For those of you who have sons and those of you who are happy that you don't...

This was emailed to me quite a few years ago and I liked it so much, I copied and saved it as a word document.  Tonight I was going through my computer files and deleting old and useless documents, but laughed so hard when I opened this and read it again.  My sons are grown up now, so I guess these days are over, well unless I have grandsons someday...

You find out interesting things when you have sons, like:


1.) A king size waterbed holds enough water to fill a 2000 sq. ft. house 4 inches deep.
2.) If you spray hair spray on dust bunnies and run over them with roller blades, they can ignite.
3.) A 3-year old Boy's voice is louder than 200 adults in a crowded restaurant.
4.) If you hook a dog leash over a ceiling fan, the motor is not strong enough to rotate a 42 pound Boy wearing Batman underwear and a Superman cape. It is strong enough, however, if tied to a paint can, to spread paint on all four walls of a 20x20 ft. room.
5.) You should not throw baseballs up when the ceiling fan is on. When using a ceiling fan as a bat, you have to throw the ball up a few times before you get a hit. A ceiling fan can hit a baseball a long way.
6.) The glass in windows (even double-pane) doesn't stop a baseball hit by a ceiling fan.
7.) When you hear the toilet flush and the words "uh oh", it's already too late.
8.) Brake fluid mixed with Clorox makes smoke, and lots of it.
9.) A six-year old Boy can start a fire with a flint rock even though a 36-year old Man says they can only do it in the movies.
10.) Certain Lego's will pass through the digestive tract of a 4-year old Boy.
11.) Play dough and microwave should not be used in the same sentence.
12.) Super glue is forever.
13.) No matter how much Jell-O you put in a swimming pool you still can't walk on water.
14.) Pool filters do not like Jell-O.
15.) VCR's do not eject "PB & J" sandwiches even though TV commercials show they do.
16.) Garbage bags do not make good parachutes.
17.) Marbles in gas tanks make lots of noise when driving.
18.) You probably DO NOT want to know what that odor is.
19.) Always look in the oven before you turn it on; plastic toys do not like ovens.
20.) The fire department in our hometown has a 5-minute response time.
21.) The spin cycle on the washing machine does not make earthworms dizzy.
22.) It will, however, make cats dizzy.
23.) Cats throw up twice their body weight when dizzy.
24.) 80% of Women will pass this on to almost all of their friends, with or without kids.
25.) 80% of Men who read this will try mixing the Clorox and brake fluid.

Raising Rabbits

The Easter I was seven years old, we went to Arizona to visit my Grandparents.  They had a gift for my brother, Jim and me: a pair of white rabbits.  They looked like the rabbits a magician would pull out of a hat; with long ears, pink eyes, and enormous hind feet. 

Jim and I always rode in the camper shell of Dad’s pickup on long trips.  The ride home was much more entertaining with those rabbits in their wire cage.  We had carrots, apples and lettuce leaves we were constantly poking through the bars.

My dad was forced to make a rabbit pen within a day or two of arriving home.  Once the bunnies were installed in their new home we thought we were set and all we had to do was feed and water them.  As it turned out, we had a male and female rabbit and the perception of rabbits breeding, well, like rabbits, turned out to be true.  It wasn’t long before the female had pulled out tufts of her own fur and lined a corner of the hutch and had a little, writhing batch of bunnies.  Newborn rabbits are not cute, but it doesn’t take them too long to become adorable.  My Mom made us take a bottle of vanilla extract out to the hutch and dab a little on the mama’s nose before we could hold her babies.  Jim, Mom and I all loved cuddling the baby bunnies.  Within weeks, the rabbit hutch was completely overflowing with fluffy, white rabbits and my dad started construction on more pens.

Dad made three more wooden boxes with chicken wire windows and floors, and then he made several more.  Each hutch he crafted became more sophisticated and more adapted to the needs of the animals and their keepers.  His creations had separate nesting sections that were completely enclosed with a piece of plywood with a round hole cute in it separating it from living area with the food and water containers. He had us fill the nesting boxes with clean straw.  Our buns loved their new homes and went right to work making more bunnies.

We sold quite a few of our rabbits advertising them at the IFA store in Delta.  My dad also slaughtered many of the young adults each spring, but I could never eat a bite of that meat.  I practically became a vegan while I lived in Hinckley with us raising and slaughtering our own meat.  I just couldn’t eat someone I had loved and named.

I remember Jim and I having to clean rabbit manure out of the hutches with a short-handled hoe.  We would have to nearly climb into the cage and pull the piles of poop pellets off of the wooden sections to fall through the wire flooring.  We would hold our breath while we were doing it because it was such a strong ammonia-smelling stuff.  It made our eyes water and was truly a miserable chore.

Another vibrant memory of the rabbits was when our cousin, Tammy Basham, came to live with us when she was five.  We gave her a beautiful tan and white rabbit of her own which she named Bunbun.  She would pick the tops of weeds and grass to feed Bunbun and Tammy would sit and hold her rabbit for hours.  One morning before school, Tammy went outside to check on her bunny while we were eating breakfast.  I still remember her crashing through the door shrieking, “Jojo ate Bunbun!”

A large black lab dog (named Jojo) was in the process of chewing up her bunny and spitting fur all over the place when Tammy came around the fence where the rabbit hutches sat.  It was extremely traumatizing for her to see her baby murdered like that.  Dad thought she must have left the cage door unlatched and Bunbun had pushed it open and allowed the dog to get to her.

Raising rabbits is not for the faint hearted.  It is smelly, physical and emotional work.  Occasionally I’ve thought I’d like to have rabbits again, but then I think about it some more and decide, “No, I really don’t”, but I wouldn't mind holding a baby bunny if anyone has one...

Tag, I'm It!

I was tagged by Sheri  This is a 4x4 blog meme that reveals some little facts about me!  It will be great fun getting to know my blogging buddies better.  So check at the bottom and if you're tagged, copy and paste this into your blog and insert your four favs in each of the four subject.

1st   Four places I go:
   -To Weber High School’s Track
   -Costco
   -Arizona to visit my Mom
   -To my computer to Index and update the Indexing Blog (every single day)
2nd   Four favorite smells:
  -Baking Bread
  -Freesia
   -Garden soil
   -Raspberries
3rd   Four favorite TV shows and/or movies
   -Pride and Prejudice
   -Sense and Sensibility
   -While You Were Sleeping
   -Dan in Real Life
4th   Four recommendations
   -Finish what you start
   -Avoid taking offense
   -Eat fiber every day
   -Always have at least one good book to read

and now I TAG:     Tina

                               Dani

                              Melissa

                               Nana 

your turn ladies--you're it!

Winter Willie (Handcart) Thoughts

For the last couple of years I've written a 'Winter Woes' blog post, but everyone knows how much I despise winter and I won't beleaguer readers with another winy post about cold, snow, and frost and how tired I am of being cooped up in the house instead of working in the yard.  I'm trying to focus on the positive aspects of having a winter season and the importance of it in my personal life.

A few years ago I read a book entitled Tell My Story, Too - A Collection of Biographical Sketches of Pioneers and Rescuers of the Willie, Martin, Hodgett, Hung Companies 1856.  There were so many compelling accounts of valiant pioneers who traveled across the US by handcart under extreme conditions.  So many faith-promoting stories of converts from Europe whose desire was to join with other saints in Zion.  So many in these companies died of the cold and starvation and those remaining were in terrible shape under the harsh conditions they had endured over the trek to Wyoming and for the many weeks they had been stranded there.  Brave liberators from Salt Lake made their way across the frozen mountains to save those survivors of the marooned companies.

This winter my mind has often gone to an entry of a young girl who recalled her rescuer coming to her where she was huddled on the ground with only a blanket for warmth.  The man rode up to her and asked her if she wanted a ride and she answered she would.  He told her to take his hand which she did assuming he would pull her up by him on the seat of his wagon.  But instead, he started cantering the horse and while holding tight to her hand, forced her to run along side him.  She cried out in pain because she was so cold and stiff, but the man continued to have her run even increasing the pace of the horse until she was to the point of collapsing and allowing herself to be drug, when he finally pulled her up into his wagon and gave her another blanket.

She says she didn't realize it at that time, but afterwards recognized that getting her blood moving saved her feet from freezing and possibly even her life on the ride out of the Sweetwater Camp to Salt Lake Valley. There were numerous stories in the same book about those whose tenuous lives were extinguished on that rescue ride and also many amputations performed on the survivors of these Handcart Companies upon arrival in the Valley.  My mind has played and replayed this young woman's story as I've considered if her rescuer knew that he had to get her blood pumping to warm her and help her to survive this last leg of her arduous journey or if he was just prompted by the Spirit to do that.  In 1856 there wouldn't have been the scientific evidence to show how human blood circulation becomes limited in cold temperatures and eventually stops flowing to the extremities in an effort to keep the blood temperature as warm as possible in the truck of the body.  He was probably aware that activity warmed the body, but not the science behind it.  I wonder if thought about the tasks this young lady would perform through the rest of her life that would require her health and her feet?

The man must have initially appeared cruel and heartless to this poor girl as he compelled her freezing body into a painful jog.  But how wonderful that for the rest of her life (and she lived a very long and full life according the rest of her account) she praised God and was grateful to that unnamed rescuer for his foresight and wisdom in obliging her into such a difficult and painful run before finally pulling her into the wagon.

I've been considering parallels in life.  Our rescuer, Jesus Christ, who loves us and only wants to save us and see us happy, realizes we have to go through difficult things. Sometimes we are at the point of collapse, but we have to have faith that he will pull us into the wagon when we have done all we can to to learn, grow, and move our blood through our veins enough to be saved.

Introducing a New Blog

I know there aren't too many people who read my blog and even fewer who will care about this, but I've started a new blog called Pleasant View South Indexers.  For anyone who might be interested in our stake's daily indexing totals, the break-down of the total by wards, or information and posts about Indexing check out this blog: http://pvsouthstakeindexers.blogspot.com

I'm looking for guest bloggers who would be willing to share their Indexing experiences.  Let me know if you might be interested...thanks and happy Indexing!

House Fires and House Guests



The Brunker Home in Huntsville



On Friday, January 21, 2011 there was a terrible house fire in Huntsville.  The home was completely destroyed by the flames which are believed to have started because of an electrical short in the attic.  The home was owned by the Brunker Family with one, Jess Brunker, as a resident.

Jess is now living at our house.  He has been an easy houseguest.  He is quiet, unassuming and hardly allows me to do anything for him.  I have the urge to mother him; I guess because he is homeless and that makes me sad.  I keep asking him if he has eaten, if he needs laundry done, if he is warm enough, etc.  Jess keeps remembering things that were in his home that he no longer owns because they are destroyed.  When he showed up at our house, he had a small Pac Sun bag which contained all of his earthly belongings including a toothbrush and a couple of t shirts he had just purchased.  He was grateful for the things he kept in his car and pants pockets because everything else is gone.

Jess's Attic Bedroom Aflame

The very next day there was another house fire.  Our friends and former ward members, the Ray's, home was virtually engulfed in flames and even though the fire department was more successful in putting out this fire because there was a hydrant closer than a mile away (unlike the Brunker's where the fire department could not locate a water source within a mile radius.)  The Rays have still not been able to reenter their home and see what remains undamaged.  I'm so sad for these losses; these events feel so tragic and cruel.  But then I have to realize that not one person was killed in these fires (just a couple of cats of Jess's place) and that is a blessing.

We are grateful we have the room to host a fire refugee.  We've had the pleasure of having some lovely people stay at our house over the last few years.  Kelly Ahern lived here for a while, Mimi has been a recent guest, Jess is here now, and I hope that my Mother will soon come to live with us.  I'm trying to convince her to come sooner than her projected December 2011 move-in date.

There is still one extra bedroom; if you hear of any poor, homeless, destitute survivors let me know...

Tugs and Pulls

The last few months have been strange for me. There have been many things going on in my own life and the lives of my children which have yanked at my heartstrings and caused some pain and some joy, some peace and some unrest.

Life can be like that, just winding you around itself and causing you to look back to see events for what they were and the blessings they brought; also forcing you to look forward to hope for a better acceptance of incidents and for faith to recognize and enjoy blessings when they come instead of realizing they were there but overlooked.

Perhaps because I've just passed the two-year mark of being released as Relief Society President, I've been thinking so much about the three and half years I served in that position. What a trying job for someone as insecure and unsure as me; yet what enormous blessings that calling brought into my life. I will forever be grateful to those beautiful women of the PV 2nd Ward who I love more than life. I learned so much from each of them and hope that I will always remember those lessons of love. How difficult it was to be released and then be placed in a new ward. My heart is still raw over that.

Another release came this week. I gave my two-week's notice at work. I started working almost two years ago, so it feels like another chapter of my life has ended. I'm not sure why this had to happen, but I felt absolutely compelled to do it, as if I had no choice in the matter. Things haven't been great at work since I changed to part-time when Bryan had his knee surgeries. I hope and pray that whatever comes next will bring realization of the value of these experiences.

No, nothing big, nothing life-changing or monumental has happened...just the winds of life trying to put me on the course I must go. I remember hearing that God doesn't always calm the storm, sometimes he calms the sailor. That's my prayer today.

"I hate those meeces to pieces"--Felix the Cat

Tina, you did it again! Your blogpost about mice jarred a couple of memories of my own. As I read about Lincoln having a mouse run up his leg under his pants, I was gripped with a shiver that perceptibly shook me from head to foot.

I recall an incident when I was about 8 years old. My Dad was moving his giant stack of cement forms from one place on our property to another. He had Jim and me out helping, though I can't imagine we were much help. Our brainless Labrador Retriever, Tinker, was running around the fields biting at the air and acting stupid. Dad had set up the new location so the forms could be 10-12 inches off the ground and we were shifting the large, heavy, cement-encrusted and oil-drenched boards from one pile to the next. When we got to the last one in the old pile, Dad pried up the corner and a mouse streaked away into the weeds. As he lifted the form higher, the sound of high-pitched baby animal cries came to my ears. Dad yanked the board onto its edge and revealed a large nest in the ground with about 10 little, nearly-naked mice in it. I was horrified and jumped away at first, but then I bent over to look at them closer. They were encased is a nest lined with all kinds of soft bits and pieces: dried grass, feathers, old fabric fibers, etc. The babies all had their little heads raised and must have been blinded by the sunlight streaming in on them. I had just caught my breath and started to comment about how cute they were when my Dad called to Tinker and she bounded over to us, caught sight of the nest and gulped the baby mice down it two or three swallows. My revulsion was beyond bearing. I fled into the house howling at the top of my lungs. My Mother rushed to my room to decipher what could cause such a demonstration. Between sobs I told her the whole, ugly story. It was one of the few times in my youth I remember my Mom scolding my dad about something he had done. She gave him an earful about his ruthless behavior and how it would scar me for life.

The mental pictures from that day are indelibly stamped on my brain, but I almost feel the same about another mouse event which I didn’t witness, just heard about.

Rob’s Mom, Mimi, had been widowed and living alone for about 6 years when she had an infestation of mice at her house. Being innovative and never wanting to ask for help, she fashioned a homemade trap by lining up peanuts on a shelf in her storage room and then putting a handful of peanuts in a deep, narrow garbage can. The next morning she had seven (YES, 7!) mice caught in her trap. She said they were all climbing over each other and trying to claw up the sides of the can without success. Her dilemma became: “what do I do now?”

She decided to carry the can outside and to dump the mice into her garbage dumpster. She carefully carried the can up the stairs, but as she shifted the can to open her sliding glass door onto the deck, she must have tilted it enough for one mouse to claw up to the top of the can, onto her hand, up her arm, then it leapt from her shoulder onto the decking and dashed away. It freaked her out so much; she changed her plans for the remaining six mice. She dumped them into a heavy garbage bag, tied the top and used her gardening hoe to chop those ‘meeces to pieces’.

Mimi was 83 years old when she had this experience. She related the event to us as she showed us the shelf, the can, walked us out onto the deck and held up the little, short-handled hoe saying, “This is the murder weapon.” We’ve all had shivers and giggles over our little Mimi as the vicious mouse murderer.

Recently, I re-read Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nihm. I read it to my children years ago when they were small, but it was on our 2009 Book Club list so I read it again. It gave me a different perspective about mice and rats, but I will still never stop recoiling at the thought of a mouse climbing on me OR being eaten alive. I totally relate to Felix the Cat.

A Rundown of 2010

Perhaps because of all the huge and amazing things our family experienced in 2009, I thought we would have similar experiences in 2010. Years are different though...just like people. There are exciting and fun years and there are years filled with sadness and hard things. Some years are sort of boring, not providing loads of memorable experiences and some years are a mixture of ups and downs.

2010 went by so quickly and seemed so full of things, good and bad that I wanted to recap for myself some of the events. As I thumbed through my 2010 planner a few memorable times stood out:

We started out the year in anticipation of sending Bryan off to Budapest, Hungary. That was our main focus one year ago. His call came last December right after we returned from our Korea/Japan trip. So by January we were busy purchasing missionary items and getting Bryan packed for his March 10th departure.

Those months at the MTC and then off to Hungary were filled with learning and joy and, unfortunately, also physical pain as osteoarthritis plagued Bryan's knees. He was examined by an orthopedic surgeon in Budapest, had an MRI performed, and was sent home at the end of July for bilateral knee surgery. For months Bryan has been doing physical therapy. He saw his orthopedic surgeon for the final visit on December 29, 2010 and was told (again) that he will not be able to return to Hungary. So his focus now is being a student at the University of Utah starting January 2011 and hopefully resubmitting missionary papers for another area (one he can ride in a car and not spend 10 hours a day walking stairs).

Another event of 2010 which I recall fondly, is our trip to Baltimore/Pennsylvania/DC/NYC and Franklin/Nashville in March and April. Rob, Cami and I had a marvelous time visiting Dani and Kelly in their new home state of Maryland. Every day of the vacation was filled with day trips and adventures. On our way home, we made a side journey to see Rob's brother in Tennessee. Now at the end of 2010, Dani and Kelly are here at our house to wrap up another year with us. They've been here since December 23 and we've enjoyed every minutes of these days together.

Camille got her driver's license in 2010. She wasn't all that interested in driving when she turned 16 in '09, in fact, she preferred someone drive her everywhere, but about six months later she decided she did want her license and so she took the test (more than once) and obtained her learner's permit. After six months, she was finally able to get her license and now she drives all the time. Cami and her cousin, Lindsey, spent the month of July 2010 at their Uncle Kevin's and Aunt Tanja's in Franklin, Tennessee. Cami had access to a Rav 4 and drove herself and Lindsey all over for those four weeks.

We did some remodeling projects on our house in 2010. We painted the entire upper floor and had new hardwood and carpet installed. Since Bryan's been home we've also refinished his furniture and repainted his walls and ceiling.

The garden is an annual event for me, but in 2010 I branched out and planted some different items which will become staples of future gardens. We had a record-breaking raspberry year in 2010, but as winter enfolds us today, the garden of 2010 is just a fond memory and the garden of 2011, a pleasant anticipation.

The 2010 Stake Indexing goal of 2,000,000 names has been a big part of my year. I have indexed nearly 37,000 of those names personally, but there are some stake members who have been absolutely amazing in their efforts to take us to our goal. With one day left we only have 5,351 names remaining in what seemed like an unobtainable goal even one week ago.

My niece, Amanda, was married in May 2010. This pulled family members to Utah for the event. I traveled to Arizona in September to see my Mom, she came to Utah once during the year too. We had Rob's Mom live with us for a while after she fell and broken pelvis in October.

I attended my 30th Class Reunion this summer and was also able to spend some quality time with my best friends from school a week later. I lost a couple of friends this year. Natalie Jolley passed away on August 14 and Bettie Hoenhe passed on December 10. I miss them both and look forward to those reunions beyond this life. I made some new friends this year and am truly grateful that I have such amazing people in my life to look to as examples.

Happy New Year everyone!

SpudNuts and Gallon Glass Milk Jugs

Those who lived in and around Delta, Utah in the early 70s may remember what a stir was caused when a SpudNut shop opened up in town. It is easily compared to the excitement generated along the Wasatch Front when an In-and-Out Burger or a Crispy Creams opens. I recall trying to convince my parents that we should try donuts made from potatoes, they were probably really healthy. The shop had been in business for some time before I finally talked my Mom into stopping in at the SpudNuts store.

Even though I grew up on a small family farm, we never milked cows. The cows we raised were for meat and ended up in the freezer. My family always purchased milk from a local dairy farmer. When I was little we went to the Warnick Farm at the east side of Hinckley and bought raw, unpasteurized milk from them. That was what my parents had grown up drinking and so that is what they wanted. I remember a few times following one of the Warnicks out to the barn and watching them strain the milk and pour it into the jars we brought. At some point, the FDA shut down all those little Mom and Pop type dairies for selling unpasteurized products.

The shutting down of milk sales at Warnick's Dairy coincided with the opening of the SpudNut shop. Along with delicious donuts they also sold fresh, pasteurized, local milk. One day while we were in town grocery shopping, I convinced my Mom to buy the milk at the SpudNut shop and then we could pick up a dozen donuts too. It worked out well because my family liked the milk and I LOVED the donuts. A few weeks later we were at the SpudNut shop again, but she insisted we get milk only, no donuts. I asked her if I could go into the shop by myself and buy the two gallons of milk. She reluctantly agreed and handed me the cash. When I got into the store, I told the nice lady what I wanted and she sat the two gallon jugs on the counter and rang up my purchase. The way the store was arranged, I could look right out the glass wall behind the cashier to my Mom sitting in our car. I felt so proud that I could do this task by myself. Mom smiled at me as I paid for the milk and then took the two red plastic handles to pull the jugs from off the counter and carry them out the door. Everything had gone smoothly until those glass jugs came down weighing more or being taller than I anticipated and slammed into the tiled floor of the SpudNut shop. Both of them smashed simultaneously leaving me standing in a huge puddle of whole milk holding red handles attached to jagged broken glass jugs.

I've replayed this event in slow motion in my mind at least a million times. I was still looking into my Mom's face as the jugs slammed into the ground and I recall that her smile changed into a grimace before she climbed out the car and came into the store to apologize and to offer to clean up the mess. Two gallons of milk makes a big mess! I was crying when she came into the store so she sent me to the car while she tried to make amends with the cashier.

I do not recall ever going into the SpudNut shop again. Perhaps because we were banned or because my Mother was too mortified to ever enter the shop again? I'm not sure, but it was shortly after this event that we started buying our milk at Ekin's Dairy on the north end of town. It was on the road going out to the reservoir and it seems like we always hit at least one rabbit every time we went out there for milk. I hated that drive and I missed the chance to buy donuts along with our milk. Curse my wimpy arms and short legs!

Mimi

Almost four weeks ago Rob's Mom came to live at our house for a while. Earlene is 87 years old and has been remarkably healthy until she took a fall in October and broke her pelvis in two places. Since then, she has seemed frail. It also seems her memory has slipped quite a bit. At first we thought perhaps it was the pain medication she was on, but she only took the Percocet for a few days because it was causing too much trouble with her stomach and her mind.

After a couple of weeks of home health care, physical therapy, and Rob's sister, Julie, trying to spend as much time as possible at her Mom's house to help her out, we realized that she shouldn't be left alone any more so the decision was made to have her come live here while Julie and David finish the mother-in-law apartment in their house.

We all call Rob's Mom Mimi. When Kevin, her oldest grandchild, was a baby she tried to get him to call her 'Grammy', but it came out as 'Mimi' and it stuck. Now everyone calls her Mimi. Mimi is a wonderful grandmother. She has loved every one of her grands and they all think she is grand. She was a get-down-on-the-floor-to-play kind of grandmother. Her seven grandchildren all have such fond memories of playing 'city bus' on her bed with a round pillow as the steering wheel, Author's Cards, The Hair Net Lady, I Spy, Spoons and many other games.

It has taken a little getting used to having another person living at our house, but Mimi makes it as easy on us as she can. She is very unassuming and quiet. Rob brought her TV to our house and hooked it for her, so she spends a few hours of each day in room watching it. She goes to bed around 9:00 or 9:30 each evening and wakes up around 10:00 a.m. We have to remind her to eat. We believe the reason she has gotten so thin is because she just forgets to eat. She is diabetic, so this is a concern beyond weight. We keep popcorn, crackers, fruit, vegetables, sugarless cookies and hot chocolate mixes out on the counter and encourage her to snack in between meals.

We are happy to announce that Mimi's gained four pounds since she's been staying here. Perhaps having the Thanksgiving feast since she's been here helped. She loved the sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, rolls with lots of butter and stuffing covered in gravy and had quite a number of plates full of those things on Thanksgiving and for a few days following.

I took Mimi to Weber High School's production of White Christmas on December 3rd. She loved it! She kept commenting throughout the production how amazed she was at the talent of these young people and that it didn't seem possible that this was a high school musical. She tapped her toes and clapped her hands and truly seemed to enjoy the evening. Unfortunately, by the next day she didn't remember attending the program. She has become really forgetful. She knows she doesn't remember things and it really bugs her.

I guess there are some good things about Mimi's forgetfulness. She laughs at the same jokes over and over, the not-so-good things about her lack of memory is that she keeps asking the same questions over and over. She asks every day when we are taking her home. Hopefully we can make her comfortable and happy here and eventually she'll forget to ask that question. We love Mimi! We feel very privileged to have her staying here now and hope she'll remember it as a good time.

Bryan's Project

Bryan has been anxious to stay busy while he has been going through 12 weeks of physical therapy. He started back to work last month, he got registered for another semester of school at the University of Utah starting in January, but he decided he needed a project for while he is home. Thus, the ‘Remodel Bryan’s Room Project’ was born.

The furniture Bryan has had in his bedroom for nearly his entire lifetime, was some Ethan Allen pieces which had been in Rob’s parent’s cabin in Tahoe. They are nice, solid pieces of furniture, but they were pretty scraped and dented with all the moves and spending the last 17 years in a boy’s room.

So we purchased some stripper, plastic scrapers, three different grits of sandpaper, black paint, paint tray, rollers, mineral spirits and some new nickel hardware and we were off.

It took several coats of the Citristrip stuff we bought to remove all the old finish. I’m not sure if it is because the varnish was so ancient that it had practically turned to rock or if it was because we bought the most non-toxic stuff we could find. After scraping all the goo off, we wiped down the pieces with mineral spirits. Then we started with roughest grit sandpaper and went over every piece thoroughly then moved to the middle and then finest sandpapers until the wood was as smooth as glass. After a final cleaning, each drawer, door and frame received three coats of black paint.

We did four dresser pieces and a pedestal bed frame. After a thorough drying time, we attached the new hardware and the sprayed-painted old pieces we didn’t change out.

During the furniture drying time, we started on Bryan’s walls and ceiling. We filled holes, sanded and cleaned and applied fresh paint. We did a focal wall a color called, Paprika. After all the painting was done, we cleaned his carpet, bought a new bedspread and decorative pillow, made and hung new curtains and moved everything back into the new room. We even put up a hook for Bryan’s Hungarian Whip to hang from because it is so beautiful it deserves to be displayed.

We've ordered some art work and have bought a new clock to hang on the walls. The changes make the room seem very grown up. There is only one Lego contraption on the dresser. All the other toys and little boy things have been put away.