It is now December

Since the last blog, I have had a new grandson, Jackson Kyle Brown born on October 26, 2009 in Orem, UT. Cyndie and Kyle's first. They had one hour notice before going in for a C-section because Cyn had preeclampsia. What a scare. I raced down to Orem and stayed with her for one week. Most of the time was spent in the hospital and I was not much help other than to provide moral support for Cyn. Poor Baby, she had a rough go of it for the first time around. Jackson is beautiful. He looks a lot like Kyle, blond hair and blue eyes but we don't know if he will change color as time goes on. He is such a sweetie.



We all went to Tonie's for Thanksgiving. Robbie and Tracy came with "the boys", aka Vinney and Mikey. Simon also came with us. They enjoyed the trip more than being kenneled in Boise, I think. They all rode well. We had dinner at Tonie's and then played the rest of the week-end. On Saturday, we went to Park City because I had never been to Park City. It seems silly since I grew up visiting SLC all the time. I just never went up the Canyons unless it was to visit Aunt Claire at her cabin. I do not remember which Canyon her cabin was in. I do remember that she taught me how to play rummy. OOOOH, playing cards were "bad" in our home but Aunt Claire played them.

We watched the BYU v. Utah game with Tonie. She was the only Ute fan and BYU WON!!! I did not appreciate the words spoken by Hall, BYU's quarterback. I also did not like the fact that he got into a couple of scuffles. Oh well, he needs to control his emotions better I think. In any event, it was really fun to watch. an EXCITING FOOTBALL GAME. Right after the game, Robb, Simon and I packed up and left for Boise. Robbie and Tracy and the boys left before us. it is nice to have cell phones as we kept in contact all the way home. Robbie, going ahead of us, warned us of the fog and other road conditions, such as "Smokies" out on the road. Robbie was not speeding so he did not get pulled over - - we count our lucky stars for that. We all got home after midnight.

Now it is "Championship Saturday" for NCAA football. BSU is playing New Mexico State and it should be a win for Boise State. Then BSU will find out if it is invited to play in a BCS bowl or what happens next with the football program. I will have to find out what happens with BYU's bowl games also. I don't know if Utah will get invited but of course we would cheer for them if they get to play. lots of games are being played today. I guess you can tell that I like football. I like it at the NCAA level and the NFL level. BUT, the basketball season is going already and some of the teams are playing. I could be a regular sports couch potato if I did not do anything else.

Oh, Robb has been called as the new Sunday School President for our ward. A new teacher will be called to be the Gospel Doctrine teacher, the calling he has had for about eight years. It will be different. I tease him because he gets to ring the bell to dismiss Sunday School classes. :) I have been asked to substitute for a Relief Society lesson in two weeks but other than that, I continue to work as one of the Humanitarian reps. for our ward.

We got a new bishopric. The old bishopric was Bishop St. John, Dennis Wallace, and Bro. Van Leuven. Now the new bishop is Greg Schley, with counselors, Bro. Van Leuven and Bro. Tobiason. We will see what new changes occur in the ward with the new bishopric. There are always changes.

Well, I better scoot.

WOW, HOW TIME FLIES!!

I noticed that my last post was in June. Since then many things have happened. Buster passed away on July 13 from Lymphoma. We have missed him tremendously as he use to greet us at the door. It is amazing how we get attached to our pets. I look at his sweaters occasionally now and still miss him. July was Robb's birthday, Tonie's birthday and Robbie's birthday. Whew! Then on to August. In August we had our anniversary but we were not able to go to the temple as planned becuase Robb was sick. Oh well, another time we keep saying. We were going to go to Twin Falls and go through the new temple.

In September, on the 4th, Robbie got married to his sweatheart, Tracy. We are so excited and we had a fun time. They got married at the Warm Springs Chapel and Bishop St. John of the Bitteroot Ward did the wedding ceremony. Bishop St. John is our bishop now and has know Robbie since Primary. After the wedding, we all went to Barber Park Pavilion. Irene traveled from Page with her decorating things and made the place look beautiful. Pictures were taken and food was shared. I think everyone enjoyed themselves. Now it is the end of SEptember. Cynthia had her birthday and Kyle's birthday is coming up. My visiting teachers, Betty Bufford and Glenna Mavencamp are doing a baby shower for Cynthia on Saturday, October 10, 2009 from 1- 2:30. It will be at the Relief Society room and we will have fun. Cyn and Kyle and Tonie are all coming home for that. After ths shower, we will wait for Baby Brown to arrive.

Tomorrow I am involved in the Idaho Inclusiveness Coalition Symposium. I will be so glad when Friday comes. I will be able to get back to work on my regular work. I have been concentrating on the IIC stuff.

Well, I better get going now. Bye.

Father's Day, 2009

Robb and I had such a wonderful week-end with our children. It was sort of a family reunion for the Robb and Sarah Fisher family. Tonie came from SLC, Kyle and Cyn came from Provo, and Robbie and Tracy joined in the festivities. Tracy got her engagement ring from Robbie and they are set to wed in September. The ring is beautiful.

We went to the golfing range and hit some buckets of balls. We were all sore from that for the next day. We then went to the opening night ball game for the Boise Hawks. The Hawks need a bit of work. They made as many errors as they did runs and lost the ball game. We will attend again on the fourth of July, so we can watch fireworks from the stands, and to see if there has been any improvement. On Sunday we built a fire in our fire circle in the back yard and enjoyed making smores and visiting. We had BBQed ribs for dinner and really enjoyed ourselves.

It is really enjoyable to have the family visiting and having fun together. This is our dream come true. We will have more fun events this summer. Kyle and Cyn are returning to Boise next week end becuase Kyle's grandfather died and his funeral is on Friday. Tonie will be coming home on the fourth of July week-end so we can finish a quilt for her friend Sara. I have had the quilt "in process" for many many years and I think Sara has probably forgotten what t-shirts she gave me to make the quilt. I need to get busy and finish all the promised and planned quilt.

We do have some bad news. Buster, our dog of seven years has been diagnosed with lymphoma that has spread throughout his body. The prognosis is not good. His life is shortened but we will keep him at home until he is in too much pain. We will have him put down at that time. The vet does not think he will last more than one month but he seems to be really spry for such an ominous diagnosis.

Next week-end is the Bernard and Realla Fisher reunion and we have invited Dad Fisher's siblings to come and share family history information with us. It will be nice and we are looking forward to the get together. Our family needs to bring salads to the dinners. I just hope it is not too stormy or hot. We have had both sides of the temperature spectrum thus far this Spring.

We are Blessed.

Fishing Trip to Arrowrock Dam, ID

Well, we went Fishing. See Tracy's arms and Robbie's face. They are so sunburned and Tracy's arms look very painful. Robbie and Tracy took Robb and I fishing at Arrowrock Dam. I have not been fishing. Robbie got me a fishing pole for Mother's day and a fishing trip. We spent hours at the side of the lake and caught a few. I caught one but it was larger than I could hold and it broke my line when it got away. I caught another one, a lake trout. Robbie caught one and released it because it was small. Tracy hit the jackpot. One got away, several nibbles, and three fish. Robb did not get a catch because he had to seek shelter under the tree to get out of the sun. I really enjoyed the fishing but I know that we will take the canopy the next time we go. It was so peaceful to spend time by the lake. Very relaxing and took my mind off work and other concerns while I sat there. I know that Robb and I will go again. In fact, we are going to Lucky Peak for the next trip. That is only 30 minutes away. Arrowrock was way past Lucky Peak where the road changed from asphalt to dirt/gravel. I don't know how far but when you go past asphalt, it suddenly becomes a more remote area. It was very remote, no latrines, water, or anything. You had to bring everything in and take everything out. How I am thankful for bathrooms!!! I want to go to Hell's Canyon to do some fishing. Tracy says they have really good facilities along with shade and good fishing. I think Robb and I have found something we enjoy and will pursue together. I want to go camping and get all excited and then Robb brings me back to reality and says that my kind of camping is a king sized bed in an air conditioned hotel somewhere in the mountains. Yup, he is correct.

Robb made some enchiladas after we returned home from fishing yesterday. He got the recipe from Cynthia. The only problem was that the enchiladas were so spicy hot that I could not eat it. Robb, Robbie and Tracy were able to get them down, but I gave up after 1/2 of one enchilada. Today I telephoned Cynthia. I was going to ask her if she used all the chipotle the recipe calls for in the sauce. Come to find out, she did not use any chipotle and only 1/2 of the green chiles. Then Robbie says that chipotles are grilled jalepenos(?)!! NO wonder they are HOT!!! In other words, she did not follow the recipe but adjusted it so the heat was not so intense. I kinda wished Robb would have known that before hand. The enchiladas smelled really good and looked super. The next time Robb make these, he will reduce the hot spices so I can enjoy them.

This is my Mother's day present. Robb decided I needed a new dress and I found one that I really liked. I went on-line first and found the dress. Then we went to the store and lucky for us, they had one in my size. That was easy shopping. I love the dress. This is in our backyard against the white lilacs. I am being sassy!!

Well, I better go now. talk to you later.

Kyle's Graduation

I bet you can guess where we went this last week-end. We had a fast and enjoyable trip to Provo for Kyle's graduation. He graduated with a Bachelor's in Math. Now they are on their way. We are so proud of him! Kyle and Cyn will stay in Provo for the time being. Kyle has a job working for BYU in their computer area at the Bookstore. They can stay in their nice apartment for a while longer. We are very proud of them. Actually I hope Kyle stays at BYU for years to come. I don't think you could find a better employer than the Church. The benefits of a learning environment will be great as well as the spiritual atmosphere that permeates the campus. WOW.

While in Provo, we stayed in a room that is called "The BYU room." Everything in the room was blue and white and BYU memorabilia. We felt like we were trapped in a time warp. The headboard had BYU in it and so did the foot board. The bed was about 36 inches off the ground and we had to use a three step ladder to get into bed. The walls were covered with all sorts of items from BYU. Even the closet rod was held up by a "Y" on each end. I think we decided that this was a once in a lifetime experience. We would rather have a more spacious room.

Unfortunately Tonie was not able to attend graduation. She was completing her papers and classes so she can graduate with an MSW in May. She is not going to walk the line or get hooded. This is a great sadness for her mother but Tonie does not like to do this. I will continue to work on her and maybe when she gets her Ph.D. she will walk the line if not for herself, for her parents who are busting their buttons with pride. She would have walked the line on the same night as Melissa (niece) is getting her Master's degree in Nursing. I don't think I will be able to get down to SLC but I always wish I could make it to all the special events for my nieces and nephews.

The next big event, after Tonie gets her MSW, is Robbie's wedding on September 4, 2009. We are excited to have Tracy join our family after all these years of dating. She is really sweet and is good for Robbie. They go together well.

My fruit trees are all blossoming. I took some pictures. This is the apple tree. What fun to see the beautiful blossoms. We really trimmed our apricot tree this year so I am not sure how much fruit we will get off of it. I also planted some raspberries so I hope they will grow and produce fruit. Yum! Yum!

Well, I better get to cooking dinner. Talk to you all later.

Yard work is here.

Well, today Robb was home from work before the sun went down. SO, we mowed the lawn, planted flowers, dug a hole for an extension on to our grape arbor and planted raspberries. I hope everything grows. I am replanting a lilac bush next to our bedroom window to make it easier to mow around. We really don't want to pay someone to mow the lawn every week but I think we will have to. We are so tired. And the big wheel on the lawnmower broke. Now we need to replace that. My Quaking Aspen is really growing and so are my fruit trees. Now if we can beat the squirrels and birds to the fruit, we will be excited. Our yard looks fantastic with Scott's Lawn care taking care of the fertilizer, weed treatment, and such.

Last week was Easter. We spent it by ourselves. Robb got a ham for dinner and we are still working on it now a week later. I think we have about 1/3 of the ham left. We have eating sandwiches and eating ham and eggs all week. Maybe it will last us through Tuesday evening because we are going to Provo on Wednesday. I am really excited about going down and seeing Kyle graduate. He has accomplished a lot by graduating from College. Now I hope he continues one with a Master's degree to something like that. Well, you know, my family is all about education to the max.

Speaking of school, I am half way through my graduate certificate for conflict resolution. I will be taking three week-end classes in June. I am anticipating that I will graduate in 2010. I love graduating in even years. Maybe by then BSU will have a Ph.D. in Public Affairs that I can take. If not, I am thinking about psychology second bachelor's degree. I will have to see. I sure get tired of working and school but I cannot stop.

The Idaho Human Rights Commission is having its 40th anniversary celebration on May 5, 2009. I made invitations for the event. Now I need to order dessert napkins with the 40th anniversary on it. Because the state does not give us any money, we are footing the bill ourselves. There are about four of us and others that are trying to do a nice affair.

I know I am going to feel really tired tomorrow and will ache. It is okay. As long as I can move, I will go to church. Well, I will leave this blog for this evening. catch ya all later.

Broken Windshield

Well, not getting full coverage insurance for the rental car finally caught up with us. While driving to SLC this last week, to be with Tonie, we must have been hit by a rock or something. The chip was on the edge of the window and then it cracked from there. I had to pay to replace the window on the rental car and thankfully, it was not as much as I was worried it would be. Out of all the trips I have taken, this is the first time there has been any incident of damage to the car. Whew! I can count my lucky stars that it was not worse.

On the way to SLC last Thursday evening, it rained and snowed. It was really difficult when trying to pass a semi on the road becuase they sent up such a spray of slush that it would cover the front window. The wipers could not keep the window clear. I had to brake several times becuase I could not see anything in front of me. Then when we, Robbie went with me, got into Utah, the road top is white and the lines on the road are white. I could not see the lane marking for the life of me. Robbie kept watch and would begin frantically saying, "you're over the line, you're over the line" or "lane marker! Lane marker!" I think he kept me from side swiping a couple of cars.

Tonie had surgery on Friday and she did well. She is recovering at home and feels so much better than she did before the surgery. Robbie, Cyn, Kyle, and I all met to keep her company while she convalesced. On Saturday, we watched conference together. Then Saturday evening we went to dinner at "DoDo's" a bistro named after the extinct bird. The desserts were to die for and we really enjoyed ourselves.

On Sunday, we watched the morning session of conference and then Robbie and I started our trek back to Boise. The roads were much better and I was driving in the daylight. The trip was uneventful. We got home in good time, turned the car in, and crashed for the evening.

This week, I am back to a normal schedule at work. How boring is that!! Ineed to put in some work days this month so I can bring up my stats for case processing. I think I have been enjoyoing myself for too long. Now I need to buckle down.

Robb is almost finished with tax season. YEAH!! I will get to see him more evenings. Right now he comes home, grabs a bit and hits the bed. Not much of a life. The rest of the year will be much better and he promises he won't put in so many hours next year. We will see when next year comes.

We are both very thankful we have jobs. The economy is so bad that people are losing jobs right and left. We are blessed. We hope the Lord continues to bless us as he has done. Take care. I better go now.

Salt Lake City and Back

Well, it is March! The days go by fast when I am having fun. This last week, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, I went to SLC to visit with Irene and Dennis. I also visited with my daughters, Tonie, Cyn and Cyn's hubby, Kyle. I was in SLC to sit with Irene while Dennis was in surgery at the VA. Besides that, we ate and played and visited. Irene and I visited a bunch at the hospital and Dennis came through surgery swimmingly. In fact, the people waiting in the surgery waiting room with us commented that we must not live close since we visited non-stop through the surgery. We told them where we lived. It was really fun to visit with the others waiting. One guy does a lot of crocheting. You would never guess he did that as a hobby because he looked like a biker. He made cartoon animals, rugs, afgans, doilies, etc., as a hobby. Irene was working on Keyah's quilt so that sparked a discussion on crocheting.

Tonie, Cyn, Kyle and I ate dinner at the Navajo Hogan. We had frybread. I like getting frybread if I can when I go to SLC. We visited for a long time and I think they were waiting for us to leave so they could close the restaurant. On Wednesday morning, Tonie and I had breakfast at the Oasis. This was a really neat place with a bookstore. I wish I had the time to spend in the bookstore because I like getting exotic gifts for my friends. I wanted to get a present for Tamara becuase she was going in for foot surgery on Thursday. Alas, I did not find anything really fast. Oh well, I will send her a card. I was also looking for something for Leslie, it is her birthday on Saturday. Yup, another card.

After breakfast with Tonie, I went to the hospital and visited with Irene and Dennis for a bit more before leaving. Dennis was doing very well. It is very fortunate when one does not smoke or drink -- much healther and recovery is so much faster. Thank heaven that we have the "wisdom word" to guide our lives.

I left SLC at about 3:30: On the way home, it started snowing. It snowed from just before Snowville until the junction near Burley. After that, it was raining all the way home. The most difficult part of driving was when the semis would pass and spray slush all over my windshield. Going 75 mph and not seeing anything in front of you is very disconcerting. I almost came to a stop after one such incident. And then I was very grateful that there were no cars behind me. Whew!

I have to go back to work tomorrow. I really do like my job. I really do like my job. I really do like my job. I have to convince myself before tomorrow morning so I can go in and do something productive. Actually, I read my e-mails today and I have a couple of offers and counter-offers to discuss with the parties. What I should really be feeling is gratitude for having a job. Many people are losing their jobs in this downturn in the economy. I worry about budget cuts and how it will affect my job. The legislature has already voted on an across the board pay cut of 3% for all state employees, which means me. Another 2% cutback is to be decided upon by each agency. I think we will be taking furloughs to make up the 2%. I am not happy about the pay cut but having a job is better than not having a job. I am glad that Robb loves his job and he can continue with his job during this turmoil. Finally, I am thankful that we have the family and friends that we have. I know that we have lots of help if we need it. We will weather the storm and come out on top.

The Sweet Sixteen finals playoffs are beginning tonight and I am now watching UConn and Purdue playing. They are about mid-way through the second half. I think UConn will win but Prudue is sticking to them. We will wait and see. I am really hoping and UNC wins the NCAA championship. Since both BYU and Utah lost their games, I have to switch teams. One of these days, Utah or BYU may make it pass the first and second rounds of the play-offs. Boise State, of course, did not make it either.

Robb is deep into tax season. I do not see him much during the daylight hours. He comes home anytime between 8:00 and 11:00 p.m. and leaves the house to be at work by 8:00. I have company at home though because Buster and Funky Mama are home and so it Sashi.

Well, I better fix dinner. Maybe Robb will be home in time to eat something before he goes to bed. Yummmm.