SAJSET

Mr. Snickers

2011-12-26T14:49:00.001-08:00

Dad snapped some pics of our calf, Mr. Snickers (Laura dubbed him such, since he is brown and Snickers is Grampy's favorite candybar). He is growing fast and is loving his grain and hay - chomp, chomp! Major always has to accompany Grampy as he feeds and waters him - makes Major feel he has important duties to attend to. Dad got a flashlight for Christmas that shines so bright, it is dangerous to look at and throws a beam 500 feet - it should be helpful when doing the barn chores these dark late afternoons this winter. He also got some new warm work gloves.

Christmas Parties

2011-12-26T14:33:00.000-08:00

Our family progressive dinner started at Gram's house with the appetizer course

Then we went to Spencer's and Ivy's for salad and a Christmas story

Then to our house for lasagna and a nap (j/k about the nap part, but Laura and Thomas do look rather seriously ready for a snooze)

Finally we ended the evening at Sue and Dade's with cream puffs and cheesecake - we had to hurry to get a picture before they were devoured!! Fun times!!

Below are a couple of pictures from the week before when we hosted part of our Branch Progressive Dinner here.

Visions of Christmas around our home . . .

2011-12-26T14:23:00.000-08:00

Turkey Time

2011-11-21T13:30:00.000-08:00

Saw a recipe for Turkey-Time cookies and had to give it a whirl - needed enough for Sue's family, Spencer's family, 9 for YW, the missionaries, Gram, and Dad - equals 30 - so I set to work.They didn't come out quite like pictured in the recipe - but turned out okay - colorful and fun.

Now it's time to start in on pies!!!!!!!!!!!! Happy baking, everyone!!!!!! :)

Halloween Scaries!! and Homemade Treats

2011-11-17T05:15:00.000-08:00

Somehow I missed getting any pictures of Thomas, Ethan, James, Benny, David, or Brigham - how did I do that?? Anyway - here is what I did take.

Dover Young Women at their Halloweeniest!

note the snow on the roof - didn't last long and it's been warm ever since - yay!

Ivy and Laura

Laura - love her purple spider shirt and tights!

Underneath this ugly scary mask is Randall E. Dow :)

Alyssa as Rosie the Riveter, Isaac, and Seth

the Dow boys trying to get Daisy to cooperate for the pic

still trying

best she would do - would not allow us to put up her leopard costume hood

Logan, Abram, and Zack - Daisy made her get away :)

I decided to go with homemade treats this year - jello popcorn!! It was a fun change from all the fun size candy bars (and a whole lot cheaper too - yay! Dave Ramsey :).

Pie Pumpkins

2011-11-17T04:03:00.000-08:00

Dad raised pie pumpkins this year, so encouraged by a recipe entitled Mrs. Sigg's Fresh Pumpkin Pie complete with instructions on how to start with a raw pumpkin instead of opening a can - I took up the challenge. I first did the complete process from start to finish - the pie was yummy - so then I attacked every pumpkin I could round up - 12 in all! I cut each in half - scooped out the seeds (roasted some of them) and then baked the hollowed out pumpkins, cut side down at 300 for 45 minutes - it smelled heavenly - really!

Then I let them cool enough to handle, slipped off the peelings, and put them through the food processor. I ended up with 52 cups of pureed pumpkin!! the equivalent of 26 cans - all in my freezer. Imagine that! I've since made

Gingerbread Pumpkin Bars, Easy Pumpkin Dessert Bars, and yesterday I made a

Pumpkin Citrus Bundt Cake - good stuff! I always love to bake in the fall and winter.

Apple Day!

2011-11-17T03:01:00.000-08:00

Our kind neighbors, Steve and Lindsay Tudor, let us pick up drops for free - so Ivy , Daisy, Dad, and I spent about an hour and this is how many we got plus one more laundry basket full. Yummy, sweet Liberty apples! We covered them all with a quilt to keep them from freezing at night and in a few days Ivy and I started in on them - It took us 2 days to process them all.

It was a big job, but fun working together - Daisy got in on some of the action too! :)

We cooked the apples on Ivy's woodstove

then ran them through the foodmill, seasoned the hot applesauce with cinnamon, nutmeg, pure vanilla, and a pinch of salt - (these apples were so sweet, we left most of it unsweetened), put it all into hot jars and processed them on the gas range. We couldn't resist sweetening a few batches with brown sugar though. It was really a pretty efficient process once we got our system down.

We ended up with 109 jars of applesauce!! Now that should get us through the winter, don't you think??

Zack

2011-09-10T12:23:00.000-07:00

Zack insisted on carrying these 2 buckets of tomatoes all the way - then waited for me to take the picture - they are heavy - hence the grimace. He loves to pick the garden vegetables - we do it together every other day, but he asks to do it every day! :)

Zack with Major

and with Rusty.

Saturday afternoon

2011-09-10T11:50:00.000-07:00

Logan poundin' 'em in!

Grampy doing the same

Major patiently waiting nearby for Grampy to be done. . .

Harvest-Time

2011-09-10T07:02:00.000-07:00

I made a triple batch of applesauce yesterday afternoon - put a bowl in the fridge, gave a tub to Spencer's family, and froze the rest (6 quarts). It tasted pretty good, but not as good as last years made with our yellow transparents - that tree only bore 2 apples this year - so I used only cortlands this time. Next year should be good for the YT tree. Earlier this week I tried something new with tomatoes. We have tons ripening fast, so I took what we had picked and quartered them, tossed with olive oil, arranged them onto 3 foil-lined cookie sheets, sprinkled them with finely minced fresh garlic, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper - then roasted them in a 325 oven for 3 hours. After they thoroughly cooled (and just before I went to bed :) I carefully picked each panfull up by the foil and poured contents into the blender and pureed - put into freezer bags and popped into the freezer. This is my alternative this year in place of canning (I still have several quarts I canned on the shelf from last year). I don't know if it was any easier, but gives us some variety.

Saturday morning

2011-09-10T06:40:00.000-07:00

Abe, Logan, and I moved our picnic table and benches all the way across our yard from under the big oak to the patio for the fall. I didn't know if we could lift the heavy thing, but those two boys are like a team of oxen - they both got under one end and leaned into it and with only 2 rests got it where we wanted it. I was on the other end walking backwards and had all I could do to walk fast enough to keep from being plowed over! Then we went toadstool hunting on our lawn - we counted over 100 of them, various sizes - some were as big as a dinner plate! I gave the boys permission to kick them to smithereens into the puckerbrush, which they gleefully did - didn't think Dad would want to mush them up with the mower later. Dad and Spencer are shingling again. It's a beautiful sunny day with just a touch of fall in the crystal clear air.

Another Picture Wall Has Begun!

2011-09-06T11:05:00.000-07:00

I may still paint the frames black - not sure yet . . . advice welcome. Angel faces.

Overnight!

2011-09-06T10:58:00.000-07:00

These toadstools are springing up everywhere

Gram's lawn

Our lawn

Definitely a sign of too much rain!!

Tuesday Morning

2011-09-06T06:12:00.001-07:00

Abram paid me an early visit this morning - snuck (is that a real word??) up our stairs and jumped me as I was coming out of our closet (no one can actually get up our stairs without the squeaking boards announcing they're being stepped on - but I let him think he surprised me) anyway, he voluntarily helped me make my bed as we visited about random stuff. Then he asked me if I knew why he had come and proceeded to tell me he needed me to print off a picture of him for a school project. By now it was actually time to be leaving for school, so I knew this was going to be a rush job!! :) We quickly woke up my laptop - found this picture of him atop Borestone wearing his "1st to the Finish" shirt - put photo paper in the printer - pushed print - just as his Dad opened the door and urgently told him it was time to get into the car. Spencer carefully tucked the picture inside his raincoat to keep it dry and they made their mad dash to the van. I had to take a deep breath to recover! :)) All fun stuff - what a boring ho-hum morning I would have had otherwise. ;) sorry about the formatting - tried to get rid of it several times - but aaarrrggghhh could not figure it out.

In the Leafy Treetops

2011-09-05T13:46:00.001-07:00

Abe, Logan, and Zack up close

far away

good eye contact, boys!

Logan is on his way down. I had to convince him to go back up and retrieve a packet of graham crackers. They like the idea of having a snack stash, but rain is threatening - not good for graham crackers - so he agreed to rescue them. Earlier I climbed up with them to check out the view - can't see our house but they are in easy view of their Mom looking our her kitchen window. Many hours of fun ahead this fall. Logan told me he doesn't want any leaves cluttering their floor - that will be a daily battle when the leaves begin to fall - good luck on that boys! :)

Shinglin'

2011-09-05T13:38:00.001-07:00

Zack moving a ladder by himself! (he insisted)

Spence and Dad laboring on Labor Day

Roasting Corn

2011-09-03T17:14:00.000-07:00

Zack and Logan love to help Grampy with any project he has going. Here they are very much involved in roasting corn down at the shady place.

The process took longer than we thought - so we decided to steam the rest of the ears back at the house. The corn was the sweetest ever tasted - we all loved it! Thanks, Grampy, for all the good things that come from your garden!

Dinner with the Wards

2011-09-03T16:51:00.000-07:00

Ivy's parents and brother and his wife have been visiting this week

Tonight was their last night in Maine, so we had a corn roast and lasagna supper together

Considered eating al fresco at the picnic table, but the weather was iffy, so we ate in. It was fun to share time and food together. We ended with blueberry cobbler ala mode. Bj and Aleesha fly out at 6:40AM from Bangor and Rick & Muriel fly out at 2:30PM tomorrow. They have had a busy week, spent a day at Acadia, built a tree house for the boys (I'll get some pics for a later post), went to Bangor shopping a couple of times, went out for ice cream a couple of times - made some fun memories. I know the week flew by for them, trying to get in all the fun in they could store up for when they are so far away.

Life is Good!

2011-09-02T11:16:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love this time of year - temps are pleasant, humidity is low, skies are blue, apples are crisp, the garden is producing its heart out - sublime! Yesterday we had an entire meal of garden produce: new red potatoes, pole beans, shell beans w/cream, cucumbers, tomatoes, applesauce, and blueberry muffins - well, the muffins did not come from the garden - but it was otherwise grown right here in our backyard. I love that. Today, I baked oatmeal cookies and 4 loaves of oatmeal bread - heavenly aromas filled the house. Life is good!

Still More Pictures from Summer 2011

2011-08-28T14:59:00.000-07:00

Brigham let me snap a picture of him - grandmothers can be so pushy! :)

Benny about to get in line for yet another meal at Sloat Reunion

The Holt House in Blue Hill - we stopped here on our way to the Sloat Reunion (David and Brigham rode with us) - Grampy tried to get pictures of his Roundy ancestors - but no luck yet. The picture lady only works on Thursday and this was Friday. Oh well, it was fun to tour the old house (c. 1815) - anyone can peek inside at http://bluehillhistory.org/HoltHouse.htm

Brigham was playing it safe with his food choices - he's not a seafood man.

Laura's first lobster

2011-08-28T11:11:00.000-07:00

Laura had lobster for the first time at the Sloat reunion this year. The Dunham "boys" supplied us with all the fresh lobster, crab, and clams we could eat. Dick sets 300 traps a week - Nate and Robin set 900 a week - that's hard work! The seafood lovers among us were in heaven! BTW Laura loved the lobster so much she had another one the next day!

The End of August

2011-08-27T14:09:00.000-07:00

A cute one of Tommy

Birthday flowers from Ammon & Heghine

Our "new" piano

Laura putting on her goofy for us - she is so fun!!

More Sloat Reunion Pics

2011-08-27T14:01:00.000-07:00

David balancing Bugles

I think he got up to 15 or more - now that's talent!! :)

Ethan and Thomas waiting for Grammy to click her camera

Bart and Cherie in deep conversation

2011-08-27T13:57:00.000-07:00

Sloat Reunion Talent Show

2011-08-27T08:40:00.000-07:00

Nate and Kevin Dunham hamming it up

Susannah and Laura singing

Aunt Doris and Aunt Glenna harmonizing on their harmonicas

More Sloat Reunion

2011-08-27T08:26:00.000-07:00

Gram performing at the reunion talent show

Aunt Doris in the foreground on the right - Aunt Glenna 3rd on the left

Barbara Crabtree enjoying a cheesey casserole

A Sloat Reunion cake

Sloat Reunion

2011-08-27T07:16:00.000-07:00

Zack and Laura

Anne, Gram, and Laura hanging out at the reunion

A Sloat Reunion quilt

Gram and Anne

Moosehead Lake

2011-08-27T06:52:00.000-07:00

The Katahdin at Moosehead Lake

Grampy, Uncle Bart, and Gram at the Black Frog Restaurant in Greenville

Grampy, Grammy, Gram, and Uncle Bart at Moosehead Lake

Jessica's Farewell

2011-08-27T05:53:00.000-07:00

Ethan, Zack, Abram, Benny, Chandler, and James

Grammy and Grampy (Autumn in chair)

Jessica with her trifles :)

David: The Man! :)

Eric's visit

2011-08-27T05:37:00.000-07:00

Eric boarding the bus for Boston

The visit went too fast, but here is proof Eric was here!

The "boys" playing Bingo

Gram and Eric

More Summer 2011 Scenes

2011-08-27T05:20:00.000-07:00

This little toad startled me when I found him residing in my hanging petunia on our porch

A movie/game party with Jessica,Laura, Autumn, and Ivy

Jessica and Ivy

Laura Doodle

Summer 2011 Scenes

2011-08-27T04:49:00.000-07:00

Daisy on her birthday

Zack, bringing me their tub to give Major a bath

Abe, Logan, and Zack with the twins' birthday cake that Grammy Call made

2011-07-26T03:55:00.000-07:00

I have good intentions to create some interesting posts, but as you can see, it seldom happens, so I decided it would be better just to throw a bunch of pictures up on the blog than to wait until I get time and inspiration at the same moment! Anyway, the tower referred to below is part of the new bridge connecting Verona Island to Bucksport, next to Ft. Knox. We took a day to go there and then on to Camden during Katie and Todd's visit - we filled up our cars by inviting Sue, Laura, James, and Benny to go too. More pics to come!

Todd and Katie's visit

2011-07-25T14:35:00.000-07:00

View from the tower

James, Mercedes, Benny, Sue, and Laura on the 42 floor of the tower

We had such a fun 4th of July picnic at Kiwanis Park - thankfully we got all the cars unloaded and the tables moved onto the covered deck before it started raining. As soon as we were done eating, the sun came out and the kids played on the playground all afternoon.

Katie and Mercedes, Benny, Laura, and James walking to the tower

Benny on the wall at Ft. Knox

Laura helping Lincoln look inside a cannon

Grammy Call blowin' out her candles to cheers by all of us!

Lincoln enjoying his Grammy Call toys!

Ethan at K Park

Daisy posing for Grammy to snap a cute one!

Sweet Mercedes and Mommy at Kiwanis Park

Grammy Call made this fruit pizza for all to share - yum!

Grammy Dow finally delivered on Lincoln's promised Chocolate Cream Pie!

Cousins sharing the tire swing at Kiwanis Park

Dads and daughters - just hanging out and catching up.

Healthy Choices

2011-04-11T09:56:00.000-07:00

Just found a new blog that I love! http://www.wordofwisdomliving.com/ The author is anti-diets (short term solution for a long-term problem) and is all about living the word of wisdom better. Check it out.

Happy Birthday, Heghine!!

2011-04-06T09:49:00.000-07:00

Today is our daughter-in-law, Heghine's birthday. Here are a couple of pictures taken in Armenia July 2009. Love you, Heghine!

Our Cupboard Is Not Bare!

2011-04-04T11:14:00.000-07:00

Just finished putting 30 pounds of raisins into containers. What a sticky job that was! A couple of months ago, I decided to go pro-active about food storage and set up a monthly food order from a wholesaler and invited members and friends to order as well. It's a little bit of work to print and distribute the order sheets and collect everyone's money, but I actually like doing it, and the company trucks it all to the church in Dover for a flat rate of $2.50 no matter the size of our order! Can you imagine? We picked up our 3rd order this morning. This time I got 6 gallons of canola oil, a pound of Spanish paprika, and 50 lbs. of white whole wheat flour, along with the raisins. It's a great way to save on lots of staples - spices, grains, flours, leavenings, etc. Most things are much cheaper than the grocery stores, and I love seeing our shelves fill up. Next month I'm planning to get 30 pounds of craisins and 25 pounds of almonds or walnuts. World events don't stress me quite so much when I know my shelves are full of good wholesome nutrition.

Bob Dow's 80th

2011-03-28T10:38:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed a family gathering last night at Bob and Rosa-Lee's. It was Bob's 80th birthday - so a plan was hatched to surprise him at 5:00PM - I think we woke them both from a nap - so I guess you could say the surprise part was a success. :) Zack & Ruth, Randy & his 5 kids, Gram, Sandra Harmon, Lloyd & Althea and us. We had yummy food and drink, including ice cream cake - and we sat around their kitchen reminiscing for the evening - shared lots of laughter and good memories. Sorry to say, we forgot to take our camera - aggravation!!

TAK OF YER SHOS

2011-03-28T10:25:00.000-07:00

Hey, chill factor of 18 degrees, I am ready for SPRING! I know that means mud season - it is a bridge that must be crossed, but I'm ready. As I was mopping our downstairs floors on Saturday, Abe made a sign for our door - it says TAK OF YER SHOS - he taped it to the door. If obeyed, it will solve the only bummer about spring in Maine.

still dreaming

2011-03-25T13:38:00.000-07:00

I've been on the hunt for a tree wallpaper for one wall of our library - I'm thinking I will pull my colors for the other walls from this one papered wall.
I like the ocean colors in this one - still in the dreaming stage. Gotta finish preparing the walls and ceilings and priming everything and painting tons of woodwork and 4 doors and 4 bookcases. Will it ever be done????????

A Start

2011-03-24T06:07:00.000-07:00

Got started on the mudding upstairs - convinced Dad that painting the bookcases white is okay - I'm all into white wood, feel like it goes better with our cottage-size house, and makes everything clean and fresh. Now my big challenge is the uneven ceilings - I'll likely go with some texture. The guy that did our LR ceiling last summer, Mike, said that you can mix joint compound with primer and a tiny bit of Dawn dish soap and roll it on for a textured ceiling - getting the right proportions might be tricky, so I'll do some samples on some scrap sheet rock first. Wish me luck!!

Views from the porch & self pep talk

2011-03-22T05:20:00.000-07:00

I knew snow was in the forecast, but I wasn't expecting what met my eyes when I peeked out our bedroom window at 6:45 this morning - can I say that winterscapes, though beautiful in December, somehow lose their charm by the 22nd of MARCH??!!! Oh well, we are warm and snug in our little house. Anyway, I've decided that I will go by the calendar - and it says spring has arrived! Sooooo my spring cleaning and working on the upstairs renno are about to begin (I've been taking the winter off, but have got to get it done before gardening season). No more excuses!!!! I mean, really - got the puzzles together, scored over 400 in Scrabble, and watched my fair share of netflix & amazon movies (all important wintertime duties). I am suddenly emerging from hibernation - so watch out, unpainted upstairs woodwork and dirty windows - here I come!!!!!

Etiquette/Mystery Dinner

2011-03-21T08:56:00.000-07:00

The youth had this dinner for their joint activity for March. It came off fairly well for the little planning that went into it. The mystery part had a Book of Mormon twist the kids were not expecting at the end - thanks to Dickon. The manners part needs to be revisited . . . that's all I'm going to say. Anyway, it was fun and the food was delish!!

They really did have fun - though in this picture nobody looks very cheerful ;)

Poor Little Birches!!

2011-03-21T08:46:00.000-07:00

This is what we awoke to on March 8th. Everything was encrusted with ice - beautiful, but hard on the trees. Gram was so afraid her little birch would snap off, but it didn't. In fact both of these trees were pretty resilient and are looking straighter as time goes by, now that the temperatures are moderating.

Got Er Done!!

2011-03-21T08:34:00.000-07:00

We finished it! (with help from Abram, Spencer, Zack, Logan, Ivy, and Laura) Actually, Dad did most of it - he can stay with it longer than I can - about 15 minutes is my limit, It was fun and we left it up for 2 or 3 days just to admire our creating order out of chaos feeling - then back into the box it went - table folded up and put away and a feeling of space restored to the dining room until next winter when we're snowbound and the itch to do some puzzling returns.

Starting a 1000 piecer . . .

2011-03-05T16:42:00.000-08:00

Daisy, Daisy!

2011-03-05T16:30:00.000-08:00

with Grammy Call

with Laura and Thomas

with Thomas

March came in like a lion this year

2011-03-05T16:24:00.000-08:00

Grampy telling childhood tales

2011-03-05T16:14:00.000-08:00

It was suggested after cake at Grampy's birthday party that he gather the grandchildren around and tell them some of his childhood memories - of the runaway horse, of climbing up into the cupola of the old hay barn, of showing cattle at the county fairs, and more.

Winter Birthdays

2011-03-05T15:58:00.000-08:00

Dad's 74th

James turns 11!

He loves his Legos!

And so does Abram!

Abe turned 6 this year!

Grampy's Chickens

2011-03-05T15:48:00.000-08:00

Boys and dogs

2011-01-20T12:03:00.000-08:00

Sledding

2011-01-20T11:49:00.000-08:00

Ethan wanted me to take a picture of him sliding down the hill south of our house

but his new sled got away from him before he could climb aboard - bummer!

So after he trudged to the runaway sled and dragged it up the hill, James held it for him to get in

and off he went

thankfully missing the tree and Logan's yellow sled! Fun afternoon.

waiting

2011-01-20T11:38:00.000-08:00

waiting for the pasta to finish cooking

Tommy finished his nap, ate his pasta, and now Laura's making sure he doesn't eat the stem on his cherry atop his chocvan pudding.

Sleepytime Pals

2011-01-20T11:35:00.000-08:00

opening gifts

2011-01-20T11:23:00.000-08:00

Susannah and Dade went to the temple today, so the 6 younger kids came to our house for the day. We hadn't yet given Ethan his birthday gifts - so he opened them here today.

his very own cookbook

he been known to take a cookbook to bed with him for night time reading :)

hurry and snap the picture, I'm ready to open these late presents!

Chillin' at Grammy's

2011-01-20T11:13:00.000-08:00

Logan asked for more "moishmallows" but agreed to eat a banana first.

Zack taking a break from supervising Grammy in the kitchen :)

must be a compelling cartoon moment

for Zack too!

Wonderful Day!

2011-01-18T11:02:00.000-08:00

Heghine and Ammon

Justin, Rheanna, Eric, Mandy, Katie holding Mercedes, Todd holding Lincoln, me, Dad, Susannah, Spencer

a happy day for all

Heghine and Ammon in front of the Denver Temple on their sealing day

Down the road on the 26th

2010-12-30T17:46:00.000-08:00

Ethan is liking the looks of Laura's Christmas Tree birthday cake!

D'ya think Laura's already tired of opening gifts before her birthday even starts? Nah!

Brigham in his Pi shirt

David in his new fedora

Christmas morning

2010-12-30T16:38:00.000-08:00

Lincoln finding a few treats in his stocking

trying a basket on his head

Bart and Anne's big present for Mum, hiding behind the loveseat

can she guess what it is??

Her expression reads: Now I know what it is, I can't believe it, and I'm gonna love it!

more Christmas happenings

2010-12-30T16:24:00.000-08:00

Christmas Breakfast at Spencer's and Ivy's

Dads and their baby girls - finished the pizza, waiting for banana splits on Christmas Eve

Surprise!

2010-12-30T15:58:00.000-08:00

Todd and Katie and kiddies totally surprised us in the wee hours of Thursday morning - what a wonderful addition to our Christmas this year!

So cute of Mercedes in her Christmas jammies!

Here's Katie and Mercedes and Lincoln on Christmas Eve

Zack, Logan, Lincoln, and Abram watchin' a Christmas movie and snackin' at Grammy's

Gingerbread boys and girls getting ready for delivery :)

Christmas party

2010-12-30T15:42:00.001-08:00

Dover Branch Christmas pageant

Ethan and Abe were shepherds, Annie Clukey as Mary and Sean Billingsley as Joseph

Zack and Logan were among the sheep

Laura and Shelby as angels

Creche 2010

2010-12-30T15:29:00.001-08:00

We spent 14 days (along with a few others) helping to set up, host, and tear down this year's stake exhibit - exhausting to say the least. About 1400 visitors. There's gotta be a better way to do this - very labor intensive.

my favorite

Chapel display

This life-size Nativity is made of paper mache

Autumn pouring in our window

2010-10-25T12:09:00.000-07:00

Ethan often rides home from Church with us - he's a sweetie!

Ferry ride to the light house

2010-10-25T12:02:00.000-07:00

Water Front Restaurant and out on the Atlantic

2010-10-25T11:51:00.000-07:00

Camden by the sea

2010-10-25T11:43:00.000-07:00

Nathan wanted to eat fish - but he liked the French fries better :)

Borestone Mountain climb

2010-10-25T11:37:00.000-07:00

Autumn visits

2010-10-25T11:22:00.000-07:00

Labor Day cookout and Daisy's blessing day

2010-10-25T11:13:00.000-07:00

more scenes from girls camp

2010-08-20T13:05:00.000-07:00

Jessica climbing the wall

Dover's mailboxes

the Dover YW: Autumn, Jessica, Feliecha, Ivy, Monica, and Lauralee

scenes from girls camp

2010-08-20T12:55:00.001-07:00

Little Fitts Pond

Jessica was a youth leader this year - she had to be there a day early to help set up camp. They made directional signs for the campers coming the next day.

This is the main lodge at Camp Roosevelt - where we ate most meals.

new couch

2010-08-20T12:37:00.000-07:00

"The boys" trying out the new couch earlier today

This was waiting for me when I arrived home from Girls Camp Wednesday afternoon. We are loving having a couch, after going without one since we moved in in June. We watched a couple hours of Lark Rise to Candleford that very night in total comfort! The matching loveseat is supposed to arrive in 4-6 weeks - maybe by then I'll have the walls and floor and ceiling done. It is my hope!!!!!!

more changes

2010-08-20T12:17:00.000-07:00

This is taken with my back to the south window in our bedroom - the doorway is taller than it looks here due to a piece of the ceiling hanging at the top of the door. Dad keeps at it - thankfully we decided to hire trashbusters to pick up our trash weekly - they've certainly earned their money with all our demolition debris!

This is looking down what used to be the hallway toward our bedroom. It's fun to see the changes. Eric and Mandy are brave to come in the middle of all this - we're trying to get the walls re-aligned before their arrival. I'm sure the decorating won't be done, but at least the demolition will be over.

2010-08-09T06:11:00.000-07:00

Dad picked the rest of the yellow transparents this morning, so I'm turning them into applesauce. These early apples make the best sauce of all!

Please excuse the chaos, but this gives you an idea of how open it now is at the top of the stairs - soon to be wall to wall books - it will be so wonderful to clear the attic of books and have them all at our fingertips.

2010-08-09T05:49:00.000-07:00

Susannah's kitties - anyone want one?? :) One has been given away - these two have yet to find homes. They like our porch and flower garden.

Dad's first summer back from our mission is a busy one for sure, between renovating our upstairs and his big garden. The garden has grown alot since this picture was taken - we're getting tons of cucumbers, the tomatoes are beginning to ripen, and we've even had a couple of ears of early corn. I noticed the pole beans are setting on - so we;ll be having those before this weekend - all thanks to his hard work. The renovation is coming along slowly, with all the demolition, building, and electrical and plumbing issues, but we've bought our tile for the bathroom, the vanity, and tub, so we're getting there. I'll post a later pic of this same view, so you can see the changes in what will eventually be a cozy library.

2010-08-09T05:32:00.000-07:00

Ivy's 27th

Grampy and Daisy :)

Reading to the boys

Gram's 83rd Birthday!!

2010-07-10T19:00:00.000-07:00

Gram's 83rd Birthday!

Those are raspberries atop that cake - we are picking several quarts every day! The deer flies did their best to ruin the evening - especially bothering Gram and Ivy. Otherwise, it was fun.

opening gifts

Zack and Abe with Gram
\

Waiting for others to arrive

Ivy's Happy Birthday banner was just the right touch!

July happenings

2010-07-10T18:39:00.000-07:00

We had a nice breakfast and flag-raising on July 3rd. We all brought muffins, coffe cakes, fresh fruit etc. had it outside - sang the national anthem - Bob gave a short inspiring talk. It felt good to be an American (and to be in America!) - I love this country!!

Strawberry season came early to Maine this year and it almost got by us without us noticing - thank goodness Gram told us the picking was good at Thunder Road Farms in Corinna - we actually didn't end up going there, because they were down for a couple of days - but it got us in gear. We took Susannah, Laura, James, and Ethan with us to Tate's in Corinth. We picked 40 quarts total. We came home and made strawberry shortcakes (of course!) and enjoyed berries and cream and froze a bunch. Gram has made a couple batches of freezer jam too.

Rumpelstiltskin

2010-06-17T10:47:00.000-07:00

Zachary, Logan, and Abram took a break from bicycle tricks

one sunny morning this week to listen to Rumpelstiltskin, an

old linen book Nana Dow had in her attic

Margaret's wedding

2010-06-17T10:25:00.000-07:00

Three sweethearts! Gram, Aunt Sal, and Aunt Judy the day of Margaret's wedding, June 5th.
Sal made the wedding cake

Scott and Margaret Davis with Margaret 's children: Amanda,

Morgan, and Taylor (don't know who the man on the left is)

East Dover Scenes

2010-06-17T08:34:00.000-07:00

I was surprised one rainy day this spring to find this chipmunk perched atop a tire on our car - getting in out of the rain - just had to grab the camera!

This is of the Isaac Royal Farm (the buildings were actually built by Josiah Dow - Isaac Royal cleared the land - he was John Paul Jones' ccabin boy). Dad and I often walk to the windmill and back for our daily exercise. It's exactly 1 mile from our house and a good challenge climbing Patten's hill.

Another scene from our walk most days is this view of the Piscataquis River from the East Dover bridge. You can see the remnants of what was a gristmill and later a light station for the local power company in the early 1900s there on the left. The first settlement in the area was near here along the banks of the river.

Memorial Day

2010-06-16T14:13:00.001-07:00

We had a family get-together at Susannah and Dade's a couple of weeks ago. They grilled hamburgers and hotdogs on their new gas grill on the deck and we all brought salads and desserts. The kids jumped themselves silly on their trampoline. It was a fun afternoon.

new furniture

2010-06-16T08:51:00.000-07:00

Some views of our new dining room furniture, which we love because it isn't too big when we don't have the 18 inch leaf in. The dark wood shows off the beautiful doilies our Armenian friends made for us. The bench actually went with another set, but it goes well with ours and it's great to sit 3 grandsons on for Saturday night pizza - which we did while Spencer and Ivy went out to eat on their anniversary last week.

Shower for Ivy

2010-06-16T08:27:00.000-07:00

Ivy's pregnant profile at 32 weeks

Elizabeth and Alyssa did the cake

Ivy's visiting teachers (Aunt Judy and Louise Vanio) and Elizabeth Walsh and Alyssa Gosselin hosted a baby shower for Ivy on June 4th. About 25 attended and she got tons of girly clothes - lots of pink! :)

Ivy loved the baby afghan Rheanna made for her - lots of oohs and ahhs when she unwrapped it. Rheanna had given me the afghan to bring home with me when we flew home from Utah in April - so I wrapped it up for the shower.

3 days on the road

2009-08-10T03:43:00.000-07:00

We stayed the first night at this charming little hotel in Goris, which is nestled in the mountains and we have decided is a far more picturesque city than Yerevan - the hotel was surrounded by beautiful flower gardens and fruit trees. There were 5 senior couples, the Mission President and his wife, and one of our District Presidents and his wife and other family members - we rode in 3 vehicles - had a great time. We all ate dinner together at the hotel restaurant Friday night (Armenian dolma, lavash, cherry juice, ice cream, and water melon) - then we took our chairs outside to the garden area and held a fireside type meeting.

Here is Dad at the Armenian Stone Henge later the same day.

We went on a 3 day Senior Missionary trip/conference this last weekend. We did alot of traveling to places we had never been in the southern part of the country - even went to the Iranian border. It was soooooo nice to get out of the city - you can imagine how happy Dad was to see animals and agriculture along the way. I will do several posts to cover the highlights. This first picture is of us on Friday morning at Norverank Monastary - this was actually our second visit to this site.

2009-08-04T04:07:00.000-07:00

Saturday night at our apartment.

more of Ammon's visit

2009-08-04T03:44:00.000-07:00

Another one of Ammon, Dad and Poghos.

Ammon and Heghine (hay-gee-nay), his last night. They made supper for us - he did the tacos and she made cream puffs - all very delicious! He flew out early the next morning and Dad and I sure miss him - but wow! were those leftovers yummy!!

This is at our translator, Lusine's family apartment. They had us come for khoravats (Amenian barbecue) one hot Saturday afternoon about halfway into Ammon's stay.

Here Ammon is (at Dad's request) telling Poghos about rock climbing.

Ammon's visit

2009-08-04T03:39:00.000-07:00

Ammon and Dad at Garni temple

Ammon and Heghine at our apartment

Dad, Abtin, Mushegh, Hayk, Ammon, Diana, and Heghine in front of the Mother of Armenia Statue.

Pictures from Ammon's visit in July

2009-08-04T03:33:00.000-07:00

Some of our Self-Employment Workshop participants in Vanadzor

2009-08-04T03:31:00.000-07:00

More views on the way to Vanadzor

2009-08-04T03:24:00.000-07:00

These are braided greens and herbs that are hung to dry and then used throughout the winter is soups and stews, by just cutting off the amount needed for flavor. We stopped so Lusine could buy a couple and we could smell them the rest of the trip though they were put in the trunk. Very fragrant!

no pics

2009-06-30T00:58:00.000-07:00

We are off to Vanadzor again today. We've been teaching a self-employment workshop up there on Wednesdays to 10 people - tonight is the final class. It's about a 2 hour drive by taxi from Yerevan and this time we hope to get some pictures along the way. Northern Armenia is very beautiful and I will prove it with some good shots next time I post if we can get out of here in time this afternoon. We are hoping to leave the office by 2:30, but I'm getting my haircut at 2:00 - so who knows what time we'll actually be able to leave? My hair is driving me crazy - time for a cut for sure! It's a real challenge to communicate with non-English speaking hairdressers, so it's hard to tell what the outcome will be. Last time, I told her to leave the back longish and she zinged it off shorter than ever! If it turns out okay - I may post a picture of the results - otherwise - I'll stay behind the camera! :) Wish me luck!!

Botannical Garden

2009-06-25T03:10:00.000-07:00

Dad and Gagik picking and eating mulberries - very plentiful here and throughout the city. Some of the mulberry trees are very large and make a sticky mess all over the sidewalks as the berries ripen and fall. There are 3 varieties: black, white, and red.

Don't know what these are, but thought they were too pretty to pass up.

Smoke bush in all its glory!

The Tadevosyans - Gagik is a former Branch President and a retired Yerevan State University professor of Applied Mathematics. Zhenya made us terrific dolma (rice meat mixture rolled in grape leaves and steamed - very tasty!). We ate lunch at their apartment after our garden tour.

Here we are on Wednesday morning - our first time to the Botannical Garden here in Yerevan. You can see the top of Ararat behind us. The garden wasn't spectacular or anything like that, but it is big and we enjoyed the fresh morning air and country-like setting - it was a nice break from city traffic and views.

2009-06-01T00:56:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed a returned missionary fireside at President Dunn's on Saturday night. The young man in the foreground is Grigor - he just got home this last winter from his mission in Ukraine. These young men and women are the future of the Church here in Armenia - if we can just get them to stay here! We've lost 6 RMs just this last month to the U.S.

2009-06-01T00:46:00.000-07:00

Our lunch! The sister with the curly hair, Ani, has her mission call and will report to the MRC the first of July. She is going to the Russia Rostov Mission.

Our District RS President - Sister Sahteneek (in pink) - her daughter recently married a returned missionary who served here and is now living in Orem. They are being sealed this month and Sister Sahteneek received her visa Friday, so she will be there for their sealing and will visit with them for 2 weeks. She is very happy!

2009-06-01T00:37:00.000-07:00

These 2 sisters asked me to take their picture. We had a District RS activity on Saturday - it was held outdoors mostly - we did a sewing project, played some games, and had refreshments.

2009-06-01T00:30:00.000-07:00

Our office is brightened by these beautiful roses one of our returned sister missionaries brought to us last week. She picked them from her family's garden.

Remembering Truman G. Madsen

2009-05-29T00:14:00.000-07:00

Truman Madsen passed away yesterday. He was our Mission President in the 1960s. I vividly recall sitting in a District Conference in the old Bangor meetinghouse on Center
Street, daydreaming through the session, as 10 year olds sometimes do, when my eyes passed over President Madsen, who was addressing the congregation - he was glowing - I mean really glowing. A light from within. I remember it well, because at the same time the spirit witnessed to me in a profound way that what he was saying was absolutely true and that I was to pay attention and listen carefully. He was testifying of the reality of the Restoration of the Gospel and the sacred role that the Prophet Joseph Smith played in its coming forth. It was a pivotal event for me.