frijoles

having grown up in sunny so cal i have never known life without one of my favorite ethnic foods...mexican! i have tried throughout the years to make refried beans from scratch. but i never could find a recipe that worked, or my skills were sorely lacking, take your pick! a few weeks back i saw on my friend andrea's pinterest account a recipe for slow cooker refried beans, and i knew i had to try it!

yesterday i did just that, and let me tell you...they are amazing! such an easy recipe, so tasty, and so easy! and because i am so grateful for this new recipe in my life i am willing to share it with you. now, i don't usually share recipes on here, so to do so within one week is a bit odd, but they truly are foods i am grateful for. i hope you enjoy and become grateful for this recipe as well. (i actually did not add the jalapeno or the cumin, one because i didn't want to and the other because we were out of it...still, so delicious!)

Slow cooker refried beans

·                     1 onion, peeled and halved

·                     3 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed

·                     1/4-1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped 

·                     2 tablespoons minced garlic

·                     3 teaspoons salt

·                     1 3/4 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper

·                     1/8 teaspoon ground cumin (optional)

·                     5 cups water 

·                     4 cups chicken broth

-Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin into a slow cooker. Pour in the water and chicken broth and stir to combine. Cook on High for 8 hours, adding more water as needed. Note: if more than 1 cup of water has evaporated during cooking, then the temperature is too high.

-Once the beans have cooked, strain them, and reserve the liquid. Mash the beans with a potato masher, adding the reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency. 

early birds

tonight rachel and i went to see 'the help'. we were supposed to meet several other people from our ward there (girls night). we were told that we should meet at 7:15 pm. we opted to go a little earlier since they have a farmer's market on tuesday evening and i was curious as to what all they had there. so, we were there at 6:55.

we spent a few minutes looking at the vendor's wares, then decided to get our tickets. it only took us a minute to realize that the movie actually began at 7:05. someone was misinformed! (our friends)

needless to say we purchased our tickets and then went into the theater.

i am grateful that we tend to be early rather than late to pretty much everything. it's just how we roll.

and i am grateful that our friends weren't too late!

the good, the bad, and the ugly

august has been a rather interesting month. a month of new life and death, of trials and successes. usually august is somewhat of a sleepy month - it's hot out, it's fairly quiet, and pretty much uneventful (except for last year when amy had gav and then they moved to oregon).

but this year is different...we have had seven people that we know either die or have someone close to them pass away - some unexpectedly, some not.

we have had a sweet granddaughter born into our family; and her parent's best friends had a daughter two days before! and there have been other births as well that we know of.

it is just an odd mix.

along with that rach ran her marathon - a gigantic accomplishment. craig and angie moved, had darci, and he began school again. sam applied for a job with a gaming company (here's to hoping!) and rylee began kindergarten. for amy's family - gav turned one, brad started a new job that will hopefully give him an opportunity for work when he finishes school.

and then this last weekend, pat suffered from his kidney stone, rachel's car is in the shop (ac problems, not good at this time of year), etc., etc. on top of all of that i decided to feel insecure in many aspects of my life. do we ever, ever feel totally happy with who we are? if you do i am really sincerely happy for you, because i am tired of this feeling.

it sounds like i am wallowing, but i'm not...this post has a point.

the point is that i don't believe in wallowing. i believe it is wasted energy. i believe that we are blessed at all times in our lives, we just have to take the time to look around and recognize those blessings. i mean, really, i am grateful for my blessings, and not in a 'look at me, i am better than you' sort of way, but in a sincere, meaningful way.

i have the Gospel of Jesus Christ in my life. i know that God, our Father knows us and loves us and wants to guide us and direct us. i know that my Savior, Jesus Christ, lives, and that He did all that He did because He wanted to glorify the Father, and because He loves us, His brothers and sisters. i know that families can be together forever. i know that my family likes and loves me - even when i am undeserving. i know that no matter what may come in the future for our family my husband and i are there for one another, like we have been since we met.

so what if my health isn't the best? so what if we aren't going to have a lot when we retire? so what if we are upside down on our house? and so what if i feel inadequate in my calling, and sometimes in life?

the point is that we keep trying; and that we look for those things that matter - because those are the things we take with us at the end of this life anyway. we are blessed, and that is all there is to it. and i am beyond grateful for those blessings.

aunt dimity

several years ago rachel made a discovery which i am grateful for. that discovery has kept me company for many hours. it is the series of aunt dimity books by nancy atherton. they are a fun read! we actually have most of the series... because we love them. i just finished reading 'the family tree', which is, i believe, the most recently added to the series.

the thing about it is the 'main' character is dead. the other main character who is alive in the book is lori shepard. she solves all kinds of mysteries in a little town in england called finch.

each book also comes with a recipe. i haven't made most of those recipes, but the one we use all the time (well it would be all the time, if we could afford it calorie-wise) is uncle tom's butterscotch brownie's aka blondies. they are delicious. so much so that i am willing to share the recipe here with you!

Uncle Tom’s Butterscotch Brownies 

Preheat oven to 365 degrees.

½ c. melted butter

2 c. dark brown sugar

2 eggs

1½ c. flour

2 t. baking powder

1 t. vanilla

¼ cup butterscotch chips - optional

¼ cup semisweet chocolate chips – optional

Butter a 9” square cake pan.  Mix all of the ingredients together in large bowl, combining them well.  Spread mixture in the cake pan and bake for 35 – 40 minutes, or until dry on top and almost firm to the touch.  Let cool for 10 – 15 minutes, then cut in 2” squares.

if you want a delightful, clean read...try the aunt dimity series, and make some blondies to accompany you during your read!

p.s. there is a new one out! yay! 'aunt dimity and the village witch'...something more to be grateful for!

see rachel run!

quite early this morning we went to san leandro where rachel ran her first official half marathon! it was quite the experience. there were a lot of very physically fit people there, and some that were, well, not so much...but they still ran! it was a wonderful sight to behold.

i loved watching as all the half marathoners gathered together; anticipation ran high, energy was flowing, some were serious some were giddy with excitement. rach was focused, happy and ready. then the countdown began, as she passed by us she smiled and waved excitedly.

i felt like i was taking her to kindergarten again - sending her off on her own and trusting that the world would treat her right. do we ever lose those motherly instincts? i kind of doubt it.

while she ran pat and i went in search of some food for breakfast, which took much longer than it should have, but that isn't important. we also rested in the car (pat recuperating from kidney stones last night and a trip to the er, which got us home at 11 pm). when 1 hr and 45 minutes had passed we decided it was time to go to the finish line. i sure am glad we did!

we were there for about 2 minutes (she ran it in just under 2 hours, not bad, eh?) when in the distance i saw our daughter, running her heart out, beaming at her accomplishment...i was so proud of her. i began waving excitedly (as only a mother can do). when she saw me she smiled that dazzling smile of hers. a few seconds later she crossed the finish line, where we ran to greet her and give her a hug.

there was a moment - the moment - when she crossed that finish line where i welled up with joy inside for the accomplishment she has made (which nearly turned into overflowing tears, but i restrained myself), for the distance she has come since a year ago. she set a goal and she accomplished that goal. 

rach is becoming more and more confident, more strong, and more able to handle whatever life throws at her. actually, i don't know if life can throw things at her, i think she throws things at life now. so, look out life, rachel's coming! ;)

i am grateful for those moments when the success of others brings you such great joy that it is indescribable.

knowledge

we found out that a friend's baby passed away yesterday morning. she was 7 weeks old.

the friend is Rachel's pampered chef distributor/mentor, Deb. we have only known her since may. when we met her she was 7 & 1/2 months pregnant. she was at our home twice just prior to having her little girl. (this is their 4th child) i met her last week, rachel held her several times, and she was a sweetheart.

we are saddened by their loss. i was able to send an email to Deb this morning expressing our sorrow to her. she replied with this...
Thank you.  I am without words too.  Words are not strong enough to express my sorrow.  You met her.  Saw her sweet features and a face that showered us with love.  Its over powering right now.  Thanks for your condolences.  I am at a loss and don't know how to process this loss.  For now I just sit with family and friends around me.  Its all I can do. 

we have so much to be grateful for...the knowledge that families can be together forever is the greatest knowledge that we have; how to get us there is the other greatest knowledge we have, along with who provided the way.

now may not be the time to share this knowledge with them, but it will be shared. how could i not? they are in desperate need of this wonderful knowledge.

new basket!

Rach and I have been on a hunt lately - for a cute basket that is large enough to hold our stray blankets (that we use in the winter, certainly not now). We went to JoAnn's, Michael's, Pier 1 (who no longer has baskets at the one in Manteca), TJ Maxx, Beverly's and finally to Michael's again - only this time in Modesto.

Finally! We found one! Or should I say "Eureka!" Now our strays are all snug as a bug in our new basket! I am grateful that 1) our hunt is over, and 2) we have a central place for our blankets.

all grown UP!

Rylee clothes shopping for school...can you say diva?!

Our eldest granddaughter/grandchild, Rylee, began kindergarten today! She has been so excited for this day that she has been talking about it for months!

Yes, she is precious!

Here are some of the cute things regarding her and school -

*she was so excited to go school shopping yesterday that she woke up an hour earlier than normal

*when her mom dropped her off today she told her mom that she could leave because, "i got this"

*she was more excited about meeting the bus driver than her teacher

 Isn't she the cutest thing ever? Well, one of them! ;)

I am grateful that Rylee is becoming so grown up, though part of me wishes she wasn't. She is just a sweetheart, and a real blessing in our lives.

target

i woke up earlier than usual this morning and suddenly found myself organizing like crazy! i hadn't planned on it, it just happened! yesterday i was in our laundry room and found in the cabinet above the dryer all these barbecue tools that we have never even used! then i realized we had 'won' them at a ward/scout fund raiser two or so years ago! wow! (see? i do need to get organized!)

so, i pulled them all out of that cabinet this morning and realized that if they were in a clear container where we could actually see them we just might use them! also, i realized that all the laundry room cabinets should be cleaned out and that there was a whole lot of stuff that i really don't need or use any more!

after getting out all the stuff (bedskirts, duvet covers, etc) i decided that a quick trip to target was in order. (we also ended up going several other places...turned out to be a rather busy morning) but i was grateful to be able to find the containers at target that i wanted so that i could become better organized.

i especially love the target near us, it is just nicer and better organized (though things are a bit topsy-turvy right now since they are adding a larger grocery area). i am grateful for target, i love it.

a healthy bike

my bike is not healthy at the moment. it has a flat tire. it has had a flat tire for over a week now. pat thought he had fixed it, but he hadn't. it is still flat. that makes me sad. i miss my bike. i miss my bike rides in the morning, when the air is cool and there are few people out and about. i can hardly wait to get my bike back!

hopefully it will be fixed, again, by pat tonight.

but in the meantime i have to say i am so grateful for when my bike is healthy! and i am hoping it will be again, SOON!

delicious dinner

for the 4th of July i made pulled pork. i didn't want to bbq since it was going to be rather hot out, and who wants to add more heat when you already have enough?

the recipe i used was pretty simple: pork roast, salt, pepper and liquid smoke. put it in the crockpot for 16 hours and voila - you've got some pretty tender and tasty meat!

i had purchased some pork strips awhile ago, and i knew they were lurking in my freezer, just waiting to be used. now, mind you, i couldn't tell you what pork strips are exactly, but i figured they would be tasty, and i was not the least bit disappointed.

i happen to love pulled pork with rice. i don't know why, it just works. so i slipped these pork strips into the crockpot, added salt, pepper and some liquid smoke. then i turned the crock pot on high for 1/2 hour. after that i turned it to low for 5 hours.

when i returned home from church i put rice in the our rice cooker and cooked some fresh green beans.

within 40 minutes we were sitting down to a delicious meal. i am so grateful for delicious Sunday dinners! (and easy ones too!) =)

juicing

for my birthday pat was going to get me a breadmaker (which of course i would choose and order; that is how things work around here these days). i was also going to get a juicer, because i wanted one. as i was researching on amazon i found the juicer i really wanted on sale - 25% off! so, i decided to order that for my b.day present instead of the breadmaker (since it was still more expensive than i had planned on).

i have been juicing my breakfast for over a week now and i love it. i am beginning to feel healthier (these things take time, right?) and hope to feel even more so as juicing continues!

i mostly have the mean green recipe from 'fat, sick and nearly dead', or i make a carrot/apple and sometimes celery combo.

i am grateful for juicing - it's just healthy goodness.

p.s. someday i will also get my breadmaker...someday soon! ;)

life

just a few moments ago i received an email from a friend that i work with in relief society. she was supposed to be in utah, assisting her daughter who gave birth last week to her second daughter. instead she finds herself unexpectedly back in california offering her support to her parents and other extended family members.

you see her sister passed away, unexpectedly. she is the second friend within a week that this has happened to (only the other lost her brother to a motorcycle accident). which causes me to appreciate the frailty of this mortal existence.

life is odd that way. you expect one thing, you plan for it, and then before you know it something entirely different than what you had planned for happens. and when this type of thing happens we feel we are left to make sense out of something that just doesn't. we are left holding the proverbial bag; wondering what to do next, attempting to realize that this person is not on this earth at this time any longer. i remember when my dad passed away, feeling as though the world should just stop spinning, that people shouldn't go on living their lives, that laughter should cease to exist; because someone great and wonderful was gone...

however, life continued. i continued. our family continued.

and that is the wonder of this life. we can experience pain and sorrow unlike anything we have ever experienced before; yet we are able to continue, to live through it, to learn through it, to grow and to love through it.

not only am i grateful for life, i am grateful that this life is just a small (which sounds so insignificant, but it isn't) portion of what we are really living. we have the truth. we know the plan of salvation; we know that families are eternal. that is what i am most deeply grateful for...and that my friends know that also. we are blessed.

welcome!

welcome to little darci lynn dell!

she is the newest member of our family and was born earlier today in payson, utah.

she weighed 7 lbs, is 19" long and has strong lungs! 

congratulations to craig, angie and lucas - 

proud parents and brother.

i am so grateful she is here safe and sound, and 

i can't wait to meet her!

pictures will follow, as soon as i have some!

heaven on earth

i decided last night what my grateful thought would be for today as i sat on our porch swing in our backyard. i can't tell you how many wonderful conversations have been held there, or how much laughter has emanated from that little spot. i can tell you that many times i have felt the spirit there, guiding and directing me when it was needed. our porch swing is a refuge from the world, it is a place of hope and wonder, of sorrow and joy. yes, we are surrounded by neighboring homes with people living their lives and making their noises in their corner of the world. but we also have the trees, rose bushes, lilacs and jasmine that we can enjoy. and at night we have the stars! oh, the wonder of the stars! how i love to watch for them as they slowly begin to shine in their brilliance.

it has also served as a wonderful place to rock our grandbabies to sleep. they become so relaxed and snuggle right in. makes me miss them just thinking of their sweetness...

can you tell how grateful i am for our porch swing? the place is heaven on earth, truly.

banana bread!

i have been baking a particular banana bread recipe for 33 years now! wow. that is a l-o-n-g time! a friend of ours in our byu married ward brought some slices of this particular recipe by to share with us and we fell in love with this recipe. it is super moist and tasty! we have made a small addition over the years - chocolate chips.

my kids remember coming home from school on a rainy day only to find banana bread just baked and ready to eat awaiting their arrival. this is the stuff that memories are made of!

today i had 8 bananas on our counter that were quite ripe (pat is eating peaches right now, so the bananas have gone by the wayside). so, i took six of them and made two loaves. oh, the people at pat's office will rejoice, believe me! they love everything he takes in that i bake. (which is good for me since i shouldn't eat any of it!)

i am grateful for our banana bread recipe that my family loves, and that i can share it! :)

Happy 3rd to Craig and Angie!

three years ago today craig and angie were married!

my, how time has flown!

we are grateful for their marriage, 

for the happiness they share together, 

for their wonderful lucas and for darci 

who is about to make herself known to all!

ain't marriage grand?

i am grateful for craig and angie's marriage, 

for the love they have for each other, 

and the eternity they have to spend together. 

we love you both!

and luke and darci!
Happy Anniversary!

fun fhe

rachel purchased a bocce ball set recently. she had high hopes of getting her mom and dad to do something fun with her. so, tonight we ventured to ripon, specifically to stouffer park, where they have a bocce ball court.

turns out that this...

plus this

equals a very fun fhe!

i am grateful for a fun fhe - 

it just reminds us that being a family is fun!

(and i didn't do too badly either! ;> )

great leaders!

the rs presidency in our ward is amazing. on more than one occasion i have thanked my lucky stars that they are in the positions they are in. today was another one of those days. i am grateful for them, for their courage to stand for what is right (don't ask questions, i won't tell), and to make sure rs runs according to plan. i love them all.

ps - if you don't know what 'rs' is, i'll be happy to fill you in! ;)

ingenuity

today i was vacuuming. one of the few chores i had to accomplish today. :)

we have a bagless vacuum cleaner; which i love. except for the part where you have to empty it and clean out the filter, it's messy and i don't really like messy. but i will do messy since it has to be done.

today the vacuum cleaner had to be emptied - it was a must. first i emptied the obvious gunk into a plastic bag and threw it away. then i took the filter and hit it against bricks on the side of our house to try and get it as cleaned out as possible. as i was doing the latter part pat came out with his handy dandy wet vac. he proceeded to change where the hose was to another outlet, asked me to hand him the filter, turned on said vacuum cleaner and proceeded to blast the heck out of it! that's right! my husband is ingenious! one smart cookie that guy! (yay me!) all the dust and yuck came flying out in no time at all. it was so much better than hitting the thing against bricks! then he took the other parts and cleaned them out as well.

i know my vacuum is an inanimate object, i get that, but still... it is now happy. i allow objects to be happy when they are clean, it just works for me. =)

so today i am grateful for my husband's ingenuity, his willingness to share that with me (unexpectedly i might add) and a happy vacuum cleaner. it's the simple things in life that make life great.

shrimp salad

today has been busy; i made oatmeal fudgy bars for corinne's bunko night/fundraiser, made a baby quilt for our soon to be born granddaughter, went shopping, cleaned a bit (need to do more - tomorrow), and had my daily chat with amers. i also made shrimp salad this morning for dinner.

i am grateful that the three of us love shrimp salad, that it is so refreshing, and that i don't have to make dinner now!

Gavin is ONE!

Happy Birthday to our sweet Mr. Gavin!

He is such a wonderful addition to our family.

He is quick to smile, snuggle and just plain love everyone.

He is greatly loved by his mommy, daddy, brother James,

gramma's and grampa's, aunts, uncles, cousins

and anyone who knows him.

He is simply a joy.

Happy Birthday Gavin, we love you!

sharla

today my long-time friend sharla and i went to lunch at la casuela (formerly known as la morenita) in ripon. i haven't been there in years. but, the best part is that sharla and i were able to catch up on one another's lives; her kids, my kids, extended family, callings, and life in general.

i am grateful for sharla, for the nineteen years we have been friends (soon, anyway), and for the person she is. i love that we can make each other laugh and have a great time together. i also love that she loves mexican food, in particular la caseula (formerly known as la morenita), so much so that they know her by name!

thanks for the birthday lunch sharla! we will have to have a repeat in november sometime around 11/11/11 - your birthday! :)

rachel's library card

way back when, we moved back to this area. at the time i applied for a library card, but it never came through. they said i had to reapply...that was nearly eight years ago!

rachel has been allowing me to use her library card all this time; she is the best! i've been ordering books online, then she or i go and pick them up. i ordered four books the other day, today we were able to pick up one, the others will soon be in, that makes me happy.

one of the books i especially ordered for her since she wants to read it, 'the help'. not sure how it will be, we will see. we don't read what would be considered 'r' rated books. President Crockett says we need to only be doing things that exalt us - those types of books wouldn't. now this isn't some new change for us, it's just the standard we live by - he just helped reinforce that!

i am rambling, so sorry.

at any rate, i am grateful for rachel's library card, and hopefully will soon apply for my own!

p.s. i will let you know how the book is!

our best bites

we are trying to eat healthy around here. it is no easy task. we are polishing off the banana cream pie left over from my birthday tonight and not bringing any other food in this house that isn't healthy! my goal is to eat more veggies and fruits, which isn't that difficult, but a challenge just the same.

so, today, when i went onto facebook i saw that our best bites (which is a blog i love) had a recipe for 'roasted eggplant spread'. which essentially is eggplant, roasted red tomatoes, garlic, red onion and red bell pepper all roasted with olive oil, kosher salt and pepper in the oven. then you put it all in the food processor and mix it all up.

oh my! it is a wonderful treat! i suggest you take a minute and go to our best bites...today i am especially grateful for them, for they will assist me with my goal of being healthier! yay!

special day

today is a special day, and it isn't because it is my birthday. it is because it is my parent's anniversary. they were married sixty-five years ago today. and while i haven't always appreciated being born on their anniversary i am now (in my advanced age!) grateful to share this day with them. it is a reminder to me of the wonderful people that they are and were. i am so blessed to have been raised by parents that loved me no matter what i did that could certainly cause them not to! i am grateful for their example of living the gospel, loving others, sharing their belongings gladly, and being kind to others. family and the gospel of Jesus Christ are everything to them.

i am grateful for my parent's anniversary and that i can share that special day with them. i only wish my dad was here to celebrate it.

happy anniversary mom and dad!

adventures

originally we had planned to go to monterey this weekend (to celebrate my bday tomorrow). however, after searching for a hotel and realizing there weren't any reasonable ones available i began to get suspicious. after doing a little detective work i found that this weekend in monterey is the steinbeck festival and a wine tasting festival. needless to say we needed a change in our plans!

we opted to go to muir woods and enjoy the coolness there (expecting it to be over 100 degrees today as it normally is at this time of year in the valley.) however, the high here today was 92 and the high while we were there was 57! Fifty-seven degrees! the only time we ever see that in the summer time is at night, and that is unusual!

muir woods did not disappoint, it was beautiful as always...crowded, but beautiful.

after we were finished we thought we would head over to sausalito and find a cute little restaurant for lunch. little did we know that there was going to be a ton of people riding bicycles all over the place! we ended up driving through town and heading for the golden gate bridge.

i originally wanted to go to pier 23 to try some tasty fish tacos (yes, that is pretty much my favorite food - most of the time). pat was not a fan of that idea (he doesn't care much for the city). (oh, and thank you guy fieri for the recommendation on triple-d) i was not disappointed, in the least. we did have to wait for 1/2 hour since all the other people that would have gone to monterey apparently decided to join us in the bay area today...or as rach puts it they all knew it is my bday tomorrow and wanted to celebrate with me! um, sure!

after our tasty lunch we walked over to pier 39. seriously, it was busier than disneyland...honest! it was crazy! we walked about half the pier, picked us up some of the cinnamon-sugar mini donuts, then headed back to the car for the trip home. fortunately the giants game had ended a bit earlier so we missed the worst of the traffic.

hmmm. maybe that is why there were so many people there? no idea.

at any rate, i am grateful for family adventures, and birthday fun! (i really enjoy having a bday in the summer - there is so much more to do!)

sharing

i picked some nectarines from our tree and took them to our neighbor and my friend, LeAnn. i am grateful i can share with others.

my computer

i have been using my computer quite a bit lately. usually i check my emails, go on facebook for a bit, take a gander at pinterest (a healthy addiction, i assure you), check out blogs of friends/family that have recently posted, and write on here. today i actually worked on budgeting (which i love using my computer for, since i am somewhat ocd about budgeting)...and family history.

that seems to be my obsession right now. i'm not sure why. it's all about pat's family and getting it organized and figuring out whom belongs to whom and when and where, and all of that! it is a worthy obsession, definitely. i am excited because i can not only find people and info on newfamilysearch.org, but i am also using paf to make sure everyone is accounted for, and then i have made a table on word so that i can see who needs what work done. 

phew! this is busy work, believe me!

i am grateful for my computer that helps me to organize it all, and even understand it all when i am finished.

Peachy goodness!

Once again we have an abundance of peaches!

We have lost many due to them falling on the ground

(probably around six dozen or so) and have been harvesting them

and sharing them as quickly as possible.

My, but they are delightfully yummy!

With all of these peaches on hand I couldn't believe

I hadn't baked anything worthy of the mighty peach!

So, I went online this morning and went to work.

I made one of these:

 For a change, I decided to make a rustic peach pie, otherwise known as peach galette.

The pie turned out super delicious, 

I have yet to try the galette, but it looks wonderful. :)

I am grateful for our peaches and that we can share their goodness

 with our friends, neighbors, co-workers, and hopefully family.

addendum: i actually preferred the rustic pie - it was less sweet, more peachy tasting!

nice people

Mom Dell, Neil and Gloria
Mesa, AZ 2006

i have been blessed to have many nice people in my life; some are friends, some are relatives, and some are complete strangers. i happened to be fortunate enough to have married into a family of pretty nice people...

today our aunt gloria, on pat's side, passed away. from the moment i met her i liked her. she was always warm and welcoming. she was always nice to me and i will always remember her for that.

i am pretty sure she was going to turn ninety this year so she lived a good long life. i am grateful for her, and for all the other nice people in my life.

new family search

rach, pat and i are hoping to go to the temple sometime this weekend to get some work done for our ancestors. well, mostly pat's since mine are basically done! (thanks mom, sue and aunt bev!)

i decided we needed to clean up our act a bit so i went to newfamilysearch.org. what a blessing that turned out to be! we found that pat's family (godfrey side) migrated to the usa sometime around the same time my family did - 1630's. at least the first person born in massachusetts on his side was in 1635, which is pretty telling and very surprising. i am finding spouses and parents and all kinds of people we were missing. that means we can do so much more than we thought.

i am so grateful for the church's semi-new site (that i have used before, for my side, that is), and that i am getting our family history organized. i wonder if any of the kids would like to do some of this work? let me know if you're interested!