Halfway Here, Halfway There

Sponge-Bob Party for Gavin! Rock!

2011-08-30T15:53:00.002-06:00

Gavin turned 3 this month! The Bartons happened to be up there the weekend of his party, so we stopped by their house and celebrated with his family and friends!

(I apologize that these pictures don't really fit on the family blog. I had already uploaded them to Photobucket, which is how I do all my blog posts on my personal blog. It was easier for me to do the post this way. If I were an administrator on the family blog, I would change the settings so my pictures fit better. Sorry again.)

Gavin loved his balloons--he was quite attached to them

Tyler was his buddy all day

Rachel was happy to play in their fun backyard

Olivia couldn't wait to work on a craft--these were the candy bags for the pinata

Some of the party guests :)

More party guests

Tim and Nancy were concerned that Gavin would be sad when the kids beat up on Sponge-Bob

But he was loving it!

Olivia gets in on the action

It's kind of fun when you don't have to wear a blindfold and the pinata doesn't keep moving like at our house

Tyler hits the pinata a couple times

Yay! Candy!

Filling the candy bags

Time to blow out the candle

Gavin didn't feel like waiting for us to sing to him

He blew out the candle as fast as his dad could light it

opening presents

he had lots of help

now he is ready to play

Tyler tried to show him how to blow bubbles with his new bubble wand

she loved making bubbles

and more bubbles

Rachel sayas, "Don't get me!"

It was a fun time to get to visit our little cousin Gavin and wish him a Happy Third Birthday! Gavin, You Rock!

Timmer's Birthday Party

2011-06-20T12:42:00.006-06:00

Saturday, Kd and Clay invited lots of family and friends to celebrate little Timmer's Fourth Birthday. Who told that kid he could turn four anyway? Even though I see him all the time, it is still hard for me. Of course, he had a four year old's intellect and vocabulary two years ago, so it shouldn't be that big of a deal.

We all had a great time, and the cake and ice cream was delicious. Good job, Eva on the cakes. Tim had a ball being the center of attention and opening his presents. He was very good to thank everyone who brought him presents, and even had a few extra hugs to go around.

The kids all had fun playing games, squirting the grown-ups in an ambush attack. We were unarmed and unprepared, but I think Bret Hosler took the brunt of the hostile fire.

It was a nice time to spend with family. We love our little Timmers!

Anyone needing a timeout?

2010-09-28T15:54:00.002-06:00

Do you want to join me here? I have a friend with extra tickets who can't go. I thought it would be fun to go with my family, if you can. It is opening weekend of the hunt, so my boys will be busy. But maybe I could get away? Maybe with you? Las Vegas, baby. October 22 and 23. Let me know. (I haven't even asked my husband yet. hee hee)

A Heart full of Gratitude

2010-09-14T07:42:00.000-06:00

ksl.com - Heart patient thanks hospital staff with musical gift

- Tim said it was pretty awesome and he tried to stay away from the cameras.

He Is Your Dad

2010-06-03T09:34:00.002-06:00

He's unique -- one of a kind! Sometimes that frustrates you; but mostly it just makes you proud, right? With Father's Day coming up, I thought I should remind you of a few of those idiosyncrasies that we all love.

Perfectionist -- Don't rush him; he does one thing at a time, and he does it very well.
Multi-talented -- See below.
Musical -- both voice and guitar. (Did you know he can play the piano?) There is even a recording of him singing soprano, alto, tenor, & base on the same song!
He is a fine actor -- He played Poirot once, and the accent was perfect.
Linguist -- Very view people speak, read and write Navajo as well as he does.
Athlete -- He used to be an outstanding shortstop. He was also a gymnast and a high school wrestler. Now his favorite is golf, and did I mention that he is a perfectionist?
Comedian -- Lobotomy; Need I say more?
Animal lover -- Fish, cats, dogs, parrots, fish, goats, fish, and of course, FISH.
Procrastinator -- Who isn't? Wait; I'll answer that question later . . .
Grandpa par excellence! Lucky grandchildren!
Loving Husband and Father -- We are all blessed.
Spiritual -- He lives his testimony of Christ and the Restored Gospel everyday.
Outdoorsman -- Loves hiking, camping, and fishing.
Hard worker -- Has provided well for his family for his entire life.
It's official -- he's retiring at the end of this month! (Sort of!)
Please fill in the blank ________________________!

Waiting in the ER

2010-05-14T03:25:00.001-06:00

FYI- Drew probably has another kidney stone. The good news is he really likes the heavy drugs and it helps control the pain. The bad news is he has to miss the Father & Sons campout. Hopefully it will pass fast.

(I hope he doesn't kill me for posting this. What else am I supposed to do at 2 am, waiting for the doctor.)

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Small Adventures Making Big Memories

2010-05-09T12:25:00.006-06:00

We spent Saturday morning splashing, laughing, and basking at Sand Island for Mothers Day. It was nice to get out in the sun and away from the world for a few hours.

Kate, Worthy and I all had a blast playing in the mud while Mom and Dad relaxed and read their books.

Even Bear enjoyed running through the water, playing tag with the kids.

Nothing says "We love you, Mom" like a day spent having fun together. Happy Mothers Day :)

~Morgan Shae Glover

This girl

2010-03-26T13:37:00.003-06:00

is having a birthday. Rachel turns 8 in 8 more days. Saturday, April 3 (her birthday), her father will baptize her a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We are still working out the time, but we will let you know. Also, there is finally a new post on my blog. If I haven't invited you to view it yet, please be sure and remind me.

Perkins

2010-03-08T13:08:00.006-07:00

Christmas 2009
Nick feeling sick
Timothy loves Mom's boots
Laina

Timothy has this new thing about wanting to wear multiple items of clothing at the same time.

Moving on

2010-03-05T16:31:00.003-07:00

I guess it is my turn and I probably should give everyone an update. Thanks to our children (specifically the child tax credit), we are getting enough in our tax return to afford for Richie to finally get out of New Jersey. Poor Richie has been packing our entire apartment all by himself, but I have done it a couple times, so I guess he could have a turn. Dad flew out today to help him pack up the truck and drive out and they will be leaving North Brunswick on Wednesday. We have decided to move to Logan because Richie is working for the Lyric this summer but he needs work before then and we feel like he is more likely to find a job in Logan than in Blanding. We are sad about taking little Richie out of another preschool, but we are looking forward to being in Logan and being a family again! I will be able to go back to my doctor who delivered little Richie and get the kids in with Richie's old pediatrician, who we loved, and that all makes me happy. We love Logan and are really excited about being back there.

The kids and I have had a good experience staying with Mom and Dad and I am so grateful for all the help they have been to us, but I am also grateful that they can get back to their normal life soon. They literally turned their life upside down for us, moving down stairs and letting me take over their room. Mom has been so great helping with the kids and letting me get lots of rest while I was feeling my worst. Being away from my husband has been hard, but staying with Mom and Dad has been a huge blessing.

A week from today our family will be back together!

Big Changes

2010-02-03T13:51:00.001-07:00

Call us if you want more information. (Not just about the house but why we are selling it.)

http://49warren.blogspot.com/

Coupons Anyone?

2010-01-25T13:14:00.003-07:00

Hey I was wondering if anyone has coupons that they are NOT using from the Sunday paper?
I am trying to stock pile coupons so I can start doing Grocery Smarts {see our blog for more information}. If you do, just send them up with anyone {Worthy} that is coming this way. THANKS!

I've been told it's my turn...

2010-01-23T18:38:00.002-07:00

And I guess it's true. Ironic how I kind of forced this thing on the family, and now I'm the truant one. Oh well - I think Eryka and I seem to have lost some of the blogging bug since getting back from Spain. Eryka because she actually has other things to do with her life, and me just because I'm fed up with sitting in front of a computer all day long for work that I'd rather not extend the time when I get home.

Anyway, enough of the excuses. We're doing well, and there's not much news around here. I took a welcome break from work during the holiday season: three weeks straight with no documents to review, no contracts to draft, no negotiating, no stressing, no late nights, no unreasonable client demands. It was great. It was nice to feel like a part of my family again. I helped drive kids to activities, saw the school plays, went skiing with the kids, and relaxed. A lot.

I'm glad to have a job, though the time off made me think what real people who actually have time to lead a life outside of work are able to enjoy. At least I have the satisfaction of having one of the deals I worked on being rated the "Latin American Deal of the Year". (8 billion dollar IPOs tend to impress people - just not the right people - like your kids)

Did I tell you I'm trying to pick up snow-boarding (and the kids are learning how to ski)? I lived over two thirds of my life in Utah and never went skiing or snowboarding there. And I'm wishing I would have learned there. And looking forward to the chance to go skiing/snowboarding in real snow. It's so hard and icy out here that every mis-calculation results in a fall - and every fall is hard. But the kids are having fun learning. It's a slow process since we only have a few hours every weekend, but it's giving us some good time together.

Well, enough rambling.

I posted.

If you want more info, try calling me.

Or sending an email to my work account. That tends to be the most effective method.

Wish you were here

2010-01-10T20:17:00.003-07:00

These pictures are for you, Drew. Tim wanted you to see how much fun these guys had this weekend playing Halo and Modern Warfare on the X-boxes.

Personally, I don't get the killing each other over and over, coming back to life, and doing it again, but I am just a girl.

(By the way, new post on my private blog)

I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus!

2009-12-24T18:21:00.003-07:00

New Family Pictures

2009-12-04T19:37:00.005-07:00

We got new family pictures (after only 4, or 5 years)! Brooke did a great job capturing our kids personalities. It was so hard to choose!

Walk this way

2009-11-30T21:39:00.003-07:00

Dear Family,

Sorry for the lack of posting, it's not because we don't love you or lead boring lives. It's just keeping up two blogs is alot of work when you live with a little terror. OK, so he isn't much of a terror as he is a destroyer and he loves to try to destroy our laptops. Here is what we have been up to.

Gavin has finally found the motivation to start walking. Maybe it is the fear of having Kids Who Can't, I mean count come by for early intervention. I know that we shouldn't have been worried about Gavin not walking but he had no desire to even try and scored low in the gross motor skills at the Dr. office. It was also frustrating to have people ask us what was wrong with him because he should be walking by now and to watch kids younger than him walk around. But after having the first consultation with Kids Who Count, Gavin has picked up walking super fast and now has a desire to try. It was also nice for a professional tell Tim & I that we were doing everything we could and doing a good job as parents {we fooled her}.

Here is a short video of him walking which is more of a speed walk than anything. He is going to be a sprinter we just know it.

Besides getting help with walking they {KWC} suggested we get Gavin off of the bottle to help him with talking. If you been around Gavin you know he is a babbler but it sounds like gibberish but ever since we quit giving him a bottle he has been talking more coherently.

Some of the words he can say now are: shoes, night night, woof, whoot whoot, oops, huh, ball, balloon, banana, outside & the regular ones too.

Now onto us boring parents.

Tim has been super busy at work but has also had some really nice chunks of time off. We were recently called to work in the nursery in the third hour. So now Tim has two callings {Elder's Quorum Secretary} & I have one. Tim revived his Xbox from the red ring of death by taking it apart and replacing some parts costing him $5.

I recently was sought out to come work at a salon here in Spanish Fork. With Tim's schedule I would only be able to work twice a week and the owner wanted the salon to be more of booth rent than commission. Something that I didn't have the clientele to do right now with only working limited hours. So I didn't take it but I might be working with the owner in a different direction but we will see. Other than that my life is kept busy by a rambunctious and very curious toddler.

Love always,

Nancy oxoxo

Train Nutz

2009-11-05T16:16:00.007-07:00

The Glover Sr. senior couple are at it again. We decided to continue celebrating Mother's retirement by taking a train trip. We went from Provo, Utah to Sacramento, California at the end of September, and of course, we loved it.

Dad took pictures from the train as we traveled through the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range.

Mother waited for the train back to Utah after spending time in the California Railroad Museum (mainly in the gift shop). I highly recommend it.

Dad worked on a walking stick while sitting on the train, and received multitudinous, rave reviews from other passengers. He is a highly talented artist. He used the conversational opportunities to do some missionary work and had some very interesting discussions.
Unfortunately, there was unscheduled entertainment on the train when it made a stop in the middle of nowhere (a little Nevada town that reminded us alot of Blanding). Two of the passengers had a little altercation and were escorted off the train. It took FIVE police cars to help them off the train. That also reminded us of Blanding.

We had a great time and are looking forward to the next travel opportunity. Suggestions, anyone?

What do you post when you don't know what to post?

2009-10-20T16:02:00.002-06:00

Hey y'all! Worthy here. I was reminded to post by my mother and my wife and I have been trying to come up with some coherent thought to share with everyone. I haven't really had much luck.

As you all know I have had a roller coaster ride in my career the last couple of years. It has been an interesting ride. The latest is that I finally feel like the leadership in my organization respect me and appreciate the results I generate. I was about to leave and they convinced me to stay. They didn't convince me to stay as much with money as they did by acknowledging missteps in the past and making me feel wanted. It was nice.

One of the best things that has come from this experience is that it has helped me focus outside myself and grow closer to my family. One lesson I will have to learn over and over again in life is that when things are going bad it is usually because I have gotten caught up in my own ego. If I want to make things better I need to focus my energy away from myself. I need to serve others, especially my family and things will get better.

Anyway, shortly after things seemed to have fallen apart on me I wrote a poem to try finding solace. My wife was the inspiration for the poem. She always believes in me and is such a pillar of strength. In contemplating what to write I came across this poem and decided I would share it with you all. I hope it isn't too sappy for you. If it is, get over it! I'm sharing it anyway. Enjoy!

In the Mud
By Worthy Glover, Jr.

In the mud,
That’s where she found me.
She pulled me up, wiped me off, looked me in the eye and told me to build.
So I built.

I built a stool.
I stood on it and reached higher.
She pulled me back, caressed my head, looked me in the eye and told me to build higher.
So I built.

I created a ladder.
I leaned it against the lofts and ascended its heights.
She climbed up, grabbed my hand, looked me in the eye, and told me it must support itself. Build it better.
So I built.

I erected a tower.
I climbed to the top, looked down and felt powerful.
She came to my side, enjoyed the view, looked me in the eye and told me it would fall, I was a God and could do so much more.
I didn’t listen.

I stood proud and noble.
The demons came and burned my tower to cinders.
I fell into the mud.
She knelt at my side, drew me up, looked me in the eye, and whispered in my ear you are powerful. Don’t stay down. Get yourself higher.
So I built.

I constructed wings.
I flew above the clouds. I was free.
She soared next to me.
She smiled at me, brushed my lips with hers, looked me in the eye, and said almost. Finish by lifting others.So I taught and we flew.

2009-10-05T12:49:00.000-06:00

The view from my back porch.

Bears Ears at sunset

Sunset from Kd's backyard
Littlest Worthy on his baptism day with his Grandpa Worthy

Thomas on his baptism day (same day) with his dadTwo yummy birthday cakes
Thomas blows out his candles
Worthy getting ready to blow out his

Worthy blows out his candlesYummy cake!

And so what is going on in the Bartons' lives right now. Lots and lots of stuff.

Most of the above pictures come from one of those busy days. Garrett's Cross Country Meet in the morning. Our visit to the Four Corners Monument (see our blog for that--I am too lazy to link you). Baptisms in the early evening. A barbeque at Kd's. An 80th birthday party for our neighbor we attended the same night. The BYU game we would rather not mention. We thought it was lucky Kd and Clay had the Versus Channel on their TV, but after watching the game, it didn't feel so lucky. It seems to me there was more going on that day, but I can't remember it now.

We have lots of days like that around here. I am not complaining. Busy, busy, busy. And we are all doing okay. All right, I have to admit, my house is a wreck, a disaster area, but it is still livable. You know that has never been my strong suit, and since I am gone so much, we just have clutter building on top of clutter. I just don't exactly have the time or the willpower to tackle it all, much less the energy.

For those of you who weren't aware, I have been working at Britt's office since August. It is an arrangement we actually considered earlier this year, but Britt was able to hire an assistant at that time. For various reasons, she didn't work out, and I have since been answering phones and a few other various things for Britt 3 days a week. We are still in the process of figuring out how I am going to help Britt improve his business, while obviously cutting costs. We are also in the process of figuring out a set work schedule for me, and a set babysitter for Olivia.

Too much is up in the air, but we are getting closer to getting at least that stuff settled.

I have to be honest with you guys, times are tough. We thought we could dodge around this messed-up economy thing, but it has smacked the mortgage industry something fierce. And while Britt is working harder than ever, it is harder to clear loans anymore, so we have had a hard time making as much money as we need to get by. I know it is hard for Mom to hear this, since she is helpless to do anything about it and she is a fixer. I am not asking for help. Just telling it like it is.

You may have read the post where I said goodbye to our boat as we decided we needed to sell it. Well, the boat didn't sell. We thought we had worked out an arrangement with a time-share sort of situation with someone up north. But he damaged and misplaced several parts on our boat and boat trailer during the time that he had it, and has never been reliable with the money part of the transaction. Because of this, we are behind on our boat payment. We have put thousands of dollars in payments into the boat already, but because we are behind, the people who hold the loan on the boat will be coming to take the boat this Friday.

At least we have a lot of good memories. I had hoped we could have more than that, but I guess it wasn't meant to be. Thanks, everyone, who shared with us some wonderful times on that boat.

And don't worry about us. We are going to be okay. I just needed you to know.

2009-09-26T20:27:00.002-06:00

A few of the things we have been doing instead of blogging:

-Rafted the Colorado River with my children. I had a work party, and Clay couldn't get off work so he did not come. Let me just say how glad I am that I am not a single Mom all the time.

-Spent an entire week (day and night) lying flat on my back with a sad, sick little man permanently attached to me. Timothy had a really bad case of Strep throat

-Planned (and delegated) a retirement party for my Mother. Thanks to everyone for your help!

-Planned and carried out a baptism for our salt and pepper twins: Thomas and Worthy, with a fun family barbecue after.

-Being so busy at work that I barely have time to breathe. This is our busy season, so we have tons of visitors coming to the Museum, including lots of tour buses.

-Spending 2 days a week driving to Moab with my Sweetie so that we can get licensed to become foster parents. The classes start at 5:30 at night and are 4 hours long, so we leave Blanding at 4 pm and get home around 11:00 pm. Only 2 more classes to go!

Now you know!

Richie's first day of pre-school

2009-09-10T07:56:00.000-06:00

Yesterday little Richie went to pre-school for the first time. He was very excited, and so were we. He has wanted to go to school for a while now and almost couldn't contain himself yesterday when I reminded him that he was starting school.

He is going to a pre-school at Rutgers through the nutrition and food science department, so in addition to the teacher, there are several college student helpers, so the ratio of grown-ups to kids is pretty good. When he first got in the class room they put a smock on him to protect his clothes when they do their art projects and he got really grumpy. I asked him why he was making his angry face and he said, "I don't like painting, I just like coloring!" I tried to convince him that they weren't going to make him do anything that he didn't want to do, but he was still pouty when I left. There is an observation room where you can watch, so I went in there for the first 20 minutes or so. He was still looking upset until one of the college students (a girl) asked him about his Spiderman shoes, and he started to perk up. By the time I left he was snuggling up to the girl and looked like he was going to be fine. He had a lot of fun and is looking forward to going back. Sophia was super jealous, but she will just have to settle for hanging out with me while Richie is in school.

Pleasant Memories of Growing Up in Blanding

2009-09-02T08:11:00.003-06:00

Yes, it is Drew's turn to post, and he asked me to do it for him, and I am happy to do it. Of course, this means he will have to accept the consequences of anything I say about him.

Growing up in as a Glover child has a special set of memories. I am hoping that by reminding all of you of some of those special times, you will add your own insights. For the moment, this is the list of things, I believe Drew enjoyed about his early years:

Collecting eggs from the chicken coop, except when the neighbor shot a skunk inside the coop, and the smell was too nasty to even get close for a long time
Climbing the knoll and collecting fossils along the way
Fishing in Meyer's pond
Nearly drowning in the backyard mud hole/swimming pool
Tree house in the poplar tree
Chore charts
Family Home Evening charts
Sniffling, grunting, clearing his throat -- whatever it took to get a rise out of his older sister
Chasing his little brother through the house until one of them was injured
Sewing some of his own school clothes, because the stores did not have what he wanted
Playing percussion in school band, including engineering and building a set of chimes for a concert
Roller blading
1st kiss -- middle school drama
2nd kiss -- high school drama
3rd kiss -- Eryka, do you want to tell us about that?
Family vacations -- Disneyland, Yellowstone Park, Montana, Mt. Rushmore, South Dakota, Nauvoo, Washington D.C.
Black eye in middle school from taunting the baseball catcher (about 5 times his size!)
Coyotes, deer, skunks, colt birthing, etc. in the fields around our house.

So there you go -- a very limited list of some of the things Drew might remember about Blanding. Who wants to add to the list?

Next we have a list of the experiences which Drew's children appreciate about Blanding:

playing with cousins
playgrounds
jumping on the neighbor's trampoline
watching Scooby Doo
Grandpa playing the guitar and singing
Lake Powell
Blanding swimming pool
Cortez Rec. Center
Kittens and cats
Grandma's treat bowl
Marshmallow roast in the backyard

Feel free to add to this list also if you want. We love you all and hope your memories of growing up in the Glover home are pleasant ones. (Okay, Drew, how'd I do?)

2009-08-09T19:35:00.002-06:00

Just wanted to let you know we will be celebrating Gavin's first birthday on Saturday the 15th. So if anyone is up around here doing any school shopping or etc., come by. We loved to see you! Just give us a call for more details. Love you all and hope your summer is as busy and fun as ours.

How Lucky are We?

2009-07-20T20:43:00.007-06:00

Who besides us has a daughter-in-law who brings her children to visit cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, etc., even though her husband cannot come? Not only that, she cleans our house while she is here. She must really love us to clean out the pantry!

We have 6 wonderful children with wonderful mates who are always thinking of ways to make us happy. This picture does not even do justice to how beautiful these lilies were for a few days in July. Thanks, Kim and Worthy for the Mother's Day present a few years ago. It is truly a cheerful addition to our front yard.
Thanks too to all of you who decided to go to the Monticello Temple last night and invited us to go along. It was a highly uplifting experience to have so many of us together in that sacred place. We love all the Glovers, Bartons, Perkins, Calls, Glovers, and Glovers, and we look forward to seeing more of you as soon as possible.

The Value of My Sunglasses (Here's a hint its not $300)

2009-07-12T17:52:00.003-06:00

A couple of weeks ago our family had a fantastic trip to California. It was a very busy few days of Disneyland, the beach and Sea World. We had a great time and were reminded of how important family is and making family memories is.

On the day we went to the beach we had our fill of sun, sea and sand. We played hard and had an absolutely fabulous time. I had on my expensive sunglasses that I had gifted myself when I finished my Master's Degree. Throughout the day I would think to myself as I played in the water that I should put them away so as not to loose them.

Well, as we were winding the day down I went out to play in the surf one last time and was toppled by a powerful wave. The wave swept my shades off my face and out to sea. I was extremely discouraged and frustrated. I searched and searched the water in hopes of them washing ashore. I even went so far as to offer a rather trivial prayer about them. Essentially, here are the words I offerred up in my prayer, "Please help me find my glasses, I really don't need a lesson in the value of worldly things right now. Just help me find them."

Guess what! I got a pretty powerful lesson that put things in real perspective within moments of ushering that ridiculous request. The wave that swept my shades away was the last wave of the day for me. We were done with the beach and each of us was gathering to depart. As we gathered we noticed that Kate was missing. None of us knew where she was. It is nearly impossible to describe that experience. Kim thought she had drowned. I was certain she had been abducted. None of us knew what to think or where she was.

Each of us in our party walked up and down the beach. We involved the beach life guards. We walked for what seemed like miles, searching and searching with each moment becoming more and more frantic as time passed. Each of us prayed desperately for her safe return. In the end her Aunt Jen walked incredibly far down the beach and found her. Kate said she was just trying to find her Dad and she was certain he was in the direction she was heading.

In the end, I was taught a powerful lesson. The worth of souls is great, especially those of my family. My shades are worthless, they have no value compared to the precious moments I have with my family. Kate was safe in the end and I am so grateful to have her in my life. I am so grateful to have each of my children and my wife. They mean more to me than the air I breathe. I love them and value them more than anything. Cherish one another. Cherish your moments together. Be grateful for one another.

Life is a Highway

2009-06-24T22:10:00.002-06:00

And I have been riding it for the last four days. On Britt's brother, Jesse's Harley Davidson motorcycle. It has really been a great ride. Exhausting, but fun. A lot like life. We left Blanding on Sunday after church. We stayed at Tim and Nancy's that night (thanks again, you guys). Monday morning, we headed up Provo Canyon, onto I-80 to Evanston to Bear Lake, and finally to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. That was a nice drive. We actually stayed in an old hotel in Teton Village near the ski resorts west of Jackson Hole. So we didn't go into Jackson--I'm a little sad about that, but after all the waits from construction and weird lights coming into Jackson, I just needed to be off the motorcycle.

Spent some time in the Grand Teton National Park on Tuesday, and then up through Yellowstone. We saw a bear while waiting in construction, but it was high up on the hillside. Other than that, we didn't see a lot of animals, even when we went into Yellowstone. We watched Old Faithful, and had an ice cream cone there. We checked out the old lodge there which has been renovated. It used to just sit empty. It is amazing what they have done there. I will post some pictures of that on my blog when we get home. We also saw bison, elk, and a bald eagle that day.

We would like to see a moose, but we didn't see any today. We saw some beautiful waterfalls and the Yellowstone Lake is so massive, it almost looked like the ocean, if it didn't have mountains behind it. Today we toured some parts of the park I have never seen, and they were unique and amazing. We were stuck in traffic behind a bison just moseying down the road in front of a long line of cars, winding down the mountain. It was crazy. Pictures later. We also saw some incredible views coming out of the east entrance to the park into Cody, Wyoming.

Tomorrow is Bear Tooth Pass up into Montana, and then back down to Cody. After that, Friday and Saturday, Britt and I will head toward home as quickly as we can. We miss our kids. Thanks, Mom and Jennifer for taking care of them for us.

There is a lot going on this summer, too. I think Garrett will need to post and tell you about all the fun things he is doing. Love you all. Time for me to crash.

Happy Birthday to you --Timmers is 2!

2009-06-18T22:01:00.004-06:00

We had a fun get-together for cake and ice cream for Timothy's birthday today. It was great to hang out with the family that was in town.

The picture above is the awesome wall hanging I begged Mom to make for me. She made a quilt for Eva with the cool 3-D butterflies and I was really loving it. Now I have my own butterflies!

When Drew and Eryka come here next month it would be fun to do the local tourist things. Here are some ideas:

Natural Bridges: http://www.nps.gov/nabr/

Mesa Verde: http://www.nps.gov/meve/

Hovenweep: http://www.nps.gov/hove/

Arches: http://www.nps.gov/arch

Dead Horse Point: http://stateparks.utah.gov/stateparks/parks/dead-horse/

Edge of the Cedars (my museum): http://stateparks.utah.gov/stateparks/parks/edge-of-the-cedars/

The Dinosaur Museum (in Blanding): http://www.dinosaur-museum.org/

Home in the Rock: http://www.theholeintherock.com/

I am not saying we need to do all or any of these, but it would be fun to do some of them. Check them out (especially Eryka) and we will do some of them with as many as want to go with us!

I know, I know, it's my turn.

2009-06-12T10:15:00.002-06:00

Sorry, I just haven't felt like blogging lately, but I know it is my turn, so here I am. We have successfully moved into our new apartment in North Brunswick, which feels like our old apartment in North Brunswick because it is in the same complex and has the exact same layout. Moving always makes me feel like we have too much stuff, because we do, so I should have gotten rid of a lot, but it doesn't feel like we did.

Richie is working hard at getting work and we are realizing why we wanted to move closer to the city; the commute is taking its toll. We are really grateful to have a place to live and to still be in our great ward, so we are not complaining, we are just learning. Hopefully we will have good news about his career to report soon.

The kids are cute as ever, and more and more challenging every day. They love each other so much, but also can't seem to play together without WWIII breaking out. Some days I think I am ready for another baby, and then I have days when I can't handle to two I have. I love them and they make me crazy. That's motherhood.

Here are some recent pics of the kids.

Sophia has discovered she fits perfectly on the shelf of the changing table.

They happen to like each other at this moment.

Richie "acting" scared. I am nervous about his future occupation.

Posing.

Sophia has a hard life.

And finally:

Happy Birthday Mom!

We love you and wish we could be there to celebrate with you.

U.S. Open Golf

2009-06-10T13:43:00.001-06:00

This is for Dad, Worthy and Tim. Note the list of prohibited items on the (basically, just come dressed in your clothes, don't bring anything on the course). If I can't make it, Eryka will pick you up at the airport and drop you off that morning.

http://usga.usopen.com/2009/spectatorinfo/includes/2009_Spectator_Guide.pdf#page=8

Kidney Pains

2009-05-31T20:11:00.003-06:00

Last Saturday night, I woke up just after midnight in the most excruciating agony. I was lucid enough to realize that if I walked into the emergency room on my own power, I would have to wait hours and hours for anyone to see me (after all, it was a holiday weekend in the middle of the night). So I made Eryka call the ambulance.

And you know how many times I had to answer those annoying questions about date of birth, when was the last time I ate, was I allergic to any medicine? I swear, at least five. I recall being more than just mildly annoyed at this as I was curled up in agony on the stretcher being bounced on poor roads to the hospital.

So yes, having a kidney stone was THE WORST PAIN I have ever felt (not that I get to experience pain that often, but it was bad). And guess what? Most of the time it's genetic. And guess what other question I was asked probably five times or more? Yep - "Has anyone in your family had kidney stones?" To which I replied "Nope", "No", "Nuh-uh", "No sir" and "No".

When I called Dad later, I found out I lied five times that night (or did I lie once, in five separate instances?) Not that I really had any reason to know that Dad had ever had kidney stones. But I'm thinking to myself, something that agonizing can't be bottled up!!! How did I not know. I guess people prefer repressing that kind of pain. I certainly discovered after my episode that there are a lot more people who have had a kidney stone than I ever would have thought. It's just not really one of those things you bring up in conversation, like, "Oh, and by the way, I once had a kidney stone," or "...like that time I was in the most excruciating pain of my life because of a kidney stone."

There's at least one benefit of having a kidney stone (which doesn't really make up for a ruined Memorial Day weekend) - super-duper painkiller drugs. Which put me totally out of commission until my kidney stone passed Tuesday morning. (And by the way, that's not the painful part guys, despite what you're thinking -- the real pain comes while the thing is bouncing around in the Kidney and making its way from the kidney to the bladder.)

So being out of commission also meant I was dropped from my super-busy nightmare deal. Unfortunately, my recovery following the whole ordeal has been rather splendid. Unfortunate because now I'm staffed up on two extra deals. Lucky me.

2009-05-23T20:16:00.003-06:00

Our past week has been pretty busy for me {Nancy}. Gavin started throwing up Monday morning right before our morning walk & continued off & on again until Thursday. Monday was by far the worst day. He threw up 7 times & this was no little spit up. It was like a fountain unleashed from his belly & it usually ended up all over me. I don't know how many loads of laundry I did or the amount of baths that kid got that day. Tuesday we thought it was over until later that evening he threw up again & then on Wednesday he threw up all over the back seat of our truck. Needless to say Friday I spent the day renting a Rug Doctor, cleaning the truck, catching up on laundry & trying to keep Gavin happy. On top of having a stomach bug, he is also cutting some more teeth so it has been a long week for the kid.

I was able to have a Girls' Night Out on Friday night . My neighbors & I went to the Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. I would not recommend seeing it was pretty sleazy & cheesy {is that even possible?}. Tim met me at the theater so he could take Gavin home & while I was enjoying the movie, Tim was fighting crime. Literally. He saw two teenagers walking around looking at cars when all of a sudden one opened a door, got in a car, took something & got out. That's when Tim ran over and asked them what they were doing. They tried to make some explanation about the car being a friend but Tim saw through their BS & told him he was going to call the cops. The kid who took the stuff took off running leaving his friend behind. Tim took that friend into the theater & had them call 911. The cops came & questioned the kid who didn't want to rat his friend out until the cop said that they would just charge him with theft. With that thought, the kid spilled what he knew about the other kid. Tim heard over the cops scanner that they apprehended the other kid. Yeah, my husband is pretty much awesome.

Other blog worthy things:
*Watched my sister run at state track.
*Bought a new weight cage
*Saw Star Trek & X-Men Wolverine
*Tim has one final test to take and he is finished with school.
*I have been walking 4 miles everyday with my neighbor.
*BBQ, & birthday parties

We hope everyone else is having a wonderful weekend and we need to keep this blog updated even if it is a simple "we are still alive" post. Love ya all.

Sunday Afternoon at the Glover Homestead

2009-05-08T16:20:00.022-06:00

We love getting together once or twice a month.

Grandpa Worthy tried to get pictures of most everyone with their mouths full of food!

Thomas

Tyler and Eva

Rachel

Eva

Garrett

Cole

Rachel

Timothy (Pre-faceplant)

Morgan, Kd, & Nan

Grandma Gail

Morgan

WW II

WW III

Kate

Nan

Clay

Britt

We hope we're making good memories!

Umm...Yeah...I'm going to need you ta post on the blog

2009-04-28T13:47:00.003-06:00

Yep, you guessed it. Its Worthy's turn to post again. The family blog comes to a screeching halt whenever it is "my turn" to post. So, rather than hold things up and be my obstinate, rebellious self I think I will post.

As I think most of you know, Morgan has discovered the dramatist blood in her veins. She loves drama almost to a fault. It has consumed her life lately. She is quite gifted. In my humble opinion, she is really quite good. She took 2nd at Region Competition and was the only Freshman to get a Superior medal at State (they don't compete at State anymore, I have my own opinions about that but I won't voice them here).

Anyway, the reason I share that bit of background is to share a pretty funny story that happened to the Glover family in association with Morgan's State Drama Festival. As you may or may not know, Morgan's Drama Coach is a classmate of mine. We went to school together and were deeply involved in drama together. She has been pretty excited with the discovery of Morgan and it has been fun to offer my support to my former classmate.

For a couple of weeks Morgan's Coach and her assistant had been teasing Morgan that I was going to chaperon the trip to State Drama. When Morgan asked if I was going I initially played along and teased her that I was. But, eventually told her that I was just teasing her and had no plans to attend State Drama with her.

A couple of days before the team departed I sat down at an event with Mom and she told me that Dad was going to State with the team. I asked how that happened and she said that they just called and asked if he would be willing to drive the set/prop truck for the team and he said yes. I told Mom it must have been a mistake, that I was certain they thought they were asking me and got him instead. I decided not to rectify things and let Dad go.

Sure enough later that week I ran into the assistant coach and she fell on the ground laughing when she told me that Julie (the Coach) made the call, hung up the phone than turned to her and said, "I think I just asked Worthy Sr. not Jr. to go with us and he said 'yes'."

The drama kids were all dumbfounded, asking what kind of person says yes to a request from a total stranger when asked to serve in this way. I told everyone who asked me that that is the kind of person Dad is. He is willing and ready to serve at a moment's notice. He is a great man, who will give you the shirt off his back if he feels you are in need. He didn't even hesitate. He just agreed and went for it.

Needless-to-say he had a great time. He hung out with those kids for the weekend and really was energized by their vim and vigor for life. I was glad he went cause he was able to keep an eye on Morgan and make her boyfriend nervous. He was able to watch each of Morgan's performances and all-in-all I think made some very positive memories with his grand-daughter. Maybe next year Dad and I can go together and show those drama kids how to really party!

Thanks Dad for being the kind of man that would do this and thanks for keeping an eye on my daughter while she was away from home.

Back from the cruise

2009-04-01T13:47:00.003-06:00

Is Clayton sticking his tongue out in this picture? I can't tell, but it almost looks like he is. Wow, look at this rowdy bunch. Oh, it was fun to be out and about in the Caribbean with my brothers and sister and parents!

I am still recovering from my vacation. Not because I did too much and wore myself out. {I didn't. Just took it easy most of the time} Not because the home situation was rough and required some putting back together. {Everything was well in hand here. The kids are fine. My home is in better shape than it was when we left. And Megan Macdonald, our 16 year-old babysitter, still seems to like us. You know how sometimes your kids seem to make you pay for leaving them? That is not happening here. Not yet anyway.}

When I got off the cruise ship, I had the beginning of a major headache. I tried to head it off with some Excedrin, but it didn't seem to work. The next day, when we got on the plane, I felt absolutely lousy. It was a LOOONG day. I know I wasn't very good company for my family. The drive home went pretty fast, thanks to Britt (he is pretty good at ignoring speed limits). But I just wanted to get home and get in bed.

I have to tell you, from almost the first day, I was missing my kids. It was so nice to spend time with family, some we see a lot around town here, and some we are lucky to see once a year. So nice. No obligations. Very little drama (you know, we have got to have some drama to keep life interesting). And very good company. But I missed my own little family. It is funny how when you are here, you feel like you just want to get away. Then, when you actually do, you realize you miss the very things you thought you wanted to get away from.

Britt is already thinking that the next time we cruise, we have got to bring the kids. The next time could be a while from now. That's okay. We had a good time. I am so glad Drew and Eryka invited us.

It was good getting to spend some down time with family. Some of us seem to always be working, and that obviously is not an option there on the cruise ship. It was fun to watch Drew, Kd and Nancy doing Karoake. It was great to watch Kd enjoy the zip line and drive the tender boat, on a couple of our shore excursions. She is really fun, and tends to draw people to her because of that. I know, towards the end of the trip, she wasn't feeling well emotionally, but I am glad she had a good time anyway.

It was great to spend some time just with Tim and Nancy and Drew and Eryka. I love my little brothers and their adorable wives. They always seemed eager to do something fun in the evening. Normally, I would have loved to join them, but all that extra oxygen just made me want to sleep. Like, all the time.

And it was so nice to see Mom and Dad just relaxed. Just enjoying themselves. No worries. We all would love for them to be able to experience that peace more often. So glad Mom's health was good. I was worried about her before we left.

Back to real life. And other than the wind, it is good to be home. And just so you know, the sunburn is healing fine.

I Know It's My Turn!

2009-03-18T17:46:00.002-06:00

I know I am late in posting, but I really don't know what to say. Only a few days until the cruise! I am excited and freaking out at the same time. I am feeling sooo guilty about leaving my kids for so long! And I keep having dreams that I forget to pack really important things like my passport. I am home with the kids this week for their Spring Break. Clay is working non-stop this week because his boss is in New York for Spring Break. I am trying to get the house clean, and all the laundry done, then all the packing done for a week away. I am still working out like crazy so I can look good in a swimsuit. Life is good!

One Night Only

2009-03-08T17:54:00.004-06:00

Last night I came out of retirement for one night only to perform with Richie in our ward "Entertainment Extravaganza" show. We did a cutting from a show called Jerry Finnegan's Sister that is a two person romantic-comedy. It has been a while since I was on stage and it was fun to do the show with my husband. Little Richie and Sophia were allowed to stay up past their bed-time so they could see the show (actually, we just didn't have a baby sitter, and there was nothing for us to do but bring them with us). Little Richie seemed to really enjoy it, and Sophia actually let us do it without throwing a tantrum because she wasn't with me. The show was basically a talent show with musical and dance performances, we were the only acting in the show. It was a fun evening, but I am back in retirement, until my husband has the clout to get me cast in one of his movies. ;)

Next week is Richie's spring break and we are planning a little trip to Hershey, Pennsylvania, that's right, the place where they make the chocolate. Mom will be pleased to know that my kids are basically chocaholics, and aside from seeing Thomas the tank engine, I can't think of an activity little Richie would enjoy more. We are excited to have a short vacation and do some fun things like tour the chocolate factory, go to a zoo and even just go swimming and hang out at the hotel. It isn't quite a Caribbean cruise, but it will be fun for us.

Riding the bus around campus

Richie likes riding the bus...

...and making faces at the camera

Isn't she pretty?

Attention Cruisers!!!

2009-03-07T16:29:00.002-07:00

Tim and I are wanting to get all dressed up one night for dinner on the cruise. Does anyone else like this idea and want to join us? If no one does then we will not do it but we think it would be fun.

I {Nancy} was wondering what kind of bag/handbag/purse/backpack Eryka, KD & Nan were planning on bringing. Also what kind of clothes will you guys be wearing? I have been buying shorts, sundresses, tank tops, capris and lounge pants. I am the kind of traveler who likes to have a good assortment because I never know my mood or the weather that day. Let me know what you guys are packing -k- Only 2 weeks to go and we are super excited to see everyone!

Happy 30th Eryka!!!

2009-03-01T14:35:00.004-07:00

You might know some people who have had their picture taken with David Letterman, but do you know anyone who has had their picture taken by David Letterman? Now you do.

For Eryka's 30th birthday, we went snowboarding at a little family-friendly hill about one hour away. When we pulled into the parking lot, we were held up by some crotchety old guy who seemed to be having trouble pulling his Toyota Four-Runner into the space next to ours. We both thought "What is this guy's deal!?" and finally pulled in after he got himself situated.

We got out of the car and started getting our gear on, and Eryka thought we needed a picture together. As she pulled me in close, and stretched out her left arm to snap our photo, I was glancing over at the family getting out of the other car and doing a double-take. (See the picture below.)

That "crotchety old guy" looked awfully familiar. And then when he said in his best Top Ten voice, "Want me to take that for you?", there was no more doubt. As he released the shutter twice to take our picture, I couldn't help but grin at the irony of having my picture taken by a celebrity. Of course, Eryka hadn't even realized who it was until after he handed the camera back and I said (loudly, for Mr. Letterman's benefit), "Didn't Leeann used to work for him?" (Our good friend in the ward, Leeann Pope, was his personal assistant for a number of years.) Mr. Letterman did a small double-take of his own, but continued about his business while Eryka shushed me. Apparently, he is an intensely private man and hates to be recognized in public (Eryka has discussed this at length with Leeann). So, we left him to enjoy a relaxing day with his family and the only evidence we have of our encounter with fame is the picture he took for us. He's a half-decent photographer.

Here is a little something!

2009-02-22T17:42:00.005-07:00

So I have not posted for quite a while (Tim). I decided that it was about time I shared with you all a little about my job at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center. I have loved my job and it has really been a good move. I do work quite a bit, not as much as Drew, but during this time of economic worries I am grateful to have a good paying job, even if it means sleeping at the hospital once in a while.
I have had a lot of opportunities for growth at UVRMC. One of my responsibilities is to put together presentations for different conferences. The latest task I did was put together a slide show for the Cardiac department. This is to be shown later this week as part of a Cardiac Partiac. Each year they have a party to celebrate the employees of the year, and just have a good time away from work. These are a few pictures that I obtained for the slide show, and I thought I would share them with my family so you could in a sense meet my coworkers.

Don't worry that is not a human heart. Just a pig heart.
This is the whole gang a a going away party for one of the staff. My manager is in the front middle his name is Sherwin.
This is Matt and Weston in our lab. The machine behind them is the fluoroscope unit.

When it is slow this is where we relax and mostly play on the Internet, oh I mean we study. This is Bob, John, Diane, and Paul.
This is Bob hanging out in the control room. This is where we document the case as it happens. We have leaded glass that makes it safe for us to monitor and not get exposed to the radiation.

This is John and Diane hanging out.

Well there you have it I love my job and the people I work with.

Can't wait for next month and the cruise. That is pretty much all we can think about. Nancy and I have been doing our best to be swimsuit ready. We are trying to decide what shore excursions would be the best to do. We are positive we want to do the rip line tour down the rain forest along with the cave tubing. We are excited to snorkel since Drew and Eryka bought us gear. We hope to see some ruins in Mexico, and just have a fun time getting some sun. Let us know what you guys would like to do, we would love to hear your thoughts. Gavin is doing great and continues to bless us. Nancy does a wonderful job of keeping updates on our own blog about him. Right now she is making a DVD for her Mom's birthday and it looks awesome. It is all about Gavin, and it is just fun to see how quick these kids grow up. We love you all and are always excited to read new blogs.

Let's Get Back on Track!

2009-02-15T13:45:00.007-07:00

WE HAD A WONDERFUL TIME!

Eryka, Isaac, and Stella put on their aprons and made a delicious Black Forest Cake from scratch for Eryka's birthday!
Stella and Joaquin really enjoyed the visit from Uncle "Sideburns"!

Cousins Joaquin and Sophia LOVED Grandpa Worthy, and he loves them!

We had so much fun when Chrislynn & Richie came over to Tuckahoe on Monday.

Joaquin prefers his daddy to everyone else!

Thanks to Richie, Chrislynn, Richie III, Sophia, Drew, Eryka, Isaac, Stella, & Joaquin for letting us stay with them for a few days and enjoy their company. We pray that the Lord will continue to bless your little families as you all strive to keep the commandments and strengthen each other in the Gospel. We Love You All!

Tim & Nancy February 22

Drew & Eryka March 1

Richie & Chrislynn March 8

Clay & Kd March 15

Britt & Nan March 22

Worthy & Kim March 29

Eva's Song (Amazing Memory)

2009-01-12T20:06:00.005-07:00

So our turn to post is long overdue and we are sorry. Eva decided this year to enter to Reflections contest. When she was 4 years old she tapped out a pretty little tune on the piano and has remembered it ever since. She took that small tune and added to it composing a beautiful one minute song. I posted it here as a slide show because I didn't know how to post just a music file. I hope you enjoy.

Timothy is growing up fast. He learns a new word almost everyday. He's great at following instructions too. Tell him to pick something up and throw it away and he does. Sometimes he puts it in the garbage and sometimes he will throw it down the stairs (thanks Thomas). The kids have really enjoyed the snow this year. We have a great little sledding hill in the backyard (actually in the neighbors backyard) that they have built some sweet jumps on.

Kd and I are excited about the upcoming cruise and are getting ready to go. The biggest concern is trying to find a place for our kids to stay while we are gone. I think that my Lovely Sister Brenda is going to pitch in and do what she does best. (she's always been my children's second mom).

Posted by Claydar

Clueless, still

2009-01-11T17:47:00.001-07:00

Hi y'all. Is it our turn to post?

{Flight Plans}

2009-01-05T12:57:00.004-07:00

I have been checking on flights for the cruise & the cheapest I have found is flying into Ft. Lauderdale which is only about 26 miles away from Port of Miami. They also have shuttles from Ft. Lauderdale to Port of Miami.

I have also found that most airlines give a group discount but the catch is there has to be 10 or more people. So does anyone know anybody who wants to fly to Florida? We just need two more people & we could get 60% off flights.

Has anyone else found any deals or cheap flights? Let us know. Nancy

A little bit about making collages

2008-12-28T10:33:00.005-07:00

(This is the medium photobucket picture, as you can see it is actually smaller than the default blogger large. I like my images 640x480, which works on my blog)

Want to make a collage like this? Want to show it on your blog? Want to display a bigger picture than the defaults on blogger allow? You can do it. Well, most of it. The first step won't work if you have a Mac, but those of you who have owned your Macs for a while probably know a similar program that can do something like it.

Kim asked me how I do my collages, so here is my tutorial, step-by-step. The first thing you must do is download Picasa. This is an awesome photo organizing/editing/sharing program. I have had it for over five years, since I bought my first digital camera. I love, Love, LOVE it!! Once you have installed it, it should automatically recognize the picture files on your computer and organize them, by date I think.

Once you have your photos in Picasa you can choose the ones you want to use for your collage by clicking on the picture, and then you click on an icon that looks like a pushpin in a small box in the lower left hand corner. You can select several pictures, but the more you select, the smaller they will be in your collage. Once you have selected all your pictures, you click on the icon titled collage on the bottom of your screen, towards the right. Select the type of collage, and shuffle your pictures, until you like the way it looks. Then you can save your collage.

Alright, next step. If you don't already have an account with photobucket, sign up for that. It is free. Once you have an account, click on my albums. This will bring up a box which allows you to upload images and video. (I have never tried the video). Click on Choose Files, then you have to choose the folder on your computer that contains your pictures. Find the one the collage was saved in, and upload it. I forgot to tell you to be aware of the field inside the photo upload box, where it says, reduce size to: ___ On mine, I use the large 640 x 480, but I have increased the size of my posting area, so there is room for my collages. You may have to make your collage smaller to fit in your posting space. (I just realized, I may have to do that for this blog).

Once it has loaded--it could take several minutes--scroll down to Save and Continue, and press that. Now, your image is shown as part of your albums. If you drag the mouse under the picture, it will show you Email and IM code, Direct Link code, HTML Code, and IMG Code. Now, this part is a little annoying, because if you move your mouse slightly, these codes will disappear. You have to hold it just right. Click on the HTML Code--this should highlight it--then right click and choose Copy.

This is the last step. On your blog, you should make a new post. Click on the Edit Html tab. Now right click in the blank space and choose Paste. If you have done any cutting and pasting with your computer, you already know how to do this. Next, click on the Compose tab. Your picture should be there, and you can type whatever you want to say after that.

Hey, I hope that helped. We had a great Christmas. Thank you to family who came over for dinner in the middle of that wonderful White Christmas snowstorm. Happy Holidays!

Groovy Glovers!

2008-12-22T12:56:00.001-07:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

A Charleston with the In-Laws

2008-12-22T12:14:00.000-07:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Find Grandpa Worthy

2008-12-17T18:25:00.002-07:00

I know it's not my turn to post but Jerry Mosley sent me a picture of our 7th grade class. (If you can't spot me, look for the smallest kid in the class.)

Cruise anyone?

2008-12-14T19:28:00.002-07:00

Wanted:

Anyone who would like to join us on a fun filled, beach adventure to the Caribbean! You know you want to. I'm super excited. Here are a few of our favorite choices...leave a comment to vote on which one looks the best and if you want to come.

#1)$1241 per couple plus airfare

March 21-29

8 nights leaving out of Ft. Lauderdale.

ports of call: Fort Lauderdale, Florida; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands; St. Martin - Sint Maarten (island); Labadee, Haiti; Fort Lauderdale, Florida

#2) $1079 per couple plus airfare

7 nights leaving out of Miami

March 22-29

ports of call: Miami, Florida; Roatan, Honduras; Belize City, Belize; Cozumel, Mexico; Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas; Miami, Florida

#3)$1081 per couple plus airfare

7 nights leaving out of Miami

March 21-28

ports of call:Miami, Florida; Samana, Dominican Republic; St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; Tortola, British Virgin Islands; Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas; Miami, Florida

Gonna Find Out Who's Naughty or NIce

2008-12-07T20:41:00.002-07:00

Saturday night was our ward Christmas party & of course Santa had to make an appearance. Before he came out all the kids sang Santa Claus is Coming to Town which was really cute. I took this opportunity to get a free picture of Gavin with Santa. Gavin was so overwhelmed with all the kids & noise that I couldn't get a smile out of him.

You Can't Tag Us; We Aren't Even Playing!

2008-12-03T14:07:00.005-07:00

True or False? Some Random Facts(?) About Worthington W. Glover, Sr

He is the ultimate slave to fashion -- changes outfits at least 2-3 times a week!
He is a night person
He loves to speak in Sacrament Meeting, and he gives AMAZING talks
He would rather fall asleep in the tub than wake up with an invigorating shower
He has an affinity for learning foreign languages
His favorite thing about using a computer is data entry (and he LOVES computers)
He is Mr. Fix-it
He loves shopping, especially at Christmas
He is the best husband, father, and grandfather on the planet!

All True! Some Random Facts About Gail A. Glover

She would rather be sitting in front of a sewing machine than a computer
She is a frustrated neat freak (Stop laughing; it's true!)
She was recruited by PanAm to be an airline stewardess on international flights
Her favorite authors are Carl Sandburg, David McCullough, Emily Dickinson, and Nephi
She is a morning person
She loves rainy and/or snowy days sitting by the fireplace
She enjoys trying new recipes with exotic spices and hard-to-find ingredients
She is so happy to have a large family whom she adores

(Ordinary) Life

2008-11-23T08:49:00.016-07:00

I was frustrated because I couldn't think of anything extraordinary to blog about and...da ta ta da...I had remembered it's our turn to post (I know, shocking). "What is there to report?" I kept saying to myself. I guess this was my excuse for procrastinating. So I started thinking about our family and our very ordinary existence. Well, I came to the conclusion that I LOVE our ordinary existence. I love my (sometimes) ordinary husband and my ordinary dog. I love the ordinary time I get to spend with my family. I love my ordinary kids, who are really very extraordinary. So, here's my ordinary update on our (wonderfully) ordinary family:

First, it was my birthday last week. To celebrate, my body gave me some ordinary new gray hairs and a brand new wrinkle. My husband gave me a trip to Salt Lake. He was traveling for business, so I tagged along. Here's a really good example of appreciating ordinary: Worthy was sure that he was boring me to death, because he was working most of the day on Tuesday and Wednesday. But I loved just being in the car with him and hanging out with him on the way there and back. He took me for lettuce wraps at P.F. Chang's and to Cafe Rio, and I spent time wandering around the Gateway, especially Barnes and Noble. I had an ordinary, fabulous time.

Before I tell you about Morgan's ordinary week, I want to brag about how extraordinary she is. It is a wonderful thing, as a mom, to be able to relax in Salt Lake City knowing that my young children are safe, fed, and happy. So the house was a disaster when I returned. Big deal. I'm still SO grateful to Morgan for her service. After we got home, Morgan went to see the movie she's been complaining about since the actors were cast. She went to the showing at 3:00 in the morning on Friday! Crazy girl. She said, "They somehow managed to make Edward hot". She's been once again since the first time, and she and I are planning on going with my Mom next week.

Ordinarily, this picture wouldn't be a big deal. But for our Kate, this picture is a miracle! Most of her school photos (and professional photos, before we finally got smart and stopped torturing her), are tear-streaked. She HATES getting her pictures taken. So when I saw this picture, I was so proud of how brave she was. Not to mention beautiful. On picture day she told me, "There was a balloon in the gym, mom, and I was scared. But I smiled anyway." Just an ordinary detail that makes me so happy!

And Little Worthy. What a good lookin' little man. Ordinary things about Worthy make me smile: the way he always has to have something in his hand or pocket (marbles, rocks, magnets,...), the way he snuggles into me for a cuddle on the couch, his smile, listening to him read.

So, yes, my life is ordinary. Wonderfully ordinary.

Miscellaneous

2008-11-18T21:56:00.013-07:00

Yay! Mom is blogging!
Tyler being patriotic for the Veteran's day program

When I come around the corner from my bedroom to the living room in the morning (after the kids have gone to school) this is the view I see. It just makes me happy. This picture doesn't do it justice. One of the best things about our new house is the views. We live in a beautiful place.

The view from the front window of our house growing up was also one of my favorites. That is what I would love to have a painting of. It still makes me happy, when we are visiting, just to step outside and see that mountain with the trees and fields in the foreground every time. Even though I thought I hated living in the middle of nowhere, I always enjoyed that view. How blessed we are.

I always told myself Rachel's hair was too thick to attempt doing lots of little braids. But she let me try it. Even though she wanted me to quit half way through, we did it. It turned out pretty cute, and lasted a few good days. I am glad we thought to take a picture.

Did you see Garrett's post on his blog about the 10k? Here are some more pictures of that:

He is doing middle school wrestling now. Most of the kids he wrestles are at least 8 pounds heavier than him. He is learning a lot, and getting stronger all the time. I have personally seen him pin a couple of his opponents. And I have witnessed other matches, where he battled all three rounds not to be pinned. So, while his opponents won by points, they did not get the pin. He is a fighter. Also maintaining a B average. Which I think is great.

Still don't have any pictures of Cole with his artwork. He just participated in "The Long Walk" at the elementary school, a hike that signifies when the Native Americans were driven from their homes. He dressed as a cowboy, and even created his own powder horn, made from a real buffalo horn. Thanks, Grandpa Worthy for helping him get it done in time. Wish I had thought to take a picture. Look at this, sometimes he is the nice big brother.

The sad part of our story is Dixie, our dog, is gone. She has been missing over a month now. She had started wandering a lot, so we had started to keep her tied up. One morning, Britt had let her in the garage at night. He left early to go to work, and she bolted out of the garage. We never saw her again. She had always come back, so I just kept thinking she would show up, but she never did. We miss her.

Life is good for the Bartons. We look forward to hosting some of you at our house this Thanksgiving. Love you all.

I know it's my week, but...

2008-11-13T17:22:00.002-07:00

I have strep throat, so I have been out of action all week. I havent' been to work since Monday morning. I came home Monday afternoon and crashed. I finally went to the Doctor after Nan told me I had strep throat -- she was right-- the prescription was antibiotics and lots of rest. Then last night Timothy refused to go to bed. He just stood in his crib yelling at the top of his lungs, and jumping up and down. We tried everything to get him to go to sleep, and finally at 11:00 (he normally goes to bed at 8:00) we gave up and just let him cry himself to sleep. Then he woke up at 5:00 am bawling. I admit I was pretty close to tears myself when my husband calmly said, "He obviously doesn't feel well". Being the awesome man that he is, he took Timothy to the other room so I could get a few more hours of sleep. I took Timothy to the Dr today, and they said he is fine -- maybe teething? Anyway, that is my excuse for not posting sooner, but it isn't really what I wanted to post about. I sat looking out my window tonight at the incredibly sunset highlighting the entire sky. I LOVE Blanding sunsets! They remind me that I have many blessings to be thankful for, so cliche' as it may seem, I would like to share with you some of the things I am grateful for:

Sunday's at Grandma Gails -- great food, great company
A wonderful home to live in. We have been in our home for just over a year, and there isn't a day that I am loving this house! It is so perfect for our family, it is so great to have adequate room for everyone. In our old (tiny) house I remember thinking "why bother?" when Clay wanted to do home improvements. In this home I am proud of each of the little changes that we do together to make this home ours, even the kids help!
Awesome neighbors. I have neighbors that I know I could go to for anything I need. My kids are welcome and their house and vice versa. The other day one of them brought us a load of wood because he was getting some for himself and knew we needed it. How great!
A great ward. The church is great, I am so thankful for the ward family and how they help my tesimony (and my family's) grow.
Being able to live in Blanding. There are so many benefits to living in this tiny town in the middle of nowhere.
Great hair. I am feeling so pretty lately thanks to Nancy. She dyed my hair brunette, and I have had so much fun with people's reactions.

I can't wait for Thanksgiving so that we can spend some time with Utah family. We will miss you New York and New Jersey family!
Anyway

Morgan Has A Blog!

2008-11-08T13:51:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! I made my own blog! You can see it at http://www.moogleoogle.blogspot.com

Morgan

Cough, Cough

2008-11-02T13:54:00.003-07:00

Everyone at the Call home has a cold right now. It started with Sophia and me, and of course, spread to Richie and Dad. We stayed home from church today, which made little R pretty sad, he loves going to nursery, but we didn't want to spread it to anyone else. I think Sophia and I are on the tail end of it, so hopefully the boys will start feeling better soon.

Big Richie opens a show called Blue Orange this week. He has stayed pretty busy this month with rehearsals for this show and with a "Saturday Night Live" style show he and Joe put together as a fundraiser for their showcase. The fundraiser was last weekend and was a big success, so they are planning on doing more, but he has a short break from that until Blue Orange closes next Sunday. When it is closed he can spend more time with us and it will also make it easier for me to go to mutual on Wednesday nights.

Here is Sophia's first word. It comes at about 39 seconds.

Big News

2008-10-26T18:24:00.002-06:00

Joaquin can walk. Kind of... Isaac was walking by 11 months. Stella right at 12 months. Joaquin is just over 14 months old and finally today took a few steps on his own. This is a big accomplishment for this kid. He just hasn't had any desire to get his walk on up to this point. Will see how long it takes before he really realizes what he's doing and actually goes for it. He was slow to catch on to crawling too, though. He just wanted to bum-scoot for about two months.

Anyway, thanks everyone for taking such good care of me and Joaquin when we visited last week. It really is fun to see family again and catch up on all the goings-on in Blanding. Eryka, Isaac and Stella sure were glad to get me back though.

So we just wanted to remind everyone as you're making your holiday plans, there's no cooler place to celebrate Christmas than in New York City, and we have plenty of space for visitors...

Paperback Writer

2008-10-21T16:32:00.003-06:00

I'm posting another one of Jerry Mosley's stories for all to enjoy. Jerry and I grew up together in South Dakota. I think that our friendship must have started in the pre-earth life for we are truely kindred spirits. I wish everyone could have a friend like Jerry. He is one of the greatest men I know and he has been a loyal friend and older brother to me. (He's a month and a half older than me.) Jerry credits me for shaping his life by sharing the gospel with him but he has shaped my life even more by allowing me the opportunity of sharing the gospel with him. Thanks Jerry for your love and brotherhood.

PAPERBACK WRITER OR THE GREAT CATTLE STAMPEDE
By Gerald F. Mosley

On one of our amazing outings in the Black Hills of South Dakota, we had an unusual experience. It was the habit of my friend Worthy Glover to borrow his dad’s black and white Nash Rambler and go off on a Saturday afternoon in the Fall with a couple of his buddies and try to discover the meaning of life in some new and interesting way.

The Rambler was a good name for the car because it did plenty of rambling. On the particular day I have in mind we….Worthy Glover, Pat Ryan, and I scraped together some money for gas and after fueling up the Rambler we headed for the Southern Hills. Did I say we scraped together money for gas? I think this time as on many other occasions Worthy played enabler to his usual following of freeloaders. I think he anteed up the all of gas money himself.

The Rambler was the car Worthy’s dad used for public address and advertising in the local communities of Lead and Deadwood, Spearfish, Belle Fourche, Sturgis, Newell and Vale over hill and dale. He had the car set up with a pair of large metal all-weather loudspeakers that he could use to advertise various events of the local area. He would drive through a community like an ice cream truck playing music and announce to the audience in a three or four city block area what they should plan to attend without fail or dire consequences would befall them for their slacking. Children would run out of their houses to investigate the commotion and like a pied piper they would follow him down the street to assuage their curiosity.

Worthy got involved with this enterprise after he got his driver’s license and that may have explained why he had gas money and his freeloader friends did not. The car had a turntable that would play vinyl records (who knows what those are anymore?) and we who got to go on these expeditions would get to play music, loud music, as we drove down the road. All the car lacked by modern standards was a really good sub-woofer.

On this particular day our repertoire included a recording by the famous Beatles. This is wikipedia: Take note of the 1966 references. This is no doubt year the we had the adventure I am recounting.

Paperback Writer
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“Paperback Writer”

Single by The Beatles
B-side
"Rain"
Released
30 May 1966 (U.S.)10 June 1966 (UK)
Format
7"
Recorded
Abbey Road 13 April 1966
Genre
Rock
Length
2:18
Label
Parlophone R5452 (UK)Capitol 5651 (U.S.)
Writer(s)
Lennon/McCartney
Producer
George Martin
The Beatles singles chronology
"We Can Work It Out" / "Day Tripper"(UK-1965)---"Nowhere Man"(US-1965)
"Paperback Writer"(1966)
"Eleanor Rigby" / "Yellow Submarine"(1966)
"Paperback Writer" is a 1966 pop rock song recorded and released by The Beatles. Credited to Lennon/McCartney, but written primarily by Paul McCartney, the song was released as the A-side of their eleventh single. The single went to the number one spot in the United States, Britain, West Germany, Australia, New Zealand and Norway. Written in the form of a letter from an aspiring author to a publisher, "Paperback Writer" was the first UK Beatles single that was not a love song (though "Nowhere Man", which was a single in the U.S., was their first album song released with that distinction). On the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, "Paperback Writer"'s two-week stay at number one was interrupted by Frank Sinatra's "Strangers in the Night".
"Paperback Writer" was one of the last new songs by The Beatles to be featured in concert, being included on their 1966 tour. A Michael Lindsay-Hogg directed promotional film was shot 20 May 1966 at Chiswick House, London for BBC-TV's Top of the Pops and broadcast June 9, the day before the single's UK release.[1] The video was broadcast in the U.S. on The Ed Sullivan Show in the late spring.
Although the song was never included in any original Beatles album, it was included in several compilation albums:
A Collection of Beatles Oldies... but Goldies (1966)
Hey Jude/The Beatles Again (1970)
The Beatles 1962-1966 (Red Album) (1973)
Past Masters, Volume Two (1988)

Now to return to the tale:

Highway 385 ends in the town of Pluma, South Dakota. The other end is in some godforsaken place in Texas I think. We were headed south. Somewhere in the vicinity of Pactola reservoir we made a turn toward Hill City and Custer. Our intent was to visit Mt. Rushmore the “Shrine of Democracy.” We were as patriot as the next bunch of teenagers I guess, but we took the wonderful testament in stone to the four Presidents altogether too much for granted.

We were on a stretch of highway somewhere near the Needles Highway, somewhere near Mt. Rushmore when we entered a very large circular bend in the road. The road, a two-lane paved mountain highway made a near full circle around a pasture certainly four hundred yards in diameter. The pasture was fenced with steel fence posts, which were strung with three strands of barbed wire. Within the pasture was a herd of cattle. A nice little herd of black and white cows were on the far side of the pasture grazing peacefully on the grass and wildflowers. They were minding their own business not a care in the world, when their peace was shattered by an otherworldly sound coming from the far side of their pasture. They raised their heads to take note of this strangeness and heard the approach of the black and white rambler bellowing like a herd bull. The black and white cows long bereft of a herd bull and all of them feeling a little frisky, began to dash, quite literally in our direction. The black and white rambler bellowing at the top of its amplifier was playing the lilting strains of……..Paaaaper Baaack Wriiiiiiter, Paperback writer…...

We stared in amazement at the onslaught of the cows. Surely they had designs on us. (most likely they had designs on the bellowing black and white “bull.”) Worthy laughed nervously and hit the gas. The Nash Rambler accelerated and zipped around the near 360-degree turn. The cows hell-bent for leather to reach us altered their course and turned mid pasture to intercept us yet again!

Paperback WriterDear Sir or Madam, will you read my book?It took me years to write, will you take a look?Based on a novel by a man named LearAnd I need a job, so I want to be a paperback writer,Paperback writer.It's the dirty story of a dirty manAnd his clinging wife doesn't understand.His son is working for the Daily Mail,It's a steady job but he wants to be a paperback writer,Paperback writer.Paperback writer
And again the cows followed our progress around the great circle of the pasture. Their udders wagging beneath their tails, their eyes red with passion toward the bellowing bull! Tongues hanging precariously from their mouths with the exertion of the chase, they huffed steaming breaths into the chill air.

We knew the meager barbed wire would not contain the cows’ amorous intent. Worthy laughed again in mock hysteria and punched it again! We rounded the pasture with mere seconds to spare as the cows screeched to a halt back at the place where they had begun. Breathing heavily we and the cows slowly regained composure as the Rambler vanished into the distance. I looked over my shoulder and I swear I saw disappointment in the eyes of those cows. Pat, and Worthy and I narrowly escaped with our lives. I hate to imagine what could have happened to the little Rambler.

(It's a thousand pages, give or take a few,I'll be writing more in a week or two.I can make it longer if you like the style,I can change it round and I want to be a paperback writer,Paperback writer.If you really like it you can have the rights,It could make a million for you overnight.If you must return it, you can send it hereBut I need a break and I want to be a paperback writer,Paperback writer.Paperback writerPaperback writer - paperback writerPaperback writer - paperback writer.)

Thanks again Jerry. I'll have to look through my old pictures to see if I can find one of the old black and white Rambler to post later. To family and friends...Jerry has written a couple of more stories that I'll be posting later and he says he has some more in the works. Hope everyone enjoys them as much as I do.

MIA

2008-10-18T21:17:00.005-06:00

Have you seen this man he's been missing since Friday morning?

This past week I was really lucky to have Tim home Sunday, Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday which I guess makes up for the fact that I haven't really seen my husband since Friday morning. I am very lucky to have a great husband who works so hard to provide a nice life for me and our baby. Usually on the week days I don't miss him as much because I am used to him working but when the weekend rolls around and I am all by myself I really start missing him.

Besides work we have had a really good month. I celebrated my 23rd birthday by getting new clothes, going to Wingers, watching a movie and hanging out with my two favorite guys. Tim took care of Gavin so that I could go shopping by myself for 6 hours. Towards the end I was really missing the little guy and it was so cute to see how excited he was to see me (probably because he was starving). Then Gail & Worthy came up to stay with us while Gail got her cast off and her boot on and to pick up Drew & Joaquin. I really enjoy having family come & stay with us which really makes me grateful that we have the room for guests.

Gavin is changing everyday and getting bigger & bigger. My favorite thing about him is he is always so happy to see me and gives me a huge smile. It is things like that that make waking up 2 or 3 times a night, getting peed, pooped, spit up on & having my body thrashed by labor & breastfeeding all worth it. I can't even explain how much I am in love with him and how much I love his dad for helping me bring him into this world.

The weather has been gorgeous which really makes me feel bad for Tim because it is the perfect golfing weather and who knows how long Fall will last & then winter will be here. I have been enjoying going on walks with Gavin & spending more time with friends while Tim is at work. We are both looking forward to Thanksgiving because we are going to go down to Blanding to spend the holiday. YEAH!!!! I had better go & try to get some sleep before I have to be up again. I hope that everyone is happy & healthy (or at least getting over that nasty cold that is going around).
Love, Nancy

R & R continued

2008-10-07T21:26:00.014-06:00

I probably should have put these pictures in a slide show but I don't know how to do that. I took Kingsley Silas and his Sister Marlene and her 2 children up over the mountain. It was a beautiful drive. We saw deer, elk, turkeys and a bob cat as well as cows and horses. I wasn't sure if we could make it all the way over due to the snow but we did. The Monticello side at the top was a little scarey. Even with four wheel drive and going down hill it was trickey for the first mile or so. Someone tried to drive up from the Monticello side but had to turn around because the snow was too deep. Once we hit their tracks the rest of the way down was easy. Hope you all enjoy the pictures.

R & R (Rest and Relaxation)

2008-10-07T13:13:00.010-06:00

The end of last week 10-3-08 Gail had surgery on her ankle for ligament repair and a bunionectomy. The doctor said the surgery went well and that for the next 3-4 days Gail was to stay off her feet and do nothing but get bed rest. Luckily it was conference weekend so she was able to watch TV while in bed. We had a great rain storm and it snowed on the mountain. While

Gail has had a painful R & R being frustrated with not being able to get up and do things, I have enjoyed my R & R by carving on my walking sticks and driving up over the mountain to see the leaves, wild life and snow. (While I was driving over the mountain Gail decided against doctors orders to try and sort laundry. In the process she fell and had to crawl back to bed. That was her second fall for the day. Either she isn't a very good patient or I am not a very good nurse.) I'll post some more scenic shots of the mountain later.

One Year Older

2008-09-28T11:35:00.003-06:00

Just in case you didn't know what today was, IT'S MY BIRTHDAY! I am 32 today and I want to say thank you to Mom for giving me life (and Dad for your contribution to the project), and thank you to Mom and Dad for raising me in the Gospel. I am so happy to be a member of the Glover family and I love you all. Happy Birthday to me! I hope you don't mind my boldness, but I am not shy about wanting people to share in the joy that is my big day. :)

Lightning Strikes and Crocheted Blessing Dresses

2008-09-21T17:02:00.009-06:00

This is why I have not been blogging lately. Our house keeps being affected by these freak thunderstorms. We still have several things to fix since a month ago when our house was actually struck by lightning. Wiring throughout the house is still messed up. Our water heater was destroyed. Our modem was fried. The phone/answering machine was also a casualty, as well as the phone jack. Our heater/air conditioner unit was affected, but easily enough repaired by replacing a fuse. The most recent storm, a week and a half ago Wednesday knocked out my phone again. Even though we got the phone line fixed, our replacement phone is also a loss. It is just dead. So we are borrowing one of Mom's old phones.
But the internet line leading to my computer is not working right now, so I am off the internet until we can get that fixed. And I don't have time to blog anyway, because I have got to get my baby niece, Kayzlee's blessing dress done. It is making me more than kind of crazy. It hasn't exactly been an easy pattern. Oh well. I can see the light; I am almost done.
Alright, enough of the excuses. Here is a small update about what is going on in our lives.

Olivia turned four, can you believe it?!! This is a picture of her posing in her new birthday clothes, purchased at Alco the night before her birthday. Good thing she is easy to please.

this is a hairdo I found on a blog that is all about cute hairstyles, and I even got it done in time for her to go to school Garrett's first cross country meet in Moab. I think he took 11th place (they only gave ribbons up to 10th place, darnitt)He took 25th in Aztec, and he said they gave ribbons up to 25th place YAY!Cole's first football game in Towoac Cole was in on the tackle in the top picture, the second picture I just thought was cool. Britt coaches the defense on Cole's team.

Sad to say, they lost to Monticello last week. They did beat Towoac which is these pictures. The Monticello game was at night, so the pictures did not really turn out. That was a nail-biter, double sudden death overtime. We almost had them. Lost by one stinking point. It was a really hard game to watch. The referees did not call any penalties on either side, so the game was very physical and kind of frustrating.
Garrett is enjoying cross country again. He seems to be doing alright in school. I say I think he is, because my internet doesn't work so I can't check his grades, not that I always do anyway. It just seems like he hasn't had as much homework as last year, and that worries me.
Tyler is doing great in second grade (again)! She still has focus issues, but because she already knows some of the stuff, she is actually getting her work done (mostly) and feeling more confident in the things she does at school. Her teacher tells us she is in the top reading group, and she also said she thinks we did the right thing for Tyler by having her repeat second grade. She sure looks more like she fits in with her classmates.
Rachel is struggling with first grade. There is a lot that is expected of those little kids, and the amount of homework she has every day is going to give me a nervous breakdown. It is not the kind of stuff I can just leave her to it. I have to listen to her read passages over and over and time her and write down errors. I don't know how kids with parents who aren't around (because of work or other things) can possibly do it. She is learning to read, and doing well with math, she is just having a hard time with all the responsibility.
Olivia is getting stir crazy, being the only child at home. I don't do a very good job of keeping her entertained after preschool. Once this dress is done, maybe she and I can have more fun.
Okay, I am on Mom's computer, and it keeps saying it might not being able to publish, so I better just end this.
Love you all!!!

A Few Good Men

2008-09-17T19:43:00.002-06:00

It has been about a month since our community lost 3 really good men. Each Sunday our Ward has to face that loss as we sit near the 3 Widows and their children. Kim Acton was my first boss. I have fond memories of the good experiences I had working as a waitress at the Elk Ridge Restaurant. He taught me many valuable work skills that I still practice today. Debbie (his wife) is Eva's Achievement Days leader. I serve with Eric Johnson's wife Denise in the Primary Presidency. We have learned to trust and rely on each other -- we are friends. I don't know how she manages to keep it together, all I can do is keep praying for her and her children. Brian and Suzy Bayles went to Institute with Clay and I. We got married within months of each other, and had our first children within months of each other. Thomas plays with their son Brock quite frequently. Suzy has proven what an amazing woman she is as she continues to bring her very young children to church every Sunday even though it is not easy. Please continue to pray for these brave families that are still struggling to face the loss of their husbands and fathers.

Another Day at the Beach

2008-09-07T13:49:00.006-06:00

The Friday of Labor Day weekend we finally went to the Jersey shore and we can't believe that we have lived here for two years and never gone before. We have gone into the city so many times and this was so much easier than a trip into the city; the drive was shorter, we didn't have to pay tolls, parking was easy to find, and it was relaxing. The beach was beautiful but the water was not as calm as in California, so the kids didn't play in it, but they had lots of fun in the sand. Sophia is a little sand crab and just crawls and crawls. This time she didn't seem to mind sand in her mouth and she kept intentionally putting her hands in her mouth. Richie liked digging and eventually helped to bury Daddy and himself. Richie actually almost fell asleep like that (the kids missed naps that day). Richie and Daddy also flew a Thomas kite together, but Richie lost interest once it got really high in the air. It was such a fun day! Hopefully we will make it back to the shore this year.

Labor Day Hiking

2008-09-01T18:00:00.004-06:00

Why is it that the holiday called Labor Day seems to emphasize avoiding work at all costs? At least that's what it feels like being back in New York this year. I'm on a number of deals at work right now, but they have all been pretty slow the past couple weeks, many partners and clients were on vacation this past week and those who were around made it a point to get out early on Friday to be able to enjoy the long weekend. I can't complain, because it's meant a great relaxing weekend with the family. I just never knew how "sacred" the Labor Day holiday is here in New York.

So we really wanted to go camping this weekend (the kids have been bugging Eryka all summer since we got back), but we didn't plan ahead. So we compromised and went hiking this morning. We found a state park about a 45 minute drive north and came across a cute pond with a nature trail circling the water. It was about 1.5 miles and we let the kids take their time, climbing on rocks and trees and taking small side-adventures just off the trail. It took us a couple of hours to cover the distance, and by the time we were getting to the end of the trail, the kids were tired and ready to head home. It was a great way to spend the day together to celebrate working!

Here are some pictures:

2008-08-25T13:48:00.004-06:00

Today was Gavin's first well baby check and second PKU. Here are his stats:
*Height: 21.75 inches 85%
*Weight: 8lbs 12 oz (she put in the wrong number so it says 49.21% but it is probably a little bit higher)
* Head: 14 inches 20.76%

Life with a new baby is quite boring, we eat, sleep and poop pretty much all day long. Sometimes I wish Tim could nurse the baby so I wouldn't feel like such a milk cow all the time. Along with that being sleep deprived doesn't help the emotions and all the information out there on the Internet, in books and magazines can drive a girl crazy about taking care of a baby. So I have taken my friend's advice and quit reading the baby books, magazines, Internet articles, and etc and I am just going to rely on the doctor, Tim's nursing experience, & those who have been there done that for my advice and sanity. I have also come to realize how hard breastfeeding really is. Luckily, Gavin is pretty good about latching on correctly now that I have gotten more help and advice from the La Leche League. I also got Newman's ointment from the doctor that is supposed to really help cracked and traumatized nipples, which will make things even better. It is really amazing how painful breastfeeding can be if not done correctly and I totally understand now how someone could quit due to the pain.

Besides babies, we haven't done too much. My mom was here for two weeks which helped tremendously and I didn't want her to leave. She really spoiled us by cooking every meal and cleaning and helping with Gavin. If I could I would totally hire a nanny or at least a maid and cook. But thank goodness Gail will be coming in a week or so because next week Tim goes back to work and it will be different being alone with the boy. While my mom was here I took her to get a pedicure which was really needed for both our feet. My sister was also here recovering from ankle surgery. With some planning Tim and I were able to attend a dinner at Chef's Table held by a Dr. he works with. We had a good time eating some really fine food and listening to a lecture on what happens in the cath lab. We made it home just in time to feed Gavin before he got really upset.

Casey chilling w/ Gavin on the recliner with her huge pink cast.

This is how he loves to sleep on your chest with his little bum in the air. I am pretty sure that is how he was in the womb.

Thinking really hard. We swaddle him and somehow he always gets his arms out.

Trying to catch up on sleep.
They told us at the hospital that in the first year with a baby you lose about 700 hours of sleep. YIKES!!!

August is Fun

2008-08-22T13:04:00.004-06:00

Happy Birthday, Joaquin! We hung the pinata from the big Navajo willow tree in the back yard (Thanks, Clay), and all the little Glovers, Bartons, and Perkins enjoyed their 3 chances to swing at it. Sorry Morgan didn't get a turn, but it was pretty much annihilated by the time we made through the younger children.

We have had a great time seeing all of our little ones throughout the summer, and we want to thank all of you for caring so much about us. It has been a challenging summer, but the love of family helps during the tough times. New life coming in to our family is a redeeming joy. We love you all.

Yep It Is My Turn

2008-08-18T14:13:00.003-06:00

I have been told by many of you that it is my turn to post. Here is my post. It is not going to be amazing. I have no pictures to post, but it gets my turn out of the way so you can move on with your own posts.

This last week was a time of deep contemplation and evaluation for me. As I believe you all know we had an incredible tragedy occur in which 3 great men of our community were taken from this life into the next. I am not going to wax philosophical about the reason behind the event but I am going to say that it has made me ponder my own readiness if I were called on and it has made me ponder what truly matters in this life. The most important thing for me is my family. I must do all in my power to create positive memories with my family and do all I can to help them be strong and secure in the gospel. It is just too important to waste my time being frivolously preoccupied with anything else. My family needs my love and I need theirs.

So here is my challenge to you: Remember how precious your family is and do all in your power to create positive memories with them. Love your spouses. Treat them with respect. Love your children. Be tender with them. Have fun with one another. Live and enjoy life together.

Okay, I am done preaching. Kim and I have been married for 15 years. To celebrate our anniversary we went on a cruise to Baja Mexico out of San Diego, California. It was such an amazingly great time. It really renewed us and now we are saving for our next cruise. One of the highlights of our trip was while we were in San Diego. Comicon was happening while we were there. We did not have tickets but we were able to go to the convention center and wander for a while before we boarded the boat. It was an amazing circus. I think in the 20 minutes we spent there we saw Spider-Man, Storm, Baby Spider-man, Several Storm Troopers and a few self-made heroes and villains. I am pretty certain I am going to book a trip to the actual event sometime. I think I would really enjoy it.

The kids have returned to school. Kate had refused for some time to acknowledge that shcool was starting but has transitioned well, so far, into the third grade. Worthy has discovered that first grade is going to be a bit of work but he has a great teacher. Morgan just seems excited to be in High School because of all the cute older boys she will see on campus. Her boy craziness might drive me crazy.

Morgan made the Volleyball team. We are really excited. She is a much happier person when she is actively involved and she really loves volleyball. It will be fun to travel around the State and watch her play this year. We are very proud of her.

To conclude my post I want to share a thought with all of you that made me smile today. "There are three kinds of people in this world...those that can count...and those that can't."

What does 8 mean to you?

2008-08-08T22:04:00.003-06:00

For Tyler, it means BAPTISM! We chose this day for her to get baptized, so hopefully she will be able to remember the date someday. The baptism was very special. Thank you to all our family and friends who came. For those who could not make it, we understand. We love you all. The baptism went really well. Then, when Britt confirmed her a member of the Church, and conferred the gift of the Holy Ghost, he also finished with a beautiful blessing that encouraged her to stay close to the Savior all her life. I am so grateful to him for being a worthy priesthood holder. And for being in tune with the spirit to give her such a choice blessing. I won't go into all the details, but today was kind of a rough day for us. It was so nice to be able to end it this way. And to get to celebrate our precious Tyler.

Lake Powell

2008-07-29T21:18:00.004-06:00

As promised by Clay on our blog here are the pictures from Lake Powell thanks to Nan for taking these great pictures and lending me the CD.

We loved having the Calls down for a few days. I don't know why we didn't think to get pictures of them playing Rock Band with us.

Turning your blog into a book

2008-07-20T21:12:00.003-06:00

Mom was talking about printing out her blog so they could keep it like a family history and I remembered something I saw on Design Mom. It is a site called Blurb and you can use it to "slurp" your bog into a book. Of course it costs money, but it is a cool idea and it looks like they do a good job. If you are interested in checking it out click here.

Our Week

2008-07-20T09:44:00.008-06:00

Here are some pictures from our trip to the zoo and Mom and Dad's visit.

Richie really liked the "epatants" (elephants) and the white aligator (not pictured), but his favorite things were the train and carousel rides.

In the picture of the two kids where Richie has his tongue out and Sophia is crying he had just sat on her, and that was why she was so sad. It was a fun day, but super hot. I think Nancy hoped that the walking would get Gavin to make an appearance, but it probably just made her super uncomfortable. We were so happy to have her company, though.

We did a lot of swimming at Mom and Dad's hotel. Richie had so much fun and discovered that he could stand up in the 3 ft. shallow end. He would start getting brave but ended up having a couple accidents that made him cautious again. He fell in at one point when he was sitting on the edge of the pool and it scared him pretty badly, but I was so proud that he still wanted to swim. He wouldn't let go of me in the pool after that, but at least he wasn't afraid of the water.

In the picture of Dad and Sophia you can see a ring around her face after she got ahold of Dad's Jamba Juice. That little girl LOVES to eat or drink whatever she see's someone holding; she gets irate if you don't share with her. It was great having Mom and Dad here and we will see everyone (hopefully) next weekend when we come down for quick visit.

Home Sweet Home

2008-07-15T05:32:00.004-06:00

Eryka just reminded me I missed our day to post. I think we have a good excuse: we didn't have internet because we just moved into our new house! We're loving it, except that we're really just camping out until our stuff gets here from Spain. At least the air shipment came on Saturday which had Joaquin's crib (which is awesome, because now he just wakes us up at 5:00 a.m. instead of at 1:30, 3:00, 4:30, 5:30 and 6:00) and some bedding for us. The rest of us are sleeping on air mattresses, which is in fact an upgrade from the lousy mattress we were on in the temporary housing where we were staying. We bought new towels and a pot and a pan at wal-mart, and the old owners left their dishes so we have enough stuff to shower, make food and eat it. It's really all you could ask for.

And more, considering the old owners also left their cool projection t.v., which unfortunately, only really works at night because it's too bright during the day. But I'm not complaining, because now that we got cable, phone and internet installed, I can watch t.v. or browse the web on a big screen on my wall (the projector is hooked up to a mac mini, also thrown in by the old owners). We're all enjoying our new house so much, we can't imagine what the place will be like with furniture. In the meantime, our awesome new neighbors are giving us a chair and a loveseat to sit on while we wait for our boat shipment to come. I hope that isn't too long. The moving company said the boat was scheduled to arrive today, but it would take 10-12 business days to clear customs. We've lived four weeks without most of our stuff, I supposed we can get along a little longer.

I started work again last week. I'm rotating through a different practice group than what I've been doing the past two years. Normally, our new associates try out three different practice areas for six months each before settling into a specialty, but since I was pretty much specialized from the start and didn't get that experience, I'm getting it now. It is a little weird starting all over again and feeling I don't know anything. But it's also nice to have a bit of change of pace.

We're really enjoying our new ward. It's nice doing church in English. They didn't waste any time in putting us to work. Our second week here I was called as a counselor in the Elder's Quorum Presidency. I'm sure they have something big in the works for Eryka. Well, I better wrap this up and get ready for work. I just wanted to say we're happy to be back, and looking forward to seeing more of family now that we're in the country again.

Oops!!!

2008-07-13T11:24:00.005-06:00

Tim wouldn't let me start a fire in the backyard so we did smores the city way.
Notice how big my belly is (I feel like I'm walking around with a watermelon )

MMMM... delicious

Tim playing with his new toy a Mac Book.

The past month or so has been really busy with baby showers, getting things ready for the baby, and the 4th of July that we forgot to post when it was our turn.

Monday I went to the doctor for one of my a last 2 week visits (it is getting closer). Nothing out of the ordinary, his heartbeat sounds great and the Dr. says he sounds happy, my vitals are good and other than surpassing Tim's weight things are going great with the baby. Someone in Blanding gave me a nasty cold (won't name names) so I have been fighting that all week but it is pretty much gone except for my voice sounds funny and my throat is sore.

Tim started back up at school and this semester is going to be lots of work. Back to the good old days where he has to write care plans. So since he is going to have to write a ton of papers and it is easier for him to write at work when there is a break. We decided to buy a Mac Book.
It has been really fun and it came with a free Ipod touch so now we both have one. Tim also downloaded all the old school Nintendo games- Super Mario Bros., Zelda, Tetris, Mario Cart and etc. so we have been playing video games a little too much.

While I was in Blanding for the 4th, Tim traded in some of his old video games and bought Guitar Hero Aerosmith which is really fun and addicting. He also was convinced to reserve a copy of Guitar Hero 4 which we are really excited to play.

Today we helped out in the nursery for our ward. Our ward split two weeks ago and now instead of 8 nurseries we have 3 with 50 kids total so it is more manageable. The kids are so good and energetic, we really enjoyed just letting them do whatever they wanted. Oh by the way our new calling is in the nursery and we have 15 kids. Our bishopric is really wonderful and lead with the spirit. They understand our circumstance and let us know not to worry about our calling that our baby comes before it and for Tim his profession does too (when he is on call on Sundays).

Hope everyone is happy and healthy and enjoying the heat!!!

P.S. if you need a really good laugh check out this blog seriouslysoblessed.blogspot.com
and read the comments too

Faith and Prayers

2008-07-03T09:03:00.011-06:00

There are always blessings which come out of times of grief. The reunion of families is one of those blessings. The answers to prayers when lost objects become found is another. The love we are able to express to one another while recalling fond memories is truly a blessing.

And then there is the unexpected blessing of having your property and belongings miraculously preserved while you were gone. The old basketball standard could have blown down directly on the car while we were in Montana, but the Lord watched out for us and made sure it landed the other way. Thank you all for your faith and prayers in our behalf during this recent time of loss and sorrow. We know that such sincere reliance upon the spirit enabled us all to travel safely and return home to comfort and security. We love you all!

It's not my time--but who's keeping track anymore?

2008-06-28T13:37:00.005-06:00

You can almost see everyone in this picture. I have a couple others, but Kim and Kate were missing, and people's heads are turned in another direction in almost all the others. This picture was taken the day of Grandma Asay's funeral. Let's see, who was missing of Grandma and Grandpa Asay's posterity? Tiel and her husband were there, but I don't think they made it into the photo. Tim's wife Nancy very generously let him leave her to go to Montana. Chrislynn and her Richies and Sophia were there in spirit, as well as Drew, Eryka, Issac, Stella and Joaquin. That's pretty awesome, the great people and families that have come into being because of the love story of those two wonderful people.
Grandma's funeral was perfect. Mom gave a nice description of her life story, including tributes written by grandchildren. Dad and Lesli sang a beautiful song, "How Great Thou Art." The stake president and bishop also gave some nice remarks. It was not too long, but a well-presented program honoring the beautiful woman we were privileged to call our grandmother.
You all need to read David's blog about the serendipity of how things worked out that day with the funeral procession. After a very brief dedication of the grave by Bob, the granddaughters and great-granddaughters presented roses to Grandpa, rather than leaving them on the grave.
Grandpa was pretty distraught, and did not want to be there to witness Grandma's coffin being lowered into the ground. Olivia also was very upset about this. She kept asking when Grandma was going to come back alive. We tried to explain about Jesus. But she wanted him to come right now and bring Grandma back to us. She was very emotional about it, sweet tender girl.
We are so glad we were able to be there, to spend some time with family and to remember our dear Grandma. Garrett left his first scout camp halfway through the week, because he wanted to be in Montana with the family for the funeral. I know that he is glad he did. He was also pretty emotional about Grandma's death. But I know he believes he will see her again, and that comforts him.
What a blessing the gospel is in our lives! We are so grateful to have an understanding about the Plan of Salvation. We are so grateful for the good people who are part of our families, both by birth and through church association.
Here are some more pictures from Montana:

Happy Summer!!!

2008-06-14T21:20:00.002-06:00

In Blanding it feels like every other week is summer. One week is glorious, warm, and sunny, and the next is windy, or worse -- snowing! Yes it snowed in June in the middle of our Stake's Girls Camp, and the girls had to be shuttled off the mountain with 4-wheel drives. We are enjoying summer vacation. Timothy likes to be outside playing in the gravel in our backyard. I know it is weird, we have all this great lawn, and he speed crawls to the gravel patch. He is learning to walk, Mom witnessed him taking 3 steps this morning! Thomas is finally learning to swim, and learning not to cry so much with his DAILY injuries (he knows where the band-aids are, so we're covered). Eva is taking a cooking class once a week and just loving it! After a few week break, she will be back to piano lessons next week, and she is reading lots of good books. Clay's sister Brenda had her baby on Monday his name is Nicholas and he is doing great. Brenda is dealing with the aftermath of an emergency C-section because after 2 hours of pushing Nicholas still was not coming. I have had her other kids (except Darin who is 14 and too cool to stay at my house) since Thursday so that she can get some rest (Bud had them the first part of the week).

I didn't fall off the face of the earth...

2008-06-07T15:12:00.002-06:00

I just moved into a house that is about thirty years behind modern technology.

We are living with Richie's Grandpa, Vosco Call, in Logan and so far things are going well. Some mornings I think Vosco is annoyed with my super energetic toddler, but he also likes having us there. Little Richie's new obsession is the Disney/Pixar movie Cars. He loves watching cars and playing cars, ALL DAY LONG. Sophia is cutting two teeth and working hard on crawling. Big Richie is rehearsing three shows and is busy, as usual. The only news of report from me is that I had some sort of stomach bug the other day and was feeling pretty terrible, and just as I was feeling better, Little Richie started throwing-up. So I was dealing with sickness for a couple days, but we are all doing fine now.

Today I drove to Burley with the two kids for my sister-in-law, Brianna's, bridal shower. Sophia only screamed for half the drive, but we made it safe and sound. They have internet here, which is why I am able to take my turn posting. (I miss having internet access.) We are enjoying being back in Utah, even though after living in New Jersey for two years, Utah is pretty weird. It is nice being close to family; the kids are really bonding with Grandparents, aunts and uncles. As we drove away from Logan today Richie kept saying, "I'n so happy, Mom! I'n so excited!" He couldn't wait until we got to Aubrey's house. Aubrey is Richie's youngest sister, she turned nine this year, so she is close enough in age to be a really fun playmate and Little Richie LOVES her.

Sorry, no pictures this time.

As promised. . .

2008-06-01T00:04:00.002-06:00

TRUNKY!

2008-05-25T08:27:00.002-06:00

We'll be back in New York in less than four weeks! We'll be flying home on Friday June 20. Needless to say, we are very excited. We have our tickets (the firm is flying us first class - good thing to keep those kids entertained for the 9 hr transatlantic flight), we have temporary housing set up in New York, we've started car shopping on-line (anyone want to sell us a car?) and we have things lined up to close on our house a few weeks after we get to New York.

Spain has certainly been an adventure and we will always look back on this time as a special period in our lives that brought many blessings, one of which is a deeper appreciation for our own country. We've been lucky to serve in some special callings (we've both been released now, which is its own blessing) and see some of the fruits of our labors. Eryka has a very special connection with her young women and I was lucky to be able to attend a special baptism yesterday. A recent convert in our ward who was baptized shortly after we got here and who I have been visiting as a home teacher was able to baptize his son who just turned 8. He and his wife have taken the temple preparation classes and interviewed with the Bishop to take out their endowment and be sealed in the templed. I'm hoping they can have everything arranged to do the ordinance before we leave, but I know that in any event it will happen and I am very excited for them.

So this is your last opportunity. If you wanted to see Spain before we leave, you've only got three more weeks. . .

We have some cute video of the kids dancing, but for some reason we can't get it to upload. We'll post again if we can get it to work.

Spanish Fork Update

2008-05-18T11:41:00.003-06:00

How is everyone doing? We don't really get to hear much from you all, and since we haven't seen any blog updates lately we don't know what is really going on. We are guilty too of not updating folks on what is going on with us. Life is good for the Glover's here. We have been getting ready for the little one that will be here in just over 2 months! We haven't really done much and really don't know what we are doing, so when the time comes I hope that we are okay. Really the only thing we have done is accepted clothes, bassinets, and advice from neighbors and friends. We have a whole lot more to do to get ready. With Justins help we painted the kitchen and baby's room. Nancy picked out the colors and We like the change.

Did you know it was nurses day 2 weeks ago? Well it was, and the hospital didn't do anything for us except say happy nurses day. Every year instead of celebrating nurses week they wait till the next week to have hospital week. Then everyone gets to be involved. We had a good hospital week this year. They did prize drawings each day, played hospital wide bingo, yes I won a prize, we had a blood drive, canned food drive, and the biggest loser challenge.

4 weeks ago the hospital announced that there would be a biggest loser challenge that would conclude during hospital week. The winner would get an Ipod. I figured if I really pushed myself I could win. I woke up every morning at 5 and worked out for 1 hour. I really was strict about what I ate, and I worked out after coming home from work most days. I was really pushing myself to get in better shape. I was motivated just by the fact that when I weighed in I was the heaviest I have every seen myself. I was 204! It is sad that my entire life growing up I wanted to be bigger and stronger. Now that I am older I have to lose weight for my health. Well, at the end of 4 weeks I am proud to say I lost over 17 pounds! Well, I took 3rd place, had I weighed in without my shirt I would have been in 2nd place. I am not stopping just yet. I have lost more. This morning I was 185, and I feel that I could reach my goal of 170 by the end of this summer if I really pushed myself like I have. I feel better and look better. The only down side is that Nancy does not look forward to the time she surpasses me in weight due to the pregnancy.

We loved having Mom and Chrislynn and her kids here for a brief moment. The kids are just so darn cute. I hope that Grandpa's house in Logan doesn't fall down with Richie running all around. Nancy will be coming home Thursday for Casey's graduation. She will be traveling with Justin. I have to stay and work. I have been given more call and it is not easy to trade it off. Besides I just had a vacation and I can't afford to take more time off until the baby gets here.

I hope all is well with everyone and I can't wait to see more pictures of Nan's house, the grand kids, and everyone else. That means keep blogging everyone! Here are a few pictures of Nancy's hard work around the house. You can't see really well, so you all will just have to come visit us and see for yourselves.

Super Klutz Does it Again

2008-05-13T14:20:00.005-06:00

Since I usually sprain my ankle once a year, and it's been two years, I guess I was due for it. It was such a disappointment to be in Provo and ready to hit the stores for a few hours of serious shopping, when I stumbled and fell, which served the greater purpose of protecting our bank account. Oh well, at least it stayed numb for the 5 hour drive home. I learned how much of the journey can be fully accomplished with pain-free cruise control, for which I was extremely grateful!

We have enjoyed having Chrislynn, RBC III, and Sophia here visiting us for the past 2 weeks. Grandpa has especially bonded with his grandchildren.Happy Mother's Day "shout - out" to all of you!

Garrett's first temple trip

2008-04-28T11:54:00.003-06:00

On Wednesday, Garrett went with the Blanding 5th ward youth to the temple in Monticello. Britt always goes to the temple with the youth in his capacity as a member of the bishopric. I got to go with them to be there for Garrett's first time. I even got to participate, as well as Britt of course. I don't know how much is appropriate to post on the internet. Anyway, while we were waiting to begin, we realized we did not have enough priesthood brethren to proceed. Then, Dad walked through the temple doors. He was there for the Navajo language session, but Britt convinced him to join us. It was such a special experience. I am so glad Dad was there. I am so grateful Britt honors his priesthood and is worthy to perform those sacred ordinances in the temple. I am also grateful and pleased that Garrett is so excited about holding the priesthood and participating in temple ordinances.
Sunday, Garrett passed the sacrament for the first time in church. I watched him anxiously as a mother does. He did his best, with a little help from the other brethren performing the same duty. Garrett was actually the only Aaronic Priesthood holder passing the sacrament. The rest included his dad and the men who serve as leaders of the young men. We have a very small number of young men in our ward. Garrett is actually the only deacon and will be for several months still.
He is excited to pass the sacrament again. I reminded him next week is stake conference, so he will have to wait another week. After he sat down with our family on Sunday, he was telling Olivia to watch for him next time when he passes the sacrament. It was really sweet. Like I said, he is excited.
The painter is supposed to be painting our house this week. The house is entirely bricked, and they should be doing the stucco this week. I will posst more pictures on my site when there is more to show. BTW, we still have building lots, i.e. investment property, available for sale (hint, hint ; )

Morgan made Dance Team!!!!

2008-04-20T20:48:00.003-06:00

Well....maybe they call it Drill Team now, either way, our little "Moog" is part of the team!! Congratulations Morgan! I had no idea you would want to do Dance team, I am so excited for you! I can't help but remember when I was a Freshman struggling with the idea of trying out for Dance Team. I went back and forth on the issue, and then just about chickened out...until...my older sister issued an offer that I am still so grateful for today. Nan told me she would try out with me! This was something extremely out of her comfort zone, Nan was quiet and shy in High School, and did not relish the spotlight like I did (ironically today, I am the shy one and Nan is the outgoing one with all the friends). I know it was a sacrifice for Nan to try out and then to participate in Dance Team. I don't know if she enjoyed it, but she stuck with it for me. I am so indebted to Nan for her selfless act of kindness. I loved Dance Team so much that I was on it all through High School. Thanks Nan!

On another topic, Eva had a school assignment to do a project about someone she admired, and...no surprise...she picked Grandma Gail. Our family truly benefitted from being able to live with her and Dad while we sold our house, had a new baby, and then bought a new house.

What a blessing to have such great family!

Cherry Blossoms

2008-04-13T17:49:00.007-06:00

I almost forgot that it was my turn this week. We had a fun weekend, but it was a little crazy. We went to D.C. to visit Giselle, see the Cherry Blossom Festival and go to the temple. It was supposed to be a quick, one day trip, down and back, but we ended up staying the night.
We drove down in the morning and met up with Richie's sister and headed to the parade. Little Richie was so excited about the parade, even though he didn't really know why.
We caught the last 30-40 minutes of the parade, but I am not sure little Richie would have enjoyed more than that. He liked the marching bands a lot and he got to see a float with Elmo and other Sesame Street characters, and that was fun for him.
After the parade we walked down to the tidal basin to see if any blossoms remained. They peaked a couple weeks ago, but there were a few straggling blossoms.
One of my favorite things in the world is flowering trees, so I really wanted to see them. I was a little disappointed that I missed the peak, but I will have more opportunities to see them. We intended to get to the temple early in the afternoon and then head back to North Brunswick, but we didn't make it until late evening. We decided to stay the night instead of driving back really late, even though we didn't have p.j.'s or anything.
Richie had rehearsal at 11 a.m. so we had to leave really early and we actually got out the door on time, but when we got out to the parking lot our car was gone. We had a few moments of panic wondering if it had been towed or stolen, but we eventually found out it had been towed. An hour and $150 later, we were on our way back home. We made it home in time for Richie's rehearsal and we were all really tired. I am hoping we can all catch up on some missed sleep, but we probably won't.

We are packing up the apartment in preparation for the summer "move". It is hard to pack with two kids, but it will all work out. We'll see you soon.

A few thoughts

2008-04-06T12:45:00.005-06:00

Before anything else, I just want to say what a special experience I had yesterday when I was able to join the body of the priesthood across the world in standing and sustaining our new prophet, Thomas S. Monson. But even more special was the excitement of my young children and the spirit that touched my heart when they rose with the membership of the church and excitedly raised their arms in support of this man and his calling. Though they may not remember having done so, I am grateful that they are learning to set patterns of love, respect and righteous living.

On to more worldly matters. We'll be coming home soon. No, home is not Blanding. Home is New York, and we couldn't be more excited. June 20 is the tentative date, give or take a few days. I've still got plenty to keep me busy at work right now, but Eryka's getting anxious to get home so she's beginning the pre-packing process already: going through the home and organizing things, throwing out things we don't need and planning where our furniture will be going in our new house.

Did we mention we're buying a house? It's a really nice place that our friends just spent the past two years renovating. We're excited because they've done real quality work and taken good care of it, so we don't have to worry about things like updating a kitchen or bathroom. But there are still unfinished parts (basement and attic) so if we think the place is getting to tight and we get to feeling handy, we can always increase the living space. Of course, it's an old house, so of course we won't be living in total peace with things never going wrong, but that's part of the joy/pain that comes with owning a house, right? We're hoping to close on the place a few weeks after we get back to New York so we don't have to stay in temporary housing for very long.

I don't have much more to say, but I thought I'd share a few more pictures of our trip to Prague.

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad

2008-03-31T12:38:00.002-06:00

Thanks for getting married all those years ago. Just look at what you have done. Happy Anniversary from the Calls, we love you and hope you get to spend some time together today.

I guess there were a few too many big words for him to say, but I think you get the idea.

2008-03-30T10:20:00.007-06:00

Last weekend we went down to Blanding for Easter. It was a really short trip but we had lots of fun. Saturday, Tim and I went our separate ways. He went to Cortez with Dad and Worthy to go golfing and I went on a picnic down in Bluff with my family. The weather was really nice in Bluff, the only problem was it took us about an 1 hour and a half to find a spot that wasn't already taken and that wouldn't be completely out in the open with no shade. We finally found a little spot that my dad had actually never been before. We had a nice little weenie roast and what's a traditional Meyer picnic without taking a hike. We found a few moki ruins that were buried but a lot of pottery around and then we found these two, old cowboy houses. It was pretty cool that they were still standing. Later that afternoon we went over to my grandma's house for her annual Easter Egg hunt ( my favorite thing), its pretty cool that she still does it for us even though the youngest grandkid there was 10. Married grandkids can't do it but Justin was being lame so I found his eggs for him. The Easter bunny did find Tim and I at my parents' house. We got too much candy, the movie Enchanted, some baby stuff, socks, jewelry and more candy. My mom has been helping the Easter Bunny fill our baskets since we were tiny and it is really sweet that even though we are all grown almost that we still can enjoy being kids.

But Easter really isn't about the Easter Bunny or Egg hunting, It is really nice to know that in our Gospel we rejoice that our Savior lives instead of only thinking about his death. My favorite part of Easter is spending time with our loved ones and seeing new life all around us. I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter.

So we already posted on our own blog about our baby boy! We still need your prayers this change will all but kill us. Our friends said expect the worst, then it will be better than you can imagine. Well, keep in touch everyone.

The Rest of the Song

2008-03-23T20:32:00.004-06:00

Here it is! Grandpa Worthy singing the full version of Woolazhini Biyiin! Happy Easter, Everyone!

We Still Love You!!

2008-03-18T13:29:00.003-06:00

I'm just butting in because it's been forever since we posted. I'm just letting you know that we have a new post on our blog, so check it out. And please check out my walking challenge--I'd love for you to join me. You can find it at WWW.walkny.blogspot.com.

The latest on building the Bartons' MASSIVE house

2008-03-12T18:21:00.007-06:00

At least, Massive seems to be the word everyone else uses when I tell them the house being built on 5th South is ours. Check out the brick on our massive house. They just started this week. Who knew that choosing a brick color could be so complicated. Let me tell you, it is not easy. There are seriously dozens of choices, and that was just from the two companies our bricklayer referred us to. So, you see this little sample in the flyer, and somehow you have to picture what it will look like on the house. Then, you have to choose from several possible grout colors. Once you commit, you had better be happy with it, because brick is about as permanent as you can get.

Once the brick is done, we will have to figure out what color stucco we want. Again, with very little to go on. I have to see these things. I am very visual. It is overwhelming to try to decide without knowing what the finished product will look like.

Supposedly, my brick will be a little darker after it is powerwashed, and my mortar will look a little lighter once it cures. I am glad I didn't go with the chocolate grout. That just would have been too dark, I think. (Nothing against your house, Kd).

And every day, Britt is calling and saying that I need to decide something right now. How do I know where I want my cable and computer outlets. I have no idea. Placement of light switches, what? Wherever the expert who is installing them thinks. And I have no clue where I want to put the oven or the fridge in my basement kitchenette. We are not even finishing that yet. But the plumber and the electrician have to know NOW. A regular gas meter is about $65; for our MASSIVE house $1300. Ouch. Lots of stuff like that. Right now we are paying more for water at that property than we are in the trailer here. The water is not even turned on there. It must be a flat fee, and of course they charge more for county than city.

But you know what, I am going to have an awesome view from just outside my bedroom. And my master bath is going to be fabulous! Hey, if any of you know someone that wants land in Blanding, we have lots for sale still. You know, we have got to pay for this house somehow. I don't really want to live in lots of unfinished stuff. I am not kidding.

Well, Cole thinks he can't get his homework done without help. I can't blog anymore. Love you all.

Sleep, glorious sleep!

2008-03-08T22:02:00.006-07:00

Timothy is seriously the lightest sleeper, and it hasn't helped that we have all been sharing his room while we remodeled the master bedroom. But finally, it is done! So for the last 3 nights we have been allowed to sleep through the night, of course the trade-off is that he gets up between 5 & 6 am, but I can handle that! He is 8 months old now, and has been waking me up every 2 1/2 hours since he was born. I love how skilled Clay is that I can say, "I want crown molding, new baseboards, new texture on the walls etc.. and he can do it all!

Timothy knew something big was going on in my room and he just wanted to be a part of it. I took my eyes off him for less than minute and, this is what he did -- emptied an almost full can of paint. I would have taken a picture of him playing in it, but he was trying to eat it.

This picture was taken when we were considering buying the house (no, that is not my "lovely" bedspread) It is a good "before" picture

This is the pre-furniture picture

The finished product. Clay made our nightstands, aren't they beautiful?!

My Big Brother

2008-03-01T21:14:00.002-07:00

I have always looked up to my older brother Worthy. For a number of years I hero-worshiped him, and belived he could do no wrong. I know he got tired of me following him around in High School, with such devotion, but he tolerated me as well as can be expected. Sometimes I thought he was too critical of me, but later realized he was trying to help me reach my potential. I love him for that. There was one incident that I will never forget that showed me how much he really cared for me. Our school and several others were invited to film a British Airways Commercial at Dead Horse Point. For several days they drove us to a remote field near the park. There was a lot of down time and people entertained themselves in any way they could. One group thought it would be funny to randomly throw the cactus that was everywhere growing wild. I was a victim of one particularly hard-thrown cactus that became lodged very close to my eye. Worthy was the first one to get really mad and attempt to uncover who had done this to me, his loyal friends followed suit. He was my protector. I know there were many other times that he silently protected me, but this was the most visual example of his love for me. I am grateful that you are my brother Worthy. I love you and I appreciate the example you are for me and my family.

The Bartons have a blog

2008-02-28T20:57:00.003-07:00

Well, I finally gave in and created a blog. You guys can check it out at http://thebartonshaveablog.blogspot.com/. Here's a little something I recorded with my new cell phone Britt gave me for Valentine's day.
You can't really tell, but she is singing "All Star" by Smash Mouth from Shrek. She says it is her favorite song. Grandma Gail gave her a birthday card that played that song and she has been obsessed with it since. She has lots of other favorite songs, depending on her mood.

Handicrafts -- By Request

2008-02-26T09:08:00.010-07:00

Since Chrislynn requested that I post some pictures of my handicrafts, here they are! Keep in mind, since I give away everything I make, I do not have many examples to show at any given point in time.

This is a red and black, denim/flannel rag quilt I just finished this week for Cole Barton. He asked me a few weeks ago why Morgan, Garrett, and Eva all received a comforter for their baptism, and he didn't. I reminded him that he asked me to speak about "Baptism," and they had asked me to speak about "the Holy Ghost." So then he wondered what it would take for him to get a quilt, and I told him just to ask.
I am currently hand-quilting a queen-size quilt of embroidered blocks, and before you ask -- I have no idea who or what it is for; I just wanted to make it. Hopefully, I'll have it done by summer, and then I can display it in the 4th of July quilt show.

I also make crocheted dishrags, receiving blankets, burp cloths, and pillowcases.

I come from a long line of Mormon Pioneer women who crocheted, quilted, and generally created a heritage which is worth emulating. I am proud to say that I have children with a variety of great talents as well!
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_iz 0zLwQh3PI/R8RCCTp4zJI/AAAAAAAAAF4/hoPrK4G0Sy4/s1600-h/Handicrafts+012.jpg

My New Jersey Sisters

2008-02-24T20:22:00.004-07:00

Tonight I was once again reminded of my testimony of visiting teaching.

Yesterday was one of those days. Little Richie woke up several times in the night and I was really tired all day, and when I am tired I turn into "Mean Mommy". Everything he did got on my nerves and I scolded him all day long even when he didn't deserve it. Richie went into the city to do a session at the temple and then see a show, so I was alone with the kids and they were actually really well-behaved, but I was not.

By the end of the day I was feeling really drained and frustrated. When I was trying to put Richie down for bed, Sophia decided to have one of her "episodes" where she is so tired that she screams and screams. All she needs is to go to sleep, but she is so worked up that she won't go to sleep. It wouldn't have been so bad except that I needed to focus on Richie, but she demanded all my attention too. At one point both of them were crying; Richie in his room, Sophia in my room, and I was in the bathroom praying for patience. I love my kids more than anything, but I really needed a break.

Well, tonight my partner, Kristin, and I had set up an appointment in the evening so we could visit without our kids. The three of us are good friends, we call ourselves the Chrisses, because our names are Chrislynn, Christie and Kristin. Sophia's middle name was inspired by my friendship with these sisters. Anyway, Christie had a baby three weeks ago and has been feeling a bit overwhelmed with having a toddler and a newborn (sound familiar) so we wanted to have a good visit where we could talk and not have to chase our kids around at the same time. We made the appointment earlier in the week, but it was exactly what I needed, right when I needed it. The visit was only a little longer than an hour, but it was so nice to talk with my friends about motherhood and the gospel for that time. We could have stayed together for hours and hours, but we had to get back to our families. We have such a good time together that it was hard to leave. Finally Christie's husband had to practically kick us out, not because he didn't want us there, but we kept saying "we need to go" and he recognized we were never going to break-it-up without a little push. I am so grateful that Kristin is my partner and that we visit Christie. They have become two very dear friends and it is because of visiting teaching.

This picture was taken at P. F. Chang's last summer when we had a girl's night out. Kristin is in the middle and Christie on the right.

By the way, Christie LOVED the receiving blanket you made, Mom. She loved the colors and she loved that it was hand made, so thanks for offering that to her. Kristin was also very impressed and wants to see more of your handy work, so you need to post some pictures of quilts and blankets you have made or are making so I can direct her to your blog.

Exploring Toledo

2008-02-17T09:44:00.004-07:00

We've been in Spain for a year and a half and haven't seen much of Spain. Basically just Madrid and Barcelona. So today we decided to make a day trip to Toledo, the old capital of Spain. It was just 30 minutes by train and provided many beautiful sites just perfect for capturing our photogenic family. We hope to make a few more day/weekend trips in the four months we have left here so we're fully exposed to the beauty of Spain. Hope you enjoy our pictures! We think we got some good ones.

Toledo's highly defensible position made it an ideal capital city.

But I doubt anyone ever thought they'd have to defend the place against an army like this!

That's Drew and Joaquin in the corner there.

Eryka's not lost, I promise. . .

Stella knows better.

You can see the spire of the cathedral peaking at you from various locations in the town. Actually getting there is another story.

Isaac spent the time waiting for our train home playing with his new Spanish knight. (Excuse the blur - Drew is still trying to figure out some of the finer aspects of our new camera)

Family pictures anyone?

2008-02-13T08:42:00.002-07:00

Hey Everyone,

I think we need an updated family picture. I know this is impossible to keep updated but I think everyone will be in Utah in August. Sounds like a good time to have pictures taken. Right? Is anyone else interested or am I just being silly.

I have the best wife in the world!

2008-02-10T10:45:00.000-07:00

So this week is Valentines. I love my beautiful wife so much. She has brought stability to my life, she has given me purpose and hope everyday. She is more and more beautiful each day I spend with her. Nancy did something for me I never would have expected. For months now I have been bugging her about letting me get an Iphone. She told me that it wasn't a very practical purchase, and she is right I just wanted it to be cool really. Well I realized that there was no point in getting a phone that would cost me double what we pay now in cell service and risk the possibility of poor service here in Utah. But last week I went to the CompUSA store in Orem. The company has gone out of business and the store is having sales to get rid of inventory. The thing is there was nothing I really wanted there. That is until they rolled out a cart full of the Ipod Touch! Well this was what I was looking for. All the features of the Iphone without the service fees. Not only that, but it was 100 dollars off! I held off from purchasing because I wanted to run it by Nancy first. So later that night we went together and Nancy said go ahead and get it. I couldn't believe my ears. I have been constantly on my new toy ever since. I get wifi at home and work, so the internet is fully accessable and now I don't steal Nancy's Ipod so she can use hers. She really is the best.
So as for other news we are just plugging away at our dull lives. Having Justin Meyer live here with us has been really good so far. We are now a house full of students. Yesterday all morning long we were all hard at work trying to study. Nancy has been getting better as her pregnacy is going along as planned. She gets sick less, and she now has a bit more energy. She is even starting to show! I am way excited for what the future holds for us.
Here are a few pics of my beautiful valentine enjoy. I love you Nancy