Carson's First Quad Ride

Everyone came over after our Stake Conference. We finally had a Sunday that Rick didn't have any Bishopric meetings till 6 p.m. so he got out the little quad to take Carson for a ride.

Rick has been dreaming of the day when he could take his little grandson for a quad ride.
Carson didn't cry but was scared and shaking while riding around on it in the backyard.He much prefered sliding down the slide.
But eventually he warmed up to the idea. Rick had fun anyway!
Chopper enjoyed chomping on his steak bone. I love these Sunday's when we can all relax and enjoy family time and the beautiful outdoors together.

Craig's Visit

A relaxing moment with my brother Craig, his wife Debbie and mom. Looking at the fountain go off up at Fountain Hills. It was a little breezy that day and the water cooled us off. A rousing game of Scrabble up at the Lake.We got some Subway sandwhiches and enjoyed eating them by the lake and watched the boats go by. We practically had the place to ourselves. If you go you might want to purchase ahead of time a recreation pass. I didn't have one and was nervous the whole time thinking I was going to get a ticket.


We brought our dog Bentley and the squirrels had a blast teasing him.
This is Sherriff Joe's Chain Gang hard at work. Look closely and you can see they are women in chains. This was taken on the corner of Brown and Stapley. My brother who lives in California knows all about Sherriff Joe and LOVES him. We finished the day with a great Mexican dinner at our favorite restaurant "Tia Rosa". What a fun Family Day.

Mom's Birthday

Happy 88th Birthday Shout out to my mom (Doris Marjorie 'Lee' Bashore) . My brother Craig and his wife Debbie came over
to help celebrate the happy occasion. We had alot of fun trying to blow out the self lighting candles. We got kind of concerned she would pass out from trying to blow them out. Mom is still doing well, loves to play scrabble twice a week, enjoys reading and getting together for family gatherings. She is a wonderful mom and brings so much joy into our lives. She has had a life long
love of music and played the violin in symphony orchestra's all the way up into her early 80's. She loved to garden, sew, refinished antique furniture and belonged to many social clubs. She grew up in Valley City, North Dakota and went to Pomona College in So. Calif where she met my Dad. They lived in the same house near there beloved college for 56 years, until they moved to Mesa 3 years ago. They are enjoying a more restful and carefree life style out in sunny Arizona.HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM

Conference Weekend = Family Gathering

Everyone came over for dinner on Sunday. Kenzie took some great pictures of the kids I wanted to post. The most powerful talk I heard at Conference was Elder Hollands talk on Christ and his crucifixion. It left a lasting impression on me.

Annette's Baby Shower

Good Food - Family and Friends for a fun time at Annette's baby shower- due end of May.
Darling cake from "Sugar Lips"
Rosa's makes the perfect party place.
This baby will make 3 boys and 1 girl and still smiling......

Tour De Phoenix

On Your Mark - Get Set - GO!! The start of the Tour De Phoenix. Rick handing off a water bottle to Jon going up the backside of Usary Pass.
Jon came in just under 3 hours after a 70 plus mile ride. He got platinum and that was his goal.
A great ride and happy ending.
The next generation rider.
Jon and Bryce happy it's over. Bryce is our hometeacher and came in 6th overall!

Top of Shea Blvd. scenic view of the West Valley.
Mesa's finest helping keep the riders safe.


Ivette -- Jon's better half. The best part of the ride - lunch at Ned's Crazy Sub.
Congrat's Jon...job well done.

Mel's Visit

Been 6 years since my brother has come to visit me from Utah. We had a really nice reunion. My parents especially enjoyed the visit. We went on a picnic to the Botanical Gardens and saw the beautiful Chihuly glass sculptors on display. They are very unique and interesting along with the cactus. They will be on display till May.

Visiting from Canada

Today I spent the day in Queen Creek with my daughter-in-law's mother Norma, visiting from Canada. She had never been to Kohl's before and we had a great time bargain shopping, my favorite pastime and had lunch at Chipotle's. It was a perfect afternoon. I also got a picture of my son Jon and his cute bulldog "Chopper". Chopper's favorite pastime is to go down the neighborhood slide. (I wouldn't want to be the child that slid down right after him.)

Hollywood or weird

This is WEIRD because after our Thanksgiving dinner we drove over to Calif. and got to Grammas at about 9 p.m. That was one big jam packed day. Our plan was to go to Universal Studios the next day, but we got a late start and decided to just drive to Hollywood and see the sights. First off we had to go see if we could find Rob and Big's house. It was up in the Hollywood hills about 5 minutes from Universal Studios. Rob and Big is a reality t.v. show that is kind of WEIRD but I liked it because he had a miniature horse and a bull dog at his house. The show isn't on anymore and the house is up for sale. But we still had fun finding it. Then we ate at Tommy's Burger and the memories of our teenage years came flooding back. That was one of the first dates Rick took me on when we were dating. It's a different kind of hamburger that they smother with chili. (Sounds Weird) Then we joined the masses walking up and down Hollywood Blvd. Saw Hollywood High School where all the famous movie star teens went to school. Steve Horvath even went there.
We saw lots of WEIRD characters walking around in costumes. Then we went back to Grammas and ate out with our good friends Shawn and Jane. The next day Rick went Motorcyle riding up in the mountains with Shawn and Kenzie and I went shopping at the Santa Anita Mall and saw "Twilight". We finished it off by enjoying a nice roaring fire at Gramma's place. We always enjoy going over to see the folks.

The Spread

I tried a couple new dishes for Thanksgiving. Stuffed mushrooms from my good friend Dolores.
She's 100% Italian from Massachusetts. Then I tried the 12 layer jello from my daughter in law Lachelle (it took all day to make). I loved both of these recipes and will keep them as a tradition. I always seem to try out new recipes I've never done before. One was the green bean casserole with water chestnuts and mushrooms. I liked it but not a big hit with the crowd. What everyone loved was the orange rolls from Gramma Green and the Sweet Potatoe Casserole I'm going to claim. Danny made a pumpkin pie that wasn't really pumpkin but butternut squash pie that tasted better than pumpkin. Ivette made her famous French Apple Pie. The turkey was cooked in a turkey roaster and in a turkey bag. I had it in there about 4 1/2 hours and it still wasn't done. Next year I won't stuff the turkey if it in the turkey roaster. Two ovens would really be a help. But you just have to bloom where your planted and make due.

My Freedom Fighters