The Masseys Arrive!!!

Keira at the airport...

I was so happy to have my granddaughter Meagan and her darling family (Matt, Keira and Eden) fly to Reno and then drive to my home on Friday, August 29th.  They were here until Wednesday, September 3, 1:30 PM.

Keira was delighted to find she had a big TV in her room.  From then on she watched "Annie" if she was going to nap or go to bed.

The weather was so wonderful (best time of the year) we ate outside and Matt cooked for us on the barbeque.  I also tried to make them breakfast each mother and I found they loved bacon and any kind of pancake.

A few times I got to take care of Eden and we got acquainted and I found she was a delight to hold and play with.  She loved giving me the raspberry.

At the concert while the others were dancing...

Taking Selfies...

Even Keira and Eden stayed with me alone without Mom and Dad for a couple hours while Mom got a dinner out together and alone for a change.  They said the Red Onion was good!!

Keira and Eden have fun in the house, too, the tinker toys and lincoln logs even got used...

Fun on the hammock and Keira painted the deck and played with Sadie, they became very good
friends.

The beach at Rec I was not the best place this year because the water was very low and Rec 2 had lots of rocks...bummer, but there was Miniature Golfing and Meagan finally got to try those Cinnamon Rolls--I had no idea she wanted one!

There was a short hike west of town...

Into the woods...

Fun exploring the shops in Chester with a trip to Frosties, of course.

And of course, the Bandshell.  It was the largest crowd I had ever seen and the noisiest Rock Band ever--we had to retreat to the fence to get a little distance.

And the renting of a boat and tube the day after Labor Day was great--no wind, nobody else on the lake!!!

Of course, we had to visit Buffalo Chips and Paul Bunyan...

Keira the Clown! 

Finally it was time to say Goodbye--I hope they come next year!  It made my summer!

Wha's Up?

Sarah is into a pie throwing contest--wonder who won?

Melissa says goodbye to summer with a trip to Myrtle Beach!

Catching Up with the Stewarts!

 All ready for school are Kate and Ryan...

 and Brynn is entering Preschool...

Posed with little sister Molly...

Such a beautiful family...

Kelsi and Lea Fall 2014

Kelsi enters third grade with the long hair look...

 Lea has her first football game to cheer for in high school...

Exciting for Lea to be in high school with brother Jacob...

Happy Birthday, Richard, from Maria...

Maria called Johnny and had him meet her at El Camino and he had brought some things to put on Richard's grave.  So nice.  Love the pictures and that she was thinking of her Dad.  And that Johnny come and met her, too.  She also said they ate at a new place nearby that was really good food--called "The Grave" I thought she said...and I should go with her next time I am in town, which will be January 22nd for my birthday!

Anyway I was also reading in Richard's Memory book some of the messages and letters that were said about him to me from his clients, temple workers, friends, relatives.  So many lovely things were said, he was so loved by so many.  

Happy Birthday to Richard! 83 years...in Earth Time

Richard's birthday today, so feeling gloomy.  I remember when I was working in Galveston after Hurricane Katrina and Rita and we went to a Christmas parade downtown.  Glenda dressed up in Victorian costume but I did not.  There were many who did.  One couple in particular  in white hair caught my attention.

I thought how wonderful that would be to have a partner to grow old with together and look so comfortable marching in a parade or anywhere.  Of course, there is no knowing how happy they were but they looked happy.  I was envious.

I remmber also in Hong Kong with Meagan when we visited some town and were in the mall.  I was watching the escalator as a Mormon missionary senior couple emerged at the top and were animatedly talking--on their day off, I suppose, and I was really envious.  They looked so happy in their togetherness.

No answers as to why some people live a long time in pain or bedridden and others just drop dead at a young age...no answers.  And others live a long time sharing a lifetime of joy and trouble together. Seems I have been alone a lot...oh, well, hope Richard is happy on his mission up there.  Wish I had it a little easier in my old age.

But I am working on the front deck.  I did a lousy job of cleaning it because I ran out of deck wash and steam so the stain job will not be so good, but there is always next yearr...maybe do a better job then...or no job at all.  Life is so unpredictable.

Back Deck Stained...but Front, When??

Monday night I cleaned the deck with deck wash.  I really scrubbed it.  Tuesday morning I stained it with the stick and hard sponge.  It looks good.  Instead of doing two coats, I do one each year.  It never lasts more than one year any way.


The problem is that I have been like an invalid every since.  My hands hurt, my arms ache, my legs ache, my back aches.  And I still have the front to do.  I thought I would get it done this week.  The day after I stained it I had to sleep most of the day.  I was exhausted.  I hate this growing old business!!!


 Each day I think, "I need to wait till tonight, I need to wait till morning, I need to wait till tonight."  I don't know when I will finish the front...but the back looks good.

Miriam Lina Nelson

Miriam Hardy Nelson passed away today at 2 pm.  What a great life she lived.  After Richard and I married we visited Miriam and Scott in their home and she put on the most wonderful dinner amongst all those little children she was raising.  I was impressed.

When Scott died, she was pregnant with her 7th child Julie and I think Rebecca was only 9 or 10.  I remember when she told me about driving herself to the hospital alone to have her baby.  What a courageous woman she was.  Then she went on to finish college and become a Home Ec teacher at a high school.  She later received her Masters.  She could also sing and play the piano and always seemed to have a smile on her face. And yes, she was a great cook.

And she managed to raise 7 super children--how she did it, I will never know, but I do know she is a beloved mother of all her children and 29 grandchildren and 41 great grandchildren.  I remember once someone said she only had two rules at her house for the children.  They were always to say their prayers and go to church on Sunday. I am not sure that was the whole truth but it worked and somewhere in there she must have taught them all to work because they surely know how to do that.  A great lady, a great life and she has a well earned rest coming.

 Matt, Jennie, Julie, Becky, Lory and Merlin and some of the spouses.

 Alan and wife Elaine, he most have been the photographer in the other picture.

What a wonderful legacy for Miriam--plus all the grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Mark Twain

Last night I watched the second half of the life of Mark Twain.  He was one  writer who made good money on his writings and on his lectures.  His wife had also inherited an amazingly beautiful home in Hartford, Connecticut and his wife had decorated it lovingly.  They had three daughters and lived very happily in the that lovely place.

At a time when $500 a month was considered good income, they were spending $30,000 a year just to run the house with the servants (many) and costs of a home.  I am not sure if that included their lavish entertaining habits.

But Mark Twain didn't want to write for a living anymore and so he invested in different inventions-$25,000 here and there and none of them were successful. One observation was that his artistic brain did not have the caution of a good businessman and he was not questioning the things he should, much too reckless.

Eventually they had to declare bankruptcy, shut the house and travel around the world giving lectures to make money.  He was able to pay everyone back but their life was never the same.

It reminded me of the talk I heard at James' college graduation that warned them of what happens so often...a person graduates, gets a great career, and then loses because of letting other people manage or invest their money.  Anyway a lecture on how important is to learn to protect your earnings and be wise in all things.

I can say Amen to all of this.  Anyway the two part series on Mark Twain was on PBS--so worth watching.

 Last night I watched about the sculpturing of the Mt. Rushmore president heads, that was a story I did not know.  So interesting to find out how it all came about, and how long it took and at what a cost.  One thing that impressed me most was the beautiful skin that the one daughter had, who was reporting.  Reminded me of the complexion of my lady dermatologist--perfect and flawless with not a blemish.  Now that to me is really amazing!!!

John's Birthday

John would have been 54 today.  That does not seem very old.  It is hard to believe it has been over 10 years since he passed away.

I remember when he and Matt Hardy were having a discussion when Matt was living with us.  It may have been when Miriam had been in a car accident so they were young.

But they were talking about the fact that they would probably not live much past 35 and so they should really enjoy their life but they seemed to think that 35 was pretty old anyway and that would be all right.

John was such an expressive baby, always interested in what was around him.

How many pictures do we have of him holding up a fish he caught?

The last fish for John.

Trees Come Down

So many things that had to be done this summer, it has been very stressful.  One of the biggest happened the last two weeks.   First the fallers came and that was interesting to watch.  The 'traditional way' worked on the first tree.  One guy climbs up and cuts branches off on the way up and then tops it and then comes down a way and cuts it again.  The man on the ground puts branches in a pile and moves out of the way for falling timber.

The last two trees were so rotten, they had to just cut them and let them fall. But they cut them in such a way that the one knocked the other down, too, and they went just between trees in my neighbor's yard.  They are amazingly accurate fallers!  And the trees were really rotten except for the first one.

When the cleanup crew came, they did an excellent job of making it look like they were never there.  I was talking to two of them after and we got to talking about snowblowers for some reason.  I said I had one but couldn't do it by myself anymore.  One spoke up and said he'd do it!!!  He lives nearby in the club and for $20 an hour will come and run my machine.  That is what I have been looking for since Michael is gone and I plan to stay here this winter.  He also said he could do most any other jobs I had or find someone who could.  That is such a valuable source to me.  Yea!  

They were also talking about the fact that it takes two years to dry the wood enough to use it in the wood stove.  I am so glad I did not try and keep any of the wood and then have to find someone to cut

it , stack it, and dry it.  Such a big job to ask or pay someone to do.

Great Grandfather's Eye Removal, 2014

When I was six we visited my Great Grandfather Lillywhite who only had one eye.  We were told it was from a wood chip that had lodged in his eye from chopping wood but that was not the whole story.

Yesterday I used the digital newspaper Steve taught me how to do and I found an article from 1908 in the Box Elder News.

It said that Benjamin Lillywhite was operated upon by Dr. Fieday for the removal of a cancer from his left eye lid.  It was hoped the eye could be saved but an examination proved that it was affected by the disease, so it was taken out and then the cancer was cut off the eye lid.

It went on to say that two years ago while Mr. Lillywhite was chopping wood a small stick flew up hitting him in the eye, but further than causing him a little pain at the time, no serious damage was thought to have been done.  The bruise was evidently a bad one however, for soon there appeared a small lump, which grew as time passed and finally developed into a cancer. 

"The operation was most successful and while Mr. Lillywhite had to lose his eye, he is confident that the trouble has now been resolved which hope is just as sincerely shared by his family and numerous friends."

I remember hearing as a child that his eye was knocked out when he was cutting wood--now I hear the "rest of the story".  Very interesting.

Tussockosis

If it isn't  one thing, it is another--looks like I have found my source of allergy bothering me of late. It is the Douglas-fir tussock moth caterpillar.  There was a huge article in the paper today about the current battle with the deadly (to trees) caterpillars.  Currently they are in the phase of looking for places to pupate which is maybe why I have seen them crawling along the deck sides, on the screens, etc.  At least that means their troublesome times are about over for this year.

Since I am continually raking and gathering up needles and putting them into bags, I have subjected myself to their old skins and spent cocoons and have had the resultant runny nose, headache, itchy arms and hands, etc. that are more prevalent to people who have allergies anyway.  Since my allergies are usually in the spring and fall it has been puzzling to me.

I just captured one to make sure it was what I was reading about and sure enough it had the four colorful tufts of hair on its back.  I smashed him with a jar!

Evidently they are cyclical and an invasion only happens every 5 to 10 to 12 years.  This must be the moth invasion I had earlier this summer!!!  This is exactly how they looked!!!  I don't know if they hurt any of my fir trees--if the needles turn brown they have, so far it is the cedar trees that have been brown.  I should have killed every one of those ugly moths instead of letting some fly away, thinking they were doing some good by eating bugs and stuff--that is a different kind of moth!  At least I know they are not interested in eating my clothes in the closets.