Sparta Ward Primary Presidency at Work

Joni - Becky- Megan

This is us. The Sparta Ward primary presidency for at least one more week. Becky is moving back to Minnesota at the end of the month. We will miss her. Well about the picture. Megan has had the month from h...e...double toothpick. I was gone to California for the quilt show, Becky was gone for house hunting, so Megan did primary by herself that sunday. When she got home, her home was flooded. A pipe broke in the pantry (could it be because it was -12 degrees) and they had 2 inches of water everywhere!!!! The next week, no water, and then yesterday the pipe that feeds the dishwasher decides to start leaking, flooding the house again. Thank goodness it didn't hit the hardwood the contrators have started to lay. Well this is us painting her entryway. It has 19 foot ceilings and I was the trim girl. Note: The older you get, the harder it is to climb ladders, but I did it!!! It looks really good, but we have to go back in for a second coat. Our husbands were there helping also, but we didn't get them in the picture. Actually Mick was up on the ladder. Hopefully they can move out of the hotel this week, going on 4 weeks there. The best part of this whole post.......these girls are in their 20's and they like to hang out with me. Either that or they do a really good job making me feel that way. I LOVE IT!!!!! Oh and by the way.....Megans three little boys officially adopted Mick and I as another set of Grandparents!!!!

Road to California Quilt Show

Most of you know that I flew back to California the 13th through the 22nd of January to work at my old job doing the Road to Clifornia quilt show. I love working these shows. It is a lot of work, but you meet a lot of talented people and I get to hang out with the old gang. This is us after packing everything up after the show. L to R: Ginger (awesome quilter and now the go to girl for Threaded Pear Studios), Pamala (use to be bookkeeper of Cranberry Quiltworks, but now is co-owners of a new quilt store with Gina), me (Jersey girl now), Gina (owner of Cranberry Quiltworks, Threaded Pear Studios and now co-owner of quilt store, a very talented and busy mom, wife and creative person), Corni (she is now the go to girl at Cranberry. She longarm quilts also), Kaye (a great friend to everyone at the store. She does their sample quilts, puts together kits and will do anything you ask. She is a fun friend and a grandmother of 4), and Mike (longarm quilter who is now helping Gina with the Cranberry business). I miss working with all these people. There are a few more that aren't in the picture too. Joyce, Derryl, Cindi, and a few more part timers. It is a very fun place to work. Check out Gina's website for quilting. www.quiltersbuzz.com

Snow day

Ok it has been snowing all day. They first said 2-3 feet of snow, then they said 1-2 inches. Well we have 6 out there and it is still coming down. Wouldn't you love to be the weatherman and only have to be correct 50 percent of the time at your job. Well I got the driveway cleared and it already has another 2 inches back on it. It is a long driveway!!!!

Sled ride............egads!!!!!!

Ok, Janelle and I are at Sams Club and they have this really cool red snow sled with flames even for $22. Hey it's my birthday so I treat myself to one. On the way home I decide to try it out on the local sledding hill. Janelle kept telling me not to do it. I was too old, I'll break something. Well sledding and ice skating on one of the frozen lakes here in jersey is on my bucket list before we move, so away I go. The picture is of me whooping and laughing and having a grand old time!Very shortly after the picture was taken the sled decides to flip around and go backwards. Egads...........visions of Lava Hot Springs are now dancing in my head. Remember my river run this summer, the one where the inner tube turns around backwards, I go over a rapid, flip over backwards, scrapping my knee, (still have the scar to prove it), hitting my head on a lava rock and losing my glasses? Well at the bottom of the hill is a huge ice field. There is also a little jump. I can just picture me flipping over backwards, hitting my head, breaking my new glasses, and maybe even getting a concussion, so I bail out. Yes, I bail out. Now I am going down the hill on my back, coat sleeve is pulling up, arm is bleeding and my back and gluteous maximus are getting a real beating. Was I hooping and hollering at the bottom of the hill. No way!!!! The first thing Janelle yells is, "well are you going to take the sled back!?!"
No way, when we have a new fluffy snowfall, you will see me back on the hill with my red snow sled with the really cool flames. Maybe I'll have Janelle video it, because if we had videoed it you would be rolling on the carpet right now cracking up at the old lady from California, sledding on the local sledding hill in Andover, New Jersey.
aka. Mick keeps telling me I don't have to do everything the locals do.

Snow and Ice

OK you have to love the snowplow guys. They keep the roads so clean and clear...........BUT what about the driveways. The snowplow came through late one evening and cleared the melting snow from the roads. But then during the 9 degree night, it froze into a huge ice wall. Mick made it over in the 4 wheel drive truck, Janelle and I.........well lets just say we had to get out the snow shovel and ice pick a path to get out of the driveway.

January 6, 2009

Tuesday morning we took Eleanor to the airport. She is on the porch with mom. Then we took the plant tour at M&M Mars. It is a fasinating tour of how they make peanut and plain m&M's. The best part is they let you sample the product in the various stages. My favorite is right when the peanuts come out of the roaster and the M&M right after they have dusted it with the powder sugar. we even scored a variety box of all their candy bars and snack products. Bob and Karyn, Albert and Pat headed right to the train station to head into NYC. they missed the train at Dover so drove into the city. Bob drove and Albert was the navigator. They did great and made it just in time for Wicked. While they were at the show we had a huge ice storm. It was fasinating how the whole earth was covered in 1/4 inch of ice. You could have skated on the driveway and if you could have gotten the ice off the Yukon you would have had a perfect ice model. Theneighbors were watching me through the windows trying to scrap off the ice from the windows. I couldn't get my feet planted to scrap and kept sliding backwards. I'm always good for comic relief!!!

House Count: 9

Wednesday was suppose to be the George Washington's winter encampment but because of the ice storm, all we did was get the Utah Harmers to the airport. It was great fun having everyone.

House count: 5

Thursday my parents flew back to Washington. The house is so quiet and I'm really sad, but we have great memories of New Years 2009 on the east coast. Thanks Mick for an awesome Christmas and Birthday present.

House count: Back to 3!!! I think the landlord that lives right next door is sighing relief.

Then it was get ready for the ward game night here on saturday where we had 8 couples this month (even with a huge snowstorm that day and evening), 10 couples last month and then I flew out to California to work the road to California Quilt Show with my old job on tuesday.

January 5, 2009

OK have to admit that this day was a little selfish on my part. When the Orlands came to visit in October we went to Hyde Park NY to see the FDR home and sights there. There was so much to see that all we visited was FDR's family home, his summer cottage and Eleanor's home. We just didn't have time to do it all. So when planning the events for this group I made sure we went back to Hyde Park. Well we got there at 10am only to find out we had just missed the home tour. They had just barely opened because of an ice storm, so we asked if they could do a special tour for us since we were a group 7. OK they said. Well come to find out, they didn't do the 9:45 tour because we were the FIRST VISITORS of the day. Government jobs!?! We toured the family home, then headed to Eleanors home and then buzzed over to the Vanderbilt mansion only to be told the next tour was 2 hours away. Again we talked them into giving us a special tour. What an amazing place. Everything is exactly like when the Vanderbilts lived there. What a home tour it was. All the homes were still decorated for Christmas and the trees were spectacular at the mansion. The picture is the view from the home of the Hudson River and the back of the Vanderbilt Mansion.
House Count: Still 10

January 4,2009

Today all the Harmers headed to Liberty State Park to catch the ferry from the Jersey side and head to the Statue of Liberty and tour Ellis Island. The Wards including Jamie went to church and then we took Jamie down to the park to meet the Manwarings for their flight back to utah. Jamie headed back to start winter semester at BYU and the Manwarings to head back to school and work. It was great fun being with my cousin Mer and her family. Maybe next time they come to visit they won't have to stay in the basement!!!
House count: 10

Happy Birthday Grandma, Mom, sister, aunt you name it

January 3rd is my moms birthday so we celebrated it at the historic Philadelphia Tavern for lunch. What better way to spend your birthday, with all your brothers, sister, and family.
Love you MOM!!!!

January 3, 2009

Trip to Philadelphia would not be complete without a run up the stairs that Rocky took while training in the movie Rocky. Philadelphia Museum of Art. Then it was home to Jersey once again.

House count: 18

Albert and Bob sitting in the pew Geroge Washington sat in when he attended church in philadelphia. Jamie is in Besty Ross' pew.

Walking the oldest inhabited street in the United States Elfreths Alley.

On the porch of Historic Bond home where we stayed. Great Bed and Breakfast.

Liberty Bell in Philadelphia.