profile; head center (black circle eye); body curled up right side
Grandpa Stones, me and Adelle Jan. 2010
Well, I think it finally hit me last night that Grandpa passed. I was making a written list of memories…and it made me miss him. He will definitely be missed. Such a wonderful man. I love him.
My very first memory of him includes driving up to the Texaco station after a long drive from California or TX with him standing outside of the station store doorway. We always knew there was a treat involved when we saw Grandpa first thing! He was a very giving person. He always set up the swings for us whenever we arrived at the house, and we so looked forward to the swings! It was always fun to watch him open the mysterious shed in the back of the house- chuck full of exciting unknown items- just waiting to be explored (though we never did, until I was in college b/c if I recall correctly, it was usually locked). Even when we twirled those swings until the chains broke, Grandpa never got after us. He quietly made his way to the shed or his notoriously messy truck to retrieve the needed tools and repaired them.
One time, when the back room was just completed, minus the carpet and possibly the dry wall. Tara and I were probably only 3 or 4, maybe 5 and we decided to start chalking all over the cement foundation/floor. Grandpa sat there in his very well known jumpsuit, didn’t say anything to us, so we thought it was ok- though when Grandma arrived on the scene, we were out of luck! He was pretty laid back.
The image of Grandpa contains several dominate characteristics- his wonderfully happy and sparking eyes that would often get misty when you told him you loved him or said goodbye. Then his wonderful laugh where his entire body chuckled in sync with his laughs. It was perfectly contagious. He loved genuinely and tenderly.
I had the opportunity to live with Grandma and Grandpa for a year while I attended Utah State from August 1998- May 1999. During that time, all the wonderful characteristics of Grandpa were made even more evident. He always tried to give me money when I went on a road trip (along with the numerous bags of food from Grandma)or even sometimes when I went out for an evening. He never refused a treat. He loved his bolo ties, stayed up late watching Johnny Carson reruns, always left his evidence of mechanic work on the bar soap, hesitated to talk about his war days, and always gave wonderful hugs goodnight.
I will always remember Grandpa Stones with gentle tender love, the love he always showed. I will definitely miss him, but know that I will see him again. I look forward to that day. I love you Grandpa!
This picture was taken in January of 2010- the last time I saw Grandpa. I’m thankful we took pictures.
Lastly, I hope his dear wife is fairing well. It must be very, very difficult to lose a spouse. Thinking about you Grandma!
For preschool one day we were studying the letter "R". So I made rainbow jello cups for the first and last time- way too long of a process! But Brinly was so excited to have a left-over rainbow treat when she got home from school, she wanted her picture taken with it. Jello isn't something my kids are very accustomed too, so it was special! (And yes, she cut all her hair off after watching Tangled...the power of media).
Our first blossom after a long winter. It was note worthy!
My new project is our garden. I am doing all I can to make a GREAT garden this year, from starting my plants to clearing an area to plant them in. I'm really excited about it and am thoroughly enjoying it. I'll post an updated picture of all my starts soon. They have doubled since this photo:)
Adelle just wanted to eat ice. She is an ice fanatic!
Cade tasting the melting snow dripping off the roof. So cute. His personality to a T.
Just a little explanation here- We were making homemade tortillas. Katie is wowing my kids with her "skills" of throwing a ball of dough in hopes it becomes flat like a pizza:). We picked up several off the floor after that. We had a great time. Katie was awesome. My kids followed her example and we basically had dough everywhere:). Good times.
On our way to or from the airport. We wished we could have made it to actually go in the temple, but it was closed for cleaning. For some reason we seem to always find that weekend to plan a trip to the temple:) . Oh well.
As for the kids and I, we are baking a lot. We are down to one loaf of frozen bread. I am totally utilizing my bread machine. It makes amazing dough, which I can bake in a normal bread pan, if I wish or us to make bread sticks, scones, rolls, etc.- all of which, my children have thoroughly enjoyed making (making a mess:)). This is Adelle and I watching something bake (I don't recall what at the moment).
Household items:
Several years ago, I decided I would buy our household items in sets of 12. One trip I bought 12 shampoo bottles (various brands, types). The next, 12 conditioners. Another time, I bought 12 packages of toothbrushes. Next 12 boxes of toothpaste. Etc, etc. Thus, we are pretty well stocked in that department. I haven't had to buy shampoo & conditioner, lotion, toothbrushes for years! We are almost of out of kid toothbrushes. I have had to replenish our toothpaste several times as well as floss. Bar soap keeps FOREVER. Just make sure you LOVE your bar soap b/c you might get sick of it:).
Diapers were a big concern for me. Several years ago, I made my own cloth diapers, and purchased several as well. I use them. Not on a daily basis- but I a lot myself so many disposable diapers a month. Usually by the last week, we are using cloth. Sometimes I use them more often. Definitely stretches the budget.
Paper Products:
TP- IMPORTANT! I don't want to use leaves. Though if you keep newspaper or magazines- they could be substituted if absolutely necessary:).
Paper towels- I utilize these tremendously. They are NOT a necessity though. I could just use rags if needed, but I do keep at least 1 bulk package on hand.
Soaps:
Laundry detergent- I have 12 small bottles of SUPER concentrated liquid soap. I ordered them actually by error on Amazon on time, but have been grateful for them. They will keep us CLEAN:). They can also be diluted as various cleaners.
Dish soap- we would run out of this in a matter of months. I only keep a few bottles on hand. we go through about 1 bottle a month. BUT would go through more if we didn't use the dishwasher. Dish washer detergent may run out this week:) Joy.
Hand soap- I only keep a couple bottles of liquid hand soap refill on hand. We could use the bar soap if that ran out.
Heat Source:
We recently purchased a kerosene burning portable heater. It is killer cold here in the winter, and KNOW we would really be in a bad situation if we lost electricity. So, we purchased a heater and a few gallons of kerosene. We've tried it, and it's great. Heats super efficiently. Next, we need to stock up on kerosene.
Next months challege: 72- hour kit
We opened several of our freeze-dried and dehydrated cans. The freeze dried peaches are a winner- they were half gone the day we opened them. TVP chicken strips are a good snack food- my daughter LOVES them. They work in stir-fry as well. Banana slices, getting old- no-one wants to eat them anymore. Freeze-dried peas- GOOD. We've just snacked on them, I haven't tried to rehydrate them yet. Dehydrated mushrooms- AWESOME if you like fresh mushrooms. We've actually run out! I'll never buy canned mushrooms again. These wonders hydrate just like a fresh mushroom and taste WONDERFUL. Definitely a keeper. Dehydrated spinach- haven't tried yet. I will though soon. I'm dying for something green to eat!
