Halloween 2009 at the Spencer Nead's

I know this is a little after the fact, but considering I am planning on using this blog as a journal until I can get my act together and start writing one, I need to talk about my Halloween weekend.
I took the Friday off from school and headed for Boise and arrived there on Friday evening. I wanted to have as much time there as possible and I knew Max had his first basketball game of the season on Sat. morning. It seems like months since I have been there but with school starting and my two surgeries on my cancerous nose (finally got it all removed though) it has been a while. It seemed like little Madison had forgotten me but she soon warmed up to me and snuggled down on my shoulder. Spencer had just been to the store for something and had brought the girls each some stickers so they spent about an hour covering my shirt and hat with stickers. We had so much fun that was worth the whole trip there.
Come Sat., Max & Spence left for a haircut and a new pair of basketball shoes. They returned with Max sporting some fancy black shoes and off to the basketball game. Max has improved so much from last year and between Spence and my incentives, he made two baskets and passed the ball often I don't remember my boys playing ball at seven years of age, but they must have. I only remember the soccer games that we loved.
After the game, Spence took us to a great Mexican restaurant for lunch and I sat with the kids. At one point, I watched a lady about my age leave the restaurant with her bag of food, get in her car (which had a handicapped sticker in it), but she never left. She must have sat in her car to eat her food and as I sat and watched, tears of joy came to my eyes as I realized how lucky I am to have family that loves me (well I think so) and welcomes me into their lives and homes. Things could have been so different in my life but I wouldn't change a thing now that I am at this stage.
After a fantastic lunch, off to the house to prepare for an evening of trick or treating and lots of candy. By now, the Crossleys were due to arrive as I had talked them into coming down to have Halloween with us. Each family got the kids all dressed up cute and then Nichole and Ned emerged from the house. Holly molly!! Ned had on these huge bull horns and Nichole was dressed up as a "Red Neck Beauty Queen". For some reason, I didn't get pictures of them so I can't post them on my blog but they were a scream. A huge group of us took off to canvass the neighborhood and there were as many adults there as children. We had more fun watching the kids race from house to house as the kids did running from door to door. I took charge of Madison and after about an hour she got tired of walking so we went back to the house to get a stroller but she decided to ride her bike. How cute she was, this little princess and her trick or treat pumpkin hanging from the handlebars. She would ride up to each house, dismount, and ring the doorbell. We were a little behind the rest of the kids but she was a tropper. I didn't get a picture of that either. I just can't get used to being able to take as many pictures as I want but I am getting a little better. At least I remember to take my camera with me this time and got at least one cute picture. The Nead's had put a football jersey on their big dog and he went with us. Everyone took turms holding his lease, but I think Ned had him the most. Ned's horns eventurally fell off, but they were pretty impressive.
By the time we returned to the Nead's house with way too much candy, Summer had a great meal fixed and they had people in and out of their house all night and at least 500 trick-or-treaters. It was sure a fun night. We all fell into bed exhaused but with wonderful memories.
The next morning we woke up and because of daylight savings time, we had an extra hour. Max and I sat upstairs and I watched him play the football game I had given him for his birthday. At one point, he had the Idaho Vandals playing and I asked him if he knew anyone on the Vandals and with his no reply, I told him that his Uncle Kelly had played for the Vandals and that his Grandpa Nick played for the Vandals. He was a little puzzled so I told him a little bit about his Grandpa Nick. I can't imagine what children must think when they find out they have a grandpa they don't know but then I can't imagine growing up without a dad either considering how much I loved my dad, but my children did and they have comes to terms with it and I feel in some ways the boys are determined to be good fathers because of it.
At one point in the game, I asked Max if anyone ever got hurt and he laughed and said "No Way." It wasn't too long after that, due to my promptings, Max was doing a victory dance and fell and bumped his mouth on controllers and really got hurt. This may be a first. A player hurt while doing a victory dance. I hope I wasn't to blame for his injuries but he will never forget that dance.
I headed back to my mountain home with great memories of Halloween 2009 in Boise. Thanks Neads and Crossleys for a trip well worth it. See you at Thanksgiving.

Weekend With Nana

Had a fun weekend with the Nead grandkids this weekend. Rebecca's brother got married in Montana so she went with her parents to the wedding and Kelly had to work, so considering my only life is the grandkids, I got to babysit for the weekend. What a fun time we had. They were dropped off early Sat. morning and all morning played with my many unused toys I have in the back room. The girls loved the Barbies and Keayen spent most of his time with the legos. He did set up the horses and soldiers and begged Tally to play battle with him, but she was busy. I wished Max, Reed and Will had of been here as they would have had a great time. As it was, Keayen had to battle himself and that wasn't as much fun as battling someone else. The other boys would have had a great time with him, and the little girls would have loved playing princess, Barbies, and getting all dolled up with Nana's glitter eye liner that she used when she was the Statue of Liberty in a 24th July parade.
A little after noon, we packed the toys away and headed for Burger King for lunch. They were a little disappointed to find out there were no toys to play on, but little do they know that we are lucky to even have a Burger King let alone climbing toys. Off to the brand new Kings store that just opened in the valley about a month ago. They have a huge selection of toys and it was a hard decision on what one toy they got to buy. But, they were really good not to beg for more than one, and once the selection was made, off we went to my school to play for a while. On the way back to town, we watched three jets take off and circle around Driggs. It was pretty impresive to be so close to the runway (right next to my school). There was a crowd at the airport so it must have been something special as this is a private airport and no commercial planes can land here. I am anxious for our weekly paper to come out to see what the planes were doing.
Off to the grocery store to pick out what to eat for dinner. Keayen insisted we have something nutritious when I suggested pizza so he ended up picking spagetti and meatballs. Sounded good to me, so off to the canned spagetti and he couldn't understand how spagetti and meatballs could come in a can. He doesn't seem to know how Nana cooks. I have to admit, a lot of time was spent in the kitchen - which I am not used to - so I didn't want to waste precious time doing homemade spagetti. They enjoyed the canned stuff though and even ate the mixed vegetables I fixed them. They were good sports about the food. I forget how much time you have to spend in the kitchen cooking then cleaning it all up. Thank goodness for the diswasher. I don't remember if I had one when I was raising my own children. I sure hope so.
The girls were really good to let me comb and fiddle with their hair. It is so like my two girl's hair. Every time I looked at them, I thought of my two little girls and their curly hair. I think they were patient with me as their reward for letting me mess with the hair was putting on the glittery eye liner. I sent them home all dolled up. I would have never done that with my two girls, that was "grown-up" stuff, but grandchildren are a whole different story. It's probably a good thing they don't live with me. I'm sure I am not the only grandparent that spoils the grandkids. I haven't talked to any of my friends that don't do the same thing. Thats what makes grandparents special.
Sunday morning Kelly came to pick them up after a peaceful nights sleep. They all got to sleep by each other and had a quiet night. We had breakfast together and I got to fix their hair again, then back with the glitter. I hope their mother doesn't care they returned home pretty glittered up. They loved it.
All in all, it was a memorable weekend and they were good kids. I can't recall one complaint for one fight between them. Thanks Nead's for sharing your children with me.
Next weekend a trip to Boise is planned to spend Halloween with the Spencer Nead's. I have been trying to talk the Crossley's into coming down, but I think they have other plans. Halloween at the Nead house is always fun. I'll never forget the time Spencer forced Max to wear the frog costume then insisted he go trick or treating. I don't think there will be any forcing this weekend. I'm looking forward to getting out of our cold weather. Snow predicted for tonight. I am not ready for winter. Later!!

To El Paso and Back

Oh, my beautiful mountain home!! I didn't realize how much I love the mountains until this past week when I returned from the desert for five days. The above picture is of one of the stone formations in the middle of the desert in New Mexico. I intended to take more pictures but after this one photo, my battery ran out and I could get no more. I really wanted pictures of the red rocks outside of Moab, Utah but thats what I get for not checking my battery before leaving.
This past week was my fall break from school (used to be called Spud Harvest) so I packed up my little car/pickup with as much of Jessica's stuff I could get in with the electric piano being top priority. I took off Sunday afternoon and got as far as Provo where I spent the night. The next morning I was up and off early and had the most beautiful drive all the way to Moab, Utah, that I had the whole trip. Leaving Provo, I traveled through Price and through a lot of canyons and the trees were changing colors and it was gorgeous. I then went from the trees to the red rocks of the desert in Utah and the interesting rock formations. Once leaving Moab, I entered the real desert and the beginning of Indian reservations. The big problem with the reservation was there wasn't any rest stops or Maverik stores along the way. I have to say, I had some interesting pit stops and was a little nervous about the contents of my pickup while relieving myself. But, luckily, no problemo.
I got to Abluquerque the next day and spent the second night there. This was the first time I got lost but luckily didn't get too lost and found my way to the hotel with the help of the clerks there. I was beat from all the traveling but forced myself to ride the exercise bike for an hour to try to offset all the snacks I had eaten trying to stay awake through the desert.
Next morning, off to El Paso!! Arrived in El Paso about 3:30 and found my way to Jess's office. I hung around about an hour or so while she tried to wrap things up then we went off to her cute little home. Up the hills of El Paso we went and close to the top she and Tommy have a very cute but elegant condo. What a great place and oh, so Jessica. She has it decorated with all her beautiful pictures and nice, very homey furniture. My nights there were interesting (that is a word we use in my family when we don't know what else to say). In my haste to leave home, I quickly grabbed my four air mattresses not knowing which ones actually held air and which ones didn't. Jess warned me to charge the compressors, but I didn't take the time and I paid the price. We could only get one mattress blown up (due to dead air compressors - gee) but it looked good so we took it down to my room. That night, I only had to blow it back up three times in the middle of the night, but made it through. The next night, we blew up Jessica's comfy air mattress, which hasn't been used since we used it as a trampoline for the granchildren a couple of Christmases ago. We left the compressor hooked up just in case but this time, every two hours I had lost all the air. After a couple of blowing-ups, the compressor lost it's power again so I packed up and moved upstairs to the couch. What I can say about my nights there is that they were memorable.
Jess and I spent my one day there driving around and her talking on the phone. Much to her consternation, I insisted on driving because I am not real comfortable with her talking on the phone and weaving in and out of traffic of the freeway. Besides, we were in my car and if anything happened to it, I wanted it to be my fault. Much to her surprise, we didn't get in an accident and I managed the traffic in El Paso like a pro (I hated it though and wished I were back in my valley with only one traffic light). I didn't mind her working though, as the whole intent for my trip down there was to deliver her piano and see her condo which by now I had accomplished.
On Thursday, I headed back out into the desert and back to the mountains. Taking the Crossley advice, I took a different route home than I did on my way down. But, I really went a different way to see where my son Kelly had spent his mission. I spent the night in Farmington, New Mexico and it got pretty cold due to the fact we were at about 6700 feet above sea level. Because I was in a cheap motel, I left early the next day because I couldn't sleep because I was cold. I don't know which is worse, being warm but sleeping on a hard floor or sleeping in a bed and being cold. It got me out of there early though and I got on my way about 7:30 a.m. It was fun travelling through Kelly's mission area.
I fully intended to only get to Provo, but by the time I got there, all I wanted to do was get home and sleep in my own bed so I just kept on driving. About 11:30 p.m., I drove back into Teton Valley and decided life was really beautiful. We had snow on the mountains, but not on the ground much to my surprise. Even in the dark, it was the most gorgeous place I have seen.
I have no regrets going because the trip was fun and Jess now has her piano which Tommy plays all the time. He is an amazing pianist. On the way down, I listened to three entertaining books which made me laugh all the way. On the way home, I listened to the book about Pat Tillman who was the NFL player that joined the army and was killed in Afghanastan. It was so informative and interesting. A lot of things in common with our family. First off, he had the same agent as Spencer - Frank Bauer. He was an Airborne Ranger and stationed at Ft. Lewis, Wa. as was the kid's dad Nick. In fact, three of my children were born while we were stationed at Ft. Lewis. The book shed a whole new light on the war in the Mid East and tells how Bin Lauden rose to power.
All in all, it was a great trip and a fun way to spend my fall break. I did want to come home with a Navajo rug but I didn't realize how expensive they are. They run about a thousand dollars and above, so I passed on the rug. All I came home with was a lot of memories and about 3,000 more miles on my wonderful little car. No regrets!! I need to close now as tomorrow school starts again and it's back to work for this school teacher.
I just want my family to know I love them dearly. I know I didn't tell you enough while you were growing up, but I hope you felt the love I had and still have for you. You are my life.
In closing, I need to say "Happy Birthday" to Rebecca - Kelly's wife. I think she hits the big "30" tomorrow.
Sorry this is so long but it is as close to a journal that I have. Later!!

Reunion Continuation with Andersons

I need to continue on with my reunion week now that school has begun and the dust is settling. The above picture is of the New York cousin Eric Anderson. He is my nephew and the only son of my older brother Steve who passed away in January. Eric and his mother Evie came west with the remains of my brother who had been creamated. My other brother Gordon and his wife Paula came to Tetonia and on Wednesday we loaded Steve up and took the ski lift to the top of the Tetons then hiked as far back as we could. We felt like we were at the top of the world. We had a little memorial for Steve and sat for about an hour and enjoyed the view and the peace. It was a perfect day and I know Steve appreciated his last trip to the Tetons which he loved. It was a memorable day and a nice tribute to Steve.
Eric and Evie arrived in Tetonia on Sunday night while all my children were still there so Eric got to know his Nead cousins now they are all grown up. I hope he knows he has family "Out West" that love him and want him to be part of our family. On Thursday, we took off for Newton, Utah and that evening Gordon's children and their families came over for a nice dinner. Eric didn't know them as well as my children as he spent time with us when he was much younger. He now knows Gordon's family.
Maybe one of these days he will meet his other cousins. He must feel somewhat overwhelmed with the cousins on the Anderson side. He and Evie had to return to the east on Friday so they didn't get to attend the Reed Anderson reunion but maybe next time. Anderson reunion will be the next listing on my blog. I have some great pictures of the Millar and Russell families. Gordon, sorry I didn't seem to get pictures of your family. What was I thinking? I probably couldn't find my camera.
Next parenting tip: Be there. When it comes to spending time with your child, quality and quantity both count. Being there during the small, silly moments is just as important as being present for the big milestones. Work at creating fun, together-moments. Children will not forget these small moments with Mom and Dad. Later!

Fabulous at "Over 60"?

I just need to add a little to my blog that MY DAUGHTER JESS updated with pictures. I did not say I look fabulous but thanks Jess for the compliment. Not bad for over 60 though but not fabulous. Everyone else looks fabulous so it just helps me look better.

Now that I am here, I need to add my next parenting tip on building self esteem in children. Next favorite tip: Praise your child often and be descriptive. Parents are generally quick to tell their children when they've done something wrong, but may forget to give kids positive messages. Be descriptive in your positive praise - tell kids you like the way they completed a chore, applaud a hobby they show interest in and point out when they've made a good choice.

I have to say before I close. I look like I have been hit by a train. I had a couple of sores removed off my face and am now sporting two big bandages. I thought I would have the stitches out by the time school started but the doc can't do it until Thursday so I have to start school covered with bandages - right on my nose to boot. I'm sure I'll make a good impression the first day. Not so fabulous now Jess!

Family pics from the reunion

Here are some family pics from our fun reunion weekend. Lindsey Kunz did a great job if anyone is looking for a great photographer.

This was the original crew, now look what it has grown into............

Top Row: Ned, Reed, Will, Nichole, Tommy Cardon, Maddi Cardon, Jessica Cardon

Bottom Row: Tally Nead, Kelly Nead, Monicka Nead, Boston Nead, Rebecca Nead, Keayen Nead, Nancy Nead, Madison Nead, Summer Nead, Max Nead, Spencer Nead, Macey Nead

Nichole and Ned Family

Jessica and Tommy Cardon Family

Spencer and Summer Nead Family

Kelly and Rebecca Nead Family

More fun pics from the Family Reunion

I do look fabulous, if I do say so myself! Not bad for over 60!

Actually dressed up after church and SMILING ;O)

Games at night. The these adults didn't always get as much sleep but it was by choice!

Best way to get the kids where you want them to be, make it a race.

Two buddies.

Lining up to try to kill themselves on the slide at Darby Girls Camp.

The jumping house was fun for a while but would have gone much better in nicer weather. And just a tip for anyone looking to rent one; 1/2 a day is the way to go, it's very tiring, even for kids.

All on one sofa! The Reunion House is the perfect place to get together.

Sure it looked nice to start but ended in the SNOW! They weren't all smiling when they got back.

Reunion Weekend

I'm going to have to take this in small segments as the last two weeks have been a whirlwind of family reunions. First, on Thursday my own family began arriving at a beautiful "Reunion House" we rented for the weekend that sits right below the Tetons. Every family had their own room and each family had been assigned one meal. I had spent all day Wednesday shopping and delivered the groceries to the house amist a fantastic lightning storm late Wed evening. All but Kelly's family arrived Thursday and Kelly's family arrived Friday morning after he had worked and hadn't slept in about 36 hours. He was his happy self though and we had pictures taken from 11:00 to 1:00. Each family got their own pictures and we had about a million full family pictures taken. Everyone was a good sport. Not one complaint from any grandkids. I was impressed. I think they are all going to grow up to be models. Friday afternoon was spent at Darby Girls Camp which sports a long slide which only my family could turn into a competition.
Sat. most of the adults rose early, braved the cold, rainy weather, and left to hike up Table Rock (a 12 mile hike up the Tetons). Jess and I got the grandkids fed and went to my house where I had a bounce house rented for the day. It was so cold, the kids played inside most of the day so I felt the bouce house was a waste of time and money. Due to a pouring rain, we left home and went into my new school and the kids had fun drawing on the chalkboard, playing golf in the hall, and racing up and down the log hall. That evening the hikers returned to the house totally exhausted. Kelly and Becca have to be given the "Brave" award as they hiked with little Boston on Becca's back. They only turned back because of the rain and fear that Boston was cold. Wow! Tommy has to be given the award for being the fastest up the hill. He was dressed for the occasion though as all the others were in shorts not knowing they were going to encounter snow. The group stopped on the way down and built a fire to warm up before finishing the hike. What an accomplishment for them all. It will be a hike they will never forget. They need to attempt again when the weather is not so nasty so they can enjoy the beautiful scenery.
In spite of Saturday's events, the whole family showed up early for church and we had the grandchildren practice my mother's song "We're a Family Forever." Jess had been practicing with them throughout the day on Saturday and I have to say they stole the show. My whole family spoke in Church, even the grandchildren. I was so proud of them. That will probably be the last time I will have them all together speaking for a meeting except my funeral and then I won't be there to enjoy it. I had so many compliments on the meeting it was well worth all the nagging I had received from my children. Again, as usual they were all good sports and made me so proud. We all spoke on how God helps us in our life. Thanks to all my daughters and daughter-in-laws for practicing with your children.
Sunday afternoon was a relaxing one - especially for me. The men played a lot of horseshoes and the kids kept busy with legos, etc. Sunday evening my sister-in-law and her son Eric arrived from Boston and New York.
I need to close for now. Next entry will be the departure of my children and my adventures with Evie and Eric.
I ran onto this article in my hometown newspaper on how to nurture self esteem in children that I would like to share with any of the young mothers (mainly my neices) that might read my blog. I will just give one hint at a time, but I felt the advice given is invaluable. I notice that my students that have the highest self esteem are the most successful in school. So bear with me as I pass on a little advice for young families.
The one step I felt most important is: Teach good decision-making skills: We all make decisions every day, but kids don't often realize that's what they are doing. When you see your child in a situation where they need to make a decision, help them clarify the problem and the choices they can make. Discuss the possible solutions and the consequences of each. When your child chooses a course of action, respect his decision. If your child is unhappy with the results, you can discuss how he or she may have done things differently. (Watch for more hints) Later!