Golden Sunset

One of my favorite things is a that rich, golden light that we sometimes get at sunset! It turns the whole world that same vibrant colour!

These are the mountains just north of my house.



But here is the western sky...



I am so lucky that my office window looks to the west.

Double Rainbow

Fancy Meeting You Here!

August brings thunderstorms, hot weather and $2 Tuesdays at Thanksgiving Point. I went for the first time several years ago with my friend Diane but it didn't take long before this became another Joanie and DeLoris tradition. (If you want to read about prior escapades click on the DeLoris tag.)

I'm always pleasantly surprised at how different the gardens are from year to year. This year the theme seemed to be lots of hot orange and hot pink! Always a hot combination for me (see the last photo in the post). But this beauty is what stole my heart this trip. I've never seen a more beautiful yellow rose! Proflowers says the meaning of yellow roses is joy and friendship; which is very appropriate since this describes my time with DeLoris.



But here's the funny part... we'd just parked the car when up pulls Jessica and the kids! "I was just thinking we might see Grammie here today!" They needed to park but we both met up at the front desk. They were ready to be off and discovering while DeLoris and I waited for a golf cart to become available. I walked out with the family to get this sweet shot of my fam.



Roxie- "Mom, can I roll down the hill?"
Jess- "Sure."
Grammie- "Christian can you move to one side so I can get a photo?" At which point the previously uninterested roller (Christian) joined his sister for the photo op! bwahahahahaha.



DeLoris and I had to wait about 15 minutes for a cart to become available. But soon we too were off and exploring. We'd been cruising for about half an hour when we worked our way up to the top of the Acropolis when I hear, "Grammie, Grammie!" There, toiling bravely in the heat, is my little family from Lewis Zoo.



I grabbed the camera to get that shot and when I turned around who do I see? Heather and her parents! We had a little visit way up on top and then were off in search of some weary travelers!



Let me tell you! They were happy to see the Grammie with her golf cart! What you can't see is Roxie and DeLoris hiding on the front seat. Jess sat on the back and dragged the stroller... they were pooped and flushed!  We ferried them past the waterfalls and up the steep hill one has to climb to get back to the parking lot.



After sweet goodbyes from my family DeLoris and I took another turn around the gardens. This time around I saw these beautiful purple flowers. I thought they might be ranuculus but upon further investigation I don't think they are. Does anyone know what this beautiful plant is called?  (Sheri tells me these are LISIANTHUS!)



It was a lovely day made more wonderful by meeting friends and family unexpectedly. And you know what? There is still one more Tuesday in August!

Slow Learner...

Do you ever find that your mind wanders? As a dyslexic/ADD girl I've always been a day-dreamer. Yesterday I was in one of those day-dreaming modes while massaging a sore knuckle and all of a sudden a whole blog post popped into my mind!

I've decided that I must be a slow learner or learning-impaired or simply head-strong. Take your pick!

Growing up and through my 20's we lived rurally and heated our house with wood. At an early age I learned to chop kindling with a hatchet; then in my 20's I learned how to use a spitting maul. It was a wonderful outlet for frustrations I was going through at the time. I could make the wood fly!

Hmmm... but that was in my 20's and now I'm, well, not in my twenties! (Sneezing sound= fffffffifty-nine!) But I still have said spitting maul and I use it from time to time, usually as a sledge-hammer.

So back to the sore knuckle... why was it sore you may ask? Because the last time I tried to use my spitting maul to hammer some stakes into the ground around my tomato plants I whacked that knuckle good and hard; skinning it and bruising the bone!

Now let's think... last August, when Stuart and I were putting in the paw-th I tried to cut a piece of rock with said-maul and ended up just about chopping off the end of the same finger. It took months for that one to heal! And go back to January 2010 when I whacked my thumb good and hard trying to build a temporary fence to keep Harley in the yard after the wind storm blew down our fence!



MAYBE... just maybe, it's time to stop using said splitting maul! What do you think?

But you know my favorite part about this photo?  Notice the 3 ibuprofen tablets in the background?  Yeah, I need that quite a bit! bwahahahahahaha

Helper Harley

So *lasterday* after taking lunch to Miss Camille we decided to do a Costco shop since we haven't been there forever. One of the main reasons for going there was to get Harley more dog food. (He seems to prefer the Kirkland brand best.) Like everything Costco it comes in ginormous one ton bags. And, ya know, my hands are still healing from surgery so I knew I couldn't lift and pour. So I carefully cut open a corner of the bag, used a forklift to get the bag onto the kitchen counter and then poured it into the 5-gallon bucket... bwahahahahahaha...



Sweet Helper Harley, he isn't a begger! He's a cleaner-upper! He was right on the job going to help Mama clean up her mess!



I'm not sure I could have made a bigger mess if I'd tried. And you know... all I did was laugh and laugh!

Room 4

I blogged two months ago about moving Miss Camille's out of her old classroom at Saratoga Springs, then last month I talked about the process! But somehow neither Camille or I got any *before*, *during*, or what we refer to as *BOMB* PHOTOS! (I think I should be drummed out of the blogging community for this infraction!)

So, first, do you want to know what a *BOMB* photo is? It is when you have to make a giant mess, taking everything out of the cupboards, so that you can get it put away in an organized manner. We were amazed at how many times a BOMB went off in Room 4!

Here is what it looks like today- all ready for the ickle-firsties to come in for reading tests. (Kevin visited Miss Camille's classroom today for the first time since he helped move in boxes. His comment- "It looks just like what you and your Mom would do. I'm not surprised!")



This is what it looked like on July 26 when Camille was stapling up her bulletin board background.



Horton has a new home above the circa 1950 student cubbies. Can you see all the October birthday eggs? We've found that this is a trend.



And, lastly, my Miss Camille! I sure love this girl! But now I have to go through Camille-withdrawals after spending lots of time with her in her room. =o(



OK... I lied! That wasn't the last! I took Miss Camille lunch today (simply an excuse to see my girl again today.) As I was leaving I overheard two moms talking, "I can't believe my youngest is in 2nd grade!" "I can't believe my youngest is in 4th grade!"
So I just had to tell them...

Ladies, my youngest is down the hall teaching first grade!
(Frankly, they didn't like being one-upped!) bwahahahahaha

Robust Mortal Experience

Last September we had a Regional Conference Broadcast to 139 Stakes in Utah County and parts of Wasatch County plus 17 BYU Stakes; a possible audience half a million members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. One of the speakers was Julie B Beck, General Relief Society President. She said something that resonated with me. I wrote it down and have applied its words many times in the last year. She said that we are "having a Robust Mortal Experience!" I love that! It acknowledges that life is not easy nor was it meant to be. BUT when we have faith in Jesus Christ we are able to meet those robust experiences with courage, faith and a knowledge that the Lord will not leave us alone in our struggles.

This truth is also testified to by Helaman speaking to his sons; Nephi and Lehi.

And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall. Helaman 5:12

These last two weeks have been a Robust Mortal Experience for our family! It was two weeks ago this morning that our little Chloe was born 4 weeks early and within 90 minutes we found out that our little Dylan's heartbeat had stopped in utero; he was delivered, stillborn, 36 hours later. We made a fast trip to the AV for Dylan's graveside service on August 4th- the 30th anniversary of Amanda's death. Then this last Sunday Camille had a miscarriage.

Why do I share these happenings that many people would refer to as tragedies? Because I am here as a witness that the Lord will hold us firmly in His loving arms, rooted on His sure Foundation; "a foundation whereon if [we] build [we] cannot fall!"

Have we been sad? Yes, of course. Have we cried for our losses and rejoiced in the triumph of little Chloe? Yes.

But in spite of, or perhaps, because of, our Robust Mortal Experience we know of the Lord's love and caring for us and we know that He will never leave us alone in the storm.

Families Are What It's All About

While we were in Palmdale for Dylan's graveside service we also got to see our little Riley! It was such a treat. He is one of the sweetest children I know... and I know a lot of them! He is a darling boy and such a little-Spenny clone. He sat patiently for dinner at Steer 'n' Stein while all the oldsters visited. (I remember being the only child with all the adults. I hope I was as good as he is!)



Before dinner we visited at our hotel room and here are some of our Lewis men. Gordon made the point that this represents 3-generations.


DOUG, GORDON, RILEY, SPENCER

And lest anyone think Doug is standing on a box... I show you Exhibit A...



Look at the length of this boy's pahnts!

It was such a blessing to be able to get together and visit.

Dylan Ross Lewis

Thursday, August 4, 2011, we laid little Dylan to rest at Desert Lawn Cemetery. He is under a wonderful, shady fruitless mulberry tree in the Innocence Garden, or as I prefer to call it the Baby Lawn. It is a beautiful little corner in the otherwise dry and barren Mojave Desert.



Spencer and Deborah only wanted family to come to the graveside service. It couldn’t have been a better morning. There was a lovely cool desert breeze that tinkled a sweet little wind chime hung in the tree. We shared our faith in eternal families, hope in a glorious resurrection and gratitude for the Atonement made by our loving older brother, Jesus Christ. Again, what would we do without this hope?

Thumbnail Moon Sunset

I have the very great blessing of west facing windows... I know Jane Austen wouldn't agree and think west-facing windows very incommodious. (Think all of that with a strong English accent!)  What I like is that I rarely miss a beautiful view of the sunsets if I am in my office.

I glanced up from my work tonight and saw the most deep, beautiful, soft sunset; it only got better when I pulled up the blinds to shoot through the screen (again) and saw my very favorite *thumbnail moon*. This first sliver of a new moon always reminds me of my thumbnail. (Guess that lets you know how long my nails don't grow!)



It was beautiful and soothing... exactly what I needed this evening.