Whew!

With the pictures this time, I hope.

During and after "Redo"

Before - bathroom vanity

Okay, I know that saltillo tiles don't really belong on the counter top but hey, we needed a counter top and we had tiles left over from the floor. . . Now, 13 years later we opted to "try again".

Just ckecking in

We have been busy with an upstairs bathroom "redo". New cabinet, new texture, new lights, mirror, etc. You get the picture. I have decided to try casting a concrete countertop for the cabinet. I get a little more nervous each day I procrastinate. I think when I get home from work today I'm just going to do it!!! If it doesn't work, I'm out maybe $30 bucks. Then there is the problem of how to polish it. . . Youtube, can get you into some trouble, I've decided. It looks pretty easy on the computer. . . I will let you know and post a picture of the finished product.

Politically speaking, I am one of the many who have gotten a little energy back as far as the upcoming election goes. I would love to see the country embrace those values of the founding fathers. Yes, I realize they were not perfect men, but they all relied upon God and called upon Him to help them in the words they would say, write and fight for. Our freedom was given to us at a price and I am thankful to God for it and excited to see individuals who, although not perfect, are not ashamed to mention His name openly.

I want to be like Nicole!!

Let me start off by saying that I have been able to visit Nicole (she's married to my nephew Clint) in three of her homes. Without exception she has a talent for decorating. Not only that, but her level of tidiness is monumental. Are you getting the picture? July found me once again taking a "tour" of their latest, newly built, home and loving her sense of style while at the same time being awe struck by the showcase cleanliness I found. I mean there are six people living in this house. What's going on?

Okay, so Nicole might be considered a "clean freak", or maybe just a gal with so much energy that she has to pick stuff up. . .A place for everything and everything in it's place. A drill I'm sure her children know by heart, based on the way their rooms were kept. I love her and wish I had some of her drive.

She and Clint have a beautiful little family, and they are certainly growing up quickly. At least my yearly visits allow for great growth spurts in the children. Nicole shared a scare she had for her youngest daughter a year ago. "We were all sitting around downstairs. This was when we lived in the farm house. Aspen went upstairs, I thought maybe to get a drink, and did not return when I expected her to. Our neighborhood was like one giant construction site at this time with sub division homes literally going up all around our little property; I had a fear that Aspen had gone outside." I knew that this story had a happy ending because, after all, Aspen had helped give me the tour this day. Nicole continued her story, "So I ran upstairs and sure enough the door was unlatched and still open, and when I got outside, there on the driveway was her little doll." When I heard this and felt the panic in Nicole's voice I sort of cocked my head to one side, felt that something was not quite right, and before I could stop myself, I blurted out, "And she knew perfectly well it belonged in the toy box!"
Nicole, stopped short and laughed and agreed, yes, she certainly knew better than to leave her doll on the driveway!!

Nicole, if you read this, know that I love you and thanks for your great example.

New Arizonans!!

Question #1. Which of the 5 cars parked at a drive-in Blanding, UT, did not make the trip from Provo to Lakeside with us on July 27?
Answer: The second white one from the left!! You see, Austin and Kim moved in with us for, and I quote, "Anywhere from two months to a year". They had three vehicles and we only had one but that meant a car each on the drive home. The two of them (Kim and Austin) are recent graduates of BYU who hope to go on to graduate school at some point. In the meantime, Kimberly is getting in-house Physical Therapy experience at the hospital here in Show Low (Working for Eric's Physical Therapy Practice, and Austin is busy studying for the LSAT ?????) (I think) and applying any place he can for interim work. We have been blessed to have Austin here because we are using his skills and help on a few projects around the house this summer. To be fair, we should state how fun Kim is to have home and how her "straightening up" energy is very much appreciated; it motivates me to get busy. She is also turning into quite the little purse designer and seamstress.

Question #2: (In the second photo)Who looks like they are about 1/2 an hour from getting pulled over for running a stop sign at the intersection just before Mexican Waters?

Answer: It obviously wasn't me, because I'm not in the picture. I was told the dialog between this driver and the officer went something like this.
Officer: So where are you headed?
Driver: Arizona.
Officer: This is Arizona
Driver: Really, I didn't see any sign.
Officer: (Pointing to Arizona Department of Public Safety Patch on the shoulder of his uniform) Right here is the sign.

Okay, it was Austin. Check out the photo again and it sort of makes sense, don't you think? I guess when the officer saw that there was no way Austin was going to be able to access his "documents" (because the front passenger side of the truck was packed up to the window level with stuff and the jocky box could not be opened) so the officer just handed Austin his license and told him to drive more carefully. He's a lucky fellow, that son-in-law of ours.