Thanks and with love

We really enjoyed Braden. We will all miss him, his "teenhimers" and fun personality. I think he is finally learning that half (or more) of what Dad says he cannot believe. We have really enjoyed having a teen around the place again. It has been fun.

I am not writing this because I want money. I will be insulted if you send money. Gramps and I did what we wanted to do because we wanted to do it. You are always good to us when we come to see you and we wanted to be good to Braden when he came to see us. What I need is a solution. 

They have raised the price of the fishing licenses for out-of-state fishers. We paid $32 for Braden for a one-week license (the fewest days possible because they no longer have a five-day license). That is OK. But when both boys come with you, you might be aware that it costs so much. I don't know, if in the future, we should just go someplace camping, which seemed to be what Braden enjoyed more than fishing, or if you think that is an OK price. He really wanted to skip the fishing trip and stay longer with the Westerns but Dad had already paid for the license and Braden had just been overnight with Dad when they took the trailer up so I made him come back and go. I said, "Who did you come to see, Westerns or Grammy?" He said, "Them. I won't see them for a whole year." Of course, he said it with a smile. But I made him go fishing because I wanted my money's worth out of the license. (Bad Grammy!) Jim and Julie had also set aside time to go just so they could be with Braden. I hope he had fun. I sort of kept him on his feet. We went for walks and fished and, I hope, had fun. Jim had fun. Mary had fun. I hope Braden had fun. 

Anyway, back to the topic, do you think the boys, Braden and Benjamin, like fishing as much as just being in the mountains? Todd and his family seemed to enjoy being in the mountains. We went up to Ponderosa. (They and the Gordons did go to Yellowstone after that.) But your boys are older and they may really like the fishing part. (Also, Todd only has one boy over 12.)

Also we may need a different place to go, other than Ferron. They have made some changes to the dam, because it leaked. Well, it still leaks so the solution is to let more water out and not hold as much in the reservoir. There is no way to launch a big boat like the one Grandpa gave to us. Only little canoes and smaller boats that can be carried into the water work there now. We sold the little boat. (The island is not much of an island anymore. You can walk to it.) Put your thinking cap on and let me know. 

Read with love

We really enjoyed Braden. We will all miss him, his "teenhimers" and fun personality. I think he is finally learning that half (or more) of what Dad says he cannot believe. We have really enjoyed having a teen around the place again. It has been fun.

I am not writing this because I want money. I will be insulted if you send money. Gramps and I did what we wanted to do because we wanted to do it.  You are always good to us when we come to see you and we wanted to be good to Braden when he came to see us. What I need is a solution.

They have raised the price of the fishing licenses for out-of-state fishers. We paid $32 for Braden for a one-week license (the fewest days possible because they no longer have a five-day license). That is OK. But when both boys come with you, you might be aware that it costs so much. I don't know, if in the future, we should just go someplace camping, which seemed to be what Braden enjoyed more than fishing, or if you think that is an OK price. He really wanted to skip the fishing trip and stay longer with the Westerns but Dad had already paid for the license and Braden had just been overnight with Dad when they took the trailer up so I made him come back and go. I said, "Who did you come to see, Westerns or Grammy?"  He said, "Them. I won't see them for a whole year." Of course, he said it with a smile. But I made him go fishing because I wanted my money's worth out of the license. (Bad Grammy!) Jim and Julie had also set aside time to go just so they could be with Braden. I hope he had fun. I sort of kept him on his feet. We went for walks and fished and, I hope, had fun. Jim had fun. Mary had fun. I hope Braden had fun.

Anyway, back to the topic, do you think the boys, Braden and Benjamin, like fishing as much as just being in the mountains? Todd and his family seemed to enjoy being in the mountains. We went up to Ponderosa. (They and the Gordons did go to Yellowstone after that.) But your boys are older and they may really like the fishing part. (Also, Todd only has one boy over 12.)

Also we may need a different place to go, other than Ferron. They have made some changes to the dam, because it leaked. Well, it still leaks so the solution is to let more water out and not hold as much in the reservoir. There is no way to launch a big boat like the one Grandpa gave to us. Only little canoes and smaller boats that can be carried into the water work there now. We sold the little boat. (The island is not much of an island anymore. You can walk to it.) Put your thinking cap on and let me know.
Love, Mom

Melanie wrote: We were planning on taking them fishing in New Hampshire in August, because they asked us to. I know they like the camping. Scouts has done wonders to help build up tolerance. Tell Dad that I am sending him the reimbursement for the chaperone. It should be there in a few days. I will send it as a gift check, which I will have paid cash for, but you can deposit it or use it like a traveler's check.

Thank you for all the time. He had a good time. He was so excited that he didn't want to go to sleep last night. I made him go to bed because we aren't on Utah time. He is so funny. He thinks he has to keep up with Siovhan. I am glad to have him home!

Love, Melanie

Todd wrote: I think you really meant to send this to Melanie. <grin>

Have you received this yet?‏

Comments: Happy Anniversary! This is the dessert we enjoyed in Denmark.  Love, Mom and Dad T.

Larsen's Danish Bakery <sales@larsensbakery.com,martin@prestigeoutlet.com> 

Todd wrote: What is it?

It is called wienerbrød (Danish pronunciation: [ˈʋiːˀnɔˌbʁœːˀð], lit. "Viennese bread", corresponding to the French Viennoiserie) in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Norway and Sweden. 

This Danish pastry, sometimes abbreviated Danish especially in the United States, is a viennoiserie pastry, of Viennese origin, which has become a specialty of Denmark and neighboring Scandinavian countries. Certain other countries, like the United States, commonly consume Danish pastries.

These Danishes are made of laminated yeast-leavened doughs, creating a layered texture similar to a puff pastry. Inside is almond paste. It was Dad's favorite as a missionary in Denmark and I loved it also when we visited. Dad said the missionaries called it an "ulcer builder."

Watch for It

Your Books Are Fun order has been shipped. The following items were included in this shipment:

Smart Learning Center
Ship Date:  7/25/2005

M is for Mayflower: A Massachusetts Alphabet
Ship Date:  7/25/2005

Kirsten wrote: Got it last night.  Thanks!  Emma loves it (them)!

 

--Kirsten

Pray

AnnMarie is having some bleeding. She is not due for another month and we are praying that all will go well. She is not to push anything heavy or lift anything. They are not sure if it is a weak placenta, her uterine scar or what. Those who have had several C-sections are at higher risk for premature births. They want her to stay the course, so she needs your prayers. Love, Mom

Todd Trauntvein wrote:
Thank you.

Kimberly Trauntvein wrote:
Ok, thanks for the info. She'll continue to be in our prayers.

PAF

Hey mom,

Do you have a PAF I can merge with? I've entered as much info as I know, but realized I don't know that much (shhhh, don't tell that to the women who came to Enrichment last night). Can I go through the church web site to get all the info (I believe they don't give out the info on the living, right?)

Thanks for your help.

Love, Kirsten

Myrna wrote: They do not give out the info on the living unless you are part of the family. In order to get it you need to get your member number from the bishop and then you just type that in, when it asks for it, and you can get our information. Melanie told me that she just went to the history site and typed in my name and got everything I had submitted. You might ask her how she did that. Love, Mom

Thank you so much!‏

Dear Myrna,
You made my Cassie so very happy! Thanks for sending her story back to her!
She just squealed with delight when she saw the emails!
You are a sweetie!
*big hugs*
Love, Kim

Pitts Picnic

Hi, Myrna!
How are you??
I was wondering if you are coming down to go to the family BBQ/Picnic on Sat? It is scheduled for 5 p.m. at the Locust St. Park in Helper. I can give you directions if you need me to. It is down the street from R&A Market in Helper. It's NOT the main park in Helper by the swimming pool. It is much quieter. : )
It would be so nice to chat and catch up with the family. There is a nice place for the kids to play!

Aunt Pat, Elaine and Mike are coming tomorrow from Las Vegas. And my Dad told me earlier this evening, that Char and Wally are coming as well. It will be a fun time! We sure hope that you can make it. Please tell your kids. I don't have their addresses. But tell them that we all say "hello", and send our love!

Love, Cousin Kim

Dad called me yesterday, Tuesday, and told me about it. I have a problem. It is the Ute Stampede here and I am a newspaper reporter. I am supposed to go and take photos of the rodeo on Saturday, get the stats and do an interview. I don't know what to do about it. 
Myrna

Ute Stampede and the Mormon Handcart Pageant

The 71st ANNUAL UTE STAMPEDE for 2005, will be held  beginning Thursday, July 14, and ending Saturday, July 16. In addition to the rodeo, which you know and love, there will be an arts and crafts show at the county building Friday and Saturday. There will also be the usual City of Fun Carnival at the fairgrounds.

The Mormon Handcart Pageant: A theatrical reenactment, dedicated to the Martin and Willie Handcart Companies of 1856 and their Rescuers, both past and present. 2005 DATES: July 27-30.  Pre-pageant activities start at 6:30. Actual Pageant starts at "dusk" (9:15PM) Held at the Juab County Fairgrounds Outdoor Arena.

Grandma T. Brief Personal History

I was born in Price and as soon as I could grasp a pencil I began to try to write words. My grandmother, an elementary school teacher, encouraged me in all my writing efforts--even writing the brand name Maytag, which I copied from our washer, over and over again.

I lived with my grandmother because my mother, her daughter, was killed in an automobile accident on my 11-month birthday. My father enlisted in the war effort and left me in my grandmother's care.

I began composing stories and illustrating them when I was age five. I found it lucrative to sell the stories and illustrations to my many relatives. I had one aunt (Pat), in particular, who was always good for a quarter per item.

When I was in the fifth grade, my elementary school decided to begin a student-run newspaper. I was the first editor and held the job for two years. When I moved on to junior high, I became the female editor of the junior high newspaper (there was also a male editor). During this time, I also began writing some stories for the Sun Advocate, a bi-weekly newspaper.

I won a poetry contest (honor) and an essay contest (money) while I was in the seventh grade. I continued as one of two editors of the newspaper all during my junior high school days and continued entering writing contests and, from time to time, wining a few. I was also pleased that our newspaper placed in the top 10 in the various contests we entered.

When I reached high school I worked on both the high school newspaper and the high school yearbook staffs. Our newspaper and our yearbooks continued to win prizes and so did I. I served as one of the editors of the newspaper and was one of several students selected to be in an English class taught by a college professor, what we would now call concurrent enrollment.

I attended the College of Eastern Utah on an art scholarship but continued to work with the yearbook and newspaper. My freshman year, I did the artwork and copy for the yearbook as coeditor. I was proud that it was named one of the top five yearbooks for colleges of the size.

The newspaper, where I was an editor, was also honored for its quality.

My sophomore year, I was yearbook editor and continued to work on the newspaper. Both were again honored. My copy for the yearbook won a prize. This, and my work with the Sun Advocate, led me to try my hand at other writing. I married Leonard Trauntvein and we moved to Provo.

When Leonard graduated from BYU, we came to Nephi. We have been here for approximately 40 years.

I took a break from newspapers and had eight children. Then I began working as a correspondent for The Daily Herald and for the Times-News. Later, after Marilyn Keyte retired from the Desert News, I began writing for them. I worked full-time for The Daily Herald from the summer of 1989 through the summer of 1990 as Education Editor but decided I preferred the life of a correspondent and quit in 1990.

Writing has been a good experience. I have learned much about the world, people, and am still interested in almost everything. My family often tells me it's a good thing I'm a reporter and have a right to ask questions at interviews or else I would just be considered plain nosy.

I remember the floods of 1982-83 when I was wading through mud with a cast on a broken ankle, a few private arguments with politicians, climbing a mountain with a pencil in my mouth, a notebook under one arm and a camera around my neck. I've flown in a gas balloon, a helicopter, and an airplane because of my job. I have talked to important people in government and in my neighborhood. I have learned not to be so shy but to remember to listen.

It is an interesting life. “Every person is a story,” one BYU journalism professor told me. He was right. What you may think is boring about your life; I will probably think is exciting. Incidentally, the one thing I don't like writing about is myself.

I also enjoyed art and, in particular, watercolors. However, oddly enough, it was the oil paintings that I sold. Teachers purchased most of them. I did have a one-man show at the bank while I was still in high school. I haven’t kept up the painting, however, I found it was discouraging to get everything out and then have so many little helpers. It was better just to do projects with the kids to start with—much less frustrating and just as fun.

The nigth I was born, Christmas Eve, my father had just been diagnosed with pneumonia. He was sent to his mother’s home to spend time away from Mom, who of course, was expecting me. She went into labor that evening and Uncle Morgan, Dad’s bother, drove Mother Elaine to the hospital in a dump truck. When the nurse came out to give the good news to the “father” Uncle Morgan informed them that he was not the man.

My Dad and Mom looked forward to actually spending a Christmas together after that fateful one they spent apart. It wasn’t to be. Mother Elaine was in an accident and died on my 11-month birthday, Nov. 24. She was buried on her mother’s birthday, Nov. 26.

My father went to war serving as a Sea Bee, a part of the US Navy, in World War II. I used to pray that he would be safe. I had a vision of him on one side of a palm tree and a Japanese soldier on the other side. He tells me, that at times, it was something like that.

Aunt Renee and Uncle Max were a great part of my life. For a short time, during the war, we lived with them. In spite of rations, Aunt Renee always managed to have some canned shrimp for me. On my birthday, we had red Jell-O, which I thought was like Santa’s tummy. Uncle Max always saved me a piece of sandwich from his lunch so I could have a treat when he came home. However, we soon found a house nearby and moved there. Nevertheless, all through my life, my cousins and Aunt Renee and Uncle Max remained important to me.

My Dad remarried a wonderful woman, named Edna. They had three daughters together. Edna was not the typical stepmother and always treated me with love and respect. I continued, at my request, to live with my grandmother.

The best thing that ever happened to me, of course, was marrying Leonard and having a family. They are the light of my life. There is nothing else as wonderful nor as important. I honestly liked (and still do) being a mother and I am glad that it is my life’s work. Being a grandmother is a treat, sort of like frosting on the cake or a big piece of fudge for dessert. It is also a great thing to have a spouse, as you all know. Our love and friendship continue to grow and I am thankful that I married a man who is a strong member of the church since that is so important to me.

My creed is best explained with the following quote: "To you I say with all of the energy of which I am capable, do not become a weak link in the chain of your generations. You come to the world with a marvelous inheritance. You come of great men and women... Never let them down. Never do anything which would weaken the chain of which you are a fundamental part." --President Gordon B.

Hinckley

Grandpa is having a party for his sister!

Grandpa Pitts has rented a park unit in Price for Saturday, July 16. He would like as many as can to come. The party will start at 5 p.m. The occasion is the visit of his sister, Aunt Pat Lubbe, who now lives in Las Vegas, rather than California. It is potluck. 

Grammy is worried about attending because it is the last night of the Ute Stampede and she is assigned, as usual, to take photos. The Stampede starts at 8 p.m.

Hi, Myrna!

How are you??

I was wondering if you are coming down to go to the family BBQ/Picnic on Sat? It is scheduled for 5 p.m. at the Locust St. Park

in Helper. I can give you directions if you need me to. It is down the street from R&A Market in Helper. It's NOT the main park in Helper by the swimming pool. It is much quieter. : ) It would be so nice to chat and catch up with the family. There is a nice place for the kids to play! Aunt Pat, Elaine and Mike are coming tomorrow from Las Vegas. And my Dad (Bob) told me earlier this evening that Char and Wally are coming as well. It will be a fun time. We sure hope that you can make it. Please tell your kids. I don't have their addresses. But tell them that we all say "hello", and send our love!

Love, Kim

The Buzz’n Joneses

It sure has been a speedy month. I’m not sure, but I believe that Einstein was right about time being relative. It seems that when I was young, time went so slowly, but the older I get the quicker time passes. At this rate, I feel like within a year’s time (relative to me) I will be a grandma and have gray hair. Gone are the days when I used to count down the years before I could get a driver’s license. The odd thing is that Jim and I graduated from high school fourteen years ago. Oh well.

Mary is still growing like a weed. She had her first Daddy-daughter night on the 21st of June. I got to spend the night on the mountain with the fourth year girls at girls’ camp. He and Mary stayed behind. They had a great time together. It was a good thing that he stayed behind as Mary came down with an ear infection that night. They lost a couple of hours of sleep in the middle of the night, other than that they both faired very well. As a matter of fact, when I got home at ten o’clock the next morning, Jim had fixed the garbage disposal, mopped the kitchen floor, and vacuumed the front room. What a wonder! We now have a full-blown walker on our hands. She enjoys being able to do things on her own steam. We enjoy it too. She is a lot of fun. Mary is now the proud owner of four teeth. She got her bottom two teeth in May, and now she has sprouted her two upper eyeteeth. It appears that she is out to show us that things can be done in more than one way.

As a family we spent the fourth of July weekend in Idaho for the first ever Jones Family (Jim’s siblings and parents) reunion. It was a lot of fun, but we were both glad to return to our very own .2 acres here in Nephi. We also like doing things on our own steam. (So you didn’t know where Mary got that from?)

We have included some pictures of fun things that have happened in our family. The first is of Mary in the swing that Shawn and Kim gave us. She loves it. Another is of the hailstorm we had two weeks ago. It hailed marble-sized hail for five to ten minutes. It pretty well killed our spinach, and put holes in the leaves of everything else. The last picture is of Mary and I going down the slide in Ft. Green. When Jim moves bees, we meet him at the park in Ft. Green and have a picnic dinner. Mary loves it! You guessed it, we love it too!

We hope that you all have a wonderful month.

We love you all.

The Magnificent Seven (Almost)

AnnMarie and the rest of the Howards have been busy doing the usual summer things—hiking, swimming and playing at the park and at home. The good news is that there are so few weeks left of summer (not that that makes the kids happy) and AnnMarie will soon have the baby. The countdown for the beginning of school and for delivery of the baby is about the same. The doctors have decided that AnnMarie will have a caesarian on Aug.16. That is just a few days before school starts. The doctor’s upped the date because the baby was measuring so large. AnnMarie had just adjusted to the old date, which was just after school started so has had to rethink the news.

Brandon has been busy, like all of the men in the family, working. He will still be bishop for

a while so stop waiting for him to be released. The stake president talked to him and told him to start praying that someone would move into the ward who would be worthy of being bishop. The stake president had not found anyone who met Heavenly Father’s requirements. That means that house-hunting and moving plans are now on hold, which may be why nothing has been found to date.

Matthew has such a cute accent that an animated cartoon writer AnnMarie and Brandon know wanted him to say a few words for a cartoon project. It didn’t go well. Matthew spent the time crying and would not say anything. So he was not used and ended up getting paid a with a sucker and not the money he would have made.

The Fabulous Four

Erin and Donovin spent two weeks with Grammy and Gramps. They were in Nephi for the camping trip with Todd and family. They enjoyed playing with the cousins and being spoiled by Grammy and Gramps. They spent one night at Jim and Julie’s house and another at AnnMarie and Brandon’s. They like the sleepovers and think they are lots of fun.

Erin is getting to be quite a young lady. She even ate Grammy’s cooking and didn’t complain. She is very smart and is looking forward to starting Kindergarten this Fall. She enjoys singing, can write her name and likes to write letters.

Donovin is also very intelligent. He can recognize many of the letters and especially likes the letters “O” and “S.” He also counts and can recognize many of the written numbers. He thinks Erin is wonderful and likes to do what she is doing. She doesn’t always like that but most of the time the two get along very well.

Their trip home was quite exciting! It wasn’t certain that the exchange was going to be able to be made in Beaver. The road had been closed near St. George because of the wildfire that was burning out of control there. However, the fire died back enough to allow traffic through although David and Bree were held up for awhile because only one lane of traffic was being allowed at a time. They arrived in Beaver where they met Grammy and Gramps and Erin and Donovin started back to St. George. On the return trip, they were not allowed to use the freeway and had to make a detour through Pine Valley.

David and Bree took the kids to the park for a fun day on July 4. They went to the fireworks

in St. George this year and all had a great time together.

Grandma Barbara says she was glad to have her grandkids back in St. George. Myrna and

Leonard miss them. It’s nice to be loved!

Oh! Hi! Oh!

Todd and Amy shared their good news while they were visiting in Utah. They are going to be parents again. The wonderful new addition to the family is due in December. As time goes, that is not too far away. Amy had been wondering why she was so tired and had attributed it to the move and all the work that went into leaving one place and settling in another. However, when she didn’t get feeling better she consulted a doctor and learned, for certain, the good news.

Todd spent his time in June traveling back and forth between Utah and Ohio. He, Amy and the kids camped out with the Trauntvein side of the family in Ponderosa Campground, not too far from Nephi. Most of the family took time to come for dinner on Father’s Day and then stay overnight. 

The next Sunday, Michael was ordained a Deacon at the Gordon’s home in Lake Shore. The ordination took place just after church. The TNT family now has two who hold the priesthood.

Todd then returned to Ohio and work. Amy and children visited family in Nephi, Lake Shore and other spots nearby. It was the Lake Shore community celebration while they were visiting and so they were able to enjoy that event. The kids even, or course, got to be in the parade. Amy’s brother and family from Texas came to visit and the cousins were able to spend lots of time getting to know each other better and traveling around to places they wanted to visit. Todd returned to Utah. The family spent July 4 attending the parade in Provo and then traveling to Nephi for a barbeque and fireworks. Todd had purchased a large package to share before and after the community fireworks were over.

On Tuesday, the TNT family and the Gordon grandparents set out for a visit to Yellowstone. The Gordons then returned home and the TNT family continued on to Ohio. They will return in September for Tyler’s baptism, which will be held in Nephi on September 24, just days after Tyler’s birthday. Grandpa T will baptize him and Grandpa Gordon will confirm him.

Boltons and Waites En Mass

Melanie and Kirsten and families spent the last two weeks together touring Massachusetts, Main, New York and anywhere else they could think of that was nearby. They even visited Uncle Don and Aunt Thelma in their trailer home away from home. They were treated to rice crispy treats and punch. Uncle Don and Aunt Thelma are seeing more of the extended LHT family than they do when they are in Utah. 

Braden is the one exception to the touring company. He is in Utah visiting his Grandparents (Who are glad to have him and his cheerful personality in their house!), taking in EFY (Especially for Youth) at BYU. He helped Grandpa one afternoon as he worked to get the house ready for paint, visited with cousins and Aunts and Uncles. His hope is that the fishing trip he and Gramps are planning doesn’t get rained out. He will also go to the Ute Stampede on Saturday as Grammy’s helper.

Howard is the other exception to the Waite and Bolton tour. He is in Singapore.

Siovhan is working for her father’s company and is raking in the big bucks (that’s dollars and not deer or guys). It will, all too soon, be time for school to start and then it is back to Utah.

So, our ex-Stake President gave a talk today in Sacrament Meeting. It was of course on the subject of Father's Day. During his talk he made the mention of how sometimes in parenting that one spouse teaches in a different way than the other. He told us of a young woman who went to her mother and asked her mother, "What qualities should I look for in a spouse." To which the mother then replied, "Go ask you father, he did a better job at it than I did."

Kirsten and Jared are planning to visit Utah in August. Kirsten wants to be in Utah when AnnMarie has her baby. Lucky for her, Jared has a conference in Provo at that time.

The Bolton family is finally in the age of high speed Internet instead of dial-up. We have two new addresses: Bolton family information can be sent to: hbolton20@comcast.net; cellmel@comcast.net Hope to hear from you soon. We will have the AOL account open for a few more weeks, but after that, it will only be Comcast.

The only day that the airline could offer us for Braden’s flight was the 4th. He will be at EFY from the 11th to the 16th. On the 16th he will need someone to pick him up at BYU, then he will be with you until the 28th. He hates being in Massachusetts, and I figure that he will be okay being back here after he has been away for a little while--absence makes the heart grow fonder. Braden graduated from the eighth grade. It was an interesting program. It was in the eighties, and we had the ceremony in the gymnasium at the Middle School. For some reason, they turned the fans off when the ceremony started.

Braden’s flight information.

Date: 28JUL - THURSDAY

Flight : AMERICAN AIRLINES 1980

Departure: SALT LAKE CITY 11:55 AM

Arrival: DALLAS FT WORTH 3:29 PM

Flight: AMERICAN AIRLINES 690

Departure: DALLAS FT WORTH 5:02 PM

Arrival: BOSTON 9:35 PM

In response to a lesson that I was trying to teach the children in the car yesterday, I learned that wisdom comes in many different guises. I had told the children that Jesus had told us that we should have Him etched in the fleshy tables of our heart, because He had us etched in his flesh. Mikaela responded: "I don't just have Him on the table, but He is on the shelf, on my bed and all over in my room in my heart." I couldn't top that.

The Runnin’ Utes

Sorina

Maybe her mom’s fear of spiders is rubbing off on Sorina. She recently handed her Dad a baseball bat to “get” the two spiders crawling on our ceiling. Which is actually better than Toren’s no fear of spiders. He liked to catch them (like his Dad), and only when a red spider attached itself to his finger was a rethink in order. Then he told everyone he had “Spidey powers.” Potty training is not going so well. I was so hopeful, but I keep having to run out and get more diapers. I say every time, “this is the last bag”, but maybe it’s just wishful thinking. Late June update, we have potty training success—most of the time. Dad also hung a couple of new swings from the front tree, one from a fairly high branch. Sorina loves to swing. If no one will push her, she simply lays in the swing and pushes herself. 

Toren

Toren’s fascination with bugs is sometimes not a good thing. He has been catching bees this spring/summer in jars. I tried to tell him it was not a good idea.! But what does Mom know?! Only that bee’s have stingers and sometimes they sting. (I’m pretty sure that Jim will back me up on this one.) He found that out today as he was trying to be so helpful to the bee and get it out of the water. Let’s just say the bee was not thankful, he died anyway, and Toren is on the couch in a benedryl-induced sleep. Toren is still waiting for his two front teeth go grow back in—maybe for Christmas! Toren played t-ball, which he found somewhat boring. They use

some 16-20 players, so unless you get the infield, there is not much action. At least he enjoys hitting, but prefers to go to the batting cages and try to hit moving balls instead. 

Dane

The questions are always coming, and sometimes interesting theories. Have you ever wondered how (or why for that matter) wedding favors are made and put into that netting material? After we went to a reception recently, Dane’s theory was that some unused netting material left over from the bride’s wedding dress was used for wedding favor netting (cashews and butter-mints in this case). His Dad suggested they had possibly used old nylons (unused or washed, of course). Dane seemed to feel that the little treats lost some of their sentimentality when his Dad said they had actually just bought the netting to make the favors. Dane finished the baseball season with a 7 and 3 record, not quite in the playoffs, but a great season nonetheless. !Dane, Dane, Dane.! When I have Cub Scouts at our house, it is not a good time to use a magnifying glass to catch the flower blossoms on fire (successfully). Mom was not happy; however, the Scouts thought it was great!! Dane participated in his first piano recital and did a great job. Dane also enjoyed staying overnight for his Webelo’s camp, at Camp Kiesel.

Brigitta

Brigitta headed off to Girl’s Camp this week. I am going to miss her a lot. She helps out a bunch with kids and errands. Brigitta just got home from Camp. Unfortunately, she was sick a lot of the time. We were afraid she went sick, as Toren and Mom caught some sort of virus while she was gone and she wasn’t feeling great when she left. All of the leaders and her friends thought she was quite a “camper” to stick it out and participate and put in an effort consistently (but no one said she was a “happy camper”). Brigitta did a great job at her piano recital, hardly seemed nervous at all.  I  (Brigitta) just became the Beehive President in Young Women’s! How exciting! Of course Dad said that since I am President of the Beehives, maybe Jim could use me to oversee his queens – lame huh.

Shawn and Kimberly

Shawn spent our anniversary with the Deacons and I spent it with Wolfs and Bears. I think we need a night out. Well, we finally went on a date tonight!! We went to Batman Begins. (Shawn has seen more movies in the last month, then he has seen in the last year—Star Wars, Cinderella Man, Madagascar (unfortunately) and Batman Begins.)! Our little Mazda was quite happy to be treated as the “Batmobile” on the way home. I was hoping that everyone had just come from the movie, so they would understand why my man exceeded the speed limit, swerved in and out of traffic and came to a shuddering halt at red lights. (Kimberly is exaggerating, I had bought some gas and it must have been higher octane because the car was a little more peppy than usual). And this is not justification for anyone, as I still did not go more than 8 mph over the speed limit.

Family

We attended Michael’s Deacon ordination on Sunday. It was fun to spend time with family. We are so excited for Todd’s Family and new the addition expected in December. We also spent the 12th with Kimberly’s family in Kaysville for her Dad’s birthday/Father’s Day.! We got to play on the new deck, admire the beautiful yard that is coming along—thanks to Sandy, Dad’s sister, and play in the new Jacuzzi. Dane and Toren have asked every day if we can go back up to play in the Jacuzzi.! We also have a pool pass at the new Clearfield Pool this year and the kids are having a great time at the pool. Any of you who still have phobias concerning Salt Lake City will find vindication in the next story. Shawn met me at work to bring Toren and Sorina home while I met with my 9th new manger in 6 years. Toren talked Shawn into stopping at a park on the way home. The nearest “safe” one being in the Avenues. In a few minutes Toren brought Shawn a lighter and then Shawn saw Sorina pick up something else by the slide.

A good friend of Kimberly’s family died this morning, Ed Tostanoski.! Brigitta was going to go so San Francisco this weekend with Wilson Grandparents to visit, as Ed has not been doing well, but plans were changed. You may all remember them from our wedding reception in their SF home. Mary is suffering from the first stages of Alzheimer’s; your prayers would be much appreciated. They had been married over sixty years.

The Butcher, The Baker, and the Mammograph Taker

Well, what to say. We are still plugging away a day at a time. Life is somewhat crazy with everyone out of school. Needless to say, the house is messier and I’m “ruining their life” if I ask them to do anything “not fun.” Aren’t they just so picked on?

Jason is already complaining of being bored, but he is enjoying his time down in Nephi playing with cousins. He also has read several books (we try to make it to the library pretty often).

David seems to be happier these days. He continues to be a terrific big brother to AJ. He’s also good with Maddie as long as the other two aren’t around. He enjoys just playing for endless hours outside. He and Jason have planted their own garden in the Jr. High baseball dirt, which is just on the other side of the fence (it’s the dirt that they use at the end of the season to repair the diamond). “I’m not sure if anything will grow, but they are having a great time.

All of the kids have been having good time swimming. Maddie is working on floating, but she has a hard time relaxing enough. Jason enjoys jumping off the diving board. David is just happy to play and splash everyone around him. He and Jason also like to pretend to be sharks and sneak up on the rest of us. AJ loves to be dunked under the water, but doesn’t like to jump off the edge into the water.

AJ continues to delight us with the cute things that he says and does. When we went to the dentist he wanted to have his teeth cleaned and do everything that the older kids did even though they don’t normally do that on 3 year olds because they don’t want to scare them. He opened wide for them so that they could look at the damage that he’s done from sucking his thumb (his palate is collapsing and one of his teeth is discolored from narrowing of the nerve), the little stinker. Well, we can’t help but love him. He truly is a sweetheart.

As for Eric and I, we just celebrated our 12-year anniversary. I can hardly believe that it’s really been 12 years since I joined your family. I feel so fortunate to have such wonderful in-laws. I listen to those at work that have less than Ideal situations with their in-laws and I realized how very blessed I am. Thanks everyone!

David will be baptized on Aug. 6 at 12:40 p.m. in the stake center. Dinner will follow.

The Old Folks at Home, July

We have our two-week vacation from the temple. We were thinking about going to visit family but we have decided that since the family will be visiting us, we will stay home. That works out with Braden’s visit just fine. We will make a fishing trip while he is here, something he said he would like to do. We have also invited Grandpa Pitts and will take the boat. The plans are to go to Ferron over the 24th if any of you would like to come.

Gramps is painting the house. It is called almond and, we think, matches some of the brick in the house. Braden helped him get ready to paint one afternoon, which took about four hours, but it was not his favorite thing to do. Eric helped Dad get the scaffolding from the high school and get it in place for the back of the house. The front of the house, unfortunately, is all ladder work. I keep worrying about it because the doctor told Dad “No climbing, no mountain trails and no un-even terrain.” It is going to look nice, though. The trim is a creamy white. The brown will be gone forever (or at least, for now).

Grammy and Gramps like summer because we like having the grandkids around. They are a lot of fun and each one is unique. Time is going by so quickly. Soon they will all be grown up and will have their own families. I suppose they will no longer have much time for the old folks. So we are going to enjoy them while we can. Thanks to all of you for sharing. The only thing we wish is that we had just a bit more money so we could go places, like Disneyland, together. Oh, well, making cookies in the kitchen isn’t all bad. It is the memories that count.

My friend from high school, Sharlett Hamilton Wells, works at the temple with me. We always had a lot in common during high school—art, poetry writing, newspaper, yearbook—and we still do. She likes her grandkids as much as I like mine. They have costume days, which sounds like something I should start. (By-the-way, she says I haven’t changed at all from the girl I was except for a few wrinkles and gray hairs.)

At the Jones family reunion they had a kitchen band. That sounds fun. In addition, Grandpa Jones bought fish (trout) from the fishery and put them in a wading pond for the little kids. They caught them with their bare hands. They had a fish fry that evening I think that sounds fun and maybe we should try it. What do you all think? Is there something wrong with keeping up with the Joneses?

The garden is growing, the plants are growing and so are the weeds. Come and visit and see for yourselves.

Joke of the month

A man owned a small farm in Iowa. The Iowa Wage and Hour Department claimed he was not paying proper!wages to his help and sent an agent out to interview him.

"I need a list of your employees and how much you pay them,"!demanded the agent.

"Well, there's my hired hand who's been with me for 3 years. I pay him $600 a week plus free room and board. The cook has been here for 18 months, and I pay her $500 a month plus free room and board. Then there's the half-wit that works here about18 hours a day. He makes $10 a week and I buy him a bottle of bourbon every week," replied the farmer.

"That's the guy I want to talk to; the halfwit," says the agent."

"That would be me,” the farmer said.

Treats and fun for Family Home Evening!

No-Bake Brownies

Makes about 4 doz. brownies

1-cup evaporated milk

2 cups miniature marshmallows

1 pkg. (6 oz.) semisweet chocolate bits

1/2-cup sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. butter or margarine

1 tsp. vanilla

3-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1-cup nutmeats cut up

Combine milk, marshmallows, chocolate bits, sugar and salt in a 3 qt. saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat to a full boil. Boil and stir 5 min. more. Take off heat. Stir in butter, vanilla, graham cracker crumbs and nutmeats. Spread mixture in buttered 9" square pan. Chill one hour or until set. The brownies taste best if allowed to sit overnight before use. Cut into squares.

Graham Cracker Chewies

Crust

1 1/3 cups graham cracker crumbs

1-tablespoon sugar

1/2-cup butter, at room temperature

2 tablespoons all purpose flour

Topping

1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/3-cup graham cracker crumbs

1/2-teaspoon salt

1/4-teaspoon baking powder

1-teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs beaten

Preheat oven to 350°. Prepare the crust: Mix the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, butter and flour in a mixing bowl until moist and crumbly. Press the mixture firmly and evenly in the bottom of a 9-inch square-baking pan. Bake until lightly browned, about 20 minutes. Prepare topping: Stir all the ingredients together until blended. Spread the topping over the baked crust and bake for 20

minutes. Let cool completely, and then cut into 16 squares.

Easy Pizza

Kids' Cooking Skills: This recipe lets kids experiment with pizza combinations and teaches them how to prepare a lunch food.

Ingredients

One loaf white bread (like Wonder bread)

1 3/4 cups bottled marinara sauce

2 cups grated cheese

2 cups sliced precooked sausage or 1 pkg

lunchmeat or 1 pkg Canadian bacon

1 can sliced olives

1 can crushed pineapple

Give the kids a rolling pin and roll the bread so it is somewhat flat. Now your child can spoon sauce across each slice. Then he/she should sprinkle on the cheese, followed by pieces of sausage or meat and other toppings as desired. Bake on the center oven rack at 300 for a few minutes, until the cheese melts. Have Mom use a spatula to slide the pizzas onto a plate and let them cool slightly before eating. Serves 6.

Home Evening Hint

Make a "Busy Bee Work Chart" Make a large beehive. Make a spot on the hive for each job in the family. Color as desired. Glue the beehive to a piece of cardstock. Then make a "Busy Bee" on cardstock for each member of the family. Write the names of your family members on the bees. Let each person color his or her bee as he or she desire. (After Family Home Evening you may want to take the chart and bees and have them laminated.) Attach the bees to the hive with tape. Change them around as job assignments

change. The children will think it is fun to see where their "Busy Bees" are every day.

Grandpa Pitts' Party

I am not sure how we are going to swing it. We have three soccer games, two  overlapping and ending around 12:30 p.m. and the boys have the Primary Practice at 1 p.m. for Sunday's Program. If we don't make it for his party--what do you suggest we do to make it up to him? 

Love, Kimberly 

PS Have you heard from Amy? Does she have your camera bag?

Who knew there would be three alike in one family?

From Kimberly--July 10 and 11 are important dates for the Tostanoski family.‏

Edward Nicholas Tostanoski, Sr.

December 10, 1920 - July 2, 2005

Edward "Skee" Tostanoski, age 84, loving husband and father, died at Seton Medical Centeron Saturday, July 2, 2005, following a courageous battle with cancer.

He was born in Corning, NY, to the late Nicholas and Mary Tostanoski. Ed served in the U.S. Navy during WW II, in both the Atlantic and Pacific campaigns.

On February 7, 1942 he was united in marriage to Mary Ann Cielepala in Bradford, NY. They were an inseparable couple and recently celebrated their 63^rd anniversary, still in love.

Skee was a rod buster foreman who worked on many Bay Area buildings.

He was a loyal union member of Ironworkers Local 377.

Ed was a member of the Catholic Church of the Visitacion.

Skee was a Scout leader, a volunteer aboard the Liberty Ship Jeremiah O’Brien,

and a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Ed is survived by his wife, Mary Ann; his sons, Ed Jr. and John Skee and John’s wife Andrita; six grandchildren and seven great grandchildren (with one more on the way); and one brother, Nicholas. He is further survived by nieces, nephews, other relatives and many friends. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by two brothers, Stanley and Leonard, and one sister, Clara.

Relatives and friends are welcome at Valente Marini Perata & Co. Funeral Home, 4840 Mission St., San Francisco, Sunday, July 10^th. Viewing will be from 3:30 pm to 6:00 pm with the Rosary Vigil at 4:30 pm. Funeral Mass for Edward "Skee" Tostanoski will be held at 10:00 am, Monday, July 11th, at Church of the Visitacion, 655 Sunnyvale Ave., Rev. Zachary J. Shore, pastor, will preside. Burial will be at Holy Cross Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to: USS Emmons Memorial Fund in honor of Edward Tostanoski, c/o Edwin Hoffman, Correspondent for USS Emmons, 133 Brambleton Rd., Winston-Salem, NC 27127-9119.

We would like to thank all of the staff of Seton Medical Center for their help and support.

Regarding our relative

The lady I met at the temple is Peggy Ann Self Olsen. Her father was Theodore Robert Self and his grandmother was Virgie Mae Trauntvein.

Peggy's address is 926 West 800 North, Mapleton, Utah, 84664. He phone number is 801-489-4335. Her e-mail is: peggyaolsen@yahoo.com.

If you have any genealogy information about her family, she would appreciate receiving it. I told her I thought her Grandmother Self had a lot of family information. I am not certain what would have happened to it.

My love to all of you, Myrna


Eva wrote: Dear Myrna, Thanks for clarifying this for me. Her grandmother is
Geraldine Self Gerrard. Gerrie and I have worked together on genealogy for
many years. She is the one who opened up my research on the Gigangack line.
She gave me our Gr. great grandmother's name and I started from there in
doing all the research on that line. Lots, and lots of work I have been
able to get done. Gerrie and I are very close. Unfortunately, she has been
battling cancer for over a year but keeps on trying to do more research. In
fact, I got Helen to pick her up some weeks and take her to the library when
she is coming up here to help me. Seeral years ago Gerrie and I went and
stayed at a B&B in Manti and did a lot of research at the court houses and
cemetaries. We found the headstone for Gr. grandfather and grandmother
Jens Herman and Julie Marie. We took pictures of it, but I put them away so
well I can't fiind therm. Maybe someday. God blesss you and yours.
Much love. Eva

Todd's Drawing

My first attempt at anything real. I decided to take art at Camp Maple Dell while Michael was taking art. This was one hour of work. I am supposed to be working on the tree detail, but I have not done any of that since leaving the camp. The likelihood of me finishing it is not good. So, it is what it is.

Artist: Todd Trauntvein
Medium:  Pencil
Maximum: Eraser :-)

An artist, me?

For  Dane’s Webelos he needs to talk to an artist.  You are the only artist we know personally.  We would like to call you and talk to you, ask a fee questions.  There is one other Webelo that needs to talk to an artist as well.  We would like to set up a time that we can you.

Love, Kimberly

Silicon Valley PAF User's Group

This was in the latest Silicon Valley PAF User's Group paper
Donnette Smith

Kodak Drops Black-and-White Photo Paper

As digital camera and color printer sales growth causes erosion of the sales of traditional cameras, film, enlargers, and chemical developers, it is no surprise to learn that Eastman Kodak Company will stop making black-and-white photographic paper. This product has been a major part of Eastman sales for more than a century. Demand for black-and white paper is declining about 25 per cent annually contributing to a first-quarter loss of $142 million for Eastman. Other companies, such as Ilford Imaging of Britain, still make black-and-white photographic paper. However, Ilford went into bankruptcy last year, and emerged this year after a management-led buyout, and AgfaPhoto GmbH filed for bankruptcy last month in Germany.

We should be aware that film is disappearing and will be more expensive and harder to find. Librarians and archivists should note that all the major manufacturers of microfilm cameras have discontinued microfilm camera products. The number of firms that process microfilm is dropping each year. If you have some old black & white negatives that you plan use some day, you may not able to make prints in a few years. Fortunately, negative can be scanned and reverse the computer.

Black and White Photo Paper

This was in the latest Silicon Valley PAF User's Group paper
Donnette

Kodak Drops Black-and-White Photo Paper

As digital camera and color printer sales growth causes erosion of the sales of traditional cameras, film, enlargers, and chemical developers, it is no surprise to learn that Eastman Kodak Company will stop making black-and-white photographic paper. This product has been a major part of Eastman sales for more than a century.

Demand for black-and white paper is declining about 25 per cent annually contributing to a first-quarter loss of $142 million for Eastman. Other companies, such as Ilford Imaging of Britain, still make black-and-white photographic paper. However, Ilford went into bankruptcy last year, and emerged this year after a management-led buyout, and AgfaPhoto GmbH filed for bankruptcy last month in Germany.

We should be aware that film is disappearing and will be more expensive and harder to find. Librarians and archivists should note that all the major manufacturers of microfilm cameras have discontinued microfilm camera products. The number of firms that process microfilm is dropping each year. If you have some old black & white negatives that you plan use some day, you may not able to make prints in a few years.

Fortunately, negative can be scanned and reversed by the computer.

Myrna wrote: I would never have guessed. I have both a digital and film camera both of  which are used on a regular basis. Myrna

Donnette wrote: You probably use color film with your film camera - color will be continued - it is the b&w that is being discontinued. That is what we would use when printing our old negatives in our home dark room.

Donnette

Myrna: Oddly, I did that on my own in my home--developed black and white negatives for use by the newspapers I worked for.

Uncle Bill's Microwave Potato Chips by William (Uncle Bill) Anatooskin

From Melanie:

These potato chips are very easy to make in the microwave. Also, they  are healthier for you as they are not cooked in any oils. This method  has intrigued so many people that have tasted them and then made them  for themselves. The younger people just love them. 

4 medium potatoes (russet, yellow gold, or red potatoes) 
your choice spices or herbs (granulated garlic powder, seasoning  salt, cayenne pepper, dried dill weed) 

1. If potatoes are old, peel and slice thin, 1/16" in thickness,  slicing across the potato. If the potatoes are new or good skins, DO  NOT PEEL, just scrub well, then slice them 1/16" in thickness,  slicing across the potato. 
2. Sprinkle with your choice of spices or herbs or just leave them  plain. 
3. If you have a microwave bacon tray, place the sliced potatoes flat  on the tray in a single layer. Cover with a microwaveable, round  heavy plastic cover. Microwave on HIGH (full power) for 7 to 8  minutes. Cooking time could vary slightly, depending on the wattage  of your microwave. You do not have to turn the sliced potatoes over. 
4. If you do not have a bacon tray, use a microwave safe casserole  dish. Rub the inside of the dish with some olive oil for the first  batch of potato chips. I do not know why, but I find that if you do  not rub oil the first time, some chips will tend to stick to the  dish. After the first batch is done, you do not have to rub the dish  again. Continue to microwave the remainder of sliced potatoes as  noted above. 

Know when to stop

Actually, Todd, it (your pencil drawing) is very good! The difference between a great artist and a poor one is that the great one knows when to stop. Love, Mom

Braden's Grad Photos

Here are braden's graduation pictures from my mom.
siovhan

"One out of every 4 people has a mental illness. think of your 3 best friends, if they're okay, then it's you..."