I have no idea what happened on April 13, but here it is August 21.  My dear sister Judy's birthday, she must be about 47 years old.  She has had so many problems, my heart just aches for her.  She has moved back to Mesa, I sure hope things start looking up for her and her family.

We have problems in our own family.  This summer little Rikki had an operation for a malignant brain tumor that had started growing  she was in the operating room 8 1/2 hrs.  The doctor said they got 99% of the tumor and then they planted 14 radiation seeds hoping to kill what was left of the tumor.  She seems to be doing fine except that the muscles on the right side of her face does not work and when she talks her  mouth is pulled to one side.  We all hope and pray she will get better.  This year she will be in kindergarten.

Cassandra has spent all summer in California staying with Jim and Shanna Nally.  But now she is at Eastern Arizona Jr. College in Thatcher where she will attend school this winter.  Tammy will be a Senior.  Kris a Freshman, Tara will be in the 7th grade (1st year Jr. High)  Heather will be in the 3rd grade.  Heidi will stay with Liza while Cathy works.  Candon will be in 1st grade, Sara the 2nd grade and Jason and Cristina will be 8th graders.  Mandy, Tiffany and Richard, and Lindsey will all be home while Jacob (I think) starts to kindergarten.

Loyelin is expecting our 16th grandchild right away.  We really need a new baby, as Tiffany is about 1 1/2 years old.  She is cute as a bugs ear, but we need a little new baby.

We are up on the mountain by Hannigan's Meadow where Loye and the boys are doing some work for Dean Sellars.  He has quite a project going, and it has provided us with a lot of work this summer.  I have only been up here about 4 weeks but I have really enjoyed it.  It's so pretty and green and COOL!

Katie has been here quite a bit while Charlie has been working his backhoe.  But I have been doing the cooking so I don't have much time for visiting this week I am cooking for about 16 men.  It is quite a hassle in a camper where we don't have running water.  But most of them seem to enjoy the food.  The guys here that I cook for are Loye, Roger, Jared, Jardine and Jason Willis, Candon Williams is here, Andy Savage, Stewart Hensley, Gene Sidell, Kim Lund, Kay Smith, Chris, Bud and Arthur Isaacs, and Roy Madison (Anna Lou's son-in-law who married Juliann.)  Kent and George Hall are here with their sons Ryan and Brad.  Lane Plumb with his sons Jesse and Billy, there are 2 guys from Mesa, 2 guys from Alpine and a man named Joe from Prescott.  When our ward went to Prescott to play softball in the boys Jr. tournament they all stayed at Joe's home and he isn't even L.D.S.  But our boys all stayed in his home along with Merlin and Sherry Hancock and Tom Wing and his son.  They expressed appreciation to Joe's wife for being such a gracious hostess.  The boys won 4th place.

It has been so long since I wrote in this that I can't remember all the events that have happened since I last wrote in here.  Lucielle Plumb and Casey Moritzky, both passed away each having cancer it happened unless than a week from each other.  Lucielle was around 80 and casey was about 26.  He left a young wife Laurie.

Josh has a nice girlfriend, Sheryl Van Deren.

This last weekend was Easter and also General Conference.  We went down to Roosevelt Lake camping and stayed Friday and Saturday nights we came home early Sunday morning.  Mark and Liza and their children went also, Jared, Jason, Cristina, Sara, Loye and I all went.  Roger, Cathy and their girls except Cassie all came down and back on Saturday Amber Whiting came with them.

  Loyelin is expecting again so she wasn't feeling like going.  Shanna lives so far away, her and Jim don't get to come very often.  I love all my family but it is easier to feel close to those who want to be near us.

Mandy is such a little fisty britches and she always has an answer for everything.  As we were looking for a place to camp we teasingly told the kids we were going back to Taylor.  This upset Sara Rikki and Mandy who were riding in the car with us.  "Why?" said Sara, "Oh Brother!" is Rikki's favorite comment.  Then came this disgusted little voice from Mandy "I'm not happy!"  As she was drinking her milk and looked out toward the lake she said "If I would throw this in there it would all turn to milk."  She is a little pouter but she is so full of life and her comments always send out a ray of sunshine.  Little Rikki's is pretty quiet but still enjoys life to the fullest and never bothers anyone.  Candon is all boy and acts accordingly.  Tiffany is so good natured she just played in her playpen until someone picked her up then she was all smiles and happy.  Sara is a pretty little girl, always talking, sometimes enthusiastically, sometimes not so enthusiastic, but always talking.  Cristina is a very pretty girl and always likes to do fun things.  She is also very talented.  I just hope she sets her goals in the right direction.  Jason is my baby and sometimes acts like it, but he is so much company for me and I love him dearly, he also has lots of talents.  He could be a very good athlete, but athletics really doesn't seem to interest him to much.  As long as he is a good boy and does as his Heavenly Father wants him to, everything will be alright for him.

We did have an enjoyable trip the desert was so green and pretty with wild flowers everywhere.  We came home through young (an isolated community in the middle of Pleasant Valley, located under the great Mogollon Rim of Arizona.)  over 58 miles of dirt road.  The people of Young are very back-woodsy because it is so hard for them to associate with the rest of the world because of the bad roads.  They have a branch of the church there that meets in a small, ice little church house.  Young belongs to the Taylor Stake.

Today is Sunday.  We all got up and went to church.  Monte and Kathy were the speakers and they really did a good job.  When we got home Josh was gone to Show Low.  We ate dinner and I sat down and went to sleep.  Sheree and Benda came over about 4 p.m. to visit for awhile.  Liza and her kids were here.

My heart is simply breaking, and I know Loye is getting ulcers worrying about about work.  He hasn't had a steady job since last summer.  It seems that life at this point is certainly gloomy.  If it wasn't for Jared and Jason I don't know what I would do.  Although they do a lot of quarreling  I love all my family and pray that I can bring a little joy and happiness into their lives.

We fasted for the Ethiopians today as they are so badly stricken with famine they are dying.  It is all caused from a drought in that country.  We as Americans have so much to be thankful for and I'm thankful for my membership in the church, for the teachings my good parents gave me.  I love them and my childhood was so happy.  I don't think my children were ever as happy as I was.

This has been a wet, cold month, and today it is cloudy with chances of rain or snow.  Probably neither one, (I hope) its wet enough for now.

Snowflake plays basketball with Show Low tonight so we will probably go down even though Snowflake isn't doing to good at the game, only beating Holbrook so far in conference play.  Eric Ramsey plays and this is his Senior year.  David Lewis is a wrestler and tomorrow night has a match with R.V. so maybe we can go watch him.

Shanna called and said she didn't think I would like the Christmas present she had bought for me, so she hadn't sent it yet.  When I asked her what it was she said it was a set of Farber-Ware cook-wear, (this is really good cook wear) so I told her to go ahead and send it as I could never afford any thing that nice.

Several events have happened that I would like to record since I last wrote.  Shanna and Jim came over just for Thanksgiving day getting here about 11 a.m. and leaving about 6 p.m.  Although it was a short stay we really enjoyed having them here.  From the time in November until the time in December that Idell Solomon and I went R. S. teaching our 3 ladies had tragedy strike.  Thora Pearce's daughter Charlotte was killed in a car wreck.  Aunt Gertie hatch had a stroke and Opal Kartchner passed away.

Randy Hall married Vickie Petersen on Dec. 14.  They had their wedding right after in the Taylor Stake Center.  It was really nice.  Josh was in the wedding line and was the Best looking guy there!!!

Monty Rogers came home from the Boston, Massachusetts mission on Dec 22.  All of Shum's family was there to meet him. (at sky Harbor).

Missions from now on will be for 2 years beginning the 1st of January.  However boys who are out now will have their choice.

We had Christmas breakfast here at our house.  Loye and his boys shot rabbits enough so we could have them for breakfast.  They got about 15 and by giving everyone  one piece there was plenty.  We also had biscuits and deer gravy.  Aunt Kathy brought orange juice, Aunt Sheree brought cocoa mix and Aunt Judy furnished plates and cups.  Aunt Violet bought a quart of Raspberry jelly and it really zinged! up the biscuits.  We figured we served close to 60 people.  This family just keeps growing.

My kids gave us a 50 gal hot water tank for Christmas.  I worry for fear they buy more than they can afford.  But I do appreciate the hot water.  And I love my children for their thoughtfulness.  Roger, Jared, Josh and Liza bought it.  Loyelin made some real nice lacy looking place mats, and gave them to us.  Jason gave us an electric pencil sharpener.  Since Christmas we have spent a lot of time playing Trivial Pursuit (a new game out).  Found out I'm not very smart, as this game is one that asks trivial questions on about 6 different subjects.

One of the highlights of the holidays was watching B.Y.U beat Michigan in the Holiday ball where Brigham Young won and their quarterback (Bosco) got outstanding player of the game.  B.Y.U. hasn't been beat this year but they are having a hard time winning National recognition as the nations #1 team but they are.

Yesterday we watched 3 bowl games and they were all good games.

Loye and I went up to Asian Gardens and ate Chinese food.  We went just to get out.

And that brings us up to today.

School started again, darn it!  This year is just flying by.

After work I got me a permanent from Lorraine Solomon, it cost me $30.  But it was worth it.

Eva Willis went to Mesa with Chan and Linda today to spend about 3 weeks.  They came after her in Ronald's pretty car.  I sure hope she enjoys her stay.

Geneva Horne and her kids came up this weekend so her kids could go skiing.  They don't have to go to school until Monday.

Mandy has learned a new song (for her) "Hush little baby don't say a wowd, Mommies gonna buy you a mocking bowd, if that Mocking-bowd don't sing Mama's gonna buy you a diamond wing." etc.

Loyelin was trying to get after Richard he turned his little head and kissed her right in the mouth, needless to say Little Richard didn't get any more scolding for awhile.