Tuesday, November 17, 2009

I Hate Leaves

In my yard, there are a lot of trees. I mean a whole lot of trees; with big leaves; and they all fall to the ground every year. And they take their sweet time to do it. I don't know whether that is good or bad because in one way I'd like to take care of them all at once instead of over a month and a half but then again, if they all came down at the same time, we would probably either suffocate or get lost for a week trying to get out of the yard.

Last week on Veteran's Day, the last good weather day we had, I spent several hours mulching leaves on the west driveway. It gets especially bad there because the driveway is lined with hybrid poplars and they have a lot of very big leaves. In the past we've bagged them but this year I decided to mulch the lot. I usually mulch the leaves on the lawn but last year I bought a lawn vac to give it a try. I eventually took it back to Sears because it kept getting clogged up with the twigs that also come down. Man, the Sears' guys gave me dirty looks that day.

So back to Veteran's Day, after I mulched the leaves that had fallen on the driveway, I raked leaves out of the ditch and onto the driveway to mulch them. There was so many, I had to do it a couple of times (mind you, I've been mulching the leaves on the driveway every week for a month at this point). It was worse this year because my neighbor raked up the leaves which had fallen from my trees into his yard and dumped them back into my yard. I can't blame him really, I probably be unhappy with those leaves if I was him.

This photo is the driveway covered with leaves for the third time in the same day and I have run the mower through the middle of the pile one time.


The photo below is the finished product. There are probably about 4 feet of leaves mulched on the driveway from this day alone.


Now I have to pray there is a good weather day this week to finish up the leaves on the lawn. I've mulched them about 5 times and I think 1 more should do the trick.

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Halloween 2009

Unfortunately, Dustin had to work on Halloween night so I was able to go join PJ and the Dukatz family as they trick or treated around their Riverton neighborhood. In case you wonder, PJ is Wolverine (as in X-men) and Trey is a ninja.




After PJ's bag was so full he couldn't hardly carry it;


We went over to Tata's (Senta's) house;


And we finally ended up at Nana's house;


Where PJ smiles with the pumpkin Nana carved for him.


For a look at all the Halloween photos, check out my my picasa site at this link.

Friday, October 30, 2009

Parker & Trey Painting Pumpkins

In a previous post, I mentioned that I had more photos of PJ and Trey. On this particular night, they used PJ's finger paints to decorate a couple of pumpkins. They started out fairly clean and quiet but ended up a little messy and loud. By the way, this is my second post of the evening. If you missed the previous post, scroll down and take a look.



The Old Rock House

I mentioned previously that I would post a photo of the framed etching of the Old Rock House that Sharon gave me. So here it is. To get a better view of the etching, click on it to enlarge. Also, if you look closely, you can see a reflection of the photographer in the glass, so don't look to closely.

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Matting and Framing Class

Something that has been on my mind for a number of years is that I've got some artwork that means a lot to me and I should get it framed. The only thing is, it costs a fortune to get anything framed, even if you have a 50% off coupon for Michael's or Robert's. I noticed in this semester's community education flyer that they were offering a Matting and Framing class. So I decided to take it so that I could get some things mounted and framed. The first piece I worked on was a pastel that Senta gave me for Father's Day a couple of years ago. I personally like how it turned out.

The second piece is an etching of some kind that Sharon made of the Old Rock House in Fielding. It has been hanging on the wall of my Office for I don't know how many years, with just a ratty old mat. When I showed it to the class instructor, she just about went ballistic on how great it was. I'll post a photo of it when it is finished.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

I've Been a Bad Boy

You're right, Mom, I have been a bad boy and haven't kept my blog up for awhile. This complaint from my dear Mother has caused me to rethink my priorities and get my life in order. I'm doing this by posting some photos to my blog. As usual, since our life revolves around the grandchild, most of the photos will be of PJ.

RODEO

Last July, I think it was, PJ and I were over at the Green Park after dark. We could see lights and hear a crowd over at the rodeo grounds. When I realized that the rodeo was going on, I asked PJ if he wanted to go see the rodeo. He is usually game for anything so we walked over. Luckily for me the ticket booth was closed and we walked right in. Imagine my delight to see that the barrel races were just starting. In my opinion, there isn't anything better at a rodeo than the barrel racers, and I don't say that just because JoAnn used to be a barrel racer. I know this photo is blurry, but it was the best I could do with a cellphone.

PRESCHOOL

This September, PJ started preschool with Trey. I think the school is somewhere in Herriman. Anyway, PJ was pretty proud of himself for not crying the first day although he did admit he was a little sad.


PJ & TREY ON THURSDAY

As I'm sure you know, JoAnn and I watch PJ every Thursday night. As of late, PJ's best friend, PJ and Trey have been asking if Trey can come along. I almost always say yes because they get along so well and play together so well that, in some ways it is easier for me. The first photo is in the sandbox (duh), the second is at the gas station where they delight in making a mess, I mean washing the windows, and the third is them taking a tandem ride on one of the Walmart amusement rides. Luckily, there is no one to police the area or I'm sure we would have been in trouble.





I've got some others but it is late and my c-pap machine is calling my name. I 'll try to do better, Mom, I swear I will.

Monday, September 14, 2009

Golden Spike Journey

When Richie was home in August (we only do fun things when Richie is home), we decided to take a trip to the Golden Spike Historical Monument, with a stop at the Hill Air Force Base Museum. The trip started out with a massive traffic jam in North Salt Lake (it took 45 minutes to go two miles). It was 98 degrees, and the AC was off because the temperature gauge was going up a too much for my liking. It was amazing to me what a good traveler PJ was that day.


It is amazing the number and kinds of aircraft they have at the HAFBM. If anyone is interested in planes of any kind, it is a great place to visit.


We barely made it to the Golden Spike for the moving of the trains. It wasn't a show of the driving of the spike, they just moved the trains up and down the tracks a couple of times. They warn you to cover your ears when they blow the whistle because it is very LOUD! By the way, there are no photos of Richie because he had the camera.