I just got the LDS News blurb that Elder David B. Haight passed away last night.  Is it some sort of record to lose 2 apostles in 10 days?  He was apparently the oldest apostle ever at 97.  I look forward to October conference for our new apostles.  I will miss the little messages and waves from E. Haight  and the amazing words of E. Maxwell. 

Yesterday SV and I returned from our overnight camping trip with the “tuzzins”.  We tagged along with Garry and Liesl and kids to Lake Casitas.  It’s about 45 minutes from us northward.  Liesl arranged it all and did all the work.  She picked out a fantastic spot as close to the lake as you can get in this series of dry years.  We also had close access to a little playground that the kids took advantage of  often. 

We arrived Thursday afternoon and after setting everything up and getting a dutchoven full of food cooking, we headed to the entrance of the campground where they have a little overpriced water park.  Unfortunately the main attraction was closed just as we got there because someone laid a little dookey in the water, but the river was still open and so around and around we went in innertubes for a about an hour.  SV liked it most of the time.  When we had to go through places that got sprinkles of water on her face she balked but other than that she had a great time.  I caught Joseph playing salmon and few times trying to swim upriver, and I don’t think I saw him with an innertube the whole time.  He is quite the little fish.  Katrina latched onto a single tube and went around and around in her little pink wetsuit.  GGnana probably had the best time.  She seems to like the water just fine in her onesie and swim diaper.  Gary helped her out a little.  Poor Jacob started the whole adventure with a yellow jacket bite right on the neck.  When we got back to the campsite and were all eating he stayed in the tent because he was afraid to get bit again.

Mom and Dad Arnell joined us for  dinner and campfire pyromaniac fun.  Liesl did a great job with the cooking and the kids loved roasting marsh.  It was a lot of fun.  Later after half went down.  A few of us stayed out by the fire and enjoyed a nearly full moon reflected on the lake.  It was really nice.  Not to cool either.  SV didn’t think staying with me in the little tent was quite the thing.  She want go with her cousins in the “tint”.  But we slept well and arose early to Joseph and Katrina starting a fire by themselves. 

We ate breakfast  in the tent to keep away from the millions of yellow jackets and then packed it all up.  Just as we were finishing a howl from the play ground sent Gary and Liesl running to Jacob.  Stung AGAIN.  He must have the sweetest or meatiest smelling skin around.  Poor kid is traumatized and will probably never want to go camping again.  I will be interested in his verbal account when he has had time to process it all in his little brain. 

Brian has but one week left of this semester.  It’s all going by really quick for me but he is stressed and frustrated.  This one has been a challenge for him because of having to depend on undependable group members and having to pick up the slack. 

Pictures to come in the next week.  They need to be developed still.  The woes of using film. 

Some have inquired…Where are the cabin pictures?  They are either in my camera on an unfinished roll of film or I haven’t downloaded them yet.  Mo got ahold of the camera cable and chewed it to the wires.  I taped it up but have been afraid to see if it still works.  It does, thank goodness.  So here are more pictures. I know that is what you all would rather see here anyway.

But first some Mo pictures.

Right there…I have such troubles with that spot…………………….Puppy Heaven.

Some Playdough fun

Many second cousins…………………spleepy grandpa

…Where did I leave off?  Ah, yes, the cabin.  After leaving Tracie’s we headed to the cabin which was only about 20-30 minutes away.  There we found, Eric and Tracie and thier 3 just arrived, Mom and Dad, Holly, and many dogs.  It was a relatively quiet evening.  Friday brought Adriane and Amy Jo, G and G Gee (he he), The Robisons (too many to  list, nearly all but Jason), and Brian who I picked up at the airport.  Man, it was good to have him with us again.  When SV saw Brian walking towad us she started crying and ran to him.  It must be confusing to have him absent for so long.  I don’t think we will do this again for a long time. 

There was not a quiet moment from then on.  I rarely saw Serra, she followed all the kids around and occasionally had to be scolded for pushing others around.  She liked to play gatekeeper meaning she was in charge of the sliding door and controled who came in and out.  She feels empowered when she doesn’t let the smaller children (and some bigger) pass through during her stand. 

Mo was in heaven.  He didn’t eat any of the food I brought for him.  Why would he?  He was not hungary.  I caught him knocking down small children for cheese and lunchmeat or anything else they might be holding.  Not to mention all the goodies fallen on the floor.  On Friday morning, I heard him downstairs at 6am and I thought he was destroying someones shoe.  I went down to capture him and save the shoe.  It was not a shoe.  He was eating the cheese off the mouse trap that had been laid the night before.  Phsyco. He is lucky he didn’t get a very sore nose. 

Saturday we gained Joe’s family and that brought our numbers up to 36 humans and 5 dogs if I am counting correctly.  We had our big meal, dutch oven style this year while everyone was there.  Then a friend of Erics joined us with his family making us 40. (Mason and Bonnie)  We all had a great time catching up and telling stories.  Mom and Dad had purchased a TV with movies for the kids and they spent some of the time in the basement watching Barney and Scooby or whoever.  It is kind of funny how much noise there is and yet the only screaming kid you hear is your own. 

We spent our nights on both the blow up mattress in the loft and the regular mattress in the big room.  Night is not a quiet and peaceful place at the cabin when you have that many people sleeping in close quarters.  Snoring and other bodily noises, crying babies, people getting up to use the bathroom, terrified boys with a mouse in thier tent.  It all makes an afternoon nap quite necessary. 

Sunday morning we cooked up the rest of the food, cleaned up the place, and everyone disapeared.  The Anderson contingency headed to Park City to visit the cemetary where Dwaines family is burried, and where most of us will end up.  Weird thought.   We caravaned back to Vegas with no troubles on the way. 

Monday Brian and I took advantage of Grandma and went to a matinee and saw Spiderman along with a visit to Brian’s favorite eatery.  (Roberto’s taco shop)  He ate his and the rest of mine, smiling all the while.  The family gathered (Adriane, Eric and fam came over) in the evening, and we got the last visiting in.   We headed home Tuesday morning, dropping Brian  off at work.  He had a meeting  for school that night and the next two nights and so we didn’t see him again until Friday evening. 

Some of you may know I have begun seeing a doctor again with the intent of getting my hormones into somewhat normal levels so we can have more children.  I started a few weeks ago and my levels were in the negative zone making medical intervention necesarry again.  I spent a good hour with a my new doctor on Friday setting up a plan of sorts and running some more blood tests.  I have great hopes of things working out but it can be a frustrating and disapointing path. 

After all that fun , the California Ladies met with thier children at the beach to spend some time with Julie who hitched a ride with mom from Utah.  Some burning took place on my part even though I spent most of the time in the shade.  It was unusually hot there.  The kids had a blast and I can’t believe what a good swimmer Joseph has become.  He was out there really far, battleing waves and riptides with the best of them. 

Saturday later in the day Julie visited for a few hours with Olivebean and  we took the kiddies swimming, and had dinner together.  Brian took a nap by the pool.  He was tired from rising early to go to work. 

Sunday – church and family.  Calabasas.  We came, we ate, we looked at pictures from Julies fabulous camera.  We had family home evening.  We went home.  By the way for all of you not there, it was Brower chicken.

Note:  I ran a spell check and not a single one popped up.  Bet that has never happened to you, Doug. 

SV playing on the sliding glass and some fishies.

Tic tac teeth and Pam and kids.

THE SERRAS

SV and Obean

Wow! Absent a whole month.  I tried to update while I was in Utah last week but Doug lost interment access that particular day and so, alas, it did not happen. 

Serra~V~, Mo, and I left poor Brian working and schooling here in So. Cal on July 1st while we headed northward.  In hot Baker, we stopped for a potty break and what a hassle having to take a dog with you, not to mention the kid.  I had my hands full with those two.  I don’t think I could do the same trip with more than one child.  I don’t have enough hands.  We stayed in Vegas overnight.  Mo learned the doggy door within minutes and learned quickly that old dogs don’t like frisky little new dogs.  Ernie bit him on the rump and made him cry.  It was very sad. 

On to Provo the next morning where we stayed with Grandpa and Grandma Gee for the night.  Mo liked the no fence thing and we had to chase him down a few times.  Serra~V~ was just glad to not be in the car anymore, although she travels like an angel.  On the way up we stopped in Ceder City for a break and ran around a park for a while.  The only time she cried was when it was time to go and she had to get back in her seat. 

Saturday the 3rd was the Brower family reunion and David and Barbara’s place in Highland.  It was a perfect day even clouding over at one point to cool things down.  SV learned to jump on the trampoline and swing on the big kid swing.  I can’t believe how big and capable of big kid things she has become.  Auntie Serra was a lifesaver with her.  I don’t have enough energy to jump and swing all day and she stepped up and kept her and hundreds of other kids entertained the majority of the day.  It gave me more opportunity to gab.  I was extremely jealous of Julie’s new digital Canon and before the week was out I had started my own fund.  It was disappointing to play with her camera and then look at the back of mine and not have the instant results that hers has.  My puny digital doesn’t even hold a candle.  It may take me a year  or two but I will upgrade eventually. 

Serra~~V drove back to Logan with me that night and we saw many fireworks on the way back.  She has moved over to the lean to and Doug is in the process of renovation the big house before he marries and moves.  He was staying with Darci in Layton so we took over his place.  It showed the signs of renovation and the cleanest place we could find was the living room, so we blew up a mattress and crashed there. 

Monday I think we went swimming at the sports academy.  SV doesn’t pay attention to where she is walking most of the time and crashed into walls and people often.  She walks and looks everywhere accept where she is going.  She wandered over to the big pool and was looking at some tattooed sunbathers and WHOOPS plopped right into the shallow end.  She didn’t have her floaties on anymore and floundered around for a few seconds until I got her.  She had actually made her way to the steps by the time I grabbed her.  Still, she was not happy.  A little later as she copied other kids and ran down the wheelchair ramp into the pool, the water got too deep and she lost her balance and went under again.  Overall, not her best day.   Olivia got taken under several times by Julie who sometimes doesn’t time it right and came up sputtering at least once.  Poor little kids.  The things we put them through.  Mom and Serra~A~ got sunburned.

Tuesday we headed to Bearlake.  We went later in the afternoon because Grandma Arnell was not recovered from her houseguests of the past week.  21 in all had been there and absolutely worn her out.  I don’t think I could survive half that many and she’s in her 80′s.  Anyway we came later so she could have an extra long nap.  It was amazing to  wake up on Wednesday and look out the window of Maxines red room and see blue skies, cows grazing in the fields, the lake, and to hear nothing but a moo now and then.  It was enchanting and I can see why some people stay there their whole lives.  I always loved it as a kid but for different reasons.  I hope it never changes.  Strangely enough, Gary popped in Wednesday and  ate “dinner”(G-ma insisted it was not ‘lunch”) at around noon and that soon ended our stay as well.  It was longer than we usually stay and it was nice. 

Thursday I left Logan with my two charges and intended to visit with Tracie Peirce for a few hours.  As I pulled up, her sister Kelly was getting into her car and informed me that she was very sick and throwing up and such and so was Savannah.  I agreed that I didn’t want whatever they had and so didn’t get to see them.  I headed up to Park City and began the Anderson part of the trip.  I will write about that most likely next week when I get a minute. Unfortunately most of my pictures are on the NON-DIGITAL camera of mine and the roll is incomplete so until that gets processed no pictures.