Birthday blog's birthday

I am not the only one having a birthday this week.  I am sharing it with two grandsons and my blog.  Yep, my blog is now 6 years old.  My amazing DIL, Sally, created it for me as a birthday gift SIX years ago!  I have chosen over the years to leave it as she designed it and named it, "A Place to Share."

The name has been so appropriate and it reminds me of my Grandma Rhoda Ann Foote Nyborg's home.  It was "a place to share" and I loved visiting her on our annual summer trips north to Idaho from Arizona.  She would pull out all her latest quilt tops and crocheting projects for  us to see and we would visually cruise her sideboard for the latest pictures of her grandchildren.  I am pretty sure that if she had been born in the 20th century instead of the end of the 19th that she would have loved to share in a blog.

Readers would have been treated to multiple double wedding ring quilts (one for each grandchild), true patchwork quilts made from the fabric pieces left over from our garment sewing (I really loved my going away to college quilt made of plaids, most from my garment sewing), and ripple afghans (one for each son and son-in-law.)  She probably could have shared a tip or two on her methods back before rotary cutters and mats.  She was a template tracer who cut out pieces with scissors and then hand pieced them all back together in a most artistic way.  She had a knack for color placement and design.  I loved to see her plastic dish pans full of fabric pieces and blocks ready for the next quilt top.

I also like to think that she would have shared all the pictures of her grands online as well and maybe there would have been a post about Velva and her kids coming for their summer visit or when Laurel came to show off her first born son and Rhoda's great grandson.

This is the first picture that I posted of my grand children in November 2007.  My how they have grown over the years, but because I received this gift, I finally had a way to journal and share in a consistent way my interactions with and pictures of them the last six years.  Come March, their numbers will have doubled and now the older ones like to explore my journal history.  I in turn, love to share our family history with them.  Thank you Sally for the perfect birthday gift.

See Sally. See Sally run!

We found ourselves on the streets of Provo on a beautiful June Saturday morning.  Heather handmade a sign in honor of her Aunt Sally who had risen before dark that same morning to begin her 26 mile + run down Provo Canyon and on to the streets of downtown Provo.

We, however, had slept in, enjoyed a leisurely breakfast, and then driven as close as possible to the finish line.  We soon learned that lots of lean young women with blond pony tails were running this marathon.

And then there she was, swift and strong heading for the finish line as we madly shook our cow bells in welcome and admiration.
 

All of her siblings along with friends and spouses and, of course, her mother (along with MIL, me :) showed her the love.

Sally and several of her Ragnar Team members had made the trip from Arizona for the marathon where the altitude had hit them a bit as well as hills that went up as well as down in the canyon.

I'd sit down on the pavement, too.  Oh, yeah, I was pretty much doing that anyway.

Great job ladies!  I can not even comprehend such devotion nor stamina.

Your niece was pretty impressed (and don't let your daughters see this picture! I don't want them to feel left out :)

Two weeks of family events - Troy's Wedding

The second week ended with the wedding of Troy, DIL Sally's youngest sibling.  While not blood related, he feels like part of the family having known him now for 9 years.  The best part of last Thanksgiving with his family was to hear him tell his engagement story.  I'm so happy for him!

I've borrowed this picture of Troy and Lindsay exiting the Salt Lake Tempe from Troy's mother.  I love the joy displayed by this beautiful couple. I also want to point out that cute, happy face in the background, my sweet Sadie.

A reception was held later in the evening at Noah's in Lindon.  My highlight was watching my granddaughters, along with their older cousin, sing to their uncle and his new bride.  That babe in sandals wasn't in the original plan but she definitely decided that she should join her "sistas," as she calls them.

 

They did an awesome job.

Can't you just feel the love emanating from their family?  Mommy Sally is holding the camera in front and Daddy Dave is in the back center of the photograph.

Grandpa Scott clapped away.

It was a lovely venue flooded with family and love from both sides.

Glen Jay's day

This cute baby boy turned 61 today. I love how he still resembles his baby picture.

We dropped by Dave's and Sally's to deliver Sally's birthday present after eating at Tia Rosa's with the sister missionaries and they surprised Glen with a Krispy Kreme doughnut cake.


It worked for Ruby in July and it works for Glen in January.

I think the rule is that you get to start over with just one candle again after your 60th.

Thanks to this cute little family for creating a cake on their red "You are Special" plate.

Cute Mabel insisted on getting a piece of the doughnut with sprinkles.

David quickly led the clapping of 61 times! Happy Birthday Glen Jay!

Thanksgiving near Sundance

This year Glen and I were invited by our DIL Sally's family to join them for Thanksgiving at a home they had reserved near Sundance Resort. It was large enough to accommodate their extended family for several days of fun. We drove up the canyon from Provo to join them for a yummy dinner on Thanksgiving Day.

The grandgirls were excited to show me the snowman they had created with the help of their dad and my son, David. Youngest grandgirl, Mabel, was less excited. As I held her at the window she pointed and jabbered on about how scary it was. I personally thought it was pretty cute.

While eating our turkey dinner we enjoyed a nice surprise. A large flock of wild turkeys marched down the mountain in full view through these large windows. It created a lot of excitement! After the plates were cleared the grandgirls and their cousins from the other side presented a program that they had written and created all by themselves about the reason for Thanksgiving using the fireplace hearth as their stage. It was highly entertaining!

At the end of the program, Glen led the group in a game of Bingo as a tribute to our Thanksgiving tradition of Bingo after pies on Thanksgiving evening. There was a basket full of prizes including candy bars and $2 bills so everyone was happy.

Sally's brother is in the green shirt leaning against the stair rail. I point him out because he is also newly engaged. I loved hearing him tell his engagement story. It made me think that I might need to share mine in a post sometime.

We so appreciated being included in Sally's family fun.

8 years, 3 little girls, good job!

Happy anniversary to my middle son and his very sweet wife. What did they do on this their wedding anniversary evening?

They watched the little girl in red sing her heart out. Ruby participated in a show choir this summer and we were invited to hear them sing Broadway tunes at their final performance.


Ruby even had a little solo part from "Les Miserable."

As you can see, eight years can produce a pretty cute little family.

I was so happy that they invited me to join them.

I hope Dave finds a minute to give his "best" girl a kiss!

Dave was thinking ahead this year. He purchased tickets to go see David Gray while we were all in Utah a couple of weeks ago. The concert held special meaning for David and Sally as their first date was hearing David Gray at Kingsbury Hall so it seemed appropriate to celebrate their anniversary early at the same venue and with the same artist. Wow! Two very different concerts to celebrate a special day!

Family Trip, Day 4

On Saturday morning, day 4, Grandpa Glen decided on an impromptu trip up Provo Canyon. We stopped for a walk along the Provo River leading to Bridalveil Falls. Copious amounts of snow fell in the Utah mountains this winter and the rivers and streams are full and fast. I have never seen the Provo River so fast. We watched a kayak flash by in a second! There had been several drownings in Utah state waterways during the month of June.

We walked onto the bridge over the river where looking down at the rushing river made one dizzy.

It is not its placid inner tube floating self this summer.

But it is awe inspiring.

The grand kids teased grandpa about sitting on this bench and bending it.

They decided to all take ownership and let me take their picture.

Soon we were at the Falls. There are several in the canyon, but this one has always been my favorite.

TJ had purchased a camera with his own money and he was busy snapping away as well.

They wanted to wade but once again, we were sans swimsuits and they had already worn sodden clothes the day before. I also knew that this water would be extremely cold being snow melt and all.

Grandpa wanted a picture with the kids.

TJ took one and then jumped in for a second shot. Notice how he is almost as tall as grandpa? When did that happen!?

We told them how there used to be a tramway to the top where there was a restaurant and a place to get an ice cream cone at the bottom. We reminisced about riding that tram with our own little family and hiking around at the top. These brown sheds were the bottom.

And the tram went all the way up to the highest point in this picture where there was also the restaurant. Happy days!

We would soon find ourselves on the other side of the mountain in the background.

And here it is! Can you pick out the Timpanogos Waterfall? It looked so big when I took the picture, but there it is about center left. We were now at Sundance and had purchased tickets for the ski lift.

The grand kids were a bit nervous about letting the bench catch them from behind, but they did a great job. I snapped a picture as we reached the top and Glen and the kids were headed back down.

The views were very green and gorgeous. I was fortunate to have TJ as my ski lift companion. This is the view looking east.

And looking to the west is the Eccles Amphitheater where we had attended the Utah Symphony the night before.

That's Glen and kids in front of us and Sundance Resort buildings in the cleared spaces at the bottom. We are now facing north. It takes about 45 minutes to ride up and back down.

There was more rushing water running through the center of the resort buildings. It was an enjoyable outing.

Before heading to the canyon, Glen had taken chairs and tables to rope us off a space on the lawn in front of the Provo Temple grounds so that we might watch the fireworks display from the Stadium of Fire that evening. We made our way back to our reserved spot about 6:30 that evening with pizzas, baby carrots, cherries, and watermelon.

Oh, and whizzing balloons, giant bubble wands, and glow in the dark pendants. We were ready for a great time and soon had other children flocking to our fun grandpa and his toys. It kept them entertained until the fireworks at 9:30.

There was also a bit of face painting.

We were so happy to have Ruby and Sadie and their other extended family join us on the grass.

My son, David, and his wife, Sally, both had grandparents living within walking distance of this patch of grass when they were children. We are sure that they must have passed each other by on just such a night as we were now enjoying.

Earlier in the day while waiting for the bus to take us back to parking at Sundance, I had discovered this setting on my camera. Never knew it existed for a whole year.

Interesting, eh?

And that's Sundance, rustic and beautiful all at the same time!

Saturday was another busy, fun filled late night day.