Spring is Here

We're in full bloom and enjoying "just right" warm days. I'm putting the top down on the Mini and appreciating the beauty around me.










I'm watching the pond every day for the signs of baby ducks.
Bringing Spring onto the table.

A Baby is Coming

Something wonderful is about to take place in Midway, Utah. Starr and Calder and grandma are waiting for their first born child, a little girl named ?.

The celebration and anticipation is great as family and friends gather to express their love and happiness for them.

Starr's family is the best for parties and gatherings. They always come in mass with great food and humor. This shower was at her grandmother's home in Provo.
I am very excited to have a baby grandchild living down the street from me since all the other 10 grandchildren live far away. I will even babysit and hold her when she cries in the night.
Starr's mother and grandmother create an ambiance with flowers, food, and fun...such classy ladies.

Yum, Yum.

Mom's El Capitan Experience

When Calder was 17 years old he announced he was going to spend the summer living in the Yosemite parking lot in his pimped out VW bus. As a parent the prospect of danger was many fold the least of which was the peril of his climbing activities. Nothing would dissuade Calder from his desire and so with trust in his goodness and judgement he was sent on his way. He called me weekly to report and tell me about his adventures. This was the beginning of many years of big wall climbing and the resulting physical and emotional growth that it brought to him. He became very accomplished and well known for his skills and proved to be a credit to his family.

His older brother Travis, who is an established business owner and father of three, decided recently that he would like to experience the thrill of climbing. He arranged for Calder to take him along with his best friend and business partner, Enoch Palmer, to Yosemite to climb El Capitan. Calder invited another climbing friend, Nate Brown, to join them. The photo above is the farewell photo the morning they started on their way.
This is a photo in the meadow before their ascent. This trip had new and wonderful ways to keep me in the loop. With the age of the iphone, facebook, internet and techie geek Travis, there were daily updates and photos reporting their progress and feelings.
Planning the route. (Enoch and Nate)


Six days of this does not seem fun to me but they had a wonderful time. They said the days flew by as they busied themselves with the process of placing and cleaning their gear and climbing.
Before they started up the bears got hold of their water supply.
Sleeping at night would freak me out but they were tied onto the rock and assured me it was all safe.
Two brothers in a bonding experience.


One of many remarkable photos taken by Travis was this water falling from above which he described as separate diamonds catching the light as they fell.
At the top. A great feeling of accomplishment for the climbers and great feeling of relief to me to know they would be on their way home.
Back in Midway cleaning the gear. (the sailboat in the barn will probably be the next great adventure.) I told Travis and Calder how much I loved them but more than that I'm thankful they love and enjoy each other so much. I think this trip deepened all of those feelings. Glad they went..glad they came home safe.
The parting shot.

Spring is Coming

We've been having intermittent snow and rain but we know we're on our way to Spring.
Today was nippy/warm and we went to the plant store and bought hanging plants..such an exciting time of the year.
I worked in the pond and David mowed the lawn.  It is my favorite time of the year when the grass is so green and the baby leaves come out.
Here is the master gardener taking a rest.

Shades of Katrina

We've been thinking more of the victims of Katrina as we've sorted through our water soaked clothing and furniture.  We think of the small loss and difficulty we are experiencing compared to theirs.  The first few days after we got home were sunny and dry so we spread a lot of the wet things out on our deck and they actually dried out.
The fancy jet toilet apparently built up too much pressure for some reason and blew apart.  When we came home water was running full blast with about two inches on the floor and a general flow into my closet (David's is the small one you see) and into the bedroom.
The worst of the damage was to shoes on the floor and tops that had sleeves touching the ground.  Of course the carpets and curtains were soaked and smelly.  David called the Utah Disaster Repair and we (they..since I fell asleep on the couch around 1PM) spent most of the night vacuuming the water and setting up the fans.
It is a challenge to get ready for work each day since we have to search through bags and baskets and piles to find something to wear.  The fans were removed after a week and we think next week we'll start to see some repair begin.  It is a long process but gratefully the insurance will be paying except for the deductible.
The other blessing is we have a home away from home at our condo.  We go there at the end of the day just to sleep and get ready for the next day.  It is like a vacation each night as we pack our bag and get into the car and drive the block away.  It is clean, simple, smells good and beautiful.  (for sale for a really good price.)

Springtime in Washington DC

                                            We had such a happy trip to see Amy, Brian and their family.  We played in the yard, played tag, ball and pushed the girls on the swing.  Vera wanted to do everything Ella did.
  We received a happy greeting from Ella and Vera as they show us their prowess of jumping and sliding on the chair.
Brian and Amy took us to their favorite French restaurant.  It is my second time there and it really is fabulous.  They are always such gracious and generous hosts.  It is a "Five Star" experience.
Such a nice evening.
We played games.
Ella dressed up for us.
We visited Arlington Cemetary.  It was a beautiful day.  The blossoming trees and gardens were  a wonderful departure from Utah snow.
Part of the timing of our visit was to join Amy and Brian at the BYU Management Society, Washington chapter annual dinner.  The speaker was Elder Henry B Eyring.  Brian was privileged to be the escort for the Eyrings during their visit.  We packed very fancy lunches for their hotel room and Ella helped.  She is very good at singing and making up lyrics as she goes.  She was singing a lovely song and we commented to her how beautiful it was to make a song about Baby Jesus.  She informed us the song was about the "baby cheeses" we were putting in the lunches.
Amy and Brian are great parents.  
Ella gave a talk for sharing time.
Ganet is such a big help.  She tends, cleans and cooks.  She works hard all day long.  She is a kind, gentle person.
We rode bikes on the church parking lot behind their house.
We toured the sites of Washington DC.


We went with Amy when she ran a 5K.  The event ended up being a mostly singles event and Amy said she was probably the only one whose mother was there pinning on their numbers.
Waiting for Amy to finish the race.

                                             

We did some fun projects while we were there.
Planting the yard.  We had such a good time.  Amy and Brian help us feel so special.  We loved the time we spent with Ella, Vera, Amy and Brian.

Happy Birthday David

Today is David Thayne Bellessa's 60th birthday.  It started out with breakfast in bed, a phone call from Howard and Calder, a dusting of snow and a trip to the office.  We'll see how the rest of the day goes.

David's two favorite things to do:  skiing and golfing.  There is nothing better than doing those things with his family.

I make reference to my Valentine's posting as to how I feel about him.  I'd like to let him know your greetings to him on his birthday.  The best part of his day would be hearing from you.