Amy's Day

My friend, Amy, asked me to be her escort as she went to the Draper Temple to take out her endowment a few weeks ago. There are no words to communicate the absolute and complete beauty of the day. This was a hard-won battle for Amy. If you look really closely at her face you may be able to read the transformation in her soul. Thank you dear friend, for the privilege to be in The House of the Lord with you on your special day.

Birthday Round Up

Darling Andrea turned 30 years old this May - it's so hard to believe that my little curly-headed baby girl is 30. And it just so happens that Kyle and Carly celebrate their birthdays within days of each other. That's why this year we decided to host a Western barbeque and party for all three. We enjoyed games, presents, balloons and of course - cake! It was good, old-fashioned fun. Happy Birthday to you! I love you all!

First 2010 Bees Game

Although you can't tell by the weather, it is late Spring and we have started with picnics, barbeque and baseball. We went to our first game of the year with Andrea, Jayson and Carter. It's always a blast. There was one point in the game when Andrea and I turned to each other and laughed because we were watching the game while Michael and Jayson were over at the kiddie land playing with Carter. Andrea, remember this statement? "Thuuu waa da fwaa da waa du ovr thr."

O Brother Where Art Thou?

A few weeks after our amazing Arizona trip it was our turn to host dear Jane (of Priest Lake fame) and wonderful Bowman family members. It has been quite a number of years since the "brothers" have all been in the same place at the same time. And I guess it is a tradition for them to form a line-up to see who still has the most hair. As you can see, Michael's hair follicles are the best performing of the bunch and he is quite proud. Over the course of four days we all enjoyed Conference sessions, a trip to This is the Place State Park, Ruth's Diner, The Mandarin, a snowball fight and, of course, those marvelous Belgian waffles. We love our family - come back soon!

Sweet Easter Time

March 4 was my last published post so I have a lot of catching up to do. We'll go in chronological order. First Michael and I hosted our annual Easter egg hunt and brunch. It was great fun - even the adults get in on the act... I'm thinking it's the money hidden in each little egg. We also made the most marvelous and I do mean, marvelous, real-deal Belgian waffles - yum!

Picture Green Arizona

These are just a few of the many (many) pictures that I took with a Canon PowerShot while at The Botanical Gardens.

Arizona Road Trip

Michael and I took off February 29 for Arizona intent on visiting Mom (who is spending her first winter as a snowbird) and her dear friend Jane. We also planned plenty of golfing, playing tennis, discovering Diners, Drive-inns and Dives and attending two Temples.

After a day-long drive and overnight stop in Page, Arizona we ended up in Snowflake. We learned from our niece and nephew Tori and Jordan (who are involved in a internship in Snowflake) that the name of the town came from President Lorenzo Snow sending the Flake family to settle the area. As we were leaving the Temple Michael said, "Did you notice that our Sealer was a Flake?" Of course I did - but I wasn't going to say it out loud. It did make me smile though - a lot.

After leaving Snowflake we went through some interesting high-mountain towns - the saddest site was the mining town of Miami. The death of that industry has stripped more than the land. It was actually a little depressing. Later that night we arrived in Casa Grande to a wonderful Crab Louie Salad lovingly prepared by Mom and Jane.

The next week was a whirlwind of shopping, eating, sunning and playing. Trip highlights include driving to Quartzsite and visiting Grandma Midge who is 94-years-young (Grandma re-married on her 90th birthday so what does that tell ya)! As we left Quartzsite we traveled through the town of Hope and as we were leaving we noticed the roadside sign that read: You Are Now Beyond Hope.

On Tuesday, Michael and I went to the Mesa Temple meeting up with Uncle Len and Aunt Donna. It was so wonderful to be there and it was a treat for our eyes to see all the beautiful green grass, flowers and lemon trees. After the Temple session we found Joe's Farm Grill ( a Triple D location) in Gilbert for lunch. It definitely measured up to the hype. What a great day.

If you ask Michael what he enjoyed about the trip he will probably say the three days of golf and hanging out at the PGA tournament in Scottsdale. I, on the other hand, loved the Botanical Gardens, the Queen Creek Olive Mill and dinner at The Borderline. When you get a chance, ask Mom how she saved money with a coupon at The Borderline - smile!

Other Diner's, Drive-inns and Dives that we found on our trip include: Chino Bandido, Brandy's Restaurant, and Guiseppe's. Yum!

A special thanks to Mom for the wonderful food, loving hugs, fun adventures and a place rest (if you can call that two-inch mattress on an old sofa bed restful - again - smile). We love you Mom and we love Arizona too!