Festival of Trees

Better Pictures to follow ( well maybe -- if I could get Alisa to take them)

Each year The Festival of Trees is a fund raising event for Primary Children's medical center. People donate trees, and then they are sold. All proceeds go to Primary's medical center. Valcom donated a tree last year and this year. Tonya Steel had great ideas, did all the work and put together a wonderful tree this year. Rich's and my part is to actually put up the tree. You have to put pvc or rebarr down the middle and then rebar the tree to the stand. Since we had just been to Nevada, we found a great piece of copper pipe that we used. We did a fine job of getting the tree up and getting all the ornaments ready for the "decorators."

My other job was to get a mantle that looked like Grandma's house. I had our "garden worker" Sam construct the mantle and Emmalee Glauser painted a beautiful fire for our mantle. My last job was to get a rocking chair, which I did at the very last minute. (Sorry Tonya for making you worry) Thankfully Vintage Oak had just what we needed and they gave us a great price for the festival.


Melanie and Sue came from work to help decorate. They didn't know that part of a decorators job was to put together an end table. We only ended up with a few extra screws. After a few last minute dashes to the store the tree was complete. Thanks to all that helped.

Thanksgiving 2007 - Fallon, Nevada

Even though none of our children were able to travel to Nevada for our annual Thanksgiving Celebration we made the "Fallon Trek." We picked up Adam, Leanna, and Dakota and drove to Fallon on Wednesday.

We had a great dinner in the "barn" and then the little kids got to break the pinata at Jean Lattin's home.

There were lots of babies and so the "playing" part of Thanksgiving was taken over by changing diapers and putting children to bed. Rich finally won at "nurstz" thanks to Lynda's capable partnership. Even though LauraLee was in Idaho for the holiday we enjoyed playing games in her new home. Thanks LauraLee for being a good host. Christmas tree hunting was beautiful. We left early and made a quick side trip to the old Anaconda copper mine, near Yerington, Nevada. There was huge lake in the bottom of the pit and then there were some moon like dirt formations on the other side of the mine -- maybe some sort of reclamation project.


Kevin took care of getting the BYU-UTAH game for us by ordering an upgrade to Jill and Jeff's cable. Rich happily watched the game while I spent time with Mom and Dad looking though some of Dad's old prison stuff, which was extremely interesting. I kept asking myself -- would Brooke and Alisa throw this out? Probably, but I will need some hand holding with a waste basket near by to actually throw anything out. I read Playing for Pizza by John Grisham I was expecting it to be a thriller like some of his other books, but alas it was a book about football in Italy. It was an easy, mindless read so I actually enjoyed it.

Super Saturday Nov 17, 2007

I've never understood crafts and so to do them as an organized activity is beyond my capabilities. But thanks to a great enrichment committee we had a successful "Super Saturday."

I've decided that I will leave the crafts to those that are good at it and actually enjoy it, and I will stay close to my yard which I actually enjoy.


We also did some baby knit hats for newborns in Africa.


Sister Taylor and her very talented young apprentices helped us learn how to braid bread.

Book Review

I just finished "A Train to Potevka" by Mike Ramsdell. I loved it. Thanks to Daija for having me buy it. I think that I finally realized how big Russia is. I'm not sure I'd ever thought about it. I related to his remark that he never thought in his lifetime that the Communist government would allow its people to be free. I also never could believe that it would happen. But what about the prophecies that the gospel would be taken to all the world? Yes, but again not in my lifetime. July of 1992, Ashkii and Josh participated in a 3 week folk festival dance tour in France and Spain. I went along as a chaperone. There were dancers and muscians from Poland, Ukraine, Spain, France, Indonesia, and a few other countries. I have a picture of Josh in front of the American flag that I have framed. It reminds me of how thankful I am for my freedom. I remember one evening after rehersals the musicians from the different countries showing each other their instruments. Our banjo player was admiring the instrument from one of the "soviet" countries. They started playing music together. Words can't express the feeling I had that evening as I beheld a prophecy being fulfilled. Not only did it happen in my lifetime, but I witnessed in part the joy that these performers had from their new found freedom.

Flashback: Circa 1988 BYU dance competition. The floor show was a Russian couple. They had their security guards around them all the time, watching and making sure they didn't defect during their performance. Hard to believe that we now have the best dancers representing the US with names like Olga Foraponova and Maxim Kozhevnikov.

Editorial

If you don't like editorials then skip this entry. Every time I want to write a letter to the editor I chicken out and don't do it and then my blood pressure just rises internally and Rich get to put up with my irritability. ( Thanks Rich for putting up with me!!)

I know how to solve the money crisis in the school system. If we put up photo cop in the school zones and collected $100 for every person that went over the posted speed limit we would have surplus money for the schools.

Out of the 5 people in the intersection today only two of us actually slowed down to 2o miles per hour. Everyone else zipped by and completely ignored the speed limit. I have always wondered who they think they are? Dr.'s going to an emergency? Now that I would understand. But I do believe that it is just people who think they are very important, who haven't planned far enough ahead to get where they need to get at the time they are supposed to be there.

Do they think that the sign only means 20 miles an hour if the crossing guards have children in the cross walk? Maybe if you see children in the cross walk then you must keep going 40-50 miles an hour and then slam on your brakes. Because you had to slow down when they are in the cross walk you then must gun your car as if you were in an indy 500 race to make up those precious lost seconds. I could never be a crossing guard, I would die from high blood pressure from being mad at all the numskulls who think they don't need to obey the law.

The next Vicki editorial will be on barking dogs.

Cedar City Sheep Festival

For those that know Leanna this is how she spent last weekend. It was the "Sheep Festival" in Cedar City and her(Adam's) family herded these sheep down main street on Saturday. If you want to see more awesome pictures of this family event go to http://nycfoodphotos.com/portfolio.php?c=utah&i=1. Some professional photographer was there taking pictures. It is a sight to behold. It looks very fun to me.