I love a parade!

Grandad and Matt have all the fun! They got to ride on a float in the Junior Parada in Florence last Saturday. They got to wear hats, bandanas, and wave at the crowd. Matt got the best job. He got to throw candy to the crowd. Can't beat that.

Check these two handsome dudes out. Make sure you catch the sign. Grandad was the guest of honor for the CAC float.

Does it bring back memories? Check out the Shriners cars.

If you recall, the parade lasts all of fifteen minutes. But it's fun and nobody is taking themselves seriously.

Messiah spirit

It has happened once again. At least once during all the practices for our community presentation of the Messiah, the Spirit bears witness that the words we are singing are true. It's never with the same song and never at the same time, but you can count on having the experience sometime.

It is a testimony to me of the power of music and the inspiration Handel enjoyed as he created this series of moving pieces.

She's gone!

She came into our lives one April evening in 1995. She disappeared one night about two weeks ago. I'm talking about "Momma Cat". She hadn't looked well for a couple of weeks. She was slowing down. She wasn't as spry. We figured it was old age. Then on a Saturday, she looked so bad we took her to the vet. She was dehydrated and you could feel her ribs. They drew blood and sent us home with our own container of Ringers lactated IV solution and sufficient needles to give her an IV twice a day until she began to eat and drink again. We did this for a couple of days and she began to look better. (Did you know that animal skin will pull away from the muscle when they're dehydrated. You can give an IV subcutaneously and the bubble of fluid will absorb into the muscle.) For about a week everything was normal and then she began to fade. We had a couple of days where she didn't move from her spot in the ivy, even to eat. When we checked on her one evening she was gone. We looked all over the yard, the neighbors yard, across the street. No cat. She never came back. So she's gone, after 13 years, 3 kittens and countless doves and lizards.

I'm glad to finally have NO ANIMALS to care for for the first time in what seems like forever. Dana's glad she didn't have to watch the cat die. Dad's a little disappointed we didn't get to add her remains to the collection under the apricot tree.

Labor Day at the wash

We have made our annual trek to the Park Wash for the Reidhead reunion. This year was a minimal wash experience. No tents, no s'mores, no sitting around the fire at night, no stars. But, we got to visit with Craig, Janessa and the girls and we were able to help Grandad get to Sacrament Meeting so it was successful. I don't know if there were any wild grapes this year. We didn't even look.

We arrived at the cabin late Friday night. Craig and his family were already there. Saturday am, after Grandad's wonderful sourdough biscuits for breakfast, we loaded up the water cans and headed to the wash. We set up a tarp and unloaded the chairs and ice chest. Dad was ramrodding a branding activity so he took off. Nothing too crazy. He has a small branding iron with John Reidhead's brand that he would heat up and then anyone who wanted to could brand a slice of juniper for their very own. Grace was very interested in just what Grandad was doing.

There were several games for the kids this year. A balloon toss, a three-legged race (which we did NOT get involved with) and others. The best was the Easter egg hunt. It was divided by age groups and there were LOTS of eggs. The girls made quite a haul.

The Craig Gibson's headed to Albuquerque about noon and we just vegged in camp until it was time to cook Dutch oven potatoes for dinner. We had enough coals and time left over, so Dana sweet-talked her dad into cooking a batch of biscuits. It was great.

The weather was cool all day Saturday with lots of clouds. We went back to the cabin that night. Sunday morning, it rained . . . and rained . . . and rained. It was wonderful! Dad and Grandad went to church while Dana and I stayed with Grandma. Lunch was hamburgers with tomatoes from the garden and sweet corn.

We always enjoy the wash and all the people and friends and food. This year was different, but still fun.

He's Home!

It's not a dream. It's for real, as was so quietly murmured today about noon. Matt has returned home from Arcadia, California. He looks and sounds great. The baptism on Sunday that he and his companion participated in was a wonderful way to end his mission. We're excited to have him home and now it's full steam ahead, after a couple of days adjusting to heat, no 24-hour shadow, being able to take off your shoes, and listening to music other than Tab choir.



Check out the luggage that came home. The front part is Matt's name. Across the back of both is a sticker that give the "no other success" quote in Mandarin symbols.


Dana took Matt off to Institute tonight. We'll see how that goes. And yes, to silence all the speculation, Matt has a bedroom with a bed, made up and ready to sleep in, a closet with hangers, and an empty chest-of-drawers to fill.





Matt is scheduled to speak in Sacrament Meeting on the 14th and all are invited. Our meeting begins at 11 pm. We're looking forward to it. He promises to speak longer than 4 minutes.

Las Cruces and other trips in June

The last time I tried to post, I got an error message. I can only hope that this time around everything works as it should.

We'll start with the most recent trip and work back from there. We went over to Las Cruces to help out with Brad & Elizabeth's open house at home. We helped turned Mom's backyard into a fairyland with about a kazillion ivy bowls with tealights hanging everywhere in the trees and shrubbery and from the fence. The temperature moderated as the sun went down. Then a thunderstorm cell came through and closed things down just as the party was ending. The backyard cleared in about 5 minutes and all the decorations, refreshments, tables & chairs, etc moved inside. We had a good time and got to see old neighbors and cousins.

During our preparations and shopping I decided that we needed to fill a deficiency that Dana has been experiencing since we live in Arizona. We proceeded to buy a bunch of sparklers and other fireworks, which we used, watched and played with in the backyard at about 10 pm after the storm had blown through. Sparklers are still fun after all these years.

Saturday morning Brad was introduced to breakfast at White Sands. He thought the beach was okay but the heat was just too much. We cooked breakfast over wood fires which was a unique experience. We got the obligatory photo of Dana sliding down the dune. We even got away without too much sand caught in pockets and rolled pant legs.

The second week in June, Dana went to girl's camp and Rick and I went to Albuquerque. Rick had two different meetings back to back, so he met and I explored Albuquerque and Santa Fe. We did get a chance to go up the tram to Sandia Peak, which was fun. It got very cold at the top as the sun went down, which shouldn't be too surprising since it's 10,000 feet in the air.

My time was spent in shopping, which was fun since I found a small Christmas shop in Old Town, Albuquerque, and in taking photos. There are a lot of interesting little alleys and doorways just begging to be drawn or painted. I did the same thing in Santa Fe, but I also got a chance to sit and sketch the main square for an hour. FYI: Old town Santa Fe, Albuquerque, and Old Mesilla all look the same. A square, a church or two and an inordinate number of shops crammed into all kinds of spaces.

We are now preparing for the BIG trip to Greensboro, NC. We have our checklists and Dad is stressing even more. Only 11 days!

What a week in Cache Valley!

We have spent a very wet, cold and fun week in Logan. We got the cake made, Elizabeth is now officially Sister Hansen and we got squeaky cheese from the cheese factory.

This is probably a story Brad and Elizabeth will tell their children. It rained all week until we walked out of the temple after the wedding. The clouds broke. We had sunshine. Temperatures rose a little. The reception took place at Von's Park. Friday morning it was raining again.

Dana and I spent Wednesday making a three-layer German chocolate cake for the groom's cake. It was beautiful and there was nothing left after the reception. It was great.

Aunt Melinda made the wedding cakes Thursday morning and had every kind of disaster possible take place. She perservered and the cakes looked lovely and tasted great. White chocolate with raspberry filling.

The wedding was very nice. A room full of Hansens and Larsens. Elizabeth and Brad were relaxed. The sealer, Br. Lind, was very good and presented some new insights into eternal marriage.

The park for the reception was just the right size for the festivities. Everyone helped assemble everything. We had fun. We broke it down afterwards and shipped it all off to Grand Junction for the open house there on Saturday evening. Jeff was intrigued by everything. Having missed our family weddings, he was surprised to learn how little input the groom really has in the reception.

Everyone left on Friday, so the four of us, Rick, Jeff, Dana and myself did a grand tour of Cache Valley. We saw the Martin Harris memorial, stopped at Gossner's cheese factory for squeaky cheese and mango milk, drove up to the Bear Lake overlook and then stopped at the Wind Cave trail in Logan Canyon. We had a fun hike up to the cave along a muddy, gloppy trail. It was like going up CG Mountain except the scenery was better and greener. It was certainly muddier and more slippery coming down.

The best surprise of the trip was finding the used bookstore at the corner of 200 North and Main in Logan. There was too much to look through and not enough time.

We have spent our weekend at home. Laundry done and bags are repacked. Dana goes to Girl's Camp and Rick and I head to Albuquerque for the week. More fun times.

Graduation week

A week ago we were just finished with Dana's graduation and on our way to Salt Lake for Peter's. What exciting times. Dana's graduation was rained out from the football field to the gym. By the time we arrived at 7 pm, (festivities began at 8) it was SRO in the cafeteria where we were. They graduated about 500 students. The gym, the cafeteria, and the auditorium were packed and we watched the proceedings on live feed projection. They ended up cutting the program down to just reading the names and having the kids walk across the stage. It still took half an hour to get through them all. During the whole thing it was pouring rain. The damp doesn't seem to have diminished Dana's excitement.

We flew to SLC Friday evening so we could be there for Peter's graduation from Medical school. He is now officially Doctor Crane. The program was short and sweet. The speakers were great and they had the best sandwiches and brownies for grads and families afterwards.

The Gibson's went to Cabella's in the afternoon. We've heard about this wonderland but it does kind of take your breath away as you walk in the door and see all the mounted trophies on both sides of the room, the rows of shelves with everything a sportsman needs, and the beautiful displays of a taxidermist's skill everywhere. Of course, Cabella's does give a new understanding of camouflage and camping in your vehicle. We finished up the evening at the Brazilian Grill where Peter and Jeff were in 7th heaven.

Sunday was Joshua Peter Crane's blessing day. Peter did and wonderful job and so did Josh. He didn't cry one bit. Josh, not Peter. We had a picnic lunch after church and got to spend time with Rodney & Marja & Alex, Elizabeth & Brad, and Amber and her family (Kristy's past roommate). After we dispersed, the Gibson contingent went down to Temple Square. We walked around the gardens, looked into the tabernacle and the assembly hall, and ended up at the Historical Museum. We've been there before, but it's still absorbing. We finished up the evening with soup and Phase 10.

Monday found us at a pancake breakfast in the rain on the quad at Kristy & Peter's. We did get a chance to read stories to Katelyn and hold Joshua before we had to catch our plane home. We enjoyed the weekend and the opportunity to spend time with the Cranes before their move East. Our next adventure is Elizabeth's wedding next week. 4 days in Logan. Fun!

It's about time!

We have really enjoyed reading our children's blogs, looking at their photos and following their activities. With school now in hiatus and the stress level below the intense level (for some of us), it's time to join the rest of the family.

Of course, Dana will insist that since we never do anything, why bother with a blog at all. I think it's more a matter of the small things, the random thoughts that help build the ties we're looking to strengthen. Distance really used to be a difficulty when all you had to bridge it was a telephone and letters. Now we're not limited to when and how we can "reach out and touch someone". Even a computer camera can provide instant connections. A blog is another tool, just like letters and a telephone.

So this is a beginning. Rick and I are both comfortable with technology, just a little slow in learning new applications. But we're flexible. Gibson's are always flexible!