Thanksgiving with the Pyne's .....Finally!

We got to spend Thanksgiving at Julie and Adam's beautiful home. The tables were beautiful (as you will see), the food gormet good, and the company out of this world!

Shanna and Julie busy in the kitchen.

Mel and Roger just waitin' for dinner.

Chris and Ron taking care of the turkey.

Another beautiful table.

The Pyne siblings, Elaine, Roger, Mel and Lola.

Alisa and Ron have the ice water assignment.

Kami, John and little Conner relaxing in front of the big screen.

Adyson, Conner and Grandpa Mo.

Can you believe all the beautiful table decorations???

Lola has ice water pouring duties, at which she is expert, I might add!

Andy, little Chase and Missy just chillin'!

Little Conner, Grandpa Mo, and Mel.

Best buddies Brayden and Jackson.

Little Dawson loves Uncle Jake.

Little Conner, Grandpa Mo, Elaine, Mel and Roger.

Adam was so kind to share his house with us. Eric agrees.

MORE beautiful table decorations!

Gorgeous red-heads Sierra and Adyson.

Daxton and Landon can hardly wait to eat.

Alisa and Eric with their good friend.

Mommy's Work

About 25 years ago Mel and I had the opportunity to work with our friend Val Oveson in the State Auditor's Office. (Val was the state auditor). A few years later I also got to work in the Governor's Office. During our last visit to Utah, it was delightful to return to the State Capitol and see how they have upgraded and remodeled it. The "Gold Room" looks pretty much the same. The old lions were deteriorating to the point that they had to be replaced. I think the new lions look great.

Many years ago, when we would drive by the Capitol building, the kids would always announce, "There's Mommy's work!" I still feel a tiny bit of ownership of that building - its a part of our history.

See if you can see me in that last photo.

34 Years Ago....

34 Years ago one of our first dates was to Park City. We ate out on the patio at The Eating Establishment. During our visit to Park City in November, we were happy to see that it still exists. The restaurant has been remodeled and the patio has been replaced by another room, but after 34 years, its good to see that we're both still going strong.

I Can Relate

This made me laugh out loud. I wonder why.........

The Best of Times

Nothing beats going to visit our kids, the grandkids, and ESPECIALLY greeting a brand new grandbaby!

The beautiful Goulding Girls on Chloe's blessing day.

Emily and Summer enjoying the beautiful Sunday afternoon.

Grandpa keeping the boys busy til the meeting starts.

Best Buddies!

McKenna getting another crown braid before Church starts.

The little Princess on her blessing day.

We even got to go see Tanner play soccer.

Little Joshie loves his Mom!

Grandpa and Chloe are fast friends.

They don't come sweeter than this!

Got to help with some projects!

Isn't this the perfect room for little girls?

McKenna and Kelsey looked gorgeous in their crown braids.

It was just a little cool at the soccer game that day.

Thanks to Jessi & Dave and Audra & Mike for hosting us at your beautiful homes. It is heaven being together. Can't wait til we can come back!

Back in Time

When I was young, we had a garden and fruit trees, and in late summer and fall it was CANNING SEASON. I can remember canning bushels and bushels of peaches, pears, apples, tomatoes, string beans, etc. etc. (We had a family of 10- hence the 'bushels and bushels') When we were first married, I continued this tradition. Mel's parents had a wonderful farm, and they would give us fresh produce to can. So when the opportunity came a week ago to buy a box of pears to can, I couldn't resist.

Don't get me wrong, canning isn't my favorite thing to do in the world. The endless peeling and cutting is tedious, and you use just about every pot and pan you own in the canning process. The floor and the countertops get sticky and messy. Even after you think you've wiped up all the mess and thoroughly cleaned the kitchen, you find sticky places that you missed.

Processing the jars on a hot day didn't make the kitchen cool and comfortable.

But after the work was complete, there was always a sense of accomplishment and appreciation upon looking at the colorful jars filled with food.

So it was good for me to go back in time, remember my past experiences, and again feel that sense of accomplishment and appreciation for the blessing of the harvest.

Look What I Made!

Cooking isn't my favorite thing in the world, but I had so much fun making this fruit pizza, and I had to share it with you. It's really an easy thing to make, it's VERY delicious, and it's great fun decorating the top with the fruit. So here's the recipe, with my own tips to help you through the process.

FRUIT PIZZA

Cookie Crust:

1/2 c softened butter

3/4 c sugar

1 egg

1 1/4 c flour

1 t cream of tartar

1/2 t baking soda

1/4 t salt

Cream butter and sugar til smooth. Mix in egg. In small bowl, mix together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Stir into creamed mixture til blended. Press into ungreased pizza pan. TIP: Put plastic wrap over dough, enough to cover pizza pan. Roll out with a rolling pin, and then pull off gently when dough is spread evenly around pan. Bake at 350 degrees 8-10 minutes or til light brown around the edges. Cool.

Cream Cheese layer:

Soften 8 ounces cream cheese and mix with an 8 ounce container of frozen topping til blended. Smooth over cooled cookie crust.

Fruit layer:

Cut fruit into pieces. You can use strawberries, mandarine oranges, grapes, kiwi, nectarines, peaches, raspberries, blueberries, canned pineapple, bananas, etc. etc. If fruit tends to darken, dip in water/lemon juice mixture before putting on pizza.

Glaze:

1/2 c sugar

1 pinch salt

1 T cornstarch

1/2 orange juice

2 T lemon juice

1/4 water

1/2 t grated orange rind or orange zest

dash cinnamon

TIP: I used 3/4 c mandarine orange liquid in place of the 1/2 oj and 1/4 water.

In a saucepan, combine cornstarch and sugar and mix. Add all other ingredients (except grated orange rind) and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, til it comes to a boil and thickens. Remove from heat and add grated orange rind. Allow to cool but not set up firmly. Spoon over fruit. Chill for at least 2 hours. Cut into wedges and serve. Delicious!

Riverbend Treasure

Audra put together a fantastic book of pictures and personal notes congratulating Mel on the opening of the new Sacred Heart Medical Center at Riverbend. Not everyone got to see the finished product, so I have taken pictures of some of it for you to see. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to David, Jessi, McKenna, Lydia, Emily, Summer, Mike, Audra, Kyle, Jordan, Tanner, Josh (he didn't write anything, but we know he wished he could), Adam, Jessie, Abbi and Chad!!! This is so meaningful - we will treasure it forever!

Thank you again Audra for all your work making this wonderful book!
Thank you Adam and Jessie for taking such great snapshots of Riverbend!