Summer time Fun

I can't believe how quickly the time has passed. Is it really July-almost the end of July already. Let me recount what has been happening.

June: Nate and I made a trip to Rigby in mid-June and made a wonderful trip through Yellowstone with my sister, Carma. I really enjoy driving through Island Park, Yellowstone, and Grand Teton. We saw bison in Yellowstone and a couple of moose in Grand Teton. There was still snow on the ground in a couple of spots.

Roy was home the first weekend in June to complete the brake repair on Nate's car. I was glad they got everything fixed. (I don't know what we would have done if that car hadn't gotten fixed.)

July: The 4th of July is always a good time in Evanston. We have 5 firework stands and it is legal to shoot off fireworks beginning the 3rd of July. My favorite memory of this year's fireworks display at the Turner home was watching Jason, Stewart, Nate, and Jon all lined up on the front sidewalk and each of them lighting off a roman candle. This was after attending the Evans reunion in Clinton earlier in the day and the boys trip into the hills to shoot the .22 rifle and the .357 magnum pistol. We had lots of good food and homemade raspberry ice cream.

I had the privilege of watching Michelle's little Tinkerbelle puppy for a week while they went on vacation with Carolyn and Stew.

This past weekend, Nate and I traveled to ID, again. Our purpose was to go to Tiffany Merrifield's wedding reception. That was a lot of fun. It was good to see all the Merrifield family and celebrate Tiff's marriage.

Saturday morning, Cheryl, Nate, Ben,and I headed to the St. Anthony Sand Dunes for some fun. Cheryl demonstrated the fine art of Dune jumping and she and Nate performed the stunt for Ben and me. The evening entertainment was a trip to the "riot Zone" where Cheryl, Jason, and Nate drove race cars and bumper boats. They seemed to have a great time. Jason and Nate then played minature golf while Cheryl and I took Ben home to go to bed.

Sunday morning Nate and I headed back home.

Memorial Day WEEK

Memorial Day is now a pleasant memory and it was a fun filled week. Roy arrived home Thursday night, the 21st, with a long list of things to get done. He worked hard all day Friday doing stucco on the shed and other things around the house and Friday night Ben and Cheryl arrived for the weekend. (Jason had to work in Blackfoot, so just the two of them came down for a weekend of fun.)

Saturday we traveled to SLC to visit the zoo. Chelley came up from Orem to join the fun. ( I understand Jon was busy putting a hole in their ceiling so he couldn't join us.)

We had a lot of fun at the zoo; looking at all the animals, eating popcorn, and of course, riding the train. Ben liked the camels. Nate liked the penguins and Chelley liked the tigers. Aunt Chelley had a lot of fun with Ben and liked teasing Nate, too. After the zoo, we made a stop at "The Spagetti Factory" for a meal of pasta.

Sunday after church, Cheryl and Ben headed back to Idaho and Roy and I took a nice Sunday afternoon drive.

Monday was a work in the yard and fix the white hyundai day.

Tuesday Roy had to go to Ogden for a part for said hyundai, so I tagged along. After picking up the part we headed north for a nice relaxing drive. We drove to Brigham City and went through Sardine Canyon to Logan. After stopping for a pizza lunch, we drove through Logan Canyon and around Bear Lake. It was a beautiful day and it was very relaxing. The boys spent the rest of the afternoon trying to get the hyundai fixed.

The week went by way too fast; it always does and before we knew it, we were headed back to the airport for Roy's flight back to Tampa. It was a great week.

Springtime Fun

It feels like spring has come to this part of the world. And not a minute too soon. We have been busy having fun, here at home. Let me go back a couple of weeks to explain..

Nate flew back to DC, met Roy there and the two of them went to the Jimmy Lange flight on Sat., May 2. Nate spent the weekend with Dad and the two of them had a lot of fun from the stories I heard. It was a wet rainy weekend, so the planned baseball game was cancelled.

Last weekend, Mother's Day was celebrated with a picnic at Grandma Turner's house, Sunday afternoon. Aunt Jan came up and Tonya from Casper came with her 4 kids. They are cute kids and are very active. After lunch, I took the three older kids to the state park to see the 5 baby bison.

After a hectic week dealing with banking snafu's, Nate and I loaded up the new Santa Fe to see how it handled a Yellowstone weekend. Jason was out of town and Cheryl didn't want to spend the weekend alone, so she invited us up.

Saturday morning we got up--not too early--and headed north. After a stop in West Yellowstone, headed into the park. We encountered a herd of bison taking a nice leisurely stroll with babies in the group.

We then drove to Canyon and stopped at the Canyon Education Station. It explains all about the seismic events that shaped the Yellowstone Region. Then we drove through Hayden Valley, around the Lake, which still has ice on it, and then on to Old Faithful. There is still a lot of snow on the road to Old Faithful.

After watching Old Faithful go off, we headed for the south entrance to the Park and a drive through Grand Teton. We drove through Jackson, along the Snake River, Palisades, and Swan Valley to return safely to Cheryl's for bedtime. It was a busy day, but a very fun day. On Sunday, Nate and I returned home safely.
By the way, the Santa Fe handled very nicely. It will be a great car to take on our adventures.

Nate has eight days of school left. It is that time of year, when you have had enough school and let's get on with summer.

Our plans for the summer are not finalized, but we have fun things planned. Roy will be home for a week for Memorial Day. Nate and I hope to go to Florida for a beach vacation sometime in June. Roy comes home again for a week over the 4th of July. He will then come home for a week beginning the 17th of August. Any one wishing to spend a week with us in August is welcome to join us, hopefully in the Yellowstone area. Let us know asap if you wish to join us.
We are also going to meet up in Albuquerque the first part of August for Ryan's baptism on the 8th. Roy will fly to ALB and Nate and I will drive. I would like to do some sightseeing on the journey and also in the ALB area. Anyone wishing to drive with us, you are sure welcome to come along. Michelle, Cheryl, and I are planning at swimming trip to Lava Hot Springs and also a camping trip in the Bear Lake area. Anyone wishing to join us on these trips are welcome.

So--that's what we have been up to and our plans for the upcoming months. I hope to do some camping along the way, too.

Ma's New Ride

For the past several months, I (Ma Turner) has been on a mission to find me a new car. I have visited dealerships all along the Wasatch Front looking for the perfect car. Yesterday, Chelley and I drove to Pocatello to pick up my car. I had visited the Hyundai dealer in Pocatello the previous week and had made my choice. It is a Santa Fe and it has lots of bells and whistles that are super cool. My favorite is the sunroof. It also has heated seats, outside mirrors that defrost, auto headlights, XM radio free for 3 months, and upgraded cloth seats. It drives wonderfully and looks great. I look forward to many road trips in "my new ride".

Cheryl and Ben came to Pocatello for the big event and we had lunch together. Ben looks like he is a handful for Aunt Michelle, but he really just wanted to get behind the wheel of Grandma's new car.

Never Say Never

Thursdays are a special day of the week because my teacher friends and I get together at lunchtime and enjoy a relaxing lunch. I usually pick up lunch and bring it in and we sit down for 35 minutes and talk about what's going on. It is a day I look forward to and so do they.
A few weeks ago Kathy told me that Chris, the principal was going to talk to me about a job opening at UME. I must have been in a very bad mood and went off telling all my friends I was NOT interested in teaching ever again, I didn't want to work in the school once my after school gig was up, etc, etc, etc.
Monday morning Chris called me and asked me if I was interested in working with a student as a "tracker" for three days. I agreed, so today is day three of working again for the school district. Yesterday Chris came into the classroom we were in and asked me if I would substitute for the morning in one of the fifth grade classes. So today I will be a "tracker" and a substitute teacher.
I really would rather be working out in my yard, taking Copper for a walk, or riding my bike, but I will go and enjoy this experience. I hope I have made a difference in Ethan's school days.

Now!! That was Fun!!

We have returned home from our Florida vacation. We really did enjoy ourselves and wish it could have gone on longer. We spent time on the beach, spent a day on the gulf fishing, ate lots of great seafood, and even took in a Tampa Bay Rays bb game.

We flew from SLC to Tampa on Sunday, stopping in Denver and changing planes in Kansas City. (I do not suggest stopping in KC. The airport is just awful.) After arriving in Tampa, we stopped at LeRoy Selmon's for a delicious dinner and then drove to Sarasota via the Sun Shine sky way. It is a beautiful drive along the coast. Roy and I went for an evening walk in his neighborhood.

Monday, while Nate and I chilled out, Roy headed into work. He picked us up for lunch and a drive around the area. We ate at a place named "Pincher's Crab Shack" and my fried shrimp was the best shrimp I can ever remember eating. Nate and I went to Roy's office where we picked up our "car" for the week. A very nice Lexus. Later that afternoon, we headed to the community pool for a relaxing time. After Roy finished work, we headed to Lido Beach.

Tuesday was a wet and windy day. Roy came and got us for lunch--a little pizza place where we enjoyed a Chicago style pizza. After dropping Roy off at work, Nate and I found a place where Nate got his haircut. (He looks so much better.)For dinner that night we went to "Stonewood Grill" for a great steak dinner. The rest of the evening we drove around Lakewood Ranch looking at homes for sale.

Wednesday, I got up early and went to look at a couple of model homes in the area and after picking Nate up and feeding him, we headed back to Lakewood Ranch to get more info on homes in the area. After Roy finished with work, we jumped back in the car and headed to Siesta Key for another evening on the beach. We ate dinner at the "Lobster Pot", a little place we drove by on the Key. The seafood there was great--another delicious seafood dinner.

Thursday was our day for fishing. We got up early and headed to Sarasota Bay and jumped aboard the "Flying Fish". We went out into the gulf for some deep sea fishing. I caught the first fish of the day, (for our group), Roy caught the most fish, although we weren't keeping score, and I think Nate caught the biggest fish of one's caught by the Turner fisherpersons. We all came back a lot redder that when we left. It truly was a fun day. Later, Nate and I headed back to Longboat Key and an evening walking along Lido Beach.

Friday was chill out day for Mom and Nate. I went and bought souvenir t-shirts for the grandkids. We met Roy for lunch at an Irish pub called "Firkins and Fox." It was an interesting little place. Friday night we headed to Tampa for the Rays game. The game was great--Tampa beat the White Sox on a pinch hit grand slam home run. Tropicana Field leaves a lot to be desired in the comfort area and baseball should really be played outside. Why can't every ball stadium be like Camden Yard in Baltimore?

Saturday was travel day and Nate and I arrived home late at night. It was a great trip and I look forward to spending more time in the warm climate of Central Florida. There is so much to see and do.

WHAT'S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE

1. It's taken on a Saturday. (Today, April 11.)

2. Spring break started yesterday when school let out.

3. We are leaving for Florida tomorrow so Nate should be out with friends.

4. That's a book he is reading. 1984 to be exact. Yes, he is truly reading every page of the book.

WHAT'S HAPPENED TO MY SON???

Passing Time

It seems like forever since I posted a new blog. In truth, there is not a lot going on here on the home front. Nate has finished his ACT prep class so no more getting up at 6:30. He did very well and I am proud of his accomplishment.

The weather has been typical Wyoming spring time weather. Warm one day and snowy the next. Last Saturday, April 4th, Dad and I cleaned 6 inches of snow off the driveway. It has almost all melted away today. (Last check it was 55 here.)

I have been reading alot this spring, just like I usually do in the springtime. Dave and Summer sent me a book about Yellowstone that I enjoyed reading. As I read, it brought to mind so many of my trips to Yellowstone and surrounding areas. It also made me think of places I still would like to visit. I also read a biography on the life of Kit Carson and his role in settling the southwest and made me realize how much I would like to spend time exploring the Santa Fe, Taos, New Mexico area. (That's lucky because I would like to visit Albuquerque longer, too)

Summertime will surely be upon us, sooner that later, I hope and I have lots of fun plans for the warmer months. I have furniture that I want to refinish, but at the top of my list is going camping this summer. I really would like to travel south to New Mexico and do some camping with the New Mexico Turners and then travel North to do some camping with the Idaho Kimbers. The Orem Ellsworths would like to spend some time at Bear Lake, also, so you see I have lots to look forward to this summer.

Nate and I will spend next week in sunny Florida. I am looking forward to that and we have lots of things planned. I will post lots of pictures when I return.

Nate's junior prom was last weekend, so I thought I would post a picture of Nate and his date, Jackie. He looks like he is really enjoying himself, doesn't he.

It Looks Like Spring

The weather has turned warmer and the snow is almost all melted away. That means we should get another snow storm soon. That's just the way it is in Wyoming in the spring.
Dad (roy) has officially moved to Florida now. He drove his car loaded with his belongings last weekend. Nate and I are headed to the Tampa area for spring break. We leave on the 12th of April and return home on the 18th. We have lots of fun things planned.
In the meantime, Nate heads to Phoenix on Friday to meet up with Roy and David for a weekend of spring training baseball. Cheryl and Ben are coming down from Rigby on Friday and Michelle might be coming up for a weekend of fun. A shopping trip to Park City is scheduled for Saturday. (Carolyn, you need to move closer so you can have fun with us, too.)
Nate is amazing this year. He did really well in school last semester, but this semester, he is doing even better. He is taking an early morning ACT prep class and he has to be to school at 7 AM sharp. He can't miss more than 3 days or he fails the class. He has done remarkably well. There are only 7 more days of the early morning thing, but I have to give him credit for doing so well. He is so focused on doing well on the ACT. He did take the ACT on the 11th because it is required of all juinors in Wy to take it. He feels pretty good about it.
I am teaching math after school again this semester. In Jan. and Feb. I taught 3rd graders the module on "addition and subtraction." I really hate the material that we use. This quarter I am teaching 5th graders division. I am still using the same material and I still hate the material. I only work 1.5 hours a day M-TH. Not too bad. It doesn't interfer with my play time.
Copper and I need to start going for a walk every day, now. We are both carrying too much excess inches. It has been a long winter.
YEAH for spring.

Quiet Time

Spring has not yet arrived in our area nor will it for WEEKS. I am getting spring fever even though I know I shouldn't. I try to do a little skiing out at the state park every day, but the snow isn't that good this year. I am ready to get the bike out or take Copper out walking.

There is a Bald Eagle that I see almost every day. Today it was fun watching it soar above the trees. Yesterday while skiing, I saw the first moose tracks I have seen this year. No moose just the tracks.

Dad (Roy) is spending lot of time at the airport. Flying between Baltimore and Tampa, mostly, but he is flying to Albany this coming Sat. Then it's back to Baltimore and then to Florida again. I am getting excited about visiting Florida when Nate has spring break in April.

Here is a picture of the beach when he made a trip to Miami a few weeks ago. He will be an official resident of Florida in March. He has rented a condo there and will move out of his Maryland townhouse.

For a WY mom who is bored with winter, Florida looks pretty good right now.

Random Thoughts

Things are a bit slow at the homestead right now. I am awaiting hubby's return so we can finish the computer room upstairs. He gets home on Thurs., the 5th. Not only are we going to finish the room and move the computer back upstairs, we hope to do a night time skiing trip into the Uintas. It should be pretty close to a full moon, so we should have a delightful time. I'm sure there is plenty of snow to making skiing great.


(Notice the beautiful blue sky. I love it.)

I did a "long" ski trip at the state park this morning. Usually I only do the two upper loops, but because it was so nice and sunny, I did the bottom loop as well. It was spectacular and I enjoyed it so much. There are a couple of spots where the snow is scarce, but it was fun, nonetheless. This was the first time the trails were groomed which makes it much easier to ski. Maybe that's why I did so much today. I didn't see any moose, but one guy said he saw a bull moose with a huge rack the other day.

I was surprised as I looked into the elk pasture, too. We have a new elk. One of the large elk passed away a couple of summers ago and now there is a smaller elk to join the remaining one. (I read in the town paper that there were two elk brought to the state park, but the other one crashed into the fence and broke his neck.)

My aero garden is doing very well. Everything has spouted and is looking great. I have figured out how to set the timer so the light isn't shining all night long.

Nate continues to do well in school. I am very proud of the way he is getting himself up each morning for the ACT prep class. He wants to do well on the ACT test he is required to take in March.

I am putting together a list of things I want to do this year in the way of traveling. Of course, Florida is on the list for spring break. I want to go down and check the place out for sure. Albuquerque in August is also a sure thing. Maybe a camping trip that way as part of that trip. A couple of trips to Yellowstone is a must and a bike ride on the trails in Provo Canyon is on the want to do list.

If you can think of other fun things to do or if you are planning a great trip and don't mind Nate and me tagging along, let us know and we'll be there.

(Here's a picture of the Bison, enjoying the snow.)

Exciting Present

(It kind of looks like a robot, doesn't it)

I just finished setting up the "big" present Roy gave me for Christmas. I have been holding off setting it up because I was going to put it in the computer room upstairs. I couldn't wait anymore. It is an AeroGarden. I came with herb pods. Basil, chives, mint, thyme, dill, and parsley. I have never done much cooking with herbs, so it will be fun to learn. (I didn't cook with garlic either and look what happened with that.) I can plant tomato pods and green salad pods, too. I might try flowers next winter, also. (Maybe one night I will try out the ice cream freezer--the roll around kind-- that the Albuquerque Turners gave us. That should be fun.

I think I have finished painting the computer room upstairs so I thought I would share pictures of the colors we painted it. Hope you like them; I sure do. I especially like the chair rail. It kind of dresses the room up. We will get the laminate "oak" flooring down when Roy comes home the first weekend in Feb.

He is in Florida for the remainder of this week. I hope he enjoys the sunshine and warm weather.

Thursdays are my Favorites

Today is Thursday and I started it off by going skiing at the State Park. I really do love that and today was perfect. I left the house at 9 am and the temp was 23 degrees. Perfect skiing weather. By the time I finished I was soaking wet from sweating so hard. I came home and took a nice relaxing bath and then order lunch to take in to the school. Each Thursday I take some sort of lunch in to the school to eat with my teacher friends. Today I took in Mexican from Don Pedro's and there were 8 of us eating together. It is fun to just get together and gossip and it makes me realize how glad I am that I am not teaching full time anymore, but makes me grateful for good friends.
I then came home and prepared for my class this afternoon. For me Thursdays are like Fridays, because I don't have to go to work tomorrow. (Nate doesn't have school so we are going to Park City to buy him some more T-shirts. His other Tees don't fit anymore.
Everyone have a great weekend.

Back to Work

We are on the 9 AM meeting schedule this year for church. I don't know how I feel about that. I really enjoy sleeping in on Sunday morning, but it is sure nice to take a nice nap in the afternoon, too. I guess I will get used to it.
I go back to work at UME Monday afternoon. It is only for 1.5 hours M-Th. I guess I can handle that. It still gives me plenty of time to do things I want to do around the house and to some skiing in the winter and biking/walking in the afternoon. I will be teaching extended math again, the same program I used last year.

I am trying to get out to the state park each afternoon for a little skiing. I am really enjoying that. I continue to do the painting in the upstairs computer room. I want to have everything done when Roy comes home in Feb.

Only four more days of the first semester and then it's three more semesters to go. (But, then, who's counting.)

The Holidays--they're Over

Nate's back at school; Roy's back to work in Bowie; that must mean the Holidays are really over. We had a lot of fun with the new "Wii" and had lots of good food to eat. Roy and I went skiing once at the state park and had a great time. Most of our time was spent working on the computer room upstairs. We had hoped to get it all done, but it didn't happen.
Saturday, the third, I took Roy to the ER in Evanston where he was diagnosed with a kidney stone. He had been in a lot of pain since Thursday and working on the room wasn't a priority. He has gone back to MD and is still having some discomfort, but he has lots of pain pills, so we hope he does okay. He is supposed to fly to Florida tomorrow; we'll see if he makes it.
I just got back from another skiing trip at the state park. It was a lot of fun. But, I am sure out of shape. I'll try to make it out for a little while every day.
I want to try to get up to ID sometime this winter and try skiing at Herriman. Any ID folks want to make the trip with me?

The Holidays--they're Over

Nate's back at school; Roy's back to work in Bowie; that must mean the Holidays are really over. We had a lot of fun with the new "Wii"

What a Finish

The holidays are over. Roy is back to work and getting ready for a few very busy weeks that include two trips to Florida in the next three weeks. Nate is back in school ready to give the semester a big finish. The Christmas decorations are in the boxes waiting for me to lug them back to the basement, (except the spiral trees and beaded reindeer that will have to wait for the snow to melt before they come indoors.)

We spent a lot of our relaxing time working on the "computer" room upstairs. We really thought we were going to get it done before Roy headed back east, however, it didn't make it. We did alot of the painting, bought all the materials to finish including the flooring. (The colors of the room are: off white, Brussels Blue and bonnet blue. After getting most of the painting finished, it looks great.

While we were picking up the flooring in Park City, Roy started to feel sick and to make a long story short, we ended up getting nothing more done. He spent a few hours Saturday morning at the ER where it was determined he has a kidney stone. Veyr painful

Happy New Year

Welcome to 2009. It started with a bang in Evanston. Thousands of crazy Evanstonians gathered together at Depot Square for the New Years fireworks. (You expected something else in Evanston.) Really there were a couple of thousands of people gathered together to watch the spectacular display braving the cold. It was very exciting. The music playing in the background was fun to listen to, as well.
The Evanston Turners had a great Christmas thanks to the generousity of family members. The digital photo albums are fun to watch and remind us of fun times from the past. The camping ice cream maker will be used when we get out in the wild; Dad will make use of the ladder, which matches last years ladder, alot; and the new fleece jacket will keep me warm, but not too warm. Its perfect for a jaunt to Ogden when it's too warm for a heavy coat. Thanks to all.
It appears the grandkids had a wonderful Christmas. Nate did too. He got the cell phone he wanted, a weight bench, and lots of shirts for the cold Evanston climate.
We also got a "Wii" and that has taken up a lot of free time. Bowling is definitely the most used game,but I am trying to learn golf, tennis, and baseball.
All in all it was a most fun time.
Roy is finishing up the computer room. We are going to pick up flooring sometime today and I will get to painting later. Blues for this room, but that might change when I get the paint on the wall.
Roy flies out on Sunday.
Enjoy the remainder of the Holidays.

New Site

Nathan has joined the world of blogging. His new site is listed as one of my links, but you can go there by going to natesnewspaper.blogspot.com. He is mainly going to share the articles he has written this semester for newspaper.

He is really loving his newspaper class and has received alot of praise for his articles from the teacher. When I went to P/T Conference in October, the teacher told me he (Nate) is good enough right now to write for the Uinta County Herald. The article he posted last night was one of the first articles published in the Herald in their Evanston High School News section.

Nate spent an hour and a half after school Tues. working on his next article for the Herald about students working while in school. I didn't read it, I am not his editor, but Wed. morning he sent me a text message saying his teacher really liked his article. He let me read when he got home from school. He is a darn good writer. He always has liked writing and I have a box of books he wrote and illustrated about "Transformers" when we lived in New Park.

It is so fun to see his enthusiasm for something academic. He is doing better in school and is making his plans for classes for next year already. Last night at supper, we were talking about the weather and how it was supposed to snow this morning and his comment was, "there is a thirty percent chance because we have to forecast it for meteorology."

I hope you enjoy his articles.

By the way, his forecasting was right. It is snowing here, not much just enough to make the roads and sidewalks slick.

Thanksgiving Happenings

I wanted to get some pictures up on the blog of our Thanksgiving Day trip to Cheryl's for Thanksgiving dinner. Cheryl did a great job with the dinner. Everything was perfect. It was good to spend time with David, Summer, Allyson, Ryan, Isaac, and Evan, as well as Cheryl, Jason, and Ben.

Roy made it home on Sat. Nov. 22 and spent the better part of his vacation working on the computer room upstairs. He got the insulation in, the electrical, and most of the drywall up. We should be able to paint over Christmas. Then it is on to the downstairs bathroom. (He flew back to Baltimore on Sat. Nov. 29.)

After I took Roy to the airport, I met Michelle and we drove a new Suzuki Grand Vitara. (Roy told me to drive some new cars and see what I like best. I have already driven the Hyundai Santa Fe and loved it.) I wasn't impressed with the Suzuki.

After driving the car, Chelley and I headed to the mall to do some Christmas shopping. We had a great time. On the way home, my throat felt a little sore and by Sunday I was feeling real sick. I am taking it easy and hope to soon get back to the projects I still need to finish before Christmas.

Hope you like the pictures from Thanksgiving.