I've been away for a while for two reasons - one, one of my children wasn't able to come for Thanksgiving, and I didn't want to rub salt in the wound by raving about it, and two, I have had a dickens of a time getting those photos off my camera for some reason.

We weren't able to go to Utah for the family Christmas party last week, so in some cosmic sense, I guess things have come into balance once again, so I'll report on Thanksgiving...

We had such a great time with the family - it's been several months now since we've seen anyone, so it was good to have them all here.  We celebrated all the Nov. - December birthdays;

The oldest Grand daughter is learning to play violin this year - she brought it with (homework) and she serenaded us for a while...

She's really pretty good :-)

Thanksgiving day was fun - I had lots of help in the kitchen, and when it was over, everyone excused me to go take a nap, and they cleaned up!  Yay!

When it was all over with, Grandpa brought out the Christmas tree - he's been waiting for weeks for his little girls to come and decorate it.

Grandpa, relaxing with his girls...

My son's family left on Saturday, but my daughters stayed until Sunday.  Melissa had lots of fun decorating the rest of the house with holiday decor.  My house is all festive now, and ready for the holidays.

The tree in my living room

Wayland claimed this corner for his Santas...

The little tree in our bedroom;

December is Rodeo time here in Las Vegas.  The big National Finals Rodeo goes on for a couple of weeks, with all kinds of festivities.  Wayland has been very busy at his store, since he caters to that crowd.  The girls, getting their cowgirl on in daddy's hats...

There is a big Western Show at the convention center during the rodeo, and Wayland's store had a booth there...

Other than that, I have been painting like crazy getting some things done that my sister "ordered" shipped them out today...

I can't believe this, but in my rush to get them done and out of here, I forgot to take pictures!

Curses.

I did get these, however - the canvases came in three packs, so I did all of them...

Besides all that, I've been working really hard on billiongraves.com (a genealogy website where you input information from headstones - very cool, and more fun than playing solitaire for hours...)

That's our December.

I can't believer that Christmas is almost here already, we are hoping to be able to run up and spend Christmas Day with the family, the last trip didn't pan out, so knock wood...  Hubby only has the 2 days off, so it will be a quick (and short) trip, but worth it.

Happy Holidays!

Starting Over...

I finally got to interact with my new church group this weekend.  We've been here less than a year, and were just getting to know the old one when the apple cart rolled over and all the boundaries changed - so, here we go again.

Saturday, the women's auxiliary (Relief Society) had a "Soup-er Saturday" where they made crafts, did service projects, taught classes and had a soup cook off.  It was all kinds of fun - this new ward has lots of good energy and were so friendly and welcoming to all of us "oldsters" from the senior community.  Does the heart good...

I hadn't signed up for any of the crafts, so my friend and I went to do the service project - which was making pillowcases for a center for families in crisis.  They used a really interesting technique (the "hot dog roll") and it was kind of amazing - wish I'd known about this when I made those pillowcases for the girls this past summer!  No seams showing anywhere.  Brilliant!

After that, we went to some of the classes - one lady taught one on organization and time management.  This would have been so relevant about 40 years ago - but I had a hard time making it apply to me at this stage of my life.  I have no schedules, no deadlines - I don't even have anyone who cares if I do anything or not, so I'm afraid this was wasted on me...

The next class was on bread making.  I watched and listened so carefully, because I have always loved home made bread, but have never been able to master this art.  The teacher used ingredients I have never heard of, and one of those high-end machines that cost about as much as one of my children, so I probably won't be doing hers...  Waiting for the email with the other recipes, and hope they are a bit more basic.

Sunday was great too - they actually had us introduce ourselves this time (never did do that in the other place,)  and I was volunteered to conduct the music in RS.  It's just so nice to feel included for a change...  My friend is moving to a different part of town, so I had to venture on without her, but I guess I will survive.

I've been pretty homesick this month - it's just so weird not having any seasons like what I'm used to.  No bright colors in the fall - no beautiful snow in the winter.  (Although I do not miss the cold or having to drive in the stuff!)  But, I'm starting to realize that there are things that I do like about this place, and if we were to go home tomorrow, there would be things (and people) that I would miss from here too.
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My Own Personal Haunting...

I have my own story to tell here in my lovely home...

This house has some unconventional wiring or something, because we have a light that comes on randomly, whenever it feels like it.  The other day, I lay down on the couch to have a nap, and when I woke up, it was on - stuff like that.

No sooner had my hubby left for his trip to AZ, when I heard a big CRASH.  I went to all the windows and looked out to see what had happened, but didn't see anything unusual.  Then, later, I went into the garage to go somewhere (he did leave me the car while he was gone,) and there were boxes scattered all over the floor.  I had to clean up a bunch of stuff before I could even pull out. 
One whole stack of boxes had come crashing down for some unknown reason.

Then, I got up one morning, and went to have breakfast - while I was sitting there, I heard another big crash.  I went back to the bedroom to see what the heck this time - and my rack of dvd's had fallen over and were all over the floor.  This time I yelled at Mr. Spooky - "Very Funny Mr Ghost - knock it off!" 

Mind you, this stuff has only happened when I'm home alone, and I lock up tight all day long, so it's just me here...

Then, we had a light in the bathroom that went out.  Not just a bulb - the room lost power completely.  Wayland had a super busy week, and he didn't get a chance to look at it right away, so it was a few days before he checked all the breakers etc.
He's not a whiz at electricity, but he finally just changed the plug, and that did the trick - however, he went to get something for lunch out of the freezer the next morning on the way to work, and found that the freezer was on the same circuit as the bathroom was, and that it had been off the whole time the light was off.
We lost everything.  Plus, I had a icky sloppy mess to clean up.  Luckily, it was trash day, so I didn't have that stuff rotting in the garbage can all week.  I was worried that the neighbors would see all the blood, and call the authorities on me.

Lastly, we bought this cute little Halloween decoration at the grocery store one night, a little ghost (appropriately enough,) the thing was supposed to light up or something, and when we got home, we both played with it to try to turn it on - but the thing never did work.
Then, one night, Wayland woke up at 3 am because he saw bright red and blue lights flashing in the other room - he got up and went out there, because he thought there was a police car in the back yard or something.  It was the dang ghost.  It had finally come on, ...all by itself.

Now you tell me - coincidence?  ...I don't think so.  Ha ha

This Halloween - for the first time in 40 years, we had NO trick or treaters.
Back in Utah, we live in a subdivision that is really concentrated - lots of houses packed close together, so of course, it's the prime place for people to go "dump" their kids for tricks and treats.

They start on our street, then snake their way down through the whole thing, and by the time they get to the end, they have made a killing for the night.  There usually isn't even time to go back upstairs before the next hoard of treaters knocks on the door.

Not so here - in my little oldster's village, there wasn't a spook in sight.  I hate to sound like an old poop, but I found it rather refreshing...

Believe me, we are counting the days until my husband's 2 year commitment here is up.  (As of next month, we are halfway there - yay!)
He has already sent his resume out to his old job (they sent all the work to his department back East - that's why he got laid off, but they are going to bring it back now.)  And he has put his name in for a couple of the stores in Utah.
This city has been a growing experience, but one of the things that has grown is the knowledge that it is not for us!

So much red tape in anything and everything we try to do.  Hubby spent the whole day on his birthday at the DMV trying to get his license renewed.  Still hasn't got it.


Yesterday was our stake conference - it was so good.  They are so gung-ho on missionary work here. It's really quite contagious. The stake's theme for this whole next year is: Invite, invite, invite.
...And temple work - our stake leads the area in that, and in providing names.
I've been doing some indexing while I sit here day after day, and the last few times I try to download a batch, it tells me that "there are no more batches to do at this time."  At conference they said that our stake did a million names last year.

The church is the one good thing here.
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A Haunting We Will Go...

This week, I was trying to find an episode of Ghost Hunters for a spotlight on my family facebook page.  While I was searching, I ran across a lot of episodes that feature places right here in Las Vegas!

So, just for fun, and in honor of Halloween, here's just a few of them - places I am going to have to look into, and hopefully visit sometime in the future...

Bonnie Springs Ranch.
This one was fun to see, because we just drove past the entrance to this place a couple of weeks ago, and I was wondering what it was all about. It was during the government lockdown, so it was closed at the time...


The next one is the old Boulder City Hospital
The building is being renovated to be used as a home for a community outreach program, but all the strange activity has people wondering if it is safe for them to be there.
(I tried to find the full episode, but all I could get was this short teaser, sorry.)
Apparently, there was a cover up involved in a lot of the deaths.   Men were told that they had pneumonia, when they actually had asbestos poisoning by the materials they were using to build Hoover Dam.


La Palazza Mansion
Ok, I probably wouldn't visit this one - it sounds too creepy for me...  ha ha


There are many others, but that is just a few.  There are ghost tours here too.  They are pretty expensive, but they would be fun to do someday.

Anyway - Happy Halloween from me to you.

Boo!
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Changes

Just a little news first - this past week, our ward was re-organized.  I guess that happens a lot here.  The man who did the announcing said that he's lived in the same house for ten years, and has been in 5 different wards and 3 different stakes during that time.  Anyway, my status did change - my new bishop looks to be about 12 years old.  His counselors are both large Polynesian men - it's an interesting sight, a young boy and his "bodyguards."

The part of town that was added is all really young folk, and they're not too happy about acquiring all us "oldsters."  Ha ha.

Our church is about twice as far away as the old one. So, it will all be a new experience from here on out.  I was just barely starting to get acquainted here, so we will have to start all over...
I will miss our bishop - he was young too, but so wise in knowledge and experience.  He was kind, energetic and just fun to be around.  Mighty mighty.  I will also miss the scripture study class that he taught on Wed. nights.

But, life goes on...

Anyway, new trials this week - the light in the bathroom went out a few days ago - and we discovered there is no power to that room at all.  Checked all the plugs and all the breakers - nothing seems to be amiss, but still no light.
*Update* this morning, as Wayland was leaving for work, he discovered that the freezer outside in the garage is also out.  Aparently, it has been off as long as that light has.  We lost everything that was out there.

So, I will be cleaning up stinky dead meat juice from that disaster today.

Oh joy.
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Sled

I talked to my son on the phone last night, and he wanted pics of my latest project;

It's kind of fun resurrecting these skills, even though the eyes and the hands aren't what they used to be...

October

It's that time of year again, and hubby has been doing his thing...
Little Halloween vignettes everywhere you look.  This month has been a little depressing for him, he's having a hard time liking it anymore, so he's been decorating trying to cheer himself up.

It's funny, because I'm finally starting to feel just a little bit settled.  Dealing with the big "D" (diabetes) is my biggest challenge right now.
I'm finding if I don't get out and have my walk everyday, I start feeling more and more run down, so I have to keep that going.  It isn't always convenient - (some days I just don't want to,) but I can see a difference there.
Mostly, I just don't know how to be diabetic.  I received  a little instruction in the hospital, but I was busy surviving a heart attack, was on all kinds of meds, and lost a lot of brain cells in the process, so it didn't stick.  My visiting teacher is studying to be a nurse, and she promised to try to find me some literature on the thing...

Other than that, life goes on.

I have another painting project I'm working on (no pics until I'm finished.)

This place has been harsh on us in so many ways, but every once in a while, there are little coincidences that remind us that we are not forgotten and prayers are heard.
One of those funny little things happened at church the other day.  We were discussing the pioneers and how they moved from Nauvoo across the plains to Utah.  My mind wandered to something someone had told us - that Las Vegas had also been settled by those Mormon pioneers, and I was thinking how much I wish I knew that story - in the next breath, the teacher said "Oh, and by the way, someone left these fliers on the settling of Las Vegas, you can pick one up on the way out.

What!?!

He didn't even know where they came from, they were just there.  Crazy.

I have a friend who takes me to a scripture study class on Wednesday nights, which is nice, because Wednesdays have always been my hardest days.  She has been keeping me busy on weekends too - we drove all around looking for carpet (for her new house) one day.  ...Then she pulled into this parking lot at the end of the city - she said; I hope you're going to have another exciting adventure in here.  I looked around, and it made me very nervous - strange people hanging around the doors to this unmarked building, in a not-so-great-looking part of town...
Inside was the giant swap meet that we have heard so much about!  We had fun browsing the aisles - everything you could imagine is there.  She had just parked behind the building so I couldn't see where we were.

I do have fun with her.

Today, on my walk, I found some autumn leaves!  They aren't bright and pretty like the ones in Utah, but still, something unexpected that I didn't think I'd see here.

I was heading down to the pond to see if there were any cranes there today - these birds have been hanging out at the pond for the last few weeks.  They are awesome to look at - they are kind of a cement color, and they stand so still - the first time I saw one, I thought it was a statue.
(This one is back by the tree...)

That's my big excitement for the day - now I'm off to finish painting my project, do laundry, and... probably have a nap.  Not necessarily in that order. :-)

Enjoy a few more pics of hubby's handiwork...

A Lesson - in Frustration.

That's pretty much what life is for me down here.
Everything I try to do is met with some sort of resistance.
Sometimes I get to the point that I stop trying, because it lessens the stress of having to deal with it.

I have been completely alone this past week.  Hubby had to go help with a couple of new stores in Arizona, so I've been on my own.  It hasn't been all that bad - not much different during the day, but I am just paranoid enough at night, that I haven't gotten much sleep.

Some brilliant person had to tell me about some break-ins a in our neighborhood a few months ago, where the perpetrators came in through the bedroom window.
Our bedroom window has always bothered me anyway, just because it is so big, ground level, and one of the screens is bent leaving a gap about an inch wide down the side.  (As if someone tried prying it off at some earlier date.)

So, anyway, needless to say I haven't slept much.  In fact, several nights I opted to sleep in the tiny little craft room where the window is much smaller and faces the street in full view of the security vehicle that patrols the street at night.  That room is much smaller, and a bit stuffy, but it feels cozier and a little more secure. I locked myself in and slept like a baby... except the bed is crap.

Anyway, I digress - what I have been doing this week to keep myself occupied is to list a bunch of my excess books on amazon.com.  I thought it would serve the dual purpose of cleaning my shelves a bit, and putting a few coins in my bank account as well.
Within just a few hours of listing them, I sold one!  It was the most expensive on I had listed too :-)
So, I ran around gathering supplies to ship it and sent it off...  Then began to tally up my "earnings."
By the time I got the envelope and the cost of shipping the thing, I made a grand total of... (drum roll please)  thirty five cents.

Wow.

This is hardly going to be worth it.

So, I moved on to etsy, and listed a few things there.  It took forever to take all the photos, get them uploaded, make my way through all the descriptions, pricing etc. - then finally I went to hit the final button to open my store, and I read "there is an initial listing fee of $25."
Sadly, I left that button un-pushed.  That would take every last penny I have in my bank account at this time, and not having a job, that is pretty much how it will stay indefinitely.  I just couldn't send it away, not knowing if it would return anytime soon.

So much for my business exploits.

Then, I went to the craft store and picked up some spray varnish so I could finish the Christmas sign that I painted.  As I went to take it outside to spray, I glanced at the pattern and realized that I hadn't added the "snow" to the background.  So, I sat down and commenced dotting the thing with all those little white dots...

I hate it.

I feel like I ruined it.

I could paint over it with the dark blue again and cover it up, but the dots are kind of dimensional, so that would leave it looking all lumpy and weird looking, which would be...

Creepy. 

*Sigh.*

I had a friend take me to the library - I couldn't get a library card because my driver's license is expired - I can't renew my driver's license because I have to have a doctor's ok - and my doctor is in Utah.  So the friend tried to get me access to my library on my Nook, which she couldn't do because I have to have some kind of access code, which neither of us had any idea how to obtain...

Everything I try to do down here has a similar story.  There are so many more I could tell you - but that would just be -

Depressing.

Is it any wonder that most days I opt to just sit in the chair and play solitaire on the computer?

'Nuff said.
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Catching Up

It's time to update, but not much goes on around here...

I did do a little re-decorating last week - just spruced up my guest room a little for Fall;

My sister made this quilt for me a few years ago, and I literally gasped when I saw it!
Autumn colors are my favorite, and I love the "antiquy, old-timey" feel of it.  So much so, that I made a special trip to the town she lives in - to her favorite quilting store, to see if I could find some fabric to match it for some pillow cases.

The lady there looked at me like I was missing a few screws - but she did locate at least one of them.  When she rang me up, I nearly lost my cookies - $40 ?!!!!  Wow - I would never pay that much for a couple of pillow cases, but what are you going to do - it was already cut at that point.
I found the fabric in a box I was going through the other day, so I sewed them up.

 Makes the room look snug and cozy for the season.  I have to pretend it's cooling off, since the weather here hasn't cooperated much yet...

Next, I drug granny's old dresser in from the garage.  I've had the idea of bringing this in here ever since I saw the room - it's the perfect spot for it.  I was going to paint it first, but hey, it's all distressed and shabby-chic'ed, so why bother?  People pay lots of money for stuff like this, so I'll just enjoy it as is.  :-)

That's really all that's gone on here for a while - I've been really lazy the past couple of weeks, reading, playing solitaire, and watching the telley.  (Monarch of the Glen on Netflix, to be specific)

I hope my energy level picks up soon, because there are projects that I want to do, and I need to find a little gumption to do them...

Lastly, just a photo of all the books I've read this summer...
(Beautiful Creatures is missing - it's out on loan)

TTFN
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Jibber Jabber

My 6th day in a row inside these walls with no escape.  I am starting to lose it.

Oh, there are plenty of things to do - this week I have;

* Finished one book and started another
* Finished a BBC television series, and started it over again
* Watched episodes of Bunheads on the computer
* Indexed 150 names on family search.com
* Done several batches of laundry
* A few batches of dishes
* Read the instruction manual for my cake maker
* Made 4 Halloween cards
* Played about 40 hours worth of solitaire on facebook
* Spent 3 hours doing 'walkies' inside my house (it's too hot outside)
* Watched hours of television
* Spent even more hours on the computer (trying to find someone to talk to)

...There's more, but you get the idea.

Today I've been reminded of the Book of a Thousand Days. 
The challenge of trying to stay upbeat and healthy when you are actually going stark raving mad and just want to go running into the street screaming...

Sorry, I lost it there for a minute.

There are days when I just can't take it anymore, and am so depressed I just want to stay in bed all day, and then there are those days when I just want to be left alone to do my thing, not even wanting hubby to come home from work because he interrupts my 'flow.'

What can I say, insanity knows no rhyme or reason.

Tomorrow is hubby's first day off since we got back from Utah (on Tuesday,)  and I don't care how tired he is - I'm busting out of here!

Now excuse me, I have to get back to my 2 Tumblrs, Pinterest, Facebook, Rocky Road (book) Gilmore Girls, Ghost Whisperer, etc.

You understand...
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Labor Day

Hubby and I discussed going home for labor day all week long.
By the end of the week, we had decided against it - but a last minute text from our daughter with some good news changed our minds at the last minute.
Saturday morning, we packed and headed home.

I love going home - it's a whole different world there.  One where I can actually go places any time I feel like it, and have people who actually know (and care) that I'm alive, who will come and visit me.
I love my neighbor - she comes out and visits any time she sees us out and about.

Labor day weekend is a big to-do in my home town.  Lots going on.  It was fun watching the parade with my grand kids, and although we didn't journey down to the park for the craft fair and carnival, that is always an option...

Instead, we went to my brother in law's for a barbecue.  My sister in law, Kathy is an awesome cook, and always puts on the best spread.
My mother in law always threw a big bash for the whole family, but with her gone this year, everyone else made other plans, so it was just our two families there.

My grand daughter Millie entered a miniature flower arrangement in the flower/art show, so we went up to see that on Sunday.  She was there, and beaming from ear to ear from having won an honorable mention.

There's always so much to do, and not enough time to cover all those things, so I have to pick and choose.  I did do some shopping at a couple of my favorite haunts, and visited everyone on my list, but there wasn't time for that drive up the canyon to see the leaves.  Sad.  I miss seeing any autumn color this year.

While we were up there, my son finished editing the book that he's been working on for years, and it went up for sale on Tuesday!  Conquest From the Ashes  It's a sci-fi detective type thriller.  I haven't read it yet, I've been patiently waiting my turn...

My other son, the artist, designed the cover.  Cool project for both of them - mama is so proud!

I'm back home in the desert now, back in my stucco cage.
Trying to keep busy, keep my spirits up, and stay healthy.

Hubby doesn't have any more time off until the first of next year, so our traveling days are done for a while.  We brought home all the holiday decorations for that reason.  (I told hubby that we can't go home anymore if he's going to load the truck up every time we do - we'll have to rent a semi when the time comes to move home again!)

That's the news in my neck of the world - so glad now that September is here.  We have another couple of weeks of triple digit weather, and then it is supposed to cool down to something more bearable.

We'll see.


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Family Photo Shoot

When I was in the hospital, and saw that my son had come home, I'm told I said that it was good, that we could finally get some new family photos taken.
I don't remember saying that, but my daughter in law got her brother, who is a wizard with a camera to come and take some when I got home.

He did an amazing job, and took every kind of photo that we asked for.

Here are some of the results...

My oldest son and his family:

My other son and his wife:

My two daughters, who are still single and living at home, even though we don't anymore...

...and the 114 year old puppy, who is as much a part of the family as the rest of us:

The four of the kids together...

Another great shot with the wives...

My entire posterity (thus far):

I requested this one - of course the little girls had no idea who Charlie's Angels are, and no idea what I was going for, but they humored Grandma...

No photo shoot is complete without the gratuitous goofy shot...

...And the finale, the complete, most up to date family group shot.

Brad did a great job editing - he took my injuries out of the mix, and moved people around to get a cohesive looking shot.  Thanks to him, and to Joel for taking such great photos on short notice! 

...And just to show how talented Brad actually is with photoshop: 

(Jeff Goldblum and the raptor were not actually present.)

That's my family - if there was one good thing that came out of the tragic events this summer, this little collection of photos is it.

Love these people!
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Back in The Day...

This week has been an extremely stressful one.
My husband has had the last two days off, and has kept things around here stirred up until my tummy is in upheaval and I'm not sleeping any more.
He's back at work today, so I'm hoping to take a day off from our worries and think about something else.

Just a little something from my personal history...

I was sorting through some stuff on my shelf the other day, (purging in case we needed to move again soon,) and I found some old, old, old instruction sheets from the very first tole painting class I took a lifetime ago.  (Plus a progression of others, leading my memory through my painting career...)

That first class was at the Hobby Hive - which, back then was located in a tiny little shack on a side street in Spanish Fork.  I had run across it by accident one day, and had haunted it since, drooling over the adorable painted objects in the window.

I finally got up the courage to sign up for a class, (and convinced hubby to finance it.)
That first class was done with oils - from there painting became a passion that took hold and burned out of control for a while...

Eventually, that little store moved to a larger building on main street, and by then I was a fixture there.  They had discovered a new tole painting artist (Marie Cole) who's work was (and still is) beyond cute.  I took a few classes from her  and others - this time in acrylics, and from then on I was a complete addict.

When it became necessary for me to go to work, the Hobby Hive was the first place I thought of to apply.  (Brad was 4 when I applied, and I had to take him to the interview - I swear he got me the job!)  I did get the job, and spent several happy years there.

Shortly thereafter, the store was purchased by a larger, but still family owned company out of Provo. (Provo Craft.)
The new manager was young, and somewhat inexperienced, and he gave me a lot of opportunities.  Eventually, I got brave enough to teach a few classes myself.  (Even though it was extremely stressful for someone with acute social anxiety like myself! - what was I thinking? ha ha)

It was fun, and a challenge learning how to articulate to someone else how to master the art...
After a while, it became apparent that Provo Craft had purchased the store, not to expand their territory, but to eliminate the competition.
They soon planned to close the store, (which broke my heart.)  But, through helping with the transfer of merchandise, and the move, I managed to secure a spot at the store in Provo.

It wasn't a great spot - I was just an "extra" which meant that I did whatever crappy chore no one else would do, and gave breaks to all the people with real jobs. (I always worked Holidays and weekends etc.)
 I had some pretty hair-raising adventures there, but along with that came some pretty fun stuff too.  For instance, one year, I was put in charge of receiving and organizing all the merchandise that came in for a weekend long crafting event.
(Kind of an open house, offering dozens of mini classes to customers who came in the store.

It was a big responsibility, (and got me out of a lot of crappy jobs for a while ha ha)
When that day came, it was crazy busy, and I got to be the stand in for several of the teachers so they could take a lunch break - which meant that I got to be taught how to do all the projects.

I also got assigned to receive all the Christmas merchandise one year.   That was fun too, except that it was all stored in one of the uppermost rooms in the building, and the ceiling was really low - it was July, and it was stuffy & hot up there, and very claustrophobic!

Anyway, (getting side tracked here.) It was while I was there, that I was approached by one of the painting teachers about a new venture that they were starting - painting samples from the instruction books that the company produced, to be used as displays for other stores.

I was stunned, and honored to be chosen to do this!  I would take an order home, after work, and do it on my own time. (An order would consist of several of exactly the same item, so it could be done assembly line style.)
They paid by the piece, but if you were fast - it was really good wages.
I loved it, and made a good living at it for a while.
At one point, I was chosen to take a special class to do work from one of the more detailed artists.
There were only 8 people chosen to do this, so it was really an honor.

I was really happy with this work, and ate, slept and breathed to paint - joined the local chapter of the Decorative Painting Society - and went on lots of fun retreats, went to the painting convention in Logan every year, took seminars (two to three day classes by one individual teacher where you complete a series of projects - always intense!)
I even contracted with a couple of private places - Betty Headman, who had a booth at Quilted Bear in Park City, and I forget the name of the other place, but she sold Christmas ornaments by mail, and worked out of a little tin warehouse over by Geneva.

I would have been happy to go on like this forever, but the tole painting business started to wane - (those darn scrapbookers encroached on our territory!)  And the biggest buyer of painted samples (somewhere in Chicago) went out of business, so I lost that cushy job.

A few years later, Jennifer came along.  I had a child in high school, one in Jr. high, and one in middle school, plus a baby, so I had to put everything else on hold for a while.  (It felt like I was shifting from first to fourth gear all the time, with no transition in between - quite jarring!) ...And my health started to fail.

I enjoyed my baby to the fullest, telling myself every day, that there is a time and season for everything, and that I would take up the brush again someday when she was grown...

Ha ha.

She is grown now, and I am blind and arthritic.  There are very few places to buy painting supplies anymore, and the passion is just not what it once was. (Medication side effect - or old age?)

Whatever the reason, my hey-day came and went.  Pathetic, but that is as close to being successful at something that I will ever be.

Post Script:  I was talking to my sister about this, and something else came to mind - how during this time, my dream was always to create my own designs and have them published.  I worked and worked on some, even got the samples painted - I then took them in to show Becki (who was the person over the classes at PC.)  She loved them and told me that she wanted me to teach them.
I got so scared, that I took them home and never showed them to anyone again!
...And a few months later, every single one of the PC designers had taken my idea and done their own spin on it.

Like I said, pathetic.
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This 'n That...

Not much going on lately.

I'm continuing to feel stronger each week, which is a blessing.
Using my energy doing odd things around the house...  Re-painted a shelf and got it hung the other day - trying to get the craft room to look like something other than a ship wreck...

The Home Owners Association has been on us this summer for little landscaping issues.  Our good neighbor Frank has been very helpful in showing my husband how do trim the palm trees and bushes.
He has also had to help a few times when those "cute little bunnies" chewed off the tops of the sprinklers and caused geysers to form in the shrubs.

One thing we didn't feel qualified to handle was the trees on the side of the house...
They wanted them trimmed completely off the sidewalk.
Hello - removing all the shade for that side of the house, not to mention for any passers by on the sidewalk!

But the HOA is the law around here, and fines are doled out to those who don't comply.
We couldn't really do this one ourselves, and couldn't afford to have it done, so my husband turned the complaint over to the property managers to take care of.

They hired a landscaper to come and take care of it, so we now have the ugliest trees on the block, as per their instructions.

Meanwhile...  My husband brought a garden statue home from Utah - one that came from his mother's house, that he was particularly fond of - during the process of tree trimming, the landscapers dropped a branch on it, destroyed it, and carted it away with the rest of the debris.

Hubby was devastated.

I am a little worried about him.  I am finding that he is dealing with his grief at the loss of his mother in strange ways...

On the other hand, he's still tackling work with a vengeance.   Lately, he has been having problems with a lady who fills her cart with clothing or whatever, and waits around until there are only a couple of workers at the registers - then she charges out the door with all her ill-gotten merchandise and runs for home (those scary apartments just over the fence.)

The other day, someone reported her soliciting men in the parking lot!  He was able to get her on multiple counts, trespassing, theft, prostitution, etc. and if she sets foot on the place again - off to jail she goes!

Just another day in the life of a businessman here in this lovely place we call Las Vegas.

There is another side to the coin here though.  We have met a few people at church who are the kindest, most spiritual and understanding people.   Sundays are a balm at the beginning of each week, and literally gets us through until the next week.  Our home teachers are awesome, and I have a friend who makes sure I get to any meeting I want to attend (along with some extracurricular activities :)

Who knew such people could exist here in the land of the lost?

We won't be going home again for a while - all those trials of July have devastated the bank account, and it is so expensive to drive the truck up there.  I guess we'll have to be content for a while...

Saw this quote on Facebook, and it is so appropriate for what we've been going through.

 My sister has a conference here next month, and will be stopping in to visit, so at least I have something to look forward to.

The mornings and evenings are cooling off now, and are really quite pleasant.  So ready for Fall - whatever that brings...
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July Wrap Up...

July passed in an angry blur - spent all but 5 days of it in Utah, in the hospital recovering, and at home being nursed by my family.
My son brought me back to Nevada on the 17th, and stayed with me through Sunday, when he left to go home.  Monday morning,  the 22nd, we got the call that my husband's mother had passed away.  We threw our belongings into our bags and headed back to Utah, where we stayed until the 30th.

My husband has worked a total of 6 days this month, and I was home for 5.  We're back now, and hoping the traumatic trial period is over, because it will take us months and months to overcome the fears, the financial setback, and the trauma of this period in our lives...

There were a few highlights from the month that were not bad -

I shared my birthday with my precious youngest daughter, who turned 21 this year...

And I attended Scottish Days with my oldest daughter.  We got there early enough to see the parade this year - a first for us.  Lovin' on those bagpipes and kilts...

My mother in law's funeral was lovely, and I think she would have approved.  All of her grand children and great gran's took the stage to sing for her - and the stage was beyond capacity.
To her credit - she knew each child by name, birthday, what their interests were and so much more.

Hoping for healing and peace to her family...

August is here now, and I'm enjoying being back home.  The weather is still hot, but the mornings and evenings are pleasant.  I'm looking forward to experiencing what fall is like down here.
My quails and bunnies still visit me daily, and now bring their families who are growing up quite nicely.  The monsoon rains of July caused my dry sage colored bushes to burst into purple bloom overnight.

I'm feeling much better now, and less fearful of being home alone during the day.  I try to go walking every day, to hopefully stay that way.

Thanks so much to all my family and friends for their love and support, and for keeping me in books to read etc. through this trial.

Love you all,
PT
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Farewell to an Elect Lady...

My mother in law passed away on Monday.
It's so hard to believe that she is gone.  She was one of those people who you thought of as always being there, no matter what - the family's rock - steadfast and immovable.

She was a mother first and foremost, and her family was everything to her,
but she also opened her home to many others, and took them in as if
they belonged to her.

She was kind and compassionate and cared for others' needs before her own.
Truly the most Christlike person I have ever known - a great lady.

(Click on the link to see obituary)

Millie LaVeda Andrews Taylor

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It's My Party - Part 2...

(I was ordered by my sister in law to chronicle this before it slips from my memory...)

July 3,

As I said, I was sent home from the hospital, and was feeling pretty good - thinking that the problem had been solved.  The Christensen's, our long time neighbors came over to visit, followed by my daughter in law's family.   After that, I was a little tired, so I went to lay down...

Again with the room spinning-passing out feeling.

I called for help, and this time no one questioned me - in fact, they didn't even let me find my shoes.  It was right back in the car, and back to the emergency room.

Things didn't go as smoothly this time - they had to use the paddles 4 different times to keep me on this planet.  The last one I was awake to FEEL.

I wish I could describe how it felt, but there simply are. no. words.

I saw a blinding flash of light, and I pictured myself as one of those cartoons where the hair is all frizzed, and there is smoke coming from every orifice.
Suffice to say that it had me whimpering involuntarily like a baby, and begging them to just let me go.
Serious trauma.

They couldn't get me stable this time, so the only other option was to get me to a larger hospital in Provo...  Except the doctor said that I would never survive the trip by ambulance.
The only other option was by helicopter.

My family hustled out the door so that they could get there around the same time as I would,  while the ER team prepped me for the flight.
They wrapped me like a mummy in an itchy hot blanket.  There was apparently no AC in the cabin, because it was very warm.  It was also very close quarters.  The ceiling was only about six inches above my face.

It only took 15 / 20 minutes, but it felt like an eternity before we landed, I was so scared.

My family arrived before we did and were there to greet us.  This time they by-passed the ER and took my right to Emergency ICU.  They got me stable on medication, and from here on out - no more paddles.

The plan was to do a scan in the morning and go from there to surgery, if needed, so they told me to fast, and the test would take place around 8 in the morning.  I was so scared that I asked to be sedated so that I could sleep.

My husband came in the morning, and we waited....   and waited.....  and waited.
Finally around 2pm the nurse came in and said;  Um, I finally have some news.  We have 2 new scanners, but the company says that they cannot be used until they are inspected - and they can't be here until next week.

My jaw dropped, and I said; YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING!

An hour later, she came back and said that there was a plan B,  which was another angiogram, this time in the leg, and surgery the following day.

It was around 4 pm when they finally wheeled me into the operating room and prepped me for surgery.
I told them that I didn't care what they did to me, as long  as they knocked me out first.
They laughed and promised, but guess what - it didn't take.  I. Felt. Everything.

By the time they finished with me, I had gone the whole day with nothing to eat, unfortunately, the kitchen was closed by then.    One of the nurses scrounged me up a sandwich from somewhere.
(I was grateful, but the thing was so DRY it tasted like particleboard.)

I slept fitfully - I kept hearing noise like there was construction going on somewhere.  During the night, I asked the nurse what was going on - she said it was the fireworks.
I had forgotten that it was a holiday.

The next morning, they had me fasting again - but I didn't have to wait as long this time.  It was just after one when I went in this time.  There they installed a brand shiny new pacemaker/defibrillator.
I didn't have to feel the surgery this time, but I did start waking up before the doctor intended and felt them testing the thing.

After surgery, I was moved upstairs to cardiology.  If only I had been able to be there a couple of days earlier, I would have had the best seat in the house for the fireworks!
...Always a day late and a dollar short.

I was released again on the 7th of July.  This time, I hope it sticks.

I just want to add how well I was treated at both hospitals, and how thankful I am to all of them for saving my life and getting me through this.

No out of body experiences to share - each time I drifted out of this world, it just felt like I was dreaming.  The odd thing was that each time I was brought back to earth, it felt like the dream was the reality, and reality was jarring, confusing, and painful.

I'm not quite as afraid of death as I used to be, it's the here and now that is scary.

It's My Party And I'll Die if I Want To...

Been to Hell and back this week.  

July 1, Jenny and I were doing lunch downstairs, when I started feeling REALLY funky.  I told her I didn’t feel good, and was going to go lay down for a bit before everyone arrived to celebrate my birthday.

I stood up, and leaned forward to pick up my lunch plate, and tumbled right over the table onto the floor.   I told her - that was weird.

I cleaned the soda pop off me, that I took down with me, and did go lay down for a bit.

Later, my son arrived and we were chatting on the couch, when I started to feel that way again - so I scooted forward a bit to try to get the circulation going better - the next thing I knew, I was on my knees on the floor, with my chin on the table.  I was disoriented and didn’t know where I was, and thought I had dreamed talking to him.

He shook me, and called for help - then we headed up to the emergency room.

The hospital staff got me right into a bed as quickly as possible, and hooked me up to the monitors.  They called in a cardiologist, and discussed my case and how to proceed - all the time the nurses keeping close watch on my heart rhythms.

Finally, I was moved up to ICU.  The staff told my family to wait in the waiting room while they got me settled, and that I was the only patient in ICU at the time.

So, my family took their seats - they next thing they heard was Code Blue to ICU! ...And all the staff from ER running up the stairs to attend to me.

They told me they used the paddles on my and did some pounding on my chest - the only thing I remember is waking up with a bunch of people hovering in my face saying “she’s back" and “she’s breathing on her own."

They got me stable, and I made it through the night without any more incident.  My son, Bradley drove through the night so that he could be here with me.

The  next morning, Dr. Craigun, the Cardiologist took me in for an angiogram.  He found a 90% blockage in one of my main arteries, he inserted a stent.  Then, thinking my problem had been solved, they took me back to ICU to recover and be watched through the night.

All went well, so they sent me home, But as it turns out, that was just a red herring…

To Be continued.

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The End...

...Of the month, and Camp Grandma is closed for the season.

So thankful to my son for entrusting me with his 3 greatest treasures for 10 whole days.  :-)
...We did all the things I had on my list;

Swimming
Hair, nails and makeup (multiple times)
Games
Hide & seek (they love my house for this!)
Made neclaces
Made bracelets
Paper crafts
Played dolls
Read
Watched movies
Played with paints
Listened to e-books
Laughed, giggled, played and hugged.
(And went through more gallons of milk than hubby and I go through in 3 months!)

What a great time it was!

So much fun to get to know them up close and personal, good traits, and some, well not so good...
Learned that the oldest is a bottomless pit  (hungry all the time.)
The youngest has no pit (she won't eat anything.)
And the middle child?  No one really knows how much she consumes, because she sneaks it out of the cupboard and hides somewhere to eat it.  (Evidence: empty fudge-pop wrappers in my bathroom trash.)

My Arilie has wishes to be strong and courageous - has the potential to be a good leader (based on the karate lesson she gave me,)  but she has the tender-est heart, and is the most loving child you'd ever want to meet.  She also makes a wicked fried egg!

Millie, being the middle child, between two who are so dynamic (or maybe dramatic?) Is very soft spoken, patient and understanding - but also has a little wicked streak and loves to tease...

Ellie will be a star some day.  She sings, dances, acts and poses non stop.  Watch out for her, world!
(She's terminally adorable :-) )

My favorite moments were laying with them in bed at night (trying to get them to settle down to sleep.)  So many laughs, loves and hugs - I don't know how I'm going to get through the rest of the summer without them!  (The only thing I won't miss is the constant noise of cartoons! ha ha)

All dolled up and waiting for grandpa for the trip home:

...But now we are home in Utah - going to spend a week here.  Family Reunion on the weekend, and will celebrate birthdays, and hopefully just relax and have some fun.
(And just in time - heat wave in Vegas, will get up in the 120's by next week.)

Good ol' Summertime.
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Good Night Moon...

It's been a busy week here with my 3 little girls visiting.  We've tried to keep them busy and keep them from getting bored, but much of the time, they would just rather stay home and watch cartoons.

We have driven them downtown to see the sights there, we have visited the temple grounds, we have played at the park - we set up a rather large wading pool on the porch,  we have done crafts and lived on otter pops...

I hope they are having a good time.

As for me, I am totally convinced of the wisdom in having children when you are young.
Grandma's tired.  :-)  Grandpa has been at work almost the whole time, so it's just been me.

I don't often get a turn at the computer when they are awake, so I'll have to catch up later...

Right now, I'm going to bed.

Tomorrow we're doing nails and hair, turning them loose with the scrapbook paper, and making cake pops.
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We Are Sewing, Daily Sewing...

Been at the sewing machine all week, making surprises for my grand daughters, who will be arriving tomorrow to spend a week with grandma.

I've made them each a pair of summer jammies to wear down here because it is HOT!
I also included a pillowcases that match the pajamas, and today's project is a pair of doll pajamas that will match theirs.  I also made a random doll outfit for their American Girl dolls (Arilie doesn't have one of those - still thinking what I will do about that...)

Anyway, I hope it will be a fun stay for them - I know I will enjoy the company :-)
 They are at a fun age where it is really interesting just to converse with them,  they NEVER run out of topics, and they all talk at once :-)
Can't wait to show them my herd of baby quail and my bunnies...

In other news - After being here for 6 months, I think I am finally finding my niche.
I finally got made a visiting teacher,  and my partner is a scrapbooker!  The ladies I visit are all school teachers - into reading and genealogy (which I know nothing about, but need to learn.)
They are all very pleasant and fun to visit.  ...And all in their 70's, so I'm the young one here.  Ha ha.

Our ward memberships only arrived last week, against all of our efforts to hurry up the process, so we have been non-people up until now.  It's nice to finally be acknowleged, and able to participate in the activities officially.

Better get busy now, I still have those projects to finish...
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Rush Trip

Last weekend, we were out doing all the odd errands on Wayland's day off, when he got a phone call from home telling him that his mom had another stroke, (she's had a few lately, but this one was a little more intense,) and that they needed him home to talk about her care.

It was rather late in the day, so we made a tentative plan to head up in the morning...
But, on the drive home he kept stewing about it, and by the time we pulled into the garage, he turned to me and said; Ok, I can't take this, we need to leave now.

In about 20 minutes, we were packed and back on the road.

We got home to Utah at about 11:30, and the girls were up waiting for us.  We had a nice little visit and tucked in for the night.

Wayland spent most of the day visiting family, and doing all the little errands they needed help with.
Later that afternoon, they made arrangements with her doctor to bring her home for a family prayer circle...

As many of the family who could be there were there - some by skype and cell phone, but all of her children were represented.  She looked much better than we anticipated, but was having a hard time of it emotionally.

The family made arrangements to move her to a different facility - (closer to one of her daughters) and she is much happier now.

While we were home, I was able to do some of the things I've been missing - like planting flowers...

 Checking out my trees, and just enjoying my shady GREEN back yard!

(The large tree in the center is my baby - I planted it from a seed the same year my youngest was born.  They are both growing up quite nicely. :)


Went shopping with my oldest daughter, and visited the family graves...

Checked out how the new Temple is coming...

Went to breakfast at our traditional spot...

...And took the dog for a run up the canyon (so pretty this time of year!)

We also spent time visiting the grand kids.  School is out now, and they are so excited to come and spend time with us later this month...

All too soon, the weekend was over, and we found ourselves heading back into the sunset (literally.)

It's HOT here.  It's up in the triple digits much of the time now.  It was SO nice to enjoy the cooler temps of home, at least for a little while...

Epilogue - I've been trying to capture an image of these cute little baby quail for weeks now - this particular mother has close to 20 of them swarming around her all the time.  Luckily (for me) they spend a lot of time in front of the window of my craft room - I finally captured them today!

That's all I've got to say.  I have 6 people coming to stay this weekend (family wedding in Southern California,) So I've got to get my projects done and my room cleaned up for company.



Ta!
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