NATURE and NURTURE..ing we go~

There's a trail up behind our home, we love to hike up it. the other day when the grandkids were here for a sleep-over, we took them on this hike. They loved it, they made a video of it, climbed every huge boulder, climbed to all the highest peaks, standing with their arms outstretched, yelling; "I'm the king of the world"...as the wind nearly blew them off the big rock they stood on. It was so much fun, Grandma & Grandpa, the dogs and the grandkids...I was so glad that we walk and run everyday, so that we can hike with our grandchildren. We all had so much fun!!!

Our home..through the trees..sits just a "walk through the pasture" from the trail head.

THE VELVETS....where we hiked to, about a couple of miles~

Bo and Cougar resting in the shade

We love these HUGE boulders...like sculptures everywhere

Along the trail...everywhere I look it is awesome~

This is a picture of "The Velvets"....they are just above our home, they sit at the base of these beautiful Red Mountains. it is such a beautiful place to walk, ride the horses, or ride a motorcycle/4 wheeler.

One of the views...looking down at the highway below

Some places look like the surface of Mars...huge bolders just scatterd around

Cougar and Bo, waiting for us to catch up...hope they will always "be there, waiting for me."

The view of our home from up on the trail

The grandkids played in the hot tub for hours after out hike...got up the next morning and played in it again for two more hours! They had so much fun~

I filled them up with lots of good food and treats; Brownies, Peanut Butter Popcorn, hot dogs, baked apple french toast & ham, apples and more treats...we had so much fun~Grandparents and Granchildren and sleep-overs go together like peanut butter and jelly...so good!!!

It looks like Summer is on the way, we've had a ton of rain here, so good for the farms, everything is SO green. I enjoy my walks each and every day, the trees, birds,the red mountains that surround our home, the dogs (they love the walks) the river, perfect temp.'s , the fresh air...life is good.

I read a quote the other day that I liked, I share it with you here...

" Each day I walk along the banks of the water, that my soul may repose on the trees, that I may refresh myself under the shadow of the sycomore" (This is from an Egytian tomb inscription--1400 BC)

I think that just shows that we truly are, all brothers & sisters, daughters and sons of a Heavenly Father, who created us all. We have so many of the same hope's and aspiration's and feeling's...we respond to the world that was created for us in many of the same ways, no matter what age or time we come to live on the Earth.

I'm so grateful to live on the Earth at "this time"...and no matter what is going on in the world, I can find true peace and joy as I experience the joys of this beautiful Earth. I'm so glad that I am blessed with health and strength, that I can get out everyday and enjoy nature, it is such a wonderful blessing in my life.

" The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature as strange deformity, and some scarce see nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself." (William blake 1799)

Get out there...see it all...enjoy every moment...breath it into your heart, mind and soul. It will make you healthy, happy, full of peace and joy. Love everyday~

"WONDERFUL DAYS"...of joy and peace and happiness

Me and two of my sweet grandaughters; Brickelle and Natalie. They had a sleep-over at Grandma's house, we had so much fun making cookies. I thought they were getting too big to read stories to, but they brought me books, and I read to them until I about lost my voice...I loved it even more than they did I think!

The next day, they went with me to a "Mothers and Daughters" day at Relief Society..we made lots of crafts and have a nummy lunch, then we went to look at flowers. They are so much fun to be with~My Mothers Day weekend was so much fun...spending time with these little dolls, then Ron took me out for a shrimp dinner up at Fishlake. After, we took a walk along the lake. it was warm and peace-filled, a great day.

It's always such a pleasant surprise to run onto a cactus full of flowers !

FISHLAKE LODGE...my very favorite place! This big OLD lodge sits right by Fishlake. It was built in the early 1900's and is still used, there's a resturant, a dance floor, a gift shop, big rooms for wedding receptions.

I've been here for dances, nothing is better than hanging out on the deck, watching the full moon being reflected out on the lake.

I love to eat in the resturant...sitting in a table, looking out over the lake.

It's a big old place that has so much history, you can "feel" it! I love to sit out on the deck eating a cheesburger, staring at the beautiful lake, smelling the pines.

A BIG old rock chuck watching us

There's a awesome trail that goes along the length of Fishlake, I've walked it many times. Once I rounded a bend in the trail and walked right into a MOOSE...he was eating in the bushes, I didn't know what to do with myself..luckily my wonderful dog came immediately to my side, and "pushed me" on, or I might have froze there in fear! The moose just kept on eating, like, "You just leave me alone, and I'll leave you alone." A thrilling experience!

FISHLAKE....such a beautiful place to be. Ron's grandpa Bagley negotiated a treaty with the Indians years ago, so that we can use it today. A spot for recreations and great fishing/camping. People come from all over to enjoy it, yet it's never over crowded.

Some State record size fish have been caught in this deep, cold mountain lake.

I went over to Emery to watch Michael (Lindsey's husband) compete in a Trials Bike competion..it was hot and dirty, but we had lots of fun. Michael took FIRST in the Champ division..he is awesome to watch! (This is Lori, Lindsey and me, trying to stay in some kind of shade).

Doing one of the sections at the trials meet

Michael can fly up over BIG rocks like they are nothing!

Cougar, trying to fit himself on the little padded part, "Oh the dog days of summer."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Life is good...the weather is warm now, everything is getting green, fun events to look forward to this summer (the very best is a new grandbaby coming in August, Tiffany's). I love spending time with my family, just hanging out or cheering them on, talks with grandchildren, it's always so satisfing to me.

In my younger years, I remember that the only thing I ever really wanted was to be surrounded by my family...that is Heaven to me, hope it can always be so.

Wishing everyone a wonderful sumer, spent in the places you love best and with the people you love most. As a kid I loved my summers so much, I think I spent half my time up in my favorite tree, reading a book. Having tea parties,laying on the grass, looking at the beautiful clouds, riding my horse, playing in the water, day dreaming and enjoying the warmth of the sun....I plan to do the same this summer, you see, I'm still that same little girl at heart, only this time around, I have my own wonderful family and those precious grandchildren to enjoy it all with. Hope you do too, Happy Summer To You!

MY MOM, THE LITTLE LEMON~who almost got ate by a cougar~

DAD&MOM AND THEIR FIRST TWO CHILDREN

MOM & DAD ON A TRIP TO SALT LAKE CITY (Dad was always whistling)

ELLA MAE LEMON JEPPSON

THIS STORY IS A TRUE ONE, AND IT IS SHARED HERE IN MY MOTHER'S OWN WORDS.

"WHEN WE LIVED ON THE PROVO RIVER NEAR TO FRANCIS, AT THE AGE OF ABOUT NINE, I HAD WHAT YOU COULD CALL A VERY NARROW ESCAPE FROM DEATH, BY THE JAWS OF A WILD COUGAR. I REMEMBER WAKING UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT BECAUSE THE LITTLE HOUSE CAT WAS PURRING AROUND MY HEAD AND TRYING TO CRAWL IN MY BED FOR A NAP. IT BOTHERED ME UNTIL I GOT UP AND TOOK IT OUTSIDE. I STOOD LOOKING ABOUT MYSELF, I SUDDENLY BECAME SPELLBOUND BY THE BEAUTIES OF THE NIGHT. THE MOONLIGHT AND THE STARS BY THE TRILLIONS IN THE HEAVENS, AND AS I STOOD GAZING UPWARD, I HEARD SOMETHING COMING TOWARD ME GIVING OUT WITH THE MOST GRUESOME SOUNDS. AS THE MOON WENT BEHIND A CLOUD I COULD NOT VISIBLY SEE THE ANIMAL.
JUST THEN, A VOICE SAID TO ME, "GO IN THE HOUSE QUICKLY AND BOLT THE DOOR." I IMMEDIATELY WENT TOWARD THE DOOR, AND AS I TOOK ONE LAST LOOK, I SAW THE LARGEST ANIMAL WITH THE BIGGEST BODY, EYES AND FEET TROTTING MORE QUICKLY TOWARD ME NOW. I RUSHED THROUGH THE DOOR AND BOLTED IT, CRIED OUT TO FATHER, "OH PA, THERE'S A BEAR OUT THERE!"
AS DAD SAT UP IN BED I COULD SEE THAT HIS HAIR STOOD STRAIGHT UP IN THE MOONLIGHT. THAT ANIMAL SNORTED AND GROWLED VERY LOUDLY BY THE DOOR, THEN SWIFTLY ROUNDED THE HOUSE AND JUMPED UP ON THE OPEN WINDOW, AND AS FATHER SAT UP IN BED, HE LOOKED INTO THE FACE OF A COUGAR. HE YELLED AT HIM AND AS HE DID SO THE COUGAR JUMPED UP ON THE LEAN-TO OF THE BEDROOM PART OF THE HOUSE, AND HE HONESTLY SOUNDED LIKE A TWO YEAR OLD STEER UP THERE WALKING AROUND.
DAD AROSE AND LIT HIS COAL-OIL LANTERN AND LOOKED FOR THE RIFLE AND AS HE PICKED IT UP, REMEMBERED THAT WHEN THE NEIGHBOR RETURNED IT THAT HE HAD LEFT A BULLET JAMMED IN IT, BUT THOUGHT MAYBE IT WOULD GO OFF ANYWAY, SO WENT OUT TO SCARE OFF AND KILL THE INTRUDER.
WHEN THE COUGAR SAW THE LIGHT HE BECAME FRIGHTENED AND JUMPED OFF THE HOUSE AND WENT UP ON THE SIDE HILL AND CIRCLED BACK TO THE SHEEP CORRALS THAT WERE SURROUNDED BY A HIGH FENCE, JUMPED THAT, KILLED A FAT LAMB AND ATE HALF OF IT THERE, THEN KILLED ANOTHER ONE AND LEAPED THE FENCE WITH IT AND DRAGGED IT DOWN TO THE CAVES TO WHERE FATHER TRACKED HIM THE NEXT MORNING.
SO I COULD HAVE BEEN THE LAMB THAT HE WOULD HAVE EATEN, HAD I NOT OBEYED THAT STILL SMALL VOICE.

I AM SO GLAD THAT MY MOM OBEYED THE WARNING VOICE...I WOULD NOT HAVE WANTED ANYONE ELSE TO BE MY MOTHER. MY PATRIARCAL BLESSING TELLS ME THAT I PICKED MY PARENTS...THEY WERE THE BEST OF PARENTS. I WAS ALWAYS SO PROUD OF MY MOM, A WOMAN OF GREAT TESTIMONY,HARD WORKING,GENEROUS AND GIVING TO OTHERS, FUN, BEAUTIFUL, SHE HAD A WONDERFUL WAY OF GETTING ALONG WITH PEOPLE, HER MIND WAS SHARP AND CLEAR EVEN TO THE END. I MISS HER SO MUCH, YESTERDAY (MOTHERS DAY) WAS HER BIRTHDAY....SO I SHARE HER WITH YOU TODAY, I HOPE YOU WILL APPRECIATE HER AND THE LEGACY OF STRENGTH AND TESTIMONY THAT SHE HAS LEFT FOR YOU. SHE WAS THE FAMILY HISTORIAN ALL HER LIFE, A SAVOIR TO HER FAMILY HERE, AND TO THOSE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE VEIL. I MISS HER.... I FOLLOW IN HER FOOTSTEPS... HOPING TO LEAVE A GREAT LEGACY FOR THOSE WHO FOLLOW ME.

IN AUGUST, MY DAUGHTER TIFFANY WILL GIVE BITH TO A LITTLE DAUGHTER...SHE IS GOING TO NAME HER, ~ELLA~ AFTER MY MOTHER. I'M SURE THAT RIGHT NOW, MOM AND HER LITTLE NAMESAKE ARE HAVING "GIGGLES OF DELIGHT "OVER THIS...I KNOW THAT MOM WOULD FEEL TICKLED AND HONORED ABOUT IT...I AM SO HAPPY FOR HER. ~~HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM...I LOVE AND MISS YOU~~

"ONLY A MOTHER"....

"ONE HEART"...."THE MOST IMPORTANT WORK YOU WILL EVER DO, WILL BE WITHIN THE WALLS OF YOUR OWN HOME."

"MOTHERHOOD...TO BE A CO-CREATOR WITH GOD"

"FAMILY LOVE...NEW BABY LOVE"

"MY FIRST TEACHER"

"COMFORT...PEACE...SAFE"

"KISSES BETTER"

~ "ISAN'T SHE BEAUTIFUL"~

"OH MAMA...I CAN FEEL THE BABY"

"GRANDMA'S ARE THE BEST"

"LEAD ME, GUIDE ME, WALK BESIDE ME"

"SEE, IT'S OK"...

"LEARNING TO HELP"

"OH LOOK"....

"MOMMIE LOVES YOU SO MUCH"

"MAMA SANG TO ME"

"A LITTLE PARABLE FOR MOTHERS

"The young Mother set her foot in the path of life..."is the way long" she said.Her guide said: "yes and the way is hard". You will be old before you reach the end, but the end will be better than the beginning."The young Mother was happy, and she would not believe that anything could be better than these years. So she played with her children and gathered flowers for them and bathed with them in the clear streams; and the sun shone on them. Life was good, and the young Mother said; "Nothing will ever be lovlier than this!

"Night came and the storm, the path was dark, and the children shook with fear and cold. The Mother drew them close and covered them with her mantle, and the children said, "Oh Mother, we are not afraid, for you are near, and we know no harm can come." And the Mother said, "This is better than the brightness of day, for Y have taught my children courage."Morning came, and there was a hill ahead, and the children climbed and grew weary, and the Mother was weary, but at all times, she said to her children, "A little patience and we are here." So the children climbed, and when they reached the top, they said, "We could not have done it without you Mother."

When the Mother lay down at night, she looked up at the stars and said: "This is a better day than the last, for my children have learned fortitude in the face of hardness. Yesterday I gave them courage, today, I gave them strength.The next day came strange clouds which darkened the earth-clouds of war and hate and evil, and the children groped and stumbled, and Mother said: "Look up, lift you eyes to the light." And the children looked and saw above the clouds an everlasting glory, and it guided them beyond the darkness. That night the Mother said: "This is the best day of all, for I have shown my children God.

"The days went on, and the weeks and the months and the years, and the Mother grew old, and she was bent. Her children were tall and strong, and walked with courage and when the way was hard, they helped their Mother; and when the way was rough, they lifted her up: for she was light as a feather, and at last they came to a hill, and beyond the hill they could see a shining road and a gate, flung open wide.The Mother said: "I have reached the end of my journey, and now I know that the end is better than the beginning. For my children can walk alone. And their children followed after them.

"And her children said: " You will always walk with us, dearest Mother, even when you are gone through the ages."And they stood and watched her as she went alone, and the gates closed after her. And they said: "We cannot see her, but she is with us still. A Mother like ours is more than a memory, she is a living presence and she will always watch over us.

"MAY WE ALL BE SUCH A MOTHER...ENJOY YOUR MOTHERS DAY, THERE IS NO ONE LIKE YOU, NO ONE CAN EVER REPLACE YOU.
"MOTHERS HOLD THEIR CHILDREN'S HANDS FOR A LITTLE WHILE AND THEIR HEARTS FOREVER." ~AND~ "GOD COULD NOT BE EVERYWHERE AND THERFORE HE MADE MOTHERS" ~AND~ "MAKE A MEMORY WITH YOUR CHILDREN, SPEND TIME TO SHOW YOU CARE; TOYS & TRINKETS CANNOT REPLACE THOSE PRECIOUS MOMENTS THAT YOU SHARE."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

IN HONOR OF MAY DAY and SPRING....

THIS IS "PRALINE"...SHE GOT NAMED AFTER MY FAVORITE KIND OF ICE CREAM...SHE LOVES HER LITTLE BED IN THE GARAGE. "COUGAR" LOVES HIS TEDDY BEAR, HE HAS A GORILLA TOO. THESE ARE JUST PICTURES I TOOK ONE DAY...A DAY IN MAY.

THE NEW TORREY CHURCH HOUSE...ALMOST COMPLETED...I LIKE THE ''OLD ROCK'' ON THE FRONT, NICE TOUCH!

AS I SAT ALONG SIDE OF THE ROAD THE OTHER DAY, EATING MY TACO...ALONG CAME 25 OF THESE BABIES IN A CARAVAN...WOW!!!

"SOME FRIENDLY, CUTE GOATS"

TRULY, "THE HOUSE ON THE HILL" SO MANY PEOPLE COME THROUGH HERE TO VISIT AND THEY END UP BUYING PROPERTY HERE AND BUILDING A HOME HERE..SOME EVEN MOVE HERE PERMANENTLY. THIS MAN'S FRONT YARD IS FULL OF THESE SCULPTURES, HE MUST BE AN ARTIST.

I LOVE PASTURES..THERE WERE WILD TURKEYS HERE BUT THEY EVADED MY CAMERA!

I LOVE THE BLOSSOMS OF SPRING

I FOUND THESE BEAUTIFUL TULIPS THE OTHER DAY, QUITE BY CHANCE, I WAS SO THRILLED WITH THEIR BEAUTY..THE FIRST REAL SIGN OF SPRING FOR ME.

"THROUGH THE FENCE"

AS A CHILD, I ALWAYS LOVED CLOUDS...I'D LAY ON THE GRASS, GAZING UP AT THEM FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIME..IMAGINING. THESE THREE PHOTO'S WERE TAKEN FROM MY COMPFY CHAIR THAT SITS IN OUR LIBRARY..THERE ARE THREE BIG WINDOWS THAT LOOK OUT TO THE SKY, MEADOWS AND MOUNTAINS. IT IS SO PEACEFUL TO SIT THERE AND WATCH THE CLOUDS, BIRDS SOARING ABOVE, THE MOON&STARS, THE SHEEP AND COWS, PEOPLE GOING BY, THE RAIN STORMS, THE SNOW STORMS THAT COME DOWN FROM THE MOUNTAINS AND TAKE OVER THE HOUSE.

HOPE YOU'LL GET OUT THERE AND ENJOY THIS BEAUTIFUL TIME OF THE YEAR...NEW LIFE, A NEW START FOR EACH OF US, A TIME FOR US TO BLOSSOM INTO THE PERSON WE WANT TO BE. JANUARY FIRST IS SUPPOSED TO BE THE TIME FOR MAKING CHANGES, BUT FOR ME IT'S ALWAYS THE BEGINNING OF SPRING. MAYBE WE SHOULD TURN BACK A BIT, AND LOOK AT WHO WE WERE AND HOW MICH WE ENJOYED BEING A KID...AND ENJOY IT ALL OVER AGAIN! HAVE FUN IN YOUR MEANDERINS IN THIS MONTH OF MAY.