A dogs day

Yesterday was Shiloh's annual visit to
the Vet. He was checked and given his
shots.
After careful examination by Dr. Pam
three things were discovered.
One his heart, lungs and other vital
organs were healthy and working well.
Two he is overweight.
Three his teeth need to be cleaned.
We believe that the picture to the right
is partly the cause of the extra few pounds.
When we went on our trip Aaron stayed at the house to dog sit. To make things easier for him we put out the "eat-on-demand" dog feeder, which is a 24 hour never closes diner. Shiloh took full advantage of it.
The next picture shows what he does for most of the day.
Consequently one of the adults in the family
needs to take him running. No one so far
has volunteed for the job.
His teeth cleaning requires him to be put out
to it which is scheduled for next week.
All in a dogs life.

the best laid plans...

I know that a picture is worth a thousand words but black against black just does not work.
Our trip to the Oregon coast started out smoothly until a mile outside of Bliss when the car just stopped in the middle of the freeway. We coasted to the side and Jim and Dad checked to see if they could find out the problem. No luck and so we called triple A, thanks to Aunt Linda. A tow truck was dispatched and we sat and waited.
It was my first ride in that type of vehicle and we headed to Boise at the speed of 80 mph at times. What a ride. We arrived at the GMC dealership about midnight parked the truck and headed home with Aunt Colleen and Uncle Lyle. Sleep was not easy to come by that night.
The next morning found us at the dealership anxious for a diagnosis. I don't understand cars but I do know it was not good, but that it was probably the fault of the repairs that were recently done or a faulty part.
We abtained a rental car and headed out. We were told it would take 19 hours to take the car apart and find out the exact extent of the problem.

enjoy

As I mentioned in a prior blog I got second place in the 4th of July cookie contest. I have had a request for the recipe which causes me some problems as I entered two cookies and I don't know which one won.
So here are both recipes:
The first is the hands-down favorite according to my children-
Cinnamon-Raisin Bars
1/2 C. butter
1C. b. sugar
1 1/2 C. flour
1/2 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 C. rolled oats
Raisin filling
Cinnamon Icing
Cream butter and sugar. Add dry ingredients. Add oats and 1T. water. Mix till crumbly.Firmly pat half the mixture into a greased 13x9 pan. Spread with raisin filling. Mix remaining crumbs with 1T. water; spoon over filling. Bake at 350 sbout 35 mins.
Filling:
Combine 1/4 C. sugar and 1T. cornstarch in a pan. Add 1 C. water and 2 C. raisins. Cook over medium heat till thickened and bubbly. Cool
Icing:
Mix 1 C. powdered sugar with 1/4 tsp. cinnamon. Stir in enough milk for drizzling consistency.

Big Ginger Cookies
2 1/4 C. flour
2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
3/4 C. butter
1 C. sugar
1 egg
1/4 C. molasses
2 T. sugar
Combine dry ingredients. In bowl beat butter to soften; gradually add the 1C. sugar; beat till fluffy. Add egg & molasses; beat well. Stir in dry ingredients. If batter looks really soft add a little more flour.
Sha pe into balls and roll in sugar.
Place on ungreased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart.
Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

..onthe way

Last week I finished the running program I have been on and now I am on my own as far as what I do.
I am concentrating on being able to run a 5K without stopping or dying. So I am now able to run 1 mile (yes I know) only a mile but at my age I think that is pretty good, and I still have till September to get there. If I don't I am still so much further ahead of where I was last year.
No pictures, too sweaty.

I don't know what to say...

Some ideas when we want to say the right thing to someone who has been given bad medical news, or any thing like that.
Let me know if I can do anything is truly useless and not very useful or welcome.
Try some of these -
I'm going grocery shopping can I get you milk, potatoes, fruit...you get the picture.
Why don't I pick up the kids from school today so that you can rest?
I made an extra lasagne. When is the best time to drop it off?
I'm going for a walk, would you like to come?
Give me a list and I can call, friends, religious advisor, family and let them know the situation.
I know some of these would really have helped when we lost Trudi.

In case you were wondering...

I found this useless trivia (unless you plan on being on Jeopardy or Millionaire) and thought I would share -
The pencil which most of us have used at one time or another has been around since at least 1565, when it was first described in a book about fossils.
The bottle cap was first invented by Willaim Painter in 1892 because beverages sealed with cork loss their fizz.
The paper clip idea came from Samuel B. Fay in 1867. In the 1890's the double oval design was first produced in England.

citizenship

As I contenplate what this day represents I am so grateful for this country in which I live.

It is a country that I chose to live in and to become a citizen of. My country of birth is Australia but after Mike and I married I, in my heart, knew that if I was to live here and enjoy all the benefits I needed to be come a citizen.

I had been living in Canada prior to our marriage. We were married in the Salt Lake temple and returned to Canada for a wedding reception. We were returning to Washington state to live when the guard at the border informed us that I could not come into the US. It was devastating and we did not know what to do. We spent the night pleading with Heavenly Father to pave the way. The next day we talked to another guard and he asked us many questions. One was did I have any belongings still in Canada I did, a large mirror. He informed us that he would let me in the US because of that but never to try to cross the border again as I would them be required to stay in Canada.

I then started the process to become a permanent resident and then in time applied for and received citizenship in the US.

I know that many miracles took place to allow me to be here and I do not take my citizenship for granted.

In memory...

Several of Trudi's friends went together and bought three pear trees at Red Butte Gardens here in Salt Lake.
Mike and I finally got up there to see them and this is a picture of me and one of the trees.
Trudi loved just about all fruit and pears were certainly at the top of the list.
The trees are part of a group of several and there is an arbor going from one side of the pathway to the other.
To those who bought this memorial to a reality my thanks from the bottom of my heart. Knowing just how much others care about Trudi helps lift the grief. Grief is not as heavy when shared by others.
To all my love and thanks.

Coming events...

This is a teaser.
After thirty years, yes we are that old, the shower in our bathroom is leaking and we have several choices, move, (not really an option), leave it until the shower falls into the basement, shower down the hall in the other bathroom, or replace it.
If you chose the last option you are right. We spent time this morning at a local home store and came home with many ideas.
We are going middle ground as at our age we don't want to do the custom $$$ remodel, nor do we want the cheap done in a day style. The tile will be hard to choose from as I love many of them.
Keep checking the blog for the progress with pictures.
Any volunteers will be watered and fed well.

Water, water...

All good things must come to an end and that applies to water heaters. Thus one spring day day Dad and I were at Darin and Janae's to, "out with the old and in with the new."

This is most help that Janae and I offered. We left the work to those with more experience and muscle power.

The old...

and the new.

Great rear end.

Parade day

West Bountiful celebrates the Fourth of July the Saturday before. Em bought the kids out to enjoy the parade and the events in the park afterwards.
Syd had been the year before and knew all about the candy being thrown from the floats. It took Cedar a little while to catch on then he could not wait for the next float to come by.
We went to the park to see th vendor displays.
We took turns standing in line to finally get the balloon hat that Sydney has on. Cedar got a fishing pole with a fish on the end instead of a hat. They both got patriotic face paintings.

Thank's to my not so professional phot taking abilities you cannot really see what Cedar has on his face.
I entered a cookie contest and won second place. The prize was two free entrees to Applebees.

Play day

Grandma took a day off from work and spent the day at Liberty park with the grandkids. This is Sydney holding on for all she is worth at the Merry-go-round. After it was all over she wanted to go again. Cedar thinks horses are wonderful and he cried as I took him off and wandered back again before I caught him.


This is fun in the sun.

At the park there is an area called 7 canyons representing the canyons that feed in the valley. There are pools at the top with small creeks that lead down to a shallow holding pool. Everything is shallow enough for kids to have fun and cool off from the summer heat.

Sydneys favorite pose.

Nutrition 101

The above are some muffins that I made. The secret ingredient is Chia seeds. How I found out above them is to confess that I watch, not regularly Oprah. One day Dr. Oz was talking about these seeds that he had discovered on a trip to Peru. I checked them out on the web and this is what I found. They are known as the running food as Aztec warriors had these and nothing else during conquests. They are rich in calcium. I grind them up and add them to my muffins or my protein drink.

I am not yet breaking the 4 minute mile but who knows.

The web site suggests making a gel as follows:

Put water into a plastic container and slowly pour seed in while mixing briskly with a wire whisk. Wait a few minutes and whist again, then let stand 5-10 minutes. Whisk again before storing in the frig. Gel will keep up to 2 weeks. Add to jam, jelly, cereal, yogurt etc.

The ratio is 9to1.

It can be used as a fat replacer, for energy and endurance, or taste by substituting the oil in breads.

Here is my muffin recipe.

1T. chia seeds, ground

1 1/2 C. flour any combination, wheat, white, oat

2ts. cinnanom

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

16 oz. pumpkin

2 eggs

1/4 C. olive oil

1 C. pure maple syrup

1 T. vanilla

nuts (optional)

Oven 350 degrees

Mix dry ingredients in one bowl and in another the wet.

Fold together & add nuts.

I add raisins, cranberries and such

Spoon into muffin tins. Bake for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

Store cooled muffins in freezer in plastic bags.

Enjoy.

My granddaughter loves them because of the dark color she thinks they are chocolate.

What grandmother would tell her otherwise.

Sailing along...

On the last full day of our trip we went to canal days. This was a grand affair with many vendors selling many things. I was not tempted to spent much as I knew I had to find room in my suitcase to bring it home.
We took a boatride down the Erie canal.

The above bridge is one of a kind. All four corners are able to raise up indenendant of each other while still allowing people to cross over the bridge.

Me enjoying some R&R and letting someone else do the driving.

Another picture of the bridge.
I don't have any pictures of the 24 hours that it took us to get from Rochester to Salt Lake and nor would I want any visual memories of trying to sleep on the floor of the Denver airport.
Chicago weather sucks let me just say. As we bumped our way home I kept saying it is just jello sliding on a plate and we will get home safely. It seemed to do the trick.
Scott picked us up and both Dad and I took a nice long nap later in the afternoon.

Palmyra

The sacred grove has always been a place of beauty and serenity for me. As I sat and contemplated the events that took place there my heart was full.
How grateful I am for the Prophet Joseph. I know that he saw what he saw and he did what he did.

The grove, I believe, looks today the same as it did in 1820.

Windy day, what can I say. This was at the Hill Cumorah. As we approached the hill, there were the strains to the hymn, Praise to the Man", wafting across the land. We looked to the top and there was a young man playing the bagpipes. It was so touching. We talked to he and his family when we reached the top. He told us that there are only a few hymns that can be played on the bagpipes. The others that he knew were, Come Thou Fount, and A Poor Wayfaring man of Grief. Was so glad that he played the one he did and not the others.
My feelings were so close to the surface as in the morning we had gone to the temple and Trudi came with me. Enough said.

Victory

The day we went to Niagra Falls Dad had hayfever so bad that I drove as he could not see his eyes were watering so bad.
All of a sudden there appeared on the landscape the bridge that you can barely see in this picture. It went up high, in my eye, and, of course, over the water. I was terrified. I kept saying I can't do it , I can't drive over that bridge. Dad is saying pullover but I kept going for some reason. As I drove over I was breathing and saying relax on each exhale. I made it over only to find another a few miles further down the road.


On the way back Dad drove and as we approached the bridge I looked through different eyes. They didn't seem that high and I was calm and even looked out to the side over the water.
One day I will get to the point of being calm when faced with heights and water.

"N" day

Haven't learned how to get my pictures in order and so we are starting at the end.
This is a bridge over the river that leads to another part of the park and view of the falls.


Here we are outside the visitors center to Niagra Falls. I told the worker at the falls that I had some issues with fears and he said water or heights. I said both and asked what I would enjoy. He said I could do the boat ride. On further inquiry was told to get to the boat I would have to walk on a pathway 176 feet above to river to the elevator to ride down to the boat.

This is one picture of the falls.

This is as close as I got to the falls. The picture does not do justice to the look of terror that was on my face.

Don't know what flowers these are but I think they would look great in the backyard. Janae, need help with the name of them.

Here I am on the same bridge as the first picture of Dad.

Lighthouse

Dad finished his class Thursday and we set off to see the lights. The above is the lighthouse at Soudas Bay on the shore of Lake Ontario. There are fifty-two steps to the top of the ligthouse and I have a certificate to prove that I climbed to the top. The steps wound around and became further apart the closer you got to the top.

Here I am on the shores of the lake. I tested the water and it really was not that cold. It is quite dirty due to pollution in the area.


I loved the interior of the bathroom that I took a picture of it as you can see by the mirror.

This flag I believe is an early English one. The union jack in the corner is what is on the Australian flag.

I finally got the camera away from Pa and took a picture on him and his early counterpart.

Modesty here it comes as this is an early swimsuit, note that is actually a two piece suit. My mother had one similar to this, it was green with yellow stripes but, knowing mother it was one piece.

Fear revisited

Those of you who know me will recognize the facial expression I am wearing because of what is in the background. In downtown Rochester are the falls in the background. I am standing in the middle of a very wide bridge that spans the river below and am still terrified. I am amazed that I stood still long enough for Dad to take the picture.

The power from the falls powered a flour mill for many years and the city is now restoring the mill.

Green and yummy

With Dad in school every day I decided to brave it on my own with "Garmin" and go exploring. One of the flyers at the hotel told of a museum where "Jell-O" was invented. So off I went.
The town where it was located was where black slaves stayed on their way to Canada. The house above was a safe house. The way you could tell if it was safe was by the quilts that were hung over the front porch.


This is the walkway up to the museum.

This shows many different packages of jello from countries all over the world. There was even a coffee flavor, I believe from Egypt.

The person who made jello famous for many years on TV., Bill Cosby.


Sorry this is sideways, it is a display from Utah and the 2002 Olympics and the famous green jello pin.

New day

One evening Dad and I went to the Erie Canal to see what there was to see. Many of the stores were closed but we found a cute clothes store. As we had tickets for "Wicked" the following evening I bought a new skirt and top.

There are boats that you can ride along the canal and see the sights.

Some even like fishing in the canal even though the only fish that you can catch are trash fish, but I guess the thrill is the catch and not what is on the end of the hook.

This is Dad in front of one of the many bridges over the canal.

We found an old fashioned ice-cream store and we had to have a taste. I chose watermelon and you'll never guess Dad's choice. Of course, vanilla.