Signs of the Times

Kirtland 24th floats

2011-07-28T10:41:00.000-07:00

We had better floats this year... and then again we had an interestingly inappropriate one. There was one done by a ward that shall remain nameless, that had a couple of kids fake "tarred and feathered" and then on the back had a girl with a cutout of a beer bottle acting like she was chugging it. The theme was trials then and now, the then is obvious and the now was the Word of Wisdom. What can I say... for real? There was a very hilarious float done by 4th ward. It was dipicting the seagulls eating the crickets. They were all dressed up like seagulls downing the crickets at picnic table along with 2 Elders with the signs "Elder Sea," and "Elder Gull" on their shirts. I loved the black pipe cleaner leg sticking out of Sister Jones' mouth and her cricket sandwich. Tooooo funny.

Matched

2011-04-04T19:52:00.000-07:00

I loved Matched by Ally Condie! It's supposed to be a trilogy. Each book is the color of each of the pills in their pill box.

The dump

2011-03-30T08:25:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid my dad-"the mechanic"-would take me and my brother Cliff to the dump. It was at that time big open pits of all kinds of things. There were old mattresses, broken toys, dead animals, and of course the big draw for my dad-old cars. He would take us there and he would go off looking for car parts-it was free here not like those expensive salvage yards! Cliff and I were left to wander around on our own. I remember coming close to the edge of the dead animal pit, and Cliff who was probably 9 so I was 6, warning me not to step too close to the edge or I'd fall in. We found all kinds of junk there, and I thought it was super fantastic until I got a more mature and hygenic brain. When they closed that dump and put up big signs that said, "NO SCAVENGING!" that was a very sad day for my dad. I on the other hand had grown up and found that day to be one of the best days of my life! But, there were still trash cans at work to go through and things that were on the side of the road to pick up, so my dad still had his sources, but definitely not as exciting as our old dump.

The lightning storm and the Rabbit

2011-03-23T07:51:00.000-07:00

Being a mechanic's daughter means that you have witnessed the true limits of cars. This includes how far a car can go without gas. In other words, running out of gas was not unknown to me. One day, in New Mexico up on highway 550, our Volkswagen Rabbit ran out of gas. The Rabbit was of course packed with my siblings. My sister(Fauna) I think said we need to get out and push. We all exploded out of the car-as it was very small-and started pushing. The sky was very dark and it started thundering. I was probably 8 or 9. Anyway the hair on the back of my neck started standing up. So we started pushing faster and faster. The lightning followed and the thunder was so close to when we saw the lightning that you knew it was close. Rain started then, of course. Somehow we made it home...without gas. Later my mother revealed to me that any time you feel your hair stand up on you, lightning is about to strike, and you are a very likely candidate for the grounding. Oh, the fun times we had on the New Mexico roads!

The mechanic's daughter

2011-03-18T23:18:00.000-07:00

I am a mechanic's daughter. I have survived more breakdowns on vacation than you've eaten at McDonalds. Engine fires are no mystery to me. And yes black smoke coming out of your tailpipe is a very bad sign...I know that by experience. Can you replace a waterpump hose with a gardenhose with clamps? Yes, but that's where the black smoke and engine fire came into my life. I know the in between places in the Arizona desert better than toilet paper. Air conditioning is still such a thrill for me to have in my car that even today when I push it and it doesn't make the car stall, I get giddy. Yes I have helped tow cars before I could comprehend full sentences. Adding towing to my insurance felt like such a luxury. I still sometimes feel guilty about it. I think that I learned that the 2 most important things that you need to fix a car are bailing wire and electrical tape(we couldn't afford duct tape) Yes even though I have tried to mentally block those great fun times in my childhood of the insecurity of exploding or caputting at any moment, they are still there and have left their mark. It's who I am, a mechanic's daughter.

In-law laundry

2010-12-13T07:09:00.000-08:00

I am back to this. In-laws coming Friday. Gotta wash everything that might embarrass me laundry. No whites left undone for sure. Rugs. Bedding in Lauren's room. Anything I can't hide in closet. Todd's entire room just to smell better. All towels they gave us for Christmas last year, just to show "I too can be responsible with gifts"-they are being used and they are clean! In-law laundry is like cooking...it all has to be washed at just the right time-can't be done too early or too late-it has to be done just in time for the whole "clean" effect. Pre-visit laundry has to be done on a daily basis-you know so you can have the bathroom rugs done right before and the bedding and towels. No one can get the stomach flu during this crucial laundry time or the "magic" will never happen.

Arrogant Laundry

2010-12-09T07:57:00.000-08:00

For 2 weeks, I was the worlds biggest snobbbedy snob when it came to laundry. I had finally pulled myself out of "survivor laundry" mode to "2 loads a day" laundry mode. "2 loads a day" laundry is when even the bedding and curtains and rugs are clean and you wait for your kids/husband to shed the dirty laundry from their body to make 2 loads. I even started asking them if they wanted to get into their pajamas or comfy clothes so I could wash that days laundry on their backs. It was getting out of control, and then I turned in to a huge laundry SNOB. I would hear of others behind in their laundry, and would comment to myself of their incapability to stay with it (granted it had only been 2 weeks since I was in "survivor laundry" mode.) I thought of my home smelling so April Fresh and congratulated myself on my laundry capabilities. My snobbery soon came crashing down on me when I got another side job, and one day found that all my towels were dirty, (yes even the car washing ones) my family even started putting in pointed requests as to certain pieces of clothing that had to be washed by tomorrow, and was soon on my way to doing "potluck laundry" again...yes i was "that person" again. My 2 weeks of being arrogant about laundry was over and I was slapped in the face with it. So lesson learned if you get to the level of "arrogant laundry," learn from me... you are just a couple days away from potluck or survival laundry...don't ever forget that.

My hunger has been satisfied

2010-08-30T22:09:00.000-07:00

I waited for it. I read it. Loved it. She always surprises me in her books. The series has ended and I was very satisfied with the ending. After I finished it, it was a "wow" experience. Love Suzanne Collins and her "Hunger Games" series.

Our whole life is about Missionaries

2010-08-21T14:40:00.000-07:00

This is our missionary with his first companion Elder Schmidt from Japan. His dad is obviously in the military. He's doing good. He says teaching in Spanish is going better and he loves the "fountains of juice" in the MTC. Devin has a page on missionsite.net I've posted his emails and pictures there and it has his current address there. It has a link over to dearelder.com where you can write him for free. You need to create a quick account for yourself(email and password) and then you can write him for free while he's in the MTC(til Oct.6th.) You just need to know his box #(211) and his mission code (1006.) If you forget, it is on missionsite.net .

Kick 'em to the curb MTC style

2010-08-05T13:55:00.000-07:00

Yeah, you heard it. We now as families, because of the extreme behavior and overdoing it in every way farewells at the MTC, can either send our children on a plane to the MTC or do what I refer to as "kick 'em to the curb." We kicked ours to the curb. I'm not being cold, but factual. You now have a few seconds to unload your missionary's luggage and missionary, while a host(a missionary at the MTC) takes said child and luggage. You are informed to take all pictures and say all farewells before you get there. I obviously broke the rule of taking pictures as he got out of the van and unloaded...I was going to keep the rule but saw most family doing "posing pictures" and no one stopped them, so I hurried and took unloading pics. We had all of 30 seconds or less at the drop off. I understand why they do it...it's an easier separation for the missionary, less drama, less extended family(oh you're only allowed one vehicle) and no big ta do's with banners and pics and long drawn out picture taking sessions. Still, it feels like a drive by drop off to me. Hard on us, well me, easier on him. I guess they knew what they were doing after all.

Kevin's coquitos

2010-07-20T09:43:00.000-07:00

My nephew, that is in Chile on his mission, was introduced to these tiny coconut-like nuts called coquitos. Aren't they cute! I think they would be divine dipped in chocolate! (the inside, that is) Tick, tock. This Sunday is Devin's farewell. Our family's life will change forever...for the better of course.

Trek livin

2010-07-12T10:42:00.000-07:00

Well no one told me I'd be crying randomly for 3 weeks after I went on the trek. Every time I see a person that helped me pull my handcart or a person that was an "angel," I lose it. It was so hard and so good. It was so worth it because of the kids in my family. They obviously wouldn't have bonded as a family so quickly if we hadn't have gone through really really hard things. It was way harder than I could've ever thought and better too. We had a great time, and are having our first official family reunion Friday. We went to Toy Story 3 with our family the week after we got back. Here's the pics.

the trek

2010-06-10T13:59:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to lie about any of this. David, my husband, volunteered us for a trek as a ma and pa. The experience is something I would like to have. Can I do it? Will I survive? I have allergies and asthma. I'm trying to keep calm. It feels like when I was pregnant, and I would never try to think about the delivery until I was actually in the hospital. it would stress me out too much to think of it. So I'd be there in the hospital walking around, and it would all come back to me, the pain, the length of time, the terror of it. . . and I would say to myself, " I promised myself this would never happen again." And then I'd have a beautiful baby and forget it all. And then it would happen again. That's how I'm feeling about this trek, except I wasn't a participant in signing up for it. I've walked on my treadmill,walked twin hills(a steep inclined hill/mountain in my town)rode my bike, and I thought i was pretty ready until we went to our training in Delores.Colorado. Guess what? Huge elevation difference, less oxygen, more stuff I'm allergic to. After the training, a lady said that she feels so much better about the trek! After the training, me and my friend looked at each other and said, "We are more worried about it than before." My niece the nurse said when I voiced my concerns about surviving said, "Hey, if you die then you won't have to worry about it anymore." Thanks, that helped. Or when I asked my brother who was a pa last time, if I would survive, he said, "Miracles happen." The list goes on. So much positivity. These pics are from the last trek 4 years ago. Kelly and Linda(bro and sis in law)Kevin, Shannon and Devin(nephewin Chile, niece goin to Ohio, and son gointo s Salt lake city) The last pic of Devin says it all. UUUUHHH, TAKE ME HOME AND LET ME WASH EVERYTHING!

Devin's call video

2010-05-24T13:05:00.001-07:00

Listen closely for all the loving comments of my family.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Brace Yourself

2010-05-21T06:19:00.000-07:00

Devin's call is here. He is going to the South Salt Lake City Mission/Spanish speaking. Not kidding. Those two years of Spanish in high school are going to pay off. He's super excited, and David said, "We are so picking you up when your mission is over."

Tick Tock....waiting for Devin's Mission Call

2010-05-17T22:03:00.000-07:00

We think tomorrow is the day my son Devin's misssion call will come. Our stake president called us on Friday to tell us that Salt Lake had sent out his call to us on Friday. Soooo we're thinking tomorrow. Where do you think he'll go?

A Birthday and a Funeral

2010-05-12T08:04:00.000-07:00

My Dad turned 83 last Friday and we had a little party for him at his Assisted Living home. He had cake and ice cream and ate other's cake and ice cream also. He's sticking out his tongue and has his icing around his mouth.(yes I wiped it off after i took the picture.) The same day David's grandma died. We had her funeral on Monday. Roller coaster weekend.

Potluck Laundry

2010-05-05T19:12:00.000-07:00

New term for you,old term for me . . . . . . unfortunately. Potluck laundry is whatever I found on our bathroom floor that day. It elicits either a "HOOOray," or a "aaaaahh." It's kinda like a ward potluck. You get super excited when you see those especially great cooks walk in, or well it's the same as what you brought. The laundry, well you see a red some kinda shirt, hoping it's THE ONE, and then it gets super exciting and ends with a hoorah, or it gets stuffed to the bottom of the basket when you discover it's Todd's iron man shirt. POTluck laundry. It's a mysterious thing.

Shannon's mission call

2010-04-24T06:19:00.000-07:00

My niece Shannon waited a whole 24 hours to open her call until her dad could be there. She got it on Thursday and opened it last night on Friday. She is going to the Cleaveland,Ohio mission also serving in "The Historic Kirtland,Ohio" as a tour guide. She is extra excited, and so are we.

Survival Laundry

2010-04-19T10:22:00.000-07:00

My niece Mechelle asked what the heck I was talking about in a previous blog, so one term I use regularly, i will define. I am currently working "extrcurricularly" right now at the greenhouse here in Kirtland. During that time, my laundry especially gets shall we say "behind." This is when I go into "survival Laundry" mode. Which means only the very necessary-I need them tomorrow-washing them at 9:30 pm the night before-kind of laundry. 1 pair of underwear, 1towel per person, 1 pair of socks, 1 pair of pants, and 1 shirt, 1 dish rag, 1 drying towel, 1 pot holder. This is survival laundry. It's kinda like your 72 hr kit but only one day ahead. I know, your homes are dusted, washed, vacuumed, and put away, but this is where i'm at. It's an attitude really. It's a i don't care until someone comes to town. Mostly my living areas are clinky clean, but the laundry goes into this mode when i work "extracuricullarly" of course. Right now, this very minute, i am soaring out of survival laundry mode into the 72hr. mode. I have a load of clothes in the dryer right now, with a load of towels in the washer!!! (Can you believe there is even a hand towel and a few wash rags to boot!) Okay that's my life and definition of that right now. I hope to end "The Great Sock Shortage of 2010" today also. Oh and I finally am facing facts that Devin is growing up, and have an appointment for his physical for his mission today. A couple more hurdles in that area and they're submitted. Going now to check on my 72 hr. laundry status.

My nephew and niece's (marc and candace) new baby Corgan

2010-04-13T07:32:00.000-07:00

This is another great nephew that was born on March 25th. He had some scary troubles with jaundice, but we are so glad he's home now. This is his first bath, (Candace I hope you don't mind me swiping your super pics off your blog.) So proud to be another Grrrrreeeeat Aunt.

Kevin and Jarom

2010-04-09T07:49:00.000-07:00

Kevin is having a lot of sucess teaching in Chile. He emailed me the other day and told me that they had another quake the other day but it didn't build up or last very long. He said the Chileans are used to it, but I think it's hard to handle for him since he said that.

My other nephew Jarom and his wife Sara had a new baby boy named Seth.

Sugar Crash

2010-04-08T21:33:00.000-07:00

No ponchos can be found in my extra womanly size in the town of Farmington. For real.
Well I ended up getting 80 needles that are crapedy crap for my allergies. Well my big bag o needles wasn't such a good deal from Sam's Club was it? So my super town trip ended up with my friend kept asking me if I was okay cauz i started having an asthma/allergy thing. (It woulda helped if i hadn't eaten a couple of things I was allergic to and i had given myself my allergy shots in the last while.) So i bought some new antihistamine, 80 great needless needles, and had a puff of albuterol. Maybe I shoulda stayed and moved my family up from survival laundry to 2 days prepared. It all seemed great in theory, but as you know now, I can't handle my chocolate.

I need some snacky snacks

2010-04-08T08:24:00.000-07:00

Who's hungry? I am. Devin is getting close to submitting his mission papers. i need to quit dragging my feet and get that boy to his physical. i gotta go teach my first discussion tonight-she cancelled last week. Gotta look for some kind of snackedy snacks. I'm having a random day and don't wanna do any housework,but since we're only doing survival laundy, i should do towels at least, maybe underwear. Sorry, I'm having a mormon hangover from Easter. Too much chocolate and now ima draggin. gotta go scavenge and stare at the washer. Yippeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, just got a phone call with a better offer! Goodbye, washer and dryer, I'm going to town. Maybe i'll find a super cool poncho like i used to have in this pic. Wish me luck. I used to look like a super hero when i'd run with it flappin behind me. Ponchos and snacks are fun.

Kevin's earthquake

2010-03-03T21:39:00.000-08:00

Kevin, I found out was prepared by his mission president who listened to promptings 2 weeks before. It's an amazing story if you want me to email it to you. Needless to say, because of the preparation, Kevin and his companion knew they had to turn off the gas after the quake. So they did and it was already leaking. I didn't even think about the gas, but one spark, or sleeping with the fumes can be instant deadlyness. I'm attaching a picture taken on March 1st, after the quake. Kevin is wearing a red tie five rows back.

Kevin and the earthquake

2010-02-27T11:50:00.000-08:00

There was an 8.0 earthquake in Chile last night/this morning. Kevin (my nephew on a mission there) is in Santiago-200 miles away from the epicenter by Concepcion. It was about 7.5 in Santiago. His misssion president's wife blogged this morning and said that all of her missionaries were safe and accounted for. The tsunami caused by the quake is heading to Hawaii. I hope all our friends there will be okay. They have no power, internet, or land line phones right now in Santiago, but I saw some twitters from MSNBC this morning from Santiago. Hopefully the aftershocks won't be too bad. He emailed me this week saying they were waiting for this earthquake-the mission president also brought them bottled water and they had to have their back packs ready with essentials. Their area was pretty new and built to earthquake code from what I could tell from the newer construction (Chile has been building to earthquake code since the 1920's.)

2010-01-11T10:55:00.000-08:00

I loved the movie Julie and Julia. I can't wait to get my hands on Julia Child's cookbooks. I really need to know how to make real chocolate mousse. I wonder if I can make Beef Borg. without alcohol? Any substitutions-hmmm.

BYU Game

2009-11-24T08:17:00.000-08:00

BYU barely won against New Mexico. It was kind of a ho hum experience. No one taunted us, approached us, breathed the deathly tailgate breath on us...nothing. I think with the girls soccer incident and the head football coach punching his assistant coach, they(NM fans) were trying to redeem themselves. The only real excitement is when the NM football players ran on the field and David yelled, "Bring on the girls soccer team!" We came home to see if we were filmed in any way and we were and my son Devin gave me a lovely compliment on my appearance. He said with my coat on, I looked like a Sith Lord. thanks Devin love ya.

2009-10-10T08:54:00.000-07:00

This is how we feel here in New Mexico among
all these Lobo and Arizona fans, but we're holding
on to our love of BYU sports. Join us if you
can to the UNm-BYU FOOTBALL GAME,
NOVEMBER 14TH IN new mexico. You
can get tickets for the BYU section from:
keith@myjiffy.com (Keith Mortensen-
505-259-1767) If you can stand jeering and
the overwhelming smell of liquor in the parking
lot, you'll be so wanted in the sober section.

2009-10-03T20:10:00.000-07:00

My Groovy sister had a birthday! Check out our dog

Tina (Mother of Chaquita.)

2009-09-11T16:00:00.000-07:00

Farnsworth cousins - I'm guessing- Alan, Scott, and
Lane- probably on a Sunday.

Super cool pictures from my past

2009-09-11T15:44:00.000-07:00

Cliff despises me for this encroachment I made on the "boys of the family" picture - as you can see below-I had already been pictured in the girl photo, why his too?(He still has a prob with this) The bottom right pic is a classic of the Snyders. Check out Brant's tum tum-Marc is sporting Grandpa's Sunday suit coat.

Devin's Eagle

2009-08-10T07:32:00.000-07:00

Yes Devin finally got his Eagle Scout Award!!!!

Whew, thank you Fed Ex. Council received his

paperwork 3 days before his 18th birthday, but

they couldn't find it until 1 day before because

someone had put it in their vault. Then, council wouldn't

accept his application because our Ward hadn't

chartered for the year! This was a

month before his high school graduation!

His senior year was a major marathon for me, but

we all survived. I recommend this course of

procrastination to no one.

Signs Family Reunion

2009-08-10T07:17:00.000-07:00

Okay, thanks to my daughter Lauren, I have pictures from the reunion. We are currently having a problem with our Jdrive and my card wasn't formatted on my camera. So here's our reunion, which was super fab, from my 12 year old's perspective.

More Costner Reunion

2009-08-05T19:12:00.001-07:00

Marc (ca ching, ding-ding-ding) since you weren't here, here's some more family you've grown estranged from.

Costner Reunion

2009-08-05T19:07:00.000-07:00

Me and my sisters.

Devin's Graduation

2009-08-05T18:56:00.000-07:00

Devin graduated in May. He's super smart now!

Melissa's Wedding

2009-08-05T18:14:00.000-07:00

My niece was married in April. If you look close, you might spy Devin being nice to his sister!

Kevin's mission call

2009-07-08T21:59:00.000-07:00

Kevin's going to Chile/Santiago East on his mission on October 28th.

2009-04-24T05:06:00.000-07:00

Notice the boy with brown hair in the dark jacket with a red shirt and striped red tie is Hank Costner . . .Cliff's son. Most of you viewing this blog are related to him.

Oh yeah there was breakfast at my house

2009-04-23T08:04:00.000-07:00

After prom they came to have breakfast at my house but were too tired to play German Spotlight, so we just watched Tiffany eat racially integrated doughnut holes for fun.

2009-04-23T07:51:00.000-07:00

Devin went to prom with Liz Collard. He triple dated (For the Strength of Youth) with Chase Beckstead and Hank. Here's the pics.

Uncle Tommy rocks!

2009-03-08T20:47:00.000-07:00

Uncle Tommy had a Knee operation, I think and was home with a walker and cane. Then aunt Babs went out on her back porch to see what the dog was barking at and it was a rattlesnake. It bit her on the leg. Uncle Tommy killed it with his cane and they transported her by helicopter to Phoenix for antivenom. That's all I know.

Gulp! She swallowed her engagement ring - TODAY Weddings- msnbc.com

2009-03-02T16:25:00.000-08:00

Gulp! She swallowed her engagement ring - TODAY Weddings- msnbc.com

2009-02-15T10:35:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Marc! I hope you enjoy these pics from the reception of deception.

Notice, Marc looks super happy. His interests were: food and presents.

Jessica Arrives

2009-02-04T07:32:00.000-08:00

It was mostly superfriendly at the airport. Hey I just remembered, where was my fantabulous sister named Melanie? Jessica looked happy and serene. She even had an Argentine farmer's tan! Benjamin remebered her by giving his sis a kiss. (What a memory Bennie!)

santa pics forever ago with special santa

2009-01-27T21:53:00.000-08:00

2009-01-17T13:53:00.001-08:00

Sea World was grand

Signs of the times

2009-01-17T13:43:00.000-08:00

Yes my kids and my waistline have grown. Hooray for chocolate!