Well, we've had more company this week! Our good friends Sharry and Gina Barton came down from Utah for the long weekend, and darned if we didn't lose Gina and Nic on Saturday. He said he wasn't lost, he just got bad directions. Umm, guess who gave the directions? He wanted to take her for a drive and get lost, so I just did my part to help. I told them about the drive to Cherry, a little wide spot in the road in the mountains near here. Problem is, I told them to take the old Cherry road, and Nic heard take the Old Cherry Road. The difference is one is paved, one is kind of a cattle trail, and Nic drives a Jetta VW. He followed directions, turned off on Old Cherry Road, and when it passed the last house it becomes a 4-wheel drive road. He pushed forward, looking for the paved part of the road; dropped into a washed-out creekbed and moved carefully to the other side. As he was driving up the washed-over road up the hill, he steered around a big rock only to have another one smash up into the oil pan.
Luckily his cell phone worked, and he called David. "Dad, can you bring some duct tape and a case of oil?" We loaded up the truck with tools, oil, water and yes, duct tape. When we got there we realized the rock had cracked the whole oil plug out of the pan, so a little duct tape and JB Weld wasn't going to fix the problem. We brought the kids home Saturday, and will have to rent a car dolly to haul the Jetta home.
They thanked me profusely for giving such good directions and allowing them such a pleasant afternoon! ha ha. I'll never hear the end of this one, I tell ya. Today when Sharry and Gina were getting ready to leave, Sharry asked for directions to the interstate. Gina and Nic just looked at me, like- DON'T SAY A WORD! So, I had David give the directions.
It's been raining hard here the last couple days, so Nic took the old pickup out today, looking for a mud slick to play in. Before they left, I told them "Now look, I am not recommending this road, and if you get lost or stuck, It's Not My Fault!"
Monday, September 1, 2008
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Family, Family and Family
Wow, it's been a busy couple weeks! Jared flew in from New Hampshire last week, so we had 10 days to spend with him, it was great. He enjoyed being home for a few days, got to hang out with Nic every evening-Nic had to work all day, but they spent lots of time playing Madden football, cracking jokes, just being brothers. They are really close, and it's fun to be around them, they spout comic lines from countless movies, horse around and just have a good time. Jared helped me finish tiling the kitchen, yippee! I'd laid tile through the kitchen, but hadn't felt good enough to move the fridge and big cabinets last year, so we've had 2 colors of linoleum in there for a year. Finally it's all one style, a stone-inspired gray tile. He did most of it himself, and it looks great.
We've been helping Trish move that past couple weeks. Last weekend David, Jared and Nic drove down to Sun City and helped her load a 24 foot Uhaul truck. They hoped to be finished by noon, instead they were just getting the truck home. Seems Uhaul didn't have the truck at the right location, so they had to drive to downtown Phoenix to pick it up, and instead of getting it at 9, it was nearly noon, at 105 degree temp. Whew! I was able to recruit a bunch of men from the church to help unload it on Monday evening. 8 men showed up to help, and with the Farr men, they had the whole thing unloaded in 1/2 hour. Trish was so impressed! Now she's in the process of unpacking, never much fun, but her house is looking good already. I helped, I brought Fruittuti's from Taco Bell, not once but twice!
We had Dakota all day last Saturday while Jared was here, we had a fun day. She loves the Lego blocks, and built a big building with it- check out the slideshow. Then she played in the pool, and directed Nic and Jared in a game of catch. She would blow her flute to start the action, and play music while they tossed the ball back and forth. It wasn't long before the bubbles came out, and Dakota decided to practice her fencing moves, slashing the bubbles right out of the air. I think she'd been watching the Olympics, because she has a good fencing stance, and stabbing moves. It's so cute! I got some video of it, but haven't figured out how to load it on here yet. Bess, David's sister, and her husband Tom, were here Friday evening and Saturday morning, so they finally got to meet Dakota. We have some cute pictures of them and Mom Farr with the boys and Dakota on the slideshow too.
My Mom came by too, the same weekend. We had Tom and Bess, Grandma Madge, Dakota, Jared and Trish coming and going last weekend, in addition to going to Sun City to move Trish on Sunday. Mom came back up Thursday evening, she's helping a friend drive back to Kansas this weekend. She left the motorhome here, and rode with Laura, who's Mom just went into hospice. She didn't want to drive back alone, and Mom is such a good friend, she dropped everything and went with her. We'll be going to San Diego to see her brother after Labor Day. Mom's only surviving brother, Marvin, had a stroke 10 days ago, and he's doing pretty well. Right now he's in a Rehab unit, and she wants to go visit him. I volunteered to go with her, so she isn't driving in all that traffic alone. She's a really good driver, but doesn't like driving in heavy traffic, so maybe I can help there.
As busy as it's been, to me this is what life is all about- family taking care of each other, and enjoying one another's company. We tease each other a lot, but I love them dearly and absolutely love to spend time with all the family.
We've been helping Trish move that past couple weeks. Last weekend David, Jared and Nic drove down to Sun City and helped her load a 24 foot Uhaul truck. They hoped to be finished by noon, instead they were just getting the truck home. Seems Uhaul didn't have the truck at the right location, so they had to drive to downtown Phoenix to pick it up, and instead of getting it at 9, it was nearly noon, at 105 degree temp. Whew! I was able to recruit a bunch of men from the church to help unload it on Monday evening. 8 men showed up to help, and with the Farr men, they had the whole thing unloaded in 1/2 hour. Trish was so impressed! Now she's in the process of unpacking, never much fun, but her house is looking good already. I helped, I brought Fruittuti's from Taco Bell, not once but twice!
We had Dakota all day last Saturday while Jared was here, we had a fun day. She loves the Lego blocks, and built a big building with it- check out the slideshow. Then she played in the pool, and directed Nic and Jared in a game of catch. She would blow her flute to start the action, and play music while they tossed the ball back and forth. It wasn't long before the bubbles came out, and Dakota decided to practice her fencing moves, slashing the bubbles right out of the air. I think she'd been watching the Olympics, because she has a good fencing stance, and stabbing moves. It's so cute! I got some video of it, but haven't figured out how to load it on here yet. Bess, David's sister, and her husband Tom, were here Friday evening and Saturday morning, so they finally got to meet Dakota. We have some cute pictures of them and Mom Farr with the boys and Dakota on the slideshow too.
My Mom came by too, the same weekend. We had Tom and Bess, Grandma Madge, Dakota, Jared and Trish coming and going last weekend, in addition to going to Sun City to move Trish on Sunday. Mom came back up Thursday evening, she's helping a friend drive back to Kansas this weekend. She left the motorhome here, and rode with Laura, who's Mom just went into hospice. She didn't want to drive back alone, and Mom is such a good friend, she dropped everything and went with her. We'll be going to San Diego to see her brother after Labor Day. Mom's only surviving brother, Marvin, had a stroke 10 days ago, and he's doing pretty well. Right now he's in a Rehab unit, and she wants to go visit him. I volunteered to go with her, so she isn't driving in all that traffic alone. She's a really good driver, but doesn't like driving in heavy traffic, so maybe I can help there.
As busy as it's been, to me this is what life is all about- family taking care of each other, and enjoying one another's company. We tease each other a lot, but I love them dearly and absolutely love to spend time with all the family.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Backyard reverie
It's Wednesday morning, I'm sitting on the backporch, reading the paper. It's small town news, the latest woes of the local economy are undermining efforts to build a community center, the farmer's markets are in full swing. There was a tragedy- a head on collision near Camp Verde killed the driver and injured 3 others. Mostly it's about the local happenings and opinings of the public. I love to sit on the porch with a smoothie, reading the paper and watching nature in the back yard. We get 3 papers a week, so it's not an everyday occurence. Two hummingbirds are fighting for the feeder, the doves and finches are swinging in for a nibble and a bath. Lizards are creeping around the patio and brick wall, slurping up bugs. I love lizards! I've seen several big butterfly, swallowtails, I think. The clay pig, cow and frogs are grinning at me, tucked into corners of the garden. They are cute, but right now it's too hot to put little plants in them- they'd cook within a week, so I've tucked the pots under roses and other plants to pretend there are flowers in them.
The dogs are adjusting well to each other, Cara is the youngest but the biggest. She is energetic, and the other 2 little dogs are still a little leary of her. Chica is starting to play with her more, instead of growling at her from the safety of David's lap. Sugar just watches all the excitment from her rug in front of the tv. When it gets too noisy there, she retreats to the front room where she has a pillow. We indulge Sugar, she's 15 now and slowing down a lot. She has a lot of cysts over her body, I'm afraid some of them may be cancerous, so we know our time with her is limited. She is absolutely the sweetest dog we've ever had, and we've had some very good dogs. She was an adorable puppy, given to us by a friend that rescued her, then decided she wasn't good with dogs. She asked us to watch her for a couple weeks while she was traveling, back in 1993, knowing full well that the kids would fall in love with her. The rest is history. She wasn't the brightest bulb on the tree, but definitely the most loving and sweet natured. She is all white, except for the times in Colorado that she found a manure pile, then she'd be gloriously green! She loved horse manure, and would roll luxuriously in it whenever the opportunity arose. EEuww! That was not a pleasant bath for the unlucky person in charge!
It's a little cloudy, and there's a good possibilty of rain today. I hope so, we've had lots of clouds and little rain. It just cruises in, teases us for a while, then blows south east to the Mogollon rim to dump the contents of those pretty clouds. Fun to watch, I can see lots of lightening flashing around, but not as satisfying as a good rain in the desert.
The dogs are adjusting well to each other, Cara is the youngest but the biggest. She is energetic, and the other 2 little dogs are still a little leary of her. Chica is starting to play with her more, instead of growling at her from the safety of David's lap. Sugar just watches all the excitment from her rug in front of the tv. When it gets too noisy there, she retreats to the front room where she has a pillow. We indulge Sugar, she's 15 now and slowing down a lot. She has a lot of cysts over her body, I'm afraid some of them may be cancerous, so we know our time with her is limited. She is absolutely the sweetest dog we've ever had, and we've had some very good dogs. She was an adorable puppy, given to us by a friend that rescued her, then decided she wasn't good with dogs. She asked us to watch her for a couple weeks while she was traveling, back in 1993, knowing full well that the kids would fall in love with her. The rest is history. She wasn't the brightest bulb on the tree, but definitely the most loving and sweet natured. She is all white, except for the times in Colorado that she found a manure pile, then she'd be gloriously green! She loved horse manure, and would roll luxuriously in it whenever the opportunity arose. EEuww! That was not a pleasant bath for the unlucky person in charge!
It's a little cloudy, and there's a good possibilty of rain today. I hope so, we've had lots of clouds and little rain. It just cruises in, teases us for a while, then blows south east to the Mogollon rim to dump the contents of those pretty clouds. Fun to watch, I can see lots of lightening flashing around, but not as satisfying as a good rain in the desert.
Monday, August 11, 2008
Me and Maxine
There are days I look like Maxine (the comic book version). I have a great straw hat, ok a couple of them- one's a beat up cowboy hat, that's my favorite. The other is a wide brimmed summer hat. Then I have the wrap around sunglasses, an old t-shirt and a pair of baggy capris, plus crew socks and tennies that give the illusion that I'm 4 1/2 foot tall. These are my 'embarass the children' days, but it's comfortable and I don't care if they get ruined. I was rebuilding part of the drip system, trimming the grapes, sweeping the porch. It's messy, dirty work, not a beauty pageant!
There are 3 dogs here now, and they have to be in the back yard while the chickens are out in the side yard. We all know chickens are dumber than rocks, so they are happily pecking around the yard while 2 of the dogs are sniffing excitedly at the gate, the fence, hoping for a chance to check out those chicks up close....
We have figs! We bought the tree 6 years ago, and have had the beginnings of fruit on it every year, but this is the first time they actually grew and ripened. It's a black fig, and so delicious! They don't ripen all at once, just a few every day, so I've been eating 3-4 a day all week long. The grapes are ripening, they'll be ready by next week maybe. There are tomatoes, peppers, lettuce and cucumbers coming on too. I planted 3 tomatoes, 2 peppers, 4-5 cucumbers, a few green beans. I had several squash, but David was weeding a couple weeks ago and thought they were weeds. Either that or he didn't want that many squash... It's not a big garden, enough to eat fresh veggies from but not enough to can. Luckily, Hauser's Farm in Camp Verde has the best corn, so we have fresh corn when we want it. In fact, I think it's time for a corn run. Maybe I'll wear my Maxine outfit!
There are 3 dogs here now, and they have to be in the back yard while the chickens are out in the side yard. We all know chickens are dumber than rocks, so they are happily pecking around the yard while 2 of the dogs are sniffing excitedly at the gate, the fence, hoping for a chance to check out those chicks up close....
We have figs! We bought the tree 6 years ago, and have had the beginnings of fruit on it every year, but this is the first time they actually grew and ripened. It's a black fig, and so delicious! They don't ripen all at once, just a few every day, so I've been eating 3-4 a day all week long. The grapes are ripening, they'll be ready by next week maybe. There are tomatoes, peppers, lettuce and cucumbers coming on too. I planted 3 tomatoes, 2 peppers, 4-5 cucumbers, a few green beans. I had several squash, but David was weeding a couple weeks ago and thought they were weeds. Either that or he didn't want that many squash... It's not a big garden, enough to eat fresh veggies from but not enough to can. Luckily, Hauser's Farm in Camp Verde has the best corn, so we have fresh corn when we want it. In fact, I think it's time for a corn run. Maybe I'll wear my Maxine outfit!
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
We just got back from Colorado, and can you believe we took the heat with us? It was 107 degrees here when we left on Friday, and I was really looking forward to cooler temperatures in western Colorado. Glenwood Springs is typically in the 80's to 90's this time of year, much nicer than Arizona. Wouldn't you know, all of Colorado and Utah were in a heat wave, it was nearly 100 when we landed there! We stayed in the Hotel Colorado, an elegant old hotel in Glenwood that was built in 1893. Beautiful, but no air conditioning; we only had a ceiling fan and nearly cooked!
The wedding open house was great, our friends the Olmstead's always put on a great party. It was held at their home near Silt, Colorado. A nice outdoor gathering that brought many of our old friends together, so we could enjoy the wedding festivities and also visit with many great friends. The bride, Vanessa, is beautiful and spunky, while the groom is handsome, earnest and they are madly in love with each other. Congratulations to them, and the best of wishes for a long and happy marriage. KJ is an airplane mechanic in the Air Force, so they are headed back to Georgia to start their new life together.
Silt is in the heart of a natural gas boom, so while the rest of the country is struggling in a deep recession, the gas business is propping up the economy there. There is a lot of work available, but it's a rural area, so housing is limited. Most of the people at the wedding party have lived in Garfield county for years, and have seen energy booms before- in the 40's there was Uranium, the 70's brought oil shale, and now natural gas is the latest big thing. They've seen it boom and bust too many times to get very excited, but it does make for a lively conversation.
Monday we drove to Annabella, Utah, to visit David sister Bess and her husband Tom. We also stopped at the cemetery to visit Dad Farr's grave. Bess takes good care of it, and keeps nice flowers there. His headstone has a saw and hammer carved into it, and the statement- Arizona educator 1938-1979. He taught in Fredonia for most of that time, and his specialty was woodworking. He made beautiful furniture, and taught so many students how to do so also. I miss him so much, and I'm glad we could go by to pay our respects.
The wedding open house was great, our friends the Olmstead's always put on a great party. It was held at their home near Silt, Colorado. A nice outdoor gathering that brought many of our old friends together, so we could enjoy the wedding festivities and also visit with many great friends. The bride, Vanessa, is beautiful and spunky, while the groom is handsome, earnest and they are madly in love with each other. Congratulations to them, and the best of wishes for a long and happy marriage. KJ is an airplane mechanic in the Air Force, so they are headed back to Georgia to start their new life together.
Silt is in the heart of a natural gas boom, so while the rest of the country is struggling in a deep recession, the gas business is propping up the economy there. There is a lot of work available, but it's a rural area, so housing is limited. Most of the people at the wedding party have lived in Garfield county for years, and have seen energy booms before- in the 40's there was Uranium, the 70's brought oil shale, and now natural gas is the latest big thing. They've seen it boom and bust too many times to get very excited, but it does make for a lively conversation.
Monday we drove to Annabella, Utah, to visit David sister Bess and her husband Tom. We also stopped at the cemetery to visit Dad Farr's grave. Bess takes good care of it, and keeps nice flowers there. His headstone has a saw and hammer carved into it, and the statement- Arizona educator 1938-1979. He taught in Fredonia for most of that time, and his specialty was woodworking. He made beautiful furniture, and taught so many students how to do so also. I miss him so much, and I'm glad we could go by to pay our respects.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
