Snow in Autumn

A beautiful view of the Farmington hills today. Hope to see more autumn leaves than snow for awhile longer.

Lunch Bunch

Here we are at Firehouse Pizza in Centerville - Cathy and Joanna.  We eat lunch here fairly often.  Cathy and I usually split the lunch special, which consists of a small pizza (usually Chicken Cordon Bleu, Hawaiian Chicken, or sometimes Artichoke), 1/2 focaccia bread (with extra cheese, of course) and two diet cokes (well, diet Dr. Pepper for me with a lemon and lime slice added).  Joanna is eating her veggies these days, as she is eating healthy for "two."

Assembly Required

The Danish IKEA company does not believe in the printed word.  There is not just "some" assembly required, but every single piece of this kitchen requires opening a box, pouring out the contents, and then being able to read pictures.  This is also true when assembling the kitchen drawers.  I have, by myself, without any assistance, (except for those da-- pictures) put together every one of the 20-something drawers.

Geranium in a Diaper Pail

I've had this same geranium plant for, oh, 10-15 years.  It's planted in an old red and white enamel diaper pail that belonged to my Grandma Wardle.  The plant sits on my front porch during the late spring, summer and fall months. In the winters its home is in the living room, on the east window seat, where it usually blooms once or twice during the long winter days.

Mini MINI

I didn't know, until I started driving a MINI, that there was a MINI club. Other MINI drivers wave, nod, or turn on their lights - kinda like motorcyclists do - when you see them on the road.

I still miss my Eclipse, but enjoy driving the MINI.

I Love My Phone

I've never really enjoyed a cell phone before upgrading to the new myTouch 3G phone from T-Mobile.  Matt has an earlier version of the same phone, so it's fun to have that in common.  He's shared a lot of apps with me.  The phone has lots of built-in Google tools.  I can not only see the distance of my run, but a map of the area. I can check e-mail and facebook, make myself a post-it-note, listen to music, take pictures (and video), check out the weather, and use it as a flashlight when Elaine and I take our early morning walks. I can find businesses, restaurants, gas stations, car washes, etc. close to my current location, and lots more things. Oh, and I can make phone calls too!

I drove up to South Weber to watch Jonah and Ez play softball.  Ez was not playing that night, but wanted to pose for pictures.  "Take my picture now, Gram," he would say over and over as he made some outrageous face or gesture.  Jonah is a great soccer player and played goalie for part of the game.  Since most of my picture-taking time was spent with Hazel and Ez on my lap - at the same time - some of my action shots of Jonah turned out blurry:)

"The Office"

Here's a post about my office area.  I now have a little privacy after working here for almost 7 years.  A year ago we restructured my area and I do not have to use thick phone books below my mouse in order to navigate my computer.  A better chair (which is a whole other blog...) has made a world of difference.  Since getting a new chair was a "sore spot" for many months, we won't go there:)

Just a Bed of Roses

Here's the shop where I sell my jewelry.  Such a fun shop, owned by Brenda Klomp and located in Farmington just around the corner from where I work.  The shop was just mentioned on Studio 5 (KSL TV).

Kitchen Remodel

We are remodeling the kitchen and it has turned out to be a bigger job than anticipated.  After adding new walls and ceiling, then painting, we realized that we were off by about 1" from getting the cabinet that goes above the fridge to fit.  So back to hammering out drywall.  It's these little backward steps that cause frustration!

Jonah's Birthday

I can hardly believe that my first grandchild is now seven!!  Where has the time gone?  I remember when he was born and the incredible excitement of becoming a grandmother.  Jonah is such a wonderful boy and we have a lot of fun together.

Incredible Clouds

The clouds have been incredible lately.  While running an errand, I detoured to find a place to take a few pictures of them.  Couldn't help but capture this "tree in the road."

I know I broke the "rule of thirds" with the flag shot, but I wanted to frame both the trees and the cloud formations.

Another cloud pic taken by the HAFB Airplane Museum in Roy.

Pumpkin House

I stopped by Gardner's Village in West Jordan today.  They're all set up for Halloween, including this fun pumpkin house.

Late Summer Flowers

I love the late summer sun.  It casts a soft glow in the backyard and has me grabbing my camera and heading outside many evenings.  These late bloomers come back every year and require no upkeep.

Silo

This strange silo can be seen from Main Street in Farmington, looking west.  Who waters it when there is no rain? :)

After the Rain

I love a good rain.  Walked outside and saw the raindrops on these berries in my backyard.

Mystery Gate

I stopped on Main in Centerville to check out this old gate.  Seems to be going nowhere.  But there is an old house hidden up the hill behind it.

Three Bowls

These three bowls were my Grandma Wardle's.  She was my most favorite grandma in the whole world.  These bowls were in her basement and when we moved her out I asked if I could have them.  She got them inside of laundry soap as an advertising incentive to buy. My Watt Pottery collection started with these three bowls.  Since then I have collected many pitchers, mixing bowls and other pieces of this particular style, which are the most sought after and were created in the 1950's. They are hand decorated with starflowers, apples, cherries, tulips.  I've pretty much stopped now because the pottery is relatively scarce and continues to increase in value.

Saturday Morning

The cousin-sleepover-breakfast-tradition is homemade pancakes cooked into whatever animal shape each child wants, and grandpa usually has that responsibility.  But with the kitchen remodel going on, we opted for McDonald's breakfast instead, served out on the deck.

A Bunch of Monkeys

It's always great fun to have the cousins sleep over!  They love it and get so excited.  Here they are climbing the tree in the front yard.  It seems to be a tradition every time they visit.

Playing School - Weston & Lacie

I tended Lacie and Weston at their house this evening.  They have the most wonderful old blackboard in the hallway.  We had the best time playing in Weston's room. 

Two Tomatoes

I can seem to grow most kinds of flowers, but not so great at vegetables.  Here's two of the five tomatoes that I grew in pots on my deck this summer.  I love tomato sandwiches - whole wheat bread, thick slices of tomatoes, light mayo and slices of avocado.

Japanese Anemone

One of my favorite perennial flowers is the Japanese Anemone. Its "sunny side up" blossoms gives color to the late summer garden.  What a wonderful autumn flower!  I was even rewarded with a bumble bee in the photo.

4-Wheelin' Weston

Two pictures today -


Here's Weston on his 4-wheeler. He was riding around and around his yard, very confident in his driving abilities!


Sweet Tomatoes is one of my most favorite restaurants in the Salt Lake City area. It's the best salad bar/soup/bread/pasta/dessert eatery ever. Mike and I went there today before another visit to IKEA concerning the kitchen cabinets.

Sunday Visitors

Ez, Hazel and Jonah came to visit today. Always fun to have grandkids over. They picked the "snakes" off the tree.

Kissin' Bugs

I should have been born in the 50's. Oh wait! I WAS born in the 50's!! I love retro things, like my awesome bike. It's a Townie, made by Electra. I rode it up to the trail tonight and watched the sunset. Next time I won't wear chapstick, though. The bugs loved it!

Running on the Trail

Just used the camera on my phone during my 3 mile run today. Such a beautiful trail. It's quiet and peaceful. Other people on the trail are always so friendly. Early this morning a group of 3 quail were on the trail in front of me, all in a row. I swear they were guiding my way. By the time I set my phone to "camera" they decided to go back to their nest.

Little by Little Quilt Group

This is a photo of "most" of the gals in my quilt group, Little by Little. We have been together since 1971, I think! We meet once a month, taking turns at each other's houses. We do a different project each year and it varies, but we work on a project for each person - one a month. By the end of the year we each have a completed project. At the monthly meetings we share what we did for that person, "show and tell" what we've done during the month, visit, laugh and eat. These special gals are some of the dearest friends!

From left to right (back row) Janet Shurtleff, Gayle Burton, Kathy Hewlett, Carole Stephens, Jackie Westergard. (Front Row) Kaye Evans and Sue Armitage. Missing - Brandi Bosworth - who was hiking into a back country chalet in Glacier Nat'l Park that is only accessible by foot - 14 miles a day!

Through My Lens - Moving

Moving Day? Nope. Just garbage from the kitchen remodel. Not a great pic, but too tired after taking numerous trips from the back deck (all those stairs...) to the truck.

Through My Lens - Photo-A-Day Journal- Day 1

Today is September 1, 2009 and I am beginning a photo-a-day journal. Since I love photography, this will be a new way to look at my everyday life - sort of a daily time capsule for a year. It might also make me a better photographer!

Today's entry is about my camera. I have an Nikkon D40X digital SLR, almost a year old. I LOVE my camera! This past year I've taken thousands of photos and have been able to chronicle many experiences and events through my lens. My camera bag is this wonderful photo backpack - a place for everything, and very comfortable on hikes.

The old green chair was my great grandmothers which eventually became my mothers, and I loved sitting in it growing up. It now sits in my family room and is my favorite place to relax.