I was worried they had outgrown me.

It's been sad to me because lately when Amy and Logan have asked 
if I would keep the twins overnight, they haven't wanted to come 
"unless Violet is there too." 

Well cousin Violet is a busy girl and can't always make it. 

So then it got me to thinking that perhaps they have outgrown my 
Grandma Honeyness ways. 


Perhaps I need to change my game plan some.
A new home, a new beginning.

So they found a box of games in the garage
and were happy to go through that for awhile.

Then they started settling in. 

Jonas decided he wanted this chair from another bedroom....
so they hauled it in to theirs.



"Just in case we go somewhere really special tonight, I brought 
my best shirt," Jonas said as he was putting it on to show me. 


Téa prepared in a different way.
When I hurt my finger she went right to the contents of her 
overnight bag and found me the ONE bandaid she had packed! 
I thought it was the sweetest thing packing her own little bandaid!


But before I put the bandaid on I said I didn't know where my 
little scissors were to trim my fingernail.

She said, "Your scissors are in your bathroom drawer."

"How do you know that?" I asked.

"Because I looked in all the drawers in your house."

Then I remembered earlier, indeed they did!


But thankfully to me they still have some little in them... 
because they requested dinner on the man face plates!



And breakfast the next morning on the Dinner Winner plates. 

So happy they made me!


So after the twins left I was surprised to see 
they had actually made their beds! 
What?! Are they becoming like grown-up people now?


Then I peeled down the bedspreads.

Nope, not quite.
And that's a good thing.




Sometimes assumptions are a good thing...

A text from my sister a few nights ago...









I read her text and thought...wow, I was on her kids' emergency 
cards for 25 years and didn't even know it!

 Then suddenly I thought....wait a sec, 
I put her on my sons' emergency cards all those years too!



Wonders of the past week #4

Things happen everyday that I either learn or notice, 
and I wish to remember....
so here are some from this past week:

1. At one point in our packing I came to the realization that we own 8 hole punchers. 
How does this even happen?
I told Den I'll get rid of all but 2, and he said, 
"No, don't get rid of them. 
You never know when we will need to punch lots of holes all at the same time."



2. Maybe he was understanding since he has a thing for keeping old cell phones. 

I asked him WHY he kept them all.
He said he didn't know.
Even kept his old Palm Pilot. Any one have a clue what we should do with them?





3. I opened a make up bag tucked away in our garage that I hadn't seen in years, 
and found this souvenir from our honeymoon....

Before Dennis and I got married he asked me if I would be willing to move to LA.
I said no, because I don't like earthquakes. 
So he agreed we would live in Clovis, and I agreed to getting married in LA. 

At 2:46 the morning of our wedding, 
my hotel room shook terribly and continued with after shocks until morning.

I came so close to calling Dennis in the middle of that night 
but I didn't want him to know he was marrying a wimp that day. He learned soon enough.



4. "Fredy and his friends" were off the charts amazing.
We hired them to move us on Monday. The one on the far left is Fredy

They wrapped all our furniture up in heavy blankets and were SO organized.
$90. an hour ($30. for each guy) Took them 7 1/2 hours but only charged us for 7.
So of course we gave them a tip. 
Money WELL spent!!!!



5. One day Den, Tyler and I just so happened to be driving by our church as the steeple was being
delivered. We stopped and watch it go up. Found these pictures while packing.
I'm guessing this was about 15 years ago?
Historic day for our church building but as you can see, not many got to watch it happen.


6. Found this in McKay's old bedroom closet. I'm guessing he must have been about 10 or 11?  
Not sure. (He's 32 now)`
And no, he never got his rat. I'm not that fun of a mother.
But the part that makes me laugh now is....IF we did give him a RAT,
 did he really need to ask for a cage?

I didn't see this coming

One day in October of 2014, I was visiting a new friend from church. We are each assigned women to
look after in our ward. A monthly visit or call to see how they are doing and make sure they are okay.

So on that October afternoon as I was leaving this woman's home I noticed she had just put in some
new plants. I was impressed and asked her the names of her plants, and even took a quick picture of
them. I was thinking of perhaps planting them in my own yard. Here is that picture from Oct 2014.

Fast forward 19 months later and this same house goes up for sale. 
We jumped on it (not just because of the plants) and bought it. 

Today we moved in. 
And my have these plants grown!

I just had no idea back then, no clue whatsoever, that one day this home would be ours. 

Life is so interesting and full of surprises. That's one thing we can count on.

Not the easiest day of my life, but as far as moves go, not too bad.


The necessity invention dinner

When I got married the first time back in 1974 I was worried about our ability to live on just $400. a
month.  I remember my Dad saying to me, "Necessity is the mother of invention." 

I've heard his words many times in my head throughout the past 42 years, and again yesterday
afternoon. With most of our pots and pans and utensils packed, I was determined to make dinner.


I found this stray disposable pan in the garage. I washed it out and then took what I had in the fridge
and began layering....


2 red potatoes cut up
some fresh green beans
half yellow onion sliced
some frozen peas
some frozen chicken thighs
1/8-1/4 c water over all

I salted everything, but mostly the chicken.

Then I mixed up a simple sauce and poured it over all but mostly on the chicken:
1/4 olive oil
1 t oregano 
1 t salt
several shakes of pepper
3 cloves garlic (my garlic press was packed so I just sliced it thin)

I covered it with foil and baked it for a long while @ 350' (about an hour I think)
It would have gone quicker had the chicken been thawed so adjust for that.
Then I removed the foil and turned up the oven to 400' for another 20 minutes
I broiled it for the last 2-3 minutes so it would look a bit crispy and brown on top.



Cut up some fresh cantelope, toasted some bread, and there was dinner. 
I must say it had a very good flavor, and I will make this again even after the move is over.

I just worked with what I had. 
I think you could put any vegetables in this. 


PS  Today I took the leftovers and put them in some chicken broth and it made a delicious soup.
I didn't have to season it at all since the leftovers still had plenty.
Dennis has been sick lately, so this hit the spot just right. 





Wonders of this past week #3


Things happen everyday that I either learn or notice, 
and I wish to remember....
so here are some from this past week:

1. Two things have really saved us in packing to move:

These plastic see through containers. 

I've filled them with things we will not be putting in our drawers or 
cupboards right away, but will store them in the garage. LOVE how 
we can see through them. Perfect size too. Thank you Allyson for 
the suggestion! We found them at Costco and keep going back for 
more. 


And this brown paper tape! 


I learned about this from watching a Youtube video on moving. No 
scissors required. Just tear off and apply. Also they are great to 
write on....something you can't do with regular clear packing tape. I 
found them at Amazon, and also the U Haul store.



2. The buyers of our house texted us one afternoon and asked if 
they could come over and introduce their little girls to us. While it 
felt a bit unusual (normally real estate contacts only go through the realtor) I love 
this more personal way better. Their little 4 year old Kendall made 
a picture for us and I right away put it on our fridge....soon to be 
their fridge. 
In case you don't know, that's her swimming in her soon to be new pool. 

3. We ended up buying a new fridge from Sears. 
It's a Kenmore and I hope we don't regret that brand. 
But I learned something valuable. 
The deals online with Sears are always, as far as I can tell, 
BETTER than prices that are offered in their stores. But no 
problem if you would rather shop in their store because they will 
match their online price, However, ONLY if you tell them. If you 
don't mention the cheaper price online, they won't either. They will 
also honor free delivery or any other perks that are offered online, 
if you ask for it.

4. Am I the only one who just recently learned that Siri on my 
iPhone offers timing help anytime I need it? I just say "Set timer 
for 15 minutes" or whatever time I need, and she does! I use this 
timer pretty much daily now. Especially this week since most of 
what I own is in a box somewhere. 

5. Looking back a bit....Leo really enjoyed this Deluxe Tot Trainer. 
Karen did say it started deflating some in the pool one day and she 
had to re-blow it up. So definitely need to stay right with him, but it 
seemed to keep him more upright than the traditional water wings. 




6. I don't ever remember feeling quite this creative (or clean), 
but I saw this picture on a blog recently.  
She lets her baby eat in the sink, and then I imagine she could rinse 
him off in there too. Mealtime and bath time all in one. 
Whatever works.


7. This next moment ranks #1. I had a hard time keeping my mind 
on the RS lesson at church last Sunday. I was sitting next to a new 
Mom who had waited 13 years for her fresh from heaven little baby 
boy. I was basking in her joy. 
Took this one off Facebook 


I wanted to just sit and stare at them both together, but I was trying 

not to. Still when he would make those sweet baby noises I couldn't 
help but turn their way. I don't have permission from his parents to 
share his name. Okay, I will tell you his first name because it is so 
perfect. Rally....which means: "to come together after a defeat." 


Six more days until we are out of here. Not sure if I should be 
happy or sad about that.

Scarlett and Annie

With McKay and McKenna clear on the opposite coast from us, 
SO thankful it's not 20 years ago when all grandparents had were 
"long distance" phone calls.

Scarlett must be McKenna's little shadow. 
She is becoming such a mini McKenna. 
You'll see what I mean when you watch this.

The moving...oh the moving

My sister asked me yesterday, "Aren't you done packing YET?" 
We did take 2 weeks off to enjoy Karen and Tyler and our grand 
babies, but still, I am a very SLOW packer.


I've decided packing is boring. I don't do boring very well. 
But we are getting there and and probably 8/10ths done.


(7 year olds and grandparents are a good combo for packing.)


I get distracted easily, and I have time to take it slow, so I do.

Plus we have had several interruptions such as this....

The workers were just going to "take out 4 tiles, repair a leak, 
and put it back together."
Didn't quite work out that way.
We spent the morning yesterday looking for tile.



And I keep running into my past....
I found this on a shelf in my laundry room.
Back row: Chris, Heidi, Robin, John, Richard, Scott
Front row: Jill, Dad, Mom, Peggy
We would put this picture of my parents and their 8 children, 
on the wall near my mom's bed when she was in the final stages 
of Alzheimer's. I don't think she ever forgot us. 
Everything else, yes, but not us.

And this...how can I throw out McKay and Tyler's point chart?

This was my version of a chore chart. 
We used this for years and years. 
I would give them so many points for chores, or random things I wanted them to do for me. 
I'd say things like, "If you mop the kitchen floor I'll give you 50 points." 
Of course 50 points equaled 50 cents and they knew that, 
but 50 points sounded so much better.
And then they could cash their points in anytime they needed money. 

They also became very competitive with it....seeing who could get the most points. 

Looks like I may still owe McKay $1.50
(not sure what the 147.30 on the side is all about)



One of the very first things I thought after learning we were to 
move.... is how would I leave all the shelves in our garage 
that my BIL Dave Shepard and 
his incredibly good friend made for me?! 



He spent hours and hours and days and days putting these up all 
around our garage after Bill died.The items the shelves held are 
half packed, but we got SO much use out of them
But also, I often look at them 
and remember his example of service and love towards us. 
I will never ever forget that.



The realtors asked us to remove all family pictures 
before selling our house.We pretty much did, 
but since this was behind the bathroom door I kept it up. 
I wasn't ready to take it down.


My 4 sons and who they married above them. 
Those are the girls I prayed my boys to find one day.


And this gem. 


It was in the boys' bathroom throughout their childhood. 
I think they all could tell you the first line of this.

Bill use to wear this hat. 
It was part of who he was, and where he died.




As I was packing some of Den's things today I laughed 
when I saw this.

I had forgotten that years ago he actually needed a comb!
Filbert Avenue is where the rest of it all fell out.

Okay, that's enough for now.
Gotta get back to this.


The truth is I'd rather write or talk about packing, 
than actually do it.
But I still think packing is easier than getting ready for Christmas.

Before I go though, here's another distraction today, 
but a very good one to me.

Tyson McCauley, Amy, Logan, Chandler
They climbed Mt Whitney and they are on their way home!
I'm anxious to learn details.

I was relieved to see they are all still standing. 
I've heard it can be brutal. 14,500 ft high. 

The highest climb in all continental US.
Logan said for a short time he was the tallest man in 48 states. 

I've read that many do not make it to the top but I would love to know the stats on that. 
So far I can't seem to find that info on google. 




Wonders of this past week #2

Things happen everyday that I either learn or notice, 
and I wish to remember....
so here are some from this past week:

1.  A good meal when we have a large group is make-it-yourself-
tostados. But this last time, I couldn't find the regular tostado shells 
I usually buy and bought these instead....and they were SO much 
better. I don't know about your store, but I found these right with 
the fresh tortillas (rather than in the Mexican section of the store.)




I also learned that shredded cabbage tastes better on tostados than 
lettuce! The clerk at Vons suggested this when they were out of the 
lettuce. She said I will never go back. I think she's right.




2. I see some of nephew Jake in my grandson Richie. 
Especially looking back when Jake was that age. Interesting how 
genetics work. 




3. Speaking of Jake, he gave me a good website for ordering 
special paintings and pictures of Christ. Cultural hall.com

4. Since both Logan and his friend Matt McCauley's wives were 
out of town last Sunday, Karen invited them over for dinner. 
Chandler too. What turned out to be a surprise to us, in talking to 
Matt about the house we will soon be moving into....he said he did 
the landscaping for it! He even said he would send me the plans so 
I would have them. And he did!

Chander, Matt McCauley, Logan


5. Karen and Tyler introduced me to an iphone app: turboscan
SO we gave it a try and took my Mom's 1st grade picture and 
scanned it using my phone. I could not believe how simple it was! 
And here all this time I thought I needed to spend lots of $$$ and 
buy another scanner since mine died many months ago.

Looking at Mom's teacher, Mrs Faye, Mom is 4th girl to the right. Looking at my Mom, 
her cousin Helen is 2 girls to the left. Interesting to me because Mom use to talk often 
how her cousin got all the nice clothes and curls and bows in her hair. The contrast is 
apparent in this picture with Mom wearing what looks like a zip up sweater and flat hair. 
Must have been particularly difficult for my Mom being the 2 cousins and their families 
shared a small house together!

6. Violet is old enough now to join us in our annual tea party with Elora, Erin and her mom. Our tenth year!

Our new little princess Violet decided to rest a bit,
until the manager came along and told her she needed to sit up!




7. Last week when Amy was in Utah, she sent this picture to Logan:
In reference to Jonas, Logan texted back:

8. I have a regret. When Heidi G was here this week she was 
talking about the bunkbeds Tyler and McKay had growing up. 
Bunk beds? They had bunk beds??

If I could go back in time I would take a picture of each of my 
sons on their birthdays IN THEIR BEDROOMS. I wouldn't 
clean up the room but just take a picture of them in it as it was. 
That would have shown a lot about who they were at those 
ages....surrounded by the things they love and the projects they 
were working on at the time. I wish I wish I had.

9. And my biggest worry of the week goes to Amy, Logan and 
Chandler. They left yesterday morning to hike Mount Whitney. 

No phone reception, no outside contact for 5 days. 
We won't know how they are until they return on Friday. 

Look what happened last night

  Just a little pre-graduating gathering for our DIL Amy.... Not everyday a Mom of 7 and a Grandma of 7, graduates from college. It was not ...