March 2021

Okay, so here goes another month. They just fly by! Almost everyone in our orbit is now vaccinated, so we are feeling a bit less tense about life in the pandemic. The month started with a spur-of-the-moment trip to Mesa, AZ for Kris, whose mother has moved into a care facility. It has reached the point where we can't adequately care for her anymore. The facility is very nice and populated by a very good and kind staff. While the cat is away the mice will play, so I went to SLC with SKT and AW for an outing that, of course, including buying a lemon-blueberry pie at Pie Fight, and supper at Siegfried's Delicatessen. I also made some things that Kris doesn't enjoy with SKT. Lizzie's birthday celebration was the evening of Kris's return. Lucy Jane and her friends, Abi and Madeleine spent a few day with us in Provo on their way to Reno and, ultimately, the Oregon coast where they will do remote classes. Such a brilliant idea! Phillip and family followed right on their heels as part of a college familiarization tour for Ollie. I had a wonderful 75th birthday. The frosting on the cake was a a surprise visit from the Colvers, who brought me eggs and fudge! That evening we had dinner with SKT, Annie, and Mark who was in town for a wedding. The end of the month finally saw the large drilled stone for our future water feature delivered.

Kris is off to AZ from the Provo Airport

This is Emerald Grove: from one grove to another

Lemon-blueberry pie

Wienerschnitzel at Siegfried's

SKT and I made biscuits and gravy, 

not Kris's favorite

Lizzie turned 18

Grammy, Max, Erick, and Madi at the party

Tucker came down from the U to join us for supper

Lucy wanted Indian from Bombay House, and of

course we were game

The-George-Washington-University buddies: LJ, Abi, and Madeleine 

The Honolulu Taylors in Indiana where they visited Purdue

Corned beef and cabbage followed by a Guinness chocolate cake

for Saint Patrick's Day 

These folks can't visit Provo without a trip to La Casita

Annie made some delicious paella and invited us

These kids surprised the heck out of me with their visit

Mark was in town for a wedding AND my birthday

These people treated us to birthday dinner at Asado

Birthday cards, fudge, and a cool gizmo from Maren and family

The stone has arrived on site

Next up in April is a visit from a few of the Hastings, another trip to Mesa, and an ausflug to Texas to visit Debra Sue Darling Gibbs. So there will be more, even if this is all for now.

OXO

D.

February 2021

We are still in the midst of the pandemic, but are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I had my first and second doses of the Pfizer vaccine and they opened the 60+ group a couple of weeks early. So we jumped in and scheduled Kris's first shot the same time as my second. Valentine's Day was uneventful, as most holidays have been for the last 12 months. We had a fun February day in Salt Lake with SKT and AW looking for a patio umbrella, lunch at Greek Souvlakia, mid-century furniture shopping, eating delicious pie, neighborhood touring, Orson Gygi, and driving all the way home off-freeway on secret back routes. Work on the patio remodel has begun and we purchased a stone for a bubbler fountain. Katy and family came from Vernal for a very quick visit, and poof, the month was gone.

This was the last piece of the floor refinishing project: 

repairing the dings in the corner and repainting

Oh, happy day!

Valentine's flowers for both of us, JoJo's for Kris, and 

funeral-potato chips for me from TJ's

There has been snow, but not nearly enough -- drought's a comin'

The Green Ant in SLC

Mid-century furniture on Ninth South in the 9th and 9th neighborhood

The little individual pies at the Pie Fight in the same building

are delicious -- I had a blueberry-lemon that was heavenly 

The view of Timp as we approached home after our SLC adventure

This vaccination center runs like clockwork, and the shots

were perfect -- couldn't even feel a tiny prick, and

we had no reaction to the injection

José Sotelo, Emily's, SKT's, and now our landscaper, set his

guys to work removing the planting bed

Ready for the next phase

Lots of heavy stones to choose from at State Stone in Lehi

This is our stone waiting to be drilled

The chicken ladies brought us eggs from Vernal, and that's a

cute photo-bomber in his bomber jacket

Those eggs are so beautiful

Arthur loved the salmon patties

I think we picked up a weirdo

Coloring, puzzles, and reading with Grammy

Will the batteries in this toy ever die?

Arthur came home from the park in tears and wanted Grandpa, 

put his head down and slept for an hour and a half

A beautiful finish to the month

We will have visits from Lucy Jane, then Phillip and family in March. so it should be an eventful month. This, however, is all for now.

OXO

D. 

January 2021

January started with a bang! The 6th was SKT's birthday and we joined in a celebratory dinner at P712. The 6th was also the day of the attempted overthrow of the legislative arm of the government at the National Capitol by a Trumpist mob. They violently attempted to stop a Joint Session of Congress in the process of certifying the election of President Biden. On Friday the 8th a team of movers emptied all the rooms of our house that have hardwood floors. This in preparation for refinishing to repair the damage from our broken ice maker many months ago. That weekend we packed and prepared to return to Mesa. Bright and early on the 11th the refinishers knocked on the door and started the process. We chose a stain color from samples applied to a stripped test patch, and by midday we were off to Henderson NV for the night. We arrived in Mesa the next day and took over the 24-hour care of Grandmother Boynton. We had an enjoyable time but were almost completely confined to home because of the high rate of Covid in Arizona. We spent the entire day of the 20th consuming every morsel of the Inauguration. What a complete relief! We returned to Utah via Henderson on the 30th with a short stop in Peoria. Arriving home on the 31st, we found the house mostly returned to order with beautifully refinished floors.

Happy Birthday to Stephen

This was a beyond-shocking scene

The Mormons were there: Captain Moroni and the Title of Liberty

The immoveable table was no sweat for the movers

Clearing out the living room

The garage was our storage unit

Sanding gets underway

Four choices

Greek supper in Henderson

Grandmother and Kris

We watched movies and lots of HGTV

Kris playing Jenga with Brigham

Winter fruit in Arizona

Dickie cooking up some hash

Chip can be a clown -- Sunday dinner

Lantana is a favorite of mine

Such a happy day!

The stench is gone from the White House

Kris got an exercise gizmo for GB

Chip and Grandmother in earnest

M&G

The Youngs in Peoria

Home again, home again...the floors are splendid

So that's the month in review, and that's all for now.

OXO

D.