Facts From the Firths

Golfing and Beaching at Bear Lake

2009-08-01T14:36:00.000-07:00

Adri, Craig, and kids are in Utah. Since Kim and CJ were busy we took advantage of their cabin and went to Bear Lake. Linda and Boyd also came up and had a tee time at the Bear Lake Golf Course so Craig and I went golfing with them. What a beautiful day it was. The course was very busy, but we enjoyed it none-the-less. The next picture is where I out drove Boyd so I had to take a picture. Then I got pay-back for being so cocky. My next hit went about 20 feet to the right, and the next hit was about the same. I ate humble pie after that.

It was a beautiful day and was a lot of fun.

When we got back we loaded up for the beach. The kids had a ball. It was a little breezy, but that doesn't bother kids. They played in the sand and on the water tramp.

Back at the cabin the kids had a little "fool's paradise" upstairs. When they weren't at the beach some of them (Keaton) were in front of the TV watching videos. We just let them because life will change into the real world when we get home. Keaton and Klayson will start football on Monday and that practicing in the hot sun.

We love that Kim and CJ have the cabin and hope to get up there again before Adri and the kids go back.

Skimmin' at Bear Lake

2009-07-25T12:59:00.000-07:00

With Kim and CJ having fun at their annual Cannon Beach vacation, I told the kids we'd go to Bear Lake and stay at the cabin for a couple of nights and spend one day on the beach. My good friend, Rhonda, said she'd go with us so we left Sunday after church.

Rhonda and I got up early Monday morning and went golfing at the Bear Lake Golf Course, which used to be the Sweetwater Golf Course. It was a beautiful, cool morning and the course was way fun to golf. Rhonda asked me how we were going to get to the green after we teed off on hole #1. She was a little leary when I told her we would take the cart straight down. She thought that first ride down the hill was like the roller coaster at Lagoon. It was a great day to golf, and we even hit some good balls even though there were times we didn't know where the next green was hiding. (too bad I left my camera at the cabin)

The day at the beach was equally as fun. The kids were great. Livey just played in the sand and the older ones rode their skim boards. They got pretty good just skimming along in the ponds on the beach. They said the water was a little high in the lake for the boards. That was fine with me. They were easier to keep track of if they were in the ponds. They had to talk pretty hard to get me to try it, but I did--without much ability. Now if I were as good as Rhonda, I'd be professional. Actually, I'm almost a professional photographer to get such a realistic picture of her on the skim board. Notice, I didn't say 'skimming'!

We ended the stay with Klayson and Rhonda's favorite thing to do -- puzzles! Look carefully and you will see that it is a puzzle of Bear Lake.

So close, Yet so far away!

2009-07-08T19:18:00.000-07:00

You can't beat a $5.00 game of golf so Rhonda and I have been trying to get out and practice. There's nothing better than being on the course in the cool morning air. The only thing that could be better is to have a good game, but it only takes one good hit to get me coming back. That good, no, for me I should say "great" hit came today on hole #8. It is a 3 par, but I still decided to use my driver because I don't alway hit so well. I have been slicing a lot to the right so I turned my body a little and let it fly. It sounded great and as I followed the ball I could tell it was a great hit. It was just five inches from being a "hole in one." I even have pictures to prove it. It will probably be the closest thing to a "hole in one" for me. And, yes, that one great hit will bring me back another day.

Sew Cute!

2009-05-24T17:32:00.000-07:00

Well, Kim inspired me. I hadn't sewn for years, but when I saw the cute skirt Kim made for OK and the fabric she got for KB a skirt I decided I needed to make one for myself. So she and I made a trip to Sew and Save (that's a misnomar) and I got me some fabric, etc. When I say "etc." I didn't realize "etc." was so many other things. I had forgotten that it takes so many extras to sew something.

I had to have the store clerk help me figure everything I needed. I hadn't sewn clothes for years, (not since the kids were little and would still wear what I made) so I had forgotten how to read a pattern and really had to refresh my memory on putting in a zipper.

The pattern is what blew me away--it was $11.49. I remember when an expensive pattern was $2.50. Now I sound like my dad. He bought a spool of thread once for $.65 so I could fix his pants and thought that was outrageous. He thought thread still cost a nickle.

Anyway, I got busy and finished the skirt. I got the zipper in on the second try and didn't have to unpick any seams. That is pretty good!

Go Green

2009-05-18T20:04:00.000-07:00

I decided I would do my part preserving the earth's resources. I have always saved aluminum cans and newspapers when we take the paper. A few months ago Tremonton City put up bins where we could recycle plastic so all my plastic has been recycyled. I saw a composter advertised on Costco so I decided I would try my hand at compost. I hate throwing away food that could be used in compost so I sent for the composter. Little did I know it would come in a 'thousand' pieces.

It really wasn't too difficult to put together as I followed the directions step by step. It is a sphere and should be quite easy to move. All I have to do is roll it to where I want it once I get compost made.

Here it is. I was quite proud of myself, because I did it by myself.

Easter Comes

2009-05-18T19:49:00.000-07:00

We went to Virginia for Easter and had such a great time. I was going to post it all, but time just got away from me. The kids got some sidewalk chalk for Easter and while Adri, Sharma, and I were in the kitchen and Craig, his dad, LaMar, and Lloyd were in front of the TV, the kids had a ball. They were outside, unsupervised and going to town with the chalk. They made a line from one end of their block to the other end with stops of different colors inbetween. I loved to see them be able to be outside and be kids but their parents were not too pleased. This is the extent of their fun which you can see was nothing to get excited about. They were good to clean it up. In fact, I think they had as much fun cleaning as making.

Here are more pictures of Easter.

Busy in St. George

2009-03-12T17:12:00.000-07:00

We have been busy. We got a hide-a-bed out and a futon in. At first I was disappointed with the college look of the futon, but after buying some pillows to color it up I liked it. I especially like that we have more space in that small room.

After the futon, we decided we needed a taller toilet. So Bob-the-Builder replaced it for us. To go with the new toilet we decided we needed new deck carpet, of course. So we replaced the carpet on the deck. Lloyd was just a little hesitant because he thought we would add on, but we are not going to do that. Our place is small, but it is enough for the two of us for the amount of time we spend here.

We have had teal carpet inside since we bought the place. It wasn't worn at all, but just a little out of date so we decided to order new inside carpet. After we ordered it I had second thoughts. The teal color is really quite relaxing. Here is Lloyd in his new chair (oh, I forgot that we also bought a new recliner this year--the one that was here was so uncomfortable) just relaxing, proving what I said about the teal carpet being quite a relaxing color.

Well, I chose a carpet with a fleck of red (for the couch), blue, green (for the drapes) and gold. I put it against the cupboards and it looked good. Today they brought it and laid it out. I was a little nervous about the look. It was really quite colorful. I wanted something like Kim's and Adri's with just a fleck here and there. This looks like confetti! It isn't exactly what I wanted, but it looks very nice and I like it. It must be a relaxing color, too, because here is Lloyd just relaxing again in his new recliner. Imagine that!

Andrew is One today!

2009-03-10T09:58:00.000-07:00

Our youngest grandchild, Andrew, is one today. How time does fly. A year ago I was back in Virginia to help Adri with the kids when she came home from the hospital. This first picture is when Andrew was five days old. What a cutie Grandma thinks he is.

They came again in August and then surprised us at Christmas. Andrew, of course, had changed so much. These are Christmas pictures. The smile on his face is what he has all the time. He is such a good boy; always happy and smiley. We're going out in April to see them and I can hardly wait to mug them up a little.

Let the Sunshine In

2009-03-05T11:00:00.000-08:00

We have made a few attempts to come to St. George and stay more than a few days, but those attempts failed. Lloyd was still having problems with his blood pressure dropping, so after two falls I said we were going home. At least at home, if he fell he wouldn't hit something, whereas in St. George the place is so small he was pretty banged up after the falls. This looks good compared to what he DID look like.

With the chemo working its way out of his system, he is getting better with each passing day, so we decided to try it again. Who wouldn't feel better with bright, sunny days.

Oops! Too much water for St. George. I'm pretty sure this is Hawaii! Not bad though. Because there is a lighthouse in the picture, Kim thought it was the Oregon Coast. I'm here to tell her lighthouse or not, it is Kauai, Hawaii. And just to prove to her that I knew my pictures, I put another one in to convince her. Sue and Ashley are on the beach in Hawaii. Notice the palm trees, Kim.

Now this is Southern Utah. I couldn't find the most recent blue skies and red hills so I went back a couple of years when Kennedy was down and we went out to Zions. She is a couple of inches taller now, and her grandpa is a few pounds lighter with no hair at all.

I have never absolutely loved to spend months in St. George because I was never busy enough. These few weeks have been different. Since not being down for so long, there is plenty to do. The carpet on the decks was absolutely rotted away. It really needed to be replaced so we contacted our repairman,

Bob the Builder. He took off all the railings and led us to a carpet layer. We chose some carpet to go with the exterior of the house and it was laid the next day. We are really pleased with how it looks. Of course, anything was better than the rotted stuff we had before.

Through a friend we found another guy who does yard work so Lloyd contacted him and he took out the little bit of grass on one side of the house. He will replace it with small rocks and that way the new carpet will still get the direct sun, but not the water, too.

Next, we ordered new carpet for the inside. I really hate to see the 'teal' carpet go (not), but you gotta do what you gotta do. I'm excited for the new look.

The sun was so bright and it was so warm I decided we needed a 'color spot' so I bought some plants and put a planter together. Lloyd wondered who would water it all summer, but I let him know that it was coming home with us. I think I'll be able to keep it alive until I can put it on the deck in Tremonton.

Out with the old and in with the New

2009-01-01T18:09:00.000-08:00

The morning before the plane left.

Well, the Sleights headed back for Virginia and we were all sad to see them go. It was so fun to have the whole family here for Christmas. The tree is down and pack away for another year and the lights are half down and just waiting for a warmer day to take down the others.

We rang in the New Year at Kim's cabin in Bear Lake. Lloyd stayed home, but I decided Bear Lake with family sounded a lot more fun than sitting in front of the TV, and it was. Surprisenly, there wasn't enough snow to sleigh ride or snowmobile so we spent the evening putting together puzzles and playing games. Our favorite puzzle was the one of "Bear Lake" and our favorite game was Bananagram. We all had to use our brains (which was especially good for me) and figure out the words we could make with the letters we were given. It was really fun.

I called it a night about 10:30 and the others turned in about 11:00. We know the new year came, but we didn't ring it in. I hope 2009 is as good to us as 2008.

Fun and games at the cabin on New Year's Day!

Best Christmas Ever

2008-12-26T18:28:00.000-08:00

One week before Christmas our doorbell rang at 9:15 A.M. I asked Lloyd if he was going with Dick that early. On the way to the door I heard jingle bells ringing and when I opened the door we got a great surprise. There on the steps were Adri and her three kids! They had flown in from Virginia and Ashley and Kim had picked them up the night before. All the family had known they were coming and they had all kept it a secret since October.

This is ALS, the youngest.

What a fun Christmas it has been with all of us here.

Just a Normal Life

2008-11-04T09:30:00.000-08:00

What do you write that is exciting to read when what we are doing is quite boring and depressing. We go to chemo every other week. Some weeks are okay and others are weeks from hell. It seems like if it isn't one thing to worry about, it is another. But enough of that.

I got my Christmas lights up last week. I know, it was only the last of October, but the weather was beautiful and I knew I didn't want to put them up by myself in the cold. I called Kim and told her that if she would help me put them up I would help her. Lloyd couldn't possible do it this year and CJ never cares about Christmas lights, so she agreed. The weather was great and it took us less than an hour to do it all. Ashley called while we were putting them up. She couldn't believe that I was getting them up so early. I'll tell you what I told her, "I'm putting them up, that doesn't mean I'm turning them on." Besides that, KSL started playing Christmas music Nov. 1st.

OK was our helper. We had to go to Bothwell to get a ladder so I had the truck doors open as I looked for something or other. During that time OK climbed into the truck and donned her grandpa's straw work hat. She thought she looked quite stunning, and I though she looked cute. She really is a bright spot in our life.
K3was over the other day and wanted to take some pictures. These are a few of his pics. I think he has a real future in photography. The big girl in the pictures was proud of herself that day. She came to give me the 'letter to parents' that said she had passed her Hunter Safety Test. Her mom was proud of her, too.

Just one more of K3's pictures. This is how Lloyd spends most of his day--in the chair with a blanket over him because he is freezing. The forty pounds he has lost shows in his face. We are like Jack Sprat and his wife.

Family Foto Fiasco

2008-08-22T17:21:00.000-07:00

Hurray! The whole family was going to be here for one week in August, so I thought we needed a family picture. Every one of the girls said let's not do it because they were too fat. I told them that we're all fat, but we're doing it anyway. I made the arrangements for the place, photographer, and made sure that everyone would be here on the arranged night. It was a beautiful night, no wind, not too hot, and no mesquitoes.

The cutest grandkids in the world.

Ashley and Jayden arrived first and instead of walking down the steps he chose to roll down the hill in his cute picture clothes. Then Adri's family came and Lizzie pranced around holding out her dress like a princess. Finally after football practice, Kim's family arrived and Klayson chose to roll down the hill in his good clothes. I guess that is just the thing six year olds do.

The two that I wasn't worried about at all were the two that were not happy at all. Andrew is always the best baby, but I guess he was just tired because he was fussy and unhappy. He cried so hard it upset Lizzie and she started to cry. Miss OK is always so cute and loves for me to hold her, but she didn't get a nap that day so she was ONERY! All she wanted to do was jump on the trampoline.

Even though it was a fiasco, the pictures turned out great. If it were too easy, it wouldn't be a "family" picture, right?

Lizzie Loves New Look -- NOT!!!

2008-08-22T17:00:00.000-07:00

All of the "K" children were going to get their school haircuts and since Lizzie was here, she decided to go with them and get her "kindergarten trim." She is always a little hesitant with new experiences, but the K's talked her into it.
Lizzie has a naturally curly hair, so Mandy had to straighten it before she could cut (trim) it.
Sitting in the chair Lizzie was fine with the new look. Mandy straightened it, trimmed it, and then twisted the bang area and put a bobby pin in to hold it in place. Sometime during the process Lizzie didn't like what she saw in the mirror. As soon as she got out of the chair she went over to Kim and put her head in Kim's lap and started to cry. Finally, Kim was able to find out what was wrong -- it was too tight and the bobby pin hurt her head. But I guess that wasn't quite all because by the time she got to my house she was in tears again and went straight to the bathroom to slick the front down with water.
The new look was cute on her, but we all agreed that we love her curls the best. It's curls for kindergarten!

Little Lloyd

2008-08-13T15:21:00.000-07:00

If any of you readers have ever seen a picture of Lloyd as a toddler then you would know why I titled this posting "Little Lloyd". This picture of our latest grandchild is the spittin'-image of his grandpa as a baby. Notice the features--they are the same. If I gave "Little Lloyd" some gray hair and put some glasses on his nose you wouldn't know who was who -- maybe!

Sleightly Crazy over Corn

2008-08-13T09:27:00.000-07:00

Whoever knew corn would be such a big hit with the Sleights. Lizzie loves it. The other night she ate five pieces. Adri bought some last night and while Kim and Lizzie were husking it, Lizzie and Ry said they were hungry so Kim told them to have a piece. Here they are eating raw corn. Of course, whatever someone does Livie thinks that she needs to do it too, so she grabbed a piece and polished it off.

Adri was worried there were pesticides in the corn because it raw. We need to get that city girl back on the farm.

Bear Lake -- Kids have fun no matter what.

2008-08-13T08:49:00.000-07:00

Adri and Craig and their family were all here visiting, so we decided to take advantage of Kim and CJ's toys and spend the day in Bear Lake. They all went up the night before and stayed in the cabin, and Lloyd and I brought Keaton up the next morning.

These boys know that a little cooperations

will get them to the beach faster.

Keaton had football practice the night before.
Linda, my sister, Boyd, and Robyn and girls stayed in their cabin the night before, and then we all met at the beach the following morning. As you can see from

the picture, the boat docking did not go so well. CJ must have picked a spot with soft sand because he could not get the truck and boat to move. The more he tried, the more the wheels sunk in the sand. They got a tractor from Ideal Beach area and he tried to pull both the truck and boat trailer out, but without any luck. The brakes on the boat trailer must have locked because it would not move. With the help of some good Samaritans, they finally pushed and pulled the truck out, then unhooked the boat and got it off the trailer, then pulled the trailer out. It all sounds like it was rather easy, but it was not!

Even though the adults were quite concerned about the truck and boat, the kids ran to the water and enjoyed every minute of the day. Craig and Adri bought a big water trampoline for the kids to play with, and it was the hit of the day--even for the adults.

We really had a great day at the beach. It is always fun to be with family. Even the food tasted good, although every once-in-a-while you'd hit a grain of sand between your teeth.
Adri hopes she and the kids can get up again before they leave.

Short Stay in Sunriver

2008-08-03T16:10:00.000-07:00

Lloyd and I were invited to go to Sunriver, Oregon, with Ashley, Nikole, and Jayden. I took them up on the offer, but Lloyd opted to stay home and farm.

Sunriver is about seven miles south of Bend. It was a very ugly ride from Boise to Bend, but really pretty as we got to our destination. Sunriver is situated up in the mountains surrounded by pines. It is by the Deschuttes River.

Nikole had meetings, so she rented a house, which as you can see, had a hot tub. That is where Jayden spend most of his time, and we frequented it quite a bit, also. It got rather chilly at night and was very chilly in the mornings so it was nice to warm up in the hot tub.

The first picture was the back deck with the hot tub, and this is the front deck. You can see that it is heavily wooded with pines.

Ashley and I would take a walk in the mornings while Nikole and Jayden would ride down to the bakery and get their treats for breakfast. The next picture shows the "spare tire doughnut" that Jayden chose for his breakfast.

There were several miles of bike paths which were paved and flat. Ashley, Jayden, and I rode about 10 miles of it one day which took us past the golf course, stables, swimming pool, equestrian park, and the airport. It was fun and Jayden was a trooper, (of course, he was on a trailer bike in back of Ashley so if he got tired all he had to do was to stop peddling and let her do the work). It was nice and flat and we all enjoyed the ride.

Before we left we stopped at Trader Joe's and stocked up on a "few" things. Two of which were foot-high basil plants. They made the car smell good, but we were pretty tightly packed on the way home as you can see by the picture. Nikole and Ashley were troopers. They took the back seat with Jayden while I enjoyed a nice, quiet ride in the front all the way home. It was a fun get-a-way.

All Things Bright and Beautiful

2008-07-21T11:19:00.000-07:00

I decided we all need something else to look at rather than Lloyd's stomach. My yard looks good this year so I decided I would share it with others.

Our neighbor used to have a Trumpet Vine that climbed a telephone pole in our backyards. It always attracted a lot of hummingbirds. It was fun to watch them fly in for the nector. But, the vine died and now there are no more hummingbirds to watch. I do have another little two-legged creature that frequents my backyard and is a whole lot more fun to watch. She is quite entertaining.

"I love living, I have some problems with my life, but living is the best thing they've come up with so far."

Neil Simon, Last of the Red Hot Lovers

As Good As It Gets

2008-07-17T09:51:00.000-07:00

There were a couple of things we got when we left the hospital. I got a water pitcher which I can fill and make sure I'm drinking enough water during the day. Lloyd got another fine scar which is added to the others from the diabetes needles and the open-heart surgery. This one is a little more decorative with the staple marks.

If Lloyd had any idea I was viewing his fat tummy he would kill me. Lucky for me he knows nothing about computers.

Bad News/Good News

2008-07-16T20:01:00.000-07:00

After five years Lloyd needed another colonoscopy. Not so good news this time. :( (Kim tells me this is a frowny face. She also said that most people know this and it doesn't have to be explained.) The doctor said he had found a mass so arrangements were made to have it removed. All went well with the operation, but there were three lymph nodes with signs of cancer.
The good news was that there were only three, but the bad news was that there were three.
After talking to the oncologist, we found that there would be chemo--bad news :( --but, the good news is that the chemo will take care of it :). So, just today, we made arrangements to start on August 11th. A port will be put in that morning and the chemo will start directly after that.
Sometimes with Lloyd it's a bit hard to distinguish the bad new face :( from the good news face :)