.  Hey what do you want from the dollar store.)  Sooooo I cut the paper to fit, then pulled it up around the pot and tried to tie the bow on it.  That wasn't working...I need about 7 more hands.  So I got out a rubber band ( the one and only rubber band left after Kelley had wrapped about a hundred of them around the sandals I had sent Camille for mothers day) and put that around the paper to hold it till I got the bow tied.  Then once I got the bow tied, it slipped down, so I had to get out the glue gun and glue the ribbon in place.    HA!  After about an hour and a half, I had 7 of them done.    Dave Matheson came over to talk to Kelley and was commiserating with me because he has been in charge of getting that job done several times.  He said he had done it like that once, but then got smart and bought some real foil! 

About this time, Kelley came down from sanding upstairs to see what I was doing.  He could see this was going to take till next Thursday to get them done this way, so he said
"why don't we just glue the foil right to the pot?"   HA!  Genius!  So I cut out all the papers, and he glued the pot, and I wrapped the paper around it.  They looked just fine like that and within about an hour, we had them all done. I usually have to do things the hard way first...that's just how I roll.  Sure glad Kelley saved me from this one. He got a pretty good blister from the glue dripping while he was waiting for me to get the foil ready.  Sorry bout it!  I usually plan on at least one good burn each time I use the glue gun...just the price you have to pay for using this amazing tool!....sorry it was on him!

Spent Sunday afternoon baking and lounging with the fam. 

So glad Candice and KC were with us.  I was surely missing Camille's family and Kate though and aching for my own mom.

The sister missionaries called and wanted to come use our phone to call their mom for mother's day.  I had mentioned to them a couple days ago when I was driving them to buy calling cards that they were welcome to come to our house to call.  Anyway, Sister Abarka called her mom and talked for about two hours  I got to visit with sister Lupe while she waited for her. 

She is such a sweet girl.  She had some neat stories to tell about her life in Fiji.  She's been through quite a lot and I sure do admire her for her strength and commitment to live the gospel when all those around her do not.

We went out to look at the chickens and she was telling me about her chickens at home.  She said they just run free during the day, but come home to roost at night.  She said they put a little tag on their toe so they can tell which chickens are theirs.  She started looking at ours and said " I thought you were having the chickens for eggs...a bunch of these are male!"  I was like " really?  how can you tell?"  She said when they get to be about this big, the boys feet are different...they are taller and they grow a rooster comb on their head.  Ha!  The one's she pointed out were all the  "sex link" chicks they had told us they knew for sure they were female!    Ha! 

Happy Graduation Day to my beautiful mother.  One year ago, she drew her last earthly breath and took my daddy's arm to be escorted joyfully into the next phase in her eternal progression.  I can't be anything but happy for her.  It's those of us that are left behind  and feel the void in our lives of her absence that I feel sad for. 
I keep thinking of this quote from Louisa May Alcott as I have absent mindedly picked up the phone to call my mom..."What do girls do who haven't any mothers to help them through their troubles?" 
How I miss her comforting voice.  She could always make me feel like everything would be OK. 
I remember calling her when I found out I had melanoma. I had just hung up from talking to the Dr. and  I was in tears, but she calmed me down and assured me that it would be OK. We talked it through and somehow it didn't seem so bad anymore.   She told me she would put my name on the prayer roll at the temple and that her and daddy would be praying for me too.  Through her faith,  ( I sure relied on hers a lot while  I was growing my own!) I was comforted and at peace. 
I would call her and unload my worries and fears and she was always there with a listening ear and encouraging words.
She was always the first person I wanted to share happy things with too. All of my pregnancies, births, callings Kelley and I received, achievements of the kids, fun vacations, mission calls, Camille's engagement...then grand ( her great) kids. I think that's just how girls are with their moms....at least I hope that's how my girls feel about me...I knew she would be as happy about what ever had happened as I was.  She was just like that...always wanted the best for everyone else...not ever thinking of herself.
I've been thinking about the time that mum spent here with us a lot lately and actually allowed myself to look back a year ago in my blog.  I haven't dared go there yet.  It made me laugh and cry as I read about the wonderful, funny, sometimes sad and very hard days we spent together.
I was reminded of her forever cheerful presence...it just felt good to be around her.  She never complained.  Even at the end when things were so difficult for her...  She couldn't eat, or get around anymore without the wheel chair...yet she remained cheerful and grateful for everything. 
From the time we spent together I learned about life and death and faith, hope, and courage, about having a positive attitude, about kindness, and love, about enduring to the end, and about what an amazing woman my mother was.

How very blessed I am to be able to call her mother.

Yesterday, Kelley, KC and I got up in what felt like the middle of the night ( which was fine for me cause I was awake anyway!)  and headed up to Logan.  We still needed to get the rest of the things and Kelley wanted some boards for making the chicken coop.  Have I mentioned how much wood and boards daddy stored?  Well theres a lot.
It really was a beautiful sight as the sun peeped over the mountains as we were coming through the canyon.
While Kelley and KC loaded up some wood, I went inside and vacuumed the house.  I hated leaving it like that after we pulled the desk out of daddy's room.  It was quite a sight  to see, cause a squirrel had made his home right there behind it!  All of the hazel nuts had the tops neatly removed !  looks like they got into the bird food too!  Then when we moved the white dresser out, there was another little mess there!

How funny is that?

Anyway, I didn't want to leave that mess, so I took the shop vac up and got it all cleaned up.

As I went through the other rooms, it felt so strange and empty.  All the furniture is gone now.  But when I looked out the window of my bedroom,  it all seemed familiar and like nothing had changed. I could have been 12 years old again and just waking up on a beautiful spring morning...looking out that window to see if mum was out working in the yard.

Or I could be standing at this mirror putting on my make up like I did all my teenage years.

I always loved that green carpet in my bedroom...so soft and pretty!

When I went back outside, Deloy was over talking to Kelley and KC. 

He got to talking about building a hand rail for mum out of one of those long poles in the back yard.  He told us about a lot of things he had done for her.  I told him how much we appreciated everything he had done.  He said "Oh it wasn't anything compared to what they did for me...Del was always helping me with something...you know Del was my very best friend."

Then DeLois came over and talked for a while too.  She is a sweet lady. 

Kelley got a few boards out of the ceiling of the old garage (so many boards up there!)  and then he started chuckling.  He said..."look what I found!"  and handed us down a box that said 'Paula's school things' on it.  Oh my goodness...that was a surprise!  I had no idea they had saved all my old notebooks and things from High School!  It was so fun to look through them and read some of the things I had written.  It made me reflect to see how my teachers were trying to encourage me and even saw great potential in my writing.  I was clearly much more occupied with my social life than school though as I found a bunch of notes my friends and I had written...boys, dances, friends and dates were top priority.  It felt like I was looking at someone elses life as I thumbed through all these pages.  Was that really me?  I regret deeply not trying harder to do my best in school.  I got OK grades, but didn't really care about it that much.  Much more concerned about having fun!  What a bone head...wish I could do it again.

I found my Seminary binder and that sure brought back some great memories.  I loved Seminary and the teachers I had.  They had a great influence on my life. I remember feeling loved and accepted there.

Oh another thing that I had to smile at was that my folders were all covered with my doodling and with sayings and thoughts I must have liked.  HA!  I guess that's something I've always loved to do!  Some pretty good ones...

To get ahead, one must take a chance...

Without insecurity, there is no growth.

*****

Always be a dreamer

But also a doer.

*****

To know one's ignorance

is the best part of knowledge.

*****

It's not the hours you put in that count,

but what you put in the hours.

*****

Why should I deny myself the pleasure of doing a job as well as possible.

*****

Don't be a carbon copy of someone else....

Make your own impressions

*****

Simply do each day what you know you should

and do it at once!

*****

Don't talk about your abilities...

Demonstrate

*****

Kindness is the oil that takes the friction out of life

*****

Work is a privilege;  if you don't believe it, ask a handicapped person.

*****

You can't kill time,

You can't store time,

all you can do is use it!

*****

Pray for a good harvest

but keep hoeing.

*****

Do you come with a solution

Or are you part of the problem

*****

Experience is a hard teacher: 

She gives the test first, the lesson afterwards.

*****

The only way to begin, is begin.

*****

To avoid criticism...
Do nothing

Say nothing

Be nothing.

*****

Nature gives everybody five senses;

the other two--horse and common,

you must acquire.

*****

Brilliant people talk about ideas

Average people talk about things

Small people talk about other people.

*****

Killing the dog doesn't cure the bite.

*****

A smile is like an echo: 

It always come back to you.

*****

You have to run fast to stay in place.

*****

Do the unpleasant job first.

*****

Personality can open doors,

but only character can keep them open.

*****

When the going gets tough,

the tough get going.

*****

You are becoming what you are to become.

*****

It isn't what you earn

It's what you don't spend.

*****

People who know all the answers

Haven't asked all the questions.

*****

If you have plans for tomorrow,

Be careful today!

*****

If you can't win,

make the one ahead break the record.

*****

Do you follow through,

or do you have to be followed through.

*****

The man who rolls up his sleeves

seldom loses his shirt.

*****

What you learn today will  insure tomorrow's harvest.

*****

  There were a lot of pictures and programs and things I had saved in the box too. Oh the memories.

So glad Kelley came across that box...thats was really a treat for me!

Timeless Words to Live By...

Daddy was a keeper of great thoughts, poems, quotes and sayings.  He had several books that were filled with his neat handwriting of thoughts and quotes that we came across when we were cleaning out the drawers of his desk.  The whole top of his desk was covered with thoughts he had saved...there were some really good ones. 
I read through them as I took them of of his desk and they reminded me so much of him and the way he lived his life.
Some of my favorite ones...

"You give but little when you give of your possessions.  It is when you give of yourself that you truly give!"    Kahlil Gibran

I Shall Not Pass This Way Again

Through this toilsome world, alas!

Once and only once I pass;

If a kindness I may show,

If a good deed I may do

To a suffering fellowman,

Let me do it while I can.

No delay, for it is plain

I shall not pass this way again.

*****

"Whatever principle of

intelligence we attain unto

in this life,

it will rise with us

in the resurrection."

Doctrine & Covenants 130: 18

*****

A Pledge

This is the beginning of a new day.

I have been given this day to use as I will.

I can waste it or use it for good.

What I do today is important, because

I'm exchanging a day of my life for it.

When tomorrow comes, this day will

be gone forever, leaving in its place

whatever I may have traded for it.

I pledge to myself that I shall win,

not lose; be good, not evil; be a success,

not a failure, in order that i shall not

regret the price I paid for this day.

*****

"It's what you learn after you know it all that counts."

*****

A Wise Old Owl

A wise old owl live in an oak;

The more he saw the less he spoke;

The less he spoke the more he heard;

Why can't we all be like that bird?

*****

"Make haste, nor wait the coming hours:  He who is unready today will be more so tomorrow."

*****

"Your task--to build a better world. "God said.

I answered, "How?"

This world is such a large vast place,

So complicated, now.

And I so small and useless am

There's nothing I can do."

But God in all his wisdom said,

"Just build a better YOU."

*****

This was one he cut out of the Coronet...nice!  Some things never change

My Wife's Ten Commandments

I.  Remember that I am thy wife,

Whom thou must cherish all thy life.

II.  Thou shalt not stay out late at night,

Though lodges, friends or clubs invite.

III.  Thou shalt not smoke, indoors or out,

Nor chew tobacco hereabout.

IV.  Thou shalt with praise receive my pies,

Nor pastries made by me despise.

V.  My mother thou shalt strive to please,

and let her live with us in ease.

VI.  Remember, 'tis  thy duty clear

To dress me well throughout the year.

VII.  Thou shalt in manner mild and meek

Hand me thy pay check every week.

VIII.  Thou shalt not be a drinking man,

But use the prohibition plan.

IX.  Thou shalt not flirt, but must allow

Thy wife such freedom anyhow.

X.  Thou shalt get up when baby cries,

and try the child to tranquilize.

*****

If wisdom's way you

wisely seek,

Five things observe with care:

Of whom you speak,

To whom you speak,

and how, and when and where.

*****

In men whom men condemn as ill

I find so much of goodness still

In men whom men pronounce divine

I find so much of sin and blot

I dare not draw a line

Between the two when God has not.

*****

"Lord, make my words sweet and kind today, for I may have to eat them tomorrow."

*****

Maturity

Maturity is the ability to control anger and settle

differences without violence or destruction.

Maturity is patience.  It is the willingness to pass

up immediate pleasure in favor of long-term gain. 

Maturity is perseverance, the ability to sweat out

a project or a situation in spite of heavy opposition

and discouraging setbacks.

Maturity is the capacity to face unpleasantness

and frustration, discomfort and defeat, without

complaint or collapse.
Maturity is humility.  It is being big enough to

say, "I was wrong."  And, when right, the mature

person need not experience the satisfaction of

saying, "I told you so."

Maturity is the ability to make a decision and

follow through.  The immature spend their lives

exploring endless possibilities and then do nothing.

maturity means dependability, keeping one's

word and coming through in a crisis.  The immature

are masters of the alibi.  They are conflicted and

disorganized.  Their lives are a maze of broken

promises, former friends, unfinished business and

good intentions that never materialize. 

Maturity is the art of living in peace with what we

cannot change, the courage to change what we know

 should be changed, and the wisdom to know the difference.

*****

Some think that happiness comes from getting.  Others know that is comes from giving.

Do my thoughts, choices, and actions move me toward Christ?

Are my prayers, scriptures, the sacrament, and temple becoming more meaningful?

Am I trying to develop Christ-like qualities?

Do I feel peace in my life?

Am I receptive to the Holy ghost?

Am I keeping my covenants?

Am I learning to control how I feel and think as well as how I act?

*****

FOUR THINGS

Four things a man must learn to do

If he would make his record true:

To think without confusion clearly;

To love his fellow-men sincerely;

To act from honest motives purely;

To trust in God and heaven securely.

                    Henry Van Dyke

*****

In all things, success depends upon previous preparation...Confucious

*****

I would be a friend to the friendless

and find joy in ministering to the

needs of the poor.

I would visit the sick and afflicted

and inspire in them a desire for faith

to be healed.

I would teach the truth to under-

standing and blessing of all

mankind.

I would seek out the erring one and

try to win him back to a righteous

and a happy life.

I would not seek to force people to

live up to my ideals, but rather love

them into doing the thing that is

right.

I would live with the masses and

help them solve their problems that

their earth life may be happy.

I would avoid the publicity of high

positions and discourage the flattery

of thoughtless friends.

I would not knowingly wound the

feeling of any, not even one who

may have wronged me, but would

seek to do him good and make him

my friend.

I would overcome the tendency to

selfishness and jealousy and rejoice

in the success of all the children of

my Heavenly Father.

I would not be an enemy to any living soul.

Knowing that the Redeemer of

mankind has offered to the world

the only plan that will fully develop

us and make us really happy here

and hereafter, I feel it not only a

duty, but also a blessed privilege to

disseminate this truth.

Biography of George Albert Smith

*****

"Let it begin with me!"

THE UNEXPECTED

KINDNESS

FROM AN UNEXPECTED

PLACE,

A HAND OUTSTRETCHED

IN FRIENDSHIP,

A SMILE

ON SOMEONES FACE,

A WORD OF

UNDERSTANDING

SPOKEN

IN AN HOUR OF TRIAL

ARE "UNEXPECTED

MIRACLES"

THAT MAKE LIFE

MORE WORTHWHILE.

*****

"Don't itch for something you're not willing to scratch for."

*****

It's not where you serve but how.

*****

Attitude:  "The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.  Attitude to me, is more important than facts.  It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what people think or say or do.  It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skills.  It will make or break a city...a company...a church...a home.  The remarkable thing we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day.  We cannot change our past...we cannot change that people will act in a certain way.  We cannot change the inevitable.  The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude...I am convinced that life is ten percent what happens to us and ninety percent how we react to it.  And so it is with you...we are in charge of our attitudes."    ( Dr. Charles Swindoll)

*****

"...I will go and do the

things which the Lord hath

commanded, for I know that

the Lord giveth no

commandments unto the
children of men, save he

shall prepare a way for

them that they may

accomplish the thing which

He commandeth them."

1 Nephi 3:7

*****

Success is getting what you want.  Happiness is liking what you get.

*****

People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be, not what you nag them to be.

*****

A Prayer for Later Years

Lord, thou knowest that I am growing older.

Keep me from becoming too talkative, and particularly

keep me from falling into the tiresome habit of

expressing an opinion on every subject.

Release me from the craving to straighten out

every body's affairs.  Keep my mind free from the

recital of endless details.  give me wings to get to the

point.

Give me grace, dear Lord, to listen to others

describe their aches and pains. Help me endure the

boredom with patience and keep my lips sealed, for

my own aches and pains are increasing in number

and intensity, and the pleasure of discussing them is

becoming sweeter as the years go by.

Teach me the glorious lesson that, occasionally, I

might be mistaken.  Keep me reasonably sweet.  I do

not wish to be a saint ( saints are so hard to live with),

\but a sour old person is the work of the devil.

Make me thoughtful, but not moody; helpful, but

not pushy; independent, yet able to accept with graciousness

favors that others wish to bestow on me.

Free me of the notion that simply because I have\

lived a long time, I am wiser than those who have

not lived so long.

If I do not approve of some of the changes that

have taken place in recent years, give me the wisdom

to keep my mouth shut.

Lord knows that when the end comes, I would like

to have a friend or two left.---Author Unknown

*****

12 things to remember

1.  The value of time

2.  The success of perseverance

3.  The pleasure of working

4.  The dignity of simplicity
5.  The worth of character

6.  The power of kindness

7.  The influence of example

8.  The obligation of duty

9.  The wisdom of economy

10.  The virtue of patience

11.  The improvement of talent

12.  The joy of originating

Marshall Field

*****

"Dost thou love life? 

Then do not squander time,

 for that's the stuff life is made of." 

Franklin

*****

Money will buy a bed but not sleep;

books but not brains; food but not

appetite;  finery but not beauty;

a house but not a home; medicine but

not health; luxuries but not culture;

amusements but not happiness;

religion but not salvation; a passport to

everywhere but heaven.

Anonymous

*****

You Tell on yourself

You tell on yourself by the friends you seek,

By the very manner in which you speak,

By the way you employ your leisure time,

By the use you make of your dollar and dime;

You tell what you are by the things you wear,

By the spirit in which you your burdens bear,'

By the kind of things at which you laugh,

By the records you play on the phonograph.

You tell what you are by the way you walk,

By the thing of which you delight to talk,

By the manner in which you bear defeat,

By so simple a thing as the way you eat.

By the books you choose from the well-filled shelf;

So there's really particle of sense

In an effort to keep up false pretense.

*****

A Thankful Heart

For all that God in mercy sends,

For health and children, home and friends;

For comforts in the time of need,

For every kindly word or deed,

For happy thoughts and holy talk,'

For guidance in our daily walk--

In everything give thanks!

For beauty in this world of ours,

For verdant grass and lovely flowers,

For song of birds, for hum of bees,

For the refreshing summer breeze,

For hill and plain, for streams and wood,

For the great ocean's might flood--

In everything give thanks!

*****

The right to choose for himself what he will Believe and do is the choicest possession of every intelligent man and woman.  The unhindered exercise of this right is FREEDOM.

*****

I Am Old Glory

I am Old glory; for more than ten score years I have been the banner of hope and freedom for generation after generation of Americans.  Born amid the first flames of America's fight for freedom, I am the symbol of a country that has grown from a little group of thirteen colonies to a united nation of fifty sovereign states.  Planted firmly on the high pinnacle of American Faith my gently fluttering folds have proved an inspiration to untold millions.  Men have followed me into battle with unwavering courage.  they have looked upon me as a symbol of national unity.  They have prayed that they and their fellow citizens might continue to enjoy the life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, which have been granted to every American as the heritage of free men.  so long as men love liberty more than life itself, so long as they treasure the priceless privileges bought with the blood of our forefathers; so long as the principles of truth, justice and charity for all remain deeply rooted in human hearts, I shall continue to be the enduring banner of the United States of America.

*****

An Indian Prayer

O' Great spirit,

Whose voice I hear in the winds, and whose breath gives life to all the world,

Hear me!  I am small and weak, I need your strength and wisdom.

Let me walk in Beauty, and make my eyes

ever behold the red and purple sunset.

Make my hands respect the things you have

 made and my ears sharp to hear your voice.

Make me wise so that I may understand the

things you have taught my people.

Let me learn the lessons you have hidden

in every leaf and rock.

I seek strength, not to be greater than my

brother, but to fight my greatest

enemy--myself.

Make me always ready to come to you with

clean hands and straight eyes.

So when life fades, as the fading sunset,

my spirit may come to you

without shame.

There was also  a copy of the Ten Commandments and the Declaration of Independence and other neat cards and pictures that were special to him. 
I am also a collector of thoughts and sayings and quotes that touch my heart....I'd like to think I inherited that from my dad.
 If I see or hear something I like, I'll jot it down and stick  it my big red binder that holds all my stitchery patterns.  Then when I'm ready to sew something new, I'll go browse through all these messages and pick one that feels right for the occasion.
I always ponder as I'm stitching, about the message in what I'm making.  I think ...'Am I living what this message teaches?'  More than likely...not so much.  But it's a great reminder of what I want to be and gives me good incentive to try to do better.
Thanks daddy... for one more sweet gift you left for us. 



Friday was such a nice day...we went out back and worked in the garden a bit. 

The iris are so pretty now and when you get close to them they smell heavenly.

KC helped me pull weeds and transplant some  snap dragons that were growing in some strange places.  I hope they survive. 

Radishes and peas doing good! 

Kelley and I went out to this nursery ( behind a school out on redwood road ( I think the school grows all the plants)...KC and I came across it and bought a few flowers there the day before....great prices and really nice plants!) and got a bunch of vegetables and geraniums.

We're going to work on getting things planted this week!

Saturday morning, Kelley, KC and I went up to mum's to bring a load of stuff home.  I think everyone else has gotten all of their things out of the house now....I had great intentions of getting up there before now, but it just didn't happen.  Kelley is in up over his head now with the projects he's working on, so I hated to pester him about it.  But when I mentioned it, he was just like  " OK,  sure...lets go tomorrow!"  He's the best!

He took the trailer, so we were able to get a lot on there...the saw that was in daddy's garage was super heavy though, so we couldn't take much more on the trailer.

Just thought the ferns there were looking so pretty.  I love when they are first coming out and are all curly like that.  Reminds me of a magic fairy land. 

Everything was sure pretty and green..driving through Sardine Canyon into Cache Valley was a beautiful sight.

 OK  So this was funny!!!  Guess what we found when we were moving this dresser ? (besides the home of another squirrel)   Mum and daddy's birth certificates and marriage certificate!  When mum passed away, we looked high and low for her birth certificate...we went through everything!  Mum was very organized and had all her important papers all filed away in a safety box...except these birth certificates. 

We finally gave up and contacted the vital statistics offices and had them send a copy to us.

 Anyway, on top of this dresser was a piece of carpet, then a piece of glass over that, then a bunch of other stuff stacked on top of that.  We moved everything off, and took off the glass and lifted up the carpet and there they were!  Ha!  genius hiding place!

 Kelley's main objective for the day was to get daddy's desk home.   He knew it wasn't going to be easy...but I don't think he had any idea it would be this hard.

Him and KC picked it up got it close to the door way of daddy's room.  They could see it wasn't going to fit through, so Kelley took the door to the room off and they tried to squeeze it through.  No way.  So they picked it up and turned it sideways.  Nope.  Then they turned it on an angle.  Close, but no.

So they could see they were going to have to take the desk apart.  They thought if they could take the top off, the bottom would fit through.  So they got underneath it and found the screws that were holding it together and took the top off.  They tried to fit the bottom through the doorway again. Not happening.   So they had to take the bottom apart into two sides and a middle piece.  No kidding. 

Either daddy put this desk together inside this room, or he built the room around this desk.  Man I wish I had someone to ask about how he got it in there!  There's got to be a great story there!

Before they started moving things, I took these pictures of all the neat sayings and things that were important to daddy that were under the glass on his desk.  I carefully removed each one and put them in a box.  My heart was sure full of love for my dad as I read each little thought.  They are a perfect definition of what made my dad the special man that he was, and told the story of his character, his humility and integrity. I'll have to do another post to share some of my favorites.

 They finally got everything loaded up and tied down ( probably took about 2 hours just to get the desk out of the room!)  We got everything locked up again and headed for home. 

Sure do love these two guys. Didn't ever complain about what a lot of stuff I had them move or ask me where I thought I was going to put it. I think they could see how dear to my heart and full of memories some of these things were to me. I know it's just stuff, but when I see these things, I see my parents...you can't see daddy's desk without picturing him sitting there plucking away at the old typewriter, writing his daily entry in the journal, or if we were lucky, getting a fun ride on the spinning stool  that sits up to the desk.

Or the old brass bed in the shack...I think of how daddy rigged up the misquito net over the bed to keep us from getting eaten alive ( misquitos were so bad there close to the pond) and how mum would tuck us in and make sure we were snug when we would have sleep overs out there.

Or the old irrigation cart...I can still see daddy pulling it around the yard, unloading and connecting the pipe to wind over the lawns ( a pepsi and a snickers bar sitting  close by it to keep him going through the long irrigation day) this was before he got the new plastic pipes. 

When I see the lawn furniture, I think of all the fun parties, baby and wedding showers we had out there in the gazebo.  It was always so comfortable and inviting just to lounge out there (nothing better than a snooze in the swing) or sit and visit with friends and neighbors that would drop by.

I could go on and on...every where you look up there holds a memory.  So grateful for these wonderful memories...they are beginning to fill up the empty places in my heart that my parents passing left there.

W A S

So I got to do a pretty cool thing last night.  I have been singing with this choir of women from all over the valley for the past few months and last night we recorded the songs we have been working on.
I'm so glad Nancy and Colleen told me about it ( and how wonderful to be able to spend this time with these dear friends...I so miss our association since our ward was split)...it's been quite the adventure.  And you probably think, 'oh singing with a bunch of ladies...what could be fun about that?'  Well it's fun because of the director.  Her name is Merilee Webb...and she is a unique individual.  She is probably about 40, never married, and has more energy than anyone I've ever met.  She is amazingly knowledgeable of the music and I swear she can sing and direct all five parts at once. Oh and plus, she is hilarious!  I have wanted to bring my camera and video what she does, because you just wouldn't believe it unless you saw her. 
We have been doing some real challenging pieces and she expects us to know the music.  There isn't time for going over individual parts so we were each given a CD of all the songs, but you could turn it to your left speaker and hear just your part!  cool!  I'd sing along while I drove to mum's and that really helped me learn the music.
Each week was also a spiritual experience as we would talk about the different songs and what they were teaching us.  She would let anyone express what they were feeling and I think it was a real outlet for some of these women to be able to share their thoughts.  Very moving to hear about their struggles, and also how they overcome their trials.
Anyway, they( she has a team of people that help her make things happen) had all the microphones and sound system set up when we got there.Oh and that's another thing....never any wasted time...she was always ready to go...sometimes before it was even time to start! That's because she flies from St. George every week, where she teaches at Dixie College, to conduct these choirs ( she is doing a men's choir too!) then she has to catch a plane as soon as our practice is over to go back to St. George for the week
There were percussion instruments (they really made it sound cool!)  and also the organ had a big part on If I could hie to Kolob,  All the soloist were there too...these two cute girls came from St. George with their grandparents to do the solo on "Prayer of the Walking Child"   They were only 12 and did an amazing job! 
 .
We warmed up a little bit, then she had us start with the hardest piece first...El Vito!  That's been my hardest one to learn because it's in Spanish or Italian or something?  I thought I would be OK with it if I could read my music, then a few weeks ago, she added some clapping and even an ole' and a stomp so we were NOT going to be able to hold our music.  So I've been listening to that song over and over trying to get those words down.  The piano music is incredible...4 hands required.  The pianist that has practiced with us all the time is truly amazing.  Everyone just sits there with their mouth hanging open as she plays the introduction.  Extremely hard music.  Then last night, this guy named Eric sat down next to her and added a whole other part to it!  I would have just liked to sit and listen to them play the whole song and not even have us sing!  That recording went pretty well.
One of the harder ones was Lagan Love.  It has two solo parts and then the choir is singing some crazy beautiful harmonies. All the parts were not coming together well and we had to do it several times, I think she was still unsatisfied with that one when we moved on.  The recording guy, Steve was really good too, and would tell her when things were not just right....come one ladies...can you just  hold your papers still?   ( That was me thinking...Merilee never never got impatient...she would just say...ok...lets go again.)
One other song we had to do over was "If I could hie to Kolob"  We had never done it with the organ before and this same guy who played the piano with Carolyn played this piece.  I noticed that he wasn't playing the music that was written and sometimes it sounded weird with the harmony we were singing.  Merilee stopped and had him correct...then she said he was kind of playing by ear and making it up as he goes!  HA!  Unreal!  After he heard what our music sounded like, he adjusted what he was playing and it was awesome!  Very powerful...the kind of music that shakes your insides.
Then when the little girls sang the Prayer of the Walking Child, well the words really get to me....It's the prayer of a mother for her child and of a child  to her Heavenly Father as they are crossing the plains.
("Father Please, hear my prayer, bless my child")
"Father, can you hear me? will you listen to me for awhile?
 Please, can you make the day warm...the sun will dry the dewy grass and all will be well.
( Help my child..not to fall behind)  And Father, make my steps a little larger...I'll try not to fall behind...and also bless my shoes to help them last another mile or so.
(Father please, she's so hungry) Father, I'm so hungry...I've had nothing to eat for a while.( Father fill our grain barrel)  Please, can you fill our grain barrel?  Mother can make a flour cake and all will be well.   But Father, when the food is gone, forgive me;   I'll try hard not to complain.
Also, bless my Mother, dry her tears and help her smile again.
(Bless her sleep....let her be warm)  Father, I'm so weary, can I stop and rest her for a while?  (Please stop the wind)  Please, keep the cold from blowing, bring on the night so I can dream and all will be well.
But Father, if I sleep too long, forgive me...wake me up....don't leave me behind.  But if sleep still keeps me, Father in your arms please carry me home.
Father please grant me Thy peace so I can know all will be well. ( And all will be well)....is all well?....All is well.
We sing the mother's part and that's a real tough one for me to get through.
I think the recording went well....There was not time in one night to make it perfect, but I think it's very good. 
We get to preform next Friday night  May 11, at the Tabernacle, so if anyone is looking for a great date night, be there at 6:30.  (no tickets required)
My family is so sweet for supporting me as I would head off to practice every Sunday evening... I think they could see how much I enjoy it and were happy for me to do something I love.
oh, p.s. WAS is the name of our group...stands for We Also Sing!

More Birthday fun!

I hope KC had a good Birthday.  He's such a grateful, un-demanding kid, you'd never know if he didn't. 

We met Candice at Cafe Rio and had a fun lunch with him.

He had his last final in the afternoon, so Candice came over after work and we sang happy birthday and opened presents.  (22 candles makes quite a bon fire!)

 We were going to go to PF Changs for dinner, but KC was still full from his big fat burrito he had for lunch and he had a wedding reception of one of his good friends he had to go to, so we went to the Spaghetti Factory.  Always yummy!  ( And KC cleaned up every one's spumoni!)