Good and bad this week

First of all the bad; the two bougainvillea trees that Glen has been nurturing and trimming to tree form for almost five years were blown over by the big storm we experienced on Tuesday evening. He's in mourning. He ordered tiny plants from a company in Louisiana with this particular shade of pink and white so that he might have the bougainvillea trees he envisioned. (It's not unusual for the door bell to ring and as I watch the delivery truck drive away, I find a cardboard container marked "live plant material".) He has trimmed the trees back to trunks and is hoping for a rebirth.

Now for the good; this little sweetheart was born in July. I was gone for much of August, so made a special visit to spend some time with Mabel Ann yesterday afternoon. While her mother and sisters went on a play date, we spent some time bonding. She even gave me a smile. I look forward to watching her grow and seeing how her personality emerges. I love her blue eyes. I'm glad that the blessing dress I am working on has blue floss in its smocking design.

More good; my nephew, Matthew, received his Eagle Award at an Eagle Court of Honor last night. He is the son of my sister, Janis, and her husband, Monty.

It was delight to see him so honored for his hard work and tenacity.

His parents were very proud of him and Matthew later expressed his appreciation for the support of his parents as he worked toward this goal.

Members of the Mormon Battalion Association were in attendance to give their own special award for additional efforts in hiking the Mormon Battalion trail.

They challenged the new Eagle Scouts to also be as faithful and courageous.


They presented them with special scarf ties in memory of the Battalion of which some orginal members were Matthew's ancestors.

My son, Eric, sitting top center watches from the Eagles Nest where all Eagle Scouts in attendance were invited to sit. I had the privilege of sitting with my grandsons, TJ and Toby.

Matthew showed great poise as he delivered his closing thoughts. He was both humorous and poignant as he shared his feelings and honored his parents.

Congratulations Matthew!