MEMORIAL DAY

Today is Memorial Day a fun three day holiday for many people. It's a time when families gather and place flowers on the graves of their families members who have died and are buried in near by cemeteries. If you don't live where your family is buried, as many of us don't now days, it is still celebrated with families and Bar-B-Q's (if weather permits.) It is also a day when many American flags are put out in honor of our military men and women who have died fighting for our country. I remember when I was a little girl "Decoration Day" was a time of gathering for family and friends up at our little cemetery on the hill. Lilacs and snowballs were gathered to put a few on each grave. We cleaned off the weeds. It was also a time of visiting with old friends who had come to town to tend their graves, compare notes and maybe not see them again until this time next year. The family would have a picnic dinner in our yard and really take advantage of the gathering. We did not know Bar-B-Q's as we do today. A Bar-B-Q is really just grilling meat on a grill, then dousing Bar-B-Q sauce on it. A serious Bar-B-Q is a hole in the ground with a whole animal cooked in it for many hours. But who cares how or what, it's all good and summer says lets eat on the patio. I'm off to Pannier this afternoon for just that.

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our Nations service. I am not sure when Memorial Day was started or where, but Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on May 5, 1868 by General John Logan and first observed May 30, 1868 when flowers are put on graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. Soon it was a holiday to honor any one who died in any war. It is the last Monday in May passed by congress as a National three day Holiday in 1971. A drive through any cemetery today is a delight to the eyes........we have not forgotten those family members and friends who are gone.

Time to pack up & go...............

This is the weekend that signals it is time to pack up and go somewhere.........any where. How well I remember those days. School is out for some so the long weekend continues into the summer months, for some who work it is just a nice long weekend. I always loved and looked forward to heading out to Southern Utah, home to Colorado or to our cabin in Wyoming as this signaled a time to escape the long winter months and being tied down to the school schedule. This weekend one daughter's family went to Bear Lake, One is packing for their boat in Lake Powell and the third is home here only because the new floor being laid in St George did not get finished. I would have loved to have gone somewhere, if I could have just snapped my fingers and be there, but the thought of long spells of sitting in cramped positions, not having room to take what I think I need and the new prices for everything makes me think twice. I have been lucky and traveled the world all my life but feel it's about time to hang out my "DUNROVIN" sign. Unless you are one of the lucky few who can afford to fly first class, the hassles and expenses involved in traveling these days make you stop and say, "how bad do I really want to go?" Mr Wharton nailed it when he wrote "It's bad en0ugh that prices are up, most planes are full to capacity and you are nickeled and dimed to death with service charges for things like meals, pillows and luggage. You almost have to do a striptease when clearing security!" I am tired of worrying if I have 5 ounces of shampoo when I am only allowed 3 ounces. Delay, delay, delay and lost luggage. If you miss a connection it only means more delay and long lines. In the past I never worried about hurricanes, tsunamis, volcano eruptions or earth quakes so big they become disasters that affect flights all over the world. The threat of terrorism in many parts of the world is no joke...........I once had the opportunity to visit the sight of the plane crash that went down in Lockerbe Scotland, that brought terrorism home to me. But, I have learned in my many years, "never say never" and with all the hassles of traveling, if and when an occasion arises that entices me to pack up and go somewhere, I probably will. I just have Gypsies blood in me and when the North Wind blows I get the urge to "pack up", but more and more I can talk myself out of it. I hope all the brave souls out there have a Happy Memorial Day weekend.

WHAT MADE ME "ME"

The little brown house on the left is my Grandparents Goff's home where I was born and my mother raised. The big white house down the street, on the corner is where I grew up..........The place that made me "me'. I had wonderful parents and four siblings and it made it a house full of love. Mancos, Colo was a small town and everyone knew everyone. I graduated from high school in 1950, so this was my home in the 30's and 40's. As I look back I see the wonderful things that made me "me", and as they say: Long ago and far away, in a land that time forgot, Before the days of Dylan, or the dawn of Camelot. There lived a race of innocents, and they were you and me. Ike was in the White House in the land where we were born, Where navels were for oranges, and Peyton Place was porn. We learned to gut a muffler, we washed our hair at dawn, We spread our crinolines to dry in circles on the lawn. We longed for love and romance, and waited for our Prince, And Eddie Fisher married Liz, and no one's seen him since. We danced to "Little Dalin" and sang to "Stagger Lee" And cried for Buddy Holly in the Land That Made Me, "Me". Only girls wore earrings then, and 3 was one too many, And only boys wore flat-tops cuts, except for Jean McKinney. And only in our wildest dreams did we expect to see, A boy named George with Lipstick, in the Land That Made Me "Me." We fell for Frankie Avalon, Annette was oh, so nice, And when they made a movie, they never made it twice. We didn't have a Star Trek five, or Psycho Two and Three, Or Rocky-Rambo Twenty in the Land That Made Me, "Me." Miss Kitty had a heart of gold, and Chester had a limp, and Reagan was a Democrat whose co-star was a chimp. We had a Mr. Wizard, but not a Mr. T, And Opra couldn't talk yet, in the Land That Made Me, "Me". We had our share of heroes, we never thought they'd go, At least not Bobby Darin or Marilyn Monroe. For youth was still eternal, and life was yet to be, And Elvis was forever in the Land That Made Me, "Me". We'd never seen a rock band that was Grateful to be Dead, And Airplanes weren't named Jefferson, and Zeppelins were not Lead. And Beatles lived in gardens then, and Monkeys lived in trees, Madonna was Mary in the Land That Made Me, "Me." We'd never heard of microwaves, or telephones in cars, And babies might be bottle-fed, but they were not grown in jars. And pumping iron got wrinkles out, and 'gay' meant fancy-free, And dorms were never co-ed in the Land That Made Me, "Me." Hardware was a box of nails, and bytes came from a flea, And rocket ships were fiction and Coke came just in bottles and skirts below the knee, We had no Crest with Fluoride , no patterned pantyhose or Lipton herbal Tea......Not in the Land That Made me, "Me." There were no golden arches, no Perrier to chill, and fish were not called Wanda, and cats were not called Bill. And middle age was 35 and old was forty-three, And ancient were our parents in the Land That Made Me, "Me." So now I face a brave new world in slightly larger jeans, And wonder why they're using smaller print in all the magazines. And I tell my children's children of the way it used to be, Long ago and far away in the Land That Made Me, "Me."........ I am so grateful for the things that made me, "Me!"

Dream Catchers

Human kind has not woven the web of life.

We are but one thread within it.

Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves.

All things are bound together.

All things connect. _Chief Seattle_

Beautiful legends tracing the origin of dream catchers are many. The Lakotas believe good dreams are caught to become part of the web of life, while bad dreams slip through the center hole.

The NAVAJO, Ojibwe and Chippewa legends hold that the web catches the bad dreams, preventing them from passing into dream time, while the good dreams slip through the center and down the feathers to our heads. The bad dreams get tangled and lost in the web. In legends, morning sunlight purifies the web of bad dreams.

Traditional dream catchers have 8 or more points where the web attaches to the circular hoop, representing the legs of the spider. The spider is symbolic of female creative energies,wisdom and learning.. Faith in the Great Spirit causes the dream catcher to hold not only good dreams, but good visions, ideas and opportunities to help people achieve their ideals and goals.

Once upon a time a friend and I started making these wonderful works of art and sold a few.

Having grown up next to the Navajo and Ute Reservations I so love the legends and traditions of these wonderful people. What a piece of mind to have a dream catcher over your bed knowing only the good dreams would slide down the dangling feathers in your sleep. Never more to be awakened by a bad dream. These wonderful people have such emotion bearing ways of explaining life in all of its dimensions.

Hug a Tree.....

Well, she did it again. The Condo Manager cut down another big, beautiful tree today. It was on the corner across the street from me and the birds and quail loved it. Ever since I moved in she and I have had words over cutting down the trees in our unit. She finally cut down all the trees in the entry because she wanted them to match. She cut down a fruit tree in my back yard when I was on a trip once, and I made her buy another so I would have some privacy from the tennis court........it died. There were two huge pine trees on my street and she has taken one down but I am fighting for the one in front of my house. Yes, it is kinda messy with pine cones and pine needles off and on, but what do we pay the maintenance men for. She keeps telling me it is going to fall on my house one of these days. I love it, in the summer when I open my window I am awakened to the chirpping and singing of the birds. It seems to me, if it is not a tree she choose then down it comes, of course we are all paying for the removal. One of the fun things I always did as I traveled around the world the past 50 years is "hug a tree". I can hug in any language and trees are so in tune with the universe. They send their roots deep into the earth and reach high into the sky. They share their shade, their fruit, their lumber, the joy of climbing or swinging on them for children. They really don't ask for much. Even the trees that have grown old and gnarly can be beautiful. So I pledge to the universe to start planting trees so my grandchildren and their children will have many trees to enjoy. "Poems are made by fools like me, but only God can make a tree"!

Let It Snow.......

Can you believe this? It is the 24th of May and we are having a huge snow storm. Tiff took a picture of it just before she left for work to prove it to her online friends. I hurried out and put newspaper over all my "just planted" pots of flowers in the front, hope it doesn't freeze as they just planted flowers all over the condo unit last week. Next weekend is Memorial Day and our swimming pool is suppose to open.......I'm not placing any bets.

Today is also Monday. Why the name Monday for the first day of the week? It is said the days are named after the sun and the moon, fierce gods of war and gentle goddesses. It is said, the southern European people had a name for the silver ball of light that crossed the sky at night. In Latin the name was LUNA. When they decided to name a day after Luna, they called it Lunae Dies. Later the northern Europeans honored Mona ( that was their word for luna, or moon) by naming a day MONANDAEG. From MonanDaeg comes the modern English name.......Monday.

Tuesday......People used to believe in a god of war name TIW. People believed that when a warrior died in battle, TIW would come down from the high mountains where he lived and would take the dead warrior to a beautiful land of rest. To honor TIW they named a day of the week TIWSDAEG. In English it became Tuesday.

Wednesday....People believed in many Gods in early days, but the most powerful God was WODEN. Two black birds that acted as spies usually sat on Woden's shoulders. At night the birds would fly down to earth, then return to Woden and tell him everything that they saw during the night. Because he knew everything he was honored with a name for a week day. WODNESDAEG......In English it became Wednesday.

Thursday......Long ago people could not understand what thunder and lightening were. They decided it had to be caused by a god, which they named THOR. They believed when he was angry he would throw a large hammer across the sky.....the lightening......landing, the thunder. To honor this God they named a day THURESDAEG, in English it became Thursday.

Friday....People believed in gentle, beautiful goddess named FRIGG. She took care of the brave warriors who died on earth. The people named a day of the week after her, FRIGEDAEG or in English, Friday.

Saturday....Long ago in the Roman Empire, people believed in a god of farming called SATURN. He controlled the weather. Not only did the people name a planet after SATURN, they also named a day of the week after him. They called this day STURNIDIES. In English Saturday.

Sunday....Long ago no one could explain the ball of light that traveled across the sky every day. They decided it must be a god who drove the ball of light across the sky. They called the ball of light sol, which is Latin and called it DIES SOLIS. Later SNNANDAEG which means "day of the sun" became Sunday in English

And that is why we got the names for the days of the week. Did you know that?

Hanging out with the Simpsons

My sister and I luv, luv,luv going to movies.......now and then we hang out with stars. We met the Simpson family one afternoon.....with our popcorn.....to enjoy a movie. They are just plain ordinary folks. Homer the father and Marge the mother are loving parents to Bart, Lisa and baby Maggie, who can act like very normal children do.

When I was growing up in Mancos, Colorado, our little town had one movie house. It pretty much showed one or two movies a week. When I was really young, a Sunday Matinee was very special. Usually a Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis or Abbott and Costello comedy. In high school my best friend and I got a job at the movie. I sold tickets and Janet was an usher. Now we could get in free. Movies have become a big part of my social life. Being alone for the past 24 years, I don't depend on someone to entertain me. Why not go to a movie alone? After all you can't talk during a movie, so you don't need anyone to visit with you. I usually go to the early movie where it is day light and safe for a single woman to be alone. I don't have to ask someone , "where do you want to sit?" I sit where I feel like it. If the movie is sad....or not.....I can cry and not be embarrassed. If it turns out to be something I don't like, I can leave without upsetting anyone. I especially like Love Stories or Comedies, but I usually enjoy all the ones I choose to see. Do I have any favorite stars? Oh Yes!

A SPECIAL HELPER

Is he a cute guy......or what? This is a picture of my third grandson Richard Benjamin Cook. He was such a cute baby, then a cute big brother to his little sister Andrea and now a darling 16 year old. He is now driving

and is a great LaCross player. He is very good to his grandmother and came over yesterday to help me get my back yard ready for summer. He planted flowers, washed off the patio furniture, emptied and cleaned out the fish pond and help me get the pump going for the fountain. He washed off the steps and got my fountain on the porch filled and working. He carried out a lot of garbage for garbage day tomorrow. I feel sad for the grandma's out there who don't have sweet, willing grandchildren to make life easier. We got to visit one on one which is great as busy as these young people are. He is going to Europe to back pack with his father and another father and son, as soon as school is out (in 2 weeks) and is very excited. I am thrilled for him. Also, he has a special name "Richard". My immediate family is full of Richards. My father, my grandfather, my brother, a cousin and a nephew. His parents have done a very good job rearing a loving, caring and sweet son.

IT'S ALL GOOD

Some days you just have to stop and say "Thank You God" for where you are in your life. I feel very lucky. I have a nice home and plenty to eat. I am reasonably well for 78. I have a wonderful, caring family and lots of good friends. I try to keep moving forward doing good things.

I know the past is over and done with and I am glad. It has gone back to the nothingness from which it came. I am free and do not need a man to validate me. I have a new sense of pride and self worth. I am confident in my abilities to love and support myself. I have learned that I am capable of positive growth and change. I am strong. I am united with all of life. I am one with the Universal Power and Intelligence. Divine wisdom leads me and guides me every step of the way. I am safe and secure as I move forward to my highest good. I do this with ease and with joy. I am a new person, living in a world of my choosing. I am deeply grateful for all that I have and for all that I am. I am blessed and prosperous in every way. All is well in my world. I just successfully remodeled my kitchen and love it. I just planted all the pots in the front and back of the house for my summer flowers. I will paint the patio furniture and stain the deck this summer, but I have to have something to look forward to. Yes, Thank You God..........

Nick Names

Today I got a call from a long lost friend, his sister and I were roommates when I was a freshman in college, and that was many years ago. "Hi, is this Betty, Betty Buttons?" Now it has been awhile since I was called Buttons by anyone but my family. So that was a clue it was an "old friend". It was fun to chat with him and catch up on each other's family members. His sister is going blind which I was sad to hear, as we have not kept in touch over these many years. Why Buttons you ask? Well, when I was in the eighth grade I wrote a paper on the life of a button. From the time it was new and sewn on a shirt on through the many adventures it endured until it became a cherished button of someones buttons collection........I had a good imagination! A couple of the boys in class started calling me Buttons, just to activate me and the madder I would get the more they called me that and soon many people were calling me by the nick-name and my family picked it up and all of my X's family called me Buttons when we got married. I finally gave in to it and liked being called Buttons. My little brother called me BoBo for awhile, but mostly in my early years of school I was just Betty Ree, shorten from Betty Marie. I have always been glad my nick-name was something I liked, many people get real flattering ones like, Red, Lard, Baldy, Four Eyes, Chub, etc. that don't exactly flatter. The beautiful buttons made today would really make a fun story, you know about color doesn't matter, fun being different and they come in all sizes but still have one job to hold things together and decorate things. Well, anyway,now you know why I got the nickname I've had all these years!

KOINS FOR KENYA

Why am I so excited? Well, in all my travels around the world the past 45 year I never got to go to Kenya on a Safari, and now one of my daughters and a grandson are going to go to Kenya for a couple of weeks on a work mission, my grandson who will be 15 (almost) by then will be building school desks for an Eagle Project and my daughter will be teaching other things to the women. How did this get started? Well, my daughter, Sherrie, wrote a cute book called "The Power of a Penny". It is a story of the travel of one penny through many situations that covers the 100 years the penny has been around. She pledged to donate part of her returns in a charity, and she choose "Koins for Kenya." This lead to the acquaintance of Bret VanLeeuwen who is the founder of this charity. Bret took some of Sherrie's books with him to Kenya on a trip and the 3rd picture is of Anthony Yama, a Kenyan dignitary, co-coordinator in Africa reading her book! The second picture is Bret and Anrthony with Sherrie at a speaking engagement at the Cottonwood club. To a mother this is very exciting. " Koins For Kenya" works out of the Mnyenzeni Valley with a cluster of five villages. The valley is about 300 miles south of Nairobi near the South Coast. Bret has built schools, dug wells and taught the women to sew. The people do most the work and "Koins for Kenya" buys the materials. This is where the headquarters is and where Sherrie and Brayden will be living for a couple of weeks...........then they get a three day safari. Yes! Am I jealous? Yes. I have been down the east coast of AFRICA to Cape Town from Istanbul and on to Johannesburg enjoying places like Ghana, Lome Togo, Namibia and the Ivory Coast. I got just enough to want more, but at my age I still remember what a long, hard trip that was and don't feel this would be a good decision to go with them. I will make some baby blankets to send with them. They are used to entice the women into the dispensary to have their babies, rather than stay in the villages where many are lost. Can you imagine if you had nothing but a banana leaf to wrap your new born in, how wonderful a soft blanket would be to a new born? It is working and Bret has set about a program to help him get more blankets. Bret and Sherrie share their stories with groups who are looking for a new cause and are great speakers. Last week Bret gave Sherrie a fun bracelet made from a coin from Kenya, two holes drilled with a leather thong Thur it, made a fun conversation piece. I so love people who do nice things for others, sharing their talents and time.

SNAPDRAGONS

Beautiful day..........finally feels like spring. I finished planting my pots today. Now I feel like I have sprung into spring. I love to look out on my patio and see pots of pretty blooms. My patio is not on the ground level where my flower beds are, so I fill the patio with flowers I can see from the kitchen.

I just want you to know I have entered the Snapdragon part of my life! How do I know? Part of me has snapped and the rest of me is draggin'. No, really after diggin, dragging the hose all over and getting my hands all mucked up, I feel I have snapped and boy am I draggin' tonight. I decided to check in to the snapdragon flower on it's origin, meaning and beautiful colors.

As the snapdragons other worldly appearance may suggest it has long been associated with magical thinking in Germany. If a snapdragon was hung over a baby's bed, the child would be safe from evil spirits. WOW, "I didn't know that".! They have been thought to drive away evil and restore youthfulness and beauty to woman as well as bring back vigor and energy in everyone. During middle ages these flowers were woven into the hair of maidens so as to make them both gracious and intriguing. Snapdragons were used to make cooking oils, dyes, perfume and medicine. These bitter tasting flowers have sometimes been used as stimulants, and turned into polices to help heal tumors and ulcers.

Be prepared, the snapdragon part of your life is sure to catch up with you sooner or later, Part of you will snap and the other part will be dragon...........But, this to will pass!

Souviners

I Just remodeled the kitchen which means cleaning out a lot of things..........I came across a cup with my name on it: Betty with the words : Meaning: Special One. You are especially Unique and rare For the array of talents You can bring to bear. You've got a golden touch, A definite flair For thinking and creating with skill and care. You'll always be treasured, as long as you live, if you promise to share All that you have got to give. Do I use this cup? No. Could I part with it? No. It's one of those things you cherish because someone you love gave it to you........and are now gone. Jo loved giving gifts and I have many things I cherish because "Jo gave them to me." She knew she was dying of cancer and just before her last Christmas she gave me a big statue of an angle with long slender legs. She was very overweight when she died, but in her youth had been a very tall slender girl and always looked at herself in those terms. She said when you look at this you will always think of me, and I do. We also made an agreement that she would always be my guardian angel and leave me signs to remind me of it. She would leave me "pennies".......and she does. You would not believe the strange places and times a penny pops up just when I need a smile or a positive thought. I love you Jo, you were a great little sister and I miss you lots.

Diggin in the Dirt

Sad but true! A birthday card I got this year, they must have been peaking when I was out planting. Today I got serious and planted all the pots in the front, if they freeze they freeze, after all it is the 13th of May, is summer never coming? I get so excited this time every year, all the wonderful flowers to choose from. Every year they come out with more exotic colors in flowers and I always want one of each. Next I will tackle the back yard, which is bigger and full of weeds. I love to have many pots of flowers on the porch in view from the inside of the house so I can enjoy them easily. I love my fish pond I built and my lower patio with a little white rot iron table and chairs. On the patio I have a fountain and when I turn it on I can enjoy it in the house. At this point my wisteria plant is in full bloom, it was a present from Karrie for Mother's Day one year and has really taken off this year. I have had neighbors who never put one plant in the ground in the spring, which is interesting to me. The manager of the condo unit is flower crazy so our grounds are pretty each year. I hope we get that little shower forecast so I don't have to water the new pots for a day or two. I have no real favorite flower, just love them all...........

HELP!!!!!!!

I love to learn new words and when I came across this one..........Dhimmitude! I thought it looked interesting until I began to find out what this word could really involve. I googled it and what I gather from the meaning of this word is very uncomfortable to me. Do I like Obama and what he is doing to our wonderful country of America? Absolutely not! But there are many out there sucked in under his smoothness of talk. When I read about Dhimmitude it said: "Muslims and certain other religions are exempt from the Obamacare penalties and it is supported by law. We are surrendering from within. He is leading us down the path to total control................."

Dhimmitude, is the Muslim system of controlling non-Muslims populations conquered through jihad. The ObamaCare bill is the establishment of Dhimmitude and Sharia Muslim diktat in the United States. Muslims are specifically exempted from the government mandate to purchase insurance and also from the penalty tax for being uninsured. Islam considers insurance to be "gambling", "risk-taking" and "usury" and is thus banned. So Muslims are specifically granted exemptions based on this. Isn't that nifty? So Betty, because you are a Christian you will have crippling IRS liens put on all your assets, your house, bank accounts etc. and will face hard prison time because you refuse to buy insurance or pay the penalty tax. All the while your next door neighbor who is a Muslim will have no such penalty and will have 100% of his health needs paid for by the de facto government insurance. We who are not Muslims will be paying a tax to subsidize our Muslim neighbors. This is Dhimmitude. Is Dhimmitude an incentive to convert to Islam ? It may well be for many in the future. If you don't believe in Christ to begin with, it is no problem whatsoever to sell Him for 30 pieces of silver....."Sure I'll be a Muslim if it means free health insurance and no taxes.....Where do I sign up?" Obama knows what he doing. Long after I am dead and gone and some of you are reading through "grams" blogs, I wonder if this will be a part of your life. I really hope not, but today it worries me.

Grandma's Hands

This precious little hand on top of a very old hand is my youngest grandson's hand, Scottie, in his grandmothers. I would like to say to all my grandchildren..........."Have you ever looked at your hands?" I mean really looked at your hands. I look at my hands, they once looked like Scottie's but now they are wrinkled, with brown liver spots on them and sore with arthritis, but I would like to tell you about my hands: I stop and look at my hands and think how they have served me the past 78 years. My hands though wrinkled, shriveled and weak have been the tools I have used all my life to reach out and hold and care for you. When I was a toddler I crashed to the floor and they caught me and helped me get back up. They put food in my mouth and helped me get dressed every day. They learned to tie my shoes and my mother taught me to fold them in prayer.

They have been dirty, scraped and raw, swollen and bent. Decorated with my wedding band, they showed the world that I was married and loved someone special. They cared for my parents and wrote them letters after I left home. They were shaken when I buried my parents.

They held and rocked my children and wiped away their tears at all ages. They prepared food for neighbors in need and knitted prayer shawls for charity. They have clinched in anger and pointed angrily at times. They have combed my hair, washed and cleansed my body and tended to its needs. They love to play the piano, type, paint, knit, sew, crochet, play cards and make jewelry. My hands do know how to cook, but they do not enjoy it much. They love to dig in the dirt and plant pretty flowers and pull out weeds. Today when not much of anything else of me works real well my hands do not fail me in my every request. They still fold in prayer and these hands are the mark of where I've been and the many miles I have traveled in my life time. I now have pretty nails put on them to frost them up a bit and they luv, luv,luv to wear pretty jewelry.

And I know it will be these hands that God will reach out and take when he leads me home. So to my family, look at your hands, appreciate and take care of them and someday God will take them and lead you back to him again.

OLD OUT - NEW IN

I have always said, "The only reason I have a kitchen is it came with the house." I'm not into food and I have never cared much for cooking, unless it is to entertain. So with the help of a wonderful family they helped me through the remodeling. I think I had been watching too much TV on how to remodel your house in two days or Ty Pennington building a whole house in a week. Any way before I knew it the family thought it was a good idea and I was launched. After they measured the kitchen and designed the cupboards Karrie and I picked out the "slab of granite", I knew I wanted black until I saw a gorgeous piece of blue and white, but it was way out of my budget, so back to the black slabs. We began the rounds of picking out a faucet, the hardware for the cupboards and the tile for the back splash. I picked out the new microwave, garbage disposal and new counter TV. My family was there from the start. Tiffany and her fiance, Scott, painted the kitchen and entry hall after they tore out the cupboards. Rob filled all the holes and leveled the back splash. A plumber came Monday night and unhooked the sink, garbage disposal, dishwasher and ice maker. Tuesday they came and tore out the cupboards and were to be back Wednesday to start installing the new ones but it was so rainy they canceled. Thursday they delivered and started putting up the cupboards and finished Friday. They hoped to install the granite counters Saturday, but as usual they got behind and they were installed Monday. Rob and Will came over put in the new Microwave and Rob said he and Scott could do the tile back splash. So Karrie and I got busy picking out the tile we thought would wow them. Rich helped lay out the patterns we had in mind and we finally decided what would work. Rob and Scott jumped right in and soon they had a very professional looking tile job complete. After watching how hard they worked with Tiff's help I now do not begrudge tilers their fees. Karrie and I had made the rounds looking for a new dishwasher and fridge and they were delivered Tuesday, two week from the day they tore out my kitchen. Sweet Rob (what a son-in-law), came over with Will to hook up the ice maker and dishwasher. The dishwasher was a real pain. Tiff helped me put up my blue and white ware on top of the cupboards and today I finally found a place in my new cupboards for everything I kept the family from telling me I didn't need anymore!!!!! I love my new kitchen and am so lucky to have a family that believes ,"It Takes The Whole Family To Remodel A Grandmother's kitchen."

MOTHER'S DAY

Happy Mother's Day ..........To my Mom. Hazel Marie Goff/Yeomans. She has been gone for 40 years now, but I think of her and the wonderful mother she was to me and my siblings and various other children and cousins that lived with us throughout her life time. She was always for the underdog in a bad situation, the first to step forward and offer assistance after a fire, death, or mishap to a person. She could do everything!!!!. She was a wonderful musician, writing music playing several instruments. She played for dances all around our community, and for funerals, church and school programs. She painted, she sewed everything her four daughters wore, redid furniture, curtains, etc. She helped her husband who had a taxidermist shop by sewing trim for the bear, fox or mt. lion rugs. She made leather jackets for people and moccasins out of the leather. If she wanted a window in the bathroom, she cut one. If she wanted the door in the living room boarded up, she boarded it up and wall papered over it. She loved old things......our home was full of antiques and she loved garage sales and hunting bottles and iron pots etc from the dump. She loved to paint and I cherish her pictures. She loved rocks and old driftwood and tree forms. She did not like to cook or clean house, but she had four girls that took over some of those chores which freed her up to pursue what she loved. She wrote a beautiful book of poems, and was a reporter for our newspaper and Durango and Cortez, two neighboring town. Mother did not work outside the home so she was there when we left in the morning and she was there when we came home after school. Her last child was a boy, which was pretty special in our family after four girls. One day she cut up an old inner tube and cut him a handle out of a willow and made Jim a sling shot. She had also made him a bow and arrow........she later overheard him telling a friend, Mother and Jesus can do anything. She felt honored to be put in the same class as Jesus. She was the neighborhood barber (for free), our home was always a meeting place because it was warm and friendly. She loved unconditionally and let each one of us find our own way, backing us in our choices. If it was a mistake she was the soft spot we needed when we fell. She died of cancer at 58, so I never thought of her as old. She loved her grandchildren and made those who got to know her feel loved and special. She made them leather jackets, blankets and taught them music and to paint and create fun things. She loved the church and I am sure God was happy to see her. I miss you Mom, Happy Mother's Day.

Happy Cinco de Mayo (late)

Cinco de Mayo is a big day in our family........Some how yesterday got by to fast to wish my family a happy Cinco de Mayo.

Fun games, food and a pinata in the past was a tradition but, now the children are growing up and they do their own thing and I miss those fun parties. This is Andrea, Brayden and I celebrating one year in Sherrie's back yard, she is a good party giver.

I did go with a friend to "SUR LA TABLE" to a fun food demonstration put on by our Investment company.......Merrill Lynch and we had a Cinco de Mayo dinner party there. Everyone had a very good time and they served the following: Non-Alcoholic Margaritas, Shrimp Ceviche and Spanish Tortilla, Asparagus, Sweet Potato and Fennel Gratin, Seared Flat-Iron steak with red wine pan sauce and mushrooms and for desert an Apple Walnut Upside-down cake with Brandy Cream. Now if Merrill Lynch could just make our stock folios be that good!

I have been up to my armpits these past two weeks remodeling my kitchen and very far behind in my blogging, but I really do have a pretty new kitchen and have learned a lot about remodeling! Hopefully the weather will co-operate and I can get to my yard and planting soon. We are all ready for summer in Salt Lake, and look forward to many more Cinco de Mayos.