Simple Request

I have a simple request to make to those for whom I will be sending Christmas packages to. PLEASE give me some ideas. What is that you would like/need this coming holiday season. Also, if there is anything you don't want, or don't want your children to receive, ie, stuffed animals, whistles, dolls, whistles, action figures, whistles, guns, whistles, please include those as well.
I don't want to think of Christmas yet, but if I start now, I hopefully will get it done in time.
Nate and I are flying to MD the first weekend in Nov. so maybe MD Christmas presents can be purchased while we are there.
Thanks.

Saturday in Yellowstone

Nate and I traveled again to Eastern Idaho for the weekend. We left Friday as soon as Nate got home from school and arrived about 9ish. It is about a 4 hour drive to Cheryl's and when we get there I am tired. Carma and My Dad came over to deliver me a box of potatoes he had gotten for me and an invitation for breakfast at Carma's was accepted. Ben was again in a very playful mood when we got there.

After breakfast with Carma and Dad, we stopped in Rexburg to pick up Jason and headed north to Yellowstone. It was a chilly, rainy day, but we still knew we would have lots of fun.

The leaves in Island Park were turning to the autumn colors and were beautiful. The "quakies" were turning golden and some even had a pinkish, orange tint. Beautiful.

After a stop in West Yellowstone's Visitor Center and MacDonald's we entered the Park. Out itinerary was to head to Mammoth and do the upper loop. We stopped at the Museum of the National Park Rangers. Very interesting. Then on the Mammoth where we hoped to see lots of elk.

It is rutting season for the elk and that makes watching them very interesting. But there weren't many to see on the lawns of the building. We saw a few, but not as many as I have seen before. The scenery at Mammoth is so wonderful to look at.

After a ranger program on the Elk Rut, it was on the road again--toward Tower and then on to Canyon. We saw some beautiful, breath-taking rainbows on the way. The drive over Dunraven Pass is spectacular.

After stopping at Canyon for refreshment, we went through Hayden Valley where we spied a couple of bison herds. Then to Old Faithful where we hoped to see the famous geyser erupt.

Our first stop was at the Lodge to see if the cafeteria was still open for a bite of dinner. It was and Nate and I dined on our favorite--Trout Almondine. It was great. I needed to learn how to fish for trout so I can have it all the time.

We ventured outside--in the rain--to watch Old Faithful go off. It was the ending to a perfect day.

It sure is nice to have another driver for the trip home. Nate took over the wheel and drove the last 1/2 of the way on Sunday. Now it's time to stay home and get the fall yard work done. (Dad, Roy, come home for General Conference weekend and Cheryl, Jason, and Ben are coming down for the weekend. Better get the house child proofed.)

Our Weekend

Friday as soon as Nate was home from school, we headed north to Idaho. I love the drive, the scenery, and the thoughts of spending time with Ben and his parents. If we nothing else but sit around and watch Ben play, the trip has been worthwhile, but we never just sit around.

We arrived at the Kimbers around 8:30 so there wasn't anything to do but unpack the car and watch Ben open his birthday present from us. We gave him a little turtle that plays funny songs and teaches babies there shapes. (I should have made him some warm pj's but it didn't happen.)

Saturday morning we went exploring to find "Cress Creek". It is a nature hike that Carma blogged about a few weeks ago. Cheryl kind of knew where it was so off we went. WE FOUND IT. It is a beautiful spot and the hike is very nice. Thanks Carma for telling us about it. It was definitely worth the time. I truly love the Idaho landscape and even more the love I have for the Rexburg area because of my experience at Ricks. Maybe that is why I love visiting Cheryl, Jason, Ben, and Carma so much. I'm glad you don't mind me coming up so much.

We then moved the activities to Rexburg for "Rexburg Unplugged" which is an activity put on by businesses to show the students what services are availible in town. Nate helped Jason last year and Jason asked him to help again this year, so he did.

Cheryl and I took Ben to the park to swing for a while, did a little shopping where I got a great idea for the older grandchildren's Christmas present, and then took Ben home for a nap. The poor little guy has had the flu and by the time we got him home, he was feeling really rotten.

By the time we went up and got the boys and grabbed some KFC for dinner, both Cheryl and Ben were feeling rotten. They had a rough night. Both were feeling a little better by the time we headed for home.

Nate and I had another nice quiet drive home after I slipped over to Carma's to see her and my Dad who had come up to visit and take care of her pets while she is in Houston next week.

Maybe next weekend we'll head north again for a trip into Yellowstone. We'll see if that works out.

My pictures from Bear Lake

This is Chelle being buried by Nate.

Chelle out in the water on her raft.

Here are some fun pics I took from our little daytrip to Bear Lake on Saturday. (By our I mean, Chelly, Nate, and me.) It was a great last trip to the Lake albeit a little cool and windy. The trip was highlighted by a trip to the ice cream shop for raspberry shakes. Delicious. And I agree with Chell, that we should have a family camping trip to Bear Lake next summer.

Is it September ALREADY

I have decided I really dislike Labor Day. It means summer is over--and I really like summer. The temps here in Evanston don't get too hot and the breeze that blows in the afternoon keeps things very comfortable.
I dropped Dad off at the airport on Sunday and met Michelle who had picked me up some tomatoes and pears to can. After having a quick lunch at Cracker Barrel, Nate and I headed home. It started to rain later that afternoon and it cooled down quickly.
Monday morning we woke up to overcast skies and before too long the rain changed to snow. It didn't snow long, but snow is snow. It did clear off later in the afternoon. Which meant we were going to get cold over night. Nate had to scrape frost off his windshield before he headed off to school.
Monday was a perfect day to stay in and do some canning. I canned 42 pints of tomatoes. That added to the 19 I did previously, makes for some great soups this winter. I will can the pears later this week.
After finishing the tomatoes, I finished the two quilts I started earlier in August. (And none too soon. Nate's new quilt kept him toasty warm Monday night. The weather is supposed to warm back up by Friday. I'm all for a long warm Autumn.

Late Summer Happenings

Just thought I would share some more pictures of this week's activities. Dad has been working very hard on finishing up the shed. The outsid finish is stucco which is a tremendous amount of work. This is a picture of the door side--the double doors are custom made by my very handy husband. The doors still need a final coat of paint, but isn't that what I am here for. If anyone has a suggestion on the color for the final coat, I would appreciate it. The color of the stucco is charcoal gray.

Dad at his cool new workbench.

Also, here is a fun web site for more pictures and details of the hike we took on Thursday. http://utahpictures.com/Amethyst_Lake.php. Hope you can view these cool pictures.

By the way, I was able to get out of bed on Friday and even drove to Provo to have dinner with Chelle and our friends, Stacey and Jeramy from Stewartstown. Stacey brought Jeramy out to BYU for fall semester. Jeramy got home from his mission to Hungary in July. We saw lots of cool pictures from Stacey and Crockett's trip to pick him up.

"Down Day"

Yesterday, Aug. 28, was a "down day" from working on the shed and other odd jobs around the house. Dad has been home since Saturday and has been busy working on his various projects. We loaded up and headed to the Christmas Meadows trailhead to embark on a day in the wilderness. (Nate, of course, was in school.)

Our destination was Amethyst Lake. Dad had been there 5 years ago and has wanted me to see the beauty of this distant lake. When we arrived at the trail head, there was frost on the ground. 8000 feet is cold this time of year, but when we used to camp there when the kids were little, there was often frost in the morning. (Have I mentioned that Christmas Meadows is my most favorite place on the earth?

The first three miles are pretty easier, but once you start toward Amethyst, it gets pretty steep.

We passed many beautiful wildflowers and we followed a beautiful stream most of the way.

After hiking for several hours and working up quit a sweat, we arrived at Ostler Lake with its breath-taking scenery.

It was here we took our lunch break and much to our surprise, we had cell phone reception. (We didn't have it at the trail head and here we were 4+ miles further out in the wilderness and we could call out.)

After stopping for lunch and resting a bit, we headed to our destination, Amethyst Lake.

It is a large lake and the views are stunning and well worth the hike in. Here I am dangling my feet in the cold water.

We then headed back toward the car. It was a long day, almost 14 miles; almost nine hours, but well worth the time and effort. We decided this needs to be our Labor Day activity. (No moose, though.)

Ma's new number

I am preparing to drop my house phone line and so I have a new cell phone number. Hopefully it won't mess everyone too much. The new phone #is (307) 679-5091. Dad's cell number will remain the same as will Nate's.

Same Old--Same Old

Not much new is going on at home. Nate returned home just over a week ago. The first morning he was home, he was up way too early. He was still on Eastern time. He has gone back to his normal routine, which is get up at 11 and play until 2 (am). That's not for me.
Last weekend the Kimbers came for a visit. I'll post pictures of Mr. Ben at a later date. It was great to have them for the weekend. Ben is certainly an active little guy.
On Tuesday Nate and I traveled to Orem to pick up my bike which Michelle and Jon took down to be repaired. It is great to have my two wheeler back.
Nate is officially registered for school now. His first day is the 25th, and I can't wait.
Tonight was a "big" night for me. I went to the Uinta County Museum volunteer pot luck picnic. Such fun. The museum director asked me if I would be willing to help with the museum again this year. So I guess I will until I find something better. It will keep me out of trouble, anyway.

Day at the Beach--Lots of Fun

Yesterday, August 2, Michelle and Jon came up to head over Bear Lake for the afternoon. It was a perfect afternoon for a day at the beach. The beach was sandy and the water was warm. It was a delightful afternoon and here are some fun pictures to show it.

Here are Michelle and Jon playing in the muddy sand.

Tinkerbelle loved being anywhere but the water.

Bear Lake Visit

This is a continuation or the conclusion of Michelle and my trip to Idaho. We took the long way home, through Star Valley which for me isn't really the long way home. It is by far the most scenic of the drives to get to Evanston. We did, however, take a different drive from Star Valley. We went through Montipelier Canyon and into Montipelier ID and then around Bear Lake. We stopped and put our feet in Bear Lake. Tinkerbelle loved the stop.

Jon, you are lucky Michelle came home. Copper is soooooo glad I am home.

Vacaton Continuing

Chelley was kind enough to pick me up at the airport on Thursday. She brought kitten with her so he could go home. It was so nice of her to take care of him and make him feel better while I was gone. The plan was for her to pick me up and then on Friday we would head to Cheryl's to can some peaches and play with the Kimbers.

After spending the night in Evanston and taking our dogs for a walk Thurs. night and Friday morning we headed to Idaho. We went through Ogden and Brigham City to get some peaches.

We arrived at Cheryl's about 5:30. It was a hot drive and very long.

Here is a picture on Mr. Ben staying close to his mom after we arrived.

The purpose of our trip was to can some peaches and we did that on Sat. morning. We did 12 quarts, for Cheryl and Jason, and 14 pints for Michelle and Jon and Ma and Pa. They really did turn out great.

After cleaning up our sticky mess, and thankfully Carma let us borrow her big outdoor stove so we do most of the work outside, we headed to Big Spring for a picnic. big Spring is a natural spring that is east of Mack's Inn on the road to West Yellowstone. It is so beautiful and this year

everything was extra green. After eating and looking at the huge trout, went over to the boat launch and put our "piggies" in the water. Boy, was it cold.

Then it was time to head back to Rigby before the mosquitoes ate Chelley all up.

Vacation Over

I have arrived home after such a good time. It is always fun to be with Dad and we always do such fun stuff. This trip was shorter than usual, but we managed to do a lot of fun things. Wednesday was my last day there and after the boys finished with work, we headed to Baltimore for an evening of fun. First stop: Phillips All You Can Eat Seafood Buffet. It is so much fun watching Nate eat Crab Legs. Big Snow Crab Legs. He loves Crab Legs and he can eat so many of them. I love the chilled shrimp and crab imperial. Everything is wonderful--if you like seafood and we do. Neither Dad or I combined can eat as much as Nate.
Then it was time for a ball game. On Wednesday night the Orioles were celebrating the 25th anniversary of their last world series title. The members of the team were there. These were the guys Dad and I remember watching--kinda of heroes of baseball. (The Orioles beat the Phillies that Year.) They had a neat ceremony before the game. It was way cool. (Guess who left their cameras at home.) It was a throw back game so the team wore the uniforms from 1983--you remember the cartoon bird on the hat and tickets for the upper deck were $5.50. Man, you could almost afford to take your family to a baseball game back then.
About the fifth inning the grounds crew ran out onto the field and sat behind the tarp, so I suspected something was up--that and the fact there were flood warnings posted for that evening and by the start of the sixth inning it started to sprinkle. Before there were any outs, we decided that we would hurry home and watch the final innings at home. (After the rain delay.)
WE were parked 3 blocks away and before we could get to the car, it started to pour. By the time we got to the car, we were soaking wet. The ride home was exciting because it was raining so hard you couldn't see the lines on the road and the wipers couldn't keep up with it. A real east coast rain storm. (The game was called on the count of rain and finished on Thurs. morning.)
My flight left Thurs. morning at 8:55 am and my East Coast vacation was over.

Church in York

Today being Sunday and with us being on the East Coast, we headed to York for church. Dad spoke with Bishop Van Tassel last week and they were the sacrament speakers in York I. Dad forgot to ask Dick what time their meetings start and he was positive that their meeting started at 1. We headed up that way and arrived in time for York 2's meetings. That was okay, I guess, because the Dallastown Wagners are in York 2 as well as the Engel's. So I got to talk to Tina, Billie Rae Morgenegg, because she hadn't left the church yet, and the Engel's. All the Engel's were there except Troy who couldn't get leave and Mikey who is on a mission in CA. The twins had just returned home from Rexburg last week. Chris was there with his wife and baby girl, one twin was there with his wife, and the other twin was there with a girl friend. Lori was there with her husband and FOUR kids. Matt still looks like Matt.
Dad will make sure Nate gets to York 1 next Sunday.
I head home on Thurs. the 24. The boys will continue to have lots of fun when I leave.

Saturday's fun and excitement was fileting the fish we caught on Friday, then a trip to Baltimore and a walk around the Inner Harbor. Heat index was around 100. You remember the days when you sweat while sitting still.

Events for the next few days. Basketball in York Tuesday night and Wednesday Night an Orioles Game.

The fish were biting

Here we are, the great fisher"persons". Friday Dad arranged for Miguel to take us out on the bay for our fishing trip. Miguel brought his 11 year old son, Mark, along to help us. It was so much fun. We left Crofton at 6 am, and yes, Nate slept the whole way. When we got to the Bay Bridge, a glorious sun rise greeted us. You remember the ones where because of the humidity the sun glows a beautiful pink.
When we got out on the water and Miguel picked out our fishing spot, Nate was the first one with his hooks in the water. No one else even had time to bait our hooks before Nate had caught two fish. (All with one pole.) Now, I must give a lot of credit to Nate. He hates water; is scared to death of water, even. But for the second time this trip he agreed to get on a boat.
By the time we docked the boat at about 2:30, we had caught a cooler full of fish. Croakers. Now I know why they are called Croakers. They make a croaking sound, like a frog, when they are caught. Mark caught a lot more than we did. He is a great fisherman. But we all had fun and we will enjoy eating the fish. (I told Dad that when we move out here, he has to buy me a boat and of course, a pickup to haul the boat.)
After taking a quick shower in Crofton, we headed to a little Italian place for dinner. Bookmaker, Calamari, and pasta. Perfect Day

Vacation Update

No new pictures. Yesterday we traveled to York so Dad could meet with the good Dr. Knudson about his sore elbow. He is on the dl now as he has been diagnosed with "tennis elbow".
While Dad was with the Dr., Nate and I went to the Galleria Mall for some shopping. I remember the Galleria as an exciting mall, but both Nate and I were disappointed and we finished walking around the mall in 15 minutes. We did indulge in "Aunt Annies" pretzels, which in my opinion are the best pretzels around.
I stopped in the Orioles store to pick up an Orioles outfit for Ben and a license plate holder for my zuki.
After Dad picked us up, we went to the park over by the Layton's old house, grilled some steaks, had a picnic,and completed our PA day by driving some of the back roads before heading back to Crofton. We saw the farm house from a distance, through the corn fields, and the house on Mill Street. It was hard to remember all the back roads that we used to drive on a regular basis.
The area has really grown. There is a Cracker Barrel and Home Depot at exit one now. The traffic heading north out of MD was very heavy. It certainly is not the same as when we lived there. It is hard to believe we have been gone from PA now for six years. Time sure goes by quickly.
After getting back to Crofton, it was a quiet night of watching the All Star game. Nobody here was awake for the final out.

Vacation Finally

Let the fun begin. We have arrived safely and are ready for some big time fun. Friday after sleeping in and recovering from a late night arrival, we had lunch at the "Four Seasons Grill" and then headed for Towson to look at a job.

Nate and Dad rode the scaffolding to the 22 nd floor where they had a great view of the Baltimore area. We came home early to prepare for our weekend in NYC with the Forbes.

Saturday's drive was uneventful except for the traffic jam where we moved 7 miles in 45 minutes. It's a good thing we had no schedule to meet.

We went to the New Jersey side of the Statue of Liberty and took a quick look. We knew we had to hurry to meet Carolyn and Stew at Shea Stadium for the ball game, but traffic was way heavy so meeting was a little late. We finally got together during the third inning.

The Mets won the game 3-0. It really was a lot of fun--any baseball game is a lot of fun.

After the game we took the Forbes to their friends home where they were staying, but first, we stopped at a little neighborhood Italian restaurant we passed. The food was great and I'm still tasting garlic.

Sunday morning we left our hotel and headed toward the New York side of the Statue of Liberty. We took a Harbor Cruise around Ellis Island and the Statue. It was a beautiful day for a boat ride.

Vacation Day One:

How can I describe the way our vacation began. We left the Evans Family reuninion and made the final preparations for our journey across the country. After Nate said goodbye to his friends, we packed up the Hyundai and left town. We hadn't driven very far when there was a "lurch" in the car and the ac was turned off to see if that would solve the problem. It didn't.
To make a long story short, we didn't get to Green River before we decided the best thing to do would be to turn around and check air fares and times. Dad flies back to Baltimore on Monday and Nate and I fly out on Thurs. We will still be able to get to NYC in time to see the Met/Rockies game on Saturday with the Forbes. What a way to start a vacation.

Moose

Here's some pictures of the moose I saw at the State Park this morning. Hope he stays around until the 4th. As you can see, the river is high and running very fast as well as cold. Summer has arrived and I love it.

Time for photos

I wanted to share some photos from the past few days. I must apologize for no pics from Sat. trip to Ut. I would loved to have shared pictures of Bear Lake and I would loved to have had pictures of my cousins. One Day I will learn to have my camera with me at all times.

Anyway, the pictures are of the snow in the Uintas, more specific, the trail head for Ruth Lake, Christmas Meadows, some wild flowers at the state park, (These are Dad's favorites) and one of our apple trees which are in full bloom. It feels so good to have warm temps and a bright blue sky.