Groneman Family

My final blog post

2011-08-21T10:07:00.000-06:00

Google+ works much better as a family (& friends) conversational tool than individual blogs do. From now on I'll send Buff stuff via email and I'll be posting what I would otherwise post here to my G+ "Family" circle. I'll still watch your blogs if you decide to keep your own, but this is my final blog post here. So....replace your "Groneman Family Blog" bookmarks with http://plus.google.com and add me to one of your circles if you want to track the nonsense I usually spew forth around here. See ya on the other side..... Signing off. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hC_M6PzXS9g

Dastrup boys need these...

2011-08-17T22:58:00.000-06:00

Click here for info on cool utensils!

Lindy's blessing/family picture

2011-08-17T07:18:00.001-06:00

I just had to steal this picture from off Brett's blog so Buff can see. Our family on Lindy's blessing day in the Boren's back yard.

Foot-Baaalllll !!!

2011-08-12T15:15:00.001-06:00

Erica and I are anxious to cheer on BYU. So, we're going to the scrimmage at the stadium tomorrow (10:15 AM). Anybody who wants to is welcome to meet us there. It's free.

GO BLUE!

GO WHITE!

Emmy's first-ever dentist appt.

2011-08-11T15:26:00.001-06:00

Emmy did awesome in her first-ever dentist appt today. She got her teeth brushed, flossed, flouride brushed on, 2 x-rays, and let the dentist look in her mouth and count her teeth (20, if you wanted to know). She got to pick out a toothbrush, prize for being so good, and then she got a coupon for a free ice cream cone at Arctic Circle, which we used on the way home.

It was great because Chad went in first, and they called us back about when they were ready to brush his teeth, so she got to see that and that the chair wasn't scary at all and got to feel the tickle of the bush on her finger first before they put it in her mouth. The hygienists were so cute with her. She sat/lied down on my lap in the chair while they did everything. Let me just say it went 100% better than I thought it would, and she never cried once! :)

Oh, and if you were wondering, the dentist said her teeth look amazing and she's doing well. :)

To the mountain

2011-08-08T07:27:00.000-06:00

This past Friday/Saturday we headed to the mountain again. This time with Dastrups & Chad's family. Dastrups stayed this time, Groneman's didn't...which caused all kinds of consternation with little Emmy. After the hot dogs and smores she was expecting to go to the trailer go to to bed. Nope...her parents had other ideas (they had to help in the morning with a project to put down sod in the park in front of their house). When Emmy found out they were going home instead of staying the night she was not a happy camper! Grown ups just don't realize that when you go to the mountain you're supposed to stay the night! Jacob spent the night with the Dastrup grandparents and Brigham was working, but Christa, Benjamin, and Ty had a good time exploring, making squirrel houses, shooting bow and arrow, playing in the dirt. They stayed the night. We even tidied up a beach. Yes, we have our own beach now at the mountain. Sand to dig in, next to the stream. Christa built a little staircase going up and down to it. We had to re-route AGAIN (Chad and I did it before) the stream to not undercut a big pine tree. There is now a little (probably about 6 foot by 6 foot) sandy beach there. I love going to the mountain. I fixed a few more of the benches to put around the fire so now there is plenty of room to sit for everyone.......if some people don't mind having to dodge the smoke! There's something about roasting hot dogs over the fire that's just tasty and fun. Smores too. Unfortunately, we forgot to take our camera to the mountain this trip. :-\

Lindy's Blessing Day

2011-08-07T20:19:00.002-06:00

Today little Lindy was blessed...it was a sweet and memorable event that I wish that the Nelsons and Buffy could have attended. But don't worry-I thought about you, and I ate enough to count for you too :)
Kim will have to post some of the pictures we took of the event. It was fun to rub shoulders with Katies great family, they are some of the very best people I know. I kinda felt bad...it probably looked like we wanted to segregate ourselves from them while we ate, which was NOT the case. But there was a picnic table in the shade and I had on a brand new (questionably washable) shirt and so I needed to eat at a table where my shirt wouldn't catch it all (for us sloppy types). I thought I would go and mingle with the Borens when I was done eating, but then, when our kids decided it was time to head for our house, I needed to go with them...to let them in....and such. But I LOVE Katie's family! They are so gracious and kind about everything. I was able to make Lindy's blessing dress and several of them told me how beautiful it was. It did pick up the pink in Lindy's cute little cheeks very nicely, but that was Katie's picking of the material, not mine.

It was nice of them to put up with us at the luncheon this special day. Little Lindy was such a good baby, the blessing, everything that I would want my grandchild to be blessed with, and the food: Delicious. The company: PERFECT! It will be a warm memory for me, forever!

Hi Buff 2

2011-08-02T22:44:00.000-06:00

Nelson update here. I started a job at a nursing home last week. I've been doing orientation which has had me working a bit more than I'd like. Nursing homes, as you know, are understaffed. I'm the only nurse at all in the Alzheimer's and rehab unit which is a bit intimidating. But, the nursing home happens to be directly across the street from where we live. So, it works well with only being a 1 car family.
Steve is enjoying being a dentist and getting quicker with his skills. Lots of ward members have been to see him and beings that we live in a small town, we see his patients all over town. The other dentist (who is being fired) leaves this week and starts up a practice 2 blocks away. Steve is expected to miraculously change a very bitter and divided group of employees in that office into a great and friendly place. If anybody can do it, steve can.
Kiera and Lydia are still cute. They are the best of friends-- especially since moving here to Illinois where we still don't really have good friends for them. Their obsession with princesses continues. But their favorite game is acting out going to disneyland and riding on all of the rides (we pretend the stairs are Soaring Over Ca, the couch is Small World, etc.) I wonder how long it will take them to forget because i'm sick of that game!. We just finished 3 weeks of swimming lessons. I pulled Kiera out on the 3rd day because of her antics that I wasn't willing to fight anymore while trying to do a mommy-me class with Lydia.
Since everyone feels the need to post what they had for dinner on the blog, I will too: corn flakes with strawberries. I came home from work for my 30 minutes break and there was no food in our fridge. Cereal is always the dinner of choice in this situation (it beats eating ketchup).
TTFN

Hiya Buffaroonie

2011-07-30T10:04:00.000-06:00

Just to keep Buff in the loop, we were going to go to the mountain yesterday, but the monsoon rains are back again and people didn't think it would be worth it just to sit in the trailer and watch the rain. Don't blame them. So..we stayed home. We did the Highlands splash pad thing instead. For some reason, Jacob wasn't as thrilled with it as he used to be. He played in the water a little, but then wanted to sit on the benches. Ty had fun running up and down the river from one end to the other. He was also enthralled when one boy brought a monster truck and put in the river and let the current roll the truck down the way. I think Benjamin needed a buddy to play in the water with..he looked kind of lonely the entire time we were there. Emmy liked wading up and down but gramps had to kick water on her to get her wet (would I do that?!?)

After that we came home to Chinese Chicken Salad (from our recipe site). Jacob has lost his enthusiasm for movies in the basement...he wants to watch Benjamin play Wii.....and only certain games. If Benjamin is playing the wrong game, Jacob gets upset and cries and tries to get someone to change the game. It's a hard life being a big brother to Jacob. Emmy and Ty were up to their Bonnie & Clyde antics. They were in the back yard by themselves for quite a while and we found they had been in the raspberry patch picking all the raspberries....and as many green apples from the trees as they could reach (which isn't very far up). No, they didn't eat any, they just liked picking them. Lindy was an angel though...she didn't get in any trouble at all.

So far no 100 degree days. Got close a couple of times, but more often than when I've mowed the lawn it has sprinkled on me. The rest of the country can cook as far as I care as long as we get the cool summer! Well, we'll try for the mountain again next week if the moisture has left by then.

Sherman & Mr. Peabody

2011-07-30T09:51:00.000-06:00

The "Wayback" machine has been started. An until now unseen look into the past is available.....if you've added me to one of your circles in Google+.

Abandoning this blog

2011-07-28T09:02:00.001-06:00

Folks, I'm really considering abandoning this blog. Here's why:

Not only can I print my family "circle" stream in Google+, but it prints the comments as well as the posts. One point for G+, minus for blogger
I don't have to do an extra sign in and do captcha characters to post a comment on someone else's post
I can post private information, like when I'm leaving on vacation and not worrying about the wrong people seeing it. Only people in my family circle can see it.
We can do video chats with Cambrie right from Google+
It's really easy to integrate my pictures BUT WAIT....THAT's NOT ALL! When someone posts a comment on a picture it shows up in my G+ stream. I don't have to subscribe to anything extra to see the comments.
If you guys happened to move from your blogs to Google+ I (and anyone else in your circles) don't have to go to your individual blogs to see what you've posted. It comes right into my G+ stream (and yours, and yours, and yours.)
Nobody has to "subscribe" to anything. If you have a family circle with our family members in it, the "family blog" is just created automagically.
The calendar, wish list, recipe site,etc. are already integrated into it.
If I post something for the family that I also want to go to other friends, I just add that circle and voila! I don't have to keep things separate.

Ok..the downside of moving our blog to G+.

I can't customize the header graphic. Yet. (Big whoop).
I can't link to weather. Yet.
I can't put our calendar on it. Yet.
I can't customize what shows on my page. Yet.
I can't have it automatically email the stream to Buff. Yet (but she's only going to be gone a few more months and I can send her the info other ways)

As cool and easy as Google+ is to use today, remember it's still in the development stage. Google will integrate more things into it. For Christa's complaint that she doesn't want yet another page to have to go to...it's not another page. Worst case is that you stop going to this blog site and start going to Google+ site. One for one trade. Better, and more likely case is that other family members start using Google+ for their worldly communications and it actually reduces the number of sites you have to visit to keep in the loop. So, what concerns do you still have?

"When patterns are broken, new worlds emerge." - Tuli Kupferberg

Good times at the Mtn

2011-07-24T08:46:00.004-06:00

Friday night we went to the Mtn with Chad's and Brett's family. We had a great time, roasting hotdogs, pigging out and of course there were the smores that we ate too much of. That was little Lindy's first trip to the Mtn property...next year she will be making her parents extremely nervous as she tries to navigate uneven rocky ground while her parents hover and hope for no falls.
Emmy, who has been so excited to go to the mtn., was still so jazzed, way past her bedtime...that she kept popping up while Chad and Erica were trying to go to sleep, talking about it and how we could continue the fun in the morning. Cute little lady! I never saw such a cute and sticky little smore eater! Erica had the wipey ready to try to control the damages, so the pictures don't do it justice, but it was fun to watch. For those of you on Google+, you've already seen the pictures. Cool how it does that. For those of you sticks in the mud not on G+ yet, HERE ARE THE PICTURES

Brett and Katie brought up a fun new thing that we tried: Roasting bisquits on a stick! It was fun, and when you took them off the stick, you filled them with jam and whipped Cream and they were tasty too!

Sat. morning found us rock hunting for stepping stones for Chad's and Erica's yard. We found some good stones (we figured you guys could pick them up when you come today for dinner). And Kim worked at getting some of those benches ready to be of use. Erica and I tore out 1/2 of the old bench that we have been using for probably the last 20 years. Mostly rotten wood. I was able to get some of the messes cleaned up around camp too while Kim was gone to a water board mtg. It will be nice to have better benches and seating at the Mtn when Kim is done! Thanks honey. Good times. Which all of you could have been there...but we will be going up again soon!

pictures for Buff (sorry the rest of you have to see them again)

2011-07-21T19:29:00.001-06:00

Breaking up is hard to do

2011-07-21T07:44:00.000-06:00

Ever since I was a baby my parents would take me camping multiple times each summer. We always had a trailer and were always going and doing things in it. We'd tent camp too from time to time, especially when we started going to Canyonlands, but it was usually in a trailer. I still fondly remember waking up to the smell of bacon and coffee while sleeping in the trailer bunk. When Marilyn and I got married, family members gave us a lot of camping gear for our wedding (some of which we still have). We would just sleep out in the back of our pickup truck for a while, but finally bought an old used canvas tent at a yard sale. When Christa was a little tyke, we could finally afford to buy a trailer of our own. A used Prowler. We went camping quite often. It got sold when we moved to Virginia. We spent time camping at the mountain property too. When we got back from England, we bought Saundra's trailer and used it for a few years and then sold it back to her when, in 1998 we bought a brand new trailer which brings us to the present time.

Staying in a trailer is nice and we now actually own three. Two at the mountain and one in the driveway. I thought that, like Saundra's family, our family would like the tradition of Reservation Ridge each summer. Alas, it's not to be. I still really enjoy it, but this year was the first time we've used our Aerolite trailer in 3 years. Before that it was only once a year at Reservation Ridge. We've decided that licensing the thing and stocking it and pulling it up and down a mountain (and again with the ATV trailer) is just more money/bother than it's worth, especially since Marilyn doesn't like spending more than a couple of days there and kids rarely come up.

We have our trailers at the mountain which is where kids seem to like to go so we'll do more of that. Also, Marilyn and I both like to just take our ATVs to someplace and stay in a motel and eat at restaurants. That's what lazy old people like to do and I'm both. I can still take a tent to Reservation Ridge to spend some time up there with Saundra, but it's time to sell our Aerolite trailer. Goodbye old friend...you've provided us with a lot of good times. It's time to clean you up and put you on the market. I've really been in the mood to get rid of unused things lately. I sold the Canon camera & lenses and two metal detectors that haven't been used in years. It's hard to part with things I've really enjoyed, but it's time.

Brett & Katie

2011-07-19T09:12:00.000-06:00

(Happy Anniversary)

Water at Mountain

2011-07-18T15:56:00.000-06:00

Just talked to the guy that takes care of the water system at the mountain. The water still isn't on at our place. He says there's a guy working to fix a couple of bad leaks and he's not sure if the water will be on by this weekend. FYI.

Calling All Family..

2011-07-15T19:01:00.003-06:00

Let's do Sunday dinner this Sunday! Who is in? And then we will get organized....

Also, FYI: I just found out that there is a beach in Cedar Hills (or it my be No Pleasant Grove)! For real folks, and I think it is free! It's a pond with Fish, and I guess sand (cause kids were building sandcastles). And it is a whole heck of a lot closer than any other beaches I can think of. And we have life jackets... Anyway, we should check it out sometime.

An idea to throw to the wind and see what comes back

2011-07-15T09:14:00.001-06:00

I (and some of you) have been playing with Google+. I've been thinking it could be a viable replacement for this blog. Here's why:

Circles. You can create a "Groneman Family" circle (and a Dastrup/Kruger/Nelson/Boren/? circle) so you can selectivly share information. Post in one place, share with whichever circles you select. Only have something to share with this side of the family? Easy. Want to share something with both sides of the family? Easy too. Want to share something with family and friends? Just as easy.

Why is this a benefit? I no longer have to go to Christa's blog, Chad's blog, etc, etc. to see what's going on and we don't have to beg for you to post on our blog. You post once, share with whomever, and nobody ever needs to go to more than one place. (Your Google+ page).

Pictures. I can share my Picasa pictures and videas just as easy as I can share a "blog" post. Whenever I'm on Google, I'm on Google+ To me this really looks like the next step up in a family communication tool. What do you think?

Lydia's bad day

2011-07-14T20:44:00.000-06:00

This evening Lydia and Kiera were fighting over princesses in the other room (nothing new). Kiera decided to take out her frustrations on Lyida's head by hitting her over the head. We ran to the rescue as we heard this happening only to find blood dripping down Lydia's face and a large bloody area on top. (of course, head wounds always bleed tons compared to everywhere else on your body). Lydia was pretty darn traumatized and I was pretty upset with Kiera. About 10 minutes later I had just sat at the piano to try to calm down (and not do something rash to Kiera) when I heard Lydia screaming/crying from the garage. I went running because it was a very hurt cry. Lydia had been trying to open the garage door. the button for the door is about 6 inches away from the door itself. She climbed up on the back of a riding toy to reach the button and held onto the track of the garage door. As the door had gone up the wheels had gone over her 4 fingers. It removed some skin, left black tracts, and her poor little finger were swollen for a while. Poor little thing!
Later at bedtime when she was talking about her day she referred to the entire situation as her "bad dream".

On a completely separate subject: we found out today that an LDS physical therapist who was going to come to our area who has been looking for housing for about a month decided to not come on account of the housing situation. That is 2 LDS family that bailed for that reason in 2 months. THAT is how bad the housing situation is around here.

Things to do in Macomb...

2011-07-14T13:25:00.001-06:00

Planning on moving or visiting Macomb, IL anytime soon? You'll be sure to want to enjoy the activities the town has to offer...

Concrete update

2011-07-13T14:50:00.002-06:00

In case you care, they finally poured our concrete for our front walk today. The rest of the grass still isn't in, but slowly but surely our front yard is getting done.

Doncha just hate....

2011-07-13T07:32:00.002-06:00

Don't you just hate overfilled ink jet cartridges that explode all over your hands when you open them? Yea...me too.

I have a Boston Fern...anyone want it?

2011-07-12T19:49:00.001-06:00

Love, mom

Anybody wanna buy a digital piano, cheap?

2011-07-10T11:09:00.000-06:00

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&ad=16313991&cat=235
http://provo.craigslist.org/msg/2486779428.html

Steve & Cambrie finally used their credit at the Piano Gallery and got two pianos. I'm trying to sell this unit for them. My question is on their web site they say "Free Shipping"! Why did you guys haul yours in pieces in the back of your car?!?

Strawberry Days Carnival

2011-07-10T07:31:00.000-06:00

The CUTEST KIDS ON EARTH were at the carnival. CLICK HERE. for the pictures. Here are some samples for my darling little Buffalo to look at:

Christa....

2011-07-09T18:04:00.000-06:00

Neither your mother nor I can post comments on your blog. I suspect something is amiss there. :-( Some cute things to post comments about if we could.

Happy birthday grandma!

2011-07-09T17:14:00.001-06:00

Pictures to go along with Mom's description

2011-07-08T19:32:00.000-06:00

Here are the best ones which I've uploaded to Picasa: https://picasaweb.google.com/kgroneman/201107ReservationRidge#slideshow/5627143465068193922

Back from Camping

2011-07-08T17:57:00.002-06:00

Well, the Parental/grandparental units have returned. Good times were had! Amoungst other activities, these are some of what we enjoyed.
-WAY too much food/junk food
-ATV riding, although it was severely inhibitied this year by rain, and a gazillion downed trees. I never saw so many downed trees in my life-as you will see by Kim's pictures just a few of the downed trees.
-a new sport was enjoyed up there: Tree tipping. Yup. Kinda related to tractor tipping, only with trees. You find a dead Aspen and push on it until it tips over. FEEL THE POWER! Especially when it cracks and timber's. Just doing our bit to clear the forest canopy for alive stuff to grow!
-We took 3.5 mile walks on the same road that the cougar/bear had been on within 24 hours as evidenced by fresh tracks on freshly rained roads and their droppings which were fresh. But I wasn't too worried about the bears attacking cause I have my own bear to protect me :)
-we played LOTS of games
-I worked on my computer, read, and did other F.History kind of stuff.
-we roasted weeners, made and ate tin foil dinners and watched some GREAT lightening shows.
-We road on some HAIR RAISING roads in a thunderstorm, wondering every moment if someone was going to get hit by lightening, and went down Water Hollow Canyon sideways in mud so thick that I couldn't control my 4WD ATV! We are talking lots of adventures.

Next year hopefully you kids can come up and we can tend your kidlets while you go on some adventures too. But, since we had rain 5 days out of 7, maybe this wasn't a good year for it. And next year, I will be having a traditional 4th of July with my family in the valley...so hopefully we can do this adventure ahead of this years so it works to do both.

I am anxious to see my kids/grandkids now. Feels like forever since I saw you!
Thanks Brett for taking care of the lawns/watering etc. I think Mother nature about drowned my plants...something I wasn't counting on in July! Although, this year, I should have been!

2011-07-05T20:51:00.001-06:00

Jul 5, 2011

Lindy's Blessing Invite

2011-07-05T14:53:00.000-06:00

Free digital invitation generated with Smilebox

Katie and Lindy, July 4th, 2011

2011-07-04T22:28:00.000-06:00

Just a picture of a couple of pretty cute girls to share.

Brigham is well into the aging process

2011-06-30T05:21:00.000-06:00

Happy Birthday Brigham CLICK HERE

Only somewhat-interesting update

2011-06-28T19:19:00.000-06:00

I'm sure the minute details of my life are not that interesting to most of you folk. But they probably are to at least mom (maybe buff?) so I'll write them.
We've been crazily moving in over the past 2 days.   Our bathroom is now finished. the kitchen is finished other than the lack of fridge. The landlord is absolutely fabulous. He spent 8 hours here yesterday and today working his tail off. He HAD a fridge (more than $1000 new) but mis-measured and it doesn't fit. So now is is getting us a new one. But we are borrowing a mini-fridge from a ward member so we are surviving.
They are completely gutting our soggy basement and doing it again which will be fabulous. Landlord also tore out a ton of huge bushes and our sidewalk with the intention of stopping the flooding in our basement.
The house is great. The one thing I wish I had is more cupboard space. I'll have to put foods/equipment (like my bosch) we don't use much in the basement.
The other night we had a big thunder storm during the night. It was very noisy and I kept worrying that the girls would be scared, but they never woke up. It was tough to sleep through the noise but I managed.    The next morning the compassionate service leader from our ward called to "make sure you were ok and not too upset about the storm" Apparently, she as well as MANY others in Macomb were up most of the night worried about tornados and listening to the radio/tv.    I guess there were some sort of very dangerous winds that came through town and a very real potential threat. As she was telling me this I was on my way to walmart to buy breakfast for my family (currently having NO food). I made a mental note to buy a radio to keep in the basement to keep in case of tornados. I got to Walmart and put the first thing in my cart and the lights all went out since the power went out. The made us all go to the front of the store and I waited 10 minutes hoping the power would come back on but it didn't. I begged an employee to go and get me some milk for my starving children. The power was on a few hours later and I was able to buy food. But man, it is wierd and no-fun to not be able to feed your family. So there is my food-storage plug for the day.
Steve started work today and it went fairly well. He works tuesday-friday 6:30am to 5pm.
My girls have been making it IMPOSSIBLE to unpack everything. They fight like cats and dogs and are as grumpy as can be. I feel bad because their little world has been turned upside down, but there is nothing we can do about it. They are going to a babysitter tomorrow for 3 hours. Hopefully it will benificial for all!

Political: Considering Michele Bachmann as your next President?

2011-06-28T17:21:00.000-06:00

Throw in your ideas, even if they don't agree with mine. As Brigham said, it's the media that makes up our minds for us anyway. I can be persuaded.

I've been less than impressed with her because of the pure political blustering she constantly does, but this article on KSL brings it into focus: http://www.ksl.com/index.php?sid=16146886&nid=1013

The race is still early, but I'm leaning towards Mitt Romney for now though he seems like a tried and true, quintessential politician that holds to standard political ways.

On the other hand, Ron Paul's views would impress me if he was a little MORE quintessential politician instead of sounding like a kook sometimes. One of his views that just throws me for a loop is his insistence we legalize marijuana. Marilyn, you said you heard he was pro abortion but his web site indicates he is definitely opposite of that. Even with some of the things I don't like about him, I could get behind him if he ended up being the nominee (which I doubt he will).

Jon Huntsman - definite no. I'd almost rather vote for Obama. He's ridden his father's coat tails far enough.

Newt - Smart, sounds good, but way too much of an egotist for my liking. This most recent bout of his staff leaving isn't the first time. His dogmatic ways with people while speaker turns me off. OTOH, we may could use someone like that dealing with the rest of the world for a change.

Palin didn't impress me at all last go around because of her lack of knowledge. Flamboyant and charismatic, yes. Ready to be president, no. Some of the others in the race I just don't know much about.

I want to eat in somebody elses resturant!

2011-06-26T21:15:00.003-06:00

For some reason this wouldn't post yesterday...so I am trying again today. (My life seems to be like that!)
I have been craving a new recipe that Brett and Katie served us a while back: Chicken Tikka Masala. It is an indian dish that is just wonderful! So today was the day. I pulled it up on the family blog (thanks, Brett)...and copied and pasted it into Open Office and printed it from there. So as I am assembling it today, I was concerned right off the bat...it didn't look like it did when they made it for us...and it didn't taste right either. I went over and over the recipe to see if I had missed something...nope, it was all the way it read. Well, about 5 minutes before it was time to serve it and my family was hungry, I looked at the recipe on the computer and for some reason unbeknowst to me, the printer had omitted about 1/3 the recipe. Or maybe I screwed up...it had shown a second page when I did the print preview, but it was only another picture...no words, so I just didn't print it. Anyway...we did NOT have Chicken Tikka Masala and no one needed the recipe...but Christa was kind enough to take it home with her...and the rest of the sauce got tossed.

Don't worry, Buff. Maybe in 4 months I will learn to do it right so you can taste it when you come home...it is another one to impress people with, when it is done right.

The evening was saved by having most of my family around that I love. And Lindy was total make grandma smile again therapy! She is SUCH a sweet and good little baby! And I just totally ate up loving on her! And thankfully, the rest of my family knows how to make good food, so I still stuffed myself too much. Thanks for putting up with an old lady's attempt to cook, y'all!

2 funnies

2011-06-26T20:33:00.000-06:00

#1 today I was playing pretend with Lyida. I was the kid and she was the mom putting me to bed. Like she does I said "mom, I need a drink of water!!" She looked around and then came and leaned over and gave me a kiss and I was laying on the bed. She after the kiss she left a big ol' spit wad on my lips. Lucky for me: a drink. I was was laughing to hard to be grossed out.

#2. Nursery in our new ward is very...different. There are 5 kids and the 2 nursery leaders who are about 80 years old. They have been in the nursery for 17 years. The funny thing about the way they run the nursery is that they color the pictures FOR the kids. They have all of the coloring pictures pre colored, cut, and today even laminated with the kids names on them. I guess that is magnifying your calling : )

moving in status

2011-06-25T14:59:00.000-06:00

5 minutes after Steve purchased or hotel rooms for 3 days, our landlord called and said that we could stay at the house. Of course, the hotel is non-refundable.
So we've started moving in. the problem is that they are still remodeling. So, we can't put anything in the basement, kitchen, or bathroom (at all). And anything we put in the living room will be promptly covered in dust. So we have 1 room piled literally to the ceiling with boxes, and we've attempted to set up our bedrooms. But we've pretty much completed everything we can do until construction is done which may not be for another week. Since we have a hotel (that we don't need) we were at least excited to have a fridge there. but once we checked in they informed us that our room didn't have one (they ran out). So, it's out to the grocery store or resturant for every single meal. What a pain! I just want to have a house/kitchen/bathroom again!

Weather Gadgets

2011-06-24T07:37:00.000-06:00

Provo and Loma Linda have been dropped from the NASDAQ. Welcome Macomb, Sandy, and Lehi (closest thing to Saratoga Springs)

For Brett

2011-06-24T05:42:00.002-06:00

Thought you may enjoy THIS

TODAY ONLY....extremely cheap flights on SouthWest

2011-06-23T11:18:00.000-06:00

SouthWest Cheap Flights TODAY ONLY you can get a flight for $40 on SouthWest.

Lydia tidbits

2011-06-21T22:26:00.002-06:00

#1-- After our 3 hour drive to St. Louis, we saw our hotel and I pointed out that it was called "Holiday Inn" so that Kiera could read it off of the building when she saw it. Lydia pointed out "it's called Holiday Inn because we get to GO IN!!" (..and get out of the car!).

#2-- we went to Denny's for dinner the other night. Their is a nicely illistrated kids menu with pictures of all of the hot dogs, grilled cheese, etc.. Kiera promptly picked out her Mac and Cheese. but Lydia insisted on having "Mean Soup" (which is what she calls all soups since reading the children's book Mean Soup. She insisted that that is what she wanted. I thought she'd probably end up eating my omlet, or Kiera's mac and cheese, but I let her get it (the waitress was looking doubious about it too, pointing out that it is entre-sized). But, Lydia surprised us all and wanted nothing to do with anyone else's food. She devoured her Mean Soup. She knows what she wants!

#3-- we went to a science museum today and while in a food court steve took the ladies to the potty. I watched them take off across the food court in the direction of the restrooms with Steve in the lead followed by Kiera and Lydia. I saw it coming from a distance: Lyida dropped her pants about 30 feet from the restroom door and waddled like a penguin for about 10 feet before Steve turned around and fixed her modesty problem. I totally busted up laughing when I saw it happen and all of the ladies at the surrounding tables who were chatting quietly turned to see what I was laughing at and and they laughed too. I wished I had a camera!

Hike to a meteor crater

2011-06-21T10:03:00.000-06:00

http://goo.gl/maps/ESdQ is a meteor crater very close to where we camp at Reservation Ridge. From the road, it's a 1.64 mile hike up a canyon going from 7574 feet to 9928 feet (pretty steep) (Google Earth is cool) There is no trail. I wanna do it. It can't be any worse than hiking to Timp Cave. Does anyone want to challenge your old man/your dashing groom in this hike sometime this summer? If you have Google Earth installed and are interested, I can email you a file that lets you see the entire hike with a movable elevation indicator. I love living in Utah. People in Ill.....er....NYC eat your heart out.

Midwestern adventures

2011-06-20T21:05:00.000-06:00

Most of you have already heard about this, so this is more for Buff's benifit, but you can read it too : )
Me n' the girls arrived in Illinois after our long flights. Grandma had said goodbye to us in tears (silly grandma, we're not moving to the North Pole!). And when the girls saw their daddy and ran to him screaming "daddy!!!!" Steve cried too. People cry when they say goodbye to K & L, others when they say hello, and I feel like crying on the plane ride with them! (j/k).
The girls were very excited about the fireflies as we drove. It DID look quite magical. We arrived in Macomb at 10:30pm with 2 sleeping ladies. We slept at a ward member's house (we are not allowed to sleep in our new home until the 28th). Their house smelled like 1872 (much like all of the houses in Macomb).
We went to church in the morning. The people were VERY different from what I'm used to. Very poor, backwards, rotting teeth, improper grammar, etc.. Not everyone, but about half. But they were all very nice to us which is great and they seem to have a lot of activities together.
Kiera and Lydia have been VERY insecure since we got here. Not only are they fussy, and clingy, but Lydia took up sucking on her thumb on sunday and has been crying for a sippy cup (something she hasn't used for 6+ months. I decided not to leave her in nusery considering how insecure she was. I went with her for the entire time. The nursery leaders are a couple who look like they are late 70's early 80's. They have been in their calling for 17 years. Because of their age they can't get around very welly so they direct the nursery mostly from their chairs where they sit. Crazy! I was glad I was there to help.
Kiera has been showing her insecurity by acting up. Specifically she throws things, spills things on purpose and screams as loud as she can (her favorite). It is difficult to know what to do with her because I know that the reason she is doing it is because of her lack of stability in life. This too shall pass.
After church on sunday we went to see our new place. I was very excited to see it. It is perfect for us. As long as all of the promised changes are made, it is exactly what we wanted in a house. The basement is currently soggy, and it is still being remodeled so it is not available to us. but all of our possessions (other than the most valuable) are in the house which is open to all of the workers. I sure hope nothing turns up missing!
We are living in hotels until our house is available. So, we took off for St. Louis. Thank you Priceline.com! St. Louis is fun because they have sooo much to do with free zoos, museums, etc.. Today we went to a HUGE children's museum and were there all day long (I expected my kids would be done after 5 hours or so, but no). Pictures to come...someday.
We'll probably stay in St. Louis for a while since there is lots to do here.
I for one am also insecure as can be I realize. I'm sooo type A personality. I need to have order and organization, and a plan. I have no idea where most of my possessions are, we have only a vague plan. I'm SOOoooo anxious to be moved into our house!!

Kontemplating Kims Kamping Korse of Action

2011-06-20T08:18:00.003-06:00

Yer mom and I have been planning to vacation over the 4th as a just the two of us get away. It's been a while since we've been up to Reservation Ridge, and after discussions with the Thomas familiy, we've picked a course of action and have decided it's time for us to take our vacation there on the Ridge. I'm taking vacation from July 1st through 9th (yer mom's birthday) and taking our trailer up to Reservation Ridge. Not where we usually camp but right HERE where you see that little faint road going down into the trees. One stipulation we have with Saundra/Randy is that no kids/grandkids until July 6th or later. After that come on up! We can sit and zap flies, burn hotdogs & marshmallows, pick flowers, and ride ATVs. We'll be leaving our trailer up there for a while and splitting weekends between there and the mountain (where we dunno when we'll have a road and water). I've got a LOT of work to do to get the trailer ready as we haven't had it out for a couple of years and it's in sad shape. If you're interested in coming up, we'll need to set a day/time ahead of time to meet at the start of the dirt road where you can park your car...there are some bad ruts up further. Cell service is poor to non existant unless I drive to the top of a hill, which I can do from time to time to check on things.

Happy Father's Day!

2011-06-19T09:36:00.005-06:00

I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of the Father's in my family a Happy Father's Day! I know that Kim is not my Father but I greatly appreciate him in my life. He is always telling me how much he loves me, which is nice. He is a great provider, great GRAMPS to my grand children, great to keep our things up and running (our microwave no longer sounds like a brake that needs greasing this morning), and I just enjoy our time together. He is my sweetheart, my best friend and the love of my life!

And as for my sons and sons in law...what a great group of men! I am still SO GRATEFUL to Heavenly Father for blessing me and my grandchildren with such great dads. In a world that is such a mess, and there is so much evil and temptations out there to drag us down, my g-kids need EVERY advantage they can get especially loving and wise parents to raise them in the gospel and show them in example of how to live their lives righteously so that their children will know how to live to have happiness in their lives. Thanks for loving them, teaching them and playing with them and building strong relationships with them that will help them get them through those difficult teenage years ahead

I LOVE YOU ALL!

Nelsons have reunited in Illinois

2011-06-19T05:57:00.001-06:00

A sad day around the grandparents' house today. I was going to take Cambrie with me on an ATV trip but instead she took the girls and flew to Illinois. Interesting how I want to say "flew back" to Illinois. I wonder if that is a leftover from pioneer days when traveling East was "going back" to somewhere. Anyway....I've certainly enjoyed having Cambrie & her girls around. I never smile and laugh as much as when there are little ones around. I felt bad I didn't get to see you guys off at the airport, but I had already commited to Ken for the ATV trip. When I got home Marilyn was upset and crying because she misses you and thinking of you so far away made her sad. Maybe one day you'll be reasonably close. We can dream. Every time I see a Disney princess now I think of your girls. However, in the meantime I can't wait to hear about, and see your adventures in Illinois. I hope you post the minutia of your lives back there so we can feel connected. I miss you guys!

Family Trip 2012

2011-06-17T07:40:00.000-06:00

I was talking with Marilyn & Cambrie yesterday about our planned 2012 Alaska Cruise. When you figure it will cost each family about $3000 and take 9 days of having to take off work and get baby sitters, I'm thinking there may be preferable alternatives. So we got talking about the alternatives. The one that Cambrie liked the best was a trip to Moab. Not the Canyonlands trips of the past, but to Moab itself. Canyoneering, River running, Jet boat on the river, hiking, nice dinners in restaurants, etc. But she says she'd still like to do Alaska too. Another option we discussed was Yellowstone/Jackson. Ya see, I'll spend $3000 one way or the other. If we do the Alaska cruise, I'll spend it just on Marilyn and I. If we do something else, I may be able to spend some of it on you guys. What think ye?

2011-06-16T20:21:00.000-06:00

Went with Cambrie and girls to the mountain today. Here are more pictures: https://picasaweb.google.com/kgroneman/201106Mountain#

Celebrating a pretty terrific person!

2011-06-15T09:49:00.003-06:00

Yup. It is this Sunday is Father's day...and ya'll are invited over to dinner. I realize that with Katie's parents just returning they will not be coming....but please let me know if you will be able to attend for the rest of you all and then we will organize!

Midnight Visitor

2011-06-13T08:06:00.000-06:00

Two years old Two A.M. We had a middle of the night visitor. It has been a LONG time since we had a two year old climb in bed between us in the middle of the night. It happened last night. Yea, it woke us both up...but it made us both smile. It was a crisis though when Marilyn laid on Lydia's blankie.

Three little ladies

2011-06-13T07:17:00.000-06:00

It's hard to beat barbecue'd hamburgers. That's what we had yesterday. Num Num. A great summertime meal, though we didn't have the fresh tomatos or corn. We DID have fresh radishes from Emmy's garden however! (in the salad) The three girls played in the playhouse, on the swing, on the trampoline. It's interesting that the girls are enjoying the top part of the playhouse more than they ever have before. Earlier this year, the kids would play, but not together. They just kind of tolerated each other. Now they are *starting* to play together. At least what one does, the others want to do so it's a flock thing. It won't be long until they are heading off together arm in arm to get away from the adults and play. The mesh fence along the back is doing it's job. We don't have to worry as much about the little ones falling in the stream. It started out being a cool morning, but by afternoon the temperature was just right for being outside. The adults sat on the patio while the kids played. We miss you Buff! I'm already looking forward to a great holiday season with my Buffalo.

2011-06-13T07:06:00.001-06:00

The Yahtzee champion of the Universe has been determined. Friday night it was a duel to the death between Benjamin and Gramps. Benjamin took an early lead winning three games in a row when Gramps couldn't get the dice to cooperate. I still think the dice have some loyalty to Benjamin. >:-| Anyway, Gramps started making a comeback and one game before the last was within striking distance. Alas, it was not to be when Benjamin rolled a Yahtzee with all sixes in the last game of the series. Gramps' hope for the comeback of all comebacks was dashed. Benjamin won the title of Yahtzee Champion of the Universe. All is not lost though. Gramps will continue to train for the rematch when Yahtzee Champion of the Cosmos will be played later this year. You just wait Benjamin....you just wait!

Lindy Photos As Per Request

2011-06-12T16:02:00.001-06:00

Here's some purdy dern cute photos, if you ask me, as requested by Grandma.

Alaska Cruise

2011-06-08T09:41:00.000-06:00

Here's some info so you know a ballpark of what it will cost to do the Alaska cruise. I checked on the Royal Caribbean site (my favorite cruise line) http://www.royalcaribbean.com and for the absolute cheapest room on the cheapest dates it's $599 per person. (May 11th..there are other dates available) Keep in mind they will charge for two people whether there is only one or two. Silly to advertise that way, I know. So that's $1,200 plus tax per couple for the cruise.

We would need to fly to Vancouver BC on the 11th and fly home from Anchorage on the 18th. On travelocity.com the cheapest flights I can find that work for those days are $718/person. That makes the cheapest possible total of about $2,640 per couple. That's no shore excursions, no souvenirs, no cabin upgrades so you have a window. My guess is we'll be spending close to $3,000/couple minimum.

PARTY!!!!!!!!

2011-06-07T07:42:00.000-06:00

A lot has happened since the Nelsons' arrival. A lot of playing in the playhouse, trampoline, and swinging in the back yard. I put a mesh fence along the back to keep little tykes from falling in the stream which is running pretty high right now. It's working fairly well except Ty keeps trying his best to find a way around it. Saturday we went to the Dastrup abode and went to WHEELER HISTORIC FARM with everyone but Chad (sick) and Brigham (working) and Buff (mission). I thought the best part was when the little ones were looking out the window of the tree house and grandma would jump up from under the tree house and scare them. It was hilarious. Ty got to sit on a John Deer and he was in heaven. We saw turkeys and rabbits and a little tiny goat with a little tiny horn. Sunday the family came over for dinner..we had pizza... Chad was still sick so that arm of the family didn't make it. Brigham was still working and Buff was still on her mission. We did have a rousing game of croquet though. About mid way through the game, Katie fell behind the pack. Lindy needed feeding so Marilyn took over Katie's mallet. She stayed about a hoop or two behind for the rest of the game. Stevo finished first and was poison. Cambrie finished next. I finished next but was quickly eliminated by Steve who obviously doesn't really care about making amends for making me wear that tuxedo at the wedding. Anyway...to make a long story short, Marilyn ended up winning! Life just isn't fair. Marilyn walks around with a smile on her face these days just thinking about being able to hold Lindy...which she does at EVERY opportunity. Lindy sleeps a lot, but I've seen her awake more this last week than ever. Yesterday Chad was feeling much better so Erica invited the entire clan over for dinner and family night on short notice. Chinese Chicken salad. I ate it but didn't understand a word it said. The cousins ran around and played and played and had a great time together. It's so fun to watch them starting to be able to interact and play and have a good time. Give it another year and they'll all be best buddies. After we thoroughly trashed Chad/Erica's place, we left. Ya know, there's not quite anything that compares to being hugged by a two year old. To be continued......

FHE tonight?

2011-06-06T14:20:00.003-06:00

I'm making Chinese Chicken Salad (Krueger version) for dinner tonight. Anyone who would like to join us is welcome. Just let me know. We'll have FHE after. (We'll plan on eating around 5-ish.)

Oh, and if you come, feel free to bring a kite, since it is a blustery day. :)

Restaurant Review: Sean's Smokehouse BBQ

2011-06-03T18:23:00.003-06:00

Chad and I like to try out new restaurants, especially little local "mom and pop" shops. The other day we noticed Sean's Smokehouse BBQ near the Walmart here in Saratoga Springs, so we decided to check it out for dinner tonight. If we were to describe it in one word: "Hits the spot."

Very yummy and well priced (especially for a BBQ place). The total for all three of us (Emmy had a corn dog and fries) was $20.62. Chad ordered the pork sandwich and sweet potato fries. They have a whole bunch of homemade sauces to pour on top. He tried a really hot one and loved it (sorry, we can't remember the name of it). I had the Buffalo Ranch wings---YUM! I had BBQ Beans on the side--another YUM. I haven't had beans like them.

One of the owners (Sean) was out greeting all the guests going from table to table, and he gave us some noodle salad to try (good, but not what we were in the mood for). He said they make everything from scratch. No canned beans at all. The BBQ beans have 5 different kinds of beans in it, and he said it alone has won awards at cook-offs. He said he and the other Sean who own the place have other jobs (that he said he has no plans to quit), but they do this restaurant on the side. They started out just doing cook-offs together, then they realized they were pretty good because they kept winning, so they decided to make a restaurant. The atmosphere of the place is fun too.

So there you have it. We highly recommend it and would love to bring anyone there next time you're in our neck of the woods. We went out to support a local place, and this place definitely did not disappoint.

There has been a dearth of Family gatherings...

2011-06-02T14:25:00.002-06:00

So, I am wondering what will work best for the family to get together this weekend...Sunday would be my preferrance, but Sat works too. Can everyone come this Sunday for an afternoon of fun, cousins and food? If not, does Sat work? Waiting on feedback, and then we will organize food. Thanks ya'll! Let the party begin!

Nelson's are on their way

2011-06-02T07:29:00.001-06:00

My guess is you've heard of the Nelson's woes. Today the truck picks up their stuff and they will drive half way to Utah. Tomorrow (Friday) they will arrive at the parental units' house sometime before 3pm. PARTY! Except for Stevo who has the unenviable task of now trying to find a place to store their stuff and/or find a new place to rent since the lady in their new ward they were going to rent from was a total lie mouth who's word isn't worth 2 cents. [grrrrr!] Come over on Sunday and hear from the Nelson's themselves about how this lady is costing them around $2000 because the internet at the place she was moving to isn't fast enough so she is going back on her word and not letting them move in. [grrrrr!] I hope she feels REAL guilty whenever she gets mail in her mailbox for them since they've already had their mail forwarded there. Yea, the scriptures say we should forgive. I'm not that religious. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_giver

It's time

2011-06-01T19:44:00.002-06:00

Time for everyone to go in and update their entries on the gift wish list over there <---

Steve is graduated (repost)

2011-05-31T21:13:00.000-06:00

Today I attended an awards ceremony for Steve's dental school class. There were quite a few awards given out for all sorts of different achievements (academics, skills, service, etc.). Steve got an award from the California Maxiofacial Surgery something-or-other which included $250 which is always good. Basically, that translates to the fact that he is great at pulling teeth.

But as I sat through the long and boring ceremony and listened to the awards for hundreds of hours of this or that or perfect GPAs I thought to myself that Steve did something far greater with his time than all of his classmates: He was present as a husband and father in our home. He didn't spend every waking hour studying or trying to make a more impressive resume. He ate dinner with us every night, was there for bedtime prayers, stories, and singing. He doesn't get something to hang on his wall, $, cheering from classmates, or to shake hands with someone important for this; but I want to recognize him now for it.

Steve, we three Nelson girls appreciate the fact that you've been part of our lives for the past 4 years of dental school. Thanks for prioritizing us over excelling to the max. You are still an absolutely WONDERFUL dentist. This is your Husband/Daddy dentist of the year award.

I attended Steve's graduation on sunday. It was outdoors which was nice/Californian. I debated on if I wanted to bring the girls. I wanted them to know that Steve graduated and see what was going on, but of course I didn't want to wrestle them for 2 hours during it. So, we arrived and took pictures with the girls before it started and I took them to a babysitter. yeah!

I just finished a "goodbye party" with Kiera and Lydia and 3 little friends. It was interesting/difficult to throw it so close to our move. EVERY toy in the house is packed up other than about 10 princesses. We had Mac and Cheese in our only 4 unpacked bowls (lydia had to eat out of a measuring cup). The TV is packed up so we watched Tangled on Steve's laptop. We had a cake and we let them dig for candy in a mountain of packaging peanuts in a large box. Otherwise it was duck duck goose type of games. Total prep time: about 10 minutes (to go buy the $4 cake). It was a hit. We have about 38 hours until our truck comes.

Movie Review: Stand and Deliver

2011-05-31T09:05:00.003-06:00

Chad and I watched Stand and Deliver yesterday. It's a movie about Garfield High School (in East LA) in the early '80s and a phenomenal math teacher who significantly turned things around for the math students there.

We both liked this movie. I definitely recommend it (available for instant streaming on Netflix). It's based on a true story. I liked this movie a lot, mostly because it brought back many, many memories of my mission. There were MANY scenes from an area I served in for 6 months (Garfield High was in that area). Latino kids growing up in LA still have many of the challenges that were depicted in the movie. And still, even when the odds are against them and the "powers that be" don't believe they can achieve anything in life, some of them manage to rise above it and prove them wrong. The challenges and prejudices I witnessed nearly 10 years ago were even more than what they were in the early 80's (time of the movie). My heart reaches out to these latino kids, and bless those people like this amazing teacher who sacrifice so much to turn things around for them and show them there is a better life out there if they just work hard and shoot for the stars.

Just so you know, the movie has a lot of spanglish in it. That's really how they talk in East LA. I loved it and followed the jokes, etc. Chad said he could get the jist of what was going on, but I just thought I'd let you know.

Just so you know

2011-05-30T20:00:00.002-06:00

I loved returning from our little get-away and finding some great stuff on the blog. I wish you would also post your best stuff on our blog too, for our family history. Kim prints everything off on our blog, but it doesn't pick up your blogs posts...which when there is a big event like graduations, new jobs, terrific accomplishments and really fun stuff...it is tragic not to have it included!
Also, for whatever reason...maybe as a tender mercy for all of you who hoped it would be that way...the blog is not letting me comment on your posts. Kim doesn't seem to know how to fix it. ..so just know, I do try. I am just locked out...it takes me on an endless cycle of signing in and typing in the security name weirdness and then back to sign in...so. I give up!

Dear Benjamin - The Squirrel house

2011-05-30T18:03:00.001-06:00

The day before we went to Scofield I spent up at the Mountain doing a few repairs. I have to let Benjamin know, however, that the squirrel house needs a new roof so he had better make plans to go with me up there to fix it.

Memorial Day weekend at Scofield

2011-05-30T17:55:00.001-06:00

Another extended weekend at our friend's cabin up near Scofield. We went ATV riding a bit but got stopped by snow from going to the high country. It was still pretty to be out riding and seeing the trees and snow, etc. The weather was great the first two days we were there (Friday and Saturday). Sunday it started snowing and Monday morning there was snow on the ground and it snowed on and off. We ate a LOT (no kidding) of great food, played a lot of games, and just relaxed and shot the breeze with our good friends the Kirks. It was really enjoyable and was needed to recharge the batteries.

Pictures

2011-05-27T15:24:00.001-06:00

Sorry to Sister Buff who can't see the pictures. For your benefit: The pictures are of Kiera at the beach. She danced in the waves while singing at the top of her lungs for a good 40 minutes like she was the princess of the sea. It was so darn cute to watch her in her own universe. Lydia on the other hand decided to be scared of the waves and also the seagulls (reversed rolls?)

Book Review: "The Testiment"

2011-05-25T18:48:00.000-06:00

This is one of the best books I've read in a long time. John Grisham's The Testiment. An excentric multi-billionare businessman fools his spoiled rotton kids and just before he commits suicide, leaves his entire estate to an illigitemate child nobody knows about. She's a missionary living with primative Indians and doesn't want anything to do with the money. A drunkard lawyer sent to find her, is converted to Christ and has a situation on his hands he doesn't know how to deal with since his rotton kids are getting together and contesting the will. It's well written and from page one it's hard to put down. The ending is not what I expected. It's also currently sitting with my other books in the basement playroom ready to borrow. I'll read it again someday.

From Benjamin: Report

2011-05-24T17:24:00.001-06:00

I miss my parents. I am glad that they are coming back soon. I hope that they never go to Hawaii again. I am glad that they don't go to Hawaii every day...I am ok with it like once a year but not every week.

I am excited that school will be getting out soon. Here is what I plan to do: Go swimming, go to lots of BYU games, and camp with Gramps. That is all. Benjamin (This is actually one that Marilyn meant to post but hit the save as draft button intead...but it deserves posting)

Emmy Apr-May '11

2011-05-24T10:15:00.010-06:00

Shhh...the princess is "sweeping." (sleeping, in Emmy-talk)

At the park with a friend from her music class...
At her music class...

She decided to go and get big on us...	Painting (yesterday)...

Cool Clear Water

2011-05-23T13:36:00.000-06:00

I got a bottle of water at a meeting at work. I was looking at the lable. It is Nestle brand ["Pure Life" Purified Water (enhanced with minerals for taste)]. No, it's not chocolate water. It says it comes from a "Deep protected well, Ontario, CA". http://www.ci.ontario.ca.us/flippingbook/2009WQR/index.html says the city of Ontario's drinking water mostly comes from wells.

In other words, they are taking tap water there where Cambrie lives, running it through a filter, adding "Sodium Bicarbonate" (baking soda), bottling it and hoping people will buy it. Seems to have worked.

2011 - The winter that caused havoc at the mountain

2011-05-21T15:25:00.002-06:00

Today Chad and I took a ride up to the Mountain to see what damage there was and to do what we could. Of course, the road is washed out but man, you can't visualize the damage from a picture or video. Here's when we arrived: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ujqs_cr-X44 (When you watch these videos, in the lower right corner change to full screen mode and its MUCH more realistic)

We walked over down to the trailers and found a lot of water running under them like Ryan said...it's because the little stream that acted like a refridgerator was damed up so it couldn't run through the pipe. Chad cleard that out and got the water running where it was supposed to, and he dug a ditch around the front of our trailer, and that's no longer a problem.   We next walked over to the deck to find....a totally smashed deck. A part of a tree had fallen right on it and smashed it down. Here's the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfJNElmNkw0

We next walked down to stream below the landslide. You can see where it slid up the other side of the hill and damed the stream until the water must have broke through. Quite a bit of rubble downstream. Here's a video from below but again, it doesn't show how huge it is. As I pan to the right and you can see the bank next to the slide rember that it's about 7-8 feet high. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPSYnbEuCbE There's no way to repair that road by dumping dirt down it...it would just go to the stream and get washed away. A new road has to be built around it. Even the road that's left shows signs of sluffing off. There are big cracks on both sides of the slide area for quite a way down the road.   It's kinda scary. Where I parked the jeep there are cracks about 20 feet behind it that I didn't notice until I got out. It's really unstable.

Here's another shot from farther away: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pbe20aUSjAU

Here are some still pictures of the damage: CLICK HERE

I turned on the water but soon found there was damage to the water pipes by the bath house so we had to turn off the water again. I'll have to fix that next trip up. Oh..one other bit of damage. Somehow the mattress that was standing against the wall in the big trailer fell over against a window and shattered it. :-\ I'll just take up some wood and/or cardboard and duct tape to temporarily fix that with, then fix it permanently when I get time.   HOWEVER, it was sure beautiful up there. The air was clean and crisp and the sound of the clear flowing water and little bits of life springing out of the ground. It made me want to spend a week.

Movie Review: Stone of Destiny

2011-05-20T20:52:00.003-06:00

Erica and I just finished watching Stone of Destiny. Both of us liked it more than normal, so I thought we'd give it a spot here on the blog.

The movie is based on a true story, and it's a good story. It revolves around a stone. The stone was taken from the Scotts in the 12 or 1300's or something like that, and it has special meaning to the Scottish people. It was eventually placed in Westminster Abbey. In the 50's, a small group of college-aged kids in Scotland decide to try to steal it back.

The movie is somewhat reminiscent of The Italian Job, or Ocean's 11. It's pretty clean, too -- Not perfect, but much better than what you'd see by just turning on the TV to a random station.

Erica and I both had a bit of trouble getting into it at first, because we were having a hard time understanding the Scottish accent, and in a couple of places the background music overpowered what the actors were saying. We never were frustrated with it, but it did make it hard to get into for the first little bit. After a while, either the actors were less careful with their accents, or we became more accustomed to it.

Next time you're in the mood to watch a movie and are wondering what to watch, give this one a try. If you have Netflix, it's currently available instantly.

End of the world

2011-05-20T11:33:00.002-06:00

Does THIS mean the party's off for Christa's birthday next year?

I Love STEVEN Nelson

2011-05-19T15:55:00.000-06:00

Steve is officially done with all school/clinic. Only about 20% of Steve's class is done with their clinic. At our graduation dinner last night there were 7 dental students at the table. Steve was the only one of them who gets to be done after graduation. The rest have to continue for at least another semester. Also, Only have 20% of Steve's class have secured jobs. The rest have no idea how they are paying the bills come July. I SOOOO glad steve is done and that we have a secure job to go to! I'm so proud of Steve.
I'd like to point out that Steve has a 1 1/2 inch pile of dental school rejection letters (All because of a C in Chemistry). 4 years of applications to get in. Does any of that matter now? Not one bit. Steve is going to ROCK as a dentist. Wanna know why? Tough, I'm going to tell you: Beyond being good with a drill (which he is) Steve has the most amazing inter-personal skills. Since Steve's C in Chemistry automatically disqualified him from getting into school using the what-you-know methood, he decided to use the who-you-know method. Steve became great friends with the admissions committee and lo and behold, he got in. Now when I say great friends I don't just mean I-really-want-to-be-your-friend-so-I-can-get-into-school type of friends. I mean the type of friends that for the past 4 years Steve has been their right-hand man. He does them favors all of the time, and knows what is going on in each of their lives. They ask his opinion on who should be let in to successive dental classes.
More examples of my husbands skills:
1. Loma Linda housing had a 6 month waiting list when we decided to last move. Steve went into the office and made friends with a lady who is much like the old-ornery lady on Monsters. He discovered she was a 49ers fan... what do you know, we were bumped to the top of the waiting list and we secured a house that very day.
2. Normally after you graduate from a professional school you have to send in your transcripts to the licencing agencies and it takes 4-6 weeks to process it and then you can finally work. Steve got ahold of the head guy over all medical licencing for the state of illinois. After Steve made friends with him he promised Steve that he would have his licence in TWO days after receiving the transcripts.
3. Many of Steve's patients that he saw in dental school absolutely love him. In fact. Many drove long distances (an hour) to come bring him a good-bye gift or to come just say goodbye.

Steve is awesome. I've been trying to be better my inter-personal skills like him, and I've changed quite a bit since we got married, but I still have a LONG way to go. He is the living walking example of the book How To Win Friends and Influence People.
Good job Steve. Aren't you glad I put this on a family blog and not on our Nelson blog?

Nelsons in Utah

2011-05-18T10:19:00.000-06:00

Look at the calendar over there <---- for when the Nelson's will be arriving. Dunno how long their stay is as it depends on how long it takes to get their stuff to the land of road kill stew.

Tip when buying ground beef

2011-05-18T10:17:00.000-06:00

My friend Danita posted this and it was one of those "Oh..good tip...I didn't know that" kind of posts. If you buy ground beef in a place that grinds their own, look at what meat is on sale that day and you know what makes up most of the stuff they grind on site:
------------------------------------------
From: "DZanre"
Subject: Ground Beef (Mince for the Brits)
Date: Wed, 18 May 2011 15:29:24 GMT

So, I try to be pretty cautious about buying ground beef primarily due to e.
coli issues. But other meat packing practices make me leery of some of it due
to not knowing "just what's in there". I even have a meat grinder attachment on
my KitchenAid Stand Mixer so that I can grind my own on occasion.

So, yesterday, Dominique and I were at Safeway, and this young butcher saw me
looking in the meat case and asked if he could help me. So I asked whether they
grind their meat on-site. In case you don't know why this might be important,
typically ground beef in the US comes from these huge packing plants, and if a
batch gets infected with e. coli, it can literally infect thousands of pounds of
beef being sent to stores in a large area. If a local store grinds it, it
doesn't necessarily mean that there won't be e. coli problems, but the affected
customers will be a smaller group.

So, anyway, the butcher told me that for the Safeway stores in Colorado (or at
least the ones that are distributed the same way as our Parker store), the 90%
and 95% lean beef are done in the plant and delivered to the local stores in
these huge tubes. They then "regrind" the meat to make it look fresher - gah!

BUT the 80% lean is ground right on the premises using the meat scraps from
their cutting. The local stores DO cut all of the steaks, roasts, etc. from
sides of meat. We were standing in front of the "specialty meat" counter, and
he walked me over to the packaged meat section and pointed at the 80/20 ground
beef there and said that this meat was the best they had in the store today
(fresher than the meat in the specialty counter even) and that their 80/20 grind
is always the trimmings from what they are cutting that day. He said the way
you can get the best ground beef at Safeway is to look at the beef cuts that are
on sale that day, because that's what's going to be in the 80/20 overall.
Yesterday was top sirloin steaks and ribeyes, and since they are cutting a lot
more of the sale items on a given day, the percentage of what's in the ground
beef is always high on the sales items. He also told me that they never use
organ meats, "pink slime" and other gross stuff when they grind their 80/20.
Makes me feel a little better about it, but grinding my own still seems safest!

Mountain Property Road Gone

2011-05-17T06:42:00.002-06:00

Also, Ryan says there is water running under ours and Grandpa's trailer so it looks like I need to get up there after it stops raining this weekend and see what I can do. These videos are of the road as it starts to go down to the property after the last split (by the lightning rod).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zljkNgj4ZIE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_B8DNdX0X4

Utah Music Video

2011-05-17T06:19:00.000-06:00

A cool music video shot in Utah. Mouth of Spanish Fork Canyon (wind farm), sand dunes, etc. Not a bad song either: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URR_4i5gIFU&feature=share

Typing Test!

2011-05-16T11:40:00.002-06:00

I got 79 for my first try on the Wizard of Oz one...
Game on!

The Rapture is this next Sunday!

2011-05-15T16:56:00.002-06:00

That is what I learned in Relief Society today! The teacher reported that after much study of the book of Revelation and deep and laborious calculations that according to the (was it ?) Baptist church that the rapture will happen one week from today!

So, folks! This may be your LAST warning to repent and get your life in line or that light that you see at the end of the tunnel coming at you may well be a train!

One other thing. Brigham, I hate to disrupt your R&R in paradise, but maybe you better brush up on your flying a 747 basics, you know, in case your pilot is the one taken. Course, I would guess that you and Christa will be included in the few who are taken...so maybe you don't need to worry about it so much....it's those poor unrepentant souls on the plane that need to worry!
:)

Ah! The things that we learn at church!

Cambre/Steve - You can now save a LOT more money

2011-05-15T09:49:00.000-06:00

Cambrie, no more wondering what to fix for dinner and no more worry about tha grocery bill. Living in Illinois will DEFINITELY have it's financial advantages. I'll be Steve won't even be longing for In 'n Out. This is just fantastic for your family all the way round. Read about it HERE.

Pictures

2011-05-09T23:06:00.001-06:00

Diney the dino takes a nap.

Maybe it helps to put the box on your head while doing puzzles.

Waiting at disneyland. Brrrr 65 degrees!


	Lydia insisted on red socks today. Ugg. I think I'll toss the red socks so they won't be an option next time.

Happy Mother's Day to my sweet Daughters!

2011-05-08T19:35:00.007-06:00

And yes, that includes my sweet Katie and Erica too! I just wanted to say thanks for being such great little mothers to my special Grandchildren! It was really fun to get to share it with Christa and Brett's families, and I got to TALK and SEE my missionary Buffalo! Skype is Great...even if she was totally pixelated! She looks good an sounds good, and the next time I see her live, will be at the airport!!! But I am glad that she still has 6 more glorious months of serving the Lord! And the lives of those who accept the gospel message that she brings will be better forever! Find some for me too Buff!

Christa organized a fabulous meal complete with NUMMY Alice Springs Chicken, Grilled Artichokes, and strawberry cheesecake...and Katie brought Coconut rolls, which were very nummy too! I got to hold sweet little Lindy, and mostly Brett and Kim did a boat load of dishes for us, so all in all I would have to say that it was a pretty terrific day!

Chad came over for a little while to with a nice gift. We missed Erica and Emmy, but it's like I spent forever teaching my children , "We must share...." And we have been a lot hog-gish with them lately. But I hope you all had a great mothers day too. We missed the Nelsons and their little princesses, but we hope you had a great mother's day too!

And after years and years of wondering if what I was doing to try to raise good kids would be enough, it is nice to know now ...that it was enough. I couldn't be happier with you kids or your spouses! I am grateful to the Lord (who heard and answered many prayers concerning you kids as you grew up) for inspiration and answers to heartfelt prayer when it was most needed as a mom...and for sending me good spirits in the first place! But without the gospel, in this world, it would have been a futile effort even then, but moreso now. Thanks for taking such good care of my grandkids and give them a kiss from grandma! Loves to you all!

Speaking of manure

2011-05-07T12:15:00.000-06:00

Brett sure did spread a whole lot of it around here the last couple of days.....

Lydia tidbits

2011-05-06T22:42:00.000-06:00

This morning the girls and I were playing princess-have-a-party where at they have lots of delicious foods. So we were having fun listing the foods at the party: "cupcakes! pumpkin pie!" "Cheetoes, jello!" "Cookies, candy!" And Lydia chimes in with her I-have-the-GREATEST-idea voice. "I know....Broccli!" As if it was the ultimate goodie for a party. Yep, she loves that stuff.

As all siblings do, my children have a tendency of taking toys from each other and not sharing. We've been working on problem solving and sharing in a variety of ways. One option I've taught my girls is that if someone wants something that you have, you find something that you have and trade it with them. So while playing with toys today Lydia tried to take something I had in my hands and I told her we can't grab things from people and that mommy was holding it for a minute. She looked around her immediate area and found a piece of stray stuffing from a stuffed animal (I need to vacuume) and said "here mom-- lets trade!" At least she is getting the concept....a bit.

I'd like to thank mom for her recent gift of dinosours to us (after my girls watched The Land Before Time at her house). We particularly have fun with the T-Rex. He is mean and ugly looking and the girls think it is absolutely hillarious when I pretend that I'm in love with "Diney the Dinosour". or I pretend that Diney is a cute baby and they are laughing histerically. Diney sits in our window to watch us leave and come back when we go places in the car and, of course, that is hillarious too. Thanks grandma for the dinosours. We are getting good use out of them.

Manure Map

2011-05-04T10:06:00.001-06:00

This is an addition to what Brett previously posted.

Call before you go (801-571-5592), really just to make sure they're okay with it.

View Manure Map in a larger map

My kid in Laws

2011-05-02T08:40:00.000-06:00

Today Brigham is off taking another board test. Steve passed his a couple of weeks ago. Erica and Katie are providing exceptional homes and upbringing for those cute little girls of theirs. Not only are Brigham and Steve providing the necessities of life for their family, but they're doing it in grand style...way beyond what the normal is these days (and way beyond what I ever did). Erica and Katie are being the mothers beyond what the normal expected for these days is. I don't celebrate your accomplishments more than just a pat on the back of congratulations but I want you folks to know that I am ***SO*** proud of you and have grown to love you since you've merged into our family. I wanted to wish Brigham the best of luck today but I know he doesn't need it. I've just got the BEST family I could ever hope for.

For Lydia

2011-05-01T08:47:00.000-06:00

When Lydia was here last she was always pointing to the kitchen window and asking us to make the sparklies go. The problem was the sun never shown in the mornings while she was here. So this video is especially for Lydia: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yc8eEH7_BY

My dental experience

2011-04-27T15:14:00.000-06:00

So, as you know, we've been dentist hopping. Also, for the last few years (actually, since we were in AF) the hygenist (when we've had one) has told me I have Gingivitis and have bad "pockets" on both sides of my mouth. I've brushed, flossed, and even mouthwashed with special expensive mouthwash to help it out...to no avail. I was expecting to get chastised by our new hygenist when I went to the new dentist yesterday. Nope...she says I'm fine...in fact my gums look very good and healthy. Not even any hint of pockets. Imagine my surprise since I've really REALLY cut back on the flossing (even though those new flossing thingys make it much easier). I wondered what caused the turn around? I've basically made two changes since I went to the dentist last. First, I rinse with just plain old cheap mouthwash every night before bed (I'm sure Marilyn appreciates it). I also use the WaterPik I bought for Marilyn about twice a week (to clean under her bridge). When I told the hyginist this, she told me a WaterPik is great for dental hygine. But she's surprised I don't floss that much because my gums really looked good and still told me I should floss more. :-\ Oh..one more thing. The tooth my previous dentist told me needed to be capped (after he put 3 other caps on my teeth on previous visits)...no problem. The dentist says it's fine though it has a "watch spot" on it. Man, it REALLY makes a difference which dentist you go to. It's worth the drive to Provo. Thanks again Stevo! Anyway...that's the bedtime story for this evening. There is no moral to this story but it does have a happy ending. You can go back to whatever you were doing before I wasted this 60 seconds of your day.

Remember, Mothers day is coming

2011-04-27T12:22:00.000-06:00

After all these years, I think I *know* what your mother would really like: http://bit.ly/l0CLD5

Request for recipes

2011-04-27T08:42:00.002-06:00

So I've been getting out of my cooking funk by trying out some recipes on the family recipe site. It's been fun, and yummy too! I have a few requests of food I've eaten at your houses. If you're willing to share the recipe, please post them on the fam site and we'll probably be having them over here sometime in the not-too-distant future.

--Christa salads (I know you probably just throw them together, but they're delish!)
--Tilapia (we had this at the Nelson's house a while ago)
--Christa Quesadillas (You add something like spinach and something else, right? We had these at the Nelson's house too and it was a nice change to the regular quesadillas we're used to. We add All Season Salt to ours.)
--Marilyn Spaghetti Sauce-for canning (We plan to can this this year using the tomatoes from our garden--assuming we have long enough of a growing season to get a lot of tomatoes!)

Movie Review (Netflix Recommendation): Arranged

2011-04-27T06:42:00.000-06:00

Yer mother and I watched (and liked) this one last night via our Wii from Netflix:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0848542 "Arranged" is about two young female school teachers in NYC, one Jewish, one Muslim. The movie deals with social mores, prejudices, etc. Though their worlds are far apart, they find they have one thing in common: Their families are arranging their marriages and they bond a friendship and help each other. It is mostly serious but has a few funny moments. Worth watching.

Easter Day 2011

2011-04-25T07:16:00.001-06:00

The Easter bunny came last week while the Nelsons were here so there weren't any eggs to find (though I found one Saturday while mowing the lawn and promptly snarfed the malted milk balls inside). We thought we were gonna have a lonely Sunday just relaxing around the house....then....it was a miracle!. Dastrups and the C. Groneman and the B. Groneman families showed up and we had a nice ham dinner, apple pie, and played in the back yard! Coolness. This time we were missing Buff and the Nelsons, but managed a good time still. This past week we bought a safety net for our trampoline (we have too many kamikaze grandkids!) and it was nice to just let the little ones jump around without having to worry about them falling off. For some reason Emmy had issues with the 5 inch gap between the trampoline and the grass and kept calling to me for "Gramps! Help!" but by the end of the day she got over it by gingerly crawling across it. She probably inherited my and her Dad's fear of heights. Ty was walking back and forth over it all day like it wasn't there. Of course he would throw himself against the netting and fall back on his behind and just laugh. Silly us...we totally forgot to put down the rope swing so the kids could play on it (thwack my forehead). Thanks for the good times. Oh...and I forgot....no doubt about it, Katie definitely does NOT like rhubarb. No she doesn't.

Cambrie, for you:

2011-04-24T14:52:00.000-06:00

THIS is what you need for your fish.

2011-04-22T23:08:00.001-06:00

Cambrie is as old as Gramps!

2011-04-21T07:00:00.001-06:00

Happy birthday old daughter of mine. How does it feel to be as old as I am. It's strange these days to have half of my kids as old or older than I am. Oh well, I suppose I can deal with it. 29 is a special age....I should know...I've been 29 for years now. Anyway...I miss you and your family. It was a sad day around here yesterday. I'm glad you & Steve can be together for your birthday though because you should spend special days with the most special person in your life. I hope your birthday is a good one!

Thanks for the party, Grandma and Gramps!

2011-04-19T15:40:00.015-06:00

Pictures of Buff

2011-04-19T05:42:00.002-06:00

Here's some photographer's pictures of the Atlanta temple open house. I can find 3 pics of Buff: http://www.ctrlds.org/album91?page=1

FHE at the Chad Groneman family's house

2011-04-18T21:39:00.000-06:00

Thanks Chad and Erica for inviting us over today. Me n' the girls had a lovely afternoon,\ evening at Emmy's house. Erica pointed out that we rarely have time to talk to each other at large family gatherings because there is always too much going on. It was nice to have some more personal time with the Gronemans. The 3 munchkins got along fabulously. After about 15 minutes of them being downstairs in the basement I decided to go and check on them. I went down to discover them completely covered in dirt. Chad had swept their basement floor into a lovely dirt pile which the girls were rolling, stomping in, kicking and throwing. They were all filthy (I wish I would have had my camera!).
We had a nice dinner of Raspberry chipotle chicken which was very good and then we have a nice FHE about the meaning of Easter. After the lesson it was hide-and-seek followed by icecream. It was fun to do FHE with someone else (I'll have to do that more often).
It was fun to see Chad and Erica as a "real life" family with daddy coming home from work and them having dinner together in a house that they own. Maybe steve and I can be a real family someday ; )