Pepe LePew

Last Wednesday, mom made a bunch of popcorn a cub scout party. She made way too much so she brought quite a bit home. Last night she put some out for the cats. Next thing we know, there was Pepe LePew making himself at home. The pics aren't very good because I didn't use a flash. A flash might have scared him into doing something we didn't want. I definately didn't want to open the door.

Geneology

Y'all want to hear something cool? Of course you do. Everyone likes to hear cool things. I was working on my geneology the other day, working on my Adair line. Here's what i found: my great-great-great-grandfather John Mangum married to Rebecca Canida Knowles had a daughter, Jemima Catherine. She married Samuel Jefferson Adair. They had a son George Washington. He married Emily Perscinda Tyler. They had a daughter, Ruth Alice. She married David Lorenzo Huntsman. They had a daughter Rosetta Irene. She married John Theone Biggs. They are the parents of Richard Jess Biggs (aka R J Biggs). John's brother Kleo Ottwal Biggs married Alice Amelia Gallagher. She is a decendant of Manessah Gallagher who is the father of Richard Harvey Gallagher who was Grandma Clara's first husband.
George & Emily Adair also had a son, William Albert who married Lucretia Black. They had a daughter, Eva Irene Adair, who married Wesley Weiler Chapman. He is the brother of Otanm Louis "Odie" Chapman who is the father of Val and Al Chapman.
You never know who you are going to run into. I think it's cool. Don't you?

What do children need?

I got a message from Brant and he told me that Eli has memorized the first 8 Articles of Faith. That is amazing. I am so proud of him. When I was 5 years old I don't think I even knew waht the Articles of Faith were. I'm grateful for good children who are good parents, which all of you are. Even those of you who don't have children yet, I know you'll be good parents when you do have them.
I just got this in my e-mail this morning.
Author Jay Strack says children need four things. First, they need a model... someone who says, "Here's how we do it" and then shows them how by example. Our children sometimes learn more from what's caught than taught. Second, they need a mentor... someone to share wisdom and experiences with them... a guide by their side. Third, they need a motivator... someone who says, "You can do it!"... someone to encourage them. Fourth, they need a monitor... someone to keep an eye on them... someone who always knows who they're with, what they're doing and where they're going.
I agree with him. I hope I was that kind of father. I think I was to some extent. Anyway, I love all of you and I'm grateful for your willingness to do those things that are right and raising your children the right way.

You're probably wondering why I don't write anything in my blog. Sometimes I have a hard time putting into words what I want to say. Sometimes it's easier for me to express how I feel through music. I first heard this song when I was driving truck between Farmington and Albuquerque. I think it expresses how I feel about my wife and family. I love all of you. Please listen and enjoy.

A great song

I received the following song in my e-mail and I wanted to share it with everyone. It is a touching song. I hope you all enjoy it.

GI Joe and Lilly

Fuentes reunion

This past summer mom and I went to the Fuentes reunion. It's been a long time since I've been to a reunion, whether it be the Fuentes or Snyder. Next year we are going to try for the Snyder reunion. Anyway, it was a great time. I was able to see and visit with Aunts, Uncles and cousins I haven't seen in ages. And with all the good food that was there, I think I gained 10 lbs. LOL. It was worth it though. It was good to have Brianne with us for a few days and to have Carla, Mechelle, and Alisha there as well. I love you girls so much. I wish Marc and Brant and their families could have been there too. We missed them. We'll get to see them at Christmas. My relief driver said he would drive for me during Christmas so I can go to Phoenix. I haven't told him the days yet. I was waiting to see when Marc was going to be there.
Anyway, here are a few pics I've put together of the reunion and of the grandkids.
I love all of you.




I believe I have some of the best looking grandkids there is. I wish Eli and Lily could have been there too. I miss them.
Raeliegh Dawn. What a little cutie she is. I love her.



All dressed and ready for church.
AuraLee and Taryn. Beautiful young ladies. I love them.



Zach and Caleb. I wasn't sure they would sit for me to take a picture of them. But they did. Aren't they good looking young men? I love them.

perpetuum jazzile

I need apoligize for being slothful in posting more pics and telling more about our trip. But here we go. First of all I would like you to meet Sister Mitchell and Sister Knowles.

They were our guides when we went to Kirtland to the visitors center. They did an excellent job. You could tell they loved what they were doing.

Next we have some pictures that were in the visitors center. They are some beautiful paintings.


Here are a few pics of Marc and Candace's home plus a couple of Marc and Candace themselves.
And of course we couldn't leave out Buster. Thank you again for putting up with us for a few nights. We love you.

Our trip home turned out to be an adventure. We were supposed to have left Detroit at 1:30 in the afternoon, but it was 4:30 before we finally got to leave. You ask, "why the delay?" Well I'll tell you. The plane that was supposed to have left from the same gate as ours developed a hydraulic leak. That made it unsafe to fly. So they had to locate a mechanic to fix it. It took forever. They finally wound up putting the passengers from that plane on another flight from a different gate. They still thought it would be fixed in time everyone on our flight to make their connections. But that didn't happen. By the time they got it fixed it was too late for us to make our connection in Chicago to Albuquerque. So they pulled those of us that were going to Albuquerque, Little Rock, and Oakland and put on different flights. Those going to Little Rock were sent to Dallas where they had to spend the night. Those going to Oakland were put on a different flight. I'm not sure which one. Those going to Albuquerque were routed through Nashville then to Houston and then to Albuquerque. We supposed to have arrived in Albuquerque at 5:00 pm, but it was 9:45 pm when we finally got there. The funny thing is, our luggage beat us to Albuquerque. We got home about 12:40 and it was a little after 1:00 when we got to bed. I had major TB by the time we got home LOL. Then I had to get up at 4:00 to go to work. But we made it home safe and sound. We're still glad we went. We had a great time.

Our trip

As all of you know mom and I just recently went on a trip. Tuesday evening we drove to Albuquerque and spent the night at the Fairfield Hotel. When we told the clerk we needed to be at the airport at 5:30 the next morning they said we could leave our car there and they would shuttle us to the airport and pick us up when we got back. That saved us about $30.00. We flew to St Louis via Denver where we rented a car and drove to Quincy, IL. We stayed at the Microtel Hotel in Quincy. It was pretty nice. The bed was comfortable and the breakfasts were very good. While we were there we drove around and took pictures of some the old houses. Here are some of them we seen.

Mom had a meeting Thursday morning. After the meeting we drove down to Hannibal, MO. This where Mark Twain was born and where the stories about Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn took place. We didn't get to take as many pics as we wanted. Our camera ran out of battery. Anyway, here are a few pics. There's Lovers Leap and the ferry boat. Across the river from Lovers Leap is Jackson Island. There's a couple of pics of Hannibal taken from Lovers Leap.

Friday morning we drove out to Heartland, which is about 40 miles west of Quincy, where mom had another meeting. The spouses and families were invited to this meeting. After the meeting there was food and intertainment for everyone. There was lots of food-hamburgers, hot dogs, nachos, roast beef sandwiches, fries, chips, all the water and sodas you could drink. You could eat as much as you wanted. Then there were several different shows. Air, tractor, and car shows. There was also a rodeo, games for kids. Here are pics of the shows.

Saturday morning we drove back to St Louis and then flew to Detroit. Candace met us at the airport and took us to Toledo. We had a great time visiting with Marc and Candace. Marc had to work Sunday, so he didn't get to go to church with us. Everyone was real nice. Tuesday Marc took us to Kirtland to see the temple and the visitors center. The first set of pics is the Newel K Whitney home.

This is the store owned by Newel K Whitney and where the plans for the temple were drawn up and where Joseph Smith received several revalations. It was also where he received the Word of Wisdom.

Kirtland Temple. Unfortunately we didn't have time to take the tour through the temple. But just being on the grounds, you knew it was a special place.

I really enjoyed the visit to Kirtland. Thank you Marc for taking us.

More blog and more pics to follow.

Reunion

Good news!! It looks like we will get to go to the Fuentes reunion. We will leave on Thursday evening when I get off work and come home on Sunday. That's the weekend when Brianne will be here. It's been quite a few years since I've gotten to go to a reunion. It will be great!

Trip to Toledo

This week mom and I get to take a trip. We will flying to St Louis and driving up to Quincy, IL on Wednesday. Mom has a convention she is supposed to be at Thursday and Friday. Then on Saturday we will be flying to Detroit where Marc and Candace will meet us and take us to their home (I hope LOL). We will come back home on Wednesday. It will be great to see them and spend some time with them. It's been quite a while since we've seen them. I love them and miss them.

What is your goal?

Benjamin Mays, mentor to Dr. Martin Luther King, said "The tragedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach. It isn't a calamity to die with dreams unfulfilled, but it is a calamity not to dream. It isn't a disgrace not to reach the stars, but it is a disgrace to have no stars to reach for." No matter how discouraging things may seem, in the world around us, or in our own lives, it's important to have a goal... and to teach our children to set goals. Then press on, every day, to reach them, supporting each other as you go.

Nat and Ling

We are losing our girls tomorrow(6/8/09). :( We are going to miss them. They are special young ladies. They have been a great help around the house. We don't have any dirty dishes. They do the dishes every day, they've helped dinner and even made dinner when mom couldn't. They've become good cooks. They are both friendly and outgoing. They've made a lot friends at school and at church. They've attended an english class with the missionaries and have learned more about the church. They learned how to pray. They even say the blessing on the food they prepare each morning. They have told me that when they get home they are going to contact the missionaries. I think I will send the missionaries to them. I've grown to love them just like my own family.

So, last Monday, Nat took to lunch in Aztec at the Thai restaurant. She ordered for us, since we didn't know what we would like. Most of it was pretty good. After that we went to the Vanilla Moose and had ice cream. It was a good day.

I love you

I'm new to this blog thing, so I hope you will bear with me as I try to get it organaized. I'll try to keep things updated from time to time.
There are some things I could us some help with. Like how to do a customized layout and how to post pics and get a song on here.

I love my family. A couple of weeks ago I was teaching my deacons and the lesson was on love. There are three types of love:
First, there it the love that says, "I love you because......" (because of what you do for me, because of who you are, etc).
Second, there is the love that says, "If you love me you do this for me, or you'll do that for me."
Third, is the love that says, "I love you no matter what. If you made a mistake. It doesn't matter who you are or what you've done, I'll still love you."

The first two are conditional loves while the third is an unconditional love. The unconditional love is the love we should have for one another. That's the love I have for my family. That's the love the savior has for us. Can we be any less than what he is? I hope and pray that we will always have that kind of love for each other and for our families.