Wordless Wednesday

A plum for you, or maybe two

Innocence pure and sweet

Kissed by the sun, our little ones

You brighten each day with your funny ways

So loved by all are you

Your sweet smiles go on for miles

So endless is your laughter

A plum for you, or maybe two

In a world lived happily after

View Full Album

Our Lollipop and Cowboy

Giggles and kisses galore

A plum for you, or maybe two

Who could ask for more!

View Full Album

A plum day for 2 of my grandchildren.

AmiLynn took these beautiful photos of Lauren and Owen, who are 11 months apart in age, picking plums in her backyard. Ami is on the verge of being a great photographer, she has an eye for it and seems to capture “sweet” moments as they appear. Thank you Ami!

DI

For my wonderful, beautiful, funny, ever encouraging, crazy but not insane "VILLAGE FRIEND" who rocks my world on a daily basis and who I love to enter her world each day...

HERE"S FOR YOU MY FRIEND! I do want you to know....we love you....and whatever happens
HAPPENS! LOL

A DAY LATE

Plain and simple (August 19th sunset)

If I were a sunset where would you find me?

Over the ocean, on the beach of Hawaii?

Would you find me on the Florida coast;

Or the high prairies of Colorado?

Maybe behind a light house on the shores of Maine;

Where ever you find me, I am never the same…

The United Kingdom is always a glow;

And French Riviera, romantic you know;

You might find me in a forest peeking gently through the grove;

I know you have seen me in Belgium’s Heaven bliss;

I have shown through the Netherlands and the tulips night time mist;

But one place you will find me, majestic and proud,

Quiet and peaceful, sometime soft, sometimes screaming loud;

In the eyes of a beholder, the heart mind and soul

Saint George, Utah where her stories are told.

lindalu

Thanks to all of the villagers comments! So fun to read! Acutally the four-wheel riding is in my sons back yard, he still lives in Northern Utah outside of the Salt Lake Valley and has an acre with the chicken coop, cow and lots of room to roam for his 3 children and of course company! We took a 4 hour drive to his home with my daughter and her 2 girls and then my son-in-law flew into SLC and we all drove home (to southern Utah) a few days later. Yes the memories and tons of pictures are going to have to keep me a float for a while. What would we do without the telephone? Even the web cam!
Although mine is not working for some reason. Does anyone know anything about skype? I know Oprah uses it! So it must be good enough for little ole me! I understand that it is free, just sign up and you can skype anywhere in the world for free! You just have to have a web cam! I am going to look into this. I found something fun. Not all the villagers were born in my era but...I think you will get a KICK out of this article. SNOPES says it may or may not be true! I will let you all be the judge!



The Good Wife's Guide
From Housekeeping Monthly, 13 May, 1955.






1· Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have be thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they get home and the prospect of a good meal is part of the warm welcome needed. (I thought that was pretty funny since they are the only ones that work during the day right?)




2· Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you'll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people. ( and your work weary children don't count?)



3· Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it. (I can't stop laughing, I guess his work weary associates are boreing?)




4· Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives. Run a dust cloth over the tables. (like you would have time to run a dust cloth when you are making yourself adorable with ribbons and preparing dinner?)(I use to have a bucket of Pinesole sitting out all day just to make him think I had been cleaning all day because the house smelled so good....it worked!)lol




5· During the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering to his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfaction. (OH MY GOSH! immense personal satisfaction after working your fingers to the bones all day, don't you dare ask for satisfaction! by this time a knuckel sandwich would be my satisfaction!)




6· Minimize all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Encourage the children to be quiet. (OH yeah this one is totally pratical! SHUT THE KIDS UP??? NOT)



7· Be happy to see him. (oh honey, I am so happy to see you! LOLOLOLOL after 4 or 5 glasses of wine)



8· Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.




9· Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first - remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours. (this is a total killer)



10· Don't greet him with complaints and problems.



11· Don't complain if he's late for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through at work. (if this happens, YOU get a baby sitter and go out with the girls!)




12· Make him comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or lie him down in the bedroom. Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.



13· Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice. (I am thinking of Archie and Edith Bunker right now)



14· Don't ask him questions about his actions or question his judgment or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question him. (OK do I have every ones attention know? Did I make your blood boil or are you laughing your fanny off like I did when I first read this! check it out ladies, just google "The Good Wifes Guide" and then post this on your refrigerator with a note.......I would love to hear of some of the reactions you get from your hubby!)

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST A good wife always knows her place. (HAHAHAHAHAHAHA)
I say:

There is an end to everything...

Well I had my fun, the days are done, the girls are gone.  It seemed like they were here for such a short time when in fact they were here for 3 weeks! The girls swam and swam until they were totally tired of getting in the pool!  I had to work of course so I wasn't able to spend all the time I wanted with my beautiful daughter, but we did have fun together the time that we did share.  I got her hooked on a little reality tv I am afraid to say.  WELL, when it is real hot outside and you don't feel like taking a walk in the evening or bike ride (which she did) you watch tv in the coolness of the family room!  Yes "Big Brother" and a little "Great American Road Trip" is now on the agenda to tivo when she gets home LOLOL.  Just a few pics to share of the last couple of weeks.

Brooklyn loves animals so on a walk in the evenings we made sure we had apples and carrots for the horses along the route.

Brooklyn was a little skidish at first to hold her hand out but it didn’t take her long to get over her fear…

there were many horses of different size and color and she made sure that each one got a treat!

This is a photo I snapped of her with an attitude!  She wasn’t opposed to my taking the picture, I think she just wanted me to get it over with…lol

This just happened to be a beautiful sunset shot on one of our many walks in the evenings…

on a walk through the golf course one evening Papa and Brookie hunted the brush for golf balls…

sure enough Papa found one lodged in a tree!  It has split  in half and was stuck there waiting for someone to spot it and give it to a surprised little girl!

on a visit to see cousins up North, I tried and tried to get everyone together for a photo…I managed to get these little rascals on the trampoline, Brooklyn (top) Ryan (bottom left) Lauren (bottom center) Kyler (right).

The oldest of the grandchildren (Madison) loved giving the younger ones rides on the 4-wheeler around the back yard.

We visited a place called “Heritage Park” across from the Salt Lake zoo.  It is a great place for kids to run around, ride ponies, a train, pet animals and just have fun…

Don’t the kids look like they are having fun?

Another photo op was hurried…..6 out of 7 grandkids all together isn’t too bad!

Yes! there is still a drive-in!  Right down the road from Mikes there is a drive-in theater!  Camille popped pop corn and fixed treats for everyone.  We had a great time!

Papa and I parked right next to the little ones so that they could go back and forth in our car and then on the seats and then in our car and on our laps then back to mom and dad in the van…it was a great night!

with luggage in tow and packed into the car…

it was time to say goodbye until next time….

Papa sped them off to the Las Vegas airport while I cried myself to work…..

Good bye girls….until next time….love and hugs

Mom, Grammy, Mema…

39

Where has it gone?


I was just a young girl of 15 at the time. My brother was in Boot Camp in Camp Pendleton in California. He was going to be a Marine. It was a very scary time for everyone. We knew he was going to go to war. My mother cried a lot. I remember getting a letter from my brother Ron, and he asked me if I would please write some Marines? They had seen a picture of me and wanted to write to me. Who me? Why? But my answer was yes. I would write these Marines how ever many there were. One of which was Bob Higgins.
He was a friend of my brothers, so he had to be a nice guy. The letter I still have, among a few others from other Marines. My folks decided that we would go and see my brother after boot camp, before he was shipped out to Viet Nam. Could Bob spend some time with us too? was the question asked. Sure...we would be in CA for a few days, Bob could spend some time with our family, it would give my brother a buddy. So there it began. The "love story".

We picked up my brother and were to meet Bob at a bus stop. Yes, as he got off the bus, he was this tall skinny Marine with a grin from ear to ear. Big ole dimples and so shy! A shy Marine! HA! We had a station wagon. He slipped into the back seat next to me. He just said "hi" and smiled. I was 15! So this was the Marine I was writing. He is OLD! was my thinking. I was about to enter High School. He was nice enough I guess. He actually lived only 30 minutes or so from where we lived in SLC. He even had a couple of sisters, one was only a year older than me. This couldn't be so bad. We had a fun time together (the family and Bob) and the morning we were to leave and go home we went to eat breakfast somewhere (probably Dennys). Of course I got to sit in the booth with my brother and his friend. I adored my brother. He was so handsome and I knew I was his sweetheart. Bob and my brother got up from the table, and went and got a cigar from the check out counter. It didn't matter how old you were, they were Marines! They came back to the table and I will never forget what happened next. With a sweet as pie smile and blushing beet red this Marine (Bob) slide the cigar band from the cigar and handed it to me.
I just looked at him like a silly 15 year old would and thought?????? and he politely told me to hang on to it until he got back from Viet Nam. I remember smiling back at this ... man and blushed myself. I actually put the band on my finger and for years kept it in a safe place. A lot happened in the next 3 years. I was in High School and dated the football jock, and a few others, but always wrote this Marine and many others while they were serving their country. Some of which didn't write back. They didn't make it home either. Their letters I still have tucked away. But one Marine hung in there. He believed in us. I found out later that he told my brother after we left that restaurant that he was going to marry me. Well, on August 2nd 1970 the summer out of high school, I married that Marine,

and 39 years later we are still going strong. Yeah, this is a love story. One I have written many, many poems about.

It hasn't been all roses, maybe that is why I love roses so much. They just seem to symbolize our love and devotion to each other. He never fails to show me his love or give me roses. We had dinner at our favorite restaurant Samauri 21
and enjoyed some chocolate fudge cake that Brooklyn insisted on getting for us. SWEET. Yes, my life is SWEET. We had a good day. The card and roses he gave me (2 dozen red long stemmed roses) was perfect. I usually write something to him. This time I stayed up until 2 am writing. Good thing I didn't have to go to work the next day! It may not be the typical poem but I will share with you because it is Wordful Wednesday.
This is my poetry:

August 2, 2009

In the early morning hours I close my eyes and think back to a time long ago.

A time when we were young and our hearts were tender and so innocent. I think back when we first met, and the silly little girl that I was. I remember seeing someone so shy and a young man so brave and full of courage. I had no idea at the time where my life would take me. Nor did I know where your life would take you.

In the early morning hours I close my eyes and think back to a time long ago.

You said you knew that I as the one; that we were meant to be together. Our hearts were tender and so innocent. I am so happy that you followed your dreams; that you showed me what true love really was. Everything you went through and endured, to come home to me and prove beyond any doubt, that rainbows and dreams do exists, but you have to believe in love.

In the early morning hours I close my eyes and think back to a time long ago.

To a time when you asked me to marry you. Your strong arms would hold me tight and promise me the world. I believed you would make that happen. A time when we were young and our hearts were tender and so innocent. How blessed we were to with stand the test of life and time. Together we conquered, what ever came our way. We endured without end.

In the early morning hours I close my eyes and think back to a time not so long ago.

I looked into your eyes and knew without a shadow of a doubt that I would stand by your side no matter what life had to offer. Our hearts were tender and we knew innocence but forgave it. You showed me the world. You brought me to a place of no return and promised me eternity.

In the early morning hours I close my eyes and think back to today.

A time when we were not so young and our hearts are still tender but wise. All the memories we share, the laughter and tears of all our 39 years. I wouldn’t want it any other way.

As I close my eyes and feel you lying next to me in sleep, I am comforted knowing that when I wake in the morning you will always be there for me.

Thank you for always believing in us.

Forever and always
Your lulu