Grandpa Stones

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!

Chicken Coop Complete!

The chicken coop and pin are complete!  We all chipped in and the kids and I painted, and Shane reinforced the pin to be totally unpenitratable!  Nothing will get in or out of this bad boy:)  Now our two remaining hens will have a lovely home to lay their yummy eggs!

Fall Harvest

Our fall harvest, likely to be the best harvest ever for us.  We made applesauce and apple juice from our apple orchard.

 The kids enjoyed helping, until we broke the borrowed victorio strainer...yikes. 

 Veggies, and fruits from the garden!  Hooray!  So very satisfying.

 Completed applesauce.

 Completed peaches (we picked these at a local orchard and froze our peaches from our trees).

 Fresh salsa, jarred and stored.  It is a yummy recipe.

Camper's Cove

We made several camping adventures during the summer, this being the first. We tried a local camping facility. It was fun- windy but fun. We had some memorable experiences, like EVERY one of my children falling into the lake. It wasn't warm at all. Adelle's entire body when under. Cade just a leg, and Brinly just a leg. It was amazing...everyone at a different point of the trip. Anyway, here's proof of our fun endeavors.

We burned our cinnamon rolls and shared them with our neighbors:). Ate several meals in the wind, enjoyed a fun little train ride, attempted to fish, and slept very little due to our (always present) noisy neighbors.

Michael and Carrie's Visit

We have enjoyed a visit with Michael and Carrie and fam every spring since we moved here. It's been a lot of fun to have them come. This year was no different. We enjoyed pre- 4th of July sparklers and a few fireworks (for Shane's birthday festivities).
Charlie was a pro.

Cade was a little worried, but got into it.

These cute girls just wanted to cuddle and watch. It was quite chilly for late June.

Brinly loved it! Look at that cute face!

We stayed up a little too late:) Ha, ha...look at those faces!

We flew kites on the beach.

Shane played stratego a few times...I'm pretty sure tears were involved.

And what would a Ford visit be without a marshmallow roast! It was cold, but everyone enjoyed their 'mallows.

Adelle was bundled.

Fishing Frenzie

Fishing with Daddy at the local little lake next to our house was fun for the family. Cade was very much into the entire adventure, and Adelle was quite intent on watching, as you can see. Brinly and I kinda hung out together, waiting patiently for any action:).

Cade did eventually catch a little thing. There was pride beaming from him and Brinly.

Adelle thought it was pretty cool too.

Learning how to grab and unhook the fish. They released this little guy back into the lake. It was a fun afternoon.

Later that month, we traveled over to Traverse City for a church meeting. Shane was just called in April as Branch President of our little congregation here. So, we were there for some training. While he was in his meeting, I took the kids to this great kids fishing festival. They stocked an area of the lake, provided poles, bate, and volunteers. The kids LOVED it, especially since they actually caught something, both Brinly and Cade. They had more than just fishing, and it was all fun- but the fishing was definitely the highlight.

Brinly, "fishing" with help from the nice volunteer.

Brinly, unhooking her fish, with the help of the volunteer:).

Brinly's Catch:

Cade's Catch:

This nice volunteer could see I had no clue to what I was doing, but willing to try for the sake of my children even if it involved embarrassing myself to the extreme. That is maternal dedication, right?:) It was really embarrassing b/c it was so painfully obvious I really didn't know what I was doing, nor was I coordinated enough to even cast the darn pole with so many people around. Fortunately, this volunteer helped us through the entire process of Brinly and Cade's fishing endeavors.

Watching the fish being cleaned. Pretty cool to a little boy.

Maybe we will be able to catch this next year. It was pretty fun and all free!

Adelle's 2nd Birthday

Pink and green dominated our birthday theme for Adelle. She was thrilled to have a day of attention.

Her birthday dinner consisted of finger foods, dippable finger foods- her favorite way to eat. Hot dogs on a stick, bread sticks on a a stick, veggies and dip, chips and dip, cocktail shrimp, etc. It was a fun dinner and everyone enjoyed it:).

Here are the many faces of Adelle:)

I hope never to forget them!

Opening birthday gifts. Second birthdays are always fun because it is the first year they really understand what is happening...its all new and exciting.

We are so happy to have you in our family little Adelle!! WE LOVE YOU!