Trip to Newport Beach

We took a short vacation to Newport Beach with our St George friends. John and Nicholle Alexander, a great time was had by all. One day was spent at the treasure island section of Laugna Beach. The section of beach is exceptional, with huge waves that were curling over causing a pipe before crashing onto the beach.

The area is heavily eroded with arches and other cool features along the shore. The State has made the area very nice by placing seats on the top of the bluffs, and wonderful landscaping with many trails and lots of flowers.

The Newport Beach Temple is very unusual in that it looks like a old Spanish Mission with a Angel Moroni on the Top.

We spent a day at Knots Berry Farm Amusement Park. It has been a long time since we were there and the admission was really inexpensive $ 24.00 for kids and seniors. We have been to Micky Mouse land so many times that it was nice to go somewhere different.

There is a kind of Ghost Town Theme in the Park. Mom was bad so She was put in Jail. There is some kind of show to see every hour. We went to the Snoopy Show and then Western Shootout, that had lots and lots of gun battles and fist fights.

There are lots of roller coasters that are really cool. John and I went on Montezuma's Revenge, Accelerator, Silver Bullet and the Horse Rider. Marlene liked the log flume she went several times. Old women are not brave enough to go on any good rides. We all had a good time but is is sure nice to be home here in St George

Fifty Years

My wife and I celebrated fifty years of marriage last week. It was wonderful to have all of our children, their spouses and almost all of our grandchildren here in St George. Cody is away to school in Northern Idaho. We did some very special things. We all went to the St George Temple to remember that day many years ago when Marlene and I made those covenants with The Lord that started our life together a husband and wife. That evening there was a Open House where we visited with many of our friends.

Our Children were wonderful, they did so much for us. Angel made a very special Wedding Cake. Todd took pictures of the family and at the open house. It has been many years since We were able to be all together to have a family picture. Melody and Tara did the decorations of the Club House for the Reception and everyone helped with a family dinner that we had prior the the Open House.

We are so blessed to have our special Family, and that we were all able to get together and enjoy each others company at this time. There is a lot of love in our homes.

This and That

Saturday there was some big doings at Hurricane. They celebrate their annual Peach Days. When the Pioneers first settled the area they planted many peaches here. The Church Welfare Program now has a huge orchard there. Peach Days is the biggest event of the year for the folks there.

Mom normally doesn't like country music but the was enthralled by a band that was playing. They were called the Country Classic band. She sat for almost the whole program with a smile on Her face not saying anything, for Her that is amazing. The group was really good, mild classic music.

I think the reason that she is starting to enjoy this kind of music is because of the style of LOUD screaming music that is popular today. Two weeks ago we went to a concert at Dixie State College The band was outside but We had to leave right after we got there because the music was so loud and that I was starting to get dizzy.

We were walking around when we say a large group of people and what sounded like a whole lot of Crickets. It was very strange, as We went over we came across many Kids with hammers pounding nails. They were building wooden boats and periscope boxes. The folks from Home Depot was sponsoring a program for the kids. There must have been one hundred plus of little kids in Home Depot aprons having the time of their lives pounding nails.

Our garden is producing many many tomatoes much more than we can eat. I put on my apron to make "Salsa" I put in tomatoes, green peppers, jalapenos peppers, onions, ect. We lovingly put it all in pint jars and canned it. We opened the first bottle the next morning for breakfast thinking how good it would be. It tasted like tomato sauce. I thought there must be some way to fix up so I put some cinnamon, cloves and sugar in the bottle of supposed salsa. It still didn't taste like salsa but it was good. I guess it is true that a spoon full of sugar does make the medicine go down.

Special gifts for our 50th

Marlene and I have talked about what kind of Gift we should give so as to make our fifty years together special, something that would be a lasting memorial of the great times that We have spent together. We have looked around and found what we consider to the best thing.

In our old age, We have become collectors of beautiful things, so when we saw this Llydro of a Mother and Child at a consignment store, We had to have it.

It is really a wonderful piece of art work with much detail

Mom wanted to be sure that when I took the photos that I did not shoot at a angle that would show the boy parts. I told her that that was what baby boys have, but I still was careful about the photo.

While We were making the transaction of obtaining the Llydro. I was looking around and saw this Tureen and Platter combination for only $16.00. The Duck also now has a new home. It will have a place of honor in the center of our Kitchen Table.

So our Home in St George will become even more special because Mom and I are getting so old

Mom and Melody on the beach at Sand Hollow State Park

Melody, Marty and Kids came to visit us on the way back to Sandy from California. It was good to have them come to our home in St George.

Stuart heard that his Mission Call had been delivered to Sandy while they were on vacation with Roy and Angel's Family. They went back to Sandy Saturday Morning and Stuart had a Family gathering Sunday afternoon, which we were able to attend with the miracle of Streaming on the Internet. He is going to go to the Washington, Everett Mission. He will enter the Mission Home on the 16th of November. Bruce was really excited. He served in the Washington, Seattle Mission, that is next to the Mission that Stuart had been called to. We are so proud as Grandparents to have our Grandsons go out in the World to teach the Gospel.

Breakfast at Grandma and Grandpa's House

There is a new version of "Joseph Smith the Prophet of the Restoration" movie now being shown at the Church Visitor Centers including the one here at the St George Temple. It was great to be able to watch while they were here. When the movie was over we went to the Town Square park where Jim had a couple of rides on the "Merry Go Round". The old historical Judd Store is just across the street from the park. They have a lot of old time and unusual bottled soft drinks, as well as really good Ice Cream. Most of the Group got a scoop of the Ice Cream but Andy wanted a bottle of "Lenionade" the Russian soft drink.

Melody wanted to go to the Beach at Sand Hollow. Marlene did some swimming while the boys made sand castles. It is really nice as the pink sand dunes flow in to the lake.

We had some fun playing games with every one before going to bed. It gets a little busy when we have family visit but we love it.

The Narrows

The Narrows in Zion National Park

It has been more than twenty five years since Marlene I had been on the hike to the Narrows.

It is a easy, mostly level, hike of a little more than a mile. The canyon walls in many places were wet from moisture flowing through the sand stone walls. The walk is shaded by the cliffs as the canyon narrows. There is all kinds of ivy and moss on the vertical walls. The temperature is cool as one walks in the shadows of the narrow canyon.

The Virgin river flows closely by the trail with cascades and blue pools of cold mountain water. The Park service has made many access places to go down on the riverside where you can enjoy the water.

Riverside Walk ends at Narrows. The walls come very close together and to progress any further you have to wade in the river. The water was pretty cold and the stream bed was all rocky with lots of cobbles making is hard to walk. We hiked several crossings of the river until the canyon was so narrow that the only way to continue was to stay in the river.

The walls close in and the river becomes deeper. I went to the point where I could see some of the hikers up to their waist in water at that point I went back. It was cool to stand in the water where Zion Canyon is so narrow and look up at the walls.

The Trip is one that everyone should make at least once in their life. We loved being there in such a peaceful and beautiful place.

Clay and more fun times in St George

Clay, Allison and their family came to visit us here in St George for several days last week. We had a busy time with lots of fun things to do.

The City of St George's Parks and Recreation Department is very busy in finding innovative things for the folks here to do. The "Sunset on the Square" takes place every other Friday night.

Every one brings blankets or lawn chairs and enjoys a movie in Town Square Park. They have just acquired a old rebuilt Carousal for the kids to ride on. Their are group games to play before the movie starts. The "Blue Bunny Ice Cream Company", their factory is here in St George, supplies cheap Ice Cream.

We watched the Movie "Fly Boys" a new soon to be distributed movie made here in St George. It was pretty good, lots of action. Aaron really liked it because it was about a couple of kids being forced to fly and land a airplane after everyone else bailed out.

The Clay Glad's like to go to Sand Hollow lake while they are here. It is very unusual in that a large sand dune ends up in the lake. The contrast between the red sand and the blue water is very nice. The lake is quite shallow by the dune and it takes a long walk in the water to have the water come up to your shoulders, which is very good for little kids. The water is also quite warm, The lake water was almost 90 degrees when we were there.

One of the best places to visit in Zion National Park is Weeping Rock. The water from rain and snow melt, on the top of the Canyon Percolates through the sandstone until it reaches a different layer of rock that is harder and then it comes out through the interface between the two types of rock causing a area where the water drips out over a shallow cavity. The water is very pure after being filtered though the sand stone for such a long distance. They have done a study where they used the permeability of the stone and the height of the rock to come up with the time for the water to move from the top of the cliff through the stone and come out at at the bottom of the canyon, some where around 1,000 years.

We left the kids in the care of Cody and went to Tuachan to see the musical "Grease" it was very good. They several used old cars from the sixty's as props for many of the scenes. They used a picture of "South High School" , where I went, for a backdrop. The music was great but I have always been uncomfortable with the theme of the show, since I was a child of that age and did not like ending where Sandy let Her standards down.