Random things this week.

We got blasted with a huge snowstorm today. It really makes for a white Christmas now. It's such a beautiful sight and especially at night when everyones Christmas lights come on and they glow through the snow on top of them. I love this time of year but just hate driving on the roads. I look forward to skiing now that the resorts have gotten a lot of snow. We're supposed to get another storm like this one on Christmas day.

We recieved over a foot of snow today. Brayden and Daxton spent hours and hours outside today helping their daddy and Papa and they even found time to make a big snowman. Their little cheeks were so rosey and hands were cold but it didn't stop them. Oh, to be young again.

Jake never hesitates to help without being asked. We had a huge snowstorm today and Jake happened to have the day off to go with Shana to her doctor appointment but he ended up having to work anyway. He snowplowed and used the snowblower to help Rog. He did neighbors and our driveway too. I know Rog appreciated it so much because he never would have been able to keep up without Jakes help.

I just love these two. My handsome first born son Jared and his darling wife Kristi. I love how they are always so affectionate not only with each other but with me too. They never forget to give me a give hug and kiss after they've eaten at our home. Always a big thank you too. It makes me feel good when my kids can show their appreciation. I love you two!!

On Shana's birthday I couldn't resist having my picture taken with 4 of my beautiful grandchildren. I wish Colby could have been here. Seems like they're always gone. I just want them to know how much I cherish their love, our time together and their sweet personalities. I can't begin to imagine my life without them. Happy 28th birthday Shana. She had a fun day and it started early. Jake and the boys went at 6am to the store to buy her sausage, eggs etc. and roses for her birthday. They made her a nice breakfast in bed. We went to church and came back to a big dinner I had for her. She chose chicken and broccoli casserole for her favorite dinner. We opened presents and had ice cream and cake. That evening we spent it at our ward Christmas choir program. Which was beautiful. We then drove around to look at lights. I hope she had a nice day. I sure love my only daughter. She's a beautiful daughter, mother, wife, sister and friend to everyone.

The History of "Aprons"

I was emailed this cute email about aprons from a friend of mine. I thought it was cute enough to share with you. It's called "The History Of Aprons"

I don't think kids today know what an apron is....

The principal use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath. Because she only had a few, it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and they used less material, but along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.

It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.

From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.

When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids. And when the weather was cold Grandma wrapped it around your arms.

Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.

Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.

From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables, After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.

In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.

When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.

When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.

It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes.

Also..... Remember this: Grandma used to set her hot baked apple pies on the window sill to cool. Her granddaughters set theirs on the window sill to thaw. They would go crazy now trying to figure out how many germs were on that apron. I don't think I ever caught anything from an apron.

I remember my wonderful Grandma F always had some kind of an apron on. When I think of these words in this email I got I can just picture my grandma using her apron for all of these things. I have aprons of my own. I've had to throw a few away because they were so overused but I really do love wearing my apron in the kitchen. I've even put them on the grandkids for bibs or let them use them if they're helping me in the kitchen. Last year my kids made me a very special one with all the kids pictures on. It's pretty faded so I may need to have them update it for me since we're having more grandkids but I cherish that one. They make such cute ones now but cost an arm and a leg. If I owned a sewing machine I"d make my own but for now I'll just stick to the ones I have.

Gratitude

Being that it's Thanksgiving in two days I thought I would take this time to say a few things that I'm so grateful for. Many, many things that people do for me go unnoticed. Not because I mean to but I think I get so busy and life flies by. My mind might be set on other things and not on the things I should have noticed.
First and foremost is for my family. I'm so blessed to be the mother of three beautiful children. They've grown into such wonderful people. Such good examples to me. My boys are terrific husbands and fathers too. My daughter is a wonderful wife and mother. What more could I ask for? Well, I"ve been blessed with two daughtersinlaw and one soninlaw who I love like my own. They fit perfectly in our family and we're so lucky to have them. What more could I ask for? Well I've been blessed with a wonderfulful husband who loves me and I love him. He's been by my side for 31 years now. He's such a good example to his children and grandchildren. He lives for them. What more could I ask for? Well..... I have the most beautiful grandchildren. Five are here with us right now on this earth and two more are awaiting to join our family. My heart is always filled with so much joy and love whenever I can hold one and kiss one. I love that we're all so close by that we can gather together on Sundays and enjoy each others company. We look out for one another and help each other whenever possible. They all lead busy lives but always seem to find the time to drop by and say hi. I love them all with all of my heart.
What more could I ask for? I have wonderful friends who are so kind and loving. Non judgemental, supportive, and have unconditional love. Their beauty is obvious on the outside but their inner beauty is what stands out. I know I could call them for anything and they would be there.
What more could I ask for? I have siblings both on Rogers side and my side who I love. We've all had our share of trials growing up but we always know that we can count on one another. It's hard seeing everyone get older and having health problems or economical problems etc. But we will be there to help each other in these times.
What more could I ask for? I have a job that offers me insurance, job security, life insurance, paid time off, retirement etc. Roger has a job that offers the same. And we all know in these days that all of these things are so important. I live in a country where we enjoy freedom. I'm grateful for the men and women who protect us. I'm grateful for a religion that I can practice and that I believe in. And that I have a Heavenly Father who listens to prayers and blesses me continually. I'm grateful for my good health especially when I see so many others suffering from terrible illnesses. I've been blessed to have a home to live in. I'm so blessed to live where we have such beautiful mountains to enjoy.
I'm so grateful for my parents who taught me so many things in their short lives. As I get older and closer to the age of when they passed away it makes me realize how young they were when they were when they died. I can't imagine leaving my children and grandchildren like they did. I love them and miss them so much. Especially during these holiday times. I try to do for my grandkids what my mom loved doing for hers.
I'm also grateful for our relatives on Rogers side who we get to spend every Thanksgiving with. We have so much fun and they open their big homes up to our family so we can all be together. Thank you so much!!
I'll end this now but please know that there are many, many more things that I am grateful for. My list could go on and on. But I've listed the most important ones to me.
Happy Thanksgiving to all of you who read this. You make me smile when I read your blogs

More Friends

This past week I had the opportunity to get together with two of my school friends. We met at Los Hermonos and got caught up on what's going on in our lives. Kim, in the white sweater has been my girlfriend since 2nd grade. We met at Edgemont Elementary and she lived about a 1/2 mile from me. We have shared so many fun times growing up. She was my rock when I needed her throughout our school days. We were in the same ward also and our parents weren't active so we always walked together to church and went to mutual together. Her mom recently passed away and I was able to go to her funeral. Going to her funeral made me realize how much I've missed my friendship with Kim. Life is so short. I called her a few days after to see how she was handling her mom being gone and we decided that we're not going to allow time to go by without knowing what's going on and seeing each other. She's got a great family and grandchildren like I do. She's so special to me.

Judy is a friend that we met in Jr. High School. She has always been so much fun. I hadn't seen her for like 15 years even though at Christmas time we'd send cards. She got married when she was a Jr. in high school so she missed out on a lot of our senior fun times. She's still married to her sweetheart and has kids and grandchildren too.

Friends are such an important part of my life and I've been blessed with the best ones. I know if I ever needed anything they would be there in a heart beat. I'm looking forward to more times together now and keeping up on each others lives.

My Fridge Door

Have you ever wondered what your fridge door reveals about you? I was looking at mine the other day and I sat there and looked at all the different things I have on it. A calender that is still on January, different magnets from places I've been, my gym class schedule, different quotes, and the most darling pictures that my grandchildren have drawn. While I was looking at my fridge door I started to think what a mess. My fridge door at my age should be clean and sparkling looking. (I know it would certainly make my kitchen look more tidy) But the things I treasure most on my fridge door are the pictures that the kids have drawn. They represent who they are and the things that are important to them. I will take the pictures down once in a while and then all of a sudden there are new ones adorning my fridge. I just smile as I look at them. The pictures are made with the tiny little hands of my precious grandchildren and I wouldn't trade it for the world. So next time you come into my kitchen please take a moment and look at all the different things on my fridge and you'll see what's important to me.

My Blog is going Private Nov. 8th

There's an article on KSL.com about people invading your blogs and taking information and even your pictures and making them into their own memories and violating your privacy. So for this reason I'm going private as of Nov. 8th. If you would like to view my blog you can let me know at offonrharley@yahoo.com and I will add you to the list.
Thanks..

The Pyne Family Halloween Party 2008

I decided to start a family tradition (another one) and that's to have a Halloween dress up party. Crazy I know but we had lots of fun. I loved the fact that everyone was up for it (even Jared and Mike who hate dress up parties). But we all had some fun costumes. We played toss the candy into the pumpkin, pin the nose on the pumpkin, we decorated cookies and carved pumpkins. Our dessert was rootbeer floats in skull mugs and we had yummy brownies. Our good friends joined in on the fun. We love sharing family things with them. Mike, Teresa, Danielle, and her three kids. We all get along great. The weather was awesome for the outdoor party and we all just kicked back and enjoyed the fun. Thanks to my great kids for going along with my idea and making this something I would love to do each year. This picture shows our fun costumes we all showed up in.

We had so many cookies to decorate. We had moons, pumpkins, ghosts and cats. The kids especially loved it of course. And the cookies were very tastey.

Daxton did a great job of pinning the nose on the pumpkin. ( I have a feeling he was cheating..hahaha)

Shana the grandma is trying to find something to munch on.

I'm the tattooed biker chick with her crazy clown husband and Dax the Ninja.

Mike was trying to pin the nose on the pumpkin but got side tracked and ended up pinning it to Rogers nose. They're quite the pair!!

Makinley loved fixing up her own cookies with all the different decorations. I think she even liked tasting the frosting as you can tell from her face.

Kori is the pro in their family at decorating pumpkins. Troys just observing. Brayden is taking the pumpkin carving contest very serious. Colby even got in on the cookie decorating. He loved the frosting!! Jared took the candy toss game very serious!! hahaha. The competition was on to see who could get the most candy in the pumpkin. Our fun friends Mike and Teresa Eastman with their daughter Danielle and her three cute kids. We're glad they joined us for the Halloween fun. They're both good sports aren't they? Mike the bum and Rog the clown. They were the hit of the party.

Fall Time and Halloween 2008

This is Halloween night. I had all the kids and grandkids over for pizza before they went out trick or treating. They were all hyped up about this night and couldn't wait to get out and get their candy. Jake took the boys all over. Dax was ready to come home after about 5 houses because he wanted to eat his candy but they stayed out for quite a while. Makinley and Gentry went trunk or treating in their church parking lot. I miss the days when I used to take my kids around but it's also nice to stay in the house and watch all the little ones come around. We sure didn't have very many trick or treaters though. Not sure why but now I'm left with tons of candy!! OH NO!!

Gentry loved being a mouse. And she made such a cute one!!

Makinley wasn't too sure about having her nose and face painted but she ended up letting her mommy do it. She was a cute little kitty cat.

What child doesnt love this time of year with the fall leaves and Halloween time.

Daxton loved helping us in the yard. He couldn't help but get a running start clear back to the driveway and run as fast as he could to jump in the leaves. It brings back so many memories of when my children were little. They loved doing that.

TAG!
JUST COPY AND PASTE THIS ONTO YOUR BLOG, ANSWER THE QUESTIONS AND POST IT! I LOOK FORWARD TO READING ALL OF YOURS! I AM... CHECKING IN ON MY FAM AND FRIENDS ON THEIR BLOGS.

I think... a lot about dying young and not seeing my kids and grandkids get older.
I need... to see my kids and grandkids regularly
I know... I need to keep my mouth shut sometimes and not speak my mind
I want...happiness and success for my children
I have....such good health. I am so blessed!! (even though some pounds could come off)
I miss..calling my mom and dad with news about my family
I fear..losing one of my children or grandkids from death
I fill... empty when I'm alone for too long.
I hear.. kid moaning from ear pain and fever in room two of the ER
I smell... good since I just showered an hour ago
I crave...the love and just needing to know my kids are happy with me as a mother
I regret...not going to college and making more money
I wish... I could have had my mom and dad longer in my life
I love...Rog, my 3 beautiful kids, my almost 7 adorable grandkids, my friends, extended family
I always... wonder what the future holds
I remember... hearing my kids yell for me when they were little and came home from school. I loved that!!
I sing... but not good.
I don't always... bear testimony that I really do know the church is true. I need to do that more.
I argue...about the stupidist things. But don't argue often thank goodness
I write...in my journal almost weekly and love looking back over the years at what I've written.
I lose... weight then find it again
I listen..when my sweet grand kids say "Granny, will you read me a book?"
I don't understand ... why everyone in the world can't treat each other with respect and love. Can you imagine what this world would be like?
I can usually be found...working, on the computer, cleaning or running errands or snuggling with a grandchild
I forget... that there are more opinions than just mine
I am happy.... when my family is all together and we are having fun and enjoying each other.

I tag anyone who cares to do this.. the questions sure make you think..have fun!!

They're Back!!!!

We are thrilled to have Troy, Kori and Colby back with us. They got back on Monday night then we all got to spend the weekend camping together at Strawberry. I just wanted to post some pictures of my adorable grandson Colby Lincoln. We've only seen him once since last April and he's grown like a weed. He's 20lbs and has two teeth. He has the bluest eyes and is such a little chunk!! We're glad you're back with us and we missed you a lot. Love you guys!!!

Why I Love Living Where We Have Four Seasons

People who say that they love living where there is only a warm climate and not have four seasons just amaze me. And these pictures show the reason why I can't imagine living anywhere else. This weekend we spent at Strawberry Reservoir and the colors were the most beautiful of fall leaves that I have ever seen in my life. From orange, yellow, red, green. Some of the trees would be half yellow and the other half red or visa versa. Absolutely breath taking. And to know that God has created these beautiful seasons for us to enjoy. I'm thankful I could be a part of it this weekend!!

Girls Night Out

Ok..I have the funnest friends. Yesterday we all packed up and headed out to Wendover for the Jodee Messina concert. It was so fun because our rooms were adjoining so we could just all hang out together while getting ready. I am so blessed to have such good friends. And what's neat is most of them have been my best friends for over 20 years. We had a blast listening and dancing to Jodee at the concert. No one has as much fun as we do. We usually are the ones to start out dancing so then everyone else finally gets up and starts to join in.

Here's my sweet friend Lora. Look at how tiny and petite she is. I've always felt like sasquatch standing next to her. Lora trained me at the ER 20 yrs. ago and we've been friends since then. She has such unconditional love for me and has helped me through many trials with her good advice. She has a beautiful singing voice and we've been known to karaokee years ago. hahaa..Thanks Lora for your friendship. I love you!!

We're all ready to hit the town and head to the Jodee Messina concert. Deb, Lora, Me and Becky. There's never a dull moment when we're all together. We laugh so hard and talk about everything from religion to you name it.

Teresa, Me, Deb and Tina. We just met Tina on this trip. She's a friend of Debbies but she'll be a regular now. What a hoot she is. I love these girls!!
I"m so blessed to have Teresa now. I love that we have so much in common and have so much to talk about. She's so beautiful. Love you Teresa!!

Here's Becky getting all ready. Bec has been my friend since..can you believe it..Jr. High. We went to Orem Jr. High together and high school. We've been workout partners for years. She's lots of fun to hang out with and I love her dearly.

My dear friend Lora. What a sweetheart. She doesn't know it but when I die she's going to be a speaker or a singer at my funeral. She knows too much. haha..we also have alias's when we go out. She's Betty and I'm Wilma.(inside joke)

Deb and Teresa getting ready for the night out on the town. Deb looks just a little too serious. But just joking around for the picture. haha..Deb has been a best friend for 23 years. Teresa has joined us this spring and what a fun friend she is. I love goofing off with them even at our age.

I want all of them to know how much I treasure their friendship. I want to be there whenever they need a listening ear or a hug. I want to continue having "girls night out" and laughing and giggling like we're 16. Love you all!! Can't wait til the next time we go.

That Hurts Charlie Video

One of the doctors showed me this adorable video today at work. It's a must see!!! And you'll want to watch it more than once.

A Tribute to My Youngest Son Troy

This blog is dedicated to my son Troy. He's the youngest of my three children. Troy was born the day after his older brother Jared 5 years later. Troy was given the middle name Clinton after my father. I've always been very proud of that. I hope he is also. Growing up Troy was quite the adventurous boy. He was into all kinds of sports, hunting, fishing etc. He is quite the competitor. Never wanting to lose. He was an excellent basketball player and even played for the Orem High Tigers. In high school Troy used to love keeping me up waiting by the window at night. I'd give him a curfew to be home by and I'd wait and wait. I think he got a thrill seeing me in the window looking out for him. hahaha..I hope some day he'll get paid back by his kids..hahaha.. Troy has many friends but most of all he's been an awesome brother to Jared and Shana. He's given us a run for our money many years ago because he loved to get in fights which resulted in the police calling us multiple times or the high school calling us. (hopefully, he's grown out of that) Troy served in the Quito Ecuador mission for two years and he served faithfully. He loved the Ecuadorean people and was very successful in teaching the gospel to many of them. He's had two young men serve missions now after Troy had baptized them. Troy married his sweetheart Kori in the Timpanogos Temple and has enjoyed being a husband and now is a loving father. I just want you to know Troy how much I love you and look forward to you coming home and joining our family again. You are the jokester of us all and we need that again.

Troy has always been the jokester of our family. Always pulling tricks, making prank calls etc. Shana gave him this shirt for his birthday and it was too small but he's thinking he's pretty hot in it because it shows off his muscles!! I love the way he's always kept us laughing and I hope he never changes.

Thanksgiving Day at the Listons last year. I had to have my picture taken with Troy because we never do that. Look at his dimples!! I love you Troy!!!

Troy works for Apex Alarm systems and has done so for the past 3 years. He's working in Chicago, Miami, Calif. and is now in Boston. He's a hard worker working many hours a day six days a week. He's able to make enough money to live on all year long and be able to go to school and not have to work during the time he's not selling. He's hoping to make enough this year to get into a home and eventually get settled down into a career after his schooling. What a handsome salesman!!!

I'll never forget the day his son Colby Lincoln was born. He was nervous but oh so excited. He had seen his brother and sister with their children and now he was going to be a daddy his self. He's a proud daddy to Colby and loves to cuddle and take care of him. I always knew Troy would be a good dad. He had a wonderful example by his father.

Look at those grins!! hahaha..We were eating lunch at Bubba Gump's Shrimp in Long Beach Calif. in June. He's a seafood lover that's for sure.

Troy didn't know I was going to take his picture. But it doesn't matter because he always looks so handsome. Even if he is scruffy..hahaha..

Everyone knows how much Troy loves sports. This picture was taken at the Vegas Bowl two years ago when BYU was playing.

I love you Troy and I want you to know how proud I am of you. You're an awesome son and I look forward to you returning to our family real soon.