These pictures have got to be worth more than a thousand words...

....because I'm too tired to write about it but wanted to share some of the fun we had this past week-end. Thanks to Mandy and Mason for a great Lake Powell Houseboat Experience.

Remembering Acappellastock....

....and I had a smile on my face all the way home today thinking about the great time I had last night and wishing everyone that I love were with me in the audience enjoying it with me. Actually, this year there were 4 people with me....an improvement from the first year and the second year I went (alone) then the last 2 years Lauri and I went (wasting only a couple of purchased tickets) to this year having to buy 2 more for Lauri and James. Because I'm such a faithful fan, Shannon gave me t-shirts when I told her I should become a volunteer. I discovered this fabulous event whilst on my mission in Salt Lake and haven't missed it since (5 years straight). It was AWESOME to say the least and once again, this year proved to be as good or better than last year. The groups had amazing energy and T-Minus 5 did more than they usually do (because they host the show) which was good (because they are really good) and the emcee was one of my favorites from a group called Toxic Audio that performed a couple of years ago. So start planning for next year and we can fill the whole front row with my "converts" to Acappella. I'm posting some of my favorite pictures from the evening in hopes of convincing more of you to come join me next year. If there's anyone out there that is the least bit interested, let me know. If you don't want to comment, just e-mail me or when you see me, let me know that you too want to become a fan of Acappella....(oh, if only I could be so bold in declaring my joy in the Gospel and inviting people to join the church.)

One final picture as we left the joint last night. Can you tell that we had an awesome time????

Paul Sperrazza.....ya gotta love this guy. He is an amazing entertainer and brought a lot of life to the show with his voice. He is from the group TOXIC AUDIO (which I already mentioned but worth mentioning again for sure).

Jake and Amy Alvord also joined me on the front row this year. Jake was my boss on my mission and he finally came to his senses and joined me after years of pestering.

Lauri and James were positioned just right to be "chosen" for the "audience participation" portion of the show which was to time the act that T-Minus 5 first performed in a competition. Needless to say, they went "wayyyyyy" over but coerced James into saying they were under their time limit and for it, they got a free CD. So.......I'll see all of you there next year and I will hopefully have to rent a bus to get us all there. I LOVE ACAPPELLASTOCK........

The Germans are coming....

.....so Cynthia and I set out on yet another adventure to find the places we think they would most like to visit. (She has visitors coming from Germany in a couple of weeks). Today we ventured out to Mt. Carmel to check out the Maynard Dixon Museum (frankly, didn't have a clue who the guy was until I saw some of his work and then realized that I did know of him) and we had a wonderful adventure as we pulled in the parking lot....not to be deterred by the "We Are Closed until Friday" sign, we got out and walked in. A lady came out to meet us to inform us that we were just outta luck but we asked a few questions and finally got her to agree to let us have a self-guided tour of the place because she was too busy getting ready for the huge art gig coming up next week-end which we would later find out was to include many of the finest landscape artists in the country and, also......David Michaels (film producer) who is the younger brother of Al Michaels (sports broadcaster) and is an aspiring landscape artist, will be there...whew, that was a long sentence. Anyway....we walked around the place and read the plaques and the guy told us quite a bit about the time Dixon spent in Mr. Carmel and how he and his wife were able to purchase and restore this beautiful location as a museum. As I walked around it I could picture the serene summer days that Dixon could sit outside in peace and paint the beautiful landscape surrounding him. You can read more about Maynard Dixon as I did by clickity clicking right HERE . I was surprised to find out he was born in Fresno, California but lived and painted in many places before passing away peacefully in Tucson, Arizona. The curators of the museum in Mt. Carmel told us his ashes were spread atop a little hill where a memorial has been made in his honor. He told us to walk up but ...."don't look back until you have reached the top." I tried really hard to do as I was told and I did....only to find what I had imagined....the most breathtaking view of the beautiful coral mountains with the background of crystal blue sky. That picture is at the top of my blog.

The day ended with lunch at what used to be "Bumbleberry Inn Restaurant" but is now "Wildcat Willy's" and doesn't serve Bumbleberry Pie (but we were able to get some at the adjacent bakery.) The day was complete and the meal was very good. I would recommend it. So until Cynthia shows up again at my door, taking no excuses and motions me to ...."come on....let's go", it's been another great adventure to blog about. The Germans are gonna love it here.......

Hey Lauri.....it's your birthday....

.
....let's party....like it's your birthday. Actually, there's no time for a party but I want to acknowledge Lauri's birthday and let you know that one year ago tomorrow I started doing tributes to those that I love on their birthdays and things haven't changed (except she's not heading to Mexico and she's not turning 25) so I'm directing you to Lauri's link from a year ago (click HERE) and I'm giving her new BIRTHDAY WISHES for this year and telling her once again that I think she's pretty cool and I'm glad I get to have her around for a while longer. We will party.....I don't know when but we will. Thanks to Traci for the birthday cake and festivities.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LAURI.

It's no secret....

......that I love my family and I love being with any and all of them whether it's a trip to Kentucky to hang with Spencer's family (or even better, having them visit me) or a swim in Mason's pool with whatever little ones are there or an impromptu trip to Pine Valley that always turns into a party or having Traci and her two boys here for the week and finding lots of stuff to do or a surprise visit from Kyle's kids now that Emily and George can ride their bikes to my house or just knowing that Lauri will be walking through the door and we can chat about the day. When I was a young mom, I used to crave some "alone" time....and now that I'm alone I crave any "family time" that I can have. Traci and Lauri headed north last night with Scotty and Ba'y Jake and the house is quiet again but I will put things back together, putter a little bit and look forward to the time I can see them again....but I will enjoy this "alone" time to contemplate how very blessed I am to have my family and to know that....or at least hope....they enjoy coming home.

Good Monday morning to you....

I spent the week-end in Salt Lake and was able to hook up with some friends and have lunch at the Sego Lily Restaurant. Forgot my camera but snapped a couple of pics on my cell phone. Always good to hook up with girlfriends. I spent Saturday bummin' 'round my old stompin' grounds at Temple Square then on to Traci's to help her out while Russ is in NC. Hope everyone out there in blog land is havin' a great summer. We are winding down and fall is in the air....it certainly was in Salt Lake. I even wore a jacket most of the time. Have a great Monday......

Soup's on....

.......and there's excitement in the air. It's my favorite time of year for sure and nothin' but good memories permeate this household as I make my first batches of tomatoe soup and remember the anticipation of getting the kids back where they belong....in school, back to some structure. So, as the soup simmers, I'm enjoying reminiscing the good ol' days and found some of my favorite pictures to share and hope you all have your school shopping done (nothin' like brand new white paper, just the right pencils and pens and shiny new crayons. I think I'll go get me some tomorrow). It was good raising my kids where they could walk to school with friends, play in the gutter along the way to and from school and enjoy the sense of neighborhood. Now, I seldom see any kids in the neighborhood but the feeling is here just the same and I may take a walk up to the top of the circle on the morning of August 13.....just to remember the good times.

It's been a summer of theater.......

.....(or is it spelled theatre?)......as I've seen Footloose at Tuacahn twice, Secret Garden in Cedar City, the dress rehearsal for High School Musical II and today, we saw one of the final performances of that show at Tuacahn and I have to say, there's no shortage of things to do in St. George and surrounding areas in the summer. There's still much more to see and do and many things I've missed but today was awesome as after Evan's birthday party at Pirate Island (a really, really fun place) we went out to see the culminating performance of George and Emily's participation in "Desert Stars", a youth theater camp sponsored by Tuacahn High School.

A few years ago, (18 to be exact) I also enjoyed theater.....more than anyone will ever know. I went to every rehearsal and watched from the dark balcony as the play "Oklahoma" unfolded. Kyle had tried out and made the part of "Curly", so you see, even though Kyle and JoEllen's kids get the opportunity because of her theatrical family, um.....I think there's a little (a very little) thespian blood on our side of the family as well. Whatever....... it was fun to see George and Emily perform. JoEllen posted it on YouTube at this site http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfjGOmgMn7E. Emily's solo is toward the end....and worth the wait. I do think we have a couple of stars in the making. I wish I could post a video of Kyle singing "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning" as he walked down the isle of the Dixie High Theater or even better, his rendition of "Poor Jud is Dade". Some reckoned he couldn't sing real good.....but he was a pleasin' to the eye so it di'nt really matter much.....if ya get my drift. Just for the record, all my kids except Mason were in one of Saxton's plays....Mason was in a little "Anti-drug Campaign" singing rap group in 6th grade....so there you have it. The Wells family is "steeped" (steeped is an adjective, saturated, pervaded, permeated, filled, infused, imbued, suffused) with theatrical talent (I hope you're sensing the sarcasm here). I'm looking forward to this next generation of performing.

Happy Birthday Evan.....

July has come and gone and tomorrow Evan will be 3 and he's become little "Mr. Independent". Growing up with a big brother and a big sister, he wants to fit in and do what they do whether it be bust a move with George or put on dress-ups for Emily's play....he's willing to try and so excited to go to Pirate Island for his birthday. He loves to dress himself, brush his teeth by himself (even to the point of kicking me out of the room) and not only thinks he's a "big boy", he truly is and brings a smile to my face whenever I'm in his presence. He's always got some pretty amazing stories to tell. A great big HAPPY BIRTHDAY goes out to Evan Kyle Wells tomorrow.

Oh, what do you do in the summer time.....

......when all the world is green. Do you ride in a car, and go not very far, up the road with your friends do you drive? Is that what you do, so do I. (I hope you are singing these words to the primary song). Debbie, Cynthia and I decided to go day-trippin' up the road to Mountain Meadows and it's amazing that the place is there and I know about it but I've never been there. We had some enlightening discussion on the Mountain Meadow Massacre as we stood by the monument (what an awful event in history) and then headed over to Debbie's cabin for a cool drink of water, more discussion on other more delightful subjects then over to Pinto then on home for lunch at Olive Garden. We're just three neighborhood gals that stay pretty busy but don't get out much so we decided to start gettin' out and seein' the beautiful country we live in and learn about it's history. It was a very excellent way to spend a hot summer day.

She chose Ed......

.....arghhhhhh.....and I certainly hope that none of you really watch this show but I couldn't resist an invitation to go to Colleen's finale party with Lauri and I was NOT disappointed. Season after season Lauri comes home laughing and so I decided to join in the fun. The group watches the show all season then it culminates in a very meticulously planned party complete with being greeted at the front door with a red rose as you are invited into the Fantasy Suite. (My camera's battery ran out or I would have had some amazing pictures). Dinner is served, goblets and all, and then the trivia question quiz with such questions as... "About how many times will Jillian say "a-boht" and "Will there be any man-tears?.....if so, who will be crying them and will they be tears of joy, or of grief and utter pain from within the walls of a limo?" What will Chris Harrison's rate of effectiveness be in helping Jillian suss out her feeling and make her big decision (10= Chris helping in providing total clarity, 0= Chris doing nothing but his usual stirring of the pot and muddying of the waters)? Then the game with the pictures of all the bachelors from the beginning, 30 in all to identify (I got 3 because I knew of Wes, the country singer that I liked from the first and I got his coaster so I had to write a poem about him and he was only in it for the publicity so he could become a country music star and I'll post the poem later in the blog). Oh, there were coasters all over the room with pictures of the bachelors (and there were lights and candles and great refreshments and hot dogs served for dinner because Jillian can tell a lot about a guy by how he eats his hot dog or something like that, I guess because I don't really watch this show unless I can't find anything interesting on KBYU .) No seriously, I knew Lauri and the crew were following it so I tried because I've had withdrawals since DWTS ended and I really needed something to get me through my lonely Monday evenings (only after my scripture study and delivering homemade bread and cookies to all my neighbors) but I have to confess, this show gagged me so much, I couldn't get through even 10 minutes of it. But, I figured I'd go to the party and enjoy Colleen's excellent hostess-ship (a new word kinda like the new one I learned tonight from Jillian, "rainforesty" as she described a beautiful place they were going to make out. (Oh, that gags me even writing about it) but the party was fun and Colleen did an awesome job so I thought it deserved a blog so, to Colleen......you are clever beyond words and it's "a-boht" time you got some recognition for your efforts. Here's my poem about Wes, that won the prize, by the way.......(did I mention his picture was on my coaster?) I'm Wes, Oh yes, and I'm the man.....I'm in it to win it, but not Jill..i..ann..A career's why I'm here, So hear my song. It's all about me & opportunity....Is that so wrong?

Hope you had a great 24th of July...

We're on our way down the road to the annual Wells dutch-oven cook-off sponsored by Mark and Marian. The turnout was a bit on the sparce side, but each family was represented and a good time was had by all. The dutch-oven dishes were varied again this year with no one, hear me.....no one doing dutch-oven potatoes. We had Thai Fusion by Jason which, by the way, was the winner in the "salty" category and an excellent peach cobbler by John and daughter winning in the "sweet" category .....(I think there was a bit of lobbying going on) but it was very good and of course, little George won in the "kids" category with his amazing Mac and Cheese that he put together with the help of his dad. He really did a lot of the work including spending the afternoon shredding a wicked amount of cheese and it was worth it in the end because he won ten bucks. It was lots of fun and the food was, once again, a....maze.....ing. Always is when it's a Wells event. These people know how to do it up good. I loved Mark's dutch-oven french bread with fresh tomatoes and the pull-apart bread, I think done by Gary. There was also some really good turkey and dressing but mostly it was good to be with family. Carin and kids drove up from Vegas and John came down from Alpine. Hope to see a bigger and better turnout next year as the stakes get higher every year. It's fun to see what everyone comes up with.

I don't have a pool or fancy toys....

......but I have a trampoline and it scares me to death when the kids are out there playing on it but I wanted to try something new and post a video and this was a really cute one and no one got hurt. Yes, there are too many kids on the tramp but they're havin' a good time. What can I say. I hope this works.

It's August, 1983....we're going for a ride in Pine Valley...

.....we see this "hunk of junk" along the side of the road with a "For Sale" sign on it and think to ouselves...."We've always loved Pine Valley, and would eventually love to own a cabin....we've just built a new home in a really "bad" economy....why not?......let's give 'em a call." Turns out the price was right, Mom and Dad partnered with us and it was ours the next day...none too soon. We've later learned there were many offers and I wish I could remember the exact amount we paid but we had a lot of work to do. Up to Pine Valley every day after work and on week-ends and after 26 years...a lot of hard work and a bundle of fun....here's what we have and I just got back from there and still count it one of my favorite places on this earth to be. The clouds were rollin' in as I was packin' up to go and I hated to leave but I know it will be there for me when I choose to return. I love my mountain home and the hard workin' men that made it a "haven" for me and my family. My sons are helping me out to take care of the place.....they bought a shed and got it up in a day.....in the hot sun so they could go back to work on Monday and appreciate their real jobs. It will house the lawn mower and all the junk we've gathered through the years as well as a recently acquired golf cart.

...and when the work was done, this is what he loved to do.

Our house, is a very, very, very fine house...

.......with two cats in the yard, life used to be so hard; now everything is easy, 'cause of you....

Those are some words to a song that I like and I never really knew the words but my life is easy because of my good husband and this house that he built for us 28 years ago. (and I actually do have 2 cats in the yard; I don't know who they belong to but they come around once in a while). Sometimes I get mad.....at my house and because he isn't here to help me take care of this house but I'm trying my best. I need to try harder but I love my house and it is a very, very fine house. I found a journal that Scott kept for a few years and read what he wrote about building this fine house so thought I might share it with you, whoever you are that reads this blog; hopefully some of my family will find joy in these words: "On July 15, 1981 we moved into our new home and spent our first night. It took 3 months and 7 days to complete the house. I figure total cost at this point to be $55,384.00. That’s for 1800 square feet completed with 456 square feet of garage complete and 1400 square feet of basement that is totally framed and will require approximately $4 - 6,000.00 to complete. I therefore figure I built a very elegant house for about $20.00 a square foot when the going rate for bid would be at least $35.00 and closer to $40 per square foot for the quality of house I own. During the last month I worked nearly 16 hours a day, 8 hours at the office and then 8 hours at the house. I did the sub floor particle board, hung some of the doors, did the base board and casing, painted the entire house, did all of the soffit and gables. It was a lot of work but very rewarding." And so I need you to know that I appreciate this house and I appreciate my husband for seeing that I have a nice house. This is the month, 8 years ago that he was dying and it is a very sad month for me but I'm counting my blessings and my 5 children and their families are at the top of that list but this very, very fine home is up there as well and I love it when this home is filled with those 5 kids and their families.