Berle

I am very, very sad because I just learned today that my good friend, Berle McKay, passed away from complications with lung and brain cancer :-( I met Berle and his cute wife Ayne in Mississippi. Ayne and I were the two seasonal park rangers in Natchez during the summer of 2006. Berle was not officially employed by the National Park Service, but he was always there at the park helping us with anything we needed. I became great buddies with cute Ayne and Berle. They were always so kind to me, and they always made me smile. Berle had a twin brother--named Merle! When he first told me that, I didn't believe him, but it turns out that it was true :-) Ayne and Berle were from Texas, and he was a retired police officer, and she a retired judge--so they were in Natchez just having a fun post-retirement adventure. I am so glad that I got to spend those six months with them in Natchez during 2006, because after that they went back to Texas to be near their children, and then Berle got sick. The last time I saw Ayne and Berle, when I took this picture of Berle, was at the "Christmas at Melrose" program in December 2006. Ayne was one of the actresses inside the house, and Berle and I were on the support crew--out in the cold :-) (That was one of the few times I was ever cold in Mississippi.) Berle and I were out freezing in the carriage house trying to keep refreshments on the table for the visitors, but our main job was to keep the candles lit in the 120 luminaries outside. That was quite a feat considering that it was a windy night in Natchez! Berle was a really sweet, kind person, and so is Ayne. I can imagine that she is very heartbroken. Even though it was only for a short time, I am grateful that I was able to know Berle McKay. He made me want to be a better person, and he made the people around him happy. I feel blessed that he was a part of my life, and I am going to try to do a better job of staying in touch with Ayne. When I first went to Natchez I wondered what on earth I was doing there, but in looking back I realize how enriched my life has been because of the friendships I made there. I think that in life it's not so much about the places you go, but it's the people you meet that are important.

New Baby on the Block

Hey, yo! There's a new rock star in town--named Eliza. She is a definite trend-setter, seen today sporting a new "I Heart Mom" onesie (very appropriate apparel for Sarah's birthday), a stylin' John Deere hat, and some sweet shades. She posed for a couple of pictures with her agent, Grandma Taylor. Please wait until Eliza is a little more comfortable with the alphabet before requesting autographs.

Switching gears now, the weather in the Midwest has been a little out-of-control lately. Mom and I have been quite shocked to hear about tornadoes hitting all of these places through which we recently traveled--i.e. Kearney, Nebraska; Laramie, Wyoming; Cheyenne, Wyoming. The big Parkersburg, Iowa tornado last week was not very far from where Greg's grandparents live, and today the Springfield, Illinois area got hammered by some nasty storms--including some tornadoes. Luckily Greg, in Athens, was a bit north of where all of the really bad weather was, but I am concerned about my favorite future boss, Linda, who lives south of Springfield--where the worst of the weather was. These photos were taken in New Berlin, Illinois this evening, which is only about seven miles north of the town where Linda and her family live:










There were also reports of a tornado about ten miles south of this area, and tonight I was reading some news reports about a thunderstorm later this evening that was dropping golf ball-sized hail in the same place!


The tornado sirens went off in New Berlin this evening around 5:45 p.m., then in Springfield at 6:00. I was reading that Illinois "lawmakers, lobbyists, reporters, and secretaries" at the state capitol building had to evacuate to some tunnels beneath the building where they stayed for 45 minutes. That was round one of the storm, and then round two blew in a little while later. Storm chasers were tracking a tornado--the one that probably went close to Linda's house--at 7:15. Yikes! I hope that Linda and her family are okay. Greg, do you want to move to Utah--to the safety of the wonderful mountains that generally disrupt the formation of tornadoes?

Graduation Day!

Our family now has two accomplished graduates: Miss Riley, from 3-year-old Preschool, and Miss Camden from Kindergarten! Today was Camden's fun graduation and dance festival extravaganza.

The morning started off with the dance festival. Camden was the best dancer in her whole class, and it was especially fun that she got to dance to a song from her and Riley's favorite movie, "High School Musical!"











Sid and Grandma thought it was all pretty great.











Eliza thought it was pretty great too. She especially likes showing off her new front teeth these days!











After the Kindergarteners' performance, all of the other grades did their own dances. It got a little crazy sometimes, especially with the "Chicken Dance." Eliza and Sid liked hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa, but Sid wondered what all of those weird kids were doing out on the field, dancing like chickens.











Camden's cheering section reacts to the Chicken Dance:










Eliza thought that the Chicken Dance looked pretty fun, so she tried to escape and run out onto the field with all of the big kids--but Momma rounded her up.










Then it was time for graduation. Camden and her classmates did a great job singing the songs they learned this year!









Here comes the graduate with her diploma:













Way to go, Camden! Here is Camden posing with Grandpa, Grandma, Riley, Aunt Tiffy, and Sid. If you click on this picture to enlarge it, you will notice that Sid is either trying to make a scary face or check to see if she has any more teeth coming in. :-)











After graduation we all went to lunch at our favorite restaurant, Thai Chili Garden, to celebrate. What a fun graduation day! I am so proud of all of my cute, smart nieces!

Twisted Goodness

My favorite thing about being home, of course, is being with my family and friends here in Utah. I also desperately missed the mountains while I was away, and I enjoy looking out my window each morning to see a snow-capped Mt. Timpanogos towering above me. One of my other favorite things about being home is having Super Target and Wendy's just down the road! Unfortunately Charleston had neither a Super Target or a Wendy's.

This evening I discovered my new favorite treat in the entire world: a chocolate chip cookie dough twisted frosty from Wendy's! It is heavenly with its large, soft cookie dough chunks and scrumptious flakes of chocolate! Mom and I stopped at Wendy's after going to Super Target--the perfect outing--and brought home some of the new frosty shakes to share with the family. They come in three flavors: vanilla bean, fudge swirl, and strawberry, and are, like the twisted frosties, also very delicious. In addition to cookie dough, the twisted frosties also come in M&M and Oreo varieties. Life is good.

Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day! It was so fun to be home for the Memorial Day festivities today because for the last two summers I have been in Mississippi and have missed out on the Farnsworth Family BBQ. I love Memorial Day--especially because it is tied to the Civil War. :-) After the battles at Gettysburg and Vicksburg, ladies would go out to the battlefields and decorate soldiers' graves with flowers. Then, on May 5, 1868, General John Logan, a Union officer from Illinois, declared that May 30, 1868 would be known as "Decoration Day." It was to be an official day to remember and decorate the graves of soldiers who had died during the Civil War. The idea caught on, and the rest is history. I think it is really nice to have a day set aside to remember soldiers and loved ones who have passed on.

And, I love Memorial Day because I love visiting cemeteries. (So who better to marry than a funeral director?) Cemeteries can be fun places. There is a headstone at the Springville Cemetery that shows a lady walking up a path towards the sun. Inscribed in the sun is the word "MALL." Below the engraving it says, "Gone shopping." :-) Cemeteries are great places to learn about people and places, and a lot of information can be gleaned from headstones. This is my favorite cemetery picture. It was found in a batch of photos I purchased on e-bay when I was gathering photos for my Zion book. The back of the photo says "August 1959, Coldfield, Nevada." Ha ha ha--I love the sign: "Car Washing Not Allowed in Cemetery." Who would think to wash their car in the cemetery if it wasn't for that sign?

Dad, Mom, Rich, and I went out visiting cemeteries last night. It was really nice to stop in Provo and Springville to put flowers on graves and remember Grandpa F., Great-Grandpa and Great-Grandma Taylor, Grandma T., Cousin Laura, and Uncle Richard. We ran into Aunt Sandy and Uncle Bob in Springville, so that was nice to see them there. After our cemetery visits we went over to Grandpa T. and Grandma Cathy's to say hello. I hadn't seen them since I returned home, so it was wonderful to visit with them, and we all had a great evening together.

Today we had our fun Farnsworth Family BBQ! It was a little rainy outside, so we ate inside and had quite a house full with Mom, Dad, Rich, Lindy, Nate, Camden, Riley, Sidney, Uncle Kevin, Aunt Wendy, Grandma Beverly (Aunt Wendy's mom), Uncle Scott, Aunt Karalie, Cousin Zack, Cousin Caitlin, and Tiffy. Here are some highlights:












Cute Camden and Sid were having fun, as were cute Grandpa and Riley.













Cute Grandma, Camden, and Sidney worked up an appetite by playing extreme jungle bowling (and playing with dolls) before the feast began.













Here is an aerial view showing the post-meal preparations for the celebration of Cousin Caitlin's 20th birthday. You can see Camden and Riley sitting at the table, dutifully waiting to be served some cake to go with their ice cream.













Camden and Riley were slightly concerned about all of the open flames--especially after seeing Uncle Scott light a match by striking it on his shorts.











Sidney wasn't worried about the flames--she was just happy for some cupcakes (actually, forget the cupcake--just give her the frosting!)













The Frosting Monster!













And, after it was all said and done, there was a beautiful rainbow outside to commemorate this important holiday.











Mom, Dad, and I enjoyed going for a walk and watching "National Treasure 2" this evening. It has been a great day and we are excited that Sarah, Joel, and Eliza will be returning home from Washington tomorrow!