SISTER OF MINE

I have a sister. I can't say that I really had one until we were both older, were married and started having children. I was 8 years old when she was born and with 6 other siblings in the house I think I didn't want to be bothered with her. (I was a spoiled brat) I was married and started my family before she old enough to babysit for me! Well anyway, I LOVE MY BABY SISTER. She is the most talented and remarkable sister ever! Although we live on opposite poles of the state we do talk often and share lot's of fun sister things.....I just have to boast about her. She works 8 hours a day from her home office and besides that she has so many projects going on it amazes me. I love to crochet, but next to my sister.....LOL....I am totally an amateur! Pleeze check out her web site. She just got it up and running and is so excited about it! Honestly her little granddaughter is the luckiest little girl. I hope she understands and appreciates her when she is old enough to understand the love and time my sister has put into making such beautiful treasures of rememberance. I am sure she will. ALL MY WONDERFUL FRIENDS please check her web page out and if you know of anyone that could benefit from her talent, and appreciate the love and work that goes into her world....I would be grateful! Pass the word along will you! ENTER HER CONTEST! www.alldolledup-dollclothes.com and when you are done there check out the other project that she has started, remember the little dollies called Kelly dolls(?)well I remember the Kiddles....

This is not a paid advertisment, nor did my sister promise me that I would win her contest or even take me to lunch next time I am in town. LOL, It is because I LOVE YOU TERRIE!

DAY AT SEA-THE NORWEGIAN PEARL

(This pic is of the Norweigen Pearl docked in Skagway not Seattle) Going through customs and getting on board ran so smoothly I was amazed. Boy they have the system down to a science! We all gathered around the main lobby of the ship, looked at the HUGE screen (where Ryan was looking forward to playing the WII) and of course they were serving food at the buffett. So we headed to the buffett.


Filled the little ones up with food and then wandered around the ship. Of course we got seperated....Huhoney and I had little Lauren and Mike and Camille ended up with the boys around the pool deck where they had a welcome of some sorts and we missed the whole hoop-la of the conga around the pool. Mike said the kids loved it. Music was loud, people were already in the party mode. We saw them down below as we were somewhere on top...and waved our arms to get their attention. We were finally able to go to our rooms, luggage had arrived...Huhoney was totally unpacked and settled in within 30 minutes! I didn't get to mine until much later in the day.


Of course there is the "MUST" put on your life jacket orientation. Which is a total joke. Everyone gathering in their respective stations in the dining room. Why were we the first to get there? We ended up having to try and entertain the little ones who were wanting to just GET OUT and ABOUT of the formal dining area!


Anyway, we got through that and Camille and I took the 3 little ones to the Childrens Room. Throughout the entire cruise you could drop off your children at this center for someone else to entertain. Well that actually only happend a couple of times. The kids really didn't like it much. I didn't like it much. I was always too worried that they were not happy so I checked on them many times. If they saw me, they wanted OUT! I guess some kids loved it....ours were not to particularly impressed.



The view at sea was beautiful. I love this pic of Huhoney and Owen looking out at sea at the very back of the ship (aft)(ship terms) and the one of Lauren and of the trail at 35 knots(how ever many miles per hour that means!)


LOL Our first port stop the next day was Juneau. We shopped of course...and our first shore excursion was the Mendenhall Glacier. The first pic is of the Glacier itself, the second of a waterfall right next to it, it sounded like thunder, there was SOOOO much water it was incredible. It was beautiful, breath taking and I wish that we could have spent more time there before having to get on the bus and go to our cook out. We had some delicious outdoor BBQed Salmon with all the trimmings. Of course little Lauren had a difficult time keeping her 2 1/2 yr old peepers open. This happened quite regularly every day during our shore excursions. We took a walk up a path...


Ryan did a little gold panning....

ate some yummy marshmellows before heading back to the ship. Not too sure what order these pics below will come out in but I am sure you can sort them out...:^) I have tried to keep them in order but I am not a super star at this blogger picture thing yet.

The walk to the waterfall itself was about a mile away and we didn't have time. This far away picture does not do the waterfall justice!







It was a GREAT DAY!

THE START...

Well, this was a first ride in an airplane for the 3 little ones. They were all so good and Owen loved the "BLAST OF". It was an early rise for little Lala (Lauren) so she took a nap for about an hour. The trip to Seattle was about 2 hours long. Each seat had a little tv screen in front of it so our special Ryan was thrilled to watch cartoons! I was just so excited to see the excitement on the little ones faces and I was 2 rows back so I had to hand the camera to my son to take a few shots! The plane trip was very bumpy so we had to stay buckled into our seats the whole way!
I can't believe I didn't take pics of all the luggage! It was hilarious to say the least. Camille was prepared and had special straps to keep track of the children. Ryan has a tendancy to just run off so this worked well.

Seattle was a fun place to visit. Huhoney and I went there for our 20th anniversary. We left the airport and went to our downtown hotel which was walking distance (downhill) to the waterfront and all the shops.
They were crazy and a lot of fun to visit. Wall to wall people on a Friday afternoon. I could not get over the price of the bouquet of flowers in the flower shops that lined one side of the outside mall....
$15 for a HUGE fresh cut bouquet and $10 for a HUGE bouquet. If I were living there I would be makeing a stop once a week maybe twice a week for a beautiful arrangement! Of couse school is out and everyone is on vacation! There is such an abundance of colorful shops and people to boot! The fish shops were amazing and our mouths started to water just thinking of what we could eat for lunch or ship home!

There is a certain energy that this city has that you feel in your bones. Excitement and hustle-bustle. You really have to like it to enjoy it. Not everyone is cut out for it!

Believe me the 3 $10 strollers Mike ran to Wal-mart for the night before the trip got used to death. The rubber on the tires on this trip actually got worn down! LOL. We had 2 days in Seattle to see sights and enjoy it's old town flare so we ran, ran, ran, and dropped in the evening.

The Seattle Aquarium was a great place to visit. The children had a great time and loved all the fish. It was a wonderful way to spend an afternoon for a couple of hours.


My feet and legs were longing for a hot bath after a day of walking and walking and there was NO way I was going to walk UP HILL 6 plus blocks to our hotel......get me on the local transit PLEEZE. Oh...Ryan was obsessed with the escalator. If that is where we spent the next 10 days, he would have been a happy camper. Everyone took turns going up and down the hotel escalator with him. Probably.....100 times.....(not kidding folks!)

The next day to underground city of Seattle was NOT a fun place for the little ones. It was boreing. Very interesting for the big people but not for the little ones. Off to the Aerospace Museum.

It was amazing and we didn't even get through the whole thing even after almost 3 hours! After the adventure there we took the transit downtown and transfered to another transit (underground) the kids loved it.. downtown, to the city and the Space Needle. Twenty years ago, the Space Needle http://www.viamagazine.com/weekenders/space_needle06.asp was surrounded by a beautiful park where you could just walk and relax. Now it is an amusement park where you can't walk and relax. Just spend a lot of money! Mike took the trip to the top of the Needle and loved it. Camille isn't much on heights so she opted to stay below and just watch what was going on around us. She is more into shopping. hehehehe here are a few extra pics of Seattle's visit.

Lauren had just about enough fun for one day!


Above city tram ride to and from the Sky Needle to the center of town

Well this pretty much made my day! Apples dipped in carmel covered with chocolate and drizzled with white chocolate! 10 lbs right there on the ole hips!

Well that pretty much took up our weekend in Seattle. The next day was boarding the Norweigen Pearl to Alaska........(tomorrow)

MELLOW MONDAY and some thoughts

THANKS SO MUCH for all the well wishes from all my blogger friends! Well the bug did get the best of me but I suffered through it like a big girl...sometimes you just have to do that ya know and on "Father's Day" I had a full appetite again (Phew thank goodness) and enjoyed Huhoney's delicious BBQ chicken, watermelon, SWEET corn on the cob, a yummy yummy salad, sliced zuchinni from the garden (yep folks, we are in the zuchinni!) and Brad made a delicious cake for dessert. The kids came over (when I mean kids, I mean Brad, Tera, their children Kyler and Kolytn) to swim and have dinner. It was a nice afternoon. I have a little tribute to my HUHONEY. Please bare with me on this one, he very seldom reads my blog, but I am going to ask him to this time. I was too under the covers to do this sooner and before "Father's Day". One day....I will post my Alaskan trip I promise LOL!


My Children’s Father

To be a father is not something to be taken lightly; You have never taken it lightly.
I have watched you grow as a father; From the moment you took our tiny daughter into your massive arms and tenderly snuggled her and smothered her with kisses, I knew from that moment on that you would protect her as best as you could from the harsh realities of the world and be an adoring father to her.

I watched you take our first son onto your knee and tell him stories of adventure, we wonder where in the world he got his storytelling ability and now I know the truth! I watched you with much patience, bait a worm on his first fishing pole, coach his football team, support him on his mission, and embrace him with so much pride as he became a new father.

I always smiled at the way you encouraged our third child in sports and also coached him in soccer and told him he could achieve anything in life if he put his mind to it; how true to your word it became as I watched you wrap your strong arms around him, a young man who had to learn the hard way what this world was all about and teach him how to walk again tall and upright and become strong again like he was before his accident; all these things are only a few glimpses of what you are as a father.

The ability to laugh at yourself and teach our children to do the same. The courage to stand up for what you believe is right, and teaches them to do the same. Allowing yourself to cry and teaching them to do the same. Showing them how to love . . . and not to be ashamed to do so, these are only a few attributes you have given our children as their father.

I am so grateful to our Father in Heaven for giving me the privilege of having you as our children’s father. Nothing has given me more joy in this world than watching you give of your self with no restraints as a father, because that is who you are, tender, loving, forgiving, unselfish.
I love you.

Thank you for being the father of our children.

Linda

FRUMPY FRIDAY

Today I am feeling a little frumpy. Huhoney had a difficult time recovering from our Alaskan adventure and was out of sorts for a few days. I so bravely told him I NEVER get sick. That I have a STRONG IMMUNE system and the last time I was sick with a bug was 3 years ago and it lasted 2 days. HA......he reminded me verbally at midnight when I was not in my bed but.....well you get the picture. SORRY! My tummy and I had a huge fight....but I was determined to get up and go to the office today because my boss told me yesterday, that it was "essential" that I be here because...3other people had the day off and there would only be 2 of us in the office. Hmmm what do you do when you are sick and your boss tells you to be here? Especially after being gone for 10 days....well you bring a bowl with you to work, and a blanket and a pillow and pray you don't embarress yourself in front of him. Or pray that you do so that he feels really bad! LOL Don't get me wrong, I like my boss, he looks a little like the Monopoly Man
and is a nice guy, but can be a little "bossy". Well I have made it through the day, so far, and feel like I am going to live. Huhoney went fishing this morning with a friend. If he knew I had gone to work he would be really mad at me! Well fortunately it was a very quiet day in the office, not many phone calls and not many people coming in, so all is well. I am going to take off an hour early because I didn't take a lunch hour. I am either a martyr', stupid, or a great employee (?). Which ever...thank goodness this day is almost over and I can go home and flop into Huhoney's big comfy chair with a blankie and look forward to the weekend. Hopefully I will be up to getting caught up on posting pics of our vacation in the next day or two. Thanks for popping in to check up on me. Sorry I didn't post anything really FUN today lol. Looks like this bug even got the best of Granny!

WACKY WENESDAY

I have returned!
It was a wonderful exhausting 10 days. 10 days I would not have traded for anything in the world. Our visit and adventure to Alaska was everything it was said to be. I only have 334 pictures to sift through before posting them. Stories to tell and miles of smiles to share. My blogger friends, I have missed you and for the last 2 days have been reading and reading and reading trying to catch up. It is very difficult to get back into the swing of going to the office each day, when all I want to do is catch up on a little sleep! So for now my friends, I will just have to say....may another day come my way until then, be well!
The morning we all headed to the airport I took a few pics of the little ones. They were all excited because they were going on their very first airplane ride! There was business to be taken care of and chasing them down outside Mom even handed them all their toothbrushes, that is what they were doing as I took this pic. Here is Huhoney, Ryan, Owen, Lauren and Camille.

All business was taken care of and then we were on our way! More to come...lot's more to come!!!

TWO IN A ROW!

Oh my goodness, what has gotten into me? Two days in a row and a new post to boot! I am writing a little (oh my, I never write a little!) because I am not sure if I will be able to write tomorrow. I seldom have news each day so I try and write every other day. But the time is so short this week and I WILL BE GONE FOR 10 DAYS. YES MY BLOGGER BUDDIES, 10 WONDERFUL, EXCITING, probably EXHAUSTING days on a journey of a life time! (can you tell I don't get out much hehehehe)

Behind the huhoney. Many years ago when our children were very small my husband (Bob) the strong silent man that he is, would make a statement and always look at me and say HUHONEY? as if looking for confimation that I agreed with him. Well weather I agreed or not per say, I would agree. It just became a habit of sort and I also began to pick up on looking for confirmation to statements (especially when the children were around) so that everyone would know that mom and dad were on the same page....HUHONEY started to become a term of endearment and even know that the children are grown and we are empty nesters, HUHONEY (as I refer to him) is still very much a part of our vocabulary! So if you see me refering to HUHONEY it is the "husband", the other half of me who makes me whole!


HUHONEY and I try and keep up with a bicycle ride 2 or 3 times a week, just to keep the ole bones in shape. The town has hundreds of miles of bicycle trails, and even if you don't use the trails the roads are very bike friendly.



One ride just around the corner of our home that overlooks the little town we live in, there is a golf course (so beautiful) one of many that this area is so well known for. We went on an approximate 4 mile ride.


On our way back home, going through the golf course it was the beginning of dusk and lights of the small city were beginning to appear. The sprinklers were watering the lawns and we knew that we were going to get a little wet. It was very refreshing...other than my derrière was splattered with water from my bikes rear tire! The evening could not have been more perfect. It was a cool, slightly breezy evening. I did not want it to end! With 96 degree temperatures during the day, we revel in cool evenings when we have them! On the east side of town in the distance, on a hillside you can see the big letter "D" (look at the top of the hill in the center of the picture) which stands for "Dixie".
This town (Saint George, Utah) is known as "Dixie". I have no idea why it is that everywhere that you go in Utah, every town you pass through will mark somewhere on a hillside the letter of their town! I will start taking pictures and post them to let you all see the different letters on hillsides. For all I know it may not be weird at all; do other towns do this in other states and cities? Not all towns light their letters, but ours does. It also signifies the college here "Dixie State College", and "Dixie High School". Know that I have brought this up, I am going to do a little more research as to why we do this!

So...I want you all to know (my wonderful blog-buddies) I am alive and well and will be enjoying a 7 day ALASKAN cruise with my son and his family. We will spend 2 days in beautiful Seattle WA seeing sights there. I will not be looking at any internet or answering any phones for 10 days. Just enjoying the beauty of God's world in another part, other than my own! I am sure that I will have a gazillion pictures when I return on the 15th of June. My dilemma then will be what pictures to post and hours of catching up to do reading all my favorite blog-buddies posts. So until the 15th.....be safe my friends!

HUHONEY has a hard time keeping his peepers open for pictures...I guess the flash is too much! hehehehe
I am SO EXCITED! hugs to everyone......

oh yes...my tiny, tiny, tiny garden,
(of which consists of zuchinni plants, 2 tomatoe plants and some strawberries) I am sure when we return we will have sprouts of zuchinni as they have begun to bloom! This is NO comparison (which I covet my blogger buddies gardens)to freshly plowed dirt, and weeds and endless rows of yummy carrots and other veggies (we use to do the HUGE garden when we had an acre of land to play in) this will have to do .... lol

THE SKY'S THE LIMIT!

We can be dragged kicking and screaming into a future we did not choose, or we can live the change that gives our life passion. The place is here. The time is now. THE SKY'S THE LIMIT


My son Micheal, finally gave into what I think he feared. I remember for many many many years he would tell his dad and I that he always wanted to skydive, so a year ago....yes a year ago on his 35th birthday, we presented him with a gift certificate to go and do a tandem jump. Where he lives (close by there is a little airport) and it is there, he finally decided to DO IT (a year later) on his 36th! Before the gift certificate expired!
Thought he had better since it cost us a penny or two! He said that he wasn't at all afraid, until he was seated in the plane, then the young man (his partner he was strapped to (24 years young) who has been doing this for 4 years, usually 2 or 3 times a day, let him know....they were ready! He said he was fine until that point....then it hit him...his heart started racing and he knew he was in for the time of his life....or his life for a time!
BRAVE Mikie! and his sweet wife and 3 children watched on the ground as hubby and daddy FELL from 13,000 feet! What a go Mikie! Looks like you had a great time, wish I could have been there to witness, but I will see you this week and you can tell us all about it AGAIN! Do you notice that the instructor had a helmet and gloves on? Maybe Mike wanted to feel the wind through his hair lol. He said that at 13,000 feet they would hit pockets of warm and cold air. What an exciting experience. It was all over within just a few minutes but will last him a lifetime! Glad you had an awesome time! Hey....and if my other 2 children think I am playing favorites..well you had better get me some pics so I can also brag about you! LOL, ya know I love you all my awesome, beautiful, funny, "special" other children LOLOLOLOL




Now how are you going to top this one off next year???