Life With Linda Lou

Yummm....Funeral Potatoes!

2012-01-05T17:22:00.001-08:00

Some of you are probably saying to yourselves, "What in the HECK are funeral potatoes?" If you do a google search you'll find all sorts of recipes for funeral potatoes, but if you do a search for cheesy potatoes, you probably won't find anything!

Funeral potatoes are a traditional dish typically served at a Latter-day Saint luncheon after a funeral. They are also known as a dish served during the Christmas holidays. Personally, you could serve me funeral potatoes any day of the week and I'd be a happy camper.

Today marked the 17th funeral in three years since I've been the Ward Relief Society President. And I'm afraid that we're going to have more before too long. We have several older brothers and sisters in the ward who are their late 80's and 90's and their health is failing fast. I feel so sorry for their burdens and struggles that their little bodies have to endure.

I'm telling you about my cheesy potatoes for Dawn Rapsas' benefit and anyone else who would like to be enlightened in the ways of the LDS culture. I think it's a beautiful service that we offer to our fellow members. When a member passes away the Relief Society President is notified (me) and then I make a phone call to my Compassionate Service Leader who in turn notifies our funeral chair. If the funeral will take place after a Sunday they will pass around a sign up list during services on Sunday for brothers and sisters to cook funeral potatoes, make salads, bring fruit plates and dessert. The ward budget provides the meat for the funeral and mostly the sisters in the ward provide the additional dishes of food. If the funeral will before Sunday, then a food sign-up e-mail list is sent around. We have the most AMAZING ward! Our members are so caring and giving of their time, talents, and energies. These are just four of the most amazing members of our ward. Rachel, on the left, is our Compassionate Service Leader, Shelli next to her is our funeral chair, and Rachel's parents Lee and Carol do MORE for the ward members that almost anyone I know. They are always the first to volunteer, the first to arrive to help, and the last to leave the church. Carol and Gus are just like Carol and Lee! They will help and assist anyone in need.

I picked up 20 pounds of beef and Carol and Gus cooked it, plus added a roast of their own, sliced it and simmered it in Au Jus. It was to 'die for'. Funny pun, don't you think? Considering this was for a funeral. I'm on a roll! Oh .... speaking of rolls .... we have another couple, Peggy and Marloe who bake and donate all of the rolls for every funeral, and they're delicious and Peg is legally blind!

I'm so grateful to be living in this wonderful neighborhood. They truly are my brothers and sisters and indeed angels. I had to be over to the church by 8:30 a.m. There were tables to set for 60 people, windows and floors to be washed, drinking fountains shined, floors mopped .... yes the ward members do all of the church cleaning. It's all volunteer. Isn't that amazing? No one gets paid for their service, only in spiritual blessings! Not even our clergy are paid.

Then the food started arriving. Dawn, I remember you asking me if the ladies really came walking down the street carrying their funeral potatoes and salads and desserts for the luncheon. And, yes ... you are absolutely correct! Food just magically starts to appear and yes ... all of the pans and bowls have a piece of masking tape with their name on it so we can hand-deliver the pans and bowls back to the owners after being washed and dried! Some of the younger sisters have learned how to etch their names onto their glass dishes. That's a lot nicer looking than a burned old yellow piece of masking tape. You ladies know what I'm talking about, and I can hear you laughing!

There's a lot to do for a funeral. We arrange with the family to bring special mementos which we put on the tables for centerpieces. Today's theme was Africa. Marjorie and Rex served a mission in Botswana, Africa and there was a hint of Africa everywhere. It was beautiful. Marjorie will be missed. She was my mother's first cousin and I loved her dearly. I visited in her home monthly for over a year and just a week before she died we had a wonderful visit just days before Christmas. We talked about death. Marj had been diagnosed with terminal cancer just a few weeks prior. She was given about 6 months to live. She looked beautiful the day of our visit. She had been wrapping Christmas presents for her grand kids. She was a little breathless and mentioned that she had some fluid on her lungs. But she had done her own laundry that day.
She never complained about her illness and had a positive attitude about life. She mentioned that it would be wonderful if the Lord would let her go to sleep and her heart would just stop. Well, that's exactly what happened. I was surprised to get the Bishop's call telling me that she had passed away in her sleep.

Shortly after her diagnosis I found the cutest, cheetah, fuzzy, warm pajamas that I bought for her. I enclosed a card telling her that as she wore the cheetahs to remember what a fighter my mother was with her illness and that she too could fight the cancer that was taking over her body. Marjorie was such a lady, so proper and prim, and cheetah print probably really wasn't her style. But you know Linda ... I LOVE anything on the sassy side and I just HAD to get them for her. I wondered if she would ever wear them. This morning her daughter-in-law came up to me and with tears in her eyes said that Marjorie was wearing her cheetah pajamas the morning she passed away.

I'm so thankful for the promptings of the spirit. I felt prompted to visit Marjorie. Although Christmas rush was upon me, I felt that it was most important. I'm so thankful that I followed those promptings and was able to visit with her and give her a kiss on the cheek, one last time. Little did I know that she was very close to the other side.

Well, it's been a long day, but wonderful. I love working with these wonderful sisters and brothers! I love them for their dedication, hard work, and service and love for the Lord. The funeral was beautiful, the speakers were inspirational and the music was a gift from heaven!

After the family left, we boxed up the remainder of the food and ran it around to our shut-ins and elderly brothers and sisters in the ward. And I forgot, there were dishes to wash and dry, return to the owners, tables and chairs to be put away, floors to be swept and mopped, and doors and lights to be checked. Other than that ... a funeral is a breeze!

So here's the simple recipe I use for "Funeral Potatoes". If you have a better recipe, please post. We'd love to try it!

(1) Pkg. Frozen Hash Browns or Cubed O'Brian Potatoes
(1) Can Cream of Chicken Soup
(1) Carton Sour Cream
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Salt and Pepper
Potato Chips, Corn Flakes, or Ritz Crackers
Melted Butter

Mix soup with sour cream. Add shredded cheese. (As much as you'd like!) Stir until blended. Pour over frozen potatoes and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour into a greased baking dish. Sprinkle with more shredded cheese. Crush potato chips, corn flakes, or Ritz Crackers and place on top. Drizzle with melted butter. (About a half of a cube.) Place in 350 degree oven til hot and bubbly.

Enjoy! Hugs to you all!!

Geez Louise!

2011-12-28T05:50:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it's been so long since I've blogged! Life just seems to get in the way.

I turned the 'ripe' old age of 62 in July and decided to take early retirement from Social Security. I now only work 19 hours a week at my wonderful nonprofit job at World Joy. I've been so busy that I don't know how I ever had time to work full-time. I'm really enjoying this early retirement status.

As promised, I need to catch you up on the status of the well in Abrenya, which so many of you donated to. We raised over $8,000. We have been waiting for a dryer part of the season before drilling. There was a terrible flood shortly after we left Abomosu, which destroyed most of the farmer's crops. It's been too wet to drill until now.

Abrenya was probably my most favorite village that we visited. The people are so grateful and willing to do their part in improving their conditions. We had to walk on foot, about two miles, into the village. It wasn't a hard hike and the weather was cooperating with us ... not too hot. There were sights, sounds, and smells that I had never experienced before and I was so grateful that I was finally here in Ghana, Africa!

As we approached the village we could see the World Joy school up on the crest of a small hill, nestled among the jungle. I watched a teacher running along the classrooms, clapping his hands to announce our arrival. Then the most marvelous thing happened. At least 200 children came running out of the school towards us. They placed their arms around us and loved and hugged us. As they were running they were shouting the word, "Obruni". I thought they were yelling "Granny", which my grand kids call me. We were all overwhelmed with the welcoming party and we all had tears of joy in our eyes as we hugged the children back. I later found out that Obruni means white woman and not granny!

We were shown the lovely school which World Joy built for this small village a few years back, as well as the living quarters for the teachers. The school is overcrowded and they need more classrooms. They could also use playground equipment and supplies for the students. The tribal leaders and village met with us under the Mango trees and had a little traditional dance and singing for us. They proceeded to thank us for all World Joy has done for them and then petitioned some additional help which they are in need of. We told them of our plans to build a well in their village. They were so grateful for the news.

Upon our arrival back to the states we found out that the government was going to be drilling a well shortly for their village. But, they are in need of an additional well, so the funds that we raised from our dinner in July will build the extra well that they need. We are in looking for a contractor and the drilling should take place any day now. I'll keep you posted with pictures as they become available.

I'm excited to announce that two large companies have asked if they could do a service project in our villages and then take 50 volunteers over to complete the projects. Veridian Energy from Norwalk, CT will be going over in February. World Joy will be conducting the excursion. They will be installing solar panels which will generate electricity for our new Health Post and Library in Asanafo, and school in Abrenya. These solar panels will store electricity in lanterns and the children will be able to check out a lantern in the evenings so they can work on homework and read.

I'm not at liberty to announce the other company's name just yet. But many of you are familiar with this company and may even be distributors for them. They will be announcing their venture at their annual convention in the New Year. So, I may be seeing some of you on their excursion to Ghana. They are going to build a school and then at least 50 of the distributors and executives will go over for a week to complete the project. I can't wait to announce the name of the company after their convention. Oh ... and I'll be at their convention in our World Joy booth so you may see me there!

After immersing ourselves in the African culture in Abrenya, the skies were threatening rain so it was time to hurry back to Abomosu. The rains came and the floods came up ... as we slipped and slogged our way back to camp. And I mean it didn't just rain ... it poured. I met a lovely young woman with a baby strapped to her back, a pan of plantains on her head, packages in her arms and she handed me a large palm frond to hold over my head like an umbrella. She insisted that I take it. She gave me the one that she was holding over her and her baby. I tried to refuse, but she insisted. That was the most kind and loving gesture!

So ... lots of great things are happening for our brothers and sisters in Ghana, Africa.

Life has been kind to the Hansen family. I'm so grateful for this past year. We've had three lovely grand babies join our family. We're enjoying good health. Perhaps I've partied a little too hard ... I've got about 10 pounds to lose. I've signed up for the Salt Lake Half Marathon in the Spring so will be starting training as soon as I get rid of this nasty cold. I lost my voice on Christmas day and it still hasn't returned. BOOOO!

Got lots to do today to get ready for my laundry room makeover, which my daughter Ginger and her family gave me for a Christmas present. Can't wait for Friday!

Abomosu Here We Come!

2011-11-07T07:43:00.001-08:00

As promised ... I'll catch you up on my trip to Africa after telling you what I've been up to.

I had the wonderful opportunity of flying to Oregon and being with Natalie while she gave birth to her first boy, Jacob Doc Peton. Doc is a family name on the Peton side and I think it's an adorable name so I just may call him Doc instead of Jacob! It was a fabulous week getting to spend time with the girls while Natalie took care of the baby. I think my lot in life is being a mother. That's ALL I ever wanted in life. I loved every minute I spent taking care of the family.

I participated in another Half Marathon last Saturday in Provo, Utah, the Halloween Half Marathon. Words of advice ... don't participate in a Marathon without training first! There were several of us who dressed alike, "Where's Waldo", and we were VERY easy to find in the crowd of 4,000! A grateful thank you to my daughter Angie, and niece Eden, who stuck with me the entire time and helped me limp across the finish line because of leg and toe cramps! We had to leave the house at 4:30 a.m. to catch the bus in Provo at 5:30 a.m. The most exciting time of the race was riding on the bus up the canyon, which caught fire and we had to evacuate, in the dark, cold, and windy morning. It was FREEZING! Fire trucks, police, and ambulance arrived to make sure we were fine. It was pretty exciting!

Then yesterday we participated in the blessing of Margaret Rita Martineau. What a gorgeous little grand baby girl! Lindsey and Ryan provided a delicious luncheon for all, after Sacrament meeting. It was a great day being with family. I LOVE the Martineau family!

Back to Africa ... I was warned that I would be swarmed with people begging to take my luggage at the airport so they could receive a tip. No one bothered me in the airport and I was feeling pretty smug until I arrived at the van which would transport us to Abomosu. We were swarmed with many men trying to take our suitcases and place them in the van. I handed a tip to our driver and told him to disperse it to whom he thought was helping the best. It was sooo hard to ignore their pleas for money. But, I couldn't pay everyone, so had to tell them that Yaw would disperse the tip. There was a lot of grumbling and I had to just ignore it.

I was very worried that we wouldn't be able to get everyone's luggage into the van. Thankfully Teri, who has been a luggage handler for an airline was able to offer her expert advise and all luggage was soon packed tightly and neatly into the van. We piled into the van, with Granny in the front with the driver, and off we headed into the busy streets of Accra. Yes, it was a shock at first, to see all of the vendors coming up to the van as we stopped at the traffic lights, begging us to buy their wares. We were warned not to buy anything but a specific brand of bottled water or we would become sick. The breads and fruits and vegetables looked delicious, but once again, we couldn't eat the raw items without treating them with bleach first.

Our first stop was at the Accra LDS Temple. The grounds were beautiful and we were able to take some gorgeous pictures there. We didn't look too bad for having traveled 1 1/2 days without a shower!

We had many stops that we needed to make before driving to the village. The traffic was horrendous and crossing the streets on foot was literally taking our life in our hands! We had to buy some minutes for our international phone as well as internet time for our computer. Then it was off to the market to shop for our groceries.

The mall was very nice and modern with a very nice grocery store. All of the foods were imported from various countries so the prices were extremely high! We divided and conquered by splitting up in two's and shopped for our items. Total bill was over 900 Cedis. I'll never forget how frightened and vulnerable I felt while pulling out and counting 900 Cedis, in small bills, from my sweaty money belt!

Now the big challenge was getting ALL of the food into the van. Luckily I had brought a collapsible cooler which we placed our frozen foods into. We shoved groceries EVERYWHERE in the van, pockets, under seats, on laps, in between seats, you name it ... we stored it. And we made it fit. It was getting dark and our driver was nervous about making the trip into the jungle during the night, but we had no choice. We were ALL tired and hungry so ate at the mall. There was a nice chicken place and pizza place which we enjoyed. We were told that we didn't have to worry about eating the food there and we shouldn't get sick. And none of us got sick our entire trip! We were really blessed.

Finally we were on the road to Abomosu. It was dark, dusty, and extremely hard to see. What an experience! It took forever to get out of the city of Accra. And just when we thought the roads were clear and there would be a break in traffic, everything came to a screeching halt. The road would literally end and cars would be dodging pot holes, each other, people, and there was no rhyme or reason to where everyone was driving. It was a nightmare! There was no sleep for me! We had now been up for 2 days and a night!

It took us over 4 hours to drive 90 miles. We pulled into the little jungle village of Abomosu just after 11:00 p.m. The village was asleep with a few goats wandering around. We were excited to see our new home which would house us for the next 10 days. We pulled up to a gated structure and within minutes Brother Abu came to greet us and open the gates. The house looked wonderful compared to the other structures in the village. We quickly entered the home and were met with extreme heat! The windows had been shut and the fans weren't on so it was extremely hot and stifling. The appliances were much smaller than American standard and I was worried that not all of our perishables would fit in the fridge. The fridge wasn't working but we were able to run an extension cord into another outlet to get it to work.

Our party quickly spread out in the home to claim their beds. I was assigned to the bunk bed room. It had (4) sets of bunk beds and there were (4) of us sleeping in that room, so we each got our own bunk bed. While I took care of the groceries my sweet companions made up the beds for us. The pillows and linen weren't quite what we were expecting. The pillows felt like bricks under our heads. I learned to sleep better without one!

I thought it may be cooler sleeping up top closer to the fan, but it was extremely hard for me to climb to the top without a ladder, and the fan was making such a rackity noise, and my head was so close to the fan ... I thought it would chop off my head ... I decided to sleep in the bottom bunk. Because of sooo many high bunk beds in the room there wasn't much air circulation so my first night of sleep was next to nil. In the night I could hear something munching in the corner of the room. I was too tired to care so didn't worry about it.

We were all anxious for morning to arrive so we could see our surroundings in the daylight. I got up bright and early to see if the internet connection would work and post an e-mail to my family to tell them I had arrived safe and sound. Internet was too slow so decided to start cooking breakfast for the crew. When I went into the kitchen I was met with a 'slew' of bugs on the countertops. Although the windows were screened the tiny bugs could still fit through the screens. There was no hot water in the home so water had to be heated for dishes as well as treated with bleach. Even the egg shells had to be treated before cracking them into our food! Food prep took a lot more time because of the precautions that had to be taken.

It was a beautiful sunny morning and it was amazing to watch the villagers walking back and forth in front of our home, with Plantains and water buckets on top of their heads. The children were dressed in their school uniforms, fetching water for their homes before heading to school. I could hear the bleating of the goats, roosters crowing, strange animal sounds that I had never heard before, and smell the fires burning used to cook the villager's breakfast. The village was coming alive and my companions were still slumbering in their beds! I couldn't wait to get started for the day.

More to follow on my Africa trip .... Have a wonderful day!

2011-10-19T06:50:00.000-07:00

Packing for Ghana!

Demonstrators sent in TONS of craft supplies which we used to teach crafting projects and left with some of the local teachers for use in the schools.

Some of the gang --- Holly was off getting something to eat and Trav and Terri had already left on the red eye to New York.
New York here we come!
Accra, Ghana Africa .... we have arrived!

Wendy Oakes, one of our school teachers and me at the Accra airport.

Looking Forward To This Day!

2011-10-19T05:15:00.000-07:00

I know ... I know ... guilt trip ... It's been months since I've posted anything on my blog. I promise nothing is wrong. In fact everything is terrific. Yesterday was a day that I've been waiting and longing for, for years! I officially joined the ranks of receiving social security and I've semi-retired from my job. I'm taking my Social Security early because I'm afraid if I don't there won't be any left when I reach full retirement age. And ... gosh darn ... I've worked hard and I'm getting older and I deserve a little break from work! So yesterday was glorious. I woke early and sat in bed crocheting, then did a little reading, ate a little breakfast, played with the dog, took a little nap, ran some errands, cleaned a little bit, networked three of our computers to a printer, cleaned a carpet, and rearranged Lynn's office. I think he's afraid I'm taking over his personal space. I am!

And I only have to work 3 more hours this month at my day job. And ... I'm flying out to Portland, Oregon to stay with my daughter for a week while she brings her first baby boy into the world, tomorrow! Isn't this fun?

As promised, a few months ago, I told you that I would recap my glorious trip to Africa. So I'll post just a few comments today and continue to do so for the next while. I tried posting to my blog while in Africa but the internet connection was next to 'nil', so I was lucky to get an e-mail or two posted while there, to the family.

My Executive Director, Regina, and I planned a site visit to Ghana, Africa where World Joy has adopted 13 villages in the eastern region of Ghana. Up until working for World Joy I knew nothing about Africa, other than I thought South Africa was a location in Africa, not realizing that there are over 70 countries in Africa. Ghana is located in the western part of Africa and is a tropical country. There are no lions, tigers, hippos, water buffalos, and etc. that you typically think of when you hear the word, Africa. But there are man eating ants, large snakes, grass cutters and all sorts of strange looking creepy, crawly things. And of course the biggest danger, mosquitoes, which carry malaria.

When word got out among our friends and family that we were going to Africa, everyone wanted to come along too. Because we were going on a site visit to see the projects that World Joy had completed and assess what still needs to be done, we weren't sure how we could use volunteers on this trip. But soon there were 10 of us making plans to travel to Ghana together for 10 days. There were 3 mothers with 3 teenagers, 2 school teachers, 1 teenager, and one ole granny. I was responsible for the lone teenager. What a blessing these teens were. Talk about entertainment and such good, hard workers. And ... they were cheerful and so helpful the entire trip. Our trip wouldn't have been nearly as successful without their help.

We determined that we would each take 2 suitcases, one with personal items and the 2nd with school supplies, newborn kits, food, and craft items for our villagers. Our volunteers had raised money for paint for one of the schools that we were planning on re-painting and we put together a vocabulary packet for teaching English in the classrooms. This took weeks of planning and preparation.

Prior to leaving on our trip we were required to have a Yellow Fever shot to enter into the country. But many of us took extra precautions and had Typhoid shots and whatever else they recommended prior to take off. We also needed to secure passports and Visas, and an official entrance letter from World Joy. We also had to start taking our Doxycyclene pills prior to leaving on our trip and continuing taking them for 3 weeks upon our return. This was to prevent Malaria. We also pre-treated all of our clothing with Permethrine prior to our trip.

I planned the menu and shopped for food items that I knew would be hard to find in Ghana, like peanut butter and tuna fish and canned chili. And each traveler was asked to provide the ingredients for one dessert. So we all had brownie, cake, and cookie mixes in our luggage. We knew that it would be a hard adjustment for the next 10 days and if we had something sweet, and something from home, we could make it through anything!

So, on the morning of June 22nd, 8 of us took off from the Salt Lake airport heading for New York for a layover. Terri and Travis were flying stand-by and took a red eye the night before to New York and met up with us there. We were soooo excited. This trip brought 10 strangers together for an unforgettable and marvelous experience. I couldn't have asked for better friends to share this experience with. I still marvel that 10 people who had never met prior to this trip could have been matched more perfectly to live, eat, and sleep together for 10 days, without ever having an unkind or harsh word between us.

We arrived eager and anxious in New York and could hardly wait for the next leg of our trip. Our flight didn't leave until after 11:00 p.m. As we approached our gate for departure I noticed that we were in the minority for skin color on this flight. There were many blacks dressed in American clothing and a few in traditional African attire. I was mesmerized by the fabric and head dresses that the women wore and had great plans of acquiring a traditional dress while there. This was also the flight I was kind of dreading. I don't normally sleep well on a plane and have a hard time getting comfortable with my long legs. But one very nice thing ... my body is a lot smaller and the seats are much more comfortable these days!

Ghana is only 6 hours ahead of Utah time, so after flying all night we arrived at 2:30 p.m. the next day, which was only 7:30 a.m. Utah time. The sky was a little overcast and as I stepped off the plane I noticed the humidity, which was nice, but I was expecting more heat and surprisingly there was a gentle breeze. The airport was small and extremely crowded. Going through customs was a breeze. But going to exchange our currency into Cidis was very hectic. Although the money changer spoke English I had a very hard time understanding her and had to keep asking her to repeat what she just said. I had to exchange over a thousand dollars into Cidis and asked for small bills. And what I received in exchange was a wad of bills that would have choked a horse! Here I was trying to stuff the 'wad o' cash' into my money belt which was readily exposed for all to see. I was sure I was going to be robbed the minute I stepped out of the airport. Since I was the one in charge of the money I told the others that I would go meet the driver and wait for them. Picking up my luggage was a nightmare. There were at least 50 people, with luggage, trying to shove their way through a check-point. The officials were going through everyone's luggage. I decided to act like I knew what I was doing, so pushed and shoved my way through the check-point line and was able to get through without having my luggage searched.

As I exited 'check point Charley' I searched for our driver, Yaw, who said he would be holding a sign with my name on it. I've spoken many times to Yaw on the phone but we had never met. Sure enough, there was a good looking black man, holding a sign with my name. I ran with open arms, screaming, "Yaw!" He looked a little surprised, but hugged me back and grinned. A few minutes later another black man came over to us and I noticed he had a World Joy shirt on. It was then that I found out I had hugged the wrong man. This man was holding Yaw's sign while he used the restroom. We had a good laugh!

More to continue tomorrow! The next post will take you to the streets of Accra and thru the jungle to Abomosu our little village where we lived for 10 glorious days!

Hugs to you all! Make it a great day. I certainly am!

I'm On My Way Tomorrow!!!

2011-06-21T20:28:00.000-07:00

Ghana, Africa ... here I come!

I'm all packed and ready to go. Now if I can just get a good night's rest I'll be all set for the big day tomorrow! I'm so excited. This is going to be an adventure of a lifetime!

I have planned all of the particulars for this big trip. We have ten people in our group going to Ghana. We have three mothers with three teenagers, two teachers, one teenager, and one ole' granny. It's been fun planning the meals, grocery list, and itinerary for the 10 days that we will be there. This will be a 'first' for all of us in our party. I think that's why I'm so nervous. I really don't know what to expect. I've seen lots of pictures and asked lots of questions and talked to the people we will be working with in Ghana, but until I actually experience it, I'm sure it's going to be different than what I've imagined!

We leave Salt Lake tomorrow morning at 11:00 and fly to JFK. Have a 3 1/2 hour layover there and then leave on a direct flight to Accra, Ghana at 9:30 p.m. We arrive the next day at 12:30 p.m. We have a wonderful driver with a 15 passenger van who will meet us at the airport. We are each taking 2 suitcases, one with our personal items and the second filled to the brim with school supplies, rubber stamps, ink, card stock, and paper. One of my suitcases was designated to hold food items. It was overweight by 2 pounds so I had to remove a 3 pound jar of peanut butter. I may be hand-carrying that on the flight! I hope TSA doesn't consider it a dangerous weapon! Gotta have my Extra Crunchy Skippy Peanut Butter!

Yao, our driver will take us grocery shopping, to the pharmacy to get our malaria pills, to the phone store for a phone card, and then to the computer store for a wireless modem. Yes, we plan on having internet in the jungle. After getting our essentials, we'll get on the road to Abomosu. It will take us probably at least 3 hours to get there. It's 90 miles from Accra, but on a very bumpy, rough road. We are going to be packed so tight in that van with all of our suitcases and groceries, I'm not sure where we're going to put the pigs and chickens??

My plan is to post our daily experiences on my blog as well as Facebook. I'll try to include some video footage as well. So, please check back daily to see the wonderful 'good' that World Joy and our volunteers are bringing to the Atiwa District in Ghana. We will be working in some of our schools which we have built, as well as helping out in the Health Posts, and helping repair and paint one of our World Joy schools. We've got a LOT of work to do, and I'm anxious to experience this new adventure!

I'm off to get a good night's rest. Probably won't get to chat with you until Friday!

PLEASE VOTE FOR WORLD JOY!

2011-05-18T08:13:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone .... it's a dark, dreary, dismal rainy day here in Salt Lake this morning. I HATE this kind of weather. Give me the sunshine and I'm a happy camper! You'll all probably laugh in a few weeks when my tune changes. I'll be leaving for Africa on June 22nd and I'm sure I will be experiencing some very hot and rainy weather. UGH! But I'm soooo looking forward to the trip. I'm nervous, I'm scared, I'm excited ... all emotions are swirling around in my head. I'm not afraid that something scary is going to happen to me. I think I know what I will encounter, but until I REALLY see and feel the poverty and the living conditions of the villagers it will hit me hard and it will be very emotional for me. Not sure how I can handle that. I want to help everyone and yet I know it's not possible!

We had the most wonderful donation from Ogio. They delivered over $28,000 worth of backpacks and computer sleeves for our children and teachers in Ghana. I can't wait to see the look on their faces when they are delivered. We have a fabulous sponsor who ships containers to Ghana every few months and has offered to ship the backpacks for free. Our first shipment of used books arrived a couple of weeks ago. They will be going into our first, ever school library. Isn't that marvelous?

World Joy has been nominated for the Vivint Gives Back Project for 2011. With your help, we have the chance to win $250,000, but we need your votes daily to win. A few months ago the Utah Food Bank was in a voting campaign to receive one million dollars ... and with their supporters they were the winners of the million from WalMart! We just need to get the word out! Put the link on your facebook, blogs, e-mails and help us raise funds for our mothers and children in Africa. You can vote once a day for World Joy. Please get the ball rolling to help our wonderful charity.

Here's the link to vote, http://www.vivint.com/givesbackproject. When you get to the site you'll need to click on the Mountain Zone, View All, List, and then click on the "W" for World Joy. There will be voting button to click on. Let's make this happen!

Thanks to you demonstrators who have graciously donated retired alphabet sets, stamp sets, ink and paper to World Joy for our expedition. These supplies will be used in the classroom to help support our English teaching classes. We can still use more supplies. Please send to World Joy, 420 W. 1500 S., Ste. 101, Bountiful, UT 84010. If you let me know the value of your donation I can send you a receipt for tax purposes.

Can't wait to see many of you at our upcoming Evening to Remember - World Joy 2011 event. We will be having an organized swap, with (20) in each group. You can access our web here for information regarding the swap. You will need to bring your own adhesive and scissors for your projects. I still have a few more seats available. Please visit www.worldjoyghana.org to register or call me at 801-797-9935.

Loves and Hugs to All! -- Lou

I DID IT ... I REALLY DID IT!!

2011-05-04T08:12:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago I participated in my first ever Half Marathon. I've told you before, but I'll tell you again ... I've NEVER run in my life. Well, once ... when I was a teenager and was being chased by a bear. For reals! My counsins and I had walked about 7 miles across the fields to our other ranch in Montana, up in the mountains for a day of fishing and lunching. My cousin caught a fish and a nice, ole bear smelled that fish and proceeded to chase after him, until he threw the fishing pole and fish down and ran. The bear was more interested in the fish, thank heavens! I think we ran the entire 7 miles without stopping and didn't dare look back.

Anyway, a few months ago I shared with you how I was crazy, but was going to train for my first race. I faithfully trained, following the Jeff Galloway 'walking' schedule for the half marathon. I can't remember how many weeks we trained, but it seemed like it was forever! My daughters would come to the house early Saturday mornings for our long runs/walks. I began to dread our Saturdays because it took up most of the morning. But I loved the talks and associations with my girls.

The night before the race we met at Mimi's Cafe for a pasta feast. Well, mine wasn't much of a feast, because of my small tummy, but it was good and we had a great time laughing, chatting, eating, and geting our minds set for the big race the next day.

My baby sis and her daughter from Idaho came and joined us for the race. They too had been training. My oldest daughter Angie, and middle daughter, Laurel have both joined Weight Watchers and have lost 60 pounds. I'm soooo proud of them, and they raced with us, as well. My darling daughter-in law, Camie and my niece, Nancy joined us too. (Nancy qualified for the Boston Marathon so we weren't quite in her league. And Camie is running a Tri-athalon in a few weeks. She's not only a racer, but a biker too.) So we had a great group to train and motivate each other.

The day of the race dawned bright and early! I was sooo excited, but nervous for the un-known. I was certain that completing the race wouldn't be an issue, but I wanted to complete it in 3 hours. That would mean keeping a pace of a 15 minute mile, which is pretty 'clippy'. The furthest we had walked was 10 1/2 miles in our training. What's another 2 1/2 miles, right? The course started up at Primary Children's Hospital, on a hill ... thank goodness. There were over 10,000 people in the race! Can you believe that? We made our way to the back of the pack. Our race number on our chest had a chip in it, and when we crossed over the start line, it started tracking our speed and time.

I promised my daughter Angie that I wouldn't leave her and we would complete the race together. What a wonderful time we had. I remember seeing the first mile marker and we cheered and raised our arms in the air, as if we had just completed the marathon. It was exciting! There was a LOT of energy around us and it was a perfect morning for a race. The skies were overcast and the weather was perfect for a long sleeve top, with just a little threat of rain in the air. Not too hot, not too cold. As we made our way along the course, I noticed gloves, hats, jackets, and scarves thrown on the ground, left abandoned, waiting for the owners to hopefully retrieve them at the end of the race. Runners were already warming up and discarding their extra clothing. Thanks to Camie and the use of her top, "I was perfect ... not too hot, not too cold, just right", as Goldilocks would say.

We were told that the race would be marked every mile, and it wasn't. It was disappointing because neither of us had those fancy Garmin watches to tell us how far we had gone and how fast our speed was. We were trying to calculate from our watches. But the best site of all was coming down 2700 South, which is just a few blocks from my home and hearing our baby daughter yelling and screaming for us, and seeing Lynn and Dieter and Lindsey waiting for us and cheering us on. It makes me cry just remembering the scene. We were still going strong and feeling great, other than we needed a 'potty' break. We would run some, walk some, and when I would lag behind, Angie would spur me on, and vice versa. We were sooo good for each other.

We probably waited in line for the 'potty' at least 15 minutes. We were tempted to 'squat' behind a bush, but my dignity just wouldn't let me! Some runners who ran past us, looked like they had just went in their pants ... probably did ... that's what I'm told the serious runners do. I guess I'll never be a serious runner! After waiting all of that time for the 'potty' ... Ang decided that she wouldn't go, which caused us to have another potty break down the road.

Who would have ever thought that I could walk from Primary Children's Hospital to my home? This was amazing! And I was still walking ... still had a long way to go. When we arrived at Liberty Park, we found another wonderful site ... Lynn, Dieter, and Linz cheering us on. It was exhilarating seeing the red, 23 mile marker. The red signs were for the full Marathon runners. The route split at Sugar House Park and then joined up just past Liberty Park. When we got to State Street and looked UP the hill, I thought, "Wow ... I never imagined State Street was soooo steep." You don't notice it when you're riding in a car up the street, but you sure do when you're walking it. Those last three miles weren't difficult at all. The hill was great! I had good tunes in my ears and was dancing and singing and 'egging' Ang up the hill. Later she told me that she was having a hard time and every bone in her body hurt. I had no 'hurts' at all ... not one little whit. It was amazing!

We did have a good laugh when several good looking, fit, buff men ran past us. I thought, "Wow ... you mean we've been in front of these guys the whole race? Man ... we're really haulin'!" After a few more ran past us, the lady next to me said, "Those are the marathon runners!" Deflated I said, "Ohhhhh...."

Coming down the home stretch was so energetic. Thinking that we were going to run right into the Gateway behind the Union Pacific, and then finding out that the route turned south for a few blocks was discouraging, because we had started running thinking it was the Finish Line. And of course there were thousands of our fans cheering us on, we couldn't stop running now .... we had to keep going, and we did! Our finish time was 3 hours 21 minutes. I figure that we made our goal of finishing in 3 hours because we stopped twice for a potty break.

If you would like to see more pics of our race along the route, check out the website marathonfotos.com, put in my last name, Hansen, and choose the Salt Lake Marathon race and our pictures will come up. The 'sweat' on Angie's shirt is NOT 'sweat' ... she spilled her water.

Well ... end of race, end of story. But wait ... there's more! I've signed up for the Halloween Half Marathon in October, running down Provo Canyon. It's downhill all the way and is supposed to be a beautiful run. Come join me if you're in the area. I'd LOVE having you. We have a group on Facebook where we motivate and encourage each other with our training program. Now, I've got to get back to training during the week. I've been a 'slacker' lately!

Urgent Update!

2011-04-07T13:00:00.000-07:00

Thank you, thank you for the HUGE response to the building of our well in Abrenya, Ghana, Africa! We're ALMOST there. I only have a few spots left for our Evening to Remember, so first come first serve. I don't want to have to turn anyone away, like I had to last year.

I'm soooo excited I'm going to cry ... literally. This is a dream come true. This could not be possible without your generous hearts.

More later ... gotta run ... we have a well to drill!

Love You -- Linda

I'm Baaack!

2011-03-29T08:11:00.001-07:00

It's a great day! Wonderful things are in the works and I'm so grateful for all that the Lord has blessed me with. Let me share a few of those blessings.

I'm so blessed to have you as my friends. You have been such a joy and inspiration in my life. You were with me through the passing of my mother, you have supported me in my Stampin' Up! days, you cheered me on in my weight loss success, and you continue to e-mail, phone, and send cards of encouragement of love and support. Thank you, thank you, thank you ... I'm so blessed!

I know that we are all anxiously waiting for April 1st for the announcement of Stampin' Up!'s convention schedule. Once again, I can reassure you that World Joy's event will not interfere with anything that Stampin' Up! has planned. I've moved my event to 4:00 p.m. so you'll have plenty of time to come over and swap, stamp your projects and have a delicious buffet dinner, and be back in time for any festivities that Stampin' Up! may have planned.

The reason why I tell you this in advance of April 1st is because the media is going to have me on their TV program announcing our event to build the well. The event will be open to the general public. I want to give you 'first dibs' on registering. Click here to register.

Why else am I excited? Because we are going to build a merry-go-round in our little village of Abrenya, the one we are raising money for the well, and the 'whirl' will generate electricity for the school and charge (40) battery operated lanterns for the children to take home in the evening. This village has NO electricity. The lanterns are assigned to leaders who are in charge of keeping them charged. The leaders are in charge of 6 children who gather in the evening as a study group around their lantern. Test scores have risen at least 50% since the children have been able to study at night. Isn't that AMAZING?? I'm going to the inventor's home to play on the 'whirl' and charge the lanterns to see how they work. Doesn't that sound like fun?

Am I'm also excited because World Joy is coming to St. George, Utah and Mesa, Arizona. We'll be doing some fund raiser dinners and auctions in those cities this year. There is a wonderful lady who called our office yesterday and volunteered her reception center and is providing the food and venue for the event on December 2nd. I can't get over the generosity of people! And our Mesa event will be on November 6th.

And .... I'm going to Ghana on June 24th! We will be teaching English to the school children. I'm so excited I can't wait. My Visa came the other day.

What else am I excited about? Oh .... you know that I've been training for a Half Marathon on April 17th in Salt Lake. I'll be so happy to get it OVER with. Our long walks/runs are on Saturdays and it takes up such a big chunk of my time. I'm beginning to not like it sooo much. But I do like the results after the walk is over. I feel good ... well most of the time ... if I've had a good rest the night before. We walked 10 1/2 miles last Saturday!

How am I doing with my weight? Well, I'm maintaining. When I started training for the Marathon I gained about 4 pounds. I've lost 2 of those. My weight stays right around 147-149. I'm still wearing a size 10 ... oh wait ... I bought a pair of size 8 corduroys the other day. I still continue eating too much sugar and have bad headaches. When will I EVER learn? After the candy is gone in the house I won't buy more, I promise!

And last, but not least, I'm blessed with a wonderful family who love and support me. Most weekends have been spent tending grandchildren, which I adore. Our daughter Natalie joined us last week from Oregon for a few days. It was wonderful having her just to ourselves ... no children to compete with. She didn't have to make her bed ... got to sleep in ... eat when she wanted ... lounge around in her jammies ... and just have a relaxed time with her siblings and Mom and Dad. She needed the R&R. She's expecting her 4th baby.

So, that's about it for now. I'm teaching myself how to can meat tonight. Pray I don't blow up the house with the pressure cooker! Yikes .... I'll share more on the Bag Meal preparation and why I'm canning meat. It's amazing what I've been doing with food storage and I'd love to share my recipes and how to's. It's great for the working Mom in helping simplify meal time!

Love and Hugs to All! See you soon!

Register Now for An Evening to Remember, 2011 - World Joy

2011-02-21T10:34:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited I can barely stand it! The possibility of bringing clean, pure, beautiful drinking water to the villagers in Abrenya is becoming a reality with each new day. Many of you have already taken a leap of faith and registered for our event, not even knowing the schedule of events for convention. I thank you for your trust and support!

I would never purposely plan anything to interfere with the scheduled events for convention. Not knowing what is being planned I need to take a 'leap of faith' and schedule my venue for Friday, July 15th. At the present I have our event scheduled from 6:00 until 9:00 p.m. IF we need to move the event to earlier in the afternnoon, I have the option of doing that as well.

For those of you who attended last year, you know that it truly WAS an Evening to Remember. Not only was the food 'to die for', but the renewing of old acquaintances, and making new friends, and stamping gorgeous projects, and participating in the best swap ever was priceless. BUT this year will be even BETTER, because your participation is truly making a difference in that little village in Ghana. Seats are going quickly, so don't delay. Click on this link to pay for your spot for An Evening to Remember and build the well in Abrenya!.

For those of you who can't attend Convention, you can still participate in the building of the well. We'll accept any donation, large or small, and it's tax deductible! Click on this link to make a donation for the building of the well.

So what's for eats on the menu. Let's see, how about The Traditional Buffet, with all you can eat.

Mixed green salad with condiments and dressing.
Assorted seasonal fruit tray.
Prime Rib with Au Jus
Apricot cranberry glazed chicken
Seasonal vegetables
Parslied new red potatoes
Chocolate macadamia nut moussecake with an Oreo cookie crust.
Hard rolls
Sparkling cranberry juice

Yummm ... my mouth is watering just thinking about the food. It's excellent! You'll love it, I promise.

And yes, we'll have an organized swap that you'll want to sign up for. More details forthcoming. There will also be an incredible item that will be up for 'auction'. I'm not going to tell you just what it is ... but it's something that you'll ALL want, I promise! So, save your pennies for the 'live' auction item.

And, last but not least, don't forget the incredible stamping projects donated by the one and only, Dawn Rapsas! Dawn is the creator of UStamp with Dawn and Friends. This is an amazing website which gives you access to incredible stamping projects with tutorials and step by step instructions with pictures. This new round of projects will focus on the Big Shot. Dawn has a line up of incredible designers, including the one and only, Jaron Winder, and THE Designer of our Exclusive Stampin' Up! Bigz XL Die the O Christmas Tree Pop-Up and the Pop-Up Three Tier Cake, Karen Burniston. Oh, and did I mention ... I'm a Guest Designer on UStamp too and I've got some great projects that I've already started working on. You won't want to miss out. Please click on this link to register for UStamp with Dawn.

That's about it for now. Don't delay. Last year's An Evening to Remember sold out quickly!

Get Ready ... Get Set ... Go!

2011-01-18T07:36:00.000-08:00

Before I break the BIG news ... let me tell you a quick story. Almost two years ago, I took my last trip with Stampin' Up! to London, Ontario, Canada. On the way home we had a layover in Detroit, Michigan. I had my really expensive handbag on the chair next to me. It was a later flight in the evening and the only people down by our gate were the ones waiting to board our plane. My traveling companion sat down next to me and her skirt was covering my purse so I didn't see it when I stood up to board the plane. As soon as I got seated on the plane I realized that my purse was missing. The pilot had me come up to the front of the cockpit while he radioed for help to find my purse. But alas my purse was gone. It was the worst trip home ... because everything was in my purse, from SS card to passport, check book, debit card, camera, glasses ... you name it, it was in there! It's the most horrible feeling knowing that someone is pilfering through your personal items and knows a lot about you.

Just before Christmas I got a notice in the mail saying that some loose items had been found at the post office and there was postage due of $1.90 for the items. I kept ignoring the attempt to deliver because I didn't know of anyone sending me a package. I finally stopped at the PO and the desk clerk retrieved the envelope with my name on it and told me to open the package and I could refuse it if needed. I opened the envelope and the message inside was from the post office in Detroit telling me that some loose items had been found at their office. Out plopped my Stampin' Up! passport holder and inside was my credit cards, DL, and passport. I was floored. This has been almost two years! My temple recommend and SS card is still missing, which concerns me and of course my camera, glasses and nice handbag .... BOOOOO! Just wish I knew the story behind the stolen purse. Wouldn't that be interesting? Anyway, someone was either feeling guilty or simply found my items dumped somewhere. Thank you whoever you are!

O.K... so I just participated in my FIRST EVER 5K Frigid Race in Provo, Utah. What an amazing experience! I'm not a runner and don't profess to be one. I've only been training for the Salt Lake Half Marathon for less than three weeks, but my daughter-in-law talked me into running with her. Although the air was 'gunky' and it was cold .... duh .... wonder why it's called the Frigid 5K?... it was a wonderful experience. There were only about 35 in the race and they were mostly young college kids. That was to my advantage because I received an award for the oldest female and I had the best time in my division ... 43:47 for 3.2 miles. Not too shabby for an ole slow-poke. I walked fairly fast and shuffled a few times. There was a lady with a dog behind me and a young, heavy-set girl behind her. I was bound and determined that they weren't going to beat me. Every time I heard the woman running behind me, I picked up the pace. I beat em' both! I think I'll enter the Chinese New Year 5K race in February. Come join me!

Now for the BIG NEWS .... YES ... I'm going to have another Evening to Remember in Salt Lake City, Utah on July 15, 2011 at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. I was debating the other day about having the event because it's so much work and after hearing about the forgotten Village of Abrenya, the thought hit me like a bolt of lightening ... why not hold the event, charge $50 more than last year and donate all of the proceeds for the building of the well. I contacted the villagers and they are so excited to think that this may become a reality. And by paying your money directly to World Joy, this will be a tax write off for you because we're a 501 (c)3 non-profit foundation.

I'm taking reservations now, and payment, because all of the profits will be donated to World Joy to build a well in the Village of Abrenya, Ghana, Africa. (I need $10,000) They need to build the well during the dry months which is January-March, hence that's the reason for taking payment now.

The cost for the event will be $100, which will include a delicious buffet dinner, gorgeous ambiance and view of the city, entertainment, and some stamping projects. Call me quickly at 801-294-5581, World Joy from 8:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday to reserve your spot. I can accept credit cards over the phone or you can e-mail me your information at lindah@worldjoyinc.org. Or you can send a check to World Joy, 420 W. 1500 S., Ste. 101, Bountiful, Utah 84010. Remember, last year's event sold out in less than a day!

Now for another BIG ANNOUNCEMENT .... Our famous, one and only, Dawn Rapsas from the state of New Jersey has offered to donate ALL of the stamping supplies for the projects that will be made at the event! Dawn is one of the most generous, kind, happy, creative, business oriented, exciting, and motivational people I have ever known. In 2008-2009, Dawn earned the status of #32 Demonstrator of the Year. In 2009-2010 she was #1 Demo of the Year. And for 2010-2011 she earned the title of #3 Demo of the Year! Last year she was the Winner of the Workshop of a Lifetime Recruiting Challenge. She is also the creator and CEO of UStamp with Dawn. For a small fee you will have access to some of the greatest stampers in the world, showing you projects through pictures, detailed instructions, and video. Thousands of crafters have received ideas for their personal projects as well as their business ideas.

Our stamping projects for the evening will be phenomenal, thanks to our own Dawn. We love you, Dawn!

Due to the payment of the drilling of the well, in advance of our Evening to Remember, there can be no refunds. But, if for some reason you are not able to make the event, you are welcome to sell/give your seat to another attendee.

World Joy

2011-01-06T13:26:00.000-08:00

Grandkids, Sewing, and Family!

2010-12-27T11:50:00.000-08:00

What a way to spend the holiday season ... taking care of grandkids. A week before Christmas our youngest daughter, Lindsey, asked us if we would take care of their three kids while they attended a wedding, wedding breakfast, dinner, reception, and a temple sealing the next day. Of course we said yes. I was really nervous about tending the 'wee one'. She doesn't like me and pushes my face away when I try to kiss her. But after her parents dropped her off, she was my new best friend. So cute ... and would cry when I would walk out of the room. She was a darling, as were the other two. Laurel dropped by to visit with Addy and we talked Addy into spending the night too, so we had four kids to watch. It was Ellie's birthday so we took them all to McDonalds for dinner. We haven't been to McDonalds for years and as we drove up to the establishment I noticed there was a Playland inside. "Oh horrors", I thought, "I'll bet their mothers never let them play in those germ infested areas." But I'm the granny and I get to take liberties so I indulged them and let them climb and slide down the slides to their hearts content. They loved it! As we were pulling away from the curb heading home the phone rang and it was Laurel, Addy's mom, asking her how she was doing. This was the conversation we heard on Addy's end. "Yep, Mom, we're having a great time. We're playing at McDonald's and they have a giant slide we got to play on. And guess what? They don't have any balls with poo on them!" We laughed and laughed. Of course she proceeded to keep saying that phrase over and over because she was getting laughs out of all of us! She had overheard me earlier saying to Lynn that I was glad the place didn't have those balls that the kids land into, with poo on them!

Normally the kids go to bed quite early, but I had instructions to bathe the kids and then put Ellie's long hair into these springy roller things that I had to figure out how to do. Talk about difficult! You have to use a big ole crochet looking hook and pull the hair through this springy contraption that when dried produces the most beautiful ringlets you've ever seen. Well it took me over an hour to put her hair up. She didn't mind at all because I put on a new fairy movie and she was oblivious to what I was doing with her hair.

Got them to bed around 10:00 p.m. and Ben was up in my room at 4:00 a.m. telling me that he couldn't find Ellie. I guess he was scared. By the time I got back downstairs, the three older kids were up and ready for the day so I put on a movie and let them stay up and I went in the sewing room to work on aprons for my girls!

Yes, that was my big surprise for the girls ... aprons for all the daughters in honor of my mother who was the best cook in the entire world. She loved polka dots so each apron had polka dots on them in honor of her. I tried to pick out colors and fabric that represented each girl. Each evening was spent hunched over the sewing machine sewing like a maniac. I cut out most of the aprons at work on my lunch time and would sew each evening and some times early morning before work. I took off Thursday and started sewing at 5:00 a.m. and finished my last apron around 10:30 that morning. Now my back has been giving me fits. I even had to go to the chiro to get an adjustment. It's still bothering me.

We had a wonderful Christmas eve dinner and party at my home ... Hansen tradition. All were here except my oldest son Ryan and his family. We missed them, but they were spending the evening with her family. These four little kids went to sit down at their table and were asking where their paper plates were. One of the kids answered, "You're not eating on paper plates. You're eating on REAL plates!" They were astonished to think that they got to eat on REAL plates. And guess what? When I went to clear their table there wasn't one spot of food on the table cloth! Talk about great table manners for those wee ones!

D.J. is showing off Ginger's incredible twice baked potato casserole ... in his mouth. They really were incredible, loaded with lots of butter and bacon. I think that was the favorite part of the meal ... next to my famous homemade rolls and buttah!

My youngest baby girl, sweet Linz.

These wee ones had paper plates and cups, but didn't seem to mind.

Look at my Lee Lee (Liam). He was having a melt-down but obviously knows what to do when someone wants to snap his pictures. He paused long enough to smile for the picture, then went back to crying!Here's 5 of the 7 daughters who received the aprons. From L to R --- Laura, Reese's wife who is expecting their first baby in May ... Angie, Laurel, Ginger, and Lindsey. Nat got an apron but lives in Oregon and Camie got one too, but wasn't at the party.

Got up bright and early on Christmas day ... well actually this was the first year that Lynn and I have been alone on Christmas day with no kids at home. Dieter woke us up at 4:45 a.m. so we got up, got dressed and started a tradition, this year, to go to some of the kid's homes and watch them open their Christmas gifts. Got to Angie and Boyd's at 7:00, rang the door bell and woke them up! I told Lynn that it was so much fun watching them with their Christmas that I didn't even care if I got one single present. He didn't echo my sentiments! Dieter loved Bryant as you can tell from the picture. Rudolph kissed Bryant and the boys while they were sleeping!

Well -- I hope that each of you are prepared to have a wonderful New Year. It's going to be a great year. I have such fun things planned for this year and can't wait to share them with you. As soon as our IT guy posts the info I need to the World Joy dinner/stamping in July I'll start selling tickets for the event. There's a few of you who have already planned on going with me to Africa to do some service projects. There's a lot of work that we can do. We'll be there for about a week. I'm thinking that we'll probably go some time in April. Let me know if you would like to go too ... just have to pay your airfare and food. World Joy will cover your lodging in Abomosu.

I'm Taking the Plunge!

2010-12-15T15:33:00.000-08:00

O.K. ... I've had an over-whelming response regarding the World Joy fund-raiser dinner and I'm going to do it! I've reserved the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, same place as last year for July 15, 2011. I may be able to take as many as 250 people.

I had an amazing conversation with a dear demonstrator who wants to donate all of the stamping supplies for our stamping projects. I was almost in tears, I was so amazed at the generosity and kindness. Bet you would have laughed if you could have seen me waltzing around my office shouting for joy. I'm still in shock! As soon as I receive permission to use her name in my blog, I'll give a big tribute to her. She's incredible!

Not only will we have a wonderful dinner, like we did last time, but I'm working on some incredible entertainment. No, it's not Jaron ... even though I'm sure he'll sing a few numbers for us, if asked. And no, it's not me. He's a recording artist and I'm almost certain he'll entertain us for 'free' when he hears our purpose.

I've also had a few of you 'opt' into the trip. I'm in communication with our people in Ghana to arrange some service projects while there. I'm hoping to take a group of you over the first quarter in the new year.

I'll let you know how to reserve your seat for the dinner as soon as my web contact links the credit card information to our World Joy site. And remember, your donation (not the dinner portion) is tax deductible since it is going to a non-profit organization. We'll have door prizes, stamping, and entertainment, and fabulous food.

We had a nightmare trip to Oregon for Thanksgiving! Normally we can drive it in 12 hours. It took us 17 hours and my daughter-in law and I had to ride in the back seat of the pickup truck with NO leg room. And I had a dog laying across my lap almost the entire trip. The roads were horrible ... even some road closures in Idaho. At one point we were stopped in the middle of no-where with several truckers and family vehicles. The kid in front of us was in shorts and got his unicycle out of the car and was riding up and down the highway. It was frigid cold and windy. There were people out of their cars visiting with one another and dogs running free. After almost an hour they opened the road and we were on our way. Coming home was just as bad...another 17 hours. We finally stopped in Ontario, Oregon and spent the night. Boy were we ever tired! I don't think we'll take a road trip again in the winter months. Next time, we'll fly!

I miss my little Oregonians. Wish they lived closer! BOOOOOO! Are you all getting ready for the big day? I still have a lot of sewing to do, but no worries ... I'm having a ball with all of the church and work parties.

It was raining and a wee bit cold when Lynn and I took 5 of the grandkids to Hogle Zoo for the Zoo lights. His company paid for all the tickets, plus dinner and gift for the kids. What a company and very family oriented! Don't laugh at my hair ... remember it was raining!When you put on the Zoo Lights glasses, all of the lights turn into snowflakes. It's amazing! Look at little Ellie with the glasses on top of her glasses. Yummo --- hamburgers!Addison ...

Ginny

Benny -- with catsup on his face!

Reesie --- we only lost her once!
Granny Linda!

HMMMM ... I'm Thinking of a BIG Event!

2010-11-19T11:15:00.000-08:00

My mind has been racing a mile a minute and I've been up since 3:00 a.m. this morning, thinking about something really BIG I want to do and sewing on a Christmas present. Can't tell you what the sewing project is because she reads my blog, but it's sooo stinkin' cute! O.K. ... the pattern says that it's a See and Sew and the tagline says that it's VERY easy to make. Oh Contreras! Now, I pride myself on my sewing abilities and I've made 6 wedding dresses, but this simple See and Sew ain't that simple. I sewed for a few hours on it last night and then again this morning for another 3 hours and it's still not done. At one point, last night, I thought I was losing it. Honestly, I couldn't figure out what the heck the pattern was describing and the pictures didn't help either. So BOOOO on the See and Sew patterns. Thankfully it's working out and looks even more darling than the picture on the envelope of the pattern.

Let me quickly post a couple of my freshly painted bathroom pictures. Don't you just love that pop of orange? It's stunning. And yes, these are the same colors I had for my wedding. In fact it's going to be our 38th wedding anniversary on Sunday. Love you Lynnie!

My Daddy will be 93 on the first of December. He spent a week with us a while back. He's such a sweetheart and I sure miss not having him next door. My sis sure takes great care of him in Montana and he really loves it there. He's always been a country boy.

So besides painting and doing some home improvements, I got rail-roaded into being in a Young Women in Excellence production at the church Tuesday evening. The program depicted eight women from the scriptures who had great faith. I depicted the wife of King Lamoni. Each of had a part to say/act. I was really into my part, the Thespian that I am, and it was very spiritual in the room and I noticed a 12 year old girl elbow her mother and her mother looked at me just as I felt my robe beginning to slip under my breast bone. Now mind you, I was fully clothed under the robes, but did what an actress should NEVER do. I broke character and hitched the robe up around my neck. Of course there were giggles from the audience and I lost my train of thought for a few minutes and the spirit sort of left the room. Shame, shame on me! But all in all it was a beautiful program. Queen Lamoni was a Lamanite, but I look more like an African because I'm wearing the official king robe that Gary brought back from his trip a few weeks ago. But see if you can figure out which one is Mary Magdalene, Queen Lamoni, Sariah, Ester, Eliza Snow, Eve, Ruth, and Mary Fielding Smith.

Now on to the BIG idea. I've been thinking for the past couple of weeks how I can help the people in Ghana, Africa. If you've been watching the Amazing Race, they were in Ghana a few weeks ago. It's a very poor country and the non-profit organization that I work for, World Joy has made great strides in the country, specifically in the Atiwa District in 13 villages. Gary, my boss just went over to assess the schools and waterwells that we have built and to see if they are being well taken care of, and to also see what more needs to be done. He described to me, with tears in his eyes, that he thought we had done a lot of good over there, but there is SOOO MUCH MORE that needs to be done. The government just can't do it, or won't. There is a little, forgotten village on the other side of the River Birim and there are no roads leading to it. It is about 8 miles from Abomosu and has about 800 people with 182 being children. Everyone in this village is a peasant farner who uses rudimentary tools such as hoes, machetes, and axes. A couple of years ago, World Joy built a school in this village. All materials were hand-carried to the site.

This is Gary and the Abus on their trek to the village. It was an extremely hot, and humid day and there were heavy rains which caused a slow pace to the village.

Gary described the view amazing, almost ethereal as they came through the trees and witnessed a green grassy knoll with beautiful clouds in the sky and children dressed in white playing and running and squealing as they came to greet the party.

This is our World Joy school. It is being well taken care of. The major problem that they still have is no fresh drinking water. Their water supply is whatever they can find from the rains. The water is polluted and there is a lot of sickness and disease and death from the water. So, what's my BIG IDEA????

I want to champion a project for a water well in the Village of Abrenya. I can do this for only $10,000. I need your support and this is how WE can make it happen. Many of you have asked if I am having another Evening to Remember in July during Convention. Here's my thought. If I have a dinner at the same location as last year for 200 people, and charge $100 each, WE can get the water well for Abrenya. $40 of your registration fee will go towards your dinner, servers, and gratuity, $10 will go towards door prizes and raffle/auction items, and $50 will go entirely to the water project. And, it can be tax deductible. What about stamping? We can, if we do a shoebox swap per table. I know that's asking a lot from you, after spending all your hard earned money on convention and then another $100 for this event, and asking you to provide a shoe box for 9 people at your table. But if you think this is something that WE can do, I'll do it!

Here's the precious children saying goodbye. A few of the children followed the party all the way to the river before saying goodbye. There are 4 teachers that live on-site at the school. Three of the teachers aren't even receiving wages from the government, but they have a place to live and the villagers provide them food. Sad, isn't it? We need to provide an additional room onto the school so the one female teacher doesn't have to live with the male teachers. (Maybe she likes it???)

So, do you think I'm crazy, or do you think we can champion the project? Please spread the word and send my link so people can read about the project and get involved. Last year my event filled up in less than two days. If I get enough readers who comment on my blog and say they would like to help, I'll start with the arrangements for the event.

Now for the fun part! When our project is funded and ready for dedication, I want to go over and video tape the project and show it at our event. I also would like to take 6 of you with me. You'd have to pay your own airfare over, but I would provide transportation and accommodations while in the village of Abomosu. We'd fly into the city of Accra. We'd meet at JFK airport in NYC and have a direct flight to Accra. I promise, this will be a life changing opportunity for you. Even if you can't go to witness the event, just by coming to the dinner and helping fund the project will help you Feel and Be the Joy!

Meda Wo Ase (Thank You) for being my wonderful friends. I love and miss you ALL! -- Linda

BOOOOOOO!

2010-11-08T12:23:00.000-08:00

Oh Boooo .... winter is coming. I don't enjoy the cold weather. I need to move to Florida where it's nice and warm. It's supposed to snow today and I've been 'bummed' out about that. I've soooo enjoyed this summer. I think part of the reason I've loved this summer is because the heat never bothered me. I enjoyed being out in the sun, loved yard work, and even enjoyed just sitting and soaking up some rays. In the past, with all of my extra padding, the heat was unbearable for me. And now I'm going to have to deal with wearing long johns, padded coats, boots, gloves, and a hat. And if you've ever seen me in a hat, it's not a pretty sight! Oh well ... that's what I get for living in Utah, right?

Here's some terrific news! My hubby has been on contract work with his new job and was anxiously waiting to be hired with benefits. He was given a job offer last Friday with a large increase in pay, three annual bonuses, and all health benefits paid for by the company. And that includes the family too! What a terrific company! I'm soooo impressed. The paid health benefits is like getting a raise.

We've lived in our home for over 10 years and my master bath was in desperate need of paint. We have 12' ceilings in the bathroom and I spent the weekend painting it. It was a lot of work but turned out beautiful. I'll take some pictures and post. The color is soft suede ... seriously, that's the name on the paint can, but when it's on the walls it has a greenish cast to it. I'm using accent rugs and etc. in burnt oranges and golds. It's lovely! I have two ledges in the bathroom that I had to climb on. I'm a little nervous of heights, but I did it. You would have been so proud of me. All I have to do is paint the base boards and I'll be done. It's a great feeling to have that off my check list of things to do.

Well, my lunch is up so I must get back to work. Have a lovely week!

--Linda

FINALLY!

2010-10-26T12:05:00.000-07:00

All is well here in Zion!

Just haven't blogged or gotten on Face Book for quite a few weeks. After working all day and being on a computer, most of the day, it's one of the last things I want to do when I get home from work. Not that I don't love and miss you all ... because I do ... but I found a way to blog from work! My boss insists that I get away from my desk to take my lunch because if I don't, I never get to eat my lunch because of phones and this and that happening. So now, instead of a working lunch at my desk, I physically remove myself from my desk and go into another office, sit at an empty desk, eat my lunch at the computer and blog and catch up on personal e-mails. It's great!

Lots of neat things have been happening in our lives. Of course you all know that Lynn got a great job. We're just waiting for his benefits to kick in. Just pray that he remains healthy cuz he doesn't have any health insurance. BOOOOO! But hopefully he will in November. He loves the company he works for. His company was one of the drilling outfits who drilled one of the three holes to rescue the miners in Chile. Their drill hole was considered to be the safest of the three. That was one of the most amazing events to watch 'live'. I remember watching the first man to land on the moon, but in all honesty, this was even greater. What a joyful reunion with family and friends. It was a miracle that they all survived!

Wanna know what I learned after 61 years? I learned how to lock and unlock a door with a key! Seriously, all these years I've struggled which way to turn the key in the lock to lock or unlock the door. I was with my daughter Linz the other day trying to unlock the house door and I commented to her, " I never know which way to turn the key to open the door." She said, "Mom ... think about it. Look where the door frame is. Now imagine where the post is going when you lock the door. Just turn the key towards the door frame to lock it and turn it away from the door frame to unlock it. DUH ...! Can you imagine that I've NEVER figured that out. I knew to turn the lock to the Left on my Mom's home because in my mind I had remembered "Left" for "Lock". But that didn't always work on other doors. DUH!!!! Now every time I unlock a door with a key, I feel so proud of myself, and thankful to my youngest daughter for teaching her mother how to use a key.

Let me tell you about a neat experience I had this last Saturday. I had been asked to sing at a Regional Conference that evening. Linz and I were going to sing a duet, one which we had sung years ago, but hadn't practiced for years. I just didn't feel comfortable with the song. It just didn't seem like the right song to sing for the meeting. The theme was "Growth Through Service". Saturday morning I was doing a workshop and the hostesses' husband is a wonderful musician friend. I asked him if he had a piece of music that would work for the theme in a duet arrangement. He smiled and said that he had the perfect piece and he was dying to have someone perform it. While playing it for me, goosebumps came out on my arms and I got tears in my eyes. Listening to the words and hearing the music confirmed that this was the song we were supposed to do. He printed me out copies of the arrangement plus a CD with accompaniment and voice on it so I could practice in my car on the way home. I was really nervous because Lindsey didn't get to my home until after 4:30 p.m. and we were to sing at 7:00 p.m. Our accompanist hadn't even seen the music either. We met around 5:00 p.m. and went through it a few times. When we got up to sing, I looked at the music and thought to myself, "Sheesh, I don't even remember how this goes!" Well, Linz was thinking the same thing. We sounded wonderful together but had a few timing problems and sang a few wrong words. But all in all, did a really great job. The audience was spell-bound and the song set the spirit for the meeting. The meeting was terrific and the speakers were wonderful. One of my good friends, who had lost her husband to cancer in January, spoke on the blessings of charity in her life. She did an amazing job. Such a great spirit and such a wonderful speaker. She shared with us how hard it was to accept help, and then gave examples of small acts of service that neighbors and friends did to help brighten their lives. After the meeting, our Bishop came up to us and told us how wonderful our song was and then told us that we needed to sing that same song on December 19th in our Ward. He said that it will be perfect for the Christmas season. We were so happy to be asked because now we'll learn and perfect the song and do an even better job! Oh ... the song is called "Make Us One" by Sally DeFord. You can access it on the internet and print it off for free. It's marvelous!

It looks like it's time for me to get back to work. Lunch break is over. I'm doing well ... keeping the weight off ... exercising occasionally ... loving my job ... and loving life.

Cheers --- Linda

A JOB!

2010-09-01T20:16:00.000-07:00

Great News! My hubby has a job.

While visiting in Oregon the discussion of a hobo came up with the grandkids. Katie informed her grandpa (Lynn) that he was THE hobo because he had no job and no money! She's the same one that wrote me the cutest little love note shortly after my layoff. I have it posted on my fridge in her cute hand-writing. It has a drawn picture of a heart on it and it says, "By - Kate I am saree that yue gat fiyrd." Translation ... "I am sorry that you got fired." Isn't that the cutest little note? Geez I miss those girls. They live in Oregon and Katie is getting baptized on the 18th. My Dad will be coming to stay with us during that week so I don't think there's a possibility of us making it to her big day. BOOOOO!

So, what's been going on in the Hansen home. Life really is busy, isn't it? Just taking care of the sick and the elderly in our ward and enjoying family and friends.

I'll have to share an experience that happened last week. I was sitting in the temple contemplating life's challenges and wondering what we were going to have to sell in order to make the mortgage. I hadn't really been worrying about Lynn's employment because I had felt peace and at ease that the Lord would provide. But, I was preparing for the day when we may have to come up with a solution to make our obligations. My mother's voice came into my head saying, "Don't worry, Linda. (She always said that to me.) Lynn will find a job soon. Don't worry!" My heart was at peace once again. The very next day Lynn got a call to come in for an interview. The day after, he was offered the position. And the next day he started his employment. This is a great company just north of Toronto, Canada. They have an office in Sandy, Utah with several Canadian employees. There are also a few people there that he has worked with with other engineering firms. He feels right at home and the people are great. The company has great benefits, paying for all of our health insurance, and the pay is great as well. I'm so happy and so blessed and so thankful to the Lord for helping us through these bumps in life.

What else have I been doing? You wouldn't believe what I've been on these last three days! I got roped into trying the Master Cleanse diet. Why? I really don't know, other than our nurse and office manager at work were so excited about it, they sucked me into doing it. "Oh, it will be sooo much fun if we all do it together", they said. Our nurse purchased all of the stuff. Let me explain what I'm been chug a luggin' these last few days.

Day 1: pureed fruits and veggies with all sorts of sprouts and things in it. It was brown and it looked like sludge. Can I just say that I don't care for the taste of bean sprouts. They taste like dirt. Why would anyone want to eat dirt? And next ... why can't the sludge have a little bit of sweetness to it? So, I added some Crystal Lite to it and it tasted pretty good. Got through Day 1 pretty good. Not too hungry until I saw the Corn Nuts in my night stand. Oh ... just a few won't hurt. So I indulged. Just before bedtime the nurse instructed me to take a natural tea laxative called, get this ... "Smooth Move". Isn't that the funniest name for a laxative? We used to tease people who did something not too smart by saying, "Smooth Move Exlax!" Anyway, back to the herbal tea. It tasted pretty good and I gulped it down. I was starving!

Day 2: Woke up and thought, "Hmm ... so much for that Smooth Move stuff. Didn't really work!" Drove to work and about half way to Bountiful ... Smooth Move kicked in. Oh my goodness. I wasn't sure what I was going to do. So I prayed! Made it to work, driving quite speedily, and hoping I wouldn't get pulled over by a cop. Because at this point, I honestly wouldn't have been able to pull over. I would have had to wave my arm out the window and scream, "Follow me ... seriously ... just follow me ... I can't stop." But alas ... how do I put this delicately and to not offend ... I had to wash my undies out in the restroom and wear wet undies til they dried. So, for anyone having bowel problems, try the herbal tea with natural Senna. I promise, it will do the trick.

Day 2's drink consists of 1 litre of water, 4 tablespoons of pure Maple Syrup, and 6 tablespoons of pure lemon juice. Yum ... delicious ... well ... not really ... but tolerable. Drink that three times a day and wash down a cayenne pepper tablet, some pro-biotics, and a yeast cleanse tablet. Got through Day 2 fine with no other side affects. Had a few bites of Swiss Cheese when I got home because I was feeling a little dizzy.

Day 3 - Repeat the same as Day 2. Hey, I was doing great. But guess who fell off the band wagon? The nurse and the office manager. The office manager was throwing up the night before and the nurse decided she wanted to eat lunch. I stuck out the day with my drink and took the Maple Syrup home for pancakes! I ate a little bit of food this evening and am calling it good. End of the Master Cleanse.

Results: I weighed 142 pounds this morning ... losing 5 pounds in 2 days. Not too shabby! It will be interesting to see how quickly I put the weight back on after eating. Anyway, it was fun trying it out with the girls and I really didn't get too hungry during the day.

Another bit of good news! I finally posted the swap photos of An Evening to Remember on my official site. If you would like to view them go to http://aneveningtoremember2010.com. The pictures are all grouped in thumbnails in the post just previous to my last post. Enjoy! I was going to password protect them, but I would like all to enjoy.

Have a great Thursday tomorrow. I'm loving life! -- Linda

Quick Post

2010-08-18T06:55:00.001-07:00

Dieter and Molly watching the cat!

Carol, my sister who lives in Salem, Oregon.

Kate and Molly.

Natalie and Abbigail.
Sarah.

Kate and Molly.

Oh, I have so much to share and only a few minutes to post before I get myself to the Highland Care Center to see one of my favorite people.

All I can say is .... I can't believe this is happening to us ... again .... unemployment! This time it's my hubbie. The head honchos from the corporate office came into town and closed the Salt Lake branch down of his office. That meant EVERYONE there were laid off. Bummer! I was 59 years old going through my first layoff and Lynn is 59 going through another layoff. This isn't new to us in his business. He's a structural designer but he's always been able to find employment quickly after a down-sizing. It's been over 3 weeks and he still hasn't had any luck. So, if any of you know of a company that is hiring ... please advise. We'd even be willing to relocate if need be.

Unfortunately unemployment and my wages won't pay the mortgage. But I have faith that we will be fine. I have a calm assurance that the Lord has something in store for us and we will be blessed. I've used these last few weeks to really focus on what matters most ... visiting family members and taking care of the sick and needy in our Ward. It's been a great three weeks.

We took the opportunity of the layoff to go to Oregon for a few days to visit my daughter and her family. What a wonderful time. I'll quickly post some cute pictures of Molly, their dog and Dieter together. Dieter was in 7th heaven having a playmate.

I'm still working on my invention, so I can't wait to announce the unveiling.

Off to the Care Center. Have a fab day! --- Linda Lou

Pictures Part 1

2010-07-26T20:53:00.000-07:00

Pictures Part 2

2010-07-26T20:34:00.000-07:00

It Really Was an Evening to Remember!

2010-07-26T19:17:00.000-07:00

WOW .... WOW .... WOWZER! My Evening to Remember was exactly that ... and more. All of the hard work, planning, fretting, stewing, buying, cutting, bagging, toting, and worrying certainly paid off. I woke early Friday morning and started packing all of the 'stuff' to take it up town to the Joseph Smith Memorial building. As I was getting ready I let out a few, wild screams! My husband excitedly asked, "What in the world is wrong?" "Nothing", I replied ... "It's just that my heart is in my stomach and I'm nervous, scared, and excited and I'm so worried that someone will be disappointed with the evening." He calmed me down by saying, "Linda, when you gather over 200 of your friends and family in a room, who WANT to be there, you're not going to have to worry about someone not having fun." And he was exactly right.

Lori Hatton met me at 1:00 p.m. and we started stuffing the Make & Take packets, hauling everything up from the cars to the banquet rooms, and setting everything. Donna Moore arrived shortly after. There's no way I could have put on this event without their help. I love both of them dearly! Lori designed the 4th Make & Take, a darling punched frog and prepped all (200) packets. It only took her and her Mom 8 hours to complete that assignement. Whew! And Donna Moore helped prep packets at my home for hours and hours, driving all the way from Springville to help me.

A couple of hours later the forces arrived, my girls, to help complete the setup. Shortly around 5:00 our wonderful guests started arriving. As I watched the room fill up I only had a short panic attack. I started wondering how we were going to get ALL 200 people fed and back into the banquet room in a timely manner. The staff at the JSM were fabulous and I could tell they had certainly done this before ... however, I don't think they had ever seen women stamp projects after dinner. In fact, one of the servers asked if we were coming back next year because he wanted to work our event. He said that the weddings were boring, but our event was so much fun and the women were laughing and the singing was wonderful and it was a blast working it! The ambiance was everything I had imagined, from the table settings, to the fantastic view of the temple. There was a beautiful sunset and a breathtaking view for pictures at the close of the day. And the food was to die for. Everyone seemed so happy and it was so much fun watching them be pampered with the lovely surroundings and fantastic food and company.

After everyone was seated and I gave a short welcome, our special guests arrived, Lori Hatton and Jaron Winder. It was such an honor to have them in attendance. One of the highlights of my past convention experiences was hearing Jaron sing. He favored us with the same number he shared with thousands a couple of years ago and received a standing ovation! Both Lori and Jaron are doing well, enjoying their employment, and loving life. Life has been great!

For those of you who are reading my blog and wondering why I put on an event during the free night of the Stampin' Up! Convention ... it was out of pure love for the demonstrators. Hundreds have asked if I was coming to Convention and many asked me to meet them somewhere for dinner. Since I can't be in several places at once, I wanted to do a kind gesture for the demonstrators on their free night ... show them my town ... give them fabulous food ... share a beautiful, historical building with them ... give them a little bit of history of my city ... and just get together with friends and family and eat, visit, stamp and have a wonderful time. And that's exactly what we did. As I looked out over the audience that night and looked at those beautiful faces with those beautiful smiles I will NEVER forget that experience and I will NEVER forget the love I have for my Stampin' Up! friends. I can honestly say that if I EVER needed anything from anyone of you, you would be willing to help me out instantly. I indeed am blessed by my association with you and am so blessed to call you my dear friends.

A BIG THANK-YOU to Diana Gibbs and Dina Anker for helping me with the event. Diana was the master-mind, creator behind three of the projects and cut a gazillion pieces of cardstock for two of the projects. Dina was our communication/web specialist. She's a whiz at computers, designing gorgeous websites and taking care of the registraton process. When I get my business going I'll definitely hire her! And many thanks to Connie Jewkes, and Dina's great friends who offered to help out that evening. Couldn't have done it without you!

And last but not least ... thank-you to my beautiful daughters and handsome husband for helping me at the last minute and ALWAYS putting up with my crazy ideas. Many of you asked if I was going to do this again next year and I responded that if I had any complaints I wouldn't do it. So far so good ... positive comments so I'm already planning something else ...something even bigger and maybe even wilder. We'll see what this imagination cooks up. I have a few ideas up my sleeve.

We've taken pictures of all of the swaps and waiting for a copy of the CD so we can upload them to An Evening to Remember 2010 website. I'm sending the CD to Dina so it may take a few days for them to appear. In the mean time, my photographer daughter, will be posting pictures to my blog for you to enjoy the evening festivities.

I can't tell you enough times how much I love all of you. You are all such wonderful friends and I am so blessed to have you in my life. Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you!

Quick Post

2010-07-22T04:56:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that Friday is almost here! It's the big event that I've been planning for the last few months. I also can't believe how many hours/days/weeks it takes to cut card stock for (4) projects for 200 people! Thanks to Diana Gibbs, Donna Moore, and Lori Hatton for helping. They're amazing. Diana designed three of the projects and Lori designed the 4th.

I can't wait to see (200) friends tomorrow evening. We're going to have a wonderful time ... great food, fabulous company, fantastic stamping, super duper swaps, and some special guests.

Tah Dah ... my one year surgery pictures. Amazing, don't you think? Such a drastic difference. Never thought I was that heavy. Oh well ... I certainly was kidding myself. I feel 'free' and so great!

Got to get to work ... later!

Montana ... Land of the Big Sky Country!

2010-06-30T19:23:00.000-07:00

My brother-in-law is a logger and a rancher. Here's his snazzy red rig! Look at the size of those logs!

My cute 92 year old papa!

Me, Dad, Lynn, and the Dieter dog!

Dad, me and my sis, Margaret! (She's amazing ... never grows older! Must be the Montana air.)

I can't believe it's been 11 years since I've been to Montana, the land where I was born and raised for the first 9 years of my life. I love it there and I especially love the people in the little town of Drummond, Montana. Of course my sis and cousins and Dad live there too. What a marvelous time Lynn and I had. It was a short trip, but a great trip. We went solely to visit, but got in some great 4-wheeling, saw the beautiful country and even attended an auction selling ranching stuff. Not only was it fun, but it was therapeutic. I've said this before, but it needs repeating so I'll say it again, "You'll never take the country out of this city girl!" I love riding in the back of a pickup truck with the wind blowing in my hair. I love just riding around the hills and valleys and enjoying the beautiful scenery. And I especially love just being with my fun and loving sister and brother-in-law. They are taking such great care of my Dad. My Dad seems to be very happy in his new environment and at peace where he's at. He still misses his sweetheart and tells me daily that life is just not the same without her. We ALL miss her!

What else have I been up to? Let's see ... I started a new venture, but I haven't done too much with it just yet. I'll tell you more later when I have time to post some pictures!

Weight loss has been stable. Can't believe it's been a year since my surgery! Still fitting into a size 10. I've added carbs into my diet and some sugar, which I told myself I wouldn't do. Why do I do that? Sometimes I wonder what's wrong with me??? Some test results showed that all of my blood levels, cholesterol and all that stuff were really good, other than my sugar levels were a little high and potassium a little low. Not sure how high/low. Will find out tomorrow when I go in for my yearly check-up with the surgeon. I still feel wonderful and have lots of energy. I've been doing tons of yard work. Something that I couldn't muster a year ago because I was too heavy and too tired all of the time! I love working out in the yard and seeing the results of my efforts. We finally got the back yard sodded and a good start on the landscaping along the fence line. Looks wonderful and is a quiet retreat.

On the way home from Drummond we stopped in the next little town called Phillipsburg. What a darling, step back in time, western town. We visited the candy palace which was amazing! Candy of all kinds. Homemade caramels, fudge, hand-dipped chocolates, and old fashioned candy that we used to get as kids. It was an amazing and beautiful store. Wish you could all experience it! And the candy we liked best were the Neapolitan coconut Brachs candy ... those brown, pink, and white striped coconut candies. Isn't that funny?

.

Had a really nice visit in Park City last Friday evening with my oldest son, Ryan, his wife Camie, and kidlets. Went swimming for the first time since my weight loss. I don't float as well as I used to. And I bought my first two-piece swimsuit ever! No, it's not a bikini ... it's a tankini and I have to wear leggings to hold in my flabby, baggy upper thighs. Oh well ... it looks nicer than blubbery fat. Now I need to get a tan!

Not to brag ... but don't I have some of the prettiest grand-kids, and a handsome son???

Well --- it's off to get my big Stampin' Up! order ready so I can place it tomorrow. Got to order all the supplies for our gig on the 23rd. I'm getting so excited to see many of you. Can't wait. We're going to have such a grand time. Diana Gibbs has designed three of the stamping projects and one of my special guests has designed the 4th. You're going to love the projects and of course the product!

Gotta love that new Stampin' Up! catalog. I love the improvements they made to the catalog, especially for these old eyes. And love, love, love the indexed landing pages as well as the stamps that indicate which punches work with them. Grand idea!

Tah Tah ... later and lots of loves!

Minneapolis .... Yee Hah ....!

2010-05-27T04:10:00.000-07:00

I was so honored when Terri Gaines called to ask if I would come out to Minneapolis for her Stampin' Share for Leaders. I've always held Terri on a Stampin' Up! pedastal and couldn't believe my ears when she called to ask me to come speak at her event. What a blessing to meet so many talented and lovely demonstrators. And there were so many leaders that I haven't seen for over a year. It was such a wonderful event. (I can't believe that all of my typing this morning was lost when I went to publish post! ... so here I go again.)
Terri picked me up at the airport and whisked me away to the Mall of America. Now what woman in the world wouldn't want to go there! But the best part was getting to spend time eating dinner with 20 of her leaders at a lovely restaurant. Terri pampered me and took such lovely charge of me. I felt like the Queen of England. She put me up in a beautiful hotel and my 'hired' chauffer, Denise Jorgensen, shuttled me to and from the event and to the airport. Life just can't get any better than that.j

After dinner Denise and I went back to our hotel where she gave me a private, one on one tutorial on all of the different uses for the tiny take out boxes. Talk about an imagination. That gal is one fine stamper and always comes up with the most creative uses for our product. I'm always learning from that gal. I missed not seeing Iner, her husband. Perhaps next time!

After a leisurely breakfast we meandered to a swap meet where we met up with some of our other demonstrators. It was so nice seeing Joan Banman Cristo who drove all the way from Canada to the event!
Here's my view from the stage. Look at all of these beautiful women. Look at their gorgeous smiles. What a fantastic group of women to share my innermost thoughts. Love, love, love them all!
Just a sampling of a few of the projects that were on display. There were tons of samples ... I swear almost as many that are displayed at Convention!

When I saw those chipboard thingys that look like a briefcase, I thought to myself, "What in the world is Stampin' Up! thinking? What would I do with thosee lame things?" And lo and behold ... look what Terri Gaines came up with. Now I'm thinking, "Gotta place an order for those thingys so I can make this!"

Take a look at these darling card holders shaped like a purse!

A creative use of the bird punch -- look at all of the varieties of birds! Clever, pure clever!

A great hostess idea!

Sisters ... sisters ... While speaking to each of them individually, I thought I was speaking to the same person until I saw them together. And no, they're not twins ... just sisters. Isn't that neat? Stampin' Up! sisters! Well, in reality ... we're all Stampin' Up! sisters, right?

So, so good to reconnect with old friends!

It's been almost ten years since I was in Minneapolis ... my first Stampin' Up! Convention. Many ole timers relive that experience by saying that it was the worst convention they had ever attended. For me, I thought it was the best, because it was the ONLY convention I had ever attended. Fond, fond memories working with Cherie Manderschied that year. She did a wonderful presentation and I had the honor of coaching and working with her. We've been dear friends ever since!

My bud ... Denise. I met Denise in Mesa, Arizona at one of our first regional seminars. Denise was giving a presentation and I fell in love with her teaching style. She continues to amaze me. She's truly a master teacher! Love and miss you Denise!

Isn't this the most adorable mobile, hanging from a sweet, little tree branch!

I need to thank all of you for giving me the most beautiful cards imaginable. I received full cards, not card fronts from all of the demos at Janice Weightman's event and Terri Gaine's event. Not only do I have fabulous ideas, but I have a plethora of cards to send to our hospice and home health patients. This is wonderful and I can't wait to share them! Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

I will be posting my 2nd BIG ANNOUNCEMENT next week, so check back to see what I have up my sleeve. You WON'T want to miss out!

Happy Memorial weekend to you all. I think I'll pick some of my Mom's peonies and Irises, place them in a glass Mason jar, wrap tinfoil around the jar and place it on her grave. She was very frugal and ALWAYS placed cans or bottles of flowers on her parent's graves ... always wrapped in tin foil. I think the tin foil was out of necessity and she thought it glammed up the can or glass jar. I look at tin foil in a different light now, and think of her. Of course I could Stampify it, but I've just gotta wrap the jar in tin foil.

HALLELUJA!

2010-05-08T14:23:00.000-07:00

Thanks for all of your prayers and fingers crossed and positive thoughts! I was able to secure the entire 9th floor of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building! That means that ALL 210 of you that registered will be able to attend. That also means that those of you who weren't quick enough on the 'draw' will have to wait until next year. So sorry, but fire code doesn't allow more than 210 in the room.

Because I had to pay more money for the entire floor, of course my expenses went up, which means that we'll do our best to still give you wonderful Make & Takes, but there will be a minimal supply list which I will ask you to bring. I promise I'll try to keep it at a minimum so you won't have extra baggage weight.

This evening promises to be fun! The food will be wonderful, the company 'the best', the stamping phenomenal, and I have a few more surprises in store for you. You'll just have to wait and see.

As I mentioned before, there can be no refunds for the evening. I have to pay in advance. If you're unable to attend, please make arrangements for someone to take your place. Just make sure that I'm aware of the change so we don't have complications at check-in.

The building is a non-smoking building, as all of the buildings are in Utah, but it also does not allow outside food or beverages into the facility and does not offer coffee, tea, or alcohol. But the Raspberry Lemonade is to DIE for and they offer plenty of water! :) Just wanted to give everyone a heads up so no one is disappointed.

O.K. ... now I've got to get all of the logisitcs figured out. Thanks to great helpers Dina and Di! Couldn't do this without you. As we get closer to the event, I may have to enlist the services of some of you.

Happy Mother's Day and have a fabulous day. (I mowed and edged my Mom and Dad's yard in honor of my mother. She would have loved that for her gift!)

Had a WONDERFUL brekfast with my girls this morning. Kneaders gave away, free, the most marvelous french toast in the world, smothered in whipped cream, strawberries, and caramel sauce. It was to DIE for! It's always nice sharing time with those you love. I sure enjoy my girls and am so happy to have two daughter-in-laws who I love like my own girls!

SOLD OUT!!!

2010-05-05T23:25:00.000-07:00

An Evening to Remember has sold out!

What a FANTASTIC response. I never dreamed we would 'sell out' so quickly. I'm soo excited I can hardly stand it. This will be a wonderful evening.

We actually had 150 people sign up. I'm trying frantically to find a larger room so I don't have 50 disappointed girl friends! I'll keep you posted. You should have all received confirmation e-mails from me regarding your registration.

Regarding your registration ... there can be no refunds. I have to pay in advance for your seat and there are no refunds from the establishment. If you cannot attend after registering, you are welcome to sell your seat to someone else. Please keep me notified so we can have the registration rolls correct.

We haven't designed our stamping project yet, but I do know that you will need to bring your own adhesive for the Make & Takes. So, plan on that for sure!

It's late and I'm having troubles with the internet. Hope I can get my Pay Pal account removed from my site. If not ... please don't try to register. And pray we can find a larger room so all can attend.

Hugs and Loves to All --- especially if I didn't tell you that I love you in your confirmation e-mail! Consider you loved ... by me!

--Linda Lou

"An Evening to Remember"

2010-05-03T21:08:00.000-07:00

First Big Announcement:

I'm having "An Evening to Remember" on Friday, July 23, 2010 from 6:00 p.m. til 9:00 p.m. at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building at 15 East South Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah. The Joseph Smith Memorial Building is just a short walking distance from the Salt Palace Convention Center.

The evening will include a beautiful traditional buffet dinner which includes Chicken Wellington, which is a breast of chicken stuffed with mushroom and ham duxelle wrapped in a flaky pastry with cream sauce. We will also have baked Pacific Salmon with fresh pineapple raspberry salsa. Included in the dinner will be a mixed green salad with condiments and dressing, assorted seasonal fruit tray, seasonal vegetables, parslied new red potatoes, hard rolls, raspberry lemonade, and New York cheescake with raspberry sauce. Yummo!

Dinner will be served promptly at 6:00 p.m. and stamping will follow. You may want to arrive a few minutes early to check in. We will stamp (4) beautiful Make & Takes and have time for swapping. We will have a themed swap and will let you know in plenty of time what the theme will be.

Our own Diana Gibbs, a 2009 Artisan Award Designer will be one of my hosts for the evening. Many of you have seen her beautiful works of art on-line and in Stampin' Success. Another one of my hosts is Dina Anker from Toronto, Canada. You'll recognize Dina once you see her. She's always the first to arrive in Main Stage at Convention each year and is always waving her Canadian flag! I'm so pleased to have them helping me with our event. They will be designing our Make & Takes and are both wonderful stampers!

We are pleased to have some special guests that will be attendance. I don't want to ruin the surprise just yet, but I promise you ... you won't want to miss out! I only have 100 spots available. Payment is only $50. Just click on the PayPal link on the side of my blog to register. Also, shoot me an e-mail at lindahansen1813@comcast.net to make sure that you are registered. I'll send you an e-mail confirmation which you can print out and bring with you to the event.

I need to have my final counts and payment by May 12th to the facility. This is not a money making event for us. We'll break even if we sell all 100 seats. :) I'm sooo excited to have this event for you during your free night at convention. No need to worry about where you're going to eat or what you're going to do. Come join us for fun, laughs, hugs, food, stamping, and loves. Can't wait to see you!

Love,
Linda Lou

Where's Linda?

2010-04-28T20:12:00.000-07:00

It was off to the big city of Chicago this last weekend to attend Janice Weightman's Spring Event. Talk about a fantastic trip and a fantastic bunch of girls! Couldn't have had a nicer weekend. Got to the Chicago O'Hare airport without incident and then the adventure began. My instructions read that I was to ask where the Van Galder bus terminal was. Only problem was, I couldn't find anyone to ask so I decided to just follow the transit signs. I ended up in the 'under-ground' where the trains were to take you into the city. As I was twirling around with papers in hand, looking confused, a gentleman came up to me and asked where I was going. Needless to say I knew that he was a 'pan-handler', but what the heck ... I needed to know where I was going and he needed a couple of bucks. So off we went ... around the corner ... just him and me and got into the elevator with him. I thought, "I'm going to get mugged! ... Oh well!" But he was a gentleman and took me right where I needed to go and then promptly encouraged me to give him a tip, which I did.

I waited for a couple of hours people watching, one of my favorite past-times until my bus arrived. After boarding the bus we rode for about an hour and half south of Chicago to a little town called Rockton, population just over 7,000. The bus pulled up to a McDonalds and the driver said this was our stop. I got off the bus, got my luggage and went into McDonalds to wait for my chariot.

Janice arrived with her van all decked out with her magnetized Stampin' Up! signs on both doors. Immediately I knew which vehicle was hers! Willow, their Wheaton Terrier was waiting to greet me upon our arrival to her beautiful home.

This is her great husband, Paul, who is not only a wonderful supportive husband to Janice, but a great cook and A/V guy!

Janice and Paul have the most amazing home out in the country with the most incredible view. I could live here easily. Their beautiful daughters greeted me warmly and Matisse gave up her Pretty in Pink bedroom to me while she slept on the couch. Thank-you again Matisse!

Time to see the Stamp Room. I've NEVER seen a stamp room like this in my life. Not even the art room at Stampin' Up! can equal this room. It was neater than a stamp store --- so organized and she has everything. This is a stamper's paradise! I promise to take her example and become more organized after seeing her room.

Check out that paper! And look at the ones that are going away ... BOOOO! But I'm excited for the new colors ... HORRAY!

Check out the view, both inside and out!
Thanks to all of my stamping buddies that greeted me so warmly at the event the next morning: Lisa Miller, Lisa Lou, JoAnn Bengtsen, Peggy Taylor, Karen Davis, Pam Peterson, Cherie Gustafom, Deb Schwemlein, Rhonda Salis, Lynne Miller, Nan Goerlitz, Tammy Neperud, Mary Smith, Christie Carter, Darla Wilson, Jessica Siebels, Dianna Richards, Cindy Carroll, Barbara Pisciotto, and of course Paul and Janice Weightman.

The event was absolutely AMAZING and I learned a ton of things of which I'm planning on sharing in Minneapolis with Teri Gaines and her group. So, I won't let the cat out of the bag and show you the projects until after Minneapolis. And I'll give credit where credit is due, girls. Your demos were spectacular and I've already tried them and they work!

What a wonderful day! And I don't know how Janice knew, but she took me to Trader Joes, a specialty grocery store. I LOVE to go to grocery stores and compare prices in other cities and buy things that are specialized to the region of the country. I bought a box of Wisconsin Mac and Cheese/Trader Joes! Can't wait to try it. And we went browsing at a marvelous scrapbook store and ate at two fabulous places. The food was divine and the company was even better. Thanks again Janice and Paul for a most memorable week-end! Love you guys!

O.K. ... now for some teasers ... You'll want to keep checking my blog because I will be making two BIG announcements in a few days. All I can say is that it's a BIG announcement and one you'll want to read all about. More later ... and see you in a few days!

Denver ... The Mile High City!

2010-04-17T07:33:00.000-07:00

What an AMAZING event with Tara Bazata, a member of the Stampin' Up! Advisory Board and her Spring Stamposium event. The weather was perfect and it was a beautiful, sunny, warm day when Tara picked me up at the airport and took me to her beautiful home. She and her husband and three boys were the perfect hosts. They cooked me a lovely dinner and then I had the privilege of watching Tara 'create' in her gorgeous stamp room. I'll tell you ... a stamp room all your own is every crafter's dream. She had a place for everything and it was so well organized. It was fun looking at all of the new product and the new colors that will be coming out in July.

I'm sooo excited for the new color renovation. All I can say is, "It's about TIME!" We've needed a new, updated color line for quite a few years and this is an exciting change. Can't wait to get my hands on the new inks. What a great idea to include a sheet of the new colors in our Stampin' Success!

We had the most amazing stamping demonstrations - look at some of these gorgeous creations ... flowers made from fabric. Use them for pins, necklaces, embellishments on headbands, bracelets. You name it ... our presenter showed us how! I apologize for not giving credit where credit is due ... I've lost my folder with my program in it and I can't remember the presenter's names. BOOOO to me!

Check out this new set! Can't wait to get it!!!

This is one of my favorite Denver buddies --- Sylvia Simpson. I've known Sylvia and Cheryl Burnside for years and love them dearly. The first time I came to Denver they picked me up, showed me the sites around town and took me to the Mile High Stampers Event with Connie Ingram. We've had FUN ever since! Sylvia took me back to the airport, which gave us lots of time to gab and catch up with each other.

Me and Cheryl! We're going to plan an over-nighter at Cheryl's cabin in the mountains and stamp all day in our p.j.'s. Sounds like fun!

This is my lovely sister-in-law, Carrie, who lives in Aurora, Colorado. She came over to hear my presentation. So good to see family. I love her so much! They are the best parents and have such a good family. Their oldest is getting ready to serve a mission for our church. I can't believe that Jake is all grown up!

Look at Angie! This pic makes me laugh!!

Well ... it's fun looking at these wonderful pictures and remembering all of my wonderful 'sisters'. I have the best life and am so blessed with so many friends all over the world!

It's off to Chicago this weekend to visit Janice Weightman and her group. She's even going to let me borrow her dog so I won't miss Dieter so much! :)

On a sad note ... I shouldn't leave you with a sad post, but it needs mentioning. Our youngest daughter's father-in-law, who was only 55, died of a massive heart attack while exercising on the tread mill. We just visited with him on Sunday when Emma was blessed at church. We had a lovely dinner at Lindsey and Ryan's home after church where we visited with Blair and his family. He has two missionaries out in the field, who won't be able to come home for the funeral. One's in Germany and the other is in Washington State. He has another son who just left for Europe this week and is stuck in Europe due to the volcano in Iceland. He'll probably miss his Dad's funeral too. Life has a lot of hiccups in it, doesn't it? It's always sad when our loved ones are taken so soon and so early in life. I know there is a better place where he is, but it's still hard to have him taken so suddenly. Our thoughts and prayers are with Ryan and Lindsey! For you demonstrators, Ryan Martineau is your finance guy at Stampin' Up! He's responsible for you getting paid!

On a happier note ... hold on to your hat ... and mark July 23rd on your calendars for an evening event with me and some fellow stampers, for dinner and stamping and some very special guests. You won't want to miss out. More details to follow shortly!

A Perfect Day!

2010-04-05T19:38:00.000-07:00

Sealed for Time and all Eternity in the Salt Lake Temple

My father and my Oregon granddaughters.

My Lewis granddaughters and my father.

My brother Gil, me, and my father.My oldest daughter, Angie, with my father.My daughter Laurel with my father.Angie, Boyd, and my boys.

My son Ryan, his wife Camie, and my grandchildren.My daughter Ginger and my father.Table setting at the reception.Gelato Stand.Our newest member of the family, Laura.My youngest daughter, Lindsey, with our new addition Emma Laurel.Natalie and the Peton gang.Laura with my beautiful princesses --- all of my granddaughters minus the two baby girls.Reese and Laura with Reese's siblings!A Ethan and Ben.

What mother can fall into bed at the end of a wedding day and say that it was the most perfect day ... everything went as planned, and everything was a picture, perfect wedding! There wasn't one thing I would have changed and wanted done differently. Other than being a little on the breezy side and a little chilly, it was still a beautiful day. Our bride looked like a princess and our handsome groom looked like prince charming. They absolutely looked like a picture out of a story book. One of the cutest and most precious sites was at the reception when the bride and groom were dancing to 'their song'. There were two little girls standing mesmerized, watching every move as the bride and groom danced, hugged and kissed each other. It was priceless watching those little girls. You could tell by the look on their faces they thought Laura was a princess. And indeed, she DID look like a princess. We're so blessed to have her join our family. We LOVE her!

For some reason I'm having trouble posting pictures to the blog site this evening, so I'll continue with text and then post pics when I'm able.

As mother of the bride it was our duty to provide a wedding dinner the night before the wedding for both families and friends of the bride and groom. I decided to host and cook the dinner myself. We planned for 55. I decided to try my sister Beverlee's recipe for Cafe Rio Pork Salad, served with the most delicious rice and beans, tortillas, creamy tomatillo dressing, salsa, guacamole, tortillas chips and cheese. I marinated the pork tenderloin overnight and then cooked it all day in a slow cooker. It was delicious and the flavor was out of this world! Laura's favorite color is purple so we served lime rickies to drink. It's grape soda pop with lime and it's yummo! We had decadent chocolate cake, orange creame cakes, and blueberry cheesecake for dessert. Everything was so perfect. Everyone seemed to really enjoy the food. A few of my friends came over to the church to help set up, serve, and clean up afterwards. Thank goodness for wonderful friends!

The reception center was amazing. It was an atrium filled with all sorts of plants and waterfalls, pathways, nooks and crannys, and lots of fun places for children to run, play, and hide and seek. There was a photo booth where all attendees could have their picture taken and instantly receive copies, one for the memory book and one to keep. It was unlimited pictures so of course the grandkids had a blast. A few of us adults did too! They also had a Gelatto bar with unlimited refills of amazing gelato ice cream and cookies. There was a candy stand where you could fill your cello sacks with all sorts of different candies and snack on during the reception or fill your purse and snack on it later at home. :) Of course there was the most amazing cake. Each tier was a different flavor and was absolutely out of this world. Later that evening we danced. It was such a fun evening and everyone seemed to have such a great time.

So just what have I been up to lately? Mostly preparing for the wedding and having family come in from out of state. It was so wonderful having the kidlets here and also enjoying my father, who came down from Montana. It was really good for him to be in his home for a few days. He decided that it was better to be in Montana with my sister rather than being in his home all alone!

Weight Loss Update ... I've added breads and a few sweets back into my diet. I thought I wouldn't eat sweets again but I did let temptation take ahold of me. I have to be moderate in all things or the weight will creep back on. Sugar tends to give me headaches. You'd think I'd learn and just stay away from it. I'm kinda like an alocholic with sugar. Get me started on it and it's hard to stop! But I'm down to a size '10' ... yes, you heard me correct .... a size 10 ... and I've lost 112 pounds. I now weigh 145 pounds. I just can't explain how fabulous I feel!

I attended a funeral this morning and a gal who I haven't seen since my weight loss came up to me and threw her arms around me and just went 'ga ga' over my new look. It was so much fun listening to her as she oohed and aahed over my curves. It's always fun watching people's reaction and then waiting for that inevitable question, "How'd you lose the weight?" I'm so happy to be able to share my surgery information with them.

What else have I been doing to keep myself busy? I'm heading over to Denver this Friday for Tara Bazata's big event. She asked me to do a demonstration on using the Big Shot with fabric. I've been sewing up a storm. Just turn me loose in a fabric store and I feel like I've died and gone to heaven. I've been there twice in the last couple of days and I plan on going back next week to use my 50% off coupon for some fabric I've had my eye on!

I'll take lots of pictures and post when I get home. Can't wait to see all of my friends in Denver!

Finally .... Pictures!!!

2010-03-11T18:19:00.000-08:00

Here I am --- the evening before my surgery! Looking back I really didn't think I was that heavy. Boy was I wearing Rose colored glasses!

Have I ever worn a belt in my entire life? NO! I had no waist and had NO problem holding up my pants! But now ... I can wear blouses tucked in and cute belts. Oh so fun!

Got to admit ... Ross is my best friend. It's a discounted clothing store and I LOVE it. Especially the prices. While losing weight so fast you don't want to spend a lot of money on clothes that you will only be wearing for a few weeks.

As promised ... and finally .... pictures of Stampin' Palooza in Toronto, Canada with Caroline LeBel. This was another one of her fabulous events. Oh so fun!

Some of the gang. And take a look at those cute Olympic mittens. Talk about team spirit!

Check out the name badges. Contest for the best ones and a darling parade to boot!

My good friend Donna Henley and my new friend ... oops forgot your name ... but you are an awesome graphic designer and stamper and you speak French! See ... my memory isn't shot yet.

Carolin LeBel --- the fantastic party planner!

Dina Anker --- my tour guide, friend, buddy, awesome stamper, and great Canadian nails.

Blair Moc showing us how to make darling Easter baskets.
Lesley Poper -- showed us the most amazing cloth projects using the Big Shot!
Chanda McLean taught us how to make paper flowers ... all kinds!

Of course there's Big Shot Brent. He showed us how to cut vinyl and apply it to an umbrella to give it that customized look!

Christyne Richardson taught us how to do the Herringbone Technique.

Michelle, me, and Dina. Michelle was my darling tour guide 4 months ago! Love Yah!!!

Michelle Sturgeon showed us creative ways of using all of those scraps of left-over paper. She's amazing!
Me and some of the gang!

Well ... life IS amazing. There's never a dull moment. I'm busily getting ready for my wedding of my youngest son, Reese. We were licking, stuffing, addressing, and labeling wedding invites last night until 12:30 a.m. But it was kinda, sorta fun, especially watching the big daddy stuffing the invites and the mama telling him to not put the invitation in the envelope upside down. And his rebuttal was, of course, "Who cares?" Well, I care and I know the bride cares and he had to be told to put the labels on straight too. They couldn't be crooked!

Say ... I have a couple of demo friends who are thinking about having a big 'To Do' on the free night at Convention in July. I'm thinking about hosting a dinner, shoe box swap and some fun things to do. If you're interested and would like to attend, please comment and say, "Count me in!" Spread the word and post this on your blogs, website and 'what not' so I know what sort of venue to secure for our event.

On a sad note. I just received word that my nephew's house burned down. He lives in Silverton, Oregon and they were able to get out, but two of their cats died. There's 7 of them in their family and they have no place to live right now and only have the clothing on their backs. Thanks to family members they are getting by. Just remember them in your prayers, please.

I'll post my speaking schedule on the sidebar of my blog, if I can figure out how to do it.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Love and Kisses! -- Lou

They Don't Get Any Prettier Than This!

2010-03-04T18:57:00.000-08:00

See ... I told you my grand babies are gorgeous! This is Mia Lynn Hansen, my youngest grand baby.

2010-03-02T20:27:00.000-08:00

For some strange reason I've had a terrible time trying to download pictures to my blogger. Taking way too long so I thought I'd post some text and then try downloading pictures at another time.

Lots of great things have happened these past two weeks. As you all know I had an incredible trip to Toronto where I met with Caroline LeBel's gals. She hosted a fabulous event and I took tons of pictures of my great Canadian friends and their beautiful stamped projects. I'll post them as soon as I'm able.

We had a another grand baby born shortly after I arrived home from Toronto. It was perfect timing. Baby Mia Lynn Hansen was born shortly after 4:00 in the morning weighing in at 7 pounds 11 ounches, 21 inches long. Lots of dark hair and a perfectly beautiful baby! Shortly after she was born we found that she was born with a VSD. It's some medical term for a hole in her heart. It's mild however there's a good chance that she will have to have heart surgery in a while. She's doing well at home and seems to be a good baby.

We've been busy with all of the to do's with our youngest son's upcoming wedding. My daughter-in-law picked out a beautiful purple suit for me to wear and she purchased a size 10 and guess what? It fit!!! I even went to the store over the weekend and purchased 4 new pair of pants, all in a size 10, and they fit perfect. I haven't been a size 10 since I was a fetus!

Went to the surgeon last week for a follow-up visit. It's been 8 months since my surgery and I've lost a total of 109 pounds. I weigh 148 pounds. I feel like I'm at my goal but he said that my body will probably still lose more weight. Possibly another 10-20 pounds. The body is used to certain set points that it will automatically try to reach. And then possibly I will re-gain 10 pounds or so in the next three years. He said that some surgeons will never let their gastric by-pass patients eat carbs again, but he feels that I can start to introduce some of them back into my diet in a moderate fashion. So .... I ate my first piece of bread in 8 months at my daughter Lindsey's home. She'd baked fresh bread and it was hot, right out of the oven, with butter. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven! I even ate a portion of a whole wheat sandwich the other day and it was to die for. I love, love, love bread and it's been very difficult not having it these last 8 months. I can live without the sweets but I love bread .... especially sandwiches!

I met a darling gal in Mesa last year at Diana Gibb's event. She mentioned that her hubby and her were having the surgery any day now. So to you... I'm thinking about you and your hubby and wish you all the best. Please keep me posted and send pics of your weight loss success. There's several of you out there who have mentioned you have had the surgery or are thinking about it. Please keep me posted as well. I love hearing from you!

More later with pictures! I'm freezing and it's time to go to bed to get warm.

Loves and Hugs!

Oh Canada .... Toronto!

2010-02-19T19:52:00.000-08:00

What a beautiful city, Toronto, Canada. It was a glorious day flying here. Left Salt Lake where the weather was gray and gloomy. Got above the clouds and the sun was out all the way here. Chicago was a beautiful site as well. When I was here in October it was so foggy and rainy I couldn't even see the city. But today was a perfect day for site seeing.

O.K. ... I didn't think this would freak me out, but it did. A glass floor high above the city. Everyone was laying on the floor getting pictures. It really made me nervous and sick to step on the glass floor and see the street and tiny carsfar below! The elevator to the top had a window in it too. What an experience.

My great friend, Dina Anker, picked me up from the airport and escorted me to the CN Tower where she treated me to a wonderful dinner and view of the city. I didn't realize until I got here that the tower is higher than the Empire State Building and is considered one of the Wonders of the World. We ate in the 360 revolving restaurant high above the city. It kinda freaked me out at first, trying to get used to the floor moving as were were eating our dinner. The food was divine and so was the company. Dina is such a sweetheart. I've known her for years and I always think of Stampin' Up! events with her holding the Canadian flag and always the first one to run through the doors!

!
I love Canada. If it weren't for my family living in the states I think I'd move here.

Had a beautiful evening with Caroline LeBel's group. My presentation went well and we had a great time. Tomorrow I'll be demonstrating 4 projects. It will be a fun day watching all of the wonderful stamping presentations and seeing the beautiful stamped projects. I've already got a ton of photos to post when I get home.

Love to All!

And to you big sistie, Bev ... I'm safe and sound. But it does make me feel good to know that you worry about me when I travel!

Emma Laurel Martineau Came Into the World!

2010-02-12T18:11:00.000-08:00

I'm a new granny! Emma Laurel Martineau was born at 6:15 p.m. this evening. She arrived so fast Granny didn't get to see her birth. Why didn't someone warn me that traffic is horrible on a Friday night heading south? Oh well ... it proves that mother can deliver fine without Granny being there!

Linda the Rapsta!

2010-02-10T19:27:00.001-08:00

Howdy Everyone!

Hope you enjoy the 'rap'. I certainly had a fun time making the video. However, the stache was a little difficult to remove after the video shoot. My mom would turn over in her grave if she saw me dress and act like that. And then again, maybe she'd just laugh! Thanks to Bella for writing the script and Dawn for putting it all together! We make a fun team, don't you think?

So here's the deal... Leave a comment about my rap video and you'll be entered into a drawing for a FREE pass to UStamp with Dawn and Friends, Spring Soiree ... 2010.

Life is GREAT! I have two grand babies on the way. One almost arrived yesterday and then decided to wait for a while. Just hope he/she arrives before my Toronto trip next week. Did I say Toronto? You bet! I'm busily stamping projects for Carolyn LeBel's Stampin' Palooza on the 19th and 20th of this month. I'll be speaking to her group meeting on Friday night and then doing a stamping presentation Saturday morning. I can't wait. Last year was soooo much fun and I'm expecting this year's event to be just as fun, if not more!

If I can figure out how to post a calendar of events on this blog, I'll put up my speaking schedule. I'm out and about to several locations this Spring and hope to see many of my readers at the events! Can't wait to get my loves and hugs from you!!

Weight loss update .... tah dah ... I'm down 105 pounds. I only have 2 more pounds to lose until I hit goal. Well, maybe 7, but my husband thinks I'm at goal now. He said my loose skin probably weighs at least 7 pounds! I go to my surgeon at the end of this month and he'll tell me if I've hit goal or if he wants me to lose more. It's crazy when I shop for clothes, which isn't often, because I can't afford it, but when I hold up a size 12 pant I think, "There's no way this butt will fit into those pants." I buy them ... take them home ... put them on, thinking that I'll have to get a pair of pliers to get them zipped up ... and lo and behold they slip right on and zip right up with no effort on my part. See, I told you, it's CRAZY, but I'm loving it! I feel superb and have oodles of energy. I sleep so much better and feel so refreshed and full of energy each morning.

Got to get back to my stamping. I've got a couple of projects to get done for UStamp. Going to be a creative crew gal again for Dawn's next round. I feel honored to be asked!

Love yah and see yah soon!

It's A Wonderful Life!

2010-02-01T21:14:00.000-08:00

It's a wonderful life ... it really is! Things are just rolling along and going great. I absolutely love my new job. I never thought I could find a place that I would love as much as my old job, but I have. As I mentioned a few posts ago I'm working for a small office in Bountiful, Utah. It's a short commute from home, only 15 miles away. Since I'm going against traffic it doesn't take me long at all to get to work. I'm actually working for two companies, Aspire Home Health Care and Hospice, and World Joy. Who would have ever thought that I would be working for a Hospice company? Only my mother would have guessed it! Since I've had a lot of experience with Hospice over the last 4 years and a lot of experience administering health care, this is the PERFECT fit for me! I was just asked to be the Volunteer Coordinator and the Bereavement Coordinator for the Hospice side. I'm delighted! I'll get to go on home visits with the nurse to get to know our patients. So, I'm looking for volunteers to come help out ... singers, dancers, instrument players, you name it ... we can use you! I'll also have the opportunity of going out on visits with our social worker and inititate a bereavement program for our families.

I love working for the World Joy side of the company as well. It involves working with the owners of both companies, who are fine, outstanding men. I'm in charge of the annual benefit dinner which will be held in September. So, I'll be asking companies to donate product and services for our auction to help raise money for our efforts in Ghana, Africa. We just started building a Kindergarten school in Ekorso. The North Logan community and Skyview High School have donated enough money to build a school in Ghana. It's amazing to see the improvements that will take place in Ghana. Here's a photo of one of their schools, prior to World Joy coming in and building a new school for them.

The Ghanain people are known to be the happiest people on the face of the earth, yet they have so little. Here's some more pictures from one of World Joy's trip to the Atiwa District in Ghana.

Look at these beautiful children! Ever since I was a little girl I've always wanted a black baby. Wish I wasn't too old to adopt one of these gorgeous children. I'd do it in a heart beat! Perhaps one of my children could. Now that's a thought!

Hey, wouldn't it be cool if Stampin' Up! designed a stamp set for World Joy and then some of the proceeds from the sale could be donated to World Joy. Geez Louise ... the proceeds could help build a much needed community center in Atiwa and they could even name it "Stampin' Up!" Now that's a thought!

I've got several speaking engagements lined up for the Spring. I'll have to post the whereabouts and when on my blog so if you're in the area, you'll want to sign up for the event so we can re-connect and visit with each other. I'm having a blast ... an absolute ball. It really is a wonderful life!

As Promised ... Weight Loss Pictures!

2010-01-17T21:44:00.001-08:00

Sorry it's taken me so long to update my blog but life just happens sometimes, doesn't it! So, the weight loss is still coming off ... although a little slower. I'm down 101 pounds, weighing in at 156. I don't think I've weighed this less since I was a senior in high school. Seriously!

Just for fun I bought a size 12 jean thinking that they would be an incentive for me to lose more weight so I could wear them. Got them home, tried them on, and they zipped right up, without even pulling and tugging. Amazing! Crazy amazing! Haven't worn blouses tucked in my pants or belts since I was a toddler. Now it's fun to tuck and actually look at belts to buy. I've always been told to have a goal, end in sight, mental image in my mind while losing weight. This is my mental image. I see myself in a pair of boot cut jeans with a tucked in tailored white shirt and a black, rhinestone studded belt, and either a pair of cowboy boots or black high-heeled dress boots. My daughter Laurel said that she bought me a rhinestone studded belt. I can't wait to see it and try it on! Yippee Ki Yay!!

What else? Oh, I started my new job last week. I like it and I really enjoy the owners. Basically it's my job to run the office. But before I can run it, there's a lot of organization that needs to take place. And I've got to figure out how to do payroll and tax stuff. For the World Joy side I will be organizing the annual fund raiser dinner in the fall which will be held at the Joseph Smith Memorial building. It's a beautiful facility and we are planning for 200. On the Hospice side I was just asked to be the volunteer coordinator. We are in desperate need of more volunteers to visit our clients. You don't have to sing, dance, or play the accordian, just a visit would be wonderful. But if you do sing, dance, or play the accordian, we can definitely use your talents. Please contact me if you are locally and would like to donate an hour of your time a couple times a month. I'm sure I can find you a client close to your home so there wouldn't be much travel involved. The benefits are the best and can't be beat!

So, am I missing my mom? Yes. Sometimes the feeling overwhelms me but then I have to stop feeling sorry for myself and remember where she is and how happy she is. And soon the 'missing her' passes. I really miss my Dad. He's enjoying being with my sis in Montana but he misses his home and the Dieter dog!

Want some laughs? The day before Mom's funeral the girls and I were horsing around trying to be sexy. I'm definitely not sexy ... that's all there is to it. No matter how hard I try, I just look like a doofus. Check out these pics and have a good laugh!

I need some great project ideas, preferably 3-d and home decor. So, here's the deal. If you send me pics of your ideas, I'll enter you into a contest for a free pass to UStamp with Dawn and Friends 2010. I'll be giving away two free passes. So hurry fast and send me your projects via e-mail to sumatragal@gmail.com. (the catch is ... I get to CASE your projects!)

Have a wonderful Monday and know that I think of all of you every day and am so thankful and grateful that you are a part of my life.

So Many Things To Tell

2010-01-08T21:54:00.000-08:00

It's been an amazing two weeks! Absolutely amazing. So many emotions, happy, sad, lonely, grateful, spiritual, thankful, nervous, anxious, excited, and love for family and friends.

Nat, Neal and girls arrived from Oregon. Normally it takes them one long day of driving for many hours to get to Salt Lake. But because of horrible weather and roads it took them two days to arrive. We were so grateful and happy to see them. Natalie hasn't seen me for a few months so was shocked by my weight loss. It was exciting to watch her face when she saw the 'new me.'

I had the opportunity, with some of my girls and daughter-in-law in preparing my mother's body for the funeral. It was such a special time and so very spiritual. We curled her hair and styled it and then put on her makeup like she used to have me do it for her when her eye site was failing. She looked absolutely beautiful. Although it was a spiritual occasion, we still had some good laughs and a wonderful time together. I know that her spirit was with us. I felt her and knew that she was laughing right along with us.

Later that evening we had a beautiful viewing where a lot of our good friends and family came and supported us.
I hope that I don't come across boastful or bragging, but without a doubt Mom's funeral was the best one I've ever attended. All of my siblings spoke as well as my sister Margaret, her daughter, and Lindsey and I sang together. All of the grandchildren sang together and then we had a beautiful piano solo by our cousin. The Bishop gave a beautiful tribute to mom too. I'm certain that mom's spirit was sitting right beside Dad. I could feel her presence. She received tons of flowers. She always equated the amount of flowers to how well a person was loved. She was loved tremendously!

The Comforter really helped me through the services. I held up remarkably well. I never thought that I could sing at my mother's funeral, and we sang marvelous. I was able to give my talk without tears too. I knew that was what my mother wanted.

However, this is a scene that I'll never forget, watching my family bring my mother's little body to the grave site. It's hard not to cry when you watch your Dad cry. He held up remarkably well, but he's so lost without her.

Me, Lynn, Ryan, Natalie in the red, Laurel, Little Pregnant Lindsey, Reese in the back, Angie in the blue sweater, and Ginger on the end. My pride and joy. My greatest love ... my family! It's a wonderful assurance knowing that I can have them for eternity if we live righteously.

Where's Waldo? I mean Ryan? It was a cold, wintry day and everyone was anxious to get back to the church for a wonderful meal that our Relief Society had provided. We planned for 125 people for the luncheon. They provided the most wonderful roast beef with cheesy potatoes, jello salads, all kinds of green salads, rolls, and desserts. It was wonderful!

Here's a happier picture of me with my Dad and siblings. Beverlee on the end, next to her is Carol, then my baby sis, Sylvia, my Dad, Me, Margaret, and my brother Gil behind us. Isn't he about the most handsomest man around?

These are two cousins that I grew up with in Montana, Connie and Marsha. Marsha is 3 days older than me and our mothers were in the hospital together. In those days, after having a baby, they stayed in the hospital for 10 days without getting out of their beds. When they did finally get up, their legs were so weak it took quite some time before they had strength to walk! Things have certainly changed these days, haven't they?

This is my Dad's sister, Mona. She's amazing! She's 95 years old and still wears little high heels and dresses so darling. When she turned 90, she hiked to the top of "Y" mountain in Provo. She made the news! She wanted to do it again for her 95th birthday but the Dr. didn't think she ought to try it.

Just when I thought there could be no more tears to cry, I had to tell my father goodbye. It's been a wonderful privilege and joy taking care of him these past months. But it's time for me to go back to work and it's too lonely for him to be home during the day. So, my wonderful sister Margaret took him home to Montana to stay for the winter. I think it was harder to see him go than to see my mother 'graduate'. It was hard watching him drive away. Both Lynn and I shed buckets of tears. It was a sad day going back into their home and finding both of them gone. My daughter Angie and her son came out to help me put Dad's Christmas tree and decorations away. We also cleaned the house, washed bedding, and organized some of Mom's things. It was comforting putting things back in place, knowing that was the way Mom wanted things done. I'm sure she's at peace knowing that her home is in order and Dad has gone back to his favorite place to be with one of his favorite daughters.

So, what now? Emotions all over again. I'm nervous, scared, and excited for my new job on Monday. New job? What's that all about? In order to qualify for un-employment I had to apply for two jobs a week. I never thought that this company would call me for an interview, but they did. And they hired me on the spot! In fact, they wanted me to go to work a few weeks ago but I told them I couldn't until my mother had passed away. They were understanding and hired temp help until I could start. I'll actually be working for three companies owned by a father and two sons. I will spend most of my time with World Joy, which is a non-profit organization that raises funds to put in water systems and build schools in Ghana, Africa. The other company is, hold on to your hat, a Hospice company called Aspire Home Health and Hospice. The owners just purchased another company this week. Not sure what the name is but it has something to do with entrepaneurs. I will be the office manager as well as helping raise funds by speaking to schools and organizations.So, it's on to another new chapter in my life. I'm excited and can't wait to tell you more, as I know more.

How's the weight loss coming? I have some new pictures to post soon. I'm only one pound away from losing 100! Feeling great and looking better!

Thankyou for you prayers and love. I've felt them!

Virginia Latimer Savage

2009-12-26T18:45:00.000-08:00

Dad and Mom ... always holding hands.

Mom loved Dieter dog! When I was young she would never have allowed a dog in the house, let alone on her bed!

This photo was taken two days before her passing ... my Mom and Dad.

My mother, Virginia Latimer Savage passed away on her favorite holiday, Christmas, beside her childhood sweetheart and husband, Gilbert Owen. What a little fighter! She courageously fought her illness for almost 4 years, never complaining, never asking for special favors or demands, always a gracious patient, worrying about others instead of herself. She always told me that I was her favorite nurse. I loved taking care of my mother. The Lord blessed me with wonderful health to be able to lift and care for her in her last days on earth. And he blessed me with a situation in life to be able to be a full-time care giver to her. I am so blessed and loved by a kind Heavenly Father.

It's been a hard few days watching her struggle with her frail, worn-out body, and trying to stay alive. She didn't want to pass to the other side. She didn't want to leave Dad. I finally told Dad that he needed to tell her that it was alright to go. So Christmas Eve afternoon he went into her bedroom and told her that she could go if she wanted to and that he would be well taken care of. I think she needed to hear her sweetheart tell her that it was fine to go.

That evening my beautiful family gathered around her bedside, sang Christmas carols to her in her sedated medicated state. She was unable to communicate with us but we could definitely tell that she could hear us and knew what was going on. Even the little grandchildren sang solos to her. It was a beautiful and reverent evening, one that I will always cherish and remember. My daughter and I sang a duet together, one that Mom had never heard us perform. We sang magnificent. And then I related Grandma's favorite Christmas experience when she was a young girl living in Metropolis, Nevada. She had just told that story about a week prior to a young Primary class who came to carol to her. It was amazing because that day she was unable to talk and when the children arrived and sang to her she became alert and communicated with them. She told how they were unable to find a Christmas tree that year and they were sad because it was Christmas Eve and they had no tree to decorate. Suddenly they heard a brushing sound against the door. Her Dad opened the door and there to their amazement was a huge sagebrush leaning against their door. Perfect ... it's a gift from heaven ... our Christmas tree. Her Dad built a stand for the sagebrush and they decorated it with gold and silver ornaments. It was beautiful. They went to bed and waited for Santa to arrive. The next morning the 'tree' was scraggly and bedraggled and made the house smell something terrible so they had to take off the ornaments and throw the tree away!

After each family member kissed and loved my mother, three of my daughters stayed behind to help care for her body. She was developing some bad bed sores and it was my evening tradition to rub lotion on her feet. So my girls tenderly helped rub olive oil on her heels, feet, legs, and arms. They even lovingly rubbed her head and spoke tender words to her. In the background there was the most beautiful music playing, Silent Night, sung by the Tabernacle Choir. It was such a reverent and sacred setting, one that I shall never forget. We prepared her for the evening, made sure that she was resting peacefully and then told her good night and that we would see her in the morning.

Christmas morning I awoke early and thought about her, wondering if I should run over and check on her, but I didn't want to wake Dad, so I waited until 7:00 a.m. As I walked out my back door, my father was coming out his back door. I asked him how Mom was and he said that she had gone. I went into her bedroom and it was such a blessed sight to see how peaceful and relaxed she was. I felt relief and happiness and joy as I kissed her little face and loved her. She was still warm to the touch so I knew that her spirit hadn't been apart from her body long. There was such a reverent feeling in the room and I knew that Mom was there watching and listening to me. I spoke to her and told her how happy I was for her. I took out the canula from her nose and had Dad turn off her oxygen machine. It was a joyous moment to take off the oxygen and throw the hose away. It had been a tether to her for almost 4 years. I said to her, "Oh Mom, look ... you don't have to wear this ole thing anymore. How wonderful!"

We called family members to let them know of her passing and made arrangements for the mortuary to come and pick up her little 70 plus pound body. Our Bishop arrived and we all surrounded Mom's little body and spoke of the reverent experience that we were having. After her body was taken to the mortuary the Bishop gave my father a beautiful blessing of peace and comfort.

What a joyous day to pass to the other side. The day that we celebrate the birth of our Saviour, we are now celebrating the birth of my mother's new life on the other side. What a joyous reunion with her parents and sister. I know that she is extremely happy and she's probably wondering why she didn't want to go sooner. I'm sure she's visiting many of her loved ones here on earth. I feel her presence as well as the surrounding comfort of the Holy Ghost. I know that he's real. I know that he's the comforter. I feel that peace. I feel that love. And I feel the love of my Saviour who answered my prayers to take my mother home.

God be with you til we meet again. Thank you for your love, concern, and prayers in my behalf.

--Linda

A Little Update

2009-12-23T14:51:00.000-08:00

I'd like to take a few minutes to just share my thoughts and feelings this beautiful Christmas season.

As you all know my mother is getting ready to 'graduate' shortly. Many people have expressed how hard it must be to have your mother pass away around Christmas time. But I don't feel that way. Her passing is a part of life and something that we all have to go through. It doesn't matter if it's on Christmas Day. In fact, I would love it if she passed on Christmas Day. Christmas was her favorite time of year. She loved giving and receiving presents. She was like a little child on Christmas day and could hardly wait to open her gifts. And always after opening her gifts she would proudly display them in piles next to the couch so she could show everyone what she received. But, she only left them out for a short while because she always wanted to tidy up the Christmas mess and get everything straigtened again. In fact, if she had it her way, the Christmas tree would be taken down on Christmas day. She usually waited until the day after!

This year I put up her tree early. Her and Dad didn't want to bother with a tree but I lovingly brought the artificial tree up from downstairs and painstakingly hung each beautiful hand-made ornament on the tree. It really is a beautiful creation. Hand-made crocheted doilies glittered with sequins and pearls, wreaths made from canning rings, silver pinecones dusted with silver glitter and ribbon and butterflys made from Albuterol plastic vials, sprayed silver and gold and decorated with gossamer ribbon and pearls. Lovely, simply lovely! Everyone that comes into the home comments on the beautiful tree. And the best part, Mom and Dad have loved having the tree up.

Did I tell you about the mouse house? I may have but forgive me for telling you again. About 30 years ago Dad made a wooden mouse house. Mom made all of the miniatures. The house is complete with electric lights. Santa and his reindeer are on the roof. There is a miniature Christmas tree with a braided rug inside complete with fireplace and grandfather clock. All of the miniatures have been made from recycled 'things'. It's absolutely adorable. There's even a skating pond out back complete with plenty of drifted snow. The grandkids have looked forward to seeing the Mouse House every Christmas.

My dear sweet brother came up and stayed for a couple of days. It was such a relief to have him here. I was able to get some Christmas things done while he sat with the folks. I even slept better at night knowing that he was with Mom and Dad. Even though I live next door it's been extremely hard running back and forth and trying to keep up two homes. It would have been easier having them come live with me but all of the extra rooms are downstairs with no shower. That wouldn't have worked for Mom.

So what am I thinking now? It's hard watching my mother's little body waste away to almost nothing. It's hard wanting her to eat something so she can live, but she has no appetite and can't swallow. It's hard watching her not being able to swallow her life-sustaining pills. And it's hard watching her sleep all day and all night. There are so many things I still want to ask her and now it's too late. She can still respond a little bit with a nod of her head and an occasional "I love you." And it's especially hard watching my sons and daughters seeing her, probably for the last time on earth, sobbing as they take their little granny's hands and tell her that they love her.

Am I sitting here boobing all day? No. I get a little teary eyed at times but there is such a sweet, comforting presence here in the home. I know this is the Holy Ghost offering us comfort at this time. I feel the presence of loved ones who have passed on to the other side who are concerned for my well-being. I feel peaceful and at rest. I'm not sure how much longer she can survive. But in God's own time he will take her home. The other day I asked her if she was ready to give up her worn-out body and go home to see her parents and her sister. I said, "Won't that be soooo exciting to see your Mom and Dad and Barbara?" She said, "Not really!" I'll tell you, she's a fighter. She's fought to live for almost 4 years. She's really fought a battle with her illness. She was first diagnosed with lung cancer and then the mass strangely disappeared. However, she does have chronic pulminary disease and it's been such a struggle for her.

My poor Dad. That's the hardest part. He wanders around the house, going from the TV room, to the jigsaw puzzle, to the crossword puzzle, back to check on Mom, then back to the cupboard for a snack. He just doesn't know what to do to help. He hates to see her suffer too. And I know that he's going to miss her so much. My sis in Montana wants to take him after Mom passes. He will love being with her. He's a Montana boy and she lives on a big ranch and he will love being there.

So, what next? Sorry I haven't gotten the cookbook done before Christmas. I'll work on it after the funeral. I've got a LOT of speaking engagements lined up for next year and I can't wait to see you. I've also gotten a wonderful job offer. In fact they want me so bad they have hired temps to fill in until the passing of Mom so I can begin work. I'll tell you more about the job as I know more as to what I will be doing. You're going to love the mission of the organization, I promise!

Here's wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year!

Love to you all!

Linda

What's Wrong With Me????

2009-12-14T15:21:00.000-08:00

I have sooo much to tell you and not a whole lot of time to share all of my experiences these past few days. But I'll get to one of the funniest stories. At least I can laugh at myself ... and you will too, I promise!

So ... my neighborhood grocery store put in the cutest kitchen area with all kinds of gadgets and gizmos, which I am a sucker for. I needed new salt and pepper shakers and I saw the cutest ones that I just had to buy. Hmmm ... should I get red ones or gold ones to match my kitchen? Then I thought to myself. "How am I going to tell the salt and pepper apart if I buy the same color lids? I know ... I'll buy one lid Red and put the pepper in it so everyone knows that Red means hot and that has the pepper in it. And the Gold will mean salt because the color is more soothing. So I purchased the salt and pepper shakers ... one Red lid and one Gold lid ... problem solved.

Got home ... filled my cute salt and pepper shakers and set them on the table. Later that night we were eating dinner and I looked at the shakers and then it hit me .... DUH ... the shakers have a clear bottle and you can see which one is salt and which one is pepper! I even admitted my dumbness to my husband who just sat there and laughed! Now every time I use those salt shakers I think of my creative reasoning and laugh!
On to more news. Reese graduated from the Army's Advanced Training as a Crew Chief for the Apache Helicopter. We're so proud of him. It wasn't an easy feat, but he made it. He was even given a special certificate for leadership. And he earned his wings. They call them the 'bloody wings' because when the officers pin them on their chest they don't put the little stopper on the back of the pin. Later they slap the soldiers on the chest where the wings are and the pins push into their chest. Hence .... bloody wings! Someone did it to him, but it didn't puncture his chest. Strong muscles, I guess! He looks great and it's great having him home.

This is where he worked in the hangar on his 'bird'.

He loved his trainer!

Now for some sad news. A very good friend and cousin of mine was just diagnosed with stomach cancer which has spread to his liver. We had an apostle who came to our Stake Conference yesterday to speak. He had met with our friend prior to the meeting at which time he gave him a priesthood blessing. How very special to have an apostle of the Lord lay his hands on his head and give him the strength to endure what he has to go through in this life! As Elder Hales, the apostle, got up to speak, he asked our friend to come up to the pulpit and share his experience. He gave the most beautiful testimony and there wasn't a dry eye in the room. I felt the spirt so strong and knew that he will have the strength to endure the trials which has been placed upon him and his family. Our prayers are with you, Jim and Sandra! We love you!!!

Mom has slipped rapidly in her health. I'm hoping that those on the other side of the veil are getting her mansion prepared fast so she can slip peacefully away. It's so difficult watching her struggling for air. She can't talk much anymore and doesn't eat. I've kept her in a pretty medicated state to ease her suffering. It's just hard to watch your loved ones struggle. I wanted her to wait until after Christmas to die, but now I'm praying that she can go quickly. Thank you for all of your prayers in our behalf. I know that's what's kept me going and being able to endure this. My health has been wonderful and I've had strength beyond measure. The Lord has really blessed me abundantly and I'm so grateful to Him.

Let me share some words that gave me much comfort the other day. I was cleaning out 'stuff' and ran across something that Laurel had given me.

"What a wonderful thing is death, really, when all is said and done. It is the great reliever. It is a majestic, quiet passing on from this life to another life, a better life. We go to a place where we will not suffer as we have suffered here, but where we will continue to grow, accumulating knowledge and developing and being useful under the plan of the Almightly made possible through the atonement of the Son of God."

And one last thing ... TAH DAH ... I weighed in at 166 this morning. I'm down 91 pounds in 5 1/2 months! It's amazing!!! Only about 21 more pounds to go before I hit goal. My original goal was 160, but the Dr. said I'll probably get to 140 or 145. That will be a great weight for me. Don't think I've weighed that little since I was 15 years old.

Be good and don't drink out of any strange toilet bowles! :)

Giant Paper Snowflakes

2009-12-08T15:47:00.000-08:00

O.K. ... so now I understand how crafting can help relieve stress and strain on the body. Since Mom has been doing so poorly these past few days, I've spent my alone time doing crafting. It helps get my mind off her pain and suffering. She's enjoyed watching me make these darling giant paper snowflakes which are hanging in her home and mine. And Addy and I even made some in different sizes for her bedroom. I'll post the tutorial, if I can figure out how, as well as some beautiful pictures of the creations. They're so easy to make and you'll enjoy making them not only for yourself but for your kids and grandkids.

My darling girl friend, who is the owner of eWillow is offering an incredible special. Here is the information.

Sign up for a month-to-month subsription for $9.95 per month (first month is free!)

Sign up for a six month storefront subscription for only $39.95
Sign up for a twelve month storefront subscription for only $49.95--Our amazing best deal
This Holiday Pricing Special is available only until December 31, 2009

When you think of how much you can spend on individual craft show fees and the like, it's easy to realize how beneficial these one low special monthly fees are! Plus, you have your own unique URL and a worldwide audience 24/7.

So ... I can't figure out how to post a word doc. to blogger. Anyone know how to do it? If you want the instructions, e-mail me at sumatragal@gmail.com and I'll send.

Awesome Day!

2009-12-03T20:03:00.000-08:00

It was an awesome day today. I should have been decorating and cleaning the house for Christmas but I was having too much fun designing another project for UStamp with Dawn and Friends. It really turned out cute. Only one problem ... I set the project on the couch and ran to the store for a few minutes and when I came home, Dieter had destroyed the nylon flower that I had made and attached to the project, as well as eaten three of the pearls that were in the center of the flower. Holy Cow ... he's never done that before. I was certainly surprised. Oh well ... when he goes poop in the morning, hopefully he'll have a few pearls with it. Eewww ... that was gross! Sorry!

Cleaning the temple last night was one of the neatest experiences I've had. We dusted and vacuumed everything. There was a cleaning crew of about 20 in our group. We finished at midnight and got home around 12:45 a.m. and got to bed at 2:00 a.m. I was too wound up to sleep so worked on a cross word puzzle, read, and watched The Celtic Women sing on TV. Man, are they ever good! They're coming to Utah in May, I think, and I want to go hear them perform. I'd never heard of them until last night while watching a PBS show. Beautiful girls with beautiful voices and harmony.

It was such a beautiful sunny day today, but oh so very cold. I'm talking bone chillin' cold. I've got to decorate my porch tomorrow and I'm not looking forward to being out in the cold. I've got the heating pad on and tucked in my bed to warm up the covers while Lynn's away. Well, time for bed. Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite!

Best Ever Pizza Pie!

2009-12-02T17:50:00.001-08:00

O.K. ... so here's the recipe that my sister, Sylvia, shared with me. I think it's the best homemade pizza I've ever had. Try it and then share your comments on what you think. If it's not ... then you need to share YOUR recipe for your best homemade pizza! Deal? Deal!!

Sauce:

Saute one clove garlic in 1 tablespoon olive oil

Add:

1 can tomato sauce, and one small can tomato paste
1 1/2 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 tablespoon onion powder
Simmer for 20 minutes.

Crust:
1 1/3 cups warm water
1/4 cup non fat dry milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 package yeast or 1 tablespoon
2 tablespoons vegetable oil for the crust

You will need additional oil for the top of the crusts ...1/3 cup of oil, per pizza. This recipe makes 3 pizzas. The oil is what gives it the crisp texture.

Put yeast, sugar, salt, and dry milk in a large bowl. Add water. Stir to mix well. Allow to sit for 2 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons oil. Stir again. Add flour and stir until dough forms and flour is absorbed. (I did this in my bread mixer and it worked great!) Turn out on to a flat surgace and kenwad for about 10 minutes. Divide dough into 3 balls. In three 9" cake pans, put 1/3 cup oil in each ... making sure to spread it evenly. Pat dough into the oil and the pan, spreading it to the ends of the pan. There is a ton of oil, but it's supposed to be that way. Place in a warm place. Cover and let rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Spoon the sauce over pizzas. Put 1 1/2 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese on sauce, and top with favorite toppings.

Bake until chees is melted and the crust is golden brown. (this doesn't take long at all so watch your pizzas like a hawk!)

For chicken garlic pizza, instead of the red sauce, use 1/3 cup Ranch dressing with 1 clove garlice. Top with chopped, cooked chicken.

Enjoy -- and remember ... if you don't think this is the best pizza, then submit your recipe ... we'll give it a try and then we'll vote on yours!

I'm getting ready to go do my visiting teaching. I've got a loaf of warm, fresh, homemade wheat bread just out of the oven to give to my little gal. Then I'm going to the Salt Lake temple at 9:00 p.m. this evening to help clean. We'll be there until midnight. I'm really excited for this opportunity. I'll get to see places I've never been in, in the Salt Lake temple. How exciting. I'll let you know what I had to clean on tomorrow's post.

Have a wonderful evening!

Winners of the Free Pass to UStamp With Dawn and Friends!

2009-11-30T06:33:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday Morning, Friends!

I have two winners for a free pass to UStamp with Dawn and Friends; Tammy, from Albuquerque, New Mexico and The Ahlquist Family, from Arizona. Please e-mail me at sumatragal@gmail.com for information regarding your passes. Congratulations, girls! You're going to love this round of projects. Magnificent, if I do say so!

Thanksgiving was a marvelous day. Everything turned out wonderful. The food was delish, the company couldn't have been better, and the weather was perfect! The one down side was that my mother and dad couldn't come over to the house for dinner. Mom is very much house-bound and pretty much bed-ridden these last few days. We volunteered to carry her over but she asked if we'd just bring her over her food, which we did. I doubt if we'll have her here, on this earth, for too much longer. She's lived a great life and I'm enjoying my time with her while I still have her. So my challenge to you today is, to either go visit or call one of your loved ones, and tell them how much you love them. You never know when you may not have them in your life.

Here's a few pics from the event. Not as many family this year ... only 15, with my Mom and Dad and then I took in some dinner to one of the shut-ins in our neighborhood.

Have a grave side funeral to sing at this morning so I'd best be getting ready for the day. I've been up since 4:00 a.m. Had to run Lynn to the airport. He's in Pittsburgh for work.

Ohhh ... I made the BEST homemade pizza for dinner last night. My sis's recipe. It was marvelous. I couldn't eat the crust, because of my diet, but the topping and sauce was divine. I'll post the recipe tomorrow for you to try. I'll definitely include this recipe in the cook book!

Have a happy Monday!

Loves and Hugs -- Linda Lou

2 Free Passes to UStamp with Dawn and Friends!

2009-11-24T09:08:00.000-08:00

The movie Blind Side is wonderful! Go see it!! It's a true story and Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw are wonderful in it. I didn't want the movie to end. It's one of the best I've seen in a long time.

Well ... I'm down to an all-time low with my weight. I tipped the scales at 173 this morning. I'm down 84 pounds in five months, today! My good friend Mel brought me some clothes a few weeks ago, size 16. At the time, the pants wouldn't zip up. This morning I got out the pants and they slipped right on and zipped right up. It was a dream. There is even room to spare. She brought me some pretty suits too, that fit. It just feels so good. But it's still mentally hard to conceive. I look at the size tags on the clothes and hold the item up, and think to myself, "There's no way this is going to fit. It's too small." And when I put it on, it fits and I'm just baffled. For years, I've tucked, tugged, pulled, and yes even laid on the bed with a pair of pliers in my hand, zipping up my jeans. No lie! Those were such miserable days though. A few hours after having zipped myself into those too-tight jeans I would soon get a horrible stomach ache and had to loosen them. But watch out! You wouldn't want to be around when I loosened my jeans. It was like the Teton Dam exploding! My stomach exploded out of the jeans and knocked Lynn's front tooth out, and blackened Natalie's eye, who were both sitting next to me. (JK)

Is the diet still boring? Yes! Am I still staying away from rice, potatoes, sugar, bread, and pasta? Yes. Do I still miss them? Yes, every day! Do I cook a lot for my family? Yes, and I'm really enjoying cooking. I think I've transferred MY food addiction to cooking and watching others enjoy it. I've even been making bread twice a week, and I would almost kill to have a slice, hot out of the oven, smothered with real butter!

Last night I had a terrible episode with a piece of steak. I was eating and talking, at the same time, and not paying attention to chewing my food. When will I EVER learn? While watching Dancing With the Stars I started having another heaving episode. It lasted until 11:30 at night. It was horrible. I finally threw up a very, small piece of steak that had a tiny, little tail of fat on it. That was what was lodged and was making me ill.

O.K. now for the fun news. Let's have another 2 free passes to UStamp with Dawn and Friends, which will open on December 1st. For those of you who enter a comment on today's blog about who you think will win Dancing With the Stars, will be entered into the contest. If you don't watch Dancing With the Stars, enter any kind of comment and you will still be eligible. I'm anxious to hear who you ALL think is going to win the competition.

Got to get back to the cook book. I'm up to 70 pages of recipes. It's going to be a great book.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Happy Anniversary To Me!

2009-11-21T06:59:00.000-08:00

37 years today, Lynn and I were married in the Logan Temple in Logan, Utah. I was living in California and he in Logan. He made all of the wedding/reception arrangements and did an awesome job!

My parents had never met him or his family until two days before we were married. Mom, Dad, and my little sister and I left California Saturday night, planning on driving straight through to Logan. Dad and I decided that we would each drive 100 miles and switch each other off. My beautiful hand-made wedding dress and veil was laying in the back window of the car to keep from getting crushed. During the night, while Dad was driving, we were all sleeping, including Dad! The car went off the freeway and down into the ravine. I remember waking up to the sound of crunching gravel and being jostled about. Dad woke up about the same time we all did and said, "We're all right, we're all right!" Gently he steered the car back onto the freeway and stopped. We were pretty frightened but amazed that the car didn't roll and there was no damage. The first thing Mom said was, "How's the wedding dress?" She was sure something had happened to it. But it was fine. I think Dad only had a few miles left to drive, from his 100 mile stint. I took over from there and drove the rest of the way to Logan.

We pulled up to our apartment, early Sunday morning to meet Lynn. We weren't too impressed with the digs when we first saw it. It was an old three story home and looked like it was in need of repair. We followed the stairs up to the second floor where Lynn met us and took us in to show us the cute apartment. We even had some furniture in it that had actually belonged to Brigham Young. There were some quirks about the apartment that we can laugh about today. It wasn't too funny at the time, when we lived there. The heating system was controlled by the Capitol Theatre, which was next door. So, when there was a show playing, the apartment was hot, very hot. In fact, we had to throw open the windows to cool off. And when there wasn't a showing at the theatre, we froze to death. The kitchen was so tiny and narrow that if Lynn came into the kitchen while I was in there, we both had to back out, because we couldn't turn around. I'm not joking! And let's talk about the bedroom. It was so small that the bed had to be pushed up against the wall and Lynn who slept against the wall had to climb in bed first, or climb over me to get into bed. (Let's not go there ...)

It was the coldest winter in Logan, the year we were married. We had to keep a heater under the car all night to keep it from freezing. Lynn worked at Thykol and I worked at a Credit Service as a Secretary. We loved being married and were so happy. A few weeks after being married we found out that we were going to have our first addition to our family. We were elated! 9 months and 9 days later, Angela Lynn joined our family.

I can honestly say that my love for Lynn has grown even more, since the day we were married. My heart still skips a beat when I hear the garage door open because he's coming home from work. He's the kindest man I've ever known. There's not a mean bone in his body. I always said that I wanted to marry a man that loved children. And Lynn loves babies and children of all ages! That's a sign of a gentle and kind man. Oh ... and the best part of all, he loves the Lord and me. He honors his priesthood and excels in his church callings. Gosh, I love my man!

So about yesterday .... the Fab 4 got together for lunch, stamping, and visiting at my home. We had a wonderful time. It was just what I needed. I've been so excited these past couple of weeks, knowing that they were coming to visit. It's hard working with people that you love for 9 years and then suddenly not having them in your life anymore. We hadn't seen each other since April! We were like school kids, hugging and laughing. Anyway, I sure do love these gals. And we'll definitely get together again, soon. Seated to my left, Connie J., Terri D., Donna M, and on my lap, the famous Dieter. They are all amazing crafters. Connie is into sewing right now and brought some beautiful table runners. She's inspired me to make some. She's one talented lady! Terri has a son on a mission in Iowa and is the proud mother of two little female Yorkies that she calls her 'girls'. It's so fun to hear her talk about them. I can't wait to see them. Donna is an incredible computer whiz and can do anything on the computer. She's also an amazing designer. Check out her web page, Donna's Stamp Room on my side bar! She brought a box full of her creations to share and they are spectacular. Many of them are displayed on her web.

Best get busy. Want to go see Blindside this afternoon and visit my two grandkids who just had surgery.

Love to all!

Down 80 Pounds!

2009-11-16T14:51:00.000-08:00

OK ... lesson learned. Don't film videos with your Canon Power Shot in vertical mode! I downloaded some software to flip the video and it skews the proportions on the video so I looked about 3' tall and 3' wide. I even flipped the video in Movie Maker and it distorted the image as well. So, lesson learned ... only film in horizontal mode.

So when you watch this video clip, just tilt your head to the side to view or turn your monitor on its side. I think you're going to be pleasantly surprised when you see what my pre-surgery clothes look like on my body now. Too funny! And yes, I DO look like an umpaloompa in my brown trousers.

Had a very busy Thursday and Friday of last week. Had another funeral. One of my funeral committee members and I spent 9 hours prepping for the funeral. This means cleaning, vacuuming, and dusting the chapel, as well as cleaning the kitchen, Relief Society room, bathrooms, and gymnasium in the church. It's a LOT of work. Next time we'll ask for more sisters to come over and help. The actual setting of the tables, center pieces, and etc. is a piece of cake compared to the cleaning. Our committee does a marvelous job with asking for volunteers to bring salads and desserts. We provide the meat. In all honesty, we really put on a nice luncheon for the family. Every thing looked so pretty. We have a wonderful sister who takes care of our centerpieces and always does such a beautiful job! After the funeral is over, then it's back to cleaning up all of the rooms that we prepped the night before. But the service is worth the blessings that we receive. Even though it was hard work, I felt wonderful and had plenty of energy. The Lord has REALLY blessed me in my calling and I'm thankful for the wonderful sisters that I work with.

Oooh ... just wanted to share that I'm a Creative Crew girl, again, on UStamp with Dawn and Friends . I've got a fun idea to try. If it works out, you'll find photos and step by step instructions by joining UStamp with Dawn and Friends. I'll also be giving away two free passes to the UStamp Year End Blowout. I'll let you know what you need to do to get entered into the free drawing.

Also, if you've ever gone to the Craft and Hobby Association in Annaheim, California, you'll want to click on the eWillow logo at the top of my blog to get a discount code for your entrance ticket. Good savings there. And by the way, check out all of the wonderful projects on eWillow. It's a great place to sell your paper creations!

Well, my lovelies ... I'm having the time of my life. I'm getting some great bookings for speaking engagements for next year. I'm sure I'll be seeing many of you in my travels and can't wait to give you loves and hugs!

Down in the 70's ...!

2009-11-10T06:27:00.000-08:00

Ooh I've waited for this day for soooo long. I finally tipped the scales at 179 this morning! I haven't weighed in the 70's since my daughter Natalie was born in 1975. Hmmm ... look at all those 7's. Must be my lucky number today! It's going to be a great day today. I just have that feeling.

If any of you are considering having this surgery done or have questions that you would like me to answer, I would be happy to talk to you on the phone or e-mail. Like I've mentioned in the past, it's not an easy diet, and yes it gets boring, and yes it's still hard to cook my favorite treats and not partake or even lick the spoon. And yes, sometimes I still get hungry, but nothing compared to what it was like prior to the surgery. My e-mail is sumatragal@gmail.com. And yes, the surgery was uncomfortable for a few days and recovery took a few weeks until I started gaining energy. I was very dizzy and faint for quite a few weeks after surgery. It would have been hard to go back to work after two weeks. My biggest fear is keeping the weight off. I've know many who have gained back some of their weight. Of course they haven't been sticking to their maintanance diet and have added sugar and soda pop. I'm not a pop drinker so I don't have a problem with that.

Janice, you mentioned that you are having a spring event and wanted to know if I would like to come to the Chicago area for your stamp meeting. In a heart beat! Please e-mail me and we'll chat. I'm excited to join Caroline LeBel and her peeps in Toronto in February and Tara Bazata and her peeps in Denver in the Spring. I've also got some great friends in Billings, Montana who I'm trying to convince to have an event so I can get up to my home town! I promise I'll deliver a great motivational talk and a terrific stamping presentation!

The cookbook is coming along nicely! I'm up to 50 pages and I still have quite a few recipes to include. I wish I could taste test all of them, but it would be another year before I could have the book published. But I have great faith in the recipe submitters because everything our demos do, we do it great! Carol Marbach submitted several recipes that her husband uses in his catering business. He's a chef. When I was typing them in yesterday, my mouth was watering, because I could just imagine how wonderful the marinades, sauces, sugar cookies and nut sticks tasted.

Baby Liam is off his Bellirubin bed and is eating much better and sleeping much better. Mom is very happy!

We have another funeral in the ward this Friday. Brother Lynn Evans passed away. He's since moved from our ward but still has family living here. We're so happy that we can help with the luncheon and funeral arrangements. There will be around 80 people for the luncheon. Wish Carol's husband was here to help with the cooking!

Best get out of my nighty and get ready for the day. Did I tell you how much I love you all? Well, I do ... and then some!

Make it a GREAT day! Remember ... YOU have the power!

Down 75 Pounds!

2009-11-05T20:53:00.000-08:00

This past week the weight has been coming off a little slower. Perhaps it was the evil cashews that I bought and inhaled. I'm only supposed to have seven cashews for a snack. Ooops ... did I hear seventy? Perhaps that's why I visited the restroom a little more than usual. I'm going to have to stay away from them. Bad girl! But I'm down 75 pounds. I have about 42 more pounds to lose.

Did I tell you that I had my first fruit in four months? Yum ... raspberries. The doc said that a lot of gastric patients can't have fruit for a year. But he gave me permission to have it a couple times a week. He told me to stick with the berries since they are lower in sugar. I put some skim milk on them and a little sweetener. Talk about died and gone to heaven! You don't realize how much you miss the little things in life until you no longer can have them.

Yes, my hair is getting thinner. I cut it this morning and there's not as much to cut. Doc said it should grow back. I'm taking a supplement called Biotin which is supposed to be good for the hair and nails. My energy level is high and I feel so wonderful.

I spent today organizing my stamps. It was sooo much fun. I finally separated the retired from the current and found that I have more retired sets than current. BOOOOO! Got to have a sale so I can use the proceeds to buy more new ones. YEAH!!!

Our little grandson has jaundice really bad and has to sleep on a light bed and go to the hospital every day to have his blood drawn. Poor little guy. He's sure a beautiful baby. I haven't been able to help my daughter because her little girl is coming down with a cold. I can't chance getting a cold because I can't expose Mom and Dad to a cold. A cold would probably kill my mother. She hasn't had one in almost 4 years. Of course she's been home bound for most of the 4 years.

Got some dirt coming tomorrow so we can do a little landscaping in the back yard before the snow falls. Wish I could afford to get some sod in. Sigh .... oh well ... maybe come Spring.

Have a fab Friday! Can't wait til next Friday. I'm having lunch here at my home with some ole Stampin' Up! buds. Haven't seen them for six months.

Family Halloween Party

2009-11-04T17:27:00.000-08:00

Aaaah.... my favorite holiday, Halloween! Our family had a get-together the night before Halloween at Angie's home. We had scones with chili and cheese on top, salads, and a donut eating contest. The little kids were so dang cute watching them trying to eat the donuts without using their hands.

Ellie and Logan.

Look at little Ellie trying to use her neck to steady the donut!

After a while we let them use their hands and told them that the first person eating their donut would win the grand prize. Needless to say ... Ethan won! Look at those cheeks stuffed with donut!

Spencer won out of the big kids.

Ellie would have won in her category, but she was put with the big kids. No fair!!!

Hannah doesn't look too serious. She was enjoying watching everyone else. Look at Ben attacking his donut!

There Hannah goes!

Addison was serious about the donut eating contest and did a very good job. She's the one that has the new brother!

Baby Reesie dressed as a lady bug.

Beautiful 'witch' Taylor.

Ginny ... the bumble bee.

Logan ... the scarey skeletor and the evil mother in the background!

Spencer had removed his football uniform...

Ethan as Luke Skywalker ... did I say that right??? You can tell I don't know too much about Star Wars.

Ben --- the army guy!

And the grand prize winner for the best costume goes to Bryant ... the Oompaloompa. He's really kneeling on his shoes. That's why he looks so short. He's actually taller than me now!

Granny dressed up as the Divine Miss M. Who is the Divine Miss M? Years ago, Nat and Angie filmed a home video. Angie dressed up in the dress I'm wearing, a red wig, long earrings, red vest, and sang "Going to the Chapel" while Nat accompanied her on the drums, as Prince Eddie. Nat was dressed in Lynn's suit, cowboy boots, blonde wig and drawn-on moustache and side burns. It actually was hilarious and if I could figure out how to put the clip on my blog I would do it. Maybe the family just has a warped sense of humor and that's why we think it's so funny. When I went to the family Halloween party I came into the home with my microphone singing, Going to the Chapel". All of my kids knew exactly who I was, but the in-laws and grand-kids looked at their granny and said, "Who are you supposed to be?"

Look at my beautiful princesses. Ellie as Alice in Wonderland. (I made her costume, by the way...), Addison as Rapunzel (Ginger made her costume ... isn't it beautiful?) and Hannah as Princess Aurora from Sleeping Beauty. (Disney made her costume!)

Mother and baby came home today. They had to spend an extra day in the hospital because of baby's jaundice. Can't wait to see how I can help out tomorrow!

Love to All!

I'm a New Granny!!!

2009-11-02T07:44:00.001-08:00

If this is what Heaven is like ... I want to go there!

My daughter Laurel went to the hospital last night in preparation for being induced this morning around 8:00 a.m. Lo and behold I got a phone call at 6:00 a.m. this morning saying that she was at a '5' and I could come to the hospital. I fussed around and got ready, thinking I would have hours before Liam Scott King entered this world. An hour later I got another call saying that she was ready to push and the Dr. was on her way. I flew to the hospital, watching for cops in my rear view mirror, found a convenient parking spot and rushed into the lobby, breathlessly asking for Labor and Delivery. The elevator whisked me up to the 4th floor and I entered Labor and Delivery. They told me which room the Kings were in and I entered to find my beautiful, darling girl sitting up in bed smiling at me. I said, "I'm too late, aren't I?" She grinned and said, "Nope ... the Dr. hasn't arrived yet!" I broke down and cried! I felt like such a loser mother driving to the hospital thinking that I missed the birth of another grandson. I've witnessed the births of all of my grandbabies, except one, Angie's youngest. He came into the world too fast and I couldn't drive fast enough to make it in time. But today was wonderful. Everything worked out in my favor. After the Dr. arrived Laurel gave a few pushes and Liam entered the world quietly. The nurse had to gently rub his back to get his little lungs working. Soon we heard that familiar little squawk above the sobs of his mother. What a wonderful experience. I should have been a Labor and Delivery nurse. I would have loved that job!!!

Liam weighed in at 7# 12 oz., 21 1/2" long. He has black curly hair and is as cute as a bug. Mom is doing wonderful and baby was taking to nursing when I left.

I'll post some pics of our family Halloween party later!

Lifting Burdens

2009-10-29T12:10:00.000-07:00

Lifting Burdens

This Is It!

2009-10-28T21:59:00.001-07:00

Can you believe that this ole Granny went to see the new Michael Jackson movie This is It at the 10:00 p.m. showing last night? My hubby and some of the girls went. I loved it! Doesn't matter what or what MJ did or didn't do, he was an amazing musician. I can't believe that I don't even have any of his music. So, my daughter lent me one of his top hits CD this afternoon and I listened to it and reminisced about the movie while decorating Halloween cookies. There were some tender moments in the film and you could hear an audible sigh from the audience. I sat next to my daughter Angie during the show and she was on the edge of her seat for most of the movie. She would clap with gusto after each song. Of course I joined in too! MJ was and has been her favorite musician all her life. I think she secretly had a crush on him and wanted to marry him! Anyhow ... I'm sadder now about his death since seeing the film. And to think about all of the hours and hard work that went into rehearsals and all of the dancers, musicians, and singers who never got to perform the concert 'live'. And how I would have LOVED to attend a 'live' MJ concert. He really knew how to put on a show!

Thanks for the advice on getting an External Hard Drive. I'll go check them out at Costco.

Hey ... I loaded MDS on my computer and anytime I import a photo, my computer crashes. Any help there? Do you think it's a memory thing?

I'll take some pics of my cute Halloween cookies. Dang, they took a LONG time to decorate. Guess I'll have to figure out how to stamp on them. Would be a lot quicker. Couldn't find the frosting tint and almost resorted to using Re-inkers. Think it's toxic? Didn't do it ... found the tint hidden way back in the cupboard.

Got to get to work on a lesson for Relief Socity on Sunday. Ironically it's a talk given by Elder David Bednar about Cyberspace and using our time better by using the phone, sending cards, and in-person visits. He does say that Cyberspace has excellent good uses, but we need to use our time wisely and be careful of how much time we spend on the internet and video games. Good advice!

BOOOO ... I Need More Memory on my Computer!

2009-10-27T10:29:00.001-07:00

I've shot the same video three times now and can't download it to my computer because I don't have enough memory! Since downloading MDS I don't have much memory left. Guess I'm going to have to purchase some more memory. Wouldn't that be nice if you could purchase more memory for your brain???

So ... here's some pictures of the Make & Takes that we did at Saturday's workshop. I'll also walk you through a neat technique that Cindy Custers shared with me.

I don't know what the heck is wrong here ... but my photos are all turned the right way in my file and when I upload them to blogger, they're turned sideways. I guess it's just not my day today! Oh well ... crook your neck and look at them sideways. They're cute, huh?

Here is a neat glitzy technique shared with us at Caroline LeBel's Stampin' Palooza event in Toronto by Cindy Custer. In an empty fine mist spray bottle place some rubbing alcohol and about 1/2 teaspoon of Shimmery Paint. This is the same method we used with Pearl Ex to give your card stock a shimmery effect. The Champagne Mist is beautiful. I have the Frosted White and it gives the darker cardstock a silvery glimmer. Very pretty! Shake well and apply a fine spritz to your cardstock. The cardstock will curl immediately, so place a book or something heavy on it while drying. You can use your heat tool to speed up the drying process. The glitter doesn't rub off after drying, like the Pearl Ex does.

This is the card that Cindy shared with us. Isn't it elegant? Wish you could see the sparkle on it. It's spectacular!

Here's some cute birthday cards using the Sweet Treat Cups. There's a secret hidden compartment where the recipient can get into the treats without ruining the card.

Can you see the clouds at the top of this balloon card? When you open the card, pull the clouds and the trap door is revealed to get the treats.

Just make sure that you only secure the three sides to the piece of cardstock inside the card. Leave the top open so you can insert your pull tab which will cover the hole to the treat cup.

Well ... off to see where I can buy more memory!! Have a great day!!

Aaahhhh ... My Favorite Season of the Year!

2009-10-22T10:17:00.000-07:00

I'm always a little melancholy and sad this time of year to see the leaves change from vibrant greens to shades of real red, gosh darn gold, really rust, and bravo burgundy, and then drop from their branches to the ground. I love the colors of the season but have felt a little cheated this fall. We've had a cold spell these last few weeks and I haven't been able to enjoy the outdoors like I'm used to. But Saturday was an unusually lovely day so in the early evening we took Dieter and set out for a drive up Parley's Canyon through Park City and then over Guardsman's Pass. Oooh Eeeee ... there's some scary parts of the road that is dirt and will only allow one car at a time on the road, and there's a huge drop off on the one side. But when we got to the top of the pass we found snow. There were even some parts of the road that still had ice. I'm soooo not ready for winter. I told my hubby last night that we needed to winter in Arizona or Florida. I'm just not ready for the snow and cold. It's beautiful but I HATE to be cold and I HATE to drive in it!

I made a video to post to my blog last night and for some reason the file wouldn't run. So, I'm going to try again today. I want to show you my Make & Takes from Saturday's workshop, as well as a technique that I learned in Edmonton from Cindy Custer. You'll love it! I also want to show you some cute projects using the Sweet Treat Cups.

I've had the pleasure of getting to tend two of my grandchildren this week. I've sooo needed the change and have enjoyed their company soooo much. My parents love having them over too! Little Addison is sooo much fun. She's expecting her baby brother in two weeks, if not before. Her mother is experiencing high blood pressure so they may have to induce the baby to come early. I have baby Reesie today while her sister is having an MRI at the hospital. She just informed me that she needs to either go potty or her pants need to be changed so I must boogey!

I'll get to work on that video for you. See you shortly!

So What Have I Been Doing????

2009-10-16T11:48:00.000-07:00

Wow ... time flies when you're having fun!

Not a whole lot to report on my end. Just taking care of the folks full-time and trying to stay out of trouble. It's amazing how I can keep Mom and Dad's home nice and clean and I can't even find the time to clean my bathrooms! Isn't that the way it is ... the barber who cuts everyone elses hair but doesn't have time for his own.

My sis came down from Montana to visit her daughter for a few days. Her and her husband stayed with Mom and Dad in the evenings. It was so nice to have them here. Mom and Dad really enjoyed the company. Since they were in town, some of the other nieces and nephews dropped by to say hello. Friday evening I was helping Mom get ready for bed and some of the kids hollered to me to come out to the living room. I told them I was busy and they insisted that I come out now. I went into the living room and there Reese was standing in his military uniform. At first I thought he must have been kicked out of the army. He surprised the family by coming home for a 4-day leave for Columbus Day. I doubt if we'll see him again until December when he graduates from his Advanced Training. He only has about 7 weeks left of training. He's really enjoying his studies and hands-on training on the Apache helicopter.

Let's see ... what else ... oh ... we got to go to the opera last night. One of our friends is King Duncan in Macbeth and gave us free passes to last night's rehearsal. It was amazing! The witches were wonderful and made me wish that I had been part of the cast. Since taking care of Mom and Dad full-time, I don't really have any free evenings or weekends off. But I planned well in advance before I left for the evening. I had their food all ready to go, fresh, hot home-made, bread right out of the oven ready for slicing, and their medications ready. When we got home their lights were off so I assumed everything went well. When I went over this morning, everything was fine. Dad only forgot to take one of his pills. Not too bad!

I've been prepping for a workshop for tomorrow morning. I'm excited! This is a GREAT hostess and she always has wonderful parties. She decorates her entire house in Halloween garb and it's amazing. Of course one of her projects is a Halloween card using the Sweet Treat cups and the other card is a Christmas card using the Petals a Plenty embossing folder. Then I've provided a tri-fold Halloween card for any of the customers who are a little more advanced in their stamping and would like to try their hand at it. I'll post the samples after the workshop. I think they're pretty cute!

So, how am I doing weight wise? It seems like this week the weight loss has been a little slower. Not sure why. Maybe I'm not eating enough. I go see the surgeon on the 27th for a follow-up visit. I'm down to 189 pounds ... for a total weight loss of 68 pounds in less than 4 months. I also haven't been exercising, at all. I went for a walk the other day and it felt sooo good, I'm going to take Dieter out this afternoon. It's supposed to be a warm day. We've had such a cold fall that I'm not ready for winter. I want it to warm up a bit. Oh ... that's one more side effect of the weight loss ... I'm cold all of the time. The reason is that my body thermostat can't keep up with the weight loss. I've also noticed that my hair is thinning in front. That's another side effect, but it should grow back in a few months. Oh well ... remember Wiggy Wednesday? I have plenty of wigs that I can wear if I go bald! Oh yes ... one more thing ... I swear my ears are getting bigger!!! My sisters laughed and laughed when I told them that. But when I look in the mirror I see my Grandpa Latimer staring back at me. He had HUGE ears and now I've got 'em too. Perhaps my ears look bigger because my face is getting smaller? Could that be it??? O.K. ... so now I'll be bald with huge ears, but at least I'll be skinny right?

What else ... just still working on a big project that requires a LOT of money and a Patent Attorney. Can't share the details just now.

Yes, I'm still working on the cookbook. It should be out before Christmas so you can place your orders for some awesome Christmas gifts!

That's about it for now. I think I'll go make a technique video. Sound fun? Gotta run ... love you all!

More Pics from Stampin' Palooza!

2009-10-09T11:28:00.000-07:00

As promised, here are more pics from Caroline LeBel's fantastic event in Toronto, Canada. Don't forget to read the post I wrote earlier this morning for the two winners of UStamp with Dawn and Friends!

Sooo many friends ... so many hugs and loves! How I LOVE my Canadians. I remember so well the trip I took in 2002 to Canada to do field trainings from the west coast to the east coast and everywhere in between. It was the trip of a lifetime and I made such great friends then, who continue to be my friends today.

Oh ... I forgot to tell you ... I'm down 67 pounds as of this morning! Hooray ... almost down 70! I only have 30 more pounds to go ... possibly 40. We'll see ....

Mo Dickie ... the first demonstrator in Canada. I LOVE my bear nightie you gave me. I've worn it every night since I received it. I think of you every night when I put it on!

My chauffer, Donna, to the event from the hotel in her 'hot' Mustang!

Mo's sister, Ellie Blake!

Yum... chocolate!

Andrea Walford --- one terrific lady and stamper!

Oops ... I forgot to rotate this photo ... oh well too late ... rotate your head!

And the Winners ARE ..... Drum Roll Please!

2009-10-09T07:38:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post before I go over and fix breakfast for the Mum and Dad. Then later today I'll post more pics from the Stampin' Palooza event in Toronto. I've been sooo busy with the parents as well as working on two of the most adorable projects for UStamp with Dawn and Friends. You're going to die when you see them!! (At least I think they're pretty amazing!)

We have two proud owners of free passes to UStamp ... Handcrafted by Dawn in Raleigh, North Carolina and Catherine Healy from Wheeling, Illinois. Girls, check out the comment on your blog for instructions to pick up your free pass to UStamp.

Happy Friday!

Hugs and Loves -- Linda