October is here and with it comes.....

.....a lot of birthdays. Mason has his big three oh and Kyle his big three five......I'll pay tribute in later posts to these boys but want them to know that even though they were both born in October, they'll always be my "boys of summer".... Nothin' I love more than watching my boys play ball. I was able to catch one of Spencer's games while in Kentucky this past week. Best of all was the game they all played together this past summer during the softball season while Spencer was visiting with his family. This post is not about softabll though, it's about birthdays, October birthdays and along with Kyle and Mason, I lost a little son David in 1980 and I always remember him during this month as well. Mine, of course is at the end of the month and as I always do, I'll wish myself a happy birthday and celebrate my mother for giving me life in a later post. I hate halloween but I love my birthday so watch for more about me later. But on this day, I want to acknowledge my friend Cynthia. She is my good neighbor and friend. She feeds me and listens to my whining and has all the answers. She lets me go to her Oregon beach house and there is much more that I can say about this good woman but let's just say, Happy Birthday Cynthia and leave it at that.

On this day 6 years ago a good man was called home.....take a moment to remember my good dad, Hal Sullivan. Not only was he my dad, he was my children's grandfather and my mother's good husband who loved life and hated growing old. So, have some nibs in his memory and use one of his "grandpa-isms", tell one of his jokes or be on time in his honor. He would love that. We miss you dad.......

Home again, home again, jiggity jig.....

It was a fun 10 days with my Kentucky family and I've put together a few pictures to show what we did. I mainly went so Shana could chaperone Laynee's 4th grade trip to Pine Mountain for 5 days so I was in charge of the 3 boys while they were gone. They had a great trip and I had a good time with the boys. On Saturday, we packed in a yard sale, a soccer game and a carnival. The weather was great after they had the wind the week before and were without power for a week up until my arrival on Saturday so everyone appreciated their time outdoors enjoying the coming of Fall. All is well in Kentucky....they are all happy, busy and doing good things. If you get a chance, ask Spencer about his new church calling. He's pretty pumped.....

Just hangin' out with Jack.......

....and I'm wishin' I had somethin' interesting to blog about but I'm just here hangin' out with my Kentucky family watchin' the little ones while Shana and Laynee are off to the mountains on a 4th grade field trip. Spencer's got a bit o' pink eye so they won't allow him at the hospital, oh darn....so we've been chillin' and grillin'....no, not really grillin' but Seth and I have been doing rhyming words this mornin' so I just thought I'd throw that in for him. They are off havin' lunch with Drew right now so Jack and I thought we'd send our greetings out to the blogging world. I got here Saturday after they had 6 days with no power.....except the generator that Mason left behind, but it came on again at 4:00 so it's as if nothing ever happened....so it seems to me, but as I walk down the streets I can see the trees that have fallen in the harsh winds. The weather is great though and I've enjoyed sitting outside watching the boys play.

Happy Birthday, McKay.....

Just wanted to share this serene scene that I saw looking over the William's deck yesterday at McKay's birthday party. I'd like to be a swan and just float in the water all day and look pretty. I swam for 4 hours yesterday and became "one" with the water and it was really hard getting out and getting on with life.....and when I did get out, it was anything but pretty....so what does that have to do with anything? Nothing except a swan is in the water and I was in the water and I like the water so maybe it would be nice to be a swan, that's all. Take it how you wish....just my random thinking on this Saturday morning as I head to see my loved ones in Kentucky. Today is McKay's actual 4th birthday. We celebrated in fine fashion....as I said earlier, at the pool, in the water. So, that's it. My blogging brain isn't working well these days. Hopefully, I'll get more inspiration as I have some "thinking" time on the plane. Have a great week-end......whomever may read this. Go throw some bread to a swan today.

Count your blessings....name them one by one....

My family in Kentucky is feeling the effects of Ike. They are without power and have been since Sunday. No rain but big winds.....thank goodness for the generator that Mason left them. They are able to power their refrigerator and freezer and a couple of the neighbor's refrigerators as well. They are reaping the rewards of being prepared and they have been doing a lot of grilling. I talked to Drew and asked him what they do. He says they go to the Dollar Store (so apparently some businesses have power) but sounds like a lot of the gas stations don't. Apparently the hospital does as Spencer has been going to work but the schools don't because the kids have been out for 2 days and sounds like possibly another week or two. I asked Laynee what they do and she says they put candles on the piano and she and Drew entertain every night. She says they are living like pioneers. I also have talked to Lauri a couple of times and her circumstances are about the same but that's the norm for where she is but I'm sure she doesn't sit and play the piano at night. She is going to appreciate some very crucial American amenities when she gets home. We all have lots to be thankful for and sometimes we don't know it until we are left without it. In these dire times, may we appreciate what we do have......and follow our prophet's counsel to get prepared.

I enjoyed the week-end with Diana. She came Saturday and I also tended Miller. He was good and we were able to go to dinner. We went to church then enjoyed a fun practice for our high school 40th reunion that is coming up. We're both sorry we didn't take pictures but it was fun to see some classmates again and get ready for this fun event. Monday morning, we drove up to the Ledges to show her the development up there then headed to Frei's Fruit Market and the gift shop next door. It was fun to have her here for a couple of days.....

Random thoughts.......about Fridays and hats....

I just feel like blogging but don't really have too much to say today other than it's a Friday and I've always hated Fridays.....seems like all my life I get anxiety when the week ends. I think I like the order that comes with the week-days and when I was young, I would wonder what to do because Fridays should be fun and if I didn't have something "fun" to do, it was a waste and then when I had kids I knew they felt like Fridays should be "fun" and they would always ask for sleepovers and I hated sleepovers because, once again, it was getting outside of my "order" box and I didn't like that so I'd try to think of something that would be "funner" than sleepovers but most of the time I would just give in and let them happen. Anyway, it's Friday and I guess I am having a sleep-over with George, Emily and Evan so I am looking forward to this Friday night. So, what I'm really writing about is that I'm still knitting but needed to have a diversion from socks for a little while. Since my sock give-away is about here, I decided to take a break and work on some hats. My loved ones up north in the really cold country need something to keep their heads warm so I decided to try all different sizes. You never know if they work until the winter is over and if the hat got worn, it was good, if not, try something different next season. Ya, I know, you could just go to Old Navy and buy a hat for a few bucks but here's a quote that tells how I feel about that.
"My mother didn't knit a stitch; she taught me that it's cheaper, easier and faster to buy a sweater. Her lesson, therefore, is that I don't knit to make things. I knit to make myself happy." --Annie Modesitt
Hats off to anyone that reads this....happy Friday night!!!!!

9-11!!!! Where were you 7 years ago?.....

I was getting a new refrigeration unit and anxiously awaiting the arrival of Andrew Scott, son of Spencer and Shana to arrive the next day. Happy Birthday, tomorrow Drewby. Now, 7 years later, I'm anxiously awaiting a week from now when I can go and see Drew and his siblings again and take him out for his birthday dinner....but the business at hand has been getting Lauri off to Mexico. And that we did....yesterday. 'Hasta la vista, Lauri. I will miss you. Lauri has a blog and you catch her weekly journal by clicking on these "Goodbye" pictures.

Orange you glad it's soccer season?

Last Saturday we had non-stop games......Sorry, Maycee. By 12:00 it was too hot to get the camera out and take any more pictures. I'll get you next time. We started with McKay's, then Emily's, then Maycee's. In a couple of weeks I'll get to see Drewby's. I love watching my grandkids participate in anything, sports, music, school, playing..... I try to get to their schools at least once a year to see them in action. Good kids doing good things. Love 'em, love 'em, love 'em. I'm going to try to get my grandma blog caught up one of these days.

Who needs a Pumpkin Spice candle when you have tomatoe soup.....

I wish there were a gadget that would let me post the smell on my blog that's in my house right now. I think I'll just keep a pot of tomatoe soup simmering all winter long. I wanted to post a picture of the beautiful bottles filled with this "gold" but I lost my camera (I actually found it but it's at Mason's) so I'm posting the original recipe from Mrs. Ludwig's cookbook and you can see how well used it is. It has been one of those recipes that everyone in my family would eat so every fall, I would hunt down lugs and lugs of tomatoes and spend a few days cooking, squeezing and bottling this tasty treat. My kitchen is a mess but it's a beautiful mess. So, I got these tomatoes from JoEllen's dad, Joe Shelton in Lehi and it's been great to be able to fill up a few jars again. This is just one of those smells that brings me back to a wonderful time in my life, raising my kids, seeing them off to school, then welcoming them home to tomatoe soup and homemade bread. Aw....the memories. Some days that's all that keeps me going.....Mrs. Ludwig's tomatoe soup forever. When I was just 16, Scott took me to Ludwig's German Restaurant up by Leeds for my birthday and it soon became our favorite place to go, so these great recipes from her book bring me even more warm memories of yummy food and good times.

Welcome September......

My birthday boys this month are Drewby and McKay....Drew will be 7 and McKay will be 4. Oh my how time flies. I've spent a lot of time with these two when I would visit them in Kentucky and they have been good little friends. Drew loves sports and is involved right now in soccer but also loves baseball, basketball and Nintendo DS, does well in school and has a kind heart. McKay is a "live wire" and loves to be active, makes friends easily and loves to play. He's in pre-school and is doing great. He loves his super heroes and always wants to watch Power Rangers. He builds with legos and loves my motorcyle. Happy Birthday, boys.....your B-amma loves you both.

Aw.....Fall........is in the air....

....not quite here yet but I've been in SLC and it's very apparent there, especially in the evenings. I traveled north on my yearly trek to Acappellastock.....Oh, yeh....and once again was NOT disappointed. It was an amazing (surreal, that's for Lauri) evening and we enjoyed almost 3 hours of great acappella groups, not just the usual Barbershop Quartet although there were some of those but frankly, I wish they would not be invited as they get realllly upstaged by the "new-wave" stuff....but they were good and entertaining but "hard core" rockappella is what I go for. It was sooooo much fun and I plan to go again next year and the year after that and so on and so forth. I wasted 2 tickets because I was really optimistic that I would be able to convert someone but I will not give up. I will continue to be persistent, (but will probably get committments before I buy too many tickets again) but the offer is out there. It's in Ogden, so a little far up the road but WORTH....ITTTTT! So, back home again and feeling the Fall....got a few decorations out and all day today I've been remembering the scents of Fall....spicy tomatoe soup cooking (haven't made any yet but plan to) and I especially love the scents that come with the cool crisp air (which will come later but I'm anticipating) and the feeling of getting all the kiddies back in school, into a routine and life back to a little normalcy. Even though I have no kiddies at home to take to school, I still feel the sense of peace that comes from knowing yours have a place to go each day. Right now my house smells like "Pumpkin Spice" Salt City candle, my favorite, and my center piece is in place (oops, it looks a little uncentered, oh, well). Welcome Fall..... how do you feel about Fall?

Been there.......

.......that's why I'm lovin' the Olympics. This morning while watching the Today Show, Meredith, Ann, Al and Matt ventured onto the Great Wall exactly the same place that we did in March. It was so cool....and there are lots of places to go to the Great Wall and maybe this isn't really the same place we were at but it sure looked like it. They rode the gondola up and then took the bobsled down and all the same things we did. I felt like a little schoolgirl that wanted to raise her hand and tell the whole class that..."I've been there too." Anyway, when they got off the bobsleds, there's these Mongolian Warrior guys there to meet you and have a picture taken with you. We did that. So, I couldn't get a very good picture of the Today Show crew doing it (it is online as a video) but I have a picture of us so I'm posting that today as my "Show and Tell". Also, I've been pretty busy lately so haven't had time to put some follow-up pictures of Lauri's birthday party so I'm doing that as well. I collaged a few fun pictures from the party. Enjoy!!!

Send birthday wishes to Lauri.......

Top Ten Reasons I Love Being With Lauri:

10. She can dance.
9. She loves the color orange.
8. She makes really good cookies and other fine foods.
7. She likes to laugh.
6. She is mostly happy and when I'm with her I want to be happy.
5. She thinks kind thoughts and when I'm with her I want to think kind thoughts.

4. She gives me something to spend my money on.
3. She will do the driving for me.
2. She has a peaceful nature.

Ta da da da...... The number one reason I love having Lauri around......she does my grocery shopping for me.

When I am old I may not wear purple but I want Lauri to take care of me and she will because she stands to inherit my diamond ring. A shoutout today and for the rest of this week as this sweet daughter of mine turns 25 on Monday. Only 25 years ago on Aug. 18 we welcomed a little girl after 4 boys and I haven't stopped smiling since. Well, maybe one time when she told me she was dropping out of college but it was o.k. because she fulfilled a successful mission to Arizona and can speak Spanish so now she can interpret Dora for me and I really smiled when she graduated from BYU last May. I hope her good nature will be enough to sustain her in the small Mexican village of Irapuato and I don't really want to know how "quaint" it really is. She will head there for 3 months for post-graduate field study and I will miss her. Carry on daughter-0-mine and thanks for letting me dress you up and do your bangs curly when you were little and for shopping with me and for me and for raising Traci. You did a fine job. Now, go forward with faith and know that I love you. The only thing keeping me sane right now is not thinking about the next 3 months. HAPPY BIRTHDAY ON MONDAY!!!!

The Whole Fam Damily.......

The second day of our First Annual Wells Family Reunion took us to Town Square for pictures. After 200 plus shots......not all of us are having a good day but what can I say....it's great to be together.
I have 9 precious little grand-sons and 3 sweet-as-punch grand-daughters. My baseball team and cheerleading squad.

Money, Teeth and Pain........

........now all this family needs is a good auto mechanic!!!!!! Yep, I made them (threatened them with their inheritance) drag out their caps and gowns for this.....do ya blame me? I'm just a red blooded, American mom. Lauri and Traci, I'm proud of you too and when you get your doctor degrees you will get your spot on my blog, k?

The first annual Scott Wells family reunion....

........is almost history. Spencer rolled into town on Thursday and the partay started. Friday was the official start of this momentous occasion and as I peruse (not sure if this is the right word but I like it) the pictures I can't decided which ones to blog and I'm dead tired right now so I'm putting on the basic "blue shirt" shot of us after a day of dentist appointments (cavities filled for Russ and Spencer) then lunch catered by Cafe Rio, activity provided by City Recreation Department hydrotube and pool, grilling provided by, um....not quite sure, I was busy inside cutting tomatoes but it was good) and then an awesome talent show and games. Tomorrow is family pictures (first time this family has been together in many, many years) then breakfast and moving on up the road to finish off the festivities in Pine Valley. So, until further notice, this family is on it's way to reunioning for many years to come. It's been an awesome day for this tired grandma......