Welcome March!

My good friend Smitty shared this video with me yesterday and it just makes me smile



and also makes me wish I were Irish or planning a trip to Ireland sometime soon.

The arrival of March makes me smile too.

It's such a beautiful month in my little part of the world.

Today was filled with family

and  flowers

and some basketball

All things I love, that sometimes don't go together very well.

These are the basketball casualties from my garden,

but today,

they even make me smile.

Hello March!

May I spend you singing out loud in God's choir.

Today I am thankful for

family time - to work and talk and play and eat and enjoy some basketball - together.

boys to dig up my weeds.

a phone call from the oldest daughter and Shad.

Shaved for Shad

Ever since the sons found out about Shad's cancer and learned that he was going to lose his hair they have talked about shaving their heads in his honor. Well, yesterday they decided it was time to take the plunge.

The oldest son was more committed to the idea, so he went first. The son-in-law was drafted to be the designated barber and he did a great job getting rid of a lot of hair. 

After the first swipe, there was no going back.
 

I think this is a funny picture.  It's hard to see, but there is one really long wing poking out of the oldest son's head.  It makes me smile.

Eventually there was no more hair on his head to shave

and Shad enjoyed watching the whole process.

All too soon it was the youngest son's turn.

You need to know that this son is VERY attached to his hair.  He takes great pride in it and works hard to make it look just the way he wants.

He vacillated for a little while, but eventually he decided he could let it go for a good cause.

I was smart and restrained his arms by his sides so he couldn't grab the razor out of the son-in-law's hand as he made the first few cuts.



In almost every photo I took of this son, he is looking up trying to see what is going on.  I find it entertaining.

When the hair was all gone, it was time to take a photo.



Shad wasn't too sure how he felt about his uncles gestures of solidarity, but they were feeling pretty good about their new looks.   (This was actually taken before either one of them had looked in the mirror.)

After they viewed themselves in the mirror, the youngest son determined that he was still the more handsome of the two and the oldest son pointed out that it was a good thing he could rock the look since his younger brother is already getting a receding hairline and might actually experience being bald in his lifetime.

Together they determined that there was still too much black stubble showing and they decided they needed to use a Bic and get an even closer shave, so today we held the second session of the head shaving experience.

It started with a lot of shaving cream

and then a nice shiny head.

The youngest son didn't trust himself with a razor next to his brother's noggin so the youngest daughter stepped in to offer her assistance.

You'll be happy to know that Shad has decided he likes his uncles new looks and appreciates their love and support.

I think they are pretty awesome uncles too.

Not wanting to be left out, all the girls in the family committed to shave their underarms in support of the hairless effort.

Fortunately, no pictures were taken of those shaving sessions.

Today I am grateful for

the opportunity to be all together in California.

the bonding moments that come with Shad's cancer.

after Christmas sales!

Mr. Most Important

The youngest son informed me a while ago that my blog posts have gotten a little boring. It seems that all I talk about is the grandson and I never talk about him anymore.

I would like to remind him, that 2nd only to gratitude, he scores the highest number of label links of any topic in my blogdom  (He should just go back and read some of those posts, and I'm sure he does.)

However today, I am writing this post in his honor.

Today I had signed up to volunteer at the Bishop's Storehouse.  For any of you who don't know, a bishop is the local leader of a church congregation (ward) in the LDS church. If a family is in need of food they can go to their bishop and he will assess their need and help them figure out solutions.  One of the things he can do is offer them a food order.  Usually the bishop, or the leader of the ward women's organization (the Relief Society), will help them fill out a form with about 5 columns of basic food and other necessities of life, such as toilet paper, toothpaste and cleaning supplies, included on it.  This form is then taken by a member of the family to the Bishop's Storehouse, which is similar to a small grocery store attached to a large warehouse. Then volunteers there will help the individual select and bag their "groceries, complete with carry out service and a smile, all at no cost to the family.

The Bishop's Storehouse is almost completely manned by volunteers, some who are called to serve a mission to the storehouse and serve there, perhaps one day each week for an extended period of time, and some who come perhaps once a year as an assignment given to their ward. Individuals who receive commodities from the storehouse may also volunteer to give service there so that they can feel like they have done something in return for what they have received.

So, back to the story.  The youngest son heard that I was going to spend sometime at the storehouse and offered to go with me.  This surprised me a little bit, but made me a lot happy.

On the way to the storehouse the youngest son had to continually impress upon me the great sacrifice he was making in accompanying me.  This is his way and I am quite used to it.  I just reinforced how glad I was that he chose to come and that it would be a good experience.

We got there, signed in, donned name tags and had a short orientation.  There were 10 volunteers from our ward and about that many storehouse missionaries, mostly men and women around my age.  As soon as we were done learning how to serve, one of the older missionaries came up to me and asked if he could borrow my strapping young son for a special job and calling him by name took him away. He made a point of telling the son how glad he was that he was there and how grateful they were for his service.

Volunteers at the storehouse not only accompany and assist patrons, but they are also responsible for keeping the shelves stocked and orderly, including the refrigerated sections, and sorting and packaging produce.  There are a lot of jobs to keep a lot of volunteers busy but it seemed like we had more than enough volunteers today and had opportunity to spend some time visiting and getting to know one another better.  After the son had been missing for about an hour he reappeared and returned to my side.  One of the other missionaries, a woman, asked him if he was there by his own free will and choice and I quickly informed her that yes he had volunteered.  He then commented that it was quite a sacrifice too because he had to get up early.  Well, our shift started at 11:30 AM so the the sister kind of raised her eyebrows and then laughed out loud when he added that he got up at 9:30.  She thought it was so funny that she had to go around and share the story with all the other volunteers.  Soon, the youngest son was being commended by all the workers on his willingness to sacrifice and being praised for his efforts and thanked profusely for his service. The male missionary who had first befriended him continued to take a special interest in him, and kept finding him meaningful opportunities to help and as a mother who wants her children to have positive experiences, I was grateful.

When our shift ended and we were leaving, EVERYONE, called him by name and thanked him for coming.  It got to the point where I wondered if perhaps I was invisible or if maybe my name tag was written in invisible ink and I was the only one who could read it, but then I remembered -  I love to serve and I will continue to come to the Bishop's Storehouse regardless, but if this "moment of notoriety" leaves a lasting impression on my son and helps him to have a desire to serve again I will gladly fade into the woodwork and let him be Mr. Most Important.
  
And to top it all off that wonderful, service-oriented son, pulled his name tag off and slapped it on my back so I would feel important too.  That's just the way he is.

I appreciated that he didn't stick it on one of the grocery carts for another volunteer to have to volunteer to remove. Perhaps he learned something today too.

Today I am grateful for

opportunities to serve.

others who give service and make serving an enjoyable experience for everyone involved.

our bishop.  The hubby and I got to meet with him tonight for a few minutes for tithing settlement and I appreciate his faith in me and my family, as well as his leadership and love.

Breathing Fire

This is why my youngest son shouldn't be allowed to play with matches.

According to him this is perfectly safe.

The Blogging Dilemma

Tonight it was brought to my attention

that my blog post production rate

has dropped drastically during the past 2 years.

• ► 2011 (42)

• ► 2010 (49)

• ► 2009 (180)

• ► 2008 (222)

Hmm. I hadn't realized that.

I better pick up the pace.

Actually, I decided recently

that I wanted to be a better blogger.

As soon as I decided that

something happened to the program

I use to upload pictures to my computer

and well,

what's the point of blogging

if there aren't any pictures

for my children who aren't into reading.

Due to my lack of photos -

Wait,

I am not lacking in photos.

In fact I have so many pictures on my computer

that I have no memory left

and my computer is slower than slow

and my husband tells me daily

that I need to move ALL my photos to the external hard drive.

But, I love my pictures

and I don't want them out of my sight

even for a minute.

Then while I am rambling on

about why it is so difficult for me

to produce a blog post

I push a wrong button and

the incomplete post publishes

and makes absolutely no sense.

Now do you understand

why my post numbers are down?

No?

Neither do I.

For those of you who

have hung on through

this entire nonsense -

I give you a story

for your enjoyment

which will include

a previously uploaded picture.

It is called

"The Blue Poinsettia"

When we had our ward Christmas party

each table had a blue poinsettia

as the centerpiece.

When the party was over,

the flowers were passed out to families

and one came home with me.

I put mine on top of the piano,

but the cats kept trying to eat it.

I have heard that poinsettias are poisonous

so I didn't think that was a good idea.

I tried really hard to keep them away from it

and they tried really hard to eat it.

When we left to go to California for Christmas

I put the plant out on the stool on my front porch

so the cats couldn't have a feast.

I told the oldest son

(who was watching our house and the cats)

that he could take it home with him

if he wanted it.

Apparently he didn't want it,

because it was still sitting on the stool

when we came home a week later.

It looked quite sad and forgotten-

very shriveled and unhealthy.

I felt the soil that it was in

and it was plenty wet

so I decided to just leave it there

and see what happened.

Fast forward another day -

both sons and I are walking into the house.

The oldest son says,

"I think your flower froze

one of the nights that you were gone.

It looked fine one day and

the next day it looked - pfft. "

The youngest son looked at the plant,

and then he looked again and said,

" Wait! You mean it wasn't always blue? "

For those of you
who care about things like poinsettias.

The weather here has warmed up
A LOT
and the poor thing is doing much better.

However, it is still mostly blue.

Some Zerberts For Your Enjoyment

A few summers ago my children spent some of their free time watching all the seasons of "The Cosby Show". One of the things that came from this activity was a new family word - Zerbert. According to urbandictionary.com a zerbert is a sloppy kiss where you blow, making a farting sound (previously referred to in our family as a raspberrry).

This word was first introduced on "The Cosby Show", (Season 2, Episode 11). In the episode, Vanessa was practicing for a spelling test, and Rudy kept interrupting, asking what a series of nonsense letters spelled. The following, including spelling, is taken from the subtitles as transmitted.

Rudy: Vanessa, what does "Q-N-G-H" spell?

Vanessa: Nothing. Give me another word.

Rudy: What does "Z-R-B-T-T" spell?

Vanessa: Nothing!

Rudy: How come when you spell it's a word and when I spell it it's nothing?

Vanessa: Dad, I'm studying very hard for the spelling test, and she keeps asking dumb questions.

Cliff: I don't think anybody asks dumb questions. What's your problem?

Rudy: What does "Z-R-B-T-T" spell?

Cliff: "Z-R-B-T-T" spell? Uh... That's zurbitt. Zurbitt... uh.. You know what I think a zurbitt is? I just remembered. A zurbitt is this:(makes zrbtt on Rudy's cheek.)

As you can see, our family spelling and pronounciation may be a little bit off, but we all enjoy a good ZRBTT, zirbitt, or zerbert every now and then.

Today the youngest son shared some exceptional zerberts with his cousin's baby. Just looking at these pictures makes me want to giggle.




Who wouldn't want to zerbert those sweet little cheeks?

Welcome to scouting - June 2000


The end is in sight - January 2011


Actually, there is never really an end to scouting in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but don't tell the youngest son that right now.

Today I am thankful for

a son who put his scout uniform on when I asked him to.
a daughter who took pictures of her brother.
another daughter who provided the camera and technical support.
a son who made a special trip to my house to help me get all my scout pictures into one file.
a husband who burned the pictures to a cd and delivered it to where it needed to be.

Today I am grateful that

the youngest son didn't burn up in the burning building he practiced fire fighting in today.


photo by David H. Barehand

my youngest daughter remembered her grandma's birthday by putting flowers on her grave as she and her dad drove past.

my oldest son owns lots of movies that I can borrow when I am in a movie watching mood.

The Tallest Christmas Tree in the Nation!

This morning I took the hubby to the airport to fly to Idaho Falls to meet the youngest daughter and drive home from school with her. Allegiant Air just started flying out of Mesa Gateway Airport directly to Idaho Falls and since it is A LOT cheaper the hubby decided he would give it a try. The airline and flight were both good, according to him, but he did end up leaving 2 hours late due to the heavy fog - not in Idaho but in Mesa. Yup, we had some unusual fog this morning. Oh, and by-the-way don't always trust that map quest knows how to get you somewhere. It sent us on a non-existent road. Luckily the son-in-law had given me some basic directions that got us back on the right path.

After I returned home the youngest son decided he felt bad that he wasn't going to Idaho and wanted to go on a road trip. I am always ready to go for a drive and the grandson likes to go ( said dew, dew, dew with the head waving side to side). We finally decided on a jaunt to witness the tallest Christmas tree in the nation at the Anthem Outlet mall.

Read all about it -

The grandson was a lot more impressed by the tree than the youngest son was.

This is my view looking up from the base, probably about the top 2/3rds fit in my view finder.

Here I'm using the 6 foot 2 son as a height gauge. The toys at the base of the tree were as tall as he was.

And, here you have it - the nation's tallest fresh cut tree. All 110 feet of it.

The son was generous and decided we could visit the Nike store and the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory which were on either side of the tree. I took the grandson to Toys R Us the other day and he almost went hysterical with excitement. He jabbered non-stop about everything he saw. I was surprised that he felt the same way about the shoe store. He was thrilled with all the orange shoe box stacks, the little sample shoes attached to the rack with stretchy cords and the floor mirrors that he could see himself in. It was SO exciting!

Today I am thankful that

my son actually wanted to do something with his mom for a change.

the grandson likes to nap in his car seat.

Cafe Rhumba was kind of on the way home from the mall. I love their tropical chicken salad. Yum! Yum!

Fire Explorers CPR Training

Tonight the youngest son had CPR training for Fire Explorers. He was looking pretty spiffy in his "uniform" when he left home.

Here is tonight's group (click on colored word to see pictures.)
and the son saving a baby, (after he figured out how to put him together) as well as resuscitating a body-less person.
To view all the pictures that were taken tonight go here.

Today I am thankful for

positive learning experiences for the son.
positive sleeping experiences for the grandson.
positive dinner experiences with the hubby.

He Knows Better Than I

A couple of days ago one of my youngest son's Sunday School teachers died. He was quite young and has 5 children, ages 16 to 2, 3 under the age of 5. There is some question as to the cause of death, but it is most likely that he died of a drug overdose or committed suicide. He has struggled most of his life with some mental illness and drug abuse. He served a mission and married in the temple, but has had long periods of inactivity followed by a renewed desire to do what is right. His family only lived in our ward for about 6 months, but it was during one of his better periods and he had a very positive influence on my son's life. His death has been difficult for my son to understand and I have also struggled with how much information I should share with him as I hear rumors and stories from many different sources. I have chosen to discuss openly all of the possibilities that I can reasonably substantiate, believing that I would rather he hear it from me and we talk about it than he hear it through gossip and silently wonder and worry about it.

Today after church my son asked me "Why are some people's lives so much harder than others?" This is a question that I often ask myself. It seems like no matter how hard some people try they always have challenges while it seems that life just kind of flows along happily for others. I didn't really know how to answer his question. We talked about how sometimes choices that we make or that other people make result in consequences that bring difficulties with them. I also told him that I think Heavenly Father allows us to have challenges so we can learn the things we need to know here on earth and become the person we need to be. I didn't really feel like my answers had made a difference and I wondered what more I could say. I asked his dad and they discussed the subject for awhile with a lot of the same ideas brought out again. Still, I wondered what he was really thinking about the whole question.

Later in the day this son was sitting in the living room singing. He enjoys singing and I will often hear him repeating his current favorite song over and over again. As he sang I tuned in to hear what song was number 1 on his list at the moment. As he sang the same portion of the song a number of times, I didn't recognize it, but the words became clear to me. What he was repeating was a chorus that said:

You know better than I
you know the way
I've let go the need to know why
For you know better than I.

I still didn't recognize the song, but the message of the song was familiar to me. I felt that this was in part an answer to my question of where my son stood following our discussion from earlier in the day. To me he was acknowledging his faith that I may not have all the answers, and his dad might not have all the answers, but his Heavenly Father has the answers to why. Along with that, the fact that he doesn't know why right now is OK, because God knows why and he knows better than any of us.

I asked the son what the song was and he said it was from the DVD "Joseph King of Dreams". I went online and looked up all the words to the song and was really touched by the entire message.

I thought I did what's right
I thought I had the answers
I thought I chose the surest road
But that road brought me here
So I put up a fight
And told you how to help me
Now just when I have given up
The truth is coming clear

Chorus 1:
You know better than I
You know the way
I've let go the need to know why
For You know better than I

If this has been a test
I cannot see the reason
But maybe knowing
I don't know is part of getting through
I tried to do what's best
But faith has made it easy
To see the best thing i can do
Is to put my trust in You.

Chorus 2
For, You know better than I
You know the way
I've let go the need to know why
For You know better than I

Coda:
I saw one cloud and thought it was a sky
I saw a bird and thought that I could follow
But it was You who taught that bird to fly
If i let You reach me
Will You teach me.
(Repeat Chorus )

For, You know better than I
You know the way
I've let go the need to know why
I'll take what answers you supply
You know better than I

I have developed a great love for the story of Joseph over the years. I am amazed by all the things that had to happen to Joseph in order for him to be who he was meant to be and for him to be in a position to literally save his family from death. If he had not been sold into bondage or thrown into prison what would have happened to him and his extended family when the famine occurred? Knowing the end of the story helps me to see the power of God's love and watchful care during the entire experience.

If I could know the end of the story would I better understand the difficulties that occur in my life and in the lives of others? Maybe, but I don't believe I am meant to know the end of the story yet. I need to have faith that Heavenly Father is aware of what is going on. I need to remember that He loves each one of His children, he knows the individual challenges that we each face and he sees the whole picture much better than I do. For right now that is enough for me to know and hopefully it is something that my son is learning as well.

Today I am grateful for

the opportunity to be at church in my own ward. Does it mean I have spent too much time on the road recently if the first thing I do when I sit down on the church bench is look for my seat belt and then I can't concentrate during the meeting because I don't fell safe because I'm not buckled in?
movies that contain positive messages and children who are willing to watch them.
a lesson reminded of by my son.

Coronation 2010

Tonight the youngest son went to Coronation. He enjoyed himself a lot and score - he got another new purple tie. (I'm glad that boys can wear their dance attire even after the dance is over).

Here is the cute couple,

and the handsome boys,

and the whole happy group.

Today I am grateful for

a friend who made a corsage for my son's date, as well as her son's, and took pictures of my son and his date, as well as her son and his date, so I would look like a good mother.
good kids for my son to spend time with.
siblings that support each other in their activities - even at 8:00 on a Saturday morning.

Wordy Gratitude List

Today I am thankful for

a son who feels and follows promptings that help keep him safe. The youngest son was driving home from school after he had dropped a friend off. He usually goes out onto a main road from this house to travel home, but today he had a feeling that he should go a different way. As he was driving past our church the car started blowing really hot air and suddenly died so he coasted into the church parking lot, parked the car and assessed the situation. He couldn't get the car to start so he called me and I went and got him. A few days ago a woman's car stalled on the freeway and before she could get out of traffic she was rear ended, her car burst into flames and she was killed. The son was sure he would have ended up the same way if he had been on a busy road. I'm not sure that the situation was that dire, but I'm glad he acted upon his feelings and that all turned out well -for him at least. We're still not sure what is wrong with the car.
happy surprises at the grocery store. Today I went to Safeway to buy some groceries. Cheese was one of the items on my list because they had their 2 lb blocks on sale for $4.49. When I got to the dairy department some of the cheese had a .30 cent coupon on the package. I was happy because that made them even a better deal. When I checked out they quadrupled the coupon to $1.00. 2 lbs of cheese for $3.49. Happy day!
one woman who works really hard so a lot of women can have fun being crafty together. There is a sister in our ward who loves to make wooden crafts so she has taken it upon herself to plan a monthly Relief Society Craft project. She cuts all the wood herself and collects all the supplies for us so all we have to do is show up, pay our money (cost of materials only) and create. She is also very willing to accommodate all of the out-of-the ward daughters who want to come with their mothers. It is always a fun evening. Tonight we painted, papered and decorated letters to spell the word LOVE. The sister's husband came home toward the end of the evening and announced that he was going to tell all his buddies in the High Priest's Quorum on Sunday that a whole bunch of Relief Society women came to his house this week and made love.

If the Stake President hears about this our craft nights might be a thing of the past.

Baby Teancum

The youngest son is taking a child development class at school this year and this weekend it is his turn to "try out parenthood" by caring for a mechanical baby day and night. This son had the opportunity to be a "father" before when he was in middle school and I have always had mixed feelings about these fake baby assignments. I do think they can be an eye opening experience concerning the responsibilities and realities of having a child, but I'm not sure how realistic they really are. According to the son these babies are much harder to care for than a real baby. His big complaint is that the mechanical baby requires the parent to be the only person who responds to the baby's needs (he is required to wear a bracelet with a computer chip that links him to the baby and it cannot be removed). This son knows all too well that a real baby can be left with any number of babysitters. I tried to explain to him that often in real life a young parent doesn't have a strong support system and a surplus of willing care givers like his sister has and there isn't anyone available to care for the baby besides the parent. I'm not sure he bought my explanation. I don't think this son would think caring for his nephew for 52 hours straight would be that big of a breeze either if he really had to do it, especially since the fake baby diapers are a lot more pleasant to change than the real baby's sometimes are.

The son chose to name his son Teancum, one of his favorite baby names. His teacher asked him if this was a Native American name. He told her it was an Ancient American name and that it came from the Book of Mormon. She then told him she had a Book of Mormon at her house, but she had never read it and he suggested that she read it because it's a pretty good book.

Tonight we were invited to a birthday party at Peter Piper Pizza for an extended family member. The son didn't enjoy all the attention he and his baby got from his Aunties, Uncles and cousins as well as a number of strangers. It is a little embarrassing for a 17-year-old boy to rock a doll in a public place. This is another reason I don't believe this assignment is very true to life. All too often it seems to me that in real life young parents receive lots of positive attention and they aren't embarrassed at all.

I guess the doll is accomplishing its purpose though. As early as Monday the son was already complaining that this baby was ruining his life. A newborn to care for makes going on a scout camp out and playing church basketball a little difficult. If he can remember that a baby puts a big crimp in his carefree life, and conduct himself accordingly, then I will be grateful for this experience.

Today I am grateful

for good friends to laugh and craft with.
that my 17 year old's "baby" is a school assignment and not a permanent addition to our family.
for events that gather our extended family together.

The Sexy Beast Gets His Driver's License

The youngest son has been after me all evening to blog about the exciting happening in his life today. I told him I was still trying to come up with a fitting title and he immediately told me what my post should be called. Apparently when the son looks in the mirror 100 times a day he sees the reflection of a sexy beast, but the official driver's license just says his name. I do have to say that his new picture more closely resembles a sexy beast than the old one did. He's changed a lot since he was 15 and 7 months.

I'm not sure why they passed him though. It's obvious from this photo that he was clearly driving the wrong way through this parking lot.


Today I am grateful for

a husband who took half a day off of work to take the son to the MVD. He should have never told me he had to use up some of his leave time.
the woman who gave me her coupon in the grocery store line and saved me a dollar on my toilet paper. I think she felt bad for making me stand in line behind her for 20 minutes while they worked on her WIC transactions.
a daughter who washes dishes without complaining.

Signed, Sealed, Delivered - It's Done!

HURRAY! HURRAY! HURRAY!
Tonight in the "Rain Storm of the Century" the youngest son and I FINALLY delivered his COMPLETED Eagle Scout Leadership Service Project notebook to the person in charge.
IT IS DONE!
Now he has to present his project to the Board of Review on Tuesday night and when they approve it he will be FINISHED.
Let me say it again - HURRAY! HURRAY! HURRAY!

Today I am thankful for

a husband who can quickly change the color ink cartridge in the printer and knows how to burn CDs.a cooperative son (at least every once in a while).
a little sunshine on a rainy day.

I'm not sure that ASU red and gold are his colors, but he can definitely brighten up any moment.

Free Zoo Trip

The first full weekend of every month in 2009 Bank of America customers can get into the Phoenix Zoo for free if they show their Bank of America Check Card and a photo ID. I found out about this deal at the end of September, but chose to watch conference in October rather than go to the zoo. This month I was anxious to take advantage of the free deal, because as you know, I Love Free and there's only one more month in 2009. The only drawback of this deal is that only one person can get in with each Bank of America card, but since every member of my family except the youngest son and the grandbaby have their own BofA card this wasn't a huge problem. When it came right down to it only the oldest daughter, the youngest son and the grandbaby were interested in going with me. It just so happened that the oldest daughter still had one day left on her year long zoo membership and so she and the youngest son used that to get in. I used my Bank of America card and the grandbaby was free just because he was free.

It's a good thing that we didn't pay a lot of money to get the baby in because he didn't even open his eyes the entire three hours we were there.
It's been a while since I have been to the zoo (because I am too cheap to pay to get in) and a few things have changed since the last time I was there. They have added a new path to the children's area.

This was a really dumb addition, in my opinion. You use to walk down a short hill. Now you switch back and forth on a path that has 5 or 6 turns. There is nothing to look at, just a concrete path with wood railings. We decided this is the zoo's attempt to increase the patron's physical exercise.

Here is my token picture of some animals at the zoo.


I liked these javelinas hairstyles. They all looked like punk rockers.

I kept wanting to get the baby out of the stroller to take his picture, but the youngest son didn't think he wanted to wake up. He decided he could pose for pictures in his place. Here he is pretending to be Ariel.

I thought this was a really cool Saguaro slide.


The son said it was a tight fit.

This is the picture I turned around to take while the stroller continued to move on down the hill. The daughter was screaming, but no babies were injured in the process.

Now the two of them like to look at this picture and laugh at how dumb I am.
The oldest daughter and I both agreed that we needed a picture so the baby would know he went to the zoo, so here it is.



I'm sure we'll come again when the grandbaby is a little more interested. Maybe the first full weekend in December, since it's free.

Today I am grateful for

kids that are willing to do things with me.
a daughter who likes puzzles as much as I do.

a husband who washes my van while I just play.