Learning the Ropes

Don has been spending a lot of time these last couple of weeks (and will be spending more time in the next few weeks) taking the rappelling training that the Boy Scouts of America provide so that he will be certified as an instructor and be able to teach his scouts to rappel. He's enjoyed the training, but it has been time-consuming.

I haven't felt well this week, but am back on my feet today and am glad for it. This morning we went over to our old ward so that Don could ordain Spencyr. It was good to be with Spencyr and Keri (his mom) again. We haven't seen them in about a year and have missed them. We are so glad that they asked us to come back for this special day!

On the critter front, it's been snakes and bats for the last week. As for the garden, it is continuing to produce, which makes us happy.

As a side note, we decided to give up the land line and use only cell phones. So, for those of you who have my old cell number, I have that number again; and Don still has the same cell number that he has had for years, so you can reach him at that number.

Quick Recap of the Week

The dogs have been having A LOT of fun together. They play and play and play and play and play! It's all we can do to get them to settle down at night. And this week, they were more active than usual. That's because Don got them a little pool to play in. But the only two who really liked playing in the water were Dixie and Ham. These pictures came from the first day that Don brought the pool home. Trooper and Mia just watched the other two go crazy playing in the water; they did not want to participate at all!

First, Dixie and Ham got in the pool and started chasing each other in circles. Then they started running in and out of the pool chasing each other and splashing water everywhere! Mia started barking, trying to get them to stop, but since they are young, they, of course, ignored her.

Then Buddy came up to see what all the barking was about and Mia, who is a very proper lady, left the chaos and the mess that "the kids" were making as if to say,"Oooo, you guys are gonna get in trouble, and I am so outta here!!"

By then, most of the water had been splashed out of the pool, and a good deal of mud had been tracked into it. But that's OK. We wanted them to have fun and I'm glad they did. The worst part was when they came running in and tracked wet paw prints all over the tile floor. HUMMM...sounds familiar. They've been doing that rather regularly!!!

I went to the garden this morning to pick a few things for dinner. Looks like tonight we will be having stuffed bell peppers, calabacitas, and zucchini bread.

Earlier in the week I picked tomatoes and hot peppers and made fresh salsa (which only lasted 2 days---it's one of Jennifer's favorite things). By the middle of next week there will be more ripe tomatoes and peppers to pick--yea! The cucumbers have been really good, and there are a couple of watermelons that will be ripe before too long. We are really enjoying the fresh produce!

Oh, fall soccer season started this week. Also, Don is doing some Boy Scout training this week so that he can officially take his boys rappelling. Consequently, I didn't see much of him this week. I think that is going to become the norm for the next couple of months.

On a sad note, I sang at another funeral at the beginning of this week. Mark Latham lost his fight with cancer. He and his wife were in our ward many years ago when we lived on the other side of town, and we were glad to see them again when we moved into this ward last year. He leaves behind children, grandchildren, and two great-grand children, the youngest of which was born last month. Our hearts go out to them.

"..and the other's gold"

I learned a little song as a child that said, "Make new friends but keep the old; one is silver and the other's gold." Yesterday I spent the afternoon with two of my friends from our old ward who drove out to see me...sisters who have been true friends for many years. It was a joy to my heart! Thanks to both of you for a wonderful afternoon!



Vieng, me, Lisa

Still Here

Yes, I'm still here...just busy! Jennifer moved back in with us over the weekend and we are so happy to have her (and her two dogs) with us for a while as she saves money to go back to school. The dogs are all very happy to be playing with each other. The two youngest, Dixie and Trooper, went out and played in the sprinklers today, and then ran back inside the house dripping water and spreading mud everywhere. They were so happy from their little adventure that I just had to laugh. Cute dogs! Fun times ahead!