HOMESICK

My older sister and I went back to our home town for a funeral last Saturday and I can't believe how many good, fun memories it brought back to us. I would pay big money for a time machine to take me back in time for a week. I miss my parents SO MUCH! They were amazing people and I had a great childhood.

This is the apartment we lived in when we first lived in Grand Junction. My parents were building our house and I was 5 years old.

This is the home I grew up in, but it looks a lot different now. When it was built it had three arches in the front and the brick was not painted- it was white with brown trim. But that planter in front is from us and all the trees too. They are so huge!!

While my sister and I were taking photos of the house, the people who live there now came home and told us to come in and see the house. I was so impressed with their kindness and my sister was in tears. It was a very poignant tour for us. We haven't been inside since we moved out 30 years ago.

There wasn't a lot left in the house that was from us (again, it's been 30 years), but we found this floor in the laundry room that is original! haha They let us go everywhere!

These cabinets in the laundry room are also original. They are from our first kitchen in the 1970's, before we remodeled. Aren't they groovy?? 

I know it seems strange to take a picture of a hallway, but I always tell my kids about playing soccer and football in the hallway growing up, so I took a picture to show them. I don't know how many lights we broke, but it was a lot.

This is the bathroom I grew up getting ready in. They painted the cabinets, but otherwise it is the same.

Here is a picture of the intercom system we had in all the rooms. Sooo 80's!

This is the kitchen area and the stairs go up to the master bedroom. The people that own it now have remodeled the kitchen twice since they bought the house in 1989, but the space is the same. My mom's white and yellow cabinets and tiled countertops are history, but will never be forgotten. What a fun trip down memory lane. I'm so blessed to have had such a wonderful family and home to be raised in.

FEBRUARY'S ABOUT FINISHED

Here are a few random photos from this last week of February...

Little Miss C and Little C

I can't call Little C Little C anymore. He's taller than I am. And while he's still shorter than Big C, he's definitely not 'Little'. Medium C just doesn't really have a ring to it... hmmmm... I think we'll just go with C-Man until I come up with something better.

C-Man and his buddy, N, doing fast offerings on the 4-wheeler. Only in rural Utah...

My older sister came down for a funeral of a family friend and stayed for about 24 hours. We went and got frozen yogurt, went grave hunting for our ancestors out in the old Pioneer Cemetery north of Ephraim and out to lunch. It was a fun, but quick trip. 

My maternal Great Great Grandfather and Grandmother's headstone out in the Ephraim Pioneer Cemetery.
This was my Great Great Grandpa that was the first mayor of Ephraim back in the late 1800's.

Me, hanging out with Ronald Reagan at Home Depot on a trip to Provo.

HISTORICAL EPHRAIM IS DISAPPEARING

Historical preservation is a controversial topic at our house. With my husband being a contractor he thinks old buildings should be torn down and rebuilt. It saves money, time and is more efficient (he's a HUGE fan of efficiency). I, on the other hand, am a big supporter of historical sites. I think our heritage should be preserved and saved. I am not opposed to upgrading old buildings, but to take them down is a travesty in my opinion. There is no way that those buildings will ever be able to be duplicated. I love the history in my town. My family goes back over 100 years here, my great-great grandfather was the first mayor of Ephraim, both my parents and their parents were raised here and I actually get nostalgic when I see photos of how the town used to look- if such a thing is even possible.

Tearing down the old bank.

 If the issue is debated hotly at my house, it is just as contentious in our community. I posted the above photo on Facebook yesterday with a comment about how sad it is to see this building go and got TONS of comments. Some were just as sad as I was, some that told me to 'get over it,' and some that said there was no way to save the building because the foundation was bad, etc... Everyone has definite views on the topic. I feel strongly that our local government has a responsibility to preserve historical sites. We are the worst town in the county at historical preservation and I think it's a shame!

The hay bales were put up to cushion and save the old house next to it.

The old house next to the demolition is one of the first houses in Ephraim. I am so glad they are at least saving that structure, but I have heard comments that they should even tear that down too and just rebuild it.

This is what the bank looked like before the demolition. 

About 10 years ago The Bank of Ephraim was brought down by an embezzler. They didn't catch it soon enough and the bank collapsed. It was a sad day. My grandpa was on the board of directors years ago.

The bank in its original glory.

Cache Valley Bank (the bank that owns the building now, is supposedly going to rebuild it the way it used to look. I am not sure what that means, but I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

SCANNING & PHOTOSHOPPING

My parents have both passed away. That means that as their children we are now the keeper of the family history. It is a daunting task sometimes and I have no idea what I am doing with genealogy. Photos, however, are a much more comfortable area for me. 

I have been scanning old photos for my siblings this past week and thought I would try to repair some as I went along. Here are some of my achievements:

My dad, probably in the 70's by the look of that shirt.

I am no expert, by any means, but I am not too bad for a self-taught photoshopper.

Grandpa J. The tie still needs some work, but I think I helped it a bit.

Some of the photos were easier to fix than others, and some I just decided weren't worth the effort.

Grandma J.

This one isn't the best, you can definitely see something funky going on in the grass, but to me it looks better than it was. I saved both copies for my brothers and sisters so they can decide which one they want. If you are a purist, repairs are technically altering the original and thus, not as good, so everyone has their opinion about doing it.

COLLEGE GIRL- PART 2

I can't look at my daughter's photos and not think of my own experiences my first year at the same college. It just doesn't seem like it was that long ago, but the photos do not lie- it was a LONG time ago...

Me (in yellow) with two of my roommates at a Buddy Dance. Love those mullets, boys!

Here I am again (right), with more roommates, listening to my Walkman (probably INXS or New Order). Don't we look stylin'?

This last one is a gem. I can't even remember why we put pantyhose over our faces, but we did and I have a photo to prove it (I am on the right again). Good times in Fern Young A-4! My room-roommate (C) is with me in all these photos. We have way more history than just college. We've know each other since we were 5 years old. It was a VERY fun year! I am so glad I had that opportunity to be in an apartment with these amazing girls who are still my friends to this day.

DISENCHANTED- MY SHALLOWNESS REVEALED

Time is cruel to us all, but I think it is most cruel to movie stars. They never get away from the cameras and anyone is free go back in time to see their best and worst at a click of the mouse.

Case-in-point: Val Kilmer was definitely on my 'Hottie' list in the 80's (I guess we would have called it a 'Stud' list). You have to remember the fabulous volleyball scene in Top Gun and now look at the poor man. What a sad dose of reality for me!

Brenden Frasier is another example, but not quite so extreme. He is still cute in a 'Daddy' sort of way, but definitely not the man we knew from The Mummy, that's for sure.

I do have to admit I am very spoiled though, my husband gets better with age. He is as handsome as ever (probably more so than when I married him). HECK, he is 41 with a 6-pack! I do realize how lucky I am, I just feel bad for him. I weigh 30+ pounds more than when we got married and I've also had 5 children so you can imagine (hopefully not too vividly) what that did to my body. Thank goodness he loves me!

Oh well, we all get older, I just need to remember that the next time I see the totally unflattering photos of my old favorite hunks. Reality is tough to swallow sometimes...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME

Thanks to all of you for wishing me HAPPY BIRTHDAY on Facebook. I've never had so many birthday wishes in my life! If you need to feel popular, just get a Facebook page...

photo credit

I thought I would do a little research and see if this day is special for any other reason than for the fact that it is the day of my birth. Here's what I found...

I SHARE BIRTHDAYS WITH: One of my Grandpas, Bette Davis (actress), Jean-Honore Fragonard (rococo artist), and Colin Powell.

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY:

• 2348 BC- They estimate that Noah's ark landed on Mount Ararat (who calculated that??)
• 1614- Pocahontas married John Rolfe
• 1971- Fran Phipps became the first woman to get to the north pole (she was Canadian, Sandra)
• 1978 - Duran Duran made their live debut at The Lecture Theatre at Birmingham Polytechnic (I love Duran Duran!)

Amazing facts, no? And you thought reading blogs was a waste of time!