Angel, Nathan, and Lillie's Visit to MONTANA

I have hesitated to make this post...concerned...

that this may keep all our other children from

coming to VISIT us here in 

MONTANA...

(smile)

Angel, Nathan, and Lillie came to spend

ONE WEEK with us...

But, it didn't take long that Garvin found things

for Angel to do...(besides mending the fence that "Sirloin" busted up)

The barn needed..."cleaning" out...and Angel

ended up with the job of shoveling out

the MANURE! (smile)

  Daddy - Daughter

Team work

The other half of team - left...

This is where Garvin would say...

"Put Your BACK into it!"

(smile)

Angel is a "natural" here on the farm...

Her first experience in handling the "big" tractor

 Garvin giving instructions on how to operate it...

She did manage to get the tractor out of the pen...

and kept the fence intact!

Unloading it all into the garden plot!

On the first part of the garden...

the vegetation is doing AWESOME!

 We have corn...tomatoes...celery...beans...Different Varieties of 

squash...watermelon...another type of melon...

cucumbers... strawberries...3 types of onions...

swish chard (2 types)...peppers...

and our RASPBERRY patch...

This is only one section of our garden...

I have herbs and other foods around the HOUSE...

fruit trees...blackberries that are starting...and

blueberries...that are starting...

 We did have help...

Lillie loading up the sawdust...

Nathan is hoeing...

She is becoming a "serious" gardner...

(smile)

Angel had to make MORE than ONE trip!

(smile)

However, we do have a problem...

with our "underground" squirrels...

Obviously...those who have tried to get rid of them...

have NOT been very good shots...

Remember the movie..."Caddy Shack"?

Well....he moved to OUR PLACE and brought his FAMILY!

(smile)

OK...we do have a problem in another area...

ROCKS...constantly pulling up ROCKS...

and ol' "Sirloin"

wondering what in the world

we were doing...in his pen...in which he no longer

occupies...(sniff)

 

Caleb and Rose's Blog

I know many of you are not too familiar with Caleb and Rose's blog...Rose just put up pictures of their ROME honeymoon including - the new ROME TEMPLE...(awesome by-the-way) Plus, MOTHER'S DAY pictures...of Caleb and Hyrum together...LOVE IT!

Get acquainted with the newest FAMILY BLOG:

http://roseandcalebsmith.blogspot.com/ 

Benjamin Garvin Joslyn

      Before... 

...and After

Brothers...

One of our favorite movies when raising up our children was "White Christmas"...

It was fun...hearing our girls mimic the song

"Sisters"... (smile)

(I tried embedding the movie portion of this song...but, for some reason...it wouldn't work)

Now, if there was only a song about "Brothers"...(smile)

Garvin and I had so much FUN...

Garvin and his brothers, Greg and Scott, have not been together for "16" YEARS...

I haven't seen my YOUNGEST brother, Scott, in 10 years...

and my brother, Steve, in...a couple or so years...

I think there is something "special" and "endearing" about "sibling" relationships... 

different than with our parents...

Out of the 500 pictures I took on this trip...

I thought I would choose a few just with our brothers...

I will post much more later about our trip, Marj's birthday

celebration...and other moments...

but this is just...

"TO OUR BROTHERS"

Greg and Garvin

We are at Garvin's brother's Scott place in

Dallas, Oregon

Greg, Garvin and Scott

Having a light-hearted moment...

Must have been a good one...

Scott and Garvin

So good to see them together...

My brother, Steve...

We spent a couple of nights with him and Jerilyn

in Sandy, Oregon...

Doesn't he look great...!!! For having gone over a cliff

and breaking his neck in two places?

He is in CONSTANT PAIN...and works HARD

in staying in shape...to compensate for the damage

to his neck and ribs...etc.

He LOVES to Bar-B-Q - so we had a GREAT CHICKEN DINNER!

We are only 14 months apart...

Lots of GREAT MEMORIES...

Steve starting laughing at something Garvin was doing...

Took Steve awhile to stop laughing!

Now...to meet my baby brother, Scott...

I had to put this picture up...cause Garvin lined up the picture

to capture the "antlers" over Scott's head...(smile)

This was taken in Scott's house 

Post Falls, Idaho

Little brothers never change...

It was hard for him to keep a straight face...

I think the deer in the background...

seems to understand all too well...(smile)

He really is very funny...(smile)

After Marj's "80th" Birthday party...

we drove to Lincoln City, Oregon to Scott and Bev's 

beach house...The beach house is only about 1/2 block

from the beach...

So, Greg, Garvin, Scott, and his dog, and I

went for a stroll on the beach...

EARLY in the morning...

It was our last moments before 

Garvin and I had to leave...

Had a hard time getting Garvin to behave himself...

Do I really need to comment here? (smile)

Great, isn't it?

 

Taking A Moment to Reflect...

Monument that stands in front of the grave sites

of Garvin's parents... at the 

West Hills Memorial Park

in Yakima, Washington

One of the tender moments on this trip...

was being able to spend a few quiet moments

at the cemetery where Garvin's parents are buried...

Garvin has not been back here since his father passed away in 1988...

Garvin

Washington, Oregon, and Idaho TRIP...AWESOME!

Garvin and I made a long awaited trip...

to finally get together with Garvin's side of the family...

It has been "16" years since he and his brothers have seen each other...

It all began when Garvin's step-mother, Marj, was turning

"80" years old on July 7th...When, Forest, Marj's husband contacted the "3" boys...

to come to Albany, Oregon...to help celebrate this milestone...

plans went into action...

However, in the blessing of coming together with Garvin's family,

I was able to see BOTH of my brothers, Steve, who lives in Sandy, Oregon, and Scott, 

who lives in Post Falls, Idaho...PLUS, I was able to see one of my "adoptive" mothers...

who played a major role in me...coming into the church...Ellen Wilfley, who

now lives in Eagle Creek, Oregon...

This will be PART 1

Beginning with our leaving LATE Thursday afternoon on July 5th...

We headed for YAKIMA, Washington where Greg, Garvin's OLDEST BROTHER, lives...

We had quite a surprise...when we arrived late that night...

FOR MY CHILDREN (except Angel who got to visit them not that long ago)) ---

who have never been to their

Uncle Greg or Aunt Liz's home...

Here are the pictures I took of their BEAUTIFUL 7-Acre OASIS...

They have lived here for over 30 years...planted every TREE and flower...

including the fact that GREG BUILT his OWN HOME!

LOVED IT!

You may be wondering why I posted BURNT trees... in their back yard...

It just so happened...BEFORE WE GOT THERE...a neighbor...who lives

at the BOTTOM of the HILL from their home...accidentally set the dry GRASS on FIRE

and it RACED UP the HILL toward their "wood" home...

Greg wasn't home, but another neighbor saw the fire moving super fast up the hill

toward Greg/Liz's home...got the fire department out quickly...and tried to save their home...

Everyone thought their home was TOAST...but, a mighty divine hand...

diverted the FIRE AROUND their home...

Though, they lost trees and sections of their yard was burnt...

plus burnt holes in their patio furniture (umbrella)...

the house was untouched... 

Other section of their back yard area - burnt...

Fire went AROUND the playhouse Greg build 

for their daughter, Holly...

 You can see how close the fire came...by looking at the tree

to the left...BACK YARD...area...

 Front Yard...

(they are in the process of RESTAINING their home)

(hence the two shades...) (smile)

 They have worked so hard...over their property...and have created

such a "haven"...JUST BEAUTIFUL...

Garden shed...willow trees...

 Beautiful pond...

Orchard...

 Another view of the pond...and garden shed...

Beautiful flowers...

They came up with lots of creative ideas...building their flower beds 

around odds and ends...

Clematis wrapped around old wooden wheel...

 View from the back...Their home sits on a hillside

over looking part of the valley...

 Another section of their yard...

 Can see that it is on a hill...better in this picture...

I had many more pictures...(nearly 40) but, only put up a few of them...

Will end on two more...

and will post other moments on this trip...

over a period of days...

 Loved how this picture turn out...

And of course...I am ending on a very PATRIOTIC NOTE!

(smile)

 

LOVE IT!