Sad Accident and Start of Soccer in Peoria

On Thursday, Erin had her two littlest girls (the others were at soccer practice with BT) and they were going to Wal-Mart and to Costco. They only made it as far as Wal-Mart...and did no shopping. Ellie was a few steps in front of Erin and she was opening the side door near the carts when a big gust of wind caught the door and wedged the two middle fingers on her left hand in the door. Erin rushed to help and pulled the door open. There is basically no skin (very deep) on those fingers on the last two knuckle sections. Poor girl. Erin rushed her to the restroom to wash it so she could see what sort of damage was done. It was bad. A couple of ladies helped her with the washing the one even got some ice to put on it. But it was bleeding pretty bad. The mgmt. at the time weren't a lot of help, however. Erin thought they were calling 911 to get her some help, but when the "help" arrived, it was only a mgr. wanting to take an incident report. When Erin realized that, she rushed off to a pediatric urgent care where they took good care of Ellie. They cleaned it and bandaged it. They took x-rays and luckily, the fingers weren't broken. It's pretty gruesome. And the bad part now is that it has to be cleaned and rebandaged three times a day and Ellie hates that. They have to basically hold her down to do it. I helped Erin today since BT wasn't home, and it was not fun. I felt so bad for little Ellie. She held on tight and cried and cried. But we got it done. She's pretty good about playing still and tries to do everything herself, but she has problems. Those fingers are pretty important ones to try to function without. I won't post a picture of the actual wounds, but here is Ellie with her bandaged fingers. Brave girl!

And today was the start of the soccer season in Peoria. Eliza, Abigail and Dallin are all playing on teams. Eliza's team is the Darth Vaders (black uniform), Abigail's team wears royal blue and are the Jaguars. Dallin (and Brian's team...he's the coach!) wear light blue and are called the Big Blue. They all had a great time playing. If you look at the pictures of Dallin, he is having pure joy as he plays and even more so as the ball comes his way. The other little kids spent their time collecting ladybugs and kicking soccer balls to Grandpa up and down the hill. It was a fun day.









This evening Mark went to the YW Broadcast. I chose to watch it here at home...no use putting on a dress and nylons if you don't have to! It was a great broadcast. Can't wait for General Conference next weekend. Yea!

Days Like Today

I really enjoy days like today. I went to Erin's and we had our almost-weekly bread baking morning. It was really good. We are getting more proficient, too. It took us exactly two hours today from the time I walked in her door until we had finished bread cooling on the counter. I remember when it used to take us at least three hours. We had both recently watched the YouTube video by President Uchtdorf called "Create" and we felt like we'd heeded his counsel to create something today. It always feels like we've really accomplished something worthwhile when we've had a successful bread baking day.
After baking the bread, one of the four of us (who shall remain unnamed!) was hungry for a Sonic slush and tater tots. So off we went! After that, we stopped by Target. I needed a new 4-cup measuring cup...we had worn off the markings on the one I had! Then it was back to Erin's to bag up the bread. I headed home and got things put away. Then Brian and Abby stopped by after school for a quick dinner before Brian was off to his college class. It's always fun to have them stop by, even if it's just for a half hour or so. We enjoy that.
Tonight I worked on getting some supplies/materials together for a project Jan and I are working on. It seems like we're always working on one project or another! We just keep getting ourselves caught up in teaching or doing one thing or another. But it's fun.
Last night we went to Casa again for one of Emma's t-ball games. This is her last week to play and we wanted to get in one more game. Matthew starts baseball next week, so we'll get to travel down to watch him play next. And Eliza, Abby and Dallin are all playing soccer now, so we'll have lots of athletic events to watch in the coming months. What fun!!!

Playing Catch Up

Someone (who shall remain unnamed!) said that I was slacking a bit by not keeping my blog updated. I guess I've been a bit blog lazy. But in my defense, I have been busy, too!
On Wednesday, I/we helped Brian with his kids while he went to get oriented so he can be Dallin's soccer coach. We've come full circle! Mark spent many years coaching one or more of the kids during most every sport season they had....soccer, baseball, kickball, etc. After Brian came home, Mark helped him install a couple of shelves in their garage so they could get some items up off the floor. I told him, when he was finished, they could hold a dance in their garage now! It looks great.
I spent most of the day on Thursday working with Jan to put together another class at Scrap Happy Sisters. It will be a technique class. There are 10 tags that will be worked on/assembled to make a reference book of sorts for the varioius techniques to be taught. The tags all have 3+ different techniques on each, so it should be a full, fun class. The date will be May 16th from 11 am-2pm. See you there!
Friday was a FULL day. Every year that they hold Luke Days at Luke Air Force Base, he yearns to go and watch the planes. This year was no different, except that this year we actually went! He was able to gain entrance through a buddy of his. It was the "pre-show" practice day. It was also a day for VIPs and the media. And it was not crowded (at least not at first!). We arrived at noon and were able to stroll around looking at the various aircraft. Some old, some new. We even got to see Scott Pasmore (channel 3 news...morning show). He was there with three other people just walking around. He wasn't working, or at least it didn't seem he was. During the early hours we were there, they had several stunt planes in the air doing their tricks and blowing smoke. At 2 pm, the much-anticipated Thunderbirds began their show. And what a show it was! They performed for at least an hour!! I was able to get a few pictures (read about 150!!) to help remember the fun day. We finally left after 3 pm...not because Mark was done watching, but because we weren't smart enough to bring shade, a chair, nor water!! And it was a warm day. So we headed out to get something to drink, and to rest our tired, barking dogs. He was very appreciative to me that I would spend that many hours in the hot sun so he could do something he thoroughly enjoyed. I must say, I enjoyed it too! I'll share some pics and if I can get Mark to hold still long enough, I'll have him identify them!

Top-Spitfire, Bottom-P-51, Left-Wart Hog F-10, Right-F-22 Raptor








Thunderbirds

Globe Master Cargo Plane

B-52

C-47

Stunt Planes

F-16

AWACS

F-22 Raptor

F-15

Mark

F-16 and its cargo

Scott Pasmore (center) and friends

F-10 Wart Hog
Today we were able to spend the day junkin'!! We hit several yard sales and our favorite thrift shops. And we even made it to Mesa and had Cafe Rio for dinner. Yes, Erin, I mainlined the cilantro-lime dressing! LOL!!
It was a great day.

On another note....I only had two comments on my post a few days ago about the Gift That Keeps on Giving. I still have a spot left if anyone wants to play the game! Em, I thought for sure you'd jump in. And if you decide to play, you can always make one of those yummy cakes like you made your dad for his birthday!!

Irish Bakery and T-Ball

Today I felt like I was in an Irish bakery. Erin and I (along with her girls) have been trying to get to Mesa to have a bread lesson with Deb. Since it's spring break and since Em and her girls are in town, we went today and had a wonderful girls' day. All of the little girls, along with their moms, wore green in honor of St. Patrick's Day. The grandma's were spoil sports, I guess. We did get the traditional pinch, though. We put together a batch of whole wheat bread and answered lots of questions from Deb and Em. I think they're both excited to get going on making their own bread at home. And who can blame them? It's so yummy. While the bread baking was going on, the six girls played wonderfully together. They all had fun.

After the bread came out of the oven, everyone was hungry. Deb said that they sold whole wheat at their Costco, so we went there to check that out and we ate in the Costco food court. Some had hot dogs and others had pizza. As you can tell in the photo, Deb and I looked across the aisle at Costco at a sea of green shirts. By the way, the wheat is from Lehi Roller Mills in Lehi, UT and the price is good! That may become my new wheat source. After lunch we went back to Debs for some much-needed diaper changes and one last play time and a group photo. All in all, it was a great day...one we hope to repeat again soon.


On Saturday, we went to CG to watch another one of Emma's t-ball games. She sure is intense on the field, don't you think?

The Gift That Keeps on Giving!

I saw this on my niece's (Thanks, Audi!) blog and wanted to play along. I don't think 3 people will respond so makes it easier for me! Ha! Ha!

So, here's how it works: the first 3 people to leave a comment on this post will receive, at some point during the year a handmade gift from me. What it will be and when it will arrive is a total surprise! The catch is that you must participate as well. Before you leave your comment, write up a pay it forward post on your blog (or in an e-mail to friends) to keep the fun going (or copy and paste like I did). Then come back, let me know you're going to play and sit back and anticipate the arrival of your gift!

Just the thought of receiving something in the mail that isn't a bill is delightful!

Come and play!

Now, remember "ya get what ya get and ya don't throw a fit".

Pioneer Woman Strikes Again!

I told Mark this week that I felt like a pioneer woman, and today was no exception. I ordered from Bountiful Baskets this week. I've been wanting to do it for a while now, but it seems like every Saturday that they do an order, I'm not available to pick it up at the time they're there. And if you aren't there to pick up, they donate your baskets to a local fire station. While I don't mind donating occasionally, I'd rather not donate fruits and vegetables that I've paid good money for. Well, today, we were able to pick up our basket. We got a good selection of both fruits and vegetables. One of the kinds of fruits we got was a golden plum. I don't know the correct name for it, but it was interesting to say the least. It was round on the top and on the bottom, it came to a bit of a point. It tasted like a regular plum, though. And the apples were oh, so sweet! As an addition item, you could order a 25 lb. box of Anaheim chili for $9.75. I've bought green chili before and roasted it on the grill, steamed it, put it in ziploc freezer bags and stored it in the freezer. It's great to pull out a bag and use it just like you'd use a can of green chili from the grocery store. So tonight was out chili roasting night. We would have done it on Monday, but Erin needs help canning some meat and I'd told her we'd do her meat on Monday. It took us about 3 hours from washing the chili to putting it in the freezer. Our only glitch was that other times we've roasted chili, we used a propane grill. Since we don't own a propane grill any more, we used our charcoal grill and we underestimated the amount of charcoal it would take for that amount of cooking. So we had to stop roasting and add more charcoal a couple of times. But other than that, it went smoothly. After we were finished, I told Mark that I really enjoy canning/preserving foods for a rainy day. I think the reason why is that it gives you such a sense of accomplishment as well as doing what our church leaders have asked us to do....get your food storage act together so your family won't go hungry in leaner times or times of disaster. Makes me happy to see food stored on the shelves/in the bedrooms/and in the freezer.
Between picking up our baskets this morning and our chili roast, we went to Casa Grande to watch another of Emma's t-ball games. It's so fun to watch young kids play a team sport and learn not only the game, but how to cooperate with others, be a part of a team and learn sportsmanship.

On the Road and Hair

I felt like I was on the road most of the day today. I really wasn't, but it seemed that way. I started off the morning at Erin's house. She had one visiting teaching appointment, so I stayed with Ellie and Hattie while she was gone. Ellie was so fun. She wanted me to read to her, so we read many books. Hattie tried taking a nap, but after about 15 minutes of her crying, I went in and she said something that I didn't understand, except for her last word, "Up!" So I got her up. She said she wanted to sit on the couch and read books with me and Ellie. She lasted for about two books, then she was up and wanting to play, so we did. They had a great time doing somersaults on the sofa. (Don't tell Erin!) It was funny to watch them because both of them got a lot of static electricity in their hair from the leather couch and their hair was totally standing on end! I should have taken a picture, but of course, I didn't.
My next stop was Vistancia to drop off papers and pick up another stack. It's always fun for me to go into Brian's classroom and watch him interact with his students. It's obvious how much the kids like him.
I had a hair appointment across town today, so that was another traveling journey. It took me almost an hour to go from the school to my hair appointment. Today was cut and color. I like the color, but for the first day or two, until it's washed out a little, it's a little shocking to me when I look in the mirror!
Then I came home, picked up Mark and we headed back in Erin's direction. I had to pick up PETE containers (for food storage) near her house and I needed to drop off her Tvala soap order. We've found the BEST place to order soaps/lotions/balms. If you're interested, the site is www.tvalahandmade.com. It's a friend of ours that makes everything herself. And can I just say....her products are the absolute best! I love the handmade soaps...they smell so fresh and clean and they don't have any foreign substances (chemicals)...just very moisturizing oils and emollients. Last time I ordered her whipped shea butter and it's so nice to use (especially at bedtime) because she doesn't use any alcohols that dry your skin like most lotions do. This time I tried her lotion and so far, so good. And I also love her lip balms. Very tasty and very soothing for dry skin. You might want to give it a try.
And I have a friend, Susan, who was wanting an update on my "required" list of things to do. One of them was making my own laundry soap. I got the recipe from Kamille, and I must say, it's very nice smelling, inexpensive and seems to do the job well. I'll share with you:
Grate one bar of Fels Naptha soap (about 2 cups)
1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (different than baking soda---It's hard to find, but I found it at Bashas'.)
1 cup 20 Mule-Team Borax
1/4 cup Oxy Clean
I made a triple batch and put it in a small plastic bucket I had on hand. You only use 1 Tbsp. for a light/small load or 2 Tbsp. for a dirtier/large load.
This week I've felt like a pioneer woman...between using handmade soaps and lotions, canning beef, making my own laundry soap and bread baking.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Today is my mom's birthday. She would have been 83 years old. I miss you, Mom.

Lesson and Start of the Week

Sunday was my lesson. It went well, I thought. I had to delete about three pages of what I'd prepared, but that was okay. We had a good discussion going, and I'd rather have that than just go over what they can read from the book. A discussion is difficult (impossible) when you're reading at home on your own! Now I'm on to the next lesson....Valiant in the Cause of Christ. Should be good...I teach on Easter Sunday!
Aunt Lorna passed away on Sunday and her kids had a short graveside service for her. It's amazing to me that they both died just a week apart. They couldn't bear to be separated for even that short amount of time.
Last night Mark picked up some round steak from Safeway. It was a smokin' deal...usually $5.50/lb. on sale for $1.47/lb. So tonight I canned beef. It is so simple to do. It's a wonder I/others don't do it more often. But I'm resolved to get better and keep on top of my canning/food storage. Erin is prompting me to come up with my 3-month menu, list all of the necessary ingredients and get it stored. I'm starting with 3 months and will work up to a year. I think we have a pretty good start. I just need to get it organized and tallied.
Deb asked me to post some more pictures from the 10th Ward Reunion, so Deb, this is for you.

10th Ward Reunion....Glory Days!

Today was the much anticipated 10th Ward Reunion. It was SO much fun!!! It was held at the Mesa Institute and it was for the kids I grew up with in the old Phoenix 10th Ward. It's really hard to explain to people who didn't live in 10th Ward what our relationships were like. We did everything together. There was a 5+ year span of youth who were best friends. If you had a group gather anywhere, there would easily be 30 or more in attendance. We dated each other, socialized with each other, did roadshows and dance festivals together, played sports together, worshipped together and supported one another during those difficult teen years. It was the best. And tonight, it was almost like we were just in mutual together last week and we just picked up where we left off. We had a reunion about 15 years ago, but I'm sure there were people there tonight that I haven't seen since before Mark and I got married. What a wonderful evening! Some of our parents even attended. It was fun to catch up with everyone and we look forward to our next reunion in fouro years! I'm grateful that Hal worked so hard to put together a DVD of pictures from our teen years. What fun that will be to watch and to show our kids and grandkids. Thanks, Hal!

One Wedding and Two Funerals

I'll start with the funerals. On Thursday we went to Uncle Beans' and Aunt Lorna's funerals....and she's still here! She's still not responding/eating/drinking, and their kids feel like she'll be passing this week. So they decided to hold a memorial service for both of their parents and when Aunt Lorna does pass, they will hold a graveside service for her. It was good, as funerals go. The kids in the family all participated in various ways. Roseanne lead the music and kept everyone in line! The grandchildren and great-grandchildren sang two songs. They were very good. The six boys were the pall bearers...Jim, Clint, Tom, Andy, Jeff and Wil. And the casket was simply beautiful. I don't know who made it, but it was made with great skill and lots of tender loving care.
The best part of the day was seeing my cousins. There were lots of them there and it was good to reconnect with them. Why is it that oftentimes it take a funeral to get people together?? Whatever....it was good to see everyone. We left at 3:30 am, picked up Deb in Gilbert and it felt like we traveled all day long. We went to Animas/Cotton City, NM for the funeral then to Virden, NM for the burial. We traveled the southern route through Tucson going and we came home through Safford and Globe. It was a beautiful day, but very windy at the cemetery. We got home about 9:30 pm.

My favorite picture of the day we just happened on. It's of the M&M Hog Farm sign. It's on the side of the road in Cotton City and points you down Hog Farm Road, where the whole big operation used to be.


I took a picture of Grandpa and Grandma Mortensen's headstone while I was in Virden. This is the new one Uncle Beans had put there.

This is a picture of (from left to right) Aunt Dovetta, Jay's daughter, Jay Mortensen, Uncle Hal and Dad. Uncle Hal is the last of Mom's brothers who is still living. Her sister, Flora, (not at the funeral) is her only sister...and is still living.

Then this morning we went to the Mesa Temple to see Jodi marry her sweetheart, Phil Call. They are such a cute couple. After the wedding, we went to his parents' home for a luncheon. Yum! That's where the reception will be next Friday evening.
Mark worked a wedding reception for a family in our stake. It must be close to spring break and everyone wants to get married before so they can take their honeymoon during spring break.
Needless to say, this week has had both ends of the emotional spectrum. But it was all good and ended on a happy note.