April 30, 2010

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...see our dead grass?

actually, I would prefer that you didn't see it

but you may as well; everyone else has.

the neighbor asked, "did your sprinklers stop working?"

"No, we just complied with the water only one day a week rule

during last summer's drought,


while the rest of you ignored it."

(I didn't actually say that .... but I thought it real loud in my head)


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See the line of demarcation, where neighbor Tim's lovely green yard meets our brown one?


my ENTIRE front and side yard is

DEAD. BROWN. FULL OF WEEDS. HIDEOUS.

seriously, if I lived next to me, I would not be happy



******

weekend project: laying new sod

these sweet guys came to help, I love the Missionaries


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and Chrissy is the hardest working woman I've ever met


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Chrissy's sweet hubby, Zach even pitched in,

after working all day at his own job.


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hugs and kisses to everyone

for making our yard look beautiful again


(and no longer the the one the neighbors prattle about,

and the HOA gets their knickers in a bunch over).


April 28, 2010




Mike and Marci have some wonderful family photos

by this photographer

the photos inspired me to paint for Marci's birthday

(the original photos can be seen in my last post)

I tried a simplified version of my usual painting style

with a little added whimsy.


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then, I couldn't get this photo out of my head

so I had to paint it too.

I popped the color on the background

and I like the interplay of complimentary colors


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At 11" X 14", they are smaller than I usually paint

and I am very pleased with how they turned out.


both were painted with lots of love

of subjects I love lots



April 26, 2010

Happy Birthday Marci !



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Marci is my sweet daughter in law


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Marci is smart and beautiful

strong, decisive, and hard working

. . . . . and she has a great laugh.


She is Super-Blogger, and was my inspiration to become one myself.

I love and respect Marci.

She is a great person

who is constantly busy improving herself

and

being a remarkable mother to my 3 grand children.



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but mostly, I love her because she truly loves my son

and balances his hard work as a teacher

by providing a well run home for their family.


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I am so glad Marci is a member of our family



Happy Birthday Marci

I love you!



******

April 24, 2010



Wyatt Thomas Yuan


was born early this morning.

He is beautiful, and healthy.


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Good job Brittany and Ili !

I can't wait to cuddle him!







April 23, 2010


not gonna lie

it's my favorite show and

I'm excited

for the

Season Premiere of

Friday Night Lights


"East of Dillon"

Friday May 7th, 8/7c

With a town divided,
Coach Taylor struggles to put a team together at East Dillon.


here's a preview:


Friday Night Lights - Preview "East of Dillon" - Video - NBC.com



2 weeks from tonight!






April 21, 2010


Took a drive over the weekend

saw this in the middle of a field

what the . . .



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seriously,

it was by itself,

in the middle of a great big field.

Just some arches

. . . . . waiting for a restaurant


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saw this too


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pretty funny

April 19, 2010

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Triple Celebration:



Steve: Passed the Texas Master Electrician Licensing Exam

Me: Last day of work


Chloe: Inducted into the National Junior Honor Society



******


Like any proper celebration,

the evening started at Texas Land and Cattle


Yum


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the ceremony for NJHS was more formal than I expected

. . . . like a graduation,

with a presentation of The Colors

and candle lighting ceremony
.


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it was lovely to see the students accepting their certificates

in Sunday dress,



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the evening was topped off with a cake and punch reception

(and we just found out Chloe got straight A's too!)

that's what I call a parent payday!

Chloe, you are awesome!


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April 16, 2010

Happy Birthday Ili



Brittany married a cool guy named Ili


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Ili is cool because he can fly an airplane

and he wears an Air Force flight suit.

and lets face it . . . . guys look cool in flight suits

right girls?


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I love Ili because he is a man of integrity, who lives what he believes

and because he loves Brittany so much

and they always have fun adventures together.

Ili is funny and verrry smart

and verrry ambitious

and cooks great Chinese food for us!

I can't imagine our family without him.




Happy Birthday Ili !


I love you!


******

April 14, 2010



Tomorrow is April 15th

Your income tax return is due.

and it is my last day of work.

Yaaaaay.

What will I do

this lady of leisure I shall become?


#1

Replant my devastated yard.

last year had four months of drought followed by 4 months of freeze

and we lost most of our plants.

ALL of the grass.

5 year old trees, bouganvilla, passion vine, agapanthas.... all gone

I am very sad. I love my yard

and dread the hard work and expense (ugh) it will take to restore it.


#2

Brittany is expecting Wyatt to be born April 26th.

Ili will deploy a week or so after that.

Steve and I are driving up to OK to get Brit and baby

and they will come to live with us for the next 4 months.

It will be very sweet


#3

Zach and Chrissy's lease is up April 30th

and they are in limbo for awhile as Zach pursues the next step in his career.

So they will be moving in with us too.


#4

Party time




. . . . . and you were worried I would have nothing to do after April 15th.

pish posh



April 12, 2010


thank you brittany, chrissy, and cheryl


I owe you.

this thursday night,

steve and I will attend chloe's induction into


the National Junior Honor Society.

chloe read your comments on my blog and spoke with you too.

you helped her see

how her choices today will affect her future.


the application was lengthy;

we put it off until the last day.

her classmate, we'll call sally, said,

"you probably won't get accepted,
because you rushed through the application".

sally didn't get accepted.

I'm just sayin'
. . .


******


chloe wrote the essay entirely by herself




When I wake up the first thing I think about is me, what I’m going to do, where I’m going to go, how my things are going to get done. Normally, that is how everyone is. I know when I’m doing things for my self it may feel good for a little while but it probably won’t last very long. I also know from experience that when you help other people it makes you feel good and proud of yourself for the rest of your life! Not only does it make them feel good, but it makes me feel 10 times better that I know I helped!!!


One thing to really consider is that when you do service you are helping others. I know when I help others, and I see their smiles, I did a good job. I don’t think anyone could like it more than the person you did the service for. In Kerrville, there is a community thrift store for the battered women’s shelter. When I went down to help out, I knew we were in a different part of town. People where cherishing little toys with missing eyes and a set of tea cups with broken handles and chipping paint. When I was helping them carry their loads and loads of things, I would call trash but they called treasures, I knew that I was really helping out these people and changing their lives without doing hardly anything!


Another thing to ponder is how GOOD you feel after you help or do service! The best thing, in my opinion, is helping because it is definitely a win-win situation! They get helped and you get the great, warm, fuzzy feeling you get when you help! I still feel great about doing what service I did and it is something I would definitely recommend to my friends and family!!!


You may think that taking time out of your life and spending more of it for others, you could lose something, but actually you gain much much more! The more you give the more you get! Service is one of those things that you get addicted to, in a good way.




I am so proud of her!


(it takes a village)




April 9, 2010

Happy Birthday Jenny

I have a sweet sister named Jennifer

I love her because we share heart to heart conversations

and I feel safe to be 100 percent myself with her

and because she never forgets to bring me a pound of our favorite treat

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but mostly, I love her because

she gets me

. . . . . . . and that is priceless.



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Me, Chrissy, Jenny, Mom, Brittany in Carmel, CA


Jenny always attends my special occasions


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and I love to attend hers


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she has a sweet husband,

and 3 great kids.


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Happy, happy Birthday, dear Jenny


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I love you!


******

April 7, 2010

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This runner is named Perron.

His agonizing crawl over the finish line

placed him 144th in a race with 146 runners.


All that matters is . . . . .

he finished.



. . . . and I am inspired to do the same.



one week of taxes to go.




April 5, 2010

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Chrissy and Zach joined us

for Easter Brunch


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China: courtesy of Lois Freeman

Silver pieces: courtesy of my dear mother

Wild flowers: courtesy of the Texas Hill Country



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Easter Brunch Menu:

Eggs Benedict

Raspberry Blintzes

Fried Potatoes



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After brunch, we feasted on General Conference

Favorite moments from Saturday's session:

#1

I am so thankful for William Tindale, who, in the 16th Century, gave his life to translate the Bible into English. And to many after him, who, at risk of life and liberty, gave their precious savings to purchase Bibles, which then, were legal only in the hands of Catholic Church leaders. These courageous and faithful followers of Christ, opened the door for my religious freedom and they would be gratified to see bibles easily available today in drawers of hotel rooms.
(talk by Elder Todd Christofferson, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles)


#2

The sincere testimony born by Brother Koichi Aoyagi of the Quorum of the Seventy touched my heart.

#3


Perhaps my favorite speaker of all time is Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. I have taught many lessons in my life, in Relief Society, Young Women's, and Primary. When citing quotes to make an important point, the speaker I most often use is Brother Holland. He gives it to us straight, gets to the point, doesn't mince words and does it all with great humility. He speaks to my heart, and his closing remarks on the the Saturday session did not shrink from doing just that. In my opinion, this talk was the most pertinent and powerful message of the day.


Sunday, being Easter, was appropriately spent honoring the life, ministry, and most importantly, the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I feel a profound renewal of gratitude and debt toward my brother, Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.



He is risen! He is risen!

Tell it out with joyful voice.

He has burst his three days' prison;

Let the whole wide earth rejoice.

Death is conquered, man is free

Christ has won the victory.


In my entire life, I have rarely watched General Conference from beginning to end. Usually, I watch one full session per day. After two hours, I get antsy and tell myself I'll read the rest of that day's talks in the Ensign next month, which, in most cases, I do. I am different these days; I have watched the last two Conferences from beginning to end, and I hunger for more. I am not sure what to attribute it to. . . .

maturity,

a deepening need for Christ,

more time, and a keener sense of how to best spend it,

or all of the above.


Whatever it is, I really hated to see Conference end. I didn't want other media on afterwards, so I could bask in the light of the sweet messages for awhile longer. Rather than overloaded, I feel invigorated by the hours of counsel. Encouraged. Committed anew.


Lastly I want to mention something that was a complete revelation to me. The final talk of the conference was given by Neil L. Andersen. He expressed concerns, as the final speaker, that much of his material may have already been spoken by others before he would get to the podium. He said that none of the speakers are assigned subjects and the entire course of the conference is left to the direction of the Lord. Fortunately, or as divine intervention would have it, no other speaker had repeated his, or any other speaker's, material.

As a lifetime member of the LDS Church, who has heard and given innumerable Sacrament talks, all of which were on assigned subjects, I assumed that General Conference talks were carefully selected and assigned by the First Presidency. This revelation, that subjects are not assigned, makes Conference an even more meaningful and an amazing experience. Elder Andersen described it perfectly as a "spiritual symphony full of revelation and power . . . repeated themes, principle building upon principle, prophetic warnings, uplifting promises - the divine harmony is a miracle. In this conference, we have heard the mind and will of the Lord"



Amen, to that.



April 2, 2010

Happy Easter !

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saw these cute little ditties on a craft blog

and just had to make them.

. . . . . you know how I love working with felt.

(or maybe you don't)


it's so homey

and no edges to finish


The bunnies are fashioned after Peeps


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I sure appreciate clever women

who generously share their cleverness with gals like me.


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I sent the bunny banner to some special cuties

and also made them doggie and kitty eggs

filled with candy.


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and of course, I had to make a banner for myself.

This time, I tried yellow peeps


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It is all so fun!


******

Looking forward to General Conference

this weekend


******


I have been sewing so much lately;

I am feeling the neglect of my painting.

Some ideas are stirring, that need to be put on canvass

soon.

Followers

About Me

My photo
I married my high school sweetheart 34 years ago in the LDS Temple. I have 4 children (3 married, and a 14 year old) and 6 grandchildren. I lived my entire life in California, until 6 years ago. I now reside in San Antonio, Texas. The most important thing to me is my family; I have invested the most in them and it has paid great dividends. I love doing anything creative that beautifies my surroundings and I love nature. I minored in Art and majored in Interior Design at BYU, yet, my profession is a Tax Preparer.

Steve and I

Steve and I

Steve and I

Steve and I
Pismo Beach

Our Family

Our Family

Mike, Marci & Family

Mike, Marci & Family

Brittany & Ili

Brittany & Ili

Zach & Chrissy

Zach & Chrissy

Chloe

Chloe