My Roots are Showing

Christmas necklaces

2012-02-05T11:14:00.000-07:00

The dilemma of what to do with the darling necklaces (but small medallions) I received from two of my children as Christmas gifts has been solved. David and June gifted one a couple of years ago and Sue gifted hers this past Christmas. Because they each featured the slogan “A family’s love is nature’s masterpiece” I have turned them into earrings – they are not exact matches, but who cares – I like them. J And will wear the Tree of Life medallion on a chain with them. They all say much about what is my current focus in life.

Let's see which one of my friends notices they are not matches :-)

Bennet has an early birthday party

2010-10-24T07:17:00.001-06:00

Bennet Joshua Pilch will be one year old on 12 November, but he and his parents will be moved to St. George by then. Gotta have a party with his family who live up here :-). His parents picked quite a fun place - the pool of a neighbor and friend of Josh's for whom Josh built the pool house. The kids (Bennet's cousins) had a blast. Bennett's mom Jen had some of her sibling and their kids in attendance, as well as Josh's parents Kenn and Liz , his sister Chris with Shad and Sedona, and Josh's Aunt Lois Ann.

Yep, three water slides, the kiddie one, the middle one, and an upper one that Josh called the Slide of Death (or some such), requiring a helmet and life jacket for all users. The pool was covered during supper time.

Bennett loves the water and was carefully tended by one of his cousins.

A pool full of kids... Bennett in the center right, and Sedona is in the small wading pool in the top corner holding her dad's hand. Another cousin is standing in front of her.

Bennett is in the foreground, while Shad and Sedona are at the top of this photo.

Sedona, the "No Fear" kid, with her parents Chris and Shad.

a Wedding in the Family

2010-10-09T09:14:00.000-06:00

In honor of Katy getting married in Alaska tomorrow on 10/10/2010, let me tell a bit about my Grandmother Sneath's wedding on November 15, 1911. They had to do some traveling too - and to a foreign country!

Let's begin with a photograph...

a Gram story from Jeanette...

"I was born Nov. 29, 1914 in Alameda, Saskatchewan where my dad was manager of the Royal Bank of Canada. Charles Alexander Sneath, my dad, was born 13 Jan 1880, and my mom Lois Rebecca McGregor was born 8 July 1884.

They met at Macoun, Saskatchewan when he was manager of the Northern Crown Bank there, and she came from Iowa to visit her brothers Alex and Bruce who invested in real estate there. Macoun was just a little town on the prairie. There were wheat fields all around. I can’t imagine where they went on a date.

My dad was the entire staff at the Northern Crown Bank – manager, accountant, bookkeeper. He was born in Ontario and had several brothers and sisters. He came west as a young guy and joined the bank in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He served in several branches and was finally in Kimberly, Saskatchewan and then Macoun.

(Josh, how do you like the hair?)

My dad was shy and my mom real out-going and chattered all the time. He was SOO handsome, dark auburn hair… She was so dark too and graduated from high school in 1903. She was 27 years old when they married so she must have been 24-25 when she went to Canada.

There is a lovely picture at the wedding which Lois Ann copied and framed in an oval frame and which each of my girls have a copy. (See in green oval frame above). My parents were married in Ames, Iowa at her parents’ home. I am enclosing the account which Lois Ann and I picked up at the library in Ames when she and I were there in Sept 1998.

My dad came down to Ames by way of Winnipeg, Manitoba. Uncle Bruce told me he had to give my dad the money to pay the minister (I suppose dad didn’t have any American money?) When Lois Ann and I were up at the cemetery in Ames where Granddad McGregor (Lois’s father Alexander McGregor, Jr.) is buried, I could hear a train whistle and wondered if it was the same line that my parents had traveled to and from Canada. My mom told me that when they arrived in Macoun, there were 52 people to meet the train (the entire population). No cameras in every family, so no pictures. They soon moved to Alameda where three of us kids were born. (Saga to be continued). “

Newspaper article from the Ames Times Nov. 16, 1911; “A quiet home wedding took place this afternoon at four o’clock at the residence of the bride’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. A. MacGregor, 905 Clark Avenue, when Miss Lois MacGregor was united in marriage to Mr. Charles Sneath of Kinley, Saskatchewan, Canada.

Only relatives to the number of fifteen were present to witness the ceremony, performed by Rev. W.J. Minchin of the Congregational Church, the beautiful ring ceremony being used. The bride was becomingly gowned in white embroidered batiste and carried a shower of bridal flowers. After congratulations, a delicious four course dinner was served to the guests, Mrs. R.M. Paxton acting as cateress, the house decorations being of yellow chrysanthemums.

Mr. and Mrs. Sneath leave this evening for Winnipeg and then on to their new home at Kinley, where Mr. Sneath is manager of the Northern Crown Bank. Miss MacGregor came to Ames about a year ago from Macoun, Saskatchewan, and has gained many friends, considering the shortness of her residence in Ames. “

McGregor houseat 905 Clark Ave., Ames, Iowa in 1911.

McGregor house at 905 Clark Ave., Ames Iowa in September 1998.

You know you're in Wyoming....

2010-07-17T18:37:00.000-06:00

or some other cattle country town when you take your grandkids to the town park to play in the big sandbox area, and when a few other other girls show up with their dog, the dog's name is Chasey. Yep, she's a cowdog :-). And she is constantly at attention, watching kids move around; maybe thinking she is herding them?. And guess what she is willing to chase? Hand fulls of sand that the girls throw with their new shovels from the sand toys Grammie just brought as a surprise. I laughed and laughed :-). Chasey would even do back-flips...

three Richardson kids try out the new sand toys

Raspberries are............. yellow?

2010-07-09T23:16:00.000-06:00

They can be.... and taste just like the red ones

and hollyhocks are... white? well, they are in my garden. I bought them color unknown.

And how about those blossums on the pumpkins and squash? Nice...

I sure am liking my gardens beds and would like to put in a couple moer on the west side of the yard - it gets lots of sun now that the one big tree is no longer there. The squash got put into pots this year, because last year they ran free all over everything else. Most of the tomato plants have little tomatoes started. Go baby, Go! Salsa in the fall :-)

The Inch Report

2010-07-09T21:32:00.000-06:00

Both of my daughters, as well as my sister Jane have been making progress this spring and summer, to lose some weight. When I sent this to Becky and Sue today, Becky insisted I blog about it !
So here it is - the Inch Report from Curves' Ladies Gym - as in inches lost

Here is how it looked since 2/19/2010: and measurments taken at Curves on Tuesday 6 July

Bust - down 1.25"
Waist down 3.5"
ABS down 3"
hips down 4.25"
thighs down .5" - the slow learner...
arms up .5" - fabulous :-)
wt down 24.25

My Total Health and Fitness coach Dan Wilcox says he can see weight loss in my face (and he has been saying that for a while), and where I have noticed it especially is in my feet. I can see those veins now - no more puffy ankles or edema on my chin bones. My weigh in with him yesterday shows 27# lost and almost all of it fat. Yippie!

You will have to wait for family reunion the end of this month for the swim suit view. Living alone, who would take the photo? LOL

Ballons...

2010-07-02T10:46:00.000-06:00

One of my very favorite things to do this time of year, around the Fourth of July, is go to the grassy field, just east of Utah Valley Regional Medical Center and watch the hot air balloons launch. The crowd - big kids, little kids, the grand parents, everybody are invited out on the field, up close and personal to watch and photograph the balloons and their crews.
This morning - I left the house about 0545 - and got there just as the Bank of American Fork was beginning to fill. Miss Pink Piggy is so cute.

A new balloon on the field - at least I had not seen it before - was a bottle of Coca Cola. It was sooo tall! I think they said over 180 feet? For those of you who have not - or even if you have - been there before, the crews lay out the "envelopes" of the balloons on the ground first

then a fan is used to fill the envelope with cool air next. At least a couple of people hold the "door" open to let the air in

The lady in the white shirt and blowing blond hair was in charge of the Coke bottle balloon and her husband in the red hat and red Coca Cola jacket kept telling the crowd " I never know when she goes inside (the Balloon) if I will ever see her again"

When the balloon is fluffy enough, the hot air is "shot" up into the inside of the balloon, encouraging it to raise off the ground.

The wind currents were not just right for the balloons to launch off the ground this morning, but they stayed on the ground and let the crowds wander through and visit them for a while. In fact, there was hardly any air moving at all.

You will probably remember that Gram loved them too and we'd take her Handicapped parking tag and get into the hospital parking area. Am when the balloons had lifted off, we go have pancakes, yoghurt, juice, etc with the Kiwanis group right there on the field. I am expecting a nurse to come draw some blood for a new life insurance policy this morning, so I was fasting. I hope she hurries up :-)

Remembering our Soldiers

2010-05-31T08:17:00.034-06:00

Gram used to send out an email at this time of year, listing the soldiers in our family. Here are the ones I remember and ask that you reflect on their service and sacrifices. Don Cox, Herb, Dick and Ken Garlitz; Jim Montmeny, Jane Montmeny, Bob Ouimet, Marlin Cox. Gram's brothers Alfred and Don Sneath. Aunt Isobel 's husband Bob Phillips. Joshua Pilch. I seem to remember that Gram could list 14 - but I don't have quite that many, so let me go back further in time...

Job Allen born 1840 fought in the Civil War and was a prisoner of war for a time, Lt. David Cox and his brother John who fought in the Revolutionary War from Grayson County, Virginia. There was a Job Allen, Sr. and Jr. in the Revolutionary War too.

Now for their photos...

Donald Cox, 115th Cavalry, Wyoming National Guard

William Alfred Sneath, Gram's brother. He was a pilot with the Royal Canadian Air Force and the only one of our soldies who did not come home after the war. His plane was shot down over Muelheim, Germany on 23 June 1943. A couple of his crew survived, but Alfred is buried just south of Brussels, Belgium. Here are my notes...

Uncle Alfred Sneath was a pilot in Canadian Air Force and while flying a mission over Germany the night of 23 June 1943, his plane was shot down, over Muelheim.

There is an old Readers' Digest condensed book (I have a copy) that includes the story" Bomber" , a novel by Len Deighton, telling about a night in Germany, the 23 June 1943, and telling the story from several different persons' perspective- the English bomber crew, the Germans defending their country, and the townspeople caught in the middle.
His sister (my mother Jeanette Cox) has a box full of his memorabilia.
The CEMETARY: Heverlee War Cemetary, near Louvain, Belgium, from headstone: Pilot Officer, W.A. Sneath, Pilot, Royal Canadian Air Force, 23rd June 1943 Age 30, (a cross), "They are not dead, Life's flag is not furled."
Lois Ann visited this cemetary 3 times while living in Germany: 1) in 1977 with her mother Jeanette Cox, after visiting England & Scotland, 2) in 1987 with Kenn & Liz Pilch 3) in 1989 with Isobel Phillips & Jeanette Cox, his sisters, and with Lois Ann's daughter Rebecca who graduated from high school that May in Heidelberg.

Donald McGregor Sneath 1918-1977, Alfred's brother. He served in North Africa in WWII.

the brothers - Dick and Ken Garlitz in Vietnam 1969-1970

Herbert L. Garlitz, their father, who served in WWII in France (I think)

Our Civil War ancestor Job Allen, born 1840 in Wabash County, Indiana and died 1915 in Oak, Nebraska. He was the father of my grandmother, Anna Allen who was married to Sam Cox. During the Civil War, Job was a prisoner of war for over a year at Andersonville prison.

Hopefully I can find a couple more photos - but if you have one of the ones you don't see here, email them to me and I will put them up too. Same deal with a story or more details about one of them that you want to share.

Sharing a birthday - February 25

2010-02-25T05:54:00.022-07:00

Today is thoughts of Roots and Branches both. My grandmother and my granddaughter share a birthday.

Lily Jeanette Richardson is eight years old today and getting baptised this weekend. Here are a couple of photos when she was a newborn.

Grammie went to visit her when she got home from the hospital.

Her cousins Dani and Rachel

Now about my grandmother, Anna Cox...
In 1879, in a tiny community in south central Nebraska called Oak, my grandmother Anna Allen (later married Sam Cox) was born. I seem to remember that one of her siblings, Minnie I think, was the third white child born in that county - I'll have to look that up. Her father Job Allen fougnt in the Civil War for the North, being from Illinois, and for a time was a prisoner of war at Andersonville, a hell-hole prison. After he got home from the war, Job Allen married Mary Kenney Chenoweth about 1868. They traveled from Illinois to Nebraska in March of 1871 by covered wagon. It was like a "little house on the prairie" time in their lives. Their first 3 of 9 children were born in Illinois, the rest in Nebraska.

When Anna was 22 years old she married a neighbor man Sam Cox. To get married in 1901, they traveled for a day long journey by team and wagon to Lincoln, Nebraska, the state capitol. Their first baby, Thelma, died of pneumonia when she was less that two years old. No antibiotics in those days.

When they moved to Sheridan, Wyoming, they went by what was then called an immigrant train - household goods and livestock in separate cars, and then the family up front.

(I'll add more of ther history later but want to get these pictures up for Lily)

This picture was taken at a Cox Christmas party. Lois Ann was about five years old and Jane, the frowny one, was about three years old.

Her family called her "Granno" and she lived to be 88 years old. This is a photo of her at her 80th birthday party with her 3 children - Don, Helen, and Cliff. I think I baked her cake.

the new looking furnace room

2010-02-08T12:07:00.010-07:00

I now have a new companion for my new furnace - a new hot water heater :-) The date of manufacture on the old one was 1989. So it had lived a long, useful life. My plumber says that some new ones only last 10 years, but he highly recommends these Bradford-White brand ones - the same as he took out. Should get more showers out of it at one time, now too - that is when company is here.

The old one, rusty water, shouldn't be draining this much...

The new one, same brand, and although the floor is stil rusty, the heater itself is shiny with new intake flexible coil lines.
Supposed to be warm enough for a long shower in about 45 minutes this first time.

And many thanks to the Laurels who thought about the single sisters in our ward and brought us each plenty of sugar, pink of course... LOL

new in the TV room

2010-01-26T09:57:00.010-07:00

Doesn’t take too much to amuse some people…. I have a new love seat! Well, new to me… Jane and her staging people might be proud… the colors don’t match the sleeper sofa (except they are all muted colors that go with the “Scotland Road” paint on the wall), but it seems sturdy and very comfortable. It could think about reupholstering or getting a throw cover later. And now there is another piece of furniture for visitors to sit on in the TV room.

The view at Thanksgiving, with grandkids watching TV from the open sleeper sofa and Zen on the elliptical.

The view this morning... Yeah! more comfy seating for watching TV

And I get a nice chair for my bedroom to enjoy as I watch TV – the golden brown one, moved upstairs from the TV room. Best of all, it was gifted by one of the families in the ward who got a new leather love seat. Thanks a bunch!

The great tortilla soup weekend

2010-01-11T12:14:00.003-07:00

It was a cacophony of sound – two moms talking about their recent book readings, a dad watching a football game, one little kid in the elliptical machine racing fast, one pushing buttons on the Dr’s waiting room amusement table, one trying to climb over the baby gate on the stairs, another climbing over the stair railing, “Grammie, can I have some more ice cream?”, other child quietly watching the movie “Up”, “let me put the crying baby to bed and let’s start the game”…. Well, you get the idea. And I wasn’t even getting a headache because of all that activity. LOL! Scarier still, we had taken the time to all sit together around the dark wood dining room table which has a long history with this household, say a prayer, and helpfully pass the food around: Sue’s great tortilla soup stirred together today by the Grammie, adding sour cream, and some of Lora’s fabulous guacamole dip and Doritos Scoops. Add black cherry cool-aide or milk. Yummy!

Here is the recipe for Sue’s Chicken Tortilla Soup
1 cup shredded carrots
1 # chicken, shredded
15 oz diced crushed tomatoes
1 10 oz. red enchilada sauce
1 4oz. can chopped green chilies
1 14oz can chicken broth
1 15oz can corn or 10 oz. frozen corn
1 medium onion chopped or ¼ cup dried
2 cups water
1 clove garlic
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
¼ tsp crushed bay leaf or basil
¼ tsp peper
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp cilantro

I had some frozen turkey leftovers (about 3 cups shredded) from Thanksgiving and used that for the meat

In the middle of dinner, a parent happened to notice a new adventure for one of the babies – an unattended computer

another techie in the making

The joy of receiving a thank you note

2010-01-06T10:59:00.004-07:00

Grandmothers – and many others I’m sure - sometimes wonder how their gifts at Christmas time, birthdays, etc are received. And then a thoughtful thank you note arrives... let me show you:

Sue and I had a short discussion yesterday about thank you notes and the value of hand written card in this day and age of emails and instant messages, and cell phones… And who is Emily Post and Miss Manners anyway? Oh, maybe it is a generational thing. Take a look at one of the Dragonfly’s comments – she is a long time friend of Sue’s…

anyway - Becky and your kids - it was a great card :-) and I thank you for taking the time to write it, and even include a photo

Slushy snow this week...

2009-12-13T13:22:00.008-07:00

Last week the outdoor temperature at night was close to zero, making the snow cruchy to walk in. Today, the thermometer is hovering about 32 degrees, so we have slushy snow. There was some rain early this morning, and then snow when I got home from church - coming down so fast that I just barely got the car swept off and quickly into the garage - did I really just sweep the top of the car?

Notice that the gutters are running full of water, especially after the snow plow came through
good thing those snow boots are rubberized :-). Another 4-5 inches forecast for tonight

Then a bit later in the afternoon, the snow quit and here came the Mower Snow Removal Team - my neighbor and three of his sons... I am so grateful they have "adopted" me and my driveway.

attacking the driveway

attacking the slushy "river bank"

birthday boy

2009-12-10T08:21:00.003-07:00

When snow crunches...

2009-12-10T08:07:00.003-07:00

When snow crunches under your feet, you know it is darn cold, at least zero and below zero. Brrrr...

The radio says it was -4 in Provo last night

And here is a little evidence that the Youth came by last night, singing carols... and it is trash day.

Remembering my parents' birthdays in November

2009-12-08T12:04:00.013-07:00

Both of my parents had birthdays in November - my dad on 10 Nov 1907 and my mom on 29 Nov 1914.

1962 at the Ft. Worth Stock Show

Here are some of my favorite blogs about them... I know, I should be past the bringing up old memorials and memories stuff - I think it has to do with catching up with my Christmas cards list persons this year. I have not sent any for two years.

Plus, I have an new external hard drive, that I will collect and back-up every photo and text document onto, a 1TB size - I am already calling it the "MotherShip". I just got tired of wondering where certain files were, and where did I save that photo - in which collection - well, you get the picture?? When I was a military spouse and PCS (permanent change of station) time came, I could just reorganize stuff into a new home. Looking back, I have been in this house for nearly 17 years.

back to the review...

** from Becky about Don Cox's 100th birthday party http://randomlyoddbits.blogspot.com/2007/11/cowboy-memorial-bloopers.html

**from Sue at the time of Gram's passing in February 2008 - http://suerichardson.blogspot.com/2008/02/gone-to-be-with-her-cowboy.html

**from Sue about her memorial service http://suerichardson.blogspot.com/2008/08/grams-memorial-service.html I love being reminded of her friends and the family members who came to Sheridan

My nieces Chris and Katy blogged about them too...

Twenty Years?

2009-11-09T05:01:00.027-07:00

Good grief! Has it really been 20 years since the Berlin Wall came down? I remember the news unfolding while watching AFN (Armed Forces Network TV) while living in Heidelberg, Germany that fall of 1989. Six months later, Sue and I drove to Berlin, just before we went home to the States. People were still visiting the Wall and taking home chunks of it. Us too.

Great hair, Sue...

Lois Ann at Check Point Charlie before crossing into East Berlin.

See, still people writing on the Wall six months later

In the meantime, Becky was going to college in Sheridan, Wyoming. Gram let her drive the old gold Chevy pick up around the Sheridan cemetery. In fact here is part of a letter from Gram....

“Dear Ones, (from Gram’s house, 30 Sept 1989)
I’ve just given Becky her first Driver’s lesson. This is Sat. morning, and we just had GrandDad’s waffles – and she didn’t have any special plans for today, so we went to a couple of garage sales, didn’t buy anything – then I wanted to take her to the cemetery. I told her I wanted to take her before we were suddenly in the trauma of a funeral. So after I took a couple of pictures and west into some family background, I told her I’d let her drive. We had the old Chevy pickup – and what an ideal place… lots of little roads branching off and places to back-up – and she didn’t knock over any tombstones. We may go up there again.” “ You’d have laughed to see that old gold pick up jerking and stopping and starting up at the cemetery. Love from us all, Gram”.

feeding the goats 26 Sept 2009

2009-09-27T05:26:00.021-06:00

When I went to visit David's family in September, Aimee took me to vist Cox Farm, a harvest time kids adventure outing, about 20 minutes from her home in Northern Virginia

How about a hayride into the Haunted Forest?

Very exciting slides - don't forget the gunny (burlap) sack so you can slide like crazy

Now where did that peacock go?

I should remember how to milk a cow - I was doing it at the age of six, when my dad took my mom from the D Ranch, north of Morcroft Wyoming, to Sheridan to deliver that sister Elizabeth.

Newly hatched baby chicks under a warming lamp

Couldn't resist the sign - Oh yes, I am A Cox Girl

Feeding the goats consists of "goat food" (pellets, grain, etc>) in an ice cream cone - easy for a child or Grammie to hold onto - and easy for the baby goats to grab, chomp on, supposedly without eating the kid fingers. The little brown and white goat sure knows the drill - took the whole cone and ran off with it stuck in his mouth.

this may be what they mean when they say " as happy as a pig in poo..."

Later that trip... a visit to the MacGregor library collection at the University of Baltimore. Standing with me is Aiden Faust, archivist, and Tom Hollowak, director of Special Collections. They monitor and care for over 100 separate collections housed there.Did I mention a side trip to Baltimore's Inner Harbor and the enticing Nessie paddle boats just outside the window at Cheesecake Factory? You don't need to be psychic to understand the real drawing card :-). There is nothing mediocre on their menu.

the vacation look

2009-07-21T01:33:00.011-06:00

Here are a few photos....

Our plan worked, we met up in Newark and climbed on the plane ... hold hands and stay together

Jane at the Old Parish Church in Govan, a visit to John McGregor and Annie Lang

How is this for 100 BP (British pounds) per night? but the rail station, the taxies, the food , the underground, the bus trip to Skye are all within a block. Wonderful A/C. The older travelers like their creature comforts, you understand.

Hogwarts anyone?

What is wrong with this picture? You will have to read the small print on the two buildings to understand this one

The Way We Were....... in 2003

2009-07-16T17:53:00.013-06:00

"My bags are packed, I'm ready to go..." so sang John Denver years ago. Here are Jane and I on our Scotland trip 6 years ago:

"...leavin' on a jet plane..."
at Culloden battlefield near Inverness. Highlanders' lives changed forever after that battle in April 1745.

watching for Nessie at Loch Ness

Hail to the Chief Sir Malcolm! he is fabulous...

ready for a very formal banquet at Stirling Castle when we acknowledged Sir Malcolm MacGregor of MacGregor as our hereditary Chief.

Jane is preparing to do a "rubbing" of our ancestors' grave stone at Govan's Old Parish Church on the south side of the Clyde River in Glasgow

home again, home again, rigetty jig - LOL - no 50# limit on luggage in those days

I have a bunch more images, but let's start with these....

First pickin's

2009-07-12T18:25:00.006-06:00

Let's see, Sunday night, a steak sounds good, I wonder if anything is ready in the garden?

The pumpkins, potatoes and squash act like they are on steroids.

Wow! Look at these...

Yummy - there are supper veggies....

Even the formerly sick-looking hollyhocks are blooming too..

And just in time for me to leave for Scotland -I better let the neighbors know :-) so they can come get some squash and tomatoes while I am gone.

When Pigs Fly.....

2009-07-04T09:43:00.007-06:00

One of my favorite activities to do every summer is to go watch (and listen) to the hot air balloons launch at Provo's Freedom Festival every 4th of July. It was one of Gram's favorite too. So I bet you can tell already where this post is going...

Jane and I enjoyed pancakes.

And now I am off to Cokeville for more fun .....

Spring is here

2009-04-24T05:32:00.010-06:00

A few photos from my yard, and of the Young Men and their leaders in my neighborhood who came last night to dig grass out of my flower beds. Yahoo! They were awesome!

What a neglected mess this front step area is. All my flower beds were like that.

A wine barrel full of tulips that I planted last year. I sure am loving the "container garden" concept where I don't have to bend over to weed them.

Yellow tulips beside the front aspen trees

Whitney crab apple tree blossums in the front yard

Ross Maxfield and Young Men at work

Yikes! Look how big that tree root is that was pulled up from around the corner of the house.

The totally awesome Young Mens' crew

Next part of the project is to get my vegetable garden grow boxes built, and haul in a pickup load of good topsoil.

Wisdom for our day

2009-04-21T05:33:00.001-06:00

Monday, 20 April 2009

Every time he opens his mouth, wisdom rolls forth… Zen, maybe you remember how much we enjoyed learning in his Sunday School class when you lived here? He always had something thought provoking to say and to remember about how the Savior would have us live. Yesterday was no exception as President David Richards (formerly a stake pres., a missionary with his wife Maryl to the Lamanites a couple of years ago, a temple worker now) spoke about Provident Living in Sacrament meeting.

There are more kinds of addictions than drugs and pornography. Like food, sports, computer time, etc. that take us away from the things that matter most. He spoke of acting on the difference between wanting and needing “things” in our lives. Do we own things or do thy own us? If we go into debt for them; then we are in bondage. Even if we can afford the payments, can we afford the adddiction?

No child should leave our home without knowing how to balance a checkbook. They should have the experience of having a job, even if it is just a paper route, and know how to handle their own money.

Five actions to guide us : 1] pay tithing, 2] spend less than you earn, 3] learn to save, 4] honor financial obligations, and 5] teach your children by your example. “Use it up, wear it out, make it do, do without.” Bishop Sharp remarked that Pres. Richards “is wise beyond his years” . We chuckled, as Pres. Richards is in his 70’s .

Freaky April Weather

2009-04-16T07:42:00.009-06:00

What happened to the weather man last night? Must have been trying to get his taxes in on time and then stopped at the local pub.

View out the front door this morning

View out the Heritage Room window

That ol' pony and play house look mighty cold in my back yard

Here comes the sun over the moutains in Alpine... view out my kitchen window

I bet those tomato plants I bought earlier this week are happy I brought them into the living room yesterday. And to think I had a tiny bit of foresight on Monday and gave my yard a GI harcut to start the spring off right. Spring? What was I thinking?? That is Utah weather for you.....

Feeding the baby animals

2009-04-02T18:35:00.004-06:00

In response to Sue's blog "Fair spring, where art thou?" I have spent a good part of the day hunting for and scanning some photos to put on my blog, I guess most of what I have of your granddad taking care of animals are in my own memory banks. But I'll keep looking around. I did find this cute one of Jane and I feeding two bum lambs when we lived at the D Ranch, 40 miles north of Moorcroft in northeastern Wyoming, another 12 miles north of Oshoto. (probably 1948-50?) Oshoto is still on a Wyoming map.

The story behind this goes something like this. There was a sheep rancher that lived a little ways from us, maybe 15-20 miles. In the spring, ewes often had twins and not every one was accepted by their mothers, thus the bum lambs. When it appeared that a lamb would need to be fed by a human, he'd call up my dad (yes, we had a phone - of sorts - out there) So my dad would go over and pick up those lambs and as a family - it was probably mostly him - feed them through the summer, and when fall came, would sell them.

Time Flys...

2009-03-29T17:54:00.006-06:00

My, how time flys 

Christmas/New Year’s letter still aren’t sent and it’s already March with the Easter bunny on the way…. In Feb., my neighbor Carol Bramwell and I visited the new Draper Temple, then into March - attended the BYU’s Family History Technology workshop, walked a couple of miles in Salt Lake City's St. Patrick’s Day parade, my sister Jane packed up and moved to Denver to accept a regional position with the Veteran’s Administration system, me gone 6 days to see my granddaughter Aimee in Washington DC, where I also helped conduct some business for the American Clan Gregor Society. And here I was wondering if I was a mostly a slacker… maybe not?

Now it is girls’ weekend to supposedly get some scrapbooking and journaling done. I have to keep reminding myself that we are sort of on vacation and if we don’t jump right to the task at hand, but watch TV and snack a lot instead, it’s OK . Becky has already blogged a bunch about the girls’ weekend so I don’t need to get into that. See http://randomlyoddbits.blogspot.com/

Smarter Than a Two Year Old?

2009-03-02T16:17:00.020-07:00

So, what'cha gonna do? You have loaned your favorite bracelets to your two year old granddaughter so she can amuse herself while she visits you, tries on the costume jewelry necklaces, and fills a couple of fingers with CTR rings, then dances around the living room, with three visiting neighbor kids. Later, when it is time for her to return to Wyoming, only one bracelet is to be found - the Austrian glass trade beads from Jamestown, Virginia trip with my sister Jane. But not the ropes of silver strands one. So you ask the two year old, and her 7 year old sister, and they smile, but that's not the right answer....

So after the kids leave, and you are cleaning up, shaking out the bedclothes to wash sheets, and looking under the beds, giving those corners of the playroom a dose of your eagle eye, you think - oh relax, it is only a bracelet.... Yes, but it was a favorite. I don’t even remember how long I have had it - maybe purchased in Sheridan, Wyoming at Kraft's Jewelers when I bought some other Indian jewelry a long time ago. Buck up, just go get another one. But (in a whiney voice) it has been fun to wear it every day, reminding me that I am retired and no longer have the "no jewelry" restriction of working at the hospital and wearing scrubs.

Well, tomorrow is Sunday and I should vacuum one more time down here where the kids were playing and eating potato chips. Becky said something about Connor hiding his baby sister Emma's binky clip in one of his toys. You know how it is when you have to move toys to get the crud out from under them - surely not, but let's look in the trunk of the riding car. Glory Be! What is that shiny thing sticking out of the pencil case?? Halleluiah! It is my bracelet! LOL! I just had to take a photo :-)

Bracelets reunited :-) the third one with the magnets clasp is one Jane gave to me last fall on our way to join all those MacGregors in Georgia and Tennessee. The stone is buttermilk amber, traditionally from the Black Sea in Europe, and the silver is from spoon handles, made by Jane's friend Karen.

This is almost as good a mystery solved as the binky found hidden deep under the rigging in the Don Cox saddle, not to mention the plastic cell phone in the saddle bag.

Maybe if my brain was wired like a two year old, I'd get a lot more fun out of life! LOL

My Retirement is official

2009-01-28T06:15:00.012-07:00

I worked my last shift at Orem Community Hospital on Monday, 26 Jan 2009. I know, I said I was going to RETIRE the last of December only enough to begin collecting retirement pay, then work at the hospital once in a while to keep up the skills and make a little extra money. A girl can change her mind (GBG). Here are some things that helped me make the decision last Sat. to totally pull the plug:

Inspiration sometimes takes a little while to come forth. Take that last question – shall I keep a Monday morning shift at Orem Community Hospital, or just be done, and why am I so ambivalent about making this decision? After a good 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep last Friday night, as I began to continue the “balance my Microsoft Money” project for 2008, the thought came along that I had not retired before and I did not have a road map for that… But I have moved plenty, and packed up my household and my life and moved on. That is not a new phenomenon in my life. Catching up on my email at IHC last Saturday pointed out that they sure have a lot of procedural details & online in-service training to keep track of and that keep changing; and on top of that, the Neonatal Resuscitation Procedures class for me changed from February to October (my card expires in Feb). And all that just to get to work once in a while?? So I think that is the signal that I am done there. It is time to hone some new skills and rejuvinate some old ones, and welcome a new season of my life.

There was the feeling of closure last week on Tuesday evening when 11 of my co-workers met me at McGraff’s Fish House for a little retirement dinner.

Retirement supper at McGraff's Fish House

My good nursing and genealogy buddy Darlene Nelson figured I'd need a big pair of sunglasses for all my free time in the future. LOL!

Last Thursday, the first IHC retirement check showed up in my bank account, so I am assured that they know where I am and who my banker is. I did not sleep well Sunday night, thinking of all the things I might need to do at the hospital the next day, hoping I would take good care of my patients.

Our stake had a Women’s Conference last Saturday, and one of the speakers focused on the passages in Doctrine&Covenants Section 25, about revelations given to Emma Smith and how they relate to women in the church today in their role in the Restoration of the Gospel. You can read those for yourself, and see which ones might apply to you. At the BYU Burn’s Supper that Saturday night, I was reminded of the really good friends that I have in that group as well as at church, and although the camaraderie at OCH is excellent and unmatched because of all the situations in healthcare we have shared together, I do have good friends in other settings.

You’d never guess I was a list person, would ya?

Two of my retirement gifts were Willow Tree angels – Happiness and Good Health. I am fortunate indeed to have friends who would wish such a future for me. I only have a few of those figurines, so I did get one more - Tenderness, to remind me about the next season of my life.

I’ll let you now how it goes with this new focus. I may start traveling occasionally to see those grandkids I talk about. I’m thinking for sure that “Relly” Amelia and Lily need a visit (see Sue’s blog at http://www.suerichardson.blogspot.com and Becky’s at http://randomlyoddbits.blogspot.com )

Happiness – “FREE to sing, laugh, dance …. Create!”

Good Health – “An abundance of health and happiness”

Tenderness – “Treasuring a rare, quiet and tender moment of motherhood” (and grandmotherhood; maybe even remembering those ancestors).

Christmas morning 2008

2009-01-07T10:45:00.000-07:00

26 Dec 2008

Dear Virginia, Is it true what they say about retirement?

Can you retire and celebrate Christmas on the same day?? YES! Yesterday was my last day to work at Orem Community Hospital, in labor and delivery, at least for a while. I may go back after the middle of January for an eight hour shift, once a week, and help triage walk-in patients.

My Christmas this year actually started the night before on Christmas Eve, when I left work and went to Don and Lora’s house to spend the night, to already be “on location” for the grandkids’ present opening the next morning. There was already a party in progress that evening with Lora’s parents and siblings and about a dozen little cousins. Just like at the party at Josh and Jenn Pilch’s house a couple of weeks ago, the little boys were playing lots of “chase” antics, this time chasing Nicholas. And a present of Cheyenne, the rocking horse, from one of the aunties prompted a lot of “it’s my turn!” urgent cries.

Later in the evening, when the crowd had left, we gathered around Lora’s beautifully decorated tree to watch the 6 car train that Lora’s folks had given them last year, and listened to it whistle and play Jingle Bells and a couple of other carols.

The first little kid up on Christmas morning was Alexander, along with his dad, checking out all the presents. The train could no linger move around the track, due to the pile of presents. Pretty soon, here came Lora and the other kids, one by one. When all were assembled, and after the morning prayer, the stockings were inspected, and then the paper began to fly all over the room!

Later, I drove to work by noon, assisted a new baby into the world, and that last “retirement days left” paper chain ring was torn down. Heather Marston was my nurse friend at Orem Community Hospital who wanted the paper chain so she could keep track of how many shifts I had left to work before retirement. We put up 17 rings, starting on 17 Nov. and Lindsay Judd torn down the last one on Christmas Day.

Went home after 6 hours (we all share the work on Christmas Day by spitting our 12 hour shifts) and enjoyed the goodies in my stocking.

I did not do very much decorating around the house this year, but all the grandkid bears were gathered around the little artificial tree. Very homey :-)

Let's see, that was Thursday. Then I got this call from Sue Saturday evening about how to tell if it is time to come to the U of U hospital for the birth of the Richardson Mystery Boy. They decided to wait until Sunday morning and then drove from Cokeville to SLC, But that is more her story. Check out her blog at suerichardson.blogspot.com.

A Lost Christmas present - a flashback story

2009-01-07T10:30:00.000-07:00

Flashback story – ”A lost Christmas present”.

When my sister Jane and I were 4 and 6 years old our mother took us from Oshoto, Wyoming at the D ranch by train to visit our Grandmother Sneath (Lois Rebecca McGregor Sneath) and her mother, Great Grandmother, Old Gram (Mary Lois Bridges McGregor) in Cranbrook, British Columbia. I remember traveling through some tunnels (like in the Polar Express movie) and seeing lots of snow as we traveled across Montana in December. Seeing all that wrapping paper flying at Don and Lora’s house this year 2008, reminded me of that cold Christmas morning in Canada, after we had finished unwrapping all the presents. Old Gram, after inspecting everyone’s new gifts said something about a game she had purchased for us girls and it was no where to be found in anyone’s pile of new treasures. Grandmother Sneath, being the tidy person she was, had already taken all the wrapping paper to the basement to put into the coal furnace. So we hurried down the stairs and began to search through the piles of paper. Sure enough, there was the present, a board game called Uncle Wiggily.

The original board game from that Christmas is long gone, but as a fun game for kids today, a replacement set can still be purchased. You can read more about it by going to Google.

About the family members in the next two photos:

Grandmother Sneath (Lois Rebecca McGregor Sneath, married to the banker Charles A. Sneath) and three Cox girls: Jane is standing next to Grandmother and holding her hand, Elizabeth is sitting in front, and Lois Ann in the chair. It was a big year for squaw skirts and concho belts. How about those shoulder straps (suspenders?)for Liz to hold up her skirt? The photo was taken in front of the fire place in grandmother's house in Cranbrook, British Columbia

4 generation picture includes Jeanette Sneath Cox, the Gram of our generation, in the hat and gloves is Grandmother Sneath, Lois Ann is the little girl and on the right is Mary Lois Bridges McGregor, the Gram of her generation

My 65th birthday - notes from 19 December 2008

2009-01-07T10:21:00.000-07:00

19 December 2008

I was 65 years old yesterday. What did I do to celebrate the day? Went to work, helped with a C/Section, which brought forth a cute little kid to be named Sebastion, attended to him and his mom all day, picked up another mom and baby to care for. All day long, different ones of my friends would tell me “Happy Birthday” and ask about my retirement plans. Those first grade paper rings dramatizing how many shifts I have left to work, are getting fewer and fewer – only 4 left now after yesterday’s shift.

Darlene Nelson, my best buddy at work, the employee recognition chairman, coordinated with our boss Rebecca Allen about a retirement party for me. Darlene and I decided we would wait until the end of January for an evening meal at McGraff’s Fish House. I had some choices per IHC Retirement policy, about what money they would pay, according to the years worked. I chose to receive $100 in my pay check instead of $150 for a retirement party at work. Instead, those who wish can join Darlene and I for dinner on January 20th and each pay their own way. I will use that $100 to pay for a subscription to Ancestry.com to help with my “Finding John McGregor 2009” project.

The first birthday greetings were from Jana and Carrie. Later in the morning, I got a text message from my dentist Les Brooks “Dr. Smiles”. Soon after, a phone call from my sister Elizabeth. Later in the day, a phone call from my son Don, and in the afternoon, Sue and Amelia and Lily called to sing Happy Birthday from cold Cokeville, WY.

Ordinarily, I don’t make a big fuss about my birthday, but this one seems momentous “65”, and remembering my 60th, I decided to advertise this time. When I turned 60, I worked that day too. I imagined that my boss at the time, Ann Eves, would have some list that would remind her when people had birthdays. But nobody noticed. I remember going to the snack bar and buying a big piece of carrot cake, then when I got back to the floor, mentioning it was my birthday. No big celebratory cake from administration – and none yesterday either – yesterday probably because of the entire belt tightening going on in the economy.

Oh and what did I do when I got home from work? Cooked a steak, and later had a piece of left over birthday cake from last Sat. family party – an Orange Chiffon cake – Gram’s and my long time favorite, and vanilla ice cream. Watched CSI and one of my new favorite TV shows – Eleventh Hour. And did not set any alarm to get up today. Probably not very exciting to anyone else, but I liked it just fine.

a small flood in my basement - from 17 Dec

2009-01-07T10:15:00.000-07:00

17 Dec 2008

My daughter Becky had quite a saga yesterday..... arrived here 1130PM Monday night, got up early for Connor's 0630 appt at Primary Children’s’ Hospital in Salt Lake City for the MRI of the cyst on the front of his left calf (don't you call that his shin?), spent a great deal of the day there, got to leave about 2:30 PM, came back to American Fork to rescue Emma and Dani, who stayed with me. Connor took a while to wake up from his sedative - I think she said they used IV Nembutal, even when they got to my house, he was like a rubber man, walking like a drunk. They still did not get away from my house until 7PM. Got as far as Park City and Becky pulled over to sleep and let the kids watch movies, which is where she was when I called her to see about her progress about 10 PM. Sometime later, midnight maybe? she called me to say she had gotten as far as Coalville and found a motel to get some more sleep. But she was home at 7AM, and day care going on... Whey!

Dani and I had our own adventure yesterday (Tuesday) - a small flood in the basement! I had ignored and not replaced the wooden plywood cover over the sprinkler system gauges by the front steps when I cleaned up the front yard for the fall. When the snow began to melt off the roof yesterday afternoon, the downspout drain was missing its extension piece that would have guided the water to the roses and grass. Instead the water filled the concrete box where the sprinkler gauges sit. There is a 1" hole through the concrete wall from the box into the house that carries the electrical wire to the Sprinkler Master Controller swithches in the furnace room. Dani came hollering up the stairs that there was water running in the basement. And it surely was!! squirting right though that little hole like gang busters! After a few choice words (Mormon ones of course) I looked around for some McIver solution. There was an empty plastic grocery bag laying around, so I grabbed it and began to stuff it into the hole, plugging the dike. Dani and I moved the wet boxes and a few other things out of the room and swept what water we could into the basement drain. There was a bucket there already to catch the water before we got the squirting water stopped.

What to do next!? Well, go outside the house to see what needed to be done there.... yikes! the concrete box was full of water. Let's see - do I have some shop-vac or something to get that water out? No - only a bucket, so I bailed most of it out. Then I could see where that hole was through the basement wall that had carried that water into the house. The floor in the furnace room and a bit of the carpet got wet, but are dried out this morning. Too bad I did not have a camera crew - I bet we were comical - and wouldn't this be a great blog?

Thank goodness Dani was there to notice the running water, Later she went outside and helped clear snow off the sidewalk, not to mention helping me tend Emma all day. She was a good worker yesterday:-).. Good job, Dani!

a high school friend

2009-01-07T09:47:00.000-07:00

My sister Jane just sent me an email link about a fellow I went to high school with at Ft. Stockton years ago, Edward Pfeister, who was president of our class. Have a look at where that West Texas boy is today...

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/los_angeles&id=6590086.

He always sends me a Christmas card and a card on Valentines Day (it is probably his secretary, but I don't care - that he still thinks to do that is a wonderful rememberance.)

He is the guy in the wonderful white hair.

It's Raining Leaves (from December)

2009-01-06T09:55:00.000-07:00

13 December 2008

“The best fun I have had all fall” so claimed Lily as she helped (??) me rake up the 9 big bags of leaves in my back yard, just before the snow started to fall. Kids just have a different vision of what it means to rake leaves and what the finished product should look like.

Eventually, Amelia came out from the house and was persuaded to get into the leafy bed with her sister.

Cox Reunion in Iowa May 2008

2008-05-27T18:43:00.006-06:00

Remember all those Cox stories we love to tell? There are even more, in and around Hamburg, Iowa where my great-great grandparents Granville H. Cox and Nancy Choate Cox settled as pioneers about 1857. When I first heard about the reunion to be held over Memorial Day weekend May 2008, from our cousin Karl Jaeckel in Denver, I thought I would not go. But after a later letter from the organizer, Jeanne Backland who lives in Omaha, who was asking that at least one representative from each child of Granville and Nancy's 12 children who have descendents (there are 8) come to the reunion, my oldest child genes (I am the responsible one?) kicked in and I decided to go.

Boy, did I have a great time! Two days of meeting all those people I did not know before, except Karl, and telling non-stop stories, and visiting locations where the family members had lived, learning more about those generations who were pioneers in that area about 150 years ago. As soon as I walked in the door, they knew my name and where I belonged on the decendant chart. I felt accepted immediately and not a stranger at all. I was welcomed in as a “long lost cousin” who I guess I am, and was included in all the family story telling. That weekend was one of the best memories of this past year.

I knew of a printing company close to me in Cedar Hills who prints wall charts of families from GEDCOM files, and so I offered to have one printed for the reunion. Karl had the most recent information about the 1900 or so descendants and when the chart was printed out, it was 78 feet long! It wrapped around two walls of our meeting room near Hamburg. (See last photo below...)

Lois Ann and 3rd cousin Karl Jaeckel who wrote our wonderful book about Granville Cox's family and descendants. He still keeps track of us all today, and writes me every Christmas. Our common ancestors are Granville and Nancy Cox.

Sisters who gave the tour of the Susan Johnson home in Hamburg - Judy Johnson and Kay Johnson Burris

Cousins telling stories by the fireplace - Judy Johnson, Lois Ann, Kay Johnson Burris, and Jeanne Backland

I'll bet you wonder what the photo of this lunch has to do with anything. It has to do with the fried chicken. My Cox grandmother, Anna Allen Cox and her daughter my Aunt Helen (my dad's sister) would always cook up a big batch of fried chicken for family "uprisings" when I was growing up in Sheridan, Wyoming. So when I saw that this Iowa picnic was serving fried chicken, I knew I was in the right group.

Karl Jaeckel and his parents - Henry Ferdinand Jaeckel and Ruth Elaine Johnson. Henry's grandmother was a Cox, a daughter of Granville. He grew up just west of Hamburg, and contibuted quit a bit to the historical storytelling.

It is pretty flat country, right next to the Missouri River's flood plane.

What is a family reunion without a trip to the cemetery to visit the ancestors? These are the stones for Granville H. and Nancy Choate Cox in Hamburg, Iowa.
Lois Ann is in the orange jacket next to Nancy's headstone.

On Jeanie's chart, our family names are the green ones.

Two kinds of family charts so all attendees can figure out where they belong in the 1900 person decendant list.

2008-05-27T18:41:00.000-06:00

OHH I am soo cool, joining the other bloggers in the family!