Family Time – Page 46 – Letters from Home

Spring Lake house demolition

We stopped by at dusk last night to see the progress on my parents’ cabin demolition. It felt a little surreal to walk among the piles of rubble, and looked something like the pictures you see after a tornado.

We took my dad to dinner to celebrate the demolition, an early birthday for Richard, and a reading goal completed by the little boys. My mom was out of town to help take care of my grandpa who had surgery for cancer today. My day has been largely devoted to hopeful waiting for news. So far so good.

Some Essentials

I see some essentials in these photos that Richard captured. We have brothers who are also best friends, markers, a project, and lots of candy. There’s not much more that you need in life.

It’s Fun in the North, too.

1620580_10203291784404280_1102347882_n — Day 2: snowshoeing

IMG_20140208_125121 — Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the women gathered for hot chocolate, salads, and shopping.

A couple of weekends ago Richard and the big boys had a blowout winter sport extravaganza. I stayed warm and enjoyed a visit with my sisters.

This post looks short, but it took an hour to get these photos to post. I wrote and deleted a long post while I waited. You’re welcome. Now go have a great weekend.

Presidents Day

My brother-in-law Richard tells me that in Utah, the holiday is called Washington and Lincoln Day. Well, we celebrated it by climbing rocks.

Did you notice that Sparky is smiling in that one?

Well, that’s all for today. I need to get back to sorting papers, magazines, and toys from all of the baskets on our shelves. So far I have discovered that we have missed several non-required school assignments, allowed numerous gift certificates to expire, and that I need to stop hoarding personal letters. I also need to part with about 15 years of Taste of Home magazines. I just know that if I get rid of them, I am sure to be called to the Relief Society and have to plan meals for masses of people again and I will need those “recipes for feeding a crowd”. Come to think of it, perhaps it’s good insurance to keep them around.

A Day in Snow Canyon

We decided to take the kids to Snow Canyon on Saturday. Richard’s parents, his brother Russ and his family, and his sister Shari and two of her sons, and Rebecca’s daughter Susannah came with us. We had a great time walking beside the red sandstone cliffs. The cousins were very happy together. We brought a picnic lunch of fried chicken, rolls, and fruit which we ate ravenously after our adventures on the Johnson Canyon walk.

It seemed that the uniform of the day was fluorescent colors for most of the kids. They made a pretty rainbow along the path as they hurried ahead of the group.

We saw many families on bicycles in the park, and someday maybe we’ll do that. It seems funny that we haven’t taken advantage of this canyon before with the kids.

We landed at Rebecca’s house and ate cinnamon rolls and played on her swing (well, some of us). Sparky treed one of her cats and generally bothered Rebecca’s other cats. The adults went out for Mexican food that evening and had a great time.

As we talked about the day, Richard remembered all of the years of hearing about family gatherings and not being able to participate. Now we’re living a very different life with our parents and many siblings nearby. I am glad to be able to be within a few hours drive to the red rocks of southern Utah and the nice folks that live among them.

Goodbye, Round House

Demolition on my parents’ Round House begins this afternoon. We stopped by over the weekend to salvage some of the decorative tiles that the original owner placed under the eaves of the deck and in the floor of the family room. Daniel says that someday when he builds a cabin, he will use the tiles he has collected during his lifetime to decorate it.

Goodbye,Round House! We have loved you. Here’s a post I wrote about it several years ago.

My parents are building a new home on the land. I am very excited for them and for the family. It’s good that there are always projects to be done at the Spring Lake property.

The Olympics

My Team USA hat from the SLC 2002 Olympic Games

It takes the Olympic Games to get us to watch television at our house. We’re excited to watch many of the competitions and I am looking forward to seeing some news pieces about Russia and to see some views of landscapes. I just read War and Peace, remember?

The boys are skiing on this day off from school. I hope they don’t try anything crazy after watching those athletes make it look so easy.

The last summer Olympic Games we spent in Arizona, packing and painting. I have lots of memories associated with the Olympics. Perhaps things become more memorable when I’m surrounded by my family and the world feels more friendly and amicable. I love my 2002 USA hat. I wear it often.

Love is

…shoveling your wife’s side of the driveway at 5:30 a.m. before you rush off to work.

I love the snow. It’s the incessant days of school and work, just after we get reconnected at Christmas that makes January feel long.

I am going to make something to hang from a ceiling today because garlands and buntings always make me smile.

Never mind. I just got a call to bring treats for the fifth graders in a couple of hours. Eek.

And then Richard and I will go out to eat and celebrate new snow, a month over, Mark feeling well again, and the stain that I finally got out of the carpet.

Weekend Recap

The weekend was good. I hope yours was, too. Richard and I went to Lamb’s Grill (est. 1919) after I picked him up from his business trip. We watched the documentary, Mitt. We went to the temple. We took the kids out for Italian food because Mark wanted bread sticks. Richard was busy with church stuff and I worked on the family album. Timothy had a friend over most of the time. Daniel kept the house filled with music from his computer. He’s been listening to movie soundtracks lately. Paige worked on projects in her room. We miss her a bit. Mark began a new piano piece called Creepy Crocodile and changed clothes every few hours, as usual.

I am looking forward to a visit with my parents tonight and reserving tickets to attend the Sacred Gifts exhibit at BYU.

20 Activity Pins and a Bridge

Timothy is a “Webelos Super Achiever” because he earned every activity pin. We are pretty proud of him! We attended his last Cub Scout Pack Meeting last week.

He walked across the bridge to Boy Scouts…

and got to sign his name on the bridge.

I enjoy seeing the older version of Timothy’s personality emerging through his work in scouting, piano, school, and among friends. He LOVES to ski. He would go every weekend if he could. He plows through the books. His bedroom is decorated with Hobbit-themed Lego sets. We like him quite a bit.