SUMMER 2011 - Extreme Temperatures and Extreme Love!

So much has happened in our family since January! There have been absolute highs and absolute lows - but love will prevail and eternal relationships will go on! We have been so blessed to have Rory, Alex and Aurora move in with us - and to see Rory as an absolutely amazing father. His teaching methods, his love, his humor and his diligence are beyond what most fathers experience in their "fatherhood" years. He is also a great cook, a great cleaner and organizer, and now he has added school to his routine. Most parents don't get to see thier children in the full role of parenting, but we have been blessed over the years to have several of our kids and grandkids live with us for a season - to see them as adults - and to know of their goodness. One of the coolest things is to see these kids love and care for one another. Last Sunday we celebrated Grandma Gurney coming home from Utah and some of the family stayed until late. Ryan told funny stories of when we lived in Utah and the kids were little, and he kept us laughing! His kids were delighted, and I was happy to see family traditions and stories being passed down the generations. It reminded me of my favorite times growing up, when my parents, aunts and uncles would entertain us with their stories - especially about their lives in the mountains, the Indians, horses, etc.

My favorite days are always those where the family gets together - whether it is for Sunday dinners, to swim, to barbeque, or just when I get to tend the grandkids. A favorite day was when Rory took his brothers, sisters-in-law, and dad to a movie to thank them for all the work they gave in helping him move. I could tell that they were nervous to leave me with all the grandkids (since we were all in the pool), but the big kids (Devanie and Zander) helped with the little kids and I counted heads every few minutes.... 7 happy kids! When we got out we got on pijamas, ate, made popcorn and got out lots of pillows and blankets and watched The Frog Princess movie. All was calm and quiet until the dancing music came on - and then Aurora and Brailyn couldn't stay down! They jumped up, started dancing, and then everyone got excited - - and then parents came home!

It is so fun to cook with grandkids around! Lately they have helped prepare a lot of the meals. For our last Sunday dinner Roxie made the gravy, Devanie made the potatoes, Cam and Ryan tended the rolls, Ryan carved the turkey, Rick set the table - and I can't remember everything each person did, but dinner was wonderful! Afterwards it's a race to the sink for the little kids - because they all love to wash the dishes! I got a letter from Gilbert Town saying our water use was xtra high...so between my "forgotten" waterings of plants and our really clean dishes by Brailyn and Aurora it's totally possible! When everyone is gone I leave the toy room "as is" for a day or so, then re-organize it so that they next time they come they will be excited to be here. I remember our kids when they were little and when they didn't want to go to grandmas house because there was nothing to do and nothing to eat. I committed that our grandkids would never get a chance to feel that way!

A highlight of the summer was going to Utah - the first time with Rick, and the 2nd time I drove on my own. Rick was nervous for me to drive alone - but he tracked me on his phone and we talked at every stop (and sometimes in between). I totally loved my week with Jonique, Jacob and Xelly! It was beautiful weather, and a privilege to help Jonique while she got her wisdom teeth pulled. Xelly loved playing outside, filling her little rectangular pan with water, sitting in it, putting her babies in it ... and I thought ... "how awesome kids are to be happy with the simpliest of things". I didn't like leaving - but knew that we would be together in the end of August at Lake Powell. I'm grateful that Jacob works hard to take care of his cute little family - even if his job took them away! It is nice to have an excuse to go to Utah - and a wonderful place to stay!

Rory's birthday was fun - with everyone there to celebrate. The grandkids made heart messages and put them on large skewers and filled the lawns, planters and inside plants with them for a great heart attack! Rory chose to have homemade chicken noodle soup (old family recipe) and cheesecake(s). Some things just don't change! At least it wasn't "Bruno" soup!

These terrific grandkids have turned into fish! They took swimming lessons this year and all of them are very water savvy and they do some great dives, back-dives, pencils, and other tricks for me. Even Maddaux can do things that I wouldn't think a 4 year old would dare to do - and he's pretty tough. One of my favorite things since their school started (year round school) is that I get to teach them piano lessons at 6 am each week. What a great experience for a grandma! I'm so proud of each of them and the progress that they are making. Their music is beautiful and I see them moving forward each week! Yeah!

Another fun experience was camping up Sedona canyon (near Flagstaff) with Riley, Ashley and Brailyn. There were not any forests open for camping other than this one due to the fires and dryness. We hoped the other kids would be able to come, but Richard had to work (or should I say "got" to work), Ryan too, so it was just the 5 of us! We played lots of card games - and Ashley's favorite was SkipBo. The day that we left it began to rain, but as we arrived into the Phoenix valley the weather was 114 degrees! Yep, we came home too soon!

Jonique, Jacob and Xelly posed for me at Chris Dayley's reception. It was fun being with them and seeing Richard there too with his friends. We enjoyed having Richard fly home with us - since we don't get to see him as much after we changed our day and time of service at the temple. Rick and I love serving at the temple! It is truly a blessing to us - and we see miracles that bless our kids and grandkids - recognizing that the Lord is near, and he loves each one of us!

 These kids are getting so brave, and it's fun to see their confidence grow as their abilities grow.  Lake Powell this year will be extra fun with all these little "water bugs"!

  This little guy makes me laugh!  I am waiting for a day to be with just him - and I know that the time quickly goes by, so I need to take every chance to be with him before he is a big kid and it's not "cool" to be with grandma!

Being a grandma is the best! Rory was telling me that he thinks that pregnancy is a great thing, because it is the beginning of the absolute best part of life! Yep, I agree! The blessings of children and grandchildren are some of the greatest blessings on earth! Every kid needs a safe place to go when life is tough - and grandma's house is a safe place - always!

SPRING MEMORIES 2011

Grandkids are amazing!  Zander did an beautiful job trimming, mowing the lawn, and spraying weeds.  He brought his own weed-eater and lawnmower to help me with the "jungle"  at our Elliot house.  I was so grateful and it looked gorgeous after all his hard work!  Maddaux was surely wanting to be big on that day!  The next week Riley was there and surprised me by mowing the lawn again!  It's been a cooler, wetter March and I've loved the weather - but not as much as these grandkids!

Sundays are a favorite - not just because they are the "day of rest" but because our family gets together and has fun!  Ashley is almost as wierd as me (proof here)!  There have been lots of birthdays from Ryan's family in the past month(s) and I will post those pictures as soon as I find them. 

Our great grandmas (Grandma LaRee Bluth and /Grandma Ireta Gurney) came to eat at Riley and Ashley's home and it was such a treat to be with them.  It's not that common that kids get to know all of their grandparents plus their great-grandparents.  I only knew 1 of my grandmas and 1 grandpa - so you kids are really blessed!  We had a great time there - their home and yard are a perfect place for a big crowd!  Thanks for sharing!

So fun to hold the 2 youngest grandkids!  Jonique and Jacob moved to West Jordan shortly after this picture, so having Xelly and Brailyn together will not be a common thing anymore!  Every day counts!  I need to remember that more - as it seems that life and responsibilities keep me running far too fast and I don't want to have regrets.

Maddaux was awesome in playing with the 2 little girls while we had a lunch at Aunt Ashley's house.  The pool was a hit!  Maddaux found out that he is a great babysitter - and he begged to stay when it was time to leave.  His 4th  birthday was soon after this picture.  Cambria went with Devanie on a field trip so we loved having Maddaux with us!

This was a really awesome day!  I loved every minute with my grandkids!  We had a fun sleepover and they set up shop!  They saw that I had bags of lemons to juice and freeze, so they set up shop!  It was an amazing assembly line, with Maddaux washing the lemons, Devanie rolling them to soften them up, Roxie cutting them and Zander juicing them.  I filled the juice into bags and put it into the freezer.  I had thought that I would just have to throw the lemons away, but these kids SAVED THE DAY!  After that, we went into the garden area and cut up thousands of branches that had been pruned from the lemon tree, rose bushes, and other trees.  These kids used the clippers, pruners, etc and we cut up every bit of wood!  Afterwards we went swimming, played Wii, watched a movie and made popcorn.  I need to have them over more often - because they know how to get things done!

We love the weekends that Rory, Alex and Aurora stay over!  It fills our home with music, laughter, and the noise of little people!  I need to get the Easter pictures off my camera, but am doing this post from Utah!   Good night for now!

A MARVELOUS FAMILY WEEKEND!

This was a weekend filled with love!  We enjoyed Rory and his kids so much - and they were so delighted to be with their dad!  Even though it rained outside - it didn't rain in their hearts!  Every minute was filled with

 fun and laughter!  The rain was so welcomed - watering the desert for beautiful spring flowers - and I thought of that for Rory too - water for drought, and forthcoming blossoms of spring!    Of course, the kids wanted to jump on the trampoline, but this time they didn't want grandma - they wanted Dad!  Aurora has gotten her confidence on the trampoline now - where before she was very timid and nervous of the off-beat of other people jumping.

Alex's favorite games on the trampoline are Star Wars lazer wars - and he got his dad off the trampoline.  His pants can hardly stay up because he walks around with both light sabers hung on his pockets - the green one, and the blue one!  When Rory read him the Star Wars kids' storybook, Alex could give details, characters, and specifics as each page was turned.

And then the rain came again!  This time they found umbrellas, and had to go outside to experience the downpour!  How fun!  "Raindrops keep falling on my head..." Rory sang go them midst giggles and delight!

When Grandpa came he was surprised to see Alex batting home runs (from in front of the tv to the back of the dining room).  It was pretty amazing to see his natural ability to connect with the ball, from whatever angle!  His dad taught him how to stand sideways with the bat in position - and he did terrifically at hitting the ball midst our clapping and cheers.  Amazingly, nothing was broken!  Yeah for these cool 99 cent soft balls!

When the family came, there were now 4 little girls!  Our Utah Gurney family came for Joel Phelp's little girl's (Makena) blessing - which was given by Rick.  She is a sweet little 3 year old, and she kept saying that the girls were "so cute".  Xelly is 8 months old, and walking all over the place!

When Brailyn arrived she was quiet, but hillariously fun!  Makena and Brailyn really hit it off!  They went from the playroom to the bedroom, and I loved every minute of seeing these little cousins play together! 

All of Lena Gean's kids and grandkids were her, plus Kent and Carolyn, Grandma Gurney, Jim, Wendy's parents (from Yuma) and our kids and grandkids.  It was a special day filled with food, fun and love!

Richard, Lindsay, Trevor, Jonique and Jacob hung out at Jake and Jones' home on Saturday, then at Richard's on Sunday and at the hottub on Monday.  Cam taught all the girls to make bread on Monday, and Ryan and Rusty hung out together.  Ryan smoked chicken for Family Home Evening and they had all of us over to their home.  Thanks to all of you for your efforts to be together!  I love you all so much!

I FOUND THESE 2 PICTURES FROM CHRISTMAS ON DAD'S COMPUTER

I was looking for the Christmas pictures from 2010 and am so sad to not have found the ones I took at our family party!  I loved being with each of you that afternoon and night - and truly loved Christmas this year!  It was great to celebrate a week before Christmas eve, because we got that special time together, then all the next week I had time to serve others, to really feel the Christmas spirit, and then I loved CHRISTmas eve at the temple grounds - enjoying Jordan's concert and being with those of you who were able to come!  Oh - and Mi Amigos food before that  would have been perfect, but somehow I think they wanted to get home - and it wasn't its usually great taste!  Sorry for this lousy picture that cut off Richard's head and the top of Jacob's.  It was dark and I couldn't see what I was doing.

I had taken a picture of Ryan's family, but it didn't turn out at all.  Jacob and Jonique wanted a picture of the spot where Jacob asked her to marry him 2 years ago - but this time with their little family.  I'm glad this one turned out.  I'll post more when I find the pictures.  I guess the most important message is that my greatest blessing and gift is our eternal family!  It is made possible through the life, obedience, creations, and love our our Savior Jesus Christ!  WE LOVED CHRISTMAS DAY - TRAVELLING TO EACH OF YOUR HOMES AND SHARING THE LOVE THAT WE FELT THERE!  WE picked Great Grandma Gurney up at 7 am and went to Ryan and Cam's.  Dev, Zander, Roxie and Maddaux were just starting to open their gifts, and they were thrilled beyond belief!  It was fun to share to joy of Santa's anonymous giving.  Next we went to Richard's and enjoyed being with him.  He was alone at his home, and it was different than any other year - but we brought him what Santa had left at our home - and we enjoyed our visit!  Joni and Jacob's home was next, and Xelly had her first Christmas.  Jacob's sister and family came by while we were there and it was fun to see Xelly's "twin" cousin.  Next we went to Riley and Ashley's home and were fed a wonderful Christmas lunch!  Brailyn seemed to understand that it was a special day and she entertained us well!  Finally, we drove to Tucson to spend the rest of the day with Rory, Heather, Alex and Aurora.  They greeted us at the door and the kids were thrilled to see us and to show us their presents!  We played, danced, ate a wonderful Christmas dinner that Heather had really gone out of her way to prepare - and enjoyed the end of a perfect day with them.  When I find my pictures I will post them and enjoy the memories all over again.  Sending love and gratitude to each of you!  Thanks for the gifts you so graciously showered us with.  We love you so much!