And the boys were off………….overnight in the “fort”.  When the granddaughters start sleeping out there, we may have to change the name to…. castle?  What exactly?  I’m not sure….although they may totally go for the “fort” idea…..I would have!    But it totally looks like a gypsy wagon, or tinker’s wagon, and I prefer those names actually.  Anyhoo…………..  the overnight was a success.  The mosquito netting kept those nasty critters out and the cookies and ice water, books, flashlights and paper airplanes gave them something to do.  And then how about Raggedy Andy and Sock Monkey?  When Jonathan came in this morning, he sheepishly told me that he enjoyed the adventure very much!  He was very hesitant, actually adamant, he was NOT going to sleep out there!  We being the good grandparents that we are…..totally ignored him and did not argue with him, and he went and he loved it! 

I heard a huge loud crash in the middle of the night and thought to myself…..hmm….I wonder if someone is breaking into our house?  Maybe my brave husband will get up and check on it.  But no…he didn’t, and I didn’t, and I convinced myself it was ice cubes falling on the floor out of my automatic ice dispenser (they do that sometimes you know!).  Obviously, neither of us were to concerned, because both of us heard the loud noise, and neither of us got up.  In the morning, I noticed that two of my wooden salt and pepper shakers had fallen off my buffet onto the wooden floor.   So that’s all it was, I thought to myself.  But….  Doyle went out to check on the goat and heifer before we went to the doctor and what did he see?  He saw our huge Russian Olive tree out by the garden, on it’s side.  The whole tree had fallen down, uprooted!  Crazy!   Sad!  I know we shouldn’t like Russian Olive trees, they are huge water guzzlers, but there is history in that thar’ tree!  It was our kids favorite “fort” growing up!  They  had so much fun in that tree!  And lately, it is so nice to have it to shade our garden.  Oh…it’s a sad day indeed!  And now of course comes the other problem…..Doyle has to chop it up and fix the fence!

Another “crash” so to speak was this afternoon when Beth and I were on our way to Farmington.  We were driving down the Crouch Mesa hill and her jeep started skeetering and shuddering like we were on a washboard!  Those who drove dirt roads growing up, know what THAT feels like, or still drive dirt roads, NOT GOOD!  So we went to the side of the road and called Doyle.  He was our knight in shining armor.  He rescued us by slowly driving their jeep  home.  I’m sure Paul will not be too excited when he gets home tonight.  BLEH!!!  Vehicle problems! 

Going out to take a picture of the dead Russian Olive tree, I passed by our pond.  I couldn’t resist taking some pictures.  Even when things go wrong….there’s always beauty to be found!

Over the weekend the “boys” were busy putting in a “new” engine in Pete’s vintage pickup truck.  This has been in the works (or actually mostly out of the “works) for seven months!  There have been numerous setbacks and problems, but finally………..yesterday afternoon Pete drove his pickup home.  It is out of our yard, the old engine is finally out of our garage (and yes, we can park two vehicles in our garage again!), and Pete and Heather are back to two vehicles!  We’ve spent the last seven months trading vehicles back and forth so that Pete could get to work and Heather get where she needed to get what with three little ones and being pregnant!.  All is well, that ends well!  

We thought it would be a good idea to get the grandsons started early in learning how to put an engine in a vehicle, because in the Meyer culture, it will be something they will undoubtedly need to know how to do!

What a beautiful day, for a wedding!  Overcast, not hot and in the Colorado mountains at a rustic cabin!  We went with our friends, Roger and Mary and spent the day.  It was  chilly at 10:30 in the morning and our coffee we were served was just what we wanted.  The wedding was small, intimate and so very sweet.  The young woman getting married, Carrie Bomberger is the daughter of friends we’ve had for years (too many to count!).  Carrie’s older sister, Klista, is a dear friend of our daughter Erin.  The service was officiated by Carrie’s uncle (her father’s older brother) and he did such a wonderful job, of giving good advice and keeping it very personal.  Midway through the service he read the words to the song, “Save The Last Dance For Me” and then unrehearsed and a big surprise to everyone, including Carrie and her Dad, gave the “floor” to them for their “father/daughter dance.  There wasn’t a dry eye in the place!   

After the ceremony we had a lunch (made by the bride’s family) of pulled pork, rolls and fruit.  It was simple and delicious!  Friends of the family served drinks, and did the cleaning up (and the setting up!).  There was a game of Farkle at every table in case we got bored!  We filled out 3×5 cards of advice which went with the pictures that were taken by Klista of every guest.   These are going in a scrapbook the sisters are making for Carrie.  All in all, it was a lovely wedding.  And the secret ingredient?  Lots of love with friends and family.

  Our little “family reunion” is now a memory.  Funny how fast time goes when you’re having fun!  I think it’s safe to say that the kids had an awesome time playing and the parents and grandparents are tired!     I”m telling you, I have more respect for my mother-in-law every time we get together and our family is larger!    She could handle all 15 grandchildren and just as many or more adult children and spouses in one summer (two weeks – six weeks usually every couple years) better than anyone I know!  Our grown kids have the best memories from those times and I should say, Doyle and I do, as time erases the memory of our crying kids and tired bodies!    We did cram a lot into our week and we are happy that everyone could be together this past week.  We had a lot of fun.  We didn’t just play though, the guys built a shed for Pete and Heather, and Erin made the linens for her baby crib.  She can sew faster than anyone I know!  WOW!!  Three crib sheets, a bumper pad, a dust ruffle and a quilt!  In three days!
Now, it’s back to our normal routine.  I ended the week with a nice breakfast with my oldest son, Christopher, a great way to end a perfect week!

Tomorrow we head off to Colorado (about an hour north of here), for a mountain wedding.  It should be a fun time.  The couple is getting married at 10:30 in the morning.  It’s probably a good thing, as the rain, which is coming down every afternoon and evening, shouldn’t be a problem yet.  So romance in the summer and a wedding in the Colorado mountains!  Lovely indeed!

    This week we are having fun at the Meyer’s house!  Christof and Megan with Analiese and Willem are here from Richmond, VA; Erin and Nathan are here from Fort Collins, CO and of course, Pete and Heather are here with their three, Jonathan, Daniel and Edmund, because they live right down the road a few miles.  All the Meyer siblings here with their families for a week or so.  Because it’s summer, we thought we’d do lots of fun things with the grandchildren, so we planned an activity or two or three for each day.  We have had Water play at our house with a slip and slide and sprinklers, water guns, water balloons and “fishing” in a bucket!  We’ve had picnics and barbecues with friends and family.  We had church in our back yard pergola with some wonderful singing.  We’ve had board games, doll houses, and fun at Aztec water park.  We met for breakfast at our favorite Bistro in Aztec.  We’ve had meals at Pete and Heather’s, and the big guys have had an on-going project at Pete’s.  We will visit the children’s museum followed by a picnic tomorrow, we will go feed the ducks on Friday and Friday night the big people will go out for dinner and watch the production, Grease at the Sandstone Amphitheater.  The big hit so far was the new clubhouse/fort called, “Tinker’s Wagon.”  Doyle (Paca) took the kids out to the wagon in his wagon and lawnmower and from there he kept them for an hour and a half and they had a picnic lunch, played games and tried  fly a kite!  So….we’ve been busy, gotten dirty, hot and hungry and had our fill of cool water games, and lots of yummy food!  I think this is what building memories is all about!