Happy Day to Annika!!

We are here in Oregon - and my photos are in Monrovia!!  So words will have to tell the story of our sweet Annika!  And I will post photos when I return - you've heard of belated b-day cards - this will be a belated b-day post!!  Just helping keep the party alive!!

What I remember most about Annika's birth is when Bruce called to tell the other 3 girls that they had a new baby sister.  The gender had not been known ahead of time.  When Ara got the word from Bruce, she turned to the other girls and said, "Now we are our own Little Women!"  Gotta love a 7 year old who knows about Little Women!!

Happy Day to you Annika - and Harry Potter too, Annika's birthday buddy!!

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Good friends, good times!

Joy and I have been good friends since high school days.  We haven't lived near each other for over 30 years, and we don't see each other very often.  We correspond in spurts it seems.

But we are still BFF!!

That's what true friendship is!

Happy Birthday Best Friend!!

Happy Day to Charlie!!

This is an old photo - but it's actually one of the earliest photos of Charlie (and Mary too.)  He and Mary somehow got the short end of the stick when it came to photographs - there are apparently no baby photos of them.

But Charlie was born on July 28th!!  I remember staying at Grandpa Clayton's - or maybe I remember my mom talking about it!! 

Either way, happy day to you - and a wonderful year all year through!!

What's new?

Harry and I are in Oregon with Phoebe and family - and enjoying the mild weather!! We have enjoyed the rec center, the lake, Burgerville, of course, and now the Olympics' Opening Ceremonies!! I have a district-issued iPad now - and am learning to use it. When I learn to take photos with it - I will post them. Meanwhile I am loving sleeping in, hanging out with a quartet of charming grandkids, and the wonderful hospitality that is always a hallmark of staying with Phoebe!

Remembering Jim

It's hard to believe that it's been 5 years since Jim died.  One night Harry and I were talking and as is often the case, Jim's name came up.  And Harry said, "Not a day goes by that I don't think about Jim."

He was a wonderful son, brother, husband, grandfather and friend.  We all miss him - but are grateful for good memories.

I wish it was more popular to comment on blogs and not just Facebook.  If you read this, share a memory of Jim!

Summer fun!

Enjoyed a visit from Bonny and the "little girls" today - they were on their way back from taking Ara and Ella to girls' camp.

Enjoyed some pool time at Seely's - what would we do without such kind, generous neighbors??  (We'd play more Golf I guess!)

Pioneer Day Thoughts!

It seems like we haven't had a Pioneer Day celebration in our ward or stake for a very long time.  This photo is from a Ward Pioneer Day picnic from 1993 or 94 I think.  They asked me to be Sister Friendly and tell pioneer stories.  I was an over-achiever then, so I made a new pioneer dress.  (I am pleased to report that I can still get into it - and zip it up all the way!!)

I grew up on pioneer stories.  And I've read lots of them over the years.  I'm sure I have favorites, but I can't recall the references or details - as in names.  But I do remember reading the story about Mary Goble Pay, Sister Hinckley's great-grandmother, whose family was caught in winter snows before making it to the valley.  

I also recall the story of Brother Millet - I cannot recall his first name.  He and his family were pioneering in Southern Utah - Brigham Young sent many to colonize the various parts of the state - and they were all pretty much starving.  One family was in dire straits - Brother Millet did have some provisions - but a man came to him and said, "The Lord told me to come to Brother Millet for help."  Brother Millet shared what little he had, gratefully.  He said, "I can't tell you how good it made me feel to know that the Lord knew who Brother Millet was."

I've always found that story profound and thought-provoking.

So Happy Pioneer Day - just think, if we lived in Utah, it would be a holiday!!

A whirlwind week winds up - or maybe down?

Today, Friday the 20th,  Annika and I took flowers to Jonah's grave - and the sprinklers went on!  Fortunately for us, it was so hot we didn't care.  (Blogger won't let me move the top photo - and it's too late for me to feel like fussing with it - so you'll just have to see the photos out of order!)

After the Sunday night festivities, Monday the 16th  was spent getting organized - including swimming and bowling!!  Ida's little bowling shoes were really cute - especially with the ruffled socks!!

 Theo was a great little bowler - beat his mom hands down!!

Eliza blamed her low score on the fact that she was carrying Lars on her back!!  Matt was the champ for sure!  He said he'd taken a bowling class at BYU - so maybe that's the edge he had!!

Monday night we had dinner with Helen and my mom - I guess Helen left before we remembered to take pictures!!

  

Tuesday was beach day and Cousin Camp. And Dawn brought Annika home with her so she could come for her Grandma's Birthday Sleepover!!  Then that evening we enjoyed dinner compliments of Market Grill - and some playtime at the park.

Wednesday was more swimming and lunch at Wendy's.  We also made Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cookies!!  And of course we shopped!!  Annika made some excellent fashion choices!!

What would we do without the Seely's and their pool?  Such good neighbors!

 

And manicures, of course!

Last night we enjoyed the stake musical - and now we are headed off to meet Bonny to pick up Annika - it's been a fun several days - tomorrow I will wake up and say, "It's too tidy and quiet around here!!"

Come back soon!!

You and me and me and you!!

Scott posted this on Facebook - and it is the first time I had ever seen it!  I am suspecting there are photos of us from our courtship and early marriage that I have never seen.  Perhaps I should go hunting for them.  This one is from 1969 - when Harry graduated from BYU.

 

And here is my graduation in 1968, also from BYU.

Long ago days - as you can easily see from the photos!!

Happy Birthday Sully!!

Happy day to one of the cutest little guys around!!

 

We are excited to head up to Portland to congratulate him in person!!

Happy Birthday to the Lovely Miss Agnes

One of the people Agnes is named for is my paternal grandmother - Agnes Marrietta Busath Clayton - shown above as a lovely young woman.  I have her name as my middle name.  I haven't always appreciated the name either, although I appreciated the woman who was my grandmother.  I never met her - she died when my father was a teenager - but he talked about her his whole life, so we felt that we knew her.

 

So when  the lovely Miss Agnes came into our lives, the name came to have so much more meaning for me.  I am happy now that it is part of my name too.  

Sweet Agnes Mae - the Birthday Girl today - and a little princess in her own right every day of the year!!

May it be a wonderful day for you - and a wonderful year ahead too!!

The weeks of summer are flying by!!

 Last Sunday I went out to GH and enjoyed a visit with my mom and former neighbor Judy Vergine!  Fun to take walks down Memory Lane!

Spent the week getting ready for the visit of Matt, Eliza and family.  Saturday a.m. the kids and I hit the car wash, 

 

took flowers to Jonah's grave.

 

 I enjoyed having a "crew" to cook for!

 

It's always fun at the McGlone's pool - I think we'll always call it that!  Eliza had some friends over Saturday night too.

 

Bonny, Bruce and family joined us on their way home from Utah.  It was nice to have 11 of our 16 grandkids with us.  (Lars is not floating - Eliza is holding him up - a creative solution since he wouldn't go to anyone else!!)

 

Enjoyed an evening of eating and visiting and playing - Noah and Dawn were there too, but they don't seem to be in the photos - but then I was there too and I'm not in the photos!!

 

Ida was loving the dirt!!

 

Under the tree - a new favorite spot - I love that tree - why didn't I have it planted 25 years ago??

 

Isla - always happily playing - this time with the "little people!"  (If it's little, she loves it!)

 

Getting ready for the fire and s'mores!

 

Where there's smoke, there's fire - take my word for it that there was a fire and lots of marshmallow roasting!!

Porter and Harry W. joined Theo for a sleepover - Grandmas Mary and Helen are joining us tomorrow night for dinner and FHE - there's more swimming and Cousin Camp coming up too - watch for updates.

Eliza said, "It's all so tidy.  I feel like we're coming in and messing everything up."  And I said, "Sometimes it's too tidy - nothing like having people you love in the house - messes and all!!

Cousin look-a-like

I didn't realize how much Henry and Ella look alike until I saw this picture.  Don't you think?

He is pretty pleased with his long hair.  I wonder how long it will last after football season starts!

Keeping the tradition alive!!

Kudos to Bonny and the Bolanders for keeping alive the tradition of attending the Utah Shakespearean Festival!!  They saw Merry Wives of Windsor - looking forward to their report!!

A day to celebrate!!

45 years ago today, Harry and I got engaged.  I've told the story over and over - my kids know it by heart I think.  For those who may have missed out, we made the decision to get married on Bastille Day - we made the decision on Bastille day, we weren't going to get married on Bastille Day.  Talk about vague antecedents!!

And after we got that settled, we went to the Hollywood Bowl and saw Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev in Swan Lake.

It was all very memorable and romantic - and it's been that way ever since!!

Note:  This is a photo when we were celebrating that we had hit the two-digit mark - 99 days until we were going to get married on December 22nd.  There are absolutely no photos of us from that lovely summer courtship in 1967.  Sometimes I wish there were photos.  But the memories are sharper and clearer than any photo could be anyway!!

Coming to Monrovia!!

We are excited for the visit from Eliza, Matt and family!!  

Watch for late-breaking news!!

(And maybe bring those raincoats - it is raining!!)

Like mother, like daughter maybe?

As you well know, I've been sorting and scanning photos - an activity fraught with peril - you have to stop a lot and reminisce - it's a tough job, someone has to do it!!

But it's fun too - the above photos show Eliza and I as 8th graders - but I don't have pierced ears!!  Otherwise it's a perfect resemblance, si??

Sleepy and sleeping

I may never get all my photos sorted if I don't stop finding "themes" and stopping and scanning and blogging!!