New(er) Corolla in the Fam

I bought my first Corolla in 1992.  Ty was just a few months old so he and the car are the same age.  When Ty started driving he took over the little red Corolla.  Now we have a new Corolla in the family - 2004, silver, and in need of a good cleaning and a little touch-up paint.  It will take Terry a while to work his magic, but by the time I go back to school, my new wheels will be sweet.  These are my favorite things about my new Corolla so far: 

• No power windows, you have to roll them up and down.  Terry has had to fix the power windows in a couple of our cars.  Right now the passenger window in the Maxima can only be put up by the driver.
• One of the seats in the back lays forward so that you can access the trunk.  I could put skis in the trunk, or long 2x4s.
• 39 miles per gallon, and that's not all freeway miles.

River Walk

How lucky we are to live so close to the Boise River.  When I ride or walk along the greenbelt, I always think I should make the effort to get there every day.  This was our first trip over to the river with the grandkids.  There was a lot of rock throwing, some rock skipping, tree climbing, stick collecting, a little nature observing, and the greeting of joggers and fishermen.  We remembered sunscreen, but next time we need a picnic.

 

To the Rescue

We had a loud 2 alarm spider today.  The kids spotted a big black spider on the living room wall and called Grampy in to rescue us all.  The alarm was loud, the spider was scary, and the action was exciting.  You probably had to be there.

2 Alarm Fire

The 2 alarm fire that burned a garage and damaged a house was just around the corner from us.  It was pretty exciting to see six big fire trucks, two ladder trucks, two fire vehicles, the paramedics, two police cars, and the channel 2 news fly down our street.  Hudson and Hadley were treated to a loud parade.  Thankfully people and pets were okay.  It provided plenty of excitement, but the thing that stood out to Hudson was a girl that rode her bike into a pole while she was looking at all the action.  That's something that he can relate to.  He was also impressed (as was everyone) with the car in the garage with a melted bumper.

Dining Ambiance

Hudson is still trying to win Nedee over.  Today he drew a picture for her.  It's sitting right by her dish so that she can enjoy it each time she eats.  It was a nice gesture, but his loud voice and chasing around outweigh the gifts he's been offering.  She's not warming up to him yet.

A Little Bit of Church

After the big wedding day, we were all in need of a day off with rest and relaxation.  It was Sunday so the day of rest worked out.  I had to give a short talk in sacrament meeting at the Marqui Care Center.  Since I was speaking on family, it just worked out to bring the family along.  Terry was at a bishopric meeting, but Mike, Stacey, and the kids came along with me.  There were two men taking care of the sacrament, two women doing the music, and two ladies from the care center in attendance.  They needed Stacey and Mike's singing.  Our two little ones could barely make it through the 30 minutes, but they were much appreciated at the end.  Sister Ana and Sister Irene really liked visiting with the little kids.  Hadley gave Ana a pretty forceful high five which was scary.  Sister Ana is a quite frail.  In the end they both gave hugs, smiles, waves, and Sunday greetings.  It was a short little meeting.  Afterward we went home for a day of rest. 

Hard to See the Cute Little Face

My new grandson is Tanner, age four.  We're all excited to have him join the fam, especially his two new cousins.  He was excited for the wedding, but it a little overwhelmed.  He definitely didn't want to be in the middle of pictures.  When Terry and I were married, Ty was almost six.  We have pictures with Ty that look a lot like this.  I think I'll frame them together.