Graduations

It was a time for graduations in Utah last week. Congratulations to Taylor and Aubree! I had such a great time celebrating and visiting with Aubree's family - especially Mandee and her two little miracle boys. I also got to see Dennis and Rosemary and Don and have a traditional yummy Payson dinner. It seems like there is never enough time to do all that we would like to do, but it's fun to try.
Several years ago, when my father passed away, Dallin H. Oaks came to his funeral and told my mother that my father was having his "graduation day". While in Utah last week, my cousin Willard Dixon had passed away and at his funeral we again visited with Dallin H. Oaks. He came running up to my brother, Dennis to give him a great big hug and so I asked if I could take a picture of the two of them. He said, "of course" and so here is the picture. The two of them had been friends in high school. Dennis was a star basketball player and Dallin was the sports announcer. When Dallin's daughter asked her father if the two of them got into trouble together, he replied,"no we got into trouble separately". While speaking at the funeral for Willard, his brother-in-law, Elder Oaks spoke of the resurrection and said how not a single hair of our heads would be lost. He said that means more to some of us than others. This is a picture of my cousin, Leslie. Her mother, Aunt Beth is sitting down. Aunt Beth is my only living aunt on my father's side of the family. (Actually she is my only living aunt.) She is getting up in years, but is still going strong and is as sharp as ever. We seem to cross paths now and then and it is always such a joy to see her.

Stop BUGGING me!

It’ssssswarm in Yucaipa. I mean swarms of bees, termites, flies and ants. That’s what came to plague me over the last few days. We’ve had a problem with all these things before, but not all at once. Just when you think you are enjoying nature, nature decides to move in with you.

We had a fun time with the kids on Saturday. They had a picnic on beach towels after swimming and playing. And they sang “Happy Birthday” to Andrew.


Grace and Raegan came for a visit for a few days and we went to the “Living Desert” in Palm Desert to see some lizards and animals. I think we saw more lizards in my back yard, however. With all the bugs we have it’s no wonder. The lizard food is in strong supply.

We went to a petting coral. Grace loved it and Raegan was terrorized.

We stopped to sanitize our hands. Grace really didn't want to leave. Lots of people asked me if they are twins. I guess it's because they were dressed alike.

A giant spider web to climb on! This was a fun place to play. It was ten degrees hotter than Yucaipa, but still a great place to explore and see many animals. They even had desert animals from the jungle, like giraffs and zebras.

Fossils, Family, and Sparkly Capes

Amber and I had a "kid outing" to the San Bernardino County Museum. We took Brinley, Stacey, Spencer, Kira and Ryan. Here they are looking at the petrified wood and all the rocks etc. This was a fun place that I took their dads when they were little. It hasn't changed much.

Here's the giant polar bear. At first they all thought it was wierd that the animals are dead. I told them they are just preserved so we can get a close up look at them. Ryan called it the "snow bear."

Outside there is a place where you can dig for fossils in the sand. The kids had fun flipping sand everywhere and got so excited when a bone showed up.

The last exhibit was full of glittery clothes, purses, and jewlery. When I saw this display case, I was reminded of Staci's conversation with me about "old people." One day she said, "I know what old people like to do." "What's that?" I asked. "They like to shop," she replied. "What do they shop for?" I asked. After some thought she replied, "sparkly capes!" She was right! Here is proof...a sparkly cape from the late 1800's.

A Day at the Beach

I got to tag along with Mike, Amber and Family for a fun day at the beach. I enjoyed sitting in the shade of the umbrella and watching the kids have fun playing in the sand and the water. I took along one of my favorite stories, "The Day at the Beach", by Arthur Gordon. I read it as an eighteen year old freshman at BYU and it has affected my life all these years. It was good to read it again and to reflect on life's meaning. We all need a day at the beach to just think about good things sometimes. There is nothing like the roar of waves crashing in and the sun blasting down to remind us of our place in the universe. And it's always fun to have a picnic!