Progress on the "Garage"

So it's been a couple of months and we've made some progress on the garage. All of the massive holes required for the new water and sewer lines have been filled and the front yard is getting back to normal. Here is some of what else has been happening:

The new garage was framed. My best friend Mario and hos crew came and framed the entire structure in four days. The structure shares half of one wall with the house ("attached") and on the back side has a small office and a bathroom. Smoe of the back angles were a little tricky but Mario and his crew did a great job.



Here is the inside view after framing. The electricians and plumbers were in and did their rough-ins. The mechanical guy also came and put in the a/c and cooler ducting. Everything passed on our framing/rough-in inspection - Yahoo!









Next Mario (hey, this guy can do anything) painted the eves. He did such a good job we had him do it twice. No, actually the roofers used too long of nails and made the undersides look bad where they stuck out so Mario got to paint again. Here he is painting.





After the roofing the crane came in to lift the two coolers and the A/C unit up on the roof. Now that those are in place the roof is sealed and the rain can come.










After that we've (mostly mario) has been busy sheeting the inside of the garage with plywood and drywalling. They have also put up the lathing (foam & chicken wire) on the outside in preparation of the stucco.





Here is an inside view as it stands now. They are just finishing the taping of the drywall on the garage ceiling and have hung plastic in preparation for texturing and painting this week.









Here is a view inside the office. Doesn't look like much but this is the result of six days of taping, filling and sanding. It will also be textured this week.










Here is the view from the alley. The roof is finished and the lathing is close.





This far this has been taxing but fun. There is a lot to coordinate, check and recheck. I've had to uncover a few outlets and have a few things corrected but all in all it has been perfect. This week is texture, then paint and then inside electrical. Hopefully the next post will be the finished views. I'm already planning the garage warming party we'll have when it's done. For now it's closer every day. There's been a lot of names attached to it like "The Man Cave", "The Barn" and others I probably shouldn't include here in a public forum. But right now I just call it unfinished. But hey - The drinking fountain is connected and working. What more could I ask for!

Utah Peaches

Utah peaches are so yummy.
This fall we bought three boxes of peaches. They were so yummy that we ate most of them fresh. Then we decided to preserve some of those precious peaches for future.





I love to can peaches. For me canning is more of an art than a chore. You place those peaches in just so so and they look beautiful. I have happy memories of learning to can all sorts of fruit with my mother when I was growing up in Montana. Then when I had my own family, my mom often made the trip to Arizona to help me can in September. (Well, and help celebrate birthdays too.) Canning with mom was an enjoyable experience. It was just fun to work together and visit while we worked. Mom had a little secret that made her peaches special. You leave the pit on one peach half. One pit in every jar. It added to the flavor or something. Well, I miss those days of canning with my mom. My peaches just don't quite turn out as nice.



THANKS MOM, for teaching me the fine art of canning, and instilling in me the love of preserving food.




Well, I have continued on the tradition and try to can something every year whether peaches, tomatoes or applesauce. Most of the time I have done it solo, or with a friend. This year, I got this bright idea. DAUGHTERS! It is time for them to learn. So I picked a Saturday to do some canning and freezing of peaches.

LeeAnn loves it, she's laughing

One slice for me, one slice for you.

Bethany and LeeAnn made quite the duo of peeling and slicing

Peeling and slicing, we've got this routine down.

There was enough left over to make a pan of peach crisp

The finished product! Now don't those jars of peaches look good enough to enter in the county fair? You know right next to Aunt Bee's pickles! What a wonderful feeling to see the finished product and know you have fruit to put away in food storage.

LeeAnn and Bethany's Photo Shoot

A few days ago, LeeAnn had me dress up in several different outfits. She had me pose in various places around our backyard. Here are a few of the pictures.

Look what we brought back from Japan

September 18, 2008

Yes, what a cute doll (baby) we brought back from Japan 15 years ago. LeeAnn was born in Tokyo, Japan 15 years ago today. She was the best present or souvenir anyone could ever ask for. LeeAnn was less than a month old when we moved back from Japan. No, she does not have Japanese citizenship. She is a true blue American, but definitely loves Japanese food.

LeeAnn enjoys many of the things most teenagers like, music, movies, and hanging out with friends. She plays the piano, loves the computer, can bake and cook most anything.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEEANN

from toddler on

Halloween costume

Posing after making a video that LeeAnn made with Cassi and Janel

Riding a horse at Cooke City, Montana

LeeAnn had a yummy lemon cake for her birthday this year. It was so lemony, that you almost can't see the cake in this picture.

Happy Birthday Bethany! September 11, 2008

Today Bethany turns 12 years old.
Happy Birthday Bethany! We love you.

Turning 12 means graduating from Primary and going on to Young Women's. The YW group welcomed Bethany by heart attacking our front yard and posting the big Beehive sign in our yard. (This was secretly done during the dark of night.) Soon after we received a good rain. Now those hearts are droopy, but their message is still the same.








Here's a few other pics of Bethany from the last few years.

September 2008

practicing the piano

Bethany & friend Malina

Mom asked her to pose with the rose bushes

Christmas morning

John and Bethany before school concert - 2006

Bethany played the part of an angel in Primary

My most favorite picture of all. LeeAnn was the photographer here, in 2004!

Our Weekend In Utah

Bonnie and LeeAnn took a trip to Utah to attend the wedding of Ben Jackson (our nephew, cousin) to Shara Richards. We flew into Salt Lake City, rented a car and decided to do some sightseeing in SLC before heading to Provo. We first went to temple square. I love the feeling of temple square. It has such a peaceful, friendly atmosphere. I don't care how many times I have been there, it is still exciting each time we visit. After lunch we drove east to "This is the Place" Monument and Heritage Park. We were enjoying the train ride at Heritage Park, when LeeAnn looked back at the end of the train and saw her cousin Trent. It was our Durfee cousins from Mesa! We were surprised to see them. We spent the next hour touring the village with them.

The rest of our trip included a family reunion dinner at Harold & Verla's house in Provo where we gathered with the Jackson family. Andrew & Linda were there from Tennessee. It was their son getting married, and graduating from BYU, I might add. Both Ben and Shara graduated from BYU on Friday in the morning, then got married in the late afternoon. The next day was the wedding in the Bountiful temple. It was a beautiful wedding. We took tons of pictures, but we won't post them all here. We also got to see my Dad, who is still doing great at 96. The rest of the time we hung out with Le & Marlene in Spanish Fork. They make great hosts. Thanks Le & Marlene for putting us up.
(narrative - Bonnie, pictures - LeeAnn)





Peggy and Marlene

Ian and Lindsay
Ben and Shara - the happy couple!

These cousins have so much fun together - Lachelle, LeeAnn, & Lindsay!
LeeAnn, Lynnsi, and Annie pulling their handcart at Heritage Village
twins Owen and Clara




LeeAnn and Lindsay were giving Ian rides on the airplane.



Rachel and Shirley