Memorial Service, Arizona, and New Mexico

My Grandma's memorial service was on June 30th. It was really, really good and it was the first time my whole family has sung together (my grandma would have been so proud)! We sang "I'll Cast on Him My Every Care" and it was beautiful.

My sister, Julie, took this picture of our family after the service.

From left to right: my sister, Rachel, cousins Morgan, Miles, and Alex, me, my sister, Julie, and my grandpa in the front. Missing: my brother, Ryan (Army), cousins Jack and Zack (missions).

After the memorial service, Logan, me, and my Grandma Logan rode down to Arizona with my sister and her family. On our way down we stopped at Moqui Cave where they have one of the largest collection of fluorescent minerals in the world.

We also stopped at the Glen Canyon Dam before we retired for the night in the next town, Page, Az.

Me and Ethan at our hotel

On July 3rd we had fun playing in the backyard of my sister's house where they had a slip and slide thing. My parents came over from New Mexico, and my brother, Ryan, flew in from Georgia where he's stationed in the Army.
That night we had a fantastic ribs dinner and everyone but my mom, dad, Logan and I went to the fireworks in Anthem.

On the 4th of July we went to the Mesa Temple

On July 5th we went to a Splash Park

Caleb

Peyton and Ethan

While we were at the Splash Park, Ethan took his sandals off, and then ran across a piece of metal at the entrance of the jungle gym there. Needless to say, in 110 degree weather, his feet blistered and we stuck his feet in a couple of buckets of water. Julie still had to give him some Motrin for the pain and it knocked him out for a few hours. Poor boy!
That afternoon, Julie, Mom, Grandma, and I went to see Eclipse at the theater. We got popcorn and a drink and I think that cost us more than all four of us to get into the movie (it's just ridiculous)!


We went swimming that night at the pool in Julie's neighborhood.

Julie and Caleb

Craig and Peyton

Me and Logan (he loved it!)

On July 6th we traveled over to Truth or Consequences, NM where my parents now live. They were able to get us a tour at Spaceport New Mexico. This is a site where they will be able to take civilians up into space, but it will cost each civilian about $200,000. They may eventually be able to use it for traveling around the world (so a flight over to Europe that takes about 12 hours will only take about 3) by using the Earth's rotation.

This is what it will look like:

This is where they're at with the construction...I don't think they'll make it by 2011.

Grandma, Julie, Ryan and me at the site

We also went to the lake while we were there.

Before we left, we took some family photos

On July 9th, Julie, Grandma, Ryan, and I and the boys drove back to Arizona and on Sunday July 11th Grandma and I flew back to SLC and it was Logan's first flight! He did sooo good and we had people complement how well he did. :) Thanks Julie and Craig, and Mom and Dad for hosting us and giving us a fun vacation. :)

Grandma Baum

My Grandma Baum passed away on Sunday June 13 from Pancreatic Cancer. She was diagnosed in February and was given 3 months to live, however she made it to 4 months. My grandma has been battling cancer since 1986 (breast cancer, leukemia, and then pancreatic cancer), and even though these are very grueling and exhausting diseases, she was always saying how blessed she was. She was so proud of her family and was so happy to have family around her during these times.

Some things about my grandma:

*She was Armenian and very proud of it.

*She was one of the best cooks I know and she introduced us to new foods, especially ones from our culture (paklava, lamb, etc.)

*She LOVED music! She wrote the letters on the keys of her beautiful piano in permanent marker so that I would learn them and become a better piano player.

*She had the loudest sneeze I have ever heard!

*She was very spunky, even during her last battle of cancer

*She was a very giving person. She donated her body to science in hopes of helping somebody else.

*She was able celebrate her 55th Wedding Anniversary

*She was able to meet her newest great grandson (my Logan) before she passed away


I loved my grandma dearly and I really wish I would have gotten to know her better. I will miss her, but I am happy that she isn't in pain anymore.

Logan--3 months

Here is Logan at 3 months

He was not liking the Bumbo chair!

Good Things Happening

Just wanted everyone to know that Kenny got a

JOB OFFER

from a company called

URS

and we have

ACCEPTED!

It is down in

TOOELE, UT

just south of The Great Salt Lake. Kenny has had a full physical done and we are waiting on the background check to come back.

In the meantime, I'm trying to get organized to pack and trying to find a house to rent down there.

We are also going to try to sell our house. If anyone knows of someone looking for a cute home in a great neighborhood here in Pocatello let me know.

Here are the details:

902 Meadowbrook Ln

2 "Official" Bedrooms
1 "Unofficial" Bedroom (no window, in basement)
1 Bathroom
Living Room (medium size)
Large Kitchen/Dining Room (new cabinets, sink, faucet, floor, and paint)
Family Room in Basement (new paint, carpet, and ceiling)
Storage Space in Basement
1 Car Garage
2 Car Paved Driveway
Laundry Room (newly remodeled) with Sink
Vinyl Siding
Vinyl Windows throughout
Central Air Conditioning
Forced Air Heating
Newer Roof
Sprinkler System
Covered Patio
Fully Fenced Back Yard/Patio
Hardwood Floors throughout main floor (except Kitchen, Laundry, and Bathroom)
On Corner Lot (only one direct neighbor)


We don't know how much we're asking for it yet. We will post pictures soon with, hopefully, a price.

We are also going to be giving away three (maybe all) of our cats, and possibly our dogs as well in order to find a place to rent. This has been a very difficult decision for us but we have accepted that we may have to get rid of all pets. :*( If any of you want a cat or possibly our dogs (they must stay together) or know of anyone please let us know. Thanks!

I have many pictures to post but my computer is currently not working. Hopefully those posts will be coming soon as well.

These last few weeks...

May 22 & 23

Travis' Endowments and Farewell

On Saturday May 22 my brother-in-law received his endowments in the Logan Temple in preparation to go on a mission to Portland, Oregon. It was a beautiful day and Travis seemed very happy.
The following Sunday he gave his farewell talk in church and he did a great job! We had a fantastic feast afterward and he had a LOT of people who came to Malad to support him and say goodbye.
Travis just left yesterday (June 9) for the MTC. We'll miss him, but we know he'll have a great two years!

May 24
Interviews!!!

After Travis' farewell feast, Kenny, Logan, and I loaded up and headed to Kemmerer, Wyoming. Why? Because Kenny had an interview with Williams Pipeline in Opal, Wyoming the next day! Kenny has been trying to get a job with Williams over the past year so we were excited when they called to set up an interview.

ALSO....
Kenny had a phone interview that same day with a company called URS that operates down in Tooele, Utah. He felt good about both interviews, especially the one with URS.

We haven't heard back from either one, but URS decided they want to interview Kenny, and a few others, in person and come up to Pocatello to do it, so we are just waiting to see when they set that up.

Kenny was very and relieved to be done with both interviews

And here Logan and I are, hanging out at the hotel as we (im)patiently waited for Kenny to be done with his Williams interview. (I was so nervous that I chewed off all my fingernails while I waited)!

Kemmerer is home to the very first J.C. Penney store, so of course we had to go in. It was definitely smaller than most J.C. Penney stores I've been in.

May 27-29
Moving, Baptism, Paddlefish, and a Wedding

MOVING
On Thursday, May 27 we helped move our friends, Willy and Cameron, to Gillette, Wyoming. The load was impressive and I don't think this picture quite does it justice but here it is:

BAPTISM

On Friday, May 28 we headed up to Glendive, Montana and attended my niece, Taylor's, baptism. She had a lot of family support there and I think she was very happy!

PADDLEFISH
This time of year the paddlefish are running in the Yellowstone River by Glendive. These are "Pre-historic" fish that only eat plankton so you can't catch them by baiting them. Fishermen use 80 lb lines with a sinker at the end of the line and a 3-barb hook up the line a few feet. Basically, you have to catch them by hooking them and reeling them in. You have to buy a tag in order to keep one, I think it is one per lifetime, and only a certain limit is can be caught and kept. After that it is catch and release for 10 days then the season is closed.

"What do paddlefish look like?" you ask. Well, I'll show you:

WEDDING
My sister, Adrea, was married on Saturday, May 29 to Ryan Jackson. It was a nice ceremony on the bridge in Glendive and her reception was held in the Montana Mansion. Everything was beautiful and turned out great. Congratulations Adrea and Ryan! :)

May 30-June 5
Taylor's week with us

We brought my oldest niece, Taylor, back from Glendive to spend a week with us before she went to spend six weeks with her dad. We tried to make the week fun for her, sooooo:

We played frisbee...in the sprinklers...

...and got some Farr's ice cream...

...took her repelling/rock climbing...

...she had lots of fun...

...we made S'mores with giant marshmallows on our stove...

...they were delicious...

...we painted our toenails...

...and Taylor wanted a variety of colors...

...and we went to the mall, watched a lot of movies, played with the dogs, and made crepes for dinner!

So as you can see, we've been pretty busy, but we've had a lot of fun! :)